day 37: refugio state beach to santa barbara

week four stats. (sorry folks, i forgot last week's)

miles cycled: 1671

# of times we've camped: 23

# of times we've slept on a bed: 12

# of rest days: 3

# of conflicts: 6 or so

all i want to eat: salad and fruit

i woke up earlier than usual and remembered that i slept with the tent flap open when i could see clearly and not through tent mesh. then i remembered falling asleep to the ocean waves. it was magnificent.

i wrapped myself up like a burrito with my sleeping bag and sat closer to the ocean. i was feeling aware and sad about our journey coming to an end. we are only five days away until we get to our final destination on this bike tour. 

(there are a lot of directions now that we are in a more populated area)

today was an easy day for us at what was supposed to be 20 miles, but turned into 29. 

m&m, samuel and i took off to head into santa barbara to have lunch at the creole place, but it went from a nice idea to having to bike an extra 9-10 miles because i didn't check my assumptions. this is where conflict comes into play.

(jambalaya at cajun kitchen cafe)

before samuel and i started this journey, our intentions were to have fun and practice great communication (to name the ones i can remember). well this was one of those "i wish we had had great communication" moments. i won't bore you with details, but we were both pretty peeved at each other through lunch and for a while after that. samuel finally came and rubbed my prickly shoulders and we started a conversation about what was upsetting us. 

before we started the conversation, samuel asked me if i had energy to engage and i said, "yes. it's taking more energy to be angry!" ain't that the truth?! it takes so much more energy to have unresolved conflict than just letting go of our egos and receiving feedback, doesn't it? anyway, we came to a resolve mostly thanks to samuel's willingness to approach me. his kindness and humility always softens  in me, what can turn into a hard shell.

meanwhile, samuel had a horrible experience at velo pro cyclery. they were nice guys, but did not know what they were doing. the main reason for that was because they didn't listen to what the problem was, didn't ask the right precise questions, and jumped to conclusions. we wasted an hour and a half with them and left hoping they didn't damage his bike. the plus side? they took so long that the farmers market set up and began selling so i got some delicious fruit and veggies.

(the bounty was amazing!) 

we rolled to our hosts, sommer and ben's, home to be greeted with, "i just want you to relax" followed by a clean, comfy room, fresh towels, and a really nice bathroom! we love clean bathrooms!!!! 

(beautiful space!) 

shower, laundry, cold drinks, chips & guac, followed by a super clean and healthy meal (grilled veggies, quinoa and rice, chicken, and KALE SALAD!). we passed out after delicious dinner and great conversation about transitioning and finding community.

one notable conversation topic that came up was the theme we've noticed with our friends being drawn towards quiet, more liturgical practices (i.e. catholicism, orthodoxy, taize, monastic life). it's like our lives are so incredibly inundated with media/info/stimulus of all kinds, that being part of a high production christian church is simply too much. it's just more of what is already overwhelming. as samuel and i have been searching for a community in montana, we find ourselves curious about a quiet, reflective, liturgical practice that draws us into the mystery of God. i feel more certain of that now more than before this journey, now that i think about it. it's funny what can clarify by way of pursuing one consistent thing for an extended period, not necessarily because i thought long and hard.

funny too how we've been finding community all along the pacific coast of people who we jive with. now, if only we can all agree on the same location...