Trending Tuesday 1/07/20

Hike I am taking: Iron Mountain
On Saturday, I took my boys on what turned out to be one of my all-time favorite hikes in San Diego.  I am not sure if it was because I was doubtful my boys were going to be able to make the full 5.2 mile round trip, or because the views were fantastic, but either way it is definitely worth checking out.  The trail head for Iron Mountain is at the corner of the 67 highway and Poway Rd.  I have driven past this location for decades and had never done this hike before.  This is a heavily trafficked route but is long enough to eliminate bunching up or feeling like you are cattle being herded.  There is almost no shade on this entire hike so if you give it a shot, please go early in the morning or remember sun protection.  The total time from start to finish was three hours and the total elevation gain was 1100 ft.  If you decide to make it to the top, you will be rewarded with a killer view of the ocean, lakes, Ramona and all of San Diego.  If you do this hike on a Saturday between now and the end of February, make sure to stop by Hawk Watch which is a FREE event only 5 minutes from the trailhead in Ramona.  If you are in to birds of prey, snakes and a beautiful landscape, this is an up close and personal experience that is unique to the area!

Recipe I am using: Key Lime Pie
The season of citrus has finally come to the Shea house!  Over the past three years, I have been nurturing a mandarin orange tree, kumquat tree and lime tree.  Having very little success in the previous two years, I am excited to announce that we have fruit (haha)!  To celebrate this occasion I was inspired to take a virgin voyage into the extraordinarily sweet world of Key Lime Pies.  I have also decided that this can only be a once a year experience due to the insane volume of sugar in sweetened condensed milk (one of the main ingredients in the recipe).  That being said, making this recipe with ingredients from our garden was pretty awesome.  If anyone has a better (healthier) recipe that still tastes amazing, please let me know and I will give it a shot in 2021!

Quote I am pondering: “The human spirit must prevail over technology.”       ~ Albert Einstein
I believe that one of the largest challenges our generation faces is attempting to find the right balance, for us individually, between using technology and doing things the traditional way.  Unfortunately, there is no one size fits all answer to this question.  I have found that asking one question helps me to decipher this puzzle.  “Does using technology in this situation help to eliminate a negative?”  If the answer is yes, then use the technology to improve the circumstance.  If the answer is no, then using technology will only make for a less fulfilling experience.  Remember, there is something enormously satisfying about a hard days work that cannot be recreated on a cell phone, tv or computer.

 

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