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Stories of Wisdom, Laughter, and Healing

Come gather around the fireplace to hear storyteller and author Joel ben Izzy, who has spent his career traveling the globe, gathering and telling tales. He’ll be sharing some of his favorites with us, including stories of learning, light and laughter, taking us all on a journey, as we begin to find our own healing stories.

 

It was back in 1983, after studying English, Creative Writing, and Storytelling at Stanford, that Joel ben Izzy set off to travel the globe, gathering and telling stories.  Since that time he has taught and told stories in some 36 countries around the world. Joel has also produced six award-winning recordings of his stories and is the author of The Beggar King and the Secret of Happiness (Alogonquin, 2003), which recounts his own remarkable journey of healing, and has now been translated into 18 languages. Joel will be telling stories in Oaktree as part of an evening program and, over the course of the week, will lead a class to help ranch guests discover the stories in their own lives. In addition to Joel’s performing, teaching, recording, and writing, he is one of America’s most sought-after story coaches, with clients ranging from technology companies to foundations to Pixar Animation. For more information on Joel see: Storypage.com

I Can’t Draw and You Can Too!

I Can’t Draw and You Can Too!
I have a secret to tell you. Right now, you already have all the skills you need to make sketching a satisfying life-long practice. Join me to see for yourself the habits you can develop that will make this practice an ongoing part of your life.

You’ll find that a drawing practice does more than fill scrap paper and sketchbooks with random images. It will give you a method to see things in a new way, and a habit of being more present with your surroundings. Like a puzzle, a game, or sports, sketching keeps you grounded in the here and now. It is a practice that will enhance mindfulness and attention…and it might even improve your drawing skills.

Let’s learn some simple sketch exercises that are all you need to begin a lifetime of drawing enjoyment and satisfaction.


Session One- Sunday 9am Art Studio
The first step in developing a sketching practice is to learn to look more carefully. We’ll take a look at various places and objects in our environment, and learn to evaluate the lines that makeup what we’re seeing and how to render them on the page.

Session Two- Monday 9am Art Studio
Sketch Circle! For most of us, there is nothing more intimidating than drawing another person. Let’s throw caution to the wind, pick up our pencils and take our newfound skills of observation for a spin. We’ll take turns quick-sketching one another and see how satisfying it is to quick-draw people. Come on, how much can it hurt for four minutes?

Session Three- Tuesday 9am Art Studio
Color and proportion. Let’s dip our brushes into the fun of watercolor mixing, without getting bogged down on drawing for a day. For this session, we’ll look at our world, break it down into logical components, and render the objects and areas into an abstract color block form. While creating a captivating sketch, you’ll experience the basics of color mixing!

Session Four – Wednesday 9am Art Studio

 

Tom Birmingham is an artist and photographer living and working in Big Sur, California. After years of being intimidated by the perceived rigor of developing drawing skills, he embarked on a sketch practice that immediately brought satisfaction and enhanced his experiences in his travels and his daily life. Tom is a founder of the Peninsula Sketchers in Monterey, California. He teaches line and watercolor sketch around the country and on his annual Italian sketch tours. For thirty years, Tom has taught creative expression in photography, theater, and visual arts to artists and novices, adults and children around the world.

Choose Love! The Inner Fitness Program

The Inner Fitness program is designed for accelerated transformation and awakening from the “Inside-Out”. It is a comprehensive and practical program for people seeking to heal old wounds, navigate life with greater ease, learn to feel and communicate effectively, improve personal and professional relationships, cultivate inner peace, and manifest their uniquely authentic, fulfilling, and joyous life.  And, Inner Fitness is fun!

Lesson 1: Change Your Mind
Yes, it’s possible to change our mind! And by change, I mean transform. We have most incredible power to choose the way we see, interpret, and respond to our life’s circumstances. Imagine putting on a whole new lens that quiets our well worn harmful patterns of thoughts and behaviors and allows us to see and respond with clarity and wisdom.

Lesson 2: Healthy Inner Dialogue
Do you ever wonder who’s doing all that chatting in our minds, and even more importantly, which voice we put in the driver’s seat of our lives?  We are multi-dimensional beings with multiple voices expressing their opinions and directing our actions.  Sometimes it’s our wounded child or adolescent trying to express their hurt and anger, or our critical parent wagging its finger in judgment and shame.

Lesson 3: Permission to Feel
Having access to our full range of emotions, and cultivating the skill to feel them instead of stuffing or bypassing them, is vital to living our most authentic, powerful and satisfying life.  When we know how to feel our emotions, and have the skills to express and communicate them responsibly, we feel more grounded, whole, and connected to ourselves and others!

Lesson 4: The Joy of Responsibility
Have you ever noticed that we often play the same ‘victim’ story in our mind over and over again and that we keep reacting to our life from that story, often in repetitive negative behaviors?  We get stuck in false emotions like blame, guilt, and resentment; feeling powerless to make positive changes.

Lesson 5:  Create and Manifest Your Best Life
We are always creating and manifesting our life, whether consciously or unconsciously!  Our life is a reflection of our inner world of thoughts, feelings, beliefs, attitudes, choices, and decisions!  These are our raw materials that make up our life stories and circumstances.

Remember, you are miraculous! And may all your dreams come true.

 

Emily Boorstein‘s passion and joy is to engage people in the process of self-discovery and inspired living!  Her life purpose is to live her most authentic wholehearted life and to be a guide for those who also want to live a more mindful, joyful, less stressed, more peaceful, purposeful, satisfying, well navigated and fulfilling life. Emily is the founder of The Inner Fitness™ Program and is a monthly presenter and Life Coach at Rancho La Puerta Health and Fitness Resort in Tecate, Mexico.  A Certified Life Coach since 2001, Emily maintains a private practice with clients and students from around the world. “Inside each and every one of us lies the potential to create and manifest our uniquely personal Great Life Story.”  Emily Boorstein

Awaken the Artist Within

Awaken the Artist Within
Join us for a vibrant and inspirational slideshow/talk with Erin Lee Gafill. A museum-exhibited painter and textile artist, memoirist, and international teacher, Erin’s slideshow weaves together personal stories and stunning color-rich art with practical tips on carving out time and intention for your own creative practice. Born into the mayhem and magic of Big Sur in the ’60s, Erin shares her stories of growing up at Nepenthe Restaurant, the legendary watering hole for poets, writers, and dreamers, her deep California art roots, and a chance encounter that changed her life forever and set her on her path as an artist. Her stories will touch your heart, her tips will inspire YOU to create, and her gorgeous paintings will send you home dreaming in full color!

 

An award-winning painter and author, Erin Gafill has inspired people around the world with her inspirational art, heartfelt stories, and uniquely engaging teaching methods. Her work bridges art, craft, and community, weaving observation, intuition, and imagination into her painting, writing, teaching, and public speaking. A fifth-generation California artist, she was born in Big Sur, California in 1963, the daughter of a beatnik and a hippie and the great-great-granddaughter of Carmel’s first artist-in-residence. Growing up at her grandparents’ legendary restaurant, Nepenthe, a mecca for poets, bohemians and dreamers, she drew inspiration from its ever-changing cast of characters as well as the stunning and mystical beauty of the coast. Erin is the founder of the nonprofit Big Sur Arts Initiative, and a founding member of the Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters Association. In 2001 Erin was honored to serve as the first American Artist-in-Residence at the Hamada International Children’s Museum, Hamada, Japan. In 2009, she and her husband Tom Birmingham were named Champions of the Arts by the Arts Council of Monterey County and were honored by the United States Congress for their service to the community through the arts. Her work can be seen at eringafill.com and was featured in Spring/Summer 2020 at the Monterey Museum of Art. Her inspirational memoir Drinking From a Cold Spring, a Little Book of Hope is available at Amazon.com

Learning to Live with Less

Learning to Live with Less and Why it Matters
What are the financial and psychological costs that clutter can have on your personal and professional life?  Leave this session with solutions to help you declutter and be motivated to discard unneeded ‘stuff.’  Presentation will include group discussion related to struggles with letting go of items in your home.

Too Much Clutter?  How Do I “Let It Go?”
Feeling overwhelmed, too many clothes, piles of paper, photos, bags, spices, magazines, craft projects, antique furniture? Participants will learn the 5-step method of organizing items in your home and office. You will also learn about Brain Organizing to help you declutter your brain so you can declutter your life.

 

Amy Carstensen, a San Diego based Professional Organizer, started her business “Organizing  with Amy” in 2013.  Previously, she’s taught high school Spanish, worked for the International Community Foundation and was the Founder and Executive Director of Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center. While Amy holds a Master’s degree from UCSD in International Relations, her true passion is helping people declutter their brains and their lives.  When she’s not donating kitchen items to Salvation Army or putting labels on bins, she’s home torturing her husband and two teenage boys reminding them that, “if you can’t find something… just start cleaning up!”

 

 

Yoga with Larry Payne

Larry Payne, Ph.D.,C-IAYT, E-RYT500,YTRX-1000, is an internationally respected Yoga teacher, author, and a founding father of Yoga therapy in America. Dr. Payne cofounded the International Association of Yoga Therapists, now in 50 countries, and the Yoga curriculum at the UCLA School of Medicine. He is also co-founder of the Yoga Therapy Rx and Prime of Life Yoga programs at Loyola Marymount University, the corporate Yoga program at the J. Paul Getty Museum, and the original “Back Program” at Rancho La Puerta. In 2000, he was the first Yoga teacher to be invited to The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and in 1996, he performed the first documented headstand at the North Pole! He founded Samata International Yoga and Health Center in Los Angeles 1980, where he continues to teach groups and individuals. Dr. Payne is coauthor of the international bestseller Yoga for Dummies (Wiley), Yoga Basics (Wiley), Yoga Rx (Random House), The Business of Teaching Yoga (Samata International), and Yoga Therapy and Integrative Medicine (Turner). He is featured in the Prime of Life Yoga and Yoga Therapy Rx DVD series and globally online at Yoga International. Most recently, he is author of AARP’s Yoga after 50 for Dummies (Wiley). His website is Samata.com.

Yoga with Larry Payne

Larry Payne, Ph.D.,C-IAYT, E-RYT500,YTRX-1000, is an internationally respected Yoga teacher, author, and a founding father of Yoga therapy in America. Dr. Payne cofounded the International Association of Yoga Therapists, now in 50 countries, and the Yoga curriculum at the UCLA School of Medicine. He is also co-founder of the Yoga Therapy Rx and Prime of Life Yoga programs at Loyola Marymount University, the corporate Yoga program at the J. Paul Getty Museum, and the original “Back Program” at Rancho La Puerta. In 2000, he was the first Yoga teacher to be invited to The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and in 1996, he performed the first documented headstand at the North Pole! He founded Samata International Yoga and Health Center in Los Angeles 1980, where he continues to teach groups and individuals. Dr. Payne is coauthor of the international bestseller Yoga for Dummies (Wiley), Yoga Basics (Wiley), Yoga Rx (Random House), The Business of Teaching Yoga (Samata International), and Yoga Therapy and Integrative Medicine (Turner). He is featured in the Prime of Life Yoga and Yoga Therapy Rx DVD series and globally online at Yoga International. Most recently, he is author of AARP’s Yoga after 50 for Dummies (Wiley). His website is Samata.com.

Concerts

New Year´s Eve at the Ranch!

Wild Women of Song – Women Hitmakers
Pop standards from American Songbook – Jazz through Carol King

Great Women of the Blues
Alberta Hunter, Bessie Smith, Nina Simone, Aretha, Janis Joplin, Bonnie Raitt — all fierce, funny, gorgeous trailblazers in American music

 

Pamela Rose – Vocals
Pamela Rose is a San Francisco jazz and blues vocalist and educator who has thrilled audiences locally and internationally with her swinging, soulful style.  Her rich, bold, warm voice and easy rapport with musicians thrills audiences of all ages.  Rose is also best known for her touring concerts and lectures celebrating remarkable women in blues and jazz. Her “Wild Women of Song” and “Blues is a Woman” shows resulted in a book and concert series which has toured nationally, and features Kristen Strom, Daria Johnson and Ruth Davies.

 

 

Ruth Davies – Bass
Oakland resident Ruth Davies has lent her fluid, expressive upright bass stylings to many internationally touring artists. Jazz and blues stars such as Charles Brown, Bonnie Raitt, Clark Terry, Elvin Bishop, and Van Morrison are among her long list of tour and recording credentials. Her impressive discography includes many platinum and Grammy-winning recordings. Ruth has toured with Pamela Rose for many years, with her Blues is a Woman and Wild Women of Song shows.

 

 

Daria Johnson – Drums/Vocals
Daria “Shani” Johnson is a San Francisco based drummer, singer and multi-instrumentalist with a smooth, sensual style and dynamic spirit on stage. She has become one of the most sought-after drummers in the Bay Area. After graduating from the Berklee College of Music, Daria toured with her band London Street in the US and Europe, opening for major acts India Airie, Erykah Bada, Brandi Carlisle, and John Legend. Daria also debuted and starred in the Blues is a Woman show, bringing the audience to their feet night after night.

 

Kristen Strom  – Saxophone/Flute/Vocals
Kristen Strom has played alongside many well-known artists, including Manhattan Transfer, Gladys Knight, Natalie Cole, Roberta Flack, Johnny Mathis, Jimmy Heath, Pamela Rose, and the touring company of Blues is a Woman. She also performs in a celebrated duo with husband/guitarist Scott Sorkin. In addition to her albums, Intention, Sojourn and Moving Day: The Music of John Shifflett, she has recorded more than 40 CDs with various jazz and pop artists. Her latest album, Moving Day, was listed as one of Best Jazz Albums of 2018 by The Mercury News and has gotten national and international airplay.

 

Scott Sorkin –  Guitar
Scott Sorkin is a Bay Area guitarist, composer, producer, teacher and recording engineer who performs and records in styles ranging from jazz to Brazilian and Latin styles. His solo CD “Laika” was released in 2017. Performance credits include the Count Basie Orchestra, Mary Wilson (The Supremes), Nneenna Freelon, Paula West, Louie Bellson, Vince Giordano, Tammy Hall, Pamela Rose, Kristen Strom, touring shows “Dream Girls” and Disney’s “Newsies”, Symphony Silicon Valley, Great Performances, PBS Television and SFJAZZ. Sorkin has extensive recording credits as well as film scores (including composer credits). Scott co-leads the international jazz group “Crossing Borders”, featuring Kristen Strom, Jennifer Scott, and Rene Worst. He’s been a featured artist at many festivals.

 

 

Hands On Cooking Classes with Sara Polczynski

Chef Sara Polczynski offers hands-on culinary experiences, 3.5 hours each, during which you will enjoy preparing your own meal along with fellow cooks. Classes take place at La Cocina Que Canta, our culinary center on Tuesday and Thursday at 4pm.

Tuesday Hands-On Cooking Class 4:00 PM Sign Up
Each class $125+tax. Class subject to change, check your weekly planner and schedule for updates. The maximum number of guests per class is 14.

Wednesday Hands-On Cooking Class 4:00 PM Sign Up
Each class $125+tax. Class subject to change, check your weekly planner and schedule for updates. The maximum number of guests per class is 14.

Thursday Hands-On Cooking Class 4:00 PM Sign Up
Each class $125+tax. Class subject to change, check your weekly planner and schedule for updates. The maximum number of guests per class is 14.

 

 

Sara Polczynski, owner and Culinary Artisan for Seasoned Plates, has been a part of the San Diego culinary scene for almost 20 years.  Her story has many chapters.  As a Chef graduate of the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, Sara left to train at the renowned Manele Bay Hotel in Lanai, HI and The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, CO. Upon her return to her native San Diego, Sara was hired as the Corporate Pastry Chef for the Cohn Restaurant Group, running the pastry department for multiple restaurant concepts.

Sara’s love for teaching on the job led to a part time career of teaching in the classroom. Sara currently holds the position of Associate Professor at San Diego Community College-Continuing Education and teaches the Baking and Pastry Program as well as cooking classes.

Over the years Sara’s love for cooking began to expand along with her love of travel. Having the opportunity each year to travel and learn about regional Mexican cuisine, art and culture with influential chef mentors, Rick Bayless, Ricardo Munoz and Susana Trilling, has shaped the style and flavors of Sara’s cuisine.   Her most recent project utilizing the knowledge, passion and techniques of authentic regional Mexican cuisine was as the Consultant Executive Chef for The Blind Burro in San Diego.  Bringing authentic Mexican cuisine with a modern California flair to the people of San Diego was a dream project.

Seasoned Plates is brought to life in the next chapter of the story in order for Sara to share her passion for food and provide a unique culinary experience for each and every client.

www.seasonedplates.com

Find Your Inner Athlete

FIND YOUR INNER ATHLETE is a complete path to help one Think, Train, Fuel, and Feel Athletic. The program is unique to each individual in the way that every session has coaching and workbook-based goals that generate a distinctive and personalized journey for those who partake.

Participants can expect a daily brief coaching intro, followed by a personal exploratory workbook entry, and then a movement/exercise segment that caters to increasing athleticism with specific and targeted goals.

 

 

Stephanie Lauren is an award-winning fitness and education leader.  Stephanie has used her evolving sense of safely optimizing exercise to create multiple exercise systems (with her partner Thomas) including PLYOGA, CASE Method, and (most recently) FIND YOUR INNER ATHLETE.  Stephanie’s workout formats have been used and taught throughout the USA and abroad and are accredited by the largest exercise science education organizations in North America.  Millions of consumers in the fitness space have used her programs to inspire their fitness journey.

Stephanie competed NCAA Division I in Gymnastics and Track & Field and is a former NCAA Division I Record Holder in Long Jump and Triple Jump.

Stephanie has 3 young children and implicitly understands using movement to nurture growth.

 

Thomas Ascough is a consultant specializing in goal attainment for his clients across a multitude of sectors, with a focus in fitness and entrepreneurialism. Thomas has helped generate life-changing programming in fitness and lifestyle that have reached millions of fitness enthusiasts, most notably PLYOGA, CASE Method, and FIND YOUR INNER ATHLETE (with his partner Stephanie Lauren).

As a Certified Personal Trainer and successful business owner in multiple lanes, Thomas recognizes and nurtures the parallels and associations in each of his clients so that they can use their strengths in one facet to propel them to success in another.

Thomas Ascough also owns Savvy Fit Soaps, a Vegan (truly) natural skincare line that is changing lives with the easiest way to make a healthy change.

Gentle Yoga

Veera Sanjana approaches her yoga practice with gratitude, reverence and love. Veera is a certified Hatha Yoga teacher and her teaching style is best described as ‘meditation in motion’. Veera’s unique yoga teaching style stresses a strong fluid practice with emphasis on mind, body and breath connections to direct our attention inwards. She sets a rhythm that allows her students to explore their own inner world.

Veera was born in India and was schooled in the ancient yoga traditions from a very early age. Veera is able to bring alive the essence of ancient wisdom teachings for modern seekers, in a way that allows students to connect deeply with their own authentic power and spirit.

In her classes, she skillfully weaves together the teachings and time tested practices of Hatha Yoga, Ayurveda and Vipassana Meditation to create a dynamic and integrated practice, that help us lead healthy, happy and effective lives. Each class is unique, based on a theme related to body, mind and spirit.

Under the guidance and grace of her teachers, Veera has taught many types of yoga, including gentle yoga, prenatal, postnatal, restorative, yin yoga, yoga for kids, yoga for seniors and therapeutic yoga. Veera’s passion and visionary presentations grow out of her extensive experience as a instructor of Yoga, Meditation, Compassionate Touch, Ayurvedic Healing, Eastern Dance Therapy, Herbs and Nutrition. From her home base in California, she enjoys teaching classes, seminars, writing for magazines. She travels often and offers workshops and retreats that integrate meditation, yoga wisdom, ayurveda and spiritual life-skills.

Meditation For Everybody: It’s Not What You “Think”

Have you been curious about meditation?  Do you want to learn some basic techniques to develop a manageable home practice?  Are you a long-time practitioner seeking to deepen your practice? Over the course of the week, you will learn  techniques and tools to sustain your meditation practice when you return home after your Ranch experience.  The course will demystify the experience of meditation, allowing you to integrate mindfulness into your daily life.

Meditation trains and balances the mind. Meditation fosters relaxation and stress management. Meditation is proven to be incredible for your health: it increases the immune system, lowers blood pressure, lowers stress hormone levels in the body, increases cardiovascular health and calms anxiety and depression

Rooted in tradition but adapted for the relevance of our lives today, Meditation For Everybody is a non-intimidating practice that maintains the depth and integrity of ancient traditions. Witness your practice flourish and evolve no matter what your level is. Whether you are a never-ever or an experienced practitioner, come to Meditation for Everybody for tools to gracefully integrate mindfulness into your daily life.

 

 

River Morgan (EYRT-500) has been teaching yoga and meditation since her teens. River’s background as a professional dancer and Gyrotonic instructor deeply informs her alignment-based yoga classes.  River has been featured in Forbes Magazine, Aspen Peak Magazine, Yoga Journal, Gaiam Catalogues, Healthy Planet, Elephant Journal among other publications . River is also assistant director of The Farm Collaborative.

LifeCycle Swim School

LifeCycle Swim School leaves no person behind, offering classes for all levels from non-swimmers to more experienced swimmers

SWIM READY – ADULT WATER ACCLIMATION FOR NON-SWIMMERS
Water acclimation for those who never learned to swim, and who may experience anxiety in and around water. We’ll leverage adult cognition and the science of swimming to help replace negative thoughts about water with feelings of relaxation and comfortability. We’ll compassionately guide you to experiment with breath control, floating and gliding, building your confidence one step at a time. No matter why one hasn’t learned to swim, it’s never too late.

AMP UP AQUATIC CONFIDENCE WITH SURVIVAL SWIMMING SKILLS
Feel more confident in and around water by learning and practicing survival swimming skills. Learn a variety of techniques for treading, floating and restful swimming, and understand which skills to use in different situations. Learn how to smoothly link one self-rescue skill to the next, without panic.

THE SCIENCE OF SWIMMING FUNDAMENTALS
Unravel the mystery of graceful swimming by learning to leverage science for increased ease and efficiency. In this stroke development and refinement class, you’ll practice being mindful of hydrodynamics. Experience added buoyancy, reduced drag, and increased propulsion with less effort. You’ll learn optimum body positions, arm movements, and rhythmic breathing that can be incorporated into every stroke. Be ready to challenge your muscle memory for an improved swimming experience. Skills will be progressive, with a focus on different strokes each day.

SwimFix® CLINICS
We’ll take a deep dive into the elements that create smooth and efficient freestyle and breaststroke. We’ll review core elements of each stroke, and work head-to-toe, breaking down all components. Learn and practice drills to help achieve effortless breathing, effective arm strokes and a kick that provides more propulsion and less drag.

CREATE A PERSONAL AQUATIC FITNESS PROGRAM
An aquatic workout should include warm-up, an aerobic set and/or a muscular development set, cool-down, and stretching. Learn safe and effective aquatic movements, techniques and drills for each phase of the work-out. Learn how to monitor your heart rate, and safely “overload” your system by controlling speed, types of strokes/movements.

 

 

Jennifer May is the founder/CEO of LifeCycle Swim School, a premium swim lesson provider in Montclair, NJ since 2015. Jennifer grew up competitive racing in Houston. In middle school she was ranked in Texas. By fourteen she quit, and swimming became something she “used to do.” Jen earned a B.A. in advertising from Boston University, and an M.A. from Simmons College. She forged a 30-year career in the footwear industry, leading product development teams – a creative job that took her around the world. Balancing career, family and happiness got complicated. Burnt out, she left, and to keep busy taught swimming at a YMCA. Jen soon realized the community was underserved in quantity and quality of swim lessons. Jen took Red Cross training, and developed proprietary curriculums for children and adults. LifeCycle Swim School emphasizes safety, confidence and form; and promotes an aquatic lifestyle for all ages and abilities so that more people can enjoy the physical and mental benefits of water.

LifeCycle Swim School

LifeCycle Swim School leaves no person behind, offering classes for all levels from non-swimmers to more experienced swimmers

SWIM READY – ADULT WATER ACCLIMATION FOR NON-SWIMMERS
Water acclimation for those who never learned to swim, and who may experience anxiety in and around water. We’ll leverage adult cognition and the science of swimming to help replace negative thoughts about water with feelings of relaxation and comfortability. We’ll compassionately guide you to experiment with breath control, floating and gliding, building your confidence one step at a time. No matter why one hasn’t learned to swim, it’s never too late.

AMP UP AQUATIC CONFIDENCE WITH SURVIVAL SWIMMING SKILLS
Feel more confident in and around water by learning and practicing survival swimming skills. Learn a variety of techniques for treading, floating and restful swimming, and understand which skills to use in different situations. Learn how to smoothly link one self-rescue skill to the next, without panic.

THE SCIENCE OF SWIMMING FUNDAMENTALS
Unravel the mystery of graceful swimming by learning to leverage science for increased ease and efficiency. In this stroke development and refinement class, you’ll practice being mindful of hydrodynamics. Experience added buoyancy, reduced drag, and increased propulsion with less effort. You’ll learn optimum body positions, arm movements, and rhythmic breathing that can be incorporated into every stroke. Be ready to challenge your muscle memory for an improved swimming experience. Skills will be progressive, with a focus on different strokes each day.

SwimFix® CLINICS
We’ll take a deep dive into the elements that create smooth and efficient freestyle and breaststroke. We’ll review core elements of each stroke, and work head-to-toe, breaking down all components. Learn and practice drills to help achieve effortless breathing, effective arm strokes and a kick that provides more propulsion and less drag.

CREATE A PERSONAL AQUATIC FITNESS PROGRAM
An aquatic workout should include warm-up, an aerobic set and/or a muscular development set, cool-down, and stretching. Learn safe and effective aquatic movements, techniques and drills for each phase of the work-out. Learn how to monitor your heart rate, and safely “overload” your system by controlling speed, types of strokes/movements.

 

 

Jennifer May is the founder/CEO of LifeCycle Swim School, a premium swim lesson provider in Montclair, NJ since 2015. Jennifer grew up competitive racing in Houston. In middle school she was ranked in Texas. By fourteen she quit, and swimming became something she “used to do.” Jen earned a B.A. in advertising from Boston University, and an M.A. from Simmons College. She forged a 30-year career in the footwear industry, leading product development teams – a creative job that took her around the world. Balancing career, family and happiness got complicated. Burnt out, she left, and to keep busy taught swimming at a YMCA. Jen soon realized the community was underserved in quantity and quality of swim lessons. Jen took Red Cross training, and developed proprietary curriculums for children and adults. LifeCycle Swim School emphasizes safety, confidence and form; and promotes an aquatic lifestyle for all ages and abilities so that more people can enjoy the physical and mental benefits of water.

Piano and Flute Concerts

Musical Meditation
Come relax and enjoy a collection of miniature musical gems, performed by Natalie Dalschaert, pianist, and Brice Martin, flutist. The selections are brief yet beautiful, and are chosen for their calming and soothing qualities. Savor this meditative musical interlude following your morning classes, and before heading off to lunch.

Viva Vivaldi!
Hear “The Four Seasons” with a fresh perspective as Scott Marrone leads us through this most popular of musical works. You will never hear it the same way again! Discover the creativity and ingenuity found in Vivaldi’s delightful masterpiece “The Four Seasons.” While the immediate impression of this great work is a set of four violin concertos, closer examination reveals a wealth of symbolism and actual story lines within the musical themes and various movements. Join Scott Marrone as we listen to and explore the program contained in these beloved musical gems. Find a new way to hear and understand this classic work, making it more personal, concrete, and enjoyable!

Classics and Originals for Flute and Piano Pavilion
Enjoy an entertaining evening of beautiful classical and original music for flute, piano, and exotic winds. The musical selections will represent a variety of styles and time periods, and will range from soothing lyricism to brilliant virtuosity. To enhance the listening experience, Natalie, Brice and Scott will also include some interesting commentary about the music and the lives of the composers.

 

 

Pianist Natalie Dalschaert has performed on television, coached actors and has been a production musician for the shows Star Trek: The Next Generation, Perfect Strangers, JAG, Wings, and Song of the Lark. Ms. Dalschaert has performed on many concert series with her husband, flutist Brice Martin. Performances include the Sundays at Four radio broadcasts at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Redlands Bowl, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal Tech and for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Committee concerts. A lover of musical theater, Natalie has been musical director and pianist for numerous shows with the Los Angeles Youth Theater. Additional concerto performances include appearances with the Chautauqua Festival Orchestra and the Toulouse Orchestra in France. Natalie is a sought after pianist and accompanist for recitals, competitions, master classes and social events. Natalie has an active teaching studio and is a member of the Music Teachers Association of California. A number of her students have won concerto competitions and MTAC festivals. She received her Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from the Juilliard School in New York and her Master of Music degree from the University of Southern California, where she received the Koldofsky Memorial Scholarship.  As a student in Philadelphia, Natalie entered competitions and appeared as soloist twice with The Philadelphia Orchestra and also with the Haddonfield Symphony and the Lansdowne Symphony Orchestra. At the Interlochen Centers for the Arts, she received the Van Cliburn Scholarship. Natalie studied with Jacob Lateiner as an undergraduate student at the Juilliard School in New York. In her second year, she won a Juilliard Concerto Competition and performed the Beethoven Concerto No. 1 at Lincoln Center with the Juilliard Symphony. Upon graduation from USC, Natalie received an Outstanding Graduate of the Year Award.

 

 

Brice Martin’s formal training includes degrees from The Julliard School and the University of Southern California. He is an active studio musician and plays for film, TV and commercial soundtracks. He has played for Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, The Grammy Awards Orchestra, Star Trek: Voyager, and the Wonderful World of Disney. Brice is also a composer and has written music for film and television. He specializes in woodwinds and has a large collection of exotic woodwinds from around the world.

 

 

John Scott Marrone has been recognized as an outstanding conductor and director of many musical organizations. His experience covers the entire spectrum of orchestral and choral music from Renaissance to Contemporary, leading an impressive array of performing organizations both in the United States and Europe. In addition to his own Allegro Chamber Ensemble, Mr. Marrone has worked with the English Chamber Orchestra, Solisti di Roma, Orchestre de Paris, Oratorio Society of New York, Mendelssohn Choir of Connecticut, Greenwich Choral Society, and many other organizations including concerts and tours. His choir performed for Pope John Paul II in St. Peter’s Basilica and at the papal audience before 250,000 people in Rome. With the Allegro Chamber Ensemble, Mr. Marrone performed a series of concerts at the Salzburg Music Festival, St Martin-in-the-Fields in London, and at the Sainte Chapelle in 1994 for the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of Paris. With his choirs he has conducted at St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Westminster Abbey in London, the Duomo in Florence and many other locations throughout Europe. Mr. Marrone holds a Professional Diploma in Piano from the Brooklyn Conservatory and a Master’s in Conducting from Columbia University.

 

Coming Home to Yourself

Knowing Your Story: Who are you and how do you want to live?
Part of any journey towards wholeness includes an ongoing awareness of our true desires and then harnessing those desires so that we might live with greater joy, clarity, and purpose. To this end, Jeannie invites participants to reflect on meaningful moments in their lives and to identify what is life-giving, as well as life-draining for them. The content from these reflections provides the seeds for how to engage your story with expanded energy and authenticity.

Exploring the Mother-Daughter Relationship ~ Tuesday 5pm Arroyo Gym
A woman’s relationship with her mother is among the most profound in her life. Jeannie explores the joys and challenges that mothers and daughters encounter as they yearn to be close and also struggle to be separate. Gain insight about the woman you’ve become by exploring your story with your mother. Come to remember, reflect, learn, and laugh!

Tending the Fire: The Story of a Marriage
What makes love endure? How do we keep the fire burning? Jeannie answers these questions by sharing an intimate look inside her marriage as she and her husband grow through junctures both bumpy and beautiful. Explore the evolution of your own love, whether you’re with a longtime partner, on the precipice of new romance, or flying solo at the moment. Consider the eternal truth: love’s journey is not just about the blaze in the beginning, but about finding ways to ignite the flame again and again.

The Spirituality of Aging
Do you fear or embrace the aging process? While we live in a society which extols youth and physical beauty, we are also living in an era where women in the second half of life have more possibilities than ever before. We will explore the losses and opportunities which surface as we age and explore strategies and practices for how to make this phase of our lives the most generative and satisfying yet.

 

 

Jeannie DuBose, M.S. is an author, illustrator, and spiritual director. As an experienced facilitator and retreat leader, Jeannie works with a variety of institutions and groups, including wellness centers, schools, faith communities, and prisons. A graduate of Vanderbilt University, she received a master’s in counseling psychology from Georgia State University and a certificate in spiritual formation from Columbia Theological Seminary. Jeannie and her husband raised their three children in Atlanta; they currently make their home in Montreat, North Carolina.  She has written and illustrated two memoirs: The Mother Daughter Dance and Tending the Fire: The Story of a Marriage. To learn more about Jeannie’s work, visit www.jeanniedubose.org

Explore Rancho La Puerta’s Night Sky

Explore Rancho La Puerta’s Night Sky  – Lecture
The dark skies at the Ranch provide a fabulous opportunity for seeing the wonders of Winter Sky such as the Andromeda Galaxy, the constellations of Orion (including its famous nebula), Gemini, Taurus, and dazzling star clusters. Participate in another magical part of the Ranch experience. You will never look at the night sky the same way again!

Star Gazing
Offered several nights during the week. Please sign up at the Ranch in the Lounge.
Observe with the naked eye, binoculars and telescope.

 

 

John Scott Marrone has over 30 years of experience teaching in the New York area. In addition to Astronomy, Scott teaches Forensics, Environmental Studies, and Oceanography. He has been recognized by Ciba-Geigy Corporation for his work in promoting science literacy and received the Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award in 2007 from Manhattan College. In February 1998, Scott was invited by the Aruban Government to substitute for astronomer Jay Pasachoff to lead the observation of the total solar eclipse.  Most recently, Scott led the public observing session on Mauna Kea and in 2017 traveled to Wyoming with a group to view the total solar eclipse.

Experience New Dimensions of Yourself Through “Sounding”

What is sounding? It’s not hard to learn to do! Sounding is not singing or chanting. It’s easy to learn and it’s a wonderful tool for your toolbox of self-care. You will learn to express sounds that can help your body to relax and often times those sounds help people to self-heal. There are all kinds of sounds. It depends upon your intention and your desire for well-being. You will make different sounds to gain different results – and you will learn to make spontaneous sounds that naturally arise. Discover the fun of learning Vocal Sound Healing™ and the many ways you can use it for yourself. You don’t have to sing. All you need is curiosity and a willingness to try. Learn all kinds of sounds, even sounds that you have never imagined, that will calm, free, relax and sometimes heal your body.

One – hour classes:
Explore sound for self-healing – Have fun experiencing ways of making sounds that alleviate tension, which can often remedy discomfort in the body.

Sound healing for opening your heart – Align with your subtle level energy systems. When we open our heart to ourselves, we can open to others more easily.

Make sounds to help someone else – This unique way to sound together helps attune us to not only “hear” together and “feel the ground” together, we also get to “see” each other with more compassion and clarity.

Sound to assist your energy field – You have an energy boundary all the time but sometimes it doesn’t feel that way. Delight in learning how you can control this boundary and feel more at peace in yourself.

Discover your “inner voice” – Connect with an intelligence inside of you that supports greater self-confidence, expressiveness, clarity, and joy.

 

 

Lisa Rafel has taught about self-empowerment, self-healing and using music and sound for healing for over 25 years. An internationally recognized expert in Vocal Sound Healing™ she presents at conferences and teaches workshops all over the world. Lisa is a composer, poet, playwright, shamanic healer and spiritual teacher. Her harmonic overtone singing with crystal bowls has been called, “the sound of language before the languages divided”. Her concerts attune the listener to a deep experience of peace. Lisa has taught and sung in extraordinary sacred sites including in Chartres Cathedral in France, The Great Pyramid of Giza, The Sakya Monastery in Tibet, Shaman Conferences in Mongolia, and Sacred Music Festivals in Glastonbury, UK, San Francisco and Los Angeles, CA.  Lisa co-created the award-winning book/music set, Safe In The Arms Of Love with collaborators Emmy Award winning composer/producer Gary Malkin and psychologist, David Surrenda PhD. Their Positive Intention Music™ creates a measurable energetic connection between a mother and her baby that improves the baby’s health. Lisa’s remarkably empowering program, the Five Worlds, is taught on-line once or twice a year. Her video, The Question of Our Time, is a call to action to stop pollution. Performed by Lisa, with lyrics by Lisa, the music was written and produced by Grammy Award winners Lili Haydn and Itai Disraeli. All of Lisa’s projects support greater health and well-being.   www.lisarafel.com

Awaken the Artist Within

Art Classes
Awaken the Artist Within
Acrylic, Torn Paper Collage, Watercolor
A progressive experience – but flexible enough to allow you to start any day.  Every day Erin will guide you through a series of creativity exercises culminating in several finished pieces. No experience required!

SLIDESHOW:
Awaken the Artist Within
Join us for a vibrant and inspirational slideshow/talk with Erin Lee Gafill. A museum-exhibited painter and textile artist, memoirist, and international teacher, Erin’s slideshow weaves together personal stories and stunning color-rich art with practical tips on carving out time and intention for your own creative practice. Born into the mayhem and magic of Big Sur in the 60’s, Erin shares her stories of growing up at Nepenthe Restaurant, the legendary watering hole for poets, writers and dreamers, her deep California art roots, and a chance encounter that changed her life forever and set her on her path as an artist. Her stories will touch your heart, her tips will inspire YOU to create, and her gorgeous paintings will send you home dreaming in full color!

 

An award-winning painter and author, Erin Gafill has inspired people around the world with her inspirational art, heartfelt stories, and uniquely engaging teaching methods.  Her work bridges art, craft, and community, weaving observation, intuition, and imagination into her painting, writing, teaching, and public speaking. A fifth-generation California artist, she was born in Big Sur, California in 1963, the daughter of a beatnik and a hippie and the great-great-granddaughter of Carmel’s first artist-in-residence. Growing up at her grandparents’ legendary restaurant, Nepenthe, a mecca for poets, bohemians and dreamers, she drew inspiration from its ever-changing cast of characters as well as the stunning and mystical beauty of the coast. Erin is the founder of the nonprofit Big Sur Arts Initiative, and founding member of the Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters Association. In 2001 Erin was honored to serve as the first American Artist-in-Residence at the Hamada International Children’s Museum, Hamada, Japan. In 2009, she and her husband Tom Birmingham were named Champions of the Arts by the Arts Council of Monterey County and were honored by the United States Congress for their service to the community through the arts. Her work can be seen at eringafill.com and was featured in Spring/Summer 2020 at the Monterey Museum of Art. Her inspirational memoir Drinking From a Cold Spring, a Little Book of Hope is available at Amazon.com

Secrets of the iPhone Camera Revealed

It is so easy to grab your phone and take that photo; but with a little knowledge, finesse, and practice, you can create stunning images. Maximize the potential of that phone camera. The phones may be smart; but YOU can be smarter. With updated techniques and some great easy to use apps, your photos will be exciting and meaningful.

SESSION ONE: GETTING STARTED
Gaining control over your camera with basic settings, compositional considerations

SESSION TWO: DIVING DEEPER
Controlling the camera for more control of exposure, focus, shutter speeds, choice of lenses

SESSION THREE: GOING ALL IN
Panoramic, close up photography, portraits, filters, videos.

SESSION FOUR: WRAPPING IT UP
Artistic considerations, some great apps for fine tuning images and creativity

**All camera phones are welcome, but we will be demonstrating on an iPhone.

 

Susan and Neil Silverman have taught photography extensively.  Their enthusiasm and hands-on approach make them a popular teaching team. Their knowledge and experience encompass both digital media and film (35mm, medium,and large format). Susan’s and Neil’s work appears in publications for Sierra Club, Microsoft, Air Canada and numerous magazines and other publications. They are in demand as speakers for professional photographic organizations and are professional members of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals. Their expertise includes landscape, macro and wildlife photography, and their background in commercial work gives them added insight into all forms and aspects of light.

Understanding the Mediterranean Diet

Linda Illingworth, RDN, CSSD, is the Registered Dietitian at Lifewellness Institute, a medical practice specializing in wellness, where she provides clinical care and nutritional guidance for patients and corporate clients. An expert in functional nutrition, Linda is known for her practical advice to find the best nutritional path to achieve specific health goals.  As a certified specialist in Sports Nutrition, Linda also has specialized training in food sensitivities, supplementation, wellness, thyroid and cardiovascular nutrition.  Linda holds a B.S. in Nutrition from California State University Long Beach and completed her dietetic internship at St. Luke’s Hospital, Wisconsin. Linda is frequently consulted for her depth and breadth of nutritional knowledge, has developed nutrition curriculum for popular destination health spas, National University, consults for non-profit nutrition programs, and can be found in print and online media.

Gyrokinesis with Anjali Austin

Sunday – Friday, 11AM, 75 minutes

 

Anjali Austin is a distinguished Specialized Master Trainer in GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® methodology with over 35 years of experience in the system. Trained by Juliu Horvath and Hilary Cartwright, she taught in the New York City studios, and was among the first group of teachers certified as Master Trainers.

An interdisciplinary artist whose career spanned thirteen years performing with the critically acclaimed Dance Theatre of Harlem, she has performed ballets Billy the Kid, Swan Lake (Act II), Serenade, Flower Festival, Dougla, Concerto Barocco, and Frankie and Johnny, among others, and PBS television specials Fall River Legend, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Creole Giselle.

Ms. Austin currently serves as Professor and Chair of Florida State University’s School of Dance, where she introduced Gyrotonic to the program. As a result, the School is now equipped with each of the five pieces of specialized Gyrotonic equipment and courses are offered to dance majors. Ms. Austin holds an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College.

Pickleball with Thea Froehling and Kim Evans

Beginners will learn the rules and fundamentals of the game, which include positioning on the court, paddle grip, scoring, serving, return of serve, and the difference between a hard and soft game. They will also learn tactics and techniques to play the game. Beginners will play a game putting these new skill sets together, and we’ll have some fun!

Advanced beginners will learn to improve their playing skills. They will learn how to start a point effectively, develop their 3rd shot drop or drive, practice their dinking skills, learn positioning on the court, and learn the hard and soft game. They will break down the skills needed at this level to make sure the player is mastering the basics before advancing to the next level. Their skills will be tested while playing a game.

Intermediate players will learn how to start the point effectively, learn how to get out of trouble using defensive skills, and learn ways to apply pressure by developing offensive skills. They will practice their net game, as well as their 3rd shot development. Participants will develop tactics to start, build, and finish a point. Players will test these skills while playing a game.

Advanced players will practice dinking drills, offensive and defensive lobs, and focus on being more strategic at the net. Participants will learn when to speed up the game, and practice resets and block shots. The player will drill in the transition zone. They will practice fun drills in how to finish and win a game. The player at this level will have an opportunity to play the game using these skills.

 

Thea Mucerino Froehling is a PCI certified pickleball instructor. She coaches predominately beginner to intermediate pickleball in the Chicago area. Thea took home gold medals in the US Open, Chicago Open, and other local tournaments. The passion she has for pickleball turned into the desire to teach and help grow the sport. When not coaching pickleball, Thea is a certified fitness instructor with a zeal for working with older active adults.

 

Kim Evans is a certified Professional Tennis Instructor (PTR) and a Professional Pickleball Instructor (PPR). She competed in Division III tennis in college, and has been enthusiastically teaching tennis since 2003 at a number of highly rated facilities. She was introduced to the sport of pickleball in the 1980s, but became passionate about it in 2018. She currently competes and earns medals in local and national tournaments.

Kim is also a Licensed (Illinois) Clinical Professional
Counselor, and has been in private practice for 30 years. This unique skill enables her to incorporate sports psychology into her coaching.

“I’ve been coming to the Ranch since 1995, both as a guest and an instructor. It’s one of my favorite places in the world! I love being with the guests and encouraging them to become better pickleball players.”

Gyrokinesis with Elizabeth Jackson

Sunday – Friday, 11AM, 75 minutes

 

It all started with a BA in Liberal Arts from Harvard University, where Elizabeth Jackson‘s background in physics met her studies in physiology and philosophy. Together, they inspired her exploration of alternative therapies, where she fell in love.

Today, White Lotus by Elizabeth Jackson, a studio in the Pacific Palisades of Los Angeles, is founded on principles and experiences which span three major movement systems. Since 2000, Elizabeth has directly worked with and been certified by the founders and co-founders of THE GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM®, Yamuna Body Rolling, and Pilates. Additional studies and influences include Myofascial Therapist Tom Myers and Cranial Sacral Instructor Gary Strauss.

Elizabeth works with professional athletes, the elderly, all injuries, and people with a wide spectrum of goals for health and well-being. As the founder of White Lotus by Elizabeth Jackson, she also educates teachers/trainers in the GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® movement systems.