Author: Joseph Eberhardt

JabronieJoe The Blog

Painted Lady Migration

A unique winter of above average precipitation blessed the Southern California deserts with abundant vegetation which fueled a huge population of painted ladies to spawn.  This is a blog post of my experience with the butterfly migration and how it relates to my own personal journey.

Signs of this epic winter are the lingering glacial snowpacks that still cling to the rugged Sierra Nevada mountain range.  Growing up in these sacred mountains I experienced many of these crazy winters during my childhood.  I shoveled more snow than I ever want to again. After my time at University I realized I had the opportunity to escape the winters by getting off the hill.  By exploring new places like Hawaii, new Zealand, and Costa Rica that have always interested me.  This winter was different than any other before it.  I had applications in to teach yoga at a surf camp in Sri Lanka, or a to be brand intern in Portugal but instead I chose the path that was laid in front of me.  An opportunity to spend time exploring my own backyard of awesome winter surf along the coastline of California.  I embarked on a 5 month solo van life journey starting off with a couple weeks of solo time exploring the remote Big Sur coastline.  From there I spent 3 months on the Central Coast between Morro bay and Pismo beach spending as much time as I could in the water.  When I wasn’t in the water I was working on my book project, crafting driftwood art, or picking up trash on the beach as a form of karma yoga.

One day in February I was out exploring the remote parts of Montana De Oro State Park when a million Painted Lady Butterflies darkened the sky as they fluttered by.  The butterfly migration lasted for more than 2 weeks. It was directly correlated to the amount of precipitation we received this winter that lead to an influx of vegetation which created an abundance of resources that lead to a larger than normal painted lady population.  After the main rush they were few and far between and I missed their presence as they floated easily by.  Time went by and I remembered the vast number of butterflies and wondered where they had all gone.

The spring solstice landed on a powerful full moon in Taurus during a time of deep personal mind exploration through meditation.  The importance of taking time off to listen to what the body wants, to do the things that make you happy, or to learn a new skill is critical to a peaceful existence.  The more that I give myself the time and space to truly listen to my heart to guide me to a decision that is best for me the better I get at it.  I decided I would head back to Truckee this summer and take advantage of a great opportunity learning the business practice and practical skills or a landscaping mentor of mine.  Meditation has helped me in more ways than I can describe in this blog post, so I urge you all to give it a try.  There are some awesome apps and videos out there but one of my favorite is the The Waking Up app by Sam Harris.

The month of April was absolutely beautiful as I made my way south along the coast.  Wildflowers, good waves, and good weather I soaked up each and every day of life along the ocean.  The first week of May came and I began feeling the pull North.  I left a house sitting opportunity along the central coast and headed north.  it took me almost a week before I finally crossed the great California valley and began the climb up the mountains.  At about 4,000 ft elevation I began seeing my old friends, the painted lady butterflies that had come all the way from northern Mexico to the mountain of my hometown.  I remembered the first time I learned exactly what a painted lady was.  It was during a conversation I had with an old hiking friend as we were on the summit of Mt. Lola.  She was describing the way that the mountain ranges from mexico to Canada actually appear as large caterpillars when viewed from space.  The discussion continued and we examined that the butterflies actually use the mountain range as a compass that they use on their migration north during the summer and south for the winters. I remember this hike very well as it made me look at the whole system of our planet and how many of the plants, animals, people and places we love have a direct connection to each other and this planet.

This sparked a vision as I continued to drive the winding highway 80 through the granite golliaths, roaring waterfalls of the spring snowmelt, and the evergreen pine forests that stretch as far as the eyes can see!  I felt a part of my back between my shoulder blades and spine become activated almost as if wings had popped out of this space.  I imagined the orange, black and white intricate lacings of the wings as they floated effortlessly behind me.  I felt as if I had completed my own migration which also included a transformation in myself.  I gained a valuable tool this winter in the form of deepening my mediation practice.  This allowed me to tap into my truest self, listen to my body, trust my intuition, and to be happy as my own special and unique self.  An inspiring friend I met in the ocean and had described the connection my zodiak sign Leo and the importance of taking care of my body but in particular my back.  This was the exact space that I felt the base of my wings growing from.  This intense feeling of being exactly where I was supposed to be, doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing, was exemplified in this vision of myself turning into one of these painted ladies.  Trusting the path of their great lifetime migration. Being fearless in the unknown and brave enough to take the step out of my comfort zone.  Going through life riding the warm northern breeze, taking the effort out of controlling the outcome, trusting your own intuition, feeling the support and abundance of this planet we call home all while making sure to enjoy the ride. A valuable lesson to always remember the spring migrations of the painted lady butterflies.

A tear came to my eye as I was blown away by the shear beauty I saw in the snow capped mountains.  I found a spot to pull over with a view of this amazing granite hillside that had a snowmelt river tumbling down this steep forested boulder slope that turned into one of the most beautiful waterfalls I have ever seen.  This is when the tears really came! I let lose all the emotions and feelings I had for returning to my mountain home after my winter off the hill.  A painted lady flies by and I imagine myself fearless and unafraid as I ride the cool Sierra Nevada breeze. I count my blessings and continue on the road home.  Looking forward to a the challenge of a new job, planting a garden, spending time with loved ones and enjoying the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains.

 

JabronieJoe The Blog

Surfing Videos California: A Fun day at Saint Annes

A really fun day at Saint Anne’s in Shell Beach, California.  In the latest of my surfing videos California, this video shares a few fun waves on my 8′ soft-top surfboard followed by a couple more nice rides on my new 42″ Toobs bodyboard. I believe this was on a mid to dropping tide on the 11th of March 2019.  Enjoy riding along. Filmed on a GoPro Hero 7 White.

Jabronie joe

JabronieJoe The Blog

Jabronie Joe Toobs edit

I put together some Gopro clips I took during the second week of March 2019, riding my new Toobs bodyboard. I purchased directly from the owner at their factory in Morro Bay.  After a couple weeks of riding it I have been stoked on the performance of riding a board that was designed for these kinds of waves.  A few from Shell Beach and a few from Morro Rock!

Link below. Enjoy!

http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdUd_Ll6Mb4

Cheeehoooo

Jabronie Joe

 

JabronieJoe The Blog

Lifestyle pictures from Winter 2019

Big Sur Camping in the van

Sunset at Shell Beach, Ca

A few treasures found while picking up trash along California’s Central Coast beaches.

Drawing and wave description of one of the many new places I have gotten to surf this winter!

An awesome morning body boarding at Morro Rock, Ca

Sunset with a view of Morro Bay from Montana De Oro State Park

Sunset rainbow at Saint Annes

Sunset at Shell Beach, Ca

Secret Wave

Contact Me

Contact Me

Thanks for taking the time to explore my website and see what I got going on.  I am actively searching work/trade possibilities anywhere in the world, so if you are in need of a motivated yoga instructor, farm hand, garden maintenance help , brand intern, volunteer help at a surf camp or a soccer coach please do not hesitate to contact me.

If you are interested in what I do and how I live don’t hesitate to email me with any questions.  If you would like to work together on a project or talk about and idea that you have I would love to hear you out and help in any way I can.  The best way to get a hold of me is email.  You can reach me here at,

joe@jabroniejoe.com

JabronieJoe The Blog

The Trash for Treasure Foundation

The Trash for Treasure Foundation is a life long project or maybe even a mindfulness practice that I began focusing on during the Summer of 2009 in Truckee, Ca.  It was the first summer after I began attending University at Cal Poly on the central coast.  It was a great summer based around deepening my knowledge of the native plants, the natural geography and history of the Tahoe basin. It was done by the immersion technique of spending as much time as possible as simply as possible in nature.  I found in myself a natural instinct of wanting to collect rocks, flowers, driftwood, seeds, and many other magical treasures that can be found in nature.

After taking a few beautiful quartz pieces from a newly explored high elevation lake basin i noticed a slightly negative feeling arise when reflecting on the beauty of this one particular piece that i had found in a truly sacred place.  The next opportunity I had I rushed back to this spot with many of my treasures I had taken throughout the summer of exploration.  After returning to this special area I felt a great weight lift off my body as my body felt realigned.  As I fiddled trying to figure out what to do with theses treasures, a message come through my heart from a cool crisp breeze upon my neck.  I translated the message as a proposal of sorts as a deal with Our Earthly Divine Mother.  The deal was this, I could collect a reasonable amount of treasure on each adventure on the account that I will pick up an equal or greater amount of pieces of trash.  I  showed my acceptance of this deal by creating a medicine wheel honoring the 7 directions with about half of the pieces of treasure.  The other half have continued with me on my journey. Many of them I still have to this day, displayed as a sacred alter in Truckee, Ca.

Throughout the years of traveling many have of these treasures have been collected and later given to friends that help to serve as a material memory of wonderful time spent together under the sun and stars.  This process of giving pieces of treasure to friends transformed naturally as I continued to explore new places and new treasures.  Some of these beautifully crafted stones, shells and sticks had more of a story to share and asked me to do more with them.  That is when I evolved as an artist and began experimenting with wire wrapping of stones and shells to building driftwood murals using hemp.  Implementing a process of using minimal and simple resource that will honor and respect the natural beauty of the piece.

As adventures begin and end I am grateful to have a few very special momentos of the sacred places of the Earth that I Have been fortunate enough to experience.  As I continue to build my relationship with the planet by learning new practices of mindfulness like meditation, yoga, and surfing I notice my connection growing stronger to the energy and abundance of the planet that I am grateful to call home. This has helped me to create the mentality that the amount time to I spend out of doors is directly related to my health and well being.  This allowed me to prioritize unplanned, uninhibited, unexpected time in nature.

Sharing of this story is not meant to approve the removal of objects from their natural resting place on this earth, but to create a culture of respect based on an understanding of human impacts on the natural world and to give the power back these sacred objects. As I shared in the above story, this is a lifetime long promise that I made that, I will do as much as I can to reduce my human footprint that I create while experiencing heaven on earth.

I would like to share this story with the world as well as the mentality and appreciation of our planet by organizing beach, neighborhood, and watershed clean ups.  A future idea would be to add a therapy crafting session on site in nature as a way to invoke the creative process of art that honors and respects the sacred.

Thanks for taking the time to look into my world

Jabroniejoe

JabronieJoe The Blog

ABOUT ME

Born in the Sierra Nevada mountains in a small mountain community of Truckee, California.  Before I was one year old my parents had what society would call a mid-life crisis when they moved 3 boys, I am the youngest, all under 5 from the mountains of California to the beaches of Kihei, Hawaii.  There was a construction boom based on an influence of foreign money after some bad hurricanes in the early 90s that my dad saw as an opportunity.  This is where my relationship with the ocean truly began.  One of my earliest childhood memories is floating in the crystal clear waters looking out into an endless blue horizon.  After 2 years of struggling to survive the day to day my parents decided to move back to Truckee.  The first winter back was one of the worst winters of my life.  My parents recall me watching it snow from the sliding glass door and balling my eyes out.  They knew early on I was meant for the beach.

Growing up in Truckee was truly a blessing as I created lifelong friendships in arguably one of the most beautiful places in the world.  Conditioned and pressured by family I went to university at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on the Central coast of California. In my 4 years I managed to balance my plant science education, playing competetive club soccer, my social life, all while forming a new relationship with the Pacific Ocean.  After graduating in Winter of 2012 I made a decision to work/trade on an organic farm in upcountry Maui, Hawaii.  I was supported by my friends and family took off on a one way ticket.  That was the start of a 6 year journey of chasing summer around the globe to some amazing surf destinations.

For nearly 6 years I rarely spent more than 3 months in a particular area. Balancing my time between the Mountains and the Oceans.  Drawn by a search for the new and an endless cycle of opportunities that allowed me to work, travel and thrive in some of the most beautiful places on the planet.  Many of the places I traveled to seemed to have picked me more than I picked them.  Meaning I felt a very strong energetic pull to many of these places based on their relative location to the Ocean, fresh water, sacred mountains or peaceful towns. In these beautiful places I met many wonderful human beings who helped me on my path of learning through immersion.  I picked up many valuable skills from very knowledgable teachers throughout this self dubbed “grad school of life.”  I have managed a 4 acre organic farm on the slopes of Haleakala, Maui for 2 winters.  I have spent 5 months at an intensive organic farming internship on the coast of Oregon.  I have volunteered at a surf camp in Costa Rica and I have picked raspberries on a farm in Dunedin, New Zealand.  These experiences gave me real life practice at create new relationships, sharing dreams and visions, dealing with difficult situations, pushing my personal comfort levels, learning valuable skills, immersing myself in uncomfortable scenarios all which lead me to a new found appreciation for what I am capable of and what my dreams truly are!

Most recently I worked this past summer managing a native plant nursery in my hometown of Truckee, California.  I was also fortunate to have the opportunity to coach the junior varsity boys soccer team of Truckee High to a one loss season. Upon the end of the soccer season and the changing of season in the mountains I moved into my 1993 Ford Coachman and drove down the coast. Currently surfing or picking up trash along a beach somewhere on the Central Coast of California!

JabronieJoe The Blog

Sharing The Journey

I’ve created this website with the goal of sharing the journey I’m on. After finishing my formal education in 2012, I began a nomadic lifestyle in what I called my grad school of life.  I had a vision of working on an organic farm in Maui, Hawaii in the winters, and at a native plant nursery in my hometown of Truckee, California in the summers.  Following a desire to learn more about my many passions such as organic agriculture, a love for the ocean, a love for animals, a curiosity about California and Hawaiian native plants and how they were used by our ancestors.  This initial leap of faith in what I called my “Grad School of Life” answered many of the questions I was left with after my formal education at Cal Poly.  By immersing myself into these valuable life learning experiences, I was able to take full advantage of this one opportunity.  By committing myself whole heartedly to this learn by immersion technique many door opened, often one after another on my personal journey of experiencing summer for almost 6 straight years.  From Maui to Truckee, Costa Rica to Coastal Oregon, New Zealand to Colorado chasing my passion of learning by immersion.  Since 2012, I have kept an almost daily journal of lessons learned, new experiences, unexpected adventures and amazing memories.

It was at the end of 2018 that I became aware of the many valuable lessons I learned throughout my endless summer journey.  I was flipping through an old journal reminiscing on my time spent along the Oregon Coast.  This sparked an idea of eventually wanting to put together a book to share my story.  I came to a road block when putting together journal entries. I realized I needed a platform in which to share my message.  I went to one of my best friends from third grade, Tucker Ballister.  A successful freelance writer, blogger, and online resource who is the perfect guy to ask for suggestions.  He recommended a platform such as a website, blog, youtube channel, and shared some valuable knowledge which helped me get started. Thank you Tucker for the helpful information and the push to get my website into the online world.  So that is where we are today, the first steps of building a website to share my story and experiences gained in the last 6 years of endless summer! Keep posted for more stories of my past experiences, current passions and my dream vision of operating an organic farm/ retreat space as a build a platform in which i can take my leap of faith.

Update 5/1:

Taking advantage of a weeklong housesitting opportunity in the Shell Beach oasis to put some time and energy into this book project.  I am currently working on the story line and getting my final concepts on paper.  I have really enjoyed the recollection and reliving of precious moments and experiences as well as the writing and creation process of tying together my 6 years of chasing summer.  Keep an open eye out for more info as I am hoping to have this project finished by the end of summer 2019.

Lots of love

Jabronie Joe