Who We Are

It's been two weeks since the 2011 Retreat, one of the more distinctive ones in memory. Fewer people meant longer conversations and more time in the kitchen. We ate very well, from Kit's homemade chili, Janet's squash stew and Terrie's cornbread on Friday to Alison Blessing's English muffin/egg concoctions with their veggie counterparts at Sunday's brunch. In between was Saturday's dinner, an omnivore's delight featuring grilled pork, baked salmon, grilled vegetables, quinoa salad and risotto primavera, all prepared at the ranch by many helping hands. Menu designers included at least one vegetarian, Grace, who made sure there were plenty of fresh veggies and protein options. We ate freshly, organically, sustainably and quite locally, with a heavenly syrup (another of Alison's concoctions) made with huckleberries picked that day at the ranch, served with chocolate cake on Saturday.

Thirty adults, two teenagers, one little kid and two dogs. Neither ping pong nor volleyball; not even poker. Instead there was berry picking, Kit's big Saturday hike over the property, high tide and vigorous surf at the beach; drinking, games, drinking games, s'mores; free time to unwind. There was primal gathering around the Webers where Jorge tended the fire and minded the pork while Art, Sal, David, Grace, Terrie, Janet and others grilled bushels of vegetables. Saturday night, our emcee Brian, assisted by his lovely daughter Aanika, entertained with an indie film about getting to know your audience. More than just a rhetorical question, the answer to "Who are we?" occupied the evening. Brian discovered a freaky dimension to Jorge's tee shirt design which, when worn, interacted with the wearer's DNA to direct the scanning device beyond the office's website to the individual's alter ego. Grace rounded out the theme with a trivia quiz designed to reveal things that matter about one another, e.g. first car, unique talent and what you wanted to be when you grew up. Guess who wanted to be a clown? That would be Terrie, who now fills the "big shoes" of previous recipients of the Spirit of the Retreat Award as this year's winner.

Many thanks to everyone for making this year's retreat so memorable. Special shout out to Miyo and Jack who returned to the Retreat after several years' absence and made the delicious baked salmon with arugula pesto. We discovered a lot about one another in work and in play. Hope to see everyone there next year!