Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

Wishing everyone a very Happy Holiday and a very Merry Christmas! May your holiday be filled with love, adventure and God's Blessing.

Love from,

Beth and the Adventure Woman Basecamp Family

I Love You So Much Austin!

Austin, Texas is Fantabulous!

Looking for a fun and exciting spot to visit? Check out Austin, Texas. The city is young and hip. The musicians are everywhere and you'll fall in love with the live music. Joe's Coffee is a great place to hang with friends and grab a cuppa Joe while listening to the local groups jam (see, the photo of the Love You So Much wall at Joe's Coffee).

The vintage boutiques are wonderful and a fun place to search for your next great unusual piece of clothing or furniture. And of course, the other specialty boutiques are 'to die for.'

The restaurants are fantastic and you can spend an entire week just eating your way through Austin. The BBQ, the wings, the unexpected, yet delicious, breakfast joints are all worth the extra pounds. And check out the Whole Foods (the headquarters is in Austin). This grocery store is amazing. Check out the goats cheese with jalapeno basil spread. Un-f@%*ing -believable!

Adventure Woman Loves Antioch University Los Angeles

If you wanna be a writer and you're looking for a fantastic MFA Program in Creative Writing you should check out Antioch University in Los Angeles. This low residency program is consistently ranked one of the top in the Unites States and for good reason. The instructors are excellent, the guest speakers/writers are inspiring and the structure of the program is flexible, yet intensive. The atmosphere really fosters comradeship and mutual support among students. There are several genres to choose from (fiction, young adult fiction, poetry and nonfiction) or you can have a dual or mixed concentration. This is the real deal and a writer's haven. If you have a novel or nonfiction book waiting to come out - this is the place to go.

Adventure Woman Loves the Film, One Winter's Story

One Winter Story

The inspiring journey of big-wave pioneer and scientist Sarah Gerhardt

A Film By Sally Lundburg & Elizabeth Pepin

Sarah Gerhardt (Livermore) is an unlikely world-class surfer and pioneer. But her unpredictable rise to surf stardom is one of the many things that make this hour long documentary so fascinating. Growing up poor Sarah was often without a school lunch, and to make matters even worse, she was often without a friend. Picked on at school she would return home to painstakingly take care of her handicapped mother who suffered from MS.

Her father was out at sea for eleven months at a time and her sister had been sent to boarding school. Sarah, who seemed to have by-passed childhood for a third-class ticket to adulthood, appears imprisoned by her unforgiving circumstances. But when her mother eventually manages to get a job, and the basketball court and a science teacher offer self-confidence and encouragement, she manages to take the reins of her own life and ride off in another direction (namely big waves). It is not surprising given her onerous upbringing that Sarah cites the feeling of “freedom” as the primary reason she loves to surf.

The fact that Sarah becomes a fun-loving woman, a Ph.D., and an iconic surfer and role model is inspiring to anyone who watches the film, One Winter’s Story. But the emotional electricity of the documentary is the raw jolt of honesty found in Sarah’s memories, intimate glimpses into her roller-coaster, off-beat life that is brilliantly edited and deftly depicted against a backdrop of visually engaging and moving cinematography.

The highlight of the film is when Sarah becomes the first woman in the world to ride Mavericks, one of the world’s biggest waves, and also know for its dangerous rocks and lethal sharks (located in Northern California). Her courage and talent sky-rocket her into surf-stardom, and there she still remains sparkling as a radiant female ground-breaker and authentic surf pioneer.

Sarah’s story is remarkable, but the film itself is beautifully crafted and captures not only phenomenal surf footage but the soul of a woman who found her salivation riding the world’s biggest waves when no one else thought it was possible. This is a story of hardship, struggle, sacrifice and success. There is deep grieving and enlightened glory. The film ebbs and flows as you follow Sarah’s life, and like Mavericks; it’s a powerful ride.

Adventure Woman Reviews the Film Classic, A League of Their Own

A League of Their Own

Film Review

This 1992, classic movie is still wildly entertaining today. It has a star-studded cast featuring Geena Davis, Rosie O’Donnell, Madonna, and Tom Hanks. Penny Marshall (of Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley fame) directed the film.

The story is loosely based on the real All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, and the 1943 Rockford Peaches (an Illinois women’s baseball team). However, the characters are fictionalized, but this does not stop from making an entertaining and compelling movie about a real women’s professional sports team.

The movie was a huge success in 1992, and hit #1 at the box office. The story of two sisters from Oregon leaving the farm to play baseball during the WWII era doesn’t sound like a predictable box office smash, but it proved to be full of enough sassiness, sex appeal and sports lore to seduce audiences worldwide. The film grossed over 130 million on a 40 million dollar budget.

Catcher, Dottie (Geena Davie) and her pitcher, sister Kit (Lori Petty) share an intense loyalty and sibling rivalry. The film orbits around these central characters with the Peaches Manager and alcoholic former baseball great Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks), and tough talking Doris (Rosie O’Donnell) and All the way Mae (Madonna) providing plenty of drama.

While the girls can play serious ball, they are still sexed-up in short skirts to bring in audiences. Dottie actually catches a ball while doing the splits to capture the cover of Life Magazine and ensure the continuation of a struggling women’s league. There is conflict, competition, but also an amble share of camaraderie. The film is fun but has depth and tells an interesting story.

The story is told in a poignant book-ended flashback, and reveals the special moments and lifelong bonds of “sisterhood” both on the playing field and within a family. This classic is well worth watching with a cold soda and a bucket of warm buttered popcorn.

Adventure Woman Loves the Union Station Hotel!

Union Station Hotel
Nashville, Tennessee

Image the glamor and elegance of a bygone age when well-dressed travelers gathered in ornate train stations with monogrammed steamer trunks and dreams of exotic destinations. Open your eyes and if you’re lucky you’ll find yourself standing in the exquisite lobby of the Union Station Hotel in Nashville.

This luxury hotel was formerly a 19th-Century railroad station and is replete with Italian marble, intricate wood carvings, gold-leaf accents, limestone fireplaces and a lobby with 65-foot vaulted ceilings and prism stained glass. Mae West traveled through these beautiful corridors as did mobster Al Capone on his way to the penitentiary. Remarkably, at one time the station housed two alligator ponds.
The railroad station originally opened in 1900, but was converted to a hotel in 1986. In 1977, it became a National Historic Landmark. Union Station Hotel underwent an $11 million dollar renovation in 2007, and now combines the best of history with modern-day comfort and amenities.

There are 125 guest rooms at the hotel, each having high ceilings, panoramic windows, and marble bathrooms (with complimentary Gilchrist & Soames bath products). Additionally, all rooms have a LCD flat screen television and wifi. Union Station also features the fine dining restaurant, Prime 108, as well as in room dining. www.unionstationhotelnashville.com

If you go let us know: Submit@AdventureWoman.com and visit Adventure Woman!