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Inspirations2023-03-09T14:35:30-08:00

The Stanford Inn & Resort ~ Inspirations

Enjoy these inspirations blog penned by Jeff and Joan Stanford, Sid Garza-Hillman, and occasional Guest Writers. A treasury of thoughtful insights as well as guidance on the challenges and joys of daily life.

2701, 2024

Jeff & Joan Message: Signs of Spring

Winter has descended on much of the country. People hunker down, finding cozy corners in front of fireplaces, with a comforter, perhaps a book. Here, it is different: Nature [...]

1509, 2023

Jeff & Joan Message: Hummingbird Hawk-moth

VISITOR FROM ANOTHER CONTINENT! Last week we had a first time visitor dining on our garden’s Agapanthus africanus (white lily of the Nile) – a hummingbird hawk-moth or Macroglossum [...]

1509, 2023

Jeff & Joan Message: September Beginnings

  Beginnings & Anniversary September marks the end of summer when structure replaces “freer” days. Before shifting back to routines, we take time to consider what do we most [...]

1208, 2023

Jeff & Joan Message: Meet Pepper

Welcome Pepper! As you know, at the Stanford Inn we love all animals, but especially our dogs, cats, and all the amazing pets our guests bring to the resort. [...]

1406, 2023

Joan & Jeff Message: Thoughtful Meditation

Here's a short Meditation Jeff sometimes mentions when teaching his "What Meditation Isn't" class at the resort's wellness center. Meditation is not necessarily a solo pursuit nor is it [...]

2403, 2023

Joan & Jeff Message: Welcome Spring

"You can cut all the flowers, but you cannot keep spring from coming." - Pablo Neruda ~ Trees are in bud and bloom, fat robins hopping and days lengthening: [...]

803, 2023

Joan & Jeff Message: Breathe Easy

Celebrate the Air! Mendocino's air is magnificent, cleansed by sun and sea spray over 5,000 miles of Pacific Ocean. And, when we first arrived, the Coast air was a [...]

302, 2023

Joan & Jeff Message: Travel Light

Happy February Let's face it - there is an environmental cost to any and all travel, but we believe it is imperative we all look for ways to minimize that [...]

1912, 2022

Joan & Jeff Message: Happy Holidays

It is the season of expectation and excitement. It is wonderful to see in the kids who are at the Inn. And the holidays are about more: sharing experiences [...]

512, 2022

The Prius Effect

By Sid Garza-Hillman For the record, I’m not anti-Prius and not just because Joan Stanford drives one…but… “The Prius Effect” is a phrase I coined after many years of [...]

1008, 2022

The Stanford Inn & Resort ~ The Ultimate Destination for Pets

Stanford Inn by the Sea ~ Featured on CABBI.com https://cabbi.com/blog/12-most-pet-friendly-boutique-hotels-and-bbs-in-california/ Perched on a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean, The Stanford Inn by the Sea is a luxurious eco-friendly haven [...]

2007, 2022

Joan & Jeff Message: An Antidote to Fatigue

A getaway is often inspirational and energizing, but other times, we are more tired than before we left – especially from those visits to "exciting” destinations. Perhaps because we [...]

2701, 2022

The Art of Connection: Valentine’s Day 2022

Valentine's Day is a celebration of relationship, founded in love, a term that resists definition. Love is more than pheromones or the qualities of a partner's hair, their physique, their [...]

711, 2021

Ravens’ Recipe: Wild Mushroom and Spinach Roulade

Stanford Inn’s Ravens Restaurant presents: A favorite holiday entrée that can be made ahead and frozen. Served with roasted Brussels sprouts and/or roasted baby carrots, this dish is elegant, colorful, and [...]

2710, 2021

Personal Growth: Prepare Yourself for Wisdom

"Those who possess wisdom cannot just ladle it out to every wantwit and jackanapes who comes along and asks for it. A person must be prepared to receive wisdom, [...]

2310, 2021

The Gift of Health

The Stanford Inn is the kind of place we would all build if we were as singled-minded, as energetic, as creative as the Stanford family. The Inn is wonderful!!” [...]

309, 2021

Pandemic Reflections: Change Your Mind

This past year and a half gave us an opportunity to open to nature, attending to movement and changes with the seasons that we had failed to notice when [...]

1008, 2021

According to Sid: The Mind & Body Connection

This is Sid. I LOVE teaching classes at the resort and working with clients — teaching nutrition, cooking, and my small steps approach to health and happiness. [...]

Mendocino, California

Mendocino sits atop beautiful ocean bluffs surrounded on three sides by Mendocino Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The bluffs comprise the Mendocino Headlands and offer walking trails that afford incredible views of the ocean and the lovingly restored 1850’s New England style Victorians which now house restaurants, specialty shops, galleries and provide lodging for Mendocino artists.

The Mendocino Art Center serves area artists as well as artists throughout the United States. All this is the nature of Mendocino, located about 150 miles north of San Francisco on Highway 1.

Besides the natural beauty, visitors to Mendocino will find a variety of things to see and do.

Hikers and mountain bikers enjoy bluff-top excursions to view seabirds, the seasonal gray whale migration and spring wildflowers. Nearby Big River Beach is ideal for family picnics and Big River is an ecological treasure which is easily explored by canoe or kayak which can be rented at Catch A Canoe & Bicycles, too! Montgomery Woods up Comptche Ukiah Road offers virgin redwood groves with the tallest living tree in the world.Redwoods and Douglas Firs dominate the Russian Gulch State Park as well as other nearby State Parks including Van Damme and Hendy Woods. Many of these parks allow dogs on their trails. And at MacKerricher State Park Lari Shea offer horseback riding along the beach.

Mendocino is the perfect destinations for gay and lesbian travelers as Mendocino is gay-friendly. Stanford Inn provides gay-friendly lodging, massage and vegetarian dining. Mendocino is truly a special destination – it is the “wine country coast” with Anderson Valley wineries within only twenty minutes drive and Sonoma’s fine wineries just an hour south.

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