tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-63408360731457829002024-03-13T08:48:12.697-07:00Girl Gone WildDancer, writer, and scientist; I am an urban girl and an outdoorswoman. A little piece of the world from where I stand. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.comBlogger345125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-53399378087727251862015-04-05T13:42:00.000-07:002015-04-05T13:42:12.675-07:00Swing Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Note.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Every spring an interactive, musical art installation goes up in Montreal. 21 Swings, by the design group Daily Tous Les Jours challenges us to reevaluate our definitions of art and play and the role of collaboration in the making of interesting and beautiful things. Often, in our drive for success or accolades we forget that without the help of those around us, we are really only playing a solitary note. We forget that competition and jealousy may prevent us from realizing creating something larger. Today, make something with someone.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Watch:</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://vimeo.com/dailytouslesjours/21balancoires">https://vimeo.com/dailytouslesjours/21balancoires</a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo Courtesy of:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.popscreen.com/v/72zzS/21-Balan%C3%A7oires-21-Swings"><span style="font-size: x-small;">http://www.popscreen.com/v/72zzS/21-Balan%C3%A7oires-21-Swings</span></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-89151828706213106442015-01-09T14:14:00.001-08:002015-01-09T14:14:39.475-08:00Girl Gone Wild Is Moving!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6340836073145782900" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjklfLEcVJ-HwD6b_J17WyDVny2N3o_ylri2SLAb3n_U1BtbcX-fzfp4oWIYBKf6voMiGNttT-oemAkzmHdsK4ZwFK3_ftAqdpgd6FjsfUl-ZfnfylQCf1qepxx8GMk0v2rY7EcqupZaWg/s1600/IMG_1450.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjklfLEcVJ-HwD6b_J17WyDVny2N3o_ylri2SLAb3n_U1BtbcX-fzfp4oWIYBKf6voMiGNttT-oemAkzmHdsK4ZwFK3_ftAqdpgd6FjsfUl-ZfnfylQCf1qepxx8GMk0v2rY7EcqupZaWg/s1600/IMG_1450.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Yep.</div>
<br />
So the little blog that could is moving on, at least beginning to, anyway. The "people who say so" have decided it is time to migrate to a site all my own, where I can let folks know about the book, upcoming readings, and new publications, all in the same place. So keep reading, but start heading over to:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.rubymcconnell.com/">http://www.rubymcconnell.com/</a><br />
<br />
Catch you on the flip side...Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-34046110194910599142014-12-19T09:45:00.002-08:002014-12-19T10:25:39.427-08:00Tiny Fascinations<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnx_1Xtfqw_c6-4oqsyPZuPINYd2Pv5U2tacfCGWBKrPdb-64faFagFKO5cgb-Xh7pWrgM1RALvYNTcdn6hif7_4DjExv4nS6-foZQEvqkkhRbLPsUCssZ991xq87QLci4LQUPX3uK6ZI/s1600/20141212_181303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnx_1Xtfqw_c6-4oqsyPZuPINYd2Pv5U2tacfCGWBKrPdb-64faFagFKO5cgb-Xh7pWrgM1RALvYNTcdn6hif7_4DjExv4nS6-foZQEvqkkhRbLPsUCssZ991xq87QLci4LQUPX3uK6ZI/s1600/20141212_181303.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Shiny.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The dark days of winter are made a little easier, for me, by other peoples Christmas lights. The people in my neighborhood appear to be particularly insane in this respect, which I love. We are bounded on one side by the super-Christian college campus with its enormous illuminated cross that can be seen from halfway across town and the uber-rich estates that have a seemingly decades-long rivalry to see who can put up the most extravagant display. In the middle though, where the common people live, is a hidden street of mainstream American Christmas gone totally wrong. Think National Lampoons, but with moving, mechanical, inflatables. House after house on this particular street has its yard filled with billowing snowmen and light-up nutcrackers. Gone too, are the simple strings of lights outlining the roof, these people re-side their homes and encase their shrubbery dense nets of mismatched lights. It is American consumerism, keeping up with the Joneses and missing the point all rolled into one.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
And I love it.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Head for the side streets and back roads before the season ends, it does wonders for the holiday spirit. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-8559544089737978542014-12-11T11:41:00.002-08:002014-12-11T11:41:42.165-08:00Something To Watch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTHTEXMlrmtWu-5PHFONEr-tNa0ikP2PjEfMxHH3yqelVtZQKbc5A6PjLTps4ZF7ZvS6Bd8Lum2_-tLQMAeN2pR8MbkbduvNjhUUnePI5l39G5MRdZ1xzN0tbE3am6gSRGXSaM5U4bttA/s1600/IMG_0718.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTHTEXMlrmtWu-5PHFONEr-tNa0ikP2PjEfMxHH3yqelVtZQKbc5A6PjLTps4ZF7ZvS6Bd8Lum2_-tLQMAeN2pR8MbkbduvNjhUUnePI5l39G5MRdZ1xzN0tbE3am6gSRGXSaM5U4bttA/s1600/IMG_0718.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Entertainment.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I will admit to being far outside the mainstream in terms of media. I rarely see movies in the theaters, play no video games, take no interest in online videos, viral or not, and have not owned a television in years. But it's not like I live in a cave. There is still Netflix and Redbox, what should be plenty of choices for anyone. But one night this week while searching for a movie to watch, The Guy, who loves a good thriller and anything involving a sociopath announced that he was giving up.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
"There's plenty to watch, but it's all getting to be a bit much, isn't it?'</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
And he's right. It is a bit much. Too much violence, too many serial killers, battle scenes, rampant viruses, and ways to end life as we know it. It isn't so much that we object to it based on moral values or because we think its warping young people (though those are probably great reasons too) its just, boring. We've seen so much violence and sex and conflict as entertainment that its far less than shocking, its normal. Which it shouldn't be. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Violence should be shocking. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
So this season, we are taking a step back, filling our minds and idle time with music and books and movies that rely on story, rather than shock value, for entertainment. We are going to back classics and old favorites and going to bed early without staring into a screen first. We are letting our season fill with joy. Its a good thing.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Watch:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCFCeJTEzNU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCFCeJTEzNU</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-5079356679737200852014-12-05T10:26:00.002-08:002014-12-05T10:26:49.929-08:00Tell It Slant<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2E-Pe85EJ_Dhu0DQl4TSrc97kLjHdojK4xQnKW0KVnvHRQoioPlG-LMXph_kmAu1SzYDetd4iwtMupPwxGOCpqOrzFaGTOKah6aJovC8Fdns48q13Bu8RPV6uW0_fbWJfg617fhgiIE/s1600/20140529_181959.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2E-Pe85EJ_Dhu0DQl4TSrc97kLjHdojK4xQnKW0KVnvHRQoioPlG-LMXph_kmAu1SzYDetd4iwtMupPwxGOCpqOrzFaGTOKah6aJovC8Fdns48q13Bu8RPV6uW0_fbWJfg617fhgiIE/s1600/20140529_181959.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Read.</div>
<br />
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to read some of my work at an event called Tell It Slant in Portland. What made this event special was that I got read alongside my mother, who in her 7th decade has gracefully, and successfully, become a poetess.<br />
<br />
The theme for the evening was 'Bloodlines', and both of us brought work concerning ourselves, and our mothers. We had a wonderful time, and were truly surprised by the positive response we received, not just about our writing, but about us, the way we were with one another, and the way we write about each other. It was validating, and a good reminder of the value of family.<br />
<br />
Do not stop being astonished by your parents, they may surprise you yet.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-60107082206084425352014-11-26T14:48:00.001-08:002014-12-01T16:07:02.272-08:00Gear Guide III- Home On The Range<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6rTZMY3Iem9cwPJ_Rgt0XXlG0I042GhdJC826mmFMqXcVTaMHQewC5K6DUxiktHbPkJkD4PA9vVrIUdStvQGN0QGLOouL7A7eryrAfOl6LJTXRy6D4UUPr2eiGzexXx9OCpeeqiIMkE/s1600/207644_1038227272330_3710_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI6rTZMY3Iem9cwPJ_Rgt0XXlG0I042GhdJC826mmFMqXcVTaMHQewC5K6DUxiktHbPkJkD4PA9vVrIUdStvQGN0QGLOouL7A7eryrAfOl6LJTXRy6D4UUPr2eiGzexXx9OCpeeqiIMkE/s1600/207644_1038227272330_3710_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Sleep.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The last
installment of my gear guide, just in time for the holidays. Happy
hunting!</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Part 3: Odds and Ends</b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Water Purifying-
21<sup>st</sup> Century-Style</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Oh my goodness I
have spent a lot of time crouched at the edge of a stream pumping
water through a filter. Hours. Maybe even days. Really, a lot of
time. I have also drank more than my fair share of iodized water,
often only sort of improved by the addition of vitamin C or powdered
sports drink and patiently boiled water each evening for use the
following day. I have too, foolishly, and not since my youth, drank
directly from all kinds of streams. Clean drinking water can be a
pain in the butt, regardless of how important it may be. That's just
how it is, a chore's a chore.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Unless, like me,
you have been out of the loop for a while. I have grown so used to
filtering when touring that it never occurred to me to look for an
alternative. Apparently, I haven't checked for about 15 years. And
twelve years ago, a product called Steripen hit the market. It uses
ultra violet light to sterilize water. It's small, lightweight, and
incredibly fast and easy. Press the button, stick in water, wait
briefly. Amazing. I really wish that this had been around for field
work in Mexico.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The irony of a
product like this is that there's no real way to prove how well it
works other than by the evidence of your own body. So far, so good.
But Steripen has a good reputation among long-distance tourers and
thru hikers and has been around long enough to prove that it works,
its really pretty great. I have heard from some that they can be
fragile and need to be packed carefully in a side or top pocket to
avoid being broken, but beyond that, its a great alternative to other
forms of water purification.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Don't throw out
your filter though. Steripens may make the water safe to drink in
terms of critters, but it doesn't remove particles like clay and
silt. Use your hand filter in deserts and other areas with cloudy
water in addition to any chemical treatment.
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.steripen.com/" style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;" target="_blank">www.steripen.com</a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Kit</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
It has been a long time since I have
owned a formal first aid kit. I have pretty much always made-do with
plastic bags filled with supplies that I would periodically replace
or refill. Whenever I have owned a first aid kit they have been
purchased from the local drug store and largely geared towards
household bumps, scrapes, and burns, rather than emergency wilderness
care. The older I get, the more important that difference becomes. So
this year I checked out the options and discovered that weren't
actually very many. A lot of what is out there is a little bit of
overkill for anyone doing less than a week in the back country. What
I was interested in was something that was comprehensive enough for a
week of car camping or a short backpacking trip and still small
enough to throw into a day pack.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I ended up trying out the ultralight
travel kit from Adventure Medical Ultralight and Watertight .5</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/medical-kits/ultralight-watertight-5.html">http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/medical-kits/ultralight-watertight-5.html</a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
It's, you know, a first aid kit. And a
really good one. That it comes in a bright yellow pouch is a plus,
especially if someone besides you is looking for it in your pack. The
real cool thing about it is how customizable their kits are in
general, there are tons of different versions and it's nice to know
that a health professional has gone over the list. You still have to
clean it out and refill it every so often, but if you are one of
those people walking around with little more than a grubby band aid
floating around in your pack, pony up and buy a kit, for peace of
mind if nothing else.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Tent Hammock</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
By far the coolest thing I have seen by
way of new, or at least new to me, gear is the Hennessy Tent Hammock.
Hennessy isn't the only company out there making tent hammocks, or
camping hammocks in general, but they are doing it better than just
about anybody. I had vaguely heard about such things in the past, but
it wasn't until a friend and Appalachian Trail thru hiker mentioned
to me that she had given up her traditional tent entirely for a tent
hammock halfway through the trip that I began to take them seriously.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
They are really wicked cool. And
hammocks come with a bunch of advantages. You will never again sleep
on uneven ground or with tree roots digging into your back, they are
warmer in winter, and cooler in summer, lighter than regular tents,
and don't come with awkward and heavy poles and stakes and they can
be used as comfortable seating. Mostly, they are insanely
comfortable, which is pretty much the most important thing.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
But. There are a couple of things.
First, I had to watch not one but four videos to figure out how to
really use the thing, rain fly and all, and I'm pretty sure there are
things I'm still not doing properly. And, there is the tree problem.
You know, the part where you have to be camping someplace with trees
of an appropriate size and distance to one another to make it
feasible to pitch your hammock. Not such a big deal really, unless
you are in the desert, or maybe grasslands. I haven't had mine for
very long, but I am still trying to find the balance between
separation distance, tree diameter, and how much cord I have to hang
it, it feels like a bit much, but so can setting up any new tent. I
am hoping it sets up faster as I get used to it.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
They do seem to be every bit as sturdy
and water tight as any other kid of tent, even more so when you
eliminate ground seep and flooding problems and Hennessy has lots of
options for bells and whistles from ultra lite models to full fledged
tents with thick insulation pads. Again, pretty much too cool. Check
back in another six months to hear how it makes through the winter
camping season.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://hennessyhammock.com/">http://hennessyhammock.com/</a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
And that's it! Now go update your gear.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-66737638356694414252014-11-24T08:06:00.000-08:002014-11-24T08:06:28.098-08:00Gear Guide II- A Decent Cup Of Joe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZPt0g2YUgeeJqce4EXOzAEmrGejSTNM4fVNvpqx6CiwPgGiFHDlnK-dOpa_o8uYz1EHNAQjCDj9j0JxCgGOCCYqWAgwBMCqoHF1NjvIu5YtAM0tv_UosY2SX7VwJceVPemo9WgQjzRo/s1600/P7260438.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqZPt0g2YUgeeJqce4EXOzAEmrGejSTNM4fVNvpqx6CiwPgGiFHDlnK-dOpa_o8uYz1EHNAQjCDj9j0JxCgGOCCYqWAgwBMCqoHF1NjvIu5YtAM0tv_UosY2SX7VwJceVPemo9WgQjzRo/s1600/P7260438.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Cook.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
A continuation of
my adventures in new gear. For the background to this series read
this:</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Part 2: The Kitchen Gadgets</b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The only thing I
really need in order to be happy outside, at least in terms of food
and drink, is a hot, strong cup of coffee in the morning. For years
(like 15) I have used a camp french press in the style of old plastic
travel mugs made by Big Sky Brewing. I have wandered in my affection
during that time, sure, trying single-cup drips and small
Italian-style espresso pots, but I pretty much always come back to
the french press. This year, I went in search of an update for both
my brewing system, and my travel mug, which was of the cheap,
whatever you find at whatever store you happen to be in variety.
Meaning that it leaks, falls apart, and keeps my coffee warm for
about two seconds. I like to set a low bar.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Brew</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I tried all manner
of outside coffee makers, including making single serve 'coffee bags'
by tying up coffee filters filled with grounds with kitchen string,
every portable drip system I could find, and even a plastic french
press or two. But I kept going back to my Big Sky Bistro original.
Eventually though, the nice people from Planetary Design sent me an
alternative.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Planetary Design
makes coffee and tea presses and travel mugs in addition to kitchen
storage containers. While they make larger presses, they sent me the
travel mug double shot version. It was a little smaller than the Big
Sky version, but it was made of stainless steel, and a much nicer
design, especially in the deep green that I have. The press works
well, though I would prefer a larger cup, especially if I need to use
it to make coffee for two or three on the trail. But for just myself,
it made a pretty good cup of coffee. Better than the press feature
though, is the cup itself. It actually comes with a warning label
about how hot the contents are kept, and they mean it. There's no
heat being lost through that mug. I've never seen anything like it.
There is no doubt that you can keep your cup of coffee hot for a long
time even while snow camping with their gear. Though for your average
summer weather, it does seem like a bit of dangerous overkill. The
other odd feature of the press/mug is that the bottom has a hidden
compartment that screws off, presumably to hold an extra dose of
grounds or packets of creamer and sugar, but given how much of the
total volume of the mug it takes up, and hot hot the contents are
kept, it seems like an unnecessary feature. Also, it doesn't apply
very well to the outdoors,what's the point of having extra grounds at
hand if you still have to unpack and set up your stove to boil water?
Most of the people I show it to mention that it looks like a great
place to keep your stash.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I also received
the Commuter French Press/Mug from GSI Outdoors. I actually had to
watch this Youtube video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1u7s3cfEJY">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1u7s3cfEJY</a>
to understand how to work this product, but once I did, it was
pretty easy to use. Instead of the traditional plunger, this mug is
nested, with the removable inner cup acting as the press. It's a
clever design and a nicely balanced, large travel mug that 's a good
cup of coffee. It doesn't lend itself to sharing as it doesn't pour
well, but that's not its real intention. What's great about it is
that it keeps your coffee ground free, but I found that the pieces
can be difficult to separate, especially if you like your coffee
strong and use a lot of grounds. The biggest selling point is that it
is leak-free, I was able to pack it in a pack and ride my bike with
it safely stowed and completely filled.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
In the end, I
decided that for brewing at camp and with more than one person, Big
Sky is still the best bet. But Planetary Designs is making some great
mugs, and their features seem to be of more benefit to tea drinkers
and GSI is great for single-person use. All o f them make a stronger,
hotter cup of camp coffee that other techniques.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://planetarydesign.com/products/double-shot-french-press-travel-mug/">http://planetarydesign.com/products/double-shot-french-press-travel-mug/</a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
In another
coffee-related development, the folks over at GSI started offering a
camp-kitchen coffee mill last spring, and it's really pretty great.
It's small, sturdy, hand powered and a great addition to any car
camping kitchen. It's heavy, so I wouldn't recommend in for touring,
even it it is super compact and you are a devoted coffee aficionado.
Hang onto the instructions when you first unpack it, it's not as self
explanatory as it seems, it took me three or four tries before I
really remembered how to use it, but it isn't complicated either.
What I love best about this product is that it lets me store whole
beans in my camp bin and grind them fresh in the morning instead of
relying on stale grounds that are prone to absorbing moisture. It is
far from a necessity, and really edging towards glamping, but it is
the best stocking stuffer idea for outdoors people that I've seen in
a long time.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://gsioutdoors.com/products/pdp/javamill/coffee">http://gsioutdoors.com/products/pdp/javamill/coffee</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-59317521904045171942014-11-17T15:52:00.000-08:002014-11-24T08:06:12.454-08:00Gear Guide I- What's The Expiration Date On That?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwZ6qZs213Kcsa0xIqt23Sw5EpZXy2U2hXybeZIaMef0N9KDkibE-s7IAbSzk2_h-LHbsKmlw2bg6WUt4OO9Iw5-waKRgxQt3jX_oO3U2GuNak772WwK6mrc-pdeYnJ-wChplOtJg5vbE/s1600/P7260441.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwZ6qZs213Kcsa0xIqt23Sw5EpZXy2U2hXybeZIaMef0N9KDkibE-s7IAbSzk2_h-LHbsKmlw2bg6WUt4OO9Iw5-waKRgxQt3jX_oO3U2GuNak772WwK6mrc-pdeYnJ-wChplOtJg5vbE/s1600/P7260441.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
Gear.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
There is nothing like writing a book
about camping to force you to take a good look at your own gear.
First and foremost, I love my gear. Every piece I have is functional,
multi-season, and well tested. A lot of it is also more than ten
years old. Wow. I have no idea how that happened. It seems like only
a few years ago that I was making fun of my Dad for still using a 30
year old set of fishing poles and a similarly ancient Coleman camp
stove. As I recall, his response was along the lines of, who cares?
It still works doesn't it?</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Which happens to be true. Really good
outdoor gear shouldn't have to be replaced but every so often, when
your needs change, something tragic and destructive happens, or it
just gets so dirty and worn out that you can't handle it anymore. I
will be the first to admit that this year, upon inspection, most of
my gear is functional, but also well past ratty. There are day packs
crusted with fifteen years of dust, sleeping pads with slow leaks,
down jackets with broken zippers and unidentifiable stains, and a
coffee press I think I have been using since undergrad. I had also
heard that there had been some improvements in the ten or so years
that I was out of the loop. So I figured that what with the book and
all, it was time to spend some time and money testing out some new
gear.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Between birthday gifts, a sizable
investment in my own updating, and some very generous donations from
outdoor companies looking for real-person reviews I finished the
summer season with an abundance of shiny new outdoor toys, and a lot
of ten year old gear that proved it still has it where it counts.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The very best of what I found has
landed in the book, along with interviews with the designers and
innovators that created them. You'll have to wait a bit for those,
but there were a lot of great products that I didn't have space to
highlight in the book but still deserve to be mentioned before
everyone starts buying for the holidays.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Part 1: The Clothing</b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Thirteen years ago
I bought my first vest, a rust-red Patagonia fleece with a pink
collar and zippered pockets. And I loved it. Today it is still my
go-to for all kinds of cold weather, but after years of washing (or
not) it has started to lose it's shape and take on dirt that just
doesn't come out. It is also an inch or two shorter than it was,
which is likely due to my sticking it in the dryer, but still. Maybe
time for a replacement. While looking for outerwear I also decided
that my puffy coat, a raspberry pink down jacket by REI, while only
three years old, was looking a little thin and had picked up some
stains as well, and since I wear it all the time, three years seemed
like a good time for an update. And lastly, my Helly Hanson rain
gear, which I have had since 2007 and love more than any other piece
of gear, finally started to deteriorate on me entirely, forming
cracks and fissures in the water proofing.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So I went and
tried on every fleece vest, puffy coat, and set of rain jackets and
pants I could find, including the no-name brands they sell in places
like Bi-Mart. Here's what I ended up with (notice I didn't manage to
stick to just jackets).</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Vest</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
My fleece vest got
replaced with one from Columbia Sportswear, its a little thinner than
what I had, but comes farther down my back while still fitting
comfortably around my hips. I the thinner fleece makes it layer a
little easier, and I choose a basic black, which can be a hard color
to find in outdoor gear, so that I can wear it around town with
whatever I have on. It's pockets still zip, it comes with great
Columbia manufacturing, and it was about 30% cheaper than other
outdoor brands.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Puffy Coat</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Honestly, as long
as you are comparing down (or synthetic down) jackets of a similar
thickness/heat rating, there really isn't very much difference, even
the colors are the same from one company to another. Except in fit,
which if you are only planning on wearing it under a snow jacket or
rain coat, doesn't really matter. But my problem, and the problem of
all the other women I saw trying on these jackets, is that they are
universally too tight across the hips, especially if you are wanting
to layer. The best fit at the right price, turned out to also be from
Columbia,go figure. The other thing I love about their jackets is
that they come with thumb hooks and are made out a a fabric that is
slightly more water resistant, extra important in the rainy
northwest.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Rain Gear</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Honestly, I'm
still looking. I have ordered two different versions from Helly
Hanson, but neither of them seems to be the deliciously soft fabric
that my old gear was. I am beginning to suspect that I am going to
have to drop some serious cash (like more than $300) on a set of rain
gear, which makes me sad. And wet.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Socks</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So, the last time
I remember spending money on actual outdoor socks was sometime in
graduate school. Like ten years ago. In their (and my) defense, they
are still around and kicking. I bought a few pairs of a couple of
kinds of synthetic hiking socks that picked up every piece of dust
and hair on every floor I walked across and a few pairs of truly
heavy-duty all-wool socks that made my feet itch and break out into a
rash. Both kinds kept my feet warm when wet, which was the ultimate
goal, and both were generally ill-fitting, sagging at the heels and
stretching out after a couple of hours of hiking. I lost a couple of
pairs to shrinking as well, because who has the time or energy to
sort your socks? I have done a lot of my hiking in sandals the past
few years.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
So when the really
friendly people at Point 6 were kind enough to send me some samples
of their products, I was skeptical. I had decided over the years that
hiking socks, generally priced well above $10 a pair, were something
of a scam. But then the really nice sock people called me, and talked
to me about their socks. And dang it, they were pretty convincing.
Point 6 uses merino wool blended nylon and a small amount of
spandex in those parts of the foot that need a little more stratch, which means that while still keeping your feet warm when
wet, they also hold their fit better and stretch right back into
shape when you pull them out of the dryer. And really, they are so
very very comfortable.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I actually
couldn't believe it. Socks were perhaps the last thing I would have
expected to see significant improvements over time, but there was an
actual notable difference in the comfort of my feet, especially when
I first made the transition from hiking sandals to closed-toe shoes,
the period in which I am most likely to get hot spots and blisters.
The medium weight is a great general socks, though perhaps a little
too warm for anything over about 60 degrees and the heavy weight boot
socks are thick and warm enough to be worn by themselves inside rain
boots and still keep your feet warm in below freezing temperatures.
They are not, in general, what I would call “fashion socks”. But
of all the gear that I have tested this year, the socks are the only
thing I would say are a new essential, especially the Point 6 brand,
which are more affordable than most, usually between $8 and 12
dollars a pair.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.point6.com/">http://www.point6.com/</a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Headband(s)</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I have super long
hair, so you would think that a head band might be overkill, but on
windy days outside, nothing can drive you mad faster than the wispy
ends of your hair ending up poking you in the eye or getting in your
mouth every few minutes. The seemingly simple solution? Wear a
headband. Here's the deal though, it is really hard to find a
headband that actually stays on your head if you are doing anything
more intense than needle point. Or that doesn't look like it's
designed for a six year old.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I have tried
everything from drug store headbands (Scunci wins there) to sports
headbands from brands like Nike and Adidas, to the super wide outdoor
headbands and head covers that have become popular over the last few
years, I think because of shows like Survivor? The one headband that
I found that prevents slipping without using a super tight rubber
band that can pull and break hair is Sweaty Bands. They aren't made
specifically for the outdoors, but they do have a line that is
designed especially for sports. And they work really well. The band
at the base of your skull still slips a bit, but that can be fixed
with a clip or wearing a low pony or braid. And, they come in tons
and tons of designs, so if you're picky, it's a good brand to go to.
You can get them online or pretty much anyplace that sells women's
clothing, from Target to Nordstrom's for $15.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.sweatybands.com/">http://www.sweatybands.com/</a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Anti-Chafe
Solution</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Here's a thing
that no one ever talks about. Chafing. You hear about it every so
often when someone runs a marathon or something, and I have had a
couple of run ins with it in very hot and humid environments, but
other than that, I never really thought much about it. Then I started
talking to other women, and it turns out it can be a real, and
constant, problem. And it doesn't just happen to women that are
overweight. I've talked to plenty of skinny chicks with sensitive
skin or a little extra at the upper thigh that suffer from it as
well. So I did a little digging and found this awesome blog post that
discusses the topic in detail and reviews every possible solution
<a href="http://www.xojane.com/healthy/chub-rub-thigh-chafing-solutions">http://www.xojane.com/healthy/chub-rub-thigh-chafing-solutions</a>.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Some of the
solutions are pretty scary, like non-stick cooking spray and powders
that gum up kind of scary. But I suppose it depends on how big of a
problem it is for you, for me, it's not something I regularly worry
about, so anything chemical was something of a turn off.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Two new products
that I did try were Bandelettes and Undersummers. Both of these
companies design physical barriers to chafing, really the best
solution of all those I encountered. Undersummers are basically slip
shorts. They are made of a light weight, breathable slip fabric and
are thin enough to wear as shorts under pretty much anything. They
were not as comfortable as wearing nothing under my summer dresses,
but they were certainly more comfortable than chafing. They also come
in a variety of colors and styles, so there might be versions that
were more comfortable than what I tried. They did a pretty good job
of staying place, not riding or rolling up from the base, but the
waist band was a little snugger than I would have liked, but again,
that might be personal preference.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Bandelettes are a
little different. They are basically the top portion of a pair of
thigh-high stockings, snug bands that fit around the widest part of
your thigh. They are actually kind of ingenious. And pretty. As long
as they fit. I tried a couple of different styles, one of which is
unisex, and preferred the lacy version designed for women, but had a
couple of friends try them as well with varying degrees of success.
Again, I think it has more to do with the balance between the
discomfort of chafing and the discomfort of having something around
your thighs and for that, either of these products is a simple and
easy solution.
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.bandelettes.com/">http://www.bandelettes.com/</a></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://undersummers.com/">http://undersummers.com/</a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-90900751982282753972014-11-15T08:10:00.002-08:002014-11-15T08:10:22.087-08:00Little House<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Tfw5zP6vZJ99DKHt1EGzHtyWq8Y09pauwYWUXKtVb_OVauqGcYfjX-uhm72zzeKfnUmNaIk7XPKK-_3eHYooi5AF1pqnzz9SvvE8o5kvHPFQYzFUkrz4AEWu-wNmzaEp0A9cgPErSgk/s1600/1916252_1465612116684_7992963_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Tfw5zP6vZJ99DKHt1EGzHtyWq8Y09pauwYWUXKtVb_OVauqGcYfjX-uhm72zzeKfnUmNaIk7XPKK-_3eHYooi5AF1pqnzz9SvvE8o5kvHPFQYzFUkrz4AEWu-wNmzaEp0A9cgPErSgk/s1600/1916252_1465612116684_7992963_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Read.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Occasionally I return to a book, or a series of books that impacted me in the past. For the last few weeks it has been the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. It had been more than 20 years since I had read the 'Little House' series and what I discovered is that more than being sweet stories of an idyllic and forgotten age, they are acute recountings of daily life, survival, and ecology from an era all but erased by the industrial and technological revolutions.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The books describe an alien world in which hard work is inevitable, and the nature of that work is largely determined by season and weather. In winter there is the harvesting of ice, large blocks cut by hand from the lake and hauled home to be stored, packed tight with straw in an outside shed til summer. With the thaw comes sugaring as the sap begins to flow into the trees. In spring and summer, there is plowing and planting and the early harvest. In fall, there is the hunt.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I wonder what it means that we have given up the connection between the rhythm of our daily lives and the rhythm of the world around us, that we no longer take responsibility for providing for our own sustenance in any kind of tangible way. How and why, in less than 150 years, have we changed so much of how we live? Is it servicing us? Or has it just blinded us from our ability to be content and have gratitude for hard earned pleasures?</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
A fiddle, a rag doll, an evening by the fire. It could be so simple.</div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-24053179692279378032014-11-11T09:58:00.001-08:002014-11-11T09:58:33.419-08:00What's The Score?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8vrz1snQRvem4Ei2T8hVbTqc0hE8g1BeVsay3YnRz0766s_UP1LWECvsDa3rHF1G0MxqkmPA_duDf7bizZ8uSp3xpvI7gIBbBel45HaetgZTXOaLAkzCh3sSrzcIuxU52gxgzWk9nz6U/s1600/33728_1466720903640_1102076127_31088828_1295758_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8vrz1snQRvem4Ei2T8hVbTqc0hE8g1BeVsay3YnRz0766s_UP1LWECvsDa3rHF1G0MxqkmPA_duDf7bizZ8uSp3xpvI7gIBbBel45HaetgZTXOaLAkzCh3sSrzcIuxU52gxgzWk9nz6U/s320/33728_1466720903640_1102076127_31088828_1295758_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Improvise.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Last week, nothing went as planned. It was a week of mishaps, things forgotten, cancellations, and miscommunications. Also at least one ruined pair of jeans in a laundry catastrophe, a broken but seemingly unnecessary car part, and the accidental flooding of a room of the house. Sigh. Not what I planned. Not how it was to go. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I may have chosen to sink into a foul mood, to shake my fist at the sky, take it out on those around me, or generally grump and moan. But it wouldn't have done any good. Regardless of our hopes and best-laid plans, life follows no rule books or direct paths. It hands us what it has to hand us,regardless of our agendas or how inconvenient it may be. It forces us to improvise based on a score to which we may not be privy. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
So this week, instead of forcing my own intentions and will upon the world, I choose to listen, look, and ask. What is the score? What is life handing me? What are the turning points and opportunities? What is the tempo of this week? How might I play along?</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There is only one dance to be danced at a time. Do it well.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-70742681336099797242014-11-04T09:11:00.002-08:002014-11-04T09:11:15.918-08:00Simple Solutions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipl4wjjeJxNfgt7d5HF7QX70xaBWKn2ttFWWe8KTF_SK-uqWMdak43yxcPPu-eWtJZ-1XbZ7SNSsY-z-OFzfIxBSd6yfwjrj9TezU9Qtq5twCbDYmgIgGdKHwtU-EwqIqJLSYbvr05RWk/s1600/Hwaii+and+Taos+2011+646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipl4wjjeJxNfgt7d5HF7QX70xaBWKn2ttFWWe8KTF_SK-uqWMdak43yxcPPu-eWtJZ-1XbZ7SNSsY-z-OFzfIxBSd6yfwjrj9TezU9Qtq5twCbDYmgIgGdKHwtU-EwqIqJLSYbvr05RWk/s1600/Hwaii+and+Taos+2011+646.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Algebra.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Being one-third of the way through my 36th year has my thoughts turned to symmetry and divisibility, synthesis and divestment. I am interested in the shedding of excesses, the rounding of the edges of my life. I am aware of being a sum of my own parts, a collection of experiences, patterns, and multiplying events that have guided me on and derailed me from my path. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
More than ever, I am aware of my own operational agency. Truths, remainders and inequalities are the result of my manipulations. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Today, I choose to subtract and simplify. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-77226538963959399602014-11-03T11:00:00.002-08:002014-11-03T11:01:43.137-08:00Soggy-Footed and Full-Bellied<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbB4Ar57_z-pdVsWScy5wRru4Pqkzz0WQ0SRjw6dN50WCMCed5YKUfoby6W_2n_IdzClb9IwVM9WgR7l56I74v8cxYVwA18KViRloimyMCsLGFS4i-tY5GqcAFBOlSUcv4yQTRmMEp3wg/s1600/PA260041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbB4Ar57_z-pdVsWScy5wRru4Pqkzz0WQ0SRjw6dN50WCMCed5YKUfoby6W_2n_IdzClb9IwVM9WgR7l56I74v8cxYVwA18KViRloimyMCsLGFS4i-tY5GqcAFBOlSUcv4yQTRmMEp3wg/s1600/PA260041.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Shrooms.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
This is the time of year I love the most. I love the leaves, the arrival of the rains, pumpkins, and the excuse to drink hot tea all day long. But mostly, I love the mushrooms. I like the secrecy of mushroom hunting, that it gives me an excuse to go out by myself, at odd times of day, and in the middle of the week. I love the excitement of finding a blooming cluster, knowing that my hiking hasn't been in vain. I love the necessary days of cooking, mushroom tacos, soups, and delicate sauces, the small of drying fungi permeating the kitchen. This part of the season appeals to the child in me, the little girl that likes surprises, scavenger hunts, and still believes in the magic of the forest. Each year I take the arrival of the mushrooms as proof that simple pleasures, small rewards, and things beyond my understanding and control are still alive and well in the world. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
You've gotta get it somewhere.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-31354792116210246832014-10-28T07:32:00.002-07:002014-10-30T08:11:49.007-07:00The Stillness Of The Morning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSIGKsuA3aAJcg3QTe5U5RSQfcR1x0knt2Cr3iZMXOZ7CQuOku0Lo_aQfnbe9TpA7mCIEh15HsxCkdtK6qRfxnESgKmf51wjdVUayttcaVL0Qy9OZ4jEE5ZooFdAvF5Pdn-fgw3BIrFA/s1600/35168_1465612636697_1451780_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuSIGKsuA3aAJcg3QTe5U5RSQfcR1x0knt2Cr3iZMXOZ7CQuOku0Lo_aQfnbe9TpA7mCIEh15HsxCkdtK6qRfxnESgKmf51wjdVUayttcaVL0Qy9OZ4jEE5ZooFdAvF5Pdn-fgw3BIrFA/s1600/35168_1465612636697_1451780_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Quiet.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I love the safety of an early morning. Morning moves slowly. In early hours there is time for contemplation, for listening, for the sorting of ones life into manageable tasks. In the morning I am not yet behind, not racing or juggling or fighting traffic and customer service or negotiating relationships. In the morning each thing is presented singularly, in its own time. Now coffee, now dishes, now the sound of the men collecting trash, now the blue jays knocking at the window. There is is time, and hope, and possibility inside the blue light of a morning, a gathering of will. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There is comfort in a morning. As a child, I was always the first to rise. A good girl, I would quietly crawl from the covers to roam the house, feed the cat, and bring in my fathers paper. When he got up, half-lidded, sniffing for his coffee, interested in the news of the day, gearing up for a long day of work, he would take me by the hand and we would stand together at the picture window to watch the sunrise. From our perch on the hill, looking east, it was as if the whole world was bathed in soft pink sheets of promised light. My fathers hand was warm and soft.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
This morning, I watched the sky take on the light from my own little perch on a hill, facing west. I closed my eyes, and felt my hand slip into my fathers. For a moment, my world was simple, love, gratitude, memory. And then, with a breath and a smile, I opened my eyes.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Start the day. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-47916349003066925652014-10-21T09:15:00.000-07:002014-10-21T09:15:01.345-07:00Simple Things<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik0_kWkgwRGAfiVTk_9Hh2O598DNejsJHFXNbk8qiTvw9h31MkYJ6q0hXCXsl1ldE2l2NAeWxU7sWsYgIR0nbCgkmxGP4h_7xMFt5wj-HZyL-1RldtH8u30uxfeVx_eEaYnhqPAA7WqAI/s1600/15149_1273681798546_8283975_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik0_kWkgwRGAfiVTk_9Hh2O598DNejsJHFXNbk8qiTvw9h31MkYJ6q0hXCXsl1ldE2l2NAeWxU7sWsYgIR0nbCgkmxGP4h_7xMFt5wj-HZyL-1RldtH8u30uxfeVx_eEaYnhqPAA7WqAI/s1600/15149_1273681798546_8283975_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Morning.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Fall brings with it such a hustling and bustling that the simple things in life can slip right through our fingers. Why should we stop to smell the newly rain-scrubbed air or savor the warming of our hands wrapped around a cup of tea when there are football games, little leagues, school projects and the impending doom of holiday shopping, decorating and entertaining to attend to? </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
This week, I reject both hustle and bustle, regardless of deadlines and obligations. Instead, I choose to whittle out space to savor the season, the changing of the leaves, the sound of rain against the roof, and early night fall. Most of this time is carved from the earliest parts of mornings. Some simple morning gratitudes:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Piano practice.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Soggy mushroom hunts.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Pumpkins roasting in the oven.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Leaf prints, stained into the sidewalk.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The filling of the root cellar.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Coffee by the fire.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Garden beds, neatly turned for winter.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-15410070883379777662014-10-16T07:57:00.001-07:002014-10-16T17:03:14.324-07:00Someone's Got to Dig it.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNSMjGE0WPbSLpgBEOeOBg78bVBewnSPKVs6vISgvJ4Pz6cdubB2m_KRnnEa_1XRYvzBlPa94RStk00vDTXB3RrCP2LwjppQPhGLaKuH7GGdTU74MGzivmx3i8jjsAQf5sms6yhvmk-x8/s1600/35168_1465612636697_1451780_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNSMjGE0WPbSLpgBEOeOBg78bVBewnSPKVs6vISgvJ4Pz6cdubB2m_KRnnEa_1XRYvzBlPa94RStk00vDTXB3RrCP2LwjppQPhGLaKuH7GGdTU74MGzivmx3i8jjsAQf5sms6yhvmk-x8/s1600/35168_1465612636697_1451780_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Hole.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Last year the deer ate every flower and hopeful bud in the garden. This year, I scoured books and garden centers for every deer resistant flower I could find and planted them, as bulbs, in hopeful anticipation of the spring bloom. Yesterday, I came home to find that the squirrels, eager for a lightening of their fall work load, had emptied every hole, cast aside my precious bulbs, and replaced them with hazelnuts. I suppose someone has to dig the hole.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-44470603947529347912014-10-08T22:41:00.002-07:002015-04-06T13:57:22.441-07:00I Am Not A Mother, <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am not a mother but,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am a teacher, mentor, caretaker and friend.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am the babysitter, nanny, and perpetual auntie.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am a helper to mothers. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I have walked the floor with them until you get home, helped them with their homework, gone to their soccer games, and put them to bed when they were young.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
When they grew up, I took them to coffee, reminded them to have dinner with you, and help them put you into context.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am not a mother, but,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I have dedicated a life to the raising of other peoples children.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am not a mother, but,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am one of the first believers in your child.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I will be among the first to challenge them; a person for whom they will rise to any bar they set.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I will help them to shine on their own.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I am not a mother but,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
before you speak,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
consider.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There is a role in this world for the helper of mothers, the caretakers of children, </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
and forces beyond our control. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-28458331609671962102014-10-06T08:54:00.001-07:002014-10-06T08:54:40.142-07:00Geology Confidential I<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn78YrTH_TqKLC9syPvfhoxfByy4zVD8J69q0rvJLO_0va9JbSf_t5DOrWCyTIUb1F6Vrx6Ik1cZyc3UPBUOM8aWF87LicQgRuevHciXoF9QsR2zaF3NLLabxxXbA5gFmVwIilBfhfEdY/s1600/10344300_10203226446396435_1726796569483715989_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn78YrTH_TqKLC9syPvfhoxfByy4zVD8J69q0rvJLO_0va9JbSf_t5DOrWCyTIUb1F6Vrx6Ik1cZyc3UPBUOM8aWF87LicQgRuevHciXoF9QsR2zaF3NLLabxxXbA5gFmVwIilBfhfEdY/s1600/10344300_10203226446396435_1726796569483715989_o.jpg" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Rocks.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
You can tell a lot about a person, or a geologist anyway, by the rocks they keep. You can find them, usually cluttering shelves and porches, collecting dust and spider webs, or used as book ends, garden bed borders and paperweights throughout the house. There is, no doubt, more of them in boxes, drawers and closets, tucked away, and carried from house to house. They serve as true a record of the person, the ground that they have walked over, their work and passions, as they do of orogenies, ancient sea floors and catastrophic eruptions. A sample:</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Thousands of bags of pumice, weighed, wrapped in wax, labeled in green permanent marker.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
A volcanic bomb, fourteen pounds, hiked out of the Arizona volcanic field cradled in my arms.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Iron-rich basalt, encased in calcite and weathered to a bright pink. Hauled home from Costa Rica by a friend.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Sandwich bag, filled with black primordial ooze, gifted from a friend visiting the tar pits.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Small bottle of ash from the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Geodes, 22, gifted from a student's grandfather's collection after he passed away.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Salt block, hounded in Nevada, evaporated to less than half it's original size in the Oregon humidity.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Obsidian, with flow lines, from the Newberry flows.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Fossiliferous limestone, collected in Montana, that has graced the front porch of every house I've lived in since 2001.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Hardened clay, formed into a cube during a long day of drilling.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Dust, from a thousand day hikes and field areas, caked into the seams of a too-old day pack. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-43619959398966749562014-09-30T08:55:00.002-07:002014-09-30T08:55:58.833-07:00Where Does She Find The Time?<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnWyvHZUK3k_FBnyFJjBQNX7V8eiiVREGFKeT6EdwMGGaq7FOM8SDEG7EQOivSAavkyYSMjbnzjOwZpkS0lGdMMitPAi4iK0uTdSSUg4_3Y-Sq28w1G8BdwPJh6VY4kcRRKZCVTER4Wxg/s1600/television+beach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnWyvHZUK3k_FBnyFJjBQNX7V8eiiVREGFKeT6EdwMGGaq7FOM8SDEG7EQOivSAavkyYSMjbnzjOwZpkS0lGdMMitPAi4iK0uTdSSUg4_3Y-Sq28w1G8BdwPJh6VY4kcRRKZCVTER4Wxg/s1600/television+beach.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Hustle.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
One of the things I am most frequently asked is how do you find the time? The trick, I think, is to find what you love and go after it, without roadblocking or discouraging yourself. Some things I do to help myself along my path.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I make lists.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I keep a clean house.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I group tasks and errands.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I ignore the phone and the internet.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I set limits on how much time I will give to a task.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I triage.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I do things that I love and work most days.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I don't work at all some days.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I make choices.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I have a clear vision of my goals and obligations.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I allow my vision to shift with necessity.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I break tasks into component parts.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I start early.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I plan ahead.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I expect the unexpected.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I hustle.<br />
<br />
How do you find the time? Share your answers in the comments.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-51344411896921256842014-09-29T08:38:00.001-07:002014-09-30T21:22:02.744-07:00The Last Tomato<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrn_3L3Ci-DiI7_6J2xPDWr8hQ2LVSjqfHnxb1whnAtTWBYe8-hu9eEBjiKW7inu8aclCHSYJ7kNbWfLhADIBxHxqXj3dV7QrUPbBspOcTxNQOjISSXZMqoNzkCMjx1ka2ySAm-BVbz88/s1600/15149_1273685198631_488245_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrn_3L3Ci-DiI7_6J2xPDWr8hQ2LVSjqfHnxb1whnAtTWBYe8-hu9eEBjiKW7inu8aclCHSYJ7kNbWfLhADIBxHxqXj3dV7QrUPbBspOcTxNQOjISSXZMqoNzkCMjx1ka2ySAm-BVbz88/s1600/15149_1273685198631_488245_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Ripe.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Fall has descended seemingly all at once. The air is cold and thick with early rains, the trees are drawing straws to see who will change color first, and the nuthatches have eaten half a feeder of seed in the last three days. But the last of the tomatoes are still clinging to the vine, and managing to ripen, without the aid of sun or extra watering. I have not abandoned them, just left them to their their task. I enjoy the fortitude of the late tomato, the pressing forward of goals, desires, and obligations. The fall is the time for the completion of tasks, a period of preparation for coming hardships. In fall, we have to face the put-off things of life or surely suffer consequences in the dark days of winter. And so I strive to be an end of season tomato, focused, sure, and proceeding, making one last stand in my pot with what is left of my resources.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-59046770665302446452014-09-24T08:49:00.001-07:002014-09-24T08:49:04.388-07:00Sun City<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7DkNpmjUFoWLbaOd308CTwFTOb2_3u-N2asv_gRu4OgXFnmBVpcoAN2ZiRidUN9SNYvauBIqlGVzoJgHtDUvM-Vk4vCbIsDtkeoUHzNGOkGJ6zew7Z740n2Nhg4C5CNa8q1HFcCLNY2U/s1600/207644_1038227272330_3710_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7DkNpmjUFoWLbaOd308CTwFTOb2_3u-N2asv_gRu4OgXFnmBVpcoAN2ZiRidUN9SNYvauBIqlGVzoJgHtDUvM-Vk4vCbIsDtkeoUHzNGOkGJ6zew7Z740n2Nhg4C5CNa8q1HFcCLNY2U/s1600/207644_1038227272330_3710_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
Heat.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
I never grow tired of the desert, even though I am a daughter of the rain. I do not crave the heat, or love to lay out in the sun, but there is something about the desert calls out to me. Perhaps it is the contrast, that no trees obscure the view, no sinking into mud with every step, no dense clutches of vegetation or low-hanging clouds. Instead, there are coyote, saguaro, and scrappy stands of tiny trees that though smaller in stature are no less impressively old than even the tallest of Northwest Douglas firs. I enjoy the resilience of desert life, the necessary lengthening of timescales. In the desert, water will not come to you daily, or even by the month, best to savor thirst, celebrate it, and turn your mind from longing. The desert reminds me to accept the life I have been given, to make do. It illuminates the struggle of ordinary things and the value of simple things. There is great joy and beauty in the procurement of the necessities of life. It is, after all, a wonder. Try not to take it for granted.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-35049736717274234242014-09-21T20:40:00.000-07:002014-09-21T20:40:56.389-07:00Get 'er Done<div style="text-align: center;">
Tasks.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
A list of items encountered, tasks completed, and things remaining to be done in the twelfth of fourteen weeks spent on the road. In no particular order.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Car registration, two months old, still in receiving envelope. Found in pile of crumpled tax receipts.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Odor, unknown, coming from the empty bottom drawer of the refrigerator.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Emptying, of every waste basket in the house.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Professional registered geologist survey, completed, but not returned.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Bird feeder, empty, giant blue jays, angry.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Towels, 15, cleaned, folded, and stacked at foot of bed, presumably in case of towel emergency.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Litter box, cleaned, emptied, refilled, still stinking, so tossed out entirely.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Birthday cards, two weeks past and mostly of owls, scattered on every available surface.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
23 voice mails, waiting.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Boarding passes, printed in duplicate.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
3 empty bottles of sunscreen, two broken pairs of sunglasses, and one, still wet, swimsuit, in beach bag.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Tomatoes, 2, the last of the season.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-68397140826899093282014-09-15T09:43:00.001-07:002014-09-15T09:43:57.275-07:00Bright Lights, Big City<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3rcrnUCkSzNJ1HULh9cifcJdvD01ybXXqG7v92NyZMk6ZKIq_xPuAG63x8gPIIBMsjF3KQVJLalIkvYZXvhPi6H8FHQuk9DwwFSo8Cs720mhxch5MUPz4YuC9q8RXxymUziR036wXPA/s1600/P9110018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3rcrnUCkSzNJ1HULh9cifcJdvD01ybXXqG7v92NyZMk6ZKIq_xPuAG63x8gPIIBMsjF3KQVJLalIkvYZXvhPi6H8FHQuk9DwwFSo8Cs720mhxch5MUPz4YuC9q8RXxymUziR036wXPA/s1600/P9110018.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Urban.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Yesterday, after weeks of dusty trails, dense forests, quiet lake swims, and hot springs, I hit the city. Not just any city, mind you, but a real, honest to goodness tall buildings, stand-still traffic, sidewalks that smell like pee, big city. And after all that time in the wilderness, it made me break out into a white-knuckled sweat. I couldn't think fast enough to make decisions in traffic, I balked at prices, and I nervously yanked at my now-uncomfortable city clothes. I wandered like a refugee, a displaced person of some kind, dropped into an alien world where the women are all ten feet tall, the men are always speaking into a cell phone, and all the surfaces are reflective. I felt like an outsider, a yokel, a gawker, and a little sick to my stomach. This panicked anxiety surprised me. I hadn't realized how drastically my context had shifted from the urban jungle to the, well, jungle jungle. It made me acutely aware of just how much I thrive on the calm and quiet of the outdoors, the ability to hear myself think, and the lack of over-stimulation. I wonder about living in these places, how people find time to themselves, where their quiet moments happen, and how they ground themselves. I wonder what it means to 'get used to it', if you lose the longing for the wild after a time, or if the call of it is simply drowned out by the urban din. I was glad for the trip, for the afternoon of playing tourist, and the necessary business that got done. But I was also glad to head back out, to smaller buildings, empty streets, tall trees, and the great outside.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-26495260705700425642014-09-10T12:55:00.003-07:002014-09-10T12:55:51.337-07:00Out of Towner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAFY9-R3f3aWcKAVbYkhH8bV6Nlmx6VqiFCgu7jUhhLqxyxSlVqFkrTb8xXvxU7QfvaXoFnUrIKxa4ZYVbCN2zAuwv6TbM3Gb8TOd6jyLhtEbSwzRM0RSFoCMFV-caXezLa3HpjaxVPX4/s1600/20140824_141840.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAFY9-R3f3aWcKAVbYkhH8bV6Nlmx6VqiFCgu7jUhhLqxyxSlVqFkrTb8xXvxU7QfvaXoFnUrIKxa4ZYVbCN2zAuwv6TbM3Gb8TOd6jyLhtEbSwzRM0RSFoCMFV-caXezLa3HpjaxVPX4/s1600/20140824_141840.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Away.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
It's been a long summer. The trees are browning, the ferns are fading from the thirst, and everything, everything, is covered in dust. My long ago tomato starts and I have faithfully stood in our pots, and even produced some fruit. But mostly, I have been away. Of the last twelve weeks, I have spent most of ten of them adventuring, visiting friends, working away, and on the road. This week, I arrived half an hour before turning around and heading to work, and will leave again today as soon as I get off. My cat is pissed at me. My luggage is never unpacked. I have not see 'that' YouTube video. I have not seen anything you, or anyone else has posted on Facebook. People greet me like a long-lost friend. There is something to be said for stepping away, trusting that the things you need the most will be there when you return, and the things that fade were going to anyway. Being gone does a lot of good for sorting your priorities, forcing you to make choices, and teaching you to let things slide. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Where are you going?</div>
<br /><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-64363857941617813542014-08-27T09:14:00.001-07:002014-08-27T09:14:48.988-07:00Dry Days<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="splash" src="http://science.nasa.gov/media/medialibrary/2014/02/07/splash2_.jpg" /></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Uplift.</div>
<br />
California is evaporating. Continued drought combined with collective denial have spurred the loss of 63 trillion gallons of the states reserve waters. You can see for yourself what this looks like in satellite images from NASA <a href="http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/07feb_drought/" target="_blank">here</a>. Hetch Hetchy, the reservoir famously protected by John Muir that provides the majority of water to San Fransisco, is at 63 percent its normal level. The loss of this massive volume of water has been large enough to initiate a rebound effect in the Earths crust; California is also rising, to the tune of more than half an inch in less than a decade.<br />
<br />
According to the <a href="http://ca.gov/drought/" target="_blank">State of California</a>, close to half of many residents water use is for outdoor urban areas.<br />
<br />
Drain the pools. Turn off the misters. Let the lawns go brown. Get it together people.<br />
<br />
https://scripps.ucsd.edu/news/severe-drought-causing-western-us-rise<br />
photograph courtesy of Science@NASAAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6340836073145782900.post-54464666750994893302014-08-25T08:05:00.002-07:002014-08-25T10:24:26.796-07:00The Great Wide Open V- Tunnel Vision<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7Qcmh7pOWXN5wb3XWw9QLq7hiUwv6yTJxCAdcC-mTLmq_36j8oWyP3BIFzW9fY8l49L4t245T_2Yfi_TN3n5icMA7gOkfAQ5shIq2K_yLzcTQmqeYC5Hc7J3clHXHY17ohgGs70gAG0/s1600/thumb_Lava_River_Cave_Bend_2_adaptiveResize_530_399.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7Qcmh7pOWXN5wb3XWw9QLq7hiUwv6yTJxCAdcC-mTLmq_36j8oWyP3BIFzW9fY8l49L4t245T_2Yfi_TN3n5icMA7gOkfAQ5shIq2K_yLzcTQmqeYC5Hc7J3clHXHY17ohgGs70gAG0/s1600/thumb_Lava_River_Cave_Bend_2_adaptiveResize_530_399.jpg" height="231" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Freeze.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Lava tubes are one of my favorite things. Formed as a result of cooling during an active flow, lave tunnels are a testament to the inherent lazy nature of the world. Even lava, if given a chance with take the easiest route, sometimes not even bothering to craft a new tunnel, instead flowing through a tunnel formed by a previous flow, using it as a means of easy travel and transport. When cooled, these caves become underground conduits that lead directly into the belly of the volcano. Cool.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Literally. Basalt is an amazingly efficient insulator and most caves stay close to freezing all year long, even in the desert. In eastern Oregon these caves were the first source of refrigeration for settlers eager to beat the heat. Early entrepreneurs made good money harvesting the ice from these caves and hauling it back to town in blocks for sale. Now, the caves are overrun with tourists, largely unprepared for the experience. Although it may seem to go without saying, these caves, like an others, are really dark, really cold, and offer questionable footing. Most people forget these things and find themselves shivering along in the dark with frozen toes. But it's worth it, even if it's just for the Lord of the Rings style ambiance. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There's a whole world down there... </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09278656984785027537noreply@blogger.com0