for the love of elephant seals among other things

hello duckies,

for those of you east of the rocky mountains i hope you are staying warm and inside away from the storm.

as anyone who has read this blog probably has gleaned: i really like ruminating on the concept of place. i love getting to know the places i'm in and exploring it's various seasonal and cultural offerings.


i have fallen for the city of denver and the state of colorado.this was a surprise. i came here thinking that i would enjoy it, but long constantly and consistently for california. this has pleasantly not been the case.

however some days i really miss my first love: california. i miss the colors and sounds of la and the way that light filters in across the san francisco bay. i miss my friends and communities in ca. i miss that the worst weather i might encounter would be a 40 degree rainy day.


maybe more than anything (after my people), i miss the ocean. i'm an ocean lady. it's just that simple. today on my drive home in the slush and snow i thought of how the oceanwould always calm my nerves. i channeled the blustery northern california beach and pressed on feeling revived.


tonight i miss california something awful. i'm a touch ridiculous. it's like i'm greiving a past lover. i'm in colorado and loving it, but days like this remind me that i'm of california, made of sand, light, water, city, salt, poppies, eucalyptus, long coastal drives, and raspados...le sigh.

in my unfolding romance with place california, you take the cake.

winter rising

it's snowy and very cold today. icy winds have blown in and the streets are full of urban slush. tonight i'm honoring winter by thinking about my favorite winter place: taos. isn't it beautiful?



whenever i start to feel that winter is grundgy and gross i think of the magic of adobe, snow, sky, and chili.



in honor of tonight i'm having green chilis. yum.

goodbye 2010, hello 2011

"I am older than I once was, and younger than I’ll be.
That’s not unusual.
It isn’t strange,
after changes upon changes, we are more or less the same.
After changes, we are more or less the same."

so on this very freezing new year's eve while i sit watching my stew boil and drinking my hot chocolate i am thinking about three things:


1. one of my very best friends that turned 26 today. it's amazing when you really think about it how we walk through so many different experiences and grow each year, but some things remain the same in each of us. i'm so glad for the things that remain constant in her. happy birthday valen.

2.this past year: i could go on and on about it, but suffice it to say that it's been a year of supreme challenges, great gifts, and huge growth. the highlights have been my relationships, my growing love of colorado, my growing knowledge of and ability to work with the homeless population, and my appreciation for who i am.

3. the coming year: i am hoping for simple things this year. i wish to openly and honesty embrace the experiences in my life; to be proactively healthy; to grow in wisdom, love, and bravery; to move closer towards grad school; to develop my pancake making skills; to move in to one of two neighborhoods in denver lined with brick homes and adorable shops; to spend significantly more time in the mountains; and lastly to ground myself daily in the life that i am blessed enough to have. yes my goals span from the mundane to the amorphous.

2010, it's been real.

photocredit: {Brendan McCarthy} ....photo recap of the year coming tomorrow!

carmelized apple quiche, dried herbs on the line, babies at the door

halloween.

dried herbs,


pumpkins,


the scariest haunted house of all time. fortunately for me one of my best friends held my hand the whole time. wowza...my nervous system is not cut out for haunted houses.


the denver botanical gardens,


ham and apple quiche,


pie,


munchkins knocking at the door,


and some practical magic, yes i love this movie. it's shameful and i don't care. i do not like scary witches or sprightly pastel colored witches, but i'm a sucker for the brand of witch that lives in a big old house by the ocean, is an off the book botanist, bakes big crusty loaves of bread, is clarvoyant, and drinks a little too much red wine. yes this is my type of witch and thus...practical magic.


hope you have a lovely halloween duckies.

West Virginia, on my mind

hi all,

so as a disclaimer, i love sports movies. i'm not sure why, but a good sports movie gets me everytime. i'm not saying i don't love a good romantic comedy, but when i really want to indulge and need a crying night i turn on a rise from the ashes sports saga...

tonight i watched We Are Marshall. it is the story of the 1970 Marshall University Football team that died in a plane crash. needless to say, it's heartbreaking, but i found its portrayal of ptsd, community grief, and hope compelling. it is a true story and i loved it.

there we go. i'm a sappy sports gal. it's just reality. we can't do anything about it.

the movie made me want to visit west virginia. i forget that west virginia is called the playground of the southeast.

i hope someday i get to revel in this southern beauty.

shimmer me timbers

fall is here. the aspens are turning to gold. they shimmer and quake rhythmically. it's as if all the little anxious trees shaking from fear of winter found each other and discovered some peace in their vocal harmony. it's the colorful song of autumn.

i like to stand under the trees and imagine the world saying, "here is this gift. change seems scary and you've had so much of it this year, but look in the most transitional of seasons i'm bringing you this remarkable show of beauty."

in our ever pivoting existence i'm glad that fall is beautiful. change makes me shake and quake like an aspen and i find an undeniable sense of community in the shared experiences of all my fellow aspen trees making their shocking and inevitable movement from one season to the next...

so good night world. here is to autumnal gold.

to italia

tomorrow one of my best friends embarks on his italian journey. he is attending one of the most prestigious grad schools in the US and will spend his first year in italy. here's a blog post toast to one of the better people in my world.

toast to good food, amazing friends, language and learning, new adventures, the romans, amazing wine, and i shall revisit good food...

and also a toast to skype and google voice thingy dingy that is coming out soon.

we will miss you stateside, but wish you all things magical and wonderful.