In my new Boulder home

WEll, we made it in one piece. It was stormy night in Kansas City, probably one of the biggest storms I have encountered. And I was in a tent!!! I felt very rough and rugged. Poor Justin. His tent leaked and he was doing the backstroke until the storm abated. AFter a morning swim, we packed the car and headed out to Boulder. Kansas is the longest and most boring state. Note to self, don't move to Kansas. No mountain...no beach....just very flat fields.  The most exciting thing was a windmill farm. Those windmills were monstrous! I thought about Don Quixote attacking them on horseback, which made me realize that I would probably do the same thing if I had no idea what they were. We took pictures:)
At this point in time, both Justin and I were craving donuts. Don't ask me why but we were. I haven't had a donut for probably a year. So we researched on Justin's handy dandy Blackberry and found a donut shop in Hays, Kansas. Well not much to Hays Kansas except for men on motorcycles. Sadly, that donut shop went out of business. We tried the next potential donut place in a Kansas town...I don't even remember the name because the only place that was there was a McDonalds and a run down pizza shop. No donuts either. Well, our donut search ended. Comon Kansas. We know you have police! Where are the donuts???
Flat flat Kansas. I drove for nine hours and my body started to twitch of hunger and tiredness. I realized that human beings cannot go without food for very long. We are so dependable on that roadside burger or foot long sub at Subway. You get to a point where your hunger is beyond control and you might eat the steering wheel.
Finally, we made it to Boulder. I was (and still am) in awe of the mountains. I turned off the radio and soaked in the wonderful vibration of these majestic mountains. My heart rang true with these wonderful peaks ahead of me. I wanted to drink them in. We made it to my humble abode. It is so quaint with a deck surrounded by trees. The kitchen is the perfect size. Windows all around with a spacious living room. My room couldn't be better. I think I like small little rooms. Very cozy.  A little fairy cottage.
This morning we had pancakes with Lacey and her boyfriend. Best banana pancakes ever. Whoever visits me, we are going to the Original Pancake House for breakfast. Cheap and yummy. A big step up from IHOP. Afterwards, Justin and I perused around Naropa's campus and took a gander in the bookstore. Checking out all the reading I will be delving into these next couple of months. So excited! We then went to the Asian festival on Pearl Street. We kind of ran into it not knowing where we were going. Stores from various locations set up their booth. I ran into Tibetan Sisters which is Khenpo Tenpa Yungdrung's sister's store. I met his brother Tsering. Small world. The festival had music, dances, and great food. Justin and I got smoothies and just took in the culture.
AFter a heart felt goodbye to Justin, I am now back in my little fairy cottage. Oh I hit up Whole Foods twice already....mom this is what Woodstock has been missing. I love Whole Foods! And I desperately need a GPS.
Keep it real everyone. Stay in touch. Much love and happiness.

Meet me in St. Louis Louis!

Yes we have made it to good ol Missouri! Or I should say MOSUREEEEEEE!! "Load up the vittles pickles and hams, melons and cherry pie. Fritters and dumplins, turkeys and yams pack in a big supply. Apples and peaches soda to sip, cider is gonna flow, with a hey and a ho and away we go on a holiday in Hannibal MOSURREEEEE!!!" Gotta love Tom Sawyer WP. We did pass through Hannibal. I miss my girls!
The drive was oh so flat from Ohio to here. Corn fields corn fields and more corn fields. I was reminded of how we are stripping our nutrients in the soil for the mass production of maze for our slaughter house cow factories that will continuously cause us health problems in this country. Sustainable agriculture? Locally grown? Grass fed? Organic? Vegetarian? arg. Oh well. I can dream. Justin on the other hand commented how he loved buttered corn on the cob or corn muffins what about corn flakes. I guess I can be a little more positive about the situation.
We decided to enter the gateway to the west through the famous arch and stop in St. Louis at a cute diner called the 12th Street Diner. I love diners. It takes you back in time. They had a Gene Kelly movie playing and Marilyn on the wall above us. The food is just plain good. Garden burger and fries and you can't leave without a milk shake. Probably full of Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil but I guess you can't be picky when you have been driving for 9 hours. At that point you just want sustenance! And well it was tasty.
On the road again. Nodding off to cool jazz music in this heat. The heat has not changed from VA. Still hot and humid. There is a cool breeze however. Justin just checked the weather and there seems to be a storm a brewing. They just announced on the intercom that there will be a thunderstorm around 11pm tonight. Please tents hold up!
Traveling far distances does make you think about the past. Home on the farm in Shenandoah. Dickinson College memories. Massage school. Camp Strawderman...I wonder who got SCS girl? And of course the life ahead at Naropa. It's wonderful to think about how many people have touched my heart to get me to this point. And all the experiences I have learned that I don't necessarily want to repeat. I guess it is all about growing up figuring out what makes you happy in this world.
 Let's hope my tent holds up. Until tomorrow!

Ohio!!!

Justin and I set out early in the morning for our excursion across the USA. Mom made us scruptious egg sandwiches with our tea and coffee to give us a boost at 5am. EARLY!!! I arrived at Justin's house and he looked at the car and just gave one uh-oh. The car was packed to the brim. Where was Justin's stuff going to go? Luckily with his packing skills we were able to squeeze his bags in....barely. And off we go!!! With the mountains in front of us and no rearview vision what so ever, we hit the road. Justin has been keeping me entertained with accents and making fun of town names. Friendsville, PA didn't seem to have many friendly people as Justin quoted having a mean encounter with a lady from a previous trip. Flushing Ohio? I wonder where it will end up:)  Cheat Lake to Fairview Dr. hmmmm can you pick out the discrepancy?
We stopped in Ohio at this great pizza joint called Crenos. It was in New Concord, Ohio in Muskingum County. If anyone decides to take a trip that way, it is delicious. It looks a bit dingy and small but great thin crust pizza is so worth it....yummmy. So far we have driven 300 miles through VA, WV, PA, OH ....the company and views have been priceless. Now we are at a campsite in Ohio with wireless!! I know, not very outdoorsy but I get to blog:) Until next time in Kansas City. We will travel through Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and just over the border into Kansas. Fun times on the ROAD!!!! I'm already planning future road trips. Anyone want to go to Canada??

Chickens Unite!

It has been so great seeing people before I make the trek out to the Rockies. I'm so fortunate to have amazing people in my life with great energy and advice for the future ahead. Yesterday and today marked a memorable time. Lindsay came over and we had a blast. It started off with some yummy grilled cheese sandwiches and catching up. Then it was time to head to the barn. At the barn we are raising Road Island Red chickens with baby Araucanas and Ginny Hens. Needless to say, Lindsay and I were pretty stoked to have a field day with chickens. We set out all pumped for some chicken fun.  Immediately we spotted 3 baby ginny hens that were on the loose! Jaed visited not too long before and we caught one that had broken free. Now there were 4 running scared around the pen. Lindsay didn't even bat an eye. She was ready to snatch those hens. Now, if Lindsay were playing Quidditch she would definitely be the Seeker. Her skills for catching the birds were impressive. The birds love to get entangled within webbing that keeps them from escaping, so it was quite a feat. With determination and corralling skills, we were able to get all the hens safely back into the cage. Phew! We fed, watered and gathered eggs for the morning's breakfast.

Later that day, we soaked in the river to cool off from all the running. It felt so good. I am going to miss the Shenandoah River when I make my trek out to Colorado. Later we met up with some friends from high school for dindin and rented the movie Sherlock Holmes with Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, and Rachel McAdams. Some of my favorite actors. Definitely with wits and brawn and a touch of humor, it left me satisfied.
The next day unfortunately we found one of the roosters dead. We had a burial for good ol rooster 2. It was sad, but SG quickly made the comment that he will come back as something better in the next life:) There must have been a brutal cock fight because we could not find the head anywhere. Well, I guess it is the circle of life.
After some lunch, massage, and pitching tents (debating which one to take on my trek to CO) Linds had to sadly go home. It won't be long before we will be reunited, perhaps on the Rockies:) Now off to Camp Strawderman to give my last goodbyes. Stay tuned for a Chicken Video demonstrating the proper way to pick up a chicken. Until next time. 3 days until the big trek across the country:)