hootenannie

My sister Becca works for All Aboard Animal Rescue, where they pull dogs from high-kill shelters – usually in New Mexico – and bring them to Colorado to adopt them out. Coloradans love dogs. The state animal is probably a Shelter Dog. About a week ago, I went to one of her adoption events to…

Do you read Brendan Leonard’s blog Semi-Rad? You should. A description of the site: “Semi-Rad is enthusiasm for things regular folks can do. It’s what can be done with 52 weekends and a few weeks of vacation a year. It’s adventures for the everyman and woman. It’s a web site for those of us crushing…

I’m not what you would call a “festive” girl. Celebration isn’t really my strong suit; I’m better at “mourning with those who mourn” and all that. Show me heartache and a cozy melancholy, and I’ll show you a girl in her glory. Of course, if you know me in real life, you know that this…

A few months ago, Fair Trade USA invited a few brands that source Fair Trade Certified ingredients, LÄRABAR being one of them, to tour some participating cocoa farms in the Dominican Republic. Naturally, I volunteered myself to go. Not being an incredibly experienced international traveler (prior to this trip, I’d been to Canada, Mexico, England,…

Sheesh, thank you for your wonderful words of solidarity and encouragement after Monday’s post. I’m humbled, truly. A few things I haven’t mentioned: 1) This blog has a Facebook page! 2) I’m on Instagram! 3) I’m NOT on Twitter (this girl is not me) – you know I need more than 140 characters. But let’s…

Things look different here (you might need to refresh your browser). After 6 years, it was time. I loved that photo, the one taken in a Kansas field, sun-drenched and vibrant and glamorous – because who wears heels in a meadow? That girl was a great girl, bold and impulsive. She had so many wonderful…

Three months ago, Colorado was in the midst of out-of-control wildfires. Everything was brittle and dead, and when the summer storms started, the lightning-induced fires were hard to contain. And because this state is completely bi-polar, today is a very different story. Unless you’ve been living under a (dry, well-insulated) rock, I’m sure you’ve heard…

It’s no secret that I’m a perfectionist. I don’t like to admit that I’m a person in process, because I would love for everyone to think that I have it all together 100% of the time. Well, I don’t have everything together 100% of the time. And as if there weren’t already enough hilarious (read:…

On Friday, I witnessed a tragedy. It’s not my story to tell, but everyone who experienced it was deeply affected, and I spent the afternoon close to the surface, eyes brimming with tears. That night when I called my mom, I erupted into sobs, undone because what happened could not be undone. I spent Saturday…

I don’t feel much like getting up from this bed. My legs are stretched out in front of me and crossed at the ankles, left over right, giving me a good view of my newly pedicured toes. I broke one of them a few years ago – stubbed it on my couch, the one I…