hootenannie

When I graduated from college, I had a party. I didn’t really expect it, but people brought me presents. Let this be a lesson to all of you slackers out there: don’t quit, because in the end, YOU TOO could be the recipient of a ceramic candle holder in the shape of a flip-flop. Actually,…

Someday, I will have all 4 hubcaps for my Honda. Someday, I will not have to use milk crates as furniture. Someday, I will climb the cliffs of Cinque Terre. Someday, I will own a very grown-up chocolate brown couch. Someday, I will read the classics. Someday, I will have medical insurance. Someday, I will…

All day, the clock has ticked on. And all day, I have frantically thought, “What can I blog about?” Some days are just like that – nothing in particular that strikes my mind. Other days, I write 4 or 5 entries, and store them up for days like today. But I’m out of those entries….

You guys should see my new apartment. Really, you should. Unfortunately, my camera is out of commission, since I dropped it when I was in Seattle a few weeks back. And just like that, with a tiny crack, all of my road video dreams came to a screeching halt. I had grand plans of giving…

Dear Grant (“the man that I live with”), You have stored up major treasures in heaven. We did not know each other – you were the friend-of-a-friend – and yet you graciously opened your doors to me. You helped me carry my huge purple suitcases, and big boxes of dishes and books, and all of…

There’s this woman named Sara Groves. She used to be a teacher in Minnesota, but now she tours as a singer/songwriter. She is one of my very favorite musicians; she has a conversational style of writing that cuts straight to the heart of the matter. Even when she introduces her songs before playing them, she…

In the midst of the insanity that is my existence, I took a walk this afternoon. And as the sun shone down and I thought my many complicated and stressful thoughts, one thing kept popping into my head. Gratitude. Over and over, there are things to be grateful for. Despite uncertainty, despite my lack of…

I think that God gives us a lot of freedom to choose our own path in life. When it comes to the everyday decisions, I don’t believe that there are too many hard-and-fast absolute “rights” and “wrongs.” Should I ask that person out? Which car should I buy? Paper or plastic? God is big enough…

I’ve heard it said that “courage” is being the only person in the world who knows that you’re scared to death. Well, I suppose I’m blowing my cover. Tonight, I just feel a little bit scared. I feel scared of failure. Of running out of money. Of never finding a place to live. Of making…

For ages, America has been keeping a secret. In all of my road-tripping travels, I never unearthed the truth. But this weekend, all of that changed. What was once kept tightly under wrap is now being revealed via this blog. I experienced the Central West End of St. Louis. And it was amazing. Equally cosmopolitan…