I knew that there was a good chance of snow early in the morning.  Snow is always a possibility in March in the Rocky Mountains.  Still, I was surprised when I heard the heavy wet flakes landing on my tent.  I had set my alarm for 5:00 am but never heard it going off as  I was so bundled in  my sleeping bag trying to keep warm.  I did hear Nathan already up and back from his hot shower.  Then I heard the snow.  I quickly dressed more layers over what I had been sleeping in,  put on my big down coat that had been acting as a blanket.  Gloves and a warm hat finished off my outfit and I unzipped the door to my one person tent.  The rain fly was not staked out in my attempt to keep the warmer air in the tent.  I unzipped the rain fly and was surprised at the amount of snow that had already fallen.  The grass was covered and it was still snowing.

This was our final day of a week adventure with nine high school students, the science teacher and myself.

Nathan and I had spent the last six months planning, organizing, grant writing, campground reserving, applying for a backpacking permit, obtaining permission from the school board to take the students on an out of state trip, receiving student applications, picking students, going over gear list, borrowing gear, grocery shopping, parent permissions and finally, packing  the little red bus and hitting the road.

We had driven only 40 minutes south on highway 93 and crossed into Idaho when one of the students told us that they had never been this far before.  It was at that moment  it occurred to me that this was  much bigger than just a road trip to the Grand Canyon.

We drove to our half way point of Fillmore, Utah where we had reservations at the KOA.  We weren’t the only people staying there, but we were the only tent campers.  This was a good practice night for the kids for setting up their tents and getting their gear organized.  It was also a good night for Nathan to see who would need a better and lighter tent and who would need a warmer sleeping bag.

We had an age range of 14 to 18, three boys, six girls. We had one exchange student from Germany.  The younger girls were giggly and silly,  the older girls quiet and observant.  The one senior girl was the leader.  One boy had his head phones on, one boy was outdoorsy and confident in the adventure and the center of attention for the six girls.  The last boy never stopped taking pictures.  Everything was new and different.  He took pictures of the scenery out the bus window, he took pictures of the signs in the bathroom at the KOA.  This kid was beaming with excitement and he drove us nuts.  

On the afternoon of the second long day on the bus, we arrived at the Grand Canyon.  We stopped at the first observation point.  I knew that there would be crowds of people, the kids did not.  They were astounded at the number of people walking around, taking pictures, reading the interpretive signs.  The kids left the bus and spread out among the crowd.  We rounded them up and told them that we needed to stay together, this couldn’t be a free for all like they were used to.

Our first night’s stay in the Grand Canyon National Park was in Mather Campground, right in the heart of the Grand Canyon Village.  There are 306 campsites and the campground was full.  If Mather Campground averaged 3 campers per site, then there were more people in this campground than in our town of Darby.

We woke up early, made some breakfast burritos and packed for a 3-day backpacking trip.  We drove to the back country office to park the bus and catch the park bus to South Kaibab Trailhead.  The bus was full and the 11 of us were the only people  with backpacks on.  Everyone on the bus wanted to know our story and started asking questions.  Where were we from, how many days would we be out? They were impressed that this was a high school group out on an adventure for spring break.

Day one was a hike from the rim to the river.  All downhill, lots of switchbacks and plenty of photo opportunities. The kids quickly descended into the canyon, fulfilling their need to always be on the next agenda item.  I was fulfilling my need to not fall over and look like a beetle stuck on my back with arms and legs flailing or worse fall and roll 4750 feet down into the Colorado River. I slowly descended into the canyon.  We left the rim shivering in the cool air and arrived at the river to a nice 70 degrees.  I will lose both of my big toe toe nails from this hike but it was worth it.  The kids were already dreading the climb out and I was thrilled to not go down hill anymore.

Our campground was delightful.  We were camped up next to a sheer cliff to one side and Bright Angel creek on the other side.  We took an evening hike up to Phantom overlook hoping for a spectacular sunset.  The sun went behind a big rock.  It was anticlimactic but still a beautiful setting to be in.  The evening was warm as the nearly full moon came up and lit up our site so much that headlamps were not necessary.

We let the kids sleep in for the first time since the start of our trip.  As they got up we heated  water and they tasted their different Mountain House backpacking meals.  Eggs and sausage, biscuits and gravy,  granola and milk; all rehydrated with water.   We were on the trail by 9:00.

The morning started out gradual and the trail stayed just above the river and in the shade.  We started climbing up the switchbacks in a narrow canyon and stayed in the shade most of the day.

The first downhill people we saw were trail runners.  They had started out in the early morning, in the dark, hoping to beat the heat and the crowds.

We got to a point where we were done. Not to our destination, but just done. We finished off water and snacks, read the description in the book, trying to figure out how much further to Indian Garden campground.  All that rest, snacks, and reading and the campground ended up being around the next corner.  The lead hikers of our group had already found a group site and had set up their tents.  We were so happy to take off our packs.  The kids quickly set up the rest of their tents, rehydrated some lunch and then got in their tents for a nap.  The day had never really warmed up.  We were just warm from uphill hiking.  You had to be in the sun or in your sleeping bag to cut the chill in the air.  The kids napped, I read and Nathan scouted out a trail for our evening hike.

Nathan never stops.  He’s always busy with something.  I asked him why he works so hard, goes home late, leaves early the next morning and then does it all again.  Some nights he doesn’t go home at all, he goes to the hospital and works all night in the emergency room.  His answer was that his dad told him to always leave a place better than he found it.  I thought he was referring to our campsite;  but he meant the world, he needs to leave it better than he found it.  That’s Nathan’s drive. I think he’s succeeded multiple times over.  Nathan will never be done leaving this place better than he found it.

Our evening hike was a nice flat out and back to an overlook.  We were already half way up the canyon.  From the overlook, we could see the river at the bottom and the rim at the top.  The perfect location to watch the sun go down.  Everyone was goofy, sore, and in awe of the beauty surrounding us.  We hung out at the overlook for a long time, talking, taking photos and then the yoga poses started.  It wasn’t even my idea.  Headstands, dancer, backbends, double down dog, and a triple layer plank.  Then someone came up with the idea of a backbend with someone else in bow pose on the back benders belly.  It never worked and the photos look a bit pornographic.  We all howled with laughter as this tower of inverted belly’s would come crashing down onto the rock.  These are the kinds of moments that you can’t plan, expect or describe; they just happen when you go on an adventure with nine kids and two adults.  The kids told Nathan and I that we weren’t old (although we were older than most of their parents), we weren’t old because we still do fun stuff.  We walked back to the campsite to rehydrate some dinner.  The kids were starving and ran out ahead while Nathan took pictures of everything from the scenery to the blooming cactuses, to a Montana shaped rock.  We managed to eat before dark for the first time, but just barely.  As it got dark we looked up at the rim and could see the parking lot lights for Bright Angel Trailhead.

The next morning it was still dark when I heard the first trail runners go by.  Then just as I was getting up I heard a gentleman trying to talk on his cell phone on the trail.  The connection must not have been great so he talked louder as the rest of the campground got to wake up to this man’s cell phone conversation.  It was a chilly morning.  The kids were up, fed, packed and on the trail before 8:00.  Another day of switch backs and climbing.  We were going just over four miles and climbing 3000 feet.  I had them divide the day up into thirds based on the two restrooms along the way, trying to make the hike seem less arduous.

The closer we got to the rim the busier the trail got.  The day hikers didn’t need a permit and could come and go any distance they wanted.  For two hours people were telling us we were almost there.  It was slow going and lots of breaks, but we weren’t in any hurry, except for the desire to be done hauling our stuff on our backs.  We spoke to the people as we went by them.  They would step to the side to let us by.  I wasn’t sure if they were afraid of us knocking them over with our bulky packs or if we smelled like we were on our third day of hiking.  They asked us questions and treated us like hiking super heroes.  The trail got busier and the people weren’t as friendly.  We were just in their way at this point.  The people walked on both sides of the narrow trail and we would have to stop to let them by.  After four hours, averaging 1 mile an hour we reached the top.

Back to the world of traffic, exhaust, flush toilets, gift shops, cell phone service and meals that had not been dehydrated.  The kids were thrilled.

Nathan walked to our bus and drove it back to pick us up.  We found our group campground site.  Once again Mather campground was full.  The kids struggled with what to do first; eat, shower, buy coffee, charge their phones, nap.  They managed to get it all in and then eat again.

Nathan and I had to throw in one more evening hike.  We stopped at the store on the way to satisfy the kids desire to purchase stuff and then continued in the dark to the rim trail.  We laid on the trail and watched the stars, planets, planes and satellites. The kids asked Nathan star questions and then those questions turned into existential questions and then to interstellar travel and time questions.  Wonder and what if; the kids were full of those questions.  I was getting cold laying there so we started walking along the trail.  We were waiting for the moon to come up which it did.  It lit up the canyon and our trail.  We looked down where we had come from  that morning and could see the headlamps of the people eating their rehydrated meals at Indian Garden campground.

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.  We were in a zone for sure.  A trip like this is planned with list and itineraries and books with descriptions.  The real trip is not the list or the planned events.  The real trip is what happens in limbo.  The experience you take back with you is not explained in books,  the experience is bigger than that.  You have a hard time explaining the comradery that forms within a group  during a strenuous outdoor adventure.  This adventure was very meditative. It takes you out of your daily routine.  You couldn’t help but be in the moment, focusing on nothing but the adventure.  Your head is cleared of the clutter and drama of unimportant issues and stays tuned into the present moment.

The transition back is not an easy one and should be done gradually.  Cell phones make this gradual transition virtually impossible. You return home in a peaceful melancholic funk, to a world of perceived time crunches and life sucking drama.  That’s what’s exhausting; not hiking in and out of the Grand Canyon.

Thanks for reading. Find more great adventure stories as well as highly recommended books by visiting the Wild About Books Blog.

 

 

I’ve been so busy reading that I have not had time to write.  I’m still working my way through last month’s book of  the month “Eighty Days”.  I just started my first young adult science fiction book with my High School book club “Ender’s Game”.  I’m re-reading “Heal Your Headache” as I have now become addicted to my prescription migraine medicine.  I have a sample of “The Happiness Advantage” on my kindle that I would like to start. I’m almost through a memoir by Stephen King called “On Writing”, a great book on the craft of writing.  And, I’m almost done with the March 2016 Book of the Month.

This book does not go well with wine or beer.  It also is not a before bed book.  You will want to be alert and fully conscious while reading this selection.  This book takes place in the early to mid 20th century in Barcelona Spain and Paris France.  There is intrigue, murder and romance all intertwined in multiple storylines in this dark tale.  It takes on an Oscar Wild-ish feel in the bazaar twist and turns and with the philosophical characters who make statements such as;

“The female heart is a labyrinth of subtleties, too challenging for the uncouth mind of the male racketeer.  If you really want to possess a woman, you must think like her, and the first thing to do is to win over her soul.  The rest, that sweet, soft wrapping that steals away your senses and your virtue, is a bonus”

“Making money isn’t hard in itself,” he complained.  “What’s hard is to earn it doing something worth devoting one’s life to.”

Read this book slowly and carefully.  Don’t put it down for too long as you will need to keep the plot and characters fresh in your head.

I highly recommend this month’s book “The Shadow of the Wind”  by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

For more book recommendations, please visit Wild About Books.

I’m standing with my Earl Grey tea in hand, waiting for my to go salad that I have just ordered. I’m  in a busy local coffee shop in Hamiton.  We don’t have Starbucks here, just local coffee shops; each with their own personalities.   I look around and notice the people.  The customers are ordering coffee or fancy lattes, cookies and muffins, a few sandwiches, although it’s a little early for lunch.  As I watch, the people casually come and go; in no real hurry and I’m reminded of why Montana is the place I belong.

I moved here almost 23 years ago and at the age of 28 I knew that this was where I belonged.  At the time, I wasn’t aware of why I felt that way. I soon came to realize that Montana was home to me because no one wears panty hose.

Yes!  I had found my happy place.

I can wear wool socks or bare legs or even leg warmers, but I will never again wear panty hose.  Who came up with that term.  Is it southern?  Because sometimes I get caught using southern words and get funny looks.  I still say “buggy” instead of grocery cart; that always gets a funny look.

I admit that I have had to buy knee high hose in Montana.  In our old house, the dryer wasn’t vented to the outside.  I needed to attach the knee high hose onto the exhaust pipe to catch the lint.

As I watch the people in the coffee shop I notice their outfits and hair.  Everyone is wearing blue jeans, no one has on a tie.  The footwear is practical.  The men have beards.  The women have pony tails.  But most importantly, no one is trying to out fashion the other.  There is no fashion to out fashion.  You are who you are.  There are no label wars or trendy outfits.  The customers in the coffee shop took the time to pull on a pair of pants and a shirt and their morning routine is over.  Out the door and off to work.  If the women are wearing make-up, I don’t notice, it’s subtle if at all.

Bad hair days don’t exist in Montana.  Hats.  Just put on a hat.  Baseball hat, stocking hat, bandana, whatever works.  Hair is done.  Most days I have helmet hair.  Bike helmet, snow board helmet, kayak helmet.   

Lips; lip balm

Fingernails; clip them.  Done.

Women: sports bra.  Even a trip to the store  in your car requires a sports bra.  Frost heaves and pot holes will make you think twice about that Victoria Secret lace  good for nothing fancy pants bra.

High Heels:  ahhahahahhahha.  ha.

Snot Rockets:  usually reserved for outdoor activities such as running or biking on cold days.  For some reason, cold outdoor cardio leads to massive amounts of mucus.  Gently turn your head to the side, place your finger on one side of the nose for maximum pressure out of the opposite side in order to fully discharge the mucus.  Repeat on the other side if needed.  Use caution in high winds or with groups.  Large nosed people beware that the mucus doesn’t always get enough velocity to detach and will become a long stringy mess clinging to your clothes and face and gloves as you wipe and wipe looking as if a large snail has been crawling over you leaving a silvery trail of snail slime.

“Good God; what happened to you”

“I was attacked by 50 snails at mile four.”

 

 

 

 

An adventure book.  Not just any adventure book, but one that’s true; about adventurous women, in the late 1800’s.   How can you be  an adventurous woman in a victorian outfit?  Adventure women need ultra wicking, themo max tights with a non- binding waist band, a gusseted crotch and reflective stripes.  An outfit consisting of a full-length wool skirt, a buttoned to the neck blouse with decorative broach is not screaming adventure.

This book was suggested by my most adventurous friend Carol.  I was out cross country skiing last Saturday afternoon when I ran into Carol who was on her new fat bike.  If you’re not familiar with a fat bike, it’s a bike with super wide tires, barely inflated and used in the winter on snow.  Carol has turned her biking passion into a year-round sport. In our quick meeting, she let me test ride her fat bike and suggested the book that is the book of the month for February 2016.  Carol is the only person that I know of that has read every Wild About Books Blog book of the month.

Carol’s adventurous spirit is inspiring.  She is a retired high school art teacher and lives in Darby with her husband.  Carol rarely sits still.  If it is daylight, Carol is out on an adventure.  My favorite Carol adventure story is the day we introduced her to white water in an inflatable kayak on the day stretch of the Salmon River.  Carol is more of an adventurer on solid ground and sitting in a small blow up kayak was out of her comfort zone.  She handled it well and with lots of laughter.  Several miles into the float we parked the boats to scout Pine Creek rapids. This was Carol’s opportunity to get in the big raft and let someone take her down the rapids with the kayak safely rolled up and packed on the raft.  That is not Carol’s way.  Not only did she make it through Pine Creek rapids without dumping out of the inflatable kayak, she went down the entire rapid backward.  Although backward down the rapid was not Carol’s intention, she managed to turn a slight misjudgment into an unforgettable ride that will be retold at every day stretch of the Salmon outing that I am on.  That’s not the end of Carol’s first inflatable kayak adventure.  Carol went home that night, got online and ordered her own NRS inflatable,  a paddle, and a helmet.  This was two years ago and this June, she’s going on an 18 day trip down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon.

On Wednesday this week, Carol rode her fat bike up Skalkaho Road (a road that is closed to car traffic more than it is open) up to Skalkaho Falls.  The next day at yoga Carol was absent and someone in the class asked if she was recovering from her bike ride. Are you kidding?  It’s powder Thursday at Lost Trail, she’s downhill skiing today.  Carol is my hero.  I can’t wait to be a retired grandmother too so that I can keep up with her.

Adventure women are a dime a dozen here in Montana.  If you don’t have an adventurous spirit you will miss out on most of what Montana has to offer.  Someone asked me at lunch last week what my “word of the year” was.  I had never heard of a “word of the year”, but instead of questioning the question I said “adventure”  that’s my word.  Adventure doesn’t necessarily mean white water rafting or snow biking.  It means leaving your comfort zone.  At the end of your comfort zone, you’ll find the beginning of your life. An adventure could be writing a novel, taking an art class, going to the Sawmill Saloon in Darby or traveling to a giant metropolis like Boston. Adventure could mean opening up your own business in small town Montana or putting up a fight to keep pesticides from being used on school playgrounds.  For me, though, adventure is synonymous with outdoors. You can’t sit around waiting for adventures to happen, you have to plan for them.

You may think I sit by the fire and read all day.  Nope.  In just this week alone I’ve worked on the travel details of my backpacking trip in the Grand Canyon this March, put in for permits for a week trip down the Salmon river for this summer, signed up for a 50 mile relay run in the mountains of Montana, researched plane ticket prices for Boston in May and celebrated Martin Luther King day on some epic powder with Deja Vu, my snowboard.  Life’s short, plan your adventures accordingly.

To get your adventurous spirit in drive mode I highly recommend the February Book of the month; “Eighty Days” by Matthew Goodman; Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s history-making race around the world.  “Eighty Days” has everything I love in a book.  It’s a true story.  It has lots of great history.  It is about strong women overcoming the rules of society and it is full of adventure.

Hope your week is story worthy.

To find more great books you can visit the Wild About Books Blog.

 

I arrive at the small local restaurant to meet my co-workers for breakfast before work.  The waitress is expecting us for our weekly breakfast date.  She knows what to bring for us to drink.  Hot chocolate for one, coffee for another, Mountain Dew for the other and hot tea for me.  None of us need a menu, we know what’s on it.  The other’s order a typical American breakfast with some kind of breakfast meat and I order a small oatmeal.  Plain.

“No milk, or sugar, or raisins?” she asks.

“Just  plain please”

She walks towards the kitchen shaking her head and coughing her chronic smoker’s cough that she no longer notices.

I had learned that there isn’t any fresh fruit or real syrup or alternative milk choices and I had never even expected those items in this inexpensive, locally owned, busy breakfast establishment.  I bring my own container with frozen organic berries, walnuts and a bit of real maple syrup.  No problem.  I accept that I’m weird and take ownership of this fact.  I adjust and bring my own oatmeal bar additions.  Even my breakfast club friends shake their heads or make jokes to cover the weirdness of my special orders.  I could bring my own mug of Yerba Mate’ Tea, but decide to order the microwaved mug of water and choose from the basket of dollar store tea bags.

Some mornings I feel like some fried potatoes.  So I order  Deb’s Special with no meat, no cheese, and no gravy and if you could saute some more vegetables from the salad bar that would be great too.  The waitress writes and writes and writes and then reads it back to me with a question in her voice as if this is not something a person would really eat.   One time she brought it back with cheese on it.  I picked the cheese off because she said that would be quicker than making a new one.  And she didn’t charge me for it.  Most times they get it right and I bring a little container of homemade salsa to add some flavor.  Last time I ordered the altered  Deb’s Special, I took the first bite and thought; bacon…. that really taste like bacon.  I look into the plate, pull out a dark brown something, hoping it’s a mushroom.

“Is this bacon? Here taste it”

“That’s bacon” my co-worker and taste tester confirms.

The waitress takes it back cussing the cook for confusing bacon for broccoli on her long list of notes for my order and brings me another one in a to-go box.

It’s not easy being a Montana Vegan.

“Hey Lisa, are you eating some “toe food”?”

“No, it’s actually tempeh which is a less processed soy product than tofu, but thanks for asking.”

Another day for lunch I had gone into a different restaurant.  This is a small town and people know everyone.  I explained to the waitress what I would like and watched her go to the cook’s window to give him an explanation.  I couldn’t see the cook/owner but knew there must have been a look of disgust when the waitress explained;

“it’s for Lisa”.

Then all was clear.

When I occasionally go to Papa Murphy’s in the next town up the valley, the young crew working there actually laugh at me.  I order the Herb Chicken Mediterranean, no chicken, and no cheese.  That’s when they laugh; assuming I’m joking.  Then I ask to have added onions and artichoke hearts, which they charge me extra for.  They start the pizza.  Get the dough, spread on the olive oil, add the garlic and then throw on a large amount of cheese; push it to the side and start over.  It’s just automatic to add the cheese next in the process.  Am I the only vegan in this cattle country?  Does everyone get cheese on their pizza?  I had one person tell me it’s not legally pizza if you remove the cheese.

I’m leading up to the book that I am reading right now.  It’s not going to be a book of the month, but it is going to be a highly recommended book by this Montana Vegan.

“How Not to Die:  Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease” by Michael Greger and Gene Stone

Although this book may not be for everyone, I found it very interesting and more evidence to continue my choice to be a vegan.

“Where do you get your protein and why did you choose to be vegan?” are the questions most asked.  Oh, and the other question is “what does Brett eat?”

I believe that protein is overrated and I get plenty of protein from oatmeal, quinoa, beans and nuts.

I choose to be vegan because all of the research I’ve done has led me to believe that this is the right choice for me.

And, Brett eats everything I eat and grills up a deer burger or bakes a piece of fish for himself.  Pretty simple. I don’t think it’s legal in Montana for vegans to marry vegans, so you have to make it work.

I like facebook for information on upcoming events like the Ugly Christmas Sweater party at Higher Ground tonight.  Or for seeing some crazy fun photos like Roch and Jenn dressed up for the Star Wars movie.  I can see when River Rising is offering a vegan soup.  I just found out that the Trail Run west of Missoula is offering a relay option which will be fun for my running club.  And I found out that Alyssa will be in town for Christmas.  I get to see Debbie’s grandchildren and even share a photo of Tin Cup Creek during a late afternoon cross country ski with my dog.

Unfortunately, I have to weed through so many pre-done “sayings or phrases or share this if you have an awesome son”, that it’s hard to find the good things.  The politics, politics, politics.  Mostly, one is preaching to the choir as I assume facebook friends have a lot of the same views.

Some facebookers have different views than you.  Occasionally you’ll catch a friend liking their views such as this one:

……..“victims who shoot back live longer”

What?!

You want us to shoot each other?

This is the answer?

Look at all the people that “liked” this post or commented positively on it. “Hell yeah, shoot the bastards”.

Then the next post this person “likes” is a nativity scene with: “remember the reason for the season”.

Shoot each other and Baby Jesus back to back on facebook; I’m so confused.

Plus I feel bad that my 12-year-old cousin wasn’t armed on the Christmas day that he was shot and killed.  Someone should have told him “victims who shoot back live longer”.  Or my grandmother should have been packin’ the day she was shot and killed.  Oh! Wait.  Technically she was shot with her own gun so it was being used at the time by her husband.

One can’t just arbitrarily make such a general comment and assume that’s the answer to gun problems or any problems.  You do not know everyone’s story.

I digress. Perhaps I should ween myself off facebook and read another book.  The book for January will help you see another side of a story and help us understand what other’s may be going through.

The book for January is a novel that takes place in 1990 war-torn Yugoslavia and is told by a 10-year-old girl.  She becomes a child soldier and then a refugee to the United States.  This book is a well told beautiful story but also graphic and eye-opening.  I’m sure we will never truly understand what goes on in the modern day civil wars of other countries. This book will help the reader be more understanding and have empathy for those going through such terrible situations. Maybe think twice before saying general statements such as; lets ban all Muslims from the United States.  Hopefully, one will not be so quick to  callously say “victims who shoot back, live longer”.  But then, I’m preaching to the choir. I suppose I should share this post on facebook.

The book for January 2016 is “Girl at War” by  Sara Novic’.  

To find more great reads check out the Wild About Books blog.

 

 

 

 

 

Those of you that are regular followers of the Wild About Books Book Club Blog will remember my post “Dear Barrack”; a letter to President Obama.  Click here to see this post which I did print and mail to the President.

Mostly I forgot about it, but sometimes I wonder if Mr. Obama read my letter.  And sometimes I think about writing him again so that he understands what people are dealing with out here in the land of the real world.

Today my work phone rang and I answered it;

“Darby Schools, this is Lisa”.

It was the president’s office.   She was looking for the Lisa Poe that had sent a letter to President Obama last May.

“Yes!I am that Lisa Poe”.

“Great. This is Fiona from The Presidential Office of Correspondence.  President Obama reads ten letters every night and yours was one of them.  He has hand-written you a reply and we need an address to send it to.  If you give me your email address I’ll scan and email it to you too”.

I gave her the information, thanked her and told her to have a great  day.

What the heck?  This is amazing.

Lucky for him I had not started the ACA reporting forms process at work when I wrote that letter.  Maybe lucky for me too, I would end up in federal prison if I told him how ridiculous this has all become and that “affordable health care” is not only a misnomer but a complete farce.  This opinion being  from my perspective and experiences.  I’m sure that there are people who have better health care now.   I was hoping Mr. Obama would invite me to the White House for some more advice, but that was not the case.   Maybe I’ll just pop in one day and see if he’s available.  We need to talk about responsible gun ownership, archaic public school systems, unaffordable college educations, student loan rip-offs, GMO’s, and the dairy industry.  I should probably bring an overnight bag.

 

Thanksgiving is like the alarm clock of holiday gift giving.  A slap in the face to the short amount of time you have to not only decide what to get but to purchase it, wrap it and maybe even ship it.  If you’re shipping gifts, Thanksgiving is more of a panic button.  All the thought put into gift giving has now gone out the window and you are in a horrible place of just buying a gift that could honestly have anyone’s name on the tag.

 Here is my chart for you to follow for gift giving for the holiday season.  You can use this chart for birthdays, anniversaries and any time that society dictates that you need to bring a gift.

Easy Peasy:  Money; just give a check or a crisp bill of any denomination, although 20’s and up are more appreciated than ones and fives.  Money is always useful for the receiver and you can not get any easier for the giver.  There is nothing wrong with giving money.

Smart:  Gloves, socks, pistachios.  Gloves are lost all the time and a good collection is helpful.  Socks can be fun.  If you know your receiver has a hobby then you can be sock specific; hiking, running, hunting, skiing.  Be aware that gloves and socks come in sizes and you will need to be thoughtful enough to know if the receiver of the gift has large or small hands and feet.  I wear small socks, the stores always put the small socks on the top shelf.  I can’t reach them and have to ask for a step stool.  If you are six feet tall and wear a 4.5-6 sock you are probably unable to stand upright and would need the socks on the lowest shelve as well.  And who’s not going to smile when they open a Costco size bag of pistachios. This has the illusion of a large gift but in reality it’s mostly inedible shells.

Local: My personal favorite, shopping locally.  Most of my Christmas shopping is done at the local breweries.  The breweries stock a wide variety of promotional items such as shirts, growlers, koozies and stickers, You sit at the bar or table and they bring you everything, even a tasty beverage.

“..could I see that tank top in a women’s large please”

and they bring it

to you.

…”and I’ll take 3 of your hydro flask tumblers as well”.

Without moving from your bar stool, all of your Christmas shopping is done and you’ve shopped locally.

“….all of this shopping has made me hungry, could you bring me a pizza too”.

Consumables:  Sometimes you have to shop for the person who has everything.  The person who you know has a closet in their house that is full of all the presents you have ever sent them.  This person needs something consumable like chocolate or wine.  The other nice thing about chocolate or wine is that it is easily re-gift-able.

Personal: This may be my all time favorite even over local.  Personal can be a story or poem that you wrote for the person.  It could be something hand knitted or sewn.  Some hand-crafted jewelry or pottery.  It could even be a hand-written coupon for a foot massage by you.  Oh! A foot massage, there is nothing that beats a foot massage.  There is no money involved in this gift, yet the receiver will be thrilled to be given a foot massage.

Nocturnal Rodents:  I do not recommend this gift at all.  Giving nocturnal rodents is a poor choice.  If you or your children are the receivers of such a gift you will need to exam the relationship you have with the gift giver.  I can tell you from personal experience that you may be passively aggressively on someone’s shit list when given a nocturnal rodent.

Books:  Books are one of my favorite things ever. But giving books for presents is questionable.  You must really know the person well to pick out a book for them.  Using Wild About Books blog is an exceptionally good resource but still risky.  For example, one of my favorite books is “Born to Run”.  I love this book and you don’t have to be a runner to enjoy this book, in my opinion.  After I read this book I wanted everyone to experience reading this modern classic.  Let’s say I give this book as a gift to my son, daughter, mom, sister, dad, beautiful man, and best friend at work.  If I think about this more in depth, there is only one person in that list that might read and finish this book and that would be my dad.  As good as this book is, you would still need to have a passion for running to have an interest in reading “Born to Run”.  There is one person in my life who not only reads everything that I suggest but enjoys the books as well, my friend and superhero Carol.  I think this is rare to have someone who enjoys all of the books that you enjoy.  The answer to this book giving conundrum is simple.  Give a Kindle.  My Kindle has been a life changer.  It’s easy to read, downloads books on demand, very portable, battery charge last for weeks and you can adjust the font size to your eye needs.  A Kindle Paper White would make a great gift.  If the people you know already have an e-reader, then go for the amazon gift card.  You can purchase this online, give it online and they can use it online.  That’s almost as easy as the money suggestion.  With the amazon gift card the receiver can buy more books that they chose to read.

Happy shopping.  Several Christmas Bazaars in Darby today. If you are in the area check them out and I hear that  Santa will be at Bandit Brewery.

 

 

 

Darby Montana; a pretty spectacular place to live.  A population of about 850 in the town limits, the Bitterroot mountains on the west side, the Sapphires to the east and the Bitterroot River winding its way through it all.  There are lots of great things to do in the outdoors here, but what about the town?  What does our town have to offer? Can you get your Christmas shopping done in Darby?  Yes, you definitely can.  Darby has a lot to offer.  In one small block you can:

1. Get your dog washed
2. Buy some fishing flys or live maggots
3. Get some farm fresh eggs at the liquor store (as well as liquor, wine, and gifts)
4. After a long day of shopping you can bar hop between the two bars, The Sawmill and Dotsons (good for people watching and pool playing too, You can visit with the likes of “Pistol Packing Pete” who comes into the bar, not with his pistol, because that’s illegal to bring a gun into a bar, school or post office, but with his holster on.  The holster is not empty, he has a cordless screw gun propped in the holster.  Apparently Pistol Packing Pete has a hernia and needs the pressure to keep things in place. )
5. Get a great lunch or dinner at Mike’s Little Blue Joint (vegan options too)
6. A massage from Christina (and she’s a birth doula)
7. Yoga/Pilates classes from Wendy at Main Street Yoga
8. Get a work out at The Right to Bare Arms Fitness Gym
9. Get a Tattoo
10. Find almost anything at the thrift shop
11. Get an $8 haircut at Hope’s Cutting Corral
12. Get your hair done, nails done, makeup done, or a tan at The Electric Beach and Hair Studio
13. Drink a wide variety of craft beer at the Bandit Brewery and enjoy live music
14. Buy some organic fruit, veggies, local-made gifts and much more at the health food store, The Darby Mercantile.
15. Catch up on the gossip at the post office from the clerks when you mail your gifts.
16. Check out a book at the Darby Library to relax with after shopping.
17. Antiques (but I think only the tourist go there)
18. Candy store (tourist again)
19. Get your freshly harvested game stuffed at one of the two taxidermy shops
20. Get your skull bleached ( I’m not sure what this is or the cost, but it is available if you need it)

Consider  Down Town Darby for all of your Christmas shopping on  small business Saturday.  This list is full of ideas for presents and gift certificates and even time to enjoy yourself.  You’ll avoid the traffic as all of these options are within walking distance.  You’ll avoid multiple stop lights because there aren’t any. There also aren’t any crowds to wade through.  No lines.  Oh wait, there may be a line in the post office, but not because it’s busy.  There’s only one clerk at a time working the desk and she’s catching up on what each customer and their family have been up to since the last time they were in.  No reason to get stressed about it, just enjoy it.  Now you’ll have something to share next time you’re at Hope’s Cutting Corral.

Find more great tips and a wide variety of book suggestions at Wild About Books.  Books make great gifts too.

 

 

Time for the Wild About Books monthly book selection.  After a dry spell of not so good books, I’m happy to present a beautifully written southern novel set in the 1950’s.  I love southern novels, the food and the special southern way of speaking. The juxtaposition of having a black woman raise your children but make her sit out in the hot car to eat her dinner because she is not allowed in the restaurant.  I also like the setting of the 1950’s.  A decade that is remembered, by most, from the warm, loving and witty families of the TV.  It was all perfect.  What a great decade.

Was it really?

There was racial tension, female suppression, corporal punishment; makes you want to grow your hair out, do drugs and  love one another.  Perhaps the 50’s looked  good compared to the depression  of the 30’s and the world war of the 40’s.  It’s all relative.

Everybody has their decade. I’m a bi-decade late 70’s early 80’s.  My kids are from the zero’s.  I don’t know what you’re supposed to call that decade.  If you’re from the zero’s or the ten’s you should just not have a decade attached to you.  Skip that part. Tell them you’re a Pisces.  Get the subject changed.  John Cougar Mellencamp is not going to write a song called “It was the summer of zero zero”.

What did I do last night?  Stayed up really late and finished the December book selection.  I couldn’t put it down.  It wrecked me.  Stayed up late, slept in, missed yoga.  The book took over my being.

I was arguing with myself

“…… savor it, finish tomorrow”

“No!  Finish it”.

“You should go to sleep”

“One more chapter”.

“You might as well finish it now”

I finished it.  What a well-written book. It’s  Charlotte, NC native, Anna Jean Mayhew’s first novel and it’s a winner.  I highly recommend “The Dry Grass of August”.  Even if you’re not from the south, you’ll enjoy the characters and their struggles in a society and a decade that needs more exploration and explanation.

This book is available at the Darby Public Library as soon as I return it.

Wild About Books blog is a seriously great resource for book lovers.  Check it out.