Days Alone

Some days just feel lonely, even though you may have spent the whole of them with crowds of people. In the four years since I graduated from college, I have lived in seven new cities, and this fall I am once again relocating. Constant moving means constant adapting, and learning how to be alone- and NOT lonely- is an essential skill to this lifestyle.

  
At the beach this winter, I ran across these lone seagull tracks on the snow that nearly had me in tears for their seeming isolation.  After walking alone for a little while, however, the gull once again took flight and rejoined his soaring comrades.

The Fruits of My Labor

All spring and summer long, I have been spending my evenings tilling, planting, weeding and watering a small 10 x 15' patch of the world in the hopes that all that dirt under my fingernails would pay off. Despite the drought and the uncharacteristically hot Chicago summer, somehow it is all happening!
Last week bright pockets of color started showing up in the midst of my little green jungle, and I plan on exclusively eating tomato-basil salads for the rest of the summer!

Feeling the Heat

It's going to be 96 degrees today and I am planning to take a group of 10-year old children fishing for the first time. Just a little reminder to myself that I love warm days and I am so grateful it's summer!

Winter in Illinois is coooooold!

Hard at Work!

Paddling, both canoeing and kayaking, is definitely on my top five favorites list. A few weeks ago I supervised a group of middle school-aged boys on a jaunt in the lake which was one of the highlights of my summer so far. It was a surprisingly relaxing moment in what was a pretty high stress week. I feel like if anything can help you stay calm whilst you are spending your day with kids that age, it is well worth doing on a regular basis!

Summer Heat

Happy Summer! Now that the monstrous heat wave that overtook much of the country has passed, I am ready to enjoy sitting outside under the stars again. I spent last week in the heart of the Southeast, visiting family, watching fireworks, and attending Minor League Baseball Games-go Montgomery Biscuits! I spent the first several days of the week at my grandparents farm in Gainesville, Georgia -one of my favorite places in the world, where time seems to stop and everything smells sun-drenched.