song of the day

"ho hey" by the lumineers

peace and blessin's,
hill

Song of the Day

Today's song is "Feel It All Around" by Washed Out

Today is one of those days where I lay in my bed and stare at the ceiling. I did actually leave the house this morning, but all this afternoon I was sitting around...either reading or journaling. This song not only fits my day, but also sums up my summer: laziness (the good kind of lazy). The band kinda reminds me of a mixture between M83/The XX/Vampire Weekend (and only VW because it's kinda beach-y feeling).  It's a good summer song. I can picture myself floating in a pool to it or something.


happy sunday funday,
hill

Dave of the Day #2

man for Hillary (left) man for Rachael (center) man who looks like that fish from Spongebob (right)

D-day is fast approaching. Fast Fun Facts about June, 29th

1. It is the day I am seeing DMB in concert in Hershey Park
2. It is the Haro Wine Festival in Spain (everyone drinks and throws wine on each other) 
3. It is my parents 27th Wedding Anniversary
4. It is Rob's parents 27th Wedding Anniversary
5. It is my cousin Eric's birthday
6. Raymond of Poitiers was defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi.

Clearly, everyone should be looking forward to June 29th 

To honor this wonderful day I will post a Dave song that has nothing to do with weddings, birthdays, booze or Raymond of Poitiers and the Battle of Inab. (although the song, what would you say pretty much includes all of these...) 

This song just wants you to be where you are. And it screams of summer. It was so hot outside, you could fry an egg. 

Am I right side up or upside down,

rach

not really black and white.

“Adventure is a path. Real adventure – self-determined, self-motivated, often risky – forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not the way you imagine it. Your body will collide with the earth and you will bear witness. In this way you will be compelled to grapple with the limitless kindness and bottomless cruelty of humankind – and perhaps realize that you yourself are capable of both. This will change you. Nothing will ever again be black-and-white.” – Mark Jenkins

do what you don't, 

rach

the "real" world: relationships 101

Reality. Sometimes I don't think people know what that is.  It's not what you see on TV. It's not what you read in a fiction novel. It's not a simulated video game. It's life. Real life. Real people. Real situations. Real relationships. But most importantly, it's not "reality" TV.  I'd have to say that reality TV is even less "real" than TV sitcoms.

I just started this book today:

I've had this book for 2 years now, but for some reason I was drawn to it this morning when I was looking at my way-too-big summer reading list.  I grabbed it, went outside with my nalgene bottle in one hand, and my iPod in the other.  I was prepared for the quintessential, lazy summer day.  When I started reading it, I was surprised by how relevant the first chapter was to my own life. (note: this is not fiction....).  The first thing Klosterman talked about in the book is people's tendency to formulate unrealistic expectations for real-life situations-namely, relationships. I'm guilty of doing this. No matter how many times I might tell you that I hate Chick Flicks except for 6 of them (P.S. I Love You, The Notebook, The Holiday, Garden State, Elizabethtown, 10 Things I Hate About You), I secretly enjoy a cheesy romance.  When life gets boring, it's kinda a fun escape to pretend that I'm the main girl in Leap Year, falling in love with a bearded Irish man.  But the problem with escaping like this, are the unhealthy expectations of reality that present themselves to people.  Girls start to believe that "prince charming" will indefinitely fall for the nerdy girl over the cheerleader, realizing that the stereotypical popular girl won't make him happy and that the love of his life has been sitting next to him in math class all throughout high school. To be honest, 3/4 of the Chick Flicks with this scenario would never happen in real life.  Most importantly, it's best to remember that these stories develop in 2 HOURS. 2!! That's not even as long as a date with one person might last.  To think that you can fall in love with the perfect stranger in 2 hours is crazy.  But yet, we still go and see these movies.  And every girl hopes that she will find a Noah of her own to build her the dream house she always wanted.

  

This is where every girl needs to remember that most guys are idiots. Okay, actually all guys are.  The most sensitive boy I've ever met was gay. And it's because he was gay and thinks the way girls do. This isn't to say there aren't any sensitive straight guys out there, because I'm sure there are; this is just to say that girls need to remember that the first guy they meet most likely WON'T meet their expectations.  It takes times to meet the right one.  And it takes WAY longer than 2 hours, trust me.  Girls also need to remember that guys really aren't as thoughtful as we, women, are.  Not every guy will write you letters every day when he's away at sea; not every guy will write you a song and sing it to you to show you that he loves you, and not every guy is gonna remember to hold the door open for you on your first date.  It's the sad truth.  Boys are more shallow, single-minded, and self-centered than we are.  They might not pick-up on the fact that your favorite color is purple or that you prefer dark over milk chocolate.  They probably don't overanalyze text messages like we ladies love to do. They also probably won't run into you at the mall for the first time seeing each other after HS graduation and realize they're madly in love.  This is just a fact of life.  We, women, need to remember that these fantasy situations presented to us in the form of a Nora Roberts novel or a Brat Pack movie aren't exactly the way things happen in life.  There's a lot more back story to real romances. We can't let ourselves get caught up in a fantasy land or we won't realize that a great guy is in front of us.  Boys are nervous.  You might think they are big and tough but I promise you that they fear rejection almost more than we do.  

So, the next time you go on a date, don't expect him to whisper Shakespearean quotes in your ear or slow dance with you in the middle of the road.  He's probably too nervous about kissing you at the end of the night that he forgets to open your door when he picks you up.  So here's my advice: cut the boy some slack.  Be glad he had enough guts to ask you to see a movie or go out to eat.  I'm sure he'd love to be the Noah to your Ali but don't expect him to, because these expectations make it harder for the fellas to impress us.  If he treats you well, makes you laugh, likes your mom, knows how to cook, has ambitions and hugs you when you feel sad, he's probably a keeper.  Try to remember the movies and books we know and love are fiction for a reason.  Nothing is perfect.  Lower your expectations and something great will come your way! Live in reality, not reality TV.

with love,

Hill

Sew What?

every time I get a sewing idea, my mother crushes my dreams. and with good reason. neither of us can sew. and I try to convince myself other wise, always. today was no different. we spent a while just staring at the fabric having the good ol' conversation, "I don't know, what do you think we should do?" "I don't know, that's why I asked you, I don't know what we should do." but then I jumped in and just started cutting stuff. way more of my style. I don't like to measure and count. I just don't, sew what? (sorry I had to)

sew, (again, too good to pass up) I started out with a nice little salvation army find. $0.25 for this tan tank. there was some nice visual interest with the triangle applique. too bad it was sewn on crooked. only at salvo.

well, I love the color, but it's a little boring. 

the only think interesting about this is the bearded man in the background. 

so this tank needed some inspiration and I decided to rummage through my box of bolts of fabric and lace snippets. i found a nice hippie batiking fabric. (batiking is using a wax to resist the dye on fabric, usually in tribal patters, very popular in Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, India, Egypt... and the traditional colors are indigo, dark brown and white (they represent Hindu Gods)) Anyway, the fabric is very cool and I wanted to use it to spice up this tank. But there was a problem...

I don't know why the color is gross in this picture, sorry Nikon. I have failed you.

other than the obvious problem that i cannot sew... this tank top did not fit me. it did the skank slide off my shoulder and gaped in the back. something needed to change. 

simple stitch down the back (rather than create more pulling on the sides, i just cut the excess fabric out of the back and zipped it back to life. and then who wants a white spine showing, maybe a skeleton, but this is not Dia de los muertos. so lets get out the batiking fabric. 

no i am not cool enough to take a picture of both of my hands, these are my mom's

I made a simple pattern in a reverse taper out of some paper to make sure the pattern fits the tank. this is also me avoiding to measure, I prefer to trace and cut. tip that I learned when pinning down fabric, make sure the pin lays horizontal when feeding it through the sewing machine so the pins don't get caught. also the pins should grab the top fabric first and then snag the bottom fabric. this helps reduce the bumps and puckers. 

okay there was some measuring going on. 

zip down the side. 

some extra fabric was added to the sleeves. no one likes to waste! and here is a great chance to upcycle your old clothing and recycle the scraps from your last project. don't throw away the scraps!! just don't do it, okay? 

other tidbits of info I picked up over my sewing experiences, always have pins ready, whether they are stuck in the ironing board or between your teeth, you never know when you will need one. two types of scissors are required as well. fabric scissors. do not try to cut fabric with your regular paper scissors. it will feel like trying to cut carpet with zig-zag scrap-booking scissors. and also (pictured above) small sewing scissors to snip loose thread. and to pull stuck fabric out of the bottom place of the sewing machine... oops. 

sew nice! look at those embellishments with the old fabric.

aaaaaaand, the finished product. and I sewed it by myself (and mom helped) together we make one slightly competent seamstress. I can never show this to my grandma because there are raw edges. sorry g-ma, it's trendy. I think.

go sew something, 

rach

Dave of the Day

Dave-of-the-days were started with a few of my guys at Westminster who are loyal dmb fans (Dylan and Devon.  Seeing as I will be at one of his concerts soon, I feel it is appropriate to do a dotd in preparation for d-day (this is dave day, concert in Hershey Park, June 29th).

Most of Dave's killer songs are his jamband style songs with out radio play or official music videos, but with that being said, I chose to easy you lovely listeners into the Dave scene with an official music video to a song with some radio play.

Funny the Way It Is from Big Whiskey and the Groo Grux King (2009) pulls in some big band mumbo jumbo with a powerful lyrical message. And of course, natural Dave craziness.

Points to pay attention:

1. The bridge about a bridge
2. The progression of a celebrity's life in the video
3. "Somebody's broken heart becomes your favorite song" (so often true)
4. How plaid flannel shirts mean peace and intelligence
5. Dave has a dog named Goda (a dog spelled backwards) 

heaven or hell, im going down with the Groo Grux King, 

rach

Rachael & Hillary In The Morning (Ep. 1)

Yes. It's true. We finally did it. The first of many. Happy friday.


gotta get down on friday,
hill & rach

I don't wanna fight... let's makeup

I used to swear that I would never wear mascara.

this is not pretty.
this looks like tarantula legs.

Reasons why I swore I would never wear mascara:

1. I already have dark eyelashes .
2. I was a wicked tomboy growing up and have always poo pooed lots of makeup useage.
3. Mascara is thick and sticky and clumpy, no matter what the commercials say...
4. The commercials for mascara are the worst commercials on teevee (other than previews for Toddlers in Tiaras. If you watch that show, get off my blog right now, you don't belong in theindieattic)
5. Mascara is much too expensive.
6. There are too many different choices between brands.
7. What do all the different shaped brushes do? 
8. The girls in those commercials are totally wearing fake eye lashes.
9. For a painter, I have shaky hands and end up smearing it on my face (I just hear the operation *BUZZZ* when this happens)

But here is the biggest reason why I swore I would never wear mascara...

   10.  What is the difference between black, very black, super black, black/brown, brown, blue/black?

Some of those questions still haunt me to this day (okay, mostly all of them) but for the most part I have grown up and learned how to put on mascara. But I would like to address #6 above. Over the years I have had many a tube of mascara, borrowed tubes thick and thin, brushes winged, curved, combed and weighed the differences between waterproof and organic (something about "natural" and mascara don't jive too well with me) 

So I thought I would review the mascara I remember using. As a moderate makeup wearer, you can trust me. Aaaaaand we are off. 

Mascara #1    Lashblast from CoverGirl (waterproof in brown/black) 

This is the mascara that my mom uses and by default, I use when I'm home because who remembers to pack makeup? Not me. I like this kind, though I am not a big waterproof fan. You think I would be, seeing as I can cry like its my job but i've found that waterproof smears just the same and leaves you with thick now waterproof clumps and smears on your cheeks that you cannot rub of without making your face look like you just blew up your bunsen burner in chem class. At least you can rub the normal smears off. This mascara helps lift your lashes up and stay in place for the majority of the day. But warning the tube is so thick, it feels like you are holding a club. 6/10 

Mascara #2   The Colossal Volume Express by Mabyelline (very black) 

First of all, I bought this mascara because of the name. Come on, I don't care how seriously you take yourself, this is hilarious.  This mascara is very black, aptly named. I would not use this as a normal day look because I would look curiously like a raccoon. But I like what it does to the lashes, it clings without clumping and makes my lashes look longer without feeling heavy (regardless of how heavy they look, which is heavy) Heavy, heavy, i'll type it one more time, heavy 7/10

Mascara #3   Falsies Volume Express by Mabyelline (black) 

I got this mascara because it was in the little basket at the end of the makeup aisle, marking it on sale. So $5 rather than $8. I found this ironic because the commercial shows a leather clad model slapping this stuff that requires no false eyelashes on her false eyelashes. Well you just have to see it for yourself, plus its funny because it is in French. 

So this mascara was crap, clumped around the outer corners of my eye and would not wash off even though it wasn't waterproof. Also the wand has this little section (you can see it in the picture) that is flexible and makes it impossible to brush onto the lash because the teeth hold the lash and your hand just bends the wand down and you end up poking your eye and blinking the wet mascara onto your cheek. 4/10

Mascara #4  Great Last by Maybelline (black/waterproof) 

This is one of the cheapest contenders and it might be that way for a reason, while the color was good and it was the good kind of waterproof that stays on your lashes (not flakes down on your cheeks after watching the first ten minutes of say UP or Braveheart) But overall it was just really clumpy and there was no separation or definition between the lashes. The tube is iconic with its slime green and bubble gum pink coloring but if you use this, remember to use a comb or a clean mascara wand to separate the lashes. 5/10

Seeing the relativity low scores, I'm not much of a mascara girl, I prefer eye liner or brown/gold shadow (if anything on my eyes). But just remember to change your tube of mascara every 4 months or you could get nasty eye infections. Eww. I had double pink eye once on a mission trip to South Carolina. Along with strep and a sinus infection... please don't let that ever happen to you. 

So I was due for a new tube and decided to buy intense i-color by Almay (black flash for brown eyes) Apparently they have a new line that is color specific. I'm not sure if there are gold or brown shimmers in the mascara, but hopefully it makes my muddy eyes look a nice mocha brown, with swirls of green... maybe they can look like a grasshopper (steamed milk, espresso shot, mint syrup, chocolate syrup) rather than a mocha. Maybe I should have gotten mascara for Hazel eyes to eliminate the coffee conversation. Oh well. 

you are pretty, 

rach

what's stopping you?

I've decided it's time to start being a bit more bold in my life.  I'm always the girl who sits back and observes things. You could say I'm a wallflower. Perks of Being a Wallflower made this pretty obvious to me.  But I think I started to break out of this mold over the past year.  With a little help from my friends, I'm more of a butterfly instead of a cocoon. Sorry for all the cliches and puns. #EnglishMajorProblems. So, alas, I have become a bit more daring.  I've taken some risks. Whether it's trying something new to eat (in my case this was mushrooms...and now I get them all the time), applying for scholarships or jobs, exploring the city, or even asking out that person you've had your eye on- I say go for it. Because honestly, what do you have to lose? The worst that can happen is you won't like what you try, you might get turned down for a job or a date, or you'll never want to repeat the experience...but hey...if you don't try, it will NEVER happen! Eventually, one of the "No"s will become a "Yes" and all of that trying and risk-taking will be worth it.  Not to get anymore cliche, but carpe diem...I'll even go as far as to say YOLO just because so many people like that phrase. (I'm not one of them...I'll stick to my Latin roots, please and thank you). So do it. Just do it. You'll get an adrenaline rush like no other.  You might get something you've always wanted but never had the guts to go after.  Don't worry if it won't turn out the way you hope; most of the time it doesn't work out because something better is waiting for you.  But you won't find that better thing unless you keep striving for it!!! 

So have an extraordinary thursday. Do something crazy.  Go on an adventure.  Call up an old friend.  Try to make a souflee. Pick up your dust-covered guitar and learn a song.  Introduce yourself to a stranger.  It's worth the fear that you might fail. Because what if you succeed?

cheers,

Hill

oh the times (really are not) a changin'

HELLO! 

Nice of you to join me. 

I miss being this little kid. Not like I remember it all that well, but the pictures help. 

And there are a lot of them. 

I know I turned 20 a while ago, but I was thinking, what a strange time to be alive. 

I told ma the other day that it felt weird to be 20 and she said she doesn't even remember being 20 (and no she is not old enough to forget stuff like that) It just seems like 20 was limbo for her, just another age sandwiched in between more seemingly important ages.

I've done a lot in my 19 years of life, so what should be different about year 20? That's when I realized, nothing is different about year 20. Here is a short list of things I have accomplished in year 20

1. Hiked the Appalachian trail in Virginia 
2. White Water Kayaked in the same river they host the Green River WWK World Race
3. Climbed Red Rock, Slab and Granite in Colorado Springs, CO
4. Worked with an ELL teacher and taught various Spanish Lesson Plans
5. Met a hunk of a hippie with a really nice beard and have been dating him ever since
6. Passed my Math Perspectives Final
7. Got accepted at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso, Chile to Study Abroad

And I am sure there are more, but what the hey! I have been busy this year, past 3 months. But I have discovered the reason 20 is a weird age, I have been acting like a 3 year old and a 30 year old. Having fun is a top priority in my life and I feel like playing dress up or playing with playdough, buy gum I shall! Life is just too short to not do things that make you happy. But then the 30 year old kicks in and I have to fill out paperwork for my student VISA and dress like a professional when I go into classes for volunteer tutoring or  teach a lesson plan. I go to meetings and I try to remember to write everything down in my planner and I think i'm developing bags under my eyes (but maybe that was because I was staying up late last night watching Anthony Bourdain Reruns) 

 

So I guess 20 isn't much different than any other age. It's just about finding the balance between being an adolescent and an adult. And sometimes that is a lot easier than it sounds. 

go do what you do, 

rach

is there something in my teeth?

This was me. A week ago. 

I have a tendency to exaggerate, often. But I am not being dramatic about this. 

Well, maybe about being a chipmunk. 

But my cheeks were like this. 

And you know which cheeks I mean. 

I had all four of my wisdom teeth extracted, that is the fancy word they use rather than pulled or yanked, on Friday 8th. I must say I have never had any fear of any doctors visits. I'm kind of a professional (hold that thought...) So, I wasn't too concerned about getting my teeth cut out of my face, it just seemed like an annoying waste of time. 

So I lied on the couch chair bed thing they cooked up for dentists office and remember getting an IV aaaaaand that it. 

Then I woke up. 

Aaaaaaand that's all I remember. Well not exactly. I remember asking my dentist if I could swallow (his answer thankfully was yes) and they brought my mom in.  I gave her a dorky thumbs up and pulled the ice pack away from my face and started like, man laughing, a hearty huh huh huh kinda laugh. Then I jumped up from the chair, proud of myself (was gently reprimanded my the dentist and my mother for moving too quickly) and then sat in the car and then I fell asleep. 

But apparently I didn't fall asleep immediately. I talked with my mom a bit. And no, I don't remember any of this. I kept asking if I could drink something. By nature I am a thirsty girl, I drink water all the time, so this is normal. Mom said I had to wait till I got home. Then I asked, "Am I more coherent than Justine was?" Apparently, deep in my heart there is some sort of sibling rivalry. (The answer was, yes, by-the-way. My sister just repeatedly asked, "Did you know nitrous oxide is Laughing Gas?" Chemistry major...)  

And apparently deep in my heart I am slightly narcissistic, before falling asleep I told my mom that the nurse giving me my IV told me I was "professional" at getting blood drawn. But "professional" sounded something like "pro-fesch-un- ul."

Now, there is a special diet for wisdomless people, here is mine (I don't recommend this. try weight watchers if your desperate) 

Day One: Nothing. I just went to bed

Day Two: Applesauce, mashed potatoes, chocolate/vanilla pudding, water

*WARNING* 

YOU SHOULD STOP READING NOW IF YOU PLAN ON GETTING YOUR WISDOM TEETH REMOVED SOON (or if you are very squeamish) 

Day Two (night time): I began to feel nauseated. Then I threw up 5 times. Then I threw up 5 more times. And to spare you the dry-heaving details, this continued until mom and dad took me to the emergency room. Then I was asked if I took street drugs, if I spoke English and if I felt threatened at home? (By the way all the answers to those are 'no')

Then they gave me anti-nausea meds and pumped me full of liquids, after they drained my vein and had to poke another one. Then texted my boyfriend to tell him I was most certainly going to die (I am a very dramatic sick person). Then I fell asleep. Then I woke up, drank grape juice. Went home (circa 4:30am) and slept til noon the next day. 

Day Three-Day Six: Applesauce and veggie soup

Day Seven: Pizza Pub Pizza (and a severely bad toothache afterward) but it's the Pub Pizza. It's worth it. 

I must say, even today I am still nibbling like a baby bird but I can at least open my mouth. 

At least its a good excuse to eat more ice cream.

chipmunks are cute, don't even pretend they are not, 

rach

book talk #1

When I get older, loosing my hair, many years from now, I am going to start a book club. Or at least join one. Reading is something that I grew up doing. My punishment was I was younger was getting my books taken away from me, going to bed with out being able to read. Life was rough, that's all I can say.

Oh, Jane Austen's Book Club

So, being the older weirdo I am, I still read just as much, especially in the summer when I have ample time. As I posted a while ago, I was rereading my favorite childhood series and I found myself caught between the series book 2 and 3. Well I just had to order it from amazon, and then I had to wait.

There are not many things worse than having your heart set on a book and then not be able to read it. So I had to find some books to fill the 4-14 business day wait (seriously, if I have to wait 14 days Amazon is getting a strongly worded email from yours truly) So off to the library with my ma and I grabbed Ruyard Kippling's The Jungle Book, The Chronicles of Christomancy by Diana Wayne-Jones and a John Green novel I hadn't read or heard of.

Now if you haven't heard of John Green, there is something wrong with you. I jest, I jest. Maybe you've heard of Looking for Alaska, one of his many New York Times best sellers. If not please check this out, I implore thee...

Okay, so maybe you don't think he is funny, maybe its because you haven't read J D Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. But I probably just deterred you and altered your perception of the book I am actually going to review. So, sorry about that. 

But really if you haven't read Catcher, do it. 

Okay, so back to the wait period where I needed a book to read. I picked up John Green's The Fault in Our Stars. Before I give you some fast facts about the book, I must say something. And by say I certainly mean type...

*IF YOU GIVE THE ENDING OF A BOOK AWAY,

 I WILL HATE YOU FOREVER*

With that being said, (again typed, sorry) these fast facts will not give the book away. That is my style with book reviews. I believe in bating the hook (sorry for using fish terminology, seeing as I don't fish) and making you want to read the book for yourself.  

Quick Facts about The Fault in Our Stars:

1. This book is cripplingly sarcastic. 
2. This book is about cancers of all shapes and sizes
3. This book made me cry more than The Book Thief, UP, When Sirius Black died in Harry Potter and Braveheart combined. 
4. The book that the book revolves around (just follow me) is not real. I already tried to google it. 
5. Shakespeare provided the inspiration for the title. 
6. Page 123 made me laugh audibly (as did 107 and many other pages)
7. With that being said, when I wasn't sobbing, I was cracking up.
8. I believe in Something with a capital S.
9. I really like the name Hazel (she is the female protagonist) 
10. Green uses the phrase, "I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, then all at once." 

I finished this book in one day. And it was not one of those days where you force yourself to finish a book, *cough*thelastthreeharrypotterbooks*cough* I honestly just couldn't sleep until I finished it. The words filled myself with so much helpless hope, I felt the pain of the characters, I breathed heavy like Hazel and I flashed a crooked grin like Augustus. If that is not the mark of a brilliant book, frankly, I don't know what is. 

go devour some words, 

rach

Led Zeppelin once told me to Ramble On..

Happy Tuesday. I'm bored! Yay! Sorry for playing with my hair every 5 seconds and for having ADD tendencies to talk about unrelated subjects. Welcome to the inner workings of my brain!

With Love,
Hill

how sweet it is...

 Some things are better simple. Like, ice cream is simple. 
People like ice cream. 

Simple question: Do you like ice cream?
Simple (universal) answer: Yes. 

Some people like directions.
I like simple directions.
Like directions for strawberry ice cream
to be called, "Strawberry Ice Cream" 

I like when things taste delicious.
Like this homemade ice cream.
Food tastes better when eaten outside. 

I like to eat homemade Strawberry Ice Cream.

It's that simple.

be simple, 

rac

"Go back, Sam. I'm going to Mordor alone." "Of course you are, and I'm going with you."

Welcome to the Appalachian Trail in Damascus, Virginia. 

We are on a quest. What we want to find... no one really knows

Backpacks can be packed 2 different ways... comfortable and wrong. 

Tips for packing, all you really need is a pocket knife, nalgene, bandana and GORP. 

And probably a pack with a frame. (see photo above for the wrong idea). 

Trees are always prettier than you remember them being.  

Also these trees are so old, the seem like the are whispering in the breeze. 

Or maybe I have just been reading too much LOTR lately. 

Cody is a man. (see photo above for example) 

Putting up a tarp in theory always seems easier than it actually is. 

Rain flies should always be slanted downward, and so should the sleeping tarp. 

But maybe not so slanted that you slide down and off the tarp in the middle of the night. 

You always need sugar on hiking trips with lots of people. 

People get grumpy when their blood sugar level gets low. 

So lo and behold, our fearless leader cracks open a bag of Sour Patch Kids. 

The day was saved. 

This is not just a bagel sandwich. 

This is not just a bagel and cheese sandwich. 

This is not just a spam and cheese bagel sandwich...

It's a Luncheon Meat Pork Flavored Sandwich, grilled to perfection on a MSR backpack stove. 

We are too good to even have SPAM. 

Ain't got nothing on your sammies. 

Take that Rachel Ray

Here is a pretty picture of flowers to make up for the anger and mystery meat in the last post.

Sorry about that folks. 

 An old friend of mine once jokingly said, "to make any picture 'artistic' all you have to do is make one thing in focus while everything else is blurry." 

After looking at this picture, I think he is right. 

I mean, its just a stick after all. 

p.s. click on the picture to make it bigger and better. 

I posted another picture of trees for 3 reasons:

1. I hope no one forgot how much I love trees

2. To remind you of where these adventures took place

3. Trees are always prettier than you remembered 

These are feet. Your soul is in your sole. 

Five Fingers to hiking boots. 

Feet get you places. 

To end this post, I leave you with my smelly gear. 

No, I don't want to clean it. But thank you for asking. 

Rather than take out the rank clothes, wet shoes, dirty sleeping bag, crunchy bandannas, river water logged jackets, muddy socks and unpurified nalgene water, I have decided to write a hiking haiku:

gear always smells bad

when adventures come to close

assimilation. 

go take a hike, 

rach

if it's love...

everything in this world revolves around love. whether it is being caught up in the throws of young love or searching for it or missing it or talking about how much you don't need love. regardless, love is in the air, sometimes stagnant or refreshing like a breeze. every song on the radio is either a love song or a break up anti-love song. love is just all around, and i've been thinking about it (love that is) a lot lately.

I soon will be far, far, far away from the people I love and that makes me feel a lot of emotions. to quote the best movie ever created (The Animated Robin Hood, in case you were confused) "absence makes the heart grow fonder." so before I go to Chile, I must say, "iloveyou" to all the people I care for in my life. and what better way to do that, then show it in every way possible.

so go tell someone that you love them. tell at least 5 people. write a letter, make a phone call, send a text message. people enter our lives at crazy times, inopportune times or the perfect time. just go with it. love them for it.

it's not valentines day. ignore that.

go love, 

rach

something wicked this way comes...

in honor of the late Ray Bradbury, I want everyone to go read a book. I don't care if it is a picture book, your favorite childhood book, or a novel for your college class, just read.

I am currently in the process of rereading all of my favorite childhood book series. I do this every summer and it just makes me feel home; it is beautiful how a book does that, it takes on a different dress every time you read it. Cornelia Funk and Clive Barker wrote novels that transported my childhood to new experiences and really expanded my creativity. just thought I would share what lovely words I have been devouring.

in the past few years, my mom and I voiced concern that reading was falling to the wayside in our western culture. but friends, we have hope. young teenagers are reading Austen, delving into the old language, trying to find that magical romance. Even dare I say, the vampire fad novels, at least they are making teens read.

so, I will leave thee, and get back to my book, but I want to leave you with some quotes, about books, from books, it's kind of my style:

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”  -Ray Bradbury

“Isn't it odd how much fatter a book gets when you've read it several times?" Mo had said..."As if something were left between the pages every time you read it. Feelings, thoughts, sounds, smells...and then, when you look at the book again many years later, you find yourself there, too, a slightly younger self, slightly different, as if the book had preserved you like a pressed flower...both strange and familiar.” -Cornelia Funk

“Books loved anyone who opened them, they gave you secruity and friendship and didn't ask for anything in return; they never went away, never, not even when you treated them badly. ” -Cornelia Funk

“any fool can be happy. It takes a man with real heart to make beauty out of the stuff that makes us weep.” -Clive Barker

“I've learned two things in my life. One that love is the beginning and end of all meaning. And two that it is the same thing whatever shape our souls have taken on this journey. Love is love. Is love. ” -Clive Barker


"Don't think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It's self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can't try to do things. You simply must do things." -Ray Bradbury

go read a book,
rach