Home and Settled In

It's true what they say - I definitely needed a vacation from my vacation! I returned to Laramie worn out and ready to sit still for a while. But living in Wyoming doesn't really afford you many opportunities to avoid the car - if you want to go somewhere, you're going to have to drive! After taking a day or two to just sleep, I finished unpacking my house, cleaning, and decorating my living space to make everything feel like home. The dogs and I have lived lazily for the first few weeks of August, but times are changing. I go back to work on Monday and Fall semester begins at the end of the month. Welcome home!

Now that the dust has settled and my brain is back to full functioning powers, here are the stats and a brief overview of my vacation. Keep an eye out over the next few weeks for detailed posts and reviews.

The month's long road trip took me all over the place. I wanted to make sure I hit all my favorite spots! I think I enjoyed Oregon and Washington more and did more quintessentially Oregon and Washington stuff than I ever did while living there!

Total Miles Traveled: 4733
Coffee Drank - 12
Babies Held - 5
Dogs Snuggled - 10
Cats Cuddled - 4
Beds Slept In - 11
Family Visited - 9
Friends Visited - 7
Lakes Visited - 8
Beaches Visited - 7
States Visited - 6
Towns Visited - 33
Lowest Elevation - 0 (at sea level)
Highest Elevation - approx. 8000 (Yellowstone)
Furthest North - Winthrop, WA
Furthest South - Denver, CO
Furthest East - Torrington, WY
Furthest West - Newport, OR
Total Years of Friendship - 103

When the end of the trip was drawing near, I picked up the dogs in Brewster and my mom and I headed east for the final legs of the road trip. We drove through Yellowstone where she got to see her first buffalo and on through Wyoming where we saw a ton of antelope and hawks galore! 

As it is fire season in these parts, we also had to drive through a wild fire as we were leaving the Grand Tetons National Park. That was a most disfavorable point in our journey. Once we made it to Laramie we only had a short time to rest before rushing off to Fort Collins, Colorado for a wonderful massage and then Denver to send her home on an airplane. 

It's strange to think that I know my way around so many different cities and states. Most importantly, I know where the good restaurants are! And I'm thankful for that. It means I've traveled enough to feel comfortable exploring unknown areas and finding my way to where I want to go. GPS sure helps, too.

Here's a preview of the blog posts to come:

Oregon:

Washington

Idaho and Montana

Wyoming and Colorado

Happy travels!

Review: Wings of Mayhem

Wings of Mayhem by Sue Coletta

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There is only one word out there that can sum up Sue Coletta's latest work, Wings of Mayhem: Chilling. Right down to the bones, chilling. Coletta gives the reader not only a wild, squeamish ride, but she also accomplishes something most authors miss. Through a mastery of writing and just enough description to make the skin crawl, Coletta is not afraid to take the reader exactly where they do not want to go. There is something worth commending in an author who isn't afraid to write the darkness that can lurk within humanity, especially one who does it so well as Coletta.

Prepare yourself to yell at your book in true horror and thriller fashion. Once you get started you'll be on Coletta's hook and she won't let you off until she is well good and ready!

View all my reviews

- Mornings -

Hot breaths brush my cheek,
Velvet ears caress my face,
"Good morning, mama."

Flight by Susan Vittitow Mark

Response to Writing Prompt Ninety-Seven: A kayak, a tent, an endless horizon and yet...

Flight

A kayak, a tent, an endless horizon, and yet the tall towers of the city shimmered before Laura's eyes where there should have only been the endless waves of the Pacific. Whispering pines were drowned out by honking taxicabs and the shouts of street vendors. The sand under her feet grew hard and hot like the asphalt of summer. She spat out the taste of diesel fumes, sour garbage, and stale urine. The scent clung to her hair.

She blinked and it all vanished. The forest lay unbroken behind her. A cool breeze blew from the sea. Waves lapped gently over her feet where she'd stripped off her boots and dug her toes into the welcoming sand.

If she had to remember the city, better to remember it as it was when it was alive rather than how she left it. Better not to remember the screams of the dying, the stench of corpses. 

A seagull landed near her, cocked one eye. She laughed. “Got nothin' for you.” Her stores were little enough for the long days of paddling and not enough to share with a garbage eating bird.

Dinosaurs. Birds were damn dinosaurs, or what was left of them. Scientists had looked at the DNA or something and discovered T-Rex's great-grandbabies were in the fried chicken buckets at the company picnic. They ruled the world once. So did humans. Once. What will be left of us? she thought.

“You heading up north, too?” The seagull turned its head. “If you are, can you take a message to Chris for me? Tell him to stay safe, stay put. I'll get there somehow.”

The black eye stared at her as if some ancient intelligence lurked there. The bird flapped its wings twice, took off and soared straight north. Look for the cabin, she thought, as if her mind could reach the bird's. It's along the Oregon coast. He's there. Tell him to stay there. Tell him he shouldn't try to find me.

She watched as the seagull became a tiny dot and then vanished. I must be cracking up, talking to birds. She sighed, stretched her aching arms. At that moment she would have killed for an ibuprofen, a cup of coffee, and a roll of toilet paper. Those things would all be in the past now. Maybe she and Chris would tell their grandchildren how it once was. If she could find him. If he hadn't gotten it into his fool head to come find her in the burning city.

Laura sat and laced her boots. She broke down the tent, stashed it in the kayak with the last of the food and the water purifier. She pushed off from shore and willed tired arms to paddle. She turned north and followed the seagull.

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Contact Susan at:

writingwyoming@gmail.com

http://www.writingwyoming.com

https://twitter.com/WritingWyoming

https://www.pinterest.com/writingwyoming/

Susan Vittitow Mark co-blogs Writing Wyoming with Lynn G. Carlson.

Vacation

It's been awfully quiet on the blog and for good reason - I've been on vacation!

I took a road trip from Torrington to the west coast and have been touring my home towns for the last two weeks in the Pacific Northwest.

Posts are to follow, but in the mean time here is a sneak peek at the life I've been living these last few weeks. Want to see more? Follow me on Instagram!

Hitting the road - dog hair everywhere! 

All moved into my new place - now time to unpack!

Laramie has incredible murals all over the place.

Anyone want to go fishing?

Where are we going, mama? On an adventure darling.

Our Boise, Idaho sunset.

Izzie is a road warrior, but it sure can be exhausting.

Nothing says "happy roadtrip" like your Jeep towing a trailer breaking down on the Sunday before July 4th six hours away from our destination!

Lunch outside in Pendleton, Oregon

Keeping traditions going strong in Boardman, Oregon

Saying "see you later" to us and "hello" to our futures - Portland, Oregon

I found this crazy family in Dry Falls, Washington

Mama time - Brewster, Washington

Eating special cherries that are grown in Washington, but only sold in China.

Testing the waters of Lake Chelan, Washington

Road tripping down to Central Oregon to visit my dad - we spent the day lake hopping. Cultus Lake, Oregon.

Hey there Daddio - Cultus Lake, Oregon.

Devil's Lake, Oregon.

Spent the night at a farm in Beavercreek, Oregon

Hit the coast with my "wife" - Lincoln City, Oregon

Said "wife."

Dined in Newport Bay, Oregon

Played on the beach at night - Newport, Oregon.

Stayed in an amazing hotel (blog to follow) - Sylvia Beach Hotel, Oregon

Went antiquing up the coast - Lincoln City, Oregon

Stopped in Tillamook to visit an old friend.

Road a steam engine up the Oregon Coast a few miles - Garibaldi, Oregon

Visited with the engineer while riding in the cab (blog post to follow) - I've known him since we were five!

Drove up the coast to get my dosage of ocean air - Cannon Beach, Oregon

Dried my toes in the sand - Cannon Beach, Oregon

Saw what was keeping "Portland Weird" with my longest best friend - Portland, Oregon

Experienced the beauty of "Cartlandia" (blog post to follow) - Portland, Oregon

Witnessed my favorite thing about downtown, Street Music - Portland, Oregon

Went to the top of Multnomah Falls for the first time since I was a kid - Columbia Gorge, Oregon

Hiked Badger Mountain in Richland, Wasington

Then returned to the land of apples for a few days before setting off again - Brewster, Washington

And I'm still going! Next stop on our list is a road trip from Washington to Wyoming with a little bit of Yellowstone in the middle. Happy summer everyone!

Tell me, where have you traveled lately?

- Road Warrior -

She rests quietly
With each long passing mile
Love's warm reminder.

- Diner -

Cooks behind counters,
Calamity of voices:
Breakfast is served, dear.

Writing Prompt Ninety-Seven

Guidelines:

Length: 800 words or less

Deadline: None

Submission: 

• Submit via email to beauxcooper@gmail.com
• Copy your story into the Message box:
• Include:
• "Writing Prompt #____"
• Your return contact information marked with a "(P)" for private if applicable
• Public contact information you would like me to reference if your piece should be selected for feature.
• This can include your website or blog as well as your social media outlets: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc.
• Optional: A photo of you
• Your story
• Please copy and paste into the body of the message, however, if you have a special format design for your story (such as moments of centered or right alignment, size, etc.) attachments are accepted.

Award: My favorite submissions will be featured on beauxcooper.com as well as all BC's social media outlets with all links connecting back to your blog/social media/website/etc.

Writing Prompt Ninety-Six

Guidelines:

Length: 800 words or less

Deadline: None

Submission: 

• Submit via email to beauxcooper@gmail.com
• Copy your story into the Message box:
• Include:
• "Writing Prompt #____"
• Your return contact information marked with a "(P)" for private if applicable
• Public contact information you would like me to reference if your piece should be selected for feature.
• This can include your website or blog as well as your social media outlets: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc.
• Optional: A photo of you
• Your story
• Please copy and paste into the body of the message, however, if you have a special format design for your story (such as moments of centered or right alignment, size, etc.) attachments are accepted.

Award: My favorite submissions will be featured on beauxcooper.com as well as all BC's social media outlets with all links connecting back to your blog/social media/website/etc.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Sometimes life doesn't exactly go the way you've planned. Sometimes the big white wedding with Prince Charming turns out to be a playful elopement in the middle of town. Sometimes the house you were going to settled down in turns into your starter home. Sometimes babies don't come and dreams have to change. And sometimes those dreams won't match Prince Charming's.

April 20, 2011 - Gilbert, Arizona

It's just life. Life is change and change happens. We can panic, cry out, dig our heals in and fight it, but change will always win. It's the rip tide of our life. Resist and you'll sink to the bottom and there remain; roll with it and you'll find yourself at the surface and everything alright, after all. Consistency has not been my life's motto, but rather it has chosen to test the limits of my ability to be proactive, calm, and logical. It has prepared me for balls from left field, sneak attacks, and every other cliche out there. So when this new change in my life came along, I was more ready for it now than I ever would have been before because everything I had experienced up to that moment of decision had eased me into this new life change: starting over.

Summer 2012 - Crater Lake, Oregon

In just under two weeks my husband and I will be transitioning into a long-distance relationship where the outcome is uncertain, but the motivations and goals are the same. We each need to live out our life's purpose and grow into the people were are meant to be. In an ideal situation, or what society would perceive as ideal, we would be able to do this side-by-side. But through deep introspection and long nights filled with conversation, and sometimes tears, we discovered that our ideal situation meant letting our paths part for a little while to see what we are capable of.

Summer 2014 - Torrington, Wyoming

For us, that means selling the house we just remodeled, our rental unit, and much of our excess furniture. It means me relocating to Laramie to finish my degrees in Geology while he lives in Portland, Oregon and works in Vancouver. It means giving up a good job that pays well and is fully benefited. It means starting my life over independent of my husband. It means fully learning who I am as a person and who he is independent of each other. It also means having a strong shoulder to lean on when I need it, a support system that loves me unconditionally, an ally against myself when the shadows of doubt creep in. It means changes are coming.

Four year anniversary; April 2015 - Laramie, Wyoming

Sometimes loving someone means silently watching their life grow into something amazing and realizing that you might not fit into that life anymore. It's ok, because your love of self will grow and become something so amazing that you'll feel safe in their discovery because you feel safe in your own. The love you have for someone will consistently change. It will grow or shrink, it will harden, it will expand. It will deepen overtime, if you're lucky, and teach you things about yourself and your capacity to be selfless. My marriage has taught me much... and I wouldn't change a thing.

Spring 2016 - Torrington, Wyoming