Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Belle of the Ball

Everywhere we go Echo is the center of attention. It's so good for her to meet people and other animals so I try to take her everywhere with me. We went to the last hour or so of an outdoor concert on Sunday. It was pretty nippy out so I figured I would zip her up in my coat. Woah, she uh, grew a bit. She just barely fit into a coat she used to have plenty of room in. It was so funny, I had this huge bulge and people were looking at me like "is that a baby under there?" It was really cute though, she had her head tucked in the sleeve and her little tail would hang out the bottom. And when she wanted to look around she's tick her head out and I'd unzip my coat a little. People were totally won over. Shocking, I know. I have a lot of fun with her. And I've met more people that way.


"aww.. what kind of dog is she??" "she's so cute!" "healer right?"

Different is good

I have sort of abandoned my blog lately. I post pictures, and some fleeting thoughts, but nothing really substantial. I was reading back on some of my old posts tonight and realized how traumatized I used to feel. I have been so much more relaxed and positive since I move West. Tahoe has made me a better person, literally. If for no other reason than less time spent in the car and more time spent outdoors. Oh, and my puppy :) She makes life wonderful.

I'm sad that I haven't been inspired to write as much, though. I still write occasionally, but struggle and pain were always such compelling reasons to write. It always forced me to organize my thoughts enough to get them down. I suppose if that's what it takes then I don't need to write so much anymore. Maybe not at all.

Tahoe is like a dream. You wouldn't believe the amazing views in every direction. I took a short walk up to the highschool the other day and was simply awe-struck at the view from the football field. You look out at layers of trees and beyond that, mountains covered in snow. I just stood there staring with my mouth hanging open in wonder at the beauty. I can't imagine what it must be like to grow up here.

When I used to live on the Outer Banks I remember one of my friends was from Crested Butte, CO. She would say that she wanted raise her kids somewhere cool so they would grow up to be awesome adults. I figured Colorado had to be just about the coolest place on earth and envied her childhood. I think Tahoe would be right up there. I haven't talked to her much since then, but I bet if she has little ones they'll be hitting kickers and riding "pow" by the time they're 3. Just like the little Tahoe kiddies.

I guess the point is I'm happy. And from what I read tonight I didn't always feel this way. One of the goals I set before I moved a year ago was to "have an awesomely different life by this time next year". I think I can safely say my life is diffent and awesome. Mission accomplished.


Btw, this was the coolest day ever. It was when Steph came to visit. It snowed a bunch and the road was closed heading out to Emerald Bay where it tends to avalanche. So we decided to park and hike out to the overlook. It was totally surreal. In places along the road there's a complete 360 degree view. Completely amazing.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Confident Dog

One thing I've noticed about having Echo is that I do more things on my own. I never used to feel comfortable being out and about by myself. Aside from a trip to the grocery store or the gym, I always needed to have someone with me. I would rarely ever even mountain bike by myself, I always recruited a buddy. I guess she makes me feel more motivated. There's really no option to go home and be lazy when she stares at me like "when are we leaving?"

Since we walk three times a day, I'm always looking for new and exciting places to explore. Today we took this amazing trail up a gully with a stream running through it. It was very cool. I had to go slowly because it's a lot of effort to hike uphill in the snow. She's really good about sticking around and usually won't wander more than ten feet or so. She'll stop and look at me like "come on!!!" It was very cute. On the way down she knew the way so she was running 20 feet ahead and stopped to wait for me. She makes me so happy when she's content and doing what she loves.