The Adventures of Kinky Reggae: A Vagabond for Beauty

I keep hearing about how great Tucson is, so since I had no plans for today, I decided to head down there. I love food (which is no surprise if you’ve seen my figure), so I did a little research on Yelp and carefully chose two restaurants to try. My first stop in town was B Line, where I had what they call “pancake crepes” with pecan butter and real maple syrup and a homemade biscuit with honey. This place was delicious; I will be dreaming about this meal for a long time. My next stop was Sabino Canyon. Everyone said this was the hike to do in Tucson. It was 8 miles long, which seemed liked the perfect length. And in all the reading I did about it online, the biggest complaint was that it was too crowded. Perfect. There would be no repeat of my last hiking misadventure. (I wasn't riding a bike, so things were definitely looking good.) The scenery was beautiful: and the hike was really easy because you’re just walking along the bottom of the canyon. You hike about 4 miles ou

This weekend I came to the realization that there must be a curse on me. Why else would my love life so frequently resemble depressing Taylor Swift songs? (Why can't you see-ee-ee, you belong with me-ee-ee...) I figured this out after reading the book When Ghosts Speak , which I couldn't put down. Towards the end of the book, she addresses the issue of curses. Apparently, they are quite common. Just about anything can be cursed- a person, an object, even a certain sports organization. This sounds silly and brings to mind crazy old ladies chanting creepy things and brewing potions. But the author's explanation actually made a lot of sense. A curse doesn't have to be anything elaborate. It can be as simple as sending negative energy towards someone. We see this opposite of this take on the format of prayer. So it's just logical that curses are, in fact, real. Also, the evil eye has been mentioned three weeks in a row at church. It was kind of made light o

This is the scene from Sex and the City that was in my head last night. I watch this episode every year on my birthday. I realize that I sounded a little maudlin in my last post. That's really not typical for me. I am happy with my life and am blessed to be surrounded by amazing people who I love and who love me. But once in a while, I think we all feel alone. After feeling kind of sorry for myself yesterday, I am back to normal today. Shane Hipps spoke at our church today. He is the reason I found Trinity; he's the other pastor at Mars Hill. He spoke about the Kingdom of God, and how it's like an all-you-can-eat buffet. It's an endless supply of everything we need. My favorite part was when he said, "The Kingdom of God is within you. Boundless, indestructible, love, joy, and peace reside in us...now." What a timely reminder that I have access to this endless supply of love, that I don't need to look for it anywhere else because it's already in me.

I don't even know what to say about today. Probably the most scared and most embarrassed I've ever been. I wanted to go back to Picketpost Mountain and get to the top this time. Faye and I made it about halfway up, but had to turn around because it was getting late. I got my new hiking shoes this week and was dying to try them out. I couldn't find anyone to go with me, but last time we were there I saw lots of people hiking alone. And the parking lot was full, so I knew I wouldn't be up there alone. Let me list the other ways in which I was responsible: 1. I had water. (Although now I know a regular bottle is not enough.) 2. I had a first aid kit. 3. I had a whistle. 4. I told Rachel where I was going and when I should be back, and to call 911 if she didn't hear from me. 5. I had energy bars. 6. I had been hiking here before, so it was not completely unfamiliar. 7. I'd heard it was about a 3-4 hour hike roundtrip. I started hiking at 12:45, giving myself a littl