The Adventures of Kinky Reggae: A Vagabond for Beauty

Today surprised me. My first stop was Little Rock Central High School, where the 101st Airborne Division had to be called in when the school was forced to integrate in the 50's. Hearing those kids' stories had me in tears. No one should ever have to experience that much hatred. And then hearing them say that they had to work extra hard to prove that blacks people are as smart as white people... The injustice of it all just hit me really hard. And I think it's more upsetting given that one of our front runners for the presidency is someone who's openly racist and hateful. The fact that he has so many supporters tells me our country has a long way to go.    I was angry listening to the radio the night before, too. The man on the radio said that he keeps hearing this country has a problem with Islamaphobia. Well, he came to the conclusion it doesn't exist. People obviously don't have any kind of problems with Muslims, because everyone is sad that Muhommed Ali died.

I decided to embark on an aggressive campaign across Arkansas and visit six national parks in two days. My rationale was that after this, I will never have to return to Arkansas.  My first stop was Fort Smith. I've made it clear how I feel about forts. I looked around a little bit and then left.        I had really been looking forward to getting a history lesson at my next stop: Pea Ridge Battlefield. I did the cell phone tour, and I'll confess, I skipped a bunch of stuff. I started out with the best of intentions, but there were just so many people and places to keep track of... I couldn't do it.  I was super excited when I discovered I'd be driving through Eureka Springs, where Thorncrown Chapel is located. I've been seeing pictures of it on Pinterest for years and had always wanted to go there. This place was so peaceful; I could have sat there all day. The way I feel after a long yoga class (calm, centered, present, relaxed) was how I felt within a minute of en

Today I made the long trek across Oklahoma. I stopped at Chickasaw National Recreation Area, where I went for a walk in the Flower Park and was disappointed to see there were no flowers.     But there was a spring, and it was very pretty.  When I arrived in eastern Oklahoma, I was shocked to find mountains. Like, legit mountains. Who knew? And it's beautiful here. Quiet and peaceful.  I had a mild panic attack while driving, and it was so stupid. I was on this narrow gravel road on the edge of a mountain and all of a sudden I started visualizing myself going over the edge, and I felt trapped because I couldn't turn around. It came out of nowhere, and it was so irrational.  But tonight I remembered to watch the sunset, and that helped. I've had enough time and distance from my ex that I can appreciate some of the things he taught me. He always stopped to watch the sunset, even when he was just at home in Phoenix. I do this sometimes on my trips, and I need to do it more ofte

I was soooo excited to visit Valles Caldera. I thought there would be lots of geothermal features and maybe some interpretive signs so I could learn more about this super volcano. I got there early because they only allow 35 cars back there each day. As I waited in line for my permit, I noticed that most people seemed to be there to fish.    Such a disappointment. I drove around and enjoyed the scenery, but there were no geothermal features, no interpretive signs... Just beautiful green hills and a herd of elk. (The ranger made sure I knew not to approach them after the issues they've been having at Yellowstone.) I drove around for a little while and took some pictures, but pretty soon I was back at the Visitor's Center. I dropped off my map, smiled at the ranger, and left.  I had planned on going to the Tent Rocks, but it was 90 degrees and I wasn't feeling great, so I headed east instead and stopped at Fort Union. I really don't enjoy visiting forts... forts and dams.

I was soooo excited to visit Valles Caldera. I thought there would be lots of geothermal features and maybe some interpretive signs so I could learn more about this super volcano. I got there early because they only allow 35 cars back there each day. As I waited in line for my permit, I noticed that most people seemed to be there to fish.    Such a disappointment. I drove around and enjoyed the scenery, but there were no geothermal features, no interpretive signs... Just beautiful green hills and a herd of elk.    (The ranger made sure I knew not to approach them after the issues they've been having at Yellowstone.) I drove around for a little while and took some pictures, but pretty soon I was back at the Visitor's Center. I dropped off my map, smiled at the ranger, and left.  I had planned on going to the Tent Rocks, but it was 90 degrees and I wasn't feeling great, so I headed east instead and stopped at Fort Union. I really don't enjoy visiting forts... forts and da

When I arrived in town last night, I noticed all these signs that said "The Atomic City," and I was asked for ID to drive through at certain part of town. I was perplexed. And then I did some Googling and found out that I am in the town where The Manhattan Project took place. (I also learned that this town has the highest percent of millionaires per capita in the U.S.- 12.4%.) This town has a really great vibe; I could totally live here. Lots of science-y types because of the laboratory; reminds me of Big Bang Theory. It has a population of about 12,000, so it's a nice size. The people I've met have been so pleasant. And the scenery is gorgeous! It's on top of a plateau surrounded by canyons.  I started the morning with a little hike at Bandelier to this kiva. I was a little disappointed, because it's a restored kiva and my guidebook shows someone climbing down into the kiva. But it was all closed up when I got there.    There was an older couple there, too, a

I camped at El Malpais last night, so I was on the road by about 7:00 a.m. I had planned on exploring the lava tubes there, but it sounded like a lot of work and honestly, I get sketched out in caves, anyway.  So my first stop was La Ventana Arch.   It may not look that big in the picture, but it spans 120 feet. Beautiful! Then I drove down the road to do the Lava Falls hike. I know this is terrible of me, but after a few minutes of walking I was just not into it. The name and description made it sound really exciting, but it all just looked like this:   Shrubs on top of black rock that was once lava. So I turned around and headed to my next destination.  Salinas Pueblo National Monument has pueblo ruins. The site I went to was a church and convento in the 1600's. It was interesting to read about the relationship between the Spanish priests and the Native Americans. There is a kiva next to the sanctuary, so there's been much speculation about how these two groups interacted.   

This place was so amazing, I don't even know what to say about it. I think there is some kind of special energy here. This was once a huge center of Chacoan culture. People would gather here for trading, ceremonies, etc. The ruins are enormous, and it was easy to imagine how exciting it would be to come to this place when it was thriving. I took about a million pictures, but these are the only ones  I have on my phone. I'll have to add some from my camera later.    (Enormous kiva)

I am excited to be living in Utah for many reasons. One is that I'll be living close to Allison, and she is always up for exploring new places. Another is that I am so close to everything here! It was only a 3 hour drive to Dinosaur National Monument, and we had a great weekend.  We camped right on the Green River.   On Saturday we did the Jones Hole hike and saw a little waterfall.      We also visited the dinosaur quarry and learned more about the dinosaurs who lived in this area (stegosaurus, allosaurus, camarasaurus). We chatted with rangers who shared some theories on why there is a huge concentration of bones in this one spot. One theory is that there was a drought, so all the dinosaurs converged on this one river. Then a flash flood swept them all away, and the quarry is a "log jam" of bones. But the ranger had a much more entertaining theory. She thinks that maybe the allosaurus was just a really messy eater and scattered bones all over this area. The allosaurus h

I stopped at Fremont Indian State Park and learned this:   There were tons of petroglyphs, but they weren't that easy to see.    (A hunting map) My friend Dan was visiting friends at Zion, so I met up with them. His friends are guides and just moved there. I walked into their house and there was NO FURNITURE. Not even a chair. So funny! They were cooking and sleeping with their backpacking gear. One of the boys lamented that it would be so great to even have just one pot to cook in. So, a pot should be arriving from Amazon on Monday. I figured a little thank you gift was appropriate since they let me sleep and shower there.  I met up with the girls at the Round Valley Draw Trailhead. I was supposed to go backpacking with them, but I had major anxiety about it and changed my mind. I felt terrible and guilty, but they had a great group dynamic and I know they're having a blast out there. And we hung out all day on Thursday. We brought some beers down to Willis Creek