The Adventures of Kinky Reggae: A Vagabond for Beauty

Nancy flew in on Friday morning, and I picked her up in my brand new Forester. We headed straight for Ruth's Diner in Emigration Canyon, which lived up to all the recommendations. Then we strolled around the aviary, where I showed Nancy my favorite birds. I love those owls so much, and I could just sit and watch that darned toucan all day!   (I am obsessed with all the tulips here in SLC)   That night was so perfect. We decided that, instead of getting each other birthday gifts (we each turned 35 within about a month of each other), we would splurge on a nice night out. We went to Gracie's, which has the best Old Fashioned's I've had so far in SLC. We sipped craft cocktails and laughed and laughed for hours. Kris joined us for a few hours of this, and it was great to see my best friend and boyfriend getting along so well (even if a lot of the conversation involved teasing me).  Saturday was a fabulous adventure to the Spiral Jetty. I really wasn't sure if it would b

I can't imagine a better weekend than what I just had. Friday night: Reading a romance novel and watching the Cubs win while texting with Dad. (Rizzo!!!) Saturday: Kris had a last minute homework emergency, so I went hiking without him. The 200-foot waterfall in Waterfall canyon was beautiful!       I ran some errands because I knew Kris was working at my place and didn't want to disturb him. I picked up a cute dresser that I got online, and we spent a decent part of the evening cleaning it and getting it set up. We also walked down to Yogurtland, which was nice because I didn't have to feel so guilty about the calories. Sunday: Church. (An announcement was made for someone named Hal's funeral and luncheon. They requested more food and people to help set up/clean up. And then they said, "Please bring your favorite beer." I wish I would have known this guy!) Cubs game. Ran errands with Kris. Assembled bar cart. Watched the Jazz win. I was a

Slideanide!!! Finally!!!! I've wanted to do this canyon FOR-EV-ER and finally had my chance. And I got to do it with such a great group! It started out with me, Debra, Katie, and Ashley coming up with a plan. Then we found out Brian and his friend Darin would be joining us from Grand Junction. And finally, Angela and Dreamy-Eyed Dan would be coming from Cortez.  Surprisingly, after all that build up, I don't have much to say about the canyon except that I loved it. I did have a brief scary moment at the very beginning. It's an 80 foot rappel. I was second to last, and after I lowered myself over the edge, I saw that my rappel device had gotten twisted in a really weird way. This has never happened before! The rope was over the locking part of the carabiner. If this was just like, a 20 foot rappel, I would have gone quickly and trusted it. But being that high up... it seemed wise to get back up there and fix the situation. Luckily, Angela was up there and was able to help me

Nancy came to church with me. It’s my very favorite Sunday all year- so much joy. We get to say “Alleluia” again after abstaining during Lent. We celebrate the promise of resurrection and the knowledge that, at the end of the day, Love wins. After church, Kris treated us to brunch at Hub and Spoke, one of my favorite restaurants. We split the freshly made doughnut holes with raspberry maple sauce, and I had their housemade granola with yogurt and dried apricots. Oh, and of course, mimosas.     I requested (okay, more like, insisted) on pictures after brunch.       Then we got comfortable and watched the Cubs game. It was great because Nancy and Kris were relaxed around each other and everyone was just being normal and not trying to be on their best behavior or whatever. Kris left, and Nancy and I went for a walk around Sugarhouse Park.   Then dinner at Mellow Mushroom, then went home and watched Girls and at Ben & Jerry’s. It was a lovely