“Good news is rare these days, and every glittering ounce of it should be cherished and hoarded and worshipped and fondled like a priceless diamond.” RIP Dr. Gonzo Counterculture icon Hunter S. Thompson, until his death in 2005, lived in nearby Woody Creek. I occasionally saw him hanging out at WC Tavern. He was prickly,…
LIGHTS STILL BRIGHT in PARIS
Wednesday was the UN’s International Day of Happiness and France’s National Macaron Day. I defy anyone to nosh on macarons, pull up Pharrell William’s Happy on their iPod and not bust a sugar-high move or two. Joy always transcends embarrassing one’s self. I’m an Iowa girl. Seeing the Midwest under water is heart-breaking. Colorado has…
MORE, from PARIS
Many of you know during Aspen’s summer season I’m a volunteer USFS Ranger decked out in the required uniform and official paraphernalia. When on a mountain trail patrol, if I see a tourist who is lost, separated from their hiking group or panicky, I know what to do. Currently I am an American in Paris,…
…..from PARIS
Last Friday morning I boarded the Eurostar in London and 2 hours, 15 minutes later, arrived at Gare du Nord in Paris. I will be here five weeks. This is a take 3-deep-breaths birthday year for me (I have until October to adjust.) and I am determined to make each day a doozie. When I…
LONDON, YOU’VE BEEN BRILLIANT
My bags are packed. I’m ready to go. Groucho Marx once claimed he was leaving the city because the weather was too good. “I hate London when it’s not raining.” Well, Mr. Marx, Mother Nature threw everything at me – wind, rain, cold and, now, sun. This past week 96 camellias popped open on a…
TRAVELING SOLO: LONDON
Last week, just as the Polar Vortex had powered up to “don’t even think of flying into Chicago’s O’Hare Airport,” I was scheduled to fly to London. In an attempt to assure I would fly the friendly skies, United Airlines had changed my Aspen-Chicago departure flight time twice. While it may have seemed wacky to…
From Dumplings to Powdered Sugar
Someone with more insight than I insists the best tools for getting to Happy are 1) Sunlight; 2) Rest; 3) Exercise; 4) Diet; 5) Self-Confidence; and 6) Healthy Relationships. None are budget-busters. The first is free. The rest we can control and manage ourselves. The effort we commit to each is by choice. Last week…
Dorie’s Chowder & Eataly Picture Book
EVERYDAY DORIE, The Way I Cook, by Dorie Greenspan With apologies to Dorie Greenspan, I re-titled this week’s CooktheBookFridays recipe choice. It’s called Potato Chowder Lots of Ways. I’ve chosen to re-name it A Chowder for All Seasons. This soup is worthy of the name. Here’s Why? A chowder is a rich, chunky soup traditionally made with onions,…
LET’S WELCOME TOO-OH-WON-NINE*
It’s a new year, a fresh beginning and it’s going to be noisy. With 7.5 billion people hanging out on Planet Earth, why are we surprised? Here’s a thought. Let’s bring joy and wonder into each day, making it sparkle. Let’s laugh louder and more often. Let’s try on Happiness until it fits. What we…
MY STORY: LAS VEGAS HOLIDAYS
Many of us have a Christmas story to tell. This is mine. I decorated this Christmas tree in 2012. Michael had died earlier that year. After 8 years of living in Henderson, Nevada, our house was already sold and I was busily packing to move back to Aspen. The reality was if I ever was…
BOWLED OVER by TABBOULEH
Let’s be clear. Blogs are blogs. Power Point Presentations are not. According to my more seriously-minded techie pals, PPP are something else entirely. They are more, well, seriously minded. Humph! After watching a PPP listing ten potential benefits of them, we seemed almost on the same page. I especially honed in on (1) Broadening…
LAST STOP: GRAND RAPIDS
Everyone has a brussels sprouts story. This is mine. When we moved to Aspen from Des Moines in 1988, we bought a house that wasn’t grand but situated on lovely property abutting Red Butte Mountain and surrounded by 40-some evergreen trees. Along with moving too many belongings, we also packed up our shovels, pitchforks…
