The Spirit of Harry Truman Lives On

Thirty nine years ago today, on May 18th, 1980 at 8:32am an earthquake beneath Mount St. Helens triggered one of the most dramatic moments in American history. The eruption and landslide killed 57 people, completely annihilated the surrounding forest and blasted away over 1,000 feet of mountaintop. Even though I wasn't alive at the time, I grew up hearing many stories about the eruption.  My parents were living in Portland in 1980 and showed me pictures when I was young of their cars and rose bushes covered in grey ash. They created an image for me what it felt like watching residue fall from the air like snow and explained how it was hard to breathe outside. We also made several trips up to the mountain in my childhood to view the crater and volcanic monument now established in honor of the event, slowly over the years watching the area regrow and regenerate new life.

Never trailing far behind the countless stories of the moment when the blast took place were the fables of Harry Truman. Harry Truman was the owner and caretaker of Mount St. Helens Lodge at Spirit Lake who refused to leave his home during the eruption and is assumed to have perished during the event and to be buried under 150ft of volcanic debris. I remember hearing his story at the "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" museum on the bayfront in Newport growing up and always being fascinated by it. There was a movie theater at Ripley's that would play Harry Truman's story on repeat and I remember as a little girl sitting there watching it over and over again, astonished - stunned that someone would sacrifice their own life in such a way - in the face of such imminent danger. It seemed stubborn and foolish to me. I simply couldn't grasp WHY & HOW someone could see the value in doing such a thing.

Harry Truman at Spirit Lake

My parents also had this cool hat growing up (possibly something they purchased on one of our trips up to Mount St. Helens) which I came to love and acquired sometime after college. "The Spirit of Harry Truman Lives On" it read. I never really gave it much thought - I just liked the hat for it's colors, local flare and vintage appeal. But more recently as I've donned the hat to go out and work in the yard, I've given it more thought. I've spent some time sitting on our deck, staring out at Clear Creek Canyon and Mt. Hood, and in turn gazing down at the cap in my lap. And I have to say that after only spending 6 months out here in the country (I believe actually now thinking about it that 6 month anniversary ALSO falls on today), I understand Harry Truman more now than I ever did before.

This Pacific Northwest countryside is pure magic, and watching the winter melt into spring has been mesmerizing. Birds are starting to inhabit our birdhouses. Lilacs, bleeding hearts and trillium have popped up and commanded our attention. Bunnies, quail and lizards have been found running around - and sometimes even playing - in our yard. And as hard as it is to leave this natural wonderland to go into work for a few hours, I can only imagine how your heart would hurt at the thought of leaving it behind forever. Leaving the animals to fend for themselves, the trees to burn, the landscape to be forever changed. After only 6 months of living out here, I feel like abandoning this place to be destroyed would feel like deserting family and one of the things I love the most - and that would be soul crushing.

I can't say at my age I would make the same choice. In the face of danger I would most likely pack up my pups and head out of town. But it would be a hard choice to make. And if I was Harry Truman, at the age of 83, and had owned and lived at Monte Vista for 50 years...would I choose to stay and perish on the land I adore and yearn for, where I feel more at home than any place I've ever lived in my entire life? Maybe. It's likely. Jeff & I have both already decided that this is where we want our remains to rest long after we're gone. We feel more at peace and like better humans out here on this land and I can't imagine a better place to live out eternity. Maybe that, with time, will change. But at the current moment I can only see our connection and admiration for this land growing stronger, and our roots getting deeper and Harry Truman's crazy logic continuing to not really seem that crazy anymore...

R.I.P. Harry

"If the mountain goes, I'm going with it. You couldn't pull me out with a mule team. That mountain's part of Truman and Truman's part of that mountain." - Harry R. Truman

 

Can You Hear Me Now?

Cell phones.

The technology that revolutionized the way we live our lives. Sometimes, just for fun, I like to talk to my dance students (who are increasingly obsessed with their OWN cell phones) about what life was like for me growing up, before cell phones existed. My favorite comical technological device to talk to them about is the pager. I explain to them what a pager was....that you could call someone's pager, but that they couldn't call you back. How if you wanted to call them back, you either had to find a landline phone or use a pay phone, where you would need a quarter to make a call. My explanation of this process is always met with quizzical looks and numerous questions in response, but most of all disbelief. Kids these days simply can't fathom how we functioned (and managed to survive) in this primal way.

Unless I run out of battery, I almost never have to worry anymore about how to get from one place to another, how to MAKE anything, where or when I'm going to meet someone or really 'wonder' about anything at all.  If I have a question, I can get an immediate answer...from my phone. For better or for worse, we are all slaves to these devices that are our alarm clocks, calendars, dictionaries, recipe books, and entertainment systems. And I often ask myself this question: are we the better for it?

Here's a question for you: When was the last time you turned off your phone? For a day? For a weekend? or have you EVER? With my personal cellphone being so intertwined with my job and my business, I HAVE to turn it off sometimes to get some time away from work and to recharge my own battery. One thing that cell phones have done is made it so that anyone, anywhere, is super easy to contact at anytime.  That's great when you're trying to...say...find a friend at a festival or your partner in a crowded shopping center, but this double edged sword means that sometimes I have parents or clients texting or calling me at 10:30pm - or 5 o'clock in the morning. Boundaries are something that get lost easily with cell phones, when people more often think of what's easiest and most convenient for themselves rather than respecting one's private life and family time.

I LOVE turning my phone off. In fact, it might be one of my favorite things. I usually do so for an entire day at least once every other week, sometimes more. The last time I took an international vacation, I left my phone at home on the desk beside my bed for almost 2 weeks.  It was so awesome. Some worry about my safety when I do this - what will happen if I have an emergency or need help? And I remind them that with most of the places I travel to, I question whether cell phone service even exists at all - so in that case, I'd get help the old fashion way - holler for it. And if I am in a place where service is present, I guarantee almost every other person surrounding me has a cell phone on them they'd be more willing to share in a pinch.

To me, there is no freer feeling than being untethered to that device. SOME people feel the opposite. Without their cell phone, they feel fear, stress and anxiety creep in, paralyzed by the thought of losing their trusted aid. And I realize that some people can't simply turn their phone off on a whim because they have children to take care of and look after or potential emergencies (such as anticipating the loss of a parent) to respond to.  Some may argue that life doesn't offer you the opportunity to "turn off" the world and the noise around you. But I encourage you, whatever your circumstances, to MAKE that opportunity happen for yourself. Emails don't stop coming in and people won't stop calling when I hit the power button, but it turns out that ALL of those emails and voicemails are always waiting for me when I get back. And that MOST things CAN wait. And what happens to me emotionally during the time that phone is turned off is well worth it. When I power down my cell, all of a sudden all distractions and external connections fade away and I'm left with myself. And I am fully present. I suddenly have extra time to focus on me and my family, and to be fully immersed in the present - to read, to knit, blog, to go for a hike...simply to lay on the ground and stare up at the sky, deciphering if the clouds really do in fact have abstract shapes they're making for me or if I'm just seeing things. To notice the newt crawling through the grass next to me and ponder where he's headed. To listen to the wind as it gently makes its way through the trees. I have the opportunity to do some things I maybe, just maybe wouldn't have done otherwise...

Through my own process, I have discovered that having time to wonder - or possibly even be bored - is a healing thing. This is where inspiration is sometimes born. This is where one can fully embrace the silence and emptiness surrounding oneself and reflect on life, love and relationships - for better or for worse. Instead of looking at someone else's life through the lens social media, stepping away from the phone for a few days at a time gives us time to look introspectively and work on one's own life. It helps us reconnect with the now and focus on the precious, fleeting time before us and beautiful people who surround us. I won't argue that cell phones are bad - they add a lot of value and convenience to our lives. But sometimes, their addictive qualities steal our focus so much that we lose touch with what's most important in life, and receive in return a distorted view of a life we wish we had, when in fact, if we took a moment to turn away from the screen and dig in, we'd see that the most beautiful life, or the promise of it, is lying right in front of us.

We're Really Doing It - A Country Education

Just over a week ago another winter storm rolled through the area and coated our house and hills with a few inches of snow. Today the high was 71. Go figure. Exactly one week ago we adjusted our clocks for daylight savings time and I guess that was nature's cue to hit the "spring" button, because the days are suddenly longer, sunnier and warmer. I'll take it. I am in hog heaven.

Bird's nest I found on the ground in our yard last week

 We spent this weekend buying and planting berries, more seeds/starts for the garden, and fruit trees for our South pasture. We spent the majority of today - at least 9 hours of it - outside. Gardening, weeding and occasionally (I won't lie) drinking a beer on the porch. And through each step of this new life we're living we are learning - A LOT. For example, I created my own sourdough starter last week and let me tell you there is a huge learning curve with that in and of itself. It's like an art form and a science, all rolled into one. I am overwhelmed and scared of messing it up, but equally excited about the challenge and soaking up as much reading and as many YouTube videos as I can handle. I also think I would give my left arm to be able to have bread for the rest of my life, so I'm pretty ecstatic about the possibility of making my own sourdough creations whenever my heart fancies it.

Garden bed plan

Growing plants in our garden room

We have starts!

Sourdough starter - monster & masterpiece

 About 3 weeks ago or so, our neighbor's goats started having babies. They are the CUTEST! We've been visiting them and snuggling them to make sure they're properly socialized. It's a hard job, but somebody's gotta do it😉It's also great therapy. If you haven't ever snuggled a baby goat, I highly recommend adding it to your bucket list. They are sweet, so soft and love the warmth of being held. We even held a baby goat that was only one hour old. He was so fresh that although he had already been cleaned and dried, you could still see some of the birthing "extras" protruding from his mom when we arrived...

Meeting the baby goats for the very first time with Troy & Mili - 5 days old

Little sweetie

Curious little dude - about 2 weeks old. At this age they're bucking and getting into mischief at every opportunity...

Being out here in the country really puts you back in touch with nature - and with life, and what's important in it. And as Jeff & I tirelessly read books and the backs of the seed packets, trying to figure out how to grow veggies, we're constantly asking ourselves "WHY weren't these things taught to us in school?" What could be more important than knowing how to grow your own food? Why is there such a disconnect from the natural world to the lives of so many people on the globe on a daily basis? And we can't seem to find the answer. With all the luxuries we are afforded in the first world, I do think some of our conveniences come with sacrifices, and I would argue that being more disconnected from nature is one of them.

From Big City Life to Country Mice - A Leap of Faith and Move to Rural Oregon

Just over a year ago, Jeff & I started looking at houses to buy. We already owned our home on Mississippi Avenue in North Portland and loved our cute little bungalow, but wanted something more. As time went on and with the more houses we looked at, we started to define what that looked like and narrowed down the parameters for our search. Our list looked something like this:

-Bigger house, with more than one bathroom
-Hopefully a view of some sort.  Maybe a mountain? Maybe a river?
-Not new construction - something stable with old, strong bones
-Away from busy roads
-More land and space for our dogs to roam
-No more than a 30 minute drive from the heart of the city

See, we loved our sweet home on Mississippi street, and couldn't have asked for better neighbors, but there were changes happening in Portland that we weren't too stoked on. Over the past few years Portland has grown at an exponential rate, and with it, our neighborhood did too. Our street became more crowded and popular, which meant more cars speeding down our road, more garbage being thrown into our yard and a week before we moved out, even a shooting on the sidewalk one block from our house - in broad daylight. Despite the increasingly trendy & delicious restaurants moving into the vicinity and the convenience of being walking distance to New Seasons, we knew it was time to go. In our 20's, our home in one of the now preferred neighborhoods in Portland would have been perfect - just a short jaunt to a dive bar and a 10 minute drive to downtown - but now we yearned for something different. Something quiet. Something private. Something peaceful.

Both Jeff & I had never lived in the country before, so while we were searching for a home to buy outside the city limits, we weren't sure if we'd actually like the lifestyle. We're big time foodies, Jeff only had a 10 minute commute to work and we lived 2 blocks away from one of the most beautiful parks in Portland. Were we making a big mistake? Might we be trading in a fun, exciting lifestyle we loved for one that's boring and filled with lonely days and nights?  We hedged our bets all on one thing: NATURE.

One thing we'd learned throughout all our years together is that both individually and collectively we LOVED being outside, and that our happiness was directly correlated to the amount of time we spent convening in nature. Whether canoeing, biking, or simply walking on the beach, we felt internal serenity and like we could breathe easier when we were outside. We thought that being away from the city and all the hustle and bustle of work and industry might bring us greater happiness. And we decided that it was at least worth finding out if we were right...

View of Mt. Hood from our yard

So we lept. We ended up finding a house out in Beavercreek, OR, which was 15 minutes further out than we had originally agreed on. We were sold on the beautiful views of Mt. Hood & Adams, 5 acres of fenced in land and the fact that the entire property (including the front door) was already equipped for 2 larger sized dogs (doggy door included). We've been out here almost 3 months so far, and while it is yet to be seen whether or not we're only in a honeymoon phase, we absolutely love it out here. Our mortgage has increased, but surprisingly we're saving money. We're eating out less, traded in our gym memberships for hiking trails and are building and creating more things instead of buying them.

Jeff clearing the way of our hiking trails with a machete, just below our house

Jeff made this table out of an old tree round. How gorgeous is that?!

On a hike below our house, looking out on Clear Creek Canyon

I made my own wreath this year, solely from cuttings of things growing on our property.
 

The biggest benefit we've seen by far however has been the increase in our quality of life. We used to worry each work day about getting our dogs enough exercise.  Now they run and play for hours in the morning and crash hard at night, sometimes sore and stiff from the amount of exertion they've put forth. I've spent more time outside this winter than I ever have in any of my other years growing up in Oregon. We're constantly outside - whether we're sawing apart a fallen tree for firewood or trimming up our loganberry bushes, readying them for spring. Every "chore" outside is really a pleasure, swapping out material city distractions (like going shopping just to kill time) for duties that have purpose and meaning.  For example, I used to always hate raking leaves - collecting them as they tried to fly away and cramming them into our debris bin. Now they're a food source for our compost, and it feels gratifying and "full circle" to collect them and "feed" our load of decomposing scraps.

Jeff, working hard to create our compost bin

Compost bin in progress!

Our dog, Hermosa, in front of the shop, likely stalking something...

With each passing week, the commute into Portland seems shorter and easier. But - our desire to go into the city has also decreased with time. We find so much contentment amongst the trees and away from it all that it's become hard to leave our little corner of the world. Where once we were in the thick of it, searching for solitude and privacy, now the reverse is true. And I would argue that it is much easier to find the city, find people, good restaurants and the like than it is to find a small slice of stillness, where the only sounds you hear when you walk outside are the chirping of birds, the wind whistling in the trees and the occasional farm animal greeting the day. As I look out on Clear Creek Canyon in this moment from my dining room, looking out on our first snowfall ever in our new home, I look forward with a grateful heart to many more years of this lifestyle to come.

A rare family photo! Jeff, Rita, Hermosa & I hiking Clear Creek Canyon, below our property

Christmas Day 2018. Visiting and delivering munchies to our favorite new neighbor, Norbert the New Zealand rescue pig.

Jeff & Rita on their way to hike the canyon this week.

Hermosa & Rita, on patrol below our house

Rita & Hermosa & Clear Creek

Hermosa & I, headed home

La Historia de Hermosa

Oh life.  It's really funny how sometimes life puts you in the right place at the right time for a specific reason. That's how we felt on our most recent trip to Mexico anyways.  This is Hermosa's story, as you probably figured out from the title if you speak a little Spanish. And this is the story of a puppy who got a second chance.

Jeff (my husband) and I decided back in the Fall that we wanted to spend our first anniversary somewhere tropical and warm, per the usual.  Jeff had always wanted to go to Yelapa and Sayulita on the West coast of Mexico and once I found out that it was a 4 hour direct flight on Alaska from our house, I was in! We had a hectic last week before we left, arranging for our bathroom to be remodeled during our absence, packing last minute and planning out different tourist activities as one normally does. Then leaving my phone at my bedside and our dog Rita with our friend
Mikey we eagerly hopped on the plane and never looked back.

We spent our first 4 days in Yelapa, which is just South of Puerto Vallarta. It's a really neat little town that you can only get to by boat and where you need to use flashlights to get around on the cobble stone streets at night (they just got electricity only 5 years ago, so lighting is very limited).  We ate at some really amazing restaurants, soaked up some sunshine and visited the Marietas Islands to see dolphins and manta rays.

After that we traveled North to the surf mecca town of Sayulita. And we fell in love with it.  Sayulita is a hippie paradise with live music, dance and art all around.  The food was outstanding and the vibe was surreal. We had decided to spend our first 5 nights at an Airbnb on the North Shore, where we celebrated our anniversary overlooking the ocean, eating and drinking to our hearts content and simply unwinding & relaxing.

Then we switched it up a bit and moved to the South end of town for our last 5 nights in Sayulita, where we would be in a more rural, jungle area. The Airbnb was a beautiful, clean and private, but after a day or so there we couldn't help but notice the neighbors below us. From our front windows/balcony we could see two dogs in the yard below and one seemed extremely malnourished. That made me really sad, so being the crazy dog lady that I am I bought some bones from the local vet in town and decided to head across the street to give the dogs a treat.

The view into Hermosa's yard from our Airbnb.  You can see her on the right, standing next to the bucket & white lawn chair.

That's when I first saw the dogs up close. The older, bigger dog was a dark brown male who was very fit and strong. As I turned my attention to the younger gray pup, I gasped. One of her eyes looked to be missing and bloody.  She was thin as rails. After I got the dogs' attention and saw wagging tails, I gave the bones a good throw under the fence in opposite directions towards both of the dogs.  Immediately the larger dog leapt on top of the small dog, snarling and growling, putting her in check.  She was terrified and I was heartbroken (and I learned to never hand out food like that ever again).  It was now clear that there was not only negligence occurring on the owner's behalf, but that the other dog was food aggressive and that was most likely the cause of her lost eye and undernourishment.

I felt empty and devastated.  I rushed back to our Airbnb and promptly burst into tears. Jeff comforted me and almost immediately said "so, what do you want to do about it?  Do you want to go back into town right now and see if we can get some help?" The tears stopped.  I honestly hadn't even THOUGHT about what we could do - I was just feeling bad for that poor little pup. Of course, action is way more valuable than just wallowing in your sorrows. "Yes" I said, without hesitation.

Ironically we had just come across a booth in town earlier that day that was an animal rescue called "Sayulita Animals".  We went back to the booth but it was closed for the day.  After a visit to the local vet, who told us they could do nothing to help, and a drive by Sayulita Animals headquarters, which was also closed for the day, we headed home feeling defeated, but determined.  I wrote an email to Sayulita Animals that night and we headed to their office first thing the next day.  Antonio, the volunteer we had met the day before at the booth in town hopped onto our golf cart and up to the house to see the pup. He agreed that it was a situation she shouldn't be in. After returning to the rescue, Sara, the owner of Sayulita Animals, told us that there was little she could do.  Since the puppy had owners and wasn't a street dog, she couldn't really get directly involved with a rescue.  She had a reputation to uphold in the community, which we understood completely.  We left the rescue feeling once again defeated and helpless.

A day or so went by and we had more or less come to terms with the fact that there was little or nothing we could do for this pup. As a consolation we agreed to take 2 other rescue dogs back to Portland on our flight to meet their forever families (Sayulita Animals had already cleaned them up and found them homes - they just needed someone to transport them and carry them through customs). We agreed to do so only on the condition that Sara would continue to do everything within her power to try to help this little puppy.

On our last day in Sayulita we received an email from Sara. She said that she had stopped by the house to see the puppy, as she promised she would, and agreed that it would be best to get her out of there. She suggested that there was probably one way and one way only to rescue her: go up to the family, tell them that we'd fallen in love with their pup and ask them if we could adopt her. We couldn't believe what we were reading!  Just go up to somebody's house and ask them if we could HAVE their dog?  We thought "yeah right, like that's gonna work".  If someone came up to our house and asked if they could have or buy our dog, we'd tell them to fuck off, straight up.  We didn't know these people - what would they think about a couple of gringos going up to them and asking to take their dog back to the states?!

And then we realized that we had no other option.  And we thought of the pup and the mistreatment we'd seen over the past couple of days - her eating garbage in the yard, being scared with a shovel by one of the owners.  And we realized that we were in a completely different culture where dogs are looked at and valued differently, and we thought...you know what?  We've got nothing to lose. We might as well give it a shot. IF we could get Marianne at Street Dog Hero in Bend, Oregon (Sayulita Animals' sister rescue) to agree to be our "back up" adoption option if we brought Hermosa home and Rita (our dog) wasn't getting along with her, and IF we could find a Spanish translator to help us negotiate the rescue, then we would do it. We would give this crazy idea a shot and see if there was a one in a million chance that we could potentially pull it off.

At this time it was about 4pm and we gave Marianne a call and she agreed wholeheartedly to help us in any way. Then we walked downtown to see if Antonio (the volunteer from Sayulita Animals) HAPPENED to still be at the booth site, painting a mural we had seen him working on for the past couple of days.  He was.  We ask him if he would help and be our Spanish translator and he responded immediately with "absolutely".  He agreed to meet us at our rental at 7:30pm that night.

Antonio arrived right on time and after having a beer and hatching a plan, Jeff & Antonio headed down the hill to the big orange gates where the dogs lived.  We had decided that it would be too much to bombard them with 3 people, so I stayed behind.  It was so painful to wait. I couldn't watch.  I kept myself busy by packing and cleaning, as we were leaving Sayulita for Puerto Vallarta the next day. 10 minutes went by - then 15, then 20.  What was going on down there?!  At this point, I decided that things were either going really, really well, or REALLY bad.  I got worried.  I had to look.  I walked across the living room to the panel of windows that faced the street and looked out.  At that very moment I saw Jeff & Antonio walking away from the gated home and it LOOKED like Jeff was holding something.  I immediately rushed to the opposite end of the condo to open the door to watch them come up the stairs.

Low and behold, Jeff had Hermosa held tight in his arms.  I couldn't believe it. As he walked up to the door he reached out his arms to give her to me. I started crying uncontrollably.  She was so scared and nervous and you could see every bone in her sweet little body.  But she was safe. And she was with us.  Apparently after 10 minutes of negotiations and the daughter/owner of Hermosa saying "no" several times, they just handed her over.  Jeff & Antonio had offered to give them money for her and they refused.  They simply said "we know she'll have a better life".

Hermosa hours after her rescue

So thin :(

 We all went back into the condo and celebrated the momentous occasion.  Everyone had HUGE smiles on their faces.  We were all still in shock that she was REALLY there with us. We fed her lots of yummy things that she had never tasted before and snuggled her endlessly. After Antonio left, we nestled her into bed with us. She was really shy and nervous about being inside, as I'm sure she had been strictly forbidden to enter a home before.  She had fleas & ticks all over her and she smelled so horrible that I was honestly gagging all night.  But that didn't matter.  We wanted her to feel secure and loved and for her to know that she would never be in harm's way again.

Fast forward to today: It's been almost three months now since that trip and life changing experience. I am happy to say that we were able to get all three rescue dogs from Sayulita through customs and safely to Portland to meet their "furever families". And after a week of gradual introduction, Rita and Hermosa got along great and are now best friends.  Hermosa is actually HELPING Rita with some of her anxiety, fear and proximity issues. Hermosa has gained over 15 lbs., has been spayed and after a visit to the doggy ophthalmologist has been cleared to keep her bad eye in (no surgery or removal needed - such a relief!). She loves every person and dog she meets and is FEARLESS, enjoying hiking, swimming and exploring the Pacific Northwest. She really completes our family in more ways than we could have imagined and it is a pure joy to watch her grow into the dog that she was always meant to be.

Hermosa's first week in our house.  So tiny!

Her first toys :)

Hermosa, Rita & my husband Jeff - week 1

This rescue wouldn't have been possible without the great help from Sayulita Animals in Mexico and Street Dog Hero in Bend, Oregon.  Both Sara & Marianne are doing incredible things to help animals in need.  Please help these amazing humans continue their good work! Visit their websites, donate to them if you can or become a dog transport if you're flying their way!  It's so easy to do and it really does save lives:

Sayulita Animals: https://sayulitanimals.org/
Street Dog Hero: https://streetdoghero.org/

The biggest lesson we learned from this experience is that there IS a chance.  There's always a chance, no matter how small it might be.  So put your doubts aside and if you think there's even a remote possibility that you could achieve what you're hoping to accomplish, go for it. You could change your situation or someone else's for the better, or better yet, save a life. We are forever grateful for this experience, and for our new family member, Hermosa.

Hermosa & Rita, soaking up the sun in our backyard

Hermosa "koala-ing" her Dad.  She has no space bubble!

Good girls - can we have a treat please?

Hermosa & Rita (and me) enjoying the sand and water at Sauvie Island, just a few weeks ago

Hermosa & Rita today - snuggled up, best friends :)

Nicknack's Travel Hacks

Hey friends!

Yeah, I know, it's been a long time since my last blog post.  That seems to be the norm these days, so instead of going on and on and apologizing, I'm just going to be open and honest with you that you should expect nothing less than sporadic, unpredictable posting...until I'm retired.  Or win the lottery.

We're coming up on our one year wedding anniversary (read my last post - we got hitched in Thailand last year!) and decided we needed to go somewhere fun to celebrate. I'm not gonna lie - everything in my being was pulling me back to Thailand.  THAT trip is going to be hard to beat.  However, we decided to go an easier route this year and head to a country I really haven't explored much yet: Mexico.  I know, hard to believe isn't it?  Most U.S. folks have traveled to Mexico more times than they can count, but for some reason I decided to explore the craziest, farther reaches of our planet first and have saved Mexico for my older, lazier years.  I think I made a good call, since the flight to Puerto Vallarta is a flat 4 hours direct! Piece of cake.

We leave in two weeks and so this is the moment in trip planning where I start to make a checklist for packing in my head:

1. Don't forget the snorkel
2. Do I still have any sunscreen leftover in the house from last summer, the last time this Oregonian saw the sun?

3. Where did my sunglasses go?

 And throughout my travel experiences - especially going to remote places where you can lug around very little - I've figured out some small little travel hacks that are currently rolling around in my brain space that I think could help others.  So, whether your next trip is to Palm Springs or the Pyramids of Giza, here are a few helpful packing tips to guide you along the way:

1. PACK THINGS YOU WANT TO LEAVE BEHIND: That's right - I intentionally pack items with me that I think are on the last leg of their life or that I don't want anymore. This one helps you in two ways: 1. It helps you clean out your closet and get rid of things you've been holding onto for FAR too long and 2. It makes more room in your bag on the way home for any nicknacks you may have accumulated during your travels. Also, if you're traveling to a developing country, some things that are no longer of use to you may be very valuable to someone there and they may appreciate you leaving it as a gift.  (For example, during my time in Africa I gave an old camera I had to a family I had come to know and respect.  They were FASCINATED by it.  It's something I don't think they ever would have been able to afford on their own and they really appreciated the gesture.)

2. BUY YOUR SHAMPOO & CONDITIONER THERE. Those containers are heavy.  And unless you're staying in hotels the whole time or only staying for 5 days, you're going to need a lot to get you through your trip.  Buying your shampoo, conditioner...maybe even face wash & soap THERE not only helps your luggage weight, but it often ends up saving you money too. These items are often less expensive abroad. This also goes for pharmaceuticals. For instance, when I knew I was going to Tanzania and it was recommended I take Methloquin (an anti-malarial) I bought it in India on my way to Tanzania because the price was SO much cheaper than what I could buy it for in the U.S. Just do your research before you hatch this plan - you don't want to end up in a country without necessary medication, assuming they'll have it when they sometimes don't.

3. PACK AN EXTRA BAG. We have a coiled up, frisbee like looking bag that we throw in the bottom of one of our main bags. That way if we accumulate too much stuff during our travels we have an extra bag we can use and check.  This came in REALLY handy when we got married in Thailand.  After our wedding day was done and gone I simply threw my dress in our extra bag instead of lugging it around with me on a hanger. If you're attending a formal event abroad, this may come in extra handy for you too...

4. BRING A REUSABLE WATER BOTTLE. This is especially helpful if you're traveling to a country where you cannot drink the tap water.  You can refill your bottle at restaurants or hostels and it will save you at ton of money on bottled water.  Also helpful to have on hikes.

5. SNACK-IT-UP.  I always like to pack too much food, as opposed to not enough.  That's kind of a general rule in my every day life, but it applies to traveling abroad just as much or more.  Sometimes unpredictable things pop up...like....your hosts don't get you lunch until 5 hours later than they had told you they would.  OR what someone's serving for dinner one night (or what's available) is NOT something you want to eat, but you feel rude so you try a little. All of these circumstances are good reasons to bring snacks with you.  You can also share your country's snacks with locals, which is a kick in the pants if they've never seen a hazelnut or tried a fruit roll up before. Once all of your snacks are consumed you once again have extra space in your bag you weren't planning on for your trip home.  Win-win.

6. WEAR YOUR HEAVY STUFF ON THE PLANE.  OK, these guys may have taken it a little TOO far, but overweight luggage fees are a drag. If you're flying to or from somewhere cold, wear your heavy stuff to avoid extra charges. Bring your down jacket on the plane with you (it can double as your pillow) and wear your hiking shoes. If you're worried about being too warm when you arrive at your destination, throw some flip flops and a t-shirt in your carry-on JUST in case.

7. MAKE A CHECKLIST & MAKE ADJUSTMENTS WHEN YOU RETURN HOME. Did you pack 6 sweatshirts but only used 2?  Could have used a few extra pairs of underwear? Having a checklist specifically made for YOU is super beneficial, especially if you edit it when you return from your trip.  If you analyze what you used and what you could have used more of, you will have more successful trip planning for your next adventure. There are some great lists online to help you get started. Check out this cool website/small "quiz" that helps you figure out what to pack (and even what to prepare before you leave) after you answer a few quick questions about location, duration, weather, etc.: https://www.travelschecklist.com/

Getting ready for a trip and packing in and of itself can be stressful.  The biggest thing to remember throughout it all is that unless you're going to a completely remote, far reaching corner of the world, you'll most likely be able to find whatever you forgot (if you forget anything) at a convenience store nearby.  And that even if you can't find that ONE thing you forgot, you will survive.  Another traveler probably packed an extra one themselves or you can simply do without.  That's one of the great things about traveling - learning things about yourself, and learning that we really can manage to live with a lot less than we think we can.  It also makes you super grateful for what you have at home.

Bon Voyage!

How to Legally "Thai the Knot" - Americans Married in Thailand

On December 28th, 2016, my boyfriend & I hiked Cascade Head on a bluebird day in Lincoln City, Oregon. Unbeknownst to me, (although I had some suspicions), my man proposed to me that day on the top of a bluff, next to a small sapling and I said YES!  What a beautiful day and exciting time. We felt on top of the world (and actually, kind of literally were) and were elated to share the news with our friends & family.

 

Now anyone who's ever been engaged before knows what comes next: Yes, the celebrations, but also the questions, the suggestions, the unsolicited advice: "So, when's the date?" "Where are you going to get married?" "You know you're going to have to invite your Aunt Margret, right?" "Well...just make sure you don't get married TOO soon." It was overwhelming before we even got started.  People have so many expectations when it comes to weddings, and since I work in the wedding business, I had a pretty good idea of what all was involved.

So we spent a lot of time discussing options with one another, going back and forth with different scenarios. We wanted to skip a lot of aspects about weddings that we didn't like.  For example, we didn't want to invite a whole bunch of people to our very special day who just really didn't care too much about us or we didn't really know (no people Facebooking or taking selfies during our ceremony). We didn't want the day to be stressful.  Instead, we wanted to be entirely focused on the two of us and our love, our moment, instead of worrying why the caterer hadn't shown up or why there were too few chairs.  We didn't want to have to pick "favorites" for our bridal party, which creates hurt feelings and awkwardness.  We didn't want gifts (another weird and outdated tradition that neither of us ever really liked). And above all, we wanted the moment when we exchanged our vows to be private and intimate, a very sacred time for us to cherish instead of us worrying about everyone staring at us and what "they" thought of what we had written.  

So, for all those reasons (and because we love to adventure and wanted to get married somewhere tropical and warm!), we decided to get married in Thailand.  We already had a vacation planned to Thailand for March 2017, so the only thing we needed to do was secure a wedding planner and figure out how to get legally married in Thailand in less than 3 months.  No big deal, right? (There goes the 'no stress' idea...ha!) In all honesty, we toyed with the idea of getting legally married at the courthouse at home before our trip. Low cost, no stress.  And as we continued to do research, we found out that most people who have wedding ceremonies abroad choose that option, because it is simpler and easier.  However, it didn't feel genuine to us.  We didn't want to get legally married at the courthouse in Oregon and then have a fancy "for show" elopement in Thailand. So, we started doing the research on what all is involved for an American to get married in Thailand.  And it was HARD to figure it out, simply because there is a lot of contradicting information out there. So, that is the main reason I'm writing this blog post today.  I'm writing it for that person out there who may want to elope and get married in Thailand but has no clue what the legal process entails.  So if you're an American who wants to "Thai" the knot, this one's for you!!!

First, I would highly encourage you to hire a legal rep.  We hired Jit, and she did a fabulous job.  You can reach her at inquires@legallymarriedinthailand.com or visit her website, which is very informative (www.legallymarriedinthailand.com).  We paid 9,000 bht for her services (which is approx. $258 USD), but several people we contacted before Jit was recommended to us were charging DOUBLE that.  All other people we contacted, in fact.  So if you hire Jit, she will not only be the most affordable choice, she will also walk you through everything you need to do to successfully get married in Thailand.  Here's the basic run-down:

Before you leave:

-Each individual needs to fill out a marriage affidavit.  This is something you will need to bring with you to the US Embassy in Bangkok to make your marriage legal. Jit provided us with the form we needed, but you can get one from your respective embassy or online (just make sure it's the real deal!)

-Make an appointment with the US Embassy in Bangkok.  The Embassy is super busy, so having an appointment ensures that you are prioritized.  You need an appointment for EACH of you, not one for both of you.  There are random days and holidays when their offices are closed too, so be sure to check into that. Here's the website where you can make your appointment: https://th.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/acsappointment/

-Make copies of both of your passports to give to the legal rep when you arrive in Thailand (or before).

-Pay a 50% deposit to Jit via PayPal

When you arrive in Thailand:

-Make copies of your entry Visa in your passport to bring with you and give to your legal rep when you visit the Embassy.

-Visit the Embassy with your passport, copies of your passport, copies of your visa entry and marriage affidavits (Jit's assistant brought our affidavits with him, which was nice cause that was one less thing we had to remember).  Once your paperwork is complete, you will give it all to your legal rep, who will be waiting outside the embassy with you.  Pay them the remainder of their fee (either in baht or USD)

Finishing up paperwork at the Embassy with our legal rep in Bangkok, Day 1 in Thailand

IF you hire a legal rep (or at least the one we did), the remainder of the process is seamless for you.  After we visited the Embassy, our work was done and we were able to enjoy the rest of our vacation.  Our paperwork's journey, however, had just begun.  All of our paperwork had to be translated into Thai. Then, 4 days after that, our legal rep had to return to the Legalization division to retrieve our completed and translated paperwork.  They then sent our paperwork from Bangkok to our wedding coordinator Caz on the tiny island of Koh Tao, where we got married. From there, Caz took our paperwork to the local government office and made an appointment for our wedding day with the "Amphoe", who is the government official responsible for the the second level administrative subdivision of Thailand. The Amphoe had his own desk at our wedding ceremony (and security with him), and we had to sit with him and sign paperwork with him before they could legally pronounce us "husband and wife".  It was a trip! And we had some really funny, memorable interactions in broken English, which are always enjoyable when traveling abroad :)

 

Jit's website has instructions all about how to "Do It Yourself", which are here if you choose to do so: http://www.legallymarriedinthailand.com/information/do-it-yourself.html . I, however, highly recommend doing it the way we did it and hiring professionals who know what they're doing to help you.  It's your wedding day.  You don't want to screw it up by missing a step or not being able to actually get legally married because you forgot something.  Plus, you want to enjoy your vacation instead of worrying about paperwork, right?

At the end of all that business, here's what you get: A beautiful marriage certificate in Thai and the experience and story of a foreign wedding process.  And if you're really lucky, you also get a drop dead gorgeous, perfect wedding day of your dreams like we did.  We haven't regretted for an instant any the choices we made and we would highly recommend eloping to anyone desiring a personal, private wedding. And going through the legal process abroad, whatever that might be and wherever you decided to get married, helps you experience the culture and interact with locals in a way that you otherwise might not have.

Gratitude

Our marriage certificate...in Thai!  We can't read it, but we're pretty sure it's legit....lol

We did it!

Our wonderful wedding crew, all of which I would highly recommend.  From left to right: Rachel (wedding officiant), Aiden (photographer: www.aidendockery.com), & Caz (www.foreverlovestruck.com)

During the ceremony

Just married!

You may kiss the bride :)

So in love. Our wedding site: Sai Nuan Beach, Koh Tao

Mr & Mrs!

Our private longtail boat ride from our ceremony to Sairee beach

Sunset before dinner. Pure magic