Adding another outdoor activity to my list of loves this winter has been great. Snowboarding is challenging, athletic, and fun. Thanks to the wonder of man-made snow, I can go to any number of “resorts” here in the Metro Detroit area whether the winter weather has been cooperating or not. I can go on a […]
We publicly celebrate birthdays, romantic longevity anniversaries, and work anniversaries. We also mark sad anniversaries, like deaths and endings, but we do those privately and without support in many cases. In the next few days, I have two anniversaries. One marks the end of a relationship, and one is my birthday. Birthdays are generally a […]
I’m sliding back into it. The depression is creeping back, starting in the already dark corners and slowly moving in to the middle of the frame. Like the thick overcast that sometimes rolls in and blots out a previously clear sky. All of a sudden you think, “What happened to the nice day?” How do […]
I should never contemplate myself at 1:00 am in the mirror of a hotel bathroom far from home. The poor lighting brings out the grey hairs and the wrinkles. No comfort can be found here. No snuggly pets, no favorite pillow. I’ve been looking forward to this trip for a few weeks now, so it’s […]
I have been afraid of love for a few years now. I’ve started to view it as a kind of mental illness. It can certainly make you do crazy things. I’ve been in love. A few times. The last time I fell in love, around 15 years ago, I very clearly remember thinking, “I hope […]
It’s 9:40 on Sunday night, and I should already be in bed, but I’m procrastinating calling it a day, because the next major event is Monday. I don’t feel like Monday is inherently bad. I love my job, and I love the company I work for. What I do Monday through Friday allows me to […]
Sometimes life turns on a dime. This is associated so often with negativity. Car accidents. Unexpected departures. There are moments though, where that pivot point heads you in a direction that you never dared hope you’d travel. So much of my being strong and independent is a facade. A front. Bullshit. I’ll hurt myself before […]
After waking suddenly without an alarm and grabbing my phone to check the time, I was up and scrambling to make it to the airport. I hurriedly shoved everything but my helmet back into my gear back, brushed my teeth, dressed, and bolted out the door for the rental car. Fortunately, the airport was only […]
I cannot say that I was feeling my best for the final day of riding, which was fortunately again only forty-six miles and supposedly mostly downhill. Once I awakened by a banging on my tent by a Comfy Campers staff member, having failed to set an alarm, the camp was nearly empty. It was only […]
We’d had two long 75-mile days before the layover, so this day’s 44-mile trip felt like a quick jaunt. The route led us out of town on a wonderful paved trail on the edge of Lake Superior, the sky above me clear, a cool but not cold breeze coming on off the water. The day […]
Steffanie Is Still Here 