Fordpride

Welp I've been in country for a whole 3 days now which means I know everything about this place already. jk. But there are some interesting observations I've made that I will share with you all.  I know some of you will know some of these already, but maybe some of you won't.  Also, I just want to write them down so deal with it.  I was actually pretty prepared with most of these, but they will be documented nonetheless. 1. Toilet paper.  They don't throw it down the toilet.  There is a trash can next to the toilet where you throw discarded and used TP.  It sounds weird but it actually hasn't phased me much at all.  It's just a different place to put it. 2. Sinks.  They don't really believe in touching food when eating it, so they do everything they can to avoid it.  They use forks and knives for pizza, wax paper or napkins to hold their hamburgers, and they have public sinks for people to use in restaurants.  These sink...

Hey guys. It's me.  Cindy.  #fordpride I just really feel bad about being such a neglectful blogger.  I hope this isn't what my parenting is like.   However, I am recommitting myself.  I want to really document the realness of this experience. What experience, you ask? I'm going to Brazil for a couple months.  I am really pumped about this for many reasons, but mostly I think it'll be good for my soul.  And for my blog.  Because you all know how traveling makes my heart pump and also the words flow out of my mouth.  I'm sure there will be many stories that make me laugh and also many experiences that make me cry.  My goal is to share them all.  I want to really make this experience something great. So please just harass me to blog.  Make me do it.  Because it'll be good.  I mean, I'm only in Miami and I'm only a few hours out of Denver, but moves have already been made.  Life is already ...

I've been thinking about donuts for like the last 5 days straight.   I just really wanted one. So, finally, after going to the gym last night, I made my way to get some donuts.  That makes sense. I had found this donut shop that stayed open decently late for a donut shop and made my way.  It's in maybe a sketchier part of town, but I was not alarmed. The guy working the counter was an older gentleman, with longer, white hair and gaps between his teeth.  We had a pleasant conversation where he told me he worked for donuts.  I guess that's better than money? But really, I respect that.  Anyways, he mentioned there were some fresh donuts in the back and I told him to surprise me with a few.  Which he did, and then he threw in a bear claw for free.   I think I found the love of my life.  With a side of donuts.

I went to my very first vegan restaurant a couple weeks ago. It mostly happened because my friend wanted something somewhat 'healthy' and I figured the local Dairy Queen wouldn't qualify.  It was his birthday, after all, so I pulled up Yelp to try to find something that wouldn't taste like dirt. The place I found had rave reviews.  I was sold: the citizens of Yelp made me feel secure. But boy oh boy, did I lose my trust in humanity that day. Walking into the restaurant felt foreign to me...the walls were too clean, the employees too hipster.  Yet, I continued on.  The man at the front was very helpful when I told him I was new to this and that I needed some suggestions.  He mentioned a few things but quickly added, "But seriously. Everything is so good here".  I picked one of the specials-one of the dishes he said by name.  He had a pretty killer beard, so I wanted to believe him. Moments later, our meal arrived.  During the w...

Today. I decided on my way to work this morning that I would go to one of my favorite little trails after school.  To celebrate both summer and autumn.  And to savor the days of warm weather without any chance of snow.  Because snow will soon come. Just moments into the trail, I make eye contact. I break only to look around and find two other deer, all three of them intently staring at me.   It was on. We stared.  I walked, they jumped, we stared. And in that moment, during our intense staring contest, I did what any normal human would do: I started to dance. I mean, my reasoning was that they obviously wanted a show.  So my headphones were in and my groove was coming out. The deer just kept staring (like most humans) and I'm sure they were trying to figure out if I was going to strike or strike a pose.  In the end, I was the one who ended up losing interest, and continued my evening. But then, ins...

I love camping.   I enjoy the mountains and waking up to the real world.  Aka nature. This time around was really good, too, because I mastered the art of peeing outside.  It only took my whole life, but I rocked that urination. I also tried driving one of the quads and I got stuck on a log.  I had to be rescued by the boys and I never felt so hopeless.  I hope they didn't judge me too much but I know they did.   But seriously, this world.  It's so great.

This summer was delightful.  And full of adventures.  But more importantly, it was full of good humans.  I seriously have the best friends. My first stop of the summer was a little place called Jackson Hole.  I love it there.   Jackson included some delightful entertainment by some old guys who sing country.  I ate a whole tray full of meat.  It was disgusting and delicious and maybe a mistake.  Also, we hugged a bear. (But seriously.  So amazing.) Fun fact: I may or may not have sung a rendition of the Star Spangled Banner on the ferry ride to our hike.  And some Asian tourists might have loved every minute of it.  Married people are so cute sometimes...I guess.   Some of you might recognize this middle picture of Janna.  It got pretty big on the ol' FB. Most importantly, I ate waffles at the top of this mountain.  And we saw two movies and one of the Asians...