the lure of the wild

the lure of the wild

v.m.

a calm, sweet mist crawls over the bay as we catch one last glimpse of a land so magical.  

mere days, mere hours seems hardly enough to grasp even a slice of this heaven.  

yet, somehow I manage to grasp but just a little.

the lure is in the land, with its endless team of snow-packed peaks.  

peaks glimmering in the brilliant sun, yet shrouded in the mystery of a rainy fog.  

this same land so suddenly turns to a boggy sponge sloping down the terrain.

and home to creatures so magnificent; their eyes seem to hold an enigmatic wisdom.

the lure is in the sea, lapping quietly in and out with the coastal tides.  

it is murky and dangerous; it is brilliant green and crisp.  

cold and furious, yet soothing and quiet,

it is that deep reflection showing but the tiniest glimpse of the world below.

the lure is in the air, clean and crisp.  

it will sudden your breath; it will soothe your tired soul.

among it glides the regal bird, scoping out the world below.  

he knows this space is his and his to own.

the lure is in the people.  People who work and toil and laugh and LOVE.

people who embrace fear and unknowns.  

people who have seen and know a glimmer of the mystery.

people who know something that not many else can claim to know.

the lure of the wild.  the lure of beauty.  so pure. so true.

alaska 2012

AK is O.K. - fresh tracks in alaska

Our fresh tracks led from Tennessee all the way up to Alaska last week!  This was a new adventure for both me and the hubbs.  We literally were able to make fresh tracks - in the snow!  Hubbs went back-country skiing in fresh powder!  And we've both wanted to go to Alaska!

In honor of our trip (and to add a little whimsy), I decided to make some Alaska shirts for our trip.  One of those viral pins on Pinterest about bleaching t-shirts with a bleach pen was my inspiration.

Take One:  Bleach Pen T-shirt

1.  I decided on the phrase for the shirt "AK is o.k." and googled images for moose heads to emulate.

2.  I used stickers to place out a rough guideline as to where I would "draw" with the bleach.

3.  I placed a piece of cardboard inside the t-shirt so that the bleach would not bleed through to the back.  

4.  I used that dexterity God gave me and my design education from Judson University to sketch out the image on the shirts.  

5.  Sadly, the bleach did not work out as I had hoped.  The bleach was too sloppy and runny on my shirt, so I decided I had to scrap that.  Then, the hubbs' shirt (below), which was made of a softer cotton, would not bleach.  After I washed the shirt, you could not tell that any bleach had been soaking on the shirt at all!

Take Two:  Screen Printing Ink!

1.  I headed on over to the craft store to look for fabric paint and left with this:  

2.  I followed the instructions on the bottle and here were the results!  It was super easy!

Moral of the story:  AK is not just o.k. - It's Amazing!

Bucket List Take 2: Skydiving!

Check! and Check! Yup, that's right folks, we went skydiving! This was something new for both me and the hubbs, but was such a fun adventure to do together. It was great to face a fear and to do something out of our comfort zones. I wonder what we'll do next....oh wait, that's right: Alaska! Yup! All fifty states are going to have seen me by the time I die and Alaska is the next stop! But, that's another adventure to be told...

"check" (insert finger swoop here)

Fresh Tracks...Half Marathon


Last fall I ran the Boulder Half Marathon! I completed it! I was so excited to do it and yet hated it at the same time. I now understand the runner's high, but I also know that running is not my passion. I guess you could say this accomplishment was on my personal "bucket list". I've always had this mental list of things that I think would be neat to do or learn and this made the list.

After tearing my ACL in high school, I got into running to stay active. I've always stayed at that level until last year. Slowly, the idea to see if I could do a half marathon came to mind. I had never pushed my body that much and a part of me wanted to just see if I could do it. It's amazing to see what your body can really do!

I can't say that I'm jumping out of my seat to run another one soon. I'm so glad I did it, though. I know now that I can push my body further than I ever thought. I realized how fun it is to work toward a goal like that for months and I realized how fun it was to say that I accomplished something new!