I’m unpacking my brain. Unpacking all the wonderful-but-stressful bits and pieces from the last year: all the highs and lows of running a business, plus personal milestones like planning a wedding and moving into a new home. Unpacking the signatures, the paperwork, the timelines, the accomplishments and failures. Piece by piece, little by little, emptying […]
Last week my soon-to-be husband left for a two-month, 3,500-mile bike trip on the West Coast. His brother is joining him, and they’re calling it #NoRestOutWest. Friends and family keep asking if I miss him, and of course the answer is yes. But missing him isn’t the overwhelming feeling in my gut right now. What […]
Before we even got out of bed this morning, while my boyfriend and I were laying side-by-side looking at our phones (as we do every morning while mustering motivation to start the day), Ben said to me, “Any news on the plane?” I hopped over to The New York Times to assess just as he […]
I forgot a pair of flimsy flip-flops, the kind you wear as protection in a hostel’s grotty communal showers. I forgot a messenger bag to carry during my walks around the city, toting instead my backpack, which makes a traveler’s belongings within a thief’s reach. I forgot to bring cash, thinking I’d use my debit […]
Last year at the World Domination Summit, I watched a powerful presentation by charity: water founder Scott Harrison about how to help families around the globe access clean water. I expected a cliche pitch, but instead found myself tearing up in that auditorium. So I pledged to give away my 32nd birthday– no big celebrations […]
If you've followed this blog from the beginning, you might remember a post in late 2008 when I asked for your help. I was visiting a family in Cameroon that had hosted me six years before as a college student. It was a polygamous family, with four wives and about 20 children. And this family […]
While walking around Washington, D.C.’s peaceful Roosevelt Island last weekend, my boyfriend and I started scheming on a big trip. We’re in the very early stages of scheming, when you throw out all the possibilities and all the obstacles and all the what-ifs to get a sense for whether the dream could ever really happen. […]
Ever have a weekend or day or hour or even just a MOMENT when you say to yourself something like: Wow, this is what REALLY matters. This is what life is ABOUT. That’s how I felt after hiking in Shenandoah National Park this weekend (and leaving my computer behind): Now I’m back to the grind […]
My neighborhood is full of construction. Loud, ANNOYING road construction that makes it take forever to get wherever you want to go. Before traveling in Africa, I would’ve seen all those cones and equipment and traffic jams as simply that: annoying. But after spending time in a place where roads often aren’t paved at all […]
I finally jumped on the Kindle bandwagon! My new Kindle Touch — a holiday gift from the fam — accompanied me on my trip to Nicaragua and Costa Rica last month. While I’m thrilled to integrate this gadget into my reading life, it does have a few drawbacks specific to travel. So here’s my take […]