Road Trip

At O'Dark Thirty Wednesday morning my friend Carol and I take off for a 5 day road trip to the wilds of central Nevada. We're headed to Elko for the 27th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering. I've never been before so this should be quite the adventure. Poets, musicians, artists, and cowboys. What more could a girl ask for? I'm taking my camera and a notepad and will report back on the adventure in the coming weeks. We'll see old friends and meet new ones. 

http://www.etsy.com/people/PawsFurAMoment

This wonderful photo speaks volumes, check out their website link above.

We've got tickets for a variety of performances so it will be total immersion for three days. I'm excited to see Dave Stamey and Paul Zarzyski. I was introduced to their talents by my friend Trisha who was a devoted fan of Cowboy Poetry, Western Music and the annual gathering in Elko. They are truly gifted observers and storytellers.

Dave Stamey - Singer/Songwriter

Paul Zarzyski - Cowboy Poet Extraordinaire

This event is sponsored by the Western Folklife Center whose mission "is to enhance the vitality of American life through the experience, understanding, and appreciation of the diverse cultural heritage of the American West. This mission is implemented through the performances, exhibitions, educational programs, media productions, research, documentation, and preservation projects that celebrate the wisdom, artistry, and ingenuity of western folkways". The website is http://www.westernfolklife.org/ if you are interested in finding out more.

Taking Risks

My husband and I are pretty laid back, our approach to life has always been to go with the flow and that's served us well for 30 years. When we head out on a vacation the first questions are shall we turn right or left and which blue highway beckons?

http://www.etsy.com/people/SpiritedWoodland

We lost an amazing friend in November. She was a delightful woman who made friends where ever she went, chased her dreams and made them happen and truly enjoyed life. She would sometimes wonder out loud why her life was so crazy and complicated. I'd simply remind her that she was the one setting the calendar and we'd just burst out laughing.

Out of this loss her wide circle of friends are getting to know each other and sharing thoughts, time and aha moments like: take nothing for granted, do what you've been meaning to do, live in the present without regrets, and (oh darn) it's my responsibility to take care of my body.

Our big Aha moment: It's so easy to become complacent and timid hanging about home territory. If we want to get to some of our Bucket List: like seeing the Aurora Borealis in Alaska, exploring the Maritime Provinces of Canada, seeing the US by train, and adventuring to New Zealand, it's time to get started. We need to start planning ahead, a new concept for us. 

Our Rogue River Adventure

Bottom line is that it's time to start taking some risks, I found this great little quote on the cover of a notepad. The author is Andre Gide an early 20th century writer and winner of the Nobel prize in literature in 1947.

 

"Man cannot discover new oceans

unless he has the courage

to lose site of the shore"

http://www.etsy.com/people/RPeppers

Time to get a move on folks, put down the remote, back away from the television, shut down the computer and follow a dream. I said that! You are no longer in the Twilight Zone but on the No Excuses Tour. What's on your list?