The definition of the term “good” is always culturally informed. What are our values? What values did we inherit—from our families, our friends, our communities, our claimed identities? Aaron Sorkin thinks he has goodness, but not everyone does.
Category: Nature
Books I Lived with in 2019
Happy New Year, friends! I hope 2020 is off to a great start for you and your loved ones. I've been under the weather all year, but as they say, no place to go but up! Anyway, as the clock hit midnight on New Years Eve and our neighbors ignited all manner of fireworks, I …
Our Wedding
Matt Maloney and I married in a spectacularly sunny ceremony at the Red Reflet Ranch in Ten Sleep, Wyoming on September 14, 2019. We had an unprogrammed Quaker-style ceremony, meaning there was no officiant. Quakers believe that no one person is more divine than any other; they believe that all people have God or divinity …
Prague & Poland: A Brief Adventure in Photos
I kept trying to write this blog post quickly, and it kept devolving into a long essay because, well, it's hard not to do that when you love to write. So I'm trying to make this into a *photo* essay (not without some relevant text, of course) since I'm pretty sure the internet is actually …
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Announcement!
I can't wait to combine my editorial skills with my passion for the mountains! Thanks to everyone who's helped me get here.
If You Love It, Study It
You've probably heard someone say this kind of thing before: "Now that you know how it works, doesn't that take all the fun out of it?" Plenty of people endeavor to study subjects they feel inexorably drawn to—and certainly not to rid them of their fun or magic. It's like explaining the joke; as if …
New Poem: “American Bison”
Hello, everyone! Long time no see. It's been a little crazy here starting a new semester and a new job, but I promise I've been up to things. The lovely online poetry mag Muse /A Journal just came out with their gorgeous fifth issue, and my poem "American Bison" (hmmm, wonder what it could be about?) …
Hailstorms, Fireworks
The storms out West were stark and angry. The sagebrush and juniper desert of New Mexico and western Texas allowed me to see the expanse of skies darkening out into the afternoon. Though the inside of my car was a much lower temperature, I could still smell the coming rain—the metallic scent of wet minerals …

New Mexico, Land of Enchantment, Land of Circles
After two and a half weeks in the high-altitude New Mexico desert sun, I confess my summer freckles have returned. I like to think of them as my skin’s seasonal blossoming. They’re little circular perennials, roots dug deep and hibernating all winter long, waiting for a warm week to reappear. I stayed in Abiquiú, New …
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Ode to Snow
Winter is a time for contemplation. Everything takes a little longer to do. Food must be warmed, layers must be compiled and worn, windshields and sidewalks must be scraped and shoveled of ice and snow. Whether you are in the midst of knee-deep snow yourself or whether you only dream of it, I invite you …