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WE GOT A PUPPY AND SHE IS AWESOME. We rescued her about 2 hours outside of Columbus. She's mostly black lab, almost 11 weeks old now (we got her at 9), and her name is Iverson "Ivy" Fell. I am very, very much in love with her. She has mastered "sit", "lay down", "wait" and "Deal!" aka shake/paw. Words do not do her joy-filled being justice, so I hung out behind the lense for a few days to snag a bit of happy Ivy to share with you :) Come and meet her anytime!
 
 
  For weeks I have promised to post my goodbye letter to San Francisco, and for weeks I have edited, added, deleted, fussed and mussed over it. It hit me yesterday that I was trying to squeeze all the feels of 8 years into a handful of paragraphs, and its scattered focus wasn’t getting the job done. So I chose one aspect, based on a single, meaningful photo. Here’s where it took me... Dear San Francisco, I left my apartment the same way I first got her: seated on the floor, tears rolling down my cheeks, heart full of hope and gratitude. In a quiet moment before climbing into our car to head east, I thanked her for being my refuge; from bad dates, jobs, friends. On some days, from myself. She was my witness for 7 years. A keeper of secrets. A forgiving, sacred space to show up as Trish day after day. A place to happily pad around on a lazy Sunday, or collapse into after a long week. I admired her magic ability to energetically expand 550 sq feet into so much more, making room for B, a 6ft 3" man who could barely fit under her crooked shower head. I thanked her for turning 550 sq feet into enough for us. More than enough, really. I thanked her for showing us how much we could really live, even in a small space — for teaching us what is important, and what is just excess. She held us tight through highs and lows, laughter and tears. In her I found that the brief loss of our connection is what showed me, like a shock of electricity, the absolute worth of us. Within her walls we clawed our way into more joy than we knew was possible. "I have loved living here", I said. "More than I could possibly tell you now. You saved me 7 years ago, and I will always be grateful to you. Whomever comes to you next is so very lucky. May they find what they need in you, as I have. I will miss you." B secretly captured this moment for me, and the photo will remain a favorite for a long time. There are so many favorites when it comes to you, San Francisco. People, places, food (oh gosh, your food!), and adventures. But what strikes me as most valuable about our time together is that staring down everything that was important to me revealed a kind of truth -- humbling, expanding, grounding truth -- which will continue to guide all of my decisions from here on out. I can’t ever repay you for that gift, sweet city by the Bay. But I can strive to share it with others. (And I think that’s what you'd want, anyway.) In Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat Pray Love, there is a section in which she talks about having a “word”, both as people or places. For example, that Rome’s word would be “sex”, New York’s “achieve', and LA’s “succeed”. Eventually, she chooses her favorite Italian expression for her own word, which translates to “let’s cross over”. Your word is Free, San Francisco. A tad ironic considering you are one pricey lady. But Free to Be, baby. And that is a value which resonates right to my core. Thanks for being one hell of a healing partner. Attraversiamo, Trish Holy moly, what a whirlwind month it has been! Here's what you missed in my absence from TGL: * Trish and B said goodbye to San Francisco. I have an unfinished essay about this pending -- I promise to share it, soon! It's all the feels. * Trish and B moved into their (sweet!) new apartment in Columbus, for B's fantastic dietetics internship at OSU. (Come visit?) * Trish and B soaked up some real summer with family in New Jersey. Loved every moment of this; the heat, the walks, the friends, the summer nights that can't be beat. * Trish and B traveled to Ecuador and THE GALAPAGOS on a small ship cruise (~ 40 guests) and had an absolute magical, incredible, heart- filling time surrounded by the sea, the sun, animals, and happy faces. This trip has been on my "maybe someday..." bucket list for years, and I am still pinching myself that it happened FOR REALS. I had almost 500 photos on my schmancy camera alone (not counting the other hundreds on our iPhones) upon returning home, so it took a bit of time to weed through. I wanted to share a handful of favorites here, per tradition of my travels. I genuinely hope the images inspire you to love on nature just a little extra today. What left me most in awe (other than being in close proximity to a variety of beautiful animal species) were the intense conservation efforts the islands put forth. By limiting the amount of tourists each year, as well as the kinds of ships permitted (with guidelines on how they must function), hiring locals, and dedicating numerous hours to studying habitats, they are ensuring that these precious lands can be enjoyed for generations to come. There is so much evidence on these islands of how climate change is not only real, but dangerous to the future of the species who call it home. It absolutely boggles my mind how people deny this truth, as well as the value in these kinds of conservation efforts. Human beings can be so awesome, and also stink to high heaven. We ruin everything! But I digress. The naturalist guides on board our ship were so full of interesting knowledge. As I told Dennis, the lead guide, "I have never cared about birds in my life, until I met you! Your enthusiasm has convinced me that birds are cool, Dennis. That is impressive." Apparently, the process of becoming a naturalist there is no freaking joke, either. After several months of study, you take an exam, on which you must score a 100% ....100%!!!....to pass. No exceptions. And, you can only take the exam once. ONCE! After that, your naturalist dreams are essentially brought to fruition or crushed forever. I do not think I could take that kinda pressure! I hope you enjoy this (very out of order) collection of photos. Below you'll find sea lions + fur seals, blue footed AND red footed boobies (insert obvious yet necessary joke), penguins, tortoises, dolphins, pilot whales, iguanas, marine iguanas, and sea turtles. The sea turtle pics are just from a screenshot taken of a GoPro video, but please believe me when I tell you we were surrounded by them one afternoon during a snorkeling adventure. It was magic. I am especially pumped about the one with me floating above in my full wetsuit gear :) If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to send me a note or comment below!      
             
 
                          
 
 I love this earth so much. Do Good, Be Well, Trish |
