Adventure Friday: Traveling with grief and a budget

Today, Andy and I are finishing up our second crosscountry road trip from the east coast to Salt Lake City. Although we followed the exact same route both times, these road trips are wildly different from each other.

Traveling with Grief

When we first did the trip in October 2011, we were driving Andy's tiny Nissan Sentra, overpacked and loaded down with Andy's life belongings. This week, we're driving a zippy Volkswagen Passat, just purchased from a family member and my first ever car. In October 2011, we were giddy with the excitement of Andy's new job and new life. We were awed by the stretches of country we had never seen. This week, although our eyes still saw the beauty of endless blue sky and scrappy pine bluffs, we also felt the burdens of anxiety and sadness. Worries about work, money, family, self, and loss lurked somewhere within the hum of the tires, the vibrations of the engine, the gusting of wind. 

Eating on a Budget

One difference that I've really enjoyed is our approach to food this week. In 2011, we mostly ate at restaurants along the road. We're pretty broke this time, so we packed all of our food with us: instant oatmeal, peanut butter, bread, trail mix, cheese, beer, Red Bull, and a huge batch of spaghetti with homemade sauce. We wash our reusable bowls and utensils with Dr. Brauner's liquid soap in the hotel sinks, and we refill our big coffee mugs at each hotel breakfast.

Let me tell you, at the end of a long driving day, there are few things more comforting than those spaghetti leftovers.

Love begins with 'W'

One thing that has stayed the same is my love for wind turbines and Wyoming. I think my mom would have liked both, too.

Adventure Friday: Becoming a Gear Head

I've been learning how to ski this winter, mostly at Andy's insistant persuasion. First thing in the morning, before we get to the mountain, I'm pretty poor company. A typical Sara monologue sounds like this:

"It's too early. Can't we sleep in?"
"I never get to sleep in."
"Why do I always have to get up first?"
"I don't feel good."
"Why do I always have to make the coffee?"
"Wait, I need coffee."
"We never go snowshoeing. When can we go snowshoeing?"
"I miss hiking. When can we go hiking?"

Once I'm on the mountain, my competitive side takes over and I start having fun. Sunshine and pine trees help, too. Skiing just isn't something I typically suggest of my own will.

Until recently.

Sunshine helps

Andy surprised me with a pair of my own skis this week, and suddenly all I can think about is skiing. I can't wait to try them. I'm excited to see how they feel, and I'm excited to challenge myself. They're longer than the rentals I've been learning on, and I'm anxious to see whether I can finally break the habit of leaning back. (Or the habit may break me.)

Skis!

Sometimes I forget how much of a gear head I really am. After all, I only have two bicycles, three backpacks, four types of technical fleece, four different hydration systems, one camping hammock, and one pair of snowshoes. That's not a lot, right? Ugh.

The key to most outdoor adventures is minimalism. Whether you're carrying a week of supplies in a backpack or pedaling up a steep incline, less is often more. So why is it so easy to accumulate (and fall in love with) gear?

Or, really, why do outdoor hobbies multiply and expand?

Fuel Up Wednesday: My favorite food blogs

A tiny New York kitchen

Let's be honest. The "Local Wednesday" post idea never worked very well. While the theme was initiated with good intentions, I am too  spontaneous (or too disorganized) to successfully post on local outdoorsy events before they happen. Heck, after they happen.

Instead, let's turn to the other passion in my life: food. 

I'm not a health nut and I'm not a master chef. I do love to cook, though, and the food I put in my body changes with the seasons and the activities of my life. In all its delicious and complex glory, food is fuel.

A number of fantastic food bloggers inspire my cooking, and I'm looking forward to featuring them on Wednesdays. After all, what better way to get through a rough week than a comforting meal? 

Emily Bites

This healthy blog features American-style Italian and Tex-Mex cooking, perfect for feeding families and husbands. Think buffalo sauces, pasta casseroles, chicken bakes, and football food -- but with a Weight Watcher's twist.

Green Kitchen Stories

When I want to challenge myself with an elaborate and time-consuming dish, I go here. These elegant vegetarian recipes, crafted by two young artistic parents in Stockholm, are not for the timid or unadventurous. I am in love with their beet bourguignon (yes, beet with a 't') and no-rice risotto with chard.

Love and Lemons

Now that I'm writing about this blog, I don't think I've actually made any of their recipes yet! But the pictures are absolutely beautiful, and I read every post.

Oh She Glows

Monstrously green but oh so yummy!

My inner vegan has a crush on this blogger. Although I'm not faithful vegan myself, I love experimenting with her recipes. They are delicious, refreshing, and fun. This blog is also the source of my dangerous Green Monster addiction.

Peas and Thank You

This was the the first food blog I ever followed religiously. Try her Summer Succotash Quesadillas with Nacho Mmmm Sauce or her Noodle Salad with Peanut Mmmm Sauce, and you'll understand how she wooed me.

Pioneer Woman Cooks

With a wonderfully organized labeling system that includes categories like "Cowboy Meals," "16-minute meals," and "canning," this blog offers awesome down-home do-it-yourself resources.

Santa Fe chicken a la Skinny Taste

Skinny Taste

Gina's recipes always hit the spot. From breakfasts and smoothies to slow cooker meals and easy weeknight dinners, Skinny Taste has an amazing range of delicious recipes.

Two Peas and Their Pod

I can't remember how I stumbled across this blog, but I was very excited when I re-discovered that this family lives in Utah! It's fun to cook along with someone who also shops at Utah farmer's markets — our veggie seasons are in sync! Their corn chowder recipe inspired a slow cooker spin off of my own.

What food blogs do you follow? Where do you find your cooking inspiration?

Survival Monday: For Your Health

After spending eight years in cities that had great walking and public transit infrastructures, I have a hard time picturing myself in a residential suburb. I prefer being able to walk or bike or bus for work, errands, and fun.

Where we live in Salt Lake City, I can get away with doing most of my commuting and small errands on the bus. Even still, there are some nights when I find myself spitting and cursing because the bus only runs at 8 and 9 p.m. before stopping completely. 

The limited accessibility to public transportation is particularly frustrating on days like—well, any day last week. With the exception of a few weekend snow storms, Salt Lake City had been trapped under a layer of thick polluted haze since the beginning of January. 

The pollution stays in our bowl-shaped valley during a weather phenomenon called an inversion, as illustrated by the graphic below. 

Inversion Smog Episodes by Salt Lake Tribune

For two locations just 45 minutes from each other, you end up with a weather forecast that looks something like this:

(And really, the mountains were closer to 40 degrees by midday.) 

A significant portion of this pollution comes from vehicle emissions, from the things you and I do every day. 

The Utah Division of Air Quality offers a great list of "things you can do" to help, and I plan on adding a few to my own routine. However, many of the transportation suggestions are either truly unrealistic or psychologically daunting for the majority of the population. 

Kennecott Copper Mine recently donated 2,500 free transit passes to the public. That's an amazing start, but it just scratches the surface. Local businesses and local governments both need to focus on active infrastructure change and sustainable consumer incentives. Public transportation needs to be more convenient than driving. Industry needs to invest in longterm upgrades and cleaner technology. Most importantly, the public needs to demand change. 

The Utah Physicians for Healthy Environment highlight key issues. Are you on board?

Update 29 Jan. 2013: Governor Herbert and transportation officials met today to discuss the air quality issue. Read more. 

Survival by bicycle

Remember when A. moved to Salt Lake City and we weren't sure whether it would be long-term? Well, almost one year later, it's long-term.

The past year has been, for both of us, one of those periods in life that test you far beyond your comfort zone.

A. had moved across country in the hopes that an exciting but risky internship would jumpstart his non-existant career. I was balancing a full-time position with an intense search for a new job. My mother—who has forever been my rock and confidant—continued her two-year battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Months of hard work, sleepless nights, and emotional strain dragged on. 

Then, in one surreal week, my mom landed in the ICU in a Connecticut hospital and I received an amazing job offer in Utah. My life seemed to be screeching to a halt and just beginning at the same exact time. The months that followed faded into a blur.

I remember riding a lot. 

I remember taking the train to Connecticut a lot. My bike, of course, came with me.

I remember bursting into tears while biking to work one morning, and being unable to stop crying until I ordered and ate a side of bacon.

I remember packing boxes and moving furniture at all hours of the hot, humid night. I remember the friends and family who helped me.

Now, I live in Salt Lake City with A. I love my new job, and A's internship has turned into a full-time position. I still ride my bike to work, and we hike together on the weekends. I miss my family, and while my mom's struggle has continued along a roller coaster track, her doctors are working hard to move her out of the hospital and into a physical therapy rehab facility. 

Things aren't perfect. The journey is far from over. There are many times when I wonder, à la Monday Morning Mantra, "What the f**k have I done?" But this past year has taught me that determination can reap amazing rewards; that a loving and supportive family is an invaluable gift; and that a bicycle is one amazing piece of survival equipment. 

This ain't your New York Starbucks

My first Salt Lake City culture shock happened in Starbucks.

We had reached the city on our fourth day of driving. We were low on caffeine, and we wanted desperately to be out of that car. If we had driven just two blocks further, we would have found an independent café with a promising bike rack and a cozy fireplace. (Pangs of regret!) However, the giant Starbucks sign drew us in like one of Odysseus' sirens, and we stopped.

Almost immediately, the barista struck up a conversation with us. Within minutes, he learned that we had just driven 35 hours over the course of four days; that we had taken I-80; that A. was here for a new job; that we all like to cycle. Within minutes, we knew that the barista was originally from the east coast, too; that the drive through Kansas is probably worse than the drive through Nebraska; and that he could make us a "half-caf" that would really hit the spot.

We had paid, coffees in hand, but the conversation kept going. At every pause, I would smile and take a small step backward, only to realize that the conversation wasn't done. The line was growing behind us. I glanced over my shoulder nervously, expecting to see hovering customers and angry glares. I was sure that, ten minutes ago, someone should have already been ordering at the counter while I stood to the side and struggled to get my change back into my wallet. Instead, no one seemed to mind!

This may take some getting used to.

Sights from a Salt Lake City road trip

Pennsylvania (not pictured) gave me my October fix. Beautiful autumn leaves in those rolling hills.

Ohio was the first sign that we were no longer in the northeast.

Illinois? Well, we passed by Chicago, spotting a little luck along the way.

Indiana left me with little more than songs from "The Music Man" stuck in my head. "Gaaaaaary, Indiana, Gary, Indiana, Gary, In-di-an-a!"

Iowa was more than just corn country. It was beautiful rolling hills with elegant windmills spinning slowly as the sun set.

Nebraska? Well, the service people were nice. This was the point in the trip where we almost strangled each other. It's inevitable. Nebraska is perhaps unfairly shouldering the blame. So here's a nice picture:

Wyoming was amazing. State parks line I-80, so the rest stops had museum plaques and taxidermy animals. One even boasted a population of bison grazing at the foot of a hill.

Utah was a rapidly changing landscape that I will have to read up on in order to describe.

We landed in Salt Lake City a little later than expected, so we only had time for a bit of apartment hunting for A., followed by an anniversary dinner. We stumbled upon this on our way to dinner: 

Yes, I think I could eventually live here.

Salt Lake City road trip & the secret society of women's cycling

I suppose I should have expected this. My preparation for outdoor adventures has been put on hold by the very thing that inspired me: A's move to Salt Lake City. The past few weekends have been filled with frenzied bouts of sorting, packing, selling, tossing, and donating. In a completely selfish maneuver, I also volunteered to drive out to Salt Lake City with A (and take a redeye back to New York). According to my reasoning, this would mean not only a few extra treasured hours with him. It would also be my first time out West. Wasatch Mountains, here I come!

I've always had romantic visions of road trips: winding roads, beautiful vistas, new people, and spontaneous stops. In reality, it always works out to involve a bit of grumpiness and misadventures, too. Since we're on a tight deadline for reaching our destination, the trip will probably feel a bit more like this (and at this speed):

Courtesy of Michael Bartolomeo

Or, it'll be a mind-numbing stretch of corn fields.

My research skills must be lagging from all of this packing frenzy. At least, I'm telling myself that, because I'm having a hard time believing that there aren't any women's cycling clubs in New York City.

I started researching groups to contact when I'm back from Salt Lake City, and I tried every search variation I could imagine:

• women's cycling clubs
• women's cycling groups
• bicycle clubs women
• girl cycling
• girl bikes
• cycling for chicks
• chicks on bikes
• chicas y bicicletas

Well, you get the picture. (I don't recommend looking up the last two.)

One group on Meetup.com with particularly pink fonts looked promising until I read this: "I started this group for the more leisurely paced rider who enjoys riding slower like I do." I found myself reassessing my strategy. Just why am I looking for a women's group? Am I afraid that I'd eat the dust of faster, dorkier bike dudes? (Maybe.) Am I looking for simple camaraderie in a male-dominated sport? (Yes.) Aren't there women who enjoy riding fast and breaking a sweat? (Definitely!)

It'll probably be more fun and productive if I try riding with a few diverse groups. Who do you ride with, and where do you ride?