Currently: November

Currently living/working in: Property caretaking of Fenton Ranch in the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico through the winter, although J is still tending to his health over the border in Colorado for at least a little while longer. 

Current mood: Still grateful for SO many things, but dang, my emotions have been playing a ping pong match all month. A long time ago, a friend advised me, “sometimes you have to know misery to know happiness.” Things may not be the best of times in the life of the Wandering La Vignes these days, but blue skies will come again. 

Currently excited about: Only 14 more days until I see J again!!!!!! I just went to Denver for a way-too-short visit with him and it is true what they say: absence does make the heart grow fonder. 

Currently not excited about: Another 14 days until I see J again… 

Currently worried about: The aging process. Good grief it sucks getting old and seeing bodies break down because of it. Both Justin and I currently have grandmas in rehab facilities trying to learn to walk again. If I live to 91 and can’t walk, I'm not sure how I'd go on!

Currently thankful for: I will repeat last month’s sentiment: our friends and family! We are so blessed to have such an incredible support system. 

They say laughter is the best medicine anyway. 

Currently proud of: Justin’s attitude through his medical mayhem. Just like with long-distance hiking, the mental battle of recovery is just as tough as the physical battle!  

Currently amazed by: If there is one thing we’ve learned over the years, it is to keep your relationships fresh and never burn any bridges. Time and time again, this has proven to be fruitful for us with the opportunities it affords. Future happenings are most likely going to confirm this again!!!!

Current confession: Justin is a better fire maker than I am. It is getting brrrr here in the mountains of New Mexico. Keeping our wood supply stocked and tending to the wood stove is a full-time job. J typically handles our fires and while I can get the job done, I will gladly hand back over these tasks as soon as I can. FYI, there is backup electric heat in our cabin, so I can and do cheat once in awhile. 

Our Fenton Ranch students would cry if they knew I was dismantling their fort for the sake of kindling. 

Current guilty pleasure: Time to write my book in a beautiful setting.

Currently reading: I finally gave up on Crazy Free: An Epic Spiritual Journey by Melissa Wyld for now. Meanwhile, I flew through My Old Man and the Mountain by Leif Whittaker. It’s a memoir about Leif, who grew up in the shadow of his father, Big Jim Whittaker, the first American to summit Mount Everest. J read it first and was equally impressed. Now, I've moved on to How to Write a Nonfiction Book Proposal by Stephen Blake Mettee. 

Currently watching on Netflix: I had extra Internet bandwidth this month, so I indulged in streaming a whopping 3 movies. Two worth mentioning. 1)Tracks. I read the book—about a solo woman’s walk across Australia—over the summer, but didn’t love the writing. On the other hand, the movie was pretty fantastic. The scenery alone was worth watching. 2) The Lion in my Living Room - a fascinating documentary about cats! 

The kittens were so curious about the meows coming from the computer screen!