This lil' frog

"Where have I been?" 

......ask my few friends and single devoted reader (hi mom). Well, I was on hiatus for a while. I don't really feel much like posting to be honest with you but regardless, I have decided that I should be writing. Maya Angelou once said, “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” And there is absolute truth in that. 

First off, happy summer everyone! Mine has been a bit of an adventure really! I have spent this summer visiting many of the small towns in Arizona that I didn't really appreciate until now. My lil' gaggle of gals spent the past few weeks doing weekend trips to Sedona, day trips to PineTop, birthday trips to Tucson and one strange drive to Wickenberg that wound us through the mountains to Prescott and back down to the valley. This past weekend I threw a bridal shower for my cousin and on the same day made a mad dash for the little mining town, Jerome. Where I did a ghost tour of the city. Uh, ps the hotel we stayed at? Totally haunted! And they brought us two bottles of champagne and a bunt cake for my friends birthday. 

Oh! And they gave us fresh roses as part of the turn down service! Hello amazing! 

All in all, it has truly been a wonderful summer of personal growth and awareness. I spent a fair amount of time reading a book which empowered me to take control of my life. Don't worry, I will definitely fill you in on that in a later post. This summer has been one that has taught me the value of true friendship and who you can really count on. I also have so much to look forward to! My cousin's bachlorette party and her wedding as well as my brother in laws 30th birthday! WHEW! Busy summer followed by a busy fall. 

I guess the biggest thing that I want to talk about is the realization that its time to start exploring this world that I live in. I was sitting at work this past week, toiling away, when it just hit me how deliciously free I am. I have no boyfriend/husband/children to tie me to a place. I have no mortgage that I am beholden to. I have nothing ,really, to tether me so tightly to this state that I (admittedly) love so much. I have gypsy dust in my soul that has been aching to explore a landscape that is foreign and older than anything I have seen. That's how it happened. Once in your life you need to do something scary, you need to make a choice that will shape you in ways you intrinsically know will be massive but that you lack a real understanding of what that shift will be. I don't even have a passport but I ,along with my sisters and two of our best girlfriends, are going to jump the puddle called the North Atlantic Ocean and land in Dublin, Ireland. It even just sounds magical, doesn't it!?  For those of you who have done lots of international travel, this must be like a second nature to you. This is not really a big deal for you. But for me, its an exciting new adventure. A new step in a new path that will open unlocked secrets while I explore a completely new country. 

I'm not doing a tour, I'm not getting a guide, and I'm not using a bus. Right now, the plan is to land in Dublin, spend a few days, drive to Galway, spend a few days, then drive to Cork and spend a few days then finally back to Dublin. I'm so excited I can barely contain it! A foreign land where I only have my best gaggle and myself to count on. I'm doing all sorts of reading because the last thing we all want to do is the tourist thing. We want explore the small, out of the way villages. We want to eat in a pub. To walk the back roads and watch crisp, white linens flap in the breeze on a laundry line. We want to get stopped by a sheep in the road.  We want to talk to the locals and smell Ireland. To get it on our fingers and in our souls. We want to walk where few people have. The best way that I can explain it is to plagiarize something from one of the (many) podcasts I have been obsessively listing to. We want to be seen as part of the party instead of a boost to the economy. Now, I know we have a few months while we all save our pennies and plan our trip so you will be subjected to random bouts of bubbling over excitement but I promise to try and be interesting! First up? I'm learning about international travel 101. 

IE- How the the hell do I rent a car in Ireland??

For ages now I have been spouting off to anyone who will listen that I will publish the book I have been working on and move to Ireland or Scotland and live on the side of cliff. Well, there is nothing like an 8 day journey to give me a taste of my dream and jolt me into making it a reality! 

Goal- actually finish my book before setting foot off onto my adventure. The clock starts now.....

The Cliffs of Moher.