Off on another Adventure

It's been five weeks since the wind has carried me to an adventure. I know it doesn't seem like a long time. Perhaps my itchy feet are a result of  the 9 to 5 grind or the fact that Jeep is sending me amazing pictures of "his office" in Yellowstone watching for raptors. All I know is  I can't wait to sleep under the stars - be somewhere expansive without beige walls to hold me in and try to make me be quiet.So tomorrow I'm heading off to a spontaneous overnight camping trip in Ojai with my friend Roxanna and her dog. I'm looking forward to the drive, albeit a short one. The car is packed with groceries and two tents. I'm going to want alone time to re-read Jitterbug Perfume and perhaps journal a bit.  I wanted to get up in the trees, but Sequoia was too far since I need to be back for the AOCVCB OC Blogger Bash on Sunday and the ranger at Mt. Pinos scared me off by emphasizing that I should wear bright colors if I wanted to hike around their campgrounds because hunting season starts tomorrow. I've always wanted to go to Ojai anyhow.Regardless the point of getting away is to get out of the routine - to shake up the paradigm of work, soccer, household chores, lather, rinse, repeat. I don't want to fall asleep while living.  I don't want to pray for 5 o'clock, wishing my life away. For the first few weeks of work, I wore Ann Talor Loft apparel every day and focused soley on opportunities to experiment with my creativity and wit, boost confidence for innovative ideas and completed tasks and relate to and collaborate with peers. But try as I might to behave.. my effervescent personality has bubbled to the surface.

I've been called a free-spirit, a gypsy, a hippie. A breath of fresh air. That I lighten up a room.Exciting and scary to be seen. You see, I sometimes fear the day people recognize me as one of the Wild Ones. If I am in the den of traditional society it is because I need the warmth of the communal fire before I venture out alone again to speak plainly, live freely and authentically. I do not fancy being cast out for being weird.But maybe those compliments that my spirit is refreshing mean my weirdness has a distinct contribution to mainstream and that it is appreciated. A colleague made reference to how most people don't get to do what they want for work and I thought of my happy years as an author and stay at home mom. I thought of Jeep in Yellowstone climbing into Peregrine Falcon nests. And I could not agree with the lot of the doldrums or excessive stress as a way of life. No, I will seek the juicy. My work will be meaningful and jaunts in nature will inform my desires as my talents and where they are best used unfolds before me like the red velvet carpet.