Chased by Hurricane Rita: The Aftermath of a False Alarm

Hurricane Rita image in the Gulf of Mexico

My boyfriend Craig and I made the move to Rockport, Texas in the spring of 2005 for the purposes of opening an art gallery. After an intensive search for a property to house the gallery, we finally found what we were looking for in April of that year and began extensive renovations. The whole process […]

Celebrating Earth Day—Koalas and Cockatoos and Sea Turtles, Oh My!

A pair of pink galahs

In honor of Earth Day 2022, I’ll tell the story of the most amazing encounters I’ve ever had with wildlife. Interestingly, they all happened on the same trip to Australia that my former husband Bill and I took 20 years ago, in December 2002. Our first stop was in Melbourne to visit a friend of […]

Preikestolen Kicks My Ass (and a Buzz Kill Named Harvey)

Several hours into the hike, with my heart feeling it was going to explode right out of my chest, I stopped once again at the side of the trail to let a wave of people pass me by and tried to slow my breathing down, which was coming in huge, embarrassing gulps and wheezes. “For […]

Kayaking Misadventures on the Texas Gulf Coast

My girlfriend C.J. and I arrived on the beach for our regular Wednesday kayaking excursion. C.J. had taught me to kayak the summer before, and now we had an outing scheduled every week. She was already retired, but because I still worked, we usually kayaked at the end of the day. We drove separately and […]