Tag Archives: adventure

road rally.

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*mongolian rally car (not us, but similar situation)
—
okay, so it was not an intercontinental road rally
that speeds through tough terrain
in a variety of countries over a number of days
but
i went on a nighttime road rally scavenger hunt
that went through a few cities for a few hours
 (or more if you got lost or had an inside track on where to find something)
a wonderful adventure with a great team and lots of laughs
including:
a marriage proposal, a virgin mary statue, a condescending best buy nerd,
a welcoming fast food worker, a parking lot dance-off
swinging on a swing set with a group
ending with a dinner with people i had never met before.
no bumps in the road, just pure fun.
—
“there is always strength in numbers.
the more individuals or organizations that you can rally to your cause, the better.”
-mark shields

—

*The Mongol Rally is an intercontinental car rally that begins in Europe and ends in Ulan-Ude, Russia. The rally originally ended in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. However, to avoid punitive costs and taxes associated with vehicle imports and disposal, the rally now passes through Mongolia and ends in Ulan-Ude. The principal launch is from Goodwood Circuit in the United Kingdom, with subsidiary starting points in the Czech Republic.

a day.

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it was a 2 ice-pack kind of day

a bandaid, temperature check, coughing kind of day

but all in all a great day

we learned about the winter solstice

saw part of the big kids’ play

danced and sang in spanish

shared books

had an outdoor adventure

(add in a couple of scratches, a few sticky burrs,a clothing change, and lots of bravery)

but at the end of the day

we all had both mittens

and headed on home.

—

“there is no such thing in anyone’s life as an unimportant day.”

-alexander woollcott

the land of your childhood.

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first snow of the year – outdoor adventure day

—

first time with sustained snow play for many

running, jumping, sticks, snow angels, footprints, chasing,

snow picnic, snow story, snowballs, duck,duck,polar bear game,

lost mittens, noses running, rosy cheeks

eating lots and lots and lots of snow

one said it was the best snack in the world

and it just might be.

 

—

“there is no land like the land of your childhood.”

-michael powell

loose ends.

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 gargoyle

at loose ends

while waiting to defend the castle. 

 

—

“she wasn’t bored, just restless between adventures. “

-atticus

‘

out of the nest.

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stepped out of my comfort zone

and into the woods

in a park i’d never visited

with a group of people i’d never met

to share a scavenger hunt/hike/game night/food/campfire/improv haiku experience

what we had in common was that we all enjoy active social adventures

without knowing how they will go

and sometimes those are the best times of all.

“to be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest.”

-pema chodron

in it.

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with the return of the school year

comes the return of our outdoor adventure days.

 

—

“we could have never loved the earth so well if we had had no childhood in it.”

-george eliot

 

 

down the rabbit hole.

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walking through the city

i noticed

 a lot of people

 dressed differently

than the usual weekend attire

how fun to discover

that people from all over

of all ages and stages

had come to town to be part of

an ‘alice in wonderland’ immersive experience.

also fun to imagine them crossing paths with the families

who might be nervous

dropping off their child at the uni 

visiting our city for the first time.

“what kind of city is this?!”

“this wasn’t in the brochure.”

“do you think they’ll be safe here?”

and this was only day one.

—

“when I used to read fairy-tales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened,

and now here I am in the middle of one!”

-lewis carroll, alice’s adventures in wonderland/through the looking-glass

on the water.

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beautiful and  enlightening experience

kayaking through detroit’s canals

that i never knew existed

with detroit river sports

then paddling into the detroit river

bounded on either side by the united states and canada

learning history and tales of

bootlegging, river islands, mansions, auto barons, inventors, and boatmen

finishing with a lovely relaxed dinner

canal side

at coriander kitchen and farm

fresh farm to table fare

all in the heart of the city.

—

“if there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.”

-loren eiseley

wilding.

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 back in time on a summer’s day

when your parents thought

you and your friends of all ages

were just pedaling around the block for hours

but in that time you really

explored abandoned houses and those still under construction

built your own underground fort

jumped in the mud to see if it was quicksand

left your socks behind

met a new kid

balanced on a a board going over the water to get to the other side

found a golf ball

explored the gravel pit

rolled down a hill backwards

shared snacks that fell in the dirt

had the best day ever

every single day.

—

“keep your children wild, don’t make them grow up too fast.”

– brooke hampton

lost in translation.

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reminiscing about my visit

to beautiful ireland

 six years back, in july

how we found our way around the country

oh, we did a few turn-arounds here and there

as you can see above

but somehow we always ended up where we were going

eventually.

even with directions asked and kind answers given

regional accents, local advice, and lore

 thrown in for good measure

it could be a challenge at best

‘”oh, just go over the hill for a bit, turn at the old barn, you’ll see a huge green field with hills, and some sheep, and then a pub, they don’t have the best sandwiches but stop in for a pint, say hi to seamus for me if you see him, he’s a good lad, he just had that one thing that wasn’t really his fault, and all is forgiven, and oh, don’t turn by the church, go past it, there’s no sign, but you’ll see a big rock where john’s shed used to be before it burnt down in that fire in ’79 when everything was so dry, and take a sharp turn there….”  – and so on.

whether bumping along on a sheep path, sharing a two-way road with one lane, or driving half in a hedgerow

we found all the places we wanted to be

and discovered so many surprising and magical places along the way.

“going in the wrong direction, but making really good time.”

-cheri huber