beers with ms morris

Having a few beers with my friend Emily Morris last night. I met her last year at a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer happy hour. We have completely opposite stories as she served in Senegal and never experienced a frozen toilet and wells of vodka, but there's a lot of similar thoughts and emotions around development and lifestyles that we share from having done it. She's getting her Masters in Public Health here at UT, and just smokes away on American Spirits. I love it.

a little time in oregon

It was great to see my friend Emily from Peace Corps, but even better to see her in her own environment and witness the beauty of Oregon. She took me on a tour of the Western/Central part of the state from the very sleepy but hip city of Portland, through the Columbia River Gorge, down to the Willamette Valley where dozens of perfectly arched vineyards poured over the hills, and then to the rugged coastal town of Newport where the Pacific's cold waves launched into the shore. Totally gorgeous.

I'm getting around America, slowly, sort of in awe that ever part of our country has a different feel and vibe - searching for a place to call home one of these days.

late night street

I was getting off work, late, walking to my car parked downtown as I passed this group of people huddled and laying around together in the heat passing the night away. I asked to take their picture, they gladly accepted. I'm not sure what they were pointing at. It could have been anything.