Mountains and Tall Trees and Bear Tracks, Oh My!

The Payne family is an outdoorsy people. I grew up in the country, in a house with a giant yard surrounded by woods, reading Ranger Rick magazine. I couldn’t see our nearest neighbor’s houses through the trees and there were no sidewalks for miles. My favorite hiking spot was (and probably still is) directly behind

Reflections (Someone is feeling mighty cheerful today)

I have noticed as of late that I have somehow, slowly and inconspicuously, managed to find my own life again, without Rich’s presence. Most days, I don’t even think about him anymore. I have found that I have much more pep in my step, optimism about the future and, in general, a very real feeling

The Good, The Bad and the Lessons From Both

I know, I know. I’ve been slacking. But to be fair, I’ve had quite a hectic month! Some of it was good, some of it was bad, but regardless, I kept moving forward. The Good Let’s start with the good. For the first time in two years, I ran a 5K! For all you runners

A Dinosaur in Sneakers: Halloween in Salem, MA

I know I have been neglecting you, my dear readers. Believe me, it was not a conscious choice. I will get into why in just a second, but first, I wanted to say a big thank you for sticking with me over the past month and a half. I had over 200 unique visitors in the

Not Quite Like Mom’s, But Close

To say I have been feeling emotional this week would be an understatement. My moods and feelings over this breakup vary from day to day and week to week. Sometimes I feel okay about it – in a logical sense, maybe it really was for the best. Rich and I aren’t exactly the most similar

Being Alone Doesn’t Have to Mean Being Lonely

I think this is the toughest part about the end of a relationship. Regardless of how many friends you have, or how close you are with your family or if you live in a big, vibrant city full of potential acquaintances, mentors, loves, colleagues, enemies and best friends, you are so used to leaning on