All in a single day

Today is bittersweet or should I say tonight in fact....

It's the last night sleeping in my first Portland apartment. This last month and a half has been nothing short of amazing.

Roni and I drove to Oregon on a pristine day.

Even night was gorgeous.

Then we hit an icy mess which led me to my first PDX friends.

Roni started me on my journey on my new life in my new place.

We found some amazing PNW hot pot.

We then introduced my roommate to hot pot deliciousness.

I've went on so many hikes and adventures...

and it's only the tip of the iceberg, folks!

I start a job on Saturday (35 hours from now) and I officially sleep at my new place tomorrow night. Oh and Gavin and Steph welcomed baby Vienna Marie into the world today!!!

 And everything is gonna be a bit different. New surroundings to explore. The beginning of a work routine. And the beginning of chapter deux.

BRING IT PORTLAND!

The night that I found out that Dan-O died

I'm taking it back 7 years on this one folks.........

Dan-O was one of my loves in this life.  We shared a year dating each other when I was 14years old through 16.  Now you're asking yourself love??? But it's more than that.  I moved away when I was 15 to live with my cousin in upstate NY and in that time he connected with my circle of friends that I had also left behind.  He was my only boyfriend to ever bypass into my close knit circle of friends.

He already went to the same college as Josh, so that was a quick friendship.  He moved in with Gavin by the time I was almost 18.  And for me; I moved to Boston when I was almost 22, and he was always on the list of people I NEEDED to see when to coming visit Long Island.

His life ended far too soon on a tragic night sometime between February 12 and 13th.  He had gotten into some hardcore drugs and his body gave out on him sometime in that span of time.  His dog, Lily, stayed with him in his room silently mourning him, until Gavin heard the dog and broke down the door to a most horrific of horrifying sights.

Gavin called me, I stepped off the bar to take this phone call and for the first time in my life went into the fetal position in a corner, because I didn't know what else to do but ball up.  Not knowing the new address of his parents I messaged his sister on Facebook to call me as soon as she could.  She called me around 9pm at night and was on her way to South Africa in between flights and I broke my news....

We cried in disbelief of his agony, but in that agony we were born again.  Into a life without Dan.

She: came back to New Rochelle, NY and decided she needed to live in the moment and took a trip around the world.

Me: I had just invested myself into opening Fenway Cantina and put my head down and worked for 7 years straight.

7 years.....

And I feel like I am just started to embrace my path now.

The importance of this life is cherishing each breath.  The beauty, the pain, the love, the friendships.  It's always too short before it's gone.

Every year this week rolls around and I remember him and his soft nature and wonder if he walks beside me on some of the amazing events that I encounter.

This Friday's journey: I think he was there.

I love you friend

....like I've never loved any other

Eagle Creek

Well my roommate and I are at it again!

Watching waterfalls rain down like millions of twinkling stars in the daytime's eye.

It was supposed to hit 63 degrees today but in the gorge it was 50 and below. However, that is the most perfect hiking temperature. Not to mention clear blue skies every which way.

So many glorious waterfalls lie along this 8 mile hike we took. And we left 2 miles of unexplored territory for next time!

This hike entails steep canyon edges and hidden paths which were shining gems.

We had lunch at lower Punch Bowl Falls.

The water levels rose so high we couldn't see the larger part of Punch Bowl Falls from ground level.

Not saying we didn't get a good view.

I had to put all three pics of the same area there because I need to delete lots of pictures from my phone to make room for more ;)

So many waterfalls that fed into each other; some beginning their decent way up high, others roaring at each other feeding a giant whirlpool sandwiched in between three separate falls.

This is in my top two hikes I've gone on since I've come out here.

So tranquil, yet such powerful whitewater.

And the water was crystal clear. Some water looked like a magical blue lagoon.

We turned around after seeing the edge of this beast of a Beauty.

Just another magical Portland Sunday.

<3