A Bicycle Crash
byIn my memory of the house, which is from when I was much smaller, the retaining wall was always around three feet high. But…
essays
How To Show Up
byI looked at the menu at a booth in Morg’s, a diner in Waterloo, Iowa, on a cold morning this past January, sure of…
Make 2020 The Year Of Maximum Enthusiasm
byNote: I first wrote and published this post on December 29, 2011, calling it “Make 2012 The Year Of Maximum Enthusiasm.” Every year around…
Choose Wonder
byThe South Rim of the Grand Canyon can be a magical place: You stand with a 180-degree view of a thing so big and…
Remember When We Were Young?
byMark and I sat in the front window of a Denver coffee shop, talking about aging. Mark was 44, I was 37. Thirty-seven and…
Morning Rituals For The Reasonably Productive And Moderately Successful
byYou may have heard or read a lot about the morning rituals of high-functioning people—CEOs, visionary businesswomen and men, political leaders, gurus, life coaches,…
Ski Boots Are Ridiculous, Long Live Ski Boots
byYou know what this ritual feels like: You loosen every buckle on your ski boots, pull your sock up, and mentally armor yourself for…
Yes, A Friend Can Make Miserable Things Less Miserable
byI trudge forward, the muddy road tugging at my running shoes, splattering my ankles and shins, as I finish the uphill part of my…
Lessons From Eight Years Of Writing An Adventure Blog
byOne afternoon last August, a delivery truck rolled up outside my house in Denver. Two men got out, dollied a large box through the…
Experience The Joy of Not Bringing The Noise
byHere’s a crazy story: I spent four and a half hours outdoors alone the other day and didn’t listen to music, or a podcast,…
Make 2019 The Year Of Maximum Enthusiasm
byNote: I first wrote and published this post on December 29, 2011, calling it “Make 2012 The Year Of Maximum Enthusiasm.” Every year around…
A Simple Way To Write Your Own Ending To 2018
byIf you’re anything like most of us, another year ending means a lot of things: anxiety, hectic planning and travel, trying to meet everyone’s…
Why Finish Lines Will Get You Every Time
byI didn’t know why it happened. I was doing OK until the guy with the dog came through, and then, all of a sudden,…
I’m Meditating (I’m Just Not Sitting Down)
byI tried. For a while, it seemed like everyone was talking about how meditation changed their lives—friends, acquaintances, podcast interviewees and interviewers, authors, even…
Gratitude And An Honest Mountain Wedding
byHere’s one thing we always say about weddings: “It’s the biggest day of your life.” Here’s one thing we almost never say about weddings:…
Nostalgia Is A Mother
byLast Wednesday, around the ninth switchback in the M Trail at the University of Montana, my legs and lungs screamed at me to stop,…
Learning To Be Funny
byProbably every other time my friend Lee and I came to the end of an approach hike at the base of a climb, dropped…
What Happens When You Leave Cell Service Behind
byHere’s a thing you may have experienced: You’re about to head out on a trip in the outdoors, for three days or longer. You’re…
Summit Day
byA couple hundred feet from the top of Avalanche Gulch on Mount Shasta last Monday morning, my friend Abi and I had a check-in….
The Gas Tank Is 1/4 Full, Or 3/4 Empty
byJust east of Green River, Utah, on Interstate 70, I looked over from the passenger seat to see the car’s gas gauge hovering around…
Climbing Out Of A Huge Metaphor
byTen years ago last weekend, my old friend Jarrett didn’t have cancer anymore, so I thought it would be a good idea to take…
Should You Keep Your Big Goals To Yourself?
byA couple years ago, I was talking to my dad on the phone and asked about his plans for the next weekend. He said…
The Joy Of Wearing Out A Piece Of Gear
byA lot of things felt like they were on the verge of breaking down in the six months of training for my first 100-mile…
Complaining Is Useless
byOne Sunday last August, maybe halfway through a 22-mile trail run in 85 degrees and full sun, the day after we’d run 24 trail…
None Of This Makes Any Sense And That’s Just Fine
byLast Saturday night, I was running one of my favorite trails in the dark. I had gotten a late start, realized I failed to…
The Great Dirtbag Pissing Contest
byA few weeks ago, someone put a sticker saying “Does this Sprinter van make my trust fund look big?” on my friend Thomas’s van…
Make 2018 The Year Of Maximum Enthusiasm
byNote: I first wrote and published this post on December 29, 2011, calling it “Make 2012 The Year Of Maximum Enthusiasm.” Every year around…