Snow (Hey Oh)

Hi there, my dear readers.

Yes.  The title of this blog is the title of one of my favorite Red Hot Chili Pepper songs.  (I love those guys.  Seriously.  Great music.  I'm listening to it as I write this, btw.  You should listen too.)

(On a total side note here, I still remember the first time I heard this song.  It was the first Easter we were in Colorado and I was getting ready for sunrise service while watching VH1, cause we actually had cable at the time and why not.  This song came on and I broke out in chills from head to toe.  Hot. Damn.  Great chords, great words, and a hot lead singer.  Thus it began....)

Anyway.

There is snow today. 

I've been up since like 6am, doing homework, drinking Earl Grey tea with sweet cream (if you have never tried it, I highly recommend you do - I've been looking for a coffee alternative and this fits the bill), and watching it snow.

We've already gotten more than the weather people expected.  So I'm not sure what that means as for the rest of the day.  But this is our first snowfall of the year, so anything could happen.

I feel like our first snow is kind of late.

 I mean, I love the autumn weather more than anything.  I really do.  I love the blustery winds and golden trees and crisp sunshine that invites me to do homework and knitting outside.  And snow and I have this serious love/hate relationship; I love it as long as I don't have to go out into it.  The minute I have to go outside, I basically hate it.

But I've seen snow come here in September.

So it feels like it should have happened already.

As much as I complain about snow, I really don't think it's all bad.  It's where we get our drinking water.  It's important to the environment out here.

And while Colorado rocks in a lot of regards, this is one of the best: it snows one day then it's 70 degrees and sunny the next.

Seriously.

So while it's all wet and snowy today, it'll be beautiful tomorrow.

I'll be back to sitting under my trees on campus by Monday.

Happy Friday, all.

~Meaghan

Watching and Waiting

There has been a huge wildfire here in Colorado.

We've been watching, waiting.  Until this afternoon, it was out of control.  As I write this, they have gotten it to 5% containment.

The fire is about an hour south of us.  But at the rate it was growing, we had some concerns about possibly being evacuated if they didn't get a grasp on it.

So I packed a fire bag or two.  Knitting stuff, the Bible my mom gave me and one boyfriend's grandfather gave him, my crisis kit out of the box (candles, Goddess cards, lotion, letter writing stuff, my journal), irriplaceable things, like the last Christmas card my grandma sent me.

It made me feel better.  That's all that mattered.  I had a gut instinct, I acted on it, I was able to somewhat sleep last night.

Since the fire is finally becoming controlled and the fear of it suddenly coming the hour our way backing off, I started unpacking my backpack.

And one of my favorite candles in a glass jar had broken.  The candle is fine.  The jar, not so much.

It's a small price for feeling safe.  I'll deal.

~Meaghan

P.S - I know the most important things aren't things at all, but people.  If I lost anyone I cared about, I don't know what I would do.  I would trade all of my things for their safety.  But packing really does calm, and if you can, you want those things you can't replace.

But not over the lives of those you loved.  Never.

Prayers for Colorado.