http://chrisammon.wordpress.com living life one word at a time Thu, 15 May 2008 17:04:26 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en So much has been written about rivers and though I am surrounded by several--the Klamath, the Rogue, the Smith, the Illinois-- I am not a part of river-culture. I am not a kayaker nor a flyfisher, and prefer to take my swims in still bodies of water where I can ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/05/14/rivertime/ Today I was blindsided in the Grange Feed and Farm Supply store. I sauntered through the door thinking about sprinkler heads but was hit by a smell: a warm grainy farmy earthy atmosphere made up of soil, cornmeal, of rawhide. It struck me that it was the first time I'd ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/04/28/helmet-required/ Back on the farm. How did this happen? Just weeks ago I was happily traveling, flaunting my ultimate untethered freedom by paragliding first in Utah, then Torrey Pines, Yelapa, Santa Barbara, Big Sur, Pacifica. Not even gravity could catch me. Now I'm back in dirty Carharts and rubber ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/04/21/back-on-the-farm/ I am too lazy to find words that express how epic it is to fly Big Sur. Here are some photos that the pilot above me took of my glider along the coastline (thanks Parma Chris!) http://picasaweb.google.com/flyinghobogirl/BigSur http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/03/22/flying-big-sur/ I often hear friends say that culture shock is not arriving into a foreign country, but coming back to the U.S. I think this is true. In so many ways Americans are the exception to the norm. From the way we shop, drive, and disinfect everything, its clear that ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/03/17/home-again/ Morning in the town of Lo de Marcos. The streets are still quiet and clean. Just a few stray dogs and shopkeepers unlocking their tiendas. In an hour or so, people will start throwing plastic bags and aluminum cans in the gutters and the ranchera music will fire up and ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/02/28/en-mexico/   Traveling down the east side of the Sierra Nevada, along California Hwy 395, I am struck by how the landscape and people don’t conform to the stereotypes assigned to this maligned state—the pollution, cars, and superficiality. I love what I find--sun-etched wrinkles, old trucks, open-space--and what I don’t find: high ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2008/01/04/the-other-california/ I've been thinking a lot lately about houses--what they represent about our deepest hopes, longings, and fantasies. Normally I don't think about houses. Talking about real estate annoys me. It was hard for me in my late-twenties when some of my more interesting and quirky friends developed a mono-focus on ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2007/12/18/thinking-about-houses/ Since I got back to Ashland, friends keep asking me if I’m okay—if I’ve been lonely on the road. When I answer “yes, its-been-lonely-at-times-but-really-has-been-mostly-great” they look at me askance, as though there was ricotta on my chin and they want to subtly let me know, ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2007/12/09/am-i-lonely/ I'm in Salt Lake City right now, the flying mecca of the country, finding my way among the "cool kids" of the flying community and on a rapid learning curve with my paraglider. I left Ashland a week ago. Since my life turned upside down--dog died, relationship died, lost my apartment, ... http://chrisammon.wordpress.com/2007/11/05/hello-world/