From snowy snowy Flagstaff!
I’m a little late on this because I’ve been preoccupied the last few days, but I just wanted to recap my New Year’s Eve.
Ryan and I held a little party for some of our friends here in Flagstaff.
We had Champagne and charcuterie.
Then, at about 11 p.m., we headed downtown for the pinecone drop.
(Yes, pinecone drop.)
If you didn’t know, Flagstaff sits right in the middle of the world’s largest ponderosa pine forest. Flagstaff has hosted a midnight pinecone drop for several years now.
It’s exactly what you think it is. A giant light-embellished pinecone is slowly lowered from the tallest building downtown, the three-story Weatherford Hotel.
It’s a ton of fun, actually! All the streets are closed off and there’s loud music and fireworks.
We all gathered in front of Pay N Take to cheer as the pinecone was lowered and the fireworks were launched.
The pinecone drop was suspended the last two years due to COVID, so even though I was living here for the past two NYEs, I didn’t get to participate.
I’m glad that changed this year, though!
After the drop, we went to our favorite bar (Hops on Birch) for a drink before heading home.
2022 was great, for the most part! I started it living and adventuring in California, and then moved back to Flagstaff for more adventures here in northern Arizona.
I started my new part-time job at YogaSix as a yoga instructor, and did a lot of cool work during my full-time job with Forest Service. I bought a pair of snowshoes and a new stand-up paddle board, and got to go on so many incredible outdoor adventures. I did a lot of yoga, got back into running and ventured out to Las Vegas for the music festival of my dreams. I learned how to knit, did a lot of reading and started my first high-elevation garden.
The war in Ukraine still weighs heavy on my heart, and I am hoping beyond everything that 2023 sees a resolution in a country that means so, so much to me.
Ryan will be starting a new job this year on a different wildfire crew still based on the Coconino. The two of us renewed our lease here in Flagstaff, so we’ll be living here through at least October, but who knows what life looks like after that!
I’m hoping for another year full of hiking and snowshoeing with Yukon, yoga at the studio, paddle board adventures and high-elevation trail runs. I’ve set a reading goal of 50 books this year, and I’m hoping to finish several knitting projects. I’m planning on another season of gardening and hoping to get back into traveling now that COVID is no longer the same threat it was several years ago.
Cheers to a wonderful 2023!
