You might have noticed (probably not, who am I kidding) there was no “What I read” post last month.
Sad to say… that’s because I only read one single book in June. Whoops.
But, luckily, I did sneak in some time for some reading this month. Quite a bit of reading, actually, thanks in part to a trip back home to Michigan, which allowed for a lot of time with my Kindle. I finished eight books in July, which brings me past the halfway point of my annual goal of 50 books.
What a week!
I got back from a quick four-day trip to Michigan that I booked last-minute and kind of spontaneously for an unexpected family thing.
It was kind of nice in a way. During my last trip home to Michigan, I booked it faarrr in advance, and let everyone know about my travel plans, which means I spent way too long trying to cram in visits with friends I haven’t seen in forever.
Booking so last-minute this time around meant I had a lot of unstructured free time, and a lot of time to spend with family, which was something I didn’t realize I needed until I had it.
Well, here’s a unique version of the typical “what’s in my bag” posts that were popular circa 2014.
I’ve shared quite a bit of info about my day job, and even more info about the wildfires I work on as part of that job.
One of the tools I really rely on to do my job is what I call my PIO kit.
After about three years of living in Flagstaff, I’m finally comfortable writing out a post detailing some of my favorite places in town.
Back when I lived in Chicago, exploring the city was a never-ending task. I spent YEARS exploring neighborhoods and never felt comfortable giving a “guide to Chicago” or anything of the sort. The closest I got was a neighborhood guide, and even that felt like a reach.
But, given that Flagstaff is a biiiiit smaller, after years, plural, I feel very comfortable letting you know some of my favorite places around here, if you’re looking for things to do in Flagstaff.
Here we are, just a few weeks after the May edition of S#!T I’ve been loving lately, and I’m back with a few more fun discoveries that I’ve been really into lately.
This post? VERY fire-heavy. I’ve spent the majority of the past six or so weeks hopping from wildfire to wildfire to wildfire, so I’ve spent a lot of time loving things like industrial staplers and backpacking meals (made with hotel coffee pot hot water).
I’m back home after 14 straight days of fire — most recently the Hull Fire up on the Tusayan Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest.
Well, things have certainly been busy lately.
I blame fire season, obviously.
Did you know that our forests here in Arizona actually need fire?
I just wrapped up two back-to-back (well, almost — there was a weekend-long break in between) assignments on the Volunteer Fire and the Wilbur Fire, two lightning-caused wildfires located on the Flagstaff Ranger District and Mogollon Rim Ranger District, respectively, of my forest.
After 19 (NINETEEN!) straight days of work, I finally had a short break this past weekend JUST in time for a girls (plus Andrew) weekend camping down Woody Mountain Road (Forest Road 231)!
Well. After back-to-back aircraft-related posts about my first fixed-wing single-engine flight with Ryan, who just recently got his private pilot license, and my helicopter ride over a Sedona-area wildfire for work, this post is incredibly lame in comparison.
However, May was a GREAT month for reading! Before the Miller Fire broke out. I was able to finish six books. Ryan was gone the whole first part of the month on a fire assignment, so I had a lot of time to cuddle up with Yukon and my Kindle during his absence.
