The One with the 29th Birthday at The Stanley

People always say it is difficult to make friends as an adult. Well, I think I've found the secret- participate in ghost hauntings together.

The night before my twenty-ninth birthday was spent on a ghost tour of The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado. The Stanley Hotel is the most (positively) haunted hotel in the United States and the Music Hall that sits on the property is the fourth most haunted place in the country. The hotel is famously known for its association with the the film The Shining, which is played on repeat in the guest rooms. 

Having previously been on haunted hotel tours and experiencing some paranormal activity, I was very hesitant in my excitement to get to know The Stanley. The level to which I experienced any paranormal activity, whether intelligent or residual, was certainly less than others on the tour. I did, however, still witness the door in Lucy's room independently close itself and felt resistance on the same door when I tried to later open it. The sucker I held out in the palm of my hand also twirled around when the lights were off in Lucy's room. Others I was with had their shoes untied, felt resistance while playing a hymn on the piano in the Music Hall (the same piano also played by Bob Dylan by the way), saw apperitions in windows, and caught varying facial expressions in the same one photo during a photoburst capture. 

The stories continued at the bar after the tour. Guests and staff alike shared their experiences at the hotel while I ate a plate of Brie cheese that was served with a birthday candle in one of the slices. Birthday Brie is now a thing. The stories did not end at the bar. Once on the fourth floor, where I wondered if I would actually get any shuteye throughout the night, there was a gathering of guests. We got out our suckers and held them in our hands while others got out their phones to turn on their ghost hunting apps. 

This gathering of people sat and shared and experienced together in the hallway for so long that it started to feel like my freshman year of college, which was an easy and eager time to make friends. Having similar shared experiences on the tours and around the hotel made for obvious conversation starters and made for a memorable stay at The Stanley. 

As unbelievable as it is to me, I excitedly await another chance to stay at The Stanley. 

Happy birthday to me. 

The One where Shit Happens

Sometimes friends call just to say hi and sometimes friends call because shit has happened. Shit comes in many forms and sometimes it is the literal kind. A poopy pants emergency provided me a great escape from grading papers for an afternoon last weekend.

As I listened through the phone to a defeated sounding friend regale me the poopy pants tale from an echoing bathroom stall, I starting making a mental note of what items I needed to prepare for a cleanup intervention. I gathered towels of various sizes and an array of scented soaps and waited for the arrival of poopy pants. 

My friend stripped her son and gingerly placed him in the bathtub. I will never be more thankful for a recent bathroom remodel that included a handheld nozzle in the shower. Finally clean, fresh underpants were donned and clothes were rinsed and thrown into the washing machine. As we waited for the clothes to dry the company in the living room grew. 

Although an actual shitty situation, I was glad to be of help to friends in need. Community is such a necessity in this life and I hope that all involved that day found as much joy in the conversations and laughs as I did while working through a shitty situation. After poopy pants comes fresh new Star Wars underwears. 

May your hearts be full and not your drawers. 

The One with the Full Belly and Soul

Whether it is indulging in a boat of sushi after stacking cell phones in the middle of the table so as to avoid tecnological temptations or laughing and sharing beers with new work mates as a welcome to their world, there is definite power in sharing table with others. 

There is a certain vulnerability when face to face with another human being. Stranger or not, it is a special thing to know that those sharing table with you have given of their precious time to engage in the experience. When sharing table, food is usually involved and that means a shared experience, at minimum, the length of a meal. As the food fills the belly so the company fills the soul. 

I was recently out dining with a good friend and her tiny miracle of a newborn babe. We felt very welcomed by the service our waiter provided. Through ongoing, although interrupted, conversation with him about the newborn babe and his recently born babe we felt a small connection to him. The positivity expressed about how surprisingly nice people can still be in our world and how quickly life changes made for a very unique and memorable experience of sharing table. The experience became even more special when we leaned our bill had been taken care of. Thanks Red Robin for the kind service. 

Over tables connections are linked and bonds are formed. The amount of time those bonds last matters not, because there is always a table waiting somewhere. 

The One with the Locked Locker

Today I spent the day subbing at my former high school which means there was a good deal of reminiscing. I thought about all the embarrassing things that happened in those days: tripping over a speed bump with my saxophone while marching through the parking lot as the band practiced for a parade, showing up to the wrong school on the first day of Freshman year (that particular story can be read here The One with the First Day of High School), and having to get the janitor to cut a lock off my locker. That story is the one I will share now...

My high school best friend and I shared a locker in the Band Room. For whatever reason we did not keep a lock on our shared locker; we did not even have a lock for it. I suppose we felt safe and boring enough to trust that no one would want to steal anything from us. I remember getting to History class one day and soon realizing that I did not have my book. After convincing my teacher to allow me to go fetch it I made my way to the Band Room. When I arrived to my locker I was completely confused. There was a lock on my locker. After looking into the surrounding lockers, they were barred and not steal doors so I could easily peer in, and seeing my things in the locked locker, I concluded that it was indeed my locker. I tugged on the lock thinking that maybe someone was playing a joke and put a fake lock on my locker. Nope. It was not unlocking. 

Feeling totally embarrassed, yet still in need of my History book, I went on a hunt for a janitor. Once I found the janitor it was even more embarrassing trying to explain why I needed the lock cut off. 

"No, I did not forget the combination."

"Yes, it really is my locker."

"Seriously, it has never had a lock on it. Now it does."

"C'mon, I really just need my History book."

"Thank you!"

How I finally convinced the janitor to let me into my own locker I do not remember, but I do remember the embarrassment. And I never did solve the mystery of where the lock came from. 

And now I keep everything locked. 

The One with Narnia Friendsgiving

Narnia may be a literary land of fantasy, but for me it is real life. The setting may not be an old wardrobe. There may be no White Witch. Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy may not be engaged in some epic battle. Even with those missing pieces though, my Narnia is every bit as fantastic.

Fantastic is Batman reading a Peanuts bedtime story to The Hulk. See that here... https://www.facebook.com/hilary.gallion/posts/10100942266298151

I was very happy to spend such a fun Friendsgiving with my Narnia community and I'm always thankful for the laughter we share. 

The One with Glenwood Springs

The train ride to Glenwood Springs was snowy and magical. 

All the scenery was simply beautiful and majestic. 

We arrived to a slight chill and then ate a scrumptious meal at a steakhouse inspired by a steak looking mountain. 

The gondola ride up the mountain was pretty spectacular too. 

At the top of the mountain we played, went through a maze, and sampled fudge. 

Time spent relaxing in the hot springs is a tradition I would like to continue. 

 

The One with the Airport Hug

Airports are such strange places filled with such strange people, especially when a stranger interrupts a special goodbye just to ask if she can hug your boyfriend. Was it because he was wearing a Royals jersey? Or was it because a hug from a stranger is apparently even more special because it is from someone you don't know? Whatever the reason, that's exactly what happened just a few days ago. Even with all my travels recently in faraway places, this happened in my own local airport. Welcome to the midwest, folks.

This stranger lady went on to explain her theory of hugging and it went a little something like this... If there was more hugging in the world there would be more love in the world and it would be such a different place. Hugs from someone you don't know are more special because they are not expected and sometimes the unexpected can be exceedingly profound. 

Although I also received a hug from the stranger lady and it was an awkward experience, it was memorable and this hugging theory is not completely unwarranted. 

Happy hugging!