Chaco Love

A few years ago, if you asked me about Chacos, I would have gone off about how there was no reason to spend over a hundred dollars on a pair of sandals.

I would have then proceeded to tell you that the only reason people buy them is so they can match their "The North Face" jackets, eat Qdoba and live in Colorado Springs .... a rather harsh, unrealistic view I got of Chaco patrons my freshman year in one of the campus ministry groups.

Over time however, I talked to person after person who loved their shoes and oddly enough, didn't live in Colorado Springs.  My stereotype was busted.

After going to New Zealand and picking up a love for hiking and the outdoors, I decided I needed to invest in some new shoes.

Reluctantly, I went down to the neighborhood JAX store where to my surprise, I fell in love with Chacos.  Although it did take two sales associates to find me the right pair and help me adjust the straps to my feet, I found the Cinderella fit.  But I still wasn't sold.  Being that I am not one to spend a lot of money on clothes, I left the store empty handed.  I really liked the way they molded to my feet, but I wasn't quite sold on their value.

Fortunately for me, my subconscious took over the decision making that weekend.  After dreaming about them two days straight and being unable to shake them from my mine while I was awake, I returned to the store.  While I cringed as I handed over the Benjamin to cove the cost, I was so excited to own them that I switched them out for my old shoes before jumping on my bike and heading home.

Almost a year later, I am still in love with these shoes!

Top 10 reasons I love my Chacos:

10.  I spent too much money on them not to fall in love with them.
9.  The soles have some mean traction on snow/ice/mud.
8.  You can wash them by throwing them in the shower with you.
7.  The one strap that runs throughout the entire shoe adjusts to custom fit abnormal feet.
6.  Sweet tan lines... if I tanned
5.  I can get away with wearing them as pseudo dress shoes.
4.  They encourage messy behavior
3.  They make me feel like an explorer while going about my everyday life.
2.  1 year later, they're still chugging along beautifully when most shoes don't last me 4 months.
1.  I did the my first Half Marathon wearing these babies.

BEFORE....

BEFORE....

AFTER!!

For me, Chacos are just another example of proving wrong my own preconceived notions with personal experience.

A month a go, I decided to go No 'Poo to test the idea that I had to use shampoo and conditioner to keep my hair clean.  While I was rather skeptical when I first heard about it, I'm now a believer.  

Here's what my hair looks like today, 30 days after I started No 'Poo without any styling at all.

I think it's a winner.

Here's to the bohemian life! Cheers!

Frolicking

I wish I didn't care what people thought of me.

When I told B.P. this, he told me it's easy.

You just do it. Stop trying to be what people imagine you to be.

So this is me....

trying to care less without losing my ability to care.

I am a free spirit,
a traveler,

a wanderer,

but not because I'm lost.
I know
my final destination
but not the path
or
even the next step.

But I will get there,

eventually,

taking the scenic route,
soaking in the beauty,

treading the trails,
pushing the pedals,
holding the the sissy bar.

I will chase down the sun
and run to the plains to watch the stars uncloak
their splendor,
their sparkle,
the pin holes in the sky.

I bask in the thrill

of finding,

of flying,

of falling,

of fast rushing air

of filling my lungs yet again.

I question

more often than most

not because others are wrong

but because

I want to understand

not just memorize,

not just regurgitate,

not just learn the right words.

I want to know people,
understand what they say,
what they don't say,
what they feel

what they fear to allow themselves to feel.

I yearn for their stories,
the relationships,
the revelations,
the mundane beauty of daily life
explored through thankful eyes and beating hearts.

I want to rescue,
hug,
love,
wipe away the tears,
fix their broken hearts and broken minds,

rewrite the lies

that they are
unworthy,
unwanted
and unloved,
replacing them with the truth.

I know loss

I know pain

I know lonely

I know the back slide,

confusion and uncertainty

but

I also know

growth

belonging

peace

and forward motion.

I am more than a

GPA,

a degree,

a gender,

a family name,

a religious group,

an economic status,

a race,

a vote,

a relationship status,
a job status
or a facebook status.

I am loved equally

yet uniquely

by The Creator,

The King,

Daddy God.

I am a blithesome bohemian, 

destined to do something

that will ripple through a place,

and a time,

in the perfect time

in the perfect situation

that I will likely stumble upon in my frolic.

Because freedom leads to frolicking

frolicking to finding

finding to forward motion.