Monday quote:

Is not life a hundred times too short to be bored?”
~ Friedrich Nietzsche

Looking at a different angle… Is not every minute of every hour too precious to be bored? With all there is in the world, I can’t even imagine being bored!

PS. OK, OK, I admit sometimes waiting for the airport shuttle comes close!

If you ever come to Sedona, take one of the Pink Jeep tours, and be sure to get the “Broken Arrow” tour. It’s hands-down the best.

The tour involves amazing feats of driving up, down, and over the red rocks of Sedona, and you’ll go places that look like they should be impossible! If you’ve got back problems, this isn’t a wise idea, as you WILL get bounced around a lot, and grab for the “oh shit bar” frequently. It’s an exciting ride!

The trail is on national forest land, so although Pink Jeep company has exclusive rights to this trail for commercial operators, any Tom, Dick or Harry who wants to do it on their own can give it a try.

We passed a private vehicle with a family inside, little kid waving out the window at us. A bit later, we almost saw them flip over.

We’d just come down the very steep section shown in the photo, and they were attempting the same thing right behind us. Unfortunately, Driver Dad hadn’t had weeks of training in how to maneuver this course (unlike our driver). He got his wheels in the wrong place, went way up on one side, and came within inches of flipping. He finally realized he had to back up out of that situation, so one imminent disaster was narrowly averted.

I’m sure there were some very worried people inside that vehicle, who would rather get out & walk down the hill at that point. I’d bet there were also some “I told you this wasn’t a good idea” comments flowing, interspersed with a ripe selection of 4-letter words!

After the first near-miss disaster, our jeep driver continued on, so we weren’t able to see the rest of the story. I certainly hope the folks behind us did better on their 2nd attempt, because it was just too scary watching them on the 1st!

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We do women’s trips to Sedona a few times a year, and every guest has the option of going on this jeep trip — with a fully-trained professional driver! For anybody who’s feeling the urge to drive it themselves, I’d recommend taking the tour first, and see what you’re up against.

We arrived in Sedona this afternoon, and it feels so good to be back!

I met our group of adventurous wenches this morning in Phoenix, then we headed up to Cottonwood, where we picnicked beside a lagoon, with big shady trees. It felt like an oasis in the desert!

Next stop was Tuzigoot, the ruins of a town built by the Sinaguans about 1,000 years ago, and mysteriously abandoned 400 years later. Who were these people? And why did they all leave this “oasis” spot in the desert? (Tuzigoot and the mysterious “abandonment” definitely deserve coverage in posts of their own, so more on that later!)

From Tuzigoot, it’s a quick hop to Sedona. Driving into Sedona is always spectacular, as the famous red rock landscape comes into view, and it’s always cool to share this amazing place with new people.

I’ve been here so many times, that settling into our uptown hotel feels like coming home. Get all the chores done, then relax on the hotel balcony, looking up at the rocks, and thinking “ahhh… life is good”. The view includes famous “Snoopy Rock”, lying on his back and looking up at the sky (on the right in the picture, click photo for larger version).

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We do Sedona tours for women a few times a year, in spring and fall. I always feel my spirits life when I come here, though I don’t know how much of that I can attribute to vortex energy vs. just getting away from my desk and spending time outside!

Why, you may ask?

Well, I was walking to the bank the other day. It’s not the most scenic route in the world. In fact, you pass quite a few parking lots. But as I walked, I realized there were some amazing things on the way to the bank!

Next time, I had to take my camera along. I’m sure people were surprised to see me snapping shots in the parking lots, but perhaps it made some of them take a second look. You can find wonder even in a parking lot.

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Now tell me, aren’t these worth photographing?

Monday quote:

When I was very young and the urge to be someplace else was on me, I was assured by mature people that maturity would cure this itch. When years described me as mature, the remedy prescribed was middle age. In middle age I was assured that greater age would calm my fever, and now that I am fifty-eight, perhaps senility will do the job. Nothing else has worked.”
~ John Steinbeck

I know what he means! That urge to be someplace else strikes me often.

So what exactly IS a vortex anyway? Sedona is famous for its mystical energy vortexes — but what ARE they? What happens when you go to one?

We did a women’s trip to Sedona recently, and I got to join our group on the vortex tour. Now I can’t tell everything, because our unwritten rule is “what happens at the vortex, stays at the vortex”. (I guess now it’s a written rule!) But without giving too much away, I can tell you a bit about it.

Vortexes are places on the earth where there’s an especially strong electromagnetic field, and there are quite a few of them in the Sedona area. Some of the sites are described as having upward energy, some inwards, some a balanced combination. Other times you’ll hear these described as male or female energies. Native Americans have used these sites for centuries, and recognize their spiritual power.

So what happens at a Sedona vortex? Some people have miraculous healings or visions. Some people feel nothing at all. Most of us are somewhere in the middle. We visit with a wonderful vortex guide who provides insights, and performs special ceremonies to help us get in touch with the energies of the land and ourselves. I’ve been on quite a few vortex tours, and I always feel something. I never know what to expect, though — every time is different.

On this beautiful blue-sky afternoon, we visited Boynton Canyon, guarded by Kachina woman (an important rock formation at this vortex site), then found a private spot near the creek for our medicine wheel ceremony. By the end of the afternoon, we’d made discoveries about our aura energies, life situations and issues we were facing, and insights on our connections with the earth, ancestors, and animal spirits.

At the end, we each received a black velvet bag with a peacock feather, and some items that were meaningful to each of us. When I saw the message in mine, I was astounded. It was so “on target ” it was spooky.

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We do Sedona tours for women several times a year, and each guest has an option to go on a Sedona vortex tour. I can’t tell you what to expect, since each time is different. You’ll just have to experience it for yourself!

(click for large image)

The yacht’s tied up at the pier, and it’s time to relax. I don’t remember for sure, but I bet they were talking about dinner plans or sightseeing options (perhaps over a cocktail?), while I was taking pictures. (photo by Deanna Keahey)

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We charter a 90-ft private yacht to take us around the Greek islands on our women’s trip to Greece. It’s a tough life (scratch that, I cannot tell a lie) a heavenly way to travel! With the soaring Euro, we may not be able to keep this up in the future, but for 2008 it’s the only way to go!

I just ran across a cool tool — the “Big Dig” over at Idea Sandbox. They describe this as a set of thought starters and problem solving techniques, collected from great thinkers and writers.

If you’re feeling stuck on a particular problem — whether a business issue, personal matter, or writer’s block — you can dig in their sandbox, and it comes up with a suggestion. A couple of tries netted me the following, both of which had a kernel I could make use of:

Consider looking up. You may be trying to solve something that is really a small part of a much bigger problem.”

It’s not enough to be good when you dream of being great.”

Great stuff indeed, and I’m glad I tried it! You can start solving some of your own problems at

Idea Sandbox: Big Dig problem solver

Monday quote:

I have found adventure in flying, in world travel, in business, and even close at hand. Adventure is a state of mind — and spirit.” ~ Jacqueline Cochran, aviator

This is exactly what the philosophy of adventure is all about. Couldn’t have said it better myself!

In Our Time did a great radio/podcast episode on The Greek Myths. As usual, they had a fascinating discussion with the experts. The show is British & scholarly, but not stuffy.

How to cover such a huge topic in less than an hour? They touched briefly on at least a dozen topics that left me wanting to know more. A few of the points:

• Some of the mythical figures, and stories of murder, incest, and eating your young (”completely bonkers” according to one of the participants)
• The different ages of Greece, and the relationship of history and myth
• The evolution and purpose of myth (”distilling 2000 years of scholarship into about a minute”, as another participant said)
• The great Greek tragedies competing with each other
• And one thought totally new to me — Pandora as Eve?

In Our Time: The Greek Myths

If you’re not familiar with this show, it’s a wide-ranging show about “the history of ideas”, with recent episodes covering such diverse topics as Newton’s Laws, Kierkegaard, the Statue of Liberty, and (of course) the Greek Myths. I get it as a podcast. Check it out at In Our Time.

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If you’re going on our Greece trip for women, you’ll find this especially interesting! You’ll be seeing some of these places in person. You might even stand in the very room at Mycenae where Clytemnestra killed her husband Agamemnon… (no-one knows for sure!)