Here We Go Again

Hi friends. I'm not sure that anyone even looks at this anymore since I have failed to keep it up to date this winter, but I'm going to try to get back in the habit writing on here. So much new is happening I don't know where to begin. I'll recap first.

It's been a great winter in Bend. It's such an incredibly beautiful area that it's hard to be in a bad mood for long. I have snow-capped mountains right out the back window of my apartment and everyday I drive to a park and ride and ride a bus up to the ski resort that overlooks an entire range of gorgeous mountains. It is the last month of a long season, so I'll try to be upbeat. Those of you who have worked the seasonal life know how exhausting it can be and although it's fun and usually full of interesting people, by the time the season is winding down you are definitely ready for something stable and tolerable on a day to day basis. Which is what I think we have found in Bellingham.

Allison spent most of the winter applying to graduate programs for a Masters in Couseling and was accepted into her first choice in Bellingham, Washington. We went to visit for her interview a couple weeks ago and loved the school and the area. It's about an hour north of Seattle and an hour south of Vancouver, the campus sits on a hillside with the Puget Sound downhill and mountains with hiking trails on the uphill side of campus. You can walk or bike right out of the parking lot onto mountain trails that will take you all over the area. So, in short, we loved it and we're moving there in month. I've applied to a couple jobs up that way: one as a Residence Hall Director at the University and one with a web-based PR company as an in-house writer. I also have my webpage up and running now (though it's nothing to see just yet) at www.writingyourwrongs.com and will be looking for freelance work this coming year.

My latest writing project idea that I would like to employ your help with is a guide to local coffee cross-country. I'm writing up a proposal for a travel-guide of sorts that will help people traveling on vacation or for business who love coffee as much as I do find local quality shops in the areas they're visiting instead of drinking Star Bucks everywhere they go. They burn their beans, they exploit their farmers, they overuse the land on their plantations and they advertise organic, fair-trade coffee even though they only offer it once a month as a "specialty coffee." And they're the largest whole-saler of coffee in the world. Go somewhere else. They can afford to do a better job and they just won't. They are to good coffee what McDonalds is to a decent meal. It'll all be in the book. However, in order to persuade the publishing companies that this is a book that will sell, I'd like to first start a local coffee blog with reviews of the best coffee shops in your area. It will be coming soon, but if you have an interest in writing a review or providing me with some material to write one that might go in the guide, drop me a line on here or at JeffHardesty@writingyourwrongs.com. I think if I could add a link to this blog in my book proposal and let the publisher see that there is already an interest I would have a better chance at getting a deal. Coffee lovers out there? You interested?

I have some random pictures of this winter that I haven't posted yet, so I'm just going to post them in no particular order. Enjoy! I'd love to hear from people. I feel like I've been so out of touch this winter. This job has really been all-consuming. Between work and trying to get a life in order, I've had very little time for anything but drinking and sleeping otherwise. Let me know what's new.
Much love,
Jeff