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You'll Laugh. You'll Cry. You'll Hurl.

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Who knew that the tagline of the greatest movie ever made would predict the intense experience of ayahuasca?  As I prepared to travel here, a few people inquired about the famed plant medicine, as it’s endemic to this region. I wasn’t sure, aware of the seriousness/sacredness of the process. Also: you poop and puke! My hostel-friend Marianna hilariously & horrifically recounted the experience she had at her retreat, where a large man named Eric shat and scampered and screamed as much-smaller aides chased him with a syringe of anti-psychotic meds . Apparently he didn’t follow the strict ayahuasca prep diet: no red meat, alcohol, cannabis, caffeine, tobacco, fermented foods, fried foods, refined sugar, or excessive spice for at least a week prior. Go vegan if you can. Mama Aya will clean you out , and Eric (an American, are we surprised?) learned that hard.  I didn’t want to repeat the "shetty" experience Scottish Marianna deemed " dis gus tang ," so prior to my ...
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¡Soy Percusionista!

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Lately, I've been pulled to rediscover the things that brought me joy when I was younger-- swinging high and fast on swings, climbing trees, creative writing. I also used to drum, and this is how I'd describe it (rather meekly) to people: I was a drummer, yeah, in high school. Past tense. What, like I lost my rhythm? Like my senior tympani solo & quad cadence aren't etched in my muscles, still? Like I don't bang on my knees and steering wheel and heart when I get caught up in a syncopated beat? I AM a drummer, bitch! ¡ Soy percusionista ! Peru, in its first week, provided plenty of opportunities to revisit my old love. The problem was my good-ol Midwest reticence. I happened upon not one but two drum circles on the first Monday night, found by following the sound. I stood at the door of a shop called Lily’s, enraptured by the visiting Brazilian singers, far too shy to enter & join. That’s when Lily herself smiled and beckoned me in, with an egg (the shaker-ins...
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Mic Check

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The Return of the Blog! Do people still blog? Is this thing on? Let’s fire this baby back up. Peering back on the platform, apparently it’s been 15 years since I’ve doled out yummy nuggets and silly tales , and even more since I’ve travel-blogged from Turkey .  Well it’s 2026, time for an update + an adventure: South American Sabbatical! After a major life shift last spring, I found myself floored & unmoored. But then I remembered… I kinda like being unmoored. And in a phase where I can be unmoored, for a while. So why not lean in, find excitement in uncertainty rather than fear? Enter the idea to travel, long term, and fully untether.  Trust that there was still plenty of fear– not signing my teaching contract (eek!), selling my car & worldly possessions (gasp!), and bidding goodbye to the comfort of home all led to some shit-what-did-I-do moments. But excitement always overrode it, buoyed by the friends & family cheering my choices and reminding me what I’m meant...
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