Susan Munroe

September passed, and I was busy with several small fires around Salt Lake.  October has finished up as well, and with it the fire season.  Now it’s November, and the rocky peaks of the Wasatch have begun to wink at me with glittering, snowy eyes.  It’s started to rain again in the valley, and after [...]

Cal rushes in, barely pausing to knock before he’s pushing the front door open. He’s excited, stuttering, and wearing his red flannel bathrobe over his typical jeans and button-down, with a jean jacket on top of that, and his crumpled western hat over all of it. “Susan? Susan, can I – you’ve – come, come [...]

BG, one of Bob’s female friends, thought I was crazy to go. A six-day trip, in the backcountry, with three 40+ men I barely knew? I’ll admit I had my doubts. Lou, the trip organizer, is a local antiques dealer with whom I’ve become acquainted over the summer. The other two, Joe and Tom, are [...]

There were volcanoes, killer whales, beaches, bars, picnics and mountains…and then we were back in Auckland. Kelli’s two weeks: hopelessly inadequate, but still a wonderful opportunity to share a place that I love with someone that I love. Someone that I STILL love, two weeks later, despite the fact that she thinks I’m a dirty [...]

“Kelli and Susan drove down state highway 47, looking out the windows at volcanoes and eating chocolates while listening to Flogging Molly,” Kelli narrated. “Fear and Loathing has nothing on us!” I returned. “Except hallucinogenics.” It’s a whole new phase of my NZ experience – Kelli Time!  It’s strange to me: here I am, back [...]

For most of today, I have managed to forget that it’s that day.  Kelli arrived at the crack of dawn and has stepped fearlessly into the role of Navigator / Parking Helper / Decisive Plan-Maker.  Thank God for that, as my return to Auckland (civilization!  a city!  oh, the horror!) has been less than successful.  [...]

Several songs come to mind at this point… “…just spent six months in a leaky boat” “…we all live in a yellow submarine” My boat isn’t a submarine (though it is painted yellow), and whether it’s leaky or not I can’t say, as it’s in permanent dry dock on top of a hill, but it’s my [...]

I rejoined civilization at 10pm yesterday, and all I have to say is this: YAHOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! It’s about 70 degrees F, the sun is out, I’m wearing a skirt and no shoes, and I just woke up from a nap in a sunny patch of grass with Lumir. In the last 24 hours (less than, actually), [...]

It’s 11:00 at night when I step out of the coffee house with Andre, Justin, and Sky.  We’ve spent the last half hour or so cozied up to the wooden, paneled bar, chatting, spinning on our bar stools, enjoying the selection of NZ and Aussie wines and trading banter with Dave the bartender.  It’s way [...]

I don’t really have time to do this past week justice.  I’m not sure that it would be possible, in fact, to do it justice.  It’s been that good.  But if I don’t write it now, it will never get written, and if nothing else, the pictures that go with this particular episode need a story.  It [...]