Brent- We think about you when we use the potty.

Thinking of you from Katmandu

Namaste Friends and Fam,

I made a quick move striaght up to Nepal. I went from beautiful beaches packed with pasty tourists, to the cold mountainous air of the Himalaya. I am currently staying in an apartment in Katmandu that Dylan and Cheri have rented for a couple months.

It's been nearly a year since I have been in cold weather, and the mountains and chill bring a familar feeling, certainly reminds me of being back in Bend. I gave away my shoes back in Israel so my toes are a bit cold, I might need to remedy that soon and buy some more clothes as well.

Much Love as always,

Brent

Lance Won the Quest Again

Hey Guys, this is so cool- not a surprise but cool, nonetheless- my good friend, Lance Mackey won his fourth consecutive Yukon Quest, this morning. My other good friend, Ken Anderson finished 2nd, 15 minutes behind Lance. The first time Lance won the quest (2005) he broke into the top ten in the Iditarod. Last year he became the first person to win the Iditarod and the Quest in the same year. Ken has finished as high as 3rd in the Iditarod. We'll see what happens!!
As for the rest of the Quest teams, they are still out there and there is still a lot of race left!
~Rachael

Two Weeks To Go!!

My time in Alaska is just flying by. I can hardly believe I have been here for over a month. Joe and I are having a great time, training, getting our teams to travel together and learning each others’ tendencies, strengths and weaknesses. The last few training runs have been phenomenal. My usual partner, Tim and his family have been wonderful, helping us get ready. Tim, despite his broken leg, has managed to train a top-twenty team for Joe. We are training every other day, running 30 to 50 miles, Tim and his kids help us get ready then he rides a snow machine out on the trail and tells us which way to go and at the end of the day, Joe and I have a meeting of minds in the hot tub.
Last week we did food drops, which is a very exciting process. First we gather and bag all of our personal stuff- anything we might need, for ourselves for ten days: extra clothes, chore gloves, food, etc- about 150lbs for each of us. Then it's on to the dog stuff. Each of us packs about 400lbs of kibble into 16lb bags. Then we each pack about 1,200lb of meat and fish into 10lb bags. All of that goes into big woven plastic bags and is trucked up to Anchorage where it is sent out to 18 checkpoints along the trail. Food drops can be very stressful but Tim having already done 25 food drops has a way of making it fun. His wife and two younger kids came and helped us bag stuff up and provided some good comedy for us as you can see.

Yes, Daniel has allowed Marissa to wrap him in shrinkwrap and spray paint a target on his chest. In fact, it was his idea.

Over the weekend we did EKGs and blood work on our teams, a long, tedious process that must be done every year. We were at the Vet clinic virtually all day, drawing blood, micro-chipping the dogs and trying to get 46 Alaskan huskies to be still- what a riot.
Now all we have to do is figure out our final 32 dogs, do the final vet check and go. We only have 11 days before the big race. I am so excited.
I miss you guys, loves and hugs for everyone
Happy trails ~ Rachael

Holy Cow!!!

I was walking on the beach and something caught my eye, there she was lying on the beach naked as ever for all to see, I had to get a picture to remember this sexy sun bathing beach beauty.

Ashley and I have parted ways, and I worked my way over to the West Coast state of Goa. I have met up with a friend of a friend who is running a coffee shop here. I think I am going to help him out a bit, and crash in the coffee hut at night, at least for a few days. I think I will head north before to much longer and meet up with Dylan, Sherri and Ritter in Nepal.

Things are going great, much love as always

Brent

Namaste from Mysore

Hello Friends,
I was just telling a friend here about the group of inspiring people I communed with in Oregon, so I come to the blog, and find out the GC is hosting a talent show. How I would love to attend!
I've been in India about a week now and I've had some troubles sure, but this is good here; this is where I should be now. Coming to India is the realization of a dream, and I feel so open in this experience. I have a couple posts on my blog, with a some pictures and many words, so please investigate if you are curious (ethanburns.blogspot.com).
I hunger for news of life in Bend, and like all who wander from its sanctity, I think often of the GC community. Be well my friends, and much love,
Ethan

Leap Day Pseudo-Talent Show!

Do you have any talents? Oh, I'm sure that you do! Come show them off at the 1st Quad-Annual Goodness Collective Leap Day Knack and Aptitude Show!

Yes, friends, neighbors, boys, girls, kitties...if you can sing, recite poetry, knit engagingly, stand on your head, break-dance, swing, juggle, touch your tongue to your ear, do impersonations, or anything else mildly entertaining, let us know!

We need participants and maybe some help conceptualizing a stage of some sort.

This is to draw attention to all those groovy skills, knacks, and talents we each possess on a day that only occurs once every four years...
...so let us know; sign up, and enjoy yourself. Need not participate to attend.

The day only exists for our enjoyment, the way we see it:

Friday, February 29th, 6:30pm.

AND!...>>>It's a POTLUCK, so showcase your food skills, loves, etc. too!

See you there!  Email goodnesscollective@gmail.com to get in on the action.