Retreat

Retreat

Day 1 “Maybe I’ll get a flu,” I think, hopefully. “Or there will be a very localized apocalypse.” I am driving to a meditation retreat. It’s New Year’s Day, and shudderingly cold. I don’t want to be here. I think about my fireplace, and the friends I could be spending...
Day 28: Tribe

Day 28: Tribe

This morning is one of those mornings. Nothing terrible happens, shit just goes wrong. Then I find out that the friend I’m supposed to meet in Bucharest, where I’m headed today, can’t make it. At lunchtime, Pietro drives me to the train station, even though I could...

Day 13

“Just write,” I tell my clients. “Do it. Doesn’t matter if it’s bad. Doesn’t matter if it’s terrible. Just write and write and write and you’ll find your voice and you will make great stuff. “Write when you’re tired,” I say. “Write when you don’t have time to...
Hamilton

Hamilton

I have to come clean about one of the reasons I came to New Zealand. Usually, I say that I fell in love with the people here. That is true. Also, the jaw-dropping beauty around every corner, and the laidback pace of life. The fact that Kiwis go to the mall barefoot,...
A Hitchhiker’s Guide to New Zealand

A Hitchhiker’s Guide to New Zealand

There’s this awesome thing in New Zealand. It’s called car relocation. Yeah, they probably have it in other parts of the world, too, but I guess since people come here specifically to drive from Point A to Point B (and with good reason – if you want to feel like...