I took a pole dance class. Once. In 2007. Here's how that went: I know what rug burn is, but never until now concerned myself with pole burn. That’s what happens when, while pole dancing, you do a pole sit with your back pressed too tightly against the pole. My...
Cara’s Adventures
Anything You’re Not Thankful For?
I’m not going to write about what I’m thankful for, because it’s Thanksgiving and why play that game? Just look where it got the Native Americans. Instead, I’m going to list five things I’m not thankful for, and I invite you to do the same. Not because we want to...
Spreading a Philosophy of Adventure – An Interview About The Traveler’s Way
I often receive requests from travel websites to do link exchanges or interviews, and my goal is to participate only in those that allow me to remain true to my values about such things as: living life as an adventure, sensitive cultural exchange, environmental...
GETTING DISCOVERED – Memoirist Chooses “They Only Eat Their Husbands” as Book of the Week
If you haven't yet read my travel memoir, They Only Eat Their Husbands (Ghost Road Press, Nov 2010), please check out these compelling reasons from memoirist, blogger, and world traveler Susan Blumberg-Kason, who chose it as her: Book of the Week. I felt honored and...
THE HEALING POWER OF SOLO TRAVEL: Cara’s Interview at The Gypsy Gals Blog
Have you ever traveled alone? Have you ever wondered if women who do travel alone get lonely? Have you ever wondered what people get out of solo travel that they can't get from traveling with a partner? Then I believe you'll enjoy my new interview at The Gypsy Gals...
“WHAT ARE YOU?” – The Ancestral Traveler Within
I recently answered a question on the Soul Pancake blog that hit at the heart of a subject I ponder often. The question was, “What question do you hate the most?” “What are you?" I've answered this question a lot throughout my life. In part, my answer was: "What are...
SMELLY MAKE THIS BED – A Very Personal Essay Wins First Place
"Awards are fun..." my friend Jen once wrote me in an email. Now I remember that phrase every time I enter a writing contest. It packs an attitude that seems to say, "Go out and play." I have some fun to report: my non-fiction personal essay has won first place in the...
FIRST STOP: CHEYENNE – Just 17 More Stops for “They Only Eat Their Husbands”
It was only two hours to Cheyenne, Wyoming - a drive I’ve made before. The first time was just over twenty years ago when I interviewed for a reporting job at a local TV station. I suppose it’s for the best that I never got that job, or I wouldn’t have become a...
SNOW BUMS & ELITISTS – Is Skiing Still Worth It?
I had my skis tuned over the weekend, and when I picked them up on Sunday, the young woman who took my money stared at my skis with disdain and said, “Wow, those skis are old. How long have you had them?” “About seven years.” “Wow,” she repeated, and not in a tone...
WHAT WERE YOU DOING 25 YEARS AGO? – An Embarrassing Answer to a Mysterious Question
Award-winning mystery writer Stacy Juba recently asked me, and several other authors, an interesting question: "What were you doing 25 years ago?" If you'd like to know my embarrassing answer, read my guest post at Stacy's blog, where she writes about Mysteries,...