Montana is a most fickle state.

In one week it went from being -29 F one morning to being in the 40’s! I went from layering cashmere sweaters and wearing my thrifted fur stoles and getting to class with ice on my scarves and hair to strolling underneath blue skies in barely a coat.

Naturally, all the snow that had fallen during this chilly time immediately became a swamp. I live in a bayou, albeit a cold one, without alligators or Spanish moss.

I decided this semester for a crazy reason to write two theses. They’re very different from one another and I think this is a good thing- when I get exhausted from researching one I get to shift to another!

Valentine’s Day was spent eating sushi during happy hour (woo college budgets!) and then going to the climbing gym with Chris. At the restaurant we saw these two fellows wearing cowboy boots and matching flannel shirts while on separate Valentine’s Day dates. They staunchly refused to acknowledge each other’s matching outfits, and we kept looking over at this spectacle (or forced lack of one?)

I am beginning to love climbing. Every time I go I feel new muscles wake up and appear! It’s so exciting learning to climb, feeling the skin peel off my hands and get a little tougher. I’m getting shoes and a pass soon, and then I’ll be unstoppable! I’m learning so much about my body and my mind as well, it’s absolutely fantastic.