Dirty Good Transitions

We’ve been quiet with our posting and writing this year as uncertainty has been heavy. We’ve planted ourselves, we’ve uprooted ourselves, we’ve embarked on humble adventures, done some big races, dealt with injury, pursued more knowledge and continue to explore where we fit and what we’re meant to do. We’ve excessively pondered what our next move should/will be — personally, as a couple and with this, our Dirty Good project.

Transition is an element of life that can’t be ignored. We can put it off and avoid but it’ll come whether we want it to or not. Avoiding and not preparing for it makes the process more difficult. We have to embrace change, I have to learn that not all change is the change we desire. Nonetheless change is inevitable and we must make the best of it.In short, we are planting ourselves in Bend again. Susan has found a full-time job. This, and having a community of friends and family in Bend, will give her and I (though I stubbornly deny it’s necessity) a little more structure and certainty that she/we need to thrive. We are doing a bit of house and pet sitting as we did before we embarked on what amounted to a two-year journey exploring small mountain towns, trails and dirt roads. We’ll be looking for a place to live as Winter approaches.

Dirty Good needs to transition as well. I’m going to re-focus on building it into what I’ve wanted/hoped from the beginning but feared pursuing.Dirty Good is about a way of living, but it isn’t exclusive to myself or Susan. It’s a movement that started before we did and it’ll need to continue beyond us. Dirty Good is about getting dirty, being good, consuming wisely, living essentially, pursuing adventure, respecting ourselves, respecting others, having reverence for nature, pushing personal physical and mental limits, cultivating awareness and staying curious. Living this way in order to feel good at the end of the day — both mentally and physically. So that we feel good about ourselves and about the world in which we live.

As I’ve expressed many times, I haven’t all the answers but I do have questions. I pursue those in what I read and the conversations I have with others. I hope to infuse more of this into Dirty Good. I hope to grow our audience to share stories and perspectives of others, and help those who read and follow Dirty Good craft their own authentic stories. Authentic stories of living dirty and being good, influenced by the company we surround ourselves with and the people with whom we connect.

Get Dirty. Be Good. Consume Wisely.

— Paul