jen weatherly

Turbulence is the tone and timbre of late, here in America but also globally, and no reprieve has been promised. No end seems to be in sight. No captain is coming over the loudspeaker to let us know that this is just a brief foray, please fasten your seatbelts and hold tight, this will all…

I thought I’d broken up with track and field, but a recent conversation with a local coach tugged my heart back. If I read it correctly, he was trying to recruit me to train with his group for the 400 meters—based solely on seeing me do core work at the YMCA, mind, so there’s a…

You are climbing. And there comes a point wherein you begin to wonder: Will I ever see anything that tells me I’ve reached An Apex—if not The Apex? Will there ever be a sign? Will the vista be enough? You keep climbing, yet you harbor this doubt in your heart. Then, suddenly, there is no…

Between Georgia and Maine, the Appalachian Trail winds its way along the spine of the mountains, cutting through Eastern towns and highways, bringing people from one edge of their lives to the next. Between Georgia and Maine—almost smack in the middle—is Virginia—and in Virginia is McAfee Knob, an overlook that is apparently the most-photographed spot…

Los Angeles: the city of angels, a false idol, a circle of smog. Irvine: quintessential suburbia, the safest city in America. Laguna Beach: a beautifully Mediterranean yet tightly packed coastal community that was featured on reality TV in a past life. These images don’t necessarily summon any kind of escape with a clarity-seeking intent. They are not exactly…

When you can’t go to Barcelona for Father’s Day, this is the next best thing. Inspired by a visit to a brand-new Mexican place in Charlottesville, The Bebedero, and especially the meandering, flamenco-style guitar music playing there, we wanted the meal for last week’s holiday to be a gift that honored everything good about relaxation. Something that hearkened to…

I run quite a lot. Not to an ultramarathon extent, or, frankly, even a marathon one, but maybe a little more than what’s considered average. It’s the path I’ve chosen for over 12 years now; while there’s no real physical reason to have kept with it this long, it’s proven to be mentally and emotionally…

In the wake of holiday revelry, the impendingness of Mardi Gras, and some really stellar gifted Port (thanks Tara!), drinks and drinking have been on my brain. More specifically, the American relationship with alcohol – how historically vexed and fascinating it has been. From Big Beer to craft breweries, from local to well-sourced to biodynamic…

They say that for everything, there is a season. During this particular one, I’ve got a strange ongoing challenge that I don’t get to wield any control over. It’s humbling, too, because it’s something I’ve poked fun at many times, or labeled “boring” (because usually it is). This topic is – what else? – weather.…

There is science, logic, reason; there is thought verified by experience. And then there is California. – Edward Abbey Some words are more true than others. These words have been sticking with me lately, probably because this is the month that I bid farewell to the Golden State. (That, and “you can check out anytime…