to get on the move! We get a few glorious months to enjoy the Basin’s weather. This edition of Venue is all about inspiring you to get out and actively enjoy yourself – the Basin isn’t just full of beautiful places and interesting history, it’s full of cool people and fun activities. I’ve scoured the region looking for ways for folks to get active, moving, involved and having fun. Life’s too short to spend on our screens, it’s time to get out and join some teams! The feature story, ACTIVATION, tells stories of local people who are helping teach, organize and enjoy group, adult athletic and physical classes and activities. We’ve also got an awesome message from Dry Falls Visitor Center, ideas for your yard and garden, events through August and of course a run down of all the Fourth of July events around the Basin and ways to dig into America’s 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Did I mention the rodeos, art galleries, retail (one of my favorite exercises!), service organizations, and more?
To be truthful, this has been a weird winter. For me, it’s included my first international travel since Covid, weddings, births, loss of loved ones, our first Broadway show, but… no apparent winter to speak of. I love a good, deep snow, a few weeks of unbearably cold weather – it inspires me to slow down, bundle up, be inside and go inside myself to rest and fiddle with things long forgotten on the shelf. This winter was not like that with its busy schedule and many warm days. I’ve had to inspire those things for myself by myself, and it’s been challenging. To help, I started yoga classes at Just Be Yoga, where after only a few classes everyone knew my name and hugged me after class (it was good – I’m a hugger). In February I took a cold plunge with several very good friends in a nearby lake. My sister and I started a speed puzzle team. When we are feeling good, it’s easy to feel good. When we’re feeling bad, it’s hard to feel good – but, it is the most important time to put effort into it, and, as the stories and events and businesses in this magazine will tell you – there are a lot of folks here in the Basin who want to feel good with you, you just have to muster up a little motivation to join them. Maybe I’ll join you, too.