Also, I have the best news. I'm leaving to Portland today! Whaaa? It's true, and I am wildly excited. I'm going to visit my lovely bff Emily for the weekend where we plan to thrift until we can't thrift anymore as well as sew our hearts out for something exciting we're planning. Kinda can't wait.

Anyway, back to Diana. I didn't want to overload you with Westy goodness last week, so I didn't post these. Also, I'm pretty sure I did overload you with Westy stuff last week. Sorry. Thank you for humoring me. And this will be the last of it for awhile. Maybe. Maybe?

These pictures represent yet another learning triumph with the Diana. I did a lot of double exposure madness out there because I haven't really had a chance to make those work quite yet. Again, the trick with the Diana: PLENTY of sunlight. Plenty.

(be warned. photo dump ahead.)

Pretty sure the above photo is the best Diana picture I've shot yet. I sure do love my Westy.

See my cool Syncro Solstice shirt? That's what I'm talkin about. I'm at Dead Horse Point here.

Any of you have a Diana out there? What's your secret to Diana success? And have you tried the 35mm back? I'm curious about that thing.

Have a fantastic weekend! Hopefully I'll have some Portland updates soon!

On Saturday we ventured out on the Mineral Point trail to see what Monique, our 1984 Westfalia Vanagon, could really do. And let me tell you what--homegirl can do A LOT.

The weather was right on the verge of rain, which made for a stunning contrast between the clouds and the red sand of Moab.

The following photos are all taken by Riley Onyon and they are absolutely incredible. I can't thank him enough for taking them and letting me share them with you here.

This one here MIGHT just be my favorite. Who doesn't love multiple exposure shots? The Westy with the lights on reminds me of a Jawa. Kinda love it.

Once we got to the top of the trail and saw the view overlooking the Green River, it was like the greatest Westy victory ever. Not only had Monique made it, but we were at the top of this crazy amazing view.

Honestly, there is nothing in the world that makes me happier than 6 Vanagons lined up in Moab. BEAUTIFUL.

You can see the view here. It looks almost smallish here, but the drop was HUGE.

And while I realize that Westy trips probably aren't as interesting to all of you as they are to me, here's a little 3-minute video I threw together of the off-roading trip. (All vids taken with the 8mm app!)

We also made a quick trip to Dead Horse Point before we left back to Salt Lake. Mitchell is either looking saucy or incredibly flustered to be in the 90-degree heat here. Not sure which.

Dead Horse Point is spectacular. And at this point, I'm going to go ahead and say that if you're ever in the market for an amazing camping vacation, come to southern Utah. Moab and Zion are definitely my two favorite hotspots here, and really the only thing cool about Utah. But that's a lie. The mountains are pretty much the best.

Sigh. I hate that it's over and can't wait until next year. I already miss our Canadian brother friends and the awesome van with the solar panels. I'm going to go ahead and say that the Westy was the best purchase we'll ever make as a married couple.

That being said, the only thing getting me through this Syncro Solstice hangover is to plan our next Westy adventure. Who wants to go camping?!

Ps--if you missed volume 1, go check it out here!

Alright, you guys. Here's the deal. This weekend at the Westy Meetup was easily one of the best trips we've ever taken. While I won't bore you with minute details (as most of you aren't Westy fanatics like we are) I do want to share some photos with you, seeing as 40 Vanagons in one campground really just can't be described with mere prose.

We pulled in Thursday night to see this. Vanagons back to back, pops all topped, ready to get their camp on. I about died with happiness right then and there. The best part about the weekend was the camaraderie between all of us Vanagon lovers. We're all driving 25+ year old vans and veer toward the fanatical side, so when we get together, it's REALLY exciting.

A bit of Americana for you as Mitchell and I prepare for our first drive through the La Sal Mountain Loop. I knew there would be tomfoolery in a creek later on, so this constitutes as my swim coverups. Navajo print gone wild!

Love these boys. That kid there on the right is our bff Riley, who is the amazing photographer behind the pictures with the little RO logo on them.

Love this boy. Hippie deep down inside but killer Vanagon pilot on the outside.

This little creek was definitely the best part. We spent both of our afternoons lazily lying on the red rocks and cooling off in the freezing water.

This night shot by Riley is fantastic. I would sell my soul right this instant to be back there. We spent each night at the bonfire catching up with other Vanagon crazies in our area. Nicest people you will ever meet.

Monique was completely and totally in her element this weekend. I'll be back tomorrow with part 2--our first off-roading adventure!

I love music. So so much.

So, here's 10 reasons why this concert meant the absolute world to me.

1. I found a copy of Belle & Sebastian's Dear Catastrophe Waitress at the West Jordan library early on in high school. I took it home because I loved the orangey photograph cover. Love at first listen.

2. That album lead to the discovery of their previous albums, which lead to Belle & Sebastian's role as a hugely formative band for me.

3. High school painting class with Mr. Powell. Belle & Sebastian.

4. Discovering what would later become my career in a very random desktop publishing class that I only took because there was nothing else to take. Belle & Sebastian.

5. Andrew and Christopher.  An epic friendship. We would later go together to see Belle & Sebastian at the Hollywood Bowl in 2006 with the LA philharmonic. Still reigns today as one of the greatest nights of my life. (Andrew and Christopher--I will pay you good money if you can dig up a photo of this night. I mean it.)

6. First years of college with Emily staying up all hours of the night, mid-day naps, and lunches at the market. Walking across campus at 7:30am, freezing, donning scarves and totes boots. Belle & Sebastian.

7.  Mitch. Our first band in common. Although he would later admit he only downloaded the discography because he had seen me wearing my "Scotland's for me!" B&S shirt and wanted to impress me. Cute nonetheless and effective--he ended up loving them.

8. So so many countless drives to and from Logan in every season. Belle & Sebastian.

9. Driving 13 hours in a 1984 westfalia vanagon to LA with Mitchell. Just to see Belle & Sebastian. (and Jenny & Johnny)

10. And the real reason I love Belle & Sebastian occurred to me halfway through the show as they played Sleep the Clock Around. I looked around and saw thousands of crazy vintage-clad, music-loving kids just like me smiling and singing along with every single word of the song and realized that Belle & Sebastian has been everything to everyone there through the years. And I got the feeling that I wasn't the only one that had 10 very strong ties to Belle & Sebastian.

And in that moment I was just a little overwhelmed with how much I love music.

Anyway, enough with the sappiness. Just let it be known that this concert was a hugely personal and mostly incredible experience. I mostly wish I could relive it every night.

Dirty Westy, iron maiden-clad traveler so pumped for the show.

Jenny. Looking amazing as always in a red dress and white tights. LOVE her.

Stuart. Plaid jacket. Amazing.

We waited in line for 2 hours for this spot. Worth it.

"sitting prostrate on the floor" singing Piazza New York Catcher.

I love Stuart Murdoch. So much. Mostly for his dancing seen above and below.

Yes, this is really my picture. Yes, he really was that close. And yes, I did touch him. Sigh.

Easily the best show of my life. And if you really want to get emotional, let's talk about Jenny Lewis coming on stage. Maybe just take what I said about the sleep around the clock moment above and times that by bajillion. Life changing for sure.

And of course, if you're a B&S fan, here are a couple of videos. The first one is mine, but I had to include a couple of other amazing songs from some other fans. They took much better video. Also, Stevie the guitarist is amazing. Just sayin'.

I'm tired. Sleep wasn't quite an option on this 3-day road trip, but it was worth it. Tremendously worth it.

I don't yet have time to expound on the details. My lunch break is only so long. Plus, I want to stop and really think about the words I'll use to describe such a mind-blowing experience. Also, I hate play-by-play vacation blogs, so give me a little bit of time to adequately determine a meaningful yet interesting way to tell you of my travels.

Until then, let's just pretend for a moment that two of my favorite musical influences unite. Let's pretend they walk on the same stage and play an outstanding song. Together. Let's just pretend those two musicians happen to be Belle & Sebastian and Jenny Lewis--my two longstanding stalwarts of sheer musical bliss. We're talking literally my two favorite bands that I have loved and cherished for years and years and years.

Hmm....what if I told you that really did happen?

And I was there.

weather: hot.

A/c status: broken. Change weather to very hot.

Discomfort level: off the charts. But temporarily diffused when
I look down at my captain EO shirt.

32oz. cup status: full. Diet mtn. dew.

Current tuneage: belle & sebastian's the life pursuit.

Previous tuneage: belle & sebastian's dear catastrophe waitress.

Current mental state: infinitely happy.

Reason:

If I had to create some sort of spectrum to rate this show, I probably would tell you to suck it because this was easily EASILY the best show of my life.

Expect full deets tomorrow via pics and videos. Also, please note my life is complete. Should we not make it home due to a firey westy crash, I would die happy.

See you tomorrow.

(all pics via our drive last night. fall may not be here yet in the crappy city, but it certainly is just about over in the mountains. stupid nature. always making me miss the foliage.)

this next one is a little slow, but if you skip to the middle, i promise you won't regret it. in fact, i guarantee at least a minor chuckle. or just skip to 1:30. that's prolly the best part.

here's another long one...really long. but just watch the first minute when they show a variety of westies making bank robbery getaways on the autobahn. so amazing.

and lastly, monique (we named our westy monique. did i ever tell you that?) might be a big girl, but she can totally tow boats:

you know you want one. go westy!

we played a lot of shifty games of phase 10 and uno..

very shifty...

this westy trip marked our first attempt at dutch oven baking. attempt #1: peach/berry cobbler.

cobbler triumph in the woods! huzzah!

did i ever tell you how much i luff our westy? hmm...don't think i did.

on a side note, we also went to a real game. just because the world cup is over doesn't mean america can go back to ignoring soccer. but actually, it does. silly america.

i need to know how i can get into the drum circle section. srsly. any ideas? because constant smoke bombs, confetti, and "ole, ole, ole, oleeeeee" looks amazing to me. they know how to party.

insta-campground at its finest. we literally pulled up at 11:30pm, popped the top, and had the best sleep of our lives.

if you're wondering if this was the best purchase we'll ever make, the answer is a resounding yes. i want to live in her.

what's next? who knows. portland? mt. rushmore? boston? weekend camping trip, anyone?