Charles River Running Path, Boston, MA

2022 is the year that simply put, work got crazy. 

I started a company in 2020 a few months before we found out I was pregnant and right when the pandemic was in full force. After working from home for a few months, the small company I worked for decided we all had to come back into the office, pre-vaccine. The second stipulation was my dog was no longer allowed to attend. She had been there with me from the day I brought her home as a 10-month-old puppy and 9 years later, the rules had changed.  The "office" was a windowless trailer in a warehouse where 3-5 people would work. Safety measures at the time were two pieces of tape to make "social distancing" in our tiny trailer and I would have to bring Olive to daycare every day. 

I felt it was unsafe to return to this kind of environment and frankly, there was no need. The world was adapting to remote work and it was working really well. Having people back in the office seemed to be a matter of control and it simply wasn't safe. 

I always wanted to start my own consulting business focusing on a small sector of the environmental consulting industry. I decided a recession and global pandemic was a terrible time but also the push out of the security nest I needed. I gave my notice and got to work creating a company. 

The first year was slow and I focused on the logistics like the website, insurance, taxes, and logos. The second year I had a newborn and took a few small jobs with the idea that "I would let work find me" while I took a maternity leave. Six months into my maternity leave I decided it was time to grow the business and I actively reached out to other companies and clients and started to grow the business. Whitney is a year old now and I can't keep up with the workload finding its way to my desk. A lot of my work over the last few months has involved site visits all throughout the northeast and I've spent a lot of time driving all around New England.

I was spending long days behind the steering wheel and quickly decided to always pack my running sneakers and a sports bra when I headed out the door in the morning. My goal was to try to find a new place to stretch my legs in between jobs, a way to stay active and do a little bit of Katie Wandering in the meantime. It's been a fun way to prioritize my workouts and give them a little refresh with a change of scenery. It's also led me to check out some pretty cool spaces and places, especially the designated rec paths throughout New England. 

So I guess this was the long roundabout way of saying "I went to Boston for work and ran the Charles River Rec Path while I was there". 

Following Boston's Historic Freedom Trail

To say things have been a little busy over at KW would be an understatement.  Horse races, trips to Newport, some scuba diving and of course, the typical work grind has been dominating my schedule.  Thanks for your patience as we (slowly) recap the last few weeks of wanderings and more specifically, showing off New England to Amanda.  

Amanda was flying into Boston with an arrival time of 6:30am in the beautiful city of Boston.  The sun was shining, it only took me 1.5 hours to get to Logan Airport, we had just arrived at the Boston Commons, the clock read 6:50 am and there was absolutely no one in Boston.  We parked the car by Boston Commons (free parking on Sundays!) and headed to the Thinking Cup for breakfast.  I grabbed smoked salmon on a bagel and a coffee and we headed out of the shop and on our way to the days scheduled activity:  walking the Freedom Trail, Boston's most popular attraction.

The Freedom Trail is something most New Englanders do at least once on a field trip as a small child.  It is not something you look forward to (i.e. a whole day of walking looking at historical sites you do not give a hoot about at that time in your life).  For me, the only things I could remember was the 2 billion stairs to a tower and Mother Goose's grave (it's a thing).  What can I say, I was an attentive adolescent.

I was really excited to spend the day in Boston, walking along the Freedom Trail and soaking up Boston's History- this time for keeps.  About 20 years later, something I had dreaded on a day long field trip was now something I was waking up at the crack of dawn on a Sunday to do.

Diving for Scallops - Boston, Massachusetts

There are so many wonderful things about being back in the Northeast.  First off, there is the constant access to the water.  Growing up in New England the ocean is something we often take for granted.  Spend two years landlocked and you will realize reallllllly quick how much the ocean means to you.   Secondly, being back around the people I love has been amazing.  Again, we take our family and friends for granted and sometimes it takes a 2,200 mile move to make you realize who and what you need in your life.