The sky reflected our moods, and we could see the white-topped peaks just out of our reach, lining the ring around our valley. I convinced my husband to go for a drive "to the top of the hill" just to get a better view. It will get us out of the house. We had been stuck inside for days because of rain. The same rain was making snow just 10 miles north of us. Why not?

As many of you are already aware, I recently relocated from Chicago to Southern...

It's about a three-hour drive out to Twenty-nine Palms, but with 24 hours notice that...