new blog post on women on their way - flexibility is essential to having a successful voluntourism experience

Sometimes things on the volunteer road have a strange way of working out.  This past month I was slated to volunteer in Haiti. My second attempt to work in the impoverished Caribbean country was timed to coincide with the one year anniversary of Haiti's tragic earthquake.  In coordination with Ecoworks International (http://www.ecoworksinternational.org/), I planned to help teens create a community newsletter/journal at a small youth center in the town of Ganthier.

Things didn't exactly work out as planned, but much, much better. Read all about my volunteer experience at ANIMAL AWARE in Guatemala and the puppy that stole my heart here.

media mention: united way of king county blog

Friday afternoon thanks are in order for Erica at United Way of King County for writing and sharing this amazing blog post about yours truly and The Global Citizen Project. Read A Global Citizen: Charyn’s Volunteer Spirit Knows No Bounds here.  I met Erica last spring while volunteering at Marra Farms during National Volunteer Week (coming up in April!) and have turned to United Way of King County many times since for volunteer inspiration. Erica truly "gets" what I'm doing and I am thanksful to her for capturing it so eloquently. This blog post made my week! Thank you.

superbowl sunday. black and gold, baby. go steelers.

If you know me in real life or follow me on Twitter, you're probably well aware of my opinion of Seattle as a sport town -- two thumbs down for its teams and 90% of its so-called sports fans. Seattle lacks the live-or-die sports mentality I grew up with on the east coast, and as a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, the "We were robbed in Super Bowl XL" whines are exhausting.

So when I put out an APB asking if any Seattle bars were running any specials or promotions for Sunday, I was met with radio silence. No surprises there.

I figured we'd end up at one of our usual football viewing haunts -- the Ballroom or Pacific Inn Pub in Fremont -- until Leslie at Fresh-Picked Seattle posted pretty fantastic list of things to do in Seattle on Superbowl Sunday. Check it out here. Now my NFL-lovin' mind is spinning with so many great options. Thank you, Leslie and GO STEELERS!

media mention: tbex weekly roundup

Thank you TBEX for including me in this week's Weekly Roundup!  This volunteer gal-on-the-go is very much looking forward to June's travel blogger and writer festivities in Vancouver, B.C.  My room is booked at Sunset Inn & Suites and I'm shacking up with roomie extraordinaire.  Can't wait to see everyone hot off the heels of the The Global Citizen Project.