Running On Empty... Written by my talented cousin Jen Marrot

Thought is was funny to feel so down when the world is so drunk on sunshine. Things like that should be able to bleach it out of you.
There's a place I go where the grass reaches up to your knees, a golden yellow stem. There's sagebrush, mixed with bright red bushy clusters of wildflowers.
My shoes were full of poky dandelion seeds. That's what happens when you hike up a hill in slippers. I don't hardly wear shoes lately. Part of being laid off is that you get to wear slippers wherever you go. Even in rugged terrain....
Even if you're burning down a hill as fast as your legs can take you. --through the grass and the sagebrush. Because if the sun won't do it for you, you have to.There's a moment when you're running, where your body says you need to stop. When you gasp for air and you feel a searing burn in your heart. (Not the burn that feels like fire, but the kind that feels like menthol chap stick on your lips.) That's when I feel all the sadness and frustration spontaneously combust..................
Instantly. For the next five seconds a huge smile crossed my face as I watched the ashes of everything wisp away and disappear into the sunlight.