A Woman Who Knows Her Shit

Yesterday I interviewed another writer for my book, How to Make Love in a Tent. The interview was with Kathleen Meyer. You may not know Kathleen's name, but you've probably heard of her book - How to Shit in The Woods. What probably started out as a little, niche title has been so successful that she has released a second edition. Over a million copies are in print in a host of languages.

Who knew that such an odd topic could be so popular? But then again, anyone who has tried to participate in the titular activity can tell you that it certainly helps to have some instruction on the topic before your first attempt!

My interview wasn't really about that though. After all, one book on the subject is quite enough! (Although I do have a section just for women in my book that covers stuff like peeing in the bush and how to deal with your period.) I was more interested in Kathleen's experiences as a river rafting guide in her 30's and her more recent outdoors life with her partner, Patrick.

Kathleen has been lucky enough to finally hook up with a guy who shares her special relationship with nature. The two of them apparently sleep outside on the deck of their barn home most nights. The bed is used only in rainy or very cold weather. How many couples can claim they spend most of their nights under the stars? Even when it snows, they don't retreat indoors. She told me, "I find there’s nothing sweeter than waking up with your barrette iced into your hair, in a blanket of snow. And the intensity of that hot body next to you
is just increased, to wrap yourself around."

I'm sure some of you can think of many things you'd find sweeter than frozen hair in the morning, but I do admire the fact that she can find pleasure in it. I guess it helps when you're somewhere you can brush off the snow and take a hot shower afterwards!

It has certainly been interesting hearing from such a range of people about their outdoor experiences, and their relationships with the wilderness. The way we feel in the wild is as individual as we are, but most of us are just awed by the power, beauty and magnitude of the natural world. It's unfortunate that this amazing world is somewhere most of us only get to visit now and then. It would be even more unfortunate if we got to the point where there was little of it left to visit.

Anyway, I will be diligently weaving some of Kathleen's wisdom into my book. Pretty soon the editing will be done and a year's worth of words will leave my control. It's a bit scary, but I'm looking forward to it too!