The day after the June 2012 derecho hit West Virginia, I decided to read a book. Because, what else was there to do, quite honestly? In two days I devoured every word of Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by author Cheryl Strayed. The book is a memoir of Strayed’s journey to hike eleven-hundred-miles, all alone, without ever having backpacked before. As I read, I realized that the novel spoke to my immediate situation in a way I hadn’t anticipated. Just think of it – she slept in a tent; I slept on the floor of my basement on an unzipped sleeping bag, trying to stay cool. She cooked on a camp stove to survive; I grilled thawed chicken breasts before they had a chance to spoil. She dodged bears and rattlesnakes; I tried to avoid tripping over dog toys in the dark. This woman and I are practically twins when you get right down to it. In fact, I may write my own memoir of my days during the power outage in homage to Wild. I think I’ll call it Derecho: Charging Your Phone in the Car is Half the Fun. I’ll send you a copy.
– Tiffany Blaire
HASHTAGWV ART & ENTERTAINMENT Publisher/Editor-in-Chief, Christina Entenmann-Edwards has been a WV resident since September 2008. She was born and raised in Fairfield County, Connecticut, and is no stranger to hard work and the entrepreneurial spirit. In 2006, she graduated from Quinnipiac University (Hamden, Connecticut), Cum Laude, with a B.A. in History. In 2010, she graduated with an M.B.A. from Liberty University (Lynchburg, Virginia). In February 2012, Christina launched HashtagWV as the area’s first full-color, free arts and entertainment tabloid + online platform. Christina completed the Leadership West Virginia class of 2021, which is an innovative program that grows, engages, and mobilizes leaders to ignite a life passion to move West Virginia forward.