It's a beautiful Saturday afternoon and I'm blogging about a table......

As the title suggests it is a gorgeous and sunny Saturday. You may wonder why I am inside chronicling something as boring as my kitchen table on a day like today. Well, two reasons. First I was on call last night and had to go in at 12:30am to do a case that lasted until 9:30 this morning. It was horrible - let me tell you. Having a career that requires call is a nuisance at best. You all know how much I love this new job and consider myself lucky every morning I wake up and get to go work with this group. However, it takes over your life to some degree no matter how much you try to make sure it doesn't. You can't plan anything - a simple weekend getaway or a night out with friends loses it spontaneity when you have to check the calendar and try to trade days with a co-worker, sometimes stooping to bribing or guilting them into taking your call. And like today - I'm not on call - I should be enjoying myself and the cool things going on this city as I had planned instead I'm recovering from an all nighter.

Second, concerning the table, I am so proud and happy to finally have this done. You may recall that when I first moved to Austin I spent a large amount of time refinishing the furniture that I brought to decorate my apartment.
I put many woman hours into the little wooden table I want to use for kitchen/dining. I stripped it not once but twice, sanded allll the little nooks and crannies with my new power sander and I painted it a cranberry red. A red that goes with NOTHING in my decor. I have stared at this table for the past 5 months and wondered what I could do with it to make it better. I spent weekends dragging friends around to Goodwill and antique stores looking for just the right chairs but couldn't make a decision, much to their chagrin. (they are troopers - i love them) But finally after tearing it apart one more time, sanding allllll the little nooks and crannies again (couldn't bring myself to strip it), stealing some cream paint from a previous renter and coating the little table with 3 coats and then using brown accent paint and finally just these past two days putting a coat of clear varnish on it a dining area is born.




It is so nice to have a place to call my own (sorta) and be able to decorate and make mine. I missed that a lot in the last couple of years and maybe THAT's why this table is such a big deal to me.
Nap time for me! Have a great weekend.

Experience Austin!

Hello everyone! I've been telling you all how much I love Austin since I got here but I really haven't put too many pictures of the city to show you just exactly why I love it so! This summer I mean to change that.
Exhibit A: Basically....this is my backyard

Even before I moved here when I would come to visit - we would drive over the Lamar Bridge or any other bridge taking you over Town Lake and I would see people kayaking and I would think - "OMG - someday I want to do that!" But it's harder than you would think getting someone to go with you. I finally broke down my friend Christian this afternoon. I got off work early - it was a glorious spring day and so we jumped on a canoe - the first time for both of us. It was fun and exciting and we laughed and got scared by some type of water snake. But we didn't fall in which is what I secretly expected to happen - so I give us an A+!

It's raining - I'm bored

What a switch in weather I have this weekend. Spring has been here for weeks and it couldn't be more beautiful here in Austin, Tx. But today! augh a nasty cold front has decided to flub up Easter weekend and it is raining and cold and reports are threatening a FREEZE! Can you believe it?

I am all for a thunderstorm and as always am on the lookout for my first sighting of a tornado. Do you guys have a list for things you want to see and do before you checkout for that big vacation in the sky? I have only one thing on my list and it is to see a tornado. I'm not sure why exactly it is so important for me to see this dangerous natural phenomenon. When I was a kid I was terrified of being caught in any sort of bad weather. I can remember being very small - perhaps 4 or 5 years old and living in Gruver, Tx a block away from my grandparents. It could be my imagination cooking up images from stories I've been told but I seem to recall walking (or being carried by my dad) across the street in the dark to the house my grandparents lived in which has a basement. A very scary basement. Even to this day I can come up with a thousand reasons not to go down there. The only other thing I can remember about that night is sitting around in a circle with my parents, my grandparents and a few other neighbors in dim light most likely candle powered and I was SCREAMING and crying. I wouldn't have known to be so scared except by what other people were saying about the situation so I have to place the blame on the adults that were there. My grandmother tends to be real dramatic about the weather so
I assume that is where I get it. The storm passed in the night and I don't know what kind of damage the town suffered but I remember that the electricity was out for at least a day if not more. My terror for tornadoes may have subsided a little as I grew a little older but then my dad hammered the last nail in the coffin when I was a teenager by creating a whole new facet of weather danger to fear. By this time we were living in Dalhart, Tx. There was a utility closet in the back of the house which had a covered opening leading under the house. I never saw what was actually in the hole but one day dad crawled underneath there and came out all dirty with cobwebs hanging from his hair (again, probably more imagination than truth) and proclaimed that were we as a family to be in danger of a tornado then under the house into the tomb of terror we would go to hide. Nothing could have scared me more and from that point on I watched the clouds, I watched the news. I became an expert on weather patterns, what ingredients were necessary to create a supercell storm cloud. I knew every county in the Texas Panhandle by site. I used hook echo and dry line in everyday conversation. And when I heard even the lowest rumble of thunder I would get clammy and nervous, unable to sleep until the news had cleared me from certain death by tornado or claustrophobia.
Eventually I became less terrified and more entranced by the power of thunderstorms and tornadoes. Do you have any understanding of what enormous organization must occur for an anvil shaped supercell to form? A dance between positive and negative energy, warm and cold air, unstable atmosphere and how much moisture is coming up from the gulf. And so I was bitten by the weather bug and for 10 years now I have been on a quest that sometimes borders on dangerous obsession to come in contact with a tornado. I have driven on many a country road blaring Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon (great thunderstorm soundtrack) risking hail damage and high winds to see a funnel coming down from the sky. And to this day all my efforts have been in vain but each spring I think "Is this the year?"

And so those are my thoughts on this rainy day in Austin - which I intended to be a post about the going's on for the past few weeks but instead turned out to be why I am a nerd and a secret closet meteorologist.

Do you have an "ah"ccent?

I have traveled a bit in the past 3 years all across the country. I have heard many accents! When I was in Massachusetts it was such a shock to hear these new inflections given to old words that I felt like I must be in a different country listening to a foreign language. Massholes (which goes into a whole other facet of the East Coast experience - and is a term taught to me by my friend Barb) put r's in places that aren't there for the rest of the country - such as aorta - it's a term I hear several times a day - in the east it's pronounced aorter, idea is idear, deer......ah, it's dea. Anywhere I have traveled people always ask where I come from (even here in Texas it's a common question) and when I tell them I'm from the Lone Star State (and proud of it) it always surprises the questioner and they always say "But you don't have an accent". I guess it would be fun to have an accent that binds you with your community and gives a hint to others your origin. Anyway, I thought this quiz was kinda fun and reminded me of all the different accents I encountered on the road.

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The West
The South
The Inland North
Philadelphia
Boston
The Northeast
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Changed the title to: PLEASE don't tell my grandma

Listen to what happened to me yesterday morning! I had a case that didn't start until 10am so I decided it was the perfect oppurtunity to walk around Town Lake before work. I waited until 7am when it was light outside and started down the trail. There were several people out jogging and walking, not as much as in the afternoon, but plenty to make me feel safe. I took the hour long route and was about 30 minutes in when I met a guy walking the other direction. I noticed him because he was in jeans and a jacket and was obviously not walking for fitness. On I walk, with headphones in my ears and my hood pulled over my head because it had started to sprinkle, when I hear footsteps in the gravel behind me. I noted that it was a walker and not a runner which irritated me because I try to keep a fast enough pace not to be passed by a walker. But nobody passed me and I thought I had sped up enough until I heard it again but this time the footsteps were more of a jogging pace. But STILL nobody passed me so I decided maybe I should turn around and check out what was going on. I turned a little to my left and the guy I had passed earlier in jeans was RIGHT behind me - arms length away. I startled him, he startled me and he started jogging away. "WHAT THE $%*@ are you doing?" I yelled and he ran away even faster. My only thought is he must have been trying to snatch my ipod which was in my right front pants pocket.
I have heard the advice before: always be aware of your surroundings, carry mace, look people in the eyes etc.... and for the most part I do those things but this just goes to show that no matter where you are or what you are doing you really need to be conscious.
I don't write this to scare anyone or to cause anyone to worry. Really, it was a very ridiculous situation with this little pipsqueak trying to sneak up behind me and then to run away. But I will definitely be using a little more caution from here on out.

The truth is out there

Prologue
Every night when I go to sleep I turn the radio on to Coast to Coast. I listen to the weird program and drift off to sleep (unless there is a particularly scary topic being discussed). While I was traveling the country it was the one constant in my constantly changing lifestyle. A reminder of home if you will. The show was started by Art Bell to bring light to paranormal topics usually skipped over by mainstream media. C2C covers everything from highly scientific findings to UFO abductions, conspiracy theories, psychic experiences, bigfoot sightings - if it's weird or new age chances are Art is going to do a story on it. In 2001 Art took a lighter schedule and George Noory became the host Monday through Friday. Don't get me wrong, I know that 85% of this show is BS but it is good entertainment and some of the guests are really intelligent and have interesting ideas.


About a month ago I read that George Noory is going to be in Austin. I did some research and found that 590lbj - the radio station I listen to at night is hosting a "Talk Fest" and joining George is Neil Boortz and Clark Howard. So last Saturday even though it was a gorgeous warm and sunny day in Austin, Tx I went to the Convention Center to listen to these guys do live programs. It was an interesting experience. Neil Boortz did his program first and although I have never listened to his show he had some great things to say about the Libertarian party and the Fair Tax plan. I guess I was put off a little by his attitude which seemed to me a little pompous and if there is one thing that turns me off it is a self important, egotistical radio host.

Next to do his 2 hours was Clark Howard. I also listen to Clark's show nightly because he precedes C2C. Clark's motto is "Save more, spend less and avoid ripoffs". He deals with getting people out of debt, into good investments and other general financial help. My favorite idea of his is to keep from running up your credit card (in lieu of cutting the sucker's up) is to place the card in a glass of water and putting in your freezer - the next time you are tempted to use the card it's a block of ice - and hopefully you leave it there but if you think you HAVE to use it you'll have to wait for it to thaw out and by that time maybe you can talk yourself out of the purchase.

Last but not least to grace the stage was George. He got a standing ovation from about 400 people (although I heard him fib last night and say that "thousands of people showed up") and one alien who may or may not have been just a guy in a painted rubber suit. George is a very intelligent and soft spoken man. He admitted to the audience that most of his guests and callers were probably delusional but it wasn't his place to make that judgement and he wanted to show everyone the same respect.
At any rate - I highly recommend the show - I know I have at least one fellow faithful listener out there reading this. I wish he could have met George with me but I took this crappy picture just for him:

Heart to Heart

Today I experienced my first ever (but first of many, I'm sure) heart transplant surgeries. It was SO AWESOME! I was not able to get much history about the person who received the heart, however, I know that this day will change her life forever. This woman had been implanted with a ventricular assist device in October. Although the new pumps are more mobile than they were in the past (the device is implanted into her body and a cord runs from the device and into a machine that is in a rolling suitcase) it must be such a heavy burden to not only be chained to a machine that is doing the work of your heart but also to be waiting for a chance to get a new heart and not knowing if and when that will happen.
I was on the team that got the recipient ready to receive the new heart. Another team flew on a helicopter to the city where the organ was harvested. I also do not know the history of the donor of the heart but believe that this person had been in a car accident. Our two teams kept in close contact through phone calls so that we could time each step to insure that as soon as the heart was brought to the OR we would be ready to transplant it. Getting the woman's old heart and VAD out took about 3 hours. We went on cardiopulmonary bypass to do this. When the team came in with the heart we packed it in ice until the doctors were ready to inspect it and begin the 5 anastomosis that would give this woman a brand new lease on life.
The recipient was in her 40's and the donor was 23 years old. The donor heart was beautiful and after all the tissues had been sewn together and we let it start to beat it took off just like it was the most normal thing in the world.
I was really amazed at how adaptable our bodies and organs are. The doctors I worked with were aware it was my first time and took extra care to tell me exactly what they were doing and why they were doing it. They were very patient with me and it was evident that they were excited to be doing this type of work and cared very much about this woman's outcome. I just love my new job and the people I work with.

Yoga class

I love yoga. I have been doing it now off and on for 5 years. I first began by signing up for a class through Amarillo College. It was held at the Polk Street Methodist Church and when I went in for my first day I realized that, not reading the fine print, I had signed up for a 55 and older age group. A lot of the people did the poses in a chair. But, the teacher, who was an older woman herself let me stay and I learned a lot in that class. I loved those old people and I didn't mind their farts or their veiny wrinkley legs. Eventually, though it was time to go. Then I moved on to a group who predominately held classes at the Downtown Athletic Club. I loved that teacher, too and really learned a lot about proper alignment and the reasons for each pose. But then I began to feel like I needed a more advanced class because I had been going for a couple of years and these classes were still geared toward beginners. So I moved on to Terry Rudd who is a naturopathic doctor and teaches tai chi as well as yoga. I loved his classes the most. He had a way of working you out hard but leaving you energized instead of tired like you would think. I think I was in the best shape of my life when I was doing his style of yoga. But around that time in my life I started traveling with my job. I was so excited to be able to go to actual yoga studios instead of church meeting rooms or health clubs. I tried one studio after another, advanced classes, kundalini, hot yoga, ashtanga, ayurvedic and I never found a studio I liked in Albuquerque. Worcester, MA had a wonderful studio right down the street from me and that has probably been my favorite of any place I've gone. The teacher was very kind spirited and you had such a good feeling when you left there. I also went to a very well known yoga retreat center in the Berkshires while in that area and had a great time. It is so beautiful in that area.
So, on and on I'm searching for the perfect class but it's so hard to find. I just finished a one week trial at a yoga studio here in Austin. It is a style (Baron Baptiste's power yoga) I've liked in the past and it's a "hot yoga" class which means they heat the room anywhere from 90 to 100 degrees and it seems as if you can get more into your poses if you are well heated. I went to 4 classes in 7 days. Each class was harder and harder. Not because of the physical exercise but other factors. Such as: the person next to me ALWAYS has a cold and they sniff and clear their throat or get up to blow their nose a million time leaving tissues between my mat and theirs. There always has to be one loud person who breathes loud and grunts to show that he is achieving a higher level of enlightenment than the rest of us. There are always a few people but at least one person right next to me who doesn't know what personal space is - so maybe they are in front of me and when you lay down their feet are in my face or when you are kicking your leg up you have to dodge to not get kicked in the head (incidentally, I have had someone fall on me in Tacoma, Wa). The heat and the workout make a tiny room so stuffy and smelly. You never know from one pose to the next what you are going to be inhaling. Maybe you think that yoga is supposed to make you more open and forgiving of these little annoying traits that people bring to class. I say give me a Fellowship Hall with the Senior Citizens any day of the week because yoga studios are on my bad side today.

Good News

I spent good time with a lot of friends and family over the holidays. One of my very best friends, Andy Hopkins (that's Srgt. Andrew Hopkins officially) was visiting from Germany where he is now stationed after spending a year in Iraq. I have known Andy since the 2nd grade in Dalhart, Tx. Then, when we were in high school, Sierra moved to town and we've all been best friends ever since. We call ourselves the triangle, mostly because we are dorks. This visit marked the first time in 6 years we 3 have spent time together and it was as much fun as I had anticipated. However, what I did not see coming was an engagement of 2 out of the 3 of us. Andy and Sierra, finally after 13 years of friendship came clean and are now waiting for Andrew to get out of the service and come home so they can start a life together.

It's just one more detail that has fallen together so perfectly these past 3 months. I've never felt this way in my whole life. A perfect contentedness that every little thing is exactly how it is supposed to be. I am 100% certain that I am in the right city, living in the right little apartment, working in the most suitable job. Life is so grand and I could wax philosophical about how timing was everything here......was it karma, is it destiny, is it dumb luck....but WHO CARES about the cause , I just want to enjoy the effect. All I'm really thinking is "It's about damn time."

Happy New Year

2007! Around work during the first week of January I heard many people saying "oh, I just can't believe it is 2007 already!" My thought was "Why?" Didn't those people go to the same math class I did. The 6 always seemed to precede the 7 (not that I claim to be a mathematical wizard) so a new year didn't come as a surprise to me. Then one night last week I was laying in bed thinking of that exact subject and it dawned on me....."7, hmmmm 7 I was born in a 7, 1977...oh my gosh that makes me 30...crap I'm 30!" And then I joined the ranks "I can't believe it's already 2007"

Job

Something new: I have been working at Seton Medical Center for the past 2 months. It has definitely had it's ups and downs. The OR is huge and there are lots of different people, personalities and attitudes to deal with. For the most part I have enjoyed the hospital and I have some fun co-workers and doctors to work with. I am through with my orientation process and am currently working in the cardiovascular service, which as you all know is my preference. However, I have taken a new opportunity that came up out of the blue and I am really excited about it. I have joined a group of cardiothoracic and vascular surgeons as a private scrub tech. I am one of 6 scrubs, 6 PA's and 17 doctors who work at 6 area hospitals around Austin. Here is a link to their website if you want more information about the group: http://www.ctvstexas.com/
This is an unbelievably big step in my career which brings a lot of new experience and responsibility. I will work exclusively with this group doing only their cases. I will be learning how to do heart transplants and pediatric heart surgery. I will get the chance to assist in these surgeries as well as pass instruments and down the road I will learn to take the saphenous vein out of the leg to be used for bypass grafts in CABGS (coronary artery bypass graft surgery). I know that this will be an awesome job but I also know that I have a big learning curve to face and the next few months will be stressful but in the end I am going to do well in this position. I will keep everyone posted (or try to anyway).

Whirlwind

Ok, so I have been in Austin for 2 months now and I can't remember a time in my life when I have been happier. It is so wonderful to be close to my friends. I didn't realize how lonely and sequestered I have felt for the past 3 years until now. And along with the friends that were already here I have met a big group of new friends to hang out with. This city is so beautiful and there is always something to do. The people here are real friendly. I live in a great neighborhood with lots of coffee shops and restaurants close by as well as Town Lake which is a great walking spot and also a good place to kayak which hopefully I will be partaking in someday. I've done a lot of work on my apartment which is super cute and unique. Here are some of my before and after pictures of the furniture I have redone and also of my tiny 450 sq. ft apt.

Austin

Just to let everyone know, I am in Austin and loving every single second I've spent here. It's so great to spend time with my best friends and explore the city and shop for new stuff for the apartment. I'm having a blast and will be sure and post new pictures as they come in. This city is so fun and so beautiful. Right now I'm sitting on the balcony of my friend's apartment listening to the Rollling Stones playing live in Zilker Park....sure it might be better to actually be there - but I'm $90 richer for just doing it this way....can't beat that. Start the new job tomorrow - I hope I like it!?!

Vaya Con Dios

Saying good-bye to Albuquerque

What I've been doing

Wow, September has been a great month. I always love this time of year because to start things off I have a birthday which always falls on Labor Day Weekend and therefore I usually get a long weekend. Then the weather starts turning cooler, fall comes, the leaves change and it's a very beautiful time.
I've had company for the past three weekends which for someone who has been by themself for so long is a nice change of pace. On the last weekend in August my friend Penny that I've known since the 4th grade came to stay because we had been wanting to go river rafting. Neither of us had ever been and with me being in New Mexico it was the perfect oppurtunity. We drove up to Taos and rode the Rio Grande and had a blast.
For my birthday weekend my dad drove up from Amarillo to keep me company while turning 29. We rode to the top of the peaks on the Sandia Tram and hiked up on the top. It was beautiful. For dinner he took me to "the best Mexican food in Albuquerque" which incidentally seemed like the hottest as well. Sunday we walked/jogged on a trail by my house then went to a museum and a book store before he went home.
Then this last weekend my brother, Mason, flew to see me. We arranged with my work to have him come watch a surgery. I thought this could be beneficial for him while deciding what career move he may want to take. Unfortunately the case he was slated to see got cancelled but we were able to go on Saturday morning and he got to watch some of a Coronary Artery Bypass. I think he enjoyed it. We also went hiking on Saturday and Sunday. I loved that because I'm usually by myself and tend to get spooked or lonely but he was a great hiking buddy.
So this weekend I'm by myself again which feels nice after so much company. I'm on call and we have been working which is a good thing I suppose so that I can raise some money for my next adventure.
I've decided that two years of traveling is enough for me (at least right now) and that I need to go where most of my friends are, Austin, TX. My contract in Albuquerque will be up October 13 and I am working right now to find an apartment and a job down there. I'm so excited and a little scared. This thought came to me out of the blue and I don't know why I haven't thought to do it sooner. I've had a great time seeing the country and the things I've seen and places I've been are priceless memories to me but it's been lonely going it mostly alone. I've made some great friends along the way but it's time to get back to my best friends. Austin is such a cool city and I think with the help of a good friend I've found an apartment in a wonderful area that I'll like a lot. Now....if I can just find a job.
I'll keep everyone posted.

This week

Hey - I had a great week and I hope ya'll did too. Work load is very light at the hospital right now so we are able to go home early and to have an extra day off during the week. A good thing and a bad thing as you can imagine but I'll take the time as I know when we're busy we are BUSY.

Took a hike on Thursday but I didn't enjoy it very much. I went at high noon and the trail was hard to follow. I did see this little guy, tho.














Then on Friday night we stayed late to finish a case. I left at 6 pm , got home, ate dinner and then an hour late got called into work again. There was a lot of commotion and activity at the old hospital across the street. Trailers and lights and cameras. Turns out they were filming a scene for a movie by the Coen Brothers called "No Country for Old Men". There are lots of stars in this movie. The most notable being Tommy Lee Jones and Woody Harrelson. After our case at around 10:30 we went across the street to watch what was going on. We were able to see them filming one scene which they did over and over again. Tommy Lee Jones walked right past me from his trailer to the set. Too bad I didn't have my camera for that but it is something I've never seen before and am not likely to forget.

10 years

Life is still good in Albuquerque, NM. The weather has been crazy as we have been getting rain almost everyday. Ya'll know how much I love thunderstorms so this has been amazing for me. Of course, I got a lot of rain when I was in Washington state but there was no lightning and thunder and that's what makes a good storm.

Last weekend I went to my hometown of Dalhart, TX for my 10 year high school reunion. I had so much fun seeing the friends that I grew up with. I went there with some trepidation since the last 2 years of school were not my greatest time. There's no good way to put it but I made some really bad decisions, some very selfish choices, some incredibly stupid moves. I wish I knew why exactly I did the things I did and I still can't understand why I shunned my upbringing and acted like someone who had no morals or values. I'm really embarrassed at this. But I was lucky to have a lot of people who cared about what happened to me. My family, for sure, but other random angels who went an extra mile to make sure I finished high school. A man named Mr. Bliss, for example. He was my 4th grade math teacher turned alternative school principal who would call my friend Sierra and I every morning to make sure we were coming to school that day. And there was Sierra's step grandmother who invited us over to breakfast every morning before school so we would get a good meal (sometimes our only one of the day) and when she foiled our plan of going back home and going to bed after the waffles she started taking us to the school and would actually sit at the door to make sure we stayed there the whole time. I missed a lot of your basic high school monumental times because I was growing up too fast. I traded one life for another and eventually lost hope and felt like I was doomed to live this life I was creating forever. But eventually through the diligent work of my parents and my grandparents and me I grew up - it just took me a little longer than my classmates. And so here I am 10 years later going back to this town and these people to hopefully make some ammends and they welcomed me with open arms.

New old place

Hi just a quick post to let ya'll know I made it to Albuquerque and that everything is going great. Work is good and I got to see a lot of old friends. This is a great hospital and I really enjoy working here. I had forgotten just how much I loved it in this city. Sure, it's deathly hot, especially considering where i just came from BUT it is so beautiful!
I won't have internet for awhile but am at my favorite coffee shop in town - Satellite Coffee - a branch of the Flying Star restaurant. I'd write more but I'm out of coffee and the sun is beating down on my little table. More to come soon and maybe some pictures, too!

"the boys" Cody, my stepbrother; his son Corbin; and my brother Mason





My younger sister and dad (and me)

This is Texas

I'll leave tomorrow for Albuquerque, NM. It's just a 4 hour drive but I'm putting it off until the last minute. I've been having the best time in Texas and I hate to leave my family and friends but it will be nice to get back on a schedule and I do need to start making some money again. Wednesday I went with my dad to the town I grew up in. He works there and my grandparents and other family still live there. I got to catch up with my grandma and that's always nice because we are very close and I miss her so much when I'm away. Plus, she knows the good gossip. Thursday my sister came to Amarillo and the whole family went to barbeque hamburgers at our favorite park. Friday my parents and I went for a 5 mile walk at my old walking trail. I'd forgotten how hot and sans any shade or relief it is. And man, they are in good shape - I stayed about a step behind them the whole way. We also went to an art gallery and viewed some local art which was surprisingly awesome - I say surprisingly because I wasn't aware that Amarillo had so many working artists. Friday evening my good friend Penny and my best friend Sierra came to visit. We got a hotel room and drank a few beers - ate a 2am breakfast at IHOP and talked all night. Today my dad and I went and hit a couple of buckets of golf balls and I'm about 5 shades of red. Now, I'm just waiting for my little brother to get off of work and I'm going to make him spend some time with me. I really have missed Texas. You know the song "the stars at night are big and bright deep in the heart of Texas"? It's really true and I'm not sure why the sky is so big or the stars so bright but it is unparelled anywhere I've been so far. I could just sit out all night long and star gaze.

FINALLY!

I have finally made it to Texas this evening. I thought the drive would never end - especially today the last and probably most boring leg of the trip. I really want to thank everybody for the calls checking in on me. Always much appreciated! And I especially want to thank Debrah, Delinda and Lea Ann for letting me stay at their homes. You all showed me so much hospitality and it was really cool getting to see your cities and homes and families and friends and dogs!
Unfortunately I didn't take as many pictures as planned to document the trip. I was just too focused on getting to point A, B, C and D. I did get a few so I'll post them here in a minute.
Day 1 -
I left as planned early in the morning - said goodbye to my ghetto apt and my favorite mountain and got on the road. Oregon and northern California were beautiful but hot and getting hotter as my little wheels ate up the road. I was really surprised at how awesome Mt. Shasta and that area was. Way different than Washington or Oregon. I made it to Davis, CA at around 6 in the evening and found my friend Debrah's house and we reunited after 12 years! I can't believe how fast time flies but we got caught up quickly. I got to meet her 10 year old son and they both took me out on the town which is the CUTEST town ever. We walked around looking at shops and ate pizza and walked on a path beside a canal and had Baskin Robbins. I loved it. The town has the greatest most easy going feel to it. We stayed up late talking and drinking a beer and of course I overslept the next morning - so thanks Deb for getting me up.
Day 2 -
The beginning of day 2 was runner up for most boring scenery because after Sacramento there is nothing but yellow grass and a few hills. Ok, some pistachio trees. I made it into L.A. in the early afternoon and went with my friend Delinda to a flea market at the Rose Bowl where she was working a booth. She lives in Pasadena and what a great city that is. We took a nap at her awesome little apt and then she and her friend took me out and gave me the world's most thorough 2 hour tour of LA. First we went to the Santa Monica pier and had dinner and a walk around. It was full of your usual oddities - people with snakes, musicians (one man bands) artists and tourist. We had dinner at the end of the pier at sunset but wouldn't you know it a few clouds rolled in and I felt like I'd never left Washington. We did a little walking on the beach then it was in the car to Beverly Hills, Sunset Strip, Hollywood Blvd....uh, did I leave anything out? Rodeo Drive! They were really sweet to give me the tour and I liked it a lot.
Day 3-
Got to sleep in a little later that morning but poor Delinda had to go to work. So I took a walk around her neighborhood. I'm surprised at how safe and clean LA was - I had this notion that it would be murderous traffic, smog so thick you couldn't breath nor see but it was none of that when I was there. I chilled out with Phoebe a little and then started the drive from Pasadena to Tempe. Across the desert. A little twilight zone - those of you that know me know that I tend to get paranoid and so I must confess I constantly had a Unknown Mysteries commentary going on in my head "witnesses say the woman was last seen buying cigarettes at this convenience store" "she went into the desert and never came out" "attacked by a gang of cacti" yes, it got more ridiculous as the temperature climbed and delerium and dehydration took their course. But obviously I made it safely to my friend Lea Ann's house. She took me to dinner at her favorite little place and we had a great time talking and laughing and reviving some old memories. We spent the rest of the night under the full moon sitting beside her fabulous pool.
Day 4 -
Overslept, AGAIN. Cursed and beat my head against the steering wheel for 10 hours where I finally made it home to my family in Texas and now I'm beat so I'll write about that all later!

Sad Goodbye

Augh, I can't believe my time here in Washington is over! I've been here for 6 months but it seems like mere weeks in some ways. I have grown so attatched to this area and the friends I have made. I hate to leave but I am definitely taking a lot of happy and crazy memories with me and hopefully this won't be the last I'm seeing of the Pacific Northwest. I've been pretty organized with my packing and haven't waited until the last minutes like I sometimes do. My car is packed to the limit and I've still got a few odds and ends I have to find nooks for.
I have a great couple of days coming up that I've been looking forward to. It's going to be a lot of driving but filled with new places and old friends. Tomorrow morning I will leave as early as possible and drive straight down I-5 through Oregon and into California where I will reach Davis, Ca. I have an old old friend there that I've recently gotten back in touch with who is gracious enough to let me stay with her. We'll have LOTS of catching up to do. Then Sunday I will leave Davis and drive down to Pasadena to stay with another good friend. I'm so excited to see that part of California and I know she'll show me some good spots. Monday I'll drive from Pasadena to Tempe, AZ where, once again, I'll stay with a friend who I haven't seen in awhile. Tuesday will be a long drive from AZ all the way home to my family in Texas. I'll try to keep posting updates and pictures of my 4 day roadtrip!

Hiking in Oregon

Ok, so maybe you all are getting tired of hearing about volksmarching. However, this weekend I went to an event in Cascade Locks, Oregon and have thus decided that Oregon is the most beautiful of all 50 states and that I probably should live here someday. I was about 1/2 hour east of Portland in the Columbia River Gorge and the drive alone was worth the trip but the hike was so incredibly outrageously gorgeous that it bordered on ridiculous. All in all it took me over 5 hours to go up and down on a 25k course. I started the hike with a couple from Sacramento, CA who were really nice and gave me all sorts of advice for my drive home next month. Then I continued alone for the rest of the hike although there were lots of hikers on the trail and it was fun to meet all these different people. When I got to the turn around point at Crossover Falls I took a rest by the river and then headed back down. I soon discovered on the way down that my water bottle had leaked all over the contents of my backpack. So the last two hours of my hike was done with a wet and sticky back PLUS sans anything to drink. It did mar the experience a bit but as you can see it was such a beautiful view that it wasn't hard to forget about all that.

Winding down

Hi, everybody! My assignment here in Tacoma, Wa is about to end and I will soon be making the drive back down to Texas. July 8 is the day I'll start the trip and instead of taking the same route I came up here on (ya'll saw how well that went) I think I'll go south on I-5 through California - stopping and staying with a few friends on the way then east through Arizona, New Mexico and then Texas. However, I'll only be able to spend a few days with the family before going back to Albuquerque where I'll start my next 3 month assignment. I'll be working at the same hospital as last time and I couldn't be more excited. I know the point of me traveling is to see new destinations but I figure what good is loving a place if you don't get to go back and enjoy it some more? I truly dig Albuquerque and the surrounding area. I made a lot of great friends and ate too much good food! It's like a second home to me and it's a comfort to know where I'll be spending the next 3 months. PLUS, it feels like I'm just down the street from my family in Tx - seeing how I'll only be 4 hours away as opposed to 30! I'll keep everyone posted on my travels and of course I expect phone calls to keep me company on the 4 day drive.
I really will miss the Pacific Northwest. I am constantly amazed at how beautiful it is and my time spent here has been very rejuvenating. I'll miss it and hope to come back but for now it is time to move on.

Bonsai!!!!!

Today, Sunday, I did another Volksmarch - this time at the Weyerhauser Campus in Federal Way, Wa. - about a 30 minute drive from my apartment. It did rain or drizzle on us most of the way but the views were incredible. I went with a coworker and we completed the 10k course, ate a Lion's Club breakfast consisting of pancakes and ham and then went around one more time on the 5k course. Volksmarching is a really big thing up here and I am happy that I have found it because it is exactly what I have been looking for. There are events in all 50 states so I should be able to continue to Volksmarch all over the country - AND YOU CAN TOO! Check out the American Volksport Association webpage for events in your area! http://www.ava.org/index.htm There were different parts to the walk: trails through the most beautiful woods, around a pond, through a rhododendron garden (the Washington state flower) and a bonsai exhibit.

Weekend Volkswalk

Today I went to a Volksmarch event at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park (http://www.nwtrek.org/). For once this week the weather was beautiful and I had a great 10k walk. My 2nd. I saw some amazing animals in a great setting - in their own habitats - without cages. After the walk which took me about 2 hours to complete due to all the picture taking I took a tram ride through the rest of the park and saw caribou, bison, rams, racoons and some BIG elk!

Volksmarching!!

I discovered something new today and it was a lot of fun and something I will continue to do throughout my travels. It is called volksport - which is german for "sport of the people" it's a completely non-competitive way to get out and do sporting events. You buy record books and keep track of your progress. At each event you get your book stamped and if you pay a little more you get a patch or a pin. Each walk is usually 10 km (6.2 miles). My first volksmarch today was on the Fort Lewis Army Base for Armed Forces day. Aside from the walk they had a little street fair with booths and all kinds of army vehicles and whatnot for civilians to check out. It was a great day!

Saturday at Pikes Market Place

You couldn't ask for a better day than we had on Saturday at Pikes Market Place. We walked around downtown all day - the weather was nice - the weirdos were out and we had a good time! I just got home from dropping off the girls at the airport. Anyone who knows me, knows that I need my alone time. But I had a great time these past 5 days and I'm so glad Melissa and Whitney came to visit. They really showed me Washington in a new light. It's so good to have good friends that you can laugh with. I'm going to miss their company.

Play Day

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner

Company has arrived. Whitney, my sister and Melissa my best friend of, hmm.....20 years got to the Seattle/Tacoma airport yesterday afternoon. After getting luggage and ourselves back to the car we headed into Seattle and pointed the car toward the Space Needle. Since they disobeyed me and did not wear their dinner clothes I made them change in the backseat of the car as we were driving downtown. Not to worry I have dark tint on the windows. We finished up in some random parking lot fluffing our hair and bartering jewelry back and forth for the evening.
It's a 40 second elevator ride to the restaurant and you get a fun view of the city on the way up. When you step into the lobby of Sky City everything is deceivingly normal but when they take you to your seat you step into the dining area and you instantly feel like you've had one too many drinks because everything is moving. Thankfully you get used to it and you are treated to a 360 degree view of the city, Mt. Rainier, Elliot Bay, the Olympic Mountains, etc. Our meal was great and expensive but worth it. We were treated to a free smoking sundae at the end of our meal and how can you turn down a free smoking sundae even if you're stuffed with lobster, potatoes and bread?



It's Thursday morning and I have finally gotten everyone up and about. We are ready to start a new day of exploring. More soon!

FINE!!

Alright - I'll make a new post. I'm tired of hearing all you guys bitch. I guess I have been waiting for something cool to happen or for good picture oppurtunities to arise before I wrote something new. Life is good here. I've had a great time this week. Work for some reason has been really slow until today and we had 4 cases. I worked with a good team today and we really had a lot of fun which can be rare - you know, for heart surgery. The weather has been phenomenal. It's been all sun and no rain and around 60 degrees everyday. I hope I'm not jinxing myself but I really hope this keeps up. Everything is starting to bloom. I'm not sure what the weekend has in store for me. I want to do something but also want to keep it on the frugal side. Maybe a good long drive is in order - that always makes for something interesting. I'll keep you all posted. I have been watching the first season of Deadwood which is an HBO series. The cast includes Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickock and shows the town of Deadwood at the beginning of the Gold Rush. It was a very wild and lawless time. I've also been going to a lot of yoga classes trying to get back into shape. And I've been walking on this strip down in Commencement Bay. It's along the water and there are lots of restaurants there and also picnic places, coffee shops, etc. It's a great place to people watch. I'm glad it's Friday. There that's all that is on my mind! See, I knew it would potentially be boring and I was trying to spare you guys that. I'll try to liven up and get something started to blog about soon. I will be having some company before too long. Got lots of plans for Melissa and Whitney. We'll be dining at the Space Needle to start their time off here and I'm totally looking forward to that. Have a great weekend ya'll!

Bathroom humour - it's lamer than you think

I realize this post may cause some of you to pause and question my taste in pictures...but to others I think it will be appropriate. Notice the homey accents - I do have to say - my toilet is better than yours.
Confused? click here: http://mrk329.blogspot.com/2006/03/these-pictures-are-pictures-of-my-home.html