Found this little map thing by random accident. All the places I've visited, NOT including ones I just drove through. Ones that I actually spent some time in. Of course, driving through Kansas or Iowa FEELS like I've spent more than enough time there for a lifetime!
I've been busy. ;) Anybody want to help color in the rest of my map?? Maine, Vermont, Alaska, Arizona, or New Mexico??
create your own personalized map of the USA or check out ourCalifornia travel guide
This week was definitely an improvement over the past two weeks.
To recap the bad week:
My great aunt died, her 92nd birthday would have been last week I believe. I hadn't seen her in forever, but when I was a little girl she left quite an impression my my sisters and myself. She had long, beautiful, steel grey hair - down at least to her waist is what my perhaps exaggerated childhood memory tells me - and she and my grandpa were the ones that got me into art. I remember drawing a snarling dog with both of them (yes, I was drawing rabid dogs when I was somewhere around 7 yrs old). When I think of her, I can almost see her strength and attitude and stubborn personality, as opposed to a specific event - as a child, and even now, I just remember her "aura". My sisters and I definitely can tell where we got our attitudes from. Depending on who you ask, we're either strong and confident, or stubborn and difficult. ;)
Wilbur my turtle died. :( And much to my dismay, he hadn't eaten all of his feeder fish... so I still have 3 pathetic goldfish swimming around in the aquarium. Seeing as I'm enviro-conscious, I can't just flush them alive - goldfish (aka carp) can live and compete with native fish in the wild. And I can't just kill them, because I don't like killing things. To top things off, my sister's iguana, Godzilla, died also. He had been sick and she had spent so much time and effort trying to excercise him, take care of him every few hours, those vet bills... But she tried. Now Godzilla will be swimming laps in that big swimming pool in the sky... :)
Our other dog Tiny almost died. She was rough housing with Lucky, who is a bit bigger than she is, and he slammed her into the ground. Linda said she stopped breathing and moving! She even gave her CPR and they rushed her to the vet. She came out of it, and we still aren't sure exactly what happened...
Then our Scotty dog Wilson had had knee surgury a few weeks ago, and lo and behold, just as the vet had warned, his OTHER knee went out! He couldn't walk at ALL! And this was after him enduring a huge cast on his leg and wearing that terrible halo around his head so he wouldn't rip out the stitches... He went thru his second surgury last week. It went well, but he still needs to be carried everywhere. He was quite depressed, but he's been in better spirits lately. I think he'll get the cast off in a week or two; then, it's rehab time!
I had put anoffer on a house and they wanted too much for it, but I countered it... and they sold it to somebody else. I'm bummed because I really want to find a nice house, but it really wasn't worth what they were asking. But I'm getting very discouraged!
I haven't been able to ride my motorcycle much lately. I've been learning about bikes so I could do a decent inspection on it and make sure it's REALLY road worthy. So far, looks great! Haven't taken it on the freeway yet, but I have taken it on a little 35 mile trip. :) It's hard finding accessories for my Super Magna, because it was only made for 2 years and is very unique. I'll have to post a photo of it soon.
This past week, I had forestry training - and it was great! Our instructor was Sean, a 4 or 5 time tree climbing champion from Minnesota. Joe and I went two days for tree climbing, then Joe left and Tim joined me for chainsaw class. I am HORRIBLE at throwing my line into a tree, but I did get down the footlock decently and climbed a nice big oak with Joe and Sean, and I even walked out on a limb. Nothing like sitting the in the top of a tree, feeling it shake and creak in the wind. Seriously. It was so fun! Chainsaw class was very useful too, and I did a textbook perfect open-faced notch. Two nights, I went out with Sean, plus Bill and Dereck from Illinois, and drank "manly beer" from the Big Buck Brewery. Needless to say, this was a very sleep deprived week and I'm still recovering! Of course, Tim just had to draw little hearts on my class evaluation for Sean... hee hee.
Totally unrelated news:
Natural golf courses redefine green - I had thought about going into native landscaping/landscape architecture; I absolutely love this idea, because traditional golf courses are uber-water-intensive, chemical-hungry monsters!
Insurance pricey now? Just wait for warming - Global warming is gonna do some bad, expensive things
Drilling debate over another Alaska refuge - NOT AGAIN! You don't even know how angry this makes me, especially since I've worked for a wildlife refuge
Bush: Kyoto treaty would have hurt economy - Yeah, ok, whatever.
Wilbur died today!
Wilbur's been my Malaysian box turtle sidekick for 14 years! I loved that stupid little reptile! He was with me through middle school, high school, college... lived with Steve while I was out of state, and even went to South Carolina with me!
AND I'M A CRYING, DEPRESSED MESS OVER IT!!
I'm going to miss him so much! Feeding him goldfish and letting him run around in the grass... Never could keep his aquarium very clean, but he liked it that way. Oh, and don't tell anybody, but Wilbur was actually a girl. But I would never tell him that. ;)
And I am sooo heartbroken!
Bye, Wilbur.
Donna and I went to the Detroit Zoo. I took pictures of silly little animals, just because. And now I am posting them. Just because. ;)
I made it back alive! I really need to STOP trying new things - if I wasn't buying a motorcycle, I think I might have just adopted kayaking as my new expensive sport. I'll write about it when I get a chance! Who wants to go back and raft with me in a few months? Gauley season? ;)
See ya' later, suckers!!
I had forgetten about my nice 4 day weekend this week and decided Monday that I need to get the heck outta the midwest. I figured I had three options: I had preferred to grab a flight to Denver and visit Rocky Mt. National Park for the first time since I moved; or, I could fly to Phoenix and drive to the Grand Canyon (or even Glen Canyon/Lake Powell); or, I could drive to the southeast and see what trouble I could get into!
Flights were too pricey, so I thought Hmmm, West Virginia seems wild and rugged... Should I go rafting, climbing, mt. biking...?? Then it hit me - a whitewater kayaking class!
It's not cheap, but I'm kayaking on Saturday and Sunday and filling the rest of that time with hiking and bouldering at the New River Gorge. Yeah, I'm going by myself. Everybody else is either broke, or isn't in to that sort of stuff. I'm sure it will be easy to meet some fun people down there!
In other news; got my motorcycle license; the house I was gonna buy SOLD the day before I was going to put in an offer; I will have a motorcycle here waiting for me when I get home; and I got to take down my first tree using the boom truck all by myself this week! Maybe that doesn't sound exciting, but to be up in a tree cutting off branches and dropping them without landing them on the truck - yeah, I'm a dork. Oh, I'm also now officially a certfied Arborist (aka a tree professional).
Found out that our Scotty dog Wilson blew out his knee! He has been limping and I've felt so bad for him, but it was worse than we thought. $1500 surgery! And there's a very high risk that if he keeps walking on his good leg, that one will go out too... So they told us to crate him 24 hrs a day! Isn't that horrible! For the next 3 months essentially. I feel so horrible for the poor guy. Our other alternative is to dope him up on Benadryl and hope he just lies around sleeping... :(
Anyway, time to pack and get the heck outta here! Enjoy the holiday weekend!
I need to stop watching the Discovery channel. It inspires me too much.
Inspiration makes me do crazy things... like get in my car and drive very very far away.
I feel bad, my journal has become nothing more than a place where I reminisce upon the "good old days". But really, nothing exciting happens here! No fire, no mountains, no long hikes or rock climbing (no offense, Grand Ledge - souther MI's only outdoor climbing) or anything like that. I think that's why I'm getting my motorcycle license - I'm seriously deprived of adrenalin!
For example, I was running in the gym watching the tv's tonight and one was showing a Discovery channel show on National Parks. Made me want to be a park ranger again (One of my earliest career interets - I was a junior ranger!). Made me want to jump off that treadmill and into my Focus and head west until I decided to stop. I better buy a house fast. I think wanderlust is a stronger instinct in me than domestic suburbanism. ;)
Here, let's recycle one of my more favorite photos I took back in the good old days.
Don't get me wrong; I LOVE dogs. I can't wait to have one (or two) of my own.
But really, if it's the same size as a groundhog, is it REALLY a dog??
We already had two, so what's one more? Now their combined weight ALMOST equals one full-sized dog. Meet Lucky, Sue's new puppy. Why did she get a dog and not me or Linda? Don't ask (grrrrrr). We think it's a corgy/border collie mix but who knows. All I know, is I have never seen a dog adore anybody more than he does my sister.
This weekend, I finally finished tweaking my mountain bike and getting it trail ready. Every time I had wanted to ride, something came up. Example: My stepdad hung the bike from hooks in the ceiling of the garage, which is very high. I got out the ladder and previously had no trouble getting it down; this time, though, things would not go as smoothly. Somehow the rear tire would not slip over the hook, and I was desperately holding the bike up and trying to get it off that stupid hook. Finally it popped off, and I did manage to hold the bike up and NOT come crashing down... but in the process I NAILED my funny bone right smack on the corner of the ladder. My hand went so numb I couldn't even hold on to the bike with that hand and there I was, up this ladder holding a mountain bike with one hand and trying to get feeling back in the other hand. Not a good situation. Needless to say, my hand still tingled a few days later, and I was unable to hold on to the handlebars to ride - all that work for nothing!
Anyway, I finally made it out to the Island Lake Rec Area trail, a nice 9.2 miles along the river, past some lakes, through the hardwoods and the pines... The only thing I like better than actually riding is checking out all the hot mountain bikers! ;) And I always get at least a few approving looks from the guys (that is, until they see how much I suck! Ha!) when I hop on my bike and head out on the trail by myself. The last time I rode that trail was with Kevin, who blew me away with his breakneck speeds and death-defying mad skillz. He rides a bike better than most people BREATHE. There are a few hills that I just couldn't make it up that last time, but this time... Yeah I rocked it! Loose rock and treacherous tree roots while riding uphill were no match for me. Ok, it wasn't THAT easy and my legs burned, but it was so rewarding to see visible improvements. That is, until that LAST HILL... if you've been there, you probably remember that curvy uphill trail through the pines... I was so close to making it all the way up, my legs were pushing and I was so proud of myself... Then there's this lip at the end where the trail meets the asphalt, and I cranked the pedals to get up... UGHHHHH STOMACH CRAMP! I worked it a little TOO hard and my abs just tensed up and I practically fell off my bike! So close!
In other random topics: With spring comes softball. With softball comes the potential for hot guys. I say potential, because usually there are very few hotties in with all those beer-league players. That's ok though - Not only do I go and cheer for my cityworker boys, now Jess has a new job and those guys have a team too! So her and I are gonna go "cheer" them on... ;)
Oh, and is anybody selling a motorcycle for under $2,000? Heh heh.
Look, I managed to write an entire entry without actually saying anything important. Life is slow right now. Need more drama. Though I think my mom would argue otherwise... :)
From the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources
The trilliums exploded today! Trilliums everywhere! One of my favorite early spring Michigan flowers.
I pity the rest of my family - I won't have to hear the incessant barking of our new puppy from my room all night. As if two dogs weren't enough...
My first time on a motorcycle tomorrow. Bought a helmet today. If I weren't so tired, I'd be really excited. ;) Joe picked out some bikes for me to check out. He's a bad influence - I need to be thinking of buying a HOUSE so I at least have a garage to put the bike in!
Here's my song-of-the-day/week/month (hopefully not that long?):
Tegan and Sara - Where Does the Good Go?
where do you go with your broken heart in tow
what do you do with the left over you
and how do you know, when to let go
where does the good go, where does the good go
look me in the eye and tell me you don't find me attractive
look me in the heart and tell me you won't go
look me in the eye and promise no love's like our love
look me in the heart and un break broken, it won't happen
it's love that breaks the seal of always thinking you would be
real, happy and healthy, strong and calm,
where does the good go, where does the good go
where do you go when you're in love and the world knows
how do you live so happily while I am sad and broken down
what do you say it's up for grabs now that you're on your way down
where does the good go, where does the good go
Alas, I am heartbroken. :(
But ya' know what? Dare I say it was probably for the best?
Naw, I'd never admit to saying something so noble and selfless. ;)
Exactly two years ago, I made the move that probably changed my life forever. Two years ago, I spent my first full day as a resident of Colorado... living in the Antler Motel and storing all of my possessions in the back of my car until my apartment was ready. If I remember correctly, Steve and I arrived in Estes Park on the 26th, and - seeing as it was my first time seeing the massive, snow-covered Rockies - I knew right away that moving to this unfamiliar environment was going to be the experience of a lifetime.
Looking back, I have to think: am I more successful now than I was then?
Sure, I have the full time job, more money, benefits, and hopefully soon my own house and dogs... But success can be measured in so many different ways. I have to ask myself, am I happier than I was then? Have I made progress in character and emotion? Am I as fulfilled as I was then?
Certainly, living in that crammed 1 bedroom apartment with a total stranger and a few hundred (thousand? yuck) of my closest insect friends (ants and ladybugs!), was not nearly as physically comfortable as where I am now. But can I go outside of my front door and have the mountains as my playground? Will I find a moose peeking in my window? Am I surrounded by energetic, adventurous people that just drink up life around them? Of course, the answer is no (save for my close friends that share my passion for living)... I may have more money but I am not any richer!
But nothing in life is 100% all of the time. I have come to understand that, but I'm not going to accept it! I NEED adventure and new experiences! So, to honor my 2 year anniversary of the decision that changed my life....
I'm learning how to ride a motorcycle. ;)
I've always thought about it, but being surrounded by guys that ride just gave me that last nudge to finally learn. It's only $25 at the community college, but I got lucky - last week, I looked and EVERY CLASS at literally every community college was totally full until August, including the more expensive class through the Harley-Davidson dealers. I just so happened to look today for one last time, and HEY! There's a new spot open! So for the next 3 weeks, I'll be either at work or at class for 15 hrs, 3x a week. I'm gonna be exhausted, but I need this. Otherwise I might just hop in my car and start driving West and never come back! Don't test me either - I've been known to do crazier things and right now, it wouldn't take much!
Glad the snow came and went after that brief yet obnoxious visit we had from winter this past weekend. I tried to take pictures of the snow on my violets, but they were all buried! It's always great this time of the year, when I get home after dark and I can hear the frogs in chorus all around our house. It's that little bit of peace and solitude only found at night and reminds me that life goes on, even when I'm asleep. Even when things are bad, confusing, or coming to a close. With that said, I'm going to bed.
Working four 10-hour days may be tiring and intense, but these three day weekends are fantastic! Too bad I went out and partied last night and got only a few hours of sleep (and a nasty hangover!) when I had to work the next morning, but now that I have tomorrow off, I didn't do much tonite except study for my Arborist exam. Funny how that works, no?
Here's some pictures finally of my Montana family - which was essentially the entire population of Lakeview when I left in the fall.
It seems like all the trees just decided to EXPLODE with leaves in the past 3 days. I mean, I woke up and went to work in the morning, and when I came home there were suddenly flowers on our plum and pear trees. I love this time of the year, but it's so short-lived that you could almost literally blink and miss it. Even some violets I had planted last year in our landscape - which aren't SUPPOSED to be perennial, or so I thought - already have their purple, white and yellow flowers smiling up at me. I'll have to enjoy them before the rabbits remember how much they liked eating them last year. I think I might take on a little "project" - every day that I go trail running, it seems there are new flowers blooming. Seeing as to how I am trying to brush up on my plant ID, I might try and write up a little something on what flowers are blooming at the time. If I'm REALLY ambitious, I'll take some pictures too and post them.
... IF I'm that ambitious. ;)
Tomorrow, house-hunting in the afternoon! I'd like to say I'm excited, but I have to say I expect to be disappointed. No need to rush things though.
Alkaline Trio - Sorry About That
"It hasn't been that long, since we drank to the sunsetFinally, after two years of waiting for funding from Montana State, I got an unexpected email.
"Lisa, are you still interested in a graduate student position?"
Of course, this happens only after I had finally decided I was going to "settle down" for a while. I'm in the process of house-shopping, dreaming of dogs and sugar gliders, hyping myself up at the thought of a stable and - dare I say? - domestic lifestyle. Ok, more like force-feeding the thought of staying put down my throat... But still, it was a plan, which is more than I can say for what I had before. (Though, having no plan was a helluva lot more exciting!)
Seeing as I applied long ago, I had to find my grad school application statement and read it a few times to remember what I had even wrote! I knew I would probably have a hard time with the interview, just because I hadn't even given grad school much thought in so long!
I got a call from three people over speakerphone - which always distracts me enough as it is, with all that echoing! - and did my best to sell myself. The project sounds pretty cool, it's been ongoing since 1996 and there will be three students working on it. It involves a lab experiement involving constructed wetlands and waste treatment; one student works on how wetlands break down waste, one student works on microbial aspects, and the position I interviewed for would be a greenhouse and lab job. It isn't exactly what I am geared towards when going there, but I think it would be great experience. I have no clue how the interview went, but I'll know in a week!
There was one catch though: When I asked when they want me to start, they said "Yesterday!" As in, they want me there as soon as possible, before the summer. They said they MIGHT be able to postpone it until the fall, but it's not what they prefer.
Yikes. Every time I sit down to relax, I have to make some huge life-altering decision! Leave my full-time job and head west??
Hey, maybe I won't even have to make that decision if they didn't like my interview. :)
I just finished up a three day Certified Arborist Course, so I can take the test and officially become a tree dork! Though I really do like forestry. If anybody needs any tree work done, I'm your chainsaw kitten!
I've been reading another book by Peter Jenkins called "Looking for Alaska" - the story of him and his family moving to Alaska just to experience it. It's a great book if you want to know what it's REALLY like to live in these small, remote towns and the culture of each different place, all through a series of essentially short stories tied together. Personally, I still like his first book, "A Walk Across America", better, but I still am in love with anything Alaska. I'm at a point right now where he is training and following around a sled dog musher named Jeff King. Did I mention I have this thing for wanting to learn how to dog sled? Hee hee. Anyway, so this Jeff King guy and his wife own 80 dogs and he's won the Iditarod and the K-300 a few times, or something like that - in other words, he's a great racer. Coincidentally, I sat down to watch TV, which I rarely do during the week, and what's on the Outdoor Life Network but coverage for the Iditarod, which took place during mid-March! It's on this week through the 6th for all you dog-sledding enthusiasts. :) Did you know that Michigan has it's own dog sled race? The UP 200! Maybe some day I'll be a contender. :)
The funniest part? I recognize more names of mushers than I could probably name in that basketball game that is going on right now. Between all the Alaska and dog sledding books I've read and the stories about Paul Gebhart and Jeff King and Robert Sorlie in Adventurer and Outdoor magazines... I like a quote from the commercial for OLN's coverage of the race - "Real dogs eat seal fat!"
Totally unrelated: I discovered the brutal enjoyment that is SPINNING. As in, a cycling class at the gym. Poor Donna is my work-out buddy, and she told me today that she hates that I love the class. :) Trust me, if anybody has the opportunity and masochistic tendencies, this class is for you. When the instructor tells you, "You can rest in 45 minutes! But right now YOU'RE MINE!" and "I know you hate it and I DON'T CARE!", you know it's gonna be hell on wheels. Not only do you burn fat and make your legs look muscular and HOT, but it's also great prep for the mountain biking season that is soon upon us! Saddle up, suck it up, and LOVE THE PAIN! :)
And one last act of randomness before I go to bed... Takin' photos at work. Trees, chainsaws, and men in chaps. Enjoy.
Anybody else really love unique t-shirts? You're in luck! I stumbled across Threadless T-Shirts. And hey, if you're creative you can submit your own designs! I really like the Fire and Ice penguin one. ;)
I'm moving out soon! Well... hopefully soon. I was all set to sign a lease when my parents mentioned the idea of buying a condo. This had never crossed my mind, seeing as I have never had a full-time job that didn't END after the summer. Heh heh, silly me. So now, an adventure in real-estate land! I probably won't be able to afford anything spectacular, but all it takes is a nice little condo and a sugar glider (flying squirrel) and Wilbur the turtle and I can call it home.
What else is new? Obviously, not much worth writing about. I know it's time to take a trip somewhere when I run out of interesting stories to tell. I did go and see my friend's former bandmates play a show this weekend to celebrate their CD release. Check out the Dirty Americans if you dig some "Easy Rider, raisin' hell, alcohol fueled brand of rock 'n' roll that the legends of Detroit rock made famous and infamous in the glory days" as their website says. Joe introduced me to the guys and them seemed pretty cool too. Listen and love it!
The memorial service for Seton was this morning. It's weird when you haven't talked to somebody since high school, to hear about all they've accomplished and what they hoped to do since then. He got his B.S. in physics and math and was working on his teaching certificate. He was on his way back from class the night the accident happened. They even thanked the EMTs that tried so hard to save him. So so sad.
Since his parents are musicians, they had some people from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra play in a brass quintet with an oboe. The music was absolutely beautiful and brought back memories of being in band with him. I had totally forgotten that I used to work on German video projects with him - I think somewhere around here I still have one. The music was nearly as emotional than the family's tribute to him. The things you learn that you never knew...
