Happy Thanksgiving!

I feel very lucky in life. I have a lot to be thankful for, and despite my griping over the summer about how much work/life sucked - my life is extraordinarily good! Just to be alive and to have friends and family I love should be enough, but on top of that I have a life that I love. Sometimes I can't believe how blessed I am.

Today I've been getting ready for a trip to a yurt near Cameron Pass for turkey day. A yurt is basically a cabin with canvas walls on stilts. This will be my third time to stay in a yurt, it is run through Never Summer Nordic. They are surprisingly warm. I'm

going with Chris, Rachel, Nick, Matt, Jim, Kevin, and Katie. It will be nice - and very interesting to see if we can cook a turkey on a charcoal grill when tomorrow's high is only supposed to be 29! Even if not, we will have more than enough food. Today I made a pumpkin pie and a sweet potato casserole from Paula Dean (so of course it will be decadent!). I also got everything together to make pumpkin pancakes tomorrow morning. The recipe is from a blog I found: http://www.wearenotmartha.com/2008/10/pumpkin-pancakes.html.

I'm looking forward to relaxing with my friends, passing the time with cards, a good book, and some wine, hiking in the beautiful mountains, and of course eating mounds of food. :) Happy Thanksgiving!

Forest and River Tour

So my river tour went really well. To be honest, I was kind of worried about it. I wasn’t worried at all until the night before when Lixin said it would be good if someone else was going with me for safety. Then my imagination started going … what if this guy took me out on a boat, took all my money, and left me in the middle of nowhere?? So I was kind of stressed. Also, I woke up Friday morning to a big storm. Jean Claude, my guide, called to make sure I was still okay with going out in the rain. He said it was safe but I was nervous. We decided to go to the docks and play it by ear. I almost couldn’t eat breakfast, that’s how nervous I was. So I thought, “You should either call Jean Claude and cancel or just stop worrying. Because the trip won’t be any fun if all you’re doing the whole time is worrying. You have no reason not to trust him – his company is legit and the only reviews I found of them online were good. So either suck it up or cancel.” I chose the former.

We got to the docks and most of the thunder and lightening had stopped. It wasn’t too windy so the water wasn’t all crazy. We met our boat driver, who goes by Herchita (?), which means little mouse because he was a kind of short and squat guy. We decided to go to the Ecological Park first. So we headed up the Rio Negro. The boat had a cover so we stayed dry as we cut across the kind of choppy water. Eventually, we entered a ‘small stream’ (its size was somewhere between that of a Coloradoan and Georgian river). It came from the Amazon and was a different color from the Rio Negro. The scenery was serene. The rain was pattering on the river, and the hills around it were very green. It was kind of like going through the estuaries on the Georgia coast, but with slightly more topography. Here and there were small wooden houses that were not in great shape, to say the least. The people have two methods of adjusting to the rising and falling waters between the wet and dry seasons. One option is to have their house float on the river. They use a combination of large logs and tires to keep it afloat. I can’t imagine living literally on a river; it is so different from what I’m used to! The second option is to build your house on a hill on wooden stilts. But Jean Clause said that even then, the waters often come up to people’s houses and they have to board up the windows and live in the attic. Crazy.



Anyway, we arrived at the Ecological Park and it was still raining pretty hard. So, we put on our rain jackets and headed out. From the docks, we walked up a wooden walkway that went through the forest. It was about 8 feet off the ground to avoid the flooding during the rainy season. We took a side trail to see a Samauma tree. They have very wide bases that are an architectural adaptation of the tree to being under water part of the year and withstanding strong winds during storms. Pretty impressive.
Next we arrived at a covered deck that overlooked a pond. There were large lily pads that bloom from delicate pink flowers and several kinds of large and small birds. I’m glad we were there so early because we were the only people there and it was very peaceful. I took a ton of pictures. Eventually, we also saw two alligators and a few monkeys running around on the other side of the pond. It was neat to see the monkeys walking upright.

I don’t know how long we stayed on the deck. I could have stayed all day. If you just take one glance at the forest, it seems kind of ordinary. It’s not like looking at the Rocky Mountains, where you are automatically amazed. But I think the more time you are there, the more you see and the more you appreciate it. That short time, maybe one or two hours, made me really want to come back to the Amazon forest. I was filled with a large sense of awe at the complexity of the ecosystem. It reminded me of the first time I saw the Grand Canyon. At the time, I was considering hiking into it the next day but was very apprehensive of the strenuous 18 mile hike. But as soon as I laid my eyes on it, I was first completely amazed, and second convinced that I absolutely had to explore it. That is how I felt Friday. A few hours didn’t do it justice. I want to get a chance to know the forest at least a little more intimately.





After leaving, we went back to the Rio Negro and stopped to see a rubber tree. I was thinking this wouldn’t be that exciting, but it turned out to be a fun stop. First, there wasn’t a dock where we stopped. It was just a spot that Herchita knows about. So we pulled up the boat next to the shore and got out into some intense mud! I had my chacos on and after about 15 steps there was an inch-thick layer of mud both on the bottom of my shoes and all around them. The shores were also pretty polluted. Jean Claude said most people don’t put trash into trash cans, they just throw it into the streets or streams and it eventually ends up in the river. Sad. Anyway, Herchita was walking barefoot through all the muck and led us into the trees. There were some pretty neat trees in there that I took a lot of pictures of because they had amazing root systems above ground. He showed us a rubber tree and cut a niche in it with his very large knife. Some white sap came out, which is the latex. Interesting, I didn’t really know where latex comes from, but there it is!

Next we went to a piraracu farm. These are some of the largest freshwater fish in the world. The “farm” was really just a guy’s house in the Rio Negro – about 100 yards off the banks. Next to the house is a floating boardwalk that surrounds a “tank”, which is apparently really deep and surrounded by nets that come down from the boardwalk. So we saw some of the pirarucu. They were, as promised, very large and very colorful. We stayed for a bit but it was not the highlight of the trip.


The next stop was the infamous Meeting of the Waters. This is where the Rio Negro (warm, ‘black’, acidic) meets the main branch of the Amazon (cooler, brown, nutrient-rich). You can see where these two rivers meet up from space. It was neat to see, but to me the best part of it was just being in the middle of this huge river. A couple of local guys rowed up next to us with a boat full of fish. It was just a little rowboat, but the bottom of it was covered in dead and dying fish. Yum – dinner!


So we looked at the water and then I decided to jump in! Definitely not recommended by my travel nurse, but I’ve talked to a few people in Manaus who swim at the beaches along the river. They are still alive, so … Also, not much lives in the Rio Negro and that is where I mostly swam because it’s warmer. I jumped in from the boat, which was fun. First I jumped into the Rio Negro. It was pretty warm. Jean Claude said that I should jump into the Negro first, then swim to the Amazon to feel the temperature difference, and Herchita would drive the boat along to meet me in the Amazon (by the way, we are only talking a distance of less than 25 yards, so this wasn’t a major swim). So I jumped in, woohoo!

And then Herchita started up the boat and I had a moment of sheer panic that they were going to drive away and leave me in the middle of the Amazon. It was choppy and not easy swimming, and the temperature difference was very noticeable and of course got me thinking about density. But I was not wanting to stick around in the river for too long – first because I don’t want fish swimming up my you-know-what, and second because I didn’t want to be left behind (not that any thing either of them had done would indicate that leaving me was their intention). I guess I would have gotten a ride from the locals. It would have been pretty bad. My silly over-active imagination!

So that was my trip. It was enjoyable, especially the Ecological Forest. Jean Claude was a good guide. He is not from Manaus, but it was nice that there were not difficulties with language. There were some questions I had that he couldn’t answer, but in general he was knowledgeable. It was nice to be able to call the shots and elect to stay the longest in the forest. I will gradually be putting more pictures on http://www.chrisandanna.shutterfly.com.

River Tour - Thoughts before

Well, tomorrow I am going on a cruise/tour of the Meeting of the Waters. I'm going with Amazon Mystery Tours with Jean Claude Comeau. I am the only one on the tour. Finding a tour guide was kind of frustrating to me. There is a lot of mixed reviews of companies out there. If I had several days and Chris was with me, this company's trips would be great (canoeing, rappelling, tree climbing, camping). Anyway, I wanted to find a tour before getting here, but it was too hard to decide with all of the mixed reviews. So, I thought I would probably find people at the conference who also wanted to do tours. Well, there was a company at the conference but it's tours just didn't sound as nice. Maybe it was the guy, he was very short. Jean Claude emailed me pages of options, and when I told this other guy I wanted to do a tour he said, "Ok, you can do this one." That's it. So ... I am doing the expensive option but screw it. This way we do what I want. :)

Anywho, he is picking me up at 7:30 and we are going out to the meeting of the waters (where the Amazon River and Rio Negro converge) and to the January Ecological Park. I think it will be nice.

Happy Day

I feel very happy at the moment. I gave my presentation today and I think it went fine. I was really really nervous beforehand. My thesis defense was definitely a bigger deal, but this was stressful because my audience was so knowledgeable. I have me a handful of scientists whom I cite in my thesis, so they obviously know this stuff very well. It just makes me nervous to talk about my research in front of people who are experts in the field. I told Ian this and he said, "But you're an expert too!" Haha. I half-expect to find out that I've been going about this all wrong, misinterpreting their papers, and my results are crap. Well, maybe I am a novice expert. If I use a lot of big words, then people won't know what I'm talking about and won't ask questions. :) Just kidding, I need a thesaurus to use big words.

I had to put my presentation on a USB drive and transfer it to the appropriate laptop this morning. I watched the woman do it and then she opened the file to confirm it was okay. Well, when it was my turn to talk, they didn't have the powerpoint!! Luckily my USB drive was still with me and they downloaded it fairly quickly, but it was a bad start. I tried not to think about it. Like I said, I think the talk was fine. The jitters never really went away but someone I talked to afterward said I was very calm while giving it. I think I come across as calm often. It's a neat trick.

After the talk, I was very very tired. There were a few questions that I think I handled fine (that word keeps coming up). Some people said they really liked it. One such person is someone I cited in my thesis, and he also said he's read part of my thesis - he found it online somehow! Wow ... people are reading my thesis?! That is pretty cool, except he goes to U. Florida. But, he was nice and not a Gator fan, so it was okay.

The rest of the day was nice. The morning plenary talks were about "Visions and models for sustainable development in the Amazon region." I enjoyed them. Two of the speakers are scientists but are currently more involved in sustainable development now. It's very encouraging me to see scientists who are able to also apply their passion to helping people and the environment in a more direct way than just doing research.

Two other great things about today: 1. I found out that the hotel next to mine has a fitness room and pool. It is 10 reals (about $5) to use it, so I got up at 5:45 this morning and ran 9.4 km on a treadmill. :) It felt so good to get some exercise after almost a week without any and lots of food! It was a perfect way to start the day and I'm going to try to keep it up. 2. I just watched heroes! I had to buy it on itunes and it took all night to download, but was so good. Maybe it is also nice to have a little bit of American culture, plus just sitting and watching a tv show is a nice break from all of the working and socializing. Anyway, I love that show.

So, now Ian, Lixin and I are going out to dinner. Thanks for stopping by. :)

Weekend in the Amazon

What a great weekend. :) I am posting pictures on http://chrisandanna.shutterfly.com. I am very happy. Yesterday, Julio picked up Lixin, Ian and I at noon. We went to a supermarket first and bought a ton of food for the equivalent of $75. Then we headed north into the rainforest. After about 50 km on a road that goes all the way to Venezuela, we turned west onto a choppy dirt road. Ian took the wheel at this point, just in time for a little bit of rain. The water makes the dirt very slippery so it's like driving on ice. There was one very steep hill that we initially didn't make it up because the truck lost traction. It was a little nerve-wracking reversing down a slippery, steep slope but the second try was a charm!

Our first stop was the C14 tower. It is at kilometer 14 on the dirt road. The hike to the tower was short and being in the forest for the first time was amazing! The tower is the oldest in Amazonia, I believe. It was put up in the early 80's. Also it is wide enough to have stairs to walk up (4m x 4m). The main tower goes to 45 meters, but Julio built an additional tower on top that goes another 10 or 15 m. That tower was a little more rickety but the view at the top was great!

At first glance from above, the forest looks like ... a forest. But two things are very striking. First, for 360 degrees all you can see is forest. No roads, houses, power lines, rivers, or lakes. That is incredible, especially considering what you can see from a 60m tower is a very small portion of the entire forest. Second, if you focus your eyes in one direction, you can probably count about 15 different kinds of trees right in front of you. That to me is kind of a subtly amazing thing about the forest because you might not realize it right away. Also you can see and hear lots of birds and occasionally monkeys. We had lunch on top of the tower, it was an ideal spot for a picnic. :)

Geek alert, move to next paragraph if you're not interested! I've learned some good things over the weekend. I'll just name a few. 1. We went through a couple of different types of forest. In the lowlands the ground is very sandy and there are mostly palms. They are enormous though ... maybe 15 meters tall with humongous fronds. Higher up there is more clay and hence larger, taller trees (some as tall as the first tier of the C14 tower). 2. It is very still inside the canopy. Julio kept pointing this out because its importance in carbon fluxes. Even if there are large exchanges of carbon between the trees, ground, water, and air, that doesn't mean that the fluxes will translate directly to changes in carbon in the free atmosphere. Above the canopy, there is a nice breeze that is very refreshing ... and it enables exchanges between the canopy air space and free atmosphere. 3. The Rio Negro is not black. It's clear ... which is black. I don't know, I was confused. But it is that color because of all of the nutrients that are leached out of the groundcover on the way to the streams/river. It is very acidic and bugs don't like it. There were not many mosquitoes because we were near tributaries of the Rio Negro and it was really nice. OK, end the geek out session.

After climbing the tower he headed to the LBA base camp. I was feeling a little tired and thinking how nice some coffee would be. We first stopped at another LBA base camp and there were two guys there ... who offered us coffee! Yay! :) Then it was on to our base camp. It consists of a two-story building. The bottom is open and has a kitchen and tables. The top has screen windows and all the beds. There were a couple of bathrooms/showers, an equipment room with a pool table, and a cabana with a TV. It was weird to see a TV out in the middle of nowhere. We didn't watch it. Once it got dark, we had our own entertainment.

We cooked a surprisingly good meal considering we were in the middle of the forest. Tortellinis with sauteed green and red peppers, onions, green olives, a broccoli-type vegetable and a spinach-type vegetable, and chicken. Yum! The night sounds were pretty neat. Crickets, birds, and these crazy monkeys. Julio said they are not very big, just a few feet tall but they are very very loud! The males basically roar and fight for the females' attention. Julio said the ones we heard were probably 4 or 5 km away but they were so loud. It was pretty neat and a little creepy too. He said it is really hard to sleep when they are closer but I think it might have been worth it to hear more of them. I woke up a couple of times in the night and heard them again. Very cool.

After dinner we were very full and decided to go on a hike. At first it was neat to be in the dark of the forest (we had two headlamps but mine was nearly dead). After a bit, I saw two green eyes glowing from the side of the trail! I wasn't too concerned until I pointed them out to Julio and he said it was a snake, and it started moving toward the trail! We kept going, and then I started noticing, out of the corners of my eyes, glowing green eyes everywhere! Maybe they were not all snakes, but it freaked me out. Julio made fun of me, Ian sounded annoyed, and Lixin freaked out too. It was interesting to say the least. Lixin was nervous too and too reassure her, Ian asked her something like, "How many times do you get to do something like this?" She said, "Never!" And he said, "So this is a first." And she said, "Yes, that is very nice, if we survive!" My sentiments exactly. Well, we made it and it was a neat experience. After that, it was time for bed. I will write about today's journey later, we are going to dinner soon!

this is a movie of the monkeys roaring at night. It is kind of faint and sounds like the wind howling, but those are monkeys!

Brazil day 1 - Party like a braziliero

My laptop is telling me it is only 10:35, but it’s actually 1:35 in Manaus, and I am exhausted! Today started at 3:30 AM in Miami (or 1:30 AM Ft. Collins time). I was at my terminal by 4:30 and in the air by 6:45. The flight was uneventful and I probably slept for about 3 hours. The flight landed around 12:45 (but was only a 5 hour flight thanks to the time change). I was a little nervous going through customs because of some hoops we had to jump through to get our visas. Basically we had to come up with a reason to be in Brazil other than a conference/work, and I hoped I could be convincing that I was just visiting a friend. Julio … I don’t know his last name. Perfect. I wasn’t even sure if it mattered. Maybe it didn’t because things went fine. I got my passport stamped, caught a taxi, and got to my hotel around 2 PM.

Here are some things I noticed on the drive: 1. Lane lines are merely a suggestion. It’s perfectly okay to have three cars abreast and even a motorcycle in a two-lane road. 2. Manaus is kind of hilly and has pockets of forest here and there. 3. It is kind of smoky, maybe it hasn’t rained in a couple of days? 4. Most of where we drove looked like the industrial side of many towns. Just a little unattended to looking, and kind of dirty. 5. We drove by some nice houses and 12-ft tall walls topped with barbed wire surrounded them. The driveways were barricaded with pretty heavy-duty looking gates.

Once at the hotel, I waited for Ian and Lixin to get back so we could go out for dinner, and that didn’t happen until 7 PM. I was glad for some downtime but ended up getting pretty bored and very hungry. In the meantime, I read my Lonely Planet guide to Brazil (caught up on some of the history and worked on some Portuguese phrases), read a few chapters of For Whom the Bell Tolls (I just started it yesterday but I like it a lot so far), did some stretching and core workouts (lame), and painted my toenails (girly). When I got hungry, I had a guarana soda, which was really good, and a snickers bar, which was really healthy.

Finally my comrades showed up, along with Julio Tutto, who is collaborating with Ian and Lixin and taking us to an observation tower over the weekend. We headed off to the Beir Haus – actually a microbrewery! How incredible ☺. I had a pilsner (easy to drink) and an esturo (not sure what that means but it was dark. I liked it better than the pilsner. One guy said it was like Guinness and I think he was off his rocker – it wasn’t that good). I also had a caparini – it is made with cane sugar liquor, more sugar, and lime. It is a pretty strong drink and reminds me of a sweet mojito. Sugar is kind of a big deal in Brazil, according to my Lonely Planet book. They use it to make ethanol, and it is apparently eight times more efficient than using corn. Way to go Brazil. Oh yeah, I also had rice with some squid, shrimp, and clams in a yummy sauce. And I had some bread and cheese, and some sort of pastry filled with cheese and meat. Yum!

Eventually more people joined us at the restaurant. They all either work with Julio or are also attending the conference next week. The fun started when a band took the stage and people started dancing. After about two hours of dancing and really working up a sweat, it finally dawned on me that I am in Brazil! I am not a great dancer but I had a blast. I hope we go again while I’m here. The restaurant didn’t have walls on the front, it just opened up to the night air. Also, it was very spacious. But it was pretty hot and really humid, so after just a little dancing I was really sweaty. But so was everyone else and no one cared. Every one was just enjoying the music and each other. How nice ☺. I actually feel like I got a workout tonight. My legs are pretty beat.

Ok … time to sleep! Thanks for reading, I took some pictures tonight that I can put up later. Don’t expect an update until after the weekend – we will be staying in the rainforest tomorrow night! ☺ Oh yeah, and I do have cell phone service here (it’s the network), but I am roaming. Seems like that could get expensive so I’ll be avoiding the cell phone as much as possible. Goodnight!

Next stop, Miami

I'm just hanging out in the Denver Airport. I am really tired but pretty excited! Saying goodbye to Chris this morning sucked. It gets harder the longer we're married, I think. It's crazy that this is the second time this year that we will be apart for more than 10 days. :( Hopefully next year we will do some more traveling together!

There's nothing really exciting to report yet. Although, I must say that traveling for work is really great because of the per diem! I had a ham and cheese sandwich on french toast (with syrup of course) for breakfast with fresh-squeezed OJ. That's the high life. I'm trying to find a good place to get seafood for dinner tonight in Miami.

Last night we went to Coopersmiths with a group of friends. Chris and Matt went to a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity a while back and Chris won 4 pizzas, 6 pitchers of beer, and 2 hours of pool at Coops. :) Yum! It was nice, there were about 12 of us and we just had to pay the tip, plus everyone threw in a little extra to donate to Habitat. I can handle free food and beer for a good cause. :) Also, our friend Jon was in town and it was really good to see him. He and Kristen were a part of our Bible study for a few months and are great, fun people. They lived in Nigeria at Faith Alive AIDS clinic for about 3 months and now are living in St. Paul. I'm sad they couldn't come back to the Fort permanently!

Also, Mollie and I ran more than 7 miles yesterday. I'm not sure how far, but it took us 1:25. It was great, although my stomach was not very happy. I think it was either the ton of sushi I ate Tuesday night or all of the dairy I had on Wednesday. Either way, it was not good.

I hope that I've remembered everything I need. Traveling so far away by myself is a little nerve-wracking. Whenever I get nervous, I just try to think about something else. Because I'm pretty sure I'm prepared, so worrying will just make the trip less fun. Ooops, I never got travelers insurance. haha. Well I guess I could still buy some tonight. Bye!

Getting ready to go

Well, I leave for Brazil in just a few days! There have been a lot of things to take care of in preparation. I guess if I ever get to the point where I frequently travel internationally for work, maybe it won't be such a hassle each time. Plus, CSU has some obnoxious rules for students. I had to fill out this travel packet with all of my information. I had to make copies of documents, get signatures proving I visited a travel nurse, give them my flight information, and watch a short video with mostly things that I already know or are irrelevant (ie: Don't get in a car driven by someone I don't know ... and don't binge drink just because I'm in a country with a drinking age less than 21). It's probably nice for younger undergraduates who have never traveled abroad before, but as a 28-year-old who's lived abroad I was annoyed by the whole process. The one useful thing I got out of it is this website: www.travel.state.gov. It has information about traveling to different countries and you can register at the U.S. Embassy in the country you are traveling to.

I'm in the middle of making some plots, so I'm gonna run. Stay tuned for updates once I start traveling!

68 Reasons to Tri!

This is a list I came up during some of my more OCD/can't stop thinking about racing moments. I started it in 2002 when training for my first tri, and recently added 45-68. Enjoy ... or not. It makes me happy! :)

1. I like being in good shape – feels good!
2. I enjoy competition
3. It forces me to take care of myself
4. Helps motivate me to work out – gives exercise a purpose
5. Training makes me more in touch with my body
6. I want to look like a triathlete – trim and fit
7. I like being able to kick ass – to some degree!
8. Physically, if I can do tri’s, I can do the PCT, climb mountains, etc.
9. I think I can do well in them
10. It’s cool to be able to say “I race in triathlons”
11. To celebrate what God gave me
12. Enjoy my athleticism while I’m still young
13. The race is fun
14. It’s a challenge
15. Having goals is healthy
16. I miss competitive sports
17. It forces me to be disciplined
18. Good for my heart
19. Less impact than running marathons (as if)
20. I can pig out in a healthy way
21. Maintain, maybe even lose a little, weight
22. It’s a way to improve myself
23. See new places
24. Meet new people
25. I get to be written on
26. To collect cool t-shirts
27. It’s exhilarating
28. The transitions are exciting
29. A good excuse to go to the lake
30. A good excuse to go to the country on a bike ride
31. I get out my frustrations through training
32. This is one area where I can tackle my weaknesses
33. It feels good to do well
34. I learn more about myself when challenged
35. It teaches me to work hard for something
36. Cycling is fun
37. Running is fun
38. Running in cool places is more fun
39. I like the way my body cuts through the water
40. It works almost all my muscles
41. I can get on a bike and just go
42. I can mountain bike better
43. It forces me to eat better
44. I can impress myself

45. Nothing beats the excitement of race morning
46. Setting goals is good – achieving them is better!
47. Training requires a balanced lifestyle – healthy eating and lots of rest, attention to how I’m feeling and doing
48. I’m more focused in other areas of my life when I’m training
49. Early morning runs in the foothills
50. Tackling the dams or Rist Canyon and feeling good doing it
51. Swimming for 2 hours with Rachel and then eating a huge meal at Lucilles
52. I (really really) love my bike
53. I love biking and running with Chris
54. Checking out bikes at races
55. Seeing all the fit, motivated, healthy, happy people at races
56. Being surrounded by positive attitudes and amazing stories of success
57. Long workouts and getting into the zone where I’m totally focused on the present moment
58. Training is my “me” time
59. Peanut butter and oatmeal with a cup of coffee before a big ride, yum
60. Having lots of neon swim caps
61. Yoga and stretching don’t just feel good, they are a necessity!
62. Having a good excuse to get a massage now and then
63. Espresso love gu’s
64. The excitement of coming out of the water into T1
65. The joy of crossing the finish line
66. Flexibility in my workouts – I don’t have to ride my bike when it’s 20F outside
67. It’s nice to have a low resting heart rate
68. Being in shape to commute on my bike and not have to drive everywhere

woohoo!

I have lots to do, including a discussion of two papers that I'm leading at 12:30 (it's 10), but I just cant focus on work. I am pretty happy about how the election went yesterday, and am feeling cautiously optimistic about the future. But, politics, blah, so I'm going to write about the wonderful weekend I had.

Chris and I are ALMOST 100% done with our landscaping. We've killed weeds, planted new shrubbery (probably at least half are low-water), put down landscaping fabric and mulch, outlined the backyard area with some edging and made a stone/rock walkway from our back gate. All that is left is to get some timbers to edge the front yard part and to buy some drip-line dripper-thingies for the front yard.

Also, we finally picked up our house from the mouse fiasco a few weeks ago. I have been feeling awful about our house the last couple of weeks. After being at an interview for 14 hours Thursday, I actually dreaded coming home b/c it was such a mess. It was really stressing me out, I am not usually a neat freak but I do have my limits! So I am feeling very good about both our house and our yard right now.

Oh, yes, my interview was for a co-teaching position at Colorado College in Co. Springs next March/April. I found out yesterday I got the position (there were 3 positions and 3 applicants, so it wasn't a huge surprise). I think it will be very challenging b/c they are on the block schedule. Classes go from 9-12, with labs usually from 1-4 and maybe office hours after that. So it is a crazy day! But the whole course (climate) is crammed into 3.5 weeks. So I think it will be hard but a great experience and a good way to get my hands wet in the world of teaching. I don't get paid, but I get free housing and food on the CC campus, which is nice. I'm kind of looking forward to exploring the Springs, and I hope Chris can come down for one or two weekends to explore with me.

One more thing is that I decided last weekend to go see Obama with Nick, Michelle, and Rachel. Nick and Michelle got in line at 6 AM (I showed up at 9:30), and so we got a spot 20 ft. from the podium. It was pretty incredible. Even if you don't agree with his politics, you have to agree that he is an excellent public speaker (the exact opposite of a certain President I can think of). I feel even more fortunate about seeing him now that he is President-elect. Big thanks to Nick and Michelle for being hard core and getting in line so early!

So ... yes, I am excited about life right now, which feels great to be able to say! (maybe there is a correlation between that statement and the fact that I am on my second cup of coffee) :) Thanks for stopping by.

I'll post some pictures that Michelle and Nick took last Sunday.

He was so close!


It was estimated that 45,000-50,000 people showed up, I believe it. There was a huge crowd and the line to get in stretched a couple of miles!