Sportin'

Hello,

I am neglecting my work tonight, and it feels fabulous! I just had a really great weekend, though, and hate to get back into 12 hour work days quite yet. So, what made my weekend so wonderful? The freaking bulldogs, for one thing! That game against Florida was amazing, they played with so much heart. It's great to be a Georgia Bulldog!

And speaking of heart, how 'bout those Rockies? It has been so much fun watching them. 21 for 22, including 8 straight playoff wins, incredible! The past month and a half has brought back some great memories for me of the Braves' 91 playoff run. Unfortunately, both efforts ended in a World Series loss. But, Chris and I were at the game last night! We had a lot of fun, being at a World Series game is a rare opportunity. We got the tickets through a friend, Luke, who works for the Rockies. He did a drawing for them and we won! I guess it is also a big deal to get to watch a team sweep the series, especially an amazing team like the Red Sox (as much as I hate to admit it, the Sox are freaking good!). So, yay, I got to see Papelbon throw his glove about 30 feet into the air and do some strange squat-jump combination after striking out Seth Smith. But we were happy to be cheering on the Rockies.

All of this excitement about sports has me thinking ... why is being a fan so much fun? And just think, when else is it okay to do the following: throw yourself, ripping your jeans in the process, on the floor in a frenzy as Holliday slides face-first into home plate in a 13 inning do or die playoff game, or ... get lifted 3 feet into the air by your cousin after David Green throws a last-second touchdown pass to Veron Haynes to silence over 100,000 Tennessee fans, or ... just scream at the top of your lungs and jump up and down in public and it be perfectly ok?! Cheering on a team is just pure emotion ... it's just friggin' fun! Yeah, so now I'm done.
Of course I think participating in sports is fun, too, but who can really have more than maybe 10 people cheering for you at one time. Something about being in a big group of people all wanting the same thing is just fun.

That is basically my life the last couple of months - when I'm not working I'm either watching the Dawgs or the Rockies. I also got to see one of my best friend's, Laurie, get married last weekend in Georgia. That was wonderful, and it was so good to see her and our other friends.

So now that the Rockies season is over, I can start getting some more sleep. Also, yesterday at church the minister, Scott, was talking about committing time to God and service. I am tired of working so much and I think I need to reprioritize my time so not everything I do is for myself. I still need to work a lot but I also need to give myself some more time off and think outside of my own wants more often. I thought I would be closer to finishing my thesis by now and that made working my arse off worthwhile, but if I'm going not to be done any time soon anyway, then maybe I should work a little less and enjoy life more!

Anywho, that is enough rambling for now. Somehow, Chris and I are now watching 16 Candles. Haha. :) Goodnight!

Which Heroes Character Are You?
	You are part Hiro. You are everyones favorite Japanese tourist. Your time is well-managed and you make sure things get done. On top of that, the girls always want a second chance with you.
	You are part Peter. You're too sincere, but it works for you. Your family is very supportive despite your idealism.
Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com

Can I get an Amen!?

Honestly I thought this week was going to suck. I was dreading the start of the school year. I feel like I am taking on a lot - I want to defend my thesis (which is nowhere near done) by the end of October, I am taking a class that is so difficult that one of my very intelligent coworker's wife half-jokingly threatened divorce if he ever took another class like it, I am working about 10 hours a week on writing website content for the department, and I am still volunteering as editor of the AGU newsletter. So I literally thought my life was about to end last Sunday as I prepared to begin the semester.
But ... this has been a really great week! For one thing, I decided to take it easy while I still have the chance and before my class gets really busy. But also, a lot of really great things have happened this week. Most importantly, Chris got a job!! We are both so relieved - him more than me, I am sure. He was tired of being unemployed. He got laid off in January, but I have really been amazed by how well we have gotten along since then. I think it has tested our faith, but sometimes that was the only thing that kept me from completely stressing out. I feel very blessed - we have been okay financially, we have been able to go to Hawaii(!!) and Moab, and now Chris' new job is a step up from the old. So, thank you God!!
Another wonderful thing happened today (knock on wood) - my model is running! I have been very frustrated by it. Every week, I get myself psyched up to work hard and start getting results, but so far all I've gotten is a month's worth of -infinity for my simulated climate (temperature, rainfall, humidity, radiation, all of it crap!!). But this afternoon, as of 3:00 when I left school, the model was humming along quite happily. How wonderful!!!! I have been waiting for this moment all summer, and I think my frustration with the model has tainted my view of everything else - making things seem frustrating and overwhelming. Oh, please, let my results be reasonable so I can finally start doing earth science research and leave all this miserable computer science behind me!!
It has been a fun week for other reasons. On Saturday, Chris and I hiked up 13,911 ft. Mt Meeker with some of my friends from the department - Nick, Levi, and Matt. It was the hardest mountain I've climbed!! A mile of it was about as steep as you can get without needing ropes and climbing gear. It was tough, but the view at the top was amazing!! I also have had a few fun rides. On Tuesday, I competed in my first cyclocross race. This is kind of a mix between mountain and road ride (leaning toward more of the mountain side). I was the only one in my division and it was really hard and hot (96!), but I had a good time and would like to do it again. I even got tips from Georgia Gould, who won the women's pro national mountain bike series this year and came in 1st in every race in the series!! I also rode yesterday and had a great time. It is so nice to ride when I don't feel like I have to do anything for anyone other than myself.
Well ... I am encouraged by how well the last few days have gone. I hope I can continue to be productive without overdoing it.
I think I should go to sleep now. Chris and I went to a party tonight. It was at the house of some of my fellow grad students - in the class below mine. It was entertaining. Lots of drinking. We don't go to parties where people do keg stands, but I guess it's fun every now and then (we didn't of course, yuck!). Well, of course I did enjoy a few drinks ... which is why I would now like to go to sleep. Drinking used to make me want to act crazy, now it just makes me want to sleep! :) Goodnight!

Flash Flood!

It doesn't rain very often here in the Fort. So 3-5 inches in 2 hours seems like quite a lot! I'll start at the beginning ... I stayed at work until 7:00 tonight and was going to ride my bike home. It was sprinkling a little when it was time to go, but I talked to Chris and he said it was pouring at home - just 3.5 miles away. When I went outside, I saw basically a wall of rain and lightening about 2 miles from my department.
Luckily, my husband loves me and came to pick me up. We enjoyed dinner with our whole house shaking every time it thundered as the storm moved right over us. It is just kind of rare for us to get severe storms on the west side of Fort Collins, so we were kind of excited. We decided to drive around and look at the effects of what the NWS called a 100 year flood.
Mainly we saw the Spring Creek, it went way beyond its banks in several spots. There is a trail that follows the creek and I have no idea how deep below the water that trail was but there was no sign of it. There were a few places where the water was about mid-calf level in the roads. Chris got out and helped a girl push her broken-down car out of one flooded area.
Oh, in the picture notice my 2nd favorite bagel place in the background. I was planning on going there tomorrow morning, should be interesting!
It is still raining at our house but very lightly. Our yard is very soggy and there is a pond in the green space behind our house, but we are safe from any flooding. Apparently our house is on a 1000 year flood plain, phew! I probably would not find all of this so interesting if it rained more often here, or if I were not a weather geek.
Anywho, time for bed. Goodnight!

Triathlon for a cause and other events

I shouldn't write for too long because I am waking up at 5 AM!!! Rachel and I are doing a practice run of a triathlon, in training for the Tri for a Cure race in about 10 days. It should be fun as long as I actually wake up. And hopefully I can still get some work done tomorrow, I'll have to not go too hard.
I am pretty excited about this race because we are raising money for breast cancer research and support for women with breast cancer. It's nice to be doing a race that means something. I think it will be a powerful experience. There are 3,000 women participating, so it will by far be my largest triathlon. If you want to donate, visit http://www.active.com/donate/triforthecure07/atmos.

On Monday, we sent an email to some friends and family, as well as to the atmos department. Our goal was $500 and we surpassed it in 6 hours!!! I was so amazed, but I guess it just goes to show you how many people have been affected by breast cancer. My grandmother lost her battle on Sept. 13, 2001 (an unfortunately easy date to remember), about 2 years after being diagnosed. I have been and will be thinking of her a lot during the next few weeks.
Anyway ... on the brighter side I have great news! I got my model to run for a day! Results!!! Yes!!!! Well, they are not very exciting results because I ultimately want to run it for several years, but this is a big step.
And the bad news ... drugs in cycling. Three of the top 10 have now been dismissed from the Tour de France because of doping allegations. Plus my favorite before the race began, Alexander Vinokorouv. It's so disappointing because I admire these guys so much. They really capture my heart with their courage and determination, but then I feel cheated just as much as their competitors when I learn they did drugs. When I'm racing, I work my ass of to ride like I do (which isn't very good) and would never consider putting drugs or someone else's blood in my body (it just doesn't seem smart/healthy for one thing) ... why can't they do the same? I hate it. I hope the sport cleans up. This tour has been exciting but now ... grrr.

I am excited about this weekend. I am going to Georgia and Tennessee for several big events. The main reason is to see my one of my best friends, Kristi, as she makes her first profession of vows to become a nun. She is through 2 out of 7 years in the process. It is an amazing process, I can't believe she's already been there for two years. Sometimes it seems a little strange to me but I think she's very happy with her life, and I admire the commitment she has made. I just don't completely understand it, I am so happy being married, but giving your life to God can't be a bad thing (as long as you're not a freaking suicidal zealot). Oh yeah, I'm rambling ... the other things I'll be doing this weekend are: seeing my cousin, Patrick, and his two year old daughter (it's her birthday), seeing my other cousin, Crissie, and her newborn son (due today, I need to call!), attending another good friend's bridal shower, and seeing a lot of other wonderful friends and family. It will be busy, as all trips back to Georgia are, but I am excited about it.

Ok I should go to sleep now for sure. 6 hours of sleep is about the bare minimum I can get. Good night!

Montgomery Pass

Ah ... TGIF. A lot has happened since my last entry! My mom and stepdad, Jim, came to visit us last week. We had a good time exploring Colorado. I was very impressed with both of them - we had a busy, active week. Jim had a small heart attack last year, and it is great to see him being active. He arrived on Tuesday night, on by Thursday afternoon was hiking 6.5 miles at 10,000 feet in Rocky Mtn. NP. My mom completed a tough hike up the west side of Montgomery Pass earlier in the week. Good stuff!

The hike with my mom was part of an overnight trip to the Upper Montgomery Pass yurt (operated by Never Summer Nordic). We stayed there Monday night. On the way up, we ventured along Long Draw Road, on the eastern side of Camerron Pass. We saw 8 moose!!! The coolest sighting was our first - 3 males hanging out in Trap Lake. We also saw a baby, probably just a few months old. It was so cute! We arrived at the yurt around 6 PM and it was literally 110 degrees in the Yurt! So we hung out on the porch overlooking a valley and the Mt. Zirkel range to the west. The 12,000+ foot mountains that rise from Montgomery Pass were to our right. It was a great view. The sunset was phenomenal, we could actually see the sun go all the way down, as it sank slowly behind the far off mountains.

The hike to Montgomery Pass is kind of hard because it's on a 4 wheel drive road, which tends to have less switchbacks than a trail. But it was well worth the ascent to see the glory of the meadows at the pass. The air was fragrant from the abundant wildflowers. It was amazing. Chris and I daydreamed of hiking along the ridgeline that goes from Camerron Pass to where we were and then on and on for miles into Wyoming and beyond. It will be a good trip sometime (soon, hopefully!).

That is probably enough writing for now. It is about 12:25 AM and I am waking up at 6:00 to ride with Christine (I'm getting up early so I can eat breakfast and have coffee, we aren't riding until 7:30). But there is more to come ... 4th of July party and watching fireworks in 4 different cities at once ... a good, wet hike in RMNP ... the Black Canyon of the Gunnison and hanging our feet off a 2300 foot cliff ... rafting on the Arkansas ... etc etc. I feel so fortunate that for Chris and I, the vacation in Colorado never ends. :)

Anatomy and Physiology 101

In today's class, we'll discuss the patella. This little bone that floats around magically around your knee is connected to tibia via the Patellar Tendon. This tendon is pretty sturdy, but doesn't really like being hit by a road sign at speeds in excess of, say, 5 miles per hour. If you were to hit said sign at something like 30 miles per hour in an acrobatic move that would make Sasha Cohen jealous, you would probably suffer post-traumatic patellar tendinitis. You also might invent a new olympic sport that is some combination of gymnastics and cycling.
...
Anyway, this is what my diagnosis is for my knee. It sounds bad (especially because it has 4 words), but apparently it will heal with time. Ironically, the doctor I saw today recommended cycling as a way to strengthen the muscles and ligaments etc around my knee. Super!! The swelling below my knee is from trauma to the lateral collateral ligament. He said it may take up to 3 months for the swelling to go down. But basically, I am okay, and I can keep riding and hiking and swimming (maybe avoiding breast stroke) at a not too intense pace.

:)