hmmm...

Apparently I don't know how blogging works yet. I guess when I start a post and don't finish it, it still posts with the date I started it on. Anyway, that's why the end of my most recent post might make no sense when you read it. I'll get this down some day...I hope.

Please Excuse My Absence

I should have known I wouldn't be good at this. It's too much like a journal, which I've never been good at keeping. For some reason I just can't usually find the time to write (that or I don't make the time to write). Anyway, I will try and be better. I promise.

For now though, it's back to work on a medical case study.

p.s. I found a post I started back in late April that I never posted. It will be out of order, but I'll post it after this one. Ciao!

So Much For That

My closing comment in my last post was about not going so long in between posts...so much for that!

I feel like I have been going non-stop the past few weeks and April just disappeared! So what have I been up to? Well last weekend I was in Ohio for my friends' wedding. It was an absolutely beautiful day and wedding! And it was like a mini-ASP reunion, as Allie and Jeremy (the two getting married) met while working for ASP. There were about 20-30 ASP folk there, and it was so great to see them! You know how some things or people just make your heart swell when you see them or think about them?? Well that's how ASP is for me. It has a huge place in my life and every time I think about the people, places, and things associated with ASP, my heart just smiles! I can't imagine my life without it, so it was great to have that back in my life so prominently - even if just for a weekend.


Here's a glimpse of the wedding.


The meetinghouse where the ceremony was held.


Saying their vows. Even the reverend was a past ASP staffer. It's an amazing group of people. P.S. Don't you think her dress is absolutely beautiful!?! I love it!


After the wedding instead of blowing bubbles or throwing seeds, they passed out Ale8 - a soda that is like gold to ASP staffers (It's only available in Kentucky) - and were driven off in this cute little buggy.


3/5 of Mingo Co Staff 2007. Me, Allie, and Brendan.

Me, Allie, and Abbie (another one of my favorite staffers!).

The whole group of staffers (past and present) that were at the wedding. I love these people!


Anyway, back to my recent adventures and activities...

The past week, and the night before I left for the wedding, I spend most of my time immersed in a paper mache project for a theme meal I had to put on. I thought it was going to be the end of me. Last Thursday I drove up to Denver (because I was flying out the next day for the wedding) with plans to paper mache some pears with my friend, Kim. At first we were pretty excited about this, but we quickly realized this was going to be quite the undertaking. We ended up spending the next several hours blowing up balloons, taping them into the shape of a pear, and covering them with strips of paper mache. Our end product was 12 paper mache pears, many of which I wasn't sure would make it through the weekend (Kim's dog likes to eat things he shouldn't). Anyway, the pears did make it through the weekend, and I returned to my home in Colorado Springs with them at the end of the weekend. After work Monday, my task was to paint the pears green. Let me make a side note here that this whole idea was one of the food service supervisor's, so each of my steps in making these pears were based on her suggestions -- not that this next part is by any means her fault. Back to my story... I go to the store to get spray paint for these pears and I find the perfect color green paint. I mean perfect. AND it was only $2.50. So I buy the paint, head home, and set up shop in the alley behind my apartment (I'm pretty sure I entertained a few people that night). However, when I start spraying, the paint barely covered the newsprint from the paper we had used. Who would have thought?! I guess I should have used plain old computer paper. I continued to spray all 12 pears, even though it wasn't working, and then I spent the rest of the night freaking out/contemplating what to do. Do I re-paper mache with computer paper? Do I buy A LOT more spray paint and spray to my hearts content? Do I buy heavy duty house paint? or Do I forget the whole project and give up? I only had Tuesday and Wednesday to figure it out because Thursday was the big show. After a day in the kitchen Tuesday, I decided I was just going to drop the money on having some paint mixed and go from there. Long story short, I found a paint sample of the same green color, had it mixed (for relatively cheap), and painted the 12 pears by hand. The next day I picked some sticks and leaves off the ground and attached them to my pears to look like beautiful real pears. And I must say, they look amazing!! The theme meal went off without a hitch, and my decorations seemed to be a big hit. Another project to cross off my list!!

Here's some pictures of my meal: "We Go Together" - a theme meal of famous pairs.


A close up of a my paper mache pear. Pretty good, huh?


The main display in the cafeteria where people get their trays. It's Sandy and Danny from Grease...this is where my inspiration came from for the theme meal - We Go Together.


a close up


a famous pair with a pear...get it?! I sure thought I was clever.


another famous pair


My other center pieces. There was no way I was making 54 paper mache pears.

part of the cafeteria

Johnny and June greeted people as they paid for their food.


one side of the salad bar...

and the other side.

The next three pictures are just more pictures of pairs hanging in the cafe...close up, so you can get a good look.
I hope you enjoyed reminiscing as much as I did when I made these decorations!

Children, Spring, and Blizzards

It's been quite a while since I've posted on here...mostly because I've been super busy. I had a week of Spring Break where I went to the mountains and went snowboarding. My parents came out and spent the majority of the week with me as well, so that was nice. The only mishap during this trip involved a pile of rocks (not covered by snow), my lungs, and my thumb. You may be able to piece this together, but...I was riding along, just minding my own business, and as I came over a little hill I came upon a patch of ground not covered by snow. Of course, my board stopped, but I didn't. So I face planted into the snow while my body fell on top of all the rocks. I got the wind knocked of me and also landed on my thumb, apparently stretching a tendon. At least the doc thinks it's only stretched and not torn. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

So after my break came to an end, I started my next internship rotation at The Children's Hospital in Denver. It's been a great experience so far. I spent one week with the Cystic Fibrosis dietitians and another week in the kidney center learning all about pediatric kidney failure and replacement modalities. One patient even came in for a regular clinic visit on Monday only to find out her name had come up for an available kidney! So she went into surgery to have a kidney transplant early the next morning. How exciting!! Unfortunately, the child wasn't putting out any urine after the transplant, so they were worried that the kidney wasn't working. A quick test later they found out that there was simply a leak between the kidney and the bladder and her urine was leaking. She went back into surgery yesterday, and now everything is working beautifully. It was really neat to see all that happen, and so quickly!! Tomorrow is my last day at Children's, and then I head back to the Springs for the rest of my internship.

Today, though, was quite an exciting day. I got up and went in to work like every other day, but this time the roads weren't packed with cars; I hardly stopped once for traffic. It was amazing! Ironically, that reality soon changed. There was snow expected to move in, and it definitely moved in! With real authority. Weather reports were looking really bleak, and I even got sent home early from work. After arriving at 8:30, I was told to go home around 11:30, and I'm glad I was. This spring storm had turned into a full blown blizzard. Snow was falling at a rate of 2" per hour, winds were gusting up to 40-50 mph, visibility was awful, and it was freezing! I was advised to stay off of highways and interstates because many were closed or backed up due to accidents. I-25 and I-70 (the two main interstates around the area) had large sections closed, and the radio reported a 30-car pile-up and other multiple car accidents. I've never experienced that in my life. So, needless to say, I went through town to get home, and it really wasn't much better. I didn't see any accidents, but the roads were extremely slick, it was pretty much white-out conditions, and the wind was out of control. I felt like my car might blow away! That's some intense wind. What usually is a half hour drive turned into an hour and a half drive, and it started out so smoothly. As I got closer to the main area of town, traffic picked up, but also slowed down...if you know what I mean. I think a span of 3 blocks took at least a half hour. We were crawling. Cars and semi-trucks were stuck on hills in the middle of town, and vehicles were sliding everywhere and landing in ditches. I even slid out into the middle of one intersection, but luckily it was just as the light changed, so traffic wasn't moving yet. I just backed up to get out of the way. It was the most intense drive of my life - no joke!! I was seriously scared. My windows were relentlessly covered in snow making it hard to see anywhere but in front of me, and the moisture on my windshield kept freezing every time I sat at a light. All I can say about that is I'm glad I got my wipers changed with my oil last Saturday instead of going snowboarding. It would have been absolutely miserable trying to drive across town with my old wipers. I really don't think I would have been able to actually. The Big Guy really is looking out for me, even in small ways. :o)

So that is a quick review of my past three weeks. Pretty exciting and eventful compared to my typical week. Hopefully I won't go as long before my next post. Have a good one, and stay warm if you're in CO!

I Wish I Didn't Have to Miss This

This weekend is the 30th Anniversary of my parents Sunday school class, the Couples and Families Class, and I really wish I wasn't 3 states away. This class has been the foundation for the person I have become, and the people in it are like my family. Let me explain...

When my parents moved to Springfield they joined the First United Methodist Church. Soon after, they found a Sunday school class that seemed to fit their needs; it was called the Couples Class, later to be called the Couples and Families Class. The name is pretty self explanatory, but just to be thorough - the class was made up of young, mostly newly wed couples, just like my parents. Most of these couples had either very young children or no children, and everyone was similar in age. My parents joined the class and quickly became good friends with everyone. Then, because everyone was around the same age and life stage, they all started having children and creating families of their own. And so the community continued to grow. With the challenges of babies and new struggles in their lives, the members of this class grew closer, and the children were wrapped up in the love and support of not only their own parents, but also all the other parents and members of the class. Then, as time would reveal, many of these children became best friends (two even got married!), no doubt due to the similarities in their upbringing and the community of faith and love in which they were raised.

I honestly feel that I was raised by this entire class, and every member of the class feels like my extended family. The influences of these amazing men and women (most definitely including my parents) have shaped me into the person I am today, and I am so thankful to have had that influence from birth. The examples set in regards to compassion, service, love, friendship, fellowship, fun, and commitment (to spouses, families, and every endeavor), among other things, is something I hold truely invaluable. I honestly don't know how to put into words how blessed and thankful I am to have been raised in this family of friends. I only hope and pray I can find a similar group in which to raise my own kids.

And I really wasn't kidding when I said many of the children (we're known as the Next Generation) became best friends. My best friend and my brother's best friend also happen to be brother and sister, and their parents are some of my parents' best friends. Crazy right?! And not only that, but many other Next Generation kids are my close friends and people I still stay in touch with today, even though I have moved away.

Here are some pictures of our families (the Solomons and Yerglers) on vacation or during random occasions in life:

Kim and me on our first play date to Lake Shelbyville.

Kim and me in the gondola at Keystone Ski Resort in Colorado.

Kim, her dog Cocoa, and me on our way from the lake house in Texas to Colorado.

Both of our families on a hike in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado.

Kim and me jumping on the trampoline one Sunday after church (a weekly tradition).

David, Adam, Kim, and me in a tree in Redwood National Forest in California.

Kim and me one Sunday at church.

The four of us on a beach in Mexico. (Are you starting to see why I said completely blessed?!)

The four of us at my high school graduation party.

Kim and me on top of a double decker bus in NY. It was a mother-daughter weekend getaway.

Kim and me outside our church after the wedding of another Next Generation kid.

Moms and daughters during a little going away dinner for me. I was leaving for a summer job with the Appalachia Service Project.

At Kim's college graduation party.

Christmas 2009


The rest are just some pictures to give you an idea of what fun things the people in this class do, and the amazing childhood in which I was raised.

They travel together (pictured in FL)

They have theme dinner parties, Christmas dinner parties, progressive dinners, and random dinner parties (often at the last minute just because). Here are some of the ladies at a Kentucky Derby dinner party.

They ski together - in Colorado...

...and in Utah (and they often bring their children!)

They go on canoe/float trips in the summer time down the Merrimack River. Here Kim and I TP'd our brothers' tent.

And we go on mission trips together. At least half of the youth group was made up of Next Generation kids.


Other fun activities include potlucks at the park, summer softball leagues, 3-on-3 basketball tournaments (back in the day), Superbowl and New Years Eve parties, working the Lemonade Shake-Up stand at the art fair, volunteering with habitat for humanity and other service organizations, men's and women's weekend getaway outings, trivia night fundraisers, scavenger hunts, and countless other spontaneous and fun gatherings, dinners, parties, barbeques, outings, etc, etc...

I couldn't have asked for a better childhood or upbringing had I been given the chance. Mom and Dad, I don't know how I can ever express to you or thank you enough for surrounding me with this community and allowing them to be a part of my life. To everyone else, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for choosing to be such a huge part of my life. Y'all mean the world to me, and I LOVE YOU!!

Happy 30th Anniversary, and enjoy your time together!!!

Just a Quick Reminder...

In case anyone forgets, a quick stroll down this street will remind them. How thoughtful of whoever left this message. :o)

Whew! What a Feat

I recently have been attempting 360s on my snowboard. Some go okay (I get about 300 degrees and spin the rest on the ground), but most end up with me in a pile on the ground. And this isn't soft snow I'm falling on. This is hard-packed landings off real jumps. So anyway, this past weekend I took a particularly hard fall, straight onto my hip, and the pain is lingering a bit longer than I would like. I must have really bruised myself good because anytime I sit down I get stiff, and standing up (without pain or soreness) is surprisingly challenging. Then today I noticed that the more I was up and walking around, the better my hip/butt area felt. So when I got off work at 2:30, I decided to go for a hike. Plus it didn't hurt that it was a GORGEOUS day.

I decided I would go to Manitou Springs and climb the Incline. This is a 1.02 mi. hike, STRAIGHT UP! No switch-backs to lessen the grade, just straight up. The Incline is actually the roadbed to the former Mount Manitou Scenic Incline Railway — a cable car that took people up the eastern face of Rocky Mountain to about 8,600' before shutting down in 1990. In its place now are thousands of steps (literally - I counted) that lead to the summit destination in which the old railway used to go. During the course of the hike, you gain 2,011 verticle feet of elevation, and the average grade is 41%. The steepest grade is 68%, and there are actually 2,723 literal steps that lead to the top (I told you I counted). Those actual steps are steps-up, not paces taken between a few of the steps. If you count paces taken to reach the summit there would be quite a few more. If those statistics sound scary, also take into acount that these steps are made of either railroad ties held in place by rebar or t-posts (used for fences), rocks, or plastic or aluminum drain tile, all of which is covered by loose gravel (and there are no railings). Take a look at some pictures I found of the Incline online:


This is just a little graph that illustrates the rise in elevation and grades of the hike.


The line apparent in the mountain in these two pictures is the Incline. Pretty vertical!



A view of the Incline as you hike it. Here you can see the railroad ties and drain tile that create the steps to the top. It's steep!


Two views looking back down the Incline. It was kind of scary! I only slipped twice though, and only one of those slips took me all the way to the ground. (Loose gravel and snow/ice aren't good for traction.)

Two more views as you would see hiking up the incline.

It was intense! I was breathing so hard, and multiple times during the hike up I felt like I was going to throw up my heart. It was pounding so hard it felt like it was in my throat and ready to pop right out. But boy was I happy when I made it to the top. That felt like quite the accomplishment. If I could do that two times a week, I would be able to hike all sorts of mountains without hardly breaking a sweat! Not to mention I would have a pretty killer backside and legs. I may just have to think about making this a regular thing. I'd also like to time myself next time. I think I made it in a little under an hour, but some people can do it in less than a half an hour. Those must have been the people flying past me on the way up. O well, it was only my first time, and I'm pretty proud of myself. I bet I'll be feeling it in the morning. My legs were so exhausted as I hiked back down they were shaking uncontrollably the couple times I stopped to get out of another hikers way. My legs usually shake or tremor (or whatever you want to call it) after a long day of skiing (not so much snowboarding), but never have they been that bad. This was a workout like no other!!