I'm Running a Marathon

I think I have a fear of turning 30. Actually, I know I have a fear of turning 30.

What else would have lead me to sign up for the Marine Corps Marathon the day before I turn 30? Because nothing else says "happy birthday" like running 26.2 miles, right?

I did actually put a decent amount of thought into it - I was looking for a race, either a  half or a full, and nothing was fitting in my schedule. Then an opportunity to run on a charity team came up, it fit in my schedule, and it did seem like something cool to do for my birthday.

Bonus: I'll get to see D.C.! While running myself to death, of course, but look at the route!

Wish me luck - I'll need it, as training was going great until last week. I've had to do a lot of mental adjusting from a slow, but respectable time of 5 hours, to a much slower goal of just finishing. (Thanks hip flexor for always being there for me! Or not!)

Catching Up

It turns out grad school, planning a wedding, and working 20-30 hours a week makes one fairly busy. But this summer, all I have is 20 hours of work. There's so much I'd like to do, including writing more (and editing what I have written.)

I figure a general update would be a good first "to do." I've borrowed the format from my friend Natalie at Little Things, Big Stuff.

Cooking: Lots of food. Since I'm working on the less than the 20 hour average, I've taken care of the food most nights. I made Balsamic Quinoa (essentially this recipe from The Pioneer Woman) and it was a smashing success recently. I'd make it again in a heartbeat, and it's easy to switch to vegan.

Drinking: lots of water, with all this running.

Reading: I just finished Love is a Decision and The Total Money Makeover. I just started Grace Filled Marriage. All of these were books we were given at our wedding. I'm hoping to get more books in (and not all marriage themed!)

Wanting: to accomplish a lot this summer. In an ideal world, I'd find time to do all the house stuff I've taken on (because I have the most time,) work, train for another half-marathon, edit my book, blog, read a book a week, cook, get ahead on school reading for the fall, and generally ease into married life. Somehow I don't think that's going to all actually happen.

Wasting: way too much time in the mornings. I generally wake up when B does, but I lay around, unless I need to run before going into work. Once he's gone, I again, spend more time doing little productive.

Enjoying: even more BBC period dramas. I basically finished Land Girls, and I just started Island At War (which I've enjoyed a great deal.) Thanks Netflix!

Loving: our deck. Our apartment is tiny (all told, probably only 300 sq. feet.!) But it comes with a long deck the whole length of the house we rent from, and it's covered by the roof and the upstairs deck, so we can sit out there every evening.

It started pouring as I wrote. There's a mountain behind all that.

Learning: how to be married to an extrovert. Okay, well, maybe not always loving it - for instance, we have VERY different ideas of an ideal Saturday morning. But it's new, and we're learning about each other. So it's still wonderful.

Hoping: that we make wise decisions now, primarily finically, so we can do all the things we want to do in the future (pay off our loans, buy a home, adopt, travel, etc.)

Needing: to be more graceful, with myself and with my husband.

Smelling: lots of rain. It's rained almost every evening or afternoon this past week - usually briefly.

Feeling: contented.

An Introverts Dilemma

To be honest, I handle constant being "on" better than I used to. I used to need alone time at least once a month. But since I started grad school, and more specifically, since B moved out here, I don't think I've had one day completely off. Which makes it 5-6 months, depending on how you count it. And to be honest, I didn't need one in a "I'm going to break down in a pile of tears and snot" sort of way. It was more of: "I haven't had a day completely OFF from everyone in a long while. That would be nice."

I searched the calendar for a time when that could actually be scheduled, an act that proved futile. Here's the problem with being engaged, but not living together yet (and I supposed being busy with work and school): when we aren't doing work/school things, we make the time to hang out with each other. And my semester is currently so busy, I wasn't really willing to sacrifice those times together.

However, the weather cooperated in my favor: we got dumped on yesterday and today. School/work was canceled after noon yesterday, and canceled all day today. Just the 24 hour break I was looking for.

Friends invited us to hang out last night. I wasn't completely unwilling, but I was already in sweats, and fairly set on at least the afternoon and evening by my lonesome, as I assumed B would want to get home to shovel the drive and wouldn't leave after that. I was faced with a bit of dilemma - hang out with friends who are likely moving in a few months, or continue into my introverted cave? Fortunately, everyone was fairly understanding (and given the roads, we probably made good choice to stay put for the night.)

B ended up having to work today, despite really wanting a snow day himself, so I went out and brought him Thai food. I'd been home alone for the 24 hours I needed, so I was ready to be "on" again. I don't need the breaks as much as I used to, but I still need them, occasionally.

Our Wedding is a Microcosm of Globalization

Two American kids with primarily German and English heritage are getting married.

Two American kids with primarily German and English heritage are getting married in a Greek Orthodox Church.

Two American kids with primarily German and English heritage are getting married in a Greek Orthodox Church by a Trinidadian-American priest.

Two American kids with primarily German and English heritage are getting married in a Greek Orthodox Church by a Trinidadian-American priest, who usually leads an Orthodox church with Russian roots.

2013 Books

This years book list ended up a little on the short end - let's blame Grad School! Technically, I did read more than this, but I decided not to include any school books on here, even the short ones that would appeal to a wider range of folks (See Generation on a Tightrope). You'll also notice something interesting happened towards the end of the list, lots of book about Orthodox Christianity and marriage. Whoops! Didn't see that coming!

Here's what I read in 2013:

Food, farming, and faith / Gary W. Fick. // Nothing revolutionary, but it was nice to read someone have the same thoughts on food as myself.

Gold diggers: striking it rich in the Klondike / Charlotte Gray // This was a random library find, but ended up be completely fascinating. It also made me feel like a slacker.

Bold Spirit: Helen Eastby's Forgotten Walk Across America / LInda Lawrence Hunt

Prairie Fever: British Aristocrats in the American West / Peter Pagnamenta // I'd hoped to like this as much as the Klondike book, but it was a snooze-fest.

The Winter harvest Handbook / Eliot Coleman // So good. Get if you have any interest in gardening. I don't say that about many gardening books.

The Orchardist / Amanda Choplin // A good, heartbreaking novel. Read it.

The Last American Man / Elizabeth Gilbert 

A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains / Bird

Travels with Charley / John Steinbeck // Steinbeck became my most read novelist this year, though this one isn't a novel. I dare you to read and not get a case of wanderlust.

Facing East / Frederica Mathews-Green 

Eastern Orthodox Christianity / Daniel Clendenin // I'd recommend this book over the Ware book if you have a mild interest in Orthodoxy. A much gentler, accessible intro.

Mastering the Art of Marriage / Fa. Constantine Nasr

The Orthodox Church / Timothy Ware

The Accidental Farmers / Tim Young // And here's my most hated book of the year, in right before the New Year!

*I've also included a few Amazon Affiliate links, but only to the books I really, truly enjoyed.

Merry Christmas!

Sweet friends, near and far: Merry Christmas & many blessings in 2014!

North Carolina Hunting Laws

This is not a falcon. But if we had one, we could hunt possum.

There's been some research on our part (and when I say "our", I mean someone else's part) as to hunting license requirements in North Carolina. Upon finding out that only bow and falcon hunting are allowed on Sundays, the following conversation transpired.

Me: Because Jesus wouldn't hunt on Sunday.
B: No, he'd hunt with his falcon.

One Year

It's been one year since I moved to Montana - one year a at new job - one year away from an amazing group of friends - one year further from my family than I've ever been.

I learned that:

• I'm really good at program planning (or, re-learned that - I think I knew that in college.)
• I dislike basement apartments
• I like smaller towns
• How to write grants
• I like designing infographics
• I am perfectly okay spending a good amount of time by myself
• However, I still need community (But that community/friends like I had in DSM take time.)
• How to ride my bike with no hands.

What I'd do differently:

• Try more churches - I only visited three throughout the year, settled into one, and then never really felt like I had a part there, and eventually just gave up all together
• Have more of a stable morning routine - especially when the churches fell through - I read for a while, and that was lovely, but then I fell out of that. I think living above ground will help with that again.
• Write more - I had plenty of free time this past year, and I could have spent much more time writing. Now that grad school is looming, I wish I had more time to write (non-academically.) It's one of those things that will continually be pushed to the side for other life priorities, and I wished I'd utilized my time this past year a little better - as in, did I really need to watch all of Doctor Who? (Yes, yes I did. But none-the-less, I still could have written more.)

What I'll miss:

• No humidity
• Dry snow
• The climate controlled basetment
• No mosquitos (in the valley - they're terrible in the mountains, so I must be specific.)
• Bluebird days
• My co-workers, who gave me so many opportunities, challenged me and taught me so much about non-profit and community work.

Don't you worry Montana, I have a strong feeling that I'll be back after this next adventure. We're not done with each other yet.

A Matter of Perspective

A tree almost fell on my car yesterday. Apparently while I slept, snug in my basement, quite the wind storm blew through, and when I awoke, I couldn't even see my car.

After a small heart-attack, I could see that nothing was broken, as the trunk fell no more than ten inches away from the back of the car, and I calmed down. The rear was mainly covered by smaller branches, which did no damage.

While I was loading up the car later in the day, someone drove by and said I should buy a lottery ticket, I was so lucky.

Later on I was telling someone else what had happened, and she said "Of course it's your luck that a tree would almost fall on your car." (And for tone, it was negative.)

I found the two perspectives completely hilarious.

As for me, I chose to be thankful.

Laughter

Today was a hard day.

I've had to make a lot of big decisions lately, and none of them have been easy. And they've all impacted other people too, in some way or another. If I didn't have so much work to do, I honestly might have taken a mental health sick day. But I pulled my chin up and went in.

I'm glad I did. And not just because I always feel incredibly guilty taking sick days unless I'm on deaths doorstep. I'm glad I did because I got to play with some of the best kids on Earth.

To be honest, one of the few things I've ever been certain of is my desire to be a mom. I want a family. Everything else I wanted has always been up in the air. While there are multiple things going on that are making me a little sad, one of them is a frustration that comes up every once and a while: I am not a mom. 

So to continue on with today: I went and played with my kiddos at the University. It's not a secret that I really love the Tuesday group. While there are more tears (these kids range from age 3-6) there is also a lot more laughter. And it was just what I needed today.

Happy Easter!

I celebrated by going on a hike and enjoying creation in 60 degree weather (nevermind the piles of snow on top of Mt. Baldy.)

How did you celebrate?

Bozeman vs. Des Moines, Part Deux

Beer:
Bozeman: Montana has the 2nd highest brewery per capita in the nation (I think that's the right stat.)
Des Moines: Peace Tree. And way lots more bars not filled with college students.

I suppose I'm comparing two different things here. I love all the craft and local brews in Bozeman and in Montana. Every bar has something local on tap, and there are two brewery tasting rooms within walking distance of my house. I don't think I ever went to a brewery in Des Moines (though apparently in the mere eight months I've been gone, at least two have opened up.) I'm sure there are a few, I just never went.

But, I like the bars more in Des Moines - primarily the ones with patios - El Bait Shop and in between the Royal Mile and the Muse. Or The Lift. There's more, though then I get in to restaurant range (The Continental, for example) and then things really start to get confusing. It just seems much more casual in Des Moines, and much more college student filled in Bozeman. I just haven't found a bar that I would want to hang in for very long, minus trivia night at Colonel Black's, but that's really just because I'm a nerd.

Winner: Beer - Bozeman, Bars - Des Moines

Coffee Shops:
Bozeman: Lots. And home of way too many drive through stands in parking lots.
Des Moines: Mars Cafe. Need I say more?

This is actually a hard one for me to judge - I rarely drink coffee. So I have to judge more on atmosphere, and what I do more frequently drink: Chai lattes. The Rockford here in Bozeman has amazing Chais. And I like Zocalo a lot, primarily because they do something human right related with money (clearly, this is very important to me.)

But I miss Mars and Zanzibars. Mars is one of the few places I will actually get something coffee based on occasion.

Here's what my Bozeman friends on Facebook said (minus Jill, who was confused.)

Winner: Seriously, don't ask me.

Music Scene:
Bozeman: If you like bluegrass/folk, there's something for you (which, I do.)
Des Moines: There's venues! And some national acts!

I never thought I'd tire of bluegrassy/folk music, but if I stayed in Bozeman, I could see it happening. But we do have this great event every Thursday during the summer called Music on Main. Main Street shuts down in the evening, and there's a different band playing every week. (And free beer, if that's your thing.) I'm looking forward to that once summer is finally here again.

Des Moines can actually attract some decent bands, and some really big shows too. I was always too cheap to go to most of it, but I did listen to Spoon once from my porch. I think the biggest thing here has been Yonder Mountain (hey look, another bluegrass-y band!) Not that there's a problem with that.

Winner: Des Moines

Des Moines vs. Bozeman

As I have been here in Bozeman for eight months now, I would like to offer some comparisons between Bozeman and Des Moines. I think I may have done something similar when I first moved here, but that was probably a bit rash.

Size:

Bozeman: 37,000+

Des Moines (proper): 250,000+

I suppose this depends on your perspective, is more people better, or worse? I like the size of Bozeman, it's a nice size enough size (especially with the University) so that I don't feel like I live in the boonies, but it's still small. Des Moines is also a nice size, offering more diversity (of all stripes) because of said size, but it's still a small enough city that there are plenty of opportunities. 

Winner: I call this one a wash. I like both.

Food:

Bozeman: The best food I've had is at the Co-op sandwich bar. It was delicious.

Des Moines: La Mie. Zombie Burger. A Dong's. Centro. The Cheese Shop. Anywhere with sushi.

To be fair, I don't eat out much in Bozeman, my budget doesn't really allow for it. But  what I have had, hasn't been all that impressive. Minus that sandwich from the Co-op - that was amazing. But there are many days when I miss La Mie something fierce.

Winner: Des Moines - easily.

Biking:

Bozeman: On an average two mile commute, I'll see anywhere from 10-20 bikers

Des Moines: On an average one mile commute, I usually would see 1-2

This is also a hard one to decide. I think the college here, and being in a much smaller town influences the biking culture a lot. It's a huge part of it, and there seems to be a lot less push back from non-bikers. But does that make it a better biking town? There are very few paved trails here, so I'm almost always in a bike lane or on the road. 

Winner: It's also a wash.

Architecture:

This is hard to compare as well, Des Moines has more distinguishable neighborhoods with historic significance, but Bozeman does much better at making their new homes interesting, instead of cookie-cutter copies of each other. Not that I still want to live in a new home; but at least they look interesting. 

Winner: Wash.

Weather:

Bozeman: Summer and Winter

Des Moines: Four distinct seasons

Fun fact that I didn't realize when I was young - EVERYONE says "If you don't like the weather, just wait five minutes." I thought it was just a midwest thing. Nope. Everyone says it. It's weather. It changes.

Now Bozeman does have four seasons, but from my experience, and what has been confirmed by folks who have been here longer is that Spring and Fall are pretty short. Plus, there are a lot less trees that change colors here as well as maples. So Bozeman lacks a super beautiful fall. HOWEVER, it has the best summer. People complain when it hits 90 during the day - which, I suppose is warm. But when there's no humidity, and it cools off to 55 every night, so no houses have air conditioning, and I just moved from Iowa where it's over 100 degrees during the day, well, I think it's fabulous. As are run-on sentences.

As for the winter in Bozeman, I would say the only difference is that its longer than Des Moines. And dryer. Which really does make a difference - I can just brush the snow off my car and go. Shoveling? What's that? I can just brush it away with a broom. Naturally, this is brutal on my skin, but easy-peasy for snow removal purposes.

Winner: Depends on my mood. And the season. Bozeman wins summer. Des Moines wins for complete seasons.

Scenery:

Bozeman: Four miles to the mountains from my door step.

Des Moines: Rolling hills. Sometimes.

Don't get me wrong, I love the plains of the midwest, and appreciate their beauty. But MOUNTAINS. So much more epic.

Winner: Bozeman.

Soil:

Bozeman: Alkaline soil

Des Moines: Nice soil.

I won't get into it too much, because it's really, really nerdy. But I didn't know how good I had it gardening in Des Moines.

Winner: Des Moines

Shopping:

Bozeman: No sales tax

Des Moines: Variety

No sales tax is nice. I'm sure there's more variety in Des Moines. But I don't shop much either place. Though Bozeman does have some amazing thrift shops, thanks to the University.

Winner: Today, I'd say Bozeman. But, meh.

So, there's my point-by-point analysis. Are there other things I should compare between the two?

Procrastination

I should be working on work. But it's 9:30 at night, and even my passion has limits.

So I'm enjoying Josh Garrels.

And a mug brownie.

I've prepped for my next grad school interview, but I have not prepped for the eventual decision making I feel coming my way.

I am looking forward to: a third weekend in a row of hosting friends, nordic skiing, and some amazing potato and red onion pizza I made.

And now I really must go design some giant posters.

This Week

While I was home, almost a month ago now, someone (ahem, a Miss Julia Lovan, who I will say doesn't exactly frequently update her blog either,) suggested I should update my blog more, even if it's more photos.

Well. I don't have any photos for you. But it has been a good week, so I thought I would share what I was up to this week.

Sunday:
I finally made it back to church after checking out a few others in town, and not liking them any more. Afterwards, I went on my first "long" run of four miles. Soon, I'll be wishing for the days of four mile runs as a long run.

Then, Vista potluck, where all three new vista's came. There was baked brie. And fried rice. And way too much food. We played a few rounds of Bananagrams and then watched Downton.  I then finished off the day with a phone call. An all-around nice Sunday.

Monday:
The heat broke over the weekend at work, so after our staff meeting, I headed out to work from home. Everyone else has tiny offices that they could shut the doors to and turn on the space heaters, but as I work out front in the main room, there was no way to get warm. And I've got to admit, I loved working from home, with no one calling the phones, or walking in. I drank raspberry tea and got my stuff done, while wrapped in a blanket.

That evening, I went to my Master Gardener class up at MSU, where we talked about Botany! And plant reproduction! And roots! Iowa was name dropped, so my heart was happy.

Tuesday:
The heat was still broken at work, but I ran errands in the morning and then moved into my boss's office when she left. I only had to sit in the office for a bit, and then I headed up to MSU to run our program we're doing up there with my crazy three and four year olds.

It all went much smoother than the first week. Most of my kiddos returned and everything felt much more on target, I guess than the first week. I also was much less exhausted afterwards and managed to go for a run.

Wednesday:
The heat was still out at work. But either it really was warmer in the office or it was Stockholm Syndrom, because it didn't feel that bad. Either way, it was fixed by the afternoon. And really, I'm thankful the heat didn't break the week before when the temperature was hovering around zero.

And, as for the "Big Questions" (aka, What are you Doing After July?) - I still haven't made a final decision, but I have eliminated an option: I won't be staying in Bozeman. I love my job, and that is honestly the hardest thing to give up, but I have confidence that I can find something similar that I love. I am pursuing a few things in Des Moines (perhaps with the Y there, and I'm applying for a different Americorps postion) as well as keeping grad school in North Carolina an option. (I should know if grad school continues to be an option next week.)

So, nothing finalized. But one less option.

Thursday:
Busy with lots of fundraising stuff at work. It's almost a month until the dinner and auction, so we are on the hunt to actually get those auction "yes's" into our hands.

I then went off to MSU to spend time with my crazy-in-a-different-way kiddos (second and third graders this time.) Every single one returned from the week before. And again, I went to bed with my heart happy. I really love getting to spend time with these kids each week.

Oh, and I fit in a run. Whew.

Friday:
Oh, hi there! It's a day when I feel like I can look cute, because I have no sports to teach, no run to go on, and I'm freshly showered.

I was busy with more fundraising stuff and working on our summer guide, which I'm in charge of, and I have a week and a half to finish up.

I started listening to The Lone Bellow, because of several friends mentioning them. They're good. If you like folksy/country-ish music, I'd recommend them. (Side note: this might be the nearest to its release date that I've ever listened to a new band. Wow. I feel so on it now. Thanks friends for telling me about it.)

It apparently was "Free Food Friday" or, I suppose also, as one of our swim coaches called it "Fat-Ass Friday." We had pizza donated by a local radio station, as the "non-profit of the week" and then I went to a Mexican place in Belgrade with the CEO and her son, which was shockingly good for the combination of Mexican and Belgrade. And she treated. And I came home with a whole uneaten pizza. Whew. It's a good thing I'm running again.

Saturday: (Today)
I slept in until 8:30. It did actually feel great. Shortly, I'm off to help with child-care at Project Homeless Connect. After that, I will likely do my long run of five miles, since it will be warmer today than tomorrow.

After crashing from the run, I don't have much on my agenda, though I've had cravings for cinnamon rolls lately, so I might start a batch of those for Sunday.

This all ended up very long, and probably not all that interesting to...well..anyone. Happy Saturday all!

Planning

I want to have a farm and grow food, have my own sweets business, have my own food truck selling fancy grilled cheeses and soups, write a novel, get a graduate degree, work with college students and work with kids, live near mountains, and take care of my parents.

I mean, really, that's not unrealistic in the least, is it?

Two Completely Unrelated Things.

I received the cutest birthday gift in the mail today.

It's a fake piece of cake. Amazing.

The best part is, this is literally how it was mailed. No box, just one side stamped.


In unrelated facts about Montana: it is expensive to buy a house here. As in, the state as a whole, but even more-so in the Bozeman area. Not that I'm anywhere near buying a house. But it does cross my mind, especially when I'm feeling rather, how do I say it...directionless? in my life.

A house that I really want in Des Moines:

Just down the street from my old house. Big yard, garage (a rare thing in Sherman Hill,) a shed, two beds and one bath. All for $100,000. It's a little cozy square foot wise, but trust me, after this apartment, I wouldn't mind. It really is a super cute house.

You know what $100,000 could get me in Bozeman?

Well as far as I can tell, nothing. If I get outside of Bozeman, I may find something close to what I could afford, like this place for $145,000. (I'd do that.)

But actually in town? The best I could find was this condo at $119,000.

Uh. No thanks.

So for those of you who are worried that I might just stay in Montana forever: Don't worry too much. I don't want to rent the rest of my life. And unless I meet a rich cowboy real soon, I won't be able to afford anything but rent.

Why I'm a bad blogger

Writing a blog, unless it's specifically about say, cats, requires an honesty and openness that I just can't muster.

This Was a Lazy Saturday

I had brunch at some new friend's house. I was full until 6pm.

I picked up my room, and put everything away.

I swept and vacuumed.

I did some dishes.

I finished watching Ken Burn's documentary - The National Parks: America's Best Idea.

I read a chapter and a half from "Designing and Managing Programs."

I then promptly fell asleep.

I texted a few friends running marathons tomorrow, once I woke up, wishing them good luck.

I wrote a letter.

I half caught up on She Reads Truth.

I did some story editing.

I did a little mental planning for a new story.

I emailed about a future post-Americorps job idea.

I planned a hike for tomorrow.

I attempted to solidify birthday camping plans. I didn't really get anywhere.

I looked up recipes for bagels.

I looked up ideas for healthy, cheap breakfasts. Cereal is expensive, and I guess not that great for me.

Not bad for a lazy Saturday. And now, because "Designing and Managing Programs" is an instant insomnia cure, I shall read some, and go to sleep.

A Montana Moment

I had the most the most Montana-esque moment last night when invited over to an acquaintances' house for burgers.

1. The directions (she lives out of town) included: "look for the large stump mailbox to turn at" "if you see the monkey on the motorcycle, you've gone too far" and "our driveway is about half a mile long." 

2. I had to open and shut two gates just to make it through said driveway, dodge grazing cattle (and cow patties,) and cross a wooden bridge.

But the burgers were amazing.