here are some pics that i would call epic... and the last one is a house built into a boulder... in boulder, co.
Thursday, July 31
epic
here are some pics that i would call epic... and the last one is a house built into a boulder... in boulder, co.
Monday, July 28
pink
there comes a time in life where morals are challenged. actually, i am pretty sure there are many times where morals are challenged.
now, i've debated about whether or not I should share this story so publicly. In fact, at one point i was sure that i wouldn't post it on the blog. but last weekend introduced a new dynamic and a happy ending to this life lesson, so ive decided that i'd like to share it.
what i ask for in return for my honesty is that you will read it all the way through. deal? k, good... lets continue.
there is a part of SMR (snow mountain ranch) that has remained hidden to most and left out of my posts this summer. you kind of have to be staff here... staff that live in the bays... in order to know that drinking is a huge part of "the bays culture." until this summer, i've never really been in proximity of people drinking... never went to those cliche parties with red cups... never had friends that got mixed up in that whole deal... never even saw it. after arriving at SMR and gaining a couple of friends, i've found myself submerged into the world of designated driving and hair holding.
yes, i've been offered a drink many times. yes, i've said "no" everytime, and no, they haven't given me a hard time or pressured me. it's nice to know they respect my choice.
but just because the peer pressure is absent doesn't mean that the temptation and opportunities are absent as well. i'm not saying that i've wanted to drink, i'm just saying that saying "no" is a lot harder than i thought it would be... especially when no one is even asking the question. the drinks are just there--it's not a matter of me just saying "yes" or "no." it's a matter of me deciding in my head exactly what i am or am not going to do. this whole thing hit me hardest about two weeks ago.
5 of us girls who live in the bays got together for a "girl's night" in order to say good-bye to the two of them who were leaving. it was good fun--ice cream, chocolate, stories... and then came happy hour.
out came the bottle of razz bacardi and the two litre bottle of lemonade. the question was asked of me once, and only once, and of course, i politely declined. once it was established who was drinking (them) and who wasn't (me), they pulled out the pink nalgene bottle--the goblet of choice for holding the one part razz bacardi and four parts lemonade cocktail (for the first round, at least).
once mixed, the conversation continued and the pink nalgene began to be passed around the circle of five... take a sip, pass it on... take a sip, pass it on... and then me... pass it on. i tried to play that pass off as if that nalgene didn't tempt me any more than a glass of V8 would. the pink nalgene then continued it's familiar course through the next four girls until it would get to me again. pass it on. another circuit, and it was to me again. funny how although the level of the cloudy mixture got lower with every round, but the level of temptation didn't. what was so tempting? here are the thoughts i found myself facing... in reality, a single sip would do absolutely nothing... in reality, no one but the four would know... in reality, nothing would change. and you know what? i stand by that. a single sip would do nothing... but who's to say that it stops at a sip?
anyhow, i left the room that night mentally exhausted... i wasn't sure how i had made it out without having a drink... i was almost positive that my first drink was coming out of that pink nalgene. what kept me from giving in? at one point in the night, i took a step back to look at the story i was finding myself in the middle of. if i drank, the story would be awful... the timing would be wrong, i'd be with all the wrong people, and the story would be filled with guilt and regret. when and if i do drink, i want it to be at the right time (21) and in the right place (with my closest friends... those i'd want to share the memory with). i walked away that night having learned a ton and lost nothing.
but the story doesn't end there. it wasn't until i was in michigan that this whole waiting for the "right time, right place" idea became a solid choice of mine.
michigan's adventure... as i've already said, it was a good time. it was really good, though, because i had a moment where i realized everything was going to work out just fine.
a group of us were sitting outside of shivering timbers waiting for the rest of the group who had gone on another random ride. we were all just sitting/standing around, and my roommate asked if i wanted to split a drink from the vending machine. being thirsty, i agreed. after going through the ordeal of getting the exact change for the machine, my roommate pressed the button for the pink lemonade.
do you see where this is going? well, if you don't, it's okay... you'll see how long it took me.
so we walked back to the group and opened up the bottle of pink lemonade. she took a sip, passed it to me. i took a sip, and as i did, others had asked for a sip as well. so the bottle of pink lemonade made it's way around our little group. just as the bottle was about to come back to me, it hit me. first, that God is hilarious and is the greatest story maker of all. second, that this is how it was supposed to be. i was with all my friends, having a good time. i watched the pink bottle go around, looked at all my friends having a good time, took note of how stress-free i was, and realized how at home i was. the words "this is how it's supposed to be" just kept ringing through my head. when i looked at the pink bottle of pink lemonade, the choice became so easy for me. that moment was exactly what i needed... and i still laugh that it was pink lemonade... i think God knew that i'd get excited about a connection/symbol like that.
anyhow, so since i've been back, the choice has been easier. i just think back to that bottle of pink lemonade and remember what i realized at that moment. it really is huge for me... and it makes me super happy that i've been able to discover for myself the challenge of sticking to my morals and the reward for knowing exactly where i stand and why through a learning experience.
i guess as i grow up, the content on my blog does too.
realize that it wasn't an easy choice to put this on here (especially since it is pretty much straight from my journal), but god made it so story-esque that i knew it had to be shared.
well, tootles for now.
now, i've debated about whether or not I should share this story so publicly. In fact, at one point i was sure that i wouldn't post it on the blog. but last weekend introduced a new dynamic and a happy ending to this life lesson, so ive decided that i'd like to share it.
what i ask for in return for my honesty is that you will read it all the way through. deal? k, good... lets continue.
there is a part of SMR (snow mountain ranch) that has remained hidden to most and left out of my posts this summer. you kind of have to be staff here... staff that live in the bays... in order to know that drinking is a huge part of "the bays culture." until this summer, i've never really been in proximity of people drinking... never went to those cliche parties with red cups... never had friends that got mixed up in that whole deal... never even saw it. after arriving at SMR and gaining a couple of friends, i've found myself submerged into the world of designated driving and hair holding.
yes, i've been offered a drink many times. yes, i've said "no" everytime, and no, they haven't given me a hard time or pressured me. it's nice to know they respect my choice.
but just because the peer pressure is absent doesn't mean that the temptation and opportunities are absent as well. i'm not saying that i've wanted to drink, i'm just saying that saying "no" is a lot harder than i thought it would be... especially when no one is even asking the question. the drinks are just there--it's not a matter of me just saying "yes" or "no." it's a matter of me deciding in my head exactly what i am or am not going to do. this whole thing hit me hardest about two weeks ago.
5 of us girls who live in the bays got together for a "girl's night" in order to say good-bye to the two of them who were leaving. it was good fun--ice cream, chocolate, stories... and then came happy hour.
out came the bottle of razz bacardi and the two litre bottle of lemonade. the question was asked of me once, and only once, and of course, i politely declined. once it was established who was drinking (them) and who wasn't (me), they pulled out the pink nalgene bottle--the goblet of choice for holding the one part razz bacardi and four parts lemonade cocktail (for the first round, at least).
once mixed, the conversation continued and the pink nalgene began to be passed around the circle of five... take a sip, pass it on... take a sip, pass it on... and then me... pass it on. i tried to play that pass off as if that nalgene didn't tempt me any more than a glass of V8 would. the pink nalgene then continued it's familiar course through the next four girls until it would get to me again. pass it on. another circuit, and it was to me again. funny how although the level of the cloudy mixture got lower with every round, but the level of temptation didn't. what was so tempting? here are the thoughts i found myself facing... in reality, a single sip would do absolutely nothing... in reality, no one but the four would know... in reality, nothing would change. and you know what? i stand by that. a single sip would do nothing... but who's to say that it stops at a sip?
anyhow, i left the room that night mentally exhausted... i wasn't sure how i had made it out without having a drink... i was almost positive that my first drink was coming out of that pink nalgene. what kept me from giving in? at one point in the night, i took a step back to look at the story i was finding myself in the middle of. if i drank, the story would be awful... the timing would be wrong, i'd be with all the wrong people, and the story would be filled with guilt and regret. when and if i do drink, i want it to be at the right time (21) and in the right place (with my closest friends... those i'd want to share the memory with). i walked away that night having learned a ton and lost nothing.
but the story doesn't end there. it wasn't until i was in michigan that this whole waiting for the "right time, right place" idea became a solid choice of mine.
michigan's adventure... as i've already said, it was a good time. it was really good, though, because i had a moment where i realized everything was going to work out just fine.
a group of us were sitting outside of shivering timbers waiting for the rest of the group who had gone on another random ride. we were all just sitting/standing around, and my roommate asked if i wanted to split a drink from the vending machine. being thirsty, i agreed. after going through the ordeal of getting the exact change for the machine, my roommate pressed the button for the pink lemonade.
do you see where this is going? well, if you don't, it's okay... you'll see how long it took me.
so we walked back to the group and opened up the bottle of pink lemonade. she took a sip, passed it to me. i took a sip, and as i did, others had asked for a sip as well. so the bottle of pink lemonade made it's way around our little group. just as the bottle was about to come back to me, it hit me. first, that God is hilarious and is the greatest story maker of all. second, that this is how it was supposed to be. i was with all my friends, having a good time. i watched the pink bottle go around, looked at all my friends having a good time, took note of how stress-free i was, and realized how at home i was. the words "this is how it's supposed to be" just kept ringing through my head. when i looked at the pink bottle of pink lemonade, the choice became so easy for me. that moment was exactly what i needed... and i still laugh that it was pink lemonade... i think God knew that i'd get excited about a connection/symbol like that.
anyhow, so since i've been back, the choice has been easier. i just think back to that bottle of pink lemonade and remember what i realized at that moment. it really is huge for me... and it makes me super happy that i've been able to discover for myself the challenge of sticking to my morals and the reward for knowing exactly where i stand and why through a learning experience.
i guess as i grow up, the content on my blog does too.
realize that it wasn't an easy choice to put this on here (especially since it is pretty much straight from my journal), but god made it so story-esque that i knew it had to be shared.
well, tootles for now.
Tuesday, July 22
how it's supposed to be
So here is an abundance of pictures from the bestest weekend of the summer. I flew in to ohio on Thursday, and we spent Friday and Saturday night in Grand Rap. On Saturday, a group of us headed out to this place called Michigan’s Adventure… pretty much one of the coolest places ever.
You have to understand that it has been a long while since I’ve been to a theme park with hard core coasters… I think knott’s berry farm my freshman year of highschool would be the last time. And you also have to understand that until this past weekend, I believed that I hated roller coasters… absolutely hated them.
Well, turns out things have changed, and I was wrong… cause the first thing we did when we arrived to michigan’s adventure was make our way to Thunderhawk… the new coaster in which your feet dangled and in which you experienced all sorts of twists, turns, flips, and drops… and I LOVED it. It pretty much set the tone for the rest of the day, because we ended up doing other sweet roller coasters… like the two wooden ones, Shivering Timbers and Wildcat.
The cool thing about Michigan’s Adventure is that it is also a water park… so we did a bunch of water slides and what-not as well… and the lazy river (I love the lazy rivers).
It was a blast… the whole weekend was just so great… it was awesome getting to see and hang out with everyone… I’ve missed it quite a bit. When I got to Ohio, I was reminded of the amazing fireflies (which, I caught my first one with the help of my roomie’s siblings…), of the warmth (and humidity), of the sweet thunderstorms at night (there was a sweet one driving back to Grand Rap from the theme park), and of the fact that being out there just felt so at home for me. While at my roomie’s house, we had a little fun with the waterproof camera in her pool… I haven’t laughed that hard in a while.
We even stopped by calvin while in grand rap to check the progress with the construction on the fieldhouse… and to our pleasant surprise, we found that NVW was having major renovations… the four of us (sarah, Carolyn, Lindsey, and me) are all third noorderwierians, and so when we saw that our basement was being re-done (complete with a solarium that connects the two sides of the basement), the lobby was being re-done (complete with a fireplace), and the entrance was being re-done (complete with fanch shmancy brickwork), we were super stoked.
To be honest, It was really hard to leave there and come back to Colorado. I’ve got 41 days til I go back there (yes, I am counting down, no matter how lame that is) and it seems entirely too long.
So, here are a TON of pics from this weekend… there are a ton more, so if you would like to see the complete collection, go to the following links…
http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=50162&l=2247a&id=542566513
http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=50163&l=dd4ae&id=542566513
that’s it for now… but stay tuned for a post entitled “pink” and for a post about fireflies… I’m kind of excited for them.
(PS. those are fireflies... one of which i caught!)
Monday, July 21
weekend trip
sorry for the delay.
i know i promised a good post a couple of days ago, but considering i haven't had my laptop with me, i think that's a good excuse. in fact, i am still not back to my laptop, so this won't even be the post.
but it will be the precursor to that post.
the exciting thing was that i flew out to ohio on thursday morning. i'll be leaving this afternoon.
i flew out for a couple of reasons... one, i just had to see all my friends out here ("out here" meaning michigan, indiana, ohio)... and this weekend was the perfect time to do that because a friend of mine from grand rap was having a birthday bash where everyone was getting together and going to michigan's adventure (a theme park like knott's and raging waters mixed together). so, with a little bit of help from my friends, we managed to be sneaky and surprise carolyn (the gal whose birthday its was) with me showing up to the grand rapids... it was a good surprise... very unexpected. it's easy to pull something like that off when you're supposed to be in colorado but show up in michigan.
anyhow, so i've been out here for a bit, and to be honest, i am really reluctant to go back to colorado, but it has to be done... especially because my parents are flying out to colorado this thursday... so they'll get to see me in action at my job... cause its going to be busy. we had 5 people on staff in my department leave this past week... that's about half our adventure staff.
so
when i get back to colorado, i'll put up my abundance of pics for y'all to see.
til then, i encourage you all to watch this youtube video called "censored count"
if you can't handle something slightly inappropriate, don't watch it... but i figured, we're all adults here. plus, it doesn't actually say anything bad... it's all in your mind... and it's sesame street... so how bad can it be?
i have a feeling this is going to come back to get me.
whatever-- i'll risk it.
have a good day.
i know i promised a good post a couple of days ago, but considering i haven't had my laptop with me, i think that's a good excuse. in fact, i am still not back to my laptop, so this won't even be the post.
but it will be the precursor to that post.
the exciting thing was that i flew out to ohio on thursday morning. i'll be leaving this afternoon.
i flew out for a couple of reasons... one, i just had to see all my friends out here ("out here" meaning michigan, indiana, ohio)... and this weekend was the perfect time to do that because a friend of mine from grand rap was having a birthday bash where everyone was getting together and going to michigan's adventure (a theme park like knott's and raging waters mixed together). so, with a little bit of help from my friends, we managed to be sneaky and surprise carolyn (the gal whose birthday its was) with me showing up to the grand rapids... it was a good surprise... very unexpected. it's easy to pull something like that off when you're supposed to be in colorado but show up in michigan.
anyhow, so i've been out here for a bit, and to be honest, i am really reluctant to go back to colorado, but it has to be done... especially because my parents are flying out to colorado this thursday... so they'll get to see me in action at my job... cause its going to be busy. we had 5 people on staff in my department leave this past week... that's about half our adventure staff.
so
when i get back to colorado, i'll put up my abundance of pics for y'all to see.
til then, i encourage you all to watch this youtube video called "censored count"
if you can't handle something slightly inappropriate, don't watch it... but i figured, we're all adults here. plus, it doesn't actually say anything bad... it's all in your mind... and it's sesame street... so how bad can it be?
i have a feeling this is going to come back to get me.
whatever-- i'll risk it.
have a good day.
Wednesday, July 16
lucy and tippy
well, this may come as a shock to some... but we have a new addition to the family. this little brown ball of fur has joined the family and has become a new friend for tippy.
this is lucy... she's shitzu pomeranian mix. and as you can see by tippy's extreme lean away from lucy, he's still adjusting to her.
i think they make an adorable couple... and she makes tippy look big... but she is still just a puppy.
that's it for tomorrow... but tomorrow, i'm positive i will have a super exciting post... so do check back.
Saturday, July 12
up to no good
what better thing to do after eating at mad munchies than to sneak into a playground at night and have some fun.
this picture of us hanging down... well, that would be me and allison... a junior at calvin who has an almost identical background when it comes to the greek and lebanese blood. for some reason, people have a hard time telling us apart... so, she gets called cristina and i get called allison at least twice a day. it's kind of ridiculous. our own supervisor has to take a few seconds before saying our name. anyhow, she's super cool (as are all greeks) and we had a blast on the playground tonight.
these parting shots would be our epic escape... from imaginary cops. we're kind of dorks... especially because if you look closely, the gate right to the right of us is open... hence the following picture.
Wednesday, July 9
boulder and buffalo bill
so i've got some more pics for ya... i went to boulder again on monday... we had some good fun. on the way back, we stopped by buffalo bill's grave... fascinating.
work has been very busy lately... especially with operation purple camp here--a camp for kids who have at least one parent in the military. the kids range from 6-11. all i can say is that after a day like yesterday where i was left with no voice but still an incredible urge to run to the top of a mountain and scream at the top of my lungs, i know for sure that i am just not cut out to work with that age group... at least, facilitate and lead things with that age group... i just can't do it. i get too frustrated too fast. i was so stressed by the end of the day that i had to go off and do some laundry at 9pm to cool off and distract myself.
anyhow, since i am on a lunch break, i will be quick and go through some highlights:
1. capture the flag--staff vs guests. it was a blast. i think it was my best game... you see, i usually end up being the one that gets people out of jail... i rarely go for the flag. i had five jail breaks... all of which left me incredibly winded. i was so sore the next day.
2. i am now certified on the perch for the zip line (bottom pics). so instead of always working the ladder or belay, i will now be working up top. good fun.
3. slacklining... a new hobby of mine (pics in last post). basically tight rope walking. so much fun... i was also sore from that.
4. movie recommendations: in theatre... wall-E... go see it, it's good. on dvd... just friends, definitely maybe, benchwarmers... all of them, hilarious. i say go for just friends first... you will not regret it. i haven't laughed that hard in a movie in SO long... non stop laughter.
5. i've realized that i have become that random worker that shows up in everyone's family vacation photos and videos. it's funny to think about... people will be looking at photos or watching videos, and there i will be, and they'll just be like, who's that? oh ya, that girl that worked there. i think it's funny.
6. new stories, new experiences everyday... far from uneventful, and i've been keeping busy (more like my supervisors have been keeping me busy).
7. as if my circus act couldn't be any more complete, i am now a balloon artist. that's right. never done balloon animals in my life, and i got put in charge of balloon animals for the 4th of july carnival. what i am about to say is no exaggeration... from 9:30am to 3pm... balloon animals, non-stop... 5 minutes to eat a sandwich real quick, but otherwise, non-stop. i did over 100 balloon animals, and only popped 5. some of the craziest requests... dragon with wings, frog, butterfly... easy ones: wiener dog, horse, cat, monkey, bunny (aka... i rock at those undistinguishable four-legged animals that can be anything with a little tweaking and a little imagination.
that's about it for now... i still haven't managed to get a couple of really good stories out on the blog yet, but i promise, they will come.
enjoy the pics.
work has been very busy lately... especially with operation purple camp here--a camp for kids who have at least one parent in the military. the kids range from 6-11. all i can say is that after a day like yesterday where i was left with no voice but still an incredible urge to run to the top of a mountain and scream at the top of my lungs, i know for sure that i am just not cut out to work with that age group... at least, facilitate and lead things with that age group... i just can't do it. i get too frustrated too fast. i was so stressed by the end of the day that i had to go off and do some laundry at 9pm to cool off and distract myself.
anyhow, since i am on a lunch break, i will be quick and go through some highlights:
1. capture the flag--staff vs guests. it was a blast. i think it was my best game... you see, i usually end up being the one that gets people out of jail... i rarely go for the flag. i had five jail breaks... all of which left me incredibly winded. i was so sore the next day.
2. i am now certified on the perch for the zip line (bottom pics). so instead of always working the ladder or belay, i will now be working up top. good fun.
3. slacklining... a new hobby of mine (pics in last post). basically tight rope walking. so much fun... i was also sore from that.
4. movie recommendations: in theatre... wall-E... go see it, it's good. on dvd... just friends, definitely maybe, benchwarmers... all of them, hilarious. i say go for just friends first... you will not regret it. i haven't laughed that hard in a movie in SO long... non stop laughter.
5. i've realized that i have become that random worker that shows up in everyone's family vacation photos and videos. it's funny to think about... people will be looking at photos or watching videos, and there i will be, and they'll just be like, who's that? oh ya, that girl that worked there. i think it's funny.
6. new stories, new experiences everyday... far from uneventful, and i've been keeping busy (more like my supervisors have been keeping me busy).
7. as if my circus act couldn't be any more complete, i am now a balloon artist. that's right. never done balloon animals in my life, and i got put in charge of balloon animals for the 4th of july carnival. what i am about to say is no exaggeration... from 9:30am to 3pm... balloon animals, non-stop... 5 minutes to eat a sandwich real quick, but otherwise, non-stop. i did over 100 balloon animals, and only popped 5. some of the craziest requests... dragon with wings, frog, butterfly... easy ones: wiener dog, horse, cat, monkey, bunny (aka... i rock at those undistinguishable four-legged animals that can be anything with a little tweaking and a little imagination.
that's about it for now... i still haven't managed to get a couple of really good stories out on the blog yet, but i promise, they will come.
enjoy the pics.
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