Quack

I remember being this little girl, who loved barbies and dolls, and liked to play house and make believe. There was this moment in my life when I specifically remember a thought I had: I dreaded the fall because my mom, my sister and I spent Saturday's at University of Oregon Duck football games. I was a little girlie girl who didn't want to spend my whole weekend at a sporting event. They were sometimes rainy and cold and they would take all day! I mean, really, 4 hours for one game?? Does that seem right?
With that being said, I don't think I ever complained about going to the games, it was always what we did as a family. It's not like I hated sports either, I played them myself but maybe my attention span didn't last 4 hours. At that time, there was so much space in the stadium with plenty of room to roam where I could entertain myself with toys and such and not pay attention to what was going on in the middle of the field.
It didn't take long for me to get hooked on the love of the game, and to get hooked on being a duck. Always and forever. I must have been 8 or 9 when that happened. Then the Rose Bowl. 94-95, Danny O'neil, Penn State, the Rose Bowl Parade, Rich Brooks, Chad Cota and Ricky Whittle and of course Kenny Wheaton (Been there, Done that, and Yes, I did just by the T-shirt titled "The Pick").
I have been a loyal and proud Duck ever since. I have been supportive in good times and in bad, ups and downs, disappointments and miracles. And I always stay until the end of each and every game.
Today is the day we know for a fact that we are going to the BCS National Championship. I am "O" so proud (no pun intended). We have been fighting for this for years and it has finally come. No matter what, I will always support the Ducks. I am just so happy we made it.
Thank you mom, for moving to Eugene, for being a season ticket holder for 20 years, and for taking me to the games. I can think of nothing else I would rather do on a fall day than to go to a Duck football game.

Om . . . unification of mind, body and spirit

I use yoga to create peace from within. To meditate on a mantra and to dedicate my practice to something or someone.
Tonight, since the moon was unbelievable over the weekend, we finished our practice with moon salutations, beginning with tadasana, mountain pose, to utanasana . . . focusing on the beauty of graceful movements and of quiet, even breaths.
We focused on prana . . . our life force. Our chi. Feeling its current.
This is a place where I feel grace.
And this is a place I call my own.

You know you're in the south when . . .

I went to the North Carolina State fair this past weekend and what did I see? I saw an extremely wide array of fried foods:

Fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Fried twinkies.

Fried oreos.

Fried mac n' cheese.

Fried candy bars.

Fried cheesecake.

Tex mex chili, mixed with cheddar, covered with frito chips, dipped in batter, and deep fried.

Lastly, chocolate covered bacon topped with sprinkles.

Unbelievable. I'm not sure I agree with this culture and neither does my stomach. Or my arteries for that matter.

The House on Mango Street

I was reading this and I couldn't help but like this excerpt . . .
"Sally, do you sometimes wish you didn't have to go home? Do you wish your feet would one day keep walking and take you far away from Mango Street, far away and maybe your feet would stop in front of a house, a nice one with flowers and big windows and steps for you to climb up two by two upstairs to where a room is waiting for you. And if you opened the little window latch and gave it a shove, the windows would swing open, all the sky would come in. There'd be no nosy neighbors watching, no motorcycles and cars, no sheets and towels and laundry. Only trees and more trees and plenty of blue sky. And you could laugh Sally. You could go to sleep and wake up and never have to think who likes and doesn't like you . . . nobody could make you sad and nobody would think you're strange because you like to dream and dream. And no one could yell at you . . . without someone thinking you are bad . . . without the whole world waiting for you to make a mistake when all you wanted, all you wanted, Sally, was to love and to love and to love and to love, and no one could call that crazy." (Cisneros 82-83).

the best magazines to have around the house . . .

if you want my opinion the best magazines to have around the house are:

national geographic (my favorite. i especially enjoy the beginning of the magazine with the short one page excerpts on "fun facts" if you will.) there world is an intriguing place my friends.

the new yorker (all around quality. i like the short stories, and the literary criticisms, not to mention the cartoons.)

rolling stone (i read through one the other day, and i thought is deserved to be on my list. it provided more information than i expected)

cooking light (i'll always look for new recipes)

i can remember the moment i fell in love . . . with music

i can remember the moment my ears heard the brilliance, the creativity, and the pure talent . . . "ants marching" was playing on the cd player of my cousins car as he picked me up from a middle school dance heading to yet another memorable family function. the night is seared in my brain as the unveiling of my favorite band: the unforgettable dave matthews band.

you may wonder why i am bringing up a memory from 10+ years ago. well let me tell you this: for the first time in my life i finally was able to see dave matthews band live. yes my friends west valley utah was the place to be on august 17th 2010. i was caught up in the excitement and the anticipation that tears filled my eyes the minute they graced upon the stage. the music was unbelievable. they came out playing 3 tracks from their newest album and then one of daves solo album pieces, and then "crush." the first note of the base gives that song away and it was beautiful and then boyd tinsley comes in with his violin that gave me goosebumps. every song is perfected by every musician standing on stage. no mistakes, never flat, and yet spontaneous at the same time.

that night also marked the night of a debut song which has never been recorded and never been played live titled "write a song"

another very special moment was when dave stood alone with his acoustic guitar and played "needle and the damage done" (originally by the ever amazing neil young) in remembrance of leroi moore (their most talented and loyal saxophone player).

in those two hours i was elated. i could sing with every song and dance with every fiber of my being and the greatest part was the fact that the entire band loved it as much as i did. they all had smiles on their faces and every now and again dave matthews himself would bust a move and it made me so happy. every minute of it. i also must mention the fact they ended the set with "ants marching"

i hope every person in that crowd appreciated it as much as i did because i love music . . . it soothes my soul.

obituary

my last assignment in my lifespan development class was to write our own obituary. i'm not sure if this assignment pertained to nursing but it had to be done nonetheless.
some of us had trouble with this assignment but death is going to be a large part of my job and personally i have never had trouble talking about it. i wrote about what i had accomplished in my life: traveling adventures, work opportunities, a future family, a loving and lasting marriage, friends and family with whom i would spend my time with and lastly, the effect i left on people.
since i've written my obituary i have been thinking about it ever since.
what affected me the most is a fear of being forgotten. im not the kind of person who wants to leave a legacy behind. i don't need to make a name for myself or be known throughout the world etc. i think about it on a more personal level. i wonder about the people i am around daily, i think about who i am affecting now. i like to think in little ways i influence people. i think about how i can portray goodness and joy and naturally, without words, show all i believe in. it's not about being forgotten, it's about being memorable.

the book of mormon

the other day i heard a knock on my door . . . i thought to myself yeah! a visitor! to my surprise i met 2 boys on their mission. i always felt bad because i am sure they get enough slack going door to door. and im sure sometimes it hurts, personally.

they vocalized a summary of their beliefs and asked me a couple questions and i answered honestly. here is the kicker: they asked if they could come back, and i said ok. i figured, they would just keep trying and if i were home, id be there and if not, i would catch them later; however, we scheduled a meeting.

they came back two days later. i don't mind talking, discussing beliefs. i am thoroughly interested and frankly, they always get such bad criticism i wanted to form my own opinion. maybe i will call this an "identity moratorium." im exploring . . . no commitments. im not exploring my options for identity sake . . . im exploring my options to form my opinions. i think it is perfectly legitimate.

they were very nice and they were respectful. i had questions, and they answered honestly to all of them (they even said i asked good questions). they've made a commitment in their lives i respect and they deserve to share that. i felt comfortable expressing my own thoughts and i also felt assured they were not there to convert me. i think that is why i agreed to talk with them, i knew it wasn't about conversion, it was an opportunity for them to talk, to have a voice, to be a mode of expression.

i'm a "yes" girl. i say ok and yes to a lot of things. is it good or bad? i don't know. but saying yes has giving me life experiences, given me adventure, given me opportunities, given me joy, given me sadness, given me freedom, and given me conversations that expand my horizons. i call that life. "and God said 'it is good'" and i do believe him.

the end of an era

it's one thing to say you love your parents . . . it's another to say your proud. i must admit, willingly, i am proud of my dad. today is the day his world will cease to revolve around his restaurant. today is the day he is closing the doors and no longer "pounding schnitzel" for those of us eagerly waiting to eat. any guest walks in that place and ponders what to get. should i get schlipkrapfen? always!!!!! should i get mama stiegler, with the incredible, edible vegetable root sauce? well, since it comes with spatzle . . . always!!!!! should i get extra cream spinach? always!!!! should i get tartar? oh man . . . always!!!!!! (that recipe was in the paper by the way . . . one word: special). onto desserts! should i get apfel strudel? with rum sauce? a la mode? always!!!! should i get reisauflauf? what is that? not sure?? can't pronounce it? get it . . . always!!!

blood, sweat, and tears went into that place day in and day out for almost 27 years. it is the end of an era people! and it's brutal for me to think it won't be there.

i used to visit my dad as a kid and to spend time with him i would go to "the restaurant" and help him cook. my main duty: an entire 5 gallon bucket full of apples and me, myself, as a 10, 12, 15 year old had to core and slice them all. i was pretty slow . . . three hours later, my dad would take over and finish with great ease, and quickness, 10 entire loaves of apple strudel. he is my favorite chef and i got to admire his every move, everyday at work with him as a kid.

here's to you papa. please know i am not the only one who absolutely loves and adores your restaurant. it is a very special place for many. and thank you for the reassurance you will still cook for me . . . i am holding you to that promise.

biking time

i forgot how much i liked road biking. today the weather sparked the desire to head to campus via "half and half." for those of you who don't know my road bike is called "half and half" because two springs ago i crushed my old bike by leaving it on top of my car and driving into my garage. Needless to say the fork was bent in enough to require an entire new frame. As a result my new bike is half new and half old which equals, if you do the math correctly "half and half."
to get back to biking, today i ventured on the 5 lane road to campus and it went well. i made it in a mere 15 minutes and it was freeing. i guess all those bike rides in jackson paid off. i can do 15 minutes before class easily and here i thought it would be a work out :) now it is simply an easy mode of transportation. which makes me happy. i forgot to mention my bag held a pharmacology book and my lap top which didn't seem as heavy as it did at first. my plan was to do homework on campus; unfortunately, the school website is down for the entire day due to maintenance and i don't know what the reading is and it is impossible to find out without the school website. so, another lazy day . . . what an excuse ;)

highlighter's

do you know what i forgot about when it comes to school? i forgot how fast highlighters run out of ink. no joke, i bought 4 highlighters: pink, orange, yellow, and green . . . and i only have one left. the orange. i ran out of the green one first of course, because i liked that one the most.

trends in chapel hill . . .

i think the most interesting part about moving to a new area are the trends . . . the differences in clothing, people, habits etc. here are my thoughts:
the first trend i noticed were these moccasin type shoes. i guarantee 1 out 10 women wear these shoes. i couldn't believe it. i'd never seen them before and now i am in another town and everyone seems to know what they are. i didn't think i was that out of it. they are actually pretty cute but i searched online and couldn't find them. im guessing they are not under anything titled moccasins. if you know what these popular shoes are called please let me know :) i asked a girl i have class with and she said she calls them boats . . . i take it she doesn't really like them, especially since they have become such a trend.
second, i can't help but notice how much people munch on food in class. do you know when i noticed this?? the first day. i went to class at 8am and one girl at 8:20 started digging through her plastic bag and munching all throughout the class. i don't mind, but her plastic bag was really loud. i then went to the next class at 10:30 and that same girl was digging through that same plastic bag and munching some more. every two minutes i heard the krinkle of the plastic bag. after that class it was time for lunch, so i did my thing, ate, rehydrated etc. went to class at 1-4 and that same girl was snacking through that same plastic bag. i mean really? what's interesting is everyone is snacking on something by the second class. i see a banana, i hear a wrapper, i see granola bars, i see chips, raisins, cranberries, and drinks, and yadda yadda yadda. i'm not used to it, but today, i did bring snacks and ate them during break :)today, i noticed the first girl i mentioned earlier, she had a plastic bag poking out of her backpack. i wonder what was in it. . .

apartment visitors

do you know what the greatest thing about living in an apartment complex is? girl scouts!!! in my opinion, using apartment complexes is the most efficient way to sell something . . . this "door to door" idea is not such an inconvenient thing. the doors are very close together.
i just bought 2 boxes of thin mints and they are coming soon!! funny thing: the form i filled out looked identical to what i used to use when i sold girl scout cookies :)

Hurdles

i am feeling overwhelmed and ironically school has yet to begin . . . here is the break down:

it took me roughly 2 years to get here. i was taking classes and trying to get into schools (plural) and it felt like i was jumping through hoop after hoop after hoop.

praise the lord, and thankfully, i was accepted to UNC; however, since then the hoops have multiplied and the hurdles have raised several inches. i had to get this done, and have this titer taken, and buy these many thousands of books etc. in addition, once i arrived here i came to the realization my communication with the school was not up to par. living in wyoming and communicating only via email i missed several very very important details that needed to be completed before i matriculated into the program. for instance, hopefully my background check processes immediately otherwise i cannot begin school. secondly, i have to take a class i have already taken. much to my disappointment, humiliation, and additional stress i reviewed the syllabus and it entails almost identically the exact same processes and ideas i have already studied. by the way, the professor is new and has already stated this class is mostly online and we will hardly ever meet. frankly, i took this class online and now i am paying four times as much to do it again.

i guess, i am nervous enough about the rigorous program and i had hoped i felt a little more stable and secure entering into it. i need to gain a rhythm and a schedule so that i may feel successful and on my way to completing this journey and not failing miserably.