Long Time No Blog

Well, it has been over a month since my last entry. Apparently blogging has not been a priority. Things have been quite busy in the meantime. Mary's wedding was a blast. I had such a great time, and am so glad I was able to share in such a special moment. I wish them all the happiness in the world.

Work has been brutal. People have been yelling at me for a couple months now, and its all starting to take its toll. It has been subsiding now that I am trained a little better. But, as with any job, you will always have a few cranks in the bunch. With Thanksgiving coming up, I must admit that I am thankful to at least have a job in this tough economic climate. I will be running the Turkey Trot with some family and friends this Thursday. GOBBLE GOBBLE. We were going to do costumes, but as is life, we were too busy to get it together. Regardless it will be a good time, and a great workout to prep for some holiday feasting.

I have submitted my pharmacy school applications, and all I can do now is wait and pray that the admissions committees like what they see. The deadline is Dec. 1 so hopefully I will hear something soon after. I have been getting quite nervous though. I have been looking for back up plans and have found some extremely interesting graduate programs that I would be happy to apply for if I was not offered a spot in one of my pharmacy schools. But, lets cross our fingers that I don't have to worry about that.

Living at home has been a bit lonely, I haven't had time to make friends like I thought I would. I have made a few, but haven't really had time to get out with them. I guess its probably for the best if I will be moving in August, but I really miss my old life and my friends that go along with it. We keep i touch, but I cant wait to head out to Colorado in a couple months and see everyone again. Hopefully my next entry wont be so far from now, but what can I say? I'm a busy girl!

Survival Run

This evening I tried to run out at Swiss Valley nature preserve. What I remember as a nice 2 mile loop with hills and flat stretches through fields was nothing of the sort. Because of all of the rain that Dubuque got this summer, the trails were washed away, bridges were missing, and parts were still a bit flooded. First I tried the way I though was right, but thought that there was no way when I saw the flooded plain. So I tried another, but after running for about 5 minutes, I realized the trail wasn't going to be turning around anytime soon. So I went back and braved the swampland. After treking through giant mud puddles and running up a rather large hill, I realized that that too was the wrong direction. So again I braved the swampland. While running, I somehow managed to get a bug right in my eye. And how it burned. I was almost immobilized. It was starting to get dark and I realized I needed to get back to the car. With a watering eye, and muddy shoes I kept running. When I got back to the point of frustration, which was already midway through the 2 mile loop, I realized that the bridge leading to the right path was missing. So, I made my way across the creek. Somehow I managed to leap across and keep myself dry. The once smooth, grassy path, was rocky and uneven. Finally I made it to the woods and found the all to familiar hill that 4 years ago had kicked my butt into walking the rest of the way to the car. But not today. I kept going because I was starting to get worried. Yes, I had my pepper spray bracelet, but you never know if anyone or anything is in the woods. And then a deer darted across the path in front of my scaring the crap out of me. Thats when I really took off. And when I made it back to the car, I was so relieved, because then it started to sprinkle, and I realized that if I had screwed around any longer looking for the right path, I would have been stuck in a rainy dark swampland in panic mode. Lets just say, I will not be revisiting that trail until next summer when they have a chance to make some repairs.

Sick Weekend

Well its been quite a while since my last entry, but I have finally started working and trying to get myself into a routine. Since Carson and Madison have been back at school, I havent had much to do during the day but unpack, run, and watch tv. With no money, and friends with jobs and school, it gets old pretty fast. Its great not feeling so useless. I've started working at the pharmacy, and my coworkers have all been great so far. Pretty welcoming and helpful. All I've been doing so far is counting pills, but this week, I get to move on to some more thought stimulating areas. I have also been working for the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the suites. That should turn out to be good money, and the girl I work with is pretty cool. Nothing too exciting happened this weekend, since I've had a pretty bad cold the entire time. Madison's birthday was Friday, and poor girl, mom was in Minneapolis, Carson got to go to the Wisconsin Dells with a friend, and Nicole and I were working. Just her and dad for her birthday. But luckily, sick or not, I was able to stay with her for the rest of the weekend. Yesterday while she was at a friends party and I got to veg on the couch the impossible happened. Spice World and Austin Powers were on tv!  Aside from that, nothing too exciting happening yet. We have family coming over tonight for Maddy's birthday, so maybe that will be eventful. Or not, but there is potential. New work week starts tomorrow.

Settling In

Getting settled isn't quite as easy as I'd anticipated. Partly because I don't want to be settled in, and also because my time is being bombarded by the rest of my family. Yes, its exciting for Carson and Madison to have me back, but I think they really underestimate just how long I will be here this time. We had a fun weekend though, and I would have rather spent it with them than cleaning and unpacking. This morning I finally got my lazy butt out for a run. It felt great, aside from some knee pain. When I got home I was determined to get some work done on my room so I decided to pump some Enrique. Well, that was a failure because I ended up booty shakin around my room instead. Time for a new plan of attack I suppose. I will let you know how it works out.

The Move

I made the big move Friday and Saturday. I made it to Ames an hour earlier than expected. I think the fantastic CD that Sarah made had me zoned out and cruisin along. But somehow I feel like  I stopped for gas much less than normal as well. Its like an hour of driving and a tank of gas just disappeared somewhere along I-80. When I got to Ames I stayed with Mary and Trevor, which was fantastic because it has been so long since I had seen them. All of this wedding talk was getting old on the phone and computer. I needed some real face time. Bridesmaids dresses have been decided on as well, and I am excited to wear it. Luckily she chose lapis, a color I can wear pretty darn well if I don't say so myself. But we didn't spend too much time with wedding stuff, and just hung out and had a good time. Watched some YouTube videos, drank some beer, tried to play f the dealer. It was great to finally sleep in a real bed again. Although it did take a while to fall asleep because I was too comfortable after spending the last month on an air mattress, Vegas excluded.

The drive from Ames to Dubuque was a bit brutal. It rained the entire way, and my windshield wipers are not the greatest. But as I entered to house I was "greeted" by my two golden retrievers. My legs are still scratched up today! Then came the family and we had a nice lazy day watching Rango and Rio. I had never seen either, and am already thinking about when I will watch them again. Rango isn't the greatest movie for kids, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Rio, is just wonderful for everyone. And of course I enjoyed it more when I realized that Nigel, the bad bird's voice was done by Jermaine from Flight of the Conchords. Fan-freakin-tastic! Now today I will spend my morning unpacking and doing laundry. Until after lunch of course when we get to go water skiing and jet skiing. Time to get my butt moving so it doesn't take two weeks to move in!

Last Weekend in Colorado

Friday night we had my going away party. It was a cowboys and indians theme, that turned out to be a cowboy bar crawl. We all looked pretty good, and started at Jenny and Jess' place with some champagne and pink flamingos. We started at Connor O'neils and did some dancing because they had a live band. That was the meeting place for everyone, but we ended up moving on to the Sundowner before most of them could get to us. I hate the Sundowner, but didnt want to go too far, otherwise I didnt think Beth and her crew would find us. Then we hit the Pub. Thats where I lost track of the evening. Too many goodbye shots and drinks were given to me at that point and the rest becomes flashes. But at least I didnt get too emotional.

Saturday night we did the Denver Patio Ride. It was absolutely fantastic! It is a 16 person beer bike that takes you to several bars in downtown Denver. We went to matchbox, the retro room, and 1up. At the Retro Room, we had their signature shots, the dill pickle shot. WOW, it tasted like pickle juice, but was pure vodka. DELISH! Taylor of course looked like he was going to cry, because he hates anything that includes vineager. 1up is a pretty cool bar as well. It is an arcade bar, and it has so many of the games from when I was little, and when my parents were in high school. It even has ski ball and giant jenga. When the ride was over, we tried to do the bars downtown, but since we had started so early, we headed home around midnight. But not without stopping at Tom's Diner for a french toast milkshake. Heaven in my mouth. Since we lost most of the group slowly throughout the night, I never hit an emotional moment. As long as I keep telling people I will see them again before I go, I avoid the actual goodbye until the very last moment.

denverpatioride.com

CHIPPENDALES

I have decided to give these very special men their own post, because they are just so wonderful. The Chippendale's, aside from the creepy looking one, are ungodly hot. Their bodies are sculpted to perfection. And honestly their performance is so amusing, and lets face it, HOT, I really don't care if any of them are gay or straight. They are amazing performers and deserve some true recognition. On my previous Las Vegas adventure, we saw Thunder From Down Under... Chippendale's WIN. Saturday night could have been one of the most entertaining nights of my life thus far. Jenny, Sarah and I, drunk off of our signature drink, The Pink Flamingo, were not prepared for the awesomeness that show would throw at us. Not only were they amazing, but Jeff Timmons, from 98 degrees was the emcee!? What?! That was a surprise! You always kind of wonder what happened to all of the more obscure members of the boy bands. Well, Jeff Timmons, in my book, you have succeeded. Also, not to sound too creepy, but I got his shirt. That's a highlight in my world, especially since he was my favorite 98 degree when I was a little teeny bopper. Of course we paid the $20 to sit on their laps and take our pictures. You would have to be crazy not too.

Since we had to pregame quickly, and rush over to see our beloved Chippendale's, we ordered delivery on the cab ride back to the flamingo, and returned to the room for calzones and more pink flamingos. Sarah almost didn't make it out, be we forced her. We went to Chateau in the Paris Hotel to see RayJ, but realized how lame it was and left before he came out so I could get my roulette on. I only lost $20! Pretty legit for playing about an hour on a $10 table. Jenny had never gambled, so on the way back to the room, we hit the slots (Sarah was in bed). We chose a Lord of the Rings themed machine, complete with creepy sound effects and vibrating chairs. Bizarre to say the least. But we played our dollars, and since neither of us really understand how slot machines work, we went back upstairs. We burnt out a little earlier the second night, which was probably for the best because we had an 11.5 hour drive ahead of us in the morning.

Sunday morning, hangovers in check, we headed out of Vegas and about 14 hours later, after several food, gas, and melon stand stops, we made it home. The stand still traffic on Vail Pass also didn't help, but we made it safe and sound, and pumped for the next trip!

Las Vegas

This weekend, I took one of the greatest trips of my life. How we didnt think that it was a good idea to do this before now is beyond me, but it was amazing. We left Boulder Thursday night and had an interesting run in when we got to Grand Junction. Of course we took the most difficult route possible to find food. After a good 20 minutes of trying, we almost decided on a place called Weinerschnitzle, until of course we saw the pictures on the drivethrough menu, then we booked ass out of there as fast as possible. Luckily, we found a Village Inn about 2 seconds down the road. Total redemption for our almost Weinerschnitzle mistake. Something creepy about Grand Junction: we saw 4+ old ladies walking around with carts/bags alone, at 1am. Weird, and unneccessary. We finished up the drive in Green River, Utah. Nice little Holiday Inn Express, although the sheets felt extremely worn, and kind of gross. Sleep was needed, so we got over it pretty fast. The next morning we hit the road and passed through canyon lands. Beautiful!

We made it to Vegas around 1pm, and went straight to the Fashion Show Mall. Stupid name, great stores. I guess it all evens out. We got some good jewelry, some coffee, and then we were able to check in at THE FLAMINGO! Great deal, great location, and a lot of pink. What girl could resist? Jenny had never been to Vegas, so we did our lap around the strip, and got the giant Eiffel Tower margaritas from the Paris Hotel. Delicious, yet total gut bombs. After about half we felt like death and had to dump them out. We saw the strip and thought dinner would be wise...umm not when the portions are 4x larger than a normal portion. We powered through, and to the room to go out. With the help of our giant champagne bottle, we got the night going and headed to The Bank in the Bellagio. Almost immediately we were creeped on by some guys that didnt understand what we were doing when we continuously inched away from them. Surprise, maybe we wanted a girls weekend, and didnt want to be humped across the dance floor. Soon after, we were invited to join some men who had a table reservation and bottle service. Of course we were going to join them. Free drinks in Vegas will save you near $100/night! We got our dance on for a while, the headed out and had a little playtime in the Bellagio garden. Jenny had never seen it, so we had too! Of course we ended up licking the Liberty Bell. Who wouldnt?If I knew how to rotate the picture, I would. Sorry.

To continue our evening, we met some French men on the moving sidewalk, and they convinced us to come and check out The Cosmopolitan. The Cosmopollitan is beautiful, with crystals hanging everywhere. Its like a magical wonderland. But lo and behold who did we see there? JOHNNY DRAMA! I heard that familiar voice and looked around. And there he was! I started yelling, "Jenny! Jenny! Hurry up! Its JOHNNY DRAMA!" It took her a minute to realize what was happening, and then she saw him too. Now, we kept our distance because we arent much of celeb chasers. But Drama is only the second best character on Entourage (a mon avis), second only to the great Ari Gold. The rest of the night is a bit blurry, but I dont think we stayed out too late, because Jenny lost her feet and we werent about to send her back to the hotel alone.

The next morning: Death Hangover

But, we did go the The Sugar Factory for breakfast and it helped a bit. Probably my favorite restaurant in Vegas. But really, $22 for a lolipop with a bedazzled stick...Really? I dont care about Kim Kardashian, therefore, I dont care if she has a picture of herself eating one of the lolipops. The Flamingo pool could be better. The amount of lounge chairs was a bit pathetic. We ended up paying  $20/chair to sit, with no view, no eye candy, and the smell of vommit. Do you think that helped the hangovers at all? NO. But the pool was refreshing, and it was nice to have some time in the sun, so we stuck it out until I felt like I would vom in the pool. Redemption by nap. Then we went and ate, and realized if we were going to make it to Chippendales on time we had better get our butts moving. For the speedy pregame, we made our signature drink of the trip, and now, forever because it was delish!

 Pink Flamingos:

Vodka, Gingerale, and splash of Cranberry Pomegranite Juice

(But only a small splash so you can get the lovely pink color)

Prep Work

Today is going to be a day of preparation. Preparing for our trip to Las Vegas this weekend, and preparing for the big move. Now, yesterday we hit a bit of a crisis on the Vegas front. Beth, who was led to believe she would have the time off at work for weeks now, was informed that she could not have the day off, and if she called in, to not return on Monday. Now what kind of company does that? Waits 3 weeks to inform you that you cannot have the time off, only several days before the actual trip. If they had already known, they should have given notice, because things are booked, and also her heart was totally in it. What can I say, we are all upset to lose her, and I am hoping she leaves that miserable place anyways.

Why do I want my friend to leave her job? Three reasons:
1) She is working as a legal aid for a tax firm, but studied marketing, and has no real interest in tax law.
2) A certain coworker irritates her endlessly to the point where she has been job hunting for weeks already.
3) Now that her mentor, boss, and friend completely sold her out, the bitterness will fester until she absolutely cannot stand being there any longer.
Yes it is selfish for me to say "quit your job and come to Vegas", but, in all reality, she will be miserable if she skips the trip and stays with that job. We are 22 years old, the perfect time to make mistakes. Financially speaking, she needs to have an immediate job lined up. But, we will see what she decides to do.

Other preparations needed outside of our little crisis:
Oil change for the alero, groceries, pedicure, and a few payments of the credit cards. Not too much for Vegas, but I think that getting my things a bit more organized to move is essential for today. As for now, its time to run the canyon so I don't have a jiggly bum in Vegas.

Muddy Buddy

Yesterday Jenny and I did the Boulder Muddy Buddy. It was amazing! I started out on the 1.3mi run and climbed over the first obstacle (wall with climbing pegs). Then biked another mile to the next obstacle, the marine assault course, a crazy inflatable obstacle course. When I went to run the next leg I found myself trudging through waist deep water before starting another 1.3mi run to the four different 4' walls that needed to be cleared. I then got on the bike again and rode to the next obstacle where Jenny was waiting for me to do with her. We climbed to the top expecting to slide into a pool of Noodles and Co's largest noodles, only to find the pool filled with pool noodles and no water. Pretty disappointing on that obstacle, not quite advertised properly. Also, after trudging through the lake, sliding wasnt quite the easiest thing to do. I then started on the last leg of the race. Another 1.3mi run to the finish. But before we could complete the race, we had to go through the water, drop off the bike, climb a rope to the top of the 20' wall, climb back down, and crawl through the 50' mud pit. After crossing the finish line, we ran into the Boulder resevoir to clean the mud off. Then, to the Noodles and Co. stand for some free mac n cheese, and then to the beer garden for some free Red Hook beer.

Even after we got home and showered, we were still finding mud everywhere. Do I feel bad about the mess? Not at all. This was one of the best ways to spend some of my last weeks with some of the best people I've ever known. Will I see Jenny again? Of course, we are already planning when we will do our next Muddy Buddy and where. But, even before that we are gearing up for the Disney Princess Half Marathon in February. I cant worry too much about leaving my friends, because we already have plans set up in the upcoming months for when we are going to get back together. Running, although I may not be the greatest right now, has been a great way for us to lock down plans, and replace our heavy drinking habits of college life.

Night Out

Last night, after some frustrations, Beth and I went out on Pearl Street. We decided to pregame in the form of our sophomore year tradition: shots of vodka chased with grape kool-aid. Yummo. But, what was so easy, and went down so smoothly three year ago, seemed a bit more harsh now. After several, we decided to save money and walk to the sink. I love the Sink, I love the people that work there. Always a familiar face. After hanging with some of them for a while, we headed down to Pearl St. and went to Bacaro, which we soon realized was a bad move. After we went to Round Midnight for some dancing, and as per usual, the creepfest ensued. Guys perched on the edges, waiting to attack their prey. Obviously I couldn't see behind myself, but Beth and I were caught in a bit of a look and rotate to avoid the approaching vultures. When, of course I was caught, and she had nowhere else to move away to. We were stuck. Until finally, we had to use the bathroom excuse, and find a new bar. Instead, we went to Pizza Colore, and how wonderful that was! Delicious. Only two more weekends of fun before the big move. I need to take as much advantage of my time as possible.

Internet!!!

After about a week off, we have finally gotten internet at the apartment! So exciting! So much work I can now get done from home instead of going to coffee shops and wasting more money just to use their internet. I finished classes last week, and life is wonderful without them. I have so much extra time to get to the gym, or do a nice scenic run during the day. Today I ran the canyon. Difficult on the way up, amazing on the way down. So beautiful, and today is a beautiful day in Boulder, CO. I am currently gearing up for the Muddy Buddy on Sunday. 6.2 miles half running half biking with obstacles and a mud pit. Sounds pretty great! Kind of nervous though, I've never done anything like this, and I worry that I am not in the best shape right now. Luckily, my friend Jenny and I are doing it more for fun than for competition.

Also, working on the Old Chicago Canned Beer mini-tour with my frien Beth. We have been doing the beer tour for almost 2 years now, and are determined to finish it together at the Boulder location. (Even if we have to work on it after I move and finish together later). I am not very excited to go back home. I am not ready to leave my friends and the life that I have built for myself behind. But, I guess opportunities are endless if you are looking for them, so one year to pay off some loans may not be the end. Just booked hotels for Vegas and my last big hoorah with the girls. Can't wait!

First Final

I have my first final of summer classes in just a few hours. I don't need to study too hard, because it is for my public speaking class, but as I would like all A's, I will put in some extra effort on this one. I've really enjoyed my public speaking class. We had a pretty good group. I have only had a few classes in my 4 years at CU that I have enjoyed. Public Speaking, Biology of the Cancer Cell, Embryology, Travel Writing, and French Phonetics. Pretty sad that you can graduate and only really truly enjoy that many classes. I guess I haven't really had many classes that  I have hated though, so it hasn't been too bad. Classes I have truly despised: Organic Chemistry (mainly because the professor was extremely arrogant), Biochemistry (just really difficult), and I suppose I wasn't the biggest fan of Calculus. But that was mainly because we had online assignments, and I find it very difficult to aid students when they are unable to get much feedback on their work. Oh, in the love category I left out Sociology of American Medicine-extremely interesting. It is sad that it is all coming to an end, because no matter how stressful my difficult course loads were, I always found a way to enjoy myself. Yes, maybe some semesters I partied a bit too much, and some maybe even a bit too little, but it all evens out.

So what is the plan for after finals? I am not sure to be honest. I'm thinking that this would be a lovely weekend to get out of Boulder and head down to Denver. The kids that I babysit are finally back from vacation so I get to spend a little time with them as well. Very excited about that, they have been gone for 3 weeks! Probably good,  though. I have been so busy with school and studying for the PCAT. I have trouble saying no when I am asked to babysit, no matter how busy I may be. I guess I just enjoy it so much. They are great kids, and I am truly going to miss them when I have to move. Time to get studying. Last set of finals at CU!

Work

If only I were staying in Boulder long enough to get another job, I would most certainly do it. Working at Buffalo Wild Wings for the past year has been interesting to say the least. I have met some great people, but haven't made a whole lot of money there. When I started, I was already a BWW trained server, but I understood the seniority deal well enough and didn't mind others moving up before me. But really? 9 months before I got to start serving, and only during the slow season? Who's idea was that? And even now, I still am getting wasted shifts. Last night for instance, I was a greeter. Since no one really comes to our BWWs, I pretty much got paid to stand around and watch shark week. Which is totally amazing because its only the greatest week in television! One thing I will not be sorry to leave behind is that sorry excuse for a job. You can give corporate and upper management all of the suggestions for improvement you like, but when it comes down to it, why would they take advice from someone who has been in the restaurant business for over 5 years? Seems silly doesn't it. The worst of it is when you have a culturally insensitive manager, who will readily voice opinions on race, religion, and other cultural beliefs that I find very offensive, but when complaints are sent to higher levels and no change occurs, you start to wonder if they even opened the surveys they made us fill out.

On the up side, I got off work pretty early last night and got the amazing idea to turn my little nook of a bedroom in the living room into an epic blanket fort...yes, a blanket fort. But, my roommates needed to get up early this morning, so I decided to wait. Good thing I waited, because purchase of an extra blanket will be necessary to make my fort the perfect size. Also, I like sleeping with my sheets, and don't want to lose them to the fort. When it is finally complete, pictures will be posted. Time to finish up my classes, more tomorrow morning.

Final Stretch

So I am in the final stretch with my summer classes, and am hoping to be recieving A's in both of them. I have been taking human physiology and public speaking to meet my pharmacy school requirements. I am taking a year off of school and applying at several pharmacy schools, which I will not name until I have some acceptance offers (fingers crossed). I have had a great four years living in Boulder, and cant wait for my month of fun once classes finish. I am staying here until the end of August to make time for friends before I have to leave them all behind. This isnt the most exciting of posts, because so long as I am in school, I dont seem to have a very exciting life. But just wait, when my calendar opens up, things will get a bit more interesting.
Back to studying, more coming soon!

Homeless

Today is my first official day of homelessness. Well not really homeless, but without my own home. I am staying on an air mattress in the living room of my old roommates new apartment while I prepare to make the move back with my parents in the great state of Iowa. Four years of freedom and beautiful Colorado will make the transition much more difficult. That, and having to start over in the friend department. Aside from a small number of great friends back home, I haven't really kept in touch with many people. I am not too worried though. If all goes according to plan, I will be back on my own and back in school in only one year.
So, a little about where I am at now. I graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder in May this year. I am taking a couple of summer classes to finish up some prerequisites for pharmacy school. I have been working, studying, and traveling all summer and my classes are finally coming to an end. I haven't had much time to spend with friends so I am staying until September 1 in order to have a little quality time before I leave them. I will be moving in with my parents, and two younger siblings, ages 8 and 10. I am in quite a transition phase of my life and I cannot decide if I am excited, or completely terrified. So, any of you who decide to follow my year of life with the family after college, good luck, because I am sure this will be an interesting ride.