34 days since my last post, 19 days until I move to Houston, 29 days until I assume control of a classroom full of 10-11 year old boys. A lot has happened in the last month and a lot more is going to happen in the next month! Allow me to backtrack.
When I wrote my last post, "Simple Joys", I was staying alone at my house in La Grange, dog and cat sitting for my parents. I was alone for three days while they went to my mom's high school reunion in Beaumont, and then I was alone for eight days while they drove to Little Rock, Memphis, St. Martinsville, and New Orleans. Staying alone has never really bothered me except that there just happened to be a rapist on the loose in La Grange. Anyone who knows La Grange knows that something like this is a scary thing -- there aren't very many people here so it seems it would be easier to become a target. I also live a little out of town, surrounded by woods, and close to train tracks, so it's a pretty scary here at night...not to mention I like to watch scary movies and shows like "I Survived" which do nothing for the imagination. I didn't get raped, obviously. Perhaps it's because I traveled around armed with pepper spray, the remote control to our alarm system, and an arsenal of self defense moves just aching to be used? Or perhaps it's because the dude skipped town?
The positive side of being alone for such a long time is that you really get to know yourself. Being alone here is not the same as living alone in a big city or in college. I'm talking you can go two days without conversing with another human face to face. It really teaches you to be comfortable with yourself, because a person could drive themselves nuts when left alone with their own neurotic thoughts. I just did a lot of talking to myself (and my dog) and God, as well as a lot of reading, running, and relaxing. It was a nice break from the rigors of the world, but it also made me appreciate conversation and ...people.
In the next few weeks we babysat Caroline and Thomas for a few days, a bunch of us went to Travis' lakehouse for the 4th of July (epic), I made some intermittent trips to Houston, I went to a legit math teacher conference in Grapevine, and my family went to the beach sans Pat, Allison, and Parker.
Sidenote: Pat, Allison, Parker, Sully, and Oscar, (the latter are their dog and cat), moved to Owatanna, Minnesota at the beginning of June for an 11 month training program for Pat's new job. It was pretty hard to say goodbye, especially after having lived with them this whole last semester. Thank God for skype, which we will HAVE to do more often, Facebook, and Allison's blog, otherwise I would be having serious issues. It hurts my heart sometimes to watch my sweet little Godson grow up and not be able to hold him, but it will be that much sweeter when they move back to Texas! I'm also lucky to have another little baby nephew to spoil in the meantime :)
So, as I was saying, the last month has been busy. On one of those Houston trips I mentioned, I signed a lease at an apartment and am super stoked about it! I'm not going to say where it is because I don't believe in sharing that sort of thing over the internet, but it's in a great area! I can't wait to buy furniture and decorate -- I absolutely love to decorate -- and be a grown up in the real world with my own place and a real, big girl job! The only thing that stinks is that the soonest I can move in is August 12th which is actually the second day of my new teacher orientation at St. Thomas. Oh yeah, I got a job at St. Thomas' Episcopal School teaching 5th grade boys. I think I forgot to mention that. Hence why I'm moving to Houston! It will be a busy couple of weeks with moving, getting settled, and getting everything ready for the big first day. Some would say that I could just set up the necessities in my apartment and leave the decorating for later, but I can't do that. I'll be up all night that weekend putting things in the right place, hammering, cleaning, etc. Don't try to talk me out of it...I'm a woman on a mission!
I'm going to Houston this week to get some work done in my classroom. I'm going to lock myself in that room and MAKE myself get organized and make some decisions. It's hard to focus on school when I'm so far away and don't have all of my materials. Hopefully this will put my mind at ease.
That is as much catching up as I can do right now. I have a plan for waking up at 7AM and running through the hills on the bluff in La Grange. I want to do a half marathon next spring and need to do some outside running over hills and stuff and not just on a treadmill to see if I have what it takes. I have been doing around three miles a day, but I think it's so different on a treadmill in the A/C than on a windy, steep road in the heat. We shall see. I love having leisurely mornings with coffee and a newspaper and working out after lunch, but that's not how it will be when school starts so this will be a good test!
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
Simple Joys
I was sitting there on my favorite spot on my deck, feet dangling over the side, legs rubbing against the scratchy wood, eyes gazing down the hills that roll down to the railroad tracks, down to the lush green trees that surround the creekbeds and river bottoms and stretch out until they rise up the majestic bluff way off in the distance.
I could taste the red wine on my lips and hear the birds sharing their melodic conversations back and forth through the trees, as if they were the dearest of friends catching one another up on their busy lives. The breeze moved through the trees with a delicate rush, gliding through the leaves before tenderly playing in my hair and across my skin. It was a warm breeze, just warm enough to remind me that it's summer, but not too warm that it was oppressive. This breeze was indeed the opposite of oppressive, it was refreshing. It was rejuvinating. It met me with such a beautiful urgency that I reclined my head back, closed my eyes, and melted in the warm embrace of a breeze that I believe was meant to comfort me.
Just a few minutes prior to basking in this lovely encounter with nature, I had been singing one of my new favorite songs, "40 Dogs" by Bob Schneider, aloud out there on that deck. I stopped singing it only to, out of nowhere, start singing "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands!". There was no subconscious reason for me to start singing this song; I hadn't sung this song in years. I think the only explanation was the true, authentic, overflow of contentment, comfort, and happiness I was feeling in that moment. A huge smile broke across my face and I just gave in, sitting on that deck, swaying to my own voice, singing a song originally meant to bring joy to children. I think there is a lot to be said for having a child-like joy. Children find joy in the simple things and that is exactly what I did this evening on that deck...I found joy in the simplicity of an evening outside with the intricacies of God's creation.
I could taste the red wine on my lips and hear the birds sharing their melodic conversations back and forth through the trees, as if they were the dearest of friends catching one another up on their busy lives. The breeze moved through the trees with a delicate rush, gliding through the leaves before tenderly playing in my hair and across my skin. It was a warm breeze, just warm enough to remind me that it's summer, but not too warm that it was oppressive. This breeze was indeed the opposite of oppressive, it was refreshing. It was rejuvinating. It met me with such a beautiful urgency that I reclined my head back, closed my eyes, and melted in the warm embrace of a breeze that I believe was meant to comfort me.
Just a few minutes prior to basking in this lovely encounter with nature, I had been singing one of my new favorite songs, "40 Dogs" by Bob Schneider, aloud out there on that deck. I stopped singing it only to, out of nowhere, start singing "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands!". There was no subconscious reason for me to start singing this song; I hadn't sung this song in years. I think the only explanation was the true, authentic, overflow of contentment, comfort, and happiness I was feeling in that moment. A huge smile broke across my face and I just gave in, sitting on that deck, swaying to my own voice, singing a song originally meant to bring joy to children. I think there is a lot to be said for having a child-like joy. Children find joy in the simple things and that is exactly what I did this evening on that deck...I found joy in the simplicity of an evening outside with the intricacies of God's creation.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Perfect for Summer Salad
I usually don't post recipes on here, but I made the most delicious summer salad yesterday and just had to share it. I had been reading Cooking Light magazine and was inspired to go to HEB and buy a whole bunch of fruits and veggies that I could throw together and eat all at once. What I came up with was incredible.
Ingredients
1 peach
1 cucumber
1 large mango, barely ripe
1 small tomato
1 red onion
cilantro
3 chicken breast filets
Dressing:
Extra virgin olive oil
Red wine vinegar
Mustard
Honey
Lemon juice
Directions
1. Preheat skillet on low-medium heat
2. Season chicken filets (both sides) with olive oil first, then Nature's Seasoning, garlic, celery salt, poultry seasoning, and whatever else you like to use. I usually just grab whatever I feel like using. I really like Adobo for chicken but my parents didn't have any of that.
3. Cook chicken until done and stick in fridge to cool.
4. Cut red onion into long, thin, slices, as thin as possible. Heat EVOO in a different skillet from the one you used for chicken over low heat. Place red onion slices in skillet and cook slowly until carmelized. (I only used half the onion. It just depends on how much you like onions as to how much you use.)
5. While onion is carmelizing, chop cucumber, peach, mango, and tomatoes into small, bite sized pieces and place in bowl. Pull cilantro off stalk and throw into bowl (I probably used about 20 cilantro leaves, just use as you see fit.)
6. Once chicken has cooled, chop into bite sized pieces and mix into bowl with fruit. Add onions once they're finished carmelizing (they should be soft/barely crispy and taste sweet) and stir salad together.
For the dressing, I didn't use measurements, I just did everything to taste. I also only made enough for one serving and put it on my salad as I ate it so that I could store the salad and it wouldn't get soggy. There is a majority of EVOO, only a squirt of mustard, a squirt of honey, a quarter of a lemon, and about a teaspoon of vinegar. Apple cider vinegar is preferred but we were out. This dressing concoction was complements of the lovely Pilar Mckay :)
Here is how mine turned out!
Very healthy and refreshing meal, perfect for a picnic or just a hot summer evening! Let me know what you think!
Ingredients
1 peach
1 cucumber
1 large mango, barely ripe
1 small tomato
1 red onion
cilantro
3 chicken breast filets
Dressing:
Extra virgin olive oil
Red wine vinegar
Mustard
Honey
Lemon juice
Directions
1. Preheat skillet on low-medium heat
2. Season chicken filets (both sides) with olive oil first, then Nature's Seasoning, garlic, celery salt, poultry seasoning, and whatever else you like to use. I usually just grab whatever I feel like using. I really like Adobo for chicken but my parents didn't have any of that.
3. Cook chicken until done and stick in fridge to cool.
4. Cut red onion into long, thin, slices, as thin as possible. Heat EVOO in a different skillet from the one you used for chicken over low heat. Place red onion slices in skillet and cook slowly until carmelized. (I only used half the onion. It just depends on how much you like onions as to how much you use.)
5. While onion is carmelizing, chop cucumber, peach, mango, and tomatoes into small, bite sized pieces and place in bowl. Pull cilantro off stalk and throw into bowl (I probably used about 20 cilantro leaves, just use as you see fit.)
6. Once chicken has cooled, chop into bite sized pieces and mix into bowl with fruit. Add onions once they're finished carmelizing (they should be soft/barely crispy and taste sweet) and stir salad together.
For the dressing, I didn't use measurements, I just did everything to taste. I also only made enough for one serving and put it on my salad as I ate it so that I could store the salad and it wouldn't get soggy. There is a majority of EVOO, only a squirt of mustard, a squirt of honey, a quarter of a lemon, and about a teaspoon of vinegar. Apple cider vinegar is preferred but we were out. This dressing concoction was complements of the lovely Pilar Mckay :)
Here is how mine turned out!
To make it sweeter, you may substitute a strawberry for the tomato and to spice it up you could add or substitute a red bell pepper!
As a side, I had grapes and Parmesan Garlic Triscuit Thin Crisps.
The drink is a Salty Dog:
-Grapefruit juice
-Vodka
-Twist of lime
-Salt on the rim
Perfect pairing!
Very healthy and refreshing meal, perfect for a picnic or just a hot summer evening! Let me know what you think!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Covered with Love
Sometimes it's hard for me to love. I mean this as a pretty broad statement that applies to the broad definition of love. My favorite definition of love is the one Marcel LeJeune always uses, that true love is doing what is best for another person regardless of the cost to yourself. So when I say that sometimes it's hard for me to love, I don't really mean that it's hard for me to be nice to people, I mean that it's hard sometimes to always do what is best for everyone...including myself.
This could be something as simple as offering to cook or doing the dishes for my parents. They do those things so selflessly and never ask me to, and it rarely even crosses my mind to offer that sort of help. I want to always be thinking of ways that I can help them and others. It could also mean something deeper, like understanding God's plan in my life and still loving him even when it seems that he's holding some pretty great things back from me. I know that his plans for me are incredible and that I can't even imagine what great things he has planned, as evidenced by my current opportunities and blessings that I never would have imagined a few years ago, so in the meantime I am called to love him and the people in my life. I think I see some self improvement goals in the works :)
I was doing some painting the other day so I pulled out my little art supply bag and found one of my books by Max Lucado called A Love Worth Giving. I keep that book in there because it has some great quotes that I've often used as encouragement for friends and for myself. Max Lucado is so eloquent and gifted with words and he always seems to be able to bring me comfort with how he writes about God's love. Here is one of my favorite quotes:
"Why did Jesus do that? There is only one answer. And that answer has one word. Love. And the love of Christ "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things" (1 Cor. 13:7).
Think about that for a moment. Drink from that for a moment. Drink deeply. Don't just sip or nip. It's time to gulp. It's time to let his love cover all things in your life. All secrets. All hurts, All hours of evil, minutes of worry.
The mornings you awoke in the bed of a stranger? His love will cover that. The years you peddled prejudice and pride? His love will cover that. Every promise broken, drug taken, penny stolen. Every cross word, cuss word, and harsh word. His love covers all things.
Let it. Discover along with the psalmist: "He...loads me with love and mercy" (Ps. 103:4). Picture a giant dump truck full of love. There you are behind it. God lifts the bed until the love starts to slide. Slowly at first, then down, down, down, until you are hidden, buried, covered in his love.
"Hey, where are you?" someone asks.
"In here, covered in love."
Let his love cover all things.
Do it for his sake. To the glory of his name.
Do it for your sake. For the peace of your heart.
And do it for their sake. For the people in your life. Let his love fall on you so yours can fall on them."
This could be something as simple as offering to cook or doing the dishes for my parents. They do those things so selflessly and never ask me to, and it rarely even crosses my mind to offer that sort of help. I want to always be thinking of ways that I can help them and others. It could also mean something deeper, like understanding God's plan in my life and still loving him even when it seems that he's holding some pretty great things back from me. I know that his plans for me are incredible and that I can't even imagine what great things he has planned, as evidenced by my current opportunities and blessings that I never would have imagined a few years ago, so in the meantime I am called to love him and the people in my life. I think I see some self improvement goals in the works :)
I was doing some painting the other day so I pulled out my little art supply bag and found one of my books by Max Lucado called A Love Worth Giving. I keep that book in there because it has some great quotes that I've often used as encouragement for friends and for myself. Max Lucado is so eloquent and gifted with words and he always seems to be able to bring me comfort with how he writes about God's love. Here is one of my favorite quotes:
"Why did Jesus do that? There is only one answer. And that answer has one word. Love. And the love of Christ "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things" (1 Cor. 13:7).
Think about that for a moment. Drink from that for a moment. Drink deeply. Don't just sip or nip. It's time to gulp. It's time to let his love cover all things in your life. All secrets. All hurts, All hours of evil, minutes of worry.
The mornings you awoke in the bed of a stranger? His love will cover that. The years you peddled prejudice and pride? His love will cover that. Every promise broken, drug taken, penny stolen. Every cross word, cuss word, and harsh word. His love covers all things.
Let it. Discover along with the psalmist: "He...loads me with love and mercy" (Ps. 103:4). Picture a giant dump truck full of love. There you are behind it. God lifts the bed until the love starts to slide. Slowly at first, then down, down, down, until you are hidden, buried, covered in his love.
"Hey, where are you?" someone asks.
"In here, covered in love."
Let his love cover all things.
Do it for his sake. To the glory of his name.
Do it for your sake. For the peace of your heart.
And do it for their sake. For the people in your life. Let his love fall on you so yours can fall on them."
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Spring Break Cruise: The Last Leg
I'm just going to sum up the last few days of our cruise in this post because if I keep breaking it up I'm never going to finish and I'm going to forget more than I already have.
When I left you last, we were wrapping up a lovely St. Patty's day. The next morning we landed at our last destination: Cozumel. Pilar and I got up bright and early so that we could make the most of our day on land, while the boys chose to sleep in and stay on the boat since they had already been to Cozumel on their previous cruise. It did make me a little nervous to go into Mexico without the boys...by a little, I mean a lot. My mother watches endless episodes of Forensic Files and Cold Case and is always reading the Debbie Downer stories out of the newspaper about girls who got kidnapped/raped so she has passed that paranoia on to me BIG TIME. I wasn't going to let the boys know that I was nervous about them not going with us -they needed their rest- but you better believe that I was doing a mental review of all of my self defense moves the whole walk down the pier. Pilar assured me that we had nothing to worry about, that all of those sketchy things happen in sketchy places, not in the highly populated tourist areas. The devil's advocate in me kept saying that this was probably the perfect place for creepers to linger, just waiting to prey on a naive, young, American girl with her guard down.
Pilar and I made our way into the market area that was right off the pier and started walking toward where we figured some cabs would be waiting. Our only sketchy run-in was with a white guy who had rented a car and told us he could give us a ride to a beach. He had no credentials and was too insistent to not set off about 500 red flags in my mind. I got us the HELL away from him and latched on to a family that was heading toward the big cab drop off/pick up. This is where I was very thankful for Pilar's fluent Spanish. She was able to speak clearly with the cab drivers which put me at ease as, of course, I was assuming that everyone wanted to kidnap us and sell us into the international sex trade. Another big nerve easer was that we shared a cab with a family. The cab driver turned out to be super nice and convinced us to go to another beach that was a lot nicer than the one we had planned on going to. He also cut our rate down a little.
The beach we went to in Cozumel was very nice. It had nice lounge chairs, a restaraunt, and waiters who walked up and down the beach delivering food and drinks. Pilar and I just lounged, swam when we got hot, and soaked up our last day on a beautiful beach.
We stayed out there for three or four hours and then made our way back to the pier. Once back at the little marketplace, we did a little shopping, Pilar did a little bartering, and we set out for the ship for the last time. We spent the rest of the afternoon laying out with the boys and then went through our usual routine of showering/napping/getting ready for the night. On this night, Pilar and Travis performed "Hips Don't Lie" by Shakira at karaoke and did a wonderful job, despite what they may tell you. We went out to the Lido deck of the ship after karaoke and made our own little dance party...we're really good at that :)
After our dance party we went back to the room and looked at the stars for a little while and all ended up falling asleep. Eventually, the boys went back to their room and we all went to bed.
The next day was Friday, our last "Fun day at sea". We laid out all day, cooking ourselves to a nice crisp. Friday night we went to the "Carnival Legends" show in the Ivanhoe Theater and watched all of the cruise guests who had been chosen to impersonate different celebrities like Elvis, Madonna, Johnny Cash, etc. One of the guys we met was impersonating Ricky Martin. The show was pretty impressive. After the show, we spent some time out on the deck again and enjoyed the beautiful night. This was the night that the moon was the brightest it had been in like 200 years (or whatever it was). The light was incredible! It was a little sad to think that this was our last night, but we didn't let that stop us from soaking it all in.
The next day was a series of packing, debarking from the ship, making our way back to the car, and leaving Miami. Although we were dreading the 17 hour car ride back to Houston, we were also thankful that we still had some time together and wouldn't just be thrown right back into reality. Again, I give mad props to our manly men for beasting the last leg of our journey. Somewhere between Miami and Houston, I decided that I would try to make the drive back to Austin at 2am in order to be able to teach my kiddos on Monday morning. I crushed a red bull and made it to La Grange, but I started hallucinating outside of La Grange and decided that I couldn't go another hour and a half on the remaining fumes from my red bull. I stopped and slept in La Grange and made it back to Cedar Park in time for lunch.
I had such an incredible time on this cruise. I was able to get in some incredible lady time with my little Pilar before she goes off to med school and I sell my soul to my class of 5th grade boys. I also got two great friends in Travis and Chris who I look forward to hanging out with more since we will all be in Houston next year!
When I left you last, we were wrapping up a lovely St. Patty's day. The next morning we landed at our last destination: Cozumel. Pilar and I got up bright and early so that we could make the most of our day on land, while the boys chose to sleep in and stay on the boat since they had already been to Cozumel on their previous cruise. It did make me a little nervous to go into Mexico without the boys...by a little, I mean a lot. My mother watches endless episodes of Forensic Files and Cold Case and is always reading the Debbie Downer stories out of the newspaper about girls who got kidnapped/raped so she has passed that paranoia on to me BIG TIME. I wasn't going to let the boys know that I was nervous about them not going with us -they needed their rest- but you better believe that I was doing a mental review of all of my self defense moves the whole walk down the pier. Pilar assured me that we had nothing to worry about, that all of those sketchy things happen in sketchy places, not in the highly populated tourist areas. The devil's advocate in me kept saying that this was probably the perfect place for creepers to linger, just waiting to prey on a naive, young, American girl with her guard down.
Pilar and I made our way into the market area that was right off the pier and started walking toward where we figured some cabs would be waiting. Our only sketchy run-in was with a white guy who had rented a car and told us he could give us a ride to a beach. He had no credentials and was too insistent to not set off about 500 red flags in my mind. I got us the HELL away from him and latched on to a family that was heading toward the big cab drop off/pick up. This is where I was very thankful for Pilar's fluent Spanish. She was able to speak clearly with the cab drivers which put me at ease as, of course, I was assuming that everyone wanted to kidnap us and sell us into the international sex trade. Another big nerve easer was that we shared a cab with a family. The cab driver turned out to be super nice and convinced us to go to another beach that was a lot nicer than the one we had planned on going to. He also cut our rate down a little.
The beach we went to in Cozumel was very nice. It had nice lounge chairs, a restaraunt, and waiters who walked up and down the beach delivering food and drinks. Pilar and I just lounged, swam when we got hot, and soaked up our last day on a beautiful beach.
We stayed out there for three or four hours and then made our way back to the pier. Once back at the little marketplace, we did a little shopping, Pilar did a little bartering, and we set out for the ship for the last time. We spent the rest of the afternoon laying out with the boys and then went through our usual routine of showering/napping/getting ready for the night. On this night, Pilar and Travis performed "Hips Don't Lie" by Shakira at karaoke and did a wonderful job, despite what they may tell you. We went out to the Lido deck of the ship after karaoke and made our own little dance party...we're really good at that :)
After our dance party we went back to the room and looked at the stars for a little while and all ended up falling asleep. Eventually, the boys went back to their room and we all went to bed.
The next day was Friday, our last "Fun day at sea". We laid out all day, cooking ourselves to a nice crisp. Friday night we went to the "Carnival Legends" show in the Ivanhoe Theater and watched all of the cruise guests who had been chosen to impersonate different celebrities like Elvis, Madonna, Johnny Cash, etc. One of the guys we met was impersonating Ricky Martin. The show was pretty impressive. After the show, we spent some time out on the deck again and enjoyed the beautiful night. This was the night that the moon was the brightest it had been in like 200 years (or whatever it was). The light was incredible! It was a little sad to think that this was our last night, but we didn't let that stop us from soaking it all in.
The next day was a series of packing, debarking from the ship, making our way back to the car, and leaving Miami. Although we were dreading the 17 hour car ride back to Houston, we were also thankful that we still had some time together and wouldn't just be thrown right back into reality. Again, I give mad props to our manly men for beasting the last leg of our journey. Somewhere between Miami and Houston, I decided that I would try to make the drive back to Austin at 2am in order to be able to teach my kiddos on Monday morning. I crushed a red bull and made it to La Grange, but I started hallucinating outside of La Grange and decided that I couldn't go another hour and a half on the remaining fumes from my red bull. I stopped and slept in La Grange and made it back to Cedar Park in time for lunch.
I had such an incredible time on this cruise. I was able to get in some incredible lady time with my little Pilar before she goes off to med school and I sell my soul to my class of 5th grade boys. I also got two great friends in Travis and Chris who I look forward to hanging out with more since we will all be in Houston next year!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Spring Break Cruise: Part VI
(I've been slacking on my cruise posts, but I'm planning on getting them all finished in the next few days so that I won't wait too long and start forgetting things!)
Beautiful Belize and St. Patty's Day!
We awoke bright and early on a cloudy 17th of March....aka St. Patty's Day! Pilar and I quickly suited up, ate our breakfast (room service actually arrived on this day) and headed down to the nightclub to meet up with the boys and with the rest of the people who were going on the snorkeling excursion. Once we had all arrived, we made our way down to the bottom of the ship and boarded the double decker boat that would taxi us to our snorkeling site. As I mentioned, it was a little cloudy and chilly since it was around 8:30am, and there were intermittent rain showers. These factors did not do anything to help my nerves. It may sound silly, but I get really nervous about the smallest things, and this was one of them. I was nervous the water would be cold, nervous I would inhale the water, nervous I would panic, nervous I would get seasick as my brother had when he snorkeled (and we share the same motion sickness issues). Needless to say, I was a little nervous.
Our tour guides on the boat were awesome Belize natives with very thick Jamaican-like accents. They were pretty funny, too. They distributed our snorkles, flippers, and life jackets as we approached our destination. Once we arrived, they gave us the go ahead to jump on in to the water. I followed Pilar out and eased my way on in...and the water was perfect! I fumbled around a little bit, trying to figure out how to breathe and how to make my mask comfortable, and once I got it, I was off. I stayed with Pilar and the guys for a little while, but I soon found myself so completely amazed by all of the life under the water that I ventured way off by myself. I can't explain how awesome it was being out there under the water and seeing the different types of exotic fish and vegetation. I found myself praying a lot while a swam around. This was such an incredible example of just how small we are and how vast God is, that there is an entire world under the ocean that we rarely experience. It was funny, because I would be peaceful and prayerful, and then I would see a cool fish or some colorful coral and would think, "That's fu***** awesome!" I don't generally use a lot of profanity, but this would pop right into my head, and I think that will suffice to say how beautiful it was under those turquoise blue waters.
I think I snorkeled for about an hour and a half or so and then happened upon Pilar on my way back to the boat. We both got back on and ran into Chris who had ended his snorkeling early due to motion sickness issues. There is so much irony in the fact that I NEVER got seasick at any point on the cruise but Chris and Travis both had issues with it. Poor little guys. Anyway, we turned our gear back in and headed to the second deck of the boat for some sun and some rum punch. The sun had come out by this point and our tour guides had graciously made some delicious rum punch for all of us. This was one of my favorite parts of the cruise...sitting atop this boat, gliding over gleaming turquoise-colored waters with the wind flying through my hair, sipping on rum punch, and listening to 90's music. I was sitting next to a really nice older couple from Canada (Pilar and I found that we only ended up meeting older people...not really sure what this says about us,) but this couple was really cool.
By the time we made it back to the ship, we were all in a pretty good mood and I especially was ready to start celebrating St. Patty's day with a Long Island in the hot tub. We did precisely this, and had full access to the hot tubs since everyone on the ship had left to explore Belize. We had decided that the snorkeling would be our only exploration in Belize, espeically since the boys had been there the year before and had said that there really wasn't much to see on land. I believe we made a great decision by staying on the ship because we had pretty much the whole thing to ourselves. We just lounged and enjoyed the incredible water and relaxing day for the rest of the afternoon. Chris worked out and then passed out in the cutest little bear cub position...
I woke up from my sun induced coma just in time to snap a pic of Pilar and Travis mid coma...
And this is what the view from the hot tub looked like:
After our lovely day in the sun, we returned to our rooms, showered, and napped. We joined the boys for dinner...lovely as always, and then headed back up to our room to prepare for our St. Patty's day festivities. I had come prepared with a lime green flashing necktie that I loaned to Chris and I was already wearing a green dress, so Chris and I were safe. Travis decided to safety pin a green apple onto his shirt and fasten some green shot glasses to his head that he would later use to borrow drinks from strangers. Pilar decided to take part of our green luggage tag and pin that onto her dress. We definitely looked ready to party.
We headed down to the piano bar where we enjoyed some lovely "Blue Islands" ...a stronger, much more intense version of a Long Island. We downed a few of those puppies and were good to go. It didn't help our situation that the ship was experiencing some pretty turbulent waters, so it became hard to gauge just how much fun we were having. We met up with Quyen, one of our friends from UMASS, got some seats around the piano, and had a blast. I always enjoy piano bar and this time was no exception! We decided to head over to the nightclub and dance the rest of the night away. This was a great idea, as always, especially when they played Zombie Nation as well as a ton of other ragetastic songs! After a few hours of raging and a missing Travis, we headed back up to the room. Chris recovered Travis outside of their room and we all retired to our quarters. There are many more interesting stories to go along with this night, but unfortunately, I must protect myself and my friends from embarrassment. Needless to say, we had a BLAST!
Next stop: Cozumel!
Beautiful Belize and St. Patty's Day!
We awoke bright and early on a cloudy 17th of March....aka St. Patty's Day! Pilar and I quickly suited up, ate our breakfast (room service actually arrived on this day) and headed down to the nightclub to meet up with the boys and with the rest of the people who were going on the snorkeling excursion. Once we had all arrived, we made our way down to the bottom of the ship and boarded the double decker boat that would taxi us to our snorkeling site. As I mentioned, it was a little cloudy and chilly since it was around 8:30am, and there were intermittent rain showers. These factors did not do anything to help my nerves. It may sound silly, but I get really nervous about the smallest things, and this was one of them. I was nervous the water would be cold, nervous I would inhale the water, nervous I would panic, nervous I would get seasick as my brother had when he snorkeled (and we share the same motion sickness issues). Needless to say, I was a little nervous.
Our tour guides on the boat were awesome Belize natives with very thick Jamaican-like accents. They were pretty funny, too. They distributed our snorkles, flippers, and life jackets as we approached our destination. Once we arrived, they gave us the go ahead to jump on in to the water. I followed Pilar out and eased my way on in...and the water was perfect! I fumbled around a little bit, trying to figure out how to breathe and how to make my mask comfortable, and once I got it, I was off. I stayed with Pilar and the guys for a little while, but I soon found myself so completely amazed by all of the life under the water that I ventured way off by myself. I can't explain how awesome it was being out there under the water and seeing the different types of exotic fish and vegetation. I found myself praying a lot while a swam around. This was such an incredible example of just how small we are and how vast God is, that there is an entire world under the ocean that we rarely experience. It was funny, because I would be peaceful and prayerful, and then I would see a cool fish or some colorful coral and would think, "That's fu***** awesome!" I don't generally use a lot of profanity, but this would pop right into my head, and I think that will suffice to say how beautiful it was under those turquoise blue waters.
I think I snorkeled for about an hour and a half or so and then happened upon Pilar on my way back to the boat. We both got back on and ran into Chris who had ended his snorkeling early due to motion sickness issues. There is so much irony in the fact that I NEVER got seasick at any point on the cruise but Chris and Travis both had issues with it. Poor little guys. Anyway, we turned our gear back in and headed to the second deck of the boat for some sun and some rum punch. The sun had come out by this point and our tour guides had graciously made some delicious rum punch for all of us. This was one of my favorite parts of the cruise...sitting atop this boat, gliding over gleaming turquoise-colored waters with the wind flying through my hair, sipping on rum punch, and listening to 90's music. I was sitting next to a really nice older couple from Canada (Pilar and I found that we only ended up meeting older people...not really sure what this says about us,) but this couple was really cool.
By the time we made it back to the ship, we were all in a pretty good mood and I especially was ready to start celebrating St. Patty's day with a Long Island in the hot tub. We did precisely this, and had full access to the hot tubs since everyone on the ship had left to explore Belize. We had decided that the snorkeling would be our only exploration in Belize, espeically since the boys had been there the year before and had said that there really wasn't much to see on land. I believe we made a great decision by staying on the ship because we had pretty much the whole thing to ourselves. We just lounged and enjoyed the incredible water and relaxing day for the rest of the afternoon. Chris worked out and then passed out in the cutest little bear cub position...
After our lovely day in the sun, we returned to our rooms, showered, and napped. We joined the boys for dinner...lovely as always, and then headed back up to our room to prepare for our St. Patty's day festivities. I had come prepared with a lime green flashing necktie that I loaned to Chris and I was already wearing a green dress, so Chris and I were safe. Travis decided to safety pin a green apple onto his shirt and fasten some green shot glasses to his head that he would later use to borrow drinks from strangers. Pilar decided to take part of our green luggage tag and pin that onto her dress. We definitely looked ready to party.
Next stop: Cozumel!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
There's a place in my heart...
I have to begin this by thanking Pilar for inspiring me to write something about my experiences at A&M. I've been wanting to do this for a while and after reading her blog, I think now is the time.
To say that I was born an Aggie would be the understatement of the century. To say that I "bleed maroon" or that I've been raised a die hard Aggie would be like saying that Mother Teresa was a good lady. These would all be major understatements.
My dad has had season tickets since the early eighties...same section, same row, same seats, with the same person: one of his college roommates, Gilbert. We would always rotate who got to go with Dad that week (my mom or brothers usually won) or sometimes we would luck out and get extra seats and would all get to go. At this point, I loved A&M because my parents loved A&M, because my brothers loved A&M, and I loved all of them, so I loved A&M. I stood tall when we were on a losing streak which, let's face it, has happened more than we would have liked in recent years. I never faltered, never jumped on the other team's bandwagon no matter how many of my friends did. We would go to basketball games and baseball games and no matter how bored I got, I always appreciated the atmosphere and warm environment. We bundled for the cold football games. We layered for the Independence Bowl in Shreveport when the Ags played Mississippi State and lost in double overtime after a few inches of snow and a very cold and almost frostbitten 9-year-old Rebecca. I had already experienced a great deal of Aggieland at this point. And then Mark entered his fish year at A&M.
Mark is my oldest brother, almost eight years my senior. I was in fifth grade when he came to A&M and joined the Corps of Cadets, Company L-1. My cousin, Kevin, was a senior in L-1 which made Mark's decision to join. This was an entirely new experience for all of us and I became obsessed. All I talked about was Mark and the Corps. He was my hero, so brave for enduring such hardship and never complaining. He was so old and grown up for already being in college and was just so....cool. We went to all of his Corps events: reviews, barbecues, football game march ins, and receptions. He joined Parson's Mounted Cavalry his sophomore year and helped turn the program around with the help of his classmates. His senior year he was Executive Officer of the Cavalry and of L-1 and by this time he had made incredible, lifetime friends and had matured into a confident, successful man. I couldn't have been more proud of him.
Patrick is my second oldest brother by five years. He was not as sure about joining the Corps as Mark had been, but decided to in the end. His fish year was Mark's senior year, so they had one year together. Pat blossomed throughout his time at A&M and in the Corps. This was his place, where he was meant to be. He was chosen to be guide on bearer for his outfit, which meant that he was in charge of carrying and protecting their flag, a much more daunting task than it sounds as these outfits like to steal each other's flags. The biggest thing to happen to him occured in the spring of his sophomore year. Patrick was elected to be a junior yell leader. This experience was huge for him and for our entire family. It was like he was royalty...instantly famous among Aggies. We were opened to a whole new world full of experiences including marching down the streets of campus in the torchlight parade before midnight yell practice and then entering a stadium of thousands of screaming people through a tunnel on the arm of one of the people that they were ALL waiting for. It was incredible. As a sophomore in high school, this was probably about THE coolest thing that ever could have happened to me. Patrick was also chosen to be a Ross Volunteer, head yell leader, a class agent, and was voted the outstanding senior in the Corps of Cadets his senior year. On top of all of this, Patrick had been very involved with St. Mary's Catholic Church and had always talked about Aggie Awakening. He was always striving to be a good example to his underclassmen and to the rest of the student body as he was an ambassador for A&M. I was a junior in high school when Patrick was a senior at A&M and had grown to be friends with his buddies as we were a little closer in age than Mark and I. It was a lot more emotional for me to watch all of them graduate because I had watched them evolve from shy, timid, bald, scrawny freshmen into secure, confident, mature seniors and I knew things would never be the same with everyone gathered at the outfit barbecue or all the guys hanging out in Pat's room or summer house because they would all scatter to different cities. I also knew I was next in line.
Whether or not I would go to A&M was never a question. I wanted to go to A&M because I wanted to go there, not because my parents wanted me to go there (they did, of course) but because it was my decision. I couldn't imagine going anywhere else and I didn't apply anywhere else. I would go to A&M right off the bat and if I couldn't get in, I would go to Blinn and transfer. That was that. Fortunately, I got in! On December 23rd of my senior year I was working at Hallmark and my parents came in wearing their Aggie gear. "We're going to the Holiday Bowl!" my dad had said. "Really?" I asked. "No, but you got into A&M."
I think I rose five feet in the air. They had been checking the website that showed current students and my name popped up. A few days later, my letter came in the mail. It was happening.
I had a very clear picture of what I wanted from A&M. I wanted to join Kappa Theta Beta, the Catholic sorority that my sister-in-law had been in, and I wanted to be involved in something on campus like Fish Aides or CARPOOL. I wanted to make some awesome friends, guy and girlfriends, and meet a handsome, Catholic Corps boy. I wanted to be engaged by the time I graduated and married within a year of graduating. These were my plans.
It's so funny how much things change, how much you evolve, how much I've changed. I had a rough freshman year. I hadn't realized how hard the transition would be for me, coming from a small town that I had lived in since I was three and had had the same friends since about that time. Making new friends didn't come easy to me, and although I did end up making some awesome ones, I still found myself feeling lonely a lot of the time. I didn't get into Fish Aides or CARPOOL and wondered how my brother could be elected yell leader and I couldn't even get into one of these organizations? I did end up joining Kappa Theta Beta which opened the door for me to so many opportunities and friendships at St. Mary's.
I don't want to drone on with a fact by fact overview of exactly how college panned out for me, I just want to talk about how I've changed. I went into college with plans and a closed mind. I had opinions and prejudices and expectations and plans and all of these things have been radically thrown out of the window. The thing that has kept me sane through college has been my faith. I've definitely faltered at times and made some shady decisions, but God always takes me back. The relationships that I have cultivated are what have allowed me to grow. I've kept a solid friendship with Rachel since high school and through her I've met so many different people at UT. I found that I like people that are different and I enjoy being friends with people who have different opinions than my own, something I never valued before meeting these people. I met so many people through volunteering for Breakaway and being an IMPACT counselor who challenged me in my faith and drove me to do the research and soul searching I needed to do to defend my Catholic faith so that I would have a knowledge of what I believed. These people did this out of love and always respected my beliefs, despite our differences. I have learned so much from them. I have found a solid group of bros with whom I could tailgate with, watch sports with, and get boy advice from. I've always related well with boys and am so thankful for these relationships. The people that I owe so much to, who are always there for me to talk to, who provide me with endless encouragement and advice, are my close lady friends. As much as I value my guy friendships, there is something so special about girlfriends because there are so many things about girls that only girls can understand. I have become independent and satisfied with myself because of Pilar's independence, focus, and unconditional love, and I cannot thank her enough for that. I have been made sane in some insane situations because of Katie C's level head. I have been blessed to have been surrounded by so many lovely women. You know who you are, and I am eternally grateful. I think the most important change that I've seen in myself is comfort and satisfaction in who I am and where I am. I used to think happiness could only come from being with a guy and I didn't think this because I'd always been dating a guy, I thought this because I'd NEVER been in a relationship with a guy. I used to look at girls who were graduating single and think, "Oh, poor girl." Now, I have found true happiness and joy in friendships and am treasuring those now while still keeping an open mind about relationships. I mean...I have the rest of my life to be married :)
So here I am, at the end. I graduate in a week and am in a much different position than I imagined I would be. I am so satisfied with my experiences and knowledge gained and I am grateful beyond words for Texas A&M for providing me with this experience. It's so true that God's plans are always so much greater than you could ever imagine. I don't know where he is taking me this year and it's scary, but I know I'll be safe, that he has a plan, that I must keep my head up and my heart open.
I leave you with this song that I listened to on my move up to A&M before my freshman year. I was following my parents and my mom told me (via walkie talkie) to turn to 106.1 because "We Bleed Maroon" was on. I heard it for the first time in a very long time the other day and thought it was a great example of how things have come full circle. Gig'em and God bless :)
http://youtu.be/vsz8sJ68udc
To say that I was born an Aggie would be the understatement of the century. To say that I "bleed maroon" or that I've been raised a die hard Aggie would be like saying that Mother Teresa was a good lady. These would all be major understatements.
My dad has had season tickets since the early eighties...same section, same row, same seats, with the same person: one of his college roommates, Gilbert. We would always rotate who got to go with Dad that week (my mom or brothers usually won) or sometimes we would luck out and get extra seats and would all get to go. At this point, I loved A&M because my parents loved A&M, because my brothers loved A&M, and I loved all of them, so I loved A&M. I stood tall when we were on a losing streak which, let's face it, has happened more than we would have liked in recent years. I never faltered, never jumped on the other team's bandwagon no matter how many of my friends did. We would go to basketball games and baseball games and no matter how bored I got, I always appreciated the atmosphere and warm environment. We bundled for the cold football games. We layered for the Independence Bowl in Shreveport when the Ags played Mississippi State and lost in double overtime after a few inches of snow and a very cold and almost frostbitten 9-year-old Rebecca. I had already experienced a great deal of Aggieland at this point. And then Mark entered his fish year at A&M.
Mark is my oldest brother, almost eight years my senior. I was in fifth grade when he came to A&M and joined the Corps of Cadets, Company L-1. My cousin, Kevin, was a senior in L-1 which made Mark's decision to join. This was an entirely new experience for all of us and I became obsessed. All I talked about was Mark and the Corps. He was my hero, so brave for enduring such hardship and never complaining. He was so old and grown up for already being in college and was just so....cool. We went to all of his Corps events: reviews, barbecues, football game march ins, and receptions. He joined Parson's Mounted Cavalry his sophomore year and helped turn the program around with the help of his classmates. His senior year he was Executive Officer of the Cavalry and of L-1 and by this time he had made incredible, lifetime friends and had matured into a confident, successful man. I couldn't have been more proud of him.
Patrick is my second oldest brother by five years. He was not as sure about joining the Corps as Mark had been, but decided to in the end. His fish year was Mark's senior year, so they had one year together. Pat blossomed throughout his time at A&M and in the Corps. This was his place, where he was meant to be. He was chosen to be guide on bearer for his outfit, which meant that he was in charge of carrying and protecting their flag, a much more daunting task than it sounds as these outfits like to steal each other's flags. The biggest thing to happen to him occured in the spring of his sophomore year. Patrick was elected to be a junior yell leader. This experience was huge for him and for our entire family. It was like he was royalty...instantly famous among Aggies. We were opened to a whole new world full of experiences including marching down the streets of campus in the torchlight parade before midnight yell practice and then entering a stadium of thousands of screaming people through a tunnel on the arm of one of the people that they were ALL waiting for. It was incredible. As a sophomore in high school, this was probably about THE coolest thing that ever could have happened to me. Patrick was also chosen to be a Ross Volunteer, head yell leader, a class agent, and was voted the outstanding senior in the Corps of Cadets his senior year. On top of all of this, Patrick had been very involved with St. Mary's Catholic Church and had always talked about Aggie Awakening. He was always striving to be a good example to his underclassmen and to the rest of the student body as he was an ambassador for A&M. I was a junior in high school when Patrick was a senior at A&M and had grown to be friends with his buddies as we were a little closer in age than Mark and I. It was a lot more emotional for me to watch all of them graduate because I had watched them evolve from shy, timid, bald, scrawny freshmen into secure, confident, mature seniors and I knew things would never be the same with everyone gathered at the outfit barbecue or all the guys hanging out in Pat's room or summer house because they would all scatter to different cities. I also knew I was next in line.
Whether or not I would go to A&M was never a question. I wanted to go to A&M because I wanted to go there, not because my parents wanted me to go there (they did, of course) but because it was my decision. I couldn't imagine going anywhere else and I didn't apply anywhere else. I would go to A&M right off the bat and if I couldn't get in, I would go to Blinn and transfer. That was that. Fortunately, I got in! On December 23rd of my senior year I was working at Hallmark and my parents came in wearing their Aggie gear. "We're going to the Holiday Bowl!" my dad had said. "Really?" I asked. "No, but you got into A&M."
I think I rose five feet in the air. They had been checking the website that showed current students and my name popped up. A few days later, my letter came in the mail. It was happening.
I had a very clear picture of what I wanted from A&M. I wanted to join Kappa Theta Beta, the Catholic sorority that my sister-in-law had been in, and I wanted to be involved in something on campus like Fish Aides or CARPOOL. I wanted to make some awesome friends, guy and girlfriends, and meet a handsome, Catholic Corps boy. I wanted to be engaged by the time I graduated and married within a year of graduating. These were my plans.
It's so funny how much things change, how much you evolve, how much I've changed. I had a rough freshman year. I hadn't realized how hard the transition would be for me, coming from a small town that I had lived in since I was three and had had the same friends since about that time. Making new friends didn't come easy to me, and although I did end up making some awesome ones, I still found myself feeling lonely a lot of the time. I didn't get into Fish Aides or CARPOOL and wondered how my brother could be elected yell leader and I couldn't even get into one of these organizations? I did end up joining Kappa Theta Beta which opened the door for me to so many opportunities and friendships at St. Mary's.
I don't want to drone on with a fact by fact overview of exactly how college panned out for me, I just want to talk about how I've changed. I went into college with plans and a closed mind. I had opinions and prejudices and expectations and plans and all of these things have been radically thrown out of the window. The thing that has kept me sane through college has been my faith. I've definitely faltered at times and made some shady decisions, but God always takes me back. The relationships that I have cultivated are what have allowed me to grow. I've kept a solid friendship with Rachel since high school and through her I've met so many different people at UT. I found that I like people that are different and I enjoy being friends with people who have different opinions than my own, something I never valued before meeting these people. I met so many people through volunteering for Breakaway and being an IMPACT counselor who challenged me in my faith and drove me to do the research and soul searching I needed to do to defend my Catholic faith so that I would have a knowledge of what I believed. These people did this out of love and always respected my beliefs, despite our differences. I have learned so much from them. I have found a solid group of bros with whom I could tailgate with, watch sports with, and get boy advice from. I've always related well with boys and am so thankful for these relationships. The people that I owe so much to, who are always there for me to talk to, who provide me with endless encouragement and advice, are my close lady friends. As much as I value my guy friendships, there is something so special about girlfriends because there are so many things about girls that only girls can understand. I have become independent and satisfied with myself because of Pilar's independence, focus, and unconditional love, and I cannot thank her enough for that. I have been made sane in some insane situations because of Katie C's level head. I have been blessed to have been surrounded by so many lovely women. You know who you are, and I am eternally grateful. I think the most important change that I've seen in myself is comfort and satisfaction in who I am and where I am. I used to think happiness could only come from being with a guy and I didn't think this because I'd always been dating a guy, I thought this because I'd NEVER been in a relationship with a guy. I used to look at girls who were graduating single and think, "Oh, poor girl." Now, I have found true happiness and joy in friendships and am treasuring those now while still keeping an open mind about relationships. I mean...I have the rest of my life to be married :)
So here I am, at the end. I graduate in a week and am in a much different position than I imagined I would be. I am so satisfied with my experiences and knowledge gained and I am grateful beyond words for Texas A&M for providing me with this experience. It's so true that God's plans are always so much greater than you could ever imagine. I don't know where he is taking me this year and it's scary, but I know I'll be safe, that he has a plan, that I must keep my head up and my heart open.
I leave you with this song that I listened to on my move up to A&M before my freshman year. I was following my parents and my mom told me (via walkie talkie) to turn to 106.1 because "We Bleed Maroon" was on. I heard it for the first time in a very long time the other day and thought it was a great example of how things have come full circle. Gig'em and God bless :)
http://youtu.be/vsz8sJ68udc
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)