Love/Hate Relationship

No, this is not about boys. You'll have to wait on that one. So I've been in Portland for little over a month now and I realized today that it really is a love/hate relationship. Maybe that will change later down the road, but here's why:

I love how green it is here.

I hate that it rains so much.

I love that there are dudes to pump your gas for you.

I hate that you can't talk on your phone while driving.

I love that's there's no sales tax.

I hate the traffic.

I love happy hour food.

I hate that you have to buy a soda (or alcoholic beverage...you don't have to worry about me...) to be able to order the happy hour food.

I love the rolling hills here in the city.

I hate the layout of the city - so many twists and turns.

I love the granola-ness of the city.

I hate having 4 different trash cans.

Portland Day 11 - Rain and Shine

A day of milestones.......

I survived my first official day of PA school! Seven hours of Genetics with the same teacher in the same classroom. After that I came home with a smashing headache, but I absolutely loved it. It's gonna take some getting used to.... bring it on!

Today was the first day I actually used my umbrella. I mean, I could have easily used it before but just haven't whipped it out yet. I've been told that true Portlanders don't use umbrellas. It's either deal with it and get wet or use a raincoat. Well, I don't like either of those options so I'll stick to my umbrella for now and stick out like a sore thumb.

Also, I got my first mail in the new place today. And we're talking good mail, not bills. Now I'm just waiting for you to send me your package. Yes, YOU! You better get on that cause I'm waiting..........................

Happy Memorial Day

There are many people to remember on this day, including the thousands of people who have served our country and kept it free and safe. I will forever be indebted to them and for them I am extremely grateful. Today, however, I would like to remember and honor all of my grandparents who have since passed on to a greater and better place. I am so grateful for them and the influence they have been to me and without them and their guiding influence, both directly and indirectly, I would not be the person I am today.

My Grandma Anderson was an amazing and optimistic person. I don't think I ever heard her say anything negative ever. She always wanted the best for us and would call us out if we were being ornery. I will always remember summer vacations to Grandma's house and the good times we had together.

I was never able to meet my Grandpa Anderson as he passed away before I was born, but I can imagine the kind of person he was from my own father, my grandmother, and aunt and uncle. They wouldn't be who they are without him. He served honorably in WWII and was part of the Rainbow Division to liberate the Dachau concentration camp in Germany. I know he is still serving honorably.

My Grandma Gerlitz was such a sweet and strong-willed person. She was quick witted and when she said something funny would crack her smile. She came down to AZ a few times to stay for the winters and I loved having her so close by. She was an extremely healthy person always taking her vitamins and herbs. I want to follow in her footsteps - I already take a handful of vitamins every day! I'm well on my way. She was always interested to know about us kids and help in any way possible.

I don't remember my Grandpa Gerlitz very well, as he passed away when I was younger, but I do remember visiting him a time or two in Sacramento. Can you see where I get my sense of adventure? He was also a teacher so I can thank him for my good presentational skills.

I've been extremely blessed with wonderful grandparents whom I love dearly and consequently wonderful parents. Thank you for being who you are! I hope to be half of what they have been to me to my own posterity.

Portland Day 10 - Occasional bursts of sun

My roommates and I hiked to the top of Multnomah Falls, a 1 mile hike with about 11 painful switchbacks going up. Kind of reminded me of hiking the Y, except that one's a lot tougher and a lot longer I feel like. There was a gorgeous view from the top, overlooking the Columbia River, with Washington on the other side. Beautiful falls.

We felt like we were in a jungle of sorts with all the vegetation and greenery so we had a little together with some friends tonight with dinner, dessert and the movie Jurassic Park to end the day.

My New House

13080. My new house number. Well, it's actually a duplex, but I love it! It's HUGE. A lot bigger than anywhere I've ever lived. It's fabulous and in a very nice neighborhood. It's also located in a cul-de-sac so there is no through traffic. Thought I'd give you guys a tour.....

And here's the view from the front porch.

Portland Day 9 - Overcast

Check out what I came across on my afternoon walk today..... Oh my GOSH. This is PERFECT for my raft. Except the dock is roped off so I don't think I'll be able to use it any time soon. Oh wait, I left my rafts in Utah. Darn. It will have to wait till August anyway. This is pretty much across the street from my house, pretty close anyway. I'll be coming here to chill and study a lot this summer.

Portland Day 8 - Rain with occasional sun

The weather here is outrageous! Mostly because it changes so much. I mean in Utah, if the forecast is sunny then it is sunny ALL day. Or if it's rainy then it is rainy ALL day for the most part. Well, here the weather comes and goes as it pleases. It changes so often. It will rain for maybe 5-10 minutes and then be sunny for awhile. Then the rain comes back. Some more sun. You get the idea. It's kinda nice to have the variety but makes it super hard to plan for things, most especially when you are outdoors.

Rock Climbing. I think that's the new sport I'm going to get into. I see myself with a whole pack of gear at the end of a year. I spent the day yesterday at Smith Rock State Park, pretty much the Mecca of rock climbing in the West, or at least Oregon. We had a pretty good group there, close to 20 people, so there was a lot of down time. But it was fun to meet new people and just be outside. The place was just covered with people all over the rock faces.

I did get to climb one route, called Five Gallon Buckets. A 5.8 route. I was pretty proud of myself. It was super tall, as you can see here in the photo. It's the route on the far left; the one with the guy in green going up it.

I've only climbed outside 2 times before ever so reaching the top on this one was a big feat for me. It was a lot of fun. Like I said, I have a feeling I'll be doing a lot more climbing too. Sounds good to me!

Here's me and my two roommates, Katie and Tiffany.

Portland Day 7 - Overcast with light evening showers

Second day of class = awesome. It was much easier to sit all day. Best part of the day was getting outfitted with my white coat and getting my medical equipment, including my stethoscope NOT periscope (that one's for you Elise!). I have no clue what half of it is used for but I guess I'll find out soon enough!

I also found out that I will be able to take a Medical Spanish class which I am super stoked about. My classmates really like the fact that I speak Spanish already. I'm sure I'll be of great assistance to them while they learn. Turns out there is a LARGE population of Spanish speakers in this area as the majority of them are migrant workers out in the fields. Who would have thought in Portland? There is one other dude who is fluent and he lived in Barcelona for a while where he picked it up. Spain! We're gonna be good friends :)

I'm also really excited about my rotations. I have the option of spending 6 weeks in either Honduras, Costa Rica, China, or Kenya. I'd LOVE to do the Spanish-speaking ones of course, but it would also be sweet to do something new too.

Portland Day 6 - Rain

My first official day of class. 9 am - 5 pm. That's the schedule from now on, just like a full time job. Plus another 3-5 hrs. of studying on top of that. And boy am I excited! It was a good day, so good to finally get going. Except by the time 2 pm rolled around I was getting super fidgety and restless. I'm not used to sitting in a chair that still paying rapt attention for that many hours in a row. It'll take some getting used to. Of course we have breaks and such, but it's still tough to still for that long.

Not to mention sitting in the same chair in the same room for 8 hrs a day. At least there are windows to check the weather every so often. Oh wait, just more rain.....good thing I'm inside studying my brains out. I may be calling you soon to tell you that my head has exploded. Prepare yourself. They give the analogy of PA school being like trying to drink from a fire hose. How true that is. I already have a test tomorrow. On the SECOND day of school people! I originally thought my academic/didactic year would be 14 months. Well....make that 12 actually. It's going to get real crazy real fast. Bring it on!

I know I'm living in the right city....

When I say "granola" people know EXACTLY what I'm talking about.

Portland Day 5 - Rain, and LOTS of it mixed with afternoon sun

Today was the start date of my program, except it was really chill. We had a list of things to do on our own on the main campus, scheduled from 9 to 1. Best part was I got it all done in an hour. Worst part was I got soaked walking around campus. Turns out I did have my umbrella in the car after all.... This is on the drive home.

Tonight we went to Big Al's to celebrate my roommate's birthday. Seems a little out of place considering for how big it is right in the middle of a residential area. There is a HUGE screen to watch at least 9 different sporting events on. Heaven, right?

Portland Day 4 - Partly Cloudy

Sun, you say?! Yes, sun, ALL day in fact. Too bad I had to spend it inside finishing putting my room together. Someone I met last night was telling me that people in the Portland area don't struggle with the weather so much as the claustrophobia. Interesting..... please go on. Sun will peak through every now and then, but on the other hand there are endless trees and hills. You cannot see very far, or very much. Take this view out my bedroom window for example. It illustrates exactly what she was describing. If that's all I have to worry about, then I'm golden. As long as there's occasional sun, I'm go to go.

Tonight I went to Wasabi to meet up with my future/soon-to-be classmates. I'm really excited about the people in my group. I met some really great people. Our class size is 46 and a little over half are female. The average age I would say is right around my same age, maybe just a tad older. Maybe 25 or so showed up to tonight for the informal get together, but I know I'm going to like these guys! I'm excited to start studying/working with them. One girl and I convinced a guy sitting next to us to eat some sushi. It was awesome, you should have seen his reaction. He's never had it before and was convinced he'd hate it. Well, after destroying a roll trying to get it on his fork (and prolong the inevitable) he finally swallowed it. And he liked it! Of course! Who wouldn't like sushi.......??

Portland Day 3 - Light Rain with Occasional Outbursts of Sun

Today was a shopping and exploration day. We were like Lewis and Clark themselves! Ok, not really but I always love exploring and finding my way around a new city. It reminds me of being in Europe. Oh Europe! But, that's another post for a later day.......

So apparently I live super close to everything good. Washington Square Mall is about 10 minutes. We're talking H&M, Nordstrom, Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, Apple, among others. One of the best malls I've ever seen. Costco is also about 10 minutes. Here I am testing out a desk..... haha!

Church is about 10 minutes away. The temple is 10 minutes about as well. My sister and I just happened upon it while driving. And yes, that is me jumping at the bottom of the photo :)

Downtown is only 15 minutes. I love my location, not to mention it's a super nice area and neighborhood.

Elise and I explored Lewis & Clark College a bit since that's where our parents went to school and met. It's a beautiful area, set in the woods.

The river front would also be a fun place to hang out at night. You can stroll along the river and stop at an occasional shop or two and try a delectable vegan pastry :)

I stocked up on furniture at Ikea. Couldn't resist taking a picture, but here's your first clue to how environmental-friendly Portland is.....

Oh, there will definitely be more to follow on this subject! Environmental-friendly that is :)

For FHE, I also got in my first hike, of the many to come, at the Tualitan Wildlife Refuge.

I love this city already!

Portland Day 2 - No Sun

After such a long day, we slept in pretty late. Fortunately church wasn't until 1:30 pm. How was church? Well......the ward is super big, but also super young. It wasn't very encouraging. I guess a lot of kids come home for the summer, thus it's youngness. My two roommates (who are way cool by the way) go to two different wards so I think I'll go try out the other ward next time and then choose which one to officially attend. We shall see.....

Elise and I drove to my school to time how long it would take. Google Maps said it was 30 miles. It took us 25 minutes, but that's without traffic. It's a little bit of a commute, but I would rather live where I live and with the girls I live with. The drive is sweet. It's through the back farm country with apple farms, vineyards, alpacas, miniature horses, and LOTS of greenery. I think it will be a pleasant drive.

Portland Day 1 - 13 hr. drive turned 16 hr. drive

Granola or bust!! My sister, Elise, and I left early Saturday drive for the long drive to Portland. Yes, road trip! Except we didn't know how long it would really be....

I had rotated the tires on my car 2 days previous and thought everything was fine and dandy. Until the car started shaking uncontrollably. So much so that we stopped in Boise to get it looked at. Turns out my back tires (that were now on the front) had a huge groove in them. The rest of the tire had perfect treads except for that one spot. New tires here we come! I decided to wait where I can buy them tax free (here in Oregon) so they just rotated them back to how they were before. Pointless stop? After 2 hrs. I might be tempted to say yes, but at least I now know I need new tires, the shaking stopped, and they found a screw in my tire which they repaired. We were back on our way!

We passed a car with 2 bumper stickers: "Obama Sucks" and "Honk if you Love Arizona." Honk we did!! The dude waved enthusiastically at us as we passed him on the left. As for the first bumper sticker, I'll leave that one up to you...

Once we finally got to Portland after the forever long stretch of river driving along the Oregon/Washington border we hit some unexpected bumper to bumper traffic. We had to quickly find an alternate route using the GPS. After navigating though downtown for a while, we finally were on our way once more. Of course, it was Sunday the next day so we took a pit stop for some groceries.

After all was said and done, we got in about 1 am. The longest day of my life...... But adventure is waiting in store!

Goodbye Utah

All of these goodbyes are too much for me. Before leaving Utah I had a Bucket List of things to do, either things I hadn't done before and always wanted to do OR things I loved to do and wanted to do just one last time. It was a pretty good list. I actually was able to do a lot more than I expected, squeezing everything in within the last 3 weeks. Are you ready for the list....? (and in no particular order....):

1. The Living Planet Aquarium

2. Hogle Zoo

3. Hike the Y

4. Eat at Gourmadise - European bakery in downtown SLC

5. Baseball game - UVU will have to do for now....next time, it's the Salt Lake Bees!

6. Drive-in movie theater - loved it so much I went twice in one week!

7. Hill Air Force Base Museum - coolest place EVER!

8. BYU Museum of Art - Carl Bloch exibihit

9. Picnic

10. Salt Lake Temple

11. Mt. Timpanogos Temple

12. Inn & Out

13. J'Dawgs

14. Play croquet

15. Real Salt Lake game

16. Shave Ice

17. Mtn. bike Deer Creek Reservoir

18. Mtn. bike Lambert Park

19. Mtn. bike Provo River Trail

20. Hike Stewart Falls - only attempted (still packed with snow)

Best part is, I get to save the things I DIDN'T get to do when I come back and visit in August:

1. Spanish Fork Reservoir

2. Longboard

3. Moab

4. Antelope Island (mtn. bike)

5. This is the Place - Heritage Park

6. Salt Lake Bees

7. Wakeboarding

8. Hike Ensign Peak

9. Lava Hot Springs

10. Timp Caves

11. Hike Timp

12. Mtn. Bike Big Springs

13. Live Jazz in SLC

14. Comedy Sportz

15. Manti Temple

16. Rodeo

Utah has treated me extremely well over the last seven years (minus the one in Spain). It is an outdoors-(wo)man's paradise! Not to mention summer is the BEST part. There is always so much to do and so much going on. Not to mention all of the individual city festivals that go on all summer long. And I don't even get to enjoy it this year. You all better live it up for me!! Starting with the Scandinavian Festival in Ephraim next weekend. Good thing I had Swedish meatballs at Ikea today to make up for it. Utah, I will miss you dearly!

Goodbye Maeser

As you well know by know, I have LOVED teaching and coaching at Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy. Well, the time came to break the news to my students. "How could you do this?!" "Don't leave me!" Yes, it was a little dramatic. Sad for my students, obviously, and sad for me. My students and I have a great working, respectful, and fun relationship with one another. We know how to have fun, but also when it's time to learn.

The time has finally come to say goodbye. My last day teaching was 3 weeks ago and it was a sad day. I got some going away presents as well as a few parties. In fact, a few kids in my afternoon class came in late carrying a cake and singing "God Be With You Till we Meet Again." Sad, yet hilarious.

These are a fantastic bunch of kids. I guess I shouldn't say kids; they ARE in high school. How can you not love these guys?

I've been in and out of the school over the last few weeks to finish up a few things and of course they are excited to see me. In fact, I went to play basketball with my team one last time and I took off early to make it to another commitment. My mistake was having a sub come in for me and walking out the gym without saying anything. Next thing I know the whole team was behind me and then proceeded to smash me with not one sweaty group hug, but two!

This last Thursday I went to the Maeser Sports Awards Banquet to present letter awards to my basketball girls along with the head coach and other assistant coach. Unknown to me they also presented me with an award and said a few words. Super nice.

As I was sitting in the gym and school for the last time during the awards I kept thinking how much I'm going to miss my students and fellow faculty members. Why was I leaving?? I love that place. But, I'll just do what my headmaster said and let him know when I'm ready to come back! Problem solved.

Warning: This may make you laugh uncontrollably

So if you've ever heard of the Daily Universe, you probably went to school at BYU. And you probably realized reading it was a waste of time. Do you remember this story? One to never be forgotten. The BEST part of the paper, however, is the Police Beat. Each week the newspaper publishes stories about why people call the campus police. Sometimes all you can say is, "Are you serious?!" Or other times all you can do is laugh hysterically. Here are some of my favorites (the best part is in bold):

March 4: Microwaves from Helaman Halls were moved into the hall lounge, where someone destroyed them by running food in them for a considerable amount of time. When officers responded they found the ruined microwaves along with charred remains of a burrito.

May 9 A suspicious male was reported in the JRCB 2nd floor men’s restroom. Upon investigation police observed a toilet seat covered in miniature marshmallows. The marshmallows were thrown away. There was no damage.

May 15 A resident at Wymount complained about a radio nearby being too loud around 10 p.m. When police arrived at the neighboring tenant’s apartment, they found the tenant talking to her mother on speakerphone. The call was terminated.

May 14 While at a bus stop a female reported a male saying that if the bus did not get there soon he would not make it to his storage unit in time to get the money he needed to buy beer. If the bus was late, he would have to steal the beer and if cops got in the way, he would do whatever needed to get it with his meat hook. Police calmed the man down upon arrival.

Jan. 20: Officers received reports of students climbing trees in front of the McKay Building. When officers responded, the students told police they had not been climbing the trees, but had just been looking up in them for a geocache. The geocache was located while police were present.

March 2: Officers received a report of a van with fogged windows and seats removed from the vehicle. The caller suspected lewd acts were being committed in the van. Upon arrival, the officers discovered 10 fully-clothed individuals watching a movie.

My First Experience with a PhotoBooth

You should try it! It's so much fun! My roommate Allison and I helped at a wedding reception the other night and this was our excitement for the night before leaving. If you haven't been able to tell yet from reading my blog over the last several years, I seem to find joy in life in the smallest of things. You could say I'm easily entertained, but I don't see it that way. There is so much in life to experience and do, so why not start now?

the 80s.........still??

NOW this is what I call good music! There must be something wrong with me because I have been consistently listening to 80s music since last August. I don't just mean a little bit here and there. I mean like all the time. Sad thing is I mostly just listen to Pandora. I don't really own any of my own 80s music. Until recently that is.....

My dad gave me 7 (SEVEN!!) CD's of purely 80s music from the top Billboard songs. You don't even know how excited I was. Shoot, I've only listened to like three of the seven CD's too.

Then I got this fantastic CD you see on the left from a certain someone who has been willing to put up with my craziness for the last several months. He picked the right CD! I've already listened to it like 5 or 6 times just in the last week.

My question is this: will I ever get sick of listening to 80s music....??

The Living Planet Aquarium

I only have 3 weeks left in Utah (yikes!) I have a Bucket List of things I'd like to do. So far I've only done 5 of the 30 things I'd like to do. The Aquarium was one of them. I went yesterday with my sis and bro-in-law. It's pretty small but they also have pretty cool things to see. I liked the jelly fish, octupus, sting rays (I pet them! Yes, I am like a child at the petting zoo.....no shame), seahorses, sea turtles, sharks, penguins, caiman, electric fish, piranha, anaconda, four-eyed fish....Ok, I liked it ALL, besides the nasty giant spiders and cockroaches of course. There was an exhibit called Animal Superheroes where there were various animals/insects on display with "superpowers." It was crazy the things some of them could do. Basically, if you haven't been yet, you need to go! You'll love it!

Our favorite photo op:

MEH-hee-ko

That would be the correct Spanish pronunciation of Mexico, where I just spent a blissful week on the beach under the warm sun and in the refreshing ocean water. We (our group of 15) stayed in Playa del Carmen, about an hour south of Cancun. I went here last year, but it was just as fun to come back. Almost half of the group had never been to Mexico before, let alone outside of the country so it was super fun for me to show everyone the ropes. Plus I got to use my Spanish muchisimo, especially since only one other person spoke it. That was probably my favorite part. I love talking with the Mexicans and joking around with them. Plus I love bargaining. One chavo called me a "buena compradora." He was very impressed with my skills. There was no ripping me off!

We pretty much did the same things as last time: visited Chichen Itza, jumped off cliffs in a cenote (underground lake), ate my most favorite meal EVER in Valladolid, went to church (I bore my testimony in Spanish, thank you), had a rooftop BBQ, went snorkeling at Akumal, visited Tulum, ate delicious authentic Mexican food, shopped, and chilled on the beach - got lots more of it this time around. I had (yes HAD. This Utah weather is killing me!) a super sweet tan. I was pretty much the only one that left Mexico without getting fried to a crisp. I won't narrate too much (if you want more details, read my post from last year), but here are a few pics. Notice all the bright colors - I love it.