The three day weekend was much needed after the exhausting week of work and camping! On Saturday (5/26), Ben and Bill were working, so I had a nice day to myself. I finally had time to unpack and clean up the house a bit. They guys were really busy while I was gone, but I also think they somehow forgot how to use things like the dishwasher, laundry machines, and trashcan. On Sunday, Bill left to drive to Kansas for work. Ben and I had a big shopping day! We went to REI and had a fun time looking at all the gear we are pining for. I got a few things that I figured out that I will need for work this summer (like nice hiking socks to help avoid blisters!) and Ben got some new shorts. I still have a few things on my list that I want, but they'll have to wait until the next paycheck I guess! We spent forever at REI and then eventually made it to Target to get lots of other odds and ends for my work/camping and home.
Monday was a beautiful day! It was nice that we Ben and I had off to go hiking! We met up with Ashley in Boulder, and she treated us to an awesome and crazy delicious lunch at a sandwich shop called Snarf (what a funny name!). After that, we drove around in the mountains for a while until we got to Walker Ranch Park, near Eldorado Canyon State Park. It was the first time Lucille (a new name I came up with for our new car- after Lucille Ball. Both are quirky and cute, and the car is the color of her hair! What do you think?) drove in the mountains, and she handled it pretty well. We did an 8 mile loop trail which was exhausting, but very worth it. The park was very beautiful, and Ashley got some great pictures of all the wildflowers blooming with her new fancy camera. It was cool to see all different wildflowers than we were used to! I think we are still adjusting to hiking at high altitudes, but we made it!
On Tuesday I had to be at work at 6:30 to help see off all the crews! With an hour and 15 minute drive to work, it made for a very early morning! It was great to see everyone in uniform and ready and rarrin' to go! I helped everyone pack up and get ready to go. I particularly helped with the grocery "shopping" that each crew had to do to because I had made the shopping lists, done the shopping, and set all the food up! It was a little hectic, but I think everyone eventually made it out with only forgetting a few things!
The rest of Tuesday and all of Wednesday I had a new focus. Now that those 3 crews were out, we had to prepare for the new crew that is starting in Pueblo next week! It is a special crew because there has never been one based in Pueblo before. Their orientation is going to be longer, more intensive, and hopefully I can help make it more fun! Not only did we have to plan and schedule a whole week of orientation, but there were still people to hire! I spent lots of time making phone calls and setting up interviews. Most of the time, however, I was setting up the orientation schedule, planning field trips, and planning activities to do! I have a lot of ice breaker/team building games planned, but my biggest accomplishment was designing a community mapping project. I got a few basic ideas online, but I came up with everything else myself. I am really excited for this project because it is the first thing that I am designing and leading myself. It will also probably stay in the curriculum for the future, so it will be able to be used for years and years. How cool is that!? Aside from the paperwork and games/activities, we will also be doing a museum tour that I planned, watching an environmental movie (Bag It) and having a discussion about it (that I am leading), and doing a service project at the Nature and Raptor Center (that I coordinated). Ok, so I am feeling a little braggy, but I am so excited to have a job where I can actually make decisions and be important- it is very new for me and it feels great.
On Thursday we drove down to Pueblo. Pueblo is a smaller city about an hour South of Colorado Springs. (My commute all next week is going to be very early and long! At least once I get to CS I'll be on company time.) In the morning, we had 8 interviews set up to do. It was pretty cool to be in on interviews- I even got to ask a lot of questions, which was really fun! We narrowed the candidates down to 4 people pretty easily, but we only have two slots to fill! Nancy and Ryan (my bosses) are making the decisions today (Friday), which is going to be very tough! They even mentioned that they hope someone drops out next week so that they can hire more of the people that we interviewed Thursday.
In the afternoon we went to a tiny (and I mean very tiny- the whole town was essentially a cul de sac!) that has a big and beautiful park that one of the crews is being hired to work on later this summer. The town is Brookside, CO and is West of Pueblo. It is findable on google maps (I was a little surprised!). We conducted a "Site Visit" and got a very in depth tour of the park and trails. The trail was built a long time ago and is a little worse for wear. There is going to be lots of reshaping and rebuilding areas of the trail, but most of the work is going be putting tons of big stone steps throughout the trail because it is incredibly steep. It was cool to see this part of the planning process. Now that I got this introduction to the planning and contracting the work, it will be cool to come back and work on this project later in the summer and see the big changes we are going to make!
After lots of driving, I finally made it home after 7! Luckily, today (Friday) I am working from home. I am working on refining my activities for next week, so it wasn't imperative that I come into the office today. I have them all planned, but I am typing everything out and adding more to the schedule. Although it has been a short week, I am very glad to have a bit of a break today!
Besides work, another exciting (and a little scary!) thing happened this week! There is a restaurant that is being remodeled next to our apartment building. On Wednesday night, it was on fire! We had our screen door opened and smelled smoke. At first, we thought we had left the stove on or something. We realized it was coming from outside and we looked out and saw flames! I was thinking of calling 911, but thankfully a few seconds later we heard the fire trucks coming. We went downstairs to check it all out. We hung out by all the fire trucks for a while, which was pretty cool. There were about 20 fire trucks and more emergency/police vehicles everywhere. They even closed down our section of the street. At one point we heard a really loud bang that we thought was probably a gas tank exploding inside the restaurant. We saw the fire trucks put out their bracers and rise up. We saw hoses on the big ladders spraying water onto the roof of the building where the flames were. It was all pretty efficient and they got the fire out really fast. After we went home to go to bed though, there was still lots of noise while the fire fighters took axes and chain saws to the building to let the smoke out and make sure there were no more flames. I took some pictures of the ordeal, but it was really hard to get them to turn out. I found a website with some really cool pictures- you can check them out here http://5280fire.com/?p=26741 . They are similar to the ones I took- just way better! Today, the building looks the same as ever, as if nothing happened there at all!
We don't have any plans for the weekend yet, although it sounds like Ben is going to be very busy working. I'm hoping we'll get to visit his coworker's newborn son, Hudson. He was born last Friday! We each picked out a little cardboard book for him that was one of our favorites as kids. I picked out Harold and the Purple Crayon, and Ben got him Caps for Sale. It is a little early for him to enjoy reading, but I know he'll love them as he grows up!
I have to get back to work! Have a great weekend everyone!
Showing posts with label hiking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hiking. Show all posts
Friday, June 1, 2012
Phase Two
This past work week was still training, but it was designed to be a little more typical of what I will be doing in the future. We left early on Monday morning and met up at North Table Mountain, which is a recreational space run by the (Jefferson) county. Getting there was very dramatic and stressful, and unfortunately cast a shadow over the whole day. I got picked up by two other people who didn't know to leave early enough to allow for traffic! We got to the rendezvous point late and then had to drive to the work site separately. We basically hit every type of inconvenience, including waiting for a train and navigating past freeway accidents. We made it to the job site just in time and jumped right into work!
Working on a mountain is pretty cool, until you realize how hot, steep, and unshaded it is. For our training, we were helping the county revitalize this area. Our instructors were all part of the Outdoor Stewardship Institute (OSI). We worked on three different projects through the day. First, we helped construct a switchback. Mostly, this involved using pickaxes to dig out the trail, and then building a rock wall along the edge of the trail to support it. Our instructor for this particular project was a cute old man who seemed to take a liking to me. I think he actually picked me out as being the weakest, smallest, and most inexperienced and tried to empower me by making me the group leader. This ended up having the opposite effect. I, with no clue of what I was doing, had to direct a group of people who already knew how to do the work what to do while I was being corrected by the instructor every step of the way. I basically hated every minute of it, but I stuck it through! Later, the instructor was trying to joke around with me and called me a weakling, which was just the icing on the cake.
Our next job was to build a water bar. This job was the least stressful of the three. We dug a big diagonal ditch across the trail, built it into the trail with dug-in ramps, and then filled the end of the ditch in with some large rocks. The purpose of this is to catch the water run off that comes down the trail and redirect it to the mountainside, rather than allowing to to continue down and washing out the trail.
Finally, we went way up the mountain and started digging a brand new trail. A social trail had formed there, and we needed to design a trail that would make more sense and be more healthy for the landscape. Again, we used lots of pickaxes and shovels, although this was much more difficult! Cutting into fresh mountainside isn't easy! I got singled out again here, which was frustrating. At the end of the day, I was very stressed out, hot, and sunburned, but I had learned a lot!
After we got to our campsite and set up, we had dinner and then some more training! It just never ends. We had a two hour session about leadership. At least there were no tools involved!
The next day was a pretty similar set up, although it went much better for me! We were at Red Rocks State Park, which is a very cool place I had never been to before! There are a ton of huge red rock formations scattered through out the park- there is even an amphitheater built in between some of the formations- courtesy of the CCC. Way cool!
Two of our jobs involved closing off social trails. We had to pick and dig away at the trails to loosen of the soil, and then basically rebuild them into a more natural state. To do this, we dug in grooves for water to follow, strategically placed rocks to act functionally and look natural, and seed, fertilize, mulch the area before covering it with slash (tree branches which protect the seeds and also block off the trail). When we were done with those trails, they looked like pieces of (natural) art!
The other project we worked on was a bit different because we actually were working with a social trail instead of taking it out or otherwise working against it. There is a path from the amphitheater to one of the parking lots that a lot of people use and it is very steep! We knew that there wasn't really a way to stop people from using this major causeway, so we decided to make it safer by putting stairs in it. Building stairs (especially 6 foot wide and 30 inch long ones) up a steep path is a lot of work! We spent a lot of time digging and measuring, and then digging and measuring some more! We worked ourselves ragged with those stairs but it was my favorite job we worked on. Our team worked really well together and we got a great, tangible, useful, result.
After work we headed back to camp and I nursed my very brutal blisters. They were so bad that I wasn't sure I would be able to work on Wednesday! Luckily one of my team members was very handy with moleskin and tape, and I was able to wear 3 pairs of socks and take some painkillers to get me through!
I was on dinner crew that night and I helped make some very great burritos that really hit the spot! After dinner, we had two more hours of training!
The next two days were filled with a myriad of different jobs we worked on! We carried fencing up the mountain and built three big fences with it. We built two sets of stairs in some really steep parts or the trail, and rehabilitated a bunch of trail and eroded areas. I didn't get to take too many pictures, but I did capture one of our fence! I'm looking forward to going back and showing people all the awesome work we did.
After work on Wednesday, we had spaghetti for dinner and then some more training! The rest of the night was a bit dramatic as there was a huge thunderstorm, complete with lots of pouring rain, thunder, lightning and hail! Not so fun to camp in! The storm eventually dissipated and we ended the night sleeping in very cold and slightly damp tents. Thursday was a half work day and we were able to pack up and head home a little early.
I was hoping we would have Friday off to recover, but there was lots to do in the office! The crews were all heading out on their official first hitch on Tuesday (Monday was off for Memorial day) so we had a lot to prepare for. We did lots of planning, cleaning, organizing, packing, and shopping! I especially helped with all of the food shopping- we went to Costco and got 3 flat carts piled high with food! It takes a lot to feed 25 people for 5 days and 12 people for 10 days!
Finally, we got to head home for the long weekend!
Working on a mountain is pretty cool, until you realize how hot, steep, and unshaded it is. For our training, we were helping the county revitalize this area. Our instructors were all part of the Outdoor Stewardship Institute (OSI). We worked on three different projects through the day. First, we helped construct a switchback. Mostly, this involved using pickaxes to dig out the trail, and then building a rock wall along the edge of the trail to support it. Our instructor for this particular project was a cute old man who seemed to take a liking to me. I think he actually picked me out as being the weakest, smallest, and most inexperienced and tried to empower me by making me the group leader. This ended up having the opposite effect. I, with no clue of what I was doing, had to direct a group of people who already knew how to do the work what to do while I was being corrected by the instructor every step of the way. I basically hated every minute of it, but I stuck it through! Later, the instructor was trying to joke around with me and called me a weakling, which was just the icing on the cake.
Our next job was to build a water bar. This job was the least stressful of the three. We dug a big diagonal ditch across the trail, built it into the trail with dug-in ramps, and then filled the end of the ditch in with some large rocks. The purpose of this is to catch the water run off that comes down the trail and redirect it to the mountainside, rather than allowing to to continue down and washing out the trail.
Finally, we went way up the mountain and started digging a brand new trail. A social trail had formed there, and we needed to design a trail that would make more sense and be more healthy for the landscape. Again, we used lots of pickaxes and shovels, although this was much more difficult! Cutting into fresh mountainside isn't easy! I got singled out again here, which was frustrating. At the end of the day, I was very stressed out, hot, and sunburned, but I had learned a lot!
After we got to our campsite and set up, we had dinner and then some more training! It just never ends. We had a two hour session about leadership. At least there were no tools involved!
The next day was a pretty similar set up, although it went much better for me! We were at Red Rocks State Park, which is a very cool place I had never been to before! There are a ton of huge red rock formations scattered through out the park- there is even an amphitheater built in between some of the formations- courtesy of the CCC. Way cool!
The other project we worked on was a bit different because we actually were working with a social trail instead of taking it out or otherwise working against it. There is a path from the amphitheater to one of the parking lots that a lot of people use and it is very steep! We knew that there wasn't really a way to stop people from using this major causeway, so we decided to make it safer by putting stairs in it. Building stairs (especially 6 foot wide and 30 inch long ones) up a steep path is a lot of work! We spent a lot of time digging and measuring, and then digging and measuring some more! We worked ourselves ragged with those stairs but it was my favorite job we worked on. Our team worked really well together and we got a great, tangible, useful, result.
After work we headed back to camp and I nursed my very brutal blisters. They were so bad that I wasn't sure I would be able to work on Wednesday! Luckily one of my team members was very handy with moleskin and tape, and I was able to wear 3 pairs of socks and take some painkillers to get me through!
I was on dinner crew that night and I helped make some very great burritos that really hit the spot! After dinner, we had two more hours of training!
The next two days were filled with a myriad of different jobs we worked on! We carried fencing up the mountain and built three big fences with it. We built two sets of stairs in some really steep parts or the trail, and rehabilitated a bunch of trail and eroded areas. I didn't get to take too many pictures, but I did capture one of our fence! I'm looking forward to going back and showing people all the awesome work we did.
I was hoping we would have Friday off to recover, but there was lots to do in the office! The crews were all heading out on their official first hitch on Tuesday (Monday was off for Memorial day) so we had a lot to prepare for. We did lots of planning, cleaning, organizing, packing, and shopping! I especially helped with all of the food shopping- we went to Costco and got 3 flat carts piled high with food! It takes a lot to feed 25 people for 5 days and 12 people for 10 days!
Finally, we got to head home for the long weekend!
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Jobness
So far, I've been at work for a week and a half!
I started on Wednesday the 9th. The first three days were lots of training, orientation, and paperwork! It was really nice, however, to meet all of my coworkers and my two bosses. They all seem really great! Nancy is runs the office and is pretty cute. She also always has her boston terrier with her, Zoki, who is totally awesome. My other boss is Ryan. He runs the conservation program I am a part of. He is 6' 8'' and a little intimidating at first, but is a pretty cool guy. My other coworkers consist of 4 teams of crew leaders and mentors. There is also one other ACLC (same as my position) and we get along really well so far! We are also both currently living in Denver, so we've been able to carpool and switch off driving days, which is really convenient and money-saving.
This past week started with two training days in Denver for the ACLCs and mentors. It was interesting to be at the head office and meeting a lot of new people, but the training wasn't too exciting because it was mostly what we had already covered in our office. Wednesday was the first day with the crews! There were three crews (33 people) to meet. I think I know everyone's name already! I'll have to test myself again next week. There is one more crew that is based in another city, Pueblo, that will be trained in later. Although sometimes I feel a little left out because of not being in a crew, I'm really excited to be able to jump around and work with all of the crews.
Wednesday and Thursday were similar to the same days in the previous week. We went through almost all the same paperwork, but we had to help the big group figure it all out. Luckily, my fellow ACLC and I got a little break because we got to lead some activities during paperwork breaks and we got to distribute all the uniforms. The uniforms are mostly a green t-shirt and khaki work pants. And, lots of PPE/ safety gear as well. The uniform distribution went smoothly, but we did have to deal with some pants issues. The pants are these really thick work pants and they are basically designed to not fit on anyone! They are also incredibly unattractive and uncomfortable!
On Friday, we had a full day outside, which was a great change! We went to a really beautiful park in Colorado Springs and had some outdoor training. We learned about basic trail building and maintenance, safety practices, and got introduced to a huge number of tools. The hardest part about that is going to be remembering all of their names! After those lessons, we took a nice educational hike up to the top of a big hill (small mountain?) and had a great view of the city and mountain range. We all got very hot and sweaty (we practiced hiking while carrying our tools) and also found out that breaking in our work boots is going to take a while! Meanwhile, we'll have to work through those blisters. Here's a group photo of everyone. I'm on the bottom left along with my fellow ACLC.
I started on Wednesday the 9th. The first three days were lots of training, orientation, and paperwork! It was really nice, however, to meet all of my coworkers and my two bosses. They all seem really great! Nancy is runs the office and is pretty cute. She also always has her boston terrier with her, Zoki, who is totally awesome. My other boss is Ryan. He runs the conservation program I am a part of. He is 6' 8'' and a little intimidating at first, but is a pretty cool guy. My other coworkers consist of 4 teams of crew leaders and mentors. There is also one other ACLC (same as my position) and we get along really well so far! We are also both currently living in Denver, so we've been able to carpool and switch off driving days, which is really convenient and money-saving.
This past week started with two training days in Denver for the ACLCs and mentors. It was interesting to be at the head office and meeting a lot of new people, but the training wasn't too exciting because it was mostly what we had already covered in our office. Wednesday was the first day with the crews! There were three crews (33 people) to meet. I think I know everyone's name already! I'll have to test myself again next week. There is one more crew that is based in another city, Pueblo, that will be trained in later. Although sometimes I feel a little left out because of not being in a crew, I'm really excited to be able to jump around and work with all of the crews.
Wednesday and Thursday were similar to the same days in the previous week. We went through almost all the same paperwork, but we had to help the big group figure it all out. Luckily, my fellow ACLC and I got a little break because we got to lead some activities during paperwork breaks and we got to distribute all the uniforms. The uniforms are mostly a green t-shirt and khaki work pants. And, lots of PPE/ safety gear as well. The uniform distribution went smoothly, but we did have to deal with some pants issues. The pants are these really thick work pants and they are basically designed to not fit on anyone! They are also incredibly unattractive and uncomfortable!
On Friday, we had a full day outside, which was a great change! We went to a really beautiful park in Colorado Springs and had some outdoor training. We learned about basic trail building and maintenance, safety practices, and got introduced to a huge number of tools. The hardest part about that is going to be remembering all of their names! After those lessons, we took a nice educational hike up to the top of a big hill (small mountain?) and had a great view of the city and mountain range. We all got very hot and sweaty (we practiced hiking while carrying our tools) and also found out that breaking in our work boots is going to take a while! Meanwhile, we'll have to work through those blisters. Here's a group photo of everyone. I'm on the bottom left along with my fellow ACLC.
Next week, I'll be camping with all of the crew leaders (in gray) and mentors to do some more training! I'm thinking that it will be a lot more fun than what we've done so far.
Meanwhile, things a home have been fairly quiet. Bill came back from Hawaii, and both he and Ben have been working really long days (from about 5 am to 7 or 8 pm). They've been working this job all week, including today (Saturday!) and will be working at the same place through at least most of next week. We all feel like we are never home! We get home from work, eat take-out or left overs, and go to bed soon after. I also have been getting home late because of my commute. We have all just been too tired to do much of anything, but I think we are going to REI and/or the mall tomorrow. Otherwise,what we have done lately has been before we all stared working so much! We went to the Zoo last Saturday. We saw the new Asian exhibit which is going to be very cool! We got in with our free tickets that we got from the car dealership. Everything is done being built, but not all of the animals were in yet. But the elephants were there and they were enjoying checking out their new homes. An especially neat feature to the exhibit is that the rhinos, taipirs and the elephants are going to be rotating habitats each day. They get to have a little variation in sights and smells, which is pretty neat. The rest of the zoo was also awesome- as usual! Bill hadn't been there since October, so I had fun showing him around. After the zoo we went to dinner at Dave and Busters (Ben and I had never been before) and then we went to to see the Avengers again, but this time in Imax and 3D! It was just as good as the first time, but bigger and louder!
Thanks for reading! I'll check back in after camping next week.
Thursday, May 3, 2012
I got a job! And a car!
It has been a busy couple of weeks!
Most importantly, I got a job! It is with Mile High Youth Corps, which I mentioned in the last post. I heard back about a week after my interview and went in for a second one on Wednesday. After that interview, I felt very confident about getting the job because I had to fill out paperwork for a background check and go in for a drug test. On Friday I got a call telling me that I was being considered for another position, called ACLC. That stands for AmeriCorps Leadership & Conservation corpsmember. Basically, it is similar to the regular corpsmember position, except that there is more responsibility and there is more involvement with the organization. That sounded really cool to me because I would get to do the outdoor work and also lead some projects and get more involved! The main concern with this position, however, is that it is filled in Denver already so I would have to work out of the Colorado Springs office, which is about 60 miles away. I had a phone interview on Monday for the ACLC position, and was told I would hear in a few more days. Apparently though, the woman I interviewed with called to get some of my files from the Denver office and they realized there was a decision to be made because both offices wanted to hire me! So I ended up getting a call right away explaining the situation. I ended up deciding to take the position in Colorado Springs because not only is it a more well-rounded program, but it is also a 6 month term rather than a 3 month term (that I would have done in the other position). Accepting this job meant that I was going to be doing a big commute- I wouldn't be able to take the train or bus there. So, we had to do something about that!
On Saturday, we decided to start looking at cars for me. I didn't have the job yet (although I essentially knew that I did), but we wanted to get a head start. We first went to look at Smart Cars! We wanted to find something sensible and with great gas mileage, and Smart cars have the best rate and price for a non-hybrid or electric car. The dealer near us with smart cars is actually a Mercedes-Benz dealer, and it was pretty fancy! We worked with a really nice gal and we got to test drive a smart car. It was pretty fun, cute, and, of course, tiny! We couldn't make a final decision yet, since I didn't for sure have a job yet, so we decided to come back later. Meanwhile, Ben had been doing some research comparing different small and efficient cars. He came across one called the Scion IQ that looked pretty neat! We didn't know much about it as it was just released within the last year, but we decided to check it out. It has the best gas mileage next to the Smart car (it's pretty darn close actually), a comparable price, and has a ton more features, comfort, and is safer. Also, it's just way more cool!
We went to the Toyota/Scion dealer on Monday and worked with a really awesome dude. He was one of the youngest employees there and we were some of the youngest customers they've had, so we got along great. We got to test drive an IQ and we totally loved it! It is small, but slightly larger than the Smart car. There is actually a back seat to it, although we wouldn't put anyone we like back there longer than a few minutes. It handled a lot better and was much more comfortable. It also comes with really cool features like bluetooth phone and music, hd radio, fog lights, and essentially a gazillion airbags. In the Smart car, we would have had to upgrade just to get a radio, air conditioning, and power windows and locks. After getting a quote pretty close to what we got for the Smart car, we were pretty much sold. We deliberated a bit and decided to lease one. We obviously can't afford to buy a new car, and buying used from a dealer or otherwise wouldn't have worked either because we just don't have cash we could have paid upfront. Leasing is more expensive in the long run, but it makes sense for us right now. Anyway, we had a choice of dark purple or silver for the car, but we decided to ask if there were any more colors available, just in case. We were in luck! The sister dealership had a "hot lava" orange one that could be transferred over. So, we did all the paperwork on Monday, and picked up our spicy orange car on Tuesday! This one actually has even more features than the others we had seen, such as 7 colors of interior accent lights! It is pretty silly, but also awesome. I've always wanted a purple light to shine on my feet while driving! Sure.
Ok, so two more things about our awesome car. The main thing is that even though it is only 10 feet long, it is actually quite spacious. I get uncomfortable in cars really easily, but this one has enough space in front that I could even cross my legs in the front seat and not be uncomfortable or in the way of the driver. It is a tiny car, but it doesn't feel too tiny to drive or be in- basically they just chopped off everything behind the front seats. The other sweet thing about it is the turn radius of 12.9 feet. Considering the size of the car and comparing it to the turn radius- there isn't much difference, is there. This means that you can turn on a dime and do awesome doughnuts in the parking lot and feel like you are spinning on a stationary axis. This is way fun, and a little scary when Ben does it really fast! Now, we are just trying to think of a name for it; let me know if you have any ideas!
We have also been up to other, slightly less exciting things, too.
Before I found out about my job (and for many months before), we had been working on getting a dog. We have gone to the shelter a few times and met a few cute ones! We almost took one home in April, but it was right before Bill left on his work trip to Hawaii, so he didn't want to get a dog and then just ditch it. I almost talked Ben into getting a different dog more recently, but we knew we didn't have the funds to take care of it and for the increase in rent. Unfortunately, now we are realizing that a dog is even less feasible that we previously thought. Once I start working, I'll be working long days on top of a long commute and might be doing some travel and be gone for up to a week at a time. Meanwhile, Bill has been gone and may often be gone/ working long hours over the summer and Ben has also been working a ton and even overnight as well. There might be days at a time where there wouldn't be anyone in the house to take care of a dog :( Now, I am thinking I might be able to talk them into getting a cat at least! We'll see...
I had another fun shopping trip with Ashley a couple weekends ago! She had done some shopping on her own and returned the cowboy boots (aww), but bought the final pair of wedding shoes (yay)! I met up with her downtown where she was at a bridal shop trying on her entire wedding ensemble- she had just gotten her veil and now she could finally see the pieces all together! It looked great and she looked beautiful! We then proceeded to have a great time shopping and wandering around down town and then at the mall. Ben had been working that weekend, but once he got off, he called us and said he was heading over to a coworker's house for a crawfish boil and that we were invited! It was a fun party even though we didn't know anyone and the food was delicious once you got over the creepiness!
In between car shopping, Ben and I finally got to go hiking this weekend! We have been itching to go for months now, but Ben has just been so busy with work! We ended up going to a beautiful place called Roxborough State Park. It is about 45 minutes south of us, and it is sort of at the base of the mountains. There were amazing, huge, red rock formations all over, and we hiked up the big peak in the park and only made it back to the car right after the park had closed! The ranger actually had to let us out, oops! It was a very fast but still very fun hike. I want to go back again soon- it was so beautiful! It also showed me that I should work out some more to get in better shape for my job! If you'd like to see some more pictures I put some on my facebook and deviantart pages.
Well, I have a few days before my job starts on the 9th. I think I'll spend it driving around in my new car, and also taking care of the house before I start work and won't have time to anymore or I'll be too exhausted to do it! Bill is still in Hawaii and will be for a while yet. Ben might be going back to California soon, but I'm hoping he'll be able to stay (or come back before) til I get settled into my job!
Thanks for reading!
Most importantly, I got a job! It is with Mile High Youth Corps, which I mentioned in the last post. I heard back about a week after my interview and went in for a second one on Wednesday. After that interview, I felt very confident about getting the job because I had to fill out paperwork for a background check and go in for a drug test. On Friday I got a call telling me that I was being considered for another position, called ACLC. That stands for AmeriCorps Leadership & Conservation corpsmember. Basically, it is similar to the regular corpsmember position, except that there is more responsibility and there is more involvement with the organization. That sounded really cool to me because I would get to do the outdoor work and also lead some projects and get more involved! The main concern with this position, however, is that it is filled in Denver already so I would have to work out of the Colorado Springs office, which is about 60 miles away. I had a phone interview on Monday for the ACLC position, and was told I would hear in a few more days. Apparently though, the woman I interviewed with called to get some of my files from the Denver office and they realized there was a decision to be made because both offices wanted to hire me! So I ended up getting a call right away explaining the situation. I ended up deciding to take the position in Colorado Springs because not only is it a more well-rounded program, but it is also a 6 month term rather than a 3 month term (that I would have done in the other position). Accepting this job meant that I was going to be doing a big commute- I wouldn't be able to take the train or bus there. So, we had to do something about that!
On Saturday, we decided to start looking at cars for me. I didn't have the job yet (although I essentially knew that I did), but we wanted to get a head start. We first went to look at Smart Cars! We wanted to find something sensible and with great gas mileage, and Smart cars have the best rate and price for a non-hybrid or electric car. The dealer near us with smart cars is actually a Mercedes-Benz dealer, and it was pretty fancy! We worked with a really nice gal and we got to test drive a smart car. It was pretty fun, cute, and, of course, tiny! We couldn't make a final decision yet, since I didn't for sure have a job yet, so we decided to come back later. Meanwhile, Ben had been doing some research comparing different small and efficient cars. He came across one called the Scion IQ that looked pretty neat! We didn't know much about it as it was just released within the last year, but we decided to check it out. It has the best gas mileage next to the Smart car (it's pretty darn close actually), a comparable price, and has a ton more features, comfort, and is safer. Also, it's just way more cool!
Ok, so two more things about our awesome car. The main thing is that even though it is only 10 feet long, it is actually quite spacious. I get uncomfortable in cars really easily, but this one has enough space in front that I could even cross my legs in the front seat and not be uncomfortable or in the way of the driver. It is a tiny car, but it doesn't feel too tiny to drive or be in- basically they just chopped off everything behind the front seats. The other sweet thing about it is the turn radius of 12.9 feet. Considering the size of the car and comparing it to the turn radius- there isn't much difference, is there. This means that you can turn on a dime and do awesome doughnuts in the parking lot and feel like you are spinning on a stationary axis. This is way fun, and a little scary when Ben does it really fast! Now, we are just trying to think of a name for it; let me know if you have any ideas!
We have also been up to other, slightly less exciting things, too.
Before I found out about my job (and for many months before), we had been working on getting a dog. We have gone to the shelter a few times and met a few cute ones! We almost took one home in April, but it was right before Bill left on his work trip to Hawaii, so he didn't want to get a dog and then just ditch it. I almost talked Ben into getting a different dog more recently, but we knew we didn't have the funds to take care of it and for the increase in rent. Unfortunately, now we are realizing that a dog is even less feasible that we previously thought. Once I start working, I'll be working long days on top of a long commute and might be doing some travel and be gone for up to a week at a time. Meanwhile, Bill has been gone and may often be gone/ working long hours over the summer and Ben has also been working a ton and even overnight as well. There might be days at a time where there wouldn't be anyone in the house to take care of a dog :( Now, I am thinking I might be able to talk them into getting a cat at least! We'll see...
I had another fun shopping trip with Ashley a couple weekends ago! She had done some shopping on her own and returned the cowboy boots (aww), but bought the final pair of wedding shoes (yay)! I met up with her downtown where she was at a bridal shop trying on her entire wedding ensemble- she had just gotten her veil and now she could finally see the pieces all together! It looked great and she looked beautiful! We then proceeded to have a great time shopping and wandering around down town and then at the mall. Ben had been working that weekend, but once he got off, he called us and said he was heading over to a coworker's house for a crawfish boil and that we were invited! It was a fun party even though we didn't know anyone and the food was delicious once you got over the creepiness!
In between car shopping, Ben and I finally got to go hiking this weekend! We have been itching to go for months now, but Ben has just been so busy with work! We ended up going to a beautiful place called Roxborough State Park. It is about 45 minutes south of us, and it is sort of at the base of the mountains. There were amazing, huge, red rock formations all over, and we hiked up the big peak in the park and only made it back to the car right after the park had closed! The ranger actually had to let us out, oops! It was a very fast but still very fun hike. I want to go back again soon- it was so beautiful! It also showed me that I should work out some more to get in better shape for my job! If you'd like to see some more pictures I put some on my facebook and deviantart pages.
Well, I have a few days before my job starts on the 9th. I think I'll spend it driving around in my new car, and also taking care of the house before I start work and won't have time to anymore or I'll be too exhausted to do it! Bill is still in Hawaii and will be for a while yet. Ben might be going back to California soon, but I'm hoping he'll be able to stay (or come back before) til I get settled into my job!
Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
An Early Spring!
I suppose it might not be considered an early spring for Denver, but experiencing 60-80 degree weather in March is a wonderful change for me! I still keep expecting a freak snow storm or cold snap, which would be perfectly normal in the Midwest!
Although it has been warm, we haven't been doing too much more outdoor activity. This makes me sad! We have been pretty busy over the last month, which I guess is why I haven't posted lately! I keep reminding myself to do it, but somehow it never quite gets crossed off on the to-do list.
Let's see here... last time I posted was the end of February! Wow! ...Sorry. We have spent a lot of the last few weekends spending time with our friends Justin and Ashley. We have had lots of game nights. These usually involve a combination of board/card games, movies, beer, and cooking great food! We have also been helping (or tagging along) with some of their wedding planning errands. I've been helping Ashley pick out shoes, but we haven't found the right pair yet- even after some very long days of shopping! I keep telling her to just have no shoes like we did- it makes it so simple! ;) Bill, Justin, Ashley, and I also looked at a bunch of tux options and made some decisions on styles and color combinations. They are going to look very sharp! Ashley and I also tried to narrow down some bridesmaid dress options- the trick is that we have to find the combination of the right color, style, fabric, and price! Very tricky.
We had a special night out at the beginning of the month with Justin and Ashley when they had some guests from college visit! There were 4 visitors, and 3 were foreign exchange students. They were getting a mini tour of America over their spring break! We just got to spend one night with them in downtown Denver, but it was very fun! They all had great personalities and were easy to get along with. They were very impressed with the half yards of beer and food at the Yardhouse! We were especially impressed with the service there when Ben accidentally knocked his half yard glass onto someones food and the restaurant didn't end up charging him for the first plate or his replacement dish either. We didn't end up staying out very late because they had to get on the road early to go skiing and then keep heading west!
Another special weekend we had was St. Patrick's day! The three of us dressed up in fun green clothes (and of course Ben was in his kilt) and went downtown. We met up with some friends at the Yardhouse to start out our night. We hung out with Joey and Tracey- Joey is an old friend of Ben's from high school who just moved to Denver to be with his girlfriend Tracey. Ben hadn't seen Joey in a few years and we were all meeting Tracey for the first time, and we all got along famously! It was really awesome to meet people that we got along with so well. We're hoping to spend more time with them soon! Anyway, at the Yardhouse our St. Paddy's day was complete with green beer and corned beef sandwiches (that were totally divine! I wish they weren't just a holiday item!). After the Yardhouse we tried to find another nice place to hang out without much luck. Even with a Denverite, Tracey, we weren't able to find a place that wasn't packed! Eventually we came across a bar called 1 UP, which piqued our interest. It was full of retro (and some newer) arcade games. There was a bit of a line, but we didn't feel like going anywhere else, so we didn't mind waiting for a bit. When we got to the front of the line we were still going to have to wait a little longer, but the bouncer really liked Ben's kilt so he let us in right away. Ben was very proud! We got a few drinks and spent lots of quarters playing games like pacman, pinball, and street fighter. I wasn't too skilled at the arcade games, but I found out that I am not terrible at skiball! We're hoping to go back there again soon and play some more games hopefully when it isn't so busy! After we spent all of our quarters we went home on the light rail. Tracey and Joey only live 6 stops away from us, so it won't be at all difficult to meet up in the future.
The weekdays, I'm sorry to say, have been far less interesting than the weekends. Ben and Bill have been keeping busy at work and I have been doing a lot of reading (Swamplandia, Rook, and the Percy Jackson series- I recommend all of these! ), watching Queer Eye on netflix, and of course applying for lots and lots of jobs. I have only heard rejections so far :( . Ben and I ended up making a deal that if I could apply for 10 jobs in 1 day that we would go look at dogs together. I accomplished that goal, and we had a fun day of going to some dog shelters around Denver. We went to the Denver city shelter, Max Fund shelter, and the Dumb Friends League (which has a silly name, but is a very cool place!). We saw lots of dogs (and cats!) that we liked, but we couldn't decide on one to take home. I did have a dog in mind that was at the Denver shelter but it was being adopted when we got there! We looked at lots more, but we have very different tastes in dogs and we didn't see any that seemed like the right match for us. Ben likes black lab mix dogs, and I like Australian Shepherd/border collie dogs or other similar kinds with longer fur. Another problem is that we should probably get a smaller dog than either of those kinds so that it will fit in our apartment and won't need as much exercise. We both really love huge dogs (we saw a really cool great dane!), and don't really know what to think of medium sized and smaller breeds.
Some slightly more exciting things have going on in the apartment though. A few days ago we had the fire alarm go off and lots and lots of fire trucks came to the building! It was very noisy and exciting, and luckily nothing major happened. I think there was just a little kitchen fire in the building adjacent to ours. I guess other than that things have been pretty quiet. We got some new neighbors with some barky dogs that we have yet to meet. Our lobby, mail area, and exercise room just got repainted and they look pretty snazzy!
Since we recently filed our taxes, we got our return money back! Most of the money went to paying off bills, but we saved so me to spend on ourselves. Ben bought a new video game, Mass Effect 3. I went on a little shopping spree at Kohl's and Target and bought some spring clothes! I got a blue purse, a pair of stripey slip-on shoes, a yellow skirt with paisley stitched on the bottom, an off white lacey dress, and a fun multicolored stripey dress. Unfortunately, it hasn't quite warmed up enough for me to wear them yet (although my standards for wearing shorts/dresses is pretty high), but I have been getting lots of use out of the purse and I totally love it!
This past weekend we had an extra special adventure! On Tuesday night, Ben's uncle was in town on a mini business trip. He took us out for drinks and snacks at Earl's and we had a really great time! It was fun to catch up with him and also have some really good conversation. Ben's mom and sister came drove to visit us and take a vacation! They got here on Wednesday night. Ben's uncle was still in town and we had a big dinner planned, so it worked out fabulously that everyone was able to come to our apartment and have a big shrimp scampi feast! I don't know how we are going to eat all those leftovers! On Thursday, the three ladies drove to Idaho Springs to go to the cabin that the Little family rented. The town was very cute, the woods and mountains were beautiful, and the cabin was perfect! I hope we can go back soon! Here's the link to the place we stayed: http://www.vrbo.com/290592 . If you're planning on a visit I highly recommend it! We had a ton of great adventures hiking and exploring in on the property, the national forest, and the town of Idaho Springs. We also had a great time playing lots of games together, cuddling up in blankets, reading books, and making and eating lots of wonderful food. We also visited the Tommyknocker brewery that is located in Idaho Springs- Ben was very jealous that we went there without him because they make some of his favorite kinds of beer! Ben drove out to the cabin on Friday night after he got done with work, and Bill came out on Saturday morning, too! We played more games and did lots more hiking and exploring with the guys! We found a river on the cabin property and Bill found some fools gold in the water. It was pretty cool to see all the sparkly gold water, and our boots were still sparkling after we got back! The Littles left early Sunday morning to head back to Minnesota. After we finished packing up the cabin, Bill, Ben, and I went into town to do a little more exploring and to get breakfast. Bill headed home on the freeway, and Ben and I took the top off the Jeep and took the back roads home. It was very nice out, but it was still a bit cold in the mountains! The ride was very beautiful! Once we got home, however, we noticed how sunburned we had gotten! On our way back we stopped at Ben's work. They had just finished moving into their new office on Friday night and I was seeing it for the first time. It is very cool and huge- several times bigger than their old office! Ben has a big desk and shares an office with 1 other guy who I haven't met yet. Bill has a big corner office that he shares with 2 other people that he works with. There is still a lot of organizing left to do there, but everyone is very excited to finally have enough office and work space for everyone!
On Monday afternoon Ben came home early after starting work early. It was great to see him, but unfortunately he was mostly home just to pack up for a work trip to southern California. He'll be gone at least a week and he's very busy so I haven't been able to talk to him much so far. Hopefully everything goes well so he doesn't have to be gone longer!
On Tuesday, yesterday, I biked to the dentist. I had an appointment for an exam and xrays because I hadn't been to the dentist in a while. It turned out to be a 3.5 hour appointment because 2 of my fillings had to be replaced! Luckily, my teeth were otherwise in great shape- the dentist was very impressed that I came in without a problem and that my teeth were doing so well! The appointment was of course very long and painful, but it wasn't too bad overall because the dentist was basically the nicest and most caring person I have ever met! She was actually really fun to be around and made the whole experience a lot better. Oh yeah, and my replacement fillings are made of porcelain! They took 3d pictures of my teeth and a machine carved my fillings with diamond drills so that they fit into my teeth perfectly. Pretty spiffy! Once I finally got out of the appointment, though, I was so exhausted, hungry, in pain, and numbed that I didn't feel well enough to drive home so I had Bill pick me up! I felt much better after eating some (soft) dinner (I had an early breakfast and skipped lunch because of my appointment) and taking some pain killers!
After dinner Bill and I ventured out to the Denver REI. It was huge! It is a (the?) flagship store, and it was way cool! It was locate in a giant old International Harvester warehouse- I definitely got lost a few times! Bill picked out some sandals, a water bottles, and bike lights, and we had fun looking at lots of other stuff! I'm excited to take Ben there when he gets back, but I'm afraid we'll never be able to leave! After the REI, Bill remembered that there was a really cool ice cream place nearby. We walked across a huge bridge to get there. It is called Littleman Ice Cream and it is just a little hut (shaped like a giant milk can) with 2 guys serving a huge line of people through the windows. All the dining space was outdoors. The ice cream was incredibly delicious and they had very unique flavors! We got served by a guy who looked exactly like Jude Law. I asked him if he was Jude Law, but he denied that he was (I'm convinced he was lying). We ordered 1 serving of lemon creamsicle to share and we got a huge serving that I don't know how 1 person would be able to eat! I'm hoping to go back again soon to try some of the other flavors like oatmeal cookie and salty oreo.
Phew! That basically catches us up to today! I'll try to post more so the entries don't get so long!!
Thanks for reading!
Although it has been warm, we haven't been doing too much more outdoor activity. This makes me sad! We have been pretty busy over the last month, which I guess is why I haven't posted lately! I keep reminding myself to do it, but somehow it never quite gets crossed off on the to-do list.
Let's see here... last time I posted was the end of February! Wow! ...Sorry. We have spent a lot of the last few weekends spending time with our friends Justin and Ashley. We have had lots of game nights. These usually involve a combination of board/card games, movies, beer, and cooking great food! We have also been helping (or tagging along) with some of their wedding planning errands. I've been helping Ashley pick out shoes, but we haven't found the right pair yet- even after some very long days of shopping! I keep telling her to just have no shoes like we did- it makes it so simple! ;) Bill, Justin, Ashley, and I also looked at a bunch of tux options and made some decisions on styles and color combinations. They are going to look very sharp! Ashley and I also tried to narrow down some bridesmaid dress options- the trick is that we have to find the combination of the right color, style, fabric, and price! Very tricky.
We had a special night out at the beginning of the month with Justin and Ashley when they had some guests from college visit! There were 4 visitors, and 3 were foreign exchange students. They were getting a mini tour of America over their spring break! We just got to spend one night with them in downtown Denver, but it was very fun! They all had great personalities and were easy to get along with. They were very impressed with the half yards of beer and food at the Yardhouse! We were especially impressed with the service there when Ben accidentally knocked his half yard glass onto someones food and the restaurant didn't end up charging him for the first plate or his replacement dish either. We didn't end up staying out very late because they had to get on the road early to go skiing and then keep heading west!
Another special weekend we had was St. Patrick's day! The three of us dressed up in fun green clothes (and of course Ben was in his kilt) and went downtown. We met up with some friends at the Yardhouse to start out our night. We hung out with Joey and Tracey- Joey is an old friend of Ben's from high school who just moved to Denver to be with his girlfriend Tracey. Ben hadn't seen Joey in a few years and we were all meeting Tracey for the first time, and we all got along famously! It was really awesome to meet people that we got along with so well. We're hoping to spend more time with them soon! Anyway, at the Yardhouse our St. Paddy's day was complete with green beer and corned beef sandwiches (that were totally divine! I wish they weren't just a holiday item!). After the Yardhouse we tried to find another nice place to hang out without much luck. Even with a Denverite, Tracey, we weren't able to find a place that wasn't packed! Eventually we came across a bar called 1 UP, which piqued our interest. It was full of retro (and some newer) arcade games. There was a bit of a line, but we didn't feel like going anywhere else, so we didn't mind waiting for a bit. When we got to the front of the line we were still going to have to wait a little longer, but the bouncer really liked Ben's kilt so he let us in right away. Ben was very proud! We got a few drinks and spent lots of quarters playing games like pacman, pinball, and street fighter. I wasn't too skilled at the arcade games, but I found out that I am not terrible at skiball! We're hoping to go back there again soon and play some more games hopefully when it isn't so busy! After we spent all of our quarters we went home on the light rail. Tracey and Joey only live 6 stops away from us, so it won't be at all difficult to meet up in the future.
The weekdays, I'm sorry to say, have been far less interesting than the weekends. Ben and Bill have been keeping busy at work and I have been doing a lot of reading (Swamplandia, Rook, and the Percy Jackson series- I recommend all of these! ), watching Queer Eye on netflix, and of course applying for lots and lots of jobs. I have only heard rejections so far :( . Ben and I ended up making a deal that if I could apply for 10 jobs in 1 day that we would go look at dogs together. I accomplished that goal, and we had a fun day of going to some dog shelters around Denver. We went to the Denver city shelter, Max Fund shelter, and the Dumb Friends League (which has a silly name, but is a very cool place!). We saw lots of dogs (and cats!) that we liked, but we couldn't decide on one to take home. I did have a dog in mind that was at the Denver shelter but it was being adopted when we got there! We looked at lots more, but we have very different tastes in dogs and we didn't see any that seemed like the right match for us. Ben likes black lab mix dogs, and I like Australian Shepherd/border collie dogs or other similar kinds with longer fur. Another problem is that we should probably get a smaller dog than either of those kinds so that it will fit in our apartment and won't need as much exercise. We both really love huge dogs (we saw a really cool great dane!), and don't really know what to think of medium sized and smaller breeds.
Some slightly more exciting things have going on in the apartment though. A few days ago we had the fire alarm go off and lots and lots of fire trucks came to the building! It was very noisy and exciting, and luckily nothing major happened. I think there was just a little kitchen fire in the building adjacent to ours. I guess other than that things have been pretty quiet. We got some new neighbors with some barky dogs that we have yet to meet. Our lobby, mail area, and exercise room just got repainted and they look pretty snazzy!
Since we recently filed our taxes, we got our return money back! Most of the money went to paying off bills, but we saved so me to spend on ourselves. Ben bought a new video game, Mass Effect 3. I went on a little shopping spree at Kohl's and Target and bought some spring clothes! I got a blue purse, a pair of stripey slip-on shoes, a yellow skirt with paisley stitched on the bottom, an off white lacey dress, and a fun multicolored stripey dress. Unfortunately, it hasn't quite warmed up enough for me to wear them yet (although my standards for wearing shorts/dresses is pretty high), but I have been getting lots of use out of the purse and I totally love it!
This past weekend we had an extra special adventure! On Tuesday night, Ben's uncle was in town on a mini business trip. He took us out for drinks and snacks at Earl's and we had a really great time! It was fun to catch up with him and also have some really good conversation. Ben's mom and sister came drove to visit us and take a vacation! They got here on Wednesday night. Ben's uncle was still in town and we had a big dinner planned, so it worked out fabulously that everyone was able to come to our apartment and have a big shrimp scampi feast! I don't know how we are going to eat all those leftovers! On Thursday, the three ladies drove to Idaho Springs to go to the cabin that the Little family rented. The town was very cute, the woods and mountains were beautiful, and the cabin was perfect! I hope we can go back soon! Here's the link to the place we stayed: http://www.vrbo.com/290592 . If you're planning on a visit I highly recommend it! We had a ton of great adventures hiking and exploring in on the property, the national forest, and the town of Idaho Springs. We also had a great time playing lots of games together, cuddling up in blankets, reading books, and making and eating lots of wonderful food. We also visited the Tommyknocker brewery that is located in Idaho Springs- Ben was very jealous that we went there without him because they make some of his favorite kinds of beer! Ben drove out to the cabin on Friday night after he got done with work, and Bill came out on Saturday morning, too! We played more games and did lots more hiking and exploring with the guys! We found a river on the cabin property and Bill found some fools gold in the water. It was pretty cool to see all the sparkly gold water, and our boots were still sparkling after we got back! The Littles left early Sunday morning to head back to Minnesota. After we finished packing up the cabin, Bill, Ben, and I went into town to do a little more exploring and to get breakfast. Bill headed home on the freeway, and Ben and I took the top off the Jeep and took the back roads home. It was very nice out, but it was still a bit cold in the mountains! The ride was very beautiful! Once we got home, however, we noticed how sunburned we had gotten! On our way back we stopped at Ben's work. They had just finished moving into their new office on Friday night and I was seeing it for the first time. It is very cool and huge- several times bigger than their old office! Ben has a big desk and shares an office with 1 other guy who I haven't met yet. Bill has a big corner office that he shares with 2 other people that he works with. There is still a lot of organizing left to do there, but everyone is very excited to finally have enough office and work space for everyone!
On Monday afternoon Ben came home early after starting work early. It was great to see him, but unfortunately he was mostly home just to pack up for a work trip to southern California. He'll be gone at least a week and he's very busy so I haven't been able to talk to him much so far. Hopefully everything goes well so he doesn't have to be gone longer!
On Tuesday, yesterday, I biked to the dentist. I had an appointment for an exam and xrays because I hadn't been to the dentist in a while. It turned out to be a 3.5 hour appointment because 2 of my fillings had to be replaced! Luckily, my teeth were otherwise in great shape- the dentist was very impressed that I came in without a problem and that my teeth were doing so well! The appointment was of course very long and painful, but it wasn't too bad overall because the dentist was basically the nicest and most caring person I have ever met! She was actually really fun to be around and made the whole experience a lot better. Oh yeah, and my replacement fillings are made of porcelain! They took 3d pictures of my teeth and a machine carved my fillings with diamond drills so that they fit into my teeth perfectly. Pretty spiffy! Once I finally got out of the appointment, though, I was so exhausted, hungry, in pain, and numbed that I didn't feel well enough to drive home so I had Bill pick me up! I felt much better after eating some (soft) dinner (I had an early breakfast and skipped lunch because of my appointment) and taking some pain killers!
After dinner Bill and I ventured out to the Denver REI. It was huge! It is a (the?) flagship store, and it was way cool! It was locate in a giant old International Harvester warehouse- I definitely got lost a few times! Bill picked out some sandals, a water bottles, and bike lights, and we had fun looking at lots of other stuff! I'm excited to take Ben there when he gets back, but I'm afraid we'll never be able to leave! After the REI, Bill remembered that there was a really cool ice cream place nearby. We walked across a huge bridge to get there. It is called Littleman Ice Cream and it is just a little hut (shaped like a giant milk can) with 2 guys serving a huge line of people through the windows. All the dining space was outdoors. The ice cream was incredibly delicious and they had very unique flavors! We got served by a guy who looked exactly like Jude Law. I asked him if he was Jude Law, but he denied that he was (I'm convinced he was lying). We ordered 1 serving of lemon creamsicle to share and we got a huge serving that I don't know how 1 person would be able to eat! I'm hoping to go back again soon to try some of the other flavors like oatmeal cookie and salty oreo.
Phew! That basically catches us up to today! I'll try to post more so the entries don't get so long!!
Thanks for reading!
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