Season's Heatings

It happened again...I haven't posted in a month!
I always mean to, but it is difficult when I am rarely home to do so!

Over the last week in July, I went camping with the Pueblo crew. Normally they don't camp, but this project would have made for a long commute so camping just made sense!
It was interesting teaching a group how to camp (according to MHYC policies and practices). Some of the crew members had never even been camping before!
We worked for the little town of Williamsburg. We built the city park a nice little loop trail and helped revamp and set up the new playground areas.

section of trail and stairs in progress

Putting up hoops was much more difficult than we anticipated!

Awesome steps the team built!

We worked 4 10-hour days, which were very hot and long! After that, I said farewell to the Pueblo crew. They only had one more week left, and I was about to head out on a 10 day trip!

My next hitch was with the saw crew. We worked in a state wildlife area near Raton, New Mexico. We were working inside the Colorado border, but just barely! The park was very beautiful- we first did a fencing project on top of a huge mesa, and the rest of the hitch we were deep in the woods building a new trail!

View from our camp site- New Mexico starts at the lake!

Fencing project

View from fencing site

Elk herd on our morning drive

Starting the trail

Huge rock wall/walkway we built!

There were some great views at our work sites. We could see for miles from atop the mesa! One day we also drove alongside a huge herd of elk! The area we built the trail in was also very pretty. There was only a small burned section from a fire about a year ago. Most of the forest was green and untouched- it was a nice change of scenery from the barren burned woods we've been used to working in!
The work was also different from what the saw crew was used to. It was the last hitch of the summer, and the first time they had ever worked on building a trail. There was a lot of learning as we went, but everyone got the hang of it pretty quickly.

On Friday, August 10th after we got back from our hitch, it was the last day of the summer season and the corps olympics! All of the Denver and Co Springs MHYC crews came together for a big and fun day in the park! We played lots of field games, reflected on the summer, and had a big cookout! It was a good way to end the summer, but it was a sad day too- there were lots of people to say bye to!

I love these people

As if camping for almost 2 weeks and ending my summer work season wasn't tiring enough, that Friday night Ben and I took off on our road trip adventure! I had a week off between our summer and fall seasons and Ben took a week off so we could go adventuring! Ben's boss was very generous and gave him permission to drive his work truck- which comes with free gas! We drove all through the night and arrived in Steuben, Wi (by Prairie du Chien) on Saturday morning! We were pretty exhausted (mostly me) but it was totally worth it! We were having our annual "crash at Kamerons' parent's place for a few days to hang with lots of college freinds" weekend! We met up with Kameron, Harris (Sarah Jean) and her boyfriend Brynte, Colton, Steph, Meghan, Nick, and Matt! We had a great time catching up, hiking, watching meteors, and having campfires! I miss all those guys so much- it is hard living so far away from such great friends.

On Monday we headed out to Cedarburg! We got to see my family, all the pets, and all of the other craziness that goes on there (daycare kids, tenants, pet guests, cousins)! And, I got to see my lovely wifey friend Amanda! It was quite the change of pace for us! It was so wonderful to see my family, I miss them a lot too!
Thursday we went to Northfield, Mn to see Ben's family! We saw lots of relatives and ate lots of great food! Somehow, we also ended up with a lot of gifts and other items to take home with us- including beautiful woodcraft made by Ben's grandpa, a camera, Ben's drum set, and an adorable kitten! We have thought of hundreds of names so far. As of now, her name is Nymeria! We think she is about 7 or 8 weeks old.

Thanks for the picture, Tonyia!

We left on Sunday morning and headed back west! Now we are all home, safe and sound, with over 2500 miles behind us! We unloaded the truck, went to bed, and now have been at work ever since (is how it feels, anyway).  Although, it can't all be bad, Ben got a raise and I got a new position and a little raise too!
For the fall crew (only 1 crew in our Co Springs office) I'm going to be the mentor. It is similar to what I did over the summer, but I get to assist the crew leader more and provide education for the crew each week. This means I am going to be even more busy and away from home more than usual! Eep!

I have to go now, kitten snuggles are calling....

In the heat of July

After I got back from Trinidad, Ben got flowers to welcome me home! I forgot to put it in my last blog post, and I wanted to show them off!

Anyway, the week of July 9-13 I was back in the Hayman area. The first part of the week we worked on erosion control matting. The jute matting comes in big rolls. After we rake down the slopes and seed them with native grasses, we roll down the matting, bury the edges, and stake down the matting. Finally we put on slash (twigs, branches, and brush) and transplant some plants into the matting.

In process of putting down jute matting

Midweek, we did lots of weeding around the park. The fire ban was still in effect, so there were limitations on our chainsaw use, which prevented us from building headcuts because we weren't able to cut down the dead trees to fill them with. Weeding was certainly not as exciting as our other tasks, but still definitely important. After the fire in 2002, plants started to slowly grow back in through the burn area. Unfortunately, invasive plants/weeds tend to grow in first and outcompete the native plants (that can provide food and habitat for animals and better control erosion). Removing the invasive plants allows the chance for the native ones to grow in (especially after we spread seed and plant baby trees in the area).  The weeds we removed were toad flax, ox-eyed daisy, mullein, russian thistle, canada thistle, and musk thistle.

mullein

Mareya and Toad Flax

Russian Thistle

Musk Thistle (and bumble bee!)

ox-eyed daisy

Not a weed, but there were delicious raspberries all over the woods! 

Later in the week, we were finally able to go back to our scheduled work- head cuts! As per the fire ban regulations, we had to have some someone follow the sawyer (person running the chainsaw) with a fire extinguisher. Most of the time, I got that job because I was the guest and odd one out on the team. It was fun actually running around finding unsafe trees and watching them get cut down. We also got a special treat one day, some of the board members came with our boss Nancy to see the work we were doing. It was really fun to get to explain and show off our work! We do all the work in the woods and when we are done, it looks like nothing was ever there- no one ever sees it!

Working on three adjacent headcuts

Overall, it was a very hot, tiring, and fun week- as always!

The weekend after I got back, we all had lots of fun! I did some shopping with Ashley, and we all went to see the new spiderman movie. Bill had to leave on Sunday for work in Oklahoma. It's been a quiet week since he left. 

This past week (16th-19th) I worked with the Pueblo crew at a park in Pueblo building trails. I was sent down to fill in for their crew mentor who was out on a work related injury (nothing major, just muscle strain from over exerting himself). I worked along side the crew, provided them an hour of education each day, and I also had to give a little tough love! The crew has been getting their projects done, but they haven't been working with much motivation and drive. They got a little upset with me for my scoldings and encouragements, but they came together as a group and got through it. The Pueblo crew only works day shifts (not camping) so I had some early mornings and long days to get down there and work with them. On Wednesday I had to get up at 3:45! We did some awesome work on the trail, and even built some sweet new stone stairs! 

Stairs!

View from the trail

It was a long and tough week, but I got some great feedback from my superiors and got offered a new position for the fall! I was already going to be working though October, but my new position as the fall crew's mentor will give me more responsibility, possibly a raise, and a contract that goes into November. I'm really excited about the fall season (starts August 20th) and my new position, but I found out that I'm going to be camping every week (whether I took the mentor position or not) and it is going to be very hard to be away from Ben and home so much! 

On Friday I worked in the office getting ready for the Pueblo crew's first and only camping trip that I'll be going on next week. There was lots of shopping and packing to do! It should be an interesting week because they've never worked and camped before, but they're a tough group so they should get through it just fine! 

On Friday morning, as you've all heard, the shooting in the movie theater happened. The theater is not far from our house and Ben and I had recently seen a movie there. I can't wrap my head around what happened at all, and thinking about it makes me sick to my stomach. Thanks to everyone who checked in on us and are praying for the victims. It's hard being so close to something so awful.

Friday night we had tacos with Justin and Ashley and watched Batman Begins. Saturday, Ashley and I volunteered with the Mile High Weimereiner rescue and hung out with a bunch of awesome dogs at a meet and greet for potential adopters! It was fun, but very hot! Meanwhile, Ben and Justin went skeet shooting at the park by our house. Afterwards, we met up at Justin and Ashley's house, grilled out and watched the Dark Knight movie. We then went to see the new Batman movie. It was a good movie, but it was also so heartbreaking to think of the shooting while we were there. 

Today Ben and I had a lazy day around the house, did lots of chores, and I've been packing up for my camping trip that I start tomorrow!

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.

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.

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!