This year, I turned 23! Not exactly a "I'm turning 40!" or "Woohoo! Sweet 16!!" but, with the help of my wonderful friends, we rocked this year's birthday celebration!
I felt a bit like I was celebrating a wedding...the kind that last for 4-7 days with each day filled to the brim with dancing, drinking, eating, and the people you love! It was superb.
On my "real birthday," I put together a Fondu dinner for mom, dad, Cate and I; complete with wine and chocolate truffles! I spent the rest of my evening playing trivia with friends - a Thursday night tradition...and one that I am really no good at, but have such a great time pretending to know useless world facts on sports and entertainment! Good times :-)
I went out for a lovely Thai dinner with two of my dearest friends on Friday. And, Allison and I blew the socks off of a couple random bar-goers with our mad foosball skills at the bars later that night!
I had an actual birthday party (whoop whoop!!) on Saturday, complete with fun and fruity drinks - complements of my bartender extraordinaire friend, Liz. My friend Emily and I had made a huge dirt cake for the festivities which was devoured by the party-goers :-9 Mmm! Things really got crazy when the permanent marker came out and everyone received a "finger-stash" on their pointer finger which then appeared in nearly every picture for the rest of the night... Who knew marker mustaches would become the theme of the party!? ;-) Then, we brought the energy of the party downtown to end the night with dancing, dancing and more dancing!
It was just one of those wonderfully positive, fun-and-friend filled weekends that I'll remember forever. Cheers to turning 23! (And many, many more :-)
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Zip lining, Dirty Monkeys, & Dancing with the Stars
The family and I brought in the New Year with a bang with a 2000+ person champagne toast on the Maya Riviera in Mexico! We just had an absolute blast together - mom, dad, Cate, the Mexicans, and a massive number of tourists! We stayed at an incredible all-inclusive resort along the sandy beaches of the Mexican coast. We realized that with so much to do right in the "resort town," we'd be able to soak up all the relaxation and sun we could possibly want within a 10 minute circle around our hotel room! So, we filled our days with reading on the beach front, snorkeling, eating, playing beach volleyball, kite flying, drinking Margaritas...Banana Monkeys...Dirty Monkeys...Hurricanes...&...Pina Coladas, eating, nightly entertainment (such as "Fantasia" - aka Disney Medley Extravaganza! - in which Cate and I could probably have jumped right up on stage and sang and danced with the stars with no real problem at all!), water aerobics, water tricycling, eating, playing tennis, kayaking, discotheque-ing, eating, and napping. Did I mention eating? ;) We did venture off the resort for a one day excursion to experience the natural and man-made wonders of Mexico - zip lining barefoot over the forest, snorkeling in an underwater cave, and exploring the ancient Mayan ruins of Tulum.
After having spent seven days in Mexico, the four of us came back home utterly exhausted, 15 lbs lighter, and more than excited for Wisconsin sub-zero weather. *wink*
After having spent seven days in Mexico, the four of us came back home utterly exhausted, 15 lbs lighter, and more than excited for Wisconsin sub-zero weather. *wink*
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Blast to the past!
I thought I would post the Christmas update that I sent out a couple weeks before the New Year. Just a mini overview of 2009!
*insert TimeTravelor music here*
As Christmas and New Years are only a few countdown days away, I find myself reflecting on the past year with armfuls full of pleasant memories…
Last spring, I kept busy training for my first ever Triathlon! A semi-strict regime of swimming laps, stationary biking, and treadmill running during the cold, snowy months prepared my body and mind for a test of physical and mental endurance! I’d love to say that after my first Triathlon I was hooked and signed up for my next one as soon as possible! But, instead, I checked “Triathlon” off of my life “To Do” list and went on to the next thing :-)
I spent spring break with mom, dad, and Cate up north at the Ludsen Ski Resort for a couple wonderfully wind-burned days of downhill skiing bliss. In May, I decided on a whim to hop a plane to San Francisco and spent a week as a dutiful tourist with my super duper cousin Alana! I experienced my first time in a casino with all the bells and whistles and colorful stimulation and watched the lady next to me win $5,000!! I think I was just about as excited as she was! Also, I went my first ever Saki tasting – the result? Rosy cheeks and pleasant conversation with a Saki expert.
Less than a week after my return from the West Coast, I walked the stage to “pretend” receive my diploma! As my family, friends, fellow graduates and I shivered and went numb during the windy outdoor ceremony, it still felt pretty awesome to know I was done!
I spent my summer months on the other side of the USA in North Carolina to complete my Health Promotion and Wellness internship. Challenging work, but totally loved it. As a bonus, I enjoyed hiking, camping, rock climbing, and caving! Adventurous stuff that’s right up my alley :-)
In order to explore a bit more of the East Coast, I spent almost a month road tripping up, down, and around the eastern states with my lovely English friend, Flic. Apart from learning catchy English phrases like, “Faffing around” and “Wow, that boy is fit!” we sunsoaked in the Outer Banks, met Mrs. George Washington at Mt. Vernon, giggled and posed in front of the Intercourse, PA city sign, went from mead virgins to mead sluts in less than 10 hours, strolled along the Freedom Trail, learned about witch trial folklore in Salem, Mass, ran a 5 mile Mud Run (and became famous in the local newspaper), and saw David Letterman in person! In New York, I even got my own delectable taste of Broadway stardom by dancing and singing on the stage for the show “HAIR!”
With no real prospects of what my life would entail after being officially graduated (I found myself using the phrase, “My life past August is one giant and expansive black hole!”), I fell into a job as a Chiropractic Assistant. This being my first “real world” job, I couldn’t figure out whether my acute anxiety before each shift was because of the job and tasks itself or the fact that it was my first “real world,” 40 hrs/week, professional job. Or both. So, after much thought, reflection, and desperate prayers, I quit my first “real world” job. The verdict? Phew! *Weight lifted* Breathing free… :-)
I took some time to really search and question myself. Borrowing a very important and pivotal question from one of my most loved books, “Eat, Pray, Love” I asked myself, “What do you want to do, Anna?” So, I focused. And in doing so, I concluded (quite abruptly actually) that I wanted to travel. Not only that, but I wanted to travel to New Zealand. And not just a 3-4 week excursion. Nope, a whole year. Twelve “flybytheseatofmypants” months in one of the most beautiful and adventuresome countries in the world! If you can believe it, that decision was the hard part – next came the fun stuff :-D
I spent 5 weeks between mid-November and mid-December working as an Au Pair/Expert Organizer for my mom’s cousin’s family in Minnesota. I had a fantastic experience and learned much about the goings-on of a busy household. In the meantime, I bought my ticket to New Zealand (and sorry, as of now I don’t know when I’ll be coming back to the states since I have yet to purchase my return ticket home, *grin*)! But, needless to say, I am pretty gosh-darn excited!
So, in other words, my big “black hole” of a future is starting to fill in a bit! Mom, dad, Cate and I are getting really excited to spend this New Years in Maya Riviera, Mexico. We leave in one week! In January, I’ll be taking World Music, a winterim course through UW-Eau Claire. And, much to my astonishment, I’ll be turning 23 on January 21st! Cool beans :-)
My wish to you all is for the merriest of Christmases and the happiest of New Years.
Love and cheer!
Anna
So, there you go! Now to begin the "2010" stuff... :0)
*insert TimeTravelor music here*
As Christmas and New Years are only a few countdown days away, I find myself reflecting on the past year with armfuls full of pleasant memories…
Last spring, I kept busy training for my first ever Triathlon! A semi-strict regime of swimming laps, stationary biking, and treadmill running during the cold, snowy months prepared my body and mind for a test of physical and mental endurance! I’d love to say that after my first Triathlon I was hooked and signed up for my next one as soon as possible! But, instead, I checked “Triathlon” off of my life “To Do” list and went on to the next thing :-)
I spent spring break with mom, dad, and Cate up north at the Ludsen Ski Resort for a couple wonderfully wind-burned days of downhill skiing bliss. In May, I decided on a whim to hop a plane to San Francisco and spent a week as a dutiful tourist with my super duper cousin Alana! I experienced my first time in a casino with all the bells and whistles and colorful stimulation and watched the lady next to me win $5,000!! I think I was just about as excited as she was! Also, I went my first ever Saki tasting – the result? Rosy cheeks and pleasant conversation with a Saki expert.
Less than a week after my return from the West Coast, I walked the stage to “pretend” receive my diploma! As my family, friends, fellow graduates and I shivered and went numb during the windy outdoor ceremony, it still felt pretty awesome to know I was done!
I spent my summer months on the other side of the USA in North Carolina to complete my Health Promotion and Wellness internship. Challenging work, but totally loved it. As a bonus, I enjoyed hiking, camping, rock climbing, and caving! Adventurous stuff that’s right up my alley :-)
In order to explore a bit more of the East Coast, I spent almost a month road tripping up, down, and around the eastern states with my lovely English friend, Flic. Apart from learning catchy English phrases like, “Faffing around” and “Wow, that boy is fit!” we sunsoaked in the Outer Banks, met Mrs. George Washington at Mt. Vernon, giggled and posed in front of the Intercourse, PA city sign, went from mead virgins to mead sluts in less than 10 hours, strolled along the Freedom Trail, learned about witch trial folklore in Salem, Mass, ran a 5 mile Mud Run (and became famous in the local newspaper), and saw David Letterman in person! In New York, I even got my own delectable taste of Broadway stardom by dancing and singing on the stage for the show “HAIR!”
With no real prospects of what my life would entail after being officially graduated (I found myself using the phrase, “My life past August is one giant and expansive black hole!”), I fell into a job as a Chiropractic Assistant. This being my first “real world” job, I couldn’t figure out whether my acute anxiety before each shift was because of the job and tasks itself or the fact that it was my first “real world,” 40 hrs/week, professional job. Or both. So, after much thought, reflection, and desperate prayers, I quit my first “real world” job. The verdict? Phew! *Weight lifted* Breathing free… :-)
I took some time to really search and question myself. Borrowing a very important and pivotal question from one of my most loved books, “Eat, Pray, Love” I asked myself, “What do you want to do, Anna?” So, I focused. And in doing so, I concluded (quite abruptly actually) that I wanted to travel. Not only that, but I wanted to travel to New Zealand. And not just a 3-4 week excursion. Nope, a whole year. Twelve “flybytheseatofmypants” months in one of the most beautiful and adventuresome countries in the world! If you can believe it, that decision was the hard part – next came the fun stuff :-D
I spent 5 weeks between mid-November and mid-December working as an Au Pair/Expert Organizer for my mom’s cousin’s family in Minnesota. I had a fantastic experience and learned much about the goings-on of a busy household. In the meantime, I bought my ticket to New Zealand (and sorry, as of now I don’t know when I’ll be coming back to the states since I have yet to purchase my return ticket home, *grin*)! But, needless to say, I am pretty gosh-darn excited!
So, in other words, my big “black hole” of a future is starting to fill in a bit! Mom, dad, Cate and I are getting really excited to spend this New Years in Maya Riviera, Mexico. We leave in one week! In January, I’ll be taking World Music, a winterim course through UW-Eau Claire. And, much to my astonishment, I’ll be turning 23 on January 21st! Cool beans :-)
My wish to you all is for the merriest of Christmases and the happiest of New Years.
Love and cheer!
Anna
So, there you go! Now to begin the "2010" stuff... :0)
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Rubber Duckie, You're the One :-)
'Bout time eh?
Last week, I got to go into the "Field" with my girls and paddle down the Tuckasegee River in inflatable kayaks (aka Duckies)! I had loads of fun in my duckie! But, the some of the girls were a bit challenging and it was difficult to keep them positive throughout the day. 3 out of 6 of my girls fell out of their duckies and floated through rapids...and some of them weren't so keen about it. I, however, had a good time :-)
We camped out that evening at a beautiful group campsite. A few of the girls had never been camping before! So, it was fun to teach them how to set up a tent and what not.
The next morning, we set out to the Nanahalen River to go whitewater rafting! We paddled through the morning fog - it was absolutely stunning. The rapids were exciting - Class I and II only. By the time we were done, the girls (and myself including) were pooped out. Two days in the sun and on the water can really tire you out!
I had Friday night off and all of Saturday too which was MUCH needed for mental recovery purposes. I spent the evening at a fun bar with live music along with a good group of camp staff. Definitely nice to get off base a chill for a while.
Saturday was quite a day of randomness. My highlight of the day was definitely buying a beautiful, dark brown acoustic/electric guitar! I am determined to learn how to play while I am here for the summer. There are a few other staff who play and bought their guitars along to camp, so I definitely have some good teachers and people to jam with. Very exciting!
Other random things of the day included attending a graduation party for the brother of one of our guys on staff. But, we ended up having just the best time! His family was great and made some AMAZING food which we stuffed ourselves to the brim with. Also, we went to this natuarl attraction in the Pisgah Forest called "Sliding Rock." It's really cool because the rock is really smooth and it's like a natural water slide! Unfortunately, we didn't have our swimsuits, and there was a group of about 50 young girls from another camp there. So, we decided not to slide. HOWEVER - they crazy thing that happened was: While we were watching the kids slide, a guy walked up behind us, not more than 10 feet away with a LIVE rattlesnake in his hands!! He was pretty shaken up and out of breath. Turns out the snake was just on the paved path. So the guy grabbed it (I have no idea how...) and was freaking out because he didn't know where to put it! I'm just thinking, "Put it very very very far away from me. Thanks." He ended up chucking it into the woods a ways away and then bolting in the other direction. Yikes! We left soon after...
On Sunday, I moved to a new cabin and am now the happy counselor for 7 girls ages 15-16. They are soooo much fun and really excited about being at camp. Very motivated, positive, and silly :-) They crack me up. And they like Disney music! When I found that out, I knew we were going to get along just fine.
Our cabin is a bit more rustic than my first one. We have a pet toad that lives in our shower who we dubbed "Peeping Todo." We also have a ZILLION ants on our sidewalk. So much so that it looks like the sidewalk is moving. But, we get by :-)
I worked on base with the kids on Monday, office on Tuesday, and off yesterday! Yesterday was a super chill day. I spent the morning on base playing guitar and catching up on a few things. Then I decided to explore the Pisgah forest during the afternoon! Ended up hiking 7 miles through the forest. It was excellent! Got up to the top of Mt. Pisgah and saw a sweet view. Definitely an afternoon well spent!
I'll do my best to post some pictures...but the internet is so slow here...I'll attempt it - sometime!
Dinner circle time! Ciao :-)
Last week, I got to go into the "Field" with my girls and paddle down the Tuckasegee River in inflatable kayaks (aka Duckies)! I had loads of fun in my duckie! But, the some of the girls were a bit challenging and it was difficult to keep them positive throughout the day. 3 out of 6 of my girls fell out of their duckies and floated through rapids...and some of them weren't so keen about it. I, however, had a good time :-)
We camped out that evening at a beautiful group campsite. A few of the girls had never been camping before! So, it was fun to teach them how to set up a tent and what not.
The next morning, we set out to the Nanahalen River to go whitewater rafting! We paddled through the morning fog - it was absolutely stunning. The rapids were exciting - Class I and II only. By the time we were done, the girls (and myself including) were pooped out. Two days in the sun and on the water can really tire you out!
I had Friday night off and all of Saturday too which was MUCH needed for mental recovery purposes. I spent the evening at a fun bar with live music along with a good group of camp staff. Definitely nice to get off base a chill for a while.
Saturday was quite a day of randomness. My highlight of the day was definitely buying a beautiful, dark brown acoustic/electric guitar! I am determined to learn how to play while I am here for the summer. There are a few other staff who play and bought their guitars along to camp, so I definitely have some good teachers and people to jam with. Very exciting!
Other random things of the day included attending a graduation party for the brother of one of our guys on staff. But, we ended up having just the best time! His family was great and made some AMAZING food which we stuffed ourselves to the brim with. Also, we went to this natuarl attraction in the Pisgah Forest called "Sliding Rock." It's really cool because the rock is really smooth and it's like a natural water slide! Unfortunately, we didn't have our swimsuits, and there was a group of about 50 young girls from another camp there. So, we decided not to slide. HOWEVER - they crazy thing that happened was: While we were watching the kids slide, a guy walked up behind us, not more than 10 feet away with a LIVE rattlesnake in his hands!! He was pretty shaken up and out of breath. Turns out the snake was just on the paved path. So the guy grabbed it (I have no idea how...) and was freaking out because he didn't know where to put it! I'm just thinking, "Put it very very very far away from me. Thanks." He ended up chucking it into the woods a ways away and then bolting in the other direction. Yikes! We left soon after...
On Sunday, I moved to a new cabin and am now the happy counselor for 7 girls ages 15-16. They are soooo much fun and really excited about being at camp. Very motivated, positive, and silly :-) They crack me up. And they like Disney music! When I found that out, I knew we were going to get along just fine.
Our cabin is a bit more rustic than my first one. We have a pet toad that lives in our shower who we dubbed "Peeping Todo." We also have a ZILLION ants on our sidewalk. So much so that it looks like the sidewalk is moving. But, we get by :-)
I worked on base with the kids on Monday, office on Tuesday, and off yesterday! Yesterday was a super chill day. I spent the morning on base playing guitar and catching up on a few things. Then I decided to explore the Pisgah forest during the afternoon! Ended up hiking 7 miles through the forest. It was excellent! Got up to the top of Mt. Pisgah and saw a sweet view. Definitely an afternoon well spent!
I'll do my best to post some pictures...but the internet is so slow here...I'll attempt it - sometime!
Dinner circle time! Ciao :-)
Monday, June 8, 2009
Lightening Drill
Hi everyone!
Because of a likely turn of events (lightening and thunder in the Blue Ridge Mts), I am stuck in the administration house. During lightening drill, everyone must be under a roof, or, if out in the field camping/hiking, we need to pull out our lightening mats ASAP and spread out 15 ft apart from each other. Exciting stuff! :-) Thus, I'm chilling in the admin house.
**Up above is a photo of our staff at camp!! Jazz Hands!**
Haven't had much of a chance to update the blog lately. But, last week was our final days of what we liked to call "Counselor Camp!" As a staff, we went into the field and hiked for two days and spent one overnight in the field. We slept under tarps and set up camp just like home :-) Haha, it was a great time! On our second day, we hiked 5.5 miles with our packs and everything. The most exciting parts for me during the hike was having to tromp through 8 or so streams - some of which were flowing pretty good! At some points, we were in water up to our thighs. Our dry hiking boots turned into "Water Balloon" boots. My group deemed ourselves "Team Sock Juice!" Definitely a highlight of the week!
Yesterday our campers finally arrived! We greeted 34 campers for this week. By the end of the summer we will have had just around 100 campers come through. Hot diggity!
My co-counselors and I are in charge of 7 girls ages 16-18. Being that it is only the first full day of camp, the girls are still a bit nervous about being here. Most are signed up to stay 6-8 weeks. Should be interesting to see how the group dynamics unfold!
I am scheduled to work 3 days in the office this week from 9-6. I am kept super busy running mini errands around camp and uploading photos to the Parent Website so parents can check in on how their kids are doing. Tomorrow and Saturday are my days of this week. BUT, Thursday and Friday I am going whitewater rafting and riding the duckies with my cabin girls!! So very excited for that :-) We will camp out Thursday night and also do a bit of hiking too. Awesomeness.
By the way - This is kind of a neat thing going on at camp right now. There is a girl here from England who has been at the school since September of last year and has lost over 200lbs! Last week, PEOPLE Magazine was here to interview her and take some pictures of camp. ANNNNND, she may be on the cover of PEOPLE this Thursday!! She will also be interview on "Good Morning America" on Thursday morning!! So, tune in to that if you can! Also, she is staying my cabin till tomorrow morning when she leaves for New York. She is such a sweet girl. She is off to the camp in England for the summer and then will return to NC in August to attend the academy again in the fall.
Hope all is well! I think lightening drill is just about over....sky's clearing up anyhow :-)
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Made it!
Hi Y'all!
(I am totally going to be y'alling it up by the end of the summer *grin*)
So! I arrived in North Carolina on Saturday after a 18 hour drive with Dad. Dad was WONDERFUL and did all the driving! Thanks Pops!
North Caroline is beautiful. The forests are lush and green - I mean, GREEN green. It's awesome! Thank goodness for my new rain gear - it's rained everyday I've been here! And it's so funny because it will rain even when the sun is out. There is no predicting the rain showers here :-)
Thus far, camp has been mostly meeting and hanging out with other staff (who are all very cool by the way). We did CPR training on Sunday and Life Guard training on Monday and Tuesday. So I can now save all your lives. Or try to anyway... *wink*
I have already gone on a couple hikes in the Pisgah National Forest, which surrounds the base camp. We are located right in a valley and all around us are mountains covered in greenness. Between the mountains is the fog which settles into the creveses. It is stunning.
You pretty much always feel damp here. If its not raining the humidity is intense! On Monday the humidity was 95%. Last night, it downpoured and I awoke to a mini stream outside of my cabin. Yay for flipflops!
Today is our first day off before staff training begins tomorrow. Went for a run this morning along the windy highway that bends up the mountain. It was only slightly sprinkling when I set out but the rain started coming down pretty hard towards the end. But I like running in the rain!
Kids arrive on June 7th. All the new staff has already heard "horror" stories about the kind of trouble the kids get into when they first arrive. Many have behavior issues or are just not happy about being at camp for the summer. So, we shall see what kind of fun things go down when campers arrive...
There is a group of kids here now that attend the school. This is a program for middle and high schoolers so they can attend classes but also follow the program as well. These kids have lost anywhere from 200-50 lbs! It's pretty amazing. I've been able to chat with a couple of them and it's really interesting to find out there perspective on the camp. There is even a girl with the same name as me. And she even pronounces it the same way I do! We talked about how people always pronounce our name wrong - it was fun to connect with her that way.
Well, me and a few of the other lady staffers are heading down to the town of Waynesville for lunch and to check out the shops. Should be fun!
Catch y'all later!
(I am totally going to be y'alling it up by the end of the summer *grin*)
So! I arrived in North Carolina on Saturday after a 18 hour drive with Dad. Dad was WONDERFUL and did all the driving! Thanks Pops!
North Caroline is beautiful. The forests are lush and green - I mean, GREEN green. It's awesome! Thank goodness for my new rain gear - it's rained everyday I've been here! And it's so funny because it will rain even when the sun is out. There is no predicting the rain showers here :-)
Thus far, camp has been mostly meeting and hanging out with other staff (who are all very cool by the way). We did CPR training on Sunday and Life Guard training on Monday and Tuesday. So I can now save all your lives. Or try to anyway... *wink*
I have already gone on a couple hikes in the Pisgah National Forest, which surrounds the base camp. We are located right in a valley and all around us are mountains covered in greenness. Between the mountains is the fog which settles into the creveses. It is stunning.
You pretty much always feel damp here. If its not raining the humidity is intense! On Monday the humidity was 95%. Last night, it downpoured and I awoke to a mini stream outside of my cabin. Yay for flipflops!
Today is our first day off before staff training begins tomorrow. Went for a run this morning along the windy highway that bends up the mountain. It was only slightly sprinkling when I set out but the rain started coming down pretty hard towards the end. But I like running in the rain!
Kids arrive on June 7th. All the new staff has already heard "horror" stories about the kind of trouble the kids get into when they first arrive. Many have behavior issues or are just not happy about being at camp for the summer. So, we shall see what kind of fun things go down when campers arrive...
There is a group of kids here now that attend the school. This is a program for middle and high schoolers so they can attend classes but also follow the program as well. These kids have lost anywhere from 200-50 lbs! It's pretty amazing. I've been able to chat with a couple of them and it's really interesting to find out there perspective on the camp. There is even a girl with the same name as me. And she even pronounces it the same way I do! We talked about how people always pronounce our name wrong - it was fun to connect with her that way.
Well, me and a few of the other lady staffers are heading down to the town of Waynesville for lunch and to check out the shops. Should be fun!
Catch y'all later!
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Black Caps and Yellow Tassels
This past week has been a whirlwind of activity! Goodbyes & celebrations, packing, UNpacking, REpacking... Phew! It's been a mix of uber excitement and a bit of nervousness for what's to come!
After the ceremony it was time to warm up with mexican food at El Mezcal. My dear professor, Doc Munson, his wife Barb, and my friend Katrina joined us to celebrate! The graduation celebrations continued into the wee hours of the morning, so that by the time I actually went to bed, the birds were chirping and the sun was coming up. *grin*
I finished my VERY LAST FINAL a week ago Tuesday! WAHOOOOO! On Wednesday, Bart, my roommate for the past two years, and I hosted a fantastic potluck at the Ellis house. There was banana/sweet potato sushi, red curry tofu stirfry, homemade pepperoni pizza, and s'more pie! The downpour of rain didn't damper spirits at all. The instruments were brought out once everyone's bellies were full and a jam session commenced :-) I even attempted to play 'Horse with No Name' on the guitar, and I've definitely got some work to do....
Thursday I went on a super bikeride with my good friends Bart, Katrina, and Thew. The wind was a beast, but we pedaled on through! More goodbyes were said throughout the finals days of my time in Point - definitely a bittersweet time to be leaving a city that was my home for 4 years. I met so many wonderful people and made some amazing friends.
Along with goodbyes was the daunting task of packing up EVERYTHING I owned in my house. Lucky for me, Mom, Dad, Cate, and Aunt Carol came on Saturday morning to help me load everything into the trailor. One person can really accumulate a lot of stuff! Sheesh...time to downsize my personal belongings I think...
As Winnie the Pooh would say, Saturday was a blustery day. The UW-Stevens Point Commencement Ceremony was held outside at 2:00pm in the afternoon. The set-up was lovely with the multi-colored flags lined up behind the stage, but the wind and cool temperature made for a very chilly ceremony! More than a few caps were blown off throughout the course of the day. But, despite all that, the ceremony was beautifully done. I was honored as Summa Cum Laude for the Class of 2009 and walked the stage to shake hands with the Chancellor and receive my diploma! Yippy!! :-D
Along with goodbyes was the daunting task of packing up EVERYTHING I owned in my house. Lucky for me, Mom, Dad, Cate, and Aunt Carol came on Saturday morning to help me load everything into the trailor. One person can really accumulate a lot of stuff! Sheesh...time to downsize my personal belongings I think...
As Winnie the Pooh would say, Saturday was a blustery day. The UW-Stevens Point Commencement Ceremony was held outside at 2:00pm in the afternoon. The set-up was lovely with the multi-colored flags lined up behind the stage, but the wind and cool temperature made for a very chilly ceremony! More than a few caps were blown off throughout the course of the day. But, despite all that, the ceremony was beautifully done. I was honored as Summa Cum Laude for the Class of 2009 and walked the stage to shake hands with the Chancellor and receive my diploma! Yippy!! :-DAnd, for those who would like to see a few more pictures from the events of the day, go to -
After the ceremony it was time to warm up with mexican food at El Mezcal. My dear professor, Doc Munson, his wife Barb, and my friend Katrina joined us to celebrate! The graduation celebrations continued into the wee hours of the morning, so that by the time I actually went to bed, the birds were chirping and the sun was coming up. *grin*
Now, I am in the midst of unpacking, organizing (meaning, trying to find a spare place for all my STUFF), and repacking. On Friday, my dad and I will start the 15+ hour drive down to camp in North Carolina!! I can't wait to begin - bring on the summer!!
Cheers!
Anna
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