Jul 19
It's been busy since my last post. I've travelled back to Iowa for a short visit with family, up to Fairbanks for work and then lots of projects around the house. New and challenging activities have consisted of planting three new trees in our front yard on Saturday by myself. I planted a white spruce and two State Fair apple trees (in the background of the second picture you can see a landscaping project I did earlier this summer. Landscaping is WAY different than gardening, but that's an entirely different post).
I've also been smoking salmon. Zach went dipnetting on Thursday and Friday while I stayed home and played dog whisperer to
Honey (she's not been herself lately, but I'm not sure who she's trying to be). Unfortunately, he had to head to Fairbanks on Sunday which left him just enough time to clean and fillet the fish, so that left the smoking part to me. Last night I smoked two batches using alder chips and the charcoal grill. Tonight I have two more batches to do.
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Jun 25
Usually, during my lunch hour I sit at my desk and eat my lunch while continuing to work. Today I just couldn't. All of the problems we try to solve at work just got to feeling insurmountable, so I stepped away. Instead, I indulged in two of my most recent addictions, berries and biking.
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Apr 25
We took advantage of the nice weather and lit the fire bowl and had a couple of friends over. When there's fire (and beer), might as well make s'mores. We used bars of sea salt chocolate and ginger chocolate. We also figured out a way to melt the chocolate using the tool used to lift the bowl lid. They were delicious and messy!
Feb 4
For my last night on Maui, I enjoyed beachside mai tais, a beautiful sunset & pineapple upside down cake. Today a message & then back to reality. Maybe I'll try to extend the experience a little longer with a tropical drink at the airport bar.
Jan 6
Well, and coming up with a new one. As the date drew near for classes to begin, I started to examine why I was going back to school. After considering the reasons, I've decided that while yes, I do one day want a Masters in Public Administration degree, the career goals in which I want to accomplish with that degree or at least with that knowledge are not realistically in the next 5 years. In the meantime, professionally, I plan to hone my skills and seek out new experiences that allow me to expand my skills without necessarily requiring a whole new degree.
As for my life (that thing that happens outside of work) I plan to use this year to explore, whether its new foods, new places, new adventures. As long as its done in the spirit of exploration and learning, I think it will be time well spent. Those are my words for this year, explore, learn and evaluate. As I try to figure out where I want my life to go in the next 5-10 years and beyond, I think evaluation will be very important.
I believe I may have avoided the existential crisis for now.
Dec 17
I'm all signed up for two classes toward a Masters in Public Administration Degree at the University of Alaska Southeast. The great thing about this program is that I can do it all via the internet. This is a big step toward realizing my future plans and having more flexibility with career options in the future. Based on the burnout rate for most attorneys, I figure its a good idea to have a back up plan. Also, it won't hurt to know more about how this nonprofit world works since I'm most likely always going to be working for one.
Dec 15
I haven't been blogging much lately as my focus has been what the plan for next year will be and trying to wrap up other outstanding projects before the year ends. I'm using the template from
this website. I like how it's not making resolutions, but making goals with concrete steps toward achievement.
So far, I've got some career goals, including starting a Masters in Public Administration degree, some travel goals, two new countries this year, and fitness goals, running a leg of the Klondike Relay Race. I've added some personal financial goals as well, as succeeding on those will likely help me attain some of my other goals.
What I've found most interesting about this process is figuring out what I want to do in the next year and actually the next 5-10 years. These are big decisions, that of course can be changed, but I feel like I definitely need a long term plan so that I can work on putting the foundation pieces in place now.
For fun, I may add a goal about doing 100 pushups and giving
this program a go.
While I finish up planning for next year, the blog maybe slow, but once the new year comes around, I'll be busy with lots of new and challenging activities to report on, so keep reading.
Nov 19
Work has been extremely busy lately. No shortage of people in need. Plus, this week has been a lot of extra long days, in by 7:30 or so and not done until 5pm (ok, that may not seem long, but my office is open 8:00 to 4:30, and I haven't been taking breaks for lunch).
So, today I put my nose to the grind stone and wrapped up all the urgent matters and put the other matters needing my attention to bed and the pay off is a three day weekend. It's a break I can definitely use. Zach's off tomorrow as well, so it's like Friday for both of us. He's suggested we go bowling tonight; not one of my favorite activities, but perhaps we'll give it a go, especially at a bowling alley with decent beer.
Nov 14
Lately, I've been carrying my toothbrush around with me between home and work since who knows when I may need to brush. Last night, however, I discovered I lost it. I've looked everywhere, even in some really strange places like under the bed. But, alas, my toothbrush is lost. Luckily, the store has more. So, today the big purchase will be a new toothbrush. Maybe I'll get one of those fancy ones that take batteries and spin.
Oct 7
This morning I drove from Albuquerque to Santa Fe, just a short hour drive after the super long drive from Moab yesterday. Knowing that tomorrow brings another day of long driving as I have to get near or in Nebraska so I can pick Zach up on Friday, I made today a very leisurely day. I browsed the art galleries and shops and toured some churches in Santa Fe after having the most amazing $4 breakfast. I then had a massage, my first, and a manicure. The manicure turned out so so, but the massage was amazing and something I'll definitely have to do again. It was certainly different for me to try to turn off my brain and just relax and let it all go. I could feel that even though I'd been in vacation for almost two weeks I was still carrying some considerable stress in my body.
Later, I found the best B&B ever to stay in, which I was lucky to find after taking a closer look at the hostel reviews which suggested that by myself the hostel may not have been the safest place to plan on staying. The B&B serves afternoon tea and a gourmet breakfast I am looking forward to tomorrow; not to mention the skylight in the bathroom and fireplace in the room. Rustic, yet luxurious, at least by my standards.
Tomorrow, I start the long haul with no less than 7 hours of driving, but more likely closer to 12 or 13 if everything goes according to plan. Either way, I can't wait to see Zach again. A two week separation just seems like a long time, even though I've had a blast in the meantime and relied on him as my travel support hotline. Also, I'm excited to see how my sister's wedding comes together and to see what Sioux City, Iowa, her new hometown is like. Hopefully the airport code SUX is no indication.
No pictures with this post, since I'm having technical difficulties, but I'll get more pictures posted soon.
