Concerts and Operas

This past week, I have been busy. I have been packing and organizing, planning and researching, and traveling and saying good-bye to people.

There has been a twist in my plans to drive to California. I thought I would have a friend to help me drive there, but apparently people have jobs and other fun plans (like camping trips). My mother has offered to drive to California with me as long as we drive straight through and leave right after work today! While I am really relieved to not be making this cross-country trip on my own (thanks, Mom!), I am sad that I won't be able to stop in and see a few people along the way (especially R and D). So, woo-hoo! to the fact that I will be settling into my new home as early as Sunday--I'm sad to leave MN, but the cool temps this week are telling me it's time to go.

Let me tell you two cool things I did this week:

Cool thing #1, Sunday
I saw my first opera! It was Il Travatore. It was really wonderful--I enjoyed the opera from a first mezzanine box seat with my friend. Excellent. Here is a famous clip from the show that everyone should recognize:



Cool thing #2, Wednesday
I went to see Liam Finn in concert at First Avenue, Seventh Street Entry with three friends! Liam Finn's music was introduced to me by Kara in Korea last February, and since then, I have had his music in every playlist mix I have made. He is kind of a hippie and is from New Zealand. Here is a clip of him on the David Letterman show:



Before the show, two friends and I were walking down the street in the wrong direction (we got turned around) and who do you think we bumped into? Yes, Liam Finn himself! We didn't speak, but I can say that the three of us girls made eye contact with Liam Finn and his two friends right before they ducked into a coffee shop for some pre-show mo-jo. It was an excellent concert!

Hafta, Gonna, Wanna...Youbetcha.

I was watching the vice-presidential debate last night--before you stop reading, I want to clarify that this post is NOT political--and was distracted by something. I'm sure you caught it if you have heard Sarah Palin speak much. She has more of a "Fargo" accent than many Minnesotans I know! I couldn't get past it! I tried to listen to her policies and ideas, but kept getting blocked by her down-home speak.

I shouldn't be the one to talk about this, though. Since I have returned from Korea, I have noticed some strange things in my own speech patterns. My friends have been nice to point out that I am a little slow lately and that my words are extra-enunciated. A little slow? I hope it was only my speaking they were talking about! Yes, I have learned to be extremely careful about how I speak--when working with non-native speaking individuals, this is necessary. When speaking to American, English-speaking peers and teenage sisters, it is not.

To remedy my speech problem, I have intentionally started to add some of the rushed words that make it difficult for non-English speakers to understand, like, gonna, hafta, wanna, and shoulda. I don't like using these words, but I decided to add them into my vocabulary for a few months to jump start my normal, non-English-teacher language.

One problem, though: while my speech has sped up, I have started to hear something coming out of my mouth that I thought was gone for good: an up-north, Minnesota accent. No way! I worked hard in college to remove any traces of an accent that would mark me as a midwesterner--not because I dislike midwesterners, but because I teach English and don't want my students to sound like they stepped off the set of Fargo.

So, in light of last night's debate, and Sarah Palin's blaring accent, I have to admit that the reason it bothered me so much is that I have heard some of the same things in my own speech. I have decided to work on this in the dark recesses of my home (or, in the back room of my spunky, 94-year-old roommate, Edna) and not to speak in California until it is fixed! :)

What keeps me awake at night.

Until 2.30AM to be exact. Here are some of the thoughts and ideas I had before getting out of bed to scribble madly into my notebook:

Central America
South America
running shoes, brand names
Hartnackshule in Berlin, 10 weeks
low GI research, building muscle mass
visas to enter South America
packing lists, moving
organizing my mail from last year, lots of it
green tea's amazing antioxidant qualities
Hal Higdon and his marathon books
nail polish, need to remove it
the Spanish language, how to more effectively learn it

Why is it that I can go through my day in such a mellow manner, but when my head hits my pillow and my lamp is switched off, my brain begins milling at warp-speed? I get really creative and motivated when it is time to turn in, but when I wake up, I'm a little sluggish and unwilling to really take full advantage of my morning hours. Pretty soon, I'm not going to be able to blame it on jet lag! :)

A new domestic godess?

I've watched my mom do her annual canning my whole life. I helped out when I lived at home, but never tried to learn how to do any of it myself. This process takes my mom weeks to complete--tomatoes, pickles, beans, fruits, applesauce, sauerkraut, and so on. Two days ago, I noticed that the grapes hadn't been harvested, so I picked the ripe fruit and imagined all the possible things we could make with them (my vote was wine, but there weren't enough). Mom said jelly, so jelly it is. She guided me through the process of making jelly--boiling the fruit down, stirring in the suregel and sugar, then sealing into jars. I know how to make jelly now!

Also, we picked three large containers of apples off my grandpa's tree on Saturday. While Mom worked on canning tomatoes last night, I made applesauce for the first time! It was pretty simple, but very time consuming! I cut and cleaned almost a whole 5-gallon bucket of apples and turned it into 6 jars of fresh, juicy applesauce! Here it is:

Impressive, huh? My finished product of canning products will hopefully grow a little today as I attempt another batch of applesauce unsupervised. Here is my mom's collection of canned goods for the year:

I know, I know...she beats me in quantity by a long shot!

New Stuff

These past couple of weeks have been both relaxing and a complete whirlwind! I've had long lists of things to do each day, but have allowed myself to take things as they come. I am realizing that I like not working--is it possible to get paid to not work? If so, I want in! In all reality, I would probably enjoy this for another month, but after that, I would be looking for projects to get involved with and places to spend money. For now, I'm enjoying this transition time.

I have been in the market for a car, as you know, and I am happy to say that yesterday I found one! I looked at many cars with different makes, models, colors, sizes and prices, but nothing really felt right until I stopped by a local dealer yesterday. He showed me three cars that were about in the same price range, and here is the one I decided on:



It has relatively low miles and was priced under the low end of my price range! What color would you call it? I am not sure--it isn't gold, but it isn't brown. Tan is not exactly the right description either.

I am really relieved to have a car finally--it puts me one step closer to leaving for California. Just another week or two--I am waiting on a few last things to fall into place, but I hope to get out of here before the snow starts to fall!

One more update: I think I have a place to live all lined up in Anaheim already! I am planning to move into the spare bedroom of a spunky 94-year-old lady. She and I have talked on the phone a couple of times and she is holding the spot open for me--we'll start with a temporary lease, but as long as I'm on my best behavior, maybe she will keep me! :) (The rent is REALLY low and it would be a fantastic way for me to save a little money.)

Martin and I are learning to dance!

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Martin was here a couple of weekends ago, and in our spare time, we whipped up this little dance and made a video of it. Enjoy! :)

I've got the kids today! :)

I've got my niece and nephew today--I'm watching them and having some fun with my photo booth application! The images have been altered...I know you can probably see that, but just in case, I wanted to let you know!


His head isn't really that small in real life.


Isn't she cute? Her eyes are huge and blue and my teeth look like they belong to a horse! Oh well.

A few things...

Still no job, still no car, still enjoying life for the most part...

As mentioned in a previous post, I've been filling my days with running, Spanish and lounging during this transition time. I have gotten quite a bit done, but it has been at a VERY relaxed pace. I figure that this is a rare time in my life where it is OK to do nothing. Once I get out to California, things will be different.

I researched new music yesterday, a couple of notable finds include: Laura Marling (Brit-folk), Paramore (Brit-punk), and Vampire Weekend (indie-punk-rock). Check them out if you are looking for new tunes! I think Paramore and Vampire Weekend will make great running companions.


This is such a random post!

Finally, thanks to my aunt, I've found a new time-waster that I've quickly become addicted to: solving jigsaw puzzles on the National Geographic website. It's really fun, but if you plan to only solve one puzzle, think again.

Are there mountain lions?

I have started running again. Long ago, I used to really enjoy long runs down country roads and winding streets, however, I eventually got a little bored and started to explore other forms of exercise. It has been years since I called myself a runner, but I've decided to resuscitate my running shoes and have set a new goal: finish the Napa Valley Marathon in March. Anyone want to join me? Now, before you call me crazy, it is definitely do-able and as long as you set small goals for yourself, you can finish all 26.2 miles! I get a little nervous putting this goal into cyberworld, because, frankly, I am a little unsure I will be able to complete it myself! (But, like I said, it is do-able, small steps and goals....I will be fine) I would love company, so if you are interested, let me know (we could do a nice wine tour after the race to help speed the recovery process!) :)

My daily run has been between 3 and 4 miles--not a bad start, but I have a long way to go. I take off down the driveway and try to get as far as I can before the wind starts to dry up my sinuses and blow through my ears. Then I turn around and head home.

You might be wondering why I have made a reference to mountain lions in the title. Well, let me fill you in. I have these really random, pretty ridiculous fears, here are a few examples: sharks, things falling on my head, riding horses, extreme speed, and mountain lions.

I've been running pretty regularly since getting back to the States two weekends ago, but didn't think I had anything to fear (even after I saw a black bear run into the woods not too far from here!) until my dad mentioned that the neighbor spotted a mountain lion in the field a couple of summers ago. A mountain lion in central MN, you ask? Apparently so. This past year, my friend in Korea filled my head with stories of people hiking, jogging, and biking in California and Colorado before a surprise attacker pounced from behind the bushes to gore, shred and maul the innocent victim. The thought sends shivers up my spine.

I started off on my run two days ago, and as I made my way down the driveway, I saw a small pile of droppings discretely hidden on the edge of the pavement. Immediately, alarm bells went off in my head. I tried to calm myself down--there is no way...I mean, could it really be?...a mountain lion? I have no answers at this point--only assumptions as to what species left them there for me to find. Was it one of my parent's two dogs? A deer perhaps? Maybe I should have paid closer attention when we went through the dung unit in biology class.

I guess I shouldn't always assume the worst--I mean, why would a mountain lion choose me over any of the juicy deer, rabbits, squirrels, raccoons or porcupines roaming my parents' land? Either way, I am going to keep my eyes open from now on!

I'm back...

Well folks, I'm officially back! I've been here a week--it is a little strange to transition back into American culture. I've only bowed to one person (at a store after receiving my money, of which I accepted with two hands) and haven't had too many problems with speaking English (although, people really seem to fire questions at me quickly enough that I can't always follow). Anyway, I'm thinking about the continuation of this blog (or not continuing). I am still unsure about this, so I guess I will make a decision and keep it going until a decision is made.

My adventures are far from over--I have plans to travel to and in South America for a few months next spring (anybody want to join me?), not to mention moving to the Anaheim area in a couple of weeks. My travels up to this point have only fueled my desire to continue traveling and exploring. I'm interested in lots of 'mini-retirements' throughout my life (Korea was a nice pseudo-retirement for me--lots of vacations and a totally different environment), and hope to have lots and lots of stories to tell when I am old! :)

It has been fun being home--I have had the chance to see family before they all take off for college and the Air Force. Also, my boyfriend flew in for the long weekend (a surprise!) and it was really fun to see him on my home turf! I have yet to get a cell phone and am in the market for a car (specifically a new-ish Toyota if you know anyone), but I am looking forward to seeing friends in the coming weeks!