My favorite HNT

This is my personal favorite HNT of mine. The water, the sand, the tan...it just turned out cool. Volleyball was a huge part of my summer and started off what has now become a champion team. The way the water splash and ripples showed up just turned out fun. Now I need to get back into gear and work on HNT's for 2006!

Made it

The craftsman drill, the cabella's down vest, the crock pot, and I all made it home in one piece. They x-rayed my crock pot twice but let me carry it on. Now I'm home, smelly, hungry and need to put the garbage out and unpack. I'm SO behind on reading in blogger world. i'll catch up sometime!

Flying with a crockpot???

Santa did good this year...got me several things that I was near purchasing myself. Only problem is checking a new craftsman drill and work light in case along with a 6 quart crockpot on my return flight! Any suggestions? I'm going to put the case in my suitcase, going to try to take the crockpot as a carry on. Could be interesting...

Merry Christmas

As I look out the window of my sister's bedroom it is 40 plus degrees outside and not a single flake of snow. Feels a bit weird but so far the holidays are going well. I hope you are all warm and with family celebrating whatever traditions it is you celebrate....oyster stew, finger foods, presents in the morning, presents in the evening...whatever it might be. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Never B-4!

They did it! They did it! It's never been done B-4! Four straight NAIA championships. I was an emotional basketcase at the start of the game for some reason but calmed down sometime during the third quarter. Final score 27-10. The game photos below aren't from today but the top picture is....that is a sign the grade school kids in Savannah made for the Saints. Gotta love that Southern hospitality. Called Os twice, saw him on TV once. Sounds like he is having a great time, hopefully I'm not too boring for him when he actually gets here tomorrow night. Now I have to get the guest bedroom ready! I better get busy.

4-time NAIA Champions...

The CARROLL COLLEGE FIGHTING SAINTS

Let's Get Ready To RUMBLE....

Today the Carroll College Fights Saints rematch with St Francis in an attempt to win their 4th STRAIGHT NAIA National Football Championship. This is the 5th year in a row that the team has made it to Savannah, TN and we are hoping they make history with their 4th straight victory! So pull out all your purple and gold and tune in to CSTV for today's game. GO SAINTS!!!

I'm a GEM :)

! You are most like An Emerald !Caring, giving, - and very emotional. You're the
personpeople turn to with a problem. You worry about
everybody,and genuinely want to help - a little too much
sometimes.As an emerald, you tend to take a more backseat to
the othergems, but your inner beauty soon captivates those
who takethe time to get to know you.Congratulations ... You're the selfless gem
everybody needs as a friend.

?? Which Precious Gem Are You ??
brought to you by

Back to the gym

The holidays are NOT the time to decide to start training for a 100 mile bike ride. But, that's what I'm doing. My trainer is back from maternity leave and have me back in gear. I'm suppose to be back in the gym three times a week for the three weeks and then get back to 4 or 5 days a week over the first month or two of the new year. My butt cheeks hurt. Tonight I did an hour of cardio between the bike and elliptical plus a bit of ab workout. The goal event is an Iron Man bike ride in April...100 miles, one day! I think I have lost it but we will see how it goes. For now, I will get myself into the gym and see how it goes.

Moose on the loose

This moose got busy today. considering I didn't crawl out of bed until almost noon and get back to my own house before 1 pm I think i have gotten a lot done. Tonight after getting all the painting below done I decided to say screw the mess and haul all the christmas stuff in. A friend came over and helped and this is what we accomplished. All blue, green, silver and moose decorations. Sort of cheesy but I like it and now I am a bit more cheery with the Christmas spirit. Merry Christmas!

I don't think I ever took a picture of the entry way of my house but it was a very very nasty shade of pinkish red. It was NOT attractive. On top of that, it was glossy paint so when I went to put primer on it two weeks ago, a good deal of the primer slid off. Yesterday I sanded over the one coat of primer, put on another coat of primer, and painted this pretty green over it. It turned out nice. matches my rugs and dishes really well. The red and green curtains are still up and the green actually matches those too but I will be swapping them out after the holidays. The picture turned out a bit fuzzy, but you can get the idea.


The main floor has a half bathroom that was painted an acceptable shade of brown. The pictures make it look more mustard colored then it really but I like it either way. I have always wanted a room with a good deal of my moose stuff in it. I found these "wallies" on sale at Target and decided to put them up in the main floor bathroom. There is a nice ledge of countertop the length of one whole wall so I can set a lot of my moose knick-knacks on it. Considering I didn't use a ruler to measure out the spacing between tree and moose, it turned out okay. The door leads to the basement so it's a bit of a weird location for a bathroom but it works. Speaking of basement, I better go swap laundry.

High School Hockey

Last night I covered a local high school hockey game through the Sports Med department. I was there by myself so I made sure I got their early, said hi to the coaches, let them know where I would be etc. Growing up in western SD, I didn't grow up with hockey. I did follow the NHL a bit when I was in grad school because we were living in Phoenix at the time and I had the chance to watch the Colorado Avalanche play when they came to town. i have never really understood the rules to the game, I get the objective...get your puck into the other team's goal. That's simple enough. But play stops all the time, a few penalties I get, but there are a lot that I don't.

All of this is NOT what I found so fascinating. I was amazed by the teenagers swarming the arena. It was like a flashback to the 70s and 80s. The guys had long shaggy hair that curled up under their stocking caps, which they all wore with the tops pointed as far up as they would go. On the other end, their pants were barely hanging on and I saw more 16 year old add hanging out then I care to see. There was plenty of corduroy and polyester on the males as well. The girls must have been having a post-game 1980's themed party. Tank tops, body glitter, boobs hanging out everywhere, hair sprayed way high, glittered eyeshadow, bangle bracelets, dangling earrings. Talk about flashback.

I found myself sitting amongst a group of these girls. I like to sit directly behind the benches so if I need to get to them I can and I'm close to the door to get on the ice if I need too. These girls giggled and shreeked through the whole game. I had such a headache by the time the game was over. Way too high pitched, constant noise for me! Please tell me, was I that bad in high school.

The hockey game was at least interesting. Final score 5-3. Is the last period of a hockey game always just a crazy frenzy? Sticks, gloves, punches flying everywhere and this is high school! Afterwards the boyfriend and I went to see RENT. Strange show, interesting topic but strange. Also see they are bringing The Producers to the big screen...what's up with bringing Broadway to the movie theater? I thought the appeal to Broadway was just that, it is a LIVE show that you can't just see anytime, anywhere. Uhmmmm....

I'm going to medicate my headache and get ready to put up christmas decorations. Here's this to steal, borrowed it from Os...

It's the weekend!!!!!!

After my team stuck me alone at the hospital to see a late patient while they all went home at noon even though we were post-call, I'm finally home and it's the weekend! i usually don't get too excited about TGIF but...TGIF!!

I didn't get home last night until 8 o'clock after I ended up working up a 5 pm direct admit. My backpack from the night before was still lying on the couch with most everything taken out of it already. I was talking on the phone with Os and looked over and Reggie had crawled into the main compartment. He jumped out before I could get my camera. I went about my business and pretty soon Romeo copied his brother and was tucked inside my backpack. This time I got a picture! Isn't that just cute? Silly kids.




Romeo eventually creeped out of the bag but Regg got back in. Wished I could have caught his tumble on video. I was talking to my mom and not only did Regg crawl into the bag but went tumbling off the couch...STILL IN THE BACKPACK! I managed to sort of grab the bag so he didn't land completely square on his head on the floor but he defintely got out of the bag in a hurry, shook his head a bit and went about his business.

Bedroom pictures

Get your minds out of the gutter! It's too early in the week for HNT pictures :)

It is Tuesday night, I've been home since early and could be getting tons and tons done. Instead, I'm being a kid. I have hot cocoa, just got off the phone with my best friend and I'm watching Charlie Brown's Christmas Special. I thought I would post a few more house pictures since it has been a few days. The master bedroom is doing a bit better so here are some pictures to get an idea of where it is going. I haven't put pictures up on the wall anywhere and once I do that it will finally feel like "home". Just haven't had time to get the special mounts that I need.

This first picture is the runner next to my side of the bed. Cats love to land on the end closest to the end of the bed and slide on it up to the nightstand. I have sticky stuff to put underneath, just haven't cut it yet.


This picture is my bed. If you go back to very early in my blog history there is a big post about this bed. This was my first piece of individually purchased "grown-up" furniture. It is a slatted hardwood sleigh bed. I looked all over for it. The walls in the room are called "Spring Green" and all my bedding and accents are various shades of sage green and lavender. The ugly shades are black out shades because I need lots of darkness to sleep. I will put up pretty gauzy swags sometime to hide them a bit.



The cats love to hang out on these pillows. They are big overstuffed down pillows that my Grandma Rose made. The pillow shaws are a mix of washable suede, linen, taffeta, and such so they are very "touchable". You can see the dent where Romeo sleeps every night at my feet. Doesn't he look huge in this picture? He's a big cat, but not nearly as big as he looks in this picture.



This vanity with a sink is what made me really like this room. in college my dorm room had a sink and mirror in the room. Now I can pile all my "girl" stuff on this in my own bedroom and keep the full bath pretty so that when guests use it my hair spray, brush, hair, etc isn't all over the place. The only thing I don't like is the direction the door opens. It opens and stops right up against the sink. Might try to take it off and put it on the other way. That can be done at a later time.

Well Charlie Brown is over so I should make myself some supper and finish folding the laundry I started. Now I feel a bit more warm and fuzzy, still not completely into the holiday spirit. Maybe I'll do some shopping this weekend and see if that helps.

2 year anniversary

Today at 12:05 pm was the two year anniversary of my arrival in Rochester, MN. I've come a long ways in two years and thought I would do a bit of reflecting. It is later in the day than I thought it would be when I wrote this, so it will be short and maybe I will find time this weekend to go back into it a bit more.

Two years ago on the day after Thanksgiving I pulled out of Helena, MT and cried my way through the first three hour of my drive. In the three months prior to my departure, my husband had left me, I finished my last 8 weeks of PA school, passed my exit exams, passed my national boards, worked two months in a coffee shop, and got myself a job at the Mayo Clinic. To say the least, I was lost and confused mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. The two things that had gotten me through the three months were my friends Heather and Os. Now I was leaving them too! heather and I agreed to not say goodbye and she left the house that morning before I had even showered. I met Os at his work for one last bowl of chili, and was off.

It was an interesting adventure. I drove as far as Park City, MT the first day. Stayed with my mom's cousin. The next day I drove to my mom and dad's. My dad had spent a few days with me when my husband left and had flown to my graduation but it was the first time I was home since the whole disaster happened. I saw my grandma and that was it. I wanted to avoid everyone in town, I was too embarrassed to face anyone, I felt like a failure. I stayed there for 2 nights. I then drove from Isabel, SD to Vermillion, SD...the long way, to stop and visit my great uncle too. Spent that night with my high school best friend. We stayed up most of the night, "discovered" a shortcut to get me to Rochester from Vermillion and I left the next morning.

The shortcut wasn't of course! Never take a two lane highway through rural iowa. You have to stop every 10 miles to drive through some little bitty town with a 20 mph speed limit. I finally got back to I-90 in Worthington MN and was able to contact my mover's. They were going to delay my unload by an hour. At 12:05 pm I pulled into my new "home" and 10 minutes later the truck with my belongings pulled up. Two days later my stuff was entirely unpacked and most of the townhouse set up. Wish I now had those same movers and unpackers, they would be handy in the new house.

So in two years lots has happened. I tried to go without counseling for the first few months here. Called Heather and Os nearly daily, if not several times a day, cried every night on the bus to my car. Finally started going back to counseling. Slowly started getting comfortable in my job. I think the biggest impact on me after moving here was meeting the group of guys that I did via a rep at work. He bugged me and bugged me to come meet this group of people he played frisbee with. Well, from that group I have gained a great group of friends, even a boyfriend.

I also got involved in the church. Asked my supervisor at work about the catholic churches in town. First one I went to had a great youth choir singing that weekend. I was hooked. Now I'm on the women's ministry planning committee, specifically planning all the women's retreats. I have taught a year of confirmation classes. i am now on the youth ministry planning team as well as chairing a committee to build a parish sponsored habitat for humanity house in the next three years. Within that framework, I have met a great group of women that I admire. Sometimes I envy them as they have gotten married, had children, etc throughout the last two years. But I'm dealing with those things.

Work has been the most unstable situation in the last two years. My residents change every 3 months, that I knew coming in. What I didn't expect was for my boss to leave the clinic to start his own in AZ, the interim attending doc to be a Napoleon who hated PA's, not getting the pediatric job I was told was mine when my current job was in upheaval, to now having a very straight forward, aggressive, kind surgeon that is very understanding of what PA's can do. At work I have an amazing group of nurses and secretaries that I work with that have served as sisters, counselors, girlfriends, moms, and more in the last 2 years.

So that is a brief run down of how far I've come in two years. Now I'm getting settled...extremely slowly!!...into my very first home. So to all those that have helped me along the way in the last two years...I love you! To the adventures to come in a city and job that I said I would only stay in for 2-3 years, I look forward to the challenge.