San Antonio!

Since this was our first labor day with actual professional jobs that gave us labor day off, Jessie and I decided to take advantage and go on a mini-vacation. We contemplated the idea all week, and then finally on Friday night, we made hotel reservations in Austin and San Antonio.

In Austin we met up with Jessie's cousin and went out to a vegan restaurant called Mother's cafe. I tried their much-hyped veggie burger, which was pretty good, though I think they should just stop calling them burgers at all. Then we went down by the river and saw a very unique attraction. Austin's motto is "keep Austin weird," and we certainly helped do that at the bat bridge. A large group of people waited around this nondescript bridge at sunset to see thousands and thousands of bats fly out and off to their nocturnal endeavors. It was quite the sight.

The next day we got vegan tacos from a food truck and then vegan donuts from this farmers market co-op thingy. The lavender vanilla donut was literally the best donut I have ever had - sorry Dunkin'.

San Antonio was like another world...it was so different from anything I'd seen anywhere else in Texas! The river walk was exceptionally beautiful, and thus I took 1000 pictures of it. We took a boat tour and heard all the history of the buildings and bridges, and the ducks miraculously avoided the boat. I helped an older woman use the camera on her iphone and she asked where I was from, because "that accent ain't  from here".  Apparently I blend in well (or don't talk a lot), because I actually don't get this question all that often. Anyway, I managed to squeeze in a short explanation of where Canandaigua, NY is (NOT NYC) before the woman's friend launched into her rant about how everyone was on their phones too much. I then proceeded to ignore her and take hundreds of pictures and immediately post them to facebook. C'est la vie.

After our tour, we wandered around and I got souvenirs and free samples. Then we settled on a Mexican riverside restaurant and had some awesome margaritas and tamales.

Oh, the Alamo and the other historic missions were pretty cool too.

Lubbock

I've been here in Lubbock, Texas for 2 weeks now, and it's finally time for a blog post. Who would have thought it would be so hard to write about the most adventurous thing I've ever done?

Firstly, I have to apologize to the Texans. Before coming here, I complained to all my friends that I hated the southern accent and I hoped I wouldn't pick it up! Well y'all (hehe) I have to say that after a couple weeks I really don't mind it at all. Initially I was counting how many times people said y'all in a conversation, but now it just flows right through my brain and I don't even notice.

They have cactii in Texas!!

Another odd point about Texas...the pace is entirely different. People talk slower and move slower. Except on highways, where the speed limit is usually 75. Although apparently the 5 over leniency does not apply when you have NY plates. Also people in Lubbock seem to be terrible drivers...for example, merging lanes are very short, but people do not move over so people can merge, and the people merging just pull into traffic willy-nilly, without looking! Crazies.

Our road trip here was fun...and soooo long!! It took us 3 days. Here's some of the highlights, so I don't bore you to death.

Imagine the giant salads you could eat with this

• World's largest wind chime (which you can actually ring!) and world's largest golf tee in Casey, Ill. 
• World's largest ketchup bottle in Collinsville, Ind.
• Having the pharmacy tech call a "code 5 in cosmetics" over the intercom to get someone to open the bathrooms for us in a Walgreens.
• Going up to the top of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis
• Seeing the world's largest fork at 5am in a lightning storm

That's all for now...more to come as the adventures continue!

Aliens!!

Well hello again blogosphere!  Gosh, I haven't written a blog post in more than two months! So much awesome stuff has happened in that time - I went to the zoo (twice), and got slightly drunk one of those times... I hiked Grimes Glen again, went on another wine walk, watched Pitch Perfect two more times, and went to Fairport Canal Days and the Greek Festival on the same day with dearest Jojo.

 I love these limb-flingy things

 I spent the 4th of July at a wonderful lakehouse  with my best friends, where we put two people on one person kayaks and clumsily paddled about (and Dan and Nicole flipped twice!). We got to see fireworks all around the lake...it was so awesome.

I saw Despicable Me 2 at an overcrowded drive-in, played some awesome Kan Jam, had ice cream at the lake a few times, left my wallet at the sandbar (and begged Dan to come back and find it with me, which he did :) - what a great guy!).

I got lost on my way to and from Ithaca, but when we finally found a waterfall, it was beautiful! Then I got a fakin (Jessie's word, not mine!) lettuce and tomato sandwich at this vegan cafe, got asked to be in a music video, and gave a guy a dollar for bus fare in hipster downtown Ithaca. 

I also got to see Meg again, sing weird Indonesian karaoke, roast marshmallows, visit the Carousel Mall for the first time, and now I'm writing this from my family vacation in Cape Vincent in the 1000 islands. Our house here is super cool - we have our own dock and a water trampoline (which accentuates my natural lack of grace), and the house used to be a stop on the underground railroad! How cool is that!?!! Oh and the title of this entry - across the river (in Canada, eh), there are like 30 windmills - huge grayish industrial windmills with flashing red lights on them. And all the lights - probably 60 of them in total - blink at exactly the same time. I feel like I'm going to be abducted by aliens. Canadian aliens.

Anyway, I'm also feeling so preemptive homesickness because, in addition to all the wonderful summery things I mentioned above, I've also graduated with my Master's degree, passed my national licensing exam to officially become an OT, and accepted my first travel OT assignment in Lubbock, Texas.

My adorable little stowaway

That's right, Texas y'all. Oh gosh please don't let me pick up that accent. please. A week from this Monday Jessie and I will depart for our first OT jobs in Texas. It's a 2 day road trip where we'll get to see the world's largest fork, a section of historic route 66, a huge-ass ketchup bottle on the side of the road (idk if that's the biggest in the world or whatnot), and the gateway arch, among other yet unknown attractions.  Everything I've dreamed about in regards to OT and travelling is coming to fruition, but it's certainly going to be bittersweet leaving my friends and family. 

So that's what you have to look forward to blog-wise...I'm hoping that I can blog more consistently in Texas, because I'm sure I will have a ton of good stories to share. 

My encounter with Seitan

Another one bites the dust! Walk the entire outlet trail has been checked off my bucket list! It was a fantastic hike with Jessie through the wilderness of Penn Yan and Dresden.  At the beginning of the hike I felt like the first 30 seconds of this clip, but then at the end, I felt like this. Overall though, the dehydration and bugs were totally worth it to see all the cool ruins and animals. The path follows a route that used to be a canal with 28 locks, and then a railroad track. Apparently at one time there were many thriving mills and towns along this tract of land. The remains that we walked through were part cool and reminiscent and part spooky. The pictures are of  a ghost town we walked through...creeeeeeeeeeeeeeppy. There used to be all kinds of factories and mills, a tourist information center, a tire store...and all the windows were left open, like someone left in a hurry....

On a less creepy note, we also saw 3 blue herons, 2 cardinals, a yellow bird of some kind, a bunny, some frogs, and a whole bunch of turtles! It was super cool.

So that was yesterday. Today I had my first encounter with seitan. Not Satan, but seitan, a meat substitute kind of like tofu. Jessie and I took a mini roadtrip to Syracuse to meet Maddie and eat at this all vegan restaurant they have there. It was cool because Jessie got to order anything she wanted off the menu (which is rare, because she usually has to get a salad when we go out to eat) and I got to try something new!  I got the cajun seitan, which was very good, and super spicy!   The only bad thing was that at first I bit into the sandwich expecting meat consistency and toughness, but the seitan was much softer, so I ended up clanking my teeth together like an idiot (kind of like when you're walking down the stairs in the dark and you expect another step but there isn't one and you end up stomping the ground like the hulk). Luckily though, no one noticed.  Also they have like 6000 different kind of milkshakes at this place, all named after famous people. I got the Roberto Clememte, and it was like liquid peanut butter heaven. Not only was it freaking delicious, but I could also convince myself that it was healthy because it was vegan! Double points!

Bucket list bits

So I read an article commenting about how bucket lists are stupid and how little of them people actually accomplish. Well clearly I disagree, and I am proud to say I've accomplished a fair number  of my bucket list items already. But I did find one of the author's suggestions to be useful - to break your list up into smaller chunks...like a 5 and 10 year plan. So, here's my breakdown:

5 years:

complete a travel OT assignment
walk the entire outlet trail
visit the Ben and Jerry's factory
learn to change a tire
help build a habitat for humanity home

10 years:

ride a mechanical bull
learn to surf
learn to ski/snowboard
ride a skateboard
go zorbing
go to New Orleans during Mardi Gras
go mountain climbing
go scuba diving
go whitewater rafting
get published

Another Bucket List Item Down!

So today I got to cross riding a horse off my bucket list. It was way cooler than I expected, and my friend Heidi had a really fantastic time, which makes me very happy. My horse's name was Casper and he was super cool. I definitely want to do that again (minus the t-rex arms hopefully!).

I also went to the lilac festival with my family, and we sang along to the radio very emphatically on the shuttle bus...and people wonder why I'm so strange.

And I got a nutella milkshake! I'd call that a successful weekend!

Food Baby of the Year

So I'll get right to the title...in case you were ever wondering if it would be a good idea to down an entire pint of Ben and Jerry's chocolate ice cream in one sitting...probably not. But for the sake of experiential learning...I did it. In my defense, it was in celebration of my friend's 22nd birthday...and there were three other people sitting in the deserted wegman's cafe doing the same with me.

A pint of ice cream is four servings...now, I am of the opinion that serving sizes are there to just mess with your head (it's a miracle I'm not 400 lbs, right?)...but really, 4 servings is a lot of ice cream. I comfortably ate 2...then stuffed the other two down with it, well, because. There are kids starving in China after all!

Anyway, let's just put this whole story to bed by saying that my digestive tract did/does not agree with that much chocolate ice cream at once...not to mention I felt like I was prego with the biggest food baby in recorded history. Did I mention that we drank a fair amount of wine before this whole affair? I feel like there's something unethical about pregaming a food baby that big with wine...eh, whatever.

"We're illegally parked at a cupcake shoppe"

On Saturday morning I woke up at 6:30, put on some fancy clothes, and headed out to Brockport  to present my thesis project with my wonderful research partner Jessie. I was terrified of course, because I hate public speaking (as I suppose most people do). In order to avoid stuttering too badly, I practiced saying 'community integration' aloud about 1000 times in my car (and Jessie's). We got there, found lot N (Keuka barely has past like D) after a little searching, and headed in just in time. The actual presentation actually went very well, and I didn't mess up the words community integration at all (though I did get a bit lost in the words 'intellectual disability'). I was shaking like a leaf though, I could feel my legs especially shaking, which is unusual, but I spoke somewhat clearer and slower, so I'll take it.

After our presentation we went to a place called Chipotle and I got a gigantic steak burrito, which was fabulous! Next time when I'm not so startled by the assembly line efficiency of the place I'll make sure to get the guacamole.

Later in the day I went out with the gang to get cupcakes because, well, we like cupcakes! Also, Meg was back in this state, albeit briefly! Anyway, due to an unfortunate failure to communicate, I ended up driving around a moderately sketchy part of the city, in circles, for about half an hour before the rest of the gang arrived. I wasn't lost or anything (which is usually the case when I end up driving in circles), but there were no parking spaces near the cupcake place and I wasn't sure how long I would be waiting there alone...so yeah, I probably looked pretty sketchy myself circling the block eight times.

So when almost everyone arrived...they had run out of cupcakes. It was soooo disappointing. We ended up going to a bar down the street (and leaving our cars illegally parked at a cupcake shoppe), where I accidentally ordered a non-alcoholic drink (yup, I'm that cool :p) and we heard some fantastic stories from Meg and laughed at the way Joanna sensuously  caressed her drink. Overall a fabulous weekend!

Shake it!

After a busy last first week of the semester ever (ah!), it was only fitting that I would have a fabulously awesome weekend to match. Ready for some awkward?

First, zumba. Yes, that crazy Latin dancing craze where you have to be able to shake what your momma gave you in rhythm. Needless to say I am not any good at that kind of thing. I have absolutely no sense of rhythm, and on top of that my motor planning skills are a bit sub-par. Despite knowing both of these facts about myself, I decided to go for it anyway because it was for a good cause (my brother and one of my best friends are going on a service trip to Kenya!!).  Accompanying me to this debacle were Joanna and Dan (did I mention he's going to Africa!!?), and this would be a first for all of us.

Now that I've set the scene, let's get right to it...I was just as horrible as I thought I would be, but, so was everyone else! I pictured this being embarrassing, like 8 straight years of gym class where I still managed to mess up the cotton eye joe, but it was actually really fun! Joanna was actually really into it, and very good too - she probably could have taught the class the way she was shaking it. Dan and I, on the other hand, were doubling our cardio workout by laughing at ourselves and each other so much that it sincerely made it hard to breathe. And as if that wasn't enough, about halfway through they brought out skirts with little clinky pieces of metal on them, and we wore those for the rest of the class, which made shaking our booties even more fun. We even managed to get a picture of Dan in one :).

After an hour of sweating buckets, we decided to go to a restaurant, because, hey, why not? We recovered the calories we burned with mudslides and food  and no one even told us we smelled (although they did sit us in a corner, thankfully). I'll leave you with a picture, for your entertainment.

I have the best friends in the world :)

It's Almost Over!!

One month from this Friday I will officially have my Masters degree in occupational therapy. Not until it's almost over do you realize how fast college goes...sitting in a two hour long class seems like an eternity, but looking back over the past four years I can't believe it's so close to being over. I am not ready to be an adult.

Also, even though I'm back in classes now, my pinterest addiction has not slowed. I now have 99 different boards, including some real winners like:

Animals in Glasses (seriously, this will brighten your day - http://pinterest.com/au99/animals-with-glasses/)

Elephants

Cats (but honestly, what pinterest user doesn't!)

Hot Air Balloons

Mazes (the life size versions)

Of course I have normal boards like desserts and books, and most of my boards are actually devoted to my future profession...but I still think this online hoarding is a dangerous thing for me.

Online Hoarding

Wow, I haven't written a blog post since March 1st!! I was on such a roll too...:(

Anyway, here's the update. Since the last post I have finished up my last level 2 internship and completed my first successful phone interview (they want to interview me in person, even though I sound like a nervous five year old on the phone and I said 'cool' waaaaaay to many times)! Hopefully the in-person interview goes well, because this job would be an incredible first job and it's basically my dream job.

 I also quit (well, went inactive, in case I get too poor at the end of the semester) my job at the dunk. It was actually more bittersweet than I thought it would be. I absolutely love my boss, so leaving was a bit difficult...especially since she bought me and this other kid that's leaving on good terms (which is unbelievably rare at an establishment like the dunk) dinner and we talked about our time there for a couple hours. Also, my favorite customers made a special trip to see me because one of my dumbass (jk, he's actually one of the ones I don't mind) coworkers told them I was leaving. Schizophrenic lady also visited, of course, because I couldn't possibly leave without being berated about a decaf latte just one more time.

So I've basically had two weeks totally off, which is weird because I really haven't had that much consecutive time off in a couple years. That would explain why I spent copious amounts of time on pinterest, or as I call it, online hoarding. Seriously, I'm pretty sure I have a problem...do they have rehab for this? I have 89 boards. 89. That's an ungodly amount. Who knew I enjoyed categorizing things so much! Imagine if I collected 50 pictures of elephants, or 30 different angles of the Christo Redemptor Statue in Rio in real life. I'm pretty sure people would think I was crazy. Well, I am. So there. God I need to go back to school.

New Name, New Look

So I decided on a new name...obviously. I've had this blog since the summer before I went off to college four years ago, and as I prepare to graduate with my masters, I've decided that it's time for a change...that and a google search of 'gatos muertos' turned up a story in Spanish about a lady who had 100 frozen cats in her freezer. How do you fit that many cats in a freezer?

Phoenix Tears...really!?

It's so much harder than I thought it would be to think of a new blog title. Unfortunately, browsing the internet has been absolutely no help. I've seen some good ones, but most of the blog titles people have or suggest for others leave something to be desired. Here's what I've ascertained so far...

1. If your blog doesn't have an overarching theme you're screwed
2. If you're over 35, either your name or career is in the title...usually a combination of the two.
3. 'blog name generators' are an complete and total scam.
4. Maybe my current name isn't so bad...here's a quote from tumblr "should I name it 'on the other side' or 'phoenix tears'. Seriously? That better be about reincarnation or the long island medium. God I hope it's not about Harry Potter. But I digress.
5. People are disturbed - ie. 'walking barefoot on broken glass' and 'The darkness in my heart and soul are hiding in the cave of darkness'.
6. Gotta keep it short and sweet....unlike 'I was here, I was here, I was here', 'Can you please spell gabbana', and 'just lose yourself in ignorance and chocolate'. Long blog titles make me to tired to read the actual blog.

Please tell me that some of these are jokes...

I'll keep looking.

Bridge Guardian

This friend and I met in 7th grade (technically 5th, but we weren't friends). I believe this story happened around spring of 8th grade.  Anyway, we're walking down the white hallway to go to the bus when a teacher ambushes us for a surprisingly not creepy pat on the back. We duck through/ around that and believe we're in the clear until...the bridge guardian!! Our 4'10" math teacher bounds out of her room sideways and into our path, arms outstretched,  declaring "you thought you could escape!!" Understandably alarmed, we quickly dodged her and then proceeded to break down in laughter...this friend did her duck walk where she squats while walking because she's laughing too hard to walk upright like a normal human being.

Also this friend and I were making memes before they were cool.

Por que?

This friend and I met in 7th grade Spanish class and quickly realized that we shared a competitive spirit and knack for Spanish - which resulted in this next story. We were prompted to write a 25 word composition...and well, it escalated quickly. Soon we were pushing 100 words and neither of us wanted to give up. This is especially amazing considering that this was our first year of spanish class, so we probably only knew 50 words total. Anyway, we're racing to the bell to see who can have the longest composition, and I finally leave, not wanting to be late. Well, she came late to gym and beat me by a couple words.

Religion and Warheads

I had been in class with this friend on and off through primary and elementary school, but my earliest significant memory with him is probably around second or third grade, when we were in the same religious ed class. My mom was the teacher, and we were working on memorizing our prayers so that we could make our first communions. As a reward for correctly memorizing our prayers, my mom gave us candy at the end of class. Inevitably there would be a few sour warhead candies mixed in, which we would give to my mom so we could watch her make faces :).

Shews

As I sit here knitting (see last post) in front of my laptop, I'm reflecting back on a great February break and all the good times I've had recently with friends. So, in the spirit of friendship and nostalgia, I've decided to recount my earliest memories with my friends. In order to make it more interesting (and possibly difficult) for myself, I've left out the names so that it's kind of like a guessing game.  So without further ado, here is the first of those stories, titled "shews" :p. 

When we were in eighth grade we played modified soccer together, and we got along pretty well. One day after practice I was fetching my soccer bag from the hallway by the gym where we kept them when I noticed that my friend had left her sneakers. I grabbed them and went outside searching for her. When I didn’t find her I figured she had already left and decided to take them home with me and return them to her on Monday so they wouldn’t get relegated to the lost and found (or worse!). Unfortunately though, I didn’t have her number, nor did I know how to spell her funky last name to look it up in the phone book…so I had no way of telling her that I had her shoes. This was back in the days before I had a cell phone. Anyway, my friend ended up going back to the school to search out her shoes, and after coming up empty decided to call around to see if any of her friends had picked them up for her. Somehow she found my funky last name in the phone book and called me. Upon discovering that I had the precious sneakers, she sent her mom out to my house to retrieve them. I don’t think I realized how very Polish this friend was until I opened the door to her mother and heard “thank you, [friend's name] really loves these shews”. I just can’t do that accent justice in writing.

2/3 Cat Lady

First off, some business. I'm thinking of changing the name of this blog. The name just doesn't have the same quirkiness it did when I picked it out almost four years ago. So I need some suggestions!

Secondly, I've learned to knit. I thought about prefacing that statement with all sorts of justifications about how I had extra yarn and I didn't want to waste it...but instead, I've decided to embrace my cat lady ways. The way I figure it, I'm about 2/3 of the way to being a full blown, internet meme worthy cat lady. I know how to knit and I am obsessed with pinterest. I do have a cat, but she is not strictly mine...and I think you have to have at least three cats of your own before you officially qualify...so... two thirds.

This got me thinking about what other strange parts of my life/ personality I could illustrate in fractions...so, here goes

I'm 1/3 clown because I can make balloon animals. I'm still working on juggling and unicycle riding.

I'm 18/21 OT, because I still have 5 weeks of my last level 2 clinical affiliation, a short semester of grad work, and a big licensing exam before I'm a full blown OT. (ahhhh!!!)

Happy Ash Wednesday!

Today begins Lent, and I've  decided I'm going to use that good old Catholic guilt to make me a little healthier. I'm giving up sweets and junk food (which is going to suck on Valentines Day and St Patrick's day) and vowing to work out everyday. I got myself a yoga ball (which I am perched upon right now) for my birthday to add some variety to my workouts, so that should be fun. 

I also got myself a new laptop battery, car charger for my phone, K-cup style grounds holder, and a Lonely Planet book called A Year of Festivals, which I can't wait to read. I have a real thing for travel books lately. Anyway, off to mass...happy Lent!

I think my cat is trying to get me sick...

I know, the title makes me sound like a cat lady. I only have one cat, I swear. And she knows I'm talking about her...she keeps swatting and biting my hand. And she keeps sneezing at me. She's out to get me! :)

Anyway, as far as my quest to be healthier is going...

1. I'm still sleeping like a freaking zombie. I set my alarm for an hour before I really have to get up, but then I just reset it in the morning.

2. During that hour when I'm ignoring my plans to get up early, I have the weirdest dreams. Like all around weird...the premise of the dream, the people in the dream, the setting...it's all strange.

3. I've cut down on sugar...I'm now drinking my coffee with just 3 Splenda. I don't really know if that's a good or bad thing.

4. Tabatas are awesome...especially when they're built into your internship. Also, I've made a 'workout drawer' in my desk with tabata routines and such on little slips of paper - pick one, do a set. It's working out well so far!

Other notes:

I paid tuition for the last time today! Yay! Now I'm free...until student loans come due :).

Quote of the week: "That looks yummy, let's take a picture!" - My little sister, summing up the digital age while I wolf down some Nutella.

Reverse Bucket List

First off, Happy Martin Luther King Jr Day and Inauguration day! 

I've been in a very future-centered mindset recently - with graduation approaching and all. Soon I will have a real job in my chosen career field. Scary! 

Anyway, with my 22nd birthday approaching I've decided to take a look back with a nice idea I read about on the internet. It's called a reverse bucket list, where you list cool things you've already done.  Here is is:

Academics/Employment:

Inducted into the National Honor Society

Graduated high school with advanced distinction and honors

Granted first year Sophomore standing at Keuka College (39 college credits accepted)

Recieved George H. Ball Scholarship

Participated in Rotaract Club

Graduated magna cum laude with my bachelors in occupational science

Completed a Level 2 clinical affiliation at St. Mary's Hospital Brain Injury Rehab Unit.

Worked 3 years at the Keuka College DRIVE program

1.5 years at Dunkin Donuts

Travel/ Adventures:

Camped in the Adirondacks and saw a real live bear!

Camped under the stars at HersheyPark

Visited Cedar Point and Darien Lake

'Cabining' at Cayuga

Grimes Glen Hiking

Ocean Kayaking

Mountain Biking

Swimming in the ocean at night

Tried bobsledding in Lake Placid

Niagara Falls

Senior Trip to NYC

Made 'Ice angels'

Saw fun., Switchfoot, and OAR in concert

Moonlight Maize Maze

Cupcakes at Sugar Mountain Bake Shoppe

Laser Tag
Boogie boarding
Playing Giant Chess in Rehoboth

Deaf events with Heidi: Yoga and Church

·         Family Beach Vacations in Rhode Island, Maine, Myrtle Beach, Rehoboth Beach, Virginia Beach, Cape Cod, & Wildwood.

I might have forgotten some things, but this list has reminded me how awesome my life has been so far. Also, I have super awesome friends. :)

Creepy Mailman

Time for another creepy DD story!! I know how you like laughing at my awkward life :).

So there's this guy that comes in to DD every day. He orders at least a sandwich, a couple donuts, and a drink every day. As you might have surmised from that last sentence, he is a bit overweight.   In fact, (and yes, I know I am a horrible person for having such mean thoughts) when he told me he was a mailman I wondered how he fit in the truck. Yesterday I got to find out (insert sarcastic yay!).

 I was lounging around the house after work when my mom told me to get the mail. Gladly! It was B-e-a-utiful! So out the door I go and before my second foot hits the porch I can tell this is going to be awkward. I can't just grab the mail from the mailbox like a normal person because the mail truck is literally at the next house as I'm coming out the door and it's gonna get to my mailbox the same time I am. It's during this internal conflict where I'm trying to decide if it would be more awkward to turn around and go inside or talk to the mailman when I realize something awful...I recognize the mailman. Damn.

So now he's seen my awkwardly frozen with indecision on my porch, and he's recognized me, so I'm screwed. I bite the bullet and mosey on down to the mailbox.

'Heyyy you!' He says.

Shit.
"Hi, how are you?"

"I'm good. You're Allison, right?"

Shit. I knew I resisted that name tag for a reason.
"Yup."

"So this is your stomping ground?"

Well, I can't really say no at this point, can I?

"I was there this morning and I didn't see you!"

"I was in drive thru."

"oh." (he begins thumbing through my mail awkwardly...)
"Well it's about time I do something nice for you!" (implying that doing his job is extra nice)

In response to this I laugh super awkwardly.

"So how do you say your last name?" (still thumbing through my mail....I believe he is reading the fronts of them and I don't know what to do...)

"Uttaro."

"Ah. Well here ya go."

"Thanks"

"Yup. See ya."

"Have a nice day..."


This is my life.

Morning Lark?

First, some developments in the world of Allison.  Well, more like opportunities that have presented themselves. Number one: My neighbor has offered me a spot on her indoor soccer team  on Monday nights. Great, except that I haven't played soccer since my sophomore year of high school and I'm super out of shape. I think I might give it a go next week anyway...and if I look like a loser in front of all those thirty somethings I'll just have to deal. Also it's a great excuse to get in shape. Speaking of that, my supervisor at my level has gotten me hooked on interval training. Sometimes we do it at work, but now I do it at home a lot too. I have this timer on my phone called a tabata timer, and I just set it and then exercise for so many intervals. I like that it's very measurable and finite (unlike 'I should go for a run') and that I can do a lot of stuff quick. Right now I do this mix of yoga, abs, and push-ups, with some wall-sits thrown in for good measure.

Number two: Well, actually, I'm going to save number two for a bit, until it develops further. Readers enjoy suspense, right? Also my bedtime is approaching.

Which brings me to the title. Today I learned that a morning person is called a morning lark. I sincerely did not know this until about an hour ago. I'd heard the term 'night owl' a lot, but never even wondered what it's inverse was called. That's how much of a morning person I am NOT. But...I am going to attempt to change that.

Recently I've been feeling less that optimal. Not sick, just... stiff, tired, and more ADD-y than usual. True, I'm doing a lot more this year than I ever have before, breaking into the adult world so to speak, and I don't have a day off anymore...but I feel like there's more to it than that and my new found coffee addiction. I just read an article about the benefits of waking up early and how successful people are usually morning people, and it was like a solution smacked me in the face. So I've decided to become a morning person. I've decided to wake up early (between 5:30 and 6) and use that time. My doctor has been telling me for years that I really should eat breakfast, so I'm going to do that. I'm  going to stretch a bit, watch the news, read a bit, maybe do a crossword puzzle...basically just do the stuff that I feel like I don't have time for now or I'm too burned out at the end of the day to do. Wish me luck!

Clementines, Cupcakes, and Wine

Today I realized two absolutely mundane things. One: I eat an ungodly amount of clementines. Seriously, I better not get sick with all this vitamin C coursing through my veins. Two: This new girl at work that calls me Alli is getting on my nerves. Very few people call/have called me Alli. It just doesn't fit my personality. Also, this girl doesn't know me at all!! Rant over.

I had a really super cool weekend (as evidenced by the other two items in the title). On Thursday some friends and I went to this really fancy cupcake place in Rochester called Sugar Mountain Bake Shoppe. They sell gourmet cupcakes in a whole bunch of flavors, and apparently it takes them two days to make the cupcakes. Anyway, it was my friend Meg's first time, and you could tell by the look on her face that everything from the greeter to the decor had her a bit stunned (both were very eccentric). They also make really good tea here, so if you're looking for something a little different, I would highly recommend it. 

After cupcakes we went to this cool British pub called The Old Toad where I had a hard cider because I despise the taste of beer. This place had a cool atmosphere too, all kinds of maps and pictures, including the "beeriodic table of elements". We have vowed to return for their trivia night at some point.

On Saturday, Joanna and I attempted to go snowshoeing to fulfill a bucket list item, but alas, we were unable to locate the showshoe rentals. Next time we'll have t call ahead, because this was not a figure it out when you get there or google it type of place. We got to go on a nice snowy nature walk anyway and saw a doe that was NOT afraid of humans up close. 

After our snowshoeing fail we met up with other friends for the Canandaigua Wine Walk, which was the perfect mix of classy and accessible. For $5 we got to sample a wide variety of wines at different shops on Main St in Canandaigua. This also afforded us the opportunity to explore some of the shops we normally wouldn't visit. For example, Coach St Clay turned out to be a nice little gallery with portraits of robots and narwhals, which is not at all what I expected based on the surrounding buildings. 

We were able to finish the night with some delicious crepes at Simply Crepes, where we have become regulars. Overall a fun filled time with everyone while they were on break from college! 

Happy Thursday!

Something I learned today: Aside from all the genetic disorders and such I looked up today, I learned this from a young student: The secret to living to be 1000 is to give yourself a secret name. Now you know.

Something I am thankful for: Coffee and short commutes.

Progress: Today I heard about a job opening that I might be interested in interviewing for. Can't believe it's that time already...do I want to travel!?

Last First Level 2 day!

Aside from the lingering caffeine headache, January 2nd has been great! My supervisors at my Level are really nice, laid back people, and I already have my first assignment with this adorable little guy to work on handwriting (which I, ironically, am not very skilled at myself...). Also, the halls in the school are all named after bears (Paddington, Winnie the Pooh, Courdoroy) which is utterly adorable (and helps me not get lost)!

Something I am thankful for -- the opportunity to do my level in such a wonderful place!

Something I learned -- Must not skip morning coffee...caffeine headache kicks in around 1 and does not leave! I also learned some OT related stuff, but I don't want to bore my one reader with that :p

Progress -- I have plans in the works for two bucket list items- learning to ski and going snowshoeing.

Happy New Year!

So yesterday I got sick and was unable to attend the new year's eve party I was invited to. Luckily I had been able to hang out with this group of friends earlier in the week. So I stayed home and watched the ball drop with my family, and thought up a new blog format.

1. Something I am thankful for today:
     Today I am thankful for my family, the close group of friends from high school that I am still in touch with, and the opportunities that are set to present themselves in 2013 (as terrified as I am of them).

2. Something I learned today:
      Today I learned that it is possible not to have tried a bagel with cream cheese in your whole life!

3. Resolution progress/other news
     Starting point: Today I did 35 continuous sit ups and 15 continuous push ups. Also, I've resolved to get 100% on this quiz: Countries of the World Quiz

Anyway, my second level 2 internship starts tomorrow, and I am super excited!!