Tomorrow is Monday & I'm happy about that

The general consensus is that Mondays are less than enjoyable. But not tomorrow! I am very much looking forward to tomorrow's Monday. You don't even have to ask why, I'll just tell you. Tomorrow I am going to sign a lease on an apartment! Woop Woop! Well that's the plan as of now, hopefully everything works out. On Saturday I found a cute little place just walking distance from downtown Asheville, went to see it, had a great chat with the landlord and he told me that it was mine (despite all the others who came to see it and even though he had another appointment right after mine)! I was very excited and called my ever so helpful parents to talk it over before making the decision to go for it! Since then I have been browsing Pinterest for ideas on decorating and hunting on Craigslist for cheap furniture items. I also located a T.J Maxx and a Goodwill. However, as I'm sure my parents are reading this and would remind me, I know money is not is excess right now... I'm just scheming.

I went to a new church this morning, as I've done multiple times, and just as before found myself to be uncomfortable. Not because I'm in church, but because going anywhere for the first time, not knowing anyone, when everyone around you knows someone, is well... uncomfortable, at least for me. I am fully capable of being social and outgoing when I want to be, but place me in a room full of smiling, happy people who just kind of look at you because they know you don't really belong and oh my gosh, I just want to run away and eat icecream. BUT I didn't. I didn't even take my phone out! I committed. I found the young woman who I had connected with prior (thanks Mom) and chatted with her and her husband for a few minutes. Then went and took a seat. The worship was great, the message was good, and I even talked with a few people after... just briefly. All told me that they hoped to see me back and all were really friendly. I will be getting some more information about their young adult group that meets on Tuesdays. I'm sure that will be another experience all together. But I liked the church and look forward to returning.

On a scenic note: I am literally surrounded by mountains. Every time I drive somewhere I am in a constant state of awe. This will probably fade (although I hope not), but I just can't believe how beautiful it is here. Keep in mind I am from IL, went to school in IN, and then worked and lived in WI. All I had were hills. These bad boys are stunning. I have also come to the conclusion that North Carolina is a little bi-polar. It likes to be sunny, then rain, then be sunny while it's raining, then be so rainy you can't even see the mountains, the list goes on. But despite the sometimes weird weather, which I'm getting the feeling is actually more normal than weird, I love it here and find it breathtaking.

Greetings from The South

I MADE IT! I've been in North Carolina for about five hours now, and I already love it here. I'm not sure when the accent is suppose to kick in, but it'll probably be soon. The drive down was absolutely beautiful. Every state I went through was better than the last. I kept myself occupied with Podcasts from TED talks and RadioLab. Andy Hodges, if you're reading this, I finally got around to listening to "Colors" and I can't believe that shrimp have 12 cones?! The rest of you, check them out! Pretty interesting stuff. I also think that my left arm is tanner than my right now, so that's cool or something.

Unlike most girls (not bashing, just saying) I take my road tripping pretty seriously. I like to stop as little as possible, unless of course there are sights that I want to see. I'm proud to say I only stopped twice. Once for (way too much) coffee and once because when you drink (way too much) coffee, you have to pee. Also I got some gas during that stop. Rambo was a trooper, and has earned a car wash when I am settled in.

Once I got to NC, I checked into my hotel and then hit the road once again to go check out an apartment. It was disappointing. It seems that everything you see online is not how it appears in person, if only I had paid more attention to all those reality TV shows. NEVERTHELESS, I shall try again tomorrow! There is a potential place in Asheville, I'll keep you posted. I am also excited to go explore the area a little bit. I am surrounded by mountains and am just dying to go for a little hike.

The hotel I am staying at offers a "light supper," so un-characteristically I go to check it out. I am greeted by exactly what I expect and the reason why I typically don't check things like hotel dinners out in the first place: vegetable meat soup. Complete with sketchy looking crackers. I opt out and take a stroll to the near by Dollar Store. I know, the glamour of this situation is unreal. On the way there I pass a middle aged man who greets me by asking where I am from. I engage in small talk, which in this situation actually means that I listen to him talk about things that don't really concern me for far too long, all while in the back of my head I make a mental note to chain my door that night. Say I'm over cautious, whatever! I just got here, I'd like to stay around a while. I buy some stuff and head back. Eventually I figure out how to make the microwave work, realize I don't have an eating utensil, remember I have a camping fork in my backpack, spilled the cheese on the counter, brushed it into the mac and cheese, eat the mac and cheese, and then wondered when the counter was last cleaned. All that to say,  I am content in my little (locked) hotel room, ready for tomorrow and the adventures that it holds.

Moving Day

I am currently sitting at my kitchen table, a little sweaty from putting all of my stuff in Rambo (my jeep, remember? I'm going to stop reminding y'all soon.... also, why is there always so much stuff?!), preparing to leave. As I was systematically shoving stuff into Rambo, I realized my mind had wandered, as it typically does. This time it was reflecting over this past year, from May 2014 - May 2015. Around this time last year I had just graduated from Taylor and moved out of my apartment there with the help of my parents and the company of Joey, my cat. We made the trek all the way back to Illinois but instead of moving home, I moved into a condo in Wauconda, just north of home. It was beautiful and I loved it there. It was comfortable; I had my cat, a huge comfortable bed, was close to home but not too close, and was looking for jobs. Then as the summer went on I was spending more and more time at Timber-lee, and thinking about doing an internship there for the year. It was a long and hard process but I just had a feeling that I needed to do it. So I did. And in the beginning of August I moved out of my apartment in Wauconda, rehomed my cat, which if you know anything about me, you'll know was not an easy task, and moved up to Wisconsin. I was only an hour, forty-five from home, but it was a leap of faith. And what a great year it was. Less than a week ago, I moved out of what became my home in Wisconsin and "moved back in" to my home in Hoffman, where I've lived since I was two. This morning I, once again, moved out of my home and into my jeep. This time I'm not moving an hour or two away. This time I don't even have a house to move into when I arrive to NC (don't worry I do have a hotel waiting for me). But regardless, I'm still leaving. Point is: I've left a lot of things and places this year. But each place I went to was arguably better than what I left. I'm thankful for that, here's to hoping the trend continues.

Earlier this morning I was sitting on my bed, and as I started to process what the day held my mind kept returning to Dr. Seuss:

I literally have mountains waiting for me! But not today. Today, I head to Dayton, OH to see David and Kendra. And then I will leave from there to go get my mountain. 

Shots and Christmas

Thursday keeps getting closer. Only two days away now, and for whatever reason I don't feel very stressed about it. Still no place to live, but I definitely have options to check out when I arrive in Asheville. And on a positive note, things seems to be getting accomplished. But will I be ready by the time Thursday comes around? Doubt it. However as I was sitting in the doctors office this morning (don't worry we will revisit this topic shortly) I found myself with a few minutes and pulled out my book. SIDE NOTE: I believe one should always carry a book with them because when most of us are presented with a few moments to spare what is the typical solution? Technology. Now I'm not putting myself on a pedestal, I, more times than not, am guilty of this too. But I find it so much more rewarding when I have a book than scrolling through Facebook. SIDE NOTE OVER. Just as before I am reading "All the Places To Go" by John Ortberg and once again something stood out that seems relevant: "The truth is you don't know what you can do until you actually do it. 'Ready' comes faster if you're already moving. If you wait until you're fully ready; you'll wait until you die. Jesus doesn't say, 'Go; you're ready.' He says, 'Go; I'll go with you.'" Oh, ok. Wait, what?! Oh man, talk about a reassurance. That isn't saying that Jesus doesn't want me to do everything that I can to prepare myself, but I am walking into an open door that I don't entirely know what is on the other side. But good news: I'm not going alone. 

Back to the doctor office. As mentioned, I am getting things done. Today I got a shot. And was confirmed that I had another shot some time ago that still is good and preventing bad things. I clearly was listening carefully. I also learned that I have excellent blood pressure as well as a great resting heart rate. Then it took two bottles of water and I managed to pee in a cup, which will soon tell the doctors I don't do drugs and then they can fax my paper work down so I am one step closer being cleared to work! I took two lolly pops, one for todays' shot and one for the one I had awhile back. 

And then off to REI because I was still in need of a couple things for my new lifestyle. Then REI came to me! Via the mail. As did my wonderful sister-in-law, Kendra! 

As you can see my stuff is growing (many items not pictured). I am so excited to be able to use my new Gregory Deva 60L pack, in the stylish Egyptian Blue. I also highly recommend REI's Sahara Roll-Up pants. The material is light, breathable and basically feels like a tougher form of yoga pants, a definite plus in my book. Patagonia makes an appearance in the form of a Capilene long sleeve shirt: Black, obviously. The tag said it was made with a fabric that prevents odor... I'll let you know if it works after 8 days hiking and sweating in the woods. Probably my absolute favorite item in the picture are my La Sportiva hiking boots. These babies mean business! Complete with Gore-Tex and Vibram, these are by far the most comfortable hiking boots I have ever owned. Drop the pretty penny for them, you won't regret it! I want to thank Kendra for the Marmot rain pants. I am so excited to NOT GET WET wearing them! Black Diamond makes great products, they are the makers of my head lamp and also (not pictured) my climbing harness. The North Face contributes to the pile in form of sleeping bag: Wasatch 20 degree down bag and rain coat. Both gray, what a quality color and company! Lastly, I also recently got a REI compression stuff sack to stuff my sleeping bag in and a REI sleeping pad: Woman's Trekker 1.75. So that is my pile of stuff, and I already love it dearly. I will keep you posted as I am sure it will continue to grow!

Well thanks for sitting through yet another blog post. I still don't know if I'm doing this right, but I figure writing something can't be that far from wrong. Also, any suggestions on gear, please let me know! I am always looking for suggestions and recommendations! 

Until next time, may Christmas always follow after you get shot.... or something like that? 

Every End Leads to Another Beginning

Yesterday was weird. It was my last day of the internship I started almost 10 months ago. I woke up early and put everything into Rambo (my jeep). That car is a monster! Not only did he hold all of the stuff from my room but he also took on all of my horse stuff: a big old box of tack and three saddles! BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE! I also fit a bike in there too.

Bam! Go buy yourself a Jeep, you won't regret it! But I digress. It was an absolute beautiful day, and all of the interns were both excited and sad. There was a short ceremony and we all shared our favorite memory, what God has been teaching us, and where we will be going next. Then there were pictures, lots of hugging, the typical goodbye shenanigans. Some people were harder to say goodbye to than others, and some didn't even say goodbye. Eight of the interns are staying at Timber-lee for this summer, three are heading to other camps in the area, and then there is me. Both staying and leaving are hard for separate reasons. Leaving: you are leaving all the other people who are staying, you just have the memories. Staying: you have the place and the memories, but maybe not the people who accompany them.

I left yesterday afternoon with a Jeep full of stuff and a head full of memories, and I went home. I was greeted with warm hugs, a cold beer, and fresh brownies. (It is jealousy you are feeling right now.) I unpacked the unhealthy amount of stuff from my Jeep, and began unpacking, purging, and repacking all of my stuff from both home and camp. So far I have four bags of clothes I am getting rid of and lots of garbage. It feels refreshing. Then I ate Chipotle with my parents out on the patio, watching the birds and the water. As the sky darkened and the Hawks battled back and forth, my endless search for apartments grew tiring and I opted for bed. I was talking with Codi (my best friend) and he said him and the guys were hanging out in their basement watching Netflix, a typical activity that occurred. And I couldn't help but have a desire to be there too, and knowing that I probably will never watch Netflix in that basement with those guys again made my heart sad. But I am grateful for those relationships and knowing that those won't end. And then I went to sleep.

Waking up this morning was weird. I have a lot of things that I need to do before I can leave in 4/5 days. I know they will all get done, because, well, they have to. I will miss the past 10 months that I shared with that community of people. I have grown to love them all in one way or another. I am thankful for the impact they have had on my life and all the memories they gave me. This year is not one that will be forgotten.

And as one journey comes to a close, another one opens. Here's to another adventure! 

Open doors aren't always easy

Today was hard. It is the day that I would've started training as a summer Adventure Trip Guide for Timber-lee if I had not felt like I was being called to NC. The decision to take the NC job was not an easy one. It meant leaving. Leaving an incredible opportunity at a camp that I love and feel a very personal connection to, leaving relationships that are very dear to me, leaving behind what I know and what is comfortable to me. Today as I took a hatchet over to the group of people, my friends, who I would've been working with, I didn't realize how hard it was going to hit me. I could feel it welling up inside of me, and then my would-be boss pulled me in for a hug and said, "We'll miss you."  And I lost it. Admitting this isn't easy, but I have a point that goes along with it.

As I said, the decision to go with the NC job wasn't simple for me. I prayed and fasted intently waiting to hear where God would call me; that I could see the "right" door so blatantly and make the "right" choice. But then God opened two amazing doors, and it became clear he was going to leave the choice to me.

To switch gears a little, I'm reading a book that my mom gave me, "All the Places to Go" by John Ortberg. This book is all about open doors, and reading it now has provided me with a lot of insight. There was one line that really stood out to me so far and here seems like a fitting place to put it, "But we chose it [the open door] because the adventure of yes seemed more alive than the safety of no." Both of my open doors where going to lead to adventure, and I knew that God was going to doing amazing things which ever route I took.

After going to my pre-hire training session in NC I knew it was an incredible place. But I questioned it. I was sitting at the airport in NC recapping the weekend with my parents, and told my dad I wasn't sure about it; that I wasn't sure if that's where God was calling me, maybe it wasn't the "right" door. He responded by asking if I had not just heard the story I told. That during those few days I had felt comfort, peace, overwhelming beauty, growth, challenges, opportunities to own my faith, and felt heart broken and inspired for and by the kids I would get to work with. He responded by telling me I should go. I was so taken back. 1. I couldn't believe my parents were encouraging me to move half way across the country! and 2. How had I been so blind? The answer: fear. Just as Ortberg says, "the safety of no." I knew the job in WI was going to challenge and stretch me, but there was still safety and comfortability. I was scared to take the job in NC. Move to a place I'd only been once, not knowing anyone, not remotely near my family, and having a pretty big life style change. But how could I say no?  As soon as I officially accepted the job I knew it was right. I was (am) scared and I'm anxious and I'm excited. But right now I'm sad, because when I chose this door, it meant I had to close the other door. But I think this sadness is the silver lining because I think it signifies how much this camp, the people, and the memories mean to me.

In two weeks I will be starting at Trails Carolina. And I am a little scared, but I think everyone should do something that scares them, because when you go outside your comfort zone, that is when you will grow.

Packing Procrastination

It is now six days until I will be leaving WI to head home and I have been alternating between packing up my room, looking for apartments in NC, and trying to not think about the future. It is a tricky combination that is somewhat tiring.

I took down a picture and could distinctly remember hanging it up all the way back in August. Where does time go? Growing up adults always told me time flies by, college will be gone before you know it, every year goes faster and faster; the older I get, the more I realize this warning to be true. And yet back in December I know that I was wishing for the future, even though I didn't know what it held. Now the future is here, creeping closer every day and part of me wants to hide under the blankets and hope it goes away. Don't get me wrong, I could not be more excited... but woah. Some of you are probably thinking, 'Rachel, you're being nostalgic, that's normal' or maybe 'Rachel, you're stepping into an unknown, it's ok to be scared.' Yeah, I am both of those things to some degree, but I think that it is also a different type of fear. A fear that what if time goes by faster and I don't use it appropriately, I don't make the most out of it. There are so many things that I want to do, but doing them doesn't always happen. For example, I want my room to be packed right now, but instead I am typing this. Obviously, a small example in the scheme of life, but I am sure most people can relate to this in some way or another.

My time in WI both flew by and felt like a long time, another thing I don't quite understand but that's for another day. I learned a lot this past year and am so thankful for it. I met some amazing people and made lasting memories. When I look back on this year I am pleased, I'm not regretful. I think that this is the best way to leave a chapter of your life. There will probably always be more things that I could've done, but maybe the trick is just doing all you can and being satisfied. That's not very profound, and I'm not trying to be. I'm just trying to pack my room... and I'm satisfied with the work I've done, so now I think I'll go eat a cookie.

Until next time, enjoy the little things, find beauty in the simple, and always enjoy a good cookie.

Lets get ready to ruummble!

My wise father suggested that I start a blog about this next chapter in my life, so here I am. Hopefully this blog provides those of you who want to keep up with my adventures a way to do so. This is not for those of you who are going to judge my spelling and grammar or tell me that I need to settle down and find a nice man instead of romping around in the woods. This is who I am and what I'm doing. I hope that you follow along and get a few laughs along the way. I have no idea what to expect, I'm just figuring out my life as best I can and looking for some adventures along the way!

With that being said here is where I'm at:

I have 13 days left in my internship at Timber-lee before a short transition at home followed by a ten hour drive down to North Carolina, with a possible stop in Dayton to see David and Kendra! But wait, rewind... 13 days?! Felt like just the other day I had my Jeep (Rambo) loaded, driving up to Wisconsin, and now I'm loading it up to head back. I have been blessed with my time at Timber-lee and will be sad to leave, although I am anxious to start my new job. NEW JOB?! Who said that? In case you didn't know, I have a new job. I will be working as a Field Guide in Wilderness Therapy. How freakin' cool. I am beyond excited and just slightly less nervous. In less than a month I will be heading down to North Carolina, where I have only been once, without a place to live (yet), and not knowing anyone! Talk about transition. I start my new job on June 3rd. The job is in shift of eight days on, six days off; and for those eight days I will be g.o.n.e. During my six days off I am planning on finding some part time work to save up a little extra cash and gain some more experience AND go on adventures of my own! Where I will be living is nestled in between two national forests and at the base of the Smokey Mountains and not too far from the Appalachian Mountains. Can you say, "AWESOME?!?!"  Mom and (mostly) Dad have already been scheming of ways to come down to visit to take advantage of the awesome location, and to see me of course.. 

I have been preparing for this lifestyle change the same way I think anyone else would: spending money. REI has become my new best friend. Along with other useful websites like SteepandCheap.com or Moosejaw.com. (Warning: once you start shopping, it is very hard to stop!)  Although I have lived a pretty outdoorsy life so far, thanks Dad, it is going to be the next level up from what I'm used to. I'm pretty good at acquiring stuff, and I'm sure I'll have all I need in no time. 

I have a lot to do before I finish my internship, even more to do before I move down to NC, and then some more once I'm down there. But I am trying to focus on the moment and make the most of where I am while still giving enough attention to the future.  I'm in the beginning stages of this exciting adventure, so stick around and see where it goes!