Wow, the last month has been action-packed. I've been (somewhat) preparing for studying abroad while studying for (and sitting for) the 3rd actuarial exam, Exam MLC. I've gone out to dinner with my best friends, had my last bible study of the year, and last night went to the Actuarial Science and Risk Management/Insurance banquet. And now, it's time to prepare for my 5 final exams and 2 final papers. It is, officially, nearing the end of the semester.
In under 100 days, I will be in Oslo, Norway. This is absolutely crazy! There have definitely already been some trials and things that have not gone as planned, but I'm crossing my fingers that this is all just part of the experience. The program is starting earlier than I was anticipating, no one from Madison will be attending with me, and a few of the classes I wanted to take are not offered in the fall. I'm very anxious about travelling alone, but for now I'm just doing my best not to think about it. My plan is to get through the end of the semester, and then finalize things like my visa, ticket, housing, etc.
EXAM MLC IS BEHIND ME. Again, this is hard to believe. I have been preparing for this exam since the beginning of September, and intensively for the past month and a half. This year was the first time that it included a combination of multiple choice questions and written answer questions. I know that some people struggled with completing the exam within the allotted time, but thankfully I finished. The results aren't released for 8 to 10 weeks, so for now it's time to just wait! It's hard to guess as to whether or not you passed, because the pass mark is so up in the air, but right now, I'm feeling pretty good. I'd say there's around a 75% chance that the beginning of July will bring me good news!
In the little free time I've had, I've walked down to the farmers' market on Capitol Square, had Culver's with my bible study, watched the Badgers play in the Final Four game (although sadly with a heartbreaking loss), gone out to dinner with some of my best friends, and gone on a creative date that included a bonfire at picnic point and a scavenger hunt around campus. It's been a great, though sometimes stressful, few weeks. I'm excited to make the most of the last few weeks I have with my friends here, before moving back to Oshkosh for a few weeks, then starting my internship in Brookfield.
I hope that you are all enjoying the springtime (and I hope it has been warmer wherever you are than it has been here!).
-T
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Monday, April 7, 2014
To Oslo I will go!
It's been a long time so there's lots to share, and it's late at night, so this won't be the prettiest, but here we go!
I have officially been accepted to study abroad in Oslo, Norway for next fall semester! I'm terrified, excited, nervous, unsure - all of the emotions you can imagine, I'm probably feeling. Last week I also freaked out because I am 99% sure that I am the only person travelling from my school to that specific program - something I was not expecting and still don't know how I feel about. I technically have until April 15th to decide/commit to going for sure, but I'm hoping that I don't chicken out and decide not to go. So yes, preparations are beginning with that.
I have also applied to the Wisconsin School of Business! I was undecided whether I wanted to pursue actuarial science through the business school (and give up some scholarship money) or through the college of letters and science, but after much deliberation and praying, I decided to go with my gut and apply to the business school. I won't find out until mid-summer, but if all goes well, I will be graduating from the University of Wisconsin with a BBA. :)
Another thing I will find out this summer - the result of exam MLC! I am very nervous about the next actuarial test, which is three weeks from today! I am not feeling prepared at all. It is difficult to study and devote time to that exam while also trying to stay up on school work and current classes. In fact, I took a test tonight and have two more this week. It's a lot to handle, and it's really testing me on my ability to rely on God to give me strength and peace.
This past weekend was great - I almost went to the final four game in Texas, but at the last minute decided to stay back in Madison. Although I'm sure Texas would've been fun, I had a really great weekend here. Of course, I studied a lot, but I also went to the Union on Saturday to watch the game with a bunch of friends (although the outcome was very sad, the day and game itself were great!). Then, on Sunday, my bible study was taken on a creative date by a sophomore men's bible study! They led us on a scavenger hunt throughout campus, ending with a bonfire at picnic point. It was a blast, and super nice to be served in such a fun, creative way. For dinner, we even had "build-your-own" baked potatoes cooked in the fire. I also learned how to play spikeball! I'm definitely a fan. It also left me feeling good about Cru - I may try to make it to a weekly meeting again sometime. I'm not a big-group kinda gal, so I haven't been attending the big-group weekly meeting much this year, but maybe I'll try it out again soon!
Although we were served wonderfully by the men, it led me to a stark realization. I still really, really like the same boy that has been on my mind for over a year now. Most people around me have known/seen this, but I always figured that if someone else came along, I would move on just fine. But this past weekend, although the intent was not a romantic date, I was thinking about how I would feel if one of the men started to pursue me, and I realized that I would simply be disappointed that it wasn't the one boy I'm interested in. I don't know what that means - I know that whatever God has planned for my life is way better than anything I could come up with, whether that includes this particular boy, or a different one, or none at all, but I also know that we have to be active in living out God's plan. I'm really starting to feel like I may need to take action to voice these feelings so that they can be dealt with. That's a terrifying thought, but I have the feeling that it may need to happen sooner rather than later. ...especially because of the small detail that we will also be working together this summer.
That's a fairly brief update of my life! I hope all of you are doing well, and are feeling as blessed in your lives as I have been in mine! God is so great; I'm thankful to be reminded of this everyday. :)
-T
I have officially been accepted to study abroad in Oslo, Norway for next fall semester! I'm terrified, excited, nervous, unsure - all of the emotions you can imagine, I'm probably feeling. Last week I also freaked out because I am 99% sure that I am the only person travelling from my school to that specific program - something I was not expecting and still don't know how I feel about. I technically have until April 15th to decide/commit to going for sure, but I'm hoping that I don't chicken out and decide not to go. So yes, preparations are beginning with that.
I have also applied to the Wisconsin School of Business! I was undecided whether I wanted to pursue actuarial science through the business school (and give up some scholarship money) or through the college of letters and science, but after much deliberation and praying, I decided to go with my gut and apply to the business school. I won't find out until mid-summer, but if all goes well, I will be graduating from the University of Wisconsin with a BBA. :)
Another thing I will find out this summer - the result of exam MLC! I am very nervous about the next actuarial test, which is three weeks from today! I am not feeling prepared at all. It is difficult to study and devote time to that exam while also trying to stay up on school work and current classes. In fact, I took a test tonight and have two more this week. It's a lot to handle, and it's really testing me on my ability to rely on God to give me strength and peace.
This past weekend was great - I almost went to the final four game in Texas, but at the last minute decided to stay back in Madison. Although I'm sure Texas would've been fun, I had a really great weekend here. Of course, I studied a lot, but I also went to the Union on Saturday to watch the game with a bunch of friends (although the outcome was very sad, the day and game itself were great!). Then, on Sunday, my bible study was taken on a creative date by a sophomore men's bible study! They led us on a scavenger hunt throughout campus, ending with a bonfire at picnic point. It was a blast, and super nice to be served in such a fun, creative way. For dinner, we even had "build-your-own" baked potatoes cooked in the fire. I also learned how to play spikeball! I'm definitely a fan. It also left me feeling good about Cru - I may try to make it to a weekly meeting again sometime. I'm not a big-group kinda gal, so I haven't been attending the big-group weekly meeting much this year, but maybe I'll try it out again soon!
Although we were served wonderfully by the men, it led me to a stark realization. I still really, really like the same boy that has been on my mind for over a year now. Most people around me have known/seen this, but I always figured that if someone else came along, I would move on just fine. But this past weekend, although the intent was not a romantic date, I was thinking about how I would feel if one of the men started to pursue me, and I realized that I would simply be disappointed that it wasn't the one boy I'm interested in. I don't know what that means - I know that whatever God has planned for my life is way better than anything I could come up with, whether that includes this particular boy, or a different one, or none at all, but I also know that we have to be active in living out God's plan. I'm really starting to feel like I may need to take action to voice these feelings so that they can be dealt with. That's a terrifying thought, but I have the feeling that it may need to happen sooner rather than later. ...especially because of the small detail that we will also be working together this summer.
That's a fairly brief update of my life! I hope all of you are doing well, and are feeling as blessed in your lives as I have been in mine! God is so great; I'm thankful to be reminded of this everyday. :)
-T
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Well, Wow.
In the past week and a half or so, my life has been a rollercoaster, as cliche as that sounds. I've been struggling a lot with sliding back toward depression and pulling myself away from my friends. At the same time, I've been exceedingly overcommitted with classes, work, various clubs and organizations, and BadgerCru. Just as my excitement and passion for being back on campus was being drained away by all of these things, my closest friends here and I had a fairly large misunderstanding. I'll spare you the details, but basically what transpired left me in a much worse place than where I had started the week - not the thing I needed to be added to my plate. So, that was last Wednesday night - I was up until 3:30 AM, crying, tossing and turning, frustrated, and angry. As you may imagine, that's not a good combination.
Luckily, even though these friends were not understanding what I needed, I latched onto my family and a couple other close friends and through the grace of God, I made it through the remainder of the week. During the weekend, I hung out with other friends and my sister, brother-in-law and niece came to visit! Even aside from the turmoil happening with my friends, however, I've been feeling discontent.
This brings me to the next "big thing." As you may or may not know, I was planning to co-lead a freshman bible study here on campus. The troubling thing was, however, that I had begun to dread all things having to do with Cru and the bible study. I am so overcommitted, that I started viewing this bible study as an obligation - something I was being forced to do instead of something I wanted to do, something that I was choosing to help me pursue Jesus and help others to do the same. In turn, I could tell I was starting to feel resentment toward my faith in general. The things I was doing last year because I wanted to grow closer to God were now more like things I had to check off my list for the week. I have been growing farther away from Jesus. After praying and talking this through with my co-leader and mentor, I decided to take a step back and focus on my personal relationship with God right now. As with backing out of the summer camp counselor position, I can't help but wonder if I'm doing this for selfish reasons - if I'm just afraid to commit to anything lengthy involving my faith. It's something I'm still struggling with and I'm trusting God will help me see what he has in store for me/give me the courage to commit to the opportunities he wants me to commit to.
So, though a lot of things have been stressful, I have been focusing on the little blessings in my life. The next few weeks are when a lot of interviews for summer actuarial science internships occur - and I already have 4 interviews scheduled! I don't know what will transpire, if anything, from these, but I recognize that I'm blessed to even have the opportunity to interview with four different companies.
Additionally, I have started swimming with the UW-Madison swimming club! It seems to be the perfect commitment. I've gone to two practices so far, and it's so great to be surrounded by people who like to swim and will keep me somewhat accountable for working out. I'm not sure yet if I will be travelling with the team, but either way - it seems to be a good fit for me and a wonderful way to relieve some of the stress.
Lastly, perhaps the most troubling thing of the past few weeks has been the spike in violence in and around campus. On Wednesday night, much of the University of Wisconsin campus went on lock down, as there were shots fired on a street just off campus, and the gunman fled into campus. Additionally, there have been numerous armed robberies/muggings/break-ins. While I have never been afraid to walk across campus before, extra safety precautions are a must now - even as early as 9:00 at night. It's both saddening and frightening, and I am praying that God protect our campus and strengthen the men and women working to keep us safe!
I hope you are blessed by the little things this week. As for me, I'm off to the Badger game! On Wisconsin!
-Theresa
Luckily, even though these friends were not understanding what I needed, I latched onto my family and a couple other close friends and through the grace of God, I made it through the remainder of the week. During the weekend, I hung out with other friends and my sister, brother-in-law and niece came to visit! Even aside from the turmoil happening with my friends, however, I've been feeling discontent.
This brings me to the next "big thing." As you may or may not know, I was planning to co-lead a freshman bible study here on campus. The troubling thing was, however, that I had begun to dread all things having to do with Cru and the bible study. I am so overcommitted, that I started viewing this bible study as an obligation - something I was being forced to do instead of something I wanted to do, something that I was choosing to help me pursue Jesus and help others to do the same. In turn, I could tell I was starting to feel resentment toward my faith in general. The things I was doing last year because I wanted to grow closer to God were now more like things I had to check off my list for the week. I have been growing farther away from Jesus. After praying and talking this through with my co-leader and mentor, I decided to take a step back and focus on my personal relationship with God right now. As with backing out of the summer camp counselor position, I can't help but wonder if I'm doing this for selfish reasons - if I'm just afraid to commit to anything lengthy involving my faith. It's something I'm still struggling with and I'm trusting God will help me see what he has in store for me/give me the courage to commit to the opportunities he wants me to commit to.
So, though a lot of things have been stressful, I have been focusing on the little blessings in my life. The next few weeks are when a lot of interviews for summer actuarial science internships occur - and I already have 4 interviews scheduled! I don't know what will transpire, if anything, from these, but I recognize that I'm blessed to even have the opportunity to interview with four different companies.
Additionally, I have started swimming with the UW-Madison swimming club! It seems to be the perfect commitment. I've gone to two practices so far, and it's so great to be surrounded by people who like to swim and will keep me somewhat accountable for working out. I'm not sure yet if I will be travelling with the team, but either way - it seems to be a good fit for me and a wonderful way to relieve some of the stress.
Lastly, perhaps the most troubling thing of the past few weeks has been the spike in violence in and around campus. On Wednesday night, much of the University of Wisconsin campus went on lock down, as there were shots fired on a street just off campus, and the gunman fled into campus. Additionally, there have been numerous armed robberies/muggings/break-ins. While I have never been afraid to walk across campus before, extra safety precautions are a must now - even as early as 9:00 at night. It's both saddening and frightening, and I am praying that God protect our campus and strengthen the men and women working to keep us safe!
I hope you are blessed by the little things this week. As for me, I'm off to the Badger game! On Wisconsin!
-Theresa
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Go Badgers!
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| Two of my friends and I cheering on the Badgers at their home opener |
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| Hanging out at the Union |
Unfortunately, however, I've had a bit of a rough start otherwise. I've had good moments, and made good memories, but I feel like I just have this curtain of doubt and unhappiness that I keep falling back on. I'm struggling with my faith and with my friendships and overall trust - in God, in my friends and in myself. I'm very seriously doubting my ability to lead a Bible Study this year, as I'm already finding myself dreading all things involved with that commitment.
Last night, I was talking to a close friend of mine about all of this - something I find incredibly difficult. It's hard for me to acknowledge my struggles and talk openly about things I'm having a difficult time with. I feel like I am a burden to my friends and that I'm relying on them to fix problems that are not at all their responsibility or obligation to deal with. Of course, they claim that it's not a problem, but I can't help but feel guilty.
I'm doubting my faith, something I've never really dealt with before, and because so many people see me as being so confident in Christ, I'm not sure who to turn to. Tomorrow afternoon I'll meet with my co-leader for bible study, and I'm praying for the courage, strength, and honesty to tell her all of this, but I'm just not sure that I can. If any or all of you could say a prayer for me, I'd appreciate it greatly. I know that God allows us to struggle in our lives and it can help us to grow, but right now I'm just feeling like I'm suffocating.
Classes have started, work has started, I'm pushing away my friends, and I'm doubting my faith. Things are crashing in on me, and I'm struggling for the strength to keep moving forward. I need to cling fast to my life motto - "Life goes on."
I'm thankful for supportive friends and family and all of the blessings I've been given in my life - I pray that you are feeling loved and blessed in your own life, too!
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Back in my city!
Yesterday morning, I arrived in Madison for the semester - to be honest, I was extremely excited to be back all summer, and then just the beginning of this week I started having second thoughts. My little brother's birthday was Monday night, and then Tuesday and Wednesday I took him to school in the morning. Because yesterday morning was the last time I'll see him, I gave him a hug and then I almost cried on the way back to my house. It was sad!
Now that I'm here, however, I'm happy to be back with my friends. About half of our "pod" has arrived - there are 10 girls in a pod, and 7 of us all knew each other and chose to live in a pod, and then my roommate and one of the other rooms were random girls. My roommate seems nice and easy to get along with, so I'm not too worried! Last night, after we were all moved in and made it through our house meeting, we all just hung out and caught up a bit. Tonight should be more of the same!
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| Colleen and I in front of our "second home" (also, note my reddish hair!!!!) |
Adios for now!
-Theresa
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Sweet Summer Days
I've just begun my last week at home - and by week, I really mean only 2 more days before I leave for Madison! I have a lot of packing yet to do, although I'd have to say I'm currently more on track this year compared to last year. Last year, I was up all night before moving into the dorm, running to the store to get things and pack up the car. As one might imagine, this led to a long, exhausting day and wasn't the best first day to be away from home. SO, this year I'm trying not to repeat!
This past week, I finished my last day of work on Thursday - although it was a very anti-climatic end. The prior week, I confirmed with my boss that I would be done this Thursday, and then when I went to leave work on Thursday and awkwardly said, "So, this was my last day..", my boss was shocked. He had completely forgotten when I was going to be done. As a result of this lack of communication, I have to go back next week, but only for a free lunch, which I think I can handle. :)
On Friday and Saturday, I was in Whitewater at a Cru Leadership Advance retreat. It was a chance for all of the men and women who will be leading at either Whitewater or Madison to meet up, determine goals for the upcoming year, develop a plan, and ultimately pray for our campuses. It was wonderful to be back in such a supportive community after somewhat of a rough summer for me spiritually. I've been struggling a bit to keep my faith, lately finding that I've been questioning and doubting God a lot. So, strengthening my community with all of these spiritually encouraging people was awesome. I will be helping to lead a freshmen women's bible study with a close friend and my bible study leader from last year. This means that I will have to personally strengthen my ability to share my faith and approach people to initiate spiritual conversations. This is something that I think I will struggle with, so I will absolutely be praying for God's strength to help me and lead me to the freshmen ladies he wants me to speak with!
Today, I was in Madison at my aunt's hair salon with my mom - and I dyed my hair! I'm the chief of last-minute decisions (mostly because I'm also the chief of indecision), so once we got there, I decided to dye my hair a dark reddish brown! It's not too big of a change, but it's just enough that I can start the school year feeling a little bold!
I'm off to pack, and this is probably the last time you'll hear from me until I am once again living in Madison! That is both terrifying and exciting! I'm very excited to see the ways God will move me this year - I'm sure it will be an adventure!
-T
This past week, I finished my last day of work on Thursday - although it was a very anti-climatic end. The prior week, I confirmed with my boss that I would be done this Thursday, and then when I went to leave work on Thursday and awkwardly said, "So, this was my last day..", my boss was shocked. He had completely forgotten when I was going to be done. As a result of this lack of communication, I have to go back next week, but only for a free lunch, which I think I can handle. :)
On Friday and Saturday, I was in Whitewater at a Cru Leadership Advance retreat. It was a chance for all of the men and women who will be leading at either Whitewater or Madison to meet up, determine goals for the upcoming year, develop a plan, and ultimately pray for our campuses. It was wonderful to be back in such a supportive community after somewhat of a rough summer for me spiritually. I've been struggling a bit to keep my faith, lately finding that I've been questioning and doubting God a lot. So, strengthening my community with all of these spiritually encouraging people was awesome. I will be helping to lead a freshmen women's bible study with a close friend and my bible study leader from last year. This means that I will have to personally strengthen my ability to share my faith and approach people to initiate spiritual conversations. This is something that I think I will struggle with, so I will absolutely be praying for God's strength to help me and lead me to the freshmen ladies he wants me to speak with!
Today, I was in Madison at my aunt's hair salon with my mom - and I dyed my hair! I'm the chief of last-minute decisions (mostly because I'm also the chief of indecision), so once we got there, I decided to dye my hair a dark reddish brown! It's not too big of a change, but it's just enough that I can start the school year feeling a little bold!
I'm off to pack, and this is probably the last time you'll hear from me until I am once again living in Madison! That is both terrifying and exciting! I'm very excited to see the ways God will move me this year - I'm sure it will be an adventure!
-T
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Refreshed, Rejuvenated, Ready to Go!
After a long, dragging week, I had a great weekend! It was a great kickoff to my last week of work! (yay yay yay!) Friday afternoon, I was able to leave work a half hour early, and headed over to the YMCA to get an hour swim in - I went 2500 yards, which was the longest workout of the week, and finished with 50 yard freestyle sprint, clocking in at 29 seconds! For many of you, this is probably fairly meaningless, but to swim a 29, from a push off the wall (as opposed to diving off a starting block/side of the pool), after only a week back in the water was exciting and motivating! I'm looking forward to heading back to the Y tomorrow afternoon after work, hopefully to swim another 2500 yard workout.
After my swim, our family went to Subway for dinner, and then my mom and I headed to the mall to do a little bit of shopping. I'm not typically much of a shopper - I get bored with it really quickly, but this excursion was fairly successful! After we got back, we met up with my dad and treated ourselves with frozen yogurt. It was a wonderful low-key evening.
Yesterday was a bit more hectic, but fun nonetheless. I spent the day reffing a 3v3 soccer tournament, which featured some really good teams. Because the fields and teams were so small, the play was faster than the typical soccer game I ref, and other modifications to the rules added to the challenge, but it was a relatively good experience! As an added bonus, I ended up getting paid a dollar per game more than I was expecting!
Last night, I headed out to dinner with 5 of my close friends from high school. We ate at a semi-fancy restaurant (to give you context, it was the same place that we went for one of our homecoming dinners - fancy enough, but not overly pricey.), then had a night of facials, Pitch Perfect, and a baking adventure that ended in strawberry-blueberry cobbler! Tasty! This week, our group begins to disperse to our respective colleges, as the rest of us slowly follow in their footsteps. It was a great time reminiscing and catching up, but it also reminded me of the weird dynamic of having two entirely different lives now - one at school with all of those friends, and one back home with all of these friends. Luckily, I've been blessed with good friends in both places.
Finally, today was mostly about family. Beginning this morning, at church, I saw two people who are very dear to me - Mike and June. The past three years, they have hosted foreign exchange students. The first one, I was very good friends with, and therefore came to know Mike and June, who are much like second parents to me now. Additionally, I will admit that I have an attraction to anything foreign - people, places, things - so that definitely is a big draw, too. They just welcomed a new foreign exchange boy from Hungary into their home, so I'm excited to get to know him better!
This afternoon my older brother was home, my sister, brother-in-law, niece, and aunt and uncle came over to swim and grill out. It was laid back and not completely overwhelming like some of our family get togethers can be. The food was delicious, our pool was warm, and the sun was out - what a perfect day! We even introduced my aunt to geocaching - and the cache we found had awesome camouflaging - a log had been cut into two pieces, and then a hole had been drilled into one of the pieces, where a pill bottle was placed. The other end was reattached so that the log was in one piece again - so, in order to find the cache, you had to notice that the wood had oddly been cut all the way around. My brother-in-law made this observation, and we came back to supper satisfied (and hungry)!
Although I'm certainly not looking forward to the next week of work, I'm down to only four days left. This weekend has been a good kick-off to my final week, so I'm hoping the next four days continue the trend!
I hope the last few days of your summer find you relaxing in the sun!
-Theresa
After my swim, our family went to Subway for dinner, and then my mom and I headed to the mall to do a little bit of shopping. I'm not typically much of a shopper - I get bored with it really quickly, but this excursion was fairly successful! After we got back, we met up with my dad and treated ourselves with frozen yogurt. It was a wonderful low-key evening.
Yesterday was a bit more hectic, but fun nonetheless. I spent the day reffing a 3v3 soccer tournament, which featured some really good teams. Because the fields and teams were so small, the play was faster than the typical soccer game I ref, and other modifications to the rules added to the challenge, but it was a relatively good experience! As an added bonus, I ended up getting paid a dollar per game more than I was expecting!
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| The "brownies" (note hair color) |
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| The gang out for dinner! |
Finally, today was mostly about family. Beginning this morning, at church, I saw two people who are very dear to me - Mike and June. The past three years, they have hosted foreign exchange students. The first one, I was very good friends with, and therefore came to know Mike and June, who are much like second parents to me now. Additionally, I will admit that I have an attraction to anything foreign - people, places, things - so that definitely is a big draw, too. They just welcomed a new foreign exchange boy from Hungary into their home, so I'm excited to get to know him better!
This afternoon my older brother was home, my sister, brother-in-law, niece, and aunt and uncle came over to swim and grill out. It was laid back and not completely overwhelming like some of our family get togethers can be. The food was delicious, our pool was warm, and the sun was out - what a perfect day! We even introduced my aunt to geocaching - and the cache we found had awesome camouflaging - a log had been cut into two pieces, and then a hole had been drilled into one of the pieces, where a pill bottle was placed. The other end was reattached so that the log was in one piece again - so, in order to find the cache, you had to notice that the wood had oddly been cut all the way around. My brother-in-law made this observation, and we came back to supper satisfied (and hungry)!
Although I'm certainly not looking forward to the next week of work, I'm down to only four days left. This weekend has been a good kick-off to my final week, so I'm hoping the next four days continue the trend!
I hope the last few days of your summer find you relaxing in the sun!
-Theresa
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Bah-Hum-Bug
For lack of a better adjective, this past week has been long. Monday it was back to work, and by today I am absolutely, 100% ready to be done for the summer. Almost everyday I get so frustrated that I'm nearly in tears, so that certainly doesn't help the situation in any way. I'm still not sure when my last day will be - all of my friends are finishing this week...and I desperately wish I could join them. Tomorrow maybe I'll be brave enough to tell my bosses that I want to be done by middle of next week. We'll see.
Other than work, I've gotten together with a couple of friends this week - one of whom will be living in Italy in a week and a half! It was good to catch up with both of them, but also made me even more anxious to get back to having my own adventures.
On the other hand, I have been back in the pool this week! Today I took the day off from swimming and went for a mile and a half run instead, but I'm really excited to be back into swimming mode. AND I found out that UW-Madison has a club swim team...that actually goes to meets! I am absolutely beyond thrilled to race again.
I'm afraid this will be a short post, as frankly, my life this week hasn't been very exciting. My sister just called, however, and we are meeting up for an impromptu dinner date! My week has basically been comprised of little moments like that - friends calling up to hang out for an hour or two, seeing friends at the YMCA on my way to swim - little saving moments to keep me from going entirely crazy in a very dull week.
13 days til I'm back in Madison! Woohoo!
-T
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Home at last!
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| Devil's Tower - Wyoming |
Whew – six action-packed days later, and I'm still alive to tell about them! Monday afternoon, we
went to Devil’s Tower, which was once again, awe-inspiring. A rich Native
American site, it was full of natural beauty and cultural history. We even
spotted a pair of people while they were climbing it – both a terrifying and
inspiring feat. After Devil’s Tower, we started our journey into Montana.
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| Ziplining across the Gallatin River! |
After driving across
much of Montana, we arrived late at night to Belgrade, Montana. Then, it was up
bright and early for our adventure zip lining and whitewater rafting. I would
be lying if I claimed I had no trepidation about the event, and as you can see
in the first picture, climbing the bridge to the first zip line platform took a
lot of determination to just not look down. My father, who is afraid of
heights, had opted out of the zip lining adventure and gone fly fishing
instead. I thought about joining him, but I'm so glad that I did not; within a
second of stepping off the platform and soaring through the air, I fell in
love. Our guides were both phenomenal and the other group we were with – a
group from Chicago – was also a blast to be around. Too soon, we had soared
over the Gallatin River and it was over. We went and picked my dad up from the
fly fishing site and headed back to the company’s headquarters, where we would
eat lunch before embarking on our whitewater rafting trip. The rafting trip,
too, was a blast, exhilarating, and led by a guide who knew exactly what he was
doing. For anyone going out west, my family and I all highly recommend Montana
Whitewater Rafting Company ( Yellowstonezip.com ). In addition to zip lining, fly
fishing and whitewater rafting, they also offer horseback riding – so there’s
surely something everyone would enjoy.
We had a fairly
low-key Tuesday night, although I did go for a 2 mile run. Sadly, I’m now about
95% sure that I have shin splints in my left leg, so I'm going to have to put
the running on hold. This was the most disappointing part of the trip so far,
but I'm trying to just not let myself think about it. I’ll have to find some
other form of exercise to finish out the summer!
 |
| A hot spring in Yellowstone National Park |
Wednesday was our day
trip through Yellowstone National Park and the Grand Tetons. After making a
little detour into Idaho so I could check off another state, we entered
Yellowstone through the West Yellowstone Entrance. I found the Grand Canyon of
Yellowstone and Lower Falls to be absolutely spectacular – and of course, Old
Faithful was neat, too. Yellowstone is full of geysers and hot springs, all against
a backdrop of mountains, rivers, and prairies. One geyser, Steamboat Geyser,
is the tallest active geyser in the world. It’s highly unpredictable, however,
as intervals between eruptions have varied from 4 days to 50 years. So, seeing
this erupt is an incredibly rare event. No, we didn't see it erupt, but 7 days
before we were there, it did erupt for the first time in 8 years! A different
couple that we talked to had come to Yellowstone 8 years ago, and missed the
eruption by 4 days. I don't think they had heard that they had missed it by
less than a week this time – and we surely weren't going to be the family to
break the news to them!
 |
| Old Faithful Geyser erupting in Yellowstone National Park. |
Unfortunately, we saw
hardly any wildlife – the lone sighting of anything was on our way out of the
park when we spotted a mule deer alongside the road. After stopping for a
family picture by the Yellowstone National Park entrance sign, we drove through
the John D. Rockefeller Memorial Parkway to get to Grand Tetons National Park.
We managed to be driving along these magnificent mountains right during sunset,
providing a beautiful, scenic end to our day.
Thursday, we have begun
the journey back home, driving through Nebraska (woohoo, another state!) to
Custer State park in South Dakota. There, we finally saw bison! That afternoon, we stopped at Wall Drug, as it is obviously a staple for any trip out west. Finally, we began our final leg of our journey, driving to Rochester, the Niagara Cave, and then finally home. In Rochester, my family met up with two of my close friends from college for lunch. It was a special treat to see them - only 3 weeks until we are in Madison! Niagara Cave was also neat - and a wrong turn took us about a block into Iowa, bringing my state count to 25 of 50!
Today has been fairly low-key, as the majority of the day was spent at a soccer referee recertification class. The adventures will soon begin again, however, as tomorrow I'm headed to West Allis for the Wisconsin State Fair!
-Theresa
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Another family vacation is on the horizon!
Although I thought that the end of soccer season/nights spent reffing would leave me with more than enough free time, I've once again managed to fill it up quickly! Tomorrow night is dinner and hanging out with a couple friends, Thursday night is dinner with two close friends and their boyfriends, and on Friday afternoon, we leave to go camping as a family - the start of a week-long adventure! Meanwhile, I'm still working about 6 hours Monday-Friday as a wannabe programmer - although both yesterday and today I've worked 30 to 45 minutes extra. I'm extremely happy to report, however, that things do seem to be starting to click! I've been able to program a little bit on my own, and often the problems that I'm unable to solve take my bosses a while to figure out, too! I'm still not thinking this is the career path I want in life, but I have begrudgingly started to admit that there are moments where solving a programming problem can be almost.. fun! Since I will be off next week, I'm down to only 2.5 weeks left to work, which is hard to believe!
I'm also happy to report that I've been back on track with my running. Two weeks ago, I logged 13 miles, last week was 15, and this week I've already run 8.5! To reach my goal of 100 by the time I go back to school, I have about 48 left to go. I'm determined, and barring any injury or other unexpected circumstance, I think I'll be able to reach that goal!
I've also started teaching myself how to play piano again. That project started toward the end of my junior year of high school, and continued with a Class II piano solo at Solo/Ensemble my senior year. Last summer and this past fall I didn't make time to keep practicing, and it wasn't until I discovered the grand piano in the basement of my dorm spring semester that I realized how much I actually missed it. Again, though, by the end of the semester and the beginning of the summer, practicing was not a priority, and much of the progress I had made on my latest "goal song" seemed to be lost. This had a bit of a snowball effect, as I was dreading discovering how much I had fallen behind and therefore just never started. Two weeks ago, however, I started up again and I'm thrilled with how quickly I'm falling back into the swing of it! In case you're curious, my goal song is "God Gave Me You" by Dave Barnes. For someone who has only made her way through John Thompson's First Grade Piano Book (for those of you unfamiliar with this - the EASY, beginning stuff), this song is certainly a challenge. It's one of my favorite songs, though, and there a few certain close friends of mine with whom it holds certain significance, so the idea of being able to play it for them helps give me motivation to get through the frustrating times. Here's a link to a similar piano version as I am learning (although mine is slightly easier). Dave Barnes - God Gave Me You (Piano Cover) And if you aren't familiar with the original song, definitely check it out, as it is absolutely wonderful! Dave Barnes - God Gave Me You (Original).
Later this week, I'll post more about our upcoming family adventure out west. For now, I'm extremely excited to spend time with friends in the next few days here!
God bless!
-Theresa
I'm also happy to report that I've been back on track with my running. Two weeks ago, I logged 13 miles, last week was 15, and this week I've already run 8.5! To reach my goal of 100 by the time I go back to school, I have about 48 left to go. I'm determined, and barring any injury or other unexpected circumstance, I think I'll be able to reach that goal!
I've also started teaching myself how to play piano again. That project started toward the end of my junior year of high school, and continued with a Class II piano solo at Solo/Ensemble my senior year. Last summer and this past fall I didn't make time to keep practicing, and it wasn't until I discovered the grand piano in the basement of my dorm spring semester that I realized how much I actually missed it. Again, though, by the end of the semester and the beginning of the summer, practicing was not a priority, and much of the progress I had made on my latest "goal song" seemed to be lost. This had a bit of a snowball effect, as I was dreading discovering how much I had fallen behind and therefore just never started. Two weeks ago, however, I started up again and I'm thrilled with how quickly I'm falling back into the swing of it! In case you're curious, my goal song is "God Gave Me You" by Dave Barnes. For someone who has only made her way through John Thompson's First Grade Piano Book (for those of you unfamiliar with this - the EASY, beginning stuff), this song is certainly a challenge. It's one of my favorite songs, though, and there a few certain close friends of mine with whom it holds certain significance, so the idea of being able to play it for them helps give me motivation to get through the frustrating times. Here's a link to a similar piano version as I am learning (although mine is slightly easier). Dave Barnes - God Gave Me You (Piano Cover) And if you aren't familiar with the original song, definitely check it out, as it is absolutely wonderful! Dave Barnes - God Gave Me You (Original).
Later this week, I'll post more about our upcoming family adventure out west. For now, I'm extremely excited to spend time with friends in the next few days here!
God bless!
-Theresa
Monday, July 15, 2013
Yet another adventure!
Well, I just got home from yet another weekend away from home (I think this is the 4th one in a row). This time, I was in Minnesota with my college girlfriends. It was a blast! The two Wisconsinites of the group road-tripped to Rochester on Friday night after work. Despite almost being hit by a train, we made it and spent the night there..and even unexpectedly got to see another friend then!
Saturday, we had planned to go tubing, but due to inclement weather, settled on an indoor picnic in Bloomington before heading to the Mall of America. We walked around a bit, went on the log ride, and ate a delicious dinner at Twin City Grill. We headed to the hotel, swam for a bit, then played imaginiff. Of course, our group's staple activity is Truth or Dare (which usually just ends up being Truth or Truth), so we played that as well.
Sunday, we went out to lunch in a cute little cafe (with free soft-serve ice cream!) and then went paddle boating in a small park located in a business zone of Bloomington. The time to leave came all too soon, and us Wisconsinites headed home. Exhausted, I arrived to my house at almost exactly 9:00, and then it was back to work today.
Although the weekend was fabulous, it just made me miss being at school with all of my friends even more. Hopefully, the next month and a half will go quickly!
Saturday, we had planned to go tubing, but due to inclement weather, settled on an indoor picnic in Bloomington before heading to the Mall of America. We walked around a bit, went on the log ride, and ate a delicious dinner at Twin City Grill. We headed to the hotel, swam for a bit, then played imaginiff. Of course, our group's staple activity is Truth or Dare (which usually just ends up being Truth or Truth), so we played that as well.
Sunday, we went out to lunch in a cute little cafe (with free soft-serve ice cream!) and then went paddle boating in a small park located in a business zone of Bloomington. The time to leave came all too soon, and us Wisconsinites headed home. Exhausted, I arrived to my house at almost exactly 9:00, and then it was back to work today.
Although the weekend was fabulous, it just made me miss being at school with all of my friends even more. Hopefully, the next month and a half will go quickly!
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