Back in JOMO

This week has been amazing so far! Right off the bat I felt like I belonged, and felt at home. I've spent the past few days in Joplin, MO with a group of Bike and Build alumns rebuilding houses that were damaged or destroyed in the tornado last year. We started volunteering right away. Most pf us arrived Saturday, and Sunday we started working with the Americorps St. louis Emergency Response Team who coordinated the original disaster response, and has committed to the long term recovery efforts. They sent us to Wanda's house where we spent the day building a deck and a grape trellis. Then Monday and Tuesday they sent us to work at BJ ad "Grumpy's" house where we planted trees and humg drywall. Intent on finishing the work we had started, we stayed past 8:30 on Tuesday to finish as much ad we possibly could. The go-getter, not-leaving-until-we-finish attitude is something I truly love and sorely miss. It just brings back my love for the enthusiasm of bike an builders, and a little bit of frustration at my Americorps team. BJ and grumpy even fed us dinner because we missed the dinner the church provided.

Today we started working with Rebuild Joplin (Lynea, my former corps member is working for them now) and they sent us to work at Tiffany's house with the task of sanding the drywall in the bathroom, and installing laminate flooring. After we finished those tasks we made our way over to a nearby house where Rebuild Joplin was training a new batch of the Armericorps site supervisors. That house was in the process of being drywalled, so we used the skills we've cultivated over the past couple days to catch them up.

This whole week has felt more like real life to me, than my actual life does. I love hanging out with these people who were strangers 5 days ago, but now are friends; ad having and instant connection. Not only have they all done Bike and Build, but half of them are NCCC alumns as well!

Catherine installing drywall!

Living the dream

Friday night Liz and I got all goofy in our light-up, shimmery metallic, wigged out costumes for the firefly 5k in City Park to benefit the Denver metro Habitat for Humanity. There was almost 2,000 people there! It was a nighttime glow-in-the-dark 5k, and although we were running all sorts of zigzags trying to avoid people it was awesome! We got so many "love your costume" comments.

Saturday I woke up super early for the Rattlesnake triathlon! (And by super early I mean we arrived at 6am). Adam drove me, and made goofy jokes while I freaked out about the swimming, ad lent me his shirt when I was cold early in the morning, and took pictures and cheered! I made it though! I fnished! I didn't drown during the 1500m seim, and while I was the slowest swimmer out there I did it! About 3/4 of the way through my left calf seize up with a massive cramp ad I had to grab a kayak while massaing the knot out. It felt like the worst charlie horse of my life, and its still sore today! Then during the 40k bike ride (just under 25 miles). I took it fairly easy, my legs were still killing! But I did manage to pass a few people. The route was super hilly, and the least scenic bike ride I've done since biking through Kansas. The 10k (6.2 mile) run was great! I did manage to catch up to and pass more people on that leg, and had a strong finish! I was met at the finish line by Michelle and the ALZ Stars crew, where we took pics and I ate a cookie. So the swim took 53:57, the bike took 1:59:57, and the run took 1:02:51. My first transition tool 2:11, and the second, 1:33. 4hours, 23 seconds total.

Then I hopped on a plane to Joplin, MO where I'll be spending a week building houses with Bike & Build aulms.

Almost Tri Time!

The Rattlesnake Triathlon is in 3 Days!!! I’m as ready as I’mever going to get! Last week I met with Deb, a triathlete who volunteered toadvise the ALZ Stars (athletes raising money for the Alzheimer’s Association).She helped me figure out what I needed for the race, and how to set up my transitionarea, and then swam a lap in the Bear Creek Reservoir. After that I feel prettyconfident about the swim portion of the triathlon…however I’m less confidentthat I’ll be able to bike and run after that!

The last two weekends I ran a couple quick 5Ks. At the “IRun Colorado 5K” I ran my best time yet (26:52) and at the “Davita Kidney Rock5K” I didn’t run quite as fast, but I did place 5^th in my age group!Both were really great races and I had a lot of fun! Friday is the Firefly 5K,a after-dark, glowstick 5K I’m going to run with Liz.

Friday I had off from work for network maintenance day soAdam and I went to the zoo! We really wanted to see aardvarks, wallabies andpanthers, but they didn’t have any. Instead we saw Komodo Dragons, tigers and amongoose!

If thinking about training counted, I'd be ready for an Ironman

Its been a while since my last post so let me just run down a quick list of some major highlights.

Flew to CT for Tim & Liz's wedding. It was lovely. Great company/food/venue
Got to catch up with Stephanie, Sara and Catherine while home.
Ran the Sand Creek Half Marathon- proud to report no wrong turns and a time of 2:12:00

This past weekend Katie A came to visit. She took a little vacation from her husband and kids (she gave Steve a week to potty train Logan, haha) and came out here. We spent the weekend eating, relaxing, walking and experiencing Colorado. I made her walk all over the city (Honestly even my legs are sore), and do the Snooze vs. Jelly Brunch test (she picked Snooze too). We went to the Brothers of the Sun Tour where we saw Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney rocking out all night, and went to an open mic night that one of my coworkers hosts called My Teenage Angst, where members of the audience read their old diaries. Out loud. In Public. It was pretty hilarious. Katie said that might have been her favorite part of the trip. We also did the Coors Brewery Tour, and did some sightseeing atop Lookout Mountain.

Today I picked up my fundraising packet for the Rattlesnake Triathlon. I'm doing to do an Olympic distance triathlon to support the Alzheimer's Association. I'm super excited to get to ride my bike and run...provided I don't drown during the first leg of the race. I also hope that there are no fish in the water on race day. I intend to swim with the confidence that all the fast swimmers scared the fish away.

Afterward I was so pumped I biked to Wash park and run a solid 5 miles. I'm pretty sure I look ridiculous when I run listening to the Zombies, Run! App. I would get passed by fast, buff shirtless runner while I'm running along, then BAM! All of a sudden I am passing them as I fly across the gravel like the undead are after my brains. But then when I escape the encroaching horde and settle back into a comfortable pace I get passed again by fast/buff guy :(

Also today I got the details for the Bike and Build Alumni Joplin build trip, and booked my flight. So as I soon as I finish the triathlon, I'm headed to the airport for a week of building, church floors, peanut butter and pasta, and meeting new people who are my kinda crazy!

Katie A and I at the concert!

And now for your regularly scheduled program

Sunday's post was a little heavy on the emotional side. The past week and a half were chock full of awesome so here's a quick rundown. Last week (wednesday?) was the summer solatice ride, a Denver bike ride from City Park to Wash park, cruising though the botanical gardens and ending with burritos. No joke: beautiful short ride through town, free burritos and beer and it supports Bike Denver, the Denver Zoo, the Botanical Gardens and the Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado. I forced myself to go even though Noel was in Chicago and I was alone. Luckily after the race I met up with MG, Ashley, Steve and Brandon; so I actually stayed at the park and hung out for a while instead of heading home early.

Sunday Liz and I ran the Louisville trail half marathon. It was super hot out (its been in the triple digits all week), but we had alot of fun. The route was not very clearly marked and I took two wrong turns and had to back track, but after that Liz and I were able to stay together and finished the race at 2:32:16. After the race and a quick shower I went to DCH where I taught taekwondo to the girls Noel works with. It was pretty awesome and the girls really seemed to enjoy it.

Souls grow back

Warning: This post is chock full of emotions. If you cannot handle them read no further.

I'm having an overwhelming emotional reaction to everything that is happening in my life. Though most of the emotions that I'm feeling are happiness, wholeness, and excited anticipation, sometimes I'm reduced to tears and can barely begin to put my feelings into words.

Thursday I woke up, and for the first time in months I felt genuinely happy and full of positive energy and enthusiasm that those last few months of Americorps beat out of me. The only way I can describe it is to say "I feel like my soul has grown back." I'm ready to go back into the world and experience its beauty, and meet new people, go new places and have an impact on the world. My future was all of a sudden filled with infinite possibilities. I want to bike across the country, and lead trips through the backwoods in nature to teach and share this passion for the world. And I want freedom. I want to be able to give up this materialistic lifestyle that I feel is just holding me back.

There was one thing stopping me. How could I tell Noel that I didn't want to live with her anymore? I know that she had built her life here with the assumption that I'd be here too. But I'd made up my mind. I'd tell her after she got back from her trip to Chicago. After Liz dropped us off, Noel turned to me and said: "My mom asked me to move closer to home. I'm going to move to Chicago." Wow. We were nearly on the same page! She told me her plans, and I told her mine. She wants to leave in a few months, but I intend to stay in Denver for about a year. But now I've been granted the freedom to move on and live my life.

Last night I had Ryan over to pick up his stuff that I'd accumulated. There wasn't much, but I felt bad throwing his things out, and there was some things like a movie we watched together, and the heart necklace I wore everyday while he was in Afghanistan. Things I can't look at without crying, but can't bring myself to dispose of. So now they're his problem to deal with. In conversing with him, his impending marriage became real to me, cutting one more cord that was keeping me here and granting me the gift of freedom.

Then today after the relief and joy of talking with Noel started to ebb, I was filled with an overwhelming sense of loss. Now I can't help but think that I'm losing two of my best friends at the same time. I feel a sense of loss and  fear of being completely alone; with no one to fall back and rely on.

I'm choosing to embrace the positives in these changes. I feel like I can return to the life I love, and that each day is an adventure. I can now look at my current lifestyle with more positivity and enjoy each moment, no longer being stuck in a rut, but moving forward with my life. In the next few months I'll be trying to accomplish my "Life After Americorps" Goals, and creating a plan for the future. More than anything, right now I feel happy. Happier that I've felt in a long time.

Exploring Colorado

Thursday Jena came to visit me here in hot and sunny Colorado! We spent the whole extended weekend doing activities that I was pretty sure going to kill Jena, but she made it! The weekend was filled with athletic type events, and eating at restaurants. (Restaurants and food highlights are listed at the end). We spent Thursday walking around downtown Denver and seeing a little bit of the city. We popped into the Library, the Art Museum, and the Tattered Cover (bookstore) and spent the day catching up (gossiping like schoolgirls).

Friday I woke Jena up early to beat the line at Snooze for breakfast (ok Jaws woke us up for his breakfast, and let's be honest 6o'clock here felt like 8oc'lock to Jena). Then after failing to wake Noel up to join us for a day of hiking we picked up Liz and drove out west into the mountains. Noel has been recommending the Hanging Lake Hike to me ever since she did it with her Americorps team a year ago, and I figured it would be a beautiful place to take Jena.  About halfway there (Vail) we stopped to go to the bathroom, and we were FREEZING! It was so cold I'm surprised we couldn't see our breath! At that point we decided we wouldn't be able to continue without warmer clothes, so we stopped at the Copper Mountain resort and got some super warm souvenir sweatshirts. When we got to Hanging Lake we had descended in elevation and it was HOT again! So we left the sweatshirts in the car and hiked. The hike was a little over 1mile, but had an elevation gain of 1020feet. Alot of it was like climbing up sleek rocky stairs. I thought the hike might kill Jena, but she persevered (though she asked the people coming down if the hike was worth it). We made it to the top to see a clear bluegreen lake, waterfalls, rocks, and peaceful views overlooking a valley full of nature and beauty. We rested and snapped pictures there, before the mile hike down. The way down took barely any time at all!

Saturday I tried to let Jena sleep in a bit more, and after breakfast at Jelly we got started with our day. Now I'm a big fan of Snooze. If I had to vote for a place to eat breakfast I would go there. The food is rich, decadent, delicious, unique and worth the wait. Noel prefers Jelly. (I don't dislike Jelly, I just prefer Snooze) But Jelly does have a more comfortable atmosphere, the waitresses are always sooo nice, and its cute with retro decor. So I let Jena make up her own mind (results below). For the record, Ben chose Snooze too. Then we went to Red Rocks for a short hike (a flat 1.4 miles) and some sightseeing. Then we drove out to Longmonth where the Oskar Blues Brewery makes Jena's all time favorite beer, Tenfidy. While waiting for the tour to start we each ordered a beer, before seeing that they did offer a sampler platter of their 7 most popular brews. Resolving to have that after the tour we joined our group. This was the best brewery tour I've ever been on (ok, so I haven't been on many). It was given by a live tour guide (while drinking) to a group of people who had been drinking and most brought their beers with them) the factory was super cool, talking alot of recycling and sustainability initiatives, and their craft beers. The tour guide was super knowledgeable, and the tour was fun. After we shared a sampler of the beers (of which I drank most of so Jena could drive us home) including: Tenfidy, Dale's Pale Ale, Mama's Little Yella Pills, G'night Imperial Red, Deviant Dale's, Gubna Imperial IPA, and Old Chubb Scotch Ale. Then our tour guide came over and we chatted her up, telling her we came all this way because Jena drinks Tenfidy in Pennsylvania, and she gave us a shot of barrel-aged, whiskey-infused Tenfidy to try. It was as thick as a milkshake, and nearly as delicious! As I mentioned I had to take one for the team and finish most of the beers. Then we headed home to rest our weary legs!


Sunday I tricked Jena into running a 5k with me (ok we run/walked it). We did the Pajama 5k to support "Cancer below the waist." It was a pretty small race...I think I might have been able to win my age group. So we had a leisurely run/walk around Wash park, taking in the scenery, breathing the fresh Denver air, and enjoying the fitness atmosphere that infuses Wash Park. We got apples, bread and longsleeve Ts to commemorate our achievement. Again, Jena didn't die! When we tried to drive home for a shower my street was blocked off for the pride parade, so we went over to Greek Fest for lunch and some cultural enrichment. It was so hot on Sunday, so eventually we headed home for a midday nap. Then we went out for dinner, then dessert.

Today we headed back to our "real lives" but I feel refreshed from Jena's visit, and feel more like myself!


Pho at Pho 555
Happy Hour at Govn'rs Park (2 for 1 Long Islands)
Snooze (We split the three pancake platter and got a red velvet pancake, a sweet potato pancake, and a blueberry granola pancake-with lavender butter...)
Vine Street Pub (burgers after a long day of hiking!)
Jelly (Noel's favorite breakfast place- so Jena could have both experiences and decide for herself that Snooze is the best!) Jena's decision, and I quote: "I have assessed brunch and I believe Snooze is the winner by a nose!"(diabetes-inducing delicious!)
Froyo at Yogurtland
 Greek Fest for some authentic Greek salad, dolmathes, and orzo! (Plus the entertainment of kids performing the traditional Greek dances, in amazing costumes- we did not envy them in the heat!)
Stoney's Bar and Grill (sweet potato fries and the best salad a restaurant can make!)
Dessert at DBar (we got the molten lava cake with icecream and strawberries and rhubarb...but I can't wait to go back for a cake and shake!) This was another fan-favorite-food experience...to quote Jena: "I'm going to have daydreams about that one!"
Breakfast Sandwiches at Einsteins...a good way to start a Monday...but a sad way to end an amazing weekend!