Sunday, May 31, 2009

working hard for her money

here's some pics from the john day drive:




who wants them?

vehicle of choice currently: 2009 prius, not in this color though
i could have told the odot that this area of "sunken grade"
needed to be repaired before this ever happened on santiam pass
but who listens to me?
work has been busy! i mean busy...
in the past 2 weeks i have: flown to boise to then drive to ontario,
drove to bend and back for a meeting, went to madras and back for another meeting,
drove to john day and back in less than 24 hours.
but i have enjoyed being on the ground level with the counties and individuals i work with. they're wonderful.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

18 miles

so after j&a rolled in last friday at 4:30 a.m.
i couldn't quite go back to sleep
so i decided that i should just go on my 18 mile run then

after slightly ripping through my house
looking for "gu" that i bought
(which i'm a true believer of)
and being unsuccessful
i finally hit the road for the grocery store(s)

i didn't find any after 3 stops
so on for the miles i went
i did buy a heafty granola/clif like bar
so after 10 miles i tried to gobble down a bit to have some substance in me
in the 4 blocks i walked
as i was walking, a man was pulled on the side of the road
with a trailer

he asked if i could help him tie down something that was loose
i said sure and started to help him

the conversation goes as follows:
man in camo- "are you going to school?"
me- assessing my outfit
skivy short purple running shorts,
white athletic shirt with a bright coral/orange sports bra,
new white running shoes
and small camelback on my back

me-hmmm..."no, i'm running."

camo man- "i just saw you, you weren't running"

me- "i just ran 10 miles and have 8 more to go,
i'm training for a marathon."

camo man- "oh"

this blew my mind!
number one. the only school nearby in this small town i was in, is a high school.
number two. thank you for thinking i'm 18 or less but really?
number three. thank you for letting me know you saw i wasn't running. i'm sorry i took a small break for some substance.

needless to say it made me laugh the rest of the time
it helped me keep something else in my head
since i run music-less

the adventures in running...

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

pacheco memorial day memory making...

it was like Christmas eve night on Thursday night
i stayed up late
but analee told me Santa wouldn't come if i didn't go to sleep so...
after driving 12 hours straight the pachecos arrived at 4:30 a.m.
after i returned from my 18 mile run
and worrying them because i took so long
(funny post to follow about an experience then)
we headed for the coast
fortunately it was sunny
unfortunately it was windy and made it chilly
but we made it to cannon beach
poor things drive 12 hours then 5-6 hours later i put them back in the car
to see rocks on the coast
and get tillamook cheese and ice cream

saturday it was to abiqua falls...
beautiful, stunning
and a short hike
the rest of the hike was done by their subaru.
thank you 'baru!

it was just nice to be with great friends
we checked out cute small towns
i bought a printer for $8 bucks at a yard sale
(i've never owned a printer)
and jose hooked it up for me
we saw the famous salem soapbox races
not to be confused with pinewood derby races

we went longboarding....

i longboarded cautiously
remember my "longboard accident"
a good year and a half-almost 2 years ago
when i looked like a garbage pail kid...
strange how i'm so careful even when i have insurance now...
we played some banana game which is really speed scrabble
church was most enjoyable with analee
i don't think i've giggled in church like that in a while
then they had to go monday morning to get back to the beehive state
it was fun to see their faces
i'm so happy when friends marry friends...
i'm grateful for the miles and gas $$$ and other $$$ spent
for my friends to see me
ahhh gee...
miss 'em already

Monday, May 25, 2009

the favorite is engaged!

for those of you who don't know yet
my lil' sister is getting married!
august 21st!
quick recap:
the favorite has been in school at byu-hawaii
(i know rough life
and to think she was thinking of staying in idaho)
so she's been dating a wonderful guy named wolfgang
(he's from austria)
they've been dating over a year
and quite honestly my whole family likes him
i met him last summer when he came to our hometown
we all have been a fan
but we tried to keep our opinions to ourselves
and let the favorite decide
and well she did
when she called me to tell me
she decided she wanted to be married
i don't think i've ever heard her feel so confident in her life
i made this big sister even more excited
then just a few weeks later
she got officially "ringed"
(this past thursday)
CONGRATS!!!
love you both

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

three cups of tea

may i recommend this book to you i don't get to see greg mortenson himself but i do get to hear the co-author david oliver relin
thursday night, here in salem!
this book is very humbling and inspiring
i just finished and recommend it to everyone
it inspired me to be a true, honest, genuine, patient person
it promotes peace, education, fairness
and reminds everyone of the cause of helping children and youth
it reminded me of the value of relationships and trust
it was a wonderful book, go read it.
last night on my way back from my trip
i picked up some chinese food
my fortune read:
You will be involved in many humanitarian projects.
i've never loved a fortune so much.
i only hope so and realize i have to make the fortune real.
maybe that's going for a PhD in literacy
maybe it's getting more involved locally
maybe it's helping others to be literate
it is a part of a the relief society's goals
i'm a member of...
lots of thoughts
can't wait to be inspired tomorrow.

drivin' in style

no, i'm not pregnant.
i do ride in style though for work
rental cars can seem exciting to drive
when you have a vehicle that has almost 230K
so when i flew into boise...late
this is the champ i got
clean and comfortable
not smelly like the last rental i got from boise
my ride was pretty slick
the best part was having a large soda
and feeling like a true mom
i felt like i fit right in with my idaho plates
i even offered to drive everyone to DQ after our meeting.
no takers though...

Monday, May 18, 2009

babies everywhere!

well the good news is out!
a bunch of my good friends are having babies!
and i'm super excited for them.babies in current peoples' bellies include:
analee
amanda
ashley
hmm i just notice those are all As... interesting!
CONGRATS to everyone!
i can't wait to be the favorite aunt!

not the sharpest tool in the shed

so i just missed my flight for work
i have a habit of:
a. not looking at my flight itinerary till the day of
b. not looking at the right time (like today)
luckily they were able to book me on the next flight
and not charge my work or me for the change
i'm lucky
i think i have a mental block around flight itineraries and getting to the post office
better news to be posted at 5p.m.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

you ruin everything for everyone, all the time



listen bike pump
i needed you to work properly on saturday
i'm a woman and i have needs
my needs on saturday was to ride down a single track
you prohibited me to so by malfunctioning
when my friend, matt's tire popped...
the job you were suppposed to do
didn't happen
i don't like driving an hour on a beautiful sunny 80 degree day to corvallis
to NOT ride on a single track
may this new home be a reminder of how you should have worked.

Monday, May 11, 2009

drying out

viva las vegas! dry heat has never felt so good!
snapshot of the weekend/vacation thus far:

friday. fly in late...
wait for hilary and katrina to get out of the concert.
watch some one's bags at the airport waiting for the bomb to go off since she took a good 20+ minutes and they kept replaying the notice to not ask watch unknown peoples' bags for them.
didn't blow up

sat. morning
5 mile strip run...running down the las vegas strip that is.
kinda fun.
soaking up the rays at the monte carlo pool.
101 degrees has never felt so good.
i was drying out my body.
i just wanted to stay there the rest of the day.
early dinner with a good end of a playoff game.
lil' shopping but acting cheap, as normal.

freshen up for dave matthews (and jason mraz)
walk across the street to the mgm.
excellent concert.
i shed a lil' tear in my eye.
the energy in concerts of a beloved artist baffles me.
belting the lyrics with everyone else.
dancing in a restricted area.
being charmed by other dave lovers.

a shout out goes to my freshman roommate, da becca jex, for introducing me to dmb.
i was memorized by crash and played repeat for a good hour or longer
it's been a love affair ever since.

my earnest devotion has lessened through the years
but the love still lingers in my heart for dmb.
i haven't listened for awhile
but some lyrics reminded me
of my connection in some philosophies of life

sunday.
church with the mom, dad and grandpa.
great meal, with my aunt that always is serving...
chillaxing with family
backyard firepit
stories from g-pa about relatives
especially about the his g-mother and mother...
hence the day
priceless...

Friday, May 8, 2009

Thursday, May 7, 2009

cat fight

if you think this is bad, you should see the other girl.
or he was a lil' bit of a "rough" kisser.
either of these would be acceptable for this new addition to my lip.
the truth of how it really came about is embarrassing and won't be shared.
so i'll use the first two reasons incase anyone asks.
my co-workers said people pay to get their lips to stick out.
not interested in that, thanks.
also they said you could hardly notice it...
untrue, it's noticeable.
and it looks trashy.
embarrassing.

Monday, May 4, 2009

don't you know it's may?

dear oregon,

i appreciate your green, lush and mossy beauty here but i'm writing to inform you that it's may. in the month of may, it's supposed to be sunny. in the month of may, it's not supposed to have eight days of showers and only 2 predicted days of sun. i appreciate that it got over 55 but over 60 would be better. spring is nice and all but it can still be spring with more sun. because of your recent actions i may have to wear my green galoshes daily so i can even get out of my house or feel like leaving my house each morning on my way to work. remember the saying is "april showers bring may flowers" not "may showers." if you could kindly give attention to my needs, i would be very obliged.

sincerely,
me

p.s. i'm not convinced in buying that state sticker with a heart in the middle yet. please convince me to fully love you as a state. it's not a threat, just a mere suggestion.