Hands up!!

I'm about three weeks away from getting on a plane bound for Mongolia and am feeling very much like I'm on a roller coaster that's about to get really exciting and scary!

My last day of work was this past Tuesday, Jan. 31st! I had been at GDWCAR for 4.5 years working as the Public and Member Relations/Committee Coordinator and had really enjoyed it.

Here is a picture of the ladies I worked with (Kara, Gretchen and Mary) and I honestly loved working with them - and working with people you love is a huge blessing!  They threw me a little going away party with gifts and homemade foods I feel certain I won't get to eat while I'm in Mongolia. I'll admit, I teared up when I walked out of the building for the last time but knowing why I'm leaving makes it a little easier.

I'm also selling the car I've had for the past five years - something else I thought I'd have for at least another five years or so. On my first day of not working, I took it to get detailed and cleaned really well - so of course, this happened within an hour:

Stupid birds.

Along with selling my car, I'm finishing up details like telling my bank that my transactions for the next three years or so will be in Mongolia, cancelling insurance, giving power of attorney, visiting with an accountant about handling my taxes while I'm gone (yup, still paying taxes even though I won't be living here), and more boring stuff like that.

I'm also trying to spend time with friends before I leave which includes a few of my oldest and closest - Libs and Karen. We tried to do a few things that we've always joked about doing, like going to Medieval Times in Dallas...we're nerds.

But watching beautiful men on pretty horses fight and speak with English accents wasn't nerdy at all.

I'm over 80% as far as funds go for the first year and will be pretty close to 100% by the time I leave which blows my mind every time I think about it. Trusting that it would be provided and guess what, it was provided! Awesome. Soon I'll start packing and I think it will really start sinking in that I'm actually moving - right now, it just feels like I'm going on vacation for a few months...

Speaking of roller coasters, here is a quote from Parenthood with Steve Martin (who plays Gil) - I love it:
[Gil has been complaining about his complicated life; Grandma wanders into the room]
Grandma: You know, when I was nineteen, Grandpa took me on a roller coaster.
Gil: Oh?
Grandma: Up, down, up, down. Oh, what a ride!
Gil: What a great story.
Grandma: I always wanted to go again. You know, it was just so interesting to me that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn't like it. They went on the merry-go-round. That just goes around. Nothing. I like the roller coaster. You get more out of it.

Training in Colorado!

I just got back from three days of training in Colorado! I got to learn more about the company and talk to several people who have been teachers in Asia - it was amazing. Stories of language flubs, incredible relationships with students, strange foods, and all kinds of challenges and successes were shared the entire time. I can't wait to share my own so keep checking this blog and if you're not on my newsletter list, email me at blk2911@aol.com!

Healthy, Healing and a little Humiliating

My mom and I decided to escape and regroup on a mini vacation this past weekend. Neither of us had been to Hot Springs, AK but had heard great things so we drove from Texas to Hot Springs (about 5 hours but took us more like 7 due to traffic). We stayed at the Arlington Hotel - one of the oldest - in fact, they still used actual keys for the rooms.

We booked the deluxe mineral bath package at a bath house down the street called BuckStaff Baths - also very old - in fact many of the gangsters including Al Capone used to go there. They declared it a no fighting zone so all the gangsters left all their guns/weapons at the door - figuring everyone has the right to partake in the "healing" waters.

I followed my attendant to a cubby type of room with a big tub in it like the picture to the left shows. She told me to climb into the tub and then turned on that little machine that made the water bubble up. After soaking for 15 minutes, she came back in and started scrubbing my arms, legs and back down with a loofa - just a little humiliating.

We had about an hour's worth of getting into some kind of water device (steam chair, small tub just for your backside, shower, etc.) and getting back out again. At one point, I was covered in hot towels with one really cold one on my face - this felt fantastic and I think I could've slept like that for a while. As if this wasn't relaxing enough, I then went in for a 20 minute massage - Heaven!

My mom and I had a great time and may some day try it again now that we know what to expect. However, it reminded me that I need to continue taking care of my body - besides the better diet and exercising, pampering is a good thing too. Massages, skin care, hair care - I figure they all make a difference in the long run and although they can be expensive, there are always good deals out there to find. We didn't spend too much money and besides the baths and massages, we also got a paraffin wax treatment on our hands - made them SO SOFT!! Next time, I'd like to do this in a more private atmosphere though...it's tough trying to relax knowing that complete strangers just saw more of me than I usually do.

Weight Update #1

Hello, my name is Brandie and I hate fruits and vegetables. I know it's wrong to be so prejudice about an entire food group but the first step of recovery is admitting I have a problem...with mainly veggies.

So to get some of them into my diet, I have to sneak them in and one way I do this is with V-Fusion - made by V8. I have found that if I mix it with Orange Juice, I can't taste the veggies anymore and I can play like I'm just drinking some fruity drink. So there's a tip for my fellow veggie haters - you get two servings by doing this!

I got my mom hooked on Zumba now too. I looked over at her after the first song and could see she was drinking the Kool Aid. Which is good because I love the extra accountability to go. We're going to see if we can get a few others addicted as well.

So, this week I drank some fruits and veggies and went to a couple of Zumba classes.

It paid off with a 3.4 pound loss - YAY!

My first Rangers game!

Born and raised in Texas and I've never been to a Texas Rangers Baseball Game. Until last Friday (8-5-11)! It was officially 109 degrees and I foolishly wore jeans and melted - in fact, I drank two water bottles, a Gatorade and a Dr. Pepper over a four hour period and never had to visit the little girls room most likely due to having sweated all the liquids out. Honestly, I prefer this as I hate visiting public restrooms - especially when you have to peel your clothes off due to sweat. tmi - sorry.

But it was fun - I was in a group of about 15 or so and had a blast. The Rangers were playing the Cleveland Indians (my former roommates fave), I had a free hot dog (a little disappointed in the taste though), a cold Dr. Pepper, a nice breeze, and tons of people to watch - every now and then I remembered I was at a baseball game and checked the score. Tied 7 to 7 in the 9th inning with the Rangers beating the Indians (sorry Debs) in the 11th inning.

My first bag of baseball peanuts! And my friends Rachel and Jillian.

Here's a shot with about half of us. You can see we had excellent seats all the way at the top of the stadium.

More friends.

And to top the night off - FIREWORKS!!! Probably one of the best firework shows I've seen to date.

 

I figure I now need to go to a Cowboys game too...in fact, I'm surprised I haven't been kicked out of Texas for never seeing the Cowboys...