A tragic turn of events.

I have always been an independent kind of person and like doing things on my own. With that being said, I have some tragic news. I was going to try to keep this a secret but i've recently realized that i'm unable to keep it from anyone(secrets dont stay secret in RAYMOND! who knew?). Were moving in with the parents! I know.. I know.. I make fun of married couples that move in with their parents! What can I say, I think its a little weird. But thanks to the high cost of rent and Jeffs fleeting student loans, we are the ones to be made fun of! So were packing up our beautiful 3 bedroom house, saying goodbye, and shipping out of here. My days of daily blogging are down the drain thanks to dial up internet and constant kijiji updates will have to be put on hold. On the bright side, we hope to be able to save enough money over the summer to make the rent payments for Jeffs entire 2nd year of school! We will be back on our feet again in no time. I dont mean to sound ungrateful in any way. We are so happy to have my parents near by and for the generosity they show to us. We would also like to give a shout out to Jeffs parents who help us in every way they can! (Jeff loved the deer I cooked for him the other day.) So, with that being said, I leave you with some pictures of the house Jeff and I started in. They were taken right when we moved in.






P.S. Questions and comments are always welcome!! Let me know what you think. Have you been in this situation before and i'm just being a baby? or is it really as lame as I think?

High on a Mountain Top

As I was going through some of my old e-mails, I found something that I have always found very interesting. When I was at base camp on Aconcagua, I participated in a study. They were looking for a corelation between specific genotypes in the body and success of summiting high altitude mountains. A few months after returning home, I received this e-mail.

Your ACE-genotype is: II.

Here is the information about ACE and the genotype:ACE, Angiotensin Converting Enzyme, plays an important part of the body's water- and saltbalance. Studies have shown that the DD-variant contributes to a higher level of ACE in blood compared to ID and II. There is a lot of research on the ACE-variants and the disposal for different diseases. In sports medicine there is a relationship between the variants and performance in different sports. Science has shown that II is associated with superior endurance athletic ability, compared to D which is associated with more power-oriented events. In high-altitude medicine II is associated with enhanced high-altitude performance, which means an increased success in summiting. There is a hypothesis that this enhanced performance at altitude in part may relate to the lack of symptoms of AMS, but still no association has been found. The information gathered will be used in our master-thesis at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway. We also hope to get material publicised, then as a co-operation between NTNU and Caudwell Xtreme Everst Research Group at University College London (UCL), London, UK. Attached is an article on the subject from 2007. This project was also a cooperation between NTNU and UCL, London. Best regards,Alexander Frodahl and Karl Marius Brobakmedicalstudents,The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim

YAY, exciting right! This defanitly doesnt mean that I am going to summit every mountain I climb, but it sure helps. I love the mountains and I love pushing past what you think you cant.

(this is me at 22,500 Ft)

Todays Obsession

Being home for a week is great anytime, but with all this time on my hands I have found a new obsession. I'm trying to clear things out of my house and being shorter on cash than I would like leads me to only one conclusion, SELL IT! I've been taking pictures of the niceset things in my house that I dont want and putting them up on Kijiji! The greatest website ever. You can find anything you would ever need for cheap and you can post adds for FREE. I have a few things up and even have someone coming to look at the dryer I have for sale! Aside from the dryer and 2 cars I have for sale, I also have a 20p glass set for sale (never been used) and plastic Ikea cups and bowls, also a hurricane umbrella candle light set (also never been used). If anyone is interested in any items just let me know.

Cherry Grove and a Birthday Party

Jeff and I had a great easter weekend. It all started out with a birthday party for my Grossmutti (grandma) she turned 88 and seems to think that without vision she is doomed. But we proved her wrong. Its hard to say how many great grandkids she has now (if anyone knows, let me know.) but there were plenty running around at the party showing her a great time!

After the party, we made our way up to Cherry Grove to celebrate the season with Jeff`s family. We decorated easter eggs and went on a hunt for candies and toys. The kids had alot of fun and to my suprise, the easter bunny even left something for me!! The chocolate was more than enough to last the weekend and food was wonderful. Now Jeff is back to school and i`m relaxing and enjoying my week off!

Fly Girl

These are the lyrics to a new song that I fell in love with. Its by Tara Oram and its called Fly Girl. I sometimes feel like i'm stuck here (Not flying) so it kind of inspires me to go out and challange the world to see what it has to offer. There is a link to the music video at the bottom.

Blue skies, tall palm trees
Flipping thru pages of magazines
Workin’ at the counter at Wallgreens
Dreamin’, waiting
Pinching the pennies on minimum wage
Saving what you can counting down the days
Daddy says don’t go
Momma says it’s the only way she’ll ever know so
Come early Sunday morning
She’s gonna say goodbye
Drive past the water tower
80 miles an hour over county lines
Red bull and a blue camaro
Black top to golden sand
What lies ahead down that road
Ain’t no doubt it’s a big ol’ world
But you’re never gonna know
Until you Fly Girl
Cornfields, dairy farms
Home sweet home ain’t goin nowhere
She’s gotta find out if there’s life out there
Brother says good luck
Grandma says I sure am gonna miss ya hon but
You can stay on the ground or Fly Girl
She knows things might not go her way
But she will not take the coulda shoulda
Woulda’s to the grave
Ain’t no doubt it’s a big ol’ world
You can stay on the ground or Fly Girl

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nzBeqCIPFc

Spring!

Well, looking outside today it sure doesn't feel or look like spring. But I am still set on doing everything I can to help spring along, including write this post about it! I think what I love more than the change of weather in spring (although I do enjoy putting away the thick winter coats) is the natural transitions and changes we make in life. Its a new start, a chance to re-commit to those new years resolutions (If I would have made any) and start something new. Since I've been either going to school or working in a school for my whole life, I enjoy even more of a transition between summer and winter than most. Spring means the search of a new summer job, it means goodbye for a time and a much needed break, and best of all it means the hiking equipment comes out!! This year, spring means a new place to live, a few new nieces or nephews, Jeff working construction (coming home tired and hungry but with great accomplishment), and me (hopefully) riding horses and hiking ALL summer!