Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Oh, and the dishwasher.
I just realized that I didn't post about my dishwasher. Yes, the internship is the most exciting thing going on in my life at the moment, but the dishwasher is pretty cool, too. A friend gave us their old dishwasher a month or so ago because she got a new one for Christmas, and Erick installed it finally. It works so nicely. I have to run it after every meal, though, to keep up!
Internship
I guess I'd better take a few minutes and talk about my internship.
Last year, right before Christmas, Joy and Sarah were invited to a birthday party for a friend they met at the FISH co-op in Brazil. We don't go up there much, but I was off that night and so I decided to take them up there. We did some other Christmas-related shopping while we were up there, waiting for their party to be over, and also visited Betty (from church) who was in the hospital.
It was very cold and icy that day, and I was having a bad hair day on top of it. I was wearing a Santa hat because it was in the van, and besides, the party was a Mad Hatter theme party. While I waited for the girls to finish up a round of Catchphrase with their friends, their friend's mother introduced me to another friend's mother. We got to talking, and I found out that she was the Communications Director at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College near Terre Haute. I told her I was a communications senior at IU East, and she asked me if I was interested in doing any freelance work. I had never done any before, but I gave her my name and number and said I was interested in learning more.
Fast-forward to after vacation. This lady, Kristy, e-mailed me asking for my resume and some writing samples. I sent her the link to my Greene County Daily World blog as well as the .pdf files for the articles I wrote for the school newspaper last semester.
Last week I started school. I had four classes I was taking--the Howler class again, Public Relations, Biology of Addictions (to fulfill my last science requirement) and Spanish II (which is going to kill me, I'm pretty sure). On Wednesday of that week, I got an e-mail from Kristy asking if I could come in and interview for a paid internship at the college. I would be writing press releases and handling their social media. I went in on Thursday and by the time I made it home, an e-mail was waiting for me offering me the position! I scrambled around trying to drop the biology class and pick up the internship before it was too late and just barely squeaked by all the deadlines.
I will be starting it as soon as I get my background check back. They actually wanted me to start Tuesday, but it wasn't back in time. I also will be cutting back on the hours at my Walmart job and will be working there only a couple of days a week.
I'm just so thankful to God for just dropping this opportunity in my lap like this. I had been trying to find an internship but hadn't been successful, and really didn't think it was going to happen this semester.
Last year, right before Christmas, Joy and Sarah were invited to a birthday party for a friend they met at the FISH co-op in Brazil. We don't go up there much, but I was off that night and so I decided to take them up there. We did some other Christmas-related shopping while we were up there, waiting for their party to be over, and also visited Betty (from church) who was in the hospital.
It was very cold and icy that day, and I was having a bad hair day on top of it. I was wearing a Santa hat because it was in the van, and besides, the party was a Mad Hatter theme party. While I waited for the girls to finish up a round of Catchphrase with their friends, their friend's mother introduced me to another friend's mother. We got to talking, and I found out that she was the Communications Director at St. Mary-of-the-Woods College near Terre Haute. I told her I was a communications senior at IU East, and she asked me if I was interested in doing any freelance work. I had never done any before, but I gave her my name and number and said I was interested in learning more.
Fast-forward to after vacation. This lady, Kristy, e-mailed me asking for my resume and some writing samples. I sent her the link to my Greene County Daily World blog as well as the .pdf files for the articles I wrote for the school newspaper last semester.
Last week I started school. I had four classes I was taking--the Howler class again, Public Relations, Biology of Addictions (to fulfill my last science requirement) and Spanish II (which is going to kill me, I'm pretty sure). On Wednesday of that week, I got an e-mail from Kristy asking if I could come in and interview for a paid internship at the college. I would be writing press releases and handling their social media. I went in on Thursday and by the time I made it home, an e-mail was waiting for me offering me the position! I scrambled around trying to drop the biology class and pick up the internship before it was too late and just barely squeaked by all the deadlines.
I will be starting it as soon as I get my background check back. They actually wanted me to start Tuesday, but it wasn't back in time. I also will be cutting back on the hours at my Walmart job and will be working there only a couple of days a week.
I'm just so thankful to God for just dropping this opportunity in my lap like this. I had been trying to find an internship but hadn't been successful, and really didn't think it was going to happen this semester.
Friday, January 11, 2013
Our Texas Vacation
We are back from our Texas vacation and we had a wonderful time! We decided to go the first week of January because we'd be in between school semesters and I really didn't want to try to do school on the road. Spring break wasn't going to work because Erick couldn't take his vacation then, and I had to take mine before May. We decided just to head south and hope for the best.
I have two aunts that live in Texas--my dad's sister and her husband, and then my dad's brother's wife. (My uncle died a few years ago from cancer.) We haven't seen them in years.
The first day of our vacation, January 1st, we actually went north instead of south. Erick's parents were having their Christmas celebration, so we went up and joined them. Then we headed home, spent that night at our own house, and then headed south the next day.
It was very cold when we left and there was still quite a bit of snow on the ground. We drove to Little Rock on our first night and crockpotted some chicken on the way. We had bought an invertor to hook up to the battery to save money on meals. It smelled so good cooking all day, although trying to wash the crockpot in the bathtub at the hotel was a little difficult. We actually weren't sure if we'd get a room. I had called the hotel a few days earlier to reserve a room, and they said there had been a blizzard in Little Rock and that thousands of people were without power and that all of the hotels were filled to capacity. By the time we got there, though, all the snow was melted.
By the time we got to Texas the next day, not only was the snow gone but we saw flowers blooming and green grass. We stayed with my aunt and uncle who live near Houston in a place called The Woodlands. The city's name matches the theme--every single street looks like it is in the middle of a state park. It's hard to see gas stations and restaurants because they are all hiding behind trees. The streets all have organic-sounding names--Woodcreek and Creekside and Greencreek. I don't think I could ever find my way around because I'd be constantly lost in the woods, but it is a beautiful place. My aunt's house is very beautiful, too. My uncle Kerry is a real published author and has written with big name preachers like Chuck Coulson and Henry Blackaby. He gave me a lot of great advice on my writing.
Aunt Lainey and Uncle Kerry took us out to eat for nearly every meal because she said she didn't want to cook. We also went disc golfing with my aunt, which most of us had never done before. It was a little chilly that day, but it was still a lot warmer than it had been back home so we weren't complaining.
We stayed two nights in The Woodlands, and then Saturday we drove down to Galveston. That day it rained and was cold. We stopped at Kemah Boardwalk but couldn't go on any of the rides because it was too wet. So instead we bought tickets to the Discovery Center at Moody Gardens on Galveston Island. It was pretty cool. They had a sound and music exhibit and there was one of those pianos you can walk on and a lot of other neat things. We all did karaoke, too.
After that we drove to San Antonio, where my aunt Barbie lives. Two of my cousins that I haven't seen in forever where there--my cousin Braden, who is my only cousin on that side of the family that is younger than me, and my cousin Carrie. We also met Carrie's husband, Braden's wife, and Braden's three adorable kids. We had a great time with them and went to church with Aunt Barbie the next day.
In the afternoon, while Aunt Barbie took a nap, we went to visit the Alamo and see the Riverwalk. Rachel had three dollars she wanted to spend and it took her forever to find something to buy with it that she felt was worth the money. She finally bought a bracelet with red chili peppers on it at the Rivercenter Mall.
Since that day was Erick's birthday, we went to eat at Texas Roadhouse before continuing on our trip. We were planning on spending that night in Dallas, but it took longer to eat out than we counted on. We ended up only making it to Austin before we stopped for the night. We had only been asleep for a few hours when I was awakened by a lot of screaming and running and doors slamming. I wasn't sure at first what was going on--it sounded like maybe some teenagers goofing off. Then I could hear a woman screaming, "Don't hit me!" and a man yelling angrily. I could hear him slapping her around. I got up and called 911, and the police said they were on the scene. Soon I could hear the woman yelling at the police--and telling them to leave the man alone because he was her boyfriend! It took a good two hours until things were quiet.
The next day we drove to Springfield, MO, and it took all day to get there. We drove for twelve hours straight and we were exhausted by the time we got there. We stayed the night with our old pastor from Praise Assembly where we attended while Erick was at CBC. We enjoyed the time we spent with them and wished we could have stayed longer.
Tuesday we went to Bass Pro Shops in Springfield. Erick used to clean that store every day when we lived there. They've done a ton of remodeling since we left. The only thing we bought was some beef seasoning to put on the roast we'd bought at Braum's. We also bought ice cream there and I was suprised how reasonable their prices were. I had remembered Braum's being expensive, but I think it wasn't so much that Braum's was expensive back then as we were very poor. It's amazing how your perspective on what is reasonable changes when you aren't quite as destitute.
After that we drove to St. Louis and spent the night in another hotel. We were going to see the Arch that day, but decided to wait until Wednesday since it would be closing soon. So Wednesday morning we walked down there since our hotel was only a couple of blocks away. I wasn't sure if they were going to let Jay in at first, because he had four pocketknives in his pocket. I don't know why on earth he thought he needed that many, but since they weren't springloaded and they weren't longer than four inches, they let him in. Sarah had to lift her pant legs, though, because she kept setting off the alarm. Maybe it was the zipper on her jacket.
We went up inside the Arch, which was really cool but rather terrifying. I am kind of scared of heights. Joy was a lot more scared than me, though, so that made me feel better. At the top, I had this awful feeling that if I leaned over too far to take pictures or look down, that my weight would tip the whole thing over and the Arch would come crashing down.
That last day of our vacation we only had to drive across Illinois to get back home. I was glad we hadn't planned to drive too much on the last day, because I had time to crash when we got home. It's amazing how tiring vacations can be.
I have two aunts that live in Texas--my dad's sister and her husband, and then my dad's brother's wife. (My uncle died a few years ago from cancer.) We haven't seen them in years.
The first day of our vacation, January 1st, we actually went north instead of south. Erick's parents were having their Christmas celebration, so we went up and joined them. Then we headed home, spent that night at our own house, and then headed south the next day.
It was very cold when we left and there was still quite a bit of snow on the ground. We drove to Little Rock on our first night and crockpotted some chicken on the way. We had bought an invertor to hook up to the battery to save money on meals. It smelled so good cooking all day, although trying to wash the crockpot in the bathtub at the hotel was a little difficult. We actually weren't sure if we'd get a room. I had called the hotel a few days earlier to reserve a room, and they said there had been a blizzard in Little Rock and that thousands of people were without power and that all of the hotels were filled to capacity. By the time we got there, though, all the snow was melted.
By the time we got to Texas the next day, not only was the snow gone but we saw flowers blooming and green grass. We stayed with my aunt and uncle who live near Houston in a place called The Woodlands. The city's name matches the theme--every single street looks like it is in the middle of a state park. It's hard to see gas stations and restaurants because they are all hiding behind trees. The streets all have organic-sounding names--Woodcreek and Creekside and Greencreek. I don't think I could ever find my way around because I'd be constantly lost in the woods, but it is a beautiful place. My aunt's house is very beautiful, too. My uncle Kerry is a real published author and has written with big name preachers like Chuck Coulson and Henry Blackaby. He gave me a lot of great advice on my writing.
Aunt Lainey and Uncle Kerry took us out to eat for nearly every meal because she said she didn't want to cook. We also went disc golfing with my aunt, which most of us had never done before. It was a little chilly that day, but it was still a lot warmer than it had been back home so we weren't complaining.
We stayed two nights in The Woodlands, and then Saturday we drove down to Galveston. That day it rained and was cold. We stopped at Kemah Boardwalk but couldn't go on any of the rides because it was too wet. So instead we bought tickets to the Discovery Center at Moody Gardens on Galveston Island. It was pretty cool. They had a sound and music exhibit and there was one of those pianos you can walk on and a lot of other neat things. We all did karaoke, too.
After that we drove to San Antonio, where my aunt Barbie lives. Two of my cousins that I haven't seen in forever where there--my cousin Braden, who is my only cousin on that side of the family that is younger than me, and my cousin Carrie. We also met Carrie's husband, Braden's wife, and Braden's three adorable kids. We had a great time with them and went to church with Aunt Barbie the next day.
In the afternoon, while Aunt Barbie took a nap, we went to visit the Alamo and see the Riverwalk. Rachel had three dollars she wanted to spend and it took her forever to find something to buy with it that she felt was worth the money. She finally bought a bracelet with red chili peppers on it at the Rivercenter Mall.
Since that day was Erick's birthday, we went to eat at Texas Roadhouse before continuing on our trip. We were planning on spending that night in Dallas, but it took longer to eat out than we counted on. We ended up only making it to Austin before we stopped for the night. We had only been asleep for a few hours when I was awakened by a lot of screaming and running and doors slamming. I wasn't sure at first what was going on--it sounded like maybe some teenagers goofing off. Then I could hear a woman screaming, "Don't hit me!" and a man yelling angrily. I could hear him slapping her around. I got up and called 911, and the police said they were on the scene. Soon I could hear the woman yelling at the police--and telling them to leave the man alone because he was her boyfriend! It took a good two hours until things were quiet.
The next day we drove to Springfield, MO, and it took all day to get there. We drove for twelve hours straight and we were exhausted by the time we got there. We stayed the night with our old pastor from Praise Assembly where we attended while Erick was at CBC. We enjoyed the time we spent with them and wished we could have stayed longer.
Tuesday we went to Bass Pro Shops in Springfield. Erick used to clean that store every day when we lived there. They've done a ton of remodeling since we left. The only thing we bought was some beef seasoning to put on the roast we'd bought at Braum's. We also bought ice cream there and I was suprised how reasonable their prices were. I had remembered Braum's being expensive, but I think it wasn't so much that Braum's was expensive back then as we were very poor. It's amazing how your perspective on what is reasonable changes when you aren't quite as destitute.
After that we drove to St. Louis and spent the night in another hotel. We were going to see the Arch that day, but decided to wait until Wednesday since it would be closing soon. So Wednesday morning we walked down there since our hotel was only a couple of blocks away. I wasn't sure if they were going to let Jay in at first, because he had four pocketknives in his pocket. I don't know why on earth he thought he needed that many, but since they weren't springloaded and they weren't longer than four inches, they let him in. Sarah had to lift her pant legs, though, because she kept setting off the alarm. Maybe it was the zipper on her jacket.
We went up inside the Arch, which was really cool but rather terrifying. I am kind of scared of heights. Joy was a lot more scared than me, though, so that made me feel better. At the top, I had this awful feeling that if I leaned over too far to take pictures or look down, that my weight would tip the whole thing over and the Arch would come crashing down.
That last day of our vacation we only had to drive across Illinois to get back home. I was glad we hadn't planned to drive too much on the last day, because I had time to crash when we got home. It's amazing how tiring vacations can be.
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