Must-read books

I made Pat start reading a book I love love love.

(Ok, so I can't actually make Pat do anything. But I did set it on the table in front of him and say "I think you should read this next" and when he finished his book he started reading it next because I told him to.)

And now I have the same kind of nervousness I did when he asked to watch my favorite movie, You've Got Mail, and I had to sit there and watch it with him and sneak glances and gauge his reaction to all my favorite scenes, lines, facial expressions.

(I do have favorite facial expressions in that movie, thank you very much.)

But today, I was thinking about how you can't really predict what someone will think of a book.

I made the mistake of reading the Goodreads reviews for a book I finished recently. I was hooked on it, gave it four stars, couldn't put it down. And it had about a bajillion negative reviews. Some were on point, just things that hadn't really detracted from my enjoyment -- like, yes, it's a flaw in the book, but I still enjoyed it a lot. And it made me question whether my four stars were overkill and was it really a good book and good lord people have told me they read books just because I've reviewed them and then what if they hate them and what will they think of me??


One more anecdote -- another book I love love love is The Book Thief. Love it. In my second year in grad school, someone made a second attempt at starting a book club. (The first attempt had failed the year before after discussing exactly one book.)

The first book the New Book Club picked was The Book Thief and I was stoked. I reread it in preparation. I went to the discussion meeting, which took place in a bar because duh, and discovered everyone had hated it. Most people didn't even finish reading it.

In my head today, before I started thinking all of this, I was making a list of books I think all people should read, or at least start to read and they can put it down if they want. The book I've asked Pat to read, The Scorpio Races, would be on my list. So would the Harry Potter series, though I know plenty of people who don't really like HP.

What would be on your list? Have you known people who read your faves and hated them? I'm curious!

(Pat has not yet finished the book -- he's studying for the CPA tests and doesn't have much time for reading these days, but he'll likely pick it back up after his tests are done.)

Hiking Mt. St. Helens

Climbing Mt. St. Helens was kind of like running my marathon. Or what I imagine having a baby is like. If you remembered how difficult it was or remembered the pain, you would never do it again.

But, with over three months having passed since we climbed, the pain is a fuzzy part of the overall happy memory.

I already wrote about the surprise that waited for me at the top of the mountain, but I wanted to talk about the climb a little bit, just in case someone else has been talked into climbing and wants to know what they’ve gotten themselves into.

I’m here for you, friend.

So, here’s the climbing part of the story.

Originally, Pat and I had wanted to climb in the summer when there would be less, if any, snow, but due to his summer school schedule, we climbed May 22.

If all this is too long -- if you just want a summary -- it’s this: if you’re a super experienced hiker, you can do this hike without too much difficulty. If not, it will be very challenging. My two biggest tips are wear sunscreen and wear sunglasses. Me and Pat learned the hard way.

Preparation

To hike Mt. St. Helens, you have to buy a permit. They sell out pretty quickly for weekends and holidays, but we didn’t have any issue with buying them for a random Thursday. Still, we purchased our tickets in February to hike in May.

I didn’t hike regularly in preparation -- hard to hike in Kansas -- but it was only a couple weeks after my marathon, so I knew that my legs were in great shape. It was the altitude that would get me.

Pat was the reverse. Since he had been living in Denver and hiking regularly in the previous months, the altitude didn’t bother him as much, but he wasn’t in marathon shape. So we had different challenges.

I googled info about the hike every now and then, but usually, it freaked me out more than anything, so I stopped and just trusted that Pat knew what he was doing. He had read that it would take 10 hours, but I knew we were pretty inexperienced and I’m pretty slow and it might take us longer. We planned to sleep at the base of the trail the night before and start early in the morning.

We bought hiking boots and socks and broke them in over the weekend that I visited Pat in Denver. The rest of our gear -- tent, sleeping bags, backpack, waterproof pants, etc. -- we bought the week of in Oregon.

We each carried about three normal water bottles, a camelbak type water bottle, a powerade or gatorade (I forget which), three sandwiches between us, trail mix, and a couple mini granola bars.

We both also had trekking poles, which were lifesavers. Seriously. We saw some people with skis or snowshoes, too.

We started out with too many layers. I had shorts, yoga pants, and swishy water proof pants, a tech shirt from my marathon, a running and a waterproof jacket. I stripped out of both jackets and the yoga pants before we even made it to the mountain. Ha. During the hike, there were times I put the waterproof jacket back on, but that was it -- the yoga pants and running jacket stayed in my bag.

The Hike

We camped at Marble Mountain and hiked up whatever trail we found from there. The first section is through forest and is fairly easy. The trail is clear and easy to follow.

After the forest section, there’s a lot of rocky path. It starts out pretty easy to see and follow the trail, but the difficulty does get more and more difficult as you go on. We lost the trail more than once in this section as it isn’t very clearly marked. There are neon flags every once in a while, but we mostly tried to find our own way and followed others we could see ahead of us.

(BTW, I was right -- I am really slow. We got passed by every person on the mountain. No exaggeration.)

There was one point I almost fell off a cliff-ish part. No joke. I was bouldering and the rocks under my feet slid. I ended up pretty much flat on my stomach and unable to find a way out for a few minutes. I also kicked a basketball sized boulder down the mountain. It was pretty scary.

The lesson here was that if it got too difficult to see the path, we probably should look for a different path -- usually there was a good way through the boulders and a not-so-good way. After that, we were more careful to try to follow the actual path.

You can see the boulders behind Pat!

In addition to the big boulders, there’s also a nice mix of rocks and ash in places. I would imagine that’s what’s under the snow, if you ever did a summer hike. It’s slippery.
Eventually, we started hitting more and more snow. At first, it was alongside the path through the boulders and we could choose between rocks or snow. But, as the rocks got steeper and the path became less clear, we switched exclusively to snow and only used the boulders for resting breaks. The boulders became increasingly few and far between as we continued until finally, there was about an hour at the top when there weren’t any -- just snow.

Still some boulders here! (Obvi)

This was the really, really difficult part of the hike -- the snow.

It was difficult physically. It’s slippery. We tried to follow in other people’s steps, which worked really well, but when there weren’t any, we had to kick in a new hole for each step.

But it was difficult mentally, too. It’s very difficult to judge distance when all you see is snow. We kept thinking we were almost there and then it would be a false summit (where it looks like it’s the top, but it’s just a ridge) or would find out that what looked like a short distance was not short at all.

We definitely used the boulders for breaks, but also as mini goals -- we can stop to rest when we get to that boulder. When there weren’t boulders (or when we couldn’t make it to one) we would take standing breaks -- just standing still for a minute until we caught our breath, then moving on.

I was right that my legs were strong, but the altitude really got to me. I had a headache and got dizzy a couple times. And Pat started getting sore legs earlier than he would have liked. So I was resting a lot to catch my breath and he was resting a lot to help his tired legs.

We finally reached a point where there were no more boulders -- only snow. It didn’t seem like we had far to go, and we saw some people on their way down already. (Including a family with several teens and pre-teens, which is why I’d say it’s probably not the hardest hike in the world if you’re hiking regularly.)

One man, on his way up and standing near us, asked a man on his way down how much farther we had still. He said about an hour. It’s a good thing I didn’t hear him because I might have given up. Pat heard, though. But Pat had some extra motivation to get us to the top.

We did finally make it to the top. It was very challenging. I kept wondering -- and still wonder -- if it was harder than my marathon. I think, alone, it might have been. But since Pat was with me and I ran the marathon alone, I think the marathon might have been harder? I don’t know. I think there were points we each thought we couldn’t do it and were ready to give up -- but it was never at the same time. So we didn’t give up and we made it to the top.

Now, for the way down…

A lot of people do what’s called “glissading” to get down -- basically, sledding on your butt. I was scared about this from the beginning -- HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU’RE NOT ABOUT TO SLED OFF A CLIFF???? and also I read that glissading was how most people were injured (which is why I stopped reading things and decided to just trust Pat).

Glissading!

We glissaded a little bit, but I was still scared and Pat’s pants weren’t really slick enough, so we didn’t do much. Which, I think, is part of the reason our hike was so much longer than other hikers’ -- if you glissade down, you’re a lot faster. What we had to do was sliiiiide one foot forward for a little until we were either doing the splits or until we could stop ourselves. It was a pain in the butt and we both fell a lot and it wasn’t easy on our ankles or knees, but we made it down.

We got a little lost between the boulders and the forest and tried three paths before we found the right one. With how tired we were, the forest seemed endless, but we made it out.

So that’s it! That was our Mt. St. Helens hike. I would imagine a summer hike or a hike on a different path would be verrry different, but I did want to put this out there in case someone who is thinking of doing the hike finds it.

What’s the most challenging physical activity you’ve ever completed? Is the pain fuzzy now in your memory?

We're getting married!

First things first: in case you missed it:

So, there's that. And now for the story....


I've been keeping a secret from you guys. A secret that started when I visited Pat in Denver at the beginning of March. And it wasn't really a secret like, ohmygosh something is happening -- but more like, this is a gushy boyfriend thing that I would typically keep to myself.

[Sometimes, as much as I love my life with Pat and want to tell everyone how great he is, there are certain things I think are just for us, you know? And I thought this would be one of those things.]

But now that I know how the story ends, it's not really something I can keep to myself.

So. Back to the beginning of March. I visited Pat in Denver, where he was seven weeks into a 12-week internship. We hiked, ate some good food, watched the Jayhawks lose a basketball game, and just enjoyed being together. And I also pestered him a little bit about my upcoming birthday on March 22.

But he said he already had a present for me and that I would get it Monday morning before I flew back to Kansas. (!!!)

I'm not good at waiting, so I'm sure I asked him just a few times if I could have it early. And he said no. But Monday morning, he retrieved a box.

I could tell he'd made the box himself. It was about three inches tall, eight inches square, and not very heavy. And he told me I couldn't open it till my birthday.

Remember that whole not good at waiting thing?

Yeah.

So, I flew back to Kansas, really only knowing that whatever was in the box, it would withstand the rigors of air travel and wouldn't get me in trouble going through security.

In the next few weeks, I pestered Pat about what was in the box and asked for hints. I learned enough to know it would be several things and that I wasn't allowed to open them all at once. [This kid and all his rules.] I started to think it would be something to open each day until he got back [still another two weeks or so away].

And then he told me it had to do with a shape used in the Olympics.

RINGS. duh.

I told him, "You're trying to make me think it's something that it's not." But I got no further clues.

Three weeks later, I was home in Missouri for my birthday and I finally got to open my box. Inside, I found a chain link of a bajillion papers, like the kind you make at Christmas. The instructions said that each day, I was allowed to open one ring by separating it from the chain and unfolding it. And there were WAY more than just for two weeks until he got back.

I was kind of pissed because all the first one said was Happy Birthday. REALLY? I WAITED THREE WEEKS FOR THAT? and then I had to wait a whole day more to open the next. Silly rules.

But I played by the rules and for two months, I opened a note from my favorite human every morning.

And many nights I asked him if I could just open the rest, but he never let me. Rude.

Here are some we selected to share with you all. :)

The very last ring on the chain was dated May 22 -- and on the outside it said, "Open me on top of a volcano."

See, we had plans to climb Mt. St. Helens in Washington -- our graduation gift from Pat's dad. We had been planning on this trip forever, and Pat bought the climbing permits way back in February, so he knew what day the trip would be.

I brought the last few rings in the chain with me to Oregon after graduation. [I actually forgot them and had to turn around on the way to the airport and go back for them...]

And I carried the last ring all the way to the flippin top of Mt. St. Helens. [YOU GUYS. that climb was so hard.]

And we got to the top and I didn't want to bring it up. I wanted him to bring it up.

But I'm bad at waiting. So I asked him if I could open my last note yet.

I opened it..........



and it was blank.

So I said, "It's blank!"

And he said, "Oh. Shoot. I gave you the wrong ring -- I had two, I must have put the wrong one on. Here..."

and he dug around in his giant backpack for a minute and then pulled out a pretty, sparkly, perfect engagement ring.

:)

We're getting married!

Life lately [brain + photo dump]

Hello loves!

I keep telling myself I'll keep up with blogging better once my comprehensive exam is done, once classes are done, once I graduate... but the fact is, life is BUSY. I finished my comprehensive exam over FOUR weeks ago, and classes ended Monday...

So, I hope you'll just be happy to see me when I'm here and not miss me too much when I'm gone. Like your favorite flaky friend who is oh-so-hard to make plans with but whom you love dearly. :)

Here's a glimpse at my life lately. (that is, the part of my life that wasn't work + papers + presentations + job applications...)

I attempted for a while to walk or run a mile a day in May. That fell apart pretty quickly (#postmarathonslump), but I did manage to convince Pat to take a walk with me on campus one evening!

He took this sneaky picture of me while I was taking the first picture. (#bloggerproblems)

I celebrated my last Capstone class on a patio with my lovely friend Ashley.

 I ran a 5k that was 19 seconds away from my best time ever. (I'll take it!)

My wonderful friend Sam visited, and we went disc golfing! (aka the boys golfed and I walked around and talked at them :)

 This is what a disc-golf walk ends up looking like:

And finally, I had my last college class this Monday. These lovely ladies and I started together and now we're finishing together. (also, you can see in this picture that I chopped my hair off :)

Upcoming in my life: Me and Pat are both graduating this weekend!! Which means -- The Meeting Of The Families. My little sister, Anna, has met Pat's dad and aunt, but they're the only ones who have met. So my parents will be meeting his dad and aunt and everyone will be meeting Pat's sister. It should be exciting!

We also each have three ceremonies!! Luckily, two of them overlap for both of us. Pat and I will each miss one of the others' ceremonies (does that make sense? his business ceremony is at the same time as my hooding ceremony. booo).

And we're also having a graduation party Saturday! SO MANY THINGS.

And then next week, we're taking offffff on a trip to Oregon and Washington. I'm SO excited. We're going to hike Mt. St. Helens, meet Shauna and Tim and see my friend Jacque and do lots of cool things.

I am not sure when I'll be posting again. :( If you want to keep up with me, I'll be on Twitter and Instagram -- find me there!!!

Lots of love,

Trip to Denver!

Ummm....

hey.

I'm really behind on blogging, huh?

But I want to tell you about my trip to see Pat! Let's pretend it wasn't already three weeks ago...

Before Pat moved to Denver for his 12-week internship, I bugged him about me being able to visit. They'd told him he could be working up to 80 hours a week, though, so he knew he'd be really busy. He'd say, You can come visit, but I might not have time to see you.

Well then.

But then one of my coworkers found a good deal on flights between Kansas City and Denver. And I couldn't find the good deal myself but it put the idea in Pat's head and then we bought my tickets and then I was off to see Pat!

It was a quick trip -- I got in Friday night and was supposed to leave Monday morning. But it was soo great to visit him and see where he's living and his life for the past many weeks.

Enough talk. Here's some pictures! We went hiking both days I was there, so all my pics are from that. :)

It was a wonderful trip, and I'm so glad I got to go!

Have any of you been to Denver before? Any tips for the next time I'm out there? We didn't venture into the city much (or at all) -- maybe next trip!

Distance sucks and I'm a wimp

Hey friends.

I had planned to write a cute, cheeky, I-don't-take-myself-too-seriously post about all the great things I get to do since Pat's away for an internship for the next twelve weeks.

(So far, I've watched the Golden Globes and watched the same movies over and over again. I was trying to think of more ideas.)

I was going to try to show that I know it's not the end of the world: twelve weeks isn't that long, and at least I can assume he's reasonably safe where he is -- he's in an accounting internship, not deployed or anything.

And then I had to inflate my tire, and spent two dollars in quarters at the gas station trying to get the air pump to sound like it was actually putting air into my tire instead of just letting it all leak out, and then I ended up going to Jiffy Lube and playing right into the stereotype of girls who can't do anything and don't know anything about their cars when I asked them to please, please just look at my tires, and no I don't want my oil changed when I still have almost 300 miles till the next date. And then they told me that I'd managed to overinflate my tire and kind of laughed at me.

And then I ended up crying in the grocery store parking lot. Not a lot of crying. Just a little.

Distance sucks. And the next twelve weeks won't be fun in some ways. But I'm really, truly going to try to find the good parts of being away from my favorite human for a while. Like sending him a valentine's card I already picked out, sending him weird pictures, and spending time we'd usually spend together making memories I can tell him about when he gets back.

Kudos to those of you who spend most of your time away from your significant other, and extra love to you if it's because he or she is deployed.

What's your favorite way to spend a day you have all to yourself? I've got a few coming up and I could use some inspiration!

Ms. Manning

This is my niece-cat Manning.

She's a little weirdo.

Sometimes me and Pat cat sit.

The end.

Scenes from this fall

Hey friends!

I got to see my lovely friend Layne this weekend (woo!).

She made an unfortunately accurate comment when she called me "Miss Never-going-to-post-on-her-blog-except-about-books."

Oops.

So I thought I'd share some of the things that have happened in my life since I was a real blogger who posted things other than pre-scheduled book reviews. :)

This year, campus was just BEAUTIFUL for fall. I mean, it always is, but look at these pictures! I was lucky that the week that the trees really decided to turn colors, I had to walk this path 4-6 times a day and got to bask in the glow of the gorgeous colors and crunchy leaves. Heaven.

I played on our student group's rec volleyball team again. Don't let my classmate's #1 fool you -- I don't think we even won one set of one game. It was fun though!! (I'm to the right of the girl in the tie dye :)

For Thanksgiving, Pat and I went home to my parents' house and I got to spend time with that little fluff face up there. Pat also had his traditional bonding with all of the pets, but he of course likes the kitty the best. They're basically besties.

We also had a fire over Thanksgiving! That fire was on the struggle bus the whole time though. For the first forty minutes or so I was just waiting for it to fizzle out and die. But Pat is king of the lab when it comes to building fires, and he eventually got a pretty good fire going despite lack of supplies and some pretty damp wood.

My sisters and I also spent some time over Thanksgiving visiting my grandma. She used to live with us but moved into assisted living after a rough fall in October. She was So. Happy. to see us. It breaks your heart and makes you feel awesome at the same time. It was really good to spend some time visiting her.

Justin, the really cool guy behind Texas in a Box and Oklahoma in a box, sent me this box of goodies to review! Full review coming soon, but since I've been super slow, I figured I'd go ahead and plug it/preview it now -- plus get a discount on your box by using this link! (I believe it's for a whopping $10 off!)

Pat and I went to two KU Volleyball matches in early December. The team made it to the Sweet 16 in the tournament -- the farthest KU Volleyball has gone in program history! Rock Chalk!

Finally, I have been LOVING all the Christmas lights around my little city -- That first one is Mass Street, our downtown area, and the second one is my string of lights in my room :) Twinkling Christmas lights just make my heart so freaking happy. I love Christmas!!

So there's an update on what I've been up to lately. Plus a few papers here and there (finished a 15-page one last night!!), but no one wants to see those pictures!

I've missed you all :)

How is your week going? Can you believe we're a week out from Christmas Eve??? Crazy.