Hello folks! I know all 2 of you missed my big, exciting updates. So I’ll stop blabbing and get to business:
1. Work is going well. I am starting to get into a routine that will probably be what my days look like for the next few years (???). But I am still learning so much, meeting lots of new people, going to training seminars, etc. so that keeps my weeks interesting enough. I love my little group of friends who I have made, although being the only female is sometimes exhausting during lunch as my head spinswith sports analysis and car stories.
I have caught on to the office conversation norms. A few weeks back, I was talking to my boss and she told me “whoa, Emily, TMI” (I think it had something to do with me getting ready in a hurry and not taking a shower that morning). Since then I’ve tried to stick to the basics: Monday – discuss on how tired/disappointed you are that it is the beginning of the week; Tuesday – comment how glad you are that we made it past Monday, otherwise there isn’t much to say on Tuesdays; Wednesdays – remark that the week is halfway over and if you are lucky enough for it to be your Friday off, you of course have to close with “At least tomorrow is my Friday”; Thursday – obvious excitement for the weekend. I like to ask coworkers about their weekends etc. and occasionally I will throw in a story myself, but inevitably it always boils down to the aforementioned conversations. If anybody has found any tricks to brilliant 2 minute long topics of conversation, PLEASE enlighten me.
I am ready for the summer so maybe my coworkers will think I own clothes other than a cardigan over some sort of button up or tank. My ambition of being one of those sharply dressed business women is down the drain. I’m ok with that though. The downward spiral is in full effect.
2. I have still been keeping up with my traveling. In October I went to Detroit to visit some family. My dad was there for a combination of business/family time so I flew up to meet him. It was great to see my Mom’s parents; Aunt Lynn, Anna, Michael, Oscar and Snoopy; Uncle Rick, Ricky and Ryan; my Dad’s parents; Uncle Ted and Andrew; and Aunt Betsy, Mary and Stafford. Spending time with my family is so priceless and as I grow up, I realize how unique those relationships are. I love hearing stories about my dad when he was young and looking at old pictures of my grandma when she was a baby and my grandpa when he fought in WWII. I might think that my experiences are all unique to me, and they are, but everybody has a life that is unique to them as well. What a great way to enrich our lives: to beinterwoven in the lives of other people and their experiences. I just wish I had the chance to do that more often. It really is what life is all about.
Myself and cousin Anna
Uncle Rick, Ricky and Ryan; Michael and Aunt Lynn
The boys and their toys...airplanes are a Hodges family favorite
My Dad : )
Daddy, Aunt Judy and Grandma
I went to Las Vegas in December with a few of my girlfriends. We had pretty much hit the 6 month mark of starting jobs so we made a quick trip to get away. We went to some shows, ate some good meals, did some shopping, took part in the tiniest amount of gambling possible, but enough to claim that we did, in fact, gamble and had lots of fun in general.
3. Then, I had the amazing opportunity to go to Costa Rica with my friend from NYC, Naomi. You may remember her from some pictures in Paris. Ashley and I met her almost 4 years ago when we went to Greece. We kept in touch and visited her in December 2007 so she could show us around her “Concrete Jungle” and then she met up with us in Paris this summer for a few days. We always have lots of fun and find ourselves in some sort of adventure. Anyways, she had this trip planned with another friend who had to back out at the last minute. So about 2 weeks before the trip was scheduled, she asked if Ashley or I would be able to come! I immediately took her up on the offer (I had been wanting to go to CR ever since my parents went a few years ago) and was able to book a flight and get the time off of work to meet her there for a week.
I could spend hours of your time telling crazy stories about some messes we got ourselves into there but will just hit the highlights – both good and bad.
We rented a car (please PLEASE rent a 4 wheel drive SUV if you are inspired enough to take a trip like this. We did not.) and drove from San Jose to Manuel Antonio, about 4 hours down the Pacific Coast. It was BEAUTIFUL!! We hired an amazing guide who took us on a 2 hour hike through the national park and used her telescope to point out all of these adorable/scary/gross animals and took these awesome pictures. Don’t they look like they could be in a National Geographic magazine? Those monkeys were the cutest and hung out right there on the beach. We also did some relaxing on the beach and at our beautiful hotel.
Paradise
Best tour guide in Manuel Antonio
Three toed sloth with BABY!!
Some exotic lizard - I think its the kind that they call the Jesus lizard because it can run on top of water. Check out the huge webbed feet.
Some exotic crab
Cutest monkeys ever!!
Costa Rica, could you be more beautiful? Please?
2 days later we packed up and drove the 6, yes SIX, hours to La Fortuna/Arenal area to see the volcano. According to our books, it is the 3rd most active volcano in the world. Unfortunately, we were only there for a day and a half and it was too cloudy (as it usually is there) to see the cone of the volcano or any lava. But we didn’t let our precious time go to waste. We got a volcanic mud wrap treatment done and got to sit in some thermal spas. Be still, my heart. Has your skin ever felt like butter? If not, head to the Occidental Spa immediately and have a clay wrap done (make sure to ask for a disposal swim suit, hah).
*Note about the drive to La Fortuna – scariest thing EVER!!! The roads are terrible, not paved, full of potholes, narrow, on the sides of huge valleys, not lit or well marked. I could go on. Thank goodness for GPS and Naomi’s fearless driving. Our car was a little worn out after the trek and suffered from a flat tire which the people at our hotel were SO gracious to fix.
The alleged "road" that the GPS tried to make me drive on. I am currently in full on PANIC mode while Naomi is snapping pictures. Notice that directly to the right of the headlights is a stream, which the GPS politely directed me to turn into. Full on, RUNNING WATER, ROCK FILLED, COMPLETELY UNDRIVABLE stream. Naomi had to reverse a few hundred feet on this "road" to get back to an actual "road". Not to be dramatic, but I thought I might just die that night in the jungle.
Ticos doing what they do best: being friendly, helpful and hospitable. By fixing the silly American girls' tire.
Potholes, anybody?
Trust me that beneath the layer of clouds is a bubbling, flowing, lava filled volcano.
Next, we packed the car and went to Monteverde, the Cloud Forest. A cloud forest is similar to a rainforest, but the canopy is enveloped in a layer of – imagine this – CLOUDS! But it has all of the lush biodiversity of a rainforest. We stayed at the most unique, hospitable “hotel without being a hotel” which was an experience in itself. I could have stayed there for the entire time. But we didn’t. We did a Zip Line Canopy Tour. It was outrageous. By far, the craziest thing I’ve ever done. In particular, the Tarzan swing and the Superman. Talk about an adrenaline rush! Check out the link and watch the videos to get the full effect.
The next morning we woke up early (after our cabin survived a wind storm during the night) and took a horseback riding tour down to a private waterfall. It was just Naomi, me and our guide. He hardly spoke English but was so sweet and he helped us fight the current and climb up to the waterfall before he prepared a picnic on the banks of the stream for us. Sounds romantic, right? Hah. It looked like it could have been a scene from the Bachelor!
Our horse trainer cutting up a fresh pineapple for lunch. (He does have on a little swimsuit. But it didn't quite make the picture)
The rainbow stretched all the way across the sky from any angle.
Enjoying our picnic lunch
Our private stream and waterfall from afar
That afternoon we had to head back to San Jose, where we spent the night with a missionary and his family. The next morning we woke up before the crack of dawn, returned our beaten up rental car and flew back to the states.
The trip was NOT a relaxing, tropical vacation but it was amazing still. Another highlight of the trip was all of the people we met. Costa Rica is so different from anywhere else that I’ve been in the fact that it is NOT A TOURIST TRAP!! I didn’t see a single Starbucks there (Gasp). It’s not a beach like Cozumel or Cabo where they cater to tourists. The Ticos are proud of their culture and country and want nothing more than to welcome you into it. It was the friendliest country I’ve ever been to. I found this article when I got back that says that Costa Rica is the Happiest Nation on Earth. I can see myself living there and being happy : )
4. Between all of my working and traveling, I decided to ride the MS 150! I am really excited about this! It’s a 150 mile bike ride from Houston to Austin on April 17-18. I have started to take spin classes, borrowed a road bike from a friend at work and am riding with my friend, Katie (you also may remember her from Europe) on the weekends. I am on a team with my company so I’ll know a few people there. I’ve never made (or had the desire to make) any sort of athletic goal like this. I’m more the type that likes to go at a leisurely pace on the treadmill a few days a week to stay in some resemblance of “good”shape. This is going to be a challenge, but one that I think I am fully capable of doing with some hard work and dedication. But of course, its not all about me. I’m very motivated by the cause and am excited to have the chance to ride for somebody who is affected with Multiple Sclerosis. I can’t think of a better reason to ride than just BECAUSE I HAVE THE CAPABILITY TO DO SO!!! Here is a link to my bio page just incase anybody is interested and/or would like to donate towards my fundraising goal!
Whew, what a wild ride through the past 7 months. Catch your breath, people. And don’t hold it waiting for my next blog post : )
