The first three weeks of January are part of the break between semesters at UM. It is a perfect time for Mike to do research, for me to focus on my non-university work, and for us to squeeze in some skiing and travel.
We spent January 1st decompressing from our trip to Panama and watching college bowl games. It was just what we needed so we could jump into preparations for our next adventures.
Skiing Lookout Pass
Our first adventure of 2008 was a ski trip to Lookout Pass with our new friend Jenn. It was s crazy snow day but the newfallen snow was HEAVY. Nevertheless, we managed to enjoy ourselves by exploring both the Montana side of the mountain and the trees on the Idaho side of the mountain. The day was leisurely. We left Missoula mid-morning and, because Idaho is in a different timezone, we were not far from first tracks when we arrived. The trip home made us giggle because I-90in western Montana (and its traffic) is drastically different from our ski commute along Colorado's I-70.
When we returned to Missoula we went with Jenn for a traditional apres-ski beverage at Missoula brewery, the Kettlehouse. The first apres-ski beer turned into three more beers and hours of laughter.
Boulder
The next day Mike left Missoula for a two-week stint at NIST in Boulder. As far as I can tell he worked 12 of the 14 days he was there and every evening he spent catching up with his friends. Four notable things stand out about Mike's trip:
- One of Mike's days off was spent skiing a powder day at Vail. As we all know Mike is happiest when he's skiing so skiing a powder day at Vail assures me that he made the most of his day off.
- Secondly, Mike spent his evenings with his friends from Colorado who have been sorely missed since we left. They hopped from bar to restaurant to bar. In fact, he went to his favorite restaurant in Boulder, called Amu, so often that they know him by name and are looking forward to his return this summer.
- That's right; this summer. While Mike was in Boulder, NIST received their budget and invited him to return to do summer research. Mike was so pleased that he celebrated this news with everyone in Boulder as well as his parents before I got to hear! We will be in Boulder June, July, and the beginning of August.
- Lastly, when he wasn't out on the town for dinner, Mike was enjoying dinner parties. Alena cooked a wonderful meal, which included a carrot and champagne soup that stole Mike's heart. On a different evening, Mike prepared coq au vin at Tom and Kari's house.
The reason I was the last to hear the news about spending the summer in Boulder was because I was preoccupied with my own adventure. Two days after Mike's departure I flew to San Diego.
San Diego
My trip to San Diego to visit Alex was long overdue. He has lived and worked in southern California for over a year. It is Alex's first experience living away from Michigan and probably could have used a friendly face earlier. I should have remembered what it was like to leave Michigan and then leave Wisconsin bound for places where I knew only Mike...and Alex didn't even have a partner in first adventure away from home. That, I regret. The trip was fabulous! I think Alex and I have reached a point where we can enjoy living with each other again.
I arrived on a Monday afternoon while Alex was at work for the Border Patrol. I took a cab to Alex's apartment and let myself in. Alex's apartment is on the ground floor of a two-story building. I walked into the courtyard, past potted plants and open-air stair cases to Alex's door. Inside I found a small but comfortable one bedroom apartment. The first thing I noticed was a large oil painting of ocean waves rolling during sunset. On my left was the living room, which was filled with a couch, coffee table, big screen TV and bookshelf filled with philosophy books. On my right was a little nook separated from the living room by a screen. Behind the screen were surf boards...I had a feeling I would get to use one. The kitchen was at the rear right corner of the apartment. It reminded me of my kitchen in Ann Arbor. It was small, painted white, with no dishwasher. Alex (courtesy of Mom) had decorated the window ledge with five cacti in crayon colored pots. I found a place for my bags, unpacked some gifts, and sat down to work until Alex got home.
When Alex got home he took me to eat at a sports bar in ocean Beach. We had beer and fish before walking out to a pier. There was the Pacific ocean. I got to see it twice in a week and I felt so happy.
On Tuesday Alex had to work and so did I. After he left I walked northeast towards where I thought I would find some coffee houses. I only found a couple Starbucks (I must have been on the wrong block) and so I settled for Whole Foods as my morning workplace. When lunchtime rolled around I decided to leave Whole Foods in search of some sushi. I got myself lost and then asked for a recommendation for a place to eat. By heading back towards Whole Foods I came across Sushi Deli - a place Alex had mentioned before. The line was out the door so I figured it was a good bet. Sure enough, the sushi was tasty, but not as good as I hoped. On my way home I found a little cheese store. The night before Alex had mentioned that he really liked cheddar cheese and to my delight the little cheese store carried my favorite cheddar cheese from Wisconsin. So I bought a little as a treat and commended the buyer for her taste in cheese. I served the cheese with a chicken stew that I made for dinner that night.
Wednesday and Thursday are Alex's days off and we had a trip to Mexico planned. In the morning on Wednesday we got up and Alex took me for a tour of the mountains where he patrols and arrests/rescues illegal immigrants. On our way there he pointed out civilian homes and told me about some of the civilians who help Border Patrol to apprehend illegal immigrants who come walking through their yards and other civilians who give refugre to illegals during their trip into the US. He sure has his work cut out for him. Alex pointed out the trails that have been carved into the mountains by illegals walking through the mountains at night or out of sight of patrol. He pointed out trash left by illegals and told stories about how he has found them...sometimes easily when they walk down the patrol road and sometimes under chase. He showed me Tijuana, the jails, and the wall.
Then we drove to Rosarito, Mexico. Mr. R gave Alex permission to use the beach front condo in Rosarito whenever he wants. We took our luggage up, soaked in the view, and then walked downtown to check out the local digs. January in Rosarito is slow. Many of the shops and restaurants were closed so we found our way into a little "fast food" place called "Sports Tacos." They made our orders right in front of us, including crazy amounts of fresh guacamole. On a quick pass through the market I saw one place that sells the beaded art that piqued Mike's interest when we were in Puerto Vallarta a year before. But I was too tired to barter. After a nap in Mr. R's condo I was ready. So Alex and I returned to the market and bought some Mexican goods. Then Alex took me to a fancy restaurant. Our table had an umbrella and it was situated next to an indoor waterfall. I ordered mesquite chicken and, to my surprise, I got half a chicken! Yummy!
On Thursday we woke up early and took a little driving tour around Tijuana looking for the shortest line to cross the border. Even in the short line the traffic was pretty amazing. Mexicans can earn a living serving food and drinks to the people stuck sitting in traffic...and they do. Just like all adults Alex had to run some errands on his day off. So we got new windshield wipers, went by the Secretary of State to renew the plates on his Jeep and then went on a wild goose chase for some combat gloves. By lunchtime we were both hungry and our nerves were wearing thin but we managed to get through it without any drama. Oh what a lunch! Alex took me to Point Loma Seafoods for lunch. Point Loma Seafoods is primarily a seafood store but also serves as a seafood deli. I had a crab sandwich that was to die for! Real crab and a creamy dressing, served on fresh sourdough bread...oh yeah! After lunch we went home to unwind and digest a little and then we went up to Balboa Park and walked around for a while. Balboa was like the Louvre because you could spend a week there and just dent the list of things to see and do. We spent our time walking around the gardens. After the sun set we went for a short bar hop from the High Dive to an English Pub.
On Friday we worked. But to my surprise Alex got home before 5PM to take me surfing at La Jolla. Surfing La Jolla with Alex at sunset was the best part of the trip. It was so poetic. We floated out on the water as the sun turned the sky hues of pink and orange. On occasion we would catch a wave. Of course, I never actually managed to stand up but it just didn't matter. Surfing is my new favorite sport.
After working in the morning on Saturday I decided to explore Alex's neighborhood by going for a jog. So I ran to and through Balboa Park, around the zoo, and back. It was a much longer run than I had planned but it was a lovely tour of his little area. When Alex got home he was pretty wiped out. He felt bad that he couldn't entertain me but I assured him that he should sleep if he was tired and that I was happy just to be spending the week with him in his everyday life.
I worked in the morning again on Sunday but decided to give myself the entire afternoon off. I packed my backpack with my camera, the novel titled "Snow," and a pad of paper and a pencil and went walking. I found David's Coffee House where I settled in with some coffee and a piece of baklava to read. However, when I overheard some young men questioning why someone would ever want to get married I had to respond by writing a poem. It was the first time I had ever had the urge to do such a thing but the urge was so strong that I embraced it. Afterwards, I was so astounded by the experience of writing a poem that, instead of reading, I decided to sit and listen to the pianist play folksy tunes on the mini grand piano inside.
I left David's Coffee House to return to Balboa Park. On my way there and to my delight Chithra called. So I chatted with my old friend while strolling through the gardens. We discussed books, work, family...all the good things friends share.
Between work in the morning, my poem-writing in the afternoon, and my stroll with Chithra in the park I thought I had had quite a day. When Alex got home we added a forth chapter to the day. We went to Longboards bar in Pacific Beach for live California reggae and some Red Stripe with Alex's friend Chris.
Monday was my last day and Alex took the day off to spend it with me. (I was thrilled!) He took me surfing (Again, thrilled!) at Blacks Beach which we accessed by driving from La Jolla, past the UCSD, to park at Torrey's Pines. Then we carried our boards 30 minutes down some treacherous stairs to a very private (nude) beach. The waves were more treacherous than the stairs. They didn't tumble in parallel to the beach. They came from every direction and the undertow was wicked. But I paddled out and tried to catch a few waves...tumbling under water several times. After getting dizzy enough I decided to lay on the beach and soak in the rays.
When Alex had tumbled too many times he joined me back on dry land and we hiked out of the Blacks Beach to the car. We visited the seals sunning on the beach and then we went home to clean up before meeting Alex's friends - Chris, Miles, and Sean - at La Haina beach bar. Again, I watched the sun set over the Pacific and again it was beautiful. I was so happy to share it with my baby brother! After sunset we hit two more bars with Alex's buddies. Pacific Beach pub and grill and High Dive.
On Tuesday morning Alex dropped me off at the airport before he went to work. With tears in my eyes, I gave Alex a hug goodbye and rolled my luggage into San Diego's airport. I think I cried for more reasons than were obvious at the time. I was happy that I got to visit Alex by myself. I was proud that he was all grown up and living on his own. I was pleasantly surprised that we could live together in close quarters without being cruel to one another. And, of course, I was sad to be leaving my brother. I miss him.
Kicking Off the Semester
Before the start of the semester Jim and Teresa Jacobs with their daughter Marni (a high school senior) hosted a potluck for the physics department. What a spread! There was pulled pork (thanks for pulling Kelly), several salads and side dishes, and a selection of desserts that needed a table all their own. The people, true to form, were delightful. There were more smiles served than food or beverage!
What really stands out about that night for me was the time I spent with Teresa. She shared stories about her life, she shared her artwork, and she taught me about two "new age" ideas that were so compelling that I have been thinking about them ever since: saturn returns and the seven chakras.
A New Way to Understand My Journey
By considering what Teresa shared about what she knows about the return of saturn and the seven chakras and looking them up on the internet I have learned that they represent periods of life during which people grow/mature. Saturan returns during your 28th, 29th, or 30th year. It is a time when you rediscover yourself: you learn/explore/develop authority over yourself and reject other people's power over your fate. Concurrently, you begin to develop your 5th chakra. Chakras are energy centers in your body. The 5th chakra, locaed in your throat, is your creative identity. During the 5th seven years of your life you learn and re-learn how to express yourself.
The notion that a year ago was when I was experiencing the return of Saturn in my life and exploring new ways to express myself shakes me to my core. It helps me to realize that the transformation I was going through last spring was inevitable and that the heartbreak and confusion were just part of growing up. With that in mind, I understand (for the first time) that the people who hurt me weren't the cause of my suffering. They were merely cruel and insensitive people who assume no responsibility to be compassionate toward others. And it was an unfortunate coincidence that I had to know them during such a tumultuous time in my life.
A New Resolution or Just Nurturing My 5th Chakra?
I have decided to return to my blog this year. My aim is to use this blog as a place to share stories, in varying detail, about what happens in my life. It is for my friends and family who live far away as much as it is for me.
