A Photo Montage

I'm feeling incredibly guilty about not writing anything inspiring or witty today. But for some reason, I'm just not feeling it. I uploaded these pics and sat here, attempting to channel my best creative juices. But I've got nothin'. So in lieu of a word-heavy post detailing all the fun goings-on, here's a photojournal of our Christmas holiday.

I think that sums it up pretty well. Happy Holidays, and here's to twenty-ten! Cheers!

One day (and one surgery) at a time...

Hello All,
I had such high hopes of writing post after post after post to make up for lost time. But I find that I am enjoying my time off so much that I haven't gotten to that. Although, I have lots of new info to share, as it's been a busy couple weeks.

First and foremost, a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my amazing stepmom, Karyn. Hope you have an absolutely wonderful day and an enjoyable week off!!!!

Well, I am officially finished with my first semester of grad school. One down, three to go. I have been tossing around the idea of going on to get my DSW (Doctorate in Social Work), because if I am going to do so, I have to start thinking about my thesis right now. Most schools only accept 7-10 students per year, so it's a highly competitive program. Although that thought is in the back of my mind, I can't get ahead of myself, because so much could change in the next 17 months. Summer 2011 is going to be a busy time, between Trevor's High School graduation, Mom & Jeff's 20th Wedding Anniversary, Mother's Day, and my birthday, which all fall within about 3 weeks of each other. I have been crossing my fingers that Trev's graduation and mine will not fall on the same day.

Moving along to other (not so great) news, I am looking at having to have a couple more surgeries in 2010, much to my dismay. No need to worry, both of these surgeries are outpatient and relatively minor, and not related in any way to the Great Lump Scare of '09. I thought 2009 was the end of the surgery business, but I was wrong. It's always something, right? Anyway, those of you who are familiar with my history know that I have bad sinuses. I've had two previous surgeries to fix structural problems, and my Ear, Nose, and Throat Doc is recommending one more to address some swelling and infection issues. I'm trying to get this one scheduled for January, so I can get it over with before school starts again. I also have to get a gum graft done sometime this year (might be pushing that one off until the summer). One surgery at a time, that's how I roll. ;)

Otherwise, we have been super busy around here getting ready for Christmas. Both Lori and Michelle will be joining us, in about 12 hours actually. We actually spent the better part of Sunday cleaning and getting everything ready. My wonderful hubbs, God bless him, spent about 8 hours helping me do an intense deep clean on Sunday. What a good man he is. :)

And with that, I guess I will wrap things up. Happy Holidays to all of our dear family and friends!!! We are so grateful to have you all in our lives!

Blogging is my Therapy

Because of my chosen line of work, I'm very well aware of the fact that everyone has to have some form of release. Some people do yoga, some people drink, some people take drives. I write. I don't just write bits and pieces here and there. I vomit words onto paper (believe me, I have notebook upon notebook from my middle school and high school years in a box in the garage to prove it).

You might even say that writing is my therapy. Blogging has actually been my first experience at putting some of these words out there for others to read, analyze, scrutinize, whatever.

The fact I've been too busy even to blog speaks volumes about the current state of my mental well-being. To say that I am all out of sorts is a gross understatement.

Lately I've been feeling as if I'm going to explode because I have so many thoughts, so many words, that need to be released. So consider this blog post as my mini crisis session, to get me through the next week until I can sit down and return to my previous state of conducting weekly (and sometimes bi-weekly) "sessions" with y'all. I promise that I will be back and better than ever, after Tuesday December 15th at approximately 5:55pm (but who's keeping track???).

::6 more days, 6 more days, 6 more days::

Hello Blog?? It's me, Randi.

Hello there, blog. It's me, Randi. You know, the one who used to write entries all the time?? I'm so sorry if you feel ignored lately. But I promise, I'm going to make it up to you starting RIGHT NOW.

I'm finally getting around to posting some pictures from our weekend in Las Vegas. What a great trip full of great food, great drinks, and great friends! I'm convinced that having a stress reliever like this midway through the semester is just what the doctor ordered!

Here's the view from our room at Planet Hollywood:

And, a beautiful sunset on the strip, a little blurry, but I'd say it's a fitting depcition how a weekend in Vegas usually plays out.

And here's us at dinner at my all-time favorite sushi place, RA. Thank you, Christie, for introducing me to this place a few years back. My life has not been the same since. :)

There were other people on this trip besides us, and I did take lots of pictures. But they were more towards the end of the night, and, well, you know how that goes when you're in Sin City...

Coming soon: pics of Lake Tahoe!!! Stay tuned.

V-E-G-A-S!!!!!

::insert "A Little Less Conversation, A Little More Action" theme song here::

So today is the big day we have been waiting for since this summer. Time to meet up with our Bozeman friends in Las Vegas! woohooo!!!!! Guess who needs a vacation??? This girl right here. If only I could figure out how to do away with this guilt that's plaguing me over taking a few days off from reading textbooks and writing papers. Pat keeps assuring me that once I we approach the runway conveniently located right behind the strip, glass of wine in hand, all my worries will disappear. I guess Vegas has a way of doing that to you.

Pictures to come...

I got nothin'

For all those who are worried (or maybe 'annoyed' would be a better word), yes I am still here. I've had a few people comment about how I haven't updated in awhile.

Let's see...
Two weekends ago, Lori came to visit. We had a blast, doing some shopping, eating a few meals out, and going to Apple Hill (a local series of small wineries, apple orchards, and pumpkin patches). Unfortunately, the whole time she was here, we did not take one picture with our camera. Big fat FAIL on our part.

We celebrated Pat's 27th birthday while Lori was here. Pat doesn't like to make a huge fuss about his birthday, so we kept it pretty low-key.

Other than that, just plugging along. We will be meeting some of our Bozeman friends in Vegas next weekend, and it's going to be a blast!!!! But weekend vacations during the schoolyear=lots of preparation work ahead of time for me, so I best get back to my schoolwork. I'll try my best to actually take some pics during this trip (Am I even related to my mother????)

Oh, and for those of you who are curious, I did NOT contract H1N1...yet. It has spread very quickly here, though, so I'm sure it's just a matter of time. Speaking of which, have you heard about this? I love NPR, by the way, it's really the only news source I read anymore.

Til next time...

Awesome.

Guess how I spent this morning? In a tiny room in close quarters with a kid who is sick with the flu. I didn't think much of it, until we got to work and I realized he was still wearing the wristband from being admitted to the hospital after testing positive for H1N1 (he was released on Sunday night).

Now I generally think that the media has instilled a lot more hysteria in this Swine Flu business because someone behind the scenes has ulterior motives (which is not to say that I wouldn't immunize our children if we had children). But I personally know about five people who have contracted H1N1, took a few days off, and bounced back within a week or so. I just really, really, REALLY cannot afford to get sick right now.

Immune system, don't fail me now!!!!!

Please send your healthy vibes my way. That is all.

::healthy thoughts, healthy thoughts, healthy thoughts::

I'm supposed to be writing a paper...

...but I need a little break.

I ran across a verse the other day that really resonates with me. In fact, I printed a copy of it that is hung at my desk at work. It's a verse from the Bible, and it represents a way of interacting with others that provides an alternative to the way our culture (and government specifically) has historically treated certain groups of people.

"If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend your lives on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday."
~Isaiah 58:9-10

This represents something really powerful to me. In fact, it almost brings me to tears to think about how things could change for the better if we all chose to live by these words.

Grad school has required me to do a lot of self-reflection, looking inward to examine myself and how my beliefs and actions could influence my professional practice. I'm not going to lie, it has been a difficult process. It is tough when you come to terms with the fact that you've acted in ways that have oppressed the very people that you could one day be serving. There's an intrinsic sense of guilt that is pushed to the forefront, and it's hard to get past thoughts and behaviors of the past to move to a place of acceptance and self-forgiveness. In fact, I don't know that I will ever reach this place.

It makes me sad to think that not everyone is forced to engage in this same level of self-examination. Being forced to challenge the beliefs you've internalized over the course of a lifetime is HARD work! But it's also empowering and motivating. Some of my opinions have changed drastically. And some have been reinforced. And many others will continue to evolve over the course of my lifetime.

My schooling has challenged me in ways I never thought possible, and it's still only the first semester! But I can't wait for what lies ahead. Life is nothing if not exciting and unpredictable.

I love this man

Right after I posted about my, ahem, flabbiness, I had Pat read what I had posted. And as I was bopping about the house, doing dishes and finishing laundry, he proceeded to tell me how crazy I am for writing what I wrote. This is why I married this man, people! I ♥ my husband. That is all.

The Next Time You See Me...

This post is to serve as a warning to all family and friends that the next time you see me, I may not be the same Randi you all know and love. Well, I will be in spirit, but probably not in body. Allow me to further explain.

This is what my typical schedule looks like:
Monday-work all day, homework in the evening
Tuesday-work in the morning, then classes 3-9:20
Wednesday-work all day, class 6:30-9:00
Thursday-internship all day, homework in the evening
Friday-internship all day, homework in the evening
Saturday-varies, usually consists of at least a few hours of homework and some quality time with my hubbs, and I have class all day one Saturday per month
Sunday-housework day! chores, cooking for the week, laundry, and, yep, you guessed it, more homework

What I am trying to say is that any activity or hobby I may have had pre-GS (grad school) no longer exists. In the interest of time management, I've been forced to trim the fat (pardon the pun), and cut out anything in my life that takes time and is not absolutely necessary. That includes working out. Thus the change in my physical appearance that you may notice the next time you see me in person. I know I was never the most toned person to begin with (and these Rockafellow bat wings seem to only add insult to injury), but please do not be alarmed when you see the old Randi + a few extra pounds. I want to keep up with my workout routine, I really do. But at the end of a long day, if I have time for myself (which is rare these days), I just want to cuddle with my husband and relax, DANG IT! I think I deserve that, no??

So to all the friends we will be meeting in Vegas in about a month (::SQUEEEEEEE!!!!), to my dear mother-in-law Lori who is coming to visit in 2 weeks, and to my family, who we will be seeing over Thanksgiving: please go easy on me (I know you all will).

Until next time,

This will make you smile.

I regret to inform my loyal readers that I don't really have anything new and exciting to report this week. Here's what my schedule looks like:
Work/Internship, Class, Workout (if I feel up to it), Read/Homework, Sleep, Repeat
Pretty boring, huh?

I do, however, feel compelled to share my new tv obsession with y'all. I came home last night to find my husband watching a show on Fox called "Glee". After giving him a hard time for a few minutes about watching a musical-comedy tv show, I found myself getting drawn in. And by the time the episode ended, I was howling with laughter (much like my mother is known to do).

Please, I'm begging you, watch this clip!!! You will not regret it. There are few things funnier in this world than the sight of a high school football team performing a choreographed dance routine to Beyonce's "Single Ladies". You'll have to FF to about 2:30 to get to the dance routine. If you watch the beginning without having watched the whole episode, it probably won't make much sense.



That's all for now.

A Castle Fit for a King & A Dream Fulfilled

Usually I would try to come up with some witty lead-in. But as I wipe the sleep from my eyes, I realize that I am just.too.tired. Please prepare yourselves for the randomness that is this blog post. Ordinarily, I would have the time to post about all of these things separately, but since my time is not my own anymore, I'm going to jumble them all into one post. Bear with me, folks.

First things first, I thought my parents might appreciate a picture of my first day of grad school.

With the first two weeks of school under my belt, I'm feeling pretty good.

We decided to head south for Labor Day Weekend. I still spent a good chunk of the weekend getting my reading done for school, but we were able to take one day to visit the Hearst Castle in San Simeon. Just to give you a brief history, during their heyday in the early 1900's, the Hearst family owned approximately one fifth of all newspapers in the United States, plus 8 radio stations, movie studios, and a magazine publishing company (which the family still owns and includes such magazines as Good Housekeeping, Town & Country, and Cosmopolitan). William Randolph Hearst inherited over 250,000 acres of land when his mother passed away, and he decided to build a 60,000+ square foot castle into the mountainside. Ever seen the movie Citizen Kane? That movie is said to portray Hearst's eccentric personality. Anyway, when he passed away in 1951, the family donated the property to the state of California. Actually, they still own the property itself, but they allow the state to use the castle as a historical monument. (Only in California can your house turn into a historical monument simply because of the fact that you inherited a large fortune that was built primarily by your predecessors. But I digress.) This place is truly something to see!

Although this looks like a church, this is actually the front entrance of the house.

Here is the view of the ocean from the house. My lens was dirty, so pardon the smudge.

Here is the dining room. Interesting story behind this: Hearst sat in the very center, with new guests sitting next to and across from him. When Hearst would extend invitations for weekend visits, guests were expected to move one chair further away each time they came. When they reached the end of the table, they had overstayed their welcome and were not invited back.

The Roman Bath House. A portion of these tiles (the yellow ones) were actually made of 24-karat gold, and this entire room is covered in tile from the bottom of the pool, to the walls, to the ceiling.

Here we are by the outdoor pool. This was my favorite part! It's hard to capture the beauty of this pool with a camera.

Ok, onto other things. Last night we attended a concert that I have been looking forward to for months! One of my favorite bands since middle school broke up a few years back and then decided to get back together and do a reunion tour. I know most of you who read this are not huge punk fans, so I'll keep it short. We got to see Taking Back Sunday, Weezer, and, ::drumroll please:: Blink-182!!! The concert lived up to all my expectations. Here's a pic of Pat & I on the lawn. (I just realized that Pat is wearing the same shirt in the Hearst Castle pics as he is in the concert picture below. He does own other shirts, I swear. He just happens to really like that one.)

Alright, I think that's it for updates. It's hard to believe that we've crammed so much into the last few weeks.

To quote one of my favorite songs, "I'm alive and well," and life is very good right now. Peace out.

Ho-ly Crap.

Well I can officially say that the duties and responsibilities of my new life as a worker/grad student/intern hit me smack dab in the face this week. Hard. Like a knock-the-wind-out-of-you and then blow-your-socks-off hard.

Each of my classes require at least 3 hours of reading each week. Multiply that by 4 classes, and that's 12 hours of reading!!!!! In fact, in the last 24 hours alone, I have read a whole book, start to finish. (It's called The Working Poor by David K. Shipler, and it's a must-read for every American who desires to more fully understand the way that the economy affects the lowest wage earners in this country.)

Although this feeling of being overwhelmed and anxiety-ridden is sure to stick around for the next two years, I truly feel blessed to be involved in such an esteemed, competitive program.

And now, dear friends and family, I must log off so that I may attend to the 300+ pages of reading that has staged a hostile takeover of my so-called "holiday weekend".

I'm a Big Girl Now

Tuition fees, paid.
Parking permit, bought.
Textbooks, purchased.
School supplies, check.

And in regards to my internship, I officially have my own caseload. Scary.

Holy cow, this is really happening!!!

T minus 2 days until my first class and my official entrance into graduate school.

::Randi grabs paper bag. Breathe in, breathe out. Repeat.::

Blogging About Politics. And my Favorite Things.

Before you get the wrong impression of this post because of its title, please know that blogging about politics is NOT one of my favorite things. I've never been the type of person who has strong political affiliations. Don't get me wrong, I do have opinions about certain issues (and candidates, for that matter), but the point of this blog is not for me to preach about my own opinions.

So I vowed to myself, for the sake of my readers, that I would never post anything political on my blog. And I intend to keep that promise. But you all should know that I am having a very hard time doing so because of one particular issue that I feel strongly about involving health care reform. Those of you who know me well know how I feel this way, and why I feel this way, because of the state that I live in and the exposure that I've had to underprivileged populations, along with my own experience with health care costs and dealings with a greedy insurance company who can't seem to ever make an error in my favor.

So with that, I will change the subject. Keeping with your suggestions (thank you to all who commented on my last post), here is my current list of my Favorite Things, with some pictures included:

• The Nest Great website for finding recipes, getting decorating ideas, and overall just being a newlywed.
• half.com This website has awesome deals on textbooks!!!
• I've been swooning over this entertainment stand for about a year now. One of these days we might actually buy it.

• My new laptop!!!!! It's a Dell Studio 14 and I ♥ it!!! I bought it in red for school.

• This Moroccan Oil Hydrating Mask. It smells sooooo good, and it works on any hair type!

• These books, which are a few of my summer reads:

Beautiful Boy by David Sheff

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Hope's Boy by Andrew Bridge

Okay, I think that is all for now. Keep those comments comin'!

Hello Out There!!!!!!

Is anybody there???

I swear that I can hear the echo of my own voice in this place.

Is it because my posts have been dreadfully boring???? I sure hope not. But if that is the case, I welcome feedback and helpful criticism on topics that may be, more, well, interesting & entertaining.

When no one leaves comments on my posts, that leads me to believe that no one is even reading the blog anymore.

::insert whiney temper tantrum here::

Here's an idea, if you read my posts and like or dislike the content, leave me a comment! Please, I beg of you!!!!!

That is all.

My Dearest Mother

Today, August 11th, celebrates the anniversary of the day my mother was brought into the world. This year is a particularly important birthday for her (although I won't mention specifics), so I thought it fitting to mark this momentous occasion with a post dedicated to my amazing mother, who's always been my role model for what a great wife and mom looks like. (She's also one hell of a strong woman!!!)

Allow me to clear my throat.

:: ahem ::

"Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday Dear Mah-ahm, Happy Birthday to you!!!!!"

I love you Mom!!!!!

A Compilation of Sorts

The post you are about to read has absolutely nothing to do with anything that is going on in the lives of P & R right now. Our personal lives are a bit in shambles right now, due to some family issues, and I've spent the better part of last week trying to fly under the radar, because blogging about what's really going on around here could cause some serious drama. So instead I'm going to add an entry that I hope will humor y'all.

Our local newspaper in Montana, the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, is overall a reputable newspaper (as far as small-town news media goes). However, the content included in the daily police reports is one exception. My older brother made somewhat of a game out of taping the particularly hilarious ones to the door of his bedroom, a tradition which I continued when that bedroom became mine. So during our last visit home, my mom gave me a stack of police report pages that she had saved for me. Instead of keeping the hilarity to myself, I'm going to do my good deed for society by sharing them with everyone. Please understand that this post is meant to be taken sarcastically, and with a grain of salt.

Enjoy!

• June 6th, 2009: "A woman reported that someone is dumping their trash in her dumpster. She said she went through the trash and found evidence of possible suspects."
• June 7th, 2009: "Police arrested a 39-year old Bozeman pickup driver for assault and cited a 37-year old Bozeman bicyclist for disorderly conduct after the bicyclist became upset, believing the truck had cut him off. The two exchanged words, the bicyclist said the driver should have respect for bikes, then ran the front of his bike into the truck. The driver jumped out and punched the bicyclist five to eight times in the face."
• June 7th, 2009: "A woman reported to police her ex-boyfriend was threatening to let her birds go while she was out of town. However, the birds did not appear to have been released." (Phew, I was worried)
• June 8th, 2009: "A man in a red sports car convertible was reported for asking two small girls to find his small dog. An officer determined he really was looking for his dog."
• June 8th, 2009: "Domestic abuse was reported on River Road, where a daughter said her 56-year old mother had been drinking and hitting her (NOT funny). There were no weapons, she said, but stated that her mother is a weapon (hilarious)."
• June 9th, 2009: "A boy tipped over a porta-potty in Kirk Park around 1pm. His parents were notified and the porta-potty was returned to its upright position and cleaned." (Thank goodness those of you who regularly use the restroom in Kirk Park can pee in confidence).
• June 12th, 2009: "A man was seen behind the mall around 10 am with something over his head doing push-ups and stretching. He was waiting for the theater to open."
• June 17th, 2009: "Four of five high school kids with flashlights near a trailer court on East Griffin Drive 'looked like they were up to no good', according to authorities." (Oh dear God, no!!!! Someone call 9-1-1!!!!!)
• June 18th, 2009: "A deputy checked on a man who was shining a flashlight outside on Pebblebrook Road around 12:30am. The man was searching for his keys and 'unfortunately the deputy was not much help in locating the keys either.' " (darn!)
• June 18th, 2009: "Several gallons of red Jell-O were dumped into a boat parked on Sunfield Drive staining the seats and carpet 'as well as leaving a very large sticky mess.' The case is being investigated."
• June 20th, 2009: "A resident of Boylan Road asked to speak with an officer 'about noise associated with tee time at the golf course'." (Boo)
• June 21, 2009: "Bags of 'poo' were left on a Highland Blvd. resident's doorstep several times before he called it in. He also advised officers that one bag came with a note asking him to pick up his dog's 'poo'." (Dear dog owners: please pick up your 'poo', lest you risk ending up with your dog's 'poo in a bag on your doorstep)
• June 25th, 2009: "A woman couldn't stain her deck because three dogs were running loose in the area. She described them as a 'beagle, a little white hairy thing, and a medium white hairy thing'." (Thank you, ma'am, for such a helpful description!)

And now for my personal favorite. Believe me, this one is a true gem.

::drumroll please::

• June 15th, 2009: "A person reported his brother was calling him nonstop and conversing about nonsensical topics such as two-handed swords and Kentucky Fried Chicken. The person requested a welfare check after the conversation topics got more serious."

The previous message was brought to you by the folks at the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, who apparently have nothing better to do than post the minute details of every single random police report (ridiculous, irrelevant content included at no extra charge).

Happy Monday!

Home (aka Montucky, Bozeangeles, MAN-tana, Livingstone, etc etc)

Whew, I cannot believe how quickly this summer is going by! I feel like just yesterday I was whining and complaining about being bored, and all of a sudden I blinked and July was over. This has been, by far, the busiest month we've had in the 2 years we've lived here. Between the ongoing recovery process, Bakersfield for the 4th, having family in town, San Fran for a weekend trip, my Portland trip to visit one of my best friends, and then Montana for a week, this month has been packed full of excitement!

I can never seem to take enough pictures of Paradise Valley when we are visiting Montana. I have hundreds of pictures of this place I love so much. Here is my favorite from this trip:



Here are some pics of our floating adventure on the Yellowstone. The river was really brown and blown-out. And believe me, the water was smokin'. But luckily, the weather held out for us and we had a great float!



We spent a few days at Pine Creek camping and enjoying the mild weather. (Pine Creek is the campground right up the road from our wedding site, FYI). This place holds lots of memories for me, and it always makes me feel nostaligic to spend time here. I truly had a blessed childhood to be able to grow up in such a beautiful place.

We took a walk down to the church camp and attempted to recreate some of our wedding photos.


Recognize this road???

As much as I detest sitting in the car for 15 hours on the drive to and from Montana, I love having this time to talk about anything and everything with the best conversational partner a girl could ask for. :) On our long drive back, we discussed (among other things) the feeling of being out-of-staters for the first time since we moved away. Although I miss my family terribly, this is the first time I was truly happy to return to California and all the things the future has in store for us. Although Montana is "home", I can't shake the feeling that home has become more about where my husband is than where I grew up. This is where we have built a life as husband and wife. Someday, we hope to continue that life in Montana. But for now, home is California.