Blog Neglect

It's been a while, but there is much going on in our world. For one, I just finished college. Completely and totally done with furthering my academic pursuits and now I'm looking forward to what the future holds. I'm embracing this new chapter in my life that frankly, I thought may never come. It'll be interesting making money instead of spending it, anyway.

Sam and I are moving out of the apartment that we've called home for three years now. We'll be putting about 50 miles between us and our old home! It's bittersweet. I'm starting to become more and more nostalgic as moving day nears. I find myself paying tribute to the old days, and the six years worth of memories I have made all over Fargo. I think I'll miss downtown the most - all those long, chaotic nights filled with laughter, friends, and pitchers of Honey Weiss. It makes my heart sing. Sam and I seem to be the last to leave this college cozy nest - my closest friends have mostly disappeared into adulthood - taking them all over the state for their very grown up jobs, love interests, etc. It's exciting to be making our big move into our adulthood - a new chapter for Sam and I as well as our kitcats Simon & Leinie.

Fargo is experiencing its annual flood. The dikes are already doing their job, holding the Red at bay. I wont miss this after we move, but I'll miss the March Community Togetherness that encourages Fargo-Moorhead's best. Hopefully we will have timed the move nicely so that we wont have to deal with potential evacuations or traffic concerns. I have faith that things will work out for us.

Today, Sam & I went out for lunch at the Mexican Village where we have spent many margarita fueled nights. It was a quiet, sunny day. And after the rich, heavy food we decided to walk a bit of it off downtown. We took a post lunch stroll to the Main Street bridge that connects our two cities. Standing on all that concrete, looking out at the rebellious Red River was lovely. There was enough wind coming from the North to make the air crisp and make us appreciate the strong spring sun. I took a few photos here and there to commemorate Fargo Flood '10.

From the Main Street bridge, looking over towards Moorhead:


Sam & I:

Ice Fishing - Our First Outing of the Season

Our Sunday afternoon was spent out on a frozen lake in Northern Minnesota. The roads out there were pretty slippery: ice & packed snow, but Sam's a great driver & we made it safely to our fishing destination:)

Hwy 10


We had perfect ice fishing conditions: warm, no wind, and very little snow (plus we had beer). we could easily see the twelve or so feet to the bottom... little bit of fish action... but no one was really having any luck. saw a 5lb Northern though that we would have liked to catch for fun. maybe next time. overall a perfect Sunday afternoon :)

This is how Sam baited my hook... well... it was the only way to bait it because that's where the hook came out of the worm-jigger-lure-thing... I think they made it that way on purpose ;)


That's my lure 12 feet down

Ugly Sweater Parties: All the Rage

It seems as though Ugly Christmas Sweaters have become a primary theme at all the parties this time of year. Which is cool, it puts a playful spin on what would otherwise be your average drinkfest. This year we were invited to Kami & Dan's first annual USP... it was a blast! We played White Elephant with funny gifts, drank something called 'Reindeer Piss' (everclear, apple cider, cinnamon, and nutmeg... delicious... but wow, take it slow!), and just hung around being drunk and festive!

Chelsie & I playing Guitar Heros like the old days!

Sam & I didn't have the time to pick out ugly sweaters for ourselves, and besides, they're usually wiped out by this time of year. And so we opted to wear goofy reindeer headbands that of course lit up.

Us

My friend Chelsie ended up coming down to visit for the weekend & so she, & her boyfriend, got to come along sans ugly sweater. I hadn't been out in so long (probably since Halloween- simply because I've had too much HW or Sam had to work too early) and with some old friends, I was convinced it was 2005... our group's glory days :)

Hmm I should probably go into more detail about the White Elephant game. Everyone attending the party was asked to bring a funny gift, something under $10, to contribute to the present pile that would be passed out according to the numbers that we all drew, and how the stealing aspect worked out. There were gifts such as: KY lube, a REALLY old VCR remote that looked like an early 90's flip phone, a miniature post office facade you could hang as decoration, a few other things I can't seem to remember, and a Wal-mart bag full of empty beer cans and about 2 shots worth of vanilla vodka. And then there was Sam & my present... we basically went around the apartment and threw in some junk we've accumulated over the years such as: 5-6 $1 Wal-Mart DVDs that suck, some sweet glow sticks... you know... for all the Raves that happen around here, a Vertical Hold CD, and the mother of all gifts, one of those water sacs that looks suspiciously like a penis... after white elephant everyone pretty much played with that: throwing it, putting things in it... it was actually pretty gross, but we were all drinking everclear, which made it hilarious. Here's a pic documenting the fun:

White Elephant!


Pictured: Kami, Jim, Chelsie & Chris... & the water 'D.

This party was a wonderful way to ease into the Christmas spirit, infusing it with silliness & good friends we don't get to see nearly often enough! Can't wait for next year's shindig :)

Wiiing in Our Pants

Last Friday Sam came home with a pretty awesome surprise: he bought us a wii. Since then, our days have been spent exploring deserted islands, racing mario karts, and punching/kicking/whipping the air around us. We must look like fools. But the wii has brought a lot of fun back into gaming for us - and by US I mean I will actually play something besides guitar hero.

I always loved my Super Nintendo, so much so that I still play it on the occasional rainy day - dominating Donkey Kong's jungles, or squashing those fucking goombas. But I never quite adjusted to my ps2... Thankfully the wii offers a no-brainer control/nunchuck && classic games that allow me to relive my childhood... or something. It's been a fun four days!

My favorite game so far (maybe because it reminds me of the old versions on SNES and N64) has been Mario Kart. Pure 90's Awesomeness... Updated.

My Fave Yoga Partner

I have recently started my yoga practice back up. I had abandoned it in the summer months, but am now hearing it call my name all over again. Yoga has such a multitude of benefits that I can't ignore: calming, grounding, strengthening, balancing, rewarding characteristics that hold so much appeal & power. And so I hope to practice it faithfully.

After the first session back in the swing of yoga things, I could immediately feel that this peace & connection was what I had been missing in my chaotic days.

Thankfully, whenever I pull out my yoga mat for a sequence, Leinie isn't far behind. He loves to lay on the corner of the mat: twisting, reaching, rolling and purring. I swear it seems like he's trying to do yoga with me. I have a slideshow of his yoga practice today that made me smile :)

Check out YogaJournal.com && their podcasts for sequences, poses & answers to your yoga questions.

Leinie && Simon

Our kit-cats enjoying an unseasonably warm November day out on the balcony.

Halloweenie '09

Sam & I decided to go against tradition, which is to attend some random house party hosted by any one of our friends, and spend this holiday with family & Sam's hometown buds.

Dustin, Mike, Dan & Sam


So we visited the small town hot-spots: the VFW, & a small Pub out on the town's lake. One thing we did keep in tradition was our alcohol intake. It was once again ridiculous, and made November 1st a miserable day to remember. All the day-after pain was worth it, though :) I would elaborate & recount some stories, but noooo sense is to made from them. At all. I vaguely remember all of us declaring that we were going to become fluent in Irish together (Jenny, Dan, Mike, Sam & I), & something about Dustin having a "raging clue..."

Glad we got to see everybody dressed up like d.bags :)