Last week my housemates and I embarked on a five-week spiritual retreat in Ignatian spirituality called Spiritual Exercises in Everyday Living. The retreat runs every Saturday morning for 5 weeks and requires 20 minutes of intentional prayer every other day during the week. The retreat works to integrate the spiritual/religious aspects of our lives with the everyday mundane happenings of everyday life. It focuses on seeing God in everything, and having spiritual experiences outside of church. The program is really amazing already, and encourages candid conversation about our spirituality, where we have come from, and where we hope to go with it.

Through this past week, everyone in my house has spent a decent amount of time in private reflection and prayer, and I think we are all looking forward to tomorrow when we can start our second session.

Work this past week was busy and a bit overwhelming. This was the first time so far that I have had no choice but to work up spanish-only patients. At first I spoke very quietly and mumbled the little bit of spanish that I speak, but by the end of the week, I was more confident in my questions and ability to understand, and communicate on some level with my patients.

Last night I went out to an 80s night with a couple of my co-workers and my housemates. Besides my experience the other day of seeing my patient sleeping on the sidewalk when I was walking home from a late-night coffee run, this was the first time so far that I have looked across a room and seen many of my patients out in public. The 80s night was an eclectic mix of Yakima's best.

This afternoon one of the custodians from work is taking me to Costco because he wants to buy us some meat to eat- for no other reason than out of the goodness of his heart. I can't wait for our little road trip!!!

Lastly, the past two weeks I have spent a lot of time contemplating the idea of voluntary simplicity, and how refreshing of an idea it really is. It is truly amazing how little you need to be happy. Besides a few crucial outfits (for me: gym shorts and a t-shirt and my work scrubs), food, and a book, there is just not that much more that I need to live on. I can easily go a week without checking my email, days without my phone, over a month without turning on a television, over a month without meat or luxurious food, and over a month without taking a car to a destination within 2 miles from my house. These don't even feel like sacrifices as much as they feel like liberations. It is an amazing feeling to sit around on a porch and listen to music together and play cards together and debate exestential questions without having to be connected to the world outside. Granted, i do use my computer and phone to keep in contact- but the idea that I don't need either is an amazingly refreshing feeling.

hmmm cute guy at the coffee shop two weeks in a row. note to self: 10am on Friday mornings- start showering and putting on non-oversized clothing when getting coffee.

I'M A LOCAL!!!

Today I came to the local coffee shop I really like and I had forgotten my wallet, and the barista (is that masculine? I want it to be) gave me a free 'usual' aka small black coffee!!! it made my night. that, and the package my parents sent and the ab workout Jaime just put me through!!!

last weekend rivalled the one before - sorry I can't write much recently- my computer, Boo, is broken, so I'm writing on my itouch- but the blog is blocked on the work network so I can't even publish anything via work wireless. Moving on- Chris Cassidy, aka God, aka the international man of mystery, brought us white water rafting. UNREAL UNREAL. and that's just about the ride, not even including the men. soooo cute! soooo much fun. pics to come. Chris also cooked us a feast that night and bought us coffee that morning. he is Also the man who gives us free season lift passes all winter at white pass (the amazing ski mountain about 45 minutes away)...and he told me he knows a Dr. who specializes in ski-day related doctor's sick notes...

Either way, can't write too much until I get a computer again, but having a blast- hopefully going camping on the river this weekend (possibly toga party with the rafting instructors...?) for my birthday- but only with Grace, Jaime, and Sophie this time. Should be a blast to be in a smaller group. I can't wait!!!

www.myfootprint.org

check it out- more on this to come...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PATRICK!!!

The Catholics Are Here. The Lutherans Will Be Here At 9. The Mennonites Should Be Here Soon.

This past weekend we embarked on our first house visit to another city. This weekend the city of choice was Seattle. After relaxing all day on Friday, the five o’clock bell rang and the crew returned home from work. The house turned into complete chaos as the eight of us showered, packed, figured out food for the next three days, made mix CDs, and filled the car with our stuff. Trips in this van, not fit for 8 grown adults, have always proven adventurous. The people stuffed in the back seat are too cold, the person in front likes Dashboard Confessional, the people in the middle are hot and hate the music, and on and on and on. The growing tension in the car can only be relieved by two things: Werewolves of London and Tiny Dancer - our two go-to house songs. We arrived in Seattle around 7:30, throwing our hosts COMPLETELY off-guard. Nonetheless, the good sports that they are, they started the party right away. There are 8 of them as well in the Cherry Abbey House, so it was really fascinating to compare notes, gossip about house drama, and see all these vaguely familiar faces from orientation. After a long night of cheap beer, Carlo Rossi, Simon & Garfunkel, The Dead, and the Allman Brothers - we passed out. Very, very happily. After waking slowly the next morning we strolled around Seattle, detoxed, saw some of the sights, napped, ate falafel, bought Travels with Charlie for $3 (yep- I haggled it down from 3.50 by pulling out the v-card ...volunteer) and waited for the bigger party on Saturday night.

Saturday night rolled in and so did a four other JV houses from Seattle, Portland, and Gresham, as well as some Lutheran Volunteers (LVs), and a few Mennonite Volunteers. There was a delicious keg donated by some FJVs (former JVs) and a lot more catching up to be done. The night flew by. Needless to say, we didn’t end up leaving at 8:30am as we intended. We rolled out of Seattle around 11am in the pouring rain (MY FAVORITE WEATHER!!!!!) and headed towards Whedby Island, where our landlady, Patty, and her husband, Pat, were waiting for us. They immediately took us out for DELICIOUS pizza and wine tasting. We came home after the wine tasting and 6 of us crawled onto the queen-sized bed and passed out in a nice little Yakima-spoon. When we stirred once again it was time for charades, bottomless wine, an enormous feast, and more conversation until 2am. Sadly we went back up to the garage apartment only to find that my hiking pack was sitting on a scorching heater, had melted completely, and that some of my clothes inside the pack were burned through as well. RIP my favorite bag in the world.

Sunday morning we awoke to another gourmet feast, went on a gorgeous hike over the Puget Sound, followed by another delicious meal of fresh fish and guinness(!!!!!). By the time we began our 5 hour drive home the 8 of us were pretty much DEADDDD. Finally home, we all passed out around 10pm, stuffed with food, flooded with beer and wine, and with huge smiles on our faces.

It was an amazing weekend. Thanks to the Seattle JVs, Thanks to Pat and Patty, and Thanks to God we made it home in one piece!

ps- pictures to come!

The Good Life. Like college, but no homework.

I have uploaded photos from our hike near Mt. Ranier- as well as others from the past month- but here is a quick preview:

Allison, Patrick, Grace, Chris, Jaime, Sam, and Mt. Rainier
Mt. Rainier being gorgeous
Christmas card? ...probably
we do other things than just volunteer and hike mountains...we just don't take as many pictures of it... (note Rufus in Sam's cup- he's a bit wasted at this point in the night- giraffes have low tolerances I guess)

Another week successfully passed!

This week has been really really fantastic!

The whole novelty of communal living is still not worn off. We still routinely stay up way way too late, complain about being tired at work, then come home and stay up late once again. This week we all got our new memberships at the YMCA- I signed up to be a youth basketball coach this winter!!!! I am calling today for details, but I get a free Y membership and get to coach basketball- does it really get any better?!

Last weekend we were invited to the Reil's lake house on Rimrock lake. We got taken out waterskiing, boating on a gorgeous Cobalt, swimming in a freezing, crystal-clear lake, fed like kings, and supplied with bottomless beer. This is supposed to be the tough life? hmm....

Then later this week, Patrick's boss invited us over to her house for dinner and drinks- and we had such a blast!!! The people there were fantastic, the food was wonderful, the beer was delicious, and we just talked and laughed for hours.

Then, yesterday at work, I thought it was Wednesday, and it was not until mid-morning that I was informed that it was indeed Thursday, and the beginning of my 4-day weekend!!! ahh- wonderful! We went over to the Reils' sons apt. last night to watch football and hang out. It was literally the first time since coming to Yakima that I have watched a live television.

Then- this morning, my day off, I woke up to Chris knocking on my door with fresh coffee and salsa&scrambled eggs in bed. and...IT IS RAINING!!!!!!!

Wait- it gets even better- We are leaving for Seattle after work today- and spending tonight and tomorrow night with Seattle-Cherry Abby (another JV house) and.... I AM GOING TO SEE ALEXA TOMORROW!!

So, ya, life is great. Work is great. My bedroom is a mess. I don't know what I want to do next year. but- Life is really really great right this moment.