Jump!

Okay.

                                                  *Picture this*

           There's a waterfall.
 35 feet tall with thousands of gallons of rushing water going over the edge every second.
           There's a ledge.
 It's right next to the waterfall. Slick and smooth.

            There's me.
Me and my impulsive self.

             People are too chicken to jump. They're scared the water would be too cold. They're scared of the drop. They're scared there might be rocks at the bottom.

             I think to myself, why not? 
                                             Que pasa no?

Before I know it, I'm volunteering to jump.

                                            

             I splash through some freezing water to get to the ledge. Danny tries to tell me something, but I can't really hear him over the rushing water.
                "What?!" I call out. He repeats what he said before, and I just barely make out a muffled "jump far".
                 I look over the edge. The fact that my glasses were off made the jump seem even farther down. I take a step back, then push myself forward and leap into the air.

           Just as i jumped, I heard one of Danny's friends yell, "No wait, no no no!!!", but it was too late.

                   I felt the rush of the fall, the adrenaline, and I couldn't help but let out a small yell as I tumbled downward through space.

                  Then I hit the water.

                 The shock of the cold almost made me loose my breath, and I scratched for the surface of the water. I blasted through the transparent covering and sucked in a deep breath of air, then waved to the people at the top of the falls to let them know I was okay.
                 

                Wanna see the actual jump?
                               We got it on video.

Okay.

               Fine.

                              I admit it.
So maybe the waterfall wasn't 35 feet and was more like 12, and maybe the yell I let out was more of a girly squeal (ya. I'm embarrassed.), and perhaps I over exaggerated a bit on the details...

               But I did get to jump off a waterfall. =)

                                           *so technically, the main fact was still true ;)

Punchbowl Falls

 So.
     Yesterday I went on a hike with Danny and some of his friends up to a place called Punchbowl Falls. We tromped through beautiful, tree-infested trails that were set on the ridges of cliffs (sometimes the trail was so slim that we had to walk single file, or risk falling off the edge). The scenery was gorgeous, and it reminded me of Eragon, or some medieval - type book (yep. That's me and my overactive imagination).

When we got to the falls, my mind was blown. I risked looking like a total dweeb as I tried to get some pictures... But they turned out pretty cool, so it was worth it.

Here's a glimpse at what I saw...

                

                     Pretty beautiful, huh?





36 hours...

Today was my first full day in Oregon.

I am probably going to say this in evey post....
                                                 But I really love it here =)

After some grocery shopping, I went for a 3 mile walk with Aunt Michelle. It's so cool, because you can just walk out the door and be in wonderful scenery. You dont have to go to some lake or something - beauty is just everywhere.

                                   *I'm really tired, so I'm not gonna blog much today. *

 We all went out to eat at this pizza place - only the wait was almost 2 hours, so we had to take a little stoll before we could get our food. Here's some pics I got... (I don't want to overwhelm anyone with pictures, so I'll try to only post a few a day...)







 

I thought that last one was kinda funny ;)

The pizza (when we finally got to eat it...) was pretty delicious. Overall, though, my favorite part was walking and talking with my family as we waited... =)

Okay. I really am too tired to write tonight, so here's a video Danny showed me that pretty much explains where I am right now, and what the people are like... And to be honest, it's not that far off! ;)
                                    -Enjoy!

Oregon = Home away from home.

Golly.

I've been here a grand total of 10 hours, and I'm already in love with this place.

The train pulled in around 12:45pm, and I had no idea if I was getting off at the right stop. Normally they anounce where we are, but this time they didn't. I just noticed that the man accross from me was grabbing his stuff to leave, and he had said he was going to Portland, too.

I started putting my stuff together, and I noticed a woman two seats in front of me on the other isle looking confused as I was. She turned to me.

"Is this Portland?" she asked. I gave her my best clueless face. "I have no idea," I told her. "But I'm assuming it is."

I grabbed my two backpacks, found my duffle bag, and stumbled very ungracefully off the train. Inside my head, I laughed. Hello Portland! Dont mind me, I'm from Minnesota... We have a gradeur all our own.I pulled my bag into the station and texted my cousin and aunt to let them know I'd arrived. While I waited five minutes for them to come, I pulled out my camera...



I'm here!

 

My aunt Michelle and cousin Danny wrapped me in hugs and threw my stuff into the back of the car, then we headed off for some brunch. I listened while they told me about all the amazing foods and shops and theatres and absolutely loved how, though it's been almost 7 years since I've been here last, it still felt like home.

We ate at this place called "Jam", and let me tell ya, the food was delicious. I got a special they were advertising - an omelet with sun dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, basil, and goat cheese. I wanted to eat it so fast, but forced myself to slow down and savor the taste. Man, it was good! =)

After that, we drove around a bit and they showed me a small glimpse of the scenery. Goodness, I loved it. It's just like Minneapolis, only wider spread, more of an artsy feel, and more foliage. You can drive for an hour in one direction and hit the ocean, or drive for an hour in the other direction and hit the mountains.

I think... that I would love to live here.

After we dropped Danny off at his apartment (which is SO cool...), auntie Michelle and I headed home. We hauled all my luggage in, and then I spent the next hour settling into my new room for the next month.

Then, of course, I hit the showers =)

Uncle Steve came home, and I listened with envy as he totally ripped out on his guitar in the next room. Hopefully I can squeeze some tips out of him... ;)

Danny came by and we all ate a delicious dinner of Trader Joe's garlic fries and grilled cheeseburgers with avocado and mayo (golly, I feel like I'm being spoiled...) ;)

After dinner, Danny taught us all how to play a game called "The Settlers of Catana". It's apparently really popular, though I've never heard of it... Auntie Michelle won. Now that I've caught on how to play, she might not be so lucky next time ;)

Yep... that's pretty much it. A full and wonderful day.

Some things…

I woke up this morning around 6:15 and couldn’t fall back asleep, so I quietly went down stairs to the bathroom to change clothes and get washed up.
Let me tell you something.
                   
                              I cannot wait to take a shower.

Anyway, I went back to my seat and looked out my window for a bit. Same dull scenery.
Or so I thought.
I sat there, watching the rolling hills and dull brown grass, and it occurred to me that this was actually beautiful. Our human eye likes variety – we like to see many different things in one picture, and we like things to be busy. When something is plain or dull, we tend to pass over it with dismissal.
But as I watched everything pass by, I noticed just how many different shades of brown and yellow the grass was. I saw the different textures, the patterns of the clouds, and the sizes of the hills. Where else could I see something like this?

We continued on, and I lost interest and watched an Alias.

We stopped in Pasco, Washington, and I got off the train and called my Gramma to let her know I was fine and that I had enough to eat. She told me to be on he lookout for some really gorgeous scenery, as I was approaching the Columbia River Gorge (I think that’s what it’s called, anyway…).

I got back on the train and we were off again. I glanced out my window now and again, but nothing seemed to have changed.

And then BANG!, it did.

One minute it was brown and hills, the next it was gold, blue, and cliffs. Out one window were these magnificent cliffs that were just begging me to run out and climb them, and out the other was this amazing stretch of blue lake (the Columbia River?). Green grass and small ponds bordered the bottom of the cliffs, and as I watched I saw a small deer bounding up the side of one of the slopes. It was so close that I could make out small stripes on its feet and hooves.

                                   Some things can really make me see God.
                                                   For me, it’s animals.

(Just a small side note, there.)

The conductor just made an announcement.
Apparently we won’t be getting to Portland until noon.

9:46am - August 20th

A bit of a scare…

I was able to fall back asleep last night around 2:00am. My slumber didn’t last long, though. About 4 in the morning, I felt the train stop and heard some people moving about. The conductor said something over the loud speaker, and because I wasn’t fully awake, I couldn’t make out what he said.
All I heard clearly were the words, "Portland" and "Please retrieve all belongings and baggage".

I was instantly awake, spurred by the thought that I might be missing my stop. I heard the stewardess coming down the isle, and I called out to her as she walked by my seat, but she must not have heard me, and she continued on.

I tried to calm my beating heart and reason with myself. I wasn’t supposed to get to Oregon until 10:30 this morning… I thought. Plus, Grampa did say something about a midnight car switch, where the train would break into two and go separate ways…I laid back down on my pillow, deciding to try and go back to sleep. I’ll be fine, I assured myself. Besides, the man across the isle from me has the same ticket as I do, and he’s not getting up to leave…
The next four or five times I awoke when the train stopped gave me the same jump, but as it turns out, I was right.
We don’t reach the actual Portland stop until 10:30 or so.

7:49 am - August 20th

A ride on the midnight train.

So here I am. Still on the train. We passed through Montana today, and let me tell ya, that state has a lot of hill. As in tons. I tried to pay attention to the scenery, but we must have passed through the deadest part, cuz all there was to look at was vast farmland. There were practically no trees. Nothing to decorate the countryside.



My first henna tattoo



It was kinda sad.

 Today was spent mucking about. I played with Henna (thank you Anna Carlson!), and I swear, I got the weirdest looks from people who passed by my seat.

I played with my hair and put a red and a gray wrap in - decorated with tons of beads and coins, of course. Once again – weird glances from onlookers.

I wrote 3 more pages to my never-going-to-be novel.

I journaled, worked on Miss. Sweazey’s summer reading (Romeo and Juliet. I mouthed the words as I read, and Shakespeare’s humor kept making me laugh. Guess what that got me??? If you guessed something I’ve already said, then you’re right ) ;)

Hmm… I ate dried mangos (the best food ever), beef jerky, and two apples.

Around 7:30pm, I began to get really tired. It was to be expected, considering I got the equivalent to about two hours of sleep last night. I figured, "I’ll just take a short nap. I couldn’t sleep last night, so why should that change now?"

Wrong.I was out like a light, and when I woke up, everything was black. What time is it? I wondered, reaching for my phone.

No signal.

No signal = no time.

It’s probably around 9 or 10, I figured. I grabbed my face wash, toothbrush, and hand towel and washed up in the sink. I came back upstairs and checked my phone again.

It was dead.
Okay, fine.
I pulled out my handy-dandy laptop…
                          … and came to find that it was 12:11.

All right, I wasn’t expecting that. I plugged in my phone, then checked it for a signal. I currently had one, and it said it was actually 11:11.

Riiiggghhhtttt… Montana is an hour behind. I knew that...

I had nothing better to do, so I figured I’d share my wonderfully exciting experience of being confused with you all.

Gol. I’m suddenly starving. But I already brushed my teeth! Poopy…

12:37 (which is really 11:37) - August 20th

Illumination…

Tossing and turning, switching positions and switching again. Cramped backs and cricked necks.
That was me last night.

I finally dozed off around 1 in the morning, and I’m actually really glad that it was a light sleep. If it would have been sound, I would have missed the thunderstorm at 4:30 in the morning.

It wasn’t even a thunderstorm. It was more of a lightning storm. Talk about a light show! It was cooler than any fire works presentation I’ve ever seen.

I woke up, not sure I’d ever fallen asleep, and suddenly I became aware of a continuous flash of light out my window. At first I thought it was another train passing us, but then I saw the black trees illuminated from the white sky.

Whoa, I thought. This is so cool!

I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’m not sure I can accurately depict a picture of it. It was as if with every flash of lightning, the darkness was peeled away, layer by layer. The sky would flash a dim white-gray, then suddenly a white flash, greater than the one before it, would make everything seem surreal – just for a moment.

If I listened hard, I could hear a deep, resonating sound, and for the first time I understood the term "rolling thunder". It was cooler than any drum I’ve heard, and I doubt the sound could ever be created synthetically.

I sat, curled up with my Mexico blanket, pillow, and stuffed animal (Silver!) and watched for about 15 minutes before the rain came. It was slow and light at first, just drizzling the window with tiny tap tap taps…

Then it came in waves. A million tiny tap tap taps turned into a loud chorus that would twitch from loud to quiet when queued to do so.

I watched and listened, squinting from a particularly bright flash.

"God, you’re amazing."I whispered that to the sky, a smile on my face. My heart felt like it was laughing.

I was listening to God’s symphony.

The sunrise the morning after

6:45 am - August 19th

Could this be it?

We have finally started to move again. We’re doing the jerk, move faster, tip to the side thing again. The floor is vibrating… It kinda feels like going up a roller coaster – you know, when you’re going up the hill. It reminds me of that. I even have that little tingling feeling in my stomach. The one that says,

"oh boy oh boy oh boy! This is going to be so awesome! Just wait till I get over that hill!"
And at the same time it says,

"oh boy oh boy oh boy! This is it! Maybe it’s not too late to turn back… Am I ready for this?"

That’s what my stomach is saying to me right now.


We’re picking up speed. We’re going faster than we have before.
We just went over a bridge and passed over a freeway. Warehouses and houses and apartments are passing by my window, illuminated by street lamps.

I wonder when we’ll get out of the city.




Well, I think it’s safe to say that my journey has officially begun.



See you on the other side!

12:28 am - August 19th
　

“We have lift-off”

Well, we’re not a rocket, but we certainly are moving.

Super slow….

But we’re gaining spead! Probably about as fast as I can run right now…

　
umm…

actually, maybe that was a false alarm.
Dang it.
We’ve come to a complete stop.
……

No wait! We’re moving again!
The car is steadily jerking, the engine working to get us all moving…

faster….

Faster…!!!

Whoa. It’s kinda nerve racking. The car keeps swaying sharply from side to side…

We’re passing an old freight train covered in grafitti…
darn. That would have made a cool picture…

We keep going faster, then slower, then faster again.

Time to kick off the shoes. =)

Hmph. We’ve stopped again. We’re probably about a half a mile away from the station…
I cant see anything out my window, even when I press my face up to the glass.

Okay. Now we are litterally inching along. Slower than a snail can run.

11:28 pm - August 18th

HERE WE GO!!!

I am sitting on the train. Second floor, not first like I thought. I have two seats to myself, right behind the stairs. It’ll be noisy in the morning, when everyone is going up and down to use the bathroom and go to the food car, but there is nothing except a wall in front of me, so I don’t have to worry about kicking anyone’s seat (plus, it’s really roomy) =)
It’s pitch black outside. I am the third car from the end, and when I tried to see down to the first car, it was nowhere in sight. This train seems to stretch a mile long…

Maybe I’ll get some exorcise in and try to walk to the very front tomorrow ;)

Oh boy.
This is so great.

I have my laptop light dimmed super low so that I don’t annoy any of the other passengers (though I don’t know how I could. My car is almost empty – YES!).

Cool! I just figured out how to let the seat back, and get the footrest up.
This is actually really comfy =D
It kinda reminds me of sleeping in Ashley and Kelly’s circle chair… Only, it’s not a circle.




Ugh.
I packed WAY too much.
As in LOADS of extra stuff I probably won’t even use. I swear, if someone weighed it all, it would add up to more than a hundred pounds.

No joke.

Oh well. Too late now…

Another train is pulling in beside us. It’s loud rumbling kinda startled me, as I couldn’t see it at first (remember what I told you – Its pitch black outside).


I am actually getting tired. Maybe it’s the sound of the air conditioner running so steadily…
BUT!!! I refuse to fall asleep until we are well on our way. I am .NOT. going to miss this.


11:15 pm - July 18th

EEK! It's almost here!!!

The title says it all.

Two and a half hours and my train will depart from St. Paul, Minnesota, and be on it's way to Portland, Oregon, 1800 miles away.

EEK!!! Sorry to reiterate myself, but I'm so excited!

I must apologize, though, for I will not be able to blog for the 36 hours I am on the train (Why not? there's no Internet, duh!). I will however, be writing my posts on a Word document, recording the time, and will copy and past as soon as I get access to some Wi-fi =)

Sorry this is so short, but Anna Carlson just came over and is going to help me pack (or just watch as I pack... keep me company, ya know?)  =)

The start of the sinking in...

I think it's starting to sink in.
That I'm leaving in about 20 hours...

That I still haven't started packing.
That my room is a mess.
That I'm leaving things unfinished.

That I'm leaving things behind.

Maybe it's bad to say.... but I think that, while I'm gone, I'm gonna miss my animals the most.

This is Romeo. He's the one that I hate to leave behind the most. He's around 16 years old, has asthma, and is my bestest friend (in the animal world!). He looks young, and often times I forget that he's an "old man".  From the very start, he's always been my cat, following me and sleeping with me... When I'm gone for even a few days, I've been told that he sits in my room and "cries" for me, and when I don't come, he curls up on  my bed and waits for me.
And here I am, leaving him for a whole month.

Golly. Just that mental image makes me wanna cry ='(

 This is ChaChi. She's also around 16 years, and is just starting to show her age. She has cancer and was abused before we got her, and I spent weeks helping her become used to people picking her up and moving around her. For the longest time, I was the only one she trusted. I am still the only one she listens to half the time... I worry about her.  She is second on my list =(



Wolfie-grey    Moses-brown



These are "The Boys". Brothers that came to live with us several years ago (I think they're about 6 years old...).  Moses I'm not worried about at all - He's my grandparent's cat and pretty much lives his life in their room (he's spoiled rotten... and he loves it). Wolfie (short for Wolfgang O'Malley) is my cat and, though he can be a bit of a stinker and has an annoying, whiny meow, I get worried when I leave him alone for a long time, too. Mainly because once, he escaped from our house and was gone for 9 days before finding his way back to us - whether he was catnapped or ran away is uncertain. Also, he tries to beat up on Romeo every once in a while and tries to take the place of "King"....  I love the bugger, though.

24 hours....

The countdown has begun.

24 hours starts now.



Think of all the things that can happen in 24 hours! Plans can change so quickly... My train could get cancelled. My computer could break. Someone could die. I could become the next Jack Bauer and save the world from certain destruction... Your fate would be in my hands.

Ugh. Scary thought.... For you, I  mean. ;)

So, anyway, here I am. Typing away on my laptop when I should be packing or cleaning my room or something... Finishing things I need to finish before I leave for an entire month...

Yep. I'm a procrastinator. I can't help it. Its just my nature (sorry, teachers!).