Ms. Smarty Pants!!!!!

I [finally] received grades for my first semester of grad school. FOUR POINT OHH!!!! I knew I'd done well but was worried about receiving an A- in the econ class I took. I guess I did great because I received a solid A in all four classes! :)

Life on the Beach

Yesterday marked the first day of summer. I spent the morning bathing dogs. After work, I packed up as much as I could. I'd reserved a U-Haul and picked it up at 4 PM. A couple friends (thanks Kegan and Waylen) came over at about 6 PM and helped me move everything. We had everything moved to Manilla by about 7:15 PM. I dropped Kegan and Waylen off at their car and then returned the U-Haul. There had been a stray dog wandering around the house in Arcata for a couple of hours so I set out to find his owners. I walked him around downtown but no one knew who he belonged to. He became real excited on the corner of Q and 11th so I thought maybe it's where he lived. I let him run around, hoping he'd run into his yard, but he just ran back and forth across the street. I then realized that there was a house a few houses down that had several dogs (many sled dog breeds, this dog was a shepherd/husky mix - super cute). Anyway, I walked him down there and asked if they'd lost a dog. They had! I was so relieved. I was seriously contemplating bringing him to Manilla and keeping him until I could find his home. Anyway, he was home - I got my karma points for the day, lol. Next, I went back to the Arcata house, put a few things in my car (including Mushko) and off we went to Manilla. I forgot to mention, Cassie (the new Manilla roomie) left for Chico at about 7:30 PM. She probably won't be back this summer. It was just Mushko and I - we had the place all to ourselves (and several mosquitos). On one side of the house is a highway and on the other side of the house is the ocean. You could hear both all night. It was really easy to drown out the noise of the highway, especially later at night when not many were traveling down the road. The ocean is far enough away that it isn't super loud and you can only hear high tide I think. It sounds like a constant "SHHHHHH" if that makes sense, lol. I absolutely love it. Anyway, it was after 9 PM by the time we got here. My roommate left me a ton of food she wouldn't be coming back for and I got right into her chocolate frozen yogurt. I sat down with the yogurt and watched 10 Things I Hate About You, one of my favorite movies. I left the door open and Mushko spent most of the evening checking out our huge yard. There is a fence all the way around the property so there isn't really a backyard and a frontyard. There is a huge side yard with a bbq and some beach chairs - I can't wait to bbq outside. Then, there's the front yard area, a side yard around a detached garage, and somewhat of a back yard area. There are several small trees and a couple of fenced areas, it'll take Mushko awhile to get used to the whole thing. I'm afraid he'll be bored and am thinking about fostering a dog for a local rescue just for the summer but we'll see. Maybe I can offer to dogsit for people who are leaving on summer vacations? Anyway, after the movie, Mushko and I went to bed. I brought him in my room and closed the door. I think he'd rather sleep outside but I really want him to sleep with me in my room. I'll probably do the same thing another night or two and will then start leaving the door open so that he can choose where to sleep. There's a really cool sunroom type thing just outside the front door on the deck. Cassie has a desk in there but said that it's mostly used as a dog room. I already put one of Mushko's dog beds in there but he hasn't gone inside of it yet. It's nice because he gets so sandy at the beach. With a doggy room, I can go in the house and close the door. He can go inside or outside for awhile until most of the sand falls off of him. Only then should he come in the house. So, when we woke up at about 10 AM this morning (and by we I mean me), I could definitely hear the ocean. I put a swim suit on and jogged down there. It's been really warm - way wamer than normal for Arcata. I think it hit 92 degrees a couple days ago. People who have lived here for thirty years say they rarely see 80 degrees! Some professor from HSU said it was a "freak wind current" and that it should pass today and go back to being colder. The beach was a little foggy so maybe the heat will die down. Mushko and I jogged up and down the beach for about a half an hour. We played in the water a little bit and he sort of chased two horses. If a horse ever kicks him, it'll be his fault. Everytime we see them, he gets as low as he can, as if he's going to pounce on them. He stares at them a bit and always looks confused. Eventually, he runs towards them but once he gets close, he freaks out and runs away. I try to keep him away from the horses but he doesn't listen to me when they're around (not yet anyway?). So that about wraps up my move. I'm about to enjoy some organic strawberries and maybe a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Mushko and I will probably go back to the beach soon and then to work at 2:45 this afternoon. I know I'm supposed to go home in a few days but at this point, I almost don't want to, lol. I feel like I'm vacationing at a beach retreat. I can't wait for Luke to move in (he'll be here June 17th) and for Andrea to be here. Luke is leaving June 20th which is hopefully when Andrea will show up and she'll be staying with me for about a week. We'll be at the beach daily but will also go hiking, camping, and canoeing. There is just so much to do this summer!!! :) Anyhoo, I better get going - my stomach is making noises. I hope to see everyone soon!

Finals

My first semester at HSU is almost complete! Next week is finals week. Fortunately, I only have one final. It's open book and open notes - whoopee! I do, however, have two 20 minute presentations to give (one tomorrow and the other next Tuesday). Both presentations are due tomorrow so I'll probably be at the library tonight. This semester flew by. I can't express how much I've enjoyed my time here and how glad I am for moving here when I did (I only wish I would've moved sooner). In only a few months, I feel as though I've changed a lot. For lack of a better word, I'm much more "zen," lol. I love being outside. I love starring at the ocean, forest, trees, plants, etc. Some days, Mushko and I take as many as three walks just because it's so beautiful outside. I can't count how many times I've visited the ocean since I've been here but would estimate that I've made around twenty trips. I lived in Santa Cruz for almost two years and probably only visited the beach a dozen times... in two years!!! I'm very excited about moving to Manila where I'm hoping to walk down the beach at least once a day, every day (depending on weather of course). Not only do I appreciate my surroundings much more than I have in the past, but I've also learned to appreciate my health. Eating better makes me feel better. I should've written the date down but I think it's been about two months since the last time I've had soda. Anyone who knows me well knows I used to consume 2 or 3 pepsi's a day! I've also switched to wheat bread (which I used to hate). Luke and I have been eating salad recently and I'm starting to really enjoy it. He's currently on a huge health kick which is really helping me. I bought him a six pack of beer and he hasn't touched it. I also tried to get him to go to Safeway to buy some low fat ice cream and he wouldn't do that either! Call me competitive but if he can be healthy, I can be healthy. I've also been exercising a lot more. I do Pilates once a week, lift weights once or twice a week, and get a little cardio in almost every day. Anyway, I have to get going. There is a massage school here in Arcata that charges $25 for an hour long massage by a student or $40 for an hour long massage by a certified messeur. The students are booked up so I had to schedule a pro but $40 still seems super cheap for an hour long massage! I'm going to go enjoy a long massage and then work on my presentations. :)