just laura

Volunteering is fun!

Yesterday was the first annual FringeACT Theater Festival in Seattle and it was lovely! I volunteered for a few hours and then got in free to see two plays… VIC and Little White Pill. Both were good, and it was just fun to hang out and volunteer. (What can I say? It’s what I do). It was also fun to run into people there that I wasn’t expecting to see. I saw Jason Webley (he was the musician in VIC), I saw Dan (he was stage managing two plays), and I saw Jacob (fully clothed). Was a good day. :) Today I’m volunteering at VegFest. 120,000 free veg and vegan food samples… should be much fun! I’m going to my shift a few hours early so I can eat till my tummy’s content. Oh, and speaking of content tummies, we ate at Mesob last night! It’s my favorite Ethiopian place in town, it’s definintely the best, and I’d been craving it for months!! We finally made it there last night and all is well. Take care!

VegFest was awesome! So much yummy food, all free samples, and good too! I tried lots of good stuff and am quite content! Check out Vegetarians of Washington for more info on possible upcoming events!

Moses’ birthday was Tuesday and he turned the big 29! We went to dinner yesterday at Cedars and it was yummy! Afterwards on the way to say hi to Laura, this crazy Kix-like snow storm happened, for about a half hour. Cars were sliding all over the road, the road was white within minutes, and the whole scene was pretty crazy! We almost didn’t make it up 50th street in his Honda. Snow in March… bizarre!

In other news, Zac’s in town all week! Dieter’s had two tests to study for, but we got to see him one night at Monas, and another at Bicks. Both were good time.

Oh yeah… I almost forgot… I’m going snow boarding this weekend for the first time ever! Wohoo! Wing, Dieter, and I are going to Crystal Mountain and it should be painful but lots of fun! Wish me luck!

Friday was a really tiring day for me… Busses made slow from snow made my 20 minute bus trip take 1 1/2 hours. Work was hectic. I found out less than ideal news from a few friends that really got me down. I know I can’t solve the problems of others, but I think I tend to empathize too much and let it affect my mental state. When I finally got home from two jobs, it was time to do the third: clean the apartment building. I was already tired, out of sorts, and not looking forward to an evening of cleaning. So, when I got stuck in the elevator between the 4th and 5th floors of my building, you can bet I was unhappy. (It’s the original elevator from 1908 with the gate you have to open before the door opens). Anyway, I eventually climbed out between the two floors, completed my cleaning, and was thankful for Dieter to come and whisk my away somewhere. Sadly, to cap the long day, I hit my head nice and hard on Dieter’s roof rack when getting out of the car. That’s when I lost it, screamed in pain, and let the tears come. It was a good release, though I felt pretty awful at the time. Happily, when we finally got home, I got some food and went right to bed. What a long day…

I realize I should probably say something about snow boarding…. we went yesterday and it was fun. Tiring, yes, but not as miserable as everyone makes it out to be. My lessons were worthless, but I had fun in the afternoon meeting up with Wing and Dieter. Both were extremely patient with me as I tried turns and stops and slowly made my way down the hill. :) My problem wasn’t actually going slow, it was that I’d end up going really fast, making me think it’d be better to slow and fall than to barrel down the hill at a breakneck speed chancing an unintentional crash. Regardless, I had fun and would like to go again someday. Practice makes perfect, right?

Some quick tidbits….

Birthdays: For March… happy late birthday to Moses, happy birthday today to Alyssa, and happy early birthday to Dieter! And those February folks, happy late birthday to everyone… Kat, Andy, Charlie, and David!

Congrats: To Ron, my college buddy who was on the the Weakest Link this week! He was the strongest link, won all of the rounds except one, and ended up the game’s jackpot winner! Yeah Ron! Congrats!

Hellos: Hi to Dieter’s mom, who I just heard has been checking out the site and reading the web journal. :)

New Uploads: I just uploaded pictures from Thanksgiving, snow boarding, and more! Enjoy!

I’m looking for a 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment in Fremont, Wallingford, or the U-District. It should be $900 or below and should be of a decent quality level. Dishwasher and washer/dryer would be ideal. Bus route accessible a must. If anyone has leads, or is looking for a roommate, mail me! Thanks! :)

This week I’ve had a bad hankering for Bob Schnieder… been replaying the “Big Blue Sea” single over and over. Yeah Bob!

Had a retreat for work this weekend… am now tired and glad to be home. :) Am still in the apartment search… and will be checking out more places today. Hopefully I’ll be able to find a place a little larger than my current one. Wish me luck!

Tonight was Dieter’s 26th birthday! Yeah! We celebrated with Dena and Andrew over dinner at Taste of India… the best Indian food in Seattle! Yummy!! If you’ve never been, you should find your way over to 5517 Roosevelt Way N.E. Pronto!

And in other news…. my cousin Margaret is part of the Wilmington Storm, the cheerleading squad that just won the National All Star Cheerleading Championship! Go Margaret!!

In other news I want to share… for work last weekend, we took our retreat at a camp in the woods on the Key Peninsula. We did a challenge course while there… I’m sure some of y’all have done one before. Anyway, I’ve done a number of them and always love them! Anyway, this weekend before we leave for LA, I might go out to the same camp I went to last weekend for our work retreat. I was giving feedback on our ropes course facilitator to his boss after the event, and the boss invited me back to be trained to be a facilitator myself! How cool would that be!?! I’ve wanted to do the training for a long time, but can’t easily produce the $300-600 required. I told the man that I couldn’t afford it today after he invited me to do the training, and he said he’d scholarship me through, and even provide me transportation to get me from Seattle to the Peninsula if that meant I’d come and participate. CRAZY! Guess he said he thought I was extremely mature and had high quality feedback. Thinks I’d be a fabulous instructor… hence the offer to join, free, and get the training. Nice, but very last minute! They only do trainings twice a year, so I feel like if I don’t go this weekend, I’ll be out of luck. Anyway, I’m pretty excited about the opportunity… sorry to babble about it. :) Hopefully I’ll figure out a way to go, and not miss my Friday afternoon meeting at work. Yikes!

Got back from the facilitator’s training this weekend and it was much fun! We walked through the whole challenge course (ground initiatives) as well as the high course (ropes course). It was my first time in a ropes course, dangling up in the trees, so that was pretty cool. We even got to practice rescues… fun! They invited me back to facilitate for them… hopefully I’ll be able to find rides when they ask me for a specific date! :)

Today… got my first email from Dieter’s mom. Tomorrow… off to LA!

This week in California, we rode roller coasters, saw my old roomie Meg (and her boyfriend Brian), visited Dieter’s brothers in Sacremento, visited Marta in Davis, and saw exciting Half Moon Bay – Dieter’s hometown. It was beautiful there, and we got to see seals and wander around the tide pool, meet his exgirlfriend Julie, watch Survivor with Damian, and had world famous Tres Amigos burritos. :) Half Moon Bay is an amazing little town on the coast and it’s fabulously beautiful. Dieter rocks! We’re now back in LA at his parents house… hanging out and watching movies. Tomorrow’s the big day and we’re going to have an Easter Egg Hunt! Yeah!!