Apprehensive

So, this week feels like it is going to be an emotional struggle for me. I go into the field knowing that I will see Erik for about 30 more hours when I get out and then he leaves. I talked to some friends about it last night and they had a hard time understanding, Erik puts up this front of he's the cool kid that has tons of energy and is always doing stupid stuff, and not many people get to see what is under that so when i say I'm going to miss him they just don't get what i'm going to miss. That was frustrating for me last night looking to cry on some shoulders and not really getting it. So, i came home upset and basically sobbed with Erik for a good while and really got it out there that i am scared of being alone. I have now 2 roomates on the opposite shift so I will never see them and jackson my full time roomate has a job and doesn't get home till 6, so I will basically be alone all day. one of my biggest fears is being alone in life. I know this is an irrational fear, but it is a fear for me none the less. So, if you guys could say some prayers for me that I am able to handle this change well, I would greatly appreciate it.

On another note, tomorrow marks a year that I have been with Second nature! I will write more about that when i get home next week. I can't believe I have lived out here that long and been in this amazing job that long! I wish I was in a happier head state for this week, but hopefully I can turn it around. 

Back home...for now

I'm never in this town for very long...and I will be leaving for most of the month in Sept...more on that later...

So, we are home, back in St. George after our magical weekend in JH. Last night we got back after our hike and got pizza from a local place, and it was amazing. One of the major perks of this trip was all the great local food we got to enjoy! Not much of that in St. G. This morning we slept late and pushed our departure time back as much as we could. We went to a few shops and got some gifts, Ash my loyal reader, I got your bday gift today :) Then went to "Jedidiah" for a late breakfast, I had buttermilk pancakes, not as good as Pancake Pantry, but they were fabulous. The weather was amazing this morning, windy and chilly, I wore jeans and a hoodie! As we were walking back to our hotel it started raining, and we took that as our sign that it was time to go home. The drive back was a bit harder this time with no break in the middle like on the way there. We both were able to split the driving time and had more great time to talk about the changes coming up for the both of us. As glad as we are to be out of the car and at home, I know there is a part of Erik like there is a part of me that wishes we could still be there...not worried about what is coming next. So, just a note, get ready for a few posts filled with Erik sadness, let's not pretend to be unaware of my emotional side blog stalkers! So, here are a few of my favorite pics...

This is atop the lookout station, where they look for fires

A cool tree along the trail

This is Erik, he loves energy drinks

I wish I could take a picture of the smell...

That is how I felt last night walking around the town of JH and walking up the trail to Mt. Washburn. This town even has a special smell to it. Something here is special, maybe it is just the whole place, never the less, you can't deny it. So, yesterday was a busy one for the roomate duo, hence no daily update. We left around 930 and went to the local bagel place, Pearl St. Bagel. We had delicious homemade bagels and coffee, then headed to Yellowstone National Park. We didn't exactly know where Mt. Washburn was in the park, and I am so used to small Zion that I was prepared for that....WRONG! We first drove through Tetons National Park...with a front row view of THE Tetons...breath taking! Then we finally get into YNP an hour later and find that MT Washburn is another hour or so in, almost at the other side of the park...hmmm. Erik was an amazing co-partner. He knew this is why I piked JH as our destination, so we could hike this MT so we buckled down and drove through hellish park traffic with people stopping every 4 seconds to take pics of the poor buffalo. 

I need to go on a quick tangent here - The American population disapoints me here, they seem so surprised to see these good ol buffalo, like they have never seen a big beautiful animal like this, so they have to get up in its face and take million photos. The same with elk and bucks. I suppose my dissapointment comes from the fact that they have never put themselves in real situations where they will see that stuff, places without roads, or at least old state roads way out in the middle of nowhere. Another part of that is, why come to one of the first national parks in our countries rich NP history just to take pictures along the road? I know you are thinking, well maybe they went hiking later...no no. I have been to enough NP to know who is driving through and who is going to get OUT of their car to see the wonders in front of them. The stuff from the Road is amazing yes, but the way it works is that the best stuff is on a trail. I see more Europeans on trails than Americans...let's see what our country has to offer!!! Get on a Trail and out of the car!!! 

Ok, it is out of my system, that is the outdoor rec/outdoor professional/outdoor lover coming out and sometimes I can't keep it inside any longer! You know!? Ok, so we have driven on these 2 lane roads and sometimes get caught behind buffaloers(thats there new nickname) and go about 30 mph. Luckily the views are amazing so we tried to take that in, but both of us were itching to get hiking. So, 3 hours after we left JH we arrived at the trail head for Mt. Washburn, finally!! So, we all know I'm a nerd for my family and last name. So seeing Washburn on a bunch of trail signs was almost too much for me! Erik had been cooped up in the car for too long, so he ran...literally up to the top. Which was nice because i had an opportunity to spend some time along hiking. Our elevation gain was around 3,000 ft. It was def a challenge when I started getting to the top and the air was thinner. Erik came back down and met me when we were close to the top and we finished it up together. When I got to the top and saw that sign "Mt. Washburn" I got pretty emotional thinking about all the other Washburns. Big surprise:) And this is going to be a cheesey emotional metaphore, but i am in the business of cheesey emotional metaphores, so deal with it. I was standing on top of a mountain bearing my last name and thinking of all the mountains our family has had to climb and how my brothers are out there right now climbing their "mountains" Jay with his new adventure in Detroit...Brady putting himself out there for something new, and me living out west. There are a lot of Washburns out there climbing mountains as I stood atop "Our Mountain". After that moment, erik and I went to the lookout up top, there is a fire lookout up there because it is so tall! We took some pics and enjoyed the view. I then took rocks from the top! and we headed down. The drive out wasn't as bad as before and we got back to JH around 7 pm. Overall is was a very special day with Erik..

We are leaving today, and both of us are trying to put it off as long as possible. We both agreed this is like we are not in reality and as soon as we get home, back to reality and back to knowing he is leaving soon, something neither of us want to realize. Erik has grown to be someone I hold very dear to me, my little brother as i call him. I am so proud of him going back to school, and I will miss him dearly...so, the longer we are in JH, the longer he is here with me...

naptime in the albertson's parking lot

So, last night I updated about being in Park City, Utah. So Erik's friend was late getting to us and when I mean late....3:30 Am late! We had not planned on staying in PC over night so we had no hotel and basically no place to go after all the places in town had closed. So, we went to an Albertson's to get some cheap movies and watch them in the car while we waited. Luckily my car is great for putting the seats down and sleeping room. So we got comfy and started our wait. After both laptops had died Erik decided to charge his computer in Albertsons while I tried to sleep. I woke up at 2 am and after we got back together still nothing from his friend. So we tried to sleep again. Around 3:15 his friend called and said he was there. We sleepily drove over and got settled. I last saw the clock at 3:48. Wake up time was 7:25. We got on the road to finish our drive to JH, Wyoming. Breath taking is an understatement to the views we saw along the road. The town itself is simply amazing! If you are ever in Western Wyoming, I suggest you stop through!

What is quieter than a ski town in summer?

The answer is NOTHING! HA! I am in Park City, Utah today on my way to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. We have stopped here for a few hours to wait on a friend of Eriks. The scenery is beyond amazing, but it is pretty close to a ghost town as you can get. It has been a great day in a new town though. St. George is one of the most un-local places i have ever seen, and park city has a lot of local eateries that we have been enjoying, the taste of REAL food is an amazing thing! And getting away from the heat of southern utah is reason enough to be at 10,000 ft! That's right...rarified air! This is the only picture of main st. i could find, apparently they don't take a lot of pics without the snow...use your imagination

6 months later...

Been a while since I have been on this thingy, glad i remembered my password! I'm sure the past months have been eventful, some things that are different since my last post in Feb...I am a Wilderness First Responder...What does that mean? Well, say you and I are hiking deep in the woods, hours away from medical care and you fall and break you ankle or pop your shoulder out of place...well, I can pop it back in or split your ankle until we get to doctors. It is a pretty amazing thing to have and a neccesary one if you want to work in the wilderness field where you have people in your care 24 hrs a day. It was an intense 8 day course, and i was lucky enough to take it in Boone, Nc and spend the week with Uncle Chris and his family. Mom had been out here 2 times and dad once. We had amazing times both trips. It is great for them to see where I am living and picture how my life works out here. I think it reasures them that I am going to be ok when they meet all the amazing people in my life, and then they realize that I really do love it out here and they get sad because they know I'm not leaving anytime soon:( I turned 25...no big deal there. Mom on the other hand turned 60 with a celebration at the beach in South Carolina surrounded by her children and grandchildren, it truley was a magical week that will hopefully get repeated for all her birthdays! My friend from college Anna came out to visit as well and we hiked the Narrows, a hike in Zion national park that is almost all in water, some parts go up to your chest and you get to go back in narrow canyons, it was amazing and great to have a friend out here for a week. 

More recently I met mom in Ohio for THE START OF FOOTBALL SEASON! The titans were starting the season with a game against the Buffalo Bills in the Hall of fame game. Not only was this a chance to see FOOTBALL, it was a chance to see the Pro Football HOF - something I have always wanted to experience, and let me say it didn't disapoint. For someone who's life has been shaped and molded by football like rocks have been shaped like water, it was great to get to see and be a part of the history. As I walked in I will gladly admit I had to fight back a good deal of emotion. Even though no Washburn will most likely ever BE in the HOF...we are a part of Pro Football, so we are in a sense in the hall, and now a new generation is there. The game was amazing as well, we played great and it was fun to see live action Football, something not aboundful in Utah;)

So now that we are caught up let's move to the present tense...I am about to celebrate my year at Second Nature Entrada! It is hard for me to realize that I have spend a year of my life in Utah and about half of that sleeping on the ground in the upper desert...where does the time go? This year though has been by far one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life. It is true that we sometimes get just as much therapy as the clients, it is hard to work here and not take a deeper look at yourself, which is not easy! 

This off shift I am headed to Jackson, Wy with my roomate Erik, he is leaving to go back to college in NY and we decided to take a roadtrip together before he leaves. I will be beyond sad when he leaves, he had become like a little brother to me and it will not be the same when he leaves. I will put up a few shots from the last few months then it is off to pack the car and hit the road...

A perk of getting to work in the Wilderness...this is a sunset from the night Steve McNair died

me and the goofy parents!

This is just to show you the funny people I work with, trying to get me to dance he decided a proposal was neccesary!

The water got deep fast..

Maybe I will be able to keep this more up to date in the next busy months of fall...just badger me, that usually works!