The Upcoming Weeks

So, the holidays are nearly upon us, despite what the weather might be trying to tell us. (It has been in the low 50's...) But, more importantly, and sooner than the holidays, is the wedding! Ive been waiting for this opportunity to go home for a long while, and I'm hoping its fun. It looks like there's a ton to do, which will be nice... It'll be fun to see people and hang out, but there's a ton to do. It's going to be hard going home, as it usually is. I've changed, as have the people I'm going to see. The baby has gotten taller, classes are again in full swing for people teaching or attending, and meanwhile I've been living in small town Montana where things are completely backwards and a few steps behind the rest of society. (Limited places with wireless internet, antelope "hunting", dogs and cats running around as they please) What makes this even scarier, is that I'm begining to adapt and blend into the small town life- I'm able to recognize people that aren't from Miles, based on how they act or what they wear. I know that it's appropriate to wave at strangers, and if you know people, honking at them is an acceptable "hello". I've even had an opportunity to get to know someone who gets offended if someone doesn't wave back at him. (It's surprising how personally people take stuff like that...) I'm still really grateful for the Great Grains crew, though- they make my day, every day that I see them. One thing I am looking forward to, though, is being able to bust out words from the Midwest, like "bubbler" and have people not look at me like I'm crazy (which usually results in me explaining that a fountain is in a park, and a bubbler is something you drink from).

Speaking of the holidays, I'm looking forward to them, too. I'm headed to Missoula with Ben for Thanksgiving, which should be exciting. I hear Missoula is the place to be...

At any rate, I've got stuff I've gotta do. More post wedding.

Snow!

I got a phone call last night, around 7 p.m. from the guy. He had gotten an antelope on opening day, and had wanted me to appear. I considered helping, and realized, upon walking in his shed, that this antelope smelled far worse than the deer that I remembered my dad getting in my youth. Instead of being helpful, I sat on a 4 wheeler, attempting to keep him company and occasionally offer comments of support. It was kind of nice, hanging out in a shed. It reminded me slightly of the feeling of family I remembered during deer season back home.

I awoke this morning to a radio alarm clock , wrapped up in his arms and a majority of the blanket, only to find out that the dog appeared to be really excited that we had finally awoken. I began putting my socks and jeans back on from last night. He looked out the window and said, "It's a winter wonderland!" I peered out the window after finally getting dressed, and a sudden wave of excitement came over me. I realized that the feeling of home had suddenly come to eastern Montana for me, but the snow had come a bit too soon. A majority of the leaves have not yet fallen, though the sky has recently been overcast and gloomy. There has been snow, but until today nothing has stuck around.

DQ adventures, lost contact, the wedding

So, things are starting to pick up yet again. I really wish that people were here this weekend instead of last- there really isn't as much going on, and things should be slightly more relaxed. The open mic starts again, which should be exciting... And... yeah. There's been stuff happening for most of the last few weekends, so hopefully, some "I'm not doing anything" time will be nice.

I'm half afraid of losing people that I had been close to before, but I guess that happens. Or, the people that are supposed to be around in a few months will be. Or something.

So, last night, Susan and I discovered that the Dairy Queen had recently gotten fried cheese curds. Kate, Susan's roommate, didn't know that such things existed, so we brought one back for her. She seemed to think it was strange, but after trying them realized they weren't actually the worst things ever.

Work is going relatively well. I feel like I'm mostly ahead, and I've got only a little more to do, but will need the help of others to accomplish these things. The first courtwatch meeting is this afternoon, for which I'm quite excited- one of my "projects" is actually beginning to get started! BeLinda is also starting on a newish fundraiser that I'll be helping with- we're hoping to reserve areas of sidewalk during Art Walk, and "sell" sections that people can draw pictures representing "Safe Families, Safe Kids", and the funds we raise will help us out. It seems like a pretty cool idea- but we've got to go through the mayor to get it approved, which seems as though it'll be a long process. Hopefully, we'll get it, though! Oh, optimism.

Speaking of optimism, I'm beginning to realize that I am quite young, and have a lot of time left to do cool things. But what cool things can I do? I'm giving some serious thought to the following, but am looking for thoughts and/or suggestions. Let me know what you think!

- Applying for a Youth Outreach Position with the Peace Corps.
- Going back to college and learning how to teach
- Remaining in Cowboy Country and trying to find a job (despite the lack of opportunity... and my uncertainty that there's a lot of space for people like me out here...)

I'm also half considering combining the first two...

Anyway, I'll leave you with these words from the Weakerthans:
"By the way, I got your letter yesterday
It said there’s no need to be sad
It said that some things would never ever change
But that some already had"

Rain, bars and pizza...

So, the weekend went well, though a bit crazy. There were actually a ton of VISTAs in town for the fair, which was fun. It was exciting to have people my age here. Matt made it in (despite hitting a few animals), which was the best thing that's happened for a while! I was really excited to have a Wisconsin person here...

On Friday, we all went to the Montana Bar, where Matt was surprised by the number of cowboys. I guess I noticed too, when I first arrived here. I've kind of adapted to the culture and people here- it's really kind of an interesting place to be... When Matt reminded me that things were in fact quite different here than in the Midwest generally, I began to get all homesick again. It didn't end well...

Saturday was kind of fun as well. I had to work at the fair for a few hours, during which Matt and Susan joined in on the fun. Before the fair, Susan and I took Matt to Murdoch's (Similar to Fleet Farm, err Farm and Fleet), where he had tried to convince me to get boots... Which I did, as he picked up a cowboy hat (which worked for him surprisingly well!). He even wore it while sitting around the fair booth, despite an apparent silly feeling. Susan and I wore cute Elf Hats, as the fair's theme was Christmas in August. The elf hats gained our table brownie points.

I've still got several trainings to attend (IST in Big Sky over labor day and a retreat for ACMAC in October!), and a camping adventure planned, I'm sure I'll be keeping somewhat busy. Work is also helping to keep my mind off of a strong desire to go home.

The Fair, Friends, and Elves in August?

So, things are finally starting to seem more homey... Well, they were... Until I realized I was within a block of a halfway house. I will continue to be glued to my cellphone.

Over the course of the last week, I've had a complete change of perspective on several fronts. I met a real cowboy (yes, he wears cowboy boots and hats, and knows how to break a horse) who turned out to be one of the coolest people I've met out here, and learned how to drive stick. We (the Terry VISTAs, Susan and I) wound out going camping outside of Terry on Ian's (the cowboy) family's ranch, which turned out to be a ton of fun.

The training in Helena went well, though got really long, really quick. I cought up in the last session with some of the Billings kids, and joined in on their games, which helped pass the time. Getting home at midnight wasn't so much fun. Jordan wound up leaving earlier than I had expected him to, which wound up being ok, as it led to the aforementioned camping adventure.

Sunday led to lots of wandering- I learned more about the cool things to see and do in Miles City. With Ben's help, I discovered that it's a lot easier to escape here, if one pleases. There's also a place that has "special cows" and some pretty cool places to walk near the Yellowstone River. It's apparently called Fort Keough (I might have mispelled that...). Anyway, people research cows there, and apparently cut out parts of their skin near their stomach and replace it with glass as to see what's happening on the insides. Interesting? Maybe.

This week at work has been kind of full. This weekend is the Eastern Montana Fair, in which we have a table, and some Elf Hats. The theme this year is Christmas in August, so the fair buildings are all pretty and shiny. Our table also has a 5-foot singing and dancing Santa- it's pretty neat. There are a lot of cool things to see, including lots of 4-H stuff, several barns full of animals (mostly cows and horses), two buildings with displays, rides, a rodeo and a tractor pull, and even several musical things happening. There are also clowns and magicians occasionally floating about. It's pretty much the best weekend ever.To make it better, Matt from Wisconsin is coming in (hopefully) tonight after a crazy long drive from Colorado. Whoo hoo Wisconsin friends! There are also some kids from Billings and Terry in town as well!