Close encounters of a MOOSE kind!

I arrived in Anchorage Friday night with a temperature of -16F (-27C). BRRRR, it's cold here...the only saving grace is that it's dry (as evidenced by the static raising my hair on end) and there's not really any wind to speak of. As long as I was appropriately dressed and my body parts were covered, it was tolerable. It did look beautiful as I got my first glance outside the window at the trees. The branches were all covered with frozen ice and it really did look like a picturesque winter wonderland. It's definitely a vision that I had never seen before, not even back home in Canada.

The next couple of days I got myself settled, went to the grocery store, joined a gym and walked around a bit. I saw this spectacular view of the Chugach mountains to the east of the city that seemed so close that you could almost touch them. It made me want to go there and hike up but since I didn't have the equipment, I did forego that thought! Before I arrived in AK, I had joined some meetup groups and I met up with some of them from one group Saturday night. We got together at a local bar/restaurant for drinks and dinner and then watched fireworks celebrating AK's 50th year of statehood. They were beautiful against the backdrop of the dark black sky and the stark white snow/ice. Everyone was very nice and friendly...I look forward to more activities with them.

My first couple of days of work were spent in orientation and reading manuals...boring!!! I had a quick orientation on Monday and was told that I would be free to go home. However, I thought I'd drop by the dept. to introduce myself to the supervisor since I was in the neighborhood. Well, it's a good thing I did as she wanted me there to start the dept. orientation. (I got a phone message later from HR to go there). The hospital has a lot of useful equipment to make things easier for staff but from what I've seen, some of their programs/protocols are lacking therapy involvement.

So how does a moose fit into all of this? Well, I had been told that it's not unusual to see moose around town. Little did I know how true that would be for me, in such a short amount of time. I was walking out of the satellite building where my orientation on Monday was and on my way to the main hospital. To my utter surprise, I turn the corner and see a giant moose eating leaves from a tree. It was less than 50ft from me, just chomping away on the tree branches, not a care in the world. It looked at me for a moment and then went back to its business of filling its stomach. After I picked my jaw up from the ground and my eyes went to their normal size, I walked to the other side of the street. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera because it would have been a really cool pic!

The end of 2008

I can't believe how fast the past month has flown by. I finished up my assignment in North Carolina, flew home to Canada for the holidays and then off to the greater White North, that's Alaska! I'll get to that last part later but let's see how my last few weeks in NC panned out.

The weekend after GA was my birthday and it was uneventful. I didn't even go out to celebrate, had a mellow evening at home. I guess I was exhausted from all the travelling around I had been doing...it was nice to be home for a change. The people at work did put on a celebration for all of us who had a December birthday and there were 4 of us. One of the techs made this fabulous hat which I wore all day. However, one patient commented that it was hard to take me seriously with it on!

The following weekend I was on the road again, this time to Charleston, SC. It's a lovely city with a alot of history which includes playing a part in the Civil War. There were still cobblestone streets, horse drawn carriages that you could ride and an open building market that was 3 blocks long. I walked around the downtown area and along the shore but not for very long as it was cold. It did warm up on the day I was returning to Jacksonville. I had heard of this 2-3 mile bridge that spanned from downtown Charleston to Mt. Pleasant on which people could walk, run or bike across. However, I had heard about it late morning of the day I was leaving and while I did walk across about 3/4 mile across, I ended up returning to my car as it was getting late. If I'd had more time I would have gone across and back...you know how I love a challenge like that! As I was driving across the bridge to get out of dodge, I could see for miles (it was a clear sunny day) and wished I had heard of this walk before. Oh, well, c'est la vie!

During the last week of work, the rehab dept. had a Christmas party. There was a gift exchange (the one where you can pick from the pile or steal from someone else, etc), plenty of food, parting gifts from the dept to me (which I thought was very touching) and I took plenty of pictures. This picture is with me wearing my birthday hat and riding a "horse" that we had built for a TBI pt who liked riding horses.
Before I knew it, I was done working my last week in NC and it was time to pack up my things and organize it in such a way that I would be bringing my winter apparel to Canada and ultimately Alaska. It took several packing, unpacking and redos before I finally settled on 2 big suitcases, a carry-on and my computer bag. I barely got under the weight limit with my checked bags at the airport but boy were my carry-ons heavy! I had to think about what I would need over the next few months and be sure to bring that along...most importantly, was the paperwork to do my taxes early in 2009.

I was fortunate that a friend offered to drive me to the airport and keep my car for me while I was in AK. I know it's in good hands and will be well care for. I said my goodbyes to those I was leaving behind and flew off into what was coming next (after a most enjoyable holiday with my family)

Hope everyone had a safe holiday and a good start to 2009

It's been awhile....

I know, I know, it's been awhile since I've written anything. But I've been busy! Between taking a kinesiotaping course over one weekend, seeing the sights in various states and starting to pack up because I'm seeing the sights, I've had little down time. First things first, I took a course not only for CEUs for licensure but for the learning experience. Some of it I had learned beforehand, some of it was new. It wasn't a complete waste of time and it sends me on my way to possibly becoming certified as a practitioner once I take the 3rd part of the training.

The weekend before Thanksgiving, I went with a co-worker/PT traveler to VA, Williamsburg to be exact. We spent time taking in colonial Williamsburg where they preserve the historic buildings, atmosphere, culture of the 1770s when the U.S. was just getting started. It's amazing to imagine that almost 250 years ago, people were about to become part of a revolution that would give birth to this nation. Yes, even this Canadian knows a little about American history! Of course, we also spent time shopping at the outlet mall, but I didn't buy anything which is truly miraculous! On our way back to Jacksonville, we drove to the Outer Banks of NC, specifically Kitty Hawk. For those of you that don't know, that is where the ability to fly airplanes was born. We saw where Orville and Wilbur Wright were first airborne....now that's amazing! To see how little they flew in their first flights and zip to the present where we can travel almost halfway around the world on one flight is jaw-dropping. I can also see why they chose that area to test out their ideas...it was windy and it was cold on top of that. Oh yea, gas was at the lowest I've seen it in a long time..$1.57/gallon in VA.

The next week was a short week, due to Thanksgiving and the clinic being closed on Black Friday. I didn't partake in the shopping extravaganza but I did get a 4-day weekend so I decided to go on my furthest venture to date. It was an almost 8hr drive to Atlanta, GA. The weather was sunny and warm on Thanksgiving day and again gas was $1.57 in SC, a little higher at $1.78 in GA, both of which were lower than NC. The weather in GA was overcast and rainy but I still got to enjoy my time there. The Friday morning I relaxed and then went to walk through downtown Atlanta, which included Centennial Olympic Park, and the Thrashers (NHL team) be outplayed by the Nashville Predators. As a hockey fan, I had to say it was not the most enjoyable game as Atlanta's team played terribly and lost in overtime. I was going to try and take in a Christmas concert but I felt too much pressure to be on a schedule so I had to forego that option. I got to ride the MARTA which is Atlanta's rapid transit train which saved me money from parking downtown. The next day I returned to the downtown area, which was an iffy proposition due to the downpour that morning, to go on a trolley tour of the area. I figured I paid for the tour I might as well try and enjoy it, considering that the trolley was enclosed. Fortunately, for me, the rain lightened up on my way to the MARTA station and stopped once I arrived at downtown Atlanta for the tour. In that respect, I was lucky with the weather. That night was lowkey as I decided to return to NC early in the morning as I had plenty of things to try and do before returning to work on Monday. All in all a terrific holiday weekend. Hope everyone else had a memorable holiday!

Where has the time gone?

I feel like the last almost 3 weeks have flown by! Maybe because I've been so busy with work and seeing what's out there. The 4-10 hr days sometimes seem long when it's not that busy but it's a nice break with a 3 day weekend. It has allowed me to travel around without feeling rushed or too tired afterwards.

The first weekend after the football game I returned to Charlotte to visit with my friend, the OT traveler, for what was initially going to be a wild, well, sort of, wild weekend. It didn't turn out that way. I guess you could say we weren't as young as we used to be. I arrived in Charlotte around 5pm and met up with my friend Molly at her place. It was a little rainy which was par for the course for that day. We ended up going to an area known as NoDo which is a shortform for north downtown. It's supposed to be the artsy area with restaurants and small drinking establishments. We had a good meal and then went down the street to listen to some local music. It was fun but we were both exhausted by the time we got home about 1230am.

The next morning we slept in and then got on the road to the Lexington bbq festival, reportedly the best in the area. We both had a taste of NC bbq and it's very different than what I'm used to. The bbq sauce is more vinegar based rather than tomato based so it doesn't color the pork, it doesn't drip and get messy like the usual bbq sauce and there's none of the usual bbq taste to it. Honestly, it's really not to my liking. In addition, they give you the option of coleslaw with the meat...crazy, don't you think? There were several smaller stages and a grandstand for music. The highlight was the main concert where Lee Ann Womack was the featured performer, singing with acoustic guitar accompanionment, along with 3 other male performers. It actually was enjoyable..I think country music is beginning to grow on me!

We got home and had to take a nap. When we woke up, we barely had enough energy to force ourselves to get dressed to get something to eat. We drove to downtown which is actually uptown, can you say confusing? We ate at this Irish pub which had pretty good food. Since it was the Saturday before Halloween, there were costumed people running amuck which was quite hilarious. It was a fairly early night for us.

The next morning we woke up and went for a walk around her area, saw the Bank of America football stadium in the light of day, saw tailgaters whooping it up for that afternoon's game and sat on top of the world (actually a huge globe by the stadium). We had brunch at a nearby restaurant which was yummy and filling! We went back to her place and watched the Panthers game on tv. I left at halftime so that I would miss the stadium crowd leaving and to get home at a decent time to relax before going back to work the next day. What a weekend!

The following weekend I went overnight to Myrtle Beach, SC which is only 2 hrs away. I had a late start and figured I'd be there mid-afternoon. But noooo, I get caught up in a triathalon that is going on in Wilmington which is about halfway and backs up traffic for what seems like miles. I try and work my way around it, only to be led astray and after having found my way back I realized that if I had been patient I would have gotten back on the right track within a few hundred yards after detouring. I finally was on my way to SC and to the outlet mall! I figured while I was there I would take advantage of the mall and go Christmas shopping for my family as well as myself. As it turned out, I think I bought more for myself than for them. I spent so much time at the mall and because of my late arrival, I completely missed out on the Christmas show that I was interested in seeing. Oh, well!

The next day I spent some time on the beach in front of the place I was staying. It was such a beautiful day, sunny and warm in the 70s with the sun reflecting off the water. The beach here was different than on the west coast, particularly southern CA, because the sand grains seemed bigger and there were so many seashells. I was told later that the seashells, both complete and broken, were due to the many storms that pass by the area. It was so warm that I could have easily gotten a tan. As it was, I had to drive back to NC.

Last weekend I drove to Cedar Island, NC and took a 2.5h ferry ride to Ocracoke Island on the southern part of the Outer Banks. The island is small and most of the things to see are right off the ferry within 1-1.5 miles so I spent a little over an hour walking around and went right back on the next ferry to return to the mainland. A lot of people took their cars so that they could drive to the other end of the island north where you can ferry it to Cape Hatteras. I didn't do that because of the time factor and that the ferry between the Cape and the Island only runs a couple of times in the evening and I wouldn't have made the schedule. The ferry ride to the Island was wonderful, it was warm, sunny and of course, breezy. It wasn't crowded so I was able to sit up on the upper deck and enjoy the rays and catch up on some reading. I spent more time reading that day than I have the whole rest of the time in NC. How relaxing!

The next day I went to another outlet mall where I really did do some damage with Christmas shopping for everyone including myself. Again it was a warm and sunny day. I arrived just before noon and started out. Within a couple of hours and few dollars spent, I noticed people driving around to find a parking spot...the mall was getting crowded. There were plenty of sales going on and I was in spending heaven...however, my credit card was smoking and my bank account wasn't going to like it! Hey, you only live once and that's what credit's for anyways, right? Honestly, I'm glad I was able to find what I did and I didn't break the bank so it's all good.

How's your all's Christmas shopping going?

It's only 5 more weeks to go here in NC and then home for 2 weeks with the family. How excited am I?

Goooooo Panthers!

Well, last Sunday was my first ever pro football game! I took a bus trip sponsored by the Jacksonville, NC parks dept. It was very exciting. It began with an early wake-up so I could be on the bus at 6am...it's a good thing I only live 5 minutes from where the bus was picking us up. I slept most of the way as most sane people were doing since it was still dark out. We arrived there shortly before 11am so there was little time to kill. I just wandered around and then got to my seat early. There were plenty of tickets left over which the organizer sold to someone who then turned around to sell to someone else. Money makes the world go round! Fortunately, she kept one ticket to use as a spacer which my friend bought. Molly is another OT traveler who had just started an assignment in Charlotte and lo and behold she only lives a short distance away. It was great to see her and spend some time with her while watching the Panthers beat the Saints.

Our seats were in the nosebleed section but we could still see everything because of the design of the Bank of America stadium. However, you do miss a lot of the details that you get when watching the game on television, like the commentaries and the replays. The funny thing was that it was breezy and cool on the lower levels but once we got to the top there was very little breeze and it was sunny. Consequently, you freeze on the lower levels and bake at the top. I think I even got a sunburn on my forehead.

There were plenty of people tailgating..lots of bbqs and beer flowing in the parking lots. It was $20-30 to pay for parking near the stadium. People paid the money and were partying for hours before the 1p game. I hear in the south, people take the football very seriously, at all levels, even the tailgating!

NC so far

Well, I've been at the new job 2 weeks, that's already 1/6 of my time here. It was slow to begin with but it's picked up the last week. Don't get me wrong, I like it when it's busy since it makes the time go by so much faster. The other therapists are all very helpful and most are all fairly young. I would say that most of them are also married to someone in the military, either marine or navy. The paperwork is a little different, we dictate our evals, which is a little disconcerting to me as I like to see everything written down. I'm such a visual person that I have to get my thoughts down on paper before verbalizing them so it seems like twice the amount of work to finish up an eval. However, since I've had so many the last 2 weeks, I have gotten better at it. I also didn't need to buy so many shirts when I stopped at the outlet in MO. They provided me with hospital polo shirts but I am glad that I bought a couple more tan pants as that it also part of the "uniform". It's the first time that I've had a uniform, so to speak.
So my first weekend, I got settled; the second weekend I spent just relaxing and trying to get a little more organized. Wouldn't you know it, this weekend is mainly raining and I'm sick so I don't have much energy to go exploring. I had been so good about exercising, running a couple of miles and following some videos for weight-training, yoga or toning over the last couple of weeks. Now I feel that it's all shot since I haven't been able to do anything the last few days. The one thing that hasn't waned is my appetite, I can still eat a full meal.

I found out that the mother of a co-worker in WA is very sick, so whoever reads this please say a prayer for her and the whole family. It is a very sad situation.

North Carolina arrival

I spent the night of the 25th at my cousin's in Champaign, IL after having spent some time at an outlet mall, ostensibly to shop for clothes for work in NC. I probably didn't really need to but it was fun. It was a short visit with my cousin but I'm glad I stopped in. From there, I took off for the long drive to Raleigh, NC. I drove through IL, IN, KY, WV, VA and into NC, traversing through various terrain and noticing that it became much more mountainous and green as I headed southeast. The roads also become more windy and it began to rain which made it more precarious. Driving along side of me were many 18 wheelers who should have not been driving so fast...combine that with the rain-slicked roads and it made for some white-knuckled driving.

I finally arrived at my friend's dorm at NCSU in Raleigh. It was a Friday night so, of course, she was ready to go out and party. I'm really getting old! All I wanted to do is relax and sleep...staying out late was the last thing on my mind. In addition, she had to get up early to go on a day trip to Wilmington and I wanted to get up and go at the same time. I needed my beauty sleep!

The next morning I got on the road about 745ish and arrived in Jacksonville about 2 hours later. I met the roomie and got moved in. I pretty much spent that day unpacking and trying to have some sort of organization to the room. It was pretty warm and humid but sunny. I slept well that night. The next day found me walking through the main thoroughfare in the city to find out how long it would take me to walk to work, if I chose to do that. Well, it would take me a good hour at a decent clip to get me there so on my way back home I stopped in some stores to find out how much a bike would cost. I figured it out and the cost of a bike and lock would be more than the cost of gas to get to/from work the entire 12 weeks I'm here. That's because work in about 4.5 miles from home and I work 4-10 hour days. So much for being green and healthy! I guess I'll just have to find another way to exercise and be earth-conscious. It'll also allow me to get more sleep in the morning. Remember I need my beauty sleep!