a long drive cross-country

I have driven across the country several times:

• In 2001 I drove from Ishpeming, MI to San José, CA to start studies at San José State University as part of the National Student Exchange.
• In 2005 I drove from Ishpeming to San José again after graduating from undergrad. to begin my teaching career.
• In 2009 I drove from San José to Ishpeming via Flagstaff, Santa Fe, Oklahoma City, Warrensburg (MO), Indianapolis and Chicago.... then back to Flagstaff at the end of the summer to begin graduate school.

I arrived in Washington, DC two days ago after over a week on the road.  I was lucky that my mom was able to make the trip with me this time.  We left Flagstaff Wednesday, July 13 and drove to Minneapolis via Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, and South Dakota (Mt. Rushmore!!).  Then after two days in Ishpeming to D.C. via Ohio, Pennsylvania and (my future homestate of) Maryland.

Highlights of the trip:

• HORRENDOUS lightning and thunderstorms in Utah.  There is a beautiful scenic byway heading east out of Moah, Utah.  Unfortunately, we saw very little because of the heavy rains.
• Colorado and the Rocky Mountains.  I've driven this stretch several times but each time I am amazed at the beauty of the mountains.
• Mt. Rushmore.  It was my first time visiting and thought it was very much worth the time and extra driving.  Learning about how it was created is fascinating.  They didn't take what we'd consider normal safety precautions back then.  I can't imagine tackling such a large project.
• In Minneapolis I attended two days of the National Seminar of Hanbell Musicians of America, formerly known as AGEHR (the American Guild of English Handbell Ringers).  I will be teaching handbells this fall at Norwood and learned SO much and met some wonderful people from Area III (DC, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, & North Carolina) who can help me with the 439083098 questions I have about how to teach handbells at the middle school level.  It's a good challenge... I'm excited.
• Being at home for a day.  Not long enough.  Every time I go home I realize more and more how lucky I am to have been raised in such a tight knit community.  I have been very much shaped by my experiences growing up there.  It was fun to see family and friends.  I even got to sit in with my grandma Palkki's card club (the Tilden Terrors!).  Such fun.

I'm now in the process of trying to find an apartment on the Maryland/DC border.  Wish me luck!

inspiration for a lifetime

I recently finished reading Long Walk to Freedom, the autobiography of Nelson Mandela.  Please read this amazing book.

One of my favorite quotes:

"I always knew that deep down in every human heart, there is mercy and generosity. No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite...Man's goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished." - Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom

Leaving Flagstaff

I leave Flagstaff for the East Coast next week.

Inevitably as you prepare to leave a place you reflect on your time there.  These two years in Flagstaff have been so incredibly vivid and full of life.  I left the Bay Area after four and a half years and was, admittedly, a bit dazed by the smog, the traffic, the fast pace, and a very stressful job.  I came to Flagstaff with my Bay Area friends thinking I was crazy to want to live somewhere to remote.  I came to Flagstaff wanting despeartely to be awakened in some way.  

For those of you who have never been here, Flagstaff is in northern Arizona, about 2.5 hours north of Phoenix.  We are at 7,000 feet elevation at the base of the gorgeous San Francisco peaks (see below).  This area boasts the largest group of volcanic peaks outside Hawaii.  Flagstaff has about 50,000 residents (not including NAU) and is a strange mix of NAU students, hippies, lesbians, artists, Native Americans, "gun and country" types... the gamut. To combat some Arizona stereotpyes... No, this is not the desert.  No, this is not like Phoenix or Tucson.  Yes, this is a quite liberal area in a sea of red. Yes, we do live in a massively large Ponderosa Pine forest.  YES, it snows here... a lot. 

Living here has made me appreciate the outdoors much more.   In San José, you need to seek out wilderness.  In Flagstaff, it surrounds you.  Skiing was 15 minutes away, hiking everywhere, the Grand Canyon just over an hour away...

But more than re-awakening my love for nature, what has amazed me about my time in Flagstaff has been the people.  Outside my work at NAU, I served as assistant conductor of the Master Chorale of Flagstaff and also as choir director at Flagstaff Federated Community Church.  What I soon found was that there is just enough of that small town atmosphere here to be charming (rather than my hometown of 6,000 folks where everyone thinks they know your business).  Starting last spring, I couldn't go anywhere in town without running into someone I knew.  And I found that I loved that.  I loved that people knew me and that we could exchange pleasantries in the produce department at Safeway.  I loved not being a number in the Bay Area rat race.  I loved being a part of this community.  I guess what I'm realizing is that this community has become a part of me...

I will miss Flagstaff immensely and will try to take these lessons to heart as I move to D.C. 

 The San Francisco peaks in winter

photo credit: Brad McCann

 

The view from my first room in Flag.  Ponderosa Pines everywhere!

 

Working with the NAU Men's Chorale... a source of great joy and inspiration

 

Conducting the Harter Memorial Handbell Choir at NAU.  So much fun.