New England (Part 2)

I basically had to give everything but my first-born child to the rental car place so that I could drive to Cape Cod.   It was ridiculous!  I’ve rented a car before and didn’t have any trouble.  I blame Rhode Island.

To start, I called the rental place while on the bus to pick up the car.  The guy informed me that I could rent from a different, closer location for basically the same price, which had been jacked up from the internet quoted price, of course.  He also proceeded to tell me over the phone of all the documents I would need to rent it if I could get to the place in time.  I was like, “Listen, buddy, I have to rent a car.  I’m not staying the night in Rhode Island.  I don’t know anyone here.  I’m supposed to be in Cape Cod.”  I didn’t bother disputing the price while on a crowded bus, especially since I was in the middle of talking to the driver so that I could get back to where I got on. 

Good news: I got back to where I started, found the rental place, pulled the necessary documents out of thin air, and rented the car in maybe the span of an hour.  Thank goodness for my Dad helping me out, the internet, nice bus drivers, and not getting killed while crossing at least four lanes of traffic while doing the “backpack run.”  Haha!

Oh, adventures while traveling!!  And they didn’t stop there :)

I drove to Cape Cod and settled into my hostel.  That night I planned the next two days and then took a shower outside.  Yeah, the hostel had these cool outdoor shower stalls!  I was skeptical, but it was awesome.  I want one outside my future house.  Just sayin’.

As I was talking to a woman sharing the hostel room with me, I discovered that the beach I planned on seeing the sunrise at was one of the top ten most beautiful beaches in the world!!  It was the Coast Guard Beach, and I’ll let the pictures below speak for themselves.  I definitely went back the next morning.  I also decided that I could watch the sunrise (and sunset, for that matter) at the beach every day of my life and not get tired of it.

After the sunrise each morning, I had a ginormous and delicious (and free – cha-ching!) breakfast at the hostel then hopped on my rental bike, which had absolutely no hassles attached to it unlike the rental car.  I rode that bike up and down the Cape Cod National Seashore and the Cape Cod Rail Trail bike routes to quaint and postcard-esque seaside towns and to the ocean and beaches.  I even ventured off to the bay for a nice, small change.  These two days of in Cape Cod were the BEST!!  This is something I’d have to joyously explain in person.  Written words won’t do.  Nonetheless, I strongly suggest everyone go to Cape Cod in the summer at least once in their life.

As I said goodbye to the Cape and promised I’d be back (if not every summer thereafter), I returned the rental car and caught a train to Boston to meet another friend.  We found each other and then went back to her place to make muffins and plan the next two days worth of fun! 

The next day, my birthday, we met up with another friend of mine from college who had just moved to Boston the previous week.  The three of us walked around Boston, seeing Quincy Market, walking the harbor, watching street performers, and shopping (i.e. buying myself a birthday present).  The weather was perfect.  Absolutely perfect.  Everything made for a nice, leisurely day except my headache, ha!  Oh, well.

The last day of my vacation, my friend and I drove to New Hampshire solely to drive and enjoy the Kancamagus Highway.  My friend said that she wished I could be here in the fall to see all the gorgeous foliage but, really, I thought it incredibly beautiful as it was.  So many trees!  So much green!  I loved it.  Still, I told that I’d be back, for sure.

We had some awesome seafood before heading back to the Boston airport to catch my flight home.  Another great trip with many magnificent memories done and dusted! 

I am so blessed :)

Lots of pictures this time because it was so beautiful!  Some really are worth a thousand words, as they say.  They also say that the picture doesn't do it justice, which is also true in this case, I think.  I have to say that it's awesome that I didn't do anything to these pictures.  Yep, no editing whatsoever!  Just pushed that little button to take each one.

*lots of seals!

^ Day 1 Sunrise ^

*beach pit stop for lunch

^ Day 1 Bike Ride ^

^ Sunset ^

^ Day 2 Sunrise ^ 

*ate everything cuz a girl's gotta eat, especially for a 15+ mile bike ride :)

^ Day 2 Bike Ride ^

*bike bracelet: Happy Birthday to me!

^ Boston ^

^ New Hampshire ^

New England (Part 1)

2 countries.  5 States.  10 days.  That’s how I roll.

I was elated to be asked to be a bridesmaid in a dear friend’s wedding.  It took place a few weeks ago in Vermont, where I’ve never been before but had heard was beautiful.  I figured if I was going to go all the way up to the Northeast, I was going to make a good, long trip out of it, not just a weekend dash.  Planning ensued.

Crazily enough, it was the tiniest bit cheaper to fly into Montreal, Canada versus other nearby destinations.  Plus, the bus ride was a good 2 hours shorter to get to Burlington from Vermont, so Montreal was my first stop!  I stayed in a funky hostel, immediately meeting some guys getting high right outside and then two very sweet French young ladies with whom I was sharing a room.  The French girls were studying abroad and graciously shared their dinner with me.  In return, I suppose, I helped them practice their English.

I woke up early to catch the bus, on which I sat next to a nice girl who had been visiting her boyfriend in Montreal and was heading back to start school at the University of Vermont.  We talked about majors, families, passions, dreams, and more to pass the time during the longer-than-expected bus ride.  We’d both point out something funny or cute as we drove along our merry little way, and we were both also equally shocked by how rude the border patrol personnel were and how long it took to get through.  I enjoyed meeting her (and the French girls, too, since a lot of my travels are solo) and wished her all the best.

Once in Burlington, I was picked up by a family member of the bride and ushered off to the nail salon where all the ladies were enjoying manicures and/or pedicures.  It was a mini reunion right then and there!  Once done getting slightly woozy on the smell of chemicals, everyone went to change for the rehearsal.  Let me say now that Vermont is very pretty and, so, lived up to the hype.  I snapped a postcard-like picture of the church before going in to see the groom and more familiar faces. 

Now then, the best part of the rehearsal was when the floor was opened at dinner to share stories about the bride and groom, most of which were quite funny.  I loved hearing the stories from family members and friends to see how others see them, to know what they were like growing up, and to see that their qualities and characteristics have stayed with them. 

The actually day of the wedding was relaxing and joyous!  Everyone leisurely got ready for the ceremony and thoroughly enjoyed it.  I especially liked when the bride’s father read a letter of encouragement and charge to the bride and groom.  Afterwards, everyone celebrated well at the reception with yummy breakfast-for-dinner, dancing, and a Nerf gun [war] send-off.

Another early morning bus ride was on the itinerary to see to my friend in Connecticut, which is another state I’ve never been to.  My friend is from the area and moved back to attend Yale of all schools for graduate work.  I tell her she’s such a smarty (she truly is and humble about it, too!), and I said “…and that’s why you’re at Yale” a lot. 

Despite her busy schedule with classes starting basically as soon as I arrived, she was an amazing host and we got some good talks in while doing some fun things.  I also finally got to meet her husband, who is a really awesome guy!  (I feel like a lot of my friends married well, and I’m so happy for them!)  I got to feel like a Yalie for a day as I toured campus and attended her class convocation.  I totally faked being a Yale student while on the campus bus going to her convocation but, for whatever reason, didn’t think to keep the act up while meeting her classmates.  My friend and I thought it would have been an hilarious joke but oh well. 

The next day, we grabbed some munkins at Dunkin’ Donuts and then split ways at the train station.  She went to class, while I went to Providence, Rhode Island.  Yep, another state I’ve never visited before!  My first stop was the State House, which housed a visitor’s center.  There was an older gentleman sitting in the visitor’s center, and I picked his brain for things to do or see since I only had the day there.  He gave me some good tips and set me up for a personal tour of the State House with a Johnson and Wales student.  I found the tour quite interesting and even got to ask about J&W’s culinary program. 

Hmm, can I stand the winters up there long enough to go to culinary school?  Probably not, but it’d be cool.  I at least tried to see J&W’s campus but didn’t have any luck.  I toured Brown University instead.  

I was wearing a shirt from my alma mater, yet still got asked by the tour guide if I was a senior.  “Um, no.  I’ve graduated.”  I think I motioned to the shirt but didn’t dare say that I’d finished both undergrad and grad school. Granted, I was surrounded by perspective students *cough* high schoolers *cough* with their parents, so I can’t blame her too much.  Anyway, it was a nice campus, and it was fun to learn about the school’s history, quirks, and unique offerings.

Touring both Yale and Brown made me think of a lot of things, though.  I thought about the fact that I didn’t explore options for college.  I visited two state schools and applied to three of them, since I knew in-state tuition was a good idea since I was going to be paying for some of my education and didn’t know how much scholarship monies I would receive.  Yet, I wonder where I would have gone if I had looked and applied elsewhere.  Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely LOVED my time as an undergrad and as a grad student and honestly wouldn’t change where I went.  It just got me thinking that I’d like to go on campus tours with my kids and encourage them to go big, if that’s what they want.

^ Vermont and the wedding ^

^ My friends, New Haven, and Yale ^

^ Providence and Brown University ^

Go Army ...!

Why military?

People join the military for a lot of different reasons.  Some do it so they can pay for school, some do it so they can pay off school.  Some join to follow in the footsteps of their family members, some join because their family members make them.  Some join to serve their country or to feel a part of something bigger, while others join because they have no direction or need guidance.

Learning the reason why people join the military has opened my eyes.  I really thought that people joined because they thought it was courageous and they wanted to serve our country.  These things are true and evident in people’s lives but are not the deciding factor in a lot of cases. 

Learning the reason why people chose a particular branch intrigued me.  I didn't understand how someone chose one branch over the other.  It's all the Armed Forces to me!  This, too, provided interesting responses ranging from parents being in a particular branch and kids following in their footsteps to not being allowed into one’s desired branch due to a medical restraint (not having perfect vision to be a pilot for Air Forces, for instance) to the comradery displayed by a certain branch on the day of signing up then and there.

I've always respected people of the military no matter the reason why they joined and no matter their branch.  In my opinion, it doesn't matter what you do in the military or which branch your in because you've committed time, skills, loyalty, and much more.  Joining may cause discomfort, displacement, deployment, and possibly your life.  

So, now that I have gone through my own process of deciding to commit to the military by praying, thinking, and talking to others for quite some time and weighing the pros and cons, I’ve decided to do it.

Why Army?

My journey to the military started back in October of last year when my dietetic preceptor asked me what I wanted to do in the dietetic field.  I spouted off a slew of interests.  I also mentioned that I love to travel and wanted to be able to do that in some capacity.  She then asked if I had thought about becoming an Army Dietitian.  She went on to say that she heard such an RD speak at a conference and that the woman loved what she was doing AND gets to travel.  I said that I was not aware of military RDs existing, so I decided to look into it.

I figured it would not hurt to call and ask the different branches about a dietitian position. Right off the bat Air Force stated they weren't hiring dietitians for that fiscal year, while paperwork and phone calls ensued with Navy and Army.  I started to pray about the job.

I was prepared to keep going until there was a red light or, rather, a closed door. While I was finishing my internship, I didn't really hear anything from either apparently interested branch, so I just assumed it was a closed door and that was that.

Then, just as I was about to finish my internship in February, both Navy and Army started talking to me again.  For Navy, I did two phone interviews.  For army, I did a physical and more papers for my application packet.  I never heard from Navy again, which did not hurt my feelings because based on the interviews I wasn't really feeling it anyway.  Army stuck with me the whole way through, even helping me get my RD license faster, and I got the call that I had been accepted into the Reserves.  I was ecstatic! 
Honestly, at first, I didn't think I wanted the Reserves but rather wanted to be full-time active-duty. In the end, since I wasn't sure what was happening with the military when I was looking for a full-time job, I took a clinical job in Fort Worth.  With the Reserves, I can keep my full-time civilian job and do military work part-time.  It’s perfect.

Okay, why do it?

For those who don’t know, my prayer has always been that God would allow me to blend my love for travel and my love for health AND use both for Him.  I would say, "I don't know how You're going to do it, but I know You can."

I would've never imagined going into the military!  (Let’s be real, though, there are a lot of things in my life that I would've never thought I would be doing or would have done.)  I think the military can blend my loves whether through humanitarian missions or otherwise and can help me grow both personally and professionally.  I think I'll love the comradery, serving my country, and being a part of a team.  I know I’ll be challenged to stay physically fit and be able to encourage others to stay fit as well.  I hope to gain sports dietetic experience and just work with a different population, who is motivated and has different needs than the population I currently work with.  I’m ready to take advantage of opportunities as they arise and to experience why every Army RD I’ve spoken to and have heard of loves what they’re doing!  There are other reasons, too, but these are the big ones.

Plus, I think I can offer people help, both nutritionally (physically) and spiritually.  I was talking to an active duty RD who was also a Christian.  Before know her beliefs, I said that I was a Christian and that everybody needed Jesus!  She agreed and offered me some good advice about being a Christian in the military.  I’m excited to see how God uses me in this setting!

Well, what if...?

A lot goes into a decision like this, obviously, and many people offered their own “what if” questions and scenarios for me to mull over.

I’ve decided that I don't want to live in fear, in insecurities, or in the “what ifs” of life.  The “What if you get deployed?” or “What if you have to move?” or “What if you want to have a family?” and more questions like these have crossed my mind and been answered.  For now, I’ll leave it at that.

No, no.  Why?!

Ultimately, I prayed, fasted, asked questions, researched, listened, talked, and sought the Lord.  Lots of things have led up to and steered me toward saying yes to this opportunity, like verses, sheer timing, hearing others experience who are currently Army RDs, and God’s peace. 

I also think life is meant for living well, fulfilling dreams, pursuing passions, meeting people along the way, and, ultimately and most importantly, loving and glorifying God while showing and telling others that they have the choice to love and worship God, too. 

So, here’s to a new adventure with God, who is most definitely “a good one to adventure with!”

I proudly commissioned as a First Lieutenant in the US Army Reserve on Wednesday, September 17^th, 2014 at 18:30 :)