Home...for Now

It has been pure chaos around here for the last few weeks.  Peter finally graduated on May 8th and it was one of the happiest days of my life!  I felt like I accomplished something even though it was really Peter who did.  We went to the College of Natural Resources commencement instead of the HUGE university one which I'm much happier about.  It was smaller, shorter, and more intimate, I think.  Peter got to walk with his nifty Xi Sigma Pi sash which is the national forestry honors society.  Having that little baby actually bumps his pay grade up significantly with the Forest Service, so I'm glad he was able to earn it.  He was also the only person to graduate with a degree in forestry this spring, too.  I had a hard time holding back the tears as I watched Peter accept his diploma...well, the fake one any ways.  He'll get the real deal sometime in June.  I tried to get a photo of him accepting his diploma from the dean, but my hands were shaking and the lighting was dark and I didn't get a good photo.  I'm hoping someone else in my family did.

Peter and me in front of Old Main.

Once an Aggie...always an Aggie.

That day was great, but in the midst of it all we were in the process of packing up our little apartment in Logan.  The following day, Mother's Day, we had to get everything packed into the moving truck.  We had some awesome helpers like Peter's little brother, Adam, who helped us the entire day.  My visiting teachers were also troopers who took time out of their day to come help me, as well as my little sister, Michelle and her husband Randy.  Their help has not gone unappreciated and we honestly could not have gotten it all done in one day without them!  We left Logan, for good it seems, that evening, and I'm glad I had to drive the Jeep alone because I think I cried the entire time.  It was hard to say goodbye.  I have fond memories and experiences in Logan, and I have made good friends who I will miss terribly.  We spent the night at my in-laws and, despite my exhaustion, I didn't get much sleep.  I developed an acute case of the flu, or some other equally miserable bug, and I spent the entire night worshiping the porcelain throne and shaking with fever.  I was miserable, but Peter was so tired he slept through it all.  I'm glad he at least got some sleep.  5:00 a.m. came awfully early the next day, and we had to get up to make the drive to Colorado.  I was feeling better, or at least I was no longer puking, but I was so weary that I could barely stand.  I couldn't duck out of driving responsibilities, though,  because Peter had to drive the truck while I followed in the Jeep.  I seriously contemplated staying behind, and that probably would have been the wise thing to do, but I was stubborn and wanted to get it over and done with, so I hiked up my skirts and got to it.  It was a rough day, but we managed to keep each other awake with the help of hand-held radios.

Finally, we made it to Gunnison, Colorado.  We got a quick tour of the ranger station from Peter's supervisor, and then he took us up to the house in the town of Crested Butte where we will be staying until we can find a more permanent place...or until the end of June, whichever comes first.  He was kind enough to even help us unload everything from the moving truck!  That night Peter and I were so tired that we both sat in silence as we forced ourselves to eat some dinner.  We were too tired to talk and almost too tired to eat.  Our first priority that day was getting the bed set up, which was a good plan because we both just passed out around 9:00 p.m.  I slept like the dead, I was so tired.  The next day, Peter had to be up at 5:30 to report to his new job.  He came home that evening and we crashed again around 9:00.  That's pretty much been our schedule ever since.  We didn't have internet for about a week, but thankfully we have it up and running now.  It's helping to keep me sane considering I don't have a job...and my prospects don't look good.  The ranger station where Peter reports to has an open information receptionist position that I applied for.  I hoped that my experience working as an information receptionist and collection officer for the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest would give me an advantage, but yesterday I received some disheartening news that several veterans also applied for the job, and unless they're grossly under-qualified, they get preferential hiring treatment.  It sucks, and I'm annoyed, but there's nothing I can do about it.  That's just the way the system works.  It makes me want to go out and join the Peace Corps just so I can have vet status, though.

Any ways, Crested Butte is an interesting little place.  It's a ski town high up in the mountains.  Our house sits at just under 9,000 feet above sea level.  I didn't really notice the altitude difference much (Logan is a little over 4,500), but I did when I tried to go jogging on the one sunny day we've had the whole time we've been here!  It has snowed just about every single day.  The only other thing I can notice is that food cooks faster up here, and I get these insane nose bleeds out of the blue.  It's been a bit of an adjustment, but not too bad I suppose.

All in all, I would say I enjoy living in the Crested Butte/Gunnison area.  I've been told it gets seriously cold here in the winter, though.  In fact, according to Wikipedia, which we know to be the source of all truth on the internet, it is the coldest spot in the lower 48 states.  That makes me pretty nervous.  I hope I can survive.  I also hope I can find a decent job somewhere in this little town.  I'm nervous about that, too, because Peter's job only runs for six months of the year.  I need to be able to eat the other six months as well, so I've got to find something, I guess.  Any ways...here are some pictures that I took for your ocular enjoyment.  I miss and love you all!

My little house...for now.

The view of Mt. Crested Butte from my house.

Elk Avenue, kind of the downtown area of C.B.

Another view of Mt. Crested Butte.

Mt. Crested Butte again...

...and the view of C.B. from the highway.