Oh Kay

Memphis, Michigan. Population: 1,184 So, I decided to go on a Whale Watching tour. We were all waiting in line and there were these 2 people walking down the line taking the pictures of all of the families. Turns out I was the only 1 person family, because they looked extremely confused when I said, "Yupp, just me!" They sympathetically let me take my picture with my Ben and Jerry's ice cream. The thing I have really liked about being all alone so far is that I can basically squeeze in anywhere at anytime, because who doesn't have room for just one more person? I bought my ticket last second, was in the back of the line, and still managed to meander my way all the way up to the front of the ship as we were heading further out into the harbor. So everything was fine and dandy until we started to pick up speed. My contacts threatened to fly out of my eyes and I discovered what Boston Harbor flavored hair tasted like. So, I decided to retreat inside un...

So one of my coworkers convinced me to go to this free introductory class last weekend called "The Art of Living." Basically, the main point of the class was learning how to be happy with yourself and most importantly accept yourself (including your thoughts, your emotions, your fears, and your relationships). They focused on guiding us through a 30 minute meditation. And I have started doing it on my own now! You would be amazed at how centering (and easy) it is to just meditate for 25-30 minutes a day. The first time I did it on my own was in the sauna at the gym lol. Being able to just sit in silence and take in your surrounds is really refreshing. Yes, this is actually me! :) I'm sitting on a deck at the Charles River Esplanade. The sunset here was amazing, especially with all the sail boats floating on by. It's only been a week or so of meditation, but I actually like it. I feel like it might have started with my obsession with yoga this last semest...

I can't tell if it was my nerd side or my child side that made me want to go here. Maybe it was both? But, I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a very hands-on museum with the intention to show and prove all sorts of scientific things ranging from physics, illusions, chemistry, and biology. It was a beautiful 3 floor museum right off the river which very quickly took up 3 hours of my day (and I didn't even get to see everything before they closed!! There was loads of taxidermy as well. And even a real fossil of a dinosaur! The last thing that I got to see (before they closed) was the butterfly exhibit. It was practically a green house on the roof. Gorgeous. This was the mirror they made us check for hitch-hikers before we left the room. This little guy seemed to be quite the fan of it.

If you are like me and have never been to Boston but want to see everything before you leave, this is a great way to do it. I literally checked half of the things off of my list in one 8-hour day. Plus it was a nice workout/walk: 12.50 miles to be exact. Instead of getting a guided tour, I went online to their website and bought a $15 audio tour for my phone and printed off a map. This was really neat because you could download it up to 6 times (different devices) and it let you listen to all the different, interesting historical stories about every little stop you took on the trail. It even had cute little portions were they played old music, made the old street sounds, and talked in old accents. It was also really nice because I was able to walk at my own pace and take everything in. By coincidence, one of my roommates (who is also from San Antonio) was taking her visiting cousin (from San Antonio) to the freedom trail that same day. So I let her download the audio tour, and ...

So I never actually told you guys how/why I somehow got all the way up here in Boston. So rewind a few years ago. There was a Macedonian student who went to TLU as a biology major and an athletic trainer (how she did both, I don't know). She did research and grew very close to our beloved microbiology genius, Dr. Robert Jonas. Then she graduated, went to medical school, and became an attending rehabilitation physician at Harvard Medical School. Now fast forward to a few months ago. This same doctor decided to come back to her alma mater and give a biology seminar on a Wednesday (which are normally on Fridays). Since I had decided to start my senior seminar early, I was required to be there - otherwise I would have been at soccer practice instead. Her seminar was a little different than the usual ones we were given. She was more relaxed, less-formal, and more human honestly. What made the presentation even more unique was that it was over her journey. She gave us a little insigh...