That's what I'm hoping for anyway. At the beginning of last month, I termed it "May Mayhem". It was an incredibly busy month for us, but we survived and had fun in the process, so here are all the things that made up our month:
1) Finished the semester. I finished up TAing a class called Politics and Society at the U of M, so a good week of May was filled with grading exams and papers.
2) Interviewed for an Assistant Professor position. Will and I went to Ohio where I interviewed for a Sociologist position at Mount Vernon Nazarene University. The school is about 45 minutes outside of Columbus and we had a great time visiting! We met with faculty, students, and administration and all were very welcoming. One of my undergraduate professors from SPU moved out there a few years ago, so it was fun to see Dr. Caddell and his family again! I also gave a lecture for the students, and interviewed with a variety of people. I think they liked us because they offered us the job! Will and I liked the area, it is a great opportunity for myself and there also appear to be exciting job opportunities for Will there as well, so we accepted the position and will be moving to Mount Vernon Ohio in the Fall of 2011. The flight from Minneapolis is direct and really short, so it is easy to visit (hint, hint):) The town is about 16,000 and has great old architecture, a town square, and another college only two minutes away (Kenyon College). There is an Amish presence in the area and the scenery is pretty similar to Minnesota- farmland, rivers, small rolling hills, etc. Columbus was a fun city to visit (probably where most of our shopping, seeing shows, trying new restaurants, etc. will take place), and we are really looking forward to being within a day's drive of a number of cities we've never been to (Pittsburg, Philly, DC, New York, and many more).
3) Stephen's Wedding: My brother got married in Chicago and we had a great time in Chicago (see previous post)! It is such a unique time in our lives, as our families continue to grow! We gained a new sister Mary and niece Lily last summer, a new sister Kirstin this summer, and a new nephew just a few days ago named Finn. It is so exciting!
4) Camping at Afton State Park: For Memorial day, we went with friends camping at a nearby state park (see previous post). Great way to start the summer.
5) Defended my dissertation proposal: This was technically in June (4th), but much of my time in May was spent working on it, so it definitely contributed to the May Mayhem. I passed, so now I am working on getting my project up and running!
So now we have made it to June. Things are settling into a bit of a summer rhythm, so that is nice. We have a lot to look forward to this summer. Will's clients will be out of school so he will hopefully be able to work fewer nights, and I will be teaching a course at the U of M, which is starting this week. We hope to take in a lot of concerts, festivals, World Cup games in the next couple of months, and hopefully get up to the North shore soon! We also have a 10K on the calendar for July and a 10 mile run for September- I figure if I put it on the blog, we have to do it!
Until next time,
Kirsten
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Sunday, June 6, 2010
MN/OH Countdown
I have writer's block. Perhaps because I (Will) haven't blogged in too long. Or because it's hard to put into words all that this will mean for our next year(s). Either way, we're moving to Ohio.
While the thought of leaving is bittersweet, we will have some time to begin a MN/Twin Cities bucketlist before next fall (2011).
But we're also pretty excited for what's to come.
the job
hopefully still true in 2011
proximity to the eastern seaboard
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
On Holiday...
What better way to usher in the summer than a camping trip with friends? Will and I joined four of our friends camping at Afton State Park for the Memorial Day weekend. We had perfect weather, good food, lots of laughs, an indominable campfire (it survived through 2 hours of rain), lots of dogs (4!), and NO BUGS.
Afton isn't too far out of the city, so it was a really short trip to get out there. It lies along the St. Croix River, so it is a mix of river bluffs and prairie land. The campsite is up on the top of a bluff, so you have to hike with all of your gear up a pretty steep hill (in near 90 degree heat)- needless to say, we avoided hiking that hill unless necessary the rest of the weekend:) We did do other hikes though, and got in a little swimming. Buckley, our friends' 6 month old puppy learned how to swim, which was pretty hilarious. He was not so sure about it at first...
We were a little worried about Mosby in the tent because he tends to bark if he gets startled by a noise. Since the tent is not exactly soundproof, this could have been a problem at night, but he did great! He tried a few times to push his nose against the zipper of the tent because he knew that was where to get out, but he settled in eventually (and the second night he was fine). This was a huge relief because we love to camp in the summers, so now we don't have to figure out what to do with the dog whenever we go.
It really does feel like summer now. The days are consistently in the 70's and 80's, thunderstorms are making their way through occassionally, and you basically couldn't pay people to stay inside (us included). Much like Seattle, when you survive so many months of winter (although this year's wasn't too bad), summer makes it all worth it; this is why we live here and don't give in to the urge to move the entire state a few thousand miles south. Camping was a great way to start out the season and we are hoping to have a number of other trips before this wonderful season starts to give way to the Alberta Clippers and windchills. Below are some pics.
Until next time,
Kirsten
Afton isn't too far out of the city, so it was a really short trip to get out there. It lies along the St. Croix River, so it is a mix of river bluffs and prairie land. The campsite is up on the top of a bluff, so you have to hike with all of your gear up a pretty steep hill (in near 90 degree heat)- needless to say, we avoided hiking that hill unless necessary the rest of the weekend:) We did do other hikes though, and got in a little swimming. Buckley, our friends' 6 month old puppy learned how to swim, which was pretty hilarious. He was not so sure about it at first...
We were a little worried about Mosby in the tent because he tends to bark if he gets startled by a noise. Since the tent is not exactly soundproof, this could have been a problem at night, but he did great! He tried a few times to push his nose against the zipper of the tent because he knew that was where to get out, but he settled in eventually (and the second night he was fine). This was a huge relief because we love to camp in the summers, so now we don't have to figure out what to do with the dog whenever we go.
It really does feel like summer now. The days are consistently in the 70's and 80's, thunderstorms are making their way through occassionally, and you basically couldn't pay people to stay inside (us included). Much like Seattle, when you survive so many months of winter (although this year's wasn't too bad), summer makes it all worth it; this is why we live here and don't give in to the urge to move the entire state a few thousand miles south. Camping was a great way to start out the season and we are hoping to have a number of other trips before this wonderful season starts to give way to the Alberta Clippers and windchills. Below are some pics.
Until next time,
Kirsten
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