The Gift of Snow

Last Thursday, Washington, DC and the surrounding metro area enjoyed a surprise snow. The area, of course, is incapable of handling the snow due to the infrequency of 'snow events' so the Government shut down... as did I. Through my window, I could see the likes of enough snow on the ground for fun; I bundled up and headed out to play. I quickly learned my running trails weren't plowed... and to see the Potomac River in all its glory, I was going to have to trudge through eight plus inches of sloppy, heavy snow. So trudge I did. I would have been a lot better off building a snowman or befriending some youth for a round or ten of sledding.

There was just something so magical about walking around my city covered in blankets of fresh, white snow. The snow is inconvenient and unpredictable. It was yet another day--in this very long winter--of forced pause.

And despite the rising temperatures, beginning almost immediately after the snow fell, we still have tall banks of snow everywhere... and each time I head out for a run or walk, I am slowed by patches of icy, snow-covered sidewalks. 

I do want to remember this gift though. The frozen precipitation allowed for a softer, purer perspective on the otherwise familiar.

Friday Night Walk

There was a full moon on Friday night. And the city was stunning as the moon's light reflected against the snowfall from the previous day. Boyfriend and I set out for a post-work jaunt on walkways illuminated solely by the moon, we're totally romantic like that, you see. Oh and it just so happened to be Valentines Day; the passion truly soared as I climbed dirty snow banks! There is just something about snow that brings out the inner child in me.

As with so much of life (especially unplanned circumstances), there is a choice to make: resist it or embrace it. I choose to be present rather than wrapped up in anxiety over things I cannot control. Today was a joyful, memorable, adventurous today.

And tomorrow, well, we shall see.

An Affected Life

The New York Times is writing an article about recent Peace Corps volunteers. These journalists are currently collecting data on the broad topic: How Did Your Recent Peace Corps Service Affect Your Life? I'm someone who believes in processing and understanding and learning from; naturally, I opted to answer the call. I'm doubtful that anything will become of it. I'm hopeful an article on this topic will be published at all. After challenging myself to respond to two questions with strict word limits--100 and 150, respectively--I thought I would share my answers here.

Why did you extend or not finish your Peace Corps commitment?

While celebrating the "Close of Service" of fellow volunteers at a hotel in Maseru, the capital of Lesotho, my friend and I left the event to walk back to the Peace Corps (PC) Training Center, a quarter mile down the road. On our return walk to the hotel, my closest volunteer friend and PC neighbor was shot and killed. I was then sent back to the US for medical attention. PC eventually decided it was unsafe for me to return to Lesotho with a suspect at large. I restarted my service in Ghana and was medically separated shortly after.

How did your service affect your life after you left the Peace Corps?

First and foremost, I lost a friend while serving in Lesotho. As a result, the depth to which Peace Corps (PC) still affects my life today is in almost every way. There isn't a day, there's hardly a moment, that passes where I'm not reminded of my service. Through PC I experienced my highest highs and lowest lows. These highs, whether listening to my host sister share her story in broken English or planting gardens for orphans, showed me the brightest side of life. They've given me hope, taught me kindness, and instilled patience within me. Losing a friend, among other lows, ignited my courage and strength. These darkest times taught me to fight and to believe in myself. We as humans may not be able to control the unpredictability of life. But these moments--high and low--inspire me to live a life outside of myself.

Peace Corps recruits with the slogan, "Life is calling. How far will you go?" After serving in the Mountain Kingdom, I promised myself I would find my calling in local charities, often just as in need as the foreign nationals I served amongst. There are people fighting illnesses in need of blood. There are puppies at shelters in need of cuddling and walking. There are underpaid workers at the fire department that would love a plate of homemade cookies. There are underprivileged children in need of tutors and positive adult role models. There are soup kitchens that need servers. Through writing today, I realized my own needs have been elevated above the many deserving individuals in my community. If I want to be the best version of me, I need to answer these calls.

Will you join me? Let's serve.   

An Apple Update Issue

This is a rant. And it might get technical. About a week ago, the messaging feature on my lowly iPhone 4 stopped working. Each time I attempted to text someone, there was no keyboard display to type my message. Rather ingeniously, I came up with a work around. I typed my message into the Google search engine; copied and then pasted into Messages; and hit Send. So you can imagine how long that took to get old? I finally accepted reality and updated my iPhone to iOS 7, five months after it was released.

Prior to updating, I backed up my phone--a precautionary step in the process. The update did its thing. And upon finishing, I was immediately notified that iTunes on my four-and-a-half year old Mac is no longer compatible with my phone. I naturally downloaded this latest--and greatest--version of iTunes. But after downloading, I attempted to install and learned my Mac needed at least OS X 10.6.8 to run iTunes 11.1. From there, I proceeded to do as requested and download OS X 10.6.8. What do you think happened when I tried to install? An alert said I needed at least 10.6 to run this update. I was real good at playing this game until I tracked down 10.6 and learned this convenient upgrade comes at a $19.99 cost.

I pooled my resources for advice. Through research, we learned the latest Mac operating system is 10.9. We also learned to get 10.9, I need to spend $19.99 on 10.6, $19.99 more on 10.7, and equal amounts on both 8 and 9. Further research later unveiled an additional challenge, my "old" laptop is not capable of supporting 10.9. Or running 8 efficiently. It might--at a $19.99--risk be able to handle 7.

So I have reached a cross roads. I could pay to upgrade to 10.6 and happily be able to sync my phone to my iTunes, iCal, etc. on my computer. This is what I will refer to as a temporary fix. I can adjust to living with my phone and computer as separate entities. This is what I will refer to as the likely option. After all, I don't sync the two that frequently. I will need to find another way to back up my phone, namely my contacts. That might be what the cloud is for? Or buy both OS X 10.6 and 10.7, hoping this gets me through this and the next inevitable iPhone update. This is the least likely option.

That is the backstory. Please, indulge my rant. My laptop is four-and-a-half to the day. I was forced to determine the exact age today in the research portion of my update difficulty. I am someone who takes pride in meticulously maintaining my belongings. I therefore feel as though I should be rewarded with product longevity. Most often, this isn't the case; I went through my first three iPods in six years flat. But this time, my Mac has stood the test of time. And because of this, I'm punished faced with a slew of challenges.

I understand Apple wants to make products good enough to hook the customer but not so good that these items never need replacing. Long before today, I decided Apple's line of desktops, laptops, and tablets is not for me. I use my laptop for the most basic of functions. Simply stated, I don't demand luxuries the Mac affords. The Apple look is sleek. But practical? Not so much for me. When this laptop does eventually bite the dust, I will not return to Apple for a replacement.

The latest challenge should not surprise me. History repeats itself. In my immediate family alone, this is the third Apple product update issue. We first had a desktop (and still do) that hasn't been updatable for years. It hit the wall my laptop is near barreling into. These machines, again, are not capable of running the latest--and greatest--updated operating systems... or even the two platforms prior. So we're talking about functioning machines that are unable to maintains their health with updates and therefore render themselves (and the associated capabilities) useless. There was also my brother's iPhone 3, the one he paid all of a dollar for. The features quit working entirely when Apple stopped supporting the operating system his phone was running.  He was ultimately "forced" to invest another dollar in upgrading to the iPhone 4. And, again, after duly updating my phone, I exposed my Mac's inadequacies.

So Apple, why? Why, I ask, if I'm willing to spend the money to continually update my operating system would launching so far ahead of the older machines running older operating systems be smart? I have to believe I'm not alone in feeling as though a machine originally valued a two grand is not worth maintaining in time.  

After investigating, I realize I lost this battle. The fate of my four plus year machine is doom and gloom. I know I have no power to change the beast that is Apple. I do know that voicing my complaints here does me wonders. And hopefully allows another person--if only one--to relate.

January Goal: A Review

If you're new here, I posted my goals here. As someone whose strengths are achiever and discipline, I really like goals. Goals keep me focused, motivated, and constantly improving. My task at hand in January was to finish decorating and organizing the new apartment. I would say I was about 90% successful in accomplishing my goal. There is a tiny pile left for Boyfriend to go through. And we don't have our picture frames filled nor did we hang (or frame) our map of Lesotho. The result: lots of blank, white walls. These are failures I can live with. For the most part, the apartment has come along way. As have we in learning how to adjust to being two people sharing one life. Never has it taken so much to feel settled in a new place! This might be why this effort spanned nearly four months.

Anyway, I think we've settled into a nice, simple routine. In a nice, simple apartment. I'll let you be the judge.

This is only one of three featured storage closets in the apartment. These coupled with the balcony make this one of the best apartments I have rented to date. For some reason, photos of the front and bedroom closet and the balcony did not make the cut. Perhaps at a later date in time?  

On the negative, I did not indulge in a day of solitude nor have I really started learning the Arabic alphabet--my personal and spiritual goals for the year. I downloaded the study sheets though, so that counts for something, right? And I whizzed through three books on my way to finishing 30 for the year.

Up next: My goal for February is to follow a strict vegan diet. Due to an unusual amount of milk and eggs in our fridge left at the end of January, I decided it would be fiscally irresponsible for me to begin this goal on February 1. As soon as these items are consumed, I will begin tackling this goal. And hey! I got lucky as I was able to indulge in buffalo chicken dip, pulled pork, spinach artichoke dip, and more on Super Bowl Sunday.