This is really a beautiful city, nestled between the mountain ranges and Puget Sound. It is isolated, but it has a lot of character and while smaller, it is reminiscent of the other NW cities. I prefer to live near a bigger city but I have enjoyed living here while I was forced to be a hermit for a while to finish this school thing. I even enjoy my drive down to Portland because of the natural beauty. There are breathtaking views, particularly of this one area when the road hits the Columbia and the sun is shining off the water, the puffy white clouds hover, and the neon green grass sparkles as you drive by -- you feel like you're driving through a movie. I also look forward to crossing the Columbia farther down (when you cross into Oregon) because the view of Portland and Mount Hood is spectacular. Basically, I even enjoy driving around here because it is so beautiful. Even when it is foggy, you smell the salt air and see the low-hanging clouds moving. It is like being at the beach. The wind, seagulls, and the mist burning off by mid-morning. It reminds me of early morning Cannon Beach weather on a misty day. It makes you appreciate the sun that much more.
I have often planned a study in my head where I studied how much appreciation people have for the sun in different locations. Do people enjoy the sun more when it is around 24-7? Or do they appreciate it when it is taken away and then given back? I think it would be really interesting to do a study on that. You know that old saying about not knowing what you had until you lost it? I think that is kind of what goes on here -- you have the sun taken away for a few hours or minutes and then given back to you. You grow to appreciate it more. I would hypothesize that people get more "enjoyment" (however I would operationalize that) when the sun has been gone even a short period and then returned. Otherwise, you stop noticing it if it's there all the time. For example, when I moved away from here I didn't realize how much I would miss the enormous trees and greenery until I left it for a long period of time. Same prediction for other nature. I love it here.
I have basically been doing my best to recover for the last week. I still had a lot of paperwork to do over the last week but finally got some of the confirmation I needed. My final dissertation form was successfully turned in and I submitted my final draft. Now, I'm waiting for final approval on my draft and then final graduation clearance. I hope to hear about that soon...I really can't get excited and start telling people that I am finished until I know I'm cleared to graduate.
I've been getting back to natural foods again. I had done a good job of getting "good fast food" for the last few weeks when I was totally exhausted. Some pre-packaged salads, vegetarian brown rice sushi, and Kashi's Mayan Harvest Bake to which I add some of my frozen artichokes, brussel sprouts, asparagus, olive oil, wheat germ, wheat bran, and flaxseed thrown in. I also had some treats like black bean chips with refried beans, avocado, and spices. I'm proud of myself for making those choices during the hard times. But this week I'm back to salads each night, fruit cereal/oatmeal for breakfast, etc. My desserts are chocolate-covered ginger and dark chocolate with cinnamon graham crackers. I'm intending to cut back on the sweets by increasing the natural sugar in my diet (fruit) so that I don't feel deprived. Chocolate-covered berries and ginger are a good dessert because you really don't want to overindulge.
I've also been trying to sleep more. I didn't sleep well last week for some reason -- was up for 3 hours in the middle of the night for some reason. But in general I'm still getting more like 7.5 - 8 hours a night, which is an improvement from previous nights.
Mentally it has been an odd week. I've had moments of joy and also confusion and frustration (because I'm still working on the final paperwork for school and was running into roadblocks). I've been confused about what to do next -- whether to apply to jobs in Seattle or Portland, how long to stay at this job (mostly because I'm so unclear about what is causing my health problems), concerns about my health, and trying to figure out how to start spending my free time. I will have free time after work! It is the first time in my life I will be just working like a normal adult. Some people have been doing this since they were 18 or 22, but I am now 30 and doing it for the first time. It is a weird, foreign, confusing, and exciting feeling. So far, here are the things I'm considering spending my time doing over the next year with my newly gained free time:
- Travel locally (Seattle, Leavenworth, British Columbia, Bend, beaches, Portland, Mount Hood, etc.)
- Travel to Hawaii (hopefully for 1 month)
- Get a dog
- Learn banjo
- Learn piano
- Learn Mandarin
- Clean up my belongings and simply my personal possessions and sell/donate stuff
- Ride horses again?
- Kayak (when the water is warm again)
- Volunteer doing something I believe in (probably environmental support or reducing/improving meat consumption)
- Play video games (I've been playing a lot of Skyrim lately)
I've already been reading again so I'm happy about that. I love my pink Kindle. But I want to get back in touch with nature again. I've watched a lot of nature documentaries lately and I miss nature. I want to get back to hiking on a regular basis each weekend.
I also want to get ready to buy a house soon. I really want to buy a house in Seattle or Portland. It has to have a view and it has to have room for a garden. I want to have a little farm. I want to spend more time near the water. I want to have a family and spend a lot of time with friends.
I think I will go on a hike this weekend. I would like to sit on the top of a mountain for a while and reflect on the beauty of nature.
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