Your Bio

I have had my digital camera for two years now and I have absolutely enjoyed taking pictures of all my trips. I have gotten to go to some amazing places and I've made lots of wonderful friends along the way. Most of them are in these albums in one place or another. I hope you enjoy my pictures and the stories that go along with them. It's my journey and I'm glad to be a part of it =)

Galleries

Upstate New York : Gina, Shana, and I headed to a conference in upstate New York - Lake George to be exact. We did a little bit of sightseeing along the way. The plan was to go skiing for a day but it was in the 60's in March and most of the snow was in pretty bad shape. So, we went to the Lake Placid Olympic Village instead! We took a cool ferry boat ride across Lake Champlain and had lunch in Burlington, too. We had a good time hanging out and checking out the area.

Upstate New York

Gina, Shana, and I headed to a conference in upstate New York - Lake G ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2009 5:08am PST

New house pics - old and new : Here are some pics of the house when we looked at it and after we've done some changing! More pics to come soon.

New house pics - old and new

Here are some pics of the house when we looked at it and after we've d ...

Updated: Jul 30, 2009 4:43am PST

Steamboat - Aaron's Pics - Feb 2009 : I went to Steamboat in February and had amazing weather. These are Aaron's pictures. Mine will be up shortly. You can see all the wonderful snow we got! The week after we left it was in the 40's and rained! We hit it just right.

Steamboat - Aaron's Pics - Feb 2009

I went to Steamboat in February and had amazing weather. These are Aa ...

Updated: Mar 06, 2009 4:24am PST

Steamboat - Round 2 - Feb 2009 : Yep, I went again in February for a week. It was fantastic - lots of snow, great friends, fun nicknames, amazing food, and tons of powder! I wish you all could have come along =)

Steamboat - Round 2 - Feb 2009

Yep, I went again in February for a week. It was fantastic - lots of s ...

Updated: Mar 05, 2009 11:26pm PST

Pete's Retirement Party : The time had come for Pete Leitzke to retire in early January of 2009. We wanted to celebrate him in good fashion with a party! Our first one was rescheduled due to the weather. But, on February 3rd, Pete returned! He brought Arlene, his wonderful wife, with him and told us all stories one last time. We will miss you being around here on a daily basis but we know we haven't seen you for the last time =) Good luck finding ways to spend all of your free time. I'm sure you'll find plenty of ways to stay busy. Happy Retirement Pete!

Pete's Retirement Party

The time had come for Pete Leitzke to retire in early January of 2009. ...

Updated: Feb 23, 2009 5:45pm PST

Steamboat, CO January 2009 :

Steamboat, CO January 2009

Updated: Jan 27, 2009 6:45pm PST

Truman Bowling Alley : My good friend, Ivette, works for the White House. She reserved the Truman Bowling Alley which is the official White House Bowling Alley. It's in the Eisenhower Building across the street from the White House but it's where all the Presidents, First Ladies, and Big Wigs at the White House go bowling. It was soooo much fun. And very cool to think we were in the same place that all these great people of our nation's past have been. What a cool opportunity! Thanks Ivette.

Truman Bowling Alley

My good friend, Ivette, works for the White House. She reserved the Tr ...

Updated: Dec 22, 2008 6:08pm PST

FERC Christmas Party 2008 :

FERC Christmas Party 2008

Updated: Dec 22, 2008 5:21pm PST

Smashing Piano : I was given a piano in August of 2007 which was quite beautiful. I had a tuner come to the house and he said he couldn't tune it at all and it needed thousands of dollars of repair. Then, in August of 2008, my mom brought my grandmother's piano from TN to my house in VA. Memommy passed away last Christmas and I was to get her piano! For 2-3 months, we had two pianos in our living room. So, I tried to sell the first one on eBay, Craigslist, and/or give it away on Freecycle. I got a few replies but they were the kind that you keep hearing about that turn out to be scams. I was talking about this piano at work and a couple of guys thought it would be fun to smash a piano to smithereens. Well, it became my last option so I called up Aaron Liberty, Matt Buhyoff, Hector Picart, and Ken Hogan one night in October. We briefly thought about lighting it on fire but then thought that could get out of hand real quick-like. Thankfully, they brought some sledgehammers, crowbars, some crazy heavy duty looking claw thing, and a Sawsall. I think they had a lot of fun. Then, Ken called one of his friends who is an artist and was able to get rid of the heaviest part of the piano - the stringboard. It really was pretty so I'm sure the final work will look amazing. I pretty much just took pictures. I didn't want to get in the way. I had fun watching, though. I do recall lots of Tim Allen-like grunts from Home Improvement going on.

Smashing Piano

I was given a piano in August of 2007 which was quite beautiful. I had ...

Updated: Dec 22, 2008 5:12pm PST

Skiing 2008 : Shana and I got a great deal for three days at Snowshoe. We couldn't pass it up. So, we drove out early Sunday morning and stayed through Tuesday. We arrived around noon and skied til the lifts closed. Monday we arrived when the lifts started and left when the stopped - it was a great day of skiing. Amazing conditions. Tuesday was a bit warmer and the snow a bit slushier but we still had a great time. The hot tub after skiing was a welcome treat. We ordered dinner from a place across the street called Route 66 which was quite delicious. It was a great weekend of snow, skiing, snowboarding, laughter, and fun.

Skiing 2008

Shana and I got a great deal for three days at Snowshoe. We couldn't p ...

Updated: Dec 13, 2008 10:20pm PST

Thanksgiving in VA :

Thanksgiving in VA

Updated: Dec 13, 2008 9:47pm PST

Mainely Maine :

Mainely Maine

Updated: Sep 17, 2008 6:28pm PST

Oh Canada - August 2008 - MINI BUS!!!! : Our annual trip up to Canada was here again! We were all hoping the levels would drop from the 6-8 foot level down to 0 or -1 so that we could play on Babyface, Garburator, and Push Button. We didn't think we'd get much to play on. Were we wrong! The levels went up to 15 feet and MiniBus was in. This play wave is normally only in when there's snow on the ground, ice chunks flowing downstream, and the necessity of a drysuit, gloves, and a skull cap are dire. We got to ride MiniBus and Big Bus with warm water and warm weather. Oh man - was it a ride. You'd ride up to the top of the wave and then bounce your way down this massive 10-12 foot wave and hang out in the trough spinning and doing your best to just stay upright. It was the fastest, wildest ride I've ever had on a river. And it was a ton of fun. The tow rope was connected to a tree about 50 feet upstream. It was the "easiest" way to get on the wave but I struggled using it and had the most success by walking upstream on the island and paddling right into the heart of the monster. It was a huge rush for sure. And then we decided we'd punch through Big Bus. My first ride was a repeat of 2 years ago on Garburator when the wave immediately flipped me, sucked my paddle out of my hands, and had me handsurfing (paddle-less) the even huger wave you see to the right of Mini Bus. I eventually flipped again, the wave let go of my boat, and I tried to roll up using my hands (a hand roll) but the water was too aerated and I didn't have much to brace off of. I had to swim out of my boat. Jack retrieved my paddle, Scott got my boat, and I got picked up by a rafting company. Oh the shame! But, it was worth the ride. It was tons of fun even if I did come out of the boat. I'll never forget my rides on MiniBus or on Big Bus!

Oh Canada - August 2008 - MINI BUS!!!!

Our annual trip up to Canada was here again! We were all hoping the le ...

Updated: Aug 17, 2008 7:27pm PST

Grand Canyon Adventure July 2008 : In the Winter of 2006, I was fortunate enough to paddle with one Mr. Brooks Hinerman. He told me that he had applied for a Grand Canyon permit. My ears perked and I sweetly mentioned that if he had room on his permit that I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to go. Well, fate would have it that just a few months later he was awarded a permit for July of 2008! I immediately put my deposit down and prepared for the next two years for a 16-day trip with 15 other folks. It was well worth the time, the wait, and the money. It really was the trip of a lifetime and I would go back in a heartbeat. On Sunday, July 6th, I flew to Phoenix, AZ and got picked up by Tonya and Stuart Everett and Brian and Natalie Pickett. We headed straight for the South Rim via Sedona, Oak Creek Canyon, and Flagstaff. It was well worth the four hour drive to see the Grand Canyon. It was the most impressive thing I have ever seen. It is just overwhelming how big, wide, and deep it really is. We drove back to Flag and had our first get together with everyone (minus Toebben who was still on a plane from Alaska). The next morning we loaded our gear into the PRO van and headed for Lee's Ferry. Once at Lee's Ferry, we inflated the boats, tied on the oar frames, packed the oar frames, and lastly loaded our personal gear. That all took a few hours. Then we went to dinner at the Marble Canyon Lodge for our last meal before the trip started. That night, we all froze and wondered if we'd all come under prepared. Thankfully, the temperature never got that cold again on us. When we set out from Lee's Ferry, the water was about 50 degrees, crystal clear, and moving quite swiftly. This was the beginning of a 16 day journey that I wasn't quite sure how it would turn out. It ended up being one of the most amazing trips I've ever been on. And I made some wonderful friends along the way. We all figured out the system with some help from the more organized folks in our crew and everything fell into place. We all knew what needed to be done and pitched in to get it done. As you'll see from these pictures, there were so many amazing stories, awesome side hikes, incredible views, moments of boisterous laughter, and just pure joy. I would go again in a heartbeat. I hope to do it again in 10 years or so and hopefully with some of the same people. I know this trip isn't for everyone but if you get a chance to do it - you should!

Grand Canyon Adventure July 2008

In the Winter of 2006, I was fortunate enough to paddle with one Mr. B ...

Updated: Aug 07, 2008 11:10am PST

Lake Tahoe =) : My third trip out West this season was to Lake Tahoe. They had just received a massive dumping of snow the weekend before we arrived so we knew there'd be a good base of snow. Little did we know that the temps would be so warm the first two days. I didn't even ride with my jacket on. It was some serious Spring skiing. I met up with Aaron, Matt, Ali, Meg, Pat, and Hillary at about 1:30am on Thursday morning. Well, they were asleep so I saw them after we all got up. We skiied at Squaw on Thursday, Alpine Meadows on Friday, Homewood on Saturday, and Squaw on Sunday. The mornings started out with some crusty snow but then after a couple of runs the snow softened up a bit. By late afternoon the snow was pretty heavy. We were confined to the groomers as tree skiing was just way to difficult. Bummer. We all loved the Hot Wheels Gully at Alpine Meadows, Matt and I hit the terrain park up and caught some big air! On Sunday, I actually skiied for the first time in about five years. That was fun - almost like riding a bike. I didn't forget too much. I did, however, get back on my board for some night riding at Squaw. That was a blast. I hit the terrain park there a couple of times, too. I got tons of compliments on my pink paisley outfit! I am definitely noticeable. Hmmmm, some funny memories...Saskwatch, Polar Bear Plunge, Beatles music, hot tub, snow up to the roof, Ally and Ali - I still answered when I heard Ali even though I was Allyson that week, Mid-Life Crisis, Apres Ski, Caravan, Sake Bombs, brownies and cookies, yummy dinners, and tons of laughter! Great trip all around. Oh, the scenery was unbelievable - especially at Homewood. Holy Cow the lake was just right there. Absolutely Gorgeous.

Lake Tahoe =)

My third trip out West this season was to Lake Tahoe. They had just re ...

Updated: Mar 06, 2008 7:11pm PST

Wolf Creek, CO :

Wolf Creek, CO

Updated: Mar 06, 2008 6:26pm PST

Virginia Thanksgiving :

Virginia Thanksgiving

Updated: Jan 06, 2008 7:35pm PST

MONTANA!!!! : It's a rough life when work sends you to Montana and you have a friend in Big Sky and you get to go out three days early to get some early season snowboarding in! I had a blast hanging out in the beautiful house that Derek was house sitting. We got some good turns in on the mountain, too. Once I got over the 24 hour bug I was good to go. I had a great time riding at Big Sky. Montana is just gorgeous. I could handle living there for sure.

MONTANA!!!!

It's a rough life when work sends you to Montana and you have a frien ...

Updated: Dec 21, 2007 6:04am PST

NYC with the Roomies :

NYC with the Roomies

Updated: Dec 19, 2007 8:51pm PST

Shana's Birthday :

Shana's Birthday

Updated: Dec 05, 2007 10:32am PST

GauleyFest September 2007 :

GauleyFest September 2007

Updated: Sep 28, 2007 4:16pm PST

Assateague National Park Beach Camping :

Assateague National Park Beach Camping

Updated: Sep 28, 2007 3:55pm PST

6th St BBQ/Birthday Bash August 17th :

6th St BBQ/Birthday Bash August 17th

Updated: Sep 11, 2007 5:45pm PST

Via Ferrata August 2007 : Jake came up with an awesome idea to fill up a weekend in August. The only thing that runs is the UY on Saturdays so a big group of us did that and then several of us drove to WV and camped out. We got to see a really cool meteor shower with lots of shooting stars. We even saw some with really long tails. It was way cool. We had some camping neighbors that felt pity on us and brought us over a bag of charcoal to get our fire started and then they proceeded to bring over a cauldron of hot burning logs to get our bonfire going. It looked like something out of a movie. Then on Sunday, we went to Nelson Rocks to do the Via Ferrata. It's sort of like rock climbing but more like traversing a rock while being clipped in. Look it up on Wikipedia and it will make more sense. Anyhoo - me, Jake, Brad, Lucius, and Tyler did the VF while Patrick hiked around the area. It was a way cool thing to do on a Sunday. The weather was perfect and the views were fantastic. We got to cross a wooden bridge that was 200 feet long, 150 feet high, and had a foot of space in between each board you stopped on. You had to look down to make sure you didn't fall through. It was crazy but tons of fun.

Via Ferrata August 2007

Jake came up with an awesome idea to fill up a weekend in August. The ...

Updated: Sep 06, 2007 6:22pm PST

Ottawa September 2007 :

Ottawa September 2007

Updated: Sep 06, 2007 8:58am PST

Upper Yough Maiden Voyage!!!!! August 4, 2007 : Saturday, August 4th 2007 was the day I chose to run the Upper Yough for my first time. All I had ever heard was that you really gotta be ready when you finally hit the UY. I decided last Saturday when I was running the New River Gorge that I was ready. The NRG was easy to me and I was ready for my next step. I asked Bion, Jim, Scott, Lucius, and Jake to be there with me but only Jake was going up for the release on the 4th. So Jake got to lead me down my first time. The crew ended up being Jake, me, Calvin, Patrick, Tyler, Koji, and Koji's friend. I honestly could not have asked for a better crew. They were all a blast to run the river with as well as amazing guides. After setting shuttle, we geared up and headed for the river. I was wearing my dry top - even in 90 degree weather because the water was pretty cold. Next time I'll wear a little less! The river was flat water for the first mile and then really fun boogy water for the next mile. Jake told me to just read and run. There weren't any crazy spots I had to miss. That was so much fun dodging holes, catching eddies, and reading on the run. Then we finally got to where the rapids kick in. Jake put his elbow pads on and I knew it was go time. I put mine on in the beginning (thanks Bion for letting me borrow yours). First up was Gap Falls - it was a fun ride down and I nailed it. I was excited. I don't really remember Bastard - mainly cause I asked Jake to not tell me what rapid we were at but I don't recall anything noteworthy to tell! Must have gone good. We broke Charlie's Choice down and caught a couple of eddies. I was feeling good and felt like I had my A game with me. At Triple Drop, I followed Jake through the narrow slot which was tons of fun...had to bring the paddle parallel to my boat over my head to be able to get in there. At the second drop I caught the bottom hole and had a nice side surf. I laid hard on my brace and it slowly drove me to the river left side of the hole and let me go! Next was National Falls...I'd heard about National and the Boof - I knew I wasn't gonna do the boof. The river left line had it's own quirks with an F-U hole but thankfully it didn't F with me. I landed upright and straight into the river left eddy. We hung out in the eddy for a quick break. This was where a couple of guys were jumping into the foamy, swirly water and getting spit out 30 feet downstream. It was fun to watch. I ate a powerbar, took a picture of Patrick and Tyler and then it was soon time to head on down the river. Up next was Tommy's Hole. Jake gave another excellent description and example of what I should do. I went for it and thought I was gonna stay upright but the hole got me. I quickly rolled up and started paddling to the river left eddy. From rolling up I got water in my left contact and couldn't see all that great. I was trying to get into the eddy behind the big rock but I wasn't gonna make it so I was gonna catch the next one below it. My contact was still acting up and I could only halfway see. I missed that eddy and I had no idea what was behind me. I figured I better turn around so I can deal with any obstacles coming my way. Yeah, as soon as I got turned facing downstream things were not looking good. I saw a 7-inch diameter tree lying across two rocks with enough space for a boat to go under the tree but not for a boat and a person. To the right there was no way a boat could fit through several smaller rocks. The water was pushing me towards the tree. AGGGGHHHHH - strainers are not good. This is running through my head as well as the thought that this could be really, really bad - deadly bad. I was scared for sure but when you literally have split seconds to react it's tough to think clearly. I knew I was heading straight for the tree. Thankfully it didn't have branches and leaves and crap hanging off it. Come to find out that was Little Niagara and it was a strainer that had just appeared two or three days ago. So the water pushed me left between these two rocks and under the tree with a decent amount of speed. I thought I would go under the strainer and that the tree would take some of my face with it. My bow went under and I thought - here it comes - hang on. Thwat - I was stopped dead in my tracks. The strainer would not let me pass under and it was completely across my chest. It was pinning me back on my stern and I was unable to sit up or move in any direction. I was in a permanent limbo position. I don't remember dropping my paddle but instinct told me to do so. That allowed me to grab the tree in case I could push up on it so I could go under. That didn't happen either. Next I hear a whistle and I know Patrick and the others see what's going on. Within about 30 seconds I hear Patrick and Jake behind me, coming from upstream. They are talking to me telling me everything is gonna be ok. They were calm and reassuring which was definitely what I needed. I see Tyler in the eddy just below where I was stuck. I smiled and waved at him. I was breathing and upright so I was able to stay calm. I wasn't sure how this was gonna be fixed but it didn't take long. I didn't think the tree would budge but it soon was lifted off my chest and then I slid easily down a little chute and Tyler brought me into the eddy. Calvin was in an eddy below Tyler and he was able to get my paddle. Oh MAN! I was so glad to be out of that spot. It was stinkin scary and I hope to never, ever, ever be in that position again. I hope that is the only strainer I ever encounter in my lifetime. Staying calm was definitely key as well as having an awesome team around me. They went into action immediately. They seriously saved my life and I am forever grateful to my dream team. Zinger and Heinzerling were tons of fun and we had great lines. Again, Jake did a wonderful job of showing me where to go. Heinzerling was a wild ride and tons of fun. I am excited to run that again. I ran it clean and didn't flip at all. It was a blast. The next incident happened at Meat Cleaver. I was fine through the whole thing. I really worried my crew because I basically disappeared for about five minutes. Everyone ran the boof and on down through the rest of the rapid. I was the last one to go and was feeling good. I lined up, ran the boof, landed below and then I somehow got pulled into the eddy to the left of the boof. There's a small pool there but it's really swirly water right in front of a huge two-story boulder with a sketchy lookin chute to the left. The chute didn't look inviting at all. I knew I didn't want to go there. I tried two or three times to break out of the eddy but I just wasn't strong enough. Every time I tried I thought I was there but it would start to push me towards that big rock and close to that left chute that I didn't want to go down. I stayed in the eddy trying to figure out my next move. I knew I was worrying my boys cause this was several minutes. I was gonna have to get out of my boat. Soon I see Koji and his buddy. They give me the OK sign and I give it back to them. They are definitely relieved to see me smiling and in the eddy rather than pinned, upside down, out of my boat, or nowhere to be seen. They relayed the sign back to everyone else but the others still couldn't see me. I finally got out of my boat and skipped across the rocks where Koji and his buddy sent my boat downstream. I got back in my boat and paddled to where the guys were. They were happy to see me. I think they were thinking all kinds of bad things were going on. So, I was fine the whole time. I never got worked, pinned, or scared. Just stuck! Powerful Popper was good. Then came Tombstone. I ran the top part fine and then flipped in the middle of it. As soon as I rolled up I hear all the guys yelling for me to paddle, paddle, paddle. I straighten my boat up, get two or three strokes in just in time to blast through F-Up Falls. I saw the hole but I had no idea that was the hole that had given so many people trouble and where swims often occur. The guys were all cheering for me. They were glad I got straight and through it without incident. I was happy, too! Everything else was just read and run and was a great way to end the UY Maiden Voyage. All in all it was a fantastic trip. I am excited to get back up there and improve some of my lines. As well as memorizing what is what. Seriously, though, my Dream Team couldn't have been any better. They kept me laughing the whole way down. I didn't want to get so worked up about the river that I didn't have a good time. But I knew I had to be on my game. I was and besides the strainer I was extemely happy with my first voyage. The Dream Team made the day as well as saving my life. I am forever grateful to them and glad to be alive. I'm ready to get back out there again. The ride home was quite interesting in my car. I wasn't sure if I had enough gas to get from Friendsville to Pucini's just past Cumberland which was about 40 miles or so. Jake and Calvin both thought I did so we decided to try to make it all the way there. We made it! When we got there the needle was definitely on the very last line of the gage - on empty. After dinner (Patrick bought mine which was super nice! Thanks Patrick) we went in search of a gas station. Pucini's is at exit 45 (or thereabouts) and we thought the next exit had a gas station. We get on the Interstate and drive a mile or so and discover that there is not a gas station. So we can only keep going. Tyler, Blady, and Hector had all left before us so if we ran out of gas we'd have to call one of them to turn around and help us out. Yikes! So we keep going. The next two exits are at about mile 55 and 60. Neither one have gas stations. I'm really getting worried. We go another ten miles and still no gas station. In my mind I'm practicing my sweet Southern drawl to see who I could use it on to come help us out. Somewhere around mile 72 there is finally an Exxon station sign. Jake jokes about hoping its closed so we can really push to see how far we can go. I wasn't laughing cause I knew we had very little time. We get off on a really dark exit and don't see the Exxon. We go down the hill and look to our left - yeah, all the lights at the Exxon station are off. No lie!!!! OMG - we seriously are gonna need a tow truck. The station is closed and we gotta keep going. The next station about two miles down has a gas station with lights on that I can see from the interstate. The exit ramp was uphill. As soon as I got to the top of the ramp my car started sputtering. Oh no...Aggghhhh - are we gonna make it? I'm trying not to brake and just roll through the stop sign. We gotta cross two roads to get there and I'm coasting into the station. I'm sputtering the whole way into the station. The car is jerking and we just may have to get out and push it to the pump. Thankfully I made it to the pump and then my car dies. It was seriously in the nick of time! Geez, that was nerve wracking. The most I have ever seen my gas tank fill up was 15.6 gallons. HA - it was 16.556...Jake said that .056 was the gas that fills the tube going into the tank. We completely used it all...it's funny now but I was extremely nervous. Even if the car had died we could have stayed at the gas station for a while cause there was a live band playing...for real! And lots of bikers. Too funny. We filled up and made it home safe. That was truly an adventurous day. It was a ton of fun and I hope to repeat it soon (except for the strainer and gas parts!). Whew, I'm tired of typing and you're probably tired of reading so I'll stop now!!! Woooohooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Upper Yough Maiden Voyage!!!!! August 4, 2007

Saturday, August 4th 2007 was the day I chose to run the Upper Yough f ...

Updated: Aug 05, 2007 12:37pm PST

Ottawa July 2007 : Jeff, Julie, Bion, Erin, Patrick, and Scott drove up on Friday. I joined them Saturday night. And then Sunday Mike and Janet joined us for three days of paddling on the Ottawa River. Here's the pics to show all our fun times...can't wait to go back!!

Ottawa July 2007

Jeff, Julie, Bion, Erin, Patrick, and Scott drove up on Friday. I join ...

Updated: Jul 05, 2007 8:18pm PST

Snowboarding in Vermont - 33 fresh inches of powder!!! : The original plan was for Matt Lucas, Aaron Liberty, Hector Picart, and myself to go snowboarding and skiing in Vermont from Friday night March 16 - Monday night March 19th. However, a huge snow storm delayed our takeoff for 24 hours and Hector was called in over the weekend for work. So the trip was from Saturday night the 17th - Tuesday night the 20th. Once we finally got there - Oh man, it was AWESOME. The conditions were fantastic. We had the mountain almost to ourselves. Not too many people were up there at Killington and Pico. Enjoy the pictures!

Snowboarding in Vermont - 33 fresh inches of powder!!!

The original plan was for Matt Lucas, Aaron Liberty, Hector Picart, an ...

Updated: Mar 22, 2007 8:24pm PST

Lake Tahoe Family Vacation 2/07 :

Lake Tahoe Family Vacation 2/07

Updated: Feb 19, 2007 4:38pm PST

Colorado for the Third Time this season!!! 1/6-1/9/07 : On an extremely last minute notice I headed out to Colorado for the third time this season! Woohoo! Matt called on Wednesday, I booked my ticket on Thursday and I flew out on Saturday. We had a blast ridin for three days at Loveland, CO. They had just gotten 15 inches of fresh snow but I think most of it got blown away on Sunday. It was the windiest I have ever experienced while skiing or snowboarding. I almost got blown over on one run. We ate at Beau Jo's in Idaho Springs, the Red Room in Georgetown and we stayed at the Georgetown Mountain Inn. The skies were a beautiful blue every day and the second two days were amazing (much less wind) and warmer temps. I only wish my new snowboard had showed up before I got there! That's ok - I'll be back in CO in two weeks with my new board...and then Tahoe!!! Can't wait.

Colorado for the Third Time this season!!! 1/6-1/9/07

On an extremely last minute notice I headed out to Colorado for the th ...

Updated: Jan 14, 2007 3:47pm PST

Tennessee Christmas :

Tennessee Christmas

Updated: Jan 14, 2007 3:17pm PST

FERC Christmas Party : This was my first Christmas Party at FERC. Although, I did hear about how great the party was last year during my interview! My boss, Mark, was the reindeer who got to wear panty hose on his head while Team Dasher's Holiday L'eggs stuffed the legs with balloons to make a rack. With our cheering section and a little bit of skill - Team DHL took the winning prize home! There was lots of fun to be had!

FERC Christmas Party

This was my first Christmas Party at FERC. Although, I did hear about ...

Updated: Dec 12, 2006 7:18pm PST

Saturday Night : There was a grand celebration for Matt Lucas, Erin Orton, and Shana Murray's birthdays. We all dressed up for the night and enjoyed appetizers, cocktails, and lots of yummy cake, brownies, and cookies. We had a great time. There was even a Project Runway Showing and a few interesting photos.

Saturday Night

There was a grand celebration for Matt Lucas, Erin Orton, and Shana Mu ...

Updated: Dec 11, 2006 7:29pm PST

Friday Night at the 6th Street House : Finally! I was actually present for a party at my own house. We had a full house from 8pm till 2:30am. It was quite a night with lots of great friends, good food, music, dancing, and a game of Mafia. I am so glad I was finally able to attend a party at my own house. On Saturday, a group of us went downtown to the ice skating rink - that was such a fun time. It was almost like a movie set. I loved being there with all the girls. The hot chocolate was yummy!!!!

Friday Night at the 6th Street House

Finally! I was actually present for a party at my own house. We had a ...

Updated: Dec 11, 2006 7:10pm PST

Awesome Ski Trip in Colorado 12/06 : On Thursday, November 30th, I headed out on a skiing/snowboarding adventure with five great friends: Hector, Bion, Nolan, Lucius, and Stephanie. Our plane was supposed to leave at 4:53pm and after many calls from Orbitz telling us our plane was delayed we finally left around 7:30pm. We arrived around midnight at our condo and had three days of awesome riding. We hit Breckenridge, Keystone, and A-Basin. It snowed the whole week before and we got three more inches on Friday. We had an absolute blast on the mountain, in the hot tub, out on the town, and everywhere in between. If only we'd had more time!!! This is my TR on my myspace page and I just remembered that you can put descriptions in smugmug so here's the longer version =) Snowboarding in Colorado Rocks! Current mood: I have a cold and my voice is kind of gruff I just got back from my second snowboarding trip of the year and it's only December 5th! I had so much fun this past weekend. Six of us left Thursday night and flew out to Denver for a three-day weekend of riding the mountain. It was me, Hector aka Victor, Bion, Lucas aka Lucius, Nolan, and Stephanie. We all got along really great and had an absolute blast together. We were at Breckenridge on Friday and while we there three more inches of snow fell! It made for an awesome powder day especially since it snowed there the whole week before we arrived. Breck had awesome conditions and I did my first black diamonds on a snowboard. I was able to maintain control most of the time and didn't have any huge falls. I did fall some but not enough to have bruised knees or a bruised tailbone. I was really happy! On Saturday we drove over to Keystone for another awesome day. We stayed together at Breck but at Keystone we got all kinds of split up. Our first run we just bombed our way down the mountain. I thought I was gonna get left behind but I managed to keep up. We headed up for another run but we all got seperated. I was riding up with Bion and when we got to the top we looked for Victor, Nolan, Steph, and Lucius but they were nowhere to be found. So Bion and I decided to run the South Bowl - my first time ever on a black diamond bowl. It started out looking like alot of fun but then we got to the lip and it dropped off and was super steep! I did ok going down and maneuvering the deep powder but then I fell at the bottom and lost all momentum. It was so hard to get up because every step I took my foot just sank. I finally got up and then I saw the rest of the trail was headed into the trees. I knew I was in trouble because I hadn't done trees on my snowboard and I knew I didn't have enough control to make such small maneuvers. So I fell about every ten feet because I didn't want to crash into the trees. I did maneuver some of the trail, over a log, and on a ledge next to a creek - that was wild. Bion was awesome at keeping me laughing and telling me to think of it as an adventure. Otherwise I probably would have gotten really frustrated. I was glad he wasn't frustrated with me falling so much and for taking so long. It was beautiful back there but I was working really hard. Finally we got out and we found Nolan, Lucius, and Stephanie. We found more runs and finally around 4pm we found Victor again. Sunday we went to A-Basin and we all split up again. Bion and I stayed together and made as many runs as possible. We raced down the mountain and I was doing good but I skidded out at the bottom and he passed by to take the win. We found a really cool run with a halfpipe-like section. I was starting to gain confidence and speed and on my second run I got a bit much speed. I ended up skidding across the trail and crashing into a huge powdery snowbank! That was much softer than busting on the hard packed powder trail. I couldn't get back on edge so I did the next best thing =) Bion saw the whole thing and was laughing - after he made sure I was alright, of course. I had an absolute blast on this trip and only wished it could have lasted longer. I also snowboarded at Loveland in October...that was cool to have so much snow and such great conditions to be on the mountain so early in the season. In two weeks there are about 30 of us heading to Snowshoe - as long as they have good conditions. Then it's off to Tahoe in February. I can't wait!!! I love the snow!

Awesome Ski Trip in Colorado 12/06

On Thursday, November 30th, I headed out on a skiing/snowboarding adve ...

Updated: Dec 04, 2006 12:06pm PST

Montana Wild - So Beautiful : This is my first trip to Montana and I drove all over the area. I spent an afternoon in Glacier National Park and got some amazing pictures. Montana is amazing.

Montana Wild - So Beautiful

This is my first trip to Montana and I drove all over the area. I spen ...

Updated: Nov 06, 2006 5:22pm PST

Keystone, CO 10/24-29 : I got to go to Keystone, CO for work but along the way we managed to see some other really cool places and do some awesome things in the mountains. I went with Emily, Shana, Sarah, Matt C., Matt B., and Aaron. It was so much fun!!

Keystone, CO 10/24-29

I got to go to Keystone, CO for work but along the way we managed to s ...

Updated: Oct 31, 2006 8:56pm PST

Apple Picking 10.22 : My roomies Jen, Rashel, Angelita, as well as Tina, Kim and Rashel's boyfriend Mike all went to an apple orchard and picked apples and pumpkins on a beautiful fall day.

Apple Picking 10.22

My roomies Jen, Rashel, Angelita, as well as Tina, Kim and Rashel's bo ...

Updated: Oct 23, 2006 6:26pm PST

CNC Weekend : What an awesome weekend to be back in TN. I got to see my CNC friends, go back to campus, watch some amazing TN football and spend a day on the Ocoee. The leaves were changing and the air was crisp. It was much needed.

CNC Weekend

What an awesome weekend to be back in TN. I got to see my CNC friends, ...

Updated: Oct 14, 2006 5:08pm PST

Gauley Fest 9/06 : Gauley Fest - September 2006...tons of fun, lots of great people, and awesome paddling!

Gauley Fest 9/06

Gauley Fest - September 2006...tons of fun, lots of great people, and ...

Updated: Sep 26, 2006 7:32am PST

LG/NRG :

LG/NRG

Updated: Sep 12, 2006 7:27pm PST

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