Denver Dancing and Other Weekend Fun

So for the heck of it, I drove up to Denver with a fellow intern on Friday night to go to the Colorado Country Classic.

I really had no idea what to expect. I knew that there would be open dancing, I knew that I can't dance, but agreed blindly anyways. My friend Linda had met some of the dancers in a club in downtown Colorado Springs the previous weekend, and learned West Coast Swing, so I was excited to learn that, and then see what else came our way.

Stopped in Aurora to pick up another fellow intern, who was graciously letting us stay at her house for the night, and then headed to the competition. Reaching the hotel where the competition was being held, I was floored by 90s, Full House atmosphere that was being exuded; diamond studded everything, clothes that could have easily donned Tara Lipinski, stage makeup, two-tiered ponytails, dancing shoes, pre-competition massage stations... it was a total subculture. We sat down to watch the Pro-Am competition, a lot like Dancing with the Stars. We felt sort of stalker-like, because by the end we knew all the competitors' names, and had our favorites.

On Saturday, we went to a Cherry Blossom Festival at Sakura Square in downtown Denver. It was much smaller than we anticipated, and I couldn't find any homemade paper, so we made our way to the to Tattered Cover, a bookstore in LoDo (Lower Denver) that is eclectic, and has a pretty amazing selection. I have been recently introduced to McSweeney's, which is a literary magazine that has some killer package designs. I loved the homey, lodge-like atmosphere.


Before we left, went to a restaurant called Mad Greens, a salad place on the 16th Street Mall. With salads like the "Edgar Allen Poe" and "da Vinci" it was certainly quirky and delish. When coming back to the Springs, I headed to the baseball park to see the Colorado Springs SkySox play the Portland Beavers (farm league). It was Navs night, and I stood at the table with my roommate, Julie, telling people about NavPress and giving out free devotionals. It was freezing and raining, definitely not good baseball weather. There were two rain delays, and after awhile Julie and I got too cold and antsy to wait any longer... so we decided to get ice cream instead!

This morning, I tried Woodman Valley Chapel, a church just a few miles away from my apartment. One of the funniest moments of the service was when the British worship leader said, "You will probably never hear this from anyone else, but Happy 4th of July from England!" The message was really pertinent, speaking about change, and how we deal and persevere. Afterwards, the couple sitting next to me invited me out to brunch, so that was fun, getting to know new people and hear their viewpoints on the church.

So much more to say, since everything is new at this point, but too tired. Excited to share more as the days progress!

Colorado Architecture

Besides the natural architecture of the mountains, and some of the crazy-big homes that are nestled in them, Colorado Springs has the same corporate "boxes" as a lot of other towns across America. It's funny, though, because boxmakers make some sort of attempt to "Colorado-fy" their boxes by adding stone facade and veneers. Check out this Lowe's:

Sometimes I feel like the chains are trying to fool us; we are not the Big Bad Wolf, we are products of the mountains, that have been unearthed and now bring you low-price goods. Eh, just a thought.

"Lawn Ornaments"

Ute Valley Park in right across the street from my house, so lots of convenient hiking! I have really been trying to take advantage of my surroundings, and love to have beautiful views of the sunset and of Pikes Peak. I have seen so much wildlife, as you can see from the photo, there are always a few Bambi lurking about. I want to keep a "Creature Count," but I have seen so much so far. I think I have seen at least a deer a day, many jackrabbits, and the Colorado state bird, the Lark Bunting.

"The Glen"

So when you wake up in the morning, and see Pike's Peak, you think it can't get much better. And then I remember that I work near a castle. Woah.

This castle is part of Glen Eyrie, and was built by General Palmer, the founder of Colorado Springs, near the Garden of the Gods. It was once owned by Billy Graham, and then the Navigators. Now the Carriage House is a coffee shop, and there are tours that run through regularly. They also have a High Tea, which would be fun to check out. At this point, I've only been on the trails, so I am excited to see and learn more.

The trails and the grounds are always open to NavsStaff. It's pretty cool, flashing my ID badge and entering the grounds.

Below is a picture of Dawson Trotman's grave, founder of the Navigators. He has a really good view of the grounds and of the Garden of the Gods! I learned of Dawson a few years ago in Large Group (in Cincinnati), but have learned much more about him in the last week. Will probably dedicate a post to that later on when I know more.

Navs Headquarters

Began work on Monday, and dove right into my project! I will be designing the 2010 Short Term Summer Missions brochure for Navigators, and working on an overall identity and grid system design for the group, part of their "Reimagining" process. It has been awesome learning about the behind the scenes work that goes into mission work, and seeing all of the arms of the Navigators reaching out to the World. I've heard our team, USIMG (United States International Missions Group), described as the "home" team, and the overseas workers as the "away." I love to see how our work here can supplement others'!

I am excited for the Family Gathering, which will be July 10–16. This is an event where nearly 60 people from their stations around the world will come to relax and enjoy time in Colorado, while also work through hardships that they are facing there. I will be working with 3–6 year old, teaching a sort of Vacation Bible School program on the Armor of God. I am thrilled to be mingling with this age group, and very excited to do crafts with them! I am also interested to see if they relate more to American or their other culture, or see what languages come most easily to them.

The people here are extremely encouraging and inviting. My boss, Mark, took me to each cubicle on the first day, and introduced me to the entire team (United States International Missions Group). It seems like people genuinely care about each other here, and have time to listen and answer questions. One woman took a good 45 minutes of her morning to answer questions that I had concerning identity crises of missionary kids, or living in dangerous situations. She was willing to share some of her experience living in Bahrain during the wars. I really hope I can soak up all of their experiences, and see the mission world with open eyes.

I have been experiencing an acronym learning curve: USIMG (see above), PRT (People Resources Team), D4D (Discipleship for Development), NLT (National Leadership Team), EL (Eagle Lake), B2G (Better 2 Gether), MK (missionary kid), TCK (third culture kid) to name a few. And then of course, I am familiarizing myself with NIV, NLT, KJV, NAST... and The Message. Frequently, I think of that scene in RocketMan where Fred Randall is trying to blend by inserting acronyms that he knows into the preflight check... BMW, CNN, ATT...

Here is my cubicle. It is amazingly grey. Added some "spice" with photos and to-do lists, but is still in need of some help.


And this is around the corner, and a true joy to see everyday as I go to to the lunch room or to the bathroom. What is it? It's YOU! All of you that are going on Short Term Missions! I am thrilled to hear about all of the trips, and to be involved in this way. I can't wait to hear all of your stories, and see the ways God is developing you and the people you have been meeting. I think of you very often, and try to pray regularly for your safety and growth. AH! I am so excited for you, and what flavor this will bring to Navs in Cincinnati!

Wy-roaming

Greetings from the road! Currently in Cheyenne, on the way to Colorado Springs. It's been an epic journey with Mom so far, with hectic cities, wide open spaces, and time for conversation. I am so proud of my little Civic, because it is consistently getting 40 mpg, and we have traveled 1295 with no problems. Here's a map of our path so far:



Some observations on the road:
Chicago=Tolls. Tolls. Tolls.
Follow close behind a car with a bike on the back in heavy rain.
Throngs of windmills. Sometimes one, out of a group of ten, is turning the opposite direction. Why?
Abandoned cows, mostly dark brown
Land laced with infinite power lines, no house in sight
Sun-bleached pavement
"Amber waves of grain" that look very soft

A huge highlight has been the Field of Dreams in Heaven, I mean, Dyersville, Iowa. No advertising on the highway, nothing but a sign when we were three miles away (in the middle of nowhere). We arrived, and there were only a few cars there, but after an hour, there were about 15 people roaming and enjoying the absolutely perfect weather.


I had a catch, felt "the cool of the grass on my feet," and walked through the corn, which was not even a foot high yet. They said that for the movie, they needed the corn to be shoulder-high by shooting time; it was a very dry year, and they needed to dam a nearby river to create a reservoir to water the corn. They ended up watering it so much, and it grew so high, that Kevin Costner had to stand on a platform!

Saw a Pony Express station today, as a sidetrip off of i-80. The Pony Express existed for nine months, to speed up delivery of letters to California. Letters were literally transferred from horse to horse in a "mochila," kind of a second saddle.



Tired. Stretching my legs, then sleep.

Locks for Love

Forgot to post this, but Stephanie came up to Napoleon for, literally, a few hours, to get our hair cut together for Locks for Love. Kailee was the master hairdresser. I was nervous, I admit, since I haven't had short hair in a long time, but I am so glad that I have it cut now. Someone once told me that getting a haircut is a way to transition into a new chapter of your life. Totally true now. Check out the crazy hair model photo in the background of our portrait... :)