Jenny's Blog

Belize: Day Two

Roberto is a naturally amazing guide.  He picks up on body language and designs itineraries based upon his clients’ greatest needs.  He could tell after an evening at the zoo that we would get bored spending another day there, and so drove us to the only true beach in Belize:  Placencia.  Think post card.  White sand beaches, palm trees, and all of the most brightly colored furniture and painted houses you could dream of.  We spent the next day lounging in the sun, playing in the surf, eating great food, and in the evening, dancing along to a local drumming performance.  It was just what everyone needed.

Belize: Day One

Everything in life is balanced.  I got the airplane row all to myself from Dallas to Belize City, so of course our guide arrived later than even the group, that arrived over an hour after I did.  This extra hour was supposed to give Roberto and I enough time to go through the itinerary, which of course we didn’t do and it eventually had repercussions and required my nit picking later in front of the group.

It wasn’t a big deal though, as a woman from another university pointed out Chrissie and the gang and they are such chill people, the type that don’t mind if the guide is running late.  Perfect.  Everyone got a hug from me when they arrived.  Six women and Sebastian, the token male, engaged to one of the women on the trip and older brother to another.  He proposed on their last school program in Peru.  As long as they weren’t planning on jumping the gun on getting hitched on my time, it was fine.  We were off to the zoo!

 We got checked into our lodgings, a very rustic place tucked back into nature just five minutes down the road from the zoo.  Once darkness fell, we all piled into our van and made our way five minutes down the road to the sanctuary turned educational-zoo-center.  It was a great experience.  We got to hand feed tapirs, large rodents, primates, and even get face to face with jaguars and pumas.  The noises all of the animals made, especially the large cats, while going after their slabs of meat was astounding.  The howler monkeys too scared away every inch of silence with their menacing calls and the boars did their part by stinking up the place.  Hands down one of the best zoo experiences of all time!

Wild Wednesdays: An Open Plane Seat

At first I thought I was going to have an open seat next to me.  People just kept streaming by, some placing bags in the overhead compartment above me, but none claiming the empty space to my left.  Then this older woman stood above me looking back and forth between my row and the one next to me.  It already had three occupants and was filled.  “I guess this’ll be my seat since mine isn’t open,” she said jovially and squeezed passed my knees quickly to plop down.  I looked at the younger man who had obviously taken her aisle seat, forcing her next to me at the window, could sense he knew the shameful thing he had done, admonished him in my head, and went back to reading my book.  “Whatchya reading there?  ‘Poor Economics,’ is that for a class?” she asked. 

“No, it’s related to my work.  I’m out of school.”

“Well isn’t that exciting!  So how does it relate to your work?” 

“It’s about people in developing communities that live on less than a dollar a day.  I work in the travel industry.  I just find it interesting.” 

“Are you going to Dallas for work, or headed on to somewhere else?”

“I’m going to Belize.  What about you?”

“Costa Rica, though stopping in Dallas first to meet my sister and then we’re going to Costa Rica to visit her daughter.”

“That should be fun.”

“Oh yes, her daughter needs a pick-me-up, a little mind changing, so we’ve got some mischief up our sleeves.”  I chuckled, put my book down for the rest of this conversation.  Despite my first impressions of this woman, I decided I liked her.  On first inspection of her face, she was an old woman, orange makeup covered her marbling skin with one streak on her jaw likely erased by a bead of sweat that had trailed its way down from her brow line.  Her mouth didn’t move much when she spoke, as if everything were said through clenched teeth or tight jaw muscles.  I originally wondered if she had had a stroke.  Then, as we continued to talk, I realized she had an accent.  That must be the root of the problem.

“Where are you from?” 

 “I am from the Netherlands, I immigrated here with my family when I was fifteen.”  

Well that explained it.  And from then on out, this woman just became more and more fascinating.  The more I learned of her, the more it became apparent that my life was paralleling hers in many ways, that we were two peas from the same pod, cut from the same cloth, birds of a feather, if you will.  After marrying, she and her husband moved to Evergreen.  Her children went to the same schools I did, they hiked the same trails I hike.  Her son went to his junior prom but forewent his senior one due to his dislike for the falsity of it all.  Both of her children attended DU, she even worked at DU for years in the International Studies department.  Now, in her late eighties, she has climbed 48 of Colorado’s 14’ers, having started when she was 54.  Her son moved to Vail after graduating from DU and has become a world-renowned conqueror of mountains and speaks all over the world.  He led the first blind man up Everest, has done all of the highest peaks excepting the one in Antarctica, and regularly leads disabled children up Machu Picchu, as disabled persons are where his passion lies.  He is the reason for her interest in mountains, not the other way around. 

She shared with me tales of taking her grand daughter back to the Netherlands and opening her up to a whole new world.  She revealed her family hid a Jewish family in their home during WWII, even with German soldiers passing their house and living in the one next to them for years.  We spoke of love and relationships.  She had been married once, to her father’s children, but divorced and never found another man that fit her standards so has chosen to remain alone.  We even agreed that legalizing marijuana in Colorado would only bring unproductivity and devolution to the state, much similar to the Amsterdam that she knows so well. 

I feel blessed to have sat in the company of such a woman and to soak up her wisdom, charisma, and love for life even for a brief amount of time.  You never know who life may bless you with if you are open to having that seat filled next to you.  I have met a young man on a plane who, four years later, is still a dear friend.  I have met the head of the Anthropology department from the University of Flordia, one of the most respected anthro departments in the nation and learned so much.  I have sat next to an elderly woman who has traveled the world times over in search of adventure and lost causes she could right.  And now, I have one more beautiful memory to add to my list.  Always remember that good people attract good people, if you are open to it.

Mental Mondays: Belize

8:31am.  Monday May 13, 2013.  The Denver International Airport is officially my second home.  Good thing it's such a nice airport.  I have been in many that are much larger, out of date, internet inaccessible, and just not as pretty as the Rocky Mountain rendition that is DIA.  Belize City is only half a day's flight away.  I am both thrilled and sad.  I love going, I love flying, I love coming back home tanner than everyone else, who doesn't?  But I miss Colorado terribly when I leave.  Tears leak from my eyes when I say goodbye to my loyal shadow of a dog.  My heart drops when I know it will be weeks before I see my loved ones again.  But Belize awaits.  Here's to a great adventure!

Fun Fact Fridays: Research Symposium

Last Friday over 100 students displayed posters of personal research projects they had done at DU.  For many of these students, these projects were the result of upwards of three years of research with adjunct faculty.  Many of them were senior theses as well as PinS (Partners in Scholarship) funded projects.  Topics ranged from the reduction in ALS onset by chemical treatment, temporary musical literature analysis, racial skewing of baseball teams progression throughout American history, to the efficiency of how micro testers measure how weather conditions effect electrical cables and the use of moths as indicator species along the Front Range.  Students from every department were on site to display their research, and the final products were truly impressive.  In addition to posters, several students were also given the chance to present their findings in front of the community live.  The whole event was a great display of DU's support of undergraduate research and hands-on learning as well as their goal to instill in students how their learning applies to "the real world."  

Wild Wednesdays: Fred Astaire Showcase

Last Sunday was the Fred Astaire Denver studio's birthday, and to celebrate, they put on a beautiful showcase.  Professional and student dancers alike performed the chacha, rumba, East Coast swing, tango, waltz, and group numbers.  The costumes were spectacular and the audience was greatly energized.  On top of it, there was a delicious dinner bar and wine served afterwards and open dancing.  More and more DU students are beginning to attend this studio to give their two left feet a twirl.  It offers great beginner rates, and is so close to campus, so stop in on a Wednesday or Friday evening to see what it's all about.  Who knows, you may be the next best thing and start of the showcase!

Mental Mondays: What at first sight?

What is it that we can have at first sight?  Is it love?  Is it lust?  Attraction?  A scientific recognition of the genetic compatibility between you and that other person?  Is it a spiritual connection, or even souls from past lives acknowledging one another?  I know you're probably reading this waiting for some epiphenal answer, but I have none.  I'm just throwing out ideas and seeing what comes back to me.  I think, depending on the situation, we humans can experience any one of those.  

I bring this topic up for discussion because recently a very good friend of mine came home from work to tell me that she had the craziest moment that day.  A customer had come in who wasn't stop-traffic-attractive to the point where she noticed him right away.  She continued about her work with him there, but then, they happened to lock eyes and something shifted.  For the rest of the time he was eating breakfast with his friends, as she works at a restaurant, they would continue to match gazes and she could feel what she described as a "magnetism" between the two of them.  No verbal contact was made before he left, but they shared a mutual friend that she was working with that day.  It just so happens that they both asked about one another and greatly wanted to meet.  And so it goes...

I myself don't know if I believe in LOVE at first sight.  I think that true love is a trusting foundation that needs time to develop between two people.  I have, however, experienced my own 'What at first sight.'  The moment I locked eyes with the young man, I knew he was going to change my life.  I can't explain why, I just did.  It wasn't love, it was, I admit, kind of lust, but mostly just anticipation.  Eight months later romantic things started to happen, he ended up being my high school sweet heart of 3.5 years, is still one of my best friends to this day, and I will never be the same.  What was it at first sight?  

Fun Fact Fridays: Season's Best

For all of you outdoor enthusiasts, you know very well that weather can be the difference between your favorite open-air destination being crawling with people, or as inhabitant-free as the moon.  Summer is the high season for all hiking, biking and packing trails as well as climbing routes, especially the most beautiful.  That's why they're so popular.  Now and in the fall are your best times to have those most well-known spots all to yourself, or at least with far fewer fat tourists knocking one another into your photos.  Now also provides some great days that are cool enough to enjoy your favorite sports while still getting some sun.  Many people balk at a little rain, or threat of thunderclouds.  Get out there and brave the elements anyways, the unperdictablity can make for some of the most exciting days.  Just be safe.  

Another thing to keep in mind for non-graduating students is planning your fall quarter.  Fall is a great season for all outdoor activities.  The autumn colors make for brilliant settings and the cooler temperatures easier body temperature mainentance.  You're going to want to be outside.  Plan your schedule accordingly.

Wild Wednsesdays: Dance Showcase

The Fred Astaire dance studio is hosting a showcase this Sunday!  The event will have wonderful dance performances by professionals and students alike as well as great food!  If you are a ballroom dance enthusiast, or just enjoy a great show in an intimate setting with delectable eats, then come Sunday!  It's in the shopping center on the north side of 285 right before Santa Fe in Englewood.  Hope to see you there!

Mental Mondays: The Change

There’s always been a moment for me when I’m sitting with a younger sibling and all of a sudden I’m hit by this thought:  “Holy s#$%, you’re a real person now.”  Of course, they’ve always been a person, in existence, taking up space, but there’s a time when they become a highly functioning thinker, problem solver, critique of the world around them, an actively beneficial member of society.  They’ve taken responsibility for themselves, if you will.  I have five younger siblings.  I’ve experienced this moment three times. 

The most recent was with my youngest biological brother.  He sat behind the wheel of my car hours after dinner.  I interrupted our conversations with brief reminders to turn the brights on or off as lone pairs of headlights came and went past us on their journey home.  He’s not had the easiest childhood; being the youngest of three, enduring his older siblings’ abuse, experiencing the full effects of divorce, remarriage, and being integrated into a new family and the home the other step-siblings had occupied for years has taken its toll.  My other brother and I were gone by then and he was left to fend for himself.  He talks little, laughs at my self-deprecating humor constantly, and even in his driver permit-bearing years, still indulges my desire to curl him up into a ball, canoodle him in my lap and pet his head while cooing.  He’s as big as I am, bless his heart. 

And similar to my other brother and myself, the relationship models Garrett has had has carved out vast ruts in his heart.  Rarely do I get him to talk about it, but I felt this night was special- it was the first time he’d ever driven with me while not sitting in my lap, he had asked if he could come along, and it just felt right.  I started asking him questions.  I’ve found that the best way to get any individual to think the way you want them to without telling them so is to ask leading questions.  So that is just what I did.  I asked him first about relationships in general:  “Do you believe in marriage? Well then, if half of marriages don’t work out, half of them do.  What do you think the half that does stay together do to make it in the long run?  Do you think you could put the hard work and commitment in that it takes?  Would you want to?”  Then I asked him about girls and get the answers I expected.  I asked him why they are so immature and what he wished was different about them.  What characteristics would his perfect girl have?  What characteristics would their relationship be like?  What kind of boyfriend would he want to be?  “What do you mean you don’t know?  Well, if she were talking to her friends about you, what are the three qualities you’d hope she would say she likes best about you?”  These are the types of questions that get him thinking about the things worth thinking about rather than just focusing on the negative.   And then he said: “You’ve thought about this a lot, haven’t you?  What are you looking for so I know how I can be better?”

There it was.

 “Holy s%$#, you’re a real person now.”

There’s a moment when a person no longer is trying to meet all of their own basic needs, but is thinking outside of the box.  They are trying to better themselves for the people around them, and/or simply trying to better the world around them.  They’ve taken responsibility.

The first time this happened with my brother just under me, it hit me like a ton of bricks.  The second time, with my step-brother, it was less of a shock but still unexpected.  This time, I had felt it coming.  Like fall turns to winter and winter to spring, I could feel Garrett warming to his new role in life, a role that is going to be as beautiful as that long-awaited warmth of summer.