May The Forest Be With You

Why howdy! Casebolt here reporting from the end of Spring Break and, subsequently, her life. Not really, but the rest of April will make or break my certification... it's crazy to think that it'll all be over in a month! Man, I should have prepared better... oh well, future Chelsea will worry about that.

This break was a wonderful time of relaxation and freaking out. About what, you ask?! Oh, just everything. The future (namely a job, a place to live, keeping family in mind in that move, this summer, etc.), the not-so-distant future (everything I need to do in the next month is beyond overwhelming... I really bit off more than I could chew with piloting the TPA... too late to turn back now, but I think it's finally hitting me), and finally the past and present (those really aren't too concerning, but I threw them in for good measure). Needless to say, the end-of-senior-year insanity is in full swing.

Thankfully, I am not the only one experiencing this existential meltdown. My good friend and fellow Northwood student teacher Jori has been feeling the same itch. The only problem is, when we get together, nothing good or rational really happens. So we decided to run away to Canada a few days ago. Did we know where we were going? No. Sleeping? No. Money? No. CANADIAN money? No, eh. Did we do it anyway? Of course. So Friday morning we packed up my car and headed to a little town we'd googled called Nelson, B.C. that apparently had a hostel that could sleep us for $25 each. We had meals at little dives on the side of the road in No Man's Land and stopped at little oddity shops along the way. After finally getting past Border Patrol on the border of a little town called Metaline (wasn't sure he would let us in... he apparently didn't think it was as funny as I did when I responded to his questioning of our possession of mace or other protective devices by showing my fists and saying, "only these, sir") we headed through the bustling metropolis (*cough* sarcasm *cough*) of Southern Canada. Salmo and Ymir were particularly chaotic. We made it to Nelson, rushed about (I guess I should say aboot) to find a way to exchange American currency for Canadian cash (it was a mini adventure, I was parked at a coin meter on the street with no coin. Let the hunt begin!) and then to find a place to sleep. Thankfully the Dancing Bear Inn/Hostel obliged us quite well. After that, we wandered around the town until we found a pub for dinner, headed back to our hostel and spent a few unfruitful hours attempting to work on student teaching stuff. The next day, we went to a little French Canadian bakery for breakfast, wandered along the riverfront and into thrift shops and bookstores, and then hit the road towards Spokane. All in all, it was just the adventurous change I needed :) it felt like Kazakhstan again (slightly... a lot more English in Canada though...).

Here are a few pictures of my adventure:

Absolutely gorgeous day and stunning drive up there, we were squeeling the whole time.

Our Canadian home, Nelson, B.C.

Our sleeping quarters... nothing like communal living while on vacation, loved it :)

Anyway, I'm just hanging around at home today until Richard gets off work and we can have our 10-month anniversary dinner :) I know, it's not much for you guys but it's the longest I've ever lasted! Well, the only I've ever lasted... couldn't be happier, feeling so blessed :) But until we speak again, I want you to know that I love and miss you all like crazy... I can't wait to come home for the summer and spend more time with family. Be well, live peace and see you soon :)

With love,

Chels