Graduation

This has been 3 of the fastest weeks of my life. I have seen and learnd so much in such a short period of time that it is hard to describe to others. I found out I was moving to France on April 30th. That's less than a month ago and so much has changed. Ridiculous.

I "graduated" from training this week. Complete with our bicycle helmet caps and "Sweet Dreams" playing as we marched/danced into the conference room for out t-shirt and first aid kit diplomas. It was a hectic, long week but really fun and informative too. It is shocking how much you can learn about yourself when you role play through potential scenarios and do tons of public speaking every day. Our instructors were awesome and very patient with us. I was impressed every day that I went in by the organization and transparency of the company. Somthing that is seriously lacking in most US based corporations.

I described a bit of what I was learning in the last post so I won't elaborate too much more other than to tell you that I can now:

• successfully dismantle a bike and then reassemble it including all the cabling and many other random mechanic skills we will need while on the road
• rack 24 bikes on top of the van and trailer and then drive that van and trailer down streets about the size of a small alley lined by historic buildings (like Napoleon stayed here type of historic) with no sidewalk buffer
• prepare a "gourmet" picnic with an hour prep time which often becomes about a half hour because you are doing van support for the riders at the same time
• order a baguette in french, ordering a beer seems to always confuse either me or the server, but the baguette I am good at

Bike school was always the best time, mostly because of our instructor, Sebastian. Picture the "worst" french accent you can come up with and then add a very dry sense of humor and a couple random gestures to try to get the point across and that's Sebastian in a nut shell. I was so impressed by his vocabulary considering bikes (parts, pieces, how to describe the mechanics) would not be an easy thing to explain to others outside of your native language. It wouldn't be easy to do within your native language for that matter!

Driving was by far the most anxiety provoking of all the tasks and still is. Especially considering I am going to IRELAND! (Very excited about my placement but I'll get back to that.) Driving such a large vehicle with so much cargo on the opposite side of the road with the steering wheel on the left. Like a postman. No big deal, right?

We all had speculations about Ireland. Mostly because I don't speak any other languages (I won't count my lack-of-practice spanish) but also because I have been there before. I have not, however, spent much time in County Kerry and I have definitely not bike toured through the area staying at Premiere Inns. This will be a welcomed first experience.

I have been thinking of my Oma a lot lately. Well before I knew where I would be assigned I kept having this sneaky little thought that she was somehow, somewhere pulling strings to make this all happen. She was such a big part of building my adventurous spirit and I just laugh when I think of her and Clara (with her flip up shades) driving around in the "batmobile". Now that I'm going to Ireland it seems like an obvious connection. I still don't know if I believe in an afterlife, but the thought sure does make me happy so I will leave it at that.

The best part of training, by far, was my fellow trainees. There were 12 of us in one house. 12 very different people from a little of all over: we had two italians, one slovanian, two americans living in Paris, one american who has been in France for 30 years, one irishman who lives in Spain, one german-american (dual citizenship), two from Oregon, one from Hawaii and one from Wisconsin. Two housemates are vegetarian and one vegan. One was even on crutches (he dislocated his ankle playing basketball with his brother) and everyone scrambled to relocate upstairs so he could have a bed in the downstairs bedroom.

This seems like it would be chaos, but it was quite the opposite. Everyone was so respectful that it somehow restored my faith in the world and our potential for world peace. Apparently all we have to do is educate everyone and teach them to be tolerant of cultural differences. No biggie.

It really did make the whole experience that much richer. I didn't predict that I would become so close to everyone and each drive to the train was a little part of the house dynamic leaving. It's sad to think that we bonded over such an overwhelming learning process but we actually won't be working with each other at all. At least it's not likely within this first year. We have been successfully scattered.

We had dinner together every night. No matter how busy we all were the laptops were turned off and skype phone calls were delayed so we could all sit down together. The first night the "americans" cooked we made veggie burgers and little sliders for the meat eaters, complete with all the fixins (including cheddar cheese and ketchup) and sweet potato fries on the side. Very few at the table had experienced a homemade veggie burger and it was funny to watch the expressions! One of the best parts was when an impromptu Star Spangled Banner erupted from the kitchen. Just plain silly.

Almost every night was complete with a toast or explanation of the food on the table. (Fern gave the american toast and it went something like this, "God bless America, where we stay home drink beer and let the neighbors vote".) At the end of the toast was typically this little ditty that the people of Bordeaux apparently do whenever there is something exciting happening at their table. We decided it would happen just about any time we opened a bottle of wine. Watch for it at the end of the video.

I never once heard an argument about who got first shower or what should be on tv (partially due to the fact that the tv was never on). Everyone respected when someone needed a little alone time and we all pitched in on chores and laundry. Simone could sometimes be found sitting in our field playing the didgeridoo and I laugh when I think of opening my shutters (very french) and seeing him and Fern sitting outside in the field just watching the moon. Simone also spread a positive affirmations phrase around the house that he picked up in Australia, "You beauty". It's hard to describe, and I wish I had an audio recording of it because it makes me laugh every time I hear it.

I could go on and on about every single one of my new friends, but it would probably end up being the longest post ever so I will spare you all and share a video with you instead. Beth put this together and it is so cute. Enjoy.

ps. Mom and Dad- If you want to see the video bigger click the four arrows at the bottom right to make it go full screen. Or you can click the youtube log and it will take you to the source. LOVE YOU :)

First impressions of France

I arrived in France less than a week ago and on one hand it already feels like it's been months. On the other hand, I am often still in a state of shock. I know it has not fully sunk in yet. It is incredibly beautiful and calm and I love going down the road looking at all the old stone buildings and the poppies in bloom...so many that they are considered ditch weeds in certain areas. Cherry and olive trees line all the roads. Not to mention the vineyards. They are endless!

This is our villa. This is right before it started raining and the quick snap shot does not do justice to the field off our patio. Sitting outside and smelling the fresh air is incredibly peaceful. I love it. I am so comfortable with the other people here and it is such a sharing household. I am shocked that 12 people could get along so well. We actually have dinner together every night with incredible conversation and laughs. Sometimes you even forget how many people live here and then someone you haven't seen in a few hours will emerge from their room and surprise you. It's like running into an old friend in your own living room.

My friend Jess and I went on a 50k ride up to the Villes-sur-Auzon and around. It was fantastic. I tried to take a few photos along the way, but honestly I often feel like the camera just cannot capture all the little things that make Provence so interesting. Or maybe it's all the BIG things. The views are so deep and it's that whole picture that can really take your breathe away. You could bike around a bend and see an incredible vineyard, then behind that is an old stone house with brilliant blue shutters. And behind that you see the olive trees and further still the foothills of the mountain and framing it all: Mt Ventoux! One of the most famous climbs in the Tour de France. Look closely at the picture of the vines and you may be able to see the village up in the hills, just above the house.

We've all been incredibly busy with the job. Tons to read and lots of homework so we can be prepared to start in the middle of June. We have driving school, bike mechanic instruction, public speaking, leadership training, administrative/business training (HR, scheduling, etc) and that's all just in one day. Tomorrow we have all of that and then we have a simulated cocktail party so they can critique our clothing, etiquette and poise. Lord help me.

Saturday we'll do a mock ride (and learn how to "tray" and rack 20+ bikes on the vans) then Sunday I may do a hike on that mountain. It's been teasing me from a distance. I'd like to ride it, but maybe I'll wait till later in the season so my legs aren't jelly at work on Monday.

I still don't know much french, but most everyone around speaks english. Some of my co-leaders speak multiple languages and it's not uncommon to hear english, french, italian and sometimes croatian all at the same time in different rooms of the house. I love it. Something to strive toward.

Tomorrow we might learn where we are going. That will be exciting news. We can't really go wrong with any of the destinations, but it will be nice to know so we can start studying the area.

If you would like to see some more photos check them out here.

All my love,

Erin

Going going...back back...to Florida.

Well, after nearly 3 years I finally made it back to Florida. Technically Florida was the bonus. I was headed to South Carolina for my friend Karen's wedding and Dylan and I decided to fly into Jacksonville and drive up instead. At the time it seemed perfectly logical, but in retrospect it was such a whirlwind. 3 airplanes and 1 hour drive we are in St Augustine Florida for a quick hug from Ryan and Katrina then it's off again! We took a quick run through Anastasia St Park then borrowed Ryan's truck and made the 5 hour haul to Charleston. I had the best time catching up with old friends and spending time with Dylan AWAY from the computer and businesses and everything else that can make you crazy. The wedding was so stunning and classic and Karen looked gorgeous, as always. Charleston is, of course such a lovely town and my friends are such a riot. We walked around and ate WAY too much good food and even caught a Charleston Riverdogs baseball game. Or were they called the Seacats? Dylan apparently made it into Outside Magazine in an article about Portland cycling. He doesn't usually dress like this to ride around town, but it happened to be a photo from Cyclocross Single Speed World Championships and that's just how they do. See more here.
Drove back to St Augustine early on Sunday and went down to the beach where I used to live. The house was gone and it was actually quite the relief. All the bad, falling down mess had been cleaned up and all that was left was the good memories. Ryan and Katrina got a training kite this year for kite boarding (jealous!) so after a quick bite at stir it up (yum) we met them down at A street for a quick lesson in how these things can launch you through the air FAST. Ryan put us all to shame. He's the master of the kite. Here's Dylan giving it a go:Last day (too soon) we cleaned out a storage unit, returned a bike and trying to finish all Florida business. I found my cabbage patch. She was pretty much my best friend as a kid and here she is rotting in storage. I'm a horrible person. OH! And we ate breakfast at the BEST cuban place in St Augustine...complete with Breakfast dessert. Amazing.

I leave you now with the oldest street in the US of A...right before it gets torn up for modern day sewer and electricity. sigh.

Core Challenge

So, what have I been up to? Funny you should ask...

I started my own business. Total accident, but now it's fairly well developed. Check it out.

I have also been doing a little work around the house...pictures to come later.
Just keep faith that I am staying busy. As always.

Cheers,
Erin

Portland's 2nd annual Easter Beer Hunt

Last year we had this wacky idea to make Easter a little more entertaining for a adults: an Easter Beer Hunt. It was fairly successful with painted cans of cheap beer and a few goofy costumes, but this year my old roommate Matt took it up a notch!

Just after landing back in Portland we hussled to the house, changed clothes and ran over to Tabor to celebrate with our friends. It was a motley crew consisting of 2 playboy bunnies, a few easter eggs, several men in red dresses, darth vader in a tutu, and of course the Jesus fish.

We actually had park maps and boundaries this year which was definitley helpful considering we never did find two of the "pods" last year. Then again there were still 2 missing this year...but we're pretty sure the disc golfers got them. Damn folfers.

Murals murals everywhere

One of my favorite places in San Francisco is the Mission. Not only can you get off the BART and convince yourself that you have arrived in a foreign country, but the wall art is beautiful. I don't condone destroying someone elses private property (ie. tagging) but there is no denying that some graffiti is absolutely beautiful. Need some examples?


Look closely. This is the corner of a building column. The whole thing is just covered in beautiful images, but distortion of this sharp edge was fascinating to me.


Art is usually more permanent. It is a way to preserve your creativity and thoughts and the beauty or pain as you see it in the world forever. These artists do this amazing work fully aware that it will soon be painted over. Maybe by another artist, maybe replaced by a plain wall.

Want some more?

San Fran take four

I went to San Fran on my rode trip and then again for Bay to Breakers and then one more time with the Go Love Adventure Tour.

Take four was by far the best trip yet. I have been hired as a trip leader with Backroads this summer and I could not be more excited. Dylan flew down after my interview and we wandered the city for the next two days. I slept in, ate great food and relaxed. It was fantastic.

Truthfully I don't have the words. Instead I'll just share a few of my favorite Polaroids.