Whirlwind

Ok, so I realize that I haven’t written in awhile, and this has been a combination of a few things.  Before I get into that, I will tell you a little bit about my last week with the AJGA in Norman, Oklahoma.

Now, as you can imagine, I wasn’t too pumped about heading for a week of heat, humidity, and Sooners, but, I was pleasantly surprised upon arriving in Oklahoma City.  It wasn’t as ugly as I had first suspected!  Actually, the OU campus isn’t so bad either.

Sunrise off the No. 1 tee - Not too shabby

I landed around 2 in the afternoon on Friday, and was picked up by one of the interns.  We didn’t have to head to the course that evening, so we just washed up and headed to dinner at none other than Red Robin.  If you know me at all, you know that I love Red Robin, especially their burgers.  YUM.  After the burger feast, a few of us decided to head over to the casino.  Now, one thing I realized quickly is that there isn’t much to do in Norman, and so, the casino sounded pretty inviting.



I am kind of proud, and a little embarrassed to say, that I had never gambled before.  No poker, blackjack…nothing, so I felt a little lost walking into the bright lights.  Sure, I had gone to Vegas for my 21st birthday, but that was focused more on alcohol than it was on gambling.  And so, I knew my first time would be a definite learning experience.

Thank goodness the minimum bet was $5.  I don’t think I could have afforded anything else!

I walked around a little and kind of got a feel for the game.  One of my co-workers gave me some tips and explained a little bit of the strategy.  Once I felt comfortable, I dove in headfirst.  I only bought $25 worth of chips, and started betting.  The first hand I bet $5, and won!  I thought I was off to a good start.  Not really – I lost every hand thereafter and ended up loosing my loot in less than five minutes.  Bummer.  So I left the table for a little, and ended up coming back to another table with the remaining $15 I had left in my wallet.  (I think that going to the casino with a set amount of money you are willing to lose is probably the best way to do it.)

Getting my Tebow on - praying for good luck

Anyway, I had much better luck this time around.  Thanks in part to a new friend we made, Jodi.

I lost my first hand, won my second, and won my third.  By this time, we had already started chatting it up with another one of the players, and she started throwing chips at us to bet.  I think we appeared to be a bunch of poor college kids, (exactly what we are) and she took pity and wanted to help us win some money.  Now, keep in mind that she was betting $100 to $200 every hand, so a measly $25 chip wasn’t much to her.  As soon as I got my hands on one of those chips, I bet on it and won.  Crazy how quickly you can win, and lose.  I had had my fair share of both.  Turns out I was going to have a bigger share of winning.

I ended up winning several more hands, and I got a bit bolder with my bets.  $10 and $15, winning the majority of the time.  I think I got up about $150 or so, lost a bit, and then decided to call it quits.  With Jodi’s extra $25, I ended up making about $115, so about $90 of my own.  Not too shabby.  Thanks Jodi!

This stadium is small in comparison to UT, or at least
it is in my opinion : )

The week was off to a great start.  On top of the casino trip, we also got Saturday off!  Turns out one of my friends from high school, Devon, is working as an engineer in Oklahoma City, and so I was able to meet up with her and her fiancé for lunch on Saturday.  I can’t believe the number of people I have been able to see throughout the duration of this internship.  Incredible.

After such a great start to the week, I was eager to get to the course and get to working.  As much as I hate to admit it, OU has a wonderful golf course and campus.  (OU and Texas are HUGE rivals for those of you who don’t know…so, out of respect to my new university, I had to be totally against anything OU).

Vodka soaked gummy bears - great to take the
edge off two days of packing

This rivalry is incredible.  Coincidentally we were staying at the Sooner Legends hotel.  This hotel is packed with OU memorabilia – football jerseys, basketball nets, pictures, and even paintings.  And you know what?  All of them were against Texas.  Of course, me being new to the university and rivalry, I jumped right in.  I wore my Texas running shorts every opportunity I got.

The tournament went off without a glitch, until the final round.  Of course, my last day working for the AJGA, there is a four-hour delay.  Rain, rain, and more rain.  I guess they just didn’t want me to leave!

As I look back on my spring and summer, I have realized that this was an incredible opportunity and experience.  I am so thankful that I was chosen to represent and work for the organization.  In addition, working for the AJGA has also sparked my interest in golf.  Yep, that’s right Dad, I think I might take the old irons out for a swing sometime soon.

Now, after ending my final week with the AJGA, I had about 72 hours to pack and then leave for Austin.  I was a little nervous.

The siblings and soon-to-be in-laws : ) love every one of
them!

I left Oklahoma at 6:00 am on Friday morning, arrived in Spokane around 9:30, and was greeted by family.  Ben and Tori were there to pick me up, and they took me to the most delicious breakfast at Chaps.  Blueberry muffin French toast, orange juice, biscuits and gravy…yum!  As soon as we finished with breakfast, we headed home and I started packing.  I packed and packed all day, and got a good deal of it finished.  Thank goodness too, as I needed a day of relaxation out at the lake.

After packing and a day at the lake, it was back to more packing.  My mom and dad picked up the Budget rental truck, and we started loading it all in.  It only took about four hours!  Good thing too, as we were planning to have dinner with the entire family that evening.  
My last night in Spokane went by quickly, but it was perfect.  Ben and Tori, Jeff and Jess, Mom and Dad, everyone was able to come out for a nice dinner together.  I am so thankful I was able to see all of them before heading out for school.


And so it began: 2,010 miles before us, my mom and I headed out on I-90.  11 hours later, we made it to Sheridan, Wyoming, and I’ll tell you what, I never realized the state of Montana was so big.  Holy cow, it took forever to get out of there.

The second day was a short eight hours to Colorado Springs where we were going to stay the night with my granny.  It was such a nice visit.  We arrived around 3:30 and sat and talked, had a wonderful dinner, and had a great night’s sleep.  My grandma was also able to come over for dinner.  How lucky am I to see so much of my family!

3 generations - so great to see Granny and Grandma!

The next day, we drove the entire way to Austin.  15 straight hours.  I hope I never have to do that again.  I’m just thankful that we didn’t break down anywhere in West Texas.  That is the most desolate area I think I’ve ever seen, and I have seen some bleak landscapes.

Not the exact route we took but you
can get an idea of how far it is!

Austin is everything I hoped for and more.  There is so much to do here, especially for minimal cost.  There is so much good food and music!  I can’t wait to explore a little bit and get a better feel for what this city has to offer.

So, we made it to Austin in technically three days, but we didn’t move into my apartment until the fourth day, Thursday.  We got everything moved in and set up the bed, but the real work started on Friday.

Trips to IKEA and Bed Bath and Beyond, setting up, and organizing really took a good 2 ½ to 3 days.  I know I budgeted for buying new furniture and things for the apartment, but I have never spent that much money in that amount of time.  And then having to assemble the darn things on top of it!! My hands were blistering from all of the screws and nails I had to put it.  But it sure looks good!

I also can’t get over how gigantic this campus is.  I feel like I’m in a mini-city.  There are restaurants and laundromats, bookstores and bus stops.  Coming from small NAU it’s a bit of a shock.  My mom and I explored the campus a little bit, thank goodness.  I feel a bit more comfortable as I start my first week at school.

I get to look at this every day before I head into work!

Another cool thing I was able to do was see where I will be working for the next few months.  I will be working at the Stark Center, which is a sports museum that is actually located within the football stadium.  My office is right above where the football team will ‘stampede’ into the stadium before every game.  It’s pretty darn cool.  There have been several famous athletes that have been to the museum, mostly concerned with strongman competition type athletics.  Pretty cool!

Now, I am just trying to get settled in a new city, in a new home, and in a new life.  It is incredible how drastically your life can change in just a few months.  It is also a great feeling seeing your hard work pay off.  I started planning for graduate school more than a year ago with the GRE.  I took the test in September and then stared looking for schools.  UT was at the top of my list with the size of their athletics, the size of the school, and the success of their program.  I am very excited for the coming months, and I sure hope I can get a grip on this whole graduate school thing.

Keep on checking back!  I am planning on continuing my blog.  I can’t guarantee how often…guess it depends on my workload!  Miss you all in Spokane.  I will be back at Christmas : )

Devon is a friend from high school.  It's crazy where I run into
friends!