Living in Boston and Other Random Things

I finally made it to Boston. The people I work with are really nice. They all seem to have the same interest I have (i.e., travel, community service). We have a mixture of medical students, teachers, recent college graduates, Master’s students, and professional doctors on the staff. I guess we all have to have the same interest in order to be hired.

We have already started to plan days to hangout this weekend. One girl wants to book a hotel room in downtown Boston so we don’t have to worry about getting home. Wow, I thought we could catch a cab. She wants to go all out…

I ran outside for the first time in about two years. I am a treadmill Queen but, when it comes to running outside I get tired faster. Today I could not run my usual routine. To be honest I have no idea how long I ran because I was so tired. I think it took me about twenty minutes to get warmed up!

Ok enough about running. I must complain about my flight from Chicago to Boston!

Well I arrived at O’Hare airport bright and early at 8:52am to catch a 9:55 flight. I checked my luggage in and proceeded to my airline. I got there at about 9:45 ready to board the plane. The flight conductor person told me at that point that the entire flight was booked and I had to catch another flight because I was flying standby. I wasn’t upset at all. I didn’t have to be in Boston until after 4pm. So I got prepared to wait for the next flight at 11:40am. The plane arrived at the scheduled time. I went to the desk to get my boarding pass and the flight was overbooked as well. The flight attendant told me I had to wait until 1:40pm to catch the next flight. I still wasn’t upset because I didn’t have a time restraint to get to Boston. When 1:40pm came the flight attended said that the flight was booked and I would have to wait until 3:40pm to catch the next one.

At this point I began to get really frustrated because I didn’t want to arrive in Boston too late and I had been in the airport since 8:52am and it was going on 2pm. The attendant also said that it looked like all the flights would be booked for the entire evening. Meaning I wouldn’t be able to fly that day! I was pissed. I immediately took action to find another flight with a different airline. I called my trustworthy friend and booked a flight with a different airline. It cost me $240 bucks one way! Poor woman’s burden (This is in reference to the movie “Black Man’s Burden” if you haven’t seen it, you need to rent it this weekend).

So I arrived in Boston at 9pm yesterday. Instead of catching a cab for $50, I decided to catch the “T” for $1.25. I am the type of person that likes challenges, when it comes to competing against me. I don’t like competing against other people because I feel guilty if I beat them. That’s one of the reasons why I like to run long distance. It’s about pushing yourself past your limits. Anyhow, this ties into riding the “T” because I like to challenge myself to figure things out especially directions, transportation, resources, etc., when I go to a new place. Riding the “T’ definitely proved to be a challenge. I was able to catch the train to my destination with my heavy luggage all by myself at 9pm. My commute was extremely long (I arrived at 10:50pm) between waiting for the train, and have to transfer to two different trains, but I made it. I am so proud!!!

I am getting extremely tired right know. My eyes keep closing as I type this. OMG I have pictures of me, my twin sister, and my brother from this weekend in Chicago. I just bought a digital camera, so more pictures will be posted on a regular basis.

Working in Boston,

Crystal

Me and my twin Christine. Do we look a like to you?



My Brother Tim



Christine and me where playing around with the camera

Chi Town

I am leaving for Chicago tomorrow. The first leg of my trip will be done. I get the feeling that I will be extremely tired over the next few days with all this traveling. I am excited nonetheless because I will meet my nephew Jerry-Justin for the first time. Jerry-Justin is about two years old. When he was born I was in London. By his second birthday I was in PA. Every time this particular sister is in Chicago I am somewhere else. Hopefully I get to see him this weekend. I will post pictures with my new camera!

My thesis is almost done. I just need to complete my conclusion tonight, which means I will be up all night. The light at the end of the tunnel is almost here!!!

Congrats OG for finishing your thesis!!!!

A Summer of Moving

This is a crazy week. I am in the process of writing my Master’s Paper (which is almost done, yea), packing, and making flight arrangements for summer travel. In the mist of all of this Peace Corps is constantly sending me paperwork to finalize plans for my service. OMG I also have to learn the cryptic alphabet before I leave in August!

I keep getting distracted by people constantly contacting me to wish me luck in the Peace Corps and wanting to get together for breakfast/lunch/dinner before I leave. I usually have a lot of fun when I am out with my friends but I lose time on my paper, packing, or completing Peace Corps paperwork. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy talking and hanging out with people but its getting to be a little daunting. After I complete this paper my time will definitely be dedicated to hanging out! Imagine life with out school. I have literally been in school since I was about four …wow. A two year stint in the Peace Corps without school work I can’t wait!!!!


The plan for the summer so far, if you are interested in knowing, is as follows:

•June 9 – Leave Middletown for Chi Town (for those of you who are not natives that is Chicago)

•June 11- Leave Chi town for Boston (Decided to spend the summer in Boston working instead of Chicago. I love Boston even though this will be my first time visiting).

•July 26th – Leave Boston to go back to Chicago (Going to spend 9 days with the fam before I leave for Peace Corps)

•August 4th – Depart Chi town for Philly or D.C. (this is for Peace Corps Orientation)

•August 7th – Leave Philly or D.C. for Bulgaria

Wow! A lot of traveling this summer.


From inside the airplane,

Crystal

What I am made of...

Today was another day of running, but for some reason I was extremely tired. I usually try to run an hour two to three times a week so my body is used to this physical activity. Maybe I didn’t get enough food or rest this morning or maybe the gym was too hot! Anyhow, as I reached thirty minutes every muscle in my body felt like they were going to explode. To get some energy I turned my Kirk Franklin CD on blast, drank water, and forced myself to keep going.

When I looked at the clock again only two minutes had pasted and I was starting to lose my breath and the sweat was pouring. When it comes to working out I always push myself to the limits. I continued onwards thinking happy thoughts. That worked for another ten minutes but once again my body wanted to quit. I was about to stop the treadmill when I thought of my mother.

My mother always encourages me to stay fit. She is 48 years old, about to be 49 this summer, and continues to work out 3 times a week. She lifts, runs/walks on the treadmill, and does the Stairmaster every time she exercises. Whenever I call her or she calls me, she tells me about her workout routine to push me to keep exercising.

Furthermore, my mom is going back to school for a bachelors degree and eventually a PhD in Psychology at her age. If she could do that I knew that I could finish running for another fifteen minutes on the treadmill. I pressed onwards did my sixty minutes and was extremely happy that I accomplished my goal (even though I had to sit down for fifteen minutes to catch my breath and I am still sore).

As I am making the transition from America to Bulgaria (i.e., packing, throwing things away, planning, reflecting), I am realizing that my mama is what I am made of! She has always loved to travel, she is crazy at times, and she is very independent. I don’t think I would be who I am today with out her influence in my life. My mama is a powerhouse!!!! Although she always worries about me being away from home, she respects me enough to let me do what I want to do. I love her for this. Maybe I should have posted this message on Mother’s Day. O well, I just had this revelation today.

Mama if you are reading this blog let it be known that you are appreciated!!!!! Can you send me some money (hehehhehehe)?

Running on the treadmill,

Crystal

My Mother at "the Black Graduation" at DPU 2004.