Capriccio Nicaragüense

Me and Teena in Switzerland 2003

During my senior year of high school I became very good friends with an exchange student from Switzerland. She introduced me to the chocolaty voice of Leonard Cohen, and the beauty of batik wrap skirts. Together we spent hours walking from place to place (an homage to her pro-walking homeland), bicycled to the library, cooked, and discussed the most important intricacies of life, like ‘what do you think Bob Dylan meant with that line?’ Because of Teena I became more confident with my individualism, coming at a time when life was a lot easier if you just did what everyone else was doing. Over the years we have managed to see each other twice, both times in beautiful Switzerland, and there was never much talk of her returning to this side of the Atlantic. That being said, last week Joe and I went to Nicaragua. The one in Central America.

Getting comfortable in a restaurant in Granada

In early December, Teena wrote to see if I would be able to join her for a portion of her Central American travels. She would be starting in Costa Rica and working her way up to Mexico over a three month period. Those wacky Europeans sure do know how to travel. In any event, I told her for sure we could meet up, offers like that don’t come around just any day of the week—catching up with a good friend who I almost never see, and visiting a new land, not bad. I suggested mid-February, knowing our jobs would be able to live without us for a few days, and she figured by then she’d be in Nicaragua. So off we went.

Howler Monkey mid-jump

View of Volcan Concepcion from Volcan Madera

The most exciting part of the trip was getting to the island of Ometepe, which is created by two large volcanoes (one active, one dormant) connected by an isthmus. Myself, Joe, Teena, and Simon (a guy we found along the way) stayed at a farm at the base of the dormant volcano. While we were there we lounged in hammocks, watched howler monkeys, indulged in the Nicaraguan cuisine (rice, beans, and cheese), did a little bird watching, and climbed the volcano. And at night, when everyone else had gone to sleep, Teena and I stayed up and talked and talked. It was perfect.

The reward after climbing Volcan Madera

The last full day of our trip was spent back on the mainland outside of a town called Masaya. We wanted to get to this beautiful crater lake that we had heard so much about and finish the trip off in style. When we arrived it became clear that this was not as remote as we had hoped, in fact it was nothing short of a resort. No matter, make the most of it. We went for a dip in the largest crater lake in Nicaragua, but were quickly chased out by floating poops. The other swimmers didn’t seem to mind, but we did. You could see the beans.

Teena, me, Joe, and Simon on Isle de Ometepe

It was a short trip, but we packed a lot in. And on top of all our activities there was still time to reconnect with my dear old friend, which was above and beyond the best part of being down there. 

Pigeons, and the like

Joe is out of town, but he’s coming back tonight. He’s been gone since late December for eagle work, though there is some flexibility in his schedule which allows him to stay home for a few days at a time. This will be his last outing for a while, so I’ve been trying to think of any last minute changes I can make that he would normally object to. So far nothing has come to mind, but in case you’re interested, Joe left me with a pet pigeon before his latest departure. I’d say I came out the loser in that exchange. The conversation went something like this: “Emily, can you feed the pigeon while I’m gone?” I had not been properly listening, as the latest episode of The Bachelor was on, so I gave a brief nod in his general direction which his misread as a definitive yes.

Our pet

[He’ll make me clear it up when he gets back, so I might as well confess right now that I wasn’t watching TV, largely because we don’t own one, and that when asked if I would feed the pigeon I simply said yes.] If curiosity has gotten the better of you because of all this pigeon talk and you’re wondering “why on earth…”, there’s nothing much that can be said to that. Joe brought home a few pigeons the other day. Then he put them on our patio. Then he took a few away, and left one here—the one that needs to be fed. I find profound agreement is often the path of least resistance.

Moving on to brighter topics, two things happened last week that are worth mentioning here. 1) Joe had a birthday and 2) we sent out our save the date cards.

Making the STD cards

For his 3*th birthday dinner Joe wanted a big salad. And that is precisely what he got. After several weeks of eating out, he just wanted a plate of fresh greens. He arrived back in Vegas the afternoon of his big day, which was the nicest part about it. I was really excited, and had to keep up a party atmosphere because Joe has consistently tried to convince me that birthdays are not a big deal.  (For two people who spend most of their time reading alone in the dark, it’s not hard to create a party atmosphere, it simply requires turning on an additional light.) I’d say this year was a success. He got a great big giant salad, with sides of mashed potatoes and stuffed mushrooms for dinner. He had a pile of presents to open, which were as follows: a pan (because he is hugely dissatisfied with our current options), a menu book (so when he asks for a list of dinner options I can hit him with his new book), and an apron that has a double arrow pointing to his arms and reads ‘GUN SHOW’. Then we watched a Brazilian movie and fell asleep. Not a bad day at all.

Cutie cute Joe, with all his cute presents

Shortly after his birthday extravaganza, we found ourselves at the post office to send off our save the date cards. For the entire process our conversation went like this:

E: Are you sure you want to do this?

J: Don’t throw them in the slot so hard, you’re missing the basket on the other side.

E: This means we’re really getting married.

J: See?! You did it again.

The face Joe makes when he's humoring me

What I've been up to

The date is not for real, but the people and location are. I slipped my name in there first, because during my second grueling hour of making this thing, I realized that there was no reason why not (shirking tradition). It's also alphabetically accurate, which I'm sure some people will appreciate.
This "very easy" wedding is turning out to be more work than I had initially thought, but we still are getting away with doing a lot less than if it were a bigger, more traditional affair.  At a certain point, all we'll have to do is simply sit around and wait for the big day to come, but the next month or so will be relatively hectic with booking hotel rooms, finalizing the dinner, and most likely dedicating a few trips out to the far end of Utah to choose an exact location. Oh, and the photographer... But there are things I'm really looking forward to as well-- my brother is going to make our invitations, and he has a particular passion for drawing birds of prey. My mom is making my dress, though I suspect she would have rather just bought me one. I expressed sentiment over convenience, but the only person it truly inconveniences is her-- I'm lucky to have such an awesome mom.
As for Joe, he's been away trapping eagles in California for the past few weeks. He chose the date, and is currently trying to decide on a ring for himself. He also has veto power for anything, though he has been wise not to abuse it. In fact, he's generally very agreeable to anything I suggest, though I'm still trying to convince him that it will be really sweet if he carries me down the aisle after the ceremony. He is correct in reminding me that there won't actually be an aisle, as we will most likely be standing in dirt right next to cliff. Such a clever guy, that's one of the reasons I'm marrying him.

Out with the old, in with the new

Even though 2012 doesn’t feel any different than 2011, I’ll go ahead and accept that there’s a whole new year up ahead. I’ll do so by throwing plenty of winks in Joe’s direction. Also, I’ve carefully selected one photo for every month of the past year, the year that only just recently was replaced by 2012. Each photo was chosen based on how well it reflects my feelings for the particular month represented, but I am an emotional enigma so it was very difficult to pinpoint just one photo. Most of the stories associated with the pictures can be found by rummaging around this blog for older posts, so I’ve kept the explanations fairly brief. In all, 2011 was a great year with absolutely zero regrets. In fact, if I could keep on reliving it, I would, even the part when we lived in New Mexico.

January

 One of the first things we did after moving to Las Cruces, NM was head out to White Sands, about an hour's drive away. We did this largely because the idea of spending one more day in Las Cruces had become unbearable, and we had only been there for a week. It was a rocky start to the new year, but after exploring some of the surrounding lands we found that a quick and pleasant escape would be waiting for us whenever we needed it. 

February 

While doing laundry one rare afternoon, I was greeted by this unpleasant and very pregnant apache violin spider. Having long feared brown recluses, I knew almost immediately (because of the 3, rather than 4 eyes) that this closely related species was not a spider to mess with. Quickly, with fearful tremolos punctuating through my voice, I called for Joe to come here right now! He, being exactly 24 steps away, took a leisurely 5 minutes to respond, while I stayed in place paralyzed by fear. We killed this unlucky lady, but spent the rest of our time in Las Cruces carefully shaking out every article of clothing before getting dressed each day. Our efforts were rewarded by never receiving a bite, in spite of finding several more spiders during our stay.

March

In early March Joe and I climbed Organ Needle in the Organ mountains (pictured above). These mountains are quite famous in Las Cruces, because they are the only beautiful thing the city has to offer, I suppose. In any event, their steely charm had called to us both immediately upon arrival and we were anxious to get to the peak. We did, but Joe broke his rib in the process. We made it down safely, though it was touch-and-go for a while. This mountain was a beast to climb, even without a sever ailment it would have been difficult getting back down, and I'm still amazed that Joe did it without help or complaint. That's why he's the brave one.

April

This was an especially hard month to sum up in just one picture. By April, Joe had been trapping eagles in Arizona for a couple weeks, so I took all my alone time on the road and explored the southwest. But before I could leave Las Cruces behind I had to make it through two symphony performances-- one with the El Paso Symphony, and the other with the Las Cruces Symphony. Both experiences were incredibly uplifting, both for the musical fulfillment but also because I met tons of very nice people. It was a lot of hard work, particularly with the Sleeping Beauty solo, but equally a lot of fun. I'm so glad I got to play with them, and those two performances made our time in Las Cruces worthwhile-- it was a brief taste of life as a professional harpist.

May

In May Joe and I drove all the way to Mississippi for my grandpa's 80th birthday party. It was well worth it and we got to see a lot of awesome stuff along the way (including the ever elusive aplomado falcon). Introducing Joe to all my Mississippi family members was a big part of the trip, as he became increasingly aware that he was surrounded by republicans. In spite of that, we had such a good time and are ready to go back for more. This picture is the only known documentation of my grandpa smiling-- some people thought it couldn't be done

June

Joe was asked to help teach a raptor workshop in Wisconsin for a week in June. Seizing the opportunity to learn more about birds and see my dear friend Tiffany, I went along with him. Before and after the workshop, I stayed with Tiffany and her family, and had the most magical time. She's an awesome girl, one of the finest on earth.

July

Joe was called off to remote Alaska to do some work with gyrfalcons and golden eagles. I flew up and met him in Anchorage for a few days before he had to go back out to the bush. While he was gone I stayed with his friends in Anchorage and explored the city by bike. It was a great week because I was able to experience so many of the places that Joe had told me about from the time he lived up there. When he returned to Anchorage the two of us went exploring, and one great side trip we took was backpacking through Denali Nat'l Park. We hiked up and over mountains, found a gyrfalcon nest, saw the outline of Mt. McKinley among other exquisite views, and slept near a pair of caribou. It was fantastic.

August

This is from Carlsbad Caverns in eastern New Mexico. Once we knew our time in Las Cruces was up, we took the month of August to see all the nearby places we hadn't yet visited. On that list included the very cool Carlsbad Caverns, complete with the summertime bat exodus.



September

My most vivid recollections of September are of Joe and I endlessly maneuvering between boxes in our new apartment, while getting used to an entirely new work schedule. It was hectic and took adjusting, but by the time September was over we had a few things figured out. The saving grace of that transition was going on hikes every weekend. We found nearby peaks to scramble up, but also took a couple adventure trips in Utah. It was a great way to clear out of our house, which had also become our work place. The trend of hiking every week continued well into November, and I was proud to note that we had climbed 1 mountain every week since moving back to Las Vegas.



October



Joe was away in Texas for two weeks during October.  Party Time! But no, actually, I missed him a lot and was comforted only by knowing that he was having an incredible experience out there befriending peregrines and contributing to science, all in the same pop. While he was gone I spent a lot of extra time working and catching up with friends. The weekend before he came home I took a spectacular solo road trip up north to Great Basin National Park and climbed the highest stand alone mountain in Nevada.

November

In November I was finally allowed into a peregrine's nest. To get there, we simply had to hike to the top of a  mountain, pound in stakes, and rappel to the nest. Getting back up proved to be the hardest part for both of us, as my gangly moose legs kept shooting loose boulders towards Joe's head while I slowly worked my way up to level ground. It was a super cool experience.

December

The entire Christmas experience was nothing short of fantastic this year, starting Christmas Eve when Joe proposed, and ending a full 24 hours later after a morning of presents and an afternoon family football game. Please enjoy the above picture, properly demonstrating the colorful family (plus David Nivens) that Joe has voluntarily decided to join.

I hope your 2011 was excellent, and your 2012 will be even better!

Speechless

Only on very few occasions have I had trouble finding my words, but since Saturday (Christmas Eve) I have been rendered speechless and have yet to fully recover. At this point, other than walking around in stunned (and very happy) silence, I mostly find myself uttering things like “cool” and “awesome”.  And that’s giving it all I've got.

While I continue to run the situation over and over in my head, and take the time necessary to process it, this is what I can offer you:

On Saturday afternoon, on top of Turtlehead Peak in Red Rock NCA, Joe asked me to marry him.

I said yes. Easy question.

He caught me off guard, and I still haven’t quite accepted that this isn’t just a really super awesome dream that I will soon wake up from. The whole thing was so beautiful, and if I could have planned my own proposal it would have been exactly the way Joe executed it. We had a nice slow morning at home before heading out to Red Rock. There were a lot of people around, but not many going up Turtlehead. It was the perfect day for a hike, with great weather and clear views. Up at the top we were quickly joined by another couple, so Joe suggested that we go off to the side for more privacy. I had no problem with this because as a general rule I don’t like other people. Then, after several minutes of enjoying the spectacular views that Turtlehead Peak allows, Joe stood up and proposed. He said the most wonderful, kind things before asking if I would marry him, and after verifying that there was indeed a ring in the box and I hadn’t misheard, I gave him a hearty yes. We stayed on top of the mountain for a long time; it was perfect up there and I didn’t want to ever leave such a perfect moment. Also, I knew that I would have to take off the ring for the climb down and that didn’t interest me at all.

Two full days later, and I’m still not able to express all the feelings swirling around. There are a lot, to be sure, ranging from good to super awesomely great. As time goes by, my surprise and awe will give way and excitement will take over as primary emotion. From that point I’m sure it will be easier to make sense of all the goings-on inside me. But for now, I’m relishing in the raw-ness of the moment and trying my hardest not to forget a single detail of Saturday afternoon—the most perfect moment in an exceptionally good life.

Playing the piano together after getting
engaged.

Lessons learned

Joe was sick last week. It started innocently, waking up with a sore throat in Ohio, but was surely made worse by the germ spilling stink bomb that sat next to him on the plane ride home (don’t get the wrong idea, we weren’t sitting together). His severe congestion and pounding headache didn’t divert him from his daily routine—every morning he ate the same breakfast, did the dishes, then sat down at his desk to work, while I frowned nearby. He patiently refused my many nutritious offerings, and skillfully ignored every suggestion I sent his way, which were plentiful.

                Joe, you should rest.

                Joe, why don’t you lay down?

                Joe, perhaps a nap would be nice.

Sensing my tips for survival weren’t getting through I quickly turned to frantic commands

                Joseph! Do not get out of that bed!

Then threats

                I’ll give you something to be sick about.

And finally resignation

                Did no one ever teach you how to be sick?

Then, last Friday, as Joe was chasing away the remains of his illness, I came down with a nasty fever. I didn’t linger on my severe discomfort, nor did I speak frequently and wistfully about death (Joe’s method), rather, I took it as a teaching moment. When Joe asked me what I wanted, I guiltlessly sent him to the store—1 item at a time. If he told me he would make his own milkshake, even though I was already making one for myself, I didn’t argue. Instead, I blissfully slurped mine down while he tentatively contemplated the immersion blender. And when he told me to stay in bed, I offered no protest but relished in the countless hours of TV and movies I would get to watch. And every time I did what he told me to do (which was every time he told me to do something) I followed my “okay Joe” with “look at how good of sick person I am, you should follow my example.” Generally, Joe would thank me for being such a good example, but I can hardly take that as a sign that he learned anything.

This give and take lasted until Sunday night, when Joe announced that I had to take drugs or neither one of us would be able to sleep.  My one-man boycott against the pharmaceutical industry had so far made it easy not to take anything, but when Joe used his stern voice I knew there was no hope of that boycott continuing. He went back to the store and came home with a bag full of almost every sleep-inducing product Walgreens has for sale.  Interestingly, after swallowing the two huge green NyQuil pills, we both experienced a good night’s sleep, and I woke up the next day feeling much better. Now, the only lingering symptom is a lack of steady voice, but I don’t mind not being able to talk; Joe seems to like it too.

Joe won't wear a scarf, so I made us gypsy
belts instead.

What I learned from all this is that being sick means to me that I get to brush off everything that I should do, and spend my days of sedation working on things that I like to do. Which means reading, crocheting, and watching movies. Joe, on the other hand, likes working so much that if given a choice he would rather study maps and coordinate waypoints than crochet a scarf. Confusing, but at least now I know not to bring him yarn when he gets sick.

A List of Spectacular Things

Spending Thanksgiving with the least obedient people in Ohio. The theme of our visit seemed to be Let’s do something illegal!

Marianne’s dark chocolate with sea salt

Hearing the Cleveland Orchestra play in Severance Hall. It would be nice to compare them to other orchestras, but they’re so much better that no one else comes close.

Presents!

The present in question turned out to be a chicken ornament
made out of dried orange peels.

Joe, happy with a present in one hand and a knife
 in the other

Joe's dad, caught in a moment of triumph

Rainy weather in the desert.

The Muddy Mountains all covered in snow because of the delightful cold front we’re experiencing.

On Muddy Peak, almost two years ago

Joe asking me repeatedly if I’d like to practice blowing my nose because, “Now is the time to become a professional nose blower.”

Williams-Sonoma’s peppermint hot cocoa with frothed milk.

Northern Exposure on Netflix.

Christmas music all day long on Sunny 106.5

This fantastic book about Gypsies that has squelched my lifelong desire to be one.

My cute little classroom of students.

The last scene from Monteverdi’s opera The Coronation of Poppea. It’s an irresistibly beautiful duet between Nero and Poppea, listen for the close intervals as their voices slide by one another.

Little Gwant! is going on a mission to Guatemala City in January.

Looking forward to getting to the top of this mountain once the weather warms up just a tad.

Mormon Mountains as seen from Moapa peak

Joe made vegetable noodle soup last night and it was delicious. I’d eat it right now if I hadn’t already eaten all of it.

For now, that's it. Not because there isn't more but because I need to go to sleep, and I'm hoping for any one of these things to make it into my dreams. Good night!