Seventeen days ago I had a weekend I really enjoyed. Time has slipped fast as it usually does this time of year, when everyone finishes classes and prepares for finals and for moving, so I'll remember the details as well as I can. As I reminisce, I may remember random little details as this is the way I usually think. My mom once put it that a "stream of conscious" writing style is mine. I don't change anything here, not once I type the last period. It goes straight to published from there. I like to be as honest as possible. I'm not offering any apology, really, just an explanation. Hmm, something a little different, maybe.
My weekend started officially at two pm Friday, when my last class of the day ended. My class was Environmental Communication and I exited the Natural Resources building to the bright outside with a mood as high as the clouds. I had given my last speech of the semester. It really is a heady feeling, when everything inside just screams "DONE!" The sense of freedom truly is remarkable. I hope this is something adults (or professionals?) experience also, I mean not just students or young people. My speech had gone well too. My topic was to convince people to stop buying plastic disposable bottles and use reusable containers instead. It was a good day for speeches, many of my classmates were very entertaining in giving theirs. The feeling of relief in the room was palpable, no more speeches for anyone.
At some point before or after this test I had the chance to go and visit horses. The first two I met were in the care of Heart of the Redwoods Horse Rescue, where I occasionally volunteer. The two I met were named Louis and Olive, they had been in McKinleyville so I had not had the chance to meet them before. Louis is a Thoroughbred, he towered over Olive. The two seemed to skirmish a lot, as horses can, but they also seemed really affectionate with each other too. Maybe similar to human relationships. Olive is gorgeous, bright red and her blaze is precious. Louis is a bay and both of them love carrots. They live in a huge pasture in McKineleyville, which was nice, but part of it was quite the quagmire of mud and puddles. It was very interesting ground, the horses don't mind. I hope to get the chance to visit them again before I have to go back to Anchorage. Nearby the horse pasture was some sort of water tower or some other building, I can't remember exactly what. There were goats around it behind the fence, I guess they were kept there to keep the grass down. They liked the carrots too.
The best part of that weekend, roughly three weeks ago (this weekend too, incidentally) was the weather. It is really hard to stay inside right now and then was impossible. So I took a favorite old book outside and read for a long time. It was very pleasant. Later that Friday night I got ready to go swing dancing. I have a new dress, one I got in Hawaii over winter break, that has a perfect twirly skirt for dancing. It was the first time I had made it out to dance in a while and was totally worth it. I got to catch up with old friends. There was a live band that was great also. I left once the band did though the dancing continued with recorded music. As it had been so long since I had danced I was tired and sore. But it was totally worth it. The evening was warm which was nice so that I wasn't cold walking back home. I stopped along the way to buy some donuts, an odd craving I had. They were delicious. I will definitely get to dancing again before the semester ends.
The highlight of my Saturday was going to a local business called Cafe Mokka. They have great hot chocolate and the building itself is really cool. It was constructed in a Finnish style, I am pretty sure. All the door knobs are wooden and most of the decorations are obscure musical instruments. Anyone who visits Arcata should visit Cafe Mokka too, although it is a cafe with coffee and what not, it does not open until noon every day. This must be because of the other aspect of their business. They have private hot tubs for rent, for an hour or half an hour. When I went I chose the half an hour option, an hour would be too long. The entire hot tub was wooden and very deep, but nice. I really liked how they were outside so it was possible to see the sky and some trees. But the small area was separated from the others by walls. It really was very relaxing, I should like to go back soon.
Those 17 days I mentioned went by fast. I have less than that left in Arcata. Now I am preparing for finals and moving all these things I have to tubs for storage or to suitcases to have back home in Anchorage. I will miss all my Californian friends this summer, but I am excited to see everyone back home. This summer will be interesting for sure, I will continue to share stories about it here. I probably will not have time to write anything else though until I get back home at the end of May. Have a good weekend!
Juls
