The Rest of the News...

Last week I got to work at the Wolf store at Lloyd Center. It went decently, but I caught crap (in fun of course) from my co-workers at JB about helping another stores numbers during a company-wide challenge. I'll be working there some in a week or so too. I've also been getting a lot more hours since one of our salespeople left for another job. Practiced softball a few times last week. I think I've finally got the batting thing figured out. A bit of coaching from Daniel, Joe, and Patrick, a change of stance, a change on my grip, and I can hit with some consistency now. I am working on getting more power into the hits now. My glove is also getting worked in better (I got it for X-mas) and I am catching balls more consistently now. On Saturday the 22nd, Mom & I went to Tualitan Park to help with a community service project. Several groups were coming together to remove invasive species, including ivy, blackberry vines, and canary grass, and garbage from the park (there were actually numerous Oregon & Washington parks participating for the Ninth Annual "Down By The Riverside" Enhancement & Appreciation Days by SOLV). We participated as part of GE Elfuns, an employee member group for all divisions of General Electric. Wouldn't call it fun, but it was for a good cause. We worked hard from 9am-Noon (and I have the blister to prove it!). Got to see MatchboxTwenty on the big screen yesterday. They have a new concert DVD coming out and we got to see it at one of the local theaters. They are one of our favorite bands. It's a great show--and I can't complain about looking at/ listening to Rob Thomas for 2 hours. Today, Daniel & I went to Mount St. Helens with his parents, his great uncle, and 2nd cousin (who are both visiting from Florida). It was a long drive, but the weather was beautiful today. The view from Johnston Ridge is awesome. It sits 5 miles from the crater on the north side. If you aren't familiar with Mount St. Helens, when it erupted, the summit and much of the north side blew/slid off of the mountain during the May 18, 1980 eruption. From Johnston Ridge, you can see into the crater where the new bulge has been forming since that eruption. The bulge is now roughly the size of downtown Portland, Oregon. Perhaps we will get to hike/climb to the crater rim this summer. The link in the text above is a great resource for more info and pictures of the volcano. For those of you not from this area, I have the luxury of being able to see Mount St. Helens and Mt. Hood, as well as many other peaks EVERY DAY. So lucky to live here. I'm taking reservations for anyone who wants to come visit...