A Horseback Ride Gone Awry

Our first horseback ride of the season started out quite beautiful.

We were all having a grand old time...

...until, to make a long story short, the horses got spooked and started bucking.

Mark got thrown off and landed on his head. I got thrown off and landed

straight on my arm.

Cool, huh? Popped my elbow right out of the socket. Lucky for you my camera fell on me and not the other way around so Jonny was able to document the whole thing. After I fell we couldn't figure out how to get me off the mountain because I couldn't walk or I would pass out, they couldn't stick me back on a horse, and we couldn't splint it because it was in such an awkward position. So we called Search and Rescue of course. They drugged me up, hauled me down the mountain, stuck me in an ambulance, and drove me to the ER. There they proceeded to put me under anesthesia (twice) to pop the elbow back in to place. Apparently it took about 5 times the amount of drugs to put me under than it should have - the doctor still isn't convinced I don't drink alcohol - and it took two big men to pop it back in. Guess my body is a little stubborn. But! They got it done. I was in a sling for a couple weeks and am now doing some therapy to get my range of motion back. The doctor told me I would be in a brace for 6 to 8 weeks. Psh! There was no way I was going to let my summer go by while rotting in a brace waiting for my elbow to heal. So now, almost four weeks after the accident, I'm brace-free, back on my bike, and almost able to do yoga. Almost. Next time my horse starts freaking out I'll know what to do. Tuck and roll.

The Faces of St. Timothy's

Just some of the students of St. Timothy's Pre and Primary School in Moshi, Tanzania.

Seriously, aren't these kids beautiful??

I can't get over their perfect skin and deep eyes.

I miss them.

(photos taken on medium format film with a Yashica Gmat 124 twin lens)

The Subway

We were invited to hike the Subway in Southern Utah a few weeks back. It's something we've

always wanted to do so we were really looking forward to it. Of course, the one weekend we had the

permit to go down, the park decided to close the trail from the top down because of the

amount of water that was flowing through the canyon. So we hiked it from the bottom up and we had a grand

old time! I didn't get any photos of the actual Subway because by the time we got there I was

too freezing to pull my camera out. Those neoprene socks saved my life. It was a great weekend

getaway with great company and we plan to do it again toward the end of summer. The WHOLE

thing this time.

Spring is Here

Finally!

(Photos taken at Thanksgiving Point)

I lied. This post isn't even close to being about Africa. Does anyone even still want to see stuff about that anymore?

I photographed this beautiful little girl, Holly, along with her dad and sister this evening. They were so fun and made me laugh the entire time. Especially this one, she was a complete ham for the camera. I'll post the rest of the photos from this session shortly (...maybe. I have a habit of not following through on my blog promises).

I've been making some changes lately, the biggest and most exciting being that I got a new job. I am now a Public Relations Rep for a physical therapy company. After almost five years of working at the credit union I've finally started to move forward

into something related to my degree. And so far I'm really loving it. Ah change is good.

I've got a whole load of film going to the developers tomorrow and we're hiking this next weekend. So maybe I'll start paying more attention to this little piece of personal cyberspace I have here. But I've said that before, haven't I.

The long journey home

Two hour flight from Kilimanjaro to Addis Ababa, 26 hour layover in Ethiopia, 18 hour flight to Washington D.C., 10 hour layover in Washington D.C., 5 hour flight to SLC. By the time we got home we had been traveling for 3 full days straight. I was very dirty and tired and sick of airplane food. But, we're home safe and sound! We're glad to be back in our own place and getting back into the routine of the fast-paced, stressful American lifestyle.

My next several post will probably still be Africa related, but they'll all include photos. I'm sure that won't disappoint most of you.

Afrishare Solutions

The countdown has begun. In four days we'll leave Tanzania and this trip we have been looking forward to for so long will be over. It has been such a great experience, and one that I'm especially grateful to have been able to experience with Mark. Not many people get a two-month long honeymoon.

People are always asking me how I'm so lucky to have done the traveling that I have up to this point in my life. Usually, my answer is that it's not about luck, it's about just making it happen. True, I have been blessed with a great job that lets me take extended periods of time off and with a great family (and now great in-laws) who are very supportive and helpful in many more ways than just financially. But where I'm from, those things aren't very unique. Most of the people that ask me that question have everything that I have. The only difference between me and them is that I've made traveling a priority in my life thus far. Mark and I didn't just happen upon a bunch of money one day and decide that we would use it to spend a couple months in Africa. He has been planning and saving for this trip for a few years now and since we are now husband and wife, his plans have become my plans.

So we planned, we saved and we researched. We looked into a few different living arrangements for our stay here and finally decided on going with an organization called Afrishare Solutions. It's headed by a local named Ibrah who had a few years' experience with housing volunteers through Cross Cultural Solutions before he decided to start his own organization. We have loved our stay here. We feel safe and comfortable and have been very well taken care of. The food is great (too great in fact...I'm going to need to hit the gym when we get home), our room is comfortable, and Ibrah has been very ready and willing to talk to us about cultural differences, show us around town, and help us organize our little vacations. We've been made to feel welcome and at home. That makes a huge difference when staying in a foreign country for an extended period of time and we're glad this is the place we chose.

So to any of you who are interested in doing some traveling or volunteering, stop dreaming about it and start planning for it! There are plenty of companies and organizations out there to choose from. And if Tanzania just happens to be the place where you decide to go, check out Afrishare Solutions.

We've loved our stay here, but we're excited to be going back home and starting the next stage in our life. We don't know what the immediate future will hold, but I can say that we've already started planning a trip to Europe in the (hopefully not so) distant future. What can I say, we're addicted. See you all in less than a week!