Never have I ever...

I have never in my life broken a bone before... before last nights bike ride to yoga that is.

I've had a great couple of weeks visiting family; seeing my grandparents in Arkansas and Oklahoma, 80-35 music festival in Des Moines with MegKamm, Silo demolition at the Andersens....

I was home in Winterset again for a few days and Kayla had told me about a yoga studio in town so I decided to buy a mini pass to hit up as many classes as possible before I fly out the 26th. As I was biking to the evening yin yoga class last night my gears made a funny noise as I switched down and I quickly looked down to my right to see the chain off track. Unfortunately... turning my gaze also meant cranking the handle bars... on Christoph's old bike with a very high seat.. my bike ran straight into the curb. and I flew off. onto the cement.

I stubbornly refused to go to the ER last night... claiming it was just a bad sprain that would feel better in the morning...I was supposed to have a physical anyway so if it still hurt I'd have the doc look at it. Well it still hurt. and an hour, 6 x-rays, and a sling later, I walked out of the clinic with a fractured radius wrapped up. The good news is that my first ever bone break is a "good one"... it's not displaced, so I don't need a cast (don't need to figure out where to get a cast cut off when I arrive in Mumbai) but the bad news is that I can't do any lifting.. and currently writing/typing/driving are somewhat challenging.Should make the early morning flight to TN and the following 5 days in Memphis at the technology conference ..interesting to say the least. But not nearly as interesting as packing my four suitcases-not to mention figuring out a carry on option- and actually moving myself to Mumbai.

All I can do is laugh. What a silly silly.. annoyingly dumb.. incident... less than 3 weeks from my flight to India...

Oh. and I missed my dentist appointment as a result of this morning's fun.

Blasted broken bone....

Live a Life Inspired

Less than 4 weeks til my move. I now have my Indian visa and the only thing besides time between myself and that plane July 26 are goodbyes and packing. With all of the traveling and not-working that I've been filling my time with, I've had more than ample opportunity to be inspired... Here are some glimpses of the latest from my studio...

California Dreaming

So my stay in San Diego has been fantastic thus far... Spending time with my cousins = priceless and so enjoyable but I've also had the bonus of getting plenty of time to explore, relax, and see the sights. I've strolled through Balboa Park, eaten at the "infamous" In and Out Burger joint, soaked up tooons of art both in and out of museum settings, walked the pristine beaches of Coronado and even had a fun day of shopping.

However... Today was the cherry on top so far... Started with a *free* early morning yoga class with Katie in La Jolla, followed by a delicious upstairs patio breakfast *complete with mimosas overlooking the ocean, Contemporary Art museum, *beautiful beach time* at La Jolla with Justin and Noah (brandon and nate surfed, katie and I read and got our tan on), and ended with a night in eating delicious grilled food and watching extreme couponing (that show is incredible!).

I must say I'm completely content and tickled to my toes with my time here. Tomorrow I'll get to worship at Justin's church, and Monday I'm off to Santa Barbara to visit Ryan and Alissa! Life doesn't get much better than this my friends...

Hugs from SoCal,
Amy

DSM-EWR Departs from Des Moines July 26th at 6am

Alright everyone. My flights are booked, my visa is being processed, and the sorting/cleaning/packing is in full gear. Six weeks from tomorrow... I'm off on a new adventure to India.

But why wait six weeks? In just under an hour I'm off to the airport to visit my cousins and friends in Southern California for a long week :) (Can anybody say craziest 6 months in airports ever?)

Blessed Beyond Belief: Home from Cairo, Off to India

My art is up at Cup of Joe coffee shop on Main Street in Cedar Falls, Iowa!

I have a collection of photographs and mixed media pieces I've grouped and named my Blessed Beyond Belief: Home from Cairo, Off to India series. The pieces will be on display through July 16 (when I come snag the ones that haven't sold and try to sell them at my farewell party the 17th) for $50 each. I also have oversized postcards and small mixed media prints (Be Glad for Life) available for $3 and $12 each (a convenient $15 for both!).

The pieces reflect some of my more recent mantras in life (Live gracefully, Grow Intentionally, Love Courageously, Navigate Fearlessly, Wander Knowingly, Explore Wholeheartedly, Flourish Daily and Thrive Creatively).... While I don't always notice how cultures I encounter affect me, many of my friends have commented that they see Egypt in them- which I do not deny, as everywhere I have traveled has become an engrained part of who I am. Each piece was created on top of a recycled screen printing screen from the workshops I taught in Chile in 2009 (artists are pack rats and keep eeeeeverything). Included in the pieces as well are colors, fabrics, fragments of maps and old church photographs, designs and text that reflect my personality and the transition I have gone through in the past 6 months of graduating from UNI, substitute teaching in Cedar Falls living the life of a recent grad, traveling around the US and the world, and now getting ready for the biggest transition yet: moving to India and teaching in my own classroom for the first time.


Time and time again, as I reflect on the journey I've made the past 5 years (physically and emotionally) I am struck by this grateful realization that I am blessed beyond belief. I hope that through looking at glimpses of these pieces and reflecting on your own life, you will come to the very same realization.

Hugs from Iowa,
Amy

PS. Where in the world am I going you might ask?

I'll be teaching grades 3-5 (possibly 2-5) art at the American School of Bombay in Mumbai, India....

Check it out!

Beloved Wikipedia's Scoop on Mumbai

City Information: Plenty of Links

World Travel: Incredible India -video

Visit India tourism commercial -video

Surreal

99 days. Gulp.

It's real folks, my time in Iowa is counting down quickly, just as my excitement for this move to India grows each day. I'm currently feeling overwhelmed knowing that in the next 4 weeks before I leave for Europe I need to: apply for my Indian visa (which I'm still waiting for in the mail?), select a moving company to ship my belongings, pack said belongings, prepare my prints to go on display in Cedar Falls the day I get back from Europe, pack and move back to my parents' home in Winterset, figure out vaccinations, and attempt to prepare myself in curriculum planning for the next year, among a million other things...... I'll keep you updated as needed...

But. First things first. It's been nearly 4 months since I returned from Egypt, just over 3 months until I leave for India... and it's been quite the 7 month layover: giving guest lectures at UNI, substitute teaching all over Cedar Falls and Waterloo, visiting my siblings, traveling to Seattle for "spring break"... looking forward to Italy, Germany, San Diego, Wisconsin, Memphis and Mumbai in the next 14ish weeks...I've been soaking up great books: Shantaram, Sister of my Soul, Persepolis, God of Small Things... and spending time with amazing friends and family.

Needless to say, I'm feeling Blessed Beyond Belief.