No. 14

Picked up the Uhaul trailer this morning. Dad and I are going to load it tonight when he gets off work. It's bigger inside than I thought, so I have good faith that I'll fit all my "crap" into it. Whew. Gonna be a tight fit!

My final full day in Indiana...

Already the day is creeping away and I can't stop it. I say to myself I'm prepared to leave Indiana and all the wonderful people I love, but I don't think I really am. Though, I will just have to struggle through those emotions I feel, when I feel them, like I've done before with other situations. Tis all for the better in the end.

If I don't get a chance to say goodbye to you, I'll offer up my cell phone number in case anyone would like to call. I now have hands-free bluetooth capabilities on my cell piece so I can talk while driving. My number is 724 388 5449. Feel free to buzz me at any point this week. I'll do one final post from here at home tomorrow and then I'm mobile! To Colorado and beyond...

Alan

No. 12

Oh boy, well its now Friday and the weekend will go fairly quick-at least tomorrow because it's going to be a social day for me. For those that are attending my going away party at Steph and Robs' house, I look forward to seeing you there. 6-7pm. 210 Concord Street, Indiana, PA!

Come Sunday night/Monday morning I should about have everything boxed up and ready to load the U-haul come Monday night. I'm neither nervous nor excited. I'm just here and now. Said my good-byes today to the other employees of Gatti Pharmacy. I will miss that job. 7 years I worked there...which is the longest I've ever held a job. Anyways, about that time to say the rest of my good-byes the next few days. To not say good-bye is to admit that I'm not leaving so therefore I must because I will be gone for a number of months; and perhaps it is possible that I may never see some people again.

Well, see some of you tomorrow and the rest of you I wish you well if I don't see you.

No. 11.5

Hey ya'll. Just a quick post to remind those that were wondering of my new potential address out in Gunnison. It will be as follows, if for any reason it changes beyond this, I will inform those via this blog.

Alan D. Smith

400 N. Colorado Street
Apt. C203
Gunnison, CO 81230


Thanks!

No. 10.6

Thanks to those that tried to assist me in my mattress quest but I believe we are going to locate one in town from a friend. Thanks for the help though people. Have a good holiday. Won't be updating till after sometime. Less than 2 weeks to go! Man, time is flying :) :(

No 10.5

Does anyone have a twin mattress, or know of anyone that has one that would be willing to donate to a good cause??? I will pay also if need be to compensate! I am in dire need of one if possible to locate. Please thanks!!!!

No. 7

Nothing really new to report but I see that it has been since last Thursday (a whole week practically!) since I posted. Figured I'd better give you the readers something to chew on.

I am surprised at how fast indeed December is ticking down. Somehow I find a way to stay busy all day and before I know it the weekend is here and I'm at Fleming's peddling Christmas trees (by the way, if you have not gotten your tree for Christmas yet, you might wanna get on that ASAP because the selection is diminishing fast for the nice trees).

The back room here in the basement where all my "stuff" resides is slowly getting taller and wider and that means I'm finding more stuff than I originally thought to take. Not a bad thing but just surprises me when I think about about how I was disbelieving there was a lot of stuff initially. Hope it will all fit in the trailer and SUV!

So as with last post, I have found some more interesting thoughts to publish (though they aren't mine). Enjoy and talk to some of you sooner and some of you later.

"Let’s use the metaphor. There’s been an earthquake or a tornado or hurricane or some large scale, tragic event. We’re working to rescue the survivors, the injured, ourselves. We’re exposed first hand to death. We’re calculating what it will take to rebuild or if we should abandon. We’re coming face to face with difficult if not impossible decisions. There is chaos. There are extreme emotions. But we are committed to seeing it through, however long it may take. For our benefit, and/or for everyone’s benefit. And then one day we wake up to find we are out of the woods. We have persevered. But we’ve spent so much of our life dealing with the trauma that we’re not quite sure what to do now. We’ve grown so accustomed to living under the most challenging of circumstances that we have no idea what to do with a lovely day. We are now in unknown and unfamiliar territory. So what do we do now? The answer is simple. It’s time to celebrate. "
-Maynard James Keenan

No. 5

Today was my first day at the Christmas tree farm. It was a long day but I think it'll be fine for another few weeks. I was fortunate today that the weather was quite nice. Hope that tomorrow can be too; though I hear weather is moving in. Guess we'll wait and see.

Anyways, saw a lot of family over Thanksgiving, and lots of people are excited about or for me and my moving West. As I've said from blog No. 1, I am excited though I will admit the nervousness is ceasing and the anxiousness is increasing bit by bit. Getting tid bits of advice from people that know more about Colorado than I do and for that I am thankful. Heck, even those that don't know a whole lot about CO are still giving me good life advice I suppose you could call it. So, not to drag on and scratch my head about what I wanna blog about, I'll just call it a night and hit the sheets. I am pretty beat. Day number 2 tomorrow, doesn't even feel like the weekend. Talk to you guys soonish.

Alan

Oh and to liven up the physical composition of the page I've added a link to Crested Butte Resort's photo/video gallery...do check it out.

http://skicb.tv/flash/player/index.php?vendor_id=453&video_id=7451

No. 4

Well in non-related BS I decided to get a temporary job this Christmas season working at Fleming's Christmas Tree Farms here in Indiana. Some may ask why I would do such a thing but as it turns out, a little idle time and a desire for some cash makes for enough motivation for me. So as of this Saturday (the 29th) I'm going to work!

I think I got on this idea to post today because of the aforementioned, but then I was thinking about some of my readers and I imagine there exists some curiosity about my job and such. Well for starters and to clarify, this job is more like an internship but comes off as a job. Hard to exactly define it but I am including in the following paragraphs the write-up that came from the school's website, and for which I based my decision off to apply. So with that I will paste the document below.

High Altitude Performance Lab Manager

Western State College of Colorado

Recreation and Exercise and Sport Science Department

POSITION: The lab manager oversees the day-to-day operations of an undergraduate human performance lab at 7750 feet that includes VO₂max with gas analysis (Parvo Medics True One System), lactate threshold (via handheld Accutrend analyzer), metabolic caloric assessment, Wingate (via Excalibur Sport Cycle Ergometer and Monarch Cycle with load tray), muscular strength, muscular endurance, and body composition tests. The manager interacts with Western undergraduates and Exercise and Sport Science (ESS) faculty during weekly meetings, testing sessions, and follow-up consults related to test data. Other duties include exercise/sport testing and follow-up consults for Gunnison Valley and Western State athletes, Western State faculty and staff, and Gunnison and Crested Butte residents in addition to scheduling and posting all lab activities. Opportunities for research, travel to conferences, one-on-one exercise training, and assisting with ESS courses exists. This is a great opportunity to gain valuable experience in the area of sport and exercise science in a hands-on environment. Other lab equipment includes a new 6’ by 8’ treadmill (with a top speed of 25 mph and grade of 40%) for a variety of testing, including roller skiing, mountain biking, hand-cycling, etc. Visit the ESS wiki page at http://wiki.western.edu/ess/ or the ESS webpage at: www.western.edu/ess/index.htm for additional information.

SALARY: Summer 2008 (May 19 – August 17): room and a $1000.00 stipend. Fall 2008 (August 25 – December 19) and/or Spring 2009 (January 12 – May 8): room and a $3000 stipend each semester.

QUALIFICATIONS: Interested individuals should have a strong desire to work in an exercise and sport testing lab with undergraduate students and ESS faculty. Candidates should have advanced exercise science knowledge and some practical experience in exercise and sport testing, including accurate dissemination of test results. A Bachelor of Science degree in exercise and sport science or related field is mandatory and an MS degree is preferred. Certification through the ACSM (HFI, PT, or ES) or NSCA (CSCS or CPT) is desirable.

Sounds a bit wordy through parts of there that are specific to mostly an exercise scientist such as myself but if you'd like to learn more I'd be glad to simplify and explain. So a short post today but just a little more insight into what I'm getting ready for. Comment as needed, and as always tune back in soon:)


P.S. to entertain those that prefer visual stimulation with their words, I've included 2 picture of the giant 6 foot by 8 foot moving treadmill surface in the lab...pretty cool stuff. Ttys ya'll

No. 3

Well this makes for post number 3 for those that cannot count (of which I believe I am not one). Ha, anyways I uploaded a few pictures of Gunnison (where I'll be living/working/exploring/have an awesome time) and one of Crested Butte (not Butt as some people have been pronouncing). Just to give you my readers some visual stimulation and also to help maintain an active blog.

Nothing new on the forefront of things besides having more people donating things to me. Grandpa and Grandma Danilin thank you very much for your offerings and much thanks to Sue and Bob Cooney for their kind donations...thanks to these people to name a few, I am well on my way to having almost everything a young man such as myself could have when starting a new life in anther state by himself. (Steph or Rob, if you'd like to forward me please your parents email address I'd gladly add them so they can be recognized). Umm, I'm not at the point yet of counting down days, besides I don't think I've counted down days since I was a young boy waiting for Christmas. But nonetheless, I am getting excited and slowly am building up an anxiousness.

Thanks for those that continue to tune in, if you know of anyone else that would like to be included in this blog let me know please. So far I have 11 readers out of 40 or so invites so. Tune back in soon, never know what I'm gonna add! Thanks for reading...

Alan

No. 2

So this will be numero dos, like those who follow didn't already know. Anyways, I had a phone conference today with Scott and things are shaping up quite well. Right now I am approaching the final stages of preparation. More so to put it bluntly, I'm getting all the "stuff" together that I am going to need. As my sisters and parents can attest, I have been barking kindly up all their trees for them to throw me some unwanted stuff. I am fortunate thus far because being the youngest is advantageous in that I get all the sisters left over stuff from their college days that is no longer used. Big thanks to you guys. Furthermore, I have a list circulating out there of stuff I have yet to locate-for those that would be wanting to see that for whatever generous reason-let me know please.

So in news of the tele-conference, I found out that my apartment, also deemed "a cozy efficiency room" aka small yet comfortable, is going to be pretty squarish and have one "big" room (as compared to the attached "small" bathroom and kitchen). I will have a balcony according to Scott (my superior/boss/new friend) and the kitchen and bathroom are furnished-meaning they have refrigerator, stove, shower, sink, toydie, etc. To see a picture of my campus and a distance shot of the building I'll be living near (Coronado) visit this link http://www.western.edu/tour (Wright Gymnasium is where I'll be working; the HAP Lab is in this building) or just check out the attached pictures above. Anyways, in other apartment updates, I will be provided with all utilities (thank goodness) because as some of you may know, I am only getting a stipend for this job and the apartment so having as little bills as possible is great news.

I will continue to have Verizon cell phone service out there so your calls are all welcome...in case you forgot my number or never got it (724 388 5449). I will have a mailing address soon enough for those who wish to send me letters and/or a quick note. I'll update that address when I get it.

As far as other possibilities of a part time job, well, I am going to attempt to obtain a position personal training at Colorado Fitness in Gunnison. If that isn't the best or most promising option (take into account the current state of the economy and the fact that health and fitness is a privilege sadly and you'll understand why it's a depressed field) then I will hopefully find myself applying for a state Grant. I was clued in by Scott that it would be possible to start some corporate fitness activities at the lab and that the Hospital as well as the large grocery store have interested or possibly interested parties. Shooting for summer with those ideas.

Other wise, attire is "super casual" according to Scott...guess that isn't a bad thing. I will have my own office-though it is more so the whole lab is mine so to speak and I have a dedicated desk area with laptop and printer at my use (whoopee!). Umm, otherwise I can't think of anything I missed that I wanna get out there right now. As before, stay tuned...I will update yins with more. Leave comments if you want to hear more about this or that. ttys

No. 1

So this is Al's first blog. For starters I need to give props to Alberta Dorsey for suggesting I do this. It is interesting to think here I am blogging because I was just thinking last week about somehow starting a journal-or something to that effect-to capture my up and coming new life in Gunnison Colorado! (whooo)

Anyways, this is my first official post and I may be a little slow initially in posting everyday but once I am established out in CO I will do my best to update every day or so and definitely add pictures with my new camera (coming in the mail) that I received as a Christmas gift-thanks mom and dad.

Anyways, updates so far for those just joining and maybe a tad out of the loop:
I leave January 6th, 2009 (Tuesday) and will be driving out in dad's old SUV with a Uhaul trailer. I plan to stay with Erica and Ev Tuesday evening, Lory Baker Wednesday evening, Renee Earley and Todd on Thursday evening and arrive in Gunnison Friday morning to move err-thing in by the weekend and be ready for my new start on Monday the 12th!

As far as what I know out there about my position and so forth I'll update ya'll on that tomorrow after I have another phone conference/questions session with Scott my superior. Tune back in...!