Eme Ashe

Explore. Dream. Discover.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Who you lookin' at?

The next few weekends will take me away from Blacksburg so this weekend I stayed in town to relax, get a little more organized, and save a few gallons of gas. The 'rents took me on a scenic drive, that for some reason led to motion sickness. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the company. Perhaps the stomach filled with half a banana and remnants of last night's wine was a contributing factor. We stopped for lunch at a little tourist trap that has delicious food and dead animals everywhere. That's right, dead animals. You can eat a buffalo sandwich while sitting under a buffalo head. Don't believe me? I didn't think so. See for yourself.

Then there was this guy, who clearly did not want his picture taken since he was giving me the stink eye. I took a close-up; that'll learn him. My Asheville friends, E & L, have wild turkeys in their backyard. They wander around during the day and make bedtime dramatic by clambering awkwardly into the trees at night. It is quite a noisy and entertaining sight to behold.

There were a few other sights to behold on this outing, as you will see below. Most importantly, I learned the answer to the age old question, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" The answer is, wait for it...the egg. Second, came the chic cow. At least that is apparently what they believe out here in the country.

Some other sights from the day.





And it all comes back to the buffalo.

Friday, August 27, 2010

Really Eme?

A friend recently asked via email, "How are you really doing?" She didn't put the "really" in italics or bold, but it was implied. How am I really doing?

Tonight I read through a few old postings and frankly, I'm surprised I have any readership left. The last year was really hard for me and I just started to capture it in blog form in the past three months. I am glad the 9 months prior to that are not captured anywhere other than my brain, that is for sure. Thank you Eme Ashe readers for not giving up on me! I know life is a series of ups and downs but I hope you have found the last few weeks of blog posts more up than down.

Really, truly, honestly, I am well. Words cannot convey how I feel these days. So much has changed. The start of the life I waited for during 12 months of pain is here. I have a job I waited for, the breathing room I need, the east coast location I so desired. Tonight my Mom and I drank wine and had a good time. Last night my Dad killed a spider for me. Tomorrow I am cleaning my room and getting a little more organized in this temporary home. So what? Life isn't terribly exciting. For now, this will do.

My next two months are filled with weekend trips, reunions, and fun. I feel like the Eme Ashe of yester-year is gone. Sure, I have a few items of baggage I moved with me, but they are getting lighter each day.

Yep, tomorrow I just may go for a drive in the country, followed by a nap. The interim certainly is not bad. Nope, not bad at all.

"Change is certain. Peace is followed by disturbances; departure of evil men by their return. Such recurrences should not constitute occasions for sadness but realities for awareness, so that one may be happy in the interim." - Percy Bysshe Shelley

86 This

That's it. That is the Fantasy Football team name I took a week to decide upon. Perhaps my creativity has been stifled by the humidity in the air; perhaps it is my age. Maybe I am just not a creative a person anymore. Oh well, it's football season! It's Fantasy Football season! I am trying to convince my Dad to play in my Fantasy Football league. This would make for stressful Sundays, under roof rivalry, and hushed strategy sessions while we are both supposed to be working. Oh deer.

Monday, August 23, 2010

A super long post with lots of pictures because I waited too long to post something

Time for a new blog post passed several days ago. What have I been doing that is so important I could not make time to blog? Other than a weekend trip to Asheville and dinner with my parents for their 35th Anniversary, not much. Last week was hard. I found myself cranky a lot from work frustrations and feeling trapped in a small town, not sure what to do with myself. Apparently I didn't find my crankiness blog-worthy. You're welcome. This is a life transition that I'm in and by nature, life transitions are filled with hard days and insightful days. You learn a lot about yourself no matter what kind of day you have. I'm in the interim right now, feeling out each minute of each day, not sure where they will all lead. I knew when I decided to come to Blacksburg that I would have time to breathe and I do. It's a good thing, even though there will be days I feel like I am suffocating. There is no pressure to stay or leave, just time to breathe and figure things out. I am moving to Asheville but I am making sure the steps I take to get there lead me to a good place.

Here are some pictures to make you feel like I blogged the whole week. First, I'll start with sights and sounds from Blacksburg last week. If you're my Facebook Friend, you saw that I posted a video of the rain falling. It was pouring and the large drops of rain hitting the leaves were amazing. I did learn capturing that type of natural experience via video is probably not worth the time and technology. A chair, a sweatshirt, and a cup of coffee is all I need to capture that moment for myself. All that to say, no more videos of rain falling, I promise. I'll save my nature videos for awesome lightning shows, flooding, or significant snow falls. Or babies. Or kittens.

Kittens? Like this one?
In first discussing a move to the "lower east wing" of my parents' home, I voiced a concern about "peeping toms." It turns out, the only peeping tom was a kitten, sheltering itself from the aforementioned rain. Naturally, after his discovery his name became Tom. We fear for Tom, skinny and skittish. What has he been through? What is his fate? He makes rare appearances, seeking out shelter or food, running away at the sight of a large two legged creature. Someone left turkey on the deck for him and it wasn't me. He didn't eat it. Maybe he was craving cheeseburgers.

Cheeseburgers? Like this one?


FIve Guys is a small chain with delicious cheeseburgers and no milkshakes. It was no Red Mill but it hit the spot. Now, is there one in Asheville?

Asheville? Like this one? Ok, enough of that. I toured Asheville this weekend with the wonderful Ada Faye. We drove around looking at potential houses for me to buy. It poured the entire time so of course every place felt cozy and like home. Our day started at "Rise and Shine" in North Asheville. Ada ordered cheese and garlic on her hash browns. She is now my hero. Check out how awesome her breakfast looked!
In driving around we passed the "Orange Peel." The sign made my giggle so I snapped a photo. I'm 12, what can I say?
We ended our search for the day at these townhomes between north Asheville and Weaverville. They just about fit what I am looking for in my "starter" home, though they are under construction and I will have to wait for one that is just right for me. (Actually, if those people in the townhome on the right would move out, I would just live there!)
They are next to Lake Louise and just a 5 minute drive to where the magic happens. Sold!

Sunday, August 15, 2010

In Memoriam: Three and a half years later


This weekend I visited the campus of Virginia Tech, a mere 5 minutes from where I currently lay my head. I'm sure we all remember what happened in April, 2007 on Virginia Tech's campus and if you don't, take a break, and visit Google before reading the rest of this. For some reason on that April day I felt like there had been an attack on my home front and I had to get to Blacksburg to see my family, mourn with the town, and be a part of the unfortunate, historical event. It doesn't define the town or the campus by any means but it will never, ever be forgotten.

I snatched up a last minute travel deal and headed from Seattle to Blacksburg a few days later. What I found when I walked onto campus the Saturday after the incident was nothing short of spectacular. It was a sea of maroon and orange with so much noise and pride I swore I was at a football game and a basketball game at the same time. It was pure Hokie pride, a mourning with color, and determination that life will go on. Impromptu memorials were set up, tents with posters, letters, and banners from schools across the state and country spread across the Drill Field. I signed one, stuck a "Today we are all Hokies" sticker on one and walked around, taking in the air thick with sadness and resoluteness.

Well, I didn't travel 3000 miles for such colorful enthusiasm. No, melancholy Eme Ashe came partially to mourn. The next day I awoke early and arrived on campus while the sun was still rising and the bright orange shirts were still folded nicely in hotel dresser drawers. I took a front row viewing of the signs, pictures, and flowers piled high for each student lost that day. And then it happened, the incident that would prove valuable for my Social Psychology presentation just a few months later in graduate school. An example of the bystander effect and social diffusion of responsibility.

Along with signs, pictures, and flowers were also candles. Candles in paper cups. Next to flowers wrapped in tissue paper. Any guesses what happened next? It's early Sunday morning and I am at the impromptu memorial with a handful of other mourners who got up early to see the campus quiet. I look down and notice near my feet a candle has burned its wick and moved on to the paper cup. As I keep watching I realize this flame, though small, means business. Sure enough, it ignites the tissue paper next to it and then a fire we have. All the while I am thinking, "That flame is going to catch that cup on fire. Oops, that cup is on fire! Whoa, that is totally going to catch the tissue paper on fire. Uh-oh, is that flower burning?" In the span of about one minute I can see the entire, flammable, memorial going up in smoke. I even take time to think, "That would really suck if this thing caught on fire. It's already such a sad time. That would be the last thing we want to happen." And still, I DO NOTHING.

Bystander effect: Everyone sees what is going on and yet, no one takes action.

Social diffusion of responsibility: "It's not my job, someone else will do something."


Eventually, I decide I can't let the flowers and pictures burn and no one else is stepping up so I have to. I recognize my limitations and rather than stamping out the fire, I pick up the flower on fire and hit it against the ground until the fire goes out. That's right, I picked up part of the memorial and beat it repeatedly against the ground while people next to me were crying. You can see why no one else wanted to do that. Meanwhile, by this point the burning cup is basically a raging inferno, determined to burn all the tissue paper in its path. I know it needs to be suffocated. I also know if I try to step on it, I will catch my leg on fire. (Anyone who knows me knows I'm right about that.) I start to panic. Seriously, this memorial cannot burn. It just can't. Why is nobody helping me? There are at least a dozen bystanders!

FINALLY, after several people watched me attempt to keep the Virginia Tech campus from burning to a crisp, a man hovers over me as I squat next to the fire, staring at it in panic, and says, "You got that under control?" No, no I don't.

"No, no I don't. I think we need to step on that," I say, pointing to the fireball at our feet. We both stare at it for a few seconds before he takes his huge, fireproof boot, and smashes the cup, suffocating the flames, and saves the day. HOORAY! What took him so long? Come on people, couldn't you see I was failing? Fascinating bit of social psychology in action right there coupled with a terrifying incident that really would have made the lingering media happy.

Here are some pictures of the memorial that day followed by some pictures of the campus yesterday, three and a half years later.

2007




2010





Saturday, August 14, 2010

Week one been done

I made it! I made it through my first week on the east coast, my first real week in my new position, my first week living with my parents, my first week working from home. WHEW. It can only get easier from here right? I have no doubt that leaving Seattle was the right choice. No doubt it is good to have no doubt. The east coast heat feels good and the humidity is actually welcome! My first thunderstorm rolled through earlier this week, storming and pouring for more than two hours. It was amazing! This morning, my long awaited first Saturday, is rainy, quiet, and cool. Ah, perfect.

Here are some of the sights my iPhone camera captured from my first week. Keep in mind I didn't leave the house much...

This is not a very good picture but it is of something very good. When you haven't had your Mama's homemade cookies in a long time you may feel inclined to take a picture of one. You may also be inclined to eat several hundred in your first week back home. Good thing I got that treadmill set up already.

Mom made this salad for her lunch one day and it was so stinkin' pretty I declared it blog worthy before she was even done.

Setting up my temporary home office with Dad went very smoothly and here is the result. It actually feels like my office, like a work space. Many interviews will go well here and many will go bad, very, very bad.

I am a dork who takes pictures of storms. You can't see the rain so much; it is basically a picture of the back yard.

Ah, but in this one you can actually see the rain! My love of coffee, wine, and rain traveled across the country with me. They are welcome companions.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Survival of the stuffiest

I am happy to announce the safe arrival of my stuff. It all arrived safely stuffed into its stuffy container, and as far as I can tell everything survived in one piece. There is some dust and dirt that got in but it's fun to think about its origin. Is that piece of dust from the highway in Wyoming? Is it from a transfer station in Nebraska? Ok, you know what, who cares? It's not that much fun to think about where the dust came from. However, it is fun that my stuff is here with me now, cluttering up my parent's basement. I neglected to take a picture when the Relo Cube was first filled but here is a shot of just how packed it was. Filling it up and emptying it wasn't much fun but look how much fun we had AFTER the cube was empty!


Monday, August 9, 2010

Unfamiliar familiarity

Same job, same parents, yet life is feeling unfamiliar. Half of my job is new and working at home is really new. Working at home in my parent's house, where I haven't lived in 13 years, is really new and then some. I'm trying to do my new job but I don't know what the processes are, I don't have access to the drives I need, and I don't know who anybody is. Here is what today was like.

You've got mail: "Eme Ashe, let's meet to talk about what is going on with my open positions." Um..."What position and who are you?" All day long.

After staring at my inbox for a few hours, then staring out the window, I went upstairs to make lunch. I found the food pretty well but I couldn't find the plates, the silverware, or the cups. Hundreds of doors and drawers were opened until I was fully equiped to assemble my lunch. It hit me that while I've known my parents my whole life, (ponder that for just a second,) there is still much left unfamiliar. The same goes for my job. I know my recruiting system, I know how to login, how to contact my co-workers, where to get most of my questions answered. Yet, there is so much I don't know it is a bit overwhelming, for today at least. Ok, for this week at least and probably next week too. Soon I will remember where the forks are kept and I will know every name that dare enter my inbox.

AND I WILL GET USED TO SEEING THIS TYPE OF THING STARING AT ME!

The End

I've arrived. I made it to Blacksburg unscathed, ate a turkey burger with the parents, and promptly fell asleep at 8:30. Wow, that was a long drive. 3,000 miles = long.

Where did I leave off? Ah yes, Dallas. Saturday morning I drove from Dallas to Nashville...and then I kept going. I reached Nashville by about 6:00 and I still had a few hours left in me. As I approached Knoxville I got cocky. She. Could. Go. All. The. Way. Then I got tired. Blacksburg was another 4+ hours and it was approaching 9:30. Choosing the responsible path, I pulled off the interstate near a cluster of hotels. It was 9:30 and there were people everywhere. I started having flashbacks to my Grand Junction experience. After a few attempts at finding food and shelter, I headed back on the road to find a less popular spot.

And then I got inspired. Asheville was only 100 miles away. Surely I had another hour and a half in me! E had encouraged me to "power through" to Asheville. Haven't seen him in 5 years, I'm sure I can spontaneously just stop by at 11:30 at night. No prob. Seriously, it was no problem! I went to Asheville, arrived at 11:30, shared a bottle of wine with E, caught up on 5 years, went to bed at 3am, and toured the city the next day. It was the perfect almost-end to my trip. Eme Ashe was in Asheville and she can't wait to go back. Here are some fun, fantastic photos from my brief tour.
The door to the city. It is, I swear.
Pretty. (It does look kind of computer generated Sweats!)

I know a LNPO or two that would like this!
An activity for the niece and nephew perhaps?
Wow. So much to say about this one...
Right, Asheville is in the south. I forgot.