I began the year in Key West, FL with the pinewood guys on what was a fun, albeit somewhat unsettling trip. we almost died in the ocean a couple of times while fishing, but hey, what are you gonna do? I began my research assistantship at maryland so school now = work. jenna moved to baltimore at the end of the month in a shady neighborhood, and i helped her move in with her dad and brother.
Feb.
valentines day was spent in annapolis on the beach (it was a cold day, but remember this location). it was valentines day #1 with a girlfriend - for some reason i only dated in the summer and fall for the rest of my life. my intramural team played pretty well but lost in the semifinals. i helped jenna move out of the shady neighborhood to northern baltimore where we had lots of fun in...
March
where we saw a couple of shows, ran with a running club around the city, and hung out in towson. i went to chicago over spring break with kurt and justin schu, it was one of the better spring break trips i've taken minus the pre-flight food poisoning. running on the shore of lake michigan was a highlight. maryland only made it to the second round of the NCAA tourney but the acc championship tourney was the best series of three games i've seen the terps play since i've been here. duke sucks!
April
i can't remember anything that happened in april. sorry.
May
my spring semester was finished after a 5-6 hour final exam. its an incredible feeling to have the first year of grad school finished, and i was relishing in it. during a trip back to ohio for a wedding, i dropped the "L-bomb" on jenna and it was fantastic. i started marathon training the day school was over by running the first five miles of my course in downtown DC. swimming in gunpowder river was so so good.
June
jenna and i traveled a lot in june, to ohio for nicole's wedding (i was a groomsman) and to florida to visit jenna's brother near the beach. ohio was great to see, esp with all the family and flatness. i got nothing done at work, really.
July
in july jenna and i went to virginia beach to visit joe and shannon, and again later that month with april and mike. jenna threw me a surprise 23rd birthday party with friends from school and church, quite a feat behind my back! marathon training hit full stride with at least 40 miles a week. jenna and i celebrated 1 year together and took a backpacking trip to shenandoah nat'l park in virginia. i miss sleeping under the stars, and next to waterfalls (ha!). though we actually did both.
August
two more weddings in august brought me back to ohio (kurts and zachs) with another trip at the beginning of the month. i really didn't get any work done. i ran 4-5 days a week, while watching lots of orioles games and finding plenty of time to relax. jenna moved to college park after a trip to haiti, and finally we lived in the same town again!
Sept.
the final wedding of the year brought us back to ohio again as jenna was the maid of honor in her cousin's wedding. the fall semester wasn't too bad for me cuz i only took one class yet was involved with lots of church stuff and soooo much running. 53 miles a week once even, my max was 20 miles in one day (twice).
Oct.
all the running (650 miles since may) came to a head at the marine corps marathon, where i ran pretty well on a hot day. after 20 miles, i was solid. after 21, i was done. after 26, i was really done. my legs hurt more than they ever have before but it was a pretty remarkable accomplishment that i'm proud of. justin and the rest of the guys did great too. i started looking around for rings in october, but jenna tore her ACL after an awesome 80s cover band show so i was delayed a bit. maryland football games were fun but the team was crappy so whatever.
Nov.
lots of discreet ring-looking here, with a long break from running and a bigger focus on school and research. jim gave our band the name, 'the unmentionables' and we continued to practice often. i continued worship band every sunday, too. thanksgiving in ohio was also great, though only jeff was missing from the fun. the football game was incredible in the mud. we even had lines! new york city with jim and stefan was awesome, seeing the sites and running through central park.
Dec.
i proposed to jenna on the 4th at annapolis on the beach and we enjoyed the rest of the month as an engaged couple and as a happy couple. my final finished up fine, and school wound down before a couple of engagement parties/dinners including an awesome indian dinner in virginia. justin kearns did the toast. christmas was relaxing and fun, though i found out i had mono and strep all month so that put a damper on the football and basketball (though my record this month was 4-2).
so that was my year. jenna. school. trips to ohio. running.
this year will hopefully be more of the same, with a wedding already in the works!
stuff i listened to this year:
ted leo
the shins
the new amsterdams
u2
jimmy eat world
phantom planet
the postal service
stuff i watched this year:
basketball (go terps!)
baseball (my roommate's from mass.)
harry potter III
love actually
tons of chick flicks
about a boy
school of rock
and i wish i could've seen garden state, i heart huckabees, napolean dynamite
i wish i had a video camera. a while ago i wanted to write a short, and indeed started to write a little bit, called 'marathon.' theres a great running subculture that exists under the scope of everyday, 'there goes a random runner' junk. being a part of it is hilarious too, the stuff i'd hear while out on a run or how my lifestyle completely changed while training for the 26.2. i don't think this paragraph is very convincing, but trust me. plus, i saw love actually and liked the way six distinct people came together like in a seinfeld episode.
okay, okay, i'll fix my links. i need a whole re-design while i'm at it...
my flight back was full of fun turbulence and one of my classmates was on the exact same flight, a 7pm from detroit to washington, and thats kinda weird.
the last few days of ohio were swift, markedly seeing lots of friends (why is covenant always so GOOD? i miss it every time) and even offering actor/actress services to justin afterwards. please check out loveproject at his site if you haven't already, its fantastic. new, more subtle, yet still justin.
i also spent some time with justin schu and kurt, talking about getting married and the like. jenna and i have yet to set a date but we must soon. march or june, thats the debate.
ohio was great and it was very hard leaving - esp with jenna around. i wonder if we'll end up there, but certainly not here in college park. my last semester starts this month.
thats enough recap. i wish i had the video blogging capabilities as this would be much more funny.
