Dear God, More Than I Can Handle?

They say that God never gives you more than you can handle. Well, this week really put that to the test. 

In the past 7 days, I have:

Spent 33 hours in international transit (6,346 miles in total)

Went back to work 10 hours after landing

Orchestrated and emceed a pep rally for 1000+ students

Attended two Homecoming games

Handled a student protest

Canceled our Homecoming dance last minute (see previous)

Visited the vet three times

Watched as Bear ripped the stitches out of his ear and had to be tranquilized

Babysat a miserable animal

Hosted a dinner party

Attended a lovely surprise baby shower

  

But hey, I'm still here and still happy.  I might even be a little bored.  Nice try, God, but you're going to have to try harder.  

Happy Sunday.  Go Broncos. 


P.S. The Family Broyles is still hantivirus-free! So exciting!

Camp Dick!

You might have heard a rumor that I recently attended an incredibly beautiful Irish wedding.  Well, this blog post is not about it.  Sorry. 

The truth is that I had been having adventures long before my Irish escapades.  Weeks before - to be precise - during a very entertaining camping trip with my kickball team, Elvis Freshley. 

It was my idea to go camping, so therefore I got to choose our campground.  Obviously, I made my choice based on which site had the best name.  Camp Dick it was! 

Camp Dick is located about 40 minutes outside of Boulder, CO and was breathtakingly beautiful.  I highly, highly recommend it.  

The hiking trail was a little wet.  Ok, it had turned into a river.  But through the exploring, fire maintaining, canned beans eating, bear avoiding, frisbee games mastering, and nearly freezing conditions we enjoyed a truly memorable weekend.  

Oh, and if Ashley Leonard ever asks you to finish a bag of wine with her, the answer is always yes.  Although you might regret it the next day.  

And if you are wondering if you should fill up of gas before you go remote camping, the answer is always yes.  #kevinforcedustocoastdownthemountainwhilealsostoppingforemilytovomit. 

Not my proudest moment. 

I [Might] Only Have 3 Weeks To Live

I might only have 3 weeks to live.  I know, I'm devastated too. 

Last weekend, like we do every Labor Day, my parents and I hiked up to our favorite remote cabin in the mountains. And I mean remote.  No electricity.  No water.  No cars.  No human contact since our visit last Labor Day. 

Normally, our weekends at the cabin are peaceful and relaxing.  Not so much this year.  

The cabin was infested with mice.  There were droppings on every foot of the floor, in every receptacle from the floor to the ceiling.  

And then we heard them.  The mice had converted the mattresses inside the cabin into their apartment complex - complete with nests, communal seed collections and very large bathroom facilities.  And we spent half the day cleaning it up. 

So here's where the health scare comes into play.  Mice carry diseases, especially rural mice.  We had inadvertently walked into laughably ideal conditions for hantavirus.  Hantavirus is dangerous.  Of the 8 people who caught hantavirus in Yosemite this summer, 3 have died.  

Did you just call me a hypochondriac?  Fine.  I will let you decide. 

1. Hantavirus is carried by deer mice.  We had plenty of deer mice.  

 2. "It is believed that humans can get sick with this virus if they come in contact with contaminated dust from mice nests or droppings."  Oh, we had mega nests. 

3. "You may come in contact with such dust when cleaning homes, sheds, or other enclosed areas that have been empty for a long time."  Like, perhaps, cleaning remote cabins left alone for a year?

That night while we slept, the mice came back.  Went into our bags and chewed up our food.  And we got the opportunity to bleach everything again!

We probably will be just fine, but if not, symptoms should show up in about 3 weeks.  Don't worry, it's not contagious.  But I'm thinking it might be time for some skydiving, right Tim McGraw?