Best and Worst

The Best and Worst of the Week of September 16

The worst of last week was probably the super dreary, torrential downpour we experienced here in Austin. Though I actually enjoy rain, I wasn't particularly fond of the rivers running down Dean Keaton as my best friend and I tried to make our way back to my dorm from class. Though we had an umbrella, the flimsy cover proved to be of little use to us, for we both were throughly drenched by the time we finished running to Duren. Additionally, the rain completely derailed my Friday ride as I had no desire to get a flat tire (something much more likely in the rain) in the town of Buda (where I was supposed to ride) leaving me stranded twenty miles from campus on a test day. Instead, my forty mile ride became a quick twelve mile spin culminating in me completely freaking out when my bike started making very ominous noises that I thought meant my bike frame had cracked. After slightly freaking out, I went through my day, waiting for the opportunity to be able to take Cevie (my bike) into a bike shop. Thankfully, the creaking was only a minor problem and easily fixable. I felt grumpy, frustrated, and terrified I was going to have to tell my parent I broke my really expensive road bike.

Rule Number 9 from the Velominati (a cyclist's bible)

The best of my past week was yesterday when I had a super busy day. First, the Texas Cycling team rode out to Pflugerville, and I met a lot of other riders I hadn't met previously. I also got to meet one of the women who rides for UT, so that was inspiring and really cool. After the ride, I got back to my dorm and shoved some lunch down my throat and headed back out to the Liberal Arts Council's member retreat at Pease Park. I met the other people on my particular committee and we all were divided into separate "houses" to compete with each other throughout the year. After having a new member meeting, I jumped back on to my bike and rode all the way back to my dorm to quickly change to go eat with my best friend. After another quick meal, we headed over to the Fine Arts Building to watch Jane Eyre for her Emerging Selves signature course for Plan II. The entire day I felt included, purposeful and comforted by the constant activity and knowing what I was doing.

My LAC family's tribal animal: The Sloth.

Best and Worst

Week of September 9

Hi, my name is Kate and I'm addicted to cycling (in case you haven't already gotten that by now). This past week, I didn't ride my bike for four straight days due to illness. Since I had that terrible hacking cough and could hardly breathe through my nose, I felt it best to take a week off. However, even though I logically knew that I needed the extra sleep and relaxation to get better, this knowledge in no way made my withdrawal from riding any less painful. During these four days I felt anxious, lazy, and almost depressed though that may be too strong a word for the longing I felt to be back on my bike.

Me without my bike is like this kid without his video games.

The best part of my week was getting to see Judy Smith speak on campus. For those who don't know, Judy Smith is the real life inspiration for the ABC drama Scandal (AKA the best show ever). She gave three pieces of advice for all of us aspiring longhorns. Though her three pieces of advice have certainly been said before, they are all very important and are cliche for a reason: they're true. First she told us to stay true to ourselves, for there is much power in staying true to yourself and following your own path. Second, be prepared for whatever life may throw your way. From a new club position to an opportunity to study abroad in Russia, one should always be prepared to embrace life's many opportunities. Lastly, morals and values are important. These don't have to be from religion or from your parents, but you should have your own set of morals and values and stick to them.

Besides giving us good advice, Ms. Smith was very approachable and down to earth. She shared with us some of her past stories and was very self-deprecating. She laughed with us and interacted with the audience. When one boy tried to take a sneaky selfie with Ms. Smith in the background, she called him out on it and told him to come around and take a real picture with her. She made everyone feel comfortable and more importantly, made us all laugh numerous times. Her presentation was engaging and her demeanor seemed to draw everyone in, wanting to hear all she had to say. At the end of the event, many people rushed over to get a picture with her, Erika and myself included. Though the picture line was very long and many of the event's organizers tried to just make us take one big group picture, Ms Smith patiently insisted that we all have our chance to get a picture with her. In short, she was incredible. Attending this event inspired me, filled me with joy, and thrilled me at the opportunity to meet one of my idols.

Erika and I with Judy Smith

Best and Worst

This week was pretty awesome overall. I dropped my hardest class once I found out I didn't need to take it, making me feel relieved, lifting the stress off my shoulders. I got to hang out with a bunch of Plan II-ers at Getaway where I played volleyball for the first time in almost three years which brought back fond memories of my time as a high school volleyball player. I hung out with my good friends, watching the pitiful outcome of the UT v BYU game and eating homemade puppy chow and pumpkin cake balls. But the best part of my week was actually today (I count Sunday as part of the week) when I got to go on my first UT Cycling team ride this morning. Our sixty-five mile ride took us from Gregory Gym all the way to San Marcos. I felt enthusiastic to begin my next four years riding with this group of cyclists, connected to a group of equally bike-obsessed people (finally guys who want to talk Tour de France and USA Pro Challenge with me!) and fired up to begin racing for Texas Cycling.

Community and friendship in cycling as Chris Froome rides to his
2013 Tour de France victory with his teammates.

The worst part of this past week was definitely getting sick. I typically rarely get sick, so suffering through the headaches and sore throat from my cold really made me feel miserable and lethargic.

Hopefully this cold will go away soon, so I can begin this next week on a more positive note!

Animal Guides

Thought I would start with a little humor.

Well, I have begun my journey to discovering my spirit animal. Today, I tried both Steven Farmer and the Shamanic meditations. Though in the first I was able to experience a couple of animals including a gray wolf and a horse, I plan to try the third meditation and repeat all three in the coming week. 

Note: Google had so many cute images, I am breaking up all my paragraphs with them.

After reading the pages in our course anthology on spirit animals, I think my next attempts at meditation will be better. I think I am over thinking some of the meditation. Is the scene or animals I see something significant or something I am just making happen? I like the advice of Animal Speak by Ted Andrews gives: though I may not succeed at first I should remember that "there is no 'right' path. Be patient with yourself, and learn to tune into your unconscious" (127). I think much of my difficulty stems from my difficulty to believe in this whole concept. Like Andrews writes, I am a product of modern society where "there is a tendency to scoff at such possibilities" (118). 

This is super cute!

Though I am having trouble with my attempts to reconnect and "reawaken [my] lost belief in magic, dreams, and possibilities," after reading the real purpose and power of spirit animals, I am very interested. I like the idea that I have a responsibility as part of this world to know about the environment in which I reside (117).  These spirit animals can help us in our lives and may come and go as we need them. Like Gerald Vizenor said, "native totems are personal associations and necessary metaphors." I think the idea that these power animals can come aid us in our times of need or signal something to come is truly fascinating. These animals can "help us to recognize our own innate abilities. They help empower us and protect us. Their energies can be used to help heal, inspire, and grow" (118).

Another problem I think I may face in finding my spirit animal is my preconceived idea of what I would like my spirit animals to be. I think being a red fox would be really cool and suit my personality well, and I think that belief may color my meditation. I tried the meditation before reading, so hopefully now that I understand the idea that "the animal chooses the person not the other way around," this will not play a role in my future attempts (120). I think this problem with letting ego go and realizing not everyone is an eagle or a bear is a tough hurdle to overcome. However, like Andrews wrote, every animal is special in its own way and has its own power. "You will find your success in the animal that comes to you," not the one you arbitrarily pick because it's the king of the jungle.

Another part of the reading I found particularly interesting in the fact that entire groups can have a common totem. At the University of Texas, this totem is obviously the longhorn. I think the longhorn plays a significant role in uniting us all together. Though we all come from different places and backgrounds, we are all longhorns. The hand sign is the outward projection of this truth. The longhorn "becomes a guide to making the relationship stronger and more productive" (121). I think this is exactly the role the longhorn serves. At sporting events we all unite in our longhorn burnt orange and cheer for our fellow longhorns. In classes, though we may not know everyone's name, we know we all belong to the university and thus are connected to each other.

The reading on the spirit guides really interested me (as evidenced by the multitude of quotes...sorry guys writing after me). I am looking forward to discovering my spirit animal in the coming days!

A New Chapter: The Best and the Worst of Week One

A little over a week into my new life in Austin and I've already experienced many highs and lows. From the stress of finding new classes to the fun of hanging out with friends, UT Austin is unlike anything I've done before, not that I was expecting anything different.

Let's start with the worst of the past week. On Saturday the 31st of August, I went on my very first group bike ride here in Austin. Coming from the flatlands of Houston, I knew my very first ride would be painful as I would desperately attempt to conquer the mountains all around the city. With this in mind, I carefully selected a group ride from Mellow Johnny's advertised as "a great fit for the intermediate rider." As a four year veteran to the sport, I thought this was a great selection for my first Austin ride. Six minutes into the ride I quickly corrected that notion. We hit incredibly steep mountains hills and my heart rate flew well above my theoretical maximum. Legs burning, I pedaled as fast as I could up the walls that the Austin riders seemed to not feel. Being dropped by the group, I felt discouraged and defeated. Back home I'm considered a very good rider, so this crushing low damaged my confidence and my pride.

Pretty much my Saturday...

I staggered into the halfway point ready to call it a day after only fifteen miles (a laughable distance for the seasoned cyclist as we typically ride 40-80 miles on a Saturday ride). However, I made it back home, body weary and mind pessimistic about my future of Austin cycling. To top this disastrous ride, two days later I got miserably lost on an out-and-back ride which literally means you ride somewhere, turn around, and go back the same way. (I am very talented at getting lost apparently...) Though I started riding away from both the campus and downtown, I somehow found myself in the heart of downtown thoroughly bypassing where I was supposed to go. To add on to my frustration and misery, the clouds had to open up and literally rain on my parade.

 Needless to say this addition experience furthered my feelings of inadequacy and inferiority. I was ready to quit cycling as a whole. But finally, with help of my iPhone and more aimless riding, I finally made it back to Duren.

Since then I have ridden almost everyday and thankfully I haven't gotten lost again, though I have been dropped multiple times and even had to walk up an incredibly steep hill (the ultimate shame for a cyclist). But each day gets a little better and I remind myself that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger (thanks Kelly Clarkson).

Now for the best part of my week! It's so difficult deciding what the best part of being at UT should be. I have loved making many new friends (I will learn everyone's name eventually...I hope), experiencing college classes, playing various games like werewolves and Cards Against Humanity,  eating fantastic food, and I could go on and on. I think really just being in Austin and at UT is really the best part of my past week. I felt proud to be here, inspired to be around so many other like-minded students (especially us Plan II-ers), and simply happy to be here. Like Mr. Kanamori told his fourth year students, "We only have one life. So let's really enjoy it, okay?" I plan to spend the next four years doing that and more.