Oh the weather outside is weather

In teh past few days I’ve seen dense fog, toreential downpour, uncomfortable heat and dime-size hail. South Dakota sure knows how to keep a girl on her toes. I’ve even been keeping up with the hourly weather report but clearly I need a more reliable source.

On the foggy morning we traveled to both research sites only to be restricted to less that a mile of visibility. I debated telling Prameek a ‘Land of the Lost’ story similar to what my dad used to tell me, but I decided against it. It’d be a waste if he didn’t understand my amazing story with such classic characters like Sarah the triceratops and Stink the monkey man (although I’d be entertained). A few days later we got caught in a hail storm. We failed to get out of the pasture soon enough and had to drive back on slippery dirt roads which quickly turned to mud. Good to know the Kia can handle it.

I just can’t wait for this week to be over because Saturday we’re doing the Volksmarch up Crazy Horse Memorial! Six mile hike, baby! So excited! Last year I walked it alone and as realxing and self-fulfilling as it was, it’s always nice to have company. And now I’ve got another chance to get a picture in front of the mountain.

So recently I’ve been (poorly) splitting my time between this blog and a comedy blog I started with a couple of friends in our improv troupe Kram Comedy. There are three incredibly different authors that each post a new entry twice a week. Bored at any point during the day or night with access to the internet? Look no further than Kram Comedy Speaks! Hopefully we can make you laugh 🙂

Here’s the Land of the Lost intro. Classic.

Bad roads are bad for business

We FINALLY made it out to the pasture after two days of rain and two days of drying. Little did we know that two days weren’t enough and the roads were still pretty bad. Nothing the old/new Kia couldn’t handle. Well, some things she couldn’t handle and we weren’t crazy enough to test her limits. I did run her through mud, though! Woo, that was exciting.

Since we missed a week of observations, Prameek and I are going to work overtime to make up for it. That requires an early wake up. Damn. The only positive about waking up early is catching the sunrise. Glorious! And then when it’s up you remember that you’re awake really freaking early and want to go curl up and cry. Fortunately, that second phase only lasts a few minutes, which feel like hours, but in reality it’s no time at all.

While I’m in South Dakota slaving away with the bison, my family is at a bar-miztvah (Bradley’s bar-mitzvah – Mazel Tov!!) enjoy free candy and bonding time. Grr!! Family, I know some of you read this, and FYI I MISS YOU AND WANT TO BE THERE! Good thing there are at least 6 more mitzvahs in Ohio and then at least 2 in New York. Oh goodness, that’s way too far in advance. Nevermind, I take that back. Don’t think that far into the future. It’s too horrible to think about. Fingers crossed I’m married by then…and then you have a wedding to go to in between. Yay! And I promise, it’ll be just as, if not more fun, than my bat-mitzvah.

By the way, 1 MONTH DOWN 3 TO GO!!

Two day rain delay

Oy, rain is depressing. Everything seems worse in the rain. We’ve missed out on two field days due to this storm. It’s probably somewhat related to the terror tornado that hit Oklahoma. Try and slip in a prayer for all those affected. Help if you can. If not, continue on with your lives.

I would continue with my life except the rain poses a problem. We can’t chance going into the field in case the Kia gets stuck in the mud. I’m not sure what she can handle, but with those bald tires, mud probably isn’t it. So we’re stranded at the house finding ways to stay busy. Fortunately, I’ve got a thesis to write, blogs to update and Arrested Development to rewatch.

Yesterday I was able to catch up on New Girl, The Mindy Project and watch the series finale of The Office. Man, that one brought me to tears. Hats off to the writers and the actors and everyone involved because that was a top notch finale! There will never be another love story like Jim and Pam.

I’ll let you all know when I find my Jim. He’s gotta be around here somewhere…

Prairie dogs and drug stores

I love being in a new state and having new places to explore. One such place is the tourist trap that is known as Prairie Dog Town! You can feed sickly looking prairie dogs and fear for your life as they creep closer to you begging for an unsalted peanut. It’s quite the adrenaline rush. They even specifically warn you NOT to run away. I’m assuming that’s for children and grown men.

who would run away from this? 

The real reason Jenn and I visited this wonderful land of tiny dogs was to see the giant prairie dog statue and obviously tourist is up and get a picture with it.

The real destination for the day was Wall Drug in, you guessed it, Wall, South Dakota. Back in the 1930s, Wall Drug was an actual drug store and would encourage visitors by offering free glasses of ice water. What a marketing strategy! It still works today because that’s all I came for.

Success!

I’m sure during the peak of summer this place is packed, but since we went on an overcast day in May it was fairly empty. We explored the shops (there were so many) and got to take a picture on a real, life size jackelope!

I’m a real cowgirl!

On the way home we drove through a serious hail storm! It felt like the hail was going to break through the windshield and kill us on the spot, which would have been so unfortunate after having such a lovely day. After what seemed like forever, the hail let up and calmed down to a severe rain storm. The Kia managed to come out of that without damage, which is less than I can say for the Focus in its last encounter with hail. Poor guy got destroyed. At night we had a rather large cook out, delayed a bit by a traveling thunderstorm. There was so much food I literally had trouble breathing. I came back here with the understanding of eating poorly prepared meals or cereal but so far we’ve at least had one large, delicious meal every week. Love it.

And now this Sunday is being spent writing and working. Prameek comes back tomorrow and then its back to the field! Unless of course we get rained out all week…according to the weathermen that is a serious possibility. Ruh roh. Hope the weather is more friendly wherever you are!

All by myself (sing it)

As the title suggests I’m alone this weekend. Prameek went to Montana for a college reunion and I stayed in South Dakota to be alone with my thoughts.

My first thought was to (shamelessly) read “50 Shades of Grey”. I’ve heard mixed reviews and decided to give it a shot. I generally jump on a series bandwagon later than the public. Hell, it took me years before I gave Harry Potter any thought and without HP I’d be a different person. If there’s something I can geek out to that’s not television or Hollywood, it’s Harry Potter. Another popular series that I distanced myself from was the Twilight Saga. Eventually it ended up in my lap, but only after an intense internal argument, which I lost because Stephanie Meyers is not evenly remotely near J.K. Rowling. Have you ever read a book with a weaker female protagonist? Not once did I root for Bella. Who deserves two guys fawning over her when she can’t even pick herself up for 4 chapters? And even after her deep state of depression she fails to have a break through and gain independence. Only in the last book (yes, I regrettably continued to the last book) does she grow a pair and become a woman.

Anyway, I digress. My next reading venture will be full of bondage and poor writing, but I’ll manage. The writing is a bit redundant but I’m holding out for the good stuff. The S-E-X. I’m ready for you, Christian Grey.

Other than that, tomorrow I’m going to Wall Drug with Jenn.

And then in three months I’ll be home.

Time sure does fly.

My first attempt at a short play

I love being out on the range. It’s so open you can see for miles without being obstructed by a building or a Levitt development. However, all that open space has a downside. The wind can get up to 40 mph, which it did. It made the 80 degree weather feel as low as 60 degrees, at least to me. I was in a heavy jacket for most of the day. Ridiculous. 

So Prameek and I are watching the bison, they’re not doing much, just grazing and sleeping and all of a sudden they all start running away. But before the group sprinted completely out of sight, they stopped and just looked in our direction and waited. They were probably waiting for the lead female cow to give the OK that it was safe, which she eventually did so they hung out a bit longer. I picture the conversation going like this:

Bison 1: Hey, how’s that grazing going? 

Bison 2: It’s alright, to be honest this grass tastes a few days old. 

Bison 1: It might be, it’s been a while since we’ve grazed this patch. 

Bison 2: Maybe the patch over here is better. (Moves to the left)

Bison 1: Oh look, the lead cow is running. OH MY GOD WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE! 

Bison 2: IS SOMETHING CHASING US?!

Bison 1: I HAVE NO IDEA! 

(A few seconds later all the bison stop and congregate within inches of each other)

Bison 2: (Panting) Why did we stop!?

Bison 1: Hm…I don’t know. Let’s blankly stare ahead in case we find the reason. 

Bison 2: Found it! It’s those meddling kids spying on us again. 

Bison 1: Let’s give them a show and do nothing. 

Bison 2: Roger that. 

End scene. 

Ninety degrees and it’s only May

These past two days have been a clear indicator of the weather for the rest of the summer. Yesterday was 91 degrees and today was 85 degrees. On the upside, the heat really slows down the bison and they’ve already started to mellow out. They really didn’t care about us today. One of them even grew curious and tracked us up a hill. Bison are super cute when they’re curious. If only they tilted their big bison heads like dogs do, I could squeeze their big bison beards!

In other news, I finally caught up on The Following. Honestly, if you want to be thrown off for an entire season and then want to scream till your throat bleeds at the season finale, this is your show. Plus, it’s Kevin Bacon. How can you say no to this:

I certainly can’t. He really does rock a suit and tie. JT would be proud. For those who don’t get the reference:

And for those who have never seen JT act on Saturday Night Live, I’ll share some comedy with you:

You’re welcome.

We moved! & Happy Mothers Day!

We lived at the office for two weeks but finally had to call it quits. I’m back where I was last summer and couldn’t feel more at home. After a long and productive day in the field, Prameek and I were invited to a birthday BBQ at Jenn’s house for her mom, Judi, and Gusti, the girl who lives next door to us downstairs. I’m beginning to get accustomed to BBQs once a week. During the summer, that should be a rule.

Jenn made a ton of food – brats, burgers, potato/egg salad, corn on the cob, baked beans, macaroni salad – and then for dessert there were three kinds of homemade ice cream (and hers is the best), strawberry, dark chocolate and blackberry, as well as two kinds of cakes, strawberry shortcake (with whipped cream and fresh berries) and a delicious chocolate cake! Food coma ensued immediately.

Fortunately, we got a chance to relax and chat while we recovered. That way we were all awake to hang out a bit more on the porch upstairs with two tenants we just met, David and Janice. We stayed up talking until 1:45 am. It’s been about a month since I’ve stayed up past midnight. That was quite an accomplishment.

On Saturday Prameek and I did some laundry and then grocery shopping in Chadron, NE. Had a fantastic burger in Chadron and it cost $3.00. Worth it.

And now today is Mother’s Day! I sincerely wish I was home right now with my family. I assume my mother is having the family over (only because I’ve seen posts about it on Facebook…) and they’re all going to eat and chat and be merry without me. I’ll be watching bison calves with their mothers and be reminded of mine. So, thanks Mom, for always being there when I needed you and watching television with me, and taking care of my pets even though my dog is practically yours since he likes you better, and finally, for birthing me. You gave a great gift to the world that day wrapped in placenta and amniotic fluid. All your daughters are thankful for being born and without us, Mother’s Day is just another day. This is the one day a year you can be thankful you have three loud, obnoxious, funny daughters. And we’re sorry we can’t make life easier for you the rest of the year, but that’d just make life plain boring.

Love you, Mom!

Find me a man like RDJ

Saturday, I had the pleasure of seeing Iron Man 3 along with the rest of Facebook. I feel a bit slighted since I didn’t post about, so I will make up for it by sharing my opinion here. Aren’t you lucky? Can I just say that Robert Downey Jr. can do no wrong? Oh, I can? Perfect…because I did. Honestly, no one else could have played Tony Stark. I’ve never read the comics but I’m assuming he’s got a quick wit and arrogant and RDJ plays arrogant so well! He makes arrogant attractive. Mainly because he is very, very, very attractive. I realize I’ve completely digressed from a critique of the movie and instead discussed RDJ’s appeal. Well, the movie was action-packed with enough comedy and emotion to make it enjoyable for anyone and any age. I specify ‘any age’ because there were toddlers in the theater with us.

I didn’t even explain the best part: ADMISSION WAS UNDER $7…ON A SATURDAY NIGHT!! If I got excited about buying a hot dog, popcorn and a bottled water for $7, think of how stretched my face became after I bought the ticket! Thank you, South Dakota. Actually, thank you 2 Nunpa Theater. It was an enjoyable experience beginning to end.

Sunday and Monday Prameek and I continued our field work. The weather is finally getting nice (only to be followed by rain) and I managed to get a tan…on my face. Just my face. It looks like I caked on bronzer since my neck is still pale. Gotta spend a day evening that bad boy out. Hmm…anything exciting happen? Oh! Monday was the first day that I perspired! TMI?

Tuesday Michael took us out to Yellow Bear in order to remind me of the different paths. Directions were never my forte so this was a tricky one. Pretty sure it’s engraved in my memory now, though, so don’t worry we’ll be okay! We even got pretty close to the bison, something we haven’t been able to do yet. By the end of the summer I’ll be hand-feeding a calf while petting its head, pictures will be provided. Michael also took us out to Slim Buttes (the other pasture) on Wednesday. Prameek and I had to hike for our first time. Climbing hills does not get easier with age. I am grossly out of shape. Good thing I’ve got all summer to get back in shape. Beach season doesn’t exist here! However, the bison are very critical and sometimes I think they judge me. Rude.

Today we’re going out to Yellow Bear and tomorrow we’re going to a double birthday dinner at Aroba’s AND moving to Aroba’s. What an entry that will be!

First day off

Happy Saturday! Actually, happy birthday to Mrs. Amy Ryan! The woman’s living the dream, hidden away for the weekend at a cabin in the mountains of Europe with her husband. Twenty bucks says she has a great time.

I, on the other hand, am spending this lovely Saturday catching up on some work.

This week has been mildly chilly forcing me to layer up. No joke, I had about seven layers on when we’d go into the field. I’m like a boy scout, always prepared and a little awkward. First, I need to be thankful for all those years I played soccer and needed to stock up on underarmour – I have quite the collection. And since it’s been no higher than 60 degrees, the layers have been necessary. Except yesterday. It was beautiful yesterday. So beautiful in fact, that even the bison were happy enough to stay still and enjoy the sunshine.

Prameek observing those bison

Thursday, Prameek and I were invited to a cookout in a celebration of a boy’s birthday and his graduation from 8th grade. Good luck in high school, kid. We met some locals, ate some delicious food and played with about ten dogs. Yup, ten dogs. See Mom, it’s doable. However, I should mention they are not allowed inside…but that would hurt my case. So I retract that statement.

After being around Native Americans last summer and again this summer, I’ve noticed one very wonderful quality – they love telling jokes, the men especially. Pretty sure every man I’ve come across has slipped a joke or two right into the conversation. The people I’ve met have had great senses of humor and have all been very welcoming. However, I was reprimanded for never going to Strawberry Fields, the tribute to John Lennon in Central Park. Dennis could not believe I could live so close and never have gone. Well, up until now I didn’t know it existed…but now that I do, I’ll go for you, Dennis.