2000 - 2009 A Life and Times of Amanda Review

It may seem silly and cliche, but I love reading articles about the year in review and the decade in review. This seems like the appropriate location to review what my past decade has been like. I'm going to use my brother's set up, because it's a great one. This past decade has seen the biggest changes in my life and I don't think it could have ended up better. The decade encompassed my high school and college years. While they may not be the best years of my life, they certainly are some of the most important. I've learned a lot throughout the past decade and I'm looking forward to learning more in the decades to come!

*Some of these years may not necessarily be accurate, and that's because I have a bad memory.

2000

Finished middle school and started high school at Mounds View High School.

My mom borrowed 3 books from a coworker about a boy named Harry Potter. I started to wish my school was magical.

Said no to drugs and alcohol.

Made the competition dance line at Metro Dance and started getting serious about dancing.

Began my short career as a Cheerleader for the MVHS girls hockey team. They were the best group of people I cheered for (sorry Tony's football friends).

Went to the Homecoming dance with a boy who was 30 lbs lighter than me and 3 inches shorter than me. Felt like a giant. First experience hearing someone say "I love you" and being really freaked out by it.

2001

Without plans for our spring break, my parents send Tony and I on a mission trip to an orphanage in Reynosa, Mexico with a family friend. One of the best last minute decisions that has had a lasting impact on my life.

Became a football and soccer cheerleader for a school I increasingly disliked. Told football players don't like Twinkies.

Started getting into music and learning to love a variety of sounds.

2002

Spent a month living with a family in Cuernavaca, Mexico learning Spanish. Had a great time living relatively independently in a foreign country.

Able to take Spanish 5 at MVHS and unlearn everything learned in Mexico.

Joined the junior varsity track team at MVHS.

Started doing competition tap, ballet and jazz after many years out of practice.

Went to my first concert alone, saw Fuel, Sevendust at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium. Saved up $27 to buy a concert t-shirt from selling custom mix CDs at school.

2003

Found out that I could spend my last year of high school, not going to high school and attending college for free.

Got in to the PSEO program at the University of Minnesota, one of the best things that I've ever done. I learned to be independent, take risks, and explored a vast new place.

Continued to do tap, ballet, jazz and dance line at Metro Dance.

Got my first job at Proex, taking portraits of people and developing pictures.

Opened my first bank account!

2004

Declared a Spanish minor while still in high school.

Graduated from high school. Vowed to never step foot inside MVHS again. A promise I have since kept.

Accepted into the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota.

Quit my job at Proex and started working at East Side Beverage, a challenging but rewarding job.

Moved into Middlebrook Hall on the West Bank of the Mississippi. A great place where I met some wonderful people and made new friends.

2005

Spring semester was the worst for grades as I didn't listen to the recommendation and took 2 difficult classes that I didn't like at the same time. Slacked off an incredible amount for me.

Learned that I can't always coast through classes and spent much of April and May catching up.

Got a lot of music from a fellow music lover and expanded my tastes in music. Though I still don't do rap.

Started a job at the Gopher Express and Post Office in the student union. Discovered a life-long love for Amy's Pizza Pockets. I am extremely knowledgeable about postal requirements. Mailed my first human body parts.

Joined the Student Association for Non-profit Enterprise (SANE). Voted president of the student group to start that fall.

Became a U-Crew in Middlebrook hall starting in fall semester. Got a single and a mandate to help the freshman residents on 6th floor adjust and enjoy their college experience.

Started drinking.

Realized that I didn't want to be an Entrepreneur and changed my major to Human Resources and Industrial Relations. Hoped that with that major I'd be able to help people.

Got a bicycle for my birthday only to have it stolen 2 weeks into the school year.

2006

Applied for study abroad and was accepted to go to the Quinn School of Business at the University College Dublin.

Declared a Psychology minor to fill in the gaps until I graduated.

Moved my parents to Covington, Indiana and helped sell the home I grew up in, in Arden Hills, Minnesota. My job for that summer was to pack up the house, take Chip out of the house when people came to see it, refill the ponds, and keep the house clean.

Worked in Danville, IL for 1 month as an audit assistant. Learned I don't like numbers job and that I must always stay busy.

Traveled to Ireland where I didn't realize until the plane touched down that I didn't know a single person in the country.

Had a great time in Ireland; drinking whiskey, making great friends, studied quite a bit, traveling around Europe, and bringing my family over to show them a good time.

I figured out that I do best when I am constantly learning something new.

2007

Moved into a closet in Minnesota.

Struggled a bit to adjust to the change from study abroad.

Over Easter I ran my dad's ATV into a tree. Thought I was about to die and then got afraid of driving and motor vehicles after that.

Met and started dating Andy Harvey. Our first date encompassed riding in Critical Mass and dining at a Thai restaurant in St. Paul. We watched a barge in the Mississippi during sunset.

Completed my Emerging Leadership Program on principle and couldn't continue with the honors program if I graduated early.

Pete came for a visit over the summer and I tried to show him a good time around Minneapolis. It ended up that he was able to create a good time for himself here as well!

First time I questioned a grade I received from a teacher and went into mediation. Was able to move my grade up and felt more confident.

House got broken into the day after I moved in. I lost my laptop, camera, and sense of safety.

Graduated from the University of Minnesota in 3 1/2 years. Had to do my graduation ceremony in the spring, despite finishing in the winter. Happy to be done with school!

Got my first car that was my own! A wonderful 2008 Honda Fit. It fits a lot.

2008

Got my first job as a Human Resources Assistant at Mall of America. Learned to love MOA and learned a lot about people.

Called the city on my landlord a few times for dumping. Dealt with Thursday night garage parties 2 houses down, roomies that didn't always do their dishes, and the wonderment of a house that could be so cold in the winter could be so hot in the summer.

Got my first promotion 5 months after being hired, now an HR Representative, I started doing interviews.

Andy and I moved in together in a small house in South Minneapolis.

Andy proposed on the train ride home from a visit to Indiana. Started planning a wedding. Bought a wedding dress a couple weeks later.

Moved work offices from upstairs in Nickelodeon Universe to the basement of MOA in December. Stopped seeing daylight for awhile. Enjoyed a bigger "office" and being around the rest of MOA employees.

2009

Learned that planning a wedding takes a lot of time and effort.

Made a plan with Andy that in 2010 we would start looking for jobs out of state in earnest and move out of Minnesota within 2 years.

Started gardening and grew our own tomatoes, carrots, beans, radishes, lettuce, squash, and peppers. Ate more vegetables and fruits than ever before.

Learned how to can and preserve summer food.

Received a canoe for a wedding present from my parents and paddled around the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers and Lake Nokomis.

Took my first trip to the BWCA with Andy and he didn't end up as bear bait. He passed the family test with flying colors.

Got married on October 10, 2009. Had a great time seeing everyone and I realized that the best thing about weddings was seeing all of my family at once.

Honeymooned in Portland, OR and had a wonderful time. Came home knowing that's where we'd like to live in the future.

2010

I don't usually make resolutions, but this year there are some things that I would like to accomplish.

• The first is to keep better track of my finances. I don't usually pay much attention to them, but I've realized that's a bad idea.
• Get a dog! For Christmas Andy and I saved some gift money for each other to put to adopting a greyhound.
• Move away from Minnesota. After living here our whole lives, Andy and I think it's time to try someplace new. Preferable that will be Portland, OR, but we're open to other places.

Critical Mass Video

Critically Massive

Yesterday was the second Critical mass of my life and it was AMAZING! If I've said before that I like biking in groups, I like even better biking in a group of about 150. The weather is nice and finals are just far enough away, loads of people decided to go for a Critical Mass ride. In that light the ride was incredibly fun and full of new experiences. Here's a shot of the group going over the Hennepin Avenue bridge:

We were in the middle of the pack. The month before traffic was able to get by on this bridge, not this month!

When there is such a large group there are actually Critical Mass techniques, mostly for the protection of bikers and annoyance of drivers. At intersections people actually stand with their bikes in front of cars until everyone rides by, so that the car can't make a mad dash through the crowd. That's quite dangerous. Plenty of people fell off their bikes anyway, there was no need for added car danger. I didn't get a shot of the tactics, but I did get a good picture of a "rally." I forgot what Andy called it. At the intersection of Hennepin and Lagoon in Uptown the ride stopped and a bunch of people rode around in circles. Then they picked up their biked and chanted: "Whose streets? Our streets!"

Bike "gang"

It was really funny. Then they did that again at another intersection, except it was interrupted by fire trucks. I got a video of that one and it sounds pretty badass. So once I figure out how to get a video on here, I'll post it (any help would be appreciated). This was quite the exciting night, I was really happy to be apart of it. Especially since it is for a good cause, people really should bike more. Andy's idea of a legal Critical Mass would be even better though, because then drivers would be annoyed, but not have any legal defense against us.

Here are some random pictures that I took because I was excited about being able to ride my bike and not fall off while taking pictures. Also, for the interest of Pete, I rode Paddy:

Paddy the bike. I wrapped those handlebars myself with the orange tape. That's why it looks so bad.

Andy and his friend Patrick, leaning on each other. They got tired.

I made sure that my helmet matched my shirt, always looking my best.

Ross on Delilah.

Going under the Washington Avenue Bridge, I think this is a pretty picture.

Downtown Minneapolis, this was taken the second round through.

Quickie

The Minnesota Daily had a picture from Critical Mass last Friday. Their estimate was 30 people, mine was a bit high I guess. This picture is from the Washington Avenue Bridge. I actually watched the girl take this picture. So I'm to the left more, out of the shot.


I've also flossed for 7 days in a row now. Go me!

Bicycle (Mis)Adventures

Recently biking has been lots of fun. I've found some people who like biking and going on rides is loads of fun now. Especially when funny things happen. We started doing Wednesday night bike rides, at 9 after my 3 hour class gets over. The first one last week was really fun, rather uneventful. We saw Minnehaha falls and went all around Lake Calhoun and uptown.

This past Wednesday we decided to go to St. Paul. Andy took Kim and I to a waterfall, I forgot was it was called. Anyway, it was really cool because it was dark and it had rained all day, so it was also really muddy. We stood at the top of the waterfall and heard it going down. Then we wandered to a place overlooked the Mississippi and was really muddy. The mud was like clay! It was amazing. Then we biked down Summit Ave, and around the Governor's Mansion Andy got a flat. Andy has this huge bag that he brings with him on rides in case anything bad happens. Except for when flats happen. He was unprepared. So we called Clare to rescue us and take us back home.

Though, the most exciting party of that ride was my first crash! Well, my first crash in a long time. Anyway, it was thrilling because I flew off my bike, but didn't get hurt. Andy apparently has this habit of turning in front of people, and he turned in front of me to go onto a path. I also, didn't see him slowing down, so I was still going at a good rate. So I hit his back tire and somehow came off my bike. Thankfully, I hit the ground running. Crouch running, from what Andy says. I remember not wanting to fall and hurt myself, because I was going pretty fast, so I just kept going with my momentum until I slowed down. It was really exciting.

Yesterday was my first Critical Mass. It's where a bunch of bicyclists get together to raise awareness about cycling as a viable means of getting around. And other such stuff. The website is good. I biked downtown for the first time and that was really fun, I know more about how to get around now. I'm excited about that. Anyway, we started at Loring park, there was a group of about maybe 40ish people there all with bikes. When someone says go, we all start biking around the city. Lets just say, motorists aren't happy, and it's really funny for me. Apparently in the summer there are lots more people. It was also raining yesterday, which could be why there weren't so many people.

My friend Jon hooked up a can holder to his bike and was able to have a drink while on the road. That was entertaining. It was also entertaining when an unmarked white van sounded its siren and flashed its lights, for no apparent reason. Andy guessed it was a Department of Homeland Security vehicle. They didn't do anything. After awhile my back tire got a bit flat, so Andy pumped it back up again. Then Andy, Jon, and I had to find the group again. We did, just in time to go under the Washington Avenue Bridge, and that was really cool because it was echo-y. Jon's favorite part about Critical Mass is driving down Hennepin in Uptown. Though, no one else in Critical Mass wanted to go there. So we three braved it alone, until Jon's back tire came loose. This time Andy had no wrench to fix it. So for the second bike ride in a row, Clare had to pick us up again.

I'm looking forward to biking more often and being more comfortable getting myself around downtown. I like having people to bike with who really like biking. So life is good at the moment.