Hi ho, hi ho, . . .

Curses!! I was tricked into renewing my membership in eharmony. I know, I know. HOW do you get tricked into something like that? It's not like they have an army of match making thugs who come to your house and threaten you until you agree to renew. But their REAL tactics are trickier and more difficult to avoid. Even though I cancelled my subscription in June (after the whole auto-renewing debacle when I vowed I'd never have dealings with them again) they really upped the number of "highly compatible matches" they were sending me. And it has never stopped! Even though I didn't think my account was active, people can see ME. And try to communicate. But I can't see them and communicate back unless I renew — which they will let me do for the ridiculously low price of $19.95 a month for 3 months! So I had this guy who really wanted to get in touch with me and the little voice in my head which gives me relationship advice starts telling me MAYBE this time it will work! Even though my logical voice was reminding me that I was matched (the whole "matched" business could lead to another rant session. Lies! Ridiculous freaking lies! Matched?! "Highly Compatible" based on our "27 dimensions of compatibility?!" Lies!!) with almost 200 guys during my first go-round and only went on a date with 1. And that guy was not all that intriguing. The discounted price was giving relationship voice more sway over logic than normal. I mean, what if this guy is "the one?" And is $20 really that much to pay for true love? Of course not! (you all answer in unison) So I renewed. And then I checked out persistent guy and he's not my type. Not at all. And none of the other 20 guys they matched me with were remotely intriguing. But now I'm locked in to this contract! Curses!! Logical voice has told me repeatedly that she told me this would happen. And she did. But I remain optimistic. Remember, I have statistics on my side!

Well, I returned to work this past week and it was rough. I really enjoyed my time off and went biking nearly every day. With my Gregg Bromka "Park City and Beyond" guide book in my bag, I set off exploring new trails. And I got lost on nearly every ride. Obviously Gregg and I have a dysfunctional relationship. He showed me new trails, but then promptly confused me mid-ride and led me into unchartered territory. The worst was my ride in The Canyons when I missed a turn off and ended up literally throwing my bike up a downhill only trail. Fortunately no one came barreling down as I was coming up . . . But each ride was punctuated with truly AWESOME stretches of trail that kept me coming back to him for tips on where to ride.

Looking toward The Canyons resort on Lower Holly's Trail

The trail in the distance is my way home: Ambush Trail

Me trying to throw my bike uphill. Had to stop and take a picture because it was so ridiculous! Doesn't quite capture how steep it actually was but it was nearly vertical

That's the sign I looked BACK to when I was finally on level ground

One of the fabulous sections of trail that kept me coming back to Gregg

Amazing view overlooking The Canyons

I love this picture! It illustrates why I love mountain biking: gorgeous ribbon of smooth packed dirt winding through meadows and trees...

This is my favorite picture from the week! I took this while riding John's in Park City. Awesome ride! Until I got lost and was seriously in need of food...

Well, I better go prepare for the reality of work tomorrow. I've been in serious need of an attitude adjustment as far as work is concerned, and I think this weekend gave it to me. I was put on call Friday and then had Saturday and today off and it's been heaven. Work life has been stressful for the past four months or so (much more so for Meredith and I don't know how she's survived it all) and it's definitely taken more of a toll than I'd realized. But this weekend I really feel renewed. I have a great job and get to do amazing things and I haven't been focusing on that. So starting this week I'm going to think of one thing, person, event each day that I'm grateful for so I can turn work back into something that I enjoy doing. I'll let you know how it goes...

Cautiously optimistic . . .

Hmmm. My mood has changed since I logged on to make this post. I follow the blog of a patient I took care of quite a bit in the PICU and I was stunned to see on the headlines of the blogs I follow that he had passed away unexpectedly today. Granted, he had a life threatening diagnosis and was being evaluated for transplant in a different hospital to see if that could extend his life — so death wasn't necessarily a surprise. However, he had been doing well the day before! His mom was cautiously optimistic and they had been transferred out of the ICU. It just made my heart drop and made me realize how different my life could be. The things I face that seem so challenging are nothing . . . NOTHING compared to what this family has gone through over the past year. And now they're grieving for their little boy. I need to be better at cherishing each day for the gift it is and letting those I love in my life know how important they are to me because you never know what life will bring.

Moving on to less somber topics, I may as well give the updates on my dating life. And I must say I'm optimistic that I'm going to meet someone fabulous soon. Just based on the laws of probability I'm due for one! I've gone out on so many blah (and let's be honest, a little crazy) dates lately that statistically speaking the odds of me finding a gem are getting better and better! I went out with the guy that my friend Chatti set me up with this past Wednesday night. And as I predicted, he was not quite 5'6". Unless I have suddenly sprouted to 5'8" without realizing it. I mean, it IS possible since I've been wearing shorts so I wouldn't know that my pants were suddenly too short. Anyway, it was a fine date, but he was definitely NOT interested. I could tell he had been pressured into doing this by his mom. The guy lives in Cali and is heading back there this weekend so angels would have had to appear for anything lasting to come of it. He checked his watch a couple times and after an hour on the nose, the date was done and I was home.

And then there's persistent Spencer. AKA cirque du soleil boy. I've got to hand it to him because he keeps calling even though I have yet to respond. THAT is dedication! Too bad I'm just not interested because he is ready for a relationship.

This week I'm supposed to meet up with Kevin, a guy I met months ago through LDS linkup. Yes, I've done online dating. So if you're reading all this dating craziness and thinking "maybe she should look online." Been there, done that. Even signed up for eharmony late one night in January when I was feeling particularly unloved and dateless and contemplating reconciling with Bret to have someone back in my life. Linkup has been more fruitful than eharmony was though. Went out with 1 guy from eharmony and got matched with a 150. Not the best odds. AND they automatically renewed my subscription the DAY BEFORE it was going to expire and to get my money refunded I'd have had to fill out some ridiculous form and mail it in with my left kidney to a PO box in Kentucky — so I took the lazy way out and suffered through another 3 months.

Anywho, I'm supposed to meet up with Kevin sometime this week along with my friend Jackie's brother Jeff. We'll see if something pans out. But like I said, something good is coming soon. I can feel it! AND I'm statistically due so not only do I have a good vibe, I've got math on my side. What more does a girl need?

I need to catch up on some events of the past couple weeks. Firstly, the birth of Samson Dewey Richards on July 23rd! Mere's second adorable little babe. He's just a cute little squishy ball of peach fuzz. It's great to see Mere and Dave so happy. I really don't know what they're going to do with a boy, though!

Second, Katie and I climbed Mt Olympus together on July 25th in preparation to climb the Middle Teton. We went all the way up to the summit which I'd never done before. Kate did great but decided that the middle Teton might be more than she was up for so we ended up not climbing that, but our hike made for a fun day.

That's it for now. I'm currently enjoying my staycation from work and don't have to go back to PCMC until August 18th!! Yesssss!!! Tell those around you that you love them, hold your kids, kiss your significant other, call your parents, whatever. Thanks for reading and God bless.