The Last 48 Hours

WOW! I have never been so overwhelmed, excited, and welcomed in all my life. I am so excited to start my new position tomorrow. Meeting every one has been such a welcoming experience. It has been so refreshing to meet all these people from all over the US, really wanting to make a difference in the lives of children in regards to conservation and sustainability. I am humbled by the dedication they have to the forest and the Earth. 

I live in a six bedroom dorm with one other person; a guy named Derek. He is working on Hemlock issues. My bedroom is small, but has plenty of storage space and because there are only two of us in the house, we each get our own refrigerator. There are two shower rooms and two bathrooms (each one is about the size of my bedroom, go figure). The community building is really nice: 3 washers and 3 dryers (not coin operated, WAHOO) two bathrooms with showers, a HUGE kitchen, two grills, and an inside/outside fire place.

Oh, and I forgot to mention NO AT&T cell service. So I had to climb down the Mountain to go to the Wal-Mart (not a super Wal-Mart, yes they still have those, shocking I know) to get a Verizon phone. I'm back to the age of flip phones (pictures to come), guess it goes right along with the "not-so-super Wal-Mart. So basically my iPhone is just a giant paperweight. Sad day for me. Oh well, guess it’s the price you pay for living in the mountains. 

Some interesting facts. 
Wildwood, MO is 466 ft above sea level
Brevard, NC is 2230 ft
Cradle of Forestry is 3280 ft
Blue Ridge Parkway is 5000 ft
Mt Pisgah is 5721 ft 

Needless to say it has taken a little bit to get used to the elevation. But I just go to bed a little earlier. It is nice and refreshing to be outside all the time again.