Tired and happy- Guest post from Trevor

I am tired and unfortunately, I need to get used to this feeling. Turns out that earning an MBA is actually somewhat difficult. Even more so when you intend to do so in one year, instead of two. My current schedule is from roughly 7:30 am every morning to 12:00 am every… morning (not including time spent prepping for bed or for school). I don’t really know how I’m doing it right now, outside of just enjoying being in Spain, meeting so many new people, and actually enjoying what I am doing. I can’t emphasize this last point enough – I actually enjoy what I am doing right now. This a very different story from only a few months ago. Put nicely, I didn't enjoy what I was doing. It is truly amazing how much this simple difference has affected my energy. Long days? Yes. Am I tired each morning? No… Okay, yes. But it’s okay. Somehow I make it through the day and it doesn't seem to bother me like it used to. Before the recent change in geography, any physical inadequacy of any kind would annoy me to no end. Tired in the morning – “Ugh, I really don’t want to go to work today.” Moderate to mild sunburn covering between 12 and 14 percent of my exposed dermis – “Ugh, the car registration renewal can wait! Like, less than one fifth of my skin is in slight discomfort!”

I did not expect this sort of turn-around in my ability to overcome the intellectual equivalent of running a “super” Iron Man race (if you don’t know what that is, it is worth googling). The power of enjoying your work and being passionate about the activities that use up your precious resource of time is astounding. I wasn't the biggest believer in this concept before. I was wrong.

Now, time to pursue another precious resource. Sleep.

Madrid is a Little Bit Warmer than Warm

Before we moved here I read a lot about Madrid. I wanted to know about the climate, what we should be looking for in apartments, what there was to do and well everything else you want to know about the anyplace you are going to live. In my research I kept seeing one thing over and over again. When looking for an apartment "make sure it has air conditioning, because of the hot Madrid summers." I would always skim over this and not think too much of it. I have been in Corpus Christi, Texas in the summer. Surely it can't be any worse than that, right? Well let me tell you it may not be Corpus Christi but is sure is close, and it is only the middle of May! I am telling you they weren't joking when then said it was warm here. 

I hail from from two very arid cities, Denver and Salt Lake City. Those cities can get rather warm, but they are still dry. Humid heat is a whole different animal. You are moist all of the time. Constant pit stains, elbow and back sweat. Forget about sitting on a leather couch in your home because you will just heat up and stick to it. Lovely right?
That is another thing I did not mention. You pay for all of your energy and water bills here, separately from your rent. From what I understand that includes businesses, and energy is not cheap in Europe. So while Texas can get really quite hot and humid, you have the luxury of just going inside. If you don't want to pay to cool your home just go to any of the nearest stores and you will experience the industrial strength air conditioning, and at times you might even feel cold. Not here. The average temperature is 80 degrees or above...everywhere. We are still holding out though. We have not turned on our air quite yet. If this is only May heat then we have to acclimate. We have, though, started taking cold showers, and living in our underwear at home. 

So lesson learned, when anyone says Madrid or anywhere else in Europe is hot, just believe them. I don't care how far north you may think Europe is, it still gets quite toasty here too.

It is Time to Talk Food

It has been a good minute since I last posted, and I have lost track of the days we have been here, so I thought it was about time I finally gave up the day count and also I wrote a little something down again.

So I decided this officially will be my first food post. I can't believe I made it this long with out posting anything substantial about food. I say this because anyone who knows me knows that I am self proclaimed foodie/ food snob (or person who is just OBSESSED with food). I am so obsessed I studied Dietetics at Colorado State and got a degree in how food works. Everything about food fascinates me. From the growing to the eating and digesting. It blows my mind, things that come out of the ground literally make life possible. How cool is that! Sorry I get a little jittery when I talk about food and I could ramble about for days... okay maybe weeks or months (ask my friends and family).

Moving on. So when we first moved here I was stoked to try all of the new food. I mean Europe is know for its food, right? When we first arrived we didn't have any gas for our stove at our Airbnb flat so we didn't do much cooking. We also wanted to experience the food Spaniards ate, so we ate a lot of bread, tortillas (for people who don't the know the difference between Mexican tortillas and Spanish tortillas. Tortillas here is Spain are basically a potato omelet/ quiche thing with no crust), bocadillos (Spanish sandwiches), and meat (chorizo and the famous jamon). Now back in the U.S. we ate a pretty healthy flexitarian diet, that often contained meals from around the world. So needless to say after a week of eating our limited Spanish diet we were not feeling so hot. It was then I learned that Spaniards don't typically have a very healthy diet. Since then I have been trying to reclaim some of my past foods, while still enjoying the Spanish cuisine occasionally.

Earlier last week I was feeling pretty down and out about food. I was just not having any luck finding the whole grains I wanted and meatless options I was craving. In Denver I was involved in Farmers Markets, sustainable foods, and urban gardening. I was starting to feel that even though I love Madrid so much I was going to be unhappy here because half my heart was missing (I get a little dramatic about food. I told you I love it) It was then I walked into an eco store. This is typically organic or eco-friendly store. It had a large variety of foods I wanted and all of their foods were minimally processed. I even found veggie burgers there. Since that day things have started to get better. I am making my healthy again. I started a Meetup group, where I hold nutrition workshops (my first group was today, and I think it went rather swimmingly), I met people who are part of or have connections to the grassroots farmers markets of Madrid, and I found stores that have supplies from Asia and the Middle East. There is a whole community of people obsessed with food in the same way I am, and it makes me feel like I fit in again. So overall I would say this past week has been one of the best here thus far. I love the international community of Madrid and it is so fun to find people with your common interests, people that can bring different experiences, cultural influences, and knowledge to the table.

Truthfully I have a lot more to say but I don't want to make the post too long so I will save it for tomorrow.

Day 23 – (another Trevor guest post)

Well, it’s over. It was inevitable, predestined even. The culprits? Those pesky, annoying little pieces of yourself that you can’t see, and you can’t control. It’s a shame too, since they can certainly control you. Yes, I’m talking about your genes. Mine just stole my hair.

I guess I shouldn’t say that they just stole my hair. They’ve been shamelessly destroying my follicles and making off with their folly for years. It’s just that now, they’ve finally won the war. I can no longer fend off their advances. I can no longer cover up their plundering with creative hair stylings – they were fairly desperate in the end. I felt like the captain of a nineteenth century sea vessel full of cannon fire destruction and condemned to a cold water grave, still trying to convince my battle-worn crew to fend off the intruders to the end.

Now, here I am. Already the outsider in a foreign country. We didn’t really fit in at first, but we were doing better, learning how to dress (even what clothes we could buy to dress more homogeneously), learning what to say, how to act, etc. Alas, I’m afraid we have no hope now. Well, I should say I have no hope – Kierstin still has a chance. As if my blindingly white skin wasn’t enough, my shaved head is enough to gawk at. I look like a human Q-tip. Seriously. Tall, lanky, white, big-headed (literally).

I guess it is just another aspect of the challenge here. Another personal hurdle that I am meant to overcome. I think I can do it. Despite the fact that I now look like a giant personal hygiene device, no one seems to mind. Of course, they don’t actually gawk. Again, I am impressed with the Spaniards.

Check another few days of our foreign adventure off the list. Today we discovered that when Spain declares a holiday, it is really a holiday. Almost everything closed. Almost everyone relaxing or enjoying the day somewhere in the countryside. Next time there is a holiday, we will be sure to stock the pantry beforehand. I can’t really complain though. Yet again, I am in awe of the Spanish way of life. It seems like they really know how to live it, not just endure it.

Now, what shall we do tomorrow?