Musical Variety

I am a violist. You can tell as many viola jokes as you want, but I will back my instrument as one of the most beautiful instruments ever created until the day I die. It's been great getting to play it again, now that I've been back in Minnesota for two weeks. My orchestra has a concert coming up in several weeks and we're playing Ravel's Rhapsodie Espagnole and Lalo's Concerto in D Minor for cello (another of the most beautiful instruments ever created). The Lalo concerto is especially fun for me to play because I heard it so often when my older sister would practice her cello when we were young.

During my time spent living in Kanab, Utah, I heard plenty of music, but none of it was classical. I missed the beauty of orchestral music, but I did gain an appreciation for the types of music I did hear: mostly country-type stuff. I know that's vague, but it's so unfamiliar to me, that I don't even know how to classify all of what I heard. All I know is that I was lucky enough to live with and listen to an incredibly talented couple play guitar and sing together and it brought me to tears nearly every time. Their voices are perfect complements to one another and they are both passionate about music. It made me really want to play guitar!

Since I've been home, I have had a fair amount of time on my hands. My future is so up in the air that, aside from applying for jobs, I don't really know where I'm headed. But I know music is always going to be a part of my life. I've started playing the piano again just for fun. I'm trying to work on some non-classical songs, and I'm attempting to sing and play at the same time. That is something everyone I met in Utah who played guitar could do and something I've never been able to do. I feel like it's hard enough to play an instrument, but to be able to sing at the same time? That takes major brain power if you ask me. So I'm starting with an instrument I already know (piano), and trying to add in singing along. It's not going very well yet. I'll keep at it and be glad that no one is home to have to suffer through my experiment!

I was talking on the phone last night to my host family from back in Kanab and it got me itching to play guitar again. Today I remembered that my dad has one here at the house, so I found it, along with a book about teaching yourself to play guitar. So far I'm just learning the strings and single notes, but eventually the book gets to reading guitar tabs and playing chords, improvising, and strumming techniques. It's a totally different world of music for me. I've never been good at improvising and I've never been good at singing while I play. I'm a classical musician: these are things I just never have to do! But I actually think it's going to do wonders for my viola playing. It's pushing me to re-learn some music theory, spend lots of time thinking about chords, and try coordinating many things at once. I want to be able to apply the flexibility and knowledge that I gain on other instruments to the viola. Maybe some day, I'll break out of my strictly orchestral shell and be able to improvise with a band on viola! You just never know where life will lead you, musically!

To me, orchestral music is still the most passionate genre and the one with which I feel the deepest connection. There's no way to really describe the feeling I get when I relate to a piece of music that I really love. I literally feel it in my body. It's an experience unlike anything else I've ever felt, a connection so strong that I am actually part of the music and the music is part of me, and there's no tearing us apart. I feel like the music understands me. I feel the dissonance and resolutions in my heart and in my muscles. It truly is a full-body, visceral, cerebral experience. I know I'm lucky to have something that I feel so passionate about and that fulfills me so much. I know that not every orchestral musician feels that same level of intensity when they play, nor do I feel it every single time I play. I certainly don't feel warm and fuzzy when I'm practicing scales and etudes! But I do know there are other people out there who get that feeling that I'm trying to describe. Music touches something in them too. I just usually thought of these people as classical musicians. I mean, could anybody actually get that intense of a feeling from listening to today's Top 40 pop music? Maybe that just makes me sound like a music snob. And maybe I am, a little bit. But I'm becoming less of one, because I realized in Utah that the people I was listening to were feeling very deeply the songs they were playing. I could hear the emotion in the tone of the guitar or the ache in the voice.

It was incredibly moving for me to be surrounded by a different kind of music. Though it may sound as far from classical music as you might imagine, it has the same effect on different people. It evokes passion. It picks up where words leave off. There are just some things in life that can't be described, but can only be felt with the right music, and when that happens, it's a very special moment. So as I broaden my musical horizons, struggle to sing and play at once, and fumble through my first piece of music on the guitar (of course it was the theme from Ode to Joy, a Beethoven composition!), I just want to pay respect to musicians of all kinds. The ones who "get it." The ones who feel so deeply about music that they just can't describe it. We are very lucky to feel that, no matter what our instrument or genre happens to be.

Advice for future Best Friends Interns

Well, I've been home from Utah exactly one week now. It has a been a long and difficult week of transition. I immersed myself so fully in my experience in Utah that in just five and a half weeks, Kanab felt like home, my friends felt like we'd known each other for way longer than 5 weeks, the family I stayed with felt like true family, and my internship felt like my job. The remoteness of Kanab had become a way of life, as had going to national parks on a regular basis. Suddenly, the city of Minneapolis seems like a giant metropolis! This is, of course, the exact opposite of how I felt when I first moved to Minneapolis from New York City!

After a week of reflecting on my experience at Best Friends, I have some advice that I would give to any prospective intern.

1. Live with a person/family who works at Best Friends. I was hesitant to do this at first because I thought I wanted my own space, and it was hard to conceive of living with a complete stranger for 5 weeks. But it is very helpful to have someone who knows the area, knows the sanctuary, and can answer your questions. I happened to completely luck out on who I stayed with. They treated me like family from the moment I arrived, and I left knowing I have a life-long relationship with an entire family that I didn't have before. Simply getting to know these wonderful people made the trip entirely worth it.

2. Pack lots of clothing layers. My internship was in the fall, so I assume it's a little different for everybody depending on what time of year you are in Kanab. However, I will say that there was often a 40 degree difference in temperature from the time I started work to the time I finished work. I would start out wearing a tank top, long sleeved shirt, fleece, and a jacket in the mornings and I'd still be cold! But as the beautiful high desert sun breaks through and starts to warm the day, I'd shed my layers until I was sweating in just jeans and a tank top. The work you do can be very physical, or you might be just sitting with an animal working on socialization, so you never know how cold or hot you might get through your work. Just bring lots of layers and check the weather each day!

3. Disconnect. Best Friends is a complete bubble. It's heaven for animal lovers, and it's so far removed from the rest of the world (despite the fact that the rest of the world flocks to it to volunteer and visit). Most of us live in a world where we're constantly on our computers, smart phones, tablets, etc. I would suggest embracing the bubble, throwing yourself entirely into the experience, and disconnecting somewhat from the digital age. Your cell phone probably won't get reception most places anyway, and you may or may not have internet access where you live. I found that because blogging became part of my experience, simply logging onto the computer once a day to write my blog and check for urgent e-mails was all I needed to do. I didn't watch one single second of television and I didn't miss it a bit. I did keep in touch with my loved ones on the phone, but not as much as I expected to, given that I usually talk to them everyday. I was so busy with the internship and living in the bubble, that I managed to talk to people maybe a couple times a week if I was lucky. I was okay with that because I had such amazing support where I was living and my loved ones were very understanding.

4. Connect. As you disconnect from the digital world, I cannot recommend enough that you connect with the people and environment around you. I was lucky enough to have the best possible group of interns working with me during my session. Make friends with your fellow interns! You all have at least one thing in common: a love of animals, and you will find that you have more and more in common as you get to know them and more and more that you can learn from them. I have so much respect for all my fellow interns. A great way to connect is to get together for lunches at the cafeteria during the week and head out for adventures during the weekends. Each week, I went to some amazing new place to hike with my intern friends and those are memories I will cherish forever. I feel equally connected to the family I stayed with during my internship, so I know that I now have relationships and friendships that will last a lifetime because of their unique circumstances.

5. Along the same lines as my last point, be sure to connect with nature. Hiking has not been a huge part of my life, but it is a huge part of life in Kanab. You will be within an hour or two of several incredible national parks and hidden gems. Get out there! Even if you do short hikes, or just stop by and sit in nature for a while, your mind, body, and soul with thank you for that connection to the earth that many of us just don't get often enough.

6. Keep an open mind. The first two weeks of the internship, you'll be rotating through all the different animal areas. I can't stress enough how important it is to keep an open mind as you experience what it is like to care for different species. I went in to the internship assuming I'd focus my time in DogTown, but luckily I kept an open mind. I ended up being so enthralled with so many of the species, that I spread my focus for the final three weeks across several areas. One of the areas in which I spent the most time was at Rescue Village working with rabbits. I never in a million years would have thought that's where I would end up. But I learned so much about that species, I loved the staff, and I found a way that I could really make an impact in my short time at the sanctuary by working in rabbits.

7. The internship is what you make of it. The first two weeks are very structured and you don't have a lot of input into your schedule. However, you will soon have complete freedom to design your own schedule. Think about what you really want to get out of this internship and make it happen. The entire sanctuary seems aligned in wanting to make volunteers and interns have the best experiences they possibly can. Leesa, the intern coordinator is especially helpful and will do everything in her power to help you get the most out of your internship. All you have to do is ask. One of the areas I'm very interested in is studying animal behavior. I found out there was a vet working at Best Friends who does exactly that. I took the initiative to schedule myself to work in his building when he'd be around and talked to several people about wanting to work with him. We set up a meeting and I spent my last three weeks basically doing my dream job of helping with animal behavior research. If I hadn't asked, it wouldn't have happened. Pursue your interests and everyone at Best Friends will do their best to make it happen for you!

8. Prepare for tough transitions. Arriving in Kanab, I was excited and nervous. I also got a massive case of altitude sickness. If you live at sea level or you are prone to altitude sickness, I suggest getting to Kanab several days before your internship starts so that you have time to let your body adjust. And drink lots of water! I felt miserable my first few days in Kanab due to the altitude and homesickness. I considered going back to Minnesota before my internship even began. Now, I know about myself that I personally have trouble with transitions, probably more so than most people. But, it is a tough adjustment no matter where you're coming from just because life there is so different than most places. After giving myself time to transition, I had one of the best experiences of my life. And then, before I knew it, it was over. Time for another transition back home. I had grown so close to the animals, people, and even the lifestyle in Kanab, that transitioning back home has been incredibly difficult. My advice is to plan some things that you love to do and people you want to see for when you get back. Seeing my friends and going to my orchestra rehearsals has grounded me back in my life at home, helping me realize that I can also be happy outside the bubble of Best Friends.

There's so much more I feel I could tell a potential intern, but part of the fun is figuring it all out by yourself as you go. Plus, this is getting to be a really long blog post! So, go out there, immerse yourself, and have an amazing experience! This goes for people who are going out just for a few days or weeks to volunteer as well. Same advice applies!

Thank you, Best Friends, for a life-changing experience. I'll be back one way or another!

Week 5, Days 1-3: Oh my heck!

This post is entitled "Oh my heck!" because that's my favorite saying around here in Southern Utah. And, oh my heck, have I ever been busy lately! So you're getting three days in one blog post...

Monday

On Monday, I had my last shift in Horse Haven. I am sad that I won't be working there anymore, but I had a fantastic last day there. I got to say good morning to Squeaky the office pig:

And then I headed out to help muck the pastures. This pretty much sums up life in Horse Haven:

The best part of the day was when I got left in charge of the volunteers and got to drive Ruby (the 4-wheeler-type thing) from pasture to pasture! It was a bit of a rough ride for my poor passengers at first, but I got the hang of it:

We also got to go on an amazing tour of the canyons, where I saw my first petroglyphs. It was just a wonderful morning.

I spent my afternoon in Rescue Village, bonding rabbits and working on my project, finalizing my informational pamphlet on rabbit bonding. It was a productive afternoon.

Tuesday

Tuesday morning was spent working from home on my research for Dr. Frank. I'm still so thrilled that I have the opportunity to assist on the exact type of research I've always wanted to do. I'm getting a really good response from my work so far, so I'll be spending Friday morning working on that as well. I headed into Rescue Village after lunch and bonded rabbits again. The fab four, as I liked to call them, were doing great at bonding in their small indoor pen, but that changed a bit today, which I'll get to in a moment. If you ever wonder what I do at work, I spend hours sitting in rabbit pens:

Wednesday

Today was a really great day. My morning shift was an outing with Pepsi. He's seriously the sweetest, cutest dog on the planet! Everyone loves him, and once again, I couldn't make it through town without getting stopped a few times because of his celebrity status. We had a really great time and I started teaching him his trick for tomorrow's obedience class. I decided on "spin" because he follows the lure of a treat really well. He had a gift for me when I got there today, which was the sweetest thing ever: he gave me a t-shirt with his big ol' head printed on it! Pepsi and I had a great morning and did a variety of things. Here he is fishing in the pond by the Welcome Center and then trying to eat his entire bag of treats!

This afternoon, I spent my final shift at Rescue Village. I have really come to love the animals and staff there, so it was a difficult goodbye. The day was rather eventful as I took my four rabbits that I'm trying to bond outside for the first time into a bigger pen. It did not go well. At all. There were so many fights I couldn't keep track of it. I was disappointed that they all couldn't get along, but we were able to keep two of them out to see if they could bond together without the others. In order to assist in the bonding, I stressed them by placing them in a crate and driving them around on a motorized cart around the parking lot. They bond over their shared experience when that happens. Here they are in their cart:

Even though I didn't love the thought of stressing them, I have to say they were nearly letter perfect after that! I took them back to the indoor bonding area and they relaxed together. Luckily the rest of the afternoon was uneventful!

I can't believe I only have two days of work left before I leave here. I love it so much and I've met the most incredible people. I truly feel like I have family here now and I've been really enjoying my work and spending time with my Kanab family and friends after work. That makes keeping up a blog pretty tough, but I'll do my best for the final few days here. I'll have plenty of time to catch up on the plane ride home if I get behind again...

Week 5, Day 5 and Weekend

I just realized I haven't posted in a few days. That's probably because I've been doing things non-stop since Thursday evening and pretty much haven't taken a moment to rest since! I just wanted to write a quick post to let you all know I'm still alive, despite the fact that I held a snake and went hiking in the dark on Friday, jumped off rocks into Lake Powell on Saturday, and sat on the edge of the Grand Canyon today (Sunday). It has been quite the adventure, but I haven't even had time to upload pictures. I'm guessing this coming week (my last here as an intern at Best Friends) is going to be the busiest of them all. I will keep up the blog as much as possible as I continue to work full-time, complete my two intern projects, and fit in as much time with my Kanab family as possible. Anything I don't have time to post about, I'll catch up on when I get home and have a second to breathe! That is...if I ever can drag myself away from this perfect paradise...

Week 4, Day 1: Bonding

Well, I was supposed to be doing some rabbit bonding today, but that ended up not happening, which I'll get to later. Luckily, I still had a great day and bonded with others in the process.

My morning shift was spent entirely with Pepsi. He was super excited to see me this morning and I was beyond excited to see him. I just adore this boy! First, we went to Tara's Run, the training area, because he loves it there and he can run around and play on agility equipment and get some energy out, all while feeling safe and not distracted by other dogs. We had a blast in there today, going on the teeter-totter, the dog walk, the a-frame, through a little tunnel, over a hurdle, and jumping on on all the tables. Sometime in the middle of all this fun, I pulled him aside into a smaller enclosure to work on our homework assignment from last week's training class, called "101 Things to do With a Box." Basically, we were assigned to just clicker train our dog to pay attention to the box and then gradually shape a behavior out of it. Pepsi did great: by the end of our session he knew to put his front two paws in the box in order to get a "click" and a treat!

After our weekly visit to the Welcome Center, where Pepsi goes to see his fan club, we headed into town. He did very well in town and visited with several people. One staff member even pulled off the road to come get her "Pepsi fix" when she saw us out walking. I swear, there is not a single person I meet who does not love this dog! We met man in town, who Pepsi really took to immediately and this man really liked Pepsi. I thought for a moment I might have found his match. It was love at first sight for them both. Unfortunately, this man has a cat at home and Pepsi doesn't do well with cats. I was really bummed out because they seemed like they'd make a great team.

Next, Pepsi and I decided to take a hike together. He's a very athletic dog, but this hike was much rockier than I expected, so we both were scrambling! The views toward the top were amazing though!

We bonded deeply during this hike because we had to watch out for one another. Sometimes he didn't know how to navigate the rocks, so he'd look back at me, asking me to go first and show him. Other times, he led the way through narrow paths, with a drop off just to the side of us. He was always very careful to not pull me. For example, when he would get momentum up while going down a bunch of steep rocks, he would stop at the bottom so that I could go down the rocks too before we moved on. It was really an amazing partnership. We were both in a situation that was rather harrowing and dangerous in retrospect, but we were 100% there for each other. 

At one point, the trail split, and I let Pepsi decide which way to go. Unfortunately, the decision was not the right one because after walking for a ways, the trail suddenly ended in a sandy cliff that we both began to slip down! It was really scary. After we started sliding down a few feet, we slowed a bit and I just told him to hold very still. I started to slowly move back up, without causing an avalanche of sand and then told him to slowly follow as I was able to help pull him up back onto a flat surface. He acted perfectly and I could have cried as I hugged him and told him what a good boy he was for staying calm and listening to me. 

So we ended up getting out of our scary situation with no problems. Well, there was one tiny problem in that we ran into another dog on our way down. We pulled off to the side of the narrow trail to let it pass, but Pepsi is in love with other dogs, and though I was hanging on to a significantly sized rock to brace myself against his inevitable pulling on the leash towards the other dog, Pepsi was stronger than my rock and I stumbled and cut up my hand on some rocks. No big deal though: two bandaids later, I'm as good as new.

We were both exhausted after our adventure, so we headed home just in time for lunch. This was Pepsi on the ride home:

Thank you, dear Pepsi, for all the dog fur, slobber and paw prints that now adorn my rental car! I put him back in his run when he got home and after a big drink of water (I did have water with us on the hike for him to drink), he flopped down on his side and settled in for what I presume was a very good nap. I wish I could have napped with him!

After lunch, I headed up to Rescue Village to do my bonding with the rabbits, or as I like to call it, smooshing bunnies (because sometimes you literally have to smoosh them together!). However, they were way understaffed today, so Meghan (a fellow intern) and I ended up just helping out however we were needed. It was actually a really fun afternoon. Usually there aren't two interns working in the same area, but Meghan and I both happen to be doing projects up there, so we worked together and bonded while cleaning, feeding, and watering the rabbits. Having her there made the time go by so much faster!

I was happy to see that my first pair of rabbits that I did bond are doing great together. Someone even made them a special sign:

I got home from work today and, after an exhausting day with a not-so-great night's sleep last night, I lay down on the living room floor to greet all the cats and dogs that I live with. They all piled on top of me and I ended up falling asleep! I woke up in time for dinner and I'm looking forward to going back to bed tonight!

Week 3, Day 1: Pepsi Explores Kanab

My morning shift today was at Dulcie's, which is the octagon in DogTown where Pepsi lives.

Because dogs in this area were rotating in and out of the dog park all day, I got to take Pepsi on an outing all morning! I was so excited to spend hours of quality time with him, in which we could bond and work on behavior and manners. Our first stop was Tara's Run, the training area right near Pepsi's run. I know he loves going to Tara's and we were lucky enough that no one else was there. I let Pepsi run around and get some of his wiggles out. Here's a video of when we first got there. Please note: I do not always talk with such a high-pitched, enthusiastic voice (oh, the things we do for dogs!).

After Pepsi explored to his heart's content, I worked with him on some of his commands. He knows "sit" very well and does it nearly every time (you can guarantee a sit if you have a treat in your hand). He does not know "down" as well, since we just started working on it last week. But we worked a little on it again today and here he is getting it right!

Pepsi loves to climb around on the agility equipment, but I had never tried to get him to jump through the hoop before. We gave it a couple tries and here's one of his attempts. Not too bad!

After resting on my lap at Tara's for a while, we decided to move on to our next stop: the Welcome Center! Pepsi just loves it there because all the staff and visitors adore him. He gets constantly petted and given lots of treats. Everyone comments on his looks and how sweet he is. I hope to take him there often so that he might meet his match for a forever home! He was much calmer there today than yesterday, despite more distractions. He even took time to stop and smell the flowers:

Next, Pepsi and I left the Sanctuary together for the first time. He's really good at riding in my car! We headed into Kanab to walk around town. Our first stop was Critter Corner, the local pet supply store. Pepsi went shopping and wanted to buy one of everything. The owner was incredibly nice and completely fell in love with Pepsi.

We kept the car parked at Critter Corner and continued to walk a few blocks into town. We passed several shops and restaurants. As it turns out, Pepsi is quite the Kanab celebrity! We could hardly walk a few minutes without someone calling out his name and wanting to say hi! There are lots of sanctuary staff and volunteers around town, so he can't go anywhere without being recognized. We also met lots of locals and tourists from all over the world and they all wanted to pet him and say hello. He was so good walking on a leash with all the distractions of town!

Our final stop was a trail right by where I'm living. I decided to take Pepsi on a walk there to stimulate him with a new environment, since I'm sure he's very familiar with the trails around DogTown.

Pepsi and I took turns leading the way on the narrow path, and he had great recall if he ever got to the end of his leash.

Before we left the trail, we stopped to rest on a bench (and of course he crawled right into my lap!) and we just enjoyed the beauty of the day and our surroundings. We were both happy to snuggle up, and Pepsi snuck in some big slobbery kisses to my face. We headed back to DogTown right before lunch and I think we both had a really great morning.

So after seeing all this, you probably want to adopt Pepsi, right? If you're interested, click here!

My afternoon was spent working in another area of DogTown and it was pretty typical. The one cool thing that really stood out in my mind was that I got to go to a vet appointment with the caregiver and one of the dogs. Best Friends is very holistic, so this dog was headed to a vet who performs chiropractic work. It was wonderful to hear how much progress he'd made since the last time she saw him. His back, hips, and neck were all doing a lot better and he only needed one small adjustment. He had gained a really healthy amount of weight since last time and his coat was gleaming. I felt really lucky to get to see all that in person.

I'm really looking forward to tomorrow, since I'll get to work with Parelli horse training, visit some special dogs, and work with rabbits in the afternoon!

Weekend Photo Blog

This weekend, I had a nice combination of exploring the Kanab area and just relaxing at home with my furry Utah family. On Saturday, I went out to Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park with a few of the other interns. It was beautiful out there and great to spend some time with them outside of work. Let me also say that hiking around in sand dunes is a really good workout!

We climbed to the sandy peak seen here.

Meghan and Me on the ridge

Japhy, Meghan, and Steph

Gorgeous views for miles!

To give some perspective of how big this place is, that tiny thing on the bottom left is a 4-Wheeler!

Meghan, Steph, Me, and Japhy at the top of the dunes!

Me, making a sand angel :)

There were tons of cows along the road to and from the dunes.

After our afternoon at the sand dunes, I headed into town (and ran into Meghan everywhere I went!) and had to take a picture of the hilarious and slightly creepy fake cop that sits in town everyday:

Introducing My Utah Fur Family!

Today, I just had a relaxing day because I was really tired from the week. I did snap a few photos of the animals I'm living with here in Kanab. I have completely fallen in love with them and I'm their Aunty Jill! Get ready for massive cuteness...

Bobbo and Ruby

Sydney is playing camera shy. 

Beautiful Sydney

Sydney's action shot - leaping for the counter!

Sydney braves the sink to get at the catnip hiding on the counter!

Beautiful Lola

Lola jumping for the counter

Lola wanting a belly rub. You can pretty much always find her like this!

This is Otis. He took the longest to warm up to me, but we're best buds now.

Otis in "his" chair

Maggie is so sweet. She's best friends with Scuba the dog.

Maggie was the first to parade into my room and hop into my bed on the 1st night I was here.

Rosie is the mama of everyone. She's such a love.

Kodiak is the man of the house. He's so sweet!

Scuba's love and enthusiasm makes it impossible not to adore him.

All the animals get along so well!

Scuba and Kodi

Best buddies Maggie and Scuba, with Lola to the left

Hope you've enjoyed meeting the wonderful animals I get to spend my time with when I'm not at the sanctuary. They're all incredibly well-behaved, happy, and loved. My host family has done an amazing job raising them. And they are all rescues! 

Tomorrow, I head back to work and I get to work my morning shift in Cat Headquarters, which I'm really excited about, and my afternoon shift in DogTown, in the area where Pepsi lives. I can't wait to spend time with him and get to know him!