The Traveling Roommates

Hello Everyone,

Let me start by telling you I am writing the date January 31st because I am not able to post the actual blog until February, but I am still considering this my January post.

So here it goes....

I have amazing assistants right now, but I also have an amazing roommate that I feel so grateful to have met. She is another one of those people that I felt from the beginning that I can just be myself around her. Not that I try to be two separate people, but usually it takes me a while to feel comfortable and be my full, total self with somebody. But she is totally different. I am very happy to say that she is another one of those people who disbite my challenges wants to help me live a full life.    The new year has started out amazing.

We have traveled to Champaign Urbana to visit my friend, Paula, which I've talked about in other posts and I truely believe that in that visit, she became Tori's friend too. We also went to see the Martha Graham Company just two weekends ago. But let me start with the trip to see Paula. There is nothing like waking up to one of your best friends wanting to throw a pillow or her Charlie Brown christmas tree in your face when we had been up all night; since it was New Years Eve. Normally, I would have been angry, but I was just surprised that she had so much energy for the little amount of sleep we had the next morning. I guess she is just an early bird. But waking up the first day of the year next to one of your best friends just made me feel amazing. It gave me this vibe saying in my head that, "the new year was going to be great." And that's only where it started.

We also created memories in Wal-mart that only Paula, Tori, and I will understand. It was already late that night, but Paula said, "Why don't we go to Wal-mart, it's your last night here, I want to live it up." I was already tired because we had been staying up all the other nights late, but I said, "Ok. I agree. It's our last night here." And I'm so glad we went to Wal-mart and I did not become a party pooper.  We stayed up late and made rice crispy treats after the Wal-mart escapade. The night before, we also chased each other in the mall and acted like fools and it didn't even bother us.

Another thing that I enjoyed about the weekend is talking to Paula's friends. You see, she is 10 years older than me. And getting some insight from her friends on how to deal with CP issues is very beneficial since I don't get to ask questions like these at home. Having a mentor group makes me feel good and more comfortable about my situation. It reminds me that if they did it so can I! Sometimes I'm concerned if I'm having a new issue related to my CP that comes up out of nowhere, but then I talk to them and it makes it all better. Having those kinds of peer groups reminds me that I can, in the words of Mike and Tim, "keep on keeping on." 

We did not want the weekend to end! I had those feelings of bittersweet running through my head the whole way home. But then I had to remind myself this is not the end, just another weekend I will never forget.

Those were just some examples of the memories we created that weekend. It is what I like to call "A Huge Hug of Memories." And every single time I think of that weekend, I just want to smile. 

However, our travels did not end there. Last weekend,Tori and I took a less-than-24-hour trip to see the Martha Graham Dance Company in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Martha Graham is a very influential dancer when it comes to modern dance. I have been taking classes in her technique since October and have totally fallen in love with this technique! Therefore, I was itching to see her company. My teacher and director of MOMENTA always expressed how fabulous the company was, but until I saw it for my very own eyes, I didn't fully understand what they meant despite the fact that I was falling in love with the technique as it was. And let me just tell you, this company is breath-taking, and it was the best $20 I have spent in a long time! I always talk about how things happen for a reason, and I really do believe they did because we got there just 5 minutes before it started. In this case, I want to believe that G-d was looking out for me! 

Tori and I love to travel together! Who knows, please look out for the team of Jessica Martin and Tori Sluis because we might end up traveling to a city near you in the near future. 

I can't end this post without telling you some sad but happy news. My pet frog, after almost 4 years, named McDreamy died. I couldn't see McSteamy living by himself, so I got a new one and named it Little Dude. But on a brighter note, yesterday was Tori's birthday, so I surprised her with a cake, and of course we did what we love to do...stay up late!  

In celebration of this month, I'd like to end with this quote from Martha Graham that is on my bedroom wall. It reads, "Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance. Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their PASSION." 

Happy New Year to you all. I hope this new year has started out well for you just like it has for me. And Happy Birthday, Tori. You are amazing!