Hello guys ,
Ok I thought I had been experiencing cold weather up till this week. It has dropped to 11 degrees Fahrenheit. Which is -11 DEGREES CELSIUS!. I was out and about in Portland today and my ears felt like they were about to fall off. So I went into a shop to buy a hat and the sales guy told me they were having a 40% off sale on Friday so I decided to hack the cold until then.
It really is a beautiful sight here when it snows. The houses and streets are covered in a white blanket of snow and it all looks so pictures. Something I have learned is even though its snowing it doesn't actually have to be cold at ground level . When I first got here and it snowed the temperature outside was very mild and the snow just melted away. Now that its colder the snow stays on the ground and forms an icy covering so when you walk on it, it crunches under foot and of course it stays on the ground because of the cooler temperatures. The way they make sure it is still safe to drive is first they plow away the snow and then drop a mix of salt and sand so that the salt picks up the moisture and drays out the roads. Once the the road has been ploughed and salted and it stops snowing you would not have even known that the snow fell on the road its so clear.
So enough about the weather. This Monday I met with the entire Jazz band for our first full rehearsal. It sounded so unbelievably good. The Upright bass ( Double Bass ) player was learning the songs by sight as we played he had never even heard any of the songs before. Watching these guys playing really is a treat, I will get some of the rehearsals on tape one day and try to get them up on You Tube. I started off a little edgy but then got into it once I had warmed into it a little more.So the band is sounding fantastic and I am so happy to be involved. This week I will be writing some lyrics and then I will be getting together with Doug to put some music to them THIS IS SO FUN.
As well as meeting with the Jazz band I have started to study for my Personal Training Certificate. The study is difficult but rewarding at the same time. I am working through all of the different body parts and bones at the moment. The Certificate is NASM and is one of the top two PT Certs you can have in the U.S.A.Its keeping my brain working while I am waiting for my work permit to process.
Today I went for my first swim in the U.S.A. About a week ago I went for a interview with the aquatics manager of the YMCA Terry. She was very happy with our interview and gave me a tour of the complex. At the end of the interview she let me know that as soon as my work permit was processed to come back to see her about working possibly with adult learn to swim , life guarding or an assistant coaching role if one becomes available. There is also a very good chance that I might be able to start a Masters training squad but that is in the future. I was pleased to learn that the YMCA would pay for the certification I would need to work with them , Red cross ( First Aide ) and the YMCA learn to swim program. If it all works out and I am employed by the YMCA it means I could work there part time and work another job to make up the hours and gig with the band in the evenings. The way I see it is I am learning and it can lead to future coaching jobs so its a massive positive at this time.So when I left the interview I asked if I could come in for a swim and Terry told me to email her and she would give me a pass when I wanted to come in.My first swim in the U.S.A, its a very nice pool , small but very nice the water temp is perfect for training. It being 25 yards it was messing up my turns, I worked it out because 25 yards is only 23.8 meters so I was expecting to swim for another two meters in my mind so I had to really watch the wall every time. I swum for 2000 yards then did 500 yards kick. It was a really good work out , as I'm writing this I'm totally drained.I guess that's what you get for not swimming for 4 weeks lol.
The temperature is dropping and I am so fortunate that I am not a homeless person here. The homeless people here are just hacking it out in the cold. Most of them just stand on the street corner or at intersections holding a sign. I don't know how they can do it I was out for about 15 minutes in the cold today and I was headache and tired. Oh well I guess they are hard men.
Merin has been wonderful through all of this. Shes working hard and showing me around the place. Helping me with things I am such a lucky guy. I think shes my angel ; )
Oh before I sign off , Ok so I have just finished my swim I walked up to the starbucks to warm up a little before catching the bus. I am sitting down and on comes Katchafire "Gotta get away" It was so refreshing , Here I am in Portland Maine and Katchafire is playing at the city starbucks , Bloody Beautiful ;)
So there you have it a little bit of news from the North , I really am up north , just a little further than Doubtless bay.
Here are my contact details if you need to reach me :
Mike Babich
89 Avalon Rd
Portland, ME
04103
U.S.A
Cell : 001 207 408 460
I love you all so much ,
-Mike
Ok I thought I had been experiencing cold weather up till this week. It has dropped to 11 degrees Fahrenheit. Which is -11 DEGREES CELSIUS!. I was out and about in Portland today and my ears felt like they were about to fall off. So I went into a shop to buy a hat and the sales guy told me they were having a 40% off sale on Friday so I decided to hack the cold until then.
It really is a beautiful sight here when it snows. The houses and streets are covered in a white blanket of snow and it all looks so pictures. Something I have learned is even though its snowing it doesn't actually have to be cold at ground level . When I first got here and it snowed the temperature outside was very mild and the snow just melted away. Now that its colder the snow stays on the ground and forms an icy covering so when you walk on it, it crunches under foot and of course it stays on the ground because of the cooler temperatures. The way they make sure it is still safe to drive is first they plow away the snow and then drop a mix of salt and sand so that the salt picks up the moisture and drays out the roads. Once the the road has been ploughed and salted and it stops snowing you would not have even known that the snow fell on the road its so clear.
So enough about the weather. This Monday I met with the entire Jazz band for our first full rehearsal. It sounded so unbelievably good. The Upright bass ( Double Bass ) player was learning the songs by sight as we played he had never even heard any of the songs before. Watching these guys playing really is a treat, I will get some of the rehearsals on tape one day and try to get them up on You Tube. I started off a little edgy but then got into it once I had warmed into it a little more.So the band is sounding fantastic and I am so happy to be involved. This week I will be writing some lyrics and then I will be getting together with Doug to put some music to them THIS IS SO FUN.
As well as meeting with the Jazz band I have started to study for my Personal Training Certificate. The study is difficult but rewarding at the same time. I am working through all of the different body parts and bones at the moment. The Certificate is NASM and is one of the top two PT Certs you can have in the U.S.A.Its keeping my brain working while I am waiting for my work permit to process.
Today I went for my first swim in the U.S.A. About a week ago I went for a interview with the aquatics manager of the YMCA Terry. She was very happy with our interview and gave me a tour of the complex. At the end of the interview she let me know that as soon as my work permit was processed to come back to see her about working possibly with adult learn to swim , life guarding or an assistant coaching role if one becomes available. There is also a very good chance that I might be able to start a Masters training squad but that is in the future. I was pleased to learn that the YMCA would pay for the certification I would need to work with them , Red cross ( First Aide ) and the YMCA learn to swim program. If it all works out and I am employed by the YMCA it means I could work there part time and work another job to make up the hours and gig with the band in the evenings. The way I see it is I am learning and it can lead to future coaching jobs so its a massive positive at this time.So when I left the interview I asked if I could come in for a swim and Terry told me to email her and she would give me a pass when I wanted to come in.My first swim in the U.S.A, its a very nice pool , small but very nice the water temp is perfect for training. It being 25 yards it was messing up my turns, I worked it out because 25 yards is only 23.8 meters so I was expecting to swim for another two meters in my mind so I had to really watch the wall every time. I swum for 2000 yards then did 500 yards kick. It was a really good work out , as I'm writing this I'm totally drained.I guess that's what you get for not swimming for 4 weeks lol.
The temperature is dropping and I am so fortunate that I am not a homeless person here. The homeless people here are just hacking it out in the cold. Most of them just stand on the street corner or at intersections holding a sign. I don't know how they can do it I was out for about 15 minutes in the cold today and I was headache and tired. Oh well I guess they are hard men.
Merin has been wonderful through all of this. Shes working hard and showing me around the place. Helping me with things I am such a lucky guy. I think shes my angel ; )
Oh before I sign off , Ok so I have just finished my swim I walked up to the starbucks to warm up a little before catching the bus. I am sitting down and on comes Katchafire "Gotta get away" It was so refreshing , Here I am in Portland Maine and Katchafire is playing at the city starbucks , Bloody Beautiful ;)
So there you have it a little bit of news from the North , I really am up north , just a little further than Doubtless bay.
Here are my contact details if you need to reach me :
Mike Babich
89 Avalon Rd
Portland, ME
04103
U.S.A
Cell : 001 207 408 460
I love you all so much ,
-Mike
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