The Full Monty

I lived on the edge and broke the rules. Yep, I went out with some of the guests for dinner and theater...but I would have gone nuts if I had spend another weekend by myself!! We ate at Harbor Town, right by the lighthouse, right next to the Seapines golf course. There was a wedding taking place on the 18th green, which was amazing. I can't even imagine what it would cost to shut down that golf course to have a wedding (this is the golf course that is like PGA material...) Anyway, after dinner, we went to the "The Full Monty" at the Arts Center, which was AWESOME!! It was so nice to finally get out! And these guests are AMAZING! Two of them have been here bascially since I've been here...they leave after next week and it is going to be a tearful goodbye I have a feeling...

Moonlight Mystery

Ocean is just as beautiful by moonlight!

Gerald

Not Gus, but Gus's cousin, Gerald. He was creepin' on some birds.

Song of the Seagulls

There I was, minding my own business on the beach when this seagull decided it wanted to share my apple with me. Apparently I looked pretty friendly because it came right up to me and asked me for a bite. It got closer and closer the more bites I gave it, and at one point I thought it was choking and felt pretty bad, but turns out it was just calling friends over to share. So there I was, enjoying my apple and reading a wonderfully good book, enjoying the beautiful, sunny day...with a flock of seagulls surrounding me. I gave up and gave them the core and got out of there!

Creatures on the Beach!

Never know what you're gonna find washed ashore!

Cockroaches

Unfortunately, these are what I wake up to every morning in my kitchen. YUCK.
Yes, I have cockroaches. Apparently you're supposed to call them "water bugs" to make you feel better, but being a North Dakota girl these damn things are COCKROACHES! Yuck. What's the good news? Well I can't leave any dishes in the sink! My cereal bowl from Sunday was in the sink last night and when I went to put it in the dishwasher, 2 "water bugs" (COCKROACHES!!) scrambled out. Mom, see, you didn't need to ask and beg and yell for us to put out dishes in the sink...could have just threatened us with "water bugs" (COCKROACHES!!) and I for one would have put my dish(es) right in the dishwasher! I wonder when I'm schedule for my next extermination? Because Katie said they just sprayed....EW! (haha)

Sunrise Beach Walks

These were all taken on my sunrise beach walks! Taking pictures of this doesn't get old!!

Birthday flowers

Me with my flowers that Brett sent me for my birthday! :)

People I work with

These are some of the people I work with. The one I have a death grip on is Katie, who was the intern here when I got here. She showed me the ropes and gave me a lot of good tips to survive here! I wish she were still here! Then there is Megan, who isn't technically my boss, but darn near. She is the Fitness Specialist at the Institute. Then there's Cheney, who works in Marketing. She's awesome, but unfortunatley not in the same building as me. Then there is John. John works at the front desk and always keeps things interesting!

My back porch

These pictures were both taken from my back porch.

Villa

This is the view when you walk in my front door. I about passed out from excitement when I saw where I would be living for the next 16 weeks. It is technically a cottage - it has a living room, dining room, fully-equipped kithen and bathroom downstairs. I am the only occupant for the semester! When you walk upstairs there are two bedroom/suites. Out those double doors is a porch with a couple of rocking chairs overlooking pond/swamp. There are alligators here - I saw one tonight, they are not your TV alligators, they are only about 5 feet long. Apparently we have one that visits us outside every once and awhile. I'm excited to sit out on my porch sipping iced tea and talking to Gus (of course I named him already...Gus the gator...I'm sweet, right?! :P ) Gus will be my only company around here this fall, so it may be quite interesting! (By the way, it's not this clean anymore...go figure!!)

Gator

Sign along the walking path around the plantation (the health institute is located on a plantation - the island is divided into "plantations"....it's kind of confusing at first) There are quite a few gators around here, but most of them are only a couple feet long...not your "movie" alligators, but still pretty crazy! However, I guess there is an 11 foot one roaming around the golf course I walk by everyday that made the newspaper last week. Some guests saw it...mmm, I think I'm good!

Intenship

Well, I'm going into my 5th week as an Intern here. It's hard to believe 4 weeks have gone by, and yet it feels like it's been 4 months already.

To be quite honest, I miss NDSU...and North Dakota...and the Midwest...you get my drift! Haha! I'm on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina at the Hilton Head Island Health Institute (H3I). I love it here, the island is absolutely beautiful and the beach is less than a mile away. I live in a pretty sweet condo by myself because I am the only intern here right now and I eat AMAZINGLY delicious nutrient dense food- so all in all, I really can't complain too much. I just get really homesick about once a week. But that's starting to lessen so that's good!!

H3I was just named among top 10 best spas in the world for "Best for Weight Loss" in Spa Finders Annual 2007 Readers' Choice Awards. I really am loving it here. The Institute is a pretty amazing. People come here for a complete lifestyle change and it is so cool to be a part of it. They are so ready and willing to try new things and truly want to learn everything I have to share with them, so it is a very rewarding place to be!
I do the sunrise beach walk (where I drive a HUGE van, and those of you who know me and my driving skills...this can be quite the site!! :) ) and do a few group exercise classes every day (mostly circuits, kickboxing, and "treading" - which is like spinning only on treadmills.) Otherwise, I'm doing random office work, and, of course, cleaning the gym (I'm looking forward to the day when I finally am not responsible for the cleanliness aspect of things!) I will do a 2 week rotation with every aspect of the business, including marketing and guest services, so it will be nice to get a grasp of the whole process. There are of course already things I see here that I really don't like, but most of them are just politics of the company, and I think you're going to have that any where you go where this kind of money is involved. Most of the guests here are very wealthy. Unspoken wealth I guess. A lot of CEO's, big business people, doctors, lawyers, and house wifes. It really is a fun mix. I guess a couple weeks before I got here, Clarence Thomas was here with his wife. I'm hoping someone as cool as that is here while I'm here. I get to be here for what they call "Next Level Fitness" where they bring in a "professional" to do all their workouts. We basically get to work out all week at classes like "Beach Bootcamp" and stuff like that. I get to help plan the process and put it on so that should be fun!

Hope everyone is doing well!

Take Care,

Lindsey