Airplanes, Archaeology, Automobiles…Oh May!
Hello everybody!
I do hope your May has been filled with beautiful spring weather and spending time with close friends. I feel like the days are finally getting longer and those summer nights are just around the corner.
At the end of April, I competed at the International Team Trials in Greensboro, NC. This meet was the qualifier for the FINA World Championships which will take place in June. Although I wasn’t fast enough to be selected to go, I posted respectable in-season times in my best event, the 200m Butterfly. Regardless of the outcome of my swims, I was happy to be back home in Greensboro and with my family and friends.
After I was done competing, I took a nice break from the water. Looking back, I had been swimming almost non-stop from August to April. 8 months of swimming! My break was much needed both physically and mentally. It allowed to me assess my summer plans and figure out what I wanted my summer to look like.
Typically, I continue swimming through August, which is when U.S. Nationals occurs. However, this summer, I have been given the incredible opportunity through the University of Michigan to travel to Olynthus, Greece and conduct archaeological field work there. This aligns perfectly with my major of Classical Archaeology and gives me the chance to explore and get hands-on experience at the site where I have spent the last semester researching from afar.
Honestly, I was torn between this and going to Nationals this summer, but, in the end, I believe that this archaeology trip will prove to be much more memorable and fun. I will be spending a whole month over there, so prayers for safe travel and maintaining good health would be greatly appreciated.
I hope to write a few posts about my trip over there, so keep a lookout for my updates! To subscribe to my newsletters, click this link, or go to the home page of this website and enter your email in the “Sign Up” box!
Speedy Shenanigans:
A LOT of fun stuff has been happening in my car world lately. I was able to complete the install of my wheels, tires and coilovers a week ago and here is the final product. I am enthralled with the car, how it looks and feels now! It’s okay if y’all can’t tell a huge difference :)
In terms of racing, I had the awesome experience of getting to ride along with one of my good friends at a track day in Waterford Hills, MI. He races a Mazda RX-8 and, in my opinion, he is quite good. This was the first time I had been around a racetrack in a real racecar. I think my adrenaline was spiked for the rest of the day. Here’s a picture of me in his car:
Once I get back from Greece, I am going to be trying my hand at some racing, autocross style. Autocross is a little different from racetrack racing, in that an autocross course is set up in a big parking lot, and the boundaries are marked by traffic cones. It really just looks like a sea of cones, but there’s a course in there! Don’t worry, the speeds are quite tame. No one is going 100mph through a parking lot! Even though I know that I won’t be great at first, I’m excited to get to race, challenge myself and see what the WRX can do.
Aviation Adventures:
While I was home in Greensboro, I flew down to Hickory, NC for an EAA Young Eagles Rally. These are events put on by the EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) that encourage young kids and families to come out to the airport and receive a free ride in an airplane. It is all run by volunteers and volunteer pilots. My dad has done many of these events and I have tagged along to help out on the ground. Our day in Hickory was super and many kids got to go on their very first airplane ride. Every time a plane landed, you could see their smiles from a mile away. I got to help organize the ground crew and make sure each kid was accounted for. I had a blast and love getting kids involved in aviation!
Recipe Roulette:
Lately, I have been finding myself with a lot of ripe avocados. I love them, but I can only eat so many… So, here’s a clever way to use up that last one that’s been staring you down for the past few days. The original recipe can be found here: https://detoxinista.com/avocado-brownies/.
But I am also listing it below:
Avacado Brownies
1 ripe avocado
½ cup cocoa (or cacao) powder
2 eggs
1 cup brown (or coconut) sugar
¼ almond butter (I use PB2)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp salt
½ cup dark chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 325, and grab a 9” square, non-stick pan.
Peel and pit the avocado.
Combine all of the ingredients (except the chocolate chips) into a food processor.
Blend until smooth.
Fold in the chocolate chips and transfer batter to the pan.
Cook at 325 for 40-45 min, or until the brownies are cooked through.
Wait until they are completely cool before eating them! When they are warm they are very avocado-y, but this flavor becomes MUCH less pronounced when they are cool.
Thanks for reading! See y'all next month.
Cheers,
Olivia
