Back to School

I have almost finished my first week of my Junior year at Utah State. I am glad to be here. It is nice to be independent again, going to school, getting involved, being busy, and all that thing. I like my roommates and my house. I have my own room and the girls I live with are fun. It is weird though cuz I've never been much of a party animal, but pretty much I go to bed later than everyone else. It is weird, but also OK. I also don't really feel like studying or doing homework. I think something must be wrong with me, but I can't figure out what it is. My Institute class is D&C and I've enjoyed it so far. It is really fun cuz my friend Tasha and her husband are in that class with me. I have hung out with quite a few married people this past week, which is odd cuz I used to have a policy of no hanging out with married people, but I've hung out with Tasha and Michael, Stacy and Greg. It is absolutely LOCO! I'm having fun and am looking forward to a great semester. I'm not all that into any of my classes, and am excited about my extra curricular activities. I join the Special Olympic volunteer committee and look forward to working with those athletes starting this Saturday. I'm also excited about my job as a SI Coordinator (see www.usu.edu/arc/supplemental_instruction for more information) where I get to teach students, help them master material, and work with other Leaders as they work with their students. Life is pretty good. I am contemplative and can't figure out why I don't want to study. I must be broken. That really is the only thing I can figure out. My main goal for the semester is to pass the Grammar Competency test for my English Ed minor. Actually, scratch that, my number one goal is to become a True Aggie. :)

Power Yoga

I discovered an amazing thing this morning ... POWER YOGA!! I discovered and began loving yoga this summer. Well, I didn't discover it, but I started doing it in May. Today, I tried Power Yoga. Yoga means "union" and really does relax your mind and body while building strength within the two. So I would say that thanks to yoga, my mind and body are a little more connected and stronger. But Power Yoga takes it to a more intense level. I broke a sweat and was moving a lot more than in normal yoga, it became more than just a relaxation and strengthening fest, but suddenly became cardio. I love it, and will keep up with both kinds of yoga because I like how it has already helped me to relax and become more flexible. I like that it helps to complete my workout. You should try it cuz it is way fun!

I'm an Earring-aholic

OK, so I love to buy earrings. I just love to wear earrings! I got my ears pierced in September 2007 with my roommate, Maren, and it was wonderful. And the first day I got to wear danglies, was magical. I like my earrings to be long, dangly, shiny, and oftentimes jingley. Yesterday was a tragic day because I forgot to wear my danglies! It was so sad. I just had my studs, so thank goodness I had some earrings on, or that would have been a very naked-feeling sort of day.

Anyway, I got home from work and went to the gym and then went to Institute, and there wasn't any Institute, so too bad for me, I went shopping. And I bought some shirts, and then I, of course, had to look at the earrings. I just can't help it! They are so pretty and shiny. There were several that I liked, but none grabbed me. Except these. These aren't shiny or noisy, but they are amazing nonetheless! So I took some pictures on my phone and thought I'd let the world see my amazing earrings. These are great cuz they are big, dangly, and colorful! I like the beads on them, and I like that I can wear them pretty much with anything I want to cuz there are so many colors! To the side, we see a great shot of my neck and the earrings, but I was taking these pictures on my cell phone, and that was really the best picture I got! I hope you like them as much as I do, and if you don't, sorry, cuz the set just screams my name!

My Plan, as of Today

So I've been thinking...I don't have a lot of money. And that is OK, I'm fine with being poor, and I just don't want to dig myself into a hole. So here are some of my plans as of today, so they will probably change next Tuesday.

~Instead of taking five years to graduate (Graduating Spring '11), which would be absolutely delightful and fun, maybe I will cut off a semester and take less fun classes. Then I would graduate Fall '10. But, as a teacher, graduating in December, when schools are usually not hiring, is kind of inconvenient. I could get a lame job for a few months before getting a real one...WOOT! Or, even better, I could graduate in Spring '10. To do that, I would have to take classes next summer, and just check things off of the requirement list. That is what I am thinking I will do, and if the English department at USU would stop scheduling classes that I need at the same time, then it will be possible.

~After I graduate, I will move away. Sorry Mom. Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, maybe Idaho (let me tell you, if I move there, you will know I'm desperate for a job and new scenery)...pretty much somewhere in the West that I can afford and get a teaching job. And it will be fun. I will be a teacher and life will rock.

~And speaking of teaching, I'm thinking that I might turn to Junior High. Seriously, I think it could be fun, and you might as well brainwash them into liking history while they are young.

~I also have some short term plans. They include working, quitting, moving to Logan, starting school, making new friends, starting work as a SI coordinator, exercising, hiking, biking, and going on dates. And doing my homework. We cannot forget that. Homework is the most important thing ever, except being righteous and going to Church, which I also plan on doing.

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make a Pie!

A Lemon Meringue Pie, no less. And if Life gives you limes, make Key Lime, or peaces, make Peach Pie. If Life drops a pumpkin in your lap, you could make a Pumpkin Pie, and I would give it away cuz that is the grossest kind of Pie EVER. If you get veggies and a chicken, by all means, a Chicken Pot Pie is a fantabulous response to that. Pie is definitely one of the best things ever, and I love to make and eat it.

I think Pie is a great way to handle stress. During Finals Week in April 2007, I made "Good Luck Pie"(s) for my friends and roommates. The Pies helped me, and I did great on my exams. Pie is also great for getting guys to adore you, especially if you make really good ones for them. They will love to get fat on your yummy pies you make for them, and that gives you time to reel them in in other ways besides your cooking skills. Pie also just tastes really good. Mmmm, pie. I love it. Much better than cake. Another fantastic thing about Pie is that it is funny. I think someone getting hit in the face with a Banana Cream Pie is hilarious, even though it is a waste of a perfectly good Pie, which is unfortunate. Basically, Pie makes life amazing and it needs to be capitalized cuz it is just that important.

I just made my first Pie of the summer on Sunday. I know, it is sad that I waited until July 27 to do it, but I'm a busy woman. It was my first time ever making a Key Lime Pie, and I used my Aunt Stacee's recipe and used real key limes. Here is a secret about juicing citrus that I learned from Rachel Ray: pop the fruit in the microwave for about 20 seconds and then roll them on the countertop before juicing them, and the juice just pours out of the peel so easily and there is a lot of it! The Pie was great. I should have used a mixer as opposed to a fork to make the cream cheese not chunky, and I think it could have used some more lime. But it was yummy. Good job to me, and I hope my Dad liked it.

Basically, the point is...Life gives you the ingredients to make Pie, so make one. Even if your Pie sucks, there are parts of the Pie that are good. Maybe it tastes good, maybe the fruit was perfect, maybe the crust is really flaky, and maybe the only thing good about it is that is looks good or you didn't burn down the house when you were making it. And that is my philosophy about Pie.

Foiled Again!

My brothers are stinkers. Because they had to be lame-os, I didn't get to go shopping. Yes, I am pouting, yes, I will recover, no, I am not overreacting. But, I am almost done sewing my new purple dress.

On a not so happy note, no luck yet in selling my contract. That one girl that I emailed cuz she posted something on Facebook saying she was looking for an apartment close to campus still hasn't emailed me. That makes me mad. She should let me know if she is or if she isn't interested. It will all work out, it always does.

I Like Silly Things

Yesterday, Me, Michelle, Tessa, and Melanie went to Idaho for Jordan's farewell. This is a fitting picture, I think. I just love it. I couldn't get on the tourist trap plastic horse. It was great. And we went to a playground a swung on swings, which is definitely one of my favorite things ever. I am so glad we went to Jordan's farewell. Not only did we get to say "See ya!" to a dear friend, but we had a great time driving together. Lately, I've been feeling really adventurous and have needed to do something crazy random. I think we now know how desperately I needed it if going to Idaho is one of the highlights of my summer! I'm also uber bored, cuz I distinctly having a dream about Iowa. Seriously, how sad am I? Actually, now that I've gone on an adventure, I'm pretty happy. And Saturday, Michelle, Leslie, and I went on a lovely hike, which was great. These adventures just reinforced the fact that I LOVE going places! It doesn't matter if I'm going to Idaho or a waterfall, as long as I'm not just bumming around, I'm good.

And I'm good. I'm lonely. But I'm good. I can't wait for school to start because it will be wonderful to meet new friends and learn things and get busy again. I don't know how life will work out, I just have to have faith that it will. I think that the rest of the summer will help me realize what I have and had and what I want for the future. I like to learn, so I have to remember to learn while I'm missing Tlr. I guess it sucks cuz he isn't here, and we broke up so I can't just talk to him all day long. It is sad to not have a good friend anymore.

On a lighter note...tonight I'm going shopping! We are preparing for our fun journey to Denver for Rachelle's wedding. So of course, we all need new shirts. I'm going to try going for a new dress, and since my Dad is taking me and my brothers, and Mom is at Girls' Camp, I think I might be able to remind him that he belongs on my little finger and get a new dress!