Festival of Colors

Whether or not every other BYU blogger is doing it, I'm going to do it too... my festival of colors blog post. Four of us headed down to the Spanish Fork Krishna Temple last saturday. Good thing it was four of us, because by the time the festival had started and I saw the traffic, my pessimistic self was ready to turn back and say we tried. We were more than a mile away when we saw the pink cloud of chalk in the air and I was not too excited about walking another mile to something we already had missed. Good thing I had three more optimistic traveling companions.
When we actually made it up to the festival everyone we saw was more than covered in pink, yellow, green, and blue chalk. Eventually we found a few people who had a bit of extra chalk they were willing to share. I ended up with some pretty sweet looking pink hair.

I even somewhat enjoyed a few minutes in the middle of the "mosh pit"... though I'm sure this one was mild compared to most. I still am not quite sure what the religious purpose of the whole festival was for, but there was thousand of people who did enjoy themselves, myself included.

Sister Hinckley's wisdom

Today I'm all out of my own wisdom and want to share from Marjorie Hinckley. I love this quote: "The road has not been paved all the way for any of us. We all have a small place in our hearts where we store our sorrows and disappointments. But are there not days when you are simply overwhelmed with the blessings of the Lord? It was ever thus."

I think I share this one today because this is how I often feel about my life. So often things I hope for seem to just lead to another disappointment. But sometimes when I look back at the experiences I see how much I was learning and growing in the process. (Yes there are times when in my stubbornness I impede myself from learning, but most of the time the Lord is patient enough to help me learn the lesson).

It also seems that at the exact moment when I want to give myself over to the sorrow of what I don't have or what I don't measure up to, if I will just take a moment to look around, I find myself surrounded by the merciful, overwhelming blessings of the Lord. He does take care of me.

Pizza and more

There's a pretty amazing tasting pizza special going on at the brick oven this week. Plus my sister is only going to be working there for a few more weeks. So next time you want something good for lunch, go there. I did.

There is something else to add to the don't like list: Boys who stop talking to you and don't ever tell you why or take the time to at least send you a text message to let you know they all of sudden completely uninterested in you even though they didn't act like that last week. Yes I realize that this is a very passive, somewhat immature statement, but odds are very high that if you're reading this it doesn't apply to you, so I'm just gonna leave it.

Ironically this last statement completely contradicts my next random thought:
something we've been working on at work that I'm still not so great at--not complaining. "If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude. Don't complain." - Maya Angelou. Personally I think getting as many of the negative messages out of your brain as possible is a very healthy thing. I guess this means I should get over my "boys are dumb" attitude....someday.

i'm not really picky... just opinionated

Last night, while I was discovering the ways in which a mango and raspberry yoasis frozen yogurt sends shock waves to the top of my head, a friend invited me to make this list. He probably didn't think I would actually do it... but I did and am publishing it on this blog with the hope it will actually force me to start to like some of the things on the "learn to like" list.

Things I've learned to like:
(this counts for anything that at one point in my lifetime I hated and currently enjoy)
Tomatoes
Whipped Cream
Onions
peach yogurt (still working on the other flavors)
cooked carrots
broccoli
vinaigrette dressing
kettle corn
grapefruit juice
walnuts and pistachios
my roommate
curling my hair
running (some days)
teenagers (sometimes)
spinach
clams
meatloaf (especially if I cook it myself)
practicing piano (on my own schedule)

Things I do not like (and do not plan on liking at anytime in the near future):
Left overs (except from Olive Garden)
spicy food
olives
most flavors of toothpaste (it has be the right kind of mint)
odd parts of animals that are not meant to be eaten, but sometimes are
black licorice
cherries
nuts in ice cream
watching T.V.
Sweet pickles
playing poker
gold jewelry
lemon meringue pie
pets
nutritious breakfast cereal
bran, wheat, dried beans, and other misc. food storage items
cockroaches
wonder bread
seaweed
nacho cheese
sushi
butterfly decorations
hymns about sunshine

Things I hope to learn to like:
Mom's pork chops and homemade bread
guys with blond hair
being in large groups
laughing at ridiculous dumb situations
dark chocolate
the whole sandwich
strawberry ice cream
swimming in lakes
playing soccer
dance parties
wyoming

Learning by experience

Look...we do have a brother...and forced sibling unity.

Just wanted to share with you some things I've learned by experience in the last few weeks:

Things not to do:
Put a glass of juice on the dresser right next to your bed and forget that it's there... until your foot finds it again.
Place your towel near the one part of the cement by the hot tub that is icy.
Eat eggs with a “best by date” from last year.
Worry unnecessarily.
Try to act in a way you don't really feel.

Things to do:
Write that thank you note you've been putting off forever.
Stop avoiding visiting teaching (or your visiting teachers).
Invite acquaintances for lunch, especially on sunny sunday afternoons.
Make chocolate, caramel, sweet milk cake.
Whatever should be #1 on your priority list.
Make friends with people who make you laugh.
Eat a lot on your sister's birthday, especially with good company.

Stranger than Fiction.... finding the point

This week I watched a movie called Stranger than Fiction. Though Will Ferrell is the main character, it is not a typical Will Ferrell movie. I actually liked it. After it was over, my friend asked me the point of the movie (he had after all watched the movie when he was supposed to be doing his homework and I think the guilt was catching up with him ). I actually found something I think I can relate to in the movie. There’s a point where he know that he’s going to die and he asks Dustin Hoffman (an English Professor) what he should do with his life. He tells him to just live it as he has always wanted, to become what he has dreamed of. Now, the movie isn’t incredibly profound, but I felt a little like I could relate to Harold’s quest: To leave the easy scheduled routine behind and to have the courage to live my dreams. I am still finding my dreams, but there are the moments when I feel like I have begun to catch hold of them. Right now this includes searching out the possibilities of moving out to DC in April. And so far, it feels like it might just work out.


I like this scene with guitars because it’s often how I feel about making decisions… Still searching, but I think I'll know when I finally find the right one.

Root Canal

If we were living in the 1800s, the lady who cleaned my teeth this morning would be dead or childless, and I would have a lot less teeth, which all be crooked. I don't cry often, at least out loud, but last night my toothache, which apparently started in the roots (which are currently non existent) of my #19 tooth and extended up the side of my face to a very concentrated spot near my temple. I'm not sure how to describe that intense pain except to say, I pretty sure breaking my arm (anyone of the 3 times I did) hurt less than that. But that was a long time ago, and I can't really remember. Anyway, when I finally made it to the dentist this morning I felt grateful that their procedures include more than giving me some alcohol and pulling out the dying tooth (although after my orajel experience I have begun to appreciate the medicinal benefits of alcohol). As I'm sitting there in the chair and the hygienist lady was trying to make conversation while all I can say is yes or no. I bring up the fact my sister in law is expecting and wants to the whole natural childbirth thing and then she's telling me about her children would have died if she wasn't in the hospital when they were born. So that's where this entry started.

Of course while I'm talking about dentists I have to insert the classic Bill Cosby dentist experience

Try explaining to the dentist whether or not people in China can get baptized while you can't even move your tongue and have some odd blue plastic square thing covering your mouth that he somehow inserted with odd pliers. It's impossible. really.