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Fried Brain for Dinner

2012-11-27T20:08:00.002-08:00

Today I was talking to my friend Kenra and she told me I should write in my blog again. Oh my blog…it has been awhile since I have written in you last. I am ashamed to admit that one of the reasons I don’t write in you anymore is because I do not like your current layout but do not have the time to fix it, so every time I open you up I just get discouraged because I want to make you look awesome, I just don’t have the time or the creative juices at the moment. Today I especially don’t have ANY creative juices. My brain is fried. Right after I wrote that sentence I titled this post “Fried Brain for Dinner” then it occurred to me that I haven’t had dinner, so I guess I really am eating my brain for dinner…but not really at the same time…example 1 of my friend brain: the run on sentence I just wrote. Example 2 of my friend brain: earlier today I was sitting in the Activities office doing homework, and then I took a short nap. When I woke up, I sat up and just sat there, on the couch, in the same position, for 20 minutes trying to decide whether to a. go to devotional b. listen to devo at home, or c. stay in the office and get more homework done. The only reason I came out of my brain fried trance is because my friend Kahli came over and said hi. If she hadn't come in I probably would have sat there for longgg after devo had ended. Example 3 of my fried brain: After my group meeting I came into the office to do more homework. I successfully did a whole assignment! On my Justin Bieber religion of course…don’t ask unless you want to hear a really long explanation…then I remembered that there was root beer float ingredients in the fridge. So I went and made myself a root beer float. Then probably 45 minutes later Lacey came in and went over to the ice cream and made herself an ice cream sundae. So what did I do? I made one too! And I put on so much chocolate and strawberry syrup that you could barely see the ice cream. Why did I do this you ask? My answer? I have no freaking idea…I blame the fried brain. Then we went and sat down and I was eating the ice cream and it tasted like cotton candy…no joke! I think it was the strawberry syrup…it was like cold chocolate cotton candy…ya there is a reason that is not a current ice cream flavor…so I was sitting there eating this gross ice cream and then it occurred to me… “Why am I eating this? I don’t even like it. It tastes weird and is not making my taste buds happy or my stomach for that matter.” Then I just kept eating it… Example 4 of my fried brain: me writing this blog post, knowing it probably sounds like I am a crazy person. Why would I ever publicly publish me sounding crazy? Well the only explanation I can think of is…MY BRAIN IS FRIED.

Note: I realized that saying my brain is fried may make people think that I am high on drugs or something. This would be a false assumption. I have never taken drugs and never plan on it. I say my brain is fried because I am sleep deprived, have had an emotional roller coaster of a day, have hard core senioritis, have had a migraine, and am feeling overwhelmed with finals looming over my shoulder like death or something. THAT my friends is why my brain is fried, not because I’m high on something other than life.

sun.

2012-03-25T18:11:00.001-07:00

SUN! What a beautiful thing! Yesterday in the Burg it was sunny and in the 60’s. And I was in LOVE. In love with the sunshine that is, not a boy. Who needs boys? Yesterday was the day the inhabitants of Rexburg came out of hibernation. They slowly started to emerge in their t-shirts and shorts ready to soak up some Vitamin D. Lacey, Aub, and I went to the park and tossed around a baseball. I have to admit that I can throw better than I thought I could. Then Aub and I kicked around a soccer ball for a bit. While we were at the park we spotted the Kiwi Loco man on his bike and ran over to see what he was doing. He was giving out free Kiwi Loco (frozen yogurt). He said that the first person to bring over a kid would get a free yogurt for them and the kid. As soon as he said that Lacey yelled “Go get a kid!” So what did I do? I immediately ran to get (well politely ask of course, I’m not a creeper) one of the little boys playing football with his friends. Unfortunately some mom and her baby beat me back to the Kiwi man. But being the nice Kiwi Loco man he is he gave us all free yogurt anyway. Later that night me and the roomies went out for Thai food to celebrate Abby’s recent change in relationship status. (next month her and Kevin are tying the knot). Overall it was quite a WONDERFUL day! I swear I am a much happier person when it’s sunny outside.

P.S. I made a Pintrest account awhile ago, but I haven’t really done much with it, because I know if I start I’ll get addicted. I was right. Today I got back on and stayed on for an hour. There are so many cool DIY projects that I want to try. It makes me wish I had my own place to decorate! Someday, someday…

Hunger Games Love.

2012-03-08T12:20:00.000-08:00

So I don't know about you but I CANNOT WAIT for the Hunger Games movie! I have already ordered my shirt and midnight premiere tickets. :) Needless to say I have had a lot of time on my hands lately. And with some of that time I made a Hunger Games countdown chain. It brought back happy memories of making Christmas countdown chains as a child :)

14 DAYS LEFT!!!

Funny Little Things in Life.

2012-03-07T12:27:00.000-08:00

So I bought this cute little notebook for a dollar at Porters today.

I decided that so many random little things happen every day in my life that helps me appreciate the life I have been given. Whether they are things I am grateful for or just funny little things that made me laugh. I decided to write them down so that I can always look back on them and realize how blessed I truly am.

Here are today’s findings...

V-Day.

2012-02-14T23:16:00.000-08:00

OH Valentine’s Day…I don’t even know how to describe you. I have never been a big fan of Valentine’s Day. I feel it is way too commercialized. If someone cares about me I would rather have them show it on a random day of the year then on a designated day. I don’t want people to feel pressured into showing me they care….that defeats the point. BUT I also know that many people LOVE this holiday and I don’t want you to think I am bashing you. It’s just not MY favorite.

This is what I did on my V-day:

I got myself a public library card and stocked up on some good romantic novels! I’m so excited to read Matched! Busy Bee convinced me I couldn't live without it!

Then I got some chocolates (no I didn’t buy them for myself!) and took a bite out of each one to find the caramels. Can you believe there was only ONE, ONE! caramel in the WHOLE box. SADDEST. DAY. EVER. They should make a valentines box for caramel lovers! I mean come on, not everyone LOVES chocolate.

Also when I came home from work I found this cute little monkey on my bed. Apparently earlier a guy in our ward came by in a clown suit and made all of these for the single girls in the ward. What a nice guy!

Before work Chrissy (one of my roommates) and I may have been ranting about this particular day a bit, okay maybe me more so then her, and we had some interesting V-day related conversations on facebook…

This was my status: Sitting here eating chocolates and reading romance novels...Hello Valentines Day! Is it terrible that I'm happy that in the 20's there was a massacre on this day? Oh the irony!

Chrissy:S.A.D.! I just realized that Single Awareness Day spells S.A.D. and that is how we are both feeling...So glad that Al Capone and Bugs Moran got into a "conflict". YAY for the 7 dead gang members!!!

Ariel: YAY for St Valentines getting burned at the stake for heresy! And the fictional cupid who got punished by Zeus for sleeping with his wife!

Chrissy: And YAY for the other Saint Valentine who got his head chopped off and then was preserved in abbey...

Ariel: WHOA! Abby has a head inside of her....awk...

Chrissy: Abby spelled with an E!!!

Ariel :Oh ok good! whoo! I was afraid I was going to have to have an awk conversation with Kevin Reader....

Chrissy: don't think I'd want to be involved with that conversation!!! AWK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This was Chrissy’s status:Oh Valentine's Day...You are a pointless holiday...

Ariel: S.A.D.

Ariel: A 'holiday' that makes pretty much everyone feel miserable, either because they're single, or have a 'significant other' who expects or demands to be showered with gifts and affection to make up for the other 364 days of the year that receive next to no attention. On the flip side, this 'holiday' has also become somewhat of a national make-up day that people use to 'make-up' for the other 364 days of the year that they aren't romantic and attentive to their relationships."

Chrissy: Agreed!

Chrissy: Though I don't know if it is an actual holiday...I mean people died. Why are we celebrating that?

Ariel: YAY! DEAD PEOPLE!!! YAY! YAY! YAY! I LOVE DEAD PEOPLE!!!!!...yeah it's not really very fun to celebrate...

Chrissy: ‎"My dad's a funeral director...I find death humorous!"
"What does your dad do Ariel?"
"He is in insurance..."
"That's not funny..."

Ariel: Chrissy do you celebrate death with dead people?

Chrissy: Oh...Ariel, how well you know me. Why of course I celebrate death with dead people. How else would you celebrate death? You can't celebrate death with live people because then you would be celebrating life with alive people.

Ariel: ohhhh...wow! thanks for the clarification!

Chrissy: Of course. Ariel...how do you celebrate death?

Ariel: I eat pickles.

Chrissy: ‎(Eunice) I wear black...

Ariel: ‎*insert Eunice sounds* nuff said.

Chrissy: HAHAHHAHAHAH! Oh my lanta!

**P.S. we are talking about Eunice. THE EUNICE from She’s the Man. If you have seen the movie, you KNOW what we’re talking about!**

Well I hope you all had a great Valentine’s Day, V-day, S.A.D., Single Awareness Day, or whatever you like to call it! I sure had an interesting one…..

Dominoes.

2012-02-13T22:10:00.000-08:00

Isn’t life funny? It never seems to do what you want it to do. It’s like dominoes. You set up a line of dominos in some intricate pattern and then before you’re ready to knock them down, someone sneaks up behind you and does it for you. AGH! Doesn’t the person realize you weren’t ready to move on yet!? You wanted to stare at the beautiful set up before you for a bit longer before you were ready to leave it behind. Life it seems does the same darn thing! I guess the moral of the story life is trying to knock into my brain is that I need to enjoy every moment, be thankful for what I have, and be willing to accept change. You know reading these words, makes it seem a lot easier than it actually is. Life is probably one of the greatest teachers I could ever have, but it is also by far the harshest one. The only one more critical of me then life, is my own darn brain, but that is for another time and another post.

Living on a Plateau

2012-02-12T00:52:00.001-08:00

I hate feeling like my life is just flat. I am the type of person that does not like doing nothing. I may think that I am, but after awhile I start to get antsy and feel like I’m doing squat with my life. That is how I feel right now. I mean ya my life is good and I have AMAZING people around me, but I feel like me, as a person, is lacking. I LOVE helping people and I think that when I’m not helping people I feel worthless. I think I strive on it. When I’m helping people I feel like my life means something. I feel like my life is moving forward. But right now I don’t feel like I’m progressing. I’m just a stagnant pool of water that bugs fly around and scum thrives on and where mosquitoes come to lay their eggs. Ya…I want to be helping people! Today I have been in a kind of slump, well if we’re going to be honest; it’s been more like this whole week. Today I was reading my friends blog about her adventures volunteering at an all boys orphanage in Kenya. Last fall she asked me if I wanted to go with her and I decided that I was finally going to fulfill my lifelong dream and go with her! Then a few months later I thought a lot about it and for some reason I just felt like I shouldn't go and that it’s just not what I was supposed to be doing right now. Instead I felt like I should just come up to Rexburg and work on my off track. SO I did. And trust me I have been having a blast! But after reading her blog posts I just feel so worthless. I wish I was in Kenya holding the little boys hands and cleaning up their puke when they were sick because they have no one else. To see the joy on those boys faces at the simplest things. To witness their kind hearts and strong wills. To see them embracing life despite the fact that both of their parents died of AIDS or some other ravaging disease. THAT my friends is what I want to live for! I want to help people and be there for them. To heck with this focusing on myself crap! I learn exponentially more about myself by forgetting myself and focusing on others then I ever do having “me” time. But yes this is how I am currently feeling. I just need to find something I can actively do to help others.

P.S. Kenra is the best listener! Thanks so much Kenny! I really needed that tonight J

Waiting for Kenra

2011-12-14T11:33:00.000-08:00

“Do you want to go to the gym with me?” asks Kenra.

“Sure” I said, “when do you want to go?”

“Oh I don’t know. In a little bit, I just need to rest my eyes for a second.” replies Kenra.

ALMOST 3 HOURS LATER…

*Text from Kenra*: “Do you want to go now?”

I run into our room and jump on Kenra’s bed, “Kenra! You’re finally awake! SO much happened while you were asleep!”

The following is the story I related to Kenra:

So about half an hour after you fell asleep I decided to go make the fudge for my class tomorrow since you did not seem to be waking up anytime soon. I go in the kitchen and start making the fudge. The fudge is boiling and a little bit of it sneaks past me and falls into the burner. Instantly smoke starts coming up from underneath the pan. I lift the pan off the stove for a second, turn on the fan, then put the pan back and continue boiling the fudge. Even though it was smoking I really needed to keep boiling it! (Sidenote: Fudge can be a very fickle substance to work with. It has to boil for a certain amount of time or it will not turn out.) Then I looked down and FLAMES started coming up out of the burner. So I take the fudge off the stove and stare at the flames, as they get bigger and bigger. This was my thought process in my head, “Okay so why can’t I remember how to put out a stove fire? I know there is something special you have to consider when putting one out. Oh ya! Something to do with flour! You throw the flour on it and it puts it out. *turns around to get flour* No idiot! Flour helps the flames grow! Oh ya! Okay why can I only remember what not to do? Hmm what if I just throw water on it? But I don’t think you are supposed to do that for some reason. *flames grow higher* Okay well Ariel you got to do something before you burn the place down, you can’t afford to pay for all that damage. Okay. *gets a handful of water and throws it on the flames* Umm ya that did squat. *feels a cup up with water* Why do I feel like this is a bad idea? *throws water on flames, flames go out* Hmm it worked. I guess there is nothing wrong with doing that. Great now my fudge only boiled for half the time and the stove is all wet. *looks around and sighs* There is not even anyone around to witness this epicness!”

SO ya then I put the fudge in the pan and let it cool. I came back in the room and you were still asleep! So I went back in the front room and turned on the TV. I mindlessly watched TV for who knows how long. Sometimes I would quietly yell, “Kenra! Wake up so we can go to the gym!” But of course you were totally out. So then I drew you this picture.

And finally I got your text and came back in here. Man! You’re eyes take long “rests”.

*Kenra gets text from Mike asking her if she wants to come over. Kenra can’t decide whether to go to Mike’s or the gym. I (being the nice, selfless friend that I am) tell Kenra to go hang out with Mike*

“Are you sure Ariel? We were going to go to the gym though.”says Kenra

“Ya it’s okay, we can go tomorrow.” I reply.

*Kenra goes to Mike’s and Ariel ends up reading a book. Ariel thinks to herself, “Man! I still can’t believe no one was there to witness the flames!”*

Luckily the fudge made it through the ordeal and recovered quickly with no aftereffects.

If only I was a cat and could have multiple lives…

2011-12-11T12:14:00.001-08:00

You how there are just so many things you want to do in life? Yet there is just not room enough to do them all? That’s how I feel! I wish I could have two lives. One where I graduated from college, got married, had a family, was a good wife and mother, and lived a happy life full of love and good memories.

THEN there is the life where I want to graduate from college, join the Peace Corps in Africa, wear Chacos, tank top, and shorts every day. Have dreads, be super outdoorsy, and tan. And commit my life to helping others and working for non-profit organizations.

The problem is that both of those lives are GOOD lives, and yet I cannot have both. They just wouldn’t work together. Just some thoughts I had as I sit here in my bed STILL sick. I got poor Kenra sick now too L Well at least we can be sicky buddies….woot...woot. If you could have two different lives, what would they be like?

There is a reason that School and Flu DON'T Rhyme!

2011-12-08T21:45:00.001-08:00

I have THE flu. Kenra and I determined it is not a cold due to my fever and delirium. I am just grateful that I am not puking up my so called “meals” I have eaten today…cereal…cookie…half a sandwich…some sandwich meat with cream cheese on it…oh YA! and water. Us college kids live the life! SO I have a theory as to why I have the flu…because it’s much easier to handle if you can blame it on something. Our apartment SMELLS like DEATH died and started decomposing IN OUR APARTMENT! There is nothing we can do about it. The smell is coming from a person and everything attached to *censored*’s name. So the other day I was like “Hey God! It would be really awesome if you could make it so my nose doesn't work so amazingly well for the rest of the semester.” Then I got the flu. HAHAHA good one! I guess even God has a sense of humor. My nose doesn't work as well that’s for sure….but neither does the rest of my body at the moment. awesome. 10 days and I’ll be home for Christmas break! Can’t wait! I have so many things I want to do and people to see! I want to volunteer at a soup kitchen, go to Voodoo donuts, see my friend Cory who just finished basic training, take some sweet pictures, go on some adventures, see my friend Jess get murried, and so on.

Today has been a weird and delirious day, for EXAMPLE….

Today I was going to text Jess and so I picked up my calculator, started pushing buttons and then realized it was NOT my cell…
Kenra calling us a bunch of old people after we have been lying in bed and she screams when I randomly start singing techno
Eating breakfast out of a Tupperware because the dishes haven’t been done
Kenra swinging her headphones around and then smacking herself in the eye
Reading “The Richest Man in Babylon”
Watching “Project Accessory” out of sheer boredom and flu induced delirium
Waking up 15 minutes before my class started and deciding to skip it and go back to sleep
Trying to figure out my dumb math homework and crying because it didn’t make sense (I blame the crying on the fever…I seem to cry when I get fevers...)

Hope you guys have a great night and be thankful for your nice smelling houses!

To more completely understand how I feel refer to Kenra's blog…

TimTam Slam!

2011-12-06T22:22:00.000-08:00

Today I am sick. BLEH! Of course I would get sick the week before finals...sigh...oh well life goes on right? Well Kenra was kind enough to get me some NyQuil from the store and some TimTams! Okay so the other week I was at Mike's house (Kenra's guy friend) and he told me I had to try the "TimTam Slam!" Let's just say I fell in love...Okay so go buy yourself some TimTams (if you can, they are from Australia but sometimes you can find them here).

Then pour yourself a bowl of milk. Take a TimTam out of the package and bite off the opposite corners on each side of the cookie. Then put the cookie in the milk and suck it like a straw. Once you suck out some milk you pull out the cookie and enjoy! SOoooooo Good! Those Australians know what they're talking about mates!
I am about to start reading "The Richest Man in Babylon" for extra credit. Everyone has said it's such a good book, I'm interested to see what it's all about. Well I think the NyQuil is trying to put me to sleep soooo....sweet dreams world.

Dachau

2011-12-02T23:36:00.000-08:00

I just watched a movie with my roommates called “Sarah’s Key”. It is about the Jews in France during WWII and how they were rounded up and sent to concentration camps. As I was watching the movie I kept thinking about my trip to Germany and the Dachau concentration camp I visited there. Visiting that camp was a very humbling and life changing experience for me. There is no way you can truly describe what it feels like, unless you have been there yourself. To walk in the same barracks as they did; to see the way they were forced to live their lives. I think the most humbling part for me was walking into the same gas chambers that had taken thousands of innocent Jews lives. Before that day the Holocaust had seemed like a distant event in history that I had learned about in school. Yet being there, walking on the same ground as these brave children of God, it took on a whole new meaning. It is important that we learn from our past, so that we never make the same mistakes again. The Holocaust was a terrible event in history. But it is so important for us to not forget it. To not let those who died go unremembered. The following are some images I captured at the concentration camp. I was going to make them into a collage, but I decided against that. I wanted each image to capture your full attention, to feel each emotion that the image brings.

Have You Walked A Mile in My Stilettos?

2011-12-02T12:27:00.000-08:00

“Why is it that girls always take pictures of their feet?” asked one of my guy friends. When he asked me that question I had no answer for him. But I do not think it is just girls, I have seen guys post pictures of their feet too. Why do some people find such fascination in feet pictures? I decided to look through some of my old pictures and find feet pictures I have taken. As you can see there are a variety of shoes in these pictures. Each picture and shoe represents a memory for me. That one time I went bowling, when I went on a walk with my roommates, when I went shooting, when I took some engagement pictures for my friends, etc. I like shoes and I am not afraid to admit it! You can tell a lot about a person by their shoes. Maybe they are adventurous and never leave the house without their Chacos, or maybe they seem to have a constant array of colorful flats that match perfectly with every outfit. Everyone has their favorite pair of shoes, that pair you can always rely on, the ones that you wear when nothing else seems to work. I guess that’s why I take feet pictures. You know the saying “Don’t judge a man until you’ve walked a mile in his shoes”? Well did you ever look at his shoes? What did they look like? Were they worn and tattered, showing signs of wear and tear? Or were they pristine and brand new with no scratches or marks. Shoes can tell you a lot about where people have been and what they have done. I don’t know if this post makes any sense, if it doesn’t I’m sorry. These are just some rambling thoughts I had earlier today as I was walking to my Advanced First Aid class. It’s amazing the things you think of and notice when walking without some type of electronic attached to your ears or hands.

2011-11-27T17:29:00.000-08:00

Today is the last day of my Thanksgiving break. It has been a good and much needed break from the everyday grind and stress of school. I love Thanksgiving time because everyone shares all that they are grateful for. It is a time to reflect on life and all that God has given you. Here are some of the things from the break that I am grateful for…

· A clean house with no bad smells

· A quite, relaxing house

· Snuggling up in a blanket on my couch and reading a good book

· Total strangers that are willing to accept me into their home for Thanksgiving

· Spending time with my awesome friend Kenra

· Laughing with Kenra about the random, ridiculous things we do

· “Well isn’t that NICE!”

· Finishing my long book report

· Having the opportunity to read “It’s Not About the Bike” by Lance Armstrong FOR my book report

· Watching two different chick flicks only to find out that one of the main characters from each movie has cancer and dies…I’m grateful for NOT having cancer

· For Kenra’s Nacho Libre quotes “Come on bebe!”

· Watching Garn and Jessica laugh about how the other licks their envelops

· The Sunday School lesson today taught by the cute guy with the mole in my ward

· Knowing that God loves me

· Brother Wilcox with his crazy ties

· Talking to my family on the phone

· Going to the gym with Kenra and looking like a fool doing bench presses

· My awesome red water bottle

· Josh Groban’s “NOEL” album

· Christmas lights in our room

· Walks in the fresh air

· Mormon Messages on Youtube

· For the awkward moments in life that you can laugh about for hours afterwards

· Walking around Rexburg during the break when no is around

· Walking with Kenra outside in our shorts because it wasn’t windy and it was almost warm enough to feel like Spring

· Looking at pictures of our family trip to Moab

· Happy memories J

· The sad moments in life that make me grateful for the good ones

· The moments in life when I feel like I can do anything and be anything!

· Talking on the phone to a friend I haven’t seen in awhile

· Mesa’s blog http://itstartswithamessengerbag.blogspot.com/ it’s so inspiring!

· The opportunity I have to go to BYU-Idaho where I can combine secular and spiritual learning

· This picture I took in Goblin Valley this summer

There are always things to be grateful for. Don’t ever forget that!

Heroes | Erik

2011-11-03T22:53:00.000-07:00

Today I met a new hero of mine. His name is Erik. I have only known Erik for a few hours, but he has made a lasting impression on me. A few hours ago Erik came over with Jessica and Garn. The first thing he did after introducing himself was do our dishes! But he didn't even stop there, he not only did the dishes, he also cleaned our counters, swept the floor, and cleaned our microwave! I was very taken aback by him doing this for us. I was also very intrigued by him. What kind of guy would just do that out of the blue for someone he just barely met? It’s not like he was trying to impress us or anything, he has no need to, he’s engaged. After Erik cleaned our kitchen we were talking and the subject of his fiancé came up. We asked him about her and then he told us their story. I have never in my whole life heard a story like they have! There is no way I could even come close to trying to reiterate what he said. There is just no way. While he was telling us their story I was on the verge of tears, and I am not the type of person who cries in public. Not only did I get goose bumps from how romantic it was, I felt the spirit so strongly. I know that sounds weird to say, but I did. In that moment the spirit testified to me that true love is possible. That is does exist and that someday I can attain that same thing that Erik and his fiancé have. Erik inspired me to not give up or settle for something less then I deserve. After Erik left I felt like I should read a talk from the latest General Conference Ensign. I didn’t know which talk to read. I came across the title “You Matter to Him” by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, and thought it sounded like just what I needed to hear. And it was. I encourage you to read this talk. Here is a part of it that really helped me a lot and helped reaffirm what I felt when Erik was telling me their story.

“Please understand that what you see and experience now is not what forever will be. You will not feel loneliness, sorrow, pain, or discouragement forever. We have the faithful promise of God that He will neither forget nor forsake those who incline their hearts to Him.²¹Have hope and faith in that promise. Learn to love your Heavenly Father and become His disciple in word and in deed…God sees you not only as a mortal being on a small planet who lives for a brief season—He sees you as His child. He sees you as the being you are capable and designed to become. He wants you to know that you matter to Him.May we ever believe, trust, and align our lives so that we will understand our true eternal worth and potential. May we be worthy of the precious blessings our Heavenly Father has in store for us is my prayer in the name of His Son, even Jesus Christ, amen.” (http://lds.org/general-conference/2011/10/you-matter-to-him?lang=eng)

What I'm Thankful For | Day 1: Free gym and AWESOME workout buddy!

2011-11-01T19:25:00.000-07:00

In honor of the month of November, aka the month of much food and gratefulness, I am going to write each day about something I am grateful for. Here it goes!

November 1: I am grateful that my school (BYU-Idaho) has an awesome gym that I can go to for FREE! But even more then that I am thankful for my awesome roommate Kenra who goes with me to the gym. She is a great motivator and workout buddy. We just got back from pumping some iron and it feels amazing cuz my arms feel like jello! OH YA! Thanks Kenra!

What are you thankful for? Leave me a comment!

This is Kenra! She's awesome and a fabulously, hilarious writer. You should check out her blog! (http://puzzle-in-progress.blogspot.com/)

Heroes | Michelle

2011-10-28T09:59:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking about the word “hero” a lot lately. It started when my teacher had us read this article (http://emp.byui.edu/woods/heroes.htm) entitled “Heroes: Personal Ponderings” by Tom Hornbein. Based on this article I wrote a paper about my own definition of “heroes”, here is part of it:

Hornbein started off by talking about different aspects a hero could have. They could have completed great feats, have pools of knowledge and understanding, they could be courageous, have volition, or total selflessness. He talked about how usually when we think of the word “hero” in relation to humanity we think of people like Albert Einstein or Abraham Lincoln. As Hornbein delved deeper into the meaning of heroes he had a sort of epiphany. Hornbein realized that the people he thought of, as his personal heroes were not in fact people like Einstein or Lincoln. They were ordinary day-to-day people like the rest of us. I agree with Hornbein in this idea. He said that those like Einstein and Lincoln are people of greatness. They are people that impacted humanity as a whole. Yet they are too distant to be a hero, they are overall something more to the whole world; they are great. Before I read this far into Hornbein’s paper I tried to think of whom my heroes were. I tried to think which great person in the ages of mankind had influenced me the most. I felt that my hero needed to have had a world-renowned impact. But the more I thought about it the more I realized that my hero’s are common people, who in my eyes have gone over and beyond what is necessary in life. One of my heroes is my friend Aubrey.

Aubrey is a selfless human being. She puts the needs of others above her own. She is funny and humorous, but she can also be serious and spiritual. She always looks for the good in others. One word that I think describes her best is “charitable”. I thought about why I think of Aubrey as one of my heroes. Hornbein says that his heroes are people that have great qualities and traits in them that he would like to posses. They are people that he would like to emulate and look up to. I think this is why Aubrey is such a hero to me. I feel that charity is one of the greatest characteristics that a human being can have. This is also the characteristic that Aubrey exudes so well. I look to her as a hero because I admire her great use of this particular attribute. I know that I can learn from her and understand how I can apply this characteristic better in my own life through her example.

Overall, the conclusion that I feel Hornbein came to is that heroes do not have to be great people that will someday be in textbooks around the world. They are ordinary people who we admire and look up to. They are people that exemplify qualities that we appreciate and would like to develop in ourselves. Hornbein concluded with this statement, “Ultimately heroes are just people…[they] are in the eyes of the beholder. Numbers don’t define a hero, one alone will do

I wrote this paper over a month ago, yet I still keep thinking of who my heroes are. I would like to tell you who my new hero is. My heroes name is Michelle. Michelle is the instructor for the spinning class that Kenra and I go to. Let me tell you about Michelle: Michelle does not look like the typical spinning instructor, she is not thin or little, BUT she does not let her weight affect her which I greatly admire about her. She pushes me more than any other exercise instructor has ever been able to push me. She is not an instructor that tells the class to push themselves, and then makes her own workout easy. She pushes herself to her limits along with the rest of us. Kenra and I thought our distance was great when we biked 18miles, then I looked at Michelle’s bike and realized that she biked 25miles and a lot of that time her bike resistance was much higher than ours and she maxed out her resistance a lot! By the end of the class Michelle is covered in sweat and is proud of it! After were done she always tells us a motivational thought or story that she has found in her own life. Every time I leave that class I come away feeling good about myself and life. I know that life is hard, but Michelle makes me feel that I can do anything. Thank you Michelle for being a hero to me!

I would love to hear who the heroes are in your life! Leave me a comment or even better, if you have a blog, I encourage you to make a post talking about your heroes and send me the link!

Photographic Society Weekly Blog Contest | Food

2011-10-24T17:08:00.001-07:00

This weeks blog contest was "Food". Of course when I thought food I thought...take a picture of a meal...easy! BUT I have been trying this semester to challenge myself more and think outside the box. SO my roommate Maddy and I went on a little food discovery adventure as I like to call it. First we tried doing cheerios...in her hair. Here is one of our many failed attempts in its raw form...

It was kind of a little to strange for this shoot. So we kept trying to think of what food we had available and what we could do with it. We discovered that our roommate Kira had sprinkles! So we went to work! We were going to make frosting to put on her eyebrows but then we got a little lazy and just used sour cream. (Don't worry! She did not wake up in the morning with pizza eyebrows) Then we placed the sprinkles on top and voila! I don't know about you, but I thought it turned out pretty cool!

This is the photo I entered in the contest. I don't have the info on it because I am currently in the library waiting for Kenra to get done with her World Religions group so we can hit up the gym.

Let me know what you think! I'm trying to get better and I would love some constructive criticism or ideas!

Photographic Society Weekly Blog Contest | Macro

2011-10-12T12:12:00.000-07:00

Each week the society votes on which picture will win the weekly blog contest. This weeks theme was Macro. I did not win through the votes, but in my opinion I got something even better! After they announced first and second place the Adviser over the society, Sis. E. who is very well known in the photography dept. and teaches many of the photography classes, asked if she could do her own award. She said that she really liked my picture and gave me the prize money out of her own pocket! I was in shock slash ecstatic! After the meeting was over Kenra and I walked outside and I screamed "YES!" at the top of my lungs...I got some interesting stares but I did not care. The rest of yesterday I felt like I was walking on Cloud 9. Here is the picture:

Shot with my Canon PowerShot SD1200 IS, F2.8,1/25, ISO400

Vintage Contest: Outside Judges

2011-10-12T12:02:00.001-07:00

The Photographic Society Vintage contest had two parts. The first part was the Society Choice Awards and the second part was where outside professional photographers came in and judged the pictures in each category. For the second part this picture won 2nd place in unedited.

Photographic Society Vintage Contest Entries.

2011-10-01T14:36:00.000-07:00

I am a member of the Photographic Society on campus. During each semester we have a weekly blog contest and three big contests that are judged by outside professional photographers. This last week we had one of the bigger contests. The theme was: Vintage. I submitted two under the edited category and one under the unedited category. All three pictures were shot with a Nikon D5000. All edits were done on Photoshop (I am still trying to figure out the program).

Edited, F2.8, 1/200, ISO80

Edited, F8, 1/200, ISO200

Unedited, F8, 1/100, ISO200

This photo won the "Unedited Society Choice Award"

Airport Thoughts.

2011-09-10T16:11:00.000-07:00

Well I am currently writing to you from the San Francisco Airport. Unfortunately since Idaho Falls is soo small I could not get a direct flight. Oh well. As I was sitting there on the plane looking out the window (I always try and get window seats, it’s the way to go) I was thinking about how amazing it is that I could be sitting in this metal, who knows how many tons, cylindrical tube, and be comfortably airborne. Flight has come quite a ways since the Wright Brothers! Flight has changed our world in so many ways. Now instead of it taking me days to walk to Idaho, it takes me a few measly hours and we can ship stuff across the world in no time at all. But along with the ability to fly, came the ability to easily fly into other countries and drop bombs on villages and cities. How sad that new technology throughout the centuries that was meant to make our lives better, has also been used to inflict pain and suffering on other human beings. How interesting it is to look at the way human beings lives have changed through the decades and centuries. Sitting there in my comfy passenger seat, with nice cool air blowing on me, while I sipped on my complimentary apple juice I had to ask myself, was it worth it? Was it worth gaining all this new technology if it also meant, and still means, that other human beings will suffer for what I think of as a normal American life?.....................Just a thought I had as I sit here in this huge air conditioned airport eating my Boudin Veggie sandwich that cost me a whopping $8.95! What has the world come to!?

Couscous.

2011-09-09T22:36:00.000-07:00

The other day my mom took me out to lunch at Sweet Tomatoes. (LOVE that place!) This month is Greek themed, so naturally they had a Greek salad. It was a type of couscous dish. It was quite delightful and made me want to try and make a similar dish. I tried to find the exact recipe Sweet Tomatoes uses, but alas, for once the internet failed me and I had to find a different one. The recipe stated that after you mixed up all the ingredients you were supposed to chill it for two hours before eating it. I made it one hour, before I gave in and tried it. YUM! It was so good! I LOVE THIS DISH! Since I love it so much I thought it was only fair to spread the love and post the recipe for you all.

Greek Couscous Salad

from Our Best Bites, Mormon Moms in the Kitchen Recipe Book

Salad Ingredients:

2 Cups Chicken Broth

½ tsp. Dry Oregano Leaves

1 tsp. Dry Basil Leaves

¼ tsp. Crushed Dry Rosemary

1(10 ounce) box of dry couscous (about 1 and ½ cups)

2 Cups diced tomatoes or 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

1 medium Cucumber, diced

½ Cup diced red onion, very finely

½ Cup Kalamata olives, pitted and halved

½ Cup crumbled feta cheese

½ Cup chopped parsley, I used dried and it worked great

Vinaigrette Ingredients:

½ Cup extra-virgin olive oil

¼ Cup Lemon juice

1 tsp. Lemon zest

1 T. Red wine vinegar, I didn’t have any on hand so I just used apple cider vinegar

2 Garlic cloves, pressed or minced

½ tsp. kosher salt

¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Place the chicken broth, oregano, basil, and rosemary in a small pot on the stove top. Bring to a boil. Add the couscous, cover the pot with a lid, and remove from heat. Let sit for at least 5 minutes and then fluff with a fork. Cool to room temperature.

Combine cooled couscous, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, olives, feta, and parsley. Set aside.

In a small jar combine vinaigrette ingredients and shake until combined. Pour over salad, stir, and then refrigerate 2 hours before serving. (I ate it right away and it tasted fine). ENJOY!

P.S. I leave for Rexburgland tomorrow!

Tomorrows.

2011-09-08T22:29:00.000-07:00

I found this quote today that I thought I would share...

“Experience life; agonize, scream, cry. And then let it go.”

~Leo Buscaglia

Life is an adventure that is ever changing. Obsessing about things from the past is not going to help you enjoy life; it is going to hinder you. Move on, Let it go. Make tomorrow your fresh start. Choose to be the person you want to be, instead of dwelling on the ways in which you feel you are not. Life is never going to be easy. There are always going to be hardships and heartbreaks. BUT the way you choose to move on and deal with the past will make all the difference for your tomorrows.

College=My Life.

2011-09-07T23:37:00.000-07:00

Hola! So today was super…unproductive. I have been sick the last two days with who knows what. I even had a fever today…yikes! So my day pretty much consisted of me lying around too weak to do much else. In two days I am shipping myself off to Rexburg, Idaho (aka Sexy Rexy, Rexburgland, Iceburg, The Burg, etc) to go back to school. I wish it was now! I hate sitting around and waiting, I just want to get this next semester started! As you can tell I am a little anxious to get this party started…Every semester is a mystery to me. Who knows what could happen in four months, maybe something huge, or maybe pretty much nothing. But it is the anticipation of the possibilities that could be, that make me antsy and ready to get started. I like being a college student. There is something thrilling about roughing it on your own. No parents to pay for your rent or food; just you and your wit. So far in my life, college has by far been the hardest part. But it has also been the most rewarding. I have learned and grown so much. I have made friendships that will last forever. I have learned so much about myself and where I want to go in life. College can be a scary place, but overcoming those fears and just moving forward has been one of the most rewarding decisions of my life!

“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt