"the best is yet to be"

Tag, I'm It

2008-11-26T17:43:00.000-08:00

Two posts in one day after a long break! Here we go...

4th folder in My Photos, 4th picture...

This is a scanned image of me and my friend Tawni before prom in 2006.

Second, 16 Random Things About Me. I originally did this on Facebook, so I'll just copy it onto here.

1. I talk to myself when I'm alone, and have gotten caught many times.
2. I wish I was athletic.
3. One time I accidentally ate a bath fizzle. I looked like I had rabies for about ten minutes.
4. I'm a nervous nail-biter.
5. I am afraid of - get this - BED BUGS. They'll mess with your head long after they're gone.
6. I have a burning desire to go on America's Next Top Model.
7. I'm a weeper. I cry at nearly everything. I have the annoying spiritual "gift" of feeling other people's pain and happiness.
8. I'm an official member of the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). Long name, important cause.
9. It bothers me when people say "Man-aise" instead of "Mayo-naise"
10. I will do anything to avoid confrontation.
11. I'm a walking contradiction - a cynic looking for love.
12. The past many years, I have put up and decorated the Christmas tree at my house. The year I wasn't living here, we didn't have one.
13. I have a hard time ceasing laughter. When I find something funny, it sets itself on repeat in my head and I go on for so much longer than everyone else in the room.
14. I think getting ready is the most boring process ever. That's why I usually do the bare minimum at the last minute.
15. I DETEST Coldplay.
16. I don't know why, but I have really bad hearing, so speak up, young man!

8 Things:

8 Favorite Shows:

1. Gilmore Girls

2. America's Next Top Model

3. Scrubs

4. How I Met Your Mother

5. Malcom In The Middle

6. Sabrina The Teenage Witch

7. Home Improvement

8. The Office

8 Things I Did Yesterday:

1. Got a cavity filled.

2. Went to work.

3. Made 5 batches of ice cream.

4. Ate pizza with my mom.

5. Decorated 7 cakes and 2 pies.

6. Play The Sims 2

7. Hung Santa Claus in my car.

8. Made and decorated a little cake for a missionary whose birthday is on Thanksgiving.

I do not have a very eventful life right now.

8 Favorite Restaurants:

1. Costa Vida

2. Cheesecake Factory

3. Torreros

4. Brick Oven

5. Panda Express

6. Wendy's

7. Burger Supreme

8. Meal Time - for the fries.

8 Things I Am Looking Forward To:

1. Not having to work tomorrow!

2. Finishing my Christmas shopping.

3. Christmas itself.

4. Quitting Marble Slab and going back to school.

5. Taking art classes.

6. Turning 20, so I can stop saying, "I'm almost 20."

7. Being able to talk to my Elder again.

8. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince coming out!

8 Things On My Wish List:

1. Rock Band

2. To complete my Gilmore Girls collection with the last 4 seasons.

3. A Christmas miracle :)

4. A snow day.

5. Infinite knowledge.

6. To never, ever need glasses.

7. Perfect teeth.

8. Negative fifty pounds.

Now here are my 8 tags to complete all 3 tag-ful games!

Wendy, Kelly, Brennan, Ronda, 5, 6, 7, 8. If you read my blog, consider yourself tagged!

Thank God For Answered Prayers!

2008-11-26T17:31:00.000-08:00

My job at the creamery requires me to complete all production: ice cream, cakes (including packing and decorating), and sometimes cones, if the Saturday lead doesn't get to them. There are certain professional cakes called DecoCakes that we also sell, but I have never been trained in decorating those. My boss has always done those herself. Honestly, I don't know why we even sell these cakes. None of them ever turn out that pretty and we hardly have any of the supplies and sets that we advertise, because no one is a professional cake-decorater, but we do.

This week has been busy. With half days at the schools, running out of over ten flavors the weekend prior, and 15 cake orders, I haven't been able to read or play on the computer like I usually do here. Today, I was planning on coming in, finishing what I didn't yesterday, and relaxing the rest of the time.

Nope.

As I was opening the fridge to get stuff for another cake I was packing, I saw an order on the fridge for a DecoCake due. I looked at the date.

Wednesday, November 26.

I felt my nerves rise. Please be later, please be later, I prayed as I scanned the order.

Due at 12:00 PM.

I looked at my phone. 1:03 PM.

My nerves rose to a full panic. I began dropping things and running around the store, ranting to myself. "I don't know how to decorate this cake! Why didn't [my boss] do it?! She knew this order was due today! She's known about if for weeks! Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap." It went on as I prepped the cake for decorating with shaking hands. I ran around the store, still raving to myself, searching for the directions to the cake. To my luck, the directions were lost in the pile of mess that were my thoughts, because I was still panicking. I quickly grabbed a picture of what the cake should look like and tried my best to imitate the picture to the best of my ability.

As I barely started settling down, my thoughts became coherent again, and I was inspired to say a prayer. The entire hour it took me to decorate the cake, I never stopped praying and begging Heavenly Father to help me with the cake and to please, please, please, make those picking it up be late.

As soon as I finished the cake, I went into a corner and thanked Heavenly Father that I was able to finish, and that my cake ended up looking semi-decent (I am aware that there are two Cinderellas on the cake, but Belle is MIA.). They picked it up at 3:15 PM. All I can feel right now is gratitude for a loving Heavenly Father.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Kitty Cat? "Oh No"!

2008-09-12T09:36:00.000-07:00

Sigh. I've been tagged. Here are the 6 random things about me:

1) When I was in the 3rd grade, I won a literature contest with the following poem:

Kit-kitty cat
You are not fat
You are not fat
Cause you're a cat.

Kit-kitty poo
You are cute too
You are not fat
Cause you're a cat.

Kit-kitty sweet
You are so neat
You are not fat
Cause you're a cat.

Nice judges, right? Wrong. I was the only one who entered.

2) For a few years while we lived in Utah, a bunch of the families from our ward and close friends would take a summer trip down south. We would usually camp, but one year we stayed one night in a motel. The room the bishop and his family stayed in had a very bad case of bed bugs. Ever since, I have had a paranoia about bed bugs. The crazy side of me checks her mattress frequently.

3) I love the drums. I just love them. I admire good drummers - as well as thinking they're sexy, because most of them are - and if I had a drum set, I think I would play non-stop until I was good. I think that's one reason why my parents would never get me one. They had enough of my noise from my Bop-It. Speaking of that...

4) I am the Bop-It master. I have played Bop-It consistently until it had nothing left for me to Bop. I got so many in a row after about 30 minutes straight that it made a really annoying whistling noise for 10 minutes, letting the entire neighborhood in on my victory. After that, my mom made me put the Bop-It away.

5) I'm a nostalgic pack-rat. It's very hard for me to get rid of things that have even the slightest bit of sentimental value. For years, I kept every single note and letter ever written to me. I had 6 worn-out and over-flowing binders full of them, but when I got home from school, I decided it was time for at least them to go. Most of them were short "Hi Val, how are you? Me I'm fine. I'm in English and bored and thought I'd write to say hi, so hi! Bye!"s anyways.

6) I am on the OK Go "Oh No" special edition DVD. Seriously. No kidding. Only about 9 seconds, and you can't tell it's me. But it's me. This is the video featured:

Jessica, Kirsten, Katrina, and I put over 30 hours into that dance and video. We also all have trophies that say "I Lost the OK Go Dance Contest." What an honor.

OK, so there's my submission. My six people are Dad and Lani, because they're the only people who read my blog that haven't already been tagged.

Portfolio Addition

2008-09-06T20:51:00.001-07:00

The following was a poem I wrote when I was 15 in my 10th grade English class. The assignment was to write about when we felt the happiest in our lives. It has no title.

Life was more than school and money at fourteen.

Papers glide contently through the hallway.

I whiz by them, my eyes fixed on the double doors.

Three,

Two,

One,

I can breathe again.

Golden hair

always in my face and I cling to my stomach

The worried brick wall rushes to my side

As I double up in laughter

The Clorox-dotted sky weighed us down to the grass,

The desperate blades tickling their way in our ears,

Wrapping their long, thin arms around our necks,

Gently caressing our clammy, bare feet.

Our busy lives seemingly smooth and endless

Lying together on the grass

Watching the branches tell their story with animation

I wasn't too old to climb it,

But old enough to recognize what pleasures I found

Just letting laughter clear my senses.

Comment Courtesy

2008-08-31T23:00:00.000-07:00

Hey people!!
I would really appreciate some comments every once in a while.
Although, thank you MOM and DAD for their comments.

Maybe Our Parents Were Wrong.

2008-08-31T22:47:00.001-07:00

Here's another piece from my profile. It comes from the October 2006 issue of the Tahoma Times. As a quick clarification, I do not detest spinach anymore.

Maybe Our Parents Were Wrong.

As a child, I was commanded daily at the dinner table to eat my vegetables. I'd squirm in my high chair, my face purple from crying at a decibel that still holds its position in the Guinness Book of World Records. But no matter how true I made the stereotype of five year olds, my mother would not let me leave the table until I finished all my greens.

Greens have always disgusted me, especially spinach. There aren't many ways you can eat spinach, and of all of those ways, it's always going to be disgusting. My mom always steamed it, making the leaves feel like snot as they cleared a clean path to your stomach. She would let me coat them in salad dressing to cover up the taste, but no matter what I did, dinner always ended with the tragedy of the final swallow.

"See?" my mom would say as I gasped for air and continued to cry. "Spinach won't kill you." But new evidence proves that she could have been wrong every single time.

Investigators have tied over 183 E. coli cases to fresh packaged spinach, including the death of a 77-year old woman in Wisconsin. Washington and Oregon are some of the twenty-two states where cases have been reported. Stores everywhere are throwing spinach directly off the shelf because it isn't yet certain which brand has the deadly bacteria.

"In dealing with every fresh produce E. coli outbreak in the last five years around the country, this appears to be the largest one I've seen, and I'm very concerned," attorney Bill Marler tells Seattle King 5 News.

Children everywhere can rest in peace as grocery stores avoid selling packaged spinach. I, personally, can sleep at night knowing that my mom won't be force-feeding it to me the following day.

Annoyance of the Week: #1

2008-08-29T23:28:00.000-07:00

Unnecessary reiterated conversations.

As a guilty pleasure, I do like to eavesdrop on select conversations. It gives me endless material to mock. In some situations, it's impossible not to eavesdrop on the particularly loud. But some forced phatic ends up being pointless and annoying.

The following is an actual conversation overheard during my shift at Hollywood Video:

XX: Have you seen this movie?
XY: No.
XX: Well, I have it. It was so funny. I bought it and my mom rented it and came home and I said, "Mom, did you rent that?" and she said "Yes." and I said "I have it." It was so funny.

The continual repetition of the story that her mom was oblivious to the fact that XX owned the movie she rented makes XX appear completely unintelligent. And I have to wonder for myself: was it really so funny?

The Sky-Scraper

2008-08-17T00:51:00.000-07:00

This is another page from my portfolio. It's a poem I wrote when I was 16, inspired by the TV show Heroes.

Extravagant and towering with shiny, black glass,
it stands still as people rush past in their
exotic taxi cabs and on
high-heeled designer shoes,
oblivious to what it contains inside or
why
pin-striped business suits taper through the blurred
rotating doors.
To the man standing at the top,
they all mean
Nothing;
just pin-points and lifeless cars
driving the same
route
and never changing.
To the man standing at the top,
they all mean
Nothing
as he falls forward
and takes a different
route.

Fruitful Events

2008-08-10T23:53:00.000-07:00

I am a nerd. Really. But I'll save you grief and pain by not giving you a list of reasons why - just one. I have a portfolio of nearly everything I've written. Most of the recent stuff hasn't been added for time reasons, but these are the pieces I am proud of. I thought it would be fun to share a few of them.

This is a fairy tale I wrote when I was 13. I titled it "Fruitful Events."

Carson Confident cheered as his name was selected for fairy godfather privileges. Imagine! Carson, a fairy godfather! His wings, half the size of his body, flapped quickly in all the excitement and he hovered above all the other twelve-million fairies in the over-crowded conference room.

Penelope Prideful, the leader of all fairies, clicked a button on her podium and revealed a picture of a little boy on the large white screen behind her. His short, blonde hair was extremely messy. His cheeks were round and airbrushed slightly pink. His lips and eyes were smiling, full of spirit.

"Easy!" Carson called out a little too loud.

"Easy?" Penelope asked with a surprised look on her face. "What do you mean by 'easy'?"

Carson blushed and flew up to the stage. "I bet this child is full of wishes! Judging by the look on his face, I bet he'll want really, really big ones!"

Penelope raised one of her perfect eyebrows and folded her arms. "Oh really!"

Carson stepped forward confidently and raised his chin. "Yes, I believe so!"

Sighing, Penelope handed him a map on how to reach this child. "You better get on it. Flying to Boston won't be easy. Of course, I bet I could do it..."

Carson walked out the doors and onto Fairy-way 79. "I bet I could do it," he mimicked, looking at the map. According to the large piece of paper in his tiny fairy hands, Boston was seven million and three miles away from Fairy World. He let out a low whistle and switched his wings into high-speed so he could get there within five weeks.

About two days into his journey, Carson came upon a grassy, jade planet. Sprouting from the round forest was a rainbow. It stretched across the sky and out of sight. Carson examined his map and found "St. Patrick's Paradise: 2,924 miles."

Carson began to slow down and sat on the rainbow for a short rest. It was a shiny, smooth structure. He admired how a rod only about a meter long could shine for miles and miles. His eyes felt droopy, so he laid down on its warm, hazy mist and closed his eyes. No sooner than he had dozed off, the rainbow began to curve. Before his wings could react, he was sliding down it swiftly. Trying not to yell and draw the whole planet's attention, he held his breath before he dove into the empty, black pot at the end. He landed with a loud gong and stood up, holding the vibrating edges.

When his head stopped ringing, he began to look around suspiciously. "Isn't the pot at the end of the rainbow supposed to be filled with gold?" he asked himself. He shook his head and flew out of the pot.

"What are you doing there?" a high, sharp voice shouted. Carson saw a short, fat leprechaun hopping over to him. His overcoat was green and stretched over his fat belly. A big, bronze buckle fastened his tan pants. There were two large purple patches at the knees. A green top hat sat atop his orange head. His shows reflected the rainbow above. Carson looked from the empty pot and back to the leprechaun and heard an alarm go off in his head. "You're not supposed to be near there!"

The leprechaun stood next to Carson and stared him bleakly in the face. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the precious pot of gold was as dry as the Sahara desert.

"Aye!" The leprechaun grabbed his top hat, revealing a bald head. "Saints and clovers!" He began yelling a bunch of mumbo-jumbo, jumping up and down, pointing to the pot. All of a sudden, he stopped jumping. His eyes shrunk to slits and he focused on Carson. "You took the gold..."

"I don't know what happened to it," Carson said quickly.

"You took the gold!" The leprechaun's eyes grew. "You took it all!" He flipped his hat upside down and pulled out a pinch of multicolored sand.

"I didn't take the gold!" Carson tried to argue. But the leprechaun softly blew the sand at Carson before he could convince him that it wasn't him.

Just then, Carson became surrounded by tall four-leaf clovers. Where am I? he thought. He tried to move his wings, but then he realized he didn't have wings...or legs...or arms! He rolled himself through the clovers and bumped into a giant shiny shoe. He took one good look into it. He didn't recognize himself; all he saw was a pear with eyes and a mouth. Wait a minute...I'm a piece of fruit!

He rolled onto his back (or what he thought was his back) and gazed up at the leprechaun. His face was completely shadowned as he gazed down upon the pear. A cackling laugh shook the earth, rolling Carson all over the place.

The leprechaun picked him up and carried him over to a tall, wide oak tree. In the center of the trunk was a circle with a knob. The leprechaun turned the knob, opened a door and set Carson in, closing it behind him.

Carson squeaked, "I didn't take your gold!" He turned around and saw about fifty more pieces of fruit gathered around him. There were apples, oranges, grapes; he was the only pear.

"Um, hello," Carson said as calmly as he possibly could.

"What were you?" A grapefruit in front asked him. "I mean, before the leprechaun got to you."

"A fairy," he gulped. "What were you?"

"A sphinx," said the grapefruit, "one of the rarest creatures in the universe. I came here to take a nap after taking a message to the Land of Bubbles. Let me guess, he accused you of stealing his gold?"

Carson nodded.

"He's at it again," said a lemon.

"Don't worry," cooed the grapefruit. "He does this to everyone. We just have to figure out a way to stop him."

"Why does he do it?" Carson asked.

There was a long pause, and then an apple chimed in. "He likes his fruit. Leprechauns are crazy, anyways."

Caron's eyes almost overtook his whole curvy body. All the juice rushed from his head, making his top feel large and light. "He eats us?"

"Well," said a grape, "yeah, if we don't go bad first."

All the air escaped Carson as he began banging himself on the door.

"Stop it!" said the grapefruit. "You'll bruise yourself and you might get a sliver! Fruits don't heal. We dry up."

Carson backed away from the door and felt a cold liquid running down his belly. He took a look and saw a clear juice slipping off his curve. "Do something! I'm bleeding!"

"Sorry," said an orange. "There's nothing we can do; we don't have hands."

"When's the next time Ol' patrick is coming for more of us?" asked the grapefruit.

"In twenty-two minutes," said the honeydew, who was once a psychic.

"Okay," said the grapefruit. "We'll be ready."

They planned their escape for what seemed close to hours. Just when they had their plan ready, the doorknob twisted. The grapefruit whispered to Carson, "Here we go!"

The door swung open and there stood the leprechaun. He reached in and grabbed a mango. Before he could bite into her, she let out of a boiling scream. Grapes, using their mouths, linked together onto the grapefruit like a long tail. The grapefruit jumped and hit the leprechaun smack on the eye. The grapes wrapped around the leprechaun's neck so they couldn't throw the grapefruit off so suddenly. He dropped the mango and tried to grab the grapefruit off his eye, but the the grapefruit opened his mouth and bit the leprechaun's nose. He yelped while squeezing the grapefruit.

"Now!" yelled an orange.

Carson jumped onto three oranges stacked up and bounced up to the leprechaun's head, pushing off his hat. The dust flew out of the hat, turning all the fruit back into what they were originally. Not only that, but it turned the leprechaun into a banana.

An elf, who was once the mango, picked up the banana, peeled it and shoved it in her mouth. Due to excessive gagging, she almost couldn't get him down. "Serves him right."

The dwarves, which were exremely good at healing, sealed up Carson's cut (which was as small as a paper cut). "Well," said Carson, "it was nice to meet you all, but I've got to get to my fairy godson."

The sphinx patted Carson on the back. "May your days be long and full of fruitful events." Cason nodded and began flying away, eager to meet his new godchild.

At Least Temporarily.

2008-08-10T23:32:00.000-07:00

My two jobs say a lot about me. I mean, where else should a sugar addict with an ever-growing list of To-See Movies be placed in the employment field?

For starters, Hollywood Video. There are a few downers - there are some with every job - like the fact that all my hours are nightly-based and I've never been big in customer service or sales - being an unconditional recluse - but I do truly enjoy the job. I have a lot of fun with the people I work with, and the free rentals are a gigantic benefit. Occasionally we have a themed weekend - Hawaiian, Sports, etc - which are always fun, because I get a weekend to wear jeans. Before my second job, some weeks I would have the second most hours of the entire crew (the first being the manager). But now I'm just on for one night a week.

My second job satisfies another habit of mine. I am the new assistant manager at Marble Slab Creamery. It's the original Coldstone, except we make our own ice cream on the premises. Not only do I get free ice cream, but I work full-time morning hours mostly by myself. I'm not completely trained because I just started, but I think I'll like it a lot once I get the hang of things.

It makes a big difference when you actually like the job you're going to. I don't plan to stay with this routine for a long time, but for temporary positions, I can say I am enjoying myself.

Five Reasons Why

2008-07-30T14:02:00.000-07:00

Five reasons why I'm convinced that my cat is more kiddie than kitty.

5. She has to be the center of attention in every situation. Whether I'm making the bed, reading, eating, or trying to take a nap, if my attention isn't focused entirely on her, she tries to make it so. She'll jump on the bed while I'm putting sheets on it. She'll push my book from behind or try to get between me and the book. If my eyes are closed, she'll hop right on top of me. Whatever the case, it revolves around her.

4. She needs to know where her "mommy" is at all times. I'm not her mommy, but she still needs to know where I am always. Immediately, if she comes inside and I'm not in my room, she'll roam the hallway meowing until I respond to her so she can find me.

3. Insists on eating more sweets than her good food. She has actually stopped eating her own food. Every time we go in the kitchen, she runs towards the closet and meows and begs for someone to give her a cat treat.

2. Has to have things done her way. Katie won't let you pet her in any convenient way. She walks around, trailing far away from you, and won't hold still for even a second. She doesn't like where you set her, even if where it's usually where she'll sleep, she has to move.

1. Learns how to get what she wants faster through being a pest. Katie used to sit on me when she wanted out of my room in the middle of the night. When that stopped waking me, she would "hit" me in the face. She would use her paw and tap me until I woke up. When that stopped waking me, she started pulling me hair. She would grab a mouthful of my hair and yank. Once she figured out that that was the only thing that was going to work, she resulted to doing only that.

Speak of the devil, here she comes poking her nose around now.

The Summer Sends Its Love

2008-06-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

As a participant in this human race, I neither lead nor trail as I jog steadily and watch many successors pass me by. After observation and my own success of gaining the purple participation ribbon, I firmly believe that no one will be content in whatever their current situation might be. Our minds are fickle. We refuse to accept our surrounding. We are never considering that maybe the impossible might come if we just wait out the now.

Well, this is now. And we are stuck waiting.

No one can ever be happy with the weather. It is either too hot, too cold, too gray, too bright, too steady, too unpredictable. In our current case, we are too hot, wishing for it to be too cold, knowing full well that once it is this coming winter, we will be right back in the process of wishing to be where we are now.

As I'm writing this, I, too, am wishing for the bitter cold. At least there is a way to escape that. Not to mention the cold season being more romantic than the heat. Two lovers sitting near a fireplace, snuggling close to feel each other's body heat is fancied much more than the sticky cups of their hands constantly refilling with sweat, their clothing damp and clinging to their skin from both the sweat from their body and the extra liquid from wiping their hands on them every so often.

Our hair clings to our foreheads, swimming in its own pool. People lock themselves up in their homes, crowding around the only small, portable fan left in Wal-Mart, exposing much more skin than anyone would care to see. Showers are extended, pools are refilled, and hoses are positioned in laps as people wait for dusk.

And people cry. They constantly complain about the dreadful heat wave. People spend hundreds and thousands on home air conditioners because they can't hold through the seven measly days a year that the temperature in Seattle will exceed ninety.

As I lock myself up with everyone else and worship Otterpops and my refrigerator, guilty of exposing my purple-patterned underwear, I laugh at all the people who claim this to be their favorite season, because they end up being the usual complainers who are just trying to make it through their "most wonderful time of the year." They are the amateurs who go to the Thai restaurant, thinking they can handle the three-star spiciness and run to the bathroom, red-faced and watery-eyed.

The only person able to deem this as their favorite season would be the man reeling in the dough from his increased sales in Otterpops.

Don't claim that you can't handle more than a one-star season.

Roots Planted Once Again

2008-06-15T20:46:00.000-07:00

Greetings! I guess I owe another blog entry for the select few that read this. My dad got after me for not blogging in a long time.

Well, I'm back home now and all moved in. Just trying to make something of myself. I'm working at Hollywood Video and interviewing for a second job this week. I've had a lot of fun being home. It's been great hanging out with my friends from high school. College has changed all of us, I think. High school was like a really short and irritating leash, for lack of a better analogy. Everybody was so stressed and frustrated and irritable from lack of sleep and that caused a lot of disagreements. For clarification, we didn't fight all the time. Most of the time we got along. But, being high school and human, there were a couple of times when we made each other mad, and sometimes it was really hard to let go. But the removal of the leash has been the most relieving thing, in all those areas, and all the past drama was forgotten. Literally. It's been really nice to just hang and have fun.

But, the time has come where I have to actually use responsibility again, no matter how much I want to delay growing up. Wish me luck, citizens. I'm definitely going to need it.

Give Them Room

2008-04-22T13:05:00.000-07:00

Last week, I went to donate plasma so I would have enough to go to California. I've donated before and I know I have nothing to be afraid of, but each time I go to check in, my heart rate it always higher than they'll accept. I just sit for a while and try to breathe before they take it again and admit me. My guess would be that I'm nervous due to past experiences.

The first time I went, I had been there all day as they checked my identity and gave me a physical. When they punctured me and the tube started sucking my blood out, I watched the TV on the ceiling and tried to think about something else. Around cycle 3 (for those who don't know, the machine takes a little bit of blood, takes the plasma out, puts the blood back, and does it again), my blood pressure started dropping. I got really hot and clammy, I couldn't breathe very well, and I was feeling dizzy. I was trying to hold my feet up in the air and wiping my face when one of the doctors asked me if I was okay. They stopped the machine, gave me crackers, 3 juice boxes, and a water bottle, and had me lay for a long time with my feet up until I felt like it was okay for me start again. I toughed it out until I was finished because I just wanted to go home and sleep it off, but they wouldn't let me stand up until the color was back in my lips. Ever after that, I still went back because it's an easy source of income.

I don't have problems donating anymore. I go, sit, get my money, and leave completely fine - except for last time.

I sat down and was watching TV while the doctor got me all set up. I thought the needle hurt more than it usually did, but I ignored it. Not long after, the doctor was yelling, "Uhh...could someone come over and look at this for me?"

I looked down at my arm. Around the needle, it was blue and swelling rapidly. Out of complete shock, I got dizzy and felt like I was going to throw up. The doctor in charge came over and examined my arm. My flow was completely fine and there wasn't any blood being ejected into my muscle, so she said I would be fine and if it started to sting to let her know. It didn't sting, but I still felt sick that there was a golf ball-sized blood pocket on my arm. They brought me an ice pack and some water, put my feet up, and I focused on the TV. When I was finished, she wrapped my tender arm up and sent me on my way, apologizing for what happened (they think she came close to a tendon), and told me it would be good if I didn't come back until the bruise was completely gone.

When I got home, the bandage turned the giant blood pocket into two. I put ice on it all night and by the next day, they were gone and replaced with a beautiful, purple and black bruise. The bruise continued to grow until it was 5 inches by 3 inches. It's just now starting to fade.

When I tell people what happened, they ask me whether or not I was mad at the doctor. One guy even told me I should make them pay me extra for the injury and my disability to go back. But honestly, I don't find any reason to be mad at her.

Every human makes mistakes, and believe it or not, doctors are humans too. Things can happen that are beyond human control. In my situation, all the possible reasons why I swelled up were not the doctor's fault. It's not like she was using the needle as a dart and trying to bulls-eye by vein. The doctor in charge said that on warmer days, people tend to swell up but they're completely fine.

I'd imagine how much pressure is put on a surgeon. One twitch and they can take away a life. In English, we're currently studying the book Complications by surgeon Atul Gawande. I find the book fascinating and share much sympathy for caring doctors. But what I've learned is that doctors, who are no more perfect than any other person, are given no room for mistakes. The situation is a little more complicated, seeing that they are dealing with human lives and a careless mistake that takes away a life should not be overlooked, but small mistakes, such as not hitting the vein the first time and leaving the patient with a bruise, should not be a good enough reason to start a lawsuit.

People have become less and less understanding as our species continues to advance. Tempers rage when a cashier accidentally rings an item up twice or when policies don't coincide with what the customer wants. I have seen people make complete fools out of themselves by taking out their frustration on the employees. I want to tell them to take a step back and think about what small misdemeanor they're getting to riled up about, but in a world where everyone is wrapped up in themselves, I know it won't do me any good.

Best Week Ever?

2008-04-21T12:53:00.000-07:00

You may have crashed again after a hard party, Lindsay Lohan, but we're about to find out who had the best week ever!!

A few of my friends and I decided to split gas prices and drive to California for the weekend. We left Thursday night and drove through the night without any unexpected complications. Arriving in California on Friday, we headed to the beach where we almost caught up on the 2 hours of sleep we were running on. I, being the oblivious blonde that I am, forgot to put on sunscreen and am therefore suffering from the worst sunburn of my life. It ranges from the back of my calves up to the top of my thighs and my shoulders. It has restricted so much movement you'd think I was handicapped. It's slowly getting better. I can now put pants on without screaming!

Saturday morning, we woke up and Chase and Don dropped the girls off in Hollywood while they went and hung out with friends and family. Before they totally left us, we drove past the Scrubs set at an abandoned hospital and tried every option to get around to take a picture of it. As we were inching around the gate, the security guard came out of his little box to talk to us.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Oh...nothing," I said. "Actually, do you think we could get back there for just a minute?"

"Why do you want to go back there?"

"Because it's the Scrubs set."

"That's the Scrubs set?"

"Yeah."

"Nah...who told you that?"

"Nobody."

"Why do you think it's the Scrubs set?"

"We saw it across the street."

"You hopped the fence?"

"No...we were at those houses and we saw it through the trees."

"How did you find it?"

"We just saw it."

"I see. Well...I guess I could let you back for a minute."

He then guided us through the parking lot to the front door of the Sacred Heart Hospital and took our pictures. When a car drove up to his stand, he started running towards it and yelled, "Start heading this way! I'm not supposed to let anybody back here!" The entire day, Heather and I kept thinking back to when we stood exactly where the Scrubs actors frequently stand and renewed our excitement.

We headed towards downtown Hollywood where we spent the next seven hours. Pictures can say a lot more than I can, plus they're more fun to look at than read some boring blog, so here's the rest of our trip:

(In the Virgin Records Mega Store)

(There were character impersonators all over the streets.
These guys practically kidnapped me to take a picture with them.
He told me to point the gun at him,
called me "senorita"
and kissed my hand. It was weird)

(I'm putting this one on for you, Mom)

(This is where they host the Academy Awards)

(Towards the end of the night, we were hanging out at the
Highland-Hollywood mall and a guy came up to us,
told us we were pretty,
and offered us VIP passes to this club.
We turned them down.)

Apparently, This Is My Soundtrack

2008-04-15T00:10:00.000-07:00

This was fun!

If your life was a movie, what would the soundtrack be?

How to do it:
1. Open your music library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc).
2. Put it on Shuffle.
3. Press Play.
4. For every question, type the song that's playing.
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button.
6. Be honest.

Opening Credits: Every Day I Love You Less and Less - Kaiser Chiefs

Waking up: Self-Serving With A Purpose - MxPx

First Day of School: Day Tripper - the Beatles

Falling in love: Somewhere Else - Travis

Fight Song: Get Busy Living Or Get Busy Dying - Fall Out Boy

Breaking Up: Over - Sugarcult

Prom: The Most Depressing Song - The Get-Up Kids

Life is Good: God Don't Make Lonely Girls - the Wallflowers

Driving: Readyfuels - Anberlin

Mental Breakdown: Sugar, We're Going Down - Fall Out Boy

Flashback: Marvelous Things - Eisley

Getting Back Together: Publish My Love - Rogue Wave

Wedding: Heaven - Talking Heads

Final Battle: Tell Her Tonight - Franz Ferdinand

Death Scene: The Coast Is Always Changing - Maximo Park

Funeral Song: Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da - the Beatles

End Credit: Reason To Believe - Dashboard Confessional

Some were appropriate, some didn't make much sense, but it was all good fun!

Dr. Phil Needs Therapy

2008-04-13T12:42:00.000-07:00

I hate teenage girls.

In March, Victoria Lindsay, a 16 year old girl living in Florida, was lured to a house by 6 other teenage girls where they beat her profusely. She suffered a concussion, loss of sight in her left eye, loss of hearing in her left ear, and numerous bruises around her entire body. She was beat to the point of unconsciousness and upon awakening, the girls continued to beat her while 2 boys watched at the door. They would have gotten away with it, had they not videotaped it and posted it on YouTube and Myspace for fame.

I cannot even imagine the embarrassment this poor girl has been going through.

My brother asked me why I was getting all worked up over this, seeing as girls beat up other girls all the time. However, I don't think it reaches this level often. I am absolutely disgusted with these teenagers, who hacked into Victoria's myspace account and found out she had been talking to a boy the girls had interest in before beating her. Girls have always been destructive and hurtful, but this was taken way too far.

Upon authoritative questioning, the girls laughed together about the incident and whined about missing cheerleading practice. They were taken into custody for kidnapping and battery with a $30,000 bail. Their sentence is still being determined as the argument as to whether or not they deserve an adult sentece is shot around. Recently, Dr. Phil paid bail on one of the girls to interview her, only to back down on the idea.

I've never been very good at strongly voicing my opinion and arguing different facts to persuade. I go to extremes to avoid an argument about pointless things, therefore, I have a hard time filling an entire blog about an issue that is much more than "this is bad."

But, this is bad.

First of all, Dr. Phil. This pointless talk show is nothing more than that: pointless; the only talk show beating it in level of stupidity being the Tyra show. Dr. Phil has helped people in the past, I am sure, however, recently he has focused less on what is going to help people and more on what will get people to pay attention to him. He is a self-righteous idiot who either doesn't think about what he is doing or saying or thinks quite a bit about it, plotting to come up with measly excuses for his well-meditated actions. "Britney, I'm sorry I bagged on you, I shouldn't have done that." "Rosie, even though I still think you are abusive, I shouldn't have worded it the way I did." "I don't think doing this interview would be a good idea. Let's pull it."

Dr. Phil's idea to interview the girl only goes to show his desire for higher ratings (and ability to file the bail in his taxes, increasing his return). Who wants to hear her story, anyway? There is no underlying factor as to why this girl chose to beat Victoria Lindsay nearly to death. We already know the obvious reason and we don't need to hear her forged regrets and apologies. Dr. Phil knows that very well, or should, since he is alledgedly a "doctor," but his actions show that he doesn't care.

After posting the bail and getting this girl out of jail, he changes his mind and decides not to do the story. Great thought process, Dr. Phil. Next time you decide to help a "felon" out of jail, make sure it's for a good and well-decided reason. A newspaper headline does not qualify. I wouldn't trust Dr. Phil to help me with my psychological issues if he can't handle his.

$30,000 to the family of the felon. $0 to the family of the victim. He sure knows who needs the compinsation for the horrible event.

I hate Dr. Phil.

First Flashback Friday

2008-04-04T12:58:00.000-07:00

Last night, out of sheer boredom, I took out the journal from my senior year of high school and decided to remind myself how good I have it now (only joking...or am I?) There is one entry from the very last day of school that means a whole lot to me, something that I think will always make me tear up when I think about.

Already stated, it was the last day of my senior year. In newspaper, Ms Agnew, the sophomores, and the juniors put their time into throwing a "Goodbye Seniors" party for us. The classroom lights were dimmed. The desks were pushed together to make a long table, which was covered in all sorts of junk that will make you feel sick just looking at: pizza, about 5 different kinds of soda, cookies, chili cheese Fritos, and a gigantic cake that said "Congratulations!" Of course, I had a little of everything. We were all laughing and eating before Ms Agnew had us sit around the table.

Ms Agnew went around to all the seniors and said something personal to them. Not a lot of high school teachers would do that, but in newspaper, we were all one big family. Ms Agnew is also the most observant person I have met. She is able to interpret people, even when they're as shut off as I thought I was. Ms Agnew started crying and a couple girls in my class were crying, but I just sat and observed.

Then she got to me.

"At lot of you don't know Valerie very well because she's a quiet, calm girl, but she always produces amazing articles and they're not what's popular, but what she thinks people need. She's this girl that keeps to herself and what she does is so phenomenal that if you don't take the time to see her, it will go unnoticed. She is so composed and quiet and thoughtful and always reminds me to get back into place. She is truly and honestly my level and that's why I needed her back in newspaper."

After she had given us all a going away present, we all took turns standing up and saying something back to Ms Agnew. I was afraid to stand up, knowing exactly what I wanted to say and being positive I would cry. But I had been so reserved in class and never really said "thank you" to everything she had done, so I stood up after everyone had said what they wanted to say.

I had always said that I would be the most joyous person on the last day of high school, impatient to leave the double doors for the very last time. I told everyone I wasn't even sad about leaving, but I couldn't wait to have that diploma in my hands. I didn't think I would cry at all. But before I could even start talking, I started bawling.

"Most of you don't know me out of this class, but last year, I had a really hard time. I remember one day I was walking down the hallway and I was crying and then Ms Agnew walked by and that's when she asked me to come back to newspaper. Ms Agnew, I never told you this, but that was the moment I decided I could turn around." It was at this point where Ms Agnew had to bury her face in her hands. "You gave me hope. You give us all hope and I just want to thank you for everything you've done for us."

I sat down and the entire class was silent, aside from the sniffing. My friend Chris broke the silence. "I was doing so good. Dang it, Valerie," and he got up to get a kleenex. Everyone was crying. Then Ms Agnew said something that really, really (and in all cheesiness, my friends...) touched my heart. "What Valerie just gave me is the greatest gift anybody could have gotten."

After class, I went up to give her a hug goodbye. She whispered in my ear, "You are of incredible worth. Don't let anybody break you down." I think about that a lot.

I still left high school joyously. I was still so anxious for my graduation day to come that I felt nearly sick. Throughout the entire graduation rehearsal and the actual ceremony, I was all smiles. Ms Agnew was voted to speak, and when she started talking, I cried again. There was one thing she said that specifically sparked my tears, but I regretfully didn't write it down.

To Allison Agnew: I doubt that you read my blog, but you have changed more students' lives than any other teacher I have heard of. You have gotten to know each student at a deeper level than any other high school teacher would ever bother. You are the only thing I miss about high school.

Kill The Beast!

2008-03-29T06:53:00.001-07:00

I have had less than four hours of sleep.

Last night, my friend Brett and I stayed up watching TV until 2:30 am, but for some odd reason, I didn't actually lay down for bed until 3:30 am. I slept fine, but because of my tendency to drink tons of water, I was up again at 7:15 am to use the bathroom.

Our toilet is a beast. It's not a nice, home toilet. It's an extremely loud, roaring public-style toilet. When it flushes, it's louder than our shower. I hate it in so many ways.

I flush the toilet and while I'm washing my hands, I notice that it hasn't stopped screaming. Hardly able to keep my eyes open, I stand in the doorway of the bathroom and just watch the water swirl round and round and it wasn't going to stop. I closed the bathroom door, hoping something would happen and being too tired to deal with it, and went back to bed.

Ten minutes later, I was up again in frustration. That toilet was not stopping. I grab my phone and quietly tip to to the kitchen - unnecessary, because the toilet should have already waken Heather up anyways. But lucky for her, it didn't. I called On-Call Maintenance and a half hour later, a VERY nice man shows up to fix our toilet. As we speak, he's hitting the pipes with his wrench and the toilet still refuses to flush.

I'm tired.

Good Thing It's Not For Money!

2008-03-20T21:20:00.001-07:00

This year, I have gotten intensely into NCAA basketball. March Madness is here and I'm in my very first bracket pool. My bet is that it will end UCLA over Georgetown. UCLA has met my expectations, Georgetown hasn't played yet. But there is one team I am particularly embarrassed for.

Brigham Young University

This season, BYU has lost 7/34 games. They hold #1 in the MWC standings and #10 in the country. BYU not only has a higher ranking than Texas A&M, but their players have a higher game-point average! Texas A&M? Come on! They have had 5 losses in their last 7 games, and they still manage to beat them? This is the second year BYU has lost in the first round in March Madness. You think they'd remember the embarrassment from last year and push a little harder.

Texas A&M?????? TEXAS A&M?????????!!!!!!!!!???????????

However, major props to WSU, Duke, Notre Dame, Kansas, UNLV, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, Marquette, and UCLA. They've earned me 100 bracket points, but it's not enough! I'm only 3rd in my pool and I am somewhat embarrassed for myself for having faith in incompetent teams.

Slow Down!

2008-03-19T21:17:00.000-07:00

College in the spring. The sun is shining, the snow is melting, a heavy coat is no longer needed. The box elder bugs are back (which I don't mind) and the buses are less crowded. Everyone is happy - except for the box elder bugs part.

But I hate it. Everybody is starting relationships, getting serious, getting engaged.

That is, everybody except me.

I am the only one in my apartment that doesn't have a fiance or boyfriend. I don't even have an admirer. I haven't been driven to cynical, but it is very apparent that I'm the lone ranger. It's not like I want to rush a relationship and get engaged next week, next month, or even next year. I'm just really, REALLY tired of watching other people do it.

What is the hurry, anyways? What is the rush to marry the next guy who asks you out? The longer you date, the more sure you are that he is "The One" you want to be with for time and all eternity, the more you know each other. But now that you have graduated from high school and are moving into a bigger pool of drones, the pressure is on. Especially for Mormons. Find a guy, hook him, and make him your husband before any other girl can catch him. You panic when your classmates beat you to the alter. Getting married is not a race. Just because your friends do it doesn't mean you have to, too. Make it right. Make it mean something. Don't push marriage until you find another desperate guy who will ride along with you. One of my friends had been pushing marriage with her boyfriends so hard until she found a guy who had been looking for a wife for a long time. They got engaged after two weeks and were sealed. I wonder about her a lot. I wonder if she really, really loves him or if she did it just to get married. I wonder if she will feel the same way about him five years from now.

One of my roommates said she and her fiance first started talking marriage when "he said he didn't want to be tempted to mess up," so they got engaged. That's real promising!! Do it for the sex! I don't know a lot about relationships or marriage, but I'm 100% positive that marriage is not about having sex. If your marriage was driven only for that reason, it's not going to last long at all.

Infatuation is powerful and sometimes, very deceiving. That's why, just in my personal opinion, one of the most important of decisions of your life should be made with the most care you can give it. I do admit that I am not a romantic, but I do understand that the Lord sometimes lets you know early that the person you are dating is "right" for you. But that does not require a marriage one month later. I think you should make sure it's actually the Lord's doing instead of your desires overcoming your logic.

Honestly, I don't mind being the only single girl in my apartment. I know what I need in my life, and right now, it's not a distraction and a diamond ring. However, with the pressure of this lifestyle and environment, it took me a lot of time to get there. I do have the desire to be married and I'm excited to start a family of my own. I just want to make sure I'm making the "right" decision with the "right" guy at the "right" time. And I wish every rusher would too.

The Freshman Experiment

2008-03-06T20:36:00.001-08:00

50 Things I've Learned From My Freshman Year

1. If you sign up for a 7:30 AM class, you will never go other than test days.
2. Find locations of classes BEFORE you sign up for them. Having to make it all the way across campus in ten minutes is very inconvenient.
3. Get used to Cs and be proud of Bs!
4. Keep track of due dates. There are no reminders and no recovery.
5. Study even when you don't want to. If you don't, it will kick you in the face.
6. Pasta Roni gets really old really fast.
7. Get to the bus stop early. They are the most unreliable things on earth, and it's better to be early for a class than late.
8. On-campus housing is expensive and overrated!
9. Go out with any guy who will ask you. That's one less dinner you have to pay for.
10. Don't forget about books. Tuition and rent aren't the end of it. The mountain gets bigger.
11. If it's free, take it.
12. Wear comfortable shoes even if they look ugly. You'll regret it if they're cute stilettos and you've been standing in them for 6 hours.
14. Clean rooms make an easier study atmosphere.
15. Studying with friends always results in not studying.
16. If you miss one class, you'll most likely never go back.
17. Washing a shirt after every time you wear it is not an option. If it doesn't stink or have junk on it, you can wear it again. *This does not work with underwear, sicko*.
18. Pre-mission? Move along.
19. Turn your alarm clock off if you know you aren't going to get up. It's common courtesy.
20. You'll most likely find someone who is smarter than you in some way. So what?
21. Drink lots of water. It'll help keep you awake in really, really boring lectures.
22. Find something to make you laugh every day or don't even bother getting out of bed.
23. Start on all assignments early. You're no longer a nerd if you do it.
24. The Discovery channel rocks at 2 AM right after finals.
25. Make your room a reflection of you. Just have fun with it. You'll feel more comfortable there.
26. School spirit is necessary. If you don't have it, you will be shanked.
27. Learn to share. You give more, you get more!
28. BE COURTEOUS TO YOUR ROOMMATES.
29. You actually do move on. But it's ok to get homesick sometimes.
30. If someone pisses you off, confront them. You really don't have to live with that.
31. Some of the most fun activities cost $0 or less.
32. Get used to people getting engaged before you become a cynic.
33. It is so easy to cheat. But it is never worth it. (P.S. Don't cheat.)
34. Make a friend in every class. If you miss class, then you're backed up.
35. Sometimes the best naps are taken in the library. Except in the summer. Then they're better on the quad.
36. Explore campus. It's complex and it's better to know where everything is.
37. Always have a back-up pen.
38. Write in the margins. Then you won't have to read the entire book all over again.
39. If there is a bug in the house, who cares? Name it. I name them all Charlie.
40. You get more done if you don't have a boyfriend.
41. Institute is fun.
42. High school drama doesn't cease after high school, unfortunately.
43. Jobs get taken fast, so jump on it.
44. If you look stupid for a split second, it's no big deal. Fall asleep in the library with your mouth open. Slip on the ice and accidentally chuck your cell phone across the street. Get stuck in trees. You'll never see anybody ever again. (P.S. I have done all of those)
45. Midnight burger runs are really, really fun, but they make you really, really sick.
46. Just because a guy is 24 doesn't mean he's mature.
47. Be prepared for anything. Including 4 AM fire alarms.
48. Even if there's an activity you don't want to go to, go to it. There may be someone really, really stupid there that will make a really good story later. Plus, free food (see #11)
49. There is a dual use for almost anything.
50. DATING IS OVERRATED.

From The Depths Of Hell

2008-02-26T19:43:00.000-08:00

This is a picture I drew in my creative arts class. My professor and his TA. *These are actual quotes*
Ballam:
Here are some translations. It's hard to read the pencil.
"Where is your uncle George? He's in HELL. You're ALL going to hell!"
"Ym eb lliw uoy cisum snoinim"
"Do not college $200, go directly to HELL."
"Can you hear the devil's whips?"
Brandon (creepy boy in the flames):
"I take attendance."
Trapped Soul:
"Get me out of the firey pits of Ballam's lair!"

Heather and I hung it on our wall.

Rambling Monday

2008-02-25T17:02:00.000-08:00

I can deny it no longer: OK Go has been knocked off of the first-place pedestal.

I didn't think it was possible either! But there comes a time when you have to move on. I'm not going to lie and say OK Go isn't good, because they're still one of my absolute favorites. OK Go put on the best concert I have ever been to and each time I set my iPod to shuffle and it chooses OK Go, sometimes I go back and listen to the song again. But it's time to stop being biased and start being fair; House of Heroes has taken gold. They're that amazing. If you don't check them out, slap yourself on the face right now.

Between classes today, I went to library to edit one of my papers (which, coincidently, is about House of Heroes. :-D) and ducked in the bathroom on my way out. I drink a lot of water, like, a LOT of water. It seems like my thirst is never quenched, so I keep on refilling. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Therefore, I've gotten to know USU public restrooms pretty well. When I was washing my hands like any sanitary person would do, I noticed there were little strips of paper on the mirror. I dried my hands off and returned to the mirror to look at them.

"What do you like about your body today?"

"Count your blessings, not your blemishes."

"Life is too short to hate your body!"

Kudos to the first floor Merrill-Cazier library sanitation station. Too often are women phased by physical appearance. I know this first-hand. Medically speaking, I fall in the overweight category. Some days I'll look in the mirror and think "Is that really what I look like?" I don't like how my legs fit into pants. I have occasional self-esteem problems just like every other normal woman, and they don't get any better while Janice Dickenson is on the tube yelling at a perfectly fine girl because she gained a pound. Walking out of the library, I did feel a little bit better about myself (my pants really do look good on me today).

Here's a treat for all you parents out there: Kids-In-Mind. Kids in mind is a movie ratings website that will give you every detail of the content that gives it it's rating, while still keeping it clean. (For example, part of the review for Step Up 2 says "A teenage girl is shown in her bra as she changes clothes. Teenage girls wear low-cut, midriff tops that expose cleavage and abdomens. Teenage girls wear skimpy dance outfits exposing cleavage, bare arms and legs.") Heather and I had a really good laugh about this because some of the things are completely ridiculous (From 27 Dresses, "A man and a woman hug.") but it would come in handy when there's a movie you want to make sure is okay before you kids go see it...or even you.

Feel Safe?

2008-02-23T20:25:00.001-08:00

Tonight, since nothing else was on, I watched America's Most Wanted. One thing led to another and soon I was on www.city-data.com looking up the registered sex offenders in our area. My friend Brett and I had a pool going. He thought there were 2, I didn't think there were any.

The result?

39.

39 sex offenders in Logan, Utah!! Logan, our little town, the 5th safest town in America, has 39 sex offenders. That lead to my curiosity about how many were in Maple Valley. I thought there'd be 10.

The result?

5.

Here are some stats for Cache Valley:

Logan
Population 47,660
39 sex offenders - 0.08%
One sex offender for every 1,222 residents.

Brigham City
Population 18,463
28 sex offenders - 0.15%
One sex offender for every 659 residents.

Hyrum
Population 5,971
8 sex offenders - 0.13%
One sex offender for every 746 residents.

Total:
Population 72,094
75 sex offenders
0.12%

Here are some stats for King County:

Maple Valley
Population 16,440
5 sex offenders - 0.03%
One sex offender for every 3,288 residents.

Kent
Population 83,501
22 sex offenders - 0.02%
One sex offender for every 3,795 residents.

Renton
Population 58,534
44 sex offenders - 0.07%
One sex offender for every 1,330 residents.

Seattle
Population 582,454
477 sex offenders - 0.08%
One sex offender for every 1,221 residents.

Total:
Population 740,929
548 sex offenders
0.07%

Feel safe? I still do. There could be many lurking variables in this situation. Maybe past sex offenders like to move to isolated parts of the county. Maybe there are more registered sex offenders in Cache County than King County. The statistics are what they are, but just because I know about them doesn't change anything.

Not Quite Fiasco...

2008-02-21T11:03:00.000-08:00

I worked at Papa Murphy's in high school for two years. In the pizza business, as any other business, one of the most important things you need to remember is to listen to your customers. But, I guess not everybody knows that.

Receiver: "Thank you for calling 5-Buck pizza, home of the unlimited toppings. How may I help you?"

Valerie: "Hi, what is the difference between your wacky bread and cheesy bread?"

Receiver: "Wacky bread?"

Valerie: "Yes. It's on the menu."

Receiver: "Oh. Wacky bread is garlic butter and Parmesan and cheesy bread is garlic butter and cheese."

Valerie: "Okay. Can I get a large with Canadian bacon on all, olives on all, pineapple on half, and pepperoni on the other half?"

Receiver: *Long pause* "A what?"

Valerie: "Large..."

Receiver: "With ham and pineapple?"

Valerie: "No. A large with ham on ALL, olives on ALL, pineapple on HALF, and pepperoni on the OTHER half."

Receiver: "Is that everything?"

Valerie: "And I have a coupon for free cheesy bread."

Receiver: "A coupon?"

Valerie: "Yeah..."

Receiver: "For free cheesy bread?"

Valerie: "Yeah..."

Receiver: *Long pause* "...Okay...so that was a cheesy bread and a large pepperoni and pineapple pizza?"

Valerie: "No. A large ham and olive with pepperoni on half and pineapple on the other half."

Receiver: "And no cheesy bread?"

Valerie: "No, no, I want cheesy bread." *Speaking slowly now* "A large pizza...Canadian bacon and olives on ALL of it...then on ONE half I want pineapple...then on the OTHER half I want pepperoni."

Receiver: "Is that everything?"

Valerie: "Yes. Can you please repeat the order back to me?"

Now, I understand all situations this girl could be going through. It could be her very first day, she could be completely dyslexic or deaf and have a dog named "DURRRRRRAAEHEEEEEE," but after so long, I find it hard to have sympathies. The order is not average, yes, but it isn't complicated. It isn't in eights. I didn't ask for different toppings on every slice. Had she been writing my order down as we spoke on the phone, she probably could have gotten it right.

Receiver: "A large half pepperoni and ham, half olive and pineapple, and a cheesy bread."

Valerie: "No. Listen. Canadian bacon and olive on ALL. Pepperoni on HALF. Pineapple on the OTHER half."

Reciever: "Okay. So a large with canadian bacon and olive with pepperoni on one half and pineapple on the other half."

Valerie: "Yes."

The receiver proceeds to take my information and tells me the pizza will arrive in approximately 45 minutes. 45 minutes? Domino's could have done it in 30, as it's very well advertised, and they could on their busiest of nights. But on a Wednesday? Wednesday is possibly the slowest day in pizza history, aside Sunday, and by this point, my patience is shot. I had a dumpster full of homework, I was exhausted and hideous, like a sleep-deprived, "I-woke-up-ten-minutes-before-class" college student, and I was hungry. I didn't want to be played with.

The pizza is delivered. I sign, I play polite, and I carry the pizza to my bedroom. Opened?

Canadian bacon on all. Pineapple on all. Double olives and pepperoni on one half.

Listen to your customers.

Active Sleeper

2008-02-15T13:16:00.000-08:00

According to my roommate, I am very entertaining in my sleep. She says I mostly just mumble, but sometimes I will sing and sometimes I throw my pillow (very frustrating in the middle of the night, by the way, when I wake up without a pillow).

But my speech is starting to get defined.

"She works fourteen hours and only sleeps four. But she always makes time for her scuba diving class."

Yes. I did say that in my sleep. I wish I knew what I was talking about.

Given the Holiday

2008-02-13T20:22:00.000-08:00

Article featured in The Utah Statesman

The Best Places To Make Out On Campus

The Business building elevators. The Business building is the tallest building in the valley, meaning the elevators have the longest way to travel all the way to the top. Students can travel between the bottom floor and the eighth floor, which is the last floor accessible without an access key, giving them eight floors of time. The downside to this spot, one student said, is the interruptions that can happen if people get on the elevator.
Practice Rooms. Although an option available only to the next person on the schedule, a practice room can be a great place to hold a private session because of the nature of the room itself, closed off from everything else around it. Just be wary, most of the practice rooms have small windows.
Library. The top floor of the library, the perfect place for anyone studying on campus late at night. Just make sure to go far enough down the aisles of books so someone doesn't just happen to walk by.
Empty Classrooms. Any place void of people can make a great make-out place, especially classrooms, because it isn't likely someone would walk by and spot what is going on. Just make sure there isn't a class scheduled to interrupt the mood.
The Parking Garage. Top floor in the parking garage - an option available for those with cars, it is usually the least traveled of all the floors in the parking garage, and the option of starting the car and leaving quickly is always there. Just make sure it is after 9:30 p.m. or that make-out session is going to cost.
Stairwell. The stairwell on the north side of the library. The stairwell is an out of the way place that is used infrequently enough to make a great make-out place. The downside to this place, one student said, are the big windows into the stairwell, so just make sure you keep it close to the library wall to keep outsiders from getting a show.

Ten bucks says every single one of these places is occupied tomorrow.

In Loving Memory

2008-01-27T19:16:00.000-08:00

Every Latter-Day Saint has a specific prophet that they claim as "theirs." This was the prophet in which they found solace in for the majority of their lives; the prophet that they grew with. President Gordon B. Hinckley was "my" prophet.

Ten minutes ago, I was surfing Facebook, taking a break from my homework, when my roommate Heather came in. "President Hinckley died," she said mournfully. It took a minute for the information to register. I sat there, staring at her, and once I finally grasped what she was setting in front of me, it was nearly an outer-body experience.

I got out of my chair and relocated to the living room, where we flipped to every news station for their Breaking News report. I watched them with my roommates Heather, Ashlie, and Casey. I could tell everybody was trying not to cry. When it came to the point where I couldn't hold tears back any longer, I secluded myself in the bathroom and let it out.

President Gordon B. Hinckley lived a very long and productive life. He has fulfilled his mission here on earth and now gets the blessing to return and live with the Lord and his wife. It is more joyful than sad, in many different ways. It is just always a shock and a burden for those here on earth to lose someone so loved.

His words will never die. His influence was monumental. He will never be forgotten.

Scandal

2008-01-22T23:49:00.001-08:00

Utah State University has a tradition where every month underneath the full moon, if you stand on the A at midnight and kiss someone, you are officially a True Aggie. Tonight, I became a True Aggie.

I hadn't really been planning on it. I knew it was True Aggie night and it was party time with Lani and Shantae, where the subject happened to be brought up. We decided we wanted to go just to go, but as the night progressed, I started thinking that I would get up some guts and become a True Aggie. I mean, it's not that big of deal, right? You go there and find someone who wants to be a True Aggie too, you stand on the A, you kiss them, and you never see them again.

So we went. We braved the -6 degree night, bundled up in sweaters and multiple socks, scarves, gloves, and hats, and we went to the A. Once we got there, I heard the Aggie Patrol yelling, "We need a girl who wants to make this boy a True Aggie!" and I just went.

We climbed up the stairs and stood on the A. We had turned to face each other when I was caught up in the complete oddness of the situation.

"Hi, I'm Valerie," I said.

"Hi, I'm Nate," he said.

He teetered nervously for a little bit. Finally we both went in for the kiss. It wasn't romantic, it wasn't breath-taking, it was just a kiss. A "grandma" kiss as Heather called it. A quick peck on the lips and you're done. The small crowd of students who put kissing before comfort cheered and Nate and I walked back down the stairs, picking up our True Aggie cards.

He turned to me. "Well, thanks," he said.

I laughed. "No problem."

"It was nice to meet you," he said.

"Nice to meet you too," I said. We went our separate ways, never to see each other again. Even if we passed each other on campus, our identities would be unknown due to the darkness and excess clothing.

What an odd tradition.

Truly Agonizing

2008-01-22T16:43:00.001-08:00

Heather and I are taking his general and required class called Creative Arts. It is definitely less interesting than expected. We sit in the auditorium - which my obsessive, controlling and "all-knowing" professor has us sitting in assigned seats (as a class of over 450) - and listen to him sing Hebrew songs and talk about the Bible. I find nothing artistic about this class at all and loathe the fact that we have to attend 7 required and completely retarded movies after class, pay $4 for them, and swipe your card in and out so they know you attended. Even if that isn't agonizing enough, we then have to write a paper on the movie.

Today was the longest 3 hours of my life as we watched The Agony and Ecstasy. "Agony" could not be a better word to describe this film about Michaelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel and almost dying from getting high off the fumes. Sounds funny, and they could have put an AMAZING twist on it, adding to the hilarity of the event, but the movie was the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I played Solitaire on my cell phone for nearly the entire thing.

On the plus, there was a very cute boy sitting up and over one chair, who I talked to a little bit before the movie and mercilessly mocked the film during. He was fun. I gave him Mike n Ikes for being so fun.

About an hour and a half into the racking of my soul, Shantae texted me and informed me of the death of Heath Ledger. The shock caused me to say "What?" really loud in the dark theatre, but no one seemed the care because they weren't paying attention anyways. What a tragic event it is. I think we should all go see the new Batman movie as many time as we can in honor of his memory.

Free Hug Friday

2008-01-19T11:34:00.000-08:00

Last night, Heather, Don, Chase, Stacy, and I went to Crystal Hot Springs. Crystal Hot Springs is natural hot spring water (obviously) and it's like a giant hot tub. The water felt AMAZING compared to the 14 degrees it was when we got out. Friday just so happened to be Scout Night, so the pool was packed with pre-teen boys with high pitched voices who couldn't stop talking about peeing in the pool. Heather, Stacy, and I were some of the very few girls there, and being older, we attracted a lot of attention from the scouts.

A little kid named Jason came up to us two different times and said, "Do you eat Lucky Charms? Because you look magically delicious." Later, he came up to Heather and asked her if she would give him a kiss. That really ticked Don off when we told him. About a half an hour passed before Jason came up once again to Heather and I and asked if we would give him a kiss. Don chased him away. It's funny how high a little boy can scream. More time passed and Jason came up again. He stood there, stuttering and trying to get out what he wanted to say. We just sat there and stared at him. Finally he yelled "Free Hug Friday!" and lunged at me, throwing his arms around my neck. I shoved him off and Don lunged for him. Jason took off while all his friend yelled "Jason!! Jason!!" Jason hid the rest of the night and Don searched for him. While Don was gone, ANOTHER ten year old boy came up to us and asked us if we eat Lucky Charms.

There were also a lot of old men then, with beer guts, hairy chests, and bald heads who weren't ashamed of any of it. Heather got old man "hungry eyes" and least three times.

Despite this first time experience, we will definitely be going back to Crystal. But we'll pick a night that isn't Scout Night.

I guess Heather and I just have a way with boys.

Birthdays and Tea Parties

2008-01-16T22:17:00.001-08:00

I'm not necessarily a CRAZY college kid - I stay in most Friday night's sleep in late on Saturdays, and watch endless hours of movies in my free time - but I know how to have fun.

Over Christmas break, Lani, Heather, and I were all bridesmaids for weddings. We were talking one day and decided we should get together in our dresses after the break. What better thing to do in a fancy dress than have a tea party? Unfortunately, Heather bailed when Marni interfered, and we couldn't help but include Shantae (who could resist??!), so it was Lani, Shantae, and I. Instead of tea, because we're good Mormon girls, Lani made exceptionally rich hot cocoa...the sip of death. It was delicious, but very, very rich. We had a lot of fun.

**I couldn't fit my dress in my luggage, so I left it in Washington. Lani stopped bugging me about wearing my coconut bra as punishment after my endless rebuttals and just made me wear her crown instead.**

Valerie and Shantae

Lani (GORGEOUS dress! and girl!!)

Shantae (Also equally adorable)

Pinkies up for fancy!!

Today was Heather's birthday. As she was leaving for school I thought about making her a cake, and pretty soon the cake turned in to balloons and party hats and people. A surprise party in the making. It was stressful getting everything gathered and trying to call people to come, but thanks to Lani we got it all sorted out! And Heather was very surprised.

Val and Shantae preparing balloons (72 in all!)

Val and Lani balloon boxing.

How do you like them apples?

Val and Shantae being Dora-corns.

The birthday girl and Ben

Playing in the balloon pit. (The other girl is Emily)

Shantae imitating cake.
Shantae: "Guess what I am. I'm dripping frosting!"

We didn't have a lot planned for the party because it was last minute, but we had a really good time. Now to snap back to reality (OH! there goes gravity!) and get back to school!!

The Exciting Ride

2008-01-15T20:04:00.000-08:00

Tonight as Heather and I rode the bus to the gym, we sat there listening to our music while the select few shifted their eyes around to silently avoid each other's gazes. The Evening Express is a longer route than the morning routes. They combine all the stops and have one bus go to all of them. After about 10 minutes, we finally started heading south for the gym. As the bus pulled away from another stop, I noticed a blue SUV parked about 4 feet away from the curb. Right as I thought "Wow, we're cutting it really close there." The loud scraping broke the sound of The Spill Canvas that not even the bus engine could.

Everybody was looking around, finally looking at each other to see what was going on. The bus driver walked to the back exit doors asking what happened.

"You hit that car." A boy in the very back said.

"Great." The driver said, getting out the back doors and walking to the SUV to check it out. We all sat there, whispering about what happened and some trying not to laugh. The bus driver was circling the SUV talking on his cell phone as those oblivious passengers finally realized they were going no where and asked what was going on.

The bus driver came back to the bus and closed the back doors. "Another bus is going to come pick you guys up. Just sit tight for a few minute." Some people got out and started bravely walking the long 1/2 mile to campus. The driver went back outside and got back on his cell phone. After a while, the other bus came by and we all filed towards it. Once we got on, an Aggie Shuttle employee opened the back of the "Stadium Express" sign and pulled out a stack of blue cards.

"How many of you saw the accident?" Three hands went up, including mine. "OK, so here's what I need you to do. Fill out this card, give your name and your phone number and explain everything you saw."

So, I did. I gave it back to the guy as I got off the bus into the 17 degree weather and jetted for the gym in my basketball shorts. I might get called to testify.

The weather has since dropped to an insane 7 degrees F. I didn't think 30 degrees was that bad, and now I'm actually wishing it would get that warm.

The Inevitable

2008-01-03T23:04:00.000-08:00

Well, I finished Heroes in less than a week. I surprised myself with how long I could actually sit on the couch without getting restless. Once I started to mellow out, it was time to start thinking about packing and what I need to take and how I am going to fit all that crap into my suitcase. I leave for Logan (which right now is a scorching 11 degrees) in the morning, and though I'm excited to return to all my things and Heather, there are a lot of things I will never stop missing up here.

1. My cat, my baby. Katie has to be the one thing that makes me most happy. She has more personality than any other cat I've ever seen. She "talks" to me (as in she walks up to me and we exchange meows...I do admit to that). She cuddles with me every night and whenever I lay down - and won't do any of this with the rest of the family. There was a time when I felt like she was all I had and honestly, I need her more than she needs me. She is getting old. She's 14 now, and it just kills me to know that I'm not going to be able to take care of her the last years of her life.

2. A car. It been really nice to have a 20 minute errand really only take 20 minutes. In Logan, I have no means of transportation, save it be my feet and the Cache Valley Transit District. With the speediest combination of both, that 20 minute task will take up to 2 hours.

3. My parents. Not only because they lend me money and buy my groceries (ha ha.), but it's always nice to have the parentals watching over you and taking care of you. Bonding time with my parents are my fondest memories, and in Logan, I take care of myself. I have to worry about turning the lights off and getting myself up in the morning. I have to cook myself 3 meals a day and do my own banking and make sure I'm staying on track. Now's the time where I start stepping away from that protection and pampering and begin training on how to protect and pamper. A very scary thought.

4. My own room. I love sharing a room with Heather, but sometimes I need an hour or two to myself, to pray out loud and get dressed without worrying about somebody walking in. I also like not having the pressure of making sure my room is clean all the time, because it's her room too and I'm not going to make her live in my crap.

5. The "warm" weather. 40 degrees is paradise compared to what I am about to go back to.

But, there are also things that I'm anxious to return to.

1. My bed. Though I'm in the bed I've been sleeping in the entirety of my Washington residency, my mattress pad - my comfort - is down in Logan. It diminishes tossing and turning.

2. The Quiet Hours. From 10 pm to 8 am, there is to be quiet in the building. Here, quiet hours are not set. People are free to romp around and turn their ghetto blasters up to 50 in the middle of the night. And I have never liked having to ask people to be quiet and turn their music down, especially when they are living here and I'm not.

3. Job searching. Ok, so I'm not really excited for that, but I'm still anxious. I am in desperate need of a job, so if you know of any openings anywhere in Logan (EXCEPT Convergys) please fill me in! It has been bugging me this entire break.

4. School. Today, Jessica and I went to see our old AP Stats teacher. While we were talking, he asked what our GPAs in college were. I was so embarrassed when mine with being held against Jessica's 4.0. In Stats, we had this game called "Guarantees." You would make a guarantee and if you achieved that guarantee, people had to say "Way to go" to you. If you didn't, you had to stand in front of the class and sing I'm a little teapot. I made a double guarantee to Mr. Wright that I would get a 3.5 or higher this semester. Even though I had already made it a goal with my scholarship as motivation, the embarrassment of feeling so stupid and inadequate has pushed me so I cannot wait to get started and show everybody up. Plus, I won't have to have to record myself singing I'm a little teapot on a street corner in Seattle and post it on Youtube, although it would be funny.

5. My friends. I do have friends up here, but being around them has just been awkward after the long separation. The conversations are all the same too. "How's school?" "How are your classes?" "Do you have a boyfriend yet?" It's very tiring. There is one friend where things haven't petered out, but I feel like I'm more comfortable around my college friends now than my high school friends. Everybody has moved on and we're all going different directions. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my high school friends. I would still do anything to help them, but it's just inevitable that this was going to happen. We have to move on.

6. Writing to Elder Kendrick. I can't up here. That's all I'll say.

I don't know yet where I am the happiest; up here with my family and familiarity, or down there with so many open windows and opportunities. It doesn't matter where I want to be, but where I need to be. I need to be down in Logan. I need to be realistic and start growing up. I need to start making something of myself. It was going to happen sooner or later, and the later has grown into the sooner, and the sooner into the now. This is now.

Blurbing.

2008-01-01T23:20:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everybody! I've never really understood why they call it "New YearS" because that's just not very good English. I've also had a conversation with my mom and sister-in-law about the phrase "And how!" It just doesn't make ANY sense to me and I despise it. I return to the 2-degree (no exaggeration) Logan in 2 days. I think I'm ready to go back. I love being up here with my family, but most days I end up walking around the house trying to come up with something to do and resort to watching another disc of Heroes Season One (I've finished 4 discs). Plus I can't seem to stop worrying about what I need to do once I get back and it makes enjoying my vacation very difficult. It's the winter break! I should be able to clear my mind and stop thinking about these sort of things, but I don't think I've ever been able to do that.

I hate movie theatres. Ever experience is the same. I walk in through the red hallway and turn around the wall to look for a seat. Everyone is scattered away fearfully from the unknown. I walk up the stairs, carefully scanning for popcorn buckets, candy wrappers, Big Gulps and find a seat in the front half of the theatre far from the chompers. However, somehow, the most annoying chompers, the loudest of all, always come in later and end up sitting directly behind me, no matter my attempts to avoid them. I would show up later to the movie so I can get the whole view of the enemies, but try finding these things in the dark. I sit irritably on the edge of my seat as the surround sound of the crunching, unwrapping, sipping, and belching (yes, I have sat right in front of a belcher.) You would be surprised how deep I've dug my fingers into my ears to block them out. The lights dim and I praise the upped volume to drown out the distractions, but the whispering doesn't cease. Most people don't go to the movies to see the previews and they make it painfully obvious. Halfway through the movie I loosen up, but each time I enter I end up questioning why I keep coming back. So why do I keep going, since my intolerance obviously makes me an unbearable person? Because Will Smith is sexy.

I've found something fantastic. It's called AdBlock Plus. It's a Firefox add-on that eliminates all ads. I didn't think it was possible, but now I can surf a site without a woman falling out of her clothes stalking me. It has been FANTASTIC. First, you have to download Firefox. Once you get used to it, Internet Explorer seems inadequate. As a warning though, Firefox does take up more memory that IE, but the ABP is sure worth it.

Not a very profound thought...

2007-12-29T22:19:00.001-08:00

But where do the Chinese kids dig to?

New Videos

2007-12-29T21:54:00.000-08:00

I've posted new videos on my YouTube account. Today, Jessica and I slaved over them (and trespassed to get our recording done...shhh!) It was very cold and rainy, but you can't really tell in the videos. I know my mom is going to complain about the scenery in my music video, but Mom - listen to the lyrics. I think mine is boring compared to Jessica's. You watch and decide!

Valerie in "Start All Over" by Miley Cyrus

Jessica in "...Baby One More Time" by Britney Spears

Home Is Where Your Cat Is

2007-12-23T13:14:00.000-08:00

I'm home!! It feels amazing to be back in my house again with my family and my pets. Not much has changed. We switched from Dish back to Direct TV, but that's about it. My room is still the same, my bathroom is still disgusting, and there is still no food in the fridge. Home sweet home.
My cat has been absolutely ecstatic to see me again. The minute I got home, she wouldn't let me put her down. She's been following me around all day. I haven't forgotten how much I missed her.

The wedding went great. It was beautiful. Katie looked gorgeous and Brennan showed how much he knew it. Both were glowing. I'm happy for them both. It's really weird to think of Brennan as married though. And it's even weirder to think that I am next! The reception center misplaced my DVD for the duration of the entire reception so nobody got to see it. That sure made me mad.

Last night I was reading one of my old journals and just laughing at myself. Every entry had a different love interest. What a craze!! I have mellowed out, though. I couldn't handle liking 5 guys at one. I can barely handle one!!

For now, I will just enjoy the Christmas vacation with my family and old friends and relax as much as I can before spring semester sneaks up on me. Merry Christmas to all of you, too!

Relief!

2007-12-15T13:12:00.000-08:00

Well, first semester is over!! I have never felt more relieved. After a week of combined stress and boredom, I finished Friday morning at 10:20am. I wanted to come home and sleep, but with the wedding less than a week away, I had too much to complete. But I did celebrate. I ate a piece of chocolate cake and did the mountain of "final dishes" in the sink. After I got the wedding slideshow under control (kinda), I took a nap at 4:00pm and woke up at 6:17pm, thinking it was 6:17am and I was so confused. Night naps aren't a good idea. I got up and read until Heather got home where we watched the Discovery channel until 2:00am. (P.S. Jellyfish are dangerous!! Don't swim in Australia without the right wet suit!)

Oh Horror of All Horrors!

2007-12-04T14:19:00.000-08:00

"Hey, hey, ho, ho, management can't write the show."

It started with reruns of Conan O'Brein. Headlines were seen before. Top Ten was from 1998. It didn't seem like a big deal to me. Conan O'Brein sailed too far over my head to make me laugh (or, too far below, with the tasteless humor taken from there). I never had time for the Late Show, and David Letterman never really got my goat. It was when the scripts of my shows started coming short where the Writer's Strike started yanking my chain and I started to actually think about it.

The economy we live in is driven entirely by money - isn't that what this is all about anyways? The $200,000 salary and $37 candy bars in their offices aren't good enough for them? However, we clearly see that the entertainer is relied on more than the accountant. In fact, we have twenty plus pages in the Sunday paper dedicated to them. Thousands of magazines with the latest salacious gossip plaster the racks of the grocery line, where we are constantly fed the latest divorces and sex scandals that people claim to have no interest in, but somehow still soak in every detail. I know this because I ring up as one of them. I could care less if Angelina gets lip implants or that Britney lost her children and Jessica and Nick hate each other, but I, somehow, know everything about it. Why? Because I may spend a total of forty minutes on the TV Guide channel daily. Because I watch VH1 early Saturday mornings. Because I am a product of the media. I rely on my daily fix to get me through the day.

Scary thought, isn't it? How horrid is it that your children are so wrapped around these far-from-reality idols, and how even more terrible is it that you children's children will be even more brainwashed by the boob-tube? What will happen to us when we're without 22 weeks (or maybe even more, this time!) of new episodes of our more adored shows? Will we actually be forced to get off our cheeks and socialize with the world? Heaven forbid!

I won't lie and say that I'm entirely in favor of the Strike. All of my favorite shows have been put on the rocks while the writers throw down their pencils, rip up their scripts, loosen their ties and chant their pathetic rhymes. But think of it this way: now is our chance to gain another hold on the impressions our children receive daily. Instead of watching back-to-back prime time shows every night, why don't you exercise your legs? You're too obese for your own good, anyhow. Take a break from House and Grey's Anatomy and focus on your own drama, because heaven knows everyone has their fair share, even though it isn't always as idealistic or exciting as Ugly Betty's.

You'll Never Go Back

2007-11-29T18:40:00.000-08:00

The curse of TiVo.

Tonight when I was watching My Name Is Earl, I had to go to the bathroom so for almost the fifth time, I picked up the remote and pressed Pause. DVR is something you become accustom to after having it for years. When you get hold on a TV without it, it's like being told you can no longer sit down: it's a pain and something you will never, ever, get used to.

Guess Who Just Nipped At My Nose?

2007-11-28T12:31:00.000-08:00

Jack Frost, baby.

I'm loving the snow. I just got home from class. I didn't want to run to catch the bus, so I decided to walk home through the cemetery. It was super cold and I couldn't feel my ears the whole way home, but now that they're warming up, I'm happy again.

Finals are in two weeks, so here I go.

Winter Wonderland

2007-11-27T16:48:00.000-08:00

The first snowfall of the season!! It's not much, but it's only the beginning!

Keeping My Composure...

2007-11-26T11:42:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving weekend was spectacular. I didn't go home to Washington, but that will just make the excitement of going home for the Christmas holiday even better. I went down to Springville and stayed with my grandparents. It was nice to have ten pies again, though. Pie is wonderful! I was talking to my grandpa about how much I love pie and he told me I got that trait from my great grandpa Barnes. He told me stories about how grandpa Barnes would go to parties and tell people he would just start out with a piece of pie, and if they had the pie set out, he really would start with a piece of pie. I thought that was interesting and funny. My 3-year-old cousin Emily found paper crowns in the toy cupboard of my aunt's house and colored us all crowns. Here's a picture of me looking out at my kingdom.

My grandma took me shopping on Black Friday. I thought I wouldn't want to go, but I was actually excited to see what the hype was all about. We woke up at 4:00 AM and it threw me off for the rest of the weekend. You'd think it was mid-day at the mall, but it wasn't as crowded as I was expecting. I didn't have to punch anybody to get a dressing room, so that was good. I took a long nap after we got home around 8:00 AM. That night, Brennan and Katie took me to see Silverchair at The Venue in Salt Lake. At first, my crabbiness from the lack of good sleep tried to persuade me otherwise, but I'm really glad I went. The band House of Heroes opened, and I think I have fallen in love. Their singer (Tim) was GORGEOUS and the music was amazing. I bought the CD after the concert and they sound exactly live as they do on the CD. They were right on each beat and together and the awe gave me chills. I met the lead singer after the show and got a picture with him, but it didn't save to my phone (DEPRESSING), and this was the best picture I could get of him. As I was walking away, Katie said, "She thinks you're really hot." I turned around and just said "Yeah, I do" and he just laughed. Someone looking like him would get that a lot though.

Here's a video of Daniel from Silverchair playing the guitar with his teeth. I kept trying to get his whole solos with his teeth, but I was only equipped with my cell phone and it wouldn't load fast enough to catch it.

Silverchair was great, too. A little vain, but you could almost feel everything that they put into their songs. I realized this day how much being a musician attracts me to some men. Daniel would have no appeared attractive to me at all, but his body movements and voice and the way he played really attracted me to him. Tim sent me melting into the floor the way he played.

I came home Sunday night to a wonderful surprise waiting for me in my mailbox: another letter from Elder Kendrick. From all the excitement, I was surprised I was able to sleep last night. From that alone, it'll be an excellent week.

My Deepest Feelings

2007-11-17T22:11:00.001-08:00

Clarification

2007-11-17T14:46:00.000-08:00

The 9 minutes in the shower was what it took me to go in the bathroom, go TO the bathroom, get undressed, shower, dry, and redressed. And at my pace, that left about 3 minutes for showering.

The Other Side of Hell

2007-11-15T21:13:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, we experienced an event that will make your toes curl.

I woke up and went to go shower. I turned it on and felt the ice cold pellets of water hitting me. After a few minutes of dodging the stream, I figured something was up, got out of the shower still dirty, and got re-dressed. Later that day I decided to try again and the same experience happened. I figured I would just have to skip showering until I could give whatever was happening time to stop happening. My friend Matt invited me up to his room for dinner, so when I got there, he told me that something on the water heater broke and we'd be without warm water for a few days. I could feel my heart sinking. That night after I realized the finger streaks were staying after I ran them through my hair, I decided I had to suck it up and jump.

We're not talking a not-hot shower, here, or even an "Eh, I'd rather not" shower. This is the glacier water running from the Appalachians coming through the faucet. As soon as I got into the water, I ejected a scream that was heard in the hall. Each droplet froze to my body when it hit. I had Heather time it and I came out at a way too long 9 minutes, where the cold tile floor felt good to me. I wrapped my shivering body in my pajamas and made hot cocoa for the first time in Logan, and certainly not the last.

If a cold shower doesn't seem very bad to you, you obviously haven't experienced one like this. This was the shower from the other side of hell.

If You Like Looking At My Panties...

2007-11-10T17:37:00.000-08:00

Being in college, I've learned how to improvise with what I have for what I don't have. My main issue is laundry.

All residents have a card that sticks into the machine that has their laundry credit on it. The machine that puts money on our cards only takes $5, $10, and $20 bills. I don't usually carry cash. I rely on my debit card to get me around, so I'm constantly forgetting to get cash back for laundry. This happened to me again today.

I would have just waited until Monday to do my laundry, but I was running very low on underwear, so I decided to just risk it without knowing how much I had on my card. I hauled two full laundry bags, my detergent, and my card to the laundry room and claimed two machines. I put my card in the machine where it told me I had $1.25. Costing $1.00 to wash and $0.75 to dry, I packet all my clothes into one machine (risky) and ditched drying.

Above is a picture of my room right now. I have to laugh at myself. I've used every ledge and open carpet space I can in order to dry my clothes for tomorrow. It's a bad picture, because my rechargeable batteries have about 20 minutes on them whether they're being used or not, so I've just been using my cell phone to document my life (which should be a hint that I need new batteries!! Christmas is coming!!!)

<-- This picture isn't that clear, but I've got clothes hanging from my bed frame. Look closely and you can see them!

White Glove Inspections

2007-11-06T21:45:00.000-08:00

I HATE soap scum.

In the dorm building we're in, the "Head Guy" (I don't know what he is really called) is extremely strict over the cleanliness of the building. Once a semester, we have white glove inspections, where the dorms are scoured and torn apart to get every spec of dust and dirt...by the residents. If we don't pass, we have to clean again or pay a fee to have it cleaned "right."

Not my kind of thing.

Here's my list:

-Clean bathtub #2. Remove all hard water build-up and soap scum from the shower and tub walls, floor, fixtures, and faucets. (They bring their own razor blade, and if they scrape it along the shower and they get scum, you don't pass.) I had to take an old ATM card to the walls to get it all off. An hour and a half.
-Wash the shower curtain in bathroom #2. One minute.
-Clean the toilet in bathroom #2. Clean it thoroughly: this includes all stains in the bowl, the toilet seat, under the seat, base of the toilet, chrome, and plumbing fixtures. Fifteen minutes.
-Clean the door and door frame, light covers, light switches, plug outlet covers, walls, ceiling and ceiling vents. (This was GROSS. There was splattered yellow stuff all over the walls and doors and even on the ceiling. Who could pee up there?) Half an hour.
-Wipe off the shower curtain rod, towel racks, and empty the trash and clean the garbage can inside and out. Fifteen minutes.
-Sweep and mop the floor in bathroom #2. Ten minutes.
-Clean the telephone and fire extinguisher in the kitchen. Five minutes.
-Clean the vents on the ceiling in the living room and kitchen. Five minutes.
-Wipe down the blinds in bedroom. One minute.
-Clean the desk drawers and desk top. Fifteen minutes.
-Wash your mattress pad that is on your bed. Ahem...
-Clean the mirror and the shelf below the mirror. Ten minutes.
-Clean the windows and sills and dust all ledges. Five minutes.
-Wipe down your bed frame and clean your desk chair. Five minutes.
-Take out all trash and clean the garbage can inside and out. Five minutes.
-Clean the closet shelves, drawers, and cabinets, inside and out. Twenty minutes.
-Clean the towel racks, the shelves, and cupboards between beds. Ten minutes.
-Clean the light covers, light switches, plug outlet covers, walls, baseboards, ceiling, and any vents on the wall or ceiling. Still haven't finished. We're waiting on maintenance to come and help us remove the light covers to get all the Box Elder bugs out. But I'm guessing about fifteen minutes.
-Vacuum the carpet. Five minutes.

Total cleaning time: Four hours and 7 minutes. And I am exhausted.
Here we are getting ready for battle.

warm and fuzzies?

2007-11-04T11:59:00.000-08:00

Some days are just so hard that you have to rely on memories to bring you back up. Here are some of the things I think of that make life worth living.

My family
The Book of Mormon
My cat
OK GO and the concert in Portland
AP Statistics
Heather Baugh
Barats and Bereta
Jessica Petersen
Newspaper in High School. Ms Agnew.
Late night macaroni and cheese
Tally Hall videos
Deadly brownies of the devil
Sarah Grether
Not having a 3rd period class in high school
"Closing Down the Pattern Department" by Daphne Loves Derby
Buying something for someone I know they're going to love, and then giving it to them
Seeing my brothers
Clean rooms
Sambo
Pathetic pick-up lines
Tara Benton
"Banana Man" by Tally Hall
King County Library System
Running a long way without stopping
Yoga
Gilmore Girls
Watching the rain through the sunroof in my house
Playing with my dogs
Saying something truly amusing
Writing a good article
Snow days
New CDs
Having the attention of a guy who has mine
Taking a long motorcycle ride with my dad and coming home frozen, then taking a really, really hot shower
Cool trends that haven't gotten popular
Indie record stores
Losing my voice
The OK Go dance
My OK-Goculator
Days off work
WASL week
My Scottish sock!
Pay Day
Going out for Thanksgiving

Random Things You're Dying To Know

2007-11-02T21:49:00.000-07:00

I was cursed to read my mom's "7 Random Things" and have the obligation to write my own. It's very difficult to think of 7 random things about myself, but here's my [pathetic] attempt.

1. I once got a concussion from visiting the dermatologist. It was my 5th time visiting to get warts on my fingers frozen off. I was sitting on the paper-covered bed/table. As soon as the doctor stepped back, I remember my eyes becoming foggy and consciously thinking, "I'm going down" before passing out. I heard a sob, and as I came to, I realized it was mine. I was lying on the cold tile with my mom and the doctor sitting next to me. I got out of school the next day and out of a big assignment, because my attempts to do it look like a child's. I still have a bump on my skull where I landed.

2. In times of distress, I get my hair cut. I'm not sure if I do it as a distraction or hoping to change something, but it never fails. I tell myself I'm not going to do it, but never have the will-power to fight the part that convinces myself that it's the best solution. This actually recently happened to me. Here are pics:

It's very short. I sometimes feel like a boy with it. My mom says I look punk, and I kind of like that. Shhh...

3. I frequently put notes to myself in my cell phone. I'm looking at them now to try to remember the random things I've thought over the week. If I hear a song I like, I take a line of lyric and put it in my phone so I can look it up later.

4. I'm pretty pain tolerant. I get it from my mom. It's either her genes or her constantly yanking at my hair when I was little. Either way, I can handle things better than normal. The dentists I've had have always said I am a very good patient because of it.

5. I have gotten a lot better at admitting when I'm wrong. It doesn't even phase me anymore. I noticed the other day that I don't argue to make myself look less unintelligent. I just let it slide.

6. I react differently to Washington mosquitoes and Utah mosquitoes. In Utah, I get a bite and it's just a small dot that itches mildly for only a day. Very tolerable. In Washington, I get a bite and it swells like crazy. I think the biggest was almost baseball sized. And they itch weeks after the swelling goes down. At girls camp one year, my leaders drugged me nightly in order to get me to quit scratching and start sleeping. I have scars on my legs from that year. I don't know how the mosquitoes are different, but my reactions are.

7. My absolute biggest pet peeve is when people have music on their computer/iPod that they have never listened to. My ABSOLUTE biggest. Why have music taking up precious memory that you have no idea what it even is?! This happens much more frequently than you'd imagine. People plug their iPod into someone else's computer because they say they "trust their taste in music," take half their library, and never, EVER, listen to ANY of it. Then, someone who is actually interested in it goes through their iPod and says "Oh my gosh! I LOVE the Strokes!" and the owner of the iPod says, "I've never heard of them" but, remarkably, has 3 of their albums. That bothers me SO much. SO much more than it should bother anyone.

Those are my 7. I guess you're tagged. Post yours!

Rock And Roll All Night

2007-10-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

In my dorm room, Guitar Hero is a major part of our day. We take advantage of owning Guitar Hero I, II, and Rocks the 80's (Encore) frequently throughout our day. I, specifically, have challenged myself with this game.

I started on the Easy difficulty and quickly moved through Medium and slowed down mid-Hard. I'm now proud to say that I'm a guitar hero on the Expert level. I'm able to dominate most songs on I and II, with the exception of the one to two songs that haunt me at night with their speedy licks. I spend most of my time on Encore, where I will spend up to two hours in the Practice session, trying to conquer the noticeably harder songs. This is where my conflict arises.

Guitar Hero not only challenges your hand-eye coordination, but if played endlessly for weeks, it will also wreak havoc on your physical ability to move the fingers in your left hand. I'm currently only able to play for about a half hour now before the pain forces me to give in. My pinky and ring fingers lock up and my wrist screams. It's progressively getting worse to the point of swelling, but that won't stop me from rocking. I play every day despite my handicap.

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is released on October 28. Me and my roommates will be at the midnight release on the 27th, followed by a marathon of non-stop play until we're able to pass it. I'm particularly excited, because the song lists includes classic songs from Pat Benetar, Kaiser Chiefs, Kiss, The Stokes, Muse, more Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer, and Smashing Pumpkins.

We can't help but count down the days.

Leaves All Around

2007-10-11T17:12:00.000-07:00

Fall is here!! It's actually been here for some time now. I forgot how much I really love the fall colors, because you don't see them up in Washington. I love walking through campus and treading through an inch of orange leaves to get to class. Today, however, I was severely disappointed to see that they cleaned up the majority of the leaves. Good thing I got pictures before they did!

But, in Logan, what comes with fall comes an infestation of Box Elder bugs. They have been EVERYWHERE! Coating our building, crawling on our walls, piling in our ceiling lights. I haven't minded them so much. My roommates have hated them though. Now the invasion has died down, so they can finally sleep at night.

Donations Needed

2007-09-26T07:16:00.001-07:00

I don't think I'm going to last!

Today as I walked the dreadful half mile to my 7:30 am culinary arts test, I was shot the minute I walked out the door with microscopic demons. It is DANG cold. My ears were hardening each minute I walked through the canyon wind. My hands were reddening and I tried as hard as I could to keep them warm in my pockets. My nose was running madly. Once I got to the warm building, I nearly fell on the radiator and proposed.

I am a girl trained for 50 degree winters. I am a girl who owns 2 long-sleeved shirts, both very thin. I am a girl in desperate need of winter clothes.

Paint Dancing

2007-09-17T22:51:00.000-07:00

You never know the blessing of cleanliness until you spend an hour trying to get paint out of your hair.

The paint dance is exactly what it sounds like. You dance and throw paint on each other. It was the most fun I've had in a while. The friends I'm making at college have made me laugh in ways nobody else could, and I don't care how cheesy it sounds.

Here's a picture before we dyed the tub blue.

One Crazy Weekend

2007-09-17T12:04:00.000-07:00

None of these tragic events were thought up by me.

Printed in the September 17, 2007 edition of The Utah Statesman.

Friday, Sept. 7, 2007

USU Police responded to the the (yes, the the) Vet Diagnostic Lab on an intrusion alarm. There were no intruders nor any other problems discovered in the building. The alarm was silenced and reset.
USU Police responded in under a minute to the USU Bookstore on a panic alarm. This alarm was caused by an employee who had accidently (spelling as in the paper) activated the alarm. The alarm was reset without further incident.
USU Police responded to the Living and Learning Center on a report of an injured bird in the area. The Officer took possession of the bird. After determining that the bird was badly injured and would not recover, it was destroyed.
USU Police responded to the parking lot on the east side of the Golden Toaster chapel on a report of handwritten handbills being put on vehicles in the lot. The person responsible was contacted and agreed to quit doing this.

Saturday, Sept. 8, 2007

While doing foot patrol, police located a door that was propped open with a piece of wood at the new athletic training facility north of the football stadium. The building was checked and secured without any further problems.
USU Police received a complaint from a student about being followed by an unknown man. Police are recoding this incident and have advised the student to call back if she observes any further suspicious activity.

Sunday, Sept. 9, 2007

Police responded to Mountain View Tower on a welfare check. An individual was concerned about a student that they had not heard from in one week. Police were unable to find the individual, however, a Resident Assistant informed police that they had seen the student earlier today.
Police responded to a phone alarm at the Widstoe Building. No one was found needing assistance.
USU Police responded to Richards Hall for a report of a missing resident. Police investigated and found that the resident had gone home for the weekend. The concerned roommates were informed of this information.

Monday, Sept. 10, 2007

USU Police responded to the west side of the Eccles Conference Center on a complaint of bicycles improperly parked that were blocking the west basement entrance. On arrival there were two bikes that were in violation. Warnings informing the owners of the policy were left on these bicycles.
USU Police responded to the HPER field where an individual had broken his collar bone playing football. The individual was transported to Logan Regional Hospital by Logan EMS.
Police responded to Aggie Village on the report of a dog in the area and when police tried to catch the dog it ran easy bound off campus. No further action was taken by police.
Police responded to the Big Blue Terrace for a traffic offense. Because the offense occurred in Hyde Park it was turned over to the North Park Police for their disposition

Something must be done about this. The madness must be stopped.

Yo Ho, Yo Ho, the College Life For Me

2007-09-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Logan!! Now that I'm all settled in, I can try to find time to update everybody about the goings on. Leaving was incredibly hard. The week before the big move I was very emotional. My parents were really helpful comforting me and telling me stories and making me laugh when I was down. I miss them very much.

I'm in an apartment building owned by the university. It's a really nice building on the north end of campus. Here are some photos:

This is our living room. The kitchen is to the right.

These are my roommates, plus one. It's Heather, Heidi (not in our room), Paige, KC, Marni, and me:

FYI, that is not an alcoholic beverage. It's sparkling cider to commemorate or collegiate experience. Paige, KC, and I are freshmen.

I was called to be a teacher in the relief society. I taught gospel doctrine a few weeks back and it was HORRIFYING. I guess I did a good enough job to be called to do it steadily.

Psycho

2006-11-02T20:24:00.000-08:00

I'm really glad this day is over. I'm exhausted.

In APGI, I was put in a group and we were supposed to be talking about freedom of speech. My friend Victor asked if I could drink energy drinks because they had caffiene in them, and this kid named Nate asked me why I wouldn't be able to drink caffiene. I told him I was Mormon, and he got all excited because he'd never met "an actual Mormon" before. He said he's had so many questions. It took us 20 minutes to actually start on our group work because he couldn't stop talking. He asked me if it was true we turned in to Gods, so I explained the 3 degrees of glory, which was really hard, because I kept thinking that he was going to think it was stupid and then he was going to start making fun of it, but he really surprised me by getting really excited about how cool it was. Victor asked him if he wanted to be Mormon and he said he didn't want a religion. You'd never suspect this kid would think that kind of thing was so cool. He has earrings and tatoos and wears black every day. I thought it was a really cool thing to see.

I'm glad I got off work early today. I almost died tonight. There was this woman who came to get pizza and was in the worst mood ever.

"Where's your debit swiper?" she snapped, looking around.

"We don't have one, we run it as credit."

"I've been coming here for 2 years and you've always had a debit swiper."

"Well, I'm sorry, but we don't have one. Can I see your ID please?"

"Your kidding!! I've been coming here for 2 years and I've never had to show my ID and I've never had to sign anything and there's always been a debit swiper! Well, that is my girlfriend's card and she sends me up with it all the time and you never ask for ID."

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but we always have to ask for ID and I don't know why you haven't been asked for ID, but it's in our policy that we have to."

"This is ridiculous. That is my girlfriend's card. I guess I have to go get mine."

Great. She left, came back, and handed me her card and ID. I just wanted to get her out of there, but just my luck, her card was denied.

"Do you have another card? This one is being denied."

"You're kidding! Now, I just put a deposit on that account so it should work!"

"I'm sorry, ma'am, it's denied."

"This is ridiculous..."

So she writes a check. Ugh. Out of policy, we have to take ID for that too, so I ask for it again.

"I just showed it to you!"

"Ma'am, I just need to see your drivers liscence number. I need to copy it down on the check."

"You know what? I want to see where it says in your policy that you have to ask for ID. Because I have used my girlfriend's card all the time for her. She has cancer! CANCER! I have never been asked for ID. Not if it's at Safeway for a $200 grocery bill or here. I've been coming here for two and a half years. I want to read your policy."

So, freaking out, I called Bekah to come deal with it because I couldn't. She kept changing her story and yelling. I started shaking. I wanted to yell at her and use dirty words but I knew if I did I'd get fired. I could feel myself starting to cry, but I fought it so hard my nose popped and started running. I couldn't cry because I had to look strong to my boss and uneffected to the psycho lady. When Bekah finally got her out of the store, I think she could see how shaky I was because I kept messing up on orders, so she pulled me aside and told me how well she thought I handled it.

"You stuck to your ground and didn't let her get away with anything and you handled it very well. I'm really sorry that happened to you."

She made me feel a lot better because when more customers left, we started bashing the lady. I'm just glad I'm home.