My new friend

Saturday after the early choir practice, I stopped by the Macey's in Spanish Fork on my way home, and what should I see there but Frankenstein himself. (He was passing out candy to the little kids). He tried to get me to take some candy, but I told him only if I could get a picture. As we stood there he asked if I was married, and when I said yes, he said, "ohhhh your husband is going to be sooo jealous." ha ha. It was fun.

So we had Geoff's dad down this weekend, and it was a lot of fun but we ate so much crap! I actually ate until I was almost sick, something I absolutely HATE doing and almost never do. Time to get back to the plan!

Saturday was also the choir reunion/concert. The practice at 7 a.m. in S.F. Little Sis was there, so that was cool, and the concert was that night. I was wearing an aqua green sweater and black skirt, and Geoff showed up to match, in an aqua green dress shirt and black pants. He said it was cuz he wanted to show he's my Number 1 fan! Ha ha, he's so dang funny. I have pictures but I can't post them until we get the internet again. It was great to see some old friends and even more fun to sing. We did my favorite one, "I Never Stand Alone," from the Hill Cumorah cantata by Janice and Steven Kapp Perry, and a couple of others.

We quit Comcast because our internet service kept going out. Actually, we called and cancelled our account on Saturday and the guy was supposed to pick up the modem on Sunday and he never showed up. So I called Comcast and they said our account was never cancelled. So, someone over there lied to our face. We just signed up with Qwest, which actually makes me a little more nervous. I've always sworn we would never do Qwest because of some dealings I've had with them in the past, in business settings. They are incredibly sneaky. So, we just wrote down everything they said and hopefully things go smoothly. As long as the internet WORKS. That's what we are paying for, after all.

Awwwwww

Yesterday at work I got really upset and went home for lunch. Geoff was there (it was the break in between class and work for him), and I started bawling. Geoff was so sweet and took me out to lunch. I wanted McDonald's so we went to McDonald's. He's such a sweetheart and I love him so much. He takes good care of me.

Seize the Day

Right now I am escaping the headache of an economics chapter I really don't understand. Although this is the last day I can do it before the weekend, I really should make this short. I read a cool quote today:

"To be elated at success and disappointed at failure is to be the child of circumstances; how can such a one be called master of himself?" --Chinese Proverb

If this is a measure of self-mastery, then I am far from the mark. I get so excited about small things and then bad things really tend to get me down sometimes, too. On the other hand, I don't think self-mastery means you should quelch your emotions. Celebration of success and dissappointment at failure is all a part of life, good and bad. One wouldn't be complete without the other. There's a scripture somewhere that says all things have their opposite, that in fact sadness is necessary in order to feel joy, etc. (I'm too lazy to try and look it up right now.) I guess maybe what this quote really does is show a difference in culture. Maybe for a Chinese monk, that would be the rule, but in America we are about living it up... at least, we try. Carpe Diem or Seize the Day. Or, as my philosophy instructor puts it, "Cherish the day."

Anyway, we should have a fun weekend. More about it next week I guess. Back to economics!

Dumbledore, I never knew

Okay, this just makes me laugh. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071021/ap_on_en_ot/books_potter_dumbledore;_ylt=AuqAIUSBJ3SEmP4Cra8O9ylxFb8C

I have absolutely nothing against gays, in fact, I think they are denied some basic rights that they should be able to have. It's just, well, she waited until long after her last book was released to mention it. I think she's just trying to get publicity, using homosexuality to try and get a few more sales out of her retired series (like she really needs a few more sales). It's not like Dumbledore has been hiding something all this time, and has put careful thought into coming out at a good time in his life... because he's FICTIONAL! JK Rowling IS Dumbledore. Is there a connection there??

On another note, how sad about the fires in California. All the people without homes. It's a sign of the times, no? Scary because Utah isn't exactly immune to wildfires. We don't have the Santa Anas here, but it could still happen couldn't it? I know someone who is going to Disneyland on vacation this weekend, today she was complaining about how she has the most rotten luck that there would be a huge wildfire on the weekend she planned her vacation, potentially ruining it... I guess she meant the air quality and a trip to the beach. I said, "yeah, I bet all those people who's houses burned down are thinking the same thing." Phhhhht. I am a jerk. I really actually love this person because she's a sweetheart, it was a little funny though.

Disclaimer

Kenna is not a porn-crazed psychopath. I didn't realize the way I said it made it sound bad, but she plays the "next blog game" the safe way, too. (She just forgot to tell me how!) :) (No wait, I think she did tell me how, a long long time ago, I just forgot).

With the choir thing coming up and all, it got me thinking on some past experiences with choir tour. I remember trying to save up and earn money (the tours can cost quite a bit of money for a kid who's in school). One day my grandpa Boyack came over, just to chat. And he gave me a crisp $100 dollar bill, to put towards tour. It was such a sweet gesture, he was the kindest-hearted person.

Kill the Beast

So, I decided to try Kenna's idea and play the "next blog game." I was using the "next blog" button at the top of the screen... DO NOT do this unless you are or want to be a porn-crazed psychopath or you have loads and loads of money to spend on totally worthless crap. I figured out how to browse blogs the safe way - go to yours or my profile, then click the city or state, and it brings lists of people's blogs in that area and you can choose which ones you want to look at. Yes, this is a lesson in how to become a blog-stalker, but apparently I'm not the only one with such an interest. So it's socially acceptable which must mean it's okay, right? (I know I know, if everyone else jumped off a bridge...). Besides, if people didn't want you to read about them then they wouldn't be posting their journals online, would they? One thing I've discovered is that while it's interesting to read about other people's lives, it's actually really boring to look at picture after picture of other people's kids, if I don't know them. (If I know you then I like to see those pics). If you are the one writing the blog, I like to see pictures of YOU. Maybe your significant other. But your kids? zzzzzzzzz. I'm a jerk and I don't care, and I know they don't write their blogs purely for my enjoyment, which means I can bash them because I don't write my blog purely for their approval. Where was I going with this?

Oh yeah - there is a UVCC alumni concert this weekend. I've been wanting to do this for a long time. Sometimes I'd get out my Cumorah's Hill choirbook and play it on the piano and wish I could actually sing it with a group again. (Sad and pitiful but I missed it) As much as the 7 a.m. Saturday morning practices sucked, it was good memories, and nothing else really matches up, you know? Ward choir pales, because once you decide to quit going they come back for you, with torches and pitchforks, hounding you week after week until you fall crying and cowering to the ground with your hands over your head yelling, "STOP!!!! I just want to be left alone for the love of [insert what you love here, in my case chocolate], I just want to live my life in peace! Please, please just let me live my life in peace..." Maybe they thought badgering a young new girl would help them magnify their calling or something weird. Of course I was always too nice (or too wimpy) to just tell the crazy person I hated it, so I just kept saying I would be there and then never showed up. You'd think they'd get the hint and quit calling, you know? We had to move to get away from them. (Yes, now you also know why we've moved around so much... it's the flight response.)

There was snow on the ground Sunday morning, I couldn't believe it. It's gone now, thank goodness. Anyway, work and school drag on. The Monday morning meetings are becoming increasingly annoying. It's only because our guy who presents them, as nice as he is, talks like he just inhaled a giant bug and he's constantly gasping for air, and it takes an hour to say what could've been said in ten minutes. Some motivational speakers, it's as if they talk like they just discovered God's gift then everyone will think what they're saying is really special, and it hurts the ears after awhile. Just talk to me like I'm a normal human being with normal intelligence, please?! (Yes I already know that's not the millionaire-mentality but I'm working on it here). I just want a quiet, non-eventful week, where I can just fly under the radar and not have to talk to anyone too much (meaning co-workers) and just get my stuff done.

Yikes maybe they should come after me with pitchforks.

No Title

Geoff and I made an attempt at having friends this weekend. We invited someone who used to work with me and her husband out to dinner. It actually turned out really fun. We ate dinner at Tucahno's, and it snowed really hard while we were there. I love the huge windows there. Then we walked over to Borders and filled what space was left in our tummies with Chocolate Trio with mint and whipped cream and sat in the cafe for awhile. Then we rented Poltergeist (in honor of Halloween and their party that we will be missing), and watched it at their apartment. It was so much fun! I love Ashlee, I love having friends. We'll see if they feel the same (meaning, we'll see if they ever call us back again! ha!)

Geoff taught the lesson in Priesthood meeting today. It was about women in the church, he said it went really well. People kept complimenting him in Sunday School. That's good, cuz when we taught the 16 & 17 year-olds in our last ward, I don't remember it being that great of an experience. We tried, and I tried really, and we got to know the kids pretty well, but the teaching itself was lacking. I guess it was me, Geoff appears to be a pretty good teacher, so that's good.

He's already lost weight with the little plan we've got going. What is it about men that they can do that faster than women? I'm still the same. I guess it will take time.

I really love this Emerson Hart album. I recommend it if you're looking for something new.

From someone who is REALLY named after a state

Is anyone else as shocked as I am that they are advertising the sale of Hanna Montana concert tickets on the nightly news??? Come on?

zzzZZZzzz

I bet I have a world record. Yep, a world record for how many times a person can push snooze in the morning before finally getting out of bed. (My clock is a four-minute alarm, too). Due to the “behave like a responsible adult” plan, I’ve been going to bed between 9:30 and 10:30 the past week, giving me an extra 2-3 hours of sleep per night. You would think this would help alleviate the problem, but noOoo. Getting out of bed is like trying to raise the dead out of the cold, hard ground. I bet, if that train nearby de-railed and headed straight toward our house, I would probably roll over and mutter, “just give me ten more minutes.”

When I was in high school, (or hike school, whichever you prefer), I used to put the alarm clock on the other side of the bedroom. Do you know, I could actually get out of bed, walk across the room, turn the alarm clock off, and go back to bed without ever waking up? Recently I brought a diet Dr. Pepper to bed with me and left it on the nightstand. My idea was to take a big long drink right when the alarm went off, then wait about 15 minutes for the caffeine to work. No such luck.

Before getting married, I worried what my snooze-slapping habits would do to my poor husband, but he’s learned how to sleep through it as well, thankfully. Perhaps someday there will be a cure for the person whose body won’t function before 10:00 a.m. Until then, my alarm continues to take the abuse.

Tripping the Prom Queen

If you've ever wondered why women relate to each other the way they sometimes do, I recommend this book. Just get past all the TV analogies, and it's a very interesting read. (Especially after working with a large group of women for a little while, I see the stuff every single day, ha.)

Geoff bought an ipod today, one of the really cool ones. I think he might've felt a little guilty about spending the money (although he knows I don't care) because he insisted it would be for BOTH of us. He's so cute. The only time I ever used an mp3 player was at the gym, but I've since reverted to text books. Fun, huh?

Ice on the windshield this morning! Winter is almost here, yikes!!!

Interpretive-Dance Tutorial

For our Monday morning weekly work meeting, (the one I mentioned earlier that is supposed to improve job satisfaction and performace), we have been asked to memorize a poem called Will. It's a smart poem and maybe I'll share it sometime - it has all of the cheesy analogies you can think of... sea-seeking rivers and ascending orbs of day... you get the picture. Last Friday when I asked the ladies if they're going to memorize the poem over the weekend, they said, "no, but watch Emily's interpretive dance for it." (Emily was a theater and dance major in some college in New York, she's quite the dramatic one but we love her). I watched as Emily got a running start, then leaped into the air with arms stretched out at her sides, and landed with a thud on one foot while bowing and pointing her nose like a hound who's just found a scent. So graceful.

Of course after Emily's inspirational display, we couldn't help but share our own interpretive dances, a few of which I am going to teach you right now.

1. The Sprinkler. Place your right hand on the back of your neck and stick your elbow out. Lift your left arm out in front of you, and move both arms toward each other at the same time, then away from each other. Perform this motion repeatedly while moving your body with the beat of the music.

2. The lawnmower. Make a fist with both of your hands. Stretch arms out in front of you in a downward slant. Now shake your hips and move as though you were pushing a lawnmower, and pull upward with your right hand repeatedly as if you were pulling the starter on the mower.

3. The Car. This is one of the most adverse interpretive dance moves, as you can do nearly anything you want with it. (Think "wheels on the bus", except club-style). Once such move is to hold your hands up in front of you palms facing away. Now flick your right wrist. Now flick your left wrist. Repeat a few times. (that's honking the horn.)

4. The something-or-other. I really just made that name up because I don't know what this one's called. Place your right hand on the back of your neck again, and stick your elbow out. Staying upright, bend your left knee and bring your left foot up behind you so your left ankle rests comfortably in your left hand - now you are balancing on your right foot. Bring your right elbow and your left knee toward each other, then away. Repeat several times, if your stomach can take it. (Similar to doing crunches.)

So. Now I have further dorkified what could not be any dorkier, but there you go. I know there are more I just can't think of them. Happy dancing!


(I stole this pic from Kenna's blog. Cute huh.)

Sex Appeal

It may seem that I am so single-minded that I talk about the same thing all the time. Well, this will be the last time I bring this stuff up for awhile, then I'll be moving on. :) (And if you read this and it makes you mad, let me know, I'm always open for another point of view on it.)

I was never one to really believe the old adage that the good-looking people are more successful in life and career, have more advantages, etc. In fact, I firmly refused to believe it was true. Your skills and such are what qualify you, right? People aren't really that shallow, right?? Well, a few recent things have caused me to change my mind to a great degree. I was talking with Geoff about this, and he said he read a book once about how to become a CEO. (What?? I don't know if that is indeed his ambition, but give that man another klondike bar anyway). One of the most important things the book said to do was to keep yourself in good physical shape, because it's supposed to be an indicator that you can control your body. And if you can control your body, then you must be able to control your life, so to speak. Well, that may be partially true for men, but I think for women it's all about sex appeal. Especially if you are relying on men to help you advance, it can help to be good-looking. I know your skills and qualifications are still probably the biggest factor in your success, but what if two equally-qualified people are in the running, and one is ugly and gross and the other is good-looking, who's going to get it? See? Looks do play a factor. It's not a nice reality, but reality it is, is it not.

The more I thought about this the more mad I got. Then my little competetive spark ignited and I thought, hey, I could use this as motivation. So, Geoff and I came up with a plan. The goal for each of us is to be at a certain weight by a certain time, accomplished by eating better, exercising, and getting adequate sleep, and waking up on time so as not to be shabby-looking all day long. (This is not a sad surrender to conformity - and who cares if it was anyway - it's my determination not to be overlooked when it comes to something I really want.) "Yeah, right?" I hear you say. Well actually, this will be good in other areas of life too besides work. Really, I've often felt the last long while that I'm grasping at straws, reactively trying to keep all the loose ends tied together so the whole thing doesn't fall apart. I'd really like to be on top of things for a change. So, I guess you could call our plan the "behave like a responsible adult" plan, ha. I can't honestly say which part motivates me more, but as long as I can do it that's all that matters. Plus who doesn't want to lose weight and feel better anyway? Geoff and I are in it together, but our individual success will be depend on how bad we want it. For the first day at least, we done good.

In my philosphy class, we had to write a paper on our philosophy of life. It could say absolutely whatever we wanted it to say. So I wrote about my ambitions - perhaps a little too zealously. At the end of my paper, my professor wrote, "To have money and success are good goals, but what's more important is what you become as a person." ....or something to that extent... And I suppose it's true. So anyway, I should keep things in perspective too.

Blah blah blah, so anyway, that's sorta what's up the last few days. Hopefully I'll have something FUN to write about next. It's BEDTIME!!

Collective Soul!

It was Kick-A.

It was sooo fun! I loved it!

We got there two hours early (kind of by accident actually, we thought it would take longer to get there.) It's this creepy old building in the middle of nowhere out by the Great Salt Lake.






So we waited in line for an hour and a half, but it turned out because we were right up front, just two people away from the rail. (In the inside picture, the stage is on the left side and faces to the right). It was so much fun because we were right in there with the crowd, head-bangin and singing and getting pushed around. Well, I banged and pushed around, I don't think Geoff did much. (He did get to shove some people however) But the people were packed in so tight, it was like the whole crowd just moved together anyway. People pushed so much that we were eventually transported a little further back, but not much. It kind of smelled because everyone was sweating, but it was so much fun!




These are the best pictures I could get with my phone. Ed Roland was wearing a black t-shirt that said "I have issues", and skinny jeans (which are seriously only for skinny people, people!) And even though he has long, flowing blonde hair, he looked a lot older than I thought he would; the rest of the band looks probably ten years younger than him. But, he's an old pro, it looked like he just breezed through it, and he seemed to just love every single minute of it. He was kind of dramatic in his movements and stuff, but it was so cool. He seems just like an all-around nice and sincere person, I really liked him. I thought they all did so good. There was one song I didn't know, that's it. (Supposedly it was the first one they ever recorded.) Most of the songs they did were hits, then there were a couple from the new album. It was so fun!!!


If you're going to go to that kind of concert, being in front is the way to go. The last one I went to (with friend McKenna), we didn't get there early enough and got stuck clear in the back where we couldn't see anything and everyone was making out with each other. Twas gross.


I kind of sort of dragged Geoff to this one with me; usually the concerts we go to are the sit-down ones, with stadium seating and all (Elton John, Steve Miller, Sting are a few). He had thought it might be a little lame, but he said he had fun, (and so did I obviously, I can't stop talking about it). I can't wait for the next time they come. It would be awesome to get backstage passes or something. Cali loves Collective Soul!


Oh yeah, and Emerson Heart opened, and I didn't know who they were, but turns out the lead singer is the guy from Tonic, who I do know. It was really cool to hear him sing "if you could only see the way she loves me," I love that song. He said he had to leave early because he'd just had a baby girl and hadn't seen her yet. They were good too though. Geoff said he looked like a bad-ass dude. ha.


We should really do more concerts. It's one thing we both love.

The best-kept secret

Ladies, I'm going to let you in on a fabulous little secret ...................... layersclothing.com.
They can be pricey, but the clearances are awesome. Their shirts are loooong if you like that, go check it out.

From Reggie's new family

I almost forgot - mom got these in the mail from the kids of the family who took Reggie. Aren't they cute??? I'm so happy he went to that family. (I especially love that he has a balloon tied to his tail).

The great blue pumpkin

I had a job at Hollywood Video back in highschool. It was fun and I actually enjoyed working with the customers for the most part, except there was one thing that would really bother me. When you tried to be nice to someone and sometimes they would never look at you. You'd make conversation, and they would talk back and everything, but they wouldn't look at you. It drove me nuts.

When I first met Geoff, one of the things I noticed right off the bat was how nice he was to people that waited on us - waitresses, gas station or grocery store clerks, anyone who crossed our path. He would not only be respectful to them but he'd make conversation with them, ask them how their day was, etc. I'm a little on the shy side and that was not something I normally did, so it was amazing to me the way these complete strangers opened up to Geoff, told him about their job, what was happening at home, their kids, etc. (Sometimes the conversations get pretty comical, but that's for another day.) I thought that was so cool, you know? Since we're all in this world together and all, why not get to know people? (I know cheesy, you can handle it.)

So I was waiting in line at Subway for lunch today, and I probably waited less than 5 minutes (a short wait at Subway, there were only two people in front of me and no one else was there). But the girl that was helping me just looked like she was having a crappy day, you know, glaring at everyone and everything. So I asked her how was work going? For the splittest of seconds she looked like she wanted to strangle me for asking her a question, then she relaxed and said, "Oh it's been awful! It was crazy-busy today, lines out the door, and we kept running out of everything... well you can see." I sympathized with catering to long lines (remembering Hollywood Video) and we talked for a minute. As she wrapped my sandwhich up, she said she was just going to give it to me, because of the wait, (what wait?), and if I wanted to grab a bag of chips I could, and gave me a drink. I was kind of surprised since no one just gives me food when I order it, but I said thanks and I appreciate it. Well, I guess it paid off to be nice that time, it was kind of cool.

Also, I was going to try and figure out how to change the battery, but my Dad wanted to come up and help me do it, which was way cool of him. (Geoff would be working until late late). The second we put the new battery in, it started, first try. :)


Check out this blue pumpkin. One of Geoff's co-workers grew it and gave it to him. I put the white one next to it so you can see the contrast in color.

How do you grow a blue pumpkin?

Also - what is everyone dressing up as for Halloween? I'm just curious. (I promise I won't steal your idea.) :)

So cows CAN fly

"He had a little trouble with the law and is finishing up a stint in the hoosegow. Apparently it's illegal to catapult cattle into a flock of Hari Krishnas."

This is the reply I got from my client when I asked if one of their employees was going to be coming back to work. I love this client, he is so awesome. I needed a good laugh after this morning.

(I am going to complain about stuff now, so if you have a problem with complainers, feel free to move on.) After falling asleep around 1:30 due to stuffy nose, I woke up late (again), so I skipped washing the hair even though it needed it. Went out to my car and tried to start it and it wouldn't start. What?? This is the first time my car has ever, ever given me any sort of problem that was not my fault. Anyway, I called my co-worker, who, thankfully, was also running late, and she picked me up on the way.

Today is Grey Tuesday. (A build-up to Black Wednesday) Which means it is also very busy, and I am stressed out at work. I sat there scanning in some paperwork, and I must've sniffled or coughed, because another co-worker who was sitting nearby asked if I had a cold. I said, "I'm getting there," because I'm halfway there, and she had the nerve to sit there in her chair and say, "Well I'm just going to stay here in my little corner all day and use my hand-sanitizer. We need to put hand sanitizer everywhere, at the scanner, in the printing room, at all of our desks," on and on she went, all the while eyeing my use of the department scanner. I remarked that wouldn't it be nice if we could all take the day off whenever we get a cold. (She recently did that.) When I said that, she went, "Why can't you?" (take the day off). Well, it being Grey Tuesday, and tomorrow being Black Wednesday, I stared at her in disbelief. Given the build-up of the day's events, I'm pretty sure I said something rude to her, although I don't remember what it was exactly because I was seeing red. If I took the day off tomorrow, several people would die. I should cough in her face.

*sigh*. Women.

To be honest, if you put 20 people together in one small room, and you all share the same equipment, it is impossible not to spread, or contract, a cold. About five of us have colds right now, and there will be more, har har har. (PS- that's another reason we can't all take the day off when we have a cold, there wouldn't be enough people there to cover the work-load).

Anyway, hubby as usual has been very great about the whole car thing. We worked our schedules so we could share his car, and we're going to try and replace the battery (we already tried to jump it). That would be cool if I figured out how to replace it myself.

About the "catapulting cattle" thing, is that a quote from a movie or slang for something else? We didn't think he could possibly be serious...

Black Wednesday

At work, there are 4 to 6 "busiest days of the year." Because of the way the schedule falls, they happen on Wednesdays, usually two in a month. These days could easily put you in a mental institution, so I have happily named them Black Wednesdays. And they are happening this week (the day after tomorrow), and then again two weeks from now. So. I am physically and mentally fortifying myself against the day of reckoning. Black Wednesday.

Also, at work, we have begun subjection to a new program, which is supposed to increase job satisfaction and performance, so that we might be a more efficiently-running machine. We meet as a group, with a coach, every Monday at 8 a.m. sharp. I guess management must really believe this will make a worthwhile difference, because if you take 25 people away from their jobs for just one hour, that is 25 hours of man-power gone.

Actually I guess it's really great that I can work for a company that cares enough to do these kinds of things. I have indeed worked for people who don't give a crap before, so this is nice. I'm just a little skeptical of them, so we'll just have to watch and learn. The best minds learn from everything they can, right??? (I'm not saying I have the best mind, I'm just, you know, talking out my butt.)

My family is planning a trip to New York City next October. I'm JEALOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We probably wouldn't be able to go because of school. Just gotta hanker down and get school done, then we can participate in all the fun family trips. I got a 92 on my economics exam today. Of five exams so far, I have got a 92% on each and every one. Weird.