oh happy day.

Can I tell you what a happy day it was on Friday?

i figured out how to write in bold and italics on gmail chat.

Life just got a little more emphasized.

Then what's the point?!?!

One of my coworkers has swine flu. Which means I got the privilege of waking up before the crack of dawn yesterday and traveling through the quiet of the sleeping BYU world. And open up for work at 6:45 in the a.m.(BACKGROUND NOTE: The on-campus housing area where I work has graciously invited the children of the neighborhood across the street to come to each of the dorms and trick-or-treat at each of the student's doors.)

And besides the fact that opening yesterday meant I didn't have to work today, I got one special treat out of it. Around 9 a.m. I received a phone call from a very concerned father. He called us to tell us to please PLEASE please make sure that the students passed out healthy treats (isn't that an oxymoron?) and snacks to the children.

Excuse me while I sit here and try to understand what else this commercial holiday is all about. Because apparently, Halloween shouldn't be all about candy.

millions of keys, just for me.

These are what my life will consist of at work for the next month (and a half, if I'm being completely honest with myself):

Thank heavens it will only be the 'informal' key inventory. Not the official one. That one is bound to take all next semester.

My personal race?

"I have won races that taught me nothing, but I have rarely lost a race that has not taught me something. Don't ever make the mistake of thinking that losing is the same as failing. You don't always win from a winning position, but you rarely lose from a losing position. And you are far more likely to make your way to that winning position if you have the courage to learn from the mistakes you make along the way."

- Sebastian Coe, Olympic Gold Medalist and Silver Medalist

Sometimes I feel like I'm losing my race. I can't seem to catch a break. I tend to have an exam (or two or three, to be exact) every week with no time to stop and breathe. I feel like I am running through this semester with the lungs of an ASTHMATIC person. Short little gasps and panting, bent over with my hands on my knees digging down deep to find the courage and strength to stand back up and keep running. This isn't a race for a prize or a leisurely stroll. Instead in is an endurance test - of my determination and will, my ability to focus and prioritize, of my strength to go on.

And I'm certainly not winning the endurance test, but I can promise you, I'm definitely learning the greater lessons from the losing side. And that makes me a winner anyways.

reason #832 why I love college

A) it rained last night
B) we didn't have a tent
C) or waterproof sleeping bags
D) we did have a sheet of PAINTER'S PLASTIC
E) between the 4 of us, we maybe got 6 hours of sleep
F) about 1,000 people cut us in line to get into GameDay
G) we were the first people at Kneaders
H) we went to bed for real around 8 a.m.
I) i wouldn't trade last night
for the world.

Want a picture of our campsite?

I know, you're jealous.
but you shouldn't be.

Lag time and lists.

"You're forgetting about lag time. -- Everything you do has a lag time. It takes a while for your efforts to pay off. Like when you go on a diet-- you don't lose weight right away, it takes a few weeks for your body to drop some pounds. Once people understand that you love them, they'll forgive your mistakes. For some things the lag time is weeks, for others it's years or even decades. But things do get better. Things will get better." - a very very wise woman named Carolyn

My lag time must be 21 years and counting. Because sometimes I still can't seem to make my efforts pay off.

My problem is I have all these crazy ideas that turn into "goals" I plan on accomplishing (usually starting my list at New Years' and then it fizzles off into nothing by the end of March/beginning of April).

And my list is quite extensive of things I want to do but have never done. Because I have the teensy tiny problem of never actually finishing anything I start. Ever. So I thought maybe now would be a good time to start?

Want a small sampling from my list?

1. run a marathon
2. get a passport
3. keep a journal
4. get a scuba diving license
5. learn to cook

I am taking hope in the fact that "...things do get better. Things will get better." So... here's to making things better instead of just waiting for it.

college gameday is coming to PROVO!

And it's already here!
Not going to lie. I'm stoked. And I'm camping out.
but wait! Who needs to camp out and and then try to get on ESPN with all the other hordes of fans attempting to get one screenshot of themselves out to the nation? ESPN came to me.

Well..... let's clarify that. ESPN came to coleby clawson - the guy who took out sam bradford here:
















and who also sits a couple rows ahead of me in ortho class.

Actually I kinda feel bad for the guy. If this is what being famous is like....

Then no thanks. I'd rather be invisible and free.
But I'm still camping out.

celebrate!

Guess what I discovered last weekend?
I am this many classes away from graduating:

1

2
3

4

5

6

7

8.

Only EIGHT classes away from finishing my undergrad. And now I am feeling relieved/ excited/ nervous/ stoked/ enthusiastic/ hopeful/ determined/ scared/ comforted/ and astonished all at once. Is that even possible? Must be, I guess....

P.S. I have SENIORITIS like crazy.

Who says summer is over? Not us.

Thanks to the creative genius of one certain BRYCE DAVID MORGAN, I went boating again on Saturday. We took a little jaunt up the Deer Creek and decided to take his as-of-right-now-unnamed-boat for it's second voyage. (The maiden voyage was the night before in the middle of the night on "the best date of her life".)


Would you like to see what our handsome vessel looked like?

Too bad we forgot all our cameras. It was so fun rowing around the lake and spinning in circles and circles. And building a dock. And entertaining the old people who were sitting at the top of the hill wondering what the crazy kids were doing down below. And then someone else decided to capsize us into the FREEEEEEZING cold lake. But all in all, it was a fabulous adventure. Followed up by a quick dip in the HOT HOT springs in Midway.

To all you summer-lovers: heads up! boating season is still open.

My new craving?

So I've decided what I want to do with my next tax return. Last year's was Hawaii. (So completely worth it! Hands down.) This next one will be for something a little less.... extravagant. I want a sewing machine. THis one to be specific:

I guess taking those sewing lessons in high school ended up being good for something other than random pieces of clothing that I no longer have. But now that I don't have one accessible, I want one. Isn't that how it is with everything in life?

But seriously. I'm having a creative-crafty-craving.