Things that I'm currently quite fond of

My last two posts have been kind of complainy. So, since it's the month of Thanksgiving, and since I wanna make up for those last two, here is a list of things that I like and/or am thankful for :)

The Piano Man himself, Billy Joel. As always.

Pinterest.

My tattoo :)

My adorable little cousins.

Babies in general.

Warm clothes.

Cardigans.

Books.

My Kindle. Her name is Janie.

Jose.

Dani and David. (I don't have a picture of them together and I'm too lazy to upload both. You know what they look like :) )

My cleavage. I feel like this doesn't require a picture.

Among other things :)

I'm seriously thinking about switching up my future. I want one of those lives that people are jealous of. I don't want to be conventional anymore. I'm deciding between umpire school and bartending school. Or possibly both. Thoughts?

I've been thinking a lot lately about who I am. I know that sounds hokey and stupid. But I keep wondering about where the different quirks and personality traits come from, other than genetics. I'm a firm believer that everyone you meet changes you, even if it is minutely. So I've decided to kind of try to map it out. I'm gonna write my different friend groups and the changes and impacts they made on who I am. Starting probably around freshman year. Also, there's a few random people that don't really fit into any specific category, so I'll just mention them separately.

(Shaylie, Micah, Mystie, Kenzy, Cass, Cami, Marissa, Shelby, Jessey, Me, Sissy, Scott, Wes)

After that is when I really started broadening my friendship horizons. I really became good friends with my colorguard friends. Enter Kenzy, Shelby, Cassidi, Cami, Jessey, Sissy, Noelle, and Shaylie. All these girls were a big part of my support system. They cared for me and wanted me to be happy and safe. We got along well for the most part. :) I learned quite a bit from them, and I think my hard-working trait definitely got honed while I was in their presence.

(Me, Colton)

Shaylie, Jessey, and Sissy also had a big impact, as they introduced me to some of my other very good friends: Colton and James being the biggest two. From that group of friends I started realizing that it was okay to be yourself completely, even if sometimes yourself looked like a total idiot.

(Alexa, Me, Ashley)

And from Colton I met Alexa and Ashley, who I've written about on numerous occasions, and have also had a shaping hand in my life.

(Me, Justin, Dixon, Ben, Brendan)

Another extremely influential group was my debate friends. Brendan, Josh, Sam, Megan, Ben, Dixon, Justin, and most of the rest of the debate team. I learned A LOT from this group. It's okay to be smart, and to be knowledgeable about things. And also there's a limit about how much people want to know about how much you know. They were a big, welcoming group that I had so much fun with.

(Me, Cass, Charlie, Trissa)

(Cherisse, Moriah, Me)

(Jay and Laura)

Next is work friends. I truthfully think they've shaped me more than any other group. This includes Moriah, Cherisse, Jay, Laura, Paige, Bree, Trissa, etc. We're a weird bunch. A hella weird bunch. They helped me see that it's okay to live for myself. I think that's one of the most important lessons that I've learned. Some might take it another way and say that they "got me off the path of righteousness." But I can't think of a group of people I'm more indebted to. A lot of hard times have come from some of those choices, but they're times I wouldn't change for the world. They were so important and built my character. It was with them I realized I could still be a good person without being religious, and that it's okay to do things not according to tradition. This quote sums them up: "Life is short, when you're done, you're done. We're on this earth to have some fun." :) They're also a HUGE part in my sarcasm and sense of humor. Both of those were developed at good old Mickey D's.

(Me, Kadie, Aubrey, Katherine)

Next comes college roomies. My first year roommates didn't have a huge affect on me. Katherine, Aubrey, Kadie, Mandy, and Alli. They were kind and supportive and modeled the type of person I'd like to become, with some minor adjustments. I did get closer with Mandy and Alli, who I both can go to for advice at any time. They definitely changed me for the better :)

(Me, Karlee, Morgan, Dani, Brittany)

(Dani, Me, Celeste, Robyn)

My second year roommates, however, had AN ENORMOUS impact. I realized the type of person I DID NOT want to become, and the type of friend who will stick with you through everything. Dani and Robyn were excellent examples of the type of friend I want to be. Supportive, trustworthy, helpful. They taught me a lot, especially Dani. Dani and I developed our whole "positive thinking" mantra together, so that's also been very influential. I love those girls so much.

(Me and David)

And last but not least, David and Texas. They both loosely fit into a couple groups, but they're more on their own. I met David through church, strangely enough. I knew he didn't like going, and I knew I didn't like going. He had no idea that I was any different than the other people in our ward. Basically I approached him one day after school and offered him a ride home. We've been tight ever since. That car ride home is ingrained in my memory as the time David pretended to shoot seminary teachers out the window of my green van with my rifle. Good times :) He's wonderful. He can talk me down from anything, and our thought processes are extremely similar. We're so comfortable with each other. He is, hands down, my best friend.

(Texas and Me)

Texas is...a character :) I met her during softball, and the first words she ever said to me were: " I wish I was a little kid so I could play in the mud without anyone looking at me weird." Texas has taught me how to be carefree. She can also calm me down, and make me realize that things will work out in the end. She's extremely optimistic, and kind of childlike. She is responsible, but still knows how to have a good time, which I really admire. She fits so well into the dynamic that David and I have, and I know that the three of us are the kind of friends that will still be talking to each other regularly thirty years from now :)

(Me, David, Texas Cinco de Mayo)

(Me, David, Texas Senior Ball)

I think each group had a part in shaping me, whether it was minor or huge. It's definitely interesting for me to go back and look at things like that, and it's funny that I can pick different characteristics from different groups. I wouldn't change anything :)

Major Changes

Ha. Double meaning title.

I'm seriously considering changing my major. I was originally going to major in Psychology and minor in Spanish. Now I want to double major in English and Education and have Psychology and Spanish as my minors. The minor part won't be too hard to fulfill- I already have most of my credits done for those. But this is definitely going to set me back a ways.

Psych just hasn't been feeling right. I want to help people, but I'm not employable as a therapist in the field I want. I want to work in a drug rehabilitation center. But they generally only employ people who have been through some sort of treatment before and can empathize with the patient. I don't think I'm hard core enough for that.

So I've been thinking about teaching high school English. I know I'm good at English. I've got all the grammar rules down pat. But there's another part that's appealing to me. I wanted to be a therapist for a while. But if there's one thing I learned from high school, it's that it's a lot easier to talk to a trusted teacher than it is a therapist. I feel like I could still make a big difference in people's lives, and hopefully keep them away from needing any residential treatment.

So that's that.
I'm also moving to Virginia. I don't know when it will happen. But it's going to. I'm thinking after I graduate with my bachelor's degree. I'm hoping to move out there with Dano, work for a year, and then finish up school out there. I don't want to live in Utah anymore.

In other news, I got a house :) Colton, Carlie, David and I are all living together next semester, for the whopping price of 118 dollars a month. We got a screaming deal.

I've been kind of terrible about blogging, so this is just gonna be a catch-all post.

I went to the U2 concert in Minneapolis. It was seriously one of the most emotional and breathtaking experiences of my life. Absolutely fantastic. Here's a picture.

(L-R) Kristine, Me, Alyssa and Nicole.

It poured rain. Bono was wonderful. I sobbed like a hungry infant on multiple occasions. We wandered around downtown Minneapolis at 2 in the morning, so that was an interesting adventure. I tasted feta cheese. It was a nice night. :)

I've been working a ton lately. Raking in the big bucks :)

I only have 28 days left in Minnesota. I'm not really looking forward to going back to Utah. I want to see my friends, but I don't care so much about the rest of it.

Dani, Robyn and I have a weekend planned that I'm so stoked about! On the 22nd of September we're going to go to Ephraim and stay until the 25th, which is a Thursday through a Sunday. On Thursday we're going to stop in Provo and Dani and I are getting tattoos :) We're both getting a 22 on our ankle. 22 was the apartment number we met in. It's all-encompassing of our experiences there, good and bad, and our friendship. We're going to visit all of our old haunts and some old professors. It's going to be so friggin fun I can't even stand it!!

Well. That's my life lately. Oh. The other night it's possible that I got drunk and created a couple of blogs about people I hate. They've got a good review so far. Hit me up if you want an invitation to them. :)

Buck Delinski

Buck is a man I work with. The best word I can think of to describe him is "character." You can say he's ridiculous, or that he's weird, but none of those do him justice. He's a character. A real piece of work. I just don't ever wanna forget him, so I'm writing about him now :)

Buck tells people he took Sharon Stone to his high school prom, and that they dated steadily. He talks non-stop about this chair he's going to buy. It's a recliner with a built in fridge for beer that vibrates. He talks about getting this chair and never leaving his trailer again. Most of us believe that might actually happen.

He wears a black wool shirt unbuttoned to the top of his stomach. And hes not a skinny guy. He's huge, actually. He wears black super baggy sweat pats, and a bandana around both his neck and his forehead.

He spends 20 bucks a day on lottery tickets, and is absolutely convinced he will win one day.

He has a Golds Gym membership, but only uses it for the whirlpool after his night shifts are over.

He really is nice....but incredibly lazy. He spends most of his time looking for a chair, and very little of it working.

That's about it....the description doesn't do him justice.

Minneapolis!

So on the 4th and 5th of July I got to take the Audi and go on a little trip to Minneapolis! It's about an hour and a half south of here, and it was an absolute blast. I just went by myself, which I kind of prefer. That way you don't have to listen to the opinions of other people when you're deciding what to do, and can spend as long as you want wherever. So I drove down on the 4th. This was my first view of the city, and I was already in love :)

So my first stop was the ballpark for a Twins game. It was HOT. But so much fun. The Twins won, 7-0, so that's always good :) I had awesome seats, right along the first base line, but still in the shade. It was just perfect.

It was packed for fourth of July, and was so so much fun. I can't even get over it.

After that I went and checked into my hotel, which was super sketchy. I felt like I was gonna get murdered in it. It's one of those places where a serial killer stashes his bodies in horror movies. I checked in and went to the Mall of America, which was AWESOME. Enormous. I spent an embarrassing amount of money on underwear from Victoria's Secret, which I am currently in love with. I checked out quite a few stores, and then headed back to the hotel. I turned in for the night, and then in the morning went to the Minnesota Institute of Arts.

It was awesome inside. I could have spent days there, but I had to limit myself. I went back to the Mall of America after that, and then headed home. It was just a short trip, but it was so much fun.
Alyssa invited me to go to a u2 concert with her, so hopefully if i get work off i can go to that. we'd make a weekend of it and go to the sculpture gardens and the institute for a while longer, and then go to the concert the next day. It would be a ton of fun. I don't think I've blogged abut alyssa. She's so so nice. Holy cow. She is one of the only people who invited me to do anything, and was really genuine and nice.

This is her and her fiancee, Lance. They both are amazingly nice and smart and wonderful. She is a kidney specialist, and he is about to take the bar exam.

So that was my outing :)

I'm already almost halfway done with this little summer adventure of mine. The days are long but the weeks are short.

The past few days

So there's a bunch of random stories that have happened that I just want to get jotted down. The other day I thought was going to be awful. I started out by pulling ash at work. The boiler had been down and so the ash was really bad. Basically if the boiler is down then stuff doesn't burn well, and then the ash is really hot and clumpy and hard to pull. So it was like that, and as I was pulling it, it got clogged. Not a big deal, it happens a lot. So I was using this rake thing to unclog it. It got pulled up into the machine, wrapped around the clinker grinder, and got stuck. They tried to get it out with an electric jack, with a hammer by trying to bang it out the other way, and ended up having to cut it out with a welding torch. I felt like an idiot, but everyone said things like that happen all the time, so it wasn't a big deal.

The other day I signed up for extra work, so I didn't know what exactly I was going to do. They ended up having me move sand bags all day. It was the hottest day they'd had all month, and there was 95 percent humidity. It was crazy. I ruined my favorite Neil Diamond shirt :( Super upsetting. I ended up working 16 hours that day.

Tomorrow I get to go to Minneapolis. I'm stoked! I'm going to a Twins game, to the Minnesota Institute of Arts, the Mill Museum, the Aquarium, Legoland :), and the Mall of America for sure. I don't know quite what else I'm going to be doing. I guess just whatever strikes my fancy. :) But I'm really excited about it!

Ron, Kenny, and Asshole Danny

Oh the people I work with. I'm not technically on a crew, but I have been working with some of the same people again and again.

The three that are my favorites are Ron, Kenny, and Asshole Dan.

Ron...is super attractive to me. I know, it sounds weird. He looks almost exactly like the coach from Forever Strong. Not Larry Gelwix, but the other one. Super intense blue eyes. He's attractive. And he's really funny. He invited me to the bar when we get back on day shift, and to go to a Twins game while I'm in town.

Kenny is great. He's really short, like 4'11. He looks like one of Santa's elves. Him and Ron interact...and it's hilarious. I wish I could think of a good comparison. But I can just sit and watch them talk and listen and it kills me. So funny.

Danny...is an asshole. A lovable one, but still an asshole. He smokes a pack of extra long cigarettes every shift, chews a tin of tobacco, and drinks a bottle of whiskey a week. He's a supervisor, and so when he's around we kind of have to look like we're busy...but it's not too bad.

I just really like the people I work with, and am excited to keep working with them and go to the bar.

Birthday!

I just barely realized that I forgot to write about my birthday weekend. It was a blast for sure. Let's see. On Saturday we had a party at First Dam. It was super chill, just a bunch of people and food. It wasn't like a big thing, I just wanted to see people before I left for the summer. I believe the people who came were Cody, Jessey, Sissy, Kea, Noelle, Texas, Mckenna, Moriah, Cherisse, Colton, Cat and James and their baby....I feel like I'm missing people. But it was really fun :)
Sunday I basically just had a family day. Opened presents and such and Texas came over to have cake. Sheri and Calvin brought over cinnamon rolls and a card for me, which was super nice.

The loot: I got a hollowed out book with a flask and a bottle of rum from Moriah. Texas gave me the new Foster the People album, which I LOVE. Listen to their song pumped up kicks here. My grandma gave me 40 dollars. From my family I got 2 Billy Joel CDs, a couple of memory cards for my phone and mp3 player, a GPS, a New York Yankees license plate frame, and some earrings. Jessey and Sissy got me a Billy Joel vinyl!! That was super exciting :) It really was just an amazing day.

IHAVETHEBESTJOBINTHEWHOLEWIDEWORLD

I really love it. I'll explain it, but it sounds really boring. Sorry. I'm just ecstatic about it :)

So I got there and clocked in at 5:40 this morning. My trainer got there about five minutes later. He told me and the other lady, Paula, what we would be doing. Starting out with absolutely nothing. Until 7:15. :) Then we go and pull ash. Basically there's these giant containers, three of them, that contain ash. You take a giant, 40 pound steel rake and rake it towards you. It gets sucked up into a vacuum and taken to the ash silo. That takes about 2 hours. Then we chill for a while longer. After that we go out to the south building and fill these giant things called grizzlies. We drive the front loader around and fill the grizzlies up with coal.

Ha it sounds like I work in a coal mine. You get a little dirty, but it's super entertaining. After you fill the grizzlies, it's lunch time. So we take an hour lunch, and then go underneath the mill and clean up.

We basically sweep whatever fell off the conveyor belt and make sure there's no build up in a bunch of random hatches. We scrape shiz off and climb around on railings. It's nice :) After that we take some environmental numbers from a bunch of different gauges, and write them in the environmental book.

Then we drive the front loader again, and pile up all the piles of coal that have come in. So there's room for more.

Then we take another break. After that we straighten up and head back to the control room, where we do nothing until the shift is over.

It's a 12 hour shift, but it's not nearly that much work. He told us we could bring a book and just chill in the south building. It's really nice. I love it :)

Le New Job

I'm in a department called utilities. My official title is "fuel technician." It sounds super bad ass, like I'm really smart. But it's pretty chill. Basically I drive a front loader around and move coal from huge piles and dump it into a steel grate in the floor. From there, it lands in this giant inverted pyramid, where it's slowly dispersed onto a conveyor belt. It goes all the way up that long blue tube and is used to fuel the rest of the mill. It's actually really interesting. This is what I get to drive everyday :) But a much bigger version.

And this is the actual mill:

I work in the building on the bottom right of the picture. The Mississippi river is right behind the mill. Maybe this is boring....but it's pretty sweet to look at. This is the machine my uncle owns:

It's a lot cleaner than I expected. I'm finally done with training, and get to start the actual job on Monday!

Thoughts Thus Far

This is the weirdest thing ever. I don't generally do things like this. I'm safe, predictable, boring. I can't believe that I'm actually going so far away for the summer. I would've been just fine staying in Smithfield, working at McDonald's, just like I've always done.

I can't believe that I'm doing this. It's a weird feeling, knowing that I'm not going to see Liz for three months. That's what I was the most upset about when I left this morning. I can't just drive home in a couple of hours like I did in Ephraim. This is very uncharacteristic of me. I'm apprehensive, but excited. :)

Observations so far:

I haven't seen a single LDS church house.

People really do have the Minnesotan accent. The weird o's make them sound like Sarah Palin.

I met some people tonight named April and Devin. I was longboarding with my little cousin and he ran over and wanted to talk to them. They have a little boy his age, and three girls who are triplets. They were out on their porch enjoying a glass of wine. Which was weird to me. Just because it never happens. They were so friendly and sweet. It makes me realized that people don't have to be Mormon to be nice.

I'm gonna get lost A LOT. None of the roads are organized. They're all curvy and not numbered.

I really like my little cousin John. We read stories tonight and went longboarding. We share a room, and he's a cutie. He's super polite. We were out longboarding and saw a car drive past, and he asks me "Where are they going?" So I said, "probably to their house." and he said "can we go hug them?!" He's friggin' adorable.

I miss my sister.

I miss Colton and Texas.

I'll take pictures of the new place as soon as I'm all settled in :)

First day of work is tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Missin' My Missionaries

I've been writing back and forth to quite a few of my friends, and man I miss them. So I'm just gonna put up a picture and write a little blurb about each of them :)

Brendan Cannon:

Serving in the exotic Des Moines, Iowa Mission. Ha he loves it though. He's an amazing friend, one I've had since seventh grade. His letters are full of gems of wisdom and advice and humor. Getting letters from him MAKES MY DAY. This is a picture of our unit right after we won state. Brendan is the one bending over backwards in front of us :)

Grant Nordine:

Serving in Oooooooklahoma. I don't have a picture of the 2 of us, because our relationship is weird....I've only ever met him once or twice. He's my best friend Alexa's best friend. But we get along extremely well. We have almost the exact same sense of humor, and his letters are packed full of poorly drawn pictures and witticisms. Since I don't have a picture of the 2 of us, this is one of him and Alexa :)

Andy Chaparro:

Andy is in the Osorno, Chile mission. I've known Andy for a while. He's one of the sweetest, most caring people I've ever met. He dated Kenzie for a while, and we got pretty close during that. This picture is of us out in Mendon watching a baseball game and waiting for fireworks the summer before I left for Snow. It was an amazing night :)

James Mitchell:

James is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Man I love this kid. I went to my first dance with James, and we had a blast. He's HILARIOUS. For example, in his most recent letter to me, he drew a picture of Godzilla destroying the town of Tokyo on the back. Super random, but appreciated. This picture is pretty old. It was taken at my 18th birthday party.

Kadie Clark:

Kadie was my roommate my first year at Snow. She's serving in Ukraine. She's absolutely amazing. She's one of the nicest people I've ever met, and she is so stinkin cute I could die.

Todd Partridge:

Oh Todd. He's in West Virginia, I believe. We have been through a whole lot. Case in point: This is a picture of us together after we got in a car crash in Logan canyon on the way home from Bear Lake. The airbags kind of tore our faces up, so this picture is SUPER attractive. But he's wonderful, and I miss all the crazy stuff we did together.

Sam Bennion:

Sam is in Forks, Washington, which is ironic. Ironic because he despises Twilight so much he's been on public radio to talk about his hatred for it. His letters are the best. They're full of pictures and hilarious stories and anecdotes. They go on for pages. This picture is of us in Washington, D.C. for We the People. I don't really know it happened...but we decided if we made a movie poster called "Cousins: The great frontier." He's my cousin. :)

I'm also pretty freaking excited to start writing to a couple people who will be leaving soon, namely Alli and Mandy. This is the two of them. Alli is on the left, Mandy on the right. I love both of them :)

Alli is going to Nicaragua, and Mandy is going to Peru.

I just really miss them all, and am excited for them to come back!

Today

has been absolutely marvelous. I haven't done anything exciting. But I feel like I need days like that occasionally.

I listed over a hundred books of my dad's on Amazon. He said I could keep whatever money I got, so that's nice :) I played my favorite childhood game on nick.com for a good hour (Spongebob flip or flop). My dear friend Caitlan FINALLY got a facebook, so it's much easier to keep up with her crazy adventures. My mom and I had grilled cheese for lunch. I took my sister out for ice cream. These all sound so trivial and stupid, but they've just made me super content.

In other news: 10 DAYS MOFACKLE!!

The End of my To-Do List

I finally reached it. I've felt like I had so much stuff to do this past couple of weeks, and I think I'm all caught up.

I finished school, got my final grades, and am officially done with Snow College.

I received a job offer, and accepted it.

I completed a drug test, health assessment and hearing test for said job.

I faxed in all my paper work.

I finished unpacking.

I've got to spend some time with friends.

I visited Dano.

I booked a flight.

All that's left to do is pack, but I've still got two weeks before I need to take care of that.

I'm ready to move on.

Day o' Love for Mothers.

Dear Mom:

I love you so very much. Thank you for making me a driven, competitive, always-wanting-to-do-better person. Thank you for pushing me. I'm glad we have the relationship we do-from idle gossiping to any number of deeper conversations. Thank you for putting up with me, and sticking by me. Thanks for standing up for me. Thanks for everything, really. I love you, and always will. Thank you.

Love,
Kates

Dear Tessa:

You helped me through a time in my life when no one else could. You gave me confidence and the ability to work through hard times. You believed in me. I don't think I would have made it without you.

Love, Katy

Dear Judy:

Thank you for being my fictive mom. Thank you for letting me walk into your house, talk to you about anything, and allow me to be a part of your family. I appreciate everything you've done for me so much.

Love, Katy

Dear Sheri and Tori:

You two kept me coming back. Thank you for being non-judgmental and being two people I could look up to. Thank you for letting me do my own thing, but always being supportive. Thank you for always shooting me that little text, just to know that I'm being thought of.

Love, Katy

There have been so many mothers in my life that I'm thankful for, and wouldn't have made it without. None of them follow my blog, but I still wanted to express how much they've done for me. I love them all dearly, and especially my own mom.

I love moms :)

A Reintroduction

I feel like this past year has shaped me. It's changed me a lot, and made me a different person. So I'm just going to make a list-because that's what I do. Just a list of random facts that may or may not have been true before this year, but a majority of them will definitely be new.

Things that still are and always will be the same:

I am afraid of the dark.

I hate feet.

I like serial killers.

I am EXTREMELY competitive. Almost unhealthily.

Some new, some old:

I gag when I laugh.

I like falling asleep with the light on, but waking up with it off.

I really enjoy Lady Gaga.

I'm very reluctant to ask for that help.

I have a knack for writing, when I put actual effort into it.

I also have a knack for dropping things when I cook.

I thought I knew what I wanted to do with my life-I still don't.

Maybe I never will.

That thought scares me.

Fewer things in life make me happier than receiving letters.

I'm a closed off person.

I'm a pretty dang good judge of character.

I have a temper, and can hold a grudge.

I'm not as smart as I think I am.

Some new:

I put other people's feelings first too much.

The person that I project to others and the person I think I actually am are 2 very different people.

That's all I got for now.

Struggles

Last year leaving Ephraim was a piece of cake. I finished my finals on Wednesday, packed up and headed home, without shedding a single tear. I couldn't have left that town faster if I'd tried.

This year was completely different. As Robyn and I left Ephraim, my eyes welled up. We said goodbye to the Maverik. We said goodbye to the Wal-mart and the Subway. Now I come here and hate the Maverik, Walmart, and Subway. Because they're not my stores.

We met at Robyn's to drop her stuff off and say our goodbyes. I hugged Robyn, fought back tears. Then I hugged Dani. And I couldn't stop it from coming. I started crying and shaking. She kept saying "It's only 3 weeks." I can't do 3 weeks.

I don't think I've ever got this close to someone. Dani and I talked for almost an hour and a half tonight on the phone. I hung up and just thought for a while. As weird as this sounds, my hurt literally hurts being away from her. She's my best friend, and I just get so sad whenever we don't talk.

Kind of off topic here-on Tuesday I went shopping with my Mom, and we stopped at both Walmart and Subway. And I got so sad when I was in them. They were all wrong. My walmart is small and friendly and people don't try to beat you up to get to the shelf. My walmart has an adorable greeter named Gene that always wishes you good luck on your finals. My Walmart has Jane the check-out lady. My Walmart never has lines more than 2 people deep. None of that was the same. This Walmart SUCKED.

The same thing happened at Subway. My Subway has garish, bright yellow walls with old newspaper print on them. My Subway has that girl I always complain about. My Subway has no modern art crap on the walls. Even though there were things I didn't like about both places, like the girl who makes my sandwich crappily, I still much prefer everything in Ephraim.

I don't know. I usually don't take change this hard. I guess it's still kind of surreal to me. It still feels like I'm on a long vacation, and come Sunday I'll pack up, take off, stop in Riverton to pick up Dan, and be back in Ephraim in a lick. But it's not going to happen. I have no idea when the next time I'll be in Ephraim is. And I absolutely hate that feeling.

I'M MOVING TO MINNESOTA, SUCKAS!!

That is all :) I'm just really excited about it. I leave June 6th!

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end....

at least that's what I'm trying to tell myself. I keep trying to tell myself that something good is going to come from graduating. I'm trying to be positive. But this freaking SUCKS. I miss Snow College. I miss my roommates. They are some of the most amazing people I've ever met. I don't know how I would have made it through this year without any of them.

I look back at the posts I originally made about them here and here.

But here are my new posts :)

Celeste:

Celeste was so easy to talk to. She is extremely genuine and wants nothing but the best for everyone. You know how in church people always say to try and look at other people through God's eyes? I think Celeste has got that down. She very rarely has anything negative to say about anyone. She is so enthusiastic and vibrant and excited about life, which I envy. She is empathetic and just wants to help people, which she does on a regular basis. I love her :)

Robyn:

Ha. What can I even say about Robyn? Truthfully when I met her I thought she was going to be super high maintenance and kind of preppy. And she's kind of the opposite. She's that person who changes into sweats the second she gets home. She eats large amounts of food-CHAMPION! She is gracious. She is hardworking and dedicated to whatever she is doing at the time. She's driven. She's going to open up a bed and breakfast, and I have no doubt that it is going to be a raging success. She'll make it work. She gets addicted to things super easy-so we make her swear to never try anything bad. She is probably the friendliest person I've ever met. While Dani and I are perfectly content to not meet anybody and just go about our business, Robyn is out and about and meeting people and making connections and just being all around fun. Too bad she's from provo.

Dani:

Jeez. Dani is my best friend. I can honestly say that I've learned so much from her and am so grateful for her in my life. I gave Robyn and Celeste little cards that talked about how much I liked them where I got all gushy. But Dani's card was pretty much just filled with random memories-there were A LOT of them. But she really is amazing. She's someone I look up to and trust. She is one of the three people that knows absolutely EVERYTHING about me, and yet she still chooses to accept me for what I am and what I'm doing. She means the world to me. I started crying like a baby when I had to say goodbye to her. We're so similar that it sometimes clashes-but not often, and we always get over it. She's like family to me. She's always willing to help people, specifically me. She's one of those people that you just automatically feel comfortable with. It doesn't matter what you're doing, or how wildly inappropriate you may be getting, it doesn't ever feel awkward. Maybe that's just because we are close, but I don't think I can remember a single time. Anyway. she's amazing. I love her.

I lucked out this semester with roommates. I'm going to miss Ephraim so much. I won't ever take another class from Professor Jensen, or go to Maverik at three in the morning. I won't ever make a wal-mart trip in less than five minutes, because all the other wal-marts are too big. I won't go in my church building anymore. I won't ever get mail from that box I faithfully checked every day. I'll never do so many things again. This chapter of my life is closed, and I already miss it terribly. I feel empty knowing that I'm not going back next year. I've got the next 2 years of my life planned, but all I want is to go back to Ephraim, and be in junior college forever. I would be so content with that.

Snow college was an amazing place. I'm so grateful that I decided to go there, and that I got to meet the people I did. I truly believe that things happen to you for a reason, and that you are supposed to learn something from every encounter and experience you have. Snow was a giant learning experience for me, and I feel like everyone I met there played a significant role in shaping who I am right now. For that reason, I'm happy. Because I like who I am right now. I'm just sad I won't be there anymore.

What a weekend :)

This whole weekend has just been marvelous. I already wrote about Thursday night, so I'll just skip over that.

Friday was really chill. I went to one class and then basically had a catch up day for the rest of the day. Robyn curled my hair while we watched baseball :) Then we all got ready and went to the Snow meets Caribbean stomp! It was so much fun. We left that at about 11:30, and went over to apartment 16 just across the hall. We decided to go on a Denny's run, which involves driving about 45 minutes south of Ephraim to the small town of Salina. We packed a whole bunch of people into 3 cars and took off.

We almost didn't make it to Denny's, because there was a crazy snow storm that kind of prevented us from seeing. At all. But we pushed through it, basically because we didn't want to be the ones to call off the whole thing. We made it safe and sound and stayed there for quite a while. We went with me Dani and Robyn, Courtney, Kristy, Aubrey, Shak, Ryan Andelin, and then like 7 other people I had never met before. But it was still really fun :)

We came home and passed out, and woke up about 11:30 on Saturday. My cousin and her husband and their new BABY came into town to visit.

This is them:

This is their new baby, Corbin:

He's pretty freaking adorable. So we all got together and went to Los Amigos for lunch, and then walked around campus and the new library and talked. I came home and took an extremely long nap, from about 4-8pm. Then Robyn and Dani got home from a concert they went to, and we had a baby Grey's Anatomy marathon. We're slightly addicted.

That's it for now. I've just been really freaking happy this weekend, which is awesome. Lovin it.

Wonderful Day :)

Yesterday....was absolutely FANTASTIC. I don't have time to make this all fancy and post pictures and such, but I just wanted to get it down to remember it all.

I woke up went to classes, blah blah. That wasn't the exciting part. After class we went home and Robyn and Celeste had got us A FREE PIZZA! That's pretty freaking exciting when you are like us and have no money. So that was nice :)

We all crawled in the tent in the living room and watched Ellen together, and took naps and laughed at a variety of truthfully unfunny things. And I loved every minute of it :) Dani and Robyn fell asleep, but Celeste and I got up and went to do a service project at the temple in Manti. We were there for about an hour, raking grass and planting things. It was tornado-level windy, but still really fun.

Right after that we went to play softball with this kid named Erik. He needed people to play, and was short, so Celeste and I went. We ended up winning 19-17. Ha pretty high scoring, but so much fun. I hadn't played in a while, but it all came back to me and I did well.

We went back and Celeste got ready and went to hang out with Shawn. Dani, Robyn, and I went over to apartment 16 for a girl's night. We made coffee cake and pumpkin pie cake! And we roasted starbursts over the stove and talked for a long time.

Robyn was drinking her Dr. Pepper, and as she finished it she looked in the bottom...and found A SPIDER. An enormous, disgusting, missing three legs spider. Best thing: The spider had been pregnant, and its stomach ruptured. Tasty. It was probably one of the funniest things that has ever occurred, other than that time Celeste peed her pants and threw up at the same time...which was just on Tuesday.

So we watched Tangled and Robyn curled Courtney's hair. In the middle of the movie, Celeste called me. SHE GOT ENGAGED LAST NIGHT!!!! I'm so happy for her. They're going to make it. I was absolutely ecstatic. :) :) :) :)

I'm so blessed and lucky to have these girls in my life as roommates. It's a complete 180 turn around from last semester, and they've become my lifelines. I don't know what I would do without any of them. :)

Just a little quote :)

Those who love you are not fooled by mistakes you have made or dark images you hold about yourself. They remember your beauty when you feel ugly; your wholeness when you are broken; your innocence when you feel guilty; and your purpose when you are confused.

Love it.

Spring Break :) And some slight teacher rivalry

I'm kind of awful at this blogging thing. I just get distracted and then never end up doing it unless I'm pissed off about something. So this will just be a little update. First, a story about my spanish teacher.

So my Spanish teacher's name is Professor Jensen, and he may actually be my favorite teacher at Snow, next to Brenchley. He's really chill and is one of those teachers that constantly has a quirky banter going on with everyone. So one day last week I was in his office getting help with pronouns. It was really confusing, and because he knew that I played softball, he used a baseball analogy to help me to understand it. He also loves baseball, and so after I understood we started chatting about it. He asked who my favorite team was, and I said, "Well, I really like the Mariners, but everyone knows they're not going anywhere, so the Yankees are probably my favorite." He looked at me, and then pointed upward to his cabinets, upon which was resting an array of Boston Red Sox paraphernalia. If you know anything about baseball, you know that the Yankees and the Red Sox are mortal enemies.

So the next day in class he brings in this baseball flowchart. The very first question is, "do you have a soul?" If yes, it leads you to a whole bunch of teams. If no, it says you should root for the Yankees.

Well me and Robyn and Celeste decided to do something about that. We took my multitude of car paints, and we go and find his car in the teacher's parking lot. And we write YANKEES really big on the back windshield. So the next day in Spanish he came in during the introduction and told everyone about it. and everyone seemed to enjoy it. But then the entire class period he just kept going on and on and on and on with his stupid little jokes. For instance, we were doing an activity, and one of the questions was if anything in the room was broken. He looked around and goes, only Catalina's head for liking the Yankees. And he keeps saying stuff like, "Officer Bob was able to lift some prints off my car, so be expecting a call any day now." Or, "Even God hates the Yankees, because the same day you wrote that there was a rain storm that washed everything off." So the ball is currently in his court. But I bought a Yankees hat this weekend to wear to class :)

so now. Spring Break.

I don't really know how else to do this....so I'm just gonna list things day by day. Hopefully I can remember everything.

Friday: I took Aubrey and Dani home. I didn't have to work, so I just chilled at home. I was absolutely EXHAUSTED, so I went to bed real early.

Saturday: I'm pretty sure I worked....but I truthfully don't remember. I didn't do anything else that was all that exciting. Sad side note: A pretty good friend of mine from when I was little died in a car crash on the way to California. We had lost touch over the years and didn't talk much anymore. But it still hurt.

Sunday: I worked an opening shift, which was really freaking easy. Then I went out to Laura Moon's house. We got drunk and she did my nails and we watched Grey's Anatomy. Because of that I've been watching Grey's Anatomy constantly all week.

Monday: Monday I worked. I visited Tessa and talked with her for a while.

Tuesday: See Monday. I did the same thing.

Wednesday: Wednesday was BUSY. But incredibly fun. I woke up, took my car to the oil change place, and had that done. Right after that I went to get my hair cut by the lovely Laura Moon. She did wonderful. We just gossiped about people we hate the whole time. That was nice. I got home from that and my good friend Cassidi Hawes came up! She just came up for the day, but I haven't seen her in over a year, so it was pretty exciting. I spent the rest of the day with her, with some guest appearances by others. Her, David, Texas and i went to firehouse. Then us minus Texas went to hastings, the DI, wal-mart, etc. I pierced her ear. Her boyfriend came up, and that night we partied at Dixon's house. We smoked and drank and did hookah all night. It was lovely seeing her :) Oh! And we went longboarding on campus! Noelle came and it was quite fun :)

Thursday: Thursday kind of sucked because I had to work at seven in the morning. And I was real hung over. It wasn't the most fun thing in the world. But I got done with work and then hung out at my house for most of the night. It was nice just to chill with my little sister :)

Friday: Friday I worked from 8-4. I had to take my car in to the Ford place, and it cost like 400 bucks to fix. That freaking sucked. But i have it back now. Friday was MORIAH'S BIRTHDAY!! I got her her presents on Thurdsday and she was all ecstatic :) After work it was date night, and I took her to firehouse. Then we went to Hasting's and purchased myself a Yankee's ball cap :) I picked up my sister, and called it a night.

Today: I went all the way to the scenic town of Aberdeen, Idaho for my little sister's volleyball tournament. My mom and I mocked the girls playing the whole time, and predicted who was going to turn out in certain ways during high school. It was pretty enjoyable :) We listened to my TWO NEW BILLY JOEL ALBUMS THAT I GOT THIS WEEKEND the whole way there and back. We came home, my dad made us margarita chicken, and I watched grey's anatomy and relaxed the rest of the night.

It's been absolutely lovely.

My lovely day :)

Today was kind of a rough day, but because today has been absolutely FANTASTIC, I will write it down, as I want to remember it.

It started out with me going to my 7:30 class, which I normally detest. Until I found out what I got on my most recent quiz: a 93 percent!! That early class is physics, and it kind of kicks my butt. Constantly. Freak yes!!

So then i went back to my apartment and took a nice long nap. I went to Spanish at 11:30, and surprise of all surprises, I actually understand what we're learning. My teacher made fun of me for liking the Yankees, so I quickly began making plans to get back at him. (He is one of those teachers that everyone just constantly has a quirky banter with, which I love). I'll post a picture of what I did later, because as of right now my computer won't upload it from my phone. But let's just say there was vandalism of a car involved.

After Spanish we went over to the GSC to get some free Aggie ice cream. I ended up walking out with a scholarship for the next two years at Utah State. Best thing EVER.

After that my roommates and I all went to Subway and had a BLAST. I love these girls. They're awesome.

Then I went bowling. We played 2 games, and I got a 111 and a 189, respectively. I blew away the rest of the competition :) ha. I love winning, so that made me quite happy :)

I came home, did a shit ton of Spanish, then had a lovely dinner prepared by my lovely roommate Robyn. She made chicken pot pie and it was the best thing ever.

And then I took a wonderfully long hot shower, blogged, got a letter from my dear friend Sam, and am now going to bed.

My Day in Pictures

Napping

Making Spanish Flashcards

Next to Normal Soundtrack

Eating Pizza

Watching Zombieland


Listening to Billy Joel

And that's about it. I feel like it was productive....yet a waste of time as well. But I'm content :)

My Dad

My dad....is awesome. We drove my sister to her first stake dance tonight, and after that just stayed out driving around and talking. We were both really open with each other, which doesn't usually happen. I told him I was thinking about getting my nose pierced and what his thoughts were on it. We talked about my tattoo and about his family and our thoughts on them. We aren't usually that open with each other. We talk about things, but then they tend to be shoved in a corner and ignored. So it was nice. We watched the movie Red, and he just looked at me and put his hand on my shoulder and said "I'm really glad you're my daughter."

:)

Day 17: A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently

Pot of Kool-Aid

Watch the video here.

It's beautiful.