From Provo

Well, ladies and gentlefolk, I am here in the great state of Utah. Actually, it's not that great. It's extremely hot and dry and brown. But anyway...
It has been some time since I have written and SO much has happened since then. I shall give a brief update on the recent past events:

1. Made the 14 hour drive from home to here. It was the longest car ride of my life. I did, however, purchase the first season of Gilmore Girls and was able to watch about six hours of it on the way. I had to sneak it by Bryce. I tried to tell him it was good because it had girls in it, but that only worked for the first two episodes. I love the speed limit in Idaho. It's 75 MPH. Wow. What a difference that makes! My mom also decided to trade her car in for a Honda Accord after spending a small fortune on gas for the trip. So, yes. We arrived on Wednesday to campus.

2. Wednesday I moved in. I am in a dorm complex with about seven towers, each with seven floors. I'm on the fourth. I knew my roomate somewhat before moving in with her, so that added a little comfort. With the help of my family we carried my mountain of belongings to my room, including two garbage sacks full of shoes. A girl can never have too much shoes...And then we went to dinner with an old friend, a returned missionary, and that was pretty much my Wednesday. Not very exciting, I know. But hey.

3. Thursday meant the first day of NSO (New Student Orientaion). For this, I was driven by mother to the Marriot Center (yes, that Marriot) which is where the BYU basketball team plays. It's the gym. My mom had a difficult time leaving me there alone. It was after all, the first step to a completely independent life. But she eventually left. After getting registered, we were ushered into the huge center where we were greeted by the BYU president and staff. We learned about the history of BYU -- a little too much history about BYU. With each new name that was introduced as a past president, my butt hurt that much worse. There was a sprit of entertainment, however, when we were graced by the presence of the BYU marching band and cheerleading squad. And yes, marching band members look the same no matter where you are at in the world. That did bring some sense of comfort, however twisted it was. Next we broke off into Y Groups, which was like our Link Crew Group. There were people from DC, Arizona, Washingtong, Mexico, California, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Idaho, etc. etc. etc. No new friends from that group. There were, however, some typical "Utah Mormons" in the group. For those of you who don't know what this species is like, I will enlighten you. 1: They all look the same. 2: They wear a buttload of makeup. 3: Their hair is dyed blonde and cut on the short side. 4: They give off a valley-girl auroa. 5: They are ditzes. 6: They stick together in packs, like wolves. And 7: Cocky, self-centered guys are attracted to them. That's fine with me. I'd rather the two types stick together anyway. But yes, we had three girls like that in our group. And of course there were three guys that immediately hooked up with them the rest of the day. Can you say annoying? Anyway, we played dumb games and then took a useless tour of campus before calling it a day. Later that evening I hung out with my family and we even went shopping. See, here at BYU, there is a dress and grooming standard. You can't wear shorts above the knee. So I didn't have any shorts like that, only capris. As a result, I got some. I guess now I'm official, A?

3. Friday was my open-major meeting. Basically, it did little more than confuse me even more on what I wanted to do with my life. Though, it did convince me to drop Anthropolgy. No classes on Fridays now! That evening I went with my family to Bridal Vail Falls. It was gorgeous. The only not pretty part of the little excursion was Bryce's attitude. He was angry at the world. He wanted to go the park, not Target afterwards. He kicked and he screamed and he cursed in words that he considered evil. And then he said, "I hate everything! I hate this car, I hate this freeway, I hate the store ---" My mom interrupted him. "Bryce," she said, "Are you having a bad day?" Bryce just looked at her for a second and then completely disregarded her question and continued on with his rampage. In the climax of the dramatic performance, he squished up his beat red face and yelled, "AND I HATE THE CRISTMAS TREE AT OUR HOUSE!!!!" Now, keep in mind that we do not, in fact, have a tree at our house this time of year. Nevertheless, at least we now know that he has distinct disdain for the piece of nature, the sweet symbol of everything sweet Christmas has to offer. Bryce, the monster. Friday also brought my first night in the dorm. I stayed here without my roomate. Now, there are only four showers per floor. So getting ready took some planning in the morning. However, all went fine.

4. Saturday morning my family came and picked me up. We returned my anthroplogy book and then went and ate lunch. Afterwards, we said our tearful goodbyes. I knew they would cry. Why did the cry? Why did the make me cry? Moms and grandmas...always up for a good tear session. As I watched them drive out of the parking lot, I experienced for the first time since arriving at campus somewhat of an empty feeling. I know that is normal and expected, but I thought I would be different. I thought I would be fine. But no. The rock in the pit of my stomach sat firmly, and would only grow as time went on. And no, rocks don't grow, but if it's a rock of homesickness, it explodes with the help of dynamite. Saturday my roomate and I kept busy. We played HORSE on the basketball court outside the dorms and then went over to the sand pits and peppered for awhile. Then two cute senior guys and a girl with them asked us to play, so we did. And we lost. But it was fun, and it was my first step to being more outgoing and meeting people. See, I'm not outgoing. I'm not one who instantly makes friends. I always have a wall built around me, and I thought that going into college I could make new start, begin a year without a wall. But I have come to realize that that is how I am -- it's just my personality. So I'm working on that aspect. Saturday night we attended the FINALE. It reminded me of a grad night. There was an outside dance. Now, let me tell you about an interesting experience at this dance. Jamie, my roomate, and I were just standing there, taking in the scene before us. Wo and Behold a guy comes up to us. Mental Picture: He is tall, skinny, wearing dress slacks and a blue buttom up shirt buttoned to the top (it was a completely casual dress for the party), slicked back hair, and glasses. So there he was just standing there, looking at us. And then he broke the silence when he asked, "Do either of you want to learn the Polka." "UH." "Well." "Nah." Mumbled responses kept jumbling out from us as wetried to decide if this guy was serious or not. "Come on," he replied. "I'll teach you." Teach us to what music, we thought, as techno blasted in the background. "You can polka to anything that's got a good beat," he said. The guy read our minds. And so Jamie took my purse and made me dance Polka with the biology major from upstate New York. There we were going around in what seemed like circles, dancing around people that were standing nearby. "Um, watch out!" "Oh! People!" "Whoa!" These were short cries from myself as we spun and crashed into people. So there you have it. Only at BYU.

5. Sunday brought church. We met in the late afternoon which was a change for me, and in a courtroom/classroom of all places. It was pretty bizarre. At one point in the three hour block, we all had to introduce ourselves. I heard from a lot of interesting people. One guy had been raised in Paris and took all of his classes in French, even though he was American. He's also fluent in Spanish and Russian. Another girl had lived in Embassies all of her life and most recently called Japan her home. There was a girl from Bankok, Thailand, and people from all over the country. I was pretty impressed by many and thought, "I am so not in Oregon anymore." Oddly enough, there are six kids from Oregon in our ward. After church we had a floor meeting with the girls on my floor. And then we ate dinner in the cafeteria. My roomate was visiting her brother, so I had to do what every high school dreads: Find a seat in the cafeteria when you don't know a single soul. Finally I settled on two girls who were sitting at a table. One from Conneticut, the other from Pennsylvania. I talked to them, but again, no friendships cliqued. I often wonder if I'll ever make friends. I know I will eventually, but as of now, I have only had conversations with people...friendliness on the surface. Non-involved conversations. Sometimes I feel very alone on this vast campus. But then I realize that everything will be ok in time. Time. It's such a small word, but has such a big place in our lives.

6. And here I am. It's Monday. I went to my first class this morning. Biology 101. It is a huge class! There's got to be like 800 kids in the class. It's in a large auditorium with a projection screen that stretches across the stage. And then following Bio I went to HEPE, which is my lifestyle management class. It fulfills the wellness requirement. Again, a very large class. I am amazed at how many people walk this campus. On an average day, 20,000 students pass through the bookstore. Incredible. And I love people watching, so this is a good place to do it. I thought that in coming to BYU, everyone would have a cookie-cutter image. But I was wrong. There are so many types of people here, it's amazing. And I really like that. I also like the annonymity of such a large campus. While I wish I made friends, at least no one knows I haven't, you know?

Anyway, that's the update in a nutshell. I'm sitting in my dorm room right now trying to cool off from walking from the center of campus. I'll try to keep this updated more. I know I was bad at that for awhile. Until then, stay classic.

The time has come, the walrus said...

It's my last night at home. Come tomorrow night I will be sleeping somewhere between here and Utah. The next night I will be sleeping in the Mountain Time Zone and looking at the Provo stars. It's a wierd feeling, knowing that I will probably never REALLY live at home again. Sure, I'll be back next summer, but that's more of a vacation. And the next summer, who knows where I'll be. So really, this is my last night as a child. Tomorrow as I pull out of my driveway, I grow up. I will be forced to face the world. And I hope I can stand firm when it hits me. I hope I have done enough in my life to keep me on solid ground. And I think I have.

The hardest part of today was saying my goodbyes. This last weekend has been one long farewell. Thursday I went and tanned with dear Squeeks and bid her a marvelous time at UP. Then that night I took a walk with my dad in our old neighborhood by our old house, and then we watched "Sabrina" which is one my all-time favorite movies and was one that my dad and I saw together in the theaters (the Harisson Ford/Julia Ormond/Greg Kinnear version). Friday night I stayed at Kyndra's with Courtney and Christina and we just talked for hours. Sunday I hugged a million people at church and recieved even more Best Wishes. After church I said goodbye to beloved tacos. Almost every Sunday my family eats tacos. I will truly miss them. They were such welcome friends after a long day at church. Later that evening I smelled for the last time (at least for awhile) the sweet aroma of banana bread and chocolate chip cookies. To die for. And finally, Monday, today, I went over to my dad's for my requested Last Supper, taco salad, and a little chat time with the family. Saying goodbye to my dad when I left was hard. I could tell he was having a difficult time but was trying not to show it as I got in the car. I even got teary as I drove down our street. Tonight I went running with Michael and said goodbye to him. We sat at the Hucrest playground for awhile and looked at the stars, the last hometown stars I'll see until probably next summer. Later he brought me by a present his grandparents had gotten me, and we said our farewells. That was harder then I expected.

So all in all, it has been an emotional roller coaster ride these last few days as I have prepared to head out of town. I just want to thank everyone who is reading this for being a part of my life. Most likely if you read my blog, you care somewhat about what I at least have to say, and that means a heck of a lot to me. Many of you have been dear friends to me and have given me so many good and fun memories that I will forever cherish. I really treasure our friendship. To my family, I love you all so much. When people go to college, friends fade, but is comforting knowing my family will always be there for me. Thank you.

Well, I guess this is it - my last post from this town, the town where my parents were born, where I was born, where I have lived my entire life. Yeah, ok. So I'll miss it. But I know I will have an incredible time at school, and I will definitely keep everyone informed on what I am doing while I am there. Just continue to read my blog. I love reading people's comments.

From HERE, signing off. See you THERE.

Life's Big Questions of the Day

Here are some random questions that have ran through my mind lately:

1. Why do old people always just walk around the locker room at the YMCA butt naked? It always seems to be the older ones. I think people should shower, wrap a towel around themselves, go to their place of dressing, and get dressed. There is no reason for walking around aimlessly without ANYTHING on. The other morning I went into the Y and went in the ladies lockeroom. I was going to use the scale. Immediately upon entering, I was flashed time and time again. I did a 180 and headed back out the door trying to clear from my mind the scene that had just flashed before my eyes. Old people...Why do they like to be naked?

2. Zits. Who are they? What is their purpose in life? They have many names: Zit. Acne. Pimple. Volcano. They have many faces. But does anyone really know WHAT they are? They come in the darkness of the night. They find sick pleasure in making other people's lives miserable. They live: They are born. They grow. They eat. They explode. And they die. Forget cancer. Find a cure for zits!

3. Why does my brother's girlfriends all call him GAGEY...

4. Why does my little brother have an obsession with girls' bellies? He always asks to see mine...

5. How does Sam Goody get away with charging so much more for a CD than Fred Meyer or Wal-Mart and still make a profit?

6. Who invented nail polish?

7. Why can't the world just get along and paint flowers and rainbows together and sing sweet melodies and never go hungry?

8. Why the freak are gas prices so high?

9. Who makes a cuss word a cuss word?

10. If people who live in Oregon are called Oregonians, what are people called who live in: Wisconsin, Vermont, Maine, Montana, Idaho, Tennessee, etc.?

11. What would it be like to not have a thumb?

12. Is Laguna Beach real or staged?

13. Whatever happend to the Doogie Howser in that show about him?

14. How does Sydney Bristow escape every possible life-threatening situation?

15. Why when you are awake for twelve hours during the day you have to eat a lot, but when you sleep for 12 hours, you don't?

16. Why am I typing this post at 12:14 AM?

17. Why do stupid people go to Wal-Mart?

18. What IS water?

19. Where did Hootie and the Blowfish go?

20. Whatever happened to Amelia Erhart?

21. Did the captain of the Titanic cry?

22. Does anyone know the way to Atlantis?

23. What is the appeal of Johnny Depp?

24. Why am I finally getting tired?

25. Was Shakespeare really gay? Bisexual?

26. Why am I still writing on this blog?

27. Why did N'Sync break up?

28. What REALLY caused the Brad and Jennifer break-up?

29. Do you want me to end this nonsensical blog?

30. Okay I'll end it. But why did I stop at 30? What is the significance of this number subconsciously?

Miracle

It was 4:30 when we pulled into the parking lot of Providence hospital in downtown Portland. Like every hospital in America, the grounds were under construction and we were forced to hunt for a space in which to park. Finally, after what seemed like hours of searching, we pulled our large SUV into a compact spot. My grandma, mom, and I then walked into the lobby of the hotel--I mean hospital. The lobby boasted an open ceiling to all floors of the hospital with a statue and fountain and plants and chairs. It was quite impressive. "Mom," I said as I did a 360, "We aren't in Douglas County anymore."

Leaving the striking entrance of what proved to be an all-around impressive hospital, we took the elevator to the Family Maternity Ward, where my aunt had been admitted since 7:00 that morning. She was overdue and it was only a matter of time before the meat thermometer popped and the baby was cooked. To further matters along quickly, the doctors had induced her, and she was guaranteed to give birth that day. And so there we were, waiting.

At 5:00 the doctor came in to check her and discovered that she was dialated to 10 cm., meaning that it was time to push. It was uncertain as to how long she would have to push, so we, the cheering section, waited outside in the hallway until the baby got closer to coming out. During this anxious moment in an otherwise calm labor, I discovered that maybe Portland isn't so different from Douglas County after all. At the window where I sat hung a soup can connected to a string. Following the string, I realized that it stretched across a vast courtyard outside and connected at another window of a neighboring building. Apparently it was used when the communication system was not working. I felt very safe then, in such a technologically advanced healthcare facility.

In the midst of my disbelief of the string system, the nurse poked her head outside the door. "It's time," she said. At this point, I was unsure whether or not I would go inside during the delivery. However, the nurse said, "Jessica, your aunt said you can come in if you want." I thought about it for a split second and then decided that someday I was going to go through this, and it might be good to know what I was going to get myself into. And so I went.

The delivery room was dim. The TV played soothing music, which I thought to be a joke considering the turmoil that surrounded the hospital bed. I was prodded up to the top of the bed by my aunt's head among the chords and wires that connected the machines. The doctor sat at the foot of the bed and two nurses ran frantically around the room preparting all that needed to be prepared.

Now, I had been through this once before. My mom had my little brother three years ago. However, my mom was not as drugged as my aunt was at the moment, and I could only take so much of seeing my mom in pain. So during my brother's birth, I was in the delivery room up until he started coming out. This time, I was in it for the long haul. The long haul, however, didn't prove to be so long at all.

In what must have been minutes, the doctor was announcing that he could see a head. The nurse asked me if I wanted to go down and watch. Wearily, I did. And what I saw blew my mind away. I could see the top of the head. It was like some scene from a science fiction movie. "Keep pushing," said the doctor. "You're doing great." Well, my aunt was so drugged that she couldn't feel a thing. My heart jumped as the doctor reached his hands aroundn the babies head and pulled her out. First the top of the head, then the face. Finally, the body emerged along with a spillage of fluid. The umbilical chord tagged behind. I was so full of emotion seeing this baby breathe her first breaths of air. I was dazed. I was amazed. I was awestruck. I was incredibly happy, and at the same time wanted to cry. There's something almost sacred about bringing life into the world.

Riley Nicole Young was beautiful. She was healthy at 9 pounds 2 oz. She had all of her toes and fingers with long nails. She had a full head of hair. She was perfect. She was innocent. She was untarnished from the world. The delivery couldn't have gone any better.

Following the birth, the baby was placed on my aunt, where my uncle cut the chord. Riley was with her new family. How wierd, I thought. One minute there is three. The next, four. The whole situation was mind-boggling.

To sum up the whole experience, I am adopting. Just kidding. Well, it's not a bad idea to have at least one kid who is adopted, considering all the millions of children without families. But after having a one-on-one anatomy lesson on the placenta as the doctor explained to me the functions of it, stretching it and flipping it like a pancake, as well as witnessing how exaclty a baby exits the mother's womb, the thought of complete adoption did cross my mind. However, I also witnessed the pure love and joy that a mother can have for her child as she holds it close to her breast, knowing that the child came from within her. And that can't be adopted.

Miracle. It's the only word thick enough to describe the process of birth. And as sappy as this whole post sounds, everyone understands it at some point in their lives.

Change

Everything is changing. Everything has changed. Everything will change. Everything does change. Change can be good - and change has been bad. II have had a lot of changes in my life lately. Looking back at the past year, I have had quite a bit, actually.
My parents ended their 12 year business
We sold our house
We moved into a rental
We bought a house
We moved into the new house
I graduated from high school
I got accepted into college
I'm going to college
My stepsister moved in with her daughter
I moved into my mom's house
We switched church wards and now attend in another building
My great-aunt died
A friendship turned to more
The more turned back to friendship
I learned a new sport
I played a new sport
I got good at a new sport
I gained weight this summer
I can no longer fit into several pair of pants
I've packed my room up five times
I watched a birth
I became a blueberry expert
I became a blueberry hater
My bank account exceeded $1000 for once
I found a new friend in a stepsister
I discovered my best friend smokes cigars
I made new friends
I saw my first shooting star (and many afterwards)
I wished upon a shooting star
It's all changing so fast. Sometimes I just sit and do nothing and realize that it is a rare occasion to simply sit and do nothing. It seems my world is spinning around me and I don't try to steady myself. Too often I just ride the merry go round. Too little do I stop and ground myself. And the change just keeps on changing. I know that the constant whirl will only become increasingly quicker in the next few days. When I step foot on campus - change. When I say goodbye to my family - change. When I meet new people - change. When I realize my meal plan only gives me $8 of food a day - change. When I get homesick and have no choice but to suck it up - change. When I see that first flake of snow out of my dorm window - change. When that snow doesn't melt the next morning - change. When I come home at Christmas and realize I am different - change. Change. Change. Change. It can all be too much, and at the same time, not ever enough.
Here's to the merry-go-round.

Angeli-caca takes the Challenge

So Angelica took the challenge. She was the only one brave enough to take it on. I comend Angeli-caca on her effort, as well as her success. She emailed me her results, and here they are, for the world to see. If you see this girl around, please congratulate her on her good work. She deserves every pat on the back that life can give her. She is truly caca.

THE CHALLENGE

1. Say this line to your mother: "Mom, who are you?" Report her response. Repeat this to on other person of your choice.
First she said "What?!" Then she said "Titi, don’t be stupid", and then she sang that Shania Twain song "Don’t be stupid, you know I love you." I also asked Steven, he told me to shut up.
2. Find the weirdest song you can find and tell us what it is so that we can download it too. Feel free to post the lyrics if you can.
The weirdest song... this I found to be hard. Weird is a difficult word to actually define. "She thinks my tractor’s sexy" That’s a strange song. Have you ever found a tractor to be sexy?
3. Watch one "classic" movie and tell us how you felt watching it and/or what the movie means to you.
The other day I watched "I’ve Got Mail" and what it means to me is that no person is perfect, but everyone is bound to meet the right person for them. Sigh. I love happy endings.
4. Read one article in the News Review and comment on hidden meaning in the article--what you think the reporter was REALLY trying to say. Please include the date of the article so that one can refer to it in the archives of the online News Review.
"Patchwork" August 7, 2005. It was about Boy Scouts and now they trade their patches and can make money off them. I think what the reporter was REALLY trying to say was that if you collect junk you might make a profit. So keep those banana peels, they’ll be worth something some day.
5. State your opinion on the Douglas County Fair. Why do YOU go?
The fair is one of the staple events in Roseburg. It goes in the same set as football games, the half shell, Doc’s games, the various parades, the Arts Festival, etc. Why do I go? Because it’s an exquisite tradition, because I love the greasy food, gross people, unsanitary rides and being with my friends in the most Roseburgian atmosphere to hit Roseburg. I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
6. State your opinion on country music (please include an educated WHY).
Country music is great, but only some of it. Obviously everything’s good to a point and I can take quite a bit of coutry before I feel dizzy and unstable. It brings back great memories of when my dad used to take me to the dump with him and we would stop by Colony market and he would give me money for candy and if "Pretty Woma" came on he would sing it to me. Sigh. Those were the good ol days. In conclusion I believe in small doses of country music.
7. Eat your favorite food and then tell what your favorite food means to you.
Ice cream. I ate some Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. I suppose it means I’m going to be fat one day.
8. Send a mass email.
did it a gazillion times....
9. Send Jessica a greeting card.
DONE!!!
10. TP Jessica’s car.
Wow, i still haven’t done this one. Maybe one day.

Live from Portland

I'm in Portland right now. I just got to my grandma's house after going to the Howie Day concert downtown in the Crystal Ballroom. And yes, it really is a ballroom. We stood for the ENTIRE concert on a wood floor as the band played on a stage in the corner. It was like a scene out of the OC. It was like a club with a band. It was an experience.

First of all, we spent the day shopping. I spent a little more than I should have, as always. But it's okay. My dad says the money I earned from working this summer will all go towards school. My mom said I better hurry and spend it then and not tell him how much I made. I love my mom. So my expedintures today were quite reasonable looking at them in that light. It's either use the money on clothes or say saranara to it forever...

Olive Garden called our name for dinner. It was delicious as usual.

We left my grandma's house at 7:00 and headed to Burnside for the concert. It took us an hour to get there since Michael was driving. At one point he started driving up a one-way street with a stampede of cars racing towards us. That was a rush. Or not. At another point in our trip downtown, Michael took a wrong turn and we found ourselves on a different freeway headed to the zoo when we were supposed to stay downtown. I am so driving home.

At the ballroom, a woman by the name of Missy Higgins played before it started. She reminded me a lot of Sarah McGlouchlin (spelling?). She had that rich, folk voice and she played both the guitar and piano and was accompanied only by one other guitar. I was impressed with the Australian musician. Then the concert started and Anna Nahkin (spelling?) who sings Breathe (2 AM) on the radio opened for Howie Day. She started off shaky, but quickly gained my respect. She was quite impressive actually. Finally, at 10:15 p.m., after having been standing on the wooden floor since 8:00 p.m., and about to double over in pain from having chosen to wear high heals (I thought I'd be sitting, oK?), Howie Day finally came out on stage and put on a good performance. It would have been better if I wouldn't have so tired and in pain. However, Howie still rocked the Crystal Ballroom. He was suprisingly good live. He changed up his songs so they were quite a bit different from the CD. And then there's always "Collide." I can dig 'em. He did come across as a jerk, however. You know how you can just tell? Yeah. I could tell.

So yes, I was the brilliant navigator who brought us home to West Linn from smack dab in the middle of downtown Portland without making one wrong turn. We arrived at my grandma's with t-shirts and sore feet, where we found my grandma up waiting for us and baked rice crispy treats, banana bread, and cranberry-orange muffins. My grandma, I swear!

Well, kids. It's been been real. Stay groovy............

Big John, Fair Food, and Wife-Beaters

So I have this friend who volunteers to push patience from Mercy Rehab around the fair every year. She asked me to help her, and I obliged upon hearing that I would get into the fair free later that night. When we got to the rehab center, we were introduced to Big John. We were told that Big John was deaf and we would have to write everything we said to him on a tablet. Well, I thought, this could be a long two and half hours! It turned out Big John could talk fine - he talked a lot and LOUDLY. I learned from him that he was the head security guard at Roseburg High in the 80's. Big John, the called him. Now, Big John was merely a shadow of former self. In a wheelchair with no legs, no hearing, and quickly fading eyesight, he was a sorry sight. However, he still kept his sense of humor and joked with us the entire two hours. We pushed the big guy around the fair in the dead of the summer heat. We entered him in drawings and grabbed him freebies. He got his picture drawn from the character artist. It was quite a pleasent afternoon, and I'm sure we gave the man the most fun that he's had in a long time, probably not since last year at the fair. Poor guy.

Later tonight, I returned to the fair. And it was quite the fulfilling experience. It was the perfect summer evening - not too hot, not too cold. Just right. We got there and were able to get decent seats for the Teri Clark concert. And then we went and got food. Four of us split a thing of curly fries, a terryaki stick, fried ravioli, and a fried bread. It was amazing. There is little in life comparable to fair food. Fair food is...heaven. Especially the fried bread. It is absolutely amazing, to say the least. Following the food, we went and appropriately looked at the pigs -- and then went and tried to throw it all up on the rides. It was a blast.

Oh, and did I mention that I hate wife-beaters? Yeah, they are the most white trash look on a guy that ever did exist. And so before entering the fair, we decided we were going to count how many wife-beaters we saw. In a three hour period, we counted 18. One guy had a wife-beater and orange hawaiian print shorts and we decided he was the worst model of the retched shirt of them all. But yeah. Not a good look at all. Only in our county...

Well, I'm going back to the fair on Thursday. Tomorrow I"m going to a Howie Day concert. I'm going to get all of this out of my system before I leave for school and start having to be smart again.

Two weeks and counting

College is quickly approaching. The smell of a dorm room shared by hundreds of people is already starting to permiate my nostrils. And as of right now, I can't decide if it's pleasant or rank. It's really hard to believe that I will leaving the town where I grew up - in two weeks. I've been keeping myself extremely busy with friends, and have allowed myself little time to actually stop and think about what I am about to do. I'm not sure if that is a conscious effort to block the thoughts from my mind, or rather a natural behavior of a freshman in her last high school summer. My parents say that it's natural to never be home the summer before you go to college. Well, I definitely have not been. I feel bad because I have really spent little time with my family, but at the same time, I can't let myself just sit at home. It's like my body smells an outlet and is already itching to get itself up and going. Well, I'm going allright. In just under two weeks I will be getting in our Expedition and heading to Utah. We'll stop at my Grandma's for a night and pick her up. My two brothers will be joining us as well. It's quite the family affair, you see. I think my family has never seen anyone go to college before...But I love them and will miss them, so they are welcome to tag along. On August 24th, we will arrive in Provo where I will check into my dorm. I already know my roomate somewhat, but still not well. Which is probably a good thing. She's already informed me she wants the right side of the room. Ok, well I have the left side then, I suppose. Utah will be extremely warm, since it is a desert. Then it will snow and I will miss the heat. It will snow a lot. And I will miss the heat a lot. Did I mention I don't like cold weather? What the heck am I doing? Well, you see, I am going to college. Yes, I am old enough to go to college whether I like the weather or not. It was my decision to attend school in Utah, and so I will deal with it, hopefully even grow to like it. The wierd thing is that I will be making most of my decisions from here on out. I'm not old enough to that! I don't feel the age that I've always seen people at when they go to college. Everyone else has always been so much more ready. I can't sew a button, braid my hair, cook (thank heavens for a meal card!). And I am supposed to live fourteen hours away and survive? Two weeks and counting and my life will change forever. It's a wierd thought. I try not to think about it. Allright, well I've rambled enough. Till later....

For the Bored Ones of Summer

I have become aware that people are bored this summer. Ken wrote about it in a (sorry Ken) somewhat pathetic mass email. Angelica has written about it on comments of my blog. And I can imagine that many of you out there have felt times of boredom at some point this summer. I know that I have fallen victim to the ruthless murderer of zeal and passion, myself. So, with people in mind who suffer from this merciless plague, I wanted to create an interactive blog post that encouraged particpation from others. Here goes my attempt:

IF YOU READ THIS POST AND ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO DO, CONTINUE READING. IF YOU WISH TO MERELY SLIDE THROUGH LIFE LIKE A SLIMY SLUG, THEN STOP READING. IT'S YOUR CHOICE. IT'S YOUR TIME. DO OR DIE.

Complete any or all of the following tasks:

1. Say this line to your mother: "Mom, who are you?" Report her response. Repeat this to one other person of your choice.

2. Find the wierdest song you can find and tell us what it is so that we can download it too. Feel free to post the lyrics if you can.

3. Watch one "classic" movie and tell us how you felt watching it and/or what the movie means to you.

4. Read one article in the News Review and comment on hidden meaning in the article--what you think the reporter was REALLY trying to say. Please include the date of the article so that one can refer to it in the archives of the online News Review.

5. State your opinion on the Douglas County Fair. Why do YOU go?

6. State your opinion on country music (please include an educated WHY).

7. Eat your favorite food and then tell what your favorite food means to you.

8. Send a mass email.

9. Send Jessica a greeting card

10. TP Jessica's car

Songs That I'm Listening to this Summer

OLDIES:
Beach Boys: California Girls, You're So Good to Me, Summer, Wouldn't it Be Nice, Kokomo, Fun Fun Fun
Bryan Adams: Summer of '69
Buffalo Springfield: For What it's Worth
The Drifters: Stand By Me
Creedence Clearwater Revival: Fortunate Son
Simon and Garfunkel: Mrs. Robinson
The Archies: Sugar, Sugar
Stevie Nicks: Crystal
The Marvelettes: Please Mr. Postman
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas: (Love Is Like A) Heat Wave
Kansas: Carry on my Wayward Son
Al Green: Lean on Me
Three Dog Night: Joy to the World

NEWSIES:
Kelly Clarkson: Behind These Hazel Eyes
Vertical Horizon: Forever
The Killers: All These Things I've Done
Sugarcult: I'm Alright
Lifehouse: You and I
Good Charlotte: Seasons
Green Day: Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
Goo Goo Dolls: Slide
Yellow Card: Ocean Avenue
Ingram Hill: Almost Perfect
Greenwheel: Breathe
Five For Fighting: 100 Years
Phantom Planet: Anthem

COUNTRY (My most recent obesession):
Craig Morgan: That's What I Love About Sunday
Darryl Worley: Awful, Beautiful Life
George Strait: You'll Be There
Jason Aldean: Hicktown
Lonestar: My Front Porch Looking In
Montgomery Gentry: Something to be Proud Of
Pat Green: Baby Doll
Racal Flatts: Fast Cars and Freedom
Ryan Shupe & The Rubberband: Dream Big
Rascal Flatts: I Miss Mayberry
Blake Sheldon: Austin
Faith Hill: Mississippi Girl

GREAT EASY LISTENING SOUNDTRACKS:
The Man from Snowy River
Titanic
Lord of the Rings
Last of the Mohicans
Phantom of the Opera
Message in a Bottle
City of Angels
Anastasia