juxtapose

new marriage ... new name ... new email ... why not a new blog?

2009-11-04T19:07:00.002-05:00

yep ... i am transitioning to a new blog ... one that reflects nathan too (not that he has been all that concerned about it) but I wanted to start a new in this aspect of my life as well.

so here is our new blog address:

nbsoelberg.blogspot.com

Feel free to check us out if you want! And feel free to change your bookmarks, links, etc. This blog is not going to be deleted ... but it just won't have much updated information on it. I exported posts starting back from May (when I first introduced Nate into my blog readership) so we would not have a completely bare blog to start with. I was waiting to have the professional photos from our wedding as the first post, but they aren't quite ready yet and I decided to move forward and post them later.

Hope to "see" you over at our new blog home real soon!

Best,

N & B

Lemon Pi

2009-10-25T20:27:00.006-05:00

Nate and I just finished listening to a book on tape - Life of P i. I do believe that my friend Maya has been suggesting I read it for a few years now. I very much enjoyed it ... although I didn't like how the book ended. It left me feeling dissatisfied ... as endings usually do (as I think I have said before, I don't much like the end of books.)

It is the second book we have listened to on tape - the others include The Great Divorc e and Mere Christianity. My husband really enjoys listening to books on tape and the idea of reading books together. I think he got the idea from his parents who do the same thing. I am really enjoying it - it gives us something to discuss beyond our own lives, the news, and the gospel. Although, I must admit we tend to relate everything we read to those three categories anyway ... especially the gospel. Of course both the C.S. Lewis books are about religion and thus church doctrine informs our discussion of those books, but Life of Pi also has a unique perspective on religion. The narrator's voice is also exceptionally interesting and entertaining.

Anyway - its a good read. And no, neither of the two words referred to in the last post were found in this book. They are, however, found in the new Dan Brown book Lost Symbol which I am currently reading on my own. But I must say, I have been slowing down a bit on the reading of it because I am close to the end - only a 125 pages left. And have we learned about my reading habits ... yup, that's right ... I don't like the end of books. And so I will let this one drag out for a few weeks I am sure. Aggravating, isn't it?

heard

2009-10-20T22:14:00.005-05:00

i have been hearing two very interesting words quite frequently these past few days. don't worry, they have not appeared in the same sentence ... yet. don't you love when this happens? you learn a new word or a word that has been forgotten comes back into use ... or at least into your realm of the universe. i think reading for fun has something to do with it ... oh the joys of not being in school!

WORD #1

Main Entry: bur·gle
Pronunciation: \ˈbər-gəl\

Function: transitive verb

Inflected Form(s): bur·gled; bur·gling \-g(ə-)liŋ\

Etymology: back-formation from burglar

Date: 1870

: burglarize

WORD #2:

Main Entry: eu·nuch
Pronunciation: \ˈyü-nək, -nik\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English eunuk, from Latin eunuchus, from Greek eunouchos, from eunē bed + echein to have, have charge of — more at scheme

Date: 15th century

1 : a castrated man placed in charge of a harem or employed as a chamberlain in a palace
2 : a man or boy deprived of the testes or external genitals
3 : one that lacks virility or power s>

— eu·nuch·ism\-nə-ˌki-zəm, -ni-\ noun

the professional pictures are here! sort of ...

2009-10-14T12:17:00.005-05:00

my photographer just sent me the link to our wedding pictures! YAY! Check them out. I will have my digital copy sometime next week and then I will share them on the blog! Until then ... click through until you have had your fill!

the family dug up a few more wedding photos

2009-09-29T18:23:00.006-05:00

Thanks to my mother-in-law, we have a few more wedding photos to share while we patiently wait for the professional photos. Thanks Gennie!

one of our best!

Jonas reaching for my owl pendant I had attached to my flowers. How fun is that bouquet?!

Nate's oldest brother Joe and his wife Sara and their girls Libby and Jenna.

Sara made Libby and Jenna's dress - these girls are sooo super cute!

I throw this one in to illustrate my niece Brooklyn's great affection for Nate.
When we came out of the temple, her first question was:
"Uncle Nate, why did you marry Aunt B?"

Nathan, Grandma Soelberg, and my father-in-law Craig

The happy couple kneel down to talk to Jimmie and Jenna on the steps of the temple.

10 of our 13 nieces and nephews pictured here:
Hunter, Cameron, Libby, Jenna, Mikyla, Monica, Terrick, Joaquin, Jimmie, and Annabelle
(held by Kate - Nate's younger sister)

All 5 Soelberg kids!
(Ben, Joe, Nate, Kate, Steve)

Beautiful Temple, Beautiful Day

My sister-in-law Kate and her yummy 5 month old Annabelle

This girl is sooo smiley, I love it!

And our favorite picture of the bunch:

I love the attitude on my face (I was annoyed at the wind I think) and his discontent at the idea of holding back my veil all day ... hahahahaha! Also, check out the face on Nathan Soelberg ...
he makes it often ... I laugh everytime!

a few more pictures ... but not quite satisfying ... i know

2009-09-24T15:39:00.001-05:00

18 days and counting

2009-09-23T22:36:00.001-05:00

It has been 18 days since I gained a husband and became a wife and a Soelberg … sounds like a lot – right? But I must admit it feels really normal. Sure there are things to get used to – like sharing my bed and my bathroom with a boy, but generally it feels super natural for me. I am not sure Nate would agree … but maybe he would … I honestly don’t know.

I know you are all interested in seeing more pictures of the wedding … so am I … so hopefully we will get more photos from friends and family while waiting for the professional ones. I have sent out a plea to my family to share any pictures they may have snapped of the big day.

I also wanted to let you all know what we have been up to during our first few weeks of wedded bliss. Over 18 days we have been to the following cities:

- Newport Beach, CA
- Laguna Beach, CA
- Irvine, CA
- Bakersfield, CA
- Los Angeles, CA
- Miami, FL
- Cococay, Bahamas
- Nassau, Bahamas
- Eugene, OR
- Silverdale, WA
- Port Ludlow, WA
- Des Moines, WA
- Seattle, WA

NEWPORT BEACH, LAGUNA BEACH, IRVINE
Your tired just reading the list aren’t you? Yeah. So am I. How and why did we cover so much ground? Well, we were married in Newport Beach, then we stayed in Laguna Beach at a cute little hotel on Pacific Coast Highway and went to the beach and ate breakfast at the Cottage each morning! It was very relaxing to hang out at the beach after the excitement of the wedding. We then spent Labor Day with my entire family at my parent’s community pool and topped it off with a BBQ. My nieces and nephews LOVE to play with Uncle Nate – oh, and my two older brothers also enjoyed playing with Nate, including him in a little game of catch while in the pool.

BAKERSFIELD, MIAMI, BAHAMAS
It was off to Bakersfield for a few days with the Soelberg’s and our second reception – we had so much fun and received a warm welcome from family and friends. I loved wearing my wedding dress again and enjoyed the beautiful flowers and decorations arranged by my MIL (mother in law) Gennie. We then headed down to Los Angeles where we caught a plane to Miami, spending the night there before heading out on a three day cruise to the Bahamas, visiting Cococay and Nassau. The islands were beautiful and the people-watching on the boat was even better. While we don’t quite think we “cruise people,” we did enjoy ourselves since we didn’t have to worry much about anything while on the boat.

SILVERDALE, PORT LUDLOW
Flying back out of Miami and into LAX, we spent one more night back in Irvine and then one last night in Bakersfield – we expressed are sincere thanks and appreciation and said “so long until December” to our families and headed out on the 12 hour drive to Eugene. After only two nights in Eugene we got back in Ruby (our trusty Scion) and headed farther north to the Seattle area to visit Grandma Craig in Silverdale (Nate’s maternal grandmother) and Jim & Denise in Port Ludlow (Nate’s Aunt and Uncle.) Due to health and other constraints, many family members were unable to attend our wedding and so we decided to go visit and spend time with them. We are sooo glad we did! We had such a great time and got to spend more time talking with them at their homes than we would have at our wedding.

DES MOINES, SEATTLE
While in the area we also stayed with some family friends of the Soelbergs from Nate’s “home ward” in Des Moines, Washington (a suburb RIGHT outside of Seattle.) The Gleasons and the Pedersens received us warmly and they are now some of my favorite people. We talked extensively with each couple about the past, present, and future, as well as the gospel and the Lord’s plan for us. It was wonderful!

Another reason for heading up North was to attend Nate’s 10-year High School Reunion at Kell’s Irish Pub in West Seattle. It was really fun to see and talk with old friends of Nate’s. There was a good turn out and he really had a good time, even though the bar was crowded and loud. Nate’s voice was gone by the time we left!

EUGENE
It has been a journey. We are currently house-sitting in Eugene at our single’s ward Bishop’s house while him and his wife are in Hawaii! We are so very grateful for their generosity in letting us live in their beautiful and spacious house out in the country! It has been really fun for us and has helped give us some more time to apartment-hunt and find the right place for us. We know that the Lord is leading and guiding us to the right place and continually blesses us as we strive to be like our Savior. We feel blessed and are filled with gratitude for the love and support we have and continue to receive from all we come in contact with. We pray that it will continue as we work to finish school and find temporary employment and make plans to live abroad.

More Updates to Come!

bliss

2009-09-14T18:03:00.004-05:00

A sneak peak into the wedding day ... more pictures to come when we get settled ... all I can say is that it was wonderful ... beautiful ... perfect ... in a word - BLISS.

Photos courtesy of Kelly - thank you!

seven days ... and counting

2009-08-30T00:53:00.008-05:00

While its been a blast being in the same city, and the same house even,
for the past two and a half weeks ...
its going to be great not living down the hall from each other.

It will also be nice to not be living with my parents (as much as we have loved hanging out with them) and sharing my mom's kitchen.

I can't wait for us to have our own place!

I am also super excited to not be sleeping alone anymore ...
seriously, its one of the things I disliked most about being single.
Going to bed alone and making decisions alone are the things I will miss least (at least at first ;\)

These past few weeks with finalizing the wedding plans, it is all sinking in.
I. AM. GETTING. MARRIED.

In all honesty I have thought a lot about how I would feel when this time came.

To be married in the TEMPLE is something I have always wanted
and I have often wondered what it would be like.

How would I know? What would I feel like?

I can't really describe either, except like this:

I have never loved anyone like I love Nate.
I love him in a complete way ... in a way that makes me want to be better
and I am excited to meet the challenges of life with him.

Each day (even when we fight) I feel like we grow a little closer ... he finds a new way to make me laugh (even without trying) and I feel my love and appreciation for him deepen.

I could not be happier!

guess who's coming to town??

2009-08-11T22:47:00.004-05:00

but who's counting?

2009-08-08T01:23:00.003-05:00

5 days until Nate is in Irvine!
YAY!

28 days until we are married!
Double YAY!

For TIME & ALL ETERNITY!
(whoa - right?)

I like us ... I hope you do too!

sneak peaks ... 31 days out

2009-08-04T11:55:00.005-05:00

Since most of the people who read my sparse (as of late) posts are old friends that unfortunately will not be attending the wedding celebration, I thought I would give you a sneak peak into what I have been busy working on. I feel like our wedding reception will be fairly low-key ... with basically all the decorations done by me. I have some very distinct ideas of what I like and its my first real opportunity to try out some my decorating ideas. As many of you know - I like very flowery, swirly, "baroque" (if you will), heavy decorations. Clean and simple lines are not really my thing. So naturally our wedding will reflect this. I do however subscribe to the philosophy that less is more ... so that translates to not a lot of things but the things that are in the room are very busy and ornate. Enough talk ... now for the pictures! Remember this is a sneak peak ... which means that these are process photos ... showing you the work I have been doing which includes, painting, printing and planting mostly.

Before:
Ikea frames I have been wanting for years now but never could justify more than one since I don't really have a real home to decorate. Now they are mine! YAY!

During: Priming the original black ... lots of nooks & crannies!

After: Ta-Da! Navy blue with a little antique white dry-brushing ...
we had to trim the canvas to fit the oval because of course Ikea can't make a standard oval dimension ... sheesh. Had fun picking the font (trying to match the invitation font) and trying to get it to look just right. Also had fun (read the sarcasm here) printing the individual letters as large as I could ... then ironed on the letters one at a time so they would overlap!

Before: My dad had these sweet gilted frames up in the attack that he had rescued from the dumpster at work. Can you believe people were just throwing these away?! The red and gold was not working for us though ... so I got to priming again.

During: Primer ... again.

After: Two frames done in the same way as the Ikea frames. They turned out really well!

After (again): This is how one of the frames will be used. Printed the sign at OfficeMax for $3! That of course is without mounting, which I will do myself. I will mount it to foamcore that my dad also rescued from the dumpster at work! YAY!

My beautiful map ... I don't want to give away all the fun ... so I will tell you about this after the wedding (for those that won't be there)

Succulent Lovelies: I potted all these succulents (they are desert plants in the cactus family) in vintage milkglass that I had scouted out in thrift stores. I really like how they turned out. No two are the same really ... different plants in different arrangements in different vases or bowls. These are the table center pieces which will have navy table cloths.

SO THERE IS YOUR SNEAK PEAK! HOPE YOU ARE AS EXCITED AS I AM TO SHARE OUR WEDDING ... EITHER ON SEPTEMBER 5TH OR AFTER ON MY BLOG!

P.S. Don't panic if you have not received your invitation ... they haven't been sent yet (EEKKK - i know miss manners is shaking her finger at me ... we are having a printer issue ... should go out next week I hope!!)

check us out

2009-07-12T16:08:00.004-05:00

The 4th of July was a blast! I have never been sooo close to fireworks in my whole life. I love love love fireworks and since last year I was in Europe for the holiday, I was super excited to see them this year. The added excitement of meeting Nate's family a few days after packing up my last apartment as a single woman (and there have been a lot of them ... so this is a big deal) made the fireworks show ever so much more exciting. All in all we had so much fun visiting with the Soelbergs and I am excited to be apart of that family in just a few months.

Two of his brothers were in town (we missed his oldest brother, sister-in-law, and the girls) and the four of us went rock climbing (my first time) and it was sooo fun! Nate's camera has the pictures we took with his family over the 4th of July ... and we left that at their house on accident ... so no cool rock climbing and fire work pictures just yet.

But we did have my sister-in-law take some fun photos of us while in Irvine.

The "Heisman" pose - it was Nate and my brother's idea ...
plus we wanted to do a P90X move.

Just getting comfortable with Korean culture ...
the peace-sign is big with asian girls... and my hippie father.

Trying to sit up straight without looking unnatural.

Nate showing me "the game plan" ... to what you might ask?
I have no idea.

This one is for all the sappy people ... who like the whole kissing thing.
(I'll admit it ... I like kissing pictures ... even if its hard to capture a good one)

UO Graduation

2009-06-24T19:49:00.004-05:00

my parents came out for graduation on the weekend of June 13th ... oh, yeah ... and to meet nate of course! at the last minute i made the executive decision not to sit in on the graduation ceremony. instead the four of us took a trip to the coast to have Mo's clam chowder and go to Haceta Head Lighthouse. i think it was a great decision. i have done quite a bit of traveling with my parents ... as the third wheel ... and it was really fun to hang out with them and have a +1 myself. sometimes i forget how much i enjoy my parents. we had a really good time hanging out.

don't despair - we did take photos in the cap and gown and hood ... so there is visual proof that i am a master!

the ever supportive parents - dave and linda

future husband (hehehe)

there is one good thing about having a very common
last name - you can find places named after you!
of course had to get a picture of Johnson Hall
(there is no Soelberg Hall, might i add)

overlooking the pacific at the Heceta Head Lighthouse

the "story"

2009-06-19T02:06:00.003-05:00

okay ... there have been requests for the engagement story ... and here it is:

we don't really have one.

i know. lame.

there was no getting down on one knee (per my request) ... no over the top declarations of love. there was just a conversation while talking about family that resulted in nate saying: "we need to get something for this" (holding on to the ring finger on my left hand.)

it started with a friendship that grew slowly over time into something worth going out on a limb for. the minute our friendship changed (which at the time seemed sudden, but looking back there was a very slow build up) ... something inside me just said "this is it ... and you've known it for a lot longer than you realize."

and then there was kissing and it was really all over for me. he kissed me the way i have been waiting to be kissed for my entire life. he held me close and kissed me like he meant it.

so then there was talking and planning ... and knowing it was right ... and realizing that we both felt that way.

after talking and realizing how we felt ... there were discussions about the future ... how he wanted to go back to korea and teach and how he didn't know what that meant for us, but that he didn't have to go back ... but he wanted to. and after talking around the issue i said, not even really knowing what i would say once he asked, "just ask me nate" ... and he said: "would you consider moving to korea?" to which I replied: "only if we were married" ... to which he replied: "okay." Funny enough, I think he was super relieved to hear that! He was scared I would just flat out say no.

so really our story is this:

there was just nate and bethany and a lot of talking about how we wanted to take on this thing called LIFE together. how we had never felt this way before. how we couldn't believe we had been missing it for sooo long (we have been friends since September 2007 for goodness sake.)

and then we couldn't deny what we both knew ... that we were meant to be together ... and how exciting that was .. and so basically we went from friends - to getting married.

we now joke that we need to make up a story to tell people so that they will feel more comfortable with our story ... we are fine with how it happened - because its right for us ... but we know that other's are a bit confused and concerned.

it sounds crazy, i know, but i have never been so certain about anything in my life. he makes me want to be better and i am excited to share my life with him. the future just seems brighter and more exciting because i get to share it with him. he is everything i have always wanted. i feel calm and good and happy when i think about us.

i can't wait to be sealed to him for time and all eternity.

the thesis is done ... the wedding is on

2009-06-15T19:11:00.008-05:00

it is official, ladies and (lets be honest ... only ladies read this blog) ... i am officially a master. sigh. it feels ... well cool ... but not as cool as i had hoped. the last five days before my thesis was due were horrible (to put it mildly) and tainted my experience a little bit. my thesis adviser out of the blue just told me (through another person - not even to my face) that my thesis just wasn't what he was hoping it was going to be - it just wasn't quite there. yup ... he said that to someone else who was suppose to tell me that. awesome - right?

sigh. needless to say i freaked out and told them it was not an option to stick around and spend the money and the time to re-write my thesis and that i didn't understand why this hadn't come up MONTHS ago. why was he dropping this bomb on me FIVE DAYS before it was due to the graduate school?

so the whole thing was anti-climatic because i basically said "you know its good enough ... just pass me and let me get on my way please!" ... the problem was that he and my reader and myself for that matter knew that i could have written a better thesis. i have the ability to do better. but the reality is this: i didn't have enough guidance, time, or money. that is the hard truth. there are real constraints in the real world and i experienced the cold reality of it.

i have come to terms with it. i decided long ago that i would never bleed for my academic or professional career. i would never let it define me or validate me. and i stuck to that - so that i am okay with and proud of myself for not letting this all get to me too much.

i think this healthy perspective directly correlates with my upcoming sealing in the newport beach temple on september 5th.

The Ring:

Speaking of which ... I know you ladies are all dying to see the ring ... so here it is! It was my grandmothers (on my mom's side) and I have always loved it. As a child I would hold my grandmothers hand and stare at it ... I always thought it was so beautiful. My grandfather came home one day over forty years ago and told my grandmother to go pick out a new ring since hers had broken or had been lost. My mom was a little girl at the time and remembers going to the jewelery store in Los Angeles with her.

A few years ago my grandmother passed away and my mom has been wearing this ring on her right hand ever since. Every time I am in town or hanging out with my mom for a few days I would always ask to wear it for the duration of my stay (on my right hand of course.) Then, when our visit was over my mom would ask for it back. I once asked her if she might consider letting me have it as my wedding ring ... if that was ever a possibility one day. She said I could if I wanted it.

But of course that was all said very casually ... so about a month ago I asked her if that was really a possibility and she said of course! I gave Nate the option of the ring, since I had already sufficiently scared him by telling him that I wanted a vintage ring. He had no idea how to go about finding and picking out such a thing. He also was very concerned that I was trying to make it easy on him by suggesting my grandmother's ring and said very seriously: "Bethany, this is a big deal. If you want a new ring, lets get you one. I don't want you to compromise on this because you are worried about the cost." So I looked just to make everyone (and myself) feel better. I tried rings on and was very overwhelmed by the shinny and overly crazy bling that is out there in the jewelery world. Nothing, not even simple diamond bands, seemed right or seemed to fit what I was looking for. Flat out I just didn't like any of the rings I saw. It made me feel better about the decision to wear my grandmother's ring. I know I will always be happy I picked this ring as my engagement/wedding ring.

We have considered adding to it, but every time we talk to a jeweler about it I get worried and don't feel good about it. Its unique and hard to add to without changing the look too much. Maybe one day we will ... but for now I am super happy with it!

Ring Details:

It is white gold with a center round cut diamond that is flush with the band and is almost a 1/2 carat. There are five "leaves" on each side that have little diamond chips in them. There are a total of 11 diamonds in the ring. We had it cleaned, resized, and almost all of the diamonds repointed (or basically the prongs that hold the diamond in were redone to make sure that everything is good to go for another 40+ years!)

correction & the holiday

2009-05-26T10:56:00.007-05:00

so nate - the linguist - has informed me that the title of my last post should more correctly read:

replace "i" with "we" & "me" with "us"

Anyway ... we went hiking up at Spencer's Butte yesterday with the ward for Family Home Evening. Neither of us had ever hiked the butte, despite our almost 2 years living in Eugene. It was a beautiful evening and while not a difficult hike ... we did break a sweat! It felt good since I have taken a time out on the gym due to the thesis taking over my life.

Here are some photos of us on Spencer's Butte:

Nate is doing the Oregon "O" around Autzen Football Stadium ...
he's a super fan of the Ducks.

replace "i" with "us" & "we"

2009-05-24T09:46:00.004-05:00

so i promised some pictures and i am now delivering! we took a few photos yesterday before going to the Portland Temple. we clean up pretty good, if i don't say so myself.

How did we meet you may be wondering ... well its pretty typical ... in our singles ward here in Eugene. The funniest part (okay one of the many funny parts) is that i pretty much was like ... yup my love life is taking a hiatus while i go to Eugene, Oregon ... because really? What are the odds?

We both moved into the ward in Fall 2007 to start graduate school and we became friends - pretty casually at first - and this Fall I would say we became even closer. Lots more long talks about life and the both of us trying to figure out how to be better at it. Of course looking back, this whole time we have been trying to catching each other's eye but not with any real intent. Really I think its all about timing and quite frankly, neither of us was in a place to be starting this "we" business. For the past year and a half we both have been focused on school and making ourselves into the people we want to be - the people who can be better halves to a pretty amazing whole.

Something started to get going in the more than friends department about six months ago - but I know I was denying questions about us dating and thinking ... "that's funny they think we are dating ... hehehhe ... hmmm I wonder? ... well anyway ... Nate isn't into me, he likes Asian girls" (hahaha - babe ... just teasing, but i did tell myself that at times.)

But something just happened in April and we were both just there. Maybe it was the fact that graduation is coming up in June and then that was it ... heading separate ways ... maybe it was just that neither one of us could finish school with the other as a distraction (although we are still struggling through this one finishing a thesis and a final project) ... maybe it was just suppose to be like this. I don't know ... but we are both crazy about each other and laughing about how we missed it for sooo long. People at church were like - well yeah ... that makes sense.

And most of all it feels right ... which is the greatest feeling in the world.

Nate is an amazing man and i am super lucky that he likes to be with me!

Some facts about Nate:

- age: 27 (his 28th birthday is in July)
- hometown: seattle, washington
- mission: Korea (00-02)
- school: graduated from BYU in 2005 (same time as me!) with a BA in Korean Studies and a minor in Asian Studies ... now he is a graduate student getting a MA in Linguistics with an emphasis in Language Teaching.

This is him trying to be all intellectual and interesting ... hahahaha

Isn't he cute?! He keeps his hair short - which I really like on him ... and he has a nice soft beard that I love because its very rugged (and it makes him look older :) which I also like!)

My turn! I don't post (or take for that matter) many pictures these days with school and all ... so per many people's requests ... here I am!

Nate posed me for this one ... i am suppose to be looking all mysterious i guess :) - hahaha

say hello to the boy ...

2009-05-21T01:26:00.003-05:00

This is Nate ... we are in his study room at the Library on campus, hence all the books in the background ... not the best picture ... we are working on it - i promise.

Feeling Joyful

2009-05-20T08:24:00.002-05:00

My horoscope ... yet again is pretty right on.

Self-discipline may come naturally to you, but not today as pleasurable Venus tugs on your key planet Saturn. You can attempt to be the serious one, yet you're having too much fun now. Additionally, you cannot see any harm in feeling joyful, even if this has nothing to do with your job. Still, if you feel revitalized by doing something outside your normal comfort zone, you'll return to work even more ready to make a positive impact.

Still trying to figure things out with the boy :) Thanks for the excitement ladies! And excitement is appropriate ... more details on him (and the excitement) to come ... I PROMISE!

status update

2009-05-18T14:53:00.002-05:00

just a quick post because i am suppose to be wrapping up my thesis right now ... draft to be turned in tomorrow ... eekkk!

this is what i got going on:

- thesis completion deadline = June 2
- sometime before June 2 i need to do a thesis presentation
- final class presentation for my 2 Portland classes = June 9/10 (TBD)
- GRADUATION = June 13
- three weddings to attend in the month of June
- planning a trip to Hawaii to see Lindsay, Jordan, and Adilay (yeah!) = sometime after June 13th

what else?

- still don't have a job (eeekkk!)
- owe more money in student loans than I would like to admit (double eeekkk!)
- don't know what i am doing with my life ... do i move ... where to?

a bright spot:

- although its sort of difficult timing (we won't say bad ... because when is it a good time??) there is a little bit of romance brewing in my life ... and he is AMAZING. I feel super lucky no matter what happens ... ( i am definitely blushing at this point !!!)

More details to come :) ... probably after the thesis is turned in :(

goal achieved ... alright maintenance bring it on!

2009-05-02T14:58:00.002-05:00

my w squared goal was achieved on tuesday (its been a crazy thesis writing week ... ugghh) and now i have six weeks to maintain my weight ... which crazy enough sounds hard. i have been losing on a fairly consistent basis for 8 months now (43.4 pounds in case you were wondering) and i am not really sure what it means to maintain.

apparently i have to eat a little bit more ... yum ... but eek! in all honestly, i don't feel that deprived anyway. yes i watched what i eat but i still have a cookie when i want. basically i am a lot more discriminating with my food choices. i try to make them really count.

anyway ... wish me luck!

Whoa

2009-05-02T14:56:00.001-05:00

i love how igoogle allows me to read my horoscope everyday ... its always such a highlight for me. this is todays "reading" ... apparently love is looking to get me! Sigh. If only it were true.

"Pluto's long-term visit to your sign is heated up today by Venus, the planet of love. It's not an easy matter to explore your desires because they currently take you further than you want to go. Unfortunately, the regular rules cannot make you feel safe now, for they are merely guidelines and no longer absolute limits. Fortunately, your uncharacteristic willingness to explore the uncertainties of your emotions can ultimately bring you closer to happiness."

PART V: The Sustainable Preservation Thesis is Born

2009-04-08T20:29:00.009-05:00

Fast forward to 2008 when I started really researching the converging goals of historic preservation and sustainability. Inherently I knew that they shared the goals of environmental, economic, and socio-cultural equity – also known as the “three E’s” of sustainability – but it seemed like neither discipline acknowledged or was aware that they shared these goals with one another. That is, until recently. I think it is safe to say that the field of historic preservation has the sustainability movement to thank for the clear articulation of its own goals, which preservation has successfully adopted to validate its own place within the emerging “green building” ethos. This is not to say that preservation has not always had these aims – on the contrary, I believe that preservationists were green without even knowing it. As with all movements, preservation has gone through themes or phases in promoting and inspiring the conservation of the historic built environment.

ENTER THE FIRST TWO (semi) Official PARAGRAPHS
OF THE INTRODUCTION OF MY THESIS:

The never before seen Introduction (okay seen by two people ... my thesis adviser and my reader ... but that is it ... you people are the first! Hope you like it!):

“We cannot build our way to sustainability, we must conserve our way to it.” This is the declaration given by architect Carl Elefante, effectively calling both building and preservation professionals to arms in the battle for truly sustainable development. Donovan Rypkema, preservationist and economic development consultant, made the same connection as described in the preface, choosing Coke cans instead of newspapers to illustrate the concept of embodied energy. He reports that the demolition of one typical American downtown building – 25 feet wide and 120 feet deep – negates the environmental benefit of recycling 1,344,000 aluminum cans. Not only has a historic building been wasted, months of diligent recycling by an entire community has been thrown away. When placed in real and tangible terms the connections between historic preservation and sustainability are readily apparent. The academic and commercial literature, however, demonstrate a severe gap in articulating this convergence.

To be clear, the present global concern of climate change, compounded by the energy crisis in the United States, has spurred widespread interest in sustainability and ‘green’ building. Commercial literature abounds on the subject, as the building industry quickly attempts to address the impacts of the built environment on natural and urban ecologies. The literature addressing sustainability, however, focuses predominately on new construction, systematically ignoring the already existing building stock. Likewise, the literature for adaptive reuse of historic structures only vaguely asserts its natural alignment with the concept of sustainable building. The fact that these two movements are rarely discussed concurrently in the academic literature of architecture, planning, and preservation, exacerbates the need for an evaluation of the sustainable reuse of historic buildings.

Part IV: Why Not Buildings?

2009-04-05T20:26:00.007-05:00

I know ... you thought I forgot about my whole SERIES about my thesis didn't you! While I have had some interruptions, I haven't forgotten about the series or the THESIS for that matter ... so on we go ... in case you can't remember where we left off ... click here and refresh your memory.

Ready?

Okay.

“WE RECYLE NEWPAPERS BUT NOT BUILDINGS?” This is the exact phrase that came into my mind one day while on my way home from work. As a result of riding the D.C. Metro to and from work twice a day, five days a week, on average I was walking by eight newspaper recycling bins a day. Also in my daily commute of two years to the American Historical Association, I walked by almost a mile of historic row houses through the Capital Hill Historic District. Having grown up in one of the most rigidly planned cities in the nation, encircled by the suburban sprawl of Orange County, I marveled daily at the variety, individuality, and endurance of historic architecture. I began to wonder why we recycled small things like newspapers, soda cans, and glass bottles fervently in the name of “saving the earth” only to demolish entire buildings with seemingly no thought of the environmental impact. Not to mention the resulting impact on entire communities. I continued to ponder this seemingly incongruous connection, to no avail. I simply could not grasp the logic behind it and even started to wonder if the connection I had drawn between recycling and buildings made much sense.

As I researched and studied the field of architectural history and historic preservation and regularly walked the Southeast and Northeast Capital Hill Neighborhoods (which I came to discover were on the National Register of Historic Places as Historic Districts), I began to ask myself questions. Out of these experience grew a desire to not only preserve the past but to be a good steward of both environmental and cultural resources. In 2006 I was not yet able to articulate the connection I instinctively felt between historic preservation and sustainability. As far as I was concerned, preservationists were missing a huge opportunity to use the chic new concept of “green building” as a way to promote the preservation, restoration, and reuse of historic buildings. All I knew at this point was that reusing a building HAD to be “greener” than tearing one down just to build a newer more “green” one – it just seemed that obvious to me."

A few photos of beautiful old buildings in various stages of restoration and ultimately adaptive reuse ... its a beautiful thing! No one builds with brick anymore ... at least not like this.

PART V (the final installment) coming soon ... I promise it will come sooner than this post did!

new do ... take 2

2009-04-01T10:35:00.004-05:00

so now i have actually dried and styled my new do myself and i like it even more. i flat ironed the layers instead of using a round brush ... which let's be honest, I can't really use. i think this look fits me a bit better. it feels young and fresh and of course - new!

here are a lot of shots i made my parents take of me in their backyard:

The straight forward view:
(p.s. in new skinny jeans - yay!)

My "better" side
(I joked about this with my parents because I had this
big zit on the left side of my face all week!)

With my mom:
(who by the way is an AMAZING seamstress and
took in two dresses of mine while I was in town
... because she loves me. And I also learned this trip
that she at one point was the costume maker for
"the playgirl club" - a gentleman's club when she was in college!
Yes, I know ... you are thinking WHAT! Hahahaha
This was all before she joined the church ... at least that is what she says!)

With my dad:

This is what happens when you let my dad take the picture,
he chops off your head:

Another attempt to get my entire head in the picture:

Another picture with me and my cool yellow wayfarers on:

One last shot - a self-portrait - because you can't trust
the parents to get a good shot of the sunglasses and hair
they haven't yet come to fully appreciate:

new do

2009-03-30T14:23:00.003-05:00

i got a hair cut.

i like it.

my dad says i look 12 ... but in a good way (hahahaha - okay thanks dad!)

i like it anyway.

i feel like a have a TON of hair.

i feel like i might look like i am wearing a wig ... but in a good way.

i like it.

i might look like a doll ... but in a good way.

i haven't yet tried to style it on my own.

i will be attempting to blow dry it in a few minutes.

wish me luck.

A photographic journey of my look the last two weeks
FYI: LOTS OF FACE SHOTS OF JUST ME-
You have been warned.

Before I left for LA:

Driving from Oregon to LA
(wearing a friend's sunglasses):

In LA at the Getty Villa
with my cool Wayfarer sunglasses:

NEW HAIR CUT PIC #1:

NEW HAIRCUT PIC #2:

what do you think?

Pardon the Interruption

2009-03-13T13:44:00.003-05:00

For all of you peeps and non-peeps alike ... the whole "BIG LOVE" thing going on right now is kind of a big deal. Generally I don't have a problem with the show (never seen it but the concept is not overly offensive to me) because I know that its television and that they got it all wrong anyway. I can let that all go. But what I do get upset about is hearing about the upcoming episode that depicts the temple ceremonies. The temple is the most important thing to me - its perhaps my most sacred and dear aspect of my belief.

Depicting it on television is not okay with me.

Those of you who know me, know that I don't get easily upset by the silly things that the world and the media do and say about the Mormons. I can take it all with a grain of salt and shrug it off. Making light or just being frivolous about the temple is the one area that I cannot shrug off. It makes me sad and upset and even angry. Sacred things are not to be trivialized.

The temple is the place I feel the most peace, I feel closest to God, and I feel at home. I learn something new every time I go. The spirit there makes me want to be better and to realize my potential.

That being said ... you may be wondering what the big deal is ... and why we build temples. The First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints complied a video and put it on YouTube to explain it. It is a beautiful overview.

PART III: Connections are Made

2009-03-11T13:20:00.004-05:00

"The context of my personal awareness of, and interface with, environmentalism has merit in understanding how my academic and professional experiences have led me to pursue this specific thesis topic. I came to graduate school specifically to write a thesis like this one. I choose the University of Oregon because of its orientation to environmentalism, as well as what the program had to offer. Its location within the Pacific Northwest, widely regarded as the leading region for sustainable practices in the United States, solidified my acceptance of attending the UO. However, before the thought of graduate school to pursue a Masters of Science in Historic Preservation and before the idea behind this thesis had fully taken root, I had the beginnings of the idea planted in my mind simply by paying attention to how I felt in particular places. I am certain that I have a heightened sense of self-awareness due to my anthropological training and thus I began to notice my feelings as I walked around the historic Capital Hill Southeast Washington, D.C. neighborhood that I worked in.

Specifically, I noticed the differences I felt at home (in a high rise apartment building in Northern Virginia - the middle of what seemed to be corporate America) from how I felt as I walked to work from the Capital South Metro station through Southeast DC. I couldn't help but notice the irony that I went from home/corporate America to work/historic neighborhood. Isn't that backwards - a commercial living environment to a domestic working one - I was all confused. I worked in two old row houses that had been renovated into one and our neighbors were all residents ... these were there homes. As mentioned previously, I have always loved old things and thus it came as no surprise that I enjoyed the walk past historic row houses everyday. I noticed the variety of shape, style, and condition even though I had no real knowledge or formal training in architecture. What I did know was this: I felt something different when I walked through a historic neighborhood. I felt a sense of richness, depth, and stability. As a deeply religious and spiritual person, I quickly developed a sense of moral obligation to understand these buildings and neighborhoods and the role they played in people’s lives and in their surrounding communities."

Part IV coming soon!

Since I brought it up - let us fondly reflect on DC and the Capital Hill area ... I miss it so. Some of these pictures I am sure I have posted before ... but they really capture the area ...

The church building on the corner of 3rd and A St?

(work peeps - help me remember!)

Jimmy T's

The Capital Building

My first Thanksgiving in DC ... this was my 2005 Christmas card
(wow has it been that long? Sheesh I am getting old)

In between the capital building and the National Mall-
the sculpture is so dramatic - i love it!

One of my favorite things to take pictures of -
the Library of Congress Jefferson Building -
this picture is my desktop ... has been for a few years now.

PART II: The Gears Start Turning

2009-03-09T13:11:00.005-05:00

The next installment on how I came to write my thesis ... to catch up read this one first. I promise to do better and post the next two installments in a more timely manner.

PART II:

"The teacher loved the idea since the seventh-grade class was working on a recycling project that could be highlighted in the book and the entire yearbook staff seemed to like it as well. After all, they voted the theme in - "97% Recycled 3% Attitude" – hands down. I thought I was pretty clever. After the yearbook was distributed to all the seventh and eighth graders at the end of the year, with its big silver 97% and even bigger recycle sign stamped into the fake forest green leather front cover, my tune changed. It was not exactly a big hit with my peers – go figure since I was blatantly saying we were highly unoriginal. I became extremely embarrassed about my contribution and needless to say blocked the concept of recycling out of my mind for at least five years (ah, youth ... always uncomfortable about something)."

"In my world, the environmental movement – which basically consisted entirely of recycling – took a hiatus while I was in high school. Yes, I still recycled newspaper and soft drink cans, but environmentalism was not on my radar much other than basic recycling and erratic weather patterns caused by El Nino. With El Nino came a gradual awareness of the discussion about climate change for me. By 2001 I was studying Archaeology at Brigham Young University (p.s. blogger wants me to spell archaeology like this = archeology ... that is sooo wrong) and we often were reminded of the earth’s warming and cooling periods – the most recent Pleistocene (ice age) and the current Holocene (interglacial period). The lecture would often touch on the controversial issue of whether or not man was speeding up the warming of the earth by accelerating the rate of depletion of the Ozone Layer through industrial and car emissions; or if this was a natural cycle that the earth goes through and we were more than capable of adapting to it. It is only recently that the world has come to a general consensus that the rate of climate change is increasing due to human activity and that changes in behavior might need to happen. That makes this thesis more important and relevant than ever."

PART III ... coming soon.

maybe you don't care ... then stop reading

2009-03-06T20:49:00.003-05:00

in conversation with my thesis chair (or adviser if you prefer) he was telling my that the first paragraph of my introduction was more appropriate for a preface. basically what he was trying to say was that it was way to casual and conversational and not academic and professional enough to be put into the "official" thesis document. i had edited down something i had written a few weeks ago about my journey to writing my thesis for that opening paragraph and now i am a bit sad that no one will get to read the original document it came from ...

never fear ... that is what the blog and you people are for! i have decided to post it in installments ... short parts to help you see my thought process for why i went back to school, why Oregon, why historic buildings, why sustainability, so-on-and-so-forth.

like the title says - stop reading if you don't care (don't worry I will never know because I don't look at my viewing stats ... it won't hurt my feelings in any way ... its only my life's work thus far ... no big deal.)

let us begin.

the (working) title of my thesis is currently (I have changed it three times already):

Historic Preservation and Sustainability in Portland, Oregon: Evaluation of the Sustainable Reuse of Historic Buildings

pretty boring title ... I know... but its not a book ... its an academic thesis. its not about being glamorous and sexy ... its about calling it what it is so that some poor graduate student doing research in the future will know if they need to read parts of it for their research paper or not. i always appreciate those books and articles that have apt titles reflecting what they are ACTUALLY talking about.

that being said ... let us really begin.

PART I:

"I have had a very basic feeling for quite sometime that the past has much more insight into the present and future than society often cares to acknowledge. Therefore, the concept of keeping historic buildings in use as a response to the sustainability movement made sense to me on a lot of levels long before I began to study this interface. Growing up in the mid-Eighties and becoming cognizant of the world in the nineties (1989 is the first year I realized what a year was … I was 6 years old and it probably had to do with being in kindergarten) it was an era of “recycle, reduce, re-use” (“and close the loop” – is how the saying went). While the emphasis of environmentalism of my suburban world was on recycling of newspaper and aluminum cans at home and not much place else in the small scope of my life, the impression of the three R’s was profoundly made on me. So much so, that as a member of the yearbook staff for my middle school in 1997 I suggested the brilliant theme* of “97% Recycled, 3% Attitude.” I was not so much expressing my zeal for saving the planet as I was making commentary on the social and pop-culture phenomenon of the 60s and 70s fashion and music coming back into vogue. I was raiding my parent’s closets for clothing they wore in high school and combing thrift and vintage stores for bell-bottoms and hippie shirts** after all – even I couldn’t help but notice how much we were recycling the culture of the past."

* note ... this is sarcasm and will be explained in the next paragraph to come
** note ... if i had pictures of the year book or of middle school i would post them, but they are stored away in california at my parents place ... sigh ... that would have been good.

running and writing

2009-03-06T03:08:00.003-05:00

Ran a ten-minute-mile for the first time in my life yesterday. I had to convince myself to do it every step of the way. Don't be too impressed, I quit after one mile.

In all honesty I had already run 2 miles at my usual 11 1/2-minute-mile pace before deciding to give it a go ... the first 10 minutes of running are my least favorite so I couldn't start the ten minute mile right away. Come to think of it, the last 5 minutes are no fun either ... which leaves a solid 10-15 minutes of feeling alright while running ... this "feeling alright" is a relative feeling of course.

Update: I am 4 pounds away from my goal weight! So far I have lost 38.4 pounds in six months ... yeah, I almost don't believe it myself. Crazy. I must say - the last 10 pounds are the hardest and by far are taking the longest. So if you need some inspiration ... a motivator ... a cheerleader ... I promise you I can help. Drop me a line.

In other news ... I have OFFICIALLY started writing the first draft of my thesis (everyone scream YAY!) For the first time I feel like I can actually do this and have a vision of what it looks like. For soooo long ... like before I even came to graduate school ... since like 2006 ... I knew what I wanted to write about (Kelly - remember those talks on the way to the metro from the gym? "The Greening of Preservation" I believe was the title ... well its changed a bit since then ... but the general idea is very much still there!) The research, writing, editing, and re-writing process is a beast ... but I can honestly say that it has actually started to click (I am sure there is more writers block in my future).

I can also honestly say that its amazing how the Lord helps you get your "to do" list done when you put Him first. I have noticed that as I put my church calling (job/work/responsibilities for all you non-peeps out there) first and serve and make time for people that my capacity is enlarged ... capacity to write, to read, to think, to listen, to comprehend, to express, to serve, to love, and to give is all increased at the same time. As I read the Book of Mormon everyday I feel the peace and reassurance that I can get through whatever comes my way as I seek to know my Father in Heaven better and to emulate my Savior Jesus Christ. Reading the BOM everyday is something I have never been good at but I re-committed to do it after a challenge by my Bishop starting February 1st ... I am happy to report that I am keeping it up and really really enjoying it! So that is my testimony ... put the Lord first and He will help you push through it all and get it done. Not that I don't have hard days or unproductive days or even terrible, horrible, rotten, no good, very bad days ... but just that I have a better capacity to breathe and know that this too shall pass ... and I remember the things that are really important. I feel blessed.

where does the time go?

2009-02-15T02:00:00.007-05:00

February is already half-over (thank heavens ... I am not a fan of this month ... more on that later) and I was reflecting on what has happened and what I haven't posted about.

I went to the Pacific Life Bowl Game on December 30th with my oldest brother. UO Ducks were playing Oklahoma State in San Diego. I got tickets and new exactly who would appreciate hooking him up ... since he always does the same for me.

I had a birthday ...
My roommie bought me flowers ... isn't that nice?!

I went out to dinner with friends for the birthday
(even though I was sick)
and wore this belt buckle I haven't worn in years
(because I couldn't for year ... if you know what I mean)
so I had to show it off and wear my shirt tucked in.
I know you can't tell but it has a lion head ... its pretty rad.

So about this whole not liking February thing. Its not because of Valentine's Day (typical conclusion to be drawn, but not the reason for my dislike) ... its because its a really crappy month.

Let us outline why.

The holidays are over by this time ... Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years ... and their residual effects have worn off as well.

My birthday has come and gone ... and to make matters worse ... I was sick this year.

Winter and coldness is STILL here and not letting up anytime soon.

And this year ... I am writing a thesis and February marks just four months left to do so ... and I am stressing out about it.

Need I say more???

So a few years ago I decided I would take trips in February. It hasn't worked out every year ... but I am going to try to do that since it makes me feel better about the month. This year I went to Salt Lake City, Utah. Not too glamorous, but a good get-away none-the-less.

Saw this guy in Salt Lake City, Utah.
He and a bunch of his lion friends are on the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.
I guess I have a thing for lions these days.

Went to the Logan Temple for the first time. It is soooo beautiful!
Loved every minute of it.

More pictures ... its just sooo amazing:

triggers

2009-01-26T02:53:00.004-05:00

i inserted this wonderful CD by this wonderful choir into my computer a few moments ago to add the playlist to my itunes ... then i went about putting things away as i prepared for bed. i was taking out my contacts and putting on my glasses when i heard a sound that triggered a memory. you know how a smell or a sound or a song suddenly brings back a vivid memory? its crazy how it just takes you back! that is what happened when itunes was done importing the CD - it makes that little "blip" sound (how on earth do you describe it?) to let you know that its completed the task at hand ... you know the one from back in the day of AOL/AIM when a "buddy" had sent you a message?! Does anybody else remember that?!

Sigh ... anyway i was instantly taken back to my freshman year in college (over 7 years ago) when my boyfriend and i would talk online across three states for hours at a time. that nervous excitement i got when i heard that sound - that he was online at the same time as me and wanted to talk. i was breathless with anticipation ... hanging on every letter of every word he typed and sent my way ... (wow - i was young and had it bad ... had it real bad .... hahahahaha - still friends with a few people that could definitely voucher for just how bad i had it!)

whoa ... i haven't thought about those conversations in forever ... strange how one little sound can stir a memory.

Mind and Body

2009-01-15T12:53:00.003-05:00

It is the day of my birth (as well as the Revered Martin Luther King Jr's ... but we will celebrate that on Monday) and I am really sick this year. Its sort of sad on a few levels ... its my sweet sixteen + ten (thanks kelly for the great phrase) and I am going to the doctor. Awesome. But that is not the only thing I am bummed out about (do people still say that? bummed out? oh well, its my birthday - I am saying it) ... I am bummed out that I missed my cycling class this morning. Yes ... I said it. I am sad that I didn't get to sweat for an hour on a stationary bike ON MY BIRTHDAY. I know, I am an exercise junkie. What's it to ya?

This is the evolution ... I started doing this in August 2008:

And then I started doing this in October/November 2008:

I still do that activity above ... but to mix it up (because I think that it is important to change your work out routine and your meals ... otherwise you get used to it and get bored and then might stop AND I think your body gets used to the level of intensity of the activity so you gotta jump start it again ... but those are just my theories) .... I started talking a class at the beginning of this month using this:

I am mildly obsessed with it. I say mildly because I have only actually done it a few times. But I think I am going to really really like it.

Oh ... and these occupy a lot of my time too ... sometimes against my will ... but the thesis must get done - somehow:

Christmas 2008 in the OC

2008-12-26T21:28:00.003-05:00

In the spirit of trying to take more pictures ... here are a few shots of Christmas:

Mom and Me ... baking with matching aprons (I know, I know - awe, so cute)

The Bethany Johnson family photo in front of the Christmas Tree.

Another angle of the Christmas Tree ... and me.

my old self

2008-12-22T14:13:00.004-05:00

A lot of people say that when you lose weight you have "a new you" or "a new body" or something like that. I can honestly say that I don't agree. Its more like I am my old self again. I feel like the girl I have been seeing in the mirror the last few years (okay lets be completely honest and say the last 6 years) is not me. She reminded me of me ... but something was off. She lost that sparkle in her eye and it had been replaced with sadness.

As much as I hate to admit it ... losing 30 pounds really does make you feel better about yourself. I am running for the first time since my sophomore year in HIGH SCHOOL. I am eating better and I feel like a million bucks.

I feel brave posting this ... but what has helped me is my accountability to myself and others ... and while I realize that these pictures are not exactly comparable, I hope you can see the progress. So here goes:

Taken August 17, 2008 ... 3 days before I started "the program."

Taken December 18th, 2008 - minus 30 pounds and in new jeans!
(haha - almost exactly 4 months later - I didn't even plan that)

One of the sad things is that I have gotten out of the habit of taking pictures of myself ... so currently, this is the only picture I have taken since I started my journey, so I need to work on that. Also, the journey is not over ... I have some more to lose and I know its going to be even harder since I am at the same weight I was when I started my second year of college in 2002 and thus the remaining 10-20 pounds have been with me for a very very long time. So, wish me luck and send me good vibes to keep it up.

Reuse Buldings - Repower America

2008-12-22T14:05:00.003-05:00

Little do the makers of this video know, but this is a really good video that addresses the very basis of my thesis topic - reusing existing buildings to address environmental/energy issues while putting American's back to work ... brilliant! I hope you check it out.

O-BAMA O-BAMA O!

2008-11-05T00:38:00.014-05:00

I have never been so proud to be an American as I am right now. I have never felt more hope and patriotism and belief in my country than I do in this moment. Not a moment of victory really, a moment of relief, confidence, and hope. So many of the elections - mayor, governor, senator, representative, president - incited action and awareness. I am most impressed with the way people came out and stood in line to vote, to be counted, to matter. I am also deeply humbled by President-elect Obama's "victory" speech because of his humility and grace (transcript in post below ... couldn't yet find the video of it.)

UPDATE: Found the video - scroll down to the FULL SPEECH ... the rest are just clips

I already look forward to State of the Union addresses and any chance I can get to hear/see him speak. I have been waiting for almost 8 years - practically my entire adult life - to have a president who could move and inspire me. I am so grateful to my Father in Heaven and to the Americans that voted for this opportunity to be led by a man of integrity, honor, and compassion. I firmly believe that if Obama keeps talking to the American people on a regular basis that we can get through the tough economic times ahead of us. Make no mistake - it will be tough. I pray that Obama has the courage to help us correct our mistakes and call us to action to do hard things ... like save money and work hard and be a little more faithful and trusting in each other. One of the most important aspects to this race and I hope it will be carried into his presidency is that of HOPE. I am tired of fear guiding this country and being lead along with a threatening rope of terror and fear. That is not real leadership. Encouraging HOPE where there seems like none is the mark of a true leader. Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor of the First Presidency of my Church said this in October in General Conference regarding HOPE:

Hope is one leg of a three-legged stool, together with faith and charity. These three stabilize our lives regardless of the rough or uneven surfaces we might encounter at the time. The scriptures are clear and certain about the importance of hope. The Apostle Paul taught that the scriptures were written to the end that we “might have hope.”¹

Hope has the power to fill our lives with happiness.² Its absence—when this desire of our heart is delayed—can make “the heart sick.”³

Hope is a gift of the Spirit.⁴ It is a hope that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the power of His Resurrection, we shall be raised unto life eternal and this because of our faith in the Savior.⁵ This kind of hope is both a principle of promise as well as a commandment,⁶ and, as with all commandments, we have the responsibility to make it an active part of our lives and overcome the temptation to lose hope. Hope in our Heavenly Father’s merciful plan of happiness leads to peace,⁷ mercy,⁸ rejoicing,⁹ and gladness.¹⁰ The hope of salvation is like a protective helmet;¹¹ it is the foundation of our faith¹² and an anchor to our souls.¹³

Moroni in his solitude—even after having witnessed the complete destruction of his people—believed in hope. In the twilight of the Nephite nation, Moroni wrote that without hope we cannot receive an inheritance in the kingdom of God.¹⁴
^{(check out the talk: THE INFINITE POWER OF HOPE here).}

No, I don't think Obama is a prophet or apostle of the Lord, but I do believe that good leadership inspires us to reach higher and be better believers in ourselves, our neighbors, our country, and our God. Obama makes me feel that and I hope that those who are skeptical and unsure and maybe even full of hate and resentment, can feel the warmth of hope and have the courage to move forward and do hard things. Hope after all is nothing without faith and charity. Hope is active - again I quote Elder Uchtdorf:

There may be times when we must make a courageous decision to hope even when everything around us contradicts this hope. Like Father Abraham, we will “against hope [believe] in hope.”³⁰ Or, as one writer expressed, “in the depth of winter, [we find] within [us] an invincible summer.”³¹

Faith, hope, and charity complement each other, and as one increases, the others grow as well. Hope comes of faith,³² for without faith, there is no hope.³³ In like manner faith comes of hope, for faith is “the substance of things hoped for.”³⁴

In closing I continue to pray for the leaders of the world ... that their hearts might be softened and that they may comprehend the individual lives that they have so much responsibility for. I will pray even more that this climate of HOPE prevails and that action follows, lifting us to new and better heights.

On a lighter note ... here are some things I love connected to the election:

"Yanks Very Much" -
headline from a British Newspaper ... love it

O8
BA
MA

AMERICA,
YOU BARACK MY WORLD

Barack Obama Victory Speech Transcript. US President Elect Speech. November 4th 2008

2008-11-05T00:38:00.009-05:00

Hello, Chicago.

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It’s the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen, by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different, that their voices could be that difference.

It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states.

We are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It’s the answer that led those who’ve been told for so long by so many to be cynical and fearful and doubtful about what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It’s been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this date in this election at this defining moment change has come to America.

A little bit earlier this evening, I received an extraordinarily gracious call from Sen. McCain.

Sen. McCain fought long and hard in this campaign. And he’s fought even longer and harder for the country that he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine. We are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader.

I congratulate him; I congratulate Gov. Palin for all that they’ve achieved. And I look forward to working with them to renew this nation’s promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart, and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on the train home to Delaware, the vice president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

And I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last 16 years the rock of our family, the love of my life, the nation’s next first lady Michelle Obama.

Sasha and Malia I love you both more than you can imagine. And you have earned the new puppy that’s coming with us to the new White House.

And while she’s no longer with us, I know my grandmother’s watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight. I know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my sister Maya, my sister Alma, all my other brothers and sisters, thank you so much for all the support that you’ve given me. I am grateful to them.

And to my campaign manager, David Plouffe, the unsung hero of this campaign, who built the best — the best political campaign, I think, in the history of the United States of America.

To my chief strategist David Axelrod who’s been a partner with me every step of the way.

To the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you’ve sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you. It belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn’t start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington. It began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston. It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give $5 and $10 and $20 to the cause.

It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep.

It drew strength from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on doors of perfect strangers, and from the millions of Americans who volunteered and organized and proved that more than two centuries later a government of the people, by the people, and for the people has not perished from the Earth.

This is your victory.

And I know you didn’t do this just to win an election. And I know you didn’t do it for me.

You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime — two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century.

Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us.

There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after the children fall asleep and wonder how they’ll make the mortgage or pay their doctors’ bills or save enough for their child’s college education.

There’s new energy to harness, new jobs to be created, new schools to build, and threats to meet, alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there.

I promise you, we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won’t agree with every decision or policy I make as president. And we know the government can’t solve every problem.

But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And, above all, I will ask you to join in the work of remaking this nation, the only way it’s been done in America for 221 years — block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began 21 months ago in the depths of winter cannot end on this autumn night.

This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.

It can’t happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other.

Let us remember that, if this financial crisis taught us anything, it’s that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers.

In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let’s resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.

Let’s remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.

Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.

As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, we are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.

And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces, to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand.

To those — to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America’s beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.

That’s the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we’ve already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that’s on my mind tonight’s about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She’s a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn’t vote for two reasons — because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she’s seen throughout her century in America — the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can’t, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women’s voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that “We Shall Overcome.” Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.

And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.

Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves — if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.
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This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.

Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States

just a quote to get you to vote

2008-11-03T14:33:00.003-05:00

I heard this on a You-Tube video by Jay-Z (not the usual place or person that I take advice from) and I really really like it:

"Lots of people sat so that Martin Luther King could walk. Martin Luther King walked, so that Barack Obama could run. Barack Obama runs so that we all can fly."

all worked up for a date with the treadmill

2008-10-17T13:59:00.003-05:00

the last two morning i have gone to my apt. community gym where they have a nice treadmill (among other nice equipment) and a big flat screen TV. it is great to be again connected with the world (i don't have cable at home) and to see what is going on in the world - thank you CNN. watching CNN on the treadmill reminds me of my DC gym days with Kelly (fond, fond memories) sweating it out on the hill before the staffers flocked to the gym. while watching these past mornings i have had ... how shall we say ... the serendipitous occasion to be watching when one (to remain nameless) choice vice-presidential candidate was speaking on the campaign trail.

all i will say is this - thanks for getting me worked up these past two mornings ... I burned a lot of calories while watching you speak. i even lost 1.6 pounds this week (no joke). so, if nothing else your speaches are good for my weight loss and to that i am eternally grateful.

On another note ... did you see how well OBAMA did on the debates Wednesday night? If not, check it out ... the first 20 minutes or so I should have been on the treadmill again, but Barack always calms me down - thanks!

Check it out. VOTE.

(don't worry - the link to the above left takes you to the Full Video of the last Presidential Debate ... uncut and unbaised ... not just the parts I like).

enough with the blame

2008-10-17T13:51:00.002-05:00

i am kind of over the whole "pointing the finger" stuff that is going on about the collapse of the stock market and the ruining of our economy. Are we not ALL guilty? - granted, some more than others - but nonetheless almost ALL of the middle, upper, and higher classes of AMERICANS have been living beyond their means ... living on credit (hey the student loan holding graduate student writing this is guilty as well), buying more than we really need, spending money we don't have. That's how we got into this mess. Don't Believe me?? And why should you, I study historic architecture, not economics ... check out Factcheck.org and see this:

The Real Deal

So who is to blame? There's plenty of blame to go around, and it doesn't fasten only on one party or even mainly on what Washington did or didn't do. As The Economist magazine noted recently, the problem is one of "layered irresponsibility ... with hard-working homeowners and billionaire villains each playing a role." Here's a partial list of those alleged to be at fault:

The Federal Reserve, which slashed interest rates after the dot-com bubble burst, making credit cheap.

Home buyers, who took advantage of easy credit to bid up the prices of homes excessively.

Congress, which continues to support a mortgage tax deduction that gives consumers a tax incentive to buy more expensive houses.

Real estate agents, most of whom work for the sellers rather than the buyers and who earned higher commissions from selling more expensive homes.

The Clinton administration, which pushed for less stringent credit and downpayment requirements for working- and middle-class families.

Mortgage brokers, who offered less-credit-worthy home buyers subprime, adjustable rate loans with low initial payments, but exploding interest rates.

Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, who in 2004, near the peak of the housing bubble, encouraged Americans to take out adjustable rate mortgages.

Wall Street firms, who paid too little attention to the quality of the risky loans that they bundled into Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS), and issued bonds using those securities as collateral.

The Bush administration, which failed to provide needed government oversight of the increasingly dicey mortgage-backed securities market.

An obscure accounting rule called mark-to-market, which can have the paradoxical result of making assets be worth less on paper than they are in reality during times of panic.

Collective delusion, or a belief on the part of all parties that home prices would keep rising forever, no matter how high or how fast they had already gone up.

The U.S. economy is enormously complicated. Screwing it up takes a great deal of cooperation. Claiming that a single piece of legislation was responsible for (or could have averted) the crisis is just political grandstanding. We have no advice to offer on how best to solve the financial crisis. But these sorts of partisan caricatures can only make the task more difficult.

–by Joe Miller and Brooks Jackson

Embracing the New

2008-09-28T17:13:00.003-05:00

I like the old ...

Exhibit A: I have a BA in Archaeology
Exhibit B: I am currently pursuing a master's degree in Historic Preservation

aka - I dig historic architecture (don't you just love how I managed to combine those two things together? ... dig (archaeology) historic architecture (historic preservation) ... what? not that funny? oh ... uh ... sorry)

So yeah - I am into the past, the ancient, the long gone by, the historical, the reminiscent, the once upon a time. As I have stated before, I have an old soul ... I like Paisley (as seen here and repeated - with much better taste I might add - in my current abode ... pictures soon I promise) and hanging plates and black and white photos.

Oddly enough, however, I have the conflicting urge to change my scenery and living situations very often (as inventoried here). I want to live so many places for a year or two - South Carolina, Louisiana, Boston, upstate New York, Texas ... it just dawned on me that most of those places are on the East Coast. In all fairness, those are places far from my family and thus most likely won't be places I stay forever ... places like Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego - those could be forever places. But this moving thing is an exception ... every other aspect of my life tends to lean toward to the old, solid, stable, and classic. However, the Fall is a good time to embrace the new and that is what I am trying to do.

School starts tomorrow ... late, I know ... and with that comes new classes, new students, and new adventures. This also translates to new people at church - a lot of them - which is wonderful to see this morning. To add to the "New Fest" as I will call it, we received a new Relief Society President, which is the head of the women's organization in my church. This position is a big deal, not because it suggests she is the most righteous or capable woman in the ward (although one could argue that both these characteristics describe my good friend Jessica) but because great responsibility is placed on her shoulders. Her call to the position I know is inspired and I felt that today as she spoke to the sisters. I felt the spirit testify of her plan and organizational style as she expressed her sincere love for the women in the ward and the gospel in her life. She made me want to be better and she continues to help me re-new my commitment to the Lord and live as a better disciple of Him. I too have a new "calling" or responsibility in the Relief Society. Jessica has called me to be the Compassionate Service Leader and has charged me with the concern and welfare of the ward - to get to know people and discern their needs and help them feel the love that our Savior has for us. I feel honored to be a part of her presidency and hope to live up to the desires of both her and my heart in serving the Lord.

I am also blessed with the opportunity to serve with Jessica in the Portland temple twice a month. I am extremely excited and humbled by this calling and pray that I can learn all that is needed and provide a great service to my fellow sisters in this life, as well as the next, as we do the work of our Father in Heaven.

On a scholarly note, I will be assisting my Program Director as a TA for the first year master's student's Introductory class this Fall. Lots of preparation and time will be devoted to this class, as well as my own research and writing for my thesis.

So, lots of changes are coming about, however I know that as I embrace all these new things and strive to put the Lord first in all that I do, that I will be able to accomplish all that is asked of me.

my style

2008-09-17T15:28:00.001-05:00

I have been a little consumed with home decorating blogs these days ... its really becoming a problem. The other night I came across a blog (through a blog through a blog ... you know how that goes) that had a "find your style" type of quiz. Its really fun - you should take it and tell me what your style is. My results were as follows:

YOU ARE A HOMECOMING QUEEN

Nothing - including budget - stops you from putting your
all into creating a dream home.
Your look is quintessentially feminine:
cool, pretty colors; layered patterns and textures; and flawless attention to every detail

You know ... I can't really argue with that assessment. It goes on to further break down your style by room, which is quite an interesting idea. In all fairness I did have to fudge on some of the questions since I don't currently live in on place (being a student kind of makes you a bit homeless) and they ask you questions like "what most reflects your current location and housing layout" and things like that that require me to project my future desires.

LIVING ROOM: You love to indulge the senses, pamper, and prettify
Sounds like me, I like lots of things ... out of control decoration with a lot going on

BEDROOM: Mix in max feel
Check and double check on this ... matchy matchy is not very personal ...
in fact I have been busy painting all sorts of fun random things for my apt. in Eugene!

DINNING ROOM: Your a maestro of minimalism, using carefully chosen ingredients
This the one that is odd ... minimalism in decorating style? hmmm ... yes with food

HOME OFFICE: Who says paying the bills can't be glamorous?
Glamorous is a great word for furniture

Like I said, I have been busy painting mix and matched items. The hard thing is that I realize all the fun things I buy and work on won't necessarily go together or work in the small apartment I will be sharing with a great girl next year. But I am starting to collect things for a house I hope to one day have (it will probably be small but a girl has got to dream, right?)

My collection includes the following (wish I would have taken before pictures ... but of course I did not):

two old window frames
one end of a horse head book end
an urn shaped lamp
one small and one big watercolor/ink drawing from Firenze)
a stone shield with a fleur de lis (the sign of Firenze) from Siena
a porcelain carp teapot without the lid
a wooden fleur de lis
an old shelf
a porcelain sea urchin bowl
multiple black and silver frames of various sizes

not to mention the stuff I have in Eugene already:

two white serving platters
one green serving platter
two small circular carved wood mirrors
one small rectangular carved wood mirror
three extra small gold carved wood frames
10 small square wooden mirrors
two silver geometric candlesticks

*** UPDATE ****

I wrote this before I moved back to Eugene ... and now that I have gotten hear and set up shop I have acquired a few things ... like a red retro "waterfall" style children's desk that I needed to remove a drawer (so that I could sit under it) and paint light blue and add glass drawer pulls too ... and a vintagy french country night stand ... they are both heaven! Pictures to come when I have internet (a week from today) installed at my house. Stay tuned!

2008-08-30T01:19:00.005-05:00

I was thinking about my swimming adventures and decided to make a list of all the major bodies of water I have SWAM in ... not just visited and saw with my eyes and dipped a tow or finger in, but actually was fully emerged in. This is what I came up with:

Oceans and Seas I Have Swam In

Bethany Johnson

Pacific Ocean
(California, Hawaii)

Atlantic Ocean
(North Carolina, Delaware)

Sea of Cortez
(Cabo San Lucas)

Caribbean
(Mexico and the Islands)

The North Sea
(off the Coast of Belgium)

Adriatic Sea
(the Dalmatian Coast)

Ligurian Sea
(Cinque Terra,
Part of the Mediterranean Sea)

I think that is it ... perhaps I left something out?

futuristic boats and and nameless eels (CROATIA TRAVEL LOG)

2008-08-29T03:01:00.007-05:00

The historic island/city of Trogir (a UNESCO world heritage site, by-the-way) sits between the mainland and another larger island and is linked by foot and car bridges. You can read the history of the intact medieval city here. As a result the "Riva" or waterfront is the "it" place to park your HUGE yacht. Some of these boats looked like they were capable of not only sea voyages, but underwater and space travel as well ... these are boats of the future ... unfortunately the biggest ones were foreigners and not Croatians.

On an island, the name of which I cannot remember, where less than 100 people lived and only the small harbor had electricity, we romped around some long forgotten limestone houses and communities. We were lucky enough to have our own private boat and captain waiting for us to hike the few miles up to it, especially since there was only two ferry stops a day - 9 am and 12 noon. The island is so small that it doesn't even have a school, it shut down a few years ago since only one child lived here ... how strange is that. He ended up going to live with grandparents on the mainland. Something about that makes me a little creeped out ... not that I normally think about schools of the number of children that live in a town or neighborhood ... but doesn't that just seem kind of ... final. It makes a place feel even older. In the harbor area, the only place with electricity on the island, there is a really old church (of course) still standing with its fake facade (picture above) that started out as the real facade until they realized they couldn't afford to build such a big building. It now has a bit of a courtyard and I really really like it.

Another really cool thing about historical Dalmatian is the water catchment systems they set up. Oh, P.S. the coast of Croatia is called the Dalmatian Coast architecture and town plans, according to wikipedia: "Dalmatia is a region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, situated mostly in modern Croatia [... and] signified not only a geographical unit, but it was an entity based on common culture and settlement types, a common narrow eastern Adriatic coastal belt..." The climate is Mediterranean ... so its like southern California ... a bit arid at times and so they try to catch all the fresh water they can. These huge limestone (historically) and concrete (more recently) slabs lay in sloping expanses, in essence funneling the water into storage cisterns or wells. The water is channeled (above) into the well through a gravel and sand filter (below).

This particular well (below) located in an abandoned village on the coast was recently quality tested by the regional government and rated as having some of the purest water in the area! The owner, who heard through the grapevine (or at the local cafe) that American students were interested in documenting their little town, randomly meet up with us at the village and wanted to show off his well. His son, who now lives in Sweden was visiting and was kind enough to translate for us (another example of people speaking multiple languages ... Croatian, Swedish, and English ... sigh). He said that there was an eel living in the well and that is why it was so clean! I about died ... and then he said that the eel was 45 years old! I said ... wait ... how do you know he is that old and how do you know he is still alive (i was shocked and thus not thinking clearly that they put him in there that long ago and that he would float to the top and the water would start tasting bad if he were dead ... all good points). Then I asked if he had a name ... because hey at 45 ... he is part of the family! They roared with laughter and the son had to ask his dad to make sure he did not have a name (i thought that was funny). They said no and then I proceeded to ask if I could name it ... to which I got the response ... "no, you cannot Christen our eel" ... ahhhh, good times!

(home of nameless eel)

Italia and Hrvatska

2008-08-09T11:42:00.007-05:00

Why is it that people rarely call countries and cities by their native names?

For example ... we say Italy, not Italia ... Florence, not Firenze ... Rome, not Roma .... and Croatia, not Hrvatska .... WHY?! It makes no sense to me.

Anyway, here are a few pictures of the trip to start:

an island on the Dalmatian Coast (in Croatia)

church in Sbenik, Croatia

self portrait ... laying down in Ancona, Italy

Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy

Manarola, Cinque Terre, Italy

Abby and Bethany ... I ate a whole fish! That is a big deal for me... I don't really like fish, FYI.

Duomo - Siena, Italy

Tim and Bethany on roof of Duomo in Milano, Italy

This is what I woke up to every morning in Canova, Italy ... I know it doesn't seem real.

My feet and my huge backpack that got me through it all.

more "likes" ...

2008-07-29T12:35:00.004-05:00

capers
Firenze (Florence for all you American speakers)
coat of arms, cartouches, medallions, crowns, scrolls, knights

I am into all thing royal right now and can find them on buildings as added architectural elements in both Italy and Croatia ... these have been the main things I am taking pictures of on this trip... oh yeah and lions and horse statutes as well.

new discoveries and things i am not into

2008-07-28T12:36:00.005-05:00

While traveling I have learned a few more things about myself and what I do and don't like .... and while Europe is great and fabulous and wonderful, there are a few things that i won't miss:

squat toilets (to be expanded upon at a later date)
toilet brushes (eww and double eww)
tourists
feeling like a fool because everyone speaks multiple languages but me

But there are more things I have discovered that I do like:

cucumbers
bread salad
aviator sunglasses (italians dig them but i probably wont be buying them any time soon)
pistachio gelato (double yum)
boats
some fish
drawing and measuring buildings
curried carrots
breakfast in the morning
Richard Marx songs in Croatian blasting in my Radio Shower (it was sick)
The Adriatic Sea

Out of Order European Trip Notes

2008-07-26T04:51:00.002-05:00

WOW ... graduate school really did kill the blog! Traveling around Europe without regular internet access doesn't help either. So I decided to add a few random notes of what happened last night. The posts will be out of order on what happened as I re-cap my trip (which is on its last leg of the journey).

Yesterday Abby (fellow graduate student and friend) and I took a ferry boat across the Adriatic Sea from Split, Croatia to Ancona, Italy. We arrived an hour later than expected - about 10 pm - and were one of the last people off the boat since our huge backpacks were stored on the otherside of the boat from where we were sitting ... and really, who wants to hold a 50 lb bag on their back and a 15 lb front-back (aka backback worn on the front because your big old hiking pack is on your back) while just STANDING in line waiting for costums to stamp your passport before getting into another long line to walk through a tiny portal and off the boat? We didn't, so we waited. By the time we got off the boat there were no taxis around ... you would think that there would be TONS of taxis waiting at a ferry arrivial in a port city, but no ... no taxis for us. We knew where we were going to stay for the night since we had stayed there last week on our way to Croatia, so we started to walk in that direction. We ended up walking the whole way, which was only like a 20-30 minute walk but we were carrying a lot of weight here people! In the course of our walk (by this time it is about 11pm) we had more than 3 whistles and "cat calls" ... more than any we had had our entire trip (which may be due to the fact that we did have a man traveling with us before)! Anyway ... we decided that the front-back must be considered attractive here in Ancona because we were definitely not looking good ... we were sweaty and frumpy and grumpy. But the front-pack it drives Italian men wild! hahaha

After we get our room and leave our bags we decide to go to the ATM, since in Croatia they use the Kuna and in Italy it is the Euro, and we also wanted to go across the street to the train station and get our train tickets for the next day. Of course we passed multiple ATMs on our treck to the hotel but now could not find even one that was working! The Johnson luck as we say in my family. I was also starving, not having had dinner, and so we stopped into the "Fast Food" place down the street which had "kebabs" which were really like gyros that turned out to be very good, although very spicy hot. Before we could get our food however, we witnessed an italian argument between the vendor and a punk kid that was being a jerk ... but as all things in Italy the war of words took a good 15 minutes before we could get our food ... so much for fast. There was another young Italian guy that could tell we were a little uneasy and annoyed as we sat down to wait out the episode and told us in English "don't worry, it is ok" ... he was a cute little muffin as a friend would say.

Finally we get food and eat and the vendor appologizes and tries to explain what happened and says to eat inside, not outside because the guy is still there ... we were like - "its ok ... fine, fine" ... we just wanted to eat since it was now MIDNIGHT! Heart burn here we come! As we are finishing up our meal of "kebabs" and FANTA which is actually really good (side note: Italian fanta is better than Croatian fanta) a guy in a leather jacket and a motorcycle helmet comes in to buy beer or something and starts talking to us but we have no idea what he is saying. He is pointing under his eyes and pointing at Abby and I say "do we look that tired? because we are" and he realizes we dont understand him. We get up to pay the vendor at the counter and says, "beautiful girl" and the vendor tries to explain to us what has now become obvious. It takes another 10 minutes to get out of there saying "thank you, goodbye" numerous times to both the motorcylist and the vendor.

Ah ... and that is just one story to get you started for my more regular updates on my European adventure.

thinking and doing ... the disconnect

2008-05-02T16:14:00.002-05:00

I think about blogging often. Something funny happens in my life and I want to share it. But I lack follow through with out a deadline holding a knife to my back and making me walk the plank to take the plunge. I don't think its because it is spring ... when the sun is out here in Oregon it is beautiful. The leaves are sprouting and the flowers are blooming and it is wonderful ... but it is still raining a lot. And from what I hear, it will continue to rain until June which is right when I will be leaving for the summer.

Following through. I don't feel like this has always been a huge struggle for me ... but right now it is one of the biggest. I have time to write the papers I need to and even blog to let you people know I am alive and well and thinking strange thoughts ... but unless the due date is tomorrow - I can't bring myself to do it. Procrastination is awful and I hate that I am letting myself be engulfed by it.

Other Random Things:

I watched a disaster film last night and cried (remember how I feel about them?)
I am addicted to Propel and cookies from Safeway's bakery ... but I don't eat them at the same time.
I feel behind in life.
I feel like I want too much and I don't know how to get it.
I wish I took more pictures these days.
I need to start looking for monthly storage.
I want to wear skirts and shorts again.
I love my car - it was a really good purchase
I need to wash my car - but its going to rain again so its hard to convince myself to do it
I have this strange obsession with the South right now - architecture and everything about it ... I feel like I want to live in South Carolina or Louisiana or somewhere like that.
I constantly want to be in multiple places at once - have different lives all at the same time ... live here in the Pacific Northwest, live in the South, live in New England, live in San Francisco ... maybe its all the buildings I have been studying lately.

Anyway - those are the thoughts and feelings in my head.

fo' shizzle??? Nahh...

2008-04-03T16:29:00.004-05:00

I woke up this morning to an email with this link:

http://cnnentertainment.co.nr/2008/SHOWBIZ/Music/04/01

And then I saw this:

READ IT AND THEN WE CAN DISCUSS

Ok ... now that you have done the assigned reading, we can review and discuss (can you tell I am in school?) This is the best April Fool's Joke I have EVER EVER EVER seen ... why you might ask? Because the website looks sooo real ... you can click on ALL the links on the page and they go to the right places ... and the informational details are so right on. Snoop Dogg could very well have seen Gladys Knight preform at a Church building - that part is not a joke - she really is a PEEP and gives performances on behalf of the LDS church. The terminology is right and now on further inspection, too right and that PICTURE ... priceless.

Sigh ... I was freaking out for a moment ... I thought for sure the end of the world was coming if the "D - O - Double G" had become a Mormon but I am a believer that it could happen. Its just that I am aware of the "signs of the time," as they say, and I just happen to believe that this could have been one of them.

Just goes to show the amazing capabilities of the digital and media arts and my gullability when first waking up. I know know to wait five minutes at least between getting up and checking my email in the morning.

P.S. at the very very bottom you will find this:

(it says: "You Just Got April Fooled! Snoop's Not Mormon ... YET!")

ready to ge my passport stamped again

2008-03-19T02:12:00.006-05:00

You may be in planning mode now, but this isn't just about idle thinking. You have an uncanny sixth sense that won't steer you wrong. It's as if you can see the future and can organize the present in a way that allows you to reach your goals. It isn't time to negotiate, so be prepared to do it by yourself if others aren't enthused by your ideas just yet.

This is really a perfect Horoscope for me because I just started planning my summer ITALY trip! YEAH for traveling! I will be in Oira, a small town in Northern Italy's Ossola Valley attending a Field School for Historic Preservation. I will be learning how to read cultural landscapes and record and analyze the buildings in them ... plus I get to work along side a master Italian Stone Mason restoring a historic structure! And I get 9 credits toward my graduate work for this ... sweet huh!

"Oira is a small village of about 200 people located one hour northwest of Milan by train. Nestled between the steep slopes of the towering alps, Oira lies at the north end of the narrow Ossola valley as it winds its way toward Switzerland and the Simplone Pass. Through its relative isolation, the Ossola valley has held the secret of its striking natural beauty and amazing stone hamlets for many years. The valley has a long history of granite quarrying and milling and has many intact stone villages, a number of which stand as they did in the 15th and 16th centuries."
(Italy Field School - University of Oregon)

I am sad that I will not be in DC for the summer hangin out with all my DC peeps (and the AHA girls) ... it was a really hard decision to make ... but the internship wasn't panning out in the way I had hoped and really, isn't Italy always a good idea? (ok, so the real quote is actually "Paris is always a good idea" from the movie Sabrina, but you get it) So I will be in Europe for at LEAST a month, but most likely a bit longer. I will be in Croatia for about 5 or so days as well and then ANYWHERE IN EUROPE THAT YOU WANT TO MEET ME! I am looking for travel buddies at the end of July ... let me know if you want exact dates and locations!

Its too bad I don't drink because there is going to be a whole lot of wine around me come July!

All this Italy talk reminds me of this:

And this:

And this:

Oh, and don't forget this:

Summer 2008 looks promising. Have I convinced you to take a week off of work to join me yet? 'Come on ... you know you want to.

distraction

2008-03-11T01:45:00.004-05:00

I should be studying ... finals are next week. But ...

Seriously how awesome is this?! Here are two versions of me as a South Park character. Without scarf and with scarf ... try it out for yourself here. I think its hard to make yourself ... so if you want ... make another version of me, maybe I missed the mark.

universal

2008-02-26T19:10:00.011-05:00

i believe i have mentioned it here and here in a round about way ... but i think its time to address it more directly.

i think i am a bit behind the curve. the universal shoe curve to be specific. As a kid, adolescent, and even a young adult i didn't really partake in what has become evident to me... THE WEARING OF CHUCK TAYLORS.

Now, i know you may be thinking, "what is she ranting about now, everyone knows that chucks are aren't a new thing!" and this is true. But i was realizing this morning as i was on my hands and knees digging for my left chocolate brown chucks in the back of my closet that i now own more than one pair of this universal shoe. To be exact - I have 3 pairs ... which yes is a bit much, but if you know me at all you know that i tend to by multiples of things that i like. My very first pair of chucks were the typical and safe black and white. i bought them, not when i was 12 or 17 or even 20. i think i was actually 21! Did you get that folks, i was of legal drinking age before i owned my first pair of chucks. We had an awkward relationship, as most first relationships are, and it didn't last long for us. i wore them on occasion, they really hurt my feet all the time (i have sensitive or wimpy feet one might say), and i kept them in the back of my closet until i packed my boxes and bags for DC. they were given to a better home at that time. i was sad that it didn't work out between us ... everyone else seemed to like get along with them - why didn't i? i gave the shoe another chance when i came across a $10 HOT PINK pair in Marshal's on a visit to SoCal a year or two ago. we have been friends ever since.

Well now that i am safely and securely in my MID-TWENTIES, i apparently am all about the chucks these days ... but let me explain. it is not that i haven't liked chucks the whole time, i just felt like i wasn't the type of girl or person that could wear them. they were reserved for those cool alt-kids, which funny enough i was friends with. i just never felt like they fit my personality or "image" (can you believe i just used that word in reference to my teenage self? ridiculous, i know.) i grew up wearing vans mostly and then branched out into more girly shoes as i got older.

now that i am a graduate student i am all about the comfortable but still fun shoe to walk around campus in. it wasn't that i specifically sought out the chuck to be my shoe of choice per-se, it was more of a serendipitous event. Already having my hot pink pair i was desirous of a more versatile color to wear on a more regular basis. i really wanted a brown pair of the prison issue vans but could never find them in my size. Then, a few weeks ago, I was browsing the Home Goods/Marshal's store here in Eugene and what do you know ... brown converse chuck taylors in my size for ... get this ... $19.99. At that price, who can only get one pair?! I promptly bought a turquoise pair as well.

i bother to blog all this now because my search this morning prompted some thoughts on the whole image thing i had when i was younger. i was thinking ... what does this mean that i now where chucks as an adult but never thought i could or should as a kid? it dawned on me that i had never really felt like i had an image or a fashionable projection of who i was and what i was all about. Sometimes it bothered me and sometimes i liked it ... i felt more versatile. But now i feel like its just me. i don't have a specific look or defined style that projects my image ... at least i don't think i do. i don't really feel like a fashion style could really portray the many facets to my personality. i like not being pegged or compartmentalized by my wardrobe on what i might say or think or what music, movies, or art, i might like.

What is so interesting about chucks is the wide variety of people that wear them. Old, young, crazy, mellow ... every color and race ... tons of people wear them, or should I say ROCK THEM. Even indie hipsters wear them and they don't like to wear anything that other people wear. it just goes to show how universal they are. Some may say that is a bad thing ... but i think its great. i like that so many different people with different personalities, beliefs, views, and dreams all find the design so compelling. Really, its a design and marketing wonder.

Anyway ... the only other thing i have to say about chucks is this:

In my semi-extensive world traveling (ok, mostly to Europe) i have found three things present practically everywhere -

Coca-Cola
McDonald's
CHUCK TAYLORS

* Hey top three world dominating brands - just so you know - The Body Shop and Starbucks are on your tail.

retail therapy

2008-02-17T12:21:00.002-05:00

My horoscope for today:

"Building on what you already started sounds more attractive to you than beginning anew. Beautiful Venus enters your 2nd House of Possessions to remind you of the pleasures you crave. But be cautious about putting yourself in a financially precarious position as you seek emotional satisfaction through the material world. Ultimately, stability is more important than fleeting gratification."

This weekend I was in a bad mood and was a little upset in general ... never mind that. The point is how I approached these feelings: I went shopping ... and it made me feel better. And then the next day I went and returned the shoes I bought the night before.

yes we can

2008-02-15T02:41:00.001-05:00

I just found this on my friends Facebook page ... I am totally in love ...

PEACE ... LOVE ... and stamps are now 41 cents

2008-02-03T01:30:00.000-05:00

Went to the downtown Post Office in Eugene yesterday. The line moved at a decent pace. Four clerks were helping customers ... all four had long hair ... only one was a woman and her hair wasn't the longest in the quartet.

Middle-aged Eugene hippies that ended up with real jobs ... workin for the MAN even. I wonder how long each has worked for the US Postal Service.

how can you not know? PART II

2008-01-30T02:42:00.000-05:00

Continued from this post.

Picture this:

My roommates and I are sitting around on our computers doing various things ... we start playing songs that we mutually like and reminisce about what they remind us of ... high school dances, vacations, etc.

Then i play some good sappy songs ... like Boyz II Men's I'll Make Love To You and On Bended Knee and End Of the Road - and oh, the break down in this video is priceless. AND THEN THERE IS THIS ONE - MOTOWN-PHILLY. While I realize that these songs were played at my sixth grade dance ... what I forget is that they were in 2nd grade at that time. Sigh.

They stare blankly at me and wonder why I like these songs so much ... ummm ... because they are good - Hello!

it only seemed appropriate ... at least to me

2008-01-28T01:44:00.000-05:00

Perhaps some might view this as a little sad to post such pictures, but you all know how much I enjoy old cemeteries and thus I believe it is very fitting (more on this in a bit). My roommate and I took a walk through the Pioneer Cemetery that borders the southern edge of the University of Oregon campus today since church was canceled due to the most snow Eugene, Oregon has seen in a long while. We were excited for the winter wonderland! We felt like this:

AND THIS (Doesn't Ally look great in her bright yellow coat!):

Ally made a great point that snow makes everything so majestic and beautiful and I agreed that it was especially calm and peaceful in the cemetery ... here are some shots:

Now, the reason some may find these pictures of a snow covered cemetery a bit melancholy is because President Gordon B. Hinckley passed away tonight (Sunday January 27, 2008) at the age of 97. He was a wonderful man and an inspiring and loving prophet to all. The good he did in this life will continue to live on of course and he will be missed by many. I know that many are sad today, but we all must remember the teachings of the gospel - that this life is not the end and that we can be together in the eternities. The sweetest part of his passing however is that he is now with his sweet wife of 67 years who passed away in 2004.

Gordon Bitner Hinckley
June 23, 1910 - January 27, 2008

Shots Ring Out in the Memphis Sky

2008-01-21T17:35:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I never posted this picture ... it is from last year in DC on Martin Luther King Day. I lived by the African American Civil War Memorial on U Street and fittingly there was a service going on there. These boys were so cute ... trying hard to keep up the paintings while the speech went on and on. So sweet.

On this day of remembrance ... this is a good video to sum it all up. Typical I know, but it always gives me chills thinking about how brave and amazing he was. Really, I feel honored to share his birthday (Jan. 15th for all those wondering what the real day is).

For those who do not know, there is a National Monument planned for Martin Luther King, Jr. The National Capital Planning Commission and The Commission of Fine Arts approved the site location for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. December 1999. They broke ground in November of 2006.

This is what it is going to look like:

And this is the future location - between Lincoln and Jefferson right on the title basin:

Its funny because I still feel like I will be back to DC ... I don't know how or when or what ... but I feel like my time is not over in DC ... maybe I am in denial still ... maybe this summer?? I hope!

I am Obsessed

2008-01-21T04:20:00.000-05:00

yes, that's right ... obsessed ...

This weekend I saw Across the Universe (at the $1 theater ... or was it a $1.50 - I can't remember but who cares!) Some parts of the movie I could do without - like the crazy circus scene and the army hospital scene ... but everything else is over the top and out of control amazing. So creative and crazy! Echoing the Beatles, the 60's in general, Yoko Ono, Jimmy Hendrix, Janis Joplin ... ahhh it was great!

But I am even more obsessed with the SOUNDTRACK than I am with the movie because it is phenomenal ... all the renditions of Beatles songs are stellar. I am not a super fan of the Beatles ... ok lets be honest ... I only really listen to my own mix of their greatest hits ... but these songs are done soooo well. I will be singing Revolution, I've Just Seen a Face, Blackbird, and I want to Hold Your Hand for the next few weeks, among other songs on the album.

Check it out ... seriously.

i like to think i am a lover ... but perhaps I am a hater sometimes

2008-01-12T19:36:00.000-05:00

maybe i already blogged about this at some point, but i couldn't find it if i did ... although, i didn't look very hard ... anyway, here goes:

so i am at the university's rec center ... very nice set-up i might add ... and all i can think is how i hate the skinny pretty girls. i mean they are everywhere. i can't get away from them. i am on the eliptical (bad place to start) and i am surrounded by, like, 10 skinny pretty girls sweating their butts off (literally). i go up to the indoor track/stretching area and yup, skinny pretty girls are running around all perky like on the track ... like running for reals - not the fake running that is just to be seen.

And even worse than hating them because they are skinny and pretty ... i automatically assume they aren't very bright (isn't that awful!?) ... the thought process goes like this:

i hate that skinny pretty girl sweating it up on the elliptical over there. she looks amazing in spandex and has the flattest stomach i have ever seen. well, at least i am smart even if i am not the skinny pretty girl working out.

And then I debate to myself if I would give up my brain to have an amazing body like hers ... hahaha (you girls know exactly what I am talking about ... you know you have had a similar conversation with yourself ... right?! eek, i am a bad person, huh?)

Its unfair because these girls are at the university gym which means they are attending the university ... and they are probably very smart ... probably way smarter than I am. But I automatically assume they must spend more time in the gym than they do studying in order to maintain that level of fitness ... I mean who could do both???!!! And what an unfair comparison ... they are like 19 years old and next week ... I am going to be 25, which is not old by any means, but I mean come on, its not 19.

Sigh ... and there you have it. I am mean and shallow and envious ... the worst combination i can think of.

One of my resolutions this year - not to stop thinking those thoughts ... no I am not that unrealistic in my resolutions ... I am trying something even more impossible ... i am resolving to be one of those skinny pretty girls that everyone assumes isn't very bright. If I was skinny, I could handle the hater vibes from the other girls ... because I would know it was a hard journey ... cheers to the typical resolution of eating healthier and exercising more. And good luck to all those who have this one written down too.

(I know ... you are thinking - "she came out of blogging hibernation to say that?! man, that girl is messed up" ... but hey, I take the inspiration where I can get it.

survival mode has made me mute

2007-12-29T20:07:00.000-05:00

I tend to gravitate towards news regarding socioeconomic and demographic subjects these days - topics that are really interesting to me. Culture, consumerism, citizenship, thoughts, actions, religion ... for those of you who read my blog (or at least used to read it before I went back to school and virtually barricaded myself in my room), you know these subjects intrigue me.

Although I am relatively young, I get a feeling that things use to be different. Now, I understand that nostalgia can be dangerous - there are some pretty ugly truths found in the past - but I still feel a sense of loss. Loss of values ... Loss of direction. Our culture no longer values things like saving, conserving, waiting, or sacrificing. I bring these up because they seem to plague my own behavior incessantly. I swear this rambling is going somewhere.

This is where the rambling is going: Another subject for another blog - "curbing my consumerism" or "sustainable living" (as in emotional, physical, spiritual, education, sustainability as well as the traditional sense of greening my life) - I will flesh these ideas out before the official start of the new year in order to take them on for better living in 2008.

I have been ill since Christmas Eve and coupled with the panic-feeling I have been living with since the beginning of Fall Term it has translated into a strange mood for me. I don't feel like blogging, sharing, reading, asking, or buying. I have been focused on picture hunting for my inspiration slideshow - think more design pictures like this, this, and this ... here are a few examples:

The transition of solid colors is pretty. The fun white chandelier looks great against the yellow.

Stripes and damask fabric (and my favorite free standing claw footed tub) = fabulous.

Check the square brick in the rounded fireplace ... love the contrast.

This is wallpaper on a fridge - love it.

I have also been doing lots of thinking ... thinking about self-improvement/reinvention/renovation/upgrade (whatever you want to call it) and how that can make me feel better. I have been hibernating, mostly trying to get better, but I think my sickness has just been a fortuitous event because I don't really want to be in the world right now ... what I mean is that I am evaluating and planning and not wanting to participate in real life just yet. It also helps (or doesn't depending on your point of view) that I have a dead-line for this behavior ... I have to jump back into life when I go back up to Oregon. Less than a week from today ... I need to start anew with me and with school. That is where the 2008 resolutions come in. More to be explored.

proving myself ... to myself ... in so many ways

2007-12-22T16:03:00.000-05:00

I finished my first term of graduate school. One of the hardest things I have done, thus far. I have learned a lot so far and its really exciting. Its only the first term and I feel all sorts of anticipation of the future! So many things I want to learn about ... so many articles to read!

I feel like I have been learning so much about buildings, preservation, sustainability, cultural resource management, the economy ... all sorts of crazy things. But then of course it has been as if I have been living under a rock in other respects. I know nothing about music, politics, or movies ... those normal things that people are aware of. And that is probably ok (with exception of politics, I should know about that).

With all this political talk going on these days (most notably in my parent's house and when you live in DC ... UO students seem to be aware of it as well) I feel like I am so in the dark on what is going on. My dad said that he had heard about online questionnaires matching your ideas and views on hot political topics with the 2008 candidates. I was intrigued by this idea ... what if I was professing to have democratic leanings but in actuality had more ideological alignment with ... GASP ... a REPUBLICAN candidate (if you know me, you know my father would be soooo upset AND I would feel very foolish if this were true)! The fear is rooted in this - while I know a little bit about what is going on, I am extremely undereducated in terms of the issues. Always have been. I talk a good game, but I really only scratch the surface of understanding what is really going on in America today. So I took an internet test and here were the results:

2008 President Selector Rankings:

1. Theoretical Ideal Candidate (100 %)

2. Barack Obama (80 %)

3. John Edwards (80%)

4. Joseph Biden (74 %)

5. Dennis Kucinich (73 %)

6. Hillary Clinton (72 %)

7. Wesley Clark (not running, endorsed Clinton) (72 %)

8. Bill Richardson (69 %)

9. Al Gore (not announced) (68%)

10. Christopher Dodd (68 %)

11. Alan Augustson (campaign suspended) (67 %)

12. Michael Bloomberg (says he will not run) (52 %)

13. Mike Gravel (50 %)

14. Mike Huckabee (48 %)

15. Ron Paul (41%)

16. John McCain (39 %)

17. Elaine Brown (38 %)

18. Tommy Thompson (withdrawn, endorsed Giuliani) (37 %)

19. Mitt Romney (36%)

20. Alan Keyes (35 %)

21. Chuck Hagel (not running) (34 %)

22. Tom Tancredo (withdrawn, endorsed Romney) (30 %)

23. Rudolph Giuliani (29 %)

24. Sam Brownback (withdrawn, endorsed McCain) (29 %)

25. Kent McManigal (campaign suspended) (28 %)

26. Duncan Hunter (22 %)

27. Jim Gilmore (withdrawn) (21 %)

28. Fred Thompson (21 %)

29. Newt Gingrich (says he will not run) (21 %)

30. Stephen Colbert (campaign halted) (16%)

WHEW ... safe! I should have been more confident in myself I guess, but its nice to know that I really do vote the way I profess to believe. To be fair, and if I had the time, I would need to take multiple tests to see if they all came out relatively similarly ... that would be the responsible thing to do. Different tests might highlight different social/political issues in different ways. Even the phrasing of questions might sway me ... who knows ... I mean hopefully I would be able to figure it out ... but I am just suggesting it might be even more interesting to see who I was connected to on multiple sites. Another interesting thought is for the candidates themselves to take the test ... would they be connected with themselves as their ideal candidate??? hmmm.

Notice how my "Theoretical Ideal Candidate" does not even exist. I like to say that's because there is no one like me :) ... I am unique and thus so is my paradigm or life-view. In seriousness though, I think that it attests to my belief of voting issues rather than party. I posted the entire list in order to show the major players and persons of interest (in red) ... its official ... with 36% Mitt and I really only share religious beliefs ... and that's ok, we can still be friends.

I took another quiz on the site ... WHAT DOES YOUR SOUL LOOK LIKE. How could I not take the quiz with a title like that!?! I NEED to know what my soul looks like. Here are the results:

Belief System Selector:

1.	Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (100%)
2.	Bahai (90%)
3.	Jehovah's Witness (82%)
4.	Orthodox Judaism (75%)
5.	Sikhism (73%)
6.	Mainline - Liberal Christian Protestants (73%)
7.	Mainline - Conservative Christian Protestant (68%)
8.	Reform Judaism (66%)
9.	Islam (63%)
10.	Orthodox Quaker (59%)
11.	Liberal Quakers (58%)
12.	Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (50%)
13.	Eastern Orthodox (50%)
14.	Roman Catholic (50%)
15.	Unitarian Universalism (50%)
16.	Jainism (42%)
17.	Seventh Day Adventist (41%)
18.	Neo-Pagan (36%)
19.	Mahayana Buddhism (34%)
20.	Hinduism (34%)
21.	Theravada Buddhism (33%)
22.	New Age (32%)
23.	New Thought (32%)
24.	Scientology (28%)
25.	Secular Humanism (26%)
26.	Taoism (24%)
27.	Non-theist (19%)

SAFE AGAIN! My soul is 100% Mormon (funny, my ultra conservative right wing church friends might find this a little surprising ... hehehe ... I joke, I joke). I was a little surprised that they even had my church listed with its correct name and all, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and not just Mormon. Again I have highlighted some of the interesting connections ... notice how my soul has more in common with Orthodox Judaism (75%) and Islam (63%) than Orthodox (59%) and Liberal Quakers (58%)! Not that shocking to me ... but go figure. I also found the vast difference with Scientology (28%) and Non-theist (19%) organizations interesting. Just a little food for thought.

Anyway - check it out and see what you think. And p.s. my mac is in the shop so we will see how this goes on the whole getting back to blogging.

how can you not know?

2007-11-24T23:40:00.000-05:00

you know you are old when undergraduates don't know who 2Pac, Warren G, and Nate Dogg are. yes, these kids are white oregonians ... but seriously I am a white girl from suburbia and I still know. it just means that i am getting old since the early nineties O-G (original gangster for all of those who don't know ... sigh, there is no hope) gangsta' rap is fading from children's memories.

sigh ... good songs not to be lost.

blogging to commence december 8th

2007-11-17T22:27:00.000-05:00

so i know ... i use to be good at blogging ... or at least sort of good at it. let's say i used to be consistent. i just wanted to let you know that blogging will commence after finals.

i haven't been actually doing anything lately but i have been learning all sorts of interesting things. i hope to share them after finals when i can actually think about what i think concerning all this new information. we are not just talking old buildings people, we are talking about mind-blowing concepts for more sustainable communities and for production and consumption. let me repeat - mind blowing. come on, you guys know that i don't do light and airy very well. i have all these crazy thoughts floating around in my head and graduate school is just fueling the fire. and stressing me out, but fueling the fire none-the-less.

we'll talk more in december when i will be vacationing in the OC for a month. lookin forward to the time to re-group.

some ideas for the future

2007-11-17T22:00:00.000-05:00

i don't necessarily like the exact execution of these ideas (color, location, texture) but I like the concepts ... gets the creativity going. These are all photos from domino magazine's design challenge:

This one is actually from a woman in utah - way to go peeps
(i don't know if she is actually a peep, but chances are good)!
I like the cut-outs all though the key is a bit much for me and
the color scheme is not my bag. But I like that I could use this
idea in a rented apt. I love swirly organic stuff.

I like the painting in this picture ... not the colors tho.

This is a super cool idea, although I would have no idea
what image I would actually paint on my wall. Its so dramatic tho!

my squeaky shoe

2007-11-06T01:38:00.000-05:00

my left black jack purcell squeaks at the heel. its no big deal walking around camps ... until i go to the library and everyone turns to stare at me.

just as i suspected

2007-11-02T16:12:00.000-05:00

i take back this post 100% (well at least 90%) ... i am no good at grad school right now. What happened you might ask - MIDTERMS. i feel lost and confused and frankly, not very bright.

The problem is that i have forgotten how to study - really study - for an exam. You know, multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blanks - straight up knowing the material and not just being able to write some flowery non-sense about the stuff you read. Yeah, well I am so much better at the flowery non-sense than the facts. I get so distracted and tired and I can't focus ... anyone have studying tips?

my new favorite tv-on-the-internet show

2007-10-28T02:47:00.001-05:00

I don't have cable. I don't have a tv for that matter. But I do have the internet. Not that I have time to watch tv-on-the-internet, but I make it my reward for working hard all day long. I watch more shows than I care to admit but I stick to ABC because, well, they have the best shows and the BEST video player out there. It is great. Thank you ABC. So I tell you all this because I have a new favorite tv-on-the-internet show ... Pushing Daisies. Now I saw a zillion billboards and such for this show all summer and had no plans on watching until I did watch the pilot one day ... and I love it!

Mostly I love the witty banter between the characters that is reminiscent of The Gilmore Girls, only not as much pop-culture reference (sadly). Also, the wardrobing is stellar ... quirky and fun. Chuck, the female lead, always has fun dresses on that are very retro and cute. You can't really figure out what decade its suppose to be ... really it suppose to be timeless I think. Echoing the charm of the 20's I think but more hip and modern. The colors on the set pop and the voice-over of the man from those Walgreens commercials is PERFECT for the mood.

Ned and Chuck often wear brightly colored chucks (the converse shoe) and the buildings are very dramatic and iconic. Victorians, Richardsonian Romaneque buildings, craftsmans and this one below (which is often shown as a graphic ... lots of cool computer graphics encorporated too for the comic-book-esque feel as well).

The picture below is from an episode when they first "kiss" (they can't actually touch, so no kissing can happen - gasp! oh the angst that I love! hehehehe). Watch it so we can talk about it ... it is so funny I laugh out loud ... and I watch it by myself ... that means its REALLY funny.

keep on truckin

2007-10-25T02:26:00.000-05:00

so i guess that i don't totally stink at this graduate school thing ... although my mind may change next week after I have another mid-term and 4 papers due (yeah its going to be a GREAT weekend). i did really really well on my first real paper in graduate school and it was just what i needed to keep my head in the game. i needed a little positive reinforcement for all my crazy ideas and views on preservation and sustainable communities. on the flip side, however, i am not necessarily rockin my exams these days ... never was that great at tests in comparison to papers. but i wonder how i am going to feel when i realize it translate to a B- or a C+. right now i don't much care ... which is the problem. i have forgotten how to study and hold large amounts of information in my head for art history tests and that is exactly what i need to do right now. maybe i will have to have a tough semester before i really get my stuff together. who knows ... until then i will keep on truckin.

Wish the FedEx truck would keep on truckin ... all the way out of my picture!

This is a building outside of the Foggy Bottom Metro Station in DC

I am sure some preservationist don't like this idea ... its facadism (keeping the facade of an historic building only) but I say its clever, witty, and keeps the character of the town homes while providing office space. Plus the are no bones about what part is modern (hint, its the dark glass parts) and what part is OG (original gangster ... or original building in this case). I also like how the concrete echoes and incorporates the scale and style of the original building, while being suspended in the dark modern glass.

my shelter from the storm ... in paisley

2007-10-22T21:40:00.000-05:00

I thought that you might be wondering what my little room in Eugene looks like ... I tried to make it a nice place to cocoon myself in, you know - in anticipation of all that studying and all that rain. Its not much, but its my shelter from the storm. I have more things to add ... oh and keeping it clean is always a battle.

Enter my room - I put some cute Anthropology frames I bought a year or so ago
on some cute blue and green cards I got - so they would stand out ... I think it worked!

Up-close shot of the frames ... I love them! They are so very baroque (hehehe)

This was my first idea of a "wall hanging" - I wanted a picture wall like I had in DC ...
plus Kelly gave me three great photos of Europe in frames and I wanted to hang them!
I tried something, but it looked awful on my wall.

Instead ... I tried:
This is the far right hand corner of my little room.
It was bare, so I made a collage of green, blue, beige and some paisley/leafy cards I found.
I think it softens the room a bit and I like the way it turned out.

So my closet doors are TERRIBLE, AWFUL, HORRIBLE ...
so I applied some IKEA mirrors to them.

Don't mind the mess ... but this is my cute little bookshelf that
my loving mother put together for me.
A few baskets with green paisley inserts hold all the ugly stuff
and some of my books get to be displayed!
I have IKEA plants and vases of course ...
plus I made little "place mats" for my plants out of
those blue and green cards I used on my wall too.

Again, don't look at my mess ... look at my tree! I love it (IKEA again)!
This is my getting ready station (since there are
3 girls in this apartment with only 1 bathrrom ... I
have a few mirrors to make sure the make-up gets put on properly
(make-up?! who am I kidding ... I am a graduate student - hahahahaha)
PS - the top part folds down like a secretary's desk and I hide my printer
and school supplies in it - its soo NEAT!

Pumpkin Picking (sort of)

2007-10-19T23:30:00.000-05:00

I went with the two love birds (my roommie and her beau) to a pumpkin patch last weekend ... we had a hay ride and everything! I even had a big soft and chewy ginger cookie - yum!

(not to be confused with chewy granola ... still in pursuit of that).

Bethany and Ally

Ally and Marcus

Our little red wagon with our pumpkin picks!

when did i become obsessed with red?

2007-10-17T21:24:00.000-05:00

I never used to like red. When did that change?

It happened in that order ... hmmm and I have a red (and white) polka-dot dress ... strange.

Remembering Why I am Doing This

2007-10-15T02:11:00.000-05:00

In attempts to remind myself why I came back to school, I pulled up these pictures of some innovative uses of historic buildings in Spokane, Washington. I went there in September as part of my field school in Northern Idaho (it was only an hour and half drive from the State Park we were working at). To me, a lot of these structures are what are appropriately re-purposed historic buildings, giving new life to this part of the city and getting people back living in these well worn and experienced buildings, adding richness and texture to their everyday lives. What is of major concern to me however, is the fact that these buildings in turn are extremely expensive and luxurious beyond sustainability. That I am not ok with. If everyday people can't afford to live their everyday lives here, then historic preservation and adaptive reuse is just one more elitist movement that has no practical application to millions of people. Not cool. But check out the pictures and take in the awesomeness that old buildings are.

This building had a carriage entrance and everything,
still intact, that opens up to a receiving courtyard.

This is a fancy hotel.

This is a converted steam plant ... seriously the coolest industrial vibe.

One of my artsy-fartsy views from the top story.

Imagine this is your office ... on the fifth floor of an old steam plant ...
restaurant/brewery in the basement and first floor ...

Oh, and this is your neighbor-office on the fourth floor ... that is his window ...
not to the outside, but to the outside of his office looking into open space in the building.

Couldn't get a good shot of the pool-table/lunch room for one of the offices ...
loft style overlooking the whole restaurant below.

One of the conference rooms in the basin of an old boiler ...
drop in a floor and put in some AV equipment and we are good to go.

The developer got local artists to design tables, and art pieces around
the building using old hardware from the steam plant.

Oregon Coast

2007-10-02T16:49:00.000-05:00

This weekend I took a mini road trip with some new friends! Check out the fun:

Bethany, Marcus, and Megan walking to the sea lion cave look out ...
turns out it $9 a person to go down to the look out and they
weren't even there that day ... so we poked around the cheesy gift shop.

Megan, Ally, and Marcus chillin on a big tree that fell over t
he river that comes into the Pacific Ocean.

Cool juxtaposition of steel and trees.
The bridge was pretty cool spanning the little valley that the river ran down towards the ocean.

The bridge ... asymmetry can be beautiful don't you think?

"Sexy architecture" as Ally (she's an architecture undergrad at UO)
claims all of her classmates would say.
I would have to agree.

I like the horizontal of the brick (I wish the window wasn't boarded up)
and the diagonal succession of steps in the upper left corner.

Gears of the working light part of the light house - cool huh!

The turning light gives you a small window of opportunity to take a picture. Don't worry I got one without the cage, but I liked this one better, just as the cage is coming back around again.

I was hoping that these pictures would come out better because the way
the staircase railing wraps around was so cool!

Bethany and Marcus climbing back down the stairs of the light house -
I love the brick!

changing targets

2007-09-27T17:56:00.000-05:00

So much for graduate school just having it out for the blog ... it is going straight to the source and trying to do me in!

Graduate school is trying to kill me ... it may even be winning. On Tuesday I was convinced that I was going to either quit or die trying to do all my reading and writing.

Perhaps the family would chip in and build a mini-chapel
to me that would look like this:

Paris, France

Mmmm, probably not ... its a bit too fancy. How about a headstone like this
(minus the WILSON on the bottom):

Harrisonburg, Virginia

Perhaps that one is too masculine ... maybe something with flowers - in stone so they don't have to bring real ones (I know how those Johnson's are):

Harrisonburg, Virginia

Lets be honest, most likely my headstone would look like one of these:

Annapolis, Maryland

Either way, the inscription would read:

Insufficient consumption rate of written information.

Death by tome ... gee, that's neat.

The hardest thing about graduate school so far is that a lot of the reading is actually very very interesting and engaging ... its just so much for me to handle in a small amount of time. I feel like I don't have time to actually think about what I am reading because I am too busy trying to consume all the material.

Sigh. I will get through it and grow and learn and stuff like that. Wish me luck ... only 9 more weeks to go.

Utah Trip - August 2007

2007-09-20T02:36:00.000-05:00

As I am about to embark on a new adventure - school - I want to take the time to reflect on the past summer. After quitting my first real job (two years is a good effort, I think) and moving from DC, I was able to be on vacation for about a month in California before I moved to Oregon. I wrote here, here, here and here - just to remind you of a few. But I left out lots of stuff, so here it is!

August:

My trip to Utah to see my brother and his family was fantastic. Of course, I only have pictures of his children. They are sooo cute!

Terrick (or T as we call him) ... bluest eyes ever! And white blond hair ... I just love it.
He wants to be big like his brothers sooo badly. I wanted to steal him away in my suitcase.

Cameron (or Cam) and a dinosaur ... he likes dinosaurs and he picked out this alligator shirt to wear to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point.

Mikyla (or Kyla) ... sings songs to spell her name, always wears dresses, often says the phrases: "that's perfect" and "isn't it beautiful?"
She is a girlie-girl, despite the fact that she has three brothers!

Classic picture ... couldn't help but take it. Hunter is in the orange shirt on the right - he's the oldest ... such a cute little boy that is a great big brother most of the time - especially early in the morning when he is telling Cameron and Mikyla to play quiet because Aunt B is still sleeping in the next room.

My friends Sarah and Jon Bush's baby Jonah ... so cute!
It is crazy how much he looks like his dad!

Sarah Bush and baby Jonah ... I can't believe we met our freshman year in college and now she is married and has a baby! Crazy how time flies. It was so great to see these two and eat at Cafe Rio ... it had been over 2 years since I had been back to Provo!

school is trying to kill the blog ... but I am fighting it

2007-09-19T11:12:00.000-05:00

Apparently school is bad for my blogging health. Technically classes haven't even started and I already can't find the time, brain power, or desire to blog. This is serious people ... I love blogging and want to continue to love blogging. Sigh. I plan to dedicated tonight to some serious attempts to chronicle my last few weeks ... pictures and all.

Check back tomorrow ... I hope to have something new here.

Little Red Corvette

2007-09-07T23:00:00.000-05:00

Ok, not exactly … but this is my little red corvette:

So while my apartment screams poor grad. student ... my new car winks and says: "How you doin?"

Isn’t it adorable?! I love it. I can’t stop smiling, I like it so much. The XD was a great choice for me. I have already laid down the 60/40 rear splitting back seats to fit in the laundry and trash bins, as well as furniture and organizational bins. It is tons of fun to drive and the coolest feature is the direct connection for my ipod! The pioneer stereo (it comes standard) allows you to scroll through the music on your ipod with the stereo controls … AMAZING. Seriously it’s the best new car a girl could have. It’s a little bigger than just a regular four door … but still small. Its spunky and fun and well … just look at it!

For the record … all my clothes were packed in boxes and this was the only clean shirt I had … so I had to break my own rule of never wearing clothes that make you look like a tree. We also had spent the entire day flying, driving, loading and unloading boxes and suitcases, moving those boxes and suitcases up two flights of stairs, trying to fit a full size bed (which I got for $40, thank you very much) in the back of a mini-van and then driving across town and taking it out again … so that is why I look the way I do.

To check out the 360 degree view of my new car ... click here ... although its not red like mine.

Inspecting the trunk and checking out all the cool features and compartments.

Rear view ... literally.

Self portrait with my new car .... what should I name her?

my apartment says it all ... I am a poor graduate student

2007-09-07T22:44:00.001-05:00

I am here. I made the journey, as well as all my things. I have a lot of stuff and yet I still had to buy more – how is that possible? Well, it is. You have to buy cleaning supplies, dishes, organizing things, hangers, laundry and waste baskets, lamps, all furniture (bed, dresser, bookcase, desk, chairs, etc, etc, etc) and school supplies too! So I didn’t see my apartment before I moved in … I saw a few pictures, I thought had a pretty good idea of what I was getting into. And I did. But you know how thinking about something and then experiencing it for real is different? That’s what happened when I first opened the door. I little bit of sadness crept in. It’s very basic, very old (not in a good way), and very college living. It’s hard to go backwards. Just when you are finally getting nice things and living in nice places … you go back to school … and back to the little apartment with bad fixtures and ugly carpet. I kept repeating to myself … its ok, you are a poor student now, you are poor, you have no money, you are a student. Sigh. Little things about college living I forgot about or never experienced in my undergrad … like the idea that dishwashers aren’t standard. Doesn’t every apartment come with brand new stainless steel appliance? Just kidding, just kidding. But its hard to go from being the first people living in a brand new building and a new apartment back to college apartments.

This is the before shot of my roomies empty bedroom (since I forgot to take one of mine ... its the same but the window size and placement is a bit different ... but you get the idea):

This was my dilemma when I got here. Since I was the first to move in, I got my pick of the rooms (three of them). The two in the back had shorter, but longer windows than the front room and are thus much brighter. The front bedroom however has a larger closet. While the sunlight is something I am very very concerned about here in Oregon and the front room's window faces out to the front doors and thus the noise/wandering eyes of neighbors ... I didn't really have a choice. I needed the bigger closet. So it is darker and noisier, but all my clothes fit. Yes, my priorities are called into question with this decision.

I will post pictures of the final product - aka: my decorated room in a week (after I go on my field study to Northern Idaho). In the next few days I hope to do a little catch up and post about the last month's activities ... pictures and all.

again, about mandy moore

2007-09-07T13:20:00.000-05:00

I just watched Chasing Liberty ... great, even if typical, Mandy Moore movie. However ... contrary to the popular belief that she sings in every movie she is in, she does not have a song nor does she sing in any scene of this movie. The way her character is written is not my favorite ... she has some really bad lines through out the movie ... really her character is just stupid sometimes, but its Mandy and thus I get over it. The rest of the cast is great also - some attractive no-name British guy is the love interest that she gets to lock lips with, Jeremy Pivon is her secret service tag-along, and Mark Harmon is her dad/President of the United States (oh, did I forget to mention that she is the first daughter? well she is). Also - the Roots preform at a concert in it AND she is gallivanting all across Europe in the movie ... it would be pretty fabulous to be Mandy Moore.

hot, hot, heat

2007-09-03T23:37:00.001-05:00

Power outage in the OC ... whatever will we do? You see it wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't still 100 degrees at 6 pm. I am melting ... ahhhhh. So the folks and I went to the pool. It was lukewarm but nice enough. We stayed until my fingers and toes were all prune-like. That is when you know its time to get out.

Its my last night in the OC until November or December and its hotter than Hades. Kind of makes me happy to move to the Pacific Northwest and embrace the rain ... hahaha ... yeah right. I just gotta keep reminding myself of this deathly heat come November. Oh yeah, did I mention I have to wake up at 4:15 in order to catch my plane ... yeah ... good times.

Peace-out OC vacation life ... its been good while it lasted. Pictures from the past month to be posted when I get a wireless network for my lap top set up. Be excited. Be very excited.

unemployment = a great tan

2007-08-31T20:07:00.000-05:00

You know its been a good month when you have managed to get the best tan you have had in years. Really it just represents that I am unemployed and will soon be heading back to school ... but I am perfectly ok with that. Either way I am more tan now than I have been in the past 4 years combined!

Working is so over-rated. Living with your parents for a month in Southern California, going to the beach a few times a week, and driving your mom's 350-Z around town is sooo under-rated. But one does need to make a living to support themselves, so I will live it up now while I still can. Only four more days of the OC vacation life ... then I am off to Oregon on Tuesday to start the next chapter of my life - GRADUATE SCHOOL (imagine dramatic music here).

can you hear me now?

2007-08-30T15:22:00.000-05:00

My phone bit the dust today .... and of course I lost all my numbers. I got a new phone so email/call/text me with your number so that we can still be friends. I miss you already ... I'm missin you like candy, even.

the happiest place on earth - vintage

2007-08-29T08:39:00.000-05:00

Kelly and I went to Disneyland the other day. It is always magical ... wouldn't expect anything less of the Magic Kingdom. On our way in under the bridge and onto Main Street, I always love to look at the posters they have up for the different lands and movies. Very retro, very vintage. I LOVE IT. Then, on the way out we stopped in some shops and I came across a bunch that you could purchase. Now, I couldn't justify buying any of them since I don't have a place for them (aka: a home), but I found them online to share ... love, love, love these posters.

Don't even know why this is tomorrowland ... but I want it.

Perfect for a little boys room!

Love the colors and the shapes in this one!

For a little boy again.

I love the drama of this one ... and the yellow background.

I think that the Haunted Mansion is the place
I would want to work if I worked at Disneyland ... I love the old Victorian house!

And last, but not least ... how can you not LOVE Small World?
Its old school - yes ... a little politically incorrect - yes ...
but it means well and has a great message.
Sad to say its in Fantasyland ... never really understood that one ...
however, we must remember that it was built before the internet.
I think the idea that the world is small is no longer a fantasy ...
ladies and gentleman, we have arrived (the world is now officially small!)

Missin You Like Candy

2007-08-27T01:56:00.000-05:00

Mandy Moore at the House of Blues, Anaheim ... it was great. Go ahead - judge me. I don't care.

Have to respect a woman who can look back at being 14 and agree that it was silly. She too thought that "missin you like candy" made no sense ... but I was still happy she sang it for us. She sang this song too ... you may hate it, but I thought it was good.

Let me just say that I like that Mandy Moore ... she's a nice girl.

travel as education

2007-08-19T12:16:00.000-05:00

Traveling teaches so many lessons. Everyone should take some time to do some traveling. To get the most out of your traveling experience, one should go to places that you have never been to before because this world is full of surprises. When you get on a plane, train, or metro you are bound to have some interesting experiences. Community travel (aka commercial airline, train or bus and NOT a road trip in your own personal vehicle) is a talent, one that often must be learned. Patience, kindness, and compassion are just a few traits that can be developed while traveling if you will only allow it. And believe me, it is not always easy. Crying babies, individuals with more bags than they can carry (I have done this while moving across the country so I know have a little more compassion), loud snoring, loud talkers, bad smells, circulated air ... really the list could go on. But seriously, all these things just end up being good stories to tell ... so don't worry - you'll get through it.

Staying in a new place, whether it be the pull out sofa-bed of my brother and sister-in-laws
condo with their four little kids waking up at 6:30 am all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, or in the plush double-bed of a Hampton Inn suite, also teaches a few lessons. It always requires some flexibility and adventure when you aren't in your usual sleeping environment.

Traveling also breaks down stereotypes and preconceived notions. So many times have I been to places with low expectations and discovered the unique gems that individual cities have to offer. Boise, Idaho is a perfect example of this. It is a great city with a fun downtown vibe. Quaint but hip. I really really enjoyed it.

I believe places have souls - drawn from the people, the architecture, the environment, the history, and the present activities. You can feel a city's soul almost immediately ... you just get this cool vibe from places and you can feel what a city is all about. That is not to say that these vibes can't change and evolve with time as you spend a few days walking down its streets and seeking out the aspects that give the city its defining characteristics ... because they most definitely do. But I have found that time just ends up elaborating on the first impression vibe.

The more I travel - domestically and internationally - the more I realize that this world is amazing. There is so much to see and do and experience. So many different ways to live your life and so many places to live it. With all the places I have traveled to and all the states I have lived in, I find that each location provides me with a different perspective. Sometimes I feel like a chameleon because I change a little bit depending on the city I live in. My style changes a bit, my activities change a bit, and my interests change a bit. Sometimes that makes me feel like I am unsure of who I am, but really I think that its just a reflection of my learning and growth. I hope that the places I have been will continue to shape me.

Dem Peeps

2007-08-14T00:23:00.001-05:00

No, I don't mean "them peeps" ... I mean Dem. Peeps ... or Mormons that are democrats. My favorite example, unfortunately, just passed away August 10, 2007, President James E. Faust. Now, you may be thinking ... "hmmm, I would have thought that Brother Harry Reid would be her favorite example of a dem peep" and you would be correct in the realm of politics. President Faust was very political yes (as you can see here) but he was not currently serving in a political capacity for the last 12+ years. He was instead serving the Lord as the Second Counselor to the President and Prophet Gordon B. Hinckley at the time of his passing and for those of you who are thinking "and that means??" ... it means that he was pretty well respected in the church. Not to mention he was pretty in tune with the man upstairs if you know what I mean.

President Faust's thoughtful talks given in General Conference and his kind demeanor are things I will most miss. He was compassionate, loving and urged forgiveness and brotherly kindness. Most important to me, especially at this time in my life now, he represented that the gospel of Jesus Christ is not political. At least it was not meant to be politicized or polarizing. The Salt Lake Tribune refers to Faust's own sentiments expressed to his biographer:

"I am a conservative on fiscal and property matters, and I am liberal in terms of human values and human rights," Faust told his biographer, James P. Bell. "I believe what it says in the Book of Mormon, that the Lord values all of his children equally - black and white, bond and free, male and female, Jew and gentile - and that the Lord likewise has compassion for the heathen."

"He went on to say that the LDS Church would prefer to have members in both parties."

My dad jokes that the "heathens" he is referring to are the Republicans ... only I don't think he is actually joking when he says that. Anyway, the article opens up with a great reference to Bill Clinton - please read it (see link above).

I know what will be on my Christmas list this year - President James E. Faust's biography by James P. Bell In the Strength of the Lord: The Life and Teachings of James E. Faust.

home ain't so bad - even if it is the OC

2007-08-10T11:33:00.000-05:00

Driving around in my mom's hot little car - windows down, Led Zepplin blasting, dancing and singing at the stop light - I forgot how great the weather is in SoCal. It was even a bit chilly at night (to me since I was used to 90 degrees and tons of humidity at midnight).

So, home is good. I sort of remember why I didn't stick around ... but it sure is a nice place to visit.