I Won!!!

I've often said, "I never win anything." Not in a self-deprecating way, just in a matter-of-fact way. And it's true enough that I don't feel like I'm lying when I say those words.

Yesterday, when I came out of a meeting, Joe, our student secretary, pointed out my "prize." Beginning of January (I think) we had a products "show." There are multiple booths set up with pens, computers, binders, notepads, etc. Almost every office product you can imagine. They also have a drawing for all the workers who go. Every year I've dropped my name in, and every year I never hear anything. I always forget about it.

This year, I won! A set of 3 small memo pads, but it's something.

Words of Wisdom

"Being miserable doesn't make you better than anybody else. It just makes you miserable."

Dr. James Wilson, House M.D.

Productive Meetings

First - another meeting with the engineers (this was actually more productive than my past drawings)


Second - our staff meeting (this was the best of my drawings... I'm not an artist)

A Commitment Comes to a Close

Remember this?

Do you know what today is?

Yay for that!!!

Chips & Salsa: The Ultimate Comfort Food

Better even than ice cream.

Current favorite: El Azteca's

"I Never Do This!"

i think it's about one million points to you if
you know what film that picture is from

How many time have I said those words without really meaning it. I mean... I didn't do *whatever* enough to warrant saying that I did it, so I may as well say that I never did it. (If you made sense of that last sentence, one million more points to you.)

The event I'm speaking of this time took place on Sunday.

I was on my way to my parent's house for the evening. I got off the freeway and saw a car at the bottom of the off-ramp with its hazards flashing. No one was inside. As I was driving up the hill, I saw a guy walking. He didn't look like a recreational walker. At first I passed him, but as I went on, I guessed that the car I had seen was very probably his and since there was a gas station at the top of the hill I could maybe give him a ride...

I turned around.

I turned onto a side street in order to turn around again.

As I was coming out of the street he had just finished crossing it. I honked my horn, rolled down the window, and asked if he needed a ride -

"Is there a gas station up there?"

Yeah, you're pretty close.

"Would you mind giving me a ride?"

Not at all.

He got in, I drove him up, offered to wait while he bought a container and filled it up, then drove him back to his car.

While driving him there I found out that he was from Iowa - headed back there - but had been in Utah while going to school at the U.

When I was dropping him off I told him, "I never do this." I guess... I should have said, "I've never done this before."

A few things that make this event okay -

- This was an isolated event. I had never done it before (I'm not in the habit of inviting strangers into my car)

- I consider myself a fairly intelligent individual and after deducing (using that word I feel like I'm Sherlock Holmes) that it must have been his car I had seen and he needed help, I felt like I could offer it. He wasn't lying in wait for an unsuspecting female to go by.

Lastly, and I think most important...

- I was kind of saying a prayer the whole time asking if it was okay that I stop for this guy and help him. I never felt uneasy at all.

An example of why it's so important to be able to feel promptings.

The end result?

My parents may eventually be able to forgive me for picking up a strange man walking down the street, but I don't know if my dad will ever forgive me for him being a U fan...

It's Been (another) One of Those Days

xxx points to you if you know what the picture is from. score yourself.

On my way to work today none of my pre-set stations were playing music. The whole drive (granted, it's only a 5-7 minute drive, but still). I should have known then.

It's the second day that the director's assistant is out sick. Which means more gets put on me. It's been fairly busy (we've seem to hit a lull right now... *knock on wood!*)... I was going to meet my dad and brothers for lunch... no Linda means no one's here except me from noon to one... which means I can't leave at that time to meet my dad and brothers. So that kind of bummed me out. I apparently told one of the counselors something I shouldn't have. It was about a policy the office used to have that the higher-ups are now reviewing to see if it's changing. But I told a worker in the office. Not some random person. While my boss was telling me on the phone about not telling people, he eventually reached the same conclusion I did - it didn't matter that I told her because she works here. But I had to listen to him go on for a few minutes before he reached that conclusion.

I went to the store on my lunch break to get stuff for the huge mess of mashed potatoes that I agreed to make for a dinner with friends tonight. Now I don't even want to go, but maybe it'll be good for me to force myself to go. ... I can't promise that I'll stay for very long, though.

Argh. (not like a pirate "argh"... just a frustrated one)

On my drive back to work from my apartment I was trying to find things to be grateful for. Because no matter how bad the day is, there are always things to be grateful for.

A short list:

My family. Today, particularly Faithy. I called her from the store asking her to convert cups to pints and quarts for me. I knew she'd know. And she did. She then told me that that's something she's always just remembered from school and can still picture the chart in her head. I told her that since I remembered how to dial her number on my phone it's practically the same thing... But really, my family always gives me one (or... make that 33) thing(s) to be grateful for. And I'm grateful for that.

My mountains. I know that other people claim them too, and that they're not really mine - or anyones - but I love them. They're beautiful with snow on them, with green on them, even when they're brown. I love them.

Having a job. Especially in this economy, I am so, so grateful that I have a steady income. It hasn't been easy to find a second job, but I'm just grateful that I don't have to worry about finding a first job.

As I said, it's a condensed list because I really do have so much more to be grateful for than that, but it's a start.

And...

I'm starting to feel better already.

Coming to You From -

6:20 AM!!!

Last night I was on my bed having just finished watching an episode of House (I'm in the second season now). I got up and started rearranging my furniture. I had thought about it before, but planned to de-clutter and really clean things up before moving things around.

Well, that didn't happen.

I managed to move things around anyway, clutter and all.

Pictures to come.

The reason for this post, however, is to open up to discussion why I would possibly wake up at 4:45 AM?!?! And by wake, I mean WAKE. I was up, alert... AWAKE.

I couldn't believe it.

It's not that I went to bed extra-early either. I think I fell asleep around 10:30.

So, I googled.

In the rearranging of my room, my bed ended up with the head under the window on the east wall. I had a passing thought about the possible difference it would make with my head east and feet west rather than head north and feet south.

Turns out that some people think it makes a huge difference.

Maybe now I'll be some kind of super-hero who doesn't need much sleep. But I'm not sure what that can do for the benefit of mankind...

However, I'm happy to say that I was actually productive with my newly acquired two-plus extra hours this morning. I did some of the biggest loser yoga dvd.

Wow.

I'm feeling it.

This Post is About...

BOUNDARIES

It's something I've struggled with for... my life. Setting good boundaries. My mom has a book in progress about the need to set good and safe boundaries for yourself and with other people so you don't get overused and then upset about how you're being overused.

That's it in a (very small) nutshell. There's more that goes with it.

I was able to hear her give a speech on boundaries last year at the "Office Professionals... whatever Conference" for my job.

While listening to it I kept thinking, "me... me... me..." and these weren't good things that I was applying to myself. It was all about not having appropriate boundaries.

I let people take advantage of me. I don't like being seen as the "bad guy" so if someone asks me for a favor or anything that could slightly fall in that category... if there is any possible way for me to do it, I'll say yes. Even if it means bending over backwards while tying my shoes and walking on my hands and balancing on my head. Impossible, right? Just let me try it, and I'll show you that it can be done.

Of course, I may end up resentful of you for asking me to do it, and even more resentful of me for not being able to say no and set my own boundary in order to protect myself, but I'll get it done.

The reason for this post is that in my personal "fun" reading, I came across the following:

"Playing the part of a charitable soul was only for those who were afraid of taking a stand in life. It is always far easier to have faith in your own goodness than to confront others and fight for your rights."

Then it continues:

"It is always easier to hear an insult and not retaliate than have the courage to fight back against someone stronger than yourself; we can always say we're not hurt by the stones others throw at us, and it's only at night - when we're alone and our wife or our husband or our school friend is asleep - that we can silently grieve over our own cowardice."

The Devil and Miss Prym, Paulo Coelho, p. 44 (emphasis added)

After I read that, I realized - I'm the coward. I hate confrontation and tend to avoid it like the plague. Even if I know I'm being taken advantage of I'm much more likely to roll over and do what's asked - no, demanded - of me than to stand up for myself.

Pathetic, isn't it?

This has really given me something to (continue) thinking about.

I love smart people.

God's Pharmacy

I just got this in an email from a co-worker. Pretty cool...

A sliced Carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye... and YES, science now shows carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.

A Tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart has four chambers and is red. All o f the research shows tomatoes are loaded with lycopine and are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds on the nut are just like the neo-cortex. We now know walnuts help develop more than three (3) dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys.

Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and many more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet, the body pulls it from the bones, thus making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Avocadoes, Eggplant and Pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female - they look just like these organs. Today's research shows that when a woman eats one avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight, and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? It takes exactly nine (9) months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).

Figs are full of seeds and hang in twos when they grow. Figs increase the mobility of male sperm and increase the numbers of Sperm as well to overcome male sterility.

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries


Oranges, Grapefruits, and other Citrus fruits look just like the mammary glands of the female and actually assist the health of the breasts and the movement of lymph in and out of the breasts.

Onions look like the body's cells. Today's research shows onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells. They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes. A working companion, Garlic, also helps eliminate waste materials and dangerous free radicals from the body.

Some Random Photos

the "winter wonderland" I drove in this morning

on the way from the airport to my parent's

my brother's basketball game. not sure how i took this picture, but i kinda like it.

sunset view from my balcony

Happy Dia de Amor!

This week did not culminate in a fantastic "love day" feature. Instead, I ended up watching some of each of the following:

Sweet Home Alabama

Must Love Dogs
(I just noticed it was in German(?)... too tired to change it)

and...

Sahara
(great movie... sadly, I slept through a lot of it this time)

My day started at 4:30 this morning because I was taking some friends to the airport. That's... early. I thought 4:30 was only a pm time.

I came to my parents house from the airport and have been here all day... watching parts of movies... holding my cute new little nephew...

it's been a good day.

I hope you've all had a wonderful day of love!

Mushy Movie #5

Today, in honor of Friday the 13th and Valentine's Day Eve I...

went to a movie by myself!

I've never done that before.

I was kind of scared.

It was great fun and I'm pretty sure I'll do it again.I got off work 2 hours early and went to see Confessions of a Shopaholic.

I really really liked it.

I recommend this one.

It was cute.

It was clean.

I'll definitely be watching it again.

Note: it was kind of silly and maybe a little cartoonish... but Hugh Dancy's cute and fun to watch, and Isla Fisher was great in it.

Mushy Movie #4

A friend and I went to the theater tonight. ... I really liked the main storyline with Gigi and Alex. The others were all fine except for the married couple one. There was a very inappropriate scene (and some other short ones I would skip through if I had a remote in hand) and quite a bit of swearing (one absolutely unneccessary use of the "f" word and quite a few uses of the "s" word).

Unfortunately I could see myself in Gigi (in a not good way... which makes it "unfortunate"... you get it). It ends very nicely though.

Favorite line in the movie:

"You are my exception."

Mushy Movie #3

I love this one. It's been a long time since I've watched it. Cute guy, ugly duckling to swan girl (very possibly the best movie transformation I've seen. at the beginning of the movie - oh my goodness), bizarre ballroom outfits, great dancing... it's got it all.

Thank you Rebecca, for choosing this one!

Good Timing

I just came across this quote. Interestingly enough, it is quite relevant to things that I am exploring about my life right now. With that halfway cryptic statement, here it is:

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket - safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation. The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell." (emphasis added)

- CS Lewis, The Four Loves

Mushy Movie #2

I'm pleased to report that the mushiness factor in my second movie choice increased exponentially.

Enough said.

Sharpie Magic

I just noticed that the back of my black shoes were getting a little scuffed/torn so I grabbed the nearest Sharpie marker and colored it in. Quick and easy fix.Then I noticed a small hole in my black tights and wondered...

Mushy Movie #1

Dear Frankie

While technically not a "mushy movie," I had never seen it before but had heard it was good. When I saw that this guywas merely credited as "the stranger," I decided that there was no way the movie would end in such a way that would qualify it as "mushy."

Unfortunately I was right.

Good movie? Yes. Doesn't really - or even slightly - qualify as a Valentine's Day movie. Oh well. He's still definitely nice to look at. And he played a very sweet part - which made him even better.

Did You Hear?

About the horrible crash and burn that took place over the weekend? It happened in my apartment with me eating Valentine's candy hearts and Dove chocolates. It was sad. It was messy. It should never have happened.

We're blaming it on a mechanical malfunction.

A Week of Love

I've decided that instead of letting this Valentine's Day remind me of what I have never had in my life, I'm going to remind myself of things (mostly people) that I do have in my life. And maybe I'll celebrate it with a mushy movie a day.

So, here's to a wonderful Valentine's Day for all of us!

A Great Day

Yesterday, my day went something like this:

welcome to the world, little one (congratulations Caitlin & Rob on your 1st son!).
(I'm an aunt for the 15th time!)

Chocolate Chip

What do you do when your boss' boss hands you a chocolate chip to eat and you're on a "no refined sugar" kick?

You take it back to your office so you can take a picture

and then you eat it.

Road Trip!

Question: What do you do when you're feeling slightly claustrophobic in your nice little town, and just want to get away from everything* and you have a full tank of gas.

Answer: You take off work three hours early (with permission), you get a long-awaited oil change (my poor car!), go home and change into a super-comfortable travel outfit (loose yoga pants, a tank top, sweatshirt and flip flops), make a sweet playlist entitled "road trip" (including beauties like "Sway" by Michael Buble, "If I Had a Million Dollars" by BareNaked Ladies, "We Didn't Start the Fire" - Billy Joel, a few sweeties from the Momma Mia! soundtrack, including some by Abba themselves, "Only the Good Die Young" - also Billy Joel [which I can't listen to without remembering getting caught rocking out to that song by my sister while exercising in her garage] etc - the rule was that I couldn't skip or replay any. I only got halfway through the list... I think another trip is in order - soon.), then head off to Wyoming. That's right, Wyoming. Evanston to be exact.

The first time I stumbled upon this nice little town was when I was heading up to my sister-in-law's uncle's cabin somewhere beyond Park City. I missed the exit and ended up in another state. Yesterday, I purposely drove to Wyoming. I just wanted out of Provo.

Here are a few photos chronicling my trip:

showing off my full gas tank and new green spot telling me that maintenance is no longer required (thank you jiffy lube!)

my travel companions

shots from the car... while driving (don't worry, I never actually looked through the camera. I'd see something pretty, grab the camera and randomly point. not bad results, right?)

self-portrait - me rocking out to Michael Buble's "Sway" (I don't know if it's possible to hear that song without dancing)

destination in sight!

welcome to Wyoming! (arrival time: 4:37)

a building that I like the look of

I just like the horse and rider.

scenes within Evanston.

look at all that wide open space!

after driving down their main street and turning around, I was ready to head back to Utah. I filled up the tank... it cost less than 6 dollars to get me to another state!

scenery pictures from the way home (I love sunsets!)

my trusty steed, felix, after the trip.

treasures discovered at the gas station in Evanston:

I may need to go back just to get more of those...

You may have noticed that my "no refined sugar" was put on hold. I figured if a trip to Evanston wasn't worth taking a break, what was?! I'm not sure how long that break will last...

So, highlights from the trip include (but are definitely not limited to):

singing loudly to: "somebody to love" - the anne hathaway one from ella enchanted

and "love's great" - michael peterson (including lyrics like: "love's great, when you're not in it...")

acting like I know the words to "la bomba" - ricky martin (it's completely in Spanish)

and loving the lyrics to:

"life's a dance" - john michael montgomery (lyrics include: life's a dance you learn as you go, sometimes you lead, sometimes you follow, don't worry about what you don't know, life's a dance you learn as you go...)

and "life goes on" - leann rimes (with lyrics: life goes on, and it's only gonna make you strong, it's a fact - once you get on board say goodbye 'cause you can't go back)

and "c'est la vie" - shania twain is also a good one (lyrics such as: Don't let it get to you c'est la vie! that's life, and that's how it's gonna be c'est la vie! hold tight, it comes right eventually.)

The biggest highlight of all being that I ended the trip at my brother's house in SLC for an impromptu visit. Turns out they needed a babysitter and hadn't been able to find one. They had been ready to divide and conquer (each taking one of the kids with them). I just stopped by because I wasn't ready to go back to Provo yet. So, I ended the day with some time with my niece and nephew (both so cute!). It was great.

Moral of the story: escape when you need to. It was great. And it isn't the last time I'm going to do something like this. I really would like to go back to Evanston and actually get out of my car to walk around a bit. Maybe some Saturday coming up...

*don't get me wrong, I do love my mountains, but I kind of felt like they were closing in on me. now I'm happy to have them back.