twenty eight.

I recently turned twenty eight. It just happens sometimes. And the celebrations were perfect.

Let's start with some video, shall we? More words and photos to come later.

My celebration in Seattle was a complete surprise. I had gone to dinner with CK and SB prior to heading off to Maui (where I would spend my actual birthday) and thought we were stopping by to pick up a couple more friends to grab dessert.

Not so.

I'm not quite sure you are ready for the amount of awkward you're about to witness in this video. There is a reason I hate being the center of attention. Prepare yourselves.

So many people staring. I especially like the part where I turn around and pretend to walk out.


On the night of my actual birthday I found this gem waiting for me in my email inbox. Don't mind the pause in the middle, they were just paralyzed with fear for a minute.


A birthday always helps remind you that your people are awesome.

to sum up.

Sunday: The usual Sunday activities, including teaching RS, followed by the biggest Family Jam we've ever had.

Monday: A day off! Helping a friend move, making buttons, dinner & good conversation, FHE that was actually fun and realizing that my visiting teaching partner and I color coordinate. Who wouldn't want to get visited by that duo?!?

Tuesday: P-Rizzle's birthday! Delicious food! Turns out I like eggplant parmesan.

Wednesday: Amateur circus night. It was exactly as awesome as the name makes it sound. Meaning really awesome.

Thursday: Adam's birthday! Food. More food. Topped off with crepes.

Friday: A low-key evening with good people. Nothing photo-worthy.

Saturday: Apple cider. Breadsticks. Dressing up for a costume-ish party but never actually making it there.

Life keeps happening.

the definition of fall (part two)

Saturday was the perfect Fall day.
The sun was shining. The air was a little chilly. I got out of the city. I saw trees with changing leaves.

And I purchased cider. (And a fruit leather. Because who doesn't love fruit roll-ups?)

The cider mill was a little different than I remember. There were no apples being pressed (only on Thursdays) and they didn't make or sell donuts, BUT it was still a good time and fun to get outside and take advantage of a beautiful day.

Have you ever seen someone so happy to be holding jugs of apple cider? (PS - I bought the spiced cider in my left hand because the jar was adorable. It will taste good too. But that jar...)

Drinking cider is not the same without a donut to go along with it. Powdered is my preference. So we picked up Fred Meyer's finest to make the outing complete.

One box is checked on the Autumn To Do list.

the definition of fall

I had three separate conversations yesterday about cider mills and no one knew what I was talking about.

Me: Can we also find a cider mill?
AB: What?!?
Me: A cider mill...apples. cider. donuts. pure happiness.
AB: And totally random.

------------------------------------------

Me: Should we go to a cider mill?!?
SB: A cider mill? Don't think I have ever been to one of those. Sounds interesting!

-------------------------------------------

Me: And we're going to a cider mill.
SU: A what?
Me: Cider mill.
SU: Haunted house?
Me: CIDER. MILL.

Since no one knew what I was talking about, I took it to the world wide web to find a cider mill nearby. What I found was several people posting things like "I'm from Michigan and I'm looking for a cider mill in the area...".

I guess it's a Michigan thing. Who knew?

What I do know is that today the air is crisp, the sun is shining and I'm going to drink real cider and eat a powdered donut.

It's the definition of Fall.

Some Kind of Back to the Wonderful Future

Somehow MSN sucked me in today. I know, it's MSN, but it happened. While perusing some of the content, I came across this.

Did anyone else know that Eric Stoltz was the original Marty McFly?!? Because I sure didn't.

Mind. Officially. Blown.

i read it in PEOPLE.

Side note before I even get started: It's amazing the things I decide to take pictures of with my phone. That's all.

 In flipping through the pictures on my phone today, I found this one from a random Friday night in July.

It couldn't be better.

you're never gonna be jello.

When my mom and aunt were in town (Did I ever mention that my mom came to visit? No? I'm a failure at blogging.) we went to a real classy dinner at the Chinese restaurant down the street. For our complimentary dessert, they brought us this:

I had no idea what it was, but I decided to taste it anyway. The white side was...not disgusting. The purple side was definitely disgusting. After being the taste tester I announced, "I don't feel good about eating anything that moves like that." They both tried it anyway.

When our server came back and asked us how it was, I asked her to help me understand what exactly it was that we were eating. She said jello.

Right. Well, better luck next time.

conversation of the day

Me: Okay, I really need to keep working on my lesson.
[a minute passes]
Me: You know, I really wish glow sticks lasted longer.
LL: Hey, how's your lesson going over there "Distracto"?

the head and the heart

google knows things.

Google tells me that since September 1st, 216 people have visited this small piece of the world wide web 780 times. This small piece of the world wide web with the super lame title and obnoxious yellow background. My small piece of the world wide web.

I don't even know 216 people. Who are you?

You know, the only thing I love more than a good lurker is a good confession of being a lurker.

 
Speaking of things Google knows, read this post (and this one) listing some of the search terms that led readers to that site. People are awesome.

and then there were two.

My house is now only inhabited by two humans (and a cat).
And it's possible that I just stood in the entry way (with two non-roomies) and took turns shouting.
SHOUTING.
At 11:00pm.

Just because we could.

now you're speaking my language.

Just in case you don't speak in kilobytes or megabytes, Outlook wants to make sure you can still understand.

If I Had a Hammer

Last night at Family Jam we attempted this song and as it turns out:
1. I should never be trusted to be the only one singing. Also known as, a solo. Shouldn't ever happen.
2. I didn't know all of the words off the top of my head like I thought I did.

It was kind of a train wreck, really. But that's what makes Family Jam fun.

You know what's not a train wreck? The real deal.

Put Your Records On

A few months ago I received a text from the roommate informing me that she had just picked up a record player for the house. Cool, I thought. We don't own any records, but that's still fun. Then I got home and found that the record player was actually a piece of furniture that was the size of our couch. And also looked like it came straight from my grandparents basement.

But this is coming from a girl who only owns a dresser, bookshelf and two Adirondack chairs. So, I can't really complain about the roommate's furniture choices.

We established that it was massive. We also established that it did not work.

Many a Saturday morning I would walk out of my bedroom to find our favorite AV friend, wearing his tool belt, tinkering behind it. Time went by and a new turntable arrived by mail. More time went by and the turntable sat in the box. Then, one Saturday "morning" (it's possible that it was Noon) I stumbled out of my bedroom and found our favorite AV friend + his friend doing more tinkering. By the time they left there was sweet, sweet music blasting through those speakers.

And now I'm obsessed.

I always want to have a record playing when I'm home. Last night as my mom, aunt and I were preparing food for a family gathering today, I put on a Simon & Garfunkel record and sang Cecilia loudly while dancing in kitchen. It doesn't get better than that.

Now I just need to invest in a record collection. Because Simon & Garfunkel and Whitney Houston just aren't going to cut it.

Yesterday

*Heard on a conference call while talking about a campaign's poor performance:
"It's like when your kid comes in 6th place. I wouldn't know because I hate children. That would actually make me happy."

*I was taught a new word: Felicitations.
My favorite definition was "a less common word for congratulations" because it was as if dictionary.com was even telling me it was a dumb word to use. But it's not dumb, you see. Below is snippet of the conversation I had when being taught this word.

Me: So, here's a question. People say 'congrats' instead of congratulations. Can I start saying 'felicitats'? Because if so, then there's a good chance I'll start incorporating that into my vocabulary.

See? Not dumb! Fun. And awesome.

*I encountered a 12,000 calorie cake. It was 7lbs. And tasted like a Hostess Cupcake.

History of Hip-Hop

Loved it.

story of my life

This will all make sense in the end. Maybe.

Roger The Mechanic called me yesterday to tell me that they had taken a look at my car and there definitely was a problem, but it wasn't any of my sensors (including my O2 sensor). It was clear that I needed a tune-up, regardless of the issue, so he suggested starting there to see if that solved my problem. I agreed.

Today CC asked me how work was going and I replied that it was fine. I'm currently working on a campaign and, although I have reviewed all of the proposals, I can't figure out how to narrow them down and fit the pieces together into a plan that satisfies me.
Me: "I can't make a decision to save my life."
CC: "Well, that's the story of your life, right?"
(She's a straight shooter.)

This afternoon Roger called again to tell me that my car was ready. The tune-up fixed the issue. And my brakes were totally fine. He said, "You got lucky" and that luck only cost me $250.

Talking with CC tonight I shared my wonderful news from Roger The Mechanic.
Me: "You know, I avoided taking my car in for TWO months because I was afraid of what they were going to tell me. Instead of fixing the issue I was just going to drive it until I no longer could. Potentially into the ground.
...
Now THAT'S the story of my life."

This. That.

+I've been driving with a check engine light on for two months (including a trip to Canada and a trip to Utah). But the last few days it has become painfully clear that I can't ignore it any longer. So tonight I dropped my car off to a mechanic for the first time ever. Well, except for that time I got rear ended getting on the freeway in Provo. That was a doozy. This is the first real time. Keep your fingers crossed that it's just the O2 sensor.

+Tonight I made scotcheroos for LL's birthday and used milk chocolate chips. We'll find out tomorrow how they taste. This is what life looks like when you live on the edge, folks.

+Two reasons for actually working in the office tomorrow (unlike today):
1. More access to real food
2. Less immediate access to candy

+Tonight Fred Meyer was doubling as a club. That's the only explanation for what was happening. There was a DJ playing very loud music. And students everywhere. They were dropping them off by the bus load. When we left we saw hoards of kids walking down the street with their lanyards and backpacks and purple/gold t-shirts and excited freshman faces. It was the strangest thing I've ever seen (and I went to BYU).

+I'm getting a new computer at work and my excitement is close to Christmas levels. What has my life come to?

+Instead of figuring out how to use my external hard drive properly, I'm tempted to just buy a new computer with more space. Problem solved.

+My tan is fading. Something must be done.

To Each Her Own

I broke down and bought Bejeweled for my phone while we were in Maui. (What? There were some long car rides.) It came in handy tonight while I was waiting for the RS broadcast to start, which is where I had the following conversation with LL after she pointed out some things I'd never noticed.

Me: My mind is blown right now!
LL: Dude, there's more to Bejeweled than just getting three in a row.

I have Tetris. She has Bejeweled.

yes, another one.

actually, it's quite possible that i'm posting this again. and i'm okay with it.