Walking Home

Sometimes after a long day I just love the walk back to my apartment.  Today, was one of those days.  It was great. 

Sunday Drives

Today, I went for a Sunday drive with a few friends of mine.  We ended up in Provo Canyon and stopping at a frozen lake that was just beautiful.  Pictures to come :)

Things in General

 Well, so much for taking just the weekend off...  Life this week was quite enjoyable.  Home was wonderful-- I was able to enjoy some good home cooking, sleeping in, shopping with mom, movies, and more.  The airplane rides were uneventful and I was even able to navigate economy parking for the first time without any troubles!  Classes were good, tests were returned with satisfying scores and we are all officially half way through the semester.  Folks, we're gonna make it!

Mountains and

Cities filled with lights.  Two of my favorite things to fly over :)

Hiatus

Taking it a little break from the blog while I'm home.  Enjoy the long weekend!

A Felt Tip Pen

It was a pen like this!

I came across this old pen of mine the other day, one of those felt tip pens that people used to love.  I decided to use it to make a mountain of note cards for a class.  The mountain is complete, and you know what, I still love this pen.  Which is saying something since I literally just wrote with it for hours upon hours.  I'm not sure that making all those note cards was so fun, but using that pen was actually kind of rewarding!

Happiness

Thank you, Pinterest. 

Love

Today was strange for me because although I didn't have a significant other to share this beautiful day with, I was happy-- on Valentine's day, fancy that!  I loved seeing other people sharing in loviness and I loved that friends stopped by just to say hi and wish my roommates and I a good day.  I loved the stranger that came up and gave me a rose, just because.  And I loved being a guest player on my friend's inner tube water polo team, yes you read that correctly, inner tube water polo.  I loved that today, a lot of people stopped to remember those they love in their lives.  Girlfriend, boyfriend, brother, sister.... love to me is a lot more than just someone's hand to hold.  So today, I am grateful for love.  Grateful for my family.  And grateful for my friends.  Happy Valentine's day!

Early Release

Today, was one of those days when I really needed some extra time to study and get things done.  And you know what, I got just that!  After turning in our midterm our professor let us out ten minutes early!  It was the most wonderful surprise ever!  It was great.

Snow

Today, we were blessed with bucket loads of slushy goodness.  Some called it snow, and it was snow, but it was also slushy and wet.  I am happy that Utah got snow!  Weather wise we needed it.  I am also happy for the wonderful people who shoveled all the snow on campus.  Their hard work makes walking to Church so much more pleasant.  Thank you!

Lunch

Had lunch with an old friend today.  It was great.  And no, I did not have this salad.  I did enjoy some Chicken Enchilada Chilli and a BBQ Chicken Salad though.  They were scrumptious. 

Friday

Today, I got done with classes in the early afternoon and decided to come home and relax instead of doing homework.  It was an afternoon filled with contentment.  It was perfect. 

Midterms

Midterms are officially underway and you know what--it feels great!  I got to walk home from the testing center today with that satisfied feeling that really only comes after demonstrating the immense knowledge I have spent the semester to date accumulating.  And I get to have this wonderfully sore hand to remind me how much all my studying paid off!  I realize this may sound a little sarcastic, but I promise you-- its not.  Just a few more tests to go now, we can do this!

Ice Cream

I was having one of those days today, one where I just really needed some sugar.  The bad news is, I didn't have any.  I was carrying on my night, dreaming of finding some fun sized goodness or something gooey and baked.  I was sitting in my friend's apartment, finally at terms with the fact that I would have to go to bed sugarless when he turns to me and asks me if I would want some ice cream!  Me??  Ice cream??  I didn't hesitate to offer my thanks and willingly oblige.  After enjoying every last spoonful of its sweetness I returned to my apartment.  Pleasantly content.  Sweets and friends with surprises are just great!

Ice Hockey

For some reason or another I have managed to avoid ice hockey for sometime now.  Okay, that might be a little bit of an understatement.  I have managed to avoid it my entire life.  But that all changed today!  I decided to attend my friend's city league game! It wasn't the best game ever (11-2 . . . ouch!), but the players and puck were new enough to me that I managed to remain quite mesmerized most of the game. 

The game was good, but this movie and story are what makes ice hockey truly great for me.  Miracle.

Morning People

This semester I have class nice and early.  Some days its hard, but some days its actually nice.  Take today for example, I got to walk to school with two of my very good friends.  There's nothing like a few laughs shared between morning people in the morning! 

Oh Mr. Sun

Sunshine in February.  Need I say more?

Hansel and Gretel

Today, I was walking in the beautiful sunshine up on campus.  And I came across the most curious trail of Fruit Snacks.  There they were, lined up just so every foot or two.  And I couldn't help but think of the old Brothers Grimm tale of Hansel and Gretel.  I'd like to think that these fruit snack weren't dropped by some hungry, hard working, bustling student, but rather some delighted young adult leaving a trail to who knows where.  I for one think life is ten times more fun living it as a child.  Don't ya agree?

Men's Volleyball

Back in the land of the free and the green in Oregon, we didn't have this thing called Men's Volleyball.  Imagine my surprise when I came to BYU to find that it is quite the competitive sport-- way more than just Powder Tuff t-shirts and an excuse to stay after school.  It is an all out display of intense athletic physique and competition, and its become something of a passion of mine.  Watching those boys go out and give it their all is really quite the site to see.  It only helps a little that their ranked Number One in the Nation!  You know, they're just kinda good at what they do...

Good Friends

Once upon a time, my family lost lots of important data from our hard drive.  I was given a tip top secret mission to bring it back to The States to recover the information.  I mentioned this to a friend who is more than handy with computers, next thing I knew, he had stayed up all night recovering the data himself!  I bet you're thinking, "gee, what a great guy!"  but no, it gets better!  Today, he came with me to buy the new hard drive!  What a pal, right??  Great friends, are truly great!

Sorting

Today, we played this interesting game in class.  I'm sure some of you have heard of it, some of you may have even played it.  It's found on pbs.org (I know, you're already hooked!) and is called Sorting People.  Yes, the game is completely ethical and very thought provoking.  I'd encourage you all to give it a shot.  You can start playing right now through this link.  

If you're looking to expand your experience even farther give this podcast by This American Life a listen.  It's a golden one that has really got me thinking today.  And that's whats been great about today.  Today hasn't been a day of rainbows and unicorns, but it has offered me many opportunities to question the norms of our lives-- of our society.  Sometimes thinking hurts my head but I love it all the same.  It's great.