Checking In

I haven't felt much like blogging lately. Work's been crazy busy, life's been kinda busy.

Honestly, it's been a hard couple weeks. And as I was reminded last weekend at the Huntington Beach Midsingles Conference, there is a time and season for all things, even a season of sadness. I've kinda felt like that's where I am lately.

My roommate will be gone a good portion of the summer, and a few other people that I spend a lot of time with won't be around either.  One of them I've grown especially close to over the last 6 months, but it's no longer a good idea to continue our relationship. We cried and said goodbye last weekend. It's been really difficult not to talk to him any longer, but it's for the best.

I feel like just running away for the rest of the summer, getting out of here.

But in all of this, with a lot of prayer, I've seen a lot of little blessings this week, and I know that God is looking out for me.

My favorite little grocery store splurge was on mega sale this week, so I bought 3 packages.

Christine was so lovely and stopped by my house with flowers and chocolate, even though she's not having the best few weeks either.

Corey arranged a fabulous group of people to hit up a show, and I was grateful to get out of the house.

Scott arranged another fabulous group of people earlier in the week for a progressive taco dinner in LA. It was delicious, even though I had to miss the last stop for a late night work meeting.

Katie arranged a girls night at a delicious restaurant, and I was glad to get to know those ladies better.

A ton of people showed up at my house to watch the Duck Beach documentary last week. I had no idea so many people would want to see it, but we had a hilarious time, and I loved playing hostess.

I've run into old friends recently. One from elementary school, that I literally haven't seen in 20 years. We finally  reconnected here in LA and have summer concert plans together

I saw a man stop his car last night, block LA traffic, and help a homeless man pick up his overloaded grocery cart that had fallen over.

An old Georgetown friend checked into Dodgers Stadium on Facebook. I noticed since I was there, too, and we were able to reconnect after a few years. I love technology.

Friends have texted, called, dropped in for last minute lunches, taken me out to dinner and frozen yogurt.

I'm very much looking forward to nearly 3 weeks on the east coast, starting next week. I'll see my college friends at our 10 year reunion (ack!), head down to North Carolina to see some dear friends, and spend a few days in the ever awesome NYC. I'm so excited that I'll get to see so many people, and I'm especially grateful for those friends who are letting me stay with them along the way.

Time heals, right?

And all this is fairly minor, compared to my high school friends Cara and Matt (and their 3 young children), who lost their house this week in the Oklahoma tornado. These are photos from where their house was. If you want to help them, send me a note.

Gratitude, Day 18

I am proud and grateful to live in the good ole US of A.

I especially love that my US Passport gets me into a lot of countries without having to get a visa in advance.


Merhaba Türkiye!!!

Gratitude, Day 17

My mom took these photos out at our little Oklahoma farm a few days ago - I am missing Fall!  And my dog.

 Now that I'm out of small town America, I really appreciate where I grew up.  I had it good.  And it's nice to go back from time to time, to be reminded of a place where everyone knows you, neighbors wave when you drive by, and everyone's just as friendly and nice as they were in high school, even if the years have changed us a bit.

It's pretty there.  Even if I don't want to live there, it's nice to visit.  I'm thankful to have grown up in a little place in Oklahoma.

Gratitude, Day 16

I think it only hit me a couple years ago that if I want to buy and eat Fruity Pebbles, I can, because I'm a grownup.

Fruity Pebbles didn't hit the breakfast table often at my house growing up, but when they did, they were gone in an instant.  I think my brother and I competed to see who could get the most into one bowl, despite knowing that we'd eat two or three.

I'm thankful to be a grownup, so that I can eat what I want, when I want.  Cause today I've really only eaten sugar cookie dough, and it's awesome.

Gratitude, Day 15

Today I watched last week's 20/20 with Gabby Giffords.

Get your Kleenex.

I'm thankful that I can walk down a flight of stairs to the mailbox without any problems to return some Netflix.

Gratitude, Day 14

It's hard blogging every day, btw.

Even though the rain has stopped, there will be more of it this winter.  And thankfully FedEx was quick with my shipment and I got to enjoy these new boots over the weekend.  Puddle jumping is great.

Plus - they're aubergine.

Love 'em.

Maybe now I can properly attend Glastonbury.

Gratitude, Day 13

Last night I was digging out some things for my trip this week (this week!!  I am going to Turkey!!!) and realized that I should probably grab some books on my Kindle for the trip.

And you know what?  The whole magic Kindle Amazon Library loaning program finally started recently, after being announced months ago.  I finally figured it out, and a few clicks later I was set.

I am super thankful that I could fill my Kindle with enough books to last me the trip - I checked them out last night from the Phoenix library for 14 days, which is exactly when I'll be back.  And amazingly, I was able to get plenty to read from my long list of 'to read' even though some aren't available on Kindle format at all, and many other have long waiting lists.

Technology is a blessed thing.  Thanks, Amazon.  And public libraries.  And my Kindle gifter.  I shall be plenty entertained, even if the movie selection on the plane sucks.

Gratitude, Day 12

A million thanks to King, for coordinating and securing tickets to the one band I have yet to experience live - the all amazing Radiohead.

Countdown to March 2012.  See you soon, Thom.

Gratitude, Day 11

I've been having too much with with Megs these last few days to blog, but I'm still thankful for things, don't worry.

I spent a little time one afternoon this week with a high school student who has applied to my alma mater. Alumni interviews are part of the application process, and I've spent the last 5 years or so, volunteering to meet with a handful of students each year, talking to them about Georgetown, and then writing a nice little report about them for the admissions committee.

As much as I want to be intimidating and ask obscure questions, I can't.

But it's nice cause to reflect on my college days, and I'm really thankful for my education.  There are lots of ways to be educated in today's world, and not every path is right for everyone.  But for me, being able to attend college was a great blessing.  I know that many struggle with options on where they can attend college or how to pay for it.  It's a privilege that I was able to go without too many hurdles (oh yeah, student loans still loom over my head a bit, but still worth it).

And where I went to school is probably one of the best decisions I've made in life so far.  For me, it was perfect. I am still sometimes amazed that I was accepted from a middle of nowhere town to this place with interesting people from all over the world.  But I was, and I went without question, and I had the time of my life.  It's taken me a lot of places and created great friendships, and I wouldn't change a thing about it.  Except maybe I should've studied more.

Gratitude, Day 10

CLEAN SHEETS ARE THE BEST.

They smell nice.  I've finally succumbed to finding quarters and doing laundry at my own place.  Even if I have to drive to a bank to get quarters, cause the couch cushions are empty.

I will rest well tonight in my comfy, clean bed.

Gratitude, Day 9

I'm glad that someone invented gummy vitamins and calcium supplements.

I sure do love ice cream, but I've never been a milk drinker.  I'm on my way to getting old and I don't want osteoporosis! Two little gummy drops just now, and my bones are on their way to staying healthy.  Right?

Fingers crossed.

Gratitude, Day 8

I'm thankful for friends who come visit me, especially since it's motivation to clean my room, put away all my clothes, get organized, finally hang stuff on my wall, etc.

We'll see how much of that I actually complete, but I am motivated!!

Oh, and it's a great excuse to eat out for every meal and go shopping and be a little bit touristy.

See you soon, Megs.

Gratitude, Day 7

Today I am thankful for electric blankets.

If you don't have one, you don't know what you're missing.  Turn that thing on 20 minutes before you get into bed, and you'll land in toasty heaven.

Fingers crossed I can refrain from turning on the heat in my apartment until December.

Gratitude, Day 6

Let's go with the easy one here - I'm grateful for an extra hour today.

Did I do anything productive with it?  Nah. But after an all day trip to visit them in San Diego yesterday, of course I was going to use it for sleep.

I haven't done Daylight Savings in four years.  This means I don't know how to change the clock in my car.

Gratitude, Day 5

Today I am grateful for public transportation.

I enjoyed eight years without a car in DC - it was my entire means of getting around.

And now in LA the subway is a total novelty, but man, taking a bus on a Friday night is loads of entertainment. I'd forgotten how stellar.  Thanks, LA Metro.

Gratitude, Day 4

I'm grateful for my friends, however scattered over the globe they might be.  That's why they invented Skype.

I hesitate to call out specific people while giving thanks, but Christian deserves his own shout out.  A chance meeting at EFY in 1997 to cross-continental BFFs is a special thing. 

I'm grateful for his dedication to living a boyband life, as it provides lots of entertainment.  Except when he calls me when I'm out in public and "I Want It That Way" starts blaring from my phone.  He's Nick Carter, btw.

I'm grateful that when I decided to move to AZ from DC, he scrambled to help me pack up all my stuff in one day, after I miraculously found someone driving a moving van across the country, but I had to get everything loaded by the next evening.  Christian picked me up after work, we went to Uhaul to get boxes and we packed.  And then he came over again with friends the next night to help me load it all.  It was a humid summer day.  

I'm thankful that when I was lonely in AZ, he shared friends and family from his home state with me, so I'd have people to hang out with once I got there.  They are some of the best people I know. 

I'm grateful that he was visiting me in Arizona and wasn't in the car with me when I had a car accident on my way to the Grand Canyon in 2008.  He hijacked my grandma's Lincoln, drove two hours and found five weary people hanging out at the Denny's of Flagstaff who needed a ride back to Phoenix.  My friends were visiting from DC and he asked them how they liked hiking Camel....back Mountain, except he didn't say 'back.'  I still laugh thinking about that moment.  

I'm grateful that he let me crash a wedding with him so I could finally visit Northern California. 

I'm glad that when I was hating AZ after only being there for a few months, I could fly right back to DC, crash his house, and go on a roadtrip to Philly for cheesesteaks.  

And then a month later I'd go back and he'd make sure I didn't die at my one and only Duck Beach experience.  Because it's kind of overwhelming.  

I'm grateful that he convinced me to go to Puerto Rico over Valentine's Day and got us sweet hotel rooms with all his points from work travel.  I'll refrain from posting him singing an 'N Sync song in Spanish that I have from that trip.  But it was a stellar weekend.

 We crashed the private beach at the Ritz.

 And he's not too cool to wear a linen suit.

I'm amazed and thankful that we're still friends after all these years, despite only living in the same city for a year together.  I know I can call him anytime.  He still provides me with a little wisdom, some guidance, and lots of entertainment.  Slick, te corazono! EFY for life.  

  

Gratitude, Day 3

For the last four years I have lived in glorious, sunny weather, never having to see snow unless I want to.  Arizona and SoCal are good for that.  I hate being cold.

Good luck to all of you in the NE this winter!  Snotober isn't a good sign of what's to come in the next few months.

It's November in Los Angeles, and my windows are down.

Gratitude, Day 2

For my first few months here in LA I attended a singles ward for church, and since I knew I'd be aging out in 3 months or so, I was ambivalent about getting involved.  I'd be moving on soon to a regular ward, what was the point of jumping into an assignment when I'd be leaving in a few weeks?

I was a bit nervous about my transition back to "regular church," full of old and young, babies, newlyweds, etc. Where would I fit, would I make friends, find people to relate to, etc?  However, I did know all along that I really wanted to fully jump in and do whatever I need to do to get involved and have people get to know me.

I am really grateful for how welcome I feel and opportunities that have arisen for me to participate and make friends, even though I've only officially attended this congregation for two weeks.  

I met my new bishop, and we had a great introductory conversation.  And turns out we had tickets to the same concert a couple weeks ago.  That's an excellent sign.

I already have home teachers who visited me.  One is from Mauritius, the other from France - we will have French lessons each time they visit me.  They are both gregarious and we'll be friends, I'm sure.

My visiting teacher emailed me today.  She spoke in sacrament meeting a couple weeks ago with her husband, who I recognized from my DC days.  I had hoped we could be friends, and now we will be.

I know two other people in the ward from DC (all the way back to 1999).  They've invited me over for dinner on Sunday.  Yay!

I've gotten a couple phone calls from other people in the ward, wanting to welcome me in, and even asking if I can fill in on the organ from time to time.  Sigh, maybe I let that news out too soon, but I'm happy to play.  And I'm going to make dessert for a Relief Society cooking class in a couple weeks. I'm excited.

If only every new member or visitor at church felt like I do.  There's a challenge to me, to be as welcoming to everyone else as they've been to me.  This is gonna be good.  

November Challenge

30 days of November = 30 days of posts of things for which I'm grateful.

Chantal's already kicked things off, and I think I'll follow her lead, seeing that we are in Thanksgiving month already! And I don't really feel like blogging much lately, so this will maybe help me stay current.  

There will not be any particular order to my gratitude and it will potentially run from extremely shallow to the profound, but I will be grateful for each of these things.

So....

#1

My hearing.

There's so much good music out there, especially lately, and I'm glad I get to listen to it all.  It makes me happy.  I've long answered in the 'would you rather be blind or deaf' hypothetical that I'd rather be blind, so that I could continue to have music running through my ears, even though my independence might be more hindered without sight.

Music isn't the only thing worth hearing, of course, but it's the one that makes me most happy.

Speaking of, it's almost time to compile my Best of 2011 and start mix making.  Cheers to Spotify for making that a little easier this year.