Last Day of 24!

Tomorrow is my birthday. I know, let's all gasp together.

I looked back at the goals I set for my 24th year and found that I had been somewhat successful. And that I failed horribly.

 

To recap:

 

1. Lose pounds. Check. Sadly, the most happened in the last month from all the running around I was doing, but hey. Pounds are pounds.

 

2. Be able to jam on my guitar. Sorta check. I jammed but I still can't play much more than camp songs. Every time I pick it up, I make a new song by strumming random chords. Does that count as jamming? Dear Brighton friends, please come hang out with me so that we can jam some more.

 

3. Become employed in a full-time job. This one is a bit of a stretch. Before camp started, there was a time that I was working 3-4 part time jobs. Then camp happened and that was more than a full-time gig. At this current moment, I am not working at all. So can I check it off? Meh. Probably not.

 

4. Buy a car! Done. Signed. Sealed. Delivered. At this point, I have almost had it for a year. Crazy! Check out my Kia Optima:

 

 

She's beautiful, no?

 

5. Pay off a substantial amount on my student loans. Well, that's just comical. I suppose this is one that will carry over into every year of my life.

 

6. Go on a date at least once a month. Continuing the comedy- I am happy to say that I dated in my 24th year, but not anywhere close to once a month...

 

7. Read the Four Gospels. I thought that adding this to my repetoire would make me a true scriptorian. Let's just say that this is one that I will gladly carry over into my next year of living. Then again, why not add it to every year?

 

8. Graduate from Institute. It isn't that I didn't go to institute. No. I simply have yet to graduate. Hello 2013.

 

9. Try out a "30 for 30" I still want to do this, but something about it frightens me. I like variety, friends. Still, there is some "cool factor" that comes with having said that you accomplished a "30 for 30" (30 days using only 30 pieces of clothing from your wardrobe).

 

10. Run a 5K. There is an opportunity to do this next month. I guess we'll see if I'm in shape enough to handle it. Ha-

 

11. Fall in love. No, friends. I do not have a main squeeze. I don't even have a squeeze period. But, that doesn't mean that I didn't fall in love with other things. Peanut butter, sunrises, the color yellow, being a leader, 35 of the bestest friends a girl could ask for, etc. The list goes on and on...

 

12. Read all of Shakespeare's plays. Luckily for me, I have already read a good portion of his works in my lifetime. I get around to reading all the rest. I suppose I was being a bit ambitious. What was I thinking?

 

13. Write a song. Check. Double check. Triple check. Yes, friends. I wrote a song. And it is dang good if I do say so myself. Call me up someday and I will play it for you. It's called "Shine His Light."

 

14. Donate blood. I am counting this as accomplished because I had my blood drawn voluntarily (mostly) to help my dad. So, CHECK! Otherwise, who am I kidding?!

 

15. Take singing lessons. Um, no. Didn't happen. Shucks- out of luck.

 

16. Ride in a hot air balloon. Another shucks- out of luck. But I did see three balloons right outside my house and they were super low. One landed in the church parking lot down the street from my house. I guess that I should have run over and begged for a ride....

 

17. Learn to play harmonica. Well, I own one. And I can play Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. So- check. My list. My checks.

 

18. Hike after dark. Yes, friends. Not only did I hike a number of times in the day time, I can count at least two times that I hiked in the dark. And not only that, I still have a few times scheduled for the next few weeks. Boo-yah! Who has two thumbs and is super hardcore? This girl!

 

 After the hike with my dear friend, Sox (Chelsea).

We collapsed a bit when we got home. Welcome to hiking at 3 am. From L to R: Sox, me, Blaze (Angela), and Winnie (Sasha).

 

19. Watch the sunrise. Remember how I hiked in the dark? Well, it was all to see the sunrise. Not to mention waking up before the sun because I couldn't sleep. I can never decide if I like the sun better to rise or set. I'll take either.

 

There was a crazy amount of smog or smoke or fog or something...but it is still pretty fantastic!

 

20. Go stargazing. Check a million times over. Every night this past summer, I would go out and watch the stars for a few moments. Shooting stars always make me smile. :)

 

21. Break 100 while bowling. Nope. Couldn't have done that because I never went bowling. Ah, shucks. Maybe I should be more heartbroken about it.

 

22. Volunteer at Make A Wish. That is still a dream of mine. With all this free time I have going on, it may be the perfect time!

 

23. Ride a major rollercoaster. Does Lagoon count?

 

24. Bear my testimony once a month. Well, I may not have reached once a month status, but in the past three months, I bore testimony a number of times a week. I'm sure that I beat a measley 12. Let's see what I can do in the next 12 months.

 

 

 

That is the "To-Do" list for last year. Stay tuned and I'll figure out the one for this year. Happy Jenny's Birthday Eve to all of you! May it be the best one yet :)



 

Hello Blogging World!

I'm back!

After three of the most wonderful months of my life, I am back in civilization. Still, real life is proving to be much more difficult than I remember. Brighton 2012 officially ended last Saturday and in the time between then and now, I have:

*returned to my ward as a full time 1st counselor in the RS Presidency

*interviewed for a possible new position that I can't decide if I want or not...

*been rear-ended by an old man

*attempted to put my room back together with little success

*slept on the couch

*and ultimately felt completely useless.

Dear Real Life,

Help me figure you out.

Love, me

save me, san francisco (Part 1)

Pictures!!! Like I promised! I wish I were back in Cali at this moment. Mondays are a little too crazy for me to handle. Then again, life is a little too crazy. I am fully in the thick of so many things that there is a chance I may explode!

(Was that dramatic enough? You can be honest. I was going for dramatic.)

April 27: Maggie, Melanie and I left on a jet plane for a much needed vacation. Mel is in AP Art History this year. As part of the course, students have the opportunity to visit San Fran and its many delightful art museums. I went when I was a senior in high school. Maggie went when she was a senior. Melanie, being the wonderful sister that she is, asked if we would be interested in tagging along as chaperones. Since we are both a few years older than 21, we jumped on that idea faster than you can say... anything.

The morning of April 27, we woke up at 4:30 am! We got ready, loaded up in the car with the parentals, and headed out. Of course, don't forget how I forgot my debit card and we had to run back to the house. I was 90% sure my family was about to disown me on the side of the road. Maggie added into the mix as we drove through Sugarhouse and we were finally headed to the airport!

We like to get Naked at the airport. Maggie likes to drink hot chocolate. (haha)

Or rather, Maggie likes to dribble half the container down her shirt.

One of Melanie's friends found out that we were sisters. She pointed to Maggie and said that she and Melanie looked like twins. Then she looked at me and said that I didn't. I think we look pretty similar...What do you think?

Our first view of California! I love window seats that are right above the wing and have done since I was 10 or so and we flew to Florida. Have you ever watched the flaps move as the plane slows? I'm always fascinated. Thanks for showing me, Daddio!

OCEAN! We really ARE on vacation!

We grabbed our bags and jumped on our bus for a city tour. Since we are odd in number, Ms. Hughes, one of my favorite people in the ENTIRE UNIVERSE, came and sat by us. We chatted about the fun things we were going to see, the memories Maggie and I have, the things we told Melanie were our favorites, what we are doing now with life....etc. We drove through Golden Gate Park by a sign that pointed visitors in the direction of Shakespeare Garden. Well, I couldn't contain my English self and made some kind of exclamation. Ms. Hughes turns to me and asks, "Are you an English major?"

I answered," Yeah...Does it show?"

Then Ms. Hughes goes on to say that she is also an English major and before we left that we should go and find City Lights, an awesome bookstore in San Francisco. We've bonded over English and Art and I LOVE IT!

I thought she was going to think I was a nerd. She did, but in her opinion, being a nerd is only being passionate about something you love.

We walked on Golden Gate Bridge!!! Check that off the Bucket List. Next time, we'll get bikes and travel all the way across!

thanks dove

awkward and AWESOME

I hope you look forward to these posts as much as I do. Isn't life wonderful and funny and heartbreaking and exhilarating and.....a million other things all at the same time???

awkward
-story: A few days ago while working, some surprise visitors came in to see an office associate. It was to be a surprise so I was sure not to mention any names. While on the phone calling said associate, I forgot what I was doing. Sometimes my brain and my mouth don't communicate and strange things happen. i don't know if this happens to any of you, but it happens to me ALL THE TIME! Dang-it. Still holding the phone but looking at the man waiting, I say, "Just a moment..." to the associate and then hang up while she is figuring out what the heck just happened.What I meant to say was, "See you in a second..." or something more intelligible that "Just a moment..." Luckily, she came down and quickly forgot about how much of a dork I am. The receptionist lingo is getting the better of me!

- There are times when I say things before I realize what the impact will be like in the previous story. I keep thinking it would be a good thing if I kept my mouth shut. Sadly, that would be far less entertaining for all of you.

- After Stake Conference, we had a Mix and Mingle. Huzzah for mingling. No huzzahs for not knowing how to mingle. I tried. I promise. And I almost got the nerve up to go and talk to a few "bros....brothers....brethren?" while I was wandering around. Almost. But I just felt awkward so I went home.

-Yesterday, we had our last Brighton orientation. Sad day. Have I mentioned how much I love my staff? They are amazingly wonderful! After the orientation, a few of my dear friends were asking me if I would like to be set up for Date Night. Now, don't get me wrong. I am always up to meet new people and I really like to date. But...apparently I am a little older than I look.  When I confessed to being the old age of 24, their mouths dropped. "You don't look a day over 20!" Well, thank you? Shame that all that wisdom of four years doesn't show.

awesome

-The tulips are out in Temple Square! I love spring!

-PreCamp Week for Brighton starts five weeks from today! Five weeks! It feels forever away and then I realize all the things that I need to get ready before that time and I begin to wish I had another three. Workshops are awesome and I am learning so much about myself and how I will be asked to grow this summer. It is going to be fantastic!

-Sadly, sacrifices must be made so that I can have this wonderful adventure known as Brighton Director. I only have a month left at my favorite place of DB. Still, the people that I have met and with whom I continue to rub shoulders make all the difference. Friends in HR have been talking about what I will be doing come August. I still don't have a guaranteed position and that is okay. But yesterday at Stake Conference, President Cutler said, "When you are doing what you are supposed to be and serving the Lord with everything you have, things work out." It was exactly what I needed to hear. Thank heavens for an awesome Stake Presidency that make stake conference enjoyable and say the words I need to hear.

-Personally awesome: I am wearing khakis today that I didn't think fit me! And they even look pretty good! Maybe the gym IS paying off....(read in a whisper. I don't want to jinx anything.)

-Brighton Workshop on Saturday was a hit! Stories to come :)

-I finally got the cd player at work to allow me to change music. After last week, that is a huge feat. The miracle is that I didn't have to resort to kicking the blasted thing. Don't you love when technology has an attitude? I surely do...


-Little Mel is turning 18 tomorrow!!!! 18?!?!? Man! I'm getting old. She is most excited to be able to go and buy dry ice.

-Red is going to be on HKi staff next year! That is so exciting for me. My lil' sis is following in my footsteps. I can't wait to share with you what she writes for the school newspaper. It is gonna be good!

updated

(The sisters and I are back home, safe and sound. The trip was a blast!!! It would be even more awesome if I wouldn't be so critical of myself. Explanation following- and this time I really mean it.)

Remember how I told you that I had a personal trainer?

Remember how excited I was?

Remember instead how Gold's Gym is annoying and a rip off?!

Oh right! 

The delight of having a personal trainer came to a blazing, earth-shattering, irritating end this past Tuesday. I should have known that something that sounded too good to be true was in fact too good to be true.

I received a text from Jason, my "trainer", on Tuesday morning, saying that he couldn't train me that night unless I paid more money. I told him that a man named Mike gave me a discount. Mike is a manager and I understood that to mean something. Well apparently, Mike is not the big kid on campus. He's an idiot.

Now I am out more than $100 on two trainer sessions when it was supposed to be four. Major ERG!

My advice: Stay away from the men in yellow t-shirts at the gym that make you think they really want to help. In truth, they just want something to do. Oh - and all your money. Can't believe I got suckered in. In my frustration, I am now headed back to the Cardio Cinema to stay as far away from those men as I can. I won't make that mistake twice.

Take that Gold's!!!

update

Source: Uploaded by user via Jenny on Pinterest

I know you have been sitting on pins and needles to know how things went with my personal trainer...so I'll tell you. I went Friday and exercised with Jeff and learned that I was doing a bunch of stuff wrong. My knees went out over my toes! Gasp! Such a rookie mistake and I'm not that much of a rookie. I worked hard but I didn't really feel that I was beaten to a pulp. After the workout, he started talking numbers and how much it would cost for an awesome workout every week....
 
Long story short, I now have a personal trainer! I hope this was a good idea.

Yesterday, while attempting to be a good girl, I headed to the gym but landed in the Cardio Cinema again and saw the exact same part of Invincible that I watched from the treadmill three weeks ago. One of these days, I will watch it from start to finish and no exercise equipment will be involved.

I'm branching out, though. After working out in the dark, I went over to the free weights for awhile AND used four machines! I don't know if people were watching. I sure hope not. But I exercised in broad gym light! This is progress!