Change

I am dedicating this post to Todd. He's been on my butt lately to get me to finally go to the physical therapist for my neck. I've gone twice now! It hurts, but Dr. Peterson says I am doing better. "We'll get this neck of yours fixed in no time!" He's been working on my neck, back and S.I. joint. The massages and stretches are great, but I don't so much enjoy the electric shock idea. I giggled the entire time during my first experience. The girl thought I was nuts.

I'm reading "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" right now. Holy cow! I have learned so much. I am already trying to apply some of the suggestions to help me be more understanding of the guys in my life. How men deal with stress and communicate affection is so different from how I do. Yes, the book warns the reader that the ideas are very generalized and pretty much lump all men/women into one category...but I have found myself relating to much of it. It's been sooooo good so far. I randomly found it in my parent's basement while tying to find my iPod (which is lost for the bajollionth time).

Change can be so vital, so healthy. Progression is such a beautiful, eternal principle. I'm so grateful for a Savior who can help me change for the better. Without Him, I abosultely am nothing. The best part is that with Him, I can do anything! Repentence is so powerful. I've learned that again, recently.

Here are some cool quotes about change:

• American Proverb:
  

"It doesn't work to leap a twenty-foot chasm in two ten-foot jumps."

• Alan Cohen (author "Chicken Soup for the Soul"):
  

"It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power."

• Charles Kettering (inventor):
  

"If you have always done it that way, it is probably wrong."

• James Yorke (mathematician):

"The most successful people are those who are good at plan B."

This photo was taken with my new phone, right outside my physical therapist's office. Gorgeous! This is the cropped version, where the mountains are cut out-sorry! The colors are phenomenal in the Fall. I love it!

Claritin-D Side Effects

I always tell people I am allergic to three things: Fish, Country Music and the color Pink. Symptoms may include difficulty swallowing, clammy hands, nausea and most frequently random violent outbursts (I once threatened to jump out of a car going 40 when the driver refused to turn off Garth Brooks).

I took my Claritin-D last weekend before a blind date, not wanting these socially awkward symptoms to appear. It was "Homecoming" (the day after BYU's), which meant I got to wear a big, schmancy prom dress! I borrowed one that I had fallen in love for its unique elegance and just...awesomeness. My decision to wear it seriously was a HUGE DEAL because I knew it would appear pink in pictures and to other people. I described it to my date, Parry, as "wine/reddish brownish goldish...burgundish". His tie somehow matched perfectly.

When some country came on at the "dance" (which was super awesome, by the way: a bunch of couples, chocolate fondue, lights...all at a place someone was house-sitting), I didn't start kicking people in the head or screaming while covering my ears. I tried to drown out the music, instead, by talking to Parry. The song repeated again later and I kindly skipped it on the playlist. I think I will take my allergy medication more often. Side effects may include, but are not limited to the following:

Love this picture of Jess and Kevy Wevy!

April did my hair. We were still curling at 8:20
(5 mins after we planned to leave)!

Homemade! Super cool, low waist and
Medieval style creme accent...luv it

Jessyka and Kevin

Me and Parry- I don't think he ever stops laughing

Procrastination

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

I am working on being a better, more responsible adult. Today, I crossed a few things off my eternal To-Do List and finally put them on my To-Done List. Woohoo!

1. Call up people in the ward for my church calling
2. Make an appointment with the dentist
3. Find out more info from the physical therapist (I sprained my neck last February and it still bothers me)
4. Call up UHEA and find out when I have to start paying back my student loans
5. Go visiting teaching

This is a shirt Mike has. Awesome.

Sell-You-Lards and MATHS

MATHS stands for

Mathematical

Anti

Telharsic

Harfatum

Septomin

(See video here)

I am enrolled in an online math class where nothing is due until December. I know... bad choice, Roo. I did my first assignment the other day (We started in August). Go, me! Thanks to my iTodd, I don't hate math anymore. This summer, he helped me to appreciate it more.

I had a cool little milagro recently. I was under the impression my 2 year contract with AT&T ended this November. I was driving home from work and suddenly had the thought that it might just have ended at the beginning of October. That night, I called up customer support to find out. "Your contract ended a few days ago, on the fourth." Ahh! I freaked, thinking they would be charging me monies and signing me up for another century of expensive service. He verified with me that I would like to cancel and that was that. I suddenly had no service and was forced to accept the fact that all my contacts were probably lost, along with my pictures and important/meaningful texts.

I send out an email and Facebook message that my phone is now dead. Then the house phone rings and I answer (it's 11:30pm). It's Jess. "You are not going to believe this. Ummm, my phone died? today? I happen to be over at my parents [which is across the street] trying to figure out a phone I can use....ummm, I happened to have checked my email and got your message about your phone...can I use yours?" The coolest part is that my phone used to be hers. Last year, my phone died and she let me use her old one! Crazy! She can email me my pictures and send me my old texts and stuff! We laughed for like half an hour. God is funny like that.

This is a photo Bubba took earlier this year, which he titled "Trig" and turned in for a photography assignment. Pretty cool shot.

Finding Joy in the Journey

Even the prophet agrees with my new NO REGRETS! attitude. I don't want to even try paraphrasing. This is taken from his talk last week during the Sunday morning session of General Conference:

"This is our one and only chance at mortal life—here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now...

"Rather than dwelling on the past, we should make the most of today, of the here and now, doing all we can to provide pleasant memories for the future..."

And speaking of out Savior, Pres. Monson says, "He taught us how to pray. He taught us how to serve. He taught us how to live. His life is a legacy of love."

I want to be thought of and remembered like that by my children someday.

(read or listen to the whole talk)

President Monson in Orem, UT at the UVU Library Dedication July 1, 2008. Isn't he cute?

It Wasn't Really So But It Seemed To Be

Some people are just plain stupid.

If the subject line of an email from your "friend" is PLEEEEEASE REEAD! IT WAS ONGOODMORNINGAMERICATODAYSHOW ,DOIT!!!! ... delete it right now. At work, I answer the info/support emails. Yesterday, we received two of these "Bill Gates is sharing his fortune" Emails. Please, my dear readers, do not fall for this scam. It is not logical that he would do so, be able to "track" how many morons you forward the email to or be able to send you a personal check in the mail for thousands of dollars. Do not believe that your distant relative in Africa left millions for you and his agents just need your bank account number. You did not win the Netherlands Lottery. Nor do you need to give your social out to someone for failing to show up for jury duty.

I replied to the emails (maybe it was inappropriate and unprofessional) by simply proving a link to an article about the scam. By the way, snopes.com= awesome.

Totally unrelated, there was one thing that happened yesterday that I do regret. No one is perfect. :) I was a few minutes late driving to work, which was fine until I run into a big traffic jam. I'm trying to be patient...I finally peek my head out the window to see the cause of the delay.

(This video was uploaded about a month after this was posted)

There is a white duck crossing the street (which is normal for these parts). Then I notice why he is taking so long. He must have had a broken leg, as he could not bend it and had to lift it awkwardly up and around to take a step. I had this image of me getting out of my car to carry him across the street. I opened the door, but then decided against it. 2 minutes later, he was still struggling! The semi in the front honked at him (as if that was going to urge him to hurry? Jerk). When I got to work, I was like, "I should have carreid that poor duck to safety."

I made up for it by playing football with some coworkers.

This photo, taken in 2006 is 100% totally legit. I got ran over and died. If you forward this to 15 friends, something will pop up on your screen and tell you how stupid you are.