Santa Discovery

My friend Charlotte just wrote a really funny blog about how her little brother's comments about Santa and asked how other people discovered that Santa isn't real. I don't remember exactly how old I was, but I was already suspecting my parents from things like Santa's handwriting being exactly like my mom's.
Then one day shortly after Christmas I was over at my friend Karen's house wearing the sweatshirt Santa had given me with big Teddy Bear painted on it. Karen's mom said to me, "oh cute, I remember your mom making that sweatshirt!" My face kind of fell and I mumbled, "Santa gave it to me." Then I knew.

30 minutes please

I try to run everyday and sometimes it amazes me how it can take over 2 hours of my day to run 30 min.
First I decide it's a good time to go run and then I sit there and think about it for half an hour and try to get myself motivated enough to change clothes. I think about how far I will go and typically decide I will just go on a short run to make it more likely that I will even make it out of the house.
Then I change into running gear, that can take a good 5 minutes, then I stretch for awhile to prevent shin splints, further contemplate how this is really a good idea even though I'm not excited about it, and enjoy the warmth of my apartment a moment longer. (10 minutes)
Then there is the actual running part. Typically 30 minutes more or less.
Then I come back and stretch even more, again, preventing shin splints and just cooling down. (20 minutes) After that I usually think about doing some sit-ups and push-ups while laying on the floor for at least 20 minutes, typically longer though. Then I actually do the sit-ups and push-ups which takes another couple of minutes.
Then I have to shower and get ready for the day again because I smell from running of course and that puts me at well over 2 hours.
It seems a little ridiculous, I know, but what part am I suppose to cut out? The shower? The actual running time? Because I've already tried cutting out all the sitting around thinking and not accomplishing anything part and that just doesn't work.

new hobby

Chess is our new hobby. Maybe it has to do with not having a TV, but whatever it is we really enjoy it. Brandon and I are really evenly matched so every game is intense. I am currently on a losing streak, but that could change at any time - especially if I find a good place to practice online.
I like instantchess.com because you can play against people all over the world and the games can't last that long because some of those people get me in checkmate in 6 moves and also because you are timed. And I think it's funny how you have an option of 10 specific things you can say to your opponent like, hi or tell them they are good. You can say "blunder" too if you want. But you only get so many free games before you have to pay. Does anyone know a good chess site?
I know I may sound like a dork getting into chess but I recently found out one of my friends was the president of his chess club in High School.... at least I don't have a claim like that. Although I do remember that BYU has a chess club and if I can convince Brandon we might have to check that out.

"It's okay..."

Yesterday we had some nice Miller family time watching the Christmas devotional. Afterwards we went to Brandon's parents for dessert and visiting. Our little niece Lauren was telling us about how she cut her hair by herself recently (we think she's almost 5). I told her I didn't start cutting my own hair until I was 20. "You cut your own hair?" she asked. I told her that I did and she responded, "It's okay, it'll grow back."

So Sore

I decided it would be great if I started doing more push-ups and sit-ups. I figured I would be most likely to do them if it was a competition. So I invited Brandon to a weekly physical challenge. He graciously said that mine would count double, a necessary aid. I tried to do at least a couple sets everyday and kept track on our list. Then Brandon would just do 100 push-ups in one day and it kept things pretty close. On Saturday we were both doing push-ups all day long. I decided it would be a lot easier to just not let Brandon do anymore push-ups but that was not as easy as I thought. So by midnight (the cut-off time) I had 185 push-ups, which I am proud of even though I lost to Brandon's 380.

Thanksgiving anxiety: true or false

While we were helping prepare Thanksgiving dinner at his parents house Brandon informed me that he was nervous. Nervous? I asked. What could you be nervous about? He explained that he was nervous he wouldn't be able to eat as much as he wanted to, like his stomach just wouldn't have room or something. And the funniest part was that he wasn't completely joking. He said he bets a lot of people get nervous about that. I'm skeptical. Anyone else?

problem with paper

I have a disability. I do not have the capability of dealing with paper. I know I have never been the cleanest person to live with and I have realized the core of it is lack of knowing where to put paper. I create piles and piles on desks, the floor, under my bed. And then I clean up and they get put into boxes because I still don't know what to do with them.
Maybe I'll start drawing on every piece of paper I have, that way I can just bind all the paper I own and put it on my bookshelf as a sketch book. All paper will fall into the same category and I won't have to debate if I should throw it away or not.
When I need some old banking information, or notes from an important meeting, I'll know exactly where to look. Sort of. I have over a thousand pages of sketches so far. I think my life goal is 50,000 pages of sketches. Which means I need to stop throwing so many pages away. And I better stop getting carpal tunnel.

tis the season

okay, it's not quite the season yet unless you're from Canada, (they start their Christmas season after Canadian Thanksgiving, which is before Halloween) but yesterday we were a little tired of the same Sunday music we always listen to so we turned on Christmas music. It was great. And there's no turning back now.

new lifestyle

Recently I went to Costco and thought it would be a good idea to pick up some basic items like shampoo, conditioner and laundry soap. Of course, being at Costco everything comes in enormous quantities. I wasn't so sure about going for the cheap generic brands with these items. I said "why not, we'll give it a try." I was then informed by Brandon that buying so much of each of these items was not just "giving it a try" but actually accepting a new lifestyle. Well I went for it, and so far the new lifestyle is going fine.

voting confessions

When going to vote yesterday I realized I should have prepared a lot better for the day. I knew very little about the candidates, which is important of course. I had browsed through the websites and did some reading on the major issues. Everyone sounded pretty similar to me, probably because the lack of time I had to study in depth on each person. In the end, whether I wanted it to or not, I think the design of their websites played more of a role in who I favored than it should have. Next time I will have to be more involved before voting day.

I was really tempted to write in some random friends for the write-in spaces where there was only one candidate. Did anyone else really want to do that?

celebrity sighting

When I interned in NY my apartment had a list of celebrity sightings, it was a pretty impressive list as you might guess. We lived on the same block as Regis so it was pretty easy to run into him. They probably had 50 or so.

We all know there are a few differences between Provo and NY. Provo still has it's own collection of famous people though. For example: When Brandon and I stopped by the post office the other day we saw Lavell Edwards. Brandon was probably more excited than I was. (actually, there is no doubt about that at all) As we were leaving Lavell was leaving too and as we walked by he smiled and asked how we were doing. What a nice guy. (He didn't always look nice in his pictures) And one time we saw Willie Nelson at Smith's, complete with his Willie and friends van in the parking lot.

And I've decided I'm going to be famous too. I haven't worked out all the details yet.

Halloween confusion

As you can see from the picture, for Halloween Brandon was dressed as 3 hole punch Jim and I was Halloween Pam. (both from the office of course) Unfortunately, not enough people have seen that episode and everyone kept trying to tell me I was a cat. I guess I should have expected that though, not everyone is obsessed with the office.

I heard the greatest thing yesterday though when I showed a couple friends our picture from Halloween. One of them told me that on Halloween he saw this girl dressed up just like I was and he had gone up to her and said "Cool! Halloween Pam!" And she responded by giving him an odd look and saying, "No. I'm a cat"

Most of you probably didn't think that was as funny as I did, but that's okay.

2023

I have married into a very organized family. Every family does things a little different for the holidays. Each family has different traditions, different gift giving methods and amounts. My new family has the rotation system going on, which makes sense, and I just recieved an email that informed me of everyone that I will be buying and recieving presents for until the year 2023. I think I have the present I'm giving for 2015 figured out but the rest I'm still not sure on. I have had a request for a teleporter in 2018, I'm not sure if I'll be able to pull that off or not. Anyone know the year those are suppose to come out?

a story with a moral

Last week I ran out of gas . . . twice. The first time was on the scooter. It was a bit ridiculous because the gas gauge said it was on empty for about 3 days while I drove it around everwhere. When Brandon asked if we needed gas I told him the gas gauge was broken. I thought it was broken because I had just got gas a couple days ago.
What I had forgotten was that although I went to the gas station, I forgot to bring my wallet and therefore did not buy any gas. Somehow though my brain misplaced that information and all I remembered was that I went to the gas station. Then when I was walking my scooter 3 blocks down University Ave. on the sidewalk, suddenly that information came back.
And the second time Brandon was driving the truck and we just pulled off the freeway while we were headed to Costco when the car started dying. We glided for a little while but it started slowing down so Brandon got out and pushed the truck about 100 ft. until we made it into the gas station. I thought it was funny.

And the moral of the story is: check your gas gauge. And I apologize to Brad for not posting this blog before Monday.

the slipper transformation

I knew there would be a lot of things that I would learn from being married. I have to say that what I learned most recently is kind of embarrassing to admit. The other day I learned that my pink slippers are not pink, they are gray. They are so gray Brandon was shocked when I mentioned something about them being pink. Not just shocked, I think a little disgusted as well, and rightfully so. I got them as a present on my mission, they look like pink slippers your grandma would wear. (Only gray not pink, as I have now realized.) It was kind of like that story about the frog that sits in the warm water that is gradually heated up until it is boiled but he doesn't realize it happening. My slippers turned gray so gradually I thought they were still pink. I tried washing them. I think it helped.

what if we always ran?

When I was walking on campus the other day I saw this guy in a tie just sprinting somewhere. I've always wondered how our society would function if we all just ran everywhere we went. Everyone would start as babies just learning to run and we wouldn't really walk much, unless carrying large things like pianos or in the case of a serious injury. We would all be healthier and get more things done because we would save time by running everywhere. We would all have great stamina to run incredibly far, way more than we think is possible. That's my idea. Who's with me?

the history of your mom

Awhile ago at work some of my friends were telling their favorite "your mom" lines. Recently I was listening to a book called Collapse and it talks about all these different nations and what happened to them. One of these nations hundreds of years ago had your mom lines too. Who knew it went back so far? It was during a time where people were starving and cannibalism was starting for people trying to survive. So this book said the worst insult you could say to someone at that time was "the flesh of your mother sticks between my teeth." I would say that's pretty harsh.

I am dead

I recently discovered that I am dead because I have no blood pressure. I think that is a requirement for a live body, which I am not. I was with Brandon by one of those blood pressure machines and he sat down and got his blood pressure. So I sat down to get mine and it gave me an error message and said my blood pressure was 9. So I tried again and it did the same thing, then Brandon tried again, it worked fine, then I tried again and got another 9. I gave up. A week or two later I was by the machine again and tried two more times. Still no blood pressure. I'm just not really alive.

the comment dilemma

I have so many mixed feelings about this comment number attached to each blog posted on Provo Platinum. I definitely appreciate the ease in which I can see if there is something exciting I should read about, or even more importantly, read additional comments about. But at the same time I am intimidated to write whatever random thing I want to. Now everyone knows before even opening my blog how pathetically few comments I have. I can't decide if I should:

A. use that as motivation to write more interesting and/ or controversial blogs

B. pretend like I don't know everyone is going to be looking at how many comments my blog has

C. join the army and stop blogging altogether

D. somehow learn computer programming and start my own blogging friends website (that could take years... or longer)

E. make as many comments on my own post as possible so that people think it is a really interesting blog

entertaining public

Recently I've seen some really interesting people out on the street. I wish I had pictures but you'll just have to use your imaginations. One guy I saw was riding his bike along a pretty busy street but his bike was very unique because instead of a bike seat he was somehow sitting on the seat from some cushy office chair that had the legs taken off and a bike attached underneath it. I don't know how he managed to peddle while sitting on that mammoth bike seat, but he did.

The other event was when I was driving along and I saw this guy who had long straggly hair and a beard, with bleach streaks, and a button down shirt and super short 80's cut off shorts, and tennis shoes. It wasn't so much his outfit that caught my attention though but that he was just going for a jog down the street while dribbling a basketball. okay, maybe it was the outfit. This was along another busy street. He must've been 60 years old, former basketball star, and now he just likes to go jogging with a basketball. I've never tried it, maybe it makes jogging more fun? I really don't know.

Here are some funny commercials that I'm adding links to just because they make me laugh and I hope you like them too.

Art Show

To anyone who likes to check out art the BYU BFA show is currently hanging in the HFAC. My stuff is alright, but there are some amazing oil painters that I graduated with that are definitely something to see. We are having a reception for the show on Thursday August 17th from 7-9 in the HFAC jungle. I'm not sure what the jungle is, but that's what the advertisements they gave us say. I think it's just the area where they always put the tables of punch and cookies by the stairs. So if you're not into art you can just come for the cookies and punch. It's not a huge show, but still pretty good. And if you know any art directors, feel free to invite them too. We really wouldn't mind. I promise.

matching shirt day

It seems like I may have mentioned before in a blog about how we wear matching shirts to work every Friday. I love it because matching makes me laugh. So every Friday I wear the same navy polo shirt and then I walk into work and about 90% of the co-workers sitting in rows at computers all have on their navy polo shirts too. Which I also love because I don't have to think about what to wear. Last Friday however, (when I meant to write this blog but never did) I hadn't done laundry for awhile so all I had that was clean were some black cords. Usually I avoid wearing black pants and navy shirts, not the best combination. But for matching shirt day I make special exceptions. And that's what I wore all day.

amazing discovery

So Brandon and I were finishing registering at Target the other day and we overheard this couple talking to another couple that was registering also. They asked if they could give them some advice because they just got married recently. We half way eavesdropped, we figured we already knew what they would say because everyone we know who has gotten married has told us how horrible Target's return policy is. You can only return 2 items per person per year (they mark your drivers license or something bizarre like that) and they only give you in-store credit for that specific department, like only the home decor department or just kitchen appliances, etc. Really lame. People shop at Target though, and if they happen to buy you something on your registry that you need to return it's not the best (like stores that give you cash) but still way better. So it's easy to feel obligated to register there.

However, this couple had much better information. They explained what you have to do is change the wedding date on your registry so it's after your real one. That way you can just register for the presents you received after you're married and then you can return the ones you don't need. Ingenious! So if you ever plan on getting married and would prefer not to have 43 blenders and 12 toasters, (which I guess happens whether you register or not) plan your registry wedding date wisely. And tell everyone- except Target.

those hanging

Whenever I'm driving around and I say to myself, "oh that's a cute house" it almost always has a hanging plant in front of it, or lots of them. I think hanging plants are the key to good looking apartments. I think I will become a hanging plant collector. I don't know if that is a common hobby or if I could join clubs for that, but if not maybe I'll just start some.
My sister Heather and I have had this theory for awhile. When we lived in our super super ghetto apartment Heather bought us a beautiful green, flowing, hanging plant that changed our living room probably 2 whole steps to. (from super super ghetto to just ghetto) Unfortunately she moved home and I was left to care for our hanging plant and I guess it needed water more than I would think of it. After months of not even sporadic watering it was clearly dead. I kept it for another few months, actually even more than that, hoping it would come back to life. (I still didn't water it though) So that was my first hanging plant experience. But I think I've learned some things from it ( like watering more than bi-monthly is helpful) and I'm ready to try this plant thing again.

best compliment ever?

Brandon has given me tons of nice compliments ever since we first started dating, it's something I have really appreciated. The other day, however, he wasn't quite as smooth as he normally his. We were driving up to his house to have a 4th of July BBQ with his family and we stopped by this farm place so I could see where we're going to have our reception. (It looked really cool, just a pretty park with lots of trees and ducks) Sometimes I get car sick and I mentioned that I felt a little nauseous. Brandon told me that he makes lots of girls nauseous. Then he smiled sweetly at me and told me that there's only one girl that makes him nauseous. I gave him a funny look wondering why he was telling me that I make him feel sick but he was just kept smiling like it was a good thing to say. I let him know that people usually don't like to be told that they make them sick. After we laughed for awhile at how Brandon's compliment didn't really come out the way he wanted it to he insisted that it was the nicest compliment he has ever given me and that he was sticking with it, I make him nauseous. (apparently it's suppose to be like having butterflies in your stomach and being nervous, I'm not sure really how he came up with that)

work bonuses

One of my favorite parts of new jobs are the random things you get to learn that you didn't expect to. For example, at my current graphic design job I expected to gain more proficiency with illustrator and flash, which I have. However, I had no idea I would be learning and permanently ingraining into my brain what covalent and ionic bonding is. That's what happens when you spend many many hours trying to figure out how to get those electrons to spin the way you want them to.

At other jobs I've also learned random things. At my first job I had the Dewey decimal system mostly memorized, I knew what categories were where in the library. At the pie factory I learned how far in advance pumpkin pies are made before Thanksgiving, along with how you say "boxes" in Spanish. At the school supply warehouse I learned about drug dealing and how to use a box knife with great skill. At the grocery store I was pretty proud of my ability to name the aisle for any food item you might be trying to find. That's just a few examples, but I think you get what I'm talking about.

alternatives

I'm realizing that I'm a person that doesn't care too much about traditions. If they have a purpose behind them that's fine but why do we eat cake at weddings? Personally I think wedding cake is one of my least favorite foods. (that might be an exaggeration, but I just really don't like it) I was at a reception recently where all they had was really nice cheesecake and some kind of thick chocolate pie. No other random foods to snack on, no disgusting cake, I thought it was great. I heard of someone having cupcakes on platters with pillars as if it were a wedding cake. So it makes me wonder, what other wedding cake substitutes are there? Brandon suggested ding dongs. I think a couple of vermonsters from Ben and Jerry's would be good.

office excitement

This morning as I was clocking in at work I heard some girl yelling about something and I wondered what was going on. Apparently there was a weasel running around the office! We all thought it was a ferret at first but after doing some quick internet research we realized it was a weasel. We chased it around for awhile and watched it run up the wall and across all the computers. Eventually we chased it upstairs so KBYU had to deal with it. They thought they had it locked in the conference room for awhile, but then it got out. Eventually someone chased it outside. Kind of an unexpected way to start the week. great entertainment.

modern ideas

I was talking with some friends at work about the tradition of having rings when you get married. Jim mentioned he thinks we should go with brouches instead of rings. That was a fun idea to picture. The other idea was tatoos. When you get married you get a tatoo, but that way you don't have a ring getting in your way or scatching things or people. I think out of those ideas I'm still voting to continue with rings.

big news: my real love

You might not believe this, or you might be expecting this, but guess what I'm engaged! I'm really excited. Yesterday we discussed what kind of things we'll buy so we don't have to worry about figuring those things out later. We've already decided on nonfat milk and cinnamon toothpaste. And we've also decided to have matching scooters.

my new found love

I realized that I really really really love root canals. I always heard about them and had this fear, that it would be more painful than any other dental procedure I've been through. However, after having a root canal yesterday I would just like to say it is a GREAT experience. That might have something to do with the fact that I have been in pain for the past 2 months, and unbearable pain the past few weeks. I was ready to just drill the tooth out myself if root canal day didn't come quick enough. Ever since I got my root canal I haven't had any pain. (that might also have something to do with the special shot they gave me so I don't feel pain for a few days, the best investment I've ever made) So to anyone that has a fear of root canals as I once did - don't worry - they're great!

over the hill already

I recently heard that after 25 your body is a lot more susceptible to diseases and injuries, physical problems in general. After taking 12 pills of 4 different varieties in the past 8 hours I've decided that this is true.

the heater

The purpose of this blog is to publicly complain. All week the heater has been running at work. Not in the whole building, just the section where 30 or so of us have our computers all lined up. It's pretty bad. Whether it is 60 or 90 out the vent has been blowing hot air on me. I feel like I have a fever the whole time I'm at work and complaining to people at work hasn't gotten me anywhere so I thought maybe if I complain to more people it could become a more widely discussed topic and maybe someone will finally fix it. The saddest part is I am no longer wearing my pink sweater. Although I did recently receive an independent study polo shirt so at least I get to match half the people at work, that's the exciting part about Fridays- matching blue polo shirts.

now it's serious

The other day my friend came over and we were talking about how things are going with Brandon and he asked me if I had googled his name yet. I said no, not realizing that was an important thing to do. But apparently it is. He said, oh, I thought you guys were serious, but maybe not. So I googled his name the very next day. I found some guy at Iowa St., a race car driver, and a football player as the first three. It would take quite awhile to look at everyone with his name because his name isn't exactly one you'd classify as odd or unique. Then I was also instructed that I needed to check his name on the FBI's most wanted list, so I did. Brandon wasn't listed. So there, now it's serious.

pilot g-tec c-4

I can't believe I haven't written a blog about these pens yet. Anyone who knows me even fairly well knows I am obsessed with these pens. They can be bought in Canada, England, Japan, Singapore (at a great price too), but not in the States. It's a tragedy. Most illustrators I know also like these pens and love to draw with them. There really isn't any pen that is a suitable replacement. They either don't write smooth enough or aren't thin enough. I even emailed the company hoping to figure something out but there are some kind of patent laws that don't allow them to sell them here. So if anyone is going to any of those mentioned countries anytime soon, please buy these pens and my friends and I will buy them from you. It could be a great side business. Sometimes I see them on ebay for $5.00 a pen, plus shipping. It 's hard to justify when I can use them up so fast. (or lose them) Maybe I will just become an engineer and create my own. Or regularly vacation in Singapore. I think I better keep brainstorming for other options.

it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood

Today when I came into work I was wearing my blue jacket I wear for my scooter. I walked up to my computer, pulled open the drawer next to it and pulled out my pink sweater that I wear everyday at work because the A/C is always on so high. I realized I am Mr. Rogers. I come in the same jacket everyday and change into the same sweater when I get to work. I told that to Brad and he pointed out that I had even taken off my shoes like Mr. Rogers does. (we were sharing scars, weird, I know) So there it is, I am Mr. Rogers.

my break through

As I've mentioned before, I really love my scooter. I recently started a new job out by Springville which is a little tricky to get to on my scooter because everyone is driving at about 60, and I'm lucky if I can get up to 40. I thought for awhile I would just get rides and take the bus. Then I hunted out some back roads through a neighborhood and I can't believe how great it works. There's got to be backroads everywhere that I haven't taken advantage. I've realized that I've really been limiting myself to thinking my scooter was only good for getting around Provo. Now I've realized I can go to Orem...Pleasant Grove... Salt Lake....Idaho..........and why not Mexico too?

death for real

Sometimes I wonder if the expression "die of boredom" is acurate. Today is one of those times.

bad lunch ideas

One of my really cool friends recently gave me a bunch of cup of noodle for lunch. I was skeptical if I would actually eat it but then when I was leaving for work one day and realized I needed something for lunch so I grabbed the cup of noodle and it turned out to be a great lunch. And since I have been pretty consistent with not getting up early enough to make a real lunch I think I've eaten 4 cup of noodle lunches. bad idea. Today when I went to eat lunch, once again with a cup of noodle in my hand, I was so unexcited with the thought of another cup of noodle I had to resort to buying a sandwich from the vending machine. Anytime you're buying a sandwich from a vending machine you know you have a problem. So I've decided cup of noodle is good on a once a week basis. And vending machine sandwiches... I just hope I never resort to that again.

great conflicts

At work I heard this girl behind me talking to another guy about how he is using some of her music files that she had saved in some of our public folders on his itunes list. And she was upset because she wants people to have to go to her itunes list on our shared music instead of his. It was probably the most ridiculous (and perhaps only) argument I've ever heard at work. The guy next to me said we should have conflicts like this at work at least 2-3 times a day. That way when we have job interviews we would actually have something to talk about on that question about conflicts with co-workers. I agree. And the drama was kind of exciting. And one of the girls behind me (a normal one, not the itunes nazi one) wrote a blog I thought was pretty funny: http://singingcicada.blogspot.com/2006/05/holy-crap.html

computer life

I've never had a job so computer involved before. I currently have 11 windows open. Most of the designers have 2 computer screens to accommodate this. I'm new and deprived so I only have one. I feel like I should know computers a lot more than I do to have 2 computer screens going. Or even to be working at a computer with 11-15 windows opened at a time. And not just opened because I haven't closed them but opened because I need them. Of course most designers just use their second screen for their itunes, msn and email purposes. I think I've convinced 3 of my new co-workers to start blogs. Sometimes I meet people who don't even know what a blog is or how to use it. I think there is a variety of blogs though so I'm not always sure what the best explanation of a blog is? What do you think?

new job

I'm currently writing this blog while at my new job. I'm doing computer stuff right now that doesn't take much effort on my part but takes the computer awhile to process. So I get to sit here and try to think of new blogs to write. So far nothing very interesting has happened at work to write about. Although Brad and I did form an alliance, I was pretty excited about that. Our mission is to steal a computer for me on the graphic designers side. I'm currently an outcast on the communist side (as Brad referred to it) surrounded by programmers and editors. I need to find a way to get to the other side of the partition. Don't you love office jobs?

crazy man

The other day in the parking lot I was just talking to a couple friends when this random old guy with a huge beard walked by and just started yelling to us about how hard it would be to move a mountain as fast as a rocket or something and how amazing it is that the world moves the way it does. He was really excited about it and seemed to think we were going to start running around getting everyone else excited about it too. We didn't though. However, we were very excited to have the random guy approach us because it reminded us all of the good ol mission days. We don't have that crazy people magnetic power that we once had.

foot lotion

The other day when I was in the bookstore with Katy we noticed some foot lotion on display, one of which was labeled to be used as a tester. My question is who tries out foot lotion in the middle of the bookstore? You just whip off your shoes and see how you like the feel and/or scent of the lotion right there? Seems kind of odd to me.

poor unfortunate souls

When I was walking home from work today I saw the cutest kids running around on the grass. The only thing was they had beautiful light blonde hair that had been cut so horribly I couldn't help but cringe. It was more than obvious that their mom had no idea how to cut hair but decided to anyways. She took the clippers and ran it up the side of the little kids' heads to make a nice blunt bowl cut. I don't know what is so intimidating about scissors to people. We've been using them since kindergarden and they happen to work great on hair not just paper. So please everyone, when you have kids or a husband you want to cut hair for, don't give them a bowl cut. I highly reccommend using scissors. Or finding someone that will. Thank you for helping make the world a more beautiful place.

my big rock

So I found this rock recently that is so cool. I started carrying it around with me all over the place because I like it so much. Maybe you think it's weird to carry around a rock all the time but if you saw my rock you would understand. You might think of it as my lucky rock. I think by having my rock with me my day goes better. I'm not sure exactly how it works, but it just does. I didn't know rocks could be so great. I always thought they were just dull hard objects that are useful as paperweights.

most embarrassing moment of my life

I only share this because 1. it was hilarious and 2. I hope all of you will share your most embarrassing moments at some point as well. So there I was just cruisin into the parking lot by the wilk on my scooter when my phone starts ringing. I decided I would stop at the scooter parking lot entrance to answer it. I flipped open my phone and told Rick to hold on for a minute while I took my helmet off. I realized that was too challenging with only one hand so I just shoved the phone against my ear with the helmet on.
As I was talking I decided I could slowly drive my scooter towards a parking spot with my left hand (even though the gas is on the right side of the handle bars) while still holding onto my phone with my right hand. But then I started going a little too fast while heading straight at someone's nice huge motorcycle probably owned by someone that could kill me. So instead of having an accident with a parked motorcycle (brakes weren't an option either, that was too tricky to reach with my left hand) I turned to the left, but of course all of this was incredibly awkward and I was still trying to talk on the phone and balance the masonite board and watercolor paper I had by my feet. So I fell over. Not gracefully either. I was laughing and feeling stupid and then felt even stupider when I realized people had seen me because everyone was frantically asking me, are you alright? are you alright? Humiliating. So the moral of this story is: don't talk on the phone while trying to drive a scooter with your left hand.

running with toothpaste

On Saturday I did the Rex Lee Run, my first race ever. I had a great time. I was a little late, that was funny, both for me and the people watching me hear the gun go off while I was still running to the starting line a couple blocks away. Another funny part was these little bags they gave us at the end, mostly flyers, and then a tube of toothpaste. All the writing was in Chinese. I was a little skeptical to use it at first because for all I knew on the back it said is only to be used on dogs or something. But I tried it out anyways. Not bad. Kind of a minty bark taste. Fresh breath in general though. So if anyone is debating doing the Rex Lee Run next year, keep in mind it is good clean fun, you get the t-shirt of course and interesting toothpaste. and remember to be on time, it' s less embarrassing that way.

cooking 101

I will admit that cooking isn't one of my greatest talents. I'm not horrible, I think I can make quite a bit of decent food. Occasionally though, I just don't pay attention to what I'm doing or my non-measuring tactic doesn't work out. Sometimes I accidentally grab the poppyseed container instead of the pepper to throw onto some fried eggs. That's not really a big deal though, they're pretty similar. This morning, however, as I was attempting to make some rice pudding I went to a shelf of baking ingredients, grabbed the vanilla and threw some in. Suddenly something smelled really bad. No, it wasn't vanilla. It was apple spiced vinegar. ehlk. Not exactly the flavor I was going for.

ugliest cat ever drawn in the history of the world

It's going to published. I'm sorry. I just didn't have time to redraw it. I just thought I would warn all of you.

human glow stick

You know your friends are cool when instead of inviting you to go with them to the movies next weekend they invite you to go to puerto rico. What an amazing place, I highly recommend it. One of the highlights of the trip (no, it wasn't when my friend told me I looked like one of those ugly girls in the movies) was when we went kayaking to this lagoon at night and went swimming with bioluminescent algae. I felt like I was a human glow stick. You should try it.

you know...

You know it might be too cold to ride a scooter if:

1. you have to not only scrape your mirrors, but also your odometer, your ignition button and your seat.

2. you are wearing half of your wardrobe to stay warm.

3. you are wearing so much head gear you can't turn your head.

4. your arms are frozen to stick out in front of you when you arrive at your destination.

5. you can't find your scooter because there is so much snow covering it.

But other than that, a scooter is great year round. (although, more fun in the summer for sure)

changing the world

More like, changing the way I look at it. I mentioned before that my new hobby is science. What I especially like about science is how I look at everything differently the more I learn and I think about science, even though I hardly know anything. I can only guess how different life would be if I had a career studying this stuff. I've noticed myself just walking around recently looking at objects and thinking about what it is made of and all the tiny microscopic components that combine together to create whatever I'm looking at. Or sometimes I just think about breathing and how many billions of things are going on with my body right now to make it function the way it does.
Maybe lots of people do that but I used to only look at the design of objects, the way the light falls on it, or it's hue but I guess I'm branching out in the way I think. An example was today when I was washing my hair I was thinking of why we shower and how the chemicals work to make it so we don't smell. (I had just been running and...well, I smelled bad)

I used to think it would be cool to marry someone who got an undergrad in accounting then went to law school (there's a ton of legal stuff and complicated taxes with freelance art) but I think I would like to add a Phd in microbiology or physiology or something equally fascinating. Actually, maybe it would just be easier to get those degrees myself. That's more realistic than getting married.

successful vs sellout

So as I've mentioned before in some blogs that I've been doing more and more freelance work lately. I love it, it's so exciting! I feel like I'm really going to be able to be successful at this. The only thing is that my professors keep telling me to make sure I'm getting paid what I'm worth. However, their perspective and mine is so different. They obviously are very picky about the work that they take because they have been successful illustrators for many years. I'm glad they think our work as students is worth so much but I really don't put the same price tag on my art that my professors do. Take the amount I would accept and put a 1 in front of it, that's typically the difference of our perspectives. I figure if it's paying me more than my current job, then, hey cool. (If it's less than that then it's pretty ridiculous, come on, this is Provo) I'm getting valuable experience, published work and I'm getting paid for it. And it's not like they're paying me to scrub floors or something, they're paying me to draw stuff, which is my well known addiction anyways. What could be better? Last year I drew all the time for free. What am I talking about? My whole life I've drawn for free. In my eyes, anything is better than nothing.
However, as Michael Dudash pointed out (a visiting illustrator who came to BYU last week) when students and young artists consistently accept smaller paychecks than the industry standard then it hurts everyone because publishers start to expect to pay less and then everyone, young and old, gradually are forced to accept less money for their work. I guess the idea is that we're not just getting paid for what we complete, but the billions of hours of drawing and experience that it takes to be able to produce professional art. My professors are my professors because they know more about the illustration world than I do so I should probably listen to them. I've tried asking for more money and it gets me a little progress, but not a whole lot. Should I just hold out for the better jobs and more money or be grateful for what I'm getting?
I'm curious about other people's opinions, at what point are you a sell out hurting the industry, and when are you just a student getting a foot in the door by having some published work under your belt because you draw really fast to make it worth your time? (obviously I would prefer to be the later but I know I have to choose some type of ground where I reject work)

And by the way, the reason Michael Dudash was talking about this subject was because when I walked into the middle of a class to sit and observe my professor pointed me out and asked about the bargain freelance work I had been doing and what his opinion was about it.

BYU perks

There are a lot of great things about BYU. And of course some not so great things, but isn't that always the case? One of the things about BYU that I especially appreciate is the (usual) efficiency of the Lost and Found. I have had a couple of items never show up there, a favorite scarf and a homemade hat I really liked, but that nothing compared to the many, many, many, *pause* many items that I have gotten back. Quite often I'm in there every week or 2 to pick up stuff I brainlessly left somewhere on campus. The other day I left a project at the library but I was already on my way home when I realized I left it. Instead of going back for it I just thought, I'll just pick it up at the Lost and Found tomorrow. Very irresponsible and naive of me to always expect things to turn up there, but what can I say, it works. So the next day I picked up my project worth about $200 (it was some partly finished freelance work). When I had to write down on the lost and found paper how much the item was worth I realized maybe it would have even been worth going back to the library to pick it up. but oh well, it all worked out anyways. yeah byu!

teeth are overrated

If I can convince myself to believe that I will sure save a lot of money. I went to the dentist last week and I have 3 cavities. note- not in the place where my teeth are sore, of course not, those teeth are perfectly fine, it's some other random ones. I think he's making it up. Come to think of it, I don't know why I went to that dentist anyways. My friend used to work there and thinks the dentist is nice so I thought, hey why not, he can look at my teeth. However, now reflecting on the 3 made up cavities he told me about that will cost over $200 to fix I remember that I almost got a job working for him, because of a recommendation from my friend. You might be thinking, oh a dentist job, you would answer phones or decorate the walls or something knowing my qualifications. nope, this guy was going to hire me to be a Spanish translator. Apparently I was a pretty good Spanish 102 student. It didn't work out but the funny part was that it didn't have to do with the fact that I didn't even know the word for teeth in Spanish. So I claim the cavities are a figment of his imagination.

Record Low

I realized I have reached a record low number of clothes in my closet right now. Yeah, there's a lot in a laundry hamper to be washed tomorrow, but I am pretty amazed with the pile I have on a chair and a dresser and, well, my floor too. It seemed like I would only wear outfits for 3 hours at a time this week, I just kept changing my clothes. And it seemed like I kept wearing the same thing over and over again, because I only wore them for a few hours I thought that was okay. I think it had more to do with the fact that my closet has gradually just been declining to only the clothes I wear for Halloween. (I bet you will all be interested to see what I'm wearing tomorrow)
My roommate's cute little niece who is 4 or 5 was over visiting today and she came into my bedroom and asked me why my clothes were all over the floor. The way she asked it was like she expected me to have a really good reason, like I had been robbed, or I had a picking-up-clothes-disease. I just mumbled something about being busy. But who knows, maybe I do have some sort of disorder. I'm sure they'll find a cure for it someday.
That reminds me, I was reading this interesting anatomy book the other day and it talked about the brain and how they figured out which part of the brain does what. The front of your brain has to do with your personality. The book mentioned how there was this guy who was shot in the front of the head and lived and then his personality changed to being really mean. So don't you think this would work just as well in reserve? It sounds so easy to cure mean people. I'm sure we don't have to shoot them in the head, but I bet someone could come up with a simple procedure that just made people more pleasant to be around. I think I'll so some research on that. Lots of people have art for a hobby, but since that's my career I need something like science to be my hobby.

Rick the girl

This blog is about my friend Rick because the only thing she could come up with for me to blog about was a teacher crush. like I know anyone that has a crush on their teacher. let's be real here.
So Rick (real name will remain secret) and her husband are pretty funny. They plan on moving to North Carolina soon. Charlottesomething. I guess they have a lot of publishing houses there so I might tag along. What I'm really hoping is that somehow Rick's insane work ethic will rub off on me. She takes a million (okay, that's an exaggeration, only half a million) credits and has the tendency to not care about eating or sleeping, she just paints. I on the other hand have a tendency to eat (lots), sleep, well, not as much as I should (but more than Rick), and goof off by reading science books and playing foosball. I don't know how to develop good work habits. I hear they have professional foosball players. I don't think it's too late to change my major. And that Tuesday afternoon assertiveness class isn't helping me. (well maybe it's because I haven't gone yet)

what do you want?

So a few weeks ago I saw this flyer posted at the library that had all these questions and I kept thinking "yes" to all the questions and at the bottom it said if I said yes to any of those questions then I should go to the Assertiveness Class. It sounded like a good idea so I planned on going for awhile. I figured it will help me have more effective discipline with the missionaries, be firmer with what I want from art directors, etc. However, today my friends said let's go hang out and I said, sure! And therefore I didn't make it to the assertiveness meeting. Maybe I am doomed to be weak sauce my whole life.

uh....uh....

I really don't know what to write a blog about. I just got a cell phone, I could explain how great that is and I'm sure my friends are so happy for me. Or how confused I get every time anyone's cell phone goes off because I can't remember what mine sounds like, I just think, oh yeah, I have a cell phone, it's ringing! But I guess other people have cell phones too. I could write about how fun it was to hear the music at the library last week. It's been years since I've done that. The music was alright. Kind of obnoxiously loud. I was trying to scan something, it was like they wanted me to leave or something. I could write about my classes, my job. How cool my teachers are about me being a slacker when they know I did some freelance work. I might change my job for one that pays less, but gives me better experience. It would be sad, but good. I could write about complicated relationships and trying to be normal friends with people you dated. I could write about how I realized today how grateful I am for bicycles otherwise I might be wearing some corset or something right now. very grateful. I thought if I rambled long enough I would come up with something interesting....maybe next time. But I didn't want to completely get out of the habit. I think blogs are great. And I would also like to add that I am really looking forward to AVP2.

Ape

Does anyone know my friend April? She is great. Now that we are enjoying Marissa ending her hiatus it made me wonder why Ape doesn't have a blog. Or, perhaps she is one of those people who make comments sometimes but I have no idea who they are and I figure they are either Bryant's friends or someone he met on the street who told him they had a blog. But I don't think so. So my proposition is that April starts a blog even if she just tells us what she eats for breakfast every now and then, I just think it would be nice to hear about her and her thoughts too. Either about her breakfast, or other things as well.

by the way, if anyone wants to check out a really cool blog that is linked to many others, I recommend checking out: http://www.kactiguy.blogspot.com/

productive waste of time

I have a hard time wanting to go to my spanish conversation class. We just sit around and talk so I keep thinking how much I need to do other things. Of course, I decided I would just bring my homework and draw during class. What Spanish class haven't I drawn in anyways? (some teachers give me better reactions to that than others. some of them think I'm just not paying attention. They just don't realize I wouldn't be paying attention whether or not I was drawing) I got SO much done during class, both this week and last week. I wish we had class everyday so I could sit there and draw and get my homework done for other classes. When I'm not in class it's too easy to be distracted, I do things like sit here and write blogs and I never get anything done. Or talk to my roommates, or visit the chinese boys, or que-ever (that was for Erin). Maybe I should just start finding random classes to go to so I'll actually do my homework. I should go to accounting classes. I need to find a good accountant really soon. Too bad John moved to CA.

more failure please

I know I'll be famous someday because I keep failing at things. It seems like anyone who is famous has great stories about how they failed so much at first, they were broke, or starving, couldn't walk, etc. Then somehow they became the best at what they do, were really famous and we all admire them. I didn't get into the illustration program the first 2 times I applied. I had one professor tell me my style was getting me no where and I should try cubism. I don't know if that list is long enough though. I could include my freshman GPA, many dating experiences, my attempts at being an opera singer, etc. etc. but I don't know if that stuff relates to my failures as an artist. I think I need to find some more ways to fail really big in art and recieve major rejection so I can hurry up and become famous.

sorry, this might be boring

First of all, I would like to encourage everyone to try audible.com. It's amazing. I just go running or draw or eat lunch or clean my room (you know, on the rare occasion when that happens) and I get smarter at the same time. It's amazing. I get so anxious to go on long runs because it gives me time to "read" so much. When I went running yesterday I listened to all the latest information in the science world, like stuff about diseases, the Korean research and bio ethics. I'm finishing up Bill Bryson's A History of Nearly Everything, which is very interesting and then I'll be starting Mere Christianity, which I've been trying to read forever but haven't yet.

I'm going to try and blog more often about things that I read for 3 main purposes:

1. try and get myself to retain more of what I read
2. enlighten others with interesting (or semi-interesting to not-so-interesting) knowledge
3. I bet there's some other reason I haven't figured out yet and 2 is just too small to make a list

So today I listened to more of Bill Bryson's a history of nearly everything, about what the world was like 400 million years ago and all these different time periods I've never heard of. 99.9% of all species that have existed on earth are now extinct. Scientist think there has been anywhere from 30 million different species to 4,000 million. The bones in the museums are mostly all just plaster casts, even in NY and London. Species learned how to fly to avoid getting eaten. There have been 5 major time periods of extinction. There were once guinea pigs the size of rhinos and rhinos the size of two story houses.

choose your poison

One of my friends mentioned to me how dumb it is that people run up and down 9th East because you're just breathing in all that pollution as cars drive by. I never thought of that before, I always thought 9th East was just convenient. So I tried running through neighborhoods instead, I didn't get too lost, but suddenly I was breathing in all this smoke, like someone's house was on fire. That happened to me twice. I decided anywhere you run you're going to breathe in something gross.

bueno, asi es la vida

Ethics

One of the most interesting principles to me in economics is how you can pay someone for something and it then diminishes in value. When I was listening to a discussion on the ethics for women selling their eggs they were discussing this concept. It comes up with a lot of medical type of donations, like donating blood. I have decided that is why I don't allow my friends to pay for haircuts. They value is just too high to give it a price, recieving money would just diminish it's value.

Toxic Plasmosis

To those of you who have cats, especially ones that use jackets for litter boxes (not to point fingers at anyone...Eve!) I wanted to make sure you're aware of the possible dangers of Toxic Plasmosis that I just learned about the other day thanks to Science Friday. This is especially important if you also have a pet sea otter that you care about. Please everyone, be cautious.

President Becca

I would just like everyone to know that President Becca is my new official title since I have creamed everyone in foosball and therefore was offered the position. I was happy to accept. With my new power I plan to cure world hunger, bring peace to all nations, and find the perfect eternal companion for everyone. For everyone that would like to join the foosball club I will let you know more information at a later date. And I would just like to thank everyone for their support and encouragement that enabled me to become the foosball champion I am today.

arranged marriages

Dating. it's such a headeache, blah blah blah. I like all these boys that will never ask me out blah blah blah If they do ask me out either I'll find out really odd things about them or vice versa blahblahblahlblalhblahblahblahblabhalhb I think I understand more why they had arranged marriages. People just gave up finding someone on their own and told someone, just find someone for me. Fortunately, I'm not at that point yet. blah blah

fate of the world

Some of you might not be aware of this but I just found out the fate of the world rests in my hands. I am working on some illustrations that go along with some Book of Mormon stories. I was informed that I could influence kids and the perception they have of these Book of Mormon characters their entire lives. From talking with one of my friends about this I realized the impact this could have on the entire world. If I don't draw these illustrations correctly these kids may never gain a testimony of the gospel and therefore drop out of church, drop out of school, do drugs and make movies like Flightplan.

the odd ones

I wonder if you took all those really odd roommates and put them in the same apartment if they could figure out why they were put together. Some of you might be thinking I'm talking about my current roommates because you think only odd people live in foreign language housing, but actually my oddest roommates were at other apartments.

Earnst: the new look

Remember that guy Earnst? 80's? Did I spell his name right? The guy who goes to jail on one of his movies and he's pretty goofy and he has a closet full of all the same outfit. I think that's a great idea. yeah, I guess I like to have variety and occassionally even be creative with what I wear, but overall I'm not sure if it's more of a hassle than it's worth. I don't like having to think about what to wear or what clothes to buy so I can look semi-okay, or whatever category my clothes actually fit into, I'm not really sure. I think I almost had the Earnst closet going for me my freshman year. I had tons of clothes that looked almost exactly the same, I could pretty much wear the same outfit everyday if I wanted to. For now, I think I'll stick with the variety plan, because that's what is in my closet and I'm not ready to break my habit of conforming to society which seems to think it's a good idea to always being wearing different outfits. I think on average I wear 4-6 outfits a day. a different outfit for every activity. maybe that's why I'm tired of deciding what to wear.

money money money

somehow I'm going to become a fanatical budgeter. I have to keep track of every penny I spend and what I spend it on and how many miles I drive. Insane eh? As an artist I can deduct tons of things from taxes, which I will have a lot of because with freelance work they don't automatically make you pay it. I haven't figured out if I think that is a good thing or a bad thing, but I don't have any control over that at this point in my life so I'm not going to worry about it. I think I'll start by simply saving receipts, and either write everything down somewhere or use a program. My mom said she really likes budgeting. I didn't know that was possible. I just like having way more money than I need so I can buy stuff without thinking about it or worrying about deductions. I wonder if there are terms for different budgeting styles. I bet there are classes for this stuff. anyone have any tips? successful experiences from budgeting? ideas for a good place to go running?

the eternal email

Sometimes I am dissatisfied with my vocabulary level and I think I'll do things like learn a new word everyday or read more books. Occasionally I would look up things online with webster and I decided it would be a great idea to get the word of the day email, I enjoyed it for a few months and then after awhile and lack of reading many of them I decided it was time to quit getting those daily emails. So I scrolled to the bottom where it will typically say to unsubscribe reply and say "unsubscribe". But do you know what it says at the bottom of websters: If you want to stop receiving these emails- then change your email address! What are they smoking? no way! So this is a WARNING: to anyone thinking they might want to learn some new words by receiving a simple word of the day email decide carefully if you want to check that email everyday because you could be receiving it FOORRREEEVER!

(I realize I can just block their emails, but I decided the better option would be just to read them. I succumbed. That's probably what they wanted me to do)

the best ride

I really love my scooter. I think that is something significant to be able to say even in the middle of winter. I guess it's really not that cold out today, but I have so much fun just driving that thing around. I just wish there were little jumps along the road. Every now and then there are little dips and that's fun to feel like you're getting alittle air (I'm sure I'm not though, but it would be cool if I did). I think when I'm older I'll take up dirt biking. I think that's what they call, when you ride a motorcycle on some dirt track with jumps and you do flips and stuff with it. And stuff like they did at the rodeo. I wonder how long it would take to learn that stuff? Then I could cut my hair into a mullet also.

why isn't this fun?

I remember being a kid and birthdays were just as much fun as any other holiday, you got to do special things and get presents. I thought it was a pretty good deal. But now, birthdays aren't so great. And I'm not talking about the getting older stuff, birthdays just seem to cause so much awkward attention. I was talking with my friend about this and we're not fans of having people work so hard to make the day special for just you. I don't know what it is, I love having parties, but for some reason I don't like it as much if it's for my birthday. I think I feel obligated to make sure everyone has a fun time. I really don't understand it.

So I was trying to think of ways to change this not-so-great birthday setup and I propose that we have shared birthdays. Maybe it can be by the month, or you can just get assigned a birthday buddy where you share your birthdays. Anyone else agree? It could be a new New Years tradition- you pick a new friend to share a birthday with. And you could have a different birthday every year, variety is always nice right?

and by the way, if anyone thinks they're any good at foosball, I just beat the president of the foosball club yesterday so I'm looking for another good challenge. bring it.

blog beginning

So, to my friends that already have blogs, I'm pretty curious how much time you spent reading the terms and use before agreeing to have a blog. I just realized this might not have spell check, that could get interesting. I think my usual system is that if I have a friend who has already agreed to the terms of something then I feel it's got to be a safe thing to agree to because so far I haven't seen their life ruined by it. I wonder who gets the great job of writing out those ridiculously long contracts.