My life really isn't that exciting.  Obviously, I'm not still in Santa Maria.  It was nice having three weeks off to be at home with the family and not in Utah with freezing temperatures.  But now I'm back.  Whatever.  When I was home we went to Santa Cruz for Christmas with some family.

Here's my mom and I on the Boardwalk:

My mom and I also spent a day in Pismo.  It was such a BEAUTIFUL day.  It was clear and sunny and NOT windy and about 80 degrees.  It was perfect.

We also took Nathan to Oso Flaco one afternoon.  I really really miss being so close to the ocean.  The mountains are okay but nothing compared to the ocean.

Then I came back to Salt Lake.  Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Utah.  It's just not home.  It's not the Central Coast.  And it's not Me.

I started interning at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) as soon as I got back to Utah in January. The IRC is a great organization that helps refugees come to America from countries that are currently in some sort of turmoil.  I am working with two Iraqi caseworkers.  We are currently seeing a lot of Iraqi refugees.  There are also quite a few Nepalis and Sudanese coming to Salt Lake.  There are certainly more countries with refugees, but this is just what I see the most of.  The IRC really is a great organization with very limited funding and if you're looking for a place to donate unwanted/unneeded goods you really should think about donating to them first.  They need EVERYTHING.  When refugees come to us all they bring with them is a suitcase (or 2) and it's our job, IRC's job, to set them up with an apartment with the bare essentials.  A bed for each person to sleep in; 1 couch; one table with 1 chair per person; 1 plate, cup, bowl and set of silverware per person.  It really is quite basic.  Anything more is just a want.  They rely on donations.  Just something to think about.  Go HERE to learn more.

So this last weekend my Mom and Mary were in town; with a mission to find a dress.  A wedding dress to be precise.  Yeah, so Mary is still getting married.  Silly girl.  But she found The Dress.  That certainly is a relief.  I didn't take any pictures though while they were here.  Actually, that's a lie.  I did take quite a few, but they were just all of Mary in different wedding dress possibilities.  I've since deleted them since The Dress has been purchased.

Anyway....That's my life.  Like I previously said, not that exciting.

Still home in California.  And I like it.

HOME!

Yay, I'm at home in California!  And it's nice to be here.  I cannot believe I haven't been home since last Christmas-time.  It has been WAY too long.  I was fortunate enough to find a cheap $200 ticket flying into SLO.  My parents picked me up Sunday night from the airport with a hot thermos of hot chocolate.  Monday was spent shopping and cutting out fabric.  Yesterday I took Nathan to do his Christmas shopping and to see The Princess and the Frog.  It was cute.  And then after dinner my mom and I decorated chocolate covered Candy Cane Joe Joe's.  And now it's Wednesday morning and all I've done is sleep in, watch Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and goof around online.  Vacations really do agree with me.

Some days are just STUPID

Monday was just one of those days for me.  How can any day that starts at 4:30 a.m., much less a Monday, be expected to be anything but stupid?  I started the day off by being betrayed by my favorite shoes.  They're purple, how could they possibly do this to me?  So apparently, no matter what the color of your favorite shoes is, once they've been worn so long that they come apart at the seems, they're no longer snow-proof.  An hour into my shift and my feet were wet.

It snowed here all weekend and the roads hadn't been cleared yet when I started driving.  It was even snowing for the first hour or so I was driving.  I slid all the way through an intersection (twice) and had to make a detour.  Thankfully there was no accident. Sometimes I'm really convinced God cares about me and my safety and my job.  About 5 minutes later, I was getting nudged off the road by a huge semi-truck and hit a block of ice.  And sometimes I'm convinced that God thinks it's funny when I freak out.  So I pulled over to check everything out and lo and behold, I couldn't open the front door.  I didn't notice any other damage though, thankfully.  My supervisor just said to take it to the lot and get another bus.

Yeah, so this bus didn't like me either.  The lights wouldn't work.  And it's illegal to drive a bus without the headlights or clearance lights on.   So they had to get another bus.

Bus #3 isn't a bus they wanted used for the day, so then a supervisor came and switched it out of that one.

Bus #4 broke down while I was on my lunch break.  Yeah, that's right, 4 buses before lunch.  The turbo somethingorother broke off while my lunch relief was driving.  He continued to drive and then hand the bus off to me all without telling me that #4 wouldn't go over 12 mph.  Yeah... so I had to get out of the bus again and check out the engine and see what the *&$@^% the problem was this time.  BTW, I changed my socks while on my lunch break.  Now they're wet, again.

So bus #5 was brought out to me.  My supervisor said I set a record for driving the most buses in one day.  I asked if I would get an award or a raise.  He said I get a pay decrease.

By bus #4 it was just a joke and I was laughing.  But I'm not going to lie, it wasn't all roses.  Words such as "I hate this bus" and "I hate my job" and "why's the snow so stupid!" and "Why does anyone choose to live in UTAH!" and "Why did my shoes betray me in my hour of need?" and of course "I just want to go home".  I think it was at that point that I wanted to call my mom.  Bad days and sopping wet feet are days for phone calls home.  But she didn't answer.  So I did the next best thing.  I went shoe shopping.

But seriously, I think a pair of waterproof boots were totally in order.  

These are the shoes. 

They were the same color as this wall.

BTW: I didn't actually hit a block of ice.  It was some stupid cement block completely covered in snow and ice.  Either way, my front door wouldn't open.

HAPPY VETERANS DAY!
       I am eternally grateful for those who have fought for the rights and liberties I enjoy today.  Both of my grandfathers and my dad are war-time veterans.  I also have a cousin currently in the Army.  I am so grateful and proud of them.  And more then that, I am thankful and proud to be an American.   
       I came across this quote today.  I appreciate it and hope to be a better example of it too.  

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."                                      ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

My mom was bugging me the other day asking me when I was going to update my blog.  I told her I'd do it when something worthy of talking about happens.  Still, nothing has happened.  Whatever.  I guess there are a few things I can talk about.

#1: My BABY sister has gotten herself engaged.  WTF?!?! you may say, so do I.

#2: My burn is no longer a scab or painful.  It is now a scar.  Sarcastic yay.  (however, as ugly and noticeable as it is, I kind of like scars.  Every scar tells a story about you.  Something completely and uniquely you.  Scars are even better when they have a good story behind them.  I should make something up for mine because, let's be honest, cooking dinner is so cliche'.)

#3: I just finished reading Selected Works of T.S. Spivet by Reif Larsen.  It was so fantastic.  I laughed out loud quite a few times.  And it was interesting and I feel slightly smarter for having read it.  I'm always looking for ways to make myself feel smarter.  It's good for the self-esteem.  ALSO, double plus bonus: The main character has a thing for being a hobo too! 

#4: My mom dropped a frozen roast on her toe and smashed it (the toe not the roast).  Apparently there was a lot of blood and an E.R. visit.  While at the hospital my parents ran into our neighbor (who was there because of some reason that has nothing to do with the story, the point is he was there and that was very random) who is a retired butcher.  He told my dad that when he was in the Navy, he once dropped a whole frozen side of beef on himself.  He was out for 2 months.  I think that story makes my mom thankful that she just gets a week on crutches.

I just found out from my mom this past week that when I was about one year old she dropped an entire frozen chicken on my head.  Being vegetarian is looking good about now.   Also mainly, I was never dropped on my head as a child, something was dropped ON my head.  Ergo, no "that explains so much" statements are still not acceptable.

#5: Starting on Monday I will no longer have the annoying work shift time of Noon-7pm.  I will be getting off at 2pm.  YAY!  (that does mean I have to be in the office at 5:30am though.  I'm just choosing to look a the positive).  I really don't like working in the afternoon like I have been.  It just kills your whole day.  I always end up sleeping in and not getting anything done before work and then by the time I'm home from work , it's almost 8pm.  However, there is a really big down side to this new schedule (minus waking up at 4:30): I won't be on the Gold Route, I will be driving the regular campus routes, which I really don't like at all.  The Gold Route (G.R. for short) is the dream route of all bus drivers everywhere.  I show up at noon and don't do anything until about 3 or 3:30.  Then I drive until 7 and then I'm done.  It is because of the GR that I upgraded my phone plan to unlimited minutes; I got through so many books this summer; I took naps while on the clock; I was able to read The Book of Mormon (almost) daily; I returned all those phone calls you always say you will but don't; spent hours writing; spent hours day-dreaming; and most importantly, because of the GR, I learned that just because you may work for Goldman-Sachs, doesn't mean you're smart.  I mean seriously, the bus driver knew that 30'C was roughly 90'F (86 to be exact.  I calculating it in my head and not with a calculator) and the Goldman Sachs employees didn't.  Someone thought it was 75'F.  I felt so vindicated in that moment.

So, you might say "why are you giving up working in the lap of luxury?"  The answer is simple: I'm sabotaging myself.  I really truly am.  I need a new job and working the GR is just so simple and easy and comfortable.  So I'm putting myself in a position I will despise in order to make my find a new job.  Sometime people just need a little fire under them to get moving.  I have long known that I am one of those people.

#6: I signed up for a gym membership today.  I've been debating it for a few months now, but now that my work schedule is changing it will be a lot easier to go.  So here's to hoping I will!  I was also putting it off because of the cost.  But when I went in there today and they found out that I was a U employee, the guy told me we get a discount!  I think it was meant to be.

#7: I think I'm going to be a Zombie Cowgirl for Halloween.  I was just going to be a Cowgirl, but that's kind of boring.  You can liven up any halloween costume by just being dead.  It's a fact.

#8: I think I'm out of anything to say.  Kind of a crazy thing for me to say considering I am my father's daughter, but it's late.  I think I'll go floss.

And before I leave, here's a couple of picture from Egypt 2006.  The first one is from Luxor and the second one is with my summer roommate Kara on the Mediterranean at my favorite beach ever.

  

Burn Update: Maybe Too Gross For You

And to really gross some of you out, here's a picture of my burn from last night.

It's healing.  And going to leave quite the battle scar.  Also mainly, it does still hurt.  Mostly just when I move my wrist.