six hour shift

I just worked a six hour shift.
Of nothingness.
I was there just in case anyone threw up.
(cause ya know......)
After I cleaned the only three drinking fountains I had a lot of time on my hands.
Enough time to make a music video.
And here it is.
(It's real dumb.)

thanksgiving....isn't it about time

Mormon messages anyone?
Well, it is the eve of Thanksgiving.
And high time that we got this break.
It's definitely the day for me to head home.
This morning I ate tomato soup and a cookie for breakfast.
I ran out of face wash and haven't washed my face in a week.
(Gross I know, but my skin has cooperated and hasn't broken out.)
I have had to buy new underwear cause I'm saving my laundry doing for my mom's house.
And I am in need of watching Nacho Libre.
All signs that I need to go home.
So after work, at approximately midnight I will hop on I-15 and head to my parent's house.
Where I have a whole basement to myself to party.
And party I shall.

deleted scenes

These are the pictures that didn't get placed anywhere but my phone's gallery.
If I was an avid instagrammer they would've been uploaded there.
But I'm not so they weren't.
Here ya go!

making a home

Anyone who reads this blog knows without a doubt that I have not enjoyed my time in Provo.
As evidenced in these here posts: 1, 2, 3, 4,
I have missed Cedar City with much of my heart.
So I went and visited a couple of weekends ago and I loved it.
But as I drove away I realized that I had to come to terms that that was no longer my home.
Provo is where I reside now.
So instead of struggling through the rest of my time here I should try to make it my home.
Instead of trying to re-create old memories from Cedar City I should create new ones.
So I thought about what is unique to Provo that I love.
And the first thing that I thought of was the people.
I know that I complain a lot about the amount of people here and the studiousness of the people here.
But I have also made some fabulous friends.
I absolutely love my job because of the people I work with.
I love the special education program because of the girls I have class with.
I love my ward because of the people in it.
I love rock climbing (obviously) because of the people that I climb with.
I love the people that I have met here because they make me laugh so so hard.
Provo is full of hilarious people!
I was more focused on activities to do that would make Provo a home.
But it's all about the people.
Because once you have those people that you just absolutely love then anything you do is one for the books.
And that is why I love Provo.

weird

I'm very weird.
I get told that all the time.
But I'm used to it now.
I don't get embarrassed by my socially unacceptable behaviors.
Or by my many oddities.
But here is a list of things that have been said to me that I think are humorous:
>(while wearing purple lipstick) "Holy crap your lips are purple!"
>(to preface....I usually wear some sort of headband or scarf across my forehead) After I answer a question in class my teacher says "Hey you're wearing an actual hat on your head today!"
>My friend offers me granola and I tell him that I love granola. He replies with "I thought so. You give off that vibe." (Better than the donut vibe right?)
>"Hey did you know you don't have shoes on?"
>In sacrament meeting the girl behind me taps me on the shoulder and says "So...word around town is that you're a hippy."
>"I knew it was you because of your bun." (this gets said most often)
>(I make a lot of the clothes I wear so we have an ongoing joke at work) "Did you make that shirt too?"
>"You're gonna need to take that fanny pack off."
>"Why are you eating a candle?" (don't ask.)
>"Put your pants back on. This is a public place! " (kidding.)

into the wild

"Ron, I really enjoy all the help you have given me and the times that we spent together. I hope that you will not be too depressed by our parting. It may be a very long time before we see each other again. But providing that I get through this Alaskan Deal in one piece you will be hearing from me again in the future. I'd like to repeat the advice I gave you before, in that I think you really should make a radical change in your lifestyle and begin to boldly do things which you may previously never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt. So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very  basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. If you  want to get more out of life, Ron, you must lose your inclination for monotonous security and adopt a helter-skelter style of life that will at first appear to you to be crazy. But once you become accustomed to such a life you will see its full meaning and its incredible beauty. And so, Ron, in short, get out of Salton City and hit the Road. I guarantee you will be very glad you did. But I fear that you will ignore my advice. You think that I am stubborn but I think you are even more stubborn than me. You had a wonderful chance on your drive back to see one of the greatest sights on Earth, the Grand Canyon, something every American should see at least once in his life. But for some reason incomprehensible to me you wanted nothing but to bolt for home as quickly as possible, right back to the same situation which you see day after day after day. I fear you will follow this same inclination in the future and this fail to discover all the wonderful things that God has placed around us to discover. Don't settle down and sit in one place. Move around, be nomadic, make each day a new horizon. You are still going to live a long time, Ron, and it would be a shame if you did not take the opportunity to revolutionize your life and move into an entirely new realm of experience.
You are wrong if you think Joy emanates only or principally from human relationships. God has placed it all around us. It is in everything and anything we might experience. We just have to have the courage to turn against our habitual lifestyle and engage in unconventional living.
My point is that you do not need me or anyone else around to bring this new kind of light in your life. It is simply waiting out there for you to grasp it, and all you have to do is reach for it. The only person you are fighting is yourself and your stubbornness to engage in new circumstances."

Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer 

rainy days

It's trying to snow.
It's really trying hard.
But it's not quite there yet.
And I really wish it was.
I just want tomato soup while I watch the snow fall and hot chocolate after a snowball fight.
That's all.
But I'll have to wait.
And enjoy the rain while it's here.
So I put on my rain slicker and rain boots and went on a walk to take some pictures.

dearest hannah

One of my best friends in the whole world goes by the name of Hannah.
She is currently on her mission in California so I don't get to be graced with her presence.
But recently I found this hidden gem of a video.
I think we thought that the louder we sang the better we were?
So you may want to cover you ears at some parts.

bright ideas

I have a lot of bright ideas.
Some people wouldn't agree.
They're those ideas when you think
"hmmm this would be a good idea."
(and it's usually not.)
But you have a lot of fun doing it.
Despite the consequences.
For instance,
I deleted every single comment that has ever been published on my blog.
Because I thought it would be a good idea to click the mysterious button.

One time at work I thought it would be a good idea to see if I could fit in a locker.....

Last weekend I thought it would be a good idea to get in a dryer.

And then I thought it would be really smart to have my friends bury me in freezing sand.
(This is when i lost my toe to frostbite.)

One time I thought it would be a good idea to live in a maze.
And this was probably the best idea I've ever had.
I mean, look how fun this looks.

So the moral of the story is......
The people with the "brightest" ideas have the most fun.
And I have a LOT of bright ideas.

confessions and observations

>Can we all agree that when there is a baby or little child around it is impossible to NOT make funny faces at them when their mom isn't looking?

>Never watch a movie with a child that you actually want to watch. Because they will explain in detail what is happening throughout the entire thing.

>I love anybody who helps me avoid standing up. When we get put into groups for classwork I appreciate when my group gathers around me instead of me to them. It is welcomed when the doorbell rings and I yell "come in" and they actually do. And anyone who offers me piggy back rides gets a gold star.

>When a teacher passes out an assignment and you start furiously working on it and then she says "oh and we're not turning it in." Immediately I think "well then, screw that" and I get back on pinterest.

>Whenever I mention that I rock climb people always feel the need to tell me about all of their friends that got hurt climbing. Thanks, that's always exactly what I want to hear.

phase one complete

One of these is needed after sorting through your possessions.
Remember when I said that I was going to do that "100 things" challenge?
Well I started.
I knew that I had to tackle my closet first and foremost.
There was just too many clothes in there.
I piled up all of the clothes that I haven't worn in years.
And the clothes that I secretly hate but was in denial about.
Then came the shoes.
And then the makeup.
(I don't even wear makeup...why was I hanging onto it?)
I had myself quite the nice pile.
I took most of it and sold it at Plato's and then the rest was taken to D.I. as donations.
And ya know what?
I don't miss any of it.
Not one bit.
I can't believe that I had spent so much money on clothes that I don't even wear.
As I was making the give away pile it was like a dagger in my heart every time I added to the pile.
How many cool adventures could I have gone on with the money spent on these things?
Well, the past is the past.
So I will just have to remember these regretful thoughts next time I find myself in a clothing store.
I am still going through my clothes slowly but surely.
Wearing clothes that I am hanging on hope for and then realizing that I actually hate them.
And it's refreshing.
My life doesn't feel so cluttered.

one

I went on a hike yesterday.
By myself.
I thought it would be a freeing and reflective experience.
And it was.
It takes a whole lot more will power to make it to the top when you are by yourself.
But then after my reflecting I regretted going by myself.
I had temporarily sat down on a bench to take a rest and I set my hand down next to me.
And I set it down right on a wasp.
And that beast stung me good.
As I gripped my hand a look of horror crossed my face, I'm sure.
Because the last time I got stung (as a child) I passed out and woke up later on my couch.
I started having visions of passing out and dying and nobody finding my body for weeks.
So I mentally began writing my will.
My Quarry pass was to go to Brooklyn.
My clothing was to go to charity.
My unicycle (Ok, Tyler's unicycle) would be buried with me.
My Pokemon cards would go to Kathy.
Paul's harness would be returned to him.
My pillow would go to Eric.
And the rest could be scavenged.
I texted Brooklyn to tell her that I might not make it down the mountain and that she would be receiving a gift from me from beyond the veil.
About halfway down the mountain I started getting dizzy (this could've been from lack of water...)
And my hand started swelling.
The end was inevitable, I just knew it.
Finally, and dramatically, I made it down the mountain and shouted Hallelujahs to the sky.
As I sit here now with mud covering my hand to ease the pain I hope my allergies aren't life-threatening.
But in the case they are, consider this will official.
As there is a notary sitting right next to me to confirm it.