one of these days...

i'm going to stop ignoring this blog.

probably the day i strike up a conversation with my next door neighbors in the elevator, and thus start a life with internet again, and stop living as a cave person.

but let me just say: minus the 1.5 extra hours i drive every day now, living in salt lake is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. the end.

neglect.

i am guilty of some serious neglect to this blog. i have been a little crazy, but also i go through phases (see my fb note) and get bored of things. and i got bored of blogging. so i took a one-month hiatus, but now it's time for another list.

things that are awesome right now:
-i found a fantastic apartment. it's a little bit in the ghetto, but i'm from fresno, so i can handle it :) it's on 21st south, which means my dream of living in sugarhouse is finally coming true. i sign the lease this weekend.
-with this new apartment comes my own room! oh yes. it is cute and has room for a queen bed (and this bedding that i already bought: http://tinyurl.com/c2amuw) and a purple wall and a giant closet and a hookup for cable, so basically i'll probably never want to leave it. well, maybe sometimes.
-long beach, fresno, disneyland, price is right, hollywood. six days.
-kate speaking in full sentences last night. "i'm gonna sit in it like a chair."
-i get to hang out with emy and boozie in like two months.
-i am graduating in 63 DAYS! my last final EVER will be taken in less than two months!
-deron williams, last night against the celtics. oh yes.
-my tax refund is content in the bank. i didn't lose my check this year, so it's safely earning, oh, .05% interest. yay.
-i am graduating and i already have a job. even in the worst job market since the great depression.

things that are less awesome:
-the amount of times i have driven to salt lake in the last three weeks. a rough estimate: 15.
-having to start paying rent. and insurance. and all those other great things.
-the next six days are going to be intense, getting ready for my trip and getting all my homework done so i can do nothing while i'm gone.
-that midterm i have to take on tuesday.
-and then the one i have on thursday.

yay for life changes and new cars and awesome apartments and funny little nieces and strawberry lemonade crystal light. delicious.

thank you to all of my life coaches. and to everyone who listened to me talk this thing to death. :)

and the final decision is.... stay!

yes, friends. i am remaining in provo for another few months and working a lot and trying to learn how to be better at saving money. because the thing is, if i can save more over the next couple, i can move to salt lake and not stress so much about finding a job so quickly. i can take my time and pay my rent and chill for a bit before figuring everything out. plus, then i'll be graduated and employers wouldn't have to work around my school schedule, which they clearly are not so keen on.

i hope hope hope i can find another apartment like this one though, because oh MAN it is perfect.

the other incentive to stay: i have vacation time this year that i can use for my two upcoming trips. one to long beach/fountain valley/fresno/hollywood/anaheim for my birthdayyyy and the second to MEXICO! ah, yes friends. the other fantastic piece of news is that for my graduation, my bestie is taking us on a cruise to mexico. oh man. she is pretty fantastic, to say the least :) we leave 24 may and return 29 may. i am so very excited!

so that's the plan. work for a few months, finish school and graduate, and then move. seems logical. getting my ducks in a row, and all that. sad, but logical and much safer in this job market. my dad would be so proud :)

what to do with my life, take two.

this might seem like a duplicate to a blog i posted a few months ago. but it's not; i'm just trying (again) to make a decision about my life.

i had pretty much decided that i was going to stay in provo for winter semester. finish my classes, work at my job for a couple more months, live out the provo scene until i graduate and move on. but for some reason, i kept looking at apartment listings online. most days, in fact. just to see what was available, i guess. and today i came across the most perfect apartment.

i mean, seriously. i had a list of requirements for my first post-college apartment. my parents told me i was severely limiting myself in my search because my heart is set on getting a kitty. i want an apartment that is pet-friendly, with a private balcony, under $550/month, and in either sugar house or downtown salt lake. yeah. seems impossible.

but then i found this listing online. and suddenly, i'm not sure what to do anymore! i feel like i won't find another one like this. it's ideal. so, back to square one. should i stay or should i go now?

pros of moving:
-live alone. andddd live in salt lake.
-two of three classes this semester are at the salt lake center. so my commute would be twice a week for school. i already commute to salt lake at least twice a week anyway.
-see my friends up there much more frequently.
-find a new ward, since mine is no good.
-get a kitty!

cons of moving:
-must find a new job, probably make less money until i graduate.
-more expenses (deposit, rent, furniture, etc.)
-have to quit job...ughhh.

pros of staying:
-keep my job, save more money.
-12 vacation days at work.
-not have to drive to provo on tues/thurs mornings.

cons of staying:
-stay with roommates who are loud and young.

i don't know. i guess i don't have to make any decisions until i see the apartment. but the prospect of such a huge change in my life is making my head spin.
i need to go to bed.

old, old pictures.

so i was looking at this old folder on my the computer at my parents' house.
and i found a million old pictures that made me crack the heck up.

opa and buddy at the fresno house pool.

buddy and the decoy garbage.

"uhh...daw-bij?"

and these made us really miss soph-tie.

and we picture that pops was super mad about this shenanigan.

just like when sophie always had leaves stuck to her bung and would bring them in and pops would get so mad and grumble "oh sophie" while vacuuming them up many times per day.

oh how i miss fresno and swimming and sophie and suitcases and tiny little james and all of those funny things of which photographs were taken and saved in this old file.

so, it has been snowing for two days. it is the grimmest of the grims indeed. i know that i live in the wrong state, considering how much i loathe the snow. (interestingly, provo got about 4 inches of snow from this storm. sugar house, where i plan to move in april, got about a foot. excellent.) but i can't fight it. snow is an inevitable part of living at the foot of the mountains. sad, indeed. but a price i must pay, i suppose.

but here are some things that counteract the grimness of the snow.

-i am officially done with my last fall semester ever!
-i am also done christmas shopping. and i found some pretty funny/awesome things. oh, and i'm the sneakiest shopper too. i bought like five things for someone who was with me! tricky...
-i bought some really fantastic christmas music on itunes/put the carpenters on my ipod, which is making it feel a bit more like christmas. (ps, thanks SO much for introducing me to the weepies, anji! i am 100% obsessed with that song on your blog. which you can listen to here)
-i am only ten days away from being able to run again! which is good, because i bought a bunch of under armour to wear when i start my training. injury-free!

so, it's supposed to snow like fifteen more feet in the next week. GREAT! can't wait to slide all the way to work tomorrow morning...

reasons why my life > any other.

i am a boring blogger.

1) i have two more weeks of my LAST FALL SEMESTER of college EVER. yeah.
2) i finished my 495 paper. "mark twain: not an anti-intellectual" (the title needs work) the paper that has been haunting my nightmares for the past three months. done.
3) my 365 paper is on one of the best books i have ever read. amazing.
4) i had the most fantastic week/weekend. it included delicious things such as: these cutest babies, downtown salt lake with bailey, not feeling like an idiot when i probably should have, rainy oregon beaches and 5k turkey trots, and 100 of the nicest compliments. :)
5) this saturday is the first one in awhile in which i do not have to work, and have no other plans. sleep in? yes please.
6) deron williams is back. oh yes.
7) it is december and was 50 degrees tonight. love.

other than that, i have the craziest week ever because of three papers being due all on the same day. woof. i probably will be in hiding for the remainder. i need some seriously good grades this semester so i can graduateeeee.

okay, well. sorry i only make lists all day long. it's what i do.