First off, Jared was not impressed that I hadn't mentioned the male counterpart of my family in being wonderful in my last posts.
Jared is wonderful! We IM every once in a while and I call him when I buy cool shoes like his (Adidas... he knew what kind of shoes they were as soon as I asked. I guess he must be smart like me). He tells me about the weather in Montana and asks how my exercising is going. Jared won't do a triathlon cuz he thinks he can't swim. I think all he needs is a little encouragement :-).
Nathan is also wonderful cuz he offers to "take care" of anyone that messes with me (can't be too specific cuz a couple people at work found my blog. Sad. Now I have to be nice). He also takes me to see a way cool Dam so I can have a Dam post. He's also always on the lookout for potential ECs. Always OK with that!
Aaron takes care of all my electronic needs and almost ALWAYS answers the phone when I call (cuz its strapped to his belt like all the nerdy engineers I work with... um... did I say that?). And my father. He calls every fast Sunday to make sure I have a current temple recommend and if I still love my car. He also worries when I road trip and calls often to make sure I am being safe and not talking on the cell phone while driving.
There... On to the books! This is gonna spill out onto another post. This post has gotten long.
Favorite Authors:
L.M. Montgomery - she is very predictable but still fun to read. My favorites: "Blue Castle", "A Tangled Web", "Rilla of Ingleside"
James Harriot - Gotta LOVE books about animals and their owners. People are so funny and I love the way he describes them. Nonjudgmental but definitely showing the humor.
Robin McKinley - Young Adult Fantasy. She used to be one of my all time favorites with "The Blue Sword" and "Beauty". Her newest YA book is called "Dragon Haven". But then I was at the bookstore and saw an adult book written by her in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy section about vampires called "Sunshine". I was so excited to find a NEW book by her! Unfortunately, it was rated R in 2 places. I was so sad because I was so enjoying the premise and story. If anyone would like to read my edited book (with white out), I can loan it to u.
Garth Nix - Young Adult Fantasy. I like his new "Keys to the Kingdom" series with each book taking place in such a different environment, but its so hard to wait for the next one! I started the Aborson series but didn't like the first book as much as the rest that followed in the series.
Cornelia Funk - I hesitated to add her as one of my favorite authors because I haven't read all her books, but I very much enjoyed the Inkheart series and just read and enjoyed "Thief Lord". I've never felt the need to read "Dragon Rider" and probably won't until someone tells me they liked it. I've never been interested in the 'Yankee in King Authors Court' plot line.
Shannon Hale - YA Fantasy. I first discovered her as a Newberry Award Winner with "Princess Academy". It was so great that I read more of her books. I loved the ones I read so much that I keep forgetting I haven't read all of hers!
Allison Croggen - YA Fantasy. I loved her initial book of "The Naming", but the series is starting to get a little long.
For the younger set Angie Sage and her Septemius Heap series. Its so funny.. kind of like Sesame Street with the Adults getting most of the jokes.
There's a start. You may notice that these are all Young Adult Books. After Robert Jordan did me in with his long and never ending series (because he passed away!), I bounced through other Fantasy/Sci-Fi books but wasn't too impressed with the ess ee ex, dumb story lines, and poor writing. There are a couple of authors that I could tell u about that I liked (Tad Williams, Kate Elliot, L. E. Modesitt (obvious ex Mormon), Juliet Marillier, Orson Scott Card) but those certainly wouldn't be in my Favorites. Then I decided I wanted to see how many of the Newberry Award winners I had read. It sure was ALOT (we had tons of them in my home.. go MOM!), but there were so many I hadn't read. This took me to the children's area at the bookstore and all the good books there. I also started listening to books on CD while I exercised. This introduced me to Garth Nix's "Keys to the Kingdom" and the "Fablehaven" series by Brandon Mull. I also listened to Sharon Creech's "Heartbeat" and really enjoyed it, but I don't think I woulda liked it if I had read the book.
OK, I could go on and on and on, but I will save that for another post. I love books but tend to stick with the Fantasy/Sci-Fi cuz if u just pick up a book off the shelf the likelihood of es ee ex is much less than any other genre.
I'll need 2 go to the library 2 write down the authors NOT to read. And perhaps some movie reviews (for Eliza).
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Ode to Melissa
As long as I'm on a roll :-)
Yesterday my oldest sister and I were talking on the phone. I was at the Book Store (I just went to see the sale on movies! I was very proud of myself for getting out of there with only Movies... over 50$'s worth of movies, but only movies nonetheless) asking about authors she liked that I didn't know about (resulting in THIS post... I'm gonna do the same thing but probably tomorrow). On the way home, we talked of other things I don't remember (again my endearing quality rears its ugly head) and Jenny asked why doesn't anyone tell you about living with the same people EVERY day? (Yup, I come from a funny family)
I told her "Jenny, the grass is always greener on the other side."
"Yes I know."
"It would be nice sometimes to have someone to come home to to tell all about my day, the crazy meetings at work, the crazy people at work, and the crazy environment at work".
It was then I realized that I do have someone like that. Many of you don't know this, but Melissa and I email EVERY day during the work week. My emails are 3 times as long as hers, but she never seems to mind. I tell her what I did the night before, my plans for the night, and crazy stories from work that she might understand as a fellow engineer. Then, on most Fridays she comes to my feather filled house (Melissa and Spree REALLY don't get along) and eats lunch with me. Now, perhaps I should not let her know how much this means to me so she feels no obligation to continue, but I do want her to know I appriciate it.
I think this is a much better way of sharing than a "thankamony" on Fast Sunday.
Thanks Melissa... and thanks to Dan for still sharing her with me! That reminds me. One of Mauvia's roommates asked Mauvia how she thought she would ever get married with me around. Good thing Mauvia met Ben while I was away for the summer.
Apparently I take ALOT of work.
Never fear, I think ALL my old roommates are now married. I should start a business. "Desperate to get married? Become my roommate and u will find your EC in THIS lifetime! And instead of his #3, you can be his #1"
BTW, do not worry about me getting my needs fulfilled. I am pretty good at taking what I need from those around me (Friends at Church and Family, BEWARE the day Melissa stops working!). One of my many talents. Hey, the Lord said not to put them under a bushel but on a candlestick to share with the whole world! Its right there in the scriptures. *halo over head*
Examples: When Birgit was here I would instigate IM conversations, although those conversations usually involved things other than work :-). Every Friday, I call my sister Bethanie so I can tell her all about my week and my plans for the weekend. Emily used to call every Saturday night on her way home from the temple and we would talk about meal options for Sunday. And then of course there is my Mother. ALWAYS willing to talk no matter when I call. And today I talked to Angela about her work prospects in the schools in Los Alamos (GO ANGELA!). Man... do I have a wonderful family or what?!?!
Yes, I thought u all would agree.
(For a post that started out about Melissa, how did it get around to my family? I must just be surrounded by wonderful people!)
Yesterday my oldest sister and I were talking on the phone. I was at the Book Store (I just went to see the sale on movies! I was very proud of myself for getting out of there with only Movies... over 50$'s worth of movies, but only movies nonetheless) asking about authors she liked that I didn't know about (resulting in THIS post... I'm gonna do the same thing but probably tomorrow). On the way home, we talked of other things I don't remember (again my endearing quality rears its ugly head) and Jenny asked why doesn't anyone tell you about living with the same people EVERY day? (Yup, I come from a funny family)
I told her "Jenny, the grass is always greener on the other side."
"Yes I know."
"It would be nice sometimes to have someone to come home to to tell all about my day, the crazy meetings at work, the crazy people at work, and the crazy environment at work".
It was then I realized that I do have someone like that. Many of you don't know this, but Melissa and I email EVERY day during the work week. My emails are 3 times as long as hers, but she never seems to mind. I tell her what I did the night before, my plans for the night, and crazy stories from work that she might understand as a fellow engineer. Then, on most Fridays she comes to my feather filled house (Melissa and Spree REALLY don't get along) and eats lunch with me. Now, perhaps I should not let her know how much this means to me so she feels no obligation to continue, but I do want her to know I appriciate it.
I think this is a much better way of sharing than a "thankamony" on Fast Sunday.
Thanks Melissa... and thanks to Dan for still sharing her with me! That reminds me. One of Mauvia's roommates asked Mauvia how she thought she would ever get married with me around. Good thing Mauvia met Ben while I was away for the summer.
Apparently I take ALOT of work.
Never fear, I think ALL my old roommates are now married. I should start a business. "Desperate to get married? Become my roommate and u will find your EC in THIS lifetime! And instead of his #3, you can be his #1"
BTW, do not worry about me getting my needs fulfilled. I am pretty good at taking what I need from those around me (Friends at Church and Family, BEWARE the day Melissa stops working!). One of my many talents. Hey, the Lord said not to put them under a bushel but on a candlestick to share with the whole world! Its right there in the scriptures. *halo over head*
Examples: When Birgit was here I would instigate IM conversations, although those conversations usually involved things other than work :-). Every Friday, I call my sister Bethanie so I can tell her all about my week and my plans for the weekend. Emily used to call every Saturday night on her way home from the temple and we would talk about meal options for Sunday. And then of course there is my Mother. ALWAYS willing to talk no matter when I call. And today I talked to Angela about her work prospects in the schools in Los Alamos (GO ANGELA!). Man... do I have a wonderful family or what?!?!
Yes, I thought u all would agree.
(For a post that started out about Melissa, how did it get around to my family? I must just be surrounded by wonderful people!)
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Ode to Mother
My oldest sister Jenny just wrote a post about my Mother. She said she was thankful our Mother loves us just the way we are. My mother says wonderful things like you do the best you can with what you got and don't ever compare yourself to others. She thinks we are wonderful!
Funny thing is, my sister Emily and I were just talking about our wonderful Mother. Emily was deciding about spending money on something (OK, so I can't remember exactly what we were talking about in her life. I only remember how it applies to my life. Its one of my more endearing traits) and I told her we already knew what our Mother would say if asked for her opinion. "Go for it! You deserve it."
For example... I went through a stage when I was buying tons of clothes. It was mostly for work, but I was feeling badly that I kept spending so much. What did my Mom say? "You deserve it! You work so you have to have a professional wardrobe". Every time I called, whether about shoes, pants, shirts she always said she was happy I was taking care of my needs. (Later she called me a clothes horse, but it was said with love)
What a great supportive Mother! I couldn't imagine a better or a kinder one. (Movie Trivia)
She may get a little crazy with medicine and doctors (those ex-nurses think you should go to the doctors regularly ....
*crickets chirping*
... no comment), but otherwise she is always willing to talk and help you feel good about urself.
Thanks Mom!
(PS... thanks Mom and Angela for boxing up my stuff and mailing it... maybe the next couple of posts will have PICTURES!)
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
The True Confessions of Winder Farm
Here is the Winder Farm Post. For those of u not "in the know" (Angela), Winder Farm started in Utah delivering fresh milk to the doorsteps of participating customers during the night. They have expanded to all sorts of organic stuff and recently into Nevada.
I signed up for Winder Farm at the Santa Run where they had a promo going (see trying to expand into Nevada) with a free cooler and a sign up fee of 10$. Subsequently, they have come to me on Monday nights bringing fresh dairy products and strawberry lemonade.
Winder Farm would be wonderful if I never needed to go to Smiths again, was way into organic foods (snicker), thought ahead for dinner ideas (hee hee), and was an organized person (HA HA HA!!).
Unfortunately, none of these things are true.
If I run out of eggs or butter or sour cream, I want it NOW. Not next Monday, NOW.
Winder Farm stuff is also pretty expensive cuz it's organic. I want to help support the farms, but perhaps in better economic times.
Also, they obviously don't provide everything I need so then I head to Smiths and buy what I need.... and more. That was one of their selling points. An end to impulse buying. But they don't even have Pepper Jack Cheese! Can you believe it? Isn't pepper organic?
So, all in all, Winder Farm is like the Schwan man. I need him to come once every 3 months... definitely not every 2 weeks and certainly not every week! I've been skipping delivery every other week and that seems to work out well. Their Strawberry Lemonade is AWESOME and so are their dairy products. I just don't go through a gallon of milk, a pound of butter, a tub of sour cream, and a dozen eggs every week.... or even really every 2 weeks.
They do sell other farm fresh stuff such as vegetables and fruits but I don't go through that stuff every week either. I ordered some lettuce 2.5 weeks ago and I still have 1/3 of it left (its still good, which is surprising!) .
And that is the true confessions of the Winder Farm. I am trying to cut down on the total amount of food I buy (There are some cans that have probably been in my pantry since I've been in Las Vegas), so Winder Farm helps me accomplish that. I don't go to Smiths every week now, but I do pay for that privilege by buying organic.
Can I interest you in signing up? We both get 10$ off our groceries 3 times in the next 3 months! :-)
PS.... Did anyone get the book reference in my title?
I signed up for Winder Farm at the Santa Run where they had a promo going (see trying to expand into Nevada) with a free cooler and a sign up fee of 10$. Subsequently, they have come to me on Monday nights bringing fresh dairy products and strawberry lemonade.
Winder Farm would be wonderful if I never needed to go to Smiths again, was way into organic foods (snicker), thought ahead for dinner ideas (hee hee), and was an organized person (HA HA HA!!).
Unfortunately, none of these things are true.
If I run out of eggs or butter or sour cream, I want it NOW. Not next Monday, NOW.
Winder Farm stuff is also pretty expensive cuz it's organic. I want to help support the farms, but perhaps in better economic times.
Also, they obviously don't provide everything I need so then I head to Smiths and buy what I need.... and more. That was one of their selling points. An end to impulse buying. But they don't even have Pepper Jack Cheese! Can you believe it? Isn't pepper organic?
So, all in all, Winder Farm is like the Schwan man. I need him to come once every 3 months... definitely not every 2 weeks and certainly not every week! I've been skipping delivery every other week and that seems to work out well. Their Strawberry Lemonade is AWESOME and so are their dairy products. I just don't go through a gallon of milk, a pound of butter, a tub of sour cream, and a dozen eggs every week.... or even really every 2 weeks.
They do sell other farm fresh stuff such as vegetables and fruits but I don't go through that stuff every week either. I ordered some lettuce 2.5 weeks ago and I still have 1/3 of it left (its still good, which is surprising!) .
And that is the true confessions of the Winder Farm. I am trying to cut down on the total amount of food I buy (There are some cans that have probably been in my pantry since I've been in Las Vegas), so Winder Farm helps me accomplish that. I don't go to Smiths every week now, but I do pay for that privilege by buying organic.
Can I interest you in signing up? We both get 10$ off our groceries 3 times in the next 3 months! :-)
PS.... Did anyone get the book reference in my title?
Sunday, January 18, 2009
A Sunday Evening Post
I learned this weekend that when you have a celebration pie, you can have a celebration candle to blow out, a celebration song sung to you, but no presents. WHERES THE LOVE PEOPLE?
OK, so I wasn't expecting any presents. The greatest present ever is a stamp with my name on it! And a wonderful friend that lets me come over and use her hot tub. And then my other friend (yes, I have 2) that comes over to play SET with me and watch me blow out my celebration candle. I like SET almost as much as I like Boggle. But Melissa isn't allowed to play Set with me anymore... just like Angela can't play Quiddler with me, and Boggle is off limits to Jenny (unless its COOL Boggle on her I-touch apple thingy). Anyone that can beat me at my own game can't play anymore. This is why I only have 2 friends. Valerie can play SET with me anytime cuz she only got one set. (don't worry, she doesn't read my blog. She's a hugely busy teacher that's working on her Masters. GO VALERIE!)
Anyway... I have nothing else to write. I haven't felt much like writing this week partly because I can't get any of the pictures off my camera. This is what I get for leaving important things at home.... like my white bra. I did wash my white exercise bra so I could go to a session and sealing at the temple on Saturday with the ward. Unfortunately, I got there about 10 minutes before the 11:00am session and they were in the process of sending it up cuz it was FULL. A couple of ladies were even sent back down for the next session. Since I didn't actually know the people being sealed, I decided just to do the 11:30am session and miss the 1:00pm sealing, but I was still pretty disappointed not to be with my ward.
Oh yes, I remember what I was going to write about! I got a new ipod! Melissa mentioned that her brother-in-law went to the apple store and got a new ipod when his was broke. My ipod was still under warranty and I got a new one!! HOW COOL IS THAT? See... all I need is one friend. :-)
Funny story, the volume on my old ipod wouldn't go up high enough so I had done everything I could to increase the volume of my songs. Guess what happened when I turned on my new ipod? You got it right. The sound just about blasted my eardrums.
K.. hopefully I'll get my taker-outer-of-pictures-off-of-my-camera-and-puter-them-on-my-computerer this week. Then I'll write more. I am just so proud of myself for not writing this at work. GO ME!
Mmm... maybe I'll write about Winder Farm sometime this week, since Eliza so obligingly asked me about it (I was hoping someone would. Thanks Eliza!).
OK, so I wasn't expecting any presents. The greatest present ever is a stamp with my name on it! And a wonderful friend that lets me come over and use her hot tub. And then my other friend (yes, I have 2) that comes over to play SET with me and watch me blow out my celebration candle. I like SET almost as much as I like Boggle. But Melissa isn't allowed to play Set with me anymore... just like Angela can't play Quiddler with me, and Boggle is off limits to Jenny (unless its COOL Boggle on her I-touch apple thingy). Anyone that can beat me at my own game can't play anymore. This is why I only have 2 friends. Valerie can play SET with me anytime cuz she only got one set. (don't worry, she doesn't read my blog. She's a hugely busy teacher that's working on her Masters. GO VALERIE!)
Anyway... I have nothing else to write. I haven't felt much like writing this week partly because I can't get any of the pictures off my camera. This is what I get for leaving important things at home.... like my white bra. I did wash my white exercise bra so I could go to a session and sealing at the temple on Saturday with the ward. Unfortunately, I got there about 10 minutes before the 11:00am session and they were in the process of sending it up cuz it was FULL. A couple of ladies were even sent back down for the next session. Since I didn't actually know the people being sealed, I decided just to do the 11:30am session and miss the 1:00pm sealing, but I was still pretty disappointed not to be with my ward.
Oh yes, I remember what I was going to write about! I got a new ipod! Melissa mentioned that her brother-in-law went to the apple store and got a new ipod when his was broke. My ipod was still under warranty and I got a new one!! HOW COOL IS THAT? See... all I need is one friend. :-)
Funny story, the volume on my old ipod wouldn't go up high enough so I had done everything I could to increase the volume of my songs. Guess what happened when I turned on my new ipod? You got it right. The sound just about blasted my eardrums.
K.. hopefully I'll get my taker-outer-of-pictures-off-of-my-camera-and-puter-them-on-my-computerer this week. Then I'll write more. I am just so proud of myself for not writing this at work. GO ME!
Mmm... maybe I'll write about Winder Farm sometime this week, since Eliza so obligingly asked me about it (I was hoping someone would. Thanks Eliza!).
Monday, January 12, 2009
More of a Suggestion than a Rule
So... Sometimes my middle name is just to remind me that I am Smart, not because it is necessarily true at the moment. Kinda like the middle names my oldest sister gives her children: the child who picks up after himself, the child who thinks before she speaks, the child who uses her brain, the child that doesn't pick her nose (OK, I made that one up).
For example,
THINGS I LEFT AT HOME
1. My Book
2. A Shirt
2. A Bra
3. My Phone Charger
4. My Camera connection to get the pictures off and onto the computer and onto my blog
5. And much much more...
Of course, I am not without resources so I went to Fry's to buy a new cord for my camera last week. Unfortunately, not all camera's are created equal and therefore not all the connecting parts are equal either. I didn't find this out until I had opened the package and tried to stick a round plug into a square inlet.
Like I said... sometimes I forget my middle name is smart.
Hence this blog rather than continuing the Holiday Saga.
A couple of other things happened this last week.
1. As I had left my phone charger at home and Fry's didn't have any "plug into the wall" type, I decided to leave the phone in the car to charge. I get busy. Next morning.... my car battery is dead (surprise surprise). Thank goodness for mothers who remind me I have a Subaru with free roadside assistance (or in this case, garage assistance). Late to work again even though I had gotten up early that day.
2. One evening, after watching the cops and robbers shows I like, I get into bed and am pretty much asleep when I think I hear something out on my porch. Then my gate courtyard gate squeaks. My mind races (as only half asleep minds can race) through all the possibilities. Robbers, Kidnappers, Murderers, Crazed Wolf, Rapist, Siberian Husky, neighborhood cats... Winder Farm delivery. Anyone heard of Winder Farm? They come by your house and drop off fresh produce during the night once a week. Yup... and open your gate so they can put it on your doorstep.
3. My computer at work crashed on me twice. SO frustrating!! I stuck my feet even further under my desk so I could lay back in my chair in frustration while the dumb thing reboots. As I do so, my leg brushes the the cords and the computer crashes again. What? Ah ha... the tower power cord was loose. All along, I had been actually turning OFF the computer.
Yup.. Smart is my middle name. I'll try to remember this week.
(The winder farm people come tonight... hope I remember)
For example,
THINGS I LEFT AT HOME
1. My Book
2. A Shirt
2. A Bra
3. My Phone Charger
4. My Camera connection to get the pictures off and onto the computer and onto my blog
5. And much much more...
Of course, I am not without resources so I went to Fry's to buy a new cord for my camera last week. Unfortunately, not all camera's are created equal and therefore not all the connecting parts are equal either. I didn't find this out until I had opened the package and tried to stick a round plug into a square inlet.
Like I said... sometimes I forget my middle name is smart.
Hence this blog rather than continuing the Holiday Saga.
A couple of other things happened this last week.
1. As I had left my phone charger at home and Fry's didn't have any "plug into the wall" type, I decided to leave the phone in the car to charge. I get busy. Next morning.... my car battery is dead (surprise surprise). Thank goodness for mothers who remind me I have a Subaru with free roadside assistance (or in this case, garage assistance). Late to work again even though I had gotten up early that day.
2. One evening, after watching the cops and robbers shows I like, I get into bed and am pretty much asleep when I think I hear something out on my porch. Then my gate courtyard gate squeaks. My mind races (as only half asleep minds can race) through all the possibilities. Robbers, Kidnappers, Murderers, Crazed Wolf, Rapist, Siberian Husky, neighborhood cats... Winder Farm delivery. Anyone heard of Winder Farm? They come by your house and drop off fresh produce during the night once a week. Yup... and open your gate so they can put it on your doorstep.
3. My computer at work crashed on me twice. SO frustrating!! I stuck my feet even further under my desk so I could lay back in my chair in frustration while the dumb thing reboots. As I do so, my leg brushes the the cords and the computer crashes again. What? Ah ha... the tower power cord was loose. All along, I had been actually turning OFF the computer.
Yup.. Smart is my middle name. I'll try to remember this week.
(The winder farm people come tonight... hope I remember)
Sunday, January 11, 2009
California Beach
Of course, the real reason Emily wanted to stay longer in California was to see the beach!!! I decided I like the beach too... ALOT. I was sad we didn't get to spend more time at it, but we'll have to go back sometime. For some reason, I didn't get any pictures of Mandy and Mitch! Ah well... Their kids are cuter anyways!
Emily took us to this cool tide pool place where there were yucky squishy sea anemones and lots of snails. Alot of the shells there were occupied! It was REALLY cold and windy until the sun went down.
Later, we went to a beach to find shells. Emily is the BEST shell finder.
I pretended to run away from the waves!
I had lots of fun... That's when I decided I like the beach. We were on our way to the airport after these pictures. When we stopped to fill the rental car up with gas, I tried to dump the sand out of my shoes, pants (where I had rolled them up), and socks. When we got on the plane, (after waiting at the ONE gate, we WALKED out onto the Jetway and climbed the stairs into the plane! how COOL is that?!?!) Emily said she still could feel sand in her socks. Not very pleasant.
These 2 pictures are out on the deck of Jamie's mother's town home where we stayed. I just want to give a BIG shout out to her mother for letting us stay there. We were the first ones to sleep there because she hadn't moved into yet! I hope she enjoyed the ice cream we left for her in the freezer (Just so u know, it was AWESOME ice cream. Peanut Butter Chocolate Haagen Daaz.... it doesn't get any better than that!).
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