I'm in Germany

Well, readers: here I am in Germany!  So far my stay has been positively "wonderbar"!  I was here for a couple of days before my Uncle Tony, Aunty Tricial and cousins Beth and Josh came out to visit my family also.  The house is full!  Mum says she likes it that way.  The boys are all crashing in the basement and Beth, U. Tony and A. Tricia are on the 3rd floor: for the first time I haven't been couch-bound because of guests!  Josh, Logan, Beth and I have take the subway into Frankfurt and enjoy some German sights... a very old car and some old town streets.

My family live outside of Oberursel, a small town in a forest on the outskirts of frankfurt.  It is the last stop on one of the main trains out of Frankfurt.  The town is very quaint and has one of the best italian ice cream and gelato shops I have ever been to!  Oberursel is a cobblestoned town centered around a beautiful church that sits in the top of a small hill.  The buildings are mainly original, dating back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.  It is very european! 

German word of the day: Schloss (castle).  We went to Heidelberg yesterday- one of the most incredible towns on my list of "incredible towns".  Sitting on the Rhine, Heidelberg is a hilly town with old cobbled streets, terra-cotta roofs and the most impressive castle ruins of all time.  

Heidleberg has a wonderschon cable car system that takes you all the way up the foresty mountainside.  Yoddle- yoddle and all of that.  We took the rickety carraige along with a handful of other tourists.  The weather was insanely hot and one of the old man- tourists let one go in the confined cabin.  Needless to say, the journey upward was a little stifled.

Regardless of such hardship, the view from the top was breath- taking.

Frankfurt itself is a great town.  There are 3 H&M stores on one street.  There goes my last pay check.  It is interesting to see such a defining difference between the old town and the new built town.  It is very much a hot spot for talent and culture.  And of course, great gelato.  Who would have thought?

That's it for now.  Stay tuned for more deutsch fun.  My language skills are improving by the way- I know you were all anxious about that.  Tomorrow we are going to some place that has a ton of vineyards- and of course you all know how I feel about that!  I fear I may be heartbroken to leave this place.

FYI: The Sandwich

It was brought to my attention that I had not followed through on one of my promises to wikipedia "the sandwich".  This is most regrettable.  The smartie pants who informed me of my neglect went on to explain that sanwiches are called as such because, back in the day (in England no less) there was a certain Lord Sandwich who, like many an aristocratic brit, had a little gamboling problem.  Obsessed with the game and finding little time to eat, Lord S asked his servants to just bring him a couple of slices of bread within which he would put food for a quick snack on the go.  Rather  convenient for the avid gambler, wouldn't you say? 

FYI From Afar

A little update for you, my fans.  I am here in Germany after a number of incredibly irritating delays including exploding toilets and re-routing to locations such as Great Britain (wasn't planning on that little detour...).  Today my luggage finally arrived.  

It is an incredible feeling to be back with my family for a couple of weeks!  I'll try to keep you all updated on my adventures!

Haili and I: Sunstroke in Santa Monica

This is Not a Joke

The following was a letter sent to The Daily Universe, our school newspaper.
Letter: Swimming pornography
Wed, 08/05/2009 - 21:15

I was horrified by the photo of Michael Phelps that appeared in The Daily Universe on Monday. Phelps, a rather muscular and good looking man, was shown shirtless along with another attractive swimmer.
Doesn’t The Daily Universe understand the women of BYU’s campus cannot lead virtuous lives with clean thoughts when they’re presented with pornography at every turn?
What makes this problem even worse, though, is the fact that male sports teams all across campus routinely practice with their shirts off. Perhaps men, in their own purity and innocence, don’t understand how the female mind works. Seeing a woman in a bikini has no effect on a man, so he doesn’t understand what it does to a woman when she sees a topless man.
Let me explain: unlike men, we can only control our thoughts to a point. When men walk around half-naked, they turn themselves into pornography, and thus they tempt us.
So, out of my deep love and respect for the men on this campus, I beg them: please stop turning yourselves into pornography. Show yourselves enough respect to cover up and save the sight of your naked torso for your wife. Besides, women need you to be the gate-keepers of chastity.
Emily BelangerLee, N.H.

We Went to California

As many of you will already know, Haili and I embarked on a little adventure to California (having been in need of some serious relaxation and a having a general get-me-out-of-Utah mood for the past 4 months). These are the highly anticipated pictures for you, my dedicated blog stalkers. Above is Haili and myself in the car, poring over a map (something we did A LOT), eating at the apparently famous In-N-Out Burger (I've had better) and laughing (another thing we did a lot). I took that epic picture just outside of Vegas (in a moving car- talentssss) and the palm trees are supposed to be significant of our arrival to L.A.
We stayed in Santa Monica for a few nights with some of Haili's friends and took in the sights, went shopping etc...

Of course, being the busy women that we are, there was much work to be done. This was a serious business trip on many levels. Haili did some music stuff (and I did some too), I tried my hand at directing, Hails and I were asked to judge a couple of episodes of American Idol (tune in next season!) and Haili accepted an award for something or other. We also swung by the Kodak Theater for a premier.

All of our hard work was rather tiresome, so we retreated to the beach for some "down time" as the Americans call it. The ocean was fabulous- I miss living so close to it- and the scenery (see central picture) was more than satisfactory. Many thanks to our hosts who provided us with Aloe Vera for obvious reasons...

Of course we acted like tourists on our vacation. I might suggest that it is near impossible for anyone to walk down Hollywood Blvd without looking like a tourist. We watched a movie at Manns Chinese Theater, met a few comic book heroes, and swung by some iconic spots.

We tried to appreciate the Walk of fame, crowded as it was. Michael Jacksons star was rather en-shrined due to recent happenings (R.I.P.)...

We managed to drop in on the L. A. Temple, and later on the Newport Beach Temple. Beautiful! The Newport temple was so different to most. I liked it a lot.

Alright, alright: the splurge of the week was Madame Tussaud's. The collages are rather tight, so just click on the image to enlarge it. Fancy, yes?

We went to a party and met some people- Justin Timberlake was a bore, Jim Carey was a riot, Will Smith was darling, Pierce Brosnon didn't shut up about how he was robben of Casino Royale, and the Zafron was a dream. Just kidding! This is still at Tussauds...

... As is this. The "Really Real" awards go to Whoopi Goldberg, Merryl Streep and Jim Carey.

All in all, we had a FABULOUS time and ended up staying an extra day (partly because of a blown tire and partly because we craved a little more of the beach!).

UPDATE

A couple of things: I am back from CALIFORNIAAAAAAA (more about that later though), looking forward to my trip to Germany and desparately needing to do the dishes at home (sorry Thalia!). Also I came up with a personal slogan which embodies my work ethic: I Don't Help Brats. The End.

Quote of the Day

Kristin at work was stuffing an envelope and sealing it.

"I got lip gloss on this envelope. I'm going to have to redo it because it's going to a prisoner. It's jail-mail. I don't want to give him anything here..."

New Arrival

This is a new blog made aware to me by one of my lovely co-workers. The above are some of my favourite highlights. When you are stuck at a computer for 9 hours a day, this site is a god-send. Enjoy the hilarity, and contribute your pics!

Work, Work, and House Work

Cleaning Checks are a dreaded time at apartment 88.  This is me, getting my clean on.  My assignment was the Bathroom- gross- and those begloved hands were- brace yourselves- in the loo.  Note to self: buy a toilet brush.

This is me after work today.  Don't I look impressed with life?  I took a nap after this was taken.  Bringing home the beans is just so tough.

Spotted: My Missionary Bro!!

This is Elder McKee at the Palmyra Pageant, pictured with my relief society president and fellow FHE sisters!  Sorry for the photo stealing from facebook.  This makes me SO HAPPY!!!  What a handsome kid!!  

Hair of the Day

Prank of the Day

As most of you will know, Rich is my "Toby" (if I were Michael, of THE OFFICE). Today I let his photography skills grace the Independent Study White Board of Information. Thanks Rich, for your devotion to your job, and student advocacy.

In the News...

A young 14-year-old boy in Shanghai has been discover to be drinking gasoline to be like his hero, wait for it, Optimus Prime. Too bad now the kid has no idea what a prime number is!
His parents, who also are big gas guzzlers themselves, finally saw a problem with it when the kid couldn't add "7 and 17." Why they decided to drink the fossil fuel, they don't say, but they finally brought the kid to a doctor.
According to the physician at the Shanghai hospital, "the gasoline contains a lot of lead, which can do harm to people's brains. To make thing even worse, the boy is in the physical development stage, and the lead has caused serious damage to his body."

DeadDonalds

PUT DOWN YOUR MICKEY D'S BURGER!! A 40-year-old woman was found dead today in a machine at the food processing plant where she was an employee.
Located in the City of Industry, a suburb east of Los Angeles, the plant is a major supplier for McDonalds restaurants. In fact, the food processing company developed the famous Big Mac special sauce in the 60s.
The death appears to have been an accident.

Awkward Family Photo of the Day

HA. Is everyone excited for Christmas? I think it is my favourite holiday of the year.

Texas Cheese

I was making a cheese sandwich (why are they called "sandwiches" anyway? I'll wikipedia it.) and i was breaking the cheese just randomly when I realized that this shape had been unknowlingly formed. Shout out to Jules.

3-D: The Way of the Future

Just so you all know: Peter Jackson has said that from now on he will only commit to making 3-D movies. Having experienced my first 3-D movie recently (UP- very good, go see it). 3-D movies are going to be the newest thing. Which is oddly unsettling if I think about how long it took my eyes to adjust to the scree. AND if you consider how difficult it must be to make a 3D movie. I am interested to know just HOW it's done. But not interested enough to research it.

We're a Sophisticated Bunch...

For FHE this week a small group of us headed up onto campus for an art exhibition for one of Ashley's friends. It was magnificent. The artist was sincerely talented. I didn't know if it would be "kosher" to take photographs of her art... so I didn't... but here are a few of us being cultured. Well, eating mainly. There was a chocolate fountain.

Monday Evening at the Park

A few of us headed to the park one gloriously warm Monday evening to play cards, frisbee, take photographs of Kevin Costa, and kick the kids off the jungle gym. This is us, probably far to old to be having so much fun.

Haili Plays at Guru's

As you will remember, I notified you all of Haili's show at Guru's. Here are some snaps of the happy occasion. Haili and her roommate Morgan both played while Moana, Barrett, myself and other friends sat back and enjoyed Guru's famous sweet potato fries (YUM!), and Rich amused himself with my camera.

Wardrobe Peek of the Day

Here's a peek at 2 new purchases that I scored while sale shopping this summer. Thank you to GUESS and Nine West.

2 Days to California LOVE!

Haili and I are leaving for LA on Thursday!

Because Some of You Have Been Wondering...

A Day in the Life of Me, Summer Version, Current

5.30am Alarm goes off

6.ooam I give up on hitting "snooze"

6.30am Finished getting ready for work, grad a granola bar and head out to work

7.00am Clock in at work- check the news, a few favourite blogs, read scriptures

11.00am Lunch Break- wherein I sometimes go to the library to take back books/ check books out, go to the post office, call my aunt, write to Alastair, eat luch and/or lay out in the sun

12.00pm Clock back in at work

4.00pm Clock out and head home

4.30pm grab a book, towel and sun screen and head to the pool- check mail on the way- set up lounging station at the pool and read/ tan/ swim

6.00pm Change and go on bike ride/ run errands

7.00pm Shower and get ready for social engagement- which usually means an adventure with Haili and other friends, but is sometimes replaced with the occasional date (frequently? whatever...)

USUALLY home by 10.00pm (unless... I'm not...), chat with roommate, check email

10.30pm Hot tub/ Sauna jaunt

11.00pm Shower/ PJ time, sometimes watch an episode of FRIENDS

11.30 Sleepiness

3.00am wake up, get a drink, go back to bed

A Word...

Well readers (all 8 of you): I would just like to say that despite the rather random foul mood that I seem to be in these past 2 days; I really have an appreciation for my life right now. I have a great job and wonderful friends, a fantastic family who love me, and beautiful weather. And a pool and hot tub. And books. And great food. And Anna's bike that allows me to take epic bike rides most days. And a camera that I don't use enough. And great music that moves me. Life is good!

In the News: China Stops Shock Therapy For Internet Addicts

China's Health Ministry has ordered a hospital to stop using electric shock therapy to cure youths of Internet addiction, saying there was no scientific evidence it worked.Linyi Mental Health Hospital in eastern Shandong province used the treatment as part of a four-month program that has so far treated nearly 3,000 youths, the China Youth Daily newspaper has reported, citing the psychiatrist who runs it, Yang Yongxin.The ministry said in a statement posted on its Web site late Monday there is no domestic or international clinical evidence that electric shock therapy helps cure Internet addiction (see link below to read the rest of this article).

People of the Day: Logan and Connor

This is Connor. This picture is the epitome of his character. Interpret how you will. He's probably one of my favourite people ever- and I think I would like my kids to be as funny as he is.

This is Logan. What a stud. I stole this picture from his facebook (which means it came from someone else... sorry about the slight stalkage) and was delighted to note that Alastair's Will-Smith-early-90s fashion flair hadn't rubbed off. How stylish is he?! I'm telling you: Logan is the British Zac Efron (minus the movie fame, musicalness and uncool g/f).

Quote of the Day

Hollie and Haili are at work playing Mash.

Hollie: OOH! We should pre-prepare a whole book of MASH for the roadtrip to LA!
Haili: THAT is the BEST idea you have EVER had.

Awkward Family Photos is on a Roll...

Words cannot express how grateful I was for this today. HILARIOUS.

Occupation of Time...

Well, I hate to admit it, but the thing that has been occupying my time at work this week (besides the usual blog stalkage of fail, awkward family photos, eonline, the news etc.), is Stephenie Meyer's latest Project, MIDNIGHT SUN. It is basically TWILIGHT, but in Edward's eyes. She has posted the first 200 or so pages on her website, and the girls in the office are hard at work becoming familiar with the hero's mind. I maintain that Robert Pattison doesn't quite fit it as Edward. I wish I could have it on paper infront of me so that I could scribble out all of Meyer's mistakes as I go through it (I HOPE it is an unedited draft that she has posted). And... I am sincerely embarassed to be so very interested in it!

Senile Moment of the Week

WELL. After work I ran down to the pool with my scriptures and my Preach My gospel. Read a little, tanned a little, swam a little- the usual. Anyway this morning I got up a tad late and started to pack my bag for work- realized my scrips were missing and began to panic slightly. Of course this is the usual for me- "misplacing" items (another reason I miss my roommate Anna: she knows where all of my things end up). I searched high and low and no success. Where were they? The pool.

Awkward Family Photo of the Day

Velcro fun. I LOVE this picture. Firstly, whoever invented the velcro suit is a legend. Secondly... well just look!

Google of the Day

Hannah Davis, a new work friend, and I are googlers, officially. Today I typed in "mansion" and this Redneck mansion came up. Fabulous.

Haili Gregson at Guru's, July 9

Haili, my incredibly talented bestie, is playing a show at Guru's (on center street) on thursday. Hails and i will be going to LA later this month and we could very possibly "make it" in which case-- we are never coming back. So come and see her on thursday (over some of Gurus sweet potato fries- yum!) because it might be your last chance before you have to pay a gazillion bucks for a fancy concert hall ticket.

The Man-Suit

For any men out there blog stalking: This is how the suit ought to be done: fitted, fitted, fitted. Too many of you out there wear suits that are far too big. The 80's (and 90's) are over. Take notes from Ryan above. You're Welcome.

Pakistan: Taliban buying children for suicide attacks

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- A top Taliban leader in Pakistan is buying and selling children for suicide bombings, Pakistani and U.S. officials said.

In the video of a training camp, children can be seen killing and going through exercises.
Mehsud has been selling the children, once trained, to other Taliban officials for $6,000 to $12,000, Pakistani military officials said.

Some of the children are as young as 11, the officials said.
"He has been been admitting he holds a training center for young boys, for preparing them for suicide bombing. So he is on record saying all this, accepting these crimes," said Major General Akhtar Abbas, spokesman for the Pakistani army.

The young suicide bombers may be able to reach targets unnoticed, the military said.

Read the rest of this tragic story at cnn.com

My 4.30- 6.00

THIS is where I spend my early evenings with my ipod (currently playing the transformers soundtrack, anya marina and *cough* the ying yang twins [edited]). I love the dessert in summer. And having a pool.

Movie Reviews of the Week

First of all, let me express my appreciation for Dollar Movie Theaters. I quite enjoyed informing my good friend Malika Toure (there's an accent on her "e", but my keyboarding skills are not quite ready for that) that where she, in New York City, pays up to $10 for a movie, the good people of Cinemark have acknowledged that we in Provo are not quite as tolerant of the Box Office. As such, they have kindly provided us with a lovely theater that we may enjoy for only $1 on weekdays (50 cent mondays) and $2 at the weekend.

And now, the movies of the past week (please note that I do not usually go to the movies so often as I have this past week. There is no real reason...)

X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Kevin Costa took me to see this delightful boy-movie. As seems to be the right of my sex, I must admit that I quite enjoy a good chick flick. However, I think growing up with my boys, I have learned to appreciate the "boy-movie". Wolverine was everything it promised to be: action packed, testosterone filled and comic savvy. According to its innate purpose (to be the saturday morning comic cartoon style movie), it fulfilled its duty and I think did so very well. Some observations: why isn't the lead girl in anything huge by now? She was quite spectacular. Ryan Reynolds (as always) did not disappoint- his sword skills blew me away (as did his biceps, let's be honest. Another reason to frown about Scarlett Johansson). Liev can actually pull off the fangs. The memory erase was such a cop-out. Hugh's performance was engaging and I was rather relieved to note that his hair wasn't in that awful devil-style that he tried to rock in the X-Men movies.

Brothers Bloom. Thanks to my lovely roommate, Thalia, for introducting me to this trailer. even more thanks to the Dollars for not charging me $8. This was one of those movies that I don't think enjoyed enough credit for what it offered: a great adventure story, some incredibly hilarious lines, wonderful characters and impressive writing. I very much enjoyed Mark Ruffalo in a role other than the passive submissive silent type that gets his heart broken in every other movie he does. Adrien Brody and Rachel Weiss had genuine working chemistry that drove the plot. This was yet another flick that made my pen hand itch, and lived up to everything a movie should be. Go see it!

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. Despite a few good laughs, this movie was regrettably... well, regrettable. If the direction that the Chick Flick is going these days is into an abyss of highly sexually charged abuse on the female character: count me out. A few people in the theater got up and left- I wanted to stand and applaud them. Matthew McConaughy seems to tigh-cast himself in every movie he does, so his character was predictable- but still managed to shock me with how despicable he was. If this is how men think and act, my faith in the human race is dwindling. Of course, I understand what message the writer was trying to get across- that that sort of behaviour from a man will get him nowhere in love or life. But really, what man would go see a movie titled "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" without being dragged there by his girlfriend? I was not impressed- and glad I only paid $1. There was a time when movies set out to woo the audience. Now they seem intent on disappointing under the guise or "realism".

Family Photo of the Day

Thanks to awkwardfamilyphotos.com for this deligthful family shot that had me in stitches today. words can't express how truly awkward this is.

Fail of the Day

This got me giggling at my desk today. Thanks once more to failblog.

The Daily Shout- Out

My Lavulo family! For obvious reasons (see above) I miss my funny cousins Princess William and King Kati (love the choice of crowns, guys!) and A. Jules (a.k.a. Laban). So today's shout out goes to them, for their inspirational creativity and cute faces.

Thanks to Jules' blog for the pics (stole them).

Picture of the Day

For some reason this picture gets me a little excited for the new Harry Potter movie...

FHE Water Fight

Andrea's group had a water fight planned for their FHE activity. Who ever heard of a planned water fight?? So I decided to take a "personal day" from work and spent the day filling 350 water balloons. My lovely FHE group ambushed Andrea's group, and a whole score of water fun ensued. Many thanks to Kari's facebook page for these pictures.

Happy Wedding Day Loren and Anne!

Today is Loren and Anne's Wedding Day!

Congrats guys.

The above is what google came up with when I typed in "Loren and Anne". Apparently There is a powerful art couple named Loren and Anne and they collect art from all over. they got this one from Fritz Scholder. I thought it was appropriate as Loren and Anne appreciate art. Their wedding reception last night was artistically themed: friends and family displayed art on the walls around the room. It was really interesting for the guests to enjoy that, and to make their own art for Loren and Anne rather than signing a guest book.

So here's to an eternity of appreciating beautiful things together!

My Dream Summer

Last night Devon and I attended a lovely wedding reception for one of our close friends (congrats Loren and Anne!), and on the way home I decided to confide in him one of my dream summer plans. Upon sharing my idea, I was met with uncontrollable laughter which I thought was really rather discouraging! In fact, Devon thought that shovelling horse poo would be much more fun.

What would be so horrid about working at a vineyard for the summer? It would be an incredibly rewarding experience, learning the value of patience and hard work, checking on the grapes and walking up and down the rows all day. You could wear a pedometer and count the steps you take in one day- it would be great excercise! I also pointed out that you would get a lovely tan.

Furthermore, squishing the grapes to make grape juice would be exquisite fun, you could paint or read or write in the beautiful scenery when you were sick of the grapes and you could make lots of new friends and listen to their stories all day long. AND if you were in love, it is the perfect scenery for romance.

FINALLY: most fertilizers are made of horse poo, so I don't see why he wouldn't enjoy it. I have such stubborn friends.