this week's simple moments - transportation edition

1.  while sitting on the bus i saw a man drop a jacket, another man grabbed it, ran to the man, and handed it to him with a smile
2.  chose to ride the subway home where i saw a middle aged man in full clown costume and makeup (but without the wig - thank goodness) grab his briefcase and get on the uptown 6 train to read the New York Times
3.  sang along to numerous boy band hits while driving in clare's beloved daisy, which is the perfect vehicle for boy band singing and dancing
4.  wanted to walk home on tuesday evening but wasn't wearing flip flops so alas...
5.  had one of the saddest train rides ever on saturday morning.  the train took me back to new york city after saying farewell to one of my best friends before she moves to utah.  truly hated that train ride.

a little bit of city shaking

about 2pm today there was an earthquake in new york city.  the epicenter was in virgina.  the funny thing was how nervous everyone got.  to me it really wasn't a big deal because i've been through numerous earthquakes based on my youth in the bay area of california.  i was the calm, cool and collected one in the office while the "lived all my life on the east coast" peeps became absolutely unhinged by about 8 seconds of shaking.

around 3pm i went outside to get some air.  was sitting on 6th avenue when a woman came up to ask myself and the woman next to me if we had felt the earthquake.  we both said yes and so she asked where we were when we felt it.  the woman next to me said how she was nervous by the shaking.  i told her i was from the west coast so it didn't match any of the others i had previously been in.  can you guess which one of us the nbc4 news channel lady chose to interview on camera?  i'll give you one guess.

happy anniversary to me

this past wednesday was the 10 year anniversary of my graduation with a BA in art history from brigham young university.  i remember the day clearly.  it was gorgeous.  my family and i had to get up at the crack of dawn for my commencement ceremony and diploma distribution held at the de jong concert hall in the HFAC.  i also remember a man approaching me and offering $150 if i would give him my cap and gown so he could be done with his studies.  there was absolutely NO way i was going to make that trade because the cap and gown i wore symbolized lots of hard work, friendships, conversations, education, social interaction, spiritual growth and independence. 

i'll sometimes say that byu for me was the best and worst years of my life.  i think that is the truth about most people and their college experiences.  i definitely gained an education but what i am most grateful for is the people i met and befriended.  those bonds are as strong as ever even though i rarely if ever see my friends anymore.  somehow the things that drove me crazy about my time there have slipped out of my memory.

my choice to apply to only one school after high school paid off and continues to be a blessing as i watch my nephews and nieces develop a love for byu.  still seems kinda crazy that i am the only byu graduate of my siblings after all of the annual summer treks my family took to worship at the cougareat, deseret towers and richards building.

so thank you byu. my time spent in a relationship with you gave me opportunities to know amazing people, study hard or not at all as the case may be, cheer loudly for the byu cougars in the football stadium, marriott center or fieldhouse, live on my own for the first time, develop an everlasting and extremely special relationship with my grandpappy and grandma jewel, learn about financial responsibility and give me experience to lead me on my life's journey which ultimately led me home to new york city.

a very happy 10th anniversary to me and byu.  i think i'll celebrate with a cupcake from magnolia bakery.

personal realization #6

i have this recurring nightmare...i'm getting married but don't want to marry the man but can't call it off.  it is an absolutely horrible feeling to know something isn't right but not changing it.  or feeling powerless to change it.  well last night i had a variation of this nightmare.  instead of knowing the man i was marrying i was instead marrying by proxy meaning someone else stood up during the ceremony.  i had no idea who i was marrying.  can't imagine making the choice to marry someone you don't know.  woke up thinking singledom wasn't such a horrible scenario after that nightmare variation.

i always remember my dreams.  not sure why that happens.  i will sometimes try to stay asleep so that i can finish the dream.  have remembered my dreams since i was a youngster.  the scary part is that on multiple occasions i've had dreams that have later happened.  i think it is a blessing to help prepare me for something that is possibly going to be difficult.  really truly and sincerely hoping this scenario doesn't happen in real life.

so what does this recurring nightmare mean?  do i want to get married but terrified about my ability to choose the right person?  are my skills to make changes if i feel something isn't right seriously lacking?  am i too likely to make others happy at my own expense?  did my parents' divorce completely warp me regarding marriage and should i get into therapy ASAP?  any thoughts blog-o-sphere peeps?  any takers on analyzing my recurring nightmare?

head on fire portrait

clare took this picture of me from my birthday in the park.  loved the light beaming on top of my head and i wasn't even wearing my tiara at the time.

crossing the pond!

going to london!  we couldn't let the royal wedding derail our plan for a trip to the UK this year.  excited to fly across the pond!  i'm sure october is just as beautiful a month to travel to the british isles as is april.  ready to dive with both feet into the british life.  mostly ready to listen to men speak to me in a british accent and pretend they are mr. darcy, captain wentworth, mr. thornton, mr. rochester, etc.  so now you know the truth...i bought a ticket to london to hear men talk in a british accent.  have no regrets for that choice.

also we bought tickets to see les miserables in the west end because alfie boe is starring as jean val jean.  he was the amazing singer who performed the role for the 25th anniversary concert at the O2.  exceptionally excited to see this man in the flesh performing songs that made me fall in love with theater.  it's ok to be jealous right now.  :)



just a little over a couple of months until our trip.  now just have to find the best and most cost effective 2 bedroom flat we will be renting for the week because it is just a better deal than a hotel room.  trust me. 

still open to any suggestions of great day trip suggestions.  plan to head to bath and possibly edinburgh, scotland.  but netter will be the one doing all the driving.

this week's simple moments

1.  walking past long line of people waiting to buy tickets to a movie - i opted to use the kiosk inside where there was no line
2.  taking a "roller coaster" bus ride home along the torn up/about to be paved madison avenue
3.  putting my rockefeller center priviledge card to good use for a $3 discount to top of the rock
4.  keeping my cool while stuck in a cab veering through horrible traffic on way to see "crazy stupid love" at kips bay AMC theater
5.  water trough set up outside my office for people to fill their water bottles with good tasting NYC tap water
6.  wearing my bright red lipstick twice
7.  making it through one of the longest work weeks of my life
8.  co worker getting me four free tickets to see the Andrea Bocelli concert in central park on september 15th!
9.  no impulse purchases to celebrate my birthday (i.e. no HDTV, chair, pearls, etc)
10.  fake fighting with clare on the street where an older couple said "we need to walk away from them" - it was hilarious and kinda awesome

my birthday through pictures

and there you go...my birthday 2011.  thanks to netter and clare for playing with me for the entire weekend and letting me take their picture over and over again.  you are the best friends a girl can have.

why hello british boys who dance...

i am fully invested in "so you think you can dance" this summer.  been highly enjoyable.  every time i watch these shows i just want to bust a move. 

recently i learned the brits introduced the show to their bbc owned television viewers.  while trolling for routines by our friends across the pond i found the below top 4 guys group routine stood out.  it was choreographed by mandy moore and coincidentily she used a good portion of the routine for tadd and all star lauren's jazz number last week.

love me some men with british accents who know how to shake their groove thing.  am i right or am i right?  behold, for your viewing pleasure...



also because i have generally always enjoyed mandy's routines, i am sharing another standout performed last week by an amazing dancer named melanie (wink wink) and the always hot tamale train rider, neil.  doesn't hurt that the song chosen is a guilty pleasure of mine. 

personal realization #5

this personal realization comes courtesy of linkin park.  and i "realized" this part of my personality prior to this post on friday, july 29th at 3:53pm...

when i like something - be it a band, song, movie, book, culinary dish, etc. - i tend to become obsessive about it.  literally can't get enough of it and want to share my obsession with others.  here are some perfect examples:

*nsync - ages 21 - 24; would buy EVERY magazine they were even mentioned in, stood outside Media Play early in the morning to buy their "celebrity" album (actually bought two copies - one for car and one for home), have 10 VHS tapes full of their appearances on talk shows, performance specials, MTV making the video episodes, etc.

"the work and glory" series by Gerald N. Lund - my mom had pushed me to read these books for quite some time, finally relented and read 7 of the 9 books in 8 days; still one of my favorite book series about family, struggle, faith, and perserverance

alias starring jennifer garner, victor garber & michael vartan - this television show was the very first one where i reached obsession levels; would record the episodes each sunday and read fan fiction, trolled message boards for spoilers, bought a ticket to disneyland because actors from the show were doing a panel for ABC, forced multiple friends to sit through endless hours of episodes about SD-6, the covenant, milo rambaldi and most importantly sydney & vaughn's love story



grimaldi's pizzaria in brooklyn - the best pizza i have ever had; during one of big lug's visits to the city i made him wait for 40 minutes in the pouring rain to get a taste of this divine combo of bread, sauce, cheese and meat; spent one birthday ordering a pie for take out and then walking across the brooklyn bridge while eating it AND i just found out they opened one on 21st and avenue of the americas - woo hoo!

i could add to this list new kids on the block, gilmore girls, friday night lights, the actor and the housewife by shannon hale, lord of the rings movies, wicked broadway musical, jimmy eat world (who i have seen 9 times in concert) and on and on.  pretty sure i become obsessive about these types of things because they are a fun outlet that takes me away from the grind of daily living. 

please forgive me if i try to force my latest obession upon you against your will.  i just like to share things that i love and make me happy with others.  so in actuality you should feel honored that i care enough about you to want to make your life that much happier.  so this personal realization is yet another study on my generous and giving nature...

this week's simple moments

1.  brought my lunch every day but friday to save some dollars for weekend
2.  after my book club stood on the corner of lexinton & 91st until midnight talking to a friend about life, love and the pursuit of happiness
3.  saw the amazing War Horse at lincoln center with my friend then walked home through the park laughing and talking
4.  planned my birthday celebrations
5.  took a nap on saturday from 2:30pm - 6:45pm - oh yeah!

self portrait in a melancholy mood

the difficulty of a birthday plan

my birthday is on sunday.  woot woot.  i'm really excited to celebrate in the city with my homies.  obviously since it's my birthday my friends have deferred to me to plan the activities, eating locations, times to get out of bed, etc.  i'm struggling with deciding what to do, when to do it, what to eat, who to invite to participate and the hardest part of all, what i want for my birthday.

i've narrowed down the activities to a manicure/pedicure, lunch at the cheesecake factory, light shopping at target, going to a showing of crazy stupid love, sleeping in until at least 10:00am, viewing the cityscape at dusk at top of the rock, going to a stylist to get my hair washed and blown out, playing rock band and taking pictures while wandering through the park.  the food choices still alude me as well as what kind of cake i want my candles to sit upon. 

big lug asked me what i wanted for my birthday and i came up with a big fat nothin'.  in all honesty the things "i want" for my birthday are luxury items that no one is going to buy for me right now, including myself.  any takers to buy me any of the following:

clara chair from crate & barrel - $1,099

brighton queen bed from crate & barrel - $699.99

sharp aquos 46" LCD-LED 120 Hz HDTV at best buy - $1,079

mikimoto 16" strand with white gold - $2,600

bose surround sound system - $599

pretty sure i won't find any crate and barrel boxes or velvet jewelry cases heading my way and i'm perfectly content with that.  these are luxury items that i don't need but want.  therefore, i beseech all to believe me when i say i would love a heart felt card, picture of you emailed to me, a phone call or facebook post for my birthday. 

i will just work hard and save so that hopefully by my next birthday one of the above will be in my possession.

ode to central air

my apartment has two window a/c units.  one for the living room/kitchen and one for my bedroom.  it is imperative to keep the bedroom door closed when running its a/c unit.  this traps all of the cold air so it cools down that room quickly.  it is also important to turn on the a/c at least 30 minutes prior to sleepy time. 

the unit currently in the bedroom was a hand me down a/c from the previous apartment tenants of artiste and california lady.  it has worked great for the past two years.  unfortunately the machine died on one of the hottest days i've ever experienced as a new yorker.  the lights were on but nothing was happening so i was forced to sleep on my couch in the living room.  not ideal.

that night i bought an a/c unit online at best buy.com to make sure they didn't run out during this colossal heat wave.  picked up the new a/c unit on saturday but the crazy thing is now the old machine is working just fine!  i don't get it.  one day i get nothing when i desperately need it and now i get all the cold air i could want.  so do i keep the new a/c and put the old one on the street for a lucky soul to pick up or take the new a/c unit back via a cab to the best buy on 86th and lexington?

if only i had an apartment with central air...

this week's simple moments

1.  wore my hair in a bun on top of my head for three days because of extreme heat
2.  had first Relief Society Presidency meeting where our star of her own cooking channel show RS President made dinner for us - another example of a life experience win/win
3.  air conditioning unit in bedroom died on one of the hottest nights of the year.  not awesome.
4.  fell asleep on the couch more than once this week at around 6:30pm
5.  finished reading "the alchemist" in preparation for book club next wednesday

change is good, right?

generally i'm not a huge enjoyer of change.  something about the unknown that can be absolutely terrifying.  a full blown panic attack occurred when i was informed about the change described below.

bishopric 1st counselor and executive secretary came over to have a bit of a chat last wednesday night.  i thought they were going to switch up things in Primary by releasing me from the secretary position; which i've held for 3 years.  well i was right...they did release me but then they asked me to take on the responsibility of something else entirely.  as of sunday, july 17th i am the 1st counselor in the relief society presidency of my ward.  if your jaw is hanging open based on shock after reading that last sentence then you have a small snippet of what i felt when they told me this.  couldn't speak for roughly 3 minutes.  i'm excited but totally terrified.  doesn't help that i'm the oldest member in age of our presidency.

bishopric man thought he'd sweeten the deal by asking me to share a short 5 minutes testimony in church last sunday.  that made me more comfortable than the weekly relief society stuff.  so i thought of some things and wrote them down but didn't put a ton of effort in my preparation.  i was mortified when i saw my name in the sacrament meeting program like i was an actual speaker!  somehow i made it through my "talk" about love.  even managed to out myself from the pulpit as an obsessed 'nsync fan back in the day.  love when your brain totally disconnects from the words coming out of your mouth.  awesome.

really excited to work with the women at church and make some more friends.  any pointers are greatly appreciated from those that have served in this capacity.  looking at you joani...

the magic of a cover

been totally obsessed with music by linkin park recently especially tracks from their new album like "iridescent" and "burning in the skies."  i've never seen them live.  it's a pity.  which made the opportunity to watch a live feed of their iTunes Festival performance pretty exciting for me.  another reason why i love technology. 

during their performance on america's birthday they did a cover of the totally awesome adele's "rolling in the deep."  when this song was first released i used to blast it from my living room speakers.  my level of glee as chester began to sing it was off the charts.  to make my joy even more fulfilled, iTunes released linkin park's performance as an EP!  oh happy day.  now the masses can carry the goodness with them always. 

this week's simple moments

1.  harry potter and the deathly hallows screening with a cast q & a
2.  again realizing that jet lag is a pain in the you know where
3.  realizing my updated time warner cable iPad app allows me to change the channel on my TV.  whoa!
4.  saw Sister Act on friday night- hysterical
5.  hanging out with clare for the entire weekend

a cautionary tale

my flight to utah on saturday morning was at 7:00am from JFK.  this meant i needed to be out the door and in a cab by 5:15am at the latest.  which required a 4:00am wake up call.

got up just fine on saturday morning.  did my usual stuff to get ready for th travel and vacation including blow drying and then curling my hair.  because my curling iron was hot i placed it in my freezer to cool it down before packing it away in my suitcase.  i had done this before to great results.  just not a smart move to put in a warm or hot item in your suitcase where it can cause damage. 

only problem with placing the curling iron in the freezer is you need the mental capability to remember it is there prior to departing.  i remembered the curling iron was in the freezer while being driven by joani to sweet tomatoes for lunch after arriving in utah.  whoops. 

texted netter and my friend who had family staying in my apartment to please remove the curling iron from the freezer.  figured my idiocy would be taken care of by one of them.  well, upon returning back to my home and sleeping off the red eye flight for 5 1/2 hours on sunday morning i opened up my freezer and lo and behold there was the curling iron. 

let the iron thaw from its adventure in the freezer for three days.  today is the first day i attempted to plug it in and use it.  thankfully all systems were go.

the funny part of this story happened on monday during lunch when receptionist told me she did the same exact thing two weeks before when she went on her greek honeymoon.  thankfully her curling iron also survived after the de-thaw. 

note to self, when placing the curling iron in the freezer grab a post it and write "curling iron" on it and place on the front door so it is highly visible prior to leaving for over a week.

summer vacation with the family

my annual summer trek to utah for vacation took place last week.  it was fantastic but went incredibly fast.  my family was very obliging with what i wanted to do as well as spent their hard earned days off to hang out with yours truly.  thank you moocher, coyote and flex.  it was awful nice of you. 

arrived saturday morning where joani picked me up (on time) and we headed to a little mommy and me lunch at sweet tomatoes before heading down to utah county.  it was moocher's birthday so we did a pizza and cupcakes celebration as well as lit fireworks to commemorate the great day of her birth and entry into our family.  it was also this evening that i taught my family the finer moments of jumping for photos.  moocher, sunshine and blake took to it really easily but flex was a little bit more hesitant as witnessed below. 

sunday was a great day of rest and family fun especially because our pseudo sister was in town from alaska.  it was great to chill with rahni again and made it feel like old times.  flex hadn't seen her since before his mission almost 10 years ago.  whoa.

monday and tuesday were chillaxing days of shopping, eating, playing tennis with flex where he crushed me  6-0 and enjoying playing with my most awesome nephews.  we lit fireworks and sparklers again but had to hurry along our celebration before the rains came.

wednesday was water park day!  the family dressed in our swimwear and headed off to seven peaks water park at the generosity of our mom, joani.  we had a cabana in an ideal location between the lazy river and wave pool entrance.  the boys were super excited and blake wanted to do all the water slides.  sunshine and i battled on the flash flood slides then she and coyote took blake and jaxon on the innertube rides.  they loved it.  somehow coyote encouraged flex and i to take the plunge on the free fall waterslide that is straight down.  my heart was racing as we climbed to the top.  coyote went first then it was my turn.  the slide takes like 3 seconds and then you're done.  it also leaves you with a little present at the end - a wedgie i have never before experienced.  coyote and i decided to ride the slide again since the wedgie was already in effect.  it was a great water park day except that flex didn't heed our advice.  he opted to put sunscreen on AFTER 30 minutes of laying out in the hot summer sun.  and now the poor guy is paying the price.  thank goodness for aloe vera gel with lidocaine.

picture taken by a brave dude on the free fall water slide

thursday and friday i went shopping with my mommy a bit.  slept in.  took a nap.  ate arby's with coyote at his work.  met up with flex and joani at cheesecake factory.  bought coloring books and crayons for the nephews.  saw my former college roommate and twin sister of rahni, chandra and her family out in saratoga springs.  beat moocher twice at settlers.  lost horridly with sunshine to joani and flex in pinochle.  took lots of pictures of my nephews.  put baby mckay to sleep twice.  introduced nephew to mr. byu and the naked indian on campus.  ate taco bell at the cougareat with joani, sunshine and the boys.  bought byu hats and shirts for the munchkins to assist in their byu love affair (or brainwashing).  watched coyote play softball in the rain, thunder and lightning thus proving my sisterly devotion.  bought utah truffles to bring back for clare.  saw cars 2 with the kiddies and watched as jaxon snuggled up to grandma joani and fell asleep for the entire movie.  got a massage.  chatted with grandpappy.  drove moocher's new audi vehicle.  did a little putt putt where i lost to joani on the last two holes.  ate at olive garden at conclusion of water park day.  lost in phase 10.  drove up in flex's truck to the airport to take the red eye home.

it was a great vacation and time with my family.  honestly felt good to not have to do anything.  also was great that i sublet my apartment to some friends for the week i was gone so gained some dollars to decrease the amount of rent i paid this month.  that's what i call a win win.

baby mckay

jaxon & sunshine enjoying the lights

 moocher and i jumping for joy at our reunion



daddy coyote jumping for joy with his boys

blake with his sparkler & a grin

byu boys wearing their new hats

me and the nephews at my alma mater

blake showing off his putt putt ball