So, for those of you who haven't heard, I went to Vegas this weekend. My roommate Amy lives there, so Kirsi, Amy, and I decided to go for the weekend! We left Friday afternoon and pulled into Vegas that evening to watch Amy's sister Sarah play a game of powderpuff football. We went to Amy's house, where we had a delicious meal, and then watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding before going to bed!
Thursday was great. We got a huge breakfast spread, then went shopping at H&M and the mall before going to the Las Vegas Strip. We walked around the Bellagio and the Forum, where I picked up a Mother's day present... :) We shared appetizers at the Cheesecake Factory for lunch. Then we just wandered around City Center and walked up and down the strip before going back to the car to avoid the drunk people that were starting to come out as late afternoon turned to evening.
Here is my take on Las Vegas, particularly the strip. There is such a huge divide. There is the overwhelming opulence of the huge hotels, some of which change their millions-of-dollar displays weekly or monthly. Then there are the beggars sitting at the side of the roads holding signs saying "I won't lie - it's for beer," and the people dressed in grungy pants and oversized t-shirts snapping cards for nightclubs and drinking parties as you walk by on the sidewalk. You can't look down or up, because those cards are scattered all over the sidewalks and there are billboards for different clubs up above the roadways. But down the street there is a M&M world playhouse for little kids, not to mention the temple only a few miles away. The marble bathrooms in the hotels are contrasted with the dirty, gum-covered sidewalks and greasy gutters. And tourists buying trinkets at the numerous jewelry stores walk right by the nightclubs where desperate people resort to desperate measures to survive. The opulent parts were cool to see, and it was fun to look at the flower displays, the choreographed water shows, and the impressive architecture. But even doing that left me with a dirty taste in my mouth. I'm not really in a position where I can do a lot to help someone overcome an addiction that is supported by begging on the side of the road. But I'm walking the same halls as the people who can ignore others and even take advantage of them, all for a little fun. I can understand why people get drunk in sin city - how could you live with yourself being there, ignoring others' suffering, without drinking your conscience away? Then that made me think - what am I doing, that I can even look down my nose at these people? It's not like I'm doing a lot to make the world a better place. I guess right now what I can do is just make everyone around me a little bit happier, and work my hardest to get in a position where I CAN help those people. It's a little hard to balance it all.
So, enough with the gloomy self-reflection. We had a fun time at the strip, and then we went back to Amy's house to watch the last half of the BYU basketball game. Unfortunately, we lost. But Amy's dad made steak and her mom made a delicious salad that reminded me of Sarah Salad, so that helped us to get over the loss. We went out and stuck our feet in the hot tub and talked for a while, about life the universe, and everything. Then we came in and watched Tuck Everlasting, which is pretty much like Twilight except that the girl makes the right choice and lives her life without giving up everything for some guy who could make her live forever. It was fun.
This morning we went to church with Amy, then came home and ate lunch before packing up and leaving. We stopped in Cedar to have dinner with Kirsi's grandparents, which was great fun. We got home late tonight, and now I need to get ready for this CRAZY week coming up. Talk to you all soon!!!
Love,
Eliza
P.S. I bet you'll be surprised - I was the first one ready to leave every time we went somewhere. When we left to go to Las Vegas, when we were going to the strip, when we went to church, and when we left Vegas for home. Ha!
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Workout clothes
So this morning I went to bed at 3:30 (paper-writing) and got up at 6:30 to the first alarm. It was crazy - a minor miracle. I went to class, where the TA didn't show and so I went do a different section of Chem 105 to do the worksheet. I am such a good student. Then I went to the gym, read political science on the elliptical, and went to basketball!
Highlights of basketball: stealing the ball from the 6'7" guy on the other team just as he was scooping it up to take the shot, making a shot from outside the key, past the free-throw line, and... well, that was pretty much it, but it was awesome. Unfortunately, we lost, but that's okay too.
After basketball I headed home to work on the paper. Learned to caramelize almonds, and they are addictive. Worked on the paper til 4:50 (it had to be turned in on-campus by 5 in order to get the minimal deduction, as it was actually due yesterday) and then threw back on my running shoes and sprinted to campus.
When I got back, I started working on cleaning checks. I really love cleaning checks. Thanks mom for teaching me to clean efficiently and effectively. I can get my work done in an hour to an hour-and-a-half compared to some girls in our building who take up to 5 hours. (And don't worry that my cleaning is sub-par. Today my RA Stephanie told me that the couch I'd vacuumed was one of the cleanest she'd ever checked.) I worked on that, throwing in some dinner of leftover corned beef and cabbage and a thirsty Thursday party at the room next door, and then had the cleaning check. But right before my RA arrived I got a new PR: my blood sugar was 30. Whoo hoo! Not really, but it gave me a great excuse to un-freeze a piece of zucchini bread :)
Oh, and exciting news for tomorrow: I'm going to VEGAS!!! Amy, Kirsi, and I are leaving at 1:30 tomorrow afternoon, and we're coming back Sunday night. It is so exciting!! Now I just have to go a) write the paper that is due on Monday, b) study for the test that's Monday-Wednesday, c) do a bunch of assignments that are due at midnight, and d) dance.
I don't know why I need to dance, but I just do. Maybe because the windows are open and it's rainy but warm outside...
<3
Eliza
Highlights of basketball: stealing the ball from the 6'7" guy on the other team just as he was scooping it up to take the shot, making a shot from outside the key, past the free-throw line, and... well, that was pretty much it, but it was awesome. Unfortunately, we lost, but that's okay too.
After basketball I headed home to work on the paper. Learned to caramelize almonds, and they are addictive. Worked on the paper til 4:50 (it had to be turned in on-campus by 5 in order to get the minimal deduction, as it was actually due yesterday) and then threw back on my running shoes and sprinted to campus.
When I got back, I started working on cleaning checks. I really love cleaning checks. Thanks mom for teaching me to clean efficiently and effectively. I can get my work done in an hour to an hour-and-a-half compared to some girls in our building who take up to 5 hours. (And don't worry that my cleaning is sub-par. Today my RA Stephanie told me that the couch I'd vacuumed was one of the cleanest she'd ever checked.) I worked on that, throwing in some dinner of leftover corned beef and cabbage and a thirsty Thursday party at the room next door, and then had the cleaning check. But right before my RA arrived I got a new PR: my blood sugar was 30. Whoo hoo! Not really, but it gave me a great excuse to un-freeze a piece of zucchini bread :)
Oh, and exciting news for tomorrow: I'm going to VEGAS!!! Amy, Kirsi, and I are leaving at 1:30 tomorrow afternoon, and we're coming back Sunday night. It is so exciting!! Now I just have to go a) write the paper that is due on Monday, b) study for the test that's Monday-Wednesday, c) do a bunch of assignments that are due at midnight, and d) dance.
I don't know why I need to dance, but I just do. Maybe because the windows are open and it's rainy but warm outside...
<3
Eliza
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Of empty peanut butter jars and papers
Okay, I am officially on a peanut butter ban. Again. I ate three jars of it last semester by the end of October, and then didn't buy any until mid-February of this semester. Now, I've finished off another jar. I am officially addicted. And I refuse to buy any more peanut butter for the rest of the semester. Sigh. It's just so good!
On a side note, I finally got a research topic for the paper that was due today at five! Working on it now, hopefully I'll turn it in less than 24 hours late, so I'll get minimal deductions... And it's my first late paper of the semester, of which I am very proud.
<3
Eliza
P.S. I love this blog. I've been reading it for several days, and I think it's just too cute.
Hopefully this picture posted... If you can see it, do you like my celebration of St. Patty's day? I got up too late to dye the milk, and forgot (oops) to wear a green shirt, but when I made oatmeal for lunch (with peanut butter, raisins, and chocolate chips, yum) I decided that I would be in the spirit.
What are you doing to celebrate?
P.S. I am wearing a green hair tie, so I'm not completely out of it...
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Roommates and dates
Hello, all! This week has been tough but good. Quick rundown, coming right up!
On Monday my FHE was planned by one of the other apartments in our FHE group. They sent out fliers telling us to come in black/army gear. All of the girls just showed up in black pants and dark sweatshirts, but the guys went all out. One of them wore camo borrowed from a guy who's actually in the military, two wore camo shirts, and all of them had black and green facepaint and fake facial hair. So we got there and got facepaint (although the girls only got eyeliner lines on our cheeks, lame!) before having a spiritual thought, on the Armies of Helaman of course. Then we got plastic tubes and marshmallows and marched up to Deseret Tower Fields. Yes, we had a marshmallow war. It was awesome. My Canadian friend Jasmine and I teamed up, and we said we were Victor and Wolverine because we were shooting back-to-back and we're Canadian. It was pretty great. Obviously we won.
On Tuesday I made zucchini bread and orange melt-in-your-mouth cookies. The cookies were for a Relief Society activity where we doorbell-ditched the other Relief Society in our ward, in Fugal. Unfortunately the entire apartment was supposed to make them and I was the only one who took the initiative. Then Madi came, asked me which plate was for the activity, took them and left. Kirsi went with her, but at least she acknowledged that I'd made them. Then Ashley and Shyler ate a bunch, so there weren't enough left to take them to my visiting teachees, as I'd hoped to do. Urgh. I left the pan, spatula, and glaze bowl out because I wasn't about to clean up from what they'd taken advantage of. They were there for two days before I finally cleaned them up. And someone left half a cookie on the plate so she wouldn't have to clean it. It made me rather upset with my roommates, but there's not a lot I can do about their lack of initiative and common courtesy.....
I was up that night until 3 am writing a polisci paper, which I still didn't finish. The next morning I got up, went to my classes, worked on my paper until 4:45, then printed it out and turned it in with three minutes to spare. I went to a group study room in the library and studied chemistry for an hour before Majid, a guy I was interviewing for an intro to Islam paper, came and I interviewed him. He was really nice, and the interview was actually quite fun and educational. He left at about 7:15, at which point I resumed studying chemistry. I finished reading through my notes for the section, wrote an index card's worth of information, and then went to the testing center to take my test! Unfortunately, I'd forgotten that the test was comprehensive, and so it was a little bit exciting, but by the time I finished at 10, I was too tired to care.
Thursday was amazing!!! I got up and went to chemistry, and then walked to the library with this guy from my class named Blaine. On the way over I asked him to the group date for Friday. It was a bit empowering :) Then I went to the gym and worked out for a while before going to basketball. Bball was kinda lame because now we're playing for tournament spots in the class, so none of the guys pass the ball to the girls anymore... Oh well. I got done with that and ran home to get ready. JulieAnn Personius (my high school water polo coach) came to visit me! It was so wonderful. She got here at around noon, and I took her on a tour around campus while we caught up. The weather was beautiful - about fifty degrees! Then we went to lunch at Zupa's, which is this wonderful little soup/salad/sandwich place. We were there for about an hour and a half, just talking. When we left, it was snowing. Oh Utah weather... Then we went back to my apartment, where JulieAnn looked up an old friend of hers who she visited on the way back to Salt Lake. It was sad to see her go but the care package I got from home brightened me up! Mom sent me elderberry syrup, applesauce, a mini-loaf of bread, delish oatmeal cookies, pound cake, gum, clovers, and a Sonora II recipe book with all of the delicious ward activity dishes from the past ten years!!! Whoo! So exciting. So for the rest of Thursday I ate good food from home, did (some) homework, and then went to my next door neighbor's Thirsty Thursday party, where we drank soda, ate cookies, and played spoons. Awesome.
Friday I went to my classes, did homework, and then went back to my apartment. Heidi and I ran over at 4:30 to get tickets for the Honors Symposium, where our Late Summer Honors Professor, Dr. Gong, will be speaking. It was the last day they were on sale for a reduced price, but when we got there they were sold out!! We got on the waiting list, so hopefully we get in :( Then we went back and I started cleaning up my apartment for the group date. I put away all the dirty dishes my roommates had left in the sink (ugh) except for Madi's egg dish, from Monday. I talked to the others, and they agreed that she didn't clean any of her dishes so we should wrap this one up and put it on her desk. That was slightly satisfying. But anyways, not to be vindictive... I cleaned up the kitchen and then decided to use up my artisan bread dough from almost two weeks ago for a pizza for our party! So I rolled out the dough just before Heidi and Katheryn came over to help me set up. We brought an extra couch in and set up apples to apples, after which Katheryn left to wait for her date while Heidi and I stayed at my apartment. Blaine came at about 8:05, and we talked for about half an hour (the three of us...) before Heidi's blind date Derek showed up. Then we started playing apples to apples. It was pretty fun, but probably a little awkward for poor Derek, who didn't know any of us. Then at 9 Katheryn and her date Chris finally showed up, because he'd been taking a test. We continued playing apples to apples, eating cheesecake and pizza, and talking until about 9:45, at which point we made popcorn and settled down to watch the Bourne Identity. It was a pretty good movie, with lots of action and fun ambiguity. I enjoyed it. We got done just before the midnight curfew, so we analyzed the movie for a few minutes and then booted the boys out. I got a parting hug and am now wondering if Blaine will ask me out... we'll see. Dad probably hopes he won't, because he's an RM... :)
On Saturday I got up late and Heidi and I went to the gym to do some weights. We went from there to the International Cinema on campus, where they show free movies every week. We watched Slumdog Millionaire, which was very good even when watched from the floor (because there weren't enough seats for all the people there). Then I went home and did some homework until it was time to leave on my date at 6:40. I went with Ben Smith from my Late Summer Honors class, and we attended BYU's Hunger Banquet. At the hunger banquet, 10% of the people are randomly assigned to sit at tables and have a gourmet catered meal, 20% sit on chairs eating hot dogs, chips, and soda, and the other 70% sit on the floor eating rice and beans with tortillas and a plastic bag full of water (no utensils). We were on the floor, which was actually pretty fun. There were Indian dancers, people chanting the Hare Krishna, and a keynote speaker from Paraguay. Afterwards we looked at the artwork and then didn't really know what to do, so we went back to my apartment and made chocolate-cinnamon bars. They were DELICIOUS! And it was pretty fun because it had been hard to talk at the hunger banquet (noisy and surrounded by people) plus the whole friendship-date thing was different for me. But we had a great time talking while making cookies, and they were amazing. I sent him home with a plate of them and then greeted each of my roommates as they arrived home from their various activities. I went to bed at midnight, which was a minor miracle :)
Today I woke up just in time to go to a Compassionate Service meeting, and then I went visiting teaching. I've discovered it works much better if I assign Shyler to either schedule or give the lesson. Today I gave the lesson and we got our visiting teaching on the first Sunday of the month for the second month in a row! (Oh, and last week our relief society had 100% visiting teaching!) Then I went to hall meeting, after which Amy taught me a more effective method for curling very straight hair. We went to church, where I was promptly asked to give a talk two weeks from now. Unfortunately, I'm going to be in Las Vegas that weekend, but I told Brother Frederico that I'd be very willing to give a talk any other week. I felt really bad about it, though. Anyways, church was great, as always, and I'm really excited because our Relief Society is doing a service activity on Tuesday where we're going into Maeser (the guy's hall in our ward) and cleaning their kitchens. It could be a bit scary, though. During church, I'd asked my roommates whether they wanted to have crepes for dinner with me. Madi was going to be gone, of course (she pretty much doesn't live here anymore), and Shyler and Ashley already had dinner planned, although they said they'd love to try some. Kirsi and Amy accepted my invitation, but when we got home they just made their own dinner. By this point I was already in the middle of making a huge, full batch of crepes. The blender wasn't working (I found out later that the blade was just jammed because the last person to use it hadn't cleaned it thoroughly), so I asked Madi if I could use hers. She wouldn't let me. Apparently I'm just not trustworthy enough to touch her precious kitchen appliances. She also locks her closet and doesn't talk to any of us anymore... I hope she enjoys a social life and friends at home. So anyways, I knocked on doors until I found a blender to borrow, and then I got them finished just as Amy and Kirsi swept out the door to go to the devotional (which, again, they hadn't invited me to go with them to - that wouldn't bother me except that they'd completely blown off the effort I put into making crepes). By this point I was just a little bit irked with my roommates. But surprisingly, Shyler, Ashley, and I had a good time watching the devotional at home, although they polished off half a jar of my Nutella in the meantime. I finished making all of the crepes and put the leftovers in my fridge. Then I went to ward prayer, went to a compassionate service committee meeting, and came home. Now I am going to bed so I can have a lovely day tomorrow following a wonderful night of adequate sleep. Love you guys!
<3
Eliza
P.S. Any tips on roommates? Leave them in the comments.
P.P.S. I realized that in one weekend I doubled the number of guys I've gone on dates with! Pretty impressive, eh? Well, a bit depressing if you think on what that means about my previous dating habits, but oh well... it's improving. :)
On Monday my FHE was planned by one of the other apartments in our FHE group. They sent out fliers telling us to come in black/army gear. All of the girls just showed up in black pants and dark sweatshirts, but the guys went all out. One of them wore camo borrowed from a guy who's actually in the military, two wore camo shirts, and all of them had black and green facepaint and fake facial hair. So we got there and got facepaint (although the girls only got eyeliner lines on our cheeks, lame!) before having a spiritual thought, on the Armies of Helaman of course. Then we got plastic tubes and marshmallows and marched up to Deseret Tower Fields. Yes, we had a marshmallow war. It was awesome. My Canadian friend Jasmine and I teamed up, and we said we were Victor and Wolverine because we were shooting back-to-back and we're Canadian. It was pretty great. Obviously we won.
On Tuesday I made zucchini bread and orange melt-in-your-mouth cookies. The cookies were for a Relief Society activity where we doorbell-ditched the other Relief Society in our ward, in Fugal. Unfortunately the entire apartment was supposed to make them and I was the only one who took the initiative. Then Madi came, asked me which plate was for the activity, took them and left. Kirsi went with her, but at least she acknowledged that I'd made them. Then Ashley and Shyler ate a bunch, so there weren't enough left to take them to my visiting teachees, as I'd hoped to do. Urgh. I left the pan, spatula, and glaze bowl out because I wasn't about to clean up from what they'd taken advantage of. They were there for two days before I finally cleaned them up. And someone left half a cookie on the plate so she wouldn't have to clean it. It made me rather upset with my roommates, but there's not a lot I can do about their lack of initiative and common courtesy.....
I was up that night until 3 am writing a polisci paper, which I still didn't finish. The next morning I got up, went to my classes, worked on my paper until 4:45, then printed it out and turned it in with three minutes to spare. I went to a group study room in the library and studied chemistry for an hour before Majid, a guy I was interviewing for an intro to Islam paper, came and I interviewed him. He was really nice, and the interview was actually quite fun and educational. He left at about 7:15, at which point I resumed studying chemistry. I finished reading through my notes for the section, wrote an index card's worth of information, and then went to the testing center to take my test! Unfortunately, I'd forgotten that the test was comprehensive, and so it was a little bit exciting, but by the time I finished at 10, I was too tired to care.
Thursday was amazing!!! I got up and went to chemistry, and then walked to the library with this guy from my class named Blaine. On the way over I asked him to the group date for Friday. It was a bit empowering :) Then I went to the gym and worked out for a while before going to basketball. Bball was kinda lame because now we're playing for tournament spots in the class, so none of the guys pass the ball to the girls anymore... Oh well. I got done with that and ran home to get ready. JulieAnn Personius (my high school water polo coach) came to visit me! It was so wonderful. She got here at around noon, and I took her on a tour around campus while we caught up. The weather was beautiful - about fifty degrees! Then we went to lunch at Zupa's, which is this wonderful little soup/salad/sandwich place. We were there for about an hour and a half, just talking. When we left, it was snowing. Oh Utah weather... Then we went back to my apartment, where JulieAnn looked up an old friend of hers who she visited on the way back to Salt Lake. It was sad to see her go but the care package I got from home brightened me up! Mom sent me elderberry syrup, applesauce, a mini-loaf of bread, delish oatmeal cookies, pound cake, gum, clovers, and a Sonora II recipe book with all of the delicious ward activity dishes from the past ten years!!! Whoo! So exciting. So for the rest of Thursday I ate good food from home, did (some) homework, and then went to my next door neighbor's Thirsty Thursday party, where we drank soda, ate cookies, and played spoons. Awesome.
Friday I went to my classes, did homework, and then went back to my apartment. Heidi and I ran over at 4:30 to get tickets for the Honors Symposium, where our Late Summer Honors Professor, Dr. Gong, will be speaking. It was the last day they were on sale for a reduced price, but when we got there they were sold out!! We got on the waiting list, so hopefully we get in :( Then we went back and I started cleaning up my apartment for the group date. I put away all the dirty dishes my roommates had left in the sink (ugh) except for Madi's egg dish, from Monday. I talked to the others, and they agreed that she didn't clean any of her dishes so we should wrap this one up and put it on her desk. That was slightly satisfying. But anyways, not to be vindictive... I cleaned up the kitchen and then decided to use up my artisan bread dough from almost two weeks ago for a pizza for our party! So I rolled out the dough just before Heidi and Katheryn came over to help me set up. We brought an extra couch in and set up apples to apples, after which Katheryn left to wait for her date while Heidi and I stayed at my apartment. Blaine came at about 8:05, and we talked for about half an hour (the three of us...) before Heidi's blind date Derek showed up. Then we started playing apples to apples. It was pretty fun, but probably a little awkward for poor Derek, who didn't know any of us. Then at 9 Katheryn and her date Chris finally showed up, because he'd been taking a test. We continued playing apples to apples, eating cheesecake and pizza, and talking until about 9:45, at which point we made popcorn and settled down to watch the Bourne Identity. It was a pretty good movie, with lots of action and fun ambiguity. I enjoyed it. We got done just before the midnight curfew, so we analyzed the movie for a few minutes and then booted the boys out. I got a parting hug and am now wondering if Blaine will ask me out... we'll see. Dad probably hopes he won't, because he's an RM... :)
On Saturday I got up late and Heidi and I went to the gym to do some weights. We went from there to the International Cinema on campus, where they show free movies every week. We watched Slumdog Millionaire, which was very good even when watched from the floor (because there weren't enough seats for all the people there). Then I went home and did some homework until it was time to leave on my date at 6:40. I went with Ben Smith from my Late Summer Honors class, and we attended BYU's Hunger Banquet. At the hunger banquet, 10% of the people are randomly assigned to sit at tables and have a gourmet catered meal, 20% sit on chairs eating hot dogs, chips, and soda, and the other 70% sit on the floor eating rice and beans with tortillas and a plastic bag full of water (no utensils). We were on the floor, which was actually pretty fun. There were Indian dancers, people chanting the Hare Krishna, and a keynote speaker from Paraguay. Afterwards we looked at the artwork and then didn't really know what to do, so we went back to my apartment and made chocolate-cinnamon bars. They were DELICIOUS! And it was pretty fun because it had been hard to talk at the hunger banquet (noisy and surrounded by people) plus the whole friendship-date thing was different for me. But we had a great time talking while making cookies, and they were amazing. I sent him home with a plate of them and then greeted each of my roommates as they arrived home from their various activities. I went to bed at midnight, which was a minor miracle :)
Today I woke up just in time to go to a Compassionate Service meeting, and then I went visiting teaching. I've discovered it works much better if I assign Shyler to either schedule or give the lesson. Today I gave the lesson and we got our visiting teaching on the first Sunday of the month for the second month in a row! (Oh, and last week our relief society had 100% visiting teaching!) Then I went to hall meeting, after which Amy taught me a more effective method for curling very straight hair. We went to church, where I was promptly asked to give a talk two weeks from now. Unfortunately, I'm going to be in Las Vegas that weekend, but I told Brother Frederico that I'd be very willing to give a talk any other week. I felt really bad about it, though. Anyways, church was great, as always, and I'm really excited because our Relief Society is doing a service activity on Tuesday where we're going into Maeser (the guy's hall in our ward) and cleaning their kitchens. It could be a bit scary, though. During church, I'd asked my roommates whether they wanted to have crepes for dinner with me. Madi was going to be gone, of course (she pretty much doesn't live here anymore), and Shyler and Ashley already had dinner planned, although they said they'd love to try some. Kirsi and Amy accepted my invitation, but when we got home they just made their own dinner. By this point I was already in the middle of making a huge, full batch of crepes. The blender wasn't working (I found out later that the blade was just jammed because the last person to use it hadn't cleaned it thoroughly), so I asked Madi if I could use hers. She wouldn't let me. Apparently I'm just not trustworthy enough to touch her precious kitchen appliances. She also locks her closet and doesn't talk to any of us anymore... I hope she enjoys a social life and friends at home. So anyways, I knocked on doors until I found a blender to borrow, and then I got them finished just as Amy and Kirsi swept out the door to go to the devotional (which, again, they hadn't invited me to go with them to - that wouldn't bother me except that they'd completely blown off the effort I put into making crepes). By this point I was just a little bit irked with my roommates. But surprisingly, Shyler, Ashley, and I had a good time watching the devotional at home, although they polished off half a jar of my Nutella in the meantime. I finished making all of the crepes and put the leftovers in my fridge. Then I went to ward prayer, went to a compassionate service committee meeting, and came home. Now I am going to bed so I can have a lovely day tomorrow following a wonderful night of adequate sleep. Love you guys!
<3
Eliza
P.S. Any tips on roommates? Leave them in the comments.
P.P.S. I realized that in one weekend I doubled the number of guys I've gone on dates with! Pretty impressive, eh? Well, a bit depressing if you think on what that means about my previous dating habits, but oh well... it's improving. :)
Sunday, February 28, 2010
End of February 2010
Hi guys. The past week has been a bit of a blur, but here's an overview for ya...
Monday I went to my classes: Isaiah, swimming, Political Inquiry, Chemistry, and Islam. I left Islam early so that I could go to a ward activity at Soldier Hollow, which is a sledding place about 45 minutes from BYU. (I got to wear my snow boots for the first time, yay!!!) I drove a couple of my FHE sisters and some random other girls from our ward. When we were about halfway up the hill for our second run, the lift stopped. We waited for about 15 minutes, until it got too cold, and then went down the hill. Turns out two girls had gotten in a tubing accident and hit heads/necks/backs. One girl had a minor concussion while the other had a major concussion, was unconscious, and had a seizure. We got everyone together in the lodge and had a ward prayer. It was very comforting to have so many worthy priesthood holders there to give blessings to the injured girls :) After the ambulance came, a lot of people left, but my FHE sisters and I went on a few more runs. My blood sugar was ooc all night, but I had a marvelous time overall, and my enjoyment was curiously amplified by the comfort that the two hurt girls would be all right.
Tuesday my blood sugar was CRAZY. I missed my chem lab because my blood sugar was high and I felt awful, and then I couldn't play basketball because it went so low that I thought I was going to pass out! Gaah. I had the afternoon off so I did homework and calmed my blood sugar down a bit. I went to my art class and then went back to my apartment and did homework! So fun.
Wednesday was typical - I went to class, did homework, etc. I also took the final for my powerpoint class, which was very easy.Thursday I got out of my last class at 11, went to my apartment, ate an omelet with spinach, red pepper, mushrooms, and swiss cheese, and then read my first book of the semester. I got some homework done, and watched Hairspray with my roommates. I also watched the finals in women's figure skating while doing some chemistry homework :)
Friday I got up and went to the dentist's. Since my tooth was bleeding too much to finish the root canal last time I went, I had to go back and get it finished up. I watched the end of Madagascar 2 and then the beginning of Star Trek. It was pretty awesome. I got back just in time to do my assignment for polisci (not the greatest work I've ever done, but it was graded on completion...) and went to class. I studied for chemistry before class and at four I was done! I felt like going for a walk, because it was a lovely day - almost 45 degrees! - so I went to Regency to find out who my roommates will be for next year. Four of them are already rooming there together and there will be one new girl beside me. I also found out that two of my favorite FHE sisters (incidentally the two who I drove to the sledding activity, one of whom lent me the book I read on Thursday) will be two doors down from me, and one of my freshman academy classmates will be in the same ward! I went back to the apartment and contemplated doing homework for the rest of the evening. Just as I was getting depressed about it, Heidi called and so we made plans to go shopping and then watch a chick flick with her friend Katheryn. We went to Ross, Old Navy, TJ Maxx, and Target, but only bought things at Target - yay for college budgets. We got ice cream and pizza and then went to watch Just Jane, about Jane Austen, at Katheryn's house. While we were there we made plans to have weekly group date nights. This coming week we each have to ask a guy and we will watch the Bourne Identity. Also, after this week we will be having competitions weekly to make sure we ask out a broad variety of guys - the girl who invites the cutest guy will win on the night when we are competing for cuteness, for example, and we will have many other competitions, like wittiness, musical ability, most intimidating major, etc. (Don't worry, we aren't asking guys based on these criteria; we're asking them and then deciding on the competition afterward - the competition is just a motivating factor). We finally left at about 2 am...
Saturday morning I got up and went to the gym with Heidi again. I got home and then went to the BYU-New Mexico basketball game with my freshman academy. The game was so cool but so lame!!! We lost 81 to 83. But the good part is that a local restaurant, Magleby's, gives out chocolate cake if you bring a game ticket after the team has gotten 80 points. Since only 7 people showed up for our freshman academy thing and we had 26 tickets... Nyssa and Mattathias and I went to Magleby's and got a total of 11 pieces of cake before they told us we couldn't do that anymore. But we had a great time rebelling, and the chocolate cake was just a bonus. Then I went grocery shopping. My two favorite buys were .17 pounds of gouda cheese for a dollar, and a little bag full of yogurt-covered pretzels, which I now love. I got home and did some homework and was about to go to bed when I started a book. I think you all know me well enough to guess whether or not I went to sleep right after that....
This morning I got up, went to my compassionate service meeting, had my visiting teachers over, went to hall meeting, went to church, and came home. My home teachers came over at five, and we had a marvelous time chatting. It's really great to know that there are worthy priesthood holders around :) My roommates and I have had a nice night together - I made a burger with all kinds of deliciousness, and though we all ate different things at different times we had a very harmonious dinner-making experience in the kitchen. Right now Amy and Kirsi are making peanut butter cookies, Madi is out (as usual), Ashley is doing homework, and Shyler is already asleep. We have ward prayer later tonight and then I have another compassionate service committee meeting. It has been a wonderful week and now I'm gearing up for a much harder one coming up. This past week I had no major assignments and (crazy!) no papers. This week I have a chem midterm, a political inquiry paper, and an Islam paper. But I will survive! You guys should call/email/comment so I don't go crazy!
I love you,
Eliza
Monday I went to my classes: Isaiah, swimming, Political Inquiry, Chemistry, and Islam. I left Islam early so that I could go to a ward activity at Soldier Hollow, which is a sledding place about 45 minutes from BYU. (I got to wear my snow boots for the first time, yay!!!) I drove a couple of my FHE sisters and some random other girls from our ward. When we were about halfway up the hill for our second run, the lift stopped. We waited for about 15 minutes, until it got too cold, and then went down the hill. Turns out two girls had gotten in a tubing accident and hit heads/necks/backs. One girl had a minor concussion while the other had a major concussion, was unconscious, and had a seizure. We got everyone together in the lodge and had a ward prayer. It was very comforting to have so many worthy priesthood holders there to give blessings to the injured girls :) After the ambulance came, a lot of people left, but my FHE sisters and I went on a few more runs. My blood sugar was ooc all night, but I had a marvelous time overall, and my enjoyment was curiously amplified by the comfort that the two hurt girls would be all right.
Tuesday my blood sugar was CRAZY. I missed my chem lab because my blood sugar was high and I felt awful, and then I couldn't play basketball because it went so low that I thought I was going to pass out! Gaah. I had the afternoon off so I did homework and calmed my blood sugar down a bit. I went to my art class and then went back to my apartment and did homework! So fun.
Wednesday was typical - I went to class, did homework, etc. I also took the final for my powerpoint class, which was very easy.Thursday I got out of my last class at 11, went to my apartment, ate an omelet with spinach, red pepper, mushrooms, and swiss cheese, and then read my first book of the semester. I got some homework done, and watched Hairspray with my roommates. I also watched the finals in women's figure skating while doing some chemistry homework :)
Friday I got up and went to the dentist's. Since my tooth was bleeding too much to finish the root canal last time I went, I had to go back and get it finished up. I watched the end of Madagascar 2 and then the beginning of Star Trek. It was pretty awesome. I got back just in time to do my assignment for polisci (not the greatest work I've ever done, but it was graded on completion...) and went to class. I studied for chemistry before class and at four I was done! I felt like going for a walk, because it was a lovely day - almost 45 degrees! - so I went to Regency to find out who my roommates will be for next year. Four of them are already rooming there together and there will be one new girl beside me. I also found out that two of my favorite FHE sisters (incidentally the two who I drove to the sledding activity, one of whom lent me the book I read on Thursday) will be two doors down from me, and one of my freshman academy classmates will be in the same ward! I went back to the apartment and contemplated doing homework for the rest of the evening. Just as I was getting depressed about it, Heidi called and so we made plans to go shopping and then watch a chick flick with her friend Katheryn. We went to Ross, Old Navy, TJ Maxx, and Target, but only bought things at Target - yay for college budgets. We got ice cream and pizza and then went to watch Just Jane, about Jane Austen, at Katheryn's house. While we were there we made plans to have weekly group date nights. This coming week we each have to ask a guy and we will watch the Bourne Identity. Also, after this week we will be having competitions weekly to make sure we ask out a broad variety of guys - the girl who invites the cutest guy will win on the night when we are competing for cuteness, for example, and we will have many other competitions, like wittiness, musical ability, most intimidating major, etc. (Don't worry, we aren't asking guys based on these criteria; we're asking them and then deciding on the competition afterward - the competition is just a motivating factor). We finally left at about 2 am...
Saturday morning I got up and went to the gym with Heidi again. I got home and then went to the BYU-New Mexico basketball game with my freshman academy. The game was so cool but so lame!!! We lost 81 to 83. But the good part is that a local restaurant, Magleby's, gives out chocolate cake if you bring a game ticket after the team has gotten 80 points. Since only 7 people showed up for our freshman academy thing and we had 26 tickets... Nyssa and Mattathias and I went to Magleby's and got a total of 11 pieces of cake before they told us we couldn't do that anymore. But we had a great time rebelling, and the chocolate cake was just a bonus. Then I went grocery shopping. My two favorite buys were .17 pounds of gouda cheese for a dollar, and a little bag full of yogurt-covered pretzels, which I now love. I got home and did some homework and was about to go to bed when I started a book. I think you all know me well enough to guess whether or not I went to sleep right after that....
This morning I got up, went to my compassionate service meeting, had my visiting teachers over, went to hall meeting, went to church, and came home. My home teachers came over at five, and we had a marvelous time chatting. It's really great to know that there are worthy priesthood holders around :) My roommates and I have had a nice night together - I made a burger with all kinds of deliciousness, and though we all ate different things at different times we had a very harmonious dinner-making experience in the kitchen. Right now Amy and Kirsi are making peanut butter cookies, Madi is out (as usual), Ashley is doing homework, and Shyler is already asleep. We have ward prayer later tonight and then I have another compassionate service committee meeting. It has been a wonderful week and now I'm gearing up for a much harder one coming up. This past week I had no major assignments and (crazy!) no papers. This week I have a chem midterm, a political inquiry paper, and an Islam paper. But I will survive! You guys should call/email/comment so I don't go crazy!
I love you,
Eliza
Sunday, February 21, 2010
President's day weekend
Hey guys, it's been a long time but no one has commented or complained, so...
I'll just give you a few highlights of the last few weeks:
I've written about three papers for poli sci, two for intro to Islam, and one for Isaiah. I took a chemistry test and decided to study harder for the next one. Classes are going fairly well, and my powerpoint class will be over on Thursday, when I will be starting my excel class. Last Thursday in basketball I was guarding/guarded by a guy who's 6'4" and very good. It was exciting and challenging, and I made a basket! That's about all the news for classes.
Last Saturday I got a place in housing for next year! I will be living in Regency Apartments, which is just barely south of campus. It is a good deal with great people and wards. I am in room 112, and I have no idea who my roommates will be. I would have chosen to be in one of the other buildings, but there were only three rooms with spots, and there was another Eliza in the building I wanted! Oh well. I'm sure it'll be great anyways :)
The most exciting thing in the past few weeks was visiting St. George last weekend. I went to Grandma Houghton's house and spent time with her and with Dad, who was visiting for her birthday. I got there on Saturday afternoon, and promptly fell asleep on the couch. When I finally woke up, we went for a walk and then went to eat at an amazing Thai restaurant. Then we went to Neilson's to get some custard (yum!) and to Aunt Marjorie's to play games. It was fabulous. On Sunday we went to Grandma's ward, which was exciting for me - there were people not between the ages of seventeen and twenty! Crazy. Then we went back to Grandma's, where Grandma and dad did family history, Grandma gave me a copy of all of her recipes (yay!), and I read The Number One Lady's Detective Agency. Then we went to Aunt Marjorie's house for dinner, where I ate salmon! Then we had chocolate-raspberry cake and played games. The next morning, we went to watch Dad swim the mile (I had a high blood sugar), and then ate breakfast and dropped him off. Grandma and I decided to have some retail therapy and headed over to Christensen's, where they had some President's day sales. They even had a rack full of women's size 10-11 shoes on sale 50% off! And let's just say that Grandma made me feel loved. My limited college budget would have held me back a lot, but she really helped me out. Thanks Grandma <3>
This weekend I went to see New Moon at the dollar theater with Heidi on Friday night, watched some Olympics, went to the gym and worked out, and went grocery shopping again. This was all done by yesterday (Saturday) afternoon. Then I got back to my apartment, made taco meat for my compassionate service dinner, and put together some pizza for Amy's birthday celebration. Her birthday was on Wednesday but we were all pretty busy so we did the party on Saturday. I went to the compassionate service thing and did some 27 dresses action, skipping between the two parties. Then, just as the party ended, the pizza came out of the oven, and Kirsi, Amy, and I went to see Princess and the Frog at the Varsity Theater. It was very cute, and we had fun eating pizza in the theater (which is allowed there). Then we came back to the apartment, watched some Olympics, and made a fort out of mattresses and blankets. Then we watched Ever After, which I am going to make us watch as soon as I get back in April. This morning I had a meeting and went back to sleep before going to church, eating dinner, having some more meetings, and writing this blog! Now I'm headed off to bed, so good night. I love you all, and would love to hear from you!
<3
Eliza
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