Have You Ever...

Instructions: Take the following list and star the items you have completed or experienced. (I decided to modify this and share the story.)

1. Started your own blog - obviously

2. Slept under the stars - girls camp, slept on a rope hammock which was incredibly uncomfortable.

3. Played in a band - Nope

4. Visited Hawaii - I wish.

5. Watched a meteor shower - Hello, Grubfest. It is a yearly tradition 'round these parts. As long as you ignore the bulls, you get a great view of the stars. (To learn more, read here and here.)

6. Given more than you can afford to charity - can't help it sometimes.

7. Been to Disneyland /world - never been to any of them, though I've been so close to most of them...in Paris, visiting Jessica in California, and everyone used to go from NH to FL while growing up. But I never went. (KLEB shakes her head in shame.)

8. Climbed a mountain - of course.

9. Held a praying mantis - nope, not a fan of holding bugs

10. Sung a solo - this would terrify me

11. Bungee jumped - want to, but haven't.

12. Visited Paris - lived there in 1999. LOVED it. Soooo amazing.

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea - I think this would be fun, but no.

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch - does water painting count?

15. Adopted a child - obviously not

16. Had food poisoning - nope

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty - yup, went with Brian Buell and Vince in 1999.

18. Grown your own vegetables - If you've seen my parent's garden, you know the answer is yes. I actually love gardening.

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France - yeah, it was surprisingly anticlimactic.

20. Slept on an overnight train - several while traveling Europe. I lost an earring on one of them. If you see it, let me know.

21. Had a pillow fight - I am one of five kids, so OF COURSE. My favorite pillow fight ever was between Jessie, Aimee, and I in New Zealand. Of course, I won.

22. Hitch hiked - no way. Too dangerous.

23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill - nope, I feel it is unethical.

24. Built a snow fort - Yup, we used to build tons of them in NH. In high school Ethan had tunnels connecting his collection of igloos in the back yard.

25. Held a lamb - I don't think so. But I have fed a baby tiger. Close enough.

26. Gone skinny dipping - nope.

27. Run a Marathon - Yup. Top of Utah, 2004.

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice - No, I thought it was too expensive. Maybe in the future.

29. Seen a total eclipse - in high school. Someone gave me a welding hat to look through to get a glimpse of it.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset - Of course. I grew up 45 minutes away from the ocean. We used to love to watch the sunrise from the beach in high school.

31. Hit a home run - not that coordinated.

32. Been on a cruise - not yet. Cruises are pretty tame. I prefer rougher travel while I am younger, but I'd take the opportunity if it came. But I try to save the tame traveling for when I am older.

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person - several times. My parents were so bugged one summer because they took us there and all we wanted was to go back to the swimming pool. It was about 104 degrees, humid, and we had no air conditioning.

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors - yup. Quebec and Nantucket cover most of them.

35. Seen an Amish community - When Ginette got off her mission in Kirtland, OH we went to visit. Plenty o' Amish there. I love the little buggy signs on the roads. My favorite though is the Amish hat-head.

36. Taught yourself a new language - well, working on Spanish.

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied - Yup, in my pre-law school years.

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person - nope. Only been to Venice. I'd rather go to Cinque Terre.

39. Gone rock climbing - of course.

40. Seen Michelangelos David - not the real thing, unless there is a replica in the Louvre.

41. Sung karaoke - yeah. But it took me many years to get up the nerve to do it.

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt - nope

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant - nope

44. Visited Africa - I want to sooo badly.

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight - In Nantucket for sure. I am in love with the ocean day or night.

46. Been transported in an ambulance - nope

47. Had your portrait painted - sketched but not painted.

48. Gone deep sea fishing - nope

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person - nope

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris - On my 21st birthday. While living there I went many times.

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling - no, but I'd love to.

52. Kissed in the rain - You bet.

53. Played in the mud - I'm sure.

54. Gone to a drive-in theater - of course. In NH and Utah.

55. Been in a movie - Yup, but I haven't watched the movie yet.

56. Visited the Great Wall of China - not yet.

57. Started a business - Yup. An LLC.

58. Taken a martial arts class - no

59. Visited Russia - no, but I want to.

60. Served at a soup kitchen - no.

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies - Yup, I was a girl scout once.

62. Gone whale watching - Um, I'm from New Hampshire, so of course. We went in high school on a dreary, gray day. Nearly everyone got sick, but me. I love rocking boats, turbulence, etc.

63. Gotten flowers for no reason - Yup.

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma - Gave plasma once in college and nearly passed out. Gave blood for the first time in September, and nearly passed out. I finally have a donor card and have a goal to become a regular donor. This stat has really inspired me to give more:

"Proponents of income redistribution even give less blood than opponents. In 2002, people who agreed that the government should improve living standards for the poor represented 28 percent of the population, but donated just 20 percent of the blood. Meanwhile, people who disagreed that the government should improve living standards - believing that "people should take care of themselves" instead - were 25 percent of the population, but donated 31 percent of the blood. If the entire population gave blood at the same rate as opponents of social spending, the blood supply would increase by more than a quarter. But if everyone in the population gave at the same rate as government aid advocates, the supply would drop by about 30 percent."

- Who Really Cares, America's Charity Divide, Who Gives, Who Doesn't, and Why It Matters Pg. 57

65. Gone sky diving - not yet.

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp - No

67. Bounced a check - No, which is surprising considering how spacey I am.

68. Flown in a helicopter - no, but I want to.

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy - no.

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial - Yup. Loved it.

71. Eaten Caviar - In France, of course.

72. Pieced a quilt - No.

73. Stood in Times Square - Yup, with Vince and Brian in '99.

74. Toured the Everglades - No.

75. Been fired from a job - No

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London - No

77. Broken a bone - Fractured my ankle on September 11 the year I turned 20.

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle - Plenty o' times. Just last night, in fact. Shaun and I had a yearly tradition to Nebo Loop on bike in the fall while I lived in Utah. He loved to see how calm I could stay while he drove crazily. I trusted him. Paul, on the other hand nearly killed me while driving in the city. Turning left on a red arrow wasn't the best idea. I'm so glad mom doesn't read my blog.

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person - I flew over it once and took a picture. But that doesn't count.

80. Published a book - Nope.

81. Visited the Vatican - Not yet.

82. Bought a brand new car - only ever owned my white Ford Escort. It was used when I bought it.

83. Walked in Jerusalem - not yet.

84. Had your picture in the newspaper - not that I know of.

85. Read the entire Bible - several times. Reading the Old Testament now.

86. Visited the White House - I am not positive, but I think I've been in there many years ago with Ginette.

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating - um no. I am so grateful that other people do this so I don't have to.

88. Had chickenpox - Yup.

89. Saved someone's life - no.

90. Sat on a jury - No.

91. Met someone famous - Who hasn't.

92. Joined a book club - Yup, with Rachel and her sisters. I really enjoyed it.

93. Lost a loved one - Yes, by more means than just death.

94. Had a baby - nope

95. Seen the Alamo in person - nope

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake - Um, it really stinks, in case you haven't been there. So no. But I have camped out on Antelope Island, which is an island in the Salt Lake. That was good enough for me.

97. Been involved in a law suit - Not the way this question means.

98. Owned a cell phone - Yes, and I miss it sorely right now. (It is missing.)

99. Been stung by a bee - Yes, I made it all the way to high school before I got stung. I was so mad.

100. Read an entire book in one day - Many.

Latest Happenings

Adam Was Baptized
Adam was one of my former Gospel Essentials students at the Branch. I am so happy for him that he decided to get baptized!! This picture is of me with Adam and his parents on his baptismal day.

Stephanie and I ran a five-mile race
I'll be honest, when she invited me to run it, I thought it was a 5K...which is only 3ish miles. Easy-peasy. But no, it was five miles...on Valentines Day morning. But we had a great time.

The World Trade Center in Boston

This was such a stark contrast from my Missouri experience. For the MO bar, we went to Jefferson City. It is a sleepy capital city with about 50,000 people. In Jeff. City, we saw the entire city just looking for a place to eat dinner.

A Boat Parked Right Outside of the Hotel

But in MA, there was a BOAT parked nonchalantly right next to the hotel. The hotel itself was surrounded on three sides by water. The smell of salt water permeated the air. Yum.

Our Tea Partay

Ginette, Colette, and I with friends in Boston. Three out of the five of us happen to be wearing argyle that day, so the other two joined in for a little argyle moment.

Lastly....


Goodbye at the airport in New Hampshire.

Saturation Point

There comes a saturation point, with anything that you are learning when it all starts clicking. If you are learning a language, it is often when you start dreaming in that language.

When Cindy was studying for the bar, EVERYTHING related somehow to a bar topic.

She couldn't help it.

I understood.

She was saturated.

As for me, I think I just hit mine. For most bars you must study wills, how they are made, how the state distributes your belongings if you don't have one, etc. I am studying the Old Testament right now and today I am Numbers chapter 27. I think when my hand-written notation above the chapter heading reads "Intestate Succession"...I'm there.

-------
* Intestate succession: the order in which the state distributes someones assets to relatives when they do not have a valid will.

** I am not sure people actually wrote wills in ancient Israel, but still...

*** Numbers 27:8-11 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter. And if he have no daughter, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his brethren. And if he have no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his father’s brethren. And if his father have no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his kinsman that is next to him of his family, and he shall possess it: and it shall be unto the children of Israel a statute of judgment, as the Lord commanded Moses....For the curious, but lazy :)

Nerd Moments

- "I heard on NPR this morning." One of my favorite phrases. I hear it all the time. As for me, my car radio is literally stuck on NPR right now so I'm hopeless till my radio decides to change its mind.

- The dictionary game...a big hit lately. Comments after include "I love this game, it is so educational.", "I love that you learn something while you play." (One person picks a word out of a dictionary and the others try to win at figuring out what the word is. Endless hours of free entertainment...and my friends have great vocabularies...and even if they make words up, most of the rest of us wouldn't know the difference.)

- We swap library stories.

- A quote after she looked at my friend's high school yearbook. "How were my glasses?" "Big." Another friend admits, "Mine were bigger."

- No one in the room has less than a master's degree.

- Most of my friends are avid fans of This American Life.

- At a recent party, there were people in the basement watching Star Trek. (To my knowledge, however, no one speaks Klingon.)

- T-shirts with binary on them...worn to social gatherings...

- We love Planet Earth and genuinely enjoy watching it on a Friday night.

- Most of my friends, myself included, own loads of bookshelves laden with books.

- My school friends rock at trivia.

- Yesterday Hael e-mailed because he was looking for this.

- Recently this song was introduced to me by two med-school friends. It made me laugh.

Missing Person Report/Studette of the Month - February 2009

"I am coming out to visit you on my spring break." My sister Colette announced in a matter-of-fact manner during my second year of law school.

"Oh, great! I'd be great to have you here!" I responded. She was still in college, and living on a student budget, so I didn't know how she planned on making this proposed visit happen.

"But I have to earn up the money first." She cautioned me. "I am going to give plasma. Once I've sold enough, I'll buy the ticket."

"Great! What do you want to see while you are here?" I asked in my best hostess manner.

"I really don't care. I am out there to see you because I miss you. I want to get to know your life, see your school, meet your friends. So if we don't get to see much of anything, I don't really care. I am going to see you." She reiterated that final point many times before she came.

Colette is the queen of the five minute phone calls. She'll call on her way to the bus, between classes, just to say hi. That winter she often updated me. "I am close to buying the ticket to come visit you! I can't wait to come!" And come she did.

We did, of course, see the arch. And she met my friends, saw my school, and became acquainted with my life in a lovable way that is uniquely her own.




The first morning of her visit, I made her some breakfast. When we sat down to eat it, I apologized that it didn't have much flavor to it. "No problem." she responded. Without saying a another word, went to her suitcase and picked out a cinnamon container. She sprinkled it on her food, and then offered me some. I just laughed. She knows me that well. She left it with me when she returned home. I still can't help but laugh and think wistfully of her whenever I stumble across the cinnamon in my cabinet with the letters C-O-L-E-T-T-E neatly printed on the label.



My third year of law school she left on a mission to California. It is always a bit of an adjustment when someone close to you leaves. No more five minute phone calls while she walked to class. No more visits. No more her.

Thankfully, she comes home on February 17, and I couldn't be more pleased!! I fly home on the 21st. Coincidentally, I am taking the MA bar on the 25th & 26th (Prayers are most welcome. Trust me, they help immensely.) so I'll be able to be home!! What a lucky twist of fate. Otherwise, I may not have been able to see her till this summer. Then, finally, I get to spend a few days just relaxing and enjoying my much missed sister.

Welcome home Colette!! Life just wasn't the same without you.

F. Enzio Busche

F. Enzio Busche, emeritus member of the First Quorum of the Seventy, was born in Germany in 1930, three years before Hitler's rise to power. Fifteen years later, when World War II ended, Enzio was a prisoner of war, having been drafted into the German army at age fourteen. The war left Enzio with many questions: Is there a God? What is the purpose of life? What happens after death? In time, he learned the answers. "Yearning for the Living God" is a collection of Elder Busche's experiences - both before and after his conversion - and an account of the life-changing awakening that can come to all who search for truth in this world.

.....

My mother got this book for Christmas last year. I have a habit of picking up her books and devouring them, and this was no exception. I sat down the whole day and just read and read. It was amazing.

My mother really sought this book out. He came to speak in New Hampshire many years ago and my mother said that everyone was just walking on clouds for two weeks after. She always wondered if he'd written a book and after much searching, she found this one. Even four months after I read it, I was still digesting it. It sheds so much light on how God works with his children. I can't can say enough about how great it really is...

Lastly, I recently came across this video. Normally I don't like these sorts of things, but since this man had already had an effect on my life, I rather enjoyed it. I didn't roll my eyes once. I have already felt of his sincerity, and seen a bit of the love that those who have worked with him have felt for him. It was nice to hear his actual voice and German accent after reading his book.

Don't worry, it isn't nearly as foreboding as this picture here would seem to portray.

Recap of 2008: My Top 10 Proudest Accomplishments

Proudest Accomplishment #10 - Graduation from Law School

Snore.

Proudest Accomplishment #9 - Swearing in Ceremony

Double snore.

Proudest Accomplishment #8 - Acroyoga

Yup indeed, acroyoga. I'll be honest, I've probably only tried it about 5 times this year. But it is random, and I like random.

Proudest Accomplishment #7 - Visiting Teaching

Indeed folks, indeed. This is my old VT companion, Bonnie Pierson after she climbed over this here fence so we could visit our visiting teachee. There were no lengths we did not go through. Indeed.


Proudest Accomplishment #6 - The Regifting

I am keeping with the one picture theme, but I must say, the regifting this year was brilliant. Adam got a lovely hockey figure (as he plays hockey with me) for his birthday. Robert got the exact same hockey figure for his wedding present (also on the hockey team). I got both of them from a hockey game I went to with Raymond (also on the hockey team). They (being the local professional hockey team) gave them (figurines of themselves) to us for free. Raymond gave me his, and I gave them both away. Could it be any more perfect.

Proudest Accomplishment #5 - Decorating Jake's Truck

Oh, her face was worth a million bucks. Welcome to our craziness Mandy. Quite possibly one of the most horribly decorated cars I've ever seen, and frankly I'm proud of it. So was Jake, but don't tell Mandy. Nothing but the best for our Jake.

Proudest Accomplishment #4 - Making it to Jake's Wedding in the First Place

It was July...a few weeks before the bar exam. Who gets married in July when their friend is taking the bar I ask you!! Who doesn't plan their life around me I double ask you!!! Well, I'll forgive him only because I passed the bar. But seriously.

Proudest Accomplishment #3 - Jumping into the Ocean on New Year's Day Dressed as a Bandit

I'll be honest. It was cold. And I hate being cold. But I jumped right in, mask and all. Took the breath right out of me. But you know what? I did it, and I don't regret it.

Proudest Accomplishment #2 - My Halloween Costume

Please notice the florescent green mullet. This was Laura's brilliant birthday gift to me which I vowed I'd figure out how to work into my Halloween costume. All in all, I thought it worked out pretty well.

Proudest Accomplishment #1 - April Fool's Joke

I really didn't think anyone would fall for it, but they did, by the droves. Even though the album was named Engagement 2008, even though there were little jokes laced through the pictures...like stop signs and such. And as if that wasn't enough, I STILL get e-mails, questions, and clarifications on rumors people have heard about my engagement. It was by far, my favorite accomplishment of 2008.