Light-Black And Decker

Has anyone noticed the terrible weather that set in a couple weeks ago and hasn't left yet? Unfortunately for us, it has greatly altered our Christmas plans. With a late start to winter, I feel it is making up for lost time by constantly snowing and snowing and blowing and icing all the day long. We were planning on leaving bright and early Tuesday morning to drive up to Washington for Christmas. But Monday it did nothing but dump snow everywhere, and Tuesday most of the highways were closed down that we need to take to get to Washington. So guess where we are now? Still HERE in PROVO. Ugh Provo. So this is the first time I spent Christmas in Provo. Right now our plans are to try again this Sunday when a minute break in the weather is looking somewhat hopeful. Luckily we do have some family here in Utah, so we were able to spend the day with my sibling and his wife, and then got dinner from my uncle and his family. Here are some pictures of how our Christmas went. We got ...

We have now spent a whole week living in our new apartment. During this week, I have made some less than pleasant discoveries. It seems that my body has adjusted to living in a non-furnaced place. A non-heated place. My body has been living in such conditions for over a year and a half, and apparently that is a long enough time to adjust, internally and externally. Now I have moved into a more modern place, that comes along with a furnace. It heats the place. And also dries out the air. So I have had unusually dry skin all day every day, and have had blood in my nose (sorry if that grosses you out) for the past week. Not bad, just when I blow it there's some red. My body is trying to recuperate and become used to a dryer, warmer climate. I'm hoping it will be a smooth transition. I am also finding myself being overly warm lately. I sleep too hot, I sit too hot, I am just too hot, more often. It is a weird experience.

Hm. Well, I just wrote a post, and then it errored and deleted itself. Now I have to write it again. But it probably won't be too long, who likes to type things twice? I basically just wanted to announce that I am DONE!!!!!! done, done and DONE with my bachelor's degree. I turned in my last paper last night, and now I am officially done! (Assuming I pass everything, so I guess it's not technically official, but still. I'll pass). After that part I went on to list some things I could do to fill my time. But, I'm not going to again. So that is all you get. To know that I am graduated from college.

Moving: A word of advice for anyone who ever wants to move anywhere: Don't move during a snow storm, unless you absolutely have to. Yesterday was our big move day, and it just so happened to be during the first real snow storm of the year. We woke up early in the morning and saw clear blue skies. We were optimistic. Then about 10, when we were starting, we got a call from one of our friends who was going to come down from Draper to help us. He was calling to tell us he wouldn't be coming because he was basically snowed in. Oh crap, that means it's coming this way. HURRY! Get everything out before it hits! That is what our conversations turned to. We used two little cars to move boxes with, our 4runner and a friend's Tahoe for the big things. We were able to get everything inside one of these vehicles except for the box springs of our bed. This we tied to the top of the Tahoe. We rushed over to our new apartment and unloaded, just as the snow started picking up pretty...

Last night I went to my last and final class of my college career. I spent my last precious hours playing a Persian instrument. It's called a santur. This is what a santur looks like: This is how you play a santur: This is how I spent my whole semester, Wednesday nights, shooting my brains out. I just have to admit, I did not like my teacher much. It was an easy A class, but was it worth it? I don't know. I was constantly being bombarded by anti-everything propoganda. I was the only one in the class who knew how to read and follow music, making it hard to learn new music when the teacher expects everyone to read and just pick it up when no one does. Then the teacher would say, "Just listen to me play it and copy what I am playing." He wouldn't follow the beat, or the notes, that were listed on the music page. He had it all in his head, apparently wrong. But no once could just pick it up by listening either. It was a class of 8 people, and to this day our teache...

I am pleased to announce that our search for an apartment is now over. We have a place to go, and it's even early enough that we can still go to Washington for Christmas. I have to say it's amazing how the Lord works. About 2 minutes after I prayed this morning and asked for help in finding an apartment soon, I got the call saying we had been approved, all we needed to do was get the deposit to her. I called my parents afterwards and she told me that all week she had been praying, asking that we would find an apartment this week. This morning when she prayed, she told the Lord "Today is Saturday, the last day of the week!" A few minutes later is when I got the call. About an hour after I signed the contract, I got another call from a girl in our ward who is managing an apartment complex and told me she had an available apartment that she wanted to give to me before posting it online. I told her thanks but that we'd already signed somewhere else. I just think it...

Over the years at working here at Independent Study, some funny things have come about that need to be shared. And yes, these are all real. Silly Questions: Can you fax me a fedex envelope? So fax? Is that like faster than regular mail? I’m taking a high school course and I want to request a final. Do I click on the high school course button or the university one? You say you’re sending all the materials. Are you sending me a computer too? How do I use an e-mail? My son is blond with blue eyes and really athletic. Can he take your courses? Funny Names: Jerusalem and his daughter Bethlehem Fancy Davis Egyptacio Amazing Sales Manly Dexter Holds-the-Enemy Weird Things People Have Said To Us: I haven’t been satisfied lately. Can you satisfy me? How can I ever repay you? Ammunition? Guns? (From an Army Sergeant) I love you! I am going to kill him, I’m going to kill him (and then you hear indiscriminate screaming in the background) Do you have kids? Don’t ever have kids. Kids are evil. Fun...

The past few weeks we have been frantically trying to find a new apartment to move into. We only have until the 31st to get out of ours. But we would like to get out by the 19th-20th so that we can travel to Washington for Christmas. As this date gets closer and closer, we get more nervous and frantic. And I just have to say, I really really hate a trend that I have discovered. This was not the case in any apartments I have previously lived in, but now it seems that EVERY single place we have looked at and decided it might be decently okay to live there, we have to fill out an application to live there. We can't just say, "We want this place let me sign a contract." Instead we have to try to sell ourselves as the best candidate and fill out an application and sit on our thumbs for days while we wait for their decision. It is SO LAME. I am beginning to hate it. I just want to say yes, I want this place and we are moving in now. Instead of applying, applying, applying, n...

I think I need to make one thing clear about the last email I posted on here about the apartment. We are definitely NOT moving there. This thing just screams scam to me. I just thought it would be funny to see how lame the email was. And don't fool yourself, we couldn't afford a $1200 deposit and rent of $900.