Dear Mr. Lerche: Let's Get Married.

This, my friends, is Sondre Lerche. He is beautiful. Also he plays the guitar (and by "plays", I mean SHREDS). Also he sings. Also he made the whole soundtrack for Dan In Real Life, ergo he has met Steve Carell. Also he sings a song with Regina Spektor. Also he has great musical friends, like Kishi Bashi.

ALSO, I went to see him in concert last night!! I took that picture. I stood 10-15 ft away from him. I squealed like a little girl when he played/sang/said beautiful things. I enjoyed every single minute of that event, especially including the two opening acts, which were phenomenal! The first one was Kishi Bashi. He's great. The second was a band called Nightlands. Phenomenal. We got $18 tickets to a venue called "The Urban Lounge" in Salt Lake City, and there were probably around 50 people. No more than 75. It was very personal and laid back and a most unforgettable experience. I was blown away by Sondre Lerche. I was expecting Jack Johnson and I got Dream Theater! Ok, that was a GROSS exaggeration on both ends, but basically, I figured he would be a super chill, but brilliant musician like Sufjan Stevens. He IS a brilliant musician, but he was NOT chill. He rocked hard! And it was wonderful. It was all just so wonderful.

I could go on and on about that concert, but I won't. Especially because I've got a wedding to plan. Sondre and I will be married in the morning!

I want to blog today.

And so I will blog! About summertime. Now that I don't live in southern AZ, summertime is magical! The sun is nice and toasty, but the breeze makes it feel just right, and the nights are just cool enough to go for a walk or sit outside. Stores have all kinds of summer sales, the BEST fruits are officially in season, and the beauty of nature is literally everywhere. Activity options are endless! And there's good feeling all around! You get to wear sandals and shorts and go to baseball games and have picnics and be a little more cavalier about your hair and makeup... Just magical!

But I'm sure that there are quite a few people from the Eagar/Alpine area that aren't finding this summer quite so magical. Neither are those involved in the Yuma tragedy of just over a week ago, I'm sure. My heart goes out to all of them. I cannot imagine what that must feel like - to know or not know that your home has burned down; to lose someone you love because of the terrible actions of another. Not very magical at all.

But I think that we could all share a bit of our own summer magic with them through prayers. Indeed, there's not much else we can do.

"Dark and difficult times lie ahead. Soon we must all choose between what is right, and what is easy."

OH MY WORD...

I am the most ridiculous person that I know of! First of all, I watched Tangled today, for the fifth time. And I got chills and cried, for the fifth time. Is that normal? Not sure. Then, I went to imdb.com to look up that main "Snatcher" from Harry Potter 7 (he's just so strangely attractive!), and ended up watching a new (to me) trailer for Harry Potter 7.2. AND CRIED!! Not just like my eyes got teary - tears streaming down my face! And of course it only got worse when I saw a picture of Hogwarts crumbling and on fire and started relating that to "the last days"...


In case I haven't proven my opening statement yet, I will go even further and share a recent experience with ya'll. Wednesday was the first day of my second term in school. I had had a nice relaxing 5 day break, filled with lots of good things, like going to Payson, seeing my favorite cousin before she moved to Texas with her husband, participating in an AWESOME regional conference and CES fireside on Sunday, hanging out with Ericka and the Girls on Thursday and Friday, having a sleep-over with Wendy on Saturday (ha...sleep-over. Yes I am almost 21), and finally - watching the Justin Bieber movie - Never Say Never - with my aunt, uncle, and cousins for Family Night on Monday. Without going into extreme detail, it's safe to say that I had Bieber Fever worse than any 12 year old I've ever met, for three consecutive days after I watched that movie. All the sudden my life was in shambles because I needed to marry that kid, and I wasn't exactly sure how to accomplish that. ANYWAY, I get to school on Wednesday, my teacher asks me and the other girl if we had a good weekend, and I nod, not thinking much of the situation because I'm still planning my wedding in my head. The other girl said No. Now let me tell you a little about her first. She is the epitome of hard work. She works at a gas station in Lehi, nannies two little girls, and goes to school. So usually her schedule is: get up at 5:00 a.m., catch the bus that gets her to the school at 6:30 a.m., wait for class to start at 8:00, go straight to work after school, get off work at midnight, do homework, go to bed around 2 or 3, and repeat. Yeah. And she works darn hard at school, trust me. Now with that in mind, let me tell you briefly about her weekend from...you know where.


She took a couple days off from work since she had a break from school, thinking that it would be a nice relaxing time. Wrong. The family she lives with (the ones she nannies for) is crazy. They believe that she has TB, because she had a SLIGHT reaction to her TB test - even though the orange paper clearly says she's good to go. But they went ahead and told everyone in their ward anyway, believing her to be contagious. So she had a nice time being avoided on Sunday as she attended church for the first time in over a year (which is a result of having to work on Sunday because the family pays her next to nothing). Wonderful. Another fun thing that happened that weekend was that the bus she was riding, along with her best friend and her best friend's baby, got in a crash, and the baby wasn't strapped down - she was holding her. I won't go into details, but know that the baby is fine. Imagine the permanent mental scars that event will cause. And finally, there was a dispute at home and....let's just say there was some domestic violence that harmed more than the people that live there. The police took care of it, and everyone in the house left for Texas, except my classmate, the two girls she nannies, and the father/instigator. So my classmate has been staying out after work even longer so as to avoid the guy, meaning she either slept in her car or walked into the house around 3:00 a.m.

And there I was planning my wedding. I've been thinking a lot about "reality" as I know it, and it is causing me to wonder more and more. What did I do to deserve the extra-fluffy life that I have? I am grateful for it, to be sure, but I can't help but think about those people (like my classmate) who have to work so much harder in life than I do and I wonder - is it better or worse in the long run? Should I be doing so much more than I am, or am I meant to just absorb the blessings I have because of the hard work and faithfulness of my parents? Is that my lot in life? Ok I don't fully know what that expression means, but the point of this rambling is that I've been doing a lot of self-evaluating, and confounded is how I would choose to describe my mind these days, so advice and/or encouragement would be much appreciated. And since this blog is way too long already, THE END!

Choices, Choices, Bills, Bills, Bills

I've been thinking about growing up. Not about whether or not I should, just growing up in general. You see, in the past 6 months, I have had some pretty intense choices to make. Each time I had two very clear options that would both be alright but led down two very different paths. But both are good! How am I supposed to choose?? The first time that happened, I thought it was a one-time-thing. The second, I assumed was coincidence. But as the third situation approached my door, I began to think a little deeper on the matter. And then reality came shining through.

This is what growing up is like. This is what being an adult is like. Up until college, the only decisions I really had to deal with were things like what to wear to school or whether or not to cry in front of my family. I didn't understand all the hooplah about "tough decisions", but I can assure you that I do now. And I am well aware of the fact that the decisions will only get more and more difficult to make. Intimidating - but I will rise to the challenge, because, as the wizend wizard, Albus Dumbledore, once said, "It is our choices, far more than our abilities, that show who we truly are." He he.

And furthermore, growing up is expensive!

That Darn Dollar Store!

Is it just me, or everytime you go to the dollar store do you come out with 100 more things than you needed? Ok, maybe not 100 but at least 3! They just always suck me in with the fact that it's only a dollar! Check it out - you can get a box of pencils for just a dollar! Or a birthday card! Or a gatorade! Or the Bible! Whaaaaat?? Yup, just a dollar.

Well clearly I need to buy it then.

Is it just me?

Idiopathic

Do you ever feel like blogging, but you don't have anything to say?

Hmm.

Of Christmas Carol Encounters

I have had some pretty interesting experiences with Christmas music in the past couple of years. So interesting, in fact, that I decided to blog about them! How lucky, right?

Last year, despite the fact that I was extremely excited for Christmas as a whole, I had this weird anti-Christmas music-complex thing going on. It was so strange! Music is one of the most wonderful gifts that has been given to mankind, and Christmas music, specifically, helps invite the Spirit in the same way that gospel and classical music can. I really just don't know why I was doing that last year. I wasn't completely against ALL Christmas music - I just didn't want to hear any of the generic/classic Christmas songs. Last year I was all about the ones that you don't hear very often or, at least, not as much. But I did NOT want to hear Joy to the World, It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, Let it Snow, Jingle Bells, Deck the Halls, etc. What a Grinch!

This year has been special in that it is exactly the opposite of last year! You see, certain members of my household were rigidly against the playing, singing, humming, or whistling of Christmas music anytime before December 1st. I don't have a specific day that I start listening to Christmas music, but I can tell you it's somewhere around November 1st! Even so, I abided by the wishes of those around me, and I have not played a single Christmas song in my house until today. I have sung one occasionally, when it just couldn't be suppressed any longer! And I have definitely been listening to the Christmas radio station in my car for the last few weeks. Anyway, the point is that I have again learned to love and relish in the classic, jaded Christmas songs that have been around for decades, simply because I was not allowed to listen to them for so long! Since Christmas music was forbidden in my household, my desire to listen to all those wonderfully classic yuletide tunes has increased a hundred-fold, and Christmas cheer has once again been instilled in my heart and soul!

You know what they say - all's well that ends well! :)