Rise and Shout

Yes, it's that time of year again - time to shift into BYU time.  For those who don't know or have forgotten, BYU time consists of late nights, early mornings, potential time zone lag, lots of work, lots of social events, and (overall) very little rest, even if you manage to get a decent amount of sleep.  (And by decent amount, I'm talking 5-6 hours is pretty typical.)

So, I thought I'd update for no good reason.  I'm back at BYU, living the crazy good life.  I started a new job this semester that I like to refer to as "cushy".  Why, you ask?  Because I get to sit on a cushioned chair the entire time!  Yay for data entry!  The work is slightly mind numbing, but the people are fun, I can listen to just about anything, snacks are allowed, and (best of all) I get to sit for the vast majority of the time!  I loved some of the perks of catering (like free food [sometimes] and cheaper food [at the CougarEat]), but the crazy hours were driving me -well- crazy!  This new job has been a blessing, especially because I can get all 20 of my approved work hours every week.  This means a steady pay check.  (And by steady, I mean that it might fluctuate by a few dollars every pay period depending on whether I actually hit the 20h each week, or only get to 19h 58m...)  On the whole, I am completely thrilled with working.  With classes and work, I'm on campus a lot, but I enjoy knowing that I'll have my Saturdays and evenings free! (well, free for homework, that is.)

School is school.  I go to class, they assign homework and reading, I have to do what is assigned and show up for the next class.  I'm in a class on Parenting and Child Guidance.  It's a pre-requisite to some of my required classes, don't freak out.  The teacher is a grad student who is so fun and happy, that I truly enjoy going to class.  She even has the occasional "kid appreciation day" where we appreciate some traits that we could benefit learning from children.  We've only had 1 of those days so far, but I look forward to a couple more throughout the semester.  And my Interior Design class is really action based, so a lot less reading homework and more "mix paints and paint these circles to mimic a color wheel".  While more action based, I doubt this work will be less work than reading and things for other classes.

Other than school and work, not much goes on... My roommates are all pretty cool.  I get along best with Meredith, but the other two are nice and friendly as well.  I even went to see Kung Fu Panda 2 with Meredith and Laura last week.  It's nice having a dollar theater, let me tell you!  (I love Kung Fu Panda, by the way.  I bought it over the summer, and I watch it at least once a week.  I love it so much because, in the end, the fat kid wins!)

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EMOTION ALERT:  Read only if you don't mind getting a little emotional. (emotion = feeling, including sadness, joy, regret, peace, anger, and any other emotion you can think of.)



I sometimes get little memories of dad.  Sometimes they make me sad, and sometimes they make me want to laugh.  I'm gonna try and post them here so I can remember the little things that might otherwise be forgotten.  So here's one I was reminded of while eating with a friend:

End of August, 2010.
Mom, Dad, Tifini and I had traveled down to Utah to bring me back to BYU.  I had a car, and they were gonna head back home either later that day or early the next.  So we met up at Costco for some eating, talking and overall merriment.  By the time I got there, Mom, Dad and Tif had almost finished eating and Mom and Tif looked to be slightly agitated at something.  Once I sat down, I realized what.  Dad was having the time of his life playing with the straw of his soda cup.  He kept moving it up and down, up and down, making that slightly annoying squeaking sound of a straw against plastic.  For some reason, that small thing made him smile and laugh.  And I couldn't help smiling and laughing along, just because he was having such a good time.  Now, was it a good time making music, or annoying Mom and Tifini?  Who knows.  Who cares.  It was one small thing that made him enormously happy. (and yes, after awhile it did get kind of annoying!)

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And this post about sums up my life right now.  Hectic, a little disorganized, slightly emotional, but really worth it.