Creole Wisdom

one week

The year has flown by.  I have mixed feelings.  How can I leave my beloved city, especially as it enters its most glorious season?  How can I leave my family?  How can I leave the would-be adventures with city sorority sisters?  I suppose there's always next summer...

I have so much to do still.  But one thing is certain: at this time next week I'll be in Utah sitting in my first staff meeting at my new job.

These broadcasting dreams are going to become a reality.  It is good to go away and have some fun and escape my less-than-stellar ward here. 

I want to sit by the pool, I want to take pictures of mountainous horizons, I want to eat new foods, and I want to love my internship. 

Stay tuned.  My Summer 08 is about to commence. 

specula the door

Mom: Here are some boxes for moving out of AOII
Me: You know I cannot use boxes that have the word "vaginal" on them. Guys from church might be helping me!
Mom: Yeah, you're probably right (walks into the office to grab a pen)

...

Me: I can still see it through the sharpie! Can you cover up "specula," too?!?
Mom: The word specula just means that it opens something
Me: Hmm, like specula the door?!?

....

I mean, can you see the faces of guys if they saw this box?!?  Thank goodness no one is coming to help me besides family.

This is the embaressment that you suffer for having a parent in the medical field. 

If you want any vagina boxes or viagra/can't-get-it-up medication pens I'd be happy to send them to you.  And no, these are not going to Utah. 

new goodies

Friday Karen, Brittany, and I headed to MOA.  I made a killing at Forever 21.  I love Forever 21 because it's like the cheap girls Anthropologie.  I can get mostly anything I want, and a ton of it, too.  I am especially partial to their ultra-feminine sun dresses.  I even found a cute cover up for my swim suit. 

Oh, and for fun I tried on shorts.  Now, keep in mind I have not worn shorts since about 2002.  Why?  Well I found out again when I tried some on for fun, there is no need for me to be walking down the street in something that looks like I popped out of playmate of the year.  Not a good look.  It was hilarious to see in the dressing room.  Ya should of been there.  I was laughing my butt off.

Sunday mom wanted to go back to MOA for a mother's day shop.  I had been wanting to go to the new Gilly Hicks store, and I did.  Oh my goodness is that store gorgeous.  You need to come to MN and see it for yourself.  The most feminine, sexy, gorgeous underwear ever in the most fabulous, elegant, yet fun store.  I had to snap a picture of the place, here is the center room where they sell tons of perfume.  Ah, so gorgeous.  It is divided up into about 4 rooms and one of them looks like a massive, dark paneled library... but it's a library of bras.  I wanted to die.  It was so beautiful.

And their products... even more beautiful than the lingerie I remember seeing in France.  So pretty!  The photos do not do them justice. 

Then off to Martin + Osa for new flip flops and a really cute top.  They are another cool, new store.  Very holistic, organic look but well-tailored, feminine, and affordable prices!

Yep.  I'd say I'm ready for my Utah summer!

mom's day

Another good mother's day has come and gone!  I can't believe it.  Planned this one out pretty well, too!  Mom and I started out Sunday with church at Calvary Lutheran.  Quickly after communion we dodged out to make it to our 12pm reservation at Figlio's.  A restaurant to die for.  I was actually worried about getting a good reservation, but I got one with no problem.  They were packed though.  Good thing I plan ahead.

Mom's gift with fun wrapping and our divine eggs benedict.

Mom's gift: picture of us (from mother's day 2007) in cool frame and willow tree figurine.  Plus a "singing" card. 


We finished off the day with a mega shopping trip at MOA (per mom's request) and pedicures oh, and yes ice cream. 

to reign supreme

coming soon, my shopping finds for summer 08.  Stay tuned:

places that were visited:
•Forever 21
•Gap
•Banana Republic
•Old Navy
•Gilly Hicks*
•Martin + Osa

*Quite possibly the most beautiful store I have ever seen in my life.  Prepare to be amazed when it comes to your town.  To read about it go here. 

this side of paradise

I have a thing for used book stores.  I think it stems from this: mom: loves antiques dad: loves/owns tons of books = me, lover of used books.  They are less expensive, and sometimes the previous owners have marked/dog eared the best parts.  The cover work is superb, too.

A used book store literally steps from my sorority house.  they have a cat that I can pet, too.  Did you see the bird? Ah, so cute!

Oh Anne Rice!  You are so talented, I am all for writing about Christ, but you should also write some of your regular stuff, too (even if it is a bit trashy).

F Scott Fitzgerald: We hail from the same city, you were really quite a hottie ('cept for the 5'8" part), too bad it's not 1925 and you can dump that crazy Zelda for moi.  I am enjoying your text, too. Like Daisy I can cry over a good shirt, so we might get along.

If you want to lean more about my really hot reading life, go here

on perfect saturdays

this is what you do:
•Wake up rested and enjoy a father-daughter breakfast at the Nicollet Island Inn.  Dad and I have been going here for years, it is one of "our" places.

•Go to a fun bridal shower.  As I was leaving Karen says to me, "you always go to bridal showers!" Haha, it might seem that way, but this is really the second I've ever been to.  Believe it or not.
•Page through my Fodor's Utah book.  Right now I am really having cold feet with this whole thing.  I think I'm going through a spiritual funk, and have decided I need to make some "big" decisions when I come back from Provo.  In the meantime I got excited about all the fun things I get to do to keep me away from the reality that I am leaving my family, friends, and beloved city for nearly 3 months.

•Walk around Dinkytown with Kate and ran into Starbucks to get my favorite summer drink: a sweetened passion iced tea lemonade.  Basically it's like a raspberry herbal tea, cooled, with lots of sugar dumped into it.  How can I complain with that?  And Starbucks goers, have you noticed the changed label.  I love it.

You are probably wondering why I felt compelled to post these two.  Well, it's one of my first tries with lamplight at night, and I love how the effect through clear plastic creates a clean, white look. All thanks to my new stellar lens, the 50mm 1.8.  So great!
•Alex and I ventured over to rent a movie, we choose something scary- a classic.  Rosemary's Baby.  Now, I can understand why that would freak people of my parent's generation out, but we were not terrified.  Understanding the social and historical context of the era, though, I can see why it horrified people.  I guess I'm not worried about some old people in my apartment trying to have me have the Devil's son.  Probably not going to happen!

blurb

I had so much fun making my blurb book.  I decided not to include my first year of blogging, and any of the unpleasant Matt stuff, because it is my blurb book!  Haha.  Reminds me of a saying I have tacked up that says: if it's not in the scrapbook, it didn't happen.  Snaps to that!!!


And the spine... one of my favorite features of making this:

Eventually I am planning on making both a book about both my grandmas.  This summer I'm making one for my sorority.  Almost everyone in my house is hooked.  Two girls have already made blurb books for their moms for mother's days, and Kate made one for her boyfriend. 

grown

Ready for one of my epic dating posts?

So as I began to contemplate myself, my life, and what I want out of this second estate I recognized that one thing on the top of my priority list for a man was someone who is grown up.  I have spent twenty or so odd years dealing with boys, and while they are fun, easy to persuade, quick to love you, they are also unrealistic, naive, and indecisive. 

Because I am nearly a senior and an ancient twenty-one I need different things.  I need someone who can talk politics, art, and history with me.  I don't want a blank stair when I ask about Obama's proposed foreign aid plan.  I am not eighteen.  I do not need someone who is going to think they're in love with me after two dates, or someone who can't keep their hands off me/themselves, still lives at home, or has never gone anywhere. Passion does not make a relationship.  I will not resent my future person because he cannot relate to me. 

So to sort myself out I took a break from Curtis.  And I came to all my conclusions in the meantime.  Unlike Wendy I got sick of the lost boys in Neverland, and went in search of a real, grown up man.  I cannot expect a boy to comprehend me, or even desire to.  And lucky for me, one fell into my lap-

And in the meantime Alex and I have been having a fantastic time.  I whipped up some chocolate-chip macadamien (sp?) nut cookies for his 22nd birthday.  He loved them. 

Turning Away From Hate

Last night, on campus, Hillel (the Jewish student organization) put on a lecture featuring TJ Leyden, an ex-neo nazi.  The first time I saw the poster on campus I knew I had to go, and it was an amazing experience.  Going into the lecture I knew that I would hear things that would disturb, even scare me. 

After this slide came up the room grew quiet.  TJ Introduced himself and began explaining his life in the movement:

TJ grew up in a middle class Irish-Catholic family and got into the movement as a teenager.  He was a leader in it, recruited other kids, and promoted racism and violence-

TJ is an amazing public speaker.  I thought I knew quite a bit about race history in this country and the rising white-nationalist movement.  He taught me things I had never even heard of, things that literally blew my mind. 

For instance.  TJ exposed the fact that seperatists of all races, i.e. Neo-Nazis and the Nation of Islam have been meeting together for years...

A seperatist is just a p.c. word for racist, and a seperatist is a seperatist no matter what color they are.  Here is a plan that the sepeartists hatched for America:

The catalyst for TJ's change of heart came from his two young sons.  He and his wife and children have since been out of the white power movement for years.  Because of who he is TJ is constantly at risk from attack from Neo-Nazis.  His best friend in the movement wrote a hateful song about him, he has been shot at more times than he can count...

After the presentation I felt compelled to meet this man who I think firmly embodies the word "courage."  He was talking to a woman who asked him, "how have you survived, how are you still alive?"  He replied, "I am a religious person and I firmly believe God has a plan for me, to go around and speak about this issue..."  A girl behind me asked him if he was Jewish.  He said, "I'm actually LDS."  That is when I perked up, and said "me too" and thanked him for coming to the University. 

It was an amazing experience, I continue to marvel at hatred and am humbled by those who say "no more."