Thursday, March 20, 2008
So much to do, such little time...And nobody to do it for me
It's been a while since I've blogged, but there's not really much to say right now, so this will be a quick one. Here's all I've got in the near future: I've got less than 48 hours to pull together the first bridal shower that I've ever hosted. I've pretty much got the plans all straightened out and I know what I'm going to do, I just have to pull it together and make sure everything works. I've got some fun ideas, so there will be pictures to come.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Through Sepia-Colored Glasses
The past two days have not been average in the life of Gina. Yesterday was an event-filled day, and today I almost died. Okay, not really, but the possibility was slightly there.
For the past several months I have been trying to get together with my friend, Jay, who lives in Provo. He and I met oh, so many years ago when he was a recently returned missionary and I had just returned from a summer and fall semester-long sabbatical from school. He and I were both at one of those new semester/new people getting-to-know-you activities and we happened to be in the same group, and we got to know each other. And somehow from that meeting, he and I became friends.
After several failed attempts at actually planning and executing a get-together, Jay and I concluded that yesterday was the best Saturday to get together. Because I had another errand that needed to be taken care of before too long, and because the best place to complete that errand was in Orem, I happily volunteered to drive down to Provo to meet him. We agreed to meet at his place at noon, he gave me directions, and everything was set.
My errand in Orem went off without much of a hitch, and after purchasing my bridesmaid dress for my friend Jami's wedding, I was on my way to Provo, and University Avenue as my journey would take me.
As I drove south on University Avenue, I realized that because I had taken a different exit from the one Jay had advised me, I was unsure of whether I was going the right direction or if I needed to turn around. So before I got too much further, approximately 15 minutes before our agreed meeting time, I sent him a text message asking him what direction I should be going. His reply was somewhere along the lines of, "You're that close already? I haven't even showered."
Because I did not receive my desired response, I told him that I could kill time if needed, but that I still needed to know the proper direction. His response to that was, "I'll call when I'm ready. We can meet somewhere else or we can meet here. I'll call."
Thinking that my wait time would be brief, I followed the directions that Jay had given me previously and found out where he lived because I figured that sometime in the future, it would be helpful to know where to find his living quarters. When he still hadn't called me, I found the closest Deseret Book store and wandered for a good 45 minutes and looked at the same books over and over again. Finally, I decided to purchase a book and kill a bit more time while waiting for him to call. So I took my new cookbook out to my car and perused it . . .twice . . .while waiting for him to call.
Then around one o'clock, I gave up waiting and sent him another text message asking him if he was ready yet and that I would go to his house and meet him, to which he replied, "I'm getting dressed, I'll call you in 5-10 minutes." Thinking that might actually mean that he would call me in 5-10 minutes, I looked through my cookbook once again, wishing I had bought something more substantial with which to bide my time.
Twenty minutes later, just as I was about to tell myself, "If he doesn't call in another half hour, I'm going to Pita Pit and I'm going home," my phone rang. I admit, I spoke to him in a tone that could have been misconstrued as bitter or rude, but I was slightly frustrated. After all, by this time, it was over an hour after the time we had originally decided to meet. But I figured all was well when on my way to his house, he called again and said in a joking manner, "Shouldn't you be here by now?"
A few minutes later, I arrived on his doorstep, and I saw my friend that I hadn't seen in at least a year and a half, since before I left Moscow. It was really good to reminisce about things that had been pushed back into the corners of my mind and to laugh about things that stayed the same about each other as well as the things that had changed. He related to me that his scatterbrained ways were the cause of his delay in getting ready for our lunch and joked that of all people, I should understand. And throughout the afternoon, I teased him about his tardiness and he asked me if I was planning on letting it go anytime soon. I then asked him if he had ever known me to let things like that go easily.
At some point, he and I had somehow decided that our lunch options had been tapered down to two, either Zupa's or Bombay House. I informed Jay that I had never eaten Indian food. He informed me that it was really good, but that if we wanted something sooner because we were hungry and wanted food, Zupa's would be the way to go.
As we were waiting in line to order our food, Jay said a name of someone I had known in Moscow and asked if that was who was standing behind him. He moved to reveal that person that I also hadn't seen in about a year and a half. I talked with him for a minute or two, and Jay and I continued on our way, eating our food and discussing the past.
After we were done eating, Jay asked if I wanted to see Javier, another former Moscow person living in Provo. I was up for it since it had been even longer since I'd see Javier, so off we went. He was in the process of moving into a cute little brick house that he had just bought, so we helped him move for a little bit.
Well, all good things must come to an end, so after concluding that he and I needed to get together more often, Jay and I parted ways and I drove home in the wind and rain, which quickly turned to snow.
I then went over to my sister's house to watch my nephew, and had a blast with that little guy. It seems that he saves the things he says for when I babysit him because later, when I told my sister that he said, "Uh oh, I broke it," she was shocked because he had never said that to her. That kid loves me. He cuddled with me until it was time for me to go to bed, and although I didn't want to make him go to bed, his mom's orders were specific. Of course, he probably would have fallen asleep on me soon after his appointed bedtime, but I thought I would follow the rules this time. Next time I might fudge a little and keep him up later than usual. Just don't tell my sister.
So shortly after I got home from my sister's house, I went to bed, planning on not waking up a minute before about 9 or 10 am. Little did I know that at approximately 7:21 this morning, my roommates and I would be rudely awakened by the smoke/carbon monoxide detector. Four out of five of us quickly emerged from our rooms, half asleep, trying to comprehend what was going on. Because we weren't sure exactly why it went off, some windows were opened to get some fresh (and cold) air circulating through our house and we were forced to stay awake until we had determined that the problem was not carbon monoxide-related. Good thing church didn't start until 1 pm.
In the meantime, Jenny, Cristi, and Haley decided to watch the Care Bears movie. Great. I was a little bit disturbed by the demon child obsessed by this evil magic book, but the Care Bears and the Care Bear Cousins were cute.
For the past several months I have been trying to get together with my friend, Jay, who lives in Provo. He and I met oh, so many years ago when he was a recently returned missionary and I had just returned from a summer and fall semester-long sabbatical from school. He and I were both at one of those new semester/new people getting-to-know-you activities and we happened to be in the same group, and we got to know each other. And somehow from that meeting, he and I became friends.
After several failed attempts at actually planning and executing a get-together, Jay and I concluded that yesterday was the best Saturday to get together. Because I had another errand that needed to be taken care of before too long, and because the best place to complete that errand was in Orem, I happily volunteered to drive down to Provo to meet him. We agreed to meet at his place at noon, he gave me directions, and everything was set.
My errand in Orem went off without much of a hitch, and after purchasing my bridesmaid dress for my friend Jami's wedding, I was on my way to Provo, and University Avenue as my journey would take me.
As I drove south on University Avenue, I realized that because I had taken a different exit from the one Jay had advised me, I was unsure of whether I was going the right direction or if I needed to turn around. So before I got too much further, approximately 15 minutes before our agreed meeting time, I sent him a text message asking him what direction I should be going. His reply was somewhere along the lines of, "You're that close already? I haven't even showered."
Because I did not receive my desired response, I told him that I could kill time if needed, but that I still needed to know the proper direction. His response to that was, "I'll call when I'm ready. We can meet somewhere else or we can meet here. I'll call."
Thinking that my wait time would be brief, I followed the directions that Jay had given me previously and found out where he lived because I figured that sometime in the future, it would be helpful to know where to find his living quarters. When he still hadn't called me, I found the closest Deseret Book store and wandered for a good 45 minutes and looked at the same books over and over again. Finally, I decided to purchase a book and kill a bit more time while waiting for him to call. So I took my new cookbook out to my car and perused it . . .twice . . .while waiting for him to call.
Then around one o'clock, I gave up waiting and sent him another text message asking him if he was ready yet and that I would go to his house and meet him, to which he replied, "I'm getting dressed, I'll call you in 5-10 minutes." Thinking that might actually mean that he would call me in 5-10 minutes, I looked through my cookbook once again, wishing I had bought something more substantial with which to bide my time.
Twenty minutes later, just as I was about to tell myself, "If he doesn't call in another half hour, I'm going to Pita Pit and I'm going home," my phone rang. I admit, I spoke to him in a tone that could have been misconstrued as bitter or rude, but I was slightly frustrated. After all, by this time, it was over an hour after the time we had originally decided to meet. But I figured all was well when on my way to his house, he called again and said in a joking manner, "Shouldn't you be here by now?"
A few minutes later, I arrived on his doorstep, and I saw my friend that I hadn't seen in at least a year and a half, since before I left Moscow. It was really good to reminisce about things that had been pushed back into the corners of my mind and to laugh about things that stayed the same about each other as well as the things that had changed. He related to me that his scatterbrained ways were the cause of his delay in getting ready for our lunch and joked that of all people, I should understand. And throughout the afternoon, I teased him about his tardiness and he asked me if I was planning on letting it go anytime soon. I then asked him if he had ever known me to let things like that go easily.
At some point, he and I had somehow decided that our lunch options had been tapered down to two, either Zupa's or Bombay House. I informed Jay that I had never eaten Indian food. He informed me that it was really good, but that if we wanted something sooner because we were hungry and wanted food, Zupa's would be the way to go.
As we were waiting in line to order our food, Jay said a name of someone I had known in Moscow and asked if that was who was standing behind him. He moved to reveal that person that I also hadn't seen in about a year and a half. I talked with him for a minute or two, and Jay and I continued on our way, eating our food and discussing the past.
After we were done eating, Jay asked if I wanted to see Javier, another former Moscow person living in Provo. I was up for it since it had been even longer since I'd see Javier, so off we went. He was in the process of moving into a cute little brick house that he had just bought, so we helped him move for a little bit.
Well, all good things must come to an end, so after concluding that he and I needed to get together more often, Jay and I parted ways and I drove home in the wind and rain, which quickly turned to snow.
I then went over to my sister's house to watch my nephew, and had a blast with that little guy. It seems that he saves the things he says for when I babysit him because later, when I told my sister that he said, "Uh oh, I broke it," she was shocked because he had never said that to her. That kid loves me. He cuddled with me until it was time for me to go to bed, and although I didn't want to make him go to bed, his mom's orders were specific. Of course, he probably would have fallen asleep on me soon after his appointed bedtime, but I thought I would follow the rules this time. Next time I might fudge a little and keep him up later than usual. Just don't tell my sister.
So shortly after I got home from my sister's house, I went to bed, planning on not waking up a minute before about 9 or 10 am. Little did I know that at approximately 7:21 this morning, my roommates and I would be rudely awakened by the smoke/carbon monoxide detector. Four out of five of us quickly emerged from our rooms, half asleep, trying to comprehend what was going on. Because we weren't sure exactly why it went off, some windows were opened to get some fresh (and cold) air circulating through our house and we were forced to stay awake until we had determined that the problem was not carbon monoxide-related. Good thing church didn't start until 1 pm.
In the meantime, Jenny, Cristi, and Haley decided to watch the Care Bears movie. Great. I was a little bit disturbed by the demon child obsessed by this evil magic book, but the Care Bears and the Care Bear Cousins were cute.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Listen up!
I had once promised myself that this blog would never experience comments or complaints about dating. But since this is only my third post with many more to come that will not contain anything about dating, and since this is MY blog and I can do whatever I want. So here goes.
I find it interesting that despite my insistence that I will not ask anyone on a date until I get asked out first, there are many people that think I should take the initiative and ask out anyone I might be interested in. I remind these people of my stance on the subject and include the fact that even if I wanted to ask someone out I wouldn't because I'm a big chicken, yet they must still think that one day I might say, "Hey, you're right! The next hottie boy that I see walk into this clinic, I'm going to walk right up to him and say hey, wanna go out sometime?" Okay, I understand that these people are trying to look out for me because they know that yes, I do want to go on dates. Yes, I do want to get married someday. But I do not want to nor believe that I should back down on my belief that it is the responsibility of the man to ask the woman out. I could go on about that belief, but I'll refrain because it'll only remind me of how irritated I get when the subject is brought up.
Another thing that kind-of irked me was the suggestion that someone made that I should start looking for men that already have children because let's face it, I'm not getting any younger, and apparently there are fewer and fewer decent single men in the world that don't have children. Don't get me wrong, I have absolutely nothing wrong with single men with children. I just think that maybe I still have at least a few years left before I have to start considering men that have an incredible amount of baggage that they would be bringing into a relationship. I don't even think I would be ready to get into a relationship with someone that would be bringing along an insta-family.
I realize that many may disagree with my comments, and I realize that some may even be offended, and if anyone does take offense, that's their decision and their right. But I hope they realize that what I have said is my opinion and my belief and my right.
I find it interesting that despite my insistence that I will not ask anyone on a date until I get asked out first, there are many people that think I should take the initiative and ask out anyone I might be interested in. I remind these people of my stance on the subject and include the fact that even if I wanted to ask someone out I wouldn't because I'm a big chicken, yet they must still think that one day I might say, "Hey, you're right! The next hottie boy that I see walk into this clinic, I'm going to walk right up to him and say hey, wanna go out sometime?" Okay, I understand that these people are trying to look out for me because they know that yes, I do want to go on dates. Yes, I do want to get married someday. But I do not want to nor believe that I should back down on my belief that it is the responsibility of the man to ask the woman out. I could go on about that belief, but I'll refrain because it'll only remind me of how irritated I get when the subject is brought up.
Another thing that kind-of irked me was the suggestion that someone made that I should start looking for men that already have children because let's face it, I'm not getting any younger, and apparently there are fewer and fewer decent single men in the world that don't have children. Don't get me wrong, I have absolutely nothing wrong with single men with children. I just think that maybe I still have at least a few years left before I have to start considering men that have an incredible amount of baggage that they would be bringing into a relationship. I don't even think I would be ready to get into a relationship with someone that would be bringing along an insta-family.
I realize that many may disagree with my comments, and I realize that some may even be offended, and if anyone does take offense, that's their decision and their right. But I hope they realize that what I have said is my opinion and my belief and my right.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Some of the best things in life . . .
I wish that everyone had someone like this . . .
. . . around anytime things get rough and tough. My sister called me this afternoon needing a babysitter for my nephew Nathan. She had a dinner that she had to be at by 6:00, and my brother-in-law was stuck in construction in Ogden and it was anyone's guess as to when he would get home. So being the good sister that I am, I rushed as fast as I could in rush hour traffic . . .ha ha . . .(It's been a really long day and I'm tired. Humor me and laugh.)
I'll tell you this much, at times when you're feeling like there aren't many people in the world that are remotely happy to see you, it sure makes you feel great when you walk in the door and one of your favorite people flips out because he's so excited that you're there. I am loved.
So almost immediately after my sister left, Nathan, who will be two years old on St. Patrick's Day, kept saying, "Pocket? Pocket?" and shoving toy cars in my pockets. Well, I'm not one to discourage a creative mind, and being the favorite aunt, I let him. And then when he tried to get the cars out of my pockets, he had some difficulty. "Stuck! Stuck!" he said, so I helped him pull them out so he could put them back in. I am loved.
He also said (or at least tried to say) many words I had never heard him say. I'll admit there are a few things I miss about not living with my sister. Anyway, besides pocket and stuck, he also said his versions of the following words, in no particular order: frog, snail, flower, duck, duckie, piggie, Elmo, eye, nose, head, dog, bear, teeth, pillow, bed, book, ball, dinosaur (at least I think that's what he said), come on (okay, that's more of a phrase, but when he does it while cocking his head in the direction he wants you to go, it's pretty freakin' cute), help, and thank you. How many two-year-olds do you know that can say thank you without any prompting? I am loved.
Okay, so he had a few tantrums when I would take his crackers away from him because all he was doing was licking them and then trying to put them back in the bag or when he would try to convey what he wanted and I could not understand him. But how can I let that get to me when he cuddles with me for an entire movie and even flips out when his dad tries to take him from me? I am loved.
So as I was about to leave, I went to get my kiss and squeeze (if you ask him for a hug he ignores you, but if you ask for a squeeze, he'll lay his head on your shoulder for a minute, so I make sure I get my squeeze) and then I said, "I love you," to which he promptly blew me a kiss. Now, I'm sure that for a lot of people, that's not that unusual. But my sister and I were quite surprised that his immediate response was to blow me a kiss because he had not done that for months. I am loved.
You can probably guess how I felt as I walked out of my sister's house tonight. It's very comforting to know that even when things seem to get difficult, you're important to the people that are most important to you. How can anyone complain about that?
. . . around anytime things get rough and tough. My sister called me this afternoon needing a babysitter for my nephew Nathan. She had a dinner that she had to be at by 6:00, and my brother-in-law was stuck in construction in Ogden and it was anyone's guess as to when he would get home. So being the good sister that I am, I rushed as fast as I could in rush hour traffic . . .ha ha . . .(It's been a really long day and I'm tired. Humor me and laugh.)I'll tell you this much, at times when you're feeling like there aren't many people in the world that are remotely happy to see you, it sure makes you feel great when you walk in the door and one of your favorite people flips out because he's so excited that you're there. I am loved.
So almost immediately after my sister left, Nathan, who will be two years old on St. Patrick's Day, kept saying, "Pocket? Pocket?" and shoving toy cars in my pockets. Well, I'm not one to discourage a creative mind, and being the favorite aunt, I let him. And then when he tried to get the cars out of my pockets, he had some difficulty. "Stuck! Stuck!" he said, so I helped him pull them out so he could put them back in. I am loved.
He also said (or at least tried to say) many words I had never heard him say. I'll admit there are a few things I miss about not living with my sister. Anyway, besides pocket and stuck, he also said his versions of the following words, in no particular order: frog, snail, flower, duck, duckie, piggie, Elmo, eye, nose, head, dog, bear, teeth, pillow, bed, book, ball, dinosaur (at least I think that's what he said), come on (okay, that's more of a phrase, but when he does it while cocking his head in the direction he wants you to go, it's pretty freakin' cute), help, and thank you. How many two-year-olds do you know that can say thank you without any prompting? I am loved.
Okay, so he had a few tantrums when I would take his crackers away from him because all he was doing was licking them and then trying to put them back in the bag or when he would try to convey what he wanted and I could not understand him. But how can I let that get to me when he cuddles with me for an entire movie and even flips out when his dad tries to take him from me? I am loved.
So as I was about to leave, I went to get my kiss and squeeze (if you ask him for a hug he ignores you, but if you ask for a squeeze, he'll lay his head on your shoulder for a minute, so I make sure I get my squeeze) and then I said, "I love you," to which he promptly blew me a kiss. Now, I'm sure that for a lot of people, that's not that unusual. But my sister and I were quite surprised that his immediate response was to blow me a kiss because he had not done that for months. I am loved.
You can probably guess how I felt as I walked out of my sister's house tonight. It's very comforting to know that even when things seem to get difficult, you're important to the people that are most important to you. How can anyone complain about that?
Monday, January 21, 2008
Experimentations
Someday I would like to learn how to become a better photographer, although I sometimes like to think that I'm amazing. Some examples...
This is my roommate Cristi's amaryllis up close.
Some clouds I thought were pretty cool.
The Jordan River Temple Moroni
This is my roommate Cristi's amaryllis up close.
Some clouds I thought were pretty cool.
The Jordan River Temple MoroniPossibly more to come if I ever find other cool stuff to take pictures of.
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