i have really been enjoying pandora the last few days. i know that basically everyone loves christmas music and everyone gets into the christmas spirit this time of year. but i definitely consider myself someone who goes a little overboard with the christmas listening. it's on all. the. time. pandora has been a great source for me to find new christmas favorites and different versions of the classics. i don't know what my itunes christmas genre would consist of if pandora didn't exist because my go-to christmas stations fm 100.3 and kosy 106.5 just don't play enough of a variety. thank you pandora, for helping me expand my christmas music playlist.
alright. i'll admit it. i got sucked in. i had zero plans to go out on black friday, i had no need for anything in particular, and i definitely did not have money to spend. so why did i go? my parents were looking through the ads during breakfast on thanksgiving and i joined them (baaaaad idea). all of the sudden i started to need things. those darn ads got the best of me. i would have a few more dollars in my pocket had i not looked at the ads found in the newspaper thanksgiving morning. as i was looking i kept finding things that i could find a use for. the deals were just too good to pass up and before i knew it i was in line at target (for 40 mins, might i add) at 9 pm, waiting to get into the store thanksgiving night. two of my sisters were already going and that was another reason why i caved and went. im not saying that i'm regretting my decision entirely (although my bank account IS suffering) because it was fun to spend time with my sisters. all of our thanksgiving plans were over by the time we went and it actually gave us more time to spend with each other--even if we were exhausted the next day. i ended up getting my sisters birthday present way ahead of time. i got my engaged friends their wedding presents for cheaper than i would have if i waited. i got my parents christmas presents (haven't dont that in a while due to lack of funds). and i splurged a little and got myself a few things, but i don't do it often so it's ok, right?? not sure i'm the biggest fan of black friday. not sure if i will make it a tradition. but i'm not a hater.
one of my friends got engaged last week and part of it was actually recorded by a news crew. i don't know if it was supposed to work out this way but what a great moment to have recorded. this and other instances of this happening (dr. coyne's video of her proposal as another example) are wonderful. i feel like it is so awesome that we live in a time when it is possible to preserve forever exact precious moments of life. these videos will be treasured forever i'm sure. i love that we have the ability to take pictures and videos to help preserve our memories. if you're a romantic and want to see the darling fairy tale proposal click here.
im addicted. you think i would be productive over this wonderful break and try to get ahead in school so i wouldn't have a week like last week...nope. i'll just watch parenthood whenever i have a spare minute, thanks. my friends got me hooked on parenthood a couple weekends ago and i really wish i would have waited until christmas break to be introduced to it. it happened though, and i really am only complaining a little bit because i love this show a whole lot. i laugh. i cry. i already feel a connection with each character. sometimes i find myself thinking about them during the day. told you it was bad. do yourself a favor and look this show up on netflix-after finals.
a few of my girl friends and i took a little road trip to california this weekend. to save time we decided to drive through the night to and from california. this was slightly risky but with a lot of caffeine, a good book, and a friend to discuss it with we made it to each destination safely. my friend and i began reading the happiness project on the drive and instantly loved it. we decided to do our own project beginning in january. we are both wanting to improve on our quality of life. it's not that life is bad (it's FAR from that), and it's not that i'm not happy (i'm very happy and very blessed). we just feel like we could be taking more advantage of what we have and can better learn to/choose to be more happy each day. if you haven't read it, check it out.
i saw these two commercials today and wanted your opinions. the first one i loved. sears, 2 thumbs up.
the second one is creative and (quite) funny but---is it border line pornographic? inappropriate? uncomfortable? or am i just being weird about the whole thing? i'm probably just being weird. thoughts...
i know we're supposed to blog about experiences with the media but tonight i wanted to mention an example of how i resisted using a form of media. tonight i was going out on a(nother) blind dateand when he texted me today he included his first and last name in the text. probably for no reason other than out of habit. i was presented with a choice. to stalk, or not to stalk... i have been getting set up a lot lately. i'll admit it though, i usually check them out on facebook before the date happens. (i'll take some but not all of the blame-most of the time the person doing the setting up suggests it). at the time of stalking i have usually already agreed to go out with them so i feel ok about it. i probably shouldn't though. it's not all about the physical and doing the classic "facebook stalk" makes it way too easy to judge unrighteously. tonight i was proud of myself for not succumbing to the urge to stalk him before the date. now the question is, is it ok to stalk him after?!
in my adult development and aging class this morning we watched these videos. i had already seen the video of them playing but it was so cute to see the interview as well. i'm hoping my hubby and i will be like this one day. i seriously have such a soft spot in my heart for older couples. these videos brightened my day. thank you youtube.
our conversation on blogs the other day made me think about my favorite blog as of late. a couple of girls in salt lake put on the names of "gertrude" and "charlotte" and blog about (the woes of) dating and the things they have to say are hilarious. i love reading about their funny real life dating experiences and their witty insights to the dating world. definitely check it out if you need a good laugh. *warning. i wouldn't read it in a quiet public place. i have burst out laughing (more than once i might add) in the middle of the library or during a class (sorry dr. coyne-it wasn't your class though). maybe one day i'll be creative enough to blog as they do. check it out! http://aspinstersdatingencyclopedia.blogspot.com/
this is slightly embarrassing but i'm getting over it. this is my eye without any make up. get me to a hospital. i look sick from all the purple streaks around my eye. if you were to ask what is causing this discoloration i would answer without hesitation-tv. i feel like most days i can be fairly productive during the day and get (most) of my homework done, but nighttime-nighttime is my time and instead of doing what i should be doing (sleeping), i catch up on my tv shows for the week. this is not a healthy habit and that became especially apparent when i woke up the other night (morning?) at 6:32 am and my laptop was still open near my bed, playing episodes that i had fallen asleep to. this is a problem. i need to do something about it.
the movie from class last week stirred up a lot of emotions for me. i left class having mixed feelings about what we had just watched. i agree that women are heavily portrayed as sex symbols and objects, but parts of the movie were somewhat disturbing. i am so glad that i have the gospel to guide me in the right direction and tell me who i am supposed to be and how i should treat myself. i'd be so lost if i had the media to depend on. according to them i should be unhealthily skinny, have flawless skin and perfect hair, wear expensive clothes but i'm also being told to be an independent/strong woman, a successful business woman, to not depend on and trust men, etc. neither sound like who i should be according to my heavenly father, yet both ideas are being shoved into my face from every angle. here are some thoughts i had about the movie... -daphne zuniga was an advocate on this movie, yet in a tv show i watched (one tree hill-i watched somewhat faithfully...a little embarrassed to admit) she was mostly portrayed as the hoochy mom who was a successful business woman, divorced, and so worried about looking young, stylish, and having sex. i know she was just playing the role of "victoria" but you'd think if she felt strongly enough about the portrayal of women in the media that she wouldn't have taken that part. i found it slightly funny that probably many of the women (or at least the celebrities that were featured) had gotten plastic surgery, spent thousands on clothes and salon visits, and cared a lot about their appearance. i could be wrong, but that's my assumption.
-the other women that were featured on the show appeared to be normal-no work done, showing who they really are-but the message i got from what they were saying was that unless i become the ceo of a company or run for president, i will not be considered successful. what about the women who want to be stay at home moms? they're implications of what determines a successful woman was degrading to those who don't feel the need to aspire to be the next president of the country. they went on and on about how brainwashed we have become to feel like we need to look a certain way but in a sense they're trying to brainwash us to think that we need to act a certain way. -it is so sad and wrong how women are portrayed in the media. this negatively affects us women but i loved that they pointed out that the media does not make it easy for men to respect women. we shouldn't just be worried about the media affecting women and their self esteem. the media is affecting us all-women, children, men-and that's something important to be aware of.
i have turned into quite the hopeless
romantic. i love a good chick flick or (clean) romance novel just as much as
the girl next to me, but i think it has definitely become more apparent in the
last year or so. my reasoning for this? i believe it is mainly because i am not yet a mrs. one of the greatest things about reading is getting lost in a
story, escaping to a fictional world, and experiencing life in ways that might
not be possible in the real world. right now i am not falling in love, but i certainly loved falling in love with edward through the character of marianne. there were ways in which i related to this character, but at the same time i would not consider my personality identical with hers. this turned into
something i loved about this story. i almost felt like i was able to put myself
in someone else’s shoes. i gained perspective of what the thought process might
be for someone who is the same as marianne. i learned why feelings are
sometimes buried and need more than a gentle nudge to be revealed. i connected
to the character but at the same time i somewhat analyzed her and learned from
it. needless to say i have already
reread this particular novel and plan on doing so multiple times for multiple
reasons.
"in life, there are no ordinary moments. most of us never really recognize the most significant moments of our lives when they're happening." -kathleen magee
conference weekend equals the best weekend. there is seriously nothing like it. while talking with a friend he asked how i enjoyed my weekend and i said there are few things that i like more than general conference. he then asked me what those few things were. i honestly had a little bit of a struggle coming up with them. obviously time with family and certain friends is absolutely wonderful and maybe a couple of musical moments would be up there as well, but conference weekend as a whole just has it all. family. food. relaxation. and most important modern revelation/guidance from our heavenly father. prayers were answered, personal revelation was received, reminders were given and i was given a spiritual boost to keep on keepin' on. i enjoyed the common theme of true discipleship and how we can work towards that. i really try each day to live in a way to have the spirit as a constant companion. we can receive so much from him-comfort, guidance, strength, answers, promptings, etc. i felt the impression to really do better at keeping a journal (which i thought was interesting because no one really talked about that specifically this conference) i know myself and know that if i try to keep a regular journal it only lasts about a week because it becomes too big of a task. so i decided i'll begin the habit by keeping a gratitude journal. by actively looking for the tender mercies the Lord blesses me with, i will notice more blessings from Him and will become even more grateful. i will begin by expressing gratitude for our prophet thomas s. monson and the twelve apostles. alright, basically i am grateful for all the leaders of the church. i'm grateful for the opportunity i had to listen and learn from them last weekend. this weekend there were no ordinary moments. "most of us never really recognize the most significant moments of our lives when they're happening." if anyone didn't get a chance to watch or listen to conference i'd encourage you to visit lds.org and do just that. don't miss out on the significant moments that took place that can be life changing.
our class discussion on music really made me re-appreciate music and how powerful it is. so much of my testimony has been strengthened through music and the spirit can teach so much through it. countless times of joy have been accompanied by a song to describe that perfect moment. bitter tears have been shed while listening to a song that captures the feeling of sadness and despair.
this summer i had a new experience (new for me, i'm sure others have experienced this same feeling) with a song. i had recently gone through the worst break up i've experienced (yes i will admit that i was that girl--so distraught, confused, and incomplete after a breakup). it had been months and i was seriously fed up with feeling stuck and unable to move on with life. i took up running about a month after the said moment and really found that i was able to channel a lot of my anger, confusion, and frustration into running. it felt good and gave me something to do. i only ran to the same playlist which was gavin degraw's album "sweeter". gavin's music has influenced my life in many ways over the course of the last nine years. needless to say he's one of my favorites. i (kinda) switched it up one day and put all of gavin's albums on shuffle when i went running. at the very end of my run a new song that i had never paid attention to came on. it was called free and it seemed to capture every emotion i was feeling at that moment. i was exhausted (physically because of my run, and also emotionally because of current life circumstances) and as i finished my run i laid on the grass, looked up into the sunshine, and felt an overwhelming feeling of hope, strength, and determination to be who i wanted to be and work towards becoming the person i knew i could be. it sounds silly but i treat this musical moment as one of the most spiritual moments i've experienced in my life so far. tears streamed down my sweaty cheek and i felt god's love for me and my testimony was once again strengthened that he had a plan for me and i had the ability to accomplish it. it was a life changing experience.
in class dr. coyne asked us to think of a song that describes us right now. this one was a no brainer for me, simply because i am still receiving strength from this particular song. i loved having the time to reflect again on how it has influenced my life. not only did it give me strength during a break up, but now i can listen to it and think of myself becoming more well-rounded, keeping the commandments and becoming a better disciple of Christ in order to be free from worldly troubles, and i can commit to give my Heavenly Father everything i have--to truly make His will become mine. i'm not sure gavin degraw knew that his song would have such a profound effect on me and my commitment to god. how grateful i am that he wrote this beautiful song and shared it for everyone to enjoy.
i am so grateful for music and the power it has to bless lives, give strength when it's hard to find, invite the spirit, and so much more.
*excuse the loud crowd and weird videography from this video. here is a recording of it as well but there's something about live performances that i just love.*
today in my adult development and aging class we watched a movie called grace. it is about a husband who cared for his wife who had alzheimer's disease for a total of about 15 years. he was her primary caregiver (and a great one at that) and cared for her until the day she died. watching him care for her and have so much patience and continual love for her was amazing. seeing her in that condition made me so sad (and scared of that possibly happening to me) but seeing him be there for her day after day was unbelievable. he dressed her. he fed her. he took her on walks. he stayed calm when she was worried. he painted her nails. he made sure she her hair was looking nice. he sang to her. the list goes on. that kind of love is hard to find and is definitely what i want to have one day. i didn't expect this movie to produce the same reactions as a chick flick but girls in class were crying and everyone was "ohhhhh"ing and "awwwww"ing as if the notebook was on. i love the feeling of getting lost in a movie. i felt like i knew grace personally after watching this show. that could be one of my favorite things about movies--getting lost in the story and feeling a connection with the characters, even though that sounds absurd. being able to escape to another life via movies is so great to me and i'm grateful for it. sometimes i need to have 2 hours where i don't have to think about myself, my life, and what needs to be accomplished. the media is truly a lifesaver at times and prevents me from losing it quite often. i currently have the desire to watch all of the audrey hepburn movies before i watch anything else. ok, i might not make it through them all but i at least want to give it a shot. i watched charade a couple weeks ago and absolutely loved it. i'm pretty sure the following movies will be consuming my spare time for the next few weeks...
roman holiday sabrina breakfast at tiffany's how to steal a million funny face my fair lady war and peace wait until dark always
i finished this wonderful book again last weekend. my testimony grows each and every time i read it. i am so grateful for the prophet joseph smith and all of the others who sacrificed so much in order to bring us the book of mormon. it truly was written for us. i just participated in a choir that performed the cantata "from cumorah's hill" a few times over the last couple weeks. this piece, written by steven kapp perry with words by brad wilcox, was all about the book of mormon and how we can apply it to our lives because it is most definitely written for our day. learning and performing this cantata had a profound influence on my reading and studying of the book of mormon the last few months. the messages and truths i was singing about through song and the spirit i felt while rehearsing and performing testified more to me of the truthfulness of this book. i am so grateful for the book of mormon and the guidance and peace that it can give. all we need to do is open it and have a sincere desire to learn from it and it will work it's magic. i'm grateful for this form of media that is used as a way for our loving heavenly father to communicate to us. how blessed we are to have it.
as i was leaving class today i was about to pull out my iphone, put in my headphones and start my 3 minute walk to the bike rack. this is a usual routine after my last class--actually after every class (minus the bike rack part) but today i decided to not put in my headphones. we had just finished talking about media influencing prosocial behavior in class and although this isn't an example in the media it's an example of the media effecting my prosocial behavior. as i was walking i thought that in general, i would probably be more prosocial if i wasn't in my own little world (headphones in, music somewhat blasting) every time i was surrounded by others. as i was walking i ran into an old friend and didn't have to pull out my earbuds to begin a friendly conversation with her. i got a few silent laughs in as i overheard conversations taking place around me. i continued to think about our class discussion and reflected on my personal application of the concepts talked about. these things i experienced in that three minute walk were extremely more beneficial to me than hearing one song that i would have most likely listened somewhat mindlessly to. im not saying that it's awful to listen to music while walking around campus. i definitely turned on my music for my bike ride home (uphill the whole way--i need something to help it be more enjoyable). i am not someone who thinks everyone with earphones in is antisocial and hates life. i've been that person on campus for the last 2 years. all i'm saying is it might be beneficial to leave them out every once in a while.
devotional last week was especially great for me. i feel like the message shared was exactly what i needed to hear right now. i could recap what elder snow counseled us (if you missed it you really should listen to/read it when it comes online. such excellent advice.) but instead i wanted to mention a great reminder i received from the beginning of devotional that came in the form of a song.
"come, follow me, the Savior said. then let us in his footsteps tread for thus alone can we be one with God's own loved, begotten Son. come, follow me, a simple phrase, yet truth's sublime, effulgent rays are in these simple words combined to urge, inspire the human mind. is it enough alone to know that we must follow him below, while traveling thru this vale of tears? no, this extends to holier spheres. not only shall we emulate His course while in this earthly state, but when we're freed from present cares, if with our Lord we would be heirs."
i was overcome with the spirit as i listened to the concert choir sing this beautifully simple hymn. it really is somewhat of a simple commandment but at times it can seem so hard to do. follow the Savior. He is leading the way with His arms stretched out to us, just waiting for us to accept His invitation. i was reminded that He is the only way. our Savior Jesus Christ is the one who we need to be following. He is the perfect example for us. the counsel is there--plain, simple, and powerful. follow Him.
last saturday night i was watching gilmore girls (started from season one ever since we talked about our favorite shows in class...bad idea because i'm constantly not wanting to do my homework...) and i was particularly noticing how lorelai and rory eat. one of the episodes was about them having a saturday movie night (watching willy wonka and the chocolate factory, of course) and they had to go to the market to get the essentials to go along with their pizza: huge marshmallows, licorice, jelly beans, chocolate kisses, peanut butter, cookie dough, and fun dip. this is only one example of the eating habits of lorelai and rory. they eat at luke's daily, lorelai drinks more coffee than imaginable, cheeseburgers and cheese fries are considered their "usual" and somehow the two of them are still fit and normal sized. i assume they don't exercise because it's never talked about. so how do they still look the way they do? i found myself craving food and eating an absurd amount of it during the 2 episodes that i watched that night (after 10 pm-possibly contributing to my sleeping problems). i wasn't even hungry but i couldn't stop stuffing my face. it kind of got to me and i found myself wishing i could eat like they do and not feel yucky or have to run 5 miles to work it off. probably not the most positive effect this particular piece of media is having on me. i will cancel it out by reading a few quotes from the brethren about true beauty and my divine nature. that ought to do the trick, right? i hope i'm the only one slowly getting trapped by media's portrayal of the woman's body and health, but if i'm not (and my guts telling me i'm not) maybe a reminder would be beneficial to us all.
don't worry, a post dedicated wholly to stephanie nielson is next.
i recently got a new computer (finally a new macbook owner. it's about time!) and i've been transferring everything from not only one, but two of my old computers to my new one. when i transferred my music over i added over 3,000 songs to iTunes.whoosh. the sight alone of the number 3,045 started giving me anxiety. i have always loved music and it is a huge part of my life but i definitely didn't understand why i have that much music. i've been obsessed with the same two artists all summer. that doesn't mean i don't occasionally turn on something else but i definitely have my favorites now. i remember being in high school and feeling like my older siblings were so boring because they didn't listen to the radio and they only listened to their favorite artists. actually i thought it was more absurd than boring. it was incomprehensible to my 14-year-old mind that they weren't getting sick of listening to the same music over and over. uh, i totally don't listen to the radio any more. i am becoming boring and strange, just like my siblings had become. now that i'm in this particular stage i realize that they probably didn't listen to the radio as much because almost every song has at least one swear or the lyrics are inappropriate. i'll be the first to admit that i still know some of the popular songs and am not as picky as i should be about my music. i'm working on it though. i've been playing a game with myself in order to clean up my new iTunes (clean up in terms of having less music and purifying). as i'm doing random things (ok lets be honest-when i'm on facebook, blogger, or instagram) i turn on shuffle and when a song comes on that i really don't care for or is inappropriate i send it straight to the trash. i realize this will take so much longer than just going through my iTunes but i really don't have the time to do that right now. so until then i will anxiously await each new song that comes on shuffle and enjoy the game of deciding if it's worthy of my time (and eternal salvation).
as i was stalking my best friend's blog i stumbled upon her post about a favorite commercial. i also fell in love with it as i watched. not only does it show a fraction of what is available on the web today (there's so much available, the possibilities are endless) and shares the message "the web is what you make of it"(something i definitely agree with), but it does so through a cute little love story that every hopeless romantic (totally me) would ache to see, even if it is only a minute and a half long. if every commercial was that good then i wouldn't be so eager to watch my tv shows on hulu or netflix. unfortunately, that's not the case and i will continue to watch my shows commercial free. i may, however, search youtube for the latest worthwhile commercials and enjoy those too.
