What Goes On

I just want to give props to my cronies, Julie and Sarah....they've been my go-to buddies for years now. We have a good time and usually just hang out, go eat, go on soda runs, and watch Grey's anatomy and the Office together. We do other stuff too on occasion, but these guys don't need to be accompanied by a party or activity. Its fun just to sit and talk and laugh...usually at the expense of Sarah. Hehe...I spend most of my "down time" with these two-


Me and Sarah

Julie, Me, Sarah

Ob-la-di Ob-la-da...life goes on

So a few of us got together to watch the BYU vs. Utah game. I'm not really sure if any of us really cared much about it. It was more a good reason to have a party and at least acknowledge the importance of the event. But I have to admit, it wasn't all that important to me. For the record, we all root for BYU. I'm not too sure that their loss had any effect on the mood of the party. Amy had ordered hot wings from Wingers, there was soda in abundance, and T.R. and I picked up a Papa John's pizza. So, all in all, it was a good time. Maybe next year, Cougars...



As you can see, getting a soda was more impotant than the play that is taking place ....priorities, man.
Contrary to what this picture depicts, this party was out of control with enthusiasm...ok, maybe not
Aaron (her fiance) and Julie

Dig It

So I have been wanting to respond to my sisters' emails, bloggings and general requests to share what sort of new music I've been into. Lately, I've been going to a lot of concerts with Julie and Sarah- small ones- and I've loved them all! First off my shultes, I highly recommend discovering Ray LaMontagne. I'm sure a few of you have heard his song off of the Last Kiss soundtrack. His newest album, Gossip in the Grain is amazing. I mostly listen to him these days. You at least have to love "Trouble", "Hold You in My Arms", "Shelter", "Let It Be Me", "I Still Care For You", "You are the Best Thing", and "A Falling Through". So there are some good ones to check out. We went to his concert a month ago and he's one of those guys that is somehow even better live- Love him. Also I went to Missy Higgins' concert. She's quite the little firecracker. I like her live better, but her recorded stuff is great too. My favorite from her is probably "River". We also just went to the Hotel Cafe tour which included the likes of Mieko, Thao, Kate Havenik, Emily Wells, Lenka, and (the reason why we went) the one and only Rachael Yamagata. And yes, it was awesome. So that's some newer stuff. As for what I've been listening to that's not so new but worth listening to-
"To Sheila"- Smashing Pumpkins, "My Lovely"- Eisley, "Subterranean Homesick Alien" and "House of Cards"- Radiohead, "A Call to Apathy"- The Shins, "Sweet Surrender" and "Answer"- Sarah McLachlan, and "Two"- Ryan Adams.....ok, That's enough for now.

There's a Place

Basically, you walk around this place with no pants...its very acceptable
lunch- and a bit of down time at our camp picnic table
Julie, first day in (not to camp yet) This was the first waterfall we saw
those guys up at the top are about to jump off into the water- fun stuff

There is a path in there somewhere, cause we crossed through this


Ok, so I know I've taken a "break" from the blog- but I'm back. I wanted to post about my Havasupai trip last month, but I haven't gotten a hold of Sarah's pictures yet. You see, my camera was stupid the whole time and for some reason takes blurry pics. So I am only posting a few of the ones that turned out (hardly any of me) and I will post more later. First off, this place was an absolute surprise! A little paradise hidden in the bottom of the Grand Canyon. We started hiking down around 4 or 5am. It took about 4 and a half hours. It wasn't too bad until the sun started coming up! Then it got a bit toasty with our packs on. Our party consisted of Julie, Sarah, and I...and two friends and a bunch of their friends joined us later at the bottom. Once we got there and set up our little camp (which consisted of two tarps- one on bottom, one on top, and a floaty raft for each of us) we got to take a nap. Aahh. Then, the rest from there was pretty much hiking, swimming, climbing- and occasionally eating. The whole place reminded me of somewhere you hope to find while playing in the backyard as a kid....the water was literally the color of Blue Hudini Kool aide, there were lizards everywhere, and all sorts of hidden paths and trails through jungle-like terrain. (Obviously, I was a tom boy as a kid.) I'll try to post more pics later- but the highlights of the trip were:
*Finding a cool water cave underneath a waterfall- ( kinda scary to swim to. Googles were a must)
*Hiking over an hour back into the "town" (the indian res) our third day there just to get some COLD sodas, and some crappy diner food- so worth it!
*Seeing the breathtaking waterfalls
*Playing card games one night- lots of bugs, lots of fun
*Spending all day 5 days with Julie and Sarah- lots of laughs
*Hiking out of the grand canyon the last day in...flip flops. Yup, my blisters were too bad for shoes. It was pretty comfy, and I was proud of my accomplishment.
*Hot warm weather- and basically being in water the whole time
*Huge rope swings


Some of the not-so-fun highlights:
*Getting cactus in my thigh...and not even noticing til the next day- gross.
*Nasty port a potties
*Somehow losing my balance and falling into the river we had to cross (multiple times a day) to get out of our camp- actually this was funny. I had just woken up and obviously didn't have my balance yet. I awkwardly lost my balance enough to fall in up to my neck- I got my clothes and my little backpack wet (annoying.) Sarah and Julie had a good laugh at it....the water is only about crotch-deep. I'm still baffled about how it happened.
*So many blisters and cuts on feet- my flip flops became my best friends
*Waking up SO sore from the day before's hikes that I couldn't straighten my legs for at least 5 minutes....only way to cure it- HIKE MORE

This trip was a lot of fun, and a lot of work- pretty physically demanding. Mostly cause we just went from place to place and never took a break. But it was all beautiful. I even think my mom would agree on that. (she's not a desert fan.) Overall, a way fun adventure. I felt like I needed a few days off work after hiking so much to recuperate- but of course, I started work six hours after arriving home.

I Want To Hold Your Hand

...Unfortunately, his hand was made of paper. Sean's best bud Will and Sarah got married last weekend. They're both in our ward and Sean played match maker and actually introduced them and set them up. Since Sean was to miss the wedding, Will got the idea to have a stand-up poster of Sean, so he could "be there." Of course it was nothing close to the real thing, but it was funny.

Will, Sarah, fake Sean, me, and Dustin-


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Come Together

So for the past two weeks I have been staying up way, way too late. (I won't say how late) My whole sleeping schedule is awful and I basically run off of very little sleep. Having said that, I also just recently dicovered my new favorite tv channel- Music in High Definition (MHD). This channel plays all sorts of concerts- Unplugged (artists do an acoustic concert), Storytellers (where the artist performs songs and then tell about writing them and answers audience questions) and my favorite, Crossroads (an unusual combination of two artists who do a concert together.) I wouldn't say that this is the reason I stay up late. But I tivo them so it gives me something to watch into the wee hours of the night. So for any of you out there with access to this channel- check it out!!!
Some of my favorites so far:

This is Robert Plant (Led Zep singer!) and Alison Krausse- amazing combo!
Maroon 5 and Sarah Evans (love her)
Little Big Town with Lindsey Buckingham-my other boyfriend
Dave Matthews Band storytellers- these guys are such incredible musicians...its mind blowing
Heart! These girls still rock! I'm going to their concert this summer!!!

I've also seen Lyle Lovette and Bonnie Raitt crossroads, and a suprisingly good Ricky Martin unplugged (all in spanish). I'm definitely on a music kick...but then again, I think I'm always on one