Sunday, October 15, 2017

Fall Things

I am in LOVE with the fall leaves. G and I finally made it up to Ruth's Diner, a little diner built out of a train car up in the canyon, for brunch. Lucy has been telling me about this place for years, and it was well worth the 45 minute wait--especially since we were waiting in such beautiful scenery!
Greta and I have very few pictures together, despite the fact that we are together the majority of the time. We've set a goal to rectify that!


Holding these balloons still for a picture was SO hard. But we were determined, because I love my birthday balloons. I would highly recommend turning 25.

Our first roommate picture! Love that I still get to live with my college besties & feel so blessed that our new roommate, Evann, is so much fun!



The Nothing Man

I went on a date on Saturday. He was cute and he had given me lots of attention prior to the date (and I hadn't gotten annoyed at him), so things were looking good. And then, only a few minutes into the date, disaster struck.

We were in a museum exhibit about human rights and women's issues. He was certain this was the most boring exhibit in the museum, but I thought we should walk through anyway, because, umm..it was awesome. Standing in front of a wall about the evolution of protests, I asked the boy

Me: If you were to protest something, what would you protest?
The boy: Nothing.
Me: There is nothing you would ever protest?
The boy: I am a white, middle-class male. What would I have to protest?
Me: So you don't think you should use your privilege to help others?
The boy: Nope.
Me (inside my brain, not out loud): Is this a joke? Maybe the word protest was a scary word. 
Me (out loud): Okay...What would you advocate for?
The boy: Nothing.
Me: Nothing? There is no cause you believe in enough to advocate for?
The boy: Nope.
Me: If you could change one thing in the world, anything, what would you change?
The boy: Nothing.
 
At this point, the date might as well have been over. I interpreted this exchange to mean that he doesn't care about other people. Which, considering that he didn't ask me any questions about myself during the date, probably isn't that far-fetched. 

It really was a bummer. He had so much potential. My views of the rest of the date were all colored by this 2 minute interaction at the beginning of the date. The worst part is I think he thought the date was going well. Well, until I accidentally said "Woo!" when he said it was probably time to take me home. Whoops.

My dad wrote a song about the boy. It goes like this (to the tune of "Do you know the muffin man":

Do you know the nothing man
the nothing man
the nothing man
Do you know the nothing man...


Sunday, September 17, 2017

I'm not saying I'm a gold digger

I went on a date with a millionaire last week. Okay, I don't actually know that he's a millionaire...but I'm pretty sure. My cyber stalking revealed quite a lot about this guy, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hoping he would pick me up in his Lamborghini. He picked me up in his Audi instead. It was fun to play rich for the night. He insisted we order one of every single thing on the menu that either of us wanted to try. The food had to be brought out in waves because we ordered way too much to fit on the table. While I don't think either of us would ever choose to go back to that restaurant (Louisiana food in Utah...what a joke) it was definitely a memorable experience. He was attractive and nice, but not really my type. While there was a piece of me that wanted to throw myself at him his wallet, that "I'm not saying she's a gold digger" song got stuck in my head and it was just so not worth it.

This experience led me to make a minor adjustment to my "meh" dating theory. The theory: Most dates are meh. They are neither good enough or bad enough to make for a good story. Getting out of the meh category is the key to successful dating, and the cure for 1st date boredom. HOWEVER, I would not consider my date with the millionaire an above average date. He was pretty meh. Just an average guy. The food was also pretty meh, maybe even below average. BUT the date did make for a pretty great story. I mean, how often do you order every entree at a restaurant? The new theory: to escape "meh" you must either be a good date, bad date, or rich.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Balance

My goal for the week was to live a more balanced life. NAILED IT.

I only worked late one day and I filled my evenings with social activities. Monday night we went to Seven Peaks for a tri-stake activity. Very fun, despite the wedgies that are absolutely impossible to avoid at water parks. On Wednesday we went to Lady A concert #2, which I think was even better than Lady A concert #1. Even the openers were amazing.

Last night, we had a LSU vs BYU football party. LSU totally dominated (which was not a surprise), and we had the best group of people over to watch the fame with us and enjoy gumbo, a bomb Dr. Pepper bar, and sparklers (What's a party without a little firework action? Can you believe that one of our attendees had never done sparklers?!).

My life is nothing like I would have imagined it to be, but I love it so much.

Sunday, August 27, 2017

Lisa the career lady?

There were only 3 jobs I wanted as a child: checkout worker at the grocery store, teacher, or anything in a fancy office building as long as I could wear heels that would make a satisfying clicky noise when I walked down the hall. I probably make about the same amount of money as a checkout worker. I teach a couple classes each week. And, although the building isn't fancy, my shoes do sometimes make clicky noises. I guess you could say I'm living the dream.

I really do love my job. Like, a lot. I work late more often than not, and I could talk about my job for hours without boring myself. I was talking to a friend this weekend and came to the realization that I spend so much time at work because I feel needed there. I know I am making an impact. And it feels good.

I never really thought I'd be a career lady. And I definitely never thought I'd be a work obsessed career lady. But here I am, single, with lots of time on my hands. I'm quickly realizing how easy it is to become so concerned about work that other things in your life take a back seat. Right now, I can afford to spend extra time at work here and there, but I need to remember to work hard at learning to live a balanced life. Practicing balance in my work/home life now, will help me be better at balancing in the future when *fingers crossed* I have a family that needs me to be an A+ balancer.

While seeking for that balance, I am grateful to have found a job that I truly love. I didn't even know if that was possible a year ago. But good news: IT IS. 

Here are 10 good things about my job:
  1. I work with people who love their job.
  2. I witness miracles on a daily basis.
  3. I'm learning important life skills.
  4. I am actually utilizing my Family Life degree!
  5. I'm learning to follow through with consequences, which is not my favorite thing, but I think it's really good for me to learn to hold people accountable.
  6. I'm learning to take feedback.
  7. I'm learning time management.
  8. Sometimes I get to snuggle babies.
  9. I get to help women learn to be transitional characters, changing the lives of generations to come.
  10. Perspective. I have gained so much gratitude for my oh so privileged life.

Sunday, July 30, 2017

I've dated all the boys.

I was in the kitchen making dinner tonight when I heard my roommate and her boyfriend chatting in her room. That's when it hit me. I immediately stopped cooking, found her on Facebook, and searched her friends list. It was confirmed: her boyfriend was my first Bumble date, several months ago.

I thought he looked familiar when I met him. He's at my house practically every time she's home, and I've lived here for over a month. How did I not see it before??? Then again, he's never said anything either. Does he recognize me? Time will tell. I feel like I can't just announce that I've all of a sudden realized we went on a date. The timing has to be right. Translation: I can't just come out and say it when she's sketching out wedding rings or they're making out. But also if I don't say something soon, I feel like that's weird too. I really thought my days of running into people I've gone on dates with ended when I moved to Salt Lake. In Provo it was pretty common for me to run into multiple people a day that I had gone out with, but Salt Lake was my fresh start. Or so I thought.

Moral of the story: Be nice to everyone you go on dates with, because you never know if you'll end up living with their next girlfriend?  Or maybe the real moral of the story is I've gone on too many dates. I quit. But not really because I already have a date set up for this week.

Wednesday, April 26, 2017

I ran over my own car.

Have I ever mentioned how much I dislike the dentist? I really dislike the dentist. But, in an attempt to be a real grown up, I go to the dentist (sometimes). I had my 6-month check up yesterday. At 7AM. What was I thinking when I set an appointment so early in the morning? GOOD QUESTION. I rolled out of bed (hair in a greasy messy bun, no makeup, oversized hoodie--looking real cute) and headed to the dentist only to learn that I have a dang cavity.

Obviously, the day was off to a great start.

Then, as I was pulling away from the dentist office, I heard a crunch. THE ROAD WAS CLEAR, and I was confused. I rolled down my window and asked the girl (who was staring at my car) if I had hit something. "Your bumper FELL OFF," she said. WHATTTTT?! Who knew that could just happen? My front bumper fell off and I RAN OVER IT. I RAN OVER MY OWN CAR. 

So here I am, in the middle of the road, on top of my own bumper, with NO CLUE what to do or how to get my car off my bumper. Go forward? Go back? I was about to go into full on crisis mode, when a boy crossed the street and helped direct me off of my bumper. But this is Provo, and I wasn't wearing makeup, so of course this wasn't just a random stranger boy. Ohhhhhhh no. This was a boy I had gone on a date with over a year ago and then never spoke to again (classic me). He didn't say anything, and honestly I was not in the mood to bring up the fact that we had gone on a date before, so we just sort of ignored that (or he didn't recognize me) and pretended to be perfect strangers.

Another boy also stopped, and the two of them tried to tell me it wasn't a big deal as they loaded my bumper into my car. I was (am) seriously so grateful for these two. I wasn't buying their "this isn't a big deal" crap, but it was a nice gesture, and I would probably still be stuck in the middle of the road on top of my bumper without them. It's finals week. People are busy. And neither of them made me feel like an inconvenience in their day and neither of them hurried away. I was definitely not  looking cute, so I know they had no ulterior motives. These were quality humans.

Of course the second I drove away (with my bumper in the passenger seat) I burst into tears. I literally bought this car 2 weeks ago. The car issue quickly turned into a Lisa issue. Obviously it was all somehow my fault and I bought the worst car in the world. Thanks to 3+ phone calls to Dad and a very nice body shop guy, I was able to pull myself out of that slump and realize that it was all going to be okay.

And then it kicked in. Carine said it's called White Knight Syndrome. Suddenly that boy who stopped to help, ya know... the one I went on a date with a year ago, suddenly I thought he was the most beautiful man in all of Provo. Naturally, I contacted the friend who had set us up and asked if he was single. He is. So I called him. It went something like this, "Hey! This is Lisa. The girl that ran over her own car today. And also one time we went on a date. I think you're the nicest person in the entire world, and I probably owe you dinner." The kind soul didn't say no. Probably because he agrees that he does deserve a free meal.

The White Knight Syndrome has since worn off. It's probably for the better. I probably would have proposed at dinner if the you-saved-my-life-so-now-I-love-you feelings would have stuck around.


Enjoy this, the only picture of my car pre-bumper casualty. 

Sunday, March 19, 2017

The (little) Grand Canyon

This weekend we discovered the little grand canyon. I thought Eliott was taking us to go hike across the prairie, but then BAM! we arrived at this gorgeous location. It was the best. Sunshine, 70 degree weather, and good people. 



 






 







Tuesday, February 14, 2017

He's got my back

Blogging post-break up is hard. Especially because I am always scared to really blog about my relationships. The downside of not sharing the happy relationship times on the blog is that it is really hard to blog about the ending of a relationship that you, dear reader, know nothing about. Let's just say this one was (is) a doozy.

If there is one thing I have learned (or re-learned) this past week and a half it is that God knows me. He is aware of me, and He has my back.

I was walking to school today fighting back the urge to cry. I had to teach a class this morning on COMMITMENT. On Valentine's day. 11 days after my heart was shattered. I didn't think I could do it. All I wanted was to go home and crawl back into bed and never get out. I started making deals with myself. Get through this lesson and you can go home. You can call in sick to work. You can skip your afternoon class. But you have to teach this class, and you are not allowed to cry until after 10:45. I was barely holding it together. And then my angel came. She had just passed me on the path to school when she turned around and complimented my coat. Then she asked my name. She asked how I was doing. I lied. She walked me the rest of the way to school, gave me a Valentine, and disappeared. I made it through that class. And armed with the reminder that God will get me through the day, I'm still on campus.

God has not left me alone for one second these past 11 days. The list of miracles that have occurred in my life are unbelievable. But they are real. 

Greta was home when it happened. Kyle had snapped saying his plans for the night got cancelled, and she went to respond to him several times saying they should watch a movie or something. But each time she opened the message to respond, she changed her mind. She stayed home without plans on a Friday night. God knew I would need her.

My home teacher was at my house one hour post-break up to give me a blessing. I never have good relationships with home teachers, except right now. I always thought home teaching was just for the rare occasion when someone with no friends needed something. Not me. But all my friends were his friends. I would have had no one to call. On Sunday, the EQ President and a member of the Stake Presidency came to visit. I told the EQ President how grateful I am that with all the changes in home teaching this semester I got to keep my home teachers. If they had been changed I would have had home teachers that would have maybe  home taught me once before the break up. And I wouldn't have called them. The EQ President looked me square in the eyes and said "Lisa, we did change your home teachers. But then we changed them back." God knew I would need them.

My "Love You" balloon from Carine is the first thing I see every morning and the last thing I see every night. Mornings and bedtime are the hardest. No one has informed my subconscious dream-making brain that it's over. But every morning the first thing I see when I open my eyes is a reminder that I am loved. I take a deep breath, and I get out of bed. God knew I would need reminded, often.

There are a million other miracles. Tabatha texted me out of the blue the day after the break up just to tell me she loves me. The weather has been beautiful. Greta and Carine have taken the best care of me. Friends I haven't talked to in months have taken me back in immediately and made me feel so loved. Mom has answered all of my middle of the night phone calls. I have been blessed with an abundance of dark chocolate. Anytime I am about to break, a friend shows up. I have a running list of the miracles that have occurred on my computer, and just looking at the list brings tears to my eyes. God is so good. He loves me. He loves you.  He is paying attention. You and I are never alone.

Happy Mother's Day to Me, a Plant Mom

I really love my plant babies. I didn't know how much I would enjoy being a plant mom. In the past, I've basically killed e...