Fall Favorites

It's amazing what idleness does to your brain and your mind. All my friends are occupied today, and I don't start work till Wednesday. I am really having a hard time...

It's getting chillier here which makes me SO excited for Fall, decorating for Halloween, going to Becca's for Thanksgiving, and eventually decorating for/having Christmas! But, it also reminds me of decorating for Halloween with Sabina, making Christmas decorations, driving on Five Mile Mountain Road with the GORGEOUS fall colors surrounding you, going to the apple orchard place and picking out pumpkins and apples by the dozens. Most of all, the outdoors with the animals and their fuzzy coats, watching their breath steam into the cold air as they bleat while I feed them. Watching Justin's coat gradually thicken, riding him in the cold air all bundled up in coat, scarf, gloves, watching his breath steam into the air as he turns his bridled head to look at a deer that runs past. There's such a peaceful quiet serenity about riding in the Fall, hearing the bridle clink around as Justin moves his head in time with his foot falls. It's so nice when your fingers are chilly from being ungloved as you're trying to do something with your horse, so you seek shelter under their mane where it's REALLY warm.

I miss that. Alot. Hopefully once school starts I'll get distracted and it won't bother me so much, but... Fall is my absolute favorite season, and there's so much that makes it that way. I think its gonna be harder being away from home this time... aLOT harder.

Taco Time Employee!

Yup. I got a job! And I know it was because of the Lord, because I'd been praying and praying and hoping that I'd get a job I could walk to, and DREADING a job that I had to drive to... and I got one right across the street and down a building! YAY! It's fast food, but hey, someone's gotta do it and it'll give me responsibility and something to do. The man who hired me was awful kind about it; I could see he was really trying to justify hiring me, and finally he just did.

I hope he's blessed immensely for it, although I think he'd think a plate of homemade cookies from me would be kinda weird... oh well, the thought counts right?

I was handed an application by the cashier kids (well, not kids but college students) but I asked to see the manager anyways (thank you Sarah!). He talked to me and told me to come back at 2:30. Awesome, I felt a little more confident because he told me to come back. I did, and -not really meaning to- RIGHT as the clock struck 2:30. Well, those same 'kids' were there and were like, "Oh, came to drop off your application?" I didn't give it to them. I told them that the manager told me to come ask for him, so was he here? They said he was out running errands, I could wait if I wanted to? I'll wait. I told them, sat down and waited for 35 minutes and he arrived. He sat down in front of me, went to grab a pen (I didn't realize it was going to be an interview) and basically interviewed me... then hired me! It was so kind of him, he told me "I probably won't be able to give you many hours at first, but I don't want to turn you back 'on the streets' so-to-speak, many jobs out there?" I told him I'd tried 15 places so far, and he hired me. Good GOOD man!

I start next Wednesday at 3:30pm. I also told him -to the question 'how many hours would you like to work?'- to give me as many hours as he could. Hopefully it'll all work out. I am grateful. SO grateful!

Job Huntin'

I'm in Rexburg! Duh. I've been here since Sunday and I'm staying with these nice people that are friends of the Williamson's that used to be in our stake. They're really nice people, got a nice (big) house, a beautiful yard (that they tend just perfectly), got three horses, and all their kids are grown up and gone so they didn't mind me staying here. :) Ugh, but I've been job hunting...

I applied at Melaleuca, Dollar Tree, some Copy & Print place, Broulim's, Subway next door to my apartment, and the Rexburg Opinion Center. Of those, Dollar Tree and Broulim's were hiring; Melaleuca hires alot of students but I don't know how long it'll take them to review my application; the Rexburg Opinion Center I KNOW I have a job there, you just call 24-48 hrs after submitting your application and set up your group interview/orientation. The only problem is, I can only work night shifts (3:30pm-7:30pm) at the "ROC" and you have to work a minimum of 2 days (Mon-Thurs) and a minimum of 4 weekend days a month (Fri & Sat). I can only work that shift Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays because I have evening classes M-W. And, I'd really prefer a job elsewhere where I could work during the day 5-6 days a week.

I think I might just call them up and tell them it won't work out this time around. But at the same time, I -need- a job... how long should I wait? I applied at all of those places either yesterday or the day before...

On the Road Again!

Except this time, we're driving ALL the way out to BYU-Idaho, not just from Alma's house to Rexburg.

Nothing exciting has happened really... just the usual, go through horse-filled Kentucky, stop in Nauvoo Illinois to see the temple and some buildings (about 3 hours we spent there), nab lots of postcards on the way and send 'em, mosey through Corn-covered Iowa, TONS of sunflower filled fields in VERY windy Nebraska, get some more postcards, then enter Wyoming and enjoy its beauty and spendor (seeing as how its one of my favorite states) then spend all day and well into the evening and darkness trying to get OUT of never-ending Wyoming, and then stopping a little ways short of Logan, Utah for the night at a Crystal Inn.

I ate way too much for breakfast this morning at the continental breakfast... In fact, I'm stuffed to uncomfortable-ness... >.<

Nauvoo was nice, there was a little shop there (actually, there were several, and all in old-fashioned and mostly original brick buildings with old signs - very cool!) that we stopped in, I got some postcards and they had Old Tyme-y Portraits... *dies* I was JUST talking to Brandy about how fun it would be to go to a place that did these and have 'em done! Too bad she wasn't with me, we would've wasted NO time in paying for them, dressing up and posing dramatically!

Lots of horses. All over. Lots of cowboys at one of the rest stops in Nebraska too... ;D Hopefully I can find some in ole Rexburg, daggonnit! Dad's been driving the whole way, but I've only had a couple urges to drive so I'm good. He can be rather exasperating though, as he's asked me at least 20 times (that is no exaggeration, I've kept a vague count in my head) "You doin' alright?" - to which I reply, with some exasperation in my tone - "Doin' just fine!!!" "FINE!!!!" ugh. But he means well, and he's been awful kind to ask me at every truck stop almost if I "found something ya can't live without?" hahaha, I love that line of his, I'll have to remember to use it one day. And of course, I don't exaggerate with the southern-twangy-ness of the way I'm writing these phrases, yall know his accent. I have to say its somewhat refreshing too, I won't be around any southerners for a good long while. *sigh*

Gotta Love Technology!

Wow, so here I am sitting in an airport in Cincinnatti, Ohio on my laptop without it plugged in, enjoying the internet with their free Wi-Fi. I'm even connected to David's automatic-answer-and-start-video webcam and am watching the inside of his house, haha! I just think its cool as can be, and it gives me something to do for the next 25ish minutes that I have to wait to board the airplane.

Super cool, that's what!

FHE

Last night's FHE was really good. Well, we decided it wouldn't be FHE... see, we have a 'Brother' apartment and a 'Sister' apartment. Well, our sister apartment NEVER comes to FHE, it's always us and our brothers (and they are all always really busy so its nice they always make time for FHE), so on Sunday we took a 'Family' picture and last night we went to Anthony's house (he's our oldest 'brother'). He has this next door neighbor who turned 94, so he suggested to us that we go see him and sing him Happy Birthday. It was such a good experience! Anthony's house is out in the country and it was beautiful!!! We went to his house, his mom gave those who hadn't eaten some spaghetti and then we all ate these delicious cookies she made.

There were cows and farms (Anthony's folks have a farm) and horses all over, and they had a tire swing! I got on it and Anthony gave me an underdog and since he's 6'4" he shoved me up into the trees! It was on a willow tree, and so so so beautiful! After we were done at Anthony's house, us girls scrambled in the back of his pickup and we drove to the 94 year old's house. That guy looks great for 94!!! He was up and moving, came right to the door in his plaid shirt, jeans, old battered up cowboy boots and belt (I think its so cute/sweet when old guys wear their cowboy boots! Anthony's dad was too). He seemed awful touched that we came and sang to him, and he gave us one of the cakes he got for his birthday because he got two.

Then on the ride home, Anthony took us the scenic route and it was beautiful and breathtaking. Definently showed the reason why Idaho's my second favorite state, I want to buy me a ranch out here sometime its so pretty! (Even if you have to irrigate all over the place)

Teton River Dam... at 11:30pm!!!

So, yesterday I saw Jon Schmidt -- AMAZING! And afterwards I went to Cami's boyfriend's apartment and watched Newsies with Justin and Cami and Justin's roommates. We had to leave RIGHT before the very TIP of the end because curfew was upon us, but I LOVED it, that movie is so amazing and fun and it just gives me chills!

Anyways, Friday night (curfew is 1am on Fridays) I was wondering what to do until Justin and Cami invited me to go to the Teton River Dam even though it was already like 10:30 at night. It was the two of them and then Justin's friend and his ex-girlfriend Brittney who I talked to almost the whole ride, she was really nice!

To sum it up, we drove into the middle of nowhere, I discovered that Justin is a crazier driver than David (and while I felt safe-ish, I still feel the safest when David is driving, even if he is peeling out around corners on dirt roads), then we parked on the side of a cornfield in the middle of nowhere, hiked through it for like 10 minutes, then proceeded to descend a rocky slope that was VERY steep (and if it had been daylight, I probably would've considered it impossible and not gone down), and while everyone else would confidently walk on steep flat sheets of rock, I kept getting on my butt and sliding - it was SO much easier! Finally, when we got to the bottom, we walked out to the edge of the river bank and I could SEE in the dark the beautiful grand-canyon-like thingy that had the river flowing through the bottom. I SO wished I could've seen it in the daylight, but the stars were beautiful. We walked way far down the river bank until we found a bunch of jetting out rocks that we decided to climb over to get to the dam opening. I thought I would slip and fall, but I didn't.

Then we got to the opening, slipped through an opening in these iron bars, then slid through a small opening in this cement wall (they had apparently cemented it off, but people busted a hole through) then we got in there and ran through the tunnel, it was SO fun! You had to either straddle run or run on one side then run on the other, then back and forth so you didn't lose your balance. It was so fun just running through there! Plus, everything echoed like a second later so it was loud but cool sounding. If you said something, you could wait a couple seconds then it would say it back to you. Pretty cool! Then we reached the control room, slid underneath this big thing that was being held up by a iron grate (if it fell, it could've sliced us in half, kinda fun/freaky) only, oh we THEN had to climb up a ladder and then up a tunnel thing with a rope -- Justin and Cami had to pull me up because I'm so weak-muscled. Really, I felt stupidly dependent the whole time because I"m so weak and clumsy and unbalanced. But, we went into the control room and saw the neverending ladder (its like 12 flights of ladder steps Ephraim told me later, somewhere around 300+ steps). Then we came back.

I had alot of fun, even if I was clumsy as heck and weak besides, everyone was patient and the guys were nice. We got home just barely under curfew, and then me and all of our roommates peeked out the window at Cami and Justin who stood outside embracing and talking for 20 minutes before he shoved a kiss on her face (literally, I watched the whole thing!) which was THEIR first kiss and HIS first kiss and HER first kiss in 5 years, so it was something we'd all been waiting/expecting for. Plus, Taleea had a HOTT date Friday night as well, he was VERY good looking and she had an awesome time with him - we're hoping he'll ask her out again, he's just perfect for her - tall, kind, sweet, caring, and plays the guitar besides!