GO CUBS GO!

Life Ain't So Easy When You're A Ghetto Child

Once a week the Brigham Young University newspaper, The Daily Universe, notifies the citizens in the area of the criminalities and delinquencies that have taken place on and around campus. These are taken verbatim from this last week's affronts to society. It's amazing that I step off my front porch...

Jan. 26: A 48-year-old intoxicated female visitor was found stretched out on a chair in the Cougar den of the WSC. She was unconscious with an open bottle of vodka on the floor beside her. Provo paramedics transported her due to her physical condition. She has a prior history of being arrested on campus.

Jan. 21: A male subject was seen repeatedly tossing his two-or three-year-old child in the air during the course of the basketball game. When police asked him to stop, he refused until told he would be cited.

Jan. 24: Two male students were found at B66 near the ROTC building using power tools in the building to sand edges on a bicycle frame. Police directed them to leave.

Jan. 25: A male was reported throwing snowballs at the windows of Carroll Hall from the balcony of Young Hall. The subject left after officers arrived at 10 p.m.

Jan. 21: Police responded to a call from witnesses about an ill student in his vehicle. the student was just taking a nap.

And my very favorite...

Jan. 22: A male and female were found sleeping in the courtyard of the JFSB at 5 a.m. They were found sleeping under some blankets and they said they had just fallen asleep.

There is no escaping the Bushmen...

Last semester I read, watched videos, participated in discussions, and wrote ten thousand words on the Bushmen of Africa. I did not knowingly and willfully take a class devoted to these nomadic hunter-gatherers. Nowhere on my transcript do I have an 'A' for Bushmen 101, but my introduction to anthropology was just that. As the sun set on December 19, 2008, after burning every last page of text in my possession, I turned my back in gleeful satisfaction with the knowledge that I would never again be haunted by the Bushmen. A new term is upon us. Twice a week I sit in a room right next door to Dr. Crandall's Bushmen 101 class and snicker at the poor saps who have three really long months ahead of them. One afternoon while I was snickering away, my professor explained that we would be watching a video about Mayan society...which is appropriate because that's what the class is, Maya Society and Culture...multiple centuries and half a world away from the Bushmen of Africa. The video was about the rise of a complex society. It discussed what factors influence that rise, and how even though the specifics may vary regionally, the overall formula for the creation of a complex society is a global one. As I watched, one moment I was transfixed by the genius and beauty of the Maya society, and before I knew what had hit me, there were the Bushmen!!! In fact, it was a clip from one of the same films I had to endure just months ago! My mouth actually dropped open as I watched them hunt down that giraffe with sticks...again. I left class distraught and confused as to how this could have possibly happened to me. I'm just going to have to accept the sad realization that for me, there is no escaping the Bushmen.

S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night!

In all actuality, our Saturday night started Saturday morning. Mugsy was down for the weekend. I love it when she comes for a visit. I miss the energy and comedy she brings to my life. We started the day off right by sleeping through a respectable hour for breakfast...so, we had it for lunch instead. I pulled out my brand new aebleskiver pan, and after a few incredibly smoky and burned attempts, I got them nearly perfect...



These were about the fourth try...



Butter and powdered sugar, it's the way to go.



After completely gorging ourselves, Meg decided to really spend some quality time with me...

As she would say (and horrifically spell)...SIKE! She made up for it by taking me to my first viewing of "Twilight". All I can say is, "I heart Edward Cullin!!!" Thanks Meg for being a sport and taking this picture..even though you were sure the embarrassment would scar you for life.

Papa, Aspen, and Cody came down to spend the evening with us in this hoppin' town of Provo. I took them to my favorite frozen yogurt place, The Yoasis.

I love that Aspen always tries really hard to be so charming and cooperative...



Here's my fro-yo masterpiece! Pineapple and coconut flakes!!!


And, here's what I have to take in order to enjoy, not curse, my fro-yo masterpiece...


After, we went to our first BYU hockey game. Meg's first comment was, "Hey! He just hit him! Is that allowed?!?" By the end of the night she was screaming in that sweet voice of hers, "Hit him harder!!!" I think hockey is our new favorite sport. Meg and I cheered wildly, Aspen and Cody mildly, and my dad tried really hard not to cheer for his rival school...

I'm wondering how long it took them before they realized that they needed to explain this to people...


Two true Coug fans...


Besides the body bashing, the Zamboni is my favorite part...something about clean, straight lines...


And to complete a perfect day, due to the fact that we were well off campus, I scored a fully loaded Coke...

Mugsy- Thank you so much for being my partner in crime this weekend! I love you!
Dad- The Bay City Rollers reference was just for you!

Sweet call of the countryside...

Instead of reading the one hundred pages (detailing the lives of cattle-herders in Namibia) that I'm supposed to have done by tomorrow, I thought that this would be a good time to catch up on some blogging. Besides school and that "Freshmen Fifteen" that I've gained...again...here are some highlights (that I have pictures of) from the last month:

SUKKOT!
One of the best parts of Fall is the many opportunities to "whoop it up" with some Jewish holidays. If I didn't know that Jesus Christ was my Savior and Redeemer I would convert to Judaism in a heart beat. Sukkot, or the Festival of Tabernacles, is one of my favorites. Here's a little excerpt from Judaism 101 "The Festival of Sukkot begins on Tishri 15, the fifth day after Yom Kippur. It is quite a drastic transition, from one of the most solemn holidays in our year to one of the most joyous. Sukkot is so unreservedly joyful that it is commonly referred to as the Season of our Rejoicing. Sukkot commemorates the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were wandering in the desert, living in temporary shelters. The word "Sukkot" means "booths," and refers to the temporary dwellings that we are commanded to live in during this holiday in memory of the period of wandering." The BYU Hebrew Club built a sukkah on campus, and I was so excited I got right on the phone with my mom...who got right in the car with the rest of the family to come down and be a real Jewish family and eat J Dawgs (Polish...I know, but the pickles were kosher!) in the sukkah...


FIREARMS!
Last weekend we headed up to Newton to blow things up and eat large amounts of food...the perfect day. Willy and Jan, Greg (minus Nat and baby Garrett...nice...why do you think we went?!?!), Brian and Kathy, Eric, Mal, Matt Man, and the grand finale, my cousin Mike who's in from med school in Milwalkee.

CITY CREEK
We love city creek, especially in the Fall. The colors are changing and it's absolutely beautiful right now. Mom, me, and the Beans went up just the other day to spend the afternoon. We took books and snacks, and soaked in some sunshine. Even the Beans was happy.

Hey buddy, why the long face?

Only a Cubs fan could watch her team tank the first game at home, commit 4 errors in game two, be down 9 runs in the bottom of the ninth, have 2 runners on with no outs, and actually think to herself, "You know, we could win this"...No...Just no.

P.S. Two words I never want to hear again: Kosuke Fukudome

That's Amore

They told me it would happen. I openly mocked and argued, but they were right. Everyone told me that one of the outcomes of moving to Provo, Utah was that you're destined to find your one true love. Let me just tell you that I've never been so deeply happy as the night I discovered DEEP FRIED TWINKIES! That's right...you winced didn't you. So did I at first. Twinkie eating is nothing to be proud of to begin with, let alone dipping it in batter and flinging into a vat of fat...or so I thought! Put aside all preconceived notions you had about those tiny golden sponge cakes and find yourself a Deep Fried Twinkie stand...yep, a stand...off the street. I would like to take a moment and thank the individuals of the Utah State Fair Committee who approved the Twinkie Stand and also my Aunt Tay for introducing me to my one true love.