new BIL

- My sister Shelley....I mean Mrs. Brunson, surprised the family and eloped Dec. 21 to Dana Beach. She and Shawn got married barefoot at sunset. Romantic!

Stars

My mom was telling me about a DVD about the star of Bethlehem. It is about a Christian man who wanted to know whether or not the star was a real phenomena that could be scientifically proven. Upon researching, he discovered that yes indeed that really occurred. There is a mathematical equation or some sort of mathematical pattern that the stars follow. Which means you can chart any day in history and figure out what the stars looked like.

Ready. Set. GO.

This is my vent session today. All work related:
-I work in an office with no heat...except two space heaters
-Our internet isn't working consistently so every time I attempt to DL or UL files my computer freaks out- not to mention that switching from one page to another takes eons.
-Each time my internet goes down (upwards of 12 times a day) I have to ask a crotchety old man with long eyebrows who smells like crotch to go and fix it.
-The repair men who come to fix our computer are idiots who call me Sarah and Stacie because they don't dare ask me my name.

Christmas Jar

I read this book yesterday. It is a quick read and a good message. If you are interested in a heart-warming, predictable, Christmas book read it soon before the movie comes out- it'll only take you a couple of hours.

ELFED!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

It is hard not to like this rendition.

Christmas Tag

1. Egg nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate. Sometimes I like it with peppermint. I always like it with cream on top.

2. Do you wrap presents or bag them? Depends on the gift. I bag things that are hard to wrap or obvious when wrapped i.e. jewelry, compact discs

3. Colored Lights or White? Both, but not blue lights

4. Do you hang mistletoe? My parents do from the light in the living room.

5. When do you decorate? I helped to decorate my house with my roommate on Monday.

6. Favorite holiday dish? can peppermint ice cream count as a dish?

7. When & how did you learn about Santa? I am sure my older siblings told me when I was quite young. It wasn't a re memorable moment in my life.

8. How do you decorate your tree? hmmm... with my hands. what do I decorate my tree with? ornaments. what is this question asking?

9. Snow...love it or dread it? Love for about two or three weeks then I am ready for spring and flowers again.

10. Can you ice skate? yes. can I skate well? NO.

11. Do you remember your favorite gift? I did get a doll that was life size. This doll was awesome, but it is also a contributing reason I have a hard time with remember my rights and lefts. Here's why: she had on a black outfit with hot pink and hot green squares. One hot pink was on the left side on the top and the other square was on the right side on the bottom- vice versa with the greens. Anyway, I was learning my rights and lefts at the time.....needless to say I thought that the right and left sides were different depending on the top and bottom of your body. Does that make any sense?... It does to me.

12. What is the most important part of the holidays? Most important remembering Christ and being more charitable. Close seconds: spending time with family & friends and giving gifts.

13. Favorite holiday dessert? plum pudding. worst holiday dessert: fruit cake Jim Gaffigan knows.

14. Favorite memory? My sister and I used to sing Christmas songs in our most beautiful and grown up voices. What was our microphone? the vacuum.

15. Do you have a special ornament? Special, IDK, but my favorites are the ones that look like icicles. I used to put them in my ears when I was little and wear them as earrings. not sanitary, but I survived.

16. What do you do on Christmas Eve? eat and watch Christmas movies with my family

17. If you could have anything for Christmas this year what would it be? a trunk full of benjamins

18. What do you do for neighbors and friends for Christmas? cards...nothing

I tag Becky, Heather, Marianne, Andrea, and Leatha

Be honest

Which one

or

?

Marriage

My sister is engaged- they made the announcement this weekend. Hooray!! My dad had "the talk" with my soon to be brother in law. My sisters and I were laughing out of sheer embarrassment on behalf of all parties: us and them.

Quick story: I slept at my parent's house last night. Before going to bed my dad called me into my parent's room and said "Stace, turn on the light" I did. My parent's were snuggling closely in the middle of their bed. Then my dad said, "This is what married life is all about." I pretended to throw up and went downstairs to bed. They make me laugh :D

Two shout outs: Happy B-day Lynnie and Congrats on the baby blessing Shine-FinALLY- sorry I couldn't make it :(

Breaking News

Take a looksy: Kevin Costner= Rockstar, okay maybe not Rockstar, but some of his shows are sold out. Click to listen. hahahahaha

p.s. I know, two posts in one day... don't judge me.

Praises and Thanksgiving

I wonder what really happened?......


I was researching online: http://www.powwows.com/gathering/general/469-true-origin-thanksgiving.html

The first settlers were dying from disease and enslaved Squanto. He taught them how to work the land (grow corn and catch fish). He also helped them create a peace treaty with a nearby tribe Wampanoag. In celebration of having their crops produce they had a feast mostly a brew of ale, but that was never called Thanksgiving.

Here is how Thanksgiving got its "official" title: (all documented by government records)

Basically the Puritans thought they were the chosen people and mass murdered hundreds of Natives. They gave thanks to God and celebrated. Here is an account from an article:

In the midst of the Holocaust/Genocide of the Red Man and woman, Governor Dudley declared in 1704 a "General Thanksgiving" not to celebrate the brotherhood of man, but for:

[God's] infinite Goodness to extend His Favors... In defeating and disappointing.... the expeditions of the Enemy [Indians] against us, And the good Success given us against them, by delivering so many of them into our hands...

And as you are eating turkey and giving your praises to God, keep this image in your head

"To see them frying in the fire, and the streams of their blood quenching the same, and the stench was horrible, but the victory seemed a sweet sacrifice to the great delight of the Pilgrims, and they gave praise thereof to God."

Twilight Movie

Less of this

More of this

Holding hands

So my boss just got back from the Phillipines. While he was there he attended church and made some friends at church. What he didn't realize, is that men hold hands in the Phils. So imagine if you will a middle aged man walking hand in hand with various men, feeling slightly strange, and talking to them about who knows what. It gives me a good chuckle.

A child's prayer

Heather, Jaxon, Bria and I were playing the entertaining and fun card game, Go Fish. Jaxon didn't come out on top for the last game of the night and was really upset to the point of tears. He just wanted to play one more game so he could win, but it was bedtime. I completely understand because I will play solitare for however long it takes to win. Anyway, Heather gave him the "you win some and lose some, but its still fun" talk. I thought it was settled- then came night time prayers. Here is Jaxon's prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

thank you for Go Fish
please bless that I can get all the matches
please bless I can win
and if I don't win, bless that we can play again
and if I still don't win, I will go in my room and play by myself
name of Jesus Christ, Amen

November 18th

I woke up this morning feeling like my senses were heightened. I could hear things more clearly and the air smelled differently to me. I was more aware of everything around me. There is something special about today, I thought. Then I called my sister because 'I knew' she would be coming this way and I wanted to see her while she was in town. We went to Target and she reminded me that two years ago today my Grandma Joan passed away.

Two years ago today I went to a Chakra class in the morning and in the afternoon I went to Dancing Cranes with my mom. I checked my phone in the parking lot of Dancing Cranes. I had about 15 missed calls and finally my dad left a vm telling me the sad news. Sorry to sound cliche, but I was in the parking lot looking up at the world spinning and I was standing still- like in the movies. That really happens. So, in memory of Grandma Joan here is Winnie the Pooh because she loved him....and because she sort of looked like him toward the end of her life.

"If there ever comes a day when we can't be together keep me in your heart, I'll stay there forever" -Winnie the Pooh

Christmas Wish List

Because my website isn't up and running.... and because I network through friends and family:

One gift certificate= $55.00
Three gift certificates= $150.00
Five gift certificates=$225.00

Come one Come all...preteens, that is

Hooray! Twilight the movie. I am gearing up. I am significantly dropping any/all expectations. I feel like a 12 year old, but I am going.

Tagged: Crazy 8s

8 favorite shows
-Arrested Development
-The Office
-Psych
-30 Rock
-Scrubs (never watched the last season because it got sort of lamo)
-A man among wolves (only seen one episode last week and thought it was pretty cool)
-Golden Girls
-Flight of the Conchords

8 favorite restaurants
-Thai Chili Gardens
-The Indian Palace
-Ginger's Cafe
-Kneaders
-Cafe Rio
-Gurus
-I can't remember the name, but it's the Cuban joint in Lindon
-Las Tarascas

8 things I did today
-watched Half Alive on youtube
-gave a massage
-at midnight I started John Adams part one (HBO series)
-clipped my fingernails
-talked to my mom
-had a dance party with myself in my office
-caught the neighbors using our outside power outlet (okay that was yesterday)
-bird watching mostly seagulls

8 things I love about fall
-the autumn shift (the earths physical shift changes our shift)
-the mountains specifically driving or hiking through canyons Provo, Payson, and Lambs
-harvesting vegetables
-not washing or styling my hair as much: hat season
-drinking hot drinks
-there are certain songs and artist that I categorize as fall music
-autumn colors
-baking more often

8 things I wish for
-become independently wealthy so I can feed the poor and cloth the naked and some other stuff...
-meet and marry Ray Lamontagne
-travel to all seven continents
-superpowers specifically invisibility, time travel, to fly, and breathe underwater
-flourishing business The Peaceful You (look for it and don't try to steal my biz name)
-longer days and less responsibility
-longer and thicker eyelashes
-see energy

8 things I look forward to
-Everything in my previous list coming true. Everything in its own time :)

I tag Marianne, Heather, and Brinn

Obsession

I have a new obsession, Ray Lamontagne. I would like to share my new favorite song Half Alive. It is unreleased so I had no other way to share, but through youtube. Thank you, youtube. This is a live version so its not the best recording. Also for clarification, I don't like the video- just the song. So maybe don't look at the video because it might affect your ability to like the song. And I thought I could just have it playing, but I am not that savvy yet, but here it is anyway: Half Alive

Personal Account of Presidential Election

As requested, and because I want to share, here is my senior year presidential election tragedy. It all started in the 11th grade. I remember not campaigning much because I had two AP classes that were killing me and I also thought that I could dominate my component. Bad start, I know. I was already on student council too- which meant that I had all sorts of ins and was used to taking short cuts to get my way. It gets better. So as the votes were being tallied, Coach I. (the st. council teacher) said that one person that she thought was going to win was getting smoked big time. The final tallies were being announced at the stomp that night. I wasn't stressing out really, I sort thought it was someone else who was losing, but then people started being nicer to me- so I had to find out who Coach I. was talking about. Needless to say, I got my way and found out ahead of time. Even still, when the winners were announced I couldn't stay and look at people in the eyes. I felt so sad and mostly ashamed at my behavior. I left the stomp early. Poor Lika (my foreign exchange student) came home with me so I could pout.


My senior had more travesties: I didn't make the tennis team, so I became the self appointed tennis manager. I didn't get asked to Homecoming. Instead, I went to get a concert with one of my friend's mom. I applied to be the Debate/Drama sterling scholar (I was the only applicant) and they asked one of my friends to be it instead. Not to worry, I was the Family and Consumer Sciences sterling scholar. Last big bite, I was president of the Key club and I was told by the organizer that the scholarship was "pretty much mine" and then it was not awarded to me. Never tell someone that something is "pretty much theirs" if it isn't:( All in all, it was a hard year for me, but things worked out- just as they do now.

By the way: don't the images give it such a dramatic flare? Also, the words in blue are the secrets of great leaders- so keep it on the low down.

Good Tuesday

Good news, Starbucks came through, I got a free drink yesterday for voting. The good news doesn't stop there, we had an election party last night with hot chocolate, popcorn, and CNN. I am confident, calm, and hopeful with the results of the election. Both McCain and Obama reacted respectfully toward each other and toward the results of the election. I enjoyed each speech- more than I expected I would. Links to Obama's speech and McCain's speech. My heart feels for McCain. Flashback: I lost the presidency election senior year and had to leave the stomp because I didn't want to look anyone in the face. Not one of my prouder moments:(

Ch-ch-check it out

There are few things that bring me pure joy and bliss.

1. Really cute kids
2. Perfect weather days
3. REM sleep with fantastical dreams
4. Laughing until tears
5. Winning in Scrabble
6. Ray Lamontagne

I went Ray Lamontagne's concert last night. I was smiling ear to ear the entire show. I was on the front row. I thought my heart might jump out of my chest at any time and join him up on stage. There is something so easy and gravitating about his presence. I love the way he dances too. I could go on, but I won't. I wanted to meet him (like I met and hugged Damien Rice after his show) but I thought I would leave my stalker self at home. I lied, truthfully we didn't have the time to stalk. Anyway, to sum, if you don't know Ray Lamontagne check him out. You will not be disappointed. He is one of those artist's that I think everyone will enjoy.

Autumntime Lullaby

I made my way to Park City the other day. Beautiful. Here are two highlights from the trip:

I went through Lamb's canyon. I had never heard of it before. Anyway, its a really exclusive area. There were two abandoned turn of the century homes that I tried to "break" into. I just wanted to take a looksy. They were heavily secured. I am talking big heavy metal vaults for doors. But one interesting thing is that there was toilet paper in one of the outhouses. Weird...

We went to a park and sat under the prettiest yellow tree enjoying the ducks, the water, the photo shoot..? In the distance a tree or two away were two adult women taking glam shots of each other.

For the record, this is not an image from PC- I just added it for ambiance.

Secret Life of Bees

I read this book on Monday. I genuinely liked it. I wanted to read it before I watched the movie. Generally, I am not a hard critic when it comes to books. I am easily entertained though....

Are we Human or are we Dancers?....

I love the Killers. I love this song (the first time I heard it). I love this painting. I am a love machine!

Rockband Concert

Last night I went to this concert for free. Thank you Crista and Nick!!

We arrived at the concert when Dashboard started. The nice thing about Dashboard is that every song they sing is a hit. It is fun to sing along. What is more fun is looking at Chris Carrabba oolalala.....

My favorites were Hands Down and Vindicated. Chris is a different performer these days. I have seen him about three times it's interesting to see his progression as a performer. He is more confident, quirky, and from what I gather, himself.


Okay, I'll admit I was a bit nervous to go to a Panic at the Disco concert. Because look at them. However, rest assured that they are actually really talented and normal, aside from the 16 year old emo fan base. Keep in mind this assessment is coming from someone who listens to folksy, mellow music.



The lead singer was born in Utah and raised Mormon. I could sort of tell- which made me happy:) He is really talented- he would go from instrument to instrument throughout the same song. He plays guitar, accordion, cello, piano, and drums. Also, I am really impressed by his vocals. His range is unbelievable. (Musical talents- another reflection of a Mormon) I am not going to go out and purchase their albums, but I have a new respect for their sound and talent. Also, some members of the band are as young as 21. Overall, they put on a good show with one major exception NO ENCORE. I have been to a zillion concerts and they were the first to not give an encore.

We took two people home from the concert. They were high on life and other substances. Anyway, we dropped them off at 7 eleven. They both very openly announced that they were going to have some sexy time and off they went into the bathroom together.... Okay gross. Who does that in a 7 eleven bathroom? At least go to least step it up to grocery store bathroom.

Tagged: 7 Quirks

Here you go, Becky

1. I started recycling my plastic bottles because I only drink Arrowhead water (separate issue) So I felt pretty guilty knowing how many plastic bottles I have used in the past and not recycled. Now, I practically dig through every garbage can (public or private) so I can collect all the plastic bottles and recycle them. Ironically enough, I haven't actually recycled one bottle. Rather, every bottle I have ever collected is my car or in my room. I am a real saint.

2. I get really nervous to answer the phone. (More nervous now that I lost all my contacts because I don't know who is calling me anymore). I usually don't carry my phone with me, but when I do have it I see who is calling, wonder what they want, check the vm, and then muster up some courage to call them back. Hello, my name is Stacie and I have a Phone phobia.

3. I like leaving the lights on, but have an internal struggle about the electric bill and wasted energy. I just like coming home to a light on. I blame this quirk on Grandma Joan. My roommate bought me a really cool night light which is in our bathroom and that seems to help.

4. Apparently, I cackle after I say something funny. I am pretty upset about this one because I didn't know about it until a week ago when someone pointed it out. This person told me that he/she promised never to say anything about it, but couldn't handle listening to my cackle anymore :(

5. When I see a zit or blackhead on myself it has to be eradicated immediately- no exceptions.

6. I love music. I love sharing music. When someone talks when I am showing them a song I, want them to shut up- not because I want them to listen to the music, but because I really want to listen to it. I start to disengage from conversation and tune them out completely. It's true.

7. If I pop one knuckle I have to pop them all. Followed by neck and back pops. Ending with a few shoulder and neck stretches.

I tag Heather, Shannon, Stacey, and Leatha.

Humanity

I recently saw a movie that captured the raw side of humans. Everyone was forced to depend on each other because they couldn't see. This movie really got me thinking about how we are all the same, but we try so hard to be different and be better than our neighbor. Societies create boundaries. We build homes to keep us and our things in. Then fences to keep others out. Sometimes, for the really exclusive, gates around the community. In my Utopia, we embrace our sameness. No gates. No fences. No fear.

Flightless Bird, American Mouth

I have been talking politics lately- I assume so have you all. I am kind of thrown back because I have heard this comment over and over "I don't think I will vote because I can't decide, and my vote doesn't matter anyway." Trying to contain myself, I listen politely and shake my head; however, now that I have a blog, I am throwing it all on the table.

Three HUGE issues with that comment:

1. Indecision: Sure, we all face it everyday. My political views change too, but that shouldn't stop anyone from voting. Where is the sense in that? You have approx a month to form a solid opinion.

2. Actually Voting: Some people don't vote because they think it is too task intensive. Register. Take time from work to go. Pick up a pencil. Mark your chosen candidate. Yes, you are lamo, if you are complaining. Register now- so you don't freak out the day off.



3. My vote doesn't really matter: You may be right in the big scheme, but your vote matters to you. How can anyone sit back and do nothing? It reminds me of Andy from the office "Andy Bernard does not lose contests. He wins them. Or he quits them because they're unfair."


In summation, you have lost all credibility in my book if you complain about how things are and do nothing to help. Give the bird back it's flight, use your American mouth.

A Good Chuckle

My lovely friend made me an Eva Cassidy mix and I love it! Thank you!! So awhile back I was really having a superstar moment. I was drivin', singin', movin', & groovin' (droppin' my g's like Palin) As I was belting at the top of my lungs: "See your true colours shining through" I heard some chuckling so I peered to my left. There was a car full of teenage boys with their windows down laughing and pointing at me. I'd made their day. I didn't know whether to stop singing or finish holding out the note. I finished. Yes, you are now listening to that song on my playlist :) Feel free to sing along......you might just make someone else's day. hahahha

A Letter To My Body

In the last few years of my life, it has been my secret mission to enpower women. I want women all over the world to feel confident, sexy, successful, and happy. Between working at the women's shelter and battling my own demons, I believe the root to of not feeling confident, sexy, successful, and happy comes from within: specifically BODY IMAGE.

Why do women believe in the idea that there is only one way to be something. For example, where does it say that a successful woman is a rich working woman? and sexy woman is tall, blonde, and skinny? If you have bought into these ideals STOP NOW. Replace those beliefs with new ones. Love yourself completely.

A good first step on the path to loving yourself is to write your body a love letter. http://www.blogher.com/letter-my-body I know, it sounds sort of lame at first. However, if you step back and consider that your body is divine. You are the ruler. You command your body and it is obedient. You control your movements, your health down to each cell literally, and you control your thoughts. This is a great deal of power. Let us all be more responsible with that power. Let us create happy thoughts especially about our bodies and body image. Furthermore, say thank you to a divine creation.

The Flower of my Youth:
As I was thinking of a title for my blog, I thought to myself, why am I starting a blog? I am not a mother or a wife. But I AM young and having an awesome good time being in the flower of my youth! So here's for cherishing and basking in my youngness!