don't tell matt!

I am officially really lame and ashamed of myself. But, I'm going to do this anyway. Matt came out to visit this weekend and here are a few pictures. The first one is actually at the BYU FSU game (we shouldn't talk about that much more). As you can see we are both very proud of being cougars. Since Matt and I were both sick and had to cancel our trip to New York, we pacified ourselves with a trip to New Hampshire to pick some apples and eat some apple cider donuts (the most delicious treats ever created). The last picture came out very squinty, so I had to do some mad photoshop to take out all the crinkles in my face...smooth as a baby's butt. Well, now my roommate is reading this. I'm uncomfortable. Don't tease me for this post.

I'm alive?

I don't know if anyone even reads this anymore.  Clearly I don't write on this anymore.  But I just wanted to let all my loyal followers, a.k.a mommy, that I am alive and doing well.  Nothing interesting to report though.  And definitely no fun pictures to put up.  Wow, I am seriously boring.  I think this blog may be on the out, so kiss this sweet page goodbye.  It's been a joy and a pleasure.  oh it's also US OPEN time and i've been watching it all day.  it's been amazing.  and i just saw a ballboy eat it pretty hard.  ok, i have ADD...gotta stop talking now.  

1st year of a doctorate program? piece of cake.

I SURVIVED! Booya! (ps why did people stop using this word all the time?  it sums up my feelings so perfectly).  it is over.  i have survived my first year in boston.  and despite all the complaining and the dramatic episodes, it actually wasn't too bad.  and i even managed to have a little bit of fun.  this whole experience reminds me of my first day of kindergarten, minus the nap time but with double the amount of animal crackers.  after our last final we wet to our friend's apartment and celebrated the freedom and the idea of finally having a summer.  after being in school for two years straight i think we deserve it.  

 

  

before i snapped this momento of our last final i actually said the words "you guys are going to want this picture one day!"  and thus i started to turn into my mother.

        

Paul and i share a birthday, one which was ruined by studying for neuroscience all day.  but if your birthday is terrible that means that things can only get better, right? 

seriously. it is this bad.

This has been a pretty insane week.  Well, it's been an insane year.   But things are winding down and today I took my second to last final.  With 6 finals spaced out in 5 days, a practical final examination the week prior, and terrible allergies to boot, it is no surprise that my body has taken a bit of a hit.  I went to bed at 12:30 or so last night and woke up at 6 am to go over my neuroscience notes one last time.  I'm 97% sure that when I looked in the mirror this is the reflection I saw (except with blonde hair).  I almost peed my pants, I almost started crying, and then I realized it was only me, or whatever creature it is that I have become.  Hopefully by this time tomorrow it will all be over and my skin can be introduced to the sun once again.

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super duper embarrassing...

so mom, this one's for you.  a few weeks ago my mom seemed really excited by the fact that i wear scrubs to my clinical.  i know, who wears scrubs in hospitals anymore?  weird.  so she asked for evidence. and here it is.  and in her honor i tried to be extra sassy with my hips.  i figure with finals rapidly approaching there's a chance that i may not return to school, and thus my last time to wear scrubs without total disdain for health professions.  sorry but i thought that putting on my badge and stethoscope would be a little over the top, but that picture is available upon request.  i'm thinking about starting a calender or something...scrubs of the month or something catchy.  but wardrobe aside, i really liked my last clinical and i can't wait for this summer when i get to spend my internship in a similar settting.  the only downside about being a physical therapist is that i am constantly called "mean" and a "torturer" by the patients.  i guess i am pretty intimidating though...i give the The Green Monster a whole new connotation.  

Happy Easter!

Good news: I've already eaten most of my easter chocolate and have settled into a good nauseous feeling.  

Last week at General Conference Elder Holland gave a really beautiful talk about the atonement and Easter.  The church has made a little video about it and put it on their homepage so you can easily find it by going to www.lds.org  

This talk really stood out to me last week during Conference.  Over the past year I have been "privileged" to feel more alone than I ever have in my life.  It's been a crazy 12 months of moving to a brand new city and starting a new life surrounded by people that don't share my beliefs.  I've complained more than once about being lonely--something I had honestly never felt in my previous 22 years on this earth.

But despite my complaints I have had the support of family, friends, classmates, and roommates.  And I knew that they were all supporting me even if they were not physically with me because I could feel their love and prayers.  And most importantly, I have maintained my relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  

So it seems almost silly to me now that I am ever capable of feeling lonely because it is impossible for me to be alone.  I can feel the love that President Monson and his Apostles have for each person on this earth, and especially for me as an individual.  

I can't imagine what the Savior felt before he died.  Before this experience I thought I knew what it was like to be alone.  Now I know what it feels like to just merely think that I am all alone, while still benefiting from the love of others.  If it's possible for me to be sad despite all of the blessings and support I receive, I cannot fathom the strength that our Savior must have had.  One reason that I am grateful for the atonement is because it means that I will never experience true loneliness.

The video is good, it's only like 5 min., and you can eat your chocolate bunny while you watch it.

total guilty pleasure

So sometimes I watch the food network (and espn, i promise).  And i've recently discovered that the FOOD CHALLENGE is on Sunday nights.  This show is amazing.  These people make the most outrageous cakes.  My inner creative genius as well as my inner fatty both identify with this spectacularly tasty program.  Just look at the cake above.  THAT'S A CAKE, NOT A DRESS!!  Plus, that dress is gorgeous and i wish i could wear it.  and then i'd always have a little snack with me (i need to keep my blood sugar up, people).  and at the end of the day, when i will have eaten my entire dress/cake, i'll be naked and covered in frosting.  and if that doesn't get me a date with prince charming, i don't know what will.  wow, somehow this post has derailed and i have no idea what i am talking about anymore.  so cakes.......

I should work at Hallmark

HAPPY MARCH MADNESS EVERYONE!

So I had a brilliant idea today as I was walking to class.  And I think I should pitch it to Hallmark and make millions of dollars off of it.  So here's the idea:  as many of you know, the end of March signals the beginning of spring and it is a time of hope, excitement, and dreaming.  But no one cares about baby chikadees and wobbly-legged lambs when the country's elite collegiate athletes are competing in the NCAA basketball tournament.  And these athletes carry with them the hopes and dreams of all the wanna-be collegiate athletes out there, all the accountants buried under W2 forms, all of the now slightly overweight blue collared workers that haven't touched a basketball in decades but continue to yell at the TV because they KNOW that they could have made that shot at the buzzer and ushered the team to the final four.

Hallmark gets a bad reputation because it tends to capitalize on the female gender's desire for intimacy, sincerity, and frivolity.  This reputation is perpetuated by the unfortunate males that are forced to purchase cards, boxes of chocolates, and teddy bears that wear shirts saying things like "i love you berry much!"  Most men (certainly not all) do not like these things, and instead of taking girls out to a fancy vegan dinner, would much rather be at home eating buffalo wings and watching a game.  But men continue to support this tradition with grumbling attitudes and the hope that some new red lingerie will be in their near future.  

So why shouldn't Hallmark create a holiday that is devoted to allowing the women to show their love and appreciation to men.  Why not support their love of sports and greasy food?  And yet, somehow make it classy.  A lot of girls I know do not like march madness because they feel left out, or feel that the men in their life would rather watch basketball than spend time with them.  But if Hallmark could create a card saying something like "I simply go MAD for you in March"  then girls could somehow get involved in this whole thing.  Girls could, essentially, create a Valentine's day geared towards men.  Instead of a teddy bear, why not give the man a pizza that comes in a box shaped like a basketball?  This way, the girls dont feel left out, everyone gets to watch the tournament, and I make millions of dollars.  Plus, I truly don't think we give guys enough credit for suffering through Valentine's day.

SPRING BREAK!

I finally have time to write on this stupid blog! Yippee!  So, I am on spring break, and loving it.  I can't believe I went so long without one of these things.  I spent some excellent time in VA and basically sat on the couch and ate tons of mint brownies.  It was awesome.  And my family and I got to do some fun things like going to the national gallery and stalking Angelina Jolie (for all intents and purposes, I saw her).  And, Margo comes in two days!  

Other than that, I have no exciting news to report.  Sorry.  I should really adopt a baby or something.

You know you go to Boston University when...

..you receive a text message from the BU Police saying, "there is police activity in the area of 705 Commonwealth Avenue.  Please stay clear of the area and await further update".

..you walk into the lobby of the gym to find scattered information booths, all of which are covered in uniquely colored and flavored condoms.

..your school has two baseball teams.  The Red Sox and whoever those other guys are.

..all of your conversations hit upon the "nice weather" if the temp. rises above freezing.

..you are never more than five minutes away from a coffee/bagel shop, and never more than three minutes away from a Dunkin' Donuts.

..you secretly think that Comm. Ave. Guy (pictured above) is your best friend.  (Actually, that might just be me)

that's all i got for now.  i started this little list today when the first two things happened within hours of each other.  turns out that the police were responding to a report of someone carrying a clip and a bullet.  and as for the safe sex buffet, i can't say that i took the time to figure that one out.

my money's light green....

Do yourself a favor, and please look to the right of this page.  You will see a little box that says YouTube.  In the search field please type in (or cut and paste) the following: "young jeezy, my president is black".  click on the first video, or any that strikes your fancy.  and then enjoy the following song.  i hope it brings as much joy to you as it has to me on this cold winter's eve in new england.  

Nostalgia and procrastination

I can only spend so many hours doing neuroscience homework.  And since my computer is just sitting here on my desk daring me to touch it, I often find myself wasting a lot of time on it.  Today is no exception.  I started going through my pictures, and then I started going through my pictures of my study abroad in Europe.  So now I'm procrastinating and wishing I could go back in time.  Even though I was only gone for a few months, it was such a treat to leave my whole life behind me (i.e. my cell phone).  Why was I so fortunate to have a life that consisted of traveling through the oldest and most amazing cities, studying and learning about incredible art, eating delicious food, and all the while being surrounded by the most amazing and inspired individuals.  Ya, I was pretty lucky.  Anyways, here are a few things I miss:

"The Kiss" by Rodin.  You can see a picture of something, study it, talk about it, even fall in love with it from what you read in a book.  But there are some things that have the power to make your heart stop when you walk into a room and there it is.
I miss reenacting significant events in history, like the destruction of Pompeii, and being the obnoxious Americans.
I miss the intensity.
I miss the random old man from Empoli who I decided to share a bench with.  He only had about 3 teeth, spoke Italian, and he was 93.  I don't remember a lot of conversations I've had, but I think that one will stay with me.
I miss cobblestone.  I miss Brugges, Belgium.  The coolest city I've ever been to.
I miss the people that know exactly what I miss.
I miss the forced romantic moments.
I miss the creativity, the movement, and the genius.
I miss the quiet moments and stray dogs.

I said brrrr, it's cold in here!

It's a little chilly here!  The town is beautiful when it is all covered in snow.  And to be fair, I appreciate the beauty for about 30 seconds before I start complaining of the fact that I have to take the bus to church because my car is under a foot of snow.  And I have to trudge through snow covered Harvard Square another 3 blocks to actually get to church.  And let's not forget the fact that I have to dig my car out of the snow....BUT it's beautiful.  It's also starting to get a little lighter here earlier!! YAY.  I still left for school in the dark and came home from school in the dark...but I was also there from 7 am to 5:30 pm.  But during my last class I could see through the door that it wasn't getting dark until about 4:45!  YAY.  And there were only scattered flurries today.  Not bad, not bad!

      My home all covered in the snow

        I took this picture of my street after I came home from church...but in the morning the street wasn't plowed at all and it looked really pretty.
This is what I usually wear to school.  I'm pretty sexy these days.  Showing just enough skin to keep 'em guessing.
              This is my car.  Well, there's a good chance that it is my car.

who stole the sun?

So I have a small confession.  I traveled back to Boston yesterday after my wonderful 3 1/2 week vacation in Virginia and Utah.  I guess the vacation really took a lot out of me, because I was exhausted this morning.  I woke up at 9:00, ate some cereal, and decided I was still really tired (plus, I have a cold).  So I went back to bed and finally rolled out of bed at 2:00.  Uh oh.  Does it count that my body still thinks it was noon?  Anyways, by the time I got out of the house at 3:00, there was only about an hours worth of sunlight left in the day.  Mr. sun, sun, mr. golden sun, please shine down on me!