Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Road Construction Has Begun!

Hello all.
It's almost summer time.
The weather is warmer.
The sun is shining.
The tank is clean!
And road construction has begun.
I would first like to proclaim my love for my wonderful job. I love it so much. Why? Because it's the greatest. You get to stand and stare at angry drivers all day long while you get flipped off, cussed out, hit on, and whistled at. Also, you get awesome tan lines like this:

I cheated a little. This picture is from last summer, but
you get the point.
And, if you, like me, are slightly allergic to the sun, you get hives. Like this:

Just kidding. That picture is disgusting. :)

You also get really quite dirty.

And you lose your mind a little bit and decide that a pile of ants is the coolest thing you have ever seen. So, you take a picture of them:

As you can see, there are many ants.
You also get to wear this sexy outfit called a hard had, safety glasses, and a reflective vest. 

I felt the blow fish face was totally appropriate.

You also are allowed to park under important signs because... Well because you're important!




Well drivers. Be careful out there. And please, please be nice to the flaggers. They really aren't trying to make you miserable I promise. In fact, we are only trying to keep both you and the construction crew safe. Please don't speed through the construction zones. When a flagger is holding a slow sign, please slow down at least a little bit. And don't be rude. There is something about being in cars that makes people feel like they are invincible. We are people too. Just remember that. :) Love you all. Have a wonderful day and travel safely this summer!

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Memorial Day Weekend

It has been oh so long. I am a terrible blogger. I praise all of you out there that keep either a journal or blog of some sort frequently. Good work. So I will just update all of you on the status of everything. So, as you know, or perhaps you do not, this weekend is Memorial Day weekend. My heart goes out to all of those that may be grieving during this time. I am also forever grateful for those that have fought and are still fighting for the safety and security of this wonderful country. I've always been very patriotic at heart, yet I feel I don't voice it enough, if ever at all. I'm somewhat quiet when it comes to opinions that contradict others, though my mind and thoughts are so incredibly loud. If only I could express that well. I feel so blessed to be in such a wonderful place. Heavenly Father has been very very good to me, allowing me to live my life here. I would feel very prideful if I did not express those feelings at this time.

I feel odd now transitioning into something so different. It seems a little selfish. But here is what has been happening. School is going well. This is such an easy semester and I am grateful that I have had so much time to do what I love. I have been able to spend much time being with my roommates and my friends. It seems like we are always busy doing something new. We have been big on Sunday dinners this semester. We thought perhaps we would scare away our guests, but they just keep coming back every Sunday. One of my roommates, Shaina, has a tradition in her family where the first time a guest comes over to her house for dinner, the guest must entertain them somehow after the meal is finished. So we have implemented that same tradition in our apartment. Every time a new guest has dinner here, they must do something to entertain us. We've had things from a person lighting his hand on fire to a full on skit with different people playing another's arms. It has been so much fun. The meals have also been fantastic. And occasionally we will add an activity that goes with the meal. For instance, for one dinner, Shaina and I wrapped a bunch of random utensils, like a blender bottle whisk, a potato masher, a Tupperware lid, a goblet, etc. Then, we did a Christmas gift exchange type thing with all of the utensils in the center. Of course, none of the guests knew that they were soon going to be eating with these "gifts". So after everyone sat down and was situated with their gifts, we all opened them and then announced that these were the utensils they were to eat with. To add to the fun, we all sat on the floor in a circle and then tied our wrists to the person sitting next to us. Anyway, Sunday dinners have definitely been a highlight of my semester.

Some other activities that have been happening include:

Hiking "R" Mountain


Running Stadium Laps
Cutting Zach's Hair
And Eating at Buffalo Wild Wings
It has been a great semester to say the least. Marisa (pronounced Mer-EE-Sah NOT Mar-iss-ah) also had family pictures this weekend in Utah. Ol' Gilroy just wasn't going to make the drive though. Gilroy is Marisa's car. He has been struggling. So I offered to drive her and CJ and April down. And oh what fun! Here is some of our adventures from this weekend:

Eating at In and Out Burger with Strangers. :) This was a lot of fun. Of course,
when we got there it was jam packed and no tables were available. So we waited
around for one to open up, and a kind man saw us waiting and told us he was
about to leave and that we could have his table. So he left and we took over. Then we
saw these nice boys waiting for a table and asked them if they would like to join
us. It was quite enjoyable. :)
We went shopping at Nordstrom at the City Creek Center. Nordstrom is my
very favorite store for all of those that were unaware. 
We also woke up looking really pretty. 
I also bought this coral dress. I love this color. It was a must.
And, one of the best parts of the weekend:
This dress.
Ok. This picture is not the greatest, but the dress is! Here is the story behind this beauty. We were shopping at Nordstrom Rack. And I pulled this dress off the rack because I was super attracted to its color. It looks black in the photo but it is actually a really pretty eggplant color. So I pulled it out and it looked kind of ugly. But I saw great potential and decided to try it on. I will admit, it looks a bit like a sack, but I fell in love with it! I just can't express my love for this dress. It is a situation very similar to the leather jacket. So I decided to buy it and I wore it to church today. As I was sitting, waiting for an interview with my bishop, Malia, my other beautiful roommate, said, "Oh! Your dress has pockets too! That's cool." And I about died from elation. I was so excited! I immediately stuck my hands in those bad boys and just smiled. Pockets in dresses are one of my favorite things. It just made me so happy. So I've just been having a great day. :) Oh and also, my FHE brother, Nate dropped by. Without invitation. Contrary to what most people live by, I LOVE when people drop by unexpectedly just to hang out. It makes me very happy. So I was very happy to see Nate. So I gave him one of these:

Haley Brackett's Famous Cookies
Nate was having a hard time focusing on the conversation while eating....but we understood. If you haven't had one of these cookies, call me. I will make you one. If you call me tonight, I've still got a few left. :) Nate also was telling me a story about how he was asking this girl in our ward if she knew who I was and she asked, "Is she the really pretty one? Like REALLY pretty?" And I just...my heart melted. That was the sweetest thing ever. Telling me I'm pretty is like one of the best compliments in my opinion. You will immediately be my best friend because I will think you are the sweetest person in the whole world. Thank you to everyone who has already said that. I love you. :) Ok world, for now, that is my life. I appreciate all those that read and/or follow me. :) Have an absolutely wonderful Memorial Day tomorrow and don't forget to thank the Lord for the people that are fighting for us and the blessings you have just from living here in America. Love you all.
Love,
Hay <3