Blogging

One of the requirements for the blog assignment is to link to another blog. Easily enough, I read a blog every week called "La Dolce Vita," which is the mission update blog for one of my good friends Paige who is on her mission in Rome, Italy. I’m not sure if you could imagine better words to read than Rome and Italy when opening your mission call; my lucky friend did just that.  Though I have only known here for a couple of years, we became very close as our personalities melded as perfect as two personalities could. We met through a mutual friend during the first couple weeks of our sophomore years at BYU and UVU and have gone many places together ever since.  Her blog is a great read because not only is it funny and a reminder of her personality and humor, but it also serves as a weekly uplifting reminder of missionary work.

Daylight.

I think daylight savings time is a silly idea. Twice a year we must change our clocks and twice a year we will get confused. Many people love the idea of "falling back" when we turn our clocks back an hour because we get an extra hour to sleep. On the downside, the sun sets at a painfully early time compared to those nighttime sunsets of the summer. Personally I enjoy the flip side of this when us early-birds get to wake up with the warming sun rays rather than the cool touch of darkness. When spring time rolls around and we must change our clocks again, it is more grudgingly as we lose an entire beautiful hour of sleep and the sun attempts to get back on the track of normality again.

Hurricane Sandy

With the entire hullabaloo about Hurricane Sandy I was not sure what to expect from the storm. It seems that most weather predictions are inaccurate at best, and the worst weather is a result of under-prediction. When I lived in D.C. this summer I encountered a large storm that knocked out power for millions during one of the hottest weeks of the year, and not surprisingly, they had not warned of a storm of that magnitude. Nevertheless, with the coverage of Hurricane Sandy all over the news, I eagerly waited to see what would come of it. Turns out they weather forecasters predicted accurately, at the first big damage came from a collapsed crane hundreds of feet in the sky. After seeing the beginnings of the storm online during class in the computer lab, I could not help but feel guilty as I walked home in the beautiful sunny blue weather and the tens of millions of East coast residents were prepping for battle with Mother Nature at her worst.

Politics

This year is the Presidential election for our country. This year is also the first year I am old enough to vote in it. When I was younger I remember that I could not have cared less about the elections. Even in 2008 when I was a senior in high school and we studied the election daily in my A.P. U.S. Government class I never put much thought into it. Not until recently had I even developed an interest in politics; a combination perhaps of living in Washington D.C., all summer, realizing the impact the next four years of my life will have on my future, or simply naturally maturing with age. The problem however, is that even though I can vote with my Washington state absentee ballot, I am not sure who I will vote for. The hardest and easiest part about the American political system is that it is essentially a two-party one. Though it can simply things, I definitely thing it over-simplifies them. I find it hard to identify with one or the other enough to cast my vote for one away and give it to the other. I think it would be more practical if there were other viable parties involved in elections but America - its media, its citizens, and its lifestyles - is so set in its ways that it will take a very long time for some type of political revolution to happen. Until then I'll have to sort my though the two-partied mess to find a place for my vote. 

Music

For the last couple of weeks I have been on what some would call a music binge. A couple of recent musical discoveries along with a couple of past favorite bands releasing new albums have led my ears to be constantly plugged in. Though all completely different in genre, they still resonate on my level in one way or another. The first in this audio string is Mumford & Son’s new indie/folk album called Babel. Too anxious to wait any longer for the album, I bought and downloaded it on my iPhone while walking to school. One week later, Macklemore, a favorite rapper of mine from my home state of Washington, dropped his debut album The Heist to much fanfare. It equally was unable to disappoint me. Lastly, a newer band in my roster called Stars had released a new album a few months ago called The North. Recently discovered by me however, their album has been on repeat for the last few days with no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Fall

As Autumn kicks into full gear, I've begun to realize exactly how much fall I missed out on by growing up in the state of Washington. Of course this time of year is great up north, and I have never complained before about the season, but fall is simply better when you experience it here in Utah. Washington didn't get its nickname for nothing - the evergreen state truly stays green. I remember at the LDS stake center that there was a handful of large deciduous trees and in our used as well we have a few small ones planted around, but besides that the only change in the trees are dead browned pine needles too weak to hold on thru the cold winter months. Here in Utah, we have the treat of watching fall creep down the Wasatch mountains until it reaches the valley floor, taking away the green and replacing it with rich reds, yellows, and oranges. I know it must be notching compared to the east coast - or so I've been told by east coast lovers here t BYU - but for me it's a new and fascinatingly beautiful experience I enjoy every 12 months.

DI

Deseret Industries is a place where dreams are made. Ever since my freshman year here in Utah, I have transformed the D.I. into one of my stomping grounds. My friends and I would go so often that Trina the cashier knew us by name. The thrill of the D.I. stems from not knowing what lost gems could turn up; whether in the clothing section, the knickknack shelves, or the book corner. My apartment has been decorated this way semester after semester and the compliments about the various artworks have never ceased. I am proud to say I am a Deseret Industries regular and hope someday the rest of the world understands its beauty as well.

overcast.

The weather this morning could not have been better if I had dreamt it. There is something special about a cool, overcast, and dizzily day that can’t be replicated.  Days like this stir up all my desires for a relaxing afternoon stroll on the shores of Utah Lake, lightly bundled in my best fall attire. The evening would conclude with a night at a local coffee house sipping on a cup of steamed cinnamon milk and enjoying the company. Days like this remind me of my home state of Washington, meandering around Seattle’s streets care free. The hug of the low hanging clouds seems to warm you with its embrace just as much as it blocks the sun and shoots down cold breezes. On some days like this, I even opt out of a head covering to let the rain refresh me head to toe. Though many people would disagree, this kind of a day possesses some mysterious spark that brightens it more than any sunshine or surf ever could. 

Baltimore

While in D.C. this summer, I woke up one morning with a urge to explore something new. I see the city every day of the week, so I quickly formulated a list of nearby day trip options. When the options were weighed and compared - Baltimore was the winner. Just a short 40 min drive away and the big city was already in view. In the first five minutes, we could already tell Baltimore would be a cheaper city than D.C. as the parking was 5$ for an entire day rather than 15$ for the first 30 min. in D.C. The vertical height and variation of the buildings first caught my attention when we left the parking lot. Washington has wider streets and a law stating that all buildings can only be up to 20 feet taller than the street they reside on which makes for a very flat skyline. Eventually we made our way downtown to the Inner Harbor to find that the city was much nicer and cleaner than I ever expected it to be.I definitely fell in love with the harbor and reassured my self in how much I love coastal cities compared to the land-locked ones I have always lived in. By the end of the day, I did not want to leave back for my small apartment just north of the nation's capitol but promised myself I would return to the city someday. 

First Thing's First

Early this summer, or rather late spring to be exact, I got on a red-eye flight Delta Airlines plane at the Salt Lake City International Airport and ended up in Washington D.C. ten hours later. D.C.would become my home for the next 14 weeks and coming from small town Provo, Utah to one of the most prominent cities in the world did not come without its culture shock.

Just to name a few, everything cost an arm and a leg to buy, the air seemed to suffocate you in its warm wet humid grasp, the diversity of people made up for Utah’s lack thereof 100 times over.

The goal of the trip was to learn about my field of study through an internship, but in the long run I took just as much home with me about life, culture, and the world around me. What I gained from living in the city was a priceless learning and growing experience in the best setting you could ask for.