The Comings and Goings of Julie Mack

Running Revelations

2012-01-22T14:42:00.000-08:00

I'm training for the Hollywood Half Marathon on April 7th. By the time this race comes around, it'll have been almost 2 years since my last race. Thankfully the plantar fasciitis I developed from that race has now gone away, hopefully never to return. So, I'm up to 4 miles now and it is hard but feels good. As I'm running I like to listen to music and sometimes I just turn the music off and think. I definitely have a love/hate relationship with running. It's challenging but feels so good at the same time (especially when it's over). Anyway, I had a couple spiritual epiphanies while running this last week that I want to share. So let's get spiritual!

Revelation uno.... Ok, so I run down the ramp to the Santa Monica Pier and on my way back I obviously have to run up it. Some may think this is not a big deal. But for me, that last little hill at the end of the run kills me. So the other day as I was running it, I was about half way up when I wanted to stop and it hit me. You should never decide how far you'll go when you're running uphill. Decide before you get to the hill that you are not going to stop. You might be thinking, well, duh. But then I was thinking about how that parallels other parts of my life too. When life is hard, sometimes I want to stop, throw in the towel and give up. But it's when things are going well or when I start life's "hills" that I need to decide that I'm not going to stop and that I'll finish what I started.

Revelation dos... Yesterday it rained in the morning so I left for my run late in the afternoon once it finally cleared up. I was so excited to run in such beautiful weather! Seriously, the sun was shining and it was cool out. However, what I did not expect was the HUGE gusts of wind leftover from the morning storms. Like we're talking move me sideways wind. Anyway, I was super annoyed with the wind and ended up walking a bit because I felt like I was running into a wall. As I was walking and cursing the wind, I started to think about a scripture someone had pointed out to me on my mission. It's in Ether 6:5 and it says "And it came to pass that the Lord God caused that there should be a furious wind blow upon the face of the waters, towards the promised land; and thus they were tossed upon the waves of the sea before the wind." I think about the Jaredites in their boats hearing this crazy wind and being tossed around in their boats and if it was me I'd be thinking "I'm going to die." But the whole time this horrible wind and storm was moving them towards the promised land even though they couldn't see where they were going. Isn't that how life is sometimes? Sometimes I feel like I'm stuck in this huge storm that either God gave me or I made for myself and I don't see how it will lead me to anywhere good or happier. But then once you're out of the situation, you can finally see how that has helped lead you to a better place than you were at before.

So, there you have it. Spiritual lessons from training to run 13.1 miles. I guess the body and the spirit really are closely connected aren't they? :-)

A New Room!

2012-01-09T10:52:00.000-08:00

I'm proud to say that after 2.5 years of sharing a room, I am now loving having my own room again. Hooray! While I've loved sharing a room, there is nothing quite like having your own space. This last week I had LOTS of spare time to decorate my new bedroom and the apartment. Here are some pictures of what I did. I'm super excited and I love it!

This is my desk. I'm in love with it. It's huge and I can do my sewing projects and crafts on it with lots of room to spare. There are still a few things I'd like to add to the top shelf to complete it.

This is my photo wall. All of pictures I've taken and a cute way to display them. It's nice because I can change it up as I take new pictures and it's cheap :)

These two pictures are of the fabric covered canvases I made. Again super cheap and super easy to change up as my tastes change. I wish the lighting had been better so it didn't look like I had bars on my windows. Haha.

This is my current favorite shelf on my desk. I'm not even sure why I like it so much except that I think it's adorable, if I do say so myself.

This is the top of the bookcase and I could use a little help finding other things to put up there. The 70's makeup case was my mom's and the handkerchief in the memory box frame was my great grandma's. I feel like I need something else sentimental or handed down? Not sure yet what that is but I'll figure it out :-)

Can I just say how much fun I think decorating is? I'm not sure I'm really that great at it, but I love imagining the potential an empty space has. It's really fun for me. And a great way for me to fill my time. I'll have to post a picture of the picture cluster I did above my television. I love it lots and lots!!!

Christmas time is here!

2011-11-25T21:19:00.001-08:00

It's my favorite time of year!!! Christmas music is officially playing and decorating has begun (sort of, I'll be moving apartments by the end of the month so not too much decorating can happen).

Following Thanksgiving dinner we made gingerbread houses. This is one of my favorite Christmas traditions!

And I made another wreath! I love my new ornament wreath! This took WAY more ornaments than I anticipated, but, I am most certainly pleased with the final product :-)

What are your favorite Christmas traditions? What are your favorite Christmas songs/version of songs? Sigh. I wish it were Christmas all year....

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Wreaths

2011-11-11T09:14:00.001-08:00

You gotta love Pinterest. It has opened up this whole new crafty side to me that I hardly new existed. I just finished this wreath....

Just in time for thanksgiving! It was based on a pin I found. It's just yarn and felt. Easy peasy. Now I'm in the process of making a Christmas one :-) The best part about my new found hobbies? They're pretty cheap!

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I'm so crafty (part 2)

2011-10-19T22:25:00.001-07:00

Look what I did this week! In two days...

Another new skirt!!!

Inspired by anthropologie!

Here's a close up of the fabric...

Good times with my sewing machine :)

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I'm so crafty!

2011-10-12T17:29:00.001-07:00

Recently in my hours of freedom/boredom while building up clientele for Pilates, I decided to finally teach myself how to really sew. I'm slightly addicted after just this one skirt! Please see below....

And another angle....

I need to get some white or blue twill tape for the tie so it blends better. But not bad for my first skirt ever, huh? I couldn't wait to wear it so I wore it to the store last night. I wore a buttoned up white cardigan with a lacy coral tank underneath and some super cute nude wedges. I might wear my cowboy boots with it too. Love feeling so crafty :-)

Next on my sewing agenda is an a-line lace skirt with this green fabric underneath (inspired by an anthropologie skirt I could never afford)...

And a maxi skirt. I've caught the sewing bug! Hooray for new hobbies!

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Things I miss...

2011-10-09T20:01:00.001-07:00

If I'm being honest, there are few things I truly miss about NY. But this little nephew is one of the things I miss the most. I was close to him for the first 3 years of his life. He is so sweet and I love him. He first said my name "ooo-deee" until Woody took that pronunciation and we arrived at the current "ju-wee". What a sweetie!

I ran across these two videos on my phone camera. It made me miss him. Some skype-ing with him and his parents and baby brother will be happening soon.

YouTube Video

Please excuse the shaky quality. We were obviously driving. He LOVES "Tangled" and will only let his mom sing the duet with him. He'd get mad at my brother if he tried to sing. Ha ha. What a cutie :-)

YouTube Video

This was on the 4th of July, just before I moved. He loved the fireworks and we enjoyed watching them together. He has the sweetest little voice.

Miss you Gabey!

I love the see the temple...

2011-10-09T15:03:00.000-07:00

I love this place....

Since moving to Santa Monica, I've been trying to go once a week to the temple. I love the temple. I love the Spirit that is felt there and I love that it means that I can be with this crazy group of people forever.

Come on Dover...

2011-10-02T23:16:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, my great roommate discovered that the horse races were beginning their new season yesterday. So she put together a group of awesome people to go to said races. Naturally we would be expected to dress up. It's a pretty classy pass time, right? Right! Most girls decided to wear big hats like in the epic movie musical "My Fair Lady" as seen here (at about 6:30). I however decided to dress up more 40's vintage because of this article. And, hey, why not dare to be different, right? Here are pics of our costumes...

I am like a star shining brightly.... Who decided to put the girl in the yellow dress front and center? Yikes!

Roommate picture! (Minus one, who stayed home sick :( ...)

It also happened that Saturday at the horse races was the food truck festival. So there were about 50+ amazing food trucks to choose from for lunch and general munching. I had a chicken taco from Komodo. It was delicious! And super light and refreshing (which was much needed in the 90+ weather in Santa Anita). I didn't place a bet at the races but had so much fun trying to pick who would win and cheering loudly from our box seats. I have to say, horse races are A LOT of fun and totally unpredictable. I would highly recommend this activity as something to do at least once in your life. Hooray for horses!

Side note... best names of horses... Dusty Bottoms, Kvetch, Your Lucky Day, Mental Giant, Hot Ride, Ruler of Dubai, and Game on Dude... to name a few. Love it!!!!

A Little Rivalry Humor

2011-09-29T10:53:00.000-07:00

A friend recently found this video. It's hilarious even though I am a BYU fan :-)

Some kids take the rivalry very seriously, I find great humor in it. Haha. Enjoy!

Being Active

2011-09-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

I'm on a roll with this blogging thing this week! As soon as I start my job next week I won't be this dedicated but I figure while I have the time I could ~~get back in the habit~~ start the habit of blogging more consistently. Ha ha. So here goes my random post for the day....

One thing I love about living in CA is being able to be active outdoors for more than 2 months of the year. I went sailing today (awesome!!! More on that later). This morning I biked to the beach, went for a run, and walked along the beach back. It was so lovely! There were tons of surfers out. That will be my next hobby I think.

My bike! Love having this!

Running shoes on....

My run on the boardwalk!

All the surfers....

What can I say? I love the beach, sunshine, and beautiful days in CA!!!

Hiking

2011-09-21T18:02:00.000-07:00

I went on a hike in Malibu today. It was beautiful! It was a pretty long drive up there. The Pacific Coast Highway is a really nice drive though so I didn't mind so much. Here is one of the great views along the trail....

Love the haze over the ocean.

I didn't go very far because this warning freaked me out and I was totally alone. Like no one anywhere to be seen. And I kept hearing cracking sticks and what not. I really think watching crime TV has ruined my chances of enjoying a hike alone. Also animals with teeth that would attack me ruin it.

I have now decided that hiking alone is probably not the smartest idea. And I will only go where there are lots of other people around or with a friend.

A couple weeks ago I hiked to the Hollywood sign. There were lots of people around and no mountain lion warnings. My kind of hike. It was a good 45 minute hike up and 35 minutes down.

Pretty smoggy view of LA....

The view of the valley...

The Hollywood sign....

I really enjoy nature when it doesn't freak me out. Maybe I should start a hiking group? When I was in NY I was part of a hiking group and it was lots of fun. I saw a book at Barnes & Nobles with details of LA area hikes. This could be a fun group to put together. Hmmmm things to consider.....

Runner Up for Best iPhone App

2011-09-20T17:52:00.001-07:00

For awhile FatBooth has been my favorite iPhone app. I am happy to say it is now tied (maybe even beat?) with Film Director. Holy hours of fun to be had! Seriously. Please see my current favorite videos with my cute niece and nephews....

YouTube Video

These videos prove 4 things...
1- I am an awesome Aunt.
2- I have the cutest nieces and nephews.
3- This App is truly awesome. I have only just begun to discover it's rad-ness.
4- Pretty much ANYTHING sped up to music is funny.

Enjoy! And you're welcome.

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WW Chicken Salad with Walnuts and Grapes

2011-09-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

So today with all my last-week-of-freedom-before-I-start-my-new-job time I decided to share a delicious and healthy Weight Watchers recipe I discovered. Here it is...

1/4 C plain fat free yogurt

1/4 C fat-free mayonnaise

1/4 tsp ginger root

6 oz roasted chicken breast, without skin, cubed

2 medium scallions

1/4 C red seedless grapes, quartered

1/4 C celery, chopped

1/4 C carrots, raw and shredded

1 tsp chopped walnuts

1/4 C green apple, peeled and chopped (not originally in the recipe, but I love the addition)

Here are all my yummy ingredients ready to combine and consumed.

Mix mayonnaise, yogurt, and ginger together. Pour over chicken and stir until coated. Add remaining ingredients to chicken mixture. Annnnnnnnd voila! Serve over a bed of greens (that's how I like it), pita, bread, etc. Whatever your heart desires :) Makes 4 servings, 3 points each.

My finished product!!! Yum-Yum-Yum-Yum!

And let's be proud of me for blogging twice in one week. What??? That's unheard of. Maybe this is a new chapter of my blogging life? TBD....

Goodbye NYC, Hello CA

2011-09-18T12:26:00.001-07:00

About 5 months ago, I got a really strong feeling that it was time to say goodbye to NYC and move back to my homestate of CA. So, a month and a half ago, I packed everything up, sold lots of things, and moved to Santa Monica. And honestly, I haven't looked back. Sure there's been a few times that I've been nostalgic or have missed my friends and family and work that I had there, but overall, I haven't felt sad about the NYC break-up. I guess my time there was ready to end.

Peace out New York, it's been real.

I now have a job as a Pilates Instructor in Beverly Hills (which begins in a week) and a great apartment that's a mile from the beach and life is grand! I have a pass to Disneyland and have gone many times (totally already paid for itself). I go for runs by the beach and bike rides and have a great tan already. I'm excited to start work and make some moo-lah, although being unemployed has had a few perks as well. Haha. So I'm a CA girl once again and I couldn't be more excited!

A wedding to remember

2011-06-25T21:24:00.001-07:00

Today I went to the wedding of these two peeps.....

Kami has been one of my closest friends for 10 years. (September will be our 10 year friendship-aversary). And her wedding was beautiful. She was gorgeous. And the whole day was just perfect!

Congrats my friend, I love you :-)

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Babies and a Birthday

2011-03-04T16:22:00.001-08:00

I had a birthday and got two new nephews in the last month. Good times were had.

I took a long weekend trip to DC for my birthday to play with my siblings that live there.

The first night I stayed at my soon-to-be-sister-in-laws house and then went into the city with my brother to hear Mitt Romney speak. It was really interesting and motivational. What an excellent speaker!

After that my sister came up to DC with her kids to pick me up and go to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Totally cool! (and totally free!!!) Then we continued on to her house where I spent the remainder of my weekend.

It was full of shopping and playing with the nephews and watching movies in their awesome new media room and me being spotlighted at FHE and birthday cake!!! (Mia said she loved me because I play with her and put makeup on her :) haha)

I celebrated my birthday with all my friends in different ways. I went to dinner, had sleepovers, and hung out with everyone and felt loved. :-) So happy 28th to me!!!

Then I got 2 new nephews. First came Keifer (born on the 24th.... coincidence? I think not lol)

And then came Aksel...

He is sporting the lovely "je suis un rockstar" onesie I got him. I mean, really? That shirt screamed his name. How can this kid not grow up to be a rockstar??? Haha.

That's it folks.

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SNOW

2011-01-29T09:55:00.001-08:00

I think snow can be absolutely gorgeous. But when you live in a city with so much traffic (both foot and vehicle) it gets really gross, really fast.

Exhibit A:

Slushies. Ankle deep (at least), ice cold, brown nastiness on every corner.

Thankfully I have the below so I don't have wet feet....

Exhibit B:

How am I supposed to board my bus with piles of snow waist high? Or sometimes.....

One floor high!!! Poor carnegie deli.... If it was clean I might think that actually looked fun. But, alas, it is nasty.

BUT sometimes people get creative with the waist high snow....

And you just have to respect the ingenious beer cooler. So utilitarian.

And sometimes it makes wicked cool designs on windows.....

So while snow is still not my favorite and I still hold firm to my belief that snow should be visited but not lived in, it's not ALL bad. Right???

Vacations in 2011

2011-01-12T07:25:00.000-08:00

Here are my list of vacation places for 2011 thus far....

1-Salt Lake in early Spring to see two adorable new nephews get blessed and to visit friends and to eat Cafe Rio.

2-South Carolina with the Mack clan for our annual resort reunion in late summer.

3-And, this just in, Dominican Republic for a week mid-summer with a good friend.

2011, you're looking good so far. Keep it up.

Fatbooth

2011-01-04T10:13:00.001-08:00

This is one of the results of my fatbooth app......

I'm pretty sure this will ALWAYS be funny to me.

Yummy yummy!

New Friends and Experieces

2011-01-01T18:32:00.001-08:00

My day of traveling back to New York started Thursday at about 7pm. We packed up the car and drove to San Francisco. My flight was supposed to leave at 9pm but the flight was delayed until 10:32pm. With a time so specific, you'd think they might have stuck to it. No luck jetblue.

The checking in and security process was fine. I used the new x-ray/inappropriate scanner thing and it was quick and painless. And I would like to take a moment to congratulate my packing skills for my bag weighing in at 49 pounds. Sweetness. Everything was fine. Even with the delay I was still going to make my connecting flight in Boston and my 2 hour layover was reduced to 30 minutes. I was golden. Or so I thought....

The plane arrived about 10:20pm, they then had to "clean" the plane and load us all on and we didn't leave until 11:20. My chances were so slim that I would make my connecting flight but I still felt like there would be a chance. I mean surely they'd hold the plane for all the people on my flight making the connection. Right? And they wouldn't be leaving on time. Right?

Wrong.

The plane landed in Boston at 7:30am. I missed my connecting flight by 10 minutes. Once I was off the plane and the fact that I had missed my flight was confirmed, I waited in a long line to see if there were any flights that would take me to JFK. Thankfully the lady was honest about the fact that there were a huge number of people doing standby for the same destination. And luckily the girl next to me in line was going to the same place. So I suggested we rent a car and drive because I really didn't want to spend new years in an airport (jetblue lady said we'd be lucky if we got a flight Friday but we'd probably not make it until at least Saturday. Ummmm... no thanks). Enter Kristina and Carolyn my driving buddies.

After a fiasco of trying to find and get our luggage (and finding that it was already on its way to JFK), we rented a car and started the drive.

I had maybe 3 hours of sleep on the plane and was now the sole driver to JFK. Five and a half hours later I was at JFK trying to find my luggage in this....

Needless to say I had made a few diet coke stops. Ha ha! I was tired, smelly, and hungry but I was back home by 5:30pm. Only 7 hours after I had anticipated. But I still managed to stay up past midnight and celebrate new years with friends and the ball dropping...

So happy new year!!! And good luck and safe travels to all of you you aren't home yet. May you have better luck :-)

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A little Japanese and Chinese if you please

2010-12-28T08:27:00.001-08:00

Yesterday Kellie and Kevin and I went to the San Jose Japanese friendship botanical garden. I had never been and it was small but beautiful! I would love to go back in the spring some time. Of course I had to try out the camera on my phone and all the photo apps I've been downloading :-) here is a taste of the garden...

Then my whole family went to ho chows for Chinese food. Holy amazing!!! New York does a lot of things right but Chinese food is not one of them. Here is my delicious wonton soup....

And here is Mongolian beef, tangerine chicken, brown rice, and the most amazing honey walnut prawns in the world!!! No joke.

Not photographed was the veggie mushu. I look forward to this place every year :-)

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iPhone

2010-12-27T14:37:00.001-08:00

I am blogging from my new iPhone. Merry Christmas :-)

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What goes up must come down

2010-12-12T05:35:00.000-08:00

I think this year will be the year of visitors. I love it! I love having people come visit me and spending time with family and friends and showing them all the fun places I like to go in NYC. It's a pretty bomb city. So I can't remember if I uploaded pics of everyone who visited me this year (Heidi & Sara, Kate, Kellie & Katie, Ben, Parents, Emily & Family (no joke, all 5 of them in my little one bedroom was hilariously awesome), Ina, Daniel, Tommy, etc.) but I don't want to go back in and find them all so here is a picture of me and Daniel (my friend from CA) who came most recently to visit. I think I'm a good hostess and tour guide. The last month and a half has seriously been one house guest after the other and I'm kind of glad to have a break through the holidays. It's exhausting. Ha ha.

Other interesting news.....My nephew got baptized. I got to go down to DC for the baptism. He's so cute and his baptism was SO sweet. He was tearing up the whole time and was so excited to be making this covenant with Heavenly Father. What a sweetheart.

Other interesting things that have happened lately.... I went skysdiving!!! Oh. My. Goodness. It was amazing! I would totally go again if it were cheaper/free. I went with a group of friends from work. I really like my co-workers and we get along really well. So here's a picture of them.....

(Technically at this point Melana wasn't a co-worker but she's one of my besties and used to work at the club so we'll let it slide lol)

(Ummmm, sorry it's on it's side)

So sorry this picture is rotated but I thought it was hilarious. But I'm glad I jumped in the suit cause all the guys who tried to be tough got grass stains on their bums when they landed. And you've got to love the conehead-edness of the helmet. Seriously. Made it worth it just for this picture. Ha ha.

And there's me defying gravity with Jeff Daniels on my back! No joke, his name is Jeff Daniels. He was the best skydiving teacher there ever was. Made me feel calm and laugh and got me distracted until minutes before I leapt out of a plane over a mile above the earth. Twas awesome. Highly recommend it.

Tommy

2010-08-22T14:30:00.001-07:00

A couple months ago a co-worker posted on facebook that she needed a dogsitter while she was gone for two weeks on her honeymoon. I quickly volunteered because I've been thinking about getting a little companion. I thought this would be a good way to see if it was possible or feasible to get one. Here's what I have discovered....

Meet Tommy! My doggy for two weeks. He's the MOST cuddly and sweet French Bulldog you've ever met. We go for walks in Central Park and I feel really cool because people comment on him and he's really good and obedient.

My first concern was...what in the world will the dog do while I am gone all day? The answer....sleep. And sleep some more. Here is Tommy's cute little face sleeping on my couch....

We went on a walk to work and Tommy took a turn checking people in....Again, me feeling cool that I had a cute little dog to show off.

Okay, so the real breakdown on having a doggy in New York City....

Con--You have to pick up his poops. Not so bad with a little dog but still...

Pro--He's so excited when you come home, it's really nice to feel so special and to see his cute little excited face.

Con--You have to clean your carpets and floors after he poops, pees, and/or vomits on your carpets and floors. Not cute. (all of which have happened in the first week)

Pro--He gives you hugs. Literally paws on your shoulders and face nuzzling in your neck. SO cute!!!

Con--He's expensive. Hands down probably the deciding factor for whether or not I could get one.

Pro--You get more exercise and walking time in the city.

Con--When he needs to go you have to take him out. No just letting him out the back door. You must get dressed, put shoes on and walk him.

Okay, the list could go on, but this is what I've decided...I would rather save up my money that I would spend on a dog and travel and then get a dog when I have a yard and/or kids to play with him. So, thanks Tommy for helping me decide that the time is not right for me to have a dog.

The end.

Summer Favorites

2010-08-01T07:03:00.000-07:00

Here's a list of some of my favorite summer things (in no particular order)....

Summer Drink:

Starbucks Iced Passion Herbal Tea Lemonade...Deliciousness! Especially on a hot & humid East Coast day (a more regular occurrence than I would like)

Summer Song:

"Madeline" by Jacob Vanags (pronounced Van-Eggs....AND you can buy it on iTunes....ALSO "Speak Up Now" is a close runner up, just so you know).

Summer Clothing:

ModCloth dresses. Bless facebook and their ads on the sidebar. That's how I found this place. Amazing. Period.

Summer Exercise:

TRX. I just got certified and got my own straps. It is a KILLER workout. Love it.

Summer Food:

Chop't. Delicious salads are so refreshing on a hot summer day. AND you can make your own creations which = even more awesomeness.

Summer Travels/Visitors:

Hawaii, Hiking, Sara and Heidi, Kate, Beaches, Alvin Ailey at Summer Stage in Central Park, etc.

I really do enjoy summertime!

Now if we could get the weather to stay in the mid-high 80's.....

World Cup Madness

2010-06-23T18:23:00.000-07:00

Okay....I might love Landon Donovan. Not only is he easy on the eyes but he scores winning goals for the USA. Here's his amazingness....

For as much as I love soccer I've surprisingly never been a very avid World Cup watcher. But this year is different. I am so excited to see what USA will do. The game today against Algeria was intense and awesome and made me miss playing SO much. I can't wait to see them play again on the 26th!!!

Hawaii

2010-06-20T13:41:00.000-07:00

A week ago I landed at JFK after 12 hours of travel from Honolulu, Hawaii. I spent a week there with my whole family. I love that place. It is SO relaxing and beautiful and perfect. I might even say one of the most perfect locations for a vacation. We swam in Waimea Falls, Waimea Bay, White Plains Beach, the Lagoons at our resort, and Waikiki Beach. We jumped off cliffs into the ocean (which is really scary when the water is so clear you can see the bottom of the ocean floor....), ate shaved ice (with ice cream on the bottom, ate amazing food, went to a luau, surfed, snorkled, and all around had a great time.

Here are a few pictures from my trip....

Kate, Meg, & Me at the windy cliff...can't remember the name

Sandy feet. Just the way I like them. Always feels like a pedicure after :)

Waimea Bay...the closest rock cliff is the one I jumped off.

I don't think I could live in Hawaii but it definitely should be visited by everyone at least once in their lives. I actually think I might try out some other tropical islands next. But we'll see what happens and what's in my budget...

I Came. I Saw. I Conquered....Sort of.

2010-06-01T17:16:00.000-07:00

I did it! I ran my first half marathon. I did average of 13 minute miles and finished in 2 hours and 50 minutes, thus accomplishing my goal of finishing under 3 hours.

This is us getting ready for the start....

Maddie and I waiting for the start. Feeling nervous....

This is the runner looping back before me. I was a little slower than they were apparently....

I'm so proud of myself for accomplishing a half marathon. I've never been a distance runner. I've always been more of sprinter so this was really a big challenge for me. My next goal is to run the 6.2 mile loop in Central Park without stopping (including the huge hill at the top). And my sister wants me to train for another half marathon with her. She finished her first in 1 hour and 45 minutes...we'll see how long I need to train to keep up with her :)

Thoughts on a bus ride

2010-05-28T10:20:00.001-07:00

I'm on a bus. Writing this on a bus. On my way to Boston. To spend a 4 day weekend. And run 13.1 miles. I'm feeling: nervous, excited, full of Pringles, and anxious. I'm with Maddie. I heart my NYC BFF. She got us both into this race. Hooray!

Other things observed on this bus ride: The East Coast is really green and lush outside of Manhattan.

To Be Continued....

Not Nail Polish

2010-05-23T11:55:00.000-07:00

So I was at my pilates work/study about 3 weeks ago. The windows had been cleaned that day and in so doing they took off a very important "broken window" sign. I went to go open the windows to get a breeze for the class that was going on. I knew there was a broken window and I was trying to figure it out and had narrowed it down to two of them. As the Grail Knight on Indiana Jones said I "choose poorly" and the window came crashing down on my fingers. And here's what I am left with...

Riddle me this...why were only the outside two fingers bruised or damaged at all? Ha ha! I think I'll lose the pinky nail. He definitely got the worst of it. Poor little pinky nail. I haven't painted my nails yet and everyone keeps thinking it's just badly chipped nail polish. I wish it were. All for the love of pilates :)

It's about that time again...

2010-05-09T12:14:00.000-07:00

Hey...remember me? I used to update my blog every 2-3 months and have recently gone to every 6 months. Yeah, that's me. I hope you didn't forget who I was. This will be a brief update but an update nonetheless.

Training....I'm training for a half marathon. It kills but is great fun. This Saturday I will be up to 12 miles. I actually really enjoy the long runs as a time to think and push my limits. I've started to run without music and I really enjoy it. I feel like it's easier for me to listen to my body and to focus on running. However, I do keep my iPod shuffle on my person just in case I need a little pick me up mid-run. It's working out wonderfully.

Personal Training...so I'm still doing my personal training stuff and LOVING it. I'm also working through all my pilates machine certification as well. I got my mat cert in February and am finishing up the hours for my reformer, cadillac, and chair cert. It's awesome and I love that too! I have also recently picked up some private clients for some in home training which is lots of fun and adds a little more variety to my life. Way to help people improve their lives through exercise!

Callings...I'm one of the chairs of the service committee at church. Basically we're over cleaning the church, service projects, family history, snow removal, and emergency preparedness. It's a fun and time consuming calling. I actually really like it a lot even though it feels like it's all the stuff that no one else wants to do. We did a blood drive recently and had a pretty good turnout.

So, that's it for now. I'll try and be better. Until next time (hopefully before another 6 months).

xoxo

Foot Model?

2009-11-22T15:25:00.000-08:00

So, a couple months ago on a randomly sunny day at the end of summer (it rained a TON this summer) I decided to go to Central Park to read and study. I get to the park, pull out my blanket and start to get situated. Take my shoes off. Roll up my pants and try to start absorbing as much Vitamin D as possible. When a random man walks up to me and says, "You have the most beautiful dancers feet." I look around me, then look at him, making sure he was speaking to me. He was. With an awkward, I-don't-know-what-to-say-to-that, fake smile, I say, "Uh, thanks?" He then proceeded to ask me all sorts of questions about my feet. Did I dance? What kinds of dance? Etc. Etc. I vaguely answered the questions with a huge look of confusion on my face. Then the man asked, "The sunlight is just so perfect right now, can I take some pictures of your feet?" I was majorly confused and said, "Uh, I guess so." He then pulled his camera out of his bag and took pictures of my feet and began directing how he wanted them (demi-point, flexed, left on right, etc.). Thankfully my sister-in-law called me and I had an excuse to end our conversation and photo shoot. It wasn't until after he left that I thought that his intentions might be a little less than pure. If anyone sees my "beautiful dancers feet" for sale somewhere, let me know. I really hope this goes down in history as one of the absolute strangest experiences I have in my life.

It's about time!

2009-11-15T11:40:00.000-08:00

Okay friends. I hope you haven't lost complete faith in me. Here I am, once again to repent of the recent negligence of my blog. Life has been so crazy and busy that I've hardly have time to check all my friends blogs, let alone update my own. Enough with the excuses. Here it goes....

I've moved to midtown! Hallelujah! Midtown is awesome! It is SO much more convenient for work and life. I walk 10-15 minutes down 7th Avenue and I'm there (only 5 if I take the train). It's close to every subway and lots of restaurants and good times. These good times will include walking outside my front door on Thanksgiving to watch the Macy's Parade and on New Years Eve to see the ball drop. In my opinion, a much better option than standing out in the freezing cold all day to see a really small ball fall down. However I do have to say I already miss the cat calls all the time. It's been quite awhile since someone has said "God Bless you Mami." Oh Washington Heights, you will always have a special place in my heart. But midtown wins.

As far as work goes... I'm still doing my personal training stuff and loving it. I never thought I would actually really enjoy being a personal trainer. Who knew? It's very fulfilling and I love all my clients and I love feeling like I'm helping people accomplish their goals and try to be better. It's awesome. But in addition to my personal training business I've started a certification program for Pilates. I will be a Pilates mat and machine instructor as well. I'm SUPER excited for this. I've loved Pilates for a really long time and find everything about it fascinating. So, if I didn't already have too much to do, now I DEFINITELY have too much to do. But it's all good. And it's keeping me busy and helping me continue my education. Which is always a good thing, right? Right!

So those are the new things in my life. I went on a trip to Colonial Williamsburg a few weeks back with my family. It was loads of fun and very relaxing. Not all of the family was there and for the first time in Mack Family Vacation History I got my own hotel room. Pretty sweet if you want my opinion. Other than that I'm busy getting to know people in my ward, going to institute, and playing as much as I can. Which isn't much. I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving when I'll have 4, count them, 4 days off. To relax and hopefully play tourist. I love playing tourist. Now on to the rest of todays adventures....

(I was going to include pictures but my computer wouldn't load them. Lame Sauce. Next time. Which will not be in 3 months. I promise)

A For Reals Update

2009-08-09T14:11:00.001-07:00

So, here are a few pictures of the adventures I've had over the past few months (in no particular order)....

We went to a Yankees game in the new Yankees stadium. I think we won. I don't really remember. But Maddie and I did win at looking gooooooood.

I went to the Museum of Natural History for the first (and second) time. It's such a great little place. I loves it!

Went to dirty Jersey to visit Heidi and her family. We relaxed and ate and talked. It was major good times!

My cute nephew turned 1. I can't believe he's already that old! Crazy!

Went to Palmyra for pageant and good times. Pageant=the cheesiest thing I've ever seen.

Made a new friend, Russ. He's who I went to Palmyra with. We had a good time.

Made a trip to CA to visit family, see my nephew get baptized, and play with my sisters.

LOTS of rain this summer. Really? It's been non-stop.

New roommate...Zaneta! She's super awesome! This is us on the 4th of July. We had to beat a ton of crowds and someone kept tooting next to us. Gross. But the fireworks were amazing!

There ya go! This has been my life the last few months. I've also been on a few beach trips and frolicked around Manhattan. I'm also really enjoying my job at the gym and am working hard at getting new clients and having a weekly adventure. Life is good!

The Inside Scoop

2009-07-24T17:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Future Husband:

Hi Future Husband! How are you? I hope you are making a lot of money. Ha ha. Just kidding. (seriously though, you're not poor, right?) Anyway, just wanted to write you a little letter to help you get to know the needs of your future wife better.

When I'm mad at you...try to make me laugh. I'll forgive you a lot faster. Just remember that one of the best features of your future wife is her ability to not only forgive really quickly but also forget really quickly as well. I think this is a gift that Heavenly Father probably gave me so that we could have a loving and lasting relationship. So in instances where I'm upset, please take advantage of my horrible memory.

When I'm sad....let me cry. Hug me. Give me some significant cuddle time and tell me everything is going to be okay. But if by some chance I tell you I need to be alone, I really need to just be alone and cry. When I'm done, I'll feel much better and then we can continue like normal. I'm emotional. Sorry. I think this is a blessing and a curse. I will try and help you navigate through the tangled web that can be my emotions at times. Don't worry. It'll all turn out okay.

When I'm happy...please, oh please rejoice with me. Jump up and down with me. Have dance parties with me. Have adventures. Laugh with me. Joke around. Surprise me. I'm planning on having most of our time together be happy times so let's have a party and enjoy life together.

When I accomplish something important....congratulate me with something special. This could include dinner, theater tickets, something sparkly, flowers, basically anything that shows me that you put thought into my present (side note-- these items are also good for when I'm angry or sad).

Most importantly, my future husband, let's find each other ASAP. I'm tired of waiting for you. I'm pretty sure you're going to be awesome and worth the wait (cause I know I am) but let's both work a little harder at putting out the vibe and starting our lives together.

Love, your future wife

Frustrations

2009-05-31T14:30:00.001-07:00

There have been a lot of things on my mind lately. Here are a few...

1-What am I doing with my life?
I started my job as a personal trainer at the gym and am now licensed to sell life insurance for Primerica. Both things are good but I don't feel super passionate about either of them. Correction. I really enjoy the personal training part of personal training but the whole trying to sell thing is difficult for me. It's especially hard when I know how difficult finances can be right now. These feelings have led me to really wonder what I'm doing with my life. I feel aimless a lot of times. Sigh.

2-Why does it stink to grow up?
I've been really trying to focus on the positive but growing up stinks! You get a job and then do that everyday for the rest of your life. If you focus on the monotony of it all it can be pretty lame sauce. I'm trying to focus on the fun parts of growing up like hopefully making enough money so I can travel one day.

3-Why don't LDS boys ask me out as much as non-LDS boys?
Ever since I started working at the gym I have been asked out at least once a week. At least. It's ridiculous. Now, the thing I'm trying to figure out is how I can get the LDS boys to want me that badly. Hmmmm....

4-How is it possible to be surrounded by people in a huge city and still feel lonely at times?
Most days I'm pretty happy but there are random days here and there where I feel completely and totally alone. It's amazing that that is possible here. I need to start interpretive dancing again, that always cheered me (and my roommates) up. Ha ha!

This was not meant to be depressing and I'm sorry if it was, just some things I've been thinking about lately. In other news I cut my hair, bought a ticket to go to LA in July, went to DC, and went to the Museum of Natural History for the first time. So I'm still managing to have fun and enjoy life despite all my ponderings! :)

Happy Belated Easter

2009-04-19T07:58:00.000-07:00

Happy Belated Easter! Last weekend was so much fun!

First, we celebrated Easter! Which is Maddie's favorite holiday and I have to say it's in my top 3. We pretended like it was spring and wore open toed shoes with our cute Easter dresses and were freezing. Good times. We took pictures with Easter baskets and our fun flowers (just fyi, gerber daisies are my absolute favorite flower). Here we are in all our Easter glory...

The main reason Rachel came down was to help throw Maddie a bridal shower (on Saturday). We made some yummy California citrus salad, crescent rolls, and homemade brownies for our little luncheon. It was delicious!

Later that night Maddie and I went to see "Sunshine Cleaning" while Rachel and her boyfriend went on a date. The movie was really good.

Then on Easter night Maddie and I went to my brothers house for dinner and got to play with cute little Gabriel....

Why is he SO cute?!?! I'm a very proud Aunt :)

Problem Solved

2009-04-19T07:51:00.000-07:00

Remember how I wanted a Puma bag? Well I got one! But I didn't have to use my funds that I've been saving! One of my super good friends from CA called me a couple weeks ago and slyly asked if I had received the bag yet. I told her that I hadn't and that it would probably still be awhile. Then a few days later I received my very own bag in the mail with a "Happy Belated Birthday" note from her with it. I was SO surprised!

So I am now the proud owner of the most incredible gym bag on the planet. It seriously is never ending. That's exactly what I need for those days when I am gone from morning until night (which is more often than I'd like). So, thanks Ally for supplying me with my Puma bag need.

Springtime...hopefully here to stay

2009-04-07T20:06:00.000-07:00

So, I like taking pictures of the beauty that is New York in what we call "Spring" or the beginnings of it. Between conference sessions on Sunday, Maddie, Dan and I went for a walk in Central Park and here are a few goodies from that little jaunt...

The view across the reservoir....

The colors are coming back! I love it!

I feel like their child sometimes....

Things I'm grateful for...not frozen water. It makes for a much prettier picture.

Other things I'm thankful for: Flowers.

Also, I'm grateful for green, beautiful grass.

Lastly, I'm grateful for Central Park. What a glorious idea to have a park in the middle of this pavement city. Lovely!

It's a race!

2009-03-30T06:32:00.000-07:00

I just got back from my weekend in DC. It was wonderful! It was a very nice (and much needed) break from NY. So here's a breakdown of my trip...

First, I went to run an 8K (5 miles). It was awesome! My goal was to finish in under an hour. I finished the 5 miles in 53 minutes! Yes! It was hard and a great opportunity to push myself and a great bonding experience with two of my siblings. I only stopped a handful of times for very short breaks. Emily didn't stop at all and she finished in 48 minutes! Next time my goal will be to not stop. The course was pretty level and there were only two moderate hills. Not bad.

Unfortunately I left my camera at home during the race and couldn't take any pictures. But if I had and if this man was a woman and was wearing more clothes, this is what I would've looked like.

So, it was drizzling the day of the race and I got pretty wet. My legs got the worst of it because I have super short legs and my pants were dragging on the floor (please see photo below)...

Other fun things that come with going to DC are seeing my cute nephews and niece. We played a lot of Wii....

Ate a lot of food...
Went to a swim class...

Saw Barrack's house....
Admired the beautiful flowers in DC...

And just had a happy time together....

Now it's back to reality. That's the part of taking a trip that I like the least. Sigh.

A Puma Dilemma

2009-03-19T10:07:00.001-07:00

I want one of these...

So I made one of these...

In it, you'll find a few of these...

It's gonna be awhile before I get my bag.

Working Hard For the Money

2009-03-18T11:06:00.000-07:00

I really need to do better about blogging. Once a month is just not going to cut it.

SO, I am now employed! Yah! I am actually working two jobs that are somewhat like running my own business. Let me explain.

Job #1: I am going to be a personal trainer at New York Sports Club! Yah for fitness! There are lots of reasons that I'm excited for this job. First, I've let myself get in probably the worst shape of my life lately and knowing that I'm gonna be training other people has really helped me get back on the health train. Second, I'm excited because I really like teaching and helping people. I feel like personal training is something that is important. Third, free gym membership. Fourth, there is a chance that I can teach classes and that just makes me happy. I had fun when I was teaching classes to little kids but teaching adults who can #1-pay attention for longer and #2-have a little more control of their bodies will probably be slightly more enjoyable.

Job #2: I'm becoming a financial advisor with Primerica. So I'm busy learning all about loans, mortgages, life insurance, etc. so that I can help people find ways that they can save on life insurance and other areas and better invest their money. I've been super busy studying for the life insurance exam which will take place on April 4th (as long as my New York drivers license gets here in time). This one will probably be a little slow to start out with because we have to find out own clients but I'm working with an awesome team of people and it should be good.

So that's what I'm doing for work.

In other news, I'm running an 8K next weekend in Virginia and I'm very excited. My goal is to run it in under an hour. I've been running outside lately and I LOVE it. The weather is getting much nicer and I couldn't be happier.

All in all life has been treating me pretty well. I'm happy and am working towards goals which makes me feel productive and useful.

It's been too long...

2009-02-26T19:17:00.000-08:00

I can't believe almost a whole month has passed since my last post. It's been busy and filled with lots of interesting new developments. So here's the quick rap up of February...

I started working at the tile store and 10 days later quit. Long story. Basically, I had different expectations than the owner about how I should be treated. If you want to know more you can email or call me but basically our working styles didn't go well together. Sad, I know. So I'm hunting...again. But I've already had a couple interviews and feel really hopeful that things will work out.

I went to see a taping of Martha Stewart with Maddie, Megan, and Kami. It was SO fun! I love the free things you can do it New York. Such good times. We learned how to make love bug cookies and some delicious looking chicken meatballs and italian wedding soup. Sadly we didn't get to try any of the food but we did get some cool attachments for a rolling pin so you can roll dough evenly, a book, and a magazine about seeds. Good times with Martha.

Then my brother Ben came to visit for Valentines/my birthday weekend. We had so much fun eating and exploring downtown. We rode the Staten Island Ferry, walked around Wall Street, went to the Museum of Sports, and just chatted and had a great time. Gotta love having some good family time!

As mentioned before, it was my birthday! Yah for being born! Megan made me this amazing cake, Maddie made yummy brownies, and Kami brought some scrumptuos cheesecake. Pretty much all my favorite desserts. We had a few people over to celebrate and got overloaded on sugar. It was great.

Lastly, we went out for Tessa's birthday where I made a fool of myself and got on top of the bull on Wall Street. It was actually really fun. We explored downtown, went to dinner, FHE, a movie, and rode the Staten Island Ferry at 1:00am. It was a LATE night but totally worth it!

So that was February. At least most of it. I still have 2 days left. I'll see what other schnanagans I can get into before it's March....

PS To "Employed"

2009-01-30T05:33:00.001-08:00

This job will be slightly less like Terico in that I can actually look cute when I go to work, there will be no forklift driving, it's not in a warehouse, I work from 10-6, not 5:30am-2:30am, and I have a desk! Just wanted to clarify. :)

Employed

2009-01-29T17:21:00.000-08:00

The job hunt is over. Phew. I start on Monday and I'm excited. I'll be working at a tile place here in NYC. The good old days at Terico have paid off I guess. At least they helped me get my first real New York job. Hallelujah! I definitely need the money. I'll post again after my first day on Monday. It's sure to be exciting.

Things I'd like to do with my money (besides living expenses):
-Save it so I'm not living on savings
-Save it so I can start traveling around the world, I've been really getting the desire to travel and experience different parts of the world lately. I really want to go to Europe and parts of Central America.
-Buy cute clothes. It's been awhile since I've bought myself something new and I'm ready to start again. Possibly with this or this or a knockoff of this...Sigh... I love shopping and I'm glad I get to enjoy it again. Century 21 and little Chinatown ladies, here I come!
-Take dance classes--finally!
-Get cable or something more than just the 5 channels I currently get on tv.

I'm sure there are more but that's it for now.

Silly, silly, silly.

2009-01-25T15:17:00.000-08:00

I sang a duet in church today. It was a beautiful arrangement of the hymn "Ring Out Wild Bells" (thanks Megan!). I did the alto part which was definitely the harder of the two parts because the accompaniment didn't have any of my part in it. Anyway, I was getting most of it in the rehearsals but I was still really nervous. So we get up to perform it and I mess up about 10 times. And at one point I almost fell over because I rocked back on my heels and lost my balance during the song. So when the song was over I was totally embarrassed because I wear my emotions on my face and I made it clear that I had messed up and almost fallen over. So, on my way down the stairs I turned to Megan (who had arranged the song) and said "I'm sorry." I couldn't even wait until we were sitting quietly in our seats to express how ridiculous I felt for messing up the song. Needless to say I probably won't be singing in church again anytime soon. Although I almost feel like I should do it again just so I can redeem myself. Gosh. I am so silly sometimes. Blah.

A New Hobby

2009-01-22T16:28:00.000-08:00

As some of you may know, I have been having fun getting to know my camera lately. I decided I should share a few of my favorite shots. So here they are (in no particular order):

A boat I found while wandering around down by the Brooklyn bridge while waiting for an Enrichment activity that never actually happened. But I got some fun pictures so it was worth the trek down there.

The famous star on 5th Ave...

The lesser known star at Rockefeller center. It's usually overshadowed by the huge angel next to it....

The Rockefeller Center...I was hoping Tina Fey could've been in the picture but she couldn't make it.

Huge ornaments...

Christmas, Disney style...
Christmas, MET style....
Cool hanging ornaments in a store window...

Iced Tea or Lemonade anyone?

Skyline in Central Park....

More Central Park...
A cool bench in Central Park...

More CP...
More....
My warm toes in my wannabe Uggs by Skechers. I'm gonna need new ones real soon because I wear these almost everyday....

Pregnant/tumor tree in CP...

Christmas was everywhere!

Central Park how you have inspired me...

Bryant Park...

Brooklyn Bridge...No. Sleep. Till Brooklyn. Courtesy of the Beastie Boys....

Bergdorf Goodman window display. I didn't show the freaky ones with animals dressed like humans. They weird me out...
Tree outside my Aunt and Uncles house...

The DAM in CT...
Tree by the dam...
Fall Colors!
The end for now. I hope you enjoyed a brief look at some of my favorite shots. I love this whole camera thing. It's been really fun to go on photo trips. :) Now to put them in a coffee table book to eventually look back on my time spent in NYC!

I just realized there were SO many pictures. Sorry.

Roller Subway?

2009-01-14T20:21:00.000-08:00

Today as I was waiting for the subway I had a mental movie about how much fun the subway system would be if there was a roller coaster car. You know, you get strapped in and go super fast down these dark and scary tunnels that you have no idea who or what lives there. Then you'd get off at your destination and leave that much happier and uplifted. It could be amazing. Kind of like Space Mountain at Disneyland. Honestly, could you imagine how happy all the ladies in their fur coats and men in their business suits would be? Their inner child would be released and maybe, just maybe they'd smile at their fellow New Yorker. Or maybe it would just be fun to see them freak out, kind of like the girls below....

I would like to add that no one in my dream looked quite as scarred as the girl and mother in this photo. My roller coaster car would be fun and everyone would enjoy it. Angry business men and snotty ladies included.

Another idea just popped in my head....what if there was just a roller coaster that took you around New York by all the famous sights? Kind of like the monorail or tram at Disneyland (where you don't have to sit in traffic on a bus). Just think about it. This could be big.

I will gladly take any donations for either of my brilliant ideas.

Caution...I growl when assaulted.

2009-01-11T16:57:00.000-08:00

So two days ago I was going to the temple. I hadn't been since before Christmas and I really needed and wanted to go. So I went. Before I continue, I must outline a few factors that lead up to what happened so that you can fully grasp why I did what I did.

1. I was a little late (surprise, surprise) and as a result was rushing.
2. It was SUPER windy and as a result my skirt kept crawling up my bare legs.
3. It was freezing and I obviously didn't think before getting dressed in my skirt and boots that maybe my knees and legs that weren't covered would be cold. They were cold.
4. I had my hair straight and down and it was in my face and getting static-y because of the wind.

Okay, so I'm walking down the street to the train, super frustrated that I had decided to live in New York where everything was so uncomfortable (see above). Anyway, I start walking towards this man who is just standing in front of a store. He was staring at me, watching me struggle with my skirt and hair. I knew he was going to say something to me. He did. He made kissy lips and said something like "hey baby" to me. Now this is not the first time this has ever happened to me but I was super frustrated with NYC at this point and this just tipped me over the edge. All I could do was make a VERY loud sigh/growl at him. He was slightly taken back and then when I was halfway through crossing the street I heard him start laughing. Then I started laughing.

I'm turning into an animal here.

The best part is that every guy that I passed from that point on would try to hit on me. I must've looked pretty good that day. Or maybe Heavenly Father just has a sense of humor. Probably both. :)

Then when I finally got to the subway a man followed me on the subway platform. I looked at him and said "really?" and walked away. He followed. I walked away. He followed. I walked away and something finally clicked that time with him that I didn't want to talk to him or be by him and he didn't follow. Thank goodness I didn't have to pull out my fierce growl again. It probably would've made his day.

Oh NYC, the stories I will have to tell my children!

Pleasantly Surprised

2009-01-08T19:57:00.000-08:00

Tonight Maddie and I headed out for one of our girl dates to go see a Broadway show. We had decided on Wicked beforehand. The only way we can afford to see it is if we do the lottery two hours before the show. So we went and stood in line in the cold, and....

...nothing. We didn't get the tickets. This was our fourth time to try to win the lottery. Honestly. You'd think the little army man who's in charge of tickets would recognize us and give us a break! Perhaps next time will be the lucky time. Anyway, so we decided to go try for other shows. We went to Spamalot and Avenue Q but to no avail, they were all sold out of the tickets we could afford. So then I suggested that we go see a movie. Maddie quickly responded with "have you seen 'Yes Man'?"

Now I must interrupt this part of my story to give a brief history of my feelings regarding this movie and book. The book is about a guy who decides to say yes to absolutely everything for a year. It's a true diary type book about this authors experiences. It's amazing. Thank you Stacey Bond for bringing it to my attention. :) Now that I've established how amazing this book is let me explain why I had hesitations about Jim Carrey being able to pull it off. The book is SO not Jim Carrey. It's super British and tongue in cheeky. Just a different type of humor than Jimmy usually does. I just didn't want to see them ruin a book that was so influential. Now back to my story...

So, Maddie had suggested the movie and I wasn't super excited to see it but was a little curious to know how they would pull it off. So we went. (after a brief dinner break to the Shake Shack, always yummy and it was Maddies first time!)

And let me tell you...I was totally pleasantly surprised! I'm always glad when that happens instead of being dissapointed. :) It only worked because the movie is not an exact rendition of the book. They did their own thing and loosely based it on the book and it was awesome. Jim Carrey is as goofy as ever but I actually really enjoyed him in this and it was really hilarious. Go Jim! Way to exceed my expectations! Anyway, if you want to see a good comedy (very slapstick) you would enjoy this (minus the freaky part with the old lady...you'll know what part I'm talking about when you go see it). The end.

Why?

2009-01-04T13:54:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow night I leave this...

For this...
Why did I think moving to New York was such a great idea? It's like 20 degrees, there is ferocious wind, and it snows. I hate living in snow. I think snow is a beautiful thing that should be enjoyed for the weekend. I lived in snow for 4 years at BYU and the cold I experienced there already pales in comparison to the freezing-ness that is New York. Woe is me. I'm sure I'll survive. :)

In other news...when I get back to New York I have a lot of new years resolutions to complete. I will share two of them with you right now.

First, find a full time job that I enjoy. The time has come for me to be an adult and really get a job. I have gone through a lot of my money and I need to be a big person and start making money instead of just spending it. So, if any of my fellow bloggers have any suggestions as to what I should do, I would much appreciate it. :)

Second, I am going to start training for this. One of my goals was to train for a race and do it. I feel like an 8K is a nice way to accomplish this. I am in no way a serious runner so it will be a good challenge for me and will help me push myself.

There are a few other goals that I will probably post about later but for now, that's all you're going to get.

Happy New Year!

Santar Strikes Again!

2008-12-25T18:23:00.000-08:00

We have a tradition in the Mack household that started about 7 years ago. It's the tradition of Santar.

It all started my freshman year of college when Kellie and I came home for Christmas and my Mom had a box of junk at home waiting for us to go through. She had cleaned out our room and wanted us to decide whether we wanted any of the stuff in the box or not. We didn't want to go through the box so we decided to wrap it up and give it to our little sister, Katie. As we wrapped it, we pondered on who to say the gift was from. Kellie suggested Santa. I said that we couldn't say it was from Santa because he always gives good gifts, so I said we should say it was from "Santar"--emphasis on the "r." So, Christmas morning came and Katie opened her lucky box of hair ties, coins, papers, and junk from our old room. We all had a great laugh and ever since then Santar has blessed us with presents. For the first few years Katie was the only recipient of the Santar presents but we have since expanded the giving to all who are home for the holidays. It's always a good time. Here are a few highlights from today and from over the years....

-Hair Fertilizer
-Spray on Hair
-Love to Stretch with Richard Simmons workout tape
-Beverage dispenser
-White trash dress from Texas (this one has been useful for many Halloween costumes)
-Pirate Nutcracker (complete with pirate parrot)
-Hot dog condiment trays (literally, the shape of a hot dog...I received that gift in all seriousness and then re-gifted in true Santar style)
-BYU baby bottle to my Utah loving sister-in-law
-Grow faith fish that grows up to 600%
-Angel magnet with a stick on face of yours truly
-And many, many more

I love Santar! Santar has proven to be a fun, random piece of joy in our Christmas celebration. There will be many more crazy gifts to come.

So, if you ever receive a gift that is wrapped in a crazy package and proves to be less than desireable, you can consider yourself Santar-ed.

Merry Christmas to all!

My Quirks

2008-12-13T06:03:00.001-08:00

I have never been tagged before. So here goes my first attempt at doing this crazy thing.

Thanks to Kremer, aka Jennifer Kremer Oliva for giving me this opportunity.

My 6 non-important quirks

#1--I am a double-checker. Or sometimes triple-checker.
Every time I leave an apartment or house I have to "make sure" that I have everything. Then once I'm in the car or walking away from the door I'll turn around and go back to "make sure" that I locked it. I believe that this quirk comes from my Mom or from watching too much crime TV. My Mom does the same thing. But she also watches a lot of "Law and Order" and is a worrier like me. So, the mystery of my worrying about forgetting something and locking the door continues....
#2--I have a really bad short term memory.
It's true. I will get mad at someone and then 5 minutes later be able to forget why I got so mad. This is not always the case with getting mad but I do forget lots of details about events that just happened unless I tell someone about them or make an effort to remember.
#3--I use a lot of hand sanitizer.
Since moving to New York I have become uncomfortably aware of all the nastiness that happens in public locations. It has made me extra germ-a-phobic. I always have hand sanitizer with me and use it all the time. For example, I saw a lady blow her snot onto the subway platform. She didn't use her hands or a tissue, she just decided to launch her snot from her nose to the floor in front of her. Her hand was only used to wipe the remaining snot on her face to her pants. Also, I've seen more kids and adults peeing or remains of their pee since moving here. Also their poo. Those are just a couple examples.
#4--I burp really loudly.
Thanks to Davidson for teaching me how to belch on my mission. She is my yoda when it comes to burping. I've tried to stop many times and I have it under control now but I have beat boys at burping competitions. Give me a diet coke and I'll wow you.
#5--I talk really fast.
Example: The other day I was getting on a bus and I wanted to know if it stopped at 54th and Broadway. I asked the bus driver. He said "whoa, slow down, what's your rush. Let's try that again I couldn't understand you." I told him I was from California and that's why I talk so fast. I'm not sure if that's true but that's what I'm sticking to.
#6--I like room temperature water. And lots of it.
I prefer room temperature water. Cold water hurts my teeth. The only time cold water feels nice is when it's a super hot day. But even then I'd probably prefer it to be room temperature. I also drink lots of water. I have a 32 ounce bottle and I usually drink at least 3 of those a day. This is probably part of the reason that I have to get up in the middle of the night to use the restroom. Oh well. I can't stop myself. I'm addicted.

So there you go. My first tag! I hope you enjoyed it. :)

Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T10:19:00.001-08:00

I'm back from my Thanksgiving pachanga and it was awesome! I don't think I'd want to live in Orlando but I'm pretty sure it's one of the better vacation locations. Not only is the weather awesome, but it is home to the happiest place on earth, where all your dreams come true...Walt Disney World! I had never been to Florida or Disney World and I loved it! We went to all four parks...The Animal Kingdom, Epcot Center, Hollywood Studios, and Magic Kingdom. All four are great in their own way.

The Animal Kingdom is really ambience-ful and is really pretty as you journey through different parts of the world. The water ride was awesome and we all got soaked. It was so great!

My favorite part of the Epcot Center was the International section. The food was great and the replicas of the different world figures was cool. I also enjoyed the test track ride there, super fun! Also, Soaring is probably one of the coolest rides there is. Period.

Hollywood Studios is home of my two favorite rides: Tower of Terror and the Aerosmith ride. I rode on the Aerosmith ride twice and the Tower of Terror four times. Wicked awesome.

Magic Kingdom was really fun and very similar to Disneyland. The Pirates ride was not quite as good as Disneyland but Space Mountain was good and I got to ride in the very front. Great.

My whole time in Florida, I was really hoping to see an alligator. There were signs all over the place saying to be careful around the water but I didn't see anything. Kind of dissappointed, not going to lie. Oh well. Here's the sign around our resort.

As expressed in my last entry, I was super excited to see all my nieces and nephews. One of the best parts was to be able to have all the new babies together for the first time. You can totally tell which child belongs to which sibling (Mia=Emily, Gabriel=James, and Zach=Megan). I love being an aunt (in case you didn't catch that from my previous posts)!

Lastly, here is the most recent family photo. I love my family. I'm so glad we could spend so much time together. We had a blast and look forward to our next family trip!

Family Time

2008-11-18T05:32:00.001-08:00

Just three days from today I will be flying to Orlando for the very first time in my life! I am so excited for a few reasons....

#1-I get to spend 7 days at Disney World. I've only experienced the joys of Disneyland and I'm excited to be able to say I've been to both.
#2-I get to go to Disney World with all my cute nieces and nephews. Anything Disney is always a million times more enjoyable with children. Although, let's be honest, the inner-child always comes out when anyone is involved with Disney junk.
#3-I don't have to be in cold New York for a week! It's getting pretty chilly here.
#4-We're going to a resort with a pirate ship in the middle of the pool. It shoots canons of water. It has slides. It's going to be wicked awesome.
#5-I don't have to worry about finding a job, going to auditions, or not having any money for a week.
#6-Thanksgiving. Need I say more?
#7- MOST IMPORTANTLY! I get to spend 7 days with my favorite group of people in the whole world....my family! Here's a picture of us a couple years ago (mentally add a picture of Kevin, Keith, Zachary, Gabriel and Mia....we've grown)

ORLANDO 08--It's going to be great!

An Embarrassing Moment

2008-11-14T07:17:00.000-08:00

Whenever people ask the question "what is your most embarrassing moment?" I always draw a blank. I've decided that this is not because embarrassing things don't happen to me (they most certainly do) but that I quickly get over them and then forget they happened. Also, I think most of my embarrassing moments happen when my "brain-mouth filter" is not on (speaking before thinking) so I usually forget about those). The other day I had an embarrassing moment that had nothing to do with my "brain-mouth filter." And so the story goes....

I was on my way from my brothers apartment to run an errand to Colony Records (a sheet music store). I passed about a hundred people waiting in line for the David Letterman show. I was at the crosswalk on Broadway crossing 53rd Street. The little hand was just about to stop blinking so I decided I'd pick up my pace to make the light. About half way through the crosswalk I was suddenly falling. I have NO idea what tripped me. I tried my hardest to catch myself (usually I have really pretty good balance) but to no avail, I was falling. I landed on my knee first and then slid to my hands, very similar to sliding in baseball. My shoe flew off my foot and my glasses fell down on my face. A really nice man came up behind me and asked if I was okay. I said "I don't know how I fell" and he said "This is New York. It happens." Thanks, Mr. Stranger for being so kind. You totally could have laughed. Perhaps you did after you left me. Anyway, I grabbed my shoe and made it to the other side safely. I put myself back together and then pulled out my trusty hand sanitizer to clean up my hands. (I've seen what people do here in the streets and it is anything but sanitary!) I haven't fallen since. The end.

There you go, an embarrassing story. I'll probably forget about it in about a week.

How Starbucks Saved My Life

2008-10-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

Before I get to my book recommendation, I must show a little bit of my weekend in Connecticut. I went up to CT with Maddie and Dan to see the beautiful fall colors. Some of these colors are pictured below. It was incredible! I had no idea that fall in New England (or thereabouts) was such a big deal, but apparently it is. We drove all around CT and saw lots of beautiful trees and wildlife. It was so great to, first of all, get out of the city and secondly see such amazing nature. Nature is something that New York is lacking. So, this is the dam where you can see a lot of the fall colors in the trees...

This is my loving embrace of nature. It had been far too long since I was able to really enjoy a breath of fresh air and space around me.

Okay, so I started reading this book called "How Starbucks Saved My Life" and it's awesome!

I think everyone should read it. It makes you think and reflect on your life. Read it and love it like I have. I'm really tired and would write more about the book but just take my word for it. It's great and it will change your life. The end.

Tea Time

2008-10-22T06:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to a little place called Alice's Tea Cup. It was SO much fun! I went with my roommate Kami and her Mom and sister for her Mom's birthday. We had tea and scones and little sandwiches which were delicious! My personal favorite was the Mulling Spice tea, BLT sandwich, and either the orange almond or the buttermilk scone. Although, I must say, all the selections were tasty! (except the chocolate tea...it was weird) I had heard about this place through my sister-in-law Angela and through a couple of people in my ward and it far surpassed my expectations. It was so fun to have an afternoon tea. I had to suppress the urge to raise my pinky while drinking tea and speaking in a really bad British accent. It was the perfect place to just sit, relax, enjoy some good food, and talk.

Here is the selection of scones, sandwiches, and desserts we had at our tea party...

Here's our little teapot, short and stout...

Our Wonderland party...

Pouring the tea...

Enjoying the tea...

In news relating to Alice in Wonderland....did you know that Tim Burton is doing Alice in Wonderland and that Johnny Depp is going to be the Mad Hatter?!?! This is either going to be the most brilliant thing ever or a super scary version of the acid trip movie I loved as a child! We'll see...it'll be a few years before it comes out, not until 2010! I think when it does, another trip to Alice's Tea Cup will definitely be in order. Any takers?

More Good Times in the City

2008-10-19T15:28:00.000-07:00

I have a friend whose name is Madison. We call her Maddie. She is getting married to Dan the Man next summer. They are happy and in love. When she doesn't have too much homework and when Dan permits (ha ha, just kidding, she does what she wants) we have Broadway and girl time! It's the best! So far we've seen In the Heights and Grease and last Wednesday we attempted to see Wicked, Mamma Mia and Hairspray...all of which we couldn't get into. Sad day, I know. But have no fear! We kept ourselves busy. We went to lunch at The Burger Joint in Le Parker Meridian Hotel and then shopping at Steve and Barry's where I introduced Maddie to the wonderful world of Sarah Jessica Parkers line, Bitten. A-maz-ing! If you haven't gone, stop what you're doing, find the nearest Steve & Barry's and GO! Super cute clothes for very low prices. Love it! Okay, so here are a couple pictures from our recent adventures...

We rode in a cab during our day out and the driver was insane! I think they all are. But honestly, if I drove everyday in New York, I think I would drive insanely too.

Maddie with Danny from Grease. Okay, so it's a cardboard cutout and we tried to block Sandy in the picture but still, it's a picture with Danny. Maddie was totally crushing!

I was crushing until the teens who were watching us take the picture started talking about what we were doing and I started laughing. So this is my not-so-seriously-in-love picture with Danny. It really encapsulates how I felt about that show. It was a mess! (also, by the way, he told me he likes it when I put my finger on his chin...awkward)

Also, among other adventures is my time I spend with my soon-to-be-not-roommate, Autumn. We have fun together. Here is when we went to the Shake Shack (amazing burgers and fries...we're talking In-N-Out quality).

I enjoyed my burger, shake, and yummy cheese fries. Delish!

Autumn enjoyed her meal as well...she wouldn't even stop sucking for the picture! :)

Last, but certainly not least, is the fun little LOVE statue Maddie and I found walking on 6th Avenue. Just a friendly reminder to pass along a little love! Muah!

Hap-hap-hap-happy Burfday!

2008-10-16T13:03:00.001-07:00

This is my BFF Kathryn Stephens Nally. aka Kate....

It's her birthday today. Yah! (I love birthdays!) She is married to Tim (aka Timmy Jimmy Nally). Let me list a few of the things I adore about Kate (in no particular order)...

#1-When we lived together she let me borrow her clothes and jewelry (even her sentimental ones)
#2-She is a great shopper
#3-She is super classy and has amazing taste
#4-We laugh together
#5-We cry together
#6-We would talk on our beds until the wee hours of the morning
#7-When she was single she was one of the best flirts I've ever seen (no worries Tim, she only works her magic with you now) :)
#8-She's spiritual. Her excitement to go on a mission made me less scared to go on mine.
#9-She's got a great sense of humor.
#10-She works extremely hard in everything she does. She doesn't settle for mediocrity.
#11-Her family is amazing.
#12-She's a super supportive and good friend.
#13-She's awesome.

Happy Birthday Kate! Thanks for being born. :)

Not Homeless

2008-10-15T05:02:00.000-07:00

It's almost official folks....I have an apartment! I turned in the security deposit yesterday and the lease signing will be next Friday. I am SO excited. Wow. I will not be living on the streets of New York come November 1st! Thank goodness! Here are a couple pictures of my new place....

This is the front entrance. It's really long and has two bedrooms.

This is part of the kitchen (there's still the other half with the stove and more counter). It has new stainless steel appliances and granite countertops.

So, next Saturday I'll be moving in to my apartment. I feel so grown up, having a place of my own and everything (thanks Mom and Dad for helping me). The roommate situation has yet to be determined so I might be living by myself the first month while looking for roomies. I found this place through an amazing website where there are no brokers fees and a pretty good variety of apartments. I got a super sweet deal on my apartment and I'm totally stoked for moving! Yeah for growing up and not being homeless!

In other news...here is a picture of me and my super cute nephew, Gabriel. He makes me happy and I love that he is here in New York. I'm also equally glad that his parents are here in the city.

Thought Bubbles

2008-10-09T19:49:00.000-07:00

Autumn and I were on the subway tonight on our way home from institute (like good little girls) when she turned to me and said "wouldn't it be cool if everyone on the subway had little bubbles above their heads so we knew what they were thinking?" My first thought was, "that would be too weird" and then I quickly realized that that actually would be the coolest thing ever. Honestly, there are probably some people whose thoughts are probably best kept to themselves but other people might have the most interesting and off the wall thoughts going through their minds. Although, then it might take the fun out of people watching. Who knows? Just something to think about.

The end.

Apartment Hunting

2008-09-27T10:47:00.000-07:00

So, who knew that finding an apartment in New York would be such a chore?!?! Well, I have to be honest, it's not like I ever thought it would be easy, but for serious, does it have to be this difficult? Mostly the problem is that I have no money and so finding a place that's affordable but not in the projects, is difficult. I've found a few good places and a couple that I covet but that are way out of my price range. So I will continue my hunt for the perfect apartment....it'll happen, hopefully sooner than later!

New York, New York

2008-09-25T10:22:00.000-07:00

I made it! I'm here in New York City and I'm loving it! I really like living in this city. The auditioning is way beyond anything I've done before. It's seriously crazy. Here are a couple photos of my beginnings in NYC....

This is our bedroom, it's a serious accomplishment that we're able to fit 3 girls in a one-bedroom and actually not feel overly crowded. Amazing!

One thing I love about New York is the incredible food you can find on every corner. This is my yummy Shrimp Parmesan I had in Little Italy...

Also, there are always a million things to do and see. It will be awhile before I get bored here...

The New York adventure has just begun and I'm super excited for it! I've done A LOT of reading in the last few weeks (I finished all four books of the "Twilight" series in three weeks) because I have a lot of time to sit and do nothing (i.e. waiting at auditions, waiting for the subway, riding on the subway, etc.). Any suggestions for my new reading addiction? I'm super excited for everything my new adventure will bring! I'll try to keep this updated :)

Dance Break!

2008-08-26T05:14:00.000-07:00

Young Womens Camp 08

2008-08-17T20:15:00.001-07:00

This last week I went to girls camp for my church. We had so much fun! First of all, Camp Ritchie is like deluxe camping instead of really roughing it. There were cabins and everything but the real bonuses were #1 the lake stocked with canoes and boats and #2 the rappelling and rock climbing, both included in the campground. I had to leave a day and a half early because of a vocal recital I had to attend but my last night there included the YCL2 debut and party. The debut included the introduction of each of the YCL2's (the group of girls I was over) as they walked down the stairs into the dining area all dressed up. They were so cute and excited to be spotlighted! Here is the group picture of the Debut....

Later that night we took the YCL2's midnight canoing for their party. It was absolutely gorgeous! Their was a full moon and a ton of shooting stars. While we were waiting for the canoes to be ready we played "the tape game." This is one of my favorite games. Basically you take scotch tape and make your face all messed up and take pictures. Here is my face and one of the girls....

I'm kinda sad the whole camp thing is over but now it's time to focus on moving to New York next week!

PS We also played another one of my favorite games "the ugly laughing competition" game. Basically you see who can make the ugliest sounding laugh. It's awesome, you should try it sometime!

Always a Bridesmaid!

2008-07-27T22:16:00.000-07:00

I finally can check getting a caricature done off of my list of things to do before I die. I have always wanted to get one done, but never wanted to pay the $20 to get it done. So, as luck would have it, I went to my dad's work party on Saturday and they had hired a guy to do it, for free! (at least, free for me) Yes! So, here is what I would look like if I were a cartoon...

Next, a week ago I went to Utah for a family reunion. It was way too short but I had a really nice time seeing my extended family. Some of whom I haven't seen in 8 years (that was the last family reunion I had attended). One of the most exciting things was finally having all four of the quadruplets together again (Ashley, Taryn, Hailey, and myself). The quadruplets, for those of you who don't know, are me and these cousins who were all born the same spring. We grew up as the quad and always making a good time wherever we went. Yah for finally being back together.

Next, but certainly not least, I got to be a bridesmaid for the third time this year. I'm hoping to break a record and have at least one more of my friends get married this year so I can be a bridesmaid once more. :) I was the bridesmaid at my sister Katie's wedding. She was beautiful and we had a good time getting her ready for her big day! Congrats Katie and Keith!

Congratulations James and Angela!

2008-06-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to give a little congratulations to James and Angela for being new parents and bringing my newest nephew into the world! :) Isn't he SO cute?

Congratulations! Yah! I love being an aunt and I'm very excited to babysit in NY! :)

New York City Here I Come!

2008-06-29T21:37:00.000-07:00

I am moving to New York on August 26th! I have an apartment all worked out and I have now purchased my flight out there. It's official! I will be living with two of my friends from college (Kami and Autumn) and we will be cramming into a one bedroom apartment in Washington Heights. It's sure to be a good time. :)

I am now in search of a job in the city. One that will allow me to go to auditions and pay me enough so I can try and support myself. Growing up is so fun. Seriously though I am super excited for this adventure and I can't wait to experience it. Wish me luck!

My Job

2008-05-25T18:39:00.000-07:00

I decided that today I would show you around the place I work. It's called Terico. It's a marble and granite tile/slab company. Here is one view of the warehouse...

Reasons I like working at Terico:
#1-I get paid really well
#2-I get to practice my spanish (or lack thereof) on a daily basis
#3-I get to work with my sister Katie (see photo below)...

#4-I get to drive forklifts. It's such a fun thing to have on a resume because people ALWAYS ask about it and I feel cool telling them I am forklift certified with a little paper license thing too. (I know my face looks retarded in this picture but it was the best one of the bunch)....

I am working here to save up money so I can move to New York in August. I can't believe I'm really gonna move to New York. It's so crazy and exciting!!!

Update!

2008-05-18T15:34:00.000-07:00

After months of nothing, I am now resolved to update my blog more frequently! We'll see how it goes. Does anyone have a "how to blog for dummies" book? :) I'm sure I'll figure it out with time!

So, another update on my life...First of all, my internship is now over! I have successfully completed my second internship (the first was with California Musical Theatre and the second was with TheatreWorks). It was a good experience and I learned a lot. Secondly, my sister Kellie got married on April 10th! I was her maid of honor and got to give a really awkward speech at her reception. :) Here is a picture of us at the event....

Next, I've been auditioning quite a bit in the last few months since I came home. Here is one of my battle wounds from a dance audition. This is about 3 hours after the dance audition. It was a pretty good bruise. Oh the things we do to audition! I haven't quite made my final decision as to which show I will be doing. I'll keep you posted. Enjoy the bruise...

The second half of March and most of April was consumed with family and wedding events. My sister, Emily and her two boys came to visit from DC for 3 weeks before the wedding (her third is on her way in August!). It was so fun to spend time with her and her kids. Also, my other sister Megan and her two little boys and girl came to visit from LA. It was a blast. Here are a few of our adventures together....

We made homemade Oreos which are actually really, really good. I would highly recommend them...

We built a fort, which the kids got to sleep in every night (unless they came out and didn't go to bed, then they had to sleep upstairs)....

We went to the zoo...

We hunted for Easter eggs (they probably got a lot more candy because they were at grandma and grandpa's house)...

We played with food and I taught them how to put spoons on their noses....

We played dress-up....

Andrew invented some new ways to play with the people toys...

And we used the nifty pirate cut outs from our McDonald's happy meals to be pirates...

And that ladies and gentlemen has been what has been keeping me busy the last few months! :)

I finally gave in

2008-01-10T19:31:00.000-08:00

Dear whoever wants to read about what is going on in my life:

I have just begun the world of internet blogging and I am a little scared! What does this mean for me? Haha! I am excited to start my little blog and let all of my wonderful friends know what I am up to.

First, I GRADUATED!!! No more college for me (unless I get a masters...). I am back home in San Jose, California doing an internship with the professional theater company, Theatreworks. I am the New Works/ Arts Administration intern 5 days a week. So far I have been working through the hundreds of new plays (literally, hundreds) we have received as submissions for the New Works festival in April and for next season. I have only read three so far. They are pretty good, except for the f-bombs that are constantly being dropped in them. (sidenote--I do not understand the need for writers to use such a gross word!) Besides that, I love reading the plays and getting to critique them. It's pretty fun!

Other than that, life is just getting settled. I am looking into taking a dance class or a graphic design class at San Jose State this winter. We shall see.