School is 4 Fools Look at Meeeeeeee

Not only am I going back to school, but I'm also going back to school. If you're confused, you're not alone. I don't really refer to my job as "work" but usually as "school" since I'm a teacher. So I'm going back to "work" school, but I'm also going back to "school" school.

**Also don't forget about the Back to School Giveaway! Ends today!**

I found out on Friday that I've been officially accepted and enrolled at Western Governor's University for my Masters of Education starting September 1st! It was touch and go there for a while because I definitely said

"Ok thanks! Love you byeeeee!"

at the end of my phone interview, but they were cool with it anyway. For the record, I say that to everyone on the phone when I hang up. It was not intended to be brown-nosing. Sorry, Clover.

Yeah, my admissions adviser's name is Clover. Haven't heard that one before. I like to picture a little jolly leprechaun helping me improve my future, hiding a pot of gold under her desk in a bright green cubicle.

This guy surprised me with dinner and a movie (always my favorite) to celebrate!

Ultra Quick Movie Review: The Way Way Back is worth a redbox for sure. But I hate seeing my idol - Steve Carrell - as a doosh. :(

So Wednesday I go back to "work" school for teacher meetings, a week from today all my new kids show up for the first day back, September 1st I go back to "school" school to start my Masters program and September 16 The Beard starts his web development program downtown and I'll basically never see him again until Christmas (more coming on this - he's making me be secretive).

We're loading up on string cheese, gushers, office supplies and spiral bound notebooks over here. I love back to school shopping. I think I have 4 planners now.

I don't think my blog will suffer. In fact, my blog posts will probably increase because I'll be on my computer even more and looking for stuff to distract me/procrastinate my homework with. Good news, right?

My Happiness Project: Week Two

This week started off a little slow. Netflix was set up, all the life necessities were unpacked, The Beard was at work all day and Glen Coco was being EXTRA cuddly (he's still a little unsure about living in a new unfamiliar place). Therefore we spent quite a bit of time on the couch and at the pool. Still, I managed to work on my two goals for this week - Mindfulness and FUN.

Fun

- Go outside EVERY DAY. This sounds so pathetic, but there really are days when I don't go outside. It happened a lot last summer. Life is just better when you spend some time outside. (I refuse to say NATURE because then that means my concrete walk to the pool doesn't count.)
-- I did it! I walked Glen, went to the pool, read outside and I went to Bear Lake and spent TONS of time outside. You just feel good. You feel like you did something, even if it was a 2 minute walk. If you do one thing, do this, you guys.

- Choose to DO over NOT DO. On both Tuesday and Wednesday we had plans to hunker down and work on some research stuff at home. Both afternoons we got invited to do things - Tuesday we went to the Owlz game and to Buffalo Wild Wings with Chris & Haley, Wednesday we saw Despicable Me 2 and went to Iggy's with the Holdaways.
-- We DID! Both were late nights where we didn't accomplish what we'd planned for that night. Did we regret it? Absolutely not. It was replenishing and FUN.

-Do new things. Break out. I love sitting on the couch and watching The Office for 6 hours, but am I learning anything new or having FUN? No.
-- This meant going to the family reunion with my parents even though The Beard had to work, I hate camping, I'm not a lake person, and I'm not super tight with my dad's side of the family. But you know what? I had an amazing time! I learned to ride a jet ski with my 70+ year old grandma! I played with the cute babies and told ghost stories with the young girls. I came home exhausted and smelling of smoke but so refreshed and energized. I've got a pretty awesome family.

Mindfulness

- I read The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh. He's a Buddhist monk and he stresses the idea of mindfulness, or being mentally present. Basically, he says you shouldn't wash the dishes just to get the dishes clean and move on with your life. You should wash the dishes to WASH THE DISHES. Whatever you are doing at any given moment should be the most important thing in your life. Otherwise, if you're always thinking about what you SHOULD or RATHER be doing, you will never have real happiness from life and you'll always feel like you don't have time.
-- Again, my multi-task-y-ness is a problem here. It's about being mentally quieter. I tried to think about things as I was doing them - applying mascara, playing with Glen, walking to and from the pool, driving to Bear Lake with my parents and just t
alking with them instead of trying to read, listen to music, nap or make to-do lists. I found much more pleasure in those things and, as they always say, I think I did them BETTER than if I'd multitasked.

- Journaling. Latter-day Saints are all about journaling, but I've never been that consistent with it. And when I do, I only write positive things or notes from scripture study. But being mindful means thinking about your day, good and bad, and remembering it.
-- I'm sucking. I wrote like once this week. But I have motivated myself by keeping my journal on the coffee table so I remember to write while I'm watching my bedtime 6 Office episodes. I also promised myself that as soon as I finish this almost-full moleskin journal I can go get a really pretty new fancy journal. The kind with the fuzzy cover and a tiny lock and key. (jk... kind of)

- Meditation. I've only ever done this in yoga, and even then not specifically. The goal is to achieve real mental "rest" by accepting all thoughts and feelings and quieting the mind in peace.
-- I have yet to exercise the patience to do it for the recommended one hour a day. But I am trying to do it for at least 15 minutes each day. A couple mornings I did it when I woke up - I shook my muscles out, tied my hair up and propped myself in the lotus position while acknowledging each thought, feeling, idea and then releasing it. I was amazed to find how much PEACE I felt. Even if I had to go clean up all the fuzz Glen ripped out of his hedgehog toy while I was all zen.

 

Look at this guy. I'm in love with him. 

 

It's going pretty good, guys! I really feel happier and like I'm doing more with my life. The mindfulness stuff is kind of weird, but the fun part has been... well, fun. :) Tune in next week to hear how I do with my physical and learning goals this week! Wish me luck!

My Happiness Project: Overview
My Happiness Project: Week One

Don't Be a Bad Sport, Old Sport.

Who ISN'T talking about Gatsby?

I forced The Beard by pain of death to go to Gatsby this weekend on a double with Haley and her fiance Chris. He was less than thrilled. Who doesn't want to go to stuff they hate with someone who geeks out and dresses up for every occasion? Sounds pretty fun to me.

The Beard is a BIT of a contrarian. It's more extreme individualism. He's no robot. I am grateful for that. You like something? He hates it. If something is popular, it has to be garbage. It's not necessarily being a hipster. It's more that he just refuses to like/do/be things just because its expected.

He hates President Lincoln. If that tells you anything. Which it should.

He hated the book. "It's not a story! It's all this backstory and undeveloped characters and just because Fitzgerald writes amazing prose it's become this brainless classic!"

Therefore I guess he gets bonus points for sucking it up and going with me. I owe him like 100 hours of Red Sox baseball now. 

I disagree with him, however. Even though I also dislike the story, for the most part. Terrible people doing terrible things. The only real moral of the story is that you will lose things if you live carelessly. But I still liked the book because of it's few redeeming qualities, listed hereafter. The story sticks with you. I'm still thinking about it, days after seeing the movie.

I liked the movie more than the book and here's why - the parts of the book I liked the best were better represented in the movie than in my head.

The parties. Doesn't this just make you want to wear something sparkly and dance? I couldn't have pictured this in my head. The movie did a great job.

Gatsby's plan and backstory. I love that they took the time to explain and show where he'd been.

The infatuation, however selfish and unrealistic, between Gatsby and Daisy. I literally trembled (hate that I just used that word) at one of the romantic parts. Embarrassing, right?

And of course, the fashion. Goes without saying.

How can you not love it? The soundtrack has been on repeat since Saturday. I highly recommend it.

The Beard did say one thing that is 100% true.

"If at any point, ANY of the characters make the right decision, the book would have been over."

Gatsby is honest with Daisy about his upbringing/lack of wealth --> She either still loves him and commits or he realizes she's shallow and moves on. No book.

Gatsby is a hardworking, honest businessman --> He makes half as much money, accept reality, settles down with a nice women worth 20 Daisies. No book. 

Tom is a good husband to Daisy --> She loves him, doesn't wonder about Gatsby, no one gets their nose broken, no one gets hit by a car. No book.

Wilson is a good husband to Myrtle --> She loves him, doesn't cheat, no one gets their nose broken, no one gets hit by a car, Wilson doesn't shoot Gatsby. No book.

Myrtle doesn't step out on Wilson --> No one gets their nose broken, no one gets hit by a car, no one gets shot dead out of miscommunication. No book.

Nick doesn't facilitate the rendezvous between Daisy and Gatsby --> They don't have a torrid secret affair spanning East and West Egg. No book.

Daisy stops the car, takes responsibility for the accident --> No one gets murdered. We all learn about consequences. No book.

Because that IS the book - every character making every wrong decision and getting few, if any, consequences for it. In the end it's an allegory, though. Gatsby dies symbolically - they'll all meet their due eventually with the Great Depression quick on their heels. Excess breeds a fall from grace. Carelessness breeds despair. 

.... wickedness... never was.... happiness. Omg see what I did there?

And if they'd just joined the Church, just think how much happier their lives would be???

I Put the "Dance" in Abundance Mentality

Over the last week, I got kind of nervous because we had all of a sudden booked  our week like we were single again - friends, family, appointments and funtivities every night. For some reason I've started this trend where I plan a couple of activities a week and try to leave other nights wide open - then I end up canceling my activities anyway out of... what? Laziness mostly. Fatigue. Fear that I won't be cool or have fun. Selfishness.

Instead, I accepted all of these funtivities and plans because I've been in excellent spirits (due to this fantastic weather, fun developments at school and the planning of a Vegas spring break trip next week - woot!) and I decided I should try to have the "abundance mentality" I liked so much in 7 Habits by Steven Covey.

The Abundance Mentality says that you shouldn't live like you have limited resources, a finite amount of energy or only a few spots in our heart for love and close friends. You should live like you have plenty of love, energy and time - especially for others. You find as you love more and more, you end up with more love to give and receive. You end up with more energy and more friends. More LIFE.

So when the Holdaway's called us to meet them at Culvers in AF for dinner when I'd just returned home sweaty and exhausted from a particularly awesome workout (post coming later this week) I was tempted to pass - but we went and it was awesome. I even came home with a new JCrew pencil skirt and striped sweater for $45. Yahtzee.

Also - Can we talk about how awesome the Traverse Mountain Outlets are? These are the bathrooms. They are nicer than my entire house - and bigger. And I secretly want a big floppy hat so I can pretend to be a celebrity at the pool this summer. Does anyone have one of these? Worth it?

Post-workout shopping - A Millenium Falcon t-shirt - Target, hoodie - Pac Sun, jeans - F21, high top sneakers - Forever Young shoes, hat - JCrew

When I was sore and tired from getting home late, knowing that our team was going to forfeit either way, I wanted to ditch my regional tournament bball game. The whole season our ward barely scraped 5 people together to play - but we made it to the regional tournament after sweeping the stake. Two of our women got hurt playing and we forfeited our first tournament game. But I showed up anyway. It was just me and my baller friend Brei - so we forfeited as predicted. But the other team had 8 girls and wanted to scrimmage so we got to play anyway! And we had an awesome time - and an awesome workout. Rewarded.

Wednesday we had a CDP with the Ashby's and made some of the most delicious tacos and guacamole and berry cobbler this state has ever seen. After stuffiing ourselves, Katie and I planned.... wait for it...... A giveaway! Check out my post tomorrow morning to enter!

Thursday was our one night to hunker down and relax. Which means popcorn, cuddling with Glen Coco and NBC shows. Are you serious Ann Perkins? Who is your hairstylist? And is anyone else insanely weirded out by the sperm donor situation?

These two

Friday was one of our beloved date nights with our besties the Findeis'. We met for dinner at our favorite Italian joint in Salt Lake - Tucci's. Wow. We ended up talking so long we missed our planned movie - Don't Stop Believing - that documentary about the Fillipino guy who joins Journey. Instead we went shopping at City Creek (a new Boston hat for Ryan, tons of spring essentials for me) and watched "Thank You For Smoking" back at our place. Man we love them.

Saturday morning I was tempted to lay in bed and just read all morning/day/evening always. But I didn't! I pushed myself to make use of my time. I slept in, mind you. But I got up, hit the gym, library and Sonic - of course. I had my protein shake and then we cleaned up our house! Chores! Can you believe it!

 Breakfast of Champions: Vanilla-Honey Greek yogurt with honey flax granola and blueberries, a protein shake and a 44 oz. Diet Dr. Pepper. 

 The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell and 1776 by David MuCullough

Saturday night we had another CDP with Caroline (newly returned from INDIA yikes) and her boyfriend Martin, with a guest appearance from our other high school BFF - Mckensie. Plenty of glory days-ing, gossiping and catching up.

What an awesome week. Am I tired? A little. But this abundance mentality thing is pretty freaking awesome. Give it a try. It definitely paid off for me. Get your hands on "Seven Habits for Highly Effective People" and your world will change.

Stay tuned this week for a giveaway, Workout Wednesday, the creepiest thing about me and more #JuniorHighProbs.

Thanks for reading! Love you all.