Diet Coke

I love Diet Coke. I never used to drink soda at all. My parents never drank it growing up and so only on holidays would my mom buy some 2 liters to chill outside on our deck (we lived in Montana, so if the fridge was full, our second fridge was the deck). Since then I kind of became a healthy food freak, so I didn't drink soda until I started my graduate program. Now I'm addicted, I really am and kind of hate that I am, I mean I stress out about it, but then I tell myself--who cares? I like it, so what? I made the HB take me to the Coke museum when we went to Atlanta where his company is based. It was fun to taste the different flavors offered in different countries and look at all of the old advertisements.

I just bought this shirt on e-bay and I keep wearing it because it's so soft!

sectional healing

this is from a T-shirt sold on the website www.nostarclothing.com

The house I used to live in with 3 other girls had a sectional. Despite it's missing foot and resulting unsteadiness, and revolting fabric, I do have to say that it provided a lot of "sectional healing."

"i must access my attack pack"

I went to the San Rafael Swell this weekend with April, Bill, Lanik, and Lanik's Buzz Lightyear toy. Needless to say, we all listened to all of Buzz's sayings countless times. Having an attack pack though doesn't sound too bad instead of a backpack. Of all the things to forget, I forgot 2 of the most crucial--toilet paper and a flashlight/headlamp. I blame this on the fact that Tyler didn't come because had he come I'm sure we would have had more supplies than ever imaginable. But of course April and Bill covered my butt.

This time around we took their Montero so instead of getting stuck, we actually pulled someone else out of the sand. (who cares if just moments later we thought the Montero wouldn't start again). We hiked Ding canyon and Little Wild Horse canyon, hiked all over Goblin valley so we could make it to the other side and to the top to collect some agate and view "the nothing."

The next morning we went to Black Dragon Canyon to view the rock art, one of which really resembled the Wily Coyote to me.

There are just a few things that would have made the trip better.
1.--If I'd actually brought some cash to buy Ty and Caiden some of those cool Goblin valley t-shirts.

and 2.--If instead of filming my walk through the narrow, twisting, Little Wild Horse canyon sideways to capture the narrowness I would have realized that we'd have to watch it sideways too.

And 3.--it would have been better if some of the little pools had hot springs inside of them so I could warm up before I got in my tent at night.

If only I could take home the papasan chair I found in Goblin Valley!

"Lucy's little sister"

Found. In Ethiopia not far from the original skeleton named "Lucy" after the song "Lucy in the sky with diamonds" by the Beatles. The most complete skeleton of an Astralopithecus afarensis, living 3.3 million years ago. A 3 year old girl. To me, this is really exciting!

Studying archaeology at BYU made this kind of discovery really controversial. Are we really made in God's image? Why didn't early humans look like we do today? I read a number of different theories on the subject and loved to read the most outlandish of them all because we all know that truth can only arise out of wrong guesses--if you're afraid to guess, you'll probably never find the truth. I would always rather be moving in some direction than none at all.

i have a favorite spoon

it's the one in our entire collection that the handle isn't a big round plastic encasing, if that makes sense. you know the cheap set we all got when we went to college or moved out, with the fat round plastic handles? my favorite spoon is the one that actually has the regular thin, metal handle.

meatloaf and cereal

Last night I made meatloaf. My husband loves it and I've never made it for him so I really wanted it to be good. I had it almost done when he got home from football practice, I just needed to take it out of the oven, spoon off the grease, put the sauce on, and cook it for 10 more minutes. Right when he came over to me I was sort of pouring off the grease and half of the meatloaf fell into the sink. I was mortified. I was really really embarrassed. Nevertheless, he ate it and he liked it.

I have a knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Monday is my "office" day for work and since my office is at home, and my work is usually done by 2 or 3, my Monday afternoons are fairly free. So the one day that I scheduled something else in the afternoon my boss happened to call me needing something and I was up in Park City.

Another time a few years ago I was living with an older couple in Washington state. They had a rule about eating only in the kitchen and I totally respected any rule they had, they were so loving that I would have locked myself in my room for a month if they'd told me to. But one morning I had this uncontrollable urge to sit on the living room floor with the milk jug in front of me and 4 different boxes of cereal lined up to choose from and read the boxes while I ate. Right as I was sitting down the wife walked in. She never even said anything, just look surprised. but I felt so guilty. Because they were sooooo good to me.

This is what it's like to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

quilting

We went to the fair over the weekend. I was working there sort of, just checking up on my company's van as I was responsible for it even though other people were actually "working" it. I haven't been to the fair since high school. In Missoula there are 2 things that everyone in the entire city and surrounding area seem to come to each year--the fair and the homecoming parade for the U of M. I loved both. The fair was the chance to see friends I hadn't seen all summer, and to maybe run into a boyfriend and make out for a few minutes as we weren't allowed by our parents to be seeing any of these people.

There's nothing romantic about the fair. It's cheap, dirty, hoky and a rip off. So why is it full of lovers?
And why does it make me feel more loving?

This year I'd say it was because I looked at the quilts. Because part of me wants a simple life. A pure life. An unadulterated life. Because in that life I know who I'm supposed to be. But in this one I don’t. I want to be so much.

I made a quilt once. I loved doing it. I listened to books on tape while I stitched it together. I want to make more quilts. I feel like I have a purpose when working on something like that. But why am I not the type for this? It feels like you have to committ to a certain way of life to be able to make quilts for a hobby. I alreaday have enough hobbies that I never have time to do anything with, why start another? Maybe what I need is something grounding. I think that's what Tyler does for me, he's grounding. I love that he loves regular things and regular life. Sometimes I wish he wanted more and maybe he does in different ways than me. I don't think I want an extraordinary life, but just to feel like life is extraordinary for me.

Quilts are the ultimate juxtaposition. They can be ancient or modern. But they are always sort of calm—not because of the colors or patterns used, it's just the object itself. Could I make a quilt that wasn’t calm? That would be interesting.

Hey nostradamus!

Douglas Coupland wrote this book called "Hey Nostradamus!" I just finished it and I loved it. I didn't enjoy high school at all and that's where this book starts out. But it does remind me of all the emotions of high school and of any troubling time in my life. In a way that doesn't depress me though, for some reason it made me feel like the world was even more beautiful. I used to go to group counseling for a while. I absolutely loved it. I felt more alive then. I felt more like part of the universe when I heard other people talk about their pain or their joy or their love. The book is in 4 parts--an ongoing story told by 4 different people involved in the story. First, a teenage girl who dies in a school shooting, second her boyfriend (secretly her husband) later in life, then his girlfriend later in life, then finally, his father. I would love to see a movie made of this book.

on the green

One time just after high school my distant cousin took me golfing. I hardly remember it--I don't remember how long it took or how hard it was, but I remember looking for my ball a lot. I've never been since then. Last week my boss paid an unexpected visit. He arrived in town Thursday and he and my co-worker discussed going golfing on Friday morning. The conversation went like this:

boss: "do you think Alene wants to go golfing with us? She's never really been before."

coworker: "Alene will go. She'll do anything. Remember when we had that meeting in Dallas just after she got hired and we played broom hockey on that ice rink? She played so hard out there, she loved it."

boss: "You're right, I'll be she'd do it."

And I did it. And I wasn't that bad either. Maybe they were just being nice, but both boss and coworker told me that I did very good for my first time.

I love trying new things, but I honestly had been a bit nervous about it. Mostly because it was with my boss and I hadn't had a chance to even hit some balls before he came. I sort of think I need to be decent at it since it's the game of the business world, but that also makes me hate it. Why golf? Why not rock-climbing or something? Studies have proven that fit leaders are better leaders. Why are we a society of lazy sports?

coconut lime lips

the HB and I went to Oktoberfest at Snowbird this weekend. We enjoyed some yodeling, some german chocolate cake, and I picked up some coconut lime lip gloss. Not only is the smell incredible, it honestly makes me feel more alive. Too bad Mollycoddle Soaps doesn't have an online store. She only sells her homemade stuff at fairs and such. I love this kind of stuff. I feel like I'm supporting my community and also love to see people's handiwork. Having shops all around feels like a sort of foreign country and its relaxing and inspiring to insouciantly stroll by and see what other people are doing with their lives.

Before I started my MBA program I got a BA in anthropology. There's not much you can do with it, but I thought if I also had the business degree I could go into work with one of those microloan programs. The ones where you go down to Ecuador, or Panama, etc. and loan a woman $100 and that's all she needs to get her own business on its feet with her hand-made crafts. It's a tiny amount of money, but one after another these businesses eventually stimulate the whole economy. I want to go on a crusade someday. A modern one, like what Dr. Paul Farmer is doing, or what Peace Corps, Unicef and all sorts of volunteers are doing around the world. People think it's too hard to do, or that you need to be independent, but I believe that if you really want to do something, you'll find a way. I'm still looking for my way, but I'll find it.

inevitably football season

This is from Shakira's "Inevitable"

"To be true I must confess
Making coffee I'm a mess
Don't know anything about football.
Been unfaithful once or twice
Cannot even win at dice
As for watches, I don't use one.
To be completely honest,
No one thinks of you
Quite the way I do...
It's all the same to you now.

"To be true I must confess
I never sleep at twelve or less
Never take a bath on Sundays.
Since I'm telling you so much
I cry in earnest once a month
When the weather turns to freezing.
With me nothing is easy
Only you can tell
You know me so well...
Without you everything's a bore."

I actually really love football. Last fall I could have hardly told you anything about it. As a woman, you only learn about the sports that your dad or brothers are into, and then eventually what your boyfriends are into. I never learned about football. My senior year at BYU I bought season tickets with my roommates and we went so we could paint out faces and hang out. I liked it, but had never been introduced to it in high school or anything. So last fall I got thrown into it and started getting it about halfway through the season. This may sound stupid, or you may wonder how I could have enjoyed it before then? But it's like going to a foreign festival or something and enjoying the atmosphere, but understanding very little.

I love being at the games. I'm still struggling with watching them on TV because the energy is what I like. I need a party at my house to get way into it. I tried to keep the energy up last night by making the HB play rounds of speed with me during commercial breaks.

Last fall I went to a women's clinic put on by the coaches at BYU. We got to meet some players, do some drills, learn about the game, hear from the coach and a referee. That was cool. I loved the whole clinic, but got kind of annoyed by all the women that were there because they wanted to understand and support their husbands better. I'm not too good for that, I do want to, but sometimes when I witness it in the masses I get disgusted that you never see a man at any quilting clinic. What's with that?