The best things...

Yes, it HAS been a while! Approx. 16 months since my last post. Better late than never, eh? Anyway - on to my purpose in writing. Just wanted to share two of my favorite things:

1. SUNSETS -

[sunset in Hawaii...yes, I actually took this!]

I grew up in Bountiful being able to see the sunset nearly every night from my house. The way my house is positioned, looking over the Great Salt Lake and being able to see from Kaysville to the Copper Mine...well....it just makes for really good sunset watching! When I moved to college this was something I really missed. UNTIL NOW! For the first time in four years, I have a window where I can sit on my bed and watch the sunset. Cheesy? Maybe. Beautiful? YES!!!

and what made the sunset even more beautiful tonight?

2. BEN AND JERRY'S HALF BAKED

'Nuff said. This ice-cream is chocolate-brownie-cookie dough perfection.

Successful sunset-watching, ice-cream-enjoying evening. And a very content me.

Proof that my life was once more exciting than it is right now...

I went to Amsterdam a few weeks ago, and yes, the windmills, the Van Gogh museum, the Anne Frank house, and the World Congress on Families were all amazing. But how often do you see a guy harmonizing two recorders out of his nostrils? Impressive, no?

This cafe in Edinburgh, Scotland, is where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter. It was cheaper for her to stay at the cafe all day than to heat her freezing cold apartment. And staring at a castle out the back window (with four towers), the idea of Harry Potter emerged.

Anyone who knows me knows that I've had a small (uh...large) obsession with the Eiffel Tower. I finally got to go to Paris myself, and a plethora of pictures ensued. I will include just this one.

Wait a minute, is this my screensaver, or the REAL Stonehenge? Crazy! haha

Notice the bobby in the background :) I love Londontown!

Venice! Just about every corner you turn looks this pretty. I promise my photography skills are not that amazing, but in Venice, every picture looks professional!

The only consistent thing in my life is change ...

I was thinking a few days ago about what has happened so far this year. I can't believe how fast the time has flown. September? I thought we were still in March! But I can't complain. This year has been one of the more eventful ones for me. And so I started making lists in my head. This is what I came up with so far...

In the last 9 months, I have:

• been to 7 countries
• had my passport stamped 11 times
• gone to church in 5 different languages (English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Dutch)
• been on just about every form of public transportation ... car, bus, coach (not to be confused with a bus ... thanks Tony!), double decker bus, taxi, boat, gondola (I love Venice!), airplane, bicycle, metro, and a LOT of walking!
• Lived in 3 different apartments, one house, and one beautiful Victorian townhouse
• ...had 5 changes of address
• reported my first news stories on KBYU
• tried fish for the first time since I was five. I gagged. It was the size of my fingernail - but I did it!
  
• ate more desserts than should be humanly possible ... and completely enjoyed it!

Of course, the list had to conclude with desserts since I am currently eating - very slowly - the remnants of my candy stash leftover from London.

This year has definitely been a year of change, a year of growth, and a year of new and adventurous experiences. I remember at one point last May feeling almost lost because I had not been forced out of my comfort zone for a week or so. I used to cringe at the thought of big changes. Now I stare straight in the face of change and say, "Bring it on!" haha. Okay, maybe not, but I am sure glad for all the experiences I've been able to have which have led me to see change as not an obstacle but an opportunity.

Long time, no blog!

I finally updated my blog in hopes that I can use it as a way to keep track of the funny/interesting events that happen to me. Just one thing: I haven't posted anything in over 6 months! So ignore the fact that my posts are few and far between, and just enjoy the reality that I am actually doing it. More posts to come soon ...

As a sidenote, the sole motivation for me to blog comes thanks to despair.com. With this encouraging quote, who wouldn't want to blog? haha

London!

I decided it's about time for me to start blogging about my adventures in London. I love it here! The city is so beautiful and there is always so much to do. I'll add more pictures as soon as possible but this was just my test to make sure I still know how to do this.

Garbage Raid

TRULY....one man's junk is another man's treasure! Last night I attempted to do my homework in the apartment. That was my first mistake! People kept coming in and out of our place and finally Sydney arrived with nearly-empty wrapping paper rolls that she had found in the garbage. My homework was instantly thrown aside as we dressed ourselves in high-end wrapping paper fashion. Sydney and Carli sported the Santa dress, each with additional ribbon, while I attempted more of the African look. I even balanced a bowl on my head to finish off the motif! When Carli caught hold of the bowl, however, she was suddenly an army man with a really whimpy gun! Who knew you could make such good use out of that little bit of wrapping paper everyone always forgets about!?!?

We found this sled in the lobby of a boys hall. It was my makeshift African Safari boat!!!

The College Life!

BYU football games!








One morning I got a craving for a little bit of home so I decided to make myself some good, homestyle bread-milk-&-honey. Sydney was eating some other random food combination so we decided to document it! Food never goes unappreciated in college!












This was taken just after Sydney and I performed our Samoan dance in the Lobby - We take great pride in our Polynesian Dance skills!