viva méxico

it's oficial....

Friday, September 13, 2013 this half chilena half north american is going to become half mexicana, too.  that sounds impossible, i know... i guess my heart will just have to grow to fit all those mexicans in it.  i'll be moving to Mexico D.F. until December 11 to go prepare the Lord's servants in the newest MTC opening this summer.  there are no words to describe the extreme range of emotions i am feeling right now...so i will express them with a song

you may or may not ever see me again.  there is the distinct possibility that i will o.d. on tacos.
peace+love

tarantula hawk

if i ever make a horror film, the plot will be based around this...

i saw the name "tarantula hawk" on my facebook feed and decided to look up photos.  wow.  wow wow. i thought jerusalem crickets were bad...although, her curly antennas are kinda cute.

anyway, this inspired me to find out what, exactly this thing is.
wikipedia, the great source of all information, taught me this (just imagine it as you read--sure to give you nightmares):

The female tarantula hawk captures, stings, and paralyzes the spider, then either drags her prey back into her own burrow or transports it to a specially prepared nest, where a single egg is laid on the spider’s abdomen, and the entrance is covered. When the wasp larva hatches, it creates a small hole in the spider's abdomen, then enters and feeds voraciously, avoiding vital organs for as long as possible to keep the spider alive. After several weeks, the larva pupates. Finally, the wasp becomes an adult, and emerges from the spider's abdomen to continue the life cycle. Tarantula wasps are alsonectarivorous. The consumption of fermented fruit sometimes intoxicates them to the point that flight becomes difficult. 

learn more here.
sweet dreams...
peace+love

scared

i am afraid of the dark.  very afraid.
two nights ago i was having a hard time falling asleep.  i finally started nodding off at about 1:30 a.m.  then at 2 i was awakened by a sound in the bathroom.  i looked over and the bathroom light was on.  my heart started pounding and my imagination racing as i thought "i didn't hear anyone come in and someone just randomly appeared in the bathroom." i pictured bloody mary, chucky, phsycho preparing to chop me into pieces and flush me down the toilet.  i grabbed my phone off the nightstand to call my roommate to come to the rescue.  the phone rang twice when the bathroom door swung open.  my roommate stood in the doorway and said, "are you calling me?"
geez.  how the heck did she get in the bathroom without me hearing her...?


oh well...here's the reason i am growing to love provo

what are your scary stories?

peace+love

the fall

coming home from a mission and adjusting to the "real world" is an interesting experience...my life's circumstances make it even more interesting. 
today i was given about 5 minutes to make an important life decision. i really hope i made the right one.

then, i got to go be one with the earth.  okay, maybe it wasn't the most spiritual experience i've had in nature (impossible when you've got cousin sammie screaming about snakes every 5 minutes), but i've got to say, there is nothing that brings me more peace of mind and makes me feel more "at home" than getting away from civilization for a few minutes and pondering on the beauties of the earth.

hello, nature...it's good to be back.

peace+love

i might die

is it possible to die from pain induced by a needle in your arm?

i have to get a typhoid shot this week--if anything has had me seriously reconsidering a mission it is this. pathetic, i know.

but anyway, what could be more fun than running (walking) 6.2 miles with friends in the beautiful mountains with the leaves changing?

throw a bunch of mud in there and call it a party!

peace+love

overworked and underpaid

yesterday my sister informed me my eyebrows needed to be plucked.

i also missed out on a perfectly windy day of kite flying.

but, on a more positive note...

tonight, i was taking my dog for a walk after dark. i kept picturing bo radley following me.

i got a little nervous, so i hummed "long shadows" to myself.

nothin' like the sweet sound of josh ritter to make you feel better.

(it also helps that bo radley is actually a good guy who saved scout and jem from an untimely death by the knife of the town drunk...)

p.s./btw my birthday is in a week. i'm $66 away from my goal of $210 to charity:water. if you have not yet donated or told a friend to donate, you have until friday!

peace+love

wisdom is missing

i don't know anything about them (seeing as i found them, like, yesterday)except that their first album came out in june, they're from Seattle (and we know all great things come from seattle, coughbrandicarlilecough) and i love them.

so here is hey merseilles

the mandolin player has no shoes on.
and in case you didn't know i love the accordion almost as much as i love the banjo.

i got my wisdom teeth out this morning. don't feel sorry for me...i'm not in too much pain, people cater to my every need, i sleep all the time, i get to start eating ice cream tomorrow (mint choc. chip or yogurt stop natural flavor will do, thank you), and the i.v. didn't hurt (which probably had something to do with the valium they gave me beforehand). but check out those chipmunk cheeks!

peace+love

cinam yadnom--that's manic monday backwards

-roll out of bed around 9 a.m.-

-hit the gym for a couple hours (not watch silence of the lambs...scooby doo this time)-

-take my sweet time getting ready, checking e-mails, eating lunch-

-walk to the grocery store (enjoying the perfect 75 degree weather that is gradually turning to thunderstorms)-

-walk to the library-

-walk home...no rush, i've got no place to be-

-chat with friends-

-ice cream sundaes with friends-

-home...blog-

-bed-

life is so funny that way.

on an unrelated note, here's what i've been listening to today. nothing like a corny love song to make your day a little brighter.

peace+love

just another manic monday...

-sunday night bedtime=9:45 p.m.-

-fell asleep at 11(ish)-

-woke up at 12:30-

-asked roommate and boy to keep it down...boy says, "you hate me, don't you?" oh, i'm sorry, i didn't realize we were 5-years-old-

-back to sleep-

-woke up at 1:25-

-back to sleep-

-woke up at 2:30-

-back to sleep-

-woke up at 3:13-

-back to sleep-

-woke up at 3:15-

-got dressed-

-changed my shirt 3 times-

-left for work at 3:30-

-arrived at work at 3:42 wishing i were wearing different pants...seriously?-

-baked and baked and baked (well, trained, really)-

-awkwardly discover two of my co-workers at great harvest are an item...who kisses at work unless you're an actor or prostitute? and even then, if you're julia roberts, you don't.-

-home by 9:30 a.m.-

-back to sleep-

-phone call at 11 a.m. from convergys-

-"my phone's echoing, can i call you back?"-

-"it's still echoing, maybe you should try calling me."-

{maybe i should tell him it's my phone}

-"it's still echoing. let me try one more thing."-

{really, i'd like to be asleep right now...please hurry}

-"okay, nothing is working. i guess i'll just see how this goes"-

-reject job offer-

-back to sleep-

-up again at 12:30 p.m.-

-ew, i can smell myself--off to the school gym to shower. our gas got turned off.-

-watch LOST. {spoiler alert spoiler alert} NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NOT SAYID AND JIN AND SUN! I DIE!-

-go to the gym...watch silence of the lambs while i'm on the elliptical-

-regret watching silence of the lambs while doing sit-ups-

-and while in the shower (yes, i showered before and after the gym. don't judge me)-

-and while changing-

-periodically (or obsessively) glance over my shoulder all the way out to the car-

-ride to the movies with co-worker. hear about new roommate who has a parole officer...is that weird to anyone else but me? (no comments from you, jen and aubry)-

-hear more tales of the craziness that exists between all of my co-workers (not at great harvest...other job)-

-feel more convinced of the need to find a different second job-

-slightly regret rejecting convergys job offer-

-then i remember the sucky hours-

-regret=gone-

-watch iron man II with co-worker-

-enjoying myself-

-1/3 into the movie, NOT enjoying myself-

{this dialogue is almost as bad as star wars}

-3/4 through the movie, enjoying myself again-

{um, can i please be ScarJo in this movie?}

-home-

-blog-

-bed-

how was your monday?

peace+love

you can move me if you want to

if you were stranded on a deseret island...everyone in my family should do this fill-in-the-blank for the sole purpose of question #2 - all i have to say is 6 hours in a cramped car on thanksgiving...

1. If I could medal in an olympic event it would be mogul skiing - i love my moguls .

2. If I was stranded on a deserted island I'd take jesus .

3. clowns are my most irrational fear.

4. I'd rather walk on hot coals , than drink rotten milk .

5. I am a mountain and you are the sea .

6. I should really be nervous for my audition .

7. One of my favorite things in all the world is having my toes popped (hint hint) .

peace+love

spring fever

beautiful escondido/san diego
-gummy watermelons and wedding magazines for the drive. also, lots of Dr. Pepper
-katie's first attempt at wedding dress shopping
-remember hearing about all the rain in cali? ya, we didn't experience that
-peterson's donut corner...open 24 hours aka the reason America is fat...so good
-growing friendships and building new ones
-in 'n out burger
-driving a unimog-offroading in a unimog-almost dying on a unimog-the old guy on his roller blades carrying speakers and interpretive dancing
-trespassing for the sake of a picnic at the rock foundation of a house that burned down on top of a hill overlooking a lake
-kicked out of two apartment complex's hot tubs

-going out with a bang: late night swim at fletcher's cove and moonlight beach, almost a full moon, then warming up in some housing developments hot tub.(i broke more laws this weekend than i have in a long time)(wow, i look terrified)full moon. beach. bonfire. layers of waves grabbing my toes.

i thought, being here, experiencing this, how could you not believe in God?

what did you do this weekend?

p.s. LOST: the final season...starts tomorrow

peace+love

young love

cedar city loves me:
-i arrived in cedar sunday night to the warmth of 3 letters. not bills. i love mail.
-in the middle of my first class on my first day back (monday) we had an earthquake. it was terrifying. i clutched the edge of my desk ready to crawl under as soon as something fell from the ceiling (as i was taught to do in grade school). luckily it was really small and short. later that night we had another tiny one. i felt it though. my heart now starts pounding at every rumbling sound or small tremor.
on the bright side, it got me on byu radio, just one more brick on my yellow road to stardom.
-i graduated from physical therapy today and fully intend to climb on saturday.
-i'm taking 18 credits this semester. 7 music classes + a half semester of intro to climbing.
-with the exception of wednesday, i've been up before 7 a.m. everyday this week...go me.
-news in the indie music world: greg laswell and ingrid michaelson are dating! meredith thinks they're married, but i'm skeptical. they will make beautiful music making babies. their babies may be beautiful, but mostly the music that their babies will make will be beautiful. they've already made a music baby...this song:

{via}
this made me laugh on this inside

peace+love