Fahrenheit 451

it's far too hot outside to sit, walk, stand, or do anything for that matter.

so, i'm sitting in my air-conditioned house in a rocking chair reminiscing about recent events of life and listening to a.a. bondy.

today was a good sunday. it didn't start that way. i talked to my stake president this morning and he informed me that the 12 apostles have not made a call for me to serve yet. he feels confident it will happen this week. which means i will receive it the next week. and won't leave for a few months after that. i won't lie, this mission prep thing is not all rainbows and butterflies. there are times i feel extremely discouraged, unknowledgeable (which, ironically, isn't even a word) and unworthy. i often wonder what i'm getting myself into. it doesn't help that i'm impatient and stubborn.

then i had a missionary farewell and homecoming to attend.

at the farewell i was gently reminded why i decided to go on a mission in the first place.

at the homecoming i was gently reminded i will not be the amazing teacher on my mission. but the holy ghost will be.

what i learned from all this? i've just been selfish. my focus has been on my anxiety and my problems. not on preparing to teach the people i will come in contact with and relying on the spirit.

now i am recommitting to continue to love life and live it up but focus on the well-being of others and seeking the holy ghost as a constant companion in everything i do.

on the lighter side of things, more pictures from skydiving. apparently my mom took pictures while i was in the air, so enjoy...

sky so blue

a perfect landing (on our feet!)

post-jump hair

{also, virtual hug to whoever gets the reference in the post title}

peace+love

breaking away

today i decided to join the color country cycling club to help me train for a big tour i'm doing at the end of the summer. it was my first time pacing with a group and it was a 35 mile ride. plus i rode my bike to our meeting area. so 40 total. 40 mile ride while out of shape=NO bueno. (oh and if you're thinking i kept up with the old guys you're out of your mind). i'm proud of myself for just finishing. and in case you were wondering, yes, my bum is completely numb and i'm probably NOT going to be able to walk tomorrow. as a result, i am exhausted. which means i have no energy to write about an artist and look up songs. but if you have never seen it, watch breaking away. it's my inspiration for life. and i told my dad that as a reward for completing the ride today he should buy me my own copy. PLUS dave stoller is to cycling as paulie bleeker is to running aka the hottest thing on two wheels (legs). he might even be hotter than paulie because he woos a girl by singing in italian. and dennis quiad wears cut off shorts {1:58 of trailer}. seriously. hilarious. watch. now.

peace+love

rebel without a cause

it's friday and i'm going to see alice in wonderland!

1. One thing I MUST do before I die is sky dive. i don't think it has the same affect when you're an angel .

2. I would rather eat a cockroach than break a bone any day.

3. If I could give my younger self one piece of advice it would be dear 10-year-old kelli jean: rebel, rebel! okay, not really. save your pennies. eventually, you're going to have to start paying for stuff .

4. If I won the lottery tomorrow I'd pay the rest of my tuition and rent (you're welcome, dad) and eat well for the rest of my college career. oh that would be heavenly .

5. The best surprise ever was for my 15th? birthday my older sister gave me a john mayer songbook then asked me to play "your body is a wonderland" for her. when i opened the book to that page, 2 concert tickets fell out. my sister rocks the casbah .

6. My biggest fault is my lack of priorities. i've said before, i buy music before i buy food .

7. My biggest strength is i'm passionate. who do you know loves paulie bleeker more? .
peace+love

as cogsworth says,

"if it's not baroque, don't fix it!"

i liked our old internet for which we had a router in our apartment. it was very speedy.

windsor apartments decided to switch to a wireless network. it is slow. extremely slow. and requires the refresh button every time you open a new page.

but at least i have an apartment and a computer and a family and food and i'm healthy.

pray for haiti.

peace+love

rotten runklehouse!

i decided to start my weekend adventures early and skip school on friday...i went to turn in my theory assignment early and asked my awesome teacher if i could take the quiz right then. she asked me how long the assignment took me,

"about 25 minutes"

"then you understand this stuff...full credit on your quiz."

i love dr. stitt.

thursday came round and i drove up to provo to climb with my dear friend cody. it was his first time climbing since he's been home from his mission. i'm out of shape too. we each did 4 routes and decided to go up to the bouldering cave. i topped out a problem and (dumb dumb dumb) decided to drop to the floor. the floor is cushioned to prevent injury. but see, when you have an injury that you were recently able to start functioning on, it can still be a little sensitive. turns out my ankle was not ready for that kind of pressure. looks like i'm out another week.

cody...ah, so young...

last night i had a dream i was bouldering and when i reached the top i carefully climbed to the ground.

as dr. stitt would say,

"ROTTEN RUNKLEHOUSE!"

peace+love

to the rock

dear rock wall/cliff/mountiainside,

how i've missed you. i love you. even when you defeat me. which is often. but not as often as boulders defeat me. which is more often than not. but that's not the point. the point is...well, it's great to be back.

i love you
peace+love

murphy's law (paranoia)

i had this strange thought today when i noticed a lump on my shin--what if i lost all use of my left leg? i got choked up just thinking about it...
i couldn't HIKE!
or ski
or rock climb
or skip
or drive a clutch
or run
or dance
or cliff jump
or ride my beloved bicycle
or walk
heck, standing would even be a little difficult!

my dreams of becoming a hermit with my husband and abandoning all modern conveniences would be shattered...

but then again, maybe I'd get my leg amputated and get a prosthetic then compete in the special olympics--table tennis, or bowling...
except that my average bowling score is 44.
or i could climb mt. Everest with my prosthetic leg and get really famous...
except i don't even have a desire to do that with two human legs.
or i could fulfill my ambition of becoming a whale trainer at sea world...I'd be the first whale trainer with a prosthetic leg
yes, that's it! they can't say no to someone with a prosthetic leg.

did you know elephants can have prosthetic legs?
i'm going to bed
-what great thing would you do if you had a prosthetic leg?

free falling

i bought these beauties on saturday...i was thrilled to try them out, so i insisted we go out to the wash today and climb...

i ignored the feeling in my gut--no lie, it said to my brain, "if you go climbing today, you'll go to school on crutches tomorrow"...new shoes, near-perfect weather- there was no way i was letting my unused shoes sit in the box one more day...

on my second attempt at my second problem i had made it as far as the third or fourth move...my right foot was in a great hole, and my left was pressured against the wall with my trusty "stealth" rubber. i was searching for a solid hold for my hands so i could shimmy to the right then complete the climb. i thought i had a good hold, but when i went to move my feet, i fell...i didn't think the fall would be that far. in reality it was only about 4 or 5 feet...but, the crash pad was a few inches away from the rock. the front of my left foot landed on the pad while the back half rolled onto the ground... [these are definitely not my legs, but the ankle bruising/swelling part is pretty darn similar]

one ruthless dirt road, the longest 25 minute drive of my life, and 3 x-rays later, alas, i will be going to school tomorrow on crutches

i've learned my lesson
is there a time you didn't listen to your gut and paid a price?
or did listen and avoided disaster?

be careful what you wish for

lately, i've been putting forth a conscious effort to be less judgmental--
i received my visiting teaching assignment--here's what i've learned:
my companion is a girl from the "ghetto" in maryland...she hates utah mormons...she spent the first 18 years of her life being black, and acting white doesn't come naturally to her--that's why she hates living in utah...she hates utah mormons...she's got street cred because she was engaged to a black guy, then a hispanic guy...she hates utah mormons because we're sheltered and judgmental...her high school is one of the top 100 performing arts schools in the nation (she's a bio major)...there were 39 maryland high schools in the top 500, and only 12 utah schools...it's so much better there...and at the same time, in her high school 1 of 6 students is not expected to graduate...she hates utah mormons...she knows how to make very tasty mixed drinks ...she's been in utah for four years- oh, and did she tell you she hates utah mormons?

some things just don't add up, and
if there are two things i cannot stand, they are:
1. people talking themselves up to sound "bad"
2. people telling me i'm sheltered and judgmental because i'm a utah mormon

ya, the spirit was really strong during our lesson
peace+love