News Update

I have the coolest parents in the world.

Thought you all should know.

That's it for tonight.

Reasons to Love* Rexburg #2

The University Bookstore has lots of cute signs like this one, all with happy, bubbly, idealistic thoughts: "Always Kiss Me Goodnight", "All Because Two People Fell In Love", etc. You know the types.

And don't get me wrong, these are good things. It's good to remind ourselves of the goals and philosophies we want to incorporate into our lives.

But I have to draw the line with this one. "Live Simply", cut out of sheet metal, with a star and twine for decoration. Yours to display in your own home for only $20.

Um... wait.

$20 for a sign that reminds me to "Live Simply"? Isn't buying the sign a violation of the very lifestyle it encourages? If you're so in love with the concept of Living Simply that you want to buy a sign to remind you to do it, then I think you may have missed the boat.

Reasons to Love* Rexburg #1

The David O. McKay library has a bit of a tradition. A daily ritual, if you will. Every night at 11:20, an announcement comes over the P.A. system: "The David O. McKay library will be closing in 10 minutes. Please take all materials to be checked out to the circulation desk." This announcement is especially annoying when it comes on when you are on a roll with whatever project you're working on. Knowing that by the time you pack up, walk home, and get everything set up again you will have forgotten that brilliant idea to add to your essay adds to the sense of urgency. Like you're a spy working against a tight deadline, and have to transmit some important information to HQ before the building blows up. Or something like that.

So if it weren't bad enough that you have to rush to finish your thoughts, it's made worse by The Music. As the announcement ends, a song begins to play. It's a different song every night, but they all have the same quality: they are so incredibly obnoxious that they make it impossible to think, thus rendering the last 9 minutes of possible productivity completely useless. Sometimes the songs are so bad you want to run out of the library. Which I suppose is a fairly decent strategy for the students who work in the library and probably want to go home and sleep.

But tonight was different.

After the usual announcement (on a side note, I realized tonight that they never actually say that you have to leave the library and go home. Just to take all materials to the circulation desk. Hm...), a song began to play. But it was not like any other library closing I had heard before...

Hakuna Matata- What a wonderful phrase! Hakuna Matata- ain't no passin' craze!

Best. Library. Closing. Song. Ever.

And I couldn't help but want to dance as I walked down the stairs, through the East and West wings, and out the door. I did manage to call Teags, and left what I can only imagine is the World's Coolest Message on her phone. Because cool things like this just don't happen every day. And that's why this is a reason to love Rexburg.

*in this series, love may or may not be the actual emotion felt, depending on the level of sarcasm of the day.

Reason to Love Washington #14

Out-of-Date Police Car Scanners!

I was driving home from a friend's house on a Sunday night around 11:45. Listening to music, I got distracted, and sang along (which takes talent when the music is orchestral, but that's why horn players are cool). I turned (nearly home now), and noticed a car following me. Which was strange because the main street was nearly deserted to begin with, and what would the odds be of the one other car on the road also turning down the same street? Weird. I turned onto my street. The car still followed. Double weird. The car suddenly had flashy lights on it's roof. Red and blue ones, brightly illuminating the otherwise dark street.

Crumbucket.

I pulled over (conveniently, I was already in front of my house). Cop came out. Apparently I had been going 36 in a 25 zone.

Double crumbucket.

"Have you ever had a ticket before?"
"No, sir, and I'm feeling pretty stupid right about now."

Especially since I wasn't even in a hurry. It would be one thing to have a dramatic story to tell the officer, explaining why I was in such a hurry ("I'm in labor!" "My sister called, there's a family emergency!" "I left the oven on!" "I have to pee!"). Any of these would have been better than mine: "Well, I was listening to some music, and there was this great horn line, and so I was singing along to it, and kinda got lost in the moment... and it's not like there are other cars on this road at 11:45 at night or anything, and even when there are, no one keeps to 25 anyway!".

So I chose to not say anything.

Apparently, this is a 120$ fine (speeding, not silence, which is ok now because of the 5th amendment). Have I mentioned I don't have a job? He asked for my license. I passed it over, and explained why it looks weird (it's Canadian!). He looked at my plates. They're from Idaho. Cop was confused as to why I have a Manitoba license, driving a car registered to my name from Idaho, and speeding in Washington. I don't blame him. It took a little while to explain it all. He took my papers back to his car. I assumed a somewhat fetal position, banging my head rhythmically against the steering wheel while muttering: "stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid...".

Cop came back.

I looked up.

He handed me my papers.

Explained that the scanners in his car wouldn't recognize the Manitoba license format, so he couldn't register the ticket.

He eyed me warily, as if to peer into the depths of my soul.
"Watch your speed."

"Yes, sir."

And he was gone.


So, I feel badly for speeding, but I'm very glad that I didn't get a ticket. But I also think it's weird (in an advantageous-to-me kind of way) that their scanners don't recognize Manitoba licenses. I mean, I know that not very many people from Manitoba probably make their way to Washington, and even fewer are dumb enough to speed, and fewer still dumb enough to get caught, but you would think they would have the equipment to deal with that.

Not that I'm complaining. :)

Reason to Love Washington #15

Mount Rainier!

On overcast days, you can't see anything.

But on non-overcast days, you can see it peek through Washington's ubiquitous evergreens (they didn't name it the Evergreen State out of sarcasm, that's for sure). It's cool, because sometimes I forget it's there, and then I'll take a turn while driving, come around the corner, and have a beautiful vista open up in front of me. Ta-da! It's a mountain! And it's awesome. And I'm sure people can tell I'm not from around here because sometimes I just have to pull over so I can gaze at it and take a picture. Or look around to see whether there is a better vantage point nearby. I've found some pretty good ones.... The mountain always catches my attention.

Mount Rainier. Sunrise. View from my window. Sweet.

Reason to Love Washington #16

Blackberries!!

We went to pick berries for FHE so we could make freezer jam. And you know what's cool? The berries were free!!

FREEEEE!!!!

I can't even tell you about the excitement I felt at the prospect of free* berries. And then we made loads of jam which is very tasty on toast. I ended up with nearly 2 litres of jam. Which should last me for at least a few weeks.

And it was all free**!!!



Artsy-fartsy shot of blackberries accumulating frost as they thaw after being taken out of the freezer.

*free minus cost of bandaids and neosporin to treat thorn scrapes, and emotional damage from having to run away when people who lived nearby released the hounds on us (even though the trail was public property).

**free minus cost of sugar and pectin to make the jam, and containers in which to freeze the jam.

Reason to Love Washington #17 (I'll fill in the other sixteen later)

I was driving around Bellevue yesterday before meeting some YSA branch peeps at the temple for a baptismal session. I had gone earlier in the day to spend some time there, but it was presently dinnertime, so I was driving around looking for some sort of food establishment. I never did find one, but I found something even BETTER!

Where else but Washington (okay, maybe Orgeon) could you have a public park that features a water area with a life-sized orca sculpture that shoots fountains of water out its blowhole? I had to stop for pictures. It was cool, and really fun to watch the kids playing with it.



The orca distraction made me a little more pressed for time than I would have like to have been, so I never did find a place to eat, and wound up eating a box of jellybeans for dinner. Don't tell my mom. ;)

Rexburg!!

Hm, so I had an idea for something all artistic and crafty in February, but never really got around to doing it... until now! (Dun dan dunnnnn). Those familiar with the Rexburg temple will know that the temple uses a lot of wheat motifs in its decor, especially in the stained glass windows. For those not familiar with the Rexburg temple, you need to know that it uses a lot of wheat motifs in its decor, especially in the stained glass windows. I love the designs that are used. The motif was also used a lot in the Rexburg Temple Celebration in which I performed the night before the dedication. It was a very touching experience for me, and I thought it would be cool to somehow snag a piece of the set... but before you report me, all I did was pick up some heads of wheat that had fallen onto the floor off of some displays. That makes what I did gleaning, not theft. :D
Anyway, I planned what I wanted to make a while ago, but never really had the time, and have consequently been carrying little heads of wheat with me in my luggage all summer. But now I've finished it! And I have to say I'm kinda proud of it. I used a window box so the wheat could go inside, and the stained glass motif is on a piece of vellum that has been attacked with both Sharpies and pencil crayons (those are Canadian colored pencils). So here it is!


The finished creation! Though it's hard to tell from the picture, it's very beautiful when light shines through it, it creates a really neat glow.



The design a little more close-up. And wheat. Lots of wheat.

This is for you, Teresa...

I cut my hair!

And when I say I cut it, I really mean it. The other night, around 10:30, I decided I wanted a haircut. Immediately. So I found my scissors and brush, and commenced my work. I don't think I did too badly! Maybe if the whole med school thing doesn't work out... I'll go to beauty school instead. They both involve cutting....

Iorana!!

One of our branch FHEs this summer. We learned a Tahitian hula, while the guys learned a haka.

We needed a little encouragment to shake our hips in public, though, and our Tahitian dance-trained instructor (on the left in the grey)responded to our shyness with: "Geez, girls, it's no wonder you're in the singles ward. Now shake it!!"

I have to say that I think we did pretty well for just an hour's practice... and it was a blast.

Lab Sweet Lab

The fabled day has arrived. The long-promised pictures of my internship are posted. Now is a good time to put on your "ability to laugh at bad situations" mojo. I'm having trouble getting the pictures loaded, so I may have to do this in installments.


The outside of the building. Or shack. It tends to look bigger from the outside than it really is. For scale, if I were standing right next to it, my head would reach past the shadow level on the side wall. There is apond to the right, and settling ponds to the left (the white hollowing in the ground). The lab is built down into the ground a few feet (you open the door and go down a few stairs), thus ensuring the floor is very close to the water table. This helps maintain the moist environment that is so crucial to the survival of the various species of mold and fungus in the lab. In places where the floor is not as, um, solid, as we might like, you can actually look through the holes and see the water flowing about 5 inches beneath the floorboards. This system is not as bad as it might sound, as it provides the lab with its only supply of running water that isn't fed into the fish tanks. Haha.

I believe this is an elephant fungus. And his friends. Under some of the tanks. Which aren't really tanks, but rather 38-gallon Rubbermaid tubs.



Chemical storage area. Organization and temperature and humidity controls are, apparently, optional, as is labeling.


Tin that contained aflatoxin. I can't figure out how to rotate it. Sorry.

Black mold growing on the walls in the lab, coming through the new paint.

It's Canada Day!!

It's July 1st!!


Which means it's Canada's birthday, and that makes me happy because I like Canada. I may be biased, but that's my prerogative as a Canadian.
At church on Sunday, our Branch President spoke, and one of the things he mentioned was about how grateful he was to live in the United States. He listed some of the good things about this country, and called it the "Best in the World". I was visiting with a friend later that evening, and, knowing that I am Canadian, she asked me what I thought about President Bigelow's words. I figured that there are lots of things I could agree with-- that there are a lot of good things in the states, a lot of great things about it (they let me come to school here!). I can even see why to many who live here, it really is the best country in the world. But... (and I may be biased) I found that I just couldn't quite get my heart to agree. My mind, yes, my heart... not quite. Yes, the states have a lot of great things going on-- but so does Canada! And I love the freedoms and opportunities that I was able to grow up having. We've seen a lot of the country while traveling and moving as a family, and while every region is unique, that diversity that is part of what I love about Canada.

So... to kick-off July... I'm going to make a Love List for Canada... I realize that some of these things are not exclusive to Canada, but they are there and they rock nonetheless...

Nature!
-the Canadian Shield
-the Rockies
-the Prairies (yes, even the prairies... they grow on you after a while... ha, no pun intended)
-Aurora Borealis
-Winters are beautiful (dang cold, but beautiful)
-the East Coast
-the West Coast
-Forests
-camping
-canoeing
-biking
-cross-country skiing
-the beach
-fall leaves, and pressing them in heavy books
-wildlife- Canada geese, moosen, deer, polar bears, grizzlies, beavers, lobsters (ok maybe those don't count... but they are still cool)

Food!
-Ketchup Chips
-Aero Bars
-Poutine
-Kinder Eggs (for the toy, not the chocolate)
-Maple Syrup
-Maple Candy (one is more than enough)
-Maple Cookies
-Maple Taffy (boil the syrup/sap and then pour it in a little trench in the snow, then roll it up on a popsicle stick to eat it like a lollipop)
-Shreddies
-Fruit stands by the side of the road in the summertime (especially in Ontario)
-Nanaimo Bars
-Pierogies

Cool Role Models!
-Terry Fox
-Emily Carr
-Kim Campbell (the U.S. is busy making a big fuss over having a female President, meanwhile, we had a female P.M. over 10 years ago. Even if she was in office for only nine months, and only because of some unfortunate troubles with the preceeding P.M.)
-uhhh... I guess there should be more here but... brain lapse.

The Dominion as a Whole!
-Freedom
-Democracy
-Bilingualism- and not just on cereal boxes
-Multiculturalism (and not to mention all the tasty food that comes with it :) )
-An honourable military tradition of peacekeeping and libration
-socialized health care (it may not be a perfect system, but it's one of the best)

Miscellaneous!
-spelling things with "extra" letters (I'm looking at you, u)
-special distinction for the letter Z to not rhyme with any other letters of the alphabet
-cool-looking money (hockey on a fiver = awesome)
-doughnuts always within a short drive
-an understated national identity, and the accompanying self-deprecating humour
-"Sorry"
-"Eh"
-Mounties and the musical ride

So... what have I missed? What are your favourites?

Gross-out Alert!

After a long day in Olympia this week, I came home and made some salsa and nachos (and by "made" I mean "opened the salsa jar and poured some into a bowl"), and decided to watch a bit of TV to unwind.  Channel surfing didn't yield much that was interesting until the University of Washington channel caught my eye.  I guess the med school there does video lectures, and the orthpaedic surgery department was presenting a seminar on shoulder reconstruction.  The professor spoke (rather blandly) about the surgery itself (I guess a video lecture is still a lecture, and therefore, can be quite dry), but then indicated a that a video would be shown of the procedure being done on an actual patient.  Sweet!  So of course I watched it.

It was really cool.  They showed all the incisions and explained what they were doing and why.  There was a lot more drilling than I thought there would be, and also more, um, gushing, for lack of a better word.  But it was still very cool.  I saw the bones in the shoulder joint and how they fit together and rotate.  I saw the layers of muscle carefully separated and later sewed back together such that the proper function and movement was retained (though I imagine the patient will be sore for a little while!).  Definitely interesting stuff, and I couldn't help but be a in bit of awe of the precision and complexity of the surgery.  It was kind of... elegant.  I know that's a bit of a weird word to use here, but it was really neat to see.

At one point, I also realized that I was eating while watching surgery (and its inherent, um, mess), and that it didn't faze me.  Part of thought that maybe that's weird, that you shouldn't be able to watch people be cut open while munching away on dinner.

It was then that I looked at my bowl of salsa and realized that it kind of looked like...

Never mind.

At least it wasn't spaghetti and meatballs.

May already? How did that happen? (I know, I know, the earth kept rotating. But I swear it's speeding up!)

First off, I apologize for my month-long hiatus from the blog. In my defense, I was running around the country having way too much fun to think about writing. Ok, actually, I just haven’t had much internet access, and the few minutes I have had I thought were better spent with emails. Anyway, now that I have found the public library near work that has Wi-fi, it appears that problem has been solved.

I’m hoping to write about my trip, but I need to organize things (pictures, etc) before that can really happen, so it will probably come in installments. In the meantime, enjoy the following random story:

Sometimes when I go through the checkout line at a grocery store or drugstore, I like to look at what people are buying and try to figure out what they’re up to that day. A stressed-out looking mom buying plastic forks and paper plates at a drugstore for twice the price at a grocery store is probably in a big rush and took the closest thing she could. Child’s birthday party, perhaps?
Anyway, it’s a fun way to people watch.

I had to laugh at myself yesterday as I picked up a couple things at the store before heading home after work. I had been in town either feeding the fish or running errands since 8:30, and it was then about 7:00 at night. I wear clothes I don’t care about at work, so I was wearing a t-shirt and black sweatpants. My hair was a bit of a mess from running around all day and not bothering to fix it (I don’t think the fish really care what I look like). I looked, and was, tired.
I realized that if there are any other people out there who like to people watch like I do, and if they saw me with my purchases, it wouldn’t be very hard to figure out what I was up to for the evening.

The three things I bought?

Leg wax, Disney’s Enchanted (I’ve wanted it for a little while, and I rationalized it as an early birthday present), and a Toblerone bar. I’m not sure you can say “Girl’s night in” any better than that.

And yes, I did watch the movie while waxing my legs and munching some tasty chocolate. A Saturday night well spent. And my legs are so smooth.... :)

Flashback...

Well, exams are finally over and while I have a lot of packing and cleaning to do, I thought I'd take advantage of the momentary lull to do a little update.  Yes, Michelle, this is for you. :)

First, massive kudos and thanks off to Kyooyoo for letting me borrow Babar tomorrow morning.  My brilliant, well-laid plans for obtaining a car by the end of the semester have been freakishly abrupted week after week, so that I am still without car and need to move my things into a storage unit tomorrow before midnight, at which point I will board a bus with the rest of the BYU-Idaho symphony band to get on our way toward the deep South for a two week tour.  So really, Kyoo, you are a lifesaver.  And I know you read this. :)

So, yes, we're heading on tour!!  We leave soon, but I'm not sure it has really sunk in yet.  Exams will do that to you.  I'm not even sure today in Thursday; I lost all sense of time last week.  We're going to Dallas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Florida, and Alabama.  I think we have 16 concerts total over the tour, but we also have a lot of service opportunities, and I am really glad for that.  In our tour preparation, they have emphasized that yes, we need to prepare our music and be ready to perform the best we can, but we also need to remember that it's not about the music so much as it is about the lives we can touch.  I'm hoping to have some missionary experiences while I'm out there; they don't come as often in Rexburg as one might hope.  We also have some service projects and stuff, so I'm sure it will be fun.  Sadly, this may prevent me from being able to update my little blog over the next little while, but you can expect some massive bloggage (that doesn't sound like a comfortable word...tehe ) when I return.  I just hope that my hair doesn't frizz and my face break out from the humidity.  If that is the case, then the post will be delayed slightly to allow for photoshopping.  Haha.

Anyway, on to the topic of choice... and the reason for the title...

We got our Temple Celebration DVDs Tuesday in class.  For those unfamiliar, the symphony band played the program music in the Rexburg Temple cultural celebration in February.  The celebration was the night before the dedication, and the main theme outlined the history of the Saints in the area.  It was really cool to learn about the early settlers and the struggles they went through to establish this valley, and then see a fruition of their works materialized as the temple was dedicated.  I remember feeling so incredibly grateful and almost undeserving as I reflected on all they went through, and that I have many of the blessings of their efforts.  They laid the foundation for what we now enjoy.

Playing in that concert was one of the most fulfilling musical experiences I have ever had.  I felt as though it (the celebration as a whole) was a simple and pure (but very heartfelt) expression of the joy that we all feel in having a temple in Rexburg.  And as I watched some of the scenes in the DVD (I have yet to watch it all the way through; I'll have to wait until I have a large chunk of time available), I feel that joy again.  Like an outwelling (is that a word?) of love and bliss.  I get all choked up and cry a little when I watch it.  It's hard to describe, I guess.  Maybe those who were also in it know what I mean by that.  But I feel so glad to have been able to be a part of it, and so glad that we have a temple here (oh, if anyone knows how I can upload an mp3 to my blog, please let me know, and I will put some tracks on so you can hear it!).  I have been working in the office at the temple this semester, and it has become one of the best parts of my week, but also being able to attend pretty much whenever I want/can is amazing.  I feel a difference when I can attend often.  As though the peace that is there stays with me throughout the week, and I have started to notice and miss it when I am not able to go that often.  Anyway, I have started to ramble, and I don't know that I can really find the right words to describe what I am trying to say anyway.  Maybe that's what music is for; it fills the gaps words leave behind so our souls can express themselves more fully.  If I had my horn with me now, I would make it soar....

My One Regret? Not Having Brought My Video Camera...

So, it was an eventful day-- I went to Dr. Mills, an orthopaedic surgeon, for a consultation on my wrist.  Well, not exactly-- my wrist itself is fine, but it had developed a ganglion cyst on the joint.  I've had it for a while, but the last month or so it has gotten a lot worse, and seemed to be threatening to take over my arm.  And, following Murphy's law, it was on my left hand, the one I use to write, play horn, play racquetball, and most everything else.Anyway, it was starting to really get in the way and painful... so I went to the doctor and he had a look, took some Xrays (very cool to look at), and then we chatted about options.  Settling on aspirating it, he prepped the instruments.  The aspiration procedure basically involves sticking a large needle into the cyst and sucking out its guts.  With no anaesthetic.  After having disinfected the area, he had his assistant help hold my arm down (any sudden jerking movements from the pain would make it ten times worse), then he put the needle in and sucked away.  It was pretty cool to see, actually, and he pulled about 1.5 cc of fluid out.  That may not sound like a lot, but it's amazing what it can do when it's not supposed to be in there.  I was surprised to see it-- it was thick like hair gel.  Not that I'd recommend using it in your hair.

Anyway, so now my wrist is back to normal (aside from some rather intense bruising), but I have to admit that I feel a strange sense of loss.  Almost like a friend has moved away.  Except that now it doesn't hurt to type, so that is great.  I'd post a picture, but, well, it's not a pretty sight right now.

In other news, I have only 2 weeks left of school, and then I'll be on tour!  It's strange, but I don't think it has really hit me yet that we'll be in the South.  It'll be a neat experience, though, and I've never been there before (Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi), so I'm looking forward to that adventure.

I'm also getting things ready for my internship in Washington.  I was able to find a place to live this week, so I am glad about that.  Mom is also relieved that I will not be resorting to my plan B, which was to buy a tent and some gear and just camp out all summer.  But I still think that would have been fun....

Geek Alert!!

So, last night, I found myself cramming (as often happens) to prepare an informative speech for my public speaking class.  Before you think I am a complete slacker, I *did* choose my topic a few days ago.  I just hadn't written our what I would say.  Or put together the power points.  Or practiced.  No matter.  A grand effort from 11 pm to ten to six this morning proved sufficient, and I presented in my 9 am class to critical acclaim (none of my classmates fell asleep while I was talking).  I talked about how penicillin works, which I think is one of the coolest things ever, but that is a topic for another day (actually, I'm quite proud of my power points, I might try to post them on here.  I used pacman screen shots to illustrate phagocytosis.  Hehe.).  Anyway, while searching for some suitable images to use in the presentation, I came across this gem:

I had to stifle the loud laugh that wanted to come out; my roommate was sleeping peacefully on the other side of the room.  But it just makes me giddy with joy.  Hehehe.  Yes, I am clearly a bio geek.

Gratitude

I received some absolutely exciting news today-- I got a scholarship for next year!  It was completely unexpected, as I didn't apply for it, it was done automatically through the biology department.  I got an email that said something to the effect of "your student financial account has been updated", and I fully expected that when I logged on, I would see that I owed the school money for something or other, and that I couldn't register for more classes until it was paid.

Needless to say, it was a welcome surprise.

Actually, that is a big understatement.  It turns out that the scholarship is funded by a former biology department chair and his wife who have long since retired, but keep giving back to the students.  And I find myself so humbled by that.  How many people do you know who give hundreds of dollars to people they don't know?  It has made me even more aware of the amazing influence people can have in the world, that we can help others through the means that we are given.  It has been an interesting semester for me.  I have had a lot of "learning opportunities" (code for "sometimes life sucks"), but through them I have become more and more aware of the difference that we can make in each others' lives.  I have had so many instances this semester where some kind words from a friend, or some compassion shown, or an offer to help have made all the difference in my day.  And it has made me realize more and more how selfish I am.  That all too often I don't think of others, or when I do, sometimes I don't do anything about it, and it remains a lonely thought in my brain, never fully actualized.  I have learned so much through others' examples lately, and it just makes me want to be better.  I hope that someday I have the means to help others, but more importantly, that if or when that happens, I have the heart to want to help.

The beginning

Well, I have decided to start a little blog.  I figured this would be especially good for the summer since I'll be doing an internship in Washington state in cancer research, and it would be nice to be able to keep friends and family updated.

My little title, "Life is Beautiful" is meant as a bit of a play on words-- I am a biology major, and studying life has led me to an ever-increasing appreciation for and awe of it.  Perhaps it's an indication of my geekiness that I find the opening and closing of Na+/K+ ATPase channels as elegant as ballet, but I really find a beauty in how life lives.

I also find that as I get a little older (and hopefully wiser along with that), life itself (in the more standard, social definition) becomes more beautiful and meaningful.  There is so much to be glad about.  I don't mean to sound naive, and I am certainly aware that life can be extremely difficult and trying, but I also find that if we focus on the things that really matter, we can always find something to be glad about.  On ne voit bien qu'avec le coeur.  L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux"  -- St. Exupery

So now I'll have a place to write down my experiences, adventures, and thoughts about life.  Not that I have anything particularly profound to say.  I'm sure that if you don't know me, this blog will be very boring.  Heck, it might bore you even if you do know me, but you know what?  It's not about you.  Suck it up, princess.