Yay for 2011!

I haven't blogged in a whole month. So sorry! And I am even more sorry that this is only a 3 sentence post. I have so much to say, and I just wanted to let all of you in blogger world know that I am alive, in case you care.

Much love,

Annie

Reminiscing

About once a month the Jehovah's witness missionaries do what we would call "street contacting" on the southwest corner of BYU campus (you know, right before the stairs that constitute as "BYU property"). They usually don't try to get any conversations going, because even they know that we are all hurrying to class and work and such, although sometimes I do see people (no-doubt former missionaries) engaging in conversations with them.

This morning when I saw them I was all "oh jeez, I really hope they don't try to talk to me. It's cold, and I have to get to work." They didn't. I just took their brochure thing, and wished them a nice day, because I appreciated it when a person was nice, even if they had no interest whatsoever to hear what I had to say. And then I thought, "I wonder if people thought that when they saw me standing on a corner, "that" being 'I really hope they don't try to talk to me!'" But even if they did think that, it wouldn't stop me, because I had something important to say, and even if they didn't give a crap, I at least had to try!

And that's probably how those j-dubs feel. But honestly, what they had to say didn't offer me more than I already knew. The cover of their brochure thing was "The Five Secrets of Contentment." Thank you, but I already knew all this. I know how to be content. And I am content. Actually, I'm more than content, I am down-right happy. If I were to design a brochure for what I believe and know, the cover would say "The Five Secrets of Happiness." And then I would get all missionary at the end of it and be like "but these aren't secrets! you can have it all! Isn't that great?!"

Anyway, after all that this morning, I just thought back to all those delightful discussions I would have with so many stubborn people who loved their Bible bashing. I remember sometimes being so frustrated I could have pulled my hair out. And now I think: "but it sure was fun!" And I remember sometimes feeling so discouraged that I just wanted to quit. But I was still happy. That never changed.

Good times. And btw, for more info about getting all that happiness that I just ranted about, go here! Or here!

And a merry Christmas to you. Loves, Annie

Another way Netflix makes me feel guilty

I have already mourned about how I tend to waste time on Netflix when I should be studying or writing a paper, as written about here. Yeah, so, I am trying to do better at that. And I think I'm doing a little better, although it still is a temptation!

I don't really watch whole movies on netflix, because then you really do know that you're wasting two hours, because that's how long a whole movie is. I watch the t.v. shows, which is a real sneaky way to hide how much time you are wasting, because one episode of a show typically is only 20 minutes, so you think "I'll just watch one episode, it's only 20 minutes. That can count as a break, it's not wasting time like a whole movie does, blah blah blah." And then before you know it, you have watched three or four episodes, and the same damage as a movie is done to the time wasting. But this we already know.

So, I started watching that show "17 Kids and Counting," although I'm not sure whether to call it that. The first season is "17 Kids and Counting", the second season "18 Kids and Counting," and the third is "19 Kids and Counting," meaning that the mom of the family gives birth to a new child every season. Crazy. I have learned a lot from watching this show, no lie. For one thing, those parents are pretty amazing. They have well-behaved, well-groomed and happy children, which I have seen from personal experience with families with 15+ children is not always the case. They are also very conservative and have high standards. At first glance, you might think they were Mormon. But they're not. They're even more conservative than that, which I forgot to realize was possible, since I am a Mormon, and I consider myself pretty conservative.

In season one of the show, the oldest child gets engaged, and when she says yes, he gives her a side hug. And they never had dated each other before the engagement or any other people for that matter, because that affects your abilities to "fully give your heart to that person that God wants you to be with." And so does kissing.

At first I was just like, "well, that's how they feel, and I can kind of see why they feel like that, because I have high standards too right?" Wrong. They made me feel like my standards are way too loosey goosey. That I am not pure because I have kissed boys. And that I've created baggage for marriage by going out on dates. That show was one giant guilt trip. And then the parents went off being like, "yeah it's a great idea to not date and not kiss. Michelle (the mom) had a few boyfriends before me, and that just created a lot of baggage in the marriage. And we kissed before we were married, and that wasn't the best thing to do, etc, etc." Don't get me wrong, I can see how having serious relationships can create baggage, especially if you go too far: like I said, I have high standards. But even going on dates before an engagement? Come on.

So I guess I should apologize to future husband. Future husband, I am so sorry for the baggage that I have created by my poor choices to go on dates. I am sorry that you aren't the first person I have kissed. Forgive me? K thanks.

Anyway, maybe the solution to all of this is once again to take the advice of the Duggar family and just not watch t.v. That would solve so many of my problems, including the common time-wasting problem. We'll see. Well, I hope you have a happy Monday. Love you lots!

'Tis the Season!

Christmas time is officially here. Holla! I thought about making this month's "blogging goal" to not write crazy rants about anything. But sometimes that makes things less interesting. But who can think of writing crazy rants right now when the world is so wonderful and full of holiday lights and decorations and snow? Then again, finals haven't happened yet, so there is still time.

I love the Christmas season for so many reasons including the decorations, the lights, the traditions, the treats and food people bring to you, the parties (especially the work ones, which is weird, but I think it's because you get to chill with the people you work with and not actually worry about working. That's fun), and I love how everybody just seems to be in a better mood, except for the Scrooges, but even they make the season fun because then you can feel like you are living in your own real-life Christmas Carol.

But the two things that really put me in the Christmas mood are the movies and the music. I love 'em. And while I usually can't handle the extreme cheesiness in the rest of the year, Christmas time is an exception, except for some really horrible stuff, which ironically is usually country holiday songs: example of the day: that Christmas shoes song. Yuck.

So my movie recommendation of the day from my list of best Christmas movies is:
White Christmas is a perfect movie to help put you in a holiday mood. Go out and watch it today.

But my latest discovery this year has been that one of my fav singers, Sufjan Stevens, has not one, not two, but FIVE Christmas albums! And they are legit. I am sharing with you today one of my new fav Christmas songs called "The Friendly Beasts." I don't know how long this song has been around, but my dad played me a version of it by Brian Stokes Mitchell with the MoTab, and I wasn't crazy about it because it was pretty silly. But Sufjan's version is really sweet in showing that even the animals rejoiced in the birth of Christ. And this video is adorable.

Anyway, happy beginning of the Christmas season, everybody. I love you all!

Thanksgiving is a swell holiday

It's the last day in November, so I figured I would give Thanksgiving a shout out before we officially switch gears into Christmas, which I am also very excited about.

I love Thanksgiving. Even though we don't do anything important on that day besides eat huge amounts of food, which is fine by me. It's wonderful to have a day where the only thing on the schedule is to eat. I'm grateful for that.

Last year and the year before I spent Thanksgiving in Bucharest, and so this year was especially nice to eat Thanksgiving dinner with the fam again. And I am grateful for that. And speaking of Bucharest, I think right now I am most grateful that I went on a mission. I have amazing friends and a couple of besties from going on a mission, and it also strengthened my friendships from before. I am also grateful for that.

It's safe to say that every good thing that has happened in my life is because of the gospel. No doubt about it. My great friends, my close family, my education, my hopeful future. It's great! And I love the holidays! Happy Thanksgiving!

The Changing Times

I am trying to learn tolerance, and be more understanding of girls nowadays.

Like, the way they feel about these boys (overrated)

Is the way that I fantasized about these guys as a teenager. (And let's be honest, I still do)














Mr. Darcy or Gilbert Blythe, anybody? Who would you choose? That just may be a harder decision than between Jacob and Edward!!

So I am now trying to not be too much of a hater on ridiculous pre-teens, and ridiculous teens, and even ridiculous adults.

"Tolerance is always a good lesson, even when it comes out of nowhere." -Mr. Hall, Bronson Alcott High School

Happy Monday. Love, Annie

I'm just going to say it

Utah State sports fans are sore losers.

Seriously. They have such crap sportsmanship. I am so happy we beat them in basketball last night. Forget football: yes that was a painful memory this season and we better never repeat it. But before that, back when Utah State would celebrate their first touchdown of a season by acting like they had won the national championship (because it happened just as rarely), they would always cling on to that lame excuse that "we're good at basketball" and yet whenever I saw BYU play them, we still would beat them. (I am aware that they won last year, but I was out of the country, so, "out of sight (or country) out of mind.")

It's just pathetic though when a team's cheers and chants are all just to slander the other team. When their team does something good, rather than cheering that, they cheer on how the opposing team screwed up and how they suck, blah blah blah. That's just retarded.

The crowning moment was when I ran into a Utah State alum last night and I will admit, I loved rubbing it in their face that we won. I cheekily said, "well, nice try." But said person went off on "ohh nice try to you! you guys who were behind some of the game! boo hoo hoo." Excuse me?! Who won the game? We did. Almost winning is STILL losing. And Utah State, you did not win last night. Get over it.

Go ahead, lecture me about how I perhaps am being a sore winner. How I need to read Pres. Uchtdorf's talk from the recent priesthood session, which I already have, and I agree. Utah State fits that category of "normally kind and compassionate human beings can be so intolerant and filled with hatred toward an opposing team and its fans." And I will also admit that we BYU fans tend to make "broad generalizations and apply them to everyone associated with the other team." ex: that USU is just a farmer school and all they teach at that school are those cow whistles that were being heard all night last night (just to give you an idea).

To that friend and USU alum, I hope we can still be friends and lay these differences aside. I know that it shouldn't be so hostile, but in the words of Vince Lombardi, "If it doesn't matter who wins or loses, then why do they keep score?" That's all there is to it. We won. Sorry you lost last night. But I am not sorry we won!!!