Life as I now know it...

My hands smell like latex. My cuticles are ripped and torn. My shirt is stained with blackberries. I've yet again discovered muscles I didn't even know I had (and I've had many chance to discover new muscles). My mind is busy. I've been waiting for this moment for such a long time!

I've now completed two full weeks as a crew member at good ol' Trader Joe's. It is so nice to be doing something. I've lifted, hauled, stacked, picked, placed, tasted, scooted, blown up, fetched, carried, sliced, shoved, smashed, tripped (I'm a klutz), almost broken, knocked over, scraped, pushed, pulled, and sensed more than I have in a very long while. I hurt. My body is still not used to the all the physical labor, and I'm excited for the day that my body doesn't automatically shut down at 9:30 pm. And I feel that day coming very soon.

Work = Happiness.

A Night at the Nats

Baseball is the American past-time, and I've loved it ever since I was a wee little lass. Being the first child, I may have had a slight advantage over my younger siblings in that my parents signed me up for everything. I did tap, ballet, gymnastics, swimming, soccer (bad experience, don't want to talk about it), basketball, golf camp, tennis camp, horse back riding camp...you get the picture. But some of my favorite childhood memories come from playing baseball with my dad, on a team, or a pick-up game with the other neighborhood kids.

When we were younger, my dad would take my brother and I to the Kingdome in Seattle to see the Mariners play. It was an absolute treat. I remember buying peanuts from street vendors to take inside, sitting way out in the out-field, and loving every minute of the game.

This past week i was reminded again how much I love baseball games. My friend Heather invited me to go with her work to the Nationals game. I thought it was very fitting to see the American past-time in the nation's capital. My childhood memories flooded back, leaving me with an intense sense of nostalgia.

Even though I've lived all over the world (kinda), there really is no place like America. I am proud to be an American! And I'm proud to be an American who loves baseball!

Decisions, decisions...

I hate making decisions. It's true. In social situations like at a restaurant, I'm the person who likes to order last, so I can have the extra time to decide between the 3-5 items on the menu that sound equally great to me. The last time I was out with a friend, I think it took me 15 minutes to decide what kind of wrap I wanted (I was secretly happy that my friend was also having a hard time trying to decide what to eat).


Many would say that those decisions are pretty minor, and it's kinda pathetic that it takes me a while to come to a decision. On the other hand, I've been faced with some pretty major, life-altering decisions as of late. And that's when making a decision becomes absolute agony for me. I don't know why, but I can't seem to help it. Maybe it's because I have this fear of making the wrong choice.


I've always been the sort of person who likes to have life planned out. And I had a plan...up until college graduation. But ever since then my future has been gapingly wide open. Frightening.


What to do? Grad school? Peace Corp? Foreign Service? Become an expert bagger slashy grocer at TJs? Become an administrative assistant, and waste away countless hours in front of a computer searching the web in between making copies, answering phones, and running random errands? Tempting, but no.


After many anxiety-ridden sleepless nights, and countless hours of prayer, I've finally decided what I'm going to do...

I'm moving back to Taiwan!

Back to Berhan, back to my amazingly cute kids.


"But you just got back!" you may say. It's true. I did. But it feels right. It is right.


The Lord works in mysterious ways, and through my experience here in DC I've learned how the Lord is acutely aware of me and my situation. Honestly, it would have been so much easier if He had told me what to do, but I've learned that's not His way.

Decision making is a blessing, even though it may seem like a blessing in deep, undercover disguise.

Heavenly...

I've had the opportunity to go to the Washington DC Temple quite a few times in the last month, and just so happened to be there this Tuesday night. The Temple has always been a place of peace, a place where I can receive answers to my prayers, a place where I overwhelmingly feel the love of my Heavenly Father. It has truly been a blessing in my life!

We've had gorgeous weather in DC the past week or so, and I thought I'd take the opportunity to try to capture this glorious place. My camera just doesn't do it justice! If you're ever in the DC area, go see the Temple. It's truly amazing.

Summer in Essence

We Summer, Wolfgang Tillmans, 2004

Ever since my eyes first laid upon the prints of Wolfgang Tillmans during his show at The Hirshorn Museum the summer of 2007, I knew I was in love. Since then, Tillmans has become my absolute favorite photographer. His unique, introspective works of art question the traditional meaning of landscape, and captures what it means and how it feels to live in today's world.

We Summer, 2004, is my favorite. To me, it captures the essence of summer. I love the way the bubbles abstract the light, and give life to the scene. I love the energy, the color, the light.

I don't know if it is because Tillmans reminds me of my summer in DC as an intern, or if it's because I somehow link him in my mind to one of my favorite groups--Bloc Party (I think is the whole German/Eastern Europe connection)--but his art speaks to me. The method and the meaning behind his art is something I hope to someday possess.

Wolfgang Tillmans--BRILLIANT I say!

I'm in Love!

I'm in love...with a shoe. And I'm so excited that it's finally warm enough that my good ol' Chacos can come out to play. I was getting worried that my Chaco tan line would disappear before I could wear them again. But that is not the case!

I've had friends rave and rave about Chacos, so when I originally decided to go to Taiwan, I figured they were worth checking out. My friend Elise and I spent what felt like hours in shoe store (she was checking out Keens) agonizing over style, color, and fit. I finally decided on the black beauties, and am so glad that I did.

My first experience wearing my Chacos was here:

Arches National Park in Moab. My two roommates wore theirs, so I figured it was a good place to break them in. Umm, not so much. They gave me blisters at first, so I had to ease my way into wearing them.

But once I flew over the great big pond (considerably larger than the one between New York and London), we could not be separated. Not only did they accompany me in the classroom, but on many exciting adventures across Taiwan and Thailand.

Amazing dirt/ tan line from Chacos. First day of Trek in Thailand

All in all Chacos are pretty much amazing, and if you haven't given them a try, you really should. You'll love them as much as I do.

Check, Check

Ever since the start of the new year, I've been meaning to set some new goals for myself. But in the craziness of returning to the States and then moving to DC, I haven't made the time to reflect on what I now want out of life.

My senior year of high school, right before I began the new and exciting world of college, I sat down and made a list of about 20 things I wanted to accomplish in my life. They weren't all life goals, but some were. Others were things I wanted to do while at BYU. Last night I took a look at this list, and realized that there were only few left. That means I really needed to write a new list.

And so I did...and here it is:

What I Want to Accomplish in My Life--a list of sorts

1. Get married in the Temple


2. Have a family


3. get a TESOL certificate and teach ESL


4. take the foreign service exam


5. brush up on my Czech and French


6. learn Chinese


7. run a half marathon


8. run a marathon


9. visit my mission


10. work for a non-profit or begin my own


11. have a savings


12. go to hair school


13. travel to Jerusalem


14. see Petra


15. see the Taj Mahal


16. see the Great Wall of China


17. get out of debt.

And that's my newly updated list. Hopefully I'll be able to check off some of those things soon! Goals are exciting, and I'm feeling more hopeful about my future in general. It's not like I haven't had an exciting life thus far, so I'm sure that I'm bound to have a few adventures in my future!

P.S. Look what I'm wearing today!!!

I'm wearing shorts!!! That means winter is no longer here. Huzzah!!!