updates in pictures

midway, utah.  love the snowy mountains.


possibly my favorite new ice cream flavor.  mostly for the name?  yes.


some leftover birthday cake.


my new nigh-night land.


the bedspread detail

well that's all for now, but as always, you can check out fritz's work on my flickr.

no. 10

sound of silence - another one of my favorites.  i love the intro in the music...

" 'Fools,' said I, 'you do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you'
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells of silence"

full lyrics here.  music video here.  an excellent cover by l. cohen here. photo here.

just some updates:

so, i finally made it to america.  cue cheering crowd.  unfortunately, though i flew into houston, TX before continuing to utah.  not like texas is bad or anything, it was just a major culture shock for me.  imagine going from seeing girls in oxfords and skirts to track suits and 4-inch heels- and yes, i saw that.  but now that the culture shock is wearing off, i'm realizing how much i've missed america.  i miss driving, the mountains, the current- a radio station-, and not being aware of how i use different words or how i talk differently.  it's nice to be back, to be able to see family and friends.  yay!

katherine helped me move into my apartment yesterday.  we ran errands all day.  (literally all day.  we left our cabin in midway by 10 and we didn't finish moving me in until past 9.)  my apartment is a little... dirty, falling apart... but it's great. 

today, i start classes.  tuesdays and thursdays are my longest days.  i have three classes today- starting at noon and ending by 6:30.  but the rest of the week, i only have one class at two, so that's nice. 

maybe i'll wander around provo this week to take some photos of my new neighborhood.  stay tunned for that.

an education

i've been wanting to see this film for such a long time.  i adore carey mulligan.  she makes me want to cut my hair again, to the REALLY short length.  i've heard such great things about it- the film.  i mean, rotten tomatoes gave is a 94%, so that's something.

i thought it was so lovely.  the filming, the costumes, the music.  all of it.  my only problem with the film was that the main girl- jenny- blames everyone around her for her mistakes.  she blames her parents for "pushing" her to make the mistakes she made, even though she's the one that made them... but she was only 17, so that's understandable. 

here are a couple of lovely shots from the film.

no. 9

mrs. robinson- another one of the s & g classics

"Hide it in a hiding place where no one ever goes
Put it in your pantry with your cupcakes
It's a little secret, just the Robinsons' affair

Most of all you've got to hide it from the kids"

full lyrics here.  music video here.  photo here.

no. 8

7 o'clock news/ silent night (one of my personal favorites)

"In Washington the atmosphere was tense today as a special subcommittee of the
House Committee on Un-American activities continued it's probe into anti-Vietnam war protests.
Demonstrators were forcibly evicted from the hearings when they began chanting
anti-war slogans."

full lyrics here.  music video here.  picture here.

learning lessons

this past few days, i've learned quite a lot about myself:  i am not a positive thinker.  i like being in control/ i hate it when things are out of my control.

it's all across the news that volcanic ash has completely shut down europe for the past few days.  yeah.  sounds terrible.  i don't think people really understand how terrible the situation is unless they live through it.  i'm living through it.  i was supposed to arrive in DC yesterday.  that plan was shot down  when volcanic ash prevented any flights from getting into london.  so we rescheduled.  i was supposed to leave tomorrow morning, but the wind continues to blow ash over europe, so that plan fell through.  so, we rescheduled.  now, i fly out weds- fingers crossed.

i was supposed to spend this week with my sisters in DC.  now, i won't get there until weds and i will have to fly out to utah on friday.  that gives me a lovely two days to spend with my sister.  TWO instead of SEVEN.  see why i'm frustrated?

no. 7

america - today, i head back to the states... so i thought that this song would be very appropriate.

"Let us be lovers we'll marry our fortunes together"
"I've got some real estate here in my bag"
So we bought a pack of cigarettes and Mrs. Wagner pies
And we walked off to look for America"

full lyrics here.  music video here.  photos here and here.

finally...

i finally got a pair of wellies.  (yes, just a couple of days before leaving london.)  but i love them.  of course i bought hunters because they are the classic wellie of england- and both the queen and the duke of edinburgh put their little stamp of approval on these babies. 

now, i really want rain.  and lots of it!

no. 6

bridge over troubled water (i know.  way cheesy, but still such a beautiful song- and sometimes that little reassurance is just what you need.)



"When you're weary
Feeling small
When tears are in your eyes
I will dry them all
I'm on your side
When times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water"

full lyrics here.  music video here. 

probably the best book of our day

yes, that is a grand statement, but it's so true.

my interest was sparked a few months back, when i read ahlin's recomendation.  the book is "the history of love"  by nicole krauss.  i started reading it a few weeks back, and i just finished.  and man, did i love it.

this book is fiction, but at the same time it isn't.  it's a memoir of all of our lives.   it's prose, but also verse.  it's so simple that it is realistic:  the emotions, the characters, the situations, everything.

go out.  find this book.  and read it.  if you regret your choice, i will personally bake you cookies.

also, ahlin, remind me that i owe you a batch of cookies- for introducing this book to me!

my week

so this week i was all alone as my family is out in spain.  boo-hoo for me!  but i had a surprisingly fun time.

the weather here in london really cleaned up nicely.  i took the dogs for long walks in the park accompanied by fritz.  (check out my flickr for pics of london in springtime) man, i'm going to miss hyde park... and my puppies.  but i didn't even have to wear a coat out.  it was fantastic!  i love spring.

i watched a few movies: up and adam.  i liked both.  but i don't think up is a kid's show.  i thought the theme with the grumpy ol' man was too emotional and too "grown-up" for young children to understand.  adam was a fantastic movie.  when it first ended, i didn't really know what to think, but i did really like it- after i thought about it.

i bought flowers to cheer me up- as i was home, alone, for a full week.  and as i sat in the room with my daisies, their fragrance made me light headed.  oh, dear.  but they did make me happier.  i also have daffodils up in my bathroom.

i don't really mind spending the day all by myself, but at night, i don't like being alone in a big house.  thank goodness my puppies sleep with me, or i'd freak myself out, WAY too much, especially when my radiator makes scary noises!

as for this next week.  it's my last week.  so, i have a bunch of packing and goodbye saying to do.  i head out for america a week from today.  (crazy!) i'll spend a week with my lovely sisters laura and ruth out in DC.  and then i fly to lovely utah.  (yes, there was sarcasm in that statement.)  and i get to go out to school!  i honestly miss the class room enviornment.  after two years of doing self-education (aka online courses)  i will be so relieved to have someone teach me! 

hope you dear readers have an amazing weekend!  enjoy the sunshine- if you've got it- and look forward to the sun if you don't have it!

happy birthday, mum!

today is my mother's birthday.  she is such an amazing person, and i am so happy that she's my mother.  i really love her.  so, my dear mother, i love you and have an amazing birthday! ps.  isn't she just lovely?

no. 5

i am a rock

"I have my books
And my poetry to protect me;
I am shielded in my armor,
Hiding in my room, safe within my womb.
I touch no one and no one touches me.
I am a rock,
I am an island."

full lyrics here.  music video here. image found here.

style jealousy

man, i wish i was this girl.  look how sweet she looks. image via the satorialist

what i watched this past weekend...

i would like to start off by explaining that i am home alone, my family is in spain,  all of my friends over here are either ill or have gone home to visit their families... so, i've been watching plenty of stuff...

(click on the title to learn more)
someone like you: **** (it's good to be reminded that not all men are cows)
the wedding date: ** (did you realize that he only fell for her AFTER they slept together?)
the invention of lying: *** (since when was honesty and turrets synonymous)
fantastic mr. fox: ***** (i love literally EVERYTHING in this film.  if i could have a film describe my life, i would want it to be this one)
general conference: **************************(amazing.  these men and women are truly inspired)

another easter thought

i just read this article, and it answered many of my questions about why easter isn't a commercialized as christmas is.  read it.  it's very well done.

here's a little excerpt to wet your whistle:
"Even agnostics and atheists who don't accept Christ's divinity can accept the general outlines of the Christmas story with little danger to their worldview. But Easter demands a response. It's hard for a non-Christian believer to say, "Yes, I believe that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified, died, was buried, and rose from the dead." That's not something you can believe without some serious ramifications: If you believe that Jesus rose from the dead, this has profound implications for your spiritual and religious life—really, for your whole life. If you believe the story, then you believe that Jesus is God, or at least God's son. What he says about the world and the way we live in that world then has a real claim on you.
Easter is an event that demands a 'yes' or a 'no.' There is no 'whatever.'"

no. 4

homeward bound

"Homeward bound
I wish I was
Homeward bound
Home, where my thought's escaping
Home, where my music's playing
Home, where my love lies waiting
Silently for me"


full lyrics here.  music video here. image found here.

happy easter!

i know the symbolism of this day.  i know that three days earlier, Christ was taken, sentenced to death, bruised, broken, and killed on the cross- all part of a loving plan from His Father, so that you and i could be saved.  but that was three days ago.  let's talk about today.  today, He rose from the grave, triumphantly.  today, He beat death.  He lives, and because of that, He will never abandon us.  He will always be there for us.

this image comes from my trip two falls ago to the Holy Land.  this was taken at the garden tomb. 
this sign is just a simple reminder, but i love it.

just a few thoughts this easter.  have an amazing day!

no. 3

wednesday morning, 3 a.m

"My life seems unreal,
My crime an illusion,
A scene badly written
In which I must play.
Yet I know as I gaze
At my young love beside me,
The morning is just a few hours away."
full lyrics here music video here photo via flickr

the definition of pants

let me start by saying what pants aren't:  leggings, tights or sweaters. yes, i said sweaters.  i know you're thinking that i'm crazy, but i'm not half as crazy as these people:

yes, these people are wearing sweaters as legwear.  this photo is for real.. what is this world coming to?

image from here.