Gratitude

In honor of the approaching holiday, I thought I'd share a few things that I'm grateful for.

1. Good literature, like the Alchemist, that inspire me and get me really thinking about life's journey.

2. Lovely sisters - and in-laws - that I share my hopes, dreams, and silly stories with.

3. My mother - who is always there - for the good and for the bad and who finally has a cell phone so that I can reach her anytime of day or night.

4. The magic of the first good snow of the season.

5. The last brightly colored leaf to fall from the tree.

6. My job - I may not love it, but it's a good starter job and helps me to provide for myself.

7. My beautiful little car :)

8. Besides the above mentioned people, family members in general and bffs like Natausha make life great.

9. I'm grateful for pictures - they have the power to preserve memories, feelings, events, etc. I looked through some pictures today and was flooded with memories - tears and laughter - and all the great feelings of life.

10. I am grateful for heartbreak (not that I want it all the time. I would actually be happy to never experience it again.) However, I was thinking the other day about what a beautiful thing it is to hurt that deeply because that hurt is a reflection of how much we are capable of caring and loving someone and that's a pretty miraculous thing.

11. I'm grateful that I have the power to make my dreams come true.

12. I'm definitely grateful for my life and my beliefs.

13. I'm grateful for Frozen Yogurt (especially the kind in Provo that is extremely reasonably priced and I get to buy it by ounce and add as many toppings as I want).

14. I'm grateful for the dreams of foreign lands and cultures and that I can plan lots of imaginary vacations that I hope will one day stop being imaginary.

15. Despite my country's imperfections, I am very grateful to live in the U.S!!!

16. I'm grateful for songs that perfectly express my feelings.

17. I'm grateful that I got to travel to Plymouth and the Mayflower and recreate the first Thanksgiving in my mind in the place that those first pilgrims came.

This list could go on and on. It's just a start of what I'm grateful for this Thanksgiving!

Today

I just want to giggle like a school girl. It's a lovely day.

Que Sera, Sera...

Jen sent this to me and I figured, why not answer it...



1. Were you named after anyone? I think Rebekah in the Bible.

2. When was the last time you cried? I don't think I've cried since Halloween - when I moved from Provo, haha.

3. Do you like your handwriting? Yeah, I think it does the job and I can write incredibly small.

4. What is your favorite lunch meat? Depends on the day - anything that's deli fresh.

5. Do you have kids? Obviously not.

6. If you were another person, would you be friends with you? Sure, I like me.

7. Do you use sarcasm a lot? Never does a sarcastic word slip from my mouth.

8. Do you still have your tonsils? Yes, unless they were removed without someone telling me.

9. Would you bungee jump? Probably not, but then again I didn't think I'd do the human slingshot up Hobble Creek either. Check it out on You Tube. It was awesome!

10. What is your favorite cereal? Quaker Cinnamon Oatmeal Squares (and it makes the best milk!)

11. Do you untie your shoes? Except for my running shoes, I don't have any with laces...

12. Do you think your strong? The arm I hold up the blow dryer with is pretty tough :)

13. What is your favorite ice cream? I almost never crave or want ice cream. The end.

14. First thing you notice about people? their personality? or their dreamy smile and look in their eyes (which is sometimes creepy)

15. Red or Pink? I own considerably more pink.

16. Least favorite thing about yourself? Sometimes I'm shy.

17. Who do you miss the most? It'd be nice if Natausha, my side kick, were here... but I still talk to her about 3 times a day, at least.

18. What color shoes are you wearing? Old black (with some dust on them) flats. I'm not a shoe person.

19. What was the last thing you ate? A rolo.

20. What are you listening to right now? The Christmas music coming out of my coworkers cubicle.

21. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Purple!

22. Favorite smells? Crisp fall air with the scent of bread or pumpkin spice, vanilla, etc. candles.

23. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Natausha

24. Favorite sports to watch? I watch sports for the social scene...so whichever sport has the best people watching it.

25. Hair Color and Eye Color? Brown and Hazel.

26. Favorite Food? Mexican American Food or Shrimp.

27. Scary movies or happy endings? Hello -happy endings.

28. What color of shirt are you wearing? Pink

29. Last movie you watched? The Proposal (no worries, I closed my eyes during the inappropriate scene)

30. Hugs or kisses? Depends on whose giving them.

31. What book are you reading right now? Land of a Thousand Hills by Rosamond Carr

32. What'd you watch on TV last night? There's not even a TV in my apt.

33. Farthest you've been from home? Chile

34. Are you bored at work? Um, YES! That's what I spent so much time doing this.

Burning the Midnight Oil

There are so many useful phrases that I think we should reincorporate into our language - or I think Cheri should write a song entitled, Burning the Midnight Oil. Wouldn't that be terrific?!?

There was a point to this post before I got distracted by old idioms.

Last night on my date, somewhere towards the beginning of the night, he asked me, "So Becky, what do you like to do?" Naturally I started to respond, but within 2 or 3 sentences (before I had even mentioned one thing that I like to do) I was distracted by something else and my mind hopped to another topic. About an hour later, after discussing various other topics, he said, "Wait, you never told me what you like to do." So, I again started down the path that would lead to that answer, but alas, again I got sidetracked and didn't answer the question. (Atleast we had good converstation even if it wasn't the answer to the question.) The 3rd time, about another hour later, the topic was brought up, and I made a concerted effort to answer the question, to which I succeeded.

I chuckled and explained to the poor bloke that that's how we communicate in my family. In order to answer one question or tell one story, we must discuss every other possible topic first - normally for a quite extended amount of time. I guess I am like my family after all.

P.S.

I love this cold time of year! I get to sip hot chocolate all the time. I even went to Starbucks for the first time and had the most delicious Peppermint Hot Chocolate with Cream. I highly recommend it!! I also recommend Village Inn or 7-11 or Stephens.

Hot Chocolate makes me happy!

So do scarfs and hats.

Rosy Cheeks.

The soon to be hung Christmas lights.

The already playing Christmas music (yes, that's right, I like it BEFORE Thanksgiving).

Singing the songs from Mickey's Christmas Carol or Alabama Christmas favorites.

etc.

An Eventful Sunday.

Let me tell you about today.
First, I think winter is going to be brutal. Don't get me wrong - I HEART the snow, but it was so stinkin' cold today and it was only like 32ish. I'm going to have to start layering and layering, expect at work where the office temp hovers around 84 by the end of the day and I feel like I'm back in Ecuador.
It was another happy Sunday.
Church was amazing today and I got a calling - Activities Committee. This is officially (well except for that one month stint as Gospel Doctrine Teacher) that I've had a calling outside of Relief Society - ever. Bishop said it's good for me to have a calling with some men and mix it up. I like my new Bishop. He's quiet and a little shy and doesn't really know how to always phrase things or ask things, but he cares and wants to know. It was funny as he tried to so delicately ask if I am dating someone. There were some amazing talks in Sacrament Meeting and there are lots of familiar, friendly faces at church.
I have a week lined up with plenty of social engagements :) It turns out that I can still flirt! I'm pleased needless to say.
The day was busy after church with a dinner group, a friendly boy who stopped by to bring me Argentine goodies, a fireside, ward prayer, another little activity with another boy. I like having things to do constantly at my disposal. It's so relieving!
Salt Lake captures me more and more everyday. Thank you Salt Lake!
For anyone who's ever felt lost before, you know how relieving it is to again be found.
I made some new friends.
I am getting familiar with this place.
I was in Provo over the weekend and although it was good to see some faces, my decision to move really was right!
This was a good start to a new week.

Who got bitten by the happy bug?

So I must confess.
All of those close to me knew that the month of October was one of the low-points of my life with tears everyday and an unrelenting feeling of frustration. Now, that is quite atypical. I am a happy, jovial, silly person and I do not like being down. It was a whole month, at least, of that feeling so it couldn't even be blamed on womanly fluctuations ;)
However, I must say that November is looking up. I have returned to being me! It just goes to show that when you're where you're supposed to be, things feel better and work out much better.
Where am I supposed to be?
That's easy - Salt Lake City.
Despite my concern and need to lose some of my Provo Pride, Salt Lake has pleasantly surprised me. I often feel like I moved to the big city from a small little community. There are so many big buildings and streets lined with restaurants. There's quite a smattering of different cultures and ethnicities, and there is most definitely more SMOKE in the air in Salt Lake. (That part I'd be happy to do without.)
It turns out that no matter how much I love Provo, it's not the best place for a 25 year old single BYU graduate who works in Salt Lake.
SLC is accompanied by a multitude of post-graduate, mid-20 year old Mormons. There's an institute that is full of activities and is such a great place to meet new people. There are older wards where many of you are in the same shoes. It's such a relieve! I love being 25...on the verge of 26... I think it's a fantastic age, but it turns out that Provo is not the best place to be in that stage.
I guess I knew that I didn't belong in Provo before I even signed another year contract in Provo, but I didn't want to move on account of great roommates and other positive situations. It goes to show that even though change can be difficult and not always exactly as you want it, that there is divine purpose in change. I knew that I needed to leave, but couldn't get myself to bid farewell. So because I refused to move, I had to suffer until I was willing to make the change.
I am glad that I have now. I can still have friends in Provo, but I can also enjoy the new adventure of life in the big city....Salt Lake.
It's no NYC, that's true, but it has its excitement. Everything here is new to me.
Running is a beast because we live on the side of the mountain so everywhere I attempt to run I have some SERIOUS hills, but at least they are accompanied by beautiful old houses and narrow oak lined streets that are covered by the fallen yellow leaves.
I can run to Temple Square from where I live - love it.
People in my ward have been exceedingly nice and I'm finding it so easy to meet new people here. I love being new because it forces me to step out of my box and I do so much better when I'm alone in a whole new place.
I am back to a shared room, but I have an amazing roommate which I'm so grateful for! Her favorite show is Gilmore Girls - which we happily watch together. And, she even goes to bed earlier than me. It's a miracle!
Work still has it's ups and downs and there's a lot that I want to change about it, but I am making friends which makes the 40 hours of work a little bit better.
So, I'm feeling better. I'm feeling happy. Life is good and I'm going to try to keep it that way.