Oreo Dust

I'm looking at my fingers and they are covered in black speckles of Oreo dust. If we're going to do the messy hand thing, we might as well go down with the Oreos, right? I just ate a handful of Mini Oreos with a glass of milk in honor of the memory of our nightly ritual. I miss you girls so much!

I feel like such a blog hog, but I really wanted to blog today about what has been happening here. Today was my first day of work at an ad agency. Euro RSCG is my new home from 9-5 on the weekdays and so far it has been great! It is in an old building in downtown Portland -- an open space with unfinished brick walls, hardwood floors, the general industrial feel, and great art, awards, flashing neon lights, and random sculptures adorning the walls, ceilings, and everything inbetween. From what I've seen so far, the people are just as good as the design - some of the most friendly and down-to-earth people I've worked with. I had the lovely surprise of discovering that a lot of the people there are either from Utah or have lived in Utah. Which means many of them are LDS. There are many Cougars among us, which is always comforting. I've been assigned to help out on the Adobe account and the Barclays Global Investment account (with five point something trillion dollars of assets) and I think they will keep me busy. I also learned quite a bit about online advertising today and buying adwords. It's all quite fascinating. There is so much to learn after college. :)

I think I'm close to nailing down my housing in New York - finally! I found someone to live with and I think she'll be a great roommate, but just talking to her on the phone tonight made me miss you guys even more. What am I supposed to do when I haphazardly end up sitting next to he-who-shall-not-be named at FHE? Or I end up giving a ride home to a random strange boy who keeps telling me about the fantasy trilogy he's writing? Who can I tell? Who will understand? I honestly get so sad when I think of coming home to just be... home...with no laughter, no conversation, no quote board, no oreos.

On a happier note, I have a date with Christian on Saturday. Indian food and the symphony.

Four Weddings and a Bridal Shower

While all I was wishin’ and hopin’ for was a summer fling, it appears that several girls from my youth are getting exactly the thing that they have been pining for since the day they turned twelve. On Friday I attended a bridal shower for a girl that is in my home ward. She was recently enrolled in her first semester of college at BYU-Idaho during this past Winter semester. She and her fiancée dated for two long months before he felt it was time to propose. The date is set for July 8th, and she can hardly contain her excitement. Frankly, the whole situation makes me sick. I sat there and could barely stomach Katherine’s performance as she incessantly reminded us that she was getting married. Disgusting reiterations of “David - you know, my fiancée…” and “Well, you know...I wasn’t even looking for it [marriage]” made an already unpleasant situation completely insufferable. Women in our ward only encouraged her behavior with statements like, “Oh Katherine, I always knew you’d be the first to get married.” The whole thing was absolutely revolting. I already despise bridal showers, but I should have known this one was going to be intolerably nauseating. But I played along and was cordial and supportive about the whole thing. Although, guilt set in as I realized Katherine knew that in reality I was thinking how her engagement was absolutely ridiculous. This realization occurred while I was talking to her, and she randomly felt the need to justify her present situation, even though we weren’t even discussing her relationship with David. She even felt the need to oddly preface her explanation in a way that made me realize she knew exactly what I was thinking, despite any type of supportive performance I gave. I made further efforts to congratulate her, but I still am struggling with the whole situation.

Our First News From Just North of the Rainbow Nation

I'm sure you all got this too, but here's the first email from Jo (and I picture I just found on google -- she'll have to tell us if it really looks like this when she gets back!):

Hey guys!
I just wanted to email everyone because I do not know when I will get the chance to send email again. We found this internet cafe in maputo that we can pay to go to. Things are going pretty well here, thought the conditions are pretty rough. It has been pretty warm for their fall season, and we just sweat a lot since it is so humid. Showers are cold, mosquitos are a plenty, lizards, frogs, cockroaches and many other unnamable insects are all around, we live in dirt and mud although we are in a town called machava and not out in the bush. The people are amazing and kind and happy, although so many of them live in such horrible conditions. We will probably start teaching on Monday. We came into the city today with about 60 people and a chicken on a bus that should have fit only about 20, but it was a definite adventure. The area is beautiful, especially the coast. They are working on building up the tourism here, and so they have a couple of nice hotels and things, but they are nowhere near where we are staying. There are so many things going on and different things to explain that I cannot take the time, but I just wanted to say hi and let you all know that I am here and safe and in Africa!!! I hope everything is ok at home and everything. I do not know when I will email again, but I am sure that we will try again in a while, so you can email me if you want and I might get it, but I might not respond personally because of time. Love you all!
Tchau
Joanna

MACHAVA

Hey ladies! I do not have any more time to say anything but that I am here in Mozambique and things are crazy but great! I love you all! Africa is beautiful!

Serendipity

I just finished watching Serendipity for the first time. I don't think I've ever been less fit for marriage than I am right now. I really wonder, though... I know that we make choices - our entire existence and progression thrives on that. But we also know through experiences we've had, personal and otherwise, that often there is a guiding power in the things that happen and the choices we make. Of course I don't write of destiny. I allude to nothing short Divinity. The quandary still puzzles me: which of our choices are entirely our own, and which do we have so little to do with, that we are merely acting out what was meant to be? And if it so seems that many experiences which are given heavenly credit are good ones, what is to be understood of the not so positive ones? Are we to take credit of all the plights that plague us? Or give the commendation for these great "learning experiences" to others that are involved? I suppose the solution to it all is to be grateful for whatever comes and learn what we can from it. Who thought that a romantic comedy would take me on such a journey of introspective philosophical thought?

I've been thinking about you girls a lot lately! I thought about you yesterday when I went to Ann Taylor to work on my New York wardrobe and needed some fashion consultants. I think of our dear Jo in faraway Africa learning clicking language and saying, "Oganawambula" when she can't think of anything else. I sure do think the world of you girls!

3 artists, 2 cds, 1 concert

Even though my visit home was meant to be restful, there haven't been five minutes of downtime yet. I woke up at 4:45 this morning, headed for the airport, and finally arrived at home around 7 pm. I jumped in the car with my friend, Mimsi and we headed to Jammin' Java for a great little concert in the smallest venue I've ever been to. I love it when it's so intimate like that. We sat at the front table and just soaked it all in as we absorbed the musical stylings of Landon Pigg, Ki Theory, and Lucas Reynolds (of Blue Merle). Lucas is a funny kid - he couldn't sit still. He's very into his music. While he played "Part of Your History," and "Lucky to Know You," I became very nostalgic. Perhaps my favorite of the night was Landon's "Can't Let Go." I'm sure you can imagine why it felt so relevant. You'll have to check him out.

So, it's midnight and I'm home. And hopefully tomorrow somewhere between the dentist, the haircut, the new guitar strings and the visit to my favorite high school teachers, I'll find some time to start breathing again.

I love you girls!

Campus Life

I'm glad to know I'm down. :)

As I arrived ten minutes late for class this morning, I realized that in my earlier years I would have been shocked by my tardy attendance. However, I don't even care now. Aren't all the mothers thrilled to hear about this new leaf I've turned? :) The old biddy has transformed into a school-weary senior--and I am enjoying the metamorphosis. I find myself comtemplating how little work I will have to do to still pass my classes. Surprisingly little. Someone should have filled me in about the slacker track a long time ago.

Everything feels too surreal right now. I drove down from my sister's this morning and haven't been back to the apartment yet. I'm too scared. Isn't that silly? I just don't want to return and find the shell of a place that once provided so much relief from the daily routine. I have to buy books still, and then I'll go "home," and I use the term loosely.

I laughed when I read Whitney's comments about how normal the people were at her "save the world" thing. I found it so amusing because I would have had the same reaction. I find it interesting that seemingly quiet, non-radical girls find so much intrigue in those who are radical and brash (to quote Seth). Do we want to be like them? I don't think so, but something about the personality attracts us. Kind of like my once obsession with skater boys.

For Sarah--I hope all is well in the real world. And I talked to he-who-shall-not-be-named's brother. So I'm a snoop! Anyway, she is not quite a girlfriend...just a girl. They are taking it VERY slowly. I don't know if that helps, but his next comment was, "He needs to figure out where he's going." I tried to pry more, but by that point the brother gathered why I cared.

Vomit

Yes, my subject line is vomit. As in, "I wanted to vomit when I heard that he was dating a girl in Utah who has a year left at BYU and he is visiting her this weekend."

Sound familiar?

Now - something to make you smile. Maybe.