Roomies!

I don't think I've really talked about my roommates yet, so I thought I'd fill you in. My roommate Sarah and I have been friends for a little while now. We met at BYU, she was good friends with my cousin Brooke. She's from L.A. and is out here going to school to become an even planner. She's so cute, fun, and the tall, beautiful blonde type. Kate Fujikawa is my other roommate and she is actually from San Diego. We were in the same stake, but didn't really know each other. She's so funny and has the greatest laugh ever. She works in a law office here and is preparing to take the lsat herself. Katie McKinney is our other roommate and she is darling. She's from Alabama and recently moved here to work as an instructor at the Paul Mitchell Hair School. Some of our good guy friends recommended that we try to live together and I' m so glad they did. She's got that southern accent and hospitality that I love.

So basically I am really lucky to have such great roommates. I can tell fun times are coming! Here are some pictures of us (minus Katie) at Kate's B-day celebration at the Love Cafe.

Don't ever hesitate!

So the other day I was riding the metro and I was just minding my own business, when I kept getting this feeling to give the Book of Mormon I was reading to the guy sitting next to me. I took a few minutes to think about what I would say and to get my nerve up. Well as I was doing this the man next to me starts to get up. I panicked because I knew I needed to give him this book. So I said, "Have you read this book before?". He said no and I quickly asked him if he would like to. He said yes with a big smile as I handed him the book. He got off the train seconds later. Whew! I almost missed my chance because I hesitated. Since this experience I can't stop thinking about what things I've missed because I've hesitated. I certainly could have given him a better introduction to the Book of Mormon and even helped him feel the Spirit. I'm sure I've missed many other opportunities to share what I believe because I have hesitated. What friends or guys have I passed up? What new experiences or adventures did I hesitate on that could have been great? How much money have I lost on plane tickets because I was worried and so I procrastinated? (Thanksgiving)

It's something to think about: what have I missed because I've hesitated? Well I submit that we just don't hesitate. We should jump at opportunities to open our mouths, experience new adventures and learn new things. I'm in if you're in!

Updates

Hello everyone! Sorry I told you I would not be very good at keeping up on this blog. Life is good though and I thought I should let you know. I found a place to live! Yahoo! I am living with 3 other darling girls in a cute duplex. I live about two blocks from where I used to live. It's such a great location. We are two blocks from the metro, 1 block from the mall, great restaurants, etc. And I finally have my own room! Yes, I have officially upgraded to a big girl room, I even got a big girl bed (no more twins for me!). There is a darling yard and plenty of space on the main floor with a kitchen, dining room, family room, and sun room. It's so nice not to be homeless anymore.

Speaking of being a big girl.... I bought a car. Yep, a 2000 silver Honda CRV. It was a great deal and in great condition. So now I'm a car owner. No more depending on everyone else, riding the metro everywhere, struggling to carry my groceries home, etc. It's a great feeling.

My job is going well also. I am starting to pick up more and more responsibility and learning a lot. I am healthy and happy. So what else can you ask for? I hope all of you are doing well also. I will add pictures of my house and car soon.

Being Home

So being back from the Philippines has been different than I expected. I returned a few weeks ago and still am totally out of it. I spent the first week and a half just trying to catch up on my sleep and convert my time clock to the proper time. I spent a lot of time searching for jobs and housing (I’m trying to be grown up). I just feel so far removed from my life here in DC. I don’t have a place to live, I don’t see the same friends, etc. I just feel different and my perspective is different. I wish that I could explain it better, but I just can’t.

Last week I went to California to visit my family and just relax. It was so great! I spent almost a week at a cabin in Lake Tahoe. It is such a beautiful place and I have so many great childhood memories there. I met my cousins and my parents there. It was so fun to water ski, swim, play tennis, go on bike rides, etc. I just love it there and I love being able to be with my family even more.

I even got to spent a couple days with my sister and play with my nieces a little. I sure missed them!

While I was at Lake Tahoe I actually got a job offer and I accepted. I am working for JBS International. We run the Child Welfare reviews in each state for the Federal Government. It will be great to be a part of conducting and analyzing the reviews. I will also gain a great perspective of how the Child Welfare System is working on so many different levels. I feel very lucky to have gotten a job so quickly. I'm actually still a little shocked at how quickly it all occurred, I thought I would be interviewing for weeks and weeks.

So even though I don't have as many exciting things to report, I will do my best to keep you all updated on my life.

Goodbye Philippines

Jeanette and I took our final trip of the Philippines to Boracay. It is a small island with beautiful beaches. We spent the entire time laying out on the beach, drinking mango shakes, reading, and sleeping. It was a great relaxing time! Honestly it was so nice just to be able to do whatever we wanted whenever we wanted. I love those kinds of vacations.

It is sad to say but my time in the Philippines has ended. I arrived in the States just a few days ago. I am still working on trying to catch up on my sleep and adjust to life. There is much to do in order to find a job and a place to live. I had a great time in the Philippines; I experienced and learned so much there. I hope to never forget those lessons and amazing memories I shared there. Thanks to all who made it possible and for all of those that made it fun while I was there.

I'm off again

I know I just returned from Thailand, but I am off again for another trip. We are headed to the island of Boracay for some R & R on the beach. I will be gone for about 5 days. Take care while I'm gone. I'll be thinking about you while laying on the beach sipping on my mango shake.

Thailand

You must beware that this could possibly be the longest blog entry you have ever seen in your life. I am going to attempt to capture the last four AMAZING days I spent in Thailand. I have added more pictures to “My Pictures” as well for you to see. Perhaps they will do better justice portraying the beauty of what I saw.

Day 1:
We arrived at 3:00 in the morning to Bangkok. We had hired someone associated with our hotel to pick us up so we didn’t have to worry about anything at that hour. Well he pulls over on a street in the middle of Bangkok and says I can’t go any farther, but your hotel is that way. Ahh! So we walked aimlessly through dark alleys and past drunk people up and down the streets until we finally found our hotel. I kept thinking to myself, “what I am I doing?” It certainly was scary at the time, but funny now that I think about it. We stayed in a hotel on Khao San Road which is known as Backpacker Road. There are tons of foreigners that stay on that road when in Bangkok. It was amazing to me how many people were still out and about at 3:00 in the morning. We took a few hours of sleep and then headed off for some adventures. We took a two hour train ride out to Ayuthaya which is the ancient capital city of Thailand. Our train ride was fun. The man next to Jeanette kept talking to her and laughing, thinking she knew what he was saying. We were all cracking up because we had no idea what he was saying to her in Thai. Ayuthaya is really beautiful. There are old Buddhist Temples and Chedi’s (pointy pillar-like structures) all over. It was really neat to see the worn down architecture and the different representations of Buddha. We even got to ride elephants. Yep! We road huge elephants through the ancient capital city of Thailand, no big deal. Just kidding, it was a big deal, it was so cool. Unfortunately they have turned everything into tourist sites, so it’s not as exotic as it sounds, but still pretty cool. Then we ate a great Thai meal on a floating restaurant on the river before returning back to Bangkok. So in Thailand a popular mode of transportation is the Tuk Tuk. They are basically three wheelers that have been converted into little truck-like things. They target tourists around and of course tourists love them because they are cheap and fun. The catch is the tuk tuk driver will take you wherever you want to go, if you will go to a store and look around so they get a gas voucher. The local gem stores, clothing factories, and handicraft shops offer Tuk Tuk drivers vouchers if they bring tourists in to their stores. It’s a clever strategy, but kind of funny. That’s not the only funny things about Tuk Tuks, they tend to drive out of control. They drive so fast, dodging cars, and driving on the opposite side of the road when there is too much traffic. It’s really fun/funny! Every time we road one during our stay in Bangkok I just cracked up the whole time. Well our Tuk Tuk driver this night was by far the best. He paid no attention to the traffic signals, other cars, etc. Every time we were stopped and the light changed he popped a wheelie because he was taking off so fast. Oh man, it was too funny! You gotta love the Tuk Tuks. Day 2:
We woke up early and headed out of Bangkok to the famous floating market. There is the cutest little town with water canals instead of roads. On several of the canals there is what is called the floating market. Boats with various food items, clothing, etc travel up and down the canal selling their items to other boats passing by. It is really neat to see all the vendors passing up and down the canal. I had the most amazing coconut pancakes off one of the boats, oh man they were good. Later that day we went to the weekend market in Bangkok. It was so cool to see all the different vendors with the Thai souvenirs and beautiful handicrafts. This market is enormous, it is said that if you were to walk 8 hours a day for two months straight you would still not make it through the entire market. Yeah, it’s that big! I bought lots of cool Thai silk pillow cases and other fun stuff. I may have gone a little overboard on the purchases, but oh well.
That night we went to dinner and did lots of people watching. It really is so interesting watching all the people interact with each other and the hustle and bustle of the food and clothing vendors lining the streets. I also bought my first personally tailored, handmade suit. Yep, I’ve officially grown up! You can get business suits made really cheap in Thailand and since I will be looking for a job, I decided it to take advantage of it. I really struggled deciding though, I guess I just wasn’t ready to make such a grown up purchase, but I did, and it’s a beautiful suit.

Day 3:
This day was one of our Temple days. There are over 440 Buddhist temples in Bangkok. All of which are decorated with such beautiful, extravagant details. It really is indescribable how ornate these buildings are. It was a Buddhist holiday and so there were many people at the various temples worshiping. I’m not sure of the symbolism of all of it, but people were praying at the feet of Buddha, lighting candles and incense, laying flowers and leis on various statues and figures, placing coins in special buckets, and donating items to the monks.

We saw the Standing Buddha (which is huge), the Lucky Buddha (which was one of my favorites, this is where many people go to get married) and then we went to the Marble Temple which houses the Black Buddha. There were about 30 different representations and poses of the Black Buddha surrounding this temple.
Then we went to the Golden Mountain. It too is a place of worship, built in the shape of a mountain that overlooks the city of Bangkok. We spent the evening at the night Bazaar in the city. I can’t even adequately explain the good food of Thailand available. I was in complete heaven smelling and tasting everything, especially the Kiwi shakes. This bazaar seemed to be more of a trendy market, there were local designers and artists selling the most beautiful clothing and art work. I may have spent a little too much here too.
Day 4:
We started off our day going to the Jim Thompson House. Jim Thompson was an American that helped to revive the silk industry in Thailand years ago. He is famous for his work in Thailand and all over the world now. His home was a beautiful traditional Thai home with amazing Asian art throughout.
We then went to the Wat Phra Kaew and the Grand Palace. The Wat Phra Kaew is the largest and most ornate temple we saw by far. There were several different buildings and statues throughout the grounds of the temple. Inside the temple there is the famous Emerald Buddha; which isn’t really made of Emerald, but of Jade. Anyway this where many important religious ceremonies and events occur. It is also the temple where the King and his family go for worship. The Grand Palace is on the same grounds and was the residence of the royal family. One thing I really loved about Thailand is how proud the people seem to be of their country and especially their king.
The last temple we saw was the Wat Pho which houses the Reclining Buddha. The Reclining Buddha is absolutely huge and made of gold. You can’t really comprehend how beautiful these temples and various Buddhas are until you see them in person. Every inch of the temple walls were covered in gorgeous murals. As we were walking around the grounds we saw many of the monks heading for the temples. You see this night marks the end of the Buddhist holiday and the monks head into the temples to stay for three months of fasting and meditation. They do not leave the temples and only eat once a day for three months. It was very humbling to see these dedicated men seeking enlightenment head into the temples.
That concludes my amazing trip to Thailand. I saw so many different things while I was there, all of which I cannot describe in this blog. The colors, the feelings, and the smells cannot possibly be captured.