Five Fast...Things I Love

1. Argan oil. My hair is blonde, (naturally brown, so very bleached) AND I live in a very, very windy area. Argan oil is SAVING it from being totally dry and destroyed! I use 100% pure argan oil from Julep, and it is excellent. I just towel-dry my hair so it's damp, then pour a SMALL amount (less than dime-sized) into my hand, rub my hands together, and finger it through my hair, especially on the ends. If you put a bit too much on your roots, just lightly dust them with translucent facial powder. BUT the argan oil absorbs nicely overnight, so wait til morning to see if you added too much. It's a very forgiving oil, and is wonderful to massage into your nails and hands when you're done!

2. doTERRA diffuser (you put water with a few drops of essential oils in it, then it diffuses the water into the room!) http://www.doterra.myvoffice.com/janetcarpenter1/

3. American Eagle jeans. After 2 months of Nutrisystem, I've dropped 2 pant sizes, so...oh darn, I have to buy more. American Eagle jeans are ALL I wear, I love them, they are so consistent in their sizing, and they last for soo long. And they're cheap!! $40 for jeans that will literally last me years if I stay the same size? Yes please! And there's always clearance sales online. If I wait for a percentage-off coupon, I can usually get jeans for $20 with free shipping.

4. My roommates! They're awesome, nice AND clean!

5. The psychology major! While cognition is more science-oriented (and thus, more difficult for ADD me to concentrate), it's still interesting. I love my History of psych class though and ethics because the discussion is so thought-provoking. I'm finally developing a proper vocabulary for psychological processes and situations that I've been thinking about for years!

First Day Lessons at BYU-Idaho

Here's what I learned in my first day attending BYU-Idaho in Rexburg.

1. Guys who wear v-neck t-shirts ought to be treated with caution. Especially if their shirt is a size too small.

2. They weren't kidding about the wind. Wind makes ears hurt.

3. There's an orchard, like, with trees, on the south end of campus.

4. People are really smiley here.

5. It's a much more pleasant walk to campus than BYU-Provo. No massive hill to scale by south-of-campus residents.

6. The Ricks building pathways are hidden. HIDDEN. You can see the building, but you can't get there quite so easily. There's a shortcut across the grass next to a greenhouse. But I don't think it's a real shortcut cause everyone who took it glanced around furtively. There's a hidden path from the back of a parking lot next to it though.

7. You can park anywhere that normally requires a permit after 4pm, which is nice for evening classes. I took advantage.

8. An excellent way to spend the time with new roommates is swapping old roommate horror stories.

9. The Dollar Tree (next to Kmart) has wall decals. Perfect for a white, unblemished apartment room.

10. I'm now one of those people who change their outfit 3 times a day. It's fun, no complaints.

Julep Spring Mystery Box!

Okay, so I love doing my nails, and my new vice is Julep, basically a monthly nail color club. They are super nice, and while the website is confusing sometimes, customer service is fantastic. It's a subscription service like ShoeDazzle or JewelMint, and is $19.99 for 2 nail polishes+a personal care product, or there's one box that offers 3 nail polishes and no product. I've only done one monthly thing, but they have an excellent deal called "mystery boxes" quite often, and they are SO WORTH IT. The mystery boxes cost $19.99 if you have the email code (they show up as $60 in the cart), with free shipping if you're already a "maven," or monthly subscriber, and are guaranteed to be worth at least $60. Why WOULDN'T you do these? I love being surprised, and I rarely NEED a specific nail color, so this is a great way to build up my collection. I did the St. Patrick's Day one last month, and I forgot to take a picture but I got 5 nail polishes, a base coat, hand & nail scrub, an anti-aging cream, and I think a few more things. It was awesome, and I thought I'd really scored.

Then......

I got the Spring Mystery Box.

It arrived today, fast. Julep is based in Seattle, and I live in Spokane, so it only too 2 days to arrive. The first thing I pulled out was...a $120 gift certificate. O.MG. I heard the Price Is Right crowd cheering in my head as I stared at it. It was pretty freakin awesome. After that, I was pretty okay with WHATEVER ELSE was in the box, but kept getting better. I got the top coat, which was sweet, since I love having matching top and base coats (did I mention I like doing my nails?). I also got the argan oil elixir, and the nail growth revitalizing serum, both of which I was hoping I would get! The nail polish colors I got are Melissa, Blake (so pretty), January (I needed a new red!) and Alicia (which I think I might already have, but I'm not complaining!)

Overall, this was an INCREDIBLE mystery box, let alone that it was only $19.99! I'm definitely doing these regularly. Plus, it's so fun wondering what I'll get! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to spend my $120!!!

Five (more) Fast Findings

Okay so maybe I have a lot on my mind today.

1. I've been sifting through a friend's facebook pics who has natural brown hair dyed platinum blonde, kind of like me, and she likes dying her hair in ombre shades of blue or purple quite often. She's still in high school. My first instinct? Man, I hope my kids are cool enough to want to do this someday. I'm serious though, I want my kids to feel totally comfortable expressing themselves. If that means goth, dressing like Peggy from Mad Men, drawing on my kitchen walls with 80's Glam Sharpies, whatever! I hope they go for it. Of course, with my luck, my kids will probably be happiest shopping at Eddie Bauer and Cabela's or something.

2. I have this major thing for art deco design. One of my favorite things about Smallville was its art deco focus, especially in the Daily Planet offices and at The Talon. The apartment above The Talon was kinda drool-worthy too. But anyway. If I could go back to the Roaring 20s, Prohibition, decadent velvet couches days, I would totally do it. Well, if modern utilities were included, of course:

3. Pinterest is an amazing place. I think my favorite part about it is going through other people's boards. You can really get to know a person's interests just by the pictures they've posted. After all a picture really is worth a thousand words. Follow my board:

4. I don't really get...immersed in the hip hop culture, but every once in a while there are a few artists who stand out to me. Flo Rida is one of them. He has a knack for sampling hits from years past and turning them into his own catchy song. I'm sure some people knock him for it, but what can I say, I like his versions! He first did it with Right Round (which sampled "You Spin Me Round" by one-hit-wonder band Dead or Alive), and now my current new favorite, Good Feeling, which samples, of all people, Etta James' "Something's Got a Hold of Me." The beginning of Good Feeling (and the resulting chorus) is all Etta. Lets take another listen, knowing that:

5. I've been having trouble lately trying to plot the next phase of my life. I think, though, that I have it sorted out. First off, I've been deciding if I want to do BYU-Idaho's Fast Grad program, which allows you to take classes year-round, and finish early. If I do that, I'd likely be done, with a BA, in July of 2013. If I just do my normal classes of Spring-Fall semesters, I'd be done in December of 2013. What's the problem, you ask? Winters in Rexburg, Idaho, suck. They are windy and cold and snowy. I don't do windy, cold or snowy. Good grief, my first choice for college was BYU-Hawaii! But a friend pointed out, wouldn't it be better to suck up a few months of misery for another year of your life? Or well, 6 months. So I think I'm leaning toward just sucking it up and getting things out of the way faster. Originally, I was planning on taking that winter semester to volunteer in China at the Starfish Foster Home, but a nifty alternative would be to get my BA in July, THEN go to China, AND since I would have the appropriate degree, I could probably find a job teaching English too. So I could still volunteer, but I would also be making some money, so I could potentially travel around China and see the sights for a year or so before law school. Eh? Eh? Anyway. That's kinda what's brewing in my head. It's kind of based on a lot of Ifs though, as in IF I survive winter in Rexburg, IF I don't fail any classes, IF I don't screw things up by (gasp!) getting married or something. If I do this Fast Grad program though, I'll probably take this year's summer session off so I can have 6 weeks to chill and do nothing til I hit the daily grind again. Thoughts, as usual, are appreciated, but I'm pretty much surfing it day to day at the moment.

Five Fast Findings

1. My phone cracks me up. It's an amazing little machine, the MyTouch 4G Slide from T-Mobile. But like any smartphone, it does sorta run out the battery. (Well, it doesn't help that I was using Google and Shazam all day because I had a long drive for work, but anyway.) I was trying to squeeze in one final text, but my phone ever so gently stopped me mid-sentence, flashed a pretty white screen with the HTC logo and the slogan "quietly brilliant," then softly faded the screen out to black, as if it was saying, shhh it's okay, I'll be back when you find the cord. It made me laugh. My last phone would just abruptly go black, leaving me frustrated with a now-useless paperweight and a face like the Scream villain. I love my MyTouch. (note that it is my personal opinion that the 4g SLIDE is better than the regular MyTouch 4G. Not that I use the slide-out keyboard much with Swype, but the 4G slide just seems to be higher quality, in case you're planning on purchasing one).

2. So I'm trying to cram in last-minute crafts that I've been planning on doing forever but never got around to doing, since school is starting in less than 3 weeks now. My current project is wrapping bangle bracelets and earrings with embroidery floss/thread (which were only 39 cents per skein at Joann!). It's kinda time-consuming and once you start wrapping, you can't set it down or it will unravel, but it's really easy. Just wrap, then knot at the end, and slather the knot in Tacky Glue (or super glue, really whatever strong glue will bind to fabric), then let dry for a few hours. I used this blog as a guide: Delighted Momma: DIY Colorblock Earrings. (little tip, she has a ton of crafts with much more helpful instruction than what I'll ever offer you, sift through her blog!)

And here's a pic of my first bracelets. They clash all together like this, so don't worry, I won't be wearing them like this in public:

3. As of tomorrow, I'll be halfway through my second month of Nutrisystem, and while it's been a bit tougher because my hours as a fast-food-restaurant secret shopper got increased for these last few weeks before I go to college, I've still managed to lose weight. I need to use the scale at the gym tomorrow (for consistency), but I believe I've lost a total of 10-12 pounds. And I'm definitely in the size 12-14 range, as my AE size 14 jeans are starting to feel a little less-snug. yay!

4. I went to Hobby Lobby for the first time tonight. It's amazing. Just. amazing. Soo much stuff. And lots of it was on sale too. I found a gorgeous lamp that I'm going to use as my nightstand lamp, it's $39.99, plus I have a coupon for 40% off one regular-priced item, so it will be quite reasonable. One nice thing I learned is that if I go to mobile.hobbylobby.com on my phone, I can just show them the 40% off coupon, instead of having to track down a printer. They only have one in the Spokane Valley right now, but rumor has it, they're building one on the North Side!

5. There's a difference between Equal and Splenda. Now that I'm being pretty much sugar-free outside of Nutrisystem foods, my new vice is no-calorie sweeteners. However, I'm learning that there's a reason why people request specific brands instead of just "sweetener" at restaurants. My preference is Splenda. I've found that Equal feels a little chalky and dusty to me, even mixed in herbal tea, but Splenda has more of a sugar-like consistency. The Walmart brand of sweetener (my parents have a massive bag of it) is also not bad. I know I'm just being super picky and I couldn't even blame the lady at the drive-thru window who gave me a blank stare today, but hey, I'm limiting my caloric intake hardcore, this is my last frontier of control!

Moving away to go back to college gives me an excuse to shop for my new room

I'm going to BYU-Idaho in a few weeks and my mom and I have been working on a quilt for me to take. It's made up of squares that we found at a flea market in Hawaii, so the quilt is bright and very Hawaiian-looking. Pics later. But anyway, I've been using this quilt as a good base for how I want to decorate my new room. I have a window ledge/shelf thing, so I've been looking for a print or wall plaque or something that I can prop up and display. Something that kind of conveys who I am. It's been quite a search for the past few weeks. Tonight I almost bought a print from Zulily.com, when I realized, wait a minute, my mom has a ton of Hawaii pictures from her DSLR, and I have Photoshop with some cool fonts...so here's what I created. I'll probably keep working in this vein, especially when I get my own nice camera. I can finally dig into my pages of good quotes I've saved on my computer over the years too.

I love photography, but I'm not really into the whole senior pics/weddings bread-and-butter stuff. I could see myself doing this type of art photography though, as a hobby of course.

Most indie movies suck, but there are some that are worth every penny of that director's second mortgage

I've taken a few film classes, both to satisfy obscure AA degree requirements (writing, diversity, guess my prior journalism courses and Native American heritage weren't quite enough, WERE THEY SFCC), but anyway, I took Intro to Film and Independent Film. Which means I've seen everything from Duck Soup to Boys Don't Cry, and everything in between.

I've learned the difference between an independent film and a studio film (one gets lots of creativity, blood, sweat and tears, and the other gets lots of money but may be limited or reduced in creativity to studio preferences), and I've learned that on the whole, most indie films are dialogue-heavy, with a message to share, and usually a pretty sweet custom soundtrack (because the latest Top 40 pop song is usually too expensive to secure for the film, and an emerging artist looking to get their name out there is happy to write a song for peanuts and a spot in the credits).

I'm not really into dialogue movies. I tend to get bored easily, and I like action and drama more than anything. However, there are several indie films that I not only tolerate, but have placed in my top favorites lists. As my title says, most indie films suck, but there really are some that I hope the director knows, it was all worth it.

One of my favorite movies, definitely in my top 5, is Ten Inch Hero. It's about the crew of an offbeat sandwich shop (hence the title), and a mix of romantic comedy, slice-of-life and coming-of-age genres. The actors are fairly well-known, and most people first watch this film because Jensen Ackles is in it, but I'll admit, when I first watched this movie back in 2008, I didn't really know who he was. I was working at Blockbuster at the time, and we had 5 free rentals a week, which I preferred to use to preview new releases. This looked interesting, and I'm so glad I watched it. I bought my own copy soon after, and now it's on Netflix instant, so I get to watch it anytime I want.

Besides the incredible cast and screenplay, I love two songs written by Bethany Joy Galeotti (of One Tree Hill) for the movie, The Long Way, and Something Familiar. I've had copies of the songs for years, but they're pretty hard to find, so good luck with that. I also like the fact that this movie really ends with everyone finding their other half. A good majority of indie films are too involved in sending a message to let us end on a happy note, but this movie truly makes you smile, through happy tears.

There are a lot of parts that ring true for me, for anybody who's ever, well, lived. When one character is meeting her Internet chat buddy/potential boyfriend, she gets intimidated when she spots him and realizes that he is way hotter than she is. Upset and panicking, she runs out. Later, she explains, "There's no way a guy who looks like that is going to want me." I've felt that way before. When her friend replies with, "you are the smartest person I know...you have so much to offer..." But I know exactly what is meant in the sad reply, "I didn't say I don't have a lot to offer, I said that people never know because they don't see me."

While that is a rare sad part of the movie, it, among other (happier) parts, rings true with me, and with most every girl, I think. And that's the beauty in this movie. It is very real, and very true to life. Of course, in the end, the less-pretty girl does end up with the hot Internet buddy, but even that, if it isn't always realistic, gives hope to everyone who's ever been in her position.

There are also little clips of random conversation, created from an eclectic crew with too much time on their hands at an eclectic sandwich shop ("All I'm saying is, Cobain wasn't trying to leave this world, he was just trying to leave Courtney."), and scenes ranging the gamut from a blue mohawk being filmed like a shark fin to domestic violence.

The dominant theme throughout everything in this movie, good and bad, is hope. And hope is the real reason for living, isn't it?

The ordered chaos of Sons of Anarchy

I've been watching Sons of Anarchy on Netflix this past week and I have to say, it's really an incredible show. My recent Netflix obsessions have featured cops or crimesolving, so this is a view from the other side of the law. But the Sons of Anarchy, a motorcycle club, have their own rules about morality, and strict ethics codes that they follow. Often, they are more about vigilantism than "gangbanging," and it's actually satisfying to see the bad guys get killed, without so much as a flinch from the club members. No sending them to jail with chances of getting let out, no last-minute flicker of a conscience, or whining about how every life is precious. It's like the Wild West, which had its merits. The Sons of Anarchy control a small northern California town, but they love it, so drugs aren't allowed to be dealt, and often when there are problems that law enforcement is unable to "properly" take care of (such as the rape of a young girl), townspeople turn to the Club to take care of things.

What I really like is the depth of the characters. There is no cut-and-dry character on this show, despite their stereotypical appearances (motorcycle gangmember, gang matriarch, dirty cops, etc).

The men are hardened, tough guys, many of whom have been born into the Club, with fathers who died for the Club, or are leaders in it. But they love women, and I mean, they respect the women, not just their flesh (though they certainly have plenty of "girls" around). Despite their tattoos, black leather vests and Harleys, seeing one of these men treating their "old lady" with care is enough to make you melt. Becoming their "old lady" means being put up on a pedestal for life, with a troupe of bodyguards surrounding you. The juxtaposition of tough and soft is squeal-inducing, and watching these guys do anything to avenge them is hot. We also see that vulnerability when Jax becomes a father, and nurses his son through prematurity. They're men's men, for that entails, but we see their affectionate side often, calling each other "brother," fearlessly hugging each other (albeit with manly backthumping) and even cheek-kissing each other before they go into "battle."

And the women. These wives and girlfriends are tough and battle-hardened in their own rights, continually standing up for themselves, the men they love, and the Club. But they too, have flashes of this beautiful fragility, especially the rare occasions when matriarch Gemma breaks down. And she's arguably the toughest person on the show, even among the men. Time and again, when the guys get into messes, it's the women who hold them together while they fight their way out. Gemma, despite her love-hate attitude toward most people and trigger-happy finger, is continually a voice of reason for the Club. Jax's Tara finds her own inner toughness after Gemma takes her under her wing. Her new street education is shown in Season 2, when she grabs a malicious supervisor by the throat, throws a solid right hook and successfully threatens her home and children to drop a damaging report involving the Club. The women keep many secrets, all for the good of the club, and often to their own inner turmoil, and we rarely see any obnoxious waffling or pretentious morality debates from the women. The raw black-and-white attitude is refreshing, though harsh at times, and the portrayal of simply taking care of business, removing the debate about what's defined as right is where this show's strength lies.

Despite Club fights and arguments, the club, the family, is what prevails, always at the day's end. It's an alternate reality that one feels comfort in delving into, and despite not-so-rare moments of shock and horror, it's usually surprisingly easy to root for the Club. Plus, like any family, there's enough joking around to make one laugh at least once per episode.

I have no patience to develop patience

I am getting pretty desperate to get back to school and have something to do. Here's why.

We have a big formal dance for church coming up, and it's traditionally girl-ask-guy, which is commonly translated as: "Girls who don't usually get asked to dances may now do the asking without ridicule, but guys are going to ask some girls anyway."

So the stampede for dates has begun, along with a flurry of texts back and forth between members of different friend groups, inquiring as to who is going with who, and who might be asking someone else, so that we don't have to endure the embarrassment of courageously asking someone to be our date, only to hear, "oh...that would be fun...except I'm already going with so-and-so."

What I've learned today is that I prefer my boy-free bubble that was created last semester, when I was too busy with school to worry about the drama of guys and dates. Despite the reputation BYU-Idaho has as "BYU-I Do," I'm looking forward to being too busy to deal with boys unless someone actually asks me out. Guys are a lot more drama than I prefer, especially since I have a lot of education to complete in the next 3 years, and getting married would only screw that up. So Father Time, let's get a move on and make it April already, so I can get started on real life.

Five Fast Findings

It's time for another Five Fast Findings, it's been a while.

1. I've decided that one of my passions in life is singing. Even if it's just karaoke, I feel so much better when I sing. Part of it is being the center of attention, in the crowd, receiving positive reinforcement afterward, but part of it is just the sheer joy of making music. I wish I were a better songwriter, I really do, because I would dive right into that. As it is, I'm planning on perhaps starting or finding a cover band that I can do vocals for. Maybe sing at weddings, etc.

2. I just turned 25 last Thursday (yikes) and I'm starting to feel a lot like that one person in every LDS singles ward that is just a little older and out-of-place than everyone else. Since my singles ward covers a whole stake area, there are actually a lot of us older people, but when you look around and realize that most everyone else in the group that you'd really like to be a part of is 5 years younger than you, it becomes surreal, and a little sad. I wish I fit in better, and sitting by myself because I don't want to barge into the younger group isn't really a great feeling, but at the same time, I've earned every one of those 5 years, so what do you do? Sometimes you just have to accept that you're NOT going to fit in, and learn to live with being "independent," until the right friends come along. Most friends closer to my age are now engaged or married, and that's been tough, not because I'm envious or anything, but because the luxury of spur-of-the-moment planning is gone for them, and it's hard to just hang out with them, even though I often feel more in sync with them than the singles ward crowd. I'm more than ready to go to BYU-Idaho and have more variety, not just with guys, but with friends closer to my age and life experience.

3. I got my hair done on Friday, just touching up the roots so I can be an official blonde again. I love being blonde, but anyway. The point of this finding is that while I was at the salon, there were a lot of "little old ladies" there for their weekly appointments. They were hilarious, but it got me thinking, as I looked at them with their unique style of putting on makeup and preference for hairstyling, is that just how they've always done it since their younger years in the 50s? Or is there a point somewhere in their later years where they start to do perms and stenciled eyebrows? It's like people who wear mom jeans. We know that there was a point where they wore acid-wash pegleg pants, so where did the mom jeans happen? When will I stop dressing "younger" and start dressing like a mom or a grandma? Or will this generation be able to eliminate the mom jeans once and for all?

4. I've just started week 3 of the Nutrisystem diet, and while I had some slipups at the end of last week (birthday party, food testing requirements for secret-shopping a fast food place), overall it's going well. I'm really, really ready for next month though, because there's several foods that I just have found to be gross, so I've put off eating them...now they're starting to become more dominant in my food box. blech. Still, having food provided is the best part about this diet. Except for a few isolated moments, I have been doing well resisting fast food. I'm learning a lot about myself too. I've realized I used fast food as a reward for myself, and I've done it for a long time. Now I can't do that, so I'm having to find other ways of making myself feel better (which may explain my shopping spree early last week..). It's really tough, and it means that I've been, not really depressed, but kind of on a plateau, with no real emotions up or down. It's slowly tipping though, and like I said in a previous post, I love not feeling guilty about what I eat. That really is making a difference in my outlook on, well, everything. I never realized how big of a role food played in my life before. As well, I'm learning to watch my calories, and take advantage of zero-calorie products like Splenda (I've concluded Splenda is better than Equal, which is too powdery) and diet 7up. I poured a small glass of Sprite at a potluck yesterday, and was shocked to realize that 8 oz. has 140 calories. That's an entire meal on the Nutrisystem diet! Diet soda, it is.

5. My parents are on this rather hilarious pre-retirement kick. It started just before I moved back home, and is really ramping up, with several trips just completed, and a new one being planned. They go on trips a lot, and have bought expensive, durable suitcases that are just the right size for carry-ons. My mom also keeps a ready-to-go toiletry bag with TSA-approved liquids underneath the bathroom sink so it's easier for packing. They have a well-used timeshare, and my mom just got an Alaska Airlines credit card that gives you extra miles when you use it to purchase Alaska airfare. I went with them to Houston last month, and they have a total regimen down at the airports. It's really interesting to watch, and it's kind of funny as an adult kid to see my parents actually enjoying themselves on trips, and spending money on themselves. My memories of childhood family vacations are basically good, but certainly they aren't as relaxing for the parents or the oldest child when you have a hyper younger brother and a frugal budget to remember. Certainly, I'd say my parents are making up for lost time a bit, but also, they ARE approaching retirement age, and I think they will have a good time when that arrives.

Maybe I'll get my doctorate in psychology someday

There have been several times in the last week where it's hit me suddenly and firmly, and I've once again known, FOR SURE, that I've finally chosen the right major. I've been on the fence between psychology and communications for a long time. I was an official communications major at Westminster College of Salt Lake City in 2006 even, but then I took a psych 101 class. Granted, I had a fantastic teacher (I'd say 70% of Westminster's teachers really knock it out of the park. The other 30% almost negate that, but if you get a good teacher, you get a GREAT teacher), but I've always been interested in mental illnesses, analyses and the like.

Probably the important part about psych vs. comm is that in a psych class, you really have to think outside the box, and not only memorize facts, but really delve in and come up with your own hypotheses about things. Communications, I learned, is more about teaching you how to use software (Dreamweaver, InDesign, etc), and how to write in a strict news format. If I were to return to the comm major, I would focus solely on journalism writing, to get away from the computer aspect of it.

The advertising and marketing classes in the comm major are very, very time-consuming, but with little intellectual exercise. So it's not that you're studying, but rather completing projects and developing faux ad campaigns. I got burned out quickly on that busy work with no intellectually creative output. I like to do deep thinking and decide where I stand on something that may have multiple views and perspectives. When I don't have that option (ie. in an advertising class), I tend to get bored. I think psych is going to fit much better. I'm excited to keep learning how people tick, and especially when I become a lawyer, that element is going to be important.

One species in particular that scares the living crap out of me, but also makes me intensely curious, albeit from a distance, is the sociopath. Highly manipulative, no sense of right or wrong, and no guilt felt, ever, they're a rare and dangerous breed. For this reason, they're a sexy additive to most crime shows at one point or another, and my reaction to these characters is, I think, how horror-film junkies feel when they're watching a good one. It's the shiver running down the back of your neck, the paranoid looking over your shoulder, even when you're quite aware there's just the wall. But the idea that this world is right here, 2 feet away from you on the screen, it's a bit of an adrenaline rush.

I'll smoothly transition on that note into my next topic here at Lindsey's House of Ramble. I was talking to a friend the other day about rock climbing, and I mentioned how I loved the rush, but I'm really not normally an adrenaline junkie. He pointed out that I had just said, essentially, that I was. And it got me thinking. I've spent most of my life being the one kid who's worried someone's gonna hurt themselves, and doing whatever I can to avoid those team-building tree-climbing activites at leadership camp. When guys do backflips off the pool diving board at a party, I'm always the one who's shouting, "now wait a minute before you jump, make sure he's out of the way!" That's me. Ever cautious, ever avoiding danger, ever avoiding risk. But in the past few years, I've really started breaking out of that little zone. I started rock climbing. Granted it's been a while, because my climbing buddy moved and I had a stress fracture last summer, but I'm still into it. I plan to keep it up when I go back to school, and a major motivation for my current diet and exercise plan is to be strong and light enough to really get into climbing.

There was this point about 14 months ago where I suddenly stopped being scared of physical activities. Maybe it wasn't "sudden," but I started saying yes when people asked me to do that I've always avoided out of fear of embarrassment or injury. Climbing, running, four-wheeling, swimming, etc. And I've learned that I really like that rush I get from it. Does that make me an adrenaline junkie? I think it just makes me ALIVE. But there's this moment I clearly remember, when I was top-rope climbing for the first time at the EWU climbing wall, and I'd gotten really high. When I start to climb, there's this zone, or rhythm I hit, where I just zero in and keep climbing until I can't go anymore. So all of a sudden, I looked down and I was really high up. I wasn't scared, but I was ready to come down. In order to do that though, I had to let go of the wall, and trust in the rope and my partner. I distinctly remember this rush of, not fear, but thrill, and of freedom as I pushed off the wall. It was overwhelming and I remember getting a little giddy about it. Like I had conquered the world. My world. I felt that way when I first went skydiving, except here, it was much more real, because I knew I could climb right back up and feel that again. That's why I love climbing. Running is fun and relaxing, but I don't get the same rush of accomplishment from a route well-climbed. So maybe I am a bit of an adrenaline lover, but I don't think I'm an adrenaline junkie, yet. I think I still have too much caution in me to really go over the edge.

The Litigators by John Grisham book review

Allow me, for a moment, to pursue another avenue. A book review, thanks to the digital media download options at my library, which lets me digitally "borrow" books like The Litigators for a 2-week period on my Kindle.

I've been reading John Grisham's legal thrillers since I was 12 years old. Always a precocious child, I enjoyed the legal tap dancing and quick wit. I'll note though, that having re-read books over the years, there's quite a bit of offbeat humor and nuance that I (thankfully) missed when I was younger! Nonetheless, I've enjoyed his writing for more than half of my life, and The Litigators certainly ranks as a new favorite.

With a wryly painted picture, and a lightheartedly satirical view, from which no members of the legal process are safe, we have The Litigators. Even the title itself is an irony, indicating that the main characters may actually be experienced at, well, litigating. After a slice-of-life view of the Finley & Figg Law Firm, a rather ostentatious title for a small operation, we open with a big-firm lawyer in the midst of a "snap" or nervous breakdown. After exiting the elevator at his workfloor, he quite literally dives back through the closing door at the last second, in an effort to find relief from the panic attack he's enduring. Thus begins the tale of David's journey as a depressed corporate lackey in a sweatshop firm to a content and happy third wheel of a two-man "boutique firm" in a rickety converted house, with partners who have failed the bar exam multiple times. It's a fascinating riches-to-rags story, not unlike The Street Lawyer, but with an upbeat, energetic spin that makes us root for David and his new pals at every turn, while laughing at the webs they tangle themselves up in.

The book is filled with sharp humor that literally makes one laugh out loud, and cracks are taken at everyone, from wealthy, jet-flying tort lawyers to unabashedly lower-caste ambulance chasers, even a legal malpractice lawyer (an odd breed, to be sure), as well as judges, corporations, even the plaintiffs. What's more though, is that we might as well be sitting in that courtroom, for the detail he pours into the scenery and fleshing out numerous personalities.

The great thing about The Litigators is that, after several years of Grisham testing his creative limits with "eh" books like Ford County and A Painted House, he is finally returning to the legal thriller genre he pioneered in the 90s. Those who love the cynical wittiness of The Rainmaker and the vivid characters of The Firm will feel the tones not only echoed, but reinvented in The Litigators.

Reading The Litigators feels like returning home. Grisham is back, baby, and this fan is already excited for the next book.

Losing weight feels good

So I've been on the Nutrisystem diet for just over a week now, and I already have more energy than I'm used to. As well, I've already lost a pound, and after hovering between sizes for a while, I'm firmly in the lower size. I've only worked out twice though, as I'm letting my body acclimate to the calorie level. I'm ramping it up this next week though.

Five Fast (diet) Findings:

1. The best thing about this diet is that I HAVE to eat everything provided, because it all adds up to exactly 1200 calories. There's no guilt over eating something anymore, because I HAVE to eat it! It's amazing, when I think about what I ate, I don't have to feel any shame for splurging on something unhealthy or sweet. As well, I've stopped trying justify poor eating choices to myself, because there's now a firm, hard line on what's allowed and what's not. Spinach is allowed, Taco Bell is not, end of story. It's surprisingly comforting to have such ironclad rules, especially since I've always WANTED to lose weight, just never had enough willpower to enforce the rules on my own.

2. The fresh-frozen foods are not great. Ironically, they're part of the "gourmet" plan, and they cost more. Even if they didn't cost more, I'd advise against it. I'm downgrading my plan next month to only receive the ready-to-eat meals that need no refrigeration. Not only do I have yet to really find a frozen meal that I love, but whenever I microwave or heat the meal, it tends to not work properly. I put a Turkey Pepperoni Pizza in the oven, and it burnt the cheese on the outside, but the cheese in the middle didn't melt all the way. So I put it in the microwave (a brand-new one, mind you), and it was the same thing, like the cheese itself isn't meltable or something. So far, none of the frozen meals have really gone through the cooking process smoothly. My ready-to-eat foods, though, taste delicious, and I'd much rather have a Flame-Broiled Burger than the Glazed Chicken Tenders (blech). The one that I did enjoy was the Ravioli Formaggio, but it's not enough to keep me paying an additional $75!

3. The Fudge Graham Bar is probably the most incredible thing I've ever eaten. I'm serious. It's soo delicious. And even though it's just a bar, I still feel full afterward (a rarity for my stomach), because there's so much flavor. I only ordered 4 this month and you better believe I'm ordering a bunch next month.

4. On that note, getting bars for both breakfasts and lunches on this diet is important, I didn't realize that before. Here's the deal: I'm a person that normally skips breakfast and lunch, munches around suppertime, then eats a large dinner. No wonder I weigh more than I'd like, I do the exact opposite of everything I'm supposed to do. Anyway, what I've been noticing is that on busy days, I have a tough time carving out time to eat since I've never done it before, especially with breakfast items like the bagel or chocolate muffin, because you need to put cream cheese on the bagel, and the chocolate muffin is so messy that I don't want to eat it in front of other people. Lame, I know, but I'm also your basic self-conscious-about-food overweight person. SOO, I'm ordering breakfast bars next month. They're mess-free, and I can eat one while I'm driving to church, or walking to class. Same with lunch. There are quite a few lunch bars on the Nutrisystem menu, and they are easy to toss in my purse and eat while I'm shopping or running errands. Again, since I'm not used to making the time to eat 3 squares a day, whatever I can do to make that happen more smoothly, I'm all for it.

5. It's much easier to say no to non-approved foods. We had root beer floats at a group activity tonight, and it took me about 5 seconds to remember I can't have it, and walk away from the table. Had I not been on the Nutrisystem diet, I would have easily had "just a small one." But I had dinner and dessert to look forward to, and with an exact 1200-calorie diet, I don't have room for another 200 calories in a dumb root beer float. I've never counted calories before, and I don't have to now, as long as I follow all of the snack guidelines, but I am more aware now that every item NOT within my diet has significantly more calories than I need to eat.

Anyway. A friend on the HCG diet has suggested that I do HCG to lose a bunch of weight now, then go back on the Nutrisystem diet after that, but I really am pretty skeptical. I don't doubt that people lose a lot of weight on the HCG diet (I've known several people who dropped weight like water on it), but I've spent several months building up good muscle tone, and I don't want to risk losing it. I don't like the idea of being lightheaded either, it seems like medically-induced anorexia. As well, I love not having to cook or prepare food beyond the 1-minute microwave time, and reverting back, even for stuff like tomato soup on the HCG diet, does not sound good to me, even if it's only 26 days. Plus, being on a 1200-calorie diet is just right to train me how to eat smaller portions. A 500-calorie diet seems restrictive enough for me to pack the weight right back on later. But it really boils down to cost. I think if I had a lot more money in the bank, I'd try the HCG diet for a bit, but I think the cost is too high to take the risk. Nutrisystem is a much more solid gamble. Plus, I am in the camp that believes weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint.

Editing to add this:

What I really want from weight loss is to get to a size where, when people learn that I'm 25 and single, they don't think anything of it, except that maybe she hasn't met the right one yet, or she must be focusing on things other than finding a husband. Currently, I feel like people think, even if they don't mean to, that I'm not attractive enough to be married, because that's how I feel sometimes. Even if people DON'T think that, every single girl who has ever weighed more than she likes has thought that about herself at one point or another. It's how our minds work. As well, I tend to like guys who are, well, good-looking. I think they used to be closer to the same league as me, when I was thinner, but now, they are definitely in a class above me. I'm still attracted to those guys though. I'd like to feel like I'm in the same class, looks-wise, as the guys I tend to like. Shallow? Yes. But there it is. This is my blog, so I guess I have to be honest from time to time.

You definitely won't starve on the Nutrisystem diet

So I took the plunge. I signed up for Nutrisystem. I learned last week that I was going to be receiving a very large tax return, right at the same time I learned I'm going moving to go to college in April, less than 2 months away. I really want to lose weight before that happens, so it's either this or a weight loss resort, as I already work out regularly and food intake is my only dilemma.

My biggest problem in weight loss has always been food. I don't like cooking for one person. It takes forever, longer than the actual eating part, and it uses the same number of dishes as cooking for a full family, but I'm the only one cleaning up. I also don't like a number of "healthy" foods, like vegetables. Unfortunately, that tends to translate into my poor eating habits of spending all day trying in vain to figure out something to eat, then finally giving up at 5 or 6pm and grabbing some fast food. And since I haven't eaten all day, I tend to eat more than necessary. This has been a problem for years.

That's why Nutrisystem is actually a great program for me. I already work out regularly, so this is just helping me manage my food. I'm on day 3 now, so I'll catch you up on my activities.

Every day, we are supposed to eat Breakfast (entree, protein shake), Snack (PowerFuel, own purchase), Lunch (entree, PowerFuel), Snack, (SmartCarb, own purchase), Dinner (entree, SmartCarb), and Dessert (entree). On top of that, you're supposed to eat 4 servings of non-starchy vegetables and drink 8+ cups of water.

The only food I have so far is the ready-to-go food, which doesn't require any refrigeration. I ordered it late Wednesday night, and it arrived Saturday afternoon by FedEx. Extremely quick. My frozen foods were only shipped out yesterday, so who knows when I'll get them.

Day 1: I had church today and was runnning late, so I ate my Double Chocolate Muffin in the car. It was fantastic. Great start to the program, despite my skipping the protein shake. I originally planned to have string cheese for my snack, but I didn't check the fridge beforehand, and my dad had finished off the family stock of them, so I skipped my snack today.

After returning home, I ate lunch, the Vanilla protein shake from breakfast, low-fat Yoplait yogurt, and the Three Cheese Pasta with Chicken. It came in a little Instant Ramen-sized round container, and I was supposed to add water, put in the microwave for a minute...then let sit for 8-9 minutes. They're not kidding about that either. I may have started eating a mite early, and the chicken was tough, the pasta still hard. A few minutes later though, it softened up and was edible. Still, I didn't like it. It was full of broccoli pieces (blech) and the chicken tasted a little dry. I think if I liked broccoli, this would be just fine, but there are other lunch options out there. I'm not getting this next month.

Snack was a small wheat roll that my mother had fortuitously finished baking about 10 minutes prior.

Dinner was the Grilled Chicken Breast on another wheat roll, with mixed greens (from a tub, like at the grocery store) stacked on it. AMAZING. Be warned though, it sure doesn't look like the picture. It's fairly small, and sealed in a packet much like tuna might be, because it doesn't need to be refrigerated. I stuck it in the oven for about 5 minutes, then plopped it on my "sandwich." Despite its appearances, it was delicious. Moist, flavorful, didn't need any condiments (good thing, because they're pretty restricted on this diet), and I felt full afterward. I'm getting more of these next month.

Dessert was the Zesty Herb Snack Mix, which I ate along with my sandwich. I actually really liked this one. It has more flavor than Chex Mix, and the pieces are small, which makes one feel like they're eating a lot. I'm getting more of these too. I drank water throughout the day, and instead of snacking before bed, I just continued to drink water. I felt full, and that's a key position with the Nutrisystem diet.

Day 2: I woke up late, so I moved the times of my meals to a bit later. I had the Chocolate Frosted Donut for breakfast with a Strawberry protein shake. The donut was super weird, it looked kinda plastic and EXACTLY like the picture. It tasted alright, but certainly not like the donuts I'm used to eating. I'll probably pass on this next month. The strawberry protein shake was really good.

For a snack, I had one of those Buddig lunchmeat packages, it's 2 oz, which is what I'm allowed for a PowerFuel. I put mixed greens on each slice and rolled them up like a tortilla. I have to slip in those mixed greens where I can, because I can't make a salad and slather them in ranch or honey mustard like I used to. It's 1 tablespoon of dressing, or vinaigrette.

Lunch was the Cheesy Homestyle Potatoes Mix. (also in the round Ramen-type container) and yogurt. The mashed potatoes also had broccoli, but no chunks, so it was bearable. Still, not really a fan. I'll probably pass on this too next month.

At dinnertime, I had a karaoke night with friends and was running late, so I grabbed a slice of wheat bread as my snack, then planned to eat dinner when I got home. We went to a sushi place, and someone ordered edamame, the little green bean-type pods, but you slide out the beans with your teeth and discard the shell. I'd never tried them, and normally, I would have ordered something else, but I ended up having several of the endame pods, since a) I couldn't eat anything else on the menu, and b) I could count them as my SmartCarb for dinner. As it turns out, they weren't bad. So score one for Nutrisystem changing my eating habits. I drank a lot of water too, so eating out was not a problem.

When I got home, I made an Italian Herb Flatbread Pizza. It's kind of like a Lunchable pizza, you spread the sauce on from a packet, and sprinkle the cheese on top, then nuke it for a minute. It wasn't fabulous, but it wasn't bad either. I'll order this next month. I ate it with the Cheese Puffs, which were not quite as tasty as Cheetos. They were small and a little crunchier than I'd prefer, and definitely had some wheat in there. They weren't terrible and if this was the only option I'd be fine, but I'd rather get more of the herb snack mix next month. Overall, a decent day. It's kind of fun anticipating my next mealtime so I can try out a new entree.

Day 3: That's today. I started off with a vanilla protein shake and a Cinnamon Bun, which was as weirdly plastic-looking as the donut, with icing perfectly, evenly spread all over the top. I took one bite, realized it was super-hard, then noticed on the package that I'm supposed to microwave it. Oops. So I tossed it in there for 10 seconds as per the instructions. It wasn't bad, but I'll definitely do this one for 15-20 seconds next time. Overall not bad, but probably not my first choice either. I'm about to eat my first snack, probably yogurt. I'll get some string cheese tonight.

So far, I'm absolutely LOVING this Nutrisystem diet. I love not wondering about what I'm going to eat, and I get enough choice to feel like I have options (which I do, tons of them), but not so much that I get overwhelmed and give in to fast food. Overall, the sometimes-interesting taste of the food is balanced by the convenience of this program, and I think once I try all of the food, I'll have plenty of good options to choose from.

Five Fast Findings

1. Any reason why so many "prom dresses" are advertised by models who are definitely not high school age, or even remotely appropriate? Also, any reason why 90% of said "prom dresses" make ANYONE wearing it look like they need a street corner to stand on? Seriously. Mothers PAY for these dresses for their little girl to wear! No wonder prom night has such a bad rep.

Exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

(note that a lot of high schools not existing within a reality show or teen drama don't even allow dresses that expose the midriff like this)

2. Anyone who likes to read and has not yet purchased a Kindle, run, do not walk, to Amazon.com. I got a Kindle Touch for Christmas, and it is one of my best friends. It has almost as many accessories now as my dog (including cozies hand-knitted by moi). My local library also has a digital library where I can "borrow" books on my Kindle for 14 days. It's awesome.

3. At my church, we are organizing a speed friending night. It's like speed dating, only you meet new friends instead of dates. The one difficulty for my detail-oriented self was trying to figure out how to make sure everyone meets each other. Originally, we were just going to have people rotate around a long table (made up of several shorter tables), and talk with the person across from them, but (several paper models and diagrams later..) it turns out they will only meet half of the people that way, skipping every other person. So I finally researched and tested the solution: One lucky duck never moves, and everyone rotates around him. They eventually end up having sat across from each person once. I'm thinking I'll raffle off that one special chair, maybe get a good bribe in the process. I kid, I kid. mostly.

4. I hate cold weather. My parents keep the house at a toasty 65 degrees, which means that by 7pm, I'm sitting in bed, surrounded by down comforters, trying to stay warm and being completely unproductive, as getting anything done would require leaving my cocoon. Hello, Netflix.

5. One thing I can do in bed is knit. I use a variety of plastic-peg knitting looms (round ones, mostly, like the Knifty Knitter brand) to make different sizes of hats. The idea is that I'll donate them once I find an organization. At this time, I'll either donate them to a Romanian orphanage, or to the Cheyenne River Youth Project in South Dakota. It's a youth center for kids on the Cheyenne River Reservation, of which I'm a tribal member. Winters get pretty windy and chilly there in Eagle Butte, SD, so perhaps my hats will be needed. I've got a stack of them about 3 feet high now, tres cool.

Five Fast Findings

1. Apparently, Brandy is telling people to stop comparing her to Beyonce (here). Honey, I don't think anyone's made the mistake of doing that. Beyonce is way cooler. Plus she's had a single during this decade. sorry.

2. Child actress Kyla Pratt popped up when I was watching Veronica Mars, which spurred me to find out what she's been up to. Turns out, she has a 1-year-old kid, and kept it a secret all during her pregnancy. Smart girl. Since the baby daddy is ah, less than impressive, she decided to avoid the negative backlash. "I didn't want to go through that with my pregnancy. The baby can feel what you're feeling..." (source) I think that's a really smart thing for a celebrity to do, if you're able. She was more popular in her younger years, so it was easier for her to drop off the face of the earth for a while. I've never been a fan of her acting, but as a person, she seems like her head is on straight.

3. I LOVE my MyTouch 4G Slide. It is the best phone, with a stellar camera. I took it to an All-American Rejects concert last night (yes they're back in the biz), and it took fantastic pictures (see below). I can also listen to music, watch Netflix, read a book on Kindle, or play Solitaire. It really is an all-in-one phone. AND it's lightning fast. I've had the phone for about 6 weeks, and it has only force-closed an app once. AND that app was a new one, with bugs.

4. I love having blonde hair. I need to get the roots touched up, but having blonde hair just makes me feel a bit lighter when I look in the mirror in the morning. I've always had brown hair, and it just feels dark and heavy. Blondes really do have more fun.

5. My new love is Pinterest. It's like a mass comparison of who has the best taste, except minus the intense competition. I have 6 boards, and I am a pretty active...pinner? Anyway, it's a fun site.

All-American Rejects pics with the band:

Self-reflections

I am

-searching, ever searching, for my passion in life

-obsessed with Romania. the children, food, culture, architecture.

-an artist, but haven't figured out how to express it yet

-a dog lover

-a lover and follower of fashion trends

-20 pounds lighter than I was a year ago

-the proud owner of an associate degree, even if I still can't get into the college I really want.

-a good driver

-a dabbler. I know a little bit about most everything

-finally learning what happens when past mistakes catch up with you.

Falling asleep on a cold rocking chair or co-sleeping? Ha.

http://www.newparent.com/baby/happy-baby/

An excellent article on basic parenting practices. I particularly support the idea of co-sleeping. I never thought I'd be planning on sleeping with my (future) infant, until I got a dog. I always feel much better with him sleeping next to me, and while a popular concern of co-sleeping is danger to the baby, I've yet to roll over on my dog. In fact, I have occasionally woken up in odd and contorted positions, due to unconsciously conforming and working around him in the night. Plus, who wants to drag themselves out of bed and schlep to another room to breastfeed at 3am? Not me. It's bad enough my dog wakes me up to go outside.

The article does express surprise that only 22% of American babies are still being breastfed at 12 months. Frankly, I'm surprised a quarter of American babies are still getting breastfed when they're a year old! There are a ton of reasons why breastfeeding is better the longer you do it, but I've also known quite a few babies who didn't want mommy's milk after a few months. I guess it's one of those things that you decide as you go.

Another idea supported in the article is that babies do best in households that aren't quite so structured. AGREED. Why does a baby need to be "on a schedule"? They'll get on one when they learn there's a world outside their crib. The oft-cited idea that always picking up a constantly-crying baby "spoils" them or teaches them improper habits is negated in this article as well, which I like. Secretly, I can't help but wonder if this American idea was started by busy career moms who didn't have time to pick up their screaming baby. But I digress. Anyway, the article is a good one, and cites a lot of valid studies.

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