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Thursday, February 24, 2011

Girls Who Read!!

I found this quote and just loved it. It describes my love for books and words to a tee!
"Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes. She has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve.

Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag.She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she finds the book she wants. You see the weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a second hand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow.

She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book.

Buy her another cup of coffee.

Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent. Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice.

It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas and for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry, in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does.

She has to give it a shot somehow.

Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world.

Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who understand that all things will come to end. That you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two.

Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series.

If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are.

You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype.

You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots.

Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads."

— Rosemary Urquico

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Angels Among Us

"We are each of us angels with only one wing. And we can only fly embracing each other." -- Luciano De Crescenzo

After my...interesting Valentine's Day yesterday and blogging about it, I was reminded of the angels among us every day. Coming home from ward FHE, I discovered a note and 3 boxes of chocolate on my doorstep. The note was a poem saying they had read my blog post and were saddened by my rough day and that they wanted to be there for me. It was signed- A friend. To this person out there- Thank you. Thank you for reminding me that there are people like you out there and that I have people that care about me. Thank you for making my Valentine's Day instantly better. Thank you for your kindness and thoughfulness. And, if you're reading this, yes I want to be friends.

I have been extremely blessed and I fear I do not express my gratitude enough so I wanted to take a few to highlight some angels in my life. *Names have been changed or nicknames utilized.

My Home Teachers: Ninja* and Hero* were assigned to my roommates and myself at the beginning of last fall semester. When winter semester started I got an excited text from them letting us know that they were still our home teachers. They have come faithfully every month to share the message and visit with us, but more than that, they have shared their testimonies with me, given me blessings, comforted me in hard situations, wished me happy birthday, brought me dinner, and written me encouraging notes. For the first time in my life, I have home teachers that I know will come if I call in the middle of the night and to whom I'm not just an assignment. Thank you Ninja and Hero!

My Boss: J.C.* is amazing! Honestly. She is wonderful at her job and is a fantastic mother. Working for her and with her is incredibly rewarding- not only has she given me the precious opportunity to care for her adorable son, but she is teaching me along the way about life and strength and courage. Thank you J.C.!

A good friend Kasey*: Her and I have been through some similar experiences in life, yet she never fails to inspire and motivate me. She never fails to tell me she's praying for me or to invite me to join an activity. Her faith and optimism is amazing and I am grateful to have her in my life. Thank you Kasey!

And there are dozens more of these angels in my life and I foresee doing a similar type post more often. One last thought- if we are looking for the "angels" in everyone around us, don't you think we'll start to see angels more?

Monday, February 14, 2011

Valentine's Day!

I'm not a Valentine's hater, honestly. I'm not bitter or overly jealous of cute couples. But today was rough. 1st- Really sick. I've been sick a couple days, but it got worse today. I'll spare you the details. The doctor sent me to get medicine at Walgreen's leading to... 2nd- running into my ex in Walgreen's looking completely gross and starting to cry in front of him. He doesn't help by trying to be all sweet while slipping in that's he's planning to propose to his girlfriend soon. Epic meltdown in public. So I drove to another store twenty minutes away to give me time to cry really hard ( which I don't recommend while driving). But I'm a big girl so I went out and bought myself some chocolate which I will save til I can enjoy them. And I'm going to be ok. The sun will come up tomorrow and I will keep moving. Love will happen to me again one day and I'll be ready for it. Til then....

Friday, February 11, 2011

Confessions of a Compulsive Giver

For some people it's shopping and shoes. For others it's manga or Pokemon cards. For me it's not quite that literal. I'm a compulsive giver. I wake up thinking about who I need to help and make little notes when someone comes to mind. I walk into stores and instead of getting my list immeadiately, I see items that other people might need. I look for any and all occasions to bring a plate of food or a small gift or even a note. Not just birthdays or holidays, but engagements and mission calls, midterms, tough days, Happy Tuesday and Fabulous Friday and just because. I'm a huge tipper and I have to give money or food to homeless people.


The first step is admitting it.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

TT: Austen and Algae

I must warn you, however, that I was recently given random trivia games. So I will mix in those with my tidbits from my college education. Enjoy!




  • Jane Austen published all of her works anonymously and her identity as the author of her books as not known until after her death in 1817.

  • Algae by itself produces between 71 and 87 percent on the world's oxygen!

  • Celebrity real names for you: Mel Brooks was born Melvin Kaminsky and Judy Garland was born Frances Gumm. Yeah, I would change my name too.

  • The origin of the hole in the doughnut: Captain Hanson Gregory, a 19th-century Maine sea captain, was eating a doughnut while sailing through a storm. Suddenly the ship rocked violently and threw him against the ship's wheel - impaling his cake on one of its spokes. Seeing how well the spoke held his cake, Gregory began ordering all of his cakes with holes in them.

  • Saddam Hussein once used Whitney Houstons "I Will Always Love You" as a campaign theme song. Sending mixed messages there I think.

  • Tycho Brahe, the astronomer, wore an artificial nose made of gold and silver because he lost a part of his nose in a duel Hardcore.

  • Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise. That's right ladies- it's just how we roll.
  • Donald Duck cartoons were banned in Finland because he doesn't wear pants. Shame on you Donald!
  • Penguins can convert salt water into fresh water! How cool is that? Not to mention they stay with the same mate for life.
  • The IRS loses about 2 million documents a year. Yikes! Make sure your taxes get done right!
  • And last but not least- humans have unique tongue prints. But I don't think he police are going to start printing our tongues just yet.