Happy Last Day of OCTOBER!!

I'M LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD!!!

IT'S HALLOWEEN!!

(I prefer to celebrate Dia de los Muertos, but where am I going to find Sugar Skulls in Ephraim??) 

I carved a pumpkin that looks like a cat!

Sorry the picture isn't very good...

Then I watched all the PG-13 horror movies on Netflix.

Ate Pomegranate. 

Ate Reeses and Cookies and Cream bars.

Visited with my Vising Teachers

Ate their delicious cookies (they were seriously the best pumpkin cookies I've ever had)

Then I came back to my computer to find a delightful message from Josh.

I seriously died laughing

Like *DIE*  hyperventilating, rolling on the floor. 

Ready?

What a creep! He copied my costume!

Best. Thing. Ever. 

Happy Halloween!

xoxo,

mo

Hola! Bonjour! Konichiwa! Hai!

Sorry!  I haven't blogged in two whole weeks! Crazy....   

I was home last week getting my physical for my mission papers.

I got poked

and bruised

and gave blood

and had my blood pressure taken

and found out I do NOT have tuberculosis. 

allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 

to be told I am completely healthy! 

(I knew that.) 

So....

xoxo,

mo

p.s.

read this.

HOMEMADE BAGELS!

Yes. That is a homemade bagel in my hand.

Yes. It is covered in cinnamon sugar.

No. I will never buy bagels again.

Yes. Do ignore my scruffley hair.\

Oh and guess what.

MY MISSION PAPERS ARE OPEN!! 

(and mostly filled out, just waiting for my doctor appointments)
xoxo,
mo

Snuggle V. Cuddle

*sigh*  

Today was a very dramatic day.

Brenda woke me up to go to Institute.

I didn't want to go.

So instead of getting out of bed to tell her

I texted her this:

"Dear Brenda, go without me.

I'm going to load up on drugs

and sleep."

(not real drugs obviously).

But I got out of bed,

and I was glad I did because 

my Institute teacher is fantastic.

Then, after Institute I arrived at my apartment

I was in a very chipper mood,

reached down into my favorite satchel

and *sigh* realized my favorite satchel

did not contain my keys.

My second favorite one did.

I very dramatically leaned against the door

and slumped to the floor. 

(hehe it rhymed.)

I slumped for an hour.

And may have chipped off

all my nail polish during

The Wait.

Then I walked alllllllllllllllllllllll

the way across campus

in cowboy boots

interrupted Brenda's class

and took her keys.

*sigh* 

Then I watched The District

on BYU TV.

I'm not the type to go

*OOOH REALITY SHOW ON MISSIONARIES*

but it was fantastic. 

And very helpful.

My papers aren't opened yet.

*sigh*

The best part of the day was when 

a certain friend of mind shamelessly

admitted she/he did not know 

the difference between 

snuggling

and

cuddling.

*sigh*

Snuggling is that

*meh I want to be closer*

so you just keep scootching

closer, and closer, and closer.

Cuddling is the casual

*movie time! Keep me warm

I like holding your hand*

type of chillin.  It's appropriate

to snuggle at points during

a movie, but snuggling is usually

reserved for gazing deep into

each other's eyes or preparing 

to take a snooze with your

favorite fluffy kitten.

In other news, 

that came in the mail today.

Fun fact, 

I decided I was going to 

teach  myself Spanish

a few weeks ago

and got from the 

Distribution Center.

Before President Monson

announced the missionary 

age change.

I'm a tad awed. 

*sometimes dramatic days

take a toll on your face so you

hide it with a lovely, fantastic book*

Well.... 

xoxo,

mo

p.s.

CONFERENCE TALKS ARE OUT

read my favorite

read it over and over and over

just, don't tattoo it on your chest

What's On My Mind

Have I ever mentioned I love fall? I absolutely adore it!  I love the leaves, the chilly air (commonly referred to as "Sweater Weather"), the fresh squashes and tomatoes, pumpkins, corn, mazes, haunted houses, Halloween.  I love looking out the window and seeing all the trees change color. There's green, yellow, red, and orange right out my window.  I love warm boots, dark jeans, and, of course sweaters.  I love relaxing at the end of the day with a mug of hot chocolate or apple cider.  Or going on walks through the leaves, and wearing mittens.  I love autumn.

I love the fact I've checked the Missionary Online Recommendation System every half hour today, hoping my bishop has activated my papers. (not yet). My favorite parts of the day are when I wake up every morning to a text from Josh, my hour-two hours I spend studying Preach My Gospel, or the Book of Mormon,  dinner (we make fantastic dinners around here), around 8 o'clock when we decide we want to make weight watchers cookies, and when I finally curl up in bed, read a few more chapters in the Book of Mormon, and have happy dreams all night.  That's what I like about my days.

What I don't like.  Having to wake up early to go icky Biology.  It's not icky, just boring.  Realizing you're almost out of margarita sticks.  (Lemon-lime slushed popsicles, they aren't alcoholic, I promise.) Missing my family.  I know, weird right.  I actually do miss my crazy family.  I miss high school too.  Which is even weirder, but I liked spending my days studying government, working with the literary magazine, and debate.  

Most of all though, I miss writing essays.  The worst decision ever is not taking an English class this semester, I don't know if I can survive.  I miss editing newspaper articles, or those dumb group-editing sessions in English.  Those sessions were awful! I always felt like my papers neeeever got any suggestions that actually helped me, but most of the time I'd take the essays I was editing for a few class periods and edit them to shreds.  I love editing.  I miss it so much. 

I miss working with people.  All through high school I was either an editor, or a debate captain, or volunteering.  I like teaching because, believe it or not, I learn so much more about something when I teach someone.  It gave me the excuse to spend hours looking up random things, like George Mason, or graffiti, or the complete works of U2, to help the people I was working with.  That's how I learn the best.  I can't sit in a lecture, well, I can, but if I get with a study group and re-teach what I learned from that awfully boring lecture I'll learn it better.  

I have to share what I know.  I like that.  My poor husband is going to learn a lot of random facts from me one day. Lucky him.  

xoxo,

mo

p.s.

read this.  

like, actually read-read it, you'll learn a ton of new facts

i loff it 

Well... :D

So. . .

I met with my bishop today.

And. . .

As soon as he talks to my home-ward bishop

I will be set to

open my mission papers.

I'm going on a mission.

And I couldn't be happier.

Oh my goodness!

xoxo,

mo

p.s.

read this:

"Today many sisters are being called to serve. Many more are preparing to serve. Not because they aren't married or dont have anything else to do, but they have the desire to serve. One reason that the Lord wants more sisters to serve is because within the next generation He will send His priesthood army to the earth. He wants to send choice spirit children to mothers who have been prepared, properly trained, and taught in the gospel. What better schooling can a mother have than the experience and growth she gains through serving a mission." 

-President Gordon B. Hinckley 

My "Plans"

WELCOME TO MY HALLOWEEN BLOG. Isn't it cute. 

So this is my 2-year plan I had all written up.

Jan-May: 2013

Modern Lit

Thesis Course

Intro to Mass Media

P.E.

Graphic Design or something.....

Psych or something....

May-August 2013

NANNY in DC baby!! Or volunteer in Peru. . . 

August-December 2013 USU

Survey of American Culture

World Literary History Since 1900

Professional Editing

Beginning News Writing

Document Designs and Graphics

January-May 2014

Intro to Public Relations

Professional Writing

Methods and Research....

Publications Productions

History of the English Language

June-August 2014

ILP in Weihai, China

August-December 2014

Professional Writing Technology

Modern Rhetorical Theory

Writing for Public Relations

Poetry Writing

Specialized Documents

January-May 2015

Studies in Writing for Digital Media Production

Professional Writing Capstone

6 Jcom Upper Division credits

Graduate in MAY!  Bachelors in English-Technical Writing, Minor in Public Relations

But.  In 3 minutes on Saturday morning my entire plan got thrown out the window.  Honestly, I wrote this because I have no idea, clue, or even a general direction I want to go with my life.  I thought, "Hey, plan something, stick with it, maybe you'll like it."  That's generally not the right idea. . . 

So, 

Tomorrow I meet with my bishop.

xoxo,

mo

A Day in the Life of a Vegan

Breakfast:  Oatmeal with Raspberries.  Every. Single. Day.  I think I could eat this every day of my life and not get sick of it. . . mmmm.  I don't care what kind of oatmeal, as long as my raspberries are in there.  If you don't have any delectable fresh berries (like me. . . ) I ran to wally-world and bought a bag of frozen ones.  Before you nuke your oats I crunch some frozen berries into smaller chunks (so every bite had juicy goodness and you save money) and throw them in.  That way, when it's done cooking, you'd never know they were frozen.  Add a little water to make it the consistency you like and, BAM! Delicious breakfast.

*insert picture here.... my camera ran out of batteries and I'm too cheap to go buy some.... I'll just wait until I go home and stock back up... welcome to the life of a college student*

If you don't like oatmeal I really like chopped up fruit for breakfast.  Every Saturday buy a bunch of your favorite fruit, then on Sunday I chop it all up and throw it into a Tupperware and snack on it all week.  I do the same thing with veggies.

Lunch/Dinner:  I'm a tofu fanatic. Really.  My roommates don't appreciate it, but I LOVE tofu.  So, for lunch if I have classes or work all night I'll just make extra and eat the rest for dinner.  It's quick and easy that way.

For a successful vegan lunch/dinner you must have some delicious sauce.  I really like the Kikkoman Stir-fry and Teriyaki sauces, they're so delicious. Or you can make your own.  Nikko makes a boss Teriyaki sauce, but I don't have the recipe... He doesn't either.  Basically whip some soy sauce with brown sugar and other yummy smelling Asian spices and hope for the best.  Agave Nectar is good to use with less brown sugar if you're worried about your petite figure.

Cook up some bell peppers, onions, maybe some mushrooms, carrots, potato in a frying pan (I use a wok) then add your tofu.  Stir it up until the tofu is nice and warm.  Add your sauce, cover it.  Then serve over rice or whole-grain pasta.

Salads.  I love my leafy-greens.  Throw some Italian dressing over crunch lettuce, cucumbers, carrots, and mushrooms and chow down.  Eat as much as you want.  Eat salad until you're sick.  It's better than eating Micky-D's until your sick.

I'm working on other recipes.  I don't dare share them without testing them first.  That's my rule.

Snacks:  Tupperware of fruit and veggies!  They're so easy to just go grab, sit in front of the TV and eat.  I have this things where I always need to be chewing on something (gum is good, but it gives me headaches) so I munch on celery.  I love celery.

Rice Puffs.  You know those delicious Quaker flavored-Styrofoam?  I eat those all the time.  They're fluffy and crunchy and just feel good in your stomach.  Make sure not to get a flavor that has any milk products in it.  Sometimes that can be tricky.  Cheddar cheese flavor=bad.

Granola.  I eat this by the pound.  I have an 8-pound bag in my cupboard and it's nearly half-way gone.  I bought it a month ago.  This is also really yummy for breakfasts. Granola and raspberries.

Margaritas.  No. Not the alcoholic kind.  Ice and raspberry margarita mix blended together.  YUM!  Or any slushie of any kind.  Mixing limeade and ice in a blender is really good too.

Popsicles.  Walmart has delicious lemon-lime pops for 1.96 a bag. There's 18 in a bag. Oh yeah! And they're massive.  I call them margarita sticks and I highly recommend them.

Desserts: I have found the best cookie recipe in the world.  It is VEGAN! They're called Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows. This is the recipe.  I used veggie oil instead of canola oil, substitutions are pretty forgiving with this recipe.  When you go to bake them, press the round ball down a little better so they're flat, I think they taste better that way.

I like these because they're chocolate and vegan.  Vegan chocolate chips are so expensive and not worth it.

So that's my current life as a vegan.   I'm going to go make something new for lunch.  If it's delicious I'll post it tonight, if not. . . I'll try something else.

xoxo,

mo

p.s.

read this and this

Facebook.

Okay.   Many of you are wondering why I'm disappearing from Facebook.  It's complicated.

First of all I don't need Facebook.

I don't need it to keep in touch with people.  I don't need hundreds of Facebook friends, because I'm not going to take these hundreds of friends through life with me.  Sorry, but that's the honest-to-goodness truth.

Second, Facebook is a time waster.

Ugh.  Social media is my downfall.  I'm not just getting rid of my Facebook, my twitter is disappearing, and so is my Tumblr.  *cringe*  I'm going to feel incredibly naked without my constant interaction with people I have never met, and will never meet.  So, I'm sorry buttercupthekittyjay and  calif0rnia-girl  I'm not going to be reblogging any of your posts anymore.  I'm sorry I'm going to give you a momentary mental breakdown when you realize you're missing a follower.  I'm sorry Facebook world, you won't be enlightened by my fabulous and witty posts every other day. I'm sorry dear, dear Twitter followers, my 140 characters of randomness will not be sent to your phone hour upon hour.

Third, I have better things to be doing.

Such as homework.  Meeting new people.  Reading my scriptures.  Tracking down door-bell ditchers. Making delicious vegan dishes.  Snuggling kittens.  Volunteering.  You know, important stuffs.  Just think about the hours the world spends on the internet every month, week, or even day.... We could be doing much better things... And actually making an impact.

Fourth, I'm going to make a difference.

I'm going to do that things I should be doing.  3 years from now I don't want my greatest accomplishment to be "I had over 1000 Facebook friends, or my tweet was re-tweeted by *insert famous person/corporation here (Ellen DeGeneres would be my dream re-tweeter)* I've been thinking about this lately, and I literally wrote out what I'm doing for the next two years.  I even planned my entire schedule up until my graduation in 2015 with an English Major- Technical Writing and Editing emphasis and a minor in Journalism/Communications- Public Relations emphasis. I am going to work all summer, work through school, then go with the International Language Program to China or Mexico the summer of 2014.  It's planned.  I have goals.  Facebook is only getting in my way.

Why am I still blogging/keeping friends on Facebook?

I'm keeping a record.  These are my thoughts. My crazy, random, sometimes insane thoughts.  There are some groups on Facebook I'd like to still be a part of, just for updates for future jobs and support. And, of course, my mother says she uses Facebook to keep tabs on me.   So, I guess I better give her one way to do that.  I don't need hundreds of friends.  A handful of people who are going to support me is all I need.

I don't want Facebook honestly.  I don't.  People didn't have it 8 years ago.  I think I will be just fine and connected without it.

This is my story.  This is my future.  Welcome back to my new life!

xoxo,

mo

p.s.

read this and this