Sad, but true. Or is it funny, AND true?

First Time

I don't usually do this, but today, the blog = journal. Not some wacky post trying to be clever and analyze a little part of life, not a snapshot of some wild adventure, not a complaint, not an opinion poll, a journal.

This is how most of my journal entries run -

Mon July 27, 2009

Was going to go to work, but slept in. (big surprise....) Mom upset I didn't ask to borrow truck.

Took Brent to orthopedist, has to get surgery. Tomorrow. Lazy rest of day, sock shopping in the mall and chicken enchiladas. Life is good. - Sandra Dawson P-J-S-

The PJS has been going on for a couple years now, it's an idea I stole from seminary and started using when I wanted to make sure I wouldn't miss a day of scripture reading. P is for prayer, J is for journal, and S is for scripture, and I try to mark these every day. Confession: I almost always mark off the P (95% of the time) but I don't almost always pray (closer to 70%). I don't know why. I'm embarrassed to admit, even to myself, that I forget or am too lazy to say my prayers.

I can say, though, that in the past 25 months, I have only missed one day of opening my Book of Mormon, and that day I was pretty darn sick, I fell asleep before I could even think about it. My dad's stake president once challenged the stake to read in the Book of Mormon every day for the rest of their lives, even if just a verse. My dad missed 3 days in the first 18 months, another day in the year after that, and then, to the best of my knowledge, hasn't missed since.

In Spain, there was Faustino. And he has one of the most fervent testimonies of journaling (two l's?) I've ever felt. "This is your STORY," he would say, "this is your HISTORY!" What does it mean if the days go by and we forget them; if we don't record the experiences, what will we learn? Your life is interesting, your life is important, and no one knows the events, feelings, ponderings and musings of your life like you do. Write it down, if for no one's benefit but yourself. (yourselves?)

Opinion Poll

Is this country? (The song, not the windmill, I couldn't figure out how to just do the music, so I made a video. No, nothing interesting happens, it really is just that windmill the whole time.)

Yes: 1.

No: 1.

Looking for a tiebreaker here.

These are a few of my least favorite things....

I'm too lazy to put a picture up, and I have faith in y'all that you won't need a visual.

Mosquitoes.

Hate them.

What's their purpose?

It's 1:20 am. I have to shower before I go to bed. I have to get up by 7:30 and make myself look nice. But here I am, blogging, because I am so upset at the bloodsucking bugs.

Now, if you'll please excuse me, I'm going to put my fingers to use doing something far more helpful than typing.

Tradition...kind of

I have this friend I do this thing with.

Friend: Rebecca
Thing: Go to Utah temples

We are the differentest samest people I know.

We're both hilarious, for one.
We're proud fans of Cougars, scooters, and missionaries.
We're Utah girls. We raft, we hike, we camp, we fish.
We like swiss chicken. (That doesn't even count, everyone likes swiss chicken)

She's blond, I'm brown.
She's focused, I'm scatterbrained.
She's logical, I'm emotional.

Ha ha, blond, focused and logical, she's out of the ordinary.

And although I'm eating a Rebecca food at the moment, carrot sticks, I'm planning on devouring a Sandra food in a couple minutes, white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies. Freakin yum.

Anywho, we both believe in documentation. Hence, this blog post. I hereby document the June 3rd visit of Sandra and Rebecca to the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple open house, in which said persons skipped the orientation video, oo'ed and aw'ed at the pretty-ness inside the temple, and then enjoyed cookies and water in a nearby "tent" that could double as a prom or wedding or bar mitzvah location.

I'm not sure I spelled macadamia or bar mitzvah correctly, and although Rebecca might be the kind of person to look that up before publishing, I am Sandra.

Kauai

Myself and Shauna, exploring along on oceanside trail

Nothing says family vacation like piling into the back of a minivan

Here I am trying my hand at deep sea fishing.
I can't believe I had time to stop and pose for this picture, you know, between the four hour boat ride and not catching a single thing.....I was pretty busy.

"The Bat"
In case we caught something that I couldn't beat to death with my own two hands.



The trip consisted of:

-Late night visits to the hotel fitness center
-Early mornings with a way too energetic Shauna
-Reading "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown to get caught up

before the movie comes out
-Making purchases at Costco of course,

including the ultimate Costco dog. The hot dog.
-Teriyaki pineapple burgers and coconut shrimp
-Aloe vera lotion and lots of it
-Snorkeling, snorkeling and more snorkeling
-Kayaking
-Hiking
-Walking under waterfalls
-Jumping off of solid ground, swinging on a rope

and plunging into the water
-Cruising around the Na Pali coast on the Zodiac with Captain Joe
-Taking pictures
-Long plane rides


That's about it....until next time.

Aloha HOY!

I definitely should have blogged more and captured more experiences from Spain, but I didn't. And I'm not going to sum it all up now. Maybe later. Moving right along.

I'm starting my day in Orem, Utah, wearing my favorite PJ combo of boxers and a T, eating a bowl of HONEY NUT Cheerios. How will I end it? I don't really know. But I'll be in Hawaii.

My mom just graduated with her Master's degree (woo hoo!) and we are going to Kuaui (spelling?) for a week to celebrate. Celebrate on the beach, celebrate on a hike, celebrate on a pineapple, celebrate on a snorkel set...you get the picture.

So that's all for now, I mean, I have a plane ride to catch. I wish you could've come, anyone. My sister is bringing her boyfriend, my brother is bringing his best friend and as said sister so lovingly put it, I "have no one". But! Do you really need someone when you're in Hawaii? I mean, come on, I'll have 2 pina coladas, one for each hand.

I just haven't blogged in a while, and it's May, and I felt the need to put something up. Even without a photo. Who knows, maybe something interesting will happen on my trip and I can post about that. Like if I get bit by a jelly fish and have to be peed on.

You. I would pee on your sting wound if you came, you know. Hasta lasagna.