Feeling blessed.

It's been a rough couple of days. I was so excited to come back home to Logan because I missed Jake so much, but he's been so busy that I've hardly seen him! It's no fun coming home to an empty apartment after I just spent a week surrounded with people I love. But it's absolutely worth it to be here when Jake gets home and we can finally talk.

Despite not finding another job yet and feeling kind of lonely at home sometimes, I am feeling greatly blessed.

I realized today that I just needed to spend some time outside, doing something. So I ran a few errands, took Mal to lunch, visited Jake at work and it totally did the trick. I'm back home now but I did something with my morning.

I have many things to look forward to. We're heading down to Orem (AGAIN!) this weekend for my cousin's wedding. Couldn't be happier for Taylor and Lance. We'll get to see my family which is always a pleasure.

Mallory has decided to stay in Logan this summer. I have to admit that I'm excited about this, because last summer she left me for California and I hated it! I just need her around. The day that we move to different towns will be a sad day.

It's officially less than two weeks until we move! So that's kind of exciting and daunting at the same time.



Sometimes it helps to count your blessings. :)

Why job searching is no fun at all.

Hi All. It's been over a week since I last posted. And let me tell you what, today is not a good day.

So as I said before, I accepted this job a couple weeks ago that I was supposed to start this week. The job was taking care of a lady who is paralyzed and in a wheelchair, helping her go to bed and cooking meals from 7pm-9pm every single night. Sounds awful, right? Just the hours, mainly. I accepted it because she gave it to me right no the spot at our interview and I really need a job. So that was good news. Well I started to not feel so good about it. At the interview she told me that with the job she wouldn't want me to get pregnant. Umm, I'd like that option open for myself and my husband please! Then yesterday she called. It went something like this (paraphrased, of course).

woman: Hi Hannah, can you come in for training on Wednesday?
me: yes, sounds great!
woman: Which shift did we decide on, the morning or night shift?
me: night.
woman: oh okay, because I still need someone for morning.
me: oh I would much rather take morning if that's available!
woman: (sounding defensive) why would you rather take morning?
me: I can do both but morning is preferred because I'd like the nights to do things with my husband.
woman: do you have another job?
me: I teach violin lessons in the afternoon
woman: oh. I guess that's okay.
me: so would you like me to work mornings then?
woman: oh, I already have someone working mornings.
me: ... okay...?
woman: so you can come in for training on Wednesday?
me: yep, I'll be there.


Now before you get mad, this woman is not mentally handicapped in anyway, at least that is apparent to me. We had a very normal conversation at my interview. But first of all, she should not have to approve if I have other jobs or not! The description is for 2 hours very early in the morning or very late at night! And then she totally contradicted herself, saying she needs someone to work mornings and then that she already has someone.

It gets worse.


After hanging up the phone, I went out into the living room totally confused. Jake was there, along with my mom, Mallory, Mallory's boyfriend and Mallory's friend. I said I just felt like something was off about this woman. It felt that as soon as I would take this job my life as I knew it would be over. I would be on call at all times.

SO.

I then decided this job wasn't for me. Better no job and suffer a while than this job and suffer permanently. I haven't told her yet I will not take the job. But this morning I get online on a job listing website (the same that I found hers on) and she posted my job for someone else! BOTH morning and night positions! I was shocked and embarrassed. I have no idea what I would have been in for if I actually decided to go to training tomorrow. In our 2 or 3 conversations it was very clear I had the job already. I'm kind of upset, as you can see.

But then there was some silver lining.


I applied to work at my gym. I got an email last night asking me if I would like an interview. I responded right away and said yes, of course. So then this morning I woke up early with Jake and my mom to drive her to the airport. The whole way there and back I was checking my email to see if there was a response. No response. I figured it would take them a while to get back to me. Well, because I have been getting inconsistent sleep the last few days I came home after the airport and just crashed in bed. I was asleep until 11:15 when I had a phone call. I looked over and didn't recognize the number so I didn't pick it up. After I missed it I realized it could be the gym. SO I check my email really quick, and my message says this:

"Could you come in at 11:15 this morning to interview?"

Obviously, I didn't get the email. I called back and the woman sounded rather annoyed that I didn't respond to her email. A PHONE CALL WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE! I asked if there were other times. One was for noon, and I could have showered really quick and made it except that Jake parked the car at the transit center. The other time was 3:00, which is when I am teaching. So just like that, no interview. This job is no longer a possibility.

Because apparently in the year 2011, if you want a job you need to check your email every half hour.


A bit unprofessional, if you ask me.


So those are the job opportunities in Logan, UT, my friends. Crazy people who can't make up their minds. I really hope something comes along soon.

Sorry to be so depressing. Hopefully in 6 months I will come back and read this and just laugh, because the job I landed was way better than either of these.

Tribute to my best friend on her birthday.

Today is my best friend's birthday.

My best friend is the beautiful, multi-talented Rebecca Fisher.

Becca and I met in high school. We knew each other all four years but only became best friends during our senior year of high school. Before that we had a weird relationship. I called her "Reb" because I wanted to be different from everyone else, who called her the latter part of her name, "Becca". She must of thought I was a total crazy.

We were so close senior year. After that we had a fantastic summer and I moved away to Logan, Utah. It's always hard to sustain a friendship from 800 miles away, but we called each other a lot and when I came home in the summers we would spend most of our time together.

Then I got engaged. It was hard on our friendship a little because Becca hadn't met Jake and it all happened very fast. It also meant I couldn't come home again in the summer and I would spend most of my holidays in Logan. She was so supportive through all of it, was a beautiful bridesmaid at our wedding and continues to be one of my best friends, even from far away.

I owe Becca so much. My sophomore year of college was one of the worst years of my entire life. Take that back, maybe the very worst. I had some hard months of heartbreak, betrayal and overall sadness. Becca dropped everything and came to stay with me in Logan for about a week during this time. I can honestly say that if it wasn't for her, I may have never recovered. I can never thank her enough.

I love Becca, and miss her all the time! Today is hard because I wish I could help her celebrate her 23rd birthday, but I can only give her a blog tribute.

I was looking through some pictures of us, and we have a TON! I am going to post some, but it's only about half of the pictures that I found of us. Crazy!

Happy birthday, Becca!

Update on our lives.

It's been a few days since I've blogged! Somehow I feel like this is an accomplishment.

Anyway...


Things for the Garrett household are rapidly changing. At least that's how it feels to us.

We have decided to move out of our nice, spacious apartment. We really want to buy a car sometime in the next few months and decided that a monthly payment would fit much nicer into our budget if we paid a little less rent. So we are moving down to the island! I have to be honest, I have never been a big fan of the island. But our place is cute, still has two bedrooms and is on ground level. We were very lucky to get the first place we looked at.

I have been job hunting. I love teaching my violin students and will continue to teach, but have a lot more time that I can be working somewhere else. And violin teaching in the summer... let's just say epic fail. All of my students leave for significant amounts of time (which is understandable), but nobody practices, nobody pays, and nobody cares until August rolls around. This is something that I will never understand. Summer is a time to practice like crazy! So I have taken a job that is 2 hours every night of the week, taking care of a sweet lady named Susie who is confined to a wheelchair. I'm a little nervous about it, but I'm sure it will all work out. I've applied for a couple nanny jobs as well, as those would keep me working in the day time. Hopefully one of those can work out too!

Knowing when and if to buy a car is stressful. We realized we need two modes of transportation, since we are moving out of the middle of Logan and we will both have jobs that require a car. Jake has been begging me for a scooter for a long long time, and I finally feel like it might be a good idea. They are really cheap, and would be a nice supplement to a new car. We'll see. Everything is still up in the air. As soon as we take care of the daunting moving task we'll tackle a new car.

Jake has been studying so hard for his classes, I'm so proud of him. Even though he's spending hours in his office studying, he always takes breaks and makes some time for me. He's enjoying his job at the Human Resource department on USU's campus. I like to go visit him and see how cute he looks in his business casual attire. Best Buy is always fun for him too, as he can geek out for a while and display his vast knowledge of computers.

So that's what is new for us. It is times like these where I really feel like my ability to be patient is tried. I want to be in our new place already, have a new car and start my job! Thank goodness for Jake. He always brings me back down to earth.

Books I've read recently.

Day #23: Your favorite book.

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

I read this book in high school and it changed my life. Steinbeck always does such a great job of developing his characters. I wish I could describe my love for this book. I can only say that the word timshel (though mayest) will change your life too, if you decide to read it.

Hollywood should really make a film of this movie. Yes, they already did back in the 50s with James Dean, but it only tells part of the story. In fact I've never seen it, because it's not very close to the book. There was a TV mini-series made back in the 80s with Jane Seymour (as Kate), and I'm still not sure if that would do it justice... maybe someday there will be a film made that is almost as good as the book.

Books are so vital to who I am today. I spent countless hours reading as a kid. Some of my favorite authors were Beverly Cleary, Roald Dahl and C.S. Lewis. I remember reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in elementary school, and when Charlie finally finds the golden ticket I was so excited that I went up to my teacher's desk and told her how exciting it was. She told me to go sit down and be quiet... kind of funny in retrospect. 

In 7th and 8th grade we read some outstanding novels. My teachers truly knew how to pick some great reads. Some of my favorites were The Martian Chronicles (which began my long love affair with Ray Bradbury, especially his short stories), To Kill A Mockingbird, The Pearl and Of Mice and Men. These books encouraged me to read some other great novels in high school (through school and on my own). In college I stopped reading as much because I was so busy. Reading seemed almost like a chore because I had to do so much reading as it was. Now that I've graduated I've read some fantastic books! Here are some of the books I've read since the end of December.

Gunn's Golden Rules: Life's Little Lessons for Making it Work by Tim Gunn

Okay so maybe this book won't go down in history as one of American Literature's top 100, but I LOVED this book! I am one of the biggest Tim Gunn fans you will ever meet (Project Runway, anyone?), and this book taught me a lot of great tips on etiquette. The etiquette tips weren't things like which fork to use at a dinner party, but more just in dealing with people in every day life, and your attitude. I highly recommend this one to you, especially you women.

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

This book, on the other hand, is a great British classic. Jake and my sister-in-law Kim inspired me to read this one. I very much enjoyed it. Just like Steinbeck, Dickens' characters are so well established. Pip's character was so able to relate to.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

Another book that Jake encouraged me to read. It's one of his favorites. I wish I had read it when i was younger, because as much as I enjoyed it at age 22, I think my 12 year old self would have loved it even more. I was really big into fantasy adventure books at that age. 

The Boy Detective Fails by Joe Meno

One of the most unique reads I've come across. Joe Meno has a distinctive, indie-esque style that was on the verge of being annoying. The story itself was superb! But sometimes he would have 2 sentence chapters, each  taking up an entire page, just to be profound. Also, since it follows a boy detective into his adult life, we have to decipher codes to figure out what is going on in the story. Pretty annoying. I ended up just looking up the codes and their meanings online, because Meno's instructions made very little sense. As far as plot and interest, I do still recommend it.

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

To be fair, I didn't actually finish this book. I got about 85% of the way, and then just couldn't handle it anymore. Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoyed what I read. Very enlightening, and I cared very much for the characters. But there was just too much downfall for poor Jurgis. Every time things started looking up, he would lose his job. I don't even mind a sad ending; many of my books have these. But I feel like I got Sinclair's point, and really needed to move on. 

Room by Emma Donoghue

This book is one of THE best books I have ever ever read. It is told in the point of view of a five year old boy, Jack. He and his mom are stuck in a room, and he's been there his whole life. That's about all I can say without giving more away. But holy cow, this book was so incredible. My only beef with it was that I wish it was longer! 

I also reread East of Eden recently, just to remember all the little reasons why I loved it the first time. So now I'm looking for a new book. I tried reading Water For Elephants again, and actually was enjoying it! But there's a part somewhat near the beginning that was... well, off putting. I think I'll find something else to read.

What would you recommend?

Things I wish I could do better.

I'm going to get right down to business today and start with the daily question.

Day #21: Something you wish you were better at.

Well let me tell you, there are many things I wish I could do better. I hope that maybe writing this list of things will inspire me to tackle at least a couple.

Top 10 Perfection Wish List

1. Quilting/Sewing

My mom put my sisters and I in a quilting class when I was in junior high. I loved it. We made table runners, pillows, tote bags, small quilts, Christmas decorations... it was incredible. However, like most things when you're about 13 years old, my mom was always the one who was pushing me to do it. Once I started quilting I loved it, but my mom helped me a lot. I'm afraid that I don't actually know how to do it by myself anymore. My mom has made gorgeous quilts, and it seems too hard. Maybe someday I'll go back to it.

2. Swimming

Don't get me wrong. I know how to swim. But I can't tread water to save my life. Literally. I watch disaster movies where people are suddenly surrounded by water, and I just think to myself that I would be dead at that point. I tire easily in water, and when I took water aerobics in college, treading water was impossible.

3. Genealogy

Jake and I are taking a genealogy class right now at church, and it seems really fascinating. My sister-in-law Liz is the ultimate pro at it, and she seems to really enjoy it. To me it just looks like a lot of work! My Abbott side of the family could really use some genealogy work, and sometimes I feel inspired to do some of it. But even though people say it's really easy, it's not. Genealogy is hard.

4. Cooking

To be fair, I actually have been working on my cooking skills. Cooking is a very expensive hobby, though. I try to keep our grocery bill down. But I want to teach our future kids that eating healthy is important. So this is one I will continue to work on.

5. Playing the piano

I took piano lessons for a few years. I took 2 semesters of piano proficiency classes in college. I SHOULD know how to play the piano! But I really can't play very well at all. We have a really crappy keyboard in our second room, and it's just sitting here gathering dust. I like to feel the weight of real piano keys, and so playing on plastic, light keyboard keys is hard for me. But no more excuses. I really must learn to play the piano.

6. Singing

All three of my sisters were blessed with beautiful singing voices. Truly gorgeous. I'm not sure if they have always had these voices or if they worked hard to perfect them, but I don't have one of those voices. My sister Carolyn sings like an angel. She gives me chills every time. If I could sing like her, I would die happy.

7. Badminton

I've always enjoyed this sport. I used to be fairly good at it but am now out of practice. Someday when we live in a place that doesn't snow half the year, maybe we'll build a badminton court.

8. Running

This is another thing I have actually worked pretty hard on. I really hate running. A lot. But I want to like it, because it seems so exhilarating. I've used the excuse that my arthritis holds me back for so many years now. Though this is probably true, it's not a valid excuse. I can do it if I want to. Maybe I won't love running, but I really do enjoy my semi-running style on the elliptical. Someday maybe I'll transfer my energy to real running.

9. Thirds (on the violin)

Yet another thing I have worked very hard on for a long time. For those of you who don't know what thirds are, they are small intervals that are, for me, extremely hard to get in tune. It's held me back from perfecting a lot of pieces! It's a slow process but I think I'm finally getting a little better. Consistency, consistency, consistency...

10. Writing

My family is full of incredible writers. My dad is the most profound, intelligent writer I know. He can say so much in so little. It's true of all my brothers, too. My brothers are all so witty and spot on. I think if you can write, you can do just about anything. It makes you a better conversationalist and a better friend.

What do you wish you were better at?

WalMart and animals. Maybe related in some way.

I just got back from a rainy, long, miserable trip to WalMart. I  am NOT a fan of WalMart. I will tell you why.

• Overcrowded. People are everywhere. They should really make lanes like we have on the road.  
• The people in the overcrowded store are unaware of anyone else around them. They park their cart in the middle of an isle with 8 kids and don't notice when people are trying to get around them. I have all the respect in the world for mothers, especially those who bring their kids to the store. But PLEASE be more considerate!
• I always always always end up with the squeaky cart. Generally it has a gimpy wheel or just feels the need to be incredibly loud. Everyone stares at me as if it is my personal cart and that I should really invest in a new one. Sorry, WalMart is a big place, I'm not going to the front of the store to get a new one.
• They say they are cheap, but Walmart is actually more expensive than the other grocery stores I go to in the valley. They are incredibly good at marketing and persuading customers that they are cheaper. What they do is put up a huge display of things on sale at an amazing price. The display is meant to lure you in to another isle with regularly priced products that are not a great deal at all. I watched a documentary on it, it's true.
• Their produce section is awful and not fresh at all. Their fruit and veggies are basically spoiled before you even buy them. And once again, they are overpriced. 

I only went there today because I needed some gifts for a baby shower tonight, and with the rain being so miserable I just wanted to make one stop. So I'll give you that, WalMart: you ARE a convenient one stop shop.

When I got home I put my iPod on shuffle. I do this when I'm not sure what kind of mood I'm in that day. I let the iPod gods decide my future for me. I had a really great shuffle going before I came in and blogged:

1. Spirit Voices -- Paul Simon

2. Real Men -- Joe Jackson

3. Never Grow Old -- The Cranberries

4. Prenzlauerberg -- Beirut

5. Tu Me Salvaste -- Mana

6. It Only Makes Me Laugh -- Oingo Boingo

So my not so great trip to WalMart was, in fact, redeemed by some great artists. Thanks, guys.

Now for my daily question to answer.

Day #21: Your favorite animal

My super awesome sister-in-law Kim asked me the other day what my favorite animal is. The truth is that I have 5. And these, ladies and gentlemen, are in a very particular order.

5. the llama

4. the sloth

3. the ferret 

4. the dog (most any breed, but I will feature the pug, as I love pugs)

And of course, as anyone who knows me well knows, I LOVE PIGS.

I wish I had time to elaborate, but I have to go make some lunch and get ready for teaching for the day.

Culture within our own country.

My diet is FINALLY over!

I have a confession, however.

Yesterday was meant to be soup day. Jake and I diligently made the soup the night before so that I could just wake up and have it all day. Well I woke up the next morning a total mess. I could barely sit up straight or walk around. I had zero energy. I have a history of hypoglycemia, so I knew it was only a matter of time until the diet completely disagreed with me. Luckily it happened on the very last day. 

So I stopped a day early. I had 5 students to teach yesterday, and had to pull myself together. Unfortunately I was so sick I had to reschedule all of them. But it's okay. I don't think I failed this diet by stopping a day early. I could have maybe lost a couple more pounds but no biggie. 

Many of you wonder: why did I do this diet? And you're probably totally sick of hearing about it. I know. I've been talking about it too much, but it's the only thing that's kept me accountable.

I did it to lose a little bit of weight, of course. But that's not really why. I did it because I wanted to give myself a real challenge of strict self-discipline. I think all of us need a reality check every once in a while. I wanted to see if I could do something hard without giving up, and I did it! I'm very proud of myself. 

Now that it's all over I will stop talking about it. :)

Day #20: A picture of somewhere you would love to travel.

There are SO many places I would love to go. I have narrowed it down to my top 5. They are in no particular order.

1. Boston

I was raised on hearing stories of the magnificence of Boston. My parents both love it. Well, Massachusetts more generally, I should say. Boston is the home of the Red Sox, a team I have loved for many years. Amherst is where Emily Dickinson was born and raised. It seems to have so much history and intrigue. I would just love to experience it.

2. England

Most specifically London, but I feel that the rest of the country is probably just as beautiful. When I was little I dreamed about going there. I really don't know why. Such a different culture than we have here in the states.

3 and 4: Ireland and Scotland

GREEN, GREEN, GREEN. These places both seem so raw and natural. My biggest draw to both of these places is their music. I've been playing Scottish and Irish fiddle tunes since I was 4 years old. I don't mean to group these two countries together, implying they are the same. I know they are not. But the music from these countries tie together in my mind. 

5. The entire United States

This is the main point I wanted to bring up in my blog today. I often think about why people are the way they are. Why mean people are mean, why nice people are nice, and why I feel the need to generalize people into these categories. Well I think that many of these answers can be found in people's upbringing, and their ancestors' upbringing. Within the United States we have many different lifestyles. We don't have to travel outside of our own country at all to find culture. I have spent all of my life on the west coast or very near the west coast. I have no idea what people are like in other parts of the country. If I had the time and the means, I would buy a mobile home with Jake, and we would take a couple of years to travel to all fifty states and learn about them. I would write a book about it. I figure that you would need 2 or 3 weeks in each state to soak up some culture. That's about 3 years. I love my country, but I wouldn't consider myself a patriot. If I could fully understand the country and each state, I would probably have a much bigger appreciation. In fact, maybe someday when Jake and I retire we can make this dream come true. Maybe we'd cut it down to a week in each state, to make it a year long trip instead. But it's an interesting thought, don't you think?

Disney: good or evil?

Day #18: A picture of your favorite place you have traveled.

Well I went to Austria when I was a junior in high school for about 10 days, and it was GORGEOUS. The most beautiful place I have ever been. But I don't think I was there long enough to say it is my favorite place. I think it has potential. I'm not sure I'll have the chance to make it back someday, but I hope so.

I guess you could say my favorite place that I've traveled to is a place I've been quite a few times... it's not very far away...

DISNEYLAND.

A lot of people say that when the grow up, going to Disneyland loses its magic. Not true at all for me. I love Disneyland. It is an obsession. I think about it just about everyday. I can't wait to take my kids there someday. 

At the same time, though, I hate Disneyland. In an episode of Mad Men the ad men said that the best way to sell a product is to appeal to human emotion by way of nostalgia. I don't like feeling that Disney has so much control over everyone, not just our kids. 

Disney made 38 billion dollars in 2010. 38 BILLION! Can you even think about how much money that is? They appeal to young parents who want to make Disney a part of their lives. They appeal to young children who want to be just like their favorite princess or super hero. They appeal to grandparents who want to see their cute little grandchildren dressed as Snow White. They appeal to women in their early twenties who do not have kids yet but for some reason can't let go of the magic of my childhood. 

There has been an outrageous spike in clothing sales for Disney in the last few years. They have started selling clothes to infants, which should bring in billions more for the company. The parks are incredibly expensive, as well as the food and merchandise. But I never seem to mind paying for anything inside the park. It's Disneyland! How often do I get to go? 

Webster defines nostalgia as "a wistful or excessively sentimental yearning for return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition." 

Disney has hit that emotion SPOT ON. My childhood was full of amazing Disney movies and songs. I am just one of the millions of people who will continue to allow them to bamboozle me. 

Diet update and other tidbits.

Hi All!

The diet is going well. I'm on day 5, so I've made it over the halfway hump! Today I am allowed to have 10-12 ounces of chicken and 5 tomatoes. I was really worried about this day because 10-12 ounces is not a lot... it's probably one large chicken breast or two small ones. But since I've been eating so little the last 4 days, my stomach isn't even hungry. It's 1:00 and I haven't eaten anything today. I'm not a big fan of tomatoes just plain, so I will probably just have some chicken.

OH! Here is a tip for anyone who decides to do the diet:

On Day #4 (Banana/Skim Milk Day), Make a banana milkshake! Last night I still had 4 bananas leftover, and so I got some ice, skim milk and 4 bananas and mixed a really good milkshake. Jake and I shared it, and half of it was more than enough to fill me up. 

I'm glad this is almost over. It's been really tough. But I think it's worth it, especially if you do it with friends! I'm doing it with my sister Mallory and her roommate Kristen. We are going to go out to lunch after it's all over this week. Any ideas as to where we should go? We don't want to pig out, obviously, but want something we weren't allowed to have before. I'm thinking maybe Pita Pit.

 

Oh, and no big deal, but I've lost about 7 pounds so far. I've probably lost the bulk of my weight, and may not lose much more. But I feel good! 

That's it for today, detox diet wise. :)

Now I'll do a quick 30 day challenge update.I'm kind of getting tired of it, because I have other things to write about. But I figure I'll finish it out. Here's a few, since I've missed some days.

Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die.
Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you.
Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently.

Day #15: A picture of something you want to do before you die.

I want to go on a mission with Jake when we're old and retired. It's something that we look forward to. It's a long way off, but a good plan to have.

Day #16: A picture of someone who inspires you.

Hilary Hahn. Outstanding violinist. She plays Bach better than anyone, in my opinion. To me, she seems very humble, despite her natural talent. There's so many musicians out there who brag about themselves, but in the interviews I've seen she's fairly soft spoken and kind. 

Day #17: A picture of something that has impacted your life recently.

This weekend is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints' semi-annual General Conference. Millions of people around the world watch our prophet and his apostles speak. These men (and women, who are auxiliary leaders) are truly, truly inspired. I have felt the Spirit of the Lord so strongly these last couple of days. I'm grateful for what the Gospel means in my life.