You Say Its Your Birthday!!

This weekend my gorgeous sister Bekah came to visit from Salt Lake City. We had a fun weekend. She came in on Thursday eve and although I had to work on Friday, she made herself at home by going down to the Beach. We went on Friday to Indian food at Bombay in Ontario, and then went to Smogdance, the poor man's Sundance ,in Pomona. There was a film Andrea, my roommate, and I were interested in seeing. The short was called the "Constant Process" It is documentary by an LDS man Douglas Hunter, about Susan Russell, a lesbian Episcopalean priest. I felt myself nodding and my heart beating faster in recognition of the truth of Christ's teachings to love one another, which is really the message I took from the documentary. I wished that more of Douglas Hunter's perspective was in the documentary, this was not included at all. As an LDS person still struggling with how I feel on the whole Prop 8 thing, I am interested in hearing perspectives from other LDS people, and I think his perspective would have been a peculiar one, seeing as he has been able to spark up a friendship with this priest. Maybe we'll hear more from him. The next day, we got to go see our brother Josh and his wife Kelly. They happened to be in Simi Valley this weekend,so we opted to drive to see them. It was awesome to see them. That night my roommates took me out, not sure of where we were going, as it was a surprise for my birthday. We drove down to...L.A...and went to a place that I've wanted to go, the Bonaventure Hotel...up at the top...went there to watch the sunset and have some appetizers and drinks. It was amazing. It is a revolving restaurant, so in an hours time you are able to see all of the L.A. valley. I loved it. It was really surreal to be surrounded by these awesome friends and my sister. It's been 3 years since i moved here to California, and seriously my life has opened up. I have had so many experiences that I had asked for and prayed for. I am loving living here. And love the fact that I can be in L.A. for my birthday. We then went to a little dive restaurant called the Redwood Bar and Grill, which had a pirate theme. Very cool. I loved every minute of it. Happy Birthday to Me!! This next year is going to be great.

Are we there yet?

Lots has been happening. I finally finished my Psychology bachelor's of science. the girls and I took a short weekend to Vegas. Had sushi at Nobu at the Hard Rock Hotel, did some shopping and went to our favorite piano bar at the Paris hotel. It was a great weekend. I was with the perfect girlfriends, Andrea and Elizabeth. Vegas always does something to me. It is so extreme in so many ways, it always takes me a few days or months to get back in the groove. Its almost as if it confuses me, that kind of mesmerizing confusion. Its fun while your in the middle of it, but I am happy to be back in Laid Back California. As I walked out of my last algebra class knowing that it was the completion of my degree I felt such a strong urge to scream out loud...Free at Last, Free at Last...and so happy and thankful that I had the will and determination to finish. It was definitely not easy. but it was definitely worth it. I will be walking all pomp and circumstancial in June and I can't wait. Josh and Kelly got me the perfect gift for graduation...Killers Tickets to see them in Sacramento and the plane ticket to get there. Thank you to them. I cannot wait until September. I have been thinking a lot lately about the age old question..which part is mine? and which part is God's? I am still asking this, sometimes pretty frequently. Why do i have the need to control? I have started meditating in the morning, it is supposed to help with the overthinking and the need to understand and identify every detail of every emotion and thought. Am I fighting a losing battle? No, I don't think so..i do think that I have a long way to go. I do know that i have excellent friends and family support. And I have U.2. In the last few years U2's music has been a bit of a spiritual strength to me. I went for a drive today and while I was driving and singing had a bit of a cathartic moment with Bono from Joshua Tree.... Red Hill Mining Town. "I'm hanging on..You're all thats left to hold on to. I'm still waiting, I'm hangin on, You're all thats left to hold onto" God knows what I mean. I know that for sure at least.

You light up my life.

This week I had visitors,of the short and cute variety. My niece Gwyneth and nephew Carson came to play in California with me. With them, they brought a light with them that I love to bask in. So innocent and beautiful. They remind me of how much I can love. They remind me of how goofy I can be. They remind me of what is important. They make me want to be a better person. Carson, pretty shortly after he got out of the car, said "You know what I love to do? Organize and clean....I do!" I said, well my little man, you've come to the right place, up to my closet with you. A seven year old that loves to organize, my kind of guy. Then there's Gwyneth. 4 year old going on at least 9. She loves High School Musical and Twilight and dancing. We danced interpretively and intensely to Depeche Mode late one night, much to Carson's horror. I took them home after three days, way too soon. There was so much more we could have done if we had the time. Driving home after dropping them off, I missed their little voices, their loud laughter, i looked in my rear view mirror and knew it was just me and the radio.

You're always after me lucky Charms

Only in America can a St Patrick's day be celebrated with corned beef and cabbage and guacamole. Maybe even only in California for that matter. We had a potluck feast, and also included in the feast were also green rice krispie treats (my own special recipe,which only really means use a whole stick of butter for extra calories and potential for heart disease) and green bagels. Well now that we've gorged ourselves...Happy St Patrick's Day everyone...

Strange Love

Oh my gosh. Bought tickets to see Depeche Mode at the Hollywood Bowl. Destined to be one of the best concerts of my lifetime. Depeche Mode in the historic Hollywood Hills. My good friend Melissa, who is of equal devotion is flying out from Minneapolis to see them with me...I met Melissa a couple of years ago in SLC. If I had met her maybe two weeks before, she would have been next to me in the front row when we both saw Depeche Mode in different sections in Salt Lake City. Somehow the stars aligned and I landed the seats. I've got the 40 30 second videos on my phone to prove it. I had always wanted to find a friend that loved them as much as me, and when I met Melissa I knew we were meant to be friends. Six months after I met her I moved back to California. She moved to Minneapolis to take a promotion (how very Mary Tyler Moore of her). She still remains the girl who gets equally giddy at the sight of Dave Gahan..sigh...strange love for sure...

Intimacy Issues

So, how messed up do you need to be when you feel like you're being smothered by a cat wanting too much from you? Oh, its not me...i'm just asking what I think is an important question.

Its just you and me,Kid

I was recently inspired by Robert's declaration of ten reasons why he loves Brian.
Why I love Diet Coke:
1. Its fizzy
2.Its caffeinated
3.It makes me happy,truly happy
4.It goes well with everything
5.Its portable in cans and bottles, whichever you prefer
6.Its a very reliable companion, can be found globally, cold in America,warm in Europe
7. It has only good intentions
8. Offers no surprises, I know where I stand
9. Its calorie free
10. Just for the taste of it, people.