happy people.

Contrary to popular belief, I am indeed alive. If you're wondering why I seemingly abandoned the blog, the answer is... Solitaire. For no reason other than pure selfishness, I decided that I simply couldn't waste time on my corner of internet nonsense until I won my 100th game of Solitaire. (not in my life, just on this phone. If I'd only won 100 times in my life I would be ashamed to set foot outdoors.) You may not see the logic, but that is entirely beside the point. Kelsey, my suiteheart roomie who I've yet to introduce you to, will surely laugh when she reads this because she has been on the receiving end of nearly all the dramatic ups & downs of my life as a Solitist. If you find games on phones unproductive, think again, because between that word I just invented right now and the hours spent playing words with friends, my vocabulary has expanded into vast territories previously unknown. But, as I was saying, I have finally won my hundredth game of Klondike Deal 3 Solitaire, and due to such victory, you my friend are in for a small treat!

FIRST ITEM OF BUSINESS:

shout-out to my darling roommates, because without their nagging I probably would have drawn out my 99th game forever.

Little J, you are my inspiration. You are what gets me out of bed in the morning. Literally. Sorry my alarms are so loud. You're an absolute angel! A radiant beam of light in our tornado of a three foot dorm room. Thanks for letting me eat the last of your goldfish, and for being the main marine biologist in my life. Thank you for the thousand times when you have loaned me dear FJ so I can transport my car-less butt to my various obligations. Even though I loathe your asian snack mix and the terrible smells it produces, I forgive you when I walk down the hall and get a sniff of vacuum powder wafting from our room. Stop going to the gym so much, teach me how to sleep, and get excited because in 46 days we will be lying on the mexican beach eating quesadillas sent from heaven!

Keltser, my future closet/bathroom/bedroom sharer. I am so excited to stay up late into the night exchanging cool facts and life stories from our beds. I have deprived you from many nights of sleep, but made up for it with lots and lots of sonic ice. You are my hero, and remember: they do come home! Thrilling. I'm a fan. You're funny, I like you. I'm going on strike. That's real. I like it when you sit on our floor or when we do relaxation sessions in your room. Imma be brilliant with my millions. Oh wait, that's you. You're the best, and I'm quite sure I would not have survived college this long without the occasional mouth-watering Sunday dinner provided by your darling mother. We need to get to work on the countdown by the way. Also, pdmf. Whooops!

Heath-bear, that's new, do you like it? You're my main source of Life. And not just Life cereal. I adore you and your crazy quiet little voice. Don't you forget it! I like it when you hide in Jessica's bed and scare her. Why are you so tan at this point in the dead of winter? Yes i know it's March. I do not retract my question. I love your daily schedule on the dry-erase board. I'm terribly sorry we vandalize it so. All I'm saying is, you know perfectly well what to do between the hours of noon and 8pm and I have not been seeing any productivity in that area. Everyone's madly in love with you, do something about it!! I wish I was as funny as you, and that I had your ab ripper dedication. I'm sorry that you hate Humanities, I really wish it wasn't so. I love you dearly, and I simply cannot wait for roommate nights next year. You better not bail or I will take your planner and hide it in my explosive closet, and we all know what a disaster that would be!

Other mentions go to KB, whom is missed terribly but will never in her life read this due to her horrid relationship with electronics (although we did convince her to Skype with us the other night and it was thrilling!!!) and of course to Lays, whom I will be seeing shortly and then hauling away back to the land of Provo so she can spend a few days with us, an event for which I could not be more excited! Both of you, Yogurtland the instant we are all reunited in Vegas this weekend! And then probably five more times after that.

As for the main subject of my comeback, it was inspired by the words of our lesson in church today, which simply and beautifully reminded us to BE HAPPY. We went around the room sharing one small thing that makes us happy, and afterwards I felt high as a cloud. It's lovely how many things there are in this beautiful world that are capable of creating happiness. While I listened, I proceeded to make an entirely incomplete and unorganized list of things that came to mind that bring me absolute joy. And because I found it uplifting today to hear what made others happy, I am going to try to perhaps lift your spirits by sharing my list here and now:

Things that make me happy:

-watching Cooper dance, even though his talent is identical to my dad's

-when Riley forgets that he's shy

-waking up to find that it's snowing out my window

-reaching the point on the I-15 when you go over the hill and see the Vegas skyline

-when someone tells me I smell good

-boys who smell good

-Sundays when church is so wonderful I wouldn't mind if I was there all day

-napping on friends' beds

-open windows

-getting into clean sheets straight from the shower

-when Jess or Kelsey comes and picks me up from the library at midnight so I don't have to walk back

-air conditioning and car windows down on a hot day

-when I peel an orange in one piece

-glade carpet powder

-perfect slurpee texture

-being surrounded by people I love and admire

-telling life stories with new friends

-thinking about my upcoming trip to Africa!

-the rare occasions when I wake up without the help of an alarm clock

-experiencing different cultures

-being surprised in a good way

-best friends who are ten times better than I am

-getting letters from someone I miss

-sunny days with snow on the ground

-the perfect powder day & feeling invincible on a snowboard

-when someone smiles at me

-frozen yogurt after the gym

-books

-pretty things

-beautiful weddings

-getting owl post from my mom via the harry potter theme park website

-when a song perfectly describes the way I feel

-having time to sit and think in the Temple

-crossing things off my to-do list

-when my hair actually cooperates

-watching my dad get really excited about something

-talking on the phone on the swing in my backyard on a beautiful night

-stars

-reading old journals

-little kids who never stop talking

-getting out of the pool and laying on a hot trampoline

-the way the casita shakes when I'm watching Pearl Harbor

-concerts

-really cold water

-when Price wants my opinion on something

-fresh produce

-punch cards that get me free stuff

-my mom's homemade raspberry jam

-surviving a deathly hot yoga or spin class

-sleeping babies

-hearing someone with a beautiful singing voice

-In-n-Out when I haven't had it in a while

-freshly painted finger and toenails

-the smell of warm home baked bread

-when someone wants to borrow my clothes

-when people play with my hair

-trees in large numbers

-staring at the sky for long periods of time

-when someone gets excited about something I'm excited about

-quality colored pencils

-when I'm able to make a meaningful comment in a class

-when someone remembers some little thing I told them a long time ago

-thursdays

-driving

-hearing the train out the window when I'm laying in bed in Oceanside

-falling asleep in my favorite chair at the cabin

-having good conversations late into the night

-enthusiastic greetings

...and many many many others. but now I must commence studying for my Spanish test and perhaps catch up on a bit of the reading that I have neglected on this beautiful day.

I hope that this finds you happy and well. And perhaps if you're nice I will consider laying off the phone games and updating you more often on the joke that is my life. I say that with endearment by the way. I do believe I'd rather my life be a comedy than a tragedy.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXO, the one who loves to waste your time.