Song of the Day: Not Alone by Darren Criss

You're Not Alone!

With the weekend coming to a close and the prospect of a lazy, Monday holiday on the horizon, I've had the opportunity to just relax, which I still find unnerving. In the last few months leading up to my return to academia, I worked both a part-time and full-time job. Any form of "relaxing," usually consisted of me sleeping for the five hours in between them. And since I've been in Utah, I've only had more idle time to waste, which I've regrettably filled with meaningless television and video games. However, I have a job interview on Tuesday (I'll keep you all posted) about which will (hopefully) result in more productive evenings for myself.

In other news, I just wanna thank you guys again for the birthday wishes! I really appreciate it! 'Twas a totally awesome day, filled with sushi and delicious birthday cake!

So, let's start with this day's post...

I recently had a chance to re-watch the movie Captain Phillips with a friend. For those of you who haven't heard of it and want to know more (I mean, it's got Tom Hanks in it and he gets hijacked by Somali pirates; kind of an awesome plot line) you can view it's IMDB page here.

During the course of the film, there's a part when Tom Hanks' character, Captain Rich Phillips, is set adrift at sea with only his pirate captors on a lifeboat. And even though the Captain's crew is following closely behind them -- via cargo ship -- it becomes increasingly apparent that he is alone and his chances of survival were rapidly dropping with every passing moment.

I think we can all relate to the Captain's dilemma. In life, we sometimes find ourselves in uncertain situations where the likelihood of us making it out unharmed seems nearly impossible. And even though we have support standing by, our own loneliness sometimes blinds us to their presence.

But the good Captain was not alone! In fact, three US Navy Ships AND a team of Navy Seals were also dispatched and en route to intercept the pirates and rescue him, which they did successfully!

Can you imagine being freed from that chaos and seeing the extent of your rescue party? Would you think that you -- a small, insignificant citizen of Planet Earth -- would be worth the trouble of mobilizing navies and special ops?

I firmly believe there is very little humankind would not do for each other. And whether you believe in a Higher Power or not, I think someone is aware of your troubles and somewhere there's a rescue party on stand-by awaiting the call to assemble and save you.

Take my new roommate Terry, for instance.

This guy is incredible. He's a Psych major here at UVU and he's got the uncanny ability to read body language accurately. He's the kind of person who will stop you in the hallway, ask you about your day, and just give you a hug because he knows something is amiss but won't ever intrude and ask you directly about it. When I was going through my roommate drama earlier in January, Terry would occasionally text me or drop by my apartment. Those visits were random, but they were perfectly timed events that definitely helped me out when I felt alone and isolated.

Then there people who have always been there, like my second cousin Melissa.

To be truthful, I didn't actually know Melissa before I moved to Utah. She was just another relative my mother would randomly discuss who also happened to go to UVU. During the aforementioned roommate drama, I would sit in my apartment and just waste time alone. But all that would change when a five foot tall girl, accompanied by all her roommates, came to my door one evening and said:

"Hey... I'm your cousin and I live upstairs... Wanna hang out?"

And we've been hanging out ever since.

There are lots of people like Terry and Melissa in the world, waiting in the wings to be needed. We just need to be open to them. And maybe, one day, we can be needed for someone else.

Song of the Day: Celebrate

Obligatory Pre-Birthday Post

So... It's my birthday tomorrow.

As many of you guys already know, last year I celebrated with 22 acts of random acts of service. From sun up to sundown, I ran all over Virginia attempting to complete these seemingly small tributes. And with the passing of another trip around the sun, I've been toying with the idea of continuing that tradition.

However, this year is a little different.

Why, you may ask?

Because this will be the first year I am celebrating without my family.

When we first talked about my going my back to school,  the biggest hurdle we discussed was distance. It's common knowledge to a lot of people that I wanted to be back out West. And despite their attempts at persuading me with glossy brochures and personalized phone calls, none of the schools in Virginia had much to offer to me.

More than anything, though, I feel as though I just wanted to return to Utah. Call it my pioneer heritage leading me home, or my subconscious desiring a new, spiritual awakening, I've always felt as though my time with the Beehive State was not quite over.

When I was contemplating the application process to UVU,  life as I knew it was changing.

• My older sister and her husband had just announced their pregnancy. 
• My little sister was in a serious relationship that was moving rapidly towards marriage. 
• My mom's health was stabilizing, which, compared to the following year, was a significant improvement. 

Everyone was taken care of in my family and I felt it was time to start pursuing my college career.

So I began the application in May. I wrangled together all my transcripts (one from my old high school and 3 separate records from my advanced studies at governor's school and my brief time at BYU ). I retook the ACT (excelled in English and Reading, bombed the Math section). I took Placement Tests and worked my butt of trying to get together enough money set aside to pay for school and the trip out there.

In the five months it took for me to finish the application, life was almost unrecognizable.

• My little sister had been engaged and was now single. 
• I was working two jobs and getting hardly any sleep. 
• Mother was unable to go up and down the stairs of our house. 
• And the arrival of my unborn niece or nephew would fall upon February... A month after I would officially start!

To be completely honest, I'm not sure how I survived those last 3 months of 2013. A lot of it probably stems from the coworkers and friends that supported me and my decision. But the majority of my sanity I attribute to my family. 

I'm not going to sugarcoat it: it's been a hard month. 

• My first set of roommates were of the "pot-smoking, food-stealing" variety and it got to the point that I only ventured out of my bedroom for two reasons: Class and to use the bathroom. (I later got them evicted, but that's a story for another day.) 
• I haven't made a single friend yet from any of my classes, which is rather impressive considering there are 30,000+ students that attend there. 
• Don't even get me started on Church! (3 hours of sitting by yourself is not enjoyable.) 

Despite all these minor setbacks, I know this is where I need to be. And I thank all of you for supporting me in my dream. 

Song of the Day: This Is The New Year

Welcome to 2014 -- The "It's About Time" Edition

Hello everybody!

Yes, I know, it's a been a very long time... Things have been kinda crazy.

For those of you who are not my immediate Facebook Friends, I have moved to Utah! Yes, the Happy Mormon Valley of the West is where I currently reside.

Why am I in Utah? I'm currently attending Utah Valley University, where I'm studying English with a emphasis on Writing Studies and a minor in Creative Writing.

What do I plan on doing with that degree? My dream job would be a book editor, where I'd discover the next breakout novel and live out the rest of my days in comfort. But until then, I'm still attempting to write my own novel and living like a poor college kid.

Well, I think I've properly summed up the last few months of the new year. Stay tuned for more updates as I tackle the craziness that is the life of a twenty-something. Until next time!

Thanks for Being (Dis)Courteous!

Anyone who knows me fairly well (or, at least, anyone who has added me on Facebook) knows that I have a soft spot for movies. When me and my sister were living together (July 2011 to November 2012) we frequented the cinema no more than 20 times. We know its absurd, but we love it. (And we looove some freshly popped, buttery popcorn.) 

Aside from the movie theaters though, I've also developed a sort of addiction to Redbox. Who honestly hasn't been sucked into renting a movie through them? At $1.20 per night, it's a ridiculously cheap option, especially when compared ALONE to the price of movie tickets. 

My problem though? I never return them the next day! 

I don't know why, honestly; it's not a particularly hard thing to do. I just... Forget.

And so we segue into my story: 

Here I was, with 3 DVDs being rented out more than 2 days ago, driving to the nearest Redbox kiosk to return them.  When I arrive there is a mother and son in front of the machine. Not wanting to crowd the sidewalk -- we were outside a CVS -- I turned off my car and waited for them to finish. Let me repeat that: waited for them to finish. 

Approximately 12.75 seconds later, a larger man, clutching 3 DVDs in one hand and a lit cigarette in the other, comes around the corner and stands behind them. 

From my car, with the driver side window down, I made several observations about this particular individual. 

A.) He was standing very close to this woman and child. 

Now he wasn't grinding up on them or checking their heads for lice, mind you. But this presumable stranger was definitely within touching distance and invading their personal space. 

B.) He was growing visibly pissed off with every passing second. 

I'm talking toe-tapping, exasperated sighs, pacing, excessive wristwatch checking and tongue clicking!

C.) He kept blowing his smoke in their direction, like by doing so  they would leave quicker. 

Who does that?!

When the mother/son duo leave, he angrily deposits his videos and storms off in a huff. 

I checked my dashboard clock: No more than 3 minutes had gone by since he first got in line. 

Now, dear reader, I must ask you: Was that not possibly the most discourteous thing imaginable? 

The world is full of rude individuals. Everyday you see fewer people holding doors open or tipping waiters and help staff. How often do you hear strangers exchange hellos or good-mornings anymore? Some individuals get so caught up in themselves that they forget that there's 7 billion other humans on this planet and each of them deserve the same universal respect and courtesy. 

Be kind and considerate to each other. 

And maybe, just maybe, we'll make the world a better place. One act at a time. 

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