traveling dress

After my wedding dress has been to Austria and back (it's temporary home since last August up until a couple of weeks ago), and has been almost a year and a half since I've worn it....

It STILL fits! I feel pretty great about that.

Ok, ok, I can't say I weigh the same I did when we got married, but I can still slip it on and zip it up, all the way.

Happy New Year everyone!

home.

Well, it's been a while since I've blogged, eh? I guess that means that I've been having too much fun and not a lot of time around computers.

That's a GOOD thing.

Ok, so maybe there's a side of laziness in there somewhere too.

Since I'm official home HOME as of two nights ago, I think it's time to play catch-up with blogging on these last couple of crazy weeks.

It'll be coming soon....today, tomorrow....or whenever I feel like it.

Episode Two

Here is episode two to this post. :

Last night when I went to bed, Wolfgang was sound asleep. I thought I might have a little fun...

Me: "hun.....hun...??"
Wolfgang: (groan)
Me: (thinking of something) "Did you feed the cow today?"
Wolfgang: "yeah, its all good."
Me: "what did she say?" (apparently this is the best thing I could think of at that moment)
Wolfgang: (Something in German).
Me. (pause.)..."What did she say in English?"
Wolfgang: "Nothing."

It's time for those cows to learn some English.

Class of 2010!

Wolfgang and I officially graduated yesterday from BYUH! It was a fantastic day. Couldn't have been better, celebrating it with our families and friends.

Last night was the first night in a while that we actually got some good sleep in, so we are happy campers.

Pictures and more details to come!

24 hours.

Wolfgang's family is currently on their flight heading over here to Hawaii and will be here a little less than 24 hours,

Jess will be here in a lot less than 24 hours,

and my parents will be here in about 2x 24 hours.

BRING IT!

Party time!

Pathetic

I may or may not have teared up after our friend bought and took our entertainment center.

I didn't care about the entertainment center itself, is was just the fact that our little apt became that much more impersonal (our entertainment center was about the only thing we decorated semi-cute) and that much more real that we are leaving.

(Sorry I have so many posts like this....get over it.) ;)

Disclaimer: OH and one more thing... the above mentioned DOESN'T mean we are sad to leave TVA (housing complex) I've been counting down for months on that one...I just mean leaving in general.

1:5

Completely done with one class,

5 more to go.

This week will be one of the worst/best weeks of my life.

here we go.

Pandora

I know I've blogged about Pandora in the past, I would like to blog about her (yes, her.) again.

Amongst all the chaos of these last couple of weeks and not feeling a lot of peace and calmness at this point, I've learned that my more "worldly" approach is to turn to my good friend Pandora.

For the last 5 years, it has been very difficult to get into the Christmas Spirit, until finals are over, which usually end within days of Christmas, then I feel cheated of the Christmas experience.

So, to calm my troubled heart during this chaotic time, I rely on Pandora in supplying me with delightful Christmas music. I'm a big time Christmas music snob, so the "thumbs up" and "thumbs down" feature is really great for me.

Tis the season.

lei'd

My first REAL lei. (PCC leis don't count for me; they're too impersonal, and made in Thailand).

Its fragrance was beautiful.

like a train

I'm just going to say it how it is...

I don't do well with change.

Anytime my life is about to make a dramatic turn, I think I go into denial, and the reality of it hits me at random times (and I become annoyingly and ridiculously emotional).

Last night was one of those random times.

It sort of started out yesterday afternoon, when it officially became known that our chance of staying in Hawaii went from about a 70%, down to about a 5%. When Wolfgang told me and the synapses in my head did their thing, I just kind of stood there in shock. "That means we aren't staying in Hawaii?" I almost cried. In the beginning, I knew that our chances of staying here were not that great, but the ups and down of it really confused me emotionally, knowing whether to be happy or sad, in either outcome (Hawaii or Mainland).

Then last night came along. I was lying in bed when all of a sudden it hit me again, that we are leaving Hawaii, very soon. A flood of people went rushing through my mind- friends, co-workers, and professors, and I couldn't help but break down and cry.

I seriously can't believe the last 3 years has gone by so incredibly fast. A part of me is ready to move on, but the other part is feeling overwhelmed that I haven't done everything that I need to/want to here. I guess that's just how life is though.

It's amazing how time flies.

Get out them decorations!

Our Christmas decorations.

24...old?

We've had a delightful weekend, and I'm still not ready for another week!
And as a side note, we've done pretty decently good so far selling our stuff
one surfboard gone,
clothes/books/texbooks gone
and microwave, entertainment center, dvd player and (maybe more) "on hold" until the end of the semester,
it's a great start.

It drives us crazy though, not knowing where we'll be living in about 3 weeks. Wolfgang didn't get the job he was hoping for here on Oahu, so we've got one more opportunity here, and if that doesn't work out, off to the mainland we go! But no bites yet.

Anyway, back to the title of this blog...
since when is 24 yrs old, OLD? I've felt like a "seasoned" person lately.
Not feeling well, but not sick (if that makes sense),
my feet hurt all day yesterday...from NOTHING,
and today, my muscles around my thighs/hips are super sore...again, from nothing.

What's up with that? Maybe all the stress is finally taking a (weird) toll on my body.
We had a great lesson in church today that has helped me to have a new perspective on life and the things that I need to do. My goal is to get back to working out to release all my unwanted stress, I think it'll be good.

Bring on the new week! (ugh.)

First half of turkey weekend

So Far:

-neither one of us has had to work
-realized we've technically have had 3 turkey dinners in a 24 hour period...that's embarrassing AND disgusting; but we are more than happy and blessed to have enough food.
-have been able to sleep in, one of those days
-had a lovely morning in the newly re-opened temple (although the A/C was broken)
-got quite a bit of Christmas shopping over with (bitter-sweet)
-gotten homework done (and a loooong way to go...)
-nice naps
-have thrown our crap together for our first (of many, I'm sure) yard sale tomorrow.

I hope you all have been enjoying your Thanksgiving Holiday weekend as well.

Rededication

23 months ago, The LDS temple here in Laie Hawaii was closed down for major renovations. The temple was first built and dedicated in 1919, and later rededicated for the first time in the 70s.

This temple is the 5th one to be built in all of the world, and the first one out of the continental U.S.

Everyone has been anticipating this glorious day, and we are glad we were able to be a part of it. Today, the temple was rededicated by the Prophet of our church, President Thomas S. Monson, and one of his councilors, President Henry B. Eyring, and a member of the 12 apostles, Quentin L. Cook was in attendance as well.

The rededication was performed in the temple, and members of the church (including us) were able to attend this sacred event via live broadcast in our churches, all throughout the Hawaiian Islands.

Leading up to this event, there was an open house for several weeks, which made the temple open to the public, for free tours of this beautiful and sacred building. We were able to take a tour, and also helped as volunteers. Also in preparation for the temple rededication, we were challenged by our church to do our family history so that we could find names of ancestors that we could do proxy work for, and have found plenty that will keep us busy.

We believe that by doing this work, families on earth and in heaven, can be together forever and in the eternities. Each person has their agency to choose for themselves whether or not to accept the covenants that are made with the Lord, but we have confidence that their lives have been touched and feel of the importance of accepting the Lord in their lives, and the desire to be with their families forever.

I am so grateful to be a part of this religion. I have found out for myself that it is true, and nothing brings me more closer to my Savior Jesus Christ and my Heavenly Father. It helps me to keep my priorities straight, and to remember the important things in life.

I'm so glad that I was able to participate in such a historical event in the history of Laie Hawaii!

If you are interested in understanding more of what I am talking about, click on the temple picture on my side bar.

Birthday Boy

Happy Birthday Dad!!


I was cut off guard too when I realized that you are now the big 6-0!!
(I definitely got my Asian eyes from you)


But not to worry, you've still have some young bones in you. :)

I love you and I am grateful for everything that you have done for our family, and continue to do.

(I know I always use this picture, but it's one of my favorites)

I look forward to you coming to see us here in Hawaii, in less than a month!



Just think, you'll be doing this again soooon!

Love you!

One month

Exactly ONE MONTH until Wolfgang and I graduate!!!




...at least I hope so. I'm so glad that the end if finally near!

One month til party time

In exactly one month, my family with be here in Hawaii to celebrate our graduation and Christmas! Can't wait!!!

Guess I REALLY need to pass my classes then, huh?

Yikes

NOT cool.
It's legit too: http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/sharkkayak.asp

Did you know?

Remember those,

" DID YOU KNOW???" "....NOW YOU KNOWWWW...."
moments with Bill Nye the Science guy as a kid?
I do. (maybe I can attribute my love for biology to watching his show? hm.)

Tonight, we had one of those moments.
A friend of ours informed us that youtube pays you $100,000 for every 1,000,000 hits you get on your videos that you post.

Looks like Wolfgang and I need to get our creative caps on and get to work.

Bump, Bump it up!

Is this really a Progressive ad, or a Bumpits ad?

Change? Yes please.

I have a really hard time dealing with change and transitions. With graduation coming up just around the corner, I'm ecstatic, but beyond nervous too. I've been thinking that I've been a student for approx 20 years straight, and after December 17th, my life will completely change.

Yeah, maybe I'll end up going to school again, but probably not; and I know that you continue to learn...blah blah blah but my days of being a legit student are limited.

I have mixed feelings about this, but for now those feelings are dominated by GREAT JOY. I'm just ready to be done!!

What has helped this process along in wanting to move on, is the fact that I'm getting really annoyed and short with things around here. This may not seem like a blessing, but to me it IS a blessing in disguise.

Let's be real, if I didn't have nights like last night (obnoxious awkward single couple on playground last night keeping us up, security not getting off their lazy butts and helping us, Wolfgang getting up to tell them to leave, baby cry, listen to the baby's parents make love, baby cry again...)
Then I wouldn't desperately want to leave this place, and therefore I would be more sad.
I'm also at that stage where I don't care much about either of my jobs anymore, so now it's REALLY time to move on....

So yes, here was Jaimie again complaining about her living arrangements, but I really do feel like it's a blessing in disguise. call me morbid if you want.

Jack-o-what?

Not only is Wolfgang funny half- asleep, he's also pretty funny awake, too.

For those of you who watch the hilarious "Modern Family" tv show, you might appreciate this even more, after watching the episode from 2 weeks ago.


On Halloween, before making my traditional "Jack-o-lantern sloppy joes" (ever since we were little) with some friends, Wolfgang was trying to clarify the name, Jack-o-lantern.

He thought they were "Jack-o-Lennons"
Wolfgang: "you know, like the singer, right?"

Nope.

He can get away with it, because of the whole "English as a second language" excuse.

I'm considering making an additional blog, and only filling it with random quotes from him, but I'm thinking I would be the only one that thought it was funny.

Who knows, maybe I'll give it a try.

Got Milk?

Sometimes Wolfgang says some funny things when he's half awake/dreaming/sleep talking. I'm slowly getting better at coming up with things to say in response, to hopefully provoke a funny sleep-talking conversation.

The one this morning went something like this:

(my alarm goes off, Wolfgang wakes up a little):

W: (mumbles)"My professor said 'Got Milk?' today, it was pretty funny."
Me: "oh yeah? why did he say that?"
W: "I don't know, I guess you need money when starting a business."
Me: "does he have his own cow?"
W: "no."
(pause. couldn't quickly think of anything else to ask)

end of conversation.

Can't wait for the next one!

Chacos, anyone?

So I'm pretty DESPERATE to get rid of these women's chacos that I've had for a long while. They are brand new, never been worn. If you know anyone interested, direct them to here, plllleeeeasssee!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220690751575&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT

whoever buys them will feel charitable and at peace in their life knowing that they helped out a great cause (the poor college student trying-to-get-rid-of-stuff charity)

Mahalo.

More of Hawaii in our future?

I'm a proud wife.

What can I say? Wolfgang has learned how to ROCK interviews.

Yesterday he had his first interview for a management trainee program with the hotel company he had an internship with this summer.

The interview was an hour long.

30 minutes later, they call him back saying they want him in round two, in which he will presenting (and 3 or 4 others) in front of 5 General Managers of hotels, of why they should pick him.

YAY!

Mind you, not only was it awesome that they called him back so fast, but the fact that they had already done 14 interviews that day, and they had a whole slew of others who hadn't even interviewed yet.

my husband rocks.

So, maybe we'll be in Hawaii longer than we thought? Guess we'll find out!

black cat

Dear Black Cat,

Sorry I don't have a more flattering picture of you

Today I read someone's blog post about their cat, and it reminded me of you. (even looked like you a little, but don't worry, you're cuter)

I miss seeing your little furry drool-y face. You're so cuddley and "lovey-dovey" all the time; it makes it so enjoyable to pet you. You're a little feminine to be a male, but we don't judge. You purr uncontrollably several times a day, and takes naps even more often- it must be nice.

Be a good cat and I hope to see you sooner than later.

Love,
Jaimie

werido week

This past week was quite the week.

It was one of those where it lasts for what seems to be an eternity, and just about every day I was confused as to which day it really was; I can't even blame it on being sick or something.

It was also very draining between staying up til 3am doing midterms, and having a very intense 3 1/2 hour meeting that left me emotionally (and ultimately physically) drained for days after.

Although weirdly enough, it was kind of life changing, too. I've come to realized more of who I am, and what I want to become. I feel like the experiences I had this week, and particularly in that meeting, helped me to understand how important it is to stand your ground, regardless of what others think. I have a new admiration for people, of being examples of who I want to be, or do not want to be, and I even have a greater love for the major (International Cultural Studies- Communications) I have decided to stick it out with. I feel that it has built my character as a person, and as a citizen. I have a long way to go in every aspect of life, but I have a new determination to be the person I want to be, and surround myself with people that respect that, and do not judge me because of it.

Now, it's time for a new, and hopefully refreshing week!

Birthday Boy

So it's a bit late in the day to be doing this, but we are finally home for the night, and I couldn't finish this day by not dedicating a post to the cute little European we love! ;)


HAPPY BIRTHDAY WOLFGANG!



Now you are old like me!
I'm so glad that you were born :)

We've had lots of fun memories together,
And I look forward to many more to come.

I'm so glad you stuck it out with me, and that we're married, and that you are stuck with me forever! (mwah hahahaa...sucker!)

You're my best friend and I'm so lucky to have you in my life.

Love you!

2 months

I take great joy in knowing that in exactly 2 months, we will either be a. DONE and OUT of this apartment we are are currently in, or b. cleaning it and getting really really close to leaving it.

I can't wait for this day, minus the packing up and cleaning part.

I feel like living here has increase problems with anxiety, stress levels, and has lowered my tolerance level. I would actually really be interested if someone to do a study on the people who live here, in the rabbit hutches.

Things that have contributed to these problems include the fact that something is always going on. What can I say? I like being at peace in my home, a "place of refuge." What usually happens in a day at our apartment is either:

The baby next door is crying,
or
The rooster is crowing,
or
The neighbors/complex residents are making loud disturbing pleasure noises that no person should ever witness,
or
the baby next door is crying,
or
The whole place smells like sewage because of the sewage plant thing up on the hill behind us,
or
the baby next door is crying,
or
the children are obnoxiously (a word?) playing on the playground right outside our bedroom window
or
the yard workers are using REALLY LOUD MACHINERY that I have to YELL at Wolfgang to talk to him, and can't even consider making a phone call
or
a child from another complex is crying or throwing a tantrum
or
the baby next door is crying
or...
...repeat, repeat, repeat.

Ok, so maybe I'm being a scrooge, but I've had enough. I believe my blood pressure has risen to unhealthy heights, and my chances of explosion on innocent people has increased. This is not good.

I'll do my best to be a good righteous citizen until my days are up here.

(I'll try to say some nice things here now)
The few things that I will miss about living here, is the fact that we are so close to our friends, and that we don't have to pay for maintenance. Mmm....that is all.

I know I should be grateful for this place, but I won't, not ever, until I live somewhere worse with drug dealers or killers or prostitutes or all of the above as neighbors and then I'll think back, "oh yeah, I guess living in TVA wasn't so bad after all..."
But until then...
nope.

Hair snob

Ok ok, I realize I've been talking a lot about my hair lately. What can I say? I love having short hair, and I'm quite anal about it.

But along with having short hair, this equals having hair cuts, A LOT more often than I use to. I use to cut my hair maybe twice a year... I would let it grown out all nasty, but it didn't matter because I always had it up, because the humidity here in Hawaii gets the the best of it.

I've come to realize that I am a hair snob. I use to have my awesome roommate cut my hair here in Hawaii, but unfortunately for me (but fortunately for her) she has left da island and is now touring Jerusalem and surrounding areas.

So, that is the only person I have ever let cut my hair here, and any other times I waited until I was on the mainland to get it cut.

I hesitated to find someone to cut my hair that I trust; I don't like finding new people, and I've had my hair butchered before: no bueno. I flipped.

The first time I went to one place, and she did a pretty good job, although she informed me that she too was leaving the island for good in a week. great.

Since then, the short hair cut I got was from this amazing hairstylist in Vegas that I went do while we were on the mainland in August; she is so great, and I have had my hair done by her before. Needless to say, I've needed a hair cut since then, and have already had it trimmed once while I've been here. I've decided to branch out and try someone new, with the help of yelp.com.

Next Saturday Wolfgang and I have a hair app, and I'm nervous and hope that it'll turn out good, because this shaggy hair needs a good cutin'.

Sorry, that was probably a really boring post.

Editions

I love the farmer's market on campus every other Friday (pay day, sneaky sneaky)

Today was especially quite the event, because along with the farmer's market was a health fair thing of some sort. The farmer's market has really improved since it first started, and today we notice a few editions to the "menu," yummy cinnamon rolls, and this:


Mmm. I love bread. Especially with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar... mm MMM!

and,

Wolfgang is loving his new job at the Waikiki (Marriott) Edition. He's been working there a few weeks now, and this whole weekend they are super busy with the grand opening. Word has it that Usher and Christina Aguilera will be there; Wolfgang will believe it when he see's it.

If Usher really does show up, Wolfgang said he's going to ask him if he will make him famous like he did Justin Bieber. He'll even upload a youtube video, if he has to.

The hotel has been really hush hush about everything, but now that they are officially open, they have come out to the public. Click Here to watch a little clip about it that they did on the news today. (two picture icons under the red "Video Gallery" first the one on the right, then left.) Then there are some more pictures here. Quite risky with their choice of colors!

the new do

Someone that I don't even know gave me a great compliment about my new hair (even earrings). That was quite flattering, and made my day. (and I was even thinking that my hair was getting a bit shaggy and not so cute)

Weekends are always too short.

This weekend consisted of some fun, with a lot of BORING. Friday night was good, it consisted of:

I LOVE Target.

A little over a year ago they opened one up on the opposite side of the island, but what I DIDN'T know until a few days ago, is that at the same time they also opened one up in Honolulu! So we just had to go visit it. Good thing I brought a list and stuck to it, I was proud of myself. I was also proud of Wolfgang for not letting me to to the swimming suit section.

Target just has such a nice, clean, happy atmosphere, compared to Wal-mart's nasty, dreary, frantic "I hate my job and all of you" atmosphere, it was pathetically refreshing.


We came back home just in time for the REBEL SOULJAHZ (for those of you that are not "cool," that's the cool way of spelling soldiers) concert on campus.

On our way over they stopped really fast right in front of us and said, "hi, um...we are suppose to be performing here in like 10 min...can you tell us where the stage is??"

They are a lot less intimidating than they look. Wolfgang and I have seen them before at various events and enjoy their music, AND we scored free tickets. They are a local Hawaiian band that plays very enjoyable hawaiian-style reggae music with their dreamy Polynesian voices.

As for Saturday,

BORING.
LAME.
LONELY.
...yet productive.

Wolfgang was gone literally all day, pretty much from 8am-2:30am the next morning, because of a stupid English test they made him take on campus, and also because of work. I was a total homebody and stayed home all day and just did homework. What can I say? Us newlyweds are clingy to our husbands and don't want to do things without them so I didn't bother trying to call anyone to do something, especially on Saturdays, and quite franky I don't want to be the 3rd wheel of a married couple anyway, that's just awkward. AND all my awesome single friends are gone, so it was just a really long and excruciating date with my homework. But hey! less homework to do today and tomorrow.

And that my friends, was my weekend. Now back to the grind of school...

Really?

Enough said.

Happy Birthday Mom!

To the woman who:

Tells "your mom" and "that's what she said" jokes
Wants the Rolling Stones music (or is it the Beattles?) playing at her funeral
Gave birth to two angels (the younger one surpassing the older)
Spoils her children when they are home
Shows endless compassion and patience for others
Can fall asleep instantly, anywhere
Has been known to say, "it's because you're a Cooper Girl"
Installs a new confidence upon those she gives advice to
Jams out to her children's music
Has never received a speeding ticket, or any ticket (knock on wood)
Has been seen in an apple costume or a large fruit hat, and made my childhood memory of lunch time quite memorable (complete with plenty of embarrassing moments), and showing "her secret sign" to me on the video taped "morning annoucements."

Yep, that's my mom, and she's the best mom EVAH (*austrian accent included)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!

I love you very much and I can't wait for you to come visit in less than three months.

Love,
The Favorite.

Hello, October.

'Tis the season of pumpkin; an excuse to make one of my favorite cookies.

Listen

The 180th Semi-Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

That's what we've been up to this weekend, while simultaneously working on our attention spans.

Great speeches by great leaders who are able to help us redefine our lives and encourages us to make goals to better improve our lives and the lives of others. Click here to learn more or to listen/watch the talks given.

Those Europeans...

a couple of days ago in my Gender and Culture class, our student discussion leader somehow got on the subject of "Global Promiscuity" (courteous of the almighty Wikipedia, of course).

My favorite part was when the article said,

"Another study that looked at promiscuity based on total number of sex partners found that Austrian men were the most promiscuous males in the world with 29.3 sexual partners on average..."

(I chuckled out loud in class).

Looks like we'll be having a long talk tonight.

job hunt

For me, I despise job hunting. I find it so annoying to spend countless hours trying to find one that I qualify for, and hopefully one that I would like. Dressing up all the time is tedious too, and pretending to be confident. Job interviews are even worse, I hate the dumb questions they ask. Ask my parents or Wolfgang, I'm a mess when trying to find a job because I am so incredibly nervous and lack any and all confidence, during the job hunt and even during the start of a new job.

BUT...

Currently Wolfgang has been job hunting, and it is SO FUN. I seriously get really excited about it, more than him I think. There is a slight chance we will be staying here for another year or so if he gets this management trainee program that he wants, but we are coming up with plan b, c, d, e...just in case. So far, he has applied for jobs in:

Hawaii
NYC- already has had his 1st interview over "Skype"
Chicago-(denied, but applied for another position)
Phoenix-(denied)

Other places he's planning on applying to?

More in AZ
Las Vegas
Aspen and Denver
England (maybe)

...and anything else that strikes our eye.

I currently want Chicago (never been there, but looks fun) or Colorado, and HE wants NYC or Las Vegas...(although I could do both too, LV is close to family and a lot cheaper to live rather than these other 'ideals', and NYC...is, well, NYC.)

We'll see how this works out.

entertainment for the uncreative

I felt the need to blog, but instead of telling you something, I thought I would show you some funny videos I've encountered in the last couple of days. Enjoy.

t-shirt

Thanks Jess, for the new shirt (I like)



The day I wore it, I noticed a cute cruiser that someone was walking, and I almost said something like, "Nice cruiser!" but immediately realized that was a bad idea and would be a potentially creeper situation, seeing that I was wearing a shirt with a cruiser on it.

It brings me back to about 2 years ago when I owned my own half-pseudo cruiser, which I loved, until it was STOLEN. Yes, it was even locked up with a pretty hefty bike lock.

Damn you, "Laie Boyz."

aaaRRRR

So today was national "talk like a pirate day"...

Oh, and my birthday.

24. ??!! I'm pretty sure my body is already on it's way to deteriorating.

24 years ago my poor mother had to deal with a little preemie baby that wanted to come out the wrong way. OUCH.

Last night the husband took me out to eat at Macaroni Grill (MMMmmmmm) and did a little window shopping, but after trying on some cute shirts, we were too cheap to pay the price and just left, hoping for the best that we could get it on sale later...(self control, self control....)

Today was a bit busy but good, and in the evening invited friends to have some cake and ice cream.

The problem is, I never found someone willing to do my homework for me for my birthday. HOW.RUDE. Jess offered, but I think the time I would waste figuring out how to get it to Portland, I would have it done by then (but then again probably not) AND did she didn't guarantee a good grade, so it looks like I'm stuck.

She also informed me it's my last year of being in my "early 20's." ouch.

I better make it a good one.

Thanks to all those who made it special with the phone calls, text messages, emails, cards...etc, etc.

Back in the swing of things

Today has been long and busy so far, with back-to-back classes with a side of work before and after.

I got so use to our campus being a ghost town during the summer, that it is weird and kinda annoying to dodge so many people all over the place.

Best quote of the day by one of my teachers,

"...The best kind of art history, comes from good history."

...

huh?

(and that didn't even come from my Taiwanese "KA-muni-kka-shuns" teacher)

lame.

We start school tomorrow.

UGH.

BUT, it's our last semester.

I can do this, I can do this, I can do this...

Out of order

So I FINALLY blogged about our vacation back to AZ, but it's a little out of order; the post is underneath the post with the rocks in hand.

Just thought I'd let you know :)

Happy Rosh Hashanah. this one's for the family.

The superb vaycay

Alright folks, here are finally some pictures from our little vacation to home/vegas. As soon as we got our sweet cheap flights back in oh, about April, we were counting down. We had a really great time, and a part of me wished I could of just stayed there and just have someone pack all our bags here in Hawaii, and move on to the next stage in our life, but alas we are back, and I can't complain.fair warning, I am TERRIBLE at trying to condense the amount of pictures I should use to recap any event, but I'll try to keep it not-so-out-of-control.

We...(not necessarily in complete order)

...went to the gorgeous Las Vegas temple for the first time. Absolutely beautiful.


Celebrated our first anniversary in Vegas for the weekend and got a sweet deal to stay at
THE TRUMP. It was lovely. They even had framed pictures in our room of Antelope Slot Canyon. I'm pretty sure they customized it, JUST for me.
Got our new dos (as you have already seen),ate at all the places we missed,and even took our chances at the slots

...and were carded immediately upon arrival at the roulette table. I would of taken a picture then, but I was too embarrassed and wasn't sure if it's allowed?

Moving on.
Saw the Blue Man Group, which was AWWWWESOME. We loved it. (We got a bargain on those tickets too, thank you very much! We were all about the deals, and they were even really good seats)And of course, play on da LAKE. We even camped out under the stars, it was beyond great. Ok ok, so the ground wasn't very soft, but that's the only complaint :)
Lake Powell is one of my favorite, if not THE most favorite places of mine to be. Maybe it's because it's quite nostalgic. I'm am so completely at home and 'in my element' if you will, when I'm boating with family and friends, and just swimming in that perfect degree water. It's so gorgeous! Truly blessed to have grown up next to it. I've come to realize that I really enjoy living next to water...

Rainbow Bridge

I married a kid

Hiking "Hole in the Rock." It was quite the little hike! It was where the pioneers hiked down with wagons, families, and livestock. I can't believe they did it! And at that time there was no lake, so we looked at the depth reader on the boat, and it was another 300 feet down!

That little white speck is our boat!

We even convinced my dad to go on the tube!
(PS for the record I completed wasted Dave and Wolfgang on the tube, they didn't think I was a good enough driver...I showed them! I wish I had a video of it)

It was a great time enjoyed by all!

Well hello desert

So apparently there IS part of a desert (oh! and a road and a bus...)as my background of my new blog template thing...it doesn't show up on my laptop, but it does on my work computer screen (I don't get that)
but it's not like I'm blogging at work, or anything...

(anything BUT) Labor Day

Labor Day was pretty nice,
even though it should be a day of reverence and remembering, instead it was a day of sleeping, beaching, and eating.

We went out to dinner with some friends to The Cheesecake Factory, and holy cow! apparently I haven't eaten dinner there in a while. Their portions sizes are HUGE! Our friends were smart and shared an entree, while Wolfgang and I had a severe amount of left overs. It was actually quite sad, because I then had NO room, or even desire for that matter, to have cheesecake! what a serious shame, I never say no to their cheesecake!

I won't make that mistake again... ;)

sunny...with a high percentage of LAZINESS.

Being home in AZ and going to Vegas was absolutely wonderful. I thoroughly enjoyed being with my family, and to see a few friends too. I'm always such a pansy when I have to leave my family, I cry like a small child, for various reasons. I don't know what my problem is, I think I have transitional anxiety (I made that up, but it sounded great). I promise that I'll post some pictures soon but alas, I'm just too lazy to do so, hence the name of this post.

Going on vacation totally threw us off. HI and AZ are only a mere 3 hours difference, yet the first several days, we were so jet lagged, it was really quite pathetic. We would be EXHAUSTED in the early evening, and would go to bed at around 9-10 at night, and wake up early in the morning (then go back to sleep of course). I can't even remember the last time I went to bed that early.

Anyway, so it's been really hard to get back into the swing of things, especially since school hasn't started yet (which I do want to get started on, just for the mere fact that I want it OVER with). My first day back to work was a drag, I had to work 13 1/2 hrs. ugh. Needless to say, after only three days of being back to work, I was already ready for this 3 day weekend (I LOVEEEE office jobs for this reason, and somehow got lucky not to have to work at subway)

Well, that's my boring update for you. I hope you all have a lovely Labor Day holiday, and find some time to enjoy and relax.

mess

Dear Maintenance Boys,

I appreciate you "fixing" our toilet, but I don't appreciate the messes you leave after you fix something, especially when it's in places that you didn't even fix something in.

Sincerely,
Jaimie

trophy dog

Now THAT is funny.

Why bother having an obnoxious dancing partner if you can just use your dog?

extreme make-over

I've always wondered,
if I made it to the "What not to wear" TV show, what they would do with ME...
But my most recent "make-over" is when I got my hair cut in Vegas two weekends ago.

I had been dying for months to get something done with my nasty hair, but I didn't trust anyone in Hawaii (my ex roommate who does awesome is no longer around) so I decided to stick it out until I made it to Vegas and have the same girl from last year do some serious damage (in a good way) to my hair. She is VERY talented, and thanks to my cousin for suggesting her!

Here is my before picture. I'm thoroughly embarrassed to show this hideous before picture, but it is just to how HOW BAD it really was, hence I always had my hair up.


Aaaannnnndddd... AFTER!!

(before color)
(after color, although you might not be able to tell a ton in this picture)

I love it. I've been wanting to cut my hair really short for a really long time now, it's been a while since I've had it short. I'm still learning how to style it, and each day is a different slight challenge, and I also have to be careful not to end up like this little guy

Mr. Bieber himself.

I'm going to show the long hair world of Hawaii some FLAVAH. watch out!

(not the best of quality of pictures, I apologize, but I hope you get the idea.)