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Lack of Wisdom

My boss was telling us that her husband just got his wisdom teeth taken out, so I thought I would share with you my grand experience with my wisdom teeth extraction.

It was the summer before my Sophomore year in college and my dentist back home told me I needed to get my wisdom teeth out very soon. I was leaving for school in just a few days so it was decided that I would have them taken out in Utah. By myself. Without my mom.

Since it was the break between summer term and fall semester, Bethany took me to the dentist that day, and for all of you who don’t know Bethany, she is a complete jokester and doesn’t care what other people are thinking. She’s hilarious.

While we were waiting in the room, she put on gloves and started playing with all the tools.

I was scared to death. I haven’t had much dental work growing up, so I wasn’t sure of what to expect. But fortunately Bethany kept me distracted.

After the surgery, I started sobbing. The doctor said this might be a side effect. I thought my earrings had fallen out too, which they hadn’t, and so when I got up I started searching the ground for them.

I started gagging in the car and kept telling Bethany, “Oh, I’m gonna throw up, I’m gonna throw up.” She dropped me off at the pharmacy and told me not to move while she went to another store to buy me a few things to eat. When she came back, she found me wandering through the isles, crying, cotton ball hanging out of my mouth, blood dripping down, searching for the bathroom. I looked like I had broken out of an insane asylum.

I cried all the way home about how ugly I was and asking if I would like that forever. (Oh, and my eye problem had flared up again, so I had to wear my glasses, so that didn’t help.) Bethany reminded me that when I was crying, I thought the tears were blood and that I was bleeding out of my eyes. Clearly it was a pleasant experience.

For the next week, other than a few drop-ins by Bethany and the boy I was dating coming over and dumping me (probably because he couldn’t look at my face anymore lol), I was alone in my big apartment sleeping my life away and wishing my mom was there to feed me pudding and icecream.

One of my cheeks was swollen for quite a bit, and when my new roommates were moving in, they met me like this. I can’t imagine what their first impressions were.

I’m so glad I never have to go through that again.

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Conference Flashbacks


Four years ago, I was a Senior in high school and I came out for a college visit. Fortunately it was the weekend of conference.

Three years ago, I went to conference with Sam again and few other friends of ours.

Two years ago, I attended conference with two of my friends in my ward. That was the year Amanda and I made mass amounts of chili for our friends. No one showed up, so we ate chili for weeks.

One year ago, I was dating T.J. and went to conference with the question in mind, “Should I go on a mission or should I marry T.J.” I got an answer.

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While I'm at it…

On Facebook, I complained about how many girls are wearing short skirts and shorts on campus. I thought I might as well write a post about it too because it really irritated me.

Okay, here are my feelings. I don’t care how you dress off campus. We all measure our own standards and can decide what is appropriate based off what our Prophet and other leaders have told us. That is for you to figure out and draw your line.

But when you are on campus, it is a complete different story. You sign the honor code each year, you tell your Bishop you abide by the following standards:

“Dress and Grooming Standards

The dress and grooming of both men and women should always be modest, neat, and clean, consistent with the dignity adherent to representing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and any of its institutions of higher education.

Modesty and cleanliness are important values that reflect personal dignity and integrity, through which students, staff, and faculty represent the principles and standards of the Church. Members of the BYU community commit themselves to observe the following standards, which reflect the direction of the Board of Trustees and the Church publication For the Strength of Youth. The Dress and Grooming Standards are as follows:

Men

A clean and well-cared-for appearance should be maintained. Clothing is inappropriate when it is sleeveless, revealing, or form fitting. Shorts must be knee-length or longer. Hairstyles should be clean and neat, avoiding extreme styles or colors, and trimmed above the collar, leaving the ear uncovered. Sideburns should not extend below the earlobe or onto the cheek. If worn, moustaches should be neatly trimmed and may not extend beyond or below the corners of the mouth. Men are expected to be clean-shaven; beards are not acceptable. Earrings and other body piercing are not acceptable. Shoes should be worn in all public campus areas.

Women

A clean and well-cared-for appearance should be maintained. Clothing is inappropriate when it is sleeveless, strapless, backless, or revealing; has slits above the knee; or is form fitting. Dresses, skirts, and shorts must be knee-length or longer. Hairstyles should be clean and neat, avoiding extremes in styles or colors. Excessive ear piercing (more than one per ear) and all other body piercing are not acceptable. Shoes should be worn in all public campus areas.”

I came to BYU for a reason. I was sick of being in an environment where values were diminished and standards were corrupted. I also appreciate the fact that BYU looks so clean and professional. When visitors come to campus, that is one of the first things they notice. It makes a huge difference when we are dressed modestly and nicely.

I do not want to see you dressed like that. I especially don’t want my husband to see you dressed like that. You don’t look “cool”. We all just wonder what you’re thinking when you chose your outfit.

Professors and employees need to start talking to the students when they are violating the honor code. But the responsibility doesn’t just rest upon them. If your friends or roommates are about to leave the house like that, tell them what you think! It will make a difference!

And that is the end of my ranting. Sorry.

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Genealogy, I am doing it

Last night I helped serve a dinner for the missionaries and volunteers who work in the Family History section of the library. During the event, a representative from the new Church History Library downtown SLC spoke to all of us and gave us an interesting slideshow of the history of the church. Some of the photographs were seriously incredible. He showed a real photo of the pioneers crossing the plains in 1947. Another photo was of the SLC temple half way built. My favorites were of several Native Americans who had come to SLC to have their picture taken.

One story he shared was from Joseph F. Smith’s personal journal. While reading us what Joseph wrote, a picture of the journal was on the projector. Joseph had a two and a half daughter who was very sick. She couldn’t sleep at all one night and as he consoled her, the little girl said, “It’s okay, I’ll sleep well tonight.” That evening the little girl passed away. Joseph’s heart was broken as he realized his little daughter knew what was before her.

I didn’t tell the story nearly as well as the words in the journal, but we all felt such sadness hearing the thoughts of Joseph. It was incredible how much we could sympathize for him and his family from just a short journal entry. The speaker told us if we can connect so much with someone who isn’t even related to us, imagine how amazing it would be to connect with our family members who have passed on. That is why it is so important for us to keep personal records about our stories, events, and testimony. It truly will be a treasure to our posterity and a great way to connect with them.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9Y8x5z2pd8&fs=1&hl=en_US]

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Strong Enough

One of my greatest leaders at church who became a great friend of mine is Christina McEvoy. Christina was my Young Women’s president for a couple of years. She is a mother of two and is one of the strongest people I know, physically, mentally, and most importantly, spiritually.

Christina moved to Idaho the spring of my Senior year and we’ve tried to keep in touch through the past three years. I called her the day I got engaged and let her know that, without her strong leadership and help through my high school years, I wouldn’t be in the place I am today. It was that day when she she told me she might have melanoma again.

After a long journey over these past 8 or 9 months, she has been fighting melanoma (the most serious form of skin cancer) that has spread to her lymph nodes and to her lungs. She is currently midway in a series of treatments to help fight back.

Christina, in her blog, wrote, “I am back to feeling optimistic about the future, I am ready to fight this ‘bad boy’, as I like to call it. Cancer will not win. I will come out on top eventually. Someone told me once that during treatment, you will feel like crap, but the cancer will feel even more like crap! I love that! I know that I have everything I need to conquer this-a strong body, a healthy and positive mind, an amazing family, wonderfully supportive friends, and the help of the Lord along the way. In the end, it will be alright. I am not done yet. I have many more things I know the Lord wants me to accomplish, with the most important being raising these 2 boys!”

Christina is a motivation to me. Her optimism in such a critical time is inspiring. She is a fighter, a winner, and most of all a great example for all of us.

On October 16, there will be a benefit run in Kaysville, Utah. I invite you to sign up and run the race in support of Christina’s battle. There will be t-shirts, food, fun, and most of all, a chance to be a part of this trek of Christina’s.

If you’d like to read more about her story, visit her blog, Strong Enough, or website.

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Replay

Sometimes I go through my wedding photos and think, “Can’t I just relive that day over again?!”

It was the best day. Ever. For you and for me. Okay, probably just for me. But nonetheless, I would give anything to replay that day in my life.

I remember when T.J. and I were waiting in the foyer waiting to come out of the temple after we had been sealed, the temple worker told us it was hailing. All I could do was laugh. I really couldn’t have cared less! Nothing could ruin that day or make it anything less than perfect. (It also helped that by the time we took our pictures outside, the hailing had ceased.)

Would you judge me if I dressed up in my wedding dress again and walked around temple square?

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Hello, Reality

Yesterday was the career fair on campus. Because I have been constantly worrying about what lies ahead of me when I graduate, I decided this was a great opportunity to look for some internships or job possibilities. Even if it wouldn’t lead to any definite plans, it could give me a little direction.

I dressed up in a little red jumper with leggings and flats, I thought I looked professional enough until I saw the mass amounts of guys in suits from the Marriott school. Now, I’m aware that they needed to wear those suits because they would be making some very important contacts at the event, but boy, did I feel like a little kid who lost her way.

The only thing worse than feeling intimidated is acting intimidated. So, I decided to act like the career fair wasn’t giving me a panic attack, hold my head high, and suck it up.

I actually did meet a few great contacts. I’m not sure if they will evolve into anything, but it gave me a little hope that there are jobs available in my general field. With my degree in Advertising, I can go the business route to marketing or I can go the creative route to graphic design. I mean ultimately I would love to work specifically within Advertising, but if other possibilities come my way, I won’t turn them down.

Adobe was there. This was probably the best and most exciting contact I made. The man I met with is a marketing analyst  who works a lot with SEO for their clients. Uhm, hello? I would love to do that! I gave him my online resume URL and felt a little better about myself!

I also met with an advertising and marketing agency in Orem. They’re pretty small, but when I told them I am very interested in social media marketing, they seemed very excited. I gave them my URL, as well.

Most of these people were seeking people who could start in the winter, which I won’t be graduated by then. But I am still excited that I went to the fair to see that there will be opportunities when I graduate.

“My beloved brothers and sisters, fear not. Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith.”
-President Monson

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Rude Remarks.

Yesterday, I went to the doctor. (FYI I’m okay. And no, I’m not pregnant and that’s not why I went there). When the nurse brought me into the waiting room, she put the little thing on my finger to measure something, I think my pulse, I have no idea.

While that was on my finger, she took my temperature from my ear. Once she was done with that, I assumed the finger device was finished too. I don’t know why, I just was antsy, and took it off without thinking.

When I realized I took it off too early, I let her know. But instead of saying something like, “Oh, it’s okay, we can just do it again.” She actually said the following, in a very sharp and harsh tone:

What were you thinking?!

I tried to tell her why, but it just came out as jumble because I really wasn’t sure why I did it. So I just apologized over and over.

I literally had to hold back the tears.

I know it doesn’t sound very bad, but the way she snapped at me made me feel terrible.

Oh, and then I had to wait in there for 35 minutes without cell phone service or a magazine. So if you need to know how much prescriptions cost for students, I can help you out. It was my only reading material in there.

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Good Morning

I keep stealing these beautiful photographs from my favorite blog La Belle Vie.

Hope you enjoy them.

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Glitter in the Air

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQ0zhsvhynw&fs=1&hl=en_US]

I’m usually not much of a Pink fan, but I can’t stop listening to this song!

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