minor

for the last few weeks {monthish} i've been contemplating quite a few very large decisions.  for example:

• internship winter semester or summer semester?
• internship in provo or anywhere in the world?
• ...which internship??
• after april graduation, what next -
• frantic search for full-time job to cover expenses?
• yoga certification?
• stay in provo?
• move back to st. george?
• move...anywhere else?
• LDS mission (which very recently became a possibility with the closeness of my 21st birthday)?
• if so, mission in january? april? later?

in short, i have been overwhelmed with the options.  naturally, when one has a list of possible opportunities this long, one chooses something that was never on the list to begin with.  which is exactly what i did.

art minor!

that's right, my mourning days are over.  i am now an official visual arts minor, and i don't have to cry out in jealousy every time i meet an illustration major.  true, this decision pushes my graduation out another semester.  now, the date is december - slightly more than a year away.  that's a daunting thought, surely.  but after considering all the many options in my life right now, the only one that feels right is just to stay put for a little while longer.  and to compound that, it makes more sense than the rest do.  now, the possibility of finding a paid internship (that i'll love) will be considerably easier because i can look during the summer without worrying about graduation.

i do have one concern: money.
but my reasoning is thus: money was the one factor that almost stopped me from coming to this university to begin with (which, i feel, has been one of the best decisions in my life).  so, if money wasn't a good enough reason to stop that, it's not enough to stop this.  money will work itself out, somehow.

i also have one soapbox:
a pet-peeve, of sorts.  it drives me crazy when boys and girls stay in college for eternity playing around.  they take all the fun classes, perpetually put off making decisions about their major and future in general.  i think this exemplifies the stereotype of my generation - the generation that doesn't know how to grow up and take the reins.  i am decidedly not doing this.  i realized this was a large reason for my rush through school - the goal of graduating with my bachelors when i was twenty.  but guess what?  i realized adding a minor wasn't considered playing around - and i can still have a lot of fun doing it!

so there you go.

i'm now very settled with my decision to do what i'm passionate about (study families), while also incorporating one of my first loves into my education (art).

and i can't wait to step into that art building.

with full confidence that someday, my studio will look like this.

perceptions of autumn

happy first day of fall!

the consequence of good intentions

it's tuesday.  tuesday implies an eight-o-clock class, followed by others until i mentally quit at 4:00 pm.  it's 8:58 am. right now, and i am not in class - again.  what's more, it's two minutes before nine and i am not leaving for my nine-thirty class, either.  really, this story begins about a year ago.

last fall semester, i realized something about myself: when most people become stressed with classes, they simply step up their performance a little, push for the perfect score, read everything twice, and so forth.  not me.  when class stresses me out, the most relieving thing that i can do is to quit - for a moment, at least.  i discovered this after waking up late consecutively for several days of class, always wearing a beanie over my bed-head, and going for more than a week without makeup.  then one day, i slept in past my class.  and it felt wonderful.  that's when i realized the benefit of taking a sick day to put my life back in order, instead of always being late.  it's proved an effective strategy, most of the time.  the only danger (other than the fact that missing class means missing lectures that will inevitably be tested on) is that i will become so stressed that i miss an entire week, or too many days here and there, resulting in a much lower test score than will make me happy.


last night, nine-thirty, i still had an incredible amount of homework.  and when you're stressed, the best thing to do {generally} is to exert yourself physically until your too tired to stress anymore.  so, i put the books down and took a light run (nothing too strenuous due to the large cinnamon roll at ward-family-home-evening).  after that, the best thing to do is eat.  so naturally, i sat myself at the table with my beloved roommates and chowed down on watermelon, chips, and salsa.  i have this little goal lately; it's called get to bed early.  and for the sake of the goal, i decided that it would be much more beneficial to my health to turn my light out earlier and wake up earlier to finish my reading [and my paper].  what i didn't take into consideration is the inevitable tendency my body has to simply sleep until it's satisfied, which (considering the deprivation lately) is a substantial amount.

now, my good intentions: early to bed, early to rise, right?  such a good thing.  i love that principle!  but i'll have you note, midnight doesn't qualify as early to bed.  i thought it might last night... but nope!  not even close.  i woke up this morning five minutes after the beginning of my first class, realized i hadn't completed the reading or attendance writing for my second class (and absolutely did not have time to do so), and made the decision to take a sick day.

i feel great!  not an ounce of sick in me [except maybe dark circles under my eyes].  i'm going to finish a little reading for an afternoon class, do yoga, drink a green smoothie, and curl my hair.  it's a good day, isn't it?


ps. i've been craving dill pickles and extra-sharp cheese. strange, i know. but they tasted sooo good last night!

i have roommates to back me up when i forget my camera.

my candied orange scones.  i told you they were delicious. 

for the recipe, go here.