Happy Valentine's Day!

Following Directive Counsel

I almost titled this post "Keeping the Commandments" but my roommate and I decided that keeping a journal doesn't fall into the same realm as "Thou Shalt Not Kill" or "Thou Shalt Not Bare False Witness", so "Following Directive Counsel" it is.

For most of my life, I have been horrible at keeping a journal. I've compensated by cutting and pasting emails into a word document and maintaining this blog the past few years. I actually did a great job while in MBA school recording all that was happening, which is good because the events from those 2+ years were "moments of impact" that defined who I am today.

Part of the argument people give for keeping a journal is that it will be a record of your life for future posterity. Well, right now I'm not sure what the future holds for me and I've realized that my experiences can be a benefit for people now. That is one reason why I've actually blogged about a few dates recently and why future posts may seem more personal than in times past. This is my record. It is for me. But I also hope it inspires faith and courage and maybe produce a bit of laughter in all of you.

Let No Man Forget That You Are From Old Virginia!

In October, I went to Virginia to visit a dear friend. He had been inviting me to come visit him for a year or two and I finally stopped waiting for the perfect time and made it happen. Before you start wondering anything about us, the timing of the trip coincided with a bunch of social activities so he could introduce me to guys he has been scoping out for me. Though it was fun to meet new people, the highlights of the trip include visiting historical sights and catching up with old friends.

At the DC Temple

Civil War battle re-enactment at Balls Bluff

Listen to those cannons!

My good friend Cheryl

Trip to Monticello

Do You Have This Much Fun?

I love my job! What makes it so great is the people I work with. Hilarious. Social. Smart. It makes going to work everyday something to look forward to instead of dread. Here is a look into life with the Domo-ites that started with a tweet I posted last night and took off.

Do you have this much fun with the people you work with?

First Time for Everything

In December, I finally had the chance to visit New York City. Yes. I've been to cities in Europe and many in the United States but never to NYC. We took a redeye, which I don't recommend, and landed 3 hours later. Gratefully, we were able to change and clean up a bit when we got to our hotel.

First stop was getting in line for student rush tickets of How to Succeed in Business... with Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette. Half of us sat in the cold while the other got breakfast. Hot chocolate never tasted so good! After we got tickets (Yay!!), we headed to lower Manhattan to see the 9/11 Memorial. The memorial was quite sombering. You began to get a sense of the size and scope of the devastation. TVs and documentaries don't quite seem to capture it. Battery Park, the Bull, and Wall Street were next. Kind of geeked out in the financial district. I wanted to see a few more historical sites, including Trinity Church, but the rest of the group wanted to leave. So doing what I did best, I said, "Go ahead. I'll meet you for dinner." Gratefully, my friend Allison came with me. It was nice to break from the big group for a while and mosey at my own pace. Al and I stumbled on some cool buildings and parks, and Trinity Church was breathtaking. Met up with the group for dinner and then went to the show. It was fun to see Daniel Radcliffe in a non-Harry Potter role. Such a fun play!

Day two was a little bit less intense than the first. Everyone slept in but me who wakes up to the light. So I got up and walked down toward the UN Building. I hadn't fallen in love with NY yet. All the buildings and people made me feel a bit claustrophobic and I kept comparing it to other cities. My walk back from the UN changed that. I realized how unique each city is in culture and style. The goal is to embrace the diversity of each city and find its hidden treasures. That epiphany opened my eyes to the beauty of the city. I absolutely loved walking around, taking in all the city had to offer me. For lunch we went to Little Italy and had amazing Italian food. So good! Most of the girls wanted to shop but three of us wanted to check out Central Park. Once again, just walking around the park and absorbing the culture made for a relaxing afternoon. We met up with the group for some plays. Long story short, I decided not to see either of the two plays the group went to that night. Instead, Abby and I sat in Times Square and chatted. I think we both needed that conversation and I'm grateful for that time with her.

I wanted to sleep in the next morning, but I needed to get in line for general rush tickets for Anything Goes—got my tickets!—then met up with Sherstin and Amie to figure out the matinee. We finally found student tickets at Mary Poppins. After that, we went to Macy's, Bergdorf Goodman, and Tiffany's. Fun stores but I didn't buy anything. Then came Mary Poppins and a nap. I was exhausted! I needed to make it through Anything Goes. We met up for dinner at Qdoba, one of my favorite places, before we split up for our different shows. Both shows today were phenomenal! I loved them!

Our Sunday started out with a harbor tour of Lower Manhattan. As you can see from the pictures, we saw Ellis Island, The Statue of Liberty, the financial district, the Empire State Building, the Sears Tower, the UN Building, and the Brooklyn Bridge. Very nice morning. Nice not to be walking anywhere. After the tour, we went to church at the Manhattan LDS temple. Fun story that happened here. I ran into a guy that I dated five years ago. It was really fun to know that even after all this time, I could still turn his head. As we were saying goodbye, he stopped and then invited me to a party that night. Made me smile, especially since my number was still in his cell phone! Met up with the group and we walked around Central Park and FAO Schwartz. The party that night was fun. Fun to meet new people. Fun to talk with Mark. Fun to know that I could still be on someone's mind.

Our last day was mixed with different activities. Most people slept in but I still wanted to see a few things. I walked by Rockefellar Plaza, went to the top of Rockefellar Center, walked by Carnegie Hall, and walked through the NY Public Library. We packed up and headed to the airport in a limo. 

I absolutely loved my time in New York. I'm planning on going back again and my friend who lives there said I could stay with her. I'm really excited because I missed a few museums and Newsies is opening on Broadway. So many fun places to visit, so little vacation time.

Clarification: I don't mind new people looking at my blog. I don't want to move my blog private so I monitor who visits to make sure nothing unusual is happening. The real freakout moment was wondering if date number one stumbled upon my blog, but I realized there is no way he could find it. Slight panic! :)

Tech Nerd

Do you know what makes me paranoid? Seeing an unfamiliar IP address on my blog tracker. Then I have to look at where the person bounced from, what city she (because lets be honest, I might have two guys that regularly follow my blog) was in, and possible people I know in that area. Then my mind races through my different posts, especially the most recent two, to make sure I haven't crucified anyone or revealed too much about anyone or myself. Rest assured, I think I'm okay so far. Still, you random visitors make me nervous.

My New Love

Have you ever heard me talk about how much I hate shopping? If you have, I apologize. Complete lie. I've realized that it wasn't shopping I didn't like. It was knowing I didn't have money to spend and not finding things in my size for things I did like. New job and online shopping have completely transformed me. I love shopping! In fact, I put a shopping ban on myself during January just to catch up financially from all my trips. However, I found the perfect dress. What to do?! The solution actually was very simple. The dress was on backorder and would take 2-3 weeks to ship. That means my credit card would not be charged until February. Perfect! So in 3-4 weeks, this dress will be arriving at my door and I'm really excited. I'm ready for spring!

Way With Words

I love this post on Robert Burns. Wish I was as quick-witted with my speech.

In 1791, riled by a recent review that criticised a supposed abundance of "obscure language" and "imperfect grammar" in his poetry, celebrated Scottish poet Robert Burns channelled his anger and wrote the following magnificent letter to the critic responsible. (Source: The Works of Robert Burns, Volume 4)

Ellisland, 1791.

Dear Sir:

Thou eunuch of language; thou Englishman, who never was south the Tweed; thou servile echo of fashionable barbarisms; thou quack, vending the nostrums of empirical elocution; thou marriage-maker between vowels and consonants, on the Gretna-green of caprice; thou cobler, botching the flimsy socks of bombast oratory; thou blacksmith, hammering the rivets of absurdity; thou butcher, embruing thy hands in the bowels of orthography; thou arch-heretic in pronunciation; thou pitch-pipe of affected emphasis; thou carpenter, mortising the awkward joints of jarring sentences; thou squeaking dissonance of cadence; thou pimp of gender; thou Lyon Herald to silly etymology; thou antipode of grammar; thou executioner of construction; thou brood of the speech-distracting builders of the Tower of Babel; thou lingual confusion worse confounded; thou scape-gallows from the land of syntax; thou scavenger of mood and tense; thou murderous accoucheur of infant learning; thou ignis fatuus, misleading the steps of benighted ignorance; thou pickle-herring in the puppet-show of nonsense; thou faithful recorder of barbarous idiom; thou persecutor of syllabication; thou baleful meteor, foretelling and facilitating the rapid approach of Nox and Erebus.

R.B.

Why I Have ADD

This image captures what I do everyday for work. Now you know why I'm a bit scatterbrained after the day is over. Click the picture to see it in more detail.

Mutual Weirdness

This just makes sense to me.

Good Intentions and New Direction

My goal this weekend was to post about my trip to Washington DC, New York, and Disneyland. Well, guess who forgot to bring her power chord home? Yep. Me. But how, may you ask, am I posting right now? Well, I forgot the power chord to my work computer and the battery has now died. So I'm using my home laptop which doesn't have any of my recent pictures and posts about trips are no good without a visual aid. Never fear, I'll get those posted this week.

And now for the new direction. I'm finally, I think, out of the funk I've been in for the past while. In being so, I've decided to be a bit more honest on my blog. You all know I have a blog tracker. I seem to have regular visitors and most of you are friends and family. I have nothing to hide and hope that my life experiences can bring a smile to your face or insights into your own lives. Which means all of this may become a lot more personal. Now the really personal stuff will go into my journal. I'm starting that back up again because I needed to document some good things that happened recently. Nothing life changing. Just a tender mercy of the Lord. He does hear and answer prayers. You'll get that story soon.

To end this post, I wanted to share a quote from one of my new favorite shows Once Upon a Time. On tonight's episode, Grumpy says to Snow after her heart was broken (you have to see the episode because it really is cute), "I need my pain. It makes me who I am. It makes me Grumpy." I love this line. It helps me realize that turning off the pain or trying to drown it out doesn't help us one bit. All the adversity, struggles, and disappointments have made me who I am. It makes me Thamina.

2012 Update

Remember my three goals for the new year?

• All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.
• All you need is 20 seconds of insane courage and good things happen.
• To be surprised.

Well, I'm off to a good start. I'm also realizing I don't have as much patience as I thought. I feel like I am a speedboat navigating around a battleship. Somethings just take time and I need to slow down.

2012 Theme Addendum

"All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware."
—Martin Buber

Excited to discover the secret destinations of this life's journey.

Welcome to a New Year

I've reflected much on the past year. 2011 brought many unexpected events that I wasn't quite sure how to deal with. In everything that I had to confront and overcome, I found a resilient strength in me that I didn't know existed but that I attribute to the Lord and the consistency of family and friends.

I've also discovered a bit of personality that I knew was there but for some reason had suppressed. John Adams summed it up best when he wrote to Thomas Jefferson, "I was young, and then very bashful, however saucy I may have sometimes been since." I find myself being much more bold and sassy in conversation, in work, and in my relationships with others. I hope it hasn't come across as arrogance or pretentiousness. But I do like how the challenges of the past have helped me throw caution to the wind and give life my all.

My theme for 2012 comes from a movie quote: "All you need is 20 seconds of insane courage and good things happen."

My goal for 2012: To be surprised.

To speak completely in metaphor, last year was the year I rolled a six. This year I get so see where I land.

Rendered Speechless

This month has been busy! I counted and realized I have slept more nights in a hotel than I have in my new place. With all this traveling has come walking around all day in the cold and taking very little time for sleep. When this happens, my body rebels against me. Translation: Thamina got sick. Now, it was all pretty manageable until Christmas Eve when my siblings and I decided to go skiing up Fairview Canyon (aka ghetto skiing).

Now I live in a family of physicians. Four of the five people going on this trip had either been in medical school or were currently in medical school. Dad: family practice physician. Sister: emergency room physician. Brother: second year medical student. Sister-in-law: second year dental school. They've all been tested on the simplest and complex viruses. I may have been asked once or twice if I was feeling well enough to go but no one pushed for me to stay back. Now, to give my family a fair shot. I am me. I'm pretty stubborn. If I have it in my head to do something, I'm going to do it. I didn't want to miss out on the fun and decided skiing was worth any repercussion.

Little did I realize what the consequences of that decision would be. Christmas day was wonderful, but as the day wore on my energy level dropped and my voice began to crack, creak, and croak. The day after Christmas showed no signs of improvement. In fact, I croaked multiple octaves as I tried to speak, and as I was talking on the phone with my sister, she started laughing because she couldn't understand me at all.

I realized the time had come. To save my voice, I had to speak in a whisper or stop talking. Day one. Then day two. I'm now on day three where I am trying so hard not to talk. You all know me. Me and talking are inseparable. I always have something to say. But now even the slightest effort drains me. So for now, I'm speechless. I'm mute. The only way to get better is to rest my voice. I'm hoping it will be back tomorrow. I'm hoping this illness has run its course. I'm hoping.

Do you ever have those moments when you know you should be anxious or nervous about something and realize you aren't? You just know everything is going to work out and be okay. It's an interesting feeling to have. Not quite sure what to think about it. I'll keep you all posted.

Crazy Busy Life

I haven't forgotten about my blog. With moving and traveling, it has been the last thing on a long list. Never fear. I'm home for a couple of days before the next adventure and I have maybe five or six boxes left to unpack.

On my list of things to update you on is trips to DC and New York, my move from Provo to Salt Lake, and the many holiday celebrations. Another vacation is just around the corner so I'm hoping to get a few of these updates in before then. Be on the lookout...

One More Thing I'm Grateful For...

Happy Birthday to my amazing father!

His children have always been a source of pride for him and he has loved each of us unconditionally.

He always greets my mom with a kiss, cuddles with her on the couch, and holds her hand as they travel through life.

He has sacrificed so much for his family. He would work long hours so we could participate in sports, music, and other activities. My dad loves a good adventure and he always wanted to be part of the fun even though we often wore him out.

Once when I was having financial troubles because of a mix-up at ASU's graduate office, I approached my parents about possible solutions to the problem. My dad got a big grin on his face and started singing "You Ain't Never Had a Friend Like Me" and offered a different solution. My dad has always supported and helped me. My dad is absolutely wonderful and he is right. I've never had a friend like him.

Never Say Never

I remember being naive and making ridiculous comments like "I'm never going to do...", then fill in the blank. More often than not, I have ended up eating my words. Here are a few:

• I finally got out of Provo. I'm never moving back to Provo. (I said this when I left for Phoenix.)
• I'll never like broccoli...or green beans...or asparagus...or spinach (I like all of them now.)
• After ASU graduate school..."I'm not moving back to Utah." (Ha ha!)
• I'll never date some shorter than me. (Um...first two guys I dated in college.)
• I don't like running. You'll never see me running for fun. (Right. How many half marathons have I done?)
• I hate mornings. I'll never be a morning person. (Now I prefer to workout and read my scriptures in the morning.)
• I'll never enjoy yard work. (See post.)
• I'm moving from Utah after I graduate from MBA school. (Love my job! Still here!)
• I'm never teaching again. (I teach a class once a week at BYU. Oops!)
• I'll never learn HTML. (See my unordered list?)
• And finally, the reason for this post...I'll never live with a dog. (Guess whose new roommate has a dog? Yep! Mine! But I made the choice knowing full well she had a dog.)

I figure we say things like "I'll never..." because we don't know any better or realize how many good things we would miss out on if we stuck to those assertions. I've had some incredible, faith filled, uplifting experiences by not listening to my "never" words.

Knowing my life, I'm going to have many more opportunities to do things I thought I would never do. And for that I am grateful. Grateful that my ignorant comments have not held me back from the joys that life has offered to me. Grateful for a Heavenly Father who knows better and doesn't listen to my "never" comments. Grateful to others who have overlooked my simple-minded words and given me another chance.