First Penguin Report

I survived the first week of school!! Barely! :)

I'm really excited for this term. It'll be a tough term, but I'm sure I can handle it. I auditioned for Women's Ensemble and made it in! I sing Second Soprano. This is the first "real" choir I've sung in since Middle School. It's going to be a stretch, but I'm really going to enjoy it. I have three friends in the ensemble with me, and that helps A LOT!! Two of the girls came over this morning to work parts, and I found out that I need more practice in playing parts on the piano!

Also, I auditioned for a chair in band on Wednesday and for the piccolo part! You are reading the words of the second chair flute player and piccolo player!! I am so excited to be in band again! I've missed it terribly. If I had been able to, I would have joined last year. Alas, the timing didn't work out. C'est la vie!

I'm taking a fiction writing class that is really going to stretch me. I don't consider myself a writer, even though I can write. Some of the students in the class write just for fun as a hobby or a possible future career. I'm only taking it because my friend suggested it will give me practice in editing different writings. Speaking of fiction class, I need to look over my story for submission tomorrow!

Have a great week!

Last First Day

Today was my last first day of School at Clark College. It was a great day! I was on time to all my classes- I actually found my classes! I think I'm going to enjoy this term a lot! I'm retaking two classes to try for a better grade, so I'm really excited to take College Algebra again. The English class will be fun. The teacher is very personable, and she has a teaching certificate in my intended field. (I'm hoping to talk with her about it sometime this term.) I'm in Concert Band again! I'm very excited to play with a group again. I put it off too long!! Tomorrow, I'll be starting my Fiction Writing class and auditioning for Women's Ensemble.

What first day of school is complete without a picture of the kid with the loaded backpack? None! Here is my Last-First Day pic. I even wore my new outfit to school today!

As I was walking around campus today, I felt especially cute and happy. I don't know... There's something about being on a campus as a student that puts my life into perspective. It's like I'm showing to the world that I can achieve my goals and dreams! And really, that's what this term is all about for me! I'm fixing some of my past mistakes in school and giving myself plenty of new experiences that will open many doors later in life.

I was sitting next to a 16 year old, Running Start student in a class today, and I felt my age. I'm not saying I felt old, just experienced. I've done something with my life! I'm not the little girl right out of high school that hasn't seen anything outside of this city.

I love, love, love school!! Look out! I'm eager to learn!

Happy First Day of Fall!

Quilting Circle

It's official! I am a Quilting B!! It's a great accomplishing feeling to see your work completed! Last week, my finished quilt arrived from my aunt who actually finished it for me. Nonetheless, this was my first big quilt! It's so beautiful, more beautiful than I ever imagined it to be!! It's been a three year process- I picked out the fabrics in June of 2006, my aunt cut all the pieces out and mailed them summer of 2007, and I completed sewing the top June 2008! I doubt my next quilting project will take that long.




The pictures aren't too great, but it's still amazing to see the finished product. Now on to my next quilt... What to choose, what to choose...

Honorable Mention

To stop the glares coming from Provo for not mentioning the eternal coalition, (You know who you are!) here are a few pictures from Hagmoth's wedding.





It was a very fun day and a great honor to be part of it. She is so happy! I can only hope I'll be as happy and bubbly as Hagmoth on my wedding day!

Love you!

P.S. You can stop glaring now! :)

Meeting of Exhaustion

In August, I was asked to be a Co-Chair to our Young Single Adult Multi-Stake Committee. (That sure is a mouthful!) I, of course, agreed, but I never expected to be so drained after my first meeting. I had served on the committee as a Stake Representative before I left for Russia, so I wasn't going into this completely blind tonight.

My counterpart was unable to attend tonight's meeting. This was the WORST initiation a person could ever get!!! I had to conduct my very first meeting as Co-Chair without my counterpart! I do not recommend that at all!

The meeting went well. We discussed and planned everything on the agenda, but seriously... Do people not understand that an outline doesn't include details?? I came home very drained and feeling like I was about to cry from frustration.

At least my first meeting is over with! Now I can start to get the hang of things before becoming a vagabond bound for Logan.

Don't Push The Button

Our play performances for BYU Education Week were in the HFAC (the Arts Center). Hungry and I went around campus one day to find all her classrooms. That was a neat experience. I had never been to BYU before. We stopped by the library, which is HUGE!!! We saw a sign that I loved!

Before I go into that, anyone who knows me should know that I have a lot of quirks. One of them involves NOT pushing the handicap door open button unless you need it!! So, take a look.

The post reads "PLEASE Do Not Use The Access Button Unless Necessary Thank You"

One of the many great things about BYU!

My Trip to Zion

Well, my trip down to Utah was quite the adventure! I rode down with Hungry in her truck. We were taking her truck down to Provo for her stay at BYU. It was loaded up with boxes and all sorts of things. We started late on a Thursday after the heat of the day had passed. Pendleton (not Medford) was our overnight destination! Boy, were we tired... Well, Hungry had more of an excuse- she drove the entire way! I'll save us both the embarrassment of showing our arrival picture from that night... Definitely not our best picture!! But we did see a beautiful sunset. This picture doesn't give it justice at all.

We started out the next morning at 5 am!! Yes, Mom, I woke up that early all by myself! What a fun day that was. We drove and drove and drove... Have you ever realized how long Idaho is? Seriously!! It never ends! Hungry and I thought we would never reach Utah. In frustration, we pulled off at a rest area, wondering if Utah would ever come! To our dismay, we found a map showing our location.

We found we were SO close to the Idaho-Utah border!

Our reactions:












But things started looking up! We made it to Utah!! Oh, what joy we felt!

Adventures Galore!

For those of you still wondering... Yes, I am still alive!

August has been quite an amazing month!! So many events have occurred in such a short amount of time! I can't possibly mention all of them, so I'll give you the highlights!

August 1st was my first official date with Caps!! What an amazing way to start off the month! He took me for dinner and miniature golf (I won!). Then, Caps and I went for a walk, as is our custom. I have to say that my favorite part of the date was just before I went into my house. Caps and I were hugging when my oldest brother came out of the house. The look on his face was so great! It was a combination of "What is my little sister doing in the arms of that guy?" and "Wait! What's that guy doing with my sister?" That look was ever so worth being caught in Caps' arms!!!

The next week was spent being absorbed by preparations for WMOH performances. Opening night in Portland was the sixth and we closed on the ninth. Those performances were great. We had gotten most of the bugs out for our Provo run two weeks later for BYU Campus Education Week. More to come in a later post. I spent a week and a half down in Provo with the show. It was so much fun!!

I returned on the 23rd, driving a manual transmission home after only two lessons! I don't know why people think it's so hard to learn. I found it quite easy. You just have to realize that you will make mistakes the same as you do with any new task learned.

Caps left for Logan, UT on the 26th of August, and he is already sorely missed. BUT a plan is already in the works for me to visit him in October.

My blog turned one year old on the 30th of August! Happy Belated Birthday, Piano Plinker!!

So, there are the highlights of August!