Trying Something New

I love editing photos, although I'm not very good at it. I blame my general lack of talent. Oh and the fact that I have a crappy camera.

Today I was feeling adventurous... so I grabbed my camera and snapped a shot of the sunset. E-Town is so beautiful. I love the weather here, it's unbelievable that Autumn is only a trillion times better here than anywhere else in the world. I'm very grateful for this escape.

After that, I took a picture of my very favorite high heels. Isn't it funny the relationship we have with heels? We complain about wearing them all the time! They hurt us after long periods of time. They make us fall (if we're clumsy... like I am). And they are just plain hard to walk in! So why do we wear them? Because we look damn good in 'em. Simply put.

Procrastinate

We all procrastinate... It's not just me, right??

I need to finish my psych homework but my blog keeps grabbing my eye.

I haven't written in a while, so it's justified... I think...

Oh goodness, Tiff. Focus! You are supposed to be writing about Classical Conditioning...

Ok... Classical Conditioning is Pavlovian Conditioning, Pavlov was the man

who did that dog and bell thing, you know? With the Unconditioned Stimulus

Conditioned Response, etc. Pairing the US with a CS creates a CR.

TIFFANY, not on the Blog! On Your paper!

Oops...

sometimes...

Sometimes we do stupid things for the opposite gender when it comes to feelings.

- Sometimes we fall for one person of the opposite gender in particular.

- Sometimes we become vulnerable because we tell them how we feel (feelings are STUPID by the way...)

- Sometimes you tell this person everything and don't feel weird doing it.

- Sometimes it works out.

- Other times, we get hurt.

- Sometimes we find that no matter how hard we try, we just can't stay away.

- Sometimes we let our feelings overtake our common sense.

- Sometimes we imagine what it would be like if things were "right."

- Sometimes we have to deal with reality.

- Sometimes we pretend to have it altogether, so we can be around the person, drama-free.

- Sometimes we think the person will change their mind and realize what you guys have is great.

- Sometimes we feel stupid for trusting that person in the first place.

Yet, we still fall. I don't get it.

College is hard enough without dating.

Seriously.

So why do we torture ourselves with day dreams and hopes? I think it's silly to do this at such a young age, where we think we know everything... but in all honesty? We have NO idea what we're doing.

One year and four months till my mission.... yes? YES!

Stephanie Hammer: Best Best Friend Ever? YES

Yesterday was my BEST friend Stephanie Carlisle Hammer's birthday! She turned the BIG ONE-NINE! :) I'd love to tell you about this BEAUTIFUL girl!

We met our Sophomore year of High School in Miss Johnson's health class. I was super jealous of her LONG blonde hair, super great style, and boyfriend (at the time it was Stephen Hill... every girl wanted him! haha). She was extremely nice too, which surprised me, since she was so gorgeous! We talked a lot about music because we both loved:

1. Paramore, my obsession at the time... we wanted to dye our hair bright red with blonde in the bangs sooo badly. Haha, what were we thinking??

2. Panic! At the Disco, ditto. We found out that we were both gonna go to the concert the prior year but it got cancelled and we were bummed out.

3. ... Okay so I think those were the only 2 we talked about, but we would watch the music video's all the time on my iPod.

We really didn't become friends until Junior year choir tour in California.

We were roommates due to our shared friend, Cheyenne. Because of limited beds, we had to switch beds and bed buddies every night. One night it was mine and Stephanie's turn to share the pull-out couch bed. We were not very excited, in fact, I think we were pretty pissed. While we were tossing and turning and NOT being able to sleep, we talked and bonded. We talked about her ex-beau, Stephen, dumb "friends", and how gross Cheyenne and Luke were together on the trip. {Love you, Chey and Luke! haha} We immediately became really close the rest of the trip.

When we got back from California, I started hanging out with Chey and Steph more but when summer came around I lost complete contact with them.

I owe practically my WHOLE senior year to Stephanie. I started hanging out with both Steph and Chey again and I loved having drama-free, chill girls to hang with. But that bliss ended quickly when Stephanie and Luke started dating. They kept it from Cheyenne to avoid drama, but when she found out, all Hell broke loose. The hardest part was when they would make me take sides. I eventually picked Stephanie's side, the thing that drew me to her was her sincerity, loyalty, and maturity. This girl was one of the most honest, caring, genuine people I'd ever met. After that, we were attached at the hips. She and Luke started dating, and Parker and I started dating. We would always hang out, the 4 of us.

(I stole this from FB... can you tell?)

Stephanie is unique in the fact that she will drop ANYTHING to help you out. In high school she supported me in all my psychotic antics, road tripping to Ephraim, skipping choir with me for tanning or doughnuts, and help me down a few things of cheese fries from J.C. Dubs. Even after we both went to separate colleges, she would "Skype" me, talk to my boyfriend about what promise ring I would like, and visit me at school.

This girl is LEGIT!

She even drove down to PG with her husband so I wouldn't have to go to Parker's brother's homecoming alone. What person does that?? Seriously!? STEPHANIE does.

There are very few times I cry... and when this girl got married, I cried, because she was happier than I had ever seen her. She deserves the best guy in the world, and you know what... I think she did a pretty good job!

She has truly changed my life forever.

I love this girl more than chicken and mayo on crackers, In-N-Out {Fries AND Burgers}, J.C.W.'s, Beaches Tanning Salon, Cafe Rio, Böhme, Stuart Falls, St. George, Snoasis, Victoria's Secret, Harts hot chocolate (I believe her favorite is 3 chocolate and 1 vanilla cream shot), shooting, four-wheeling, and other things that I've done more than her and she's still a trillion times better than me, 3 day sleepovers, Roxberry, and Rip Riders ALL COMBINED!

If I could put this girl in one word, it would be "TRUE." She is truly 100% Stephanie all the time.

Steph, I wanna find a man like you... just more manly. :) Love you baby girl! Hope your day was amazing!

xoxo-

Tiff

Schools Back From Summa!

Oh how I've missed Snow College. I can't even tell you... No seriously. I've MISSED this place! I love it here!

I am extremely freaked out about my work load... to be honest with you... I should probably not even be writing this post with how much I need to do!

The smell of desks, the new Library, and green grass just KILL me! I know I'm weird, I can accept that... but I love it!

I decided to get a private room this year, not because I don't love my old roommates but because I needed a change.

To be honest, I wish I did live closer to my old roommates! Everyone is over where I used to live... I feel like an outcast living in the boonies. LAME!

But really, school is going to be amazing this semester.

The Things I fear .

1st-

Spiders. I haven't always been so freaked out by them, in fact... I used to be able to kill them. But not anymore. They freaking scare me to death. And this picture doesn't help...

Courtesy of Allie Brosh. The funniest artist/blogger ever. If you wanna see her blog, click this.

2nd-

Bunnies. (and other Small furry animals i.e. Hamsters, Ferrets, Gerbils) Thanks, Monty Python and the Holy Grail...

3rd-

Being Kidnapped. So I was 10 years old when 14 year old Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped. I was sooo scared, I used to wake up in the middle of the night and fall sleep by my parents bedroom door.

4th-

Public speaking. I know... Most everyone is scared of this.

5th-

Becoming an old maid... :) Yes, I DO realize I'm only 19 years old. But come on, there is always a possibility. (Funny side note. I was going to say, "End up alone" but when I typed in "Alone" in google images... I couldn't help but laugh at all the EMO pictures...)

6th-

Failure. I plan on doing my graduate program at the University of Utah. Earlier, I found out the Psychology program at the U is extremely difficult to get into. *GULP* What if I don't make it?

But Kevin W. Pearson, a member of the Seventy said this in his April 2009 General Conference talk, "Faith and fear cannot coexist. One gives way to the other. The simple fact is we all need to constantly build faith and overcome sources of destructive disbelief."

This is my challenge as I prepare to go to school. With prayer, scripture study, along with devotion to school work, I know I can succeed. :) This is also my challenge to you. To put it simply, I'm gonna quote "A Cinderella Story," how cheesy, right?! "Don't let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game." Always do what you need to do, trust in the Lord, and work hard.

Simply Live...

Everyone has a "Mission Statement" or a motto that they try to live by.

Like "That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger," "When the going gets tough, the tough get going," "What goes around, comes around," or in the words of Simba, "Hakuna Matata- Slimy, yet satisfying."

Mine is "Simply Live." I came up with it in a pivotal time of my life. I am kind of a control freak if any of you hadn't noticed. Especially when it comes to feelings of "infatuation" or "crushes." My poor roommates had to deal with a lot of my mellow-dramatic rants of "Why hasn't he texted me??" and "UGH! I hate men! They are such jerks!" (... sounds familiar... still!)

Back in November I really started to like this guy, "Sam" as we'll call him. I felt like if he didn't pay his every waking attention to me, that he had all of the sudden decided he didn't like me anymore. I was pathetic. I finally realized how much energy I legitimately wasted on NOT being happy with him.

I felt like I had to be in control of everything. I even went to the extremes of having my sweet, dear roommate Ashley change his name in my phone so I wouldn't stress over who should text the other one first.

The day Sam and I officially ended things was tough on me. I thought long and hard about the amount of time I wasted trying to figure things out that didn't need to be figured out. I thought to myself, Why do stress over everything... even the things I can't control? I just need to let things flow naturally. I need to Simply Live!

That night, we drove to Denny's and we talked. I told Sam I was really struggling with the fact that he didn't care about me as much as I did him. He told me I was trying to force things, way too much. Sam just looked at me and said, "You just need to simply live." NO, I am not making this up. He basically read my mind. I told him, "Oh my gosh! I know EXACTLY what you mean."

On my mirror are oversized purple letters reading, "Simply Live." My phone has a banner across it, reminding me to "Simply Live..." Those words have been on there since November.

I'm not saying I'm perfect at it. Because, let's be honest, I still struggle a ridiculous amount with control. But it's something I am really constantly reminding myself to do.

"Simply Living" means to me, letting the Lord's hand in my life a little more prominently. Trusting in His plan for me. Not trying to push all my goals and sights into His Master plan.

I know it's cheesy. But a motto is something to help me grow.