Some things don't change... ;)

I've discovered that somethings don't change:
1) Remember how I'm "that one laugh" in the movie theater? Or the non-movie theater? I discovered that I am also "that one laugh" in Methodist Churches during charity concerts featuring "Italian" tenors with ridiculous mustaches singing "You Are My Sunshine". I'm beginning to question whether I should be let out in public at all.
2) Nebraska is one of the stickiest states that I've ever dealt with. I was doing okay with my running regiment until I entered the state that requires a de-humidifier in order to breath while participating in physical activity. Oh yes. They make them. There were two of them with the 11 fans in my 3 bedroom apartment the day it flooded.
3) Hugs from Mama B NEVER get old.
4) Piggybacking the sticky comment above, my hair doesn't know how to deal with humidity. Strangely enough I think it likes to be straight in Nebraska and curly in Utah. I don't know how it works either. Makes no sense to me.
5) I've been wearing the same running shoes for 3 years and you'd never know it to look at them. They still look brand new...unless you look at the bottom. The soles are wearing off.

I guess one thing can change. I witnessed my father sing "You Raise Me Up" at the benefit concert. That is ONE thing that I never would have expected. Ever.

And...the jury is still out. I have a severe "dislike" for anything Bronte. I have many friends who have a passionate "like" for JANE EYRE(the epitome of my previously mentioned dislike). I've decided to read it again and give it a fair chance...I'm trying. Really I am.

Home...

I've learned a few things since I came home and feel the need to share them.
*My dependency on chocolate milk most-likely came from my mother.
*I believe in feng shui. I tried to go running on my parents treadmill this morning and nearly fell over because the furniture needs to be re-arranged: completely out of balance. I couldn't focus on anything. The good news is, I have a project now.
*Photo montages make road trips go much faster. I inadvertently created one on my drive home. I took a picture every time the scenery changed. I was more aware of my surroundings and Colorado went by a lot faster that way. Who would have guessed? (I was also highly amused by the diesels carrying the GIANT Target shopping carts, Toby Keith's roadies, and the motor home towing a John Deere tractor. Bless I-80.)
*Toads have striking similarities to rocks in the dark.
*Playing the piano is like riding a bike. You never really forget.

sensory overload...

So...the GRE. I've reached a level of total satiation. Sensory overload. There's only so much that I can cram into my brain about reading comprehension: how to read, what kind of passage it is, what kind of message is it sending, what was the author's purpose in writing said passage, how many question can ETS (the GRE people) can twist out of the passage, etc.
I took the day off.
A good friend of mine is a park ranger at Timp Caves so I went for a visit. It was good for me. It felt good to work hard to climb the 1,000 feet to the mouth of the cave. It felt even better to get to the top knowing I was winded, but not exhausted. (I think the running has helped. Maybe I ought to add a few hills to my routine.) She hooked me up with what is called an "IC" tour. I had no idea what that meant. Apparently "IC" stands for "Introduction to Caving" What does that entail? A hard hat, leather gloves, a head lamp, boots, seeping water, and a lot of really dark 45 degree air in an enclosed space. That was a drastic contrast to my Dinosaur experience, a million degrees, giant glass building, T-Shirts, sandals, small plastic dinosaurs, and NO water. The only similarities were rocks and bats. And people. Tourists are the same everywhere you go: people looking for an escape from their real lives, they came to see you on purpose, and they are excited to see you.
I'm a geek. I love to know why rocks are important and why water is an integral part of cave formation. It never occurred to me that caves are living entities. They require air and water to continue to grow...to survive. I learned a lot and re-affirmed something about myself. I love education. I love seeing people learn things that make them happy. Classrooms scare me. I loved school: kindergarten through college. I think I have a fear of public schools because of my public school experience. I don't regret my experience at all, but I did see how many of the other students treated their teachers and their educations. I know there are lots of politics in education and I tend to steer clear of them too, but I had flashbacks to NPS politics today too. I guess this is a really round about way of stating that I do see teaching in my future.

Miscellaneous; or It's Friday, right?

*When are 2 inch inseams on shorts ever okay?
*I've been living in this house for 4 months and I have just realized that the bell tower across the parking lot plays music.
*Grape Gatorade tastes like purple PixiStix.
*Crenshaw melons ROCK!
*The lady at the grocery store was right, I am fortunate. I can quit my job to study for the GRE.

Library. Day 2...

After day one, I arrived at the library armed with ear plugs to drown out any literacy students who may or may not have been practicing out loud deep in the stacks of nonfiction. Today. I encountered a little bit of a problem. Instead of student literacy issues, I found myself flanked on one side by a highly tatooed 30 something man with an ipod blaring loud enough that I could hear it and HIM singing along with his punk music three chairs down. On the other side I had the nearly 30 something married man, complete with personal fan shaped like a flower and pot. Whirring. Endlessly. It was ridiculous. They were both on Facebook for the most of the time...except for the time they were on LDSmingles.com. Really? And people wonder why I'm a hermit most of the time. Oh well. Right now, I have one focus. GRE. August 13th. That's it.

Guess where I'm spending the next 3 weeks...

Life is like a library owned by the author.
In it are a few books which he wrote himself,
but most of them were written for him.
-Harry Emerson Fosdick

Art.

I've always classified myself as an appreciater of art more than an artist. This is why I can tell you I went to the Ben Folds concert last night. He was accompanied by the Utah Symphony. Fantastic. I loved it. As my friend and I left the venue, we discussed why we love concerts. It gives people (be they musically talented or not) the opportunity to gather with others who feel the same way and appreciate a musician and their music.
I don't know if it is something about Ben Folds fans...or maybe fans of the Utah Symphony...but this was the BEST TRAFFIC EXPERIENCE that I have had in a really long time. People filed in one at a time so both lines of traffic continuously moved. I saw two police officers. Total. They were both on motorcycles. More than a mile apart from each other. There was even contruction. Absolutely amazing. City of Park City. I salute you.
In addition to music, I have appreciated more art this weekend. I have a friend who is a highly talented quilter. She does beautiful and amazing work. She called me on Friday and asked me if I wanted to try something with her this weekend. I said sure and resulting from this project, I have a new art form and goal.
We dyed fabric.

I know. It looks like I'm stewing sea urchins, but hey-I ended up with some really cool fabric. I now have a goal to make a quilt out of fabric that I dyed myself. Hold me to it. It'll happen.