Three Years...Done

You know, I think even weirder than being graduated is going to be not working in the Admissions Office.  I started working there Fall 2010.  THREE YEARS AGO.  Holy cow!  I've been there seven semesters plus two summer breaks.  That's about 2000 hours.  I wish I would have kept track of how many tours I've given but I estimate it's around 500...and total people I've given tours to is probably around 2000 on the low end.  That's a lot of people!

I have loved this job so much and can't imagine where I would have been without it.  I have met so many wonderful people and have been blessed to bless the lives of hundreds of students and prospective students.  I've also had my fair share of angry students/ parents and breaking their hearts, but they aren't common.  Although, it is awkward running into a student on campus that ripped you apart over the phone and has no idea who you are but you keenly remember their name and exactly what they said to you.

I've also talked to some characters.  We all have.  This post is to give you all a glimpse of what the admissions office looks like from our end.  We come into contact with a lot of wackos and weirdo's and just plain funny people.  I hope you find these as humorous as I do.  I sure will miss this job.

We got these two postcards four months apart and they are EXACTLY the same except for the last line of the second postcard which is...and interesting addition and the name.  Maybe we didn't send them everything they wanted the first time they sent the postcard...

The following is an excerpt from a letter written to BYU.  They weren't accepting any more for the desired semester so they forwarded the email to us....poor guy.

This one just confuses me...

And this is only a TASTING of what work is like on a daily basis.  I love it.  Aaaaaand I'm going to miss it!

Randomness Is Good

Now that I have joined the 21st century and got a smartphone I sometimes forget I still take pictures.  Here's a little catching up...through pictures...in no particular order.

I found a baby!

A boy walking his parrot to class....

This....is just awesome.

My employee picture in front of the Wellness Center.  That's how fantastic I am.

Skype date night!!!  And Meredith as the awkward third wheel....

Best boyfriend ever!  Sent me some very comfy sweats.   I wear them all the time now.

There ya have it.  My life in pictures.  Minus any food pictures because I post too many of those....

TP or not TP...is that even a question?

Someone please tell me how an apartment of 6 girls can go through a pack of 12 toilet paper in less than a week.  CAN ANYONE EXPLAIN THIS?!?!  Because I am completely and utterly baffled.  If this is a fact (and this past week, it was) it would mean each girl is using 1/3 of a roll of toilet paper a day.  I know I am certainly not going to the bathroom that much.  Is it physically possible to use the bathroom that much?  And if I'm not using my 1/3 per day that means someone else is using MORE than a third a day.  WHAT THE?!?!  Honestly, I'm tempted to put cameras in the bathrooms to see who the culprit is and what they're doing.  Do they forget a towel after their shower and need it to dry off?  Are they stuffing their bra?  Are they eating it (yeah, it really happens...)???   

WHERE IS MY TOILET PAPER GOING?!  

On a related note...remember this post from Peru regarding the LACK of toilet paper in practically every public place.  What an adventure that was...

I'm In!!

This is my "YAY!  I got into BYU-Idaho face!!!!"

No, it's not from four years ago...it's actually from yesterday.  I saw on the BYU-Idaho Admissions facebook page that they were having a contest to post a picture of yourself with either your acceptance letter or just of yourself with your reaction to being accepted.  There were only three entries so I had to enter myself.  I mean, I have to support my office!!

Peter Pan Syndrome

Anyone who's anyone and reads this blog knows that I'm terrible at making plans for live and deciding what I'm going to do.  Well, let me introduce you to one more option....go to China!!!

I'm starting to think I'm just running away from growing up.  The closer college graduation gets, the more I want to extend the college experience.  I mean, who wants to grow up anyway?!  There's all sorts of....responsibility.  Yeah, not ready for that yet.  

How about taking off for five months and going to Asia?  I could see the Great Wall of China (cross another wonder of the world off my bucket list), visit another continent (bringing my total to four), experience yet another amazing culture, meet some more adorable ninos (no idea how to say that-- or anything for that matter-- in Chinese) and a slew of other great things.  Why not?  It's not like it's super pressing to finish my last semester of school.  And once I graduate I'm going to feel obligated to be an adult.  This pre-graduation stuff is great.  I can explore the world!  Stay tuned.  No plans are set in stone until they are set in stone.  And even then I can change my mind.

I'm falling in love with these kids as we speak...

My Ugly Un-Uggs

It's that time of year again!  The time of slush and snow and puddles and more slush and snow!  Since it's getting colder, I will be transitioning from wearing skirts and dresses to work to dress pants.  Sadly, my dress pants are a little long so I practically have to wear heels everyday and they still get soaked.  Just in case you are unaware, heels are not practical to wear in the puddles, slush and snow.  So....I have a solution!  I wear the lovely boots (picture below taken earlier today) and just tuck my pants into them so they don't get all wet on the bottom.  Then, when I get to work/ class, I take out my real shoes and wear those.  I probably look like a certified freak, but at least I am 1) warm and 2) comfortable.  You can't convince me to change my ways.  I've been doing this far too many semesters...

Long Lost Pictures

Okay here's some pictures of things I've done this semester so 1) You know I'm not completely lame and 2) This post doesn't seem like a complete lie...I really did all those things!


The Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed and Emilee and I were reunited with Papa Hicken!

Temple to Temple Relay Race.  Our team got 8th of 91 :)

 Our amazing team.

The Peruvian Sunday dinner.

 XD faces!!

General Conference

 Cheesecake Factory with my best friends from GB in SLC...totally random and unplanned.

 Those world class travelers are back home with me!

Two years ago.....hahaha They're so great!

I voted for Mitt!  And even though he didn't win, it will go down in history that I voted for him and sure am proud of it.

There you go.  I really am living my life. 

Bragging and Complaining

Literally all I can think to blog about right now would be school or work.  They are seriously the only things I do with my life these days!  So I'll take a minute to brag and a minute to complain and then be done for a bit.  My apologies for never having anything fun to read anymore.  I've had the fun sucked right out of me this semester.

Brag: I'm kicking butt in my Kinesiology class.  I've got a 97% when the average is a 77%.  I have the 3rd highest score out of 63 students.  BOOYA!

Complain: There is a buttload of memorization for the class that I don't particularly enjoy.  You don't want to see the stack of flashcards I have.  Flashcards with not just a word on the back, but with multiple sentences.  It's disgusting.  But then it's kind of cool when you can answer questions like "what muscle do you use when doing a pull-up that you don't use when doing a wide grip chin-up?" and "how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?"  You know...the important things.  Also, the last test took me 2.5 hours.  "Quizes" take a good hour.

Brag: My job is so much better than your job.  We had a soup graze last week.  Heaven.  I looooove winter for the sole reason that it's soup season.  I also have some of the best coworkers ever.  They're hilarious.  My boss is hilarious.  I'm hilarious.

Complain: Yesterday I had a women yell at me on the phone for like ten minutes.  She kept telling me how ridiculous BYUI was and then we were screwing everyone over and no ones likes us.  I was in the middle of telling her she may want to consider a different school if she didn't like how we did things and she hung up on me.  Great first phone call of the day.

Brag: I stepped foot in Peru exactly 10 months ago today.

Complain: I stepped foot back in America exactly 7 months ago today and miss Peru and the people so much.

Brag: I have a bomb-diggity blog.

Complain: Basically I forget I have it and never write anymore and my life is going to shambles because of it.

Time Flies...

Argggggg.  The past month and a half have been overwhelming.  There's been so much I've wanted to blog about that I just haven't done any of it.  It's too big of a task.  Too much has happened.  Here's a quick rundown of my life this semester...

- Laptop charger broke so I now live on library computers...part of the reason I don't blog is I feel guilty blogging while in the library...
- Got the second highest score on my kinesiology exam last week!!
- Went to General Conference
- Sewed a pillowcase and pair of pajama pants
- Stayed at the library way too late, way too many nights
- Ate too much chocolate
- Ran in the Temple to Temple Relay
- Had a Peruvian dinner
- I go Spanish Stadium Singing every Sunday now...it's good for my soul
- Went on a blind date
- Make peanut butter banana bread
- Still working in Admissions as a Coordinator and loving it
- It's starting to get cold out....
- Mailed in my absentee ballot for Mr. Mitt!
- Lost my ipod and had it found outside in the grass by the apartment maintenence man...what a blessing
- Watched the presidential debates
- Homework (have I mentioned that yet??)
- Working out not quite as often as I wish
- Slept on the couch because I didn't want to put my laundry away that was covering my bed
- Touched a one-day-old placenta in my women's health class

Sorry I couldn't make up my mind which tense the list should be in.  It's late and I really don't have time to even be typing up this lame list.... maybe in the future I'll actually get around to posting pictures from these events...maybe

I Like Older Men...

That's not a bad thing, is it?  What if they're MUCH older?  Like, what is the age limit of appropriateness to have a little crush on?  If it's a celebrity, that changes things, right?  For the sake of this post, age and availability don't matter.  Here's my list of celebrity crushes...in no particular order.

Richard Gere.  He's a charmer.  Runaway Bride.  Pretty Woman.  Chicago.  I love them all.

 
Michael Caine.  He's brilliant.  The Prestige.  Batman.  Secondhand Lions.  Just talk to me forever.

Zac Efron.  Who doesn't like him?  Hairspray.  17 Again.  Charlie St. Cloud.  He's a beautiful boy.  If anyone's trying to get rid of a cardboard cutout of him, I'll take it.

Chris Pine.  How could I forget about him!?  Princess Diaries 2.  Star Trek.  He's my favorite to look at.

Well, that's all I have off the top of my head.  This is not a normal thing for me to think about, so I guess I can add to it later if needs be.  This is what I blog about when I have 24 hours to pack up my apartment, white glove it, move apartments, work 8 hours, and run 2 million errands.  I promise I'll blog about important stuff sooner or later.

My Mini Me!

Let me introduce you to Abbigail Anne!  We are practically the same person as my full name is Abigail Anna.  This cute little button is the week old daughter of my coworker, Drew.  Even though I know she's not named after me, I still find it quite an honor that someone could know me and still name their child Abigail.  It means that the name Abigail doesn't leave a bad taste in their mouth.  She is actually the second baby to share my almost exact name (that I know of).  One of my high school drama teachers named her daughter Abigail Ann as well.

We also thought we'd get a picture of her first trip to dad's work.  As you can see, Drew is an excellent multitasker! (PS- we staged the picture...he's actually a very responsible dad)

Single and Childless

Hooray!!!!

Now let me explain why this is a good thing.

My first few weeks at BYUI I was in a small culture shock.  Besides the fact that everyone was Mormon, there were also babies...everywhere.  I looked at the young mothers and thought to myself "oh, I hope I never have to drag my little baby to class with me, or study in the library with a stroller and crying baby."  Don't get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for the girls who have kids and yet are still finishing their degree.  It think it's awesome and something I could never do.  This is why I am proud to say, I have survived college without having a child!!!  I mean, I do have one year left but I'm thinking the chances that I'll meet a boy, get married, AND have a baby in less than a year is pretty darn slim.  Can I go so far to say there's a zero percent chance of that happening? 

Yeah, I'm feeling pretty confident with that assumption.

Finding Myself

....more like finding my blogging self.  If you're a regular reader of my blog you'll notice in the next week that some construction will be going on.  I just can't figure out what I want my blog to look like.  I liked my old one but felt like it needed a change and after a few weeks, it doesn't feel like "me."  So I am on a quest to Abigailfy it.  Thanks for your patience :)  This will be like Daisy Abigail's 4.0!

My Inner Geek

If you've never listened to the Radiolab podcast you are missing out.  Let me tell you, I've learned so many awesome, but slightly useless, things from that podcast!  You don't even need to be a geek to enjoy it because there's something for everyone.  I can't pick a favorite episode because they're all just so stinkin' delightful.  I've learned about the origins of outhouses, how babies think logarithmically, the limits of the human body and mind (and if there are limits), how liar's brains are different from normal brains, where AIDS came from, how words affect our daily lives, what stochasticity means and a slew of other things.  It's incredible!!!  Seriously, you need to go to radiolab.org and then find their podcasts and download as many as possible.  Most episodes that are an hour long have three or four stories within them.  I used to listen to them while working out but they're great for long car rides too.  Did I mention they're totally free??

To make this easier, I'll just link you right to their site!

Radiolab Podcasts---BE EXCITED!