Zach

Every teacher dreams of sending his or her favorite student to the best college in the nation. I am pleased to announce that Zac Moe from MOB will be attending Utah State University this spring.

It's kind of a long story, but basically, Zach started out at Hampton last fall, but ran out of money and had to come home. (He actually received a letter while he was home for Christmas break informing him that his ENTIRE BALANCE needed to be paid in full before he could return for spring semester. Zach did not return. His stuff may STILL be in a room there somewhere.) So, he took a few classes at CSN, worked for a while, kinda tried to save some money but mostly bought shoes, and now he is headed to the great land of the Aggies.

I think he'll like it. I mean, I wouldn't encourage him to go there if I didn't think he'd do well. It's definitely different from Vegas, but Zach's an outgoing person and I think he'll adjust pretty easily. Once he gets over the initial shock of so many while people in one place, I think he'll see it really is Aggies all the way!

9 for '09

And, here comes Part II...
9 Goals for 2009

1. Work somewhere I LOVE and am really, truly happy.

2. "Schmooz" it up with the ol' co-workers. (This is ROUGH for me, but I think it's important.)

3. Travel more. (Hey, I figured I need at least ONE goal that will be both fun and easy to keep.)

4. Keep in touch with old friends. (This goal may, and hopefully will, tie in with goal #3-- TRAVEL MORE.)

5. Come up with more exciting, free things to do when people come to visit me. (This can tie in with goal #4. If I had more exciting things to do in Vegas, maybe more old friends would decide to come visit.)

6. Cut back on the sarcasm. Every year I debate whether or not this is a goal I want to set. I think I'm funny, but I'm sure I need to do better keeping this in check. One of the kids really believed me when I said "Benjamin Button" was based on a true story. Poor kid.

7. Help every single senior in my AVID class receive at least one scholarship. (Too optimistic, you say? But what about the lazy seniors who won't even apply for these scholarships you continually tell them about? Well, these lazy seniors will no longer be allowed to be lazy.)

8. Read more literature in Russian and (this WILL NOT be fun, but will definitely be useful...) study Russian grammar.

9. Stop watching TV online from crazy Asian websites that may slowly continue killing my computer. (It's hard to come up with 9 things and really, this will be better for my computer.)

8 for '08

Top 8 Memories of 2008
(in no particular order)
1. Sitting along the Dnepr River with Alosha and, after HOURS and HOURS of conversation, getting pretty close to figuring out the meaning of life just before the sun came up.
2. The birth of Joie, my niece, who we like to call Roo.
3. Surviving life threatening rides with Bogdan, who took us all over Western Ukraine at TOP speeds on VERY bumpy roads.
4. Spring Break trip/ tour of USU with Zac Moe and Kehaulani.
5. Dressing up for dinner, eating fresh fruit by the pool, then heading to a foam party at a dance club in Turkey with Galya and the girls from Belarus, who never, ever quit dancing.
6. "Skype reunion" celebrating the 11th anniversary of entering the MTC with Elders from my MTC district, some of the coolest people in the entire world. We've all reconnected once again.
7. Krista's wedding in beautiful San Diego. Krista and I have been friends forever and I was thrilled to see her marry Ardi.
8. Seeing "Wicked" and cruising all around Chicago in the freezing cold with some great, very photogenic friends.

Snow!?!

Whudda thunk? Snow in Vegas. School was even canceled. Hooray! :) But we have to make it up later in the year, so... :( And even worse, the snow all melted before the "Snow Day" even started.

I love the Aggies. (We all love the Aggies!)

Did you see this article?

I went to a USU basketball game over Thanksgiving break. Ags won by 40 points. I'd almost forgot how exciting it is to be part of that crowd. The crowd was cheering, "Up by 40!" at the top of their lungs. Domino's delivered pizza to a few lucky spectators and others played "bungee basketball" during half time. Football? Not so much, (although USU won last Saturday's game by 45 POINTS!), but basketball games were always the best.
Oh, to be in college again!

The moral of the story? One vote really DOES count.

I couldn't believe how quickly this got out.

A whole extra hour of birthday-ness...

I realize I should feel lucky to have an entire extra hour on my birthday, but even this extra time has not helped me. I tried to come up with a creative list.
32 things to do in the year of 32.
I really could only come up with about 6 things to put on the list, so...
Guess everyone's right. Old people really do lose their creativity. :(
Here's the list anyway.

1. Travel more.

2. Reconnect with important people I've lost contact with.

3. Take photos. I have access to 3 digital cameras and a decent camera in my phone, but for some reason I never take photos. I know I'll regret this.

4. Be nice. (I AM nice, but sometimes the sarcastic comments I THINK are funny may not be quite as funny to everyone else.)

5. Spend more time with my family.

6. Start working on my list of 33 for 33 a bit earlier next year so I can come up with a few more ideas.