Thoughts From Dolls

The fact that it snowed yesterday has nothing to do with this blog post. And neither do the Nilla Wafers I ate last night that remind me of my grandma and being a kid at her house. But last night as I was eating these nilla things, I watched some Pixar short films while snuggling up in bed (with Salami). Most were cute, but this one was creeeppy.

Growing up I had two shelves atop half of my bedroom, lining the wall. I loved, like really loved, dolls, so I filled the shelves with all different sorts of them. I loved dolls from other ethnicity and dolls with lots of accessories. Just to prove my point, I am going to admit that I had an American Girl doll house that my dad made out of wood. Often, when I would have my little friends over for sleep overs, especially my couz Paige, they would say how creepy it was that I had these dolls staring down on me all night. That one with the cloak? No matter where I go, she is still looking at me - they would say. Okay, they were not creepy; what is so scary about a sweet little doll? Except when one randomly fell off the shelf - now that did make me jump - but I liked to pose some of them standing up which sometimes made them a bit wobbly.

 I think maybe I wasn't sketched out by them because they were my own dolls. I knew each of them: their personalities, likes and dislikes, temperaments; because I had created them; they existed truly in my head. What an interesting idea. For two reasons:

1. Whenever we create something it does exist first in our head. This Pixar short first had to be created in someone's head. And why did they create it? What does it mean to them? When I watch it, I also use my eyes and noggin to create meaning. What does it mean to me? What does it mean to you? Blowz my mind. (EMD*)

2. On a more spiritual side of things. God knows us each perfectly, and he created us. Maybe that is why he can see us not as we are now, but as we can become. He sees our divine potential and worth. Perry cool stuff. To find out more about the LDS (or Mormon) church, go here.

*EMD refers to English Major's Disease and often happens when English teachers think everyone is going to love literature as much as they do, among other symptoms. Coined by Dr. Chris Crowe.

Blanket Electric

Last night I fell asleep on the floor with my electric blanket wrapped around me. Let me tell you, if you live in the snowy mountains and you don't have an electric blanket, it is time to invest. Electric blankets are the bomb.com. Hate how cold it is when you get out of the shower? Suffering from wet-sports-bra syndrome after a run? Not want to get out of bed in the morning? Electric blankets are better than all space heaters combined. The truth of the truth is that my Vegas native mother bought me the blanket when I first moved to Utah, and I didn't use it for three years. That's right boys and girls, three years. I finally opened it when it got below zero, yes, beellooow zzeerroo for multiple weeks, not days, weeks, in a row. Honestly that electric blanket saved my life, and my roommates' too because they probs would have died from how much I would have complained about how cold I was. Now I use it basically every day and try to force every and all visitors to try it out too. Believe me, it's a dream. Warning, if you come over to my place, we might force feed you oreos, wrap you in the blanket E, convince you to play Dixit, and probably send you home with dinner.

Mountains to Climb

I came across this blog post about Utah and the snow piles. And it made me think about this church talk about overcoming challenges. And then it made me remember my high school cross country teammate Lauren Lucas.

Once, near the end of summer in Vegas, yes scorching hot Vegas, we were doing hill repeats, just for fun, because we are overachievers, and because we told ourselves we were going to take state that year. And after a few repeats, when we were at the top, one of us looked over at the foothills of Black Mountain. Maybe because anything would have been better than running up that hill again or maybe just because a mountain seemed easier...

"Look at that mountain; let's run it," someone said. So we did. Let me tell you right now: Running up mountains is one of the most rewarding physical experiences. It literally feels like you are pulling yourself, and each other, up to greater heights. So we sat there, looking over the Las Vegas valley, looking at all the next mountains we were going to run up. We told ourselves we could run up anything, and I still believe that sometimes.

#tbt on Friday

Beautiful people:

Hello Utah

Why Everyone Should Hike Timp, Top Ten

1. It is underrated. It is way more challenging then people make it seem, which I love.

2. You have cell service the entire way. So, if you want, you can surprise your other friends who are hiking Timp and tell them where you are.

3. It gives you a new perspective. You can see everything from up there, but you don't really know what is going on anywhere in Utah Valley.

4. You can meet cool people at the top who tell you they will give you free In-N-Out or that you did an awesome job working as a sports camp counselor that summer.

5. You just keep hiking not even realizing how close you are until you are twenty seconds away. Just keep taking little steps and you will get places.

6. At the right time of year, there are lots of wild flowers. You can even pick your favorite and kiss it.

7. Since you see all the different parts of the mountain, you can choose your favorite. I like the waterfalls.

8. From the summit, you can make thank you videos or even promotional videos in a way chill setting.

9. You could even become a TimpPro.

10. Because everyone else does it. And there is a good reason everyone does.