22!!

This is a taste of my birthday this year. Thanks to Chels for the matching boutineers and to ky for the kewl pic.

Stargirl

Jerry Spinelli can write. You may recall his name from the highly read book Maniac Maggee a novel centered around a boy who runs. Always. Well Stargirl has been sweeping the scene of young adult literature and the book was given to me on Monday. Though I am not usually one to love young adult literature, this book is fantastic. The words have a way of talking about love like a lazy ballon, or a friend as a substance of bendable light. The theme is one not uncommon to YA lit, a tale of a teenager being an individual. But this story is not about the protagonist, but instead is told by her friend who describes the changes that Stargirl goes though when trying to be popular, herself, a cheerleader, owner of a rat, do-gooder, and happy person. Though an easy read, I find myself reflecting on how I feel that I can be a better person, one who cares less about myself and more about others. I highly recommend this book to everyone (particually those who have lost the desire to find oneself in the haze of commonality which is so often a cruch to people).

Welcome back Sarah, you are alive

Best things of the last few months:

Student teaching.

I started my student teaching at Mountain View High teaching English. I love it. I truly love the kids and find it the most humorous thing I’ve ever done. Every time I go to class I laugh so hard. I do love to learn all about the English language and have the most incredible lead teacher. She knows everything.

Finishing applications for graduate school.

I finished taking the GRE and all of my applications are in! Now it’s just a waiting game to see if I get in.

Becoming an aunt again.

I have a new nephew named Carter and a new niece named Avery.

Health.

I am in relatively good health.

Dating.

I go on dates.

Worst things of the last few months:

Student teaching.

I started student teaching and remembered a few things about high school. The students get up so early. I am so tired of 6:00am. There are still the cool kids and not cool kids, there are still the people who are scared, afraid of others, and stealing their friends notebooks. I wish students had a little bit more self-confidence and a little more love for one another.

Finishing applications for graduate school.

I had to take the GRE (aka, the devils favorite test) twice. I had a professor who turned in a letter of recommendation 5 weeks late, and a school that thought they had lost my manuscript. Plus, I still have to live in an interim period of not knowing if I’ve been accepted. If I get in somewhere I might be a little shocked.

Becoming an aunt again.

I have yet to see Carter and Avery.

Health.

I had to get over mono, and missed a very important presentation. I have had dry skin so bad that the skin by my eyes has been puffy, red, and painful (haven’t worn makeup for a week). Luckily, the medicine is helping and it’s getting better. It could always be worse though.

Dating.

I go on dates.

Overall, things are going well. Life is running along just smoothly. I am obsessed with the girls I live with and we are all very sad for the approaching day of graduation and moving on from one another. I am quickly approaching 22 and so grateful for the many blessing and opportunities that I have been given. I am truly blessed.

So as for my lack of blogging participation-- I would say I'll try to be better but that may just be setting myself up for failure.

Winter

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It snowed today. White little flakes reminding me of winter. I feel like I should go and gather nuts so that I will have food for the season that kills. But who's afraid of the snow when we have H1N1 virus floating around. H1N1 has BYU paranoid....and their constant e-mails to professors has been the best! I've been missing school because I've been sick and teachers have to be nice (the e-mails say so.) Thank you swine flu, thank you.

Welcome October

Happy Fall

First Leaf

by Lia Purpura October 5, 2009

That yellow

was a falling off,

a fall

for once I saw

coming—

it could

in its stillness

still be turned from,

it was not

yet ferocious,

its hold drew me,

was a shiny switchplate

in the otherwise dark,

rash, ongoing green,

a green so hungry

for light and air that

part gave up,

went alone,

chose to leave,

and by choosing

embellishment

got seen.

long time, no blog

Welcome to the CANDY SHOPPE. The snapshot is of some of my best friends and I in front of the house that we live in, properly named the candy shoppe. Already this year has been a blast. The people in the picture (from left to right) are me, Mandi, Mary, Kellee, Reb, and Kylie. I love the house, partly because it is so nice but mostly because I get to go home to some of my favorite people every day. Notice the porch, yesterday my friends and I enjoyed a chilled dr. pepper and talked--absolute bliss for me.

My senior year of college is going to be filled with a lot of school, but this time it's fun school. Tomorrow I go to mt. view high school to start working with the teacher who I will be doing my student teaching with in January. It's amazing that they are going to trust me to teach students how to write and enjoy english. Cross your fingers that it goes well. The rest of my time is trying to figure out poetry and transcendalist authors.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that I am excited for the new year and appreaciative of all the blessings that I recieve and remember girls 09 is our year!

Ps: Below are some random pictures that were taken the same day. I'm sure you're curious who the amazing photographer is....and it should come to no surprise that it was Kylie. She is so talented.

Kel and I

MJ, Mandi and I swinging on our neighbors swing. We wish it was on our porch but for now we'll take the chairs and dp.

Bat, the animal...not the sporting equipment

This last week I was able to go to my cabin in Idaho. Lets clarify cabin really quick. It's more like a house, well it is a house, complete with all the amenities and a fire pit in the front so it 'feels' like camping. Yes sir, that is how I rough it in the wilderness. The days were filled with early morning mountain bike rides and canoe trips. Smores dominated the nights, while i discovered possibly my new favorite short story writer (read Flannery O'conner's short story A Good Man is Hard to Find or Good Country People--they definitely make you think). Anyway it was my kind of vacation, lots of food, family, and no cell phone service. Then it all changed.

I have been having difficulty sleeping recently and so I was sitting in my bed listening to music that erica, once again, so kindly donated. I looked out my door and saw my dad sitting on the stairs. I asked him what he was doing and he coolly replied "I think I just saw a bat." My retort was laughter and I quickly reminded him that I was mocking him and bats prior to his going to bed so it must have been that conversation that caused him to dream of bats. He was not convinced so he went down stairs. An hour later I was still up and this time thinking about bats. I couldn't go to sleep so I meandered down stairs, curled up on a couch and watched the ceiling. I must have drifted off to sleep because i had a terrifying dream of bats attacking me and a mine worker coming after me. I was, once again, awake.

The solution? I couldn't stop thinking about the bats so the 21-year-old mature almost college grad, myself, did the only think I could think of. I went and slept on my parent’s floor. Then, somewhere around four am my mom shrieks "BAT." We scramble to exit the room. My aunt and uncle who were up there with us run out. There might have been screaming and profanity. Then, after we were all armed with pillows we see a silent, gliding bat effortlessly cut through the air, with the illusion that it was magic creating his flight.

When I had gone into my parent’s room I had shut the door which means that the flying rat had crawled into the room--right by my head--disgusting. Luckily my fearless, bat attacking uncle went after the nocturnal being and captured it. While the bat was chewing on his leather gloves my uncle showed an act of stupid (but endearing) charity and released the bat out in the wild.

Why are bats scary you ask? True they are creepy, yes they make high pitched scary noises, and yes they do have a reputation of morphing into vampires but the truth is even more scary. The bats can bite you without you feeling it and you can get rabies. Safe to say I was happy when the bat was gone. Anyway, i hope the attached picture is scary enough for you because i find it revolting. Word to the wise-watch out for the bats.