Whats Making Me Happy Today

My favorite NPR show is Pop Culture Happy Hour, at the end of each episode they do a section called "whats making us happy this week." I thought it would be fun to do one of those on here. Lots of things are making me happy, that I could share with you all but I will limit it to five tonight.

1. The Brilliance, this band is simply amazing. I am not musically or artistically talented however I know a good sound when I hear it. This christian indie band has a raw, open, beautiful sound that I believe is rare in the Christian music genre of today. I am lucky enough to be going to see them tomorrow. I challenge you to give them a listen.

2. Joseph Gordan-Levitt mainly its because of this new movie that he wrote and starred in, its supposed to be really good (a favorite at Sundance). I have loved Josephs lovely face ever since "10 things I hate about you." Him and his sexy dimpled face... moving on.

3. Pilates Class, for the last couple of weeks I've been going to this super awesome pilates with props class. Not only am I gaining a stronger core I'm also getting to know new people from the community. We have had some hilarious conversations in those forty-five minutes sessions.

4. Planning for my Triathlon, I honestly don't know what I would do if I didn't have the Triathlon to focus on. Being in this dorm is fun but during the day there can be some dead time, planning my workouts and reading blogs about super athletic triathletes is very inspiring.

5. Starbucks London Fog, I love Starbucks I don't care what anyone says about me spending more than I should on drinks, they are so freaking worth it. I'm on a first name basis with the Batista here at my local Starbucks. She knows my love for Earl Grey tea and makes me my special, London Fog drink. I know its actually a Earl Grey Tea latte but a London Fog sounds soooo much more romantic. I can't quite describe the wonderful enticing, tantalizing, delectable, savory taste it has. Its like catnip for humans (or just me). I don't care if everyone thinks I'm crazy. Earl Grey Tea makes me freaking happy, no ecstatic! It simply makes my day better if I have it. :)

Bonus: Clouds when I left Spangle this past June I thought my love for the worlds ceiling would fade. It hasn't I am constantly struck with how beautiful simple clouds can be. How can something so normal be so beautiful? I challenge you dear readers to take a second to stare at the sky on a partly cloudy day. It just might make you a tad bit emotional if you have the least bit of an imagination.

Paper Kites

Soooo the other night I was on a clicking spree on Youtube and discovered this Australian band called Paper Kites I can't stop listening to them, I've already posted several songs on Tumblr. I decided to diversify a bit and post this one on blogger. I love them! They will be in Atlanta next month, unfortunately I'm in Nashville.

Pilates Class

I'll say it again I forgot how charming Tennessee is, Tuesday I joined the local civic center they offer different fitness classes so I decided to do a Pilates class. Before the class I had gone running, and done 6 miles on a stationary bike this was my first time doing both on the same day so I was quite tired to say the least. Anyway I headed up thinking I would get my mat and silently wait for the class to begin. When I got up there several ladies were already there and almost immediately they started talking to me, asking me where I was from, whats my job, and just carrying on with each other so friendly like, it made me smile. I wondered towards my mat and just sat there and listened to them talk about their kids, husbands, jobs and things that had happened that day.

One lady in particular made me want to laugh as I listened to her talk, we'll call her Sandy, she's a tall blonde women approximately in her mid to early forties she has this twangy/southern-belle accent. She was talking about her husband who had just come back from a biking trip to Canada, when one of the other ladies asked why she hadn't joined him, her response was "girl I wasn't about to ride to another country on that death trap." She carried on talking about how much her husband loved that motorcycle as if it was his baby.

Class finally started with just four of us in there and they talked the entire time! Because the conversation was so lively and even the instructor talked it wasn't like any other Pilates class I'd been to, the ones I'd attended before most of the time no one says much to each other and after class starts it is silent except for the instructor telling what moves to do.

I really like this Pilates class.

Biking the Oregon Coast

So I was suddenly struck with an amazing idea while surfing the net. This past spring break I went to Oregon and it was amazing I loved it, especially the coast. I was thinking about visiting there again at some point next year. I was reading an article about a guy who was running across the united states with his entire family and inspiration suddenly hit me, why couldn't I do something like that? My first thought was to maybe run across TN but I don't know if I could do that, but biking I could bike, I really enjoy biking. Anyway I think I have settled on Oregon... doesn't that sound crazy awesome?! I'm doing it, maybe spring break, by then I think I could be ready.

This guy went from Montana to Oregon

I am stoked about doing this. :) Anyone want to join me?!

• Its friday evening happy Sabbath anyone who happens upon my little section of the world wide web. Are you doing anything as cool as I am? I got bored last week so I decided I wanted to learn how  to knit after a couple of tries and with the help of several YouTube videos I can now call myself a knitter... kind of, I know what cast-on, cast-off are and I know how to do the knit stitch and the purl stitch, go me! 
  
  I found the needles in my moms closet
  
  
• I have successfully completed the second week of Staff Pre-session, all week we have been cleaning the dorm, that was fun.
•  I am adjusting well back to the mindset of a small dorm and I am beginning to become excited about this upcoming school year. I love adventure, trying new things but as I have mentioned before I am somewhat slow to adjust ... by that I mean I am reserved at the beginning. So far I'm enjoying my new role as Assistant dean. 
• I've been running! I will have to say Portland has some really nice back country roads. Because my Moms words are forever ingrained in the back of my mind warning me that girls shouldn't go places alone I have not run to far from the school, but I have explored in my car. My plan is to plan a new route each week. The scenery is beautiful and because of all the rain its really green. My phone has been really stupid lately so I haven't taken many pictures.
• I love music, lately I've been listening to Shane and Shane I forgot that I like them.  I really love the song "When I Think about the Lord".

New Places New Goals

I feel like I'm in a rut. The last three weeks I've been so incredibly lazy if I'm going to do well at this triathlon I've signed up for I've got to lose quite a bit of weight and my swimming has to become 1000% better. This is the big trip I'm going to do this semester and next semester I will be going to Seattle. 

I'm really liking Portland so far, its really pretty, when I was here in academy we weren't allowed to go off campus so I never got to see much of the surrounding unless it was school supervised. There are two mid-sized towns close by and Nashville is only about an hours drive away so I won't have any problem getting off campus on my days off.

This week has been somewhat lonely I'm the only one in the dorm and the dean just got married so I don't really have anyone to hangout with so I've been watching trashy TV on Hulu. Moving to a new community in the beginning is always awkward for me I don't like meeting tons of new people and they always think I'm quiet/shy in the beginning, one of the staff members happened to point that out to me in staff pre-session  meetings the other day. (like I didn't know that ) I know I spent three years of my life here but all the staff I knew while here have left.

Don't get me wrong I know things will get better after I get busy during the school year. I guess I'm just tired of moving around, having to get used to new people and new places over and over again I really think I'm ready to settle down and get a permanent job and an apartment... Oh my word another thing I have to worry about is people asking when I'm going to get married the Head Dean warned me that the staff and students are brutal about trying to hook the single staff up. Adventists seem to expect that the obvious next step in a girls life after college is to get married and have babies. After spending 2 weeks at home with my niece and nephew I know that I don't want kids for awhile they are adorable, cute, and I love them to death but the thought of changing diapers and dealing with screaming kids 24/7 is not for me right now. I'm not going to lie and say I love being single all the time because that is just not true. My facebook news feed is filled with new engagements everyday, close friends are tying the knot every weekend I ask myself sometimes when will that be me, however I'm reminded also of family members and friends who have gotten married and divorced and I am willing to wait until God shows me the right one. I don't think that person is at Highland but who knows maybe I'm wrong. 

Well I look forward to regularly updating my blog on the progress I'm making with the first Sprint Triathlon . It will be a 500m swim, 12 mile bike ride, 3.1 mile run. I think that is doable right? If I practice I should be able to do okay.