back in the dating arena *groan*

Those who are reading the title line are probably thinking: "Wait, you were dating someone?!"

Well, sort of. I had been spending a lot of time with a guy for the last three months, and I thought that meant we were dating. I finally brought it up with him on Friday, and well...we're just friends. It turns out our expectations were different...I'm kind of in the market for something more serious and he doesn't feel ready for that.

I am grateful that there was no physicality involved or else this would be much harder. He and I are going to stay friends. I know that sounds cliche, but I think we really will. We've managed to stay friends for a good while, we just won't see each other as much.

So, this means I'm really back in the dating arena. I guess I never really left, but I wasn't really sure until a few days ago. To be honest, I'm not exactly happy to be back. I really dislike the dating scene, especially since no one has expressed any interest. What the heck is wrong with me that no one expresses interest, eh? Flirting...I hate flirting. Every time I come from trying flirt, I'm exhausted. I guess I'm not a flirtatious person. Asking guys out...puh-leeze. I really hate doing the asking...even though it's one of the very few ways I've ever gone on dates. That, and getting set up. I have yet to go on a good blind date.

Actually, I'm not quite telling the truth about no one showing interest. It appears that I have a secret admirer in my ward. Either that, or someone told some guy to write an anonymous "love note" to me last night. What I speak of when I say "love note" is a ward thing. At ward social after church on Sundays, you can write a "love note" to someone. It's not a romantic thing (unless you want it to be), it's mostly if you want to say something nice to someone. Well, last night, they came by with the love notes after ward social, and I got one. All mine said was: "Hi Laura! You're pretty!" It was signed with a *wink*. It was definitely a guy's handwriting too. Now I'm wondering who wrote it...

But back in the dating arena...when can I get out of it please?! I really don't like it at all! If you have any cliches to say, spare me. I've heard them all.

cows?

So, I'm reading up on the Pennsylvania Dutch variety of English for my ELANG 468 class, and I came across this piece of Pennsylvania Dutch superstition:

"Cows are given the power of speech on the night of Christmas Eve and anyone born on Christmas Day can understand what cows say."

This made me laugh because, for those of you who don't know, I was born on Christmas Day. Hmm, I don't think I can understand what cows say. But then again, I *was* born in Japan. Maybe I can understand what Japanese cows say, hah! Are there cows in Japan? Hmm...

I also found this other piece of folklore:

"When a woman sleeps with her foot sticking out from under the cover, it is warm enough to plant corn."

I do have a tendency to stick my foot out from under the covers when I sleep--I do it when I'm hot. A former roommate said that that was my personal cooling system.

Maybe I've got some Pennsylvanian Dutch in me after all...no wonder one of my friends insists that I sound Pennsylvania Dutch. He must see something in me no one else can...ha ha.

eleven days?

Has it been that long since I posted an entry? Gee. Well, I hope no one has been too depressed that I haven't updated as much lately :)

So, I finally printed out my cover letter and resume for the editing job, only to find out that they had closed submissions four days before. Darn. I guess it's for the best--I was worried about how I was going to work 20 hours a week and do school at the same time. I mean, I cut back on my credit hours when I had a 10 hour a week internship last year! At least I can still go volunteer at the MTC and have a fighting chance at a social life.

I gave my talk on September 14 and it was well-received, even though I stayed up until one a.m. finishing it. I was going to finish it sooner, but I was baby-sitting my little cousins and it was a challenging night. I still love them, don't worry.

I suppose most of you heard that Houston was hit by Hurricane Ike last weekend. My parents were in the storm surge area, but they didn't suffer too much damage. The back fence was blown down and there was a little bit of roof damage, but nothing too serious. My parents were without power for about four days. Thankfully, they were not in any of those long lines for food and gas because our food storage is well-stocked. I am now grateful for those many Family Home Evenings of restocking the 72-hour kits and those many summer days we spent canning food. I have a strong testimony of food storage :)

This last Friday, I got to go to my freshman ward reunion! It was pretty exciting, seeing all of those guys after two years. And they hadn't changed a bit, ha ha.

I got sick this last weekend :( I started exhibiting allergy symptoms earlier last week, but it's normal for me to have allergies at this time of year. But on Saturday, I woke up with chest pains and terrible congestion. I had one of my roommates take me to urgent care, where I was given codeine and a pain reliever of sorts. It turns out it was just allergies, they just got really bad. The medicine is helping and I feel much better, though I have to be careful when I take the codeine because it makes me very sleepy.

So with being sick, I didn't get a whole lot done so I'm going to be spending the rest of the day in the library, trying to get as much done as possible.

Oh by the way, I have a new calling. I'm a Gospel Doctrine teacher....woot.

what's been going on

So, it's been nearly two weeks since I moved in and I just finished my second week of school.

So far, I still like my roommates. My apartment is still pretty clean. We all had really messy roommates last year (I didn't over the spring/summer) so we are all pretty determined that this apartment stay clean. It's pretty easy with just four girls. We now have internet and tonight we are getting an entertainment system (a TV at last!). My ward is great! Everyone is really nice and friendly.

School is good, but now it's starting to get a little overwhelming. I still haven't applied for that job--I keep forgetting to print out my resume. But I think I'll submit it on Monday. I still don't know if I actually want the job, with how busy my schedule is about to get. But I can always turn down the job if it is offered to me. I still volunteer at the MTC, but only an hour a week because that's all I have time for.

My parents are currently surviving a hurricane, and thankfully they are not in the worst part of the storm. I'm not particularly worried about them because we have a strong house and good food storage.

I saw the "World Trade Center" movie last night with my friend. I thought it was going to be extremely depressing, but it actually wasn't. It's not a movie I would watch repeatedly, but I'm glad I saw it. My friend and I both enjoyed it, and it made us think.

I should get back to work. I've got homework to finish and a talk to write. I'm giving a talk in church this Sunday, woot.

random

3 joys
-My family
-My best friend :)
-The Gospel

3 fears
-Losing loved ones
-Not being loved
-Marrying the wrong person

3 current goals
-Be better at scripture study
-Doing well at school
-Being good all around

3 current obsessions
-Dating dilemmas of sorts (working on it)
-School
-Writing a talk

3 random facts about myself
-My CTR ring has diamonds in it (and was once mistaken for an engagement ring even though it is on my RIGHT hand)
-I'm related to famous people in the Church
-I like crocheting

settling in

I flew back to Utah on Friday evening. My mom's aunt and uncle picked me up at the airport, took me to dinner at Chuckarama (big buffet place, it was pretty good), and took me to Draper. They actually drove me to the grounds where the Draper Temple is being built. It's going to be a beautiful temple, I can already tell. I hope I'll get to go through the open house in January. They finally took me back to their house, and I watched TV with them for a while. They seem to like "Murder, She Wrote". I stayed up kind of late, but I guess it's not the end of the world.

Yesterday, I moved into my new apartment. And so far, I'm enjoying it. There are only four of us in the apartment, and there's so much storage space! It's crazy! We don't have desks in our bedrooms, which is kind of a bummer. No bookshelves either, which is bad for me. I have a lot of books. I'll figure it out somehow. There isn't a dishwasher in the apartment either, but that could be a blessing. It forces us to do dishes after we use them instead of fighting over whose turn it is to load/unload the dishwasher.

So far, I love my roommates. We're consolidating our dishes and silverware, so we can use each other's stuff as long as we take good care of it. It's so nice especially after last fall when I had roommates who were completely against sharing dishes. That caused a lot of overcrowding in the kitchen. I guess I am being blessed for all the difficult roommate situations I've been in. I don't regret living in Glenwood for as long as I did. I made some wonderful friends who I still keep in touch with and I grew a lot, spiritually and emotionally. I also had two wonderful bishoprics while I lived there.

I went to church in my new ward today, and I already love my new ward! Everyone is so friendly and so nice! And it isn't just my ward that's friendly, it's my entire complex. That's the nice thing about living in a small apartment complex. As it turns out, I'm in the same apartment that my cousin Rachel lived in last year! No, it wasn't planned. Well, it brought her good luck so maybe I'll have good luck :-) I've met some people who remember her too.

So, life is treating me well. I got to hang out with a very good friend last night, so that was good too :)

quiz results...yeah

I wonder if these really do sound like me...

You Are a Realist

You don't see the glass as half empty or half full. You see what's exactly in the glass. You never try to make a bad situation seem better than it is... But you also never sabotage any good things you have going on. You are brutally honest in your assessments of situations - and this always seems to help you cope.

Are You An Optimist or Pessimist?

See?  I'm not a pessimist!

You Are A Realistic Romantic

It's easy for you to get swept away by romance... But you've done a pretty good job keeping perspective. You're still taken in by love poems and sunsets You just don't fall for every dreamy pick up line!

Are You Romantic or Realistic?

At least I try to be... Men See You As Choosy

Men notice you light years before you notice them You take a selective approach to dating, and you can afford to be picky You aren't looking for a quick flirt - but a memorable encounter It may take men a while to ask you out, but it's worth the wait

How Do Men See You?

No wonder I had trouble getting dates

You Are Ready to Get Married

You've done more than dream about the dress and the honeymoon In fact, you spend a good deal of your time thinking about what makes a relationship work And from your answers, it looks like you have the skills to say "I Do" and mean it You've dated enough, learned your fair share, and you're ready to settle down.

Are You Ready To Be A Wife?

*ahem* YIKES!!!!!  And no, I am not announcing anything.

You Probably Look Younger Than Your Age

You live a healthy lifestyle and know how to take care of yourself. You'll probably have a youthful glow for many years.

Do You Look Your Age?

Yeah, I know I look young for my age.  Sometimes it annoys me, but I'll probably enjoy it later on.

You Are A Woman!

Congratulations, you've made it to adulthood. You're emotionally mature, responsible, and unlikely to act out. You accept that life is hard - and do your best to keep things upbeat. This makes you the perfect girlfriend... or even wife!

Are You A Girl Or a Woman?