books

I love books. I love them for so many reasons.  Here are some of the reasons below as stated by others:
"The first time I read an excellent book, it is to me just as if I had gained a new friend" -Oliver Goldsmith
Only in books could you find pity, comfort, happiness - and love. Books loved anyone who opened them, they gave you security and friendship and didn't ask anything in return; they never went away, never, not even when you treated them badly." -Cornelia Funke


Lately in my class on Don Quijote we have been discussing books and how Don Quijote is a book about books. Some scholars have written some very interesting things that have made me think of how I read.  Carroll B. Johnson wrote about Readers and Reading and some of the things he said stuck out to me:
"everyone reads, everyone assigns meaning to what he reads, and everyone is affected by what he reads."
"When we humans confront any reality, we experience an imperious need to make sense of it. We do this by referring whatever it is to some code or signifying system we have already internalized" 
"each man reads the way he does because he is who he is, or more accurately, who he has become...Life presents us with choices, each of us chooses one possibility instead of the others available on each occasion. Over time our choices organize themselves into a pattern typical of each of us. Our history, the aggregate of the choices we have made, comes to define our personality. We are what we have become."
"we read the way we do because we are who we are"
"Like the characters themselves, we all read, we assign meaning to what we read, and we are affected by what we read. In fact, because who we are determines how we read, it might be said that as we read the text, the text is simultaneously reading us, in the sense that our reading has the power to coax out of us and make us recognize aspects of ourselves we didn't know were there, and might prefer not to discover." 


In reflecting upon these comments, I believe it is true. In the past few years I have noticed more about myself lately; namely the fact that I like certain books because the characters have good values, or I like a certain topic because I am struggling with that issue at that point of time in my life. I have come to the conclusion that the reason that we come to love books so often is that they are reading us- our hopes, our fears, our dreams, our desires, our curiosities, etc.  Often what we read helps us understand who we want to become or the choices we want to avoid making in our own life.  I sometimes read and find meaning that relate to faith in God, or other symbolism that I believe I would not see if the text were not also reading me at the same time. Thank goodness for knowledge, for the chance to read and become who we want to be.  I know many may not love books, but this is just another reason that I do.  
What do you think?  Do you think that "we read the way we do because we are who we are"? 

design

I work for a graphic design company.  It is fun because I get to see logo designs everyday.  However, it makes me wish I knew more graphic design.  After I graduate I am considering taking a class to learn it better.  I also have a CS4 "for dummies" book that I want to go through to improve my skills. I know basic Adobe Illustrator skills but am going to improve... at least that's my goal.
Recently, I got to create a logo for my sister's blog.  It is very simple and really didn't require much work from me, but it's a start.  I am hoping to get better and one day design my own blog layout, etc. We will see.

here's the logo I designed, (hope Jen doesn't mind that I'm putting it here)

question

So I was thinking about some differences between my husband and I. Last night we watched the Office episode from last week. We have cords that just hook our macs up to the tv so we can watch it there. For some reason my computer wasn't loading the video so we had to use Jake's. In doing so I realized a few things about myself.

1. I rarely have the volume on my laptop turned up. Most of the time it is on silent because I take it to school, etc and I can't stand the annoying beeps and noises that some programs make. When I want to listen to music or watch a video, then I turn it up.

2. My husband always has the volume up. And when he needs it off, he pushes the button several times to turn the volume down instead of just pushing one button that totally mutes it.  This sometimes annoys me because, as many of you know, I am often impatient and I think it is very inefficient. 

3. we have this same difference with other things- especially playing games on the wii. We rarely use our wii, but recently purchased the old school tetris and have enjoyed playing it when we need breaks in between studying.  (I have many fond memories of playing Tetris with my Dad)  I want the volume down, and Jake is not annoyed by the same weird techno/elevator music going the whole time, full blast.

It's all about personal preference.  

So here's my question: how many of you are like me and live without the volume and how many of you always have it on? 

only 5 weeks left of school!!

I just counted in my planner. Only 5 weeks left. Not counting Thanksgiving week and finals week, which is also graduation week. I can't wait.  In submitting my paperwork for graduation, I found out I only have to get a 2.6 GPA this semester to still graduate "magna cum laude", which cracks me up because my GPA from BYU was not that high; so I am sometimes not as motivated as I should be. But I'm pretty sure I will still get A's in all my classes since that is the current grade I have and I don't anticipating doing anything dumb to change that.  It's amazing to see how the level of work and easiness of the classes are different here than at BYU- I guess that's why BYU is ranked as one of the top schools and USU is not. I am sad my diploma won't have BYU on it since that's where  I associate myself and still find myself saying "you guys" when I talk to USU students, but oh well.
Anyway, back to the whole point of the post- I'm excited!! I know it has taken me forever, but at least I am doing it. And I don't have to take any more school in my whole life if I don't want to. Maybe one day I'll decide what I want to be when I grow up and go back to get my Masters, but for now I am content to have a break and do things I've been wanting to do for a while- like pick up a good book just on my own or take a photography class, etc. And maybe if my Christmas quilt turns out I will have to do another.... we will see.

fun with mi hermana

Last weekend we had fall break so we went down to American Fork to stay with my oldest sister Jennifer and her family for a few days.  Jen and I got pedicures, went on a hunt for some cool frames, and planned a Christmas quilt we are going to make.  My sister is very talented as far as quilting and has been wanting me to try to start with a rag quilt. So we went fabric shopping- which is so much fun and Jen sketched up a cool quilt for me.  We cut the fabric and are going to make it when I go down there in November.  Can't wait!
I wanted to do red and green and also add a little white and black to the quilt so we are going to do that and then on the black and white sections add some cool holly berries.  I will post pictures of the final project when it is done.
I stole some pics from her blog with our fabric and toes.

the innocence of a child

I am currently holding my 2 month old niece as I type. She is sucking on her pacifier and has fallen asleep. It is such a miracle to think of her small body and her sweet spirit. Babies are the best.
And they are so cute as they get older. Helping Liberty (2 years) get dressed and put a flower in hair was so fun. She was so excited to see the flower in the mirror. How sweet.  There is something so precious about children; their love, their humility, their willingness to forgive. No wonder Christ asks us to be like them.

the comfort of family

I am recovering from being sick for a week and am very, very far behind in school. Since I am currently looking for a book that I have to write a paper on that's due tomorrow and I have no idea where I put it after finishing reading it, I decided to take a break and finally post.

October 3-4th was General Conference and my parents were in town for Sonora's baby blessing, and we had family pictures and Jake's mom's birthday with his side of the family, so we headed down to Salt Lake.

Friday night we went to the USU vs BYU football game, which was really fun. We got to sit with Brent and Christa who have third row seats, so it was an awesome view. Right behind the BYU bench, it made me feel like a BYU student again, which I miss so much. No one even had to know I went to USU.... (I always joke that at least I picked the right schools because the colors are still the same from high school- navy and white and silver. Gotta love it). The game was fun and my Dad was there with 3 of the grandkids too. Traffic was the worst I have ever seen it in Utah on Friday afternoon and evening, but at least we made it to the game.

Saturday was general conference- oh how my spirit loves listening to those inspiring messages. I want to improve and be a better person and listening to conference always pushes me to do so. In between sessions on Saturday we had family pictures with all of Jake's extended family (after much complaining I wore the specific color requested) so we went to Vivian Park up Provo canyon and it was beautiful.

Saturday night the men went to Priesthood session and the girls went shopping. So fun. I found the CUTEST orange purse at Dear Lizzie in Alpine and since mom was in town we had to go to Tai Pan trading too. We also got together with Mariela. Jake and Mike taught and baptized her on their mission in Pennsylvania and she recently returned from her mission in Idaho. She is so sweet- originally from Peru and called the missionaries when she came to the US. Funny connection- she first found the sisters phone number so I was able to talk to her and then (since she lived in Jake's area) he and Mike were able to teach her. She is amazing and one of the kindest people I know.

Sunday was a treat. More conference, wishing Jake's mother a happy birthday, and Sonora's blessing. Jen went to so much work and had a darling cupcake bar for dessert after the blessing. Jake got a few games of Acquire in with the boys (I don't know why it always ends up with just the boys playing) and we headed back home to Logan and had to say goodbye to everyone.

What a wonderful weekend. I love being with family- it warms my heart to smile and chat and just enjoy everyone's company. Enjoy the pictures.

Trenton kissing his little sister's forehead, two of my favorite men.

the cupcake bar with all of the different frosting options

this is what Liberty does when you tell her to smile for the camera- she must have got it from her oldest brother.

cold and flu

When I get over this cold and stop coughing and feeling sick and caught up with school I will post more.

this weekend was great and we took a bunch of pictures- thank goodness for family.

We bought our plane tickets for Thanksgiving in Colorado- yay!

a spiritual feast

I am so excited for this weekend. I have been looking forward to it for a long time. My parents are coming into town today for Sonora's baby blessing on Sunday and we will be down in Salt Lake to see them and also to wish Jake's mother a happy birthday. I feel like its been so long since we have seen our family members and I can't wait. Tonight is also the BYU vs USU football game and I am so excited to go to it. It reminds me of my fun times as a BYU student and makes me wish I were still there.

But the best part of this weekend is the spiritual feast. This weekend is general conference weekend for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is such a wonderful time. We get to hear from inspired church leaders and it warms my spirit to do so. I am so grateful for a loving Father in Heaven who loves us so much to give us continued revelation. Just as God called prophets and apostles in the bible to help guide his people, he does so today. Why would a loving God call prophets to the earth at that time to teach his children and not do so now? No, a loving God still loves us and still leads us. He has a prophet on the earth today. And I can't wait to hear from him and the twelve apostles this weekend. Some may say that we are crazy or that apostles do not still exist, but as you read the bible and learn the organization of Christ's church when he was on the earth, he called apostles and gave them the priesthood- the power and authority to act in His name. This authority is not just given by a seminary or on a piece of paper, but from God. I am so thankful for continuing revelation today and I know in my heart from many experiences that when God prepares people who are willing to truly listen, they will feel the spirit so strongly through General Conference. I can't wait. Saturday and Sunday this weekend I will be taking notes and praying to know what I can do to become a better person and a better servant of God. What a feast. And I'm ready to dig in.