DEN --> LAX

I'm sitting in the airport writing this post. I meant to write it yesterday but it took me all day to pack and clean. Then last night we went to Ben's mom's house for dinner. I kind of really love his family--well his mom and his aunt, at least. They're really nice and his aunt is funny and they are just really down to earth and interesting people. I actually was the one who requested we get together with them again before I left. 

This will be my last post in Colorado and it is definitely a bittersweet moment. I'm really looking forward to going back to California and spending time with my parents and Brittany and Laura. I'm also planning on visiting my grandma and Sandy and Betty. Of course I'll only have 3 weeks to see all of these people, but I'll make it work. I'm also finally getting a little excited about NY. I mean, I'm still super nervous about finding an apartment and I don't think it will really feel real until that happens, but I'm feeling the beginning of excitement. 

On the other hand, I will never live with my sister again. It's such a weird feeling because I hadn't lived with her in years before this anyway. But the last few months have been (mostly) great with her and Ben and I'm really going to miss them, their house, and their pets. But they will always be family and I will continue to talk with them often (hopefully), so it doesn't really feel like the end of anything.

Now to update you with the past couple weeks. I made chocolate muffins and healthy homemade mac & cheese on the same day. The first was a complete disaster but the second was a great success!

When I was still excited to make the muffins

They didn't really rise... so they are "muffin tops"

 I also finally finished my afghan! I had a huge crisis when I finally started the border because I wasn't going to have enough yarn to finish it so I had to rip out everything I'd done and only crochet every other one so it turned out a little weird, but I don't think anyone but me can actually tell. And I do still have to weave in all the ends... but it's basically done so whatever. It turned out so huge though! I'm planning on keeping it on my bed in NY!

it might look better folded because it's very stripey looking otherwise

I saw some pretty sunsets and sunrises in my last couple weeks because the smoke kind gives everything a nice glow.

sunset

sunrise. and yes the sun really was red.

I've also had another little animal friend in the house the last couple months. It was a spider. Living in the light right above my bed. Yeah, not my favorite animal in the house.

It's shadow would move around, so I know it was still alive.

But I am really going to miss my actual favorite animals!!

Rocko sits by the door and meows until you let him out.

I tried to take a picture of me hugging Loki, but he just wanted to play

This is the closest they can get without fighting

Loki likes to play-bite Rocko and Rocko likes to hiss and smack him with his little paws....

I also had my last ice skating class on Thursday and it was fun but felt way too short. I don't feel confident enough in any of the things I learned. Maybe I can take another class someday. 

I couldn't figure out how to rotate it and I don't have enough time to try right now. 

Ok, gotta get ready to board my flight. Hopefully I will have found great apartment in NY by the time I write in this again!!

-E

P.S. Loki and Rocko just can't help saying goodbye one last time!

He is such an angel when he is fast asleep on my bed (too bad he's not always like this...)

Rocko in one of his multiple spots around the house where he can look out the window.

can't. stop. eating. Nutella.

Like I said in my last post, I sometimes plan what I am going to blog about while I am bored at work. I planned this blog post title a couple weeks ago, but since then I actually have been able to stop eating Nutella... because I ran out :(

Mmmmmmm.....

My obsession started a couple weeks ago when I decided to make that banana "ice cream" again, but put Nutella in it this time. When I brought the Nutella home from the store I realized I should try a little bit since I had never had it before (of course now I'm wondering how I ever lived without it). It was the beginning of the end after that first bite. That night I ended up eating a bunch of it straight from the jar. I couldn't stop! It was soooo good! Then I started eating it on toast. I had 2 pieces of toast with Nutella every day for almost a week haha. But anyway, it was really amazing in the banana "ice cream" and I highly, highly recommend it! I put about 2 tablespoons in, so I still feel like it was still pretty healthy since it just had bananas and Nutella.

I also got obsessed with this new book series. There are 3 books right now, and I'm hoping there will eventually be more. The first one is called Graceling and is about a land with 7 kingdoms where some people are Gracelings, meaning they have two different colored eyes and a "Grace", which can means they are really good at something. There are Graces for absolutely anything you can think of. Anyway, it's the story of this one girl who has a killing Grace and it is really really good! The second book is called Fire and is kind of strange because it is a "companion" to the first book and takes place in a land on the other side of these huge mountains and neither land knows about the other and there is just one character in common between the two books. And then the third book is called Bitterblue and follows one of the characters from Graceling 8 years later. I just finished Bitterblue last night and I highly recommend them! They are all about a strong, young female character, which is what I am really into right now.

Another big thing going on right now is a huge fire right outside Fort Collins. It started on June 9 and by then next day it had really taken off. My sister and I drove around a looking at the smoke a little bit that day. I'm really glad that the smoke seems to mostly blow across the north side of town and not near us, but it still smells smoky at night.

View from the backyard

It looks like the sky is fire, but it's just the sunset

The sun was actually bright bright red but it looks white in this picture

At this point it is 50% contained but 60,000 acres big, and 189 homes have been lost. Here's a website if you want to read more http://inciweb.org/incident/2904/

This was from two days ago (8 days after the fire started)

But it has been making for prettier sunsets.

And now for the Lowe's update. I think I've had 4 guys ask me out now. I don't know for sure because I'm not really good at knowing when a guy is asking me out on an actual date, but 4 guys have shown interest and 2 have asked me out for sure. I think the guy closest to my age is 26 and the guy farthest from my age is 42 (I know! Gross right??). The 42 year old guy has always been kind of playful/flirty but I knew it was never going to happen since he was obviously way too old for me so I never really worried about it. I mean come on, he has an 18 year old daughter!! But then last week he was like "we should get a beer before you leave" and I was like "I don't really like beer" and I kept trying to make excuses because I could not imagine what the heck we could have to talk about. 

This other guy is much more disturbing though, because I think he thought he actually had a chance with me and I think his was more of an actual date request. This guy definitely looks like he's in his 30s but I'm not sure how old he actually is. But the first conversation I had with him was about his kids, so I kind of just assumed he was happily married. The first time he asked me to hang out with him he just said "You should come over to my house for dinner sometime next week" and at that point I still thought he was married so I kind of said sure, but luckily it never came up again. Then he asked me to go hiking, and that was really easy to refuse because I told him I don't like hiking and that I whine a lot when I do, which is true but not something I normally tell a guy I just met haha. Then he went to Vegas for the weekend and came back on Tuesday and gave me a souvenir magnet!!! At that point I got a little freaked out and started trying to avoid him. The next time we had a conversation he mentioned his kids again so I asked how old they were (thinking he would say like 5 or 6) and he said that he has two daughters who are 15 and 16!! What the heck!??? Doesn't he realize that I am closer in age to his daughters than to him! So by that point I was totally grossed out and now I try not to talk to him at all. 

But ladies, if you want to meet a guy, just move to Colorado and work at Lowe's ;)

On a happier note, I am totally loving my ice skating class! I have had two lessons and so far I have learned forward and backward swizzles, snow plow stop, skating on one foot, pumping with one foot, and slalom. The last two are not something ice skaters usually do but are leading up to a really common move. I'm excited for the class this week! I hope by the end I can actually look good doing these moves and not like a toddler trying to learn how to walk haha. 

My rental skates =)

I just realized today that I have less than two weeks until I leave Colorado and only a week and 2 days until I go to NY to find an apartment. I'm actually kind of sad to be leaving because it has been a lot better lately. I think Ben is trying to be less of a control freak and we've been hanging out again. It's been around 100 degrees the last few days and we don't have air conditioning so 3 nights ago Ben and Rachel and I all laid in my bed in the basement watching this new HBO show called Girls. It was fun! Then last night we hung out in my bed again, and then they decided they couldn't stand sleeping upstairs anymore so they blew up the air mattress and slept in the living room in the basement. I think we will watch Girls again tonight and I'm looking forward to it! It's fun to be like a little family haha. 

Ok I think this is getting long enough so I'm going to stop. I should really post more often so all of my posts don't turn into novels haha. 

I'm really going to miss these guys!!! Even though Rocko gives me allergies and Loki is sometimes a pain in the butt. 

Rocko says "It's hot and the counter feels oh so cool"

Loki says "It's hot and Ellen's bed is so comfy. I'm going to take a nap and make sure I take up as much of her bed as possible"

-E

work is boring so I make to do lists...

Sometimes work is excruciatingly boring and we're not really supposed to do anything except stand there and smile at the nonexistent customers. So lately I have taken to writing myself a list of things to do everyday. Sometimes there will be important things on there like stuff I have to do for loans and to get ready for school, but usually it says things like groceries, crochet, and laundry. I also put really dumb things like watch movie or clean glasses. About once a week I put BLOG on a list in the hopes that this will encourage me to do it more often. But after a couple weeks of this I have little slips of paper everywhere even though I usually throw the old ones out and it's starting to look like a crazy person has been writing a manifesto in my room or something.

The other day I was so bored at work that I even thought about things I could write about in my blog and wrote that on my list. So here were the things to write about on my list of things to do so I can cross them off =)

Katy Perry:
I have random thoughts when I listen to the radio on the way to work in the morning. I really love Katy Perry. I mean, obviously a lot of people do since she's had like over 10 number one hits, but I feel like it's different for me because a few years ago I probably wouldn't have liked her. But I've grown to like pop music more and I just love every new song of hers that comes on the radio. Right now they have been playing "Part of Me" a lot and sometimes I sing it in my head (or out loud if no one is around) when I'm bored at work.

This is the part of me that you're never gonna ever take away from me, no. Throw your sticks and stones. Throw your bombs and blows. But you're not gonna break my soul

But then a Ke$ha song came on the radio, and I mean it was upbeat and kinda fun I guess, but it in no way compared to Katy Perry, even though they are both pop songs. And I realized the difference was the Ke$ha doesn't really sing. The whole song was just her voice being manipulated by a computer. So anyway, sorry for this long and pointless tangent about Katy Perry, but I like her. Whatever. Get over it.

Baby birds:
So getting back to the work topic, I used to hate when they'd send me out to the Garden Center at 8am because it would be freezing and there weren't any customers that early anyway. But lately it has been nice at 8am, because it's not as cold and there are birds everywhere! And now there are baby birds too! I loved watching them the other morning and even though there are security cameras all around me, I took some pics with my phone. They aren't great pics, but it's not like I could ask the little baby robin to pose for me.

Momma robin

baby robin

Momma and baby together

It's hard to tell in these pics, but the baby was so fluffy and cute! And it was already bigger than some of the other birds species out there. There was also this nest up high and I couldn't see the babies but every time one of their parents came to feed them they would chirp like crazy! It was such a good morning =)

Pinterest:
So a few days ago my sister joined Pinterest, and even though I have been on it for a long time I had never really gotten into it, but the last few days I got obsessed. I guess I always thought that it was pointless to repin DIY stuff and recipes that I would never do, but since I'm going to be moving to NY, I feel like I might actually use some of the things on there. I also thought the ones of clothes were pointless, because I didn't think I'd ever actually go out and buy those specific clothes. Then the other night I decided to make my own and I love it! I am seriously way into coral right now. I bought this shirt from Old Navy the other day and I was proud of myself because I thought it was orange-ish, and I usually hate orange. But everyone at work said it wasn't orange, so then I realized it was really "coral" or "salmon" which apparently I now love.

Casual coral and beige, made by me :)

Speaking of clothes, I also bought these tennis shoes at Old Navy that were on clearance for $10.50 and it is seriously the best $10 I have ever spent. I have worn them twice at work so far, and I have gotten at least 15 compliments on them. I think that people just notice them more because they are a really bright blue, because I have never had so many people notice something new on me. Or maybe that is just one of the differences between California and Colorado, I dunno.

It's kind of dark in my room so they are actually even brighter in person.

Cooking:

Since I've been living with my sis and I've helped her make dinner a few times (usually I only do some of the chopping because she is so much better and faster at everything else), I have wanted to start cooking myself. I bought a magazine the other day that has "5 Ingredient and 15 Minute Recipes" hoping that while they may take me 30 or 45 minutes, at least they won't take me 2 hours. I also found some cool recipes on Pinterest and I even made one of them today! It is "Single Ingredient Ice Cream" but it is really just blended frozen bananas. That's it. But you can add stuff to it, which makes it 2 or 3 ingredient ice cream, so I added peanut butter and cocoa powder to it, like the girl in the blog did. I was really proud of myself for making something like that. I even used a food processor for the first time!

It's kind of more like soft serve ice cream when you first make it. And I was worried about it not being blended enough so I did it a lot and I think the bananas kind of unfroze by the time I ate it, but I put most of it in the freezer so hopefully it will be better when it's frozen again. It basically tastes like bananas, peanut butter, and chocolate, which are great together. And it's totally healthy because it's mostly just bananas! The only complaint I had was that it kind of felt like the texture of mushed bananas--a little too slimy--but maybe it'll be better when it's more frozen. 

Then later today, Ben's aunt came over (she is so nice and sweet! I'm going to miss her and his mom when I move...) and gave me and my sister some old rings she didn't want. I guess she has arthritis so she can't wear them anymore. Rachel kept 2 and I kept 2. What do you think of them?

The middle of the big one is actually pinkish, but I couldn't make it look pink in the pic.

I'm wearing them right now and I kind of like them. I usually only wear one ring if I wear them at all, but I like when people wear more.

Financial Aid:

The last thing on my list to write about was the financial aid process for school. I was just so confused about it and worried that I hadn't done something I was supposed to do, but I finally figured out that I was making it way more complicated than it really was. I did everything I thought I was supposed to do and then called the financial aid guy at school and he said I had, so that was a relief. He also said I'd be receiving a financial aid package soon, and I think it will include any scholarships I'll receive so I'm kind of excited!

Ok, I think that's finally it. Considering I didn't think I had much going on in my life right now or much to talk about, I wrote a pretty long post. 

I will again leave you with pics of "my" pets.

He has a rough life

This is the only pic I have of them together because if they get any closer than this, Loki tries to play with Rocko and Rocko bats him with his cute little paws.

-E

update: Me, Rachel and Ben had the banana "ice cream" for dessert. It was definitely better frozen (just let it sit out for a few minutes before you try to scoop it). It was good but I think next time I will add more chocolate and less peanut butter and maybe even mix in some chocolate chips at the end. Mmmm... can't wait to make it again!

look! i'm already posting again!

These past couple days have been really nice. I didn't have work yesterday so I got to sleep in and relax all day. Then my sister and Ben left for a camping trip in the evening so I went and got myself 2 cupcakes (one regular size white chocolate raspberry and one mini red velvet. They even gave me the mini one for free!) and take-out Chinese food. Then I watched Two Weeks Notice while eating my Chinese food and cupcakes and I loved it!

I've been watching movies that take place in NY lately, to get myself ready for moving there haha. So far I have watched Little Manhattan, Spiderman, Two Weeks Notice, and tonight I watched You've Got Mail. I'm going to run out of NY movies to watch soon, but maybe I can find some online.

Then I started thinking about the wrinkles I am developing around my eyes so I searched for an article about what to use on your skin in your twenties and I found this awesome website All Women Stalk with an article called 10 best skin care products for 20 somethings and I found a couple other articles about great skin products and I wrote them all down and went to the drugstore, but they only had one of the things on my list. That was probably for the best though, since most of them were pretty expensive and the one I did find was on sale for $2.99! It's called Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque and I used it last night and it was amazing! It smells so good!

Then today I only had work from 6-10am, so I had pretty much the whole day to myself. I stopped by Walmart to see if they had any more suitcases on clearance (I bought one a couple weeks ago that was originally $80 but I got it for $30) but they didn't so I went to Kohls next. They are apparently having a huge sale this weekend and all the luggage was 50% off! It was still a little more expensive than I'd like, but if it lasts me for years it'll be worth it. I ended up ordering one at this kiosk thing since they didn't have it in the color and size I wanted in the store, and I got free shipping so it worked out. I also got the second largest size instead of the largest, because if I fill a 29" suitcase completely, it will probably weigh more than 50 lbs and I won't be able to lift it, so I got the 24" instead. I figure this will be the one I will mainly use in the future, and if I never use the Walmart one again, it'll be ok because it only cost $30.

isn't it pretty? =)

Then I went to DSW because my sister got these sandals there last week and she really loves them and since I haven't bought new sandals in years I figured it was time. They are different than the shoes I usually get but I really love them! Plus, I think I should retire my rainbows because they are so old and dirty that when I wear them they make my feet dirty. I ended up looking at almost every shoe in the store and trying on a couple pairs of heels for fun, but it's probably a good thing that the only shoes they had in my size were super ugly haha.

Cute, right?

Now I am just washing my sheets and hanging out with Rocko. I want to paint my nails, but I have to wait until my laundry is done so I don't mess them up.

 Is it sad that I really love having the house to myself? Seriously, it just makes me feel so happy and free, which is kind of weird because it's not like I normally feel oppressed or anything. Sometimes I like being alone so much that I think I'd like to live alone, but then I remember that I also really like telling someone about my day and chatting and watching TV and movies with someone. So maybe one day I will live alone, but for now I am glad I live with people. I just like when those people are not here and I get a few days to myself =)

-E

the past few months

It's been so long since I've written a post that I had to go back to see what the last thing I wrote about was, and I was surprised that I basically have written nothing about Colorado... woops!

I guess the biggest thing that happened in the last few months was that I got a job at Lowe's as a cashier. I actually really like most of the people and I like working with the customers, but I hate that it is sometimes boring and I have to stand on my feet all day. Some people might question why I got a job as a cashier when I could have gotten an office job or even a job working for an Optometrist, but I'm super happy I got a normal, boring part-time job. I think it has helped strengthen my communication and people skills, which is probably going to be one of the hardest parts of optometry school for me. It's also shown me that I can be really good at helping people and that I actually really love it! I was worried that I was going to end up hating Optometry because I'll have to deal with people all the time, but that is actually my favorite thing about working at Lowe's. So anyway, I'm really glad that I got the job, but I just wish they would let us sit down or do something interesting when we have no customers for half an hour haha.

The biggest decision I made in the last few months was that I decided to attend the SUNY College of Optometry in the Fall! Although it will be a big change, and some people look at me like I'm crazy when I tell them, I think it's going to be great! I mean it won't always be kicks and giggles, but no Optometry school would be. And while my Mom was freaking out for months about finding an apartment, moving all my stuff there, etc, etc, I have remained relatively calm. And now that I have my plane tickets home and to NY for the housing day, I am feeling a little sick of waiting and kind of just want it to be time. On the other hand, it doesn't feel real yet. I can't believe I am going to be living in NY in 2 and a half months!

my future school!

One of the most fun weeks I had lately was the week I went home to California. The reason I went was to see David Sedaris speak again and it was as awesome as I thought it would be. He is just so hilarious (and I saw Jack Hodgins from Bones!) Also, he signed a book for me and my sis.

I also got to see Rochelle! It was so random that she happened to be visiting CA at the same time as me! We played Taboo at my house with her sis and friends and we went to the beach and saw some amazing tide pools. It was so much fun and felt so natural even though we only see each other like once a year at the most.

Then I went down to Brittany and Dan's new place and hung out with them. Their place is so cute and I can't wait to see what else they have done to it when I go back in July. Then the best part of the week was meeting up with a potential roommate, named Kalynn, who turned out to be awesome! We are living together for sure now (I think! Haha, I am still a little paranoid she's going to tell me she found someone better) and I am so excited because finding a roommate seemed like one of the scariest parts for me. I mean what if no one wanted to live with me!? But anyway, I'm so excited to live with her and I hope that we get along and have fun!

And besides seeing all those people, I also got to hang out with my parents, which was so nice. It was the longest I have ever gone without seeing them, but that's only a preview of what it's going to be like the next few years. They are so great and we played some games and had a lot of fun together! My mom and I also laughed the hardest we have ever laughed. It was definitely a "had to be there" kind of moment, but it went something like this:
(While playing the Who Wants to be a Millionaire board game)
My Dad: Obviously the "Native American hickory tree nut" is the pecan
My Mom: But how did you know it's not the Brazil nut?
My Dad: Because it says Native American hickory tree
My Mom: But where does the Brazil nut come from? (meaning what kind of tree)
My Dad: BRAZIL!!

Anyway, it probably doesn't seem that funny but the way my dad said it was hilarious.

Also, I started crocheting an afghan! I didn't work on it for like a month, but I just began furiously working on it again a week ago and it's more than halfway done now!

The yarn! On sale for only $22!

The first 4 rows

Getting longer!

Also, I got a new phone, read 29 books, got my first credit card, reached Starbucks Gold level, and will be taking an ice skating class in June!

And of course, no blog post would be complete without cute pics of my pets-in-law =)

Seriously cannot get enough of his cuteness!

And his too!

Ok, I will definitely try to update more often, especially when more interesting things happen, like finding an apartment in NY, moving, and starting school. But bye for now!

-E

the new men in my life ;)

So living with my sister and Ben has been great, however, it does get a little lonely sometimes since they are the only people I know. They're not around during the day most of the time so I've been by myself a lot, BUT luckily I've had these great guys to keep me company.

Loki loves to sit on the foot of my bed and take a nap

Rocko is the cutest fuzzball ever and he likes sleeping
in my lap after being scratched for an hour.

Loki watching the Ellen Degeneres Show with me.

Loki, AKA the cutest footrest ever.

He is my new love! I really want a cat now!

These two guys are clearly the most important thing in my life right now, but I guess I also have some news to tell. I started my job at Lowe's today and it went really well! Tomorrow I have to work from 8-5 which kind of sucks, but hopefully it's not too bad. Also, I got a call from the Berkeley College of Optometry today and I found out I got in! Now I just have to figure out where I want to spend the next 4 years of my life, nbd. Also, my sis and I have started doing yoga again and I really enjoyed the class we went to today. Hopefully we can keep it up!

-E

P.S. Rocko says it's time to go to sleep. Nighty night!

zzzzzzzz........