I haven't posted in over a year, but I'm avoiding accomplishing things so naturally, this seemed like a good time to write a blog post.

This is obviously an unrelated photo
I took at Huntington Beach in March.

One of my methods for coping with stress is to overthink in lists. Here, I will share the results of this obsession.

Current obsession: big ticket clothing purchases.
My list:
- a leather jacket made out of actual leather.
- a white dress (I'm thinking the Spell and the Gypsy Olivia dress and yes I realize it's sold out).
- Chelsea cargo pants from Athleta (in olive and black - please don't buy them in my size because I'd like them to still be there when I finally pull the trigger).
- the Spiritual Gangster Wild Thing Savasana Pullover
- a whole lot of shoes: some comfortable peep toe block heels (frontrunner: Naturalizer), nude dress sandals (hey Easter bunny - Sam Edelman Patti in a 6M please), a new pair of FitFlops, some joggers (or Adidas?), Clarks booties (maybe like three pairs), those Sanuk flip flops made out of jersey...
- swimsuits x 100000



Bonus list: places I want to go in 2017
- New York sisters trip (and mom!!) to see Anastasia on Broadway*
- Idaho for the Idaho Falls temple open house
- Power Squad trip to wherever that happens
- Sayulita (lovers trip with my boyfriend to stay at Petit Hotel Hafa)
- Banff (in August. with the kids.)
- Idaho (for B because he loves it there)*
- Philadelphia with MBA friends to pretend we're on a job hunt*
- bonus of the bonus list: places I want to go in 2018
     - study abroad in Europe
     - glamping in Bear Lake with the kids for my 10th Imagiversary
     - San Francisco on an MBA Entrepreneurship trip
     - Austin on an MBA Entrepreneurship trip
     - Las Vegas for the MAGIC convention

*these are actually planned.

Q: What are you doing New Year's Eve?

A: Having a family party and choreographing dance moves like we're 12. Obviously.

All I Want for Christmas is a High School Musical Christmas Sequel

As an avid High School Musical fan, is this too much to ask?

Does anyone know who I talk to about getting a Christmas sequel for High School Musical? I've already come up with the title - "High School Musical: Home for Christmas."

The fourth High School Musical movie would have the blockbuster style of High School Musical 3 and would come out Thanksgiving weekend. The movie would take place a year or two after the crew goes to college when they are all coming home for Christmas. The soundtrack would include Christmas classics and a few High School Musical holiday originals and would become a Christmas staple for years to come. All of our cast favorites would make their returns including Troy Bolton, Gabriella Montez, Sharpay Evans, Ryan Evans, Chad Danforth, Taylor McKessie, Kelsi Nielsen, and Ms. Darbus. I am open to let actual screenwriters come up with a plot, but hopefully it would include some Christmas spirit with some service project or benefit concert or something, and perhaps a cozy gathering in a cabin ("Let It Snow"?).

I'm certain that this would make a lot of money for the HSM franchise, and it would make a lot of HSM fans REALLY happy, win-win right?!

Since I have come up with this plan, every time I listen to Christmas music, I REALLY want to listen to the High School Musical: Home for Christmas soundtrack, which isn't even a thing (yet), so I'm sorry to everyone else that this happens to.

Image via FanPop

LAND OF SMOKE AND SALT

blinding white // glowing red // golden birthday // smoke shadows

 photos by tia

Everyone is in Europe, Except Me + my hatred of FOMO

Photo by my dear friend Britt, in Grasmere, England, 2007

Everyone is in Europe except me.

And by everyone, I mean that Hey Natalie Jean (whose book is fantastic, by the way) and SaraBoulter are. They’re posting lovely images of far off places and art and food and magic and adventure.

Sometimes I spend my few spare moments while the kids are napping catching up on some much needed sleep. Sometimes I tidy up or sneak in a workout. And sometimes, I numbingly sulk because I am here and everyone else is… not. The whole world is amazing and I have wanderlust and I lack the ability to always be adventuring. By choice, of course, because I could just up and leave, but I also love being here.

I love hiking in the mountains with my kids and my sisters. I love making a home out of this house and dreaming up all the renovations that will probably never happen. I love watching my son wait outside for our neighbor to get home so he can play. I love quiet moments of watching Big Hero 6 or Wall-E for the illionth time. I love making pancakes or waffles for breakfast like a short order chef. I love waking up and thinking, “what should we do today?” or “where should we go?” I love my son telling me “Wednesdays are for grandma’s house” with the most confident tone as if that’s a scheduled thing that we do every week. I love living within thirty minutes of every member of my family and seeing them at Sunday dinner and being able to shop or chat or hang out with them.

I know my life won’t be like this forever, so I try to soak it all in while I can.

But Europe, right? 

On FOMO

In other news, my game face could use some work.

“FOMO” is something the cool kids say. It stands for “Fear Of Missing Out” and is the biggest crock of shit to ever be acronymed.

I’m all for “Carpe Diem” and seizing the day, but doing something because you’re scared of not doing it seems to be a pretty stupid idea to me. For starters, it encourages a drive motivated by fear, and fear is an ugly motivator anyways, and in my case, a precursor to anxiety. And then there’s the focus on what’s lacking, things that we’re missing instead of things that we have. I’m all for saying “yes” as often as possible, but being scared of feeling like I’m less because I don’t have something? No thanks, I’ll pass.

So buckle up kids because I am waging my own personal vendetta against FOMO. My cool points are suffering, but I think I might end up better for it.

We shall see.

Film February FAQs

If by "frequently", you mean questions that I have asked myself over and over and over again.

What cameras are you using?

For Film February, I am currently using my trusty Fujifilm Instax Mini, an inherited Welta Weltax, a newly purchased Holga 120, and a couple of disposable cameras. I’ll share the last two with B. 

I'd also like to use some other inherited cameras: an old Kodak Instamatic and an inherited SLR - if I figure out how to work them.

Why February?

It’s the shortest month of the year, it starts with “F”, it was soon (I started thinking about this early December, so I was getting antsy).

What does this mean for your instagram?

I don’t know. Things might be slow until my first batch of film is developed. I might just post old photos. I will allow myself some digital pictures if the concept is directly related to something. Maybe I’ll allow digital photos of instax photos. I made the rules for myself so I will allow myself to add addendums as I deem fit.

Can I do it too?

Always. #MyFilmFebruary so we can be besties.

photos taken with a Welta Weltax and processed and scanned by Alpine Film Lab