The Silver Lining

Last week we found out that my Grandpa passed away. He'd been suffering from Alzheimer's the past few years and had gotten progressively worse within the last few months. I was torn about the whole situation. I did not know whether to feel happy that he was finally able to move on, or sad that for the first time, I would pull up that gravel driveway in good old Wapato, Washington and know that he would no longer be inside. I figure that in the end, it was better for him even though my selfish desires wished to keep him hear as long as I could.

This man never ceased to amaze me. I remember my visit this past June on the way to the traditional Stimpson Family Reunion. I sat on the recliner next to his and visited with him for at least an hour, reminding him that I was Nicea's daughter, which made me one of his granddaughters. The channel on TV was set to CNN which was flooding with stories regarding WWII, specifically D-Day. Grandpa had been there. He repeatedly told me he was a war veteran, and on June 6, 1944, he landed on Omaha beach. That he had faught in that war. That he had served his country honorably.

I'll never forget the numerous times I was thrown into the pool even before I knew how to swim. Grandpa thought it was the best way to teach me I guess, or perhaps he forgot which of us cousins knew how to swim and which didn't. Either way, I learned and swam in that pool millions of times. I probably went down the slide even more and lets not forget about the time when I was 6 years old and I learned how to dive.

"The Monster" was another Grandpa Stimpson trademark. With either knee as an "on/off" button we'd play this game with Grandpa at least twice a day. By simply hitting the "on" button he would grab us and tickle us until we could manage to hit the "off" button (he made this very hard to do). During the game, Granpa would frequently "blow a fuse" which I now realize meant he was tired and didn't want to play anymore. I think this is a prominent memory for all the Grandkids which only goes to show how much we all loved it.

All these memories and more came flooding back as we all gathered together in 101 Skoneway to say goodbye. Every single cousin, aunt, and uncle was able to make it to the funeral (I suppose we'll excuse Loren, him being on a mission and all) and I believe this alone is very telling of the family this incredible man raised. Grandpa is gone but we know he is in a better place and that we will see him again soon. And that's the Silver Lining.

Nice Notes

Isn't it the best when you walk from class to your car and a little piece of paper is flapping on your wind shield? "Someone has left me a note!" I think to myself, "aw, I probably don't even know this person. How kind. See, this is why I love BYU!" And then you actually pick up the note...and read it...and realize people have way too much time on their hands.


P.S. Go ahead and send me back to Driver's Ed. I'd quite like to perfect my spit-wadding skills. Prank calling Mr. Ashdown from his own classroom again wouldn't be so bad either.

Everyday in the World

Everyday in the world many a thing could happen...

One could win the lottery...
fall in love...
make a new friend...
discover a hobby...
quit a job...
find a job...
finish a good book...
invent a new ice cream flavor...
dance in the rain...
learn a language...
write a short story...
have a good cry...

or anything else one could think of...

and if it all becomes too overwhelming

perhaps...

one could just sing.

Rip Roarin and Ready to Run!

Okay. So picture a bunch of crazy people that join a team to run 180 miles straight in 24 hours. Nuts right? Totally. So what kind of people would participate in such a feat?

WE WOULD!

Allow me to explain. I participated in the Red Rock Relay a couple of weekends ago and it was the hardest, funnest, coolest experience. For those of you that have heard of the Ragnar "Wasatch Back" it is the same exact thing. It is a relay race that runs for 24 hours in which someone from your team is always running. So yes, you run through the night, and pretty much you get no sleep for 24 hours and run your heart out. I ran about 14.5 miles of the total 180. We were 2 people short so some members of the team ran twice as much as I did. Oof. I could never.

This was me before my first leg. Notice the smile and excitement. It faded around 4am.

And here is your proof. Like I said, excitement slowly faded. In fact, I think Jen and I completely slept through Mike and Clint's final legs...sorry guys.

As time progressed we had to find ways to keep ourselves busy...
So we took plenty of scenic pictures (since we all looked so fresh and clean, sarcasm, please tell me you caught that)

We brushed Jen's hair.

And most importantly, we played some intense road games. This was approximately 8am of day 2 when the game was played. Therefore we had some pretty creative answers. They go as follows:

Things you fear that start with Letter "F": Fugly Friends.
Famous Athletes that start with Letter "R": Rarl Malone.
Or my personal favorite, contributed by a passing (and panting) runner
Ice cream flavors that start with Letter "H": Oh hell no. (Now, I don't know if this particular runner was aware that this flavor doesn't actually exist, but what a great idea?! The Oh hell no ice cream flavor. "Uh yes, give me two scoops of 'hell no.' Thanks.")

Marks on our calves represent each time we finished a "leg."

Our team shirts.

All in all we had the best time ever and most importantly, WE FINISHED! I have never been so exhausted in my life and at the same time felt so great. I can't wait to do it all over again!

Alohamorra!

OMG! Did you guys think I died? (and by "you guys" I mean the like 5 people in my fam that actually read this) Seriously though, I thought I might have. Not to fret. I am here, back and better than ever. Awesome. Perf. Spectac. So here is a little recap of le summer so far...

Got some new wheels...

Spent some quality time with the fam...

Which includes this dude...

And this babe...

Drank some DC.. (this is an actual picture of our washer, funny joke boys)

Made a new friend...

Cooked..(or at least attempted)

Took Spring semester at BYU..But then dropped out of summer because this happened to me after the first day of classes. True story.

Visited Heidi AnnE in California..

AND FINALLY...DRUM ROLL PLEASE (BLLLLLLLL)

I saw HP6 at midnight and it was AMAZING! Whatev, I know. I'm a freak. I don't even care. If being a freak means watching Harry Potter for the rest of my life I'll take it. If you haven't seen it yet RUN, don't walk, and I'll pretend not to pass judgement upon you for waiting over a week to see sheer genious on the big screen.
Well dudes, thats it for me. Peace out.

Life as a Musical..

How do I love thee Zac? Let me count the ways...

Meet Zac Efron. The leading man in my life, and an inspiration to many. If you don't know Zac, then you don't know anything (too harsh?) Yes, my friends, he is that "tween" idol, and I realize that I am 22 years of age, but look at that face! What's not to love? Recently he broke my heart when he announced he was pulling out of the new "Footloose" remake but I am oh so forgiving and I'll let that one slide. Anywho...some of you may know that he's dating this awful human...


Blah, blah blah. Terrifying, I know. But alas, life goes on and I can only dream that one day my boy will come to his senses and find someone worth his time (ahem ahem), I know the perfect candidate..hint hint..

Okay, so moving on.

After repeatedly watching HSM 1, 2, & 3, I began to feel inspired to sing my feelings. In fact, one of my roommates and I thought it would be an amazing idea to sing everything we could for a day. Her little sister took the challenge and actually sang everything that came out of her mouth for a full day. That's dedication. Unfortunately, I sang about my bean burrito and got bored with the idea all too quickly. The point is, Zac inspires us all. Is that the point? I really don't know...Maybe I just felt like talking about Zac....

I'm pretty sure Zackie inspired these people too..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkYZ6rbPU2M&feature=fvsr

"Hoppy" Easter

Yay for the Gedicks', they've managed to get with the times. Not only did Freddo invest in dish network and high speed internet this year, oh no, there's more.. Get ready for this folks...WE TOOK DOWN THE CHRISTMAS TREE! (gasp!) I know, I know, how could we have done such a thing? I mean its only Easter...Christmas is still a mere 7 months away or was only4 months ago depending on how you percieve the situation. But alas, it is another step forward into "the now" as I like to call it, and we are cruisin' right into 2009 in style. Since I'm trying to help my parents "get wit it" the actual taking down of the fake green thing in our living room only seemed right. My next feat...convincing Prof. Gedicks he can't live without Tivo.
And there she (tree) is sad, lonely, and finally realizing that her time ended long ago. It's a shame she got the boot on Easter Eve but bad news never had good timing. I bet it feels like our VCR did when we finally replaced it with the DVD player two weeks ago (okay okay we've had a DVD player for awhile, but I submit it was probably purchased much later than all of yours)Although I know this was for the best I was truly sad to see the tree all wrapped up in her cocoon ready to hibernate for the summer. How generous of her to go down without a fight and help us embrace "the now." Goodbye C. Tree, we shall see ye in 7 months! Until then!