My Favorite New Things

I realize that it has been one week since I last posted. I seriously intended on writing but I never felt like it, and I hate forcing myself to write because it never comes out as good. Lots of cool stuff happened over the past 7 days, including my 90's themed 20th birthday party, actually turning 20!, a bonfire party, an awesome benefit concert, and spending good ol' time with the people I care a lot about. My summer is almost a month over, and for a summation of its progress so far, I've created a list of my new favorite things that have shown up during all this downtime without the hassle of school or a job.


* The Cooking Channel. More specifically, the show called Eat Street, which features food trucks based in major cities all across the country. Sadly Utah hasn't caught onto the trend yet, but I SOOO can't wait for the day that we do, because we are seriously missing out of on all this unique, gourmet food that's made in cute, traveling automobiles.

* The Sacred Romance, by Brent Curtis and John Eldridge. This is a book I'm reading about the romance God calls us to and the things that block our path of following it, such as the Arrows that pierce our heart starting at a young age, the doubt that creeps into everyone's mind about the reality of such a higher being, and the issues we sometimes have trusting that God has our best interests in mind. I can't say enough good things about this book. Besides the compelling subject that gets you thinking deeply every time you sit down with it, the book is very well written. Each chapter is dense with imagery and explanations, and the sentences are so deliciously constructed, it's as if they were dripping with sweet honey. Maybe that's just me admiring great literature written for the intelligent mind, but I sure do get a kick out of it.
Sometimes I have to reread paragraphs and sections just to soak up every last part of the message.


* Making my bed. I've been putting more effort into keeping my room consistently clean, and it just makes me feel a whole lot more civilized. That mainly entails making my bed and keeping my window seat as uncluttered as possible (normally it would be topped with piles of clothes). While these things don't happen every single day, I'm on a roll and I like it.


* Working out. I hate to say the complete opposite of the opinion I've kept all my life, but I really do like exercising. My routine now consists of walking/running on the treadmill and doing strength-building exercises afterwards, plus a good amount of stretching. I still have the hardest time forcing myself to start, but once my heart rate gets up and those endorphins start spilling out, all I want to do is keep going and going! Thankfully I know some exercises from dancing back in the day, but I may have to look up some new ones because I like branching out and I want to target difference muscles. So if you have any in mind ... you know where to find me.

* "Thor." It was the last movie I saw in theaters, and I can confidently say I was entertained throughout. Quality-wise, it wasn't the best, but I was pleased with its slightly comedic tone, and impressed by how well they integrated the fantasy world of the Norwegian gods and goddesses with the real world you and I live in. I expected the transitions between the two to be awkward, but I never noticed feeling that way when I was watching it. My family also appreciated pointing out the various subtle references to other superheros of the Marvel franchise, such as Ironman, his dad (Mr. Stark), the Hulk, and even a future Avengers character that I wasn't yet aware of, named Hawkeye.


* "Train Conductor" for the Iphone. I downloaded this game for free and immediately became addicted. It's one of those where you become obsessed with continually trying to beat your old score and get as many points as you can. In the game, train tracks line across the screen parallel to each other with numbers on both ends, and trains emerge randomly with the number of the track they need to end up on. Your task is to click and drag the trains to make new tracks that appear only to get them to their destinations, without letting any trains crash. It sounds pretty simple, but past the first few levels it gets really chaotic and fun, and you won't be able to help crying out in frustration when two trains crash and it's completely not your fault. (Although it will be, but it seems unfair that the game would put you in such a sticky position. This makes it challenging and oh-so-fun.)