Happiness Is Finding Shiney Things

Long Overdue Like a Birthday Card

2011-11-02T17:41:00.001-07:00

Soooo, a lot has happened since I acquired my awesome TMNT pj's back in August. I got a job at The Living Planet Aquarium, which involves me going around to all of the elementary schools and teaching the fourth graders about the water cycle. Although it wasn't exactly what I was looking for, it has some neat benefits. Because the job is with the schools, I get federal holidays off and I get the summers off too. yep, no working during the summer for Jekka. I can hike to my hearts content, and maybe even take a trip to the aquarium in Atlanta.

Why Atlanta? They have whale sharks. ^_^

I summited Mt. Nebo, which is the tallest mountain along the Wasatch front. Here's a couple pictures of that.This is the ridge that takes you to the false summit. The real summit is only 10 feet from that, and this next picture is of me sitting on it. It was one of the biggest accomplishments of my life.
But that's not all!! The unbelievable also happened!!! Check out THESE pictures.....
That's right, my family and I...WE MET DREAM THEATER!!! They came to SLC for a concert last month, and afterwards we noticed a small group of people hanging around some tour buses in the back. So we wandered over there, waited for almost an hour and THEN THE BAND CAME OUT!!! It was like an unexpected dream come true, an item that I didn't consider for my bucket list because I didn't think it would happen. But it did!! I got the signatures of all of the band members on my Train of Thought shirt, which is white so you can see them really good.

Also in September, Kamelot came to SLC and so Mom, Dad, Chris and I went to that. It was loads of fun, but we didn't get to meet the band. And next month, Fair to Midland is coming to Utah!!! yeah, I'm stoked! December 9!!

So, that's the most exciting stuff that has happened. My goats are doing fine. I don't get to see them very much because of work. Lord Byron is behaving himself too. Thank goodness.

Er, yeah, that's about all. Toodles!

TMNT!!!!

2011-08-16T15:10:00.000-07:00

So, I was at Wal-Mart today, walking around and being bored while Mom and siblings picked out pants for school, when I saw the awesomest thing ever.....

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle pajama pants!!!!

Of course I got them! I saw them at Hot Topic several months ago and wanted to buy them, but they were a whopping $20 and I didn't have that kind of money on me. But at wally's world they were only $14. yeah, I felt happy about it, so I bought them.

Now I have a TMNT t-shirt and pants! ^_^

Harry Potter

2011-07-07T10:42:00.000-07:00

Again, it's been several....days. But I've been very busy with grueling trips to San Diego where I tested the salt concentration of the Pacific Ocean at Oceanside beach, and the capacity of the waves to carry a human on a boogeyboard from waist-deep water to the shore. I have to report that it is very probable for the waves to do that, it's just a matter of timing when the boogeyboarder hops on the crest. That's a little more tricky.

And the ocean is salty. Very salty.

Of course, I've seen Harry Potter 7-b (as I call it). I thoroughly enjoyed it although I wanted more Gringots and invisibility cloak. However, it reminded me of a very funny posting I found ages ago on mugglenet.com. So, in the goodness of my heart, I decided to post it on my blog. If anyone should know who it was that orginally wrote it, please let me know because I would love to give them the credit they deserved. It's awesome!!

50 Ways to Annoy Voldemort
(or 50 ways to considerably shorten your lifespan)

1.Ask him why he doesn't have such a cool scar
2. Ask him if he has any grey poupon
3. Wake him up by singing Aretha Franklin's "I will survive...."
4. Greet him in the morning with a sarcastic, "My sir, you look particularly menancing today."
5. Get a pair of finger puppets resembling himself and Harry Potter. Re-enact all of Harry's victories over him in a spectacularly childish way. Be sure to give them both squeaky voices
6. Smile during Death Eater meetings and say you taught him everything he knows
7. Chew bubblegum all the time. Should he address you, your only response will be a series of huge bubbles in succession, the last of which will burst everywhere and make a mess
8. Dance the funky chicken
9. Ask him when was the last time he took a bath
10. Pat him on the head and give him flowers when his plans are foiled yet again
11. If you ever need to say "like taking candy from a baby," be sure to add "Of course, SOME of us might find that harder than others." Stare pointedly at him
12. Play "knock and run" at his bedchamber door every night
13. Call him "The-Man-Who-Let-The-Boy-Live"
14. Ask why the Dark Mark couldn't look like something "more socially acceptable"
15. Insist that you have meet chunks of cheese with more cunning plans than his
16. Pinch him. Make sure he squeals
17. Be cheerful
18. When he tries to impress you with his powers, say, "Awwww, lookit! Voldie's got a twiggle!"
19. Try to teach him to play a mouth organ
20. Roll your eyes during plotting sessions and say things under your breath like, "You're the boss, boss" or "It's your funeral."
21. Teach him how to spit tobacco
22. Taunt him about his middle name. "Marvolo? What's that, a washing detergent?"
23. Keep a good behavior chart. Award points and give out gold stars
24. Magic-marker Potter style glasses on him while he sleeps
25. Apparate into and out of his room rapidly. Do this non-stop for one hour
26. Play cards with him. Tell him he has no poker face and how does he expect to rule supreme without one.
27. Let off party-poppers in his face whenever the urge strikes you
28. "Did you even have a girlfriend? EVER?"
29. Tell him he should really try the 12-step program for Evil Overlords-Evil Overlords Anonymous
30. Anytime he enters a room, insist on entering first and announcing him grandly
31. In these announcements, fake a trumpet noise and give him an equally fake drumroll
32. Exclaim sarcastically, "You're breakin' my little heart here, Dark One" whenever he starts to talk about what has caused him to become who he is
33. Encourage him to think "happy thoughts"
34. Ask him to give you written summaries of his sinister plots for revenge and war. Correct his spelling
35. Mock his choice of Quirrel as a host
36. Tell him you think a yoga class can cure him of "his wicked ways"
37. Get the song "Mr. Tamborine Man" stuck in his head
38. If he's having an evil-plotter's-block in one of his scheming sessions, wingardium leviosa a lightbulb to float above his head. Turn it on. Look offended when he gets angry and say, "I thought I was helping!"
39. Tell him constantly to stop repressing his anger
40. Buy him a stress ball
41. Hint that he is only a character in a book and will never triumph
42. Call him Tommy-boy
43. If you're feeling gutsy, call him Voldie-poo
44. Whack him in the arm and say "mosquito" every few minutes
45. Say he looked better under the turban
46. Eat his pet snake. Offer him some
47. Teach him to steeple his fingers, lean back, and say "Eeeeexcellent!"
48. Start drawing outlandish parallels between his life story and Star Wars. Talk at great length
49. Be generally in awe of him and never look away
50. Imperius his Death Eaters into a rousing chorus of "All Things Bright and Beautiful"

Whew! That took a while! I'll have you know, I found this after the fourth book was published but before the fifth one was released. Still makes me laugh....

No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!!

2011-06-15T13:12:00.000-07:00

Weeding sucks. It sucks like a bucket of ticks. Especially when you find the little prickly weeds that bite into you when you're least expecting it. . .like the Spanish Inquisition.

Then again, you cannot expect the Spanish Inquisition. They come at you like POW! and there's nothing you can do about it.

So, I was scrolling through the pictures I took on my mission and found this one. I have a tone more of these smoking ones, but this one's my favorite.

Yeah, that's about it for this post. I'm so proud of myself. Second time in one month!

Nihon ni ikou!

2011-06-06T18:06:00.001-07:00

So, I realize I'm doing a super duper good job of staying up to date with my blog. I think it's been more than a month this time around since the last time I wrote. . .well, I'm pretty sure I mentioned going to Japan, so I'll just say that it was uber fun. Here are some pictures. Many of them are the cooler ones, mainly from Kyoto and Oosaka region.
This picture says to not feed the birds. . .because they will poop anywhere, including people's laundry.

This was funny. So, Chris and I were at Asakusa (located in Tokyo) and we kept being approached by Jr. High school kids who were on a school field trip from Hyogo-ken (Kobe region). They had an assignment where they had to interview a foreigner, get a picture taken with them, and then have the foreigner sign their paper. Well, I stand out with my blond hair and light skin, and Chris stands out with his height. So, we got stopped often by groups of boys and girls, and at one point got them to take a picture with our camera too. It was the first time I had ever autographed anything, and was hunted down and practically cornered.

We went to the Fushimi inari jinja (shrine) in Kyoto. As you can see by the pictures, you walk through more than a thousand torii gates. and i mean more than a thousand, because the path goes up and around the mountain. We walked/hiked it all and there were torii the entire way. It was really cool, and very pretty. The top picture is where the path splits, and you can to either way to end up at a little shrine; and from there you can hike around the mountain.

On Sunday, we went to Chris' bean area (his very first area for his 2-year mission career), Toyooka. We went to church there, got to meet and play with the members, and then high-tailed to the neighboring area for a baptism. This baptism was done in the ocean, more specifically a bay area. But it was a very neat experience. I had always seen a baptism done in a baptismal font in a church, so this was really neat. What was also amazing was that once the missionary (the one on the right) began to say the baptism prayer, everything became quiet. All the cars, boat, and ocean noises disappeared, and all you could hear was the prayer, the birds, and the wind blowing through the trees. It was a very calm and peaceful feeling and I felt very close to Heavenly Father. I'll never forget this. And that second picture is the three of us outside the Toyooka church. Happiness!

So, yep. That was my Japan trip. On top of seeing new sites, I had real takoyaki (octopus cooked in balls of dough), and onabe (veggies and meat cooked in a pot of yummy-flavored broth) and had real Kobe beef. good stuff. I have many more pictures, but so that the server doesn't get overloaded, I'll replace my lovely picture of the Turtles with pictures from the trip. I'll try to do it often but. . . .we'll see about that! MUAHAHAHAAAAA!!!

Until next time, catch ya later!

One month and two weeks later. . . .

2011-05-12T12:30:00.000-07:00

hello everyone! I bet you all thought I was dead! Ha ha! I'm not! Well, not yet at least.

So a lot has happened since Spring Break. I survived April which includes finishing up two projects, several papers, and acing two tests. It also includes a rather uneventful but still enjoyable Easter Break, and taking a grueling exit exam from the Biology department. How did I do? No idea. I forgot the website that I took the test at, so I can't check my score. How did I do. Okay. I had a ton of questions about plant physiology, but at least I got the question about the lac operon! Thank you Dr. Karpel for drilling that into us!

So, May came along, and finals was relaxing. Then. . .I graduated! whoopee! I know you want to see pictures, but again I have to get them from Dad's computer, which means that it may be another week before you see them. But, being a graduate and about to embark on a search for a job and an apartment to room with the Elvish pirate gypsy, you can expect a lot more posts from me.

So, I will be gone for another week as I am going to NIHON!! yeah, I'm excited. I'll be sure to post some pictures of that too. Oh dear, I need to get my camera fixed! blah!

So, I want to put up some pictures of the best Ornithology lab ever, but again, that's somewhere else and so It's going to have to be another post. so sorry. I know many of you are itching to see what I am up to in my life. After all, this is supposed to be a blog about my many adventures. Oh dear, I'm really letting down the purpose of this aren't I?

I will get on that! No more lazy kitty! Wait, hold on. Let me uncross my fingers. Grrr. . .mmmrrrf. . .hm. They're stuck. Hold on. I know exactly how to fix this! *goes off to get a jackhammer*

Try to stay locked together after this fingers!! MUAHAHAHAHAAAA--drat! I need two hands to work a jackhammer. grrr. Well, I guess that means I'm not going to stop being a lazy kitty. Yes, that was a double negative. they come in handy every so often.

EXPLOSION!!!!

Spring Break

2011-03-21T14:23:00.000-07:00

Actually, it's after spring break, but I was busy enjoying doing nothing but read and watch Chuck that I didn't touch my computer except to do the little homework I had. But, it was fun.

The hiking expedition consisted of going to Capitol Reef Nat'l Park and doing two hikes. The first was the Grand Wash which was a long 5 miles of open canyon but great bouldering spots. Chris and Mike were all over those. And then the second hike was a bit more fun being Sulfur Creek and 2 of those 5 miles were scrambling around waterfalls. It was also very entertaining to watch Mike try not to get his feet wet, to which he succeeded.

The second day was good ol' Coyote Gulch. And unlike last year where we had a whopping 62 people from Paul's work (US synthetic), there was only 20 and boy was it nice. Not only did we hike along at a comfortable pace, but the take out point only took us 20 minutes instead of two hours!! It was lots of fun. I love that hike. I was so bummed that it was over, but the weather's getting good again and so more hikings will be coming!!!

On top of all that, we stopped for the night in Scipio and so I got to see the Elvish Pirate Gypsy minion fiend for a little bit! That was very happy. She's got a boy in her life at the moment and he sounds really cool.

So the whole thing in Japan is really sad. All of the missionaries in the Tokyo and Sendai missions have been accounted for, and all have been moved out of those two mission areas to Kobe, Nagoya, and Hiroshima (which being reopened to accomodate them) due to the nuclear reactors. As for the members, the two I am emailing are safe and sound as well as their friends, but I have yet to send off a letter to my other friends. I just don't know if the postal service is running or not in those areas because of the radiation threat. But I might just write and send one and then wait to hear back from them.

Wow, I realized that's not my usual random-happy posting. Next time will be a bit more exciting.

Toodles!

Small Balls of FIRE!

2011-02-26T09:35:00.000-08:00

Being a college student has its benefits. You can choose when to have your own classes. You watch announcements closely for free dinners and stuff, but most of all you throw the most awesome parties ever.

I went to one of these parties last night. Here's what happened.

So Mandi's friend, Jacob, invited Chris, Mike and I to his party last night to play Mario Kart to our little hearts content. so we go over to his place, and walk in to see three of his roommates cooking something on the stove. It smells terrible, so we ask them what they're making and they say, "smoke bomb."

A little stunned, we go downstairs and ask Jacob, who repeats that they were making a bomb. so we shrugged it off, thinking no big deal (such a college student) and start playing Nintendo. Well, we then hear a whooshing sound from upstairs and see light flickering off the wall. next thing we know, the guys from upstairs are yelling at us to get out of the house and we all run upstairs.

The had set the kitchen on fire. I could barely see through all the smoke, but I was able to make out a little patch of fire on the floor and a lot of heat on my face. I, as well as everyone else, got outside okay. We were a bit shaken up but then we all started exclaiming how awesome and intense that was. Sure, we could of died, but nothing like ending the party with a bang!

It being a smoke bomb, the fire died down quickly, but their neighbor whipped out a fire extinguisher and put the rest of it out. The police and fire department showed up and sucked out all the smoke and hosed down the place. After an hour we were allowed to go inside.

Man, that kitchen was toasted. Everything was singed, the microwave was melted, and a lot of the cupboards were scorched. Funnily enough, none of Jacob's food was touched. But, the kids just got off with a warning, and one of the boys' parents actually own the house so they don't have to worry about angry landlords; just angry neighbors. But, it was awesome.

We played super smash brothers after that, and I got to finish my cactus cooler. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to finish it from all the smoke and ash, but the fire and smoke stayed in the kitchen so it was still good. Ha ha! I was in my first fire and it was started by a bomb. Oh, it was awesome.

And tonight, SUU is doing a showing of Harry Potter 7 and so Chris, Mike, and a bunch of other friends are going to go see it. It's turning out to be an awesome week! I wonder what will happen next week. So, yup. That's all folks! Until next time, stay tuned!

I'M NOT DEAD!!

2011-02-16T16:17:00.000-08:00

I'm not dead yet! I think I will go for a walk! I feel happy! I feel happy!

Seriously, folks, I'm not dead, I'm just enslaved by the evil textbooks and reports until May 2011.

So, how's that all going? How's cell/molec and ornithology doing? cell/molec is still listed as unspeakable for good reasons, but ornithology is by far my favorite class. I love it. It's so much fun. Although we had a quiz today and I think I failed it miserably. But, it was one of those days-weeks. I don't want to study. In fact, I refuse to study today. I took a nice long nap, figured out rides with brothers and friends for this extra-day weekend ahead of us.

not to be confused with Extra-pair copulations, but we won't go there shall we?

Biology World: *gasp* Jekka! You didn't just say that?!

That's how nerdy I am. Curse you Darwin!

So, I'm still reading harry potter, still working on my secret project for mother's day. Now mom's going to badger me about but I ain't saying a word! nope! not one!

Writing? ha ha! It's not happening. I'm hitting the sick-on-being-on-the-computer-all-day-so-I-don't-want-to-have-anything-to-do-with-it syndrome. That's why I'm looking forward to having no school. I'll actually want to write again. Although, my goal for this extra-day weekend to at least do a bit of writing even if it kills me. I kinda hope it does. Nothing like getting killed by your own story to make your day, eh?

Well, I'm off to post on Mandi's blog. She's leaving very soon now for Japan, so I'm going to have to do something about that. Curse school!

Ta ta! Not TATA, but Ta ta!

>:P

2011-01-19T20:48:00.000-08:00

It's the second week of classes. I've already written two papers, had one discussion I was completely lost in, am trying to write two other papers--one of which is a project proposal--and figure out a full-scale project proposal. Along with that, I'm trying to rack my brain for chemistry stuff because apparently I'm going to need to know that for lab?!?

So, if you don't hear from me on behalf of Mandi shimai, or just from me in general, you can rest assure that I have literally fallen off the face of the earth and will not emerge until May 5, 5:00 pm.

It is all Cell-Molecular Biology's fault. There's too much to do, and if my teacher keeps it up like this, I'm not going to be able to study for the tests because of all of the assignments he's dishing out. That's all. I've ranted about this too much already.

On a happier note, I went night climbing yesterday. It was quite thrilling but very cold. Even though my headlamp wasn't working very well, there was a full moon so we could all see pretty good. It felt nice to be on real rock instead of plastic. We did the kingpin at the bowling alley (just up the canyon). And now I am pleasantly sore. It's wonderful!

So, yeah, hopefully I won't become to stressed and frustrated with school. I guess SUU isn't going to let me go THAT easily. They're going to wring me for all I'm worth. *sigh* Not fun.

But I'm learning about birds!

The Wiggly Giggly Unicorn Under the Stairs

2011-01-07T10:56:00.000-08:00

The title has nothing to do with what I am currently thinking. In fact, I'm not really thinking at all. I'm just hanging out at the counter, typing, waiting for my baked potato to finish (I have been craving one for the past couple of days), and trying to decide if I want to read Harry Potter or type up more of my story.

As the Father Lord just said, "Errrr, ruckum shmuckums!"

So you know, that's as deep as this post is going to get. No post on Sundays! Hee!

I should write, but I also really want to read. I know half of you are yelling, "go write you silly! how are you going to publish it if you don't finish it?!"

Answer: Technically, it is finished, I'm just typing it up because a lot of editors and publishers want the full manuscript, either that or the first fifty pages. I wrote it first in a notebook because that's what I wanted to do, but now I'm typing it up and fixing a lot of things.

The other half of you are yelling, "Stop dilly-daddling and make a decision already! If you want to read Harry Potter then go read it!"

Answer: But I should write. . . .

See, this is how I end up doing nothing with my free time. I can't make a decision and next thing I know, I'm being attacked by giggling unicorns and stalked by Midnight Furies demanding a belly-rubbing. So, I'll figure something out. . .

Buh-Bye!

Of Accomplishments and Disappointments

2010-12-29T21:39:00.000-08:00

Man, sometimes I surprise myself with my own cleverness.

Shaddup, Francis! I'm not being cocky or anything! Go read a Madagascaran-English dictionary.

Well, I accomplished my goal of finishing chapter 25 BY Christmas. It was a very close one, being 1:14 am Christmas morning, but I did it! And now I am trying to work my way through the next chapter. I made a little outline of things I want to accomplish in the next two chapters, so I'm going to kick in my freaky skills and try to write all that I want to write but make it work at the same time.

which, these few chapters really suck. Who'da thunk that writing about politics would be so hard! My brain felt like oatmeal blended with soggy bread and cereal once I finished that chapter.

Luckily, I got a book to read. CB was kind enough to let me read Alcatraz vs. The Shattered Lens. He was very kind indeed, because I gave him that book for Christmas.

Alas, that is where my great disappointment comes in. I read it, enjoyed it, finished it, and started cursing up a storm at Sanderson. Man! I hate waiting for books! It was bad enough with Harry Potter but now I have TWO books to wait for. TWO! Not one, TWO! The second book to The Heroes of Olympus (the first being The Lost Hero. Sooo good!) and the fifth Alcatraz book.

Upon finishing that book, I went to his website to see he was writing it. I suspect it is the "Untitled Urban Fantasy" that says is 53% done. I say this because

1) Amazon "claims" that the latest book is the "fourth and final installment" of the series.
2) I refuse to believe that because the fourth book ends in a non-closure sense. He's still not tied to the altar!

So, I am forced to wait a whole year. Grrr. Snarl. Scream. Gnash. Bite. Fang-stab. And all that other stuffage.

I made a to-do list. It's very long. But I'll work on it.

Yeah, that's all. . .ciao!

The infiltrator has been infiltrated!

2010-12-16T18:12:00.000-08:00

That sounds really cool doesn't it? I felt like typing that even though it's totally the wrong blog and all. man, can I handle two blogs at once? This will be interesting. For those of you who are following me on facebook, you might as well go find something else to do because I'm probably not going to be there often. My blog is the best way to know what I'm doing.

Tonikaku, Mandi's in the missionary torture center, I just sent her her first letter from watashi, and I got my christmas shopping done! I had difficulty finding my present-of-choice for the father lord (thanks to a white cherokee >:P) but it all worked out great. Tomorrow's going to be wrapping it all up and then writing. Yes, writing. You see, I have a goal to finish chapter 25 by christmas. If I don't then the consequences will be very severe. Mastah and I had a very long discussion on this.

Don't forget your words Mastah!!!

So, that should be good for me. And I'm reading a very good book: The Lost Hero: Book 1 of The Heroes of Olympus. It's the new series by Riordan. So far very good! I like it!

Anywho, my computer is threatening to reboot if I don't do something about it so, tally-ho!

*scampers*

It's alive?

2010-12-06T21:41:00.000-08:00

Either my water bottle is alive or there's something living in the tap water of Cedar City, Utah. Some nights I hear scratching noises coming from the "Never Thrist" aluminum bottle by my head. Other times it's little pops like big pieces of pop rocks going off in your mouth.

And right now it's letting off puffs of. . .something. . . .

I think it's farting. . . .

tonikaku, it's alive. Somehow. . . .

I also saw two white cherokees today. TWO! That's DOUBLE the bad luck, bad ju-ju! I'm really concerned for what that'll turn out to be. And I saw both of them within ten minutes of each other! Scary!

For those of you who don't know: white jeep cherokees are bad luck. It started on the first jeep trail I ever went on. We were stuck behind a white cherokee the entire way and they treated ever. single. pebble/stick as a ginormous obstacle (wow, ginormous is a word!). At first, my family and I would make fun of them. But then weird things started happening. Traffic jams. Cars falling a part. Failing tests. Almost getting hit by a car.

So, we realized that they are bad luck. And I crossed the path of two of them! *cries* I'm nervous.

Although, I'm playing solitaire right now and I keep losing. Not a big deal because I'm playing it to cool down my over-worked brain before bedtime (and exhaust it further so it'll stay quiet tonight).

Okay, that's all. Toodles!

Lies and False Advertisement

2010-12-03T15:40:00.000-08:00

So, I'm normally a happy person and I hate getting mad or annoyed, so when I do it's pretty serious. And I just got even more annoyed with the SUU Bookstore. I found out how they do their buyback stuff.

So, if the bookstore is buying it from you to put back on the shelves downstairs, then it's 50-60% buyback price. BUT if it's going into storage, or they're sending it back to the retailer, then it's 25% buyback price. I was so annoyed when I heard this. That's false advertisement! No wonder why more and more students are turning to the internet to get books and stuff. At least you can sell it yourself for a better price.

I am going to give a shot at my PE book, and i might just let them have it either way (if they take it that is). But, one thing's for sure, my goal this Christmas is to sell all the textbooks I currently own online. And next semester, I'll just pop into one of the Nutrition classes and offer to sell my clicker for $15, and I'll throw in a set of batteries for good measure.

But, yeah, it just ticked me off. I knew already that I wouldn't get a good deal, but I thought it would at least be better than four dollars for a book I paid 16 for, and $9 on a clicker that I bought brand new (which was $40 by the way). Before the recession, any and every book was bought back at 50%.

Don't worry, I'll calm down. It's Friday, finals is next week, I don't have a final in Mythology anymore because I did the reading, took all of the quizzes, and only missed two days of classes. so, I'm going to relax today and then start the study fest tomorrow. I want a break.

I also saw the second Transformers movie last night. I thought it was good but I hated how much crude humor was in it. I can handle the mom getting high, but not all the sexual references and whatnot. It's just not condusive to the storyline. And the only strong character was Sam and the ex-Section 7 agent. Everyone else wasn't that great.

Well, that's all for now. Lord Byron is behaving himself. He's been chilling on all of my scriptures, and probably reading my book (not Samurai but the one I'm reading right now: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman).

Toodles!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-27T10:09:00.000-08:00

Aaaaaah, I love thanksgiving. One gets to hang out at home, stuff one's face, and then go play. The turkey's were delicious and the rolls exquisite. It was lovely.

And I saw two movies that same day too. I saw Harry Potter again (and now I REALLY want to read the books again. In order since it's been a long time) and Tangled. Tangled was pretty cute. I thought the storyline was very well-done. I just wish it was in the good ol' animation instead of CGI. It would have been a lot better, in my opinion. It was really good, I would recommend it.

I also bought a book yesterday. It's called The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. It sounds really interesting, got a newberry medal award, and I had a 30% off coupon. So, it was all good.

yeah, er, that's all really. Toodles!

And in the forecast: TURKEY!!!

2010-11-24T18:02:00.001-08:00

So, I'm home and I have ABSOLUTELY NO HOMEWORK!!! Yep, I finished it all and it's wonderful!

So, I saw Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on Saturday. I greatly enjoyed it. It made me want to read the book again, but I think I'll reread the series again, starting January next year. Or just forget all of them and read #7. dunno. I'll think about that and let you know.

Book update: finished reading Seeing Redd and got started on Archenemy. So far, it's way intense and I'm not even 30 pages into it!

So, I have a latest addition to my little animal friends. His name is Lord Byron, and he is a little black and green snake about 5 inches long. I found him alone and cold in the parking lot of my apartment. So I brought him in and stuck him on top of my dresser, well away from my three little goaties. You see, him being a snake, I figured he might try to harm my little goaties so he's isolated from them.

Unless he gets smart and jumps from the dresser to my bed and then slithers over to them. Gosh, I hope that doesn't happen. Granted, I just found the little guy so I don't know what kind of character he is, but if he turns out to be less innocent than he appears, my goaties just might have an archnemesis. *gasp*

If I end up getting some sort of story idea out of this, I will totally let you all know. you all being anyone and anybody that reads this blog.

Sooooo, yeah, that's about it. . . .oh. SUU totally cancelled classes yesterday because of the blizzard that was coming. It was pretty sweet, but hectic at the same time. CB and I were running around everywhere trying to get our stuff together so we could leave. Needless to say we got four flat tires, CB got dragged off by arctic wolves, and the rest of us got attacked by rabid prairie dogs and ravenous ravens. it was quite the ordeal. It wasn't until it started snowing that we were able to rescue and piece Chris back together, chop down a tree and fashion skis for the car and get on our way before there was twenty feet of snow on the ground. Trust me, it was pretty intense.

Well, that's all. Happy Thanksgiving!! *gobble gobble*

2010-11-12T17:22:00.001-08:00

MIKE'S HOME!!!!!

Random Moment

2010-11-07T09:04:00.000-08:00

Amazing isn't it? I'm posting. AGAIN!! But that's because I've had a few more discoveries.

My favorite episode of Wizard's of Waverly Place is when Alex and Harper switch bodies and they can't switch back. At one point, both brains go into Alex's head. Here is what she says to Justin when she's trying to get his help:

"I have two brains in my head!"

Harper also manages to take some control over Alex's legs. Here's what happens:

Alex: "Drat! You figured out how to use my feet!"
Harper's brain: "You have such a short attention span that it's not hard to take over."

yeah, it was awesome. I also watched Master and Commander for the first time. I had only owned the soundtrack for five years and listened to it every now and then. But my favorite part in that is when the doctor is fixing a man's skull. All the crew members are gathered around. Here's what happens:

Crewman: Is that his brain?
Doctor: No, it's just a bit of dried blood. This here is his brain.
Everyone: *moves closer* Oooooh.

Overall, I thought it was a good movie. It's kinda slow, yes, but rather fascinating I think. I also did Benson Creek again yesterday. Sooo fun! Except that the water was FREEZING and I got more WET this time than last. But, that's what makes it so fun! I love showing my body what it can handle and mild hypothermia is one of them.

don't you love fall daylight savings? I woke up and thought it's not eight o'clock, it's seven! sleep in! It was wonderful.

Psych starts again this week. ^_^ I got more of my project proposal written up. ^_^ I don't have anymore stressing tests until finals. ^_^ Today, I'm going to read and write, but mostly read. I'm reading The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor. So far I like it! I recommend it to Alice in Wonderland fans. It's a fun spin-off of that.

Well that's all. Winston suggests you look up Callipygian and use it to someone you think would not hit you. We learned it from a game last night. Tally Ho!

Hellloooo. . . .

2010-11-05T16:30:00.000-07:00

Psych comes on again next week! I'm so excited! I've been in the mood for some new episodes.

Yeah, that's all. Nothing really new to report. I have my goaties, I'm trying to retain what little sanity I have left until Thanksgiving, and try to find the gumption to work on the THREE STINKIN' SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES I HAVE TO WRITE!!!!

*deep calming breaths*

I'm not stressed out at all! Nope! Not one bit!

Benson Creek

2010-10-26T21:18:00.000-07:00

It's not November yet!! okay, so this is the way fun Benson Creek that I did October 2. These pictures were taken by T. Banks. The first one is of me rappelling down the first waterfall which was 105 ft. That's the longest rappel I've ever done. Then the second waterfall which was only 32 ft, the third is 43 ft, and the fourth and last was 34 ft. On this one, this girl that came with us decided to do the Spiderman maneuver. It was awesome. So, see and enjoy!

Jekka Jones signing out!

PICTURES

2010-10-14T10:32:00.001-07:00

Coming soon. . . .to a computer near you. . . .

I thought I wasn't in Kansas. . . .

2010-10-06T11:05:00.000-07:00

Sooooo, I turned on the news for some background sounds as I made oishii yakisoba (with tuna, which was okay but not as good as chicken) when a very strange thing came on:

There is a tornado watch in Central and Southeast (Lake Powell area) Utah.

yes, that's right, a TORNADO watch. Not a lightening watch or a flash flood watch (though that is a big concern at the moment with all the rain we're getting here in Southern Utah) but a TORNADO.

That's the big funnel clouds that threaten places like Kansas, Tennessee, Nebraska, and Texas but can't survive long in Utah because of the moun'ains. It's big and black and comes out when there's mixtures of high and low pressure. Well, apparently Lake Powell's gonna get a little trip to Oz.

On top of that, this little storm system that's sucking out moisture from the Pacific and spitting it out in Arizona and Utah is supposed to keep going until this weekend. Since Sunday, it's been stormy skies and lots of rain. I'm loving it, but it does make me tired.

So, yeah, that's all. It's the end of the world, as my roommate put it.

$1.00 Books and Not Complete Series

2010-10-05T20:39:00.001-07:00

So, a long time ago I got a series recommendation from the EPG Minion Fiend to read The Years of Merlin by T.A. Barron. Well, they sounded fascinating so I added it to my ever growing list of books to read. Alas, I kind of forgot about it until today when I went into the SUU bookstore.

They have Books III and V on the dollar shelf.

So, I'm torn right now. Do I buy them or not? If I buy them, then I would be inclined to seek out the rest of the series. And because these are hardback, I, of course, would want to get the rest of them in hardback. Just because I'm OCB (Obsessive-complusive Bookworm).

So, that is my current dilemma. And its midterms and I have a test in practically every single class until next Wednesday. Luckily, I got two of the five out of the way BUT the one I'm most nervous for is this Thursday and I'm quite nervous for it.

Plus I'm trying to type up a short project I did but the more I type it up, the more I realize I didn't do that great of a job on thinking it up in the first place. But, we didn't have that much time anyways so I hope I get at least a decent score on it. don't you hate that? You didn't procrastinate at all but you still don't have enough time to do it so it feels like a half-job? Luckily, it's not my real project. That will be much better.

Well, that's all for now. I got pictures from a super awesome hike I did last Saturday (alas, I missed the first session of Conference but it was so worth it) and I'll post a few of the fun ones later. Hopefully tomorrow. My goal is tomorrow.

Until then, I will keep stewing about this book series and let you know what happens. Tally ho!

Thrashing hands and knees

2010-09-24T08:58:00.000-07:00

I know! Crazy isn't it?! It's only been like a week instead of a month! This is just like my journal-writing habits. Only if something awesome happens do I write in it often.

But, alas, nothing really exciting happened. . .except I've become addicted to rock climbing. I blame my tallest (Christoph). he invited me to go rock climbing with the club last week and I loved it. I thrashed my fingers and knees kinda bad that time, and I did again this week. Strangely enough, its only my left hand that gets scraped, and my left knee. I must switch to using those more than my other side when I'm scaling a rock face. But, I love it. It's lots of fun.

Yesterday I did this climb called Missie's Playhouse. It was pretty fun, but then I got to the hard part where you have to try to get your body onto a ledge using practically nothing. I tried twice then decided to stop as it was getting dark. But, it was pretty fun.

So, yeah, I found a new hobby and its lots of fun. I just wish I had money so I could get my own equipment, mainly shoes and caribeners. but a nice long some-odd feet of rope would be cool too.

yeah, that's all. I like rock climbing now. I might do narrows again this saturday. My only crux is that I suddenly have a ton of homework that all needs to be done by next week. the majority being monday and tuesday. soooo, who knows what I'll do. I really want to go. Like really super uper duper bad. I love the narrows. . . .

Toodles!

Reading and writing but. . . .

2010-09-22T18:05:00.000-07:00

It's all homework, dash it all! I want to write, but I'm sick of the computer. I want to read, but I'm sick of reading. I want to go outside and take a nice long walk but I've been practically everywhere and there's really no place I'm interested in going to. I would love to get a library card and check out some books for the library but I have some obstacles in my way:

1) I'm reading a book right now, with another book series I'm going to read when I finish it, and another one after that. (for those interested: The Dalemark Quartet, The Looking-glass Wars, and The Hunger Games)

B. As mentioned above, I'm working through homework. Nothing serious but it's just a bunch of busy work. Alot of textbook reading and 1 page report writing.

III. I have no time to read.

So, that's my current predicament. I'd really like to write. That would be nice. I do want to finish editing/revising by my birthday next year so I can start trying to submit it to editors and whatnot. Man, I'm more interested in doing that than trying to get into grad school! But, I have no money to get into grad school, so while I'm working and saving money I might as well try to accomplish my dream right?

Anywho, I've become a whiner this semester so I'm going to stop now. I had oyakodon with horensou in it. It was very tasty. I love washoku. I'm feeling very full right now, but when that goes away I think I'll have some ice cream. I bought brownie mix today but I'm too full to make that. Methinks I'll make it tomorrow.

Last week I went rock climbing. SOOOOO fun! Except that I tore a chunk of skin out of my middle finger and it hurts something fierce! I'm going rock climbing again tomorrow. I'm excited!

But, er, yeah. FLAP THE PICKLES TO THE HIPPO'S EARS AND THE PORCUPINE WILL DO A DISCO!!!

Relief

2010-09-13T11:23:00.000-07:00

So, remember a couple postings back (or was it the most recent one? *shrugs*) I was freaking out about a girl in my group for biology. Well, she decided that seeing if big cats will react to a dog whistle wasn't cool enough for her so she decided to go off and do her own thing.

Which I was glad about. I think our current project is alright, in fact I think it is a brilliant idea. I mean we can only do so much with the animals being undergrad college students. It's not like we can get into their pens to take a blood sample. Goodness, she knows science so well that she's forgotten the basics. What is the first thing you learn about the scientific method? How do you even come up with a hypothesis?

Ask a question.

So, before I bore you all with that speel again, I will stop now. But let it be known that my friend and I (she was the one who came up with the whole idea in the first place) will be hanging around the San Diego Zoo, blowing dog whistles at cougars and leopards. I'm looking forward to it. I seriously want to know if they'll react at all.

So, yeah, I just felt like throwing that out there. And another thing to keep me happy: How to Train Your Dragon comes out in about a month!!! Happiness!!!!

Happiness is. . . .

2010-09-07T19:01:00.000-07:00

Actually flying on a pig. Not that I've ever done it before, which is why I think I could also be 10X's more happy.

And I really do wish I had a tail. A dog's tail like Katie's (family dog) because her's is thick and strong and knocks over people and appliances when she is uber happy. I say that because smiling and skipping just doesn't quite show how happy I am.

So, I wish I had a tail so I could knock things over. Then people would see that and think "Whoa, that girl is really happy. She just knocked over the projector AND the teacher at once!" Wouldn't that be awesome?

Yeah, I could do with a pig about now. I found myself in a group about to embark on a semester-long research project in my animal behavior class. One girl gets stressed really easily and so that stresses me out when I have no reason to be stressed, and the other girl seems to want to make things more complicated than they have to be. Seriously, it's called testing a hypothesis not proving. Science is all about testing, and even if your hypothesis turns out to be right, you test it again just to make sure. And then you can repeat other people's experiments. Seriously, if you have a question you can test it!

Yes, that is a complaint speel brought to you by Jekka G. Senoj. It makes me grit my teeth. Then again, I'm seriously hoping that she's not right about all this because that would suck. *deep breaths* she's a child of God, she's a child of God.

Have you noticed that those creepy chinese character-leaving people have disappeared? yep, I filtered them out! It was the only way to get rid of them. I will not support porn on my blog or any link to it! I have my standards and I'm sticking to them! With or without super glue!

So. Moral of the story: Pig+water+tail=happiness.

Bingo

2010-09-01T18:34:00.001-07:00

Bingo: A game played in the car involving shouting "Bingo!" whenever a yellow car is spotted.

Rules:

Construction vehicles, buses, boats, and jet skis are not Bingo
Semi's count as long as the cab is yellow. If the cab is not yellow then it is not Bingo
If two people shout out Bingo at the same time then they must spell it out. The first person to spell it wins the point
If both spell it at the same time, twice in a row then rock-paper-scissors breaks the tie

Now, I bring this up because there are a ton of Bingos around SUU. I mean a TON! Not two thousand pounds but two hundred Bingos. There's four in my apartment complex parking lot, two I see all the time in the school parking lot, and one sitting down a street I pass everyday. Not to mention a yellow bug that zips around campus.

It's a dream come true. I just wish I had someone to fight it over with. That would be nice.

Well. . .er. . .that's all. I have a ton of homework but none of it is due immediatly so there really isn't no point in doing it right now. It's not procrastination because a lot of it isn't due til either two weeks from now or at the end of the semester. Really. I have 16 credits but quite a lot of time on my hands.

That might change though when I start having exams and stuff. Then it'll be a lot of studying. But, I'm not complaining. yeah, I can keep writing, but I've been on the computer so long that I'm sick of it. And I've been reading so much so I don't feel like reading. I could draw but I'm not a good drawer, but at least its relaxing.

Its times like these I can use a good hike or two. *sigh*

Moving Day

2010-08-21T21:51:00.000-07:00

I seriously hate moving. It's always like "What do I need?" "I've packed way too many things but I have a sneaky feeling that I didn't pack enough" and "Where do I put all this crap in the limited space provided by the apartment."

Seriously, it sucks. And what's more is that I forgot my beloved goaties!!! They're at home wrecking havoc on my dolphin figurines and no doubt taunting Midnight and Peej. Well, I'll be home in a couple of weeks, maybe, so I'll get them then.

But, yeah, I don't like moving. It sucks. But I'm here in Cedar City reading Fruits Basket until I fall asleep in my rather comfortable bed. I'm such a boy. All I have is a sheet and a blanket, but that's all I really need. Going on a mission, and to Nihon of all places, kinda makes you live off the bare necessities with pleasure. Seriously, I'd sleep in a mummy bag on the bed if Mom hadn't been around to stop me.

Sasuga helicopter mom. Everyone give her a round of applause. yeah, that's right! Okaasan, otsukaresama desu! And give a big clap for Father Time, who works his but off to pay for my college tuition and apartment. But not mine alone but Mother's and Chris's tuition and housing as well. Not to mention transportation, fun, food, and heating.

Gosh, aren't parents great? Especially when they care more about family than their personal image.

Well, that's all for now. I'm going to see how many people are reading this by doing something crazy.

NEW BACKGROUND!!!

I'M NOT JEKKA!

2010-08-08T15:07:00.000-07:00

I AM MELON LORD!!!

(from Avatar: The Last Airbender)

Waiting. . .waiting. . .

2010-08-04T12:37:00.000-07:00

Sooooo, I ordered the Dalemark Quartet Vol. 2 (contains the last two books) a month ago and I still haven't gotten it yet. It's so weird because I have never been this impatient before, but I'm chomping at the bit! I want my book! I'm still reading The Drowned Ammet, and I'm only a third of the way through it. I've been on a writing spree recently (yatta!) so I haven't been reading much. But when I order a book, I do get a little impatient.

Still, it's two days past the due date and I still haven't gotten it. I sent an email to the seller but I haven't gotten a response yet. so, I'm going to try to be patient and give the guy one more week before I demand all my money back and buy it from somewhere else.

I really do want that book at a decent price. I hope it comes soon! *crosses fingers, toes, tongue, and hair* Please oh please let it come.

Rupert, that grenade launcher is not a toy to play with. Please get down from there before you waste on of my grenades. They're very hard to come by, y'know.

Slacker

2010-08-03T14:30:00.000-07:00

So, I was sitting the other day thinking about how much I've changed since my mission and I realized that I used to post random stuff on my blog. But, lately, I haven't been doing much randomness. It has nothing to do with having a facebook page now. I don't do much on facebook as all of my friends can testify.

but, I have been more scatter-brained than usual. For the first time in my life I want to write more than read! It's a very happy feeling and I've been able to get a lot done. but I still have more to do.

Did I mention that writing sucks sometimes?

but, we went to California and spent a day at Universal Studios, two days at SeaWorld, and a day at the beach. It was lots of fun. But the highlight was that one of my dreams came true. We saw two dolphins swimming along the coast at the beach. It was really cool because I've always wanted to see wild dolphins and I got to see them. I was very happy!

but I made a very important discovery today: don't give chocolate to little brothers. Especially Girl Scout Cookies. It makes them go. . .well, gonzo.

Go look it up Francis, that's a good goat!

The Countdown Begins!

2010-07-19T15:59:00.000-07:00

Hook: A brilliant movie and I love watching it. but I recently found two awesome quotes to add to awesome quotes. so, minnasan, enjoy these two quotes because they are brilliant!

Hook to the crew: Good morning my stupid sorrid sacks of entrails!

Smee to Hook: But Captain, you have the sleasiest sleeves of the seven seas!

brilliant right? AAAAAND Chris comes home in 18 days!! Yes, I am so excited! It's going to be talking in japanese all day, craving sushi and ramen, and learning to use chopsticks all over again. I am sooo excited.

And I recently did the Zion Narrows in one day, which my family always refers to The Blitz, and I was amazed that after two years of not hiking it my legs still remembered how to navigate the greased bowling balls, and I wasn't as sore as I expected. but it was lovely and fun and I so want to go do it again, and I brought back some water from the Big Springs and I had to chase my family away from it. Big Springs to my family is like--as my Dad so amazingly put it-- sweet Bella-blood to a newborn vampire. yeah, I had to carry that bottle everywhere with me to make sure my family didn't drink too much. Alas, it is now gone.

So, that is my latest happiness. I'm off now to brainstorm and jot down the dream I had during my nap with Peej. Toodles!

What was that, Francis? You want a pony? First prove to me that you can take care of Rupert and then I will get you a pony. . . .yes, that's right, Rupert. . . .Good luck, little goatie

Empty Recycle Bins

2010-07-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

So, I must have a really small recycle bin on my laptop because i delete one tiny little item (a one-page document) and it fills it up instantly. If I delete a whole folder chock full of reports, music, movies, and stories, would it explode? would my computer have a circuit breakdown? It's very tempting to try in my opinion. . . .

so, nothing new to report except that I went straight from Memphis to Omaha in the same week. Not only is flying all day on an airplane very tiring but so is driving across two states in one day. And not little states either. We're talking Wyoming and Nebraska. Omaha happens to be on the far side of the state.

BUT my aunt took us all to this awesome bookstore. It's called Half-Price Bookstore, everything is half off or less! yeah, I was in heaven. I bought the most books out of everyone because I found a ton written by Lloyd Alexander in the Clearance section. I was happy. They had a few books by Diana Wynne Jones, but not a lot. I would have bought the Dalemark Quartet but they only had the second and fourth book. :P I'll keep looking for that series though. . . .

So, that's been happy. And since being here we saw Avatar (the REAL one), Eclipse, and Toy Story 3. Here's the breakdown:

Avatar: A bit of a bummer. Sokka wasn't funny. but the bending was cool.
Eclipse: I was rooting for the newborn army
Toy Story 3: definitely the best original trilogy someone thought up. Just as good as the first two. Kudos to Pixar

I did see How to Train Your Dragon again (yes, for the fourth time) and as always I loved it. It was Mom's first time seeing it and she got into it. She kept grabbing my arm and asking if Toothless was going to be okay. It was very funny.

So, yeah. . . .that's about it. . .*poof*

Movies and Games

2010-06-21T16:37:00.001-07:00

Soooo I promised pictures of the Jeep in the field but. . .I'm lazy and haven't had a chance to get them from my Mom's laptop. But, I have some other fun things to write about. I watched Alice in Wonderland again (the new one by Tim Burton) and wrote down a few of my favorite quotes:

Red Queen: "It is better to be feared than to be loved."

Red Knave: "If you are hiding Alice, you will lose your head."
Hatter: "Already lost them!"

Alice's six impossible things before breakfast:
First, There is a potion that can make you shrink.
Second, There is a cake that can make you grow.
Third, Animals can talk.
Fourth, Cats can disappear.
Fifth, There is a place called Wonderland.
Sixth, I can slay the Jabberwocky

Absalom: "Nothing was ever solved with tears"

I also noticed that the March Hare says "Cup?" and "Spoon?" which really tickled my funny bone.

but, yes, that's all for now. I'm off to Memphis to visit the M.A.N.D.I for a week! Horray!
Ciao!

Birthday Surprises

2010-06-04T16:58:00.000-07:00

So, this birthday was one of the best. My family and I went to Moab and went jeeping and hiking. I got to hike a really fun trail called Ding and Dang Canyon, Discover an awesome Valley in Goblin Valley (aptly named Jackpot Valley because hardly anyone goes there and it's full of rock scrambling goodness), drove the jeep on Elephant Hill and loved it, and caught a runaway jeep.

So, I got to explain that last one. It was EPIC!!

So, when we go to Moab, one person drives the blue jeep and the red jeep is tied to the trailer pulled behind the RV. This is how we've always done it to save on gas and whatnot. Well, I was driving the blue jeep with the cousin, Katie-Sue, riding in the passenger. We're driving through a valley enjoying the scenery when Katie-Sue looks out the front window and says, "Jekka, the jeep's off the trailer!"

I look up and sure enough the jeep has all four wheels on the road and is heading slowly off the road. I slam on the brakes, grab the ham radio (like a CB radio but ten times better) and start yelling into it, "JEEP! JEEP! JEEP! NO JEEP! NO JEEP! JEEP GONE!" But we get no response from dad and he keeps driving away in the RV. Katie-Sue's yelling for Dad to stop (even though he is in another vehicle and incapable of hearing us), and I honk the horn but the RV disappears around the corner. Katie-Sue yells, "Why is he still driving?! Does he not see that the jeep isn't there anymore?!"

So, we sit there and watch the red jeep drive itself off the road, bump over a pile of logs and some sagebrush, until it comes to a stop in the middle of a meadow. It's sitting there, red against green, looking very pleased with itself. So, because we don't have any keys for it, we pick up the ratchet straps that held the jeep to the trailer and now spread across the road, and go racing after Dad. I tell Katie-Sue to keep calling him on the ham radio. I tell her after a mile to make sure we were on the right channel (we kept getting off of mara-simplex while jeeping) and she checks it. It was on the wrong channel. So she puts it on the right one and says, "Richard, can you hear us?" Here's what follows:

Dad: Yeah, what's up?
Katie-Sue: The red jeep is gone. Look in your rearview mirror. It's gone!
Dad: What the?! Where is it?!
Katie-Sue: It's in a meadow--
Dad: It's in the middle?!?!?! You got to move it before someone hits it!! (he thinks its in the middle of the road)

Katie-Sue: No, Richard. the. jeep. is. in. a. mea-dow!
Dad: Oh. Okay. How did it get there?
Katie-Sue: It rolled off of the road-
Dad: It ROLLED?!?!?!?!
Katie-Sue: No! It drove itself off of the road and into a meadow
Dad: Is it okay? (he's very panicy by now)
Katie-Sue; yeah, it looks fine.

So, we catch up to the RV where dad had pulled off to the side of the road. he and mom hope into the blue jeep with us and we drive back to the meadow. All the while, Dad is asking us exactly what happened and if we are sure the jeep is okay. We just keep repeating that it drove itself off the road and is perfectly alright as far as we can see. So we get to the meadow. Dad checks it out and finds out that everything is perfectly alright with it. It's still drivable, not even a scratch, but it did collect a lot of twigs in the axles. :D So, he drives it out with no problem, and because one of the straps had broken, Mom drove the red jeep into Moab. Katie-Sue and I doubled back a little bit because Dad was missing a strap (he uses four to tie down the jeep), and though we didn't find it we did find the tire marks from when the jeep's back wheels and then front wheels fell off of the trailer. It was pretty intense. On top of that, if the jeep fell off fifteen feet before or after where it did, it would have gone off into a ditch filled with huge boulders and lots of trees.

Yeah, guardian angels are looking after my family, and probably hating it. But, that was the ultimate birthday experience: The jeep tried to runaway. Once I get the pictures from Mom, I'll post them. It's really funny.

so, yeah, I had an awesome birthday. Toodles!

Sadistic Parents

2010-05-27T19:49:00.000-07:00

I have sadistic parents. I think it's because BOTH of them are EMT's.

(Brief Explanation: EMT= Emergency Medical Technician. They're the people that get to the scene before the Ambulance, take care of the victim as best they can, and basically get all info ready for the paramedics)

So, it's wednesday night and my parents walk in from an EMS meeting down at town office. I'm in the kitchen, minding my own business and trying to fit leftovers into our overflowing fridge when Dad walks up to me.

"Hey, Jekka, look at this!" says he.

I turn to look, thinking it's a cookie or some nifty gadget Dad found at the meeting. well, my second thought was right. It was a gadget, but a sadistic gadget. He was holding a shot. Basically, it's the needle and tube that stick out of your veins. And on top of it, Mom was holding another needle and had that thirsty glint to jab that length of silver in some poor victims vein.

Don't worry, I armed myself with a dirty frying pan and kept the fridge door between me and my parents until they put the needles down.

I didn't sleep well last night either. No joke. I was afraid they would stick me in my sleep.

the needles are still on the kitchen table, in plain view. It's quite scary. So, my advice to all of america today: Don't have BOTH parents become EMT's. that equals an increased fear of being poked by needles and many sleepless nights.

So that's all. BEWARE OF NEEDLES!!

mata, chuugokujin, yamete kudasai. honto ni watashi wa chuugokugo ga mattaku wakaranai shi yomemasen! eigo ka nihongo de comment wo kaite kudasai! arigatou gozaimasu.

Midnight Fury

2010-05-18T19:49:00.001-07:00

Yes, I post a lot about my cat. Why? Because she's cool. She's the cat of the devil and part-dragon. You don't believe me? Check out these pictures!

Seriously, she and Toothless have a lot in common. When I last saw this movie, I noticed that Toothless kinda wiggles his bum at one point, just like a cat! I thought it was awesome. But yeah.

Randomness brought to you by Jekka G. Senoj, signing out!

Of Kitties and Pigs

2010-05-11T19:04:00.000-07:00

So, I have Midnight sleeping on the couch next to me. She used to not do that before, either chilling on the floor or the back of the couch, but i kind of like it. She's in petting distance and it's like snuggling without really snuggling. So, yeah, I really like it.

I went and bought The Red Pyramid yesterday. I'm looking forward to reading it, but I have to finish Warbreaker first. That's a pretty good book by the way. I recommend it to all you fantasy fans.

but Mistborn is by far the awesome-est!

so, I've noticed a mistranslation I always do. in japanese the swine flu is called "buta flu" which literally translates to pig flu. So, when a conversation comes up about buta flu, I naturally say pig flu. In return, I get confused looks and "Pig flu? Don't you mean swine flu?"

Dunno, in my book Pig sounds better. But, that's me: the returned missionary from Nihon.

So. . .Mother's Day talked to Jones chourou and Webster chourou. That was pretty fun. I also begged for some goman dressing from jones chourou. I miss that stuff. I don't care for salad dressing but that is seriously the best. I'm going to hog it like I'm currently hogging The Red Pyramid. I feel kinda bad. Steph doesn't know I have it and she's itching to read it. But, when I'm done she can have it then.

So, yeah, all this random update thingies brought to you by. . .JEKKA GOATY SENOJ!!!

boop, bleep. blawp.

New awesome trialer!!

2010-05-02T14:29:00.000-07:00

So, I lack technology skills to upload the video to be viewed from my blog but if you go to www.iwatchstuff.com and look up the latest trailer for Avatar (REAL Avatar not Blue-people--which I'm thinking of calling Ratava because it's the complete OPPOSITE from the REAL Avatar). so go watch it. It's so cool! I'm excited! July 2!!! Yay!!! Yip yip!

yeah, that's all. *poof*

Apologies

2010-04-30T21:16:00.000-07:00

So to all of the devoted fans out there--oof! *gets knocked off the high box* Okay okay! But, I wish to apologize to all those fiends and minions who read this blog. There are three reasons why I have not been up to date or as random as I used to on this blog:

A) It was finals week
B) I had a lot of projects requiring extended hours on the computer (which equals me becoming sick of the computer)
C) I was absorbed in a really good book.

which reminds me. . .HOLY COW!!! MAN!!! MISTBORN IS AWESOME!!!
I finished reading The Hero of Ages, the third book in the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. It was so cool! Holy cow!! *goes crazy and bounces off walls*

I almost didn't know what to read after finishing a book like that. It left me reeling and at a loss for direction. For those of you who are bookworms, I'm sure you know that feeling quite well. You have no idea what sort of book is worthy of your attention. That's how I felt.

Luckily, there's another book by Brandon Sanderson that I haven't read yet so that's the next one on my list.

so, yeah, random update by Jekka. I'm home now for the summer, which means relaxation mingled with responsibility, and job hunting. :P

But, no homework!!! Yay!

This message was brought to you hastily by Jekka G. Senoj. Drink lots of water and enjoy your day!

Facebook

2010-04-06T10:01:00.000-07:00

I know, I just posted and I'm posting again. Don't die from a myocardium infarction!

yes, that was really fun to say.

ahem, so as many of you have probably found out to your surprise and shock (no myocardium infarctions please!) that I recently started a facebook account. yes: about time. No: I won't be on it very much most likely. this week is insane with papers due, projects to complete, a nasty test to study for, and nothing but stress to make the cardiac contractile cells work their measly little channels out.

yep, so with that, off to go home and study and read and study some more. and when I say read I mean textbooks and nasty graphs and research papers.

so, toodles!
and if you don't know what a myocardium infarction is, go to wikipedia. It'll tell ya!

Turkish Angora

2010-04-04T11:53:00.001-07:00

Newsflash: Midnight's breed

What is it? What could it be? Turkish Angora!

If you just rolled your eyes please raise your hand. *counts* Wow, really, so few. I guess not a lot of people understand my love for my black furry kitty. But, after consulting an encyclopedia out of curiosity. I with my family figured that she is a rare breed of cat known as the Turkish Angora. Medium-length silky hair with tufts inbetween the toes and coming out of the ears. There was also a picture that looked like her except the cat was white.

So, we have a rare cat that's taken over the house and is the devil's very pet. I love my house! (in case you're wondering, Peej is part siamese and leo is tabby. Katie, as many of you know, is a canine of the breed Holus digguslotus).

So, yes, another update to random. It's conference week and on top of a mission reunion where I got to see a lot of friends and ai suru Hill kaichou and Hill shimai, my roommate and I got tickets for the Saturday morning session of general conference. It was my first time going and it was really cool. Much more fun than watching it on TV. Only a few protesters were out. I wish I had gold stars to give to them because it was really cold and windy and they showed a lot of devotion in coming out with the rest of us. I hope they weren't out the whole time. That would have been freezing.

So, yes, my cat is a turkish angora. she is a turkey. MUAHAHAHAHAAAAA!
*poof*

P.S. And to whoever is posting in chinese: I don't speak or read chinese. chuugokugo ga wakaranai shi mattaku hanashimasen. nihongo demo ii desu ga kondo, eigo de kaite nokoshite kudasai. arigatou gozaimasu.

Spring Break

2010-03-11T09:54:00.001-08:00

Well, I'm ready for spring break now. yesterday was a wild wednesday. two tests and a super-face paced lecture on the heart. I think my teacher was talking as fast as a pacemaker cell depolarizing! It was crazy. but, it was nice to get that all done and over with. today and tomorrow's going to be relaxing.

so, yeah, that's all. people out there are probably thinking "what kind of post is that?! we don't care about school and silly tests! we want randomness!"

okay, here's randomness: I bought a half-pint carton of chocolate milk, exactly like the ones I used to have for lunch in elementary and middle school. It was fun drinking it. And it was cheap. only 39 yen. It was great.

I finished the last book of Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Awesome! And it left me in that familiar void of "Now what? What do I do after an ending like that?" but, I solved that in picking up "Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians" figured I could get caught up with those books. but, yeah, for all you out there who haven't read the Percy Jackson books (a.k.a. The Lightening Theif) I highly recommend them. they're really good. And: don't judge a book by its movie.

the movie was nothing like the book. It was just a scratch of the plot line.

so, yeah, I'm done now. Time to see if my teacher posted questions. I like answering questions. (not!)

And that was some good advice from the Elvish Pirate Gypsy: You can't run away from your own two feet. Wise words!

toodles!

Snow craziness

2010-03-05T09:23:00.000-08:00

Hello Jekka Jones, this is America!

I feel like doing a post, but I don't know what so I'll fall back on the good ol' weather approach.

Besides my cousins coming down and spending the night as they were on their way to Zion's *jealous growl* it was quite the interesting day. I got up in the morning, had breakfast and went to institute. As i was walking to institute, it was a really nice morning except for the super strong wind blowing from the south and a big ominous dark cloud creeping over the mountains. It was actually quite pretty. The sun was on the verge of being covered by the clouds, but it still shot out a sunbeam through a little indent. I wish I had a picture of it. It was really cool.

then, within twenty minutes (I was well and comfortable in my class) it all erupted into a blizzard of the Elvish Pirate Gypsy Minion Fiend's white bugs which last until 1:00. Then the clouds disappeared, taiyou-sama came out, and the two inches of snow melted away. Now it's a beautiful day and hardly any snow on the ground.

So, yeah, it was a cool day. coolio enough, it stopped snowing by the time I was walking home from classes. so that was nice.

I watched gakeno ueno ponyo. It was cute, but I really wanted to watch it in nihongo. Alas, I was watching it on our TV and the DVD remote has been lost for many months. so. . I watched it in english. It was cute, but I was dying to watch it in nihongo. especially because I kept translating it into nihongo in my head. And, when it came to the awesome theme song I was dying to hear, it was in english! yeah, I was bummed. I'm going to watch it in nihongo next time. most definitly!

well, America reporting out! Catch ya later Jekka Jones!

(I wonder how many people will get that. . . .)

FOUND

2010-02-23T09:16:00.000-08:00

Found: Elvish Pirate Gypsy Minion Fiend

Circumstances: a shiney sword and strawberry cheesecake WITH the strawberries

Place: my house

Events leading up to finding: a wedding, emails, and a phone call made in a hospital

current status: URESHII!!!!

So, yeah, last weekend was lots of fun. My cousin got hitched, I found my fiend, and saw a really good movie called Blind sight (site? something like that) with Sandra Bullock. I also watched Princess Mononoke. eigo de mitandesu. zannen. shitsurei sareta!

but, I got an email from my companion, hamada shimai. I was happy. she was one of my favorite companions. then again, all of my favorite companions were my nihonjin ones. nihonjin wa saikou desu! banzai!

but, yeah, that's about it. the wedding was really nice. my cousin got sealed for time and all eternity at the Manti temple. that's a really pretty temple. I like going to the old temples, they really do have a special feel to them. these temples are huge, but they were built by the sweet and blood of the early saints. no machines, cranes, or computers helped in building these temples. It was all man labor. And you can feel how sacred they are. They truly are special places on earth.

So, I'll make a brief comment before I scurry back home to work on homework: I really like those Percy Jackson and the Olympian books. They're very good, and lots of fun. It's like a fun review of greek mythology and I'm learning more about it. Lots of fun.

and I can't smash two chapters into one but I'm fixing some parts to make the beginning better in my opinion. then I'll have to keep the typing going. gotta finish typing it so I can get other stories going.

well, that's all.

*poof*

This page is in Japanese. Translate using GoogleToolbar!

2010-02-11T21:01:00.000-08:00

So, in an attempt to maintain insanity in a college officially devoid of nihonjin (japanese people), I have changed my gmail account so that it is in nihongo. It's not hard to navigate. I understand quite a lot of the kanji. When I say understand I mean that I don't know how to read it correctly but I understand the meaning. For example I think the "send" button is "tenshin" but when I plug it in to my awesome little white demon denshi jisho. . .

boop bleep blawp

it turns out to be "soushin". But, I understood the kanji characters so it was no problem before. but now I can read it! kampai! *smashes glass of water into air*
Drink water it makes you happy!

So, I just thought it was funny that google keeps badgering me that my email account is in Japanese. As if some crazy person logged on and changed the language settings and I am utterly incapable of changing it back. Oh wait. . .a crazy person did do it.

*insane cackle*

but, I'm currently in limbo right now. I just finished reading The Lightening Theif. I give it 5 stars. I'm going to see the movie tomorrow with my roommate. I'm debating whether I like the new addition to Samurai or not (I'm currently in the process of taking two chapters and smashing it into one. My only concern is that I'm rushing it, but I think it's better than the first write-up. I have a knack to dilly-dadle too long in starting off the story). And with that change trying to make that fit in with the parts I do want to keep.

Whoever though that writing a story was as easy as eating ice cream never tried to take on a novel.

So, your latest update from Jekka Goaty Senoj chan.
sayo~nara!

sneaky MANDI moment

2010-02-10T20:57:00.001-08:00

Muah ha ha ha! the Mechanical Android is back to take over the Jekka Blog and disrupt the flow of insanity yet again....('cause Jekka sure isn't sane and normal)

>.>

<.<

I'm watching you all! Any Nuisances WILL be detected and infiltrated upon Mastah's orders...

I wanted to post this because it's too cute...

Bye!
The Mechanical Android Nuisance Detector and Infiltrator
M.A.N.D.I.

Avatar: The Last Airbender

2010-01-31T20:03:00.000-08:00

soooo, I finished watching Book 3 this week. . .yeah. It was amazing. loved it. can't believe it's over. owarimashita. honto ni shinjirarenai kagiri bikkuri shimashita.

It was an awesome ending. I loved it. I actually went back and watched Sozen'
s Comet, all four parts again the next day. I just couldn't get enough of the ending. it was amazing!

so, yeah, that's all good.

And I've realized two things:
1- still haven't found the Elvish Gypsy Pirate Minion Fiend
2- my goats are missing. they're at home. I'll have to fix that very soon. . . .

but, yeah, that's all. . .flamio hotman!

(picture taken from a quick search on google images)

You can't stop it, Satan!

2010-01-26T09:03:00.000-08:00

So, word is probably breaking all over the emails and institute and seminary buildings in the LDS community world-wide. . .especially in Utah, because it was announced yesterday that there will be a new temple i~n. . .

PAYSON!!!

ureshii dayo! I was so happy! First a temple to be built in Sapporo, Japan (bringing it to THREE temples in the land of the rising sun) and now Payson!

What's funny was that ever since I moved to Elk Ridge when I was eight years old, I always thought it would be really neat to look out my window and see a temple right outside of it. Even in Orem I couldn't see the Provo temple, and you definitely couldn't see it from Elk Ridge (you could find the general location but you couldn't see it). It was just a little fantasy but I always wanted it to be real. I'd even daydream about it. In my first year of college, I shared that little fantasy with a roommate and she just laughed at me and told me that it wouldn't happen. Payson was too small and the Provo temple was close enough.

*big happy grin* take that old roommate! My fantasy's coming true! honto ni ureshii desu yo! ureshii!! ureshii!!

Jekkatran: ureshii=happiness, happy, that's great!

yep. I happy is!

Trunky or Lazy?

2010-01-22T16:26:00.000-08:00

So, I feel like posting again. I got an email from my Mom which was a forward from my Aunt Leanne (see new blog link posted migino shitano hou) asking if I had a facebook. Which comes up something. I want to start a facebook but I currently feel too lazy to upload pictures and whatnot. I mean, I want to start posting some of the more fun pictures I have like when I went to the Ghibli museum, jinjas, and saw Fujisan from a park, but to do that requires more than an hour on the computer.

In my defense, I got to the point where I wouldn't be on the computer for more than 45-mins. One time, I only used the computer for 30 mins. To put this in perspective, I'll remind minnasan that as a missionary you get one day out of the week (called Preparation Day/P-Day) where you got to go sight-seeing and email your family. but becuase you either had a cost or time limit, you didn't get a lot of time to do email. So, I got down to being done in 30 mins.

I've only been home two and a half weeks! shinjirarenai! crazy desu yo!

But, oh well, on to more exciting things. . .it slushed today. You could say snow but it was sticky wet snow that becomes slush. So, that was fun walking to and from the school today.

And I'm thinking of going on a quest to find the Elvish Pirate Gypsy Minion Fiend. She has disappeared from society. I suspect she got trapped in a library (again) or got lost when travelling to Neverland. I will inform you all of how the journey goes. ja matta ne!

*shoulders backpack and goes marching off singing* Oh where oh where is ElvishPirateGypsyMinionFiend? Oh where oh where can she be? She's got a long green cloak and wicked cool knives. Oh where oh where can she be?

Konnichiwa!

2010-01-12T13:53:00.000-08:00

Minnasan! Konnichiwa! o-genki desu ka! Jekka desu! Kaette shimaimashita! Japan wa sugoku FUN deshita! Desuga ima College ni imasu. hayakutemo Class ni ittari shukudai wo oyoidari shiteirun desu.

So, I'm back. I'm alive. I'm at school now. I miss nihongo. Eigo is weird. I have a lot of homework to catch up on. Homecoming talk is this sunday, January 17 at Elk Ridge 2nd ward (the church behind my house) at good ol' 9:00 am. Hope to see peoples there! You can point and laugh as I struggle to do a talk in eigo. It's been 18 months since I've done a talk in eigo.

*examines picture* is that me? When was I holding a snake that big? doko de tottano? Where was that taken? Is that really me?

*mumbles more japanese* Joonze chourou ga itara i~stumo nihongo wo shaberu tsumori da. ima taihen desu. ato de shasshin wo shimasu.

ja matta ne!

RETURNING WITH HONOR!!!

2010-01-05T09:52:00.000-08:00

Jessica Jones Shimai comes home today, Tuesday, January 5, 2010 at 1:00pm.

YAY!!!!!!

Of Spiders from Hell and sweet Skeletons...

2009-11-08T14:54:00.000-08:00

Jekka's letter was rather..... strange this past week. I don't know where she went or what she did, but she was going on about some sort of skeletons that were passing out roses and spiders, whose webs would send you to Hell... I was a little confused. Maybe next time she can elaborate?

"It's funny what the Japanese consider scary."

One thing she didn't mention was mummies....

Those are some scary mummies. It looks like some zombie mummies got ahold of some missionaries and ate their brains, turning them into bike riding missionary mummies as well... Upon closer look though, they seem to just want to tell you about Jesus Christ and his Gospel. Such nice mummies.

Did you know Jekka could play sports?!?!

2009-09-12T13:30:00.000-07:00

Amazing! Jekka San went with her District to go bowling and play volleyball one night! Craziness! I didn't know she knew how to play sports. These minions just keep popping up with new things don't they?

This is her playing volley ball at the nearby ward building with the ward she is in. They had an investigator there that they taught as well.

Then sometime after they went to go bowling. Looks like they mean business....

Real business. . . .
She wrote on the back of this picture stating "This is how missionaries foil Satan's plans!". You go girl! Lol. With these minions around, I would wonder why Satan wouldn't run in the first place....

Moar Pictures!

2009-08-23T15:08:00.000-07:00

Jekka and her companion were teaching a family at one point and time and they decided to dress up. Yes, Jessica, dress up, amusing I know. Either way, here's some pictures of the families they have been teaching and other things they have been doing. :)

This is a family to which Jekka and her companion are teaching the discussions to her husband. :) Go Jekka! Spread that gospel.

Pray for the missionaries!

This is a bookmark Jekka made from pressing cherry blossom flowers.

No way! A post!!

2009-08-21T10:14:00.000-07:00

So I know that as the "responsible" minion, I have slacked off in my duties posting to Jekka's blog...Gomen!!! I have received many letters with pictures and for the next few months have plans to upload them! Yay! So I have pictures!

Both Jekka and Christopherson had sent me these pictures during the late spring. In Japan, when all of the Cherry Blossoms (Sakura trees) go into bloom, it is a time where all the Japanese go and take pictures of all beautiful blossoms.

From a distance they look pink like Cherries, but upon closer look....

They're actually white! Christopher said they look like snow when the pedals are fallen on the cars and ground. Jekka and Chris took lots of pictures of these, but I picked only a few that looked really neat to post.

They are so pretty!!! And is it me or does Christopher look different? Where's that shaggy hair?! Craziness.

They have both been writing in so much Japanese that I had to go get a translator and a Kana/gana chart!! Well until next time! Enjoy the Sakura's!

I got a letter!!!

2008-11-04T13:04:00.000-08:00

*dances* I gotta letter I gotta letter I gotta letter hey hey hey hey! -name that mooovie!!- <3

So I got a cute little letter from Jekka!! And some cute little pictures as you can see from above. Those pictures are actually about 1/2 of an inch big! Crazy huh? So cute though! She sends her love and says that Japan is great! It was slow at first but Kawano Shimai and her are starting to find more people! The apartments are small, but cozy. They don't have an oven, (*gasp*) but thank goodness they have a toaster oven! Wow, no oven.... I'd go crazy! I love to cook... She says that Futons are comfortable and so easy to store! Silly Jekka. She says that the picures are called Purikuri. It's like those little photo booths that they have here in america except much cooler and a little more expensive, but worth it! (400¥ = $4.00) You can draw on them as you can see from above. She leaves a note to all her minions: Be good and drink lots of water, she loves us and we're "so pimp" which is her new word... Apparently it's her companion's favorite word. That and freaking. lol Cutie.

ok so letters... it figures that I get a letter just as I sent one out yesterday inquiring where my letters are from her. Anyone else heard from the loverly Jekka? Anyways, the addresses I have are correct and all you need to do is write out the address on the letter as such. The only requirement is to please do not write in all captial letters. They prefer lowercase. I sent both Chris and Jekka a letter and it cost me less than $2.00 at the post office! So it's real cheap. I was expecting at least $5. >.< Welps... I'm going to head out I just wanted to post really quick. Check out the awesome business card! That's so nifty. It has her home address on the left but I cut it out. Also, no calling her unless you want a full discussion on the gospel. Besides, I don't know if it would work anyway. ^_^ So cool! I love the little symbols, japanese has pretty pictures.

Miracles!

2008-10-30T22:22:00.000-07:00

Updates updates updates!!!

Chris Choro San is first up (I know this is Jekka's blog, but he's her sister!!)
Rain and temperatures are falling in Toyooka and waking up early is definitely not his thing. (HA HA!) After some spiritual insight, him and his companion went over to a little neighborhood by the oceanside and had a wonderful time with two potential investigators. Hopefully the baptisms will grow and the people won't mind cold water. The church building doesn't have a font, so baptisms take place right in the ocean! He and his companion are making great progress and hope to have a baptism soon. According to records, there hasn't been a baptism for over a year! So I hope they have luck there.

Jekka Shimai San!!
Important "fyi" if you ever find yourself in Japan... Sunglasses are looked down upon there. It gives the impression of "you're up to no good and you're a hoodlum". So don't wear them. Course from foreigners, they are more lenient, but people are more willing to speak to you if they can see your eyes.

With this in mind, Jekka had miracle! And it's best if she explains, so I will let her do the talking....
"So, we were challenged by one of the other Chourou in Tokyo to get 40 conversations in one day. Normally, we are supposed to get 10. A conversation is where you share a
brief principle, testify, and then invite the person to come to church. If possible, you try to set up an appointment to have them come to church or have a lesson (that is called a contact). Well, we took him up on that and ganbatti (did our best) the next day. We did it! We didn't get any contacts, but we had forty conversations. It was amazing, and what was more was that I had been feeling a little homesick but as soon as I was stopping people and talking to them, I forgot about it and became focused on the work. It was awesome. I wanted to talk to people. It was fun stopping people. When someone said 'kekkou desu' (no thank you) I bid them a good day and sought out my next victim. Really, I became a missionary on a mission. I learned why these eighteen months are called a mission. It really was a mission. A mission to stop people and find that elect that God has been preparing. Since we've been trying to have forty conversations, we've had a lot more contacts and people say that they want to come to church. It's been awesome.

"So, with that in mind, here's the miracle. Last night, we had finished with a lesson and we had two different routes we could take to get home: the one we took that day or another one that went by a member's house. Kawano Shimai asked me what I thought, and I said the way past the members house, but I wasn't sure. She thought differently so we pedaled a little ways and stopped by a hotel to say a quick prayer. As I was pedaling, I had the thought to go today's way but I was still unsure. Kawano shimai said the prayer, and as she prayed I could only think of the way we had come today. Afterwards, I told her that. She agreed, and we took off. We stopped at a combini (convenience store) to use a toilet and buy a few snacks, and because it was really late we decided to only stop young people. Well, we stopped some Philippine girls heading off to work and gave them chirashi's. After them, there was no one. No one whatsoever (except for danseitachi but we are only supposed to stop joseitachi-women). We started praying for one person. Just one person to talk to. Well, we got to the turn off for our apartment but had to wait because it was a *don't walk* light. On a bike next to us was a girl reading a text on her cell phone. Well, I said 'konbanwa' (Good Evening) to her and she replied with 'good evening'. I was surprised and asked if she spoke some English. She said she did, but only a little so Kawano Shimai started talking to her. We found out that she goes to a christian school and so we told her about our church. Then, Kawano Shimai decided to take a leaf out of Bertagnole Shimai's book (a something she had learned from our last recent exchange) and asked her if she would like to come to church on Sunday. She said she wanted to, so we set an appointment to meet her at 10:00 on Sunday and got her phone. It was great! It was awesome! Had we gone the other way, we would have ridden past her, AND if there were people for us to talk to, we wouldn't have talked to her! Honto ni, Kamisama wa inori wo kotaete kudasaimasu yo! Honto! It's awesome! God is amazing! It was great!"

Jekka has now visited the tallest tower in Japan, the Landmark Tower. Standing 296 meters, it holds offices, a hotel, restaurants, a shopping center and other community space. Apparently you can see Fujisama from the tower, but Jekka couldn't tell cause it was so hazy up there.

She's gotten her bike finally to which she plans on taking a picture of. She would like if possible people to write her letters. There are addresses in the previous post and I'm pretty sure that's how you write it... I'm going to check tomorrow with a friend in the branch who served his mission in Japan as well. I'll also be checking on a few words in here that I'm not sure of the meaning and freetranslation sucks when it comes to Romanji. -.- Dumb. Well, until next time! Write Jekka and Chris!! Any HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Jones Shimai

2008-10-09T09:54:00.000-07:00

"Man, this computer is weird! Holy cow! I keep hitting a key that makes it into Japanese so everything goes all weird, but I'll manage somehow.

So, yes, I am alive. And It's going great. Well, mainly riding our bikes around and knocking on doors because we don't have any progressing investigators so far. We did teach three Chinese college students on Monday and we'll most likely see them tonight at Eikaiwa (English class) and may try to set up another appointment so we can teach them some more. Also, two days ago while we were tracting, we stopped a Korean girl and we got talking with her (Well, Sister Kawano, I just stood there and interjected with my limited Nihongo). The conversation got really intense to the point where Kawano Shimai was teaching the first lesson, the restoration, and I was whipping out pictures of Joseph Smith and President Monson. It was awesome. We also gave her a Book of Mormon and I'm really hoping that she'll call us sometime and come with us to general conference this Sunday. I really hope she does. It was so cool and so exciting. so, yeah, on your part, please pray for her! Her name is Aki San (she's from Korea).

So, other than experiencing riding my bike in the rain, eating REAL Ramen, Octopus and killing my first gokiburi (cockroach) it's been going good. It really has been an interesting experience. NO, I'm not fluent yet. Far from it actually, but yesterday was a really fruitful day in that I stopped a lot of people and I talked to a few people today. I find that especially when tracting I get more and more confident with stopping and talking to people. But, I have far to go. My current goal is to try to have somewhat of a conversation even if I don't get around to the gospel. I just need to talk to people.

A quick spiritual thing: because Kawano Shimai is trying to learn English, she passes off the lessons to me. well, yesterday she did lesson three which is the gospel of Jesus Christ and she shared a couple scriptures about faith and that was when it really hit me of what faith really is. It's seeing with your heart rather than your eyes. This statement makes a lot of sense when you think about why some people don't think there's a God. How can you believe in something you can't see? So, with that in mind, faith is seeing with your heart. When you feel warm inside, that's your heart catching a little glimpse of what God is like. It was a very insightful thing to me.

So, my companion. You probably want to know more about her. She's so freaking awesome!!! She's so pimp! I say it that way because freaking and pimp are her favorite words. She says them all the time and it's so funny. She'll be practicing teaching a lesson and she'll say, I want to share a freaking good scripture. It's so funny! She's so awesome and she loves taking pictures. Yeah, it's great fun.

It really is hard to say how missionary work feels. It doesn't feel very strenuous right not but I can expect it will be. My current frustration is that I want to talk to people but I get only so far and then I don't know how to say anymore. Yeah, I need to just talk and slaughter the language but I'm trying. And one thing that holds me back is that they are so polite and I don't want to offend them. Even though I'm a gaigokujin (foreigner) and can get away with it, I don't want to. Especially in Yamate where there's an international school and so gaigokujin's are somewhat of a common sight. But, I'll keep trying! Don't worry! And I'll try to keep you posted on more things that are going on. Hopefully this next week we'll be able to teach more lessons and get some people to come to church. That would be very nice. So, I'll keep you posted.

Conference is this week due to translation, but I'll still be able to watch it in English. So that's nice.

Until next week, I love you all! So, yeah, that's about all! I love you! The church is true and we can all do a little something to become more like Christ and make the world a better place! Love you!

Jekka Jones/Ba-da-bug!"

CONCERNING ADDRESSES:
If you'd like to write to Jones Choro Chris, his address is as below-
Japan Kobe Mission
4-6-28 Shinohara-Honmachi Nada-Ku
Kobe-Shi, Hyogo 657-0067
Japan

As for Jones Shimai Jekka-
Japan Tokyo Mission
4-25-12 Nishi Ochiai
Shinjiku-ku
Tokyo-to 161-0031
Japan

Jones Choro

2008-10-07T10:18:00.000-07:00

From the Chrisser Bear himself:

"I am in Japan now using a computer in the city hall. It is the only computer in Toyooka that has a computer with accessible internet to the public. We are lucky to have email because ldsmail is the only thing that works. Soshite, Toyooka is a small rural town in the Kyoto region on the other side of the coast from Kobe.

I got to Japan, crashed from jet lag, woke up at 5:45, and enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with our Mission President and mom. She is an awesome cook and they are really, really neat. We stayed there for two days receiving a lot of training. Then we got our trainers. My new companion is named Kunihiro Choro, he is from Fukuoka and is a Nihonjin. He speaks rough English so there is a communication barrier, but he is still an incredible person. He is diligent in his work and knows the area very well.

Toyooka is very fun, we`re working very hard. My bike comes in tomorrow and will cost about 40,000 yen. that`s about 400$. So here bikes are a little expensive because of the rurual area, the main area of Toyooka has only about 90,000 people here. Our branch is very small, there are only 30 people in the ward and all are super amazing, they are so happy and their faith is so so strong. We have two investigators right now, Yamaguchi san and Oike san. We plan to atleast baptize Yamaguchi san by the end of this transfer. This may be a little challenging because she is having a lot of family problems, but God will help her.

Kunihiro choro is an awesome companion, I`ve learned so much Japanese from him because that`s really all I can speak to get my point across to him. There are four of us here in Toyooka, and when we introduced our selves to the members they were so excited to have four missionaries in the area, it`s the first time they ever had this many missionaries here in Toyooka. Of the four of us I`m the only one who doesn`t know Japanese at all, but that`s alright, I can slowly hear the Japanese make sense, I can get the rough meaning out of the conversations. Like yesterday, Kunihiro taught this woman that we housed and taught her the whole first lesson and a bit of the second. That was really cool because at first she wasn`t interested but as we talked the spirit practically punched her in the stomach. If she shows up to Eikaiwa (English lessons) tonight I think we`ll have a new investigator and maybe a baptism she was that interested.

Toyooka is wonderful, its nestled in the mountains with plenty of rice fields and a major river flowing through called Murayama. This place is so wonderful, I love Japan so much and the work is so hard but so much fun. We get kindly rejected everyday, but occasionally we`ll find someone who will listen to our message and we pray that they`ll listen to more. We have to dig to find those few elect individuals, and some times it takes some witty words, but it`s still a wonderful challenge. I have no idea what people are saying, but when I speak I try to give it power because I know I`m slaughtering the language. This place is wonderful, not only is the food delicious but the people are so nice and the kids, who don`t know who we are, scream and run up to their parents saying something about a special gaijin is here (gaijin is foreigner). Sometimes I catch a lot of peoples attention. I apologize if this is terrible typing, I`m still trying to adjust to the keyboards here.

The adventures have been great, right now I`m using an old missionaries bike until I get mine tomorrow that this falling apart mile by mile. Japan is so wonderful, my companion is a pro cook, and there are so many wonders here. If only I could bring people these lessons, they all hide behind several different reasons the two most common are that they are Buddhist and busy. Most of the people probably don`t even know what they worship through Buddhism, but that`s what they say when they don`t want to hear the message. The one girl that we talked to yesterday and placed a book of Mormon and two lesson pamphlets started with that, "Oh I`m Buddhist, not interested", but I replied "That`s okay, because this message is for anyone, it does not matter what you believe, it`ll make you happy" (remind you it was in very, very, very broken Japanese. When she asked me how long I`d been studying I told her two and a half months and she freaked out. When she found out that I was only 19 she was even more astonished, then she was willing to let Kunihiro teach her. Somehow, I have good hopes in this lady.

Well, family, I love you very, very much but I don`t have time to saunter around in daydreams of America so I`ll send a letter telling a few more stories if I have time today because I really want to take a nap. I`m exhausted. P-Days are great no? Anyways, my companion is sleeping on the seat next to me so I better wake him and go. The work is great, challenging, but worth it when you see the Japanese smile. These people are so nice, sometime getting politely rejected is a little let down. I hope some old man chases me through a forest or something so that I can get the "missionary rejected experience". Well, be very careful in your works, tell mike to be good that he`s doing the right thing because this work is wonderful.

Have a Good Day, love your Toyooka faring missionary.

Christopher Michael Jones Choro"

On the way to Nihon!

2008-09-27T13:38:00.000-07:00

So Jekka is doing well and staying way out of the way of being a 10 on the "Girly Scale" not wearing any make up or anything. That's always a good thing. :) Silly girl. She's got some pictures, but is unable to develop them until she gets to Japan, so we'll just have to wait patiently. Chris Choro is doing well, but is starting to get anxious about going to Japan!! He's started giving empty study classrooms names and different people a pokemon name that is equivalent to their personality... Oi! This is the last week before they head out!! So if you do end up sending letters, the letters will need to be addressed differently from their MTC address! I don't know Chris' yet, but I know Jekka's! Be sure to send her letters at this address:

Sister Jessica Catherine Jones
Japan Tokyo Mission
4-25-12 Nishi Ochiai
Shinjiku-ku
Tokyo-to 161-0031 Japan

I know there are a lot of words in there you probably don't know what is going on, but that's what needs to go on the front of the letter!! Also, your best bet if you want to get the letter directly to Japan is to go down to the post office and let them stamp it. It could be from $1 to possibly $6 depending on the size of the letter/package. I'm sure we'll all figure out something right?! The only request that Jekka's made is that we do not write to her saying "Only x-many days left!!". You may count down the days if you wish, but she'd rather not know being it will just distract her. Also if you could send pictures, she would love to receive pictures especially if you have some from the Narrows or the Subway.

Speaking of words, I've written out some Katakana for everyone to have fun with!!! Hope it's readable. I've been having fun figuring out a few words. Have a specific word you want to know? I can totally get it for you with my new software that I downloaded without Mastah's permission. >.>

Story time!!!
So, as I was saying, Chris has started giving names to study rooms such as; The Bat Cave, The Abyss, the Celestial Kingdom (has a window with a view of the temple), the Lone Isles, The Temple of Doom and Valley Forge... Well, one day Glenn Shimai and Jekka are studying in the Bat Cave which is connected to the Abyss by a window, to which has doors you can shut over the window. Example:

SO, when both classroom lights are on, you can see into each room. When the lights are off, you can't see anything from the other room. While Jekka and Glenn Shimai were studying, Glenn thought she heard a knock, so she goes to open the door. Seeing nothing, she closed the door and went back to work. She thinks she heard it again, so she opens the window door again, and puts her face to the glass trying to see into the dark room when BAM! someone slammed their body against the glass. It scared Glenn Shimai so bad Jekka thought she had a heart attack. The people in The Abyss turned on the light to reveal Dean and Fryer Choro laughing their heads off. Silly boys.

As for Chris, his story is that he had a dream that some kid stole a song he made up and he said he could because it wasn't copyrighted and the kid sucked at playing it. That's chis for ya...

Well, that's it for now! Until next letter from Japan, there won't be much posting! Keep in touch though and be sure to write Jekka and as soon as I get Chris' address, him too!!

1 and a half weeks left!!!!

2008-09-20T13:59:00.000-07:00

SO! I apologize for not updating sooner, things around here have been busy and I got over powered and blew a fuse, so by the time Mastah fixed me back up again, I had things going everywhere piled up to do and I feel like a non stop house keeper! ;)

You see right though! Only a week and a 1/2 before our beloved Jekka goes off to Japan with Chris and the rest of the mission crew! She's sent me a few pictures of her mission group and I'll post them at the end of the blog. If you have pictures that you'd like to post from Jekka, paintingpixies@mac.com is where you should send them!! We'll get them posted for ya!!

There were originally only three sisters going to Japan, but now there are two more in the group who aren't in the pictures!

Sister McIntire is half Japanese and so she grew up in Tokyo for a bit before moving to the US for a few more years before going back to attend High School there. Her dad is the mission president of Kobe. She came to the MTC to learn the gospel doctrine in English and learn how to teach. Since she's already fluent in Japanese, she'll leave with Jekka and the others.

Campos Shimai is from Las Vegas and is also going to japan. We don't know much about her other than she is a skinny little bean pole and has a missionary friend in Minnesota whom she is writing.

Sister Shipp is from Salt Lake City and was a friend with one of the teachers. She's headed to Tokyo with Jekka! She spent a semester at BYU Jerusalem for a while as well and loved it!

So those are the new sisters that Jekka is getting along with so well. Jekka also had a rather Girly Girl moment taking the time to go to a Make up class!!! Can you believe that? Oh how Jenni will have a fit about that. Jekka's companion Betagnole Shimai apparently from the experience made a scale of girly girl-ness for those of you who didn't know how girly girl you are:

On a scale from 1-10... 10 being the girliest one could ever be. Changing clothing outfits at least 3 times a day by doing so also changing make up and hair. Everytime a girly girl comes across a mirror she has to stop, examine and fix hair and clothes reapplying make up. This girly girl also has a boyfriend or wants one so bad she goes out of her way to find one. When around boys they are flirty giggly, and "playful" hitting the guys arms at a passing joke. They had the outdoors with a passion afraid to get wet or dirty.

Then there's the complete opposite. These girls only buy boy clothing and wear them, even to the extent of boxers. They never wear make up and they don't care how they look. They like the outdoors and thrive on intense physical activities. Basically full core Tom Boy. Their only acknowledgment to their gender would be using the woman's restroom.

Chris and Jekka laughed at this and have come to the conclusion that Jekka is a 3 and if she ever went past a 5 he would have to take measures (I'm sure Jenni would too) to correct her personality. Jessica promised that she would always remain faithful to a 3 maybe just touching the 4 while she's on her mission, but thrives on being a 3. However, I think that someday Mastah Tori and I will have a bit of fun making her a 5 one day.... maybe higher. :) *evil grin*

In Jekka's classroom they have a new edition to the family. A gnome. That's right, a gnome. There is no name for this gnome yet, but I'm sure one will soon arise before they depart for Japan. A few new words from both Chris and Jekka will be posted up in the Japanese word column soon. She and Chris should be getting their flight plans soon as well so we will expect that as soon as possible! Keep us posted. I promise to update more often! Sorry for the dely in posting!! Next letter I will post a picture of some Katakana as well with Romani. :) Then you'll know some Japanese!

From left to right. Of course, Jekka in her pretty blue shirt. Then Sister Bertagnole and Sister Glenn on the far right.

At the World Map in the Main building trying to point to Japan.
Sendai - Hamzawi Choro, Stewart Choro, and Dobutsu
Tokyo - Jekka, Dean Choro, Fryer Choro and Bertagnole Shimai
Kobe - Glenn shimai, Burton Choro, Shepley Choro and Chris

Her District (27 B) at the Provo Temple on P-Day

from left to right: Burton, Fryer, Shepley, Peterson (aka dobutsu), Chris, Hamzawi, Fryer and Stewart Chorotachi.

Genki Genki!

2008-08-13T07:47:00.000-07:00

Jones Shimai and Choro are doing great spiritually especially! The language is coming along great and soon they'll have to start teaching the lessons in Japanese only! They've only been in the MTC for 4 weeks, but it feels like they've been there for months already!! I have mailed her two letters, one in response to her letter I received and another when I got back from the Asian market and bought some Japanese candy and asked her what it was called. I also asked Jekka for some Katakana and when I get the letter, I'll be sure to post some katakana. Both Chris and Jekka are really missing the outdoors, so maybe I'll send her some hiking pictures, but however, I think being in Memphis, it won't do much good.... So hey! All you who live in Utah, send her pictures of the wondrous outdoors!! Maybe I'll send her a jar of dirt....or soak her letter in the river before sending it. ^_^ Put a leaf within the letter, just a few ideas for ya. Be sure to check out the Japanese list!! I've been adding words onto it with each new letter and e-mail I get! So check it out and maybe you can understand what they're all saying. I know I'm having a blast! I'll be well educated next time I go to an Anime convention. lol Geek=me. Well, as Jekka says, Kono kyoukai wa shinjitsu desu yo! fukuin wa shinjitsu desu yo! (Does anyone think they know what this means.... *goes to freetranslation.com*)

Random pictures!!

Little Changes

2008-07-30T09:10:00.000-07:00

I received both e-mails from Jekka and Chris, and they're both learning the language (Nihongo) very well. They have both been receiving massive ammounts of e-mails at dearelder.com and they thank you. The enjoy the e-mails and will try to write back, but sometimes they really don't have the time to write to anyone, but family.

New words you maybe didn't know:
Kawaii - Cute
Kowai - Scary
Anata no kawaii desu - You're cute!
Anata no kawaii - Informal way of saying "You're cute"

Already I am causing mayhem to the blog as I change a word list into a Japanese list for all to know the words. So instead of posting new blogs everytime I see a new word, I'll just update the list on the right. As you can see, I've also changed a few things on the side bar. DON'T WORRY I DIDN'T LOSE IT! I'm not an irresponsible minion (sometimes) and I've filed it away in my programming for a later day when Jekka wishes to have it back. For now I will keep these files hidden from the Mastah, but hopefully she won't reprogram me.... >.>

Other than that no really new news right now. I'm sure that a letter will come soon or something. The posts will most likely slow down also when October comes around being that they will probably be busy with everything. ^_^ So until another new word comes around, Ja ne!

Goats

2008-07-26T12:24:00.000-07:00

I just received a letter on the how to goats were doing! So I thought I would update again....

Jekka doesn't get to see the goats much really. Right now they are just in the room where the only time she sees them is when she goes to bed. They haven't gotten into any trouble (Thank Heavens) and Rupert took a shower the other day in the bathroom sink! Yay! We're all so proud of him. Francis enjoys cleaning and has been keeping the place tidy or so he says. Jekka thinks he just lounges around, being lazy. Windston has memorized every word in Japanese from the Japanese-English dictionary and we think he is somehow miraculously fluent in Nihongo. She can't understand a word he is saying, but then again, having a goat speak Japanese can be rather difficult to understand.

Here are some new phrases!!!
Matsujitsu seito Iesu Kirisuto Kyokai - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Shimai - Sister Choro - Elder To make either of these plural add -tachi to the end of it. (Chorotachi and Shimaitachi)

So far, she can say prayers and bear her testimony in Japanese. She's learning how to have a conversation and though it's a little harder, she's working at it. She has two companions instead of just one and their little threesome are always together! How cute. So far that's all the news. Don't forget to send her some mail at dearelder.com

Be happy and don't let the platypus steal your apple!

First E-mail!

2008-07-24T18:24:00.001-07:00

Well, Jekka can only e-mail her parents, but her mother was kind enough to e-mail me with some wonderful news! I believe Mastah received it as well? Anyways, she has already had her first P-day! As she says:

"Already, my douryou (companions) and I can teach Lesson 1: The Restoration comfortably, and on Thursday we have a teaching evaluation so we get to see how well our lessons plans are coming and what we can do to improve our lesson and ourselves. The gospel is true! Fukuin wa shinjitsu desu yo."

She's certainly learning the language because it's hard to follow sometimes with her engrish. XD Shimaitachi means sisters and chouroutachi means elders, I've learned that! Also fukuin means Gospel! That's the Japanese lesson for today!

She tells an amusing tale of when she was sitting with some of the other sisters from her district that one of the sisters was shocked that the elders did not stand up when they approached the table to sit, get their glasses of milk, open the doors for them, etc. and was so flabberghasted that she went to the Elders and chewed them out for not being "respectful" like so. Then Jekka got the guts to go stand and apologize for what the other sister had said and that it was uncalled for! (Go Jess!!) She said that she and her other sisters didn't feel like they should be treated as they are delicate saying that they appreciate them already and love them for who they are, that treating them like such would only make them embarrassed. She's awesome to do that!!

After this however, the Elders started to joke around with the sisters and after going to get a drink, two of the elders got on their knees and started bowing saying "Oh wonderful Shimai! You are so wonderful!" (Sounds like she made quite the impression! lol) Then just the other day Jones Chourou (CB) interrupted her and said, "Wait Jones shimai, let me get you a glass of milk!" Of course, being that it was CB, Jekka almost wailed on him saying, "Sit down you little punk!" However, being a missionary now, she stopped short of 'punk'.

Jekka's note to everyone is:
"dearelder.com is a great place to send letters. It's free and it's same-day delivery. All my tomodachi (friends) should give it a shot. . .hint hint *wink wink*"

That's all for the update right now!! I hope to hear more from her again soon!! Keep in touch with her and I'm sure we'll hear more!

"I love you all, and I hope you are staying strong and true to the beliefs you have. I know this church is true and God loves each and every one of us. I look forward to learning more and growing. I have grown so much in five days and I know I will grow more as God helps me learn nihongo and fukuin (japanese. . .gospel). I love you all. Take care!

You're insane and bonkers child,
Jones Shimai (Jekka!)

MUAH HA HA HA HA!!!!

2008-07-20T15:45:00.000-07:00

FEAR ME ALL!!! FOR I AM THE MECHANIAL ANDROID NUISANCE DETECTOR AND INFILTRATOR! I HAVE COME TO TAKE OVER THE JEKKA'S BLOG!!! HA HA HA HA HA!!! (Don't tell Mastah, it's a secret! >.<) FEAR ME!!... are you scared yet? You should be! Be scared!... Now!

I don't think you're scared enough... Oh well, it's not as fun without Jekka... I hope I can make up in humor for what I lack in random for this blog.

I have received your e-mails and will be writing Jekka a short start letter with everyone's addresses. You should receive and e-mail from me later, letting you know that I have written them down in the letter. Feel free to still send addresses if you want an occasional letter to the Jekka Bug. She wants addresses!!! In the meanwhile, feel free to write her as well!!! I have her MTC ADDRESS!

Sister Jessica Catherine Jones (be sure to put her first name and last, middle is optional)
MTC mailbox #160
JPN-TOK 0930
2005 N 900 E
Provo, Utah 84604 1793

I also have another address, one whom would love to hear from you too!!

Elder Christopher Jones
MTC mailbox #160
JPN-KOB 0929
2005 N 900 E
Provo, Utah 84604 1793

That's it for now, I'm still trying to get things organized back at home from my visit. For now, enjoy some pictures and if there's anything you'd like for me to post in a letter, or an address you want to send, e-mail me at paintingpixies@mac.com!

Bon Voyage

2008-07-15T21:16:00.000-07:00

I am off. Tomorrow is the big day. At 12:00 noon Chris and I enter the Mother's Torture Chamber, commonly known as the Missionary Torture Center, but formally known as the Missionary Training Center. There, we will study scriptures and the Japanese Language. There, I will study and train until October 1 of which I will hop on an airplane and journey to Japan.

So, about my dear blog. It will not be shut down, or dismantled, or removed from the world wide web. Au contrare, the Mechanical Android Nuisance (Mastah, we changed it. Is that okay?) Detector and Infiltrator (the minions made me do it), also known as MANDI for short, is going to post my happenings. I will be writing her and sending her pictures at least once a month. I will write little letters to people, thanking them for their letters they wrote to me, but it will go to Mandi in one big bulk letter. Unless I decide to throw everyone off *evil cackle* by writing them back!

Still, I want addresses so send your address to MANDI at paintingpixies@mac.com unless otherwise notified (like my mass email. . .). It will make me most happy.

Her website is also one of the links in the side panel, as well as her blog.

I won't be here until October, I will send Mandi my MTC address once I get it, but after October letters will be received here:

Sister Jessica Catherine Jones
Japan Tokyo Mission
4-25-12 Nishi Ochiai
Shinjuku-ku
Tokyo-to,
161-0031

So, yeah, that's the scoop. Aaaand, yes, my Goaties are traveling with me. They are most excited and will help me retain my insanity for the two and a half months that I'll be in the MTC. I'm also taking peanut butter. YUM!! You can take the Jekka out of the weird, but you can't take the weird out of the Jekka!

Well, that's all for now. As tribute to everyone. . . .Mandihasbrushedandplayedwithmyhair. . . AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

*goats dive for cover*

In Which a House Has Many Ways

2008-07-12T08:57:00.000-07:00

I love Howl. :D

And the countdown has actually gotten to a small, manageable number: four days.

That's kinda freaky and a little exciting. I report to the MTC in four days, where I will study both the scriptures and the Japanese language before wandering off to Japan.

Wow. It's actually happening! Luckily my story's finished so I won't have that constantly on my mind.

Er, yeah, that's about all.

I love Howl. :D

LA LA LA LA LA

2008-07-05T09:27:00.000-07:00

LA LA LA LA LA

Mandi's song!

LA LA LA LA LA

Mandi's song!

She likes the music

She likes the words

THAAAAT'S MAAANDI'S SOOOOOONG!!

:D

And on that note, I recently bought Diana Wynne Jones' newest book: House of Many Ways which so happens to be a sequel to Howl's Moving Castle. Yesh, I am most excited to read it.

Four days and eight hours left

2008-06-26T15:24:00.000-07:00

Yeah, that's right! Four days left! Four! You heard me! FOUR!!

What do you say to that huh? HUH? What do you say to that you mean old tomato! I DON'T GET TO EAT YOU! HA! Because guess what!

I finished my story. Including the epilogue! Eight notebooks! It took me five years and three months to finish it but its done!!!

(Don't ask how many pages. Even I don't know that.)

So take that! And that! Aaaaand THAT! *pokes and kicks tomato* I'm done!

And I feel exactly how I feel after finishing a really good book. Only difference is that I know what I'm going to do next. I'm going to try to get as much typed up as I can before my mission. It's a shame my lappy went haywire. . .literally. But I'll try to commandeer Chris' or the laundry computer.

I just can't believe it! I'M FINISHED! The rough/first draft is out of the way!

*Francis hopes onto desk* Jekka, now that you're finished what are you going to do next?

*traps Francis in a jar* I am going to read. I'll start typing tomorrow.

Butterfly nets and faeries

2008-06-24T11:14:00.000-07:00

I finally bought a butterfly net. Ever since Kayleigh and I saw them at Lin's I've been wanting one for no other reason than just to have it. Well, I was at Macey's yesterday with Mummy and Chris and I saw them there on sale for 69 cents. So, after much begging and firm explanation that I want it just to have it (a perfectly good explanation in my opinion) Mummy let me get one.

I love it! When I got home, I caught Midnight with it, or tried to. She ran away before I could do it. But I caught Peej. She gave me a funny look and tried to run away, but she only got more caught in the mesh. The silly kitty. But yeah, I have a butterfly net and it's cool.

Now that I have a butterfly net, and Zoie chan kindly reminded me that today is National Fairy Day, I'll go catch meself a fairy or two. I'll let them go, don't worry. I don't want to keep a fairy indoors overnight. They turn into ugly things.

I see the confusion on some of your faces. . .read Fablehaven.

Winston, put down that Thesaurus and come fairy hunting with me. Maybe we'll end up in Neverland!

*grabs net and runs off*

Polly wanna cracker!

2008-06-18T14:25:00.000-07:00

What does the title have to do with anything? Absolutely nothing. Really. Nothing whatsoever. I'm just sitting around in the Doldrums, not really doing anything productive. Which is the best thing for anyone to do in my opinion.

Okay so I have been somewhat productive in the thinking sense. I finished the Phantom Tollbooth. So good! People should go and read it, right now. And I also read The Foundling by Lloyd Alexander, also way good. I enjoyed all the stories, with characters I knew or didn't know so well. My favorite was Kadwyr the Rascal Crow. And now I'm going to read Brave Deeds which is a book about my Oma and Opa Braal when they were part of the Dutch Underground Resistance in Holland during WWII. So, we'll see how that goes.

Yeah yeah, I'm still writing. In fact, I should probably stop doing nothing and get out of these Doldrums to do something. Fear not, I won't think too hard. That's painful stuff.

Come Rupert! To the car! And start thinking!

Tagged

2008-06-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

*struggles with radio collar* NO! I won't be part of scientific research! No! No! Nonononononononono! Mononoke? :D

Well, Mastah tagged me, so some of you will be eager to know about my favorite authors and whatnot (see her blog) but guess what! I'M NOT TELLING YOU!!! MUAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!

Why? Because I can! That's why! It's pure and simple! Tee hee!

Fraaaaancis! Oh, Francis! We must go and play with the side walk chalk! Why? Because it's fun! Let's go! *grabs goat by the horn*

"It's like exercise"

2008-06-10T09:22:00.000-07:00

"When you don't do it for a long time, it's exhausting. But if you're always exercising then your not dead after doing it. Clothes shopping is exactly the same thing. You're exercising a part of your brain when it comes to colors and styles." That's what Dad said and boy was he right!

So, yesterday was clothes shopping for Missions, and I did not expect it to be so tiring! First we went to Mr. Mac where Chris got outfitted for suits and whatnot. I tried on a couple of nice, modest dresses they had there and ended up buying one. Other than that, I wasn't feeling stressed at all or anything like that.

And then we went to the Sister Missionary Mall.

Boy, was I tired. How do girls do that?! Seriously! After the first two blouses and skirts I was ready to be done, but the lady helping me just kept throwing in more and more blouses and skirts, vests and sweaters. Mom ended up staying in the dressing room with me to help me mix and match, which I am so grateful for. I was so confused. When I first walked in, the nice lady told me to look around and she would go ahead and pick some stuff out for me. Well, I looked around and found nothing of particular interest. So I just went into the dressing room.

Man, I was so tired. And we're not even done yet! Some of the clothes we bought are dry clean or hand wash only, so we have to take them back. And, due to the heat and humidity in Japan during the summer, I'd like to get one more skirt that's really light weight and made of cotton. I'll have six skirts!!! Six!!! I suppose that's alright, but aaaahhhh!!!

I have already made a sacrifice: My Tomboy-ness.

What's more, tomorrow we're going to go look around some other places with one of Mom's friends. She's an expert on mixing and matching (ideal for a mission: as little clothes as possible with a variety of combinations at the same time all able to be chucked into the washing machine or dryer) so she's going to really help us.

Two things I learned on this outing:

1-Look at the tags
2-Sister Missionary Mall is a good place but go to other places too

I will be happy when the shopping's done. :P Winston, what are you doing now? Get away from Peej, you're a toy to her. AH!

Kitten attacking goat, gotta go!

Rain!

2008-06-07T09:16:00.001-07:00

This has been a good week. My "Astral" travels haven't been as entertaining as I would hope, but that may be because I have been very inquisitive in my dreams as of late. I think my dream self is getting more and more curious. I hope it's careful, curiosity is lethal.

Rain! :D

I've been doing very well on my goal for finishing my story. I've been writing two pages every day, and today I'm going to actually go all out and finish an event. An event being, well, an event that moves the story closer to completion. Keep this up, self, and I will finish before June 30! And I won't have to eat a tomato.

For those of you who don't know, I have until June 30, 2008 to finish my story. If I don't finish it by that time, then the result is the tomato consumption. *gasp* No one knows what the tomato consumption is? That's easy to explain, here's my definition of a tomato:

Tomato: A vile fruit that is fat and red and tastes disgusting. It is a vital ingredient for ketchup and spaghetti sauce (which is tasty), but alone, as a fruit, causes gagging, chocking, nasty aftertaste, vomiting, and in some cases death.

Does that answer any questions?

Rupert, go outside and take a shower now!

Bring forth the wine

2008-06-02T10:13:00.000-07:00

Seriously, I got some wine for my 12th birthday!!! My Grandma and Grandpa gave it to me to celebrate the day that I am officially, cleverly disguised as an adult! Hooray! And what's more, I got The Foundling by Lloyd Alexander for my birthday too! I'm so happy!

Anywho, we got a new cat. A white one. She's two months old. Has a very light brown tail. And though we all agreed to call her Peej, which is jeep backwards, we still have our own names for the little white thingy. I call her Little One, Chris and Mike call her Clump, and Kaitlyn calls her the Poopsmith, and Dad nicknamed her Terdtail. Muffers likes her, and Midnight hates her.

Before we were just wading through fur, now we're swimming in it. *rolls eyes* Okay okay, I admit, the little thing is cute. Dad likes her. Yes, I like her. . . .She's tiny and fun to hold.

So, yeah, birthday was fun. Saturday we went out to eat at Sizzler's and though the Elvish Pirate Gypsy Minion Fiend could not attend (curse lesson-planning), Mastah did along with my dear childhood friend, Alice. That was fun. Yesterday, being my birthday, we had a big barbecue with lots of food and Grandma Curtis' to-die-for ribs. *mouth salivates* I love food too much.

I haven't tried the wine yet. I kinda want to, just to see what it's like. I'd rather try that than go and gamble. As much as I joke about it. Gambling is dumb. I mean, why stick money in slots or lose it to a card game when you can go and buy a book? Which reminds me. . .I want a trip to the book store. I have some birthday money to spend. . . >:D

Francis, ready the car! And bring the wine!

The Blue Screen of Death

2008-05-29T09:33:00.000-07:00

I think my lappy is starting to kick the bucket. It takes forever to turn on, and yesterday it kept restarting itself. It would get to a certain point, and then I would see a flash of a little blue box and it would restart. It would get to the same point, I would witness the little blue flash, and then it would restart.

I think I know what is wrong. The stupid hinge is coming out and that may have caused some damage to the motherboard thingy.

Oh well, luckily I have all my updated Samurai and stories on my jumpdrive! Those are safe!

Francis, go get the pinecones and hollyberries from that last post. I don't know why you put them there. Yes, you can eat the berries and throw the pinecones at Rupert. I'm alright with that.

Pinecones and Hollyberries

2008-05-27T08:34:00.000-07:00

I got my mission call! Chris and I, both at the same time. A lot of you probably know this already but I feel like posting it anyways.

I was called to serve in the Tokyo, Japan mission, and Chris was called to serve in the Kobe, Japan mission. We both will be learning Japanese (nihongo) and we both report to the MTC on July 16, 2008. For those of you who are itching to come and watch us speak (and laugh at us), our farewells are on July 13, that sunday before we leave. I assume it's going to be my normal church time, which is 9 am. But, I'll keep y'all posted on that as it gets closer.

But, yeah, wahoo!

Aaaaaaand on to other business. I and the Elvish Pirate Gypsy Minion Fiend saw Prince Caspian and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull over the holiday break. Prince Caspian was awesome! I liked it lots and I want to go see it again. Bad. Like, really bad. It was so good. Indiana Jones 4 was alright. The third one is still my absolute favorite, but the fourth one probably comes in second. I don't know. I kinda need to watch the first one again. Heh heh. Other than that, it had the same suspenseful yet cheesy fighting (you know, the kind where you know the bad guy will eventually die) as all the other movies. And it was funny. But, yeah. Prince Caspian: awesome. Indiana Jones: Pretty Good.

And since I'm posting. . .I had a crazy dream last night that I went back to Payson High School to go to school. The weird thing though was that all my teachers from college were teaching there. Professor Simon was my English teacher, but English was more like foods class in that we ate a bunch of food, learned etiquette, and then did research on stuff from our future careers that had to do with eating. For some reason, my research was on the deep-see fishies. Which was cool but I don't think those fish are exactly tasty. Then my history teacher who was named Mr. Green (but was in fact Ryan Paul from SUU) accused me of taking a history book and never returning it. But I had never used one of his books in my research and so I had to go talk to him about that. Except that my Japanese teacher wanted me for something (no, she did not teach japanese in my dream) and that made me more stressed out. . .and on top of that I had a test and I forgot to put on my shoes and grab a pencil (though those turned up later in my dream). I think I would have gone bonkers had not Jenni been there in her awesome Elvish Pirate Gyspsy outfit (without shoes though) to guide me around Payson High. And then, I said to myself in my dream "Why am I at Payson High School? I'm not even in school anymore." To which myself replied "Jessica, you're serving your mission at Payson High School"

And then I woke up wondering what the heck I had just dreamed. Of course, as crazy as this is, it's nothing compared to the Elvish Pirate Gypsy's dreams. But, I felt like sharing.

Winston, I want you to hide any books dealing with learning! I don't want to see them! I'm sick of having dreams where I'm still in school! Put them away, NOW!! Go read the Calvin and Hobbes books instead. You'll learn everything you need to know from those two hooligans.

It's raining, it's pouring

2008-05-21T11:21:00.000-07:00

Sooo, I wanted to get some pictures of Robber's Roost and post them, but, as always, I'm too lazy to go and get them from Dad so they'll have to come later. Other than that: The hike was awesome and horrible at the same time. The first three miles were a blast with much scrambling through slot canyons, Fat Man's Misery, and rappelling down cliffs (one being a free-fall). After all that fun stuff though, it was ten miles of trudging through heat, sand, and over rocks.

The definition of Forever is South Fork of Robber's Roost. It's also the definition of Eternal Hell. It took forever before we got to Middle Fork, then to the Dirty Devil River, before we threw down our packs on the banks of the Dirty Devil and went to sleep.

Funny story though, right after we had all settled down for bed I felt something move under my sleeping bag. Well, I thought it was my sleeping bag being weird so I kicked my tarp. It moved again. Confused, I sat up and looked at the spot and saw it moved. I yelled at dad to wake up, and I told him that there was something under my tarp. He sat up and looked, and just then my tarp moved again and something black skittered out from under it. Dad grabbed his headlight and shone it on it.

Lo and behold, it was a little froggy!

After that, we got serenaded by all these frogs. But they weren't the pleasant croaking and bloatings (sorry, Gurgi there. . . . ) but sounded as if the frogs were being flattened by a steam roller and then covered in cement at the same time. It was rather funny to listen to. Not to mention, when we woke up in the morning, a bird starting screeching like it was going to die. It was a very odd adventure.

But, I'm home, no longer sore (except for my bruised big toe. I've never had a toe bruised under the nail before. NOT PLEASANT!!!).

AND IT'S RAINING!!! Oh glorious, beautiful, wonderful, sweet, wet RAIN!!!

Of course, once it lets up, then it'll be time to tackle our weed-chocked garden, but that won't be too difficult. The ground will be nice and soft. And muddy. Which means. . . .

MUD FIGHT!!!

*starts throwing mud at goats* Come on, goaties, come and get me!

In answer to Mandi's question. . . .

2008-05-14T09:52:00.000-07:00

I think there's five indian tribes. . .

Choctaw, Chikasaw, Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole.

Does that sound right?

Isn't it sad that after a whole year we still remember that?

whistles

2008-05-12T17:56:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a while so I felt like posting. Here's some postings and happenings:

Saturday was a lovely time with Fiend and Mastah. We went to Barnes and Nobles where Mastah got her book signed by Jessica Day George (author of Dragon Slippers) and I got to briefly talk to Brandon Sanderson. What was a big killer was that he had the early copy of Hero of Ages sitting on the table. Yeah, I was salivating. Gosh I can't wait to read that!

Been watching Full Metal Alchemist with Nathan. I regret giving in to his incessant nagging because of the thematic elements in that anime, but. . .it's been fun watching them with him. And I did inform him that it's okay if he wants me to skip a part. Though, with how that anime goes, he may not want to. . .

I've been reading the Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander. I'm on The Black Cauldron right now. So good!

I'm going hiking this weekend! Yay! Robber's Roost! A two-day hike near Canyonlands Nat'l Park! :D

Aaaand, I wrote more today. Just half a page but it was something! I need to get writing. . .If I don't have that book done by June 30, I'll have to eat a tomato. *shudders* I do not want to do that so I best start writing everyday!

Okay, er, that's all. Oi, Rupert! Go take a bath! You stink like skunks! Have you been playing with skunks again? RUPERT!!

*goes to get the tomato juice* Darn goat!

(Mandi: Once I steal a camera, I'll take a picture and post it of my goats so you can see 'em)

Yay for Pinata's!

2008-05-05T20:33:00.001-07:00

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

And to celebrate it, we mutilated a pinata! It was so much fun. Dad had gotten it when he and my aunt went to Bajio. The Bajio people gave every customer a little pinata with a number on it, which matched up to a prize. Dad got a T-shirt and my aunt got a gift certificate.

Well, Dad brought it home, and Steph got the brilliant idea of filling it with candy. So she filled it with candy, Dad found a rope and threw it over a branch on our big oak tree, and then we proceeded to knock the candy out.

Nathan went first, and he hit it once (we each got three swings to try to hit it), and then Stephanie went, then Dad went (he almost hit it) and then I went. I totally whacked it and decapitated it! It was awesome! We all gathered around the pinata and munched on the candy, and then we decided to mutilate the rest of it so we kept whacking it until its body was in shreds. It was lots of fun. A great family home evening activity. . . minus Mom and Chris but it was still fun!

I wonder if goats make great pinatas. . .

Oh goaties. . . .

Home again home again

2008-05-04T19:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is more for Mandi than anyone else. So, if you're not a Manda Panda then go and do something exciting. Like goat floating. . .

Shame on you for not knowing about goat floating! You throw goats into a pond until they sink. Then you hightail out of there before the grumpy farmer catches you!

Okay, so, Mandi, I will come and visit you if it kills me. I will. I was practically fainting from looking at the airplane prices, but I'm going to see if mom will pay half of the ticket for me. If it kills me I will come and see you! Promise! I want to see you! Chris said that he would like to come, and that would be fun, but I'll have to talk to him more about that. I'm sorry it's taking me so long, but I just barely recovered from the O-chem book-buying spree at the start of this year and with Grandma sick with cancer, Mom has been at her house every day, all day so that she can help her. Don't worry, I'll get with Mom and talk to her sometime this week and then I'll let you know when I'd like to come. Along those lines, if there's any day that will not be good for picking me up, or me coming in general, let me know so I can plan around that. Seriously. Anything that would compromise me getting picked up (I'll be flying into Memphis) I'd like to know. I'm sorry it's been such a pain, but. . . .

If you wait, I will come. . .

Now for the rest of you: I'm home! *and there was much rejoicing* And what's more was that right on my bed, still in its package, just waiting to be opened, was FULL METAL ALCHEMIST SEASON 1 PART 1!!!! And part 2 is on its way! And as soon as I get it I'm going to get season 2 part 1! And then part 2! And then maybe the movie!! And then I'll have all of Full Metal!! And then I can rest in peace!! And then I can spend more money on books and visiting Mandi and friends instead of saving it for my mission!! Yeah, I'm a little thrilled. Just a little. :D

And and and, as I was unpacking and situating stuff, I uncovered my little remote control jeep I got as a cruel gift for my sixteenth birthday from Mom and Dad. After a bit of digging, I found the charger and charged the batteries for close to four hours. It was long, but I was putting stuff away during that time. Afterwards though. . .muahahaha! It was so much fun! I was driving it everywhere, startling Katie and scaring Midnight. It was great!

And then, I had to clear one of my shelves in my closet to make room for the many books I happened to buy while at college. I now have five shelves stuffed with books. I'm running out of room! What am I gonna do when I run out? Fortunately, I don't have to worry about that until after my mission. Time to procrastinate on that thought!

Well, yeah, that's about all. . . .Winston, I just put that jeep away! Turn it off right now! If you don't, I'll take YOU goat floating! WINSTON!!!

Pardon me, but I have to go and stop a goat before he steers that thing over the other two.
*scurries off*

No Water, No Problem

2008-04-30T07:57:00.000-07:00

Except that it's finals week.

The two basement apartments are flooding, as well as a basement apartment in the building next to us.

A girl in the apartment next to us has to move to a different room so maintenance can drill a hole into her wall.

The water pipes are in their death throes.

And we have no water!

Yeah, isn't the end of the school year great?

On the bright side, I bought The Golden Compass yesterday and me and my roomies all watched it last night. It made me so happy. I also went to Braun's Books too and bought four books. They are as follows:

The Book of Three
The Black Cauldron (really nice, new covers for these first two!)
The Cay
The Outsiders

Hmmm, all of those start with "the". . . .What a strange coinkidink! Oh well.

Hey Rupert, I think you should go take a bath while the waters still there in D2. You need a bath BADLY!!!

Well, I best continue to pace around until 10:45, which is when I need to leave for my Chem final. I'd do some studying but I feel I've done as much as I've been able to. Anymore won't be of much help, methinks. So, off to pace.

*starts pacing*

Study Day

2008-04-28T15:50:00.000-07:00

It is so hard to study when you practically studied the material the week before. I mean, I had an out of class homework assignment in O-chem which basically was to prepare me for the ACS. Well, I feel pretty prepared. All I'm doing right now is reading the end-of-chapter reviews and working a couple of problems, but I feel ready. Unfortunately my final isn't until Wednesday at 11 am. I'm going to be so bored! I know I won't try cramming some last minutes studying that day becuase cramming does not work with O-chem. If you don't know the stuff by test day then there's nothing much else you can do.

It seems like I'm whining but I'm really not. My brain's just shot with all this studying. I need something else. . .chocolate, anime, a walk. . .a walk is good. Maybe I'll go for a walk? That'll be good. I like walks. They're good for my spleen. . . .

Francis, take over for me.

helo, ths is fragnchifs. i;'m sojrry fkor the mspekllings buyt it igs diffhibcuklt too tyipfe. i',m gtoo sgmdajll. baa1

Exploding Coconuts

2008-04-25T08:06:00.000-07:00

Do coconuts migrate? They do in Cedar City! And specifically in the hands of myself, Alex, Kayleigh, and Nena.

You see, one coconut last night at 8:00 pm migrated from Wal-Mart, to our apartment, and then to the roof of the science building where it committed suicide with a resounding SPLAT! on the sidewalk below.

Yup, we threw a coconut off the science building.

It was awesome! We didn't drain any of milk out so when it went SPLAT! it went SPLAT! It was awesome! We decided that it will be a yearly event to celebrate the ending of one year of school.

Don't worry, we're currently in the process of separating coconut meat from shell, drenching it in sugar and then roasting it. We roasted some yesterday, and it was gu-ud!

Rupert! Winston! That is not a coconut! That's a watermelon! We won't be able to cover our tracks as well with that! No! Stop!

*flees*

Blah Blah

2008-04-23T14:45:00.001-07:00

Hmmm. . . .I'm hungry.

*sings* Tonari no Totoro. To-to-ro!

Francis, don't you dare rescue Minnie!

To read or not to read. That is the question.

Of course, I could write. . . .

Anime club today. Yipee!

My Sharphin is gnawing on my brand new brush. Good sharphin!

For those who don't know, Sharphin is half-dolphin, half-shark.

Some idiot is playing their rap again. *retaliates with Rush*

How would I define poetry? Crazy? Weird? Confusing?

Inquisitive minds should not go on walks.

Walks are good for the spleen. (Not scientifically proven).

New Avatar episodes start airing on TV July 14. :P

TWO MORE DAYS OF CLASSES LEFT! *explodes*

First Anime Convention

2008-04-19T16:33:00.000-07:00

So, after being roped unwillingly (or was it willingly?) into watching Anime, I went to my first Anime Convention today. Boy, was it fun. I didn't stay the entire time, for about three hours actually, but it was really fun. I would love to go to another one, especially a bigger one. This one in St. George was really small, small enough for them to hold it in the lobby of Holiday Inn. Yeah, it was small, but. . . .

I didn't really meet and talk to the voice actor who was the guest of honor just because Anime is still new to me, along with all the voice actors. But, his name was Jerry Jewell and he did the voices of Kyo Sohma in Fruit's Basket (very cute show, I highly recommend it) and Barry the Chopper in Full Metal Alchemist. He also did several other ones that I didn't know just because I haven't watched them yet (or don't really feel like watching: Yu Yu Hakushou for example). I did get his autograph on my program just because I could and I figured "Why not? I'm here aren't I?"

He was a cool guy too. There was a panel that the Anime Con hosts put on where all us fans got to ask him all sorts of questions and he answered them with a laugh and a smile. It was lots of fun. That was the highlight of the whole experience, especially when he started getting requests to do the voices of all the characters he did. Kyo's was especially funny. When a girl asked him to do that, rather shyly, he said (and pardon the language but it's so the character): "Dammit! People always ask me to do that!!" It was so funny! I laughed so hard! It's so Kyo!

For those of you who haven't seen Fruit's Basket, I'll have to show it to you. It's those kind of shows where no matter what episode you watch, or how much of one, you walk away feeling absolutely happy. It's such a cute Anime.

Anywho, so, I did get something from the Con. Unfortunately, they didn't have a good selection of merchandise. In fact, compared to what I was expecting, they really had nothing. Just a bunch of Americanized mainstream Anime action figures and trading cards (like Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Gundam Wing) and a lot of Miyazaki merchandise. I was really surprised that they didn't have any Fruit's Basket merchandise or other Anime that Jerry was in. I did get a stuffed Totoro carrying a leaf. It cost a pretty penny, mainly because (according to the saleslady) they have been discontinued in America as well as Japan. Yeah, it was expensive, but I'm glad I got it all the same.

There were a lot of people who were dressed up (the infamous cosplaying that is almost a must at Anime Cons) and once I get the pictures from Kayleigh, I'll post them. There was one girl dressed up as Link. That was cool to see.

Well, I'm done typing now, but before I go and take a short nap: Yup! That quote from my last post is from Hook. Kudos to Lizardbreath and Alex! Er. . .yeah. *leaves*

"Lightening has struck my brain"

2008-04-18T07:58:00.000-07:00

Does anyone know what movie that's from? I'll give you a clue: AWESOME!!! *wicked cackle*

Anywho, so I was looking at some past assignments from English 2010, and more specifically I was looking over this personal collage I had done. Well, one of the things I had written in this collage was the story of how Samurai came about. It was in this that I had a sudden thought:

According to that (which I remembered to be true) I had started writing my story in March 2004, which means I've only been working on it for four years. I always thought I was five years going onto six, but I'm not. Just four going onto five (but soon to finish!). It was a rather pleasant discovery.

I'm not a hopeless case!

Okay, so I am. I've already chosen two anime series to buy. Which was a very difficult thing to do becuase I still want to buy so many books! Gah! Anime. . .books. . .anime. . .books. *screams and pulls hair*

Okay, so much for that. I'm going to go read now. Winston, take over for me.

BAaah, baah, baaah, baaaaaaah! Baaah! *clicks goat heels together and snorts* Baaah, baah!

Yeah, you do sound like a sheep. . . .

Why I want to be a Marine Biologist

2008-04-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

Every so often, I do or attend something dealing with Biology and every single time I walk away just remembering why I wanted to be a Marine Biologist in the first place. Well, today was one of those days.

There was a convocation today and the speaker was a deep-sea explorer by name of Edie Widder. She was so cool! And her presentation: AWESOME!!! She showed all these cool pictures that she herself took on her deep-sea explorations of viperfish, loose-jawed fish, jellies, and squids. She even had some rarely-seen video clips of six-gill sharks (deep-sea dwelling sharks) foraging for food.

Which was really cool. These sharks grow to be 12 feet in length, which is really hard to comprehend in the deep-sea environment where a fish is lucky to get a meal. However, these sharks forage in the sand, swallowing it and blowing it out through their gills and catching sand-dwelling critters for dinner. Dr. Widder had a video clip of that that she showed us. It was so cool!

She was able to get those video clips because she built the Eye-In-The-Sea. Which, for many who don't know, is a camera that sits on the bottom of the sea, with a little jellyfish-like light-up contraption that attracts other deep-sea creatures. Well, it was thanks to this contraption that she was able to discover the foraging techniques of the six-gill shark, and to see a squid that has not been seen before, and therefore has not been categorized in a family. She came up with this idea because the deep-sea submersibles make noise and so they scare away much of the wildlife (which, as she pointed out, is a probable reason why a giant squid has never been seen alive. They've only been found dead, floating on the ocean surface). The Eye-In-The-Sea, being very quiet, will allow scientists to see critters that have not been discovered yet.

It was just so cool. And I loved it. I wish I could get a hold of some of her pictures. They were so cool! And she had a good one of a viperfish (I did a presentation on that fishy in my fish class) and its modified first dorsal fin ray, which it uses as a lure to attract prey. That is why I want to be a marine biologist. I want to dive down into the deep oceans and see aviperfish for myself and other bioluminescent creatures doing their thing. It's just so fascinating. Nature is amazing! Science is amazing!

*sigh* I love this world.

Full Metal Alchemist

2008-04-10T10:54:00.001-07:00

Thanks to my best buddy Heather, I now have the Full Metal Alchemist soundtrack!

^_^

Heather found this picture for me on Deviantart. I don't remember the artists name but its there in isty bisty teeny weeny black letters at the bottom (I very nearly typed "yellow polka-dot bikini"). It makes me happy.

Yeah, I'm a nerd. So, update on my current Anime because I can:

Full Metal Alchemist
The Get Backers (Almost done!! Only two more episodes left!!)
Kino's Journey
Black Cat

I guess School Rumble too, but those four above are more of a priority. I can find school Rumble online. So yeah, that's all folks!

Rupert! Get away from my books! You're going to make them all smelly! Get away! *throws flowers, strawberries, and all matter of pleasant-smelling things at Rupert*

The white bugs are falling again!

2008-04-09T08:29:00.001-07:00

It's April!!! Why is it snowing?!?! Why?!? I thought we were done with that?!? I love the snow and all but I am ready for some rain and thunderstorms!

Did I offend the Gods in some way? Is Ryine angry at me and so Fristine is avenging her hurt feelings? What's going on?!

Francis, go ask Septos what's going on. He's close to Ryine, maybe he will tell us.

*sigh* It's sticking too. Maybe Septos will throw in some lightening with the snow. Hmmm. . .I've never heard of that before: lighting snowstorm. That sounds kinda cool. . .I'll have to remember that. . .throw it in a story somehow. . .that would be cool.

Blah, it's that time again! Off to class. Fishies!!!

Humorscopes

2008-04-06T10:11:00.000-07:00

While listening to General Conference, I decided to check out the humorscopes for today. There were so many funny ones that I just wanted to share my favorites with all my good friends:

Ares- Once you're that far behind, there's really no way to get caught up. You might as well do something fun instead. You can tell them I told you it was ok.

Leo- You will be on your way downtown today, when you will be struck by an odd thought. Fortunately it will bounce harmlessly off you.

Libra- Your cat will go thundering past you on the linoleum, but will miss the doorway by an inch or so. You will hear an odd "ping!" sound as her head hits the doorjamb. No harm will be done.

Sagittarius- Today you will rush around in a tizzy. It will be sort of fun, actually, since the tizzy handles well, and has more than enough power to make an exciting ride.

Capricorn- Someone will ask you for your advice. Don't give it! Or if they insist, simply shake your head solemnly, and mutter "Much bad juju", and refuse to clarify. They only want a scapegoat.

Aquarius- Your ancestors were berserkers -- feared warriors who attacked without fear or common sense. You will soon enter the same state of mind, and when you finally "snap out of it", you will find an enormous pile of peeled potatoes and family members edging towards the door.

Pisces- Nothing unusual today. Unless you count that episode with the iguana...

Okay, so practically all the humorscopes today were awesome.

What was that Winston? You want advice on how to burn the dictionary? Advice bad juju, Winston! Go burn the mathbook instead.

Have a good Sunday everyone!

Beware Angry Bloggers

2008-04-04T14:37:00.000-07:00

Screw the tires!!!!

Seriously, I swear Squirjee is a screw magnet. I got another screw in the tire again! This time, it had a washer (I think that's what it is. It's the flat thing that normally the screw goes into to help hold things together) so my tire didn't go flat immediately, but it was enough that I need a new tire.

Unfortunately, they didn't have any tires in stock that were cheap. The cheapest was $114 and if it wasn't for Chris being there to help me out, I may have bought it. Though, I can't be sure and now that I think about it I probably wouldn't have. I can be a blonde sometimes but that much for one tire. . .yeah, I wouldn't have done it. Forget that last sentence. . . .But, the earliest Big-O is going to get the tire-size I need will be Tuesday. Until then, Chris is letting me borrow his car to go to work, which brings me to a much happier note. . .

My last day is actually Thursday next week! There wasn't enough labor money for my manager to schedule a lot of people and she asked me if I would be offended if she only scheduled me for one day. I told her I wasn't, so Thursday is my last day! Which means I only have three more days of work! I am so happy!

Well, I'm going to go read some more because books=happiness and I could use a little more happiness right now. Have a, er, good day!

His Dark Materials

2008-03-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

So I just finished reading His Dark Materials, the trilogy that The Golden Compass is a part of, and all I can say is: It's just a story, and a good story at that. Sheesh.

Some people's kids, that's all I have to say. Man, if anything I'd love to have a little more on what happens to Will and Lyra afterwards. The book I have (all three in one volume) has little excerpts called Lantern Slides which is just snippets on parts of the story that isn't told in the story itself, and there is one about Lyra at age eighteen. Unfortunately it's just a paragraph, and doesn't really say much other than she's studying the aleithiometer and can somehow communicate with Will. Gah! I hated how it ends! It's so infuriating!!

And I want a daemon! That's so cool! I want a constant companion that goes everywhere with me. It's so cool!

Now, I have four books I can read next. Well, three since one of them is a sequel (The Year of the Griffin) so I think I'll write some more of Samurai, then decide on what book to read.

Ooooh, that would be a great discussion. Hey, Winston! I need you to help me with this debate on what book to read next! No, Francis, I don't want a joke book. . . .Rupert, you're the one who needs a book about keeping one's self clean! Compared to you, our shower is germ-free!

Okay, maybe not. There are things living in our shower. . . .

Oh, and it's Mastah Genius Day! So go find a Mastah near you and break their dishes, play in their laundry, and tinker with their doomsday devices! Happy Birthday Mastah!

Much Ado About Nothing

2008-03-29T10:08:00.000-07:00

Friday was a good day, yesterday. It's so nice being a science major. Your classes get cancelled because your teachers have to be present at the high school science fair being hosted by SUU. I had no classes yesterday, it was so nice. Though, I did work on some homework. Well not some, just one homework. I was sweating bullets over a stupid poem analysis paper, trying to figure out what to write and how to put into coherent terms so I don't sound so vague.

Which is a very difficult thing to do. Poetry is already vague enough without having to try to explain your interpretation of it. It's so difficult it should be shot. Don't worry, I got it done though.

On top of having no classes, I got off of work early. I believe due to the increase in gas prices, people are limiting their driving around town to when they absolutely need it. That and the sun setting at 7:30 pm. Needless to day, we were short on labor so after I stocked candy and popcorn and ran the last stack of returns, I was free to go home. Of which I then went to Off the Cuff and laughed so hard I'm surprised my cheeks aren't sore.

Oh, Mom, they were doing this one game in which the audience chooses a one-syllable name, and the comedians all sing a song to it so that the last word of the line they're saying rhymes with the name. They keep going until a person fails to come up with a new rhyme, or says one that was used before, and then they start all over again with a new name. I yelled out Spock on a new round and they used it! It was so funny, and they got really far on his name. It was a great night.

Well, yeah, that's all. . .off to buy a present for Mastah now. Her special day's tomorrow!!! Which means she'll probably get it in a couple of days becuase the Post Office on campus (yes, I'm lazy) isn't open on weekends. So, yeah, expect, er, something soonish Mastah!

If I were home I'd make you cookies, but, alas, you'll have to be happy with something else.

>:D

2008-03-24T15:03:00.000-07:00

I can make a hangman's noose.

I thought I knew how before but I really didn't.

I can make a hangman's noose.

My uncle showed me how yesterday.

>:D

Oh Rupert. . . .

Happiness Is Finding Shiney Things

Long Overdue Like a Birthday Card

TMNT!!!!

Harry Potter

No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!!

Nihon ni ikou!

One month and two weeks later. . . .

Spring Break

Small Balls of FIRE!

I'M NOT DEAD!!

>:P

The Wiggly Giggly Unicorn Under the Stairs

Of Accomplishments and Disappointments

The infiltrator has been infiltrated!

It's alive?

Lies and False Advertisement

Thanksgiving

And in the forecast: TURKEY!!!

Random Moment

Hellloooo. . . .

Benson Creek

PICTURES

I thought I wasn't in Kansas. . . .

$1.00 Books and Not Complete Series

Thrashing hands and knees

Reading and writing but. . . .

Relief

Happiness is. . . .

Bingo

Moving Day

I'M NOT JEKKA!

Waiting. . .waiting. . .

Slacker

The Countdown Begins!

Empty Recycle Bins

Movies and Games

Birthday Surprises

Sadistic Parents

Midnight Fury

Of Kitties and Pigs

New awesome trialer!!

Apologies

Facebook

Turkish Angora

Spring Break

Snow craziness

FOUND

This page is in Japanese. Translate using GoogleToolbar!

*sneaky MANDI moment*

Avatar: The Last Airbender

You can't stop it, Satan!

Trunky or Lazy?

Konnichiwa!

RETURNING WITH HONOR!!!

Of Spiders from Hell and sweet Skeletons...

Did you know Jekka could play sports?!?!

Moar Pictures!

No way! A post!!

I got a letter!!!

Miracles!

Jones Shimai

Jones Choro

On the way to Nihon!

1 and a half weeks left!!!!

Genki Genki!

Little Changes

Goats

First E-mail!

MUAH HA HA HA HA!!!!

Bon Voyage

In Which a House Has Many Ways

LA LA LA LA LA

Four days and eight hours left

Butterfly nets and faeries

Polly wanna cracker!

Tagged

"It's like exercise"

Rain!

Bring forth the wine

The Blue Screen of Death

sneaky MANDI moment

whistles