It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Ever since high school I've loved the idea of Black Friday. For those of you who have somehow missed the commercialization of Christmas in the past 20 years, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving and involves the best markdowns, bargains, and door buster sales of the year... all beginning around 4 or 5 am. It's insane, it's ridiculous... it's American.

For several years I have braved the bargain hungry crowds of Wal-Mart at 5 am just to get some semi-entertaining dvd's out of the 2 dollar bin. Am I really that desperate for some movies and is it really worth all the trouble to save a dollar or two? Heck no! For me it's about the excitement. It's the first initiation into the holiday season. It's like a spectator sport. Who's gonna get the tv's first? Who's gonna forget their kid in aisle 12 because they just had to get to the DVD player next (they spread everything into random aisles in an attempt to make it less chaotic)? Why is that 90 year old grandma up at 5 am to get the socks that are on sale? Doesn't she know nobody wants socks for Christmas and they'll still be there around noon (a more normal shopping hour).

Anyhow, I think I've described as best I can my need to get up at some awful hour of the morning (oh wait I normally get up at this time...) and go shopping the day after Thanksgiving. BUT, I'm sad to report that this year I didn't wake up. Whether it was sabotage by my alarm clock or the fates trying to save me from myself, I do not know. All I know is that I woke up at 9 am, and I will proceed to sink into my stupor of depression for the rest of the day.

And I don't even have any leftover pie to eat for breakfast.

Holidays as a single adult can really suck sometimes.

When it gets cold and it feels like...

I love the holidays.

Really, who doesn't though. Sure, there's the segment of the population who is in uproar over christmas music being played before Thanksgiving, and then there are those that wish to acceptably play their christmas music 300 days a year. There's the battle between eating all the delicious food and trying not to gain 15 pounds in a single week. There's the love you have for spending time with your family balanced with your need to get back to your own life. The holidays are a special time of year, and they come packed with memories.

Though I love the holidays, sometimes I think back through the memories and the people with whom I have shared past holidays and it makes me a little sad. I'm sad because I miss those that I have grown apart from and those that I'm literally far apart from. So, although I'm stoked for Thanksgiving and Christmas... there's those other feelings. And since I seem to be at a loss for words lately, I'll leave this one to Lifehouse...

So far away from where you are
These miles have torn us world's apart
And I miss you
Yeah, I miss you

So far away from where you are
I'm standing underneath the stars
And I wish you were here

I miss the years that were erased
I miss the way the sunshine would light up your face
I miss all the little things
I never thought that they'd mean everything to me

Yeah I miss you
And I wish you were here

I feel the beating of your heart
I see the shadows of your face
Just know that wherever you are
Yeah, I miss you
And I wish you were here

I miss the years that were erased
I miss the way the sunshine would light up your face
I miss all the little things
I never thought that they'd mean everything to me

Yeah, I miss you
And I wish you were here

So far away from where you are
These miles have torn us world's apart
And I miss you
Yeah, I miss you
And I wish you were here

And I can see it in your eyes that you're so sure

"Deep down, everyone wants to believe they can be hardcore. But being hardcore isn’t just about being tough. It’s about acceptance. Sometimes you have to give yourself permission to not be hardcore for once. You don’t have to be tough every minute of every day. It’s okay to let down your guard. In fact there are moments when it’s the best thing you can possibly do… as long as you choose your moments wisely."

Sweet like a chica cherry cola

So it's kind of sad that it has taken me 4 years to come to the realization that Provo actually has some delicious dining options other than the standard national chain (not that I'm knocking the chain restaurant, because that's what pays my bills, but seriously... you can do so much better.)

Also, I suppose I shouldn't be too shocked that it's taken me 4 years to realize this, considering my dislike for eating out combined with the fact that it's rarely my idea and I just tag-a-long with friends who lack creativity or diversity in dining options.

Anyhow, some of my favorites include (I hope you realize that this is a purely selfish blog and not for your reading entertainment, but on the off chance that I need to resort to my blog as a journal of sorts, I can remember the few things I loved about Provo):

1. Cafe Rio, of course... no list of fav. restaurants in provo is complete without the Rio
2. Kneader's Bakery Cafe... although their sandwiches are delicious, $4.99 all you can eat french toast... need I say more
3. Hickory Kist... amazing sandwiches, rarely crowded
4. Sammy's... hole in the wall places are usually my favorites and the pie shakes have sold me for life
5. Zupas... anyplace that gives you a chocolate covered strawberry to end your meal is a winner in my book, oh and the salads are amazing

Oh, I could go on and on about the great Indian places, and Thai Restaurants, and even Tucanos (the meat lovers paradise) or the ridiculous amount of dessert (more recently yogurt) stops, but I will leave my list at 5. They are all delicious, cheap, and do not employ waiters. In one word, perfect!

So anyone feeling a pumpkin pie shake?

A thousand other boys could never reach you...

So Jo and I were complaining about the holidays today and how you have to spend them with all your happily married family, siblings, cousins, etc. Ugh. We decided since we are not part of a happy couple we don't want to have to spend the holidays with all the happy couples. So then I said "I just want to spend the holidays doing what I want to do while I'm still single!" And then after several seconds reflection I realized, hmmm that might be a while. I don't know what kind of crazy guy would marry me, to which Jo replied, "If I were a guy I'd marry you!" Ha ha, then we decided that we would be the coolest couple ever. We'd be that couple that everyone wishes they were friends with, but of course we would be very selective about who we chose to hang out with us.

I can just picture the look on your face right now. You're pondering how sick and twisted we are and judging us... ha, but I don't care, I love Jo. So here's to watching movies and eating pie by myself on Thanksgiving!

She is right in front of you

So the random shuffle songs game was fun, but here's what I would pick if I was designing my own soundtrack


CARLA CANKLES MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Opening Credits: "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" -Cyndi Lauper

Waking Up: "World Spins Madly On"- The Weepies

First Day of School: "Suddenly I see" -KT Tunstall

Falling in Love: "Time After Time"- Quietdrive (or the Cyndi Lauper version is always good)

Fight Song: Eye of the Tiger (seriously... are there any other fight songs???)

Breaking Up: "Ready, Aim, Misfire" -New Years Day, "Total Eclipse of the heart"- Bonnie Tyler, "White Horse" -Taylor Swift (It's a 3 way tie, but hey, sometimes you gotta go through a lot of break up songs before you find the right "one"... and i still haven't so...)

Life: "Dirty Little Secret" -All American Rejects (ha, can it be considered a soundtrack now a days without dirty little secret)

Mental Breakdown: "Dark Blue"- Jacks Mannequin

Driving: "Life is a Highway" -Tom Cochrane

Flashbacks: "Learning to Fly" -Tom Petty

Getting Back Together: "Only One" -Yellowcard

Wedding: "Brown Eyed Girl" -Van Morrison

Birth of a Child: "The Prayer"- so many different artists (Celine Dion, Josh Groban, Andrea Bocelli, Charlotte Church)

Final Battle: "Draco"- Dragonheart Soundtrack or "Once and For All"- Newsies Soundtrack

Death Scene: "Only the Good Die Young" -Billy Joel

Funeral Song: "Spirit In the Sky"- Norman Greenbaum

End Credits: "Don't Stop Believin'"- Journey


Ha, I realize most of these are pretty cheesy, and the styles don't blend very well, but guess what... It's my life, and I can have whatever jumbled conglomeration of music I want!

Favorite fruit is chocolate covered cherries

IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here's how it works:
1. Open your music library.
2. Put it on shuffle.
3. Press play.
4. For every question, type the song that's playing.
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button.
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool...


CARLA CANKLES MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Opening Credits: "Fools like me"- Lisa Loeb

Waking Up: "Get Up" -Ciara feat. Chamillionaire

First Day of School: "Soldier" -Destiny's Child

Falling in Love: "Crazy For You" -Madonna

Fight Song: "I never loved you anyways" -The Corrs (I guess if it's a break-up/fight)

Breaking Up: "Bruised" -Jack's Mannequin

Life: "Journey to the Past" -Anastasia Soundtrack (dude it's a sign... genealogy is always haunting me)

Mental Breakdown: "Thriller" -Michael Jackson

Driving: "Broken Road" -Rascal Flatts

Flashbacks: "Why Can't I" -Liz Phair

Getting Back Together: "The Way I Are" -Justin Timbaland

Wedding: "No Woman, No Cry" -Bob Marley (wow, do you think my marriage is gonna last, geez)

Birth of a Child: "When I'm Gone" -3 doors down (yeah, this game was going so well before...)

Final Battle: "Act Naturally" -Buck Owens (ha ha my final battle is a dance off!!! ((between country hillbillies that is)))

Death Scene: "Hypnotized" - Plies ft. Akon (the dance battle didn't go so well apparently)

Funeral Song: "Bleed It Out" -Linkin Park

End Credits: "Better Than Me" -Hinder


So there ya go... the soundtrack of my life. I'll admit i'm a little disappointed certain songs didn't show up, and the last several songs didn't exactly fit, but it's all good and that's part of the game i guess.

They talk about greatness whenever they speak about me

Umm... not really, nor does the title have anything to do with the post I just thought it was a good line.

So are you ever doing something and you're reminded of a great inside joke you have with someone, but said person is no longer really in your life anymore?

It's such a depressing feeling. And then I am left chuckling to myself but nobody gets why. So in particular here's to you Rach... "I think I hit my head."

And for all those people in my life who have shared inside jokes with me, but are no longer around to keep bringing them up, to you I say "I miss you. I miss you like a fat kid on a diet misses chocolate cake!"

Open the gates and seize the day...

When I have no words, I leave you with other's inspiration.

"A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success. Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which you can do today. This is the man who discovered electricity. You think more people would listen to what he had to say. I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo? The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can't pretend we hadn't been told. We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying."

You don't know me, you don't know me at all

Jamie tagged me on one of those blog list/e-mail forward-esque activities, and for lack of better posting options here goes...

8 Things I am passionate about

1. Swimming
2. Games/Game Night
3. Desserts (cooking, baking, eating, sharing, basically anything to do with them)
4. Movies (I would love to be a part time film critic)
5. Jobabe
6. One song dance party
7. North Carolina basketball
8. Well UNC anything really

8 Words or Phrases I say often

1. ridiculous
2. blahddy blahddy blah
3. curses!
4. it's all good
5. seriously
6. gosh (but with a southern accent more like gash)
7. I can't think of any more.... you tell me

8 Things I want to accomplish in the coming year

1. Quit the Macrackaroni Grill
2. Keep up with the old guys at swim practice
3. Figure out the next phase of my life
4. Move out of Utah
5. Learn to fly
6. Master 5 languages
7. Grow 5 inches taller
8. Dye my eyes blue

8 Places I would love to go or visit (I'm currently on this whole see the U.S. kick, so these are my places to go in the next year or two... i'll start adding world sites after the u.s.)

1. Seattle
2. Portland
3. Grand Canyon (I'm actually going in 2 weeks!)
4. Disney World and all accompanying parks
5. New York City
6. British Columbia (I hear it's gorgeous and the weather is perfect... oh and i do realize this isn't the U.S.)
7. Boston
8. Atlanta

8 Things I need or want (sadly mostly material things came to mind)

1. A pair of jeans that actually fit
2. A new ipod, just one with more memory so I can have all my music with me at all times ;)
3. A bike so I can go on adventures with Emily!
4. Tear away pants (remember the old track pants that button up the side so you could just rip them off, I lost mine and I want a new pair, but I think they quit making them)
5. I could use a new laptop, but i'm still trying to decide how much i care
6. a cute apartment
7. a pumpkin pie shake (mmm mostly it just sounded really good right now, and a kid was talking about them at work)
8. AND world peace (ha ha i couldn't resist the shout out to Miss Congeniality)

And now you pass this along, but I'm not sure anyone reads my blog... however, if you do and you feel so inclined, write a list and I'll read it!

I wanna let go and know that I'll be alright

I'm wide awake and so alive
Ringing like a bell
Tell me this is paradise
And not some place I fell
My skin like scars
Cause I keep on falling down

I wanna feel the car crash
I wanna feel the capsize
I wanna feel the bomb drop, the earth stop
Till I'm satisfied

I wanna feel the car crash
Cause I'm dying on the inside
I wanna let go and know that
I'll be alright, alright

Push me til I have to fly
I've shed my skin, my scars
Take me deep out past the lights
Where nothing dims these stars
Nothing dims these stars

I wanna feel the car crash
I wanna feel the capsize
I wanna feel the bomb drop, the earth stop
Til I'm satisfied

I wanna feel the car crash
Cause I'm dying on the inside
I wanna let go and know that
I'll be alright, alright

So right
So wrong
I'm wide awake and so alive

I wanna feel the car crash
I wanna feel the capsize
I wanna feel the bomb drop, the earth stop
Til I'm satisfied

I wanna feel the car crash
Cause I'm dying on the inside
I wanna let go and know that
I'll be alright, alright

Cause I'm open wide
So right, so right

Your mind is in disturbia, it's like the darkness is the light

Sometimes I get up at 5 am. And sometimes when I get home at night I park in the underground parking so that I won't have to scrape my windshield in the morning.

I'll be honest, sometimes the underground parking kinda freaks me out. I mean I walk down there at 5 am, and it's dark outside and nobody else is up at that ridiculous hour of the morning. It wouldn't take much for a serial rapist to be sitting in between two cars with a knife just waiting to take advantage of a slightly delirious (only cause of the cold, I'm pretty alert right when I get up), cute (i can say that right, I mean I don't think I need a paper bag over my head), unsuspecting (provo gives you a false sense of security) young lady such as myself.

Perhaps, just perhaps, my imagination has run away with me at these wee hours of the morning... and for that I blame the cinema, the world we live in and my roommate Jo.

The weather outside is frightful

It's hard to want to swim when there's snow on the ground. I'll be honest. I'm not really a winter person. I like a good snow storm. Sledding is fun, and cuddling up with tons of blankets and watching movies all day is fun. But it's not realistic to do this for 6 months out of the year. So I prefer warm weather with a token snow storm once or twice a year.

Too bad I still live in Utah, and I have to scrape an inch of snow off my car that has accumulated during the 2 hours of swim practice this morning...

I guess all I'm left with is the mormon approach... that I'm supposed to learn something from this, and that's when I turn to wise words once uttered by Albert Camus.

"In the depths of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer."

It's just a little crush...

Sometimes I actually do enjoy my job. Mostly I enjoy the people I work with. Let me just share one moment with you...

So we're sitting around table 201 after our shift (technically i was still on, but i like to sit around on the job :)) Anyhow and we were talking about crushes, I think because somebody's horoscope said something about their crush. Soooo, Sam mentions that she had a crush on a guy named Travis Cain in the 4th grade. Well, then Ryan (Cain) chimes right in and says that Travis is his cousin. So of course we all kind of pause, because this is potentially hilarious, but think to ourselves well there's probably a lot of Travis Cain's. So Sam says "no it's not the same guy." And Ryan says "Yeah, Travis Cain from Valencia California right." Oh I wish you could have seen the look on Sam's face. I about died laughing. It was priceless. So, she further denies that it's the same guy and Ryan offers to call him. He whips out his cell phone and starts dialing a number. In a panic, Sam says "no, don't call him." Anyhow, after several more minutes of laughter Ryan admits that he doesn't have a cousin named Travis, he just happened to hear Sam mention one time that she went to elementary school in Valencia.

Good times. Anyhow, this leads me to my gratitude list

November 3
-Papa John's pizza... yum
-Ryan and his wittiness that allowed me the second best laugh of the week
-Kneaders French Toast for breakfast

November 4
-Pushing Daisies and the funny/crazy phrases they make up like "pissing jitters"
-Laura, my roommate, for just laughing at Jo and me and our crazy antics and accepting us despite our silly escapades
-JoBabe for encouraging and laughing through all of the above. Sometimes I don't know what I'd do without my honey.

Think about the chance I never had to say, thank you...

The month of november is time for the attitude of gratitude challenge. Thanks to a roommate 4 years ago, there is an e-mail that I pass around between some friends and mostly my sisters where we have the opportunity to share what we are grateful for during the month of November. I figured I'd share the details on my blog so that A) if anyone reads this and gets inspired they can pass the e-mail around between friends as well or B) in the more likely event that no one reads my blog, I can at least someday print my blog and have something slightly memorable in a journal of sorts and C) so we can all laugh at how shallow I am when it comes to making these lists.

Here's more details:


It's that time again! You can either accept or decline this challenge, but it really
isn't that difficult, and the results are wonderful, so I would advise you
to accept! It is time for the Attitude of Gratitude Challenge!

For those of you who have not played before, the "CODE" is outlined below.



HERE'S HOW IT WORKS:

Each day during the month of November you will send an email to the people you want to
include in your own challenge! You only have to send one list a day, so send it to as many
people as you like! Each daily email will contain *3* "things" for which you are grateful.
[Except for the week of Thanksgiving (November 19th to 25th). All entries this week must contain
*5 "*things"].

Definition of "things"- the term "things" is used here to encompass a myriad
of stuff including, but not limited to: a certain set of circumstances, an
event, an inanimate object distinguished from a living being, possessions or
effects, a deed or act, a product of work or activity, an idea or notion, a
piece of news or information, a person, a memory, anything that makes you smile.



THE CODE:

- The challenge is to come up with 3 ORIGINAL "things" each day. Try
not to repeat entries.
- Your email should be sent by midnight each night. If you miss a day
or two, no biggie, but you have to make it up, no skipping! (Note:
For some of you, this may require accessing your email account on a more
regular basis).
- The challenging part of the challenge: One of your entries each day
must either be the name of a person who you spoke with that day about how
you appreciate them OR an experience involving a person who did something
for you ( i.e. held the door or the elevator for you) and you gave
them a "Super" thank you.
- NOTE: A "Super" thank you is more than a simple " thanks" or
"thank you". Let's say, for example (hypothetically speaking,
of course), you ordered a "tricky" order with specific preferences at a
restaurant and the waitress gets it all right! Along with
leaving a nice tip, a "Super" thank you would include remarks to the
waitress along the lines of "thanks so much for getting that right".
"Super" thank you's involve more interaction between the giver
and receiver and are typically more sincere. I think you get
the idea.



Okay, the challenge starts November 1st, which is today. Good Luck!

Unless you are one of my cohorts, this is the last email you'll receive
from
me until the December Holiday challenge. It's up to you and your cohort to
keep the challenge going. (Maybe I'll send an email to remind you about
the 5 "things" for the week of Thanksgiving).



WARNING OF POSSIBLE SIDE EFFECTS !!

Please note that challenge participation may result in any or all of the
following:

-you will be surprised at all the Lord has done for you

-angels will attend

-you will feel help and comfort

-(my personal favorite) you may find yourself singing as the days go by

-your doubts will fly

Have fun!

***** So here's two of my days so far

November 1
-Braxton for thinking that I make work fun, and reminding me that even though i sometimes hate my job, we still have a lot of fun
-Hearty sandwiches with everything on them
-Big Tips that make crappy nights bearable

November 2
-Grumpy Gills for allowing me to have the longest hardest laugh in a while
-Wheat Thins and the fact that I don't have a gluten allergy
-Rain which reminds me of home and makes me feel so much less guilty for vegging on the couch all day