new vid + careers + random

A few random things from this week,

I made a video with the wonderful and beautiful Emma Evans for our integrity Personal Progress projects! It was such a blast making it with her, she's such a amazing girl :)

Next, completely unrelated,

Today we took the PSAT and had a career day. We went to a couple different classes taught by teachers and community members and learned about their professions/passions. I have come out of that wanting to be a music-teacher-in-Africa-slash-wedding-photographer who knows how to cut hair. Who knew there were so many passions that could be turned into careers? WHOO

Slightly related, this is one of my favorite songs from my new favorite album by my favorite band. It's about doing what you love, and if you don't love what you do, then it's not right for you :)



Also completely unrelated,

I was reading an piece of writing today, and after some searching, I found out that it is called "The Loss of the Creature" by Walker Percy.

I only read an excerpt of it, but the part that I read really made me think. It talked about the person who discovered the Grand Canyon, Garcia Lopez de Cardenas, and how when he saw it, he thought it was the most beautifully amazing thing he had ever laid eyes on. Now that it is a tourist attraction, people obviously still think it's beautiful, but they are not "seeing" it in the same way as the one who first discovered it. Percy said they decide whether or not they are satisfied based on how well the actual sight lives up to their expectations--they may have seen it in a photo or a postcard, and they immediately compare what they are seeing to what they already know about it. Example, "It's just as beautiful as the postcard!" In addition to this, instead of looking at it, really looking at it, the first thing they do is take photos.

I don't know if I agree with all of his points, but it certainly made me think. (It specifically makes me want to not be so busy taking pictures that I miss the real beauty.)

Irrelevant Ron Swanson picture break

It was a gorgeous fall day today. I thought this patch of baby grass growing in our gravel driveway was just adorable

Last thing,

I just finished The Great Gatsby and I'm feeling awed, inspired, and sorely disappointed about the stupid and deeply metaphorical ending all at the same time. All I can say is that F. Scott Fitzgerald is a crazy and ingenious romantic. And that I wish at least one of the characters would have gotten a happy ending.

Last thing for real,

A sneak peak of our California/Vegas trip last week...

Full post coming later, mwahaha

One more

bye

on living a romantic life

I've been thinking a lot about the rest of my life lately.

Last Sunday in church we had a lesson about marriage. One of the leaders was sharing a personal experience about him and his wife. Basically his point was that falling in love for the first time is fun and exciting, but once you're married, that young romance won't be enough to get you through. Eventually it will fade away, and a deeper love built on trust will take it's place. That kind of love is what will pull you though the rough times, that's the kind of love that will last for the rest of your life and throughout eternity. The falling-in-love-for-the-first-time love will have little to do with it.

One of my friends leaned over and whispered to me, "Life sounds so unromantic."

I laughed, "Yeah, haha."

Then I thought about it. And I thought about it some more, and kept thinking about it for the whole week. Do I believe that? Do I believe that the majority of life is boring and unromantic? That life and falling in love is only exciting for a little while and then the rest of life is boring? If that's true, there's really no point in living at all.

Real life isn't all like a movie. That's for sure. But it doesn't have to be boring.

I think as a teenager I want an exciting life. I want to fall in love and travel the world. But I need to face it that it's not all that realistic. It's romantic, and it is also possible. It's totally possible. But it may not happen to me and I need to be okay with that.

Now of course I want to fall in love and get married. It is my most important goal to be married in the temple and start a family.

But if I build my whole life up to when I fall in love, then the rest of my life will be boring. I can't build my life up to one moment, because once it's over, what do I do then? It's like the part on Tangled when Flynn and Rapunzel are sitting in the boat, and Flynn tells her that once she's lived her dream, she has to find a new one.

I can't build my life up to any event or moment or anything. I have to take the adventures as they come, and never stop finding things to be excited about. I don't have to fall in love or travel the world to have an exciting life. I can live a fantastic and thrilling life without any of that.

In fact, I will venture to say I can live a romantic life without having a man at all.

My life can be as romantic as I want it to be. I'm not talking about the falling in love with a man kind of romantic. I'm talking about the Anne Shirley kind of romantic. Romantic like the things that I fall in love with on a daily basis. Romantic like a sunrise. Romantic like listening to 40's music while wearing a pretty dress. Riding a bicycle to work, watching the stars, going on a hike in the early morning, walking through the trees during spring when the cherry blossom petals are falling down like snow. That's the kind of romantic I'm talking about.

I'm not saying that finding true love is not important, because it is. Holy crap it is. I'm definitely not saying to not get after your dreams. You wanna travel? Do it. Make it happen.

Here's what I am saying: Just because you're life is not like a movie does not mean it's not a worthwhile life.

I can't keep waiting to fall in love with a person. The time will come. In the meantime, I'm going to fall in love with the beauty all around me. 

I want to start living the best life I can live instead of trying to live the perfect life I've always imagined. I can't waste time waiting for fun and exciting things to happen to me. I can't afford that kind of time!

Sometimes I need to take a deep breath, go watch the sunset or something and remember that sometimes, it is fun to just be.

Sometimes just living and being and breathing is enough. 

Go live the life you've been given and live it awesome.

you can also find this as a guest post at Catch Ya on the Flipside :)

magic hour + rain + growing up

Apparently, there is this thing photographers call magic hour.

It's the half hour before the sun sets and the half hour after when light is breathtaking and the colors are gorgeous.

These are from the other evening :)

that moon.

Also, the rain has been wonderful. I've missed it.

our car window :)

this one took forever to focus :P

ALSO.

this.

This is me in front of a car.
I drove that car by myself for the first time to a soccer game about 60 seconds after that picture was taken.
LIKE I DROVE IT FOR REALS CAUSE I HAVE MY LISENCE NOW
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

AND
the I ♥ MJ shirt that I am wearing is foreshadowing for our vacation to Vegas + Southern Cali this week because HOLLA, we're going to the Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil on Tuesday!!

One more sunset pic from another night this last week.

you can seen the baby grass :)

AAAAAND Funniest Video of the Week award of the week goes to Miranda Sings

and our runner up, Weird Al

Have a fantastic week!

sweaters finally + fall photo dump

At last I can finally stop focusing on my summer swimsuit body and start focusing on my fall sweater body. Whoo!

I was really proud of that outfit.

also, a beautiful Sunday morning in my front yard

also, Lauren and me

also, irrelevant, but

these sweet thangs

Happy Fall :)

some fall things

Today, it rained for the first time in, like three months. It was gorgeous, I went outside and laid face down on the pavement for like ten minutes.

my driveway :) it was beautiful

the smelllll mmmmmm

Also, today is the first day of fall. Whoo!

I got a phone (finally!) with a super sweet camera.
I'm having a lot of fun with it! :D

this is real, by the way. my friend at school didn't believe me, haha.

Also, today is the ten year anniversary of the Lost pilot.

Happy fall! :)

lovin me some tunes

catching ya up on my listenings this summer:

Preacher - OneRepublic

Keep the Faith - Michael Jackson

Love Never Felt So Good - MJ ft. Justin Timberlake

Lovers on the Sun - David Guetta

Maps - Maroon 5

Shake it Off - Taylor Swift 

Rather Be - Clean Bandit

On Top of the World - Imagine Dragons

Pumpin Blood - Nonono

Meteor Shower - Owl City

Luck - American Authors

Ain't No Mountain - Marvin Gaye

It's a Beautiful Day - U2

also some other goodies from earlier this year:

Hold my Hand - MJ ft. Akon

You Get What You Give - New Radicals

Take a Walk - Passion Pit

Feelin' Good - Christina Grimmie

Red Hands - Walk Off the Earth

Beauty in the World - Macy Gray

Alligator Sky - Owl City

This is Love - The Script

Comeback - Redlight King

Lights - Ellie Goulding

Friday Night - Eric Paslay

Drive - Incubus

Closing Time - Semi Sonic

I'm Gonna Be - The Proclaimers

Say Anything - Tristan Prettyman

California Dreamin' - The Beach Boys

Happily Ever After - He is We

summer you get back here {part 2}

I know I just posted yesterday, but I figured a few of the adventures mentioned in it needed their own posts. Like Indianapolis roaming. Plus it's Michael Jackson's birthday today.

So, Indiana.

This map was in our orthodontist's office, we got to put a pin on it

My mom, Nathan, and I went to this convention with my Grandpa where he sells his books that Nathan and I illustrated the covers for a couple years ago.

A lot of weird costumes and weird smells and weird food and weird tasting water. Basically not Oregon.

We had a lot of cute adventures there. Like this 50's burger place in the mall

I'd like to take this moment to say that at one point all waitresses and waiters all broke into a choreographed dance to the song "Respect." I don't think it gets better than that ever. 

Also this

And this

Our hotel used to be a train station. The conductor really liked my purse.

And this

Here's me being creepy at a writing class taught by SCOTT FREAKING WESTERFELD who wrote the Uglies series and the Leviathan series

yes that is Scott Westerfeld

This is also Scott Westerfeld

We're practically twinning with our stripey button downs.

I am twinning with Scott Westerfeld.

The city was really pretty

 A bunch of the rooftops and all of the fire hydrants and taxis were turquoise.

Also this Hard Rock Cafe 

with a whole room dedicated to Michael Jackson

My mom was in heaven.

(Happy birthday Michael!)

Also this view of Mt. Hood on the airplane ride back

Which by the way was a coast to coast flight :)

We flew to Atlanta and then back to Portland

And that concludes the trip!! :)

Couple more summer-y things before we end:

I bought a pair of overalls

Also, the ice bucket challenge

And a pic of me and baby cousin Viggo

Watch the video I made about him and his family here.

Alright! Happy summer guys! :)

be excellent to each other and party on dudes