Yup, that's you.

I saw this on Amy's blog and she saw it on Christie's and I'm sure we all saw it somewhere, but we should see it AGAIN.



Just think about it.

the green book.

February is still putting January to shame!

Jon picked me up from the airport on the 12th and surprised me with a great Friday the 13th/Valentines' Day gift! (Does anyone else find that ironical? hehe)

KALAI tickets!

He is the all-time best guitarist that possibly ever was or could be!

Can you tell he's my favorite?

It was a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful night at Garnder Hall downtown! Kalai is such a great performer and dang funny too! I first saw him 6 years ago at a friend's backyard shin-dig. Thanks again Beaver! That night changed me forever. Anytime anyone knows about an upcoming concert, please let me know. Although, you may not find one that I don't already know about :), it would mean the world to me!

Check out his website! http://www.kalai.cc/ and blog www.myspace.com/kalai


"Kalai is urban vintage. The Hawaiian Born, Alaska raised, 26 year-old, is an old school young buck with do anything, anytime, at any level, musical talent. Besides being a lyrical BIGfoot... His music ranges coast to coast with soft ballads, edgy blues, straight jazz, acid jazz, and yeah buddy, a little bit of his own thing. If Dave Mathews, Paul Simon, Ben Harper, James Taylor, John Mayer, Bill Murray (Yes, the comedian.) and Béla Fleck had a baby it would surely be this guy! One might say you have to hear him to believe it, but chances are, even once you do, you won’t. Just Listen. " (quoted from http://www.kalai.cc/)



If I could write I real good review about anything at all, it would be about this man. Here's some video clips, but I would recommend getting a CD, you'll never regret it!

Here are some delectables:









Enjoy!

Jan gets her butt kicked.

I must say these first few weeks of February have January running with tail between legs! Feb is kicking Jans butt! I got to start off the month by visiting family! It's been Kiki World Tour '09 for me with a visit first to VA with Mike and Amy and then to WI for the Gotbergs.

I love visiting family! It was one of the best vacations ever. I have adorable nieces and nephews. And I have to admit they really love me which makes me feel pretty cool. We had so much fun just doing everyday stuff. Amy asked me, "Is there anything here that you want to see that you can't do or see in Utah?" "YOU! silly" I replied. Just being apart of my sisters daily routine for a few days each was a wonderful blessing.

I must say I am feeling especially grateful to have a family member who works for Skywest. Without her, none of this would be possible. I'm a buddy!

For a complete play-by-play of my trips see LeShel's blog or if you can, login to Amy's and check it out!

What a bittersweet trip! I was fortunate enough to be able to hide my tears in airports with strangers. I am still feeling confused on what my true emotion is! Happy to be home or Sad to have left! I'm sure it will always be some sort of mixture. Better to have made more memories, than never to have visited at all, I say! Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us and especially for families. I am glad I am part of an eternal family!

Love You All!

And... (edited for time and content)

And you all thought I was back blogging again. hehe...

I will say though that back in December I never thought anyone would really miss me. Thanks for all your teasing and loving concern.

However, I'm still not blogging (with this one exception) until later. It's not that my life is totally uneventful, just almost. I guess I need to clarify this: uneventful does not mean depressing.

Does anyone ever just feel like they don't have anything to say? Maybe I'm alone in this but I just don't feel like blogging up cyberspace with type pollution unless I have something that needs sharing.

Life is happy and I'm happy. I hope everyone out there is happy, too!

Hasta Luego!

No blogging

Just a friendly notice that I will most likely not be blogging until after the 15th. Graduation is coming up and finals are the last thing I am going to let get in the way of getting out of here! That is all. See you soon.

I GOT IN!

Yesterday I was extended an offer to work for Teach for America in Houston, Texas! It looks like I'm going to be very busy for the next two years. I feel so excited and Jon is so supportive. He bought me pink roses and took me out to my favorite Thai restaurant in Logan. We went bowling, had ice cream, and watched a movie too; all to celebrate! We are so excited to be moving to the this beautiful city next year.

I have already started looking at apartments which admittedly is premature, but I can't help myself! The cost of living there is much less expensive than where we are now. It is a huge city filled with great museums, shopping, cultural festivals, and has a beautiful temple in the northwestern suburbs.

I don't which school I am teaching at yet, but I know that I tentatively assigned at "bilingual, PreK-4th grades." I don't even know exactly what that means yet, but I know it means that I get to work with the little latino kids in the school. This is a small dream come true for me; I guess that means I have even bigger dreams. (he he) I can't wait to get started helping these kids!

Did you know?

4th graders in the United States should be reading books like "Harry Potter", but 4th graders in low-income communities are still reading "See Spot Run."

Only about 50% of children in low-income communities graduate from high school.

Those that do graduate do so at an 8th grade reading level.

Only one in 10 will graduate from college.

13 million children are currently living in this situation in the United States.

These children are not under-performing because they are not are capable or smart as children from high-income communities, so why then this achievement gap?There are many reasons. Some of the causes are out of our control, others are not.

And that is why I want to work to stop this injustice. I can't fix the problem everywhere, but I can start one child at a time. I'm just one person, but I can do hard things and work to make a bright future for those who will come after me.

YAY! What a great adventure!

Influence

Life has been a bit hectic to say the least. Two weeks ago Sunday my grandmother passed away. She is a wonderful lady and will always be cherished by those who knew her. I know that she is in a better place doing wonderful things. She is with family and friends and will be there to greet my family when we pass from this mortality.

My heart aches for her on most days, but has done so for a long time. She battled with Alzheimer's disease in the last years of her life and anyone who knows about or has experienced this disease in their life or family knows how challenging it is.

I would like, however, to dedicate this blog to my precious grandfather. His work ethic is uncoupled, his generosity and spirit of service is magnificent, and his love for me means everything. He never left my grandmother’s side not even for a moment during her affliction. He took care of her and suffered with her to the very end. That is in itself a heroic act, but also the epitome of long-suffering, eternal love, and honoring sacred covenants. I am amazed at his strength even now after her passing. Their love for one another is of the sweetest, most respectful I have felt.

Because he has loved his wife, his family, and his neighbor my grandfather has served the Lord his whole life. I have never witnessed greater testimony, acute faith, and inspiring love. Thank you grandpa for all that you teach us through your humble example. He is so tender to me and every time we speak on the phone or we visit I feel uplifted, strengthened, and an eagerness to continue on in my life in such a way that would always make him proud of me. Take today for example, he is dusting the house and doing so with a cheerful heart, blest with work. I am reminded of my dirty house and my previously begrudging attitude towards my duty to clean it and feel grateful now to have a change of perspective.

Forgive my continued rambling, but…

I think that many of us are in search of "making a name" for ourselves, or doing something truly great that will in turn be our little bit of immortality to leave behind in this world. I recently heard a speech in which the orator discussed this very topic: influence.

She spoke of those who we deem to be the most influential people in our society. Some of her categories included winners of the Nobel Prize, those who carry the title of Ms. America, Heisman athletes, Presidents of the United States, Great War generals, and others. Then she posed the question to us, “Do any of you remember the names of these individuals?” Do we remember the names of the last 10 people who won a Nobel Prize, Ms. America? Can we even list the names of our last 10 presidents? No? But these are our most influential people, right?

Wrong.

Our most influential people are those we know, and those who know us. They are friends, teachers, bishops, mission presidents, fathers, brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, mothers, and grandparents. Whether these individuals have been a positive pebble in our pond of self-worth or a deadly drought set to destroy us, they are still those who have the greatest power to motivate; our most influential people.

Can we today reflect on just one of these individuals? If this person was a righteous influence in our lives, can we thank them personally? Not by email, or in our hearts, or a text, but an actual phone call, or a real letter? If this particular individual caused us pain or hurt, can we forgive them and pledge to be positive influence for change? I believe we can. We can be that righteously influential brother, teacher, sister, friend, wife, mom, son, husband, or grandfather to those who matter most to us. We can also be that Nobel Prize winner or the lovely Ms. America, but none of that will matter if we are not first and foremost the reciprocator of the service, love, encouragement, and tenderness provided to us by our most influential.

I am so thankful to these many people in my life. They are so precious to me and I am rededicating myself to be more like each one of them.