And so it Ends.

This year has almost expired. It is with some sadness and very little regret that I kiss 2006 goodbye:

Here we are, Two Thousand Six. I'm going to miss you, but I have a good feeling about Two Thousand Seven. Good luck with the whole "going down in history" thing. You've been good to me, so thanks for that...you know, we've been through a lot, you and I. Goodbye, Two Thousand Six.

Well, then it's done.

I don't like resolutions, because they are bull crap. I do, however, have a sole desire for the upcoming year: patience. I need so much more of it. I honestly think that if I develop patience, all of my other problems will melt away. And if they don't, I'll have the ability to deal with them.

Also I am realizing more and more my need for Jesus Christ. He is my Salvation. His name is Wonderful. I need to act like it and treat Him as such.

In 2007, I will complete my Freshman year of college. I will turn 19 and begin my service as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I will say goodbye to so many. In fact, I will give up basically everyone and everything in my life for two whole years. I don't know if I can do this.

2006 was a roller coaster. I am happy to see it go. I look forward to turning over a new leaf.

Not a Fairy Tale by Any Means.

Long ago and far away there was a boy. Who did nothing ever but sit about his house in desperate boredom and growing lethargy.

Well. That boy was neither long ago nor far away, I suppose, for he is I and I am sitting right here, am I not? Well, it's settled then. I have officially wasted another night on a superb amount of nothing.

I am currently listening to The Phantom of the Opera soundtrack. And I must say that "Masquerade" is one of the best songs ever written.

Briefly.

I found this over at Found. I like it more than is probably necessarry. Look at them. They are so quiet.

Christmas went over well. I didn't ask for much and it was nice to just have a quaint simple Christmas this year. I love Christmas.

Perhaps tonight will be a quiet night. I hope so.

And so this is Christmas.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I love this season. There is so much hope to be found this time of year; not that the blessings of Jesus the Christ do not extend to all men at all times, but this is the time of year when we are all reminded of the glorious and humble birth of our Lord and Redeemer Jesus Christ, son of Mary.

I hope you all feel the blessings of the Man who, over two millennia ago, was born in a humble stable in Judea; the Man who taught and preached and healed; the Man who atoned for our sins; the Man who suffered on the cross; the Man who again took up his body in a great resurrection of life. Forget about the presents; they are fleeting. The blessings of one Jesus Christ extend to the Eternities and never diminish.

Have a wonderful holiday, everyone. Again, Merry Christmas.

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

-Isaiah 9: 6-7

Yeee Hawww!

MY FRIEND ALLIE NOE IS COMING TO CELEBRATE THE NEW YEAR! I am excited.

Plans for today: wrapping gifts. Mmmmm. I love wrapping.

As for Life Right Now.

I sort of forgot that Dashboard Confessional was my most favorite band. But they really, really are. I love the music that they make. A lot. I guess that's my plug for the day.

My best buddy came in town last night. Everything is different. Not between him and me...but with all of our old friends. Bailey's friend Drew had a party the other night and all of our friends from high school were there. And it was just odd. Everyone is at so many different places now. Some people I am worried about. Others I am confused about. Mostly, it was just reaffirmed that I AM NOT IN HIGH SCHOOL ANYMORE. That party was more or less the biggest reality check I've had yet on that subject.

But Matt and I had a lot of fun. We were up until like 5:30 this morning. I'm not really sure why, but we were. And that was fun. We just listened to some tunes and that was cool. I didn't realize when he left here that we would be listening to a lot of different music when he got back...I guess that's a given, but either way, it was weird for us to just go back and forth saying, "Have you heard of this band?" and the answer would just be "No." That's weird.

But he is in Canada right now. And the real party starts in January. It's gonna be so crunk.

The Weekend.

I threw up thrice between Midnight and 6:30 this morning. So I mean, tht sucked, you know?

In other news, my sister came in town and we had Christmas. I got The Format's newest CD. That was cool.

I sort of like today. I'm not doing anything because I don't feel so great. And it's nice to be lazy every now and again.

HIIIIIIIYA.

So it is December 16th and 70° outside.

Apparently hell has frozen over.

A Brief Explanatory on the Universe as Theorized by Kirk Thomas Garrett.

I just Q-Tipped my ears. And it's nice because a clean ear is a happy ear, you know?

Anyway, I was just listening to this group Dhira. They are Spanish only like the lead singer is Swedish or something? I don't know. Anyway, they are so good. They even have a sitar! I don't know why that sentence is exclamation point-worthy. I guess I am just really excited.

But anyway, I was listening to Dhira and I was just thinking about how I really, really like music. A lot. I mean, I don't want to be one of those people that's all, "MuSiC iS mY lIfE!!**" or anything, but it feels like music is part of me. I really just feel good when I listen to music.

And I really think that sometimes humans are capable of feeling music. Not the vibrations of it or anything. Like the actual music itself. I think that sometimes when you are in the right place and the right music is playing at the right volume that there are nerves in your body which feel it. It's like when you feel heat. Only music isn't necessarily warm. It just feels like it's in your body because your nerves feel it. I think that these nerves are in your stomach because it seems like whenever I feel music, the feeling starts in my belly and spreads out until it touches my toes and the top of my head.

And I'm no brainologist or anything. And you probably think I'm wrong. But if that's the case, then you are listening to the wrong music. Put down the country or the rap and pick up a descent record that has some actual electric guitars and a real set of drums played by someone who is not named Bubba. I mean, I like rap just us much as the next guy, but I mean your music nerves are not going to respond to lyrics like "Do yo' chain hang low?" or "Lemme see yo' grill."

They, the nerves, only respond to music that feels like it was written by the universe itself--music that glorifies innocence and youth, music that shows love as something that is the most beautiful and dangerous thing in creation, and music that let's you know that getting older is inevitable and that things turn out just fine in the end.

And that brings me to another theory of mine about the universe: the Vortex. The Vortex is a very rare occurrence when you, your body, is the actual center of the universe. Now the beauty of this is that the universe is infinite and by definition has no center. That is what makes the Vortex so awesome in its power and influence.

See, you feel the Vortex when you have that feeling in your body, most especially your chest and stomach, when everything feels right and good. It might be described as feeling infinite. It might also be described as feeling like you are nonexistent. More specifically, the Vortex makes you feel like everything and nothing mutually. Feeling the Vortex is exclusive to no one and you have probably felt it before, but you didn't realize it.

The Vortex likes to show up when you are quiet. When you are with people you love. When you witness the massive beauty of creation. When you are listening to good, soft music. But perhaps not all of these at the same time. For example, when last I felt the Vortex, it was when I was on the side of a mountain in Las Vegas and I saw the hugeness of the city and the wind on my face. Nothing big, but I understood the gravity and beauty of the situation.

However, the Vortex chooses you. You cannot coax the Vortex into coming. I have tried it and the Vortex is so big that it knows when you need it. Also, the Vortex has to watch everyone so it is gone in a flash. You may feel it for ten minutes at most and then it will be gone for months.

You might feel it when you are in love. You might feel it when you are driving very fast on the Interstate at night. You might feel it lying in the grass looking at the sky. But so many people skip over what they feel in the deepest parts of their bodies or simply don't participate in quiet, beautiful activities and miss that they are the Vortex. They feel too much with their heads and not enough with their bodies.

That is the trick with these things. You have to let your self be still enough to listen and then you have to let your body function as it should: in one unit. Your brain, your heart and your gut have to work together. God put them in one container, your skin, and you have to let them be one in order for them to catch on to the little things that are so huge that the universe has.

But don't concentrate so much on the little big things that you miss the average things. Those are just as beautiful as the universal and a lot more common.

Like clean ears. Clean ears really do feel good. Like I've always said. A clean ear is a happy ear.

Srrrriously.

I AM FRICKING DONE WITH EXAMINATIONS. THIS SEMESTER IS OVER.

That's pretty rad, right?
Right.

A Different Sort of Blog.

I think that if I had a choice, I would never really desire to step out in the sun. But the sun is nice, you say. It warms your face, helps you make Vitamin D. That sort of thing.

But stepping out there involves taking a chance. Because once you're out in the sun, there is no longer a controlled environment. Inside, you can check the batteries in your smoke detector, envelope sharp edges in padding, and even control the temperature. The outside world is broadcast through the computer or the television, so there is no need to forgo the precautionary, safety of the indoors.

But.

Think of all the things I would miss out on. There would be no crunching in the leaves at autumn. But then again, there is an awful lot of dust in those leaves; bad for the lungs, you know. There would be no running in the rain. Well, then there is the chance for pneumonia if the wetness is not taken care of shortly thereafter. There would be no first-hand experiences of seeing a canyon or climbing a mountain or running in the middle of the road in the nighttime with nothing but legs and asphalt.

And the smells. Never horse excrement or honeysuckle or a lake or the grass.

And the feelings. No sand in between toes or wind blowing through hair or snowflakes on cheeks.

And the sounds.
And the people.
And the emotions.
And the minutes ticking away for everything and nothing.

But the risks! There are so many risks.


Well take a chance. When gambling in terms of living, really living, the odds are always on your side.

Finals.

Finals have been okay. I feel like I have done well on all of them thus far except for US History, but I made A's on everything else in there.

Tomorrow I have no school.
Thursday I have one test.
Then, finally, the semester will be over.

Final(s)ly.

It's Finals week.
This week will suck. But afterward, it will not suck at all. In fact, it will be quite the opposite.

My best friend does not get back until January 6th. How stupid.

Christmas break will be wonderful.

I must study now.

Check Out this Sweet Music Video.

It's this europop band, Porcupine Blood. They're British.



[I mean, technically that's just Grant and I. But it's still pretty rad, right?]

Two Things I like Right Now (It Seems Like that's All my Blogs are about).

1.) I really, really like getting Christmas cards. That is so fun. Please send me Christmas cards, please. Seriously.

2.) I also really like Natalie Dee. This drawing came from there.

That's all.

Ugh.

So I have to take this defensive driving course because I don't like to go the speed limit.

Only, the thing is, I have to have eight hours of this class done by the twelfth. So I am taking ALL EIGHT HOURS OF THIS CLASS AT ONCE ON SATURDAY. That's so much. I am not okay with that crap.

But I mean, I know it's my fault for breaking the law so many times. And I know I deserve it.

I'll just have to celebrate hardcore afterward to make up for it.

Recapitulation. Finally Finished.

This is how my trip went.

FRIDAY 11/17: We (meaning my brother Reed, his wife Amber, his daughters Carly and Jenna and I) left Reed's house around 4:00. I fell asleep almost immediately and woke up in Oklahoma. I completely slept through Arkansas. We stopped for the night in El Reno, Oklahoma, a little town on the west side of Oklahoma City.

Saturday 11/18: We drove. A lot. I slept. A lot. I called a lot of people just to tell them where I was. We drove through Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. We did NOT stop at the National Dinosaur Museum in Tucuamcari, New Mexico. We did, however, stop at the McDonald's in Tucuamcari. And believe me, that was a hoot. We had to make two stops because I had to use the bathroom. I found out that I love Oklahoma, hate Texas, love New Mexico, and hate Arizona. We got into Vegas about 10:30 Vegas time. I like driving over Hoover Dam at night. I love being on I-215 and seeing all of the lights of Las Vegas.

Sunday 11/19: We did not go to church, but we decided that after I ironed my Sunday clothes. So I wore my Sunday pants all day anyway. We drove to our old house. The house on Connie Drive that was the first place I've ever lived. It looked different from the last time I saw it. That house is kind of in the ghetto. But just kind of. We ate at a place called Hash House A Go Go. It was a fun experience. Just don't get the scrambled eggs with basil, sun dried tomatoes, and goat cheese. It sucks. We then went to my Aunt Tootsie's to visit and then to my cousin Terri's to dinner. It was a delight.

Monday 11/20 I wrote a paper for government all day. That was stupid. That night we went to Terri's for dinner with a lot of my family. I saw a lot of folks that I haven't seen in a while. I got made fun of, because I am the youngest cousin. But I am capable of dishing it right back out.

Tuesday 11/21 We went to Best Buy so Reed and Amber could buy a camera. The Sufjan Stevens Christmas Album was nowhere to be seen. We then went to get my second cousin Bryant, who is my age, and we went to eat at In-N-Out Burger. I love that place. We got tee shirts then went to the Forum in Caesar's Palace, which is more or less a super fancy mall. Bryant and I went into Louis Vuitton and saw a pair of toddler sneakers that cost $248. I thought that was somewhat overpriced. We then went into Dolce & Gabbana and I tried on a leather jacket that cost $1,095. If I had the money I think I would have bought it. Then we went to Long John Silver's to eat a #5 in remembrance of my dead Grandpa. Apparently that was one of his favorite things. Then we went to the Bellagio to look at the Atrium and the fountains out front. The Bellagio is my favorite casino. Then we went to my Aunt Betty's house for hot chocolate. And the day was over then.

Wednesday 11/22 We went to Tootsie's for lunch, but Reed and Wade (another brother of mine) had to do some stuff for work with their accountant (who happens to be my cousin David) so my sister and sisters-in-law went to the outlet mall. So my brother-in-law J.Paul and I dropped them off and went tot he Venetian because we heard that the mall there was good. Well, friends, it was not. In fact, it was probably the worst mall I've ever been in in my entire life, and I live in Memphis, the Bad Mall Capital of the World. So we went back to Tootsie's for dinner. My cousin Brendan (whom I call Bubby) had gotten in town the night before, so we hung out. We went to Aunt Betty's for soup, and then my cousin David's for desert (it was a progressive sort of thing). At David's there was a ton of family there. I even met some that I've never seen before. That night, Bubby and I picked up a friend of his, got Slurpees and then went up on the side of the mountain behind his house. You can see the whole of everything in Las Vegas up there and it was an AWESOME experience. That night we slept in my Uncle Don and Aunt Kerma's motor coach.

Thursday 11/23: That morning Bubby, Reed, and my brother-in-law J. Paul went to this ratty little hotel on the strip called Tropicana to see the Bodies Exhibition. That was more or less completely rad. We went to my cousin David's for Thanksgiving dinner. We sat around, played with the computer, watched some old episodes of The Office YouTube, and just hung out. It was great fun. That night Bubby, my cousins Eric and Bryant, and I went down town. We watched the fountains at the Bellagio and the Volcano at the Mirage. Then we got a Slurpee and went to Fatburger. It was cool to hang out with cousins who are my age. We didn't get back to Bubby's house until almost 1:30. But we stayed up and talked until 4:00. Looking back, I sort of don't even know what we talked about. But it was fun.

Friday 11/24: I saw Happy Feet with Bubby and his family. Then We went back to his house and chilled for a bit. Then my aunt Kerma took us out to dinner. I met up with Reed and J. Paul and their families (because Bubby, his mom, and Kerma went to see Phantom). We hung out at the MGM and looked at the lion habitat. I eventually met up with Bubby and we went to get his girlfriend. I can appreciate wanting to spend time with your boo when you haven't seen her in a while, so I backed off and was quiet most of the time. We got Slurpees and went up on the mountain again. I sang a song. It was frickin' freezing so we went back to Bubby's and I fell asleep on his couch watching Elf. I woke up around 2:00 delirious and confused. I went upstairs and Bubby was awake and we lingered for a while but eventually fell back asleep.

Saturday 11/25: I left the city of my birth behind once more. It was sad. I hugged Bubby goodbye and said "See you...never?" and it was sad. Hopefully we'll run into each other before we go on our missions. It took forever to cross the Dam on the way out of town. America never looked so sad as when we ventured across her to my real home.

Sunday 11/26: We rolled into town around 9:30. When we got back I realized that there is little here for me. And I longed for something new.

All in all, it was an amazing trip.

I love Las Vegas.
I will spend a lot of time there when I go to BYU.


I love my family.

I look forward to the future.

Potpourri.

I love Christmas.
I love Christmas music.
Listen to some good Christmas music here.

The past few days have been sunny and cold. I love that. It's the winter rain that kill me.

I look at the weather somewhat religiously now that I'm a collegian. I think that that means that I am more of an adult. Because all adults care about is money and the weather.

I don't want to grow up.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year?

I really love Christmas when it DOESN'T interfere with my social life.

Every year I set up the the village and the big Nativity set. And of course the very second I want to go somewhere, mom pulls that out of nowhere and says that I have to do those.

More like Crapmas.
That was probably bad, right?