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The Beginning of A Brand New Day.

2012-01-30T16:44:00.000-08:00

So many things to be excited about this week.

1. Abby Kate has turned 8 and can hardly wait to be baptized!
2. Indoor soccer, but the weather is nice enough for outdoor.
3. One month has gone by. The first month to be precise and so many good things have come out from its days.
4. Good movies about the south have been watched, Forest Gump and The Help.
5. Good books have been started and need to be finished.
6. The home teaching message for next month is about prayer, simply one of the best things anyone can do. Here is my favorite line, "As your teacher and your friend, I promise that God will answer your prayers and that by the power of the Holy Ghost, you can know that the answers are from Him." You can read the message here and know for yourself that he answers prayers. I'm finding this to be true every day.

But, even if you don't have much to be excited about this week, you can find it all around if you look.

Paying Dues

2012-01-28T00:03:00.000-08:00

I keep a pack of Wrigley's Peppermint Extra gum in the drawer at my desk. Half piece after half piece, until it's gone. It's reminds me of home. But in the way that sometimes when I chew it, I think of church when I was a little kid. I think of the way that I used to want a full piece of gum, but I got a half instead. I remember how if I played with it, my mom would have me spit it into the wrapper and it would be gone forever. I remember sitting on the long bench that went in front of the window, and I would peek behind the curtains to see little cobwebs in the corners and dead bugs. I remember those green padded benches, how they always seemed to fit everyone you needed on one row. I remember Sister Mortensen with her paper fan in the summer. But it wasn't always peppermint gum, although that is her go to. Sometimes it was bubble gum, and how hard is it to be a kid and not play with your bubble gum in church? To blow bubbles as big as you want. It seems like it might nearly be impossible for a young boy, no less an adult. But I find myself stifling the urge now.

And so I chew peppermint gum. I don't care if it's not polar, or infused with ice, or on the cutting edge, because it means more to me than a stick of chewing gum. It's half piece after half piece, until it's gone. But the memories it brings are always there.

Clarity.

2012-01-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

There is nothing like hearing a good song for the first time. The way it etches itself into your memory, tied with what you were doing the moment you heard it and how it made you feel. I've learned to just embrace these moments, instead of trying to reconstruct them. It is natural, you see. It's not something you can force. And that is why I'll always have an open mind to music. Because it makes me feel something I can't recreate. It makes me feel a myriad of emotion that ranges all the way across the spectrum. It's the same reason I love it, and always will.

My Turn

2012-01-19T15:21:00.000-08:00

To do something that scares me. Because yesterday I did, and now this is just an extension of it; writing about myself without being cryptic.

Today is Rosalio's birthday, but he works. So yesterday, we (Dave, Rosa, and I) went up to eat dinner in West Valley. That's where Rosalio used to live. We went to Las Islitas, which is essentially 100% mariscos, or seafood. You have to know that I am not the world's biggest seafood fan. Actually, I'm not even it's smallest one. I just have never liked it, plus it scared me. So, going to a place like that kind of gave me the food creeps. But, like all great seafood establishments, they have to have something on the menu to appease those with differing tastes. And you can be sure that I found it.

But! I knew that I had to try something new, even if I didn't like it. So, in the spirit of defying my fears (and gravity if you like that song), I decided it was time to try ostiones, or oysters. I have a video for you, don't worry. But in the meantime I will share two things with you. First, I saw Man Vs. Wild eat an oyster fresh out of the ocean the other day while my roommate James and I were watching on netflix and I thought to myself, "I think that I should try oysters someday." Second, I have a vivid memory of my brother Clint being coaxed into eating squid in a Chinese restaurant in Seattle all these years ago by my older brother. He said that he would buy him McDonald's if he ate the squid. Then proceeded a 5-10 minute psych session where Clint tried and tried to muster up the courage to eat the darn thing. He doused hot sauce on it and when he was finally ready, he put it in his mouth - his face showing every disdainful thought he was having - and chewed, but couldn't seem to get it down. He then fled to the bathroom where he puked repeatedly. I remember feeling so bad for him as he just ruined any chance he had for a decent lunch.

So, fast forward 15 years or so and instead of a Chinese restaurant in Seattle, you have a Mexican seafood restaurant in West Valley. No bets, no pressure, just a little cajoling from the other two. And you can watch the rest from here.

But an important thing that I realized, which I kind of already knew, is that I liked that feeling. I liked feeling courageous and in control of my own fate. Even if it was just my fate with food. I liked having power over my emotions. That even though it scared me, I could do it. And that is a great feeling. Because you do enough and you realize you can do anything. And what's better than that?

Mañana es un beautiful day

2012-01-16T22:54:00.000-08:00

Two things you must do today.

1. Listen to this song

2. Do one thing that scares you.

And then feel good about the world around you, even if you felt bad before. Sometimes, all it takes for your world to change is the smallest thing, and then before you know it - everything is beautiful again.

For All His Creations, Of Which I'm A Part

2012-01-12T00:26:00.000-08:00

I know God loves me.

For so many reasons.

I know He loves me because when my day was hard, He put Moscas en la Casa on shuffle.

Now, you might laugh. But to me, that is exactly what a loving God would do. Comfort His son. In ways only He knows how. I believe they are called tender mercies.

And I will always be grateful for them; and Him.

Songs for Heartache

2012-01-10T14:08:00.000-08:00

Beauty in lyrics, I just had to share.

Baseball Cards

2012-01-04T01:06:00.000-08:00

I found you again,
under the black boards of my old big bed -
It is made.
There you were
in white boxes,
binders,
and plastic sheets.
And all of a sudden,
I am 16 again.
Or 12.
Or 8.
Or however old I needed to be to cross that street
to get to where you were; tucked neatly next to
the dry cleaner.
That street that ran like a vein out of the canyon.
35 miles per hour.
I rode my bike,
walked,
and rollerbladed.
Elementary school manners.
Clean bill of health.
Pockets full of coins, crashing into one another; harmony.
I'm there again,
cheap, nondescript carpet, wall to wall.
Glass case display.
Shelves filled with colorful boxes,
Pictures of the great ones looming.
Hold one in your hand.
Hold a few.
But now, I'm 25 again.
Feeling like a kid again.
Down the same vein, I drive.
35 miles per hour.
Clean bill of health.
Everything else has changed,
but in your plastic sheets you remain.

Utah Ghost Towns

2011-12-26T11:00:00.000-08:00

Seems like a pretty good Christmas break idea, doesn't it? This site along with my dad's endless knowledge of Utah make for some great resources. The whole ghost world is at my fingertips and I've got my trusty stead to get me there.

for now

2011-12-21T01:34:00.000-08:00

enter Transatlanticism,

enter a car filled with five growing men.

a toyota camry,
father owned,
thousands upon thousands.
it's seen oceans, rivers, mountains and deserts
oil change after oil change.
safe, secure, and still running now as we come across the mountains
at the perfect time

can we dissect that word for a minute?
perfect
meaning there could not be a better.
meaning that time was meant for that moment, straddling the line between fear and adventure, between 13 hours in a car, between the song that would melt you years later, live.
meaning that there is good, better, and best.
meaning that where there is dark, there is no light. But this was just the absence of light, receding into the night, pushing back against that which loomed, not going gentle into that good night.

grey fog, light falling snow, mountains that stood tall, dusted.
lakes and evergreens.
windshield wipers wiping voraciously.
heat, desperate to keep my windows clear, blowing through vents that usually live dusted themselves.
fearful not to look at the road, but so mesmerized by everything surrounding me that I couldn't keep my eyes on it.
downhill the whole way, more brake than clutch and gear; floating.
I took every mental picture I could.
promised myself I'd write about it as soon as I could.
I did. I have. I will.
and when I do, I find myself driving down that hill again, more brake than clutch and gear; floating.

I Played My Drum For Him

2011-12-19T11:32:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas week! That means that it's time for Christmas music only, unless you've already been doing that.

This kid is only 16 years old. He played all the parts in this song, arranged all the shots, and edited the whole film himself. It's amazing, and such a good version. It made me fall in love with this song. I love how that's possible, after 25 years of hearing it.

Winter Break

2011-12-16T16:11:00.000-08:00

This song has nothing to do with Christmas, but if you listen to it, unapologetically, you will realize that it makes you feel good. Something that you should be feeling this time of the year anyway; or any time of the year.

So, if your day is hard, or you are sad - TURN IT UP. Because sometimes all it takes to be happy is good music.

And if it doesn't help. Read this, this, or go to your local library and borrow this.

The Spirit of Things

2011-12-10T18:17:00.001-08:00

Everyone has the light in them.

December is beautiful to me, because it is the most bright of all the months. It's the beginning of a deep, dark winter. It's cold. The sun escapes the sky as soon as it can. But it is bright. There are people with observing eyes, everywhere. Looking for what they can do to make it just a little warmer. Christmastime is the BEST time of all the year, and you can make it bright. What will your eyes see?

Thank You Español!

2011-12-05T12:50:00.001-08:00

for songs like this, that hit the spot.

Modern Technology

2011-11-30T23:42:00.001-08:00

I'm going to test you,
how far you will go
to salve my soul.

to save my soul.

Because when I am sick, this is where I come,
to my corner of the internet; the world.
where I can be desperate in little line after little line.
and you can mistake all of this stomach sick feeling for beauty,

but it's really not romantic.
it's uneasy music to uneasy ears
restlessness in a bed big enough for two,
used by one.
it's should I send it, or should I just sit here and wallow?

Because if I do, I'll regret it.
but, if I don't, is it just as bad?
It seems like it's just as lasting.
either way, it's not the right thing to do.

So here I am,
honestly,
just trying not to send that text.

honestly

2011-11-29T00:54:00.001-08:00

I can't stand it. Let alone stomach it. I need to rehearse it so it sounds just right, or just perfect, or just about enough.

I need to stand up, out of bed, outside of queen sized covers that keep out the world and let in the music, while it spins, or simply floats out of speakers. It's the kind of cover you want on a cold night, or even a warm one, pushed to the side so you can find the cool parts when it just gets too hot.

I need to let it all hang out in honest prose. You need to know all about me, otherwise I won't know who I am. "Never forget who you are." I saw it on the big screen, next to people who absolutely knew who they were. But who am I?

I am
C
O
B
Y.

Son of a king. Lover of all things world green. Consumer of culture. And a firm, or complete believer in the fact that a smile makes you somebody that anybody would want to know.

Some of

2011-11-27T23:06:00.001-08:00

My favorite things right now.

8 Tracks - You can find a mix for any mood. Sleep, Fall, Friday's, Saturday's, Feel Good, Hip Hop, anything! I love it. I am constantly on it. I hardly use other music sites now because of it.

Mixtapes, simply, are the best.

Owl Moon - One of my favorite Children's books about winter. Magical.

Now that it's the Christmas season, here is this video too.

Look to the light! Look up!

To The Adventurer

2011-11-24T23:59:00.001-08:00

To The Adventurer in all of us: don't give up!

Did you know the world is even bigger than you imagined? It's wide, wild, and full of enchantment. Your books told you all about it, countless times. You've seen it in the movies. And even when this world wasn't big enough, they built another, and another. But have you been outside?

Have you ever been so close to the world that you felt it beat beneath you? Have you satisfied that inner burning to see all that it has to offer? And even better, its culture? To me, that's the best part about it. Because when you're out, in the middle of a field filled with tall grass, framed by mountains so imposing and rich with color, what good is it if there is no one to share it with?

Older Brothers and Sisters

2011-11-22T11:02:00.001-08:00

Continuing what I started with so much gratitude for my family:

I am the youngest in my family. There are 6, but really 11. Someday there will be 12. I love every single one of them. I couldn't have hoped for better brothers and sisters. Their kindness and concern never ceases to amaze me and it just leaves me feeling so happy that I could have examples like that.

One thing an older sibling should be all of those things, in my mind. And, especially, a teacher. I've learned so much from them and continue to do so. If you've ever been on a date with me, you better believe that I asked them for ideas. They have talked me through some of the biggest decisions of my life and they have never taken their eye off of me. To sum it up, I feel loved because of my brothers and sisters. They are the reason I want to be close to home, always. And the reason for many other things. I love them and am grateful for them.

Here are some great pictures of them. I'm digging really deep for some of these photos and don't have as many as I'd like.

Family Ties

2011-11-19T13:05:00.001-08:00

My favorite thing about my mom is that she is a Mother in every sense of the word. She aches with the pains of her kids and joys with their successes. She is eternally kind and loving. She is a mother, grandmother, and probably the best person that I know. I have more respect for her than any other. I love her and am thankful for her.

My dad is the kind of person that you have to love. He's funny, warm, and will do anything for you. He's showed me love for some of my favorite things in the whole world. Every single soccer game that I played growing up, he was on the sidelines; every one. He will always be someone that I look up to and I am very grateful that some of his personality traits live on in me. I love him.

Thanksgiving is next week, and even though there is no BYU vs Utah game to look forward to, I am excited. Excited especially to take the chance to say thanks to those that I love.

Thankful

2011-11-14T07:53:00.001-08:00

Because I have a million reasons to be.

When you have a family that is open, warm, quick to help, concerned, kind, and above all loving; you have a reason to be thankful.

It's the time of year when thoughts are turned to how we are blessed. So, in the spirit of the season; I wanted to do a series on gratitude.

I love this video. I posted it last year too, but wanted to share it again because it sums up exactly how I want to feel all the time. Plus, David Garrard is in it.

"And seeing the wonders and beauties of this world, as though seeing them for the first time."

Finding Truth

2011-11-03T14:43:00.000-07:00

"...and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost."
"And by the power of the Holy Ghost, ye may know the truth of all things."
Moroni 10:4-5

I love this. The Book of Mormon is true. There is real power within its pages. I know it. I've felt it and that is something you can never take away from me.
And you can know it too.

vacaciones

2011-11-03T01:26:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note,
so I can make sure that I get it all out antes de salir (before I go)

It will all work out
even when your backpack's contents are strewn across your bed, your floor, and your desk.
When you walk into your room for two reasons, to sleep in a queen size bed that your brother gave you and to change your clothes
you ignore the mess,
you ignore the tasks,
but you still make your bed.

It will all work out,
you know it will, feel it will. You hope it will, but you still have to remind yourself from
time to time.
You look for the beauty in everything,
even in unkempt bedrooms with hardwood floors,
a cupboard so full, a practical imagination bare lay bare.
Old books from childhood
pages worn
pages ripped
but words neatly typed forever into the fabric of your mind.
Sometimes you are hard to follow,
mountainous passes, highways drawn through, this is sometimes you.
and that's ok,
because even though it's cold enough to close it, you keep your window open.
long nights under bright white comforters,
sweater weather
long sleeves,
hats
and socks.
you'll figure it out.

and as long as it burns inside you
you'll get back up
even with creaky knees,
sore wrists,
and aches in your back
because it will
all
work
out.

do you promise?
yes.

Fall Classic

2011-10-31T11:14:00.001-07:00

Halloween has always been one of my favorites. There is something about the cool, crisp evenings and all the memories of pillowcases full of candy, walking street to street. It's a beautiful day.

hip hop

2011-10-25T12:53:00.001-07:00

makes you feel good.

One Day More

2011-10-23T22:37:00.000-07:00

Things I am thankful for this week:

Sunday walks, sunsets, and family.

Front porches, back yards, and the power of the pen, or finger on a touch screen.

Thank you notes.

People to be thankful for.

Chapters ending, new ones beginning.

La lengua española.

La gente Latino.

Clean kitchens.

October evenings, days, and the excitement of Halloween.

Peach milkshakes.

Bring Him Home - Les Miserables, and all things that remind me of my mom.

Mom & Dad.

Romans 8:28 and eternal perspective.

and of course, hope because I know that God knows my name.

Fall Break

2011-10-20T12:24:00.000-07:00

Vaccination + FaceTime + NYC deli + Concerts in the city + Futbol + Football + New shoes + Endless mixtapes

It's October

It's fall

And everything is good

Mixtapes

2011-10-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

I think it's about time for a playlist.

Themes: choose your own, waiting, it's...almost...morning, somebody to love, fall, big comforters

enjoy!

1. Blank Slate - The National

2. Somebody That I Used To Know (Bombs Away Remix) - Gotye

3. Dirt - Saydee Price

4. Vanished - Crystal Castles

5. Det Snurrar I Min Skalle - Familjen

6. De La Souls - P.O.S.

7. Home - Parlor Hawk

8. Impossible Soul - Sufjan Stevens

October, and all it means...

2011-10-05T23:12:00.000-07:00

The weather is changing, for the best. Rainy school + soccer days. Come home, make home, be warm. And let it be cold outside, I don't care.

Laying Down

2011-09-26T00:47:00.000-07:00

New music can make you feel like a hundred million dollars. Or it can simply make you feel like where you are is the absolute only place in the world to be at that moment. I bought some new records Saturday in between shifts. It took so much patience to wait until I got home to listen to them. When I did finally get home; I put them on, let them spin, and just laid on my bed feeling like a million bucks.

be

2011-09-20T08:46:00.000-07:00

Wherever there is light, there can be no dark.

be a light.

Going West

2011-09-19T15:25:00.000-07:00

Me + the old world explorer.

Two things that I love about it:

1. Late summer/early fall Sunday BBQ's

2. Hardwood floors, vinyls, and the best pages in the whole wide world.

Well, maybe three things

3. The best ways to celebrate brand new things. Pizza Party!!!!! complete with 90's mix tapes and smiles so big, held so long, that your high cheek bones get sore.

That's just so far. More to come.

I Had a Dream

2011-09-12T00:35:00.001-07:00

I had a dream that I was flying

up over the mountains, green and gold in different spots

up over the tips of the tallest trees, trying to scratch me as I floated by.

I had a dream that I was soaring

into clouds that looked as big as whole cities, breathing them in as I went

into puffs of smoke, cold air, and warm

I had a dream that I was floating

on and on and on and on, like I was in a river drifting slowly downstream

on the golds and reds of the sunset, peach like my favorite flavor of ice cream

I had a dream I was loving

and it was only ever you,

it was only ever you.

I lived a dream that I was loving,

my whole life dedicated to one.

And although we were two, we were only ever one

we were only ever one.

To My Dad,

2011-09-04T01:29:00.000-07:00

There is something that is unlike any other feeling to me, that is watching football with my dad. He's been a BYU fan for years, ever since he came here for college as a teenager from Salt Lake City. He's seen just about everything important happen for BYU football, storing them in his mind like the VHS tapes that they were recorded on. Bowl games and rivalries, even the time when he saw Miami come to town and helped shake the stadium with noise, watching the Cougars upset a National Champion. He's antsy and paces back and forth (when we're watching it on tv), but he's so even keeled and I've learned a great deal over the years, just sitting with him at football games. The smell of the food at the concession stands, sitting snug between perfect strangers, and the hours spent in the north endzone watching them play have been something I look forward to every fall. I've spent years in those stands and in front of that tv set, in awe of just how special it all is. We don't have to speak too much, we're so much alike that we get each other without even saying a word, sometimes sitting there, both just tapping our legs with the anticipation of it all. You can find me a lot of places, at a lot of different times, but on a saturday in fall, there is nowhere else I'd rather be in the entire world than with my dad, at a BYU football game.

Goodbye Summer!

2011-08-30T00:13:00.000-07:00

I'll see you again. When my hair is longer and you don't need anymore friends, but you'll still be mine. Months will pass, you'll be tucked away like a neat little note from someone special that brightens the day. Your light will be hard to contain, but that's why it spills over everywhere, making it okay to be messy. Making it okay to wake up as early as you can just to be able to watch the mountains try to contain it, until they can't any longer and it just bursts over their jagged peaks, to be apart of something that big.

You'll keep everything I've loved about you the same, except with time, some things change, but you'll "stay golden pony boy." And like a long day, you'll be over and out, gone with the nights that make you SPECTACULAR, something else that nobody understands. So goodbye, until we meet again. When it's just you & me and everything around, completely perfect for months on end.

Going places

2011-08-13T23:35:00.000-07:00

I love music for many reasons. You couldn't count them on your hands, feet, or calculator. The list is always expanding and growing. I love the power of music and believe that it is very real. To add another to the list, this is something I felt today;

I love hearing a song for the first time, even if you've heard it before. Really hearing it for the first time. Letting it pour over you like warm water. Stopping whatever you were doing before, just to listen to it.

Music has power. There is something so real about it. It can apply to you in a completely different way than it does to me, but that's one of the best parts. Let it take you where you need to go. And even if you've heard the song a million times before, after you wake up and put it on loud, and it seeps through the walls and you hear it all the way up in your bathroom, stopping you right where you are

frozen

unable to move for three minutes and forty nine seconds. And everything is perfect, even if it's just until the song ends.

And that's why I love music.

Night Drive

2011-08-09T08:34:00.000-07:00

Windows rolled down

Kaskade (feat. Mindy Gledhill) - Eyes (Extended Mix) by Kaskade

Lana Del Rey

2011-08-06T10:09:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but I can't get enough of this video. Do I love it? I'm not sure, but I can't stop listening. Without further ado, Lana Del Rey - Video Games

End of July

2011-07-31T11:34:00.000-07:00

Two things I loved this week, well, maybe three things:

1. THIS, on repeat, and then in real life under the stars, above the clouds with great company.

2. Soccer, again. Almost sick of it, then refreshed.

3. This, this, and this.

Two things I learned this week:

1. People still have feelings under all of that tough skin

2. When I'm nervous and scared to do something, I just need to look in the mirror and see myself for what I am, and do it anyway.

It Will All Work Out

2011-07-24T11:07:00.000-07:00

People who make you want to be more, who get the most out of you, are worth having around.

Two things I loved this week,

1. Parks just down the road, where you could sit and feel like you were a million miles away.

2. This, this, and this

Two things I learned this week.

Ok, maybe three things

1. There are still so many places around my home that I've never been, and they AMAZE me. I've lived here for 25 years.

2. You can make a mix cd with all your favorite songs, but it won't be the best mix you've listened to. You need role players.

3. God will take care of you, even if it's all scary for a minute.

Summer Nights

2011-07-20T09:37:00.000-07:00

My summer nights have been full of soccer, fireworks, cool breezes, good music, reading, rain storms and new places/views. I've found favorite spots in places that I never even knew existed, spent time in great American ball parks and on soccer fields with grass that was way too long to run fast enough in. I've eaten popsicles in backyards, front seats of cars, and in the hottest houses, watched movies in the park, laid on blankets in tall grass and heard explosions in the sky.

Because not a lot of feelings compare to driving with your windows down on a lonely road, cool air through your hair, music on the radio, perfect temperature that you couldn't get, even if you adjusted the air conditioner in your car for hours. That's why summer is perfect.

More summer listening

Summer Mix

2011-07-11T01:01:00.000-07:00

Something I made

Summer Songs Part II

2011-07-09T10:42:00.000-07:00

I do like it! On your way to the beach? Just push play.

Floating Vibes by Surfer Blood

blogging forever

2011-07-09T00:23:00.001-07:00

I love blogs. Please link me to the ones that you like, or yours.

Summer Songs Part I

2011-07-06T09:13:00.000-07:00

You can play it at a bbq, in the car with the windows rolled down, or at the beach/pool/lake.

Tegan & Sara - Back In Your Head (RAC Mix) by RAC

cozy

2011-06-24T00:36:00.000-07:00

Where will you go this weekend that you've never been before? Even if it's in your home town? I love finding new places in all the nooks around Provo. It's like that feeling when you find a new place in your house to read, and everything feels fresh - the book comes alive, the pages smell wonderful, and even in your own home you feel revived. I love that feeling.

Stories

2011-06-20T01:16:00.000-07:00

Is there a writer that you really love? That whatever they write, you soak up every word? You feel so connected to their words, that their memories become your memories too? Sometimes? Who is yours?

Two of mine,

Bill Simmons and Roald Dahl.

The Long Weekend

2011-06-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

The long weekend is every single week in the summer. Sometimes your month is just one long weekend, and this month is that weekend for me. I'll have been to Wrigley and Angel Stadium by the end of it. The beach, and the golden fields of the midwest. Donut King and Cousins. If it's not a dirty donut shop on Durfee or a sub shop you've only driven by once, but thought about for years, it's not to be explored.

And, the best part of it all? When this long weekend is over, Having these guys live just a street away!

Mis Amigos

2011-06-08T10:56:00.001-07:00

I love the all-night drive. Just the stars above, the lights ahead, and the road, dark black below. Making old places new, and finding places that you never knew existed, and thrived for that matter.

Yesterday, I found myself in East LA, speaking mostly Spanish to some really nice people. We spent most of the day on their couch, watching their tv, reliving old premier league thrillers between Leicester and Tottenham. Because sometimes things don't go the way you expected, but most of the time, it's better than you ever would have.

Faith

2011-06-06T00:53:00.001-07:00

"Trust God and believe in good things to come."

Jeffrey R. Holland

I was reminded today just how much I like Mormon Messages on YouTube. Every time I hear them, they lift me up. They are bursting with the spirit of God and it fills the room each time.

My current favorite, although they are all touching,

revolution, revolutions

2011-06-05T01:50:00.000-07:00

are you on the other side of the world?

where the wind blows your hair to the side of your face,

but when i'm dark, you're light?

And when you're dark,

I am up and at them. revolution,

revolutions,

when it comes together, it's a lot here and there

but underlying, keeping it all together,

it's beautiful. You'd wait all day for it. Surely, even longer.

there's something to the waiting that makes the having that much sweeter.

so, even though I've heard this song before, I'll let the record play over again and see where it takes me this time.

Let it build,

and be awed, even more this time.

I think you'll like this

2011-05-30T13:17:00.001-07:00

just to float.

2011-05-25T01:47:00.001-07:00

sometimes you just need to listen to music and let it take you wherever you were meant to go. It's beautiful then. Pure.

Some moments in life are so cluttered, like a room you've neglected to clean for a week or so and instead, you let things pile up. You let the sink become a little dirtier than you normally would, and you forget to take out the trash. But there are others, other moments where you are simply allowed to float. To be above it all. Music can take you there.

Summer's Eve

2011-05-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

New Bon Iver, and Death Cab??? What a great week.

What a great weekend though, Wedding, Betos, Bonfire, Bball. Even more excited for this one. One more week until summer begins for real, my favorite month ever, JUNE!

Shish Kabobs on the lawn? I think so.

Summer is waiting

Oh, and if you want to stream the new Death Cab album, you can HERE!

hope

2011-05-19T16:35:00.000-07:00

After a no good, rotten day, you can always pray. And all the aching inside your body slowly goes away. Because someone is actually listening. Someone who knows you inside and out, and cares so intricately about you. There's not a lot of feelings like that in the world. And slowly, sometimes instantly, it's not a no good, rotten day anymore, and all the world is bright.

The Best Day

2011-05-12T11:47:00.000-07:00

If you don't have a secret set of swings that you can go high enough to kick the tree next to them, or fast enough that it makes you cold on a summer night, then you are missing out. I forgot about them until last night, but this is how they make me feel:

ps. one of my favorite songs ever

Sharing

2011-05-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

New music let's me be a little kid again. Wide eyed, pure joy. You can be any place, but the music takes you anywhere you really want to be. It's oooooh, ahhhh, and the only real thing I do when I'm truly happy - laugh/smile wide and loud.

SO SHARE IT WITH ME, please. And let's listen together. In my room, or yours.

25 minute song

2011-05-02T23:04:00.000-07:00

Imagine being on a ship, tossing and turning on the waves, some of them as big as your ship. You're sailing across the sea. And, sometimes, it's just aqua blue - see all the way to the bottom of the sea - water. But others, it's white caps, grey caps, and stormy weather all over. After so many months at sea, your legs aching for dry, stable, land, you start to get cabin fever! Everything tastes the same. The sun rises and sets. Aqua blue is all the same, is the sky the sea? The sea the sky? clouds are long distant dreams that float in and out of the very sky/sea you spend day after endles day in.

Of course, night and the light it brings, dots of burning light dripped across navy blue sky, is your sanctuary. The breeze is bearable, and when you paint with the stars in the sky the canvasses you create are works of art, masterpieces, shared hands with the ancients, the romantics, the free thinking, forward moving, complex, inner/outer driven artists of the ages. You find your peace in these skies, the same ones you rue every day. Just the change from light blue mixed white aqua to dark dark navy blue, almost pitch black moves you. It's funny, life being like that. When you change one thing and your whole world becomes endless possibility.

Public Television

2011-04-29T08:53:00.000-07:00

If you've never had cable, you've never had Sportscenter. You can do all the reading online and watch all the video clips and highlights you want, but you still don't have Sportscenter. And during the playoffs, it's kind of a sad time not to have it.

I don't think, however, that I would have grown as fond of PBS if I had cable growing up. I would've never known Nature, or Globe Trekker, or Father Ted, or any of the wonderful/educational programs. I'm kind of glad that I didn't. But I still miss the highlights. I guess life is like that sometimes. You're grateful for your background, for where you came from, but you can still miss something you never had.

Summer Songs

2011-04-18T09:26:00.000-07:00

Last night felt like summer. Walking outside, with shorts on, the sun still out late into the evening. It was the best feeling after months of bitter cold. I could've walked for miles. One of the best parts of summer besides the warmth? The music. Every summer has its own music. I remember the first time I really heard Bob Marley, sitting on top of a house boat in Lake Powell as the sun set wishing I had a girl next to my side. I'd heard Bob Marley before, but I'd never really heard him. That moment, and others, are the reason summer songs are so good. They make moments last forever.

In case you missed it last year, here was my fav summer cd.

This is the first song "Favorite Food" off of Champ by Tokyo Police Club

Reading

2011-04-17T20:27:00.000-07:00

Part two:

Sometimes, all you need is a little Dre, or a little twist on conventionalism. Sometimes you need to figure out what something really means to you, even if it isn't the same as everyone around you. That can be scary though, right? And, I guess, sometimes you just need to stand up to what scares you and not be scared, even if you're pretending. Even if you're secretly shaking a little. And after it's all done, even if you're still scared, everything will be ok. And then you can be happy, even if you were all along and just didn't know it.

Light Spring Reading

2011-04-13T13:55:00.001-07:00

Blogger, the saddest place in the Universe, if you let it be. It can also be the happiest, well maybe only Disneyland can be. With that in mind, I give you:

A Melodramatic Diary in two parts.

"Hello hopes and dreams, it's nice to meet you." "Oh, you're shattered?"

I've heard the saying, "When it rains, it pours," before. I thought that somebody had said it once long ago and it had carried throughout the years. But it actually kind of makes sense this week. Little drops all falling at once and me ending up soaking wet. It's funny because you never think so many things will happen at once, and then they all fall into place and you don't know what to do. Should I be sad? Should I just sit in the basement and play nintendo all day? Maybe though, I'll just let it rain for a little.

Sometimes, you just gotta listen to a little old school Dre.

End part 1.

Breakfast

2011-04-11T09:35:00.000-07:00

and the things you think while eating it.

If you don't have a cereal box in front of you, or a sports page, or your laptop, what do you think while eating it? And nobody to talk to? I save that kind of thought process for when I'm falling asleep, when I need it most. Those thoughts that are winding and grand, and even glorious.

Sitcom

2011-04-10T00:48:00.000-07:00

Untied strings, from canvas shoes, things

you

don't

even

care

about.

Except on rain days, when you forget your coat, but a few hours later

you'll

dry

out

again,

and remember how

you

didn't

even

care

in the first place.

Nick and I

2011-04-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

The weekend

2011-04-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

Is over! But, just a few days away at the same time. I love the weekend, and the weekday. There really isn't a bad day in the whole calendar. Tuesday nights are like Friday nights to me, I've always love them and they have always included some of my favorite things (soccer, film society, game 6's). It all started in high school when Wednesday class started later than the other days and just turned into one of the greatest days/nights ever. Imagine being able to say Tuesday and Friday in the same breathe, pretty incredible right? I think so.

Pacific

2011-04-04T16:28:00.000-07:00

Spring break is next week. I need a place to go, and to stay, and something to do.

Out in The Rain

2011-03-09T12:31:00.001-08:00

Even the best long sleeve shirt can't save you in the rain. When it's cold, and pouring, and relentless. There is no daybreak in the distance or even an uneven patch of grey to hope passes by. It's just one big dome of persistent drizzle. It will eventually soak through, and there you'll be, wet and cold. But it's not the worst fate in the world. Actually it can be a pleasant one, depending on who your with. I guess that's what the matters all the time.

Mondays Can Be The Best Days Too

2011-02-28T22:31:00.000-08:00

There is something about a soccer field and spring that rejuvenates me. I love everything about it. How warm it can be, or on the other side, how grateful you can be to have a new hooded sweatshirt. How just a few hours out there seem to last forever, and it's always into the sunset.

If you were paying attention from before, I'm making my ipod more accessible to me. That's progress. Album art added, and bands I actually like. This could be the start of something great. Goodbye Sky Harbor was a much needed addition. Ps. I love the spanish subtitles in that youtube video, just straight up translated. And, how good is Jimmy Eat World live?

If you're looking for a good make-out song, add that one to your list. The album version of course, and thank me later. Actually, just add the whole album (Clarity) to your mix.

Bananas

2011-02-27T12:12:00.000-08:00

Cereal + bananas = a great day. Or at least a great start. And, if you've got a great start, nothing can stop you.

Great start to the year? Yes. Nothing can stop you/me then. Even if somedays your hair is wet and you forget to comb it until it's dry. It will all work out.

thankful heart

2011-02-13T16:43:00.001-08:00

This week, have I loved.

This mix, have I loved.

And holding my nephew for the first time, have I loved. What a family I have, truly wonderful.

Someday

2011-02-04T00:13:00.001-08:00

I have an ipod, but don't feel connected to the music on it. Isn't that a sick feeling? I find myself listening to podcasts most of them time. Which I love, but I think a really good connection to your ipod is one of the best things, musically. I still remember being on the beach with my four button ipod, great playlists, great music, and awesome times. I still have that ipod and will keep it until I have kids, then I'll show it to them and they'll say, "Dad, you really were cool at one point in your life. Even if it was just while you were at the beach with your ipod. How did you meet mom anyway?" I'll say, "I used to be hot." Then we'll all laugh and eat oreos with milk around the table.

Adventure is Local

2011-01-05T14:23:00.000-08:00

If you love Provo, or have any ties to it, you might like this blog:

I had all these great things to say about it in my mind when I was trying to go to bed last night, but I didn't write them down and as so often is the case, it totally escaped me.

C. Jane is a great, enjoy her view of one of my favorite places in the world.

Winter Roads

2010-12-29T23:14:00.001-08:00

I love winter, icy roads are new lands. The world is a new place to be explored, and I've got the perfect companion. It's just me and you, and you are a car; but so much more. A winter sleigh, gliding through the silent trees, full of warm sounds and even warmer blankets (the king). I guess we've almost got it figured out.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-23T00:55:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Adventure is yours

2010-12-17T21:30:00.000-08:00

Mike is off into that good night. What a beautiful day, even with the cold. We drove down 9th East with Crest drinks, and he rode off into the dark, into a new world of delight and wonder.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,

Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.

Do not go gentle into that good night.

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Adventure is Out There

2010-12-10T12:56:00.001-08:00

Adventure is out there, just around the corner in almost every case.

One of the catalysts for good conversation is a road trip, plain and simple. Even if it's just two or three hours here and there, you'll like somebody more than you ever thought you did and you'll probably eat some of the greatest combinations of things you'd ever hope to eat.

You'll stumble into towns that would have been lost to you forever if you hadn't and you'll be grateful that you found them, so you can store them in your mind with perfect tags and instead of being lost forever they will become vivid and somewhere you long to return to.

That's why I love the open road and a car full of friends.

Oh yeah, and the music.

Songs I've discovered on road trips:

^Our Hell - Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton

^Fake Empire - The National

^What You Know About Transparent Things - The Hood Internet

^Change Order - Jaydiohead

It's Gettin' Easy - Dear and The Headlights

And so many more!

Enjoy!

A Quiet Minute

2010-12-03T01:54:00.000-08:00

If you have one, today, go listen to this song. I already liked the song, now I love it.

Mixtapes

2010-11-23T23:21:00.000-08:00

I am always making mixes. I love them. I used to make them on cassette tapes, recording over anything I could find just to get that song I loved from the radio. You had to stuff little pieces of paper into the holes on the bottom of the tape if you wanted to be able to record over what was already on it, that or use a recordable tape.

My sister used to have all these Beatles tapes that I would listen to over and over again. I loved I am the Walrus, Elenor Rigby, and Michelle. I loved those tapes and I would spend hours listening to them on the floor, in my room. They were either given to her or made by one of her friends, either way I was grateful to have them. Her stereo was the one I used to record my tapes on.

Now, I just use my macbook.

Enjoy!

Nowhere Near My Heart - Kori Pop

Sun of a Gun - Oh Land

Quiet Little Voices - We Were Promised Jetpacks

Slow - Twin Shadow

Bon Iver - Skinny Love (Das Kapital Rerub)

Thanksgiving

2010-11-21T00:28:00.000-08:00

This video reminds me of something I need to remember always. I love how they always tie in a conference talk, President Monson is a wonderful example! Enjoy and be grateful always, not just this week!

Thanksgiving week

2010-11-17T14:30:00.001-08:00

I am grateful for a lot of things, but mostly my family.

Sundays

2010-11-14T17:51:00.000-08:00

are the best for reading, especially under a blanket.

Fin de semana

2010-11-12T13:55:00.000-08:00

The weekend! If you need a song for it, try this one. If nothing else, it's good for a drive home from school/work/your friends house. Jamie told me it's in a Pepsi commercial. Either way, enjoy!

You know you started out your weekend right if it started Thursday night with soccer. I love that about Thursdays.

symphony

2010-11-10T13:49:00.001-08:00

I found this song today, and it really made me happy.

If you love it like I do, enjoy this

New York on the Mind

2010-11-08T13:44:00.001-08:00

fly away for just 191 quid (quid = one pound sterling This is the most common form

of slang for a pound, and is used in exactly the same context that dollar currencies use ‘buck’. Interestingly the plural of quid is quid as in ‘you

owe me five quid’. Probably comes from the Latin ‘quid pro quo’ which means something in exchange for something else and is used in legal transactions. It could also be from a mint that existed in Quidhampton.)

While you're there, listen to this

And eat this

And visit them

But in the meantime, enjoy this

Wedding Season

2010-11-08T13:40:00.001-08:00

Jame & Linda 10/30

Mikey & Nat 12/17

am

2010-11-08T02:49:00.000-08:00

I love:

Headphones so comfortable you forget you're wearing them

pants/shirts/socks/sweaters just like that

sunday naps

new world perspectives

maps

world fever

Por mi clase

2010-11-05T11:55:00.000-07:00

In my spanish class there are six people on a good day, three boys and three girls. Sometimes there are only four people in my class. To my teachers credit, it is never awkward and everyone gets along fine.

I love Spanish class. It's always been my very favorite class. Taking it has opened so many doors for me too. I remember two years ago, after spending time with my family, I went over to Idelfonso's house and had Christmas eve dinner for the second time. I don't ever think i've been so full in my life. They had Pozole, Tamales, and two different deserts or postres. Not to mention all the different sodas and their homemade hot fruit drink that reminded me of wassail gone wild. I spent 30 minutes after dinner on the couch with Idelfonso talking. When he speaks, he speaks like a Mexican in Mexico speaking to other Mexicans. I am not a Mexican. I am a kid from provo who learned Spanish in middle and high school. I still have to think when I speak. So when I say I spent 30 minutes after dinner talking with Idelfonso you better believe that I was praying to be able to understand him the whole time. You just have to know the right times to laugh. But if you could believe it, I understood most of what he said. He brought me into his home with his family on Christmas eve, he fed me, and then he showed me the pictures his brother drew for him (he had them framed on his wall, drawings on notepad paper).

The other night, he gave me a ride home from work when I didn't have my car. These are just some of the adventures I've had because of Spanish class. Not to mention the countless others; "sorry sister", sitting on Maria's front porch, baile latino, futbol latino, golazo celebrations on the trampoline, long nights after work sitting in the parking lot and hablando (speaking).

I love my Spanish class.

Book review

2010-11-02T23:13:00.000-07:00

The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I found this book deep in our bookshelf one evening in high school. I needed a book to read while I was taking a bath. It was small, the pages had small print, and it was old. But something resonated with me before I even opened it. I read the first few pages and was there, in rural China. I read the whole book in a few days and remember thinking that I had never read anything like this book before. It was raw, unabashed, and relatable. I still haven't read anything like it to this day.

View all my reviews

Reading takes you places

2010-10-31T02:26:00.000-07:00

Gotta love that when you have to peace out, there's always somewhere you can go

Radar

2010-10-29T14:16:00.001-07:00

Cortney and I love this song

It doesn't speak to me

2010-10-26T22:56:00.001-07:00

Halloween reminds me of pillow cases, trick or treating in foxwood with my dad, the old story book that was always up in the bathroom, and cold nights. Not to mention all of the school parades and treats and that old tape we used to play.

I'd keep growing out my beard if it weren't for Jamies wedding on Saturday! Oh happy day though. Tonight, you're getting thought writing, not composed. But when is it ever composed?

Basically, no filter.

enjoy!

Midterm break

2010-10-12T01:06:00.000-07:00

I like this

and midday naps + the news from lake wobegon + my new comforter

I loved priesthood session + brothers & dad + slab + oregon/stanford

Take me to

2010-10-06T14:16:00.000-07:00

Portland, Or

Lavell Edwards Stadium

The wet grass in my backyard

El Cine

The soccer field

Somewhere I've never been

and I'll be happy

something special

2010-09-23T12:50:00.000-07:00

This game makes me cry

Electrifying night

2010-09-23T00:14:00.000-07:00

I bought a rain coat a year ago, forgetting that I live in a desert. I put it on this morning, excited to finally use it. Drove to school. Got out and looked into the patchwork sky, decided I wouldn't need it. I honestly felt too warm to wear it. I walked maybe a city block before big drops descended out of the heavens and onto my head. I guess that's the way life works sometimes.

Who am I?

2010-09-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Mormon.org

The Mormon messages are beautiful and always make me cry.

Joseph Smith's first vision too, just reading it, thoughtfully

School Songs Part II

2010-09-20T00:09:00.000-07:00

add

Jolene - Ray Lamontagne

to the previous

School Songs

2010-09-14T17:08:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my favorite songs of the school year so far:

Madder Red - Yeasayer

Sprawl II - Arcade Fire MY FAVORITE SONG in a long time

Slow Down - Wyclef Jean

White Sky - Vampire Weekend

Mine - Taylor Swift

Blank Slate - The National

Noticed - Mute Math

Slow - Twin Shadow

Pleasant Grove - Forest World

School without music? No way

a.g.

2010-09-14T16:56:00.000-07:00

how are you? What is the first week of school like? I guess a lot of things have changed since I used to be there. My first week of school was great, I made so many new friends. I remember Jamie and I used to do so many funny things. We should have lived in the dorms, but that's alright because living at home is always good :) Especially when your parents miss you. I hope you got the gummy bears I sent. I know you love them, like I do. Haribo. Those Germans sure know how to make candy. I wanted to write you and let you know that we misssssssssssss you! I'm sure you already know that though.

xoxo