Dear Reader, a hurried update

I had a couple of people ask me why I don't blog anymore. It's not that I'm choosing not to blog. It's that blogging seems to require deliberate thought and cohesiveness that I don't possess in great measure at the moment. So my dear reader, I offer you a somewhat scatterbrained update on my life.

A majority of my time is consumed by Taekwondo, which, I might add, is the best job on the face of the planet. We've had a couple weeks off for "summer break", which means the kids don't come but the staff works even more than usual. I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things--I've missed my students! Of course, half our staff is going away for 2 weeks, which mean me and one other instructor are covering nearly all of the classes at the studio for the next two weeks. It's going to be a major ADVENTURE.

I'm actually really pleased with my work right now. I feel like I'm really coming into my own as an instructor and staff member at the studio. My students are thriving, I feel like I'm connecting and really starting to make a difference in these young lives. Some of my advanced students are now entering their Black Belt Testing cycle. I will have a direct hand in their progression toward Black Belt. This is significant. But it's not just the advanced ranks--every student of mine is precious, and I find myself brimming over with the desire to help them succeed. It is this investment in my students and in this place that makes every long day, every hour worth it.

In other news, Sam and I are going to start submitting our novel to agents. Technically, we're submitting a query letter. This is a one-page document, which is all we have to hook their interest. One paragraph introduces the book, the theme. The second paragraph is a brief synopsis of the story. The third paragraph is a brief author bio, where we talk about our qualifications. That's it. That's all we have to interest an agent enough that they request more. I've really been struggling with it. I mean, our book is good. It's the best I've ever written. It will stand on its own merits. But brevity has never been a strong point of mine (ie this was supposed to be a "brief" update on my life!) I don't write poetry...I write EPIC NOVELS. So writing a single page, making it concise but mysterious, brief but engaging...well, it's a challenge for me. Sam and his family have helped greatly, and I'm not sure I'll ever be satisfied. But in the next couple of days we're going to start submitting our queries and wait for some of the rejection letters that are guaranteed to follow.

That's pretty much it. I spend a vast majority of my time at the studio, either teaching or in the office. Sometimes I get to hang out with my awesome friends. On Sundays I direct the ward choir, which is challenging but fun. Occasionally I get to go to ward activities, though not as often as I would like. And every now and then I get to chill with my family--though not as often as my mother OR I would like. But that's pretty much how it goes!

Quitting my job, writing, and life: an update

My blogs have been neglected, I'm afraid. I'm not sure I can quite express to you the insanity that has been my life over the past couple of months. Suffice it to say, I have been a busy girl.

The biggest news that I wish to share with you is that today is my official last day at my morning job. No longer shall I be the friendly customer service rep. No longer do I have to rise early to answer phones and talk to grumpy people. No longer will I claw my eyes out over silly projects handed to me last-minute by my boss. Freedom is mine.

This decision was a long one in coming. I have been dissatisfied with this position for quite some time, but felt stuck by circumstance and finances. However, change is finally in motion. This fall I will be going back to school. I am not certain where yet--I am registered at UVU to get started on a second bachelor's degree. However, I am on the alternate list for the MSW program at the University of Utah. Obviously it would be my preference to skip two extra years of school and go straight into my chosen grad program. So here's to hoping that someone else decides to drop out of the program, so I get to go. They have until August to let me know...so we'll see what happens.

Needless to say, this intent to go back to school put a hard deadline on my time at this job. However, more and more I was getting the feeling that I should quit sooner.

My writing has been going very well. Sam and I finished our manuscript at the beginning of May. Before that time, we set some goals for ourselves and this book. The first was completion by the end of April, which we almost made. The next goal was to finish a full revision of our own by the end of May. This is still in the works, we'll see how much progress I can make this weekend. Our ms will spend the next few weeks in the hands of our first round of beta readers, then undergo a second full revision. Then in July we'll hand it off to our larger second group of beta readers, followed by a third full revision. The goal is to have the ms ready by the end of summer to begin the submission process to agents and editors.

I'm quitting my job for the summer to write. I just feel that this is what I'm supposed to be doing right now. These few months are precious time for me--in the fall, I'll be back in school and working, so my time to write will be very limited. I feel strongly that I am supposed to finish and pursue this book, so I'm taking this time right now to do so. It was hard to justify to myself--I mean, I may never make a dime off this book. It may never go anywhere. So it was hard to justify a REAL job and the bulk of my income for what may essentially just be a hobby. But after some earnest prayer and counsel from family and friends, I decided that for this summer, it was the right thing to do.

Incidentally...I'm really excited about the book. Co-writing with Sam has had it's challenges here and there, but overall it's been a great experience that we are eager to repeat. Together we've created something really strong, and I think that with the right timing, we have the potential to get published with it. I am very hopeful.

Other updates--Taekwondo is also going really well. I am picking up even more classes this summer, which is exciting. This coming month I will be competing at the Utah Summer Games. I'll be sparring, performing my form, and performing on our school's demo team, which is the shiz. I'm in the middle of a "diet" (not really, it's just eating better and being off sugar) trying to drop a weight class for the tournament. I'm super excited about this competition and everything else going on at the studio.

Life continues. I doubt it will get any less busy for these changes. But hopefully it will be a lot more fulfilling and enjoyable. =)

Beware: I am mean.

A little something you have to know about me.

Apparently, I'm mean. But, I don't mean to be mean. :P

So, Olympic Taekwondo is all about kicking. That's how you score points. They're now incorporating rules that award points for punches...but nobody actually scores them yet. Like, we're supposed to, but we're all hard-wired for just kicks, so that's still the name of the game. Kicks to the head get more points than kicks to the body. Naturally, the more advanced your rank, the more people tend to kick to the head. In the Black Belt ranks, you hear of people called "head hunters" who do nothing BUT head kicking. But that's another story.

I tend to get underestimated a lot. You see, I am not quite 5'3" tall. I'm stocky. Sparring matches are assigned by rank, age and weight. So a girl who's a lot taller than me will be a lot skinnier than me and weigh the same. So I tend to fight a LOT of people who are taller than me. This gives them a huge advantage--my head is a lot easier to reach. And I don't look like a fighter--I'm stocky and...well-endowed in certain areas. This all plays into the underestimation.

As I proved yet again today, I can hold my own in a fight. The first girl I fought today was at least 7 or 8 inches taller than me. Granted she was older than me. But still, she should have walked all over me with head kicks. But you see, I'm scrappy. I do a lot of what we call "jamming"--I stay in really close to her, where I can still nail her but she can't get to me because I"m too close. And I play mind games, which is really where these matches are won. I'm loud, I'm confident, I smile--rather wickedly sometimes--and then I beat the tar out of them. Ya, I get tired. My endurance isn't what it should be, and I'm not as fast as I need to be. But I win.

I was still coming off the high from my first fight when I went into the second--an exhibition match, which means that the opponents aren't people who would normally be put into a bracket together because of differences in either age, rank or weight. In this case, it was age--she was 48, I think. I, um...kind of wiped the floor with her. I didn't mean to. But I've been well trained and I was in tournament mode, and it was really hard for me to back off. Fortunately, she was still cheerful and upbeat later. It's never my intention to really discourage anybody--and when you lose 27 to 3, that has a strange tendency to occur. :-/

Nobody looking at me would think I'm an athlete. Nobody looking at me would think "ninja" or "fighter." Nobody looking at me would think that I know more ways to hurt or kill someone than I care to count. Nobody looking at me would think "martial artist." But that is how I think of myself. I am a martial artist. And on days like today, it's nice to know inside that I am good. At least, I can hold my own. I might not look like much, but I warn you--don't underestimate me. Because apparently, I'm mean.

2009 in review

I guess I wrote these posts a little backwards, but it's okay. Here is a year in review at Descent of the Muse.

In January, I wrote a lot and put on a Roadshow with my singles ward. Also, I started volunteering with LDS Family Services.

In February, I entered the Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest, started thinking about buying a house, and actually started looking at houses, which was weird.

In March, my novel made the quarterfinals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest. And Melissa and I went on a road trip to SEATTLE, which was a blast.

In April, I bought a guitar...which I then did not learn to play. I started back at Taekwondo after a 2.5 year absence. Also, I started my adoption blog.

In May, I moved to my apartment in Lindon. My friend Dixy got married, and we went on our annual camping trip to Red Cliffs.

In June, I went to New York City with my parents, which was amazing.

In July, I was exceptionally busy preparing for the national conference of Families Supporting Adoption.

In August, I started teaching classes at Taekwondo, and it started really kicking my butt into gear. I also met and started dating Grady.

In September, I turned 23. I decided to apply to the MSW program at the University of Utah, and started working on applications.

In October, I fought in a tournament (first time since 2006). I went to Pennsylvania and was the keynote speaker at an adoption conference there.

In November, I broke boards for fun. I participated (and won!) in the National Novel Writing Month. And I gave thanks.

In December, I went to lots of parties. I was the keynote speaker at TEDxSUU in Cedar City. And I started my awesome new job at Taekwondo!


All told, it was a pretty good year. And we can only hope that 2010 will only be better!

NaNoWriMo!

Five days left in November, and I just hit 50k! Kick-butt-boo-yah!

Now back to writing....

Pics!

The long-promised pics of Writing Camp! The roomies and I, writing away.



My novel is coming along quite nicely. I hit 30,000 words yesterday and have pressed onward. Having good times!

NaNoWriMo: Week One

My dear friends, we are coming to the conclusion of NaNoWriMo's first week. I have spent the last seven days writing, and I have to tell you, I'm feeling great.

Anna, my fabulous roommate, has become my writing buddy, and I think writing buddies make all the difference in the world. Our dining room table has become writing camp. We have a lamp (it kind of feels like an interrogation light, not gonna lie), and all sorts of cables. Music and food abound. We share ideas and lines and plots from our novels. We encourage each other. We spend our late-nights together at the table, writing.

It's going pretty well before. I've stayed ahead of the daily quota, though not as high as I'd like to be. Although if I'm being honest with myself, I'm doing REALLY well considering the chaos that is my life right now. Last year I wrote more, but last year I didn't have work AND taekwondo AND dating AND roommates to hang with and whatnot. So I think I'm doing myself proud.

The story is coming along nicely. I'm really happy with most of the characters, and the plot is developing in some interesting ways. So I'm just plugging along and having a good old time.

I'm hoping to post some pictures soon--I want to show you the funsies that is our writing camp. =)

Onward!

Board Breaking Extravaganza--check out the awesome videos

This weekend at Beyond Sports, we're having a Board Breaking Extravaganza! Sounds exciting, doesn't it? Well, it is! We've invited all our students to come--and to invite all their friends to come too! Everybody comes, and we spend the first part of the event teaching them how to break boards--or in the case of our students, how to perform a new break they've never done before. We practice and get ready. Then we spent the next half BREAKING--everybody who comes gets at least 2 boards, and they perform the breaks they've been taught. We're going to go through half a forest's worth of board, I tell ya.

So, for black belt test, we all have to break 10 boards. That's right, 10. Those testing for their 1st degree plan out in advance which kicks and hand techniques they will use to break their 10 boards. They plan the setup (which is more important than you might guess) so that their breaking makes an interesting performance, without a bunch of shuffling in the middle. At testing, they have 5 minutes to set up their boards with their board holders, practice, and break all 10. If any of their boards don't break, they lose points. If it takes longer than 5 minutes, they lose points. Points are awarded for good technique, power, and the boards breaking.

This weekend is a dry run for testing. All the kids testing for their black belts in January get to do all their breaks, just like they would for testing. It helps us evaluate where they're at with breaking, and if we need to adjust any of their choices.

For me, things are a little different. At black belt testing, I will be sent into another room. My head instructor will set up an arrangement of boards (and bricks!). Then I will come back into the room. I will have 2 minutes to break all the boards (and bricks!) I get judged on having good technique, but I also get judged on how challenging the techniques are that I choose (on the spot!) to break with. I am judged on my performance--how flashy I can make it, on the spot.

This weekend, though, I get to pick my breaks. I am doing 10 boards also (no bricks...my hands aren't conditioned enough quite yet!) Last night I sat down to decide what breaks to use this weekend. My instructor told me to choose things that will challenge me. And so I have!

First will be a blindfolded jump back kick. (This clip made me laugh! Now imagine, no gear--WITH blindfold--through a board.)

Next is a double jump front snap kick. (Couldn't find a good vid, sorry)

The next one is kinda fun. I will toss a board into the air, and as it comes down, I will break it with a ridge hand.

Following that, I will break 3 boards with a palm strike. This is how I will break bricks at my black belt test.

And last I will break 3 boards with a triple spin hook kick. (This one is crazy-sauce, but will be awesome if I can pull it off.)

All I have to say after all that is: board breaking is awesome, and Taekwondo is the shiz!

NaNoWriMo

I have a deep love for NaNoWriMo--National Novel Writing Month. I've participated for several years now, with great enthusiasm.

This year, I'm cheating. You're supposed to write 50,000 words of a NEW novel, one that you haven't started, and preferably one that you don't care about that much, because you're going to be cranking out 50,000+ words in 30 days, which means that quality is not necessarily a priority.

However, I'm hip-deep into this novel I'm co-writing with Sam, and I've come to the decision that it would be ridiculous for me to start another book at the moment. So I'm cheating. I will be writing 50,000 fresh words, but they'll be a part of this novel that we've already begun.

Last night, I told my roommate Anna about NaNo, and when her interest was perked, I realized that I really really really wanted her to do it with me. There's just something about company during moments of insanity. Having someone to rant to about characters who misbehave; someone to have late night write-a-thons and runs for caffeinated beverages. Strangers on forums are no substitute for a flesh-and-blood companion. So now I'm really hoping that Anna will join the ranks of NaNo-ers who will be madly scribbling away this November.

Cravings

You know those days? Ladies, you know what I'm talking about. Yes, those days.

All I want today is chocolate. Lots of it. Good chocolate, crappy chocolate, I don't care. But it's all I want. Food? Pass. Water? I guess so, but only if it's washing down some chocolately goodness.


PS: On a side note, I've been cracking at the novel this morning...haven't made a ton of progress, cuz my coworker is MIA again, but we're looking forward to a very productive weekend, and I'm stoked.

Addendum to Hair

I do have to admit that with really short hair, it'd be pretty hard to do this:

pics from my friend Dixy's wedding back in May. This was a good hair day for Valerie.

Most days, I hate my hair. It's an ongoing problem.

We had a few guy friends over the other night, and somehow we ended up discussing hair (I think it was one small portion of a LONG discussion on dating and relationships). The young men expressed how they like long hair on girls. They find long hair to be more feminine and more attractive.

So, I've been growing out my hair. The purpose of this is multifaceted. The first reason is simply because I haven't had 'long' hair in a long time, and I wanted to try it out. The second reason is more complicated--my mother, bless her heart, has had the same hairstyle for about 20 years (although she's presently growing out her hair, and I'm very proud of her). Under absolutely no circumstances do I want to fall into that trap. I want to always be young and dynamic in my hair and dress (we'll see how that actually turns out). After wearing my hair the same way for 18 months or so, I decided that it was time to try something different. Since my hair couldn't get much shorter, it was time to grow it out. Beyond those reasons, however, was the simple desire to have 'long' hair (that's a relative term, of course) for my wedding...whenever that happens. However, it takes a long time to grow out hair, so it was worth starting.

My hair has been growing steadily, and I'm actually quite proud of the length I've attained. I can almost make a ponytail. I'm so close! I really really really want to be able to make ponytails again. I don't find them all that attractive on myself, but they will make Taekwondo so much less hassle. =)

However.

Almost every day, I think about cutting my hair. I really liked my old style. It was cute, it was spunky, it was very me. I don't know whether it would be considered feminine by these guys, or any of the guys I've gone out with. But I felt very attractive with this particular hairstyle. I am tempted all the time to return to it. But then all these months of hair-growing would be wasted. That's what I remind myself.

I don't want to be one of those women who has long hair, gets married, and then chops it all off. I think that's tacky. But I've had short hair consistently since I graduated from high school, so I don't think having short hair would be all that unusual for me.

My goal is to be strong for awhile yet. I want to be able to make ponytails. =) And maybe if it gets a little longer, I'll like it a little better. At any rate, we'll see what happens.


PS: I think boys are lucky, that they don't have to deal with this madness.

In the event of an emergency...

At my apartment, we apparantly have a short circuit. One corner of our kitchen keeps losing power. We've thrown the circuit breaker a few times, which helps, but it just goes out again. *sigh* the joys of apartment life. At any rate, it started us thinking about fire hazards, and what to do in the event of an emergency.

One of the things we did was to ponder what we would take out of our house if it were on fire. I said to my roommates, "Decide on 5 things you would carry out. You have to be able to carry all 5 at once, cuz you only get one trip."

We decided that purses didn't count, they're attached, but if you have to add anything to the purse, those things count against the 5. We also determined that the 5 things have to be easily accessible--whether before or after we had the conversation they became so.

Here are the 5 things that I would carry out of my house if it were on fire.

1. My laptop.
2. My journals.
3. My scrapbook.
4. My scriptures.
5. My Dan certificate


Here's my thinking. 1. My laptop. All of my everythings are on my laptop. My novels. All my digital pictures that have never been printed. All my school work from college. Everything. Yes, I should back everything up, but I haven't. Besides, there's just a lot! If I lost my laptop, I think my world might come to an end. Just saying. 2. My journals are irreplacable. I have three of them at my apartment, and they cover the last 8 years of my life. They would be a devastating loss--I would feel like I had lost those years, because the record would be gone. 3. My scrapbook is not necessarily irreplacable; as long as I had my laptop, I would have all the pictures. But I've put an awful lot of work into my scrapbook and the memories within. So I'd take it too. 4. I would feel pretty sacrilegious if I didn't take my scriptures out of a burning building. So I would take them. =) and 5. The certificate from the Kukkiwon (international DUDES of taekwondo) that says I'm officially a black belt--and it costs a fortune and many many months to get replaced. So since I couldn't think of anything else I would save, I'd save this.

This is the thing--a fire would be, in any case, a devastating event. The loss of all my earthly belongings is not a pleasant thought. I would be so sad to lose all my books, all my furniture, my books, my piano, all those books, my clothing, my books, all my papers and documents and records, my books... But the point of this exercise was to identify those things that are most irreplacable and precious, so that if we had mere seconds to grab a few things, we would know immediately which things were most important. It saves time and perhaps a fair bit of panic in the moment.

The only downside--a fire is at least as likely to occur when none of us are home, and we're unable to save anything at all. *sigh*

What five things would you save in event of an emergency?

Black Belt Testing

This blog post is dedicated to black belt testing. Not interesting to you? Don't read it. ;)

I need to see if I can find you any photos from my first black belt test. It was pretty sweet. I tested for my first degree black belt (in taekwondo aka as first Dan) in August 2005. That seems like forever. So it's about time that I test for my second degree. =)

I want to tell you about some of the cool things I get to do to test for my second Dan. After all, I spend a majority of my "free" time at the studio these days, which means this is a pretty big part of my life--which means, dear reader, that I want to share it with you. There are about ten different "categories" I will be tested in. I'm not going to tell you about all of them. Just the REALLY cool ones.

1. Forms. "Poomsae", as they're called in Korean, are a set series of movements that represent a variety of attackers. There are a LOT of forms--at our studio, each belt rank moving from white to black learns a new form. They get progressively more advanced and more challenging as you work up the ranks. Which also means they get COOLER. I have to show all the forms I learned as a color belt and first Dan (about 15 or so) plus two new ones for second Dan. I've learned one that I will be tested on. I'm stoked to learn the other one! I'm coming to really love forms, which wasn't true a few years ago!

2. Bo Staff Fighting Form. Do you know what a Bo Staff is? It's basically a stick as tall as you are. Well, as tall as I am, in this case. This is new for me, and I start learning it tomorrow--a form like those mentioned above, but with a bo staff. I think a staff is one of the most practical weapons to learn. Katanas and nunchuku and sais are cool-looking, but when would you ever actually use them? But a lot of things can be used for a staff, even on the street. So I'm excited to start learning.

3. Breaking! This is SO STINKING COOL. If you've never seen a breaking demonstration, you really should. We break things (boards, or sometimes bricks) with our bare hands, feet, elbows, etc. To test for my 2nd Dan, I have to break 10 boards--that's right 10 boards--using techniques as dictated by my instructor. That's actually more challenging than it might sound. Before now, I've gotten to choose in advance which kicks, strikes, etc I will use to break my boards. Gives you a chance to practice. But now I don't know which techniques I will need to use, so I have to practice everything! Most likely I will have to break 3-4 boards at once with a kick (a jump back kick, perhaps?) And my master has warned me of several others, including a triple spin hook kick, which I've accomplished ONCE. EVER. but will continue to work on. I just want to emphasize how totally awesome breaking is. We'll probably go through several trees' worth of boards that day. With killer kicks and hand techniques. SWEET MUFFYCAKES.

4. Self Defense Demo. This has the potential for so much awesomeness. Each of the black belt candidates have been put into a group. Within the group, we have to develop a "demonstration" that shows the practical application of all the self defense we know--and in my case, what we can come up with on our own. For those testing for their first degree, it's a lot more simple. The self defense techniques that they have to show off are dictated to them, and then they get to choose from the established curriculum as to what further techniques they demonstrate. My portion is a bit more challenging, as you might expect. First of all, I get to demonstrate knife and gun defense--which means my fellow student will attack me with a [fake] gun and knife, alternately, and I have to demonstrate how to defend against them. Secondly, I've been instructed to include a lot of throws/take-downs, both those in the curriculum and some of my own. We have to develop scenarios in which we would use all of these different self defense techniques. And there's a certain amount of showmanship to it as well--we have to make it look real, practical, and powerful. When done well, these demos are freaking amazing. I'm so excited!


That's all for now. Those are less than half of the things I get to do for testing, but they're the ones I'm particularly excited about. Incidentally, my black belt test is in January (which will come faster than either you or I can imagine). If you're local and interested, consider yourself invited. It's going to be awesome!

Tilapia

I make a lot of goals with regards to my health, exercise, and dietary needs. I fail to follow through on most of these goals (alas...c'est la vie). However, I AM still trying to eat better (though I have a severe weakness for ice cream...and there is still FAR too much in my house).

Anyway, the last time I went grocery shopping I was looking for new and healthier things to feed myself, and I decided I wanted to buy some fish. After looking at all my options, I decided to purchase some frozen tilapia fillets. (Don't ask...it just seemed good at the time.) Anyhow, I decided to try it out.

I've never eaten tilapia before in my life. So it was kind of an adventure. I basted two fillets in lemon juice and lightly sprinkled them with garlic powder. Then I tried little sections with different spices. I tried about a dozen different spices, one at a time with little chunks of my fillets. I wanted to find out what I liked! It was a little silly, but still amusing.

My personal preferences leaned in high favor of the rubbed sage. Definitely my favorite. I also liked oregano and italian seasoning, in about equal measure. After those it was a bit of a wash. It was fairly good (with just the lemon juice and garlic powder); a bit plain, perhaps, but I think with a side vegetable it would have been all right.

Little life adventures!

When God keeps poking you, you'd better start listening!

I don't mean that statement to be sacreligious or in any way disrespectful. But I honestly believe that God uses other people to 'poke' you, to give you hints and nudges and a bit of a wake up call. Welcome to my life.

In the space of 12 hours, four people asked me when/if I was going back to school. It had been on my mind anyway, with school starting and a bunch of my friends starting classes. But then in less than a day, I got asked again and again about me going back.

Little pokes. Little nudges.

If you know me at all, you know about my impulsiveness. This is how it works--I start thinking about doing something. I stew about it for a looooooooong time. I might bounce the idea off a few select people, or I might keep it to myself. But when I finally make the decision, I take action immediately. I make it happen. Right. Now.

I started thinking about going to grad school last year. Do any of you remember that? I decided that I wanted to study social work. But as I was looking at the application for the program I was interested in, A) I was too late for this year's deadline, and B) of equal importance to education on the application was volunteer work in the field. At the time, I had none. So though school wasn't an option at the time, I still got interested in volunteer work. I contacted my caseworker down in Cedar City, who recommended me up north, I pursued it, got in touch with some key people at family services...and now I have nine solid months of volunteer work behind me, and my passion for the field has multiplied far beyond what my original interest led me to believe.

At this point, I'm just going to apply. Applying hurts me nothing, and could gain me a great deal. I have found something that I love to do, something worthwhile, and something I can make a career of. The chances of getting the kind of position that I want increase significantly with a degree--particularly a master's degree--in the field. And what is there to hold me back?

Japanese night

I love sushi. Can I just tell you? I think sushi is one of the most delectable foods I have ever eaten. There is such a wonderful combination of taste and texture that I just delight to experience.

Last night was a pleasant evening spent with friends. After work, I went to the Mt. Timpanogos temple to do baptisms for the dead, as I do on most Wednesdays. Usually, they whip me in and out of there in under an hour. But last night, I got stuck behind two youth groups...so it took much longer than usual. Alas! So I was late to sushi night, but that's okay.

We gathered at Sushi Ya's, which is on south State Street in Orem right next to the bowling alley. It's our all-around favorite sushi place. My new favorite of the evening was the "hybrid roll". Don't ask me what was in it, I don't remember. But it was delicious!

It's funny, because a couple of my friends kept rushing through the orders, trying to get the next round ordered quickly. I can't quite blame them, they've been practically fasting for three days, so they were hungry! However, it's not really my style. Going out to dinner, especially somewhere more fancy than usual, I just like to relax, eat slowly, and enjoy the company. A good meal, particular something outside the usual, should be savored.


Anyhow, then we retired to Jameson's brother's house to watch Kenshin. Now, I hope that you realize, dear reader, that I have a great deal of innate nerdiness. Sometimes I try to disguise it--sometimes I don't. This is just one of these things that I can't help but enjoy. "Rurouni Kenshin" is a Japanese anime about a wandering samurai in 19th century Japan. The hero, Kenshin, was an assassin during a revolution ten years prior, but has since given up murder and resolved to lead a peaceful life. The very best episodes of the series (in my opinion) are the episodes that show Kenshin on the verge of breaking and reverting to his old self. He hovers on that brink in a couple of key episodes, and they're easily the best fight scenes.

At least I own up to my nerdiness, guys. And as I'm currently writing a martial arts novel, I view it as research and inspiration. ;)

A better lifestyle

My taekwondo master always encourages us to strive to be our best possible selves. Today during meditation, we repeated to ourselves the mantra, 'it's amazing being me.' I am trying to take these lessons to heart, and I am striving to improve my life and my lifestyle. It is a constant work in progress. But as they say, writing down goals helps me achieve them. So here are a few of the changes I am making.

First of all, I'm eating better. I've started adding a lot more fruits and vegetables to my diet, and cutting out the processed foods. This is huge! Real food does take more time to prepare, but I think that time is worth the good health and how much better I feel about myself. Also, and this is VERY hard for me, I'm trying to cut out more sugar. Very hard for me. But I'm trying. Maybe I'll set more specific goals soon.

The next step is my cross-training. Of course, I do taekwondo, which I love, but I'm only there a few hours each week. So I'm cross-training. Right now its cycling, because it's helping me to strengthen my bad knee. My goal right now is 30 minutes three times a week. So far I've only been managing one or two times a week, but I am going to improve.

Thirdly, I'm just trying to be more active. I spend FAR too much time parked in front of the boob tube, and I'm trying to cut back on that. Whether its my cycling, or walking, or practicing TKD in the living room, I'm striving to be more active all the time.

All these things work together to improve the quality of life. I'm far from perfect, and I have a VAST amount of improvement lying before me. But I DO feel better, and better about myself.

I challenge you to make a goal this week that will help you to be better in some way! Let me know how it goes. :)

Focused on the goal

This weekend, July 31-August 1, is the Families Supporting Adoption national conference.

I have been working on this conference for over four months. I got asked if I wanted to "be involved" and "help out" (such innocent terms), which quickly involved into a full-fledged planning committee, of which I quickly became a co-chair.

Last year was the first time birth parents were invited to attend the conference. There were a total of six classes offered for birth parents, only on the second day of the conference.

Our planning committee (which didn't exist last year either) quickly decided that this wasn't nearly enough. As we brainstormed ideas for sessions and presenters, we quickly expanded to fill both days of the conference. We more than doubled the size of the birth parent portion (which is still barely a fifth the size of the adoptive-couple side).

All of our hard work and time has come down to the wire. The conference starts Friday morning. Of course there will be hiccups, as there have been constantly over the past weeks. But I am so excited.

This conference represents the culmination of my passions. Firstly, I love adoption, I advocate adoption, and I love talking to people about adoption. And this is two whole days of talking about adoption. Secondly, I love organizing things. This conference has let me off the leash, and I have been able to organize and facilitate and detail-out to my heart's content. It's the utmost use of my stage management and administrative abilities.

It's going to be awesome.
It's going to be inspiring. (except maybe for MY presentations!)
It's going to be the adoption event of the year.

And I can't wait for it to be over. :P

Google Docs: A tool for co-writing

I've never really used Google Docs before. I've heard about it, here and there. But I simply have never possessed a need for it. I had Box.net for online storage, where I don't just use my wonderful Gmail account. But then I heard about file sharing.

My friends, this is not just storage. That's what I thought I was dealing with. I have a file, I save it on Google Docs, and then someone else I invite to share can also look at said saved document. And realistically, I could have simply done this through my Box.

But its better. So far beyond better, it's in an entirely different realm. It went from "oh, that's cool" realm straight up to, "THIS IS FREAKING AMAZING" realm.

It's live file sharing. Every time it saves the document, the text gets updated for all the users, simultaneously. And it auto-saves about every five seconds. You can literally be working on the same document simultaneously.

Do you see the potential?

My friend Sam and I are working on a new project, something we've been brainstorming for many weeks now. We have finally started writing. So in an effort to improve our co-authorship, I decided to check out Google Docs.

We can literally co-write. As I write, the text automatically updates itself on Sam's computer, and vice versa. We can make instantaneous corrections and changes. We can compare notes and work from the same set of written brainstorming. THIS IS FREAKING AMAZING.

Ladies and gentlemen, the muse has descended. Please excuse me while I join Google for some much-needed writing time. Ciao!