School's Cruel

Hello, world! Laura Miller here, updating on the happenings of her life. So far, life's been good and college has treated me with some goodness!

I got to see a few fabulous movies while I've been here. I had the opportunity to see Megamind and I was cracking up! Funniest tale of a villain ever! It was a pleasant sort of different and brightened my day. I finally saw Despicable Me, which was also an excellent animated film. The minions were the best part; I can kind of see myself blending right in with the clever, little goons. Just recently, I saw Tangled, the new Rapunzel movie. I loved it! It was adorable and dramatic. It was just really intense and wonderful. :)

Although, I had the the saddest and funniest experience on the way to see Megamind, quickly pedaling to the theater on my fabulous, rusty bike. There's a sharp turn onto the sidewalk to get into the Laie Shopping Center and it had been raining all day. Amid my quick twist to get on the sidewalk, my bike hydroplaned sideways, causing me topple over. Immediately, I laughed aloud and set to getting myself off the ground. Several people asked if I was alright and it was a tad embarrassing, except I'm so clumsy already that I hardly get ashamed of my trips and stumbles. I stood up, still chuckling to myself, and examined the scrapes of mud on my shins and my throbbing foot. There weren't really any injuries except for some small pricks from rocks here and there. When I got to the theater, I headed straight to the bathroom and wiped the dirt off my legs. The next day, I noticed a pale bruise on my foot and it steadily got darker and darker as the week wore on. I was so proud of my bruise, I made excuses to show it off to people, always resulting in a "Woah! What happened?" or a suck of air through the teeth and a "that looks really bad." It's all gone now, but a partial bruise feeling still remains. I must've bruised something like a bone, I don't know!

Thanksgiving turned out to be fantastic, despite being away from home. I went to the church lunch, got myself some real food and talked to some fabulous folks. This means that I didn't go without turkey or ham this year! I had lots of food, like mashed potatoes and gravy, salad, turkey, ham, stuffing and some yummy pumpkin cake pie thing. When I went home, I managed to make a green bean casserole and a chocolate mousse pie. Yes, people, I made some homemade pie crust with absolute success! It was flaky and delicious, making the perfect shell to carry chocolate mousse. That pie was gone by noon the next day! I'm so happy about that success. It was definitely a day of gratefulness for me.

I'm looking forward to the holidays like nobody's business. Okay, so it is plenty of people's business, I'm just really excited. Since the cold weather isn't existent in Hawaii, my housemates and I decorated the house a little bit. I found myself counting out the days until I go home while I took a shower. Only thirteen days left...not that anybody's counting. I spoke to my mom about Christmas ideas and plans while I'm home and all the siblings are amassed in the house. Look here, siblings! We are going to make a gingerbread house as a group. Oh, yes, we are going to work together. Of course, it has to be humongous and structurally sound as well as stylish. It will be a bonding moment for all of us, so be excited! I've also convinced my mother to have the fantastic family activity of making sugar cookies. It has been ages since the tradition was practiced and there is no reason to want to skip out. Seriously, it's cookies and frosting and they are just waiting for us to make them and eat them. Another activity I am very excited and determined to carry out is to teach my family members various parts of the Christmas Bells song. Then, when we make Christmas dinner or something, we can video tape ourselves randomly bursting into song! How awesome would that be? Super awesome, that's what! Let's just say that I am persuading my mother to plan family bonding activities and not a soul will escape!

I am also preparing a list of things I require for when I return home. That sounds awfully spoiled sounding...and it probably is. But some of these things are very much necessary for anybody to celebrate the holiday season! I've recently wanted to tell my mom to have cookies prepared for my arrival home. I mean, I want to walk through the door and see...cookies! You see, I am carrying out a challenge of no sugar or white flour until I get home. My mother was the one to think of the idea and I grow tired of watching those Toll House cookie commercials. Also, egg nog must be supplied throughout my stay, especially because I missed that opportunity last year. That is the last time I try and diet through the Christmas season. Alright, so my list is really just good fun...except for the egg nog. That's serious.

I'm learning to cook much better these days. Now I can make cucumber salad; fried rice; beef stroganoff with ground beef; stir fried broccoli; deluxe scrambled eggs; salad with hard boiled eggs and homemade dressing; beef and rice; amateur sushi; amateur onigiri; and various combinations of the same ingredients I use for basically everything. I'm going to start looking up other ideas now that I have some general recipes and cooking experience. I'm so proud of myself! I tried making homemade potato chips, but the first time I made them too thick, and the second time I learned that fake diet butter doesn't work as well. I gave up on it, but I'm not too broken up over it. When I get back home, perhaps I will be continuing my cooking and baking experiments. My mother suggested that I make dinner one night for my entire family, but all I can think of to make is fried rice. Maybe I will have to learn how to make orange chicken or something. Or...we can have prepackaged orange chicken. Of course, my brother and his wife make some mean Mongolian beef!

I'm not a huge fan of Glee, the musical television show, but I do enjoy their choreographed music videos slipped in. Some of the drama attracts my interest, but sometimes I find myself cringing at the situations. Still, I enjoy the music and dancing; I find the talent very mesmerizing. My favorite little performance so far was the mash-up of "Umbrella" and "Singing in the Rain." Very cool choreography and setting and quite lovely to listen to. The teacher is a magnificent singer, I think. I want to dance all cool and stuff...

I'm very happy that all my shows are coming back on television. They are the spark of my week and adore watching them while I eat my little meals. Since nobody facebooks me or emails me anymore, I do a lot of non-social activities. I don't watch TV as often as I used to, but when I am watching my precious shows, it seems like my roommates want to talk to me right then. I end up pausing my show to listen to them because I don't have the ability to listen to two things at once. Sometimes, I miss having excessive moments to myself, because I share a room and live in an apartment where a completely silent, personal space is rare. Don't get me wrong, I like all my roommates and we have lots of fun sometimes. But when I want to belt out a song, I usually don't because I'm afraid of disturbing them. When I want to sit in silence and write or watch videos online, I have to wait until night where I may or may not get an hour to myself in the bedroom. I love people, but I also love personal space. I am finding more things to be thankful for everyday! Still, I need to get out there and socialize! No more of this sitting around!

Amid my no-sugar-no-white-flour-challenge (which I'd like to call NoShoNoFloCha), I have decided to cut back on calories and various unhealthy foods. So far, I've lost about ten pounds and I broke through the 170 mark. I'm in the 160s! I don't have a problem with people knowing my weight. What does it matter? It's more about how chubby I am in image. I'm thrilled about losing some weight, especially because I've struggled with it for awhile. But you can't stop me from loving food! Proportions are a big part of my new diet as well. Even though I'm eating more fresh vegies and fruits, I'm eating less at each meal instead mammoth-sized proportions. I make nearly everything from scratch so I know what's in it and so it's a bit more natural and healthy. Man, I'm so proud of myself!

My semester is finally winding down and I have to scurry around to write a paper and do some studying! But I know I'll make it just fine. I don't worry excessively because it makes me tired and it's harder to concentrate when I do. So, I'm chill. I'll make it, I know I will. I even took the time to go to the beach and unwind. A happy Laura is a successful Laura! Now I'm going to throw in some pidgin because I can: shoots! This haole's almost pau with all dat dakine schoolwork! I'm such a loco now.

Recently, I've set myself on videotaping much of my adventures here in college. I want to make some montages of it all because it's so fun! Of course, then I also have to remember to take photos. I'm also planning to go to more church ward activities in the coming semester so I can meet more people and make new friends. Today, I went to ward prayer meeting, which was actually quite cool and I got to make friends with some legit people!

Alright, back to the world of a student! Mele Kalikimaka from Hawaii!

Here Comes the Sun, But Where's the Snow?

Hello, all! It's me, the one and only Laura Elizabeth Miller! Okay, perhaps not the one and only, considering that I don't have any very unusual names. But, it is me, nevertheless, and I have finally gotten around to another post.

In Utah, it's getting cold. In Washington, it's getting cold and rainy. In Hawaii, however, it is hot and sunny; sweat-inducing and blinding; non-Northwest-like and non-winter-like. It's just not what I'm used to, and it certainly does not feel like winter is coming. Perhaps this is why a lot of students don't want to go to class and just want to be on the beach...it's still summer here!

Speaking of not going to class, I had the most wonderful experience yesterday. I was feeling extremely reluctant to go to class in the afternoon and was just dreading walking into that classroom. To my happiness and joy, my class was canceled! On one hand, that is wonderful and I spent the time messaging buddies and doing my homework. Yes, I did my homework earlier than usual; yay me! On the other hand, the teacher was sick, and I simply cannot be pleased by such an ill-fated occurrence.

School has been going quite well; classes aren't too agonizing and I seem to be able to take on the load very well. Of course, my mother's wonderful packages from home help me plow on and work those two jobs and classes! Considering that I can never truly look at my apartment as a permanent residence, I don't have very many options for fun things to do. I suppose I could go to the beach, but I like walking the shore better at night without the crazy UV rays and blinding sunshine. Although, now I have something to record my shows, so I am truly blessed to have full advantage of our huge television! Oftentimes, I doodle, or look up rice recipes online. Just yesterday, I drew a picture of a "flying crocodile machine." If you are wondering where in all the planets I got that from, my housemate and I discovered it while watching Pirates of the Caribbean bloopers. In one of his blunders, Johnny Depp described the "Flying Dutchman" as the "Flying Crocodile Machine." Indeed, we chuckled about that many times. Sometimes, we just giggle about it in the class we have together, along with the phrase, "Button, oh button." I have also drawn the true story of the Titanic. Obviously, the tragic fate of the ship was nothing like this, nor was it comical at all, but I find krakens to be fantastic, fictional creatures!

As Halloween comes nearer, I find myself unsure of what will happen on the 31st. I have a costume, should I find myself invited to some party or realize there's an on-campus celebration of the frightful holiday. In some ways, I miss home, because Halloween was a day I would spend with my best friend, or amongst people I know and cherish. Plus, I would much rather walk through a scary maze than the "Haunted Lagoon" at the Polynesian Cultural Center. I hear scary things coming out of the PCC at night sometimes...

Now is sort of the time that students are asking each other, "are you staying for Thanksgiving?" Most reply that they will be, since we really don't have that much vacation time to fly home, eat some turkey and fly back. My housemates and other students explain that it's not a big deal, because Thanksgiving isn't really any more than lots of food. But they also don't eat as much as me. To me, Thanksgiving is kind of a serious family holiday. Perhaps that's mostly because we like to eat! If there's one thing that I will miss, besides the green bean casserole, it will be the nine pies my mom makes with the homemade crust. Where else can I get a peanut butter and chocolate pie? Or a to-die-for-chocolate-mousse-pie? I am not expecting such joys to be in Hawaii. I'm pretty sure there will be something coconut at the Thanksgiving table this year.

As for Christmas, I am bouncing on my heels with excitement for my winter break. I get to fly home and see my entire family: parents, siblings, nieces, nephews...the whole lot! I'm so unbelievably excited, but I'm also quite worried about getting them gifts...I have no idea what to get them. I'm also eager to see my best friend this winter and my sweet, sweet little pooch. Beside all the wonderful living beings, I'm also thrilled to be in Washington weather. Sun is great, and it gives me an excuse to tell my mom that I need new shorts and a plethora of summer shoes (not that I've taken advantage of said excuse), but I grew up in the rain and the clouds. I grew up wearing jeans and jackets and loving every minute of it. I came to love the ocean on a cloudy day; I find Northwest beaches to be so beautiful and so under appreciated. Though, ultimately, I miss the snow. Hopefully there will be some when I fly home this year, but not until after I come so I don't get snowed in.

College has given me an excellent opportunity to discover what I have taken for granted and to count all my blessings in great detail. At home, I was thankful, but not to the extent as I am now. Now, I understand the beauty of a dishwasher and the greatness of a home cooked meal. I can now comprehend the convenience of a car and the perfection of having a quiet house without vacationers stomping upstairs. I don't only marvel at the things I don't have, but I also have come to appreciate all the many things that I have at the moment. I am so grateful for food; for clothes; for an incredibly nice apartment; a bike so I don't take forever to get to campus; a computer; roommates with printers; a television; gym shorts; kind housemates; some cooking background; cookie recipes; skype; a phone; and definitely a longer list than that. But, most of all, I have come to love my family and my best friend even more. Not having them here is kind of hard, especially when you're a new student on campus. On the island, I don't really have that many people I can turn to that think the same as me, that share secret jokes with me, that have the same humor as I do. In this tiny place, I don't really have anybody that understands me as much as my family does.

Just this morning, I received a most exquisite package from my mother. When I opened it, I could imagine heavenly light bursting out of the cardboard insides. Literally, I hugged the shirt inside and then I ate a cookie. I took out each object like it was the best thing in the world because, right now, it is the best thing in the world. One of the many gifts inside was a pair of white vans and my fabric markers, preparing me to celebrate Halloween all the way down to my toes...really. I am planning a Halloween pair of shoes to embrace such a fun and exciting holiday! Now, all I need is an edited version of Sleepy Hollow. Maybe I can record it on TV.

I'm pretty sure my roommates think I am quite strange and nerdy at this point. At least, three of them do, I think. I have to admit, I'm not surprised. They often find me watching the unusual, but intense show of Doctor Who and it can take awhile to grow on something. It would be strange to walk into a room and encounter David Tennant yelling random things on the screen; I'd be a little frightened. I'm pretty sure that the anime I watch doesn't suit their tastes either. The weird talk of mushi and odd folks that turn into animals when hugged raises a few eyebrows but also slight chuckles. One of the anime I watch, named Fruits Basket (and I know that a couple of my brothers are aware of this one), has been nicknamed "Fruits" in our apartment. Sometimes, there is a holler of "Fruits!" by either my housemate or myself.

Besides my television strangeness, I also tend to exclaim odd things and appreciate...different things. Such as, I often talk in a series of accents and voice tones. If I am simply saying "I need butter," I may say it in a nasally, high pitched voice or in a very epic British accent. Sometimes there is a moment of silence...then a laugh. Or if we watch a movie where I tend to pick up a line I like, such as "there's shrimp in this!" in a very extreme, dwarf-like voice from Lord of the Rings, I may say it sometimes. Recently, I have begun to replicate the voice of Dumbledore from Harry Potter Puppet Pals. It certainly makes college life interesting for my housemates. Can you imagine living with me? I'm pretty sure they never expected this.

Nowadays, I work two jobs. I've never had an official job before, but I'm doing pretty darn well with securing them and handling them. For one, I am an art teacher's assistant, doing the basic duties of preparing the classroom for their various projects, grading, handling powerpoints and all that great stuff. For the other job, I'm an usher for the auditorium. So far, I've handed out programs and monitored the doors and I find it to be quite relaxing sometimes. Even though it sounds rough that I have two jobs, I hardly reach seventeen hours a week. In other words, it's way easier than it sounds.

Anyway, that is life right now. It's pretty smooth, sometimes dull (which I spice up by using strange voices) and sometimes unusual. But, always sunny. I just miss everything I'm used to!