Chaos

Chaos, is a funny thing, people everywhere try so hard to avoid it. People go to such extremes to get out of chaotic events, and I am the opposite, I cherish it.  Anyone who knows my family knows that we thrive in chaos.  With eight people in my family, there is always SOMETHING going on. We are loud, and over the top. We cry loud, we laugh loud, and we love loud!  In my house someone, is always touching you, with their sticky fingers, or yelling to close to your ears or spilling their sandwich crumbs down your shirt. It sounds crazy and maybe a little uncomfortable at first, my family welcomes everyone and loves everyone. When I was in High School our house always had a guest in it, granted it was normally one of my friends from high school, but our door was always open.  My friends just walked in, and my mom always made enough dinner to ensure that if a guest stopped by, or if we found a homeless person we wanted to invite for dinner, they had a spot and a meal.  I love it, I love the chaos of my house, I love walking in and seeing toys strewn all over the floor, the backpacks of all of our friends strewn across the floor, and the ten or twelve ramen packets by the stove, because it was Wednesday, and that is what my mom would let us eat. Our house always had crumbs on the counter,  a towel on the floor in the bathroom, and a lot of loud singing. We had a holes in our walls (cough* nick* cough),  and you could guarantee that you would find food somewhere it shouldn’t be (like the entertainment center, seriously Eliza!)

As my family gets older, and we move away from the sticky fingers, and the babies climbing all over us I find myself missing those moments of chaos. Where Eliza was drawing on me with her chocolate covered fingers, while Bonnie “braided” my hair, and Jonathan and Jeremy argued about Pokémon in my ears. That little bit of chaos that was so fleeting is gone now, replaced by silly kisses, loud laughter at the dinner table over something Justin said, and the occasional drama from our “brain tumors”.  I love the chaos in my life, without it; there would be too much silence, to many moments that aren’t filled with true joy.

This is why I love Portland.  I love sitting and having chaos around me. I love the loud people, the crazy people, and the sheer noise. It makes me think of home.  I love feeling like things are just barely under control.   I love that people are welcome to be whoever they are, the good, and the bad. I love that for once in my life I don’t stand out as the loudest, or the craziest, just like at home. Everyone has their own chaos within them, and together we create a hive, each world briefly touching as we pass one another.  A look, a smile, or a shared eye roll, we each interact with each other contributing the each other’s chaotic world. I think it is a beautiful thing.  Silence and stillness has a place within each person, but it is chaos that brings me alive.

A Not So Traditional Canadian Thanksgiving.

Hello all,
After a long emotional weekend for all 19 year-old latter-day saints girls (and 18 year-old boys), I thought I would give you an update, and a story.
Yes. I am planning on going on a mission for all who wonder.
No, I won't be going for a while.  I have school
Yes, I think it is awesome.
Yes, this is going to change BYU for the better.

But that isn't what I wanted to talk about. Today I wanted to talk about the joys of Canadian Thanksgiving. For any of you who don't know(aka everyone in the world, except Canadians), it is tomorrow the 8th of October, but this year, I celebrated early due to the number of midterms I have this coming week.. Also I forgot until Friday. Meh, shiz happens..Anyway. With joy in my heart, I decided that I wanted to celebrate. Because any day that you can celebrate what you are thankful for, is a great thing (and I love stuffing).

I realized however after declaring to my lovely roommate Alice (Sarah) (her image is beside)that I had absolutely no turkey in my house, no sausage for my stuffing, and no way to get to a story because it was Sunday and I had no food. Sarah just winked at me (or tried, how I love her!) and we did what college kids do best. Improvised.                                                  

Now, my improvising could have been disastrous, but with a little help from my friends (aka) Alice (Sarah) it was a wonderful meal that I will never forget.


Surrounded by people I loved, and people I was just meeting for the first time, I sat down to Fried Chicken, with Mash Potatoes. Cranberry Almond Stuffing (with no sausage and Italian seasoning instead of sage), Peas (because you HAVE to have peas with mashed tatoes), and the most delicious pumpkin doughnut holes I have ever had. It wasn't  traditional, it wasn't with my family, it wasn't even with people I have known all my life (or even for over two years) and yet somehow it was one of the most perfect moments of my life. We did some traditional things. We had a thankful board (below), and we laughed and joked, and I just had fun.

I am so grateful for the people in my life who surround, and love me.  I am so thankful for the people who accept me the way I am, and love me. I am thankful for those have surrounded me and loved me in the last year, when everything was going wrong. I am surrounded by love, and I wish that I could adequately explain how  much it means to me. here are two pictures of notes that I received this week, that keep me going How loved I feell I wish I could thank those who sent them, but I don't have names on most of them.

 Thank you. Thank you Sarah for being someone who loves me no matter what, and deals with having to share a room with me (I will clean eventually), Thank you for being willing to sit through endless pintrest sessions, for getting me tissues when I cry, and for making sure that we always have our Diet Cokes and chocolate on Sundays.Thank you all. Those who have kept me going through my hard times. To those who I have just met and love me, and to all of you who have touched my life for the better.  I am so blessed, and loved. I have a huge family  biological and adopted. I am surrounded by the best people in the world. I am loved by the best people in the world.I love you all, I hope that each of you have people in your life who have changed it for the better. Happy Thanksgiving all.

Taylor The Latte Boy

 There's a boy who works at Starbucks. He is VERY Inspirational...
No, seriously, I am not just quoting this song.
I may have found love. (Again, I will explain my other true love, known as Really Cute British Guy I Followed, at some point)
At Starbucks..
His name is Taylor* the Passion Iced Tea Boy , and I love him, I love him, I loove him..


Now, I realize that this is may sound a little extreme, but honestly. I have met the man once, and he holds the key to my heart. The key being a Venti Shaken Passion Iced Tea** with two splenda.
Seriously! Have you ever had one? I suggest you walk, no run, to the nearest Starbucks and get one. It will revolutionize your life.
Go, Get one. NOW!
....

Thank you.

Taylor works at a Starbucks in Joplin, Missouri, and while I have never actually spoken to him (except to order) I know that we are made for each other. Every week  I drive down to Joplin to get my fix of shopping and Starbucks. Generally this means I go to Target and look at the books, then I go to Romancing the Stone, to see if they have anymore wrap pants, or evil eye things. Then a quick jot into Icing to see if they have any new hats, and then on to Steak and Shake to get the best sandwich in the world. Somewhere in there I always go to Starbucks, because our town of 8,000 doesn't have one. And I can barely go a week without my  Venti Shaken Passion Iced Tea with two Splenda; I am a tea addict (a conversation for another day).
Normally I go through the drive through, because it is just easier, but one particular day, I decided to go in. As I stood in line, reviling in all things Starbucks (Starbucks always makes me feel like I am home in Washington), I spied Taylor, the Passion Iced Tea Boy. First off Taylor is beautiful, he has this beautiful brown hair, that is cut just right, blue eyes (can you say yummy?),  a Celtic knot tattoo,and beautiful physic. And, I smiled at him, and he looked at me and smiled... And then I ordered, barely getting the words out because, I couldn't take my eyes off of him. I handed him my twenty, and when he handed my change back, I didn't even look down at it, I just dropped whatever bills was on top into the tip jar (sadly it was a five... and three ones....). Then I stepped down the counter to wait, and inadvertently stare at him. Pretending to text I gazed at him, wondering what our children would look like,  if he would live in Seattle, and if just maybe he was fabulously wealthy (Don't ask.. I realize he was working at Starbucks).
He began shaking my tea, and then he did the most beautiful thing. He started doing TRICKS! he was swinging my tea all over the place, flipping it catching it behind his back, the whole shebang! It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen! Then he poured it into my cup, and my heart sank a bit because I knew that I was going to have to leave him... But then he put the lid on, and flipped my cup out of his hands on to the counter without a drop spilled. Then he winked at me... SA-WOON! He had me hook, line, and sinker.
I love him... So I giggled (yes giggled, it was mortifying), thanked him for the show, winked, and walked out...
And, I haven't seen him since.

Ah, unrequited love.

I love him... It is unfortunate that I will most likely never see him again
Oh Taylor the Passion Iced Tea Boy.

I love you, I love you, I love you!

I have included the song Taylor the Latte Boy, by Kristin Chenoweth,  for your listening pleasure


*Names Changed to protect identity
** Go figure I love PASSION, Iced Tea