Hellooo? Are you there?

That's probably the question you should be asking me, due to my sudden disappearance from the blog world.  I hate to admit it, but I do believe the mid-winter blues have finally set in.  Yuck.  And here I thought I was doing so well avoiding them, but those sneaky little blue-sy feelings settled in overnight...along with 4 inches of snow.  

I'm kinda feeling like this sad snowman right now.  I. Need. Sun.  And summer.  And waking up early to run outside, tan skin, summer nights, crickets chirping as I fall asleep, little tweety birds waking me up, heat, sandals, summer rainstorms, the 4th of July, Gidget-style beach parties, barbecues, popsicles, all of it.  

 Thanks again for the pictures, google.  Sure don't know what I'd do without you.

Halfway there

This week is halfway over.
My tests for this week are halfway done.
I halfway cleaned my room today.
My hours spent at work this week are halfway completed.
I'm halfway convinced that halfway isn't a real word.
And I halfway don't care.

You know those weeks where you just feel like you have a ton to do, but then you take a step back to fully assess the situation and realize that you really don't?

Having two tests in one week for the same class really messes with your brain.

I keep trying to validate my stress by reminding myself how I've yet to start studying for my second test

and I still have a pile of laundry in my room that needs to be folded

and now I need to make time on Friday to drive down to I.F. and return some stuff

and I have to get my taxes done

and remember how I was going to write up my goal plan on a poster board

and now I need to make a headband to complete my outfit for sister's wedding

and maybe I should figure out what class I'm taking next semester

and wasn't I going to de-clutter some of my stuff

and I need to start reading more of my books I got for Christmas

and my 25 before 25 list should probably be finalized soon

and when am I going to do my blog makeover I've been planning...

I don't know why I stress myself out about these little things all the time.  Really, there's no need for it.  Seriously, look at the things I'm trying to accomplish.  Not one of them is stress-worthy.  But I don't get them done and then I feel that tiny tinge of failure.  You know what I'm talking about, that little guilty feeling you get when the end of the day hits and you realize you did nothing you told yourself you'd do that day.  Yeah, I know it well.

I know that if I just slow down long enough to look at the situation I'll realized that oh hey this stuff really isn't stressful at all.  So here's to writing up a to do list for the next three weeks and knocking these things off one at a time...but then again thats just one more thing that might stress me out.

Procrastinate now

Don't put it off.

So who else out there is in love with Ellen Degeneres [in a completely heterosexual way]?  Seriously, I think she is the funniest person alive.  And if I ever hit the big time and have millions of dollars to do whatever with, I plan on doing exactly that--whatever I want, Ellen style.  Anyways, she has this stand-up routine that my friend got for me a few years back.  Hilarious doesn't even begin to describe it.  I'm not even kidding, go to Youtube and type in "Ellen Degeneres Here and Now" and be prepared to laugh my friends.

So why am I telling you all of this?  Well you see, the underlying theme of her routine is procrastionation.  And what am I doing right now?  Yep, you guessed it--I'm procrastinating.  Hard.Core.  You see, I have two tests this week.  And have I put in any real studying effort as of this moment?  Ummm...no.

You know those weeks where you're looking forward to something awesome [such as a visit from your sister and her kids] and that makes you not want to do anything at all, even though in reality if you keep yourself busy the week will probably go by faster?  And instead you let yourself keep getting distracted by anything and everything.  And you get that gut-wrenching feeling when you realize you know absolutely nothing about what you're being tested on and you're probably gonna fail?  But then that calm feeling of whatever happens, happens takes over and you tell yourself its no big deal after all...except it still is a little bit.

So now that I've successfully procrastinated for a while, I'm going to go study some anatomy.

And take a shower.

And clean my room.

And fold my laundry.

And re-organize my iTunes.

And watch more videos on Youtube.

And just about anything else I can think of instead of studying.

Its Friday!

And time for Favorite Things Fridays!  Yaaaaayyyyy!

I'll be honest, I spent most of this week wishing it was over.  And I plan on doing the same thing next week [until sister and my rambunctious nephews get here!] and the week after that, and probably the one after that too.  You see, in three weeks from now I'll be in Nevada.  Sigh.  I miss that place.  Sagebrush, casinos, red-light districts, all of it.  

One of my top 5 pet peeves is when people hear I'm from Nevada and automatically assume I'm from Vegas.  Ew.  In my opinion, Vegas should just be sold to Arizona.  There is definitely more to Nevada than that-city-which-shall-not-be-named.  Don't believe me?  Take a look at this

[Pictures to come tomorrow when I'm on my own computer :)]

I.  Love.  It.  Oh well, until then here are some of my favorites:

Going out to a delicious post-birthday dinner at Applebee's.  My craving for a burger and fries was more than fulfilled.

A joint birthday lunch with one of the BFFs at Millhollow.  I'd forgotten how good their sandwiches are!  And I got a coupon for a free starter size yogurt.  Ka-ching!

My Valentine's Day surprise

Watching animal videos on Youtube with the niece and nephew.

Queen Helene's Mint Julep face mask.  Its so tingly fresh!

Listening to T. Swift pretty much 24/7.  Thank you iPod.  Thank you iPod car connector thingy.  Thank you iPod dock.  Thank you iTunes.  Just, thank you.

Two of the cutest kids ever coming in to work tonight.  One was my best friend after I gave him a sticker.  The other dropped his candy and yelled, "Aw snap!"  Holy for precious.

This quote from the niece, "You hafta be patient Aunt Torr.  I'm doin' a procedure on my baby!"  Remember how she's not even three years old yet?  

Homemade pizookies.

Justin Bieber on Glee.  And the return of Fizbo the clown on Modern Family.  And some serious PDA on The Office.  

Anne of Green Gables.  The bro-in-law got it for the sister for V-Day.  Lucy Maud Montgomery had to have been a genius to even think up the mess of imagination that takes place in Anne's head.

Not too bad for a week that I never thought would end, eh?

Obsessed? Maybe just a bit...

Remember that one time I got a $25 iTunes gift card for my birthday?  Well that little baby had a very specific purpose.  I used it to buy these:

Oh my heck, I'm obsessed.  I'd heard most of the songs on Fearless already, but Hey Stephen and The Best Day?  Wow.  And I'd try to pick just one favorite from Speak Now, but I'm 99% sure that'd be impossible.  Don't believe me?  You try picking a favorite out of these:

Pictures courtesy of Google image

Videos courtesy of Youtube

Obsession courtesy of Taylor

Day 4

Day 4-Your favorite photograph of your best friend.

To be honest, I've always had a hard time with the term "best friend".  I mean, yeah, I have two friends that I've titled my besties...but at the same time I have really strong connections with lots of other friends.  I usually just refer to those friends as my favorite friends, mostly because I don't want them to feel left out.  Pretty sure they'd be fine either way, but just work with me here people.

I had the same problem when I was a kid and had to pick a different stuffed animal to sleep with every night, along with the my usual hippo and rabbit blankie combo.

Stuffed animals have feelings too, you know.

Back to the point, I have lots of friends.  I love all my friends.  I'm pretty sure all my friends love me.  Either that or my parents have been paying them REAL good to play nice...

So this says photograph, as in singular.  And for once I'm gonna play by the rules.  Mostly because there are waaay too many pictures I could put up here and...well...I kinda need to eat some lunch and take a nap...sorry.  But not really.

Jen, Whit, and Torr.  On Whit's wedding day.  Love this picture.  Love these girls.

Don't love my awkward necklace placement and gapping cardi.  Oh well.

The perfect ending...

To an already awesome day!

About an hour before I left work last night, I received a very mysterious text message from the sister. 

"Let me know when you are on your way"

I replied with an "Ok.  Why?"

No response.

Luckily, I remembered to let her know when I was driving home [and maybe I didn't remember until I hit Walgreen's...good thing I had to stop a few times for pedestrians] because when I walked up the stairs I was greeted by this:

Ok, seriously how cute is this?

And how awesome is the sister for setting it up?

Delicious doesn't even begin to describe the lasagna, the chocolate-covered strawberries were to die for, and did I mention I got to eat it all by candlelight?

Its pretty safe to say my stomach and I had a happy day of love.

Happy Day of Love!

Today is Valentine's Day [duh].  I'll be honest, I'm kinda wary about this day for a few reasons...

1.  Its REAL easy to snag a ticket for the oh-poor-me-I'm-single-for-yet-another-Valentine's-Day train.  Seriously.  One way, round trip, whatever you need they've got it.  And even though the lovely little attendants are so sweet inviting you on and offering you chocolates and cookies, once you've reached your destination [and feel the candy hangover the next morning] you realize how much worse it actually made you feel.

2.  If you tell people that you're happy being single, they almost always flash you one of those knowing, sympathetic smiles.  They might as well just say out loud, "Oh that poor delusional girl.  She actually sounds really convincing, but there's no way she's being honest by saying that."

Oh, um, ok.

But I am.

No really.

Promise.

And then they smile again and give you a hug or pat you on the back.  And then you imagine punching them in the face.  Twice.  Because the harder you argue, the more they think they're right and you're just getting defensive.  Lose, lose my friends.

3.  You thought Rexburg girls were boy-crazy before now?  Just wait until February 14th.  Shoooot dog, I can't even tell you the number of times I rolled my eyes at all the girly giggles fluttering around my classroom today.  Come to think of it, guys get kinda weird too.  Like the complete stranger who thought it was completely appropriate to hold onto my waist as I was sliding past him to get to my usual middle-of-the-back-row seat.  Awkward?  You bet.

So yeah, today can be kind of awkward and is usually a little too pink for my taste, but seriously what's so bad about celebrating a day dedicated solely to love?

I have a friend who was psyching herself up to be depressed all day today.

The worst part about it?  She started doing this about two weeks ago.

Yeah, I'm not going to go out and buy roses and giant stuffed teddy bears [all while dressed as cupid or a giant heart, nonetheless] but I'm also not gonna sit around watching The Notebook and stuffing my face with peanut butter hearts.

I may be single, but I have plenty of other people in my life that I love and want to show my love to today.  And like my girl Taylor, I'd rather stay optimistic about love.  Its gotta be better than shriveling up into a bitter old lady with no one to love, other than my cats of course.

But seriously, the first step to finding love [in Torr's Guidebook to Life] is loving yourself.  And ain't no way thats gonna happen by obsessing over your single status and beating yourself up about any little imperfection you can find.

And so what if you're your own Valentine?

At least you already know how awesometastic you are...and what your favorite candies are!

So to anyone who may read this, whether you're married, engaged, dating, single, in an open relationship, or the always awesome "its complicated", do me a favor.

Go stand yourself in front of the closest mirror

give yourself a big smile/hug/pat on the back/hi-five

and tell yourself how much you love you.

And then go out, my friends, and be optimistic about love...

Favorite Things...Saturdays?

Maybe I should change it since I clearly can't post about my favorite things on Friday.

Ehhhh.

To be honest, I really can't think of favorite things from this week.  I mean, it was my birthday which was obviously my favorite.  And my presents are most definitely my favorite.  Especially my new book and my iTunes gift card that is providing such musical enjoyment to my ears as I type this.

Oh, and the 50-ish year old guy I saw today with a bright blue mohawk.

That was pretty bomb.

But really, its been one of those weeks.

Where I worked three full days

[you may roll your eyes at that, but 7.5 hours X 3 days of rude customers &

smelly feet sure do wear you down].

Where I stressed about my "unofficial bridesmaid" outfit for little sister's wedding.

I did find out what her teal was today, though.  We were completely shocked by the color [we were picturing brighter] but I do believe we may have found something that'll work.

Where I found out in a week and a half I have a lab exam and a lecture exam,

days apart from each other.

Thanks a lot teacher.

Where my co-worker "C" decided to exaggerate about how "L" was on a rampage about "R" and myself not doing a good job closing...when really we did and "L" threw no such fit.

Good thing I still had left over birthday cupcakes when I got home from work tonight.

Happy birthday to me

Yesterday was my birthday, thus the lack in posting.

My apologies, but I was too busy playing with my presents and stuffing my face with my amazing birthday cupcakes [chocolate with key lime cream cheese frosting and coconut flavored chocolate sprinkles...the sister is a cupcake-creating genius...like seriously, she puts the Cocoa Bean to shame] to even think about my blog.

Here are some of the [very few] pictures I took:

The goods, from left to right-ish/top to bottom-ish: super cute tall socks, notebook made out of recycled cow poo [thanks again mom :)], gift card, purple fuzzy scarf/head warmer thing, owl necklace, Bath & Bodyworks lip glossers, Viva la Juicy perfume [aka the best smelling stuff EVER], flower wallet, birthstone necklace, note that accompanied the money for some Big Sexy hair products, Matched, iPod car connector thingy, BPA free H2O bottle

Hahaha I don't know which is funnier, that my sister forgot to sign her daughter's name for her and mom had to add it in [with the duh! of course] or my dad signing Love, Father...seriously?  I died laughing.

I'm just a little excited for my popcorn.  Seriously, no joke, its dee-lish-us.

The nephew tried to act all cranky with me for taking his picture.  And the niece is lost in chocolate heaven. 

But seriously, how could I not take a picture of that?

And a video of the cutest little thing you've ever seen singing happy birthday to me [and herself...she's just a few months early on that one]:

Overall it was a good birthday.

Nothing too exciting, but I did get this Saturday off so I can party hardy with all my amigos.

As in go to dinner and then hit up the cheap theater.

Thats just how we roll.

And now, to be honest, I'd much rather be reading Matched.

Seriously, the only word I can think of to describe it is intriguing.

So much is going on and nothing's being explained...but in a good way.

I'm not even joking, go buy it now.  The end.

Day 3

Day 3: Your idea of the perfect first date.


Well, to be honest my idea of the perfect date in general can be summed up by this girl:

Hahaha, sorry couldn't help myself.  

For seriousness now, my idea of the perfect first date?  Umm...well...lets see...I don't really know.  I can think of a few things a first date shouldn't be, though:


1.  It shouldn't be too awkward:
As in your date constantly reminds you of how special this night is.  And he cooks you a fancy schmancy meal.  And makes you finger paint.  Which wouldn't be so awkward except for he over-analyzes every single thing he paints, and constantly says "Hmmm...I wonder why I painted that?"  And it really doesn't help if the other couple you're "doubling" with leaves to go play World of Warcraft or Dungeon's and Dragons or some other equally weird game.  Yeah.


2.  It shouldn't be silent:
Sometimes people get nervous and can't think of things to say.  And sometimes your date specifically chooses to not talk to you.  Sometimes that same date also refuses to open your car door for you, and makes fun of your hometown.  And sometimes when that happens, you don't feel bad for giving him the stink eye.


3.  It shouldn't end with your date leaving to call his girlfriend:
But to be fair, going along with this I should say you should be informed that you're going on/on a date.  Preferably sometime before you start hearing things like, "Um, aren't you going to open your date's door for her?" and "You guys are quiet back there, and the windows are steaming up...whats going on?"  Ahem, awkward much?  And for the record, dragging along roommates to the sand dunes and pairing people off in couples so that you can go off and make out with the boy you like does not count as a date.  Just sayin.


And last, but definitely not least, 


4.  It shouldn't involve bowling.
Because I hate it.  And think its pointless.  Seriously, there is no way you can convince me that taking turns hurling a ball down a waxed strip of wood into an arrangement of white pins and trying to knock over as many of the aforementioned pins as you can each time is fun.  Seriously.


So there you have it.  My idea of the perfect first date is doing something that isn't too terribly awkward, talking, being clearly told I'm on a date, and not bowling.  Sounds fun, right?


Really though, I'm all about first dates [and dating in general] being fun and creative.  I really don't care what we do as long as its something I wouldn't be doing normally.  Does that make sense?  Thats why the whole "dinner and a movie" deal is so lamesauce.  I can go buy myself dinner and pay 3 bucks to watch a movie any night of the week [except I'd be thrifty enough to go on a Wednesday, for the free popcorn].  Creativity is key my friends. And really, other than that I'm up for anything.
Well, except bowling.  


p.s. my birthday is officially in 32-ish minutes.  I decided I'm excited about it.  Mostly because I remembered that age really is just a number.  And I'm pretty sure I'm gonna rock 24.

32 days

I got a call from my little sister this morning.  She unofficially/officially got engaged on Saturday, and today they decided to set the date for March 11th.

In case you don't have a calendar handy, thats in 32 days.  

My poor mother.

Hahaha, the bride!

And the groom. He clearly practiced that smile.

I guess its only fair that I show a normal picture too.

Trust me, it was hard to find.

 So now I'm supposed to find either a black dress or a black skirt and a teal cardigan-ish shirt of some sort.  Questions: where does one who is a certified giant [such as myself] find a modest length black dress or skirt?  And does anyone even know what teal is?  Or even better, does anyone even know what Kali Randall Hostman's definition of teal is?  The mom said she has some paper thats pretty much the exact color we need to be looking for.  I have a feeling that'll be a lot more helpful than google images.

Irregardless, I'm happy these crazy kids finally decided to make it official.  I feel like they've basically been married for the past few years, but hey I'm not gonna complain and turn down an opportunity for new clothes and a party!  And I have a feeling this little stinker will make a lovely addition to the wedding party.

A day late...

And probably a dollar short, but I'd rather not think about that.  So, I was going to do my Favorite Things Fridays post on Friday [go figure], but then my hormones got in the way.  They're sneaky little buggers, you'd better watch out for them.  

Mine, not yours.

But yours are probably
sneaky little buggers, too.

They like to have a dance party all throughout my body and make me grumpy, then happy, then grumpy, then happy, then extremely giggly, and back to grumpy, over, and over, and over.  Oh, you know the feeling?  Yeah.  Lets just say they ended on a grumpy note yesterday and I decided I needed some sleep.  And boy oh boy can I just say it was the best sleep ever?  Well, minus the really creepy dream where I was in a horror movie and everyone kept dying gruesome Hunger Games style deaths.  But other than that, it was pure bliss.  


Well, onward and upward, here's the list from this week:


1.  Making valentines for FHE.  Like we had stacks of construction paper, scissors, glue sticks, and glitter crayons all for the purpose of making our very own cheesy kindergarten-style valentines.  Whoever came up with that idea definitely deserves a big pat on the back.


2.  Standing next to someone who is 6'6".  I never get to feel short.  It was kinda weird, actually.


3.  Getting pumped up to go to work every day by reminding myself that my chocolate milk [courtesy of the boss lady] is in the back room fridge, just waiting for me to partake of its goodness.


4.  Some random lady giving my co-worker her Cosmo magazine because she "looks like a girl who reads Cosmo."  FYI lady, she doesn't.  And now its just chilling in the back room because no one at work reads Cosmo.  Although I did go through it once to smell the perfume samples.


5.  And on my way through said Cosmo, I found this:

You'd better believe this face has taken up residency on my bulletin board.  Oh yeah.


6.  Crunchy Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.  'Nuff said.


7.  Getting a birthday letter from my missionary friend.  And finding out she comes home on JULY 13th!!!!!  Yesssssssss!!!


8.  Day off + the family at the brother-in-law's parent's house for the night = Torr gets to sleep in tomorrow.  And watch The Office all.day.long.  Double yessssssssss!!!


And now, bring on the birthday week!  Hip hip hooooooorrrrrraaaaayyyyyy!

Dear hair,

Remember that one time I oh so hastily decided to [somewhat] dramatically shorten you into this?

Yes, I copied Selena Gomez's haircut.  What?  I think she's funny and has cute hair.  Plus our hair is pretty similar, curl and thickness-wise.

You were cute and all, but do you think you could do me a solid and oh, I don't know, grow?

All I'm asking for is a few [like maybe 6-8] inches.  Something more like this:

Yeah, Selena again.  Don't judge.

Or this:

Hi, I don't know who you are...but can I have your hair?  Thanks.

Or how 'bout this:

I'm kinda diggin' Rachel's dip dye color...weird?

And I definitely wouldn't mind this:

Oh Katie.  People say I look like her?  I still don't see it.  But I'd def be okay with my hair looking like hers.

Or you could always make me REAL happy and magically look like this when I wake up tomorrow morning:

Don't mind Tay Tay's devastated face.  Drew just told her there's someone else.  Cue the teardrops.

Ok, so you got that hair?  All I'm asking for is some more length and T. Swift's hair stylist.  It would also be awesome if you decided to behave yourself and do what I wanted you to do [at least 75% of the time, I'm flexible].  And grow faster than a measly 1/2 inch each month.  Got it?  Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.  Until then, I'll just have to keep thinking long, positive, hairy thoughts.  Maybe that will help you like me?

Thanksabillion,

Torr

P.S. thanks google for all the pictures.

And for feeding my lust for long hair.

I'd curse you, but I depend on you too much

and should probably stay on your good side.

One time, I made a necklace

After my exciting friend day this last Saturday, I was summoned to babysit so the sister and the brother in law could go on a date.  After getting the kids in bed, I was supposed to start studying for my test that was closing on Monday...but I've never been very good at not procrastinating.  So instead I popped in Adventures In Babysitting, grabbed my bag of dark chocolate covered kettle corn [they don't have the exact one I got up on their site but they all look amazingly delicious], and used this little tutorial to make this:

Sorry, this is all you get.  I took one with my smiling face, but refuse to put it up.  Lets just say its about that time...

Look ma, I made a T-shirt necklace!  I didn't have any of my own shirts I could chop up, but luckily the sister had just put together a D.I. bag and I found something I could use in there.  The shirt was originally black and gray striped, and I really like how it ended up with the two different colors together.

I wore it to church on Sunday and had some girl tell me she'd pay me to make her one!  I laughed and told her to give me an old shirt to use and we'd call it even.

Then when I wore it to work last night my boss greeted me by saying:

What the heck is that thing around your neck?

And no, that wasn't her only rhyme of the night.

She was in a special mood,              

but she brought me cookies so I rolled with it. 

Now that I have successfully made one necklace, I really want to make a fun colored one.

I might have to go door to door begging for a shirt...or maybe just make a trip to the D.I.

They should have something, right?

Also, it is now officially one week until my birthday.

I'm having some mixed feelings about this one.

On one hand, I feel old and would rather not add another year on.

On the other hand, presents and cupcakes please!

Oh, positive

Today in my lab we did lots of fun bloody-ish tests.

We checked our hematocrit [what percentage of our blood is red blood cells, versus plasma]

found out our blood type [I'm O+]

and did our blood lipid profile [cholesterol, triglycerides, and all that good stuff]

Sounds exciting, huh?

Luckily my lab is at 7:45 in the a.m. seeing as how we had to do a 12 hour fast so our cholesterol and triglyceride numbers wouldn't come back all funky.

Not so luckily is the fact that it was literally -30 as I walked to lab this morning.

Thanks a lot wind chill, I thought my face was going to fall off.

To be honest, I was a tid bit nervous about working with blood today.  So maybe I kindasorta had a fainting spell one time after watching my mom get stitches in her hand...hey, I didn't eat breakfast that day, had to give a talk in Sacrament Meeting, and then watched some cranky face doctor jab a needle through my mom's hand and sew it back together.  Totally normal for me to pass out, right?  Right.

I had absolutely no problems today, though [huge sigh of relief].

Maybe because the TA was holding my hand the whole time?

No, literally, he had to hold my hand to keep it warm so my blood would keep flowing out for all the tests

[remember how it was -30 this morning?]

P.S. he's married.  Awkward much?

Two other girls in my class came this close to passing out, and one ended up needing a trash can for...um...vomiting purposes.

Good thing she'd been fasting for 12 hours, right?

I was just glad to find out all my blood levels were normal

[my teacher made us nervous by straight up laughing at some people's numbers]

...and even more glad to come home and eat a peanut butter waffle.