Don't Get Sick

Last week LA started getting sick, and has been as such all week long.  I felt pretty smug going the whole week without even a sniffle.....until I woke up this morning with the beginning of a sore throat.  So I think I've now downed about 15 chewable vitamin Cs (Thanks Costco) and still have a ziploc in my backpack with more......Can you OD on vitamin C?  Is there such a thing as too much of a good thing?  Can you tell that I really don't want to get sick?

You Know Who You Are

Dear really cute boy in my class, 

       Please stop becoming progressively cuter.  

       You are making it very hard for me to concentrate.

New Calling

Remember that time that I said I loved my calling?  Well, that's what I told the bishop when he called me into his office 2 weeks ago.  He's not letting me keep that calling. 

Dream On

Lately I've been having really morbid dreams, and remembering them.


I had a dream the other night that a dolphin attacked me while I was sitting on a rock, and I died. It picked me up and shook me like a rag doll.....I can't stop thinking about it!  Who knew we had Killer Dolphins!?!?

More recently I dreamt about being stabbed, on purpose, but it going in too far, like in that last scene in "Scream" when the 2 bad guys stab each other to make it look like it wasn't them.  Maybe I need to stop watching scary movies......
Probably Not ;)

I Feel Strongly About This Healthcare Thing

Perhaps I'll have to write my own post about my own experiences with the healthcare debate, but for now, E.H. Len shared this on her facebook wall.  It's short, and to the point. Enjoy!

Pictured is a young physician by the name of Dr. Roger Starner Jones. His short two-paragraph letter to the White House accurately puts the blame on a "Culture Crisis" instead of a "Health Care Crisis"..

It's worth a quick read:


Dear Mr. President:
During my shift in the Emergency Room last night, I had the pleasure of evaluating a patient whose smile revealed an expensive shiny gold tooth, whose body was adorned with a wide assortment of elaborate and costly tattoos, who wore a very expensive brand of tennis shoes and who chatted on a new cellular telephone equipped with a popular R&B ringtone.


While glancing over her patient chart, I happened to notice that her payer status was listed as "Medicaid"! During my examination of her, the patient informed me that she smokes more than one pack of cigarettes every day, eats only at fast-food take-outs, and somehow still has money to buy pretzels and beer. And, you and our Congress expect me to pay for this woman's health care? I contend that our nation's "health care crisis" is not the result of a shortage of quality hospitals, doctors or nurses. Rather, it is the result of a "crisis of culture" a culture in which it is perfectly acceptable to spend money on luxuries and vices while refusing to take care of one's self or, heaven forbid, purchase health insurance. It is a culture based in the irresponsible credo that "I can do whatever I want to because someone else will always take care of me". Once you fix this "culture crisis" that rewards irresponsibility and dependency, you'll be amazed at how quickly our nation's health care difficulties will disappear.

Respectfully,
ROGER STARNER JONES, MD

Why I Have Been Staying up Late

It's because of this
It has changed my life. 
My mission president told me to get one, and they haven't been available to the public until just recently.
I didn't even care that it cost 7X's more than I was planning on paying for it
When I start studying at night, I read out loud, and I can't put it down.
Here's why it's awesome:
      1.  It has the new Chinese translation of the Book of Mormon
      2.  It has a pinyin translation of the characters
      3.  It has the English translation of the Book of Mormon
      4.  It has all this goodness in a side-by-side triple-column format
Therefore, I can read out loud, recognize the characters, and know what it means all without having to look through 3 different Chinese dictionaries, which are all in my nice newly painted nightstand.
I've only had it about a week and my character recognizing skills have already vastly improved,
Plus it's the scriptures, how could it be any better?

Oh man life is good!

And yes Mrs. Nesbit, that is your shirt. ;)

Eat Responsibly

Today when I got back home with the kids there was only one cookie left. so I did the only fair thing to do, I ate it myself so they wouldn't have to fight over it ;)

What I want

My mind was racing in the temple tonight.  So many things are going on in my life, and changing, and usually for the better, it seems.  And yet, every day I pray for things I think I need. I realized tonight that there have been many times in my life where I thought I knew what I needed, (I sure knew what I wanted) and I figured it would be best for me and make me happiest.  Later, I would  always come to realize that what the Lord had in store for me was much better than what I originally planned.  I like to think I'm a happy, content person, that I know the spirit guides my footsteps, yet I still find myself trying to tell the Lord what I "need"!  When am I gonna realize that if I'm living worthily, what the Lord has in store for me is going to really be what I need? 

And what He has in store for me I can't even comprehend.  I like the way Enos puts it in his last verse - "And I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest.  And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of my Father. Amen." Enos 1:27

P.S.  Bella was great today.  She was an angel. ;)

Babysitting Tuesdays

Tomorrow I babysit these kids again-because it's Tuesday. 

It'll probably be the last time that I have them for a whole day for a long time, but I've learned a lot about babysitting from them.  Mainly from Bella.  Last time I watched them, Bella pooped....in her swimsuit....at the splash pad. I don't know what prompts her to have accidents whenever I decide to be the cool aunt. The time before that I took the kids to Riverfront park, and she was just having too much fun to be bothered to go to the bathroom. That time I had her extra clothes and diapers, this time, I didn't, I hadn't even put her in a diaper, and we hadn't even been there an hour before I saw her stickin her hand down her shorts, and realized she had grossness all over her hands, and face....and leg. Sick.  So tomorrow, no matter where we go, we be prepared!  And the other kids will be in school ;)

Speaking of Boys....

Last year some girls in my ward made a music video, and I made a few cameo appearances ;) I prove my ice cream eating abilities in this video. 

Being Nice to Boys

Elder Scott gave a CES fireside tonight.  I love that man.  He visited our mission and taught me a lot.  His fireside was on....marriage.  Duh. He said a lot of insightful things, things about being married, preparing to be married, but what stuck out to me was something he said about his wife.  He said that the two of them never once argued in their home, and never said an unkind word to each other (hence why he is an apostle).  It reminded me a of a project I did back at BYU for a marriage prep class, I had to make a goal and work on it through the semester.  After doing the research and consulting close friends and family, I realized I needed to work on being nicer to boys.  Maybe it's just my personality, or maybe it's the way I deal with the nervousness of being around a boy I like, but I am mean!  Sarcastic, rude, I pick on them, taunt them......and what's worse, I usually don't even realize it.  DeeDee  told me that even though her and Stinkycheeze are both really sarcastic people, that they are rarely sarcastic or rude to each other.....because they would never want the other to think that they didn't love them.

How could these two possibly make fun of each other anyway?

So why am i rude to the boys I like?  Well it was reaffirmed to me tonight what I need to work on.  The question is, how do I recognize it, and how do I change that habit?

Family: Isn't it About Importance?

A couple weekends ago I had another one of those epiphany-type experiences at work.  This is actually two stories in one, and they were simple really.
 I had called in the ultrasound tech late that night for multiple ER patients. He had been pretty busy all night, so I knew I was gonna get roped into chaperoning him a bit that night. we had 2 pregnancy pelvic ultrasounds in a row.
Patient #1:
        This patient was a early 30's woman with her husband in the exam with her. It doesn't need to be said that if you're coming into the ER for pregnancy issues at 2 in the morning that you're not having a good day. What a blessing for that woman to have a supportive husband to stay with her all night and be there for her in her pain.
Patient #2:
          This next patient's exam was routinely the same, but with a much different environment.... a 16 year old patient there by herself. I believe her mom had had brought her into the ER, but all in all, a 16 year old, not even old enough to have a credit card, maybe not even able to drive yet, bringing a baby into this world, without an able father, and without the blessings of being born in the covenant.
         It broke my heart that it was obvious when these 2 patients passed each other in the hallway the latter was hurt and lonely, and probably had no idea the life she was missing out on. The first, although in pain, she looked hopeful and confident and safe. 

I'm so glad that my knowledge of the gospel, of eternal families, of temple covenants has kept me clean, and though I yearn for a family of my own, I know that it will happen on the Lord's timetable and that it will happen in the way God intended, and when I have to make late night visits to the ER, my husband will be there, supportive, loving, with an eternal perspective to lead our lives. I'm so blessed!  And...more importantly, I have the ability, and the responsibility to choose the better part for my children.

My Family is Eternal!!

Garage Sale-ing!!

So this awesome roommate of mine

went with a very tired - just got done with graveyard shift me

to find me some bedroom furniture.  After seeing some of the furniture she said, "Bacon, if you buy this I'll help your re-finish it."  How could I say no?!??!  So here are the before and after pictures of our awesome bartering and painting skills.  I got the entire bedroom set for $40 (talked her down from $150!)  and the desk I got for $20. 

MIRROR - One of those that sits on top of the dresser

Sorry - all the "before" pictures I took with my phone so they're not the best quality. 

Note my sexy long legs in the mirror

(I don't have an "after picture for the mirror, but we just painted the wood black)

NIGHTSTAND- Before

After

I tried buying new handles for the drawers, but I couldn't find anything that would fit, so L.A.  just spray painted them, pretty sleek eh?

DRESSER- Before

After

I love this thing, it's huge, but super sturdy, and it's exactly like one my parents had in their bedroom.

DESK - Before

Oh man this picture does not do the nastiness of the desk justice. 

It was the grossest color, but had good wood, and a lot of potential....

After

This one is my favorite!  For obvious reasons. 

We were gonna go with a lot of colors for each piece, but decided to just make this an accent piece instead.

It's bright and fun, and looks really good with the other black furniture. 

Now I just need to learn how to decorate my walls!

Thanks for showing me how to re-finish furniture L.A.,  you da bomb!

I Love my Calling

When I moved into the Havana ward I got called as the gospel principles teacher.  I was excited to finally get a teaching calling, but I had no idea how much I would love it.  It's my favorite.  Words cannot express.  I was so sad last week when we didn't have enough people in my class to really make it worth while, because the lesson was on Charity and I was excited about it.  Luckily though, my co-teacher was out of town this week, so I got to give my lesson anyway!  It was wonderful for many reasons, the subject matter obviously, class participation, but the spirit was undeniable!  Here's what the spirit taught me today:

• Charity really is the greatest virtue.  Besides the fact that it is plastered all over the scriptures as being such. If you read 1 Corinthians chapter 13, you realize that it encompasses everything about the gospel and everything that we are supposed to strive for.  I asked the class if any of them thought they possessed all of those qualities, a few people laughed.  I asked if they knew anyone personally other than Christ that came close to having "real charity".  This prompted an awesome share from Rachel who mentioned her MTC teacher who really loved her, and believed in her abilities to fulfill the calling of a missionary.  She said that through her mission when she would get down, she would think of that teacher and how he believed in her, and it helped her believe in herself.  That hit me hard.  That teacher will never know the impact his love had on her life, and he was thousands of miles away when it helped her the most.  And isn't that the point?  To be witnesses of Christ and to be his true followers, we are here to do his work, and the most effective way to do that is to help Heavenly Father's children feel of their own worth, and to feel the pure love He has for us.  That MTC teacher did that.  And he was just a man. 
• If you take a good look at the 10 commandments, you can see that the first 4 commandments are to prove that we "Love God" (we wouldn't worship anything else, we wouldn't curse his name) and the last 6 are to prove that we "Love our Neighboor" (of course we wouldn't steal or lie).  So if we truly possessed charity, we wouldn't need these other commandments, we would already do those things, we would already posses those characteristics, charity is the higher law. 
• The story of the Good Samaritan is about learning to love our enemies.  I love the verses in Luke 6:27-28, 32-35.  If you love those that love you, who cares?!?!  Do you love those who hate you?  Do you pray for them?  Do you try to serve and love them?  Who doesn't struggle with this principle?
• 4 steps to developing charity:
• study the life of Christ and keep his commandments.
• pray to have charity.  Hello Moroni 7 ;)
• love ourselves - learning not to focus inward, but focusing outward
• don't think we are better than other people.

I wish I could always feel the spirit I felt in that class today. It reminded me of the impact love can have on somebody, and how much I need to work to develop it more....especially with upcoming events in my life. 
It also reminded me of the experience I had in 歸仁 (Guiren) my last area, where I never felt love between members in that struggling ward.  Everyone, it seemed, was offended by someone else at church.  The less-active members supported each other better than the active members did.  We tried something to change it, "the circle of love". 
It was simple - the member writes a simple note to the first person they think of.  The missionaries deliver the note, and ask that member to do the same for someone else. 
I can't believe the impact it had.  There was not one sister who was not touched by the fact that someone else in the ward was thinking about them, that someone loved them, that someone appreciated them, that someone believed in them. This is one of my biggest pet peeves about the Taiwanese people, their lack of expressing love to each other.  It's taboo there, and it's why no one felt love in that ward.  I know of at least 4 families that came back to full activity within the next few months after starting that project.  I won't take responsibility for that, it was the sisters, it was the spirit.  It was the Lord and his gospel that reminded us all of the power of love!

Why I love the library.

I love rediscovering old movies. When I got home from the mish Du dixiong taught me the the endless possibilities that come from requesting movies from the library. So my last semester at the Y I made a list, all the best movies of the 80's and 90's. I can't remember all the movies I went through, but I remember enjoying:
"All Dogs go to Heaven"
"Dirty Rotten Scoundrels"
"Indiana Jones Trilogy"
"The Sandlot"
"Mrs. Doubtfire"
"Big"
"Home Alone 1 and 2!"
oh man there were so many good ones. The other day I tried to take a nap amidst all the errands I had to run, but ended up just watching "The Mighty Ducks", and part of "Sandlot". And I DVR'd

"Kazaam"!!

I ended up making the kids watch it with me before I moved out.....that and "Space Jam" Good thing I got to see "Kazaam" before I moved out, apparently it's the embodiment of all great 90's movies.

p.s. Last winter I also googled the top 10 Christmas movies of all time and rented them all.  It was educational. (I would definitely add "Elf" to that list, seeing as how it is really the best movie of all time.....

Things I am Learning

I work at a hospital - in the radiology department - on the weekends - in the middle of the night. Working at a hospital is very eye opening in many ways. Its a very different experience to become a part of a persons/family's tragedy/triumph. Lately there have been a few experiences that have weighed on my mind a lot. First of all, I've become very careful about what I say and where I say it, now that I've had co-workers have family members come in as trauma patients while I'm working in the ER. It's scary to think you might know the person you're helping and not even realize it. On the other hand, it's made me more aware of how blessed I am, and the things I can do to maintain a happy life. Like taking care of my health for instance, or taking care of my relationships with others.


One such instance happened some time ago. Working as a radiology assistant I get to take part in working in every modality in radiology. Especially at night.....especially because I'm a girl. Often I have to chaperon pelvic ultrasound exams, which is as exciting as it sounds. One night I watched a sonographer doing an ultrasound on a woman who didn't know she was pregnant. It was cute to watch the tech play a little game with her, explain to her what she was seeing and then say, "and that little pea right there is your baby" ;) This woman was obviously pleased, excited, as you'd hope most women would be. A minute later a knock came at the door, it was a nurse bringing down the patient's husband. The tech gave the husband the same show he gave the wife, showed him his little baby, and the man just stood there and said "oh". No look of shock, excitement, any emotion really, it broke my heart. I felt so bad for this woman, and vowed to never have a baby with someone that didn't want one, And to make sure I marry a man who has emotions dang it! What a special experience they could have shared together that was just an "oh" experience for him. I don't feel like I was able to really put down in words how significant this experience was for everyone in the room, needless to say it's had a huge impact on me.

Getting Started

Today I officially moved in to a house, and now with wireless internet, I feel I am capable of figuring out how to use this thing.

I am Aunt Bacon, so named by Ella when she couldn't pronounce my real name, and it has stuck, and unfortunately....it kinda fits me!  After graduating from BYU last winter I decided that instead of going to grad school that I would rather take some time off and pursue a license in x-ray technology.  so I moved up to Spokane to get some help from my MRI tech in-law Scooby.  Shau-Shawsh and him let me stay with them and helped me get a job at the hospital and get into the x-ray program at the community college here.

They're the best huh? 

Once I finally decided to stay and make this permanent, I found a place to live and am settling down.
I don't think the things I have to say will have much importance to most people, but my lack of journal skills have led me here, a place where I can record my thoughts and life as a 20-something single-year-old. ;)  So enjoy!