Monotony

Well. Here I am to save the day!! I come with an update... I hear it is way past time that I do so and so I am (Alexis, you should follow suit!)

I am not sure what to write about because day to day is pretty monotonous since returning, and so I will just write about what comes to mind, and I hope yall don't mind that too much.

It feels like so long ago that I was up at school with my girls.. I kind of almost feel like I've fallen off the edge of the map being here in Texas. Alexis is busy working and keeping up with the California lifestyle, livin la vida loca. I am going to visit Myra & Alexis in November, around Thanksgiving. I will go to Disneyland finally! - I've been to Disneyworld twice but never Disneyland. Then I get to spend the weekend with my fave roomie Alexis - FOR HER BIRTHDAY!! YAY!! I'm so stoked to meet her amazing family and to be with my love again haha; no more long distance friends - together again!

Inga is going good as ever last I heard.. we talked for quite awhile, gabbing like old ladies haha. Love her. She & Dan are swell and as in love as can be. If she gets married next year I will be visiting her for 2 weeks or so - I get to help plan her wedding!! And she said I could wear crazy makeup as a bridesmaid hahahah. Love it! Though I need to decide when the cut-off age for my makeup will be some time...


Up in Idaho, my momma came to pick me up hahah so we took pictures at the BYUI campus park. It was nighttime when we got around to it unfortunately haha. There are so many beautiful spots to sit and reflect and ponder there. This was one of my fave spots:




So then we came home. And when I returned I was just as sad as can be.. I missed my girls and my way of life and the weather and everything but the school part of school in Idaho. Like any returning bird to the nest, I felt myself digress and I was the same teenager again haha. Its interesting... at first the helping around the house came natural and gradually it flitted away like a memory.... but I'm really not that bad. Life is just different returning home, as I'm sure many of you are aware of based on past experience. Its super strange. I wonder if it will be a big growing up process when I leave again or if it will just come naturally? I go back up to school in January. Ugh. I am not looking forward to it because I know what the weather is like up there. Not favorable at all. Plus I will then get to add classes to my days. Yuck! Though it is all worth it for the summer days... How I long for those again :)

I am currently sleeping on the couch. It will be easier next year when Maddie leaves for college; I can sleep in her room while she's gone. But for now its just the couch. I decided it is better than the floor.

A few weeks back I lost my drivers license, being the grownup I am, and I had to go take another picture when I got there. Turns out at the beginning of this year they made a rule that you can't wear glasses in your picture!!



I get pretty random with my time so I baked a cake when I came back! I was in the mood for a cake and since we didnt have any I made a lemon cake with orange glaze and crushed white chocolate, with fruit on top. It was waaaaaay too sweet but so good at the same time haha.

OH of course I havent told you what I have been doing with my time! well for awhile it was pretty chill - I sent out job applications and stuff, but to no avail.

Then I got two.

First was at Riley Donuts, from 6:30 till 10 (at which time I leave for my other job). I help out however I'm needed, whether its the cashier, putting big orders together, cleaning up, packing donuts or making them, I am there. I make well in hourly pay - for how much hours there are - as well as in tips. I can make pretty well in tips there.. surprising huh? Its not bad, though I really do cherish my 2 days off a week haha.

Then one day my sister, mother and I went to lunch at TGI Fridays. I was like oh what the hey, might as well, and then and there I got an interview. A week later I was hired. Then I trained and now I am a fully certified TGI waitress!

Now I never liked the idea of being a server EVER so it is surprising to me that this is the ideal job for me (for now). I get new challenges every day.. every table you go to is something different. There is always something to do so the time just flies. I like the people I work with - even the managers! Who'da thunk? And you make much more money in less time than at a regular job. I got calls to be hired a few other places but Fridays is the place to be for me.


Another HUGE plus for me (and anyone that knows me knows this) is that you can flare up your outfit so you can paint it or add anything creative you want pretty much!! I have a few nicknames, one being Velma (many a folk say I look like her, esp when I do my hair like in the picture above). I put Velma on the back of a shirt already and I just wear my beaded tie with it.

Once we get new shirts in I plan to paint designs on the back of them. I'm getting 2 new ones.. one with dogs, because I can bark - which, by the way, is a huge crowd pleaser at Fridays. The dog shirt has a bunch of famous animated dogs on it: Pluto, Scooby Doo, Clifford, Odie, Astro, Snoopy, Tramp, Lady, Commander K-9, Blue, Brian, Droopy, Gromit and Slink.

Of course, the next shirt is going to be a Star Wars shirt. It was pretty much destined to be from the minute i found out i could paint my shirt according to my wishes. On the sleeve it is going to say 'Your server I am'. Now this design is still in the works but here is what I have so far:


Needless to say the people I work with know I'm weird. haha. Its also great cuz when we get a birthday everyone comes to get me to do the shout out because I am the loudest! Another nickname of mine there is The Siren because I really got a set of pipes haha.

ALSO go to a Fridays near you, because their food really is very good! Ask me for food recommendations. If you are in Houston, come to my Fridays even!!

I love working there.. and recently I had been working a lot because of Ike - we totally banked after Ike because almost no other restaurants were open so they all came to fridays. I was making about $150 a day every day! Pretty dang swell...

Although between Riley's free donuts etc and Friday's discounted food, I've got to watch out or else I'm going to be rather large real quick!!!!

Speaking of Ike... here is a picture taken from the International Space Station:

We evacuated to Spring, just north of Houston, during the storm. Though I think we shoulda gone farther north and visited family cuz when we visited our family friends - the Williams! - WE LOST POWER THERE TOO!! oh goodness. I cannot describe the appreciation I have for electricity, especially for temperatures like A/C for Houston and heating for Idaho! I felt so disgusting I was taking like 6 cold showers a day to keep cool. It was nice when the cold front moved in though, and though kind of weird, it was good to be able to escape the world for a bit.

The day after the storm hit we all took up together and cleaned up the Williams house, and many of their neighbors houses. It was great being able to help out other people.. a full family service project! :)

Here's the Crew:

Me, about to dominate the nasty that was at the bottom of the pool:

Okay. Now one thing, OTHER than electricity and A/C that could have made this trip more tolerable would have been to get rid of our dog. Oh my goodness. Jackie was a pain in the BUTT. At the William's house, there are lots of open windows so she can 'see' plenty of things to bark at. And she took every chance she had. And she would go on and on, all freaking day long. I wanted to strangle the thing by the end of the trip. I was glad to get her back to our house so she couldn't make up an excuse to be a nuisance.


Also, wherever we were, she had to be. And when we were outside and she wasn't, it was the hysterical end of the world. At one point she even jumped up onto the window ledge to beg haha. What a dorkwad...

In regards to our house, we had a fence downed and a few tree branches gone, along with missing shingles and minor water damage. Mom is using it as an excuse to get new carpet. She also got new silverware, though I'm not sure how that all ties together.

In other news, Madeline is preparing for the ACT and applying for colleges which stresses her out a bit. Ryan is loving (i.e. HATING) band at Clear Brook - it really pulls his limits but at the end of the day they have a show and make progress that makes us extremely proud of him. And Kyle has left elementary school and started to move on up, so now we have no Rippsteins further in Elem. Kyle hangs with his friends and keeps himself active, especially when he actively pushes for a 'family outing' of mini golf haha.

Also I have finally come to terms with my hair changing from curly to straight, as it did this year at BYUI. In February it freaked out and now it has gone from cute curls to straight, so now I get to style it. Dangit! haha. but it is good because I can grow my hair out without being worried about how the curls will go. I have accepted that now I have straight hair, and if anyone has any styling tips, they would be much appreciated!

Life is pretty boring these days.. waiting to hear from people, or calling them myself. Then its just sleep and work or catching up on things. I will update more later on.. if there is anything worth updating for! I highly recommend yall asking questions or whatever about what yall would like me to update on and I gladly will - I'm just not sure what to write about!! :)

Well I'm off to be as strange as ever! Keep it weird!!