Work, Joy, and The Beatles

"As I turned up my mom's record player loud, what I heard changed my life. I heard The Beatles making mistakes. I heard them fumbling around to find their genius... It had The Beatles trying different tempos, different lyrics and different ideas. It had The Beatles fighting. I heard The Beatles failing. I heard The Beatles working. 

"But learning that they didn't have perfect blueprints from their genius was a revelation. It inspired me to start to practice and rehearse the stupid ideas that I had." -Penn Jillette, in his CNN Opinion piece today, Beatles, bootlegs and Vermeer. 

Image Source: Here

I'm ok with consciously placing things on a pedestal (e.g. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds), but the danger comes when we don't stop to recognize how much hard work went into those things getting up there. Sometimes it's easy to think whatever we admire just walked into that position, inherently just being all that we look up to. But in reality, anything admirable in this world requires a lot of work. Attaining and maintaining. 

Look at how easy it is to break a bad habit vs. making a good habit. How easy it is to make a mess vs. keep a room clean. This world just demands work, constantly. It's as constant as our need for nourishment, and sleep. 

Food, and sleep. They are just so good. (You guys, I'm such a grump over here without them.) And it's the same story for work. 

I think this world demands so much work, because work makes joy. And genius. And all things good. God sent us here to be happy. He sent us here to work to be happy, because that would make the truest kind of joy.

Image Source: Here

I just kind of loved reading this perspective on The Beatles and their work today. The Beatles sing to my soul. It has a lot to do with my dad, and the way that his career in radio combined with his trivia mind placed 60s music into my roots. He'd turn up the radio anytime a different song came on his oldies station, and tell me the year the song came out, where he was when he first heard it, a fact about the recording or the band, and then he'd listen or sing. I'd listen and watch. I loved the way he loved it all, and remembered his life through those songs and the memories and moments they brought him back to.

When I lived in London, I turned up The Beatles every time I ran through Hyde Park. I mean, how could I not? That just felt right. And when Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds came on, I ran with more joy than I ever had before or since. That song will always take me back to Hyde Park, to London. To a time when I realized how big the world was and how much I loved it. 

I don't remember where that particular Beatles song takes my dad back to. But I know The Beatles take both of us places, along with millions of others. Their work, turned into their genius, changed the world.

As Winter Continues

Until this winter, I have always ignored the "feels like" number on the weather forecast. I swear it has always been just a couple degrees higher or lower, and I just never believed in it too much. But now, let me tell you. That number has power. Lately it has been "feeling like" almost 20 degrees colder than the real temperature, with our wind spells and our sun that is MIA. So, don't just ignore that number. Otherwise you will not wear enough clothes out of the house and parts of you will suffer. (Mostly the fingers of my right hand. I don't know why my left is having such a better time of it.)

Life goes on though. Just, more so indoors. We made it to a Pacers game downtown when Jimmer and the Kings (sounds like a band) came to play Indiana (Jimmer should totally be in a band). We loved seeing him score a 3 and tie the game at one point - we watched him make those 3s so many times back at BYU. It just made our hearts happy. The Pacers killed his team though... our guys are on fire right now. (Seriously, Jimmer would have so many automatic fans if he started a band.)

Our living room changed colors during the final days of Michael's studying for boards. Being snowed in with a studiously boring husband (no offense, babe) calls for desperate measures. That gallon of grey paint (Gravity, if you want to know the fancy name) had been staring at me every time I did laundry over the past few months, and finally I had no other excuses. So, on the walls it went. You guys, painting is literally the worst. I vow to never do it again [in this apartment].

I went with my "Little Sister" to the Indiana Museum of Art for her first time, and that girl just ate it up. She loved everything about that place, and made me appreciate a lot of stuff that I've just glanced over before. Then they had a craft room where they mixed some Hershey's syrup with paint, to give it a different tone, texture, and smell. I just found that ironic, because, well, you remember. I have since bought Hershey's syrup though. And these too, thanks to readers who have now told me about a better way of breakfasting. 

We met up with some friends Sunday night for some nostalgic Dr. Mario playing. This game, you guys. So dear to my heart. I grew up with an old Nintendo system that was never replaced at our house, and never needed to be. Dr. Mario, Tetris, Klax, Paper Boy... who's with me? Those good ol' days of innocence before Nintendo became a violent, addictive nemesis of functional dating and marital relationships. That's a topic for another day. Michael saw the inner child come out in me strong, and was pretty amused at how competitive she is. Also, muscle memory in fingers is awesome.

We don't have any family pictures printed, from both Michael's family or mine. We need to get on that. So instead, our house has been full of all the framed pictures from our wedding reception, meaning it was a semi-shrine to our love. Now, I'm crazy about our love, but shrine is just not the vibe I ever meant to go for in our home. I decided I wanted to choose a quote as a theme for my year, and add it to my living room. I think quotes in homes are a great window into the spirit of that family and that place. So, here are my current words to live by, including a bird that I traced with a computer mouse. That's hard to do, people. Then I printed this baby on scrapbook paper and we are good to go! I love it. And it has already made me pause multiple times and think about what makes me happy now, instead of what will make me happy later. 

[Leave a comment with your email if you want me to send you the printable version! 

You can print it on any paper to match your house.]

Pictured here: Michael saving the day. We have been the victims of a few potholes around town, one in particular that just really did a number on us. It couldn't be avoided, people. (That may sound defensive, but you will never know who was driving... especially if you ask Michael.) We are so grateful for our friends out here... during our tire ordeal, they picked up our other friend from the airport, made us all dinner, and sent us home much happier than you would ever predict for a flat-tire-Monday. We had a friend come into town for two days to interview for dental school! We're so hoping that he gets in and comes to Indianapolis in the fall. 

So, even with all those happy happenings around here, sometimes winter still just looks like this. Toys abandoned, longing looks outside, wondering what has happened to the green and fresh world that we once knew. And you should know, Kitty deals with all of this through violence. She has long since learned I don't tolerate this, which means it gets channeled into Michael with a vengeance. He seriously has to be on guard at all times these days. You never know when Kitty will suddenly need to deal with her winter emotions and lash out at him, usually his unsuspecting foot or ankle. We have found a coping mechanism for this -- I'll just leave you with that:

  

Salted Mornings, etc.

Let's talk about mornings. Are they anyone's favorite part of the day? I realized when I wrote those words that yes, actually, there are "morning people" in the world. I've heard of them. But I don't want to dwell on "those people" right now, because I want to talk about how mornings are really hard and I want to feel like everyone agrees.

For example, I drank salty, salty milk today. 

Let me give you some background on that. Chocolate milk is my morning drink of choice (even though let's face it, coffee probably should be for various caffeinated reasons, but I have decided to choose to not drink coffee). For some reason, most of my days start with chocolate milk and it has just been that way for years now. I blame it on those dance team days when breakfast before my daily 5:30am practice was a laughable thought, but I needed to put something in my stomach. I guess it seemed like the most substantial drink I could make and get out the door without actually getting into the world of blenders and effort. And now I'm a conditioned chocolate milk feen. 

Chocolate milk requires Hershey's Syrup, which we are out of, which requires a trip to the store, which winter has made irrationally difficult and hard-sounding in my mind. So, (judge me here, all you green smoothie makers of the world) for the last two mornings I've resorted to stealing cocoa powder from my baking cupboard, tossing in some sugar, stirring it up, and drinking my daily chocolate milk fix before my eyes have really opened all the way. It's not very good. And when you physically add the sugar part to your sugary indulgences, they seem much more indulgent. 

Like I said, this all goes down before my eyes are even fully opened. Which is maybe why today, I made my second mistake in the sugar vs. salt battle that so many poor souls have fought in before me and lost. (And won. I recognize that. But I don't want to dwell on "those people" right now either.) 

Today I stirred cocoa powder and salt in my milk and I drank it.

Two whole swallows, if you have to know. And then I reached for more "sugar" because I figured the bitter cocoa powder was at fault here. Michael witnessed this scene from across the kitchen over his regular bowl of cereal, and said "make sure you're not using the salt..." That's when I noticed I was adding more salt. To be honest, I guess it woke me up more than coffee probably ever could. But waking up is so overrated.

Let's get to the positive part of mornings, before this gets too pessimistic up in here:

Morning Commute: Then.

Morning Commute: Now.

Isn't that a beautiful view? We drive along that river every morning together (unless Ion has his way), and I so love that view. Do you know that sometimes we even see an elephant on our drive? We pass the Zoo just before the river, and sometimes, if we're lucky, that elephant makes an appearance. But that's only in the afternoons. 

Me and the elephant, we know mornings are hard.

Especially when you add salt to the wound.

Ion, the Winter Storm

Mother Nature has closed the doors on Indianapolis today (with plenty of other cities and states affected) - Ion, the raging storm, has kept us all home. It was even illegal to drive today, beyond emergencies. I've never really been in a weather lock-down before. Utah made me go to school no matter what, always.

Well, we did have one half-day, one time. Because it was so windy.

This is more fun to play in. See?

One of the many shoveling shifts.

This inch came down in one hour. We had almost 12 inches by the end of Sunday.

We went for a walk that night to listen to the silent snow and wade through the inches of powder.

And Michael's skis were involved. This was hilarious to me. I just kept laughing the whole time.

Brian wanted a go on the skis the next day too.

The mounds of snow were one thing, but the dropping temperatures the next day has been a completely different story. We're dropping to -15 degrees with a wind chill that feels like -45 degrees. 

It feels weird to breathe out there.

I'll leave you with this little snow experiment.

A New Year's Post | 2013

We ended 2013 over here in pretty meager fashion. I've been living on one corner of the couch for the last four days, with a few transfers to my bed and back. My body is rebelling, and my sinuses are leading the coup. Michael has been on the other side of our couch with a stack of 2,000 flash cards for his boards. Our house was not the place to be for a rocking New Year's Eve ... but we did bust out some sparkling cider and discuss whispered resolutions (because my voice is gone - not because they are mysterious). (But now I think I want to add a "mysterious" category to my resolution list.)

I had a strange feeling last night. The only thing I can compare it to is the way I feel when we're locking the door as we leave for a vacation, and my mind is fiercely trying to remember what it is that I'm forgetting. That's how I felt leaving 2013. Like December was shutting the doors, close of business, and I was trying to grasp on to what it was I forgot to do. I don't really know what that means. Maybe I have some unfinished business with 2013 that will come to my mind on this side of January. Maybe it was just an effect of my body forgetting how to breathe this week. If I sort it all out, I'll let you know.

For now, I'm ready for a rewind of 2013, because last year's review sure gave me a grateful pause and better perspective. Ready?

I started off the year with tedious projects that were actually well worth it. I've significantly increased the joy I feel when I see my fridge since I made these cardboardy Instagram magnets. And we all remember this dear project, endearingly referred to as thatdamnwall. To view a completed version of the project please see: June.

And let's not forget who adopted us in January - this little Kitty. After reading some past posts about those initial interactions, I see that I was very wrong in thinking this was a temporary visitor. When we leave Indiana she'll be coming with us for sure. But, the logistics of that will need to be worked out. Girl is crazy in the car. She used to be so small!

February marked the month I got in touch with my inner child and brought the bangs back to life. That was hard, you guys. The length of my hair has a direct correlation with my inability to take (hair) risks, so that was a scary day. But, the bangs are still here and life is good. Maybe this year I'll go blonde.

Kidding.

We also made our quick trip to Cincinnati in February, and had our first married Valentine's Day. We've decided to make sushi our Valentine's tradition, so I'm already excited that February is about to make its rounds again. Cincinnati was such a fun little city, full of hills (!) and a great farmer's market, cathedral, arboretum, and we hear the aquarium is great, too. We need to get back there this year.

March gave us these delightful cupcakes, which may need to be baked again soon. 

This was a busy month, and such a good one. All of us ladies out here spent a lot of time together getting ready for The Everything Sale, and I am grateful for the way that helped all of us grow closer together.

Helping with The Everything Sale was a huge reminder that there is so much good to see in the world when you look for it. We saw such wonderful acts of kindness that day. I know that I am just one of the countless people that loves The Farar family so very much, and I think about them so often. Even though The Everything Sale is long over, this family is still in the minds and hearts and prayers of so many. They are loved.

We experienced Kentucky's Thunder Over Louisville last April, and it was so memorable. Probably the best fireworks I'll ever see in my life, if we want to get dramatic (but truthful). After waiting all day for the show I had decided that this was a fun but one-time deal, but then after the fireworks... you know I'll be back there come spring. I just really loved that day.

That was also the weekend of our FIRST wedding anniversary. Holla! Can you believe it? That first year sure flew. We packed in enough changes to keep things blurry and exciting and before we knew it, it was time to slice that first layer of cake. Except we had to substitute Oreos for said cake, which just didn't make the move with us.

Speaking of cookies, 2013 marked these as my favorite recipe. This was routinely, methodically determined, and it was actually the first recipe I started using months back. I just didn't think it was my favorite UNTIL I started making my cookies twice as big but cooking them for the same amount of time. That's the ticket, friends. Go enjoy a few (dozen). And ignore the bad picture on the recipe page - why do they show a burned batch? Bugs me every time.

Also, finishing Popsicle Stick Table #2 was put in the books as a great success in this house. I'm thinking we would be a lot more emotionally invested in these tables if we actually ate the popsicle off of every stick that went into these guys. That would have been true dedication. Maybe next time. (a.k.a. never again.)

Remember our dog-sitting days? As do I, as do I. Part of me actually kind of misses (parts of) those fun times. Maybe we'll get back in the business as we get into 2014. This little guy made quite a few visits over here last year.

We fit some good music into our April last year - here we are at the Josh Ritter concert at The Vogue. What a fun night with the Toblers! And his albums have become our road trip music of choice since then. This man was a big part of my musical year. You should watch this, and share in our enjoyment. Yeah, I know it's long. Don't judge.

And who can forget this epic "Secret" experience last April -- the Taylor Swift concert. Oh what a night. I loved being there so much; her concerts are awesome productions.

I still can't believe that all played out the way it did. For the record, I have since used the Secret in all the right ways (in an extremely dedicated fashion) for another "aspiration" and failed, hard. I didn't just dabble in this Secret use either, I dedicated myself to this goal even more than this T-Swift experience, and came so incredibly close to success that I was sure the Secret worked again. Until the complete failure part. So, the point is, I'm still on the fence about this whole cosmic concept. I think the obvious bottom line is: God gets final say. (And I don't think God cares too much about Taylor Swift concerts... and I mean that in the nicest way possible.) Have you tried the Secret? I so enjoy success stories. Send them over.

And April ended on such a somber note, when the world cried with Boston. That stung so much. I was glued to the news that week, and I felt so offended by those cowardly actions at the marathon. There were multiple 2013 newsy moments that could have justifiably ruined perspective and killed hope, but this quote helped me through that event and others since. I don't want to ever stop believing in the power of the good in the world.

May brought some beautiful days to Indianapolis, and the benefits of working downtown came back. I love working right by the war memorials and being able to catch parts of the ceremonies that take place there throughout the year. 

May also brought a tiny reminder that I married the right person. Those tiny reminders are everywhere when I watch for them.

Aaaand my first, and last, completed crochet project. Should I pick this back up in 2014? We shall see, we shall see.

And my favorite part of May was a surprise visit to Utah, for Mother's Day and Ali's birthday. That was so.much.fun. I love being with my family and with my mountains, and we had such a fun weekend all together. Oh how I loved and needed that quick trip.

We soaked up the sun as much as possible in June. We were both so ready for summer. The Monon Trail is a favorite up here, and our Craigslist bike finds got some good use. That sounds so nice right about now!

In June my sweet, sweet grandma passed away, and I sure miss her. She was such a wonderful woman. I was so grateful to be able to make it out to Utah for her funeral, and be with all of my family while we remembered this woman we all love so much. We all think about her so often. 

Right after that Utah trip was our Daetwyler reunion in Florida. All of Michael's sisters were there, and we had a blast being all together that week on the beach. 

We did fit in a few days of nothing but summer stuff, like this bike-in movie. What did we do with our summer breaks growing up? Three months of just summer, to fill however we wanted? I totally took that for granted.

Alison made her first trip out to Indianapolis that month, and we caught the Indy 500. We picked her up in Chicago, and had a great weekend. We were surprisingly entertained by those 200 laps of speeding cars that day. Definitely a unique sporting experience.

Aaaand my first, and last, completed sewing project (post-8th grade sewing class). Should I pick this back up in 2014? We shall see, we shall see. (Doubtful.)

July marked our first full year of living in Indianapolis. We were finally using Google Maps a little less as we went here and there, and we were becoming experts on how to experience this city on the cheap. I documented our day to day routine for the books, because this is just a fun time of life. 

The kitchen. Finally finished. Not the most aggressive project timeline in my history, but... it is finished.

And the highlight of the summer was the Miner Road Trip in July, when Logan, Jenny, Ali and the kiddos all made their way out to the Midwest for an adventure. I loved having them here so much! They met us at Michael's parents house, and we loved being with them for the fourth of July. We watched fireworks along the Ohio River, and Lydia sang all the words to Party in the USA. Just a good, good time.

The crew came up to Indianapolis for a few days after that, and we hit all the sites. The kiddos loved the zoo and the Children's Museum. Jaren had his birthday while he was here, so that was the best bonus! I sure love our families. The times that we are together are the highlights of every year.

We took a mini road trip to Nauvoo in August to meet Michael's sister Pam and her family, visiting from Texas. They came back to Indianapolis with us and we had fun showing them around.

  

Then, another mini road trip! This time to see our Iowa family. We met them in Milwaukee when Danny was there for work. We had never been there before, so we had fun exploring with them. Cheese factories, markets, all that good stuff. Cheese is the best stuff, actually. 

We ended the month with another concert in northern Indianapolis. John Mayer played at an outdoor venue and summer never felt so good. His voice will always be one of my favorites.

September. The greatest month. The transition into fall is the best time of the year, and it seems like I enjoy it more every year. Running errands downtown for work in fall weather just makes my heart happy. Running errands for work in snow or blistering heat just makes my heart feel ok. So, September takes the cake.

Our dog sitting adventures got a whole lot bigger. I took these pictures while safely stationed in a corner, and stayed in my selected corners throughout our entire visits to these small horses' dogs' home. Those things, you guys. Nice as puppies. Big as baby elephants. Bad combination, if you ask me.

September meant hitting the big 2-5! And it has been a good age transition. It's at least one that I remember rather than still feeling like I'm my same age long after my birthday has passed. Do you have those?

Color came to our bathroom. That was a big deal.

But this discovery was the biggest deal of all. 

Obviously.

October was time for spooooky stories and busy days. We never even carved this chosen pumpkin you see here. He just sat idly by on our porch, a symbol of our more passive enjoyment of Halloween. 

But we did have a wonderful fall break in northern Michigan, just us and our bikes. It was probably one of the most seamless trip experiences I've ever had. We had no time to plan until the night before, but everything came together and everything went smoothly the whole weekend. That trip was so great, and so was Mackinac Island.

Part I / Part 2

And the month went out with a haircut and an epiphany.

Michael hit the big 2-6! Always one-upping me. He has worked so hard this year, on both written and practical tests. Doesn't he look so legit up there flaming those dentures? I'm sure there is a more technical term for that. But, still. He's flaming those dentures like a boss.

His birthday present was a trip to the Notre Dame game, and his friend Jason flew out to come with us. We had such a good time catching up with him. And freezing with him at the game. Seeing that campus made the trip worth it, even if the scoreboard was a disappointment... #gocougs.

Ali came out for another visit, and we were able to go to Louisville and meet Michael's dad. We went to the temple and then rode bikes along the riverfront. Bikes are just the best way to see a city. Don't you wish we all rode bikes more? We would all be happier. I'm sure of it.

Then it was finally time for our long-awaited date to Wicked, which was my birthday present two months prior. Talk about anticipation. I so love Wicked. (Also, don't you love Elphaba Idina Menzel in Frozen? I so love Frozen. I'm just full of love.)

And then it was finally time for Thanksgiving. I haven't checked 2014's November yet, but I hope Thanksgiving is a little more timely. I needed more Christmas Tree time in my life. We loved being with family in Evansville, and eating so much food with them. Some of us learned how to make tamales one afternoon, so here's Ethan sitting on them. Cutest tamale guard I've ever seen.

And then December. Too soon to review December? You're right. We'll stick to the highlights version:

Frozen, round one.

Cute visitors.

Just the right gifts.

And our little tree, who is still up, standing tall.

Well, just a little bit tall.

What a year we've had. To be honest, I have gotten in the habit of measuring years by places I've flown to or big accomplishments I've made. This year, in those terms, was semi-uneventful. But those aren't the right terms. I'm realizing more and more that years, and months and days, should just be measured by the way you live your life and the perspective you keep. And in that sense, 2013 was its own kind of eventful. It sinks in more all the time that Michael and I get to be together for eternity. I realize more all the time that the most important thing I can do is just try to do what my Savior would do, in all situations. And I realize more all the time that true happiness is intrinsic, and all up to me. All up to you, for you. Working through this concept overwhelmed me at first, but now it is beginning to empower me.

I'm excited for 2014. I'm trying to make the right kind of resolutions.

Look for God's hand in my life more. Be God's hands in other lives more.

And get my dresser and closet under control.

Maddie from the corner of the couch, out.