What the Randi: A Blog

Happy New Year! Let's Walk the Walk, shall we?

2012-01-01T23:27:00.001-07:00

Happy first day of 2012! I hope that this new year is serving you well. As for me? Well, it is grand.

You wouldn't think so by my current state. I've been tucked in bed cuddling with my pup all day as I've been trying to get over a cold, my monthly cramps are kicking my trash, and I'm nursing my frozen neck and shoulder that has left me unable to move these past few days.

At first all of this bummed me out, but it's actually fitting in perfectly with my new game plan "Walking the Walk," as mentioned in my last (mildly depressing) post.

As someone in the healing profession, I spend a lot of time advising people on how to be healthier and happier. I want people to invest in their health and well-being and trust that can be pain-free in every area of life. But I can't really help them if I'm not practicing what I preach. And I hadn't been for quite some time.

So I've been working on that, and I'm happy to report that things are on the up and up. Since my last post, I have landed a great job as a content writer for a website, opened up my own massage space in Sandy, UT, and started teaching Yoga at the clubhouse in my housing development. I also finally finished my last lingering online class and am now officially a college grad!

And now as I sit here with body aches that make me want to puke, I'm finding a new way to walk the walk. I'm trying out all of the tricks that I tell my clients that help with these kinds of pains. It's actually kind of fun for me when I get sick because I can try out all of the new remedies that I've read about and see what actually works and what doesn't. I'm kind of twisted like that.

So with heating pads and herbal teas as my companions, I have come up with 6 main intentions for 2012 to help me keep Walking the Walk in my personal and professional life. I am a little hesitant to share them here because they are really personal, but I feel moved to do so because perhaps they will spark an idea of what would serve you. And like always, sharing them will help keep me accountable.

1. Balanced Love: Work on the balance of giving and receiving love. I can't give it unless I allow myself to fully receive it, and I have always struggled with being able to receive it. And if I'm doing one more than the other, love becomes self-centered and exhausting. When it is balanced, everything else in my life will follow.

2. Be my "why not" self: Often times when I try to take on a new way of being I stop myself because I think, "Oh I can't. I've never done this before, and it's just not me." Well from now on, when that wall comes up, I plan on saying, "Why not?" Why can't I be the type of person that likes mornings? Why can't I say no to yet another serving of pasta? I have no good reason. There is no good reason why I can't be the person I want to be.

3. No Shame Authenticity: I have made some major life changes these past few years, and I have been trying really hard to tune into who I really am. It's been hard when what I'm discovering as my authentic self goes against the grain of the culture that I live and grew up in. I found myself being ashamed in a way of how I really feel about things, worrying that if people really knew how I felt that they wouldn't like or respect me anymore. Well, that is silly and I'm done with that. Life is too short to revolve it around what other people will think.

4. Easeful Organization: Whenever I try to get my ducks in a row, I find myself getting overwhelmed and anxious about staying organized. I get so caught up in my vision of what having an organized life is that I just give up before I start. I want to live in a world where being organized and on top of things is just who I am, not something I have to live up to. It's easy, I just need to chill out.

5. Because It's Fun: For some reason, this past year I have become so serious. The things I love to do turned into a burden somehow. I created all of these attachments and expectations to things and activities that I enjoyed and they lost their fun. I'm sick of that. I'm dropping the baggage, and I just want to do things because they are fun, not because they will make me lose weight, or impress so and so, or any of that.

6. Responsible Abundance: This intention is directed towards my financial life. I honestly suck with money. For years I have been living from pay check to pay check, and the second that I get some extra income, I get so excited and just spend it right away. I want to be able to handle abundance. I want to create abundance in my life and let it flow freely and responsibly in and out of my life. When I do that, then that creates space for even more abundance.

And there you have it. A little insight as to what I'm putting out there for 2012. This is the first time that I am putting out intentions instead of specific individual goals. I like to do that on a weekly and daily basis, but I'm hoping that these by following these intentions, all of the details with come naturally.

The happiest of New Years to you, my dears.

Much love,
Randi

Self-loathing in Lehi or Bringing Awesome Back

2011-11-13T13:24:00.002-07:00

Welp, here we are.

It's been roughly 4 months since my last post. Whoa.

I had really high hopes of posting my adventures while I was in Europe, but as anyone who has travelled will tell you, when deciding between sitting in front of a computer writing about Europe or actually going out and experiencing Europe, you choose the latter. Curious about my trip? Well, keep checking back here because I plan on trickling in posts about my trip over then next month or so.

In the mean time, I would like to vent. Vent and also just declare a few things about my life.

You see, I am in what some would call a rut. A pickle, a funk, a humdrum experience, a vortex of doom, if you will. And I'm sick of it. I'm done with it. It is not serving me, and it has gone on long enough. So by telling you fine people about it, I hoping that I can get it out of my system and move on.

Europe and Morocco was unreal. It was heaven. Besides being away from Chris for so long, it was the best thing ever. Everyday was new, exciting, and totally out of my comfort zone in the best possible way. Coming home to Chris and my dog was beyond lovely, but I also came home to a clean slate.

At first this "clean slate" excited me. I was done with school, we had just moved to a new city, there were new surroundings to explore, possibilities galore. But after getting rejected from potential jobs and realizing that my new city can be explored in an afternoon, I found myself sitting at home all day watching Grey's Anatomy. That's right people, I watched 7 seasons of overly dramatic surgeons doing each other in only 2 short months.

It hasn't been all bad, though. I started working a few shifts in the spa at my massage school, which has been fun. I have a few clients come to my house. A poem of mine just got published. I am working on a book with my yoga teacher, who has also asked me to be a teaching assistant in Costa Rica at her teacher training. I now have my own logo and website going on at www.randikaymartin.com, which took me forever and I'm really proud of it. I got to take a fun trip with Chris home to Fargo and Minnesota. And American Fork Canyon is only 10 minutes from my house.

But, I have been putting my life on hold to be available for a job that I really wanted and thought for sure I would get. I recently found out I did not get the job, and the two months of waiting around and clearing my schedule was for nothing. Well, not nothing. I did watch 7 seasons of Grey's Anatomy.

So here I am again. Clean slate still relatively clean. But instead of feeling excited about it I'm feeling lazy, rejected, and insanely bored. I found myself being envious of the grocery store janitor because at least they had something to do and a place to be. I guess I could be a janitor at my own house, but I'm also learning that I really suck at being a housewife.

"Well with all of this free time, haven't you been filling it with fun activities and things you love?" you might be asking. And I have been to a certain extent. But you have to understand something about me, I need some sort of structure. Without it, I am embarrassingly unmotivated. If nothing kicks me out of bed in the morning I think, "Laying here feels nice. I will just do this for a while until I have to go pee or get really hungry... I could play the guitar today, but what will I play? Oh I don't know. I suck at the guitar anyway... I'll just watch one episode and then take a shower...Ok one more episode... Just one more, promise..." And then Chris is home from work and we hang out until it's time for bed. But I can't sleep because I slept in and have expended little to no energy during the day. So I stay up late surfing the internet and telling myself what a load of crap I am until I fall asleep on the couch. At about 4 or 5 am I wake up because I'm uncomfortable on the couch with the lights on and somehow plop myself into bed. And let's not even talk about my diet of pumpkin cookies and pasta.

And so, ladies and gentleman, this must end. I declare that it is officially over. I'm taking my life back from the deadly claws of depression and crappy TV dramas. Because of this state I've been in the last few months I have made some poor decisions that I can't take back, and I've settled for a standard of living that is nothing close to what I want for myself. This is not me. This is not who I am. I have worked too hard to let my life be nothing short awesome.

So here's to being awesome. And I do mean having some of awe.

And I do have a game plan. Boy, do I have a game plan. But this post is getting long, and I have things to do! So, stay tuned for my "walking the walk" game plan. It's going to be big.

And thanks for reading. If you've made it to the end of this post, I salute you.

Mi casa es su casa

2011-07-13T16:09:00.000-06:00

Well folks, I made it to Logroño, which is a city in the providence of La Rioja. Here is a little map for you visual people.

I´ve been here for about 2.5 weeks, and I must say that I am in love with it. Apparently, it was voted the number one place to live in Spain because of the quality of life here. Technically I live in a small town called Ladero, which is right on the border on Logroño. I take a bus into town, but you can pretty much walk everywhere you need to be with in 10 or 15 minutes.

The downtown looks like a typical Spanish town with narrow streets and old buildings, but it is surrounded by mountains and vineyards that I love. I live in a newer development, so my surroundings are quite spacious.

The dark building in the middle is where I live. Sorry that this photo is kind of dark, but you get the idea if you look close enough.

This is my front door. Notice the Hobbit-like door knob.

This building is only about a year or two old, and it looks an IKEA display because everything is IKEA! But I loves me the IKEA, so I feel right at home.

I don´t have any pictures of them yet, but my host family is better than I could have ever dreamed. They are a Chilean family that moved here for the Wine scene. La Rioja is world famous for it´s wine (wine is cheaper than water here), and my host dad is a wine maker. They are a couple in their late 30´s with three kids, who are adorable. They are really laid back, super nice, and just a good time to be around. We get along really well.

I have nothing to really compare this experience to, but living with a host family in Spain is the life. I get up for dance class with the magical Veronica (yes I have a Spanish dance class),

and then go 2.5 hours of language class taught by this firey Spanish chica.

I can´t even tell you how much I love Ines. She is loud, always looks fantastic, halarious, and one of the nicest people you will ever meet. She makes learning grammer a very entertaining event.

Here is my class (all USU students) with our history teacher the first week we were here. But history class is no more.

At around 2:00pm, I take the bust back home (this sign is how I know when to get off. I have yet to figure out what it means)

and find lunch and a made bed (when I run out of time in the morning to make it myself) waiting for me. Lunch is always followed by my favorite thing about Spain: Siestas.

Here is my made bed where I endulge in siesta goodness.

Upon arising from a delicious nap I do homework, watch some TV (which I have in my room), or go out to my personal patio and do some yoga.

So far in the evenings I´ve had a cooking class with the beloved and masterful Paco. No words can describe my love for this man. He calls me his American daughter.

And he feeds us the most delicious food in places like this:

This is a underground tunnel from the 1400´s. It used to be used for hiding when the city was being threatened. And now it feeds hungry Spaniards and their guests!

I should also note the Paco made us his award winning ice cream. It won first place at the international ice cream tournament. First place! I have offically eaten the best ice cream in the world. And boy was it!

They eat dinner around 9 or 10 here, so after cooking class I usually go straight home to bed.

And then I wake up the next morning and do it again. Not too shabby, eh? And we only have classes Monday through Thursday, so I have the whole weekend for adventures. I will post about the adventures thus far soon.

And that is my life in a nut shell. I can´t believe I only have a few weeks left.

Stay tuned for San Fermin craziness and climbing in The Pyreneese!

Barcelona or bust!

2011-07-03T05:49:00.000-06:00

After moving, online classes, and running Ragnar (which I will post about one of these days), I made it on a plane that whisked me away to Spain! After three plane rides and time travelling, I was painfully reminded about how flying and jet lag quickly kills the magic of going to a foreign land. But, stick around long enough and the magic comes back. And it doesn´t take long in a place like Barcelona.

Yes, my reason for coming to Spain is for a Study Abroad program through Utah State in La Rioja, but I figured I would visit some friends since I was in the neighborhood. Meet Susie:

She was one of my roommates when I lived in Costa Rica studying Yoga. She lives in Barcelona teaching dance and yoga, and it was so lovely to meet up with her after two years of being apart. She was my saving grace while I recovered from travelling, and she helped me learn the ways of the Spaniards. Honestly, if you ever need someone to help you kick jet lag where it hurts, Susie is the one to do it. Man oh man. But I loved her for it.

Barcelona really is a magical city. It seems that each brick in the cobblestone streets has centuries worth of stories to tell. Majestic cathedrals mingle inbetween restaurants and shops, and each round about is home to a fountain or statue of some explorer or war hero. Palm trees wave with the breeze coming in from the Mediterranean, which you can get a peek of if you leave the narrow streets. Susie lives in a neighborhood called Gracia, which is more like a village that hooks onto the bigger city. Sadly, my time there was short, and I was mostly in a jet lag haze, but here are a few things that I got to do.

The weekend I arrived was the weekend where they celebrate the saint San Juan. People of all ages gather in the streets at all hours of the night to eat, drink, and set off fireworks. I had the pleasure of being startled by cracks and booms many-a-time while walking around and while I was trying to sleep. One of Susie´s british friends, Kate, had a few of us over for dinner to celebrate.

Dancing in the streets happened, of course. Here is Madalena and Susie shakin´it.

Gaudi is a famous Spanish architect who creates crazy buildings such as this:

And this:

One day we chilled at a beautiful beach right outside of Barcelona. Here is Kate and her adorable son Oscar enjoying the day.

Here is the beach, but this photo doesn´t do it justice. It´s near the airport so we could see airplanes come and go. They were so close I felt like I could reach up and touch them.

We went to a huge market that seemed to have every food under the sun.

This is a plaza where the royality used to live.

One of the many cathedrals. We were able to see a wedding going on inside.

Susie and her delightful boyfriend Alejandro. I´m so thankful for them. They took such good care of me!

And that is a brief rundown of my time in Barcelona. I was so fortunate to have Susie and her wonderful friends there to show me a good time.

Now, I am living in La Rioja and have a week of my program under my belt. But I´ll post more on that later. Feel free to follow me on this blog to stay updated on my time living in Spain and other European adventures.

Chau!

Update Montage

2011-06-08T00:19:00.003-06:00

Hello Folks,

Well, summer is finally here, and while there is a very brief lull in the Martin happenings, I'll provide a little update for those of you out there who care.

This past semester...

We celebrated this many years of being wed:

I switched from snowboarding to this:

We cross-country skied four miles up to this for Valentine's Day:

I was in a play where I did a lot of this:

We went to Albuquerque to visit Chris's dad and adorable half-siblings and did this:

For Spring Break we got this little guy:

And then went up to Bear Lake and stayed in a cabin where we saw this:

And did this:

With these people:

I also rolled my first one of these:

Then we went to Escalante where we did this:

And made our dogs to this:

Later in March, we held another successful tournament in which we played this:

And did this:

The day after the tournament I did this:

Chris had a conference in the Bahamas, so I tagged along and did a lot of this:

For my 26th birthday I got to eat this:

Followed by this:

Oh, and Chris was awarded this for being Utah State University's Man of the Year.

During finals week we did this in the library:

And finished the semester off by doing this:

Graduation was followed by packing up, saying goodbye to Logan, and saying hello to Utah Valley. As much as Utah Valley isn't our scene, Chris got a really great job in north Orem, and we are moving into a real nice place at the point of the mountain in Lehi.

We move into our new place on Saturday, I'm running the Wasatch Back next Friday and Saturday, then the following Tuesday I'm leaving for Spain for seven weeks. The fun just never stops with the Martin crew, but I'll post more about those adventures as they unfold.

Peace.

The Story of Dexter

2011-03-10T19:26:00.000-07:00

Oh, hello blog-o-sphere. It's been a while, hasn't it?

Being a Creative Writing major means that I'm too burnt out to write anything more than I have to for class, so the blog gets neglected. But, it's Spring Break, and I've got nothing but time. So, I'm back, bloggin' up a storm.

I'm here to tell you about the lastest member of the Martin family.

Meet Dexter.

Border Collie/ Australian Shepherd mix. 10 months old. Male.

Chris and I have talked about getting a second dog for a while, but it was always something we would do eventually. It would come up in conversation every once in a blue moon, and we would say, "Yeah, maybe someday." Our first dog, Maeby, fulfilled my dog desires and honestly, I couldn't imagine having loving another dog as much as I loved Maeby. I didn't think I had enough room in my heart for another dog.

Two weeks ago we were watching our friend's dog. We had another dog around constantly for about five days. It was so fun to see Maeby with another dog. She was better behaved, and her separation anxiety was a lot better. The idea of a second dog started to more and more into our conversations.

Late August was the soonest we would get another dog. With our move to Salt Lake coming up in May, we figured that August would be the perfect time for us. To satiate our second puppy thoughts we started looking at what we call "Puppy Porn." Ksl.com has a classified section just for dogs for sale. We have spent hours and hours fawning over puppies. In fact, it's how we found Maeby.

Warning: Never look at puppy porn unless you are ready to get one.

This is where, on our very first look, we found Dexter, who was called Buddy at the time. There was just something about him when we looked at his profile. He had to be ours. So we texted the number that night. With in minutes we got a text back saying he had already been sold. We were crushed. I went to bed that night aching for Dexter.

The next day Pet Smart was hosting Four Paws Adoption dogs at their store. To deal with our Dexter devastation, we decided to look. Here we found Peggy. An airedale/healer mix, super cute, perfect size, really cuddly, doesn't shed. On paper, she was the perfect dog. But I just wasn't excited about it. It didn't feel right, so I figured that it just wasn't the right time for a second dog. We had filled out paperwork for Peggy to come home with us on Sunday, but Saturday night we planned to call on Sunday to say we'd changed our mind.

After a wonderful morning of skiing, we got out of the canyon and received a text message. "Bad News," Chris said to me. The text stated that the people who were going to by Dexter couldn't have him in their condo, so he was available if we still wanted him. "Oh, no," I replied. All of my feelings of doubt about getting a second dog right now was quickly replaced with feelings of excitement and urgency. Keep in mind, we had just decided the night before that getting a second dog right now wasn't right for us. We quickly drove home, showered, got right back in the car, and drove an hour to Layton to get Dexter. Maeby and Dexter hit it off, and they looked so perfect together. We were sold.

And now we have him. Maeby was a little territorial at first, but five days later it's like we've always had him. They play so well together and he is the cuddliest dog I know. And, turns out, there is room in my heart for two dogs. I mean, look at him. Honestly.

So there you have it. The story of our dear Dexter.

And just so you know, taking a nap on the couch with two dogs covering me to make a warm puppy blanket is the best.

Dharma Tree Pics!

2010-10-02T01:01:00.000-06:00

Hey ya'll.

Just a quick post to let you know I posted picture of my new massage space, Dharam Tree, on my other blog.

Check it out HERE.

It's very exciting and so far it is keeping me very busy, which makes me even more excited!

And if you haven't already, you should subscribe to my other blog. It is going to be jammed packed of great things and also, the more public subscribers I have, the cooler I will look :) I only want that to happen because I plan on using this blog to help me get a writing job with holistic health publications. So yes, it would help my career if you subscribed, but you won't regret it. It's going to be BIG!

Peace and Loves.

Playing It Safe. Or, Up With Failure!

2010-09-08T16:03:00.000-06:00

Well, it's that time of year again.
The slight chill in the wind makes us reach for longer sleeves. The buzz of knowledge floats around as many head back to school for another eventful year. Halloween candy and decorations start to creep into the grocery stores. And we say goodbye to another Summer that, yet again, slipped through our fingers.

But change is good. Change is inevitable. We know it comes and goes with the seasons, so why not embrace it? I don't know about you, but that's what I've been trying to do lately. My lack of blog posts attest to that. It's a hard, busy thing to let go of old, clunky baggage to make room for the new, more space efficient bags.

In my last post I talked about the Summer of Randi. I am happy to report that I feel I fulfilled that Summer theme. More than ever, I am feeling more and more comfortable in my own skin and have allowed myself to evolve. Which is pretty dang neat. I even bought skinny jeans! I always thought that Randi could never do skinny jeans. But I can, even though my hips don't lie.

And now school has started, yet again. This past week and a half has been insane trying to get everything in order. Not only did I start this semester with 17 credits, but I also just opened my own Massage space downtown and I auditioned for two shows!

Thus leading me to the whole point of this blog post.

Newsflash: I'm deathly afraid of failure. I know, I know, so is everyone else, but a lot of the people don't let it stop it from doing things they love. I do. In a bad way. I have perfectly orchestrated my life in such a way that I don't majorly fail at anything. And that means I don't majorly succeed at anything either. Well, I've had enough of that. So, I decided to put myself out there and get involved in theater again, because for all of my fellow thespians out there, I ached for the stage.

Long story short, I auditioned for two different shows that Utah State is putting on this semester. Having got a lead in a previous USU show a few years back, I figured I had a pretty good shot. I made calls backs for both shows; I got rejected for both shows. Pain was had, tears were shed, feeling like I was 18 again and getting rejected for my dream role in a production at Fargo South High that led me to not do a show for five years was felt. I was ready to crawl right back into my play-it-safe shell.

But amongst the pain and tears, I felt a twinge of joy. There was a part of me that loved feeling failure and rejection. It had been so long since I had done anything to feel a major anything. And I found comfort in knowing that feeling this pain now will make it easier when I feel it again. It will also make success that much sweeter when the time comes. Oh, and it will come. It was like I was challenging myself to step it up instead of sheepishly backing down in the game of life. And in my own, still depressed about it at the moment way, I said, "Bring it on!" Isn't this great news??!!

I also learned a lot about preparation, getting my pride bubble significantly popped, working hard for the things I want and all that jazz, but we shall have to save that for another post.

In conclusion, I share this with you because a) posting about the things I learn and go through is very therapeutic for me, and b) perhaps someone out there in the blog-0-sphere is going through something similar and can find comfort in knowing that we are meant to feel all emotions. The good, the bad, and the ugly. All can serve us to our liking, whether we believe it or not.

I shall leave you with a brilliant quote from my favorite Genie:

Until next time.

Summer Theme 2010

2010-07-13T00:42:00.000-06:00

It's the middle of July. In case you haven't noticed. I recently realized that summer is half way over and had a mini freak out.

As some of you may recall, I have a tendency to label my summers. I blogged about it HERE last summer when I announced the theme of 2009. I regretfully have not been present enough to declare a theme for this summer and now the summer is almost over. What is to be done? Dare I declare a theme halfway through? I dare say that I do.

I am very tempted to name this summer Slacker Summer because that is what I've felt like done all summer. Nothing. But really that is not true. I was really burned out after Spring Semester was over. And when I say burned out, I mean Burned. Out. May consisted of sleeping and going on climbing trips that I may or may not post pictures of someday. June was full of cooking, taking more naps, and starting to train for a marathon. And both months were sprinkled with mini quarter life crisis's that led to complete laziness and confusion. Who knew that turning 25 would make me all reflective and indecisive on what I want to do with myself.

Now I'm half way through July and I finally feel like I'm back. I learned long ago that breakdowns equal breakthroughs. Can't have one without the other and finally the breakthroughs are shining their bright little lights at the end of the tunnel.

::Warning. Cheesy self discovery rant begins now::

For most of my life I have let things define me that were not really me. My happiness came from other people being happy with me. As long as I was making everyone happy, I was happy. Over this past year I have made some personal choices that a huge chunk of people in my life disapproved of. And even though it made my soul happy, it crushed the rest of me to know that I had made others sad. I have also lost myself in being a "good wife" and trying to figure out what that was. Turns out what I thought I "should" be isn't me at all. Combine that with a handful of other things, I was torn. Torn between creating a fulfilling life for myself, while still revolving my life around everyone else. I have been learning the hard way that those two things can't live peacefully together. Long story short, I'm done with that way of being.

Since I have never lived a life fully confident of my own decisions and not worrying about what everyone and their dog will think, I don't really know how it looks to not be like that. So that, my friends, is what I am devoting the rest of the summer to. I call it......drumroll please......
The Summer of Randi. Has a nice, epic, Chinese new year ring to it, don't you think?

I could sit here and feel all guilty for wasting the first half of my summer, but really, I don't think it was wasted. It's all part of the master plan of creating happiness. Can't have the good without the bad. Can't have the yin without the yang. And there are signs everywhere reminding me of that. Including the oil and vinegar plate at dinner tonight. I kid you not, it made this shape all on it's own.

So there you have it. Let the Summer of Randi officially begin! And I must add that I feel insanely blessed to have a husband like Chris. He has created such a loving space for me to do what I need to do feel fulfilled and he supports me creating a life where I can pursue my goals and find the balance of being independent and in a relationship. I hope to do the same for him, even though his head is on a little straighter than mine.

Please feel free to share your wise insights on finding this balance with me if you have had similar feelings and experiences.

In other news, I started another blog! It is my professional blog where I write about yoga, massage, and other holistic things that I love. Please read, subscribe, and comment. The more people interact with me on that blog the more I can use that blog as part of my resume to hopefully write on this subject for larger publications. So check it out at http://randisblogasana.blogspot.com.

Ok. Thanks for reading. Loves.

A Note to the Public

2010-05-03T23:41:00.000-06:00

To whom it may concern,

My apologies for my absence as of late. Life is overwhelming me, and I have had no time to devote to this here blog. This post won't be anything to get too excited about, but I just wanted to let you all know that I am still alive and well. But I do have some news.

Item One: I am sad to report that Project 365 is no more. I know, I know... it was one of the best things to go on in 2010, but I lost my camera charger and got way behind. That, and having to take a picture everyday kind of took the fun out of taking pictures. It became annoying instead of exciting. So why do something annoying if I don't have to? Also, because of my 18 credit semester, blogging every week about some pictures I took got low on the priority list real fast. My apologies to those that care. But, I will still post lots of photos because that's what I like to to.

Item Two: Many changes have been happening in the life of Chrandi (Chris and Randi). We made our first move as a married couple to a great little house so we could get this:

She is an Australian Shepherd and we named her Maeby. Yes, after the Arrested Development character. I love her more than life itself. She has made my life crazier and more sane at the same time. It's magical really. But I have been aching for my own puppy for over five years and I can't believe I actually have one now. Expect to see many more posts about her.

Item Three: On April 17th I turned 25 years old. 25, people. I still feel like I'm 18 or something. Pictures from the Birthday Party will be posted soon. To celebrate the fact that I can rent a car, Chris and I bought a washer and dryer! The fact that I actually want my own washer and dryer is proof that I am getting older.

Item Four: I got offered a fatty scholarship by the English Department. I don't know why I feel the need to share this. Perhaps it's because I never thought I would have the grades to deserve a scholarship, and I can't brag about it to many people because I have smarty pants friends who are surprised if they don't get scholarships. So this is me letting myself brag.

In closing, much has happened, little has been shared. I will get back into the blogging world after this week when I am set free from my mother of a semester. I am even starting a new blog dedicated to holistic health, so stay tuned for that.

I wish you all the best in your endeavors,

Randi

Project 365: Weddings and Whatnots

2010-03-27T12:15:00.000-06:00

As usual, life is craziness and posting Project 365 is not the priority I would like it to be. But here are some times that were had.

March Eighth

This is a really good book that I get to read for my Medical Anthropology class. I encourage all to read it.

March Ninth

I have a new addiction. Popcorn cooked with coconut oil topped with nutrition yeast. It is the best thing ever and I really can't get enough. I bring it on campus with me and munch on it all day.

March Tenth

More popcorn. Thank you whomever got us a Whirley Pop for a wedding present.

March Eleventh

Adam and Chelsea got little chickies for their coop. They are the dorable.

March Twelfth

My cute mom with her cute brothers and sisters sang a little ditty at Matt's wedding dinner. This is them rehearsing. It was a grand night for all. I love my family.

March Thirteenth

This is a dance party that was had on the lawn of the Baird's house the morning of Matt's wedding. The boys went for a run, but before, dance party USA. It was an awesome day and Matt married one of the best girls I know. But more on that later.

March Fourteenth

This is my uncle's house in Sugar House. I love it. But more importantly, I love my uncle. We just chilled here all day with the fam.

March Fifteenth

Matt and Rachel let us hang out with them before they went to Europe. Cafe Rio never disappoints.

March Sixteenth

To celebrate the Springtime Chris, Paul, and Jer put on spandex and went for a bike ride. Devin was also there, but he had no spandex.

March Seventeenth

Happy St. Patty's day! Here are the lovely Sarah and Dione helping us celebrate.

March Eighteenth

Behold. The first banana bread I have ever made. It was delicious, if I do say so myself.

March Nineteenth
Huzzah for Chaco weather!

March Twentieth

Sad times. My orchid I got from Kelly for Christmas has lost all of it's flowers. But it still looks kinda cool. In a naked kind of way.

March Twenty-First

This is a result of Spring cleaning. Our DI pile is getting bigger and bigger.

And there you have it. Pretty exciting, eh? I think so...... Or do I?......

Project 365: From Nuckett to The Big Apple

2010-03-12T10:37:00.001-07:00

Enjoy.

March First

Team Nuckett rides again! About two years ago, Chris and I were on a curling team with Devin and Jer. We called ourselves Team Nuckett. Today was a magical reunion of our glorious team.

March Second

This is a curious painting in the HYPR building at USU. USU is having The Biggest Loser competition on campus and I got asked to teach a Yoga class for them. It was way fun and I wanted a better picture to represent it, but this is the best I could do.

March Third

This night I stayed at the Baird's house in SLC because I had to catch a flight to NYC in the morning. They are an incredible family that I have known my whole life. I forgot to take a picture this day, so I shot this picture of the nightstand right before I went to bed.

March Fourth

This is my dear friend Rebeka. We met at my Yoga teacher training in Costa Rica and I haven't seen her since. She lives in New Jersey and I got to stay with her. This is us at her Yoga studio, Pink Lotus.

March Fifth

Meet David. He wrote the song "Midnight at the Oasis" and is one of the nicest guys I know. Rebeka and I Yoga Studio hopped around NYC and ended up at OM Yoga for a meditation workshop taught by David. It was really wonderful and that is where Chris met up with us.

March Sixth
While Chris was stuck in a conference all day, I went to Yogaworks for a class and then strolled around Central Park. There I saw these guys putting on a break dancing show. This guy was the comedic relief. I gave him a dollar.

March Seventh
We are on Times Square! This is right outside of our Hotel Room. The university invited Chris to a conference in NYC and paid his plane ticket and put him up in the Mariott Marquee on Times Spare. So, I tagged along for the good times. It was a great weekend that I will post more about later.

Things have been way crazy this past week, and now I am a week behind in my postings but don't you worry, I will get caught up eventually. And stay tuned for a full New York update and my brother Matt's wedding!!

Project 365: Recap

2010-02-28T19:39:00.000-07:00

So, I've been a little overwhelmed with life lately, which has led to no Project 365 updates for a few weeks. Things have slowed down a bit, for the time being, so here are the latest snid bits of my life.

Enjoy.

February Eighth

Aggie Blue Bikes had this little number on sale. I needed a commuter bike to ride around on when the weather is too harsh for my nicer road bike. I plan to spruce it up a bit, but this is the before pic.

February Ninth

I walk by this snowman at least once a day on my way to campus. Sadly, I have watched him melt away into nothing. Today he looked like he had been incarcerated by the sun.

February Tenth

Meet Panda. He is my USB port. I love him.

February Eleventh

Some Indian girls on campus were doing Henna tattoos to raise money for their club, so I got one. And I bought a real nice scarf.

February Twelfth

Yet another Spoon Me visit. I'm an addict.

February Thirteenth

Some of you may know of the infamous Violent Times Day party. It has been put on by my brother-in-law and his friends for years. It's another option for people to celebrate something other than Valentine's Day. Here is Chris reading his Emo poem by candlelight.

February Fourteenth

The pic didn't turn out that great, but Chris surprised me and took me to an awesome sushi place in Ogden on our way down to Salt Lake. It was oh, so delicious. Thank you, Chris. He is the best Valentine I have ever had.

February Fifteenth

We spent the night up in a cabin in Big Cottonwood Canyon with the Brewerton's and their family. It's where Chelsea grew up. We just walked right up to Brighton Ski Resort, enjoyed a great powder day on the mountain, and boarded right down to the front door of the cabin when we were done. Good times were had by all.

February Sixteenth

You should be able to guess by now that we spend a lot of time with Adam and Chelsea Brewerton. Well, this night we took advantage of a party of four coupon at The Indian Oven. That's Adam sneaking into my photo.

February Seventeenth

This is a one of the desks in one of my English classrooms. If you look closely you can see a Lord of the Rings theme. It's pretty amazing.

February Eighteenth

Chris had to work this night, so I invited Kelly and Casey over to help me get caught up with Project Runway. Originally I just watched the show to keep Casey company, but I got addicted. I'm a sucker when it comes to reality TV, although I hate to admit it. That Heidi Klume... she's so hot right now.

February Twentieth

Speaking of addictions... I heart Cafe Rio salads.

February Twenty-First
Just a typical Sunday in Logan, Utah. A man riding a hot pink BMX bike in a suit through a snowy field. Classic.

February Twenty-Second

I love that "family time" consists of hanging out with Chris, Devin, and Koo. I think I married into the best family ever. Don't worry, Koo isn't a violent person all of the time. Just when she plays Carcassone.

February Twenty-Third

This was in the yard of a house we are thinking of moving into. It comes with a pancake tree! That's what I'm talkin' about.

February Twenty-Fourth

Olga got a makeover. We have been looking into getting a roof rack for a while now, and we found a sweet deal on good ol' Craig's list. Olga looks so hardcore now.

February Twenty-Fifth

Behold the eye of a tired college student.

February Twenty-Sixth

This is the coolest part of Chris's new commuter bike. We are now owners of four bikes. I never thought I would be the type of person that would want more than one kind of bike. What is happening to me?

February Twenty-Seventh

USU has this thing going on where you trade in an old sweatshirt for this sweatshirt. The sweatshirt you trade in goes to the people of Haiti. Isn't that neat? I guess it's part of Traditions Week on campus. I don't even know what that is, but I got to help Haiti and get neat hoodie out of it!

February Twenty-Eighth

I started teaching Yoga two Sundays a month at Chris's work in Brigham City. It's really cool to teach Yoga to at-risk teenage boys. We had a lot of fun today. I love my job.

Well, there you have it. Don't you feel better now that you are up to date? I know I do.

P.S. Did you notice I gave my blog a makeover? I dig it.

Winter Blues

2010-02-23T23:38:00.001-07:00

Well kids,

It's that time again. It's the end of February and springtime seems to be eons away. The winter sunshine seems hopeful, until you walk outside and feel the sting of a cold breeze.

This time of year lends itself to the lazier days of Randi Martin. For whatever reason, I am quite unmotivated. You may have noticed that there hasn't been a Project 365 post in a while. Don't worry, it's coming. Whenever I get around to it. I hate this feeling because my mind is constantly racing with things I need to do right now and things I need to do in the near future, but my body just lays there on the couch getting caught up on The Bachelor.

It doesn't help that I am taking 18 credits of upper division classes. Lesson learned on how much school I can handle each semester.

My house is a mess. I finally went grocery shopping yesterday but then ate out again for dinner tonight.

It's almost midnight and my body is begging me to do some night time Yoga and go to sleep, but I feel guilty for sleeping when I have so much to do.

I'm not even sure why I am blogging about my winter woes. Perhaps it's because I think if I vent about it, the funk I'm in might go away faster. Or maybe you are also experiencing the downfalls that the end of February brings, and reading this might make you feel like you are not alone. Or maybe it's because I am sick of just having Project 365 posts.

Chris is not as prone to being as moody as I am (or moody at all), but he is also feelin' it. We both skipped school today to be lame. It was fun, I guess. We deserve a break sometimes. It was nice cuddling on the couch together, eating a big bowl of pasta, and watching Arrested Development.

The good news is that I have been in this funk before, and I will probably be in it again this time next year, but that's ok. If any of you knew me back in my "glory days," you know that I was in a funk for years at a time, so this isn't so bad. It's just annoying. This too shall pass.

I have just decided to declare weekly goals that will aid in my seasonal recovery.

This week's goals:

*Don't skip anymore class
*Do yoga everyday (even if it's just 10 minutes)
*Clean and de-junk just one room of the house...let's say the kitchen.

Ok. I feel good about that.

Thanks for listening. Maybe, if I feel like it, I will return and report on my goals for the rest of the week.

And good luck to you all as Springtime creeps ever so slowly into our lives.

Project 365

2010-02-09T18:41:00.000-07:00

Another week another dollar... or something. So, I realize that this may be boring for you guys. I had the intention of doing this project thinking that my life would be a lot more interesting to share. Ah well. Get used to it because we got a whole year of this, baby!

February First

For date night this week we made another delicious recipe from The Moosewood Cookbook. I bring you Southwest Black Bean Burgers. We topped them fresh spinach and mango salsa. It was pretty much the best thing ever.

February Second

I am not ashamed to admit that I am a huge LOST fan. It started last semester when I watched all five seasons in a month and a half. It was epic. This day was the season premiere of the final season! Chris and I made these amazing "healthy" cupcakes and decorated them to the best of our ability. We gathered with some friends and they provided "Dharma Beer." Don't worry. It's just Apple Beer in Dharma Beer clothing.

February Third

Arrested Development must be one of the best show ever made. Ever. Chris had never seen the second and third season *gasp* so we decided to just watch them all. We just started season two. So. Good.

February Fourth

I love my little sister-in-law more than life itself. We went to the oh so fabulous Spoon Me for some good eatin'. I know I have bashed Spoon Me in the past, but it has grown on me.

February Fifth
Meet Todd. He is our whale. He usually hangs over our front door protecting us, but as of late he had joined us on our bookcase. Everyone deserves a change of scenery every once in a while.

February Sixth
I recently started teaching a beginner yoga class at the Whittier Center right across the street from my house on Saturday mornings. I absolutely love it. My students are really great and we just have a good time. It's also a great old building to do Yoga in.

February Seventh
Extreme close up! Can you tell what it is? I will give you a hint. My husband named it Madeline, it is one of the coolest things on the block, and it rhymes with lypewriter. I really hope these things make a comeback, but for now it will serve as a cool decoration.

Welp, that is all for now! Until next week!

Project 365

2010-02-01T22:10:00.000-07:00

Yay! I am staying on track. Now maybe I will move on to making posts that aren't just Project 365. Here is the latest.

January Twenty-Fifth

We switched our date night to Mondays and this time we made pasta and watched a movie. At one point during the night Chris pulled out this beautiful ring to give to me. I guess he planted it there earlier. He is such a romantic.

January Twenty-Sixth

We study together in the same room quite frequently. Chris was doing some heavy-duty reading and the next time he looked over at me I noticed that he had spun his mustache into quite the do. Good work, honey.

January Twenty-Seventh

Playing a lot of Plants vs. Zombies has reminded me to tend to my own, real plants. I love these little guys and I am thrilled that they are still alive. I created them in my Horticulture class semester and they are still with me!

January Twenty-Eighth

And some more of the loads and loads of reading I get to do for school this semester. These books are for my Medical Anthropology class, which is actually an awesome class. I have spent much time with these books this week.

January Twenty-Ninth
My brother-in-law, Devin, has been training hard for months for this very day. I am so proud of him that all of his hard work paid off at a, wait for it, Scrabble Tournament! At the last minute he needed an extra teammate and so Chris got to compete. Well, kind of. He got to be the team score keeper. But still, it was fun. I came, took some pics, ate the food, and read my books. Yay Scrabble! Don't knock it. Scrabble is a great game.

January Thirtieth

Our friends Adam and Chelsea have the best dog in the world. His name his Chaco and I love him as if he were my own. Chris and Chaco like to have staring contests. It's adorable, really.

January Thirty-First

We met Adam and Chelsea about a year ago. We fell in love and spent pretty much every day last January having a January party. On this last day of January we had a little shin dig to celebrate our one year anniversary. We have a slew of new and old friends over, including my good friend Jeff Cardon, who came up from Salt Lake. One of the items of entertainment was this sticky Lizard thing. Adam sat under it, pretty much like this, for a half hour waiting for it to come down. Sometimes we would forget we stuck it up there and it would fall down and scare everyone. Good times. I love my friends.

Well, there you have it. Until next time, stay in school and don't do drugs. H.A.G.S.

Project 365: Catch Up

2010-01-26T14:08:00.000-07:00

So... it turns out this is harder than I thought. Well, it's not hard, I just keep forgetting and not having time to post. So, sorry this will be a little longer than usual but let me just get up to date.

January Eighth

Our good friend, Seth Hanks, came to town with his band, The Archer's Apple. They played a grand ol' show and it was so good to see him.

January Ninth

I am in love. This is my new favorite ice cream. I try to stay away from dairy products, but man. This is heaven in ice cream form.

January Tenth

Christmas is officially over. This isn't a good picture but we finally dropped our tree off to go to the Christmas Tree lot in the sky. Fare thee well,old friend.

January Eleventh

Today was our two year anniversary of being wed! It was also the first day of the new semester, so we decided to keep it simple. We went to Borders and picked out an amazing vegetarian cookbook called The Moosewood Cookbook. So, we went home, made some dinner (two-rice stuffed squash and roasted pecan brussel sprouts), watched a chick flick, and had a wonderful evening together. I love Chris so much. I can't believe I ended up with a guy like him.

January Twelfth

So, Chris and I have a tendency to get hooked on certain games. One of the latest is Doodle Jump. You can get it for your itouch. I love it and this is my highest score ever! I have not gotten remotely close since. It isn't as high as Chris, but it will do. I know I'm a nerd.

January Thirteenth

To try and aid in getting rid of the extra holiday fluff we had acquired over the holidays, we decided to go on a three day apple juice cleanse. We ate and juiced a buttload of apples. Surprisingly, it was a very positive experience and I still like apples.

January Fourteenth

Logan may have crappy, polluted winters,
but sometimes it is absolutely gorgeous. I love it when the fog freezes around the trees and everything turns into an icicle.

January Fifteenth

Another icicle picture. I love it.

January Sixteenth

Right before I got married, I got to live with the best roommates I've ever had. Chris and I met up with two of them, Kristin and Andrea, and their boys at Typhoon at the Gateway. I miss them greatly and it was so good to see them. Never a dull moment with those two.

January Seventeenth

For the long weekend, we went and chilled in Springville with the fam. Sunday was spent playing another game we are addicted to. Plants vs. Zombies. It's how we de-stress ok?

January Eighteenth

We went out to eat and to a movie with Chris's family on MLK day. We ate at Ginger's Cafe, which happens to be one of my favorite places on earth and where Chris and I went on our first

date. It's on Main Street in Springville. Check it out.

January Nineteenth

Now, I'm not gluten intolerant, but this pizza crust is wonderful. We make it at least once a week with our homemade pizza sauce and fresh vegetables. I love it.

January Twentieth

I successfully beat Plants vs. Zombies! And when you beat the game they play a music video where a sunflower sings and all the zombies dance. It's pretty great.

January Twenty-first

Thursday was our date night. We went to eat at the delicious Beehive Grill and then went to Avatar in 3D. It rocked my socks. And we looked pretty fine in our 3D glasses, I might add.

January Twenty-second

I get to read this entire bad-boy for one of my literature classes. I'm quite the procrastinator, so I usually end up having marathon reads. I spent most of the weekend with this book.

January Twenty-Third

I also had to read this entire book by Monday for my Non-fiction writing class. Oh, the good times this semester is already bringing!

January Twenty-Fourth

I am finally getting around to growing wheatgrass! I have had the supplies for a few months now, but finally I got myself a nice patch of grass. And today I put some into my green smoothie. I like wheatgrass because it is good for me, but also, I miss seeing green this time of year. It's amazing how much this little tray of grass can boost my winter blues.

And there you have it. I decided that posting on Sundays will be a lot more convenient that posting on Fridays, so stay tuned! Hopefully I will never have to do this long of a post again.

Project 365: Round one

2010-01-08T17:52:00.000-07:00

So, I'm doing it.

My good friend, Andrea, gave me the idea with her entertaining blog and many moons ago I decided I was going to do it when the New Year came. So, it's the New Year.

What does this mean for you, my faithful readers? Well, for 365 days, I will attempt

to take at least one picture a day and blog about it once a week. So, let's say every Friday-ish, expect to get a recap of the week before.

Why I am doing such a thing? I don't know. I think it will be fun. Some of my many New Years Resolutions are to just be purely myself more publicly (I know that is a weird resolution but it makes sense to me) and to blog more and make it more entertaining for myself and those that read. So, this is a great way to kills two birds, if you will. Also, I got a new digital camera for Christmas! Hazzah!

So get ready for RAW, UNEDITED, ALL RANDI, ALL THE TIME!!!!! Just like you always wanted...

January First

I was lucky enough to ring in the New Year with Tor-kul-na. A beloved creature from the nerdiest game I have experienced in real life. Heroscape. It's like a mix of Risk and Dungeons

and Dragons. It also takes at least an hour to just set up! No, I have not played it. No, I will not play it. But, but my husband has and did THREE times on New Years Day with his siblings. Happy New Year.

January Second

I have a history of being very connected to the cars I drive. From the Lobster Superstar to Glory Moses, I have decorated my car with the same nicknacks and buttons to really make it my own. A week before I got married, Chris and I both crashed Glory Moses (at

separate times and within a few hours of each other) that eventually lead to his death. So we started our marriage with a black, 1999 VW Jetta named Olga. She's a great car and has been really good to us, but for some reason, I never decorated her like she was my own. Well, two years later, after a deep clean and an oil change, I decided it was time. Buddha and lawn gnome are now proudly displayed, along with some buttons up on the roof and beads and hemp necklaces around the rearview mirror.

January Third

My good friend from Fargo, Jenny, and her boyfriend came out to Utah to experience the greatest snow on earth. Chris has a season pass to Powder Mountain for work, so we went there. It was my first run of the season, so there were some falls and some swears, but it was a grand time for all. Luckily, we got to take advantage of the hot tub at Jenny and Dave's hotel afterward.

January Fourth

Attention all ladies. For all of those that suffer from lady-time cramps, meet your new best friend. No, it's not what you think it is. It's better. And legal. It's Red Raspberry leaf tea. I have been taking an online herbology course and this is where I learned of this magical plant. I had some of this tea this week and it has worked wonders! I encourage all to partake. It is also good for pregnant women and aids in all female reproductive issues.

January Fifth

So, I couldn't figure out how to flip this around. Whateves. Behold the newest member of the Martin Family. I have had the same backpacking backpack for a real long time. Although I did love my Gregory Palisade, I couldn't help but lust over the new Osprey packs. And thanks to our addiction to checking SteepandCheap.com, I was able to get one for quite the discount. I could not resist. Too bad it's so cold out. I can't wait to use this bad boy in the out of doors.

January Sixth

Our oven has been broken since the end of September. Three of the burners worked, so we have been able to manage, but we haven't been able to bake anything for months. This saddens me, what with it being cookie baking season and all. But finally, our landlord delivered a newish oven. Chris had a hard time parting with our retro green oven. It really added character to our kitchen and matched our lovely green sink. Although it was hard for him to say goodbye, he handled it like a champ.

January Seventh
Here is one of my homemade business cards/punch card for my little massage business. I was a little afraid of venturing off on my own with massage but it has been going really well. I gave three massages this day and two of them rescheduled! Good times for all!

So there you have it. My first week of Project 365. I hoped you enjoyed it. I did. And next week, more merriment shall ensue. Until then, good day and good night.

Well, here it is.

2010-01-04T11:23:00.000-07:00

Since the beginning of July, I have been pondering and praying on if I would ever really make this post. I have debated over clever titles and themes to express what I am about to write, but I have just decided to just write and see what comes out. Hopefully, it won't be too long and that boring.

A little disclaimer: If you are not of the Mormon faith, or not that familiar with Mormons, a lot of things that I mention will not make any sense. Also, this post might not even be that big of a deal to you. And to all readers, if you get bored just scan down to "In conclusion."

For those of you that know me well, you know that I love people. I love my friends and family more than anything. I love meeting people, making connections, staying in contact, talking for hours, and making silly random phone calls texts just to say hi. And I don't know if you have noticed, but you probably haven't heard from me in a while. If you have, it has only been quite recently and here is why.

I like to say that I am on a "Spiritual Journey." Now, you might say in response, "So what? Everyone is on one. Good for you." Well, with my experience in the Mormon faith, Spiritual Journeys are encouraged, but only if it fits in with the Mormon way of life and you end up in the Mormon faith. I'm not saying this is true, but I'm just saying that this is my experience. So, when I realized that my little journey would take me outside of the Mormon church, I kind of freaked out.

For a bagillion reasons, I was finding myself not spiritually fulfilled in the LDS faith. It wasn't making me happy, like it did in the past. And after guilting myself into reasons that weren't true as to why I was unhappy, I decided to finally get real with myself and with God. This was not easy. This was not fun. But, it is what I deserved to do. And I knew that if I didn't do it, I would mentally and emotionally go back to a place that I worked so hard to get out of. Luckily, I have an amazing husband that helped me create a space of love for me to do this, because I was not getting it from my bishop, even though I gave him a chance to help me.

The next series of event are some of the most sacred conversations I have ever had with God. Because of that, I will not share them here, but what I want you to know is that they happened. Some people reading this may not believe in God, or may not be able to fathom that God would lead me to these actions, but it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is what is real for me.
*And a little side note, the only thing that matters is what is real for you. Just because I receive one answer doesn't mean you will receive the same answer. So, please don't let my experience offend your beliefs or discredit things you believe to be or not to be true.

After I "got real" as to what was going on and what I felt moved to do, I felt so much peace and unconditional love inside. A feeling I don't ever remember feeling this strongly. But after I left the comforts of my own home, I realized I had to deal with everyone else. I got a huge pit in my stomach when I thought about what my friends and family would think. How would they ever understand my actions? What if this or that person knew? They would be so disappointed. Would they still love me? Would they still want me around their kids? Can they tell by what I'm wearing that I'm not active anymore? Would they wish I had never married into their family?

I know some of you may laugh at my worries, but they were so real. So, I did the only thing I could do at the time, and that was to isolate myself. Until I could gain more confidence in myself and not care so much what people thought of me, I just had to keep to myself. That is why I have been distant. I was judging all of you, before you had a chance to judge me. And, I'm deeply sorry for that. But I needed to love myself before I could let anyone else love me.

So that is really what I have been working on the most these past few months and I am happy to report that I am seriously getting there. And this blog post is a big part of that process for me. Some of you may think that this post isn't necessary. This is all personal and no one needs to know about it. Well, I am here to say, that I do need to do this. I just want it all to be out there partly so I can stop worrying about what so and so will think if they ever knew, and partly because I feel that people shouldn't feel ashamed to talk about it. In the culture that I live in, it is so hard to talk about doubts and even harder to act on those doubts. It shouldn't be that way. So, this is my way of talking about it and making it ok. I love you and I miss you. I miss being my social self and I am done with being ashamed of who I am and what I am going through.

In conclusion:

I love the Mormon church. I love that I was raised Mormon, that I served a mission, and that I got married in the Temple. I still consider those things to be sacred events in my life and I am thankful that they happened. I am not angry or bitter or anything like that. I still like being apart of events that happen in the Mormon world (well, the ones I can be apart of), so please don't feel like you can't be yourself around me. I won't be offended or mad if you talk about Mormon things around me.

Where I am at now is that still don't know how I feel about a lot of things. And to me, that is really exciting. I will never close the door to the church, but for now, it is not where I need to be. There is still more for me to learn from being on the "outside," and when it is time for me to be somewhere else, I know that I will be led there. But in the mean time, I am having a great time searching and finding things that really work for me and finding things that don't. And I really am happier and at more at peace than I have been in a really long time.

Some of you may be freaking out and racking your brain as to how you can help me. Well, let me help you help me. Just love me. Don't treat me any different than you did before. Feel free to pray for me, but I ask that you pray for me to find what works for me, not what works for you. Please, don't preach to me. I love hearing what you believe if it comes up, but preaching will have a negative effect. And please, please don't worry and don't be sad. I know that some of you reading this feel those two things and it kills me inside that something that is making me happier and healthier is making someone else worried and sad. And if you choose to feel that, I guess I can't stop you, but I just ask that you trust me.

And where is Chris is all of this? Well, his story is his and if you are curious about the details, just ask him. But, I will say that he has joined me on the Spiritual Journey train, and is has been really great for us.

I am afraid this is getting too long, so if you have any questions or anything, don't be afraid to ask. If you can't tell, I'm open to talking about it. Oh, and if you know of someone that doesn't read this blog who would like to be filled in on the spiritual life of Randi, then please share it with them.

A big thank you to those who I have already talked to about this. You have no idea how much your love and support has helped me.

On a lighter note, this blog shall continue as normal. Stay tuned for some holiday adventure recaps and some new and exciting goals for 2010!

Giving Thanks 09

2009-12-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

I am going to get a Christmas Tree today, so this is my last chance to justify writing about Thanksgiving.

And what a grand Thanksgiving it was!

I would say that the biggest thing I am thankful for over the Holidays is my family. I have an incredible immediate family, but I also got to marry into one of the best families around. They have always welcomed me in with open arms and I'm so glad that they are as weird as I am. I have so much fun with them. And this Thanksgiving did not disappoint.

For the second year in a row we have ventured out to the wonderful and magical Lincoln, Nebraska! Chris's brother, Dan, and his wife, Courtney live there.

Oh, and Rudy is there, too. Sorry guys, but he is the real reason I agree to drive to Nebraska.

Devin, Katie, Jeff, Chris, and I spent four days in Nebraska and roughly 25 hours in a car. Times were had. Here are some highlights.

Thanksgiving dinner was a hit, once again. Not bad for not having parents around. I made the Olsen family Wild Rice Stuffing and everything else went really well. I think we ate a total of 72 rolls over the course of the weekend.

Thanksgiving Day isn't complete for Devin and Chris unless they beat Mario Brothers 3 from start to finish, without warping. Here is Devin in action.

A new Nebraska tradition is goin' shootin' the day after Turkey Day. We shoot clay pigeons, so don't worry. I am proud to say that I shot three this year, which is a record for me.

We also ventured to The Omaha Zoo. Enjoyment ensued.

A lost of video games were played over the course for four days. Towards the end, the girls got a little bored, so Katie, Courtney, and I got pedi's while the boys played Smash.

It definitely was another successful trip to Nebraska. Hopefully, there will be more. And thank you Dan and Courtney for having us!

Hallowed Ween

2009-11-09T12:55:00.000-07:00

For most girls, Halloween is a time to dress up, well, skanky. Any character, occupation, or object magically becomes skanky. Skanky pirate, skanky nurse, skanky bumble bee, you name it. Halloween is the perfect opportunity to show off some of that skin that might otherwise be socially unacceptable, especially in Utah.

I, on the other hand, have always had a different agenda. The past few years I have been far from skanky.

Notice the less than flattering full body jumpsuit I sported for my April O'Neil costume one year.

And then there was the ever so attractive Red Dwarf and Black Hole combo.

But, none can beat this year's legendary duo. I give you Wayne and Garth.

I have been wanting to be Wayne and Garth with someone since the beginning of time, so as nasty as I am as a blonde, it was worth it.

We got to sport this ensemble twice this year. The first time was at the first annual Squash Bash put on by our friends Adam and Chelsea. What is a Squash Bash, you ask? Well, it's hard to describe, but lets just say that there is a lot of singin and dancin and squash bashin. Chris and I did karaoke to Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen. An obvious choice if you are familiar with Wayne's World.

The next night, which was Halloween, was spent at USU's production of Sweeney Todd, which was incredible. Some of my friends were in it, and it was top notch. Good work, friends.

But my favorite part of the Halloween season is the infamous Pumpkin Blow. I posted about it last year, as some of you may recall. It happens every year on the Saturday after Halloween. This is our third year partaking in this little America splendor. Behold.

80 sticks of dynamite were used this year. Notice how it is nicely tucked away in the pile of pumpkins.

Before...

After.

I tried uploading a video of the festivities but blogger won't let me. Well just know that the explosion has never been this big before. It was literally raining pumpkins. One even whacked me in the bum; a war wound that was gladly earned.

So maybe Halloween isn't my most attractive holiday, but I have a good time. Perhaps next year will bring out a more skanky Randi, but for now I will stick to nappy fun Randi and blowing things up.

Makeover Summer results

2009-11-02T12:36:00.000-07:00

For those faithful What the Crap readers, you may recall a blog written at the beginning of the summer called Makeover Summer. And for those that didn't read it or need a refresher, you can check it out HERE.

In this blog, I went off about some of the lofty goals I had set for the summer. Here is a report.

*Getting my body in gear: Well, I must say that this one was a success. As you may have gathered from my previous post, I got way into Yoga this summer. It is a great way to trick your body into good shape because it is so enjoyable to do and so good for the soul. I don't have "the hottest body this side of the Mississippi" like I had hoped, but I did lose about eight pounds and I look a wee bit more toned.

*Eating habits: this one was, also, a success in my eyes. I fell in love with fruits and veggies and the Farmers Market. I still eat my fair share of sweets and not-so-good things but all in moderation, my friends. Every June Chris and I are vegetarians. Just for kicks. This June Chris bailed on our little tradition but I took it on with open arms and am still going strong. I even subscribed to Vegetarian Times! I just love how much better my body feels when I don't eat meat. And vegetarian dishes tend to be healthier in general. But, I will say, even though I "wax vegetarian" I am not a full vegetarian. I still eat meat if someone cooks it for me or I just feel like it. I don't really believe in totally cutting things out of your diet (unless you have to for certain health conditions) because it messes with your head. It takes away your power to choose. Like with sweets, for example. The moment I say no more sugar, is the moment I crave it like no one's business. Again, its all in moderation. Read the book Intuitive Eating. It changed my life and my relationship with food.

*My house: A mini success. For a while there, I was getting sick of my apartment. It took going house hunting to make me fall in love with it again. There are a lot of hell holes out there and I am thankful for where I live and not having to worry about so much stuff. I did a lot of fun projects like taking down a gaudy wallpaper border and painting the wall, got some new bedding, rearranged a bit, took a big box of stuff to the DI, got new plates, painted some old frames some really cool colors and got some new art work. Even though there is still some clutter in the house, it looks a lot better and I love to be in every room, which was the goal. A huge thanks goes out to the lovely and talented Mr. Jeff Cardon. He came up one weekend and helped me re-d0 a bunch of stuff. And I got one of his paintings, which is amazing. Seriously, if any one out there needs any help with anything, he is your man.

*Wardrobe: mmmm not so much. I kind of dropped the ball on this one. I did buy a few new things and got rid of some old things but nothing to write home about. This goal is kind of a costly one. But I have been allowing myself to be more girly in what I wear. I guess I did buy a buttload of cool jewelry at the Farmer's Market. So, more of an accessories makeover than a wardrobe makeover.

*And finally, mini goals: yes and no. Yes, I did play two shows since that post. No, I did not write new music or write for fun. No, I did not decrease my Facebook time. No, I did not pay off my credit card, but I did make a good dent in it. No, I did not garden. And no, I did not build up my massage clientel. It was quite a slow summer at the Spa I work at and it's been quite a slow Fall. And so, I quit there and started working from home again, which is really exciting and I am already busier at home than I was at the spa! Good times. I did read a lot of books and I take more time to pamper myself. That was a huge one for me. I have really taken the time to fall in love with myself and get to know myself again. I know that sounds kind of cheesy, but it has been easy for me to get lost in being married and revolving my life around someone else. Over these past few months I have really made an effort to do things for me and learn to balance that with being married. And that whole process is another post entirely that maybe I will have the courage to write someday. The journey I have taken (and am still on) to get to this healthy balance isn't really one a lot of people in my life would be a fan of, but it's been really great. And I have an awesome husband.

So, there you have it. All in all, I would say Makeover Summer was a hit. I H.A.G.S. (had a great summer. Do you remember writing that in yearbooks?)
It was the perfect theme for my summer, I think. Who knows, it might even be next summer's theme. Wouldn't that be crazy? And if you didn't do it this summer, do it next summer, or next month, or next week. You never know what will happen, but I promise it is worth it.

Summa Time

2009-10-13T22:58:00.000-06:00

Hey friends.

Yes, it has been a while since I have posted and posted something neat. So much happens in life that I just can't keep up the postings.

Life is good and busy. Before I fill you in on the here and now, here are some things that happened that were fun.

In July Chris and I got to run the Green River with our friends, Adam and Chelsea, and their family. We did a section called Ladore. It was 18 miles and it took us around 5 days. It was heaven. No phones, no internet, I didn't even wear a watch. If only real life could be like this.

Here are some hot pics. (These come up kind of small, but you can click on it to make it bigger)

Another thing that happened this summer was that I got to go to Costa Rica for two weeks. I went there to fulfill a goal I have had for a while of being a certified Yoga instructor. After many hours on the internet and many phone calls, I came across this 2 week intensive Yoga Teacher Training certification in Costa Rica. It was the best option for me time wise and money wise and it just felt like something I was meant to be apart of. So, from August 14th-30th I was livin it up in the jungle. Eat, sleep, and yoga was my life and I loved it. I met incredible people and ate the most amazing food. I not only did I learn so much about Yoga, I learned so much about myself. I really miss it.

Here are some hot pics from Costa Rica.

I was really blessed to have such an awesome summer. I left out a few other grand trips to Moab, Fargo, and Bozeman. Not much to report on those. They were just really fun.

I got back from Costa Rica a week after school started and was instantly bombarded with the pressures of getting caught up in my classes and getting back to work.

I am liking my 16 credits, working part time at a spa, and teaching yoga. Oh, I started teaching a beginner yoga class at a chiropractor's office once a week. I love it. I love yoga. Everyone should do it. It will change your life.

Well, thats all for now. Stay tuned for updates on how my "Makeover Summer" went and other current events!

I love you.

09.09.09

2009-09-09T23:14:00.000-06:00

Happy 9.9.9 everyone!

And to celebrate, this is what I saw at 9 o'clock pm with 9 of my friends.

It was legendary.

Props for my girl

2009-08-11T10:23:00.000-06:00

My loverly friend Lynette is giving away this amazing bag on her blog. I do own one of her bags already and I love it. It's all unique and vintage and it makes me feel cool. Check it out on her blog here:

http://ladydanburrysews.blogspot.com/

Peace.

A little ditty...

2009-08-05T00:24:00.000-06:00

Yes, it has been about a month since I have posted. I have gotten so behind on posting the exciting events of summer that I get overwhelmed when I think about posting. I do intend of posting some grand highlights of my life soon, but in the meantime I shall entertain you with another little ditty.

I just finished an online class I was doing this summer and here is a piece I wrote for it. Don't worry, it's not even close to being as long as the last piece I posted.

Enjoy.

The True Tree Hugger

I always thought Sister Nelson was a bit crazy. Her hair was always in a tight bun at the top of her head, revealing her discerning eyes. The way she dressed herself in long skirts and shirts the color of pale earth tones were not the least bit flattering on her figure that proved she had a big family. The stern way in which she taught my Sunday school class of preteens seemed to encourage us to mock her afterwards.
Most of Sister Nelson’s lessons went in one ear and out the other, except for one.
“We all have Spirits, my little brothers and sisters,” she spatters as she motions to everyone in the small Sunday school room lit only by an open window. “And even though someday we will all die, our Spirits will live on!”
Internally, I roll my eyes as I assume I had heard this lesson before.
“And not only do we humans have Spirits, but everything has a Spirit. I have a Spirit. You have a spirit. Birds have spirits. Cats have spirits! Even...um…this table has a spirit!”
“A table? How can a table have a spirit?” a fellow class member asks as we all whisper and giggle.
“ Well, look at the table. What is it made out of? Wood! Wood comes from trees and trees definitely have spirits.”
…

Logan Canyon had never felt so refreshing as it did one day this past winter. Logan City had been suffering from a polluted overcast season that happens in the winter months. I had forgotten how much I had missed the sunshine and fresh air as my husband and I were snowshoeing across a field covered with glistening powder. The crisp air that brushed across my nose with each crunching step reminded me of how excited I was to be alive.
I was in the zone. Having a husband who is about a foot taller than me forces my legs to move twice their natural pace. Determined to keep up on this excursion, I focused on my pace more than the breathtaking scenery around me. With my determination unknown to my husband, he got caught up with our friends we were with, leaving me alone.
Eventually, I stop to rest. As I lift my head to look around, I become overwhelmed. I notice that I stopped in the middle of the most beautiful patch of white birch trees I have even seen. The setting sun peeks in between the trees creating a golden aura around each trunk. For a moment I feel frozen in time. It’s like there is a force coming from the trees keeping me locked in place so we can exchange a moment. My heart starts to drown in unconditional love being exchanged between us.
Trees definitely have spirits echoes in my mind.
…

Today, at the Gardener’s Market, I bought a pendant made out of a gourd with the dark outline of a tree and its branches carved into it. When I passed it in small booth owned by a woman in a long flowing skirt and braided hair, I knew I had to buy it. I resisted the purchase until the marked was coming to a close and I chased down the flowing skirt merchant as she was leaving. Now, I wear it around my neck.
Starting at it, I start to contemplate my love for trees. My mind wanders back to my childhood and almost every memory is associated with a tree. Like the time I climbed higher than any boy in my neighborhood. Or the time I ran away from home and hid in a tree until I got hungry and went back home. And there were the many times I pretended the tree in my backyard was Grandmother Willow from the movie Pocahontas. I would often go to it for guidance in my, oh, so important childhood decisions.
I look around my apartment and notice the artwork and décor of my home consists largely of different depictions of trees. My photo albums of my adventures all over the world each feature specific trees that stuck out to me. What is with trees and me? Perhaps, it is their quiet dignity. Or how every part of them is there to serve. How their leaves provide oxygen to breath, their sap is used to eat, their wood provides building materials. Even the way they encompass the earth creates shade on a hot summer day and adds beauty to any landscape. They are the perfect example of humility and selflessness.
Eventually my thoughts take me back to Sister Nelson. Maybe she wasn’t so crazy after all. Maybe she is wiser than I ever gave her credit for. Or maybe, I am just as crazy as she is. Whatever the case, I know I am thankful for those selfless giants. Somehow they show me that everything is connected to each other, that there is something bigger than myself looking after me, and that no matter what happens, it is all going to be ok.

2009-07-04T14:04:00.000-06:00

Happy 4th, my fine feathered friends!

And to celebrate this day I bring you Devin Felix. The best brother-in-law anyone could have ever dreamed.

(He is also the lead singer and founding member of the hot ska band, Viewers Like You)

Here is a video of Devin and friends from the 4th of July two years ago. Enjoy.

Small and Simple Things

2009-06-09T11:31:00.000-06:00

I love Chris. In case you didn't know.
The Sunday before he left on a work trip for four days, he planned a picnic in the park. We had a nice little lunch that was followed by a heavenly hammock lay while listening to Blind Pilot. It was sunny, but not too hot, as a rain storm teased us in the distance.
It was perfect.
Here are some dorky shots.

This past weekend Chris was asked to play with the band he originally started, Viewers Like You, at a wedding. It was a grand reunion and Chris preformed swimmingly.

And now, your Moment of Zen provided by the wedding of Levi and Christine.
(I want to be like this lady when I grow up)

In case you haven't heard...

2009-05-31T23:02:00.000-06:00

.... I'm pretty much famous.

Yes. This is me with Donny Osmond. I have already posted this photo on facebook and showed you the picture on my camera if I have seen you recently, but I got to milk this for all it's worth.

When Craig Jessop resigned as the conductor of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir a little while ago, he came to be the head of the Music and Theater departments as Utah State. Due to the recent budget cuts and all that, Craig worked his magic and got Donny Osmond to come put on a benefit show for the Arts this past Memorial Day. There was a big dinner with Donny for 250 bucks a plate that was followed by the concert. I was not that big of a Donny fan, like at all, but my brother-in-law, Devin, was convering the events for The Herald Journal and had an extra ticket. I thought it sounded like fun, so I gussied up and got to be Devin's date.

At dinner we sat at a table with Craig's daughter and close friends. It was quote enjoyable. Donny's assistant told us that she didn't know if Donny would meet with us because he had said no to every other publication for an interview. When she got back from asking him she told us to follow him out after dinner for a quick word in the hotel lobby. We did what we were told after dinner and somehow a few quick words turned into a full on interview and meeting in the hotel lobby turned into a short walk, elevator ride, and chillin in his hotel room. At first we went to the room of Donny's band but it didn't work out due to the fact the when we opened the door they were in their underwear. So, to Donny's room we went! Just Devin, Donny and his assistant, and me. It was very plesant. Donny was so kind and charming. I can see how he woos the ladies.

We said our goodbyes and off we were to the concert. And I must say, I was very impressed with the show. He still got it. He was singing and dancing like you wouldn't believe for a three time grandpa. And the two front rows were filled with screaming middle aged moms. It was halarious and he was so fun with them. It made me want to see his show in Vegas.

I feel like such a nerd but I am star struck. He really charmed me, I must admit. Chris just laughs at me because like a week ago I could have cared less about him. Ah, well.

Until we meet again, Donny....

The Yoga Mind

2009-05-20T10:00:00.000-06:00

Alright friends. Here is what I have been slaving away at for a week and a half. I recently took a week long non-fiction writing workshop that counts for 3 credits. I loved it! And this was my final product that I handed it at 9am this morning. Its kinda long for a blog post but if you wouldn't mind checking out and letting me know what you think, that would be grand. The spacing is kinda weird because I just copied and pasted it. I am rambling now because I am kind of nervous to post this, but ah well!

Ok. Enjoy.

“What are we doing here?” I asked Chris. We had only been married 6 months and already were on the other side of the world, going on a late honeymoon to pursue an obsession I have had for seven years of Hobbits and The Misty Mountains.

For the first month of our trip we were able to dodge the rainstorms of a New Zealand winter, but right now, we were not so lucky. We sat on a log outside of the local thermal lodge, drenched from the early afternoon rain. The town of Rotorua, a geothermal wonderland, had a constant sulfuric waft that tickled my pores as a reminder of being far from home. Hot pots hissed in the background as its steam haunted the air. We had been there for about two hours. No car. No phone. Just our life on our backs and each other’s company.

“I don’t know. Because we told him in the e-mail we would be,” my husband replied as he wiped the rain from his eyes. His tall stature caused his knees to be awkwardly at his chest as he hunched over the log. As the rain poured, his dirty blond hair appeared dirtier and his piercing blue eyes reminded me why I loved him.

“Should we try calling him again?” I asked Chris. “It’s your turn.”

We did have a cheap phone card and a telephone at a nursing home across the street. We took turns running across the street, schmoozing the receptionist, and leaving voicemails for Paul, our Yoga Master that by e-mail had confirmed he would pick us up at this spot to take us home with him. We got his contact information from a pamphlet while hitchhiking around the South Island. The plan was to work for him at his retreat in return for room, board, and yoga classes.

“Fine. But this is the last time.” Chris groaned as he bolted across the street.

Sitting there alone, I wondered what, in fact, I was doing there. I emailed to inform him that we were arriving a day later than expected due to the weather and the uncertainty of hitchhiking for transportation. His words of, “Yes, um, let’s see how we go with the discipline and the yoga mind,” in the emailed response kept echoing through my mind. The phrase confused me and I wasn’t sure exactly what he meant but I felt this disappointed energy surge through the computer screen as I read it. It created this familiar urge to please him and prove to him that he can trust me.

It reminded me of many times in my past where I let someone down. It’s hard to think of one specifically because they all bleed together into a raging sea of disappointment. It’s like riding a wave. I paddle my way to the top only to crash down into the troubled waters below. But this time there would be no crash. I would stand up on my board and ease myself onto dry land.

“No luck,” Chris said as he came trudging back from the nursing home and plopped down next to me. “Let’s wait a little and give it one more try.”

Chris has an uncanny ability to understand me. When necessary, he can get himself into my world and take on my troubles as if they were his. And so we both sat there, determined ride this wave out.

After one more frantic attempt on the nursing home phone, I finally got a hold of Paul. A bit surprised and perhaps annoyed to hear from us, he instructed us to find the hospital and ask for a woman named Lynda. She lived with Paul and would take us home with her after her shift’s end. Finally, sweet Lynda would save us! As we dragged ourselves to the hospital, I imagined our savoir from the storm as Mother Earth in the form of a yogi. Her comely countenance embracing us as we sailed to our destined retreat in the serene New Zealand countryside.

“Are you Randi and Chris? Ok. Let’s go,” Lynda said as she wrapped herself in a rain jacket. Not only was there no warm embrace or sweet smile, but her eyes dodged us as she barely recognized our existence. Instantly intimidated by her short word answers and lack of people skills, we loaded our packs into her cramped Isuzu. As she hoisted her petite body into the car, I could tell her strength was one you wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of. Her short dark hair and dark eyes stared forward as we began our journey home, bouncing in the car as if driving through the choppy sea.

“So, do you like to travel?” I asked her, trying to make small talk as we puttered along.

“No. Travel is pointless. Why travel when you can meditate?” I couldn’t tell if she was annoyed at the thought of travel or if her native French accent, tainted with years of living in New Zealand, made her sound stern.

“How long have you been practicing Iyengar yoga?” Paul asked as he stared at his computer screen, tending to his emails, Lynda at his side with her hand on his shoulder as she peered over his shoulder.

“Um, well, we have an Iyengar yoga book at home we practice with sometimes,” I sheepishly replied. Chris and I felt isolated on the other side of the room, awkwardly trying to make ourselves at home.

“Wait, that’s it? So you have no experience with Iyengar?” He swiveled in his chair to give us a shocked glance.

“Well, just from the book I have.”

“So, no experience.”

“Well, that is some experience.”

“No, experience is maybe 2-3 years minimum. You have no experience. I bet you don’t even own yoga mats.”

I did own a yoga mat and had been practicing from books and DVDs on and off for over 2-3 years, so had Chris, but neither of us couldn’t muster the words to defend ourselves. He was right. We were wrong.

“Well, you’re here now and there is nothing we can do change that so I guess there is something for us to learn from each other,” Paul sighed, breaking the awkward silence, perhaps thinking that this might brighten the mood.

“Let’s get to work,” Paul exclaimed as he finally stood from the desk chair. As a smirk appeared on his face was when I first noticed his resemblance to James Taylor. I was hoping he would break out into “Fire and Rain” but instead moved us along by saying, “Since you guys have never experienced a real practice of yoga, this is where you should start.”

It turns out that Iyengar Yoga is a whole lot more than just looking at a book. It is the most intense yoga out there. It strictly focuses on breath and the body’s alignment with the use of props like bolsters, blocks, and straps. The instructor quickly corrects any misalignment or error. To become just a beginning instructor, you have to go in front of a board with a minimum of two years experience and pass a test. And then if that wasn’t enough, you are then supposed to forget about the position your body is in and lose yourself in some spiritual journey. So, maybe we didn’t have any experience.

We grabbed yoga mats, bolsters, blocks, and straps, and moved around his tattered old furniture to make room. We set up in the main room of Paul’s home in which he built with his own two hands. He claimed it was necessary for the inner work that needs to be done in a person. I wondered why we were cramming into the main room when a spacious studio space lay just a few feet away, towards the front of the house.

The main room contained a section for the kitchen with a cooking area, a cleaning area, and a space for a table and chairs. All of which flooded together, making it hard to tell where one ended and the other began. The countertop bar created for the eye a small separation into the next section of the main area. Moving the random pot or pan on the bar would reveal the tiny cockroaches hibernating within. Paul didn’t seem to mind them though, as they cohabitated in perfect harmony.

Looking from the kitchen to the left sat the desk. There sat the computer surrounded by a mess of letters and bills, misplaced DVD’s and old books that are destined to cure the soul. Later, I would find Lynda there sneaking in a chick flick while Paul was out of town for a class.

Straight ahead was the couch covered with blankets of odd patterns to cover up its age. Below the left arm of the couch sat a small iron fireplace and a basket of wood scraps from the yard. The couch faced a wall of shelves filled with books and books that would later consume my consciousness. Between the couch and the wall laid an open space that it often filled up with yoga mats and meditation pillows, but on the off times remained open and bare, exposing the nakedness of the trees. To the right was a glass sliding door that led to the deck that led to the acres of breathtaking New Zealand countryside. Later, Lynda would put on her child sized, purple gum boots, go out on to the deck with her rifle and giggle as she killed an innocent rabbit to bring in, boil, and feed to the chickens. Large windows interrupted the wooden walls, letting the natural light shine in and create a portal to the world outside. In the mornings, mist would creep in along the rows of fruit trees and tickle the toes of the rolling hills.

“Just practice a sequence from this book. Let’s see where you guys are at. I’ll help if you need it.”

A book landed at our feet as we finished setting up our props. Choosing a sequence similar to one we knew in a book from home, we start, not sure how we will hold up.

As I carefully lean forward and down into downward dog, I make sure my heels are firmly stuck to the floor, displaying the flexibility of my calves.

“Are your quads engaged? How about your wrists? Engage your wrists!” he calls from across the room. I glance over assuming he could read my thoughts as he stood on his hands and crossed his legs over his head.

Engage my wrists? My quads? How do I-? What are you-?

“All muscles are engaged in every pose. You have to constantly be checking in with yourself. Ok, now hold it longer…..longer….longer…”

Collapsing on the ground I search his eyes for further instruction. By this time he had made his way over to me.

“Try one on this page. Both of you. Grab chairs.”

He points out a pose where you put your weight on your upper back and neck as you flip your legs over your head and rest them on the chair behind you.

“You can do it, come on.” He recognized the baffled look on our faces.

As I start to awkwardly maneuver myself into the position on the page, Paul interjects.

“No, no, get there from just lying on your back. Use yourself to get your legs on that chair. No cheating.”

What are we doing here? I wondered as I lay flat on my back, not able on conceive the idea of my body moving like that.

“Just try.” Paul said as he walked back to his mat and stuck his leg behind in neck.

From the second I had contact with Paul, I felt like I was being tested. Every word I said was somehow being interpreted as a reflection of my life. Every move I made told him something about the workings of my soul. I had somehow challenged him in the game of life and I was losing. I resented him for how closely he watched me.

How he thought he knew me.

“But- I can’t- arrggghh!!” I grunted as my legs flailed in the air above me, kicking the air as if the ground would be there and propel me to the chair.

Chris and I exchanged the doubts we were having in ourselves and about the hole we dug ourselves in.

After 10 minutes of listening to us moan, Paul finally chimed, “Quit thinking. Just do it.”

Quit thinking...just…do…it!

And just like that my legs were on the chair as if his words grabbed my toes in an effortless pull.

“See. Now hold it. Longer…longer…longer….”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Chris and I were eager to earn our keep.

“Do you know how to prune trees?”

I didn’t even know what pruning meant, but Chris was up for the challenge.

“Yeah, I have done it once or twice.” Chris replied, pleased to be of service.

“Well, then, come with me. Randi, you can restock the woodpile. Just take the pile of wood outside and stack it in the pile in the bathroom.”

Stacking wood. Seemed easy enough.

“And it looks like it’s going to rain today, so if you don’t have work clothes you can borrow some. They’re in the dresser in your room.”

There was only one other bedroom in the house besides his. It was a spacious room in the corner of the house that was full of old mattresses and foam pads stacked on each other. This room was screaming commune living. There were two closets filled with worn out pillows and blankets for the taking. And, as promised, two dresser drawers were full of wholly t-shirts, and plain splattered scrubs. We grabbed the closest clothes to our size and our raincoats and we were off to work.

Paul chuckled at our blue gortex layers, protecting our bodies from the rain as if it would some how burn our skin. He didn’t believe in waterproof layers. Wool from New Zealand’s own Merino sheep was more than enough to do the job. I guess a country that has more sheep than people has got to have some pride in what they have to offer.

“Yeah, so, you get a little wet, but this wool absorbs the moisture and it keeps you real warm,” was his reasoning.

There was a little nook under the window of the bathroom for wood storage. My job was to take piles of chopped wood under the plastic covering in the yard and move it into the nook. I lost my self in the work. The rhythm of moving from one pile to the other caused a hypnotic trance in the constant mist of Rotorua. Being proud of my progress, I removed the plastic covering from descending pile to expose the pieces cowering from the showers.

The wood nook was complete. Its supply carefully stacked as a result of a seasoned Tetris player. Ready to move on, I approach Paul for my next task like I had moved to the next level of a game.

"Good on ya. You can go help Chris pick of the branches in the yard." Good on ya was a phrase we adopted while in New Zealand. It represented a job well done and a casual congratulations; a pat on the head for a good girl.

"Ok, great!" I moved on to help Chris with the fruit trees with a new confidence that this week was going to work out after all.

The morning carries on. I lose myself again in the rhythmic movements of moving discarded branches into a messy pile to be used later as fire starters. Connecting with the unwanted branches, I thank them for their service in the trees and a job well done. Good on ya, branch.

"Randi!" Paul yells from the top of the hill and down onto the patch of trees I have found myself in.

I have heard that tone before. What did I do?

"Randi, what did you do? Are you totally oblivious?"

"I don't really know what you mean? I did I stack the pile wrong?" How could I have stacked the pile wrong? I did exactly what he told me to do.

"You are obviously not living in the Yoga Mind, Randi. You left the plastic covering off of the wood in the rain! You have to finish what you start. Now all of the wood is drenched and who knows how long it will take to dry."

Paul was not one to raise his voice but the intensity of how he speaks when angry was enough to make you feel the size of a kitten.

"I'm so sorry, " was all that came out. It took every fiber of my being to not burst into tears. "I didn't even think to do that. I guess it slipped my mind. "

"I guess it did." Silently he walked back to the shed where he was working. The silence drenched with frustration.

As I awkwardly placed the plastic cover over the newly ruined woodpile, my mind, fighting with my tear ducts, went blank. Now, I just remember standing there in the rain, as it washed away any trace of my self-esteem.

Wake up, do morning practice, eat some breakfast, read, go to afternoon yoga class with Paul, lunch, yoga class, explore Rotorua, more yoga, dinner, read, evening meditation, bed.

That was a typical day, mixed in with the occasional walk, documentary, or deep conversation.

As much as tried to soak in all of the knowledge that came oozing out of Paul and notice how blessed I was to be living in the most gorgeous place in the world where my only responsibility is to practice yoga, I found myself frustrated. Not only did I realize how weak my body actually was, I realized how week my mind was. And for the first time, I was jealous of Chris. I was jealous of how easy it was for him to wake up in the morning. How quickly he progressed with the yoga positions. How him and Paul would laugh and go for hunts in the backyard. How he wasn’t allergic to the cat. How he didn’t ache for home.

Eventually, the time had come to say goodbye to Paul and Lynda. We were to go to class one more time with them at the Thermal Lodge and leave from there. My mind and body found relief in the fact that it was a beginner class. I had already pushed myself through two advanced classes earlier in the day.

We begin. As I brought myself to do a move, I wait for Paul to make the rounds, rambling off something about the mind being more powerful than the body and how one must tune out the resistance within and just let go. He passes me as I tried to sit and wrap my arms around my legs and lengthen my neck down. I had grown accustomed to his touch and found comfort in correction.

“You have all the flexibility in the WORLD,” pressing my forehead to the mat as he punched the word “world.” I was in shock at the position I was in. Excitement over comes me as I morphed into a position I had never experienced, and that Paul acknowledged my potential.

As the class came to a close, we lay on our backs and focused on our breathing. My mind wandered, reflecting on the week. I think back to when we thought we were going to work for our room and board. I think of how relieved I am that we chose to just pay him money instead of work for our room and board. I chuckled to myself at Paul’s infatuation with Austin Powers movies. I cherished the time Lynda and I shared exchanging trials of our past. My mind moves to the girlfriend who came to class with one of the other students. I baffled at how she had never practiced yoga in her life, but Paul kept praising her and saying how much of a natural she was. I wondered why I never got that praise. I wondered why I was so anxious to leave Paul’s but knew I would miss it when I was gone. I thought about how closely I watched Paul. How everything he said was a reflection of his life and every move he made reflected the workings of his soul. How I thought I knew him.

And for a moment the focus of my breath is gone, the focus of myself is gone, and I lay there longer…longer….longer….

“And come back. Stand up when you are ready,” gently spoken to bring us back to reality.

We pack up our things, gave Paul our money for the week, and said our goodbyes. Since there was no “good job” or “great progress” coming from Paul, I couldn’t help but ask.

“So…. How did I do?”

“You were ok,” was his response as he was packing up his bags, not even making eye contact.

You were ok? Ok? I worked my butt of all week for just an Ok?

“I was like you in the beginning. It took me a few years to really get in to yoga. You’ll get there. Oh, and good job, Chris.”

We were in New Zealand for three more weeks after we left Rotorua. Both of us attempted to keep our yoga practice afloat. Chris, of course, held out longer than me. I found myself frustrated without Paul’s all-knowing eye. Paranoia followed every move I attempted to make. How did I know if the point from the top of my head to my tailbone was perfectly in line? I didn’t know, and if I couldn’t practice yoga Paul’s way, I didn’t want to practice at all.

A year has past since New Zealand. And a year has past since I have practiced yoga. Well, physically. My “yoga mind” has been stretching ever since I left Paul’s. Close to everyday I ponder something I read in his library. Frequently, a demanding task will come up and the phrase, “Quit thinking, just do it,” enters my brain. I, also, find myself falling into rhythmic patterns often as I go throughout my day. I am even stretching my mind to bring me to practicing the yoga poses again. In a month I’m starting a Yoga Teacher Certification class. It will be a bit daunting for me, but I am ready. I am sailing through to my destination and I am at peace.

Makeover Summer

2009-05-01T10:34:00.000-06:00

One of the many little quirks I have is that I like to make themes for my summers. It started when I lived in Jackson Hole for a summer. I entitled that summer "The Summer of Adventure." And you have to raise your fist in excitement as you say it. Then there was "Summit Summer" where my goal was to summit a bunch of peaks. There was "Mission Summer," when I went on my mission. Last summer was "Mission: Frodo Summer," that was spent in New Zealand.

This summer is.........(drum roll)..........."Makeover Summer!" What do I mean by Makeover Summer, you ask? Well, let me explain.

*First things first, get my body in gear. We are all feeling it. The extra layers of warmth we all gain in the winter months are starting to be unnecessary. So, with my new road bike, climbing gear, yoga mat, and sunny weather, I plan on having the hottest bod this side of the Mississippi by summer's end.

*Second, my eating habits. This past semester I took a basic nutrition class at USU. It rocked my socks and I learned a buttload. I plan on giving my refrigerator a makeover and applying all of the wonderful things I learned in my NFS class. Which I have been doing and have seen a big difference in myself already. And maybe even start food storage?! Whoa.

*Thirdly, my house. Now, I'm not talking extreme home makeover. I just want to de-clutter my house and be in love with how every room looks. I am really excited about this one. Over these past two semesters Chris and I have been so busy that how the house looks gets really neglected. We have so many piles of papers from school all over the place. Well, schools out, baby, so those papers are going to fly! Into the recycling, of course.

*Fourth, my wardrobe. For the most part, I am pleased with how I dress. But, I am 24, people. I still wear clothes I've had since Jr. High. There is a part of me that is a little scared to wear nicer clothes for reasons I'm sure only a therapist could tell me, but I'm ready to step it up a bit. Not wear pajamas everyday. Maybe do my hair a little more often. Wear eye liner. Buy heels.

*And lastly, a hodgepoge of mini goals, like taking time to pamper myself, not wasting away hours of my precious life on facebook, clean the car and keep it clean, pay off my credit card, read a lot of books, write for fun, garden, write songs and get back into the music scene, build up my massage clientelle, and all that jazz.

So, I'm pretty excited for this summer. Utah is the best place for summer, I think, and we don't have too many Utah summers left before we graduate and move on in life.

I am officically done with finals and so Makeover Summer has begun! I even gave my blog backround a makeover, if you didn't notice.

And I challange you to have your own Makeover Summer because it's fun to improve and switch things up a bit.

Ready.....Set.....Go!

It's Birthday...It's Birthday Time

2009-04-27T22:16:00.000-06:00

That's right, people, it's Birthday Time. Well, it was on April 17th. I turned the mighty age of 24. And in honor of my coming of age and journeying further into the depths of adulthoodness....

....I had a Princess Party!

Those of you that have know me most of my life know that I have never been much of a girly girl. I don't like pink, I don't know how to do my hair, I didn't own Barbies, and I have never had a Princess Party. As I have been embracing my adulthoodness, I have also been embracing my girliness. And ya know what? I like it. Being a girl is fun! And I have pictures to prove it.

But let me start at the beginning of my day.

My wonderful parents sent me a mandolin in the mail! I have always wanted to learn and have merriment with one, and so now I can! It's name is Randolin the Mandolin. It came with a Disney Princess Birthday card that played a cheesy Happy Birthday Princess song sung by some chick. It was perfect.

(those are packing peanuts I'm swimming in, FYI)

I share my birthday with my acting professor and director of Assassins, Mr. Kevin Doyle. So, in our Shakespeare class we had cake and bagels and looked at fun pictures.

And then I was serenaded by my brother-in-law's band Veiwers Like You on the Quad for A-Day.
Here is the band and their fans skankin' it up. A little birthday skank, if you will. If you are unfamiliar with what "skanking" is, you can find the definition HERE.

And after much anticipation and dollar store purchases, I give you The Princess Party.

Everyone was asked to dress up as a princess of sorts. Even the men were encouraged to embraced their inner princess.

Princess Gertrude (Pete) and I

Sleeping Beauty (Chris) and Cinderella (Jer)
Princess Adam and Princess Nate
Princesses Chelsea, Brooke, and Hannah
Princess Peach (Wave)
Princess Brooke with Wagner the Jester
And there were many others that I didn't get pictures of.

We had a merry time playing Kiss the Prince. The boys looked dashing in lipstick.

But Kelly, as the Pretty Prince of Parties, won Eric's heart.

Another highlight was The Wishing Well. If you tossed in a coin and pulled out a ribbon as whimsical music played from Wave's cell phone, you found an enchanted Princess fortune at the end of your ribbon of choice. It was halarious.

See the beautiful Princess Nate guarding Ye Old Wishing Well.

The party ended by partaking of the amazing princess cake Chelsea made for me. The flowers on the cake were a gift from Chris earlier that day and the candles were, well, all we could find.

Everyone was given a little party bag as they left, filled with goodies that any Princess would need!

And for a perfect ending to a perfect day, Chris and I ventured up to Old Main and became "True Aggies" together. It is an old tradition at Utah State to become a True Aggie. This happens by kissing someone on top of the "A" on a certain night at midnight each semester. Chris and I have been meaning to do this for quite some time since we both were not True Aggies.

When we arrived there was a huge line and and a huge crowd around the A. I flashed some ID and we got to go to the front of the line, with it being my birthday and all. As we got to the top of the A, I shouted to the crowd, "It's my birthday!" And as we kissed we had cheers from the crowd screaming Happy Birthday. It was magical.

So, there you have it. My 24th birthday. Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes and the joyous celebration. It was the perfect day!

Stay Cool

2009-04-13T13:01:00.000-06:00

Watch this. I hope it rocks your socks.

Click here: Stay Cool

Consider my socks rocked.

2009-04-09T21:34:00.000-06:00

Today I realized one of my childhood dreams came true, without even knowing that it did. I love it when this happens.Do you remember Inspector Gadget? I'm not talking about the box office hit with Matthew Broderick. I'm talking about the old school cartoon. With the blonde, pig tailed Penny, the annoying but kinda cute sidekick dog Brain, and the mysterious, evil hand of Dr. Claw.

I remember being so envious of Penny and her "book". You know her little computer book that supplied her with all of the information she needed in an instant. Seriously, as a kid I wanted that book so bad. It was new, different, magical.

I never dreamed that someday, I would have one on my own.

Thank you, Mac, for making my dreams come true.....

Isn't it about....time?

2009-04-01T23:48:00.000-06:00

So, I suppose I should post. I really do enjoy posting so I don't know why I don't do it more often. Could it be my busy life with a dash of laziness? Perhaps.

Oh in my last post I mentioned that I would post about my Valentine's day and the play. Well, I feel that the moment has past so I will just say that I had an amazing Valentine's day and I love Chris.

And here is a picture of me as Squeaky Fromme with my partner in crime, Aubry as Sarah Jane Moore, in the musical Assassins.

And now on to more exciting things in life. My fish tank. For my birthday last year Chris got me a beta fish and two crabs because we can't have pets at our apartment. We named the fish Gandalf and the crabs Ren and Stimpy. Sadly, Ren and Stimpy are no longer with us because of bad parenting. I guess we were supposed to have a plant for them to climb that went above the water so they could get air. Well, we had a plant but it didn't quite reach the top. We always found them at the top of the plant and we thought, "Oh, it's so cute how much they like that plant." Little did we know they were gasping for air, trying to stay alive.

A few weekends ago Chris, Devin, and I went to Petco to look at the dogs up for adoption. We totally fell in love with one of the dogs and it was painful that we couldn't take her home. So, as an attempt to ease the pain we bought a friend for Gandalf. Mainly because it's called a White Mystery Snail. I mean, how could you resist that? We named him Shadowfax. Thats right. I am a Lord of the Rings nerd.

Here they are living in harmony together. It's beautiful, really. The Petco lady told us that snails eat cucumbers. What the what? How mysterious. So we put it to the test.

We watched Shadowfax chase that cucumber for over and hour. I know. But trust me, it was entertaining. Eventually we went to bed but the next morning, success!

And in a week that baby was gone! Oh, that Shadowfax...

So, ya. I think thats enough excitment for one post.

Surprise Visitors!

2009-03-04T17:00:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the absence of my writings. I made a goal to post more frequently but I have been sucking at it. Ah life... but over the past month or so I have been blessed with the presence of some amazing friends and family members.

The lovely and talented Kilene Cardon got married at the end of January. I love it when people from Fargo get married because it is a huge reunion of everyone I grew up with. It was so good to see everyone. But the biggest surprise was to see Jessica Albrecht!! My brother, Matt, showed up with her as his date. She was my Young Women's leader growing up but more than that, one of my dearest friends. I even lived with her and her cute family in Spokane, Washington. I have not seen her since I lived with her like 4 years ago. I can't even express how good it was to see her. I love her dearly.

I am sad that Jessica didn't bring her husband, Aric, but Matt wasn't. I caught Matt wooing Jessica on the dance floor. Don't they look guilty?

Speaking of Matt's dating life... the next time I would see Matt was when he was coming up to see me in the play Assassins at Utah State. It was on Valentine's Day. I had made reservations at a restaurant for six. Me and Chris, my friends Brooke and Wagner, and Matt and his date "Michelle." The plan was to all meet up at the restaurant. Well, as I walk to meet Matt and Michelle, Michelle turned out the be the one and only Micheal J. Olsen! I can't beleive my dad flew all the way here to see me in the show! My mom came earlier in the week to see the show but that was because she had already planned a ski trip out here. Twas grand to see her, as usual. But my father was a complete surprise. I loved it! I really have the best parents in the world. Some of my extended family made it to the show as well. A big hug and thank you to them.

The reason I didn't do this post earlier was because I have been waiting for my dad to send me the pictures he took but his computer crashed or something and I can't wait any longer. So this one will have to do.

We had a big brunch type party the following Sunday. Chris's brother and sister and friends also came up for the weekend so we had a full house. I loved it!

And the last surprise visit I shall mention is none other than Drew Danburry himself. Accompanied by his darling wife. Some of you may know of Drew. He is a wonderful musician that I have known for, oh, about 4 or 5 years. He is always on tour and I have had the pleasure of housing him a few times. From Spokane, to Fargo, to Logan. It was so nice to see him and Lynette. I love you guys! And Lynette gave me an awesome purse she made. You should check out her stuff HERE. You will love it. And check out Drew's blog HERE. He has a great new music video posted.

This is an old school pic of Drew and I in Spokane.

So thank you all for those that came to visit this past month. It was so exciting and crazy and fun! You guys are the best. And soon I shall post about the play I was in and the rest of Valentine's day. I didn't want to jam pack this post too much.

Peace and love.

2009-02-17T18:21:00.000-07:00

Alright. I am a bit behind on the updates in my life. Things have been crazy! I am a full time student, have my own business, teach primary, and have had a lead part in a play that rehearses at least 15 hours a week. Along with trying to keep the house clean and do all my homework. Oh ya, and spend time with Chris.

But amongst the business Chris and I have had the blessing of falling in love.....with two other couples. Nate and Heidi Eiman and Adam and Chelsea Brewerton. Ever since we met them at the beginning of January in our ward and we have been spending time with them almost everyday since. We all got rock climbing memberships separately and started climbing together. From there we went snowshoeing and then started finding excuses for parties. And now we just hang out because we want to. It's been such a blessing for Chris and I to meet and get close to other couples up here in Logan. And through these couples we have met so many other great people in our ward and I am finally feeling like I am getting settled in this town.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE all of my other friends inside and outside of Logan. But this post is just a special shout out to my new special friends. Here are some hot pics.

Here is Heidi and me trying to be apron models for Chelsea's website. Look at us all home-makey!

Happy Birthday to Nate!

The awesome Whiting family that we go to know through the Brewertons. They had us all up at their cabin in the Uintahs for cross country skiing.

Heidi and Adam whipping up crepes at our International Crepe Day and Groundhog's day party.

Nate, Adam, Chris playing a heated game of Risk....that lasted forever....but Chris won.

Chelsea and Heidi cross country skiin' it up.

We love you guys and thank you for being our friends!

2009-02-09T17:01:00.000-07:00

I dedicate this post to my dear friend, Adrianne McBride.

Yesterday morning Adrianne was killed in a car accident in Orem, UT. She has been a friend of Chris since his freshman year and her and I have gotten close this past year. It's amazing how fragile life is. I have been contemplating that a lot over the past 24 hours. I don't mean to be a downer or depress anyone. I think this is just my way of coping. I needed something new to do instead of checking her facebook page every 5 minutes to see if anything new was posted by her friends and family. So here is my therapudic post....

Thank you, Adrianne for being such a loyal and loving friend. You helped me pick out the shoes I wore on my wedding day and the backround layout for this very blog. You spent hours and hours downloading music to my itunes which makes up most of my music library. You were my first massage client and the most loyal. You introduced me to great movies and TV shows I don't know what I would do without. Thank you for your addition to my secrect garden gnome collection. And thank you for all of our lunch dates and girl's nights. I will cherish those times forever. Thank you for loving me and sharing your life with me. I will miss quoting 30 Rock and talking about our girl-crush on Tina Fey. I will miss your comments on my blog, hearing the latest update on your love life, and seeing your latest high-heeled shoe obsession.
Thank you for teaching me about living in the moment and cherishing life. Thank you for reminding me of all of the people in my life that I love and motivating me to tell them that I love them. And thank you for reminding me of the testimony I have of our spirits and what happens when we die. I love and miss you, Adrianne. Catch you on the flip flop.

Don't worry...I won't quit my day job.

2009-01-28T15:06:00.000-07:00

I have finally done what I was born to do. And I know you all have thought it.

I am a model. That is correct. I model for Ankara by Chelsea. You can check out my hot pic HERE .

It's pretty cool how is got this gig. I mean, she just saw me and said, "Will you model my aprons?" And she is my friend in my ward that I hang out with on a regular basis...but thats not the point.

But seriously, folks, check out her site. She has some great stuff. And she is a really cool girl that deserves business.

Go HERE to win the hot apron I am wearing and see another glamorous shot of yours truly. They definitely cropped this picture to show off my best attributes. The offer of winning the apron is only good today so check it out!

2009-01-20T14:00:00.000-07:00

I don't have anything thought provoking or intellectual to say today. Nor do I have anything witty or amusing. I just wanted to make a post on this historic day and say that it's an honor to be apart of it. God bless America.

They say the first year...

2009-01-11T22:38:00.000-07:00

Well, Ladies and Germs, we made it.
Chris and I celebrated our one year anniversary of being wed this weekend. I can't even believe it. I am apologizing in advance if I get too shmoopy. I will try my best to keep it at a minimum.

On January 11th, 2008 we were sealed in the Mt. Timpanogos Temple. It was an incredible experience. And the rest of the day went on swimmingly. Honestly, I feel like I had the perfect wedding. Everything was just how I have always wanted it, except it being in the fall...but whateves...

And this weekend was the perfect one year celebration. We had a really nice dinner at "The best Italian Restaurant in Salt Lake City" rated by Zagats, called Lugano's. It defanately did not disappoint. I got us this bonsai tree at Cactus and Tropicals because 1) that is were we had our reception and B) we had a tree like this when we were dating and we killed it, so I thought we would give is another go. I had it waiting on the table of the restauarant when we got there. We named him Secret Little Tree.

After we stuffed ourselves we were off to the lovely Anniversary Inn. We spent our wedding night there so it was fun to be back. I love that place. It's fun and a good place to feel like you are out of town. We watched Waiting for Guffman (which we watched on our first date) and watched our wedding video. In the morning we had breakfast in bed and drove back up to Logan.

Thanks to Chris's mom for saving our wedding cake, we got to eat it tonight. It didn't look too hot but it tasted pretty darn good once it thawed out. It was accompanied by our faveorite tea we got on our honeymoon.

Tomorrow we are back to school and work and the real world but it was a perfect weekend to relax and take time to be a little romantic.
I adore being married to Chris. I couldn't have dreamed of a better husband. He is so good to me and we just have so much freakin fun together.

They say that the first year of marriage is the hardest but to us, marriage isn't hard. It defanately could be but we just choose easy and it's great. This has no doubt been the best year of my life.

And if I didn't gross you out too much with this blog.... Here is some video from our reception done by the wonderful and talented David Perry. Who knows, you might be in it.

Ain't no party like a Fargo party

2009-01-02T22:14:00.000-07:00

Hello friends.

How are you? Things are good here.

Oh, Christmas Break. Why did you have to go by so fast?

Chris and I ventured off to Fargo Rock City for Christmas times. It is so nice to be home, but every time I go home I realize that Fargo and I are changing but not together. Except for my house and family, Fargo seems less and less like home. Yes, there are your typical new stores and developments and that one place you always went to isn't there anymore. But more than that, it just feels different. Most of my old friends have moved away and the majority of the ones still around don't feel like friends anymore. It's a little sad but exciting at the same time I suppose. It feels good to let go and move on. I will always love Fargo. Fargo is like the girl that "has a good personality." It may not be the best to look at but dang has it got charm.

Unfortunately, my Dad was the one taking all the pics over break on his camera and I forgot to get them from him so I don't have a lot of pics to share but here is a quick run down.

Our flight didn't leave until like 6ish in the PM so we came to Salt Lake early to go to the Body Worlds Exhibit. Wow. It rocked my socks and could be a post all its own. It will only be around for a few more weeks so if you are in the SLC area and have not gone, I submit that you MUST! There is this skeleton on the wall where you can text something to a number and the skeleton will say it. It was neat.

These past couple years we have been packing up food and presents and having Christmas Eve and morning at our little lake cabin in Minnesota. I love it there. But, man, is it cooolllddd!!!

We took a little jaunt down to the Twin Cities to see the sights, go the The Mall of America, and see a Timberwolves game. My brother, Matt is friends with Mark Madsen, who plays for the T-wolves. So, we got court side tickets for free and hung out with him a little. The team kinda sucks but Mark is one of the nicest guys I've ever met.

Here is the house I lived in from ages 3-10 in Bloomington, MN. I miss those days. I'm glad I got to show Chris. He was a victim to memories overload. He's a champ for enduring.

When we got back to Fargo I got to see some old friends. Katie, Tova, her husband Jake, and Chris and I ate lunch at the new Trollwood. Trollwood is a performing arts school I practically lived at in the summer time. It is in the process of moving to a new location and its uber nice. Like almost too nice to be Trollwood. Here blows the winds of change.

Chris and I recently got climbing gym memberships here in Logan and were missing it so we tried out the new wall in Fargo. It kicked my trash. My mom is a rock star. She may have turned 60 this year (her birthday is on Christmas) but she's still got it.

This is my mom rockin the rock.

I wish I had more pics but oh well. Nothing much more to report about. Just did a lot of chillin and seeing people I love.

We are back safe in Logan and it feels good to be home. I had a really nice New Years but I will save that for my next post. I can't believe that school starts again on Monday. Should be a fun semester.

So, thank you Fargo, thank you Christmas break, and thank you reader of this blog. I love you.

And now for your moment of Zen.
(My dad is recovering from a knee replacement surgery and he got the privilege of sporting one of these through the Mall of America. It was pretty funny.)

Oh, Tannenbaum

2008-12-19T11:24:00.000-07:00

Tis' the season to do Christmasy-type things, so we started by getting our own tree!! We named it Casone because (as you can see in the picture above) our dear friends Jon and Casey helped us pic it out. They came up from SLC to visit us a few weeks ago and it was a grand ol' time.

We made veggie burgers from scratch and they were TO DIE FOR!!! Oh the meatless goodness...

And we made our own decorations for the tree, since we never had a Christmas tree before we had to improvise. Thank you pipe cleaners and scraps of paper. Oh, and I got the paper ball idea from my dear friend Leah. Check out her fancy blog here.

My dear friend, Brooke, had an extra ticket to the Christmas Devotional and since Brooke and I haven't spent time with just the two of us since we both got married I decided to go. I usually don't like to go to the broadcasts if I can just watch them on TV because I don't like the crowds and I would rather watch it in my PJ's on my couch. But I have to say, it was a really nice experience. Being in the presense of the First Presidency was surprisingly overwhelming. And the Mo Tab sounds so much better in person. Got me in the Christmas Spirit for sure.

But nothing gets me in the Christmas spirit more that kissing a camel! This old barn in Hyrum hosted a live Nativity. It was pretty neat. Petting the animals was my favorite part.

And then there were ward and family Christmas parties this past week, which for some reason I have no pictures of... But they were alot of fun. The whole lot of Chris's family got together at an elementary school in Springville, UT. All 11 kids. Most of which have spouses and babies. We ate good food, exchange presents, and played some intense dodgeball. Only a few minor injuries and one pair of torn pants. I really love Chris's family. They are so fun. I'm so glad that we get along so well with eachother's families. Such a blessing.

And speaking of families, we are going to Fargo Rock City, North Dakota on tuesday! Oh, boy. I can't even wait. It's wierd that when I gradutated high school I moved to Utah and never wanted to go back. But since then, I have moved back to Fargo two or three times and I look oh so forward to every visit. Crazy how that is. But its home. And I miss it. And my family is amazing and they make me laugh so hard. I can't wait to see them.

Until next time... Randi out.

2008-12-08T17:21:00.000-07:00

This post is coming a little late but better late than never right? Right.

For Thanksgiving this year, Chris and I ventured half way across the country to the lovely and exotic..... Lincoln, Nebraska! Chris's brother, Dan, is going to grad school out there and him and his lovely wife,Courtney, were kind enough to let us take over their house for a few days.

Twas a grand trip. We started driving with 3 of Chris's other siblings, Devin, Katie, and Jeff, at 1:30 am! After a long, long journey we arrived in Lincoln around 4:00 pm. The next morning we woke up at 7:00 am to experience the football field of the Corn Huskers. Someone from the ward in Lincoln had some hook ups and arranged for the members to be able to play football on this legendary field Thanksgiving morning. People here treat this football team like a religion and so it was a life long dream for a lot of these people to be on this field to play. We didn't play football. We just wondered around being cold and tired, but it was still neat.

After the football fun we all crashed and slept for a while. Once we awoke, we all chipped in and prepared one of the best Thanksgiving meals I have ever had. Good work, everyone.
Chris and his brothers have a tradition of beating Super Mario 3 every Thanksgiving so that was also going on and off all day until it was done.

The theme of this Thanksgiving was "Forget Parents." And boy did we. We drove whenever we wanted, ate whatever and whenever we wanted, and played hours and hours of video games. This was our time.

I fell in love and became obsessed with Rudy. He is Dan and Courtney's dog. Honestly, he is the cutest dog in the world. I want a dog so badly it hurts but our landlord won't let us have one, so Rudy filled my dog wanting void. All I wanted to do was cuddle him 24/7. He was mainly a tease but I got a few good moments.

The next day, after Courtney and I braved the stores on black Friday, we went shootin. I have a lousy shot, so I chilled with Rudy and was moral support. Don't worry, all we shot were clay pigeons.

Don't mess with the Martins

On Saturday we decided to be a little cultured and we went to the Natural History Museum. I have to admit I was impressed. Education ensued.....

On Sunday we had a looooooooong drive home. But we only got caught in one storm and we made it back in one piece.

Thank you, Nebraska for the good times. Until we meet again...

2008-11-25T20:12:00.000-07:00

Sorry, boys. The lovely and talented Karly Jo got married this past weekend.
It was such a fun wedding and I was honored to be a Bride's maid.

I love it when someone from Fargo gets married because it is the only time I ever see the ol' gang I grew up with. It's crazy that most of us are married now. We are all growing up so fast! *tear*

Although, my poor husband has to endure listening to unfamiliar stories and inside jokes all night. Bless his little heart. Thanks for being my hot date, Chris.

And now for a little tribute for Karly and Tina. We made it, girls! Fargo love for life!

I am so happy for my Kjo. We have been through a lot together. From primary to girls camp to Nauvoo to X-files marathons to living together freshman year. I love you.

When in Rome....

2008-11-20T00:27:00.000-07:00

So I have been tagged by the wonderful and talented Mr David. I will do this but I don't know how exciting it will be for everyone.

1. I collect garden gnomes. My secret obsession started when I was a wee lass and used to watch David the Gnome on Nick Jr. It continued as a secret until I randomly told someone and they stole one from someone's yard for me. The trend caught on and my friends started frequently stealing them from lawns to give to me. That doesn't happen anymore. But I do buy one when I see one. And I always take gifts...

2. I used to make up dances to the entire soundtrack of Disney movies and then make my parents pay 50 cents to watch me.

3. My mom and I swing dance in public places whenever we hear music.

4. When my husband is not home I blast The Black Eyed Peas and dance around my house.

5. I tried to dress like Punky Brewster and Clarissa from Clarissa explains it all when I was younger. I guess that explains my lack of ability to match.

6. My favorite T.V. show is "The Adventures of Pete and Pete."

7. I openly have a crush on Tina Fey.

There you have it. I am so interesting....

And I tag:
Adrianne
Jo
Matt
Tina
Kelly Greenwood
Ehu
Mama Turley

Don't feel obligated to do this. It's just for kicks.

And if you care to check it out, I had to make a travel-type blog for my English class. It only has one post right now. Maybe someday it will have more but if you want to check it out it is here.

Peace.

Back by popular demand!

2008-11-02T21:10:00.000-07:00

After a 5 year break, I am finally back into the theater scene. For those of you that knew me back in the day, I used to be quite the thespian. From about 5th grade to 12th grade I was in about 2 shows a year. Coming from two theater major parents, I couldn't get away from it. But the older I got, the more political and weird the theater scene got and by my senior year I was done.

Well, slowly over time, the urge for the stage that runs through my blood has been creeping back into my life. S0, I decided to dip my toes into the Utah State theater program by being in their annual Halloween Show.
They did two one act plays. The suspenseful Monkey's Paw, and the comical murder mystery And Then There Was One. I was Emily Plain in And Then There Was one. Not much to brag about but it was really fun. Thanks to those who came physically and in spirit....or something.

And next on the calender is the annual Pumpkin Blow!! This is an event of a life time. Chris and I started going last year. The Saturday after Halloween, in Weston, Idaho, friends and family gather 'round to see a huge pile of pumpkins blow up. It's wonderful. Please enjoy the video.

God Bless America.

We all Fall down

2008-10-10T19:27:00.000-06:00

If haven't mentioned it, yet...
I freakin love the fall. It is my favorite season by far and Logan is probably the best place in the world to experience it. Even though I have not toughened up for the winter chill, yet, I loved walking around campus today in the crisp Autumn air, wearing my 3 layers and fatty scarf.

And I gave my blog a makeover. Check out the hot back round. (thanks Adrianne)

So... I really need to update more because some neat events have happend. Prepare yourself for a mega update.

A few weeks ago a bunch of us went backpacking up Logan Canyon to White Pine Lake. It was so fun and so pretty.

Can you find Devin in the picture? So much for cute Randi and Chris photo op.

And we only got caught in one rain/hail storm. Not bad...

This past winter a family friend of Chris, The Garlicks, lost one of their daughters in a skiing accident at Beaver Mountain. They dedicated this amazing monument to her at the top of one of the runs. They had an awesome cerimony to dedicate it that had live music, speeches from friends and family, and great food. It was such a beautiful day and an honor to witness.

There is an organization on campus called Aggies for Africa and every year they sponsor a shoe drive where you donate old shoes and go barefoot for a few days. Chris and I both dontated shoes but I was the only one to go barefoot. I was all over it.

And last but not least.... Jeffery "Wave" Felix got home from his serving an LDS mission in Germany and Austria. Wave is the only Martin/Felix sibling I hadn't met yet and it was an honor. It is hard to tell in the photos but three of the brothers decided to grow out mustaches in honor of Wave's arrival. Devin, Greg, and Chris never looked better. Chris was so proud to sport
the mustache and polyester.

So, there you have it. It has been quite the eventful Autumn season thus far..and it's not over yet, folks.

Good bye summer, my old friend....

2008-09-28T23:24:00.001-06:00

Summer has been good to the Martin Family this year. New Zealand seems like a dream, these days. And even though the leaves are changing, it's getting dark sooner, and all that jazz we still had some good times in Logan before school started. Here are some "tender momes" we have had since we have been back from down under.

The rocket launching

The Sunday tradition of playing a heated game of croquet.

Seeing Kelli and Drew again!! Along with chillin with Janette, Wookie, and Wags. Good times had by all. Except the ice cream place "Spoon Me" isn't as good as it sounds.

Chris and his biker gang taking on White Pine Lake. Chris is the one in the red helmet. What a winner. Its not really a bike helmet but it got the job done.

And the infamous Cache Bash. Go Wingnut!

And now it is time for my favorite season of the year. Logan in the fall has to be the prettiest place on earth.

So goodbye, Summer. Thank you for all of the good times. You shall be missed.

Back to reality, whoops there goes gravity....

2008-08-26T04:22:00.000-06:00

It is 4:22 in the AM and I have to get up for class in 3 hours. I can't sleep. What the crap?
Might as well blog...

Well, its that time of year again. The thirst for knowledge is in the air once again in Logan, UT. Perhaps not for everyone, but it is for me. Honestly, I never thought I would actually crave to be in school in my entire life. But I guess being out of a formal education for 4 years can do that for a person. If I stop and think about it, a part of me does feel a little lame for being a 23 year old freshman. Especially when most of my friends have been done with their undergrad for a few years and are off to bigger and better things. Some might say that I have been off doing bigger and better things and now I'm back to reality and slowing down a bit. I suppose I have always done things a little backwards. Ah well... It works for me. And luckily I married someone who is the same way so we are in this backwards boat together.

Even though I have loved the wanna be vagabond life, it does feel good to have a little structure. Chris and I finally got jobs, if you can believe it. Chris is working at an at risk youth center for boys in Brigham City (which he loves) and I got hired as the massage therapist at a local holistic health center called Divine Health and Home. I am also have massage clients separate from the health center. I even have business cards! I am so profesh. So if any of you out there needs a massage.....you know who to call.....(its me, in case didn't catch on to my subtle plea for business). And we started school today. Both of us full time students. Hazzah!

So, life is good. Busy. A little overwhelming, but in a good way. And now I shall try to fit some sleepies in before its too late.
Peace

Once you go Black.....

2008-08-14T15:40:00.001-06:00

It is a bitter sweet feeling I suppose.
I am back in the rockin Logan City. It feels oh so good to be back but I will admit that I do miss New Zealand.

Coromandel Town was amazing. So pretty. But it was too bad that we spent most of our time indoors due to the stormage. And the rain didn't let up really until we left the country. Ah well.

We ended up taking a bus to Auckland. There we met up with an awesome couple, Debbie and Trevor. We met them about 2 months ago when we were hitchhiking on the South Island. They picked us up around the Pancake Rocks and said that if we were ever back in Auckland that we would have a place to stay. So, we called them up and ended up staying there for almost a week. They are way chill. Trevor is a life coach and Debbie is a fashion designer. They took good care of us. And Trever offered to do a life coaching session with me and it totally rocked my socks. Who knew?

After kickin it with them we stayed with some members that knew the Chattertons we stayed with in Hamilton. The Shwankies are one of the coolest families around. They serious hippies. They used to live in a big school bus and travel around the South Island, playing guitar and singing together for money. We had some good sing alongs when we were staying with them.

We also when to an All Blacks game. For those of you that don't know, rugby is like a religion in New Zealand. And the whole country has one team. The All Blacks. Their big rivalries are with South Africa and Austrailia. We got to see them play Austrailia and we totally whooped 'em!

So went to church with the Shwankies and then the next day we were off! I am not even going to go into details of our travels back because everyone knows that airlines are lame...but we made it eventually. And we were warmly welcomed home with the Orm of Enwelcoment!!

Thank you Deh, Jer, Kelly, and Orm.

In closing. Chris and I had a freakin' blast on our trip. And even though we will be paying it off for the rest of forever, it was totally worth it. I advise all to partake in the goodness off New Zealand. I also advise for all couples and future couples out there to take a trip like this. It will bring you together and help you get to know eachother like nothing else.

And thats that for now. For those of you that have started reading this blog just for New Zealand updates, please know that this is also the place for Chris and Randi updates in general. So feel free to check back every so often.

Peace and loves.

Snakes on a Plane

2008-08-02T18:02:00.001-06:00

We leave to come home tomorrow!!! I can't beleive it!

Well, here is the latest update.

So, our stay in Hamilton was wonderful. We had alot of fun with the older couple we stayed with. The LDS temple is in Hamilton, so we got to do a session and also see the church school that is closing down soon. It was a really nice experience.

After Hamilton we decided to explore the Coromandel Penninsula.Oh man. It is freaking amazing. So beautiful. We stayed in a town called Tairua and went fishing. We didnt catch much but enough to have some dinner. And the fisherman that took us liked us so much that he had us over afterwards to his home, and I gave his wife a massage so we didnt have to pay for the fishing. Not too bad.

The next town we stayed at was in Coromandel town. Its a cute little town by the sea but we barely got to experience it. There was a huge wind and rain storm that came in and lasted about 3 days. It was nasty and the streets were flooded. There was no going outside. Luckily we were staying at a nice hostel where there was a tv in our room with 2 movie channels. The down side was that it cycled the same movies over and over and one channel was right behind the other. But on the plus side we got to watch Snakes on a Plane as much as we wanted. Now if you havent heard, Snakes on a Plane is a brilliant movie with Samuel L Jackson. I am not going to tell what it is about though because I will give it away....But I'm sure you can figure it out.

We got a nice little day in at Coromandel Town but then the storm was back, so we ended up taking a bus to Auckland so we didnt have to stand out and hitch in the rain.

Dang, I am running out of time to update but we have spent this past week in Auckland and I will write about that later.

Much love.

2008-07-19T03:27:00.000-06:00

Hello, again, my faithful readers!

Let me fill you in.

So, when I last left you we were in Nelson. Awesome city. And the weather is great. Nelson is right next to a national park called Abel Tasman. I must say the Abel Tasman could be my favorite place in New Zealand. It is so beautiful. It is right on the coast of the Tasman Sea with white sandy beaches and then it goes up into lush green rainforest. So amazing. The only downfall is that it is called a rain forest for a reason. Especially in the winter. (it is winter here, lest we forget) So we hitchhiked in the pouring rain to a hostel right outside the park. Now this is a magical place. They have this art gallery outside where people carve things into trees and make jewelry and all sorts of cool artwork. We bought some cool necklaces from a french woman who is a reiki master. Of course i had to do a reiki session with her. It was awesome.

Then next morning we got up and headed for the hills. They have huts along the trails where you can stay. On the coastal track you have to pay but we did the inland trail which isnt as popular and so they don't charge. We met these two boys from northern california who we ended up hiking with the whole time. They were way funny. One was 18 and the other was almost 17. We started on the inland track and we were more out of shape than we thought so we didnt make it to the first hut. We did make it to a possum infested shelter though. It is not as nice as a hut but it gets the job done. We kicked the possum out and set up camp on this kindof bunkbed with ghetto foam pads that had all sorts of mystery stains. There were dirt floors and a tiny fireplace where we magically started a fire with wet wood. It was a fun night. We had to build a possum proof door. It worked but we could hear them try to get in all night. And one of the americans eased the situation by reading us to sleep with Lord of the Rings. He did all of the voices.

We woke up the next morning and decided to hike down to the coastal track so we could experience both. That was a cool hike but it rained like non other and we got totally drenched. We made it to a hut that was pretty nice. There was a gas fire that kept us warm and dried out clothes. By the end of the day there were 11 of us in this hut. There is a room in the middle which is a kitchen and where the fire place is and then there are two rooms on the side that have beds with matresses. Well we were all too cold to sleep in the rooms without fire so we crammed 11 matresses in this little kitchen and all slept on the floor. Good times.

Then the next day was clear and beautiful and so we had a nice hike back and headed back to Nelson where we stayed with the Hippolite family again. We love them. Such a great family. We stayed with them another few days and we got welcomed onto a morai (not sure on the spelling).
It is a moari meeting house and you can only enter onto it if you are welcomed. They have a whole ceremony where they sing and stuff. It was pretty cool.

We finally said goodbye to the Hippolite and the south island and headed north. We took the ferry and i got sea sick! I have never gotten sea sick or had motion sickness. Crazy... Then we took a bus up to a town called Rotorua. Here we have been staying for the past week with Yoga Master Paul Barton. He is an intense yoga instructor that runs retreats from his home in the forest farmland. So pretty. So we have been studying meditation and Iyengar Yoga (which is the yoga that makes you hurt). I will say that it changed my life. My body kills but wow. I cant even tell you what I have learned about myself and the mind and all that jazz. I never knew that yoga could work so much on the inner self.
Also while in rotoura we went zorbing which is rolling yourself down a hill in a giant rubber ball filled with water. So fun!!! Kiwis are crazy people.

Now we are right outside of a town called Hamilton. We are staying with another member couple. They are the parents of a family we met in Nelson. They are a pretty funny old couple whose kids are all grown up so they just go on service missions for the church. They just got back from serving all over the cook islands. Here we will go to the new zealand temple, which will be really nice.

So ya. Thats the new update. Oh yea, and we are coming home August 4th!!! I am loving this crazy journey, but i must admitt....it will be really nice to be home.

Peace and love!!

Milli Vanilli

2008-07-06T23:40:00.000-06:00

Well friends,

A good amount of adventure has happend since last post. Allow me to share...

So we stayed a few more days in Dunedin. Turns out we got to stay at the hostel for free because we got along really well with the owners and they let us stay for free if I gave them massages. Its was cool.
So our plan was to hitch about 4 hours from dunedin to Christchurch. Our first ride was our friend Alex that we met in Wanaka. He was the swiss guy that gave us a ride to Queenstown. He just happend to be passing by when we were hitching. It was cool. He gave us a ride about half way. After Alex we just kept going from little town to little town until we got picked up be a Semi carrying like 2oo+ sheep. That was fun. He took us to our friends in Southbridge right outside of Christchurch that we stayed with at the beginning of our journey. We were there for a few days and then headed north up to a cute beach town called Kaikora.

We were there for 2 nights. Then we hitched back down south about half way to christchurch to try and take a road to the west coast. Well it is a tiny road and not many pass on it. One of the only cars to pass us was our friend Ralph! He was one of our German friends we met in Franz Josef and then again in Dunedin. So random. He was going to blenheim, which is a few hours north of Kaikora. We were so excited to see him and didn't know if we would get picked up again on that road so we just went back up north with him.

We went to church in Blenheim. That was really nice. A member had us over for lunch and had a good chat. We also met some members who were visiting from Nelson which is 2 hours northwest of blenheim. They said if we needed a place to stay we could call them if we were in Nelson. Little did they know how much we would take them up on their offer.

We were on our way out of Blenheim getting ready to hitch and we passed a little lot with a bunch of old used cars for sale. And they were way cheap. We hadn't had they best hitching luck the past few days so a car looked pretty good. We found a red 1988 toyota camry wagon. It was pretty ghetto but it had alot of charm. We fell in love with it and just bought it on a whim from some chinese guy that barely spoke english for 650.00 nz dollars, which is about 500 american dollars. And we figured we could just sell it when we left because people do that all of the time.

Since we now had a car we decided to go to Nelson instead of to the west coast for reasons that are not important enough to explain. The car got us to Nelson just fine. We called up some our member friends the Chattertons and they took us out to dinner and then to the Hippolites to sleep. Two very awesome families. Well, the hippolites had us take our car to a mechanic because our muffler was so loud and we could get a ticket for it. Long story short, to make our car safe for the road we would need to replace all four tires, get a new muffler, fix the speedometer, and who knows what else.....

With much contemplation we have decided to junk the car. It would cost too much for us for it to be worth driving for 2 months and it guzzles gas like none other. We lovingly named it Milli Vanilli because it was not as good as it seemed and didn't last very long. We took it around town to junk yards and no one even wanted it!!

So we decided to just leave it somewhere and take the plates as souvineirs. That was the plan until the wonderful Roma Hippolite talked to a mechanic at church. He said that he would take it and fix it up and then give it to someone in the branch that could use it! See, now it wasn't such a waste of money after all!

So we have been staying in Nelson at the hippolites for almost a week now. They are such a fun couple. Their kids are away at school so they love having us around to entertain them. A few kids just got in today because they are on a school break. We are havin a grand ol time. Now since this post is way too long I will post later about our magical trip to abel tasman national park where we slept with possums!!

Ok, until next time!! much love!

quick lil update

2008-06-20T16:13:00.000-06:00

Hello, friends!

Wow, I have so much to write its kindof overwhelming. I guess all I can do is give you some highlights.

We have almost made it all the way around the south island. Right now we are in Dunedin. Its a cute city that "they" say that it is comparable to endinburgh in scotland. To me it kinda looks like san fran. Which is neat.

Since the last post we have done quite a bit. We left graymouth and headed south on the west coast. We got picked up by a magical man named oli. He is from the north island. He used to be a forest ranger and now is just bummin around, living out of his van. His van is sweet. He has got stones and feathers and artifacts from all of his adventures for decorations. He carries a martin travel guitar and we had some good times with that. We traveled with him for two days. We hiked around some glaciers and chris and him went skinnydipping in the most beautiful lake i have ever been to.
oh and in graymouth we explored a cave. we got wetsuits and all that and jumped down waterfalls inside the cave, and tubed down a river while looking up and seeing glow worms. So cool.

He dropped us off in a little ski town called Wanaka and then we were off again. We met a swiss guy and traveled with him to queenstown.
In queenstown we bungy jumped off of the very first offical bungy jumping site. It was unreal. We got to jump together. Which was awesome. One of the coolest kisses i have ever had. And its in a gorge over a river so you get dipped in the water. Seriously, unreal.

We went to the Milford Sound. Wow. So beautiful. And dolphins swam next to our boat. Again, unreal.
Then we traveled down to invercargill then to the catlin forest and went to the beaches and waterfalls there. We chilled with some sea lions which were so cute.

They we made our way up to dunedin. Tonight there is a winter festival with lights and bands and all sorts of cool things. So that should be fun. Tomorrow we head back up to christchurch and chill there for a bit and then tour the upper half of the south island.

So yea. We are having the time of our lives. and ive never felt this way before. yeah i swear, its the truth, and i owe it all to you................(there is my shout out to footloose)
peace.

A storm is a-brewin

2008-06-06T20:45:00.000-06:00

So we made it! I am in love with this place. I dont know if I am coming back.

We had an early flight from Utah to LA. 6am.... but it was alright. I don't even remember it now that i think about it. Our dear friend, Michael, picked us up from the LA airport and showed us around town. We went to the chinese theatre and I got my pick with Gene Kelly's hand print, drove around downtown, went to the beach, and all that good stuff. And then at 9pm we were off to NZ!

We got into Aukland at about 6am. We were so tired and disoriented we didnt really know what to do. We wandered around town until we found a hostel and it was too early to check in so we just crashed on the couch in the lobby. The front desk lady was so sweet that she put a blanket on us when we were sleeping.

We were in Aukland for about 2 days. We walked around town, went to the top of the highest tower in the southern hemisphere and hiked a volcano. Not too bad for our first days in town.

Turns out it is cheaper to fly to the south island than take abus or train, so we flew to christchurch and were greeted by the lovely Andrew Winchester. He is a friend of my old roommate and dear friend, Kristin. His family was so sweet and took us in for a few days while we mainly slept and overcame our jet lag.

After a few days there we were getting antsy to see the sights, so we got dropped off on a street corner and hitched hiked into the souther alps of the south island. Known to some lord of the ring fans as the misty mountains. The landscape is amazing. we stayed a night in the mountains at athurs pass, hiked up to a water fall and were off.

we hitched to a town on the west coast called greymouth and here i sit. there is a huge rainstorm going on so its kind of a bummer. but what can ya do? we will be here for a few days to go to church and explore a wee bit and then who knows where else.

so that is the latest update. chris and i are loving it so far, even though we haven't done too much. its enough just to sit here and say "what the crap? i am in new zealand!!!"

love you all!
until next time!

and as they say in new zealand,
Bye! haha....get it.... cause they speak the same language as us.....

New Zealand, here we come!

2008-05-30T22:53:00.001-06:00

Alright, Kids.

The journey begins. Well, almost. In the morning, Chris and I are off to LA and then from LA to Aukland, NZ! Our flight leaves at 6am. Ouch. But its all good. We will spend the day in LA kickin it with some friends and then we leave for NZ at 9pm.

Although I am not looking forward to the 12 hour flight, I am looking forward to traveling through time. I will magically skip a day. I will go from the 31st of may to the 2nd of June. Where does that day go? Perhaps to another dimension. Not outer space, but the space between spaces..... (thank you Indiana Jones)

So, stay tuned for our adventures and wiley Schinnannigans.

Much love.

The adventures of Timmy.

2008-04-15T16:35:00.001-06:00

Once upon a time, there was a kite named, Timmy. Timmy was given to Princess Randi by Prince Chris to celebrate her 22nd year of reignment on this earth. Timmy brought joy and merriment to all who flew him. Chris and Randi would travel with Timmy over hill and dale, just to watch him dance in the wind.

Sir Devin, a mere jester of the Kingdom, would often accompany them on these fair outings.

Timmy brought joy but also a challange to all who flew him. He definately brought out the best and worst of a man. This kept everything in its balance.

On the hillside of Logan Palace one day, there were many members of the Royal Family enjoying quality time together. While the wind was blowing in its perfect hour, someone unexpected came to upset this ebb and flow of Timmy's purpose.

An evil Palace guard came storming onto the hill using all sorts of loudness and corruptness.
"This is a Palace, not a park!!!" he screamed over and over in the most unessesary of tones. "You must all leave at once!"

So, even though they were all members of the Royal Family, participating in beautiful Royal Family activities, the merriment was destroyed.

What will happen to the Kingdom now that Timmy is not there to serve and direct? Will Timmy ever fly again? Who was this evil Palace guard and why did he have the power over the Royal Family?

Stay tuned to find out what happens next on The Adventures of Timmy!!!!

Over the Ice and through the Ocean

2008-03-26T14:37:00.000-06:00

That is right, kids. A lot has happend since I last posted..... a few of my wildest dreams have come true.
Number one: I finally got my zamboni ride. How many of you, everytime you went to a hockey game or went ice skating dreamed of riding on the Zamboni. Well, Chris suprised me with a Zamboni ride before one of our curling games. And yes, it was magical, exciting, and everything one could imagine it to be. I feel complete.

Number two: If you have not heard yet.... Chris and I are moving to New Zealand for the summer months. Anyone who knows me well, knows that I have been obsessed with New Zealand since I was about 17 years old. I have attempted to go a few times but it never worked out. Well, now my friends, my dream is coming true! I own a plane ticket to New Zealand with my name on it!! No more lonely nights searching for plane tickets to New Zealand, finding a good one, taking out my credit card, switching off looking at the screen and looking at my card contemplating the pro's and con's, having the con's win and sadly placing the card back in my wallet. I am going, baby! We don't really have a plan once we get there. All we know is that we got holiday working visas and adventurous souls. What else do you need? So off we go June 2nd!!!

Number 3: Come saturday the 29th I will be a Healing Mountain Massage School graduate, on my way to becoming nationally certified! Aw yea....

So I have not yet figured out how to get my personal pics up yet, so you will have to wait on seeing hot pics of me and chris. But they are a-comin!

peace for now

Happy anniversary to me!!

2008-02-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

Well kids, its offical.... I have been married for one month today!! hazzah!!!
Here are things I have learned in the first month:
*Being married is SO much better than being engaged
*Cooking = good times.... who knew?
*health insurance is a B.
*adjusting to living with a boy was insanely easy
*Being indepenently dependent is a good way to be.
*I have a hot bod.
*If I feel like having a midnight waffle/Harry Potter party, I can, and no one is going to stop me!
*I am so paranoid about getting pregnant that I was craving pickles one night so I took a pregancy test....
*taking pregnancy tests are kind fun....you never know what you are going to get!
AND
*my husband is da bomb dot com. I heart him.

Thats is for now. I will be posting some hot pics in the near future.
peace in the middle east

So here I am....

2008-01-29T13:02:00.000-07:00

I figured I would jump on the band wagon of the bloggin world. You know that I used to blog quite frequently back in the day. Anyone remember xanga.com? I thought my bloggin days were through, but I like to think of this as an upgrade from xanga...or something.

Let me update you on my life right now, for those that might be out of the Randi loop. I just got married. I live in Logan, UT working at home for backcountry.com. I am a live chatter. So, if you are on the site and it asks you if you want to talk to a "gear expert" that is me. Aw yea.....
I am just finishing up school at Healing mountain massage school and will take my test to get nationally certified with in a month!
My husband and a few friends of ours, Devin and Jer, currently joined the Logan curling club and are now known as Team Nuckett. Put the four of us in another situation and we transform into the band Little Wooden Boy. We are trying to think of more things we could be called when the four of us are together. I will let you know how that goes....

And thats about it for now. If you want to see some wedding footage and a halarious interveiw of how my husband, Chris Martin, and I met and that whole story. It really is worth watching.

http://davidperryfilms.squarespace.com/blog/

Scroll down until you see Chris and Randi.

ok. Thats all for now. Until next time!!