Attention bibliophiles!

WANTED:  A new book to read.  Preferably a classic.  Favorite author: Hemingway. I also highly enjoy David Sedaris. Favorite book: Meditations of Marcus Aurelius.   I'm on the last few pages of A Moveable Feast and I won't finish it until I know there's something there to replace it.

Please leave any suggestions for me!  Also, I will never read Faulkner again, so if anyone was thinking that (which...no one probably was) - just don't write that down.

You're on a rollercoaster...don't stop and think, just scream!

"It's like I'm in a room with a thousand doors, and some of them are locked. And I also have a huge set of keys. And there are windows. And you're blindfolded."

-- Janice and I, on the topic of personal revelation from Heavenly Father...and how sometimes us converts have a hard time with it.  Also, this about baptism:  "It's like there was a door, and you knew exactly what was on the other side of it. And all you had to do was open it."

This message is for all of you!

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us most. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and famous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in all of us. And when we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”


Maryanne Williamson










And that, my friends, is one reason sacrament is so awesome. :)

Life, as of late.

So, this is what I've been doing at work when no one is checking in.

Today I made a towel animal turtle. I think he's actually my favorite, so far.

Other life updates:

*Still a workaholic.

*Still can't sleep well.

*I caved...I drank an energy drink today.  I know, I know...I said I'd try to give them up.  But what can I say, it tasted like going home....and now I'm wired and it's after midnight.

*Team Too Legit is doing exceedingly well. Vance is the best boyfriend ever!

*Pimp Juice is still pretty intense.

*I saw Battle: Los Angeles...and it was hella good, even for a movie with aliens...which I am terrified of normally.

*I ate pierogies today.  Important? No. Delicious? Yesh.

*Charlie Sheen is intense....WINNING.  Haha. It must be really difficult to be Charlie Sheen's publicist right now. Seriously, though.

I always think that I have so much to write about...but I guess I don't.  One of these days I'm going to actually  write a detailed entry. *Yawn*

Mmmmm.  Pierogies.

Ahahahahahahahaha. Being a Lydia is awesome.

Is Lydia still so bad?


Real Housewives of Late Night

Let's get some shoes...let's party.

So what's happened in the time between posts?

Well, I've knocked another thing off of my list for this year - VEGAN WEEK.



I'm not gonna' lie to you folks.  It was difficult. EXCEEDINGLY DIFFICULT.  But thanks to the miracle of soy, I made it through the week.  I probably had a vegan soy smoothie for breakfast everyday.  I think one of the hardest things was that I couldn't have chocolate.  UGH.  Even a lot of dark chocolate has some type of dairy in it.

And then some things that are dairy free have HONEY in them. Damn it. And the things that somehow magically didn't have honey OR dairy had coffee or tea in them. Wha the heck, whatever is a vegan Mormon to do?!?!?  And the funny thing is, when you somehow got something without any animal product what-so-ever, it was usually gluten-free, too.  It's like... the store's one all-purpose food for people who don't eat everything.

In the end, I kinda got the hang of it, and it did honestly make me feel a little bit...lighter. That's the only way to describe it.  I feel like I seriously could've developed superpowers if I stayed with it long enough.  If soymilk weren't so dang expensive, I'd drink it all the time instead of regular milk...which I don't...drink anyway.  But I guess I'd use it in my cereal?



On another note, I think I have a thing called "Turf toe".  It's from running in my crappy crappy shoes.  I suppose rest will fix it, but I need to do cardio, dang it! I just don't feel like I've really worked hard enough if I don't run.  But my toe hurts.  I know, that's so important to everyone out there in the world, right?





I went shopping with my boyfriend Vance, and it was awesome.  He's almost freakishly tall (I love you, Vance!...but seriously, you're super duper tall, man.) and also skinny, so it's sometimes hard to find a size that fits right.  Frowns.  As he now knows, I'm good luck for shopping, though.  I think he found some really good stuff at super excellent prices...as if I would allow him to buy anything at full price! *snort*  That's just not how we do things 'round here...

Within five minutes of walking in the door with him, I fell in love with these red shoes with the ruffles on the back:

  

And they were seven dollars.

SEVEN.  And they looked awfully sad and lonely, so I decided to give them a new home...in my closet.  They are happy and have countless friends to keep them company.   (I told you I was good luck for shopping!)


On a final note: I seem to be getting dizzy a lot.  I wonder what is causing that?

Vitamin String Orchestra + being warm inside + awesome birfday sign = good times, happy feet (And I wanted the title to be longer than the actual post. I think I succeeded.)....wait...no...yep. That's long enough.

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for another year of my beautiful life!  

I'm 24.  The next year is gonna' be awesome, I can feel it in my bones!  Time to boogie down!

So good it'll make you wanna' slap yo' mama.

Another culinary triumph for Team Vance and Lydia (btw, someone please think of a better team name than that?) -

Tzatziki!

To make Team Awesome Tzatziki (does that sound better?):

16 oz. Greek yogurt
1 cucumber, seeds scooped out and diced
3 cloves garlic (it was very garlicky...maybe two would work)
Chopped fresh dill (we just eyeballed it, but it wasn't much)
2 tsp. lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix and let the flavors become friends overnight, if possible! As a tip:  I would make sure the garlic is super smashed, so you don't get crazy huge chunks of it. But I tried it with some raw veggies this morning - yum! As a friend Jamie and I used to say:  It's so good, it'll make you wanna' slap yo' mama. Oh dang!







I just got back from helping Vance with something, which required me to drive Pimp Juice.  Oh geez!  What is it with people wanting to kill Team Too Legit (is that one a little old school?)!  A guy was pulling out of a parking lot, and I was passing by - driving in a straight line - which means he had to stop and I had the right of way...but...he...just...kept...driving...

It was scary.  The guy wasn't even looking forward.  He was looking to the side.





But we survived!  On to another day of awesomeness.

The Love Post!

Yaaaaaaawwwwn.

So, my boyfriend made dinner for Valentine's Day, and all I can think is, "WHY DID I GO THROUGH MY WHOLE LIFE WITHOUT GNOCCHI?!?!"  Dericious.  For serious.  It was a romano and ricotta gnocchi with pesto.  Now, how to describe this dinner, in laymen's terms?  How about...tiny romano and ricotta pillows of tasty, covered in herby yum sauce?  Yes.  That's it. (I'm so pleased with that description.) He also made a very tasty cabbage slaw.  You may think, "Hmm...cabbage?  That's not so great." But wait....hold it...did you hear that?

Oh, it was the sound of you being COMPLETELY WRONG!

It was a good counter to the gnocchi.  The cabbage was super crisp and refreshing. I loved it!  

Oh, I also own more chocolate than is necessary for one human:

(Good call with the HK chocolates, Vance.)

Did you all notice the heart confetti on the table?  Les made a wonderful dinner for the Sister Missionaries and  a couple friends...I swear, Les is such an entertainer. With her dinners and schmoozing skills.  I'm envious.  I feel like she needs to live in the Upper West Side in a classic six with a doctor husband, so she can host dinner parties all the time. 

I don't know how she feels about that just yet.  But I foresee it in her future. She better start planning on patterns for dinnerware now.  How about....hm...something French Countryside-esque?  I like that.

I digress, back to the Val Day celebrations. I also received this beautiful number here:

(Good call with the purple stone. I love purple!)

Oh em gee.  I didn't even realize we were in the jewelry-buying zone.  But good to know!  I didn't expect anything like this for our first Valentine's Day together...especially since my birfday is in five days.  I figured I would get a lame combo-present, where you roll both special occasions into one present. (It's an unfortunate event, the combo-present...I feel bad for everyone born within a week of Christmas...sorry Les...)

The whole night was perfect.  And it was the first good Valentine's Day I can remember having.  I am one very happy lady right now....I'm also very preoccupied with the thought of all that gnocchi (oh, did I mention dessert? I shouldn't....so...much...fat...and sugar...) turning into calories inside my body.

It's time for some GTL.

Minus the T, because I don't want skin cancer.

And the L...because...I can do that later.

Um....Okay, so just the G.  But lots of the G.

Um. Yeah.  I'm fawkward. Sorry, guys.

Updatey McUpdate.

The Grand Canyon Railway trip was awesome!

Look at that scenery! That is actually the view from one of the suites in the El Tovar.  Everyone, don't mind how crazy I look in this picture.  I was extremely sleep deprived.  Don't judge me.





Also, check out this random picture of me  thoroughly enjoying my Hello Kitty Koala:

What I'm doing in that picture...I don't know.  But I love Hello Kitty.

Boogie down the pounds!

Do you ever have moments in your life when you're doing something, and then you realize - "Gee...I'm weird."



Seriously.




Does that ever happen to anyone except me?



I was just in my kitchen, preparing a tasty snack (read: going to the pantry to get cheese flavored rice cakes.) and for some reason I decided walking wasn't going to get me there fast enough.  Or fancily enough.

So, I did a grapevine on the way to the pantry. I opened the door, grabbed the half eaten bag of rice cakes, stepped back with a turnout (i.e. the way ballerinas walk) and considered my options for the jazziest return to the table.

The final choice?  A triplet turn, arms in first position. There was another name for the way the arms are held - I remember my last dance instructor Karen teaching it to us.

(A video about doing a triplet turn...now imagine it slightly more graceful and while holding a bag of cheesy rice cake snacks.)

Man, those cheesy rice cake snacks were awesome....and totally worth dancing over.  They were multi-grain, too. 

I'm happy my friends already know I'm strange and still love me. <3

Blogging: almost as nerdy and lame as....nope, it's nerdier than most things.

So, what is up, fellow bloggers...or blog readers?


I guess it's been a while, probably time for a life update.


Well, I'm still not in school, and I'm still enjoying it.  Do I have plans to get a graduate degree? Yes, I still do.  Do I plan to do that sooner than later? Yes, that too.  But I just like being able to get up everyday and feel....awesome.  Not worried about school.  Or feeling stressed because of working so much and still not having money.  I am so blessed in my life that I am able to wake up every single day and feel pretty dang good about everything.  I would like to keep it that way, just for a little longer.  I've kinda' grown tired, though, of people asking when I'm going back to school.  So, with a little help from Pink Floyd, I've formed a plan of action for all further conversations about it:


Person: So, you graduated?
Me: Yes, I did, last May!  Kinda' taking time off, though.
Person: Oh...I see...well...when are you planning on going back.
Me:... *blank stare*....we don't need no education.
Person: What?
Me:  We don't need no thought control.
Person: But wait, you just said th-
Me: ALL IN ALL YOU'RE JUST ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL!  


(And hopefully a group of school children will come to back me up, singing. Or at least that's how it worked out in my head. It was epic, really.)

On to other news, my mom and I are planning a trip to the motherland next year.  It's been over a decade since we've both been there.  As I understand, there will be a wedding going on at that time, so...hopefully we'll be able to go!  I LOVE WEDDINGS.  I'm trying to convince my awesome boyfriend Vance to go with me. So far, I think it's working....but we'll see.

Speaking of the awesome boyfriend, I have a lot of plans coming up with him as well!  In February we are going on a supermondofantastic train ride to the Grand Canyon and back, compliments of The Grand Canyon Railway.  I forget exactly how this all goes, but we get to see the Old West shootout at the train depot first, then we board the train (Observation Dome, sucka's!) and ride to the canyon.  While up there, we get a guided tour and lunch at El Tovar.  (OMFGOSH, I KNOW).  And then we hop back on the train (Luxury class!) where we enjoy free refreshments and I suppose Vance can enjoy a champagne toast.  I'll just watch him and drink Sprite...and pretend it's champagne. Haha.  I think I'll  call that trip..."Lydia Pretends To Be Fancy" because there's no way I could usually afford it.  Of course, we're really going on it because we need to know what to recommend for the guests....right....

In May, he and I are going to the Phoenix Comicon.  Hopefully two other lovely ladies, Kristann and Diann will be there as well!  It's a four day event, so I'm really scared that I'm going to drive him insane by the time it's over.  Perhaps if I keep him full of Mountain Dew, my insane energy and non-existent sleep schedule won't make him want to strangle me!  Leonard Nimoy, among some other very awesome Sci-Fi/Comic book people will be making appearances.

Yeah, I'm gonna' meet Spock.  It's happening. This. May.


Those are a couple of the things I'm looking forward to right now.  Oh, and I suppose Valentine's Day. And my birfday.  And his birfday!  My old man is getting....older....haha. But I swear, he doesn't look a day over 25. :) ...But seriously, I'm pretty sure he could out run me any day of the week and probably throw me, so that's the last of me poking fun at him.   So, dear blog readers,  keep your eyes open for more dorky pictures of my adventures soon!

But I digress, back to the present!


I have just recently become obsessed with budgeting and couponing.  I don't know if I'll ever reach the heights of the people on TLC's Extreme Couponing, though....I'm just a newbie couponer for now.  But let me show you a few of the deals I have gotten the last time I went shopping:


 This Silk?  1.99, my friends.


A package of delicious Goldfish crackers...88 cents!

  Morningstar Farms fake meats...for only 2.99!


Not bad for a beginner, yes?  I just love saving money....or I'll spend the money on something like this:

  (The coveted purple Guess purse...one day, you'll be mine!)




I feel like I probably have more to type. But I'm getting drowsy, for some reason.  And I have to get ready for work.  I feel that, somehow, the two are correlated.  I promise I'll be a better blogger from now on, though.  It's on the New Year's list, you know.

We're not in your dream. We're in mine.

It's a new year, hot diggity dog!

(Is it just me, or are those mustard and ketchup ladies kinda whorey?)

SO, let me tell you all about this new year. And please excuse my writing, I'm extremely tired. I might not be as witty and entertaining as I usually am.  It is now the very early morning of January 5th, 2011.  My shower pipes have already frozen in the negative temperatures that have occurred during the night.  As a result, I was not able to take a shower in my own bathroom for a few days.  And for other reasons, I actually had to leave my apartment to take showers.  (Thankfully my boyfriend allowed me to use his.)

Sounds annoying, right?  Nah.  It wasn't that bad.  But after the water came back on, it started to come from the valve instead of anyplace it should come out of.  Oh.

Well.


Crap.


So then I had to wait another day for the maintenance guy to come and fix that. He then set up a portable heater ( and I quote, "So...this is just an option for you, Lydia, but I can set up a heater against this wall where the pipes should be..I mean...it's just a throw away heater I found somewhere and bypassed all the safety features on.  Um.  So don't let it tip over.") and told me to wait until the next morning to check it.


Thankfully, it seems the water works, and it does get warm.  Not hot. But warm.  And that works for me right now.


Sometime between the water gushing from places it shouldn't and the maintenance guy working, I screwed up my right arm.  I'm really not sure how, but my theory is that I have terrible crippling arthritis.  No, I did not consult a doctor about that.  Like I said...it's just a theory.

(If also had the crippling arthritis in my hands...it would look like this.)

Today at work, the machines that make the keys stopped functioning.  Oh, and I was at work for ten hours.  Not bad.  I know, I know, I'm just complaining at this point.  But ten hours on your feet sucks.









Watching Inception.  This is probably the worst movie to watch right now.  I'm having a hard time distinguishing between the characters in the movie talking and my roomies talking in real life.












Hooray for 2011!  Time to boogie down, I got all the bad stuff done with, now I have the rest of the year to enjoy and have fun!  Woohoo!

(Heck yeah, Richard Simmons!  Let's boogie down those pounds!)