Remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.

It is hard to believe how much life changes from day to day. I think these are the most important years of our lives. I thought I figured myself out at 18, but I don't think I know myself at all. I am re-reading To Kill a Mockingbird for the first time since 7th grade. I was too young to understand, so maybe this time around I will really feel it.

Last friday Brent and I went on quite the escapade to find spring water in Ogden Valley. We drove 40 minutes up a secluded road in the mountains in the dead of night, with terrible instructions from my roommate. We finally found it. We had to cross several sketchy wooden bridges to find it. You should have seen the random assortment of containers we had to fill. We were ill-equipped for the journey, only taking my cell phone for light, backpack filled with containers, and of course our expensive camera. I fell through wooden slats, got at least a dozen burrs caught in my hair, slipped up and down the mountain, and froze my tosies off. Was it worth it? Let me tell you, it is the most delicious water I have ever had in my life.

Also, I decided I am going to adopt a kitten. Or a 2 year old siamese named Roger. We went to the shelter yesterday, and I cried tears of sorrow. Seeing animals like that breaks my heart. I think I might start volunteering next semester.

Happy day!

Chatting with a 3 year old.

Tonight at my local Jiffy Lube while getting a safety inspection I met the cutest little girl. Her name is Olivia Cucumber and she is cucumber years old. We talked about everything under the moon. Micky Mouse, small straws, her dogs Max & Tyson, boyfriends, cold hot chocolate, dirty socks and fashion. You name it. Here is a snippet of tonight's conversation: Olivia asked: "what is your last name?" "Nielson," I said, "whats yours?" "Cucumber." "Cucumber?" I asked. To which Oliva replied "You just said a bad word." "What word, Cucumber?" "No..." She responded. After a long confused pause I said "I don't say bad words, I am a good kid." To which she replied, "no, you are a good doggie." Another confused pause. "How old are you?" I asked. "Cucumber." She said, and smirked and held up 3 fingers. I smiled.


The innocence of a child is a beautiful thing. I wonder how many conversations I had with strangers when I was 3.

These days.

I am really enjoying life these days. They are full of love, confusion, stress, and joy. I love the downs, just as I love the ups. They make me feel real. Brent just turned 21. I blew 100 bones on a tablet for the guy, which pretty much sent my funds straight into the garbage. I think I am sitting at a pretty .28 cents. You know you are poor when you can't afford to drive to school for 2 days. My car is a trooper though and made it the whole week with negative gas. The school gods are looking out for me, I guess. I have now burned myself at work 6 times this week, and fallen asleep with my head in the freezer twice. I hate work. My social psych group project is in full swing. Some genius decided our topic should be "should executions be televised?" Easy. NO. Turns out I have a group full of Einsteins and they decided we are going to show a video of a real execution! My teacher OK'd it and everything. I watched it last night and I wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Worst thing I have ever seen. I guess it is a good thing I am now an Elementary Ed major and will be surrounded by cute little kiddies on the reg. My family had thanksgiving at my place this year and it was a nuthouse. I turned into one of those psycho clean freaks, that runs around at parties & straightens pillows & puts coasters under peoples drinks. When we went around the table and said what we were grateful for, my adorable nieces said "the world" and "kitties." We spent the rest of the break in the beautiful snowbird, in the ritzy cliff club. All inclusive spa and erythhing. As of lately, Brent and I have been jamming to these songs and playing wipeout on the wii. Oh, and survivor season 7. This is our life.

Also, we redecorated my living room. The subdued reds and dark yellows are history. Say hello to mint and mustard. Brent thought we should do a photoshoot in front of my beautiful new mint wall.

Also, here is an old favorite, and a twist on an old classic. Enjoy.

Party on Wayne!

It has been a rather uneventful week. I did ace my abnormal psyc test, so thats great. I have since decided that is what I want to be. An Abnormal Psychologist. It is so fascinating. I learned today about this case "Joey the Mechanical Boy," where this child believes he is a robot. He would only eat or drink because he thought it was necessary for his circuit board. Apparently his mother never acknowledged his existence, even prior to birth, and so he never really considered himself a human being. So sad! The mind is a mysterious thing, I tell you. October 24th was mine and Brent's 2 year anniversary. He got me blue orchids, we went out to dinner, and ate dessert by the fire. It was quite magical. We also bought a D-SLR camera, and we have been adventuring with it ever since. Here are some pictures as of lately.

That is a picture of Brent wearing my jacket & being grumpy.

For Halloween we were Wayne and Garth, from Waynes world. They seemed to be a hit at the lame-o party we went to. Ya know, the kind where there are a bunch of scantily clad ladies, pong, and who knows what kind of smoke lingering in the air. Classic college party. Not my cup of tea. Houdini my hamster was Harry Houdini of course. Trick or treaters these days are so greedy. I made several candy trips, and still managed to run out around 8. Apparently, "please take one" translates to "take as many as you'd like." At least it did I was a kid. Brents parents are coming this weekend and I am pumped.

Wallflower.

So I finally saw Perks of Being a Wallflower. I haven't read the book in years, so I couldn't remember anything about it. Now I remember why I loved it so much. Who knew that one book/movie could have all of my favorite things in it? Catcher in the Rye, Rocky Horror, Come on Eileen, The Smiths, and Something by the Beatles?! Seriously. Ever since I knew what love was I wanted a boy to play me that song. "Something in the way she moves me." Ah, I think that is so lovely. Anyways, after the movie Brent and I held hands and ran out into the rain and I felt so full and happy. Kind of like when you look at someone and you think, "so this is what love feels like." That good. I got into my car and this song came on and I started to cry. And I have never felt more alive.

Here are a few pictures from my trip to Montana. I will post more about that later.

And this is what it looks like when you wear all of your scarves at once.

Time to go get my two-year anniversary on!

I am my mothers daughter.

Hello, fellow bloggers. This week has been a good. I am done with work, and packin' up for Montana while jammin to these songs. I am here to speak on behalf of my beloved mother, of whom which you may already know. As you may be able to tell, I changed my blog name to wildflower, due to the fact that is what my mother calls me. "A wildflower," she says, "is what grows where it is not planted, and sticks out in a field of roses." Beautiful. Along with being a wizard with words, my mother is the most open-minded person I know. Which is why I am so upset with all the hate that is blasted in cyberspace. I will tell ya'll right now that I am going to vote for Obama, for well-educated decisions that are very near and dear to my heart. So far, my fellow people, the dems, have been called stupid, ignorant, and I believe the term "asshat" has surfaced on good old facebook. Where everybody is a bully. Gee, I think this is awfully rude and it makes my heart race. I actually think that is because I just downed a bottle of 5 hour energy and my heart has been racing like a madwoman. Regardless, I like Mitt Romney and I think that he is a pretty neat guy, but just not the choice for me. Also, I think it is pretty rad that he is a Mormon and proud of it. Kudos to him. All I'm askin', is for a little respect. I am aware that the era for bi-partisanship is dead, but it isn't going to do us any good to be so divided. I digress. Another thing my mother taught me is creativity. She said that when I was a little girl I would dig around in the trash and find paper to make hula skirts for my teddy bears, and use half&half cups for tea parties. Everyone needs a creative mind. Also, she taught me the importance of uniqueness, and individuality, and compassion, and so many other wonderful qualities. The best part of all is she didn't just tell me these things, she was an example of them. Here's to her.

Isn't she a beauty? Also, I love my dad. He is the coolest mountain man I know. I got my love for the outdoors, and my wanderlust from him. I just bought myself some 2B's and some 3B's so I'm going to get to sketchin'. Happy Hump day everybody, be kind to one another. P.S. I just found this, I thought it was pretty insightful.

Bless my heart, bless yours too.

I almost forgot to share these killer songs with you guys. They are real crowd pleasers.

Opposites attract.

Okay, so I realize that I don't know how to make a blog look cute. Quite frankly, I have more prompting things on my to-do list. It is October, and Hallows Eve is upon us. Incidentally, my favorite holiday. I don't know what it is, but I have always been fascinated by all things spooky. Please don't judge when I tell you that for at least 2 good years of my youth I believed that I was a witch. I thought that I controlled the element of fire. I thought I could fly. And I would bless patches of my grass. I would use spells to call frogs. Kids are crazy, right? Anyways, this year I have decided to be Garth from Waynes world, and Brent is going to be Wayne. Its going to be excellent. I did want to be Sylvia Plath, and have him be Ted Hughes, but I figured nobody would understand. Speaking of the great Sylvia, I am reading the Bell Jar. Again. I can't tell you how much I adore that woman. She took something so morbid, and gruesome as death, and made it beautiful. At least to me. By no means did she glorify it. Its as if she was destined for such tormented darkness and pain, so instead of enduring, she became a martyr. Also, I really love that she always uses the reference "peanut crunching crowd" to describe mankind. We are all just spectators, bystanders Maybe, I find the honesty and vulnerability so beautiful. Anyways, for all of you that don't know what I am talking about, go read Lady Lazarus, Daddy and Mad Girls Love song. They will change your life. Speaking of literature, has anybody heard about what is going on with Ayn Rand and Paul Ryan? I hope she is not endorsing him. After reading the Fountainhead this summer, I have come to appreciate the work of Ayn Rand, but I don't agree with the idea objectivism. I believe it is a completely lonely existence. Anyways, I'm ranting. I originally intended on writing this post in honor of my wonderful boyfriend Brent. Now, I'm not a sappy gal, but I will give due where due is needed. Brent is my best friend, and he teaches me things each day. We are complete opposites, but we are completely perfect for each other. He may not be able to keep a rug straight to save his life, or enjoy sweets. He may think I am a little goofy, and think my style is a little strange. He might spend months on killing one little wasps nest, and he might be a little OCD. What he calls messy, I call "eclectic." But I love him. He is complex, and dedicated, and loyal, and everything that is good in this world. I've said it from day one, his presence fills a room. And he makes my life so completely worth it.

Its safe to say that I am blessed. I'd never call myself a devoutly religious person, but I am incredibly faithful. My dad taught me that God is in nature, my mom taught me that he is in people. She told me once "God watches how to treat his creations." I don't see how you could go wrong with mixing those perspectives. That way, you will always be kind to everything and everyone. Speaking of, outside the temple a hobo told us that he hated us, our families, and that he wished we would die on our way home. Also, on Friday night, these people kept driving around and cussing at us, and everyone around. I can't wrap my mind around people like this. Who could live in a constant state of contempt and hate for mankind? It breaks my heart. I want to get back to when I was a child and would pray for a half hour before I went to bed. I used to pray for the homeless, animals without homes, people who were sad and dying, for everyone's safety, a place to sleep at night, and a friend. I prayed for world peace. One of my favorite quotes is by Jonathan Safran Foer. "When I was a girl, my life was music that was always getting louder. Everything moved me. A dog following a stranger. That made me feel so much." I think the world would be a much better place if we were all a little more child-like.