Over the past three months, I have started probably a grand total of 8 blogs. This blog post is going to be all of the failed beginnings of these blogs. I hope you enjoy.

Blog 1 started May 3, 2009-
Ahem! I have something to say and I will say it now! (yep, that's all she wrote. And you will never know just what it is I was going to say.)

Blog 2 started May 29th 2009 entitled Running on Empty-
So, I have decided to start running again. If only I had the motivation to get out of my house and do it. The other day, I was sitting in my family room with Callie and Alan G, just staring outside and thinking "Hmmm, I should go running. That actually sounds good. Running NEVER sounds good so I should DEFINITELY act on this." So what did I do? I'll tell you what I did. I got up, walked into the kitchen and snatched two freshly baked chocolate chip cookies from the cooling rack and promptly shoved them into my mouth. FAILURE.

Blog 3, Started June 9th 2009 entitled Save the POLAR BEARS!-
For the last few days, McKay and I have been house sitting for my good friend Satyra's family. They are in Cancun enjoying surf, sun, and H1N1 Influenza. Satyra will single handedly bring swine flu to the BYU masses. Heneway: as we babysit the Taylor's beautiful new home out in the middle of nowhere (not kidding. It's just out there, in the country, by some fields) and eat their food and sleep in their basement, we also watch their movies. Correction: we watch their Planet Earth. They have a projector and a big old screen to watch on. It is absolutely terrifying to wake up from a long blink and see a giant great white shark leaping out of the water at you. Scared the living daylights out of me.

Blog 4, Started June 21st 2009-
Okay. REALLY Idaho? You decide to make it rain more than ever before in the history of Idaho, the exception being the Great Flood. And you know what? If it's going to be all gloomy and rainy here, and if it is going to be the rainiest place in the continental United States, I DEMAND that I have a sparkly vampire/Edward Cullen to love. Right. This. ONE ONE!

Blog 5, Started July 3rd, 2009 entitled "Erin, will you play dress-up with me in the playhouse?"
Oh good heavens. So many children, so little time. Seriously, I don't know how people have children right now. They are fun, adorable, and I love them all to pieces, but GOOD NIGHT. They wear me OUT. As in, I'm ready to DIE right now of exhaustion. The above quote is from my niece Audrey. Now picture me, playing dress-up. Hilarious, right? Well, Audrey is the queen of drama and dress-ups. I had to wear gloves, hats, feather boas, and all sorts of things I have never worn in my life. My problem is I can't say no to those little faces and their cute little voices! If anyone else asked me, I'd say "Aw HELL no." But here I am, in a pink hat, gauzy scarf, and a lacy skirt.

Blog 6, started August 2nd 2009 entitled Post-Wedding Letdown-
Errbody was here, and now errbody is gone. My sister got married on Friday the 31st of July and it was crazy. My mother was ready to have a coronary (really, Callie? it's FINE) and the house was full of people at all times. But I will say that it was a beautiful affair. We were all together and we were all happy. But now all of the siblings are gone. Cara and Tyson are in the Caribbean meeting Jack Sparrow and Will Turner, Jen and Brant and the crazy/adorable ones are in Kansas, Kate is back in DC (after I DROVE her to the airport because she coerced me into it using guilt and a long-held knowledge of how to make me do anything she asked me to), and I am sleeping.

Blog 7 started August 10th 2009 entitled Pie, Oh Glorious Pie-
For the last week I have been religiously watching the television show Pushing Daisies. I recommend it to all because it's HILARIOUS and charming. The show has an extremely interesting premise. Ned, a young man, has a gift/curse. He can make dead things come to life. Touch a dead thing once: alive again. Touch that dead thing again (a second time): dead for good. Keep that dead thing alive and don't touch it for 60 seconds, something else must die in its place to keep the cosmos in balance. But that isn't what I wanted to write about. Ned's profession is that of a pie-maker. Ned spends his days making delicious looking pies and all I want to do is EAT ONE RIGHT NOW. Seriously, every episode is full of rhubarb, strawberries, peaches, raspberries, pears, and sweet potatoes all being stuffed into a flaky, golden, and delicious crust. AND I NEED PIE RIGHT NOW.

Blog #8 started August 28th 2009-
I just recently decided I needed to indulge myself by purchasing something totally and utterly nerdy. Wanna see it?

YEAH. That's right. Tauntaun sleeping bag. I wish the tauntaun was my power animal...

The fall playlist that has nothing to do with fall...

Time for a new playlist update. Enjoy!

1. A Message by Coldplay- I swear, this is the song that every WB (I guess it should be CW now) show uses during most of their love scenes. It deserves so much more than Clark and Lana confessing their love to each other. It's kind of cheesey, but it kicks some serious A. The best part is toward the end when we get a bit of an instrumental (for maybe 15 seconds) and Chris Martin comes in and sings some more of his awesomeness. Depressingly great.

2. Citizen Erased by Muse- Did you expect me NOT to put Muse on here? This is old school, from their 2001 album called Origin of Symmetry. This album is a little more hard rock than Black Holes and Revelations. This song is a great example of their style. It's loud and intense at the beginning, but it gets a little softer. A perfect blend of angry and soft. Go Muse.

3. Skinny Love by Bon Iver- I know this their most...recognizable song, but it is the the song that made me fall in love. And I fell in love fast. Bon Iver is chill and folksy. Perfect for lying in a hammock on a sunny Sunday afternoon.

4. White Winter Hymnal by The Fleet Foxes- Fleet Foxes are a summer discovery as well. I love the early-mid 60s feel of this song. It's glorious.

5. Keep the Car Running by The Arcade Fire- The Arcade Fire are absolutely perfect. This song had me from the beginning with it's mini buildup'

6. Milk by Kings of Leon- This one was hard because I don't like all of the Kings of Leon. His voice sometimes drives me a little crazy. But this one is great because of the bass in the background and the rhythms at the end of the song. And his voice isn't too non-singy

7. Africa by Toto- Okay, the player says the song is called Toto. But it isn't. This is the family theme song. My dad wants it played at his funeral (a wish I will grant) and all of us know the words. I karaoke to this song all the time. It's the synthesizer and all that talk about Kilimanjaro and rains in Africa. It's too much greatness in one song. And if you want to love this song more, watch the episode of Chuck where Lester and Jeff sing their little hearts out.

8. Single Ladies by Beyonce- Don't judge me. The music video is hilarious. And this song ROCKS.

9. Mexican Standoff by Elbow- This song had me with the instrumental at the beginning. And I sort of love his voice a lot. And I also love that the lyrics say "your sweet reassurances don't change the fact that he's better looking than me."

10. 9 Crimes by Damien Rice- Beautiful song. Depressing and gorgeous. But I like sad music. Probably more than anything.

11. Heartless by The Fray- This is a cover of Kanye West's song by the same name (clearly, seeing as how it's a cover). I heard this at The Fray concert I went to in July. They played it during their encore, which was fabulous. And as much as I love Kanye (which I don't), this version is greatness.

12. Recycled Air by Postal Service- Even though it starts out sounding like an Enya song, I still love the sound of Ben Gibbard's voice over anything. He's made of awesome.

13. Buildings and Monuments by Republic Tigers- A band I discovered on Megan's blog (thank you so very much Megan!) and promptly fell in love with. It's all about his voice and the fact that the song has a killer chorus.

14. Life in Technicolor ii by Coldplay- I'm inundating you with Coldplay, but I'm not sorry. If you've heard Life in Technicolor on Viva la Vida, you will love this one. It's the same as its previous version except it has LYRICS. And I just can't help it. When Chris Martin sings, it's like he's singing to me. (also, at the risk of truly overwhelming you with Coldplay, if you are interested, listen to the acoustic version of Lovers in Japan. It's also made of awesome)

15. Secret Meeting by The National- A my sister once said "Wow, he's got a hot voice." Indeed he does.

16. Everybody's Changing by Keane- Now whenever I listen to this song, I see the lead singer dancing like a maniac across the stage. This concert awakened a new love for Keane in my little heart. And I love how upbeat the song is (musically) but it's about everyone moving on and you trying to as well. It's an interesting combo.

17. Uprising by Muse- New single by Muse and it's a little more poppy and flashy. But I like it. Matt Bellamy is still a rock god and Muse knows how to bring it every time, hands down.

Robots in Disguise

(Yes…appreciate this picture. He is pure beauty)

Last week, I went to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen at midnight. I found the movie to be long, loud, full of ridiculousness…but mostly enjoyable. I think the perfect description would be “junk food for the brain”. I grew up with Transformers so seeing them on screen was a blast. Correction: seeing Optimus Prime and Bumblebee kick some serious Decepticon trash was a blast. The movie is beautiful in one way: special effects. That’s the only redeeming quality. Michael Bay may not know how to direct or make a movie without crass humor/slightly whorish women, but he sure knows how to make a robot explosion or transformation look cool. And for those reading who have seen the movie, the best part was in the forest when Optimus Prime lays a serious beatdown on all trying to kill Sam Witwiky, that most beautiful man (Who knew the kid from Even Stevens and Holes could be THAT hot? Seriously.)
That still doesn’t change the fact that the movie had some serious issues. GAPING plot holes. And this article addresses every one that arises. Literally. Plus, it made me laugh. If you’ve seen the movie, it’ll make you laugh too.

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/smg-transformers-10-questions.html

Only recently have I come to realize how much I absolutely love Summers in Idaho Falls. Granted, you can't beat a Summer in London. Not by any stretch of the imagination. But Summer time in Idaho Falls is absolutely glorious. This is largely due to the fact that 1) The temperature never gets too high like it would in Arizona, Southern Utah, California or some where that is typically warmer year round, 2) the air is rarely if EVER muggy and gross, and 3) I get to live at home while I eat watermelon and hamburgers straight from the grill while sipping homemade lemonade (which I didn't have to make myself nor did I have to go grocery shopping for the food which I have eaten) then proceed to sleep in a giant bed in a room that is all mine. Really, not much can be wrong with this picture. Plus, I get to play with my nephew all the time (yeah, he loves me best), watch all the TV shows I have missed, read more books than I have been a been able to in the last three years of college, enjoy snow cones from the shack by Albertsons, see the best fireworks ever on the 4th of July, go to the cabin, go boating, and play Guitar Hero/Rockband/Mario Kart Wii all the days of my life. And even the whole job thing is great. Not only do I get to draw blood, learn what various prescription drugs do, and shadow doctors, but I actually get to help with research and meet with patients! I get to do my very own research project. It's basically a dream come true for the nerdy pre-mad student deep within me.

But the purpose of this blog is not to tell you about my life this summer. It is to tell you about the object that will make my summer true, unadulterated BLISS. This object is a hammock.

Just last summer, my sister Kate purchased a hammock from an unknown store. For an entire summer, my family enjoyed the hammock until one fateful night, my dog, a chocolate lab named Molly, became exceedingly bored and proceeded to rip the hammock to shreds. We woke up to pieces of nylon rope scattered across the yard. Molly was very proud of her work despite the fact that it tore up her mouth. My dad almost killed her. Needless to say, we were all pretty depressed about it and I felt slightly robbed because I had been at school and in London when the hammock was in use. I had only been home for about a week when Molly murdered what was left of my summer. So, as I came home this summer to do a medical internship, I decided I needed a hammock to enjoy the back yard.

Consider the benefits of having a hammock: no lying on the ground with the bugs. Instead, you get to lie cradled in a colorful bed that swings back an forth. Plus, it's totally great for snuggling with someone you happen to like. Also, it's perfect for reading in while listening to some great summer music. Next, it's portable so that if you decide to go camping or something, you can totally take it with you. This feature is particularly important for me because that means I can take it away from Molly every night. And, you can feel like 1) a pirate 2) a soldier 3) a vagabond. SWEET. Last, outside is so much better than inside so why not spend as much of your time outside as you can. Hammocks are genius! HANDS. DOWN.

Just a Little Tidbit from the Reader's Forum

Everyday in BYU's student newspaper, there is a section called the Reader's Forum where readers write in about previous articles or pertinent issues. This is what the Forum is INTENDED to be. But it is NOT what actually happens. Instead, the Reader's Forum has become a source of entertainment for hundreds of Daily Universe readers. Today's article about Saved By The Bell, the television show from the 90s, made me laugh out loud in the library. I will share it with you. (And I'm putting it in quotations so as not to cite it as mine. Because it's not.)

MORALLY CORRUPT

"It has come to my attention through reading two recent letters to the editor ("Saved by the Bell," March 6 and, "The shorter the better," October 3,2008) that some students at BYU believe it is acceptable to derive moral lessons from episodes of the television series, "Saved by the Bell." I am extremely troubled by this mode of thinking. "Saved by the Bell," or SBTB, as it is know to the extreme followers of the show, is morally corrupt. If we use the show as a moral compass, surely we will be led astray.
For example, in an episode titled, "Screech's Woman," Zach cross dresses and tried to make Screech think Zach is in love with him (Season 1, Episode 5). In season 2, episode 5, the "gang" holds a house party when a parent is out of town. Jessie is addicted to caffeine pills in season 2, episode 9. The list goes on and on. Cross dressing? Disobeying our parents? Consuming caffeine? Whatever happened to the essential nature of manhood, honoring thy father and thy mother and condemning all those who dare to sip a Coca-Cola?
I call on all BYU students and alums to boycott any reruns of SBTB and any further use of it as a moral scale. No longer may Zach lead us astray, as he did with his friends on "Day of Detention" when he convinces them all to help get him out of detention. Need I remind you that in the end, rather than freeing Zach, everyone winds up in detention (season 4, episode 8)?"

by Maria Miles
East Walpole, Mass.

Here and now, I offer my congratulations and my gratitude to the author of this letter to the editor. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. And even though I am 146% sure that she is being totally sarcastic, I am still just as grateful for the laugh. So here's to you and your sarcasm, Maria Miles of East Walpole, Massachusetts.