july review: the lake, harry potter, and american idol tour

so july is basically over

and

hobby lobby already has christmas set up - that stresses me out

it tells my brain the year is over

and i've yet to figure out my plans for school in 2012

really, i need to figure a lot out.

ANYWAY

...now for my foto-review of recent events:

this is B...and me:

me and b were good friends

back in our byu days

and still are

really, he's one of the few i'm still in touch with

we relate on a lot of things in life

i miss him.

THOUGH

now i'm overly excited

because B is getting MARRiED!!!

to miss kelli lebaron...

they are a perfect match

(i hope she doesn't mind me snagging her foto)

and

they've asked me to be in the wedding

which is perfect

because i wasn't planning on missing it anyway.

so...november 5th is the big day

i already have my flight to Salt Lake

and my dress

purchased.

and can't hardly wait for this reunion

and happy times.

my first time back to utah in

3 1/2 years.

other july events...

THE END CAME

6 hours of Harry Potter

Part I and Part II

we all just left ever more disappointed

that Hogwarts is not real.

my sister, Cinnamon, and her kids were in town

we spent a day at lake lanier

the water made me miss my view of the beaches

in Puerto Rico and Barbados

and how i wished i could live like that forever

right on the water.

i did not document my evening at the Fox Theater in Atlanta

for Fiddler on the Roof,

but i did get something from the

american idol 2011 tour concert!

it was a very fun night

and full of  s t e l l a r  talent

all i had was a lil dinky camera, so the fotos are not up to par...

singing celo green's "forget you"

lauren alaina and her new hit single "like my mother does"

scotty mcreery

i had to capture the ONLY jacob lusk fan in the audience.. HA!

he came on right after james durbin (fotos below)

everybody was up and going wild for james

...and then the disco lights came on

jacob came out...

and only one person was really into it.

james durbin rockin out in the crowd

i thought he did the best

of course, he did sing Muse

and i love Muse.

i wish i had some fotos of stefano langone

he was my crush in the beginning

(paul mcdonald being the other - LOVEhim)

though it seems he's come out of his shell a bit

because he had half his clothes off through his performances!

believe me, no one was complaining.

mine and ryan's happy face

i left craving more live music

too bad there are very few shows coming up

that i'm interested in at least.

we made homemade spaghetti sauce with some of our tomatoes

...we cut up some...

and then mom went out for more to add to it...

and look!

my first sunflower bloomed!

we have quite a few more now.

and bigger

:)

april showers bring may flowers, may flowers bring june bugs

i had an early start today.

mamita and papi needed to be at the airport at the crack-o-dawn.

it got me to work extra-sunshiny early.

and..i'm in a great mood!

interesting.

work is going well.

i enjoy my new job.

i'm writing internet articles on all kinds of pest control.

you name it.

i'm learning...a ton!

i had a hair update.

always rejuvenating!

fotos to come.

kevin has his ViSA INTERViEW pending for june 22nd.

july...are you here  y e t ? ? ? ! !

july = friends, family, love

london, my bffl, is coming. prego tummy and all!

nate will be here...for a day :)

kevin! - nuff said

and cinnamon & kids may be coming too to meet kevin.

i'm going downtown today after work to see

LiZ FACE!

er, elizabeth harwood

one down-to-earth, intelligent and talented lady!

we met working for efy - wrote each other on our missions - and now

*happy reunion*

 mom and dad are in AZ

visiting familia for the g's anniversary.

it's going to be weird having the whole house to myself.

for a week. 

 

3.05.2011

wow, march.

ALREADY

wasn't it JUST new years?

(side note: right now my mother is singing me the anthem for

Chihuahua, Mexico

which is rather hilarious!)

she's proving her point that although she's losing her memory

and her medication is making her memory WORSE...

today she's asked 4 times if i'm working this weekend...she forgets names and short term stuff

she can still sing EVERY verse of the

mexican national anthem

AND

the one for the state of Chihuahua (where she grew up)

"...VIVA CHIHUAHUA VIVA CHIHUAHUA!!! TIERRA QUE SABIA CARINO..."

...she's still going...

this week and next are the end of the term for me.

* i have homework assignments

 * a research paper

* a final project in psychology

* and two tests

all weighing on my mind right now

because they're due/on monday.

and here i am on my blog.

i did complete my taxes though!

i made a goal to file them before march.

so i'm a few days behind...

but still feeling accomplished.

i only get a lousy $260 back.

but what can i expect when my parents claim me dependant,

and i only worked 5.5 months in the last year?

i'll count my blessings!

you know, i used to want nothing more than being completely independant.

but boy do i love the perks of living at home!

i have no shame. i will enjoy this while i can.

i have my dad's health insurance.

free rent.

free food.

i can save my money.

and enjoy the company of my parents.

you know, as a teenager,

i couldn't WAIT to be away from home and my parents.

i'd rather be with my friends over my family

ANY DAY

but i'm over that.

over the years i've realized that family is more important.

i love my friends,

but i keep re-learning that friends come and go.

some through time, d i s t a n c e, or differences.

sometimes you may even feel you have NO friends...

yet family are the ones that are always there.

...family is forever...

and i love that!

once up on a time i couldn't wait to get away,

but now i'm cherishing this time i have with my parents...

because i know it will probably never happen again.

i also regret the times i treated my family terribly

due to my own personal issues.

i would blame them and avoid them

and be angry

but look who's still my #1 fan

and still loving me to no end...despite it all

my fam!

i love them.

and am grateful to call them mine.

my further news updates:

1. stake conference tonight and tomorrow. rumor has it the "Conyers Stake" will be formed.

changes will be made...sad, but this means the church is still growing growing growing!

2.  i'm no longer in the YSA branch here...back to the home ward, i feel much better there

 3.  next week i'll finish up final exams.

then i think i'll see about getting a second job.

i need to save up as much as i can.

 4. kevin and i have a skype date tomorrow

:)

we take what we can get.

i liked these words of wisdom ...

"All blame is a waste of time.  

No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame him, it will not change you. The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off you when you are looking for external reasons to explain your unhappiness or frustration. You may succeed in making another feel guilty about something by blaming him, but you won't succeed in changing whatever it is about you that is making you unhappy."

-Wayne Dyer-

 “People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are.

I don’t believe in circumstances.

The people who get on in this world are the people who get up

and look for the circumstances they want,

and, if they can’t find them, make them.”

-George Bernard Shaw-

elder baron

yesterday

i was having a

v e r y

bad day.

very.

the climax of a

very bad streak actually.

an email from a friend today helped me see things a little better.

coming from my dear jeffrey who is living in ghana, africa

and has been for the last year and a half (on his mish)

he reminds me:

(this is after listening to my pathetic perspective and current mood, he has been one of the

few in my life that i tell EVERYTHING to...believe me, there are very few and none of which live anywhere close to me)

brief pause for foto:

me & jeff have shared a lot.

even though i feel i've been a crap-ball to him lately,

he's always a good egg.

and a blessing in my life in so many ways.

ok, so

his words:

"...things can really freakin suck sometimes..(yes, you can already tell this is jeff talking)..even a lot of the time. but look what things are really great in your life right now. you have your parents there to give hugs to whenever you want. you have food....real food. you might not appreciate that one like i do, but, OHH, you have real food. tuna fish sandwich. hamburger. steak. pizza. pasta. anything. that stuff makes me happy when ive got it. dont take it for granted. youve got a job. a steady source of income. income that allows you to progress. to buy new things. clothes. music. gifts. schooling. gas. that provides steadiness and sanity, a source of income. you're in school, it might not be easy and quite stressful....but its progression. its making yourself a better, smarter person. an investment. you're healthy. at least to my knowledge, you're not dying...in fact you're quite busy. and so many other things. even, in may, you will have the temple right there. so that you can practically live in it.

(side note: i had joked that i wish i lived in the temple just so i could have peace in my every day) 

basically, you have so so SO much to be happy about whit. too much. its okay to feel bad about things and be overcome by stress. but try and let it pass and remember how much youve been blessed. you might not have everything, but you've got a lot more than most. you have love all around you. you even have kevin. that is reason alone to be happy and stay happy.

i understand where you're coming from and a touch of what your going thru, so these words might not mean much, and im sorry. its all i can do really. "happiness is the object and design of our existence" and if we're not happy, then we need to change and try to be..."

 

there was more in the email than that.

i only selected an excerpt.

i'm blessed with this friendship.

and i really appreciate his reminder.

especially when i think of him being in africa

and all the people he must see that have MUCH less than me.

or most of us.

not even a tuna fish sandwich!

( i love tuna )

or parents.

we often take so much for granted.

i feel selfish.

yet grateful.

i should be happier than i feel.

thankyou, elder baron. 

p.s. - jeff likes to say "fake it to make it" - but my operation "make me happy" is already in sway...

kind of.

changes will be made.  

so this is the new year....

shaun, jake, nate and i went to downtown atlanta to watch the PEACHdrop!

we enjoyed our first hour of the new year on a downtown rooftop

i was sick and doped up on meds,
but we all agree that so far....2011 is the BEST YEAR EVER!

now...reviewing my past year

i've decided to post

the

*whitneylaurentutt2010BESTOF*

now...remember...i spent the first half of my year in puerto rico

and barbados - in a different life/world

and really NOT in the loop of anything going on

so my best of....is just that

MINE.

best book

in this case...series...

i couldn't put them down.

maybe i'm mainstream.

but i can't wait for the movies!

'nuff said.

top 2010 new albums WORTH my listening to

LCD Soundsystem

This Is Happening

and

Arcade Fire

The Suburbs

other noteworthy albums of the year:

She & Him: Volume Two

(Zooey Deschanel & M. Ward...if you didn't know, CLICK ME and know)

Vampire Weekend: Contra

 Camila: Dejarte de Amar

Aventura: the Last                     Gotan Project: Tango3.0

Sufjan Stevens: The Age of Adz

**MOVIES**

for me

my 2010

F A V O R I T E

for best all around

great cast.

classy.

intense.

intelligent.

made me want to see it AGAIN...

i loved it.

i'm not a movie-goer every weekend.

mainly because it's so dagum expensive these days.

but i also enjoyed these from the year...

...i cried more than i wanted...it had an unexpected ending.

i love my comic book movies!

and i am a scarlett johansson fan.

her and angelina jolie are my chick faves.

yes, i am a fan!

loved the books.

&

watch the movies.

i thought this was the cutest warm fuzzy girly movie!

HARRY POTTER 7 would probably be up here, but i still haven't seen it.

lame, i know!

and honestly, i can't even remember all the movies i saw this year to make this list.

2010 was a great year for me.

remembering great moments...

...my family i left in puerto rico

...my last day on the mish in puerto rico

coming home to see my family after 18 months...

my sister, Tamaron, got married in the Mesa, AZ temple

i went to Colombia to visit mi amorcito

and meet his family...

fast forward a bit...

the year ended great...

my whole family together for Christmas.

and a reunion of friends...

...happy times had by all.

i'm still compiling my "hopes and dreams for the future"/goals list for 2011...

as of now...

• budget better...save up/buy a car
• and a new digital SLR
• speak slower (when i talk to people @ work on the phone, many tell me i talk too fast..ha..i'm working on it!)
• be more social...you may laugh, but it's true. if you know me, you know what i'm talking about
• continue my education: get back to school/get good grades... and read more
• move west when kevin gets stateside and be :) con el amor de mi vida
• BODA!
• not so much lose weight...but get in shape..more exercise regularly!
• practice piano more
• get some paintings done
• put my art to good use...get some $$ out of it
• manage my time better - don't procrastinate as bad :)
• notice needs of others more - quit living so selfishly
• don't complain
• go back to Puerto Rico to visit
• improve guitar skills

...my list is growing on the daily...

dream big, right?!

HAPPYNEWYEAR!