Truth and Beauty

Baby, I love you. But you make me huge.

2012-01-26T12:44:00.002-07:00

I don't drive much. Jerry always drives. He prefers it that way, and so do I.

The result of this is that when I do drive, my skills have greatly decreased. This is especially true for parking. My parking skills are really quite embarrassing. I am that girl in the parking lot who re-parks 4 times, during which 4 separate sets of cars think they are going to get my spot until they realize that I am just an idiot.

The other night I was running late to teach a voice lesson on campus. Thankfully the lesson was at 7:00, which is also the time when all the parking becomes public. So I thought it would be no-big-deal for me to try parking in the staff parking in front of the HFAC. Well there must have been some big performance that night because at 6:58 the parking lot was already full with a dozen more cars roaming for spots. I was super upset because I was going to be late for my student. By some miracle I saw someone pulling out of a spot right in front of me! As soon as they left the spot I realized why.. they weren't leaving, they just couldn't fit in the parking space: the cars on either side of the space were both over the lines, making it just barely big enough for a car, but not for openable car doors.

I don't know what confidence came over me, but I decided I would try to fit in the spot. On my first try I was able to get into the spot! I was truly shocked at myself. My car door opened just enough for me to be able to get out, and there was just a few extra inches between my car, my body, and the car to the left of mine for me to be able to squeeze my body through.

I taught my lesson. I practiced this aria.

When I went back to my car the car to left of mine left and had been replaced by another. There were still cars scowering the parking lot. Someone even spotted me walking and followed me to my spot. When I saw my car I was horrified. The car to the left of mine had literally parked 18 inches away from mine. I knew there was little chance that I would be able to fit between the cars, but with the car waiting to take my parking spot, I felt some performance anxiety and decided to just try(since it worked out when I parked a few hours earlier). I was successful in getting my 39-weeks pregnant body between the cars, but once my car door was open, it was physically impossible for me to get in the car.

So I decided I would try going through the passenger's side and climb over to the driver's seat. When I started to walk around the car I could see that there were 3 cars behind the car waiting for my spot. Thankfully, there was plenty of room for me to be able to get into the passenger's side. Once I got in the car, I realized that the "climb" over to the driver's side is not something a person in my condition should ever really attempt. It took pushing and leaning the seat all the way back, and adjusting the steering wheel all the way up to allow for there to be enough room for my huge, inflexible body to get over to the driver's side. By the time I got everything back to normal and pulled out of my spot there were even more cars waiting for me.

I am used to having cars wait on me because of my lack of parking ability, not because of my lack of fitting-into-my-own-car ability.

The L-Word

2012-01-20T10:54:00.003-07:00

Before Jerry and I ever liked each other I would drop by his apartment every once in a while. This was because it was my brother's old apartment so I knew some of the guys (namely, Patrick). One day while I was there I happened to mention to the group of boys that, "I will never tell any boy I 'love' him until we are engaged." It was true. I felt so strongly about that word.. love. I didn't just want to toss it around!

Fast forward a couple months. Jerry and I had been dating for about a month. We spent every waking moment possible together. And when we were both at work we would IM each other constantly. So really the only time we spent apart was when we were sleeping. I really liked him. a lot. I was scared. I kept on remembering my creed/goal/standard to never say "I love you." And I wanted to break it sooo bad. But there was a fundamental problem. Jerry was present when I told that group of boys about my feelings about that love word. I had no idea if he was paying attention when it happened, or if he even remembered it. But in my mind I knew that if he remembered and I dropped the l-bomb on him, he would think that I wanted to get married.

We started saying stuff to each other like, "I just think you are really cool." But with all this meaning. It was juvenile. But, for me, it was what I had to do to get by without the l-word.

After a Saturday full of swimming and having fun, we went to Doc's pizza. In a college town full of cheap places to eat with sub-par food, this place takes the cake for the worst food. Of course, to Jerry it meant endless helpings of pizza, cinnamon buns, and rootbeer, so the quality of the food was not important. I was not very impressed, but accepted the fact that Jerry was indeed a bachelor and this place was good to him.

Although the food did not please me, the entertainment did. There were a few other tables of people there. And they were all filled with.. for lack of a better word.. white trash. We had lots of fun people-watching and commenting on odd behaviors. While laughing at one particularly funny observance I made, Jerry said, mid-laugh, "Oh, Danielle, I love you." His tone was very jovial and he said it in a way that you would say to any person you thought was funny.

But my mind raced. I stopped laughing and immediately snapped back, "What did you just say?" (I said it with extra emphasis on the t of 'what')

Jerry stopped laughing. He looked at me and gave me a smirk. "I love you."

My heart stopped. I thought I was going to throw-up. (It's hard to say whether it was from food poisoning or extreme shock) Without saying anything, I ran to the ladies' room.

I remember looking in the mirror. My cheeks were red from spending the whole day in the sun. I wasn't wearing any makeup. My hair was frizzy, wild, and smelled like chlorine. Did he really love me? Or was he just clarifying what he just said? Did he remember that day when I told about my feelings about the l-word? If he did, does that mean he wants to marry me? How many girls had he told this to before? It seemed so easy for him! Maybe it was just because he was simply clarifying what he said...

I splashed some water on my face and tried making my hair look half-way presentable. Whether he loved me or not, Jerry deserved at least not to be seen in public with a crazy girl.. even if it was only by people with less than 12 teeth..

I decided to play it cool when I went and sat back down with Jerry. As if nothing significant had just happened, because for all I knew, Jerry thought that nothing had.

We went back to our apartment complex where there was a group of people organizing a game of Fugitive. Jerry and I went into his apartment and told some friends to come get us when they were actually ready to play. We sat on the apartment couch. All of a sudden it hit me. I had to do it. I had to say it. I might burst if I didn't. I started shaking my legs slightly to get rid of some of the adrenaline that was suddenly pumping through my body. We just sat in silence. I felt like my lungs were being compressed, and that my heart was pumping out of my body. I was so nervous. I finally said, "I want to say something."

"Okay.." he said.

"Um... Jerry... Jeremiah, Iloveyou." And then I puffed out a big gush of air.

He gave a slight chuckle and said, "I love you, too." And then, "Is that why you've been shaking?"

"Yes! You tricked me into saying it! I was so nervous!"

"What? How did I trick you into saying that?"

"At the restaurant, you told me that you loved me! But I couldn't tell if you meant it or not. And I don't want you to think that we have to get married or anything. I just really like you, and I think it is really love, and I thought you deserved to know," I blurted out.

We were then interrupted by Craig opening the door to get us for the game. The game lasted for a while. It was a lot of fun. Jerry and I stuck together. We were both a little nervous about what just happened, but we didn't talk about it. Later that night when Jerry kissed me goodnight he added, "I love you."

I opened my apartment door. I must have looked terrible. My whole perception of what I thought love was was completely upside-down. I was confused. But I was also so happy. My roommate Audrey looked at me and said, "Is there something wrong? Did you and Jerry fight? You were both acting weird during Fugitive."

"No, actually, there is nothing wrong. In fact, it's the opposite. We told each other 'I love you.'"

I think Audrey tried to summon up some excitement for me. But I think she was mostly still weirded out. Every milestone in Jerry and mine's relationship never seemed to impress her. She now claims that she knew we were going to get married.

I have since found out that Jerry did remember me preaching about my philosophy on saying love. He claims that he was confident that he could break me of that. Also, he says that when he told me “I love you”(the second time) in Doc’s that he said it because he meant it, but he also said it out of jest because he knew that I didn’t want to say it. That little punk! I hate him.

Now we tell each other "I love you" at least a few dozen times every day. I think once our kids are old enough they are going to be so embarrassed with our frequent use of the phrase.

Baby Stuff

2012-01-05T09:59:00.003-07:00

I am (hopefully)less than 4 weeks away from being a mom! I keep on waiting for the "nesting" to set in that everyone talks about, but it's not. So I have forced myself to make a list of stuff I have and stuff I need.

Stuff I have:
baby clothes
stroller
car seat
diaper pail
bassinet
pack-and-play
breast pump
thermometer
baby carrier
a few blankets
one swaddling velcro/cloth contraption
small boppy pillow

Stuff I don't have, which I need:
diapers/wipes
baby bath(our shower or sink won't work)
baby socks

bottles

pacifiers

sheets for bassinet

changing pad

diaper rash cream

baby medicines (ibuprofen, gas drops)

snot sucker bulb thing

baby soap, shampoo

hand sanitizer

Stuff I will personally need, some of which are a little disturbing:
nursing bra/garments

nursing pads
lanolin cream

thick sanitary pads

diaper bag(I was planning on getting a big purse, but I haven't found one that I like yet)

Okay, so now I need your help. Is there anything that seems superfluous to get? Is there anything that I missed?

On being poor: retraction

2012-01-02T17:42:00.003-07:00

Sorry about the last post. It was written in the middle of the night due to pregnancy insomnia, so I wasn't thinking straight. I was trying to go for a funny and sarcastic tone, but I have been informed (by my husband) that my tone did not come across that way.

We are so blessed to have what we have and we are excited about all the opportunities that we've been given. I really have never been happier. So if any of you out there were concerned or worried, please don't be. This is a fun and wonderful adventure in our lives!

On being poor

2012-01-02T04:55:00.003-07:00

Jer and I have been married almost three years. When we were first married, we were super poor. We used all of our wedding money on rent, and returned tons of stuff to walmart and used that money for food. Then Jerry graduated and started working full-time. We weren't so poor and we started to pay off loans. Now Jerry is a graduate student and we are having a baby. Let me put it this way-- we have never been this poor. And I am hoping we will never have to be this poor again.

Believe me, I am not asking for sympathy. For some reason I find the whole thing disturbingly funny and interesting. Maybe I am just going crazy? Some people would probably find this whole situation stressful and depressing. But not us! (okay, maybe a little) I think we both know better financial days are ahead.

I mean, really, things can only get better.

Barbra & Liza

2011-07-14T14:52:00.003-06:00

One thing you should know about me: I love musicals.

If you don't know this about me.. you are probably a stranger reading my blog.. and that is really cool! (and weird considering I only write in it a few times a year)

I don't pretend to know everything about musicals, but I do know more than most.

So I am really embarrassed to admit something...

I just discovered how amazing Liza Minneli and Barbra Streisand are.

Sad.

True, Cabaret has some shocking twists that I find a little too ''pushy''.. but Liza is thrilling.

True, it is a sin that it took me 22 years to see Funny Girl.. but Barbra was still in it, and she was perfect.

liza singing "maybe this time"

Barbra singing "don't rain on my parade"

Update

2011-04-21T08:17:00.003-06:00

I have no idea what direction this post is going to take. So hold on to your seats!

School: I still have one year left. I got into the School of Music 2 years late... and it is a 4 year program which I am doing in 3 years and everyone thinks I'm crazy. I think I'm crazy too. But I love doing what I love every day. Jerry got into the MPA program at BYU! This is a big deal. I could not be prouder of him.

BYU Singers: We went to Chicago in March to sing at the ACDA convention. It was a great experience. We had a lot of free time. I did a lot of shopping and eating. The coolest part of the whole experience was getting stopped in the middle of Chicago and being asked if I was in Singers. We worked really hard on some crazy music and did it justice. Now we are leaving next Tuesday to go on tour to Colorado. It definitely is one of the least exotic places that Singers has toured to, but I'm sure it will still be a rewarding experience. I don't know if I will do Singers again next year (I was in this same dilemma last year too, ha) but if I do they will be going to England or China.

Dreams: Yes I still have crazy dreams all the time. In fact, last week I was sick and was only able to get really light sleep, and woke up every 15 minuets. So I had nights with dozens of crazy dreams.

Church: I have been choir director for almost a year, but I was just released. I was kind of sad to leave because my choir was just getting to be really good! I was finally not very nervous any more, and I was able to get more done in rehearsal and teach the choir how to make a really beautiful sound. This past Sunday we performed 3 pieces for Easter. I felt the Spirit so strongly as I was conducting and could feel it guiding me and the members of the choir. It was an edifying experience that I will never forget.

In addition to being director, Jeremiah and I have been primary teachers for the 5/6 year olds. We grew to love our class from last year, and were sad to see them move up at the year change, but we are learning to love our new class just as much. It is amazing what children can teach us. Our new class has 8 kids. EIGHT. They can be a hyper, busy bunch, but the moments when they really listen are so precious.

Marriage: (I give you permission to skip this paragraph if you are queasy) Jerry and I had our 2 year anniversary a few months ago! It is still weird to me that I am a married woman, but it is even weirder to think that there was a time when I wasn't married. I find something new to love about Jerry almost every day. I have found my life with him so far fulfilling in a way that I could have never imagined before. I feel so blessed that God has put this wonderful man in my life who loves me more than I feel that I deserve.

Future: This summer Jerry and I are both going to work 12 hour days 5 days a week! For 8 of those hours we will be together, which makes it much more bearable. Since Jerry starts grad school in the Fall and he isn't allowed to have a job, we figured we need all the money we can get. We still wont be able to avoid loans (unless we magically earn $50,000 this summer) but we want to avoid debt as much as possible! We are planning on doing a trip this summer, but haven't made any plans yet. If you hear of any cheap flights from SLC to ANYWHERE please share!

Ha! Now I don't owe any of you cookies.

BUSY

2011-03-15T16:41:00.002-06:00

Okay peeps, I really want to have a blog. It just seems that being a full time music student and having a part-time job does not easily permit this. In a month and a half I promise that I will start doing posts once a month. If I do not have a new post up by May 18, 2011 then I will owe everyone who asks cookies.

Help?

2010-11-18T11:48:00.002-07:00

For the past few months I have had a recurring dream. In my dream I am looking for something in our apartment, or I am cleaning when I find a new room. Sometimes the new room is a complete surprise, and other times it seems like I knew it was there but I was too lazy to see what it was or what was inside of it. The room is always furnished. The furniture is usually pretty old, but always has a lot of character. The furniture isn't really my style, but in my dream I always think that Jerry would really like it (although I don't know if that is completely true in real life). Sometimes I find a whole collection of rooms. Sometimes there are even double chocolate chip cookies left in the room by the landlord.

These dreams are extremely pleasant. I wake up really excited only to really depressed about 10 seconds later when I remember it wasn't real.

Does anyone know what these dreams mean?! And why have I never had them up until a few months ago, and now I have them all the time?

Thanks, Jaden

2010-08-18T10:44:00.004-06:00

A dream:

I am a young asian black kid. I am a trained fighter. Basically I am a ninja, stuck in a smaller body. I have spent months in a little canoe with some people I am protecting from The Bad Guys. We are living off of fish I catch with my bare hands or teeth. I also can create storms that make the fish jump into our boat. This is what I have to resort to when I am so weak that I can't do it with my teeth or hands. In addition to the people I am protecting, I am keeping track of a magical sphere that I also have to hide from the people I am protecting. My conscious is growing weaker because it is so straining to remember to protect the people from danger, but also to protect the sphere from danger and from the people. I know my task and I am going to be successful.

I am now myself: Danielle Cenatiempo(not Hale, yet). I have a task and I know I am going to be successful. I have to take a trip to Hell. I don't die, I just need to go there and face the devil. All I have to do to get into Hell is to get past the bouncer at the door. Easy.

Hell is an infinitely long building. It is comprised of rooms of various lengths but all the same narrow width and height. To get into each room you have to enter through the previous room's door. The first room was very long and had tons of people. They were all partying and laughing and seemed happy on the surface, but you could tell they were sad. I wanted to stay and be friends with some of them and help them be truly happy, but I knew I had to get through to the next room. It took me months to get to the other side of the room to get to the door to proceed to the next room. But this didn't upset me. I knew by the time I met the devil, it would be the right time, but I needed to get as far as I could into Hell before I met the devil.

Over the next period of time I proceeded through more rooms. In each room the people just seemed sadder and sadder. Not even trying to cover up their sadness with laughing. And not even trying to suppress their sadness with alcohol. There was also less people in each room, mostly because people were so sad that they forgot that they could even go to another room. In my fourth or fifth room I saw a man who looked like me. He was trying to get to the next room. And he looked happy. We became friends. His name was Jerry. After months of journeying through Hell we discovered that we were on the same mission. We both needed to face the devil. We started to fall in love-- and we got married(well as married as we could get in Hell).

Alas, after years of trekking through Hell we arrived at the last room. We knew it was the last room because there were no people and it was wider and taller than the rest of the rooms. All the rooms up to this point had different themes i.e.: red, school, Moroccan, glitter, my grandma's house, or metal. This room was like a big, old, abandoned warehouse with lots of broken glass and splintering wood(which if you know much about me, know that I am pathetically scared of both-- but that is something for another post). So basically, I guess this really was my personal Hell. Jerry and I knew that we were going to have to face the devil in this room. But we also knew that we had time to prepare. We started to train ourselves to fight and to resist mental penetration (a la Harry Potter). After we felt that we had done everything within our power to prepare for the Devil, we had a visitor. It was a little asain balck kid who seemed wise beyond his years. He gave us a glowing sphere and told us it was the key to defeat the devil. Then he disapered.

The day came for us to fight the fight the devil. She was a woman. We could hear her laughing. When she finally came into sight we were surprised to see that she just looked like an average, middle aged, working woman. I was defeated pretty quickly, but was still very aware. I could hear the devil and Jerry fighting for days. I remembered that Jerry needed the glowing sphere. I tried to enter his mind to remind him of where we had hid it. But instead of entering his mind, I accidentally entered the devil's mind and told her. When Jerry realized the devil knew where the sphere was, it was a race to see who could get to it first. Jerry did.

I woke up.

Artichoke Chicken

2010-06-24T12:53:00.003-06:00

Near the beginning of high school, my parents jumped on the high protein and vegetable diet train and I was forced to partake as well(unless I wanted to spend all of my babysitting money on food). They were advocates of the Swarzbein principle. Along with this "principle" came many books, some including some recipes. There was a recipe for "Artichoke Chicken Sauce" which we loved. My mom made it often and recruited me to start making it. I would experiment a little with the flavors and soon enough my mom had dubbed me official Artichoke Chicken Sauce maker(I don't really think it was because it was so spectacular when I made it, I think this was just an evil parenting technique).

I have made the recipe so often that it has kind of warped into a totally new thing. And I just have to share it. It is too good to just keep to myself.

For 4 generous servings:

1 T butter
1 large onion, sliced thinly
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
2 1/2 T Dijon mustard
1 lb chicken breasts
1- 1 1/2 c marinated artichoke hearts
1 roasted red pepper
1/2 c- 1 c evaporated milk or heavy whipping cream(use more if you are using as a sauce, and less if eating plain)
2 t lemon juice or zest
Dash of Cayenne pepper(..or more... ,or omit)
1 T Dried basil
black pepper and salt

1. Coat chicken with 1 T Dijon mustard and black pepper. Set aside to marinate.
2. Roast the red pepper, peel skin off, and cut into 1 inch strips. (If peppers are $1 or more, just buy a jar of roasted red peppers which are by the pickles. It is much cheaper, and a lot less work)
3. On Med heat, melt butter in skillet and add onions, 1/2 t salt, and 1/2 t black pepper. Saute until very tender then add garlic. Cook with garlic for about 3o seconds.
4. Add artichoke hearts along with a few T of the marinating juice they come packed in. Then add 1 1/2 T mustard, cayenne pepper, lemon juice or zest, and basil. Let cook for 3-4 minutes.
5. Grill chicken. Let sit for at least 3 minutes after cooking before cutting.
6. Add evaporated milk to skillet, let cook for about 1 min. Turn off heat and add chicken.
7. Serve over spaghetti or angel hair pasta, or plain!

Notes:
When eating plain: I like to add more onions which act kind of like a substitute pasta. I also don't cut up my artichoke hearts(which usually are already quartered) and chop my chicken into large pieces.
When eating with pasta: I like to cut the artichoke hearts into smaller pieces than packed, and cut the chicken into 1/2 inch cubes.
Evaporated milk/ heavy cream: I have been using evaporated milk for a while now. I like it becuase it is less fattening, I can always have in on hand, and it is usually cheaper. If you want to use cream, you can add it sooner and let it cook longer.
Amounts: These amounts are just estimates, I never measure. I probably use more mustard and black pepper than listed, but I am being conservative in my estimates.

Enjoy!

seeing clearly

2010-04-26T15:38:00.002-06:00

Ever since my brother started doing window cleaning I notice windows. Well, I notice dirty windows. It is pretty much a curse. Everywhere I look there is dirt and dust all gettin up in windows' business, and it is gross. I am grateful to go to a university that cleans their windows. I am very ungrateful to live in an apartment complex that has more important things to do than clean their windows, and they don't even do those more important things! And this brings me to another subject. WE ARE MOVING. Two blocks away, that is. But hey! No more crummy management and grumpy neighbors who yell at us and leave notes on our car!

Out with the old and in with the new!

2010-04-01T16:22:00.003-06:00

This past month has been a pretty eventful one in the Hale home.

Jerry (unfortunately) got news of the MPA program. Even though it wasn't what we wanted, we are happy to know so that we can start coming up with more life plans! Well at least I am. Sometimes I just sit back and think about the type of decisions I have to make compared to most 21 year old women, and it makes me feel a little too grown-up.

We sold our contract!! And hopefully got the apartment we wanted, although that is still forthcoming news.

But that means we are moving out of our ward. :( Which makes me sad, if you couldn't tell by the frowny face. We have been in the same ward since we were first married and I LOVE our bishop. I think we will start going to a family ward though, so that will be a nice change. And maybe I can go under the radar and NOT be called as ward choir director. Although I have a feeling that I will continue to be called as one until I enjoy it...

I had my last Singers concert of the year. Being in Singers has been a HUGE commitment. I knew being in it meant 6 hours of rehearsal a week. plus 12 or so concerts. But I had no idea the amount of physical, emotional, and spiritual commitment it was going to be. I have been seriously debating whether I want to do it next year since it will be a tour year, and will be even harder. but I think I will. But don't quote me on that.

Only two more weeks until vocal juries and finals! Then we will move into our new apartment and I will start Spring term (which I found out today that I got more grants for, THANK YOU OBAMA).

Sorry. My posts usually seem to be lists. And I know that's boring.

Auditions

2010-03-04T16:49:00.003-07:00

Just a little over an hour ago I had my audition for both the spring and fall operas(at BYU).

Usually after an audition I can remember every little puny thing I did wrong, or the expression on someone's face, or that my accompanist missed a note. Usually when I perform my senses are super heightened, and I can commit everything I see/do to memory.

Today? Well, that a whole 'nuther bucket of worms! I cannot remember a SINGLE thing that happened. Okay, that's not entirely true. But I only have shadows of memories. I remember that I made up words at one point, but I don't remember where or how long... or how bad I was at making up the German.

I wish it was just a fluke that this happened. But it wasn't. I think for the first time ever(or at least in recent memory) I was totally blinded by anger. Just a few minutes before my audition I was at work, and a lot of things happened that made me really upset. This isn't very out of the ordinary, but today I just let those things get to me. So before my audition I found a private place to pray that God would take away my anger and forgive me for being so angry. But by the end of my prayer my heart was still pounding unnaturally hard and my eyes were still blurry—I wasn't willing to stop being angry.

I am so glad that the Lord is so forgiving, and that He can help me to be more humble and forgiving. But I also know that the Lord cannot change our hearts unless we let him—and I wasn't letting Him.

I don't ever want to be angry like that again. I am glad I experienced that anger in such a memorable way so that I will be able to easily recall the situation and feelings so I can try to avoid them in the future.

So I probably didn't get the role which I was hoping for. But I did get a greater understanding of the Lord's hand in my life. And I learned that choosing to be angry is destructive.

I'm Legal

2010-02-18T12:15:00.003-07:00

That's right. Yesterday I turned 21.

It was an awesome day! Full of many loving, thoughtful surprises! I was served breakfast in bed, then I skipped both of my morning classes. I went to work where I was showered with various forms of chocolates and 1 Izzy. Then I went to Singers where, traditionally, 3 people talked about how great I am, and it made me feel very special. Then I worked some more and then I treated myself to wrap from L & T, and it was incredible. Then I got ready for opera scenes, and then I performed! It was awesome! We had at least 100 kids there, so the energy was amazing and they all had such great reactions. I am excited to do it again on Friday. Then Jerry and I went out for some steak dinners. And then I came home and opened my presents... which were all clothes, which is good, since that is all I wanted! (O, and I also bought myself a French Art Song book which I needed/wanted).

Now back to the normal grind. I have a midterm today for a class that I have skipped more often than not, and for which I hae never done the reading for.. so wish me LUCK, because I wont be getting a good grade with knowledge, or hard work.

We made it!

2010-02-16T10:39:00.003-07:00

Sunday was a great day! We didn't do anything "official" to celebrate our anniversary, we just did everyday things but called them special. i.e. I made dinner(although I will admit, it was the bomb) and Jerry played me some songs on his guitar. Mostly, it is so wonderful to know that we will be together for eternity.

On Monday I made Jerry a Brazilian dinner. I have spent weeks trying to find authentic recipes, but I pretty much found to do things really authentically I would have to fly down to Brazil and get all of their ingredients. I ended up making:
Brazilian rice
meat
lemonade
and pastels

I also got the stuff to make advacado shakes, which we have yet to make.

Some people have said that the first year of marriage is the hardest. If that is the case, then the rest of our lives are going to be a complete breeze! No, really, the people who say the first year is the hardest are probably lying. I bet the hardest is the 39th year or something, so I am waiting.

Relief!

2010-02-02T16:46:00.001-07:00

Jeremiah is finished with his MPA application! I am a happier, more pleasant person to be around.

Child.

2010-01-29T09:19:00.003-07:00

Last night Jerry decided to take off his sweater.

First, he got his arms out of the sleeves and then started spinning around singing, "Helicopter!"

Then the sweater started to creep up his body and eventually over his eyes.

Lastly, Jerry couldn't see and fell to the ground in terror as the helicopter turned from friend to foe.

recent recipes

2010-01-15T11:17:00.004-07:00

Here are a few things I have made over the past few weeks which I got from the internet. (Psh! I am NOT typing out a recipe)

From Food Network:

Giada's Garbonza Bean and Zucchini Salad.
Yum! First off I looooove zucchini, hence my attraction to this recipe. But I do not love zucchini raw, so I cooked it in a tad bit of butter in a pan with a little bit of S & P. I also did not have any red onion so I just cut up a bit of yellow onion really small. I thought it was fabulous and Jerry even said, "This is good, for a salad."

Sunny's Picnic Potato Chicken Salad Cups
This recipe is GOLDEN! The paprika, bacon, and mustard totally make this recipe. I have to admit we did not cupify this recipe, but I am sure the addition of lettuce would make this more fun! Jerry really liked this.

Robin's Chicken Piccata
This did not live up to my expectations. It has tons of my favorite ingredients: artichokes, capers, lemon.. but I must have missed something because it was not too spectacular. Jerry said that he liked that it tasted more light and different that what I usually make. I took the leftovers to school the next day, and they seemed to improve with time, or maybe I was just super hungry.

Melissa's Chicken a l'Orange
This recipe would normally never appeal to me, but one of Jerry's all time favorite meals is orange chicken, so I thought I would give this a try. I used boneless skinless chicken breasts, and since they didn't have skin like the recipe calls for, they did not get crisp. The sauce was Super easy (it has 2 ingredients!) and pretty tasty! Overall it was really good, and since it really only has one ingredient that I normally don't stock, I have a feeling it will be a go to meal from now on.
UPDATE: I forgot to say that after I used the sauce as a glaze for the chicken, then I added some chicken broth and flour to make it a little milder to top the cooked chicken and rice with.

From Our Best Bites:

First off, if you do not know about this site and cook in any shape, way, or form, you need to visit it RIGHT now. Not only do they have simple, practical recipes, but they also have good tutorials on how to do stuff like .. make tortillas(which I almost successfully did).

Stuffed Pizza Rolls
Okay, despite my raving about this site, this recipe (or at least the way I made it) did not turn out very well. I stuffed mine with sausage and cheese, but all the cheese disolved into the bread making it a harder texture.. and then there was no ooey gooey cheese when you bit into them(which is the best part, you know). I still think this is a great idea though, maybe I should try a different crust.

From Recipe Zaar:

This is a great site to explore. I like to just type in 'chicken' or 'banana' and then sort the results by ratings. I have made MANY things from this site

Creamy Cajun Chicken
I really liked this, although I think the only ingredients I actually HAD were chicken and sun dried tomatoes. I had to make my own cajun seasoning, and I had to use milk and butter as a substitute for cream(which of course, is not as good as the real stuff), used a white onion for the green onion, and used whole grain spaghetti instead of linguine. But despite all of that, all 3 of us liked it! Even Daxson! (well at least he was a good pretender). The tomatoes made the sauce way good, but I'm sure when I make it with cream it will be even better!

Italian Soup
I was running low on food supplies last night, but I had italian sausage and some soupy vegetables so I just typed in 'italian soup', and this recipe seemed to have positive feedback. I substituted celery for zucchini(but I woul prefer the later) and did half sausage and half ground turkey to make it a little lighter. I ended up cooking some macaroni noodles separate so that when we reheated the leftovers the noodles wouldn't overcook and get puffy.

If you just read all that, you're crazy.

winter semeter '10

2010-01-12T17:01:00.003-07:00

.. is going to be a challenge!

I am pretty much taking all the same classes, just one level higher (music theory, sight singing, dictation, piano, music civ, Singers, voice lessons). So far, it has already been a challenge for me, and it has only been 7 days of classes. But, I just had my first voice lesson for the semester, and I am super excited for my repertoire this semester!! (can anyone say Carmen aria!??) I even get to sing a music theatre piece, so I am going to sing I'm Not Afraid of Anything from my new Songs for a New World book that Jerry got me for Christmas.

I am very thankful for our electric blanket that was a wedding gift. We only have a window unit in our apartment that is in our family room and takes a long time to warm up all the way to our bedroom. But this morning in my half-awake, half-sleeping state I got nausous/ freaked out by the wireing in it.
.. just thought you would want to know.

Things that made me happy in the past 24 hours
- coming home to a perfectly clean home (yes, Jerry is wonderful)
- I Am Aldolfo from The Drowsy Chaperone
- lifting 3 lb. weights
- crappy ABC family shows
- DD's video of Henry
- groceries
- singing in devotional
- my SOFT, WARM robe. i just love it!
- a canceled class

Christmas Break 2009

2010-01-06T11:30:00.002-07:00

Wow, break seemed to last forever! in the best of ways!

Highlights include:

Getting our car fixed(but not the money that it cost)
Meeting Tobin and Trista's new arrival, Kalan
Getting to make music with all of my Hale in-law siblings
Having at least one super lazy day with Jerry
Driving to and from Arizona with no radio
Driving in snow for 7 hours and seeing hundreds of cars off the road, but not being one of them!
Getting to see Devin, Emily, and Creed
Jerry's new guitar! Thanks, Devin!
Spending all of our time with my parents, who I missed (hiking, eating out, movies, games)
Spending 2 days with all the Hales(minus the Tobin clan) for New Years
Cleaning our apartment and decorating! (it still looks pretty sad, but hey, not as bad as before!)

For the next month Jerry is putting all of his effort into applying for the BYU MPA program. It is one of the best in the nation, and getting a job afterwards is pretty easy , plus it will really help Jerry so he can have a career he will love! What's better than that? If you know me, you know my philosophy is to never expect anything so that I am never dissapointed. I am going to try to live by this for the next few months, but it so hard to not get my hopes up.

Love, 1 year (and a day) later

2009-12-14T09:15:00.005-07:00

One year ago yesterday Jeremiah officially proposed to me! Of course we already had the temple booked and such, but it was the night I got my very special ring and knew that if Jeremiah was willing to spend X amount of dollars on me, that he wasn't kidding when he said he wanted to marry me and be with ME for eternity!

(happy)

I think the more interesting part of the story is when Jerry asked my father for my hand. I was told the exact words that came out of my dad's mouth were "Why would you want to marry her? She is so crazy!" Wow, thanks for the support, dad. Basically my parents like my husband more than me, but I'm not complaining. I would too if I were them.

stop the demands!

2009-12-08T17:52:00.004-07:00

I have had about 10 complaints in the last month about needing to update my blog. so here you go.

every once in a while I think of something I could potentially write a post on i.e. ducks, Singers, my hatred for music theory classes. But all of those posts would be pretty much horrible for anyone to read, so I will try and stick with happy subject matter.

To pay for December rent Jeremiah and I had to write out separate checks, depleting both of our savings accounts to SINGLE digits. We have been talking about money a lot and trying to come up with solutions, and there are plenty, but our biggest concern is just having enough cash to pay for January's rent.(well, this is sounding like a depressing post, huh?). It has definitely been something we both have been praying about. Today at work Ken called me into his office and told me to shut the door(which always makes me suspect bad news). He then told me that he was going to give me a small raise, and that it was going to be retroactive from September! So basically I am getting a little Christmas bonus! It won't be very much, but it will still help contribute to my bank account and next month's rent!

Little miracles make me happy!

A conversation over burnt chocolate chip pancakes

2009-06-24T13:31:00.002-06:00

D: I feel so bad for the girls in then 14-15 yr. old group at EFY, they are all so cute and all the boys that they are with look like they are 10.

J: Yeah, I feel bad for them too.

D: I remember at that age it seems like only a few boys actually want to have girls as friends, but every girls wants to have guy friends.

J: I don't even remember that period of my life.

D: what, because you had so many...

J: No, because I had no friends.

Evil Baby, Drunk Men

2009-06-05T17:10:00.006-06:00

About once a week I sit down, ready to write another post, but I can't think of anything to write! Yesterday, I recounted a dream to my co-workers, and got the idea that I should post my wacky dreams! I totally understand if you don't read them, I think it will just be fun for me to be able to go back and read them.

So here's the dream:

I had a baby boy, but wasn't quite sure how he got here since I didn't remember being pregnant. He had to go away for a few weeks. The weeks past and I was able to see my baby again. The people who cared for my baby during the weeks told, "You are going to have to put your baby to sleep." I was appalled because you can't put babies to sleep! They are so innocent and precious. The people went on to tell me, "Your baby is going to grow up to be a serial killer, so he needs to be put to sleep." I refused to believe the people and took my baby back. As I am looking at my baby, he get the evilest look on his face, opens his mouth crazy-big, and ATTACKS ME! He was trying to kill me. And I agreed, that my baby was evil.
Then I woke up.

On another note: I went selling with Jeremiah on Memorial Day(this is sadly not a dream). Quickly I realized that I am not cut out for sales, because I am a push-over, and I wanted it to be over as soon as possible. I walked up to a house with its' garage door open, and with the family inside the garage having a Memorial Day celebration(with beer). Grandpa was sitting in the corner singing country/folk songs. I started pitching to the owner, but he was in a contract, so I started to leave and said to Grandpa, "I will miss your singing! It made my day."
"What do you even know about singin, little girl?" sassily says Gramps
"Actually, I am music major, so I think I know a little, and I think you are awesome!"
"Well, I am a professional," lies Grandpa.. he was horrible.
"I believe it!!" I lie.
So after some prodding, he convinces me to sing for him and the others. Usually I would just say no, but I was just buying time so that I didn't have to go knock more houses, so I sang for them. All the while they were cussing under their breaths and grandpa insisted on standing 7 inches from my face and staring right at me.
To make a long story short, I made $40 that day. And not from selling phone service.
That's right. I am a PAID singer.

Just a little shut eye.

2009-04-01T12:57:00.007-06:00

OK: I just want to say 'sorry' for my last entry. I got many complaints about how the point that Jeremiah is the cutest husband ever was, in fact, not proven at all. The point is THAT IT WAS PROVEN IN MY HEART.

hm. So I thought that once Jerry and I were married all problems would be fixed RE: our laziness. This assumption was indeed FALSE. sad, huh? The only redeeming part about all of this is that instead of staying up together until curfew and getting nothing productive done, we now stay up until about 10:30 and get nothing done. So at least we are getting more sleep.

While we are on the topic of sleep. I have a story! I hope it sounds as funny as it really was, but it probably wont(just like my last failed story trying to prove to ya'll how cute jerry is). So I guess I am not quite adjusted to sleeping with a man yet. I mean, we've adjusted in certain ways--like how we both like the covers, who sleeps on what side, and whatnot. But waking up and seeing Jerry right next to me and sometimes even [touching] me kind of takes me off guard. Just the other morning I happened to stir before our alarm went off. There I was half awake, and I hear a little cough next to me. I rolled over quickly and what was there?!??!?! A MAN!!! I screamed. Make fun of me, but that is what I did.
Later that morning when our alarm went off I opened my eyes to see.. WHAT? A MAN!!! staring straight at me!! like 3 inches away from my face!! Now some may say that that is a tender moment and that I should cherish it("I love waking up next to you and seeing your face"(eye flutter)). Needless to say, I did not cherish that moment, but I'm pretty sure Jerry cherished the memory of me jumping and screaming. good for him, I guess.

DISCLAIMER: I do enjoy Jerry's presence in the morning, and his face isnt scary. I am just easily startled.

Hi.

2009-02-25T16:24:00.004-07:00

So, I'm pretty sure only 5 people read this.. and they already know everything I am about to say.. but I am avoiding studying so I am going to post an update on my life!(plus.. there is a lot of new stuff anyway!)

Well, I got engaged
Was birthed 2 nephews
Got into the music program
And got hitched!

wow!

on a lesser note:
I got my wisdom teeth out
Had my cell phone stolen
Turned 20
Went to Idaho and Arizona
moved apts

So since I've been married a number of people have asked me sarcastically if I was going to start a blog about how cute my husband is. And I responded "NO! HA! not me! never! HA!" well, here I go..

i cave

It's hard not to when, seriously, you DO have the cutest husband ever! So, I am going to try and not force his cuteness on you, and this will be the last time I call him cute(on this blog).. but know that if I randomly tell stories about him, know that I am trying to convince you that he is, in fact, the most adorable married man you have ever met/heard of/live on the same earth as.

So yesterday at lunch time, Jeremiah and I were home scrounging thru the pounds of sugar wedding food in search for some nutrition. When none magically appeared I excitedly remembered that I had some Pizza Rolls in the freezer which I had bought a month earlier on sale at Smiths as a splurge. My mouth started watering as I thought of eating the fake meat, cheese substitute, and bleached carb combination. I turned to Jeremiah in a frenzy and exclaimed my pure passion for my discovery, only for him to reply with frowns, healthiness, and hatred towards a little piece of heaven that he had never before partook. But I wouldn't let his negitivity bog me down, and proceeded to bake my golden nuggets in the oven(on a stone, of course!). Distraught, Jeremiah settled for a pop-tart. As I began to partake of the extacy wrapped in synthetic death, my vision became blurred from the happiness I was experiencing so I did not notice that my loves were being stolen and eaten and enjoyed by none other than their harshest critic: Jeremiah!!

and I want to puplically say: I told you so.

eastern dreamin

2008-10-20T17:00:00.002-06:00

So last night I got back from my roommate's wedding in Washington D.C. Kayla was beautiful, the wedding was beautiful, and Maryland was BEAUTIFUL.
Man, do I ever miss the East. The humidity. The trees. Gah! I love it. Yeah, Utah has its' perks, but mountains can only go so far on my scale. I miss the fall. Just look at that ^^ can anything compare?

i am a confused individual

2008-09-17T16:41:00.001-06:00

Hate: running
Love: running with Jeremiah

Hate: corn bread, hot dogs
Love: corn dogs

Hate: people who love Wicked
Love: Wicked

Hate: change
Love: changing for the better

Hate: being wet
Love: swimming

Hate: learning German
Love: singing in German

Hate: working
Love: money

Hate: being tired
Love: being tired with Jeremiah

Hate: bananas and yogurt
Love: bananas with yogurt

Hate: cleaning
Love: A clean room

Hate: school
Love: learning

Hate: Twilight
Love: Twilight

Hate: being alone
Love: being alone with Jeremiah

The Adventures of Jerry and Danielle

2008-09-03T16:09:00.005-06:00

The other night Jeremiah and I decided we wanted to get out of our socially intense apartment complex and just have some not so intense time to ourselves. I grabbed a deck of cards and we hopped into Jeremiah's souped up mexi-car. We parked on some mountain and were going to go on an adventure, but it was too dark and we were both wearing flip-flops(well, we were both wearing MY flip-flops, but that is a story for another day) so we opted to just sit in the car and play speed. After many failed attempts to get the cards to not slide around, we got distracted and started talking.
Now, mind you, we were on top of a dark mountain about 10 minutes away from campus, so you can imagine that there was the occasional passer-by-er. And me, being the jumpy freak I am, would jump everytime I heard/saw another human being(crazy! i know.) Of course, Jeremiah just lives to see me squirm and encourages it frequently. And this night was not an exception: there was much prodding and scaring on Jerry's part, and much screaming, jumping, hitting, and spitting on my part.
Being scared aside, the night was going well. Jerry was telling me about his mission and worm-selling business, and I was telling him about how I ruin peoples lives. Good Conversation. At some point Jeremiah's eyes get all big as he looks right past my head. "Danielle, get out of the car on my side," says Jerry.
"You're not scaring me this time! I hear people outside but I'm not scared."
"Please just get out of the car. You'll thank me."
Despite my unwillingness, I decided to trust him and get out of the car. Jerry then proceeds to tell me that he saw a mouse inside the car where the seatbelt comes out.
A Mouse. In A Car.
Being the sensitive person I am, I started to tell Jerry that he was crazy, and that he had mistaken a shadow or my hair as a rodent. After inspecting his car and playing with shadows, Jerry was convinced that he in fact was crazy, and was just seeing things.
We got our bodies back inside the warm car to again reminisce about our childhoods. Of course there was not always noise coming out of our mouths(pretty surprising, since I was part of the conversation) which made for good down time to gaze into each other's eyes, or as Nate calls it, laser beaming each other. During one of these quiet, brief moments while I was contemplating the meaning of life I heard a ..
"squeek squeek"
accompanied by a scuffling of feet!
You can imagine the chaos! We both screamed like little girls as we desperately struggled to escape the rodent infested vehicle! Of course I said sorry roughly a million times for accusing Jerry of being crazy. After a little more shuddering and such, we set out on our mission to de-mousify Jerry's mexi-car.
You should have seen this mouse!! I would venture to say that if this mouse was able to swim, it would be the Michael Phelps of all mice. It would hop and run at top speeds, he was like a flash of light!, and hence, impossible to catch. After about a half hour Jeremiah finally swept the amphibian mouse out of the car with his(aka: MY) flip-flop.

Moral of the story: If your boyfriend tells you there is a mouse in his car: Believe him.

"Sorry about the mess guys.."

2008-08-22T09:42:00.006-06:00

On my walk to work today I noticed a police car. It just so happened that my path allowed me to be very close to said vehicle. So what did I do? What any normal U.S. citizen would do: look inside. I have never been inside a cop car, of course, so the idea intrigues me.

Now, this wasn't my first experience peeking inside a police car so I pretty much knew what to expect: the dividing grid, radar gun, steering wheel, donuts.. you know, the norm. So I immediately noticed that this car was a little different. In addition to having a divider between the back and front of the car, there was a divider between the two back seats, making 2 little human cages. But this is not what caught me off guard.

What astonished me was that these human cages were filled with crap. It looked like the back of a normal college car. There were stacks of papers, empty pop bottles, sweaters, and a halfway-buried radar gun.

I noticed that my feet had stopped moving and that my mouth was a little agape. My first thought was "is there really zero crime in Provo, which allows this officer to leave his car incapable of transporting criminals?"

Can you imagine what is going to happen when that officer finally has to put someone in the back of his car?
"Sorry it's so messy.. Let me just stick some of this in my trunk.. I swear it was clean a few days ago, I have been so busy.. Just move whatever you need to, I don't mind." And he says all this with that typical embarrassed tone that we've all heard while piling into a friend's car.

o, provo police.

I love life. Period.

2008-08-14T14:32:00.004-06:00

A recent conversations had over a pie tin of Skyline chili dip:

Jerry: Did you know there was a woman who thought she was pregnant, but it ended up just being a tumor?
Audrey, Dave, Me: Wow, that is crazy, poor lady!!, nervous laughter
Me: I dont get it... wouldn't she have known she wasn't pregnant? I mean she would have still had her period and stuff.
Audrey: Well there are rare cases where you still have your period.
Me: Really?!?! That sucks. That is like the only reason I want to get pregnant.
Audrey: You know they have pills for that kind of stuff. You can go four months without a cycle.

awkward pause

Jerry(to Dave): So what's your favorite car?
Dave: Something with a lot of horsepower. Something really manly.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

2008-08-06T11:40:00.002-06:00

So I've been thinking a lot lately about these things called life plans. Mostly my thoughts seem to gravitate towards the fact that I have none. Well I have plans, but not for my life. Well, I do, but they all seem so rocky right now.. and it stresses me out. For instance: I want to major in Classical Vocal Performance, but if by some miracle I do get in, I will be in school for 6 years, and that just seems like crazy-talk to me. But I do have back-up plans. I am starting a Communications major and a Sociology major.. now realistically, I should only start one.. because that is THREE majors, but no, me being me, and not having good life plans: I am doing three majors. Now someone might read this and think to themself, "That doesn't seem like the worst thing in the world, I wished I was interested in three things enough to want to major in all of them." To you that is thinking this: do not be deceived. I am completely dreading all three of these things, that is why I have three, I do not want to commit to any of them and dig myself in a deep hole.. so instead I am digging three shallow holes.. so in the end I am going to die of dehydration because I never got deep enough to get the water from my well.
It is so pathetic that I have such an easy lifestyle, and am surrounded with support and people that love me, and yet, I feel so uneasy constantly.
Gr. Life Plans.

These Is My Words

2008-07-16T09:31:00.000-06:00

So right now I am reading a novel by Nancy E. Turner titled These Is My Words, The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prime, 1881-1901. I am finding it really interesting. It is about a young woman before the turn of the 20th century. She is a lovable character: tough, naïve, and selfless. You think she deserves only the best while witnessing her go through the worst with the best of attitudes. Many members of her family die or are killed by Indians, some of her girlfriends are raped by outlaws, and she has a loveless marriage. Before her marriage, and at the beginning of the diary, Sarah immediately falls unknowingly in love with Capt. Jack Elliot, who ardently loves her as well. This love story is what keeps me reading, I want her to realize her love so badly while she continues to mistake her love for absolute disgust. So far it is a realistic description of rough living in the late 1800s. It is a good break from the novels about rich Britains, whos only trials are developing a bad reputation.

I would highly suggest this book to anyone. It does have some disturbing parts, but I think that adds to the heart of the story telling.

Not too much of the novel is introspective, but the parts that are, are golden.
"Sometimes I feel like a tree on a hill, at the place where all the wind blows and the hail hits the hardest. All the people I love are down the side aways, sheltered under a great rock, and I am out of the fold, standing alone in the sun and the snow." p. 152

I miss naps

2008-07-10T16:01:00.000-06:00

So, the real reason I started this blog was so i could have something else to do at work. And since I am typing, it looks like I am being productive and such. Anyway, right now I am really struggling to stay awake. I just got out of an hour meeting with my boss, and I seriously think I got a few minutes of sleep, because I don't know what we did for that whole hour... I'm pretty sure he didn't see me nod off though.. well at least I hope, I guess there is no way of knowing, unless I ask him, which could be a little risky if he didn't see it.

So tonight I plan on revisiting my artsy alter-ego. My dad gave me his brilliant camera to keep! So now I just need to find a location/subject to shoot. I am really disappointed that I don't have any access to a lab to develop the pictures, because that is where the majority of the artsy-ness takes place. O well, I guess I can just photoshop if necessary. My work has a crazy good scanner and nice new macs, so it will be fun to photoshop them. But I definitely miss the darkroom. I loved rolling the film, it is kind of an adrenaline rush to know that, at any moment, you could ruin hours of work. I also like being in the same room as all those deadly chemicals that made Dr. Miller loopy(at least I like to think it was those chemicals, I'm pretty sure he had a hippie stage though).

Sorry this post is stupid, it really was just a way to keep my eyes open.

Things are Changing

2008-07-08T15:16:00.000-06:00

Everyone around me seems to be having crazy things happening in their life

Parents: Moved to Arizona, looking for a house
Denae/James: Preparing to take Ohio Bar, getting promotion
Devin/Emily: Pregnant
Dustin/Dantzel: Pregnant/married
Kayla: Engaged
Audrey: In Israel
Ashley: In Jerusalem

So, I'm starting to wonder if anything exciting is going to happen in my life? I did just get a new voice teacher, Ruth Christensen. I really like her, although her lessons are way expensive, which is why I love my parents!

Things I Love(currently):
-Living in Monticello
Seriously, everyone here rocks my world. All the new people just add to the fun.
-Having the room to myself
I love Audrey to death, but it's nice to just drop my clothes whenever I want.
-Opera
I go through phases
-CHICKEN FIGHTING with Jeremiah
Okay, it's like the normal chicken fighting in the pool, except replace the bottom people with basketballs. fun stuff.
-Double sided sticky tape
This is something that I love constantly, but I thought I would just reinforce the fact.
-Dresses/skirts
I don't know where they have been all my life(o yeah, my closet), but I have a newly enhanced love of feeling girly daily.
-Dave and Robb
I'm glad they are back in M22. They make me laugh.
-Sunblock
I just invested in my first bottle.. and jeeze was it pricy! But I guess $10 is a small price to avoid skin cancer.

An Explanation

2008-07-02T15:49:00.000-06:00

The title for my blog actually came from a poem written by the genius Emily Dickinson, who I recently have began to appreciate. Audrey and I have started to analyze her poems to expand our minds, since we both have pretty mindless full-time jobs. I really love all of her poetry, and find myself deeply connected to each theme.

I think this poem can be viewed from so many differing perspectives. I think almost anyone can get something out of it.

I died for beauty, but was scarce
Adjusted in the tomb,
When one who died for truth was lain
In an adjoining room.

He questioned softly why I failed?
"For beauty," I replied.
"And I for truth,--the two are one;
We brethren are," he said.

And so, as kinsmen met a night,
We talked between the rooms.
Until the moss had reached our lips,
And covered up our names.