newsies

first, an update via instagrammed pictures:

frenchy orange drink from a date to a french pastry shop

pretty drive through the canyon to go to the roomie's bridal shower

more canyon driving after the wedding--yes, it rained the whole time.

my bridesmaid's bouquet :)

...

sometimes i wonder why i chose to take classes this summer. there are lots of pros to taking on some extra credits, but there are DEFINITELY cons, too. but, i've realized that one doesn't really outweigh the other. it's a perfect balance of love and hate...making it hard to decide if this was a good idea or not. i know it'll be love once it's over, that's for sure.

i took test number three today...within the past three weeks. i could throw out a couple (or like, fifteen) unrelated and/or semi-disgusting facts about the anatomy and physiology of the outer and middle ear...but i won't. you're welcome. i'm really excited that i found something that i love. that makes taking classes year-round worth it. next term starts sign language! how stinkin' cool, right?!

anyway, even with taking classes and working this summer, i've managed to have ten times more fun than i had ALL of last year. i've met so many people, including mature men who do NOT enjoy "my little pony" (yes, this was in fact a problem). i went to my old roommate's wedding this past weekend, and that was an adventure. my new roommates are great, too. i haven't laughed this hard in a long time. i feel like i've already made some great memories, and i've definitely had a scary amount of hilarious (or hilaryous?) embarrassing moments.

as much as i'm loving it here, i am craving me some home. i am probably the biggest homebody everrr. i would rather be at my house with my family than anywhere else. i don't know what i would do without phones and skype...it's still not the same, though! i need some good old fashioned famry time, and of course some friend time too. i'm feeling a serious void in the best-friend-going-shopping-pigging-out-late-night-talks department. also, i miss having more than four plates and an ice dispenser in the fridge (it's a hard life, i know). but seriously. luckily, this august might make all my wildest dreams come true. keeping my fingers crossed.


what's the best (or worst, gotta be realistic) thing you're doing this summer?

arizona love

going home last december gave me the perfect dose of arizona: palm trees, sunsets, and good old desert heat made me a very happy girl.

missing this.

expect the unexpected

in this case, the expected was me. hating my freshman writing class. the unexpected was coming out of that class (with an A, might i add!) with a new writing style, and the odd feeling of catching myself wondering how i would write about certain events or my thoughts in general.

i never would have imagined myself sitting down at my computer to type these words; i have never been a fan of writing. but, this past semester i've learned a lot. i haven't learned all the secrets, or fancy techniques that magically turn words on a page into something desired. no, i've learned about passion. my teacher was constantly encouraging us students to write about things we were passionate about. even if it was a boring topic to someone else, he said, our passion for our writing would come through to make the paper absolutely interesting. he also suggested (or demanded) that we never write ANYTHING boring.

i struggled at first, because i walked into that class worried. i worried about getting a good grade. i worried about the ten-page research paper. i worried about all the other intelligent people around me reading what i wrote. i worried that i would hate it.

when i saw the rubric that my teacher would be using to grade my work, i was even more...worried (surprising?). the highest scores would be achieved by choosing an interesting topic and writing more of a letter to a friend, not paper to a professor. this went against everything i had been taught in high school! to me, writing was about the teacher forcing a topic on the dreading student. the student would be expected to write like a robot--but still keep a "voice." have you ever tried talking without any contractions? um, excuse me, but that is definitely not how i talk. i told my teacher these things, expecting him to agree with the teachers i had suffered under before. i was shocked to hear my college writing teacher tell me that i was now expected to write like i talked. contractions, forbidden in my junior year english class, were perfectly welcome. i could choose topics like beauty pageants, mormon mommy blogs, and foster care for my papers and still get an A! at first i was extremely confused. then, my opinion on writing really started to change.

i handed in my first paper with a pounding heart. i had done everything my teacher had asked. i had written about children in beauty pageants. other kids in my class wrote about evolution or politics. through our peer-edits, i felt like i was taking the easy way out by writing about something that i was completely invested in (just for the record, i wrote against pageants. a pageant girl, i am not). when i got that paper back, i was afraid to look at the red two-digit number after my works cited page. i blinked for a long time, then scrolled down and opened my eyes. i think i might have scrolled too far with my eyes closed and all, but i finally forced myself to look at the 94 staring back at me. never had two numbers put together made me so happy!

i could go through the rest of my entire semester of writing, but this post is getting long. the point is, i've gone from a writing student to a writer. i believe what i have to say is important, and so i'm gonna write it.

keep it hilaryous,

hilary

fourth of july jealousy and a little ditty about me.

in an attempt to salvage my fourth of july evening, i have turned to blog stalking and now updating! huzzah. right now i can hear a few neighborhood kids setting off the now "legal" (they're legal to buy, but not to set off if they explode or go into the air? whaaat?) fireworks for arizona. these are times when i wish i was back in  small town utah, or a costal city on the east coast like my friend. classy parades, flags everywhere, and firework shows complete my perfect picture of independence day. hum, maybe next year? i can't complain too much, though, because my dad made peach shakes for the family. happiness in a cup? YES. anyway, as i was stalking blogs in the midst of my boredom, i looked at the collaborative blog started by two friends and me this past fall. there was a sort of get-to-know-you survey we did, and i found my answers to be amusing (at least to myself) so here it is, in all of it's glory, updated to fit my current state of life. to see the original, and about five posts about various topics, go here.

1. Do you like chinese food? Very much so :D maybe it has something to do with the LARGE amount of asian friends i have...i have them to thank for my experiences with revolving sushi bars, vietnamese restaurants, pho (just recently!) and crazy things like chopsticks. i need practice.

2. Favorite comedian? uhm. i don't really listen to/watch legit comedians. but, anyone who can be funny without being completely crude and vulgar has talent in my book.

3. What kind of jelly do you like on your PB & J sandwich? i like raspberry jelly. and LOTS of it. my PB&Js are like pb...&J!

4. Favorite ice cream? oooh, i like popsicles best. but, tonight at the grocery store i saw mint chocolate chip in the ice cream aisle and just about died. SO refreshing in humid arizona monsoon weather.

5. Tell me a random fact: i have a scar on my forehead from when i got 12 stitches. i fell on a car door when i was 8.

6. Pick a movie quote: "Geet that corn outta my face!" -Nacho Libre.

7. Favorite quote: "walk by faith, in a world governed by sight."

8. Name a couple of favorite colors: sea foam green. peachy. navy blue. coral.

9. Favorite Dave Matthews Band song (if you have one?): definitely don't have one :) but my favorite justin bieber song is...haha i'm kidding. not really though, anyone else have bieber fever?

10. Favorite online store: anything with free shipping!!!

11. Favorite music genre: anything to sing to! i like upbeat songs...but i find an insane amount of joy in listening to classical music while i drive at night. try it.

12. All-time favorite blogger: TAZA.

12. Favorite clothing brand: none. i like a random assortment. or anything under $5 :D

13. Describe your personal style in three words: modest. sweet/girly. vintage-y. (mostly from the mouth of soyoung)

there you have it. a peek into the life of hilary. anybody else notice there are two number twelves?

 it's pretty much a crime to have a post with no pictures, gasp! i found these on the sandal girls as well, from fancy week at school last november. show choir members dressed up for their productoin of FAME. sierra and i joined in for fun!

soyoung, me, and sierra. ditching yearbook class for a few minutes and asking random students walking by to take our picture :)

the cheesy "act like you're happily walking" picture...i love it though. and i want my hair back. no more haircuts.

here's to being fancy!

snapshots...that's fancy for "random, poor quality pictures"

 a few random snapshots of life in the past few months - ignore the ipod camera quality :)

1. friends photoshoot in downtown glendale
2. fun nail polish colors on my bookshelf (and childhood books...ramona anyone?)
3. in n out with soy and gen
4. soy and me at in n out
5. 'Y' cookie cutter from future school (!!!)
6. palm trees and a huge full moon on the drive home one night

 my summer has consisted of a lot of job hunting...which has been a whole lot of unsuccessful. so stressful! i wouldn't mind going to work, i swear. i just need the darn job first. now, with less than two months remaining in arizona, i'm trying to spend as much time with my friends as possible. last night we played crazy asian card games and catchphrase, watched glee, made banana bread, got a salad at a greek restaurant 20 minutes before it closed, and talked about anything until midnight. this whole college thing is bittersweet, i tell you. high school ending was SUCH a relief, but now i'm scared to leave and stressed about a job. hmmm, real life, haha. i know it'll be okay...and hopefully adventurous :)

all i can say is, thank goodness for skype! and winter vacation. there is NO way i'm losing touch with these friends of mine. absolutely not. this is where i suggest that they all move to utah with me. :D ha!