hello, old friend!

i've been meaning to post for a while.

actually, scratch that.

i've been wanting to post for a while, but nothing noteworthy has happened in my life lately, so i just haven't written anything.


but lately, i've missed it.
i've missed coming here to my little corner of the interwebs and writing about things that most people wouldn't/don't care about.

so, here are five things [and one adorable video] to tide you over until something truly interesting happens in my life.
[and if nothing exciting happens, expect more cat videos]


1. last week at work i was helping out in a classroom and the teacher i was aiding asked me to come up to the front of the class to do something. she is super funny and likes to embarrass me, so as i was walking to the front, she kept saying things like "look at her! so beautiful!" and "isn't she the cutest girl you've ever seen?" i, of course, was completely red in the face [did i ever tell you i was voted class blusher in the sixth grade? well, i was. for a good reason] and awkwardly made my way to the front of the room.
when i got there, the teacher said to one of the students "isn't kellie so beautiful?"
his reply [and this is a direct quote]?
"i think she's ugly as HELL!"

ah, my glamorous life.
don't be jealous.

2. i went to rexburg the weekend before last.
my good friend, aaron patrick mcgregor [or, aawon patwick mcgwegow as he prefers to be called], was moving to texas and i wanted to see him one last time before we were apart for a long, long time.
the saturday that i was there, my friend ryan invited lyndee, lulu and i to go to st. anthony [a nearby town] for a community art walk kind of thing.
it was such an awesome experience and i've been meaning to write about it for a long time.
basically, artists in st. anthony opened their homes to the public and displayed their art in living rooms, kitchens, studios, what have you.
we went to one artist's home [she wasn't there at the time, unfortunately] and took some cool postcard prints of her paintings and talked to [presumably] her little brother, and then moved on to the next home.
it was a beautiful house right by the river and it was owned by an older empty-nester couple who had just moved in a few months ago. the husband graciously let the six of us college-aged kids in and let us wander around his house as we admired his wife's art.
after a few minutes of walking around, we got a chance to meet with the artist herself and after five minutes of talking with her, i had an anne shirley moment.
this woman was my bosom-friend.
she was so inspiring and funny and talented! she was everything i wanted to be!
apparently she had only taken up painting when she was fifty after her husband was called to be a bishop. that really affected her and she ended up feeling very depressed. after a few months of feeling that way, her husband asked her what she wanted to do about it. he asked her what she had always wanted to do in her life and she said, "i want to learn to paint. and i want to play the violin."
so, she did it!
she started taking lessons in both areas and is now a hugely talented artist/violinist.
after she told us that story, i blurted out that i wanted to be her when i grew up.
to that, she replied, "oh, honey! don't wait until you're fifty to play the violin."

that statement was so profound! it really hit me and it pops into my head at least once a day.
don't wait to do something until you're older.

start now.

at the end of our pleasant visit, she hugged each one of us, had us sign her guestbook, and bid us farewell.

and as we walked, i kept exclaiming that i was so inspired! that i wanted to talk with her for hours and hours and how i wanted to be her.

even though i can't remember her name, i'll never forget the way she made me feel.

3. i hate singles wards sometimes.
is it just me, or is it like junior high all over again?
i hated junior high.

4. i miss having an animal around.
i keep flipping between wanting a dog or a cat.
i guess i'm lonely?

5. how sad is it that whitney houston died?
her music has been such a big part of my life!
as a child, i would make up dramatic dance routines to the songs on the bodyguard soundtrack [my favorites were "i have nothing" and "run to you" (for the "run to you" dance, i would run and "slide" underneath the dining room table. very creative)].
i would lipsynch "i will always love you" and practice every trill and inflection her amazing voice would make.
as a college student, my best friend alyx and i would drive around town blasting her self-titled album [especially "how will i know," "the greatest love of all," and "all at once"] and singing at the top of our lungs. it was not pretty, but it was fun, satisfying, and cathartic.
after my first big breakup last summer, i relied on her songs to get me through it. songs like "didn't we almost have it all" [PLEASE watch that video! her performance of it is so incredible!] and "where do broken hearts go" were on a near-constant repeat on my ipod.

and now she's gone.
i'll always remember her as an incredible singer and a huge musical infuence in my life.
first it was etta, now it's whitney.

[celine, please be careful!]

6. i don't want to end this on a sad note, so here is a cute video of a kitten snuggling with a teddy bear [aka the reason why the internet exists]!