New year, new goals

I haven't posted in a while, not that I didn't want to just because I've been busy working and sleeping and not geting on my computer when I come home from work. But would you blame me? I'm at work for 8-9 hours a day just sitting in front of a computer.

Here's a letter I wrote, to send to missionaires about a month ago, but I never printed it or mailed it to anyone. I'll try to do that sometime this week, but for now it's my new blog post :) Enjoy :)

Dec. 28, 2008

Hey!

I’m sorry I haven’t written you in forever, and considering I write for my living there’s no excuse.
How have you been? What are you up to? I haven’t heard from you in forever!

I’ve been busy, but mostly with work, sleep and trying to cram too much fun into weekends.

I work at NBC NewsChannel 7 in Boise, Idaho I am the morning show producer. That means I write what the anchors read for the 5-7am newscast. I’ve almost been here for a year! I interviewed exactly one year and a week ago. So crazy! If you haven’t heard, yes, I did graduate in journalism—I went to school to learn what I do. Any other questions? Pretty much my life is my job, and then sleep, and food. I feel like a slave sometimes and I want to go back to school – where I was carefree. Maybe I’ll go back in a couple of years. Right now I’m treating my job as my master’s degree. I signed a 3 year contract up here so one year down two to go. I really do like my job, but I miss taking 5 different subjects a semester and learning something totally new every 4 months.

My highlights of my year are few but fun. I tried wakeboarding this summer, I sorta got up. I wanna try that again. I went to Germany this fall. (My cousin and her husband live there. He’s in the military. I figured, free place to stay and a tour guide!) I flew out by myself and met up with my cousins. It was a fabulous adventure. I went to Frankfurt, Germany, a little south west of there and then into France – just on the border. And one weekend there we flew to London, England and saw the Broadway Musical Wicked!. It was so fun! I also rode mountain bikes through the Black Forest, (If you’ve never been “real” mountain biking this is the place to go, it was hard but fun!)

I fly home to Utah to see my family every few weeks – about once every two months. I have cousins up here who live 30 minutes away so I visit them as well. They are super fun! I just spent Christmas with them. They treated me just like one of their kids. It was fantastic!

The day after Christmas my younger –not so little anymore—brothers flew in to visit me! Even though it was supposed to be a quick flight from Utah to Idaho, it took about 6 hours because their plane from Colorado was delayed in the snow. But thankfully they waited for standby and got on the last flight up Friday night.

I showed them the News Studio yesterday, they were impressed. Now my parents are coming up this afternoon—driving in a car to pick them up—and brining me random things I never moved up with – Like my yearbooks and my guitar—I know random –but they are big and heavy.

Well, as the new year is coming I’m looking back at my “year in review” and trying to think of things I didn’t do this year that I want to add to my list of next year.
1. I work the graveyard shift right now and have since I moved here 11pm –9am so that’s number one: get off the graveyard shift.
2. Read more books, I’ve gotten good at renting from the $1 rentals and watching any movie I want, but I really can’t tell you a book that I have read this year –that is sad.
3. I want to learn the guitar. Yes, I own one but I want to actually learn how to play it. I think it’s possible
4. I want to go to NYC! My uncle and aunt live there, he works at the institute building there, I so want to go visit!
5. I want to go up to some sort of mountains once a month. I live in Idaho, I should do more outdoor things now.
6. I want to buy my first car. I really want a jeep kinda thing—any suggestions? Right now I drive my grandparent’s old Cadillac. I love it and it serves me well, but my sister is about to get home from her mission and she needs a car, and I need something else.

I have a lot more goals but I’m not gonna bore you with them now.
Basically, I want to finally feel like I belong here in Idaho—or move on to somewhere that feels like home. Right now I feel like all this is just temporary.

We’ll see where life takes me.
I hope you are doing well on the mission. I need to study preach my gospel more and read more church books.

Have a Happy New Year and I hope all your dreams and goals happen for you this month and year.

Love ya,
Ranae :)

Christmas at Clarissa's

So a few weeks ago my current roommates and I decided to decorate the house. It was quite a feat. Took most of my Saturday but it was really fun.

Here's a link to a bunch more picts :)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028475&l=31476&id=122800723

We hung lights on the house, the big tree outside and then decorated a little tree in the house... and made a gingerbread house :)

This is my favorite Christmas song this year: All I want for Christmas by Mariah Carey.

Early Christmas at home

I went home this past weekend for an "Early Christmas" to visit my family. And I got to go to a USU vs UVU basketball game where my brothers and I sat on the front row behind the basket and heckled the other team. We won of course.

While at home I also got to go to my nieces's first dance performance. She was so cute :)

and I got to see my old roomie McMac we had a great convo with our friend Manette. I love those girls :)

That night I went and visited my cousins who were watching "White Christmas" a classic if you haven't seen it. :)

The next day we had an extended family Christmas party.

Here's some photos from that.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028809&l=55c06&id=122800723


I love my family and wished I could have spent more time with everyone.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!

Napoleon Dynamite

So, I love the movie Napoleon Dynamite.

The first time I watched it I hated it. But now I love it, it's so creative!

I just bought the movie and watched it for the first time since I think my freshman year of college.

I love that it was filmed just a few miles from where I went to school and that they have tours of Napoleon Dynamite things there now in Preston, Idaho -- although I've never taken the time to go there and see them.

Also, many people may not believe this but the "Happy Hands" club came to my high school the year before this movie came out and performed. We tried not to laugh at them cuz we were guessing they were serious.

This is my favorite song from the movie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZGHTkmhxgQ&feature=related

HAVE A SWEET DAY AND DON'T ASK TO EAT MY TOTS!

Trip to Germany

So, I haven't posted a blog about my trip yet, it took me about 3 hours to upload my photos, then put them on facebook and label them.
So for now, I'm sharing my facebook links to my picts.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2027036&l=2961a&id=122800723

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2027040&l=eb665&id=122800723

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2027041&l=d3422&id=122800723

I'm going to Germany!

So, after months and months of planning and saving and preparing... I am officially going to Germany, just as long as my ticket to get there is valid. I'll find out Sunday in at the airport.

I don't know no German, "Nine spreken ze Dutch" --(what I've been told that means, I don't know how to spell in German either).

I'm not going to Germany for Octoberfest or to practice my German, I'm going there to visit my cousin.
I'm going to visit my cousin and her husband who live there! I can't wait!
Even if I only go to one country in Europe I'll be happy.

Originally I reported I would be going to Spain on this trip to do some scuba diving... well, it turns out, due to scheduling problems, that it will no longer be possible to take a scuba trip. Maybe next year in Mexico. :(

Either way, I'm going overseas, scared to death but still excited.

See you all if I return, I may like it better there than the U.S.

I am Scuba Certified

So, I realize I don't post on my blog very often but I have to blog about this!

$400 and two weeks later and I am officially a certified scuba diver! YAY!

I just finished my final two dives yesterday morning and yes, on my schedule I am still awake. Which means, I still feel like I'm bobbing up and down in the water.

I'm way excited though to go scuba diving in Spain when I go to Germany next month! I even have my international driver's license.

I can't wait for my huge adventure!

I took the dive class with two men in their 60's and a man in his late 20's. It was so fun!

I can't wait until I can actually scuba dive in clear water and see tropical fish!

HAVE A GREAT DAY!