Once upon a time I wrote about how much I love rain. Well, rain and I are not so good right now. Yesterday I woke up bright and early to what looked to be a promising day. The sun was just peaking out from behind the mountains as I drove home from the pool. It was a beautiful spring morning.

My internship starts tomorrow and I had some things that I needed to get done on campus. I headed up to the Tanner building. Since it was such a gorgeous day, I decided to conserve gas and walk. My house is twenty minutes from the business school, but that wasn't a big deal. While I was working through my orientation material it began to rain. This wasn't just a light drizzle, it was a steady down-pour.

I also made the unfortunate decision to take a different backpack....without my umbrella. At this point I decided to I would try to wait out the storm. It can only rain buckets for so long, right? Half an hour passes and my stomach begins to rumble AND the computer lab is freeeeezing! (Unfortunately I had to use a PC.) I had no choice: It was time to venture out into the rain. Breakfast/lunch could wait no longer.

I'm pretty sure that my normal 20 minute walk took 40 minutes. It was cold and wet. It was also the first time I had done my hair since camping...karma, anyone? I trudged home and by the time I got there I was drenched from head to toe. I finally get in the door, change out of my wet clothes, look out the window, and realize it had stopped raining. Literally 2 MINUTES after I got home. Hence, rain and I are not speaking anymore.
I don't know what it is about the last few weeks, but I just want to go go go! This past weekend I took a trip to Zion National Park with some girlfriends and spent the whole weekend camping and hiking. I've never really been camping. Bugs and dirt are not really my thing, but it was an AMAZING weekend.

It all started late Friday night. We totally forgot to book a campsite, which when you're camping on the busiest weekend of the year is a major problem. Zion has a handful of campgrounds that are first come, first served so we figured we try to get one of those. This meant that we had to leave super super early, we're talking o'dark thirty here people. Since I was going to drive I was promptly sent to bed so we could roll out of Provo at 4am the next day.

We made the drive down to the park, waited in line for what seemed like an eternity only to be told that all of the campsites were gone. Quickly becoming desperate we began calling all the other campsites around the park and finally found one. 25 miles away. In Hurricane. So we flipped around, raced to Hurricane, set up our tent, raced back to Zion, and waited another 25 minutes to get into the park. (For whatever reason, people completely forget how to drive when surrounded by red rocks; it's weird.)
Cars for dayzzzz
We set up that tent in five minutes

Our first day in the park we hiked Angel's Landing. Angel's Landing is this huge mountain and is marked as a strenuous hike. The park map says that it takes five hours, round trip. Challenge accepted: we got it done in about four hours :) In order to get the summit you have to survive the chained part of the hike. The trail stops at a lookout and the last half mile is on the rocks. The park people (I'm not sure what to call them) have installed chains for hikers to hold on to to get them to the summit. I got about a quarter of the way up, freaked out, and promptly climbed back down to wait at the lookout. I'm a pansy, it's fine. My fellow hikers took about an hour to get to the summit and come back down, so I hung out and talked with this awesome lady from San Jose. We bonded over our pansy-ness :)

Although I didn't make it to the summit, I found this awesome hiding spot

The second day we hiked the Narrows. If you ever go to Zion and only have time for one hike, this is the one! The Narrows is a slot canyon with a river running through it. I LOVE WATER! We spent the whole day playing in the water and looking at the red rocks. I felt like I was in the middle of an Indiana Jones movie or Lost, either will work. At one point I found this mini cave in the side of rock and decided that I really wanted a picture of myself in it. The only problem is that it was about five feet above the water level and there was no easy way to climb up it. Luckily there was a guy behind me who offered to boost me up :) (Picture is not my camera so sorry to build up to the moment and then deny you the pleasure of seeing the picture...but I promise it was really good!) I loved the Narrows so much! The water was perfect and the scenery was just gorgeous. We found this little sunny spot to have lunch. It was perfect to sit there, listening to the water, and basking in the sun. 

Coming out of the Narrows

On the last day we woke up, tore down our camp, and headed to Kolob Canyon for one last hike. We picked on that ended in the Double Arch Alcove. This hike followed a little stream 2.5 miles up the canyon. It was the perfect way to end our trip. We didn't want anything too intense since we had a four hour drive ahead of us. The alcove was amazing! The echoes were out of control. Since it was Mama Lo's birthday we sang to her there, ate some fruit snacks, and headed on our way. 

Red rocks

Zion was the perfect way to spend Memorial Day weekend. Sure the park was super crowded and the drivers terrible, but we met some super cool people. There's something about camping that bonds people together. Everyone is willing to help each other out and before you know you've had this great conversation with someone you've just met. We also had some interesting food experiences. We didn't have a campfire so that altered our dietary plans. Tin foil dinners don't work quite as well on the grill and s'mores don't turn out great on the gas grill either. However, if you make a turkey sandwich on a tortilla and put in your pack, you'll have melted cheese at the top of Angel's Landing. Poor man's panini, anyone? 








So I bought a car. Since I know little nothing about cars, I decided to purchase said vehicle in North Carolina so Papa Lo could help me. I then had to drive the car back to Provo. Luckily I have super great friends who agreed to meet in NC and make the long trek back to Happy Valley. Our route took us through Charlotte, Atlanta, Fort Worth, and Colorado Springs. 

In Atlanta we took a trip to Olympic Park, the Atlanta Underground, and the Atlanta Temple. In the park we tossed around the frisbee and boiled in the hot southern sun. We then headed a half mile further into the city to the Underground to grab lunch and see what it was all about. The food was delicious! I also bought some pralines (which if you've never had them you should definitely find some, eat them, and love them). Aside from the food I have to admit that I was a little disappointed by the Underground. It was not at all what I was expecting. The temple, on the other hand, was perfect! It was beautiful, peaceful, and the perfect end to a long day :) From the temple we headed to our lodings fro the night, stopped at a lake, and called it a day. 

Atlanta Temple

Angel Moroni

The next day we had a long, long drive ahead of us. Twelve hours to be exact. To help break up the stretch between Atlanta and Dallas, we made a short pit stop in Birmingham. We stopped at the 16th Street Baptist Church, the site of a Civil Rights era bombing. The church is beautiful! After our short stop we drove straight through to Dallas. We had tickets to a Texas Rangers game and we didn't want to miss the whole thing. We arrived during the fourth inning, but still got to sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the seventh inning stretch, so it was still worth it. The Rangers lost, but it was a really close game. Still kind of a win win.

16th St Baptist Church

Dal and Ben, all tuckered out

A boy's best friend...the baseball diamond
The next morning we had a breakfast of pancakes and oj before getting on the road. We stopped in Amarillo for lunch. Dallas had found a restaurant called "The Big Texan." If you're ever in Amarillo, you have to stop. The Big Texan has a food challenge: a 72oz. steak in less than one hour. While we were there there was a man trying to beat it. He didn't quite make it, but it was a valiant effort. From lunch it was a straight shot to Colorado. Unfortunately, the A/C went out somewhere around the New Mexico border. Finally, we pulled into our final stopping point for the night. We stayed with an amazing family who treated us like their own kids home from college.

The last day was probably my favorite. We went to church at a local ward and then headed to Manitou Springs to hike the Manitou Incline. The Incline is a trail built over the top of an old railroad track. It goes pretty much straight up Pike's Peak. Hands down the hardest hike I have ever done! At one point I wasn't sure I was going to make it up...definitely the elevation... The view from the top was well worth the trek :)

After we finished the Incline we piled in the car and headed for Provo. Around Vail we hit a blizzard, literally a blizzard! The day before we drove in 100 degree weather and now we were in a blizzard. After safely passing through the mountains we made it to Provo, safe and sound. 

A little bit of Israel in Colorado!

Stairway to heaven 
Finally at the top
Four days, 2,400 miles,5 cities late...we're all still friends :)  


Do you ever wonder why sitting makes you so tired? Last week I drove across the country with three friends (post to follow). We went from Charlotte to Atlanta to Dallas to Colorado Springs to Provo.



That's a long way--2,360 miles to exact.

This makes for roughly 36 hours of car time, aka sitting time. I've been home two days now and I'm just exhausted! I don't know, I didn't much other than sit, look out the window, sing along to music, and have witty conversations all across the south.

Regardless, it was an incredible trip. Everyone should drive cross country at least once. Chalk it up to experience.

The open road, specifically crossing the Mississippi into Texas from Louisiana. 

You know how some people name everything? Their phone, their laptop, their car, their favorite shirt, etc. I am not one of those people, with one exception: my car. (Note: I do not criticize those who name everything, I'm just not that creative.) Choosing a car name is an important ritual. It has to be a name that clearly defines the car, but doesn't reflect poorly on you.

I picked out Watson for my car. I like Sherlock Holmes--it's classy and makes you think, plus we all know my secret dream is to be British. Watson is the best sidekick in the world, and, thus, I paid homage to him.



My little Mazda 3 is a manual transmission. This makes for quite the adventure. I have driven stick before, but never for long periods of time. Mama Lo and I went to pick up the car yesterday and she politely asked, "Do you want to drive it home or should I?" Not wanting to seem like I wasn't sure what I was doing I said, "Oh, I can totally do it." The first few miles went great. I usually have a hard time getting out of first, but not today! Then it became time to turn into Trader Joe's. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but this Trader Joe's turn-off was on a hill. For anyone who gone through the painful process of becoming a manual transmission expert, you know that hills quickly become the bane of your existence.

So there I am, sitting on a hill and wondering if I will ever get to Trader Joe's. At this point I have rolled back 20 feet from my original position. This hadn't been a problem until a peppy 16-year-old pulled up behind me. I couldn't just sit at this intersection forever, a thought that had crossed my mind 100 times since I had been at this intersection. The time had come, I had to somehow get out of this intersection. I nursed the gas (all the way to 7000rpms, no big deal), squealed the tires like crazy, and eventually made it all the way to Trader Joe's. I'm pretty sure everyone in that intersection was embarrassed for me.

I would like to say that this was only squealling-tires-this-isn't-the-Fast-and-Furious moment of the day, but it wasn't. I am great everywhere but hills and when you live in North Carolina, they're everywhere! I have one week until my road trip commences--let's hope I get this hill thing figured out...



There have been some great love stories in the history of the world. Romeo and Juliet, Beauty and the Beast, Noah and Allie. The best ones, however, have been the ones that are real. I went to work with my mom today and stumbled upon a love letter that Ronald Reagan wrote to his wife Nancy after they had been married for a quarter of a century: 

Dear St. Valentine,
I’m writing to you about a beautiful young lady who has been in this household for 25 years now—come March 4.
I have a request to make of you but before doing so feel you should know more about her. For one thing she has 2 hearts—her own and mine. I’m not complaining. I gave her mine willingingly, and like it right where it is. Her name is Nancy but for some time now I’ve called her Mommie and don’t believe I could change.
My request of you is—could you on this day whisper in her ear that someone loves her very much and more and more each day? Also tell her, this “Someone” would run down like a dollar clock without her so she must always stay where she is.
Then tell her if she wants to know who that “Someone” is to just turn her head to the left. I’ll be across the room waiting to see if you told her. If you’ll do this for me, I’ll be very happy knowing that she knows I love her with all my heart.
Thank you,
”Someone”

How beautiful is that?! Mr. President, this is my favorite. 

I, dear Reader, think that it's time I come clean. I've been trying to hide this for quite some time now, but I simply cannot continue to live a lie:

I am a Pinterest addict.

I know, I know, I'm just like every other BYU co-ed: Pinning away, planning the perfect wedding, decorating the perfect house, and finding the secrets to get dancers' legs. 

I have boards dedicated to recipes I will never try, clothes I will never buy, and hairstyles that will never grace my head. I'm not really sure why I pin, but I can't stop, haha. Maybe it's cathartic and maybe it's just a way to pass the time while at work. Maybe one day I will actually live in my Pinterest house (it's beautiful and I definitely wouldn't be complaining). 

This house is perfect and a taste of what you will find on my board. 

My house board is filled with white linens, wood floors, and sun-bathed rooms. It makes my Provo apartment look rather depressing, actually...

Sometimes, though, I do find things on Pinterest that I find to be useful. There always seems to be little tidbits of advice spoken by a general authority or some famous writer whose book I meant to read. There's also a plethora of travel pictures that feed my desire to see the world. My travel board is a healthy mix of places from East Asia to culture-rich Europe.

And then there are the boards that are...I don't want to say 'wishful thinking' but that's the only thing that is coming to mind. Case in point: the wedding board. Is there a female BYU student who doesn't have an oversized wedding board on Pinterest? I would venture to say probably not. So my wedding board is filled with ranunculus, burlap, lace wedding gowns, and mason jars. Who knows what my wedding will actually look like, but hey, a girl can dream, right?

Burlap and ranunculus in the same pin?!

So there you have it, Readers, my confession. I am a Pinterest addict. This addiction serves no purpose, but it's not hurting anything either so I suspect that I will continue pinning away in the afternoon sun. And please don't surmise that pinning is all I do. I promise it does not affect any 'real' things that I have to do. I save this addiction strictly for downtime. So I'll keep pinning and telling myself that when I've finished college I'll actually try some of the things I've pinned :)




I'm an Apple junky; I'm not afraid to admit it. I think Apple is slowly taking over my life and I'm gladly handing them money to do so :) The best part is that my whole life is always in my pocket (ok, not my whole life, but a large portion of it). Here's the 25 most played songs on my iPhone:


1. The a Team, Ed Sheeran

2. The Boxer, Mumford & Sons

3. Empire State of Mind, Jay Z

4. She Got the Honey, Mat Kearney

5. What I Know, Parachute

6. Tiny Dancer, Caroline Glaser

7. Ho Hey, The Lumineers

8. I am the DJ, Neon Trees

9. I've Just Seen a Face, Across the Universe Soundtrack

10. On Top of the World, Imagine Dragons

11. Young Dumb and In Love, Mat Kearney

12. Barefoot Blue Jean Night, Jake Owen

13. If You Told Me To, Hunter Hayes

14. The Gambler, fun.

15. Man in the Mirror, Michael Jackson

16. Beauty and a Beat, Justin Bieber

17. Steal My Kisses, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals

18. Wagon Wheel, Old Crow Medicine Show

19. A Drop in the Ocean, Ron Pope

20. When I Was Your Man, Bruno Mars

21. Daylight, Maroon 5

22. Brighter Than the Sun, Colbie Cailat

23. Fine By Me, Andy Grammer

24. Gravity, Sara Bareilles

25. Hey Mama, Mat Kearney


Slide1
© Angela Lopez 2014. Powered by Blogger.

Instagram