I Know Him!

So my sister's friend was on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart last night. I wasn't able to watch it though because first, I don't have cable and second, I wasn't even home. But here's a clip of it I found online. You don't have to watch the entire clip because he is on right at the very beginning. He's the guy singing the welcome song to Bill O'Reilly. He's such a great guy and it is fun to see him making a name for himself!

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Bill O'Reilly
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Rally to Restore Sanity

And just in case you think I'm making this up and I don't really know him, here is a picture I took of him and my sister when we went horseback riding in Jackson Hole.


Yep, I totally know someone famous. Although, I already say that about my sister all the time so I guess this means I now know two famous people! :D

My Gentle Reminder...

Every day when I get on the train, I pull out a book to read. Today however, I became extremely distracted by a very loud woman who was literally yelling into her phone so as to be heard above the noise of the train. Within five minutes of this, I was completely unable to focus on the words I was trying to read and I felt myself becoming quite irritated. I finally decided to put the book away and pull out my MP3 player to see if I could drown out her noise with some music.

I put in my earbuds, pushed play, skipped the song that was nearly over, and this was the next song that started playing:



At first I just chuckled and silently said, "You've got to be kidding me". But as I began to listen, I noticed that I was trying extra hard to focus on the words of the song in order to block out the distracting voice next to me. When the song ended, I listened to it again. And again. And again. Before long I realized that even though I could still tell that she was yelling, her voice was muffled and all I could really hear were the words of this song. I also noticed the calm and peaceful change that was taking place inside me.

Two days ago I had made a promise to myself and to Heavenly Father (and in a way, to each of you as well) that I would try my best to be more kind and loving to those around me. This morning, I would have failed if not for Heavenly Father's gentle reminder to me of that promise.

"Love one another as Jesus loves you. Try to show kindness in all that you do. Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought. For these are the things Jesus taught."

I find no coincidence in the fact that this is the song that began playing when I put my earbuds in, and I will be forever grateful for it.

My Apologies...

For the last few weeks I have been reading this book:


I am not finished reading the entire book yet but I still felt the need to blog about it. As I have been reading the last few days, I have felt completely inspired to improve on many aspects of my life, one of which being the way I treat people. The more I read, the worse I feel about all the mean/negative things I say about people, even if I do sometimes say them facetiously. I know I am a very direct and opinionated person. I also know that many people find this trait of mine to be quite distasteful. Even though I may continue to be direct in my communication (I feel it is always best to get to the point and not beat around the bush), I will strive to improve on the way my directness is relayed to others...perhaps in a more kind and tactful way.

With that said, I would just like to say to all the smokers, bicyclists, skateboarders, and ditzy girls of the world (and anyone else who I may have offended in the past) that I am truly sorry. In the future, I will try to refrain from making such blanket statements about people and try to be a little more understanding and a little less judgemental.

It's not very easy for me to point out my flaws, but I am grateful that I am at least able to recognize them and improve upon them. It is my hope that in blogging about this, you all will now be able to help me out by holding me accountable for the things I say and calling me out on them the next time I post or say something brash.

I'd also like to thank President Hinckley for helping me see the error of my ways. This book has really opened my eyes to the person I am and the person I can become. I'm starting to think I should have read this book in 2000 when it first came out. Maybe then I wouldn't be 10 years late on starting my path to self-improvement.

What I Learned...

The following is a very random conversation I had with my six year old niece tonight:

Niece: Over the year, what have you learned about dogs?"

Me: Well, I learned they come in all shapes and sizes...

Niece: Wrong!! They come in all sizes but only one shape.

Me: Only one shape?

Niece: Yes! The shape of a dog!

Me: Oh, I didn't realize a dog was a shape.

Niece: Well, they aren't triangles!

Me: True.

Niece: What else have you learned?

Me: I learned that dogs are fun to play with.

Niece: Not always.

Me: No?

Niece: No. Some dogs just aren't playable.

Me: Oh...

Niece: Over the year, what have you learned about frogs?

Me: Well, I learned that they are green.

Niece: Yes.

Me: I learned that they have really long tongues and like to eat flies.

Niece: Yes.

Me: I learned that if I kiss one it will turn into a prince.

Niece: No.

Me: NO?!? But that's what the story says!

Niece: Well...that story is wrong.

Some Observations...

I usually try to take a walk during my morning break here at work. You know, just to get my lazy butt out of my chair and enjoy some sunshine and a little bit of fresh air. Well, due to my regular Thursday afternoon meeting being moved to the morning, I was unable to take my regular morning walk. Therefore, I decided to take it during lunch. Morning or afternoon, it probably doesn't matter much. I realized today that no matter what time I choose to go, I always pick the exact moment that classes are letting out and students begin to swarm the sidewalks. No matter where I go, I am completely bombarded by them on all sides of me. I don't like it. At all.

But I digress. On my walk this afternoon I made some observations. They might not be too surprising to those of you who know me well, but to the rest of you, you might think me a little callous or coldhearted. I promise I am not. I just get a little annoyed with people sometimes - especially when I am surrounded by them.

Observation #1: Smokers (maybe not all but the vast majority) are selfish people. They don't seem to care if there are 29 other people walking in near proximity to them (and by 'near proximity' I mean within 2 feet). All they seem to care about is getting their next nicotine fix, taking no consideration for anyone else around them. To the guy who decided to start puffing on his cigarette while walking amongst a throng of people, I would just like to say this: You better be glad I didn't shove that thing down your throat. Just because you feel like dying of lung cancer someday doesn't mean the rest of the world does too. Go smoke in your corner.

Observation #2: Bicyclists and skateboarders also appear to be selfish people. They don't seem to care if there are 30 other people walking in near proximity to them either. They just zip on by, nearly taking out anyone who is in their way. To the girl on the bicycle who felt she could just ride her way through the crowd and push us all out of the way, I would just like to say this: Back off. Just because you are on a bike doesn't give you the right of way. We are all trying to get to our next stop via this ridiculously narrow pathway, so you can inch along just like the rest of us. The next time you try to push me out of the way, I intend on pushing you completely over. Think on that.

Observation #3: There really are girls in this world who talk and act as if they belong in the movie Clueless. To the girl in the (what appeared to be) cheerleading outfit from high school, I just want to say this: I don't care if you do know some guy who is setting up a booth near the campus library. That doesn't mean you can just stop walking mid-stride to yell "Oh my gosh! I totally know you!!" to him in your high-spitched, squeaky voice that sounds like you drank one too many energy drinks, and not expect someone behind you to plow you over. Besides, the guy you were talking to wasn't impressed and neither were the other 31 people who heard. Remember you're in college now, not high school.

Taking a Break...

In approximately 45.5 hours I will be on the road heading toward good ol' Californ-i-a. My exact destination? DISNEYLAND!


This will be the third trip my family (well, half of us at least) has taken to Disneyland together in the past five years. So while the rest of you are working, going to school, chasing children, etc. I will be doing this:

(Tower of Terror)


and this:

(Thunder Mountain Railroad)


and this:

(Space Mountain)


and this:

(California Screamin)


Try not to be jealous though because I'm pretty sure I won't be having much fun. In the meantime, enjoy a Camille free week. I'll be back in eight days to blog all about it!

Creating Something from Nothing...

Is it truly possible to create something from nothing? If I want to create a masterpiece on the piano can I do it from nothing? No. I need the piano. If I want to create a masterpiece on canvas can I do it from nothing? No. I need a canvas. And paint. Basically, I would need the materials necessary to create these masterpieces. That seems logical, right? Well, I'm not sure I completely follow this logic:

"Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the universe exists, why we exist. It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touch paper and set the universe going."

That's a quote by the physicist Stephen Hawking from his new book. So, let's see if I understand him... Oh, who am I kidding. I don't understand him. Do any of you understand him? I kind of feel like he's just running his mouth in circles. He says the universe can create itself from nothing but then in the next breath says spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing. What?

I really don't believe any of us can create something from nothing. So if we can't, then how could a universe create itself? Aren't we more intelligent than a bunch of stars and planets? And where did we even come from? Did we just appear out of thin air...from nothing? To me it just seems more logical that a higher power would be involved in this process.

But, that's just me.

I talked about this with a friend who tried to explain all these different theories to me. Even though I understood what he was saying, I still could not understand the concept. It just doesn't make sense to me at all. Isn't it easier to believe in something that does make sense? Take this explanation for instance.

Ultimately, I guess it depends on whether one puts more faith in man or in God. I believe in God. Therefore, I believe that God created all things - including man. And to me, that means God is way more intelligent than man. From that, I can only conclude that His explanation makes more sense.

But, that's just me. Again.

Anyway, I'm curious to know your thoughts! Do you believe the universe spontaneously created itself from nothing and that, therefore, is why we exist?* Sound off below!


*I can't even seem to pose the question in a way that makes sense. That's how confusing it is to me.