J.D. and I have been spending some serious quality time with each other lately. Since I’m basically all done with school and schoolwork for the semester (and he’s just a procrastinator), I’ve started playing Zelda Ocarina of Time on the Wii we “borrowed” from my family. After I had reached the Temple of Time (a good few days of playing for me, because I’m… not very good), J.D. decided that he NEEDED to play as well. Lucky for him, we also have an N64 and Ocarina of Time for that system. So, today, we spent most of our free time playing our separate games. At the same time. On the same TV.
How? We managed to fangle a giant TV from his friend’s parents, who were just going to throw the thing away. And I mean, this thing is huge. Pre-flat-screen-huge. 82-inch screen, two feet from front to back. It was interesting to fit it into our tiny apartment. Anyway, we discovered that we can split the screen into two and play on two separate systems. Of course, the sound only works for one of the games, but… We could both sit and enjoy our games together, and J.D. was always there to help me get through the difficult parts.
Yeah. We’re boring. But we’ve had a busy semester, and I’ve earned it. (He’ll officially earn it by the end of the week)
Speaking of J.D.’s game, he named his character on Ocarina of Time something… Rather derogatory and mean. So, everyone in the game sounds like a pretentious, sarcastic jerk every time they say something to him. Like this, “Great job getting up here, stupid.” Or, “Hey, stupid, get up!” It’s juvenile, but so far, we’re still laughing every time it happens.
P.S. On another note, I keep having dreams of being on a cruise again… My family and I, minus J.D., as it was a few weeks before we got married, went on a cruise. And I keep dreaming about going on another one. And drinking lots and lots of hot chocolate.
As many of you in the world know, Apple recently debuted their most recent installment in the iPhone saga, the ‘iPhone 4s.’ Proclaimed to be the best and most exciting yet, it features “sexy Siri,” the bot that answers all your questions with the touch of a button and the easy use of your vocal chords–like a real person without the hassle of trite pleasantries! I suppose the graphics are better, and even the price is better (for Apple)! On top of that it comes with all the same features as a planner, a computer, and phone, a Gameboy, an iPod (or any other thing that plays music), a dictionary, an encyclopedia, a friend (albeit a cold one), and annoying child. With all of these amazing features, who WOULDN’T want one?
The answer? Me. However, my husband is trying desperately to convince me that he needs one beyond all reason.However, on a newlywed’s budget, I am trying to convince him (and perhaps the rest of the world) that they are silly and we don’t really need one. I am very content with my flip phone, iPod touch (Christmas gift from my parents a few years ago–I just wanted a regular iPod; you know, with the circle thing?), paper-and-pencil planner, and looking things up in books and on the internet MANUALLY. So, the following are five reasons you DON’T need an iPhone, plus five things you can get instead.
Reason #1: You already have a phone that fulfills its phone-like duties: making and taking phone calls. It even has voice mail! And as an added bonus, it can take pictures, AND send texts AND video! Why do you need something else that does the same thing?
Reason #2: We already spend our hours whiling away our time on the internet with our laptops in wi-fi zones, why do we want to waste MORE of our time on the internet with a phone that can connect ANYWHERE?
Reason #3: Have you seen the price tag? HAVE YOU SEEN THE PRICE TAG??
Reason #4: It will be obsolete in a while. As I was looking up the iPhone 4s, I was seeing rumors flyinig around Google about the iPhone 5, which probably promises to be even more… Excessive.
Reason #5: Someday, the novelty WILL wear off, and when it does, you’ll only be left with the taste of regret that you didn’t wait until something better came along, like the following:
FIVE THINGS YOU CAN BUY INSTEAD:
#1: Food. This is number one because I’m getting tired of wandering around after I come home from class, wishing we had some decent snack food or something to ease that grumbling in my stomach. You can only eat so much tuna, so many egg salad sandwiches, so many 95-cent pot pies, so many (very) basic chicken recipes, and so much hamburger helper before you feel the need for something more, something… Substantial.
#2: Pants. I say this because J.D. and I seem to have a shortage of them. He keeps ripping holes in his (which I will eventually repair–maybe I’ll repair all the holes in his jeans for Christmas, if he wants to spend our money on an iPhone so bad), and I have to do my student teaching next semester, and something tells me that low-rise skinny jeans are not appropriate. But who doesn’t want more pants? Nobody wants to go around smelling like butt when they only have one or two pairs of jeans to wear.
#3: A house. Someday. That $300 for an iPhone could be saved, and eventually get anyone out of the renting cycle and into a home of their very own.
#4: Friends. As in, throw a party. Make some mac n’ cheese and invite everyone over for some hard-core face-to-face interaction (something that would likely not be happening if one were too busy building a relationship with a fake woman named Siri– See video below).
#5: Here, I have three options: For the price of an 8 gig, $200, you could get a fainting goat:http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=18418782&cat=&lpid=&search=
For the price of the 32 gig, $300, you could get one male purebred Corgie puppy! OHMYGOSHCUTE!!!! http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=18009816&cat=&lpid=&search=
And, for the price of the 64 gig, you could get you could get a used couch, loveseat, AND chair! Because who doesn’t love lounging around on furniture? Especially when the furniture you currently own smells like butt and consists of one used recliner and an old loveseat.
There you have it. iPhones were obsolete before they were made: we already have screaming children, friends, planners, the internet, mp3-players, phones, cameras, and books. We even have plenty of things to touch, thank you very much.
Yes, I am still in the planning stages of this wedding. Yes, my engagement has lasted this long. And yes, I do live in Utah. You’d think I’d have it all done by now? Actually, you’d think I would have had it done by the time I was 18. Well, I don’t, and I didn’t. How many days until the big day? 35. Yes. Just over a month. Now, an acquaintance of mine recently got engaged (to my ex who recently returned from a mission in December, which is… Ahem… Awesome.) So, I’ve found it humorous to play some comparison games. Because I’m like that.
Me: Brunette, short hair, like to wear men’s cargo shorts and read science fiction, 21.
Her: Blonde, long hair, likes to wear dresses and flowers, probably reads books by the guy who wrote “Charly,” 18
Her: Dated him for… Something like… Maybe three months? That might be pushing it.
Me: Dated him for… Something like… fourteen months.
Her: Engaged April 24
Me: Engaged February 12
Her: Hand felt like a museum piece first day back at school after engagement.
Me: Had fill-in ring first day back at school after engagement, just wanted to eat m&ms all day and not tell anybody–waited for people to notice my new jewelry. The (very) reluctant attention hog.
Her: Considering elopement on April 28th
Me: Considering elopement now, because I only have 35 days left to make all this stuff for my wedding.
Her: Engagement photos done May 3rd (that’s only one and half weeks following the engagement)
Me: Engagement photos done April 10th (I think)– Two months after the engagement. Wow, slow.
Me: Engagement photos outfit: Jeans, Shirt from the D.I., and my boots of AWESOME.
Her: Pretty dress.
Me: Engagement photos: Park, messing around, and a giant pipe.
Her: Engagement photos: Trees, hay bales, and a tractor.
(My roommate is also getting married. She was very adamant about doing her photos up at some national park. I think that is boring. “Stand next to this tree and smile. Stand next to that shrub and smile. Walk down that path holding hands and smile.” Ours were more like, “Hey, let’s go play on the swings! Let’s ride these dolphins! Let’s climb this wall! Let’s see if we can both fit down this slide!” Yep. Much more fun.)
Her: Grateful for girl’s nights in the midst of “crazy wedding planning” (hint, her date is in August–it’s not crazy yet, dear)
Me: Grateful to be able to eat nachos and watch Bones/America’s Next Top Model/The Office by myself to relax from “wedding plans.” (AKA doing homework and letting my mom and future mother-in-law stress while I take “brain breaks” from said homework. Also grateful that I at least finished planning the middle school band festival. That was a higher priority than the wedding.)
Anyway, I’m a terrible Utahn/bride. Dating for more than a year?? Procrastinating wedding plans??? Not including some shade of pink or purple in my wedding colors??? (BTW my colors are green, white, and gold) No hay bales??? No matching denim????? No hair extensions (might even cut hair back to a pixie)????? Man! What is MY problem?? Heck, I may even add a drum circle to my reception entertainment, just to let people know how TOTALLY wack-o I am!
Also, if I hear the phrase “It’s your day, do what YOU want!” I might throw up. My favorite, though, is, “It’s YOUR day, do what YOU want! But you’re GOING to want this!” I’m perfectly content letting J.D.’s mother do as much as she wants. I have no idea what’s going on for the luncheon, but she apparently has it completely under control. Thank heaven for mothers.
So, this evening, I attended a production of The Mikado put on by my university’s music department. I was actually supposed to be IN the show but declined due to the realization that it would bring me little to no joy throughout the process and in fact would NOT give me friends. Anyway, that’s beside the point. What IS the point is that I HATE “actor voices.” And what I hate even more is a decent character with a BAD British accent that ranges from about five areas of the UK and other nearby areas, including Utahn, especially when NOBODY ELSE is using a fake British accent. I mean, come on… Just because you can say a FEW words with a fake accent around friends does NOT mean you can do it on stage. Especially if you’re from Utah. Also JUST because you got to see and talk to The King’s Singers a few days previous doesn’t mean you’re well-versed in the nuances of the language– and yes, I do categorize it as a different language. Sometimes I just can’t understand anything they’re saying, partially because it’s just so much nicer to listen to than the “happy valley” accent.
Anyway, that’s it for this two in the morning rant.
So, guess what, internet… I’m planning a wedding. For myself. Because I’m engaged. I figured you should know. So I think I’ll share some of my thoughts on planning a wedding, specifically in Utah.
I recently printed out a checklist of all the things I have to do before I get married. It’s a long list, but we’ve been working on cutting out things we don’t need. Like a wedding coordinator. Why would we need someone to tell us what we want for our wedding (which will be in a free venue, mind you–a huge perk to LDS-dom–in a beautiful, pre-decorated castle), and what we want our decor to be in our also-free reception venues (two receptions, one south, one north Utah). In this day of the internet, where I can find all the ideas I need (and some I don’t need) for this stuff, what would be the point to pay someone to look on the internet for me?
Another thing I’ve crossed off because we don’t need it? Bridesmaids. For an LDS wedding, there’s not a huge procession where all the women involved have to wear matching dresses. In all reality, I don’t see a point in having bridesmaids except to pose for a few pictures wearing dresses that are only flattering on 50% of the girls (unless you were part of the “popular” crowd, where all of the girls you would ask to be your bridesmaids were carbon copies of each other. This is probably what my insane roommate’s wedding will look like, however. I believe she is also engaged. Although, I haven’t had occasion to ask, or even talk to her. But that’s beside the point. In fact, I don’t even know if I’ll find a maid of honor. I’ll probably just have my mother help me out. I can’t imagine asking one of my few female friends to do it–I’m not necessarily close enough with any of them to ask anyway. I can’t imagine any of them WANTING that kind of responsibility on my behalf. It just seems very silly when I have a mother and myself who are both very capable of taking care of ourselves and this occasion… Although, this may mean I will likely have the tamest-ever bridal shower, filled with gifts like nice hand soap from Bath & Body Works or a gift card to Maidenform or Target. Perhaps a nice bath rug or framed picture. Which is cool, too. That’s how I roll.
Let’s see, what else… Ah. Reception entertainment. Now, we haven’t necessarily nixed this concept altogether. I’m actually throwing around the idea of hosting an drum circle for the So-tah (southern Utah) reception, inviting all of J.D.’s percussion friends and letting them have at it with their djembes. Which I probably didn’t spell right. Other than that, there will be plenty of children running around to keep everyone entertained. I think we’ll have a table for them, though, with coloring books and games so they’re not SO all-over-the-place. Haven’t decided if we’ll do much dancing. I can’t say I’m really INto the whole Utah dance thing… I still have memories of those awkward middle school “dances” (which I ended up calling “stands” because that’s really all it was–standing, perhaps swaying, and doing a lot of perspiring) and remain jaded. Oh, and church dances. Those were relatively similar. I was never really into the whole standing and swaying thing. I just ended up talking a lot and being three times my awkward self. I don’t think I ever talked so much in my life than I did when I was swaying awkwardly in tandem with a young man who was far more adept at keeping his mouth shut than I was.
Probably why I went to prom with my 11-year-old brother… But hey. J.D. loves me for it.
