Fail

It may seem like I'm obsessed with Google, and I might be just a little bit, but Google failed me. Usually, I'm quite confident I can Google anything and within a few minutes I can find my answer. It is how I can have credibility when I give my dad a hard time for still relying on his trusty encyclopedia set. Or when I tell my mom, "Oh, yeah we can find out how to tie a quilt without knots on the internet." However, I was too over zealous. Because my quick usual searching methods left me without what I was looking for. And so now, I don't know where to go for answers! Oh, to be a product of the technological age! It's a good thing I learned some survival type skills (i.e. starting camp fires, milking cows, etc.) at the Heritage Center, just in case the world's technologies really fail.

(Oh, I started my internship at the Church History Museum. I want to share fun stories, but I'm scared. I signed some confidentiality paper and so I am lost. What will I talk about? My best stories always seemed to come from work! Actually, I think I'm fine. I am an intern, let's be honest. I will not be in on any secret meetings. Though, on the second day I was standing guard for an original Book of Mormon, handwritten Book of Commandments, and other such interesting Church stuff. Ha.)

Poor Choice of Road Trip Snacks

As I was cleaning Cornelius (my car) today, I realized I made some poor choices for road snacks late in my trip across the country. Junior mints and powdered donuts are examples of such bad choices. If the junior mints get loose (which one may have in my car), they melt into a puddle of chocolate, mint goo. And powdered donuts, well, that speaks for itself. Mind you, those were my poor choices in Wyoming. By that point in the road trip, I was tired of the trip and wasn't thinking clearly. Up until then, my packed at home chex mix, apples, granola bars, water, and cherry tomatoes had served me very well (oh, and diet coke...well! I traveled over 2,000 miles after all!). I had cheerfully weathered the rain of West Virginia and Pennsylvania, and the miles of nothingness of Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas. I got to spend some quality time thinking about my life. But by Wyoming, for some reason I thought, "Hey, powdered donuts! That is an excellent idea!" Ha. Not quite.

My Perfect Evening

Someone asked me this evening what I would do on my own free time in the evening (this was to gather what it is that I like to do). Right now at this time in my life? I asked. Yes. Homework. And for breaks I would do my chores, like grocery shop, do laundry, etc. But obviously, as much as I love school, this is not how I would voluntarily spend my time. So, anything in the world, how would I love to spend my evening, this evening? Maybe we always want what we can't have, but here is what my perfect evening would be:

I would come home from work (developing exhibits and educational programming, of course!), with my commute being no longer than a half hour. After some dinner and relaxation (Maybe write! Or read for fun!! How earth shattering!) I would breathe in the crisp spring air, throw on my walking shoes and head for the River Trail in Logan Canyon. Nothing grand, nothing monumental. A simple walk along the Logan River. That would be the perfect evening. The sound of the water, the birds and the smell of the fresh air and trees. And then, after the sun had set, and I was relaxing with friends, I would step outside to look at the stars. It has been too long since I have really seen the stars.

(Yes I am aware these are pictures of the Wind Caves Hike. I, sadly enough, do not have any of the River Trail that I could find quickly!! I will remedy that this summer...But it IS Logan Canyon. Close enough.)

I guess I will find a Logan Canyon/River Trail here in my new life. But to experience nature, alone, with relatively minimal people is something I miss. (I miss it so much, I am doing my entire exhibit on open space. Ha.) To be sure, there are chances for outdoor things here. It is all just so used. I can't think of a better word...but there are so many people, things just look worn out, from the city to nature. I am guessing I just haven't searched hard enough (a Logan Canyon equivalent is most certainly NOT 15 min away here...). I will find it; until then, I have my hope of the perfect evening.

[Please don't misinterpret what I am saying... I really like it here. I love the trees and the green and the moisture and the monuments at night and the hustle and bustle of the city and the amazing people I have met. But, if I am honest, I just want a simple walk along the Logan River.]

Do You Have An Alias?

If you don't, you should get one. (And have an updated passport so you can quickly leave the country...though your passport should have your real name, not your alias. I think you would get in trouble with your alias on your passport.) It is very handy to have an alias, or what I like to think of as a "fake name". Fake names come in handy in many instances; with sales people, in awkward social/possible dating situations, ordering food...you get the idea. I will disclose my fake name, because people who read my blog are probably my friends and so I don't need to lie to you. My fake name is Isabella Barker. My family will catch on to the Barker. Isabella is just a name I have always loved (and if anyone is familiar with the Christmas song, "Bring a torch Jeanette Isabella", well....that explains itself). However, I am sad that Twilight has forever ruined Isabella for me. Twilight it fine, I guess...but Bella is kind of an annoying character, I won't lie. Anyway, this is the ramblings of a procrastinator. Better I ramble about this than what I should be doing! (No one cares to read exhibit labels in a museum, much less on a blog!!!)

And now an easy question: Have you ever Goggled yourself? Yes. You all have. Some of us are (un)fortunate to have strange and unique spellings of our name so we do not have to wade through pages of other people to get to us! Anyway, as further exhibit that Google IS trying to take over the world, apparently it is possible to create a Google profile that appears when your name is searched. It is supposed to be another social networking kind of thing, to take on Facebook, of course. You can read more about it here:

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1893965,00.html

(I am really digging Time these days, I don't know why...)

Preparation is Key

Hypothetically speaking, say you were the president of a major world country. Or, you are the head of the national health organization in said country. In a neighboring country, a deadly strain of a flu virus breaks out and kills some people. World leaders begin calling it a global pandemic problem. What do you do? Do you assume and prepare for the worst, calling for a costly production of a vaccine, talk of closing the border of your neighboring country (whom you already have tenuous immigration problems with), recommend people cease non-essential travel to that country, and suggest closing schools? Or, do you assume that, like a lot of things like this, they will fizzle out before too much damage is done? Because if you choose the later option, somehow, THIS will be the strain that truly is a global pandemic that decimates the country. So, you have to prepare for the worst. I, in my own life, often assume the worst, but never quite prepare for it. That means I am worried, but never prepared, which brings more worry. Lesson learned: Preparation is key.

In my research and reading of the news for this hypothetical situation, I discovered that something similar happened in 1976. I don’t remember this, I wasn’t born I can honestly say, nor have I ever heard about it. Apparently a case of the swine flu broke out in the US killing one individual and infecting hundreds. Pres. Ford ordered a nationwide vaccination program (costing $135 million). Unfortunately, the vaccine caused some people to develop Guillain-Barré syndrome, a paralyzing nerve disease. And nothing really happened with the flu (thus, I have never heard about it). Anyway, those are just the facts of that one case. I thought it was pretty interesting. Lesson learned: Preparation can backfire; You cannot be 100% prepared for everything and anything that could happen, but you can do your best...

Here’s the entire article:
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1894129,00.html

What Luck!!

You know those moments that are so small, they aren't really worth mentioning...except somehow they mean oh so much? About three days ago, my sunglasses broke. They had served me well, in fact I considered them the most perfect pair I had ever run across. So I was sad. And I was even more sad because I knew I would need to look for a new pair soon. Choosing sunglasses seems like an easy enough task, but for me, somehow it isn't. They have to feel right, look right, block the sun right...there are a lot of variables. And unfortunately, what is popular right now doesn't really mesh with me. Last night while shopping at Target, I took a look at the sunglasses wall. I sighed...there are always so many choices! Why with all the choices?! And then, there it was! The EXACT same pair of sunglasses that had just broke! (I mean exact, not similar.) What luck!! I was overjoyed probably more than I should have been. But sometimes, those little things can either send you over the edge or really just make your day.

Google Kind of Makes Me Nervous

So, does anyone else get a little nervous about opening their Gmail account? No? Well, that is good. A good sign you’re not as paranoid as I am! There I am, just innocently opening my email to see what great invitations, deadlines, or opportunities await, and my eyes are drawn to the right of the screen. There they are--Advertisements. But not just your random mortgage, loose weight, better than botox ads I get in my Yahoo account. Oh no, Google is so much better. Somehow they KNOW what your email is about. So I open a random email about tickets to a baseball game from some person on a random listserv I belong to. And then, there they are, ads for baseball stuff—baseball in general, Nationals tickets, LDS posters (since it’s an LDS listserv), etc. Granted, sometimes Google gets confused and it doesn’t quite match. But ultimately, I am pretty sure Google is positioning itself to take over the country. They know too much…now if they combine with Facebook, they would take over the world.


So apparently today is Earth Day...

And this post, my friends, is the way I get to take a break from my darn museum about puppets. I thought museums just took people’s crap (that’s what the Heritage Center did, after all). But NO, apparently there are guidelines above guidelines and forms above forms to follow and fill out. I get to make all that up (isn't school great?). Very helpful and so much fun. Seriously, who knew I would rather be writing my 25 page research paper? Not me…but somehow it seems easier.