4 Pics 1 Week

-Mountains, trees, hiking...I mean come on! Summer is here. Get out there and take in the vistas. I suggest Glacier National Park surprise surprise but Logan Canyon, Millcreek Canyon, and even Provo Canyon have some pretty fantastic areas if driving 14+ hours isn't in your weekend plans. My goal is to find some new trails this summer because this whole sitting-in-a-chair-all-day thing is killing me. Kind of.

-Sorry for all those who are grossed out by feet holla atcha jr high friends and those who are just grossed out by MY feet ....sisters.... but I have had some pretty successful dirt/tan lines going on this week. This is nothing compared to my sister-in-law's Chaco lines though. She's so cool.

-Batman was spotted at the nearby Macey's on Tuesday.

-Met up with these lovelies for some frozen yogurt and to catch up on their lives. sorry boys, both are taken.  I was extremely please with my cold concoction of Cookies...you know what, never mind. I can think of nothing more boring than reading about what someone else decided to put in their dairy product. So just enjoy the picture, which shows that my #nomakeupmonday became #nomakeupanyday this week. It happens.

peace

rrw

we have words for a reason

So, like any good twenty and older girl without a boyfriend, I have dedicated a larger portion of my life than I care to admit to the fabricated affection of others via reality television. But let's get real, nothing in these things is real. Except for the real bewilderment I feel towards the disappearing act of so many women's eyebrows. But...that's a different tangent.

I've been watching this truly terrible show. I just can't stop. It's basically a Bachelor spin off with less traveling, no roses, fewer cat fights, and no Chris Harrison. i really don't know why i even watch it. In it, three guys date numerous women and then send them home one by one. And I've noticed a trend in these girls that is seriously driving me crazy. They all tell this man how in love they are with him, are very generous in their show of physical affection, and plan their lives out with this man. Then the man sends them on their way and in their few moments to say goodbye all the girls say is "It's ok. It's ok. I understand...."

And I'm all like "WHAT?"
You had already named your children with this guy.
How are you NOT slapping him in the face?
He kissed you good, like, yesterday.

Ok. Sure, they went into this knowing what was in store. And like I said, it's all fake, but I mean really?

The few times I have experienced a guy "sending me home" I was not ok and I was not about to make him feel like everything was fine and dandy. I mean, I tried not to go all girly cray-cray on them, but I tried my best to stand up for myself. Not just say "It's ok. It's ok. You're a great guy and only good things will come to you and I'm just going to stew over this for the next 8 and a half months and tear myself apart about it but for your sake, it's ok. I understand."

NO.
Use your words people. And if you don't have a broad enough vocabulary for it, then buy a dictionary.

peace and rants

rrw

4 Pics 1 Week

Ok. So it's not Friday. And I kind of thought I would do this type of post each Friday. But I just didn't. And I'm doing it now. So deal. please?

-The BYU Bookstore literally sells everything. And sometimes you just have to wonder why. Why are you trying to get college students to buy ridiculous things they don't need? Like a backpack that looks like a plaid shirt? Ok. So that one makes sense. But it's about the only thing that does. i'm thinking their target audience must be all the EFY kids that are about to invade campus. they need that teeny tiny pen that has a cat head as a grip in order to remember their time spent here. obviously.

ps. look at that cute bride to be! her dress is a lot prettier than that backpack. trust me. i've seen it. #maidofhonor

-Summer is here and the hiking has commenced. I have this thing where I wear sandals everywhere wait, is that like, the name of this blog or something? and this rule absolutely applies to hiking. I love having my feet dirty. I know, it's weird, but whatever. Plus when you get to hike with pretty people like my Tracie friend, it's just a double bonus.

-Wow. So I realized that all three of my favorite friends are in these pictures. i'm waiting for the day when they all meet and we all become the best of friends. it's going to happen. even if that day is my wedding day. no. i am not getting married anytime soon. Lindsay and I started a scooter gang because I mean, what else are super intimidating white girls supposed to do? PS. You want a natural high? Get a scooter. It is impossible to frown while riding such a blessed vehicle.

-Oh look, we went hiking! We never do that. jklolhags The four of us went to Logan to enjoy that place, be with the pony, and hike. This trail was a beauty. 10 miles in perfect temperature, on lovely single track, alongside a stream/river/brook...natural water feature, with the destination point being some super cool tree that's older than your 1500 year old grandma. apparently this thing was a sapling when the pyramids were being built. #treesforever. 

Oh. And if you really have a 1500 year old grandma, I want to meet her so I can ask what life was like before cheese quesadillas.


My life is so good. I mean...what?

And since it's Tuesday....

You can't listen to this and not feel just...cool. So go ahead. Feel cool.

peace and rain showers

it smells so good out there

rrw

humans are cool

I'm in one of these moods where I just want to write. I think it's probably because I've been looking at Humans of New York for too long and seeing all the different types of people on there gets in me in an expressive state of mind. I probably should stop looking at that website because it makes me want to be a liberal. And we all know that it's completely unacceptable for a middle class, Caucasian, BYU student whose dad works in the finance field to be a liberal. Plus I would be the worst liberal because the most eccentric article of clothing in my wardrobe is a pair of neon pink shoes with green polo players printed on them. (I think they're a Ralph Lauren knockoff or something. But I don't know enough about clothes and brands to be sure.)

One of my favorites from Humans of New York.

I want to be that woman someday.

I'm going to have to start stretching now though.

In other news, my friend Tracie and I discovered the place for single girls to eat. Firehouse Subs. Seriously, we went there last night and were two of three girls in the entire place. Sure, there was obviously a Young Men's activity happening so most of the population was under 18, but there were others who were older. Promise! We decided that while girls prefer Zupas guilty! that pulled pork sandwich just can't be beat the boys seem to choose this place.

So...maybe we'll go back there in the future.

Oh, and I curled my eyelashes for the first time this morning? I felt like a Bionicle Woman with that contraption up against my face. And I thought, "Who in the world came up with the idea, 'I'm going to clamp metal and rubber against my eyelashes, in severely close proximity to my eyeball-the means through which I observe the world around me-because then I'll look pretty.'?" <---- holy monoly, how does the punctuation work right there?

Anyway, curling your eyelashes is a completely ridiculous concept that has some seriously devastating potential outcomes.

I'll probably keep doing it. Because dang, I feel pretty. heh heh heh.

peace and peeling
i'm like a freaking snake over here. disgusting.

rrw

tuesday tunes and travels

The song for today's tunes was chosen because if I could make a super artistic and cool video like people do about this past weekend, I would probably put it all to this song. Why? Because we love, love, love the arches. And camping. And each other. And sandal tan lines.

Ok. I'll stop rambling now. Here's the song.

Love, Love, Love by Avalanche City

 

So now that you have the music to the weekend, how about a few visuals? But first, I'm going to start with a statement of truth: If you hate Utah as many of my confused acquaintances do then you obviously haven't been to Moab or millcreek canyon. or the uintas. or capitol reef, bear lake, cache valley, the cottonwood canyons, or downtown slc. but...i digress. It's impossible to go Moab and not feel like something magical is about to happen-like Indiana Jones being around the next bend in the trail, Stanley Yelnats about to offer you onions and Sploosh, or looking in the mirror and realizing you suddenly have dreadlocks.

This was either my 6th or 14th time visiting and I enjoyed it just as much as if it had been my first. There was no parental guidance because heck, we're adults now! Sure, we forgot the utensils and had to eat all our food with our hands. And yeah, we weren't super great at planning meals so we might have visited the grocery store 4 times. Maybe I ended up throwing things in the back of Sneaky because I just couldn't get everything to fit nicely like my dad does and maybe we got lost trying to find our campsite.

But we ate relatively healthy minus the 9 smores saturday night and rose before 8am every day i even went running. practically died, but still. We drove halfway across the state without one mistake, including a joyful jaunt to Goblin Valley, put our own tent up, including the rain guard and stakes, packed our own lunches, replenished our own water, kept track of our own things, and flirted with boys on the trails, which would have never happened if parents were there well, lindsay and i flirted. I personally taught myself how to put the backpacking propane-powered stove together and cooked meals on it, started the fire and kept it alive for 5 and half hours, and used paper maps to find where we needed to go. Kudos to the parents for teaching me well.

A few themes/moments from the trip were as follows:

-Naked Juice and all the jokes that inevitably follow such a purchase
-Bickering like an old married couple, only to laugh hysterically about it three minutes later
-R Kelly's "World's Greatest," because that is THE BEST song to sing while hiking. case closed.
-Lindsay's new Chacos and the love-hate relationship she had with them
-My love-love relationship with Chris Pine in the new Star Trek show. LOVED IT.
-Mental breakdowns at the grocery store
-Seeing naked, old men on the trails i'm just...not going to get into detail on that one
-Trail games like "20 questions" "rhymin' time" "let's tell a story" and "word for word."
-My backside and Zumba hips? it happened.  don't question.
-Speaking chipmunk
-Arrested Development, Simpsons, and King of the Hill references. None of which I got.
-Bonding over deep questions around the campfire
-Watching the engaged couple interact because they might be the most entertaining people I've ever been around
-Adventure Pants from Slovakia
-Learning Slovak, Tahitian, and French. i remember nothing
-Dance parties under the arches
-The gems of wisdom that you could only experience at a stake conference in Moab


And now I give you a bazillion pictures. Admire our beauty.

come at me bro

no. you don't understand how unbelievable this was.

self-timer. boom.

they're a boy band with girls in it

i'll take that awkward-fifth-wheel-pose-in-the-front any day.

engaged. enlove.

e.p.i.c.

model shots at delicate arch.

peace and Arches National Park

rrw

moab diner, where the tourists eat

I am currently sitting in bed with an entire pizza just for me, getting ready to hit up all the Hulu shows I've missed in the last week.
Yes, Hulu. Because I don't have enough money to do Netflix.

It's been a fabulous weekend and, as always, there are a ton of pictures. But pizza and "Bachelor" knock-offs are calling my name and I must answer. So I'll leave you with a video from the beginning of my trip to Moab and call it good for now.

There are a lot of these. And I own this blog so they'll probably all be put on here.

peace and pizza
oh yikes. i promised a friend i'd go running with her...

rrw

songs and southern utah

This last weekend I sat with two of my friends and discussed the details of an upcoming road trip/campout. Obviously the topic of playlists came up. My friends have sophisticated and hipster-like taste in their music. I sat there, saying "I've never heard of them before" after every band name.

I've always been this way. It used to stress me out like nothing else because knowing music and bands was a sign of how cool you were. Until I was about 17 the only music I knew was the soundtracks to Swan Princess, Brother Bear, Harry Potter, and Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron holla atcha Phil Collins and Bryan Adams.  what's up Hedwig's Theme!? Now, I still consider these arrangements works of art and will gladly jam to "Get Off My Back" at any time and any place, but I've also tried to branch out into the "real world of music" and have found like I don't mind it too much.

So here are a few of my favorites from the "real world."

Circus of Love-Benjamin Dunn and Friends

Hinnom, TX-Bon Iver

Yamaha-Delta Spirit

Shell Suit-Chad Valley

Be Your Man-Ivan and Alyosha

1,000 Ships-Rachel Platten

Break the Walls-Fitz & The Tantrums

Heartbreaker-MSTRKRFT



Isn't southern Utah beautiful?
Looking forward to it.

picture taken during our time spent in Zion National Park over Easter

ps. don't ever go to Zion's over Easter.

hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people.

everywhere.

hiking really slow.

the only reason this photo turned out is because someone has mad camera skills.

jklolhags

but really. 

i don't know how there wasn't another person in this.

pps. look. at. her. legs.

peace and playlists

rrw

4 Pics 1 Week

-Do you think I've seen Warm Bodies enough times? And this is minus two ticket stubs. I can't help it.

...Speaking of movies, Rise of the Guardians was fantastic. Had me all sentimental for childhood like any good movie should do. Get it at a Redbox near you!

...Also, Iron Man 3. It wasn't my favorite but let's focus on the positive anyway. Likes: the cool suits flying all over the place, some of Robert Downey Jr.'s lines, the sweet technology, the way Tony Stark loves Pepper Potts.

-It was a lonely and boring Friday at work last week, similar to today, when Professor Brad Wilcox asked me to park his car for him. Naturally coworks and I took a small joy ride around town. I drove because my legs were long enough to reach the pedals without readjusting the seat. And because I had my license.

-On my way to the tulips last Saturday I was just minding my own business singing along with P!nk about how she needs a reason i've yet to figure out what she needs a reason for though... when I looked at the car next to me and saw Harry's patronus (aka. a stag) looking right back at me. Terrifying. So obviously I had to jeopardize everyone on the freeway's safety and take a picture.

-I was stalking my little sister's instagram to see why she's so much more popular than me on that thing when I saw some comments between the two of us regarding tie dye and ponchos. Brilliant. #shehad16tiedyeshirts #iworethesameponchoallsummer2009



peace and zumba
i have never moved my hips in such an aggressive manner. loved it.

rrw

next top model

I've been looking forward to this post for a long time aka since monday and I'll probably read through it enough times to make the "number of times viewed" statistic skyrocket from the usual 7 per post to about 381.

I laughed while we were snapping photos, I laughed when I went through the photos, I laughed when I thought of the idea for a post, I laughed as I typed, and I'm laughing now in anticipation. And that is why I blog. Because behind all the typing and editing and photo-ing and html-ing I'm usually laughing.
just so you know. because like, i knew you wanted to.

So now I give you...

Lindsay vs. Rachel: Battle of the Poses

The Door Frame

While Lindsay opts for the sultry stare, slightly pursed lips and flattering leg bend with gentle hands, I opt for the pigeon-toed, "I have to hold the wall up and look how surprised I am about that" look while making myself look 5 inches shorter than normal, because we all know that tall models are overrated. 

The Face Shot 

Embracing my inner eagle, I fly towards the camera with the majesty of the wind in my hair as I taste victory in the air. Somewhat surprised by the intimate distance of the lens, Lindsay kept it together and also worked the casual breeze while showing a small grin that hints to something more behind those long, hooded lashes. maybe the stroller is hers?



The Arch

Is that Superwoman? No, just Lindsay looking off into the distance, challenging any trouble maker on a segway to dare cross her steamy eyes and akimbo arms. While she's protecting the land, I bring out my inner Princess Diaries and pop my foot, waiting for my Prince Charming to get back from wherever the heck he went. i'm holding the pose until he gets here.



The Brick Pillar Lean

Lindsay seems to have a secret in this Secret Garden as she casually leans against the brick pillar, eyeing the camera with a certain sweetness that makes you wonder where she's been and where she's going. I chose the shoulder slump and laugh to show how comfortable I am against the hard brick while I stand on my ankle, proving my flexibility in difficult situations.



The Double Double 

In this double whammy both contestants attempt to connect to nature. I go for the "Sound of Music" look while I dance to the music of the hills. they must be playing "Baby" by jbeibs. Lindsay seems to take a Pocahontas spin on the theme, letting the colors of the wind paint beautiful pictures in her windswept hair as she takes the form of a diving swan.

In the end, Tyra called us both up. Look for us on the next cover of Elle Magazine. 

peace and posing

rrw

*additional pictures. 

#itsforfun -to be said in a nacho libre voice.

It's the attack of the apes.

do i really walk like that? 

i hope so

Can-Can at the Colosseum

it's what i kept calling this wooden structure. 

i mean, look at those arches.

Sassy hips.

My model strut.

Obviously.

Wait, where are my hips?

Ok.
...whatever.

Basking.

Man, if I were into those cheesy quotes on friendship I'd totes put one here. Love this girl.
#sisterwivesforever