My Birthday Wish

My friend in Washington has concert tickets to see three of my favorite artists -Train, Matt Kearney, and Andy Grammer- the weekend before my 18th birthday. But I don't have enough money to pay for airfare back to the mainland.

All I want for my birthday/Christmas is to be able to go to this concert with my friend.

I am trying to raise money to do this. I need about $500. PLEASE help me by donating to my Birthday Wish Fund through the Paypal button below. Every little bit counts; even small $5-10 donations help and are greatly appreciated.

Please help me have the best birthday ever. It's my 18th. Once in a lifetime. Why not?

Photography

New hobby. So great.

The Cure for Hiccups

Items needed: yourself, a spoon, a glass of water, and hiccups (of course).

1. Put spoon in glass.
2. Place the glass to your lips and press the handle of the spoon against your forehead.
3. Chug!

Works every time.

Friendship

Human are imperfect. They often make mistakes. And that includes, you, me, our bestfriends, and everyone else. So when your friend does something stupid, remember that you have done stupid things too. Have patience and be forgiving. Be the friend who cares enough and is brave enough to tell them the straight truth about what they have done. Support their attempts to try again and be better.

The Help

I know I am a little behind the times here, but I saw this movie for the first time on Monday night.

It's amazing. Seriously. But it is awful to see people treating each other like that. I don't think I have ever before watched a singular movie where I wanted to punch so many different people in the face. I mean, we are all children of God here, right? Right. So let's be considerate. (And not actually punch people in the face.)

Daylight Savings

Failure in the consistent blogging department noted.

Now. Yesterday was Daylight Savings.
Interesting Fact: Hawai'i does not observe the above mentioned odd practice.
How weird is that?
Therefore, without doing anything, I am an extra hour behind my friends in Washington.
So, dear friends who occasionally call me: Be aware that while over the last few months I have been two hours behind you, now it's three.
Thanks.

Blurg. Ants. People. Yesss

Life is really hard. In lots of ways. And sometimes you just need to cry yourself to sleep.

But then in the morning your friendbrother calls while you are getting ready for seminary, And you get to chat with him and the adorable lil Miss B. And they wish you a good day.
And it makes things look a little brighter.
So thanks guys.

In other news, ants have taken over my locker. Yup. Luck abounding through my life in sooo many ways.

Sarcasm completely intended.

(PS You can tell I put a lot of thought and effort into that title, yeah?)

Forget Me Not

For Christmas, my mama gave me a tiny grow your own forget-me-not flower kit because of this wonderful talk by Dieter F. Uchdorf.

(Don't tell anyone, but he is one of my favorite current General Authorities =] )

"You are not forgotten...wherever you are, whatever your circumstances may be, you are not forgotten. No matter how dark your days may seem, no matter how insignificant you may feel, no matter how overshadowed you think you may be, your Heavenly Father has not forgotten you. In fact, He loves you with an infinite love...God loves you because you are His child. He loves you even though at times you may feel lonely or make mistakes...

You are closer to heaven than you suppose. You are destined for more than you can possibly imagine...

There is something inspiring and sublime about the little forget-me-not flower. I hope it will be a symbol of the little things that make your lives joyful and sweet. Please never forget that you must be patient and compassionate with yourselves, that some sacrifices are better than others, that you need not wait for a golden ticket to be happy. Please never forget that the “why” of the gospel of Jesus Christ will inspire and uplift you. And never forget that your Heavenly Father knows, loves, and cherishes you."

     - Dieter F. Uchdorf

Underwater Adventures

I got a  new camera for Christmas. Supposedly it is waterproof.

So I decided to test that, while it was still under warranty. Last week my mom, sister, and I went snorkeling, and tried underwater photography. Surprisingly, it worked! Here are some pictures of our adventure. Isn't the ocean a marvelous place?

Facelift

So, I am trying to be cool and make my bloggy pretty and unique. Trouble is this technology thing...well usually I just don't bother dealing with it because it so annoying. So if anyone has any ideas, pictures, advice, or design help, it would be greatly appreciated.

Cake is Always Great

I intended to write some lovely, meaningful, spiritual Christmas post, but obviously that did not happen. So let's just move on shall we?

I made this cake last night. It is truly amazing. Just don't bother trying to zest the tangerines. It's ridiculous. Use orange zest. Orange liqueur can be substituted with orange extract, 2 teaspoons. Also, when you glaze it make sure your glaze is nice and thick and the cake is actually cool, otherwise it will just run off and not look as pretty. =]

Tangerine Cake with Citrus Glaze

Photo-Op

Tuesday, Mom and I drove down to Kona, and stopped to enjoy the view from the K-Mart parking lot.

Yes, that is the ocean.

Shaka!

See the temple?

There it is!

Hawai'i 101

Here is some basic info about Hawaii for you!

First off, I live in Hawaii, the state, on Hawaii, The Big Island. Subtle but distinct difference. There are eight islands.

I live in Waimea. (Northern bit of the island. Right in the middle.) It's chilly, windy and rainy. Typically about 15 degrees colder, more or less, than the coast. Hour drive to Kona (West coast. middle).

Hawaiian Language-

Aloha- Pretty much anything positive. Greetings, love....all that jazz.

Mahalo- Thank you

'ohana- family. Like Lilo & Stitch

keiki- children

honu- sea turtle

Mele Kalikimaka- Merry Christmas!

It is custom to remove your shoes before you enter someone's house.

Adults are more often referred to by children as Auntie or Uncle, rather than Mr. or Mrs.. The receptionist at my school is Auntie Lani, and the custodian, who I love very dearly, is Uncle Hapi.

POG

Passion Orange Guava Juice. It's pretty much everywhere. And it's to die for. Seriously, go buy some right now. Most grocery stores carry it.

Shaka - pretty much an "all good" greeting gesture. You might think you're being insulted, but you're not. You will see it everywhere.

Another traditional greeting/farewell/thanksgiving gesture is a hug and kiss on the cheek.


Flip-flop sandals are called slippers. Or slippahs, if you want to sound authentic and cool.

That's it for now! Any questions?

So. Much. Sugar!

Monday it finally started to feel like Christmas. With the weather here feeling more like spring, it's been weird. But then mom and I had a day of Christmas goodie making mania. After a quick stop at the grocery store, we put in our happy Christmas CD's and baked allllll day!

Grand total-
almond roca toffee
minty chocolate crinkle cookies
orange rolls!
pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting
rosettes
pretzel hugs
wasail
tacos- for lunch
my favorite sausage rice casserole- for dinner

All in our absolutely TINY lil kitchen!

Then we went caroling in Waikoloa with some families from church, and brought a bunch of goodies to share. It was fun.

Write a Friend Month

First off-
I apologize (again) for lack of postage. I think I am just gonna apologize in advance.
Also, this technology thing has been holding a grudge against me or something, because it hasn't let me comment ON MY OWN POSTS! It was angrymaking. So if I didn't reply, it wasn't my fault. I tried. The computer wouldn't let me.

Now! On to new stuff.

According to the calendar in my classroom, December is Write a Friend Month.
I quite enjoy that, as I am missing my friends very very much. Also, it is Christmas! And I think writing and sending letters is especially appropriate during this season. It is what I try to do, instead of spending money on worldly presents. It is more meaningful. But that is a topic for another time. Maybe a talk in church next week actually...

Anyway.
I would like to issue a challenge: Write your friends! Handwritten notes and letters are the best, but if you know you probably won't do that, at least send emails! Or however else you message!

Let people know how much you love and appreciate them. It really means a lot to hear from your friends. You never know who is needing a boost. Why not give it to them?

Happy Birthday Momma

Yesterday was my Mama's Birthday. I love her muchly. She is super awesome. So fun and silly and kind. Impatient with my baking, she always wants to get it done and eaten as fast as possible. Sun-loving. Sings hymns in church even when she knows she isn't on the right pitch. Adventurous biker chick. Makes me lunch. She is just wonderful. One of my heroes.
So Mama, I love you! Happy Birthday! Thanks for all you do.

IMPORTANT: Email Change

Just so you are all aware, I have a new email!

MegyTortuga@gmail.com

Feel free to email me, I love hearing from you all. Any questions, comments, thoughts, just wanna talk... anything, let me know!

Distractions

Sorry for my lack of postage. It's been a stressful, emotional, rather unhappy week. Lots of new things happening.

Also, I have been gladly distracted by a book!

Inheritance, by Christopher Paolini!

It is quite exciting. And an excellent distraction from loneliness, stress, school, etc. Plus, I am right in the middle of the epic battle.

So I will blog later. I am going to go read some more.

You should to, instead of being annoyed with me for not posting.

teehee

Meet Milo

This is my fuzzy stuffed turtle, Milo. I hug him when I miss my friends or am sad. He is my friend when I don't have any here to help me. We snuggle. It's nice.

My best friend gave him to me before I left. I love them both very much.

Aren't they so silly? :)



Anybody else have a sentimental attachment to a stuffed animal?

Welcome to Waimea

Tuesday I visited the town I will now be living in. Waimea, Hawai'i.

Fun Fact - Waimea is the original name of the town. But as there is another Waimea on a different island, the Post Office renamed this one to Kamuela. So all the locals still call it Waimea, but the addresses all say Kamuela. Kinda confusing, I know.

Anyway. Waimea is headquarters for the famous Parker Ranch, where my dad now works. So it's home to all the Hawaiian cowboys. Not really a touristy, beachy place like Kona is. It's actually cooler than you would expect, I wore a sweatshirt in the evening. At the base of a mountain, it gets alot of rain. I am glad for that. Here are some snapshots of our visit -

My lil sis's new school -

My new school -

Hurrah! Those Mormon churches are everywhere... -

We visited our school, the library, and our new rental house. In the afternoon it started to rain, but it was just tiny little sprinkling! However the wind blew it sideways everywhere. Unfortunately it was about that time that my camera died.