Back to School

"Don't you just love New York in the Fall?  It makes me want to buy school supplies.  I would send you a bouquet of newly-sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address."

- Tom Hanks, You've Got Mail

It's that time of year again.  That time when you wake up in the morning and realize you have a full day of work and school ahead of you.  That time when you realize you will be trading valuable sleeping hours for just a little more time to write a paper you procrastinated.  That time when you finally finish an 8-hour work day, hurry to catch the bus, and drag your feet as you walk up the hill to campus.  Yes, it's September and I'm in school once again.

Things are a little bit different this time around.  For one thing, I'm not going to BYU.  I'm going to Cal State East Bay.  We watched part of a film in class on Wednesday and I was the only one that was phased by the use of the F-word.  (Reality check, Celia...people do swear.)  My classmates and I are pretty much taking all of our classes together so it would be in my best interest to get to know these people very well.  (Luckily there are some very nice people in my classes that I've already become "friends" with so it hasn't been as difficult as I thought.  One of the guys was actually in my graduating class at Northgate High School.)  It was easy in my history classes at BYU to just sit and take notes, make occasional comments, and roll my eyes when that one kid in the front row raised his hand for the tenth time.  Since this is vocational training and not just education, I'm getting the feeling that my usually passive-yet-attentive style is not really going to work here.

But not everything is different here.  Campus is still up on a hill.  It's within walking distance (although my walk to Cal State East Bay, Concord Campus is considerably longer than the one I would take up to BYU everyday).

View of Mt. Diablo on my way to school.

Walking to campus.

Cal State University, East Bay - Concord Campus

I still see random wildlife on campus but instead of seeing deer I see wild turkeys and SO MANY SQUIRRELS!  They're everywhere!

There were about 20 turkeys walking around campus the first time I came out of class.  This is the only one that didn't run away from me :)

My first week of school is officially complete.  I can honestly say that I forgot what it is like to do homework and to be truly exhausted.  This is a different kind of exhaustion than what I've felt before.  When I was at BYU, I worked custodial and didn't really have to think for the four hours I walked around the JKB cleaning.  Now I work 8 hours everyday and actually have to think about what I'm doing.  Then I go to class where I sit and think some more.  But I like being busy.  I like having a schedule and a routine.  I like feeling like I'm working toward a goal.  I'm okay giving up a few hours of sleep for this. :)

So it's back to riding the bus, back to taking notes, back to long hours writing papers, back to sitting in front of computer screens, back to thinking, back to reality.  I got this!

Things You Should Never Try To Live Without

I moved into my new apartment this past Saturday.  After hefting all of my possessions up three flights of stairs for a back-breaking hour and a half, I was able to get everything pretty much situated.  This is the first apartment I've lived in that isn't furnished so I borrowed a lot of my parents' furniture but also got some of my own.  Lucky for me, my sister-in-law, who is very adept at finding furniture for low prices, located a couch for me that I was able to get for $15.  I went to Big Lots and bought a small shelf for the living room for $20.  I got a bunch of odds-and-ends for the kitchen at Ross.  Basically, discount stores now rank among my closest friends.

I really like the layout of my apartment.  My room and my roommate's room are on opposite sides of the apartment.  The living room is in the middle.  We each have our own bathroom!

My bedroom.  In case you couldn't tell, I really love America :)

The other side of my room. That door leads to my bathroom.

The view outside my bedroom window.  Not too bad, eh?

The living room.

The dining area.

The kitchen.

So I'm feeling quite satisfied with the way things have worked out.  Although, there were a couple of days when I had to live without some necessary items.  So get out your notepads and jot down a few tidbits of what I'm about to say.  It may come in handy later in life.  These are three things you should always have at your disposal:

• A Toaster:  I thought I had it made when I showed up at my apartment with the basic breakfast items, bread and butter.  However, when I woke up the next morning ready to eat some slightly-browned toast covered in melted butter, I was bitterly disappointed.  Alas...I had forgotten a toaster.  I spread the cold butter over my cold bread and ate it with as much cheerfulness as I could muster.  Advice: Don't live without one of these wonderful inventions.
• Shower Curtain Rings:  Who knew little plastic circles could be so essential to one's happiness?  I woke up Sunday morning to accomplish the usually painless task of getting ready for church but found myself faced with a dilemma.  I had a shower curtain (which my old roommate Heidi so willingly and generously bestowed upon me) but I had nothing to hang it up with.  In a desperate attempt to make do with what I had, I flung the curtain over the bar and taped it so that it hung straight and would block (most) of the water from reaching the floor.  Never in my life have I felt more white-trash than I did then.  Advice: If you don't have shower curtain rings, find some other means besides tape to hang up your curtain.  It turns out hot humid air and cheap adhesives don't really mix.
• A Microwave:  There's nothing worse than making a bunch of delicious food, putting it in tupperware to save for later, and then realizing that your now cold food is inedible because there is no microwave on your counter to heat it up with.  Advice: If you are unfortunate enough to not own a microwave, make only one serving of whatever deliciousness you want to eat so that you don't end up with leftovers.

So despite some difficulties at first (having to do without the aforementioned items, dealing with the smokers down below us), apartment life in Concord has been just fine.  I think my roommate and I will get along well, there is a shopping center just down the street, my sister Brittany lives just around the corner, and the Concord Campus of Cal State East Bay is within walking distance. Yes, "I find myself quite content with my situation." (I'll give the person who knows what movie that line is from a high-five.  Sorry, I'm a poor starving college student again so that's all I have to offer. :)

I Will Remember You

I'm a cryer.  It's quite annoying, really.  I cry when I hear a touching song on the radio.  I cry during the tender moments of movies.  I cry every time I get up to bear my testimony in church.  I come from a long line of cryers.  In other words, this horrible tendency to burst into tears is actually hereditary and, therefore, not my fault.  What can I say?  I'm a Christensen.  Crying comes with the territory.

So it should come as no surprise to you that I cried the day I left Provo.  I woke up that morning, looked around my nearly-empty room, laid my head back on the pillow, and promptly let out of a few wails.  Later that morning, tears streamed down my face as I vacuumed behind my desk and my dresser.  My throat ached but I managed to hold the tears back as my sister Brigitte and I drove down University Avenue past restaurants and old apartment complexes, away from the Y and all my BYU friends.  I nearly cried again when I said goodbye to Brigitte, my closest family member for the past five years, and drove away with the Lamberts to make the long journey back to the San Francisco Bay Area.

I have been back in California for a little over a week now.  I've started a new job.  I've managed to find an apartment (though I haven't moved in yet).  I went to the Walnut Creek YSA Ward this past Sunday.  Everything has been going just fine.  I love the fact that I can have Sunday dinner with my parents, my grandma, my cousin, and two of my siblings and their families.  But, like any change in life, adjustments and reality checks are required.  I'm not in Provo anymore and, though I've managed to hold back the sob-fest since I've been home, I am still a little sad that my ward members don't live next door, that I can't just walk up the hill to church, and that I have to make friends all over again (something that's never been particularly easy for me).  I am happy to be here, though, and I really believe that this is where I am supposed to be right now.  So to Provo and all of my friends there, I'll quote the lyrics of a song that aptly express my feelings toward you: "I will remember you and all of the things that we've gone through.  There is so much I can say but words get in the way so when we're not together, I will remember you."  If any of my Provo friends are ever in the Bay Area, please feel free to visit me.  I'd love to see you.

New beginnings give all of us the opportunity to be a little better than we were before.  I start school in a few weeks.  Maybe this time around I can be a better friend and example to those around me than I was in high school.  I will be attending a new ward.  Maybe I can try to serve those around me with a little more zeal and enthusiasm than I did before.  This is my chance to be a better version of myself.  Let's hope I can start it off right!

The Office

I'm Pam Beasley.  Except I don't work at a paper company and, unfortunately, Jim Halpert doesn't sit on the other side of this desk.  But I am in charge of the candy jar!

The Quote Wall

Apartments really aren't complete without a quote wall.  The year-long record of a set of roommates/friends' moments of shear brilliance or just plain stupidity (for we all know that quote walls can only be filled with these two extremes) is a testament to how much fun and laughter the group has enjoyed that year.  I don't know what it is about the late hours of the day that makes us all say strange things but these sentences always tend to burst from our mouths past the fateful hour of 11:00 PM.  As soon as one of these phrases is said, at least one girl in the apartment manages to rise between fits of laughter, run to the quote wall, and write down the sentence that caused the frenzy.

Throughout my five years in Provo, I've both heard and said some crazy, thoughtless things that made it onto the quote wall.  If I went all the way back to my freshmen year, this list would be far too long so I've decided to record some of the best ones I remember from the last couple of years.  They probably aren't that funny to anyone who didn't experience them first-hand but, trust me, they were funny once.

• (When Jaden wanted to borrow one of Jen's DVDs), Jen: "If you scratch it, I will scratch your face."
• Celia:  "Let me go put some pants on."  Kristin (Greer): "Good.  Public nudity is frowned upon in most societies." (For the record, I was wearing basketball shorts when I made that comment.)
• Rachel: "Do I look like a walking advertisement to you?"
• Celia: "I'm sorry, I just think you're hugging too many people."
•  Jen: "Jaden, please don't lose me on purpose!" Jaden: "Okay, I'll lose you on accident."
• Rhiannon: "It gives them a first-degree burn." Jen: "That's what happens when people touch me."
• Celia: "Don't say that here!  We're in a public place!"
• Rhiannon (to Jen):  "You're scandalous!  I've missed you!"
• Jen: "Celia, I always want to hug you and I don't know why!" Celia: "Well, you always want what you can't have."
• Rachel: "Wait, what?  Pikachu died?" Kristin: "Yep, Ash was in mourning for a week."
• Celia: "Thank you for your time and talents."
• Rhiannon: "My dream will be made MANIFEST!"
• Jen: "Being pregnant hurts." Rhiannon: "Yeah, apparently it's worth it."
• Celia: "That's the nice thing about big hips.  You have more to swing around."
• Rachel: "What crackhead show is this? Sorry, I didn't mean to say crackhead."
• Jen: "She's black and he's hispanic.  That's like too many races in one relationship."
• Robin: "It's like an endless stream of stupid...it's like vomit!"
• Celia: "I haven't had Ben&Jerry's since the last time I had it."

In my last apartment, we didn't have an official quote wall so I took the liberty of writing down some of the quotes in a pad I keep in my purse.  Here they are:

• Trevor: "This food is going to burn through me like Sherman burned through Atlanta."
• Kristin: "I'm going to marry a normal guy so my kids can have a normal childhood."
• (My hometeachers gave me a priesthood blessing in my room), Ryan: I'm in a girl's room.  I should take advantage of this." Celia: "What do you want to take advantage of?"
• Celia: "Seriously, why don't people hang out with us?  We're so much fun!"
• Heidi: "I'm like wearing a horse's butt on my head."
• Kristin: "Heidi...someday, if it weren't against the Word of Wisdom, I'd really like to get you drunk."
• Heidi: "I could be Ginny now. Get me some Harry!  I need me some Harry!"
• Kristin: "I've bombed everything without fail!"
• (A brief synopsis of the movie A Little Princess), Melissa Smith: "Her dad leaves her then her dad dies and then she's like the orphan slave girl and then a lady in the street gives her a flower and calls her a princess."
• Celia: "It's permanent until it goes away."
• (All of these were said during the course of our craft night a few nights ago), Brigitte: "Handmade bows, hand-cut signs...it's just hand-done!"  "We're so innovative!"  "'Free' can be taken a lot of different ways.  You don't want that in your bedroom."

I strongly encourage anyone who does not have a quote wall to get one.  You won't regret it.

The Clock is Ticking

My time in Provo is winding down fast.  It's kind of a mind-boggling feeling to have a five-year chapter of my life come to a close.  When I look back over the last five years, Charles Dickens'  words, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," take on a whole new meaning.  I've experienced moments of great joy but also moments of heartbreak and sorrow.  But that's the college experience, right?

I would like to take a moment to reminisce about some of the finer moments of my college career.  Please excuse my little trip down Memory Lane.

Freshman Year (2007-2008): Oh, Heritage Halls!  I am convinced there was no better place than Penrose 85 to spend my first year of college.  My roommates that year far exceeded my expectations.  Melissa, Shauntelle, Sandee, Caitlin, and Kory pulled me out of my shy little shell and introduced me to the world in more ways than one.  They took me to Wal-Mart for the first time in my life.  I rode in Sandee's convertible with the top down.  I rolled down restricted grassy slopes on campus way passed my bedtime.  I "broke into" the top floor of the SWKT with my FHE brothers.  I "stole" couch cushions from the apartments of most of our ward members with our guy friends.  In all honesty, what didn't I do my freshman year? :)

That one and only time I went to a formal dance on campus.

That time we did a human pyramid and I (stupidly) volunteered to be on the bottom.

That time we dressed up all funky and danced to the closing-time music in the Harold B. Lee Library.

That time we frolicked in the autumn leaves.

That time we sewed cheesy Christmas sweaters for the boys.

That time we wrote a Christmas letter, took a "family" photo, and gave a copy to each of the apartments in our ward.

All those times we played with Sandee's computer which we affectionately called "Mobi."

That time we drove around Provo in Sandee's convertible with the top down.

That time we dressed up to eat at Macaroni Grill.

That time Sandee dislocated her shoulder dancing in the Thanksgiving Point parking lot after Preference.

That one time I got to sing in General Conference with the rest of the BYU Choirs.  No big deal :)

That time at the end of Freshman Year when we got a group together to go eat at IHOP at midnight.

That time we had to say goodbye to "our boys" before they all left on their missions.

Sophomore Year (2008-2009):  We moved over to good ol' University Villa for our sophomore year of college.  Despite the fact that our apartment complex looked like a group of Communist buildings, it was actually a fairly decent and fun place to live.  Sandee went off to study abroad at the Jerusalem Center but our new roommate Julie fit into her place quite nicely.  Our friends from freshman year were all on their missions but we made new friends fairly quickly.  We all had to grow up a little bit that year.  I buckled down into my school work.  Shauntelle got married.  Sandee came back from Jerusalem with a serious boyfriend.  Our new roommate, Ji Yeon, moved in winter semester.  Times and situations were changing but we still managed to have some fun.

That one time...oh wait! One of the many times my Idaho roommates made fun of us Californians :)

That one time we went to Shaunie's bridal shower.

That one time when we decided to make a "Melissa burrito" in the University Villa lounge for Shauntelle's bachelorette party.

That one day in December of 2008 when Shauntelle got married. She was the first in a long line of my roommates to take the plunge.

That time we built a snow fort.

That time we tried to slide down the hill wrapped in garbage bags at Rock Canyon Park.  Our attempt to "garbage-bag sled" was pretty much unsuccessful.

That time we dressed up yet again to go to Macaroni Grill.

That Relief Society activity where we did facials and other girly things.

That time we played games at Kiwanis Park on the first warm day after an especially long winter.

That time we dressed up like hooligans to see Imagine Dragons at the Velour.

Junior Year (2009-2010):  We decided to stay at University Villa for another semester.  Sandee got married just before the beginning of the school year and three of my roommates (Kory, Caitlin, and Julie) were engaged.  Melissa was in London for the Fall.  I spent most of my time buried in my studies, but for the rest of the time I had fun being a third-wheel to Julie and Kyle and trying to be a social member of the ward.  When everyone got married in December, I moved over to another apartment and ward in University Villa to live with my friend Hannah and her roommates Melissa, Kristin, Alyssa, and Jen.  It was awesome to room with another fun set of girls!

That time we had a combined bridal shower for Julie, Caitlin, and Kory.

That time Shaunie and I decided to go cheer Melissa on at the finish line of her half-marathon.

That awesome time when you get a roommate that you just automatically click with :)  Miss you, Jen! (not that you will see this while you're on your mission)

That great semester when there were four of us from the same ward in Women's Chorus.

That one time Bailey came into town on Valentine's Day.

That one time we went out to dinner before Jane left on her mission.

That one time we walked down to McDonalds and were saddened by the fact that the play place was closed.

The first time we bought cupcakes from The Cocoa Bean.

Senior Year (2010-2011):  We all decided to live in The Elms for our senior year.  Since we had to accommodate seven of us, we decided to split into two next-door apartments, W23 and W24.  I roomed with Jen, Kristin, and Alyssa, and acquired two random but awesome roommates, Rhiannon and Rachel.  Rachel and I played volleyball with a group from the ward at the very beginning of the semester and met our friends Cameron and Jaden.  Little did we know that Jaden and Rhiannon would soon hit it off and end up getting married.  I bit off a little more than I could chew that year when it came to schoolwork so I had a few friends in the ward but my social life took place mainly within the walls of my own apartment.  My friends, Russell and Kyle, came back from their missions that year so I spent some time with them as well.  I moved to B32 in The Elms in the Spring of 2011.  My roommates were Alex, Robin, Becca, Melissa, and Kiana.  I went over to A102 pretty much every day that summer and hung out with Jaden, Cameron, and their roommates (Andrew, Kevin, and Bryan).  Before my graduation that August, Alex, Robin, and I had packed in quite a few fun summer adventures.  Senior Year was definitely one of the highlights of my college career.

That one time Rachel decided to join in Jaden and Rhiannon's cuddling session.

One of the many times we attended BYU football games, each taking a swig from the water jug every time we scored.

That time we went to the corn maze and got scared stiff by the guy with the chainsaw.

That time we dressed up as The Incredibles for the Ward Halloween Party.

That time when we were awesome...which was all the time :)

That one time when my roommates found it necessary to cover me in Jen's birthday streamers.

That time we went to Park City during the Sundance Film Festival to see if we could spot any celebrities.

That time when I went to clean the bathrooms on the 3rd floor of the JKB for my custodial job and found this.

The time when our FHE brothers cuddled with Jen to her little heart's content.

That time when Trevor, Jonah, and I decorated the winning cake for a ward activity.

That time when everybody came over to watch YouTube videos...oh wait!  That happened like every day spring term.

One of the many times Robin, Alex, and I went to such places as The Cocoa Bean.

That one time Robin, Alex, Kevin, Cameron, and I hiked Bridal Veil Falls, got lost, and nearly died.  No joke.

Post-Grad Year (2011-2012): I stayed in the same ward but moved over to The Avenues to live with Heidi, Kristin, and Faith.  Post-graduation time was not at all like what I thought it would be.  Basically, I never succeeded in finding a job so I had way too much time on my hands.  My social life pretty much depended on ward activities and whatever my roommates were doing.  Needless to say, life can be fairly boring when you're not in school and everyone else is.  Spring and Summer terms have been really fun, however.  I've been able to hone in on my cherry-pit spitting skills (an event at our ward's Olympics), get killed several times playing Super Smash Brothers, enjoy the fireworks for the two major holidays of the summer here in Utah (Independence Day and Pioneer Day), be ward choir director, read LOTS of books, see lots of movies, and jump over fences illegally while playing Fugitive.  It's definitely been an up-and-down year for me emotionally but it was a good experience.

That time when Shauntelle took roommate pictures for us up at Sundance.

That time we went to Tucanos for Heidi's birthday and Trevor said that memorable sentence, "This food is going to burn through me like Sherman burned through Atlanta."  He then turned to me and said, "I thought you'd like my reference to American history."

That time we went to the midnight showing of The Avengers and Heidi and Kristin both fell asleep.

Those times when we went to BYU Men's Volleyball games!

That time we decorated Easter eggs.  It was the first time I had done so.

That time we went on a camping trip as a ward and went boating on Yuba Lake.

That time when Heidi fell backwards while sliding down the railing.

That time when we had a ward finger painting activity (or foot painting activity depending on who you talk to :).

That one time Heidi, Andrew, Kevin and I took a random road trip to St. George.

That one time I had the opportunity to go see Wicked in Salt Lake.  It was so awesome!

That one time we went to the Manti Temple for a ward temple trip and ate delicious pizza afterwards.

That one time we had a Harry Potter party and everyone was assigned a character.  I was Helena Ravenclaw, the Grey Lady of Ravenclaw Tower.

I've had some great times in Provo.  But alas, my time is short.  I leave this place in a week and a half.  So long, Provo!  It's been real!