Eating on Paper Plates Doesn't Make the Dishes Go Away

I made it to work today. My job is extremely difficult to do when I'm sick because it involves speaking very clearly. Of course, I have a lot of trouble with that when I can barely breathe.  Luckily though, I'm almost finished here.

Oh, that's right, I didn't tell you.

I QUIT MY JOB!



I gave my two weeks notice last week and my last day is the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I wasn't planning on going home, because I really didn't feel like driving myself another 800 miles only a week after I had drill.  Lucky for me, my friend is going home and is letting me catch a ride. I am so happy. It so happens that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday and I really didn't want to spend it all alone.



I have always loved that Thanksgiving is a day that my non-religious and dysfunctional family stands together in my grandparents living room and joins hands in prayer. We bow our heads and humbly give thanks, then we continue on with our lives. We eat a meal prepared by my mom's and my aunt's hands and we chat about meaningless things. 

We forget any fights that we were in previously and we eat dinner while talking over the TVs that are in in the kitchen and the living room.  We always have way too much food and we argue about who gets to do the dishes. Eating on paper plates doesn't make the dishes used to cook and serve go away!

By the time the night is over, everyone is stuffed and we might pull out Catch Phrase or Scategories.  It will be strange this year to not have my grandpa come out of his room and tell us to be quiet or smile at us because he can see how much fun we're having all together.

As we grow up our traditions change. We can't help it. All of our lives start to move in different directions and we just can't have everything we used to. Sometimes it's difficult to deal with, but I suppose that is just part of life.

Why Can't I Just Have Both?

I have talked about all of the great things Las Vegas has to offer, but there are quite a few things that they do not have here that I really miss some days.

Right now in Utah, it's fall. The leaves are changing. The mountain sides are turning from shades of green to shades of red, orange, and yellow. The sunsets take your breath away and the air is crisp and cool. All you want to do is get a chai tea from Beans & Brews and cuddle up with your wooby.

Speaking of Beans & Brews, I had no idea it was just a Utah business until I started living here...I no longer get to have the most delicious Chai in the world in the mornings before work...It's tragic.

Via City Weekly

Here, everything is still green. I had to wear a jacket this morning, but the days are still sunny and warm.  I'll be excited for the day that I get to wear some boots and a sweater and it actually looks appropriate for the weather. Yes, that will be an awesome day.  Unfortunately, that Beans & Brews thing will never resolve its self.

I just really hope the days of dressing like this have not come to an end...

One of my favorite pass times at home was strolling through the Walmart...yeah Walmart in Las Vegas...There isn't one on every other major road like there is at home.  That means that when I'm too scared to get out of my car at the one on Tropicana--Yes, that acutally happened--I don't have many other options. At least not that I know of...I guess that means that I miss the security of living being in a generally safe area all the time.

I'm also going to miss the crunch of the snow under my feet as I walk out to the car.

I will not, however, miss scraping the frost off my windshield in the morning...That was the worst.

I miss my mom's spaghetti...It's not anything spectacular, but every time I came home to find out my mom was making spaghetti for dinner, I was instantly happier. I also really miss sitting at the table with my family talking about how our day went...

I miss cooking.
So. Bad.

I'm going to miss the annual fall trip to the pumpkin patch and pumpkin carving...

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I miss my family of course. I suppose that one goes without saying. Every time I leave them I miss them. I love being independent and away from home, but that doesn't stop me from wanting to play with a cute lil baby or take my sissy to the mall...even though she's impossible to shop with, I still miss it.

Being away makes you grow up. It makes you a big kid real quick. I learned that when I was in basic training. I am an adult.

I have my own life separate from the one my family lives...

Why can't I just have both? like...now. 

It's Actually Fall In Utah

 In Las Vegas, they keep telling me that fall is going to start. It's going to start to get chilly and I'm going to be able to tell that the season are changing...Well I'm not so sure that I believe them.

 

I have been home now for nearly an entire week, and it is definitely fall here.  For the past week, my whole family has been together under one roof and we've needed some quick and easy meals to throw together that feed lots.  Because it's actually in the 40s and 50s here, I decided to make some Chicken Taco Soup.  I also figured I might do something I have yet to do on the blog: Share a recipe. It's never too late to try something new right?

 

 

This soup is probably the easiest thing I have ever made. 

 

To make it you'll need

 

1 can of pinto beans

1 can kidney beans

1 can black beans

1 can of corn

2 8oz cans tomato sauce

1 can of Rotel or stewed tomatoes

2 limes

1 bunch of cilantro

1 package of taco seasoning

1 rotisserie chicken (pre-cooked by your local grocery store)

 

It almost seems silly to provide you with cooking directions, because it is truly so easy.  Carve rotisserie chicken and chop up into small pieces. I usually end up making it more like a shredded chicken taco soup. Combine all of the canned ingredients and chicken in a large pot. Add water as needed. If you like a little bit thicker soup, add more tomato sauce, less water. Add taco seasoning, cilantro, and limes to taste.

 

Of course, if you'd like, you can take a lot of extra time and soak beans over night, grill chicken, substitute with hamburger, throw together all of your own seasonings and such, but this tastes just as good and takes half as much time.

 

I like to serve this with Spanish rice and tortillas.  I also always top mine off with sour cream, cheese and extra cilantro, because to me, you can never have enough of it! I've made it many times and every time, no matter the size of the pot, every drop is eaten. Give it a shot. You can't go wrong!

Big Sister

In my "About Me" page I talked about how my sisters were my first friends.  We have playing together for our entire lives. While we don't always get along perfectly, we know that we will always love each other. No matter what. Thick or thin. Rough or smooth. We are family.

September 3rd is my very first friend's 23rd Birthday. My big sister, Alexis.

 

Big sisters...

 

They're the best. They teach you the most fun games ever.

Alexis's favorite was "Slave".  How this game worked, was she told me what to do and I was the slave, and when it was time to switch...oh wait...we never switched, she was always tired of the game when it got to that point.

 

They are there for all the big moments in your life

 

 

They will yell at you and be really mad for about an hour.

The next thing you know, they're asking you to go with them to Wal Mart.  

 

They understand you and accept you for who you are.

 

They tell you when you're being stupid or if you hair looks dumb.

 

They support you when you want to do something new and scary.

 

They'll pose for random pictures with Yoda on their backs.

 

 

My big sister...I love her to the moon and back.

 

 

Alexis, you have helped to turn me into the woman that I am today and I can't imagine what my life would be like without you. I know that life is hard sometimes, but you need to keep your head up and keep working at it.  Things aren't always going to be this hard.

 

I hope that you have the most fantastic birthday. I'm sorry that I can't be home to celebrate with you. Save me a piece of cheese cake would you?

 

I'm Back, Did You Miss Me?

HELLO! 

I am currently hanging out at the USO in the St. Louis Airport just waiting for my bus to arrive and I thought that I would stop in and say a thing or two before I head off to AIT and get too busy to blog about what's going on. 

First things first!

I had a giveaway going before I left that never got taken care of because I was gone. Don't worry, a winner will be picked and something will be sorted out, I promise!

Second of all. I missed my bliggity...so much. I missed all of my readers, I missed writing my witty little pieces, I missed tweeting and facebooking and all the annoying parts of bloggings all put together and I am so happy to be returning to this thing that I love so much.

I would also like to thank the awesome ladies that blogged for me while I was gone! I so appreciated them and their efforts to keep my blog from dying out. I was so worried, but I think that it was alright :) I could have asked for better bloggy friends. 

What I've decided to do with my basic training experiences, is tell you a little bit about them each week.  I suppose it will be a "Military Monday" sort of thing. Hopefully that works out as well as I think it will. 

But until then, I'll give you a few wonderful highlights. 

1) I reached one of my goals and I was promoted to Private First Class effective 12 April!  Only 18 out of 210 were promoted and I was one of them.  I am so proud of it and the extra money really doesn't make me sad at all. 

2) I was able to serve as a squad leader. It felt so good to be given some responsibility. I was more than happy to march at the front of the formation and do a few little things here and there to help out our Platoon guides. 

3) My entire family came to see me graduate! Including my wonderfully angelic niece. Meeting her for the first time was probably the best thing....ever!

And of course, there is so much more to tell and many exciting things that I got to experience. Overall, basic training was a fun and educational experience. I am really glad to be done and moving onto the next part of my training. I really hope that it's everything I hoped. 

Oh, side note! While I was in basic, my mom sent me my mail that was going to my home address. That meant that I found out I got into UNLV while I was laying on the floor in the squad bay going through my mail for that evening! So, it looks like I've got yet another great adventure ahead of me. More on that to come as well! 

I am also hoping to get a new design up and running here soon, but we'll have to see how much free time I have before that happens! I hope you are as excited as I am about what is to come!

Not Different Bad, Different Good

Christmas...What do I say about this Christmas? I would say that it was a pretty damn good Christmas.

I did my best to man up and stop hating life for the curve balls it throws at me and I checked my feelings at the door. 

I got dressed up in a cute new outfit that I got for Christmas and I hung out with my family, drank a few mimosas and enjoyed a really great night.  Last year I had to work on Christmas, and although at the time it felt like the happiest day of my life, I think that this year beats it...And no, not just because I got to drink mimosas with  my family.

This year was so much different. It's the last Christmas where I'll be living in my parents house. It's possibly the last Christmas that I'll sleep in the same room with my sissies and watch The Grinch on Christmas Eve. It's the last year that I'll go Christmas shopping with my dad to pick out the perfect present for my mom.  

It's not necessarily different bad. It's different good. I'm growing up. I have learned so much in this past year. I've learned about myself and about the people around me and what it really means to be a family.

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This year, I gave lockets to most of the women in my family (I didn't think everyone would wear them.) I am really terrible at buying gifts, so it was a quite a relief to find something so early that I knew everyone would love.

I won a blog giveaway a while back and fell completely in love with my prize, so I bought everyone living lockets.

 Let me tell you, they were a hit and the best present I've ever given. 

This one is mine. The ribbon is for pancreatic cancer and the star is the "Army Strong" deal. I would highly recommend these babies. Such a huge hit on Christmas day! I may even try to host a giveaway if the designer will work with me! I'll keep you posted :)

My other favorite gift I gave was my mom's. I always have a hard time buying for her. How do you show your love for the most influential person in your life who has done more for you than anyone else?  It's hard. Well, I opted to go sentimental instead of material. 

Our tree is covered in ornaments with my face on them and also some really weird ones that I made. I was a strange lil' thing. So, I decided that since I hadn't made her an ornament in a while I'd give her a few for Christmas. 

I used my favorite materials. Paper plates, paper sacks, and toilet paper tubes. 

You would think that it wouldn't have been all that great, but they were a hit. (she won't admit it, but I know in my heart that they were her favorite gifts ;)

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Christmas day was really a great time. I looked adorable in new Christmas outfit.

 I finally figured out how the work the hair wand I got last Christmas, I wore my locket (I hadn't put it on yet in the pictures...) I got some great gifts, ate delicious food and spend some quality time with my family. 

Today, I went to work, left early, and hung out with my girl who is heading back to her real life as a Marine on Friday. 

We ate way too much food at the Cheesecake Factory.

And she let me walk into Victoria Secret...so...of course, this happened.

Then I hit the gym in my Muggle Sweatshirt, killed it, fell down (so embarrassing.) And here I am. Over-describing two days in one giant blog post.

If you stuck with me for this long, please, treat yourself to a cookie. You deserve it :)

Happy Wednesday and may your Thursdays totally rock your socks off. 

In The Spirit of Thanksgiving

Initially, I created a vlog post for this, but I just couldn't get it right, so I decided to stick with my strengths and just write like usual.

Every Thanksgiving, I take a little bit of time to show my gratitude for all of the wonderful blessing that I have in my life. Objects, people, opportunity, and so on and so forth.  The following will be more or less a list of things and people. I mention you by name, so if you're just feeling like reading what I have to say about you, the things I am thankful for will be in bold type :) It won't be hard to find yourself!

There are many things in this world that I have to be thankful for. First and foremost, I feel that I should give thanks for my amazing family. 

Family, You have all be so very patient with me. I have had a very rough year and a half or so and every one of you have done nothing but be supportive. I have made a lot of life changing decisions that affect more than just me and it means the world to me that you have been here through thick and thin to help me to succeed in all of my overly ambitious endeavors. 

Responsibility.  I am so thankful for all of the responsibility I have as of late. It is teaching me how to be a grown up. It has taught me that if I'm not looking out for myself, no one else is. Of course, there are people around that will be supportive of me, but they do not hold my fate in their hands. I do. I am so thankful for that. 

Technology and communication. I cannot even begin to describe how thankful I am for modern technology. Without it, I wouldn't have healed as I should have. I wouldn't have been able to keep up a wonderful and emotional long distance relationship. I wouldn't be able to hear my best friend's voice or see his face...It is a great think that I take for granted. I will so appreciate it after I write letters for 3 months...

Bloggy World.  This blog has seriously been such a fantastic blessing in my life. Like I said earlier, I have had a hell of a year and half or so. I have been able to put down everyone of my thoughts here, and I have been met with such support. From strangers, no less. Honestly, having this blog to talk to has enriched my life in ways that I don't even fully understand just yet. 

My Job & The Military. I love my job. I love that I have a job in a place where jobs are so scarce for some. I am so grateful for all the skills I have learned, the friends I have made, and the experience I have gained. 

The military...oh my. Something I never thought I would ever get to be part of, I am going to get to experience. I can't simply describe to you what that means to me and how thankful I am for this chance to live my dream. 

Friends:

in no particular order :)

Will, I don't think you know this, but you have the ability to brighten my day. When you were deployed and I got the chance to talk to you, it made me so happy that I was in a good mood for the rest of the week. Although we have had our ups and downs, I feel like I can always count on you. You will always be honest with me, support me, yell at me, and make up with me when we fight.  I am exponentially thankful for your friendship and I hope that it means half as much to you as it does to me. 

[I feel very sad that I couldn't find a single photo of my bestie and me together]

Christian, I barely know you. Some could argue that I don't know you at all. But it doesn't feel that way. I feel like I've known you all my life. Although when we first started talking, you had zero obligation to me, you let me rant and be annoying. You probably think that I'm totally insane, but having you to talk to had a really positive effect on me that you probably cannot understand.  I hope that one day, we can actually hang out. Talk in person at least! Be real friends, not just the texty kind. 

Kelsey, you and I could be apart for any large amount of time and pick up a conversation like we never stopped talking. I know that I can always lean on you for support and that you will never leave me. I am very thankful for you and for our friendship. I believe it's the lasting kind that won't waver despite distance or time weighing on it. 

J...I can probably just call ya by your name on here now, but you're just...J in my bloggy so that's how you'll stay I guess. I'll keep it brief here, but I am very thankful for you. I am thankful for you and for your family and for all of the awesome adventures that we got to have together. I still think about you every day and it's getting easier to think of you. Instead of being upset, I can just...remember and be okay. I hope that you, too, are thankful for me and for what we had...

Day Family, I don't know how to say how thankful I am for you all. I have never felt so at home in someone else's house as I do in yours. I have learned so much from you all. I built lasting relationships that I know will never disappear completely. I know that if I ever needed anything, I could turn to any one of you and get the help that I need. I love you and I hope that I never have to live without you all as at least a small part of my life. 

And all of my wonderful friends new and old in general! I have some of the most fantastic people in my life...Without you all, I would not be this person that I'm growing into. And oddly enough, I'm actually starting to like that person. It has been a long time since I looked in the mirror and hated what I saw. You all have played a large role in that change. I love you guys and I hope that I have a continued friendship with everyone that is currently a part of my life. 

This past year or so has been...difficult. I have faced so many trials and have been forced to deal with many things that I didn't want to. I have been broken in many ways. I have been hurt and damaged. I have made detrimental decisions. I have made smart and great choices. I have left behind a few things and picked up some new ones...I am thankful for this life that I live. It's not perfect. In fact, it's so far from perfect, one might call it a little dysfunctional, but I don't care. I am thankful for it, not regardless or the bad, but including it. Without it, I wouldn't be me. I wouldn't be Katie. 

And Katie is just not such a bad person to be...

What are you thankful for?

My Shameless Admittance of Being A Daddy's Girl

This is my daddy. 

Today, he is a year older. 

I figured that today would be the best day to talk about how thankful I am for that guy who helped raise me.  My daddy and I are quite a lot alike.  We have the same type of temperament, we think the same way, and apparently, we even rest the same way. 

I am truly so thankful for my dad. He has made me...adventurous and unafraid of new things. 

When I was a little girl in pre-school and kindergarten, my daddy would pick me up from school or the baby sitter's house and take me to work with him. At the time, his leather shop was at a barn where he boarded horses. There was a big arena, and large pastures where the horses were. It was basically a little kid's dream playland. There was a tire swing, a creek at the bottom of the hill, huge stacks of hay bales to play on. It was fantastic.  I would go there, and I would play.  I would be gone for hours.  What was I doing? Playing in the dirt, splashing in a puddle. running up and down the hills...And it was amazing.  When I was with my dad, I basically did whatever I wanted. 

It made me independent. I don't think that I completely learned how to take care of my self when I was 4 or 5, but I did find out that I didn't always need help. I think I became a big girl. I discovered that a piece of bailing twine could be fun. That dirt and rocks and water could make me the happiest lil' lady in the world. 

When I was little, that meant that I was very easily entertained, but now, it means that I can always survive. And I am so thankful for that. 

Happy birthday daddy. I love you and I am so thankful for you and everything you have taught me.  I don't know what I would have done with out you!  I will always be your lil' girl.

Please welcome my very first sponsor: Nay's Custom Leather!  

Social Without Structure

Today's Sunday Social is one unlike all others. There are no questions for us to answer! At first, I was disappointed. I love answering those questions. But then, I decided that this would be a good oppertunity to talk about the things I loove about Fall.

If you want to share you favorite things about fall head on over to A Complete Waste of Makeup and Link up!

Admittedly, Fall is not my favorite season. I'm not a fan of the cold, I dislike Halloween, and I hate how it gets dark so early. But there are definitely things that I do like about it, even though I wish it was Spring turning to Summer not Fall turning to Winter...

One thing I love is Fall decor. My cousin Jessica runs a shop on Etsy called DefineBliss where she sells all this awesome stuff that she makes by hand. My favorite things are always the fall decorations.

Source: DefineBliss Etsy

Source: DefineBliss Etsy


Source: DefineBliss Etsy

In fact, I love all these things so much, when I hit 50 followers, I'm going to be doing a giveaway! My very first one!  My favorite thing about all this stuff, is she makes everything herself. She gets help from her sister and other family members when she's trying to build her inventory for a show, but for the most part, everything is made by Jessica from her imagination. She also can do almost anything custom orders. It's amazing. She is so talented :)

And now that I've gotten very off-track...

There's a couple more things that I love about fall.

I love our annual family Pumpkin Patch excursion as well as the carving we do after that. I really don't like to carve pumpkins, but it's always fun to get together and hang out with all our cousins.
 This year, we decided to pick our pumpkins while we could have the pick of the patch then we'll carve them in a few weeks. That way they will still be good on Halloween.
We started the tradition of going to Mabey's Pumpkin Patch a few years ago. It was a lot more fun than just going to the grocery store and grabing one out of the cardboard bins.

We went out yesterday and this was the result!

That's Jessica from DefineBliss in the middle!

My mom and sister stolling through the patch

That speck in the distance is my grandpa in his motor-scooter. He decided to do some off-roading without us and check out the pumpkins.

That pumpkin had to have been 30 lbs and my sister wanted it. So I carried it halfway across the patch for my mom to say that she couldn't have it...

We ended up wtih three little wagons filled with pumpkins for us to carve.

Also, I really love Thanksgiving. My post giving thanks is already in the works. It's so important to me to let people know how much they mean to me and how many amazing things I have in my life.

Plus, I love mashed potatoes and side salads...Who doesn't?

Wow, that ended up being really long!
Stay tuned for a post about the actual carving of those pumpkins.

And also, like I said before, when I hit 50 followers, I'm doing a DefineBliss Giveaway! The sooner I hit it, the sooner some gets a fantistic piece from Jessica's shop!

Until next time!  Happy Autumn!

On This Day In History...

My grandma died...

Today marks two years that we have been living our lives without her.

I've only said a few things about my grandma on here, but she really was the most amazing person in the world. At least to my family and to anyone who met her.  She died from pancreatic cancer that she had only been fighting for barely over a year. It's hard to believe that I get up and live every day of my life without her in it.

She was the person I went to for everything.  Sometimes, even though it has been two years, I find myself dialing her phone number when I need someone to talk to or something to cheer me up. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her...

We got the news that she only had about 6 months to live during the summer before my senior year. I had just made the drill team and she was so proud of me. There was nothing she wanted more than to see me on that team...She only saw me dance with them one time at camp during the summer. She didn't see me graduate or join the Marines. She didn't get to be there when J popped the question and she won't be at my wedding...But I guess I'll just have to keep on living...

The worst part? She died on my cousin's birthday...This year, instead of making it a sad day, we decided to get together and have a party for him. Today he turned 15.  

He got a bunch of cool presents and I made him his favorite dinner. 

Better to have too much than not enough right? There's 31 enchiladas there...But they were delicious and worth every second it took to make them. And everyone loved them. I love to cook for a crowd that's not picky.

After all the food, cake, and icecream, we proceeded to play a game. 

My grandma loved games and she passed that love onto us by playing them with us all the time. Every time we get together for a dinner, which is quite often because we all live very close, we play a game. Tonight we picked 

Unfortunately, it turns from fun to ruthless very quickly.  It's impossible to win this game playing with our crazy bunch...

All in all, today was a really tough day.  I'm reminded of what I had to go through right before my senior year started and the fact that I have to grow up with out my grandma.  I hope that this day gets easier.

Celebration!

  

Today was an excellent day! I'm really glad it was too. I was needing a lazy day of awesome and that is what I got. I don't work on Tuesdays, so I usually make plans to do a bunch of crap I've been meaning to take care of. Usually I do it. Not today. Typically, that wouldn't be a happy thing for me. I like to be productive and I like to make accomplishments. There are only a few feelings I like more than crossing something off of my to-do list. 

This morning I took care of some Army business then I came home to my ridiculously messy room and turned on some Gossip girl. It's not my favorite show ever, but I'm totally in love with the Chuck Bass/Blair Waldorf dynamic so I keep watching it...That means that my room didn't get cleaned (I did do laundry though! I can stop looking like hobo at work and I can quit wearing my sister's clothes!) 

Also, my birthday present from my sister finally came. My birthday was May 14th...so it's pretty late. But it was totally worth the wait! Check out my brand-spanking-new Gem Wallet.

I have been waiting for this thing forever and I'm so excited. I carried it around everywhere I went today even though I barely left my house...

After I discovered my wallet and did some more procrastination and Gossip Girl watching (totally absurd what's going on by the way...) my mom reminded me that we had plans to go out for dinner to celebrate my joining the Army. She also informed me that she and my aunt had already picked where we were going. Luckily, it was BBQ place that was delicious so I wasn't annoyed :D 

We went to Famous Dave's. That must be Dave on the menu, but I'm not exactly sure.

I had this thing with two meats (I picked chicken and pork mmm...) and these mashed potatoes that were to die for delicious and potato salad. And that corn bread? Might have been the best I've ever had. 

My sister and my cousin thought they might try the extra hot BBQ sauce...Bad idea. You can see my cousin in the background (not posing!) with that holy-crap-this-stuff-is-hotter-than-I-would-have-guessed look on her face. 

Basically, it was just a really awesome family filled day of laziness that was a long time coming...And we all celebrated me being able to join the Army. That is a far cry from the crying and head-shaking that came with me joining the Marine over a year ago... 

Love it when I can come home and write a post like this.

Vacation

On Sunday during work, I decided that I would fight the hard battle of getting someone to cover my shifts for a couple of days while I went on a family vacation. At first I was annoyed to be on it at all due to the fact that I would end up losing hours at work and not get paid as much. And that is never a good thing...but I'm so very glad that I decided to go.
After complaining about how camp spaghetti usually tastes, I earned myself the chore of cooking it for the whole compound camp.  It was really good though, so I'm not complaing anymore!
This trip is to a tiny potato town called Weiser, Idaho. Every year, they hold a national fiddle competition (what's the difference between the violin and the fiddle? There isn't a difference in the actual instrument. Fiddle refers to the style of music played on it.)

We go there and camp in the sticks behind these big buildings that used to be a college or boarding school (there's a big huge history to the area, but I can't remember. The buildings are big and old, that's all that really matters.) All week we play music until all hours of the night and throughout the day making new friends and reuniting with old ones.  This year just so happened to be really cold at night, so we folded down the sides of the wall tent and turned on the heater to jam. Unfortunately the heat got the best of everyone and they started sleepin on the job...

But some people managed to stay awake long enough to keep the jam going. It was probably around 12:00 am when I took this picture. Somehow, the later you stay up, the better the jams get.  But we could just be getting more immune to how crappy it can be sometimes.












The best part of Weiser is playing music with your friends that you don't usually get to see. The second best part? Yard Sales. Seems how this town is pretty small, this is the biggest week of the year for them. There's so many people from out of town that it's the perfecft time for a yard sale. These signs are just the beginning. There were more on the corners of most streets and signs were stapled to half the powerline poles. Needless to say, I had some awesome finds.

This the best used book store ever. I can't even believe how many printings he had from the 1940s and earlier. It's really cool to see.

This is the MINATURE MASTERS contest. They give really excellent musicians tiny instruments and ask them to play them. The kid in the yellow shirt was camp by us. He and his friend drove all the way from Ohio just for this contest. We fed them some pancakes and lent them phones and made friends with them. That's the best part of these things. Music brings people together :)

And that was my family vaction!