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I moved to Cedar City, UT one thousand eight hundred and sixty nine days ago. And when I wake up I will run the last few errands and move back to El Centro, CA where I grew up. I've known this was the plan for awhile and I know it's where I'm supposed to be, at least for a little bit, but it really just hit me tonight as I began to pack up my room. I can't even begin to explain what a different person these last one thousand eight hundred and sixty nine days have made me. When one chapter ends another starts.

Falling In Love Through These Headphones

Do you have that song/album that no matter how many times you listen to it you can't get enough? You have it on repeat day and night? I'm currently loving on Preston Pugmire's new album which can be bought here. Go ahead, go get it. If you wanna try it first, there's one free download. OBSESSED.

Burt's Bakery

I have a confession; I bake. This might sound weird to my few blog followers but baking was a huge part of my identity before I moved to Cedar. When we lived in New Mexico, where I was born, my mom spent months perfecting a chocolate chip cookie recipe. She took a recipe off the back of a bag of chocolate chips and just tweeked and changed ingredients until they were perfect. They're good, they're really good. I can't even really begin to describe them.

Every Burt child was raised learning how to bake these cookies. We took them to class parties, random friends on Sundays, and every family reunion. Our mom is not that hard core when it comes to cooking but she's OCD about her cookies. You have to pack the brown sugar a certain way and the flower must be measured correctly with proper butter knife technique. You can only use Ghirardelli Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips and nothing but Blue Bonnet Margarine melted to the exact consistency. Sugars first, then magarine, eggs, vanilla, flour mixture (baking soda, salt, and flour,) all while putting the chips and nuts in half way through the flour. I can double it, cut it half, make them by hand, or use a mixture, and do it all without even thinking.

So when my brother Jeff wanted a new video game or roller blades or something along those lines, he started a cookie baking business. When he was too cool for baking, I was just old enough to use an oven by myself. I inherited a healthy clientele. We sold by the dozens, we had regulars. I new who liked extra chocolate chips, who wanted walnuts in theirs, and who I couldn't tell their spouses they were buying them. Sometimes I'd make up a batch, bag them in threes, take them to school, and sell three for a dollar to students. I'd make 5 dozen, earn 20 bucks, and be out by 3rd period. I could go home right now and call up old clients, even though it's been five years, and make 100 bucks no problem.

Moving into a dorm my freshman year that had no kitchen sent my baking out the window, it was nice not to be the girl who was expected to bring cookies to everything. So when I finally made them, I was extremely upset to find out that they turn out very different at 5846 ft above Sea Level then at 30 below. This may sounds ridiculous but it's still 5 years later quite sad to me. I've tried adjusting so many little things in the recipe but there's no hope. They still taste good in Cedar, they're just not....fluffy.

This is all on my mind because I made them this morning for Jon and Liz (best landlords ever) and all I could think about was how excited I was to move home and make some fluffy cookies. 37 days till El Centro....

The Help

Have you seen the movie The Help? If not make plans to see it ASAP, best movie I've seen in a long time. Basic Overview: In a culture where a girl's main priority is expected to be marriage (not utah but close,) Skeeter gets a college education and has strong desires of becoming a journalist. Skeeter grew up in a privileged white home in Jackson, Mississippi with an African American maid that raised her. After returning home from college she recognizes the injustice of how the maids in her community are being treated. She interviews maids about their experiences and writes an anonymous book that gets published. It was beautiful, moving, funny, you're going to want to take tissues. There were two messages in the movie that I've always firmly believed in but the reinforcement was perfect timing in my life.

While Skeeter was I'm sure a talented writer, what made the difference was that she saw everyone like a Child of God. She connected with the maids, made them feel like they could trust her, and then helped them. In a time in life where I have no life plans and I'm surrounded by friends going to medical school, and getting sweet jobs with companies like Boeing, it's nice to know that me being a people person is something valuable that can change lives, even if I can't do math.

The other lesson is that children believe what others believe about them. Skeeter never felt like the southern belle her mom wanted her to be, and even though her mom never said those words, the message was delivered clearly. Her faith in herself however, came from the maid that raised her. Her maid told her every day how beautiful, wise, and smart she was. We as humans have to take the amazing influence we have in children's live more seriously.

Lagoon!

At 8:30pm last Friday night Brant called me up and asked if I wanted to go to Provo for the weekend. We left Cedar at 12:30am Saturday morning and drove to Provo. I love a good late night random roadtrip. We ended up going to Lagoon on Saturday for SUU Day at Lagoon and it was just the PERFECT day. Going into it I only knew two of the people besides me but we just had a way solid group and it was wonderful. I love when the Lord weaves people into your life.

Great People Doing Great Things

So many random thoughts going through my head:

Went to Off The Cuff tonight. I'm not one of those people who go every Friday but every once in a while, I love it. Tonight I was only about 60% there mentally because I was just thinking about how seriously amazing they are.

Five SUU students started it in January of 2004 and I don't think they could have ever imagined where it would go. They've had over 50 players come and go, venues have changed, and with everything they've became stronger. They've competed at National Improv Festivals, toured around the western US, and trained with some of the best in the world. And in September they're opening their own space! Maybe I get excited because I know the lack of great programming space in Cedar, but mostly because I'm so excited at how far these awesome people, SUU Alumni no less, have come.

Next thought, we had 14 dancers from SUU's own dance department spend three months this summer in China helping to produce the ballet "The Dream of Helen," about Cedar native Helen Foster Snow. Our dancers came home yesterday and I saw one at OTC, she just ... glowed talking about her experience. You know when you talk to someone who has had a literal life changing experience and you can just tell by their countenance? That's how she was. And that's how everyone I've talked to who saw or was a part of the performance was. I'm so proud of our students and can't wait to hear more about their experience.

Last thought, tonight I met Winthrop Paroo aka Zion Smith. If you haven't seen The Music Man at the Utah Shakespeare Festival this summer, get with the picture!! Winthrop steals the show. I got the chance to talk with Zion and OTC and he's just this great twelve year old boy, who of course made me miss Michael, who loved watching OTC. He just had this immense look of JOY on his face. You know he'll remember tonight for a long time. He's 12, acting in the Utah Shakespeare Festival, and has a 1000 more dreams. Great people doing great things.

Creativity

Do you ever have one of those nights where you plan nothing special yet it's just perfect? On a whim I went to Park Discovery with Jenna and Mikey Tuesday night, the music on the way put us in the BEST mood before we even got there. Once we were in the park Mikey and Jenna were pretending to be on a safari, then we were piarates, then we were on a plane, then a space ship...all different accents, all different story lines. Hup Hup. I felt like a third grader and that's when I remembered, I never did this kind of stuff as a child. Jenna made it clear that not participating was not an option and I didn't even know how to join so I just followed their lead. I struggle when it comes to being creative. Me and Calvin are one in the same.

I'm that girl who wrote EVERY paper the night before. I've always said their are two different types of event planners: the visionaries and the producers. I'm a producer, I don't have big visions, but you better believe I can get wherever is envisioned and I fine tune everything along the way. But here is my question to you people now, can you develop creativity? I feel like the 12 followers of this blog are pretty dang creative people and I'd love your input. I think more creativeness can only help my event management skills but where do I get it?