LOVE

Remember how in my last post (in MAY, eek!) I said I had booked a trip to New York? Well about 10 days ago I left on that trip, and had an absolute blast, as well as took my Redken Certified Colorist test. Which was hard, and fun, and stressful, and I don't get the results for 6 more weeks (ugh). Well that's not what I'm writing about. Even though I just might need to write another post about how AMAZING Mary Poppins was... What I'm sharing, is the very exciting thing that happened when I got home!

For quite some time now I have been dating a very handsome boy name Brandon Barlow. And that handsome boy who I had fallen very much in love with text me while I was in New York and said "he would love to pick me up from the airport". So I told my parents not to worry, that B was taking care of me. (he's cute, right? Ignore my face in this one. I had just flown across the country)

Secretly I was hoping that he would be waiting for me in baggage claim with a lot of flowers and a very sparkly little something. Sadly when I arrived in baggage claim, Brandon was nowhere to be found and I was left to lug my very heavy bag out to the curb where he said he would be waiting.

I got to the curb and he was not there waiting...

I waited, and about 10 minutes later B pulled up, wearing basketball shorts and an inside out t-shirt loads me up in the car and we drive away. At that point I realized I had been being silly thinking that,that night was the night, because after all it was almost midnight and he was wearing basket ball shorts. We started driving and Brandon headed East on the I2-15 though I live West. I started complaining, that I had been flying for about 9 hours, it was late, I had been up since 5am, and just wanted to go home,shower and go to bed. Brandon informed me that we hadn't seen each other for 5 days, he wanted some quality time, and I had no choice since he was driving. So, off to his house we went.

We got to his house and B told me I had to see the progress he had made in moving stuff out of his room, so I drug myself upstairs, and opened his door, and found this:

I got a little choked up and started doing my nervous laugh, and Brandon knelt down. Brushed the floor covered in chocolate kisses, and said Melinda, i kiss the ground you walk on (he's super cheesy, don't let his outer demeanor fool you, he's a total softy). We had a little chuckle over that then he told me some nice things, that he loved me and wanted to marry me, and asked me if I would...

And how could I resist a guy who would propose with carved pumpkins (did you notice the ring box inside the heart pumpkin?). So... I said YES!!!

And now we plan on living happily ever after.

All these things that I've done...

I am feeling so blessed in my life right now, there are just so many good things going on, so I thought I would share!

First an update on the fam:

1. My baby brother is getting married on June 26th to an awesome girl named Julie that we can't wait to have as part of the family! AND he just found out that he won a full ride scholarship because his grades are off the hook!! Brains and Brawn... Julie is so lucky!

2. My other little brother just graduated with his masters in accounting, and his wife finished her associates! Happy graduation to them!! Tyrel got a job in Vegas, with a big accounting firm which means they are moving HERE!!! Now they just need to get busy making me an aunt and life will really be complete. (I'm going to be an awesome aunt)

3. Since I'm talking about the fam I have to brag about my sisters. Jess is tearing it up on the volleyball court! She is a tall gorgeous blond that only cares about getting to college on a volleyball scholarship and I love it. Kami is in aestitician school and LOVING it. It's so fun to see her excelling at school. And she's really good! She even got Brandon in there for some waxing!! And he's already wanting to go back!

In other news:

Things at the salon are soooo good right now. I've been working with an assistant Leah, and she is fabulous!! She makes my life so much easier, and I can book more clients, which means I am getting busier. My clients love her! Though I'm a little worried about what I'm going to do when she leaves me to work on her own!!

Also my awesome photographer friend Christy of ChristyCropperphotography.com has been taking some amazing pics of my clients for an online portfolio, and of me, for some advertising and things I have in the works. She even made me look cool!

AND!!! I just booked a trip to New York to go to the REDKEN exchange! I'm going to take a 9 1/2 hour, 3 part test to become a certified Redken colorist. This means lots of studying and practicing in my near future, but I am so excited! All of my color specialist classes better pay off! Passing this test can open up even more opportunities, and I can't wait!

So yeah, pretty much my life is awesome... JEALOUS?

My new boyfriend... KINDLE

There is a new love in my life and I want to tell everyone about it. We met on my birthday, and it was love at first sight. Kindle takes me places I've never been before, makes me laugh, cry, and think about things I've never considered previously. I can't wait to get done with work so we can spend time together, and cuddle up in bed together. Kindle has changed my life!

Ok so Kindle might be my amazon reader that I got for my birthday in August, but seriously I am in love! My parents had an amazing gift giving year. Kindle for my birthday and a baby grand piano for Christmas. I feel like they are kind of setting me up for disappointment because I don't think they'll ever be able to top 2009.

And in the interest of sharing, here are the books I've read so far on my kindle, in case anyone is looking for a good read.

1.The Unlikely Disciple- super interesting, about a journalists "study abroad" to and evangelical college. Really made you think about what you believe and why.

2. Three Cups of Tea- Really enjoyed reading about how one man is doing what he can to change the world

3.The Weight of Silence- Pretty good book about a dysfunctional family, includes an unexpected turn of events.

4.Half Broke Horses- A true novel written by Jeanette Walls, the same person who wrote one of my favorite books, The Glass Castle, and I loved this book just as much. It's the story of her Grandmother, a force of a woman, and her incredible story.

5.The Red Tent- This book is set in the time of Joseph and his multi-colored coat, but isn't really a bible story. It's a story about the women's culture and their time spent in the red tent (a place they went during their monthly cycle, to give birth, nurse their children, and generally be together as women)

6. The Adoration of Jenna Fox- This book was a bit of a stretch from my usual reads, but enjoyable non the less. Makes you think a lot about the pros and cons of scientific advancements

7. The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance- Love, love, loved this book. I was sceptical at first, but in the end am a huge fan, maybe because I identified so much with Elna Baker, I might actually be her.

8. Graceling- this book was also a little outside of my norm, but I really liked it. About a girl who was a graced killer, and her struggle to not be the monster she felt she was born to be

9. The Hunger Games- Totally understand why this book is popular. I want this to be a movie!

10. Pretty in Plaid- Another book by Jen Lancaster, this is a prequel to her Bitter is the new black series. Her attempt to explain just why she is the way she is. A silly book, but fun read

11. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society- This one was a little hard to get into, it's written as a correspondence of letters between a group of friends. But it's worth sticking to.

12. Fancy White Trash- A silly little teen novel. Fun read if you just want something easy and mindless

13. Running with Scissors- I hated this book, I didn't finish it, and deleted it from Kindle. Don't read it!

14. American Eve- The Story of Evelynn Nesbitt, a tragic story about a young child model/actor, a kept woman, and the men who literally went crazy over her. Great read. A vocabulary stretcher.

15. Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man- Written by Steve Harvey, I think every girl should read this book. So many good insights, and obviously hilarious.

16. When You Are Engulfed in Flames- Short stories by David Sedaris, I liked some of the stories a lot and some not at all. Good read.

17. Columbine: A True Crime Story- Pretty interesting book. Another angle on Columbine, something I hadn't really thought about in awhile

18. Julie and Julia- Fun cute book, liked the movie too.

19. The Help- I LOVED this book, about the relationship of a white woman and her black maid set in the 1960's. Would definitely recommend this one!

20. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan- This book was recommended to me and I've recommended it to a bunch of people as well. Set in 19th century China it's all about women,their secret language, how they lived and the arranged friendships that were even more powerful and binding than their arranged marriages.

Just Call Me Cha Cha

When I was a Junior in High school my English teacher, Mr. Meyers, assigned us a research paper, as any good English teacher would. Somehow I missed the memo that all 5 of his classes had decided not to complete the research paper. I don't remember what it was exactly that I researched, but I do remember that when I was the only person out of our 41 person class that turned in said paper, Mr. Meyers pushed the cart holding the projector machine so hard that when it hit the desks across the room it flew into the air and broke through the thin wall into an un-expecting History class next door... But that's a completely different story. What I'm blogging about today is my love for research. (Possibly spurred by that first research paper?)

I have a habit of researching ridiculously random topics. (Which habit has been dramatically fueled by the iPhone). A few topics that have been researched include
-midget babies
-ovarian transplants (only possible in identical twins)
-why Victorville, CA exists
-the effects of testosterone on a woman (SCARY!!!)
-the calorie count of the nachos at Baja Fresh
-the themed hotel at Bonnie Springs
-the story of how the Killers became a band and the height of each member of the band
-the starting year of the Cartoon Network

After sharing very important facts regarding the above topic with my friends, they started texting me with their own quandaries. Following are just a couple of actual texts received from my friends:

-"We are at a mets game and the crowd boos everytime an Atlanta Braves player named Chipper Jones comes to bat. Why?" -Tifani
-"How tall is Julia Childs?"- Christy
-"Is Helen Keller dead?"-Jacque

All of these questions were met with speedy, accurate answers, earning me the nickname of Cha Cha. Because like Tifani said, "I'd rather text you, the answers come faster, and they are funnier... "
So ha, take that cha cha, I win!!!

For My Viewing Pleasure

Summer is usually kind of a bust when it comes to a good TV series to follow, and now that SYTYCD is over, I decided I would put away the remote and get some good reading in until all of my shows start again in the fall.

That is however until I discovered the genius of reality TV, especially of the dating variety.

Allow me to introduce the two most awkward, dramatic, self esteem sucking, brilliant reality TV shows out there for our viewing pleasure.


First is "Dating in the Dark". Where 3 men and 3 women live in a house completely separated from one another. The only place they are allowed to come together is in a dark room (hence the name). This room is so pitch black they literally can't see their hands in front of their faces. And so have to get to know the other people in the house judging only by personality, and also the groping they claim helps them know what the other person "looks" like. Over the coarse of about a week, they can communicate by email or IM with the people in the house asking each other on dates in the dark room. They go on multiple dates and finally chose one person they would like to have revealed in the light. The show claims to answer the age old question "is love really blind?", by making these people form relationships without ever seeing one another. One girl said just before the big reveal "I've been making out with this guy for a week now, I hope he's not a troll". And after finding out that in fact he did resemble a character from Lord of the Rings, said "I guess I'm superficial, and I'm totally okay with that!"
Once they have seen the person they have been "dating in the dark", in the light, (which by the way is really awkward because they can't talk or see the reaction of the person who is looking at them) they can decide to either meet up on the balcony to continue the relationship or leave through the front door and walk down a super steep extremely long drive way (which I must add, definitely adds a dramatic effect) to search out their own true love sans the help of reality TV.
I really can't imagine anything worse than thinking I have a real connection with someone until they see me and decide that in fact they don't ever want to talk to me again... Brilliant ABC



Number two has been totally and completely misnamed by FOX... and therefore has been renamed by my friends and I as "The Fat Bachelor".
In this show 20 buxom beauties compete over the love of one man who claims to like "big girls". In the first episode as each girl was being introduced at the bottom of the screen was a little description of the girl, including her name, job, height, and yes, weight. And let's just say the BMI of these girls was not falling into the "healthy" 20-25 range nor dare I say even the "overweight"25-29 range.
I'm not even sure where to begin with the dramatics of this series. First of all pretty much every single one of these women should be in counseling. They all blame their single hood on "being a bigger girl" (a phrase I've heard no less than 2700 times so far, i.e "I know I'm a bigger girl..." or "because I'm a bigger girl...") One of the girls had never been on a date, ever. Another had never been on a second date. Yet here they are throwing themselves at the fat bachelor like he is the only guy that will ever look at them again. These girls cry constantly, profess their love after one date, and are more desperate than I even knew was possible (except for Bonnie, she was kind of normal). I think what truly makes this show AMAZING is the fact that these women have the self esteem of an acne prone, pubescent, 13 year old boy, yet they are setting themselves up for the ultimate rejection. I honestly think it might put some of them over the edge when they end up going home, cause really he can only keep one...


Two last observations because this is getting too long...
1. Dear fat girls, I know you think that the only reason that guys don't like you is because you're fat, but maybe you should check out your personalities, because no one wants to be with a blubbering, gossiping, negative, only talk about myself, and talk with my mouth full chick, regardless of her dress size...

2. The only thing I think could possibly be better than theses shows separately would be combining them. Imagine Fat Dating in the Dark... If that can't dash whatever shred of self worth these girls had left, I don't know what could. Plus seriously how trashy of a show would that be?!

Kids and Old People Have All the Luck!

I've always told my family that I can't wait to get old because people over sixty can pretty much get away with anything they want, but I realized the other day that little kids have it pretty great as well. Here is my explanation why both groups really have all the luck:

KIDS
-it's acceptable to strip down to nothing but your underwear and run in your sprinklers in the front yard when it's hot outside
-people think it's cute when you say ridiculous things
-if you fall asleep somewhere someone will either cover you up or carry you to a bed
-if you look dirty or unkempt it's a reflection on your parents, nobody blames you
-if church is boring you just have to make enough noise, and someone will take you outside
-daily nap time
-fast food play places and summer camps
-since no one wants to wait for you to walk from point A to point B, and your legs would get too tired anyway, you get pushed around in a stroller or cart
-wearing a cape or a tutu to the grocery store will have all of the other kids jealous and the adults gushing over how cute you look
-you feel great in a swim suit

SENIOR CITIZENS
-if you strip down to next to nothing and water your front lawn, your neighbors will just assume you are slightly senile
-you can say pretty much whatever you want, and people will excuse it because you are old and probably a little crazy
-daily naps
-you can live in exclusive communities that are not all that different from summer camp, where they have organized activities all the time like bingo and water aerobics
-since no one wants to wait for you to walk from point A to point B, and your legs would get too tired anyway, you get to drive around one of those cool little scooters
-if you are dirty or unkempt it's probably because either you're crazy or you're kids don't take good care of you... it's not your fault
-you can go to the salon and get your hair styled once a week, and never touch it in between
-if you go to the grocery store wearing something ridiculously sequined, a large decorated hat or anything with huge floral print all of the other old people will be jealous and the clerk will probably comment on how nice you look
-you couldn't care less what you look like in a bathing suit

I guess being old and being young actually have some striking resemblences, the unfair thing is, right now as a twenty five year old, I would love to do pretty much anything on either one of these lists. Unfortunately, for some reason, people just wouldn't find it socially acceptable. So I'll say it one more time, Kids and Old People have all the luck!!

Bald is beautiful!

I'm just going to come out and say it, I love bald men. I think bald heads are sexy. My last boyfriend was (well still is) bald, as well as my last two crushes before him. He was the first bald guy I actually dated, instead of just admiring from afar, and I have to say I'm hooked! I've been thinking about just why I'm into bald heads, and I've developed a quick list of reasons!

1. I am a hair stylist, and I don't want to deal with anymore hair when I get home. It's bad enough that I have to do my own hair everyday!

2. Bald men don't have hair to hide behind, which means to be bald they need to have a nicely shaped head, as well as strong features to look good. A good looking bald man always has a good face

3. They are more confident. I mean it's kind of a stressful thing for a guy to lose his hair, so the ones that just embrace it and shave what is on their head show they are confident enough to just go with it.

4. It's like seeing a girl without her makeup. You know if you stay with a guy long enough they are more than likely going to lose the hair eventually. By choosing one that is already bald, it eliminates the element of surprise, you already know they look good, no surprise bumps or divots!

5. Last but not least. Liking bald men doesn't really eliminate anyone. If I only liked men with a thick head of hair, I would be eliminated all of the hot bald guys, but anyone can be bald! All you need is a razor!!

So here's to male pattern baldness, forget Rogaine, stop thinking about hair club for men. You look good just the way you are!