The Haggard Herald

Hi folks, just in case you were wondering, I will be getting on a plane in approximately 26 hours to fly home. ALicia--I'll play with Sadie for you :) Sarah--same goes for you with Ethan! And do you need any more help with house stuff? Mike--will you teach me about computer programs and help me coordinate another picture night where we put up the sheet and projector? Ben--can we play Christmas songs on the piano (duet style) or with guitar? Kimmy--I love you Dad--can we go kayaking and go to see the sunset on the beach? Mom--I'll rub your neck for you and can we go on walks in the morning together? Joseph and Julie--so that you don't feel left out, know that I will miss you over Christmas and especially after Christmas. I'm excited for you though. Change is scary but it's exciting once its done. And somebody tell Gramma Meyers I am looking forward to playing tennis with her over the break too. And are we going to do another homerun derby? Love you and see yo...

Another noteworthy event yesterday is that I played viola in church. Two of my roommates and another friend played an arrangement for violin, viola, cello, and piano of "The First Noel" and "O holy night." My friend Trevor read Luke 2 while we played. Another friend in my ward arranged it for us. He is graduating soon in music composition. Viola is his favorite string instrument and consequently he wrote in a little solo in my part. I was very nervous; but on the bright side it's one more experience on my way to becoming comfortable playing in front of people.

Ben and Alicia this is for you-- Yesterday my roommate Jane brought a boy over to our apartment that she's gone on a number of dates with. She told me about him the other day so when he came over I wanted to meet him. I casually headed into the kitchen where they were talking after he'd been there for a few minutes. He was so nice--that was my impression of him. And Jane was enjoying his company which I liked to see. Anyways, as they were about to leave Jamie said, "Well it's been a pleasure to meet you Wade Hoover from Heber." Then this conversation ensued: me: "YOU'RE A HOOVER!?" "Are you related to any Johnsons or Harts?" Wade:"Yes! How do you know my family?" me: Ben married my sister Wade: woa [this part is a little jumbled but it covers the main topics] me: You've got a great family! The Johnsons and the Harts are so nice. Auntie Nancy and Uncle Richard let me stay at their house for a week when we came out for ...

The longer I'm in school the less patient I am to put in long hours for the sake of homework and studying for tests. I love to learn; I am just tired of exams and due dates. Here are some inspirational thoughts I found to help myself. Maybe they will be a help to you in your own challenges. Featured quote today* When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt MOTIVATION Consider the postage stamp: its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to one thing till it gets there. ~Josh Billings Look at a stone cutter hammering away at his rock, perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred-and-first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not the last blow that did it, but all that had gone before. ~Jacob A. Riis It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer. ~Albert Einstein OTHER PERSPECTIVES Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the abilit...

For the first time in my life I shoveled snow this morning. I imagined that it would be really difficult and tiring but it isn't as bad as I thought. Here are some reasons for continuing work at the temple grounds, at least for the time being: 1. it's beautiful (the grounds and the snow) 2. I like the time outside since I'm most often inside during the winter months 3. nothing beats good old work, and to go along with that 4. I sleep very soundly after working hard 5. it's nice have an income 6. it's a great location, there are few places I'd rather be than at the temple grounds 7. if I want alone time to be in my own thoughts (or just take a break from the mental exertion of school) I have that option at work On the other hand, I value my sleep and so I'm not sure how I'd handle going in to start clearing the snow at 3:30 or 4:00 in the morning. There's a lot of snow in the forecast for the next week, so wish me luck!

Thanks for coming to my concert the other night and mom and dad for calling to wish me good luck. I had fun, especially helping baby Joseph walk around the Harris Fine Arts Center before I had to start warming up. :)

In the Spirit of Thanksgiving Follow this link to a short film in regards to Thanksgiving. Said Dallan Oaks, "We should thank God for our adversities and pray for guidance in meeting them. It is all part of the plan." It can be so easy to ask ourselves, or God, why do we face the personal challenges and difficulties that we do. Lately I've wondered about this quite a bit. I understand that there is something to be learned in every situation and the hard ones in particular. Those lessons are not usually readily apparent though. Elder Oaks continued, "Let us give thanks for what we are and for the circumstances God has given us for our personal journey through mortality.... When we understand that God offers us opportunities for blessings and blesses us through our own adversities and the adversities of others we can understand why he has commanded us again and again to thank the Lord thy God in all things." Although I do not understand why some things happ...

I've got plans on Monday to watch Ethan while Michael and Sarah go for the closing on the house. You've got to celebrate the small victories, right? I don't have a plan for my long term future (which has been getting to me a lot lately). BUT, at least I know what I'm doing this next week! And let it be known that I am VERY excited to have plans with Ethan in a few days. :) Okay so here is one recent and funny dating story. A kid in my ward came over the other day and asked if I wanted to go to a concert on campus on Friday. He did it in a round about sort of way though and I was agreeing before realizing he was asking me to go. Anyways, I've got this date that I'm committed to go on now and I feel bad because I am so irked about it. I was asking my roommates how to be gracious and not let my irk show but the question came out as "how can you be civil to a person when you really don't want to be?" Civil isn't the most appropriate word...

So many funny things happen each day; the trick is to look for them and reap the enjoyment from it. I'm proud of Kimmy for her post about the smell of home depot and her anthropology teacher. College professors can be so quirky; you might as well be paying attention to enjoy the humor--if not for the sake of learning the information. Jamie and I often say our lives should be a TV show. It'd be the funniest one around because the most unusual and funny things happen in our lives, especially in regards to dating. I'll try to remember the funny things that I share with Jamie and my roommates and post some of them on here for your enjoyment too. Who needs TV for entertainment when you can just be attentive to living? Well, except for the Cosby show and I love Lucy which are close to being as funny as real life... Check out Kimmy's post if you haven't yet--it's a good taste of humor in a college student's day.

The leaves started falling off the trees at the temple a couple weeks ago and since then all I've done at work involves leaves. It is so nice to go to work at a beautiful place, especially now with brightly colored leaves all over the place. Autumn is a great time of year and it's a fun time to be working on the grounds crew. I've heard mixed reports about working during the winter. Some people love doing snow removal but on the other hand you run the risk of being called in to work very, very, very early in the morning. I'll try it out and see how much I actually have to go in before dawn. My bet is that it won't be all that often.

Today I'm going with my mentor to present on our research at the McKay School of Education's yearly meeting with President Samuelson. I'm looking forward to it! My part is 3 fold: 1. How am I funded? (through the Mentored Undergraduate Research program and ORCA) 2. What are my responsibilities? (I've searched for and read relevant articles to become familiar with the current literature; I've gathered data from the annual reports to congress on the implementation of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and I'm collaborating with my research team on an article for publication) 3. How has research benefited me? (I'm getting to practice the research skills I've learned in my writing classes; this research is putting me ahead in my major classes because I'm already familiar with some of the topics we're learning about; and it will be a asset to me in preparation for a Washington Seminar internship and/or grad school.) Hopefully I can reme...

Why is winning a sports game is so satisfying? I'm open to your thoughts. This morning I played hockey with several friends (2 x 2) in my ward at the stake center and my team one; I even scored several of our points. It was so fun. I'm not planning on going pro anytime soon but I sure did enjoy beating my home teacher in a little competition of athletics. He is a firefighter and snowboarder and when it comes to strength and speed he definitely has me beat. But I'm glad I had my own little moment of victory in the cultural hall earlier!

Hi folks, Here's picture I found on J&J's picasa album. When I get the pictures from Jamie's family that they took during the race I'll post them too.

Which capitol to study in? Which program to choose? Or both? Alright folks, here are the facts. There are two programs that I'm very interested in. The Washington Seminar internship program and the Jerusalem Center study abroad program. The Washington Seminar is an internship program where I would have the opportunity to work in a government or private office in DC. I would live in BYU housing (the Barlow Center) located at the west end of Pennsylvania Ave. Can you imagine me working under a senator or house rep? This could be a valuable learning experience. The Jerusalem study abroad program obviously has a draw as well. It's a once in a life-time opportunity--but an expensive one at that. And then there's grad school... I'm tempted to apply for both and graduate in December instead of April. I'm still undecided though and am open to thoughtful opinions.

This weekend I participated in a stake musical. It was written by a young lady in my ward. She got some help orchestrating about half the songs from two other people who are studying music composition in my ward (one of which is my FHE brother, which is great). It went well and it was fun to play in the orchestra. With a cast of approximately 30 and an orchestra pit of 12 it all came together Friday night and was much smoother than anyone imagined. My favorite songs to play were the beginning overture and the theme again in the ending credits. I also really liked a song about the beginning of the gold and green ball. The geeky character turns out to be a great dancer and gets the girl. Wish I could share the music with you. How about you listen to some good show tunes today and think of me. :)

Jamie came up with a great name for my car. It's Kelvin. My reason for liking the name "Kelvin" the best is because Kelvin is a unit of measurement for heat. Let's break this down. A) I value warmth/heat. B) The car actually does have a great heater in it. C) It's a science term--which makes it even better. And last but not least, D) it's a boy name and I feel an added sense of safety in thinking my car is manly.

Guess who got her ears pierced for the first time. That's right! I did! 'Why now' you ask? Some of you may recall when I first wanted to pierce my ears I wasn't allowed to because I wasn't 12 years old (that's the Meyers minimum age for ear piercings, thanks to Alicia). By the time I was "old enough," soccer was way more appealing to me than having pierced ears. I had to choose one or the other and clearly soccer won out. After that I forgot about it... And then there were roommates. Two years ago my roommates convinced me that it was time I pierce my ears. At least three times since that day my ear-piercing plans have been foiled--until yesterday. I drove myself and my best friend Jamie Lee down to the mall. I walked in that pre-teen jewelry store, picked out the earrings I wanted, signed my name on the line, held my breath, and bat-a-bing bat-a-boom. Pierced ears. I was so good that I even got my sucker at the end. An orange one.

Hello, Thanks to Kimmy, I have pictures from our cross country drive. Here are some of my favorites. The first is of Kimmy at the temple lot in Far West. We also saw the temple lot in Independence which is across the street from the Community of Christ temple (formerly R-LDS). The next picture is of Dad and I at the Winter Quarters temple, followed by Kimmy and I standing in front of the statue and grave marker in the cemetery right next to the temple. It was a little drizzly while we were there. We were the only ones around. Next on the trip was Mount Rushmore and Custer State park (where we went exploring for rocks (per dad's request) and buffalo (per Kimmy's request)). Lastly, we hiked to several lakes in Rocky Mountain National Park and drove across the continental divide. Other notable events for which I do not have pictures include Dad making up a song about Kimmy and chipmunks, driving past a lot of corn and soy fields and cattle ranches, and stopping at Barnes ...

Here are a few more pictures from the last part of our trip.

One of my fun classes this semester is orchestra and it isn't just strings this time--I'm in the full orchestra and am very excited about it. We are playing one of my favorite classical pieces, Hoedown from Aaron Copland's Rodeo. We are also playing Saturday night Waltz from Rodeo, Night on Bare Mountain by Mussorgsky (you'll recognize it if you listen to it), and Prometheus Overture by Beethoven. Click here to listen to Hoedown . And as a side note, if you're looking for a good book to read, I recommend What to Listen for in Music by Aaron Copland. In the Introduction he writes, "Listening to music is a skill that is acquired through experience and learning. Knowledge enhances enjoyment." Chapter 3, The Creative Process, was what jumped out to me and caused me to buy it. Other chapters are about the elements of music, forms of music, contemporary music, movie music, and more. Great book. Great composer. Great orchestral selection by my conduct...

I bought insurance today for Gramma Meyers' older Corolla. I'm starting to get excited abouth the fact that I'm going to have a car--and it's becoming more real too. In addition to being home together for a week and a half, I am looking forward to my first road trip in my first car. Dad's been sending me information about things to see on our way to Utah. Here's our tentative itinerary: Monday: driving Tuesday: Mostly driving, Kansas City (new temple site), Wednesday: Liberty Jail, Adam-Ohndi-Ahmen Thursday: Winter Quarters, Mount Rushmore Friday: Rocky Mountain National Park & hiking Saturday: White water rafting in CO, Provo

I did it! Pictures will be forth coming (thanks to Joe and Julie and Jamie's family who took pictures). 4:30am- woke up and got ready 5:00am- Jamie's Mom picked us up (she ran too) 5:30am- got on one of the 30+ buses at the Riverwoods 6:00am- arrived at the starting area up in the mountains 7:10am- race started appro. 8:30am- pit stop for Jamie (the line was long so we were held up about 10 minutes) approx. 9:20am- increased pace approx 9:38am- started sprinting approx. 9:40am- finished! approx. 10:00am- ate watermelon, cantalope, and strawberry pancakes 10:30am- make french toast with J&J at my apartment Highlights: 1. Jamie and I ran together for 11 of the 13 miles. 2. The sunrise in the mountains was beautiful. 3. Jamie's dad took pictures at several spots along the trail. 4. I felt great the whole time. 5. I still had energy to run faster for the last couple miles and sprint the end. 6. Julie cheered for me as I came around the last stretch. 7. Joseph, Julie, and...

I started two independent study courses last summer. I extended them a few months ago. And now I have less than a week left to finish them. I'm almost done! Communication Disorders 133: Introduction to Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. That's the first course I registered for. It's a required class for my major and it's not too hard because it covers material from my major classes. HFL 260: Family Finance. This is the other class I am taking. It's slightly harder to motivate myself to study this one. I think that's because this material is less familiar to me than the ComD class is and I try to get everything from each lesson. But the catch is there's no way to learn everything-at least not in one class. It's not a very realistic goal. And it takes a ton of time. What I've learned from independent study classes you ask? (1) I've learned that it's harder than I thought it would be to study alone. (2) I've learned th...

I've been thinking more and more about Jerusalem again. I called today and now there are several people on the Fall waiting list. Too bad, I printed out the application yesterday to start working on. Well it looks like Jamie and I are staying here together in Alta; and Jane our roommmate from winter semester (she was in Jerusalem with Jamie last fall) will be here too. At least I can look forward to having a car. :)

We go through different phases of things to do at work. Some things that have to be done weekly like mowing, edging, weed whipping, blowing off the side walks, and weeding, while other tasks come in spurts. The first big seasonal project we did was to plant all the flowers for the summer which we did throughout May. Mike, the temple grounds foreman, told us that our crew plants 50,000-60,000 flowers every year. That is a LOT of flowers. Except for the blister part, I liked planting because I learned the names of flowers and how to arrange them in the flower beds, and we can clearly see all the work we accomplished. What we've been working on lately is pruning the rose bushes. There are hundreds of them on the grounds and they produce a ton of flowers. We started pruning before I went to FL and it's what I've done 7 out of the past 8 hours (2 days) I've worked. We have to prune what's left of the dead flowers so that new blooms will come. I think we're g...

Okay, so what's so great about What up Doc? Why is Judy there? What in the world is her motivation for a single thing she does? Why is it that no matter how hard Howard tries, he has no control for what is happening to him? Can I sympathize with that feeling lately? YES.

Today was my long run for the week and I ran 7 miles! (3.5 miles on University Ave towards Timp and then back) The more I run the more I like running and feel good while doing it.