Friends bid Farewell....

One of the harshest realities of living in New York, is that you will ever leave or be left, because it tends to be such a transit place for so many people. Especially during this time of recession. I have one friend who was laid off, the other is taking a better job and etc. So three of my really good friends celebrated some of their last hoorahs in NYC... and here are some of the fun pics from their parties.

Shout out to my southern utah connection Joe, we instantly connected by talking about good ole St. George, Utah, it was nice to have someone in the city be so close to home. Jenn, she was a brilliant RS president and even a better friend. Very thoughtful, generous and fun! Karli, her and I hitted it off the first time we met in a class, we could not stop laughing.... I wish them the best and hope they know they will be greatly missed... :(

"What the Shack?"

So in NYC one of the hottest spots to go eat, especially during great weather is the Shake Shack in Madison Park. However the line can become ridicioulusly long... so my friend and I were making fun of other names for the Shake Shack, like "Overated Shack," and my favorite, "What the Shack?". So my darling friend Angela and her friend Rachel came to the city for a brief pit stop on her way to run her first marathon ever, the Boston Marathon... so we did some of the highlights of NY, ate at Grimaldi's, walked across Brooklyn Bridge, went to a friends to play Rock Band (my favorite), and then ended the trip to an hour long wait in line for the Shake Shack with my two friends, Mark Weinberg and Brenda... it was worth the wait though... I loved having those girls in town, it felt like a bit of home :)

Birthday Parties!!

Two of my really good friends birthday's are five days apart, Joe April 15th, Heidi April 20th. So for Joe's b-day we went to this intense novelty restaurant called The Ninja, it was intense and don't worry about it, took three hours. However it was worth the great birthday celebration. Then for my friend Heidi's birthday we had a party at our friends house and played the classic "Ipod" game. Where you literally make a fool of yourself for other's enjoyment, ten times worst than Karokee, but that much more entertaining. Someone puts their ipod on, with a blind fold and sing to the song, there is simply no shame. So I sang to the classic Weezer, "If you want to destroy my sweater," but I guess one time I accidently said, "If you want to destroy my teddy."

CONCERTS!!! Come rain or shine... I am a true fan!

So one of my new obsessions is the New Zealand two man band, Flight of the Concords. They are hilariously witty and funny, let alone endearing accents... so my friend Jon and I both talked about how much we loved them so we were able to buy tickets last minute to their concert at Radio City Hall (classic venue) and it was AWESOME!!! My favorite song was "Jenny" check it out on youtube if you get a chance.... I kept listening to their songs for the rest of the week, and it's quite humorous to run to.

Then my next favorite band is a local, two guys from my ward, they are actually quite good and catchy... so my friend Logan and I decided to show our support on a very rainy night, we happened to be the only people to show up... which was a bit unusual because they usually have an entourage. Nevertheless it was a fun and memorable night, especially since I forgot to bring my ID, they guy didn't let us in, then after seeing how pitiful we were in the rain, came outside and told us, "We were breaking his heart," and let us in... the band was so touched they dedicated a song to each of us...:)

The band is breaking up... the end of an era...

You know in the classic movie Grease, (which my mother did not approve me watching when I was younger and did not understand until I was older to pick up on all induendo's) when their group of friends break up for a bit then they all reunite and say  "The gang is back" well, that is what it felt like, my solid group of friends have been going through some changes,  one got laid off, one quit their job and another re-locating, so we've decided to take advantage of hanging out as much as possibly and sadly I will most likely be the last one standing, which is usually not the case... so we went to one of my favorite places to eat "Grey Dogs". We're all smiling not only because our "band" has reunited but because it is sunny outside...

Passover Dinner

My friend was invited me to attend a "traditional" passover seder dinner he was invited to here in the city. His friend is Jewish, who is not practing, but for traditional and celebratory reasons held a passover dinner with her friends and family. So we partook of this culturally rich experience and don't worry it lasted a total of six hours and we were stuffed of Matza bread, my favorite was chocolate covered Matza. It was very memorable and another once in a lifetime experience I was able to gain from living here in the city. Don't worry that weekend I did go home to celebrate Easter with  my family, best of both worlds. 

Talofa Samoa!

So 15 years ago, my "adventurous" parents decided to start a program in Western Samoa. So the whole family, all six kids under the age of 16, spent our summer in Samoa, I was 13 at the time, and it was the first country I had been to (the beginning of what later became our travel bug).  It was definitely a culture shock for a 13 year old girl from little ole LaVerkin, however one my most memorable and cherished traveling experience. Due to our travel to Samoa, this is when my family was introduced to one of our dear friends, Tala Covington,  we then offered for her to come to the States and live with us there, then she met her husband Jeremy and the rest is history. Well she and her family recently relocated back to her roots for six months to live in this beautiful, sometimes not so much of a paradise,  there are some serious bugs (don't worry I got 60 mosquito bites on just one leg), cold showers and dial up internet...yuck!!! Nonetheless, it still is a great place to visit. So my parents, and my two younger sisters (LeNae and Lana) and I went to Samoa for our spring break. It was very laid back and chill, spent most the time at the beach, swimming in waterfalls, and eating pongi po po (rolls in coconut milk).