Craziness!

Dear Sis. Johnson the Snazziest,

Well, I at least think that you're snazzy. I'm sorry that you spent your birthday planning for eight hours. That seems a bit excessive to me, but I guess planning is a good thing?

And you are totes the Doctor.

Did you get the pen? Is it not super cool?

This week has been kind of crazy as illustrated by the fact that I have to go to bed soon so that I can get up tomorrow morning to write, not edit, write a paper that's due  tomorrow about Sendhil Mullainathan. If you don't know who that is, that's OK, neither do I. Yet...

So, here's a brief rundown in bullet form

• Monday: woke up in Vegas, went climbing in Red Rock Canyon. It was awesome. Daniel, Nathan, Nate, and I climbed for about three hours. I led a 5.10b. The rocks were awesome, the weather was perfect, and we got in for free because it was a holiday. Thank you dead presidents. (pic included of me leading the route)

• Tuesday-Thursday: lots of school. I took two midterms on Thursday which is more than I thought I would get done. Not fun.
• Friday: Daniel and I went and saw Walk Off the Earth in Salt Lake. They were playing at the same place that we saw Lindsey Stirling. They were AWESOME! They have great stage presence and put on an awesome show, just like I knew they would. (pic included)

 

• Saturday: Daniel and I doubled with this other couple and went climbing up Rock Canyon. The other couple had never been climbing before. I was going to lead the climb because Daniel didn't want to, but then this giant rock came tumbling down the hill and hit me in the leg. I wasn't even climbing. I was just standing there, and it hit me smack in the thigh. The guys climbing below us all winced and asked if I was OK. It hurt a lot, so I took a minute, and shook it off and then lead the route because I am THAT hard core, and I figured that if I didn't climb it then no one would get to climb it and there goes the point of the trip.. (pic of my awesome bruise included)

• Saturday night: went to a cougarettes concert with the roomies. They are really good at what they do, dancing that is. they are all white, from Utah, have danced since they were three, and their moms all own dance studios. Rather homogenous.
  
• Sunday: Today was fun. I went to church, hung with Daniel and skyped the parental units.

  

  It's now a little more purple than this...

So, that's what happened.

You quote this week is from The Fault in Our Stars, which I can't remember if you read or not, but should if not, when you get home, "Pain demands to be felt." Kind of gloomy, but true, I think.

I love you!
Tonya 

Of Dead Presidents and Las Vegas

Dear Sis Johnson the Twenty-year-old,

I hope you had a great birthday! How did you celebrate? I hope it involved lots of delicious food and presents. Did you get the cool pen that I sent? If you didn't, please go pick it up from wherever you pick up packages. It is awesome. It has both a 4gb USB drive and a laser pointer. That's right. A laser pointer. Whaaaat?! I figured you could use it to play with small animals when you are very carefully not touching them as per Dad's instructions. Hopefully it works. It seemed like one of those things that might not be the most reliable. 

Also, you're 9 months in, which means that you might finally be feeling like you have some idea of what you're doing as a missionary. This surely means that you are about to get transferred or put in a leadership position. We have received instructions from your mission president not to make you trunky, so forget that I mentioned you coming home. "You didn't hear anything."

It's great that your comps with a ginger. I keep thinking of Dr. Who every time he regenerates saying, "still not a ginger," but he does like his ginger companions. Donna and Amy are both pretty gingers.  

Anyway, I think it's awesome that you're having good teaching times. It sounds like your investigator pool has filled out a bit. That's good. The longer you are in an area, the more fluctuations you will see in your teaching pool. It's like the economy, it comes in waves. That's right. I just made an economics joke.  

So, it might surprise you to hear (or maybe not considering the frequency of my little adventures) that I'm not in Provo at the moment. I'm in Las Vegas. Daniel and I decided to elope. Please send gifts to my Provo address.

Pscyh! No, a girl in our ward is from Vegas and she invites a bunch of people down from the ward to visit her family every year, so we came down to enjoy the company and Red Rocks Canyon, which is a super popular climbing area just outside of town. We drove down yesterday afternoon because Daniel is in men's chorus and had a concert yesterday morning. 

It was a great concert. I got to see Daniel do the haka because they sang a Maori song and combined it with an abbreviated haka. It was excellent. 

On the way down to Vegas, we stopped in St George to do some climbing. We got lost trying to find the first spot we wanted to go to (this happens a lot. I feel like I spend 80% of my climbing time figuring out where the heck we can go.) So, we gave up after a few minutes and drove back down the road to a crag that was easily accessible from the road. We only had time to do two routes. Daniel led his first route outside, and I led a 10.C. Then the sun was setting, so we got on the road and kept driving to Vegas.

When we got here, we ate some dinner and then we headed down to the strip where we were going to get frozen hot chocolate, but then it was $11 a cup!! And we was like, "Ain't nobody got money for dat!" Instead, we just watched the fountain show at the Belagio and were entertained by this street magician who did some impressive sleight of hand with two red foam balls. The people you meet in Vegas. 

I forgot how diverse the rest of the world not-Provo is. It was good to see people from different walks of life. I did realize that there is a whole culture involving the consumption of alcohol that I just don't understand. I think that's OK, though, but it does create an understanding barrier between me and all the people who spend $30 for a yard-long margarita. 

Anyway, we went to church this morning and now we're just chilling together and getting ready for dinner. Tomorrow we're going climbing, and it's going to be awesome! I will send you pics. 

Other things that happened this week was a great Valentines day with Daniel. We went out on Thursday because Daniel had to work on Friday. The near-hour long wait was worth it partially because Daniel  and I read The Economist while we waited. That's right. We're nerds. 

After dinner, we went to see the Saratov Approach at the dollar theater. This movie is about two missionaries who get kidnapped while serving in Russia. In the end, the kidnappers release them after the Church and their family refuse to pay the ransom as it would set a bad precedent for kidnapping hopefuls all over the world. 

It was kind of a miracle that they didn't just kill them. You should see it. It's neat. I think you're probably at a low-risk for kidnapping as you are not in Russia, so no worries. 

I wish that I could update you on the Olympics, but I know nothing. I've only seen two events: the men's slalom skiing and the men's long-program skating. This Japanese guy in the most hideous, sparkly shirt I've ever seen won. This cute half-Chinese Canadian came in second, so that was nice. I think that men's skating is n excuse for the world's costume designers to show off all their worst designs at a venue where no one can tell them no. Blech. 

Your quote this week is from when the Doctor introduces himself to Rose for the first time, and talks about how awesome he is:  " It's like when you're a kid. The first time they tell you that the world's turning and you just can't quite believe it 'cause everything looks like it's standin' still. I can feel it. The turn of the Earth. The ground beneath our feet is spinnin' at 1,000 miles an hour and the entire planet is hurtling around the sun at 67,000 miles an hour, and I can feel it. We're fallin' through space, you and me, clinging to the skin of this tiny little world, and if we let go...That's who I am."

I love you!!

Tonya 

Classy Murder Mystery Banquets and Lead Tests

Dear Sis. Johnson the Sassiest,

Admit it. You're sassy, you sassy pants. I bet you're a sassy missionary too. I'm so glad that you get to stay in Louisiana for another 6 weeks. That means that you'll be in Lake Charles for 6 months, right? I was in Roi Et for 6 months. Roi Et was the smallest area in the mission for sisters, and I swear I invited every street in that area by the time I left. I think Lake Charles is a little bigger than that.

How's the new comp? Crazy that you're still in a three-some. How did the last one go? Did you adjust to having three people teaching? Was it like a party all the time? Three people is so much more fun than two.

I can't believe that you're  going to be 20! And the last Johnson child leaves tennagedom. That's it. I'm officially old, and Mom and Dad are ready to retire. I hope you do something awesome for your birthday like eat some ice cream or jumbo or cake or something. 

I am so grateful for your service and know that there is no other way that you could better be spending your time. What you're doing now has eternal consequences for you, your investigators, your companions, the members you serve with, and your family. Missions are so awesome. 

So, thank you and Happy Birthday. 

Anyway, I loved those stories  about the little boy praying for his Mom and accidentally finding that less active. How are Michael and Randy doing? The Lord is totally leading people to you because you are totally prepared and worthy to teach them. 

As for things going on with me, it's been a pretty great week. I had lots of tests (well, that wasn't part of the greatness) I didn't do so well in budgeting because all our prof said about the test was that it would be over everything that we'd learned so far, and then he and the TA went out of town for the week. Lamesauce. The other test went better, I think. Finance and budgeting were the two classes. I know, you're excited hearing about it. 

I found time to go to a basketball game too this week. We watched our cougs trump the Santa Clara Broncos (no, not THE Broncos who also got trumped but in the superbowl. Please take a moment of silence... It's OK though because everyone still loves Peyton Manning. I saw an article about it on the internet, so it must be true.)

Aside from studying, I went to a "classy mystery banquet" with Daniel. One of his friends from school wrote this whole mystery story, and then he invited a bunch of people to a fancy banquet. Every guest had a role assigned and we went around trying to found out who the "murderer" was and what not. 

It was pretty amazing. There were about 50 people there and the host knew everyone's part and how it all fit together. Daniel was a German scientist working on cold fusion, and I was a German oboist, who was playing in the Berlin symphony. Daniel put on this great German accent for most of the night. It was great fun, and I discovered that in addition to being a great Hermione Granger real-life-double, I also make a great bitter, German oboist.So, that was fun.

Last night I went to the ward Valentine's Day party. They had amazing fondue. Then my roommates and some guy friends from the ward went and got amazing tacos from that place that Dallin took us before. Yum, yum, yum.

This morning I got up painfully early for a Sunday and went to Music and the Spoken Word at the tabernacle in Salt Lake. My visiting teacher is in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir now, and it was her first time singing in the broadcast, so a bunch of us went up to support her. She sounded great! And looked great in their little half-mumus. 

The most ironic part of the whole venture was that no guys came. There were about 13 girls and no boys. Story of this ward. I did hear that some of the guys in the ward, upon seeing the picture we took in the tabernacle with all of those amazingly beautiful women sans men, said, "Dang, man! We should have gone!" Yes, you should have. 

Church was good and then Luiza made dinner and we had a lot of people over. All in all, fun was had. No tests this week too! Yay!

Your quote this week is from the Doctor again. I'm in season 5 now with Doctor the 11th and Amy Pond. I'm loving it more than ever. This is from the first episode when he finally comes back for Amy.

 Amy Pond: I thought... Well, I started to think you were just a mad man with a box.The Doctor: Amy Pond, there's something you better understand about me 'cause it's important and one day your life may depend on it: I am definitely a mad man with a box.

I love you!

Tonya 

Knew it. 

A Word on Hermione Granger

So, I totally don't have time to be doing this with a presentation in an hour and a test tomorrow, but I have to add my two cents to the Hermione-Ron-Harry debacle that's been cantering around the internet.

As some of you know, I consider Hermione to be my fictional soul-character. If I were to be any character in literature, it would be her, and I think we have a lot in common: amazing hair, a love for learning, an immense fear of failure, and an intense drive to succeed at whatever is thrown in our path.

Check the hair. 

I remember when we were waiting for the third book to come out, and our home teacher predicted that Hermione would be with Ron and Harry with Ginny. At first, 12-year-old me was shocked! Hermione was so awesome, she totes deserved the hero!

Then I grew up and thought about it more and realized that Hermione and Ron were a great fit for each other. Here's my reasoning why:

Hermione needs a yin for her yang. She needs someone who can tell her to chill out, help her laugh at life, and stop her when she's being too ridiculous. Ron is exactly this person. He has always been able to simultaneously infuriate her and make her laugh. He helps her realize when she's taking herself too seriously, and will help her maintain a perspective when things don't go perfectly according to her well-laid plans. Opposites don't always attract, but Ron and Hermione do in all the important ways.

Don't get me wrong. Hermione and Ron will definitely fight. In our organizational behavior class, we called this storming. It's a part of team building and a necessary part of growing together as a team, or in a relationship. The great thing about Ron and Hermione is that they're not afraid to fight with each other. They're going to get all their issues right out in the open, yell about them for a bit, and then find a way to come together and resolve them because they love each other and want to make it work.

Ron, under all his character flaws is a very loyal friend. Only intense love and loyalty could motivate him to continue to live under Harry's shadow as a best friend. Albeit, there is a point where his delicate ego can't take it anymore and he leaves, but the best part is he COMES BACK! Relationships are about forgiving each other and helping each other grow. Ron is loyal enough to stick with Hermione through the thick and thin. He may storm out for a bit, but he'll come right back.

I could go on, but homework, studying, and my own life is calling my name. Maybe despite all the other reasons. I think Ron would be with Hermione because personally I would go for Ron over Harry, or anyone else in the books. He's not perfect, he's rough around the edges, but he's willing to learn, grow and forgive with Hermione, and I think that's what's important in a long-term relationship.

Curly-haired Woes

Don't get me wrong. Most of the time I love my curly hair, but sometimes.... not so much. Sorry for the occasional awkward language of this post. It was too accurate not to share. 29 Things People with Curly Hair Can Never Do.

Happy Chinese New Year and Other Things

Dear Sis. Johnson my Favoritest, 

I can't believe it snowed in Louisiana. Are you freezing? I really hope that you went out and bought some warm clothes. I'm sure Mom can put some more money in your account in the interest of you retaining the use of all fingers and toes. I bought a pair of nice boots earlier this winter because I was tired of my feet being so cold. I would recommend investing. 

I'm glad that you're taking members with you when you teach. Sometimes a member friend can literally make all the difference with an investigator, especially when you're  working to overcome linguistic or cultural differences. I can't tell you how many times on the mission we were asked if there were Thai people at our church. We would reassure them that we were the only white people, but having a member there ups your cred about 1000%. 

Are you getting transferred? Is is transfers week. I predict that there is a 70% chance that you are getting transferred. There's my "phayagoning" skills coming in handy. "Phayagon" means to prophesy in Thai, and it's  what we would call it when all the sisters in the mission tried to predict  where and when we would be transferred. Since there was only about 20 of us it wasn't that hard, but I suspect  that your mission has many more sisters now. 

Anyway, keep up the good work. From my accounting, you've been out more than 8 months, which means that you're coming up on your half way point. This is when you've been on the mission so long that it feels like forever, but you still have an eternity in front of you. Don't worry, it'll fly by.  

I remember looking at the airport signs in Bangkok and thinking that I would never actually go there, and then, BAM! It happened, and I was like, "Wait... WHAT?! What happened to my mission? I want it back!" But some days, hours,  moments will be longer and honestly a struggle, so just keep on fighting. In Thai, they say, "Suu Suu!" It literall means, "Fight, fight!!"

Things here are going good. This week was kind of low key too. I did a lot of school stuff all week as per usual. I'm learning all  sorts  of interesting stuff about government finances and budgets.... Said no one ever... 

Just kidding. It really is interesting to learn about where all the services we take for granted come from and the process in deciding what gets provided and how. Interesting... but occasionally a little dry. 

Other things. Thursday Daniel and I played racquetball. I'd never really played,  so he taught me how and then proceeded to beat me soundly twice.  

Friday night we went to see "The Book Thief"  together. I'd already seen it  and read the book, but Daniel hadn't. He cried at the end. I re-read the book this week too. The book is so much better than the movie,  but the movie  is excellent too. 

Saturday I went to a Chinese New Year Party at the Wilk. 

The Party in A Nutshell:

The Wilk ballroom has been set up with lots of round tables. There's a large screen  at the  front broadcasting the Chinese Times Square equivalent of a New Year's celebration.

More Asians than I've ever seen in  Provo  mill  around waiting in line to get food,  which according to my friend Liz, is Americanized Chinese food, which she would never eat in China.

The walls and ceilings are adorned with red Chinese lanterns and random banners with indiscernible Chinese characters on them. 

I wait in line behind a pack of teenage Asian girls who occasionally  look up from their banana-cover cell phones to communicate with those around  them. 

After we finally get food, a variety show of sorts starts, which, of  course,  features lots of karaoke. This may sound very stereotypical. Yep. My favorite part was when they made white people who couldn't speak Chinese get up in front of everyone and sing along to Chinese songs with sound-cancelling head phones on. The point was to have someone in the audience guess the song. I played this before, but we called it Helen Keller. If  you're wondering why, try it.

Happy Chinese New Year!

Today was a great fast and testimony meeting. Fasting is hard, but it's always worth it. I'm sure  you've  heard that the Broncos lost the super bowl. A more accurate description would be the Broncos got smeared across the field by the Seahawks. 

Daniel and I stopped watching after the Seahawks  were up 40 points in the 4th quarter and read the Economist together on my iPhone. So, that was disappointing, but like a true sports fan, we lift our heads and say, "Well, there's always next year."

Your quote this week is  again from the Doctor. Love him. It's from the last episode with the 10th Doctor when the Doctor's bringing the alien salvage ship into the atmosphere so he can stop the Master and save planet earth, " There's an old Earth saying, Captain. A phrase of great power and wisdom and consolation to the soul in times of need. Allons-y!!" 

Just remember that next time you're feeling down about missionary work.

Allonsy!

Tonya

Why are Mean Girls quotes on Harry Potter memes  the funniest thing on the internet?

I know.

Am I 1% Nacho? (+playlist)

You are what you eat! Cool Hank Green video that addresses all types of deep questions like, "What is you?" and "How much of the human body is intestinal bacteria?"