Eight Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About Oahu

Hey Jessica!

I'm sorry you were so sick last week, I really hope you're feeling better.

I've been in Hawaii for about a month now and so I thought I would share with you some things that I learned about Hawaii. Here it is:

Eight Things You (Probably) Didn't know About Oahu

1. Chickens. There are stray chickens everywhere. Apparently some were wild and some not, but they mated and you just don't know which is which anymore, so I think they are basically all wild. If you ever go off of campus in the morning you will hear all the roosters crowing. If you leave campus any other time of the day, you'll see the hens, and the roosters, and their baby chicks just walking around. It takes a bit of getting used to, but it's kinda cool, and different, and unexpected.
2. Stray Animals. I don't know if this is universal (islandversal?) but there are stray animals here. More than I am used to. We have at least three stray cats and two stray dogs on campus. It is definitely a possibility that this is just a campus thing . . . but since when are there stray animals on a college campus? I've never heard of such a thing before. The biggest thing to know about said stray animals is not to feed them. You can get fined by the campus police if you do.
3. Small Beach. Maybe I'm just used to the beaches we normally go to when we go to California, but there's not a ton of sand here. Like in California there is about what 50 feet of sand before you get to the water? Here (excepting Waikiki) there is more like 10-20 feet of sand. Maybe that is just the beaches by campus, but once again, I wasn't expecting that.
4. Rain. Contrary to popular belief, it does rain in Hawaii. On this side of the island it rains more than on the other side, but it does rain. It just rains for five minutes than stops. Seriously, it's like the sky has a timer that goes off "oh! It's been five minutes! Better stop raining!"
5. Flower in the Hair. Wearing a flower of the left side of your hair means you are "taken" wearing it on the right side means you are "available". So don't screw it up, unless you want to deceive everyone.
6. Shrimp Trucks. There are shrimp trucks all along the North Shore. They get their shrimp fresh from the ocean and they are good! They all kinda look like unprofessional vendor trucks, but trust me, some of them are DELICIOUS.
7. Foodland and Walmart. These are the places to be. Foodland is the closest grocery store near campus and Walmart is the cheapest place on the island. However, Walmart is at least an hour away, sometimes two. If you are ever bored you can just go to Foodland, or you can take your whole Saturday to go down to Walmart. I don't think I have ever been so excited to go to Walmart before coming here. It's crazy. On a related note, I don't think anything here (that isn't like a pack of gum or a granola bar) that's under $4. Crazy, eh?
8. Height. I put this one in here because my friend Brooke (who's 5' 7") says that she was really surprised by how short people are here. Even I noticed that, a bit. There are a greater amount of shorter people here than I was used to at home. I was used to being the shortest person around, however, now I'm not! (And it isn't just all the Asians here.) No. All sorts of people are short! It definitely helps my self-esteem.

I was bored and watching videos on YouTube one day when I stumbled across this. I know you like this song so I thought I'd share it with you. 

At a one of the devotionals here the speaker talked about meeting new people. I can't remember what they whole talk was about but he mentioned this. He talked about sitting next to the lonely people at meals. Now, I  am usually that lonely person. I had a moment where I could've brushed off the council he was giving us and thought "it isn't for me. People should be coming to sit by me" but I listened. I decided that, whenever I went to a meal alone, I was going to sit by a someone who was sitting alone. It's been ok, I've been meeting new people, many of who I never see again, and I haven't sat alone in a while. But the other day I was really rewarded. I sat by a girl named Abigail, we talked and I found out she is in two of my classes and I had fun with her. After dinner she said she was going to buy Hi-Chews and when I said I had never had them before, she decided to share then with me. We walked over to the Seasider, she bought Hi-Chews, ate one or two of them, and gave the rest of the pack to me! It was really nice of her. The moral of this story is, listen to your leaders and follow their advice, even if you think you may be excused from it. Truth is, you're not. You'll be blessed if you follow their council, it comes from God.

Love,
Melissa

Hard Things

Melissa,

So this week was hard. Not only did I get sick, but that sickness basically made my brain not work, which made my math homework very difficult. Combine this with long days with very few to no breaks, and it gets pretty bad. It even got to a point where Monday during a study group, I was at the white board trying to figure out a proof with some other people, and we were all teasing each other like normal. Then I started laughing pretty hard and the laugh just kinda turned into tears. So I got some hugs and then they made me go sit down and take a break.

That night, I prayed harder than I have in a very long while. I just couldn't do it. School and work were hard enough before, and now with being sick, and not being able to sleep because I was sick, I just couldn't function, I couldn't think - I could barely make it from class to class, let alone get all my homework done. I realized just how weak I was, and how much I really do need to rely on my Savior.

The week got better, and after hearing President Monson's talk in the General Relief Society Meeting, my eyes were opened. Looking back now I can see the heavens opening the instant after I said that prayer. So many of my friends offered help and medicine, and my study group friends all constantly asked how I was doing and were patient enough to slowly guide my muddled mind through difficult proofs. My roommate gave me some Tylenol PM to help me sleep, and slowly, my body started to heal. As much as I wish I hadn't gotten sick, I am so glad I got the chance to see just how my Lord and Savior can help me when I am in need.

I know a simple sickness is small compared to what others go through, but for me, it was a big trial. Now I know without a doubt that God lives and that He cares for each one of His children. I know that when we turn to Him in humility and faith, we allow Him to bless our lives through His kindness, comfort, and His angels here on earth. I know miracles happen, and I know God often works through His faithful members to bless others. I know that no matter what trial we go through in this life, that we can rely on Him and make it safely though.

I hope all is going well in Hawaii, and I want you to know that though college will be hard, the Lord is always there to help you get through it. Have a great week, and I can't wait to hear from you!

- Jessica

Hawaii

Hey Jessica,

So I'm late. I'm really sorry about that. Can I blame it on the internet? Or lack of internet? The new dorms are having issues with the wifi so I haven't had wifi in my dorm since I got here. (You can get really good wifi in the laundry room though.) Mom was supposed to send me an ethernet cable in the box of things I forgot, but she forgot and so I had to buy one at the bookstore. Now I have internet! Yay! But no phone.

I didn't realize how important a phone was until I left my phone cord at home. It's really hard to get in contact with people when you have no wifi and no phone. I'm going to blame my friendlessness on my phone and internet issues.

Hawaii is beautiful. It's a little hot sometimes, especially in the sun, but my dorm is surprisingly cool. Just don't run in the middle of the day and don't stand in the sun for too long. Layers are bad.

My roommates are awesome. There's Michelle, Rei, and Maggie. Rei's from Japan, Michelle is from Utah, and Maggie is from China. Rei is super adorable. I love her! We sometimes have trouble understanding each other but she is just so sweet, we always figure it out in the end. And she teaches me some Japanese. I think I know two words now. Maggie is always teasing Rei. It's fun to watch them. Michelle is usually hanging out with some friends from other rooms and dorms.

I met some people in the room across the way. They go running in the morning so I decided to join them and be healthy. One morning we got up extra early so that we could run, swim, and see the sunrise. Kate and I (the slower runners) decided we were going to run on the beach a bit. However the beach where we were isn't very flat so we walked instead. As we were walking, we ran into a turtle. IT WAS HUGE! I wanted a picture with it so Kate took a picture. She forgot to turn the flash off her phone though and so as she was taking the picture it woke the turtle up. He opened his eyes and slowly turned his head towards Kate. He had the grumpiest look on his face. He was all "who dares to disturb my slumber". I felt really bad but watched him as he slid back into the ocean.

I got some scholarships for being in band classes. I'm in the North Shore Symphonic Wind Orchestra and the Brass Ensemble. It's pretty cool. The brass ensemble especially. There are nine of us, eight if you don't include our teacher. It's really fun to play in a small group. I've never really played in a small group like that.

Sorry for the weird post, I'm kinda really tired. Sorry again.

Melissa

Good Things

Melissa!

So Summer term ended, I got to visit home, and now I'm back in Provo for the Fall semester. And this semester is looking great because of a few really good things:

1. Family
I have so much family here! Kevin is here, as well as Cami, Danica, Alyson, and John; and we all live close to each other! On Friday we all went to Alyson's and John's new apartment to play Apples to Apples and eat brownies. We had a blast playing through the entire box.

2. Classes
I know this seems weird, but I am so excited to finally start in on my applied math classes. Multivariate calculus and ordinary differential equations were fun, but it will be great to really delve into my major. More than half of my credits will come from my math classes! I'm also taking French 102, Old Testament, and beginning Latin dance. It will be a ton of fun.

3. No Textbooks
What? Did I say that right? Yup! I went to the book store the other day and looked at the book list, and I don't have to buy any textbooks at all. There's $200-300 I don't have to spend! And quite a bit of weight I don't have to carry around as well.

4. A New Job
This will be my first time working while taking classes, but I'm excited to start working as a tutor in the Math Lab. I start Tuesday! With that and my math classes, I am going to be spending all day in the Talmage building

5. Awesome Roommates
After all my roommates left on missions, I found myself in need of some new ones. I'm rooming with my friend Mandy for the first time - we've known each other since freshman year but never roomed together. There's also four other girls in the apartment and they all seem really nice. With this great group of girls, this year is going to be a blast!

Well, that's my good things list for today. I hope moving to Hawaii is going well! What things are you most excited about for this upcoming year?

- Jessica

Sleepover

Hey Jessica,

I had my first sleepover this week. I know, it took 18 years for me to have a sleepover. But you know, parents, rules, yaddy yadda yadda. Now that Keturah and I are 18 the rules no longer apply! (Of course Cami and Kirsten could have sleepovers before they were 18. They had to wait on us.)

It started off at noon. Well it was supposed to start at noon, but Kirsten was late. Really late. So while the rest of us were waiting for her to show up be watched two episodes of "Gilmore Girls" (we're having a marathon). Once Kirsten arrived, the sleepover really started. It started with . . .

WON TONS!

We went to QFC to buy the ingredients for won tons. It took a while because we couldn't find the won ton wrappers. The people weren't much help there, they directed us to the sushi bar. (I can't believe they have a sushi bar at QFC.) We had to call Mom, she told us were to look. If you were wondering, it was by the produce. Then we had basically an extended phone call. I was calling Mom to ask what ingredients we needed and then Cami was calling her mom to find out if they had them. She had most of the stuff.

Once the shopping trip was over we went back to Cami's house and made the won tons. We even made dessert won tons by filling some wrappers with cherry pie filling. They were hot. But the won tons were very good. I ate too much.

We then proceeded to play Last Word and Rummikub. I lost at all of the games. However I was not the ultimate loser at Last Word although I'm pretty sure I was every time we played Rummikub. At least for this portion of the event we were outside. It was a very pretty day.

After that we played Mario Kart (something I did not loose at). Then we ordered pizza. We tried getting it delivered but while we were trying to get my gift card to work the store closest to us stopped accepting delivery orders online. So we ordered online but then had to go pick it up. Thanks Pizza Hut.

We ate our pizza, bread sticks, and cinnamon sticks while watching a movie. We watched Sleepover. It seemed appropriate and relatable. Except the girls were 14 years-old, had enemies, and Cinderella stories. Basically it was a stupid preteen movie. Oh well. We had fun.

We then started to play a game of Monopoly. We only played for about an hour and a half (1:30 in the morning). We stopped playing when we bought all of the properties. I knew I was going to loose from the beginning because I only had four properties. They were lame properties too. How do you only land on four properties that weren't already purchased?!? So the next morning, after breakfast, we finished our game. I lost. It was sad.

I had a lot of fun though.

Keturah leaves for college on Thursday. It's quite sad. I will miss her.

See you on  Friday!

Melissa

Cousins and Dancing

Melissa,

So last week, I went to a mini-family reunion! Cami and I took the front runner partway, and then were picked up by her parents and taken to Uncle Alan's to see everyone. There were a lot of people there: the Grand-parents were visiting for pioneer day; Uncle John's family was there on their way to move to Virginia; Kailey, her husband, and her baby were visiting her parents; and Cami's parents and sister were there to bring Lauren to Athletic camp. So we had dinner and played Apples to Apples and talked and it was lots of fun. Jayden is adorable, I can't believe how much he's grown! He's crawling everywhere now and can even stand up with some support. I helped feed him, and of course he got baby food on my shirt. This was probably the last time I'll see Erica for a while, since she's going on a mission in September, but Danica is coming here in the fall! Chadley was super excited to learn I am a My Little Pony fan, and Kailey introduced me to Friendship is Witchcraft, a fan made spoof of My Little Pony; it's funny, but it has some rather dark humor. It's strange to see these cute ponies portrayed this way!

So for the past few weeks, each Wednesday I have been volunteering with BYU's dance program to help Special Olympics kids prepared for Dance Sport. Dance Sport is a ballroom dance competition for students and it's coming up next week. I'm volunteering to help teach these kids how to dance, and then to dance with one of them so that they can compete. It's been a lot of fun, these kids are sweet, funny, and absolutely love being able to dance with someone. We're doing waltz and meringue and despite how simple the steps are, in some ways it's more fun than dancing with really good dancers. There's this one boy, if I just put on a huge silly smile, he'll just start laughing and he has the funniest laugh! I'm excited for Dance Sport and I'm really glad to have this opportunity to serve.

That's really about it, except for my research paper. It's coming along, but I really need to put some work in today before Rachel gets here!

- Jessica