Holly Something

I have to tell you a funny story.

So a few weeks ago Gared and I had probably slept in our new apartment a whopping three times. I was discovering that there was absolutely NOT enough storage space in the kitchen. The majority of our possessions were still in boxes scattered throughout the house and Gared's phone and internet cords (necessary to his at-home job doing technical support for Verizon) stretched from the office down the hall to his desk in our bedroom because we couldn't get the hookups in there to work (actually, those cords are STILL snaking down the hallway). And all the while it was the beginning of the month, the busiest time for the storage units, so I spent a lot of time filling out contracts, answering the phone, taking payments, making trips to the bank and the post office, etc. Life was busy and a little crazy.

On one particular morning I was taking some spare minutes to call and chat with my mother and tell her all about the move and the new job and the new ward and of course to pick her brain on how to make all our things fit in this new, small space. I could hear Gared in the next room talking to customers and was vaguely aware of occasional movements out of the bedroom to the restroom or the kitchen and back.

Promptly at 12:00 pm, when his first shift was completed, I heard Gared exit the bedroom and make a noise somewhat like a whoop. Or maybe a whimper. Or a squeal. As close as Gared ever gets to a scream, I guess. I assumed that he had crossed paths with a large spider or other insect (which are plentiful here), although in hindsight this was a silly idea, as this would not have been normal for him. Gared does not plaster himself to the wall when a creepy-crawly makes an appearance like I do. Two minutes later he came barreling into the office with eyes the size of saucers, gesturing wildly, stammering at me to get off the phone. A little peeved, I just gave him a look that said, "Whaaaaaat-uh?"Seemingly unable to put a sentence together, he grunted, gestured around, then glanced toward the ground and blurted, "LOOK!" I instinctively stood, expecting I don't know what. I cast my eyes downward and saw...nothing. Nothing out of the ordinary. I looked back at him with cocked eyebrows. He was still sputtering and gesticulating wildly at the ground. I looked again, and this time I saw it. A dark stain surrounding the area where I had been sitting, chatting with my mother, unaware of the unwelcome guest creeping into the office all around me...

Water. Water. Water everywhere. I dashed through the office bathroom to the apartment, where the long hallway leading to the rest of our home was completely and entirely saturated, to the point that my weight on the carpet raised pools of water around my feet. I remember gasping, "Where is it COMING FROM??!!?" Gared's response fell on deaf ears, as I was still too shocked at what I was seeing to really absorb anything else. I'm not sure what I said to my mother, but seconds later I had hung up and Gared was explaining that the toilet had been overflowing and he had shut it off. As I followed the path of destruction to our bedroom...the front entryway...the living room...I remember breathing an inward sigh of relief that it was just water, with none of the accompanying...unpleasantness...that is usually associated with plumbing. And then I turned, looked at my husband's still-stunned face, and had a ridiculous urge to laugh. After the initial shock had passed and the knowledge that the rest of our day was now spoken for—to be spent cleaning up this mess—had sunk in, it seemed pointless to be upset about it. It also seemed unbearably ironic, to the point that I couldn't help but appreciate the humor of the whole situation. To have JUST moved in, with all the newness and excitement and sparkle of opportunity that this place represented for us shining in our minds and hearts—and then to have THIS happen, when we've barely even begun emptying our boxes? It was too much.

We moved some boxes and furniture, made some quick calls to the previous manager (who now functions as our supervisor and go-to question-answerer), put up a sign on the office door, shut off the open sign, locked the whole place up, then made a mad dash to the local hardware store to get a shop-vac and some carpet fans. Gared then spent the rest of the day going over and over that carpet, attempting to draw out all the water possible—along with his wonderful sister Katrina, who was kind enough to come help us. I went back to the office and attempted to continue with business as usual.

In the end, the carpet dried. A few of our things got wet. One piece of furniture is irreparably damaged. But I do not mourn its loss—we have too little space for it anyway. Considering that Gared's parents recently had a flood in their house as well—one that required ripping up the carpet and discarding the pad, as well as tearing out drywall and insulation—I feel considerably blessed that we got off so easy. And it's still funny to me when I think about it, although poor Gared's aching back and arms probably feel differently.

One thing I can tell you, though—my trust in toilets has been permanently shattered, and I will probably go charging to the bathroom to check the toilet whenever I hear it continuing to run after use, in every house I occupy from this point onward. Forever.

It's been long enough.

This poor blog is beginning to look like my journal. The one with sporadic entries every few months, always promising greater consistency in the future. Ha.

Well. This is what my life looked like one year ago today:

Residence: Provo, Utah—Campus Plaza Apartments, to be exact. I had lived there for about a year with my favorite roommate, my little sister, Emma. Although at this point she was just about to move in with her friend Jenna. Our apartment was directly over Slab Pizza, and I distinctly remember the pizza-dough smell the apartment had when we first moved in. And the awesome live jazz music every Friday night.

Work: BYU Independent Studies. I was an Instructional Design Assistant, which meant that I helped develop and edit BYU's online courses. It was my favorite job ever in my entire life thus far. I worked there for a year and a half. I miss it!

Marital status: Single, but in an almost-year-long relationship with Gared. You all know who he is.

Classes at BYU: Getting ready to begin a new semester with 4 classes, studying Wildlife and Wildlands Conservation (with a minor in Editing).

Number of nieces and nephews: One nephew, David,  and one niece, Andrea. They were and are adorable.

Number of children: Zero, duh.

I remember at this point that I would usually talk to my mother once a week and, when she asked what was up, I could almost always begin my conversations with her in these exact words: "Oh, you know...work and school."

Well. This is my life today:

Residence: Payson, Utah. It is 20-30 minutes south of Provo, and considerably smaller. While I suppose some might disagree with me, I have decided that the presence of a Walmart here means it is not totally rural, although it certainly feels that way sometimes. I lament the absence of a temple 5 minutes away, a Target and Ross, a mall, an abundance of familiar chain restaurants, a BYU Creamery, as well as my favorite grocery store, Sprouts. There IS a Costco in the next town north. That made me quite happy. What also made me happy is that, despite the absence of most of the things I'm used to having nearby...there is an absence of most of the things I'm used to having nearby. I kind of like the small-town feel. An old downtown with little shops and restaurants. Lots of open fields dotted with sheep or horses. Quaint little houses. Not to mention there is a beautiful Temple under construction nearby. It is nice to realize that all those other things in Provo, while convenient and enjoyable, are not necessary to my contentment (although finding out that I can still price-match Sprouts at the local Walmart is a definite joy).

Work: Apex Storage. Gared and I are the proud (and very blessed) new managers of a storage facility. We live in a small apartment attached to the office where I collect rent and sell contracts for our bright orange storage units. It is a lovely apartment with 10-foot ceilings, a dishwasher, central air, and a beautiful front-loading washer and dryer set—all things I lacked in Provo (72 degrees Fahrenheit never felt so good!).

Marital status: Married! Gared and I tied the knot on December 22 of last year. Here's a photo of the blessed event:

Adventures at Philmont Scout Ranch

Stop at the Manti Temple on the way to Provo

New roommates Brooke and Rose

The new apartment—Campus Plaza Apartments

That's my new friend, Gared

My new job as a concessions hawker for the football games—that's a coworker making a big batch of hot chocolate

I lost a fight with my dresser and got three stitches

Gared taught me how to catch a fish. Then we ate it.

He wants to be a marriage counselor. Here he is teaching a dating class in my apartment.

Fisheries and wetland management class at the local hatchery

Emma looking pensive at the Wildlife and Range Club activity I dragged her to.

Halloween! Bet you can't guess who we are...

Hogle Zoo

Hunting! I scared all the elk away...

Thanksgiving with Gared's family.

Emma's new job at Culver's.

Christmas!

No Black family reunion would be complete without a visit to In 'n Out.

Cribbage. Gared is introducing me to all sorts of new games.

Emma using her cosmotology skills on me

I need the help

New Year's bonfire

Ice fishing with Gared's dad and grandfather. It was vey cold and unsuccessful

We had better luck the next time we tried.

Falconry convention

New job at BYU Independent Studies

Ornithology class

Animal nutrition class. This alpaca has had a "fistula" installed...google it...

Spring!

New Jersey Morristown Mission reunion—Sara Picard was my trainer

General Conference in April

Hair cut!

Emma's photo shoot with roommate Brooke

So pretty!

Festival of colors! Hari krishna!

Posing for Mom on Mother's Day

Skyping

Ornithology camping trip at Lytle Ranch

Visiting Texas

My parents' new puppy, Rusty

He is MUCH bigger now

Volunteering at the Great Basin Wildlife Rescue—meet baby Mr. Chitters, an orphaned barn owl.

Burrowing owl

Two orphaned Coopers hawks

Baby American Kestrel, Oster

Summer silliness

My birthday

At one of Gared's intramural football games with Jenna and Sierra

Hiking at Sundance on Gared's birthday

Red Lobster—one of Gared's favorite places to eat.

We found very good, very cheap Hawaiian shave ice!

A surprise waiting for me after work. Guess who left it?

Bike ride to Utah Lake with Emma

Sister outing—we found Bluebell ice cream! IN UTAH!

Car troubles

Gared to the rescue!

Gared's makeshift tool was a rusted piece of metal

Back to school—mammology class

Techniques of Wildlife Management class lab

I used this shotgun...

...to turn that stack of wood...

...into this.

New polar bear exhibit at the Hogle Zoo

And then one day in October...

...this boy asked me a question.

And I said yes.

Then we went to General Conference.

Not much later, my new nephew, Peter Underwood, was born.

Gared and I had a little fun with our engagement photos... :)