Five Weeks...

...until I graduate from law school. Woot - Woot!

90 Years!

This past weekend was the 90th Anniversary of my church. As part of the celebrations, Chris and I organized a game of The Amazing Race. Below are pictures from one of the stops in the game:

Cindy, Katie, Glenn, Kathy, and Billie.

Yogeld, Sheila, Rachel, two new friends whose names I should remember, Connie, & Ysidro.

Jacob, Amber, Tori, and Daniel.

I thought Jacob was caught off-guard, and then I saw Amber.

Roxie, Judith, Ryan, and Danny.

Don't get too close now, Danny.

Pastor Sven, Beatriz, Johnnie, Sarah, and Zachery.

Jacksen, Naomi, Todd, Courtney, and Kerry.

Game Night

While I was in Fort Worth over spring break, my dear friends in Lubbock all got together for a fun game night. How dare they have game night while I'm gone? Don't they know that game night is my favorite? I guess they owe me one. And by one, I mean one game night while I am in town and able to attend.

I'm waiting for the call...

An Adventist Bachelorette Party?

By their very nature, the words Adventist and Bachelorette Party do not belong in the same sentence. They are polar opposites, one evoking images of debauchery and the other evoking images of utmost conservatism. And so, like other aspects of Adventist culture that take something "worldly" and make it more conservative (think of all those cleverly named foods in a can), we also have our own version of a bachelorette party. We tamely call it a lingerie shower. And while we may look innocent,

don't be fooled by the conservative name or our posed picture - it doesn't mean that our girls-night-out in honor of the bride-to-be is prudishly innocent or clean.

Sias Weddings

Last week Chris and I attended my brother-in-law's wedding. I sat in a chapel pew by myself during the wedding ceremony. While most eyes were on the bride and groom, my eyes were on Chris who was standing by the groom's side as the best man. It reminded me of our wedding day and the many days that led up to it.

Our story is not one of love at first sight. In fact, I do not remember the first time I met Chris. Instead, I just remember knowing him.

For the first year that I knew Chris, we only saw each other occasionally. We would run into each other when mutual friends came together. We always ended up sitting and talking together in these settings. One time we ran into each other at UTA. To this day I can remember what he was wearing and how I was struck by his handsomeness. One spring break we both went on a beach trip with mutual friends and spent the entire car ride home talking about nothing and everything.

Then one summer Chris started talking to a girl. I was surprised to find myself jealous that someone else was getting his full attention. I realized that I wanted to be closer to Chris and I told myself that I would no longer sit idly by. The following school year I began inviting Chris to have lunch with me. We met for lunch almost every Tuesday that semester.

The truth is out now: In the beginning, I pursued Chris.

Over lunch that semester, we slowly built up a friendship; a foundation. At that time I only knew that I wanted to know Chris more. I liked being around him because he always had something interesting to say while I usually felt like I had nothing interesting to say. Later Chris told me that he liked being around me because I always had something interesting to say while he usually felt like he had nothing interesting to say. In hindsight, we can see that we had instant chemistry.

By Christmas we were dating. I had no particular expectations for our relationship. I was having fun and never thought about being in a serious relationship. I only knew that I enjoyed being around Chris like no other person I knew or had ever known.

I can distinctly remember, however, the moment when I realized that I was in love and wanted no other man in my life. I was driving and can remember the exact place on the road where I made this exciting discovery. And then one day, there we were, in the same position as Jesse and Vanessa were in this past weekend:

Last week Chris and I attended my brother-in-law's wedding. I sat in a chapel pew by myself during the wedding ceremony. While most eyes were on the bride and groom, my eyes were on Chris who was standing by the groom's side as the best man. And that's when our story rushed through my mind. As I watched Jesse and Vanessa make the same commitment Chris and I made two years ago, I found myself wishing for them the same happiness in that Chris and I have found in marriage.

Natural Gas or Aliens?

Right now I'm visiting Fort Worth and staying with my parents. Once a rural oasis, my parent's house is now filled with the alien-like sounds of a nearby natural gas rig. The constant hum of machines accompanied by strange, wavering, high-pitched noises make me think that ET is going to walk though the door at any minute. And if ET does walk through the door, I will run straight to my car and won't look back until I'm in Lubbock.

A Typical Day at the Park

Click on the image to make it larger.

Winter Olympics

The 2010 winter olympics are almost over. The first week of TV coverage was very distracting. I found myself watching for hours at a time. I recall thinking that the olympics should be on year-round, but after a week I had enough and year-round olympics no longer sounded so exciting. Nonetheless, here are some olympic highlights according to Kim.

1. Figures Skating Outfits. This is figure skating's pair Yuko Kavaguti and Alexander Smirnov. If this picture could talk, it would say "Sorry Honey, the swan ate my huevos."

2. Group Races. I most enjoyed short track speed skating, ski-cross, and snow-board cross. These races combine four key factors: high speeds, lots of turns, a slick surface, and athletes racing together rather than individually. This combination guarantees nail-biting suspense as racers try to avoid the inevitable: an ugly, high-speed crash. And unlike Nascar where highspeed crashes are often the highlight of the race, these olympic events do not require me to watch 499 uneventful laps just to see the one exciting lap.

3. Doppelgangers. I discovered that Chris's doppelganger is Apollo Anton Ohno.

All that Chris is missing is a gold medal or two...

Not another snow day...

Unlike my prior post, this post is not one of happiness and excitement. After numerous snow days this year, I am tired of looking out the window in the morning and realizing that I am running late because I did not allocate time for this:

I am not a morning person and therefore, I do not wake up in time for surprises like a thick layer of ice on my windshield or two inches of show insulating my car. Either I need a garage or else I need to move somewhere warmer, if not both.

Snow Day!

Last week it snowed again! When I left for school in the morning, it was raining. Two hours later, I was shocked to see that everything was covered in snow.

Being that I am a native Texan, I am not well-equipped for dealing with snowy weather. Before driving home, I scraped the snow off my windshield and windows. It was not until I was driving, however, that I realized I should have cleaned off the hood as well. Had I cleaned off the hood, my vision would not have been obstructed by the mound of snow that I removed from my windshield. Had I the forethought to clean off the hood, I would have had the forethought to clean off my lights as well, so that they would actually shine on the road before me as I drove home on a cloudy, sunless afternoon. Unfortunately, I did not have this forethought, and when I parked at home I did not realize that my headlights were still on because they were covered in snow.

Nor did I not notice that my car lights were on when I went out later in the day to take pictures of our snowy landscape. But I sure did enjoy the way our "backyard" looked.

Later that afternoon, my neighbor came knocking on my front door seeking a "boost." Earlier that day I heard him operating various hand tools through our common wall, so I thought he needed help with some project in his apartment. I was perplexed because I didn't know how I would lift-up (boost) this guy who is 6 inches taller than me, much less do it without blushing. My neighbor noticed my perplexed look right away. "Can you give my car a boost," he said, "I left my lights on."

Happy that I could help out my neighbor, I bundled up and headed out the door. I told my neighbor that we were really fortunate that I was parked right next to him in the parking lot, which would have been true had I not left my lights on as well. Chris arrived home from work within a half hour and helped us solve the problem.

In case you can't tell, Chris parked on my right and jumped my car. Then I jumped my neighbor's car. Then Chris and I went and took a lovely picture in the snow, at which time Chris told me I looked like Kenny from South Park.

All in all, it was a eventful snow day.

Coincidence or Divine Intervention?

Today, at exactly 1:56 p.m, I remembered that the ring tone on my phone had been set on silent all day. I quickly fished my phone out of my bag and turned on the ringer, even though I wasn't expecting any calls. Exactly five minutes later the phone rang. The caller id read "UNAVAILABLE" (the phone uses all-caps; it's the phone that's yelling, not me). I answered the phone with a suspicious, "Hello?," and was surprised to hear a familiar voice respond. It was a longtime pal (since the first grade!) who lives halfway around the world (in Norway!). We hadn't talked in a very long time, perhaps a year or more, and I would have completely missed the call had I not turned on the phone's ringer when I did. The initial excitement of the phone call prevented me from realizing the divine string of events that made our subsequent conversation possible. It was only after I hung-up that I realized this. Luckily, my longtime pal reads my blog, and she should get the message right about now.

Sometimes I Get Lucky

I am not a photography expert, but every now and then I snap a picture that I am especially proud of. I've decided to compile these pictures into one post, and then update the post over time. So, here are my favorites, in no particular order.

Vikings Update

The Vikings lost to the Saints last night, so I guess this means they won't be winning the Super Bowl this year. Hmmm...I'm not sure what else to say except that I now have a useless sweater hanging in my closet and nothing to wear on Feb. 7th. How dare Brett Farve interfere with my fashion plans? In fact, in order to make my sweater a useful piece of my wardrobe, I must now commit to being a regular-season Vikings fan next year. Quite frankly, I'm not sure if I can keep up with all that would entail.

I must report, however, that Chris was cheering for the Vikings last night even though they pummeled the Cowboys last week. I think this shows great strides toward recognizing that there is life after the Cowboys.

A House Divided

Chris is a huge Dallas Cowboys fan, so his shirt in this picture is understandable. My Minnesota Vikings outfit, however, is probably somewhat surprising. A couple weeks ago I told Chris that I would be cheering for the Vikings to win the Superbowl because (1) Favre needs to redeem himself after failing to retire twice and betraying the Packers, and (2) the Vikings have never won the Superbowl before. Somehow this sincere but passing statement escalated into a challenge to wear a Brett Favre Jersey during the Cowboys-Vikings game today. Not willing to pay upwards of $60 for a Favre Jersey, I decided to make my own. In the process, the Jersey transformed into a preppy sweater with a matching scarf. Not to be outdone, Chris made his version of a Tony Romo Jersey to wear while we watched the game today.

The finished products turned out awesome. I was especially proud of my sweater, and I told Chris I wanted to go to a Vikings game so that I could wear it in an environment where it would be appreciated (because it was not appreciated in my home). Then I asked him where the Vikings play, thinking it was Minnesota but not sure. Clearly, my decision to cheer for the Vikings had nothing to do with their home state.

I failed to photograph our homemade shirts until the fourth quarter of today's game. By that point, Chris was not in the mood to pose, so I had to make up for his lack of enthusiasm.


Here's the back of our shirts. My viking patch (which I made!) turned out really awesome, as did Chris' hodge-podge "Romo." Of course our novel outfits were no consolation for Chris.

Based on this blog, and the homemade sweater hanging in my closet, it appears that I am a Vikings fan now, although that is still up for debate. I feel asleep during the first half of today's game and I missed part of the second half because I ran to the drug store. I don't think those actions are characteristic of a true fan. I guess we'll see how I feel after the Vikings win the Superbowl.

Bad Sweater Contest

From Left to Right:

Daniel Cruz: He said this was the worst sweater in his closet. His closet isn't so bad.
Ezer: The winner, and rightly so!
Ryan: Not visible in this picture is the fact this is a sweater vest with a tassel on the zipper. Nice!
Amber: Fortunately the early 90's are over.
Kim: Zach Morris wants his sweater back.
Roxie: A true goodwill gem.
Chris: This sweater actually looked decent on me, which is why it looks so bad on you.
Yogeld: You get last place, but in a bad sweater contest that may be a good thing.
Judith: A little bit embarrassed so she is hiding behind mom.
Kathy: Not so bad compared to Chris and Ezer.

The Beginning of the End

Today is the first day of my last semester of law school. To say that I am excited is an understatement. I want to be forever free of law school exams, law school stress, and law school social life depression.

On the flip side, yesterday was the end of my last four- week Christmas break. To say that I am sad is also an understatement. I want to have long, carefree vacations for the rest of my life.

If I can't have my cake and eat it too, then I choose option one. I will concede long holiday breaks if it means no more law school.

Lookin' Good

In honor of my obsession with the giant Buddy Holly glasses in Lubbock (see, e.g, my prior posts here, here, and here), Chris and I now proudly sport our own Buddy Holly glasses. I think they accentuate our noses too much.

But Ryan and Amber look so natural...

Otilia

The last time I saw Otilia, less than one week ago, she joyfully embraced me and said, "Oh, I love you Kim." I do not want this memory to fade, so I am recording it here.

Sometimes your life is going so well that you forget how sad this world can be.

Sextuplets

It's official! This evening Chris and I decided that we will have sextuplets someday, five girls and one boy named as follows: Christina, Kristen, Kristi, Chrissy, Chrissa, and Christian. I asked if we could name one after me. Chris said, "Yes," followed by a short, contemplative pause and my namesake, "Butt Face."

Hmph . . . because of that comment I refuse to birth six babies for him. I suppose he should start looking for a surrogate.

Happy New Year!

New Year's Eve in the Sias house.