Fall is here. Hear the yell.

Back to school. Ring the bell.
1. I love fall temperatures.

2. Its accompanying brisk air makes me want to be outside as much as possible.

3. The leaves are already starting to change colors. For instance, a few days ago I passed a red tree while riding my bicycle. It was beautiful.

4. Sometimes I forget I have a bike here and walked 20 miles in 3 days.

5. I still like the crunch of acorns under foot.

6. I am genuinely happy to be in Boston.

7. Classes have been back in session for 3 weeks.

8. I have never felt better about school in my entire life.

9. My professors are both kind and competent.

10. The first point is extremely important to me, and has more influence on whether I like a class than anything else, likely because I am tender.

11. I finished an amazing YA novel. Uglies. For a class, but also for fun.

12. On Wednesdays I want to be a publisher.

13. I am learning about Saint-Exupéry and the first publication of The Little Prince. It is fascinating.

14. I went camping in New Hampshire. It was pretty, but cold.

15. There Austin recited Russian poetry on a canoe ride under the stars.

16. I saw Hyrum's favorite living singer. So, so good. Unbelievable.

17. I consequently heart Mark Lanegan, and his voice, and Revival.

18. I am sleeping so strange at night.

19. I always want to be the same thing for Halloween.

20. Boston Critical Mass is better than sliced bread.

Picking apples, making pies.

Yesterday day was fall time bliss in all its forms: gold leaves, orange leaves, red leaves, taking the scenic route, Northborough, Cambridge friends, apple orchards, apple cider, apple donuts, apple pie, apple everything, as well as hay rides, smiling children (including baby Søren), pumpkin patches, and freshly made kettle corn. Delicious. To wrap up this perfection, yesterday night was the RS broad cast and a night bike ride to and from Belmont with Katie, which inspired me to say, "Assuming we don't die, this will have been a really good idea," and inspired Katie to answer that she likes any sentence that begins that way. Thank you, New England for being so lovely.

One year.

2009

2008

I've been in Boston for over one year. I still remember so many things about that August 28, 2008 moving day, for instance that I ate breakfast with Lia and Becca at Guru's, but could hardly eat from scared feelings, then later sat with Becca in the basement of the HFAC, in her film lab. We both cried. At the Salt Lake Airport my mom asked me if I was making the right decision. I could only shake my head and tell her that I didn't know, but hoped so. And I did. I still do. A blog post written by my friend Chaunté reflecting on her own East Coast year mark inspired me to look at the things I've gained and the things I've lost.

The gains: An old New England home. A city that (graciously) feels like a town. That same city that does a good job living with its history. Museums. Trees. The Ocean. Dessert First Adventure Club. Outstitute. A new bicycle. An understanding of the value of one friend. An even deeper love for the Seawrights. A month of pizza. Vegan feasts and rooftop views. Trader Joes. Whole Foods. $15 bus rides to New York. A plethora of visitors. Classrooms primarily populated by women. Homework assignments that are largely practical and geared toward a real profession. Solstice/equinox celebrations that are nothing short of magical. Katie, Lisa, Ju, and Brian (among others).

The losses: A community of friends a short bike ride away. Doing the same things over and over (bike rides, music shows, art shows, dance parties). Living with people I deeply trust and care about. My little yellow house. Eden. Mountains. The campus that I came to love. Having professors who knew my name. Philosophy (which loss feels like a loss). Discussion Nights. Various clubs founded by Leland (Hot Chocolate Club, Churro Club, etc.). Daily trips to Smith's. Sunday dinners. Provo's first Friday of every month. The ability to easily straighten my hair. Meat, eggs, and most dairy products.

And like Chaunté, I wonder (and hope) that it was worth it.

Last fall I watched my skin turn pale in the mirror.

This year it is starting pale.

Come monday night we're in a state of grace.

Baby you would sleep much better. Maybe you would sleep much better.

What I did on my summer vacation. By Rachel Hunt.

Nannied three blonde haired children for a few days, and in doing so drove a mini van, made meals, packed school lunches, read bedtime stories, took the little boy to baseball practice and school, the middle girl to ballet, and the littlest girl to story time at the local library, etc. Wore my rain boots/had reason to wear my rain boots, more than anyone should have to in a summertime. Played tourist in my own town. Entertained visitors/at other times was a visitor. Rejuvenated an old favorite pastime of bedroom dance parties. Realized I like Boston more than New York. Slept on my third story roof. Was scared I'd fall off of said roof. Watched numerous sunsets and one sunrise. Rode a carousel. Picnicked. Swam in Walden Pond in the daytime. Swam in Walden Pond in the nighttime. Attended a few great music shows and one terrible music show. Read in Central Park. Read in Boston Common. Listened to records on front porches. Had discussions about philosophy and love on front porches. Lived on the river trail the first time I was home. Lived on my bike the first time I was home. Made weird, but maybe funny movies with my sister. Started running again. Stopped running again. Attended a good philosophy conference. Played a lot of scrabble. Lit a lot of sparklers. Traversed time zones. Read 15 books. Made a few new friends. Lost one friend (which point still makes me sad). Took a class that actually made me like library science. Went on a good field trip as part of that class. Gave a speech on existentialism, and another on Tolstoy/rekindled my love for Tolstoy. Turned in a 30 page project. Planted a garden. Took many, many evening strolls. Enjoyed the night air on those strolls and in general. Mourned the deaths of my aunt and high jump coach, respectively. Appreciated the offerings of farmer's markets in three states. Had sleepovers with Jessica in three states. Fell in love with the movie (500) Days of Summer. Fell in love with another movie called Two Lovers that is based on my favorite story by Dostoesky. Practically lived off of cherries and blueberries. Learned how to make vegan cupcakes. Ate a lot of gelato. Made conscious efforts to write in my journal. Swam in the Atlantic. Swam in the Pacific. Slept on the beach on the Pacific. Made fresh lemonade every day for a long while. Ate pizza and ice cream every day for a week. Began having more dreams than I have ever had and would wake up actually semi remembering them (including one featuring Aristotle and another where my first thought upon waking was, "The dilemma of determinism is..."). Got burnt out on museums. Later met a nice boy in a museum. Discovered my sister in law likes bikes. Held Henry. Loved Henry, and later Emmett, my second nephew who was not even in existence pre summer. Went to Disneyland for the second time this year. Was tutored in pinball to little avail. Tasted my first fig. In Provo actually slept. Woke up at 5ish on Labor Day to watch air balloons lift off the ground, and was glad I did. Spent time in Mass. in Wayland, Lowell, Wrentham, and the Berkshires, traveled to NYC three times, Utah twice, and Oregon, Nevada, Rhode Island, DC, California, and Colorado once each.

Late Summer Reads

Reading now:

Provo, Sweet Provo.

It was good for me to be among your mountains and wide open spaces. I miss them when I'm East, as well as being somewhere I can see the stars. I'm sorry that I didn't ride my bike as much as normal, or read as much as normal, or see as many friends as normal, or do anything as much as normal. I simply needed to sleep. Thank you for letting me, and for letting me spend time with family and a very few close friends, and later more friends at my hello/goodbye party. I liked seeing Jessica's new home in Salt Lake and eating Abby's homemade pizza before sitting on a curb with Derik talking about matters of consequence. I love Alicia's porch as always, and willingly could waste my time on it. Bless her for garden food and end of summer rituals involving dancing and sparklers.

I love the campus that was my campus and the 4th floor of the JFSB where I previously sat in class after class learning the ideas of Aristotle, Levinas, and Heidegger, and where there are offices of past professors who are more than professors to me, but mentors--friends. Thank you for letting me see Anderson who first gave me a handshake, and then a hug, and Paulsen who does the same, and is one of the kindest, wisest individuals I know, as well as the most adorable grandfather like figure you can imagine--even when he's not wearing one of his old school BYU sweaters. I love his smile when he first sees me. It is so big I know that he is happy. I know that I am happy. I love Kierkegaard because of him, and will be grateful forever. Thank you for allowing me to sit in on Anderson's Philosophy of Film class afterward with Derik, Tom Bell, and Adam. It was delightful.

The rest of that evening was important too. I lay on my bed talking with someone that it was good, but ultimately hard to see. Still I watered his grass for him before I skipped town because I told him I would, and because he was on his own way out when he stopped to say hello. I am glad that I could spend the next day with Meg (even though we accidentally ate meat at lunchtime) and the next nighttime with Abby eating a sucker and riding the ski lift at Sundance under the full moon. The canyon was beautiful. The night sky was beautiful.

California Adventures

For the fourth time in one year I boarded a plane in Boston and headed west. This most recent experience was by far the best because it consisted of an airport party with Julia and Marcus, wherein we ate exorbitantly priced airport candy and told each other ridiculous stories while waiting for our plane, then spent our NY layover eating pizza and watching 10 Things. Cameron's love remains pure. It was particularly nice to see Ju as she was away at Tanglewood for the summer playing her violin.

Meg picked me up at the airport since she was already in Salt Lake for a music show. I was so tired I could barely remember how to get to my parent's house, and was glad she knew the way. We roadtripped it to California the very next day, but first I visited Jessica on a borrowed bike. She had just returned from a run and sat on the curb eating cereal. Jared's mom kindly agreed to let us borrow her van that same morning, which made our trip significantly more comfortable than it otherwise would have been. (Thank you, Jared's mom.) And while I listened to much more hip hop than I would ever listen to of my own volition, we also sang along to Dashboard, Stars, The Smiths, and Magnetic Field's 69 Love Songs. I became obsessed with Coconut Records' West Coast, and all of us were obsessed with Walter Meego's Girls.

The first night in California was camping in the County of Orange, and laying in the tent whispering with Abby. It was also waking up in the middle of the night to a thunder and rain storm, and being glad Abby thought to put the rain cover on, "Just in case". Morning time was filled with cloudy skies, but breezes that smelled like a million bucks with the combination of campfires and ocean spray. We said hello to that ocean, again and again, and found it cold and seaweed strewn, but beautiful.

Emma drove down from Palo Alto on Abby's birthday. There were birthday back rubs, birthday cakes, birthday beaches, birthday babe, birthday everything. We also heard our friend's band play in West Hollywood, and ate dinner with Meg's aunt and uncle in West Lake, where they treated us with kindness upon kindness. The next day was Valencia, the best lemonade, a coy pond, figs, pinball, sushi and dancing recommendations, Hyrum and Pegah, and holding Henry for the first time. He is perfect. I told Hyrum I thought he looked like him. In response he pulled out his and Pegah's baby books, to compare.

Later there was Disneyland, reinstating Churro Club with what Leland calls the Holy Grail of all churros, and general keeping of the magic. In addition to the food and rides, the fireworks really were magical, as was the water show. I am glad Emma wanted to see both. Before heading out we all took the love meter test. I was blah. First time. Abby was hot stuff. Emma was burning. Meg was passionate. Jared was uncontrollable. I went again. Blah. Second time. So funny/mad. We spent the night in Marino Valley at Leland's, where we woke to Rowley hospitality, buckwheat pancakes with syrup and homemade strawberry jam, and his darling niece who looks like Coraline. Precious.