Introduction

“The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say” 

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

To begin, I promised myself that I was not going to go all nuts with the design or layout of this blog. I am a perfectionist; so, this decision is driving me a little batty. I like to make things my own. However, whenever I try to start a blog I get more caught up in the fancy design than I do the actual content and then I eventually get too lazy for either. So, it is what it is. Maybe one day (no, bad Brandy. Bad Brandy!) I will get to customizing it, but for now, I'm sorry for the mess. 

It was one of my New Year's resolutions that I write to my friends and family once a week. As many of you know, Daniel and I will be leaving for California soon and I am honestly the worst at correspondence. I'm a very introverted person, but this doesn't mean I don't love the people who I connect with... I just have a harder time expressing it, especially often. It's become a problem. I don't even compliment people anymore because I'd rather sit, hiding in my hole, even when I am impressed by them. I hate talking on the phone and video chatting. I'm a fair texter, but I can't really express myself over a short text. Well, no more because it is important for me to stay connected with all of you (this blog is viewable by email only and many of you will just receive it as an email anyway) when we finally do move. I know it's going to be a challenging time. I'm terrified, to be honest, but I'm also very excited to begin my life in a new place. 

The hardest part will be leaving most of my friends and family behind. I'm so used to having everyone (with the exception of those who have found lives outside of Utah) I need around me. I can't imagine a life where I can't go to Grandma's house when I'm lonely or just need something to eat really quick. Utah's own geography has enveloped us all into a tight little hug. The mountains have kept us all together in this nice little valley and now I'm going to a place without them. The ocean... just seems so open. It is hard to think about living in a place without the protection of the mountains.  

Anyway, this blog will be mostly about updates and telling you all about our new home. As we haven't arrived in California yet, it will probably be about moving plans and job updates (boring, but important). Of course, I'm hoping the blog will turn into something entirely different as the years go by. Just a way to talk to you all, but for now, it's going to be more like a lifeline. Something to keep me connected with your love. So, I'll get the ball rolling. 

I just had a phone interview for a summer teaching job in the L.A area. It's for the Institute of Reading Development. They actually have programs across the country (even Salt Lake, which is how I heard about it). The guy I interviewed with was actually from Utah, though he is in Boston now (small world). Here's the website: http://readingprograms.org. This job would be pretty cool. Not only would it give us some money for the summer (and continuing summers if I get re-hired, but maybe that's thinking a little too far into the future) it would also give me some badly needed teaching experience. Yay, resume building! I would be teaching both parents and students (from age 4-18) about reading. For the younger students it's about learning how to read so that they can learn to love books. So, they want them to be as proficient as possible with as little frustration as possible. Once they get older, the main goal is absorption. Basically, they want you to be able to connect with literature. Awesome, right? I'm really crossing my fingers for this one. I will know in two weeks whether I can get in on the second interview. I was just astounded they called me for the first since I have very limited teaching experience. 

Well, I should end this. I start my first day of student teaching tomorrow (Kearns High School, in case you hadn't heard) and I'm trying to get to bed at a decent time. I'm kind of excited to be an adult and work a normal work schedule (also scared of it). I'll let you know how this first week goes next week. Also, clear your calendars. I graduate on May 2nd. More details to come. :P

With Love

- Brandy

p.s. If you thought to yourselves when you first saw my blog that it actually has a pretty nice design... well, I gave in. I scoured the interweb for an hour looking for a nice design I could live with without having to make many alterations. Cheers!