my birthday is in less than a month. i wish for a puppy.

**brief summary: i am no longer employed. it felt great to work, earn money, interact with people and be busy, but in the end it was NOT worth the pay, the time, the demands of the position, etc (lots of other cons, but like i said, brief summary...)

 since leaving that job, our home has returned to its lovely state of cleanliness and yummy smells. there is fresh produce in the refrigerator, dinner is being cooked and we have clean clothes.  in the month that i was working, things took a bit of a tumble around here.  jared has been fairly vocal about how much better life has been since i quit (aka- less tired, less grumpy, less high strung beckie).  

and it's not like we need the extra money. 

we only live in one of the countries most expensive zip codes, with a 9.5% sales tax, $5 a gallon gas, two older cars, and a billion other bills we kinda didn't realize we'd have...and...i like nice things... but who needs money. ok. we do. so yes, i am eagerly seeking a better fit for my employment and excited to help contribute more.

no job means i am back to an aimless and boring existence.  and worse- jared is out of town for an entire week on his annual "gentleman's pheasant hunt".  in his absence, i have reconnected with my former love/hate relationship with jillian.

i love this yoga dvd.  i have loved yoga for years and my dedication to the lifestyle has been spotty but i love how quickly my body gets back in the mode. this video is traditional yoga/pilates with cardio.  so yes, it is definitely a more westernized version of the practice, but it gets the job done and my spine is already feeling fluid again.

it is also a good idea that i incorporate a bit more exercise into my daily routine.  because i think that i am getting fat. this past weekend was one of the best since we have lived here and we ate a lot.  two of jared's old roommates and best friends, zac and shane, came to LA for a few days and it was everything we hoped it would be.  when i was dating jared, i was also somewhat dating his whole apartment. when those boys get together there is more joy amongst them than a pack of unicorns.  jared had been working SO hard to get everything in order at work, church and home before leaving on his hunting trip.  having the boys stay with us was another reward for his diligence.  friends in town is also a good time for us to explore more things in the city.  but we do have our favorites...where we take EVERYONE.  

(sorry, most of you are on my fbook or instagram too, so these pictures are repeats...)

there was 800 degrees pizza, diddy riese, hollywood, the temple, rodeo drive, celeb houses, croquet, the beach, and late nights of sharing giggles and feelings.

(i thought that was a cute outfit, until i saw this picture and realized i look like a 7 year old. and zac stole jared's glasses...his eyes aren't naturally more squinty than mine.  shane and zac matched on purpose.)

and when we go to the pier, we must get our bacon cheese dogs. grilled, buttery bun, fake cheddar cheese, a giant hotdog wrapped in bacon. AMAZING. how did i ever do that vegetarian life?  thanks to spud and katie for actually being the ones to introduce us to the glorious caloric monstrosity. 

we also had a little history lesson when we went and saw Argo.

ben affleck has yet to let me down as a movie director.  it was outstanding and from what i read, pretty accurate.  we had seen Looper a couple of weeks ago and i assumed that it would be my favorite film until the holidays (when les mis and great gatsby premiere!) but Argo is now on my list. i happen to love alan arkin and john goodman, especially together.  that duo combined with gritty historical controversy, a strong sense of patriotism and mr. affleck make for a completely enjoyable and justifiable reason to sit for 2 hours.

one of our last adventures was going to lunch at a russian restaurant in hollywood.  it was AUTHENTIC russian food.  luckily, jared was able to speak with impressive fluency. one reason that i liked him when we first met was that he wasn't one of those guys who was constantly referring to his mission.  he was so humble about the whole experience. he loved his mission, he served faithfully, and would love to go back, but he has never felt the need to broadcast it.  the food at this restaurant was amazing, jared was able to enjoy his some of his favorites, speak russian with ease, and teach all of us more about the culture and share some his experiences.

but all good things must come to an end.  within 36 hours, all three boys were gone.  and now i am home, watching way too many episodes of vampire diaries and laughing/crying my eyes out to this book:

which reminds me that i really need a dog. these "mr. husband outta town" days wouldn't be so bad if i had a puppy to run around and cuddle with. 

part dos (2 en espanol- this IS los angeles, get with it).

i apologize if anyone has felt mislead.  my most recent post was about the first half of all this summer's/fall's ongoings.  and i made it seem as though i would be returning soon with the last half.  meh, 2 months later is still a return.

LA.

two weeks after we got married, we relocated to West Los Angeles.  when asked where i am from, i have always replied with a simple "st. louis".  i do love that city and am happy to claim it.  and while we are not in downtown Los Angeles, it is our official home. it is also the closest that i have ever come to city living (and it's not just thugs and homeless people!).  1. utah county completely diluted my reality and 2. white collar suburbs/borderline countryside in st. louis county was nothing like this.

1. DRIVING.

we've all heard about the 405 or the 10 and seen the pictures. terrifying. and let's be honest- i can barely reach the pedals, i have no sense of direction and i have been in accidents (believe it or not, none were my fault!) and so i am timid when i am driving with other people in my car. all of this added to my racial and gender stigmas going against me- no bueno (that means "no good" in spanish. i have learned a lot in LA).  but i actually do not mind the driving here.  i have simply come to accept the fact that there will always be traffic.  which means:

a. we rarely venture out beyond the 3 mile radius of our apartment.

b. even in that small vicinity, driving time can be an hour or more.

c. life revolves around parking availability.

d. ALWAYS have snacks. you could be sitting a while.

for the most part, people here are efficient drivers.  meaning that they will let you merge in, but good gracious, once they give you those 4 inches of go ahead, you best go.  and i mean go.  because those 4 inches, mean that you have about 3 seconds to take them.  and traffic laws? i am sure that they are enforced somewhere, sometime, but i have never seen it. but i have witnessed the most creative, hazardous, and obscure driving.  the lack of adherence to traffic laws makes the gridlock game extra fun.  living amongst the rich and famous means that we pretty much get a car show everywhere we go.  there are literally millions of dollars in automobiles in the parking lot of jared's workplace.  i feel really awesome pulling up to jared's building in sally the civic to hand my husband his homemade lunch in a recycled grocery sack.  no really i do.  i have amazing gas mileage (major bonus because even unleaded will cost you your first born), i zip in and around cars like a boss, and i am a pretty good wife to make and bring lunch to him.

2. SHOPPING/RESTAURANTS

within our little area of life, there are stores and restaurants that easily cater to over 30 different countries' cultures. 

a. that's admirable and impressive.

b. we can try new things.

c. for the love of grease, why can't we have taco bell or wendy's!??!

d. small businesses have a chance!

there are practically no chain restaurants here. lots of coffee, yoga studios, dry cleaners and costume shops, but no jr. bacon cheeseburgers. it's awful. fortunately, we have managed to find and settle for decent replacements.  grocery shopping is adventure.  they don't have 24 hour stores or super targets, super walmarts, etc.  luckily the renters before us were subscribed to the sunday paper and we still get it. hello red plum coupon books. and somehow i still spend way too much time and money at target. boo.

3. SOCIAL LIFE.

we don't have one. we are dating each other exclusively.

 between 12 hour workdays for both of us, jared studying for his series 7 (and passing!) test, being new to the ward and having no other contacts, there isn't much time left (or energy). but thankfully yelp and netflix are always at our ready.

luckily, we also get visitors! we've already had several house guests and it's been a blast. and we have become more outgoing over the past few weeks and have had a lot of fun with families in the ward and are grateful for the opportunities we have had to get to know more people. plus- they all have adorable kids. 

la has had it's conglomerate of pros and cons thus far.  taco trucks are always good. and there are a ton of jews- they take their holidays very seriously, it's highly commendable (on yom kippur there was NO traffic!).  amazing retail shopping available, primarily perfect weather, sidewalks everywhere, recycling, the temple, our jobs, the beach...and stuff.

being here has caused me to realize a few things: 

1. i had no idea i actually used the mountains to know my NESW directions (i get so turned around here, all i know is ocean is west).

2. apparently, i used to eat a lot of fast food.

3. there are a bagillion asians (and they still dress weird here too).

4. a lot of houses/buildings look old and small from the outside, but the inside will blow your mind. 

5. people still don't know much about mormons (awesome missionary opportunities).

6. i hoard quarters (ick coin laundry and meter parking).

7. people still smoke and it's gross (and WHY would you smoke inside your brand new aston martin???)

8. that i used to talk on the phone a lot while driving (but NEVER texted, i swear, so stupid).

9. i am a neurotic cleaner. but i love our apartment.

well there is my blurb about LA.  i feel like now i can start posting regularly about our life together in california.  but as you can see, tiny social life, newlywed bank account, and no time means that it may not be anything all that cool.