what's in a name?

at one point in my life,
i loved all things east of here.

asians, being free, nyc, d.c.,
i loved the east coast,
the pace, the people,
the access to information and good ethnic food.
and i loved the idea that i might someday
occupy that land of wonderment more permanently...

as some of you know,
i used to call this domain
"west coast girl - east coast world"

well,
not that i chose not to love my east coast life,
or asians for that matter,

but things started to heat up in az for me.
and so i stayed.

i have to admit,
i am one, happy, west coast girl

~meg

side note: in case you are interested,

a "blog interview" site interviewed me recently.

feel free to read it here.
and rate/vote if you feel so inclined...

um..... what?

what the h, gmail?

uh oh...

maybe you didn't know your wife would like this so much...

woops.
[i know, that makes you oh so happy]

went shootin with our friends matt and kim.
perfect shooting buddies.

we will be doing this again soon...

could that be any hotter.
i submit that cannot.

another reason to smile today...

this is giving me all kinds of dc memories...

(its a new one! and the first time i've seen it in az!)


[happy tuesday!]

week in review:

g-ma had a birthday...
she's like 62!

then we played with these cuties all week because they were temporarily orphaned...

(k. this one wasn't, but we played anyway...)
no, baby mac, you are not a thug.

family dinner...

i told her you could hear the ocean in it...
not true.

future ref: bubbles = tears

what the? yeah, that's just arizona for ya...

cc took me to a brazilian place in honor of getting the job.
it was absolutely fantastic!
could give tucanos a run for its money!

(the green means "keep bringing me more grilled meat and pineapple because my skin has a few more inches of stretching capacity")

the dessert that they bring out on wheels and serve right there...

cc: holy cow, this stuff is from heaven.
mm: no dear. that would be hell. it is a satan creation:
naughty.

the classic: "someone-else-took-this-so-that's-why-we-both-look-stoned" picture.
or, maybe we just ate WAY too much...

what i found with my lunch yesterday:
and yes, you may read into it.
i always do.

my indian friend, usha, that i train with said,
"jew should dake a bicture of dat and sen it to chris."
ha!

its a love story - behind the blog

i know you all want to know...

you are all gathering in coffee shops (or at sonic) and giggling as you discuss what i am up to, and why, honestly, i would stay in the "third most boring city in america."

i can tell you two things:

suddenly, there are a million things to do and see here.....
{like, the chocolate festival, and first friday?!}

and two: without an ounce of coercion, he made me stay...

MM & CC/M&C
(at the chocolate festival)

bring it on!

i know, you want to gag now, and you might as well get it out of your system because this here blog is about to go super cheese on you!

mongolian BBQ

yesterday, my cute lunch date took me to this serious yummy mongolian place.
i am a sucker for all things ethnic and new. YC's BBQ, you satiated both needs.

you buy lunch by the bowl, shove it full of uncooked/frozenish meat, veggies, and noodles. the best part though: the array of sauces. they have maybe 20 or so that you can mix and match according to recipes visibly hanging on the wall. they make curries, or thai-ish, or more chinese-ish or spicy-ish type things. i was salivating at the thought alone...

then the dude (of some ethnic background) takes my bowl of packed uncookedness and throws it right on this wheel that cooks it. like a mongolian tepanyaki (the jap's way). he moves it around with huge pool ques and then just drops it back into a clean bowl.

naughty. that's all i have to say about that.

and though i didn't pay, i would say it was also reasonably priced, and incredibly tasty. and, as my date noted, quite repeatable. we could go 100 times before repeating the same meal, unless of course you died eating what you got the first time... then repeat away.

i might be needing to try that again sometime in the near future.
the date, and the food, that is...

(pictures not my own.)

the point is, if you haven't already,
find one of these hoohah places and try it immediately.
i'm sure you've got one too,
and i am sure it is awesome.

roots

az makes me feel all country girlish... wanting to wear my white cotton dress and hop on a horse and just ride it forever....

also makes me like country more. as in the music.

like this taylor swift video (the song isn't the best, but the video is fantastic).

that i can't stop watching...

i know... sick huh...

my current job:

needless to say,
it's not going so well.

i went to get certified to substitute in AZ.
$60 for the certificate alone,
another $70 for more fingerprinting/background checks...
(and no, DC's aren't good enough.)
oh- and it would take 4-6 weeks to get the info back to get a fingerprint card...

forget that option...

gee, i thought applying for 25 jobs on the east and having them all fail was a sign i needed to be here.... um.....hey Mesa,

show me the money!

...back to work we go...


i am loving this weather though,
and loving my life right now....
...in spite of the lack of job and things...

just in case you were wondering...

{TGIF - happy friday!!}


oh, if you noticed, its national pie day...
"you can't have a pie without coo-hwip!"

...thanks to all the swing-voters...

dear blog,

according to the polls,
it looks like i might just be here in the mesa...
does that mean i have to change your name?
dag.


welcome to the home life, mesa girl!
i shall keep you posted on any and all
life-changing events that take place...

thanks to all who voted!

this week on (my) tv...

biggest loser, yes, i stayed up till 2 to watch the DVRed episode.

two words: in. tents.

that joelle girl has got to go. no one likes you or your snotty friend back home.

and quite frankry... jerry is my favorite, but i am glad he got to spend the rest of the time with his wife. cutest old man ever. couldn't be more proud.

a new show e-rob just got me hooked on:
friday night lights

donelle and i have needed shows to get us going and this has been a good one...

we decided it is basically like a football soap opera.  and therefore my new guilty pleasure.

oh and of course we caught american idol.  it is going to be a good season i think. and because God is good to us, he invented DVR which means we don't have to suffer through both hours of the awful embarrassment that is the squaking auditionees. i really would not be able to do that...

wow. i really have not watched this much tv in all my life combined, i swear. 

no i don't. well, sometimes i do... damn.  that doesn't count...

and maybe i will be watching three episodes of LOST in the next couple of days to get set for the 21st... 

look what my life has become!

no don't.  its actually quite depressing.  

the good news is i really am having fun in my transitory state.

joy in the journey member? 

clear eyes. full hearts. can't lose.

one man's pivot is another man's wingwo

a friend of mine always says:
things that don't change, stay the same.
i like that.

and i like that it means that
every time i get back home
i can count on spending some QT
with some dear manfriends of mine
that always have stuff going on:
new girls (or not), new jobs (or not),
usually new music or places to eat...
new songs they can play
to impress me (and always do...)

i have one crazy friend (we'll call him paul) that needed a *wingwo (only he calls them a "pivot") to go with him to church. unbeknown to me, we had a practice-run of my newly appointed role earlier in the week when we went out to lunch...

paul and i sat down to eat at pei wei where the tables are almost uncomfortably close to strangers. after checking out the girl adjacent to me, he announced that she is really hot... oh good. time to perk up, i thought.

he made a few more comments about how he wanted so badly to talk to her but didn't know what to say...etc. and i got an idea. i went to open my fortune cookie and squeezed the bag till it popped. of course, it made the girl and her mother jump/squeal and then paul started in... he was a champ. flirted up a storm and made the girl laugh. flattered the mom...

i thought, sweet, i totally started that! it was like starting a clap-a-long with a cheesy country song at a concert... "hey, see that? i started that... i did! (looking around for validation...)

then i made my mistake. she asked me, "is this your man?" (in my head, i was thinking, tell her no! no, he is free and willing to date you... in fact he's interested!) so i answered, "me? no. not at all... in fact, on our first date i was sure to tell him that!" oh no! i suck as a wingwo! objective #1 is to build him up... make him look awesome so she totally wants what i got! dag.

after the conversation got back to paul and i, he reprimanded me... and i knew i had failed... he picked it up of course by flirtatiously asking the the girl, "are you trying to find out if i'm single?" she loved it. totally blushed. he gave me a 6 out of 10. right, i know. like a D. good thing Ds still get degrees...

so on my next outing, i was determined to do better. i went to church with paul, straightened his tie, sat and chatted and laughed (not fabricated laughing of course...) and then i was supposed to be right by him when he wanted said girl to see him with what he called "eye candy" (i think the term alone convinced me of the unpaid position). yeah- missed that opportunity cause i was a bit distracted. then i was supposed to announce myself as a visitor in RS and say, "i'm 'just visiting' paul" i was suddenly too embarrassed to stand at all! if i coulda gotten that far i mighta said what i was supposed to!! again, he told me i failed. you're right, i know... exactly the reason i don't sky dive...

on the other hand, when out on a lunch date with my other paul friend, we ended up at Shar's (yes, that would be a cooking supply store where Shar teaches free cooking classes and feeds you. can you say awesome?). paul is into canning these days (naturally..) and so we went to check out the place, but the class was on pressure cookers. (so of course we stayed!) they made the newbies introduce themselves so he raised his hand and said our names. shar smiled and said, "oh, a husband and wife team?" "no," he said, "but someday!" all the ladies and the one other male in the room looked back and smiled like we were seriouslysoblessed...

we sat like we always would, an arm around and whispering how much we loved this and how cute shar is... the whole time...

his bishop's wife texted him a day or two later and said, "hope you enjoyed the pressure cooking class... and are you engaged?!" ha!

i would say that was a successful wingwo moment....


*wingwo: a chick a guy will bring with him to a social outing
to make him seem cooler to other chicks.
generally she is just friends with the guy and knows
she is mainly there to help him get some attention....

oh- and side note: there is a new poll on the right to check out
(for those who have reader).
as well as a peek into my little homemade etsy shop on the left.
soon to feature some askthebooth aprons...

needing some inspirational television for your new year-ish goals?

watched the first two hours. 

(tuesday nights: NBC) 

set the tivo. don't argue with me...

loving the four AZ guys defiitely worth cheering on: Dane, Sione, Filipe,  and Blaine.  is it fair to ask why they keep finding their best fat people in mesa?  6 in the last 3 shows?  really?

we should host our own, here!  

maybe we will do it!  weekly weigh-ins?  put in 50 bucks and the winner takes all?  love it.  not joking though. actually quite serious.  

let me know if you would do it... apparently mesans need it, 

and it would be a lot of fun!  we could even do it all online... keep a blog of the weekly percentages...

member my obsession with Alli? still have it. this season is going to be great though.  after the first week of hard-core training and the two-limbs in weight each they dropped, they sent nearly half of them home!  i loved it.  brilliant way to get us all involved real quick and to weed out the ones who really really need a militant lesbian to whip their butts into shape with demeaning fat-talk.

.. and it gives those who stay a huge motivation to stay because in 30 days if they are still there... they get to bring their partner back.  

i am keepin my eye on the old guy though. ---> Jerry.  he almost won the weight loss this week and he and his wife are sicka cute... he's going to be fun to watch.

in other TV news: 

i have been waiting patiently to see if the new season of scrubs was going to do me proud.  who knew it only took a short 15 minutes to get me back in and in tears... i love it.  back to the old days with a fun story and meaningful characters... zac braff and courtney cox for kicks... 

its going to be good...

oh, and maybe i am catching up on this show too... just so i can be part of the family in a few weeks when we get to season 5...(jan 21) it isn't at all because i actually like the show... no. not at all. some of us are in denial and faithfully pursue all of JJ Abrams's endeavors... period. currently still lost in season 4. and loving it.  for all intensive purposes: good time to be unemployed.

2009 just might be fine.

remember these goals from last year?

lets see how i did:
(gee, it's good have someone to report to!)

• graduate. check.

• run a marathon (right...)

• direct a show. check and check. (i know, i got nothin on landon and dave ;)

• move out of Utah. check.

• read the BoM twice. um... once. half check.

• find the tact I lost somewhere on the way. (apparently not)

• be more grateful. check and check and check... to name a few...

• go to the gym 3x a week... right. (i did do that during the summer months though, and most of the fall in DC... so about 80%?)

• make more life-long friends. (i have lost a few maybe, the the ones i made may be too many to name... most are in the east. one is in the oregon. miss you all!)

• be a better aunt and visit and spoil lots. i only wish. :( 

• help to expand my family. it only takes nine months though, ya know...

• go to my first concert. check, check, and check. (not blogged due to lack of timely fotos was the legwarmers concert. brilliant 80s cover-band in dc.)

• travel out of the country for the first time. nope!

• tell my family I love them more

• read more books. check

• serve more

• smile more

• live more

• and love more

• • • • 2009 • • • •

my self-imposed theme for this year:

• JOY in the JOURNEY •

"my sincere prayer is that we may adapt to the changes in our lives, that we may realize what is most important, that we may express our gratitude always and thus find joy in the journey."
-Pres. Monson November 2008

my english teacher once asked u to write:
"are you more about the journey or the destination?"
i wanted to get the answer right so i remember thinking about it
long and hard and eventually turned in my mission statement
with these words on the bottom:
"i am all about the journey...
...the destination is my ultimate goal."

this year I hope to:


• journal weekly
• buy myself a new computer/phone
• run a half marathon
• visit UT to see my family
• record an album
• go to the temple
• read the BoM
• go to at least two concerts
• move permanently to the east
• get my first salary job... very soon
• get out of the country for the first time
• try my hand at patience (giving up on tact-finding)
• take a photography class
• be more grateful
• laugh so hard my stomach hurts
• go to nyc to shoot fotos
• buy a car
• call an old friend once a week
• let go of the past
• enjoy every day & find something to smile about


good luck to you and yours for 2009
as scary as it is to be unemployed,
unattached,
completely broke,
temporarily at home,
and about to make some of the largest decisions of my 23 years,
this west coast girl, like 2009,
just might be fine...

{happy new year!}

ok, blog....

just sos you know... i am in the process of being crafty... and you will see what that entails soon enough... lets just say it is homemade christmas this year at the moffat's house... and i have nearly 5 projects going on... but i am half done!

i am running all over now that i am back in the az, 

but i won't lie to you, i miss the east coast and my cute roommates: 

(brittney, tali, kim, tami, and elle-- wait- you live here!)

i already miss the thai/soul/indian/asian/pakistani/naughty food that i so indulged in at least once a week...

i miss the gym that was down the hall that i could go run and lift in whenever i wanted to...

i miss the friends that took care of me while there...providing me with fun things to do and see...

i hope my magical job* finds me soon so that i can be there again soon.

oh and for the record, being home for the holidays is my new favorite thing... i have a testimony of it and know that it's true.

* magical job is basically what everyone on the east seems to have: some vague job at "the fed" or "the hill" or some vague consulting or designing thing... getting paid lots to do something that you happen to be great at... so it is exactly what you needed...something like that would be nice.

oh yes... the pictures and;or video from school will be here soon...chill dawg.

know how i know it snowed? my google theme...

on saturday, i checked my email that looked like this...


then i went outside to verify.

and it was right!!! i have never been more excited to see snow...
maybe its cause it doesn't seem as cold as utah and it doesn't snow as much..
so you can have time to enjoy it rather than live the 3 months in a vitamin d-depression...

it hasn't snowed since. and now i am sad about it.
arizona doesn't have snow... like ever. boo.

Virginia is for lovers?

oh really? i have qualms with that statement:

#1 - what makes YOU the expert on the matter... huh? huh?
i guess i am not really sure who would even know enough about virginia to think that all lovers would love virginia...?
or even that love happens here anyway...
maybe you should check the stats on how many people come here to love more freely to get out of the tyranny that is running rampant in their own state?
what if only YOU, random college kid shirt designer man,
just thought it would be "funny"?

#2 - and how can this place be called "home of the lovers", when everyone seems to whip out their alaskan snow gear when it is 53° outside?! sorry... now, maybe i did just come from utah where 40° means snow... but that does not warrant this kind of behavior....
nor does it prove that any of you know how to be lovers...

wusses...

[and this comes, with love, from a true Arizonan)


end scene.

space heaters, comma, the surrounding two inches of

welcome to the east coast.
welcome to cool, windy weather on the 12th floor of an apartment building.
welcome to centralized heating/air conditioning.

yeah—meaning: we don't get heat until enough people tell some guy in charge that our faces are getting frozen to the walls of his building.

they gave our apartment 3 "space" heaters last week because these arizonans were dying of death and because charles, the doorman, really loves us chicks from the byu. the heaters were real cute and all... they may have heated the surrounding insects.

this has been us:



thankfully, this week they turned on the heat.
us west-coasters thank you, phantom man with the say so.
and now can welcome you to our warm and once again happy abode.