Experience at Nielson's Frozen Custard

Well, it was perfect weather tonight and the Lakers were getting beat by 30. Both reasons to celebrate. So 2 of my roommates and I decided to go get some ice cream at Nielson's Frozen Custard. No big deal right? WOW.

Here's a sample of the conversation I had with the nice ladies behind the counter at this lovely establishment:

Me: I can't find the flavors on your menu, what do you have?

Nice lady: (Some gibberish about cookies & cream and vanilla, and then mix-ins).

Me: Oh, so your base flavors are c & c and vanilla?

Nice lady: We only have vanilla.

Me: Alright, well then can I have strawberry and cookie dough in a small cup?"

Nice lady: Oh, well if you get anything mixed in you have to get the big cup.

Me: Oh, so if you want a small cup you have to get plain vanilla?

Nice lady: Well you can have other things as toppings in a small cup, but if you want them mixed in you have to get the large.

Me: (Huh?) (Let's just get this over with) Ok, I'll have the large then.

Nice lady: That'll be $5.00

Me: (I look over at the display cup. Really? Whatever. I hand her my card.)

Nice lady: Um, we only take cash or check.

Me: (SERIOUSLY?!! Is this the 21st century or WHAT?!!)

So I get out my checkbook and write a dumb check for 5 piddly dollars. Thanks. Wake up and smell the plastic people. What business doesn't have a card machine?

Oh wait, it gets better.

So I get my ice cream. The thing is seriously dripping like a snow melt on Mount Everest - before I even take a bite! I was lickin' like a mad woman trying to beat the drippage, but as I was licking one side, the other was spilling over onto my hand. Well, 5 minutes and 20 napkins later, my roommate goes in and gets another cup for me. I put half of it into the extra cup but when I look down to take a bite it's no longer ice cream I'm looking at. It's like strawberry milk! I paid $5 for this?!!!

I hope they're not expecting me to come back because they can forget it. I'm taking my checkbook somewhere else thank you very much.

Dad

I've been sitting here trying to put into words how amazing my dad is, how much I love him, how much I depend on him, and how much I pray every day for a man just like him.

He really is just a big kid who always made life fun. Whether it was voice imitations, hog-ties, riding roller-coasters, writing notes to clean up the laundry room and signing it "The Management," or advocating boxing matches between 4 year olds and encouraging his little girl to "Come on, throw a punch!" And I swear in another life he was a sports commentator. He seems to always predict what they're going to say! I love the conversations we have about sports and life. He's so smart and wise. And he's the perfect size to snuggle up against.

But perhaps more importantly, he taught me to be a good person, and to always put my best foot forward. He taught me by example how to persevere through life's challenges, because challenges will come. He taught me what it means to live your religion every single day. He is solid as a rock in the gospel, quietly showing by the way he lives his life what it means to truly be a Latter-day Saint.

He is strong, loyal, capable, faithful, loving, understanding, honorable, wise, fun, and just plain amazing. I love you so much dad! Thank you for being you...

Grandpa Mathews

I love my Grandpa Mathews so much! He is so faithful to the church and to his family. I don't think there's anywhere he'd rather be than with his family. He has seen so much in his life that often I wish I could just once look at the world through his eyes. I recently watched an interview with Tim Russert (RIP) who wrote a book entitled Wisdom of Our Fathers, and in the interview he said what children remembered most about their father's and grandfather's was their hands. That's true with my Gp. Mathews. I love holding his hands, they're so strong and able, and worn from years of work. I love seeing in his eyes how proud he is of me, it's worth more than words can say.

Plus, he's my fitness hero. The man exercises more than I do!

Grandpa Hunt
I love my Grandpa Hunt so much! He can build/fix/assemble anything, he is dedicated to his family almost to a fault, and he cooks the meanest dutch oven chicken this side of the Mississippi! I love being around him, he just has this strength about him that is so comforting, and he works harder for his family than any man I have every seen. I love you grandpa!

My life is now complete

I work in the Museum of Church History and Art and on Friday we got to look around in the vaults! Well they have some pretty cool stuff down there. For instance, if anyone saw the display for Joseph Smith's 200th birthday, they had bunch of items that were excavated from the Smith log home in Palmyra and we got to see those up close. They even found a small axe that was left under the shingles of the family's frame home in Manchester! They also had a bunch of coats that belonged to president's of the church which I thought was pretty cool.

But, by far the coolest thing I saw on Friday were these 2 canes that were made by Brigham Young. He made them out of the wood from Joseph Smith's coffin (the one that he was carried in as he was being taken back to Nauvoo from Carthage). That's cool in and of itself, but the most interesting part were the heads of the canes (the part where you would put your hand). It looked like they were made of ivory or something and were shaped like flattened balls. Well on top of the first one there was a circular silver piece that looked like a quarter, and on it was engraved "gift of Brigham Young to Sidney Rigdon on (whatever date) 1844." That's really interesting because at that time in the church's history Brigham Young and Sidney Rigdon were in a sense contending for the succession to the Presidency. I think this gift shows that Brigham knew how much Sidney meant to Joseph as a friend and how much he had done for the church, even though they (JS and SR) had a falling out at the end.

The head on the other cane, however, was broken so there was no silver plate and we don't know who it was given to. But underneath where the plate would have been there was a shallow hole and inside were little bundles of Joseph Smith's hair! How cool is that?! I still can't get over it. There definitely are some perks to this job :).

Meghan the Brave

So on Friday I got out of the shower only to find a disgusting insect in my bathroom. I didn't scream. I don't do that. But I did leave the room to contemplate my next move. I'm saying to myself, "I have to kill it right? Because if I don't it will keep crawling around and I may step on it unsuspectingly!" It was at this point that I had flashbacks of one summer at home when I unsuspectingly stepped on a cockroach...with bare feet. I'll never forget the nasty, popping, crunchy, distustingness of that experience. I'm thinking, "right now it would be really convenient to have a man around to kill this for me." But did I call BJ to come over and kill it? No, I did not. Because I am a big girl and I can do things myself.

So I made up my mind to put it out of its misery (or mine rather), now I just needed to decide on a murder weapon. Paper towel? No, I don't like the crunching in my fingers. A big huge wad of paper towels so I can't feel it? No, then it might get away and crawl on my hand or something. Shoe? Hmmm, that could work, but I don't want one that I wear all the time because then I risk touching bug guts. Plus, what if the bug just squishes on the floor? Then I'll have to find another way to pick it up. Gross. Well, after much deliberation...with myself, I decided to go with a rarely worn shoe and just hope that the flattened victim stayed on it so I could take it outside or something.

Eye of the Tiger goes on my ipod and I'm ready to roll. Nothing can stop me now. I went in the bathroom and spotted him. I waited until he was in a strategically good position by the garbage can and...WHACK! I lifted up the shoe...nothing. Yessss! Easy cleanup. I whacked the shoe on the side of the garbage and he's down for the count. But I didn't want to risk bug guts in my room so I left the shoe in the bathroom to dry off for a day or two.

Ahhh, success is sweet!

p.s. I was going to put a picture of a big, nasty spider for you all but...gross. I don't want to look at that, do you?

UEFA Euro 2008

I love this time of year! Why you ask? Because it's summer and the weather is beautiful? Nah. It's because in my opinion, this is the best time of the year for sports. You've got the Stanley Cup (awesome this year! Except I wanted the Penguins to win) and the UEFA Euro soccer tournament!

Soccer every night - in English! woop woop.
These guys started qualifying for this tournament in 2006, and the winner is on their way to the 2010 World Cup! That's one thing I love about international soccer, winning cups are really special because you've been working for it for sometimes 4 years. It's like the Olympics.

Right now I'm watching Czech Republic vs Portugal and it's pretty exciting! 2-1 with 13 minutes to go, Portugal is in the lead.

So turn it on all you soccer fans! Oh wait, you probably have it on already. So everyone else who thinks they don't like the game...turn it on and get ready for some quality soccer!

(Stadium in Salzburg...so awesome)

Malodorousness and Warm Fuzzies

Well, I stink. No really, I stink. There is some major stinkiness going on (Def: the attribute of having a strong offensive smell, [syn: malodorousness (I thought the word was funny)]. And instead of taking a shower right now, as I'm sure anyone in the room with me would be praying for, I'm writing this delightful blog. Now rather than be boring and tell the story myself, I decided I'd let the back of my car do it.

As I was at the gas pump this afternoon on my way home, I opened the back door of my car and found this...


I just had to laugh because you see, I hate having junk linger in my car for days on end. It's ALWAYS clean. So this is all from today!

On with the story. I had hockey practice this morning in Provo (First practice of the summer! Yesss!) which explains the abnormally large black bag and hockey stick. And just in case you're not familiar with hockey, it gives football a run for its money as the stinkiest sport. Taking a shower after hockey practice is a MUST. And I always bring a hat because helmet hair isn't the prettiest sight you've ever seen! Hence my little travel bag behind the passenger seat. See, I was going to take a shower at Melissa's in an effort to not offend anyone with my malodorousness. But then, she said her ward was having a bbq and invited me, hence the grocery bag with Doritos. After the BBQ we played volleyball with some friends in her ward, adding on to the stinkiness. Then I went to run some errands, and got a call from Jonica (from my hockey team), asking if I could sub for her at her soccer game later that night. Well, I can't pass that up, right?! The only problem was that I didn't have my cleats or shin guards. So I met up with her and she let me borrow hers. Hence another grocery back with her cleats and shin guards. Then, during half time of the soccer game I was walking to a drinking fountain when a guy stopped me and asked if I wanted to play with their team who was playing in the game right after mine ended. WHEW! How could I pass up more free soccer??


Finally after my last game I started on my way home where the first thing on my list was to take a nice long shower. Then...BJ called me and wanted to go to the Chronicles of Narnia. Well, I've been wanting to see that for a while (that Prince Caspian is hot stuff!), so when I got home I only had about 1/2 hour to shower. I didn't even get to wash my hair! Ugh, where's that dang hat!?

Oh, and I must be related to Dana Mathews or something because that hockey gear in the foreground of the picture is for Preston and I got a kickin' deal on it!! Workin' the system!

Part 2 of this post is all about "warm fuzzies." I love getting warm fuzzies and I got a few of them today. First, I really didn't feel like I played that well during my first soccer game, especially since I was just wearing regular shoes and therefore was slipping EVERYWHERE! But then after the game these guys from the other team (who I thought were really good) asked me, "Where did you play? Did you play in college?" When I said no, they shook there heads and said, "Wha?" You should try out or something cause you're really good." That totally made my day! Then in my next game I totally biffed a shot and said - louder than I meant to - "Ugh! I stink!" (pun intended). And the goalie from the other team was like, "Uh, you really don't actually." And then a guy on my team said, "Ya, you're good." Man, that just made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!!

So despite the lack of hygiene for most of the day, it was great! I feel like


p.s. Don't judge me! I take showers ok!?!

Be Happy Today!

So the past little while I've been really worried about what I'm going to do for a job, about dating, and all these other things. I've been thinking a lot about the future. Well then a couple of weeks ago I heard this song by Trace Adkins on the radio for the first time. It really gave me a new perspective:

She was staring out the window of their SUV
Complaning, saying "I can't wait to turn 18"
She said "I'll make my own money, and I'll make my own rules"
Mamma put the car in park out there in front of the school
Then she kissed her head and said "I was just like you"

You're gonna miss this
You're gonna want this back
You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
These are some good times
So take a good look around
You may not know it now
But you're gonna miss this

Before she knows it she's a brand new bride
In a one-bedroom apartment, and her daddy stops by
He tells her "It's a nice place"
She says "It'll do for now"
Starts talking about babies and buying a house
Daddy shakes his head and says "Baby, just slow down"

Cause you're gonna miss this
You're gonna want this back
You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
These are some good times
So take a good look around
You may not know it now
But you're gonna miss this

Five years later there's a plumber workin' on the water heater
Dog's barkin', phone's ringin'
One kid's cryin', one kid's screamin'
And she keeps apologizin'
He says "They don't bother me.
I've got 2 babies of my own.
One's 36, one's 23.
I know, it's hard to believe, but...

You're gonna miss this
You're gonna want this back
You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast
These are some good times
So take a good look around
You may not know it now
But you're gonna miss this"

Then, that same day as I was doing research on St. George I came across this gem in the diary of Charles Lowell Walker. He was summarizing a Sunday meeting and observed:

"Br Jacob Gates spoke on the benefit of being happy to day. Showed the folly of neglecting the present in being to[o] anxious for the future."

That was exactly what I needed to hear. I mean, I had only been doing my internship for two weeks, why was I so worried and anxious to move on? Why not enjoy every minute of it? And why not play hockey as much as possible while I still can? Why not have fun being single instead of worrying about getting married all the time? Now in saying that I don't want to scare anyone, I do still think it's important to think about and plan for the future and to have goals that you're working toward, but at the same time why not do our very best to make every day count? Why not make today great?

99 Bottles of Beer

So our Mathews cousins from Texas had a friend who started the tradition to go to A&W on your birthday, bring as many friends as possible, and have the group drink as many beers (Mormon style) as you are old.

Well, the rest of us have adopted the tradition and have so much fun with it! My cousin Christie had a birthday on Tuesday so we met up at the A&W in Bountiful.

While it's all fun and games, there are a few rules that must be adhered to:

1. Must occur on the actual birthday day
   
2. Must be a frosty mug (none of those sissy paper cups)
3. No ice
4. Must drink at least one
   
5. If unable to attend, find the nearest A&W and drink an honorary mug
   
6. And it's kind of becoming a rule for my cousin Paul to make fun of me not being able to drink more than like 2.
   

Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of Christie's A&W night, but I do have a picture of me and Preston's 22 birthday last year. Since there are 2 of us we had to drink 44 mugs! No worries though, look at the group we had!


My favorite part of this tradition though is the way everyone else has gotten into it too. I'll call a friend I haven't talked to in a while and say, "So, me and Preston's birthday is on Friday," and without even finishing my invitation, they'll respond, "Is it A&W time?!" It's great because I know that even though many of us are going our separate ways, at least once a year we can all get together to catch up and have a good time.

So when October 1st rolls around this year, plan to be at A&W! Or just drink an honorary mug to help us out. We are getting older you know :)

Internship

Well in April I graduated from BYU
and now I'm trying to figure out what I want to do with my life. In the meantime, I was hired as an intern in the Church History Dept. of the church. I really like the job so far and everyone is so nice and so willing to help me with any questions I have. I'm working with the historic sites group who is responsible for writing Historic Site Guides that missionaries will use to tell the history of their particular site and organize tours of it. Right now I'm doing research on the St. George Tabernacle

and more particularly, I'm trying to trace the history of the clock and bell, as well as the all-seeing eye painted inside...



It's such a great opportunity to work for the church, and you couldn't ask for a better environment! My first week there I met Elder Marlin K. Jensen, the Church Historian! It was great.

I'm also working a little bit on the John Johnson Home Guide. The John Johnson Home was where Joseph received many revelations including "The Vision" (D&C 76) and where he was tarred and feathered. The Johnson family was amazing and literally gave everything they had to the church.

Anyway, there's a little update on what I'm doing.

Memorial Day

(Back Row, L-R: Paul, Preston, Dad, BJ, Uncle Alan, Mark (holding Bruce), Front Row, L-R: Nikki, Meghan, Grandpa, Mallory, Christie, Mandy (holding Rachel))

Last weekend was great! My parents came up to Salt Lake for the weekend (not to see me mind you, but so my mom could get some genealogy stuff...whatev). Well we packed alot into the weekend. Here's what we did...

Saturday

• Visited my grandpa Mathews' sister LaRae in Roy so she could give my mom her old family photos and genealogy
• went bowling with my cousins
• played guitar hero (My dad actually tried it and did pretty well, until he forgot to strum the guitar for the first 30 seconds of his 2nd game. Oops. Well, way to go dad for trying something new!)

Sunday

• Church
• went to Brigham City to hang out with my cousin Mark and his cute little fam, and played a little frisbee
• went up to Hyrum to visit and put flowers on my grandma Mathews' grave
• went to dinner (I know, we're bad, just don't report this to the Bishop ok?!)
• got stuck on the freeway for like an hour and no one knows why. There was no construction. No accident. who knows???
• went to Wal-mart to bug my cousin Tyler who had to work practically the whole time we were there

Monday

• went swimming in the hotel pool
• tried to go to the driving range but it was closed cause of the rain..what about us die hards? Open that baby up I say!!
• so we went bowling instead...again
• Preston made up a new form of bowling that he and BJ termed "sweetness." They don't put their thumb in the ball, but just hold it like a running back with the football, then throw with a lot of spin. It's not very effective or consistent, but they're determined to perfect the "art" of "sweetness." Well, Preston, BJ and Tyler bowled this way the whole time. My dad just kept shaking his head at them and refused to acknowledge their relation :)
  
• went to see BJ's place
• us kids treated mom and dad to ice cream for their anniversary (which was on May 22)
  

(Mark, Brucie, and Gp)

(BJ and Rachel)

(cute Gp Mathews)

(Gp and Bruce...precious)