Day 12: Something I don't ever leave the house without

There are many, many things I don't leave my house without.

And I don't want to be cliche and say "my cell phone is my life" because it isn't. And it's a lie if I say "I don't leave without my keys" because I forget my keys all the time when I'm not driving. I'll walk out of the house without my iPod and I'll leave without putting on shoes. Sometimes I even totally space out and forget deodorant. But that's only on bad days.

So, to answer the question, I don't ever, ever leave my house without my Kenya bracelets. I mean I obviously used to because I didn't have one before July of 2010. But I wear two every day now and my wrist just feels extremely weird without them. They are a reminder of the 17 days I spent across the Atlantic ocean. They are a reminder of how God continues to make waves in my life. They are a reminder of how hard I laughed and how hard I cried with some of my closest friends. They are a reminder that I actually saw wild elephants with my own two eyes.

One looks like the Kenyan flag, which is black, red, and green and has a tribal shield on it outlined in white. The other one is made out of mosquito netting and has two red beads that keep it on my wrist. They make me feel comfortable and make me rem

ember Kenya.

So that's what I never leave the house without.

Dear cold, GO AWAY. Most sincerely, Linley.

Oh my gosh. So far, February is off to a terrible start. Why? Because I can't go outside without fearing for my fingers and my buttocks. I'm afraid my fingers will freeze off if I don't put gloves on and I'm afraid I'll slip and injure my rear end. Valid fears, I assure you.

Winter is already my least favorite season. I'm required to wear long sleeved shirts and wear a jacket and layers and socks and gloves and pre-heat my vehicle and shiver and ache and spent countless hours in front of a fire and/or heat dish. Then there's the constant fear of school being cancelled which messes up your whole week. The cold wind bites at your nose because nose covers aren't socially acceptable and makes it all red and runny. And your eyes get watery and your makeup runs. You have to put on so many clothes and your hair gets all static-y, which is extremely unattractive and irritating. When March comes around, I'm practically crying with joy. Because in March, you can start wearing short-sleeved shirts. And the first day of spring is in March. And the first day of spring means that it's warm outside. At least, for us Texans.

When this mother of storms hit the US, I was groaning. Just last weekend, I was in my Nike athletic shorts and a t-shirt, eating a snow-cone and getting a pre-summer tan. Life was good. And then Monday night comes along and totally wrecks everything. Sleet and rain and ice start being spit out by the sky because the sky doesn't want all that. What it doesn't realize is that most people down here don't want it either. So, as I assumed, school was cancelled for Tuesday. Then the temperature doesn't rise above freezing on Tuesday night. CISD calls it, saying that there's no school on Wednesday. On Wednesday, the temperature doesn't get higher than 21 degrees. Ice is still covering the ground. So at around 5:30 on Wednesday, CISD closes school for the third day in a row and says there will not be school on Thursday. Now, there's still a chance for snow on Friday and temperatures won't get above 33 degrees. Meaning that there's still a solid chance that school will be cancelled on Friday too.

One day of no school is fine. Whatever. I'm a senior, so it doesn't really bother me. Two days is kind of a lot. Three is a lot. But four? Four days home, doing a puzzle and watching the news? No thank you. But I think that they, if the roads are still nutty, still might close her down for the rest of the week. Like I said, the temperature won't rise above freezing more than a degree on Friday. And the low for Thursday night will be 19 degrees with a chance of "late snow showers". My opinion? 90% chance I'll have a one-day week at school. I don't like it but I think that's really what will happen, especially considering the 40% chance of more snow all day on Friday. A cold six-day weekend is what I'm probably looking at right now.

I hate this. I hate being cold. Send me to Florida or the Bahamas or Hawaii PLEASE. Just get me out of this cold mess. ANGST.

Day 11: Favorite TV shows

Okay. You aren't allowed to judge me. That's our deal that you and I are going to make. I tell you my favorites shows and you don't judge me. Okay. And they aren't in any particular order.

1. The Bachelor. D-R-A-M-A. And, this will sound heartless, but I don't watch it because I want to see Johnny and Sally fall in love and get married. Nope, I watch it because I love the cat fights, the backstabbing, and the rejection. I mean really. What girl or guy wants to put themselves through that? I watch it for entertainment, not because I'm emotionally invested in it.

2. Survivor. That show is just so INTENSE. Plenty of drama, but I watch it for the thrill. I wish I was strong enough to do live off of rice and fish for 39 days.

3. Castle. This is one of my two shows with actors and actresses. Richard Castle shadows homicide detective Kate Beckett for his book series and together they solve crimes. I love it.

4. CSI. The original--not NY or Miami. I love all the characters and the murder and I like trying to figure out the whodunnit. It's intense and mysterious and awesome.

5. The Amazing Race. Talk about stressful. These show will literally keep you on the edge of your seat throughout the whole season. Eleven teams of two race around the world doing ridiculous tasks and getting very little sleep.

6. American Idol. An American favorite. How can you not like it?

That's my TV.

Day 10: Something I'm afraid of

Right now, I'm afraid of a lot of things. So don't be freaked out by this long list. I warned you.

1. A&M changing their mind after they see how badly I did on my math placement test and not letting me attend the school.

2. Not being able to find a place to stay at the New Student Conference in June

3. Not knowing when it's time to sign up for Fish Camp and Impact (A&M's Christian fish camp)

4. Getting lost on campus

5. Not knowing what classes to take

6. Not having any friends

7. Not getting involved

8. Having awful suite mates

9. Not making any friends

10. Becoming a fat lard and gaining the freshman 15

11. Flunking out because the classes are too hard

Yeah. You can say I'm scared to go to college. I know it will be this great adventure and once I get everything figured out it'll be awesome. But getting everything figure out is just terrifying. I feel like I'm drowning in deadlines.

So here's a pettier list of things that scare me:

1. Snakes. Snakes, snakes, snakes.

2. Compound fractures of bones

3. Being on the highway and missing my exit

4. Running out of gas on a busy road

I'm a scaredy cat. Meh.

"The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." --Deuteronomy 31:8

Okay, okay, God. Got it.

Day 9: A favorite picture of your best friend

It's hard because I can't pick just one friend or just one picture. That's not to say, by any means, that I'm overflowing with friends and can't imagine only picking one friend. I try to keep a pretty tight circle of friends who I'm really close to. But when I'm close to them, I'm really close to them.

Meet Paige. She's an aspiring doctor, learner, one of the most spiritually mature people I know, absolutely hilarious, goofy, can mimic a Wisconsin accent perfectly, and is an avid fan of the University of North Carolina, which is the school she is probably going to go to next year. Paige and I have found that every time we're together, we take

a picture. It never fails. It's corny and ridiculous, but it's us. And most of them aren't necessarily serious pictures.

I love Paige and think she's one of the strongest people I know. Now for the pictures...

I'm on the left and she's on the right in both of these. Hey boys--aren't we pretty? Hehe :)

Day 8: Places I've traveled to

For only being nineteen years old, I'm fairly well traveled. I've been to four of the seven continents (only briefly for one, though...) and have been immersed in several of these place's cultures. Traveling has always been an eye-opening experience and something that I definitely want to keep doing throughout my life. So here are noteworthy places I've been to...

States:

1. Alabama--I was born there (Birmingham, baby!) and have also been to Gulf Shores on vacation

2. Arkansas--My cousins live in Fayetteville

3. Colorado--Skiing (me...skiing...yeah) and also for a family camp!

4. Florida--Disney World when I was young and dorky and then in Miami briefly for a layover

5. Georgia--Mission trip 2010 :)

6. Idaho--Stayed in this tiny town (Driggs) for a hiking/adventure vacation

7. Louisiana--Passed through many times and went on mission trip there for a week (hello New Orleans!)

8. Missouri--Silver Dollar City anyone?

9. Montana--Same trip as the Idaho one. All those states are beautiful

10. New Mexico--White Sands National Park on my first mission trip. Those dunes are unreal.

11. New York--The Big Apple with my mom and dad. See you soon, NYC, because 86:12 is about to take you by storm!

12. Oklahoma--I was interested in OSU and my cousins used to live there. I've also had many a campout there too.

13. Tennessee--Lived in Franklin for about a year. It's the first house I really remember.

14. TEXAS--I have spent 17 years of my life in this state and wouldn't want it any other way.

15. Virginia--My cousins lived here! Hello, Richmond!

16. Wyoming--This was on the same trip as Montana and Idaho.

Sixteen states out of fifty? Huh. Not doing so well on the continental front. My goal is to make it to all of them someday. How awesome would Alaska be?!

Countries (in order of arrival):

1. Peru. I went on a mission trip when I was twelve...so seven years ago. That's crazy to think about because I still remember everything with perfect clarity. I stayed in Lima and Arequipa and both cities are incredible. That was my first mission trip ever--and what a great one it was. If I ever got the chance, I would absolutely go back.

2. Mexico. Okay, so I want to Cozumel. It's extremely touristy and I stayed in an all-inclusive hotel. But it's Mexico! The water was beautiful and I fed biscuits to fish who ate right out of my hands. It was an amazing, fun-filled trip with half of my mom's side of the family. I think my grandmother put down 20 Coke floats in the 5 days we were there.

3. Dominican Republic. It shares an island with Haiti but it isn't nearly as poverty stricken. The area is beautiful and very European. Some stay there for two weeks--and I thought five days was a lot. The DR is one of the happiest countries on earth, which I thought was pretty awesome. You would see these guys soaked in sweat and working on the side of the road waving at you with these huge smiles. It was an awesome vacation.

4. England. Okay, so this is kind of a half-truth. I was only in Heathrow for six hours and saw none of the city besides what I could see out of my window flying in. But I've been there so I guess I'll count it.

5. Kenya. As in Africa. Never have I been more scared or more in awe of God than in Kenya. It's alive in every aspect of the word, from the people to the animals to the landscape to the cities. Kenya is a truly amazing country and I will never forget that trip and I hope to make it back in the future.

So yes. That's a brief summary of my travels.

Day 7: Favorite movies

Oh gosh, these change with the tide. It all depends on what I've seen recently but there are only a few that stay constant. As of this day, January 27th, 2011, these are some of my favorite movies:

1. The Proposal. Hilarious beyond hilarious. I've officially decided that if I can't have Ryan Reynolds, I want Sandra Bullock to. Some of my all-time favorite quotes have come from that movie ("So...so naked."). The two main characters have such a great chemistry and I didn't stop laughing through that whole movie.

2. She's the Man. I just watched that again recently. My favorite movie quote EVER comes from this movie: "When I close my eyes, I see you for what you truly are...which is ug-lay!" I laugh during that whole movie at how awkward Amanda Bynes is and how it was nice to see stud muffin Channing Tatum show his awkward/goofy side. A hilarious adaption of Shakespeare's already funny "Twelfth Night", "She's the Man" ties in modern culture to a centuries old comedy. Though it has some gross parts (Toby and Eunice's weird kiss at the end, anyone?), it is an all around great movie.

3. Tangled. I just saw this over the past weekend and loved it. The frying pan as a weapon, Maximus the opinionated horse, and an outlaw named Eugene. What could be better? A great take on the old Repunzel tale, Tangled had me laughing the whole time. Can you tell I like comedies?

4. Toy Story 3. A great finish to the amazing adventures of our friends Woody, Buzz, and their cohorts. It had my heart racing and kept me at the edge of my seat. Yes, I cried at the end and had an overwhelming compulsion to go home and play with my Barbies that I put in the attic years ago. It really makes you wonder about the secret lives of toys, doesn't it?

5. Step Up 1-2. Nope, 3 wasn't really my favorite, sorry. The first two were great though. I always want to get up and dance during those movies. Unfortunately, no one else wants me to. So I just sit and bob my head and pretend I have good dancing skills. I live vicariously through those movies. They're just so good! And the guys in them aren't hard on the eyes either...

6. Harry Potter 7 Part 1. Seeing as I have yet to see the second part, the first is my favorite. It stayed almost completely true to the book (unlike the preceding 6). It was a very emotional movie. I laughed, cried, gripped my seat, cut off the circulation of my friend's hand (sorry, Sarah Liz), and cursed under my breath to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. It was intense and dark and brilliant. I'm SO excited for the second part but also kind of dreading it. Because after that, no more Harry Potter. Well, that's a lie. Who wants to go to the theme park with me?!

7. Get Smart. I loved this movie. Great lines, great characters, great plot. Steve Carrel does an amazing job as the bumbling and ill-experienced Maxwell Smart and Anne Hathaway is perfect for the suave and complicated Agent 99. I could see this movie again and again.

So that's my list of awesome movies. I'm sure there's more that are some of my favorites but I can't think of them right now...whoops. Have a great day!