Sock Lines, Road Signs and Broken Bikes

So I've kind of, sort of been falling behind on my blogging assignment...whoops! I think of things to blog about all the time, but do I write them down?? No. Do I forget them almost as quickly as I think them up? Yes! Am I going to work harder at being better at this blog thing? Yeah man! In the mean time this random post'll have to do to fill my post quota.


Sock Tan Lines
Today, I realized that I have sock tan lines, yeahhhhh!!! This excites me because:
1. It means that the sun has shone long enough in Rexburg to add a little color to my skin and
2. I have spent a sufficient amount of time enjoying that sunshine outside while doing things that would require me to be wearing shoes i.e. playing tennis, running, bicycling, pulling weeds etc. Meaning I got a tan from doing more than "laying out" wahoo!

Road Signs
Today, I also went on a nice run. It's a four mile loop that I have run with my roommates. It's out in the beautiful back country full of fields and a gorgeous view all the way around. A lot goes through my mind while I'm out running. It's a good time to think. I really like to plan out my life and kind of evaluate myself and make sure I'm at where I want to be at.

For the past couple of months I've been thinking long and hard about my future and where exactly I want to go with it. While I was running this was weighing heavily on my mind, and I was just really confused about what step I should take next, or what direction I should be heading.

Just as I was about to give up on this issue for the moment, and give up my running and start walking, I saw four road signs up ahead.

This is neither the road nor the signs that I saw, but I didn't have my camera with me on my run (silly me) so this'll have to suffice.

The first sign reminded me of a phase of my life I went through when I was 17.
The second one immediately clicked in my mind with a phase I went through when I was 18.
 The third sign was actually kind of humorous the way it represented a phase I went through when I was 19.
The fourth sign represented a phase I went through at 20 and had just finished up.

All right in a row and all seeming completely applicable to my past.

There was one more sign a little further up the road. This was one that I didn't have a time of my life to relate to. Not yet at least, but it was definitely something that could be the next phase in my life.

As all this was clicking in my head I kept on running (uphill during all this might I add). Finally the road leveled out again and I looked up to find the next road sign only to see that I had reached the temple, my last "road sign" if you will.

I'm sure this is pretty confusing to read, especially since you know neither the particular road signs nor what I correlated them too, but let me just say that it was SUCH an eyeopener and an answered prayer for me. I had seen those signs dozens of other times, but today I saw them completely differently and gained so much because of it.

So if any of you are in Rexburg and want to accompany me on a four miler I'd be happy to point these signs out to you and explain myself with them, it'd just take too long and be too confusing to write here :) So get out those running shoes, and let's go!

Broken Bikes
And to finish this post off, I have a sad story. Remember the story of my beloved bike?  Well, I took my bike out on Saturday morning to help with a service project and then to visit my friends at the Homestead. It was a beautiful morning and a great bike ride. Then first thing Monday morning I hopped on my bike to ride it to Spanish class because I was running late and that blessed bike gets me there in no time! Except this time, my poor little bike could hardly even putter forward. I wish I had pictures, to demonstrate the damage done, but they're just too, too sad.

Refer to this diagram to better understand the damage done :)

The handle bars were pushed completely down backward towards the frame, the forks were all twisted and mangled,  when I leaned the bike over-a ton of dirt came out of the handlebars, the front skewer and the front rim  were in awful condition and the front wheel was barely hanging on. It was sooo sad!

I have no idea what happened to it between the time I left it on Saturday to Monday morning. I'm guessing that somebody borrowed it and had a bit of an accident on it.  So I hope whoever it was is in better shape than my bike!

Love, Noelle