Spirit Bowl!

Dear Grace,

I still can't believe I'm graduating in less than two months. It’s so weird to look back and think, “Wow, have I really been in school for twelve years?” I used to look up to the seniors and the college kids in our family and think they were so far and away from my little world, but now I’m right up there with them, and it’s both exciting and sad to me. I’m such a bum, but I’m really going to miss living with Mom and Dad. It’s just weird because I can’t wait to get going on my career and get my own apartment and start my own life, but at the same time, I’ll be so lonely out on my own, haha.

Well anyway, I’ve already talked about all that at least three or four times in my previous letters, so I’ll move on. Okay, so did I ever tell you about Spirit Bowl that we have here at Timpanogos every year? Well, it’s basically just a giant school spirit competition, where everyone gathers in the gym and we hold these different contests to see who has the most spirit. Each year we have a theme, and sophomore year, it was Seniors Heroes, Juniors Sidekicks, and SquashmoresVictims. Last year was Peter Pan, So Seniors Lost Boys, Juniors Pirates, and Squashmores Fairies. This Year is the Emmy Awards, so Seniors Star Wars, Juniors Lord of the Rings, and Squashmores (I AM SOO JEALOUS!) Harry Potter. So yesterday I sported some Jedi gear for dress-up day. I found an old black choir robe in our costume box, so I put together a cheap costume, complete with white pants tucked into brown boots and a beige top and a belt with a lightsaber tucked into it. (I didn’t get the lightsaber until just this morning because some kids came into my first period to sell them for three bucks, so I figured hey, what the heck?)

On top of all that, when I drove my carpool to school yesterday morning, I proceeded to turn on the Star Wars theme song and drive at crazy intense speeds. It was as epic as when I drove around to the Batman theme song, except I was driving an imaginary spaceship instead of the Batmobile, haha.

So today was the spirit bowl, and everyone in the senior class was wearing white t-shirts with the storm-trouper helmets stenciled onto them, haha. I have to say, we looked pretty freaking sweet. Plus everyone was carrying around their lightsabers, and waving them at the juniors and squashmores. The senior class ran out onto the court as a class to start off the spirit bowl, and we all threw handfuls of flour into the air for effect. It was...messy, haha, but it did look pretty cool. So then we proceeded with all of the competitions, including relay races, costume and body-paint contests, and pudding wrestling. I have never been to a spirit bowl where there was so much--well--spirit! I've never cheered so hard at any of the spirit bowls before! Finally, they announced the winners of the spirit bowl, which were the seniors, of course, and we all poured out of the bleachers and stormed the court, which I have looked forward to for all three years I've been in this school.

After school, I went home and Alyssa came over, and we drove through the snow to take my old desk to a co-worker of mine as a birthday gift for her. Alyssa and I learned two things on that drive: one, the wire on the tape adapter Mom has in her car has shorted out, and two, the freeway entrance down by Home Depot, no longer exists. So then we had to take Geneva road all the way down to UVU to my co-worker's apartment. But that was okay, because Alyssa and I always have a blast when we're together, so we made due with the busted wire by bending it until the music came out of both speakers and sang at the top of our lungs. We actually had a mini dance party with a truck that pulled up next to us at a stoplight. We were rocking out (probably Lady Gaga) and the guys in the truck next to us rolled down their windows and proceeded to dance with us until the light turned green. After the adventures of driving in the April snows on the backroads, we went back to our house where we watched Psych (our favorite because Shawn Spencer is a hilarious psychic ha-ha-hawtie) until midnight. I'm going to be so lost without Alyssa next year. She's the person who has kept me sane these last couple of years and given me some of the best times of my life. My only hope is that I’ll be able to find ways to come up and visit on the weekends and stay connected via Facebook and skype the rest of the time. She is the best of friends I could ever have asked for, and I have never once had a negative word from her or ever felt the least bit sad or bummed out when I’m with her. She has a way of taking all my worries and throwing them out the window, so I can be free to just be happy, and be me again. I only wish she could know what her friendship means to me.

Okay, another thing, Mom and Dad suddenly decided that we needed a new TV upstairs, (which I had no problem with :) ) So they bought us a new 41” (I think?) TV. But then they decided that along with that, we would need a new entertainment center to go with it. Then they decided that we needed to get rid of the coffee table, move the family portrait and the cuckoo clock, take down the table and shelf that held all the pictures and decorations on the west wall, and put in a cushioned bench on that wall instead. Oh, and they’re also replacing the end table with the lamp on it. So basically, the entire living room looks completely different. The good news is that it looks MUCH better, and more good news, Dad has networked the TV to the internet so we can watch Netflix on it. YAY!

We also got rid of the desk and computer in my room, since that whole station hasn’t been touched since I bought my laptop. Plus, mom got rid of her old desk and the bed in her office and replaced them with a GINORMOUS desk where the bed used to be, so that’s completely different now. Speaking of technology, Mom and Dad got me and iTouch for Christmas (I couldn’t have been more shocked if they had given me a Welshman in lederhosen riding on a unicycle). It’s exactly the same as the iPad, just mini, and I just have to say that it is very much a worthy investment.

One of the coolest things I’ve gotten on it is the Gospel Library app. Basically I have all the scriptures, the hymnbook and the children’s primary songs book, preach my gospel, ALL of the Ensign and New Era Magazines, all of the most recent conference talks (and you can download the most recent conference videos) and the For the Strength of Youth pamphlet and a bunch of other crap. All in the palm of my hand. It. Is. AWESOME!

So yeah, that’s all I have to say about that. This week is spring break! And what I didn’t know which turned out to be a delightful little surprise is that Mom and Dad and I are all going down to St. George for five days. Partly to check out SUU and get things finalized down there, and, of course, to be in St. George and get away from the rotten Utah spring weather. Seriously, we’re getting the snow we missed in December, what the crap?! Yeah, I’m really starting to get annoyed that the saints back in the day decided to settle in the freaking Salt Lake valley, when they could have gone south where it’s warm and the weather actually makes sense year-round.

Well, I really can’t think of anything else to write about today, so if I have any amazing adventures in St. George or down at SUU I’ll write again. Love you!

            Love Always,

                                                Katie Jo

P.S. Kurt comes home in six months!! Squee!!