Autumn On Orchard!

The summer season may be winding down, but the adventures on Orchard Avenue surely are not! I have finally treated myself to the cutest bicycle on earth! Nothing is nicer than riding her down to the Ogden Farmer's Market and sampling all the local honey and produce. Sweet corn is in, and eating it raw is quite the treat! Although not as light-weight as I would like it to be, my sea-foam-green beach cruiser is as slick as they come. I’m glad she’s not a flimsy hipster bike, or else she couldn’t withstand the reason why I like her best. Not only did I buy it on sale at an undisclosed location, but I’ve attached a BASKET! It’s my evil plan to ride it around Ogden with the basket filled with Persian kittens, books, and a baguette! Which brings me to my favourite part of the close of summer- SCHOOL!

Now, I’m not normally a huge academic kind of guy, some would go as far as saying that I hate all the education in the whole world, but that is just ridiculous! This is the semester of new beginnings. I am attending Weber State University and I LOVE every minute of it! Especially FRENCH! Yeah, that’s right friends, J'aime classe de français. (Note the baguettes and whatnot) My dream is finally becoming a reality! I’ve grasped the sad truth that I won’t have many people to talk to; but during ski season all the tourists from Europe will congregate in our quaint historic districts and exceptionable ski resorts! That will be better than finals, speaking with actual Europeans who will love me for my zest for life and learning! They will think it’s cute when I say fart instead of repeat because they sound so similar!

With the opening of schools, comes the closing of baseball fields- this is the lone thing I hate about autumn. Stupid! Stupid! I LOVE the Ogden Raptors!! A lucky few of you have been dragged to Linquist Field, and so far no complaints, except from Drew of course. (He really hates baseball, can you believe it?!) Tuesday the 6^th is the last home game of the season, I will most likely cry if we lose, so prepare. Justin M. Boudreaux #3 is my favorite player. Not just because he has a French last name, but because he plays shortstop, which I used to play in softball. I <3 him and plan on wooing him eventually!  Who’s coming with me on Tuesday? I’ll buy you peanuts and crackerjacks!

Autumn has taken some people away from me. Stupid! Stupid! Drew and Matt Ross, Morgan and Molly to name a few… and Caitlin Simone! Her and I became suuuuper close over the summer, we've danced until we're almost dead, written an irish pub song, and told eachother our deepest secrets! (BFF status guyz!) And so she just had to move all the cussin’ way to USU! GRRRRR!!! Who will put up with my nonsense and absurd antics now? I feel all alone on Orchard Avenue, with solo tea parties and lone bike rides downtown.  I guess it is good for me, because without all the “interferences” I can focus on my ultimate goal of becoming educated and French and sassy and irresistible and classy and understanding and open minded and applicable and original and fancy and… man I’ve had too much coffee!

Autumn on Orchard seems very promising, and honestly, I am looking forward to shopping for new cardigans and getting chai lattes at Kaffe Mercantile with soy milk or whatnot. Speaking of that soya crap, not only is it in everything, but it must become a staple of my diet. I am trying out a dairy-free lifestyle for a bit. Just seeing how it makes me feel, and so far all I feel is deprived. I am an ice cream whore, but not anymore! Someone take me to Sub Zero before I die! I’ve heard they have soy milk they freeze into ice cream! Yay!

"He's My Jayce Alexander, Always Gets RayDo Into Trouble"

Go ahead and call me a psychotic sociopath, but I have been spending soooo much time lately in Salt Lake City. Drew is appalled that I know about all the happenings and how I know where everything is. Hello! It’s called being aware of your surroundings and reading the newspaper! I will NEVER admit that I like that place, but I will say that I tolerate it now. I mean, I can’t flat out say I hate it if I know everything about it and sometimes enjoy going to various music events and coffee shops in that hipster-infested valley. Speaking of which, Drew and I visited Diva's Cupcakes & Coffee my most favorite coffee shop in Salt Lake. There’s nothing super special about the cupcake paradise, but it just brings back the memories of going since I was a wee high school girl. Nikkole Martin and I would always go before a concert at Kilby Court and sit in the green bubble or back patio and dream about adventure. I make new memories every time I go, and this time was no exception. After Diva’s, we headed downtown; Damato played a free concert at The Galivan's Center on the 23^rd, and The Raydo show would not miss. The band was so happy to see a familiar face, and they embraced Drew with the same affections as me. I really appreciated that, and secretly Drew did too. We both find Jayce Alexander to be a teenage heart-throb! Before the show, all I

wanted was some Chinese food in that god-forsaken city. A columnist/reporter/blogger for Salt Lake Tribune that we met on the tracks suggested Cindy Lee Cafe for a cheap Americanized Asian experience.  Ah! My nuts were busted, I was starving to death and Cindy’s food was so damn good. Woowee! I went with the Beef LoMein, a classic. I didn’t regret it or have gastrointestinal issues or anything. I will absolutely go there again.As for Ogden news: the first Raptor's Baseball game of the season was on Wednesday the 22^nd, and although we lost by one, the fireworks made it a spectacular finish. Pioneer Days have commenced, and I look forward to the Whoopie Girl, (I love how she has stayed apart of Ogden’s history for over 70 years or so now.) the demolition derby, the painted horses that speckle the city sidewalks, and of course the fire works! Not to mention the sales that the local grocery stores will have, Rancho Market hooked me up with some produce for hella cheap! Speaking of those damned fireworks, my neighbors must think it’s the 4^th of July or something. They’re shooting them off like tomorrow is the end of the world! (It’s actually in October.) I keep thinking Orchard Avenue has turned into a shooting range, each pop and bang sounds like a gun is being fired.

 When I return from wedding season in Idaho, this next week will be booked to the max with summer happenings. Monday night is of course the movie in the park at the Ogden Amphitheater. Tuesday I will be house sitting and hanging out with old neighborhood friends at the parents’ house, (sshh! Don’t tell;})Wednesday is an adventure with Caitlin and maybe Sam... GIRRRRRLZ NIGHT! Thursday is the long-awaited Twilight Concert Series with one of my favorite bands, Explosions In The Sky …and yes, I liked them long before I even knew they were coming. I wish Ogden could host such events; it would certainly place this paradise of the map. Friday night will most definitely be spent at Mojosor Borrowed Earth Emporium with Drucifer and the gang. Saturday is the only night I work. But party all the same. I LOVE SUMMER NIGHTS IN OGDEN!!