Long days, no dating. lol.

You know, I get my own self in trouble when it comes to dating. I wonder why I never--hardly ever--date. Well, being that I have been around a little while in the dating world, my wants in a companion have become quite focused. Hence, I slough off many potential candidates because they just don't fit right. Ugh.

Then I get down on myself and wonder why I am having to wait for so long. Days draw out forever, I'm like...is there ANYONE out there I can connect with? Anyone else on my same wavelength? Helooooooooo out there????

Sigh.....maybe I should stop being so picky. lol. But come on, where do you draw the line?

EFY Flu....interesting....there you have it.

So, I was wondering why this sickness is taking so long to get over. So I checked in with some of the girls that had brothers who got sick at EFY, and also the girl, and she told me that her brother got tested, and it was in fact Influenza A. I researched the symptoms and I was like...DUH! No wonder I have been so sick. LOL. So, since I have no insurance, I just called BYU Health Center and talked to a nurse and told her I caught the bug going around at EFY and that I knew someone, and that he said he got diagnosed with Influenza A, and that my symptoms matched....and she confirmed that Influenza A was in fact going around at EFY. She said they dont really have medicine to fix it, just that I needed to get some rest, drink plenty of water, don't exercise (dang...oh well, not much energy anyways)....I also asked her if it was swine flu, and she said that Influenza A and Swine Flu are the same thing. hahaha....So anyways, to those of you concerned about Swine Flu, just know that it isn't any different than the regular flu--it only has the worst effects on those who already have underlying health conditions. Here is an article about it:

Flu symptoms raise concerns at BYU summer camps

Reported by: Brent Hunsaker Last Update: 1:04 am

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PROVO, Utah County (ABC 4 News) – Each week during the summer, two to three thousand kids descend on the Brigham Young University campus. They attend a variety of youth camps. The most popular camp is called “Especially for Youth” – EFY. During the first week of June, several EFY participants and their counselors came down with flu symptoms. Sarah Christensen was a counselor during that week. “All these kids started dropping like flies!” she said. Sarah did not get sick, but one of her girls did. Another counselor and even some of the participants claim the number of sick easily exceeded 100. But the official tally was five counselors and five students sent home early. “We are taking a very aggressive stand,” said BYU spokesperson Carrie Jenkins. Here are some of the steps being taken: Organizers are communicating with all teens who are scheduled for camps for the remainder of the summer. They’re being told, “If you’re sick, don’t come.” And if they can’t come to camp because of illness, Jenkins said they will be rescheduled or given a refund. Also, between sessions crews are taking extra care to clean and sanitize the dorm rooms. And during orientation, the kids are told to “minimize” touching. Hand handshakes, hand holding and hugging are discouraged. Sarah observed, “They’re very wise in what they’re doing. They’re making sure that infected counselors aren’t going to continue and that they stop the flu in the session that we were at.” Lance Madigan, a spokesman for the Utah County Health Department agrees with Sarah’s assessment – the precautions are appropriate. “It’s the flu,” said Madigan. “You want to take regular precautions. But we don’t necessarily want people hiding in their homes.”

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Back from EFY!!!

EFY was so fun. SO FUN. SO EXHAUSTING!!! lol. Talk about constant worry, constant schedule, stressing out, and reaching out!

I dont even know where to begin. I had 14 girls, they were great girls. Couldn't have gotten better ones. One of the biggest challenges I found was being their friend and also their counselor. I had to do a skirt check once and skip morning scripture study to find this girl a modest skirt, and I think she hated me after that, but I was only doing what was best for her and keeping EFY a placed where the Spirit could be.

One of my favorite outcomes was that two of my girls that were really struggling expressed to me afterwards that they had found the answers they were looking for. I can't tell you how that brought tears to my eyes after all my trying to express my heart and my testimony to them in hopes that they would feel the Spirit and make forward strides in their lives towards the Savior. I loved hearing their testimonies during testimony meeting. I loved watching all the girls interact with the young men of our group, and hearing them express how they were now determined to find a worthy priesthood holder who could take them to the temple. Each girl felt the same way. I will attribute that to my co counselor, Nate, who was able to befriend his guys and get them to respect him and do things right by treating the ladies like ladies. Yay for good guys!!

Now I am physically and emotionally exhausted. I actually came down with a really yucky bug. I don't know what it is but I am coughing and my head is totally stuffed, I just want to sleep all the time. Thankfully no nausea. That could mean swine flu. LOL. Actually, we had an epidemic at EFY. They had to send 20 counselors home and I think about 200 kids. It spread like wildfire! Talk about mass chaos for the health counselors!! Yuck!! I just hope mine doesnt turn into Influenza, like one kid got diagnosed with! Supposedly that is the beginning of swine flu. Ew!! They thought it was swine flu, thankfully they are pretty sure it wasn't. Haha wouldn't that be kind of funny? 2400 kids quarantined for swine flu due to EFY.

Pre-EFY Thoughts!

Wow! So, EFY is starting THIS WEEK!! I've been perusing through the EFY manual, and there is soo much stuff in there! Wow no wonder they say that it is draining! I am a little intimidated, not gonna lie! For one, I am not one of those always super peppy cheerleader people. That lasted about a semester in high school, and even then..yah. So I am a little nervous about that expectation.

However, we did have EFY training today. They started us out with the line dances....actually they just played the music and danced to it. haha. Everyone else kind of either followed or pretended like we knew what we were doing or just kind of stood there....(oh pick me for that one! The standing there part, that is.)

They did keep telling us that our first priority is as teachers. This was comforting to me because this is my comfort zone. I mean, not that I know everything by all means, but teaching something of such great importance to such an impressionable age means that I can't just pull it out of my hat with some crazy fun candy and cheers....it really means that I'm gonna have to be on guard all the time seeking for teaching opportunities. That is intimidating, but I know that if I am really keeping my heart in the right place and seeking the guidance of the Lord that I can know what words to say. Maybe that's why its more comforting to think about it that way, because maybe my personality type isn't your typical "EFY Counselor" type, but at least I can do the most important stuff, besides just reaching out to them and being their friend, and I can handle that. Hopefully. :) Oh so much to think about!

I have a huge bag of books and stuff that I can use as resources for lessons. Actually, if anyone out there has any ideas or anything that they experienced with EFY counselors that was good for you, something that stood out or the way they were towards you or whatever, please let me know! I am all ears!!! I've never even been to EFY so please, feel free to talk!