Wednesday, December 19, 2012

I gots da monay

Sweeeeer

Uh

Sweeeeeet

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

The semester's ending

and I suddenly realize I have tons of free time. And am relaxed.

A lot of my semester was filled up with homework, classes, work, volunteering, church, etc. Now that things are winding down, the organizations and things I spent a lot of my extra time doing are done and I have so much free time.

Homework - just end projects that are relatively simple.
Classes - my classes are enjoyable to begin with.
Work - work is easy. I'm writing this post at work = enough said.
Volunteering - all the activities I volunteered with are done. And we get an appreciation dinner on Thursday.
Church - my calling was FHE dad and our FHE sisters were bums and never hardly ever pulled their weight or came. (Gals, if you read this, truth hurts.)

Also, as it gets closer to the end of the semester, it always seem like everybody goes bananas and stresses out about everything. I have never once stressed out at the end of a semester. Same thing with midterm exams during the middle of the semester. Everyone always gets really stressed and tense during those times as well. I don't. Maybe they are just faking it to get some sympathy because they are all princesses?

Point is, don't stress out or you'll get pimples or shingles. You can also get pimples by drinking 24 cans of Mountain Dew in the period of three days. I've been there.

Monday, December 3, 2012

I failed NaBloPoMo...but Mom is cool.

Mathematically speaking, I failed NaBloPoMo. I made 11 posts in the month of November. When you divide 11 by the amount of days in November, which is 30, you get 0.3666 repeated. 36% is a horrible F.

Well, to redeem myself, I'll post a paper which I had to write for my class. I was to interview someone in my family about their "migration history." I figured I'd call home and interview whoever answered whether it be Mom or Dad. Or a robber if he/she was robbing the place at the time.

(I tried to make it cheesy/corny/humorous because I figured the 45 girls and 4 other guys in my class would be dry writers.And, yes, there are about 45 girls and 5 guys [including me] in my class.)



My Mother’s Migration

Leaves fell and summer started to wind down as that very first day of August 1960 brought new life into this world and my mother was placed into my grandmother’s arms. They decided to keep her and named her Patricia. Patricia Brimhall. Little did she, or my grandparents, know the adventures that lay ahead of her and the impact they would have on her.

The town was South Weber, UT. My grandfather was a working man who, for as long as I can remember, always had a love for tinkering and building things. They lived there in South Weber for about six years until they moved in the summer of ’66. During those six years between my mother’s birth and her family moving, my grandfather had built a house in Clinton, UT. That is to where they moved. My grandfather and my grandmother had a big family and they needed more room in order to expand.

Life was quaint and comfortable until yet again, it was decided that more room was needed and more land was needed as well. This took them to West Point, UT in the summer of 1971. Both my mother and father come from big families and it was always a joke of my parents that they had so many of us kids so that they could put us to work in the yard and around the home.

Now, having mentioned my father, this is where he comes into my mother’s life. How they met, dated, fell in love, and got married is a tale that would send this two-page-maximum paper over its limit. To summarize, my mother and father were both attending Weber State University in Ogden, UT. They decided they liked each other a whole bunch and so they got married October 16, 1980. Since they were attending university, they figured it’d be easier to simply move to Ogden. Little did my mother know that marrying my father would bring on many moves and changes. My father joined the Air Force after college and went to officer school. It was a pretty sweet deal because he kept going to college all over the place and it was all paid for by Uncle Sam.

The first place that my parents moved to (this is now May/June 1983) after my father graduated from Weber State with a degree in mathematics was Auburn, AL where my father attended Auburn University and got a second undergraduate degree, this one in electrical engineering. He could have gone to any school of his choosing but they finally decided Auburn as it had the best engineering program (obviously, BYU-Idaho wasn’t around yet at this point in time). He got this second degree in record time and went into Air Force service working on engineering projects. The first assignment sent my mother and father to Las Vegas, NV in December 1984. They spent about three years here while my father worked. My mother explained to me that she never really loved moving around especially as they started having children. By this time they had three of them.

The summer of 1987 brought on yet another move as my father had to complete a “hardship” tour. Now, he had a choice. He would have to spend one year overseas in an area that his family wouldn’t be able to join him. But, there was one “hardship” location where he could serve for two years and his family would be able to join him. That location was Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. So, in the summer of 1987, my mother and father packed up their three kids and belongings and moved to the Middle East.

Leaving behind American comforts of home and the familiar American way of life, my mother traveled overseas to a land of hijabs, camels, and military compound housing. At least she was with my father.
Two years went by and my mother realized that a glorious fourth addition would be joining the family shortly. So, still under the jurisdiction of Uncle Sam, my mother and father and their 3.7 children moved back to the good ole’ USA to Mesa, AZ in the summer of 1989. Once again, my father got his education paid for while getting a graduate degree in electrical engineering at Arizona State University. Mesa was a good place for my mother to move to as two of her sisters were now living in the Phoenix area. On December 16, 1989 the most miraculous gift from God was given to my parents in the form of a brand new son named Nathaniel Keith Lewis. My mother was so overjoyed at this new arrival that she decided that in December 1990, Albuquerque, NM should get the opportunity to revel in Nathaniel’s presence. Also, the Air Force wanted my father there. Luckily, another one of my mother’s sisters was living in Albuquerque at the time so that made the move and transition easier.

After two years in Albuquerque, my father’s commitment to the United States Air Force came to an end and he took a job in El Centro, CA working for an electrical engineering firm. My parents packed up their bags and now five children and moved to Mexico El Centro. It suffices to say that after about a year they felt their time in El Centro was about 9-10 months overstayed. My father took a new job and in December 1993, my family drove across the United States to Reston, VA where it is pretty much as far away from El Centro as you can get.

Life was good and happy in Reston but something that my father had always wanted to do was to live and work in Germany. Before he had met my mother, he had served a mission in southern Germany and had learned the language. Interestingly enough, an opportunity arose within his company and they were looking for someone that they could send to Berlin, Germany to work on some projects. My father saw this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and took it. Now, mind you, by this time, there were now six kids in my family ranging from about 17 to about 2 years of age. And my father wasn’t in the military anymore meaning that we wouldn’t live in military housing with other Americans immediately nearby. And my mother didn’t speak any German (or Arabic when they were in Riyadh). These were trying times for my mother. But, with her eyes straight ahead and a heart full of faith, my parents made the move. This was August 1997.

Six years. Six years went by in Germany. This was the longest time that my parents had lived anywhere together. Fortunately, my mother learned German. In fact, all of us children learned German too. My mother met other American women in our ward and mothers of other American children with whom we went to school. The food was fine and the neighboring countries provided from some amazing family vacations. My mother survived.

One last job transfer has brought my family back to the USA. My parents liked the east coast so much that in August 2003 they moved back to Virginia, this time to Ashburn which is where I tell people I’m from. They are now empty nesters and one-by-one, all the children have left to live their own lives and become first-class world travelers like their mother.

Who better to take an example from than mom?

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Awkward situations aka don't hang out with me

I don't know why it is, but I think awkward situations are really, really funny. And I purposely try to make them and watch how people react.

Some instances as of recent:

1. I'm in an art class and we make clay pots and paint stuff and draw and a lot of the projects turn out really dumb and I don't want them. I've already gotten an A on them, so now what? In between my art class and the class after that (a class about light and sound and how our eyes and ears deal with light and sound physically, biologically, and psychologically) I try and give my artwork away to random students. And no one ever wants it! I mean, yeah, it looks dumb they would have no use for it, but whats the difference if I was giving away a clay coil pot or an Xbox?

2. Today at work this girl came in to talk to one of the professors. I was manning the front desk and thi girl was just playing on her phone and I thought "Hey, maybe she's hungry?" So, I turned towards her (the view was blocked by an ivy) and said "Hey, do you want some candy?" She took about five seconds to look up and said "Uhh, are you talking to me?" "Yeah," I said, "we have lots of Christmas candy. Want some?" "Uhh, no thanks." Her loss; it was really good.

3. I've started raising my hand like it's all deformed like this or this with the back of the hand towards the instructor. People think it's funny but I do it to spice things up because class gets boring sometimes.

4. Ghosting people in between classes. I never get caught because I'm sneaky.

Yeah, and other stuff here and there.

I have a list of social experiments I want to do. Maybe as I accomplish them I'll let you know. Or not because for some of them I want to keep my identity a secret...

Friday, November 23, 2012

Baby Calvin and I will be millionaires

Everybody likes watching videos of babies laughing right? Well, they do, and so Baby Calvin and I decided that we're going to monetize his laughter and get rich by means of the interweb.

I recorded a video of Baby Calvin laughing, put it on my computer, uploaded it to the Youtube and now it's going to go viral and Youtube is going to pay us so much as a "Thank you" for bringing the internet yet another baby video.

So, I present to you the video that will make Baby Calvin and me millionaires:





Thursday, November 22, 2012

...i hate technology...

i literally spent the last hour writing a really good post. and then it all went and got deleted.

Blargjshskdjxkdosnsbahqhaodjsh.

So here's a funny picture:



Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Per Anna's request - The $100 challenge

Anna gave me (and the rest of the world too I guess) a shout-out in her post asking what I'd do with $100. Of course, since I've been on a Harry Potter rush for the past few weeks, I've decided to follow the example of Leprechaun gold and only give myself a set amount of time (shall we say 24 hours?) and see what would happen.

...

I could be responsible and use it wisely like buy an actual full tank of gas or get groceries, but seeing as I'm almost 23 and single and independent, why not go crazy? Two words: animal shirts. Yep, I'd probably spend all $100 on animal shirts. At least five or six could easily be purchased. I own four animal shirts and sweater and honestly they get maximum complements. Like this one. I have this one ordered and am just waiting for its arrival = super excited.

But Nathan! Why don't you just go to DI and get a whole bunch for $2 a piece? It isn't that easy because they go like hot cakes. Or Twinkies nowadays. In all of my DI excursions, I've only ever found one shirt: my tan shirt with a print of an elk doing its call.

Also, I might hold off on a couple of the shirts and buy a pair of pants instead to wear for dates.

Also, I really like your idea, Anna, of incorporating art-links to specific words. Meow.




Sunday, November 18, 2012

What I would realistically do with $1,000,000

We all are asked all the time what we would do with a million dollars, right? Instantaneously, thoughts of grand vacations and luxury cars fill our minds. And lots and lots of candy. Well, I was thinking about and thought, "How far would $1,000,000 actually get me and my 'dreams'?" Here's how I'd break it down (realistically):

- Sell LaFawnduh the Honda = + $2,500
- Buy Texas the Lexus = - $35,065
- Pay for my own school/rent = - $15,000
- Complete the travel section of my bucket list = - $4,000

And that's pretty much it. I'm left with $948,435. Of course, tithing is paid had I received the money cleanly, so that brings it to $848,435.

What to do, what to do.

Meh, probably I'd invest a lot of the rest. Or start a fur-trading business.

Also, that lots and lots of candy idea doesn't sound so bad either.

Saturday, November 17, 2012

STEAL FROM ALISON HAHAHA

As you can tell, this NaBloPoMo thing and I can't really agree on a solid, steady schedule. I've been meaning to write something but I guess I'll attribute my lack of posting due to writer's block. And I hardly even consider myself a writer.

So I went over here this morning to read what Ali had posted and her line "Ooh maybe I will write about my bucket list tomorrow..." got me thinking about my own bucket list and what is currently on the list inside my head. Alison, as much as I dislike thievery, you got my creative juices flowing and for that, I thank you.

Ahem, may I present The Bucket List of N. K. Lewis (In no particular order):

       1. Go to Iceland.
       2. Go to Africa. (Yes, that is very vague but I mean like 3rd world Africa...)
       3. Travel around the Balkans.
       4. Sleep in a building on campus. OVERNIGHT.
       5. Swim in the pond in the middle of campus.
       6. Pull a meal (plate, fork, knife, cup, food, etc.) out of my bag and eat in the middle of class.
       7. ...

Umm, wow. That's all that's coming to mind. Travel and random things here at BYU-Idaho. In my defense, I just woke up about 30 minutes ago and it takes me a few hours before I'm socially functional.

Alison, sorry to have disgraced you by stealing your idea and totally being lame.


Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Stew and gingersnaps


I made my first stew of the season:

Behold.

I haven't tried it yet, so I can't say if it turned out alright. It actually kind of looks like throw up...but whatever.

EDIT: It is now 10:37 PM. The stew's been doing its thing for ~4 hours. It tastes marvelous. You all are welcome to Rexburg to sample my wares.

I'm also in the process of making a bunch of mini gingersnaps. They're each about 1 inch wide. Tomorrow is our Colonial Fair at the elementary school, so I'm making gingersnaps (I guess they ate those back in the day?) and I bought 25 lbs. of clay with which to make dice and marbles.

I still have a ton of dough so there's going to be a lot more.


Thursday, November 8, 2012

Kershaw Intermediate School

This semester I'm in a preliminary student teaching class. For those of you that have yet to know, I'm studying Elementary education here at The Brigham Young University of Idaho. Taa daa.

Anyway, every Wednesday and Friday, the girl I'm partners with (Mom, Alison, Lisa, Katie, and Anna: she's married. Don't start.) and I go to Mrs. Zorbachonk247's (name has been changed) 5th grade class and work with her students. I finally got all of the student's names down today of which I'm very proud.

We teach lessons mainly about social studies and history. We are currently doing colonies and it's been groovy. I had to learn them myself as I never had to in Germany.

The school is pretty small when I compare it to Dogwood Elementary. That's where I went for Kindergarten and 1st grade and it was the only American elementary school I ever attended. It's in Sugar City (Kershaw Intermedate is, not Dogwood Elementary), the next city north-northeast of Rexburg. Everyone knows everybody in the town and I know some of the students sisters and cousins so... small world, eh?

I'm horrible at ending these posts so here's a funny video: (Right at 1:04 is something Mom would say)



Parenting: you're doing it right.

Monday, November 5, 2012

My job

So, since I'm here currently at work and I know I haven't been 100% diligent in posting, what better time to post than at work?

I work for BYU-Idaho in the Academic Administration office.

This is my official name tag. It's the same picture
that's on my student ID and yes, the mustache is real.
Yes, Chris, Bryan, and David, you may revel over its glory.

My job is actually super easy and laid back. My main job, I think, is to answer phones. As no one really ever calls my extension (twice maybe this semester?) this gives me lots of downtime. I mean, sometimes I'm asked to scan something or run something to another department on campus but for the most part I do homework, read the news, play games on my phone, make origami, and eat the candy from the candy bowls that we set out. Ahhhh, on-campus jobs.

This is my desk right now. I have yet to answer the phones
or do anything important today and I get off in 5 minutes. Winning.

I guess the only "downside" is that I have to wear a shirt and tie to work. And since I work every single day, I don't wear normal clothes all that often. Just Tuesdays and Thursdays when I have a few hours between school and work. All in all, it's a good job and the people I work for and the other students I work with are groovy so no complaints there either.

 This is me. In case you forgot.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Snorkels, Albuquerque, and Platypi

I gave Katrina over at here the opportunity to give a few words and I am going to attempt to tie them into my life.

1) Snorkels. This is easy: I've never been snorkeling. I've never been scuba diving. BUT, when I was in the fire department in high school we played with the scba's (like scuba but without the "u" part which stands for underwater fyi) and that was neat. Bam, scba's beats scuba beats snorkels.

2) Albuquerque. This is easy as well: I used to live there. Do I remember anything about it? Not at all. Well, I do remember going through Albuquerque to get to Philmont back in either sophomore or junior year of high school. We stayed in a hotel there for a night. Philmont was cool: 15ish boys hiking for 10 days without taking showers. Bam, Albuquerque.

3) Platypi. Now this one is hard. Fun facts: Platypi (is this the correct pluralization) lay eggs and have barbs on their hind feet. And they're mammals. And they still even lay eggs. Bam, fun facts.

Well, there you have it folks. Meh, family. You guys are my main audience. Peace out scout.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Back on the internet

Ok, well, that title, first off, is a lie. I've been on the internet for a while. What I mean to say is that I'm back to the art of blogging. Seeing as this is NaBloPoMo (and because Anna asked nicely), I'm going to start writing again.

School's going well. Classes are fun for the most part. Apartment's nice, friends are neat. Work is easy, I mainly just sit at a desk and do homework. Volunteering every now and then. That's pretty much my life up here in Rexburg.

My creative writing skills are pretty rusty and since I'll be posting every day, I'll post about something new/diferent/awkward that I'll have done that day. So here goes: today I bought dark chocolate and marzipan. Here's proof:



I was kind of worried but the chocolate was surprisingly really good for being so dark. The marzipan was good as well. When their forces combined, it was like a party erupted in my mouth and everyone had received a VIP invitation.

- Nathan