good thinking

(read below to understand image, from Slumdog Millionare)

Well,

I am sick! For the first time since my surgery last summer on my tonsils, I finally got sick. This has been the longest time period that I can remember having without being sick! What a good decision it was back then to get those puppies out. Although at the time, it was not so fun, I am reaping the benifits now. Of course this is a type of much in life, but I have digressed on that subject many a time and will talk of other things today.

This upcoming week is my most packed week of the semester, as a result today's entry will be shorter as I need to continue reviewing journal entries, discounts, and A/R stuff. (I know all the accountants out there are cheering.)

The weekend was good, very productive, I was able to complete a presentation due Wednesday, complete a good portion of my econometrics problem set, and get ready for the 2 tests which I have tomorrow. I also finally saw Slumdog Millionare. Oh my. Such a good movie. If you haven't seen it yet, you are missing out, there is a reason that the film is supposed to get best picture this year. Truly a remarkable film. The story is one of overcoming odds, but in the most extreme way. It is a love story also. It's funny how when you are in love, watching love story's are so much more meaningful. I don't want to spoil the ending of the film but at the end of the movie I couldn't stop thinking about Allison, and what I am and would be willing to go through to have her in my life. Go see the movie when it comes out. Lucky for me, my roommates Dad is a film critic, so I have it already, but you need to see this one. (Disclaimer: It is R for violence and some profanity, this one is not for the kids.)

My fever is coming in waves, and it just started up again, I am going to go drink some more water. 19 days until I am with Allison! So soon! So far we are planning on the following:

- Salsa dancing lesson

- going to see some caves and hot springs

- going to SLC

- maybe seeing the Draper temple open house

- watching Slumdog Millionare

More will surely follow, but that is all that we have so far planned. Well, back to accounting!

-dallin

love

ugh...
Today started at 3:30 am at Uncle Jon's house, and it is now 7:21 PM at West Point. Man I am so tired. The weekend was incredible. First of all, I need to thank those who helped us out this weekend. First and foremost, Jon and Bonnie Rosdahl & family. They were so incredibly helpful. Uncle Jon was at the airport to pick me up, they let me borrow a car, and Aunt Bonnie made an incredible dinner Sunday afternoon. It was so much fun to spend time with their family. Also JD Tueller and his family had us over for breakfast Sunday morning and let me crash Saturday night on an extra bed in the house. I left this weekend feeling so grateful for my family and friends that are willing to help Allison and I out. Our relationship is supported by so many, and we couldn't do what we do without the help of our friends and family. The sacrifices of my family has blessed our relationship so much.

As for the weekend, it was amazing. I love Allison. When we were driving to my Uncle's house Sunday I started thinking about the horrific travel day looming ahead of me. And as I thought of that, I stole a glance across the car to Allison, and there she was smiling, laughing and glowing. Once again I was reminded why it is we do what we do for each other.
When we first started to get serious about our relationship we both kind of struggled to define what love is, and what it means to us. I am starting to catch a glimpse of the part of love that is sacrifice. For Allison and I, just to see each other's face in person requires a $400 plane ticket, 7 hours of travelling, and jet lag. We have to give so much in order to keep this relationship going, and i think that that is one of the greatest things about our situation. We can never take each other for granted.

Sitting here, 2000 miles away from her when I was 2 feet away from her 24 hours ago absolutley kills me inside. She is my best friend. There is no one in the world that I would rather be with then her. No one can make me laugh like she can, no one gets me like she does. I love her so much. And despite the pain that I feel everytime I kiss her goodbye, I know that this is worth it. I know that I love her and that she loves me. And this refiner's fire which we are going through together will bless us so much in the future, of that I am confident.

I am so blessed to have her in my life. I can't wait for Spring Break, 9 days together, it is going to be unreal. thanks again to all those which helped make this past weekend possible for us, thank you!!!

-dallin

January is over!

I think most people hate January. January, the month after the holidays, the beginning of a new year, cold, dark, long. Those are the words that came to my head when thinking about January. January actually wasn't too bad for me. It went by pretty quick, the highlight was 500th night of course.

February is looking pretty good. This upcoming week and the final week of February are going to be very busy in school. In 11 days I will be with Allison again! I am getting pretty excited about that. Just have to get through this and next weeks! Today was a good Sunday. I was able to sleep a little more because of fast Sunday which was sweet. I taught my primary class again. They are fun. I am trying to start out hard so they don't think that they can walk all over me. But they are just 5 years old, so I can't be too hard on them. The weekend was great. I think I spent around 5 hours on the phone with Allison. Now you may say, thats so much time! Get a life...but remember that if we were together we would spend twice that much time together in a weekend. I miss her so much though. Weekends are the worst. During the week it isn't that bad, I mean, I still miss her but I am so busy doing this and that that I can't focus on missing her too much. But when it is Friday afternoon, and I just want to cuddle up with her and watch a movie, it hurts...
The weather hasn't been too bad these past few weeks, I think tomorrow the high is supposed to be around 45 degrees! Well, I am ready for bed. This week I have 1 paper due, 1 quiz, 1 oral presentation, 1 test and an in progress review in my systems class! Should be funn.

-Dallin

Amazing Weekend

Well,

Allison just left. Hate that. But man did we have an amazing weekend. Let's see, Friday I drove into the city and met them at Rockefeller center. Allison and I went on a walk in central park, that's where the above picture was taken. We found this random gazeebo thing and managed to balance the camera on a rail to take the picture. We really could use a third wheel sometimes haha. Most all of the pictures which we have together were taken at arm's length. But after the park we found a random little cafe and I had a midafternoon snack.

We sat in there to avoid the cold for about an hour. Those are the times with her that I treasure the most. We weren't doing anything, just sitting, laughing and not thinking about anything else but the moment.

We then went and met her mom and aunt at this awesome restaurant on the upper-west side called The Atlantic Grill. Oh man the food was so good! And because it was restaurant week in Manhattan we got a three course meal for $35, which in Manhattan is a steal. After that we made our way down to Broadway and saw Mama Mia! That was actually really cool. The music was awesome, the actors were all incredibly talented, and it was pretty funny.

We went back to Allison's hotel after that and hung out for a while. We lost track of time talking about things and before we knew it it was 1am and because the place which I was going to stay was on the upper-west side, and we were at this point in mid-town east I just slept on the foldout bed.

Saturday morning we went out for breakfast, and then went to the Met. I haven't been there for nearly 4 years, so it was fun to be back. Allison loves art so it was fun to watch her recognize artists which she studies and likes. I love how she is into music and art. I know little about that kind of stuff.

We then made our way up to West Point to get her ready for the dance. While she was changing I took Mary and Sandy over to West Point for a quick modified tour of campus and showed them around a little. We shot back to the hotel though to try and escape the cold. Allison was just finishing up and I shaved, changed in about 4 minutes. We then went back over to campus and hung out in my room for a while till the dinner started. The dinner was awesome, the food was great and the speaker wasn't as dry as usual.

We then made our way down to the dance (it was slow moving with Allison in heals). The dance was so much fun. They had a live jazz band complete with a singer and everything. I think I managed to not step on her feet which is a success and she taught me a little about dancing. We had a great time though. We were out till about midnight and then Mary came and took us back to the hotel. Man I haven't been as tired as i was after the dance in a while, so I passed out quickly.

This morning we went to sacrament meeting, and then I saw them off! It was so much fun. Allison and I are doing great. We are learning a lot about each other. She is so good, I love her. Well, I need to get a head start on the week. Just 2.5 weeks till I go out to BYU to spend Valentine's day with her!

-Dallin

Trip to the temple, news from home....

Well,

Nothing signifigant happened today worth writing about, in fact I just noticed that I have 15 minutes till I my haircut appointment so I figured instead of reading the news I would write instead.

Saturday I made the trip down to the city with some RMs from the branch to the Manhattan temple. For those of you that have never been there it is right in the middle of New York City, one of the largest cities in the world. It is right by the Lincoln Center and Juliard. As we were running across Manhattan trying to make our appointment we dodged people, cars, cabs and buses to make it through the doors. New York is a loud place. But walking through the doors it is amazing to feel the contrasting quite that abounds in the Lord's house. True, every temple is quiet but in Manhattan you really feel the difference. We did baptisms, it was amazing. As I spent the afternoon I reflected much on the past few years of my life, the people who have made those years amazing, and the trials which I have dealt with.

I thought a lot about my Cambodian brothers and sisters, who would have given everything to spend a Saturday afternoon in the Lord's house doing His work. That made me more grateful to be in the temple.

I thought of Allison, and her example to me of a disciple of Christ, that made me more determined to be worthy of her love and support.

I thought of my family and the support which they give me everyday no matter where I am. That made me realize that I am who I am because of them.

I thought of Dillon in the Lord's service. That made me a little jealous.

It was an amazing experience, I left the temple that day energized and ready to go. This week Vindie found out that she and Lincoln will have a daughter. I am so excited for her. She is such a stud. Her example of obedience and faith has been a pillar in my life. I couldn't be happier for her. Well, 11 days has turned into less than 2, Allison gets here so soon! I am really excited. We will be in the city on Friday, probably go to central park (it is going to be 40 degrees! so warm), maybe a few art museums and a play on broadway. Saturday night we have my 500th night ball (500 days until graduation, but for the record it really is 485 days till graduation) which will be awesome. We have never been to a dance together, I hope she is wearing closed toed shoes for her toes sake haha. Life is good, but I need to get to my haircut.

-dallin

if you are looking for a new band to listen to, try:

http://www.purevolume.com/callahanlovesyou

They are sweet!

Notes from CES Fireside

My Personal Notes from remarks given by President Thomas S. Monson, 11 January 2009
-preparation is a vital factor in our lives
-academic preparation
-spiritual preparation
- testimony of Jesus Christ, this is the anchor to our souls, what is truth?
- doubt and faith cannot exist in the mind at the same time, an attitude of faith brings one closer to God

tips:
1. Avoid pitfalls in the track (oh just this once, my parents are so old fashioned) bad habits, good habits are the souls muscles, the more you use them, the more they grow.
2. Beware of the flashy start and unknown finish.
- beginners are many, but enders are few
- stick to your task until it sticks to you
- in the game of life, a second effort is often required
--This day, we sailed on
3. Help others in the race of life. An attitude of love gave mission to the Master. How many people did you help?
4. Seek the help of the Lord, remember that we do not run alone. We are entitled to His help.
- in order to find Him, we must make room for Him "birds have nests, foxes have holes..."

Make room for the Lord, and He will be your companion and your guide. You can go forward, and acheive your great expectations...

Jesus Christ is the author of my great expectations.


Well, that was awesome. I love the prophet. I love the calm, peaceful feeling that I feel when listening to his voice. The closing song to the fireside was fitting to how I have been feeling recently, "carry on". I am doing my best to prepare. I am on track to graduate at the top of my class here, I am on track to attend Stanford Business School and most importantly I am preparing myself to make the most important decision of my life. Yes, I think I am doing a good job of preparing myself.

11 days.

Dallin

for the sake of saving face

Well...

Another sweet week of life. Outside it is currently snowing like crazy...not cool. We just made 2 mile round trip walk downtown to buy sleds/discs. It was so cold. One of my new roommates Dave, is a 20 year old guy with a 9 year old spirit inside. He calls me grandpa and is convinced that I am a 65 year old man stuck in a 23 year old body so we balance each other out pretty well. But anyways, we are going to go sledding later on today, we are supposed to get around 12 inches of snow today. Ahhh, I hate snow! But I am glad that we are going to make the best out of it today.

We had lesson 1 for our classes Thursday and Friday, my classes seem to be pretty good. In SS307, International Relations, my teacher must have dropped the f, b, s, a bombs 5 times each in 55 minutes haha, he should keep things interesting. That class is infamous for the 20 page term paper that we have to turn in in April, but I am really interested in international relations, I must check cnn.com/msnbc.com/foxnews.com at least 3 times an hour each every day.

SS368, Econometrics 1, looks to be my challenge for the semester. Econometrics, basically the science of creating economic models, is a combination of economics, calculus, and statistics. MS300, combined operations, shouldn't be too bad, it is only a 1.5 credit class and as long as I pay attention in class I should do fine. My other classes: SE300, systems engineering; PE350 Army Fitness Development; Portuguese and Financial accounting shouldn't be too bad either.

So far my goals for the semester are:

- 4.0 GPA

-100% Home Teaching

-300 APFT (fitness test which I will take in April)

-stay positive and upbeat

Well, I need to prepare my lesson for primary tomorrow. I just got an email telling me that I will be teaching both my CTR 5/6 class along with the 7/8 year olds as well. I am excited about this new responsibility and excited to teach the Gospel again!

12 days until Allison comes out to New York! Wooohoooo. I am so excited. We are going to have a blast in NYC and then at the dance here.

I am currently listening to Cute is What We Aim For- Do What You Do. Talk to you later!

Dallin