Thursday, June 27, 2013

RIP Flo


One of my favorite life stories to share and laugh about is the time I saw a ghost.

So let's journey back to either my senior year of high school.  In Morgan, it's a small town. There are only so many things you can do over and over on the weekends with your friends before you have to get stupidly creative, or branch out to new territory.


By the time we were seniors, we frequented Ogden.  We would head down for dinner, a movie, maybe "drag" Washington Boulevard with all the gangsters for some good laughs.  Then we went through this phase in our group of friends (we had lots of weird phases... poker phases, night game phases, hair-dying phases, etc.).  However this phase is what I'll call, "the scary" phase.  We wanted to do anything scary!  We went to the cemeteries in Morgan, visited "The Porterville" house (an old abandoned house in Morgan), and a few friends in this high school posse got brave enough to try a Ouija board (I think the board started out homemade, and eventually was purchased at Wal-Mart.... and for the record I did not participate in this! But this is a great story for another time!)


So part of "the scary" phase was going to the Ogden City cemetery to see "Flo". The story was that many years ago, there was a girl named Florence Grange, Flo for short. It was just her and her mom, there was no dad in the picture. Her mom worked really long hours to support the two of them, so Flo would go across the street to a neighbors house until her mother came home.  Her mother left really early for work, and wouldn't come home until after dark each night. This street they lived on had no street lights at the time. So, to make sure Flo crossed the street safely in the dark each morning and night, they had a system.  Flo's mother would get in her car and flash her headlights three times, and that was when Flo knew it was safe to cross.

Well tragically, on the night of December 29th, there was an accident.  Flo's mother had returned home from a long night of work and flashed the headlights three times for Flo to cross the street. Unfortunately, in the time the headlights were flashed and Flo crossed the street, a car came speeding down the street at such a rush there was no time for them to stop once they saw Flo.  This is how Flo died. She is buried in the Ogden cemetery.


It's said that if you go to the Ogden cemetery on a full moon (of course, you can't do anything scary without a full moon), and drive to this particular street in the cemetery that has a slight hill at the top of it and park, flash your headlights three times, Flo's ghost will appear.

Okay, so I can't remember the story perfectly, and may have thrown in my own details, but this is the gist of it. Moving on to when I saw a ghost.

So we heard this story of Flo and had tried a few times to go test out the myth, but were chased out by the Neighborhood Watch.  BUT, finally, we had the perfect night.  We went late enough that Neighborhood Watch was gone, and you better believe there was a full moon out!

I was the driver, my best friend Brandon in the passenger seat, and our three other best friends Nick, Natalie and Stacey were crammed in the back seats (I think!). We had driven slowly and with our lights off to the top of this inclined street so that no one could here us.  It was time!

I parked, turned off the car, and flashed the lights three times.


We sat there and waited.

Now to be honest, I had NO expectations of seeing anything. I mean come on.  It's just a fun thing for teenagers to do on the weekends when their bored and looking for a good time.  It was exciting and challenging to get even get to this point of being in the cemetery without being chased out.

Keep in mind, it was a full moon and a clear night. We could see pretty well around us.  We'd been sitting in the car long enough that the backseat of the car had lost a little interest I think and weren't paying super close attention.  Brandon and I however had our eyes fixed on the road in front of us, just kind of listening to the conversation going on in the back seat. Then, it happened.

Suddenly, this haze appeared... it didn't really have a form at first.

I was too stunned to say anything, and didn't really trust myself to believe what I was seeing, let alone say anything out loud about it. I heard Brandon say, "Do you see..." and all I could say was "uh-huh..."  as we watched this haze gain a more human-like form by the second.  It was transparent and kind of an eery green glowing color.

It started to look like it was getting closer to the car, but I couldn't tell if it was just my eyes playing tricks on me.

I asked Brandon, "Does that thing look like it's moving to you?"

He replied, "uh... yeah.. I think so!"

Brandon and I were freaking out!  By the time the backseat caught on to what was happening, Brandon was yelling "Let's GO!!! Get us out of here!"  I panicked and started the car with our headlights flashing right into the ghost of Flo! Backing the car up seemed like it would take too much time, and Flo was coming fast! So I started to hit the gas driving straight for Flo.

Brandon screamed "NO!!!! Don't drive through it!!! Are you crazy!?!?" But, it was too late, my foot was on the gas, and we were getting out!

We made it out of the cemetery alive, and none of us seemed to be possessed by the ghost of Flo after we drove right through her.  I know that very few people believe me when I say, I SAW A GHOST! But people, I really did! And I have a witness!

So that was the time I saw a ghost, and then ran it over.  Sort of ironic that her ghost relived the experience of being run over just how she died the night we visited her.

Rest in Peace Flo! May you continue giving bored teenagers stories to tell for generations in the Ogden cemetery.


Friday, June 14, 2013

& then there was light

Over the past year, I have had women in my life face more trials than I could ever begin to comprehend.  They have been so inspiring, and I want to share their stories and invite you to help them find the light at this end of this tunnel of trials.

BAILEE

Bailee Brinkerhoff is a dear friend from my mission. She kept me sane a hundred times over during the hardest of times! Last fall, she met and fell in love with an incredible guy named Taylor Morris. They are FINALLY getting married August 9th!
 Click here for their story, you won't regret it. Their optimism blows me out of the water!
 http://fundly.com/bailee-brinkerhoff-roserunners-tayandbay-campaign#


 The beautiful Madeline Rose

Taylor walking for the first time since the accident

 One of their engagement pics! Taylor's back brace being a prop.



PLEASE WATCH THEIR FILM! It says it so much better than I can. And if you feel you can, help them find the light at this end of this tunnel of trials.  They have over $340,000 of medical expenses to pay.


Here is a link to their blog: http://tayandbay.blogspot.com/


Here is what they have put together in honor of Madeline Rose (and if you are a runner, you'll want to check this out!): http://roserunners.org/

AMY

Amy Wengert starting working on the same floor as me a few months ago. She is also a newly of about 7 months. Here is her story:
This link will take you to a quick video of the latest story
https://vimeo.com/68458059



Amy and Dallin have a long and unknown road ahead of them. For this reason family and friends and uniting to raise money to help Dallin's long-term recovery and other costs associated with the accident. If you are able to and would like to donate, please follow the link below. Thank you in advance!"


 Amy has also since announced that she is expecting a baby in January.

Here is a news article you can read about the accident:
http://news.hjnews.com/allaccess/article_7f631598-ccaa-11e2-b8e3-001a4bcf887a.html

You can join their Facebook group for daily updates on how Dallin and Amy are doing: https://www.facebook.com/DallinandAmyWengert

My Thoughts:

    I can't imagine being in either of these situations.  But when I try to, it's incredibly humbling. Bailee and Amy are rocks. Being engaged, newlyweds, or pregnant with these kinds of tragedies... not so sure that is something I could handle with the kind of optimism and faith they have.  However, I do know that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. And I do know it will come.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Big Moments

A couple of weekends ago Dan and I took a little road trip.

My brother Garet (who by the way is moving to Logan in the fall, is a complete stud, and totally available!) graduated from Snow College and we spent the night in Ephraim.  It was about a 3 hour drive, and a nice physical getaway from Northern Utah.

We stayed the night in a hotel with my mom and grandma which is always a good time... especially in Ephraim.  Besides the unusual sleeping habits that every person in the room had, (snoring, reading till 4:00am in the bathroom, and sleep apnia) there was a cat fight between to girls at 3:00am, both of which were screaming at the top of their lungs- and a few gunshots to follow.  I'm grateful that I have always been blessed with the gift of deep sleep and didn't hear a thing all night!

There were a few other crazy people we ran into during the 14 hours we were in this little college town, and am 100% confident in saying I will NEVER live anywhere in Utah south of Spanish Fork, unless its St. George!

But besides our exposure to the little town of Ephraim, we had a great time celebrating my brother in his achievement. (WARNING: I look horrendous in these pictures, but hey it wasn't my big day!)
 The Graduate!
 Proud Mom
My Brothers: Gavin, Garet, and I
 My cute Grandma Anne
The whole gang

A little secret, I cry when I see other people during big moments in their life.  For example, the Ragnar race runs in front of my mom's house in Morgan every year. It's actually the point where there is a hand-off, the next person is being tagged to run. The person who is doing the tagging just ran miles and miles of hills and they are always exhausted.  I can see from the front window, this whole process of the runner, booking it down the last hill with every ounce of energy they have. I cry I every time.  I am so inspired by people who meet the challenge and do hard things.

So it was a really great moment to watch my little brother (who is actually taller than me) finish his time at Snow College. He received the best grades he's ever had in his life; he took hard classes and was really diligent in his studies. He worked hard and earned a great reward! He now is has a scholarship to Utah State and will be moving to Logan in the fall.  I'm pretty excited about this, it'll be nice to have a family member close by and to have some good sibling bonding.

This last week my pretty much only cousin graduated high school from Mountain Crest here in Cache Valley.  I again couldn't help but get a little teary eyed again thinking about all she has done and accomplished! She is coming to USU in the fall too.  I'm so excited for her to start college and experience the joys and learning curves of freshman year-- it's the best!


I love accomplishments in life. I love the progression, maturity, and wisdom that comes from WORK, dedication, discipline, and drive.

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

PRANCERCISE

So every once in awhile, you come across a little something in life that makes you laugh so hard you cry every time you think about it. So before you continue reading, I insist that you watch the video below! It's only five minutes, and if you wanna catch the highlights, forward to the following times:

The Prancercise Walk: Start at Beginning
The Prancercise Trot (It's really hot!): 1:17
The Prancercise Gallop (cut the noose and let it loose!): 2:23
 The Prancercise Shadow Box (it's better to be punching into space, than in your face!): 3:30
The Wrap-Up: 4:43


If you think this is great, wait until you check out her website! 


And if you think that is great, wait until you click on her book at Amazon.com and read the reviews!

 Oh my I cannot get over this picture with the photoshopped horse!

 So now you have met Joanna Rohrback, Owner/MGR.M of Prancercise LLC!

Sometimes I don't know how people come up with this stuff! 
 
So next time you are out walking your dog, doing your morning exercise, or walking through the mall, don't be afraid to get a little prancercise in! And remember, "Get out there, and have some fun!"