Ben & Airy's Episode 1: Celtic Nights & The Duck

Introduction

Ariel and I first met on January 4th (or 5th?) of 2014. I tried impressing her by showing off a huge hole in my sock. A couple of weeks passed, however, and we talked a little more. These talks led to the following events. Now, whether my account is more accurate than Ariel's account...Well, we will leave that up to the readers to decide. Enjoy! :)

Ariel's Account

While I was working at flower shop I sort of won a free ticket to the Celtic Night show that evening and I was pretty excited about it because there were videos in the MC showing cool dances and bagpipes and stuff. While I was still pretty excited about it, Ben showed up and I showed him my free ticket and he volunteered to go with me if I was going alone. I was kind of glad because I wouldn’t have gone if I had to go alone.

When we got there we were told we were only allowed to sit in the bleachers. But then of course I saw that there were tons of closer spots! Whatever. We got a nice spot at the top with a good view and there were relatively few people around us.

We had gotten there pretty early so we had plenty of time to just sit and talk for a while. He spotted his friends way across the gymnasium and tried really hard to get me to see them. He told me a lot about his brothers which I really wasn’t paying much attention to. He didn’t know this about me but I just really struggle remembering names without faces. But he continued to regale me with stories about his siblings, his past semesters, and his sock. I told him that I had duck I was planning to cook up.

I didn’t notice at first but he was gradually sitting just a little closer to me. I thought for a while that it was just natural shifting of the body during animated conversation but it didn’t seem to change even when the program started and we weren’t really talking anymore. It was a pretty long first half of the performance made almost agonizing because of Ben sitting way too close. I kept thinking, “Does he not see that we’ve moved along this bench at least five feet??” and I couldn’t think of a non-awkward way to tell him that I really didn’t want to cuddle him.

After about the fifth fake out ending we decided to just leave the concert because “it was just way too long” but I was really thinking that I needed some space. So we were walking back to our apartments and I thought things were pretty comfortable again, it’s not like he was walking too close or anything. Then as I get to my complex he says casually, “Yeah, just let me know when that duck is ready.” I think, “Great, what if I wanted to eat my duck? I barely even know you and you’re just gonna come eat my food?”

Next day, I’m cooking my duck. By the way, it takes a long time to cook frozen duck and make it soft-ish to eat. But when it was finally done I thought, “I don’t really like this. Who can I feed it to?” So I gave some to each of my roommates but there was so much that there was still left over. And in the back of my mind I hear Ben’s voice say, “Yeah, just let me know when that duck is ready.” So I pull out my phone and send him a text and he was there two minutes later. He kept saying it was good and I just kept thinking how weird he was cuz it just wasn’t that yummy. But I was grateful that he got rid of it for me.

Ben's Account

On January 16, 2014, I stopped by Ariel’s apartment to grab some cookies from her room mate Elisabeth. Elisabeth was in class, but Ariel was home! Even though Ariel was my FHE sister, it was the beginning of the semester, and I did not know her all that well. For that reason, I was naturally surprised when she invited me to go buy a flower from her on the BYU-Idaho campus the next day. I thought, “Okay, okay. A super cute girl just invited me to go buy a flower from her? Heck yeah. You better believe I will be there tomorrow at 1 PM.”

Sure enough, I was there at the Manwaring Center on campus at 1 PM buying a flower from Ariel. Long story short, that same night, Ariel and I were attending an Irish Celtic Nights music show thingy (something like that). It was pretty obvious she did not want to be there with me. She was originally planning on going home for the long three day weekend (Martin Luther King Jr. Day), or--if going home fell through--she was planning on going to Utah. She made it super clear that being with me at this show was her third and last option for the weekend. Even still, I was happy to be with her, and I knew from the very start that we were going to be best friends.

The show was alright. It was a little too long for my liking, honestly. And it was too loud in there for me! And so, naturally, I was trying to scoot nice and close to Ariel so that I could hear her without any problem and talk to her before the show, during the show, and after the show. In the middle of all our conversations, she mentioned that her teacher had given her some duck and that she was going to cook it in a crock pot. I told her that sounded delicious and that she should definitely let me know if there were any leftovers. I walked her home--but not to her door--and I could tell immediately that Ariel thought I was a little strange, which I was honestly kind of okay with because I really just wanted to be her friend.

The next day, I was goofing off at my apartment when I got a text message on my phone from Ariel mentioning that she had some duck that I could try. I had honestly forgotten that I had told her to let me know if she had any leftovers, and so I threw on some shoes and hurried on over to her apartment.

The duck was so delicious.

"What About The Magic!?"

Confession & Suggestion

I have a blog. If you are reading this and have known me for 7+ years, chances are you are aware of this. If you haven't known me for quite that long and are reading this, chances are this is the first blog post you've ever read of mine. My suggestion to those who haven't seen my blog: Take a look at some of my old posts for some deep, inspirational stuff. (That's a joke. Especially if you go back to 2008. Yikes. Dark times.)

Anyways, this is my first blog post since over four years ago!! Geez. Tonight, I was having a great time at work when it dawned on me, "Hey, I should write a blog post!" So here I am at 2:25 AM writing a blog post. Not entirely sure what's gonna happen with this, but prepare yourselves and read at your own risk!

"Is it okay if I call you mine from here on out?
As if I could ever stop when your laugh is
like a light that fills me up because you are
my love."-a pretty song

Happy, Happy, Happy

These last four years (since I last wrote) have been the greatest of my life. As I said earlier...2008 was dark times. Well, not only was 2008 dark times, but so was basically every year of my life until 2014 when I met my one and only--my best friend and wife Ariel. Funnily enough, the last time I blogged was literally days after she and I went on our first date. (In fact, that same blog post vaguely mentions Ariel and can be read here. It's actually not a bad post and has a good message. Nice!)

Of course, I am exaggerating when I say that every year was dark times. But to be more exact, I lived what I felt was a very dark life after my parents' divorce. It is what it is, and I don't blame anyone or anything for it, BUT...Obviously, I was negatively impacted by it like any and every kid is. For years, I was lost. While people were able to call this place or that place home, I felt like I had lost that. While I did have plenty of moments of joy and happiness, I wasn't really happy. 

That being said, everything changed when Ariel came into my life, and we were married. The last four years have done nothing but given me more hope and happiness than I ever knew was imaginable. While my parents' divorce is something that I will never 100% get over, beginning my own family with Ariel has been very helpful in the process of healing from that trial I've been asked to face. 

Another thing that has been helpful for me and that has blessed our marriage immensely was the inspirational decision to study Marriage & Family studies at BYU-Idaho. For all of our married days, the classes I took will be a blessing to us and our marriage, and I am grateful for that.

Back to The Future

Now that Ariel and I are both graduated, I have had many people ask about our next plan of action or all that what not. Initially, I wasn't sure. But my patriarchal blessing talks about being guided by the Spirit in leading and presiding over my family. And so the last few months have consisted of me being the most prayerful I have ever been. More prayerful than I was when I was thinking of serving a mission. More prayerful that I was on my mission. And--yes, even more prayerful than I was when I sought confirmation to marry Ariel. 

Another confession (and a fun fact about me) before I say anything else: I love cleaning. I have for a very long time. I used to clean and rearrange my room for kicks and giggles as a kid. My sister Cynthia and I would clean the bathroom and other parts of our house without being asked...because we enjoyed cleaning. My absolute favorite part of the MTC as a missionary? It was cleaning 64 toilets every Wednesday with my good friend Elder Boyd. There's a reason I've been cleaning for work for the last five years: I love it, and it makes me happy. (Disclaimer: I am terrible at cleaning at home, and, Ariel, if you are reading this, I am going to try and be better about that. ROFL!)

I am especially happy to be the new custodial supervisor at Seasons Medical. This is no easy task, but it was a challenge that I hoped for and am up for. The last few weeks have been amazing as I have come up with a more effective system to ensure the building gets cleaned the way the administration is expecting it to be. I look forward to becoming a better leader through this experience. 

Not a mug shot.

With all that being said, I understand that custodial work--while I love it--is not sustainable for me or my family. I'm only 27 years-old after all, and at this rate my body might be broken by the time I make it to 40. ROFL. 

I guess this is what I am trying to say...To answer everyone's questions: After a lot of prayer and pondering, I have decided to continue my education while working as a custodian. Despite studying Marriage & Family and exploring other options in elementary and secondary education, I have decided to not go either route and instead study Data Analytics. 

My second-to-last semester, I took a statistics class, and it was amazeballs. And while neither have come as naturally for me as they have for my brothers (they know who they are)...I actually really enjoy programming and math. Luckily, a lot of the data analytics skills can be learned on your own. 

The mistake I have made in the past is not being very good about sharing my plans and goals with family and/or friends to hold myself accountable and all that what not: So my plan for now is as follows:

1. Complete the 300+ hour free curriculum for Data Analytics here before April 2019 (Adjustable since I'm still not sure if that time frame is attainable. Lets just say so far I've completed 1.4% of the curriculum. Haha.) After completing the curriculum, I am confident I will have enough skills to apply for and get offers for Data Analytics jobs.

2. However, if it's not as golden as I am thinking, my next plan of attack will be to get a nanodegree for Data Analytics through Udacity found here. 

3. Whether I get a job or I have to get a nanodegree, a long-term goal of mine is to get a Master's Degree in Data Analytics through Western Governors (which can be found here for those interested). (Side note: Is a Master's degree really needed if I can teach myself all the skills? Probably not. However, it would lead to more job opportunities such as teaching online for BYU-Idaho and/or BYU Pathway Worldwide.)

And What Not!

Now I'm just rambling, but that's just how I roll, I suppose. :) Good night, world, and I promise I won't make you wait another four years before you hear from me again. Until next time...Take care of yourselves, take care of each other, and all of that what not! (Final disclaimer: If most of this makes no sense, keep in mind it is now 3:33 AM. "A little bit tired."-Babe the pig)

(DISCLAIMER: YES, Ariel and I have communicated everything that has been talked about in this post. We are happy with our decision and have faith that our future is bright.)