Answers: What Did I do

I re-read this "quiz" a short while after I posted it and realized--it was way too complicated for the lay person to answer.  I wanted it to serve as an outline for many things, and it did that, but for answering, way too much.  Especially because it started as about 8 questions and kept growing as I thought of more and more random things.  So, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the answers.  


If there are things below that it turns out ARE the right answers and you'd like more detail about them--feel free to ask.  I'll either answer in a comment or make a post if it's worth posting about.  :)



1. What weather have I not experienced while in Boston:
a. Gorgeous spring weather
b. Hot, humid, summer weather
c. Torrential rain fall (like, national emergency flooding rainfall-twice!)
d. Thick fog (like a cat, no more like a mountain lion) 
e. Out of control, horizontal, broke trees and killed people, winds (sometimes coupled with torrential rainfall)
f. Snow Although it certainly wasn't part of my life, it did snow early one morning and stuck--about one layer.  it was gone by the time I really woke up.   The other things most definitely DID happen

2. Which of the following interesting things have I not experienced in the past two months:
a. Been told I was a hick from the sticks (not quite those words, but...)
b. Been thrown up on by an adult
c. Been sworn at (still not sure why) Around me, but not at me.  Thankfully
d. Fell down a flight of stairs

3. Which physical change has not occurred to my body in the past two months (probably only noticeable to me, but still):
a. gained a few gray hairs (by the way, Cheryl-Lynn, I only pulled the one out because it was a funny, funky texture and stood straight out of my head (differently than my other curls) so needed to go)
b. developed this odd acne patch on my cheek (hello, I have good skin, these things don't happen to me. you can leave now)
c. Lost 15 pounds (oh, yeh!  Better stop before I need a new wardrobe, which I can't afford)
d.Lost a toe nail (while all that walking helped in the weight department, doing it in bad shoes wasn't friendly to the feet)  Blisters, callouses, missing layers of skin--yes.  Lost toe nail, no.
e. Have become lactose unfriendly (I knew there was a reason I didn't eat cold (repaired) cereal for breakfast)


4. In my time in Boston I have lived with 6 other adults, one teenager and one dog.  How many of these 8 beings do not have curly hair (what are the odds?):
a. 6
b. 4
c. 2
d. 0

5. What legal-related (ish) volunteer work have I not done while in Boston:
a. Participated on a committee writing a history for a legal organization
b.Began representing a juvenile immigrant who has been abandoned by his parents Trying to get this set up, but there are some glitches
c. Trained to become a legal fellow for an international center focused on religious freedom
d. Meet with clients at a bi-weekly legal clinic for immigrants
e. Consulted via phone with an immigrant woman who was a victim of abuse
f. Gave advice to someone filling out their own immigration papers

6.  What jobs have I not done (and actually been paid for!) while in Boston:
a. Waitressed for one evening I was going to, but then I called and canceled (just didn't feel good about it, so used the time to go to the temple instead)
b. Staffed at a convention (mostly a glorified line monitor/traffic director and information giver)
c. Substitute taught
d. Worked on legal cases
e. Consulted someone else doing a legal case (and got paid for it!)

7. What cool volunteer experience have I not done while in Boston:
a. Been part of Mormon Helping Hands to clean up flood damage in Rhode Island

b. Translated (into Spanish) for a stake Primary training meeting  Haven't yet.  I'm going to next week.

c. Consulted at a specially-called Haitian Immigration Clinic
d. Worked in the temple's kitchen
e. Worked as kitchen help at a Turkish wedding

8. What languages have I not had clients speaking to me in:
a. English
b. Spanish
c. Haitian
d. Portugese (huge Portugese-speaking population in Boston--tell all your friends who complain about not getting to use their mission language)
e. Arabic

f. Armenian  Though Watertown (where Sherilyn lives and I stayed for 2 weeks) is full of Armenians, I haven't had any clients

9. What kinds of job have I not applied for in the past two months:  [answer this and 10 before you get to 11]
a. Serving at an awesome vegetarian restaurant
b. Hostessing at same restaurant

c. Early morning cleaning job (sounds like a BYU job--one I wouldn't touch back then)  Almost, almost, but then I decided to wait just a little longer; but, unlike BYU times, this time I was willing to do it

d. Paralegal
e. Attorney
f. Kitchen coordinator for for a soup kitchen (it sounded awesome)

10.  What kinds of teaching jobs have I not applied for:
a. Elementary school subbing
b. GED
c. Spanish

d. ESL  There are a gazillion listed every day, but haven't applied for various reasons

e. English (high school)
f. English (college)

11.  What kinds of jobs did I not get an interview for:  [yes, that means I actually have gone to interviews!]
a. Subbing (well, not so much an interview, but still, I'm counting it)
b. Kitchen coordinator at Rosie's Place

c. Paralegal 

d. English teaching
e. GED teaching

12. What have I not done to try to get a job:
a. Cold contacting (and when I say cold, I mean cold; chose to do this on a day where the side-ways wind was blowing sleet and rain into my face. Hard to say if it was colder inside or outside.  Good times all around)
b. Networking through professional contacts
c. Networking through church contacts
d. Used Craigslist (some success!)
e. Used Idealist (tiny success)

f. Responded to Help Wanted sign on window  Like the cleaning, I almost, almost did it, but then decided to wait a few more days--and the sign disappeared.

g. Used career center of Harvard Law
h. Used LDS on-line employment center (very nice)
i. Used ward employment specialist--she's been spectacular
j. Used BYU Law career services counselor (also great)

 13. What did I not get an actual job for:
Oh wait, that's a rhetorical question.

I got a job.  Hooray!  Too bad I have to still keep job searching at the same time, but still I am grateful! 


Okay, no need to be so pessimistic.  I did get some actual jobs (see #6) and some are still pending

14. How could I forget the hotel jobs?  What hotel job did I not apply for:  [I didn't get any of them--I didn't meet the basic qualifications, so the email said.]   I would also like to know what basic qualifications are. Apparently being easy to train, willing to work hard, and experienced at doing various dirty, non-glamorous jobs is not enough.

a. Banquet server  It was on the list, but I'm not willing to serve alcohol. 

b. Bell person
c. Baker
d. Concierge

15. Okay, enough job stuff.  What tourist things have I not done:
a. Been to the Bunker Hill Monument

b. Been to North Church  Was near it, but we didn't have time.

c. Attended a reenactment of the Boston Massacre
d. Went to the museum for USS Constitution

16. What beautiful places have I not seen awesome flowers at:
a. Boston Temple
b. Boston Public Gardens
c. Mt. Auburn Cemetery
d. Something Conservation Area (real woods!! And right by my house)

e. Arnold Arboretum  I tried one day, but kept getting lost, so spent many fun hours just wandering instead.  This past Monday I rectified this one though.

17. In the past 2 months, what modes of transportation have I not used:
a. Car--riding
b. Car--driving  Thanks, Pritchetts!

c. Train (metro one)
d. Ferry

e. Bicycle Want one, don't have one.

f. Bus
g. My own two feets--a lot

18. What have I not done to pass time:
a. Nap

b. Write  I should, but it just hasn't really been on the radar.  Except on here, of course.

c. Watch t.v. (NCAA tournament only)
d. Watch movies (Bollywood)    [these forms (tv and movies) of passing time are highly overrated]
e. Read books
f. Run
g. Walk around and look at cool things

19.  What fun Boston thing have I not done:

a. Stuck my feet in the Charles River  So, so tempting. But not yet.  When it gets hotter maybe.

b. Played ultimate frisbee on the Boston Common (for F.H.E.)
c. People watched at the Boston Public Gardens
d. Watched the Boston Marathon
e. Enjoyed the beautiful Boston Public Library


20. What great thing has not happened in my family while I've been in Boston (in just two months!):

This one wasn't such a good one, but I just had so many great things to tell I couldn't think of any non-greats.  The answer was supposed to be (g), because Whitney walked, but he actually won't graduate until June.  But since even his wife missed this, I guess it's not a good answer, eh?

a. Niece born (Vivian)
b. Another nie-phew announced (to be born by my birthday!)  (by W&L, in case you're confused--only other married couple here, folks)
c. Brother came home from mission (Asael from Las Vegas)
d. Brother left on a mission (Hyrum in MTC en route to Nicaragua)
e. Sister still serving a mission (Nancy in Texas--though she got a release date--that's not a great thing)
f. Brother won state in track event (Benson in 800)
g. Brother graduated (Whitney, from BYU)
h. Sister had around a dozen (or more? maybe more) people she was teaching be baptized (Rachel, in Heber, in her role as Ward Language missionary)  Exactly 12, she tells me.  And 3 more last weekend

i. Parents stayed alive and healthy (I didn't want to leave them out!)  They also made a crazy fast trip to Utah in April.  And celebrated another wedding anniversary.  And other good things.
j. Brother started attending BYU (Asael)

21. What fabulous answer to prayer has not happened (sometimes so directly and quickly it's amazing):

a. Phone I dropped in water resuscitated   Didn't come back to life.  :(  So, feel free to send me your phone number via email because I only have about 12 in my contact list (I keep hoping it will come to life...)

b. Found a welcoming place to live when I needed to move out of Sherilyn's roommates house (Sherilyn's house is always open to me, but for the others I was a temporary visitor)
c. Was invited to house-sit for the summer--and to live in the house rent free until the summer came
d. Got offered a ride home when I just couldn't walk one more time in the rain
e. Another ride when the trip up the hill to the temple seemed insurmountable
f. Money came from clients and temp jobs when the bank was just about empty
g. Got a calling
h. At Sunday dinner, thrift stores became a topic of conversation--right when I was praying to know how to find some inexpensive clothing (because I'm here living out of 1 suitcase of clothing--all packed for winter)
i. Get to have a garden this summer (I'm ecstatic)
j. Friends and new friends
k. One such new friend calling within a few minutes of when I prayed to know how to interact with people so I didn't go crazy, calling to invite me to a picnic. The answer was so sudden and direct it was almost startling
l.  Sherilyn.  She needs to be her own option, because she's been so important

22. What scripture character have I not felt an incredible sense of connection to and am learning so much from:  [This is excruciating to have as a multiple choice question, because I could do an essay on each one. But it will have to do.]
a. Jonah  (I'm finally on my way to Ninevah, though, and that's good)

b. Peter (wow, those waves sure look scarey; amazing conference talk on this--was it general or stake? (two weeks apart for me))   The talk in conference really was fabulous.  But even so, I haven't felt the intense connection that I've felt with the others.

c. Nephi (being called up to the mountain, raw meat made sweet, etc.)
d. Children of Israel (on-going miracles, manna, presence of the Lord daily physically manifest, and on and on)
e. Wise Man who built his house upon the rock (I've had the rains, the floods, the winds, the tempests.  Fortunately, I also have Christ.)

23. What overwhelming (and I do truly mean overwhelming, for each of these) emotion have I not experienced in the past two months:
a. Peace that passeth understanding
b. Lonliness (this, my friends and family, is why you should participate in my quizz)

c. Giddy with excitement   Funny thing was, I had chosen this as an unfelt emotion a few days before I finished writing all these (when  I was still composing in my head).  And then, before the 6th, along came a day when I did feel it.  For no particular reason, but I was was incredibly hyper and giddy.  It felt wonderful!  However, I could still say it wasn't quite overwhelming like the other 4.

d. Despair and frustration (I'm 29; all my life I've done everything I know to do to be able to take care of myself; and yet I still can't afford to provide myself food or shelter--it's not pretty)
e. Absolute assurance that the Lord loves me and that I am where I need to be

And that's why (especially option e on that last one), it's been a great two months in Boston!