February 2014 ~ <center>QUEEN ANNE</center>

Here we are on another Thursday night, coming at you live from Hale 7 in Laie Hawaii. I'm currently putting off studying for an art history test, and completing an assignment for my economics class. I am living what they call the college dream.
As I write, my arms are screeching out in pain because I've done the one thing I thought I would have to stop because of my relocation to Hawaii.
CrossFit.
Here I am, having a crossfitter as a roommate, thinking that all is lost and that I'll have another 3 months until I can get back in the gym. OH how wrong I was. Lindsey is an avid crossfitter, and she somehow got connected with a girl named Erica who lives up on the point off campus. Erica is also a crossfitter, and she also has a car. She got connected with Lindsey, and the rest is history.
A new box (fancy word for gym) opened up about 8 minutes away from us - CrossFit Ko'olau. It was opened about a month ago by this really swell guy named Micah. The gym space is quite small; it's the smallest box that I've ever been in. This isn't really a problem; there's not a lot of people that generally come. There are classes at very limited times; 5 am, 6 am, 8 am, 5 pm and 6 pm. See what I mean? We have the glorious privilege of waking up at the great time of 4:40 every morning to make it to the 5 o'clock class. This means that I'm in bed every night by 10:00, and taking naps at 7 in the morning.
Yeah, it's torture, and yes it's insanely early. But I wouldn't do it if I didn't believe that it was beneficial and enjoyable. Sure I wish I could sleep in for several more hours. But would I rather sleep and get fat or wake up a couple hours earlier and get healthy?
CrossFit is killer, and I frequently want to tear my limbs off so that they'll stop hurting completely. But it's worth it, because the payoff outweighs the cost.
Rant on Crossfit over.
These past several days have been a drag. Everything seems to be going in slow motion. The sun hasn't been out in 4 days, and it's been rainy and muggy. This brings sleepiness and grogginess throughout the whole day, and all anyone ever wants to do is sleep. Some of us may even sleep through classes that start at 9 in the morning...
There are tests to be taken, and there are tests that have been failed in the past couple days (just one, specifically. My book of mormon test was brutal, and I literally had no idea what was even going on. more on that when the wound has healed.) I'm even falling asleep as I write this. Holla.
Ward temple night was last night, and it was loads of fun. Our bishop is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet, and he always makes things lots of fun. Our ward is really fun, and there's plenty of girls to start a small country. Apparently here at BYU, there's like a 4 or 5 ratio of girls to boys. Yeah. 5 girls to 1 boy.
Anyways, we went to the temple last night, and then I went with a friend again this afternoon. This temple is so so beautiful, and the people that work there are so so nice. I love this place. It really is a blessed land.
I can't wait to move off campus. Next semester, I think that I'll for sure have to get outta here. There's just so much more to do and so much more freedom when you're not confined to your hale. But, that's another post for when I can come up with a supporting argument without falling asleep on my keyboard in the mean time.

Stay sweet and don't do drugs.
Queen Anne

Well friends, it's Sunday. And that means blog writing and sleeping.
Yesterday was the first day I was able to get out of Laie and I don't mind telling you that it was incrediblé. My thirst for a car is renewed and I am now convinced that it's required to have a good college experience.

We started the day off bright and early by taking the 45 minute drive to Hanauma bay, which is a relatively popular snorkeling location on the island. There's a coral reef very close to shore, which means that there are plenty of tropical fish and cool sights. The water was warmish (once you took the plunge and got used to it) and it was SO clear. We got in free because we are so beautiful (but mostly because we had our university ID cards, which also has its perks). We snorkeled there for about an hour, then went down into Waikiki.

Now, don't get me wrong. Waikiki is awesome. BUT if you do decide to come to Oahu, please please PLEASE don't spend your whole vacation there. It's not the real feel of Hawaii. It's basically like Miami, but a little less crowded. It's just like the mainland, and that's where the majority of the tourists go when they come to the islands. It's nice to spend one day, maybe 4 hours there. But after that...it's best to go up to the North Shore. There's a lot of designer shops, and a lot of cheap generic t shirt stores as well. The beach is nice, but compared to the north shore..well it doesn't even compare.

Post shopping madness, we went down to Chinatown, about 15 minutes away. It's the Chinese new year, so there was a celebration downtown. There were lots of cool little boths and a lot of traditional food. It was really kind of sketchy, but also really fun at the same time. Yikes.

We drove home after that, and we were happy to be back. We are all SO tired and hungry. I showered and the other girls ate, and then we drove up to the North Shore to Turtle Bay. We walked around and did a little shopping, then made our way back to the campus.

It was really such a fun day! The weekends around here are much more exciting when there is a vehicle involved, so I need to work on my friendship skills and try to mooch of someone. I'M JOKING. But I am taking donations for the "Annie Car Fund" if you'd like to donate.

Enjoy some photos of the snorkeling. Ps, if you ever decide to go underwater for anything and want to take pictures with your phone, a life proof case is the way to go.

Stay tuned for a really cool video that's being super temperamental at the moment.