WARNING: Incredibly long post.

It's kind of surprising me how one conscious decision and some listening to the spirit has done for me in just two short days. A week ago, I would have sat at home with none of these experiences coming my way, and guaranteed a lot of sadness following it.

On Sunday, I was INCREDIBLY depressed. I cried quarts. With the help of a couple of friends, I changed the direction of my life. It was hard in the moment, but now I can feel how much that turn around has changed things. This change will make it so much easier to turn my back on those short comings.

Just after I did this, I emailed a bunch of friends. People that I wanted to hang out with and set up 'play dates.' I couldn't wait to get to church because it meant I would get out of my house. I couldn't wait to see people. I've realized that I spend WAY too much time online, and though talking to my online friends is great; I need some In Real Life (IRL) social contact.

Church was my first stop. You can read about the beginning of these exploits here.

It was 'Linger Longer*' after church and I was very excited. There are two different Singles Wards in my home town, and we combine for this activity once every month, rotating whose turn it is to prepare the activity. My ward's Linger Longers are INSANELY cool! Amazing food, decorations, different and fabulous things to drink. It's awesome. This week we were able to make our own grilled cheese sandwiches. (Tip: honey butter on a grilled cheese sandwich = fabulous!)

During this, I had the chance to flirt with two guys that I think are pretty cool. Pete and Devin. I had spent the last three hours of church with Pete since the Black Licorice Gum incident. I noticed that Devin was sitting alone, and because I kind of like him, too; I called over (totally out of character, I might add.) and invited him to sit with us. Another girl sat with us. Her name is Natalie, and she's about amazing. I quite love her to death. The fact that she's a fellow Friends addict instantly raised my appreciation for her. It was a great time. Flirting and laughter are bomb.

Yesterday, I went to lunch with a close friend of mine. She has been in town for nearly two months and I haven't spent any time with her, and I felt the need to remedy that. We went out to lunch and jammed on guitar. It was great to catch up with her, and I'm so glad we were able to make that happen.

My aunt and uncle are in town and the entire family went to my grandmother's house for soup and good company. I almost didn't go. I'm so VERY glad that I did. I was able to chat with two of my younger cousins. I love those girls! They are just cute, and so much fun to talk to. I'm very happy that I went and was able to spend time with family.

I did leave early. I had promised Natalie that I would come to the ward's Family Home Evening. You can read a bit about that event here. We played I've never, which is an incredibly fun game. The best is when you get targeted. There's no one to trade chairs with, as you are the only one who has done that thing. Someone tried to target me with "I've never made videos for YouTube." Half of the circle stood up, which surprised me.

After the game, we converged into the kitchen to munch on leftovers from Linger Longer the day before. Good chatting ensued. Including Pete asking me if I wanted to go on a date.

Pete: Have you seen the movie Avatar?

Kate: No, I haven't. I want to though.

Pete: I haven't seen it either. I want to.

...

Pete: We should go.

Kate: Yeah, I'd like that.

...

Kate: *after a long pause* When?

Pete: Oh! Umm...Thursday?

Kate: Sounds great!

I have so much more happening this week. I'll blog about it all, I'm sure. Movie night with a girl-friend tonight. Institute tomorrow. Date on Thursday. Haircut on Friday. It's going to be a good week. I'm determined to make it so.