From the Kitchen....

If this is too "Julie and Julia" for you, that is not the intention and I can assure it will not be a regular occurrence! I have, however, decided it would be quite the beneficial skill if I could actually cook. Believe me, I can not cook. Seriously, ask my sister. So, in the name of trying new things, I shall attempt to cook. Tonight I attempted a recipe I found in a 30-minute meals book. It was "Chicken Basalmic and Orange Rice Pilaf with a vegetable medley." I chose this one because it appeared to be somewhat simple while including a few things I stay very far away from...spices...they scare the hell out of me! Well, it was an enjoyable experience, and while it was not up to Rachel Ray and Bobby Flay standards, it was edible! But what I'd really like to share are a couple of cooking tips that you will not find in any cookbook.

1. Do not wear any clothing you were actually planning on wearing after you have finished cooking this meal.
2. Attempting to cook for one, will inevitably yield at least 4 nights of leftovers.
3. 30-minute meals take 1 hour, at least.
4. DO NOT under any circumstances add that last pinch of garlic you think you need, trust me, you don't need it!
5. Multi-tasking will not allow me to cook multiple dishes at once, but will allow me to keep a kitchen spotless while cooking one single dish.
6. I still don't know how in the hell you mince garlic.

And thus, words of wisdom from the Kitchen of Chef Tristyn!

Tristyn M. Staley, RN

Yes children, it is OFFICIAL, I am an RN...Real Nurse...or is that Registered Nurse? Not much of a difference really! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! Okay, now that that is out of my system! I passed boards and officially have a license to save your butts (I wanted to say something else but this is a family show kids)! I start Tuesday with some orientations/classes at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo and then will go through 2, 2 week rotations in different areas before beginning my job as an RN on the Medical/Oncology floor.

I Wanna Be A Rockstar!

I love music. There is nothing like turning on your iPod, or the radio, or Pandora, and just listening to good music for hours upon hours. There is something very.....soulful, about it. Almost like reading a book, it can take to a place completely apart from where you presently are. This is one of my favorite things about music. This summer I've taken the time to attend some concerts and immerse myself in on the things that I love most. Most recently it was some serious Rock! I love rock concerts. The energy is always exploding, people jumping around and screaming, and just generally having a good time! Last Wednesday, my sister and my dear cousins and I attended "Wednesdays Rock" at the Gallivan Center in Salt Lake City. Drop Dead Julio and 12 Stones were the invited guests. I'm familiar with the music of 12 Stones and definitely enjoy it. I've never heard of Drop Dead Julio. We had an awesome time! You know it's been a good concert when you enter without knowing a single, or very few, of the bands material, and leave having had a "Rockstar" experience. When the band can make you jump and scream and have an amazing time when you don't even know their stuff, you know it's been a good night! (Apart from Johnny Polo, who incidentally appears at every concert, everywhere!)

HOLA! I have officially returned from the land of the lost......Yes my friends, I am done with school!!!!! Not forever, but I can officially become a Registered Nurse. It feels quite surreal thus far. As most of you know, it's been a long road for me, filled with several years of difficult events and school performances that I would love nothing more than to forget all together, but as with most life experiences, you learn and grow greatly from them. I do have a great feeling of accomplishment and am excited to embark on this new chapter in my life. I am almost at a loss as to what to do with myself and this new found immense amount of free time. I have given it a great deal of thought though and have come up with this....

1. READ....I have tried to continue to do my favorite thing in the whole world throughout school, but it definitely takes a back seat.... a few on the list thus far are.... "Great Expectations," "Twelfth Night, or What You Will," "The Time Traveler's Wife," The Counte of Monte Cristo," and "Les Miserables" all of which are some of my favorites that I have already read but want to revist....obviously followed by or accompanied by many many others!


2. Music....Listen to, explore, and experience much more than I have been able to!


3. Watch Football on Sunday! (And go to church of course) because I will no longer have to work every Sunday, only every third! Hola Peyton!


4. Learn to cook....relatively speaking of course. And when I say learn, I really mean it! My cooking skills are almost non-existent and should definitely be refined


5. CLEAN! I love to clean (yes I am a freak like that) and a few areas of my life have taken a back seat so I am going to thoroughly clean...My room....My Jeep...and My apartment!


6. Spend more time with my family and friends. The social scene has not been my friend these past oh, say 5 years! I intend on spending much more time with my parents, my sister, and my friends!


7. Travel....I love to travel! Two on top of the list are Portland/Seattle-to have fun and see my brother/sister-in-law/adorable nieces and New York City with my amazing friend Emily-because we are that awesome!


8. Spend more time outdoors....I'm pretty sure I have not seen the sun in approximately 5 years. My translucent skin can attest to that! I love being outdoors and am eager to spend more time there instead of my dark, dungeony apartment!


9. Workout...I actually love to workout and have had minimal time to do so...until now!


10. Sleep....I am quite certain that I am sleep deprived and will definitely be enjoying being able to get enough!

And there you go! And of course now that I have more time I will be keeping you updated on my awesome life! Untill then! Peace out!

Happiness is a State of Mind

I stole this idea from a friends blog, but I loved the concept and thought that I needed to be reminded about those things in my life that bring me true happiness. And as I was contemplating my list the rather obvious thought struck me that it truly is the small things in life that make us truly happy and make everything else worthwhile.

Trisyn's Top 10 List of things that make her TRULY happy....

1. Getting up at dawn while camping and watching my dad and grandpa build a fire together.
2. Seeing my nieces and nephew smile.
3. Reading a book from cover to cover in one day.
4. The adrenaline rush I feel when watching my favorite sports.
5. Laughing uncontrollably with my little sister and then discovering we have no idea what we started laughing about in the first place.
6. Getting up early and talking to my mom because we're the only ones awake.
7. Seeing my grandparents hold hands.
8. The smell of a brand new book, especially if it's leather bound.
9. Listening to music while I'm in the shower.
10. The smell of the rain and the way the sky looks during a storm.

Here I Am

It's been awhile so I thought I'd let you all know how things were going because I know you were worried! I began my last semester of nursing school, and so far it's been a ride. It's going to be an intense and busy semester, but I'm looking forward to finishing and being done! I have cut back on a day at work because once I started the semester I kind of had a few panic attacks and realized I needed to take some time and let myself breathe. I have done a couple of my psychiatric clinicals which was not quite as terrible and I had imagined them to be. If you know me at all you know what a rational and logically thinking person that I am. And as I'm sure most can conclude, those with mental disorders and psychosis do not think rationally. Trying to reason with them is almost impossible, and that is something I struggle with. So while I am not thrilled with my psych rotation, I think it will be good for me. I've played basketball, pool, and cards and painted with these patients and it has been just fine! I have also completed my first shift in the ER and that was also not quite as scary as I made it out to be. Part of this I think was in large part due to the fact that it was an EXTREMELY slow day so I was able to take my time and learn alot. I realized I'm much more comfortable with my skills and abilities than I thought I'd be. So yes, this semester is going to be quite a bit of hell, but it won't last forever. And although I'm going to be extremely busy, I have made it a point to plan some very fun, shall we say.....diversions! Next week I am going to the Taking Back Sunday concert with my amazing sister and hilarious cousins. I am going to watch a match of my favorite sport, SOCCER, once again with my amazing sister. And last but hopefully not least, I will be seeing in concert one of the greatest musical talents of all time, George Strait. So here's to making it through the next two months and passing the NCLEX and maintaining my sanity!

NIKE....THE GODDES OF VICTORY AND ATHENA THE GODDESS OF WISDOM