"remind me of your name again?"

So last Friday we went to the Chili Cook Off at the church. We've actually gone to quite a few church activities which I am pretty proud of myself because I am normally a church anti-social. Where I come from I didn't need to be friends with people at church cause I had my own friends, also where I come from people at church suck. Here, people are friendly and cool/interesting.

Anyway, we've been in the ward for about... 4 months. Long enough that we're not really new. Long enough that we've met the same handful of people enough that we should remember their names, because they definitely remember ours, but for some reason my HUSBAND, can not remember anybody's names.

I was so embarrassed of him at this particular church function because people would be like, "hi taylor & kynslie" and Taylor would be like, "Remind me of your name again..." in a friendly tone, of course. But the time limit has passed where you can ask these people that without sounding like, "Hi, I'm an arsehole and you weren't significant enough to remember." I started keeping count in my head of how many times he said this to people that night, I got to 9 times and then got distracted.

He would even say that to people that we had never even met. Like instead of just saying, "Hi, I'm Taylor, what's your name?" He would say, "I'm Taylor, Remind me of your name again." and I just stared at him. I was in such awe of him, awe and embarrassment. There are other ways of talking to someone who's name you forgot. First of all, we're at church so you can just be like, "Brother" and "Sister" which to me is weird and what old people do, but it is acceptable, at church. There's also, buddy, guy, sir, ladyguy, ladysir, dude, bro, champ, sport, madam, girl, etc.

I'm not really sure how Taylor thrived and flourished so well in the single's ward before I came a long, with his blatant disregard for important personal details like someone's name. Maybe he lost his tact after he married me. Or maybe it was because he put out.

If you are reading this, and at some point this man of mine has forgotten your name, just ignore him. He called me Kinesly (pronounced Ka-eye-nz-lee) like the second time I met him, and I still married him. So he's obviously got some good qualities too.

Priesthood Campout at Fort Pulaski

The weekend before last I went camping at Fort Pulaski with the priesthood brethren.  Despite being in January it was really good weather for camping.  I arrived at sunset and the view back towards Savannah from the bridge to Fort Pulaski was very pretty.  When I got there everyone was gathered around the fire making hobo dinners.  To be honest, I was a little disappointed that there wasn’t a nicer dinner ready, but I was surprised when a pulled out my hobo dinner from the fire and it was delicious.  So delicious, in fact, that I made a second.  And I was delighted to find that there was stuff to make smores with.

After dinner, everyone gathered around to sing a few church songs and to share a spiritual thought.  It caught me off guard that they were doing this, even though I should have expected it, but I was glad they were.  It’s not necessarily the type of thing that guys would gather round the fire to do which is why it was nice that it was a priesthood camp out.  We had Ben Clark play the guitar to accompany us singing and also had a special number on the harmonica.  Charles Jensen shared a spiritual thought relating the battle at Fort Pulaski to the battle in our spiritual lives.

After the spiritual thought and music, a few of the adults and a few of the boys walked over to the tunnels outside of the fort at night.  Some of the leaders had enjoyable time frightening the boys by throwing rocks into the woods and making them think there something out there.  One of the guys got a coke at the vending machine with his credit card, at which time some of the boys started hitting the buttons.  Not understanding that the transaction with the man’s credit card was still open, they started yelling, “this machine’s giving out free cokes!” when two more cokes came out.  I wasn’t there to see it, so I just thought Daniel really like coke when I saw him with three of them, but when he explained it I thought that was pretty hilarious.

It had been a while since I’ve been camping, so I was worried I might not sleep very well, but it turned out I slept pretty well.  I woke up a few times early in the morning, listening for sounds of breakfast being made and debating whether I should get out of my tent to go to the bathroom.  After drifting in and out of sleep for a little while I decided that even though I hadn’t heard breakfast being made I should go ahead and get up.  I was really excited about having breakfast being made without having been asked to contribute.  When I finally peered out of my tent, to my astonishment of the campground was deserted.  They had already left to start the service project without me.

With camping hair I went off to meet them.  Luckily I had turned my phone off to save enough battery power for at least one call, but I hadn’t anticipated that it would be a help everyone left me I don’t know where to go call.  When I met up with them, there wasn’t much left to do, so I walked with them as they picked trash up on the outer dike surrounding Fort Pulaski.  In his spiritual thought the night before, Charles had told us about how the union army had defeated Fort Pulaski we have the newly invented rifle canon.  It was very cool to see that the battered wall of the fort that they had destroyed from a mile away on Tybee Island.

bowl cutz.

this weekend is our Stake Conference. So, naturally, we made our way over to the stake center in Georgetown tonight for the Saturday evening meeting.

i just wanted to share with everyone a few things i took home from that meeting.

1) Do your family history
2) No seriously, do you your family history.
3) We are not joking, you really have to work on family history.
4) Go to the Temple
5) Clipping your nails in the chapel is not really the best place to do so, ESPECIALLY during a meeting, as the sound really resonates throughout the entire room. It's almost more obnoxious than a cell phone going off.
6) A person can actually clip their nails for 30 minutes +.
7) In 2012, some women still have bowl cuts.

anyway, tomorrow I'll probably blog about the Anthony Green concert in Atlanta last Wednesday.

how to be a mormon hipster.

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming of boring married blogging to bring you:

HOW TO BE A HIPSTER WHILE KEEPING IT REAL WITH 

THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS.

If you are of the LDS faith, being a hipster might seem to be an impossible task what with the V-necks and the excessive drinking of Pabst Blue Ribbon. But I am here to tell you that it is not. Through observation, google search, and this thrilling article in the NY Times (it can be found HERE) I have done a minimal amount of research on how you can make this possible.

1. Everything you do, DO IT IRONICALLY.  

This is the most important step. I can't stress that enough. This will help you seem super cool with anything you do. Wear stone wash jeans from the thrift store, ironically. Listen to hip hop, ironically. Watch VHS tapes instead of DVDs, ironically. Basically, be poor, ironically.

2. Hair

Hair plays an important role in a hipsters image. I actually don't know why, but it does. For women, it's best to have short hair. As short as you're brave enough for. If this is not possible, it has to be long, and wavy. As far as color, you can dye it or not. If you choose to color it, don't talk about it, ever. This will leave room for people to think that purple hue is your natural color. If you don't color your hair, feel free to brag about this often for street cred purposes. For men, there are several acceptable styles for the mormon hipster but these two are the most ideal:

OR

the ironic mullet

This is really a time for you to get creative. 

3. Facial Hair

It is essential for men that you have SOME kind of facial hair. Whether that be a moustache (personal fave) of any sort, beard, or five o' clock shadow. Of course, goatees and mutton chops are not acceptable, unless of course, you have them IRONICALLY (refer to step one). Female hipsters are not completely exempt from this step, though you are not required to have facial hair, you ARE required to like and date and marry men with facial hair. If you don't like facial hair, pretend that you do. Also, wear fake mustaches whenever possible and acceptable.

4. Clothes & Accessories

I am honestly not going to get super heavy into this one because this could take days. There are so many things that hipsters can wear and still be hipsters. Especially when you throw in irony. Irony can make any outfit cool. (refer again to step one.) HOWEVER the staple in the unisex hipster wardrobe is of course, SKINNY JEANS and baggy tops for women and tight tops for men. Make sure the clothes you buy are 50% from the thrift store and 50% from H&M.  If you are rich you can use some of your H&M half at Urban Outfitters, J. Crew, or Anthro. BUT you can never cut into your thrift store half. Thrifting is ESSENTIAL!  Also, make sure you're always wearing glasses (prescription or not_. These are the preferred styles of glasses. (all styles are unisex)

(we srsly <3 dallas green though)

For the guys: how to get around V-Necks

This probably seems hard. But it's possible. Honestly, the V-neck situation in the world is getting out of hand anyway. The V-necks are getting so deep that people are drowning in the sea of exposed chest hair. So don't feel too bad about missing out on this one because you are endowed. Here are some alternatives: Flannel shirts, t-shirts with wolves on them, t-shirts from bands that are so underground even Brendan Fraser couldn't find them in his Journey to the Center of the Earth and sometimes you can wear suit coats or cardigans over said t-shirts. Also, turtle necks, and ugly sweaters. MAKE SURE NOT TO FORGET TO WEAR A SCARF! Even in the summer.

What about church clothes?

A big part of being a Mormon hipster is that you are, still a Mormon, and being a Mormon means you gotta go to church. Because being inactive, is NOT hip. For the women I have 3 staples for you, Thrift store dresses, flats, and SHOULDER PADS. For the men, make sure to wear fitted dress pants, they're kind of like skinny jeans but for church. As far as ties, don't even THINK about wearing regular ties. This is unacceptable, (UNLESS, it's a tie with a pattern which is appropriate for church, and also ironic.) Some good alternatives for regular ties: skinny ties, bolo ties, or bow ties.

5. Music/Books/Movies

Navigating the hipster scene of multimedia can be daunting. What to watch!? What to hear!? What to read!? 

I'm here to sort of help.

Music

Well, fortunately you being a hipster means you are not stuck with one genre of music. You can do electronic, acoustic, hip-hop, instrumental indie rock, whatever your mood. However it is SO SO SO important that you only listen to underground music. This will give you the upper hand in situations with your "normal" friends. There might come a day when your favorite underground gets out and gets popular, but do not fear. You heard it first. Before they were cool. You are king. Also, You are allowed to listen to top 40, either secretly, or ironically. If you have a Spotify, be VERY careful to only listen to music that no one knows, or makes you look cool.

Books

Don't read Twilight. Too late? That's okay, just tell everyone you hated it. Even if you didn't. Because hating Twilight is what hip people do.

Movies

Movies can be tough because a lot of LDS members don't watch rated R movies. And it's usually pretty essential that hipsters watch and LOVE Wes Anderson movies. Which are pretty much all rated R. Fortunately for you, there is Fantastic Mr. Fox. Watch it. Love it. This is your ticket to cool.

6. College

I am not going to tell you that you HAVE to go to college to be a hipster, but you pretty much do. This is where you will find other hipsters to hang out with OR other hipsters to avoid (avoiding people is cool). If you can't afford school, or just don't feel like it, just go to your nearest college and wander around campus with your backpack and macbook (APPLE PRODUCTS ONLY! FOREVER!) and act like you're studying. It is important to note that you can attend any college you want, EXCEPT BYU. I'm sorry. BYU is not hip. However, BYU-IDAHO, is acceptable. Mormon Hipsters tend to thrive and flourish there. Any school that is an art school is ideal, though.

In summary

If you follow all of these simple steps and add a small amount of your own imagination (but only a very small), you can be a hipster.  Follow the winds of change in the hipster scene and never conform to the norms of society. But I mean, you still have to follow the word of wisdom and the Prophet and stuff. 

Also, ride bikes. But only road bikes or beach cruisers. If all else fails, long board. Or roller skate, ironically.

Meanwhile, across the pond.

We have survived until Sunday. This week wasn't the easiest, or the most eventful, but you know what? We are just fine, and we've had a lot of fun.

Tuesday was Taylor's first day of training, which left me to wake up and realize that I was not in Kansas anymore (without my ToTo, too). I forced myself to go exploring out and about but being alone gave me a lot of time to think of things to complain about. 

I found out that I couldn't watch my favorite TV shows because of copyright reasons, I found out that they like to put slices of lemon in glasses of Coke, I found out that some movies haven't been released here that I saw weeks ago, and I found out that the Chinese food here is sub par. Unfortunately I am always resistant to change at first. But fortunately, I get over it pretty quick.

I woke up the next day feeling a lot better. I went into town to grab some lunch and run some errands. There was a sandwich bar that I was dying to try (because I LOVE ME A GOOD SAMMICH!) So I slipped inside and ordered what I thought would be good and to my dismay, it was not a normal tukey cheese mayo kinda sandwich. It was like a chicken currry salad. I was mad. But I ate a few bites for nourishment. Then Taylor got home and we deicded to for a 32 mile walk, so we did. Then we ate McDonalds to celebrate. the true fat american way. But I won't lie, McDonald's fries were a tender mercy.

Friday & Saturday were a blur. We had to find another place to stay just for Saturday because the room we were staying in was booked awhile ago. We finally found somewhere called the premier inn, which was pathetic. There was no cable, no free wifi, no A/C, a 9 inch TV, no electronic keys, no pool, no free breakfast, and a crappy double bed (we've got white people problems). we were mad, because we paid 95 pounds for this plus an extra 12 for breakfast. I was exhausted, so after complaining for a minute I crawled in the bed to accept my fate of being warped back into 1976. (Seriously, the crappiest 30 dollar hotel in south Carolina, was not this crappy). I was almost asleep when Taylor burst through the door informing me that he had made arrangements at the hotel he stayed at before and the cab was on it's way. Also he brought me a sandwich. I fell a little more in love with him.

We went to Oxford a couple of times (Fri & Sat night), we didn't get much time there, no more than a couple of hours. But I look forward to spending more time there (and getting some pictures) We found this cute little Ice Cream Shop called G&D's Ice Cream Cafe and the Bananarama ice cream is DELICIOUS. 

While we were walking around Oxford last night some dudes were playing soccer in the street ( in hackey sack manner) So Taylor got in on the action while I stood there awkwardly in a dress and heels. [I make big sacrifices for him, I know.] After that we met up with some of his work mates at some bar called Copa for a party for some of the other trainees who are leaving. I hate bars, and I hate drunk people. I don't hate people who drink, but trying to meet a new person, while they're drunk and have a conversation with them yelling over the loud music, is probably my least favorite thing to do. 

Then a couple (a cute Italian girl and her british-asian boyfriend--both work with Tay) offered to give us a lift back to our hotel. On the way there I was in the back with the Italian girl and another girl who was from India. I love people who are fascinated with America, and I love being the person that gets to answer questions about it.  They were asking me all kind of questions and told me how clear my accent was and how they loved that they could understand what I was saying. It was a pretty big ego trip for me.

Today (Sunday) we had to pay 40 dollars to take a cab to make it to the last 45 minutes of church. I hadn't been so desperate to get to church in all my life. After the homesickness I had been feeling I knew that church would make me feel a lot better, and I was right. The second we sat down in the chapel I almost started crying because I was so happy to be there, and I was so happy to know that no matter where I go, the church is always the same. Everyone in the ward was so friendly, so hopefully we'll make some friends. 

Also, if you are reading this, and you are single, you should probably come visit me ASAP, because there are a lot of attractive young singles (male and female) in the ward.

After church we had Sunday roast at the pub. And went for a walk around Abingdon and took pictures. So I'll shut up now and let you look at some pictures, and I will try to post more often so I don't have such long winded posts. But it makes me feel good to think that our lives are exciting enough to write long blogs about. (I even left some stuff out.)

St. Helens Church

I think cemeteries are cool.

Thames River

River Walk

me and my pal, kickin it.

SUP

Oh we opened a Nail Salon (Wateva u lyke we do 4 u)

"I love a good pair of knockers." - Taylor Giddens

strangers in love.