lauren elledge

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

>good company.

wishing i was in kauai right now.

watching the sunset and the moon rise.

laying on the cold yet also warm sand and seeing the stars appear one by one.

and i really wish i was listening to one of alexis's hilarious stories.

i miss the good company.

with warmth & love,

Monday, April 29, 2013

>we think we're funny.

for neeshy part 2.

with warmth & love,

Friday, April 26, 2013

>for neeshy.

my best friend left today... neeshy... i miss her and it's only been a few hours.

i pathetically walked to school after i said goodbye to her and just cried.

i walked home and cried. and i laid in her empty bed and cried.

so maybe i'm being a little emotional right now, so bare with me.

we've been through a lot together. especially this semester.

she was the first person i saw, hugged, and cried to after i got my heart broken.

she is the girl that shake weighted it with me.

she's the one that inspires me to be a better peacebuilder every day.

she's the one that spent so many nights, laying in my bed and hugging me as i cried.

and some nights i was hugging her as she cried.

she's the one that taught me how to surf and got me my board and danced around the living room with it.

she's the one that supported me during the weekends i wanted to be sad and just watch netflix.

and she's the one that pushed me to get out of my bed and be happy.

she's the one that my mom loves because she tries to get me to eat my vegetables.

but she's also the friend that is always down for mcdonalds ice cream cones and big macs.

she's the friend that understands why the oc, laguna beach, and the hills are all so good.

she puts up with me when i catch fish in the canal and bring them to her.

or when i call her nickel.

she's the friend that has a common love for dressing up in a gorilla costume.

she is supportive. kind. caring. funny. weird. and everything else in between.

but mostly she's just my best friend. and the last 4 months would have been impossible without her.

i'm lucky because i know i'll always have her as my best friend.

right now i'm just a sad because i wish that meant she was still my roommate, and right here.

and it's scary because i don't know exactly when i'll see her again.

but again, i'm lucky and blessed because we'll always be best friends.

not too many people have all of that.

with warmth & love,

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

our week adventure began around 3am when we left our little town of laie and headed to the honolulu airport to take a short 20 minute flight to the beautiful island of kauai. we started off the early morning at church where we were sang to by the congregation and lei'd. talk about the aloha spirit.

we then took off to wailua falls. 180 feet tall. and absolutely breathtaking. i've seen waterfalls before, but never something to big and beautiful. after we hiked down the very slippery (and technically illegal) path, we made it to the bottom of the falls and dove into the chilly water. swimming underneath something so powerful and great was an unreal feeling. we hiked up behind the falls and it was so strong. the spray from the falls blew us and we yelled to hear each other. it was amazing. afterwards we hiked to the top and looked over. it still amazes me how beautiful this earth is.

after the entire trip, i'd have to say this was my favorite thing we did. and if you ever go, you have to hike down and swim and walk behind the falls. this easily made the list for one of the greatest things i've ever done.

after wailua falls, we headed to this rope swing our friend greg discovered on his last trip to kauai. we had a blast swinging around and jumping off. we all had at least one good wipe out. unfortunately though, jordan took the prize when he busted his ear drum... yikes. took it like a champ.

after some costco food (we lived off of costco food all week), we headed to set up camp. after unloading all seven of us out of a small, fiver person car, and laughing at the sight as chickens decided to hang out inside of our car, we set off to the entrance of the nepali coast and set up our tents for the night.

there we all watched one of the most beautiful sunsets. kauai did not disappoint with beautiful sunsets every night. for the most part, the weather was pretty rainy and overcast, but every evening the sun came out and ended the day perfectly.

now blame it on us being stoked to be in kauai and running off of little sleep, but as we were watching the sunset, we saw a man on a jet ski, who was wearing a cape. and although it was difficult to see, it looked like he was wearing a mask. basically, we were convinced he was wearing a batman costume on his jet ski. we began to cheer "batman!" and then he ventured over. long story short, we met our first of very many friends that night. brando. not batman. he joined us for the evening, bringing spaghetti, cooking over a fire, and telling us some interesting stories.

i have been in desperate need of a break. and even more desperate need of some adventure. kauai gave me both. as i lay in my sleeping bag on night one, i loved falling asleep, looking out the window and seeing the bright moon shine and the stars glimmer. couldn't ask for anything better.

with warmth & love,

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

>christiana & greg.

a little video i made of christiana and greg.
they didn't know i was going to make this for them,
i just compiled some stuff i had of them from our trip to kauai.
they're getting married in july. love you guys.

with warmth & love,

Monday, April 22, 2013

>back on oahu.

sorry for the absence... finals took over, and i am very pleased to announce that i passed all of my classes! typically i'm a pretty good student, but this semester was a rough one for me personally and let's just say i cried when i saw that i passed all my classes. blessed, blessed, blessed.

after i finished finals, it was time for a much needed vay-cay. my family always teases me that i'm already on a 4 year vacation since i go to school in hawaii. but we need a break too sometimes. i spent the last 7 days on the beautiful island of kauai. showering was limited, we camped, we hiked, we hitched, and did everything in between. technology was off, and goodness i highly suggest that everyone take a week to do that.

i'm back on oahu and summer term starts tomorrow. i'll post more pictures from my trip tomorrow, but for now here's one from one of the many beautiful sunsets we saw. this world is amazing.