This is where I fill up the first part of the post with meaningless stuff (I mean more meaningless than what I normally write) so that people on Facebook can’t tell what I’m going to say just by looking at the little preview that shows up with the link when I post this there. Of course it’s not likely that anyone will be compelled into reading it just because I refuse to let them know what it’s about, but whatever.

Anyway, the events of this weekend have served to make me feel lighter (and not just because I lost five pounds yesterday)(Yeah, I lost five pounds yesterday from laughing and singing and sitting in the sun all day long)(I’m not sure how this works out, seeing as I drank like five bottles full of water…). At risk of letting the internet know where I live (*gasp*)(I guess it’s a good thing no one reads these then), yesterday/today was an important day for our community. Yesterday we had a cultural celebration with the youth in our part of Northern Utah for the dedication of the LDS temple in Brigham City.

I was in the choir for the celebration and basically we sang a bunch of songs, people danced, and those of us who didn’t use sunscreen got sunburned. We were out on a football (American) field from 8:30 (for the choir)(the dancers were there at 6:30) in the morning to about 8:30 that evening. It was a lot of fun.

I know a lot of the kids who had to dance would disagree with me because… well, it was extremely hot out there and they were running all over the place and I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed that much either, which is why I elected to be in the choir. The music we got to sing was really awesome and the dances that the people did look really fun (I actually find dancing to be very enjoyable as long as it is choreographed and not too terribly aerobic) and I just generally like being a part of productions and things because I feel like I’m accomplishing something.

Not to mention that I got to hang out all day with most of my closest friends, which was fun despite how many times they stole my ribbon-flag thingy and poked me and attacked me when I was taking a nap, effectively scaring the crap out of me. I also got a fabulous t-shirt that uses the same colors as the cover of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. The first time I saw a group of people wearing the blue t-shirts (the other t-shirts were green and yellow), I thought they were all wearing TFiOs shirts, but then I realized that they were pictures of the temple and not clouds.

Going to shows is nice and going to shows with friends is even more nice, but there’s something about being a part of a show with people that you like a lot that makes it feel like you’re being hugged. I don’t generally like being hugged because it makes me feel claustrophobic at times, but I understand what it is that makes people like being hugged. It feels safe and when you’re me, you learn to appreciate feeling safe and I feel safe when I’m doing something that means something with people that mean a lot to me. I even wrote a poem about hugs yesterday for this contest thing. It was good. Believe me.

Understanding hugs is important because people hug me all the time and want me to hug them, which I’m trying to get used to just a little bit. On a sociological level, hugs fascinate me a lot, actually. I just have a hard time knowing how to react to them. Sometimes, if I’m given enough warning, I’m okay, like if someone is going around the circle hugging everyone, but if people just hug me out of nowhere or if I’m not expecting it, I get confused. My incredibly heightened self-preservation instincts kick in and I go into defense mode (my non-violent defense mode)(I don’t usually use my violent defense mode. In fact, I try not to be violent at all. One of the things that annoys me the most is when people hit other people for no reason. Like when guys tease girls playfully and the girls hit the guys. It’s the most ridiculous thing ever, I mean, yes the guy is using a sort of verbal abuse that translates into affection for some weird reason, but why would you want to respond to affection with pain? You’d think it would psychologically train the men not to show affection. OH, WAIT, IT IS HARD FOR GUYS TO SHOW AFFECTIONS SOMETIMES. Is it because girls train them not to? Then they complain about it, but it’s probably their fault)(violence is stupid and pointless violence is even more stupid, so just don’t be violent, people).

Anyway, enough about hugs. This weekend was better than most. That was the point. I hope you all (all two of you) find something to be a part of.