Just DO IT!...?

Here I am.  The weather is nearly perfect, a comfortable 70 degrees this afternoon, the Weatherman reported while I cooked breakfast. I've slipped into my new red shorts, knee length--to hide some of the spider veins making their way up the back of my leg, pulled on my new blue Pepsi t-shirt from Target, and clipped the sides of my hair back. How do I look? I know, a little...busty.  Okay, A LOT busty--either cursed or blessed. You decide.  Lol.

Monday is Monday. Enough said. Surprisingly I woke-up rested and went to the gym. Onlookers working-out probably wonder how I use the ARC machine, read a book, and listen to the TV at the same time. They don't understand that, despite my frequent Multiple Sclerosis, mommy, old-age induced brain fog, my mind is still pretty good about filtering and honing in when an important news story comes on.

Now I find myself doing the usual this time of the morning: sitting on my laptop, watching my mother swim/walk back and forth at The Orthopedic Specialty Hospital pool, while I decide my next move for the remaining 45 minutes I'm here. Do I catch up on the political/national/world news? Scan Facebook? Instant message with my sister on Yahoo? Work on my new manuscript? Or Blog?

If you asked my husband he'd say--WORK ON YOUR MANUSCRIPT.

But today  you've won out. Here I am blogging. Wows, actually blogging--or attempting it.

Sadly enough, I waste a lot of time dilly dallying around, never actually accomplishing anything. Why is it so hard to just DO SOMETHING?? Why is it so hard to even figure out how to write this blog post today? It's not like I don't have a ton of things to say, all the time, to everyone. But articulating it into a blog post, that possibly nobody but my mother will read, is not as easy as you'd think for a highly opinionated author. And at the end of the day, I crawl into bed and wonder--"Am I gigantic loser?" That is, if I'm awake long enough to ask myself that question.








Now that I've pretty much blabbed on about--well nothing, I'm curious how many of you find yourself in the same predicament I'm in for a good majority of my day?

Does anyone question that I'm ADD?? Because that answer is pretty clear to me--YES!

Sounds like I need a vacation. Oh wait, already did that a few weeks back, and had an awesome time in Las Vegas with the FamBam. 

This is me, posing at the fountains inside Cesar Palace shopping.

 Thanks for listening.  Or reading, I guess.

Erin Apelu

Erin=Entertainment, Enlightenment, Education, Encouragment: A month of Elightenment and Encouragment

Erin=Entertainment, Enlightenment, Education, Encouragment: A month of Elightenment and Encouragment: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!! Okay, so not today. Not even tomorrow. But in twelve days. Yes twelve (12) days. Yep. You got it. A Valentines b...

Erin Apelu

A month of Elightenment and Encouragment

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!!!

Okay, so not today. Not even tomorrow. But in twelve days. Yes twelve (12) days. Yep. You got it. A Valentines baby.  I will be twenty-eight. Haha. Nope. Try thirty-seven. Dang I still look good for thirty-seven. At least that's what my secret mirror tells me every morning. I know. Modest.

But actually, I do look better then I have in probably 11 years. My family joined Planet Fitness near our house. Good news: I've lost 25 pounds. Yay!  It's been great. Fa'a and I get up Monday-Friday at 4:45am and go before he gets ready for work. It hasn't been fun adjusting my sleep schedule, but I basically drop like a rock by 10pm.

ZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Fa'a hasn't been so lucky. He took on a second job (but I think it's more like leisure activity). He's selling frozen yogurt--yes you heard me--frozen yogurt for Red Mango at the Jazz games. He loves it. But he gets home late and usually has to unwind with a Bingo game on Facebook or brousing through the Samoan Observer online. 

Kids are doing great--for an update on my family check out my other blog tomorrow--Erin The Most Happy  http://www.erinthemosthappy.blogspot.com/

But time for some Enlightnment with some Encouragement.

If you've turned your TV in the last few months (Not Jersey Shores or something similar--lol) you've noticed the media channels have been inundated with politics--mostly GOP. Who's the most Conservative? Romneycare=Obamacare. The three wives of Newt. Herman Cains sexual harrassement. Ron Pauls Foreign Policy. Who's the best to beat Obama? And so forth...

How do you disect it all?

How are we supposed to know Truth or Fiction?

What of this information is relevant to the office of the Presidency?

So many questions. So many anwers.

Lets start here. This is how I feel. Right or wrong. This is how I feel.



and is this too much to ask?



But some of you out there reading this blog (again--probably just my mom) might look at those two pictures and say to yourself what's wrong with our country? I love BO (or Obummer, as I like to call him).

If you have to ask yourself that question, take a look at what your watching, listening to, and reading. Okay. I know I'm going to hear it.

Fox News. Blah. Fox News.

For your information, I actually watch a lot more then Fox News. Yes. 5am=Planet Fitness=CNN Starting Point with Soledad O'Brien.

Among other programs throughout the day...

But I don't need to watch just one channel to know what is really going on. I have eyes to see and ears to hear, also. Luckily I live in Utah where the economy for the most part is strong. However, most of the other states aren't as lucky as we are. Unemployment is at a record high. Housing is down the tubes.Occupy Wallstreet. Foreign unrest.  I'm not telling you something you don't already know (my readers are smart ;) ). 

And where does our President stand on all of this? Hope and Change 2008=Unemployment bad economy 2012 

Oh, he wants to help all the unemployed. Bring jobs back to the US. Stop the Keystone Pipeline that would bring tens if not hundreds of thousands of jobs and reduce energy cost to every single American, and blame the GOP for it. And don't forget--make sure EVERYONE pays their fair share.

One question: what is everyone's FAIR SHARE?

Now I know I promised to be dilegent in writing. And I've failed. Water under the bridge. New day. New year. New chance. And the last blog post I made I talked about the wonderful Anne Bolyen. I promised to finish her story. And I will. Just not today. But to understand England in the 1500's is important to understanding what is going on in America 2012.

To my previous picture. What is the Constitution? Why do we really care? Isn't it just an old document by a bunch of old farts who lived in an entirely different world then we do now. The Constitution was for their time not ours.  Right?

Wrong? I have a testimony that the Constitution of the United States of Amercia is a sacred document divinely inspired to make and keep this country great. We have the amendment process for the necessary changes, which should be limited, not in excess. I believe that a document inspired by God doesn't need to be modified but only by a few simple things.   Obama is not following the principles  that this country was founded on. He makes too many Executive Orders. He's trying to build or Government to the max, taking away the rights of the people. Now he's stepped over line too far. He is getting involved in religion. Our very freedom of religion is being challenged. We can't stand by and let this happen.

I believe Mitt Romney is the only one that can save this country. Is he perfect? No. Was Noah, Adam, or Moses perfect? No. Only Jesus Christ has lived a perfect life. So let's stop beating each other up for the mistakes that we've made in the past and focus on the person with the best knowledge of the economy. A man with HIGH MORALS. A family man devoted to the same woman. Someone of faith. Who gives 10% tithe like even the Bible demands. Who takes care of the poor. Who is humble therefore uncomfortable speaking about his great wealth.

There's a lot to be picked through. Good and bad. But we need to remember only one who walked this earth was perfect. He created this world for us. Our country was divinly inspired. We need to step up and become the people worthy to live in this great Promised Land before it is ruined. We need a leader who can do this.

Mitt Romney can.

Here's a few links for some enlightnment. One of them is the transcripts from my conversation with Rush Limbaugh yesterday.

Tune in for more!  Have a great day!

My conversation with Rush Limbaugh regarding Mitt Romney:
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/02/01/young_adult_author_doesn_t_get_why_mitt_s_not_the_one_for_conservatives

Ann Coulter on Romneycare
http://www.anncoulter.com/columns/2012-02-01.html

And this one is about Newt Gingrich
http://mittromneycentral.com/2012/01/31/gingrichs-tin-message-why-conservatives-reject-gingrich/





Erin Apelu

What's With Your Background Picture??

What's with my background picture? 

Thanks for asking. I'd love to tell you. 

The actual person in the background is Natalie Dormer, a British Actress (actor to be politically correct). First off, I think she's beautiful. I love her long dark hair, piercing eyes, and perfect lips.  But that's not why I have her on my background (I'm not that kinda girl *wink*).  She's there, in a beautiful dress, portraying her character Anne Boleyn from SHOWTIME''s THE TUDORS.

What kind of nut would have a picture of Anne Boleyn on their background? Me.  I'm probably her number one fan. I truly feel Anne Boleyn has helped shape me into the woman I am today. But for you to understand I need to start at the beginning, so bare with me.

Back in 2008 THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL staring Natalie Portman came to movie theaters. I, being ignorant in history--particularly Tudor history--went to see the movie with one of my good friends, Chey, thinking it looked like a wonderful romance (which in actually it really was). Needless to say, Chey and I in were flabbergasted when the movie ended with her head cut off.

I felt stunned. Shocked. Sick to my stomach. It had to be a mistake. It wasn't fair! I wanted to see the alternate ending. There had to be an alternate ending!!!!


How could King Henry VIII behead the woman he loved and chased for a decade? How could he so easily disregard her?

Where was the love?

The passion?

Fairy tales weren't supposed to end this way!!!


I went straight home to bed (since it was 2 am by the time we got home) and tossed and turned mulling it. First thing the next morning I called my mother. The conversation went something like this:

"Mom! Did you know King Henry VIII beheaded Anne Boleyn?"

My mom let out a long, drawn out sigh, "Oh Erin, Erin, Erin, where were you in history class? Of course I knew that. How did you graduate with a cumulative 3.9 and NOT know that?" (good question!)

I looked at the clock--six hours until I needed to be to work at the Polynesian Cultural Center.  I had time.  I quickly logged onto the Internet and typed in ANNE BOLEYN. Of course there were thousands of hits, so I spent the next six hours combing through as many as I could. Reading. Reading. And more reading.  But still, the details were vague. There had to be more to the story. I HAD to find out!

A little about me:  I can be...obsessive. 

I spent every free minute thinking about Anne, Henry, history, and how could things have gone so wrong.  It was my curse for gagging at history in high school and college--now I was obsessed with it.

I went straight to Borders and found as many thick books (non-fiction) about Anne Boleyn. I locked myself into my room, snuggled with Tali, my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and dove in. What I found was shocking! Controversial! Amazing!

Anne wasn't the harlot that the movie, the Internet, and most history classes liked to portray her as.   What a
relief!

Anne Boleyn was the second daughter of Sir Thomas Boleyn, an Ambassador to France in his early years and later elevated to Lord Privy Seal when King Henry VII was in pursuit of Anne. Her mother was Lady Elizabeth Howard, daughter of Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk.

How could Anne Boleyn, Lady In Waiting to Queen Claude of France, one day become one of the most influential Queens of England?

THAT is a good question!!!  But allow me, over time, to help explain why this dark haired mystery woman, and her journey to the throne touched my life in so many ways.

For now--this post is way to long...keep tuning in for more of this (and a lot more of other fun stuff too!)



Erin Apelu

Happy Late Independence Day!

Okay, so I know I promised to write often, and I haven't been consistent. I was crazy busy this weekend (I know, excuses, excuses, excuses--but they're actually true this time) and I can't believe I passed up our Nation's birthday without even a word to my awesome followers (okay--so it's only just my mom *wink*).

This year I am feeling even more passion for our amazing country, our incredible Founding Fathers, and especially our wonderful troops that have given, and still continue, to give up their lives for defending the freedoms we have become so accustom to enjoying.

More than ever I feel our precious constitution is under attack from enemy's far and near. You can't turn on a news station or switch to an Internet site where you don't hear about radicals (in our own nation, government, etc...) debating whether or not our constitution is even relevant anymore.

To quote ABC News John Donovan this weekend:

The reality is that the framers – posed in paintings as though frozen on an American Olympus – they were not gods, they were guys – guys who didn’t give women the vote and let slavery stand for the time being and who, by the way, were trying to create at the time a stronger central government, of course not too strong, leaving to us a Constitution that we could fix, as needed, – sorry, make that amend – which we’ve now done 27 times.

But you see, what Donovan does not understand, is that our Founding Fathers were brilliant enough to create a document that could expand over time. The amendment procedure was crucial to the Constitution, and was utilized early on to create the Bill of Rights. And it was through that process that women were given the right to vote.

People also continue in ignorance regarding the three-fifths compromise. Many try to use that section of the Constitution — which counted slaves as three-fifths a person — to show the founders were decidedly pro-slavery. But that actually, the controversial segment was used to help defeat slavery. That’s because the slave states wanted to count the slaves as full people in order to gain more power. But if that happened, it could have had severe consequences in enshrining slavery in the country forever. Which would have NOT been what our Founding Fathers had envisioned for our wonderful country. So the “compromise” was reached to only count the slaves as three-fifths a person, thus creating a more even balance of power.

Yeah, I've been there too, asking the same question you are right now--why do I even really care about this?

Well, please indulge me as over the coming days I try and help you understand why a blonde from Taylorsville Utah, who didn't even graduate from college, and had to be coaxed by her mother to try and get a good grade in high school history class (promising that one day I'd care) now cares so passionately about history (not just this countries) and how it is immensely important to our future as a nation, religious institution, and most importantly--our family. 

Would love to hear your thoughts....

Erin Apelu

A New Day

Everyone's doing it--at least that's what I've been told. I guess it's time that I start doing it too.  Really, there's nothing I can do to escape. Denial isn't working anymore. Lack of motivation isn't a good enough excuse to avoid it. So there's only thing left to do.  I have to give into peer pressure and start...

Blogging!

It's not like this is the first time I've blogged. Last spring I actually started my own personal blog: Erin--The Most Happy.  I spent half a day trying to figure it out, uploading pictures, editing, edititing and re-editing my profile about a hundred times.  Finally I was finished. I was going to write everyday.  I swore I would. One year later, I've updated it about...oh, five times. 

The great thing about life (and a diet)--you can always start fresh tomorrow.

But enough about the past. Let's talk about the present and future. I've still got the other blog. It's cute. It's my fun family one. You should check it out. However, this blog is going to be special. What do I mean by special?  Well let me explain.

If you ask people about Erin Apelu they would probably say many, many different things. She talks all the time (a hundred miles a minute), has crazy unreal things always happening to her, is ALWAYS on the go, etc...  But I want to know the real Erin Apelu, and the best way to do that is with the Four E's.

#1 Entertainment. The words boring and Erin should never be used in the same sentence.  My husband loves to take me to parties just because I can entertain myself--and others. I've got a LONG LONG list of stories--many of the unbelievable (but all true) and I love to share them with others, and they're usually accompanied by crazy facial expressions and hand jestures. Now I'm excited to share them with you.

#2 Enlightenment.  I enjoy being enlightened like the next person, but over the years I've been surprised how much more there is to take in. Things I've known forever I've seen in a new light. For one, I've discovered that I love to read. Oh, how much the mind can absorb from a small (or large) book, a song, conversation, even a lecture (who knew). I have a passionate desire to share with you  the things that enlighten my mind and soul.

#3 Education.  You're never to old to learn. Heck, I've learned so much just from having teenagers (mostly that I really, really, really need to read more so I'm not the one left looking stupid). I'm excited to share with you the new things I've learned.

#4 Encouragement.  Where would we be without encouragement? Flat down in the dust, that's where we'd be. Everyone and everything needs encourgment--even my small tomato plants that are fighting for a chance to grow so my family can devour them. I hope to bring encouragement to your life.

Last, I want to say thanks to all of you who chose to follow me on this new adventure. I look forward to hearing your comments.  I promise, you won't be sorry. And I promise to write at least six times this year *wink wink* .  Check back a few times a week, or you'll have a lot of reading to catch up on.

Erin Apelu