It's been an action-packed couple of days. Sort of.
I finished The Dark is Rising today, and found the book SO MUCH better than the movie. I was glad that I saw the show before I read the book, because it allowed me to enjoy both of them. Had I gone in reverse order, I probably would have cried during the movie. :)
Book 1 was pretty boring. Just ask Jess. Book 2 was awesome (the one I just finished). Book 3 ties together some characters from both. We'll see how it turns out.
We had a nice 3-hour nap today. It was wonderful. Minus the part where 3 or 4 of Joanne's grandkids started pounding away at the piano that's right above our bedroom. It would have been frustrating even if we hadn't been trying to take a nap.
Last night was Ben's 1st birthday party. Fun and good times were had by all. Especially the kid who hacked up a lung. Seriously, he had a bad cough, and I hope that the other little ones didn't catch what he had.
Mandy and Paul came over for lunch today, which was both fun and tasty (they weren't tasty--lunch was). It's not often that we see them here in our neck of the woods.
Our stake president commented briefly in sacrament today about the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. How sad is it when people see the best solution to a problem is killing the person who's making the problem. Granted, it's one way to deal with things, but it's not a very good one. Same thing happened to Jesus Christ and Joseph and Hyrum Smith. Sad stuff. Seems they should follow Michael Scott's advice and "hug it out."
Also in regards to the assassination, I was surprised when I read about it. Those sort of things seem to me to be things of a time long ago (the 1960s and earlier--JFK, Franz Ferdinand, etc). It's weird to see it happening again.
Also in sacrament meeting, a guy from our ward mentioned how Joseph Smith had been wondering about which church to join for two years before he went to the grove and received the First Vision. It was neat to learn that he didn't just have a question pop into his head, pray about it and then--whammy! get an answer like he did. It took time and effort. That helps me feel better about when I don't get answers to my prayers very quickly.
Jess also mentioned on our way home from church that a couple weeks ago they had learned in Relief Society that the grove Joseph went to was one that his mother often went to in order to pray. It wasn't just some place that was arbitrarily chosen for his first vocal prayer. Cool stuff.
One of the other talks mentioned what Elder Ballard said recently about using new media to participate in conversations about the church. I think that's why my mom started her blog...
Happy 2nd-to-last day of the year, everybody.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Friday, December 21, 2007
Media update
Jess and I went to see The Seeker: The Dark is Rising last night at the dollar theater (wonderful place). The show was pretty good for the genre (cheesy adolescent feel-good family fantasy movie) and we enjoyed it for the most part. We did laugh at a couple of plot twists, but all-in-all, it was worth a dollar apiece. Biggest annoyance: the (maybe retarded to give them the benefit of the doubt) kids to our left and family behind us who all talked at full volume during the movie. Really, who does that?
I finished Persuasion by Jane Austen this morning, and have to admit that I enjoyed it. Austen has a sharp wit, and I love the irony and biting humor that she has in her books (at least the two that I've read). The version of the book that I was reading has the original last two chapters in it as an appendix (apparently Austen wrote two new ones right before publication), and there was almost no difference in them at all--she only changed the way in which Anne and her dashing Captain Wentworth finally discovered their true feelings for each other (that they hadn't changed after 8 years) and get back together. A lot of the text was conserved verbatim. I don't even know why they included the first couple pages.
Next to read: The Dark is Rising series. They were already in my reading queue, but having seen the movie made me want to read the books even more. I'm gonna go to the library today to pick them up--they've got like half a billion copies of each one, and they're all checked in. That's a lot nicer than the Golden Compass was. Good luck trying to get a copy of that book. Sheesh.
I finished Persuasion by Jane Austen this morning, and have to admit that I enjoyed it. Austen has a sharp wit, and I love the irony and biting humor that she has in her books (at least the two that I've read). The version of the book that I was reading has the original last two chapters in it as an appendix (apparently Austen wrote two new ones right before publication), and there was almost no difference in them at all--she only changed the way in which Anne and her dashing Captain Wentworth finally discovered their true feelings for each other (that they hadn't changed after 8 years) and get back together. A lot of the text was conserved verbatim. I don't even know why they included the first couple pages.
Next to read: The Dark is Rising series. They were already in my reading queue, but having seen the movie made me want to read the books even more. I'm gonna go to the library today to pick them up--they've got like half a billion copies of each one, and they're all checked in. That's a lot nicer than the Golden Compass was. Good luck trying to get a copy of that book. Sheesh.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
CHRISTMAS VACATION!!!
It's finally here! Finals are done as of noon today, and now it's time for a couple of weeks of no more school. Hooray!
I've got a list of things I'm wanting to accomplish over the break (so it's productive), and today Jess and I knocked out one of them--we fixed the fan in the bathroom so it's clean and not as noisy as it used to be. Sweet! And then Jess organized my ties for me and put them on a new tie hangar. Life is good.
Still to be done over the break: Fill out the FAFSA, send in a rebate for the tires we just got on the car, expand my book queue, defrost the freezer, and organize our important papers.
Last word from Dr. Cates--it sounds like we're on for the plant project. There have been a lot of ups and downs, and I'm sort of tired of being told one thing and then another. Here's hoping that we actually get to be hired and start working.
Thanks, Liz, for your book suggestion. Everyone else--please feel free to suggest books for me to read. With my handy-dandy queue, I can easily keep track. The future is now! Peace.
I've got a list of things I'm wanting to accomplish over the break (so it's productive), and today Jess and I knocked out one of them--we fixed the fan in the bathroom so it's clean and not as noisy as it used to be. Sweet! And then Jess organized my ties for me and put them on a new tie hangar. Life is good.
Still to be done over the break: Fill out the FAFSA, send in a rebate for the tires we just got on the car, expand my book queue, defrost the freezer, and organize our important papers.
Last word from Dr. Cates--it sounds like we're on for the plant project. There have been a lot of ups and downs, and I'm sort of tired of being told one thing and then another. Here's hoping that we actually get to be hired and start working.
Thanks, Liz, for your book suggestion. Everyone else--please feel free to suggest books for me to read. With my handy-dandy queue, I can easily keep track. The future is now! Peace.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Spanish Lit books
I just finished two books for my intro to Spanish lit class, and they were pretty good. En la ardiente oscuridad by Antonio Buero Vallejo is a play that Buero Vallejo wrote during Franco's regime in Spain. It was sort of a secret rebellion/commentary on life in under Franco, but sneaky enough that Buero Vallejo didn't get booted out of Spain. It's about some kids at a school for the blind, who pretend that they aren't. Along comes Ignacio, who gets sick very quickly of the lie that the others are living, and his ideas start spreading to other students. How it's handled, and the surprising conclusion made this a great read. I'm gonna hold on to this one.
The other is Querido Diego, te abraza Quiela by Elena Poniatowska. She's originally from Poland, but grew up in Mexico. The very short book is a series of fictional letters from Angeline Beloff, a Russian in Paris, to Diego Rivera, famous Mexican painter. They had shacked up for 7 or so years, had a child who died, and Rivera went back to Mexico. It's a sad book, but it was an interesting read.
I'd recommend both if you can handle the Spanish. I'd love to see En la ardiente oscuridad done as a play, which my professor mentioned had happened several semesters back right here at BYU, both in English and Spanish. Drag.
The other is Querido Diego, te abraza Quiela by Elena Poniatowska. She's originally from Poland, but grew up in Mexico. The very short book is a series of fictional letters from Angeline Beloff, a Russian in Paris, to Diego Rivera, famous Mexican painter. They had shacked up for 7 or so years, had a child who died, and Rivera went back to Mexico. It's a sad book, but it was an interesting read.
I'd recommend both if you can handle the Spanish. I'd love to see En la ardiente oscuridad done as a play, which my professor mentioned had happened several semesters back right here at BYU, both in English and Spanish. Drag.
Monday, December 3, 2007
Cool idea
So I just saw a cool idea on another blog that I want to implement, so I'm writing it down here so that I don't forget about it. The guy has a "reading queue" to help him keep track of all the different books that he wants to read. He's even got a random number generator to help him decide which one to read next. I've got a lot of books that I wanna read, so this is a pretty good idea for me, too. I've actually got something of a list on my computer, but it's in a Word document that I pretty much never open. Maybe if I put it online it will help me stick with it.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Only one more month 'til Christmas...
I love Thanksgiving. Seriously, it's probably one of my favorite holidays ever. How can you not love stuffing yourself silly not just once, but twice in one day?! You can't go wrong with pie. Nor with turkey sandwiches for the next week. Mmm, Thanksgiving. And it's all in the name of gratitude. What a wonderful attribute. I'm sure grateful for such a tasty holiday.
I also really like the break that it affords us poor college students. It was awesome to not have to go to class, even though I had to bust my butt working on papers that I had procrastinated. By the way, procrastination is bad. Just ask Elder Hallstrom.
I've been reading a lot lately. Just a month or so ago, Jess and I finished Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" series. A lot of hubbub has risen up lately because of the movie coming out soon, and the fact that Pullman is a self-declared atheist. The third book, The Amber Spyglass, contains one of the most controversial scenes where the two main characters kill the angel who is pretending to be God. A lot of people feel like "His Dark Materials" is Pullman's proselyting material--how he's peddling atheism. I personally thought the series was a lot of fun, and there were a lot of interesting ideas contained in it. I can see where the concern would come from, though, and so I've started looking into some of the books that people have written to analyze the series. I'll let you know what I find. One that I just picked up discusses how there is an inherent spirituality in the book even though religion is rejected. I'm only a couple of pages in, so I have a lot more to go before I understand exactly what they're talking about.
More recently I've read the "Wrinkle in Time" series by Madeline L'Engle, and I'm currently reading her book, Many Waters, which is a companion volume to the other three. I like how L'Engle is not afraid to reference God in a positive way in her books--they're definitely not religious books like C.S. Lewis's "Chronicles of Narnia," but they don't cast aspersions on religion or spirituality. It's just an accepted part of life for her characters.
I think it will be interesting to see what happens with the "His Dark Materials" series... I'm sure things will get even crazier than they did with Harry Potter.
Oh yeah, and the BYU - Utah game was amazing. Glad to have another year of bragging rights, and a year where I won't have to be hassled by the inlaws because of my affinity for the Y.
I also really like the break that it affords us poor college students. It was awesome to not have to go to class, even though I had to bust my butt working on papers that I had procrastinated. By the way, procrastination is bad. Just ask Elder Hallstrom.
I've been reading a lot lately. Just a month or so ago, Jess and I finished Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" series. A lot of hubbub has risen up lately because of the movie coming out soon, and the fact that Pullman is a self-declared atheist. The third book, The Amber Spyglass, contains one of the most controversial scenes where the two main characters kill the angel who is pretending to be God. A lot of people feel like "His Dark Materials" is Pullman's proselyting material--how he's peddling atheism. I personally thought the series was a lot of fun, and there were a lot of interesting ideas contained in it. I can see where the concern would come from, though, and so I've started looking into some of the books that people have written to analyze the series. I'll let you know what I find. One that I just picked up discusses how there is an inherent spirituality in the book even though religion is rejected. I'm only a couple of pages in, so I have a lot more to go before I understand exactly what they're talking about.
More recently I've read the "Wrinkle in Time" series by Madeline L'Engle, and I'm currently reading her book, Many Waters, which is a companion volume to the other three. I like how L'Engle is not afraid to reference God in a positive way in her books--they're definitely not religious books like C.S. Lewis's "Chronicles of Narnia," but they don't cast aspersions on religion or spirituality. It's just an accepted part of life for her characters.
I think it will be interesting to see what happens with the "His Dark Materials" series... I'm sure things will get even crazier than they did with Harry Potter.
Oh yeah, and the BYU - Utah game was amazing. Glad to have another year of bragging rights, and a year where I won't have to be hassled by the inlaws because of my affinity for the Y.
Monday, October 22, 2007
The Poor Thing in the Bathroom
*As a heads-up, this post is not intended to mock or make fun of. Simply to inform of an event that I found slightly amusing and saddening.
So, today I was in the library on campus and I had to go to the bathroom. So I did. While relieving myself at the urinal, I had a bit of a surprise. First, the urinal that was flushed two down from mine overflowed. Needless to say, I was a little antsy, because I was pretty much anchored to the spot--you fellas know what I mean.
Then there was a second surprise. Someone came out of the stall behind me, and went to go wash their hands. And I honestly couldn't tell if it was a guy or a girl. Very ambiguous, very Pat. They (notice the gender-neutral pronoun) walked over to the sink to wash their hands, and were looking around uncomfortably. Manner of dress and hair were mostly girl-ish, but they were in the mens room. If it was a girl, I feel really bad for her. She may have come in without looking closely at the sign. Maybe there was no one else in there when she came in. And when she came out, all of a sudden--there were boys. Wow. Awkward.
But then again, maybe it was just a guy with long-ish hair who would look uncomfortable and out of place no matter where he was.
So, today I was in the library on campus and I had to go to the bathroom. So I did. While relieving myself at the urinal, I had a bit of a surprise. First, the urinal that was flushed two down from mine overflowed. Needless to say, I was a little antsy, because I was pretty much anchored to the spot--you fellas know what I mean.
Then there was a second surprise. Someone came out of the stall behind me, and went to go wash their hands. And I honestly couldn't tell if it was a guy or a girl. Very ambiguous, very Pat. They (notice the gender-neutral pronoun) walked over to the sink to wash their hands, and were looking around uncomfortably. Manner of dress and hair were mostly girl-ish, but they were in the mens room. If it was a girl, I feel really bad for her. She may have come in without looking closely at the sign. Maybe there was no one else in there when she came in. And when she came out, all of a sudden--there were boys. Wow. Awkward.
But then again, maybe it was just a guy with long-ish hair who would look uncomfortable and out of place no matter where he was.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Two months and a pregnancy later...
I'm sorry to have let down my faithful army of blog readers. All three of you must have been somewhat saddened by the lack of updates for a couple of months. Sorry. So here's an update on some stuff.
Married life: awesome. It's been fun to learn more about Jess, and life is good. It's fun to eat together, to talk to each other, and to just have someone there to be with. Interesting, though, how life doesn't really slow down at all. It just seems to have gotten busier...
Flight of the Conchords: hilarious new show. It's a fictional show about a real band from New Zealand in New York. It's witty, and the show is basically just a vehicle for setting up their songs. Which are hilarious. "Am I freaking you out, Bret? Is this a freaky dream?" --Jermaine Bowie
The Office: yeah, I've been a little disappointed by the recent episodes (though I haven't seen the 4th one this season, so I'm really only commenting on the first three). It seems like they have great material for a slam-bang half-hour episode, but things get drawn out ridiculously, and I find myself questioning, "Just how stupid can Michael really be? Is Dwight really going along with that?" Sigh... here's hoping that we find redemption soon.
Heroes: ...fine, I got hooked by first season. Yes, I'm curious to see how this X-men ripoff turns out. *Sigh*, now it's out. But really I'm only interested in what happens to the amnesious Peter Petrelli, the stuck-in-the-past-stuck-on-the-lady Hiro, crazy old Sylar, and Claire's hot new boy toy (thanks, Jess!). Will Peter turn evil? What kind of internal turmoil will he undergo? Our goody-two-shoes hero may have to find himself again. Hiro is trying to turn Mr. Sark into a hero, but is falling for the lady that Sark's supposed to end up with. So sad. Sylar--is he redeeming himself? Or will he turn out just as psychotic and evil as before? And Tom Welling, er, "West," ... my theory is that he's the guy who pushed Hiro's dad off the roof. I'll betcha he's working for Parkman's dad. He's evil. Poor Molly.
Guatemala research project: I interviewed on Friday for a position in a research lab. I'll find out on Tuesday if I'm in, but it sounds pretty sweet. We'll be going to Guatemala to bring back plants that the indigenous folks use for medicinal purposes. Then we'll test them to see what is effective against what. Then we'll figure out the 30-40 best plants, make a booklet, and distribute it back amongst the indigenous folks so that they can take care of themselves better. Another potential benefit will be that 5-6 of them could be cultivated by the people as a cash crop, then sold to herbal companies. Pretty sweet. It's a paid lab, I'd have the chance to publish and present, and get to help people. And go to Guatemala. Could it get any better? My wife can even come!! Sweet!!! We'll see how it goes.
General Conference: awesome. Absolutely amazing. Maybe I'll post more about it as I review the talks from it.
Car: frustrating. The stupid check engine light hates me. I've now replaced the catalytic converter, the rear O2 sensor, and cleaned the air filter. Still giving me an error, and it upsets me. We also have to get the clutch replaced. Good thing people gave us money when we got married... :) But I still love the car.
His Dark Materials: an interesting book series by Philip Pullman. A little strange, but a good read, and very engaging. It ate up a lot of my time. And Jess's.
Divine Comedy: really funny last night, but I miss a lot of the old cast members. Some of the new folks I find grating. Not cheese, nerves. But it was still funny. Except for one of the last jokes. It was in relation to the Quill and the Sword, a medieval club on campus. The folks in the group are already somewhat ostracized, and then they were made fun of in a way that was not uplifting, but just sad. Several of us were offended by the joke.
Caleb and Sarah: awesome. They need to get married. Soon. 'Nuff said.
Sucking hot chocolate through grasshopper cookies: Choco-bliss. Wow. Wow, wow. Mmmm.
TMNT: we just watched this last weekend, and we both had a good time. I liked it, and it reminded me of the good old days. Except that I didn't like Splinter's voice. April's a ninja? Right... and thanks for teaching good morals by having Casey Jones and April living in the same apartment. Unmarried. That's what I want to teach my kids. *Thumbs down raspberry*
And Jess is an amazing cook. Scha-weet!
And God has been kind recently with my test and homework situation. He's really blessed me A LOT. And I'm very appreciative.
Married life: awesome. It's been fun to learn more about Jess, and life is good. It's fun to eat together, to talk to each other, and to just have someone there to be with. Interesting, though, how life doesn't really slow down at all. It just seems to have gotten busier...
Flight of the Conchords: hilarious new show. It's a fictional show about a real band from New Zealand in New York. It's witty, and the show is basically just a vehicle for setting up their songs. Which are hilarious. "Am I freaking you out, Bret? Is this a freaky dream?" --Jermaine Bowie
The Office: yeah, I've been a little disappointed by the recent episodes (though I haven't seen the 4th one this season, so I'm really only commenting on the first three). It seems like they have great material for a slam-bang half-hour episode, but things get drawn out ridiculously, and I find myself questioning, "Just how stupid can Michael really be? Is Dwight really going along with that?" Sigh... here's hoping that we find redemption soon.
Heroes: ...fine, I got hooked by first season. Yes, I'm curious to see how this X-men ripoff turns out. *Sigh*, now it's out. But really I'm only interested in what happens to the amnesious Peter Petrelli, the stuck-in-the-past-stuck-on-the-lady Hiro, crazy old Sylar, and Claire's hot new boy toy (thanks, Jess!). Will Peter turn evil? What kind of internal turmoil will he undergo? Our goody-two-shoes hero may have to find himself again. Hiro is trying to turn Mr. Sark into a hero, but is falling for the lady that Sark's supposed to end up with. So sad. Sylar--is he redeeming himself? Or will he turn out just as psychotic and evil as before? And Tom Welling, er, "West," ... my theory is that he's the guy who pushed Hiro's dad off the roof. I'll betcha he's working for Parkman's dad. He's evil. Poor Molly.
Guatemala research project: I interviewed on Friday for a position in a research lab. I'll find out on Tuesday if I'm in, but it sounds pretty sweet. We'll be going to Guatemala to bring back plants that the indigenous folks use for medicinal purposes. Then we'll test them to see what is effective against what. Then we'll figure out the 30-40 best plants, make a booklet, and distribute it back amongst the indigenous folks so that they can take care of themselves better. Another potential benefit will be that 5-6 of them could be cultivated by the people as a cash crop, then sold to herbal companies. Pretty sweet. It's a paid lab, I'd have the chance to publish and present, and get to help people. And go to Guatemala. Could it get any better? My wife can even come!! Sweet!!! We'll see how it goes.
General Conference: awesome. Absolutely amazing. Maybe I'll post more about it as I review the talks from it.
Car: frustrating. The stupid check engine light hates me. I've now replaced the catalytic converter, the rear O2 sensor, and cleaned the air filter. Still giving me an error, and it upsets me. We also have to get the clutch replaced. Good thing people gave us money when we got married... :) But I still love the car.
His Dark Materials: an interesting book series by Philip Pullman. A little strange, but a good read, and very engaging. It ate up a lot of my time. And Jess's.
Divine Comedy: really funny last night, but I miss a lot of the old cast members. Some of the new folks I find grating. Not cheese, nerves. But it was still funny. Except for one of the last jokes. It was in relation to the Quill and the Sword, a medieval club on campus. The folks in the group are already somewhat ostracized, and then they were made fun of in a way that was not uplifting, but just sad. Several of us were offended by the joke.
Caleb and Sarah: awesome. They need to get married. Soon. 'Nuff said.
Sucking hot chocolate through grasshopper cookies: Choco-bliss. Wow. Wow, wow. Mmmm.
TMNT: we just watched this last weekend, and we both had a good time. I liked it, and it reminded me of the good old days. Except that I didn't like Splinter's voice. April's a ninja? Right... and thanks for teaching good morals by having Casey Jones and April living in the same apartment. Unmarried. That's what I want to teach my kids. *Thumbs down raspberry*
And Jess is an amazing cook. Scha-weet!
And God has been kind recently with my test and homework situation. He's really blessed me A LOT. And I'm very appreciative.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Life is good
Ok, so it's been a while since I've posted, and a lot has happened lately. First, I'm engaged to be married to Jessica, and we're getting hitched next Thursday. I'm pretty darn excited.
I've got a long list of things that need to be done, and I've been stressing about several of the things (like finding a house, making the honeymoon plans, etc). Well, the biggest item got taken off the list yesterday. That's right, we finally found a place to live!! No more awkward moments when people ask about it (20 different people per night...), no more pondering about if my car is big enough to survive in for a semester (just kidding, Jess), and far less stress!
I learned an important lesson over the past couple of weeks that hesitation when looking for housing leads to getting shut down quickly. Granted, I think that losing some of the previous housing opportunities taught me that lesson so that I'd be ready to act when yesterday arrived. We found a place and were calling all day about it, but weren't able to set up a time for an appointment. So we showed up to take a look, liked what we saw, and as we left, another couple came down to take a look. So we decided that we'd take it, and everything has just worked out perfectly. I believe the Lord has his hand in this and has helped us find an awesome place. We've been hugely blessed!
So life is really good. There's still a lot to do, but I feel like things are a lot more handleable. Hooray!
I've got a long list of things that need to be done, and I've been stressing about several of the things (like finding a house, making the honeymoon plans, etc). Well, the biggest item got taken off the list yesterday. That's right, we finally found a place to live!! No more awkward moments when people ask about it (20 different people per night...), no more pondering about if my car is big enough to survive in for a semester (just kidding, Jess), and far less stress!
I learned an important lesson over the past couple of weeks that hesitation when looking for housing leads to getting shut down quickly. Granted, I think that losing some of the previous housing opportunities taught me that lesson so that I'd be ready to act when yesterday arrived. We found a place and were calling all day about it, but weren't able to set up a time for an appointment. So we showed up to take a look, liked what we saw, and as we left, another couple came down to take a look. So we decided that we'd take it, and everything has just worked out perfectly. I believe the Lord has his hand in this and has helped us find an awesome place. We've been hugely blessed!
So life is really good. There's still a lot to do, but I feel like things are a lot more handleable. Hooray!
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Faith vs Reason
Jessica made a really good point today. We were discussing the fact that I way over analyze things and make them more complicated and stressful than they need to be. I think that this contributes to my problem of not always being as decisive as I should be.
We're counseled to "study [things] out in our mind," but there also comes a time when we need to put our trust in the Lord and step into the darkness. Only then will the light move and further illuminate our path. Elder Packer makes a great point about this in his talk "The Candle of the Lord." So the question for me is, where is the balance between faith and reason? To what extent should I study things out in my mind (going somewhat crazy as I do so...) and when do I start stepping?
I realize that faith is an action principle, and in order for the Lord to tell me how I'm doing, I need to be doing something. So how does this fit with the biggest decision of my life? I think that once I start moving, I'll need something with the subtlety of a bulldozer to stop me if it's not the right thing. Hopefully that's not something that I need to be too worried about...
We're counseled to "study [things] out in our mind," but there also comes a time when we need to put our trust in the Lord and step into the darkness. Only then will the light move and further illuminate our path. Elder Packer makes a great point about this in his talk "The Candle of the Lord." So the question for me is, where is the balance between faith and reason? To what extent should I study things out in my mind (going somewhat crazy as I do so...) and when do I start stepping?
I realize that faith is an action principle, and in order for the Lord to tell me how I'm doing, I need to be doing something. So how does this fit with the biggest decision of my life? I think that once I start moving, I'll need something with the subtlety of a bulldozer to stop me if it's not the right thing. Hopefully that's not something that I need to be too worried about...
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Current Musical/Car Thoughts
So I've been thinking about some ways to spend my money, and some are slightly more pressing than others. I found out that the reason my check engine light has been on for a long time is probably due to the O2 sensors, not the catalytic converter. Which means the repair is more expensive because it's not under warranty. But, by replacing it my gas mileage should go up. That would be exciting.
I've also been thinking a little bit about buying a new stereo with an aux-in jack so that I can listen to my mp3 player in the car. I still don't know how likely that is, but I'm wanting to do it. We'll see what happens. And then I'll probably buy a small flash memory mp3 player, too. I like music.
I've also been thinking a little bit about buying a new stereo with an aux-in jack so that I can listen to my mp3 player in the car. I still don't know how likely that is, but I'm wanting to do it. We'll see what happens. And then I'll probably buy a small flash memory mp3 player, too. I like music.
Monday, June 18, 2007
New Tentative Feature...
So I've decided to try out putting bands and/or albums that I'm listening to and deciding whether or not to keep them/get more of their stuff. My music library is ridiculously bloated with music that I don't know yet (thanks to a couple of music binges that I went on), and I want to get down to stuff that I actually know and like (and someday might buy the cd).
Leave a comment if there are any suggestions... If I decide that I like the list, I'll keep it. If not, it's gone.
I really should be in bed right now.
Leave a comment if there are any suggestions... If I decide that I like the list, I'll keep it. If not, it's gone.
I really should be in bed right now.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Greatest Memorial Day Weekend EVER!!!
So this past weekend was absolutely amazing. Motorcycle riding and four wheeling not just once, but twice! Jessica came along on Saturday and it was lots of fun.
I even got a haircut! I don't know if life gets any better...
Oh wait, it does! There's an 8 for 8 sale on cereal at Smiths that started yesterday, and they've got Honey Bunches of Oats. Sweet!
I even got a haircut! I don't know if life gets any better...
Oh wait, it does! There's an 8 for 8 sale on cereal at Smiths that started yesterday, and they've got Honey Bunches of Oats. Sweet!
Friday, May 18, 2007
A Beautiful Day!
Ok, so today was basically amazing. As I was driving to work, I saw the mountains and was blown away by how green they were. As I felt how nice it was, I knew that I had no choice but to go on a bike ride with my roommates. Yes, I had to give up the season finale of the Office, but it was only for a day. And also Jessica couldn't watch it because of work, so I guess that *may* have played into the decision a little bit...
So we went up to Alpine around 6:30 (passed a bummer of a car crash on the way there) and got there just as the sun was starting to set. Bishop Albrecht met us up there, which was pretty darn cool. There are a bunch of trails up there that intertwine and are crazy cool! We rode for a little more than an hour, and I was bushed, but it was so neat! There was sweet single track that went up and down with banked turns, jaunts through heavily wooded and green areas... wow. Wow. What a beautiful world we live in, and what a fun way to experience it. Now I've just gotta get into shape so I can keep up with everyone else...
So we went up to Alpine around 6:30 (passed a bummer of a car crash on the way there) and got there just as the sun was starting to set. Bishop Albrecht met us up there, which was pretty darn cool. There are a bunch of trails up there that intertwine and are crazy cool! We rode for a little more than an hour, and I was bushed, but it was so neat! There was sweet single track that went up and down with banked turns, jaunts through heavily wooded and green areas... wow. Wow. What a beautiful world we live in, and what a fun way to experience it. Now I've just gotta get into shape so I can keep up with everyone else...
Thursday, May 17, 2007
The Last Mimzy
Ok, so Jessica and I went to see The Last Mimzy last night, and it was probably one of the weirdest movies that I've ever seen. We're talking ultra-strange. Pretty much the only thing that allows me to look back with fondness on it was the fact that Rainn Wilson (Dwight from The Office) was in it, and was funny. Oh, and the cute little girl who was in it.
Weird kids, weird rocks and toys, weird loud noises, weird alien costumes... Wow.
Weird kids, weird rocks and toys, weird loud noises, weird alien costumes... Wow.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Happy Mothers Day!!
Moms are great. Mine's absolutely amazing! She's probably made more sacrifices for me than any other person on earth, from nearly dying when I was born to waking up early to make lunches all through school to taking care of me on my visits home. How do you repay all of that? Really, you can't. As I was struggling to think of what to get my mom for Mothers Day, the only thing I could think of that would mean the most to her would be my own time. Hopefully I understand her well enough to know what would be most meaningful, and I've chosen wisely. I think I'll probably take her out to lunch, and we can spend some quality time together.
I love my mommy!
I love my mommy!
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Arranging life
So summer's started, and as of right now, things are about the same as they were last summer. I'm working 20 hours a week... and that's all. Sounds great, right? Plenty of time to bum around, just like summer should be, right? Wrong.
Too much free time = bad news and boring. So what to do? Get another job? If so, doing what? Start working in a cancer research lab on campus? Possibly. I'm not quite sure.
Not helping things is the fact that today's been pretty crazy. Life is good, but it's even better when enjoyed on more than 5 1/2 hours of sleep. I'm excited for bed.
I've also been reflecting again on my shift from reclusive introvert to more extrovertedness. I love being with people now, where it used to be a sometimes painful experience. I think that it helps that I know so many cool people now--I'm pretty durn blessed.
Other big decision for the week: Moab trip this weekend. To go, or not to go? My roommate and his girlfriend are going, as well as a former roommate and his wife. Hooray for being 5th wheel! Guess we'll see as it approaches.
Too much free time = bad news and boring. So what to do? Get another job? If so, doing what? Start working in a cancer research lab on campus? Possibly. I'm not quite sure.
Not helping things is the fact that today's been pretty crazy. Life is good, but it's even better when enjoyed on more than 5 1/2 hours of sleep. I'm excited for bed.
I've also been reflecting again on my shift from reclusive introvert to more extrovertedness. I love being with people now, where it used to be a sometimes painful experience. I think that it helps that I know so many cool people now--I'm pretty durn blessed.
Other big decision for the week: Moab trip this weekend. To go, or not to go? My roommate and his girlfriend are going, as well as a former roommate and his wife. Hooray for being 5th wheel! Guess we'll see as it approaches.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Dwim, Jwight
So the best part about tonight's episode of the Office were the opening and closing segments. In the opening segment, Jim dressed up like Dwight and impersonated him--it was absolutely smashing! And then, surprise of all surprises, Dwight dressed up and acted like Jim at the end of the episode. I about wet myself!
Question: Which is the best kind of bear?
Well that's debatable...
False! Black bear.
Amazing!
As for other thoughts from the land of television, Heroes is finally back on a getting exciting. Too bad Isaac (the painter who sees the future) just allowed himself to die. Someone's gonna have to do something about Sylar before he kills pretty much everyone. And what does he do with their brains anyway??
Lost--pretty cool show, but last night's episode was a bit of a let down. Aside from the fact that we know who the father of Sun's baby is, not much else exciting happened (except that Naomi's alive. I wonder what her story is.) Next week is supposed to be about Locke, which means we'll finally get to see a little bit more of what I actually care about. And then, finally!, we get an episode about Ben and the DeGroots and everything!! Hopefully we'll finally get some answers.
Ok, so I watch too much tv. I don't really have a good excuse, either. But at least it only cost *punches in numbers on calculator watch* 11 dollars.
Question: Which is the best kind of bear?
Well that's debatable...
False! Black bear.
Amazing!
As for other thoughts from the land of television, Heroes is finally back on a getting exciting. Too bad Isaac (the painter who sees the future) just allowed himself to die. Someone's gonna have to do something about Sylar before he kills pretty much everyone. And what does he do with their brains anyway??
Lost--pretty cool show, but last night's episode was a bit of a let down. Aside from the fact that we know who the father of Sun's baby is, not much else exciting happened (except that Naomi's alive. I wonder what her story is.) Next week is supposed to be about Locke, which means we'll finally get to see a little bit more of what I actually care about. And then, finally!, we get an episode about Ben and the DeGroots and everything!! Hopefully we'll finally get some answers.
Ok, so I watch too much tv. I don't really have a good excuse, either. But at least it only cost *punches in numbers on calculator watch* 11 dollars.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
First Post
Ok, so I caved and started a blog. I guess that this will probably be somewhat equivalent to an online journal for me, but probably minus some of the juicy details. Sorry if that's a letdown.
I finished up finals yesterday and found that I was really bored once I got home from campus. I spent most of the day lazing around, reading and watching 24. By the end of the day, I had decided that I wasn't going to let that happen to me again--I was going to be productive every day for the rest of the summer!
So today I got up, and first thing after showering, what do I do? Watch Heroes. Go figure--I guess that I'm addicted to a couple of tv shows. But for the rest of the day I was pretty darn productive. I even cleaned out the fridge, which hadn't been done since the day we moved in (and probably a couple months before that, even. Sick.).
Deep thoughts from today: I'm grateful for good friends, and the chance to talk to lots of people--and not just superficial conversations, either, but good, solid heart-to-heart talks. I've spent a lot of today in quality conversation, and even though it made me a little late for something I'd planned, I was ok with it. Now, if I could only actually figure out what I want to say before all my ideas fall out of my mouth in a jumble...
Expectations for this blog: don't have any. Whatever comes to mind will be put on here--hopefully sometimes it'll be good for a chuckle, and other times it'll be good for a "hmm" moment. We'll see.
I finished up finals yesterday and found that I was really bored once I got home from campus. I spent most of the day lazing around, reading and watching 24. By the end of the day, I had decided that I wasn't going to let that happen to me again--I was going to be productive every day for the rest of the summer!
So today I got up, and first thing after showering, what do I do? Watch Heroes. Go figure--I guess that I'm addicted to a couple of tv shows. But for the rest of the day I was pretty darn productive. I even cleaned out the fridge, which hadn't been done since the day we moved in (and probably a couple months before that, even. Sick.).
Deep thoughts from today: I'm grateful for good friends, and the chance to talk to lots of people--and not just superficial conversations, either, but good, solid heart-to-heart talks. I've spent a lot of today in quality conversation, and even though it made me a little late for something I'd planned, I was ok with it. Now, if I could only actually figure out what I want to say before all my ideas fall out of my mouth in a jumble...
Expectations for this blog: don't have any. Whatever comes to mind will be put on here--hopefully sometimes it'll be good for a chuckle, and other times it'll be good for a "hmm" moment. We'll see.
