Two Movie Recommendations

Every now and then some movies come out that don't get the attention they deserve. If you haven't seen either of these, I highly suggest you do.

I hope I didn't freak him out too bad

Today we had an a/c guy come to do some preventative maintenance on our system (hasn't been done since we moved in, figured it was time).  We scheduled it for this afternoon since I'd be able to be home, and Laura decided to take advantage of me being home by going to the gym.  Janelle insisted on going with Laura so she could play at the kids club, so it was just Spencer and me when the a/c guy arrived.

The guy took an immediate liking to Spencer (who can't?) and told me that he just has his first baby six days ago (a boy).  I congratulated him.  Throughout his visit he was shocked by just how busy Spencer was, I guess realizing that he was seeing a glimpse of his future.

At one point right before the guy left, Spencer ran up to me holding one of Janelle's tiaras on his head, and of course it was backward.  The guy looked at Spencer and said "whoa, look at that," with kind of a worried expression on his face.  I then took the tiara from Spencer, turned it around, and put it back on Spencer's head saying, "Spencer, it goes like this."

I wish I'd had a camera at that point because suddenly the guy just looked dumbfounded.  I couldn't quite tell exactly what he was thinking about me letting my son wear a tiara, but there was a definite reaction.

My Women's Studies teacher would be so proud.

Anyone feeling like getting mad?!?!

For all you Texans the link below is guaranteed to set you off like Vesuvius:

Jim Borgman, Political Cartoonist

Awkward moment

Why can't I help but stare at eyebrow piercings? Seriously, there is something grotesquely memorizing about them. I think it is like when you see someone with a big scar and you can't help but stare. My problem is that I'm at a university with a whole bunch of pierced eyebrows and every now and then one of their owners catches me looking at them. Then I have to do that quick, glance away hoping they interpret that as a passing glance, rather then a stare.


In other news I have joined a research team and I need to analyze 150 future life history's of college students to try which the grad students will then use to run their statistical analysis. It is total, bottom-of-the-barrel, agonizing grunt work. But hey, at least I'm now in the barrel.

I don't think I need to comment much on these

We were discussing women's issues in advertising today during my Women's Psych class. We watched this video, which I think is a mandatory lesson for just about every single woman out there.

This is the second video we watched. It made me feel a bit guilty since I know that even Janelle has doubts about her own beauty. A specific example is that she has a gray tooth from a falling accident she once had. In our concern over her oral health, she got it into her head that her gray tooth is a blemish that detracts from her beauty. It is sad how sensitive even the littlest girls are to their appearance.

My Nerd Score

I found this on Ben McMurry's blog. I'm very disappointed that I did not beat his score.

Favorite Memories of President Hinckley

While I have been around long enough to remember four different presidents of our church, President Hinckley is really the only one I have ever known.  I was too young to remember anything about President Kimball; however, I do remember his funeral.  By the time I was old enough to understand who President Benson was, the only tangible evidence of his presidency was his empty chair during General Conference.  My most lasting memory of President Hunter was that I learned about his death from the news scroll while watching the O.J. Simpson trial.  President Hinckley on the other hand, I have known my entire adult life, he was the president during my mission, and has been a constant I could rely on as an example.

1) "Be Ye Clean" I remember this talk.  It was the first time in my life that I knew a conference speaker meant their words for me.  I even reported on this talk for seminary.  Recently, President Hinckley gave this talk again during Priesthood session because he said that we needed a second dose, and that too few of us remembered it.  I felt a tinge of pride to not be in the group who didn't remember the talk.

2) "I challenge you to a dual"  Again, from conference.  I will never forget this moment as President Hinckley challenged Russell M. Nelson to a dual for giving a conference talk that President Hinckley described as a eulogy.  It was nice to see such an admirable person having a sense of humor.

3)  My Mission Call.  As many of you know there are very few things in life as exciting as getting a mission call.  I can honestly say that I was surprised by a call to the Philippines.  (I had my money on Russia-long story for another time).  I loved my mission though, and felt blessed to be sent to a country that was close to President Hinckley's heart.  He had dedicated the country in the 60's and had followed its phenomenal growth since then.  Shortly before my mission he had toured the Philippines, I'm always bummed that I missed that, but being able to share the Prophet's love for a spiritually blessed nation is something I will carry my entire life.

4) Temples.  I think just about everyone will have this on their list.  Once a person understands how amazing a temple is, there is no way someone cannot appreciate the building spree that took place during President Hinckley's tenure.  As someone who loves to travel, there is a great piece of mind being somewhere so far away from home, but knowing that you have access to a temple.  I'll particularly remember the contrast I felt after spending 4 months in mainland China and then being able to visit Hong Kong.  I made a Temple trip a high priority since it had been so long.  There were two other Americans in the room with me and everyone else was either Chinese or Filipino.  It was a powerful learning moment.

5) 90th Birthday.   It seems crazy to think that this was almost 8 years ago, but I got to go to the 90th Birthday celebration in the Conference Center.  It was the first major gathering held there, and it was basically a trial run for learning how to get people in and out of the building so they would have a working plan in place before General Conference.  Despite a fairly hectic seating, when it finally started it was great to be able to wish President Hinckley a happy birthday.  Although it wasn't part of the plan for the evening, it was great when Gladys Knight got the entire building to sing "Happy Birthday" (after the cameras were turned off of course, so the church wouldn't have to pay royalties). At the time I didn't think we'd get the chance to wish him many more, he sure showed me wrong.

6) The Perpetual Education Fund.  This was almost as though the brethren were reading my mind and knew what it was that was my biggest concern for the welfare of the Church back in the Philippines and other impoverished nations.  In reality it just shows how in touch they are with the problems facing real people.  At the time, I was at BYU and very concerned about what was becoming of people I knew back in the Philippines.  In reality I was getting regular reminders because I was still receiving email from girls desperate to marry me in order to get a chance at a better life here.  While unlike some of my missionary friends, I never tried to solve the problem that way, I was praying for the Church to implement some sort of plan to help members deal with the economic challenges of where they live.  Sure enough, I wasn't the only one concerned.

I'm sure I could list 20 other things, but I think that President Hinckley would probably worry that I was wasting my time.  He'd want us to move forward and not dwell on his death; to use the end of his life as a spiritual rebirth of ours.  While it is hard to imagine the First Presidency without Gordon B. Hinckley, I'm reminded of this quote:

"At the close of one particularly difficult day, I looked up at a portrait of Brigham Young that hangs on my wall. I asked, 'Brother Brigham, what should we do?' I thought I saw him smile a little, and then he seemed to say: 'In my day, I had problems enough of my own. Don’t ask me what to do. This is your watch. Ask the Lord, whose work this really is.' And this, I assure you, is what we do and must always do." 

Each Prophet is called to serve at a time when their service will do the most good.  While it is hard to imagine not having President Hinckley up there any more, the Lord has other men waiting in the benches, men who have been foreordained and set apart to serve at a time when they will be most effective.  I know that I can look forward to a lifetime of men serving in that position that I will respect as much as Gordon B. Hinckley.