BYU in the top ten!

I doubt Bronco Mendenhall will let BYU's new #8 AP and #7 USA Today Coaches Polls get to much to his player's heads, but I do worry somewhat about my Cougs getting too excited about such things. If they just focus on playing like they usually do, I really don't think they'll be challenged this year, not even by ewetah. We've proven most of the last two BYU-ewetah games that we're the better team, but we've slipped somewhat the last quarter and let the ewets be competitive and have had to rely on last second heroics (Harline's still open and 4th and 18). But I am excited to see my Cougs in the top 10 again!

Gifts from my Grandparents

I get too tied up in material things. I'm a big pack rat. So many things people have given me over the years I keep for the sentimental value of getting that item. Last night, I came across such an item.

I've always valued so much the gifts of my grandparents. My grandmother Ruth, whom we called Momo, was a divorced mother of two who worked in the local television advertising business. She smoked and drank, but she was an incredible woman. She had red hair, drove her cool yellow Volkswagon Beetle, and considered me her Capricorn grandaughter. I hate to say I was her favorite, but with all the time I spent with her, I was at least one of her favorites.

I grew up the first 18 years of my life blessed to not have experienced the loss of a loved one. Her ex-husband, Robert, died before I was born. My Momo was the first person really close to me that died. I was devastated when I heard (I was the first in the family to find out - the doctor couldn't get ahold of my mom). I remember telling my dad, and when my mom came home, him telling her, and all of us hugging.

My other grandfather, Ed (aka Grampa) died just a few years ago, right after Thanksgiving 2005. He was the last of my grandparents and we had also spent a lot of time with him. I guess I'm glad he died after Thanksgiving, as I was in town and able to see him while he was still concious (they gave him a lot of pain medication when they knew they couldn't do anything for him). He was a mechanic, very talkative, and a cute old man (although being an Arkie, he could have a mouth on him).

My grandmother Eula B (not Eula B.), aka Gramma, died while on a trip to visit her sister in Arkansas. It was such a surreal time when we heard of her death. I guess you can say her death was the most unexpected, as there were warning signs for everyone else (except Grandpa Robert, I believe - but then again, I wasn't born yet).

I am forever greatful for all that they've given me. Of course most importantly, they basically gave me life by giving my parents life. But I still remember Momo taking me around the TV stations, where I got cool stuff from different stations, like my CHiPs picture of Ponch and John, my Scooby Doo pictures, and more. I remember my Gramma always making sure she had plenty of pumpkin pie around Thanksgiving for me and always having a lot of food at family gatherings.

So, last night as I was getting ready for bed, I came across a pillow my Gramma made me years ago. It's a small pillow with a kitty on one side and a cat on the other. (Pictures are below, although I'm not sure why it keeps changing the orientation of the images). It's not a spectacular, bright pillow, and by now the blue-green images of the cats are fading, but I loved that pillow growing up. I thought last night of how little money my grandparents had, but how they made sure their many grandchildren knew they were loved. I count this pillow and a blue blanket Gramma gave me as some of my most prized possessions.

I also remember the $20 bills my Grampa would give me for my birthday or Christmas all the time. I knew that amount was a lot for my Grampa, and there's no way he could have afforded to give that much to all of his grandkids, so I always felt so special getting that $20 bill, to the point that I wouldn't spend it until I found something I really felt was worth buying. Sometimes I had the bill for months, as the gift of the $20 was worth far more than anything I could buy. I don't recall what I bought each time with my $20 bill. It's not important. It's more important to me to know of the thoughts of the gifts they gave me, especially as my dad's parents had so little money throughout their lives. I'm greatful for the gift of a pillow, some time with my Momo, and a $20 bill. I look forward to seeing all four of my grandparents again someday.

From the archives: I've Got To Do Something Else

OK, here's one from almost three years ago. I was still working for my old job, and I was really hating it. Most everyone there did (and still does). I love my job now SOOOO much better!!! I'm still figuring out where I'd like to live next. I want to buy a house (I have a condo) but don't really want to live where I do now. The choices are still Sacramento and Utah. I guess I better decide soon. I need to buy a new place while prices are still low, but then sell my condo when prices go up again.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006
I've got to do something else Current mood: contemplative
I'm really not sure what I want to do with my life. I just turned 31, which means that in Mormondom, I'm no longer a 'young' single adult. I'm not very happy with my job. It's not terrible, just not too fulfilling. I want to do something more. I'm just not sure what I want to do. I went through six years of school, getting my bachelors and my masters in math, and now I can't think of what I want to do 'when I grow up.'I don't even know where to go to try to find what kind of job I'd like to do. I don't think I want to do too much more of system engineering - I think it might be a dying job that will slowly go all the way to India. I want something where I can be out and about more, more active. But after six years of school, I don't really want to go back to school to get more training. I don't mind training, but I only want to take a class here or there. I've actually thought again of teaching. But I just know I can't afford to do it in the Bay Area. So, then, do I move? And if so, where? Utah? I'd be 8 hours away from my family. The Central Valley? There aren't many single Mormon men down there (then again, there aren't here, either). And there's still the matter that I absolutely love my ward right now. Especially working with the Young Womens. It's been awesome. I've actually really thought hard at moving to Sacramento. There are quite a few job opportunities there, and a lot more single Latter-day Saints out there. And I could get a job there for now and commute back to [where I live], until I find a place I'd really like to live in.So many decisions. Hopefully going to the temple will help me figure things out. I just can't do the same boring job day in and day out. So if anybody knows a place where a master in math can get a job, let me know
Currently listening : Sweet Right Here By SHeDAISY Release date: 08 June, 2004
9:25 AM

A return trip to Disneyland?

Since 2003, I've gone to Disneyland every two years. I think it was 2003 when I went with my friends Analane and Kelley there. I might break that pattern this year. My niece wants to go with me to Disneyland while they have the Christmas decorations up, and I'm thinking that sounds like a good idea. I might go in January as well since that's the month of my birth and Disney has a special promotion next year for birthdays. That would be only a year and a half since my last trip, and then only one to three months after that. That'd be so cool. With my brother having a discount he can give to his family, I can get a hotel room for pretty cheap. This is making me think I might have to get a season pass. Hmmmmm........

A Busy Weekend

I had a busy weekend. Friday night I went with my friends Joan and Jill (and some new friends - I can't remember the name of the woman who drove) to a dance. The dance itself was pretty lame, but I always love hanging out with Joan and Jill. They're hilarious! Especially on the dance floor. I got home about 2 AM then went promptly to bed, as the next morning we had a combined Young Men and Young Women trip to the beach. It was an alright day on the beach. A tad chilly and overcast, but hey, it was the beach. It would have been really relaxing if we didn't have a whole bunch of teenagers there with us. I had fun hanging out with my friend Teresa and playing volleyball with everyone.

When we got home, Megan and her friends wanted to go to Taco Bell, so I took them. Megan wanted to stay there for awhile but I told her I needed to get home. So I went home, asked Amy what she was doing, and we decided to go to the movies later. By the time I contacted her to see what movie exactly, it was too late for the 8 PM showing, so we had to watch Lakeview Terrace at 10:35 PM. It was a pretty good movie. I didn't fall asleep, which considering how tired I was, is pretty impressive. Got home at about 1:30 and went to bed by 2.

Next morning - up for Ward Council at 9 AM, back home about 11 but got too busy to take a quick nap before church at 1. Then got home just in time to quickly eat before a fireside that I fell asleep at. Oh well. At least I made it. Going to sleep at 10:30 last night was so blissful.

Avast! 'Tis the day to talk like pirates!

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day, you scurvy scum! Every September 19th is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. http://www.talklikeapirate.com/

I had to talk like a pirate for about an hour once playing the game Curses. It was quite fun, but gets to you after awhile.

Arrrgh!

Hmmm, should I test this?

I recently bought an iPod Touch. It's very cool and I love to see movies on it. I already liked my phone, so decided not to get the iPhone, but for those that don't know, the iPod Touch looks almost like the iPhone. So as I was driving home, I had the Touch in my hand and was wondering what would happen if I held it up to my ear and a CHP pulled me over for driving while talking on a cell phone (welcome to California). I'm not in favor of the law as I think it won't help public safety and see it as another intrusion of government into our daily lives, so I'd love to be pulled over just to say that I wasn't on the phone, and show the officer my iPod. The law is just for phones up to the ear, so I couldn't get a ticket, right?

That's why this law is stupid. Put a banana up to your ear, hold your cell phone in your hand while talking on the speaker phone, and you're technically driving legally. Good job wonderful lawmakers of California.

59-0!!! Go Cougs!

Saturday, BYU played UCLA for what everyone thought was going to be BYU's toughest game of the season (other than possibly the ewetah game). Well, BYU came out with a huge 59-0 victory! Today at work, everyone came up to tell me they saw how we spanked the Bruins. One of my coworkers is a big UCLA fan, and he comes back to the office tomorrow. I can't wait. I've already set up some little reminders for him to remember how our game went! What a great game for us. Almost unbelievable!

One more from Las Vegas: The Gondolas

One more post about my Las Vegas vacation, I mean work. Because I was one of the first 100 people to register, I was given a free ticket to ride the Gondola at the Venetian. I had at first opted for the outdoor ride, but after losing my ticket for an evening ride, I went the last day I was there and did the inside ride. I found out Larry from Accela and his wife were going, so I went with them. Thanks to Clint for the pictures. And I REALLY need to lose weight! It was a lot of fun!

From the archives: My first blog entry

This is my first blog entry I did on myspace, about LDS single adult dances. Three years later, and they still scare me, although midsingle dances are definitely better.

Saturday, August 20, 2005
Those LDS Single Adult Dances
I went to a Single Adult Dance last night. They sometimes have a way of depressing me. I guess I should explain.

However, before I do, I have to explain some concepts to anybody who reads this that isn't familiar with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or some of the things that go on with the single members of the Church.

The Church seperates single members over the age of 18 into two groups, the Young Single Adults (YSA) ages 18 through 30, and the Single Adults (SA) ages 31 to infinity. Marriage and family are extremely important in the Church. As a consequence, many members of the Church are married by the time they are 28. In fact, they're usually married LONG before they turn 28. That means that those of us that don't get married by then really have slim pickings.

That's the case last night. Being 30 years old, I'm right at the edge of turning from a YSA to a SA. So a group of my friends (who are in a similar boat) decided to check out the dance. It was fun being with my friends and dancing, at least when the music was good. However, it seemed like 90% of the men there were either extremely weird over way over the age of 40. In fact, there seemed to be more men there towards infinity rather than towards 30. Now, they're all nice people and I don't mind dancing with them, but one of the main purposes of these dances is to find somebody that you could date and possibly in the future marry. And I'm not going to be dating (let alone marrying) anyone who is my parents age or older. It's just not my thing.
I remember my first time of going to a Single Adult Dance. It was when I was in graduate school and my friend wanted a couple of friends to go with her to this Single Adult Dance at the BYU Wilkinson Center Ballroom. As soon as I walked in, I saw a 70-year-old man dancing to Will Smith's "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It." It was not a good sight. Imagine the look on my face when last night they started playing that song, and sure enough, I saw a seventy year old man dancing to it. Now, that's really just my joke about my first single adult dance, but it shows perhaps why I'm not too thrilled to go to these types of things.

I can't help but think about how it will be when I turn 31 and have to go to these activities. It's somewhat depressing that there aren't many men my age that are single and in the Church. Dating and marrying someone in the Church is very important to me. The blessings we are promised in the temple make me not want to even think about marrying someone who isn't a member.

Now, the good thing is that there seems to be a growing.... I don't know if movement is quite the right word, but it's all I can think of, of a new category of Single Adults. This is called the 'Midsingles' and usually comprises single people between the ages of 25 and 40. They have groups in the South Bay and in Sacramento. This is a better age group for myself, because I can be around people who are pretty much done with school but aren't worried about putting their own kids through school. I really wish that this designation would become an offical organization of the Church, as I think it would greatly benefit people like me. I know a lot of single adults that don't go to the single adult activities for pretty much the same reasons I've just outlined. Single in your thirties is difficult in the Church. We want to be following God's commands and raising a family, but haven't got the opportunity to do that (or for some, perhaps they have but divorce has torn their families apart and they're looking for a new start). There are thousands of members of the Church struggling to find someone. Steve Young was almost 40 when he finally found someone to marry. Sheri L. Dew is still looking, as is Ben Archibald. It's tough, but we endure because we know the Church is true and we know what blessings will be rewarded to those who are married in the temple, sealed for time an all eternity.

But in the meantime, we continue onwards, hoping that in a Church of about 12 million members, we can find just one to spend eternity with.
4:23 PM

From the archives: Leg cramps in the middle of the night

OK, for those of you new to my blog, I have a blog on my myspace account, and I'm slowly but surely putting those posts here. They'll all say 'From the archives' in the title of the post. This is one from the day before Harry Potter 7 came out.

Friday, July 20, 2007

Leg cramps in the middle of the night Current mood: excited Category: Life
I had a bad night of sleep, just when I needed it most - staying up until Harry Potter comes out tonight and all the reading I'll be doing this weekend. The worst was in the middle of the night. I got a charley horse in BOTH calf muscles. It was bad. It's the weirdest thing how that gets you in the middle of the night and how quickly it wakes you up. One leg was better after a minute, but the other one went on for a bit.

Oh well, 13 hours, 10 minutes to go!
Currently reading : Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7)By J. K. RowlingRelease date: By 21 July, 2007
3:50 AM - 1 Comments - 2 Kudos
Dragon_Fire
but you had fun when you waited up all night for HP. How you liken it so far? or is it already read? or maybe you wont even be online until you've finished the book, hahaha. anyways I'm not on myspace much so if you message me then do it to my hotmail address lol. love ya
Posted by Dragon_Fire on Jul 24, 2007 4:41 PM

My cute nephews

This weekend when I was home visiting my family, my mom, brother, and his kids went to the Grand Opening of the Tractor Supply Co. store in town. I just love this type of store. I love country living, and this store has cowboy hats and boots (obviously), pet supplies, and of course, tractor supplies. It's just a great blue collar type store. I have to go up and check the closest one around here.

I bought Nathan, the oldest a cowboy hat for his birthday on the tenth. He wanted a black hat, but those were twice as much. Still, he looks cute in the black hat, doesn't he?















They also had a petting zoo outside, so here they are petting a chicken.