Check out my profile!

I recently talked about my mormon.org profile. Well, I just found it. :) Check it out, among others. It's a pretty sweet website, if I say so myself.

Word of the Day: blithe \BLAYTH\, adjective; 1. Joyous or merry in disposition.

The Unnecessary Acquiring of Too Many Things

This is a tale I'm all too familiar with. I spent almost 7 consecutive hours going through my belongings today (because my poor car decided to put up a fight and cost me my power steering, a lot of fluid, and some very unhealthy noises on my way to work today. Good thing I didn't even really make it out of the neighborhood, and that a car place is in said "almost out o the neighborhood".) But only the belongings that were at college, and only the things at college that managed to make it home with me. (a pile still lurks beneath my sister's staircase.) And after all of that, I only managed to throw out one bag of trash, two boxes, and have one half-filled box of things to donate away.

Someday, I'd like to go through my section of the basement that contains the remainder of my possessions. Except it might take the rest of my life.

Moral(s ... because we like optional endings) of the story:

1. if you can't immediately imagine where you're going to keep it, DON'T BUY IT.

2. Don't be afraid of holding bon-fires.

3. sentimental objects are only sentimental if you remember about them.

4. Moving piles to different piles doesn't really change the volume of your piles.

Word of the Day: behemoth \bih-HEE-muth\ noun; 1. Any creature or thing of monstrous size or power

Time for a Facelift.

I am a Graphic Design major. It is time my blog reflects that somehow.

This pre-designed layout is not the solution. (Seems a bit silly to use a pre-designed one if you can design it yourself!) But it is a change, and I will continue to make changes until I am satisfied.

And isn't that an interesting theory? To know you need to make changes, and are willing to try lots of things out before you deem them satisfactory? Something I admire in politics is the recognition that there might be a better way to do things. I just wish that all adjustments were proposed and made with a 360 degree view, so that every aspect has been reviewed and given consideration. But I guess if politics worked that smoothly, we wouldn't be blogging about it. Carry on.

Some of the most respectable adults I know were my teachers. Shout out to them. Thanks for the education, for your sacrifice, and for your ability to teach. You've made a huge difference in my life, trust me.

But I found it very frustrating when a teacher was not careful about their political affiliation.

The bond between professor and pupil is tentative, as their education stands as the reward or sacrifice. (And I say "their", because I am not fool enough to think that teachers don't learn from their interactions with students.) How much does one trust another? Usually, not enough trust is placed on either end, and the bridge between them falls after several attempted crossings. Unfortunately, sometimes too much trust is placed on either or both ends, and that can end badly for either party.

But teachers "have" to be hilarious for them to have any level of student value. Students "have"to participate beyond homework and tests in order to be deemed worthy of a teacher's attention.

And the easiest way for teachers to get approval from their students (because that's how it works, right? The student rolls in on their chariot and waits to be dished an education?) is to say funny things, be pop-culturally up to date, and to share their personal feelings about certain things.

But I could not believe how often I heard a teacher dig against this political figure or that policy. Personal feelings on politicians or political parties IS banned in schools, I know it is. Because students would get them to break the rules all the time! Students WANT to know the details of their teachers, that's how they learn to trust them. I don't think I ever heard a teacher actually declare their political affiliation, but usually, you wouldn't need to ask. You could figure it out by how they talked about the news, or mentioned this financial whatever, or discussed the war in Iraq and Afganistan.

I know that my life and my views have been changed because of the influence of good teachers. I watched one teacher in particular purposely mold classroom conversations so all the students would start thinking one way, and then end the period by thinking completely the opposite, and then point out to them how easily their minds had been changed. He taught us to think for ourselves, to not let outside influences change our views unless we allowed them that privilege.

Unfortunately, that lesson didn't often stick past the classroom, but not at the fault of the students; more than one teacher was quick to make a political comment, and that would induce a discussion, and then the class usually went to pot because the loud-mouth know-it-all students would jump on their soapboxes while the teacher silently applauded, the few other students who couldn't take it try to make a comment (only to get shot down by inflated or outsourced statistics and "facts"), and the rest of us just sit back and watch or text or wonder if we were going to ever get back to discussing the woes of Ethan Frome or how to ever survive our chemistry lab.

(Okay, so I am making some HUGE generalizations, but there were several instances in my high school career that fell into this category, and it has annoyed me forever.)

I'm not saying that we shouldn't discuss politics in school. I rather think it is brilliant and crucial to our society to have open discussions where all opinions can be addressed and viewed. But that is just the problem; the students who make the biggest stink about politics never let other students share their opinions without ensnaring them into a biased debate. Why should we share our feelings if we know we're going to fight all attempts at getting shot down? And what is more frustrating is when teachers do the same thing! I remember a specific incident where a student and faculty member were openly discussing (IN class, mind you) the faults of this and that person. And then the student was permitted to show an insulting comical clip about the President. That is not okay.

I don't care what affiliation my teachers are. I just want an unbiased education. Sometimes it doesn't matter who is right and who is wrong. Sometimes all that matters is being able to communicate ideas. If we could all do that successfully ... I can't even imagine how changed this world would be.

I hope that the public education system can get a facelift, and do some very hard thinking about how they pick and train their educators. Teachers would do us a world of good to remember that their position is a position of incredible influence, and of all things to influence, it should be HOW students think, not what students think.

Word of the Day: nitid \NIT-id\, adjective; 1. Bright, lustrous.

Paying homage to the Textbook King

Yes, I know that summer is still pleasantly shining down outside. There are still butterflies and happy birds and buzzing bees and blooming flowers. There are still clouds in the sky, and the occasional rainbow. Yes, there is still happiness in the world.

But it is AWFUL hard to remember these happy things when I look at my fall booklist. Make like Cornwall and gouge out these peepers, because I will be happy not seeing my credit card make the tearful journey to the gallows.

This coming fall marks my first truly academic semester. I've managed to spread a few GEs over five semesters, taking lots of (very enjoyable) religion classes and necessary art classes. But now I must look General Education in the face, and shake it by the throat.

(Either I've got some violence problems, or the scholar within is slowly reemerging.) (Speaking of scholars ... have you seen this yet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ArIj236UHs

I'm proud to say I have indeed, visited this fabled library. More than once, in fact.)

The one nice change is that yes, I will be spending a high dollar on textbooks, but at least there will always be the next semester's student! I look forward to pawning my books off to fellow, financially depraved education seekers like myself.

And, a nice change will be my art classes. From here on out, they're almost all computer-oriented, so for now, no cost! wooooot. Try getting a refund for used art paper, 2/3rds empty tubes of paint, roughed up drawing boards ... you get the idea.

Indeed, we pay high dollar for our education. And what if we all aimed to give that price in return to someone else who needed it? I suppose that's why we gain an education in the first place, to share what we've learned and make a mark on the world. It just depends what kind of mark you want to make.

One of my roommate's professors during the first week of school said "The thing we pay for the most and use the least is education." Or something like that. It was written in marker on a piece of notebook paper and tacked to our kitchen wall for the rest of the semester, a good reminder to wisely spend only 3 hours lazing around together instead of 4.

And isn't it an interesting observation! We have an incredible opportunity (and arguably, right) to receive higher education. I wish we could see our brains develop as we learn or study something new, or get it finally ingrained and can explain the concept. I think if we could see physical evidence in our intellectual development, we not hesitate investments of time and energy, or even the money. (What does this say about our value of appearances? Nothing good.)

So instead of wailing and gnashing my teeth at this monarchy, I will remember to appreciate the opportunity it is to be a part of the education kingdom, and invest all my efforts to get every darn dollar out of those books. Because if I'm paying for them, they better do me some good.

(And who cares if your book has all the binding? Hello, half.com.)

Word of the day: garner \GAHR-ner\ , verb; 1 a. to gather into storage. b. to deposit as if into a granary. 2 a. to acquire by effort: earn b. accumulate, collect.

Yep, I'm a Mormon.

I remember a conversation I had with a friend in high school that went similar to this:

friend: "yeah, isn't (person) Mormon?"

me: "Yes, (person) is. I am too, you know."

friend: "You are!? I had no idea. You don't seem like ... well, ..."

me: "I don't seem like a Mormon?"

friend: "I just didn't expect you to be Mormon."

This conversation made me realize there are a LOT of misconceptions about my faith.

(Someone else once told me I didn't believe in Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, his pastor forgot to mention that my church is officially The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.)

And I realize talking to LDS members (we like to use that nickname instead of "Mormon") can be scary, or "dangerous" of getting sucked into the waters of baptism. Sometimes, all you want is an answer to a question, but get a lot more than you asked for. (We just want to share what we have, remember that. We're a proselyting church because we don't want to keep what we have to ourselves.)

That is why mormon.org is such a great solution!

Check it out. There are endless answers to endless questions that you've always wondered. And there are members (including yours truly) that have created profiles where you can read their stories and why they're LDS and whatever else they want to tell the world. You can chat with missionaries online if you wanna, or get a free Book of Mormon in the mail. No strings attached! It's great, and you find me fully supporting it.

Word of the Day: Pervasive \per-VAY-siv\, adj; 1. Having the quality or tendency to permeate.

Florida, the Sunshine State

In the last year, I've walked three different coasts of the U.S.

The beach in Galveston, Texas, was not particularly enthralling ... Although, there were some cool paintings on this type of cliff that ran along the beach. We only stopped long enough to walk around and take pictures, but I don't think we were too disappointed missing out on the murky water and stinky fish.

The West Coast ... a fabled, popularized phrase and dream that most people use to glaze over the reality of the dark sand and frigid waters. But it was pretty nice, I'll admit it. Great for nature-lovers, appreciators of beauty, and die-hard WC natives. The Oregon Coast does hold a special place in my heart, it was rather captivating.

And I've just returned from Florida two days ago. There's a reason people put up with the massive insects and arachnids (Have you ever seen a Banana Spider? EW) and getting boiled alive in humidity. And it is the beaches.

Beautiful white sands are endless in your eyes and mostly warm waves make your eyes burn with salt. We had SO much fun getting pushed around by the waves, joking about shark attacks, only to be surprised by a school of jumping fish right around us. "Why are they doing that?" asked one of my cousins to her dad. "Well ... that means there's a bigger fish around somewhere." We all got a little nervous and backed up, only to miss seeing three dolphins up close as they followed the school of fish.

(This is my cousin Andrew.)

The following is also somewhere around Florida ... and yes, those would be sharks and people in the same location.

I got waaay too much sun, as my peeling nose and forehead can attest, but it was definitely a great time spent on that Florida beach. (Crescent Beach, in case you are wondering.)

Some of the other wildlife we saw (or didn't see) were alligators.

Yes indeed, this is THE gator of University of Florida. I do have a small amount of allegiance to UF. My Grandpa Tillman taught there years ago, and though I might have grown out of my UF t-shirts, I still sometimes cheer for them.

This was the only black widow I saw on my grandparents' back porch, but probably one of 10 large spiders seen in one night. I CANNOT do large arachnids. I cannot.

(This was probably a leg-span of at least 2.5 inches ... I didn't really want to measure too closely.)

Anyway, we had a family reunion in Gainesville, more accurately, Alachua. My grandparents own farmland, and so we had a grand time wandering their tree-farm and swimming in my uncle's pool, which is also on the property. The Itchatucknee River, a natural lazy river, is a tradition that is definitely loved and looked forward to, as you sit on a tube and float down a crystal clear river.

Boiled peanuts. I love them. People back west think they're weird, or nasty, or just plain wrong. And I admit, if I hadn't eaten them before, I would think there is something odd about eating a very wet, slimy and mushy peanut. But there is something so satisfying about opening a shell and finding four plumped peanuts jammed together, perfect for the taking. mmmm. And I plan on broadening a few horizons when I get back to Provo ... watch out!

Needless to say, it was a great family reunion ... and this photo is still missing 20 people.

Word of the Day: undercast \UHN-der-kast\, noun; Something viewed from above through another medium, as of clouds viewed through an airplane.

Red, White, and Blue on a birthday cake

That is a line from one of my favorite songs, Sam's Town (Live from Abbey Road, acoustic version) by The Killers. (I am a partial fan of The Killers. some stuff I really like, some stuff I really don't. But different post for different day.)

"my brother he was born, on the Fourth of July, and that's all."

With Lady Liberty's birthday just on the horizon, I figure it is time for a little bit of patriotic jargon.

(And I know at least 2 people with their birthdays on the same as Her Lady, Miss United States of America. Happy Birthdays tomorrow to you both, Katja and Anderson! (And I know one just the day prior, birthday shout out to you today, Ms. Megan Hatch.))

It is amazing what a large impact those three colors grouped together have. I'm not talking about the dollar section at Target, where everything from really cheapo foam patriotic hats and junk to semi-acceptable picnic plates are sold (though I know the section well, and usually am a few dollars less when I leave that section). I'm talking about the REAL deal.

Seeing the United States flag thrashing majestically through a hot summer wind. Having those delicious berry/jello/cream dessert things at a 4th picnic along with your hamburger and cold cherry 7UP. Seeing anyone in an Army, Naval, Marine, or AirForce uniform. Seeing old ladies with their Kohl's t-shirts that say "God Bless America" walk around the grocery store. Somehow, through a mysterious force, any of those things manage to make me choke a little and pause to realize how lucky I am to live in the United States of America.

Sure, this nation has made lots of mistakes, and I don't downplay those in the least, and I am sorrowful for the millions affected by war, whether the families of recently downed soldiers or the retired army veterans that are gently shuffled from retirement center to retirement center.

My own grandfather (most recently turned 94) fought in World War II, on the islands of Lady and Okinawa, among others. His stories were great ones, now getting clouded over with time and age, and I regret to say I have not kept track of his stories as well as I should. There is an infinite wisdom shared, as well as gained, while listening to a veteran discuss things of horror, things of bravery, things of sacrifice, and things of love for one's family and country.

But I couldn't believe what a huge relief it was to cross back onto the beautiful land of this country. My subconscious suddenly released a hidden worry I had carried with me all the while in Canada. There's nothing wrong with Canada, it's a great place. But my roots are my nation, and I didn't realize just how much I loved it until I saw the US flag flower garden upon approaching the Canada/US border.

I think we forget just how HUGE the United States actually is. The farthest I travel in my circle of life here at home is about 45 minutes away. Everything I need is within 30 miles of my house. I regularly see the same 100-200 people, who themselves are wrapped up in their own cycles, and that's life. But there are 309 million people who call themselves US citizens, spanned over 3.79 million square miles. And however much some people love and some people hate it, we ARE the real deal. You and I and the old man up the street and that ruddy group of teens smoking around the corner and the kindly woman at the grocery store make up the Red, White, and Blue. We represent the American Flag.

What a responsibility! What a charge! And I believe most of the time, we do quite nicely. But that's my own opinion.

Francis Scott Key's 1814 birth of our national anthem is probably being sung at every public gathering this weekend. But how many times with the 4th verse be sung?

Oh! Thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and war's desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave!

I hope we will not be foolish enough to ignore a Divine hand in our freedoms, or even try to knock it out of the way as we're blindly flailing about. I get tired of the church vs. state business, because it was the freedom of religion that drove the patriots from England's shores.

Edward Fuller left England on the Mayflower with his small family, and died the first winter at Plymouth rock. Not much of a life, eh? He was probably very poor in England, fed up with whatever persecutions were going on, made large sacrifices to get his family on that ship, and then died, before he could truly enjoy the blessings of freedom.

8 generations later, I am fully enjoying (and usually taking for granted) those freedoms that my great-grandfather valiantly sacrificed and eventually died for. I didn't know him. But I am grateful for Edward Fuller, and I am grateful for his grit. And I will be doing what I can to honor his sacrifice, as well as thank my Lord that he arrived safely on these blessed shores.

God Bless America.

Word of the Day: Antaean \an-TEE-un\, adjective; 1. Mammoth. 2. To have superhuman strength.