"Twilight" Preview

So, though I'm loathe to admit it, I'm quite excited for this movie to come out. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, take a few minutes to watch the preview (courtesy of MTV):

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Fine holiday fun!

See It, Believe It

Seeing as no one can bring themselves to believe that I am capable of manual labor, I offer this post.

After a couple of hours of volleyball (of which I did not do too shabby) I went home and did yard work (for those of you who are trying to debunk the legitimacy of this post, notice I'm still in my volleyball gear). See that I am digging up weeds by their roots. Wearing gloves, even, due to the fact that thistle is an exceptionally evil weed, that likes to fight back.

I dug up so many weeds, in fact, that in order to transfer them to the garbage can, I had to use a snow shovel. See the piles of weeds? See them!?

All of this I was doing, by myself, while Tyler was power washing our gutters. It's amazing how much junk falls on the roof and into the rain gutters.

So there you have it folks. When it snows, I shovel the walk. When there are weeds, I dig em up. When the house is dirty, I clean it. When my clothes smell funny, I wash them. I hope we can all accept that I'm a grown up now, I do things I don't necessarily care to do, and can even get dirty in the process.

Peace.

Seeking After These Things

I don't know why I feel most compelled to post a blog when I am waxing spiritual...but here you have it. Recently my partner has experienced some strife at work when dealing with some of their contracts. His company has done the work that they have said they would do, and have billed to be paid for the work, but the companies they have serviced are refusing to pay for one reason or another. What is frustrating, is if they stop working on the project, they are not entitled to be paid, and so those who have the money hold the power, and hold their owed payments over their head.

To make matters worse, the woman with whom my partner has had dealings, claims to be a faithful Latter-Day Saint. Upon hearing this story I was first filled with righteous anger, and thought to use my investigative skills to find out more about her, and let her know how her actions have affected the lives of others. But as I thought and prayed on this, my anger has cooled, and instead, I think I shall post an article I found, and my own meandering thoughts, to the rest of the world.

I was inspired to find this article while I was getting ready for work this morning. I couldn't get the song for the 13th Article of Faith out of my head. I will not quote it as it is quoted in the article I will be copying below. After I got to work (and the world of the internet opened to me) I found a talk by President James E. Faust from the April 1998 Priesthood Conference session on this very topic. Though it is directed at men, I think it applies to everyone, at least this paragraph;

Tonight I plead for greater consistency between our beliefs and actions. I take as my text the 13th article of faith. "We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul--We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." Brethren, does the Spirit of Christ that we have taken upon ourselves spill over into our behavior in the workforce? Brigham Young said: "We want the Saints to increase in goodness, until our mechanics, for instance, are so honest and reliable that this Railroad Company will say, 'Give us a "Mormon" Elder for an engineer, then none need have the least fear to ride, for if he knows there is danger he will take every measure necessary to preserve the lives of those entrusted to his care.' I want to see our Elders so full of integrity that they will be preferred by this Company for their engine builders, watchmen, engineers, clerks, and business managers. If we live our religion and are worthy [of] the name of Latter-day Saints, we are just the men that all such business can be entrusted to with perfect safety; if it can not it will prove that we do not live our religion." What President Young urged of the priesthood holders in his day is just as important in our day. The Spirit of Christ should permeate all we do, whether at work, at school, or at home.

Though I think it a fairly slim chance that this woman will find, read, or even heed these words, everyone else should and always remember, it is easy to be a good person at home or at church, but if you can be a good person at work, in the world, or in the eyes of a stranger, that is a truer reflection of the kind of person you are. Peace.

A Gelato for All Seasons

I felt compelled to write about a little restaurant we discovered in Sandy. If you're ever in the mood for an amazing italian sandwich or, more importantly, need some amazingly authentic gelato, you need to head over to Cittá Gelato & Café on 2101 E 9400 S in Sandy. I highly recommend the meatball sandwich (italian sausage meatballs on panini) and the peach yogurt and blood orange gelato (or the sour cherry). The tomato bisque soup is also very tasty.

Five stars!

Who's FICA? And why's HE getting all my money!?

I don't plan on making it a habit to post blogs that purely complain about things, however, I just finished doing my taxes...and I don't think Rachel could have said it any better. I know I'm fortunate to be a somewhat successful professional in spite of not having completed my education, but it's frustrating to make just enough to get by, but not enough to get any tax breaks.

I think this will bother me less as my nephews get older. At least then I can rationalize that I'm paying for their education. Of course, because I don't have any kids of my own (and can't legally adopt) I'm S.O.L. as far as having a say in how I think they should be taught.

Or perhaps a better word, I heard recently, "indoctrinated", if you listen to Oklahoma politicians. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, take a moment to listen to some hate:

Oklahoma lawmaker says gays are worse than terrorists

At first I laughed, that an elected official who (I imagine) has received a college education would spout such garbage. But now I feel sad, that simply being educated is not enough to dispel these myths and lies. The only agenda I'm aware of is equality, and it's not a new ideal. It's just our turn to fight.

And while I could go on about this and several other issues that are close to my heart, I'll instead close this blog and leave you with a scripture that has become my mantra over the years since I came to accept who I was...

Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you. - Matthew 5:44

Posting for Posterity

Well, everyone else is doing it so, why not me? I've decided to start a blog for posterity's sake. Who knows? Maybe in the future this will be the historical documents we leave our children (or in my case, my nephews), in a futuristic world where we all wear synthetic blends and paper is an illegal substance...and still, no flying cars.

I make no promises as to the quality of the content that will be displayed here, only that it's the truth as far as I believe.

Stay tuned.

P.S. Happy Birthday Ryan, and Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!