Ho, hum...

It amazes me how many bog posts begin with an explanation or apology regarding how long it's been since the last post. I have done that myself and have sworn to be more regular about blogging. It usually doesn't work. I have been spending most of my online time either doing homework, or on Facebook. I haven't blogged in over 6 months, and have only posted 6 times in the last year. BUT, I am not going the usual apologize and commit route. I am going to do what I can and no more. As much as I would like to blog regularly (there is some therapeutic value to it), I have more important things, like school and family.

I am blogging because I am feeling a little melancholy today. I have some ideas why, but I'm not certain exactly why. I have the bulk of my homework done for the weekend, dinner is already made and waiting to go in the oven, the house is clean enough to be tolerable. Should be fine, right? Some of the reasons I can see I would be down include the fact that I have so little down time, I get a bit stressed. I watch TV to relax on the weekend, and something always comes up to keep me up too late, and I have a hard time getting up for church on Sunday. I need that input and haven't had it in weeks. My wife works the graveyard shift on the weekends, so it falls to me to get the 3 girls fed and ready for church, as well as myself. My asthma has been kicked up for 2 weeks, and won't mellow out completely, in spite of stepping up my treatment. Being up late with a kid who didn't feel well on Friday, I didn't get even half of my task list done on Saturday, and I'm frustrated that it usually turns out that way.

And the big one...my weight. I had started a separate blog to chronicle my wight loss efforts, but the lack of entries over the last 2 years only points to my lack of success. I have been meaning for weeks to get serious about weight loss again, but can't seem to get started. I am now back up to my highest weight ever. I tried signing up for a wellness program through my work, but unless I take time out of my workday, I can't start it until the end of the month.

So, now that I've rambled on and on...what's next?

A Minor Majority

Being a Mormon is a strange and peculiar thing, even in Utah…sometimes, especially in Utah. I live at the U of U in family housing, and it’s an interesting climate. A friend of mine once commented on his experience as a U student. He said: “There are 3 kinds of students at the U: Mormons, Non-Mormons, and Ex-Mormons, and the Ex-Mormons are by far the most vocal.” I have found this to be true. Even though Mormons are a clear majority in Salt Lake County, and any political pollster will tell you that Utah is clearly a Republican state, I often feel like a minority. I have taken a few classes at the U, and often felt that to speak my mind would invite attack. There was no open dialogue, no free exchange of ideas. If you weren’t liberal, your opinions were not tolerated. My wife has told me of professors who openly Bush Bash, and act as if anyone who disagrees with Obama is mentally flawed. I wouldn’t even think about voicing an opinion against gay marriage.

The U has an office of Diversity Affairs…I recently considered emailing them to say that, in my opinion, they had failed in their mission, as there is no acceptance for Conservatives and Republicans. For evidence of this, one need look no farther than the Student Union in the month prior to an Election. The flyers you see are overwhelmingly Democrat; the guest lecturers are overwhelmingly liberal in their viewpoints and politics. The Student Union Calendar lists holidays from 5 religions between November and January, but no mention of Christmas. How is Christmas not on the calendar??

For some liberals, diversity and acceptance are only practiced if it fits THEIR viewpoint. I once had a boss say “oh, John, we need to talk” when she heard of some of my “whitebread” music tastes. I actually said “so much for diversity,” but she missed the point. She said that the group in question could never be called diverse. (I didn’t point out that one band can’t be called diverse, and that’s improper grammar…diversity applies to the make up of a larger demographic.) Again, they embrace diversity, but only when it fits their narrow definition.

Even though Mormons are the Majority here, it is acceptable to attack them in ways that would never be tolerated if the targets were Black or Jewish. Think I am exaggerating? Go to sltrib.com and pick any 5 news stories at random (news, not just sports or entertainment) and read the comments. I would bet that at least 3 of the 5 have Mormon Bashing comments. For example, a recent story about Hogle Zoo funding had a comment about “public funding for the monument to the cult across the street.” This is the Place Monument is across the street from the zoo. It is supported by church funds and admission money…no public tax funds pay for anything there.

So, even though I am in the majority, it often does not feel like it. To quote Binkley from Bloom County, I’m a “middle class white Christian male, and there are darn few of us left!”

poems of frustration

I wrote these a few months ago when things weren't going well, and I was rather depressed...as you can tell.

Troubles come in waves,

washing over me

receding for a time

only to threaten

to overwhelm me again

I sit in the breakers

Unable to remove myself

From their grip

Unable to grasp

The hope that I

Will ever reach high ground

The future is a tease

A taunt

A promise of what is to come

Only to tell you that

You can’t have it yet

Just wait, it says

Wait until tomorrow

Only tomorrow

Never comes

Hi. My name is John, and I'm a word snob.

My wife has a number of "food issues." Foods that she will not eat, or won't eat except in certain ways or under certain conditions. She has said that there can't be any gristle or fat on her meat...nothing to remind her that it came from an animal. She used to say "yucky broccoli" is if it were one word. I tease her about being a food snob.

That being said, I have to own up to being a word snob. I am. Grammar mistakes rub me the wrong way. People with Master's degrees who say fustrated or flustrated for example. Or writing sillyness instead of silliness or other word where they y should be changed to an ie. Using there instead of their or them instead of those are less frustrating, in that they are actual words. (Still, I can appreciate good Tigger words, such as ridictical and unbusticated as they are meant to be tongue in cheek.)

My biggest pet peeve is the gratuitous use of the apostrophe. (Gasp!) I know, the very phrase is snobbish. Still, it bothers me (note that I didn't write it bother's me). It's like getting carried away with the decorations until a room just looks gaudy. The simplest way to explain the rule is that you use an apostrophe to show possession or to replace something missing (like the o from is not becoming isn't).

Why do these things bother me? I'm not sure. Between being an avid reader (bordering on voracious) and grammar classes I took in college, I know a great deal about how words should be put together. I also think you sell yourself short when you speak poorly (think about every sterotype of a redneck or trailer trash...speaking poorly is always a part of selling that image).

So, yes, I am a snob. I never said I was perfect.


Thanks to ijnek/syel, Eva the Weaver and kokogiak for allowing use of their pictures.

The Lady or the Tiger

When faced with the choice of the Lady or the Tiger, the main character of the story clearly knew what he wanted, just didn’t know which door held a warm embrace and which held claws and jaws.

But what if each door is clearly labeled and you still don’t know which one is best?

That’s the choice I face…between 2 very good and positive choices, and I can’t do both.

I have a family reunion coming up next month, and it’s out of state. Going to the family reunion is a good ambition…renewing old acquaintances and forging new bonds, kids getting to know their cousins, aunts and uncles, spending time with the wife and kids when it’s not all about bills, chores, and errands,etc. Besides, we REALLY need a getaway.

Here’s the obstacle…to go, we need $$. We need to do $600-800 in car repairs, and the trip will cost $900 (and that may be a conservative estimate).

Now, by show of hands, how many of you have that kind of money just sitting around earning interest?? Come on, raise them high…Anyone? Anyone? (Bueller? Bueller?)

I didn’t think so.

If we go, we would have to go deeper into debt to make the trip, and I need a second job anyway, as we are not really making ends meet. I am looking for one, but having a hard time finding something that I can do, given my time constraints and other limitations.

If we don’t, not only will we miss out on the stress relief and the bonding time, but there will be a certain amount of depression about having missed out on vacation and reunion yet again.

So I am forced to choose between 2 equally good options…bond with family, or improve our financial situation. No matter which one I choose, I have to turn my back on the other. And they both have claws…much like the Lady and the Tiger.

Thanks to Matt Ephraim and Phoney Nickle for allowing use of the pics.

Facebook (vs blogging)

I haven't posted on here in a while, as I tend to get my online fix from Facebook. I had looked to the blogosphere for some interaction, and that need/want is filled much better on Facebook. I still miss the writing part of blogging, and would like to do more of that. I have no idea if I will blog regularly, but I may blog just to write from time to time.

On my mind now is the Facebook phenomenon. I am loving it, as I have found so many friends that I had no way to contact. Some of them, I had thought if finding, but had no idea where to start. Some of them, I had actually tried to find, to no avail. Now, they're coming out of the woodwork! I have even "met" some new cousins and other relatives, as they marry into the family. I'm looking forward to meeting them in person at the family reunion coming up later this summer.

My last blog entry was on the death of an acquaintance from Flagstaff AZ where I used to live. I was rather surprised and saddened to hear of his passing, and needed to get my feelings sorted out. I took the post down (see previous post) with the intent of posting it again later, as a sort of tribute to this good man. I looked at it just now, and have decided it's too personal to post. Still, it helped me put my thoughts in order and sort out my feelings. You can't get that on Facebook. Not really.

I still like to write, though, so I will keep my toe in this pool too. For those of you who have read my blog (all 4 of you), feel free to add me on Facebook (just let me know your real name, so I don't delete the invite!).

Thanks to Facebook and Churl for the use of the pics.

sad news

I just learned today that a friend of mine died this morning. I learned about it in Facebook...his brother put it in his status msg. I wrote a blog about it, but his widow asked that the Facebook note be taken down, as she was getting phone calls and wasn't ready for that yet. So...I have deleted my post as well, just to make sure it doesn't become a negative for her. I may repost it later.