evidence

i mentioned previously that my favourite shows of late include csi and house. probably most of the appeal of these shows to me is watching the characters figure out a problem based on evidence collected. (well, that ... and i have a secret really-mean-doctor-crush on hugh laurie. sshh -- don't tell.)

yesterday something happened after work. see if you can figure it out based on this evidence ...

my elbow:

my pants:

and here's my leg:

any guesses about what happened?

... ...

the weather in socal has been kinda crazy lately, like in many other places this year (hello -- 10 inches of snow in seattle in a single day?). it was actually 39° here yesterday morning. but because i have been living in utah for a number of years recently, of course i didn't grab my coat. i mean, c'mon: this is california. no one from utah needs a coat here.

yeah, i decided that *before* freezing cold rain started falling. great. oh, well.

after work, i made my way to my car with my computer bag on one shoulder and an armload of papers in the other arm. i tried to appear non-chalant and completely comfortable in the sheeting, half-frozen rain. after crossing the unusually busy street to get to the parking lot, i said hello to the only other person out in this weather, as i stepped off the curb onto the asphalt.

just then my ankle wobbled a little, but i caught myself. phew!

with a nervous smile in the general direction of my cold compatriot, i snickered a little to myself as i imagined the carnage and destruction that would have ensued were i not so coordinated. and cool. yeah, i'm cool.

anyway, unfortunately, at that precise moment, a gust of biting cold wind came howling from the north.

my overly arrogant attitude and underly stable stance came into direct conflict in my war against the wind. it was a losing battle. time slowed and i watched helplessly as the ground got closer and closer. soon i was laying on my left side in a polluted parking lot puddle.

i thought i was cold before. it was much colder sitting in water. (as a side note: my grandmother has a sign hanging above her toilet that reads: "if we were meant to sit in cold water, we would have been born with webbed feet." heh.) well, since i don't have webbed feet, i didn't sit there long. standing up was a bit tricky with my inconvenient cargo, but i did it.

as i made the rest of the way to the car, i couldn't contain my laughter. oh, the irony: the very fate that i had but moments earlier presumed to have narrowly avoided became a very cold reality. literally.

how come no one i know is around when i do stupid stuff like this? it's much more fun to laugh with someone else.

anyway ... that's the story. is that pretty much what you thought, having looked at the evidence?

the results are in (again)

last year, i set a goal to limit the amount of red meat i was eating in order to decrease my cholesterol. it's been difficult and i have whined a lot, as you may recall, and i have had to really expand my ... umm ... horizons ... ? (something. can't think right now.)

anyway. i got my lab results back today. here are the highlights:

---

	PY (2007)	CY (2008)
triglycerides	97 mg/dL	82 mg/dL
cholesterol, total	215 mg/dL	211 mg/dL	(should be less than 200)
- hdl cholesterol	60 mg/dL	58 mg/dL
- ldl cholesterol	136 mg/dL	137 mg/dL	(should be less than 130)
glucose	80 mg/dL	83 mg/dL
sodium	138 mmol/L	138 mmol/L
potassium	4.0 mmol/L	4.3 mmol/L
white blood cell count	5.9 thousand/uL	5.7 thousand/uL
red blood cell count	4.91 million/uL	4.71 million/uL
hemoglobin	13.0 g/dL	13.4 g/dL
hematocrit	38.4 %	39.0 %
platelet count	283 thousand/uL	308 thousand/uL

---

okay. so ... my cholesterol is still a high. grr. it went down 4 points. woohoo. but ... honestly, i kinda expected more. i mean, i cut my red meat consumption by roughly 73%. so ... yeah, i kinda expected more. [sigh.]

so now what? as i see it, there are a few options:

1. continue the red-meat-on-weekends-only regime.

2. amend the rules such that i can have red meat on any 2 days of the week. i mean, c'mon, it went down 4 points: that deserves some kind of reward.

3. eat oatmeal everyday (or on some regular schedule) to fight this with a little proactivity instead of just restraint.

4. give up entirely and eat red meat whenever i darnwell please since it's not making any difference anyway.

anyone care to vote? c'mon, we all did it a month ago ... let's exercise our right to vote again!!

one redeeming quality

tonight was the relief society Christmas dinner at the ward building. i love my relief society. i go to a family ward and so there are sisters there from every walk of life ... and they are so much fun!! i love it. so tonight was a great opportunity to see all of them outside of the sunday church atmosphere and enjoy some delicious homemade soup and salad.

when i noted the menu, i will admit that i was a little disappointed. despite the myriad of amazing-looking soups -- from clam chowder to turkey bisque, from chicken chili to homemade dumplings, it was a splendid spread -- i wasn't very excited to dig in. (isn't that horrible for me to admit?)

you see, as i previously explained: i don't really like spoons. i think they are ugly and i think they as not nearly as useful as a fork.

however, the chicken tortilla soup that one of the sisters prepared tonight made the use of a spoon not only necessary and forgivable, but totally and completely encouraged. seriously.

there you have it, friends. the spoon's one redeeming quality: chicken tortilla soup. amen.

the emerald city

one of my favorite people followed suit with so many others in my life ... and moved to seattle. i like to think that they are all just making the exodus with the intent to prepare that promised land for me. i'll end up there someday, mind you: just you wait. just you wait, henry higgins. (sorry, that sentence was just asking for it.)

in celebration of his outset to a new life and to to help him make the transition, i joined a team of 2 others in taking on the task of picking up matt's whole life and transplanting it to the emerald city.

aside from the almost unbearable, all-in-one-day, 18-hour car-ride, it was a fabulous trip to my previously-declared favorite-city-in-the-whole-world-that-i-have-never-lived-in. (think that's a long title? just imagine having to fit that on an 8½-x-11 ivory certificate. not an easy thing to do, my friends.) (oh, and please note that the car-ride is herein described as "almost unbearable" simply for its length: sitting in a car for that long should be legally, ethically, morally, and chocolately wrong. the adventure and the company was quite pleasant otherwise.)

(i don't think i have ever used so many hyphenates in one post before. nor so many parentheses. this is quite a monumental post!)

after dragging the dregs of matt's stuff to the cars, we scooted out of santa monica at the butt crack of dawn on friday morning, august 29. being so early in the morning, this meant, of course ... no makeup for me:

mattso didn't wear any, either.

the road trip was filled with adventures and sights such as these:

now, i'd imagine that there aren't a few of you guys out there who are feeling a bit left out at this point, but don't worry: it wasn't anything you can't recreate. all you need is a vw golf crammed full of stuff, a location that is 18 hours away, and a dave. gotta have a dave.

we got to seattle around 2 am and crashed (on our beds).

saturday started too early. but saturday started with a bang. dave showed me the most amazing stuff: debacterol. it's awesome. it cures canker sores. all you do is put the sulfuric acid on your tongue (or wherever the canker sore is) for 10 seconds, it burns like a race horse, and then your canker sore is just a bit of dead skin you wait to fall off. (kinda gross, i know. sorry.) as you can see from the picture, it wasn't as bad as it sounds.

after such excitement so early in the morning, i suppose you wouldn't expect much else in the day ... but ... then we rounded up the troops and headed to ... bumbershoot!! oh, my heavens, what an amazing time was had. after waiting in a 4,000-mile-long line, we got into the gates around 11, i think. my old friend brad met up with us for most of the day (hi, brad!). we walked all over the place seeing everything that was there and making plans for what we just had to see before the day was through. after some discussion, we decided on a game plan of (1) eat bratwurst and french fries, (2) wander around for a couple hours, (3) watch modern dancers in the water fountain, (4) watch part of lucinda williams, (5) watch band of horses, (6) get high from second-hand smoke while waiting to watch beck, (7) watch beck, and (8) tucker out and go home.

sunday was a day of rest. as it should be. kinda. church started at 9, where we met many cool people! then we went on a beautiful drive and a bit of a hike up near (in?) issaquah. the weather was a bit damp, of course, which makes everything so green and beautiful so it's okay. here's the group in front of lake sammamish ("yeah, i'd say that lake is pretty sammamish."):

while there, matt taught us about the life cycle of salmon. we learned a lot, and, having been thus educated, we were ready to go to the university. and so we did. we drove out to university of washington to walk around a bit. last year when i was there, the cherry trees were in bloom and it was just absolutely gorgeous. this year, the ducks were in bloom -- this meant more poop than cherry blossoms. not quite *as* gorgeous, but not bad, no. i was able to do about 17 cartwheels in the quad and didn't get any duck poop on my hands.

from the university, we went to a ward-member's house and had all kinds of yummy desserts at a "dessert potluck" in which the hostess prepared all the desserts, (don't really think that qualifies as a "potluck", at least where i'm from, but ... it's seattle -- who knows?), after which we headed to st. mark's cathedral to hear the episcopaleon monks perform gregorian chanting. that was an *amazing* experience.

monday was officially dubbed "moving day": early in the morning, we drove matt's stuffed car to his new place to unload ... 2,374 armloads from car to apartment later ... all of his earthly belongings were safely stashed in his new seattle station.

from there, we had to officially re-seattle-ize mattso with the purchase of ... dun, dun, dun ... a northface fleece from rei! oh, behold the re-seattle-ization (okay, now say that quickly 4 times and note the excitement on mattso's face.):

being now appropriately equipped, we headed out on an even greater adventure! after a deep fried seafood lunch at ivar's, we drove down to the water and to take a ferry over to [ insert name of island here ] island. we didn't have to wait too long before the ferry arrived and we boarded. i love ferries. i love being on the water. i love standing at the front of the boat and getting almost blown away and then standing at the back of the boat and feeling the calm ... ... love it. i think they should put more in l.a. -- ferries, that is -- not fairies. heh.

after arriving on the island, we started driving. and we drove and drove and drove. it was *bea-u-tiful*! we drove up to deception pass and had to take a hike: it was sunset and it was awesome.

after hiking down to the water and back up again. we drove to the top of [ insert name of island here ] island and to another ferry pier to wait for the next ferry. i love ferries. i think they should put more in l.a. -- oh, wait -- we already did that joke ...

umm, tuesday morning found us atop of the space needle. well ... tuesday mid-morning found us there: we were on vacation, afterall. but it was lovely. the city is beautiful from up there. and it's just so cool to be 605 feet up! cell phone reception was surprisingly really good at that height.

after returning to sea level, we checked out some other tourist staples in this fair sea city. such as ...

i love this waterfall tunnel.	there's a pig in pike place market!	look who we found.

we capped off the day with yummy pizza with new friends. pretty good day, i'd say ...

wednesday morning we went to japan:

and then china:

and then we had lunch in seattle's international district (aka, "chinatown") at the uwajimaya village. that was not bad chinese. (while in china, i also found a chinese grocery store that had colored tapioca. little pink, green, and yellow tapioca balls. so cool! and even more fun to eat than the boring white stuff!)

our fearsome foursome split ways shortly after lunch. dave and nastia got back in the golf and started south. mattso and i had a couple more small adventures in seattle before i flew to utah the next morning: we went to gas works park and spent some time in the sunshine, then we went home furnishings shopping at target ... which was sorely needed for his otherwise barren abode.

farewell, seattle! i'll miss you dearly! --

err, uhh --

i mean ...

farewell, mattso! i'll miss you dearly!

gone are the days

i like my new haircut, i do. but i have to say that this has been a transition.

gone are the days of ...	and in this new day ...
get out of the shower and go. (so what if that's what it looks like i did ... that *is* what i did.)	blowdry. everyday.
flat iron on my bangs: pronto.	curling iron burns on my neck, ears, face, and fingers. (don't really know what my problem is.)
up, down, half-up, bun, half-bun, braid, knot, low knot, high knot, chignon, ponytail, curly, messy, wavy, straight.	part left, part right.
100 strokes of the brush before bed.	haven't picked up a brush in weeks. (okay, not really.)
rubberbands, sticks, claws, bobby pins, clips in my purse.	more room for chocolate in my purse.
wind blowing long beautiful blonde locks in my face.	wind blowing long beautiful blonde locks in the face of a cancer patient.

okay, that last one makes it worth it.

...

alright, and the more-room-for-chocolate-in-my-purse thing, too.

...

(oh, honestly. i'm such a whiner. you'd think i've never had short hair before in my life. sheesh, christianna.)

half-way

two down (again):

two to go (again):

creative work

my little sister inge and i made some stuff:

hers took 9 months. mine took about a year and a half ...

... obviously, mine was a *little* more complicated.

love and marriage

(i've debated with myself about whether or not i should post this here, primarily because i don't want to propogate a political debate on my blog, but i feel strongly enough about the issue and want to get some knowledge and thoughts out there. if you'd rather not read this, that's fine. yes, it's about prop 8.)

i read an article today that expressed well a few ideas that i have had rolling around in my head. whereas this article doesn't articulate everything rolling around in my head, the author explains clearly a few key points. here are some excerpts from the article:

"The debate over whether the state ought to recognize gay marriages has thus far focused on the issue as one of civil rights. Such a treatment is erroneous because state recognition of marriage is not a universal right. States regulate marriage in many ways besides denying men the right to marry men, and women the right to marry women. Roughly half of all states prohibit first cousins from marrying, and all prohibit marriage of closer blood relatives, even if the individuals being married are sterile. In all states, it is illegal to attempt to marry more than one person, or even to pass off more than one person as one’s spouse. Some states restrict the marriage of people suffering from syphilis or other venereal diseases. Homosexuals, therefore, are not the only people to be denied the right to marry the person of their choosing.

"I do not claim that all of these other types of couples restricted from marrying are equivalent to homosexual couples. I only bring them up to illustrate that marriage is heavily regulated, and for good reason. When a state recognizes a marriage, it bestows upon the couple certain benefits which are costly to both the state and other individuals. Collecting a deceased spouse’s social security, claiming an extra tax exemption for a spouse, and having the right to be covered under a spouse’s health insurance policy are just a few examples of the costly benefits associated with marriage. In a sense, a married couple receives a subsidy ...

"Some argue that homosexual marriages serve a state interest because they enable gays to live in committed relationships. However, there is nothing stopping homosexuals from living in such relationships today. Advocates of gay marriage claim gay couples need marriage in order to have hospital visitation and inheritance rights, but they can easily obtain these rights by writing a living will and having each partner designate the other as trustee and heir. There is nothing stopping gay couples from signing a joint lease or owning a house jointly, as many single straight people do with roommates. The only benefits of marriage from which homosexual couples are restricted are those that are costly to the state and society ...

"The biggest danger homosexual civil marriage presents is the enshrining into law the notion that sexual love, regardless of its fecundity, is the sole criterion for marriage. If the state must recognize a marriage of two men simply because they love one another, upon what basis can it deny marital recognition to a group of two men and three women, for example, or a sterile brother and sister who claim to love each other? Homosexual activists protest that they only want all couples treated equally. But why is sexual love between two people more worthy of state sanction than love between three, or five? When the purpose of marriage is procreation, the answer is obvious. If sexual love becomes the primary purpose, the restriction of marriage to couples loses its logical basis, leading to marital chaos."

i think we forget in all of this hype that is currently taking over my tv and my city that marriage is not a civil right and was never purported to be. love whomever you choose: there is no legal restriction on that. but align yourself to the notion that the definition of marriage does not encompass all love relationships.

grammar

does anything about this sentence bother you?

"Back problems are one of the commonest reasons for time off
work and early retirement due to disability in the USA."

that grammatical gem was included in a health & well-being report from blue cross blue shield of illinois.

makes me wonder which is commoner: back problems or grammar problems.

---

... okay, i just looked on dictionary.com. when did "commonest" become a real word? and who didn't tell me?

oh, honestly ...

i just got the following email message from my stake:

"Due to protesters, the Los Angeles Temple was closed this evening.
They ask that before coming in tomorrow you call first to see if they will be open."

that's disappointing.

on the news last night, they showed the marches that were happening in santa monica/hollywood until late in the evening.

i read that there have already been lawsuits brought with the primary premise being that this matter was fundamental enough to require not only a constitutional amendment but a constitutional revision and that such action requires a 2/3 passage in the state congress before it can be brought for a popular vote. we'll see what comes of that.

we live in a country where we are free to do so many things, including vote. and yet there are those who would wish to take that vote away when its results oppose their point of view.

those who are requesting tolerance, do not tolerate. those who speak of rights, do not recognize the rights of others.

i have mixed feelings.

part of me has a knee-jerk reaction that they are just being poor losers. at the same time, i don't imagine that they are feeling very differently than others who are refused something that is so important to them. i am disappointed, however, that they do not behave with the respect that they themselves desire.

feel that fire - dierks bentley

she wants her nails painted black
she wants the toy in the crackerjack
she wants to ride the bull at the rodeo

she wants to wear my shirt to bed
she wants to make every stray a pet
'n drive around in my truck with no place to go

[chorus:]
but she needs to feel that fire
the one that lets her know for sure
she's everything i want and more
a real desire, and to know i'd walk alone out on the wire
to make her feel that fire

she wants a cabin in the woods
she wants to stand where nobody stood
and someday she wants a couple kids of her own
she wants to make love on a train
and somedays she only wants a break
hey, she wants what she wants, but man i know, i know, i know

[chorus:]
she needs to feel that fire
the one that lets her know for sure
she's everything i want and more
a real desire, and to know i'd walk alone out on the wire
to make her feel that fire
yeah, feel that fire

so as long as there's a breath to take
a smile to share, a prayer to pray
a chance to hold her hand to fan the flame

[chorus:]
she's gonna feel that fire
the one that lets her know for sure
she's everything i want and more
a real desire, and to know i'd walk alone out on the wire
to make her feel that fire
ohh, feel that fire

she wants her nails painted black
she wants the toy in the crackerjack
she wants to ride the bull at the rodeo

disappointment

as required by california state law, i went to a 2-hour sexual harassment training yesterday.

turns out it was sexual harassment awareness and prevention.

what a disappointment.

electoral

*this* is why my vote won't matter in this presidential election:

(this map was put together by liz green for her blog post, "looking for the magic number 270? turn your eyes to the state polls" for yahoo news.)

as many of us may not remember, the presidency is not decided by popular vote. it's decided by the electoral college. we vote on nov-4; they vote on dec-15 this year. the candidate who gets a majority of the electoral college votes wins, so we really only need to be concerned with what collection of states a candidate can put together to get to 270 (a simple majority; there are 538 total electoral college votes divvied up among the states as shown above).

which then just becomes a math game ...

(i know, "math" and "game" aren't usually used together in a sentence, and certainly don't usually denote anything fun ... but stick with me here.)

okay. come tuesday, i won't actually be voting for obama or mccain, i will be voting for my state's electors. california has 55 electors in the electoral college, the most of any state.

according to wikipedia, "electors are technically free to vote for anyone eligible to be president, but in practice pledge to vote for specific candidates and voters cast ballots for favored presidential and vice presidential candidates by voting for correspondingly pledged electors. ... the ticket that receives the most votes statewide 'wins' all of the votes cast by electors from that state."

what does that mean? except for in two states in the union, each state's electors are all or nothing. which means that whichever ticket wins a majority of the popular vote in the state, wins all of that state's electoral votes. so ... whichever ticket wins a majority of the popular vote in california, wins all 55 electoral votes. as few as 50% of the california population plus 1 person can vote blue and all 55 of my state's electoral votes go blue. hmmm.

which is why my state has usually been blue and will probably be blue for the foreseeable future. the same is true of states like utah (whose 5 votes almost always go red), texas (whose 34 votes also usually go red), and new york (whose 31 votes usually go blue).

as you can see, unless you live in one of the "swing states" (which are denoted as grey in the map above, and this year they are colorado, florida, indiana, missouri, nevada, new mexico, north carolina, ohio, pennsylvania, virginia, and new hampshire), the decision is generally already made for you. i hope you swing staters realize this and get out and vote; make your voice heard.

my intention is not to encourage a lack of participation in our country's election, nor an indifference or sense of disempowerment. i am frustrated with the way the system works. i can believe that when the electoral college was set up, it was necessary in order to conduct an efficient and effective election that provided for the interests of both the individual citizen and the states. i don't believe we need it now. i believe that we do not so much define ourselves as citizens of states, but as citizens of this country. i believe that the electoral college represents better the voices of states over the voices of individual citizens because i believe the system as it is now blocks my voice from being heard at all.

...

and i know that unless obama, mccain, and all the 538 members of the senate and the house of representatives read my blog and think i actually know something of which i speak, none of this ranting will matter. but i just can't hold it in any longer!

don't think less of me.

:P

please note that, yes, i am going to vote. despite all these frustrations, i believe that we should vote. i have already received my absentee ballot, which i am going to mail in tomorrow. as my mom always says, "if you don't vote, you don't have room to complain". and i like to complain! ha!

(ps -- if anyone has input or enlightenment to share with me as the necessity of the electoral college and the purpose for its existence in our nation today, i would really like to discuss. really.)

yes

in case anyone is looking for some info online about prop 8 here in california, here's a collection of vidoes and stuff i just got in an email. with the upcoming election, i thought i'd get this out there for anyone interested ...

yes on 8 youtube videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vI-GjWY-WlA -- this is one of the best: proposition 8 in plain english (especially good for kids... and adults)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kKn5LNhNto -- 1st ad from protectmarriage.com (gavin newsom)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PgjcgqFYP4 -- 2nd ad from protectmarriage.com (i can marry a princess)

https://www.icontribute.us/protectmarriage/initiative/schools-web -- 3rd ad from protectmarriage.com (it's all about schools)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2JOe04h1pI -- ad showing the slippery slope of how marriage becoming everything to everyone will make marriage nothing to anyone

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko2-EQss0V4 -- party a & party b spoof ad

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1815820715?bctid=1822459319
-- frc mini documentary on the parkers in massachusetts

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1352578267?bctid=1784553601
-- frc on black race vs. sexual preference

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1352578267?bctid=1784521903
-- frc parkers and wirthlin on massachusetts gay education

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1352578267?bctid=1749436976
-- frc about the importance of voting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puI4pfRB0w0 -- parkers in massachusetts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx-glEL5SHE -- uk warns us "don't follow our lead"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDwIy3mT1Po -- vote "yes to proposition 8" (same sex marriage) / part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXjrULY3RMw -- vote "yes to proposition 8" (same sex marriage) / part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsiZ3crfXXc -- vote "yes to proposition 8" (same sex marriage) / part 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeUJd4y87iU -- support prop 8 - newt gingrich on judicial tyranny

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjC4lQ90Sas -- governor romney on gay marriage

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8EwbEh8EKo -- catholic bishop speaks in support of prop 102 (arizona)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_V76Gbrpys -- tom minnery of focus on the family introduces glenn stanton

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZk5lew9vMA -- glenn stanton preface to his 10 questions and talks about how to engage this issue

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL2MJ6hah-I -- glenn stanton question 1: how will my same-sex marriage hurt your marriage?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p81mkYOtJMU -- glenn stanton question 2: is same-sex marriage like interracial marriage?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEL0f2yuqLo -- glenn stanton question 3: where does it stop?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dF6w2ILsyUA -- glenn stanton question 4: can't we have religious marriage and civil marriage?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9cYmAGbREA -- glenn stanton question 5: what public good does marriage provide?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5QYnJwQttQ -- glenn stanton question 6: is it healthy to experiment with children?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8P3x0UsTNQ -- glenn stanton question 7: haven't experts said same-sex parenting is fine?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tx3IqxKFCp4 -- glenn stanton question 8: how do we know what kind of families kids need?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDOJdIQbGIE -- glenn stanton question 9: are the needs of kids or adults more important?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YmONdhwXCg -- glenn stanton question 10: does gender really matter?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiX5APGCroU -- young adult video shown during prop 8 fireside with elders ballard, cook & clayton

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewXaVmfOj2w -- elder nelson on marriage

http://www.preservingmarriage.org/videos.html -- lds church's multi-media site on prop 8. this has lots of really good videos from church members

http://www.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/media/mediaplayer.swf?media=http://broadcast.lds.org/newsroom/video/flv/California_Broadcast_8Oct08.flv&type=FLV -- excerpts from the proposition 8 broadcast for california latter-day saints, october 8, 2008

websites

- http://www.blogger.com/www.ProtectMarriage.com

- http://www.blogger.com/www.Focusonsocialissues.org

- http://www.blogger.com/www.JohnRankin.org

- http://www.blogger.com/www.Standformarriage.com

the price of gas

when i left for chicago on oct-12 (2 weeks ago, today), the price of gas at my nearby shell was $3.37. on the way home from church today, i saw this:

yes, friends, we have broken $3 in california. the good way. that's a decrease of 38 cents in 2 weeks. yea! that's more than an 11% decrease! in 2 weeks! annualize that and you get ... well, something only an accountant should know ... so i won't subject all y'all to it. just know that it's really good, okay?

what's the price of gas in your neck of the woods?

baby daddy

volkswagen is brilliant. as part of the marketing plan that was launched for the new routan, they have made available to the masses a very valuable tool that allows us to see into the future. no longer do we need to wonder what future children will look like. we can find out ahead of time. with vw's help ...

all you need to do is upload a picture of mom and a picture of dad. press a few buttons and -- pronto! -- insta-super-powers! you can look into the future!

after first hearing about this from a friend of mine, i wanted to help those near and dear to me, so i ran a few for some loved ones ...

eden & clint, your child due in january:

inge & jared, after dodidley gets a little bigger, he's gonna wanna be a big brother to this lil tike:

(hmm ... apparently this one is going to spend a lot of time out in the texas sun.)

after forwarding the above results to eden, she suggested that i use this see-into-the-future tool to my benefit. she suggested that i use multiple possible routan daddies to then be able to see which one would give me the best looking baby. then i can go after that guy ... which is a *perfect plan*!

and now i am asking for your help. i have "made babies" with several young men using this amazing vw technology. what i need from you is to help determine which of these is cutest and should thereby be my baby daddy. please leave me a comment and let me know which routan baby is cutest. i've withheld the daddies names so as not to sway your votes.

number 1: number 2:

number 3: number 4:

number 5: number 6:

number 7: number 8:

and thank you ahead of time: you will be helping future generations.

square one

i was ambitious when i first got hired here at grant thornton. within my first 3 weeks, i signed up for and paid the fees for all 4 sections of the cpa exam. and started taking them. my strategy: start with the easiest one first and work my way toward the hardest.

perhaps not the best strategy:

i passed BEC (economics, IT, and hodge-podge of leftovers), AUD (audit & attestation), and FAR (financial accounting) straight out of the gate.

REG (taxation) killed me again and again. and again. and again. ... and again. (please remember that, any of you that are thinking of asking me to help with your taxes this coming spring.)

and so this is where i stand:

back at square one. a clean slate. as if i haven't done anything yet. poised behind the starting line.

again.

ai ai ai.

wanted for murder

the suspect:

the victim:

times two.

yes, two black widows in my house.

found and killed both during one weekend.

productive weekend.

romance

(this story has been a long time coming, so hold on tight.)

the most romantic evening of my life was probably somewhere in the realm of "nerdiest evening" for most of all y'all normal people out there.

one day in early may, i was sitting at my client's office, working and minding my own business, when got a pleasant surprise. my phone buzzed and the following text message battle with an old friend ensued ...

the captain: christianna ... we need to talk.

me: what's up?

the captain: i posted something to your wall on facebook.

me: okay. lemme look at it.

the captain: fancy.

... i checked facebook and saw a somewhat long message that ended with "maybe i can take you to dinner next week sometime?" i responded via text.

me: dinner next week sounds great. actually, dinner anytime sounds good to me -- like to eat dinner at least once a week.

the captain: you are the awesomest. i think i owe you a year of dinners.

me: ha. that's a lot of dinners. just don't make me eat them all in one sitting. i'd just embarrass myself.

the captain: yeah, i don't want you to get fat. actually, you might die. i'll need to check with science on that though. also, i think you know exactly what i mean. i hope.

not really.

me: i don't want to die, so let me know when you hear back from science on that one. for now, i am going out of town on wed next week. so ... monday for dinner?

the captain: what about tonight? it'd have to be at 9:45 ish because i have to help fix someone's computer. but monday is still good.

me: tonight works better, actually. where do you wanna meet? or whatever?

the captain: don't wait to eat if you are hungry. we could probably just go get some ice cream cones from mcdonalds.

the captain: oh and i know this is very random but i can explain everything.

me: that works, too. you don't want to tell me what this is about? you okay?

the captain: i'm fine. i've had a rough week but i just think it's satan getting after me. no, wanting to see you is because i want to see you. i've been going the wrong direction for a year. sorry to be so deep or whatever.

ummm ... what does that mean? ...

me: okay. glad you're okay. i'll see you tonight. it *has* been way too long.

the captain: don't we know it.

and then i waited for the evening. totally and completely unsure of what was coming.

at around 930 i caught my first glimpse of what was coming as i opened the door and watched as a very anxious man walked up the drive trying desperately to pull *on* his red jacket. (as he was coming *into* the house? hmm, okay.) he got to the screen door and i was waiting for him there.

it was good to see him. i told him so.

i welcomed him into the house. this kid was nervous. apparently. he had some trouble mastering the function of the screen door, which, i know, is harder than it looks: guess not everyone is capable of timing it just right so as to *not* hit himself/herself in the face. so count yourself blessed and talented if you can.

having hit himself in the face with the screen door, the captain was rubbing his temple as he stepped across the threshold. but upon entering, he landed on me with a fabulous hug. after a little minute he asked, "hugging's good, right?" (p.s. little minute is a direct translation from the português minutinho. i haven't been able to shake that phrase in the past 4 years.)

"yeah, hugging's good."

we stood there a minute longer. then after the embrace that i didn't want to end, the captain took his red jacket off (hmm, okay) and asked to use the bathroom. i showed him the way and witnessed the second clue of his heightened nerves: as this young man walked past the bed to access the bathroom, he kicked the footboard (which is something i have done many a time), which tripped him and sent him headfirst to the ground (which i have *not* done many a time). oh, my goodness. i don't even know if i was able to contain my laughter. thinking back on it, though, i kinda hope i did, because, yeah.

the captain seemed to calm himself down a bit in there, because he came out more cool and collected. it was kinda late at that point, so we were going to just go grab some ice cream, but we just got to talking at the house.

i sat down on the couch and he asked, "can i sit by you?" okay, maybe he wasn't as cool and collected as i had thought. oh, well.

we talked for a while, just kinda catching up and other small talk. but soon he got a little more serious and was like, "well, i've known this for a long time ... and it was like a year ago when we first met. and i dunno, i kinda felt like there was something that could be there ... and then i was stupid and i went to idaho and got wrapped up in something that was really not a good relationship ...

"and you and i, we've been friends. and then i broke up with idaho and dated this other girl for a while back in february. but that wasn't right.

"and i was kinda wondering ... and i don't know if you liked me back then or what you think of me now ... but i was kinda wondering if there might be an opportunity for me to ...

"...

"maybe

"...

"have ... an opportunity?"

i had no idea what to say.

he continued, "i mean, i don't know what's going on with you at all right now ..."

as i processed all this information, the only thing that came out of my mouth was, "okay ..."

[stay tuned]

long awaited

sorry for the delay, guys ...

... you wouldn't believe how crazy busy my life is.

but ... better late than never ... right?

wha' happtened?

okay. i still haven't taken any good pictures of my new haircut to post ... so you're gonna have to settle for a listing of reactions thus far and just let your imagination run wild for another couple days. i promise to get something up here soon for ya.

sister: cute!

mom: i love it.

dad: you look like sandra dennis.

mom: who's sandra dennis? do you mean sandy duncan?

dad: ... you look like sandy duncan.

me: who's sandy duncan?

co-worker: oh my gosh. so cute!

co-worker: so you really did it? i love it!

friend: how do you do a cat call over text? looks really good.

co-worker: wow, it makes you look taller. [p.s. -- i was wearing 4-inch heels that day.]

co-worker: whoa. that's really different. like bad-break-up different.

joe wren [to my mom]: if she starts to think that she doesn't like it, you tell her that joe wren says it's cute.

co-worker: it makes you look ol-- uhh, more mature. yeah, now you look 24-ish. it definitely adds about 4 years. [p.s. -- i'm 28.]

co-worker: and i was just thinking, 'gosh, that girl looks like christianna.'

roommate: oh, my goodness! and i just invited a man i met on the plane over to have dinner because i told him you had long, blonde, beautiful hair!

sister: makes you look like mom.

nephew [pointing at my head]: wha' happtened?

one clue

thursday

in celebration of today being thursday, i wanted to share a couple memories of thursdays past ...

the epic mr. thursday

in my parents' ward, there lived a very good looking young man. uh huh.

i had met this guy before my mission, so when i returned, we caught up quickly/briefly my first sunday back in the states. after church that day, my little sister's boyfriend suggested that i ask this guy out. for thursday. (please note that the suggested thursday was exactly one week from the time i stepped off the plane.)

i said okay.

so i quickly grabbed the phone and called him up. he was more than obliging and agreed that thursday would be an excellent day for a date. and it was.

thursday came and, for the date, we watched spiderman (the first one -- because the second one would be coming out in just a few weeks -- see? trying to set it up for an automatic second date) and then made churros, brazilian style. (pretty similar to the mexican treat, but just imagine those cinnamon-and-sugar-covered sensations filled with chocolate. mmm. drool, drool. those alone are the reason i gained 10 pounds in one of my mission areas. really.)

that thursday night, mr. thursday and i stayed up talking until 1. which was super late for a girl that just got off her mission a week ago! but so much fun!

mr. thursday and i went out a handful of other times after that. but it wasn't meant to be ... something i noticed when i unfortunately kept burning the kid every time we talked. it was awful. (and fodder for some follow-up don't-do-it-this-way posts.)

sigh.

naked thursday

a couple months ago, a friend and i decided that we would give up on becoming cpa's and instead start a promotional button-making business. y'know, the kind of buttons that we used to wear in high school whenever there were student elections coming up. (don't have any idea if kids still use those. do they? am i dating myself here?)

anyway, after coming up with some pretty snazzy slogans and clever commentaries, we decided that our skills could better be used in the t-shirt making business. that decision pretty much came as a result of this genius:

get it? ha ha ... get it?

there you go. happy thursday, everyone.