Thursday, December 10, 2009
My new blog at www.michaellinton.org
Hi everybody (all 5 of you that frequent this blog). I have a new blog at www.michaellinton.org. I won't be updating this one much, so you'll probably want to mark the other one if you want to know what is going on.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
List of Thanksgiving Traditions
Last night we searched for lists of Thanksgiving Traditions. I have listed the ones we liked the most (in no particular order).
Go for Quantity- Each person in the family writes down 10 things for which they are grateful for every year that they have lived. Example- If I am 27 years old I will write down 270 things.
Christmas Ornaments- Make Christmas tree ornaments that represent 5 things that you are thankful for. This will make sure that you remember those things from Thanksgiving until Christmas each time you look at the Christmas tree.
Letters to Friends- Probably one of the most important things that we can do, is spend time writing personal letters to friends and family expressing specific things for which we are thankful. The most important thing is to be specific and genuine.
Read “Yearly”Thankful Book- Many families do daily or weekly activities throughout the year where they have everybody in the family submit what they are thankful for and they write it in a book. On Thanksgiving day they take an hour to read the book and while reading the book, the family member can expound on the experience and it can be a recap of the year.
Video- It is good to make a video of people actually saying what they are thankful for, and then after the day you can make one long video with pictures of those things, or you can compile it and show it at a later family party.
Table Cloth- Get a white table cloth and different colored fabric markers and have everybody at the dinner write down one or two things they are thankful for and sign and date the tablecloth. Do this each year with the same tablecloth and simultaneously you’ll have a gratitude list and a guest list.
Blog Entry- Write a blog entry, listing or describing in detail what things you are grateful for
Thanksgiving Jar Game- As people come in to have Thanksgiving dinner, give them a piece of paper to write down 5 or 10 things. You can discuss them at dinner, or you can have them put them on little slips and put them in a jar and later you can pull them out of the jar and have everybody guess who wrote that specific thing
Read Scripture- Read the same passage of scripture every year that is centered on Christ or Gratitude (Examples John 14; Colossians 3:15; Alma 34:38; 3 Nephi 11; Doctrine and Covenants 78:19)
Family Picture- Take a family picture in the same spot every year
Go Bowling- Every time somebody gets up to bowl they have to say one thing they are grateful for.
Pictures- Make a slideshow of things you are grateful for.
Note to English perfectionists in my life: I know that this whole post is full of grammatical errors (specifically dangling participles), please don’t say anything about them unless you would like to submit a revised and better version of this post that I can copy and paste into my blog
Go for Quantity- Each person in the family writes down 10 things for which they are grateful for every year that they have lived. Example- If I am 27 years old I will write down 270 things.
Christmas Ornaments- Make Christmas tree ornaments that represent 5 things that you are thankful for. This will make sure that you remember those things from Thanksgiving until Christmas each time you look at the Christmas tree.
Letters to Friends- Probably one of the most important things that we can do, is spend time writing personal letters to friends and family expressing specific things for which we are thankful. The most important thing is to be specific and genuine.
Read “Yearly”Thankful Book- Many families do daily or weekly activities throughout the year where they have everybody in the family submit what they are thankful for and they write it in a book. On Thanksgiving day they take an hour to read the book and while reading the book, the family member can expound on the experience and it can be a recap of the year.
Video- It is good to make a video of people actually saying what they are thankful for, and then after the day you can make one long video with pictures of those things, or you can compile it and show it at a later family party.
Table Cloth- Get a white table cloth and different colored fabric markers and have everybody at the dinner write down one or two things they are thankful for and sign and date the tablecloth. Do this each year with the same tablecloth and simultaneously you’ll have a gratitude list and a guest list.
Blog Entry- Write a blog entry, listing or describing in detail what things you are grateful for
Thanksgiving Jar Game- As people come in to have Thanksgiving dinner, give them a piece of paper to write down 5 or 10 things. You can discuss them at dinner, or you can have them put them on little slips and put them in a jar and later you can pull them out of the jar and have everybody guess who wrote that specific thing
Read Scripture- Read the same passage of scripture every year that is centered on Christ or Gratitude (Examples John 14; Colossians 3:15; Alma 34:38; 3 Nephi 11; Doctrine and Covenants 78:19)
Family Picture- Take a family picture in the same spot every year
Go Bowling- Every time somebody gets up to bowl they have to say one thing they are grateful for.
Pictures- Make a slideshow of things you are grateful for.
Note to English perfectionists in my life: I know that this whole post is full of grammatical errors (specifically dangling participles), please don’t say anything about them unless you would like to submit a revised and better version of this post that I can copy and paste into my blog
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Sunday, September 13, 2009
This is funny!!
I was forwarded this and I laughed my head off. I want to know if you think it is genuine or if you think it is a set up- just vote in the comments.
READ BELOW BEFORE LISTENING
"The story is this: a girl was out with friends having drinks on King St (in Toronto ). This guy approaches her and won't leave her alone -saying how cute she is. She finally gives in and hands the guy her business card to get rid of him.
The attached is an MP3 file of not one, but TWO voicemails this guy left. This goes down in the history books - especially the second voice mail.
After hearing them you can clearly see why she didn't call him back - instead she called in to the Z103.5 morning show & had them play this on the air.
Ladies: He is out there... :)"
READ BELOW BEFORE LISTENING
"The story is this: a girl was out with friends having drinks on King St (in Toronto ). This guy approaches her and won't leave her alone -saying how cute she is. She finally gives in and hands the guy her business card to get rid of him.
The attached is an MP3 file of not one, but TWO voicemails this guy left. This goes down in the history books - especially the second voice mail.
After hearing them you can clearly see why she didn't call him back - instead she called in to the Z103.5 morning show & had them play this on the air.
Ladies: He is out there... :)"
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Yellowstone 2009 Trip Video
I just downloaded Picasa 3 and it has become my picture editor of choice. It really makes it easy for me to post pictures to blogs, email pictures, make videos, make collages, and many other things that I didn't have time for yesterday. As I was playing around with the 500 pictures that we took from Yellowstone I decided to make this video. It took me about 1.5 hours, so if you don't appreciate it, then don't tell me because I want to think that my hour and a half was time well spent. Joking aside, it was easy and fun to make the video and reminded me of the great time we had in Yellowstone.
We saw a lot of wildlife. You'll see on this movie that we saw some ducks, squirrels, groundhogs, pelicans, mooses/meese (two babies with their mother), a bald eagle, wolves at night, buffalo, deer, elk, mosquitoes, and pretty much everything but a bear, and the irony was that I had intense desires to see a bear while Michelle was secretly praying not to see a bear, and of course we didn't see one, but we came within 3 minutes of watching a grizzly bear swim a 2oo yard river and then dart into the woods. We actually went to look for that same grizzly bear 30 minutes before his supposed swim (everybody gladly showed us their awesome pictures of the swimming bear). We received a tip that there was a bear siting on the other side of the bridge so we quickly crossed the bridge and decided to take the trail on the North side of the street. 25 minutes after searching for the bear, I saw people in the distance running across the bridge- we sprinted back to the bridge just in time for everybody to tell us how cool it was and to show off their photos. If we would have gone South I am confident we would have seen the bear but we barely missed him and thus we are still alive and unscathed.
I highly recommend Yellowstone, and if you want to see a bear, ask people all day if they have seen one, and then when they tell you where the bears have been sited (get specifics), go directly there, do not stop and go South. I did learn that you don't want to sneak up on a grizzly, so you want to sing, clap and make noise (which, yes mother, we did).
When you see old faithful try to be closer to the South side or to the far right of the geyser as you are facing it. We were really close and all we saw was a bunch of steam and we missed most of the water show.
Perhaps my favorite part of Yellowstone was when we saw this group of "Geyser Gazers" "Geyser Geeks" or "Geyser Gurus" that had stationed somebody at Fan Geyser all day so that they could alert people of "activity" of the geyser that would possibly indicate a 90 ft fan like explosion of water and steam. We decided to watch with them, but after watching the same 2 ft spring of bubbling water. The young kid got on his walkie talkie and with the disappointment of a kid that waited in line for 1/2 hour for a lollipop just to be told they were all gone said, "the activity of the water has ceased and I think you'd be wise to turn around." I heard his voice through all the walkie talkies of those people standing within whispering distance, and I asked him "who does that all go to"- he replied " oh all these people here (there were 12 of them, and half of them were his family). I laughed hysterically once they all turned around and walked or biked back with their faces facing down but with hopeful hearts that next year they would be fortunate enough to see it go off (it only goes off every 5-12 days). Despite my ridicule, I secretly wish I was a "Geyser Geek/Guru/Gazer".
We saw a lot of wildlife. You'll see on this movie that we saw some ducks, squirrels, groundhogs, pelicans, mooses/meese (two babies with their mother), a bald eagle, wolves at night, buffalo, deer, elk, mosquitoes, and pretty much everything but a bear, and the irony was that I had intense desires to see a bear while Michelle was secretly praying not to see a bear, and of course we didn't see one, but we came within 3 minutes of watching a grizzly bear swim a 2oo yard river and then dart into the woods. We actually went to look for that same grizzly bear 30 minutes before his supposed swim (everybody gladly showed us their awesome pictures of the swimming bear). We received a tip that there was a bear siting on the other side of the bridge so we quickly crossed the bridge and decided to take the trail on the North side of the street. 25 minutes after searching for the bear, I saw people in the distance running across the bridge- we sprinted back to the bridge just in time for everybody to tell us how cool it was and to show off their photos. If we would have gone South I am confident we would have seen the bear but we barely missed him and thus we are still alive and unscathed.
I highly recommend Yellowstone, and if you want to see a bear, ask people all day if they have seen one, and then when they tell you where the bears have been sited (get specifics), go directly there, do not stop and go South. I did learn that you don't want to sneak up on a grizzly, so you want to sing, clap and make noise (which, yes mother, we did).
When you see old faithful try to be closer to the South side or to the far right of the geyser as you are facing it. We were really close and all we saw was a bunch of steam and we missed most of the water show.
Perhaps my favorite part of Yellowstone was when we saw this group of "Geyser Gazers" "Geyser Geeks" or "Geyser Gurus" that had stationed somebody at Fan Geyser all day so that they could alert people of "activity" of the geyser that would possibly indicate a 90 ft fan like explosion of water and steam. We decided to watch with them, but after watching the same 2 ft spring of bubbling water. The young kid got on his walkie talkie and with the disappointment of a kid that waited in line for 1/2 hour for a lollipop just to be told they were all gone said, "the activity of the water has ceased and I think you'd be wise to turn around." I heard his voice through all the walkie talkies of those people standing within whispering distance, and I asked him "who does that all go to"- he replied " oh all these people here (there were 12 of them, and half of them were his family). I laughed hysterically once they all turned around and walked or biked back with their faces facing down but with hopeful hearts that next year they would be fortunate enough to see it go off (it only goes off every 5-12 days). Despite my ridicule, I secretly wish I was a "Geyser Geek/Guru/Gazer".
Monday, July 6, 2009
Double Rainbow
Michelle and I went on a hike last week and as we reached the waterfall and started to eat our dinner a rainstorm urged us down the mountain. I was grateful to see this double rainbow as we drove back from the hike.<
Friday, June 26, 2009
Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay Pictures and Video
It has been exactly one week since we were all running the Wasatch Back Relay. I decided to create this video to try to convey the fun that we had. For anybody that is wondering what the Ragnar Relay is I will tell you. It is a 188 mile race that starts in Logan and ends in Park City. 12 runners divide up the miles and each runner runs 3 legs. There are 2 vans with 6 people in each van. It is quite the experience. For more information please go to http://www.ragnarrelay.com/
If you are interested in making your own videos like this, click on this link and buy a year pass to make as many videos as you want.
If you are interested in making your own videos like this, click on this link and buy a year pass to make as many videos as you want.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
church basketball and more stictches
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Painter of the Draper Temple Murals
So I recently learned that Linda Curley Christensen is the artist of the murals in the Draper Temple. A friend found this quote from the Deseret News, "I grew up there. I rode my horses there. I looked at those mountains my whole life," explained Linda Curley Christensen, the temple's mural artist." Anyway, I did a little research and found her website. One of my favorites that she did was Little Cottonwood. Anyway, mystery solved. I found out from her website that Linda and her team worked on the art in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Times 100 Most Influential People Review
I just finished reading Time magazine’s article about “The world’s 100 most influential people.” Here are a few of the highlights.
Suzy Welch said about Suze Orman, “Here is a woman who sleeps four hours a night because she thinks the world is too exciting to turn off.” As I was reading that at 12:30 a.m., I wondered if that was why I hate going to sleep, but then thought that that couldn’t be true because I would love getting up early in the morning and actualizing all of my plans.
T. Boone Pickens said “A fool with a plan can outsmart a genius with no plan.”- I thought that was genius and decided to plan out my life with more precision and determination. Although, ironically, a few pages later E-commerce CEO Jack Ma said referring to the early days of his business, “There were three reasons we survived; we had no money, we had no technology, and we had no plan.”
Nandan Nilekani who is one of India’s corporate icons and a public policy shaping enthusiast said, “My objective in life is to be an object of change.” Makes me want to do something better with my life.
Most interesting to me was this statement that alludes to how plants split water into hydrogen and oxygen and how the plants machine falls apart and then rebuilds itself from scratch. He said “Allowing what’s worn out to die and then building something stronger shows up everywhere in nature. It’s a great model too for how we can replace a burned-out energy strategy with a clean new one.” I wonder if that is what happens to us on a different level.
We all like to be around happier people, but Nicholas Christakis has proved what we all knew already and I like how it is stated by Dan Ariely. “Happiness, like the flu, can spread from person to person. When people who are close to us, both in terms of social ties (friends or relatives) and proximity, become happier, we do too. For example, when a person who lives within a mile of a good friend becomes happier, the probability that this person’s good friend will also become happier increases 15%. More surprising is that the effect can transcend direct links and reach a third degree of separation; when a friend of a friend becomes happier, we become happier, even when we don’t know that third person directly.”
Suzy Welch said about Suze Orman, “Here is a woman who sleeps four hours a night because she thinks the world is too exciting to turn off.” As I was reading that at 12:30 a.m., I wondered if that was why I hate going to sleep, but then thought that that couldn’t be true because I would love getting up early in the morning and actualizing all of my plans.
T. Boone Pickens said “A fool with a plan can outsmart a genius with no plan.”- I thought that was genius and decided to plan out my life with more precision and determination. Although, ironically, a few pages later E-commerce CEO Jack Ma said referring to the early days of his business, “There were three reasons we survived; we had no money, we had no technology, and we had no plan.”
Nandan Nilekani who is one of India’s corporate icons and a public policy shaping enthusiast said, “My objective in life is to be an object of change.” Makes me want to do something better with my life.
Most interesting to me was this statement that alludes to how plants split water into hydrogen and oxygen and how the plants machine falls apart and then rebuilds itself from scratch. He said “Allowing what’s worn out to die and then building something stronger shows up everywhere in nature. It’s a great model too for how we can replace a burned-out energy strategy with a clean new one.” I wonder if that is what happens to us on a different level.
We all like to be around happier people, but Nicholas Christakis has proved what we all knew already and I like how it is stated by Dan Ariely. “Happiness, like the flu, can spread from person to person. When people who are close to us, both in terms of social ties (friends or relatives) and proximity, become happier, we do too. For example, when a person who lives within a mile of a good friend becomes happier, the probability that this person’s good friend will also become happier increases 15%. More surprising is that the effect can transcend direct links and reach a third degree of separation; when a friend of a friend becomes happier, we become happier, even when we don’t know that third person directly.”
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Who painted the murals in the draper temple ordinance room?
The mural in the ordinance room of the Draper temple is awesome and I want to know who painted it. If anybody knows, please let me know. I think the artist is from Utah, but I am not certain. Here is the best picture (not mine) that I could find.-( here is a link to the answer to this question) Who painted the Draper Temple Murals?
Also, I think a lot of people wonder why Mormon’s build and attend temples. I just saw this video and I think it is worth the three minutes to watch and I personally agree with what is shared in this video. So here it is.
Also, I think a lot of people wonder why Mormon’s build and attend temples. I just saw this video and I think it is worth the three minutes to watch and I personally agree with what is shared in this video. So here it is.
Friday, May 1, 2009
April 2009 in Review
More details and picture to come
Ultimate Frisbee
GMAT studying
Michelle’s Birthday
Bought Food Storage
Dinner at Francks
FHE Latin Dancing
Play Basketball at the Energy Solutions Arena
Fireside about Joseph Smith
Ward Amazing Race (stopped to try and Win wicked tickets)
Strawberry Burnt Down Trees
Played Compatibility
Went up to Strawberry
First Golf of the Season
Ward Temple Night
FHE Ultimate Frisbee
Sang at a Fireside
Went on a spontaneous trip to Zion National Park
Hiked Angels Landing
Went Skiing for the last time this season
Dinner with old friends (Andy and Heidi)
D &C Institute Class
Ward Ministry Night
Taxes
Sang at General Conference
Calderwood/Horn Wedding Reception
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Artistic talent is genetic
Monday, April 20, 2009
Angels Landing
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Skiing at Alta for free
Monday, April 6, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
March 2009 Review
Well it is that time of the month again. I go through my calendar and expenses and ask myself what I did or didn’t accomplish in the last month and then I try to figure out how to make the next month better. This usually consists of a commitment to spend less, train for the upcoming race (this time the ragnar relay), work smarter at my job, be kinder to my best friends, go to bed earlier and get up earlier, home teach every single person (even those that don’t return my phone calls), read more, and eat healthier.
So where did March go? I’ll sum it up in a few words. Choir Practice, Volunteering at Draper Temple, skiing, new business ideas, church basketball, U of U gymnastics tournament, National Dancesport Championship, blogging, starting to study for the GMAT , painting, planting peas, and of course a lot of Valcom work both day and night.
I have learned that I feel a lot more productive in the car when I listen to a book on CD. This month I listened to “Presidential Courage” which went through all the presidents of the United States from the beginning and described situations where they had to go against the popular opinion to do what was right for the nation. I recommend it but just know that although the content was interesting, the reader was a little dry and hard to listen to.
Some random things I learned; people react very differently to abstract art, when I am stressed I clean my room and car, it is possible to study for one month and get over a 700 on the GMAT, I like V8 fusion, Kyoto’s is still the best Japanese restaurant in town, www.condron.us is an interesting way to blog surf (but beware lest ye waste time), how to prune a pear tree, how to sell your art, that I can throw the cup, that you use to pour laundry detergent, into the washer with the clothes and it comes out perfectly leaving no residue around to worry about, I have a lot to be thankful for, memorizing gets easier the more you do it.
That's all for March
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
How to sell paintings on internet (my st
Here is a picture of the first peice of art that I ever sold as a result of the internet and this blog. The yellow/blue art peice is named 'gravity' and the buyer (on the right) is Jamie Maxfield, an avid appreciater of great art, a father, a comedian, a salesman, and customer.
How did I do it. well as you read on the internet it is all about the content, you first have to produce great content (in my case 'gravity' the above mentioned acrylic painting), and then you have to let the world know that the content is out there. This is done by word of mouth and internet advertising and getting people to link their websites to yours.
After the difficult decision to put my artwork up for sell, I started to tell everybody and directed them to my website to check out the art and make a bid. Jamie told me he would pay the full price of $25 and the next day we made the transaction and documented it for posterity
Sunday, March 22, 2009
$25 (potentially priceless) paintings
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Draper Temple Dedication
Friday, March 6, 2009
Ode to U
So last year I bet my colleague Jamie on the BYU and U of U football game. The loser was to write a sincere poem discussing the relative merits of the winning team and the inferiority of the losing team. Because of this bet, BYU's loss was therefore a doubly painful blow to my ego. This was written 2 weeks after the loss, but has taken me this long to post it.
Free Big Mac and a Lesson Learned
Free Big Mac offering (click on link and see the details of how to win a free big mac)
I posted a New Post on my other blog that tells of my first experience of trying to get to know and understand some of the homeless people that we see. www.bumstobloggers.blogspot.com
I posted a New Post on my other blog that tells of my first experience of trying to get to know and understand some of the homeless people that we see. www.bumstobloggers.blogspot.com
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
February 2009 in Review
So I promised at least a blog a month that would explain what I did the previous month. This is not just for your enjoyment, but a good time for me to reflect and remember what I did and decide what I am going to try and do better next month. I also find that when I write about what I have done and thought about, I learn, and I like learning.
Shaun invited me to an orientation for the BYU Executive MBA program and it is definitely something that I want to do, and I think it is the best program for the cost. I will probably wait a year or two before I start due to the cost and I will need to save up a lot, but I will get back into school someday. Work is going well and there is still a lot I have to learn before I am good at my job, so perhaps I may be here a little longer.
Our institute choir had the opportunity to sing at the fireside on March 1st, where Elder Hales spoke about finding and staying on the high ground. He said we need to stay on the high ground together and that we need not get discouraged even though all around us things are getting worse. He counseled us to learn how to budget our time and money, to not be wasteful, and to find joy in this life. He gave a few points as to what a couple has to do to maintain a great relationship and I have listed what he explained that both people in the relationship must do to be successful. They must:
1. Know who they are as children of God
2. Know the doctrines (specifically, temple covenants)
3. Choose to obtain God’s kingdom
4. Understand sealing covenant and that courting days are over
5. Think of the other more than self
6. Converse often and talk early about little hurts and offenses
7. See the good in each other by not nagging or speaking ill of each other, by being willing to change your heart and repent, and working hard at improving your relationship as well as cultivating a thoughtful spirit.
I believe this counsel, and I believe that if more people would live by these principles, more homes would find the happiness, faith and strength that is required to endure the tests of the tough times. I have been extremely blessed by the excellent example of my parents and my siblings as they live and have lived these principles.
I never thought that so much of my life would be in choirs, but I find myself in 3 choirs; ward, institute and temple. It takes a lot of my time, but I am learning how powerful music can be in teaching us the doctrines of the kingdom. I will expound on this at a later date.
Valcom reserved a suite at Energy Solutions Arena to watch the Utah Jazz beat the Memphis Grizzlies. It was a lot of fun and I am glad that Michelle could come. It was almost as fun as watching BYU beat the Utes.
So Mexico was a lot of fun. It’s hard to explain how much I love to fly in an airplane and the feeling of going somewhere else. I like the fact that at the end of the day on Thursday I could say, “It is amazing that this morning I was in my bed in Utah, and now I am walking on the beach in Mexico, and it is the same day. I love technology, and planes, and beaches.” We walked the beach, had dinner, and then went and played tennis. It was a ton of fun.
The next day we went to the jungle and went on the Ziplines. I highly recommend the zipline tour. We went through the company called Selvatica and it was a great experience. We flew through the trees, rightside up and then upside down several times. It was a blast, and then from there, we mountain biked to a natural spring (Cenote), which had a zipline right over the water and then a 15-20 ft drop. So we played in that for about 45 minutes and then mountain biked back. The zipline into the cenote was probably the highlight of the trip. As soon as I get the videos and pictures from Michelle, you will understand why I loved it so much.
The next day we went and swam with the dolphins and I learned anew why they are one of my favorite animals. They are super intelligent, kind, and quick and powerful. It was amazing to see their coordination as 2 dolphins would come up behind you at the exact same time and put their noses on the bottom of each foot, and propel you out of the water and carry you 15 feet. If you have the chance to do this, as they say, "Its an experience of a lifetime." Although if you have to choose between the Ziplines and the dolphins, choose the Ziplines.
Did I mention we got to see a 2-toed sloth? It was amazing to see how slow they moved. They really do move in slow motion and I thought it very entertaining to see them move like they were trying to not let a motion sensor sense them. I don’t know how animals get their names, but whoever named this one, did a great job, or did we get the word sloth from them.
I left my cell phone in the shuttle that brought us back to the airport, and I admit that I am addicted to having a cell phone by my side. I felt sad, distraught and lost. I have since invested in 3 more T-mobile dashes as backups, and I learned that if you lose your sim card and go to a T-mobile store they will give you one for free. I tend to lose or break about one cell phone every year and so I had invested in an extra sim card and so all was not lost. Besides they found my phone and so after a couple of long days I was reunited with my beloved companion.
I have recently been obsessed with learning about bloggers and blogging and SEO (search engine optimization), and how to use a blog as a tool for good. I’ll let you know what my conclusions with all these projects are when I know more. Recently (like 4 hours ago) I started the blog bumstobloggers. The name explains it, but the blog explains it all.
Lastly, I have listened to two additional books on tape. “The Audacity of Hope,” by super liberal and now President, Barack Obama, and “An Inconvenient Book” by Ultra conservative Glenn Beck. I guess I go from one extreme to another. My views definitely are more conservative than liberal, but I find the story of Obama inspirational and very interesting, while I view Glenn Beck as more open, honest, and hilarious.
Well that was February 2009.
Shaun invited me to an orientation for the BYU Executive MBA program and it is definitely something that I want to do, and I think it is the best program for the cost. I will probably wait a year or two before I start due to the cost and I will need to save up a lot, but I will get back into school someday. Work is going well and there is still a lot I have to learn before I am good at my job, so perhaps I may be here a little longer.
Our institute choir had the opportunity to sing at the fireside on March 1st, where Elder Hales spoke about finding and staying on the high ground. He said we need to stay on the high ground together and that we need not get discouraged even though all around us things are getting worse. He counseled us to learn how to budget our time and money, to not be wasteful, and to find joy in this life. He gave a few points as to what a couple has to do to maintain a great relationship and I have listed what he explained that both people in the relationship must do to be successful. They must:
1. Know who they are as children of God
2. Know the doctrines (specifically, temple covenants)
3. Choose to obtain God’s kingdom
4. Understand sealing covenant and that courting days are over
5. Think of the other more than self
6. Converse often and talk early about little hurts and offenses
7. See the good in each other by not nagging or speaking ill of each other, by being willing to change your heart and repent, and working hard at improving your relationship as well as cultivating a thoughtful spirit.
I believe this counsel, and I believe that if more people would live by these principles, more homes would find the happiness, faith and strength that is required to endure the tests of the tough times. I have been extremely blessed by the excellent example of my parents and my siblings as they live and have lived these principles.
I never thought that so much of my life would be in choirs, but I find myself in 3 choirs; ward, institute and temple. It takes a lot of my time, but I am learning how powerful music can be in teaching us the doctrines of the kingdom. I will expound on this at a later date.
Valcom reserved a suite at Energy Solutions Arena to watch the Utah Jazz beat the Memphis Grizzlies. It was a lot of fun and I am glad that Michelle could come. It was almost as fun as watching BYU beat the Utes.
So Mexico was a lot of fun. It’s hard to explain how much I love to fly in an airplane and the feeling of going somewhere else. I like the fact that at the end of the day on Thursday I could say, “It is amazing that this morning I was in my bed in Utah, and now I am walking on the beach in Mexico, and it is the same day. I love technology, and planes, and beaches.” We walked the beach, had dinner, and then went and played tennis. It was a ton of fun.
The next day we went to the jungle and went on the Ziplines. I highly recommend the zipline tour. We went through the company called Selvatica and it was a great experience. We flew through the trees, rightside up and then upside down several times. It was a blast, and then from there, we mountain biked to a natural spring (Cenote), which had a zipline right over the water and then a 15-20 ft drop. So we played in that for about 45 minutes and then mountain biked back. The zipline into the cenote was probably the highlight of the trip. As soon as I get the videos and pictures from Michelle, you will understand why I loved it so much.
The next day we went and swam with the dolphins and I learned anew why they are one of my favorite animals. They are super intelligent, kind, and quick and powerful. It was amazing to see their coordination as 2 dolphins would come up behind you at the exact same time and put their noses on the bottom of each foot, and propel you out of the water and carry you 15 feet. If you have the chance to do this, as they say, "Its an experience of a lifetime." Although if you have to choose between the Ziplines and the dolphins, choose the Ziplines.
Did I mention we got to see a 2-toed sloth? It was amazing to see how slow they moved. They really do move in slow motion and I thought it very entertaining to see them move like they were trying to not let a motion sensor sense them. I don’t know how animals get their names, but whoever named this one, did a great job, or did we get the word sloth from them.
I left my cell phone in the shuttle that brought us back to the airport, and I admit that I am addicted to having a cell phone by my side. I felt sad, distraught and lost. I have since invested in 3 more T-mobile dashes as backups, and I learned that if you lose your sim card and go to a T-mobile store they will give you one for free. I tend to lose or break about one cell phone every year and so I had invested in an extra sim card and so all was not lost. Besides they found my phone and so after a couple of long days I was reunited with my beloved companion.
I have recently been obsessed with learning about bloggers and blogging and SEO (search engine optimization), and how to use a blog as a tool for good. I’ll let you know what my conclusions with all these projects are when I know more. Recently (like 4 hours ago) I started the blog bumstobloggers. The name explains it, but the blog explains it all.
Lastly, I have listened to two additional books on tape. “The Audacity of Hope,” by super liberal and now President, Barack Obama, and “An Inconvenient Book” by Ultra conservative Glenn Beck. I guess I go from one extreme to another. My views definitely are more conservative than liberal, but I find the story of Obama inspirational and very interesting, while I view Glenn Beck as more open, honest, and hilarious.
Well that was February 2009.
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Me Sleeping up at Strawberry
One of my favorite things to do, even with my shoe(s) on