What's Up Chuck?

Great question there in the title of this here post - What's up Chuck?  That could easily be misinterpreted as a question about vomiting or a little puke, perhaps hurl or tossing ones cookies, you know - throwing up.  No, not talking talking that at all.  What is up with the show Chuck?  I never watched it when it was originally on television.  There were a few things going on in life back in those days and a computer geek spy didn't really have high priority in my life.  Anyhow, that is it's own story.  I have been on a bit of a Chuck marathon and have to say that I love this show.   I find it very well written and quite funny.  I often find myself laughing hysterically.  Thank you Netflix for having this series available.  If you are looking for a very entertaining program that is well written I recommend giving Chuck a try.   

Mucho Churcho

I pulled a double today when it came to church.  I went to my ward this morning and then I went to the new Cedar City Ward for Single Adults this afternoon.  Six hours of church is a lot.  I did the same thing last week and wasn't sure I would do it again this week but I opted to go.  I won't be going back to that ward for several months as the kids will be back home and our ward meeting conflicts starting next week.  We may attempt to attend an activity or two with the Cedar City Ward but I don't know how involved we will be. 

Anyway, today was the 5th Sunday in December and there were combined meetings for the third hour in each ward.  The meetings were quite good.  Bishop Ellison shared some thoughts on the Atonement as taught through the experience of David and Abigail in 1 Samuel 25.  I quite like that lesson as Abigail came seeking David's forgiveness.  She had done nothing wrong but came on behalf of her husband Nabal.  This story points to the Savior who has done nothing wrong yet presents himself on our behalf.  He has taken upon him our infirmities, our sorrows, our wrongs.  He has likewise taken upon him those things that others do that trespass against us.  Our we willing to forgive the Savior?  David forgave Abigail for her husbands errors.  Can we forgive the Savior for anothers trespass against us?  That may seem strange but the reality of the situation is that the Savior suffered for whoever trespassed against us as well.  We need to trust in him.

Perhaps I rambled a bit there.  Anyhow, I love that story.  I read it several years ago now and was moved by the lesson on the atonement it was to me then and am still moved by it today. 
  

Working Two Jobs

Today was a day that I worked two jobs.  One was my regular job at the Brick House.  The other was an opportunity to brush up on some of my plumbing skills.  Yep, there was a time when I worked in plumbing - it was new construction plumbing and consisted of roughing in sewer lines, gas pipe, and some finish work but it was plumbing.  My plumbing today really was just for the Brick House and changing out some toilets in the upstairs bathrooms.  Actually just in the women's room today as both of the toilets were in bad shape.  One was down before we came into the space and the other pretty much does not flush.  It was bad. 

So there I was installing toilets, actually got the first one installed and operational and had one of the cooks come upstairs and ask if I would come help them.  Off to my other job.  We got real busy while I was plumbing away which was great because they said it had been a bit slow.  Well, it turned out to be a great late lunch today and it was good that I was there.  At the end of that I did a delivery for a regular customer who called in and asked if I would bring a couple of sandwiches out.  He was down with the flu and he and his son really wanted a sandwich.  I made it happen because sometimes that is just what you do for people.  I ended up with a fairly healthy tip off of it as well and that never hurts.  After a couple of store runs for some needed items I headed back up stairs to the ladies room for toilet number two.  It was slow and I told the wait staff to get ready because when I start the next toilet its going to get busy.  Funny enough that is exactly what happened.  As I was securing the toilet to the floor one of the waitresses came and told me they had one large group seated and another group of 20 coming in 10 minutes.  I finished the toilet, cleaned the bathroom up, washed myself up and headed to the kitchen where I spent the remainder of our operating hours today working. 

I have one more toilet to change out in the men's room upstairs.  I may have to pick just the right time to start that one.  Perhaps on a day that is a bit slow and needs a little shot in the arm.  Or maybe just a day when I need a fun project that will take me back to my plumbing roots.  When you're working two jobs it can keep things interesting. 

Steak That Melts in Your Mouth

I tried something today and it worked out quite well.  My buddy Jason who runs the Pizza Cart here in Cedar was talking to me about steak.  We were talking about ways to cook it and he shared with me a cooking method that I am sure many are familiar with called Sous Vide.  There is a specific machine called the Sous Vide and it is a method of cooking that uses water to cook the meat or vegetable, eggs and even desserts.  We just tried some steak today using one of our warmers.  I brought it to the desired temperature and then I put in two vacuum sealed steaks.  They were frozen.  I had them sit in the water through our lunch rush and then a meeting and finally, two and a half hours later, I cut into them.  The first was a sample steak that we were given that was not the highest quality of meat.  I had cooked others of these before on the char broiler and today's method was much better though the meat was still a lesser quality.  I also cooked up a cut that was referred to as a baseball cut of meat.  It was 8 oz. and it was thick.  Oh, I guess I forgot to mention the reverse searing process.  Once your meat is at temp you take it out of the vacuum sealed bag, season it and then sear the outside.  I wasn't sure what to expect but was pleasantly surprised when I bit into that steak and it melted in my mouth.  It was phenomenal and the color was perfect throughout.  I was truly impressed and I am quite excited about this method and think it can really help us with the dinner menu.  We have been sweating about cooking steaks to perfection and with this method that should not be a problem.  We're going to work on some chicken breasts, fish, eggs and veggies also.  It is fun stuff, easy, and quite delicious.  Lets do round two. 

Merry Pinterest

This year we have been the recipients of several little gifts from neighbors and friends.  Seems that more and more there are these cute little sayings that come with said gifts.  When I say more and more I mean more and more.  If I go back a few years I don't recall seeing all these nifty little sayings.  Some are pretty dang cool, some are creative and some, let's just say that some are stretching it just a bit.  I shared some of my thoughts concerning these and was informed by my sister that Pinterest is a major source for these cutesie Christmas wishes.   Here are a few we saw this year.

• We Wash You a Merry Christmas!  Tag tied to a bottle of hand washing liquid. 
• Twizz the Season to be Jolly!  or just Twizz the Season!  Tag attached to a bag of Twizzlers.
• May You be Wrapped Up in His Love This Christmas!  Tag attached with a little story about the savior to a tube of wrapping paper.
• Wishing you a Poppin Sprite Holiday!  This is a bag of popcorn and bottle of Sprite and I have no idea what it means.  A neighbor brought it over and my brother Jay says he's done it for years.  Jay also is unsure of it's meaning.  Can't say this is Pinterest but I can't say it isn't either.
• We Whisk You a Merry Kissmas!  Tag attached to a wire whisk that is filled with Hershey's kisses.  The old man brought this one up and has apparently done it in a Christmas past.
• Let me not pass up one of my favorite gifts - Wishing you a Relaxing Holiday Season!  I think that is what it said.  It was from Jay and Sara and was a head massager.  Fabulous.

I should have taken some notes while at Laura's house.  She had more and right now I can't think of any others.  There was another soda and popcorn one that actually made sense that another neighbor brought over, my kids devoured it the same night and I can't think of the line.  It was a good one. 

Well, I've begun working on a slightly more irreverent list, perhaps those that are unworthy of the Pinterest Pin or however that works.  I think there is some serious potential with these ones.  Now, I ask that you do not be offended.  If you are offended then perhaps you take me too seriously.  I have bounced ideas off the fam and have received some great ideas from them as well.  You too may have some thoughts and I invite you to add them to this list of ridiculous Christmas gift ideas. 

• Have a Rootin, Tootin Christmas! Pops shared this idea of a bottle of rootbeer and a can of chili.  Fabulous.
• Oh Holy Night!  Jay thought of this.  Attach this tag line to a brick of Swiss cheese.  I'll take it.
• Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire!  This is another Jay gem of a chess piece with some sort of flame in it's genital region.  I told you, ridiculous, irreverent, and some 4th grade bathroom humor.  Just laugh and move on.
• What Child is This?  Leave a picture of an unknown child on a doorstep with a tag asking this question.  Jim and Jay maybe a combo effort on this or was it a Jim thought?  Can't recall.
• Deck the Halls!  A deck of cards and random halls throat lozenges. 
• Ring out Wild Bells!  Decorate bells in a wild fashion - mohawks, piercings, tattoos, perhaps a custom biker jacket. 
• God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen!  Serve up a little Excedrin PM with this tag line. 
• Fah rah rah rah rah, rah rah rah rah!  In a play on the movie A Christmas Story, serve up some ramen noodles with this tag line.  Make it even more exciting by taken the noodles out of the package and dipping them in chocolate.  Remember, these are intended to be really bad ideas...
• Oh Fuuudddgggeee!  Also a play on A Christmas Story.  Our family has delivered fudge for years and we have missed out on this one.  A classic for sure. 
• Dawn We Now Our Gay Apparel!  Bottle of Dawn dish soap all dressed up in a rainbow inspired bottle caddy.  I know, I'm walking a thin line with this and am sure to offend some but I thought it was pretty good.  
• Leave a block set of the alphabet without the L block included.  Say nothing about it, just wish them a Merry Christmas.  Eventually they will come to the realization that there is no L in the alphabet and then it will hit them - NOEL.  Jay's work here.  I love it.
• Good TIDE-ings of Comfort and Joy.  This is a triple gift idea with some Tide laundry detergent, Joy dish soap and a Snuggie for comfort.  Or stick with the laundry/soap idea and throw in some Snuggle Fabric Softner for comfort.  Dave's handywork on this idea.  Isn't this exciting? 

Well, Merry Pinterest everyone!  This collection might show up on Pinterest at some point in the future, not much we can do about that.  There are others to be sure but I cannot recall all that we discussed off the top of my head right now and it is getting late.  Suffice to say if we are wanting a creative way to wish someone a Merry Christmas I am most certain it can be found on Pinterest.  However, if you want to live life on the edge feel free to try one of these ridiculously crazy ways of spreading holiday cheer.  Oh, please don't forget to add your own ideas to this list. 


   

Christmas 2013

Enjoyed a wonderful Christmas with the folks, Laura, Nigel and the kids.  It was relaxing and a lot of fun with Donny and Shey.  I think the attached picture captures some of that. 

I had a nice phone call with the kids who were enjoying Christmas in Alaska at their Granny Sue's house.  I am glad they get to enjoy this experience.  

This afternoon we took a drive up to Woodruff Idaho and visited the School House that Richard and Susan Jensen own.  They had just finished the exterior renovation when Richard passed away last year.  It is a special place and I am glad we visited the area. 

I am grateful today for the Savior.  Many of us enjoy this season and the celebration of his birth.  We find purpose as we learn from and follow his teachings and we have hope because of his atonement.   I am grateful for what Jesus Christ has done for me.  I know he lives and loves each of us.  I hope that through the remainder of my days I will be firm in my faith in Christ and have the good sense to follow him.

Christmas Eve 2013

The folks and I are up in Treemonton celebrating Christmas with Laura, Nigel, Shey and Donny.  We arrived around 1 this afternoon and have enjoyed a relaxing afternoon and evening.   I actually made a run down to Sam Waltons place in Brigham City to pick up a few things.  I expected it to be crazy on Christmas Eve but it wasn't too bad.

Had fun with Donny and Shey tonight.  I showed them my drawing app on the kindle and we had a good time drawing some pictures and playing around. 

The attached pic was sent by someone in the Elders Quorum.   I thought it was cool and sent it to the kids.  Natty messaged me back and said Jack thought it was real.  Sad that I won't see them tomorrow but happy they have this time with their mom.

Lights At Temple Square

Laura invited me to her house for Christmas.   The folks were heading up so I joined them.  We left Cedar this evening and got to Salt Lake around 9.  The plan was to stay over night here in SLC and then be at Laura's tomorrow for Christmas Eve.  You can't come to Salt Lake at Christmas time and not go see the lights.  Well, you can but I don't recommend it.  Anyhow, here are some pics I took of our ventures around a very busy Temple Square.

From His Pocket

I had the opportunity to visit with my Bishop today for tithing settlement.  We had a nice interview and he obviously knew that my financial situation was somewhat dire.  When my tithing contributions are full and yet so little it is easy to tell that we are not living high on the hog.  Anyway he asked me about Christmas and wanted to know if we were okay.  I told him that someone had given us some money and I was able to get the kids taken care of.  He asked about me and I told him that was my gift, just to see the joy on their faces.  I guess I never reported that... on Friday morning before we left for the airport I went to the store with the Secret Santa gift money and got the kids some things they wanted.  Naturally I was running late so Natalie was calling wondering where I was at and worried about us not leaving on time.   Anyhow, I got home with the gifts sitting in the back of the car.  I went inside, gathered the kids, told them I had bumped into somebody with the car and they needed to come and take a look.  We gathered at the back of the car and I had them close their eyes while I opened the tailgate.  They opened their eyes and I told them that it was Santa that I had bumped into and he put a little something in the car for them.  They were excited and that joy in their eyes was all I really needed for Christmas and that's what I was trying to convey to the Bishop.  He said I needed to get something for myself and he pulled money from his pocket and handed it to me.  I don't know what I could get myself that would bring me more joy than what I saw in my kids faces but I was humbled and grateful to the Bishop for his concern for me.  I have a package to send to The Arizona Scottsdale Mission.  I don't know how much it will cost but the money from the Bishop will afford me the opportunity to give myself another gift of giving and that is what I really want for Christmas.  Okay, fine, if there is anything left over I might look into getting myself a second pair of jeans, maybe.  I am grateful for the Bishop and for his concern for me.  I may have broken some sort of manly protocol when I got up to leave.  Bishop had just reached in his pocket and I didn't want to linger because I was getting a bit misty so I got up to leave and Bishop came around the desk to shake my hand, I just gave him a hug and thanked him.  I'd imagine that since the Bishop represents the Lord that there is no break in protocol in giving a misty eyed hug, for even the manliest of men will fall at the Lords feet and bath them with their tears. 

Recovery Day

I got up this morning not feeling so well.  Went in to work and found things well in hand so I took care of a couple of things and came home where I just kind of relaxed for most the day.  I cleaned a bit here or there and I did some packaging of the fudge we prepared.  Around 6:30 I headed down to St. George and enjoyed a session at the temple tonight.  It was really good to be there and to enjoy a bit of time there.  I saw one of my dear friends there and enjoyed talking to her for a bit before the session.  It was a good day to recover a bit physically and spiritually.  I should note that Natalie reported their safe arrival and that the boys did very well on the airplane.  She said they slept the entire time.  Wonderful news. 

Long Day of Departure

It has been a long day.  The kids should be in Alaska in the next little while if they are not there allready.  We left Cedar a few minutes after 11 this morning and their plane pulled back from the gate around 6 PM Vegas time so 7 PM our time.  We had a great morning and day together before they left.  It is tough to have them go.  I did get to spend some time in the terminal at the gate with them.  You can still do that when you have children flying alone I guess.  I had a safety pass.  Yes, I am safe.  Anyway, they got to board the plane first.  I was hoping they would get to meet the pilot and see the cockpit but the airline was short on time because of a delay with the flight before it.  I'll find out when we have a chance to talk I guess. 

I made it home.  Had a good string of songs come through on my pandora which helped to keep me alive when my body was ready for sleep.  I sang along to a number of great songs including Enter Sandman by Metallica.  Fantastic stuff.  Also had Pure Energy by the information society play.  That is a classic.  Well, that stuff kept me going strong when i started fading.  Good times.   

Secret Santa

The Twelve Days of Christmas, my parents did this every year for a few families and we loved it when we could go out with pops on the deliveries.  We also saw how much it touched many of those families.  Mom was amazing when it came to organizing this effort and when I think about how much work has to go into that I am amazed. I seriously have no idea how she did all of that with everything else going on during the holidays.

Well, someone else out there has similar skills and has opted to do the twelve days of Christmas for our family.  As I sit on the receiving end of this gift I am grateful.  I love the excitement it has provided for the kids. Natalie is loving it and has her theories on who the Secret Santa is. It has been fun.

I went to my car today while having to make a run to the store. I found a little something there from a Secret Santa.  I struggle for words right now.  Thank you.  It is with all of my heart and perhaps some moisture in my eyes that I say that.  I am humbled by your kindness.

Secret Santa, a wonderful title sometimes employed by or given to those who out of the goodness of their hearts keep the magic of Christmas alive and remind us what the spirit of Christ truly is. 

Fudge

We've made six batches of fudge so far.  It is part of our Christmas gift idea as well as some to give to friends and family.  I am tired.  We had a late night.  Still lots to do before we head to Vegas and the airport.   Time for bed.

Enthusiasm for Giving

This morning when I was in the shower, yes the place where ideas seems to rain down on my mind - it's got to be the negative ions. Anyhow in the shower I had an idea of something we could do as a family for Christmas.  We are not going to have a very big Christmas, in fact we are going to have a very small Christmas in terms of the worldly view of the holiday.  It has been a hard thing for me to be excited about Christmas for a couple of reasons - first, the kids are going to Alaska on Friday and I will not see them at all this Christmas.  Second, we have no money.  The move of the business has left us strapped and so I have gone without pay a few times and that has left us in a very tight financial situation.  I have a few hundred dollars set aside for emergency purposes and I may be able to do a little Christmas something with some of that but really that is not the point of this post.  I had an idea of something we could give for Christmas this year.  Tonight I shared that idea with the kids and explained the money situation to them.  They decided that we should move forward with the idea and try to give a little Christmas something to others.  We got started tonight and I will share more of that in a later post.  I am grateful for Natty, Jack and Andy and their enthusiasm for giving what we can to others this Christmas.  I hope this will be one of those things that they will remember and I think it can become a tradition for our family.   

Divine Intervention

Jack decided last night, for the second time, that he was not going to get on the airplane and fly to Alaska for Christmas.  He was going to stay at home with me.  No matter what I said it only seemed to strengthen his resolve, he is not going to go.  This is a battle that I really don't enjoy.  Quite frankly I really would rather have the kids at home and the last three years having their mom come and stay at the house with them while I went and stayed at my parents worked out just fine.  They were home for Christmas and on Christmas Day I would get to pick them up and have them with me for several hours.  This year they are flying up to Alaska and I am having to do everything I can to convince Jack that he needs to go.  I did have a laugh last night when Jack was writing something on a piece of paper.  I asked him what it was.  "It's for me" was his reply.  I asked what it said, he showed me - "Do Not Get on the Airplane".  I had to laugh a bit. He went and posted it on a cork board in his room.  He has made it clear several times that he is not coming.  

I got home this evening to learn that Jack is now going to go to Alaska.  I was quite thrilled to hear the news.  He decided on his own.  I have to say divine intervention at work.   

Being Alone

I was married for thirteen years.  I have been divorced for nearly 4 years.  Tonight that seems to be a long time.  Caring for three children alone for nearly four years seems to be a very long time.  I live in a state of exhaustion and that can be a hard thing.  Sometimes the feelings of being alone can be overwhelming.   Tonight was such a night.  We had a family dinner, the annual Jerusalem Supper. It was a tough one tonight as Jack had a few problems along with Andy.  Sometimes as the single parent all you want to do is to take it easy once in a while.  Sometimes that just doesn't happen.  Anyhow, being alone is not the funnest.  It's, well, lonely.

Christmas Party Cedar City Ward

We went to the Christmas Party for the new Cedar City Ward tonight.  We are not members of that ward but as a single adult I am invited to activities along with my children when appropriate.   It was a fun evening and the kids had a good time.  There was an activity where the groups decorated one of their members as a tree.  Natty was the chosen member of her group.  There was also a special visitor which was great because the kids missed Santa at our ward party.  It was a wrongly advertised time that contributed to that.  Anyhow, Andy was first in line and was very proud of that.  He later introduced Santa to Jack.  It was great for them.  Natty even visited with the bearded man in red.  At one point I watched as Jack got a cookie from the dessert table and carefully walked it over and handed it to Santa.  We had a good time.  Here are some pics.

Feeling Better

I have not been feeling well for most of the week and that has made it a long one.  Today I am feeling better and that is a positive sign.  It is not easy to be feeling sick and to have to push yourself daily to keep moving and to accomplish the things that are before you to do.  It was nice today to simply work without the headaches and nasty feelings.  I had gotten a little lazy with my soda consumption and decided to get back on track there.  That was the last couple of days so maybe the headaches were associated with that.  Anyway,  it was much easier today to go forth and do.  Grateful for that. 

Boys and The Brain

After our family scripture reading and prayer at night Natty gets herself to be and I go and read to the boys.  They say their prayers and then I get a book and sit on the floor and read to them while they listen in their beds.  This is nothing new, parents read to their kids all the time.  Why post this?  I don't know.  I guess I look back at my life and realize that I grew up not enjoying books.  I didn't like to read at all and now I find myself loving this time with the boys.  We have enjoyed some good books together and right now we are reading the second book in The Great Brain series.  I can't tell you the specific title of the book, I just know it is the second in the series.  The three of us seem to enjoy the stories quite a bit.  The boys have to put up with me as I sometimes get emotional while reading these stories.  I am sure they think I am a big boob but I don't really care.  I read these things that touch my heart and I get a bit misty eyed sometimes.  I don't know if I can blame that on pops but I know that mom gets a bit emotional whilst reading certain stories.  Anyway, Boys and The Brain - that is The Great Brain, I love it and I hope my boys love it too.  I think they do.

The Beat Down

Right now I am feeling the beat down.  Working like crazy, exhausted all the time, can't really get caught up.  I am tired.  It just doesn't seem like my days end and when I do sit down to relax I do so at the expense of other things I have to do.  Well, I guess laundry can do that to anyone but I am not just referring to the laundry.  Sometimes I just want to sit and enjoy moments with my kids.  It is the 11th of December, I haven't gotten down any of the Christmas decorations.  We have no tree, not because we don't have a tree but because I haven't pulled it out of the storage area I keep it in.  Am I scrooge?  When I think about the tree I don't feel like taking the time to do it.  The kids are heading to Alaska in a week, we don't have any presents here anyway and it just seems like a bunch of work for me to pull out the tree, set it up just for me and then have to take it all back down.  No thanks, I've got enough to do.  I feel a pillow calling my name.  That laundry will have to wait, I am fixin to go pass out. 

Ripped A Hole

Let's clarify quickly, the title of the post is not me referreing to the hole of a muscular jackass.  No we are talking about that unfortunate moment when one bends over to get something and hears a tear in the denim jeans.  True story.  Happened to me tonight.  Happened in my favorite pair of jeans.  There really are only two to chose from, my jeans that is.  That choice just got easier as I ripped a hole in my favorite jeans.  Oh, sad day. 

Hot Overflowing Oil

We had a call late this afternoon for a group that needed to have a Christmas Party at the Brick House tonight.  It was a department at the University and apparently they got set back by the University on services or a room that was overbooked.  We brought them in and took care of business for them.  It was not without a challenge.  Before we made the first sandwich we had a major overflow of hot oil spill everywhere.  It was pretty nasty.  Had to slide around like I was on ice skates.  Ultimately we got it done and we got it done well.  I do have to say that when the fries were dropped and I looked over and saw hot oil spewing out of the fry machine I was a little worried.  We had a lake of hot oil for a while, had to add some fresh oil as we were a bit low.  Anyhow, it all worked out and after a delicate dance around pools of hot oil we managed to get it all cleaned up.  Pointer, for fresh cut fries - get as much water off the fries before dropping them and don't drop a ton of fries at the same time. 

A Gospel Conversation

Natty asked me a question earlier in the evening wanting to know if I ever struggled to live the gospel when I was her age.  In quickly thinking about it my answer was no, not really.  We were in the middle of the Christmas Broadcast and I am not feeling all that well right now so I didn't give her question the time or response that I should have.  After getting the boys in bed I took the opportunity to spend a little more time with Natty tonight and to talk about life as a 13 and 14 year old.  We had a good conversation. 

Natty shared with me that she is having a hard time when she sees people she knows are members of the church doing inappropriate things.  It is unfortunate that it happens but it is also reality.  It was a reality when I was her age and has always been the case.  The world points the finger of scorn at those who try to follow the Savior and try to live the gospel.  That can be a very hard thing to take.  The adversary works hard on us all the time by putting in front of us what is popular and what the world deems is cool and right.  Certainly those standards have moved further and further from gospel standards.  The adversary has so many weapons to hit kids with today.  That is tough. 

The thing is this, Natty knows the church is true.  She is a good girl and she tries very hard to do what is right.  She sometimes falls short as we all do.  She also feels the pressure of kids her age.  The call of the natural man can be loud and overwhelming.  The Lord is quietly there with his arms outstretched.  I am grateful that Natty recognizes the gifts of the Spirit.  Through the gifts of the Spirit she can know the truth of all things.  That doesn't mean that she is not tempted and that she doesn't struggle with wanting to be accepted of others.  Certainly those temptations exist.  I trust in the Lord that as we steadily press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, doing the things that he would have us do, reading our scriptures, saying our prayers, attending our meetings and serving others that Natty will find the strength to carry on and to quench all the fiery darts of the adversary. 

Grateful tonight for gospel conversations and for a wonderful daughter. 

Set Up Time

Got an assignment to help set up for the ward Christmas party tonight.   A few of us met at the church at 8 and put up a few tables and chairs... roughly 275 or so.  Jack came with me and had a lot of fun pushing chair and table carts around and cultural hall.  When we finished up Jack decided he wanted a picture.   Here it is...  

A Day of Soup

Today was spent making soup, transporting soup and serving soup.  We catered the LDS Institute Closing Social again this year and though it wasn't as big as last year we still had 600 to feed.  That is a lot of people to make soup for.  Broccoli Cheese and Chicken Noodle.  Wow, busy day.  4800 ounces of soup.  It took quite a while to make it all, pretty much all day, and then it disappeared in a mater of minutes.  Now, I am beat.  I have to make cookies for the Brick House but I am beyond tired and so those cookies are going to have to wait.  I do believe it is off to bed for me and I do hope that I am not dreaming about soup. 

Viva Madiba!

My Xhosa name is Vuyani.  It means happy to be with you.  My clan is Madiba, same clan as Nelson Mandela.  I am sad to report the news of the day that Nelson Mandela passed away.  It was not unexpected as he has lived a full life and his health has been failing over the last several months.  Though sad to learn of his passing I am grateful for his life and for the example he set for many people of all backgrounds.  Indeed it was a great privilege for me to serve in South Africa for two years and to witness history when Mandela was elected.  I then saw a leader put at ease much of the tension that existed leading up to those elections.  Wonderful man. 

The Plow

I was up at 5;25 this morning, not because I wanted to be but because I knew my alarm was going to sound off in 20 minutes and I couldn't get back to sleep.  No, I was up knowing that I had to put on my snow plow pants and go for it.  We had a networking group scheduled to use the upstairs conference room this morning at 7 and with all the snow fall from last night I knew there would be some work ahead of me in order to clear the front entry to the building.  Holy cow, that was a lot of snow.  That was a lot of snow in our driveway that I needed to clear just to get out of it.  Anyhow, I got to the shop, shoveled like crazy, got things set up and ready to go upstairs with the heat on, the lights on, water even.  Well, turns out that no body showed up.  I can only guess that they cancelled the meeting because of weather.  I had to run home so I could get the kids ready for school.  We managed to get everyone to school on time.  I continued to shovel snow around the neighborhood but the real treat is when I got to drive the snow plow to clear our parking lot when I got back to work.  There are some things that I consider fun to do and driving that snow plow certainly falls into that category.  The plowing wasn't done.  Turns out that the 8th Ward is in charge of snow removal this month at our building.  We were invited to stop by and help with removal.  Once again I pressed forward and did my duty, yep maybe calling me "the plow" is fitting on a day like today... 

Snow Falling on Cedar... Again

Ethan Hawk right?  I think I saw that movie once but I have no idea what it is about.  I saw the cover of it some time in the last year and other than the fact that there is snow and a tree and said Ethan Hawk on the cover with an oriental gal I couldn't tell you a single thing about the movie.  Somehow the title always sneaks into my mind whenever it begins snowing in Cedar City.  I have probably titled a previous blog post the same thing, perhaps I have even done it more than once since this is now my fourth winter typing the blog.  Crazy how time flies, how my forgetter forgets and just how un-imaginative I really am.  How else could I title the same thing?  White Crystals of Bliss Softly Drift through the Cold Winter Sky and Rest Peacefully on the City Which is Known as Cedar.  See, that is just to long and it certainly doesn't remind anybody of the great Ethan Hawk. 

My goodness, it is snowing rather heavy tonight actually.  We have at least 8 inches out there now if not more.  It started coming down around 4 and it hasn't really let up.  That is a good thing.  We need to get some snow pack up in the mountains for sure.  I will be up in the early AM to run over and shovel off the front walk at the Brick House.  I actually did it tonight and moved quite a bit of snow.  I figured I need to make it as easy as possible for 6 AM and hopefully tonights effort will make that so.  It's a good workout and when I look at shoveling as exercise it makes me feel like I'm fulfilling multiple needs.  I wasn't real excited a couple of weeks ago during the first big storm of the season but I am a bit more prepared this time. 

An Attempt at Lemon-Sour Cream

Tonight I went for it.  I have heard much about Lemon Cream Sour Cream Pie, I've been asked if our lemon cream pie has sour cream, I had a slice of Lemon Cream Sour Cream on fathers day and finally I have gotten around to making one of my own.  I did mine a little different.  First, I started with a Gluten Free pie crust - follow a graham cracker pie crust recipe and replace the graham crackers with rice chex - blended up in a vita mixer.  It is really quite simple though baking times on the crust may take a little longer.  I pulled mine out after 8 minutes but ended up putting it back in to crisp it up a bit.  So Gluten Free - check.  I also made it sugar, um, less.  I used the truvia baking blend which, if I am correct has 75% stevia and 25% sugar.  I think that is what it is.  I had a customer today request diabetic friendly desserts so I figured I might as well see how it goes.  I researched a number of recipes for Lemon Cream Sour Cream and found that most were fairly close.  Some called for milk and others called for half and half.  I went with milk.  The filling set pretty well though it may be a little clumpy.  I will do a few things different the next time I cook the filling to try for a smoother filling.  Anyhow, the flavor is good.  Using a stevia sweetener I wasn't too sure how it would turn out but it cooked just fine.  I think we have success there and really it was quite simple to do.  Perhaps I will sneak a piece of my Sugar-less, gluten free, Lemon Sour Cream pie in the morning and perhaps take some in for everyone to try.

In other news we watched a couple of Christmas videos from the Church for our FHE tonight.  We had a good discussion about what we can give this Christmas and everyone got excited.  Next week we will make some Fontano Family Fudge to distribute to friends and neighbors.  Not sure if we will go with the traditional fudge or try some of the Candy Cane stuff we do at the Brick House.  I tried to convince the kids that we should sing We Wish You A Merry Christmas at the door-step when we drop it off.  Natty wasn't having any of that.  Hmmm, what can we do to fix that? 

Move a Piano...

The primary had a combined meeting to start today after Sacrament Meeting.  They did a quick rehearsal of the Nativity for the Ward Christmas party coming up on Saturday evening.  I had been hanging out with Andy because he was on the program in primary sharing time for the scripture.  Anyhow, Morgan asked me to help him move a piano into the cultural hall so they could practice the songs they are going to sing.  I went to help him but the piano he was headed for was being used by another ward.  I turned around and walked back into the cultural hall and was asked by Sister Simmerman if I would help her out.  Oh, fantastic, what could this be?  Turns out she asked me to be the narrator for this little program and that requires that I commit to doing it on Saturday as well.  That is usually done by an older brother in the Ward isn't it?  Older brother... wait just a minute here.  I will do my best to be there.  Perhaps I need to work on my South African accent a bit and give it a go.  I am sure they will appreciate that.  Or perhaps I should bring my Hawaiian Pigeon New Testament and read the account that way, just to mix things up a bit.  I don't know if that will be appropriate but one things for sure, if I were to pull out the accent or the pigeon, the next time I go to help move a piano they will most likely look for the next unsuspecting guy to rope into to this narration thing.    

Christmas Lights

We were reading scriptures last night and when we were finished I looked at something I had written into my scriptures that was penned after the verse following the last verse we had read.  That seems to be a mouthful, hope it makes sense.  Anyway, I had written the words Christmas Lights.  I am sure that at some point in the last 20+ years that I have had these scriptures I had a feeling while reading these verses that made me think about Christmas Lights and I must have figured that writing that down would automatically remind me of the thoughts I had.  Well, I am sad to report that I have no idea what was running through my mind that would cause me to write Christmas Lights. 

I wrote the words after Alma chapter 40 verse 11 which reads:

Suffer not yourself to be led away by any vain or foolish thing; suffer not the devil to lead away your heart again after those wicked harlots.  Behold, O my son, how great iniquity ye brought upon the Zoramites; for when they saw your conduct they would not believe in my words.

Truly I have no clue how I tied Christmas Lights into this verse.  It doesn't get any easier trying to find a connection in verse 12 which reads:

And now the Spirit of the Lord doth say unto me:  Command thy children to do good, lest they lead away the hearts of many people to destruction; therefore I command you, my son, in the fear of God, that ye refrain from your iniquities. 

So, Christmas Lights, it's not real clear why that came to my mind.  I am not seeing a clear connection to either of those verses. 

Verse 11 - perhaps I was seeing a connection between commercialized Christmas being a vain and foolish thing that can lead us away from what we should really be focussed on - the birth and life of our Savior.  When we get so caught up in the worlds definition of Christmas instead of a focus on Christ, our conduct does not lead people to the Savior.  Perhaps I used Christmas lights as a representation of the commercialized Christmas though it doesn't ring bell to what I has pondering when I wrote those words.  I do feel like my thoughts above are plausible and when we get consumed the commercial Christmas instead of the Spiritual one our actions do not lead others towards Christ. 

Verse 12 - Command thy children to do good, lest they lead away the hearts of many people to destruction...  As we do good our lights shine forth in the lives of those around us.  Our good examples can lead others towards Christ.  Christmas Lights... When we lived in Florida we used to drive every night in December to visit two neighboring streets in Lakeland.  I think one was Lancelot but I could easily be wrong.  Anyway, the people that lived on these streets took Christmas lights to a higher level.  We loved it.  It was a highlight of our December evenings and lifted our spirits at Christmas time.  There were several nights in the month when the people would come out, stand in front of their homes and hand out candy canes to visitors.  There was a line of cars on more than one occassion, each was greeted warmly.  I would submit that these good people helped to bring people closer to the Savior as they let their lights shine, even their Christmas Lights. 

Well, it may be a stretch either way.  This I do know, the Savior loves us, He knows who we are.  He wants us to be obedient and to share what we have been blessed with with those around us. 

Christmas Lights... one of these days I will know exactly what that means...  Maybe...   

Brothers

Being one of six boys, it is a great blessing.  I couldn't ask for better brothers and friends.  Growing up, we were brothers and we were boys and we did the things that brothers and boys do.  We had our share of fights and disagreements.  I think that is part of growing up, part of life.  We had some pretty fantastic times together as well and some great experiences and memories.  Today I am privileged to call 5 great men my brothers.  These are men who I look up to and respect for the righteous examples they are to me.  They all honor their Priesthood and take seriously the covenants that they have made with the Lord.  I am grateful for the times I am able to be with them.  I am humbled by their goodness.  I love my brothers. 

Now, let me not close without saying something about my two fantastic sisters who are not a step behind when it comes to anything I said about my brothers.  Indeed I am blessed to call these two wonderful women sisters and yes, I love my sisters too.   

Thanksgiving 2013

Had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. 

Naturally it started out with some football.  Ah yes, the annual Turkey Bowl.  I debated whether I would play this year and last night I still lacked the motivation to get out there but this morning I geared up.  It was good.  The teams were pretty evenly matched and everyone got to participate.  The field was slick and my body right now is telling me I should not have played.  Anyway, a few pulled muscles never hurt anyone...

We had a great Thanksgiving Feast at the Brick House.  Pretty convenient to have all of this space for a big group.  It worked out well and I think everyone had an enjoyable time.  We ate and then we played Bunco.  I brought the Karaoke machine and Jack got on there.  He sang a few Neil Diamond songs and really did well.  I Am I Said, Love on the Rocks, America.  He was awesome.  The pictured attached is of him signing away.  Andy had a great time as a backup dancer.

So very thankful for family.  Grateful that we were together and that we enjoyed the day together.  We did something new during the meal per an invitation from Mike earlier in the week.  We went around the table and every one talked about something they were grateful for.  As Fontano's there were some moist eyes during this exercise.  It was a welcome addition to our Thanksgiving Day activities and one that we'll continue.     

On the Line

For the last while I have found myself working the line during the day.  I have not been on the line a lot for, well, a long time.  I jump on as needed but have done a number of other things up front, on the floor, pretty much wherever I am needed.  Working the line is fun.  It gets a little crazy but it is good.  I am not as fast up there as I need to be but that will come with time.  I try to stick to the grill on the Philly side as those are the sandwiches I am most comfortable with.  It sometimes can be a bit overwhelming when the board is full of orders and they just keep coming.  Every table was filled today and I think we kept up for the most part.  All you can do when it gets crazy like that is take one ticket at a time and push through it.  Same thing in life.  When we get overwhelmed with the challenges of our lives we need to press forward and tackle things one at a time.  We'll get through it. 

Blah

Blah!  That is how I am feeling tonight.  Almost like I am getting sick, the pre-sick stage.  Not very fond of that stage or that feeling.  There is a lot happening and getting sick is not a good thing right now.  To make getting sick even more sad is the fact that Thanksgiving is in two days.  Oh well, we'll see if we cant avoid being ill for the holiday.  Gotta shake the blahs!

New Idea

One of our employees, Brittany, was in the mood for soup in a bread bowl today.  She was nearing the end of her shift and was looking over the soups trying to decide which one she would like.  She had a lot of interest in the chili but was not sure it would go well with the bread bowl.  Pondering on that thought for a moment I didn't think it would be bad but then asked myself what would make it fantastic?  The thought occurred to me that a lot of people like cornbread with chili so why not make a cornbread bread bowl.  I vocalized the idea and Brittany thought it would be, in her words, "epic".  Dave also quite liked the idea and he and I both were thinking the same thing - cornbread with little bits of corn in it, like the stuff you could get at Kenny Rogers Roasters way back in the day.  I haven't searched to see if anyone else does a cornbread bowl.  I'm sure somewhere someone had the same thought.  Anyway, it was a new idea today and something worth exploring a bit. 

A Rare Family Meal

There were three brothers and their respective families missing tonight from a rare family meal.  Pete, Tara and farm are in town for the Thanksgiving Holiday with Tara's family in Las Vegas and were able to come up here for the weekend.  Laura, Nigel and family came down also for the holiday and are staying at my house for a couple nights.  Unfortunately Mike and Liana won't be in town until later in the week along with Jim, Clo and fam.  Jay, Sara and the fam left yesterday morning for Carson City and a Thanksgiving Holiday with Sara's brother Steve and others of the Miner clan.  So, those of us who were in town gathered at the Brick House for a rare family meal or gathering.  It was good to be together.  The cousins all got along really well and had a great time running around and playing upstairs and around the dining area.  The adults had a good time conversing about a variety of topics.  It was good to be together. 

I was pondering the gathering as I came home and was filled with gratitude for family and the time we have together.  I am grateful for each of my siblings and for their spouses.  I am grateful for my nieces and my nephews, they are good kids with wonderful hearts and love for others.  I don't have anything real deep or profound to say.  Just a note to express thanks to my Heavenly Father for the family I was blessed with. 

The Return of Night Sledding

It is our favorite time of year when the weather turns cold and the snow begins to fall.  Okay, maybe it is not our favorite.  Regardless, the snow has been falling for the last three days.  It has not been real heavy but it has been snowing.  The accumulation on the ground is 6 to 8 inches.  Anyway, the boys were excited about the snow and wanted to get some sledding in today.  I had a busy day ahead of me and so we had to put off the sledding for a bit.  At roughly 7 PM we were in a position to go and so we did. They all had a great time back out on the hills of Cedar. 

Life of Pie

Tonight I made pies.  It was reminiscent of last November when I was making pies like a wild man in our attempt to move a bunch of pies for Thanksgiving.  We did okay with that but found it to be a lot of work.  We really haven't pushed that at all this year and to my knowledge no one has asked for a pie.  Perhaps the pies just were not that good and so we are not getting return business.  It could be early still.  We'll see what happens next week.  Anyway, tonight was a pie making night because we are out of just about all of our pies and I needed to get us caught back up.  I knocked out 16 pies in a couple hours.  Not bad I guess but really, it could be quicker.  Whilst making the Hazelcream I thought about doing them on a much larger scaled and loading up the huge commercial Hobart mixer.  The thing is the King Kong of the Kitchenaid mixer.  It is huge and would handle a few more than 16 pies at one time.  Hmmm, maybe I should look into this pie making thing after all...

Snow no no no

The first big snow of the year tonight.  I usually love the first snow but I don't know how excited I am about it tonight.  Perhaps I was simply enjoying the warmer weather last week a little too much and suddenly having snow on the ground is just, well, sudden.  I am sure when I wake up in the morning and pull out the shovel that all will be well.  I do have to say that I opened the front door and took in the sight and I do love the blanket of white and the bright night that it brings.  It is also quite peaceful.  I do enjoy that part and took it in as I stood there for a moment.  Then I felt the chill of the cold air, came to my senses and closed the door. 

Malungu!

Since last nights entry I have pondered a bit more on Habakkuk Mdolo.  This was an impressive man.  He had an understanding of truth, of right and wrong and he lived according to the truth.  He was not afraid to question tradition or to abandon tradition when he found it fundamentally wrong. 

It was custom in Xhosa life that when your family member died you put on a feast for those attending the services.  Habakkuk shared the story of his fathers passing and how the town Elders expected a great feast to be provided for them.  Habakkuk refused to provide such a feast.  He was a grieving son with his grieving mother and siblings.  Because he refused to provide the feast the Elders and others in the town refused to provide any help digging the grave and would not provide a service for his father.  Habakkuk did not care and went about digging the grave himself.  Perhaps did not care is not the right way to phrase that.  He found it wrong for his family to have to provide a feast for people who did not care about them or their father.  He chose not to participate in that tradition. 

I mentioned yesterday that Habakkuk was a boxer.  This served him well when men from other clans would come and harass him on his farm.  His farm was located quite a distance from his home and in a territory that was home to a different clan than his own.  He spoke of conflict because of it and more than once had to fight for his life.  I would not want to be on the receiving end of a blow from Habakkuk Mdolo.  His mitts were huge.  I loved listening to his stories and also enjoyed hearing him analyse boxing champ Mike Tyson.  He was determined that he could beat Tyson.  We will never know but I would have loved to see that fight. 

Malungu!  Not a very nice Xhosa term for a white fella.  I am sure it was during my time in Ezibeleni with Elder Bell when we visited Habakkuk in his home.  Here we were two white boys getting out of our car to go into his yard where he greeted us - incidentally, it had a garden that was well maintained and beautiful. As we were greeting one another some youth down the street started yelling "malungu, malungu..."  Habakkuk invited us to inside and then said he would be right back.  He took off after those boys and taught them a bit of a lesson in manners I suppose.  It was the one and only time I was ever yelled at in a derogatory manner.  I don't imagine those boys ever spoke ill to missionaries again.

I don't know where Habakkuk Mdolo is today.  I don't even know if he is alive.  Perhaps he is working his farm, teaching others to be self reliant and standing for truth and right.  Someday I hope to have the chance to visit with him again.  Anyhow, I wanted to record my memories of Habakkuk Mdolo, a man of great faith, an example of hard work and determination.  Love that man.   

Yea, Cry Unto Him

I love the words of Amulek the great missionary companion to the Prophet Alma in The Book of Mormon.  In the 34th Chapter of Alma Amulek instructs the people and teaches the importance of crying unto the Lord continually.  We read these verses tonight from Alma 34 tonight in our family scripture study.

Alma 34: 17-27

17. Therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye may begin to exercise your faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you;

18. Yea, cry unto him for mercy; for he is mighty to save.

19. Yea, humble yourselves, and continue in prayer unto him.

20. Cry unto him when ye are in your fields, yea, over all your flocks.

21. Cry unto him in your houses, yea, over all your household, both morning, mid-day, and evening.

22. Yea, cry unto him against the power of your enemies.

23. Yea, cry unto him against the devil, who is an enemy to all righteousness.

24. Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper in them.

25. Cry over the flocks of you fields, that they may increase.

26. But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in you closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.

27. Yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those who are around you.

As we read I shared the story of Habakkuk Mdolo from Ezibeleni, a township outside of Queenstown, South Africa.  Brother Mdolo was a faithful man who desired very much to make a difference in his community.  He was a boxer and a farmer and a man of great faith and trust in the Lord.  Brother Mdolo traveled a great distance to take care of his families farm and he used to share stories of having to use his boxing skills against rival farmers in the area.  He held his own as he protected the family farm.  That is another story. 

In Ezibeleni he started a garden in an effort to teach the people that they could grow their own crops and take better care of themselves.  He put together quite the garden on an acre or so of land there. It was impressive.  One day we as missionaries went out to work with him in the garden.  In fact, it was right around this time of year back in 1994.  I remember that because it was the same day the Queenstown Branch was having a special Thanksgiving activity.  There we were at the garden area and before we began working brother Mdolo offered up a prayer and cried unto the Lord over the crops of his fields and also for the well being of himself and those around him.  We went to work.  After a few hours we had to leave and Brother Mdolo remained.  We saw him at the activity later that day and he shared with us that a Puff Otter snake had struck out at him.  He was able to dodge the strike and take care of the snake.  Through that experience we saw some great things and our testimonies of faith were increased. 

Tonight we discussed this story and I talked to the fam about the importance of crying unto the Lord.  I talked to them about how our schooling is our current field or farm and that we can pray specifically for help over our crops or the different subjects we are studying like math, spelling, writing etc.  The Lord will bless each of us as we cry unto him and involve him in the things we do. 

Liquid Chills

Part of the diet that, scratch that.  Part of the healthier eating program I am on right now encourages a lot of water intake.  I cannot tell a lie, I don't like plain water.  It is all about having a little flavor in my beverage.  Anyhow, my lots of water has suffered a bit so today I tried to focus on getting a lot more and yes, it included a wee bit of flavoring.  Well, there are a couple of things that happen with high water intake.  Number 1, we tend to have to urinate a bit more.  Number 2, we get the liquid chills.  Maybe not "we" on that one.  It may just be me but I've got the chills and get the chills when my liquid refreshment intake gets amped up.  Time to go crawl under a blanket.   

The Cedar City Ward

Today after our regular church meetings I took the kids home and then headed out to another meeting for the formation of The Cedar City Ward.  This is a Single Adult Ward ages 31 to 45.  Yes, I qualify for that.  What I do not qualify for is that single parents with kids living at home are not allowed to move their church records to this new ward.  I wasn't planning on doing that anyway as I love the ward I am in and my children love it as well and we as a family are exactly where we need to be.  As a single adult I am invited to participate in any of the ward activities and that will be nice.  Anyhow, this was a historic day and it was good to be in the meeting.  Scott Sorenson who was released last week from our Stake Presidency was called to be the Bishop.  It actually occurred to me a few minutes before the meeting that he would likely be the Bishop.  Apparently others had already speculated on this last week when he was released.  I'm a little slow.  Ron Cardon was called as his first counselor.  Ron is a great friend and a wonderful man with tremendous faith and devotion to the Lord.  I am happy for both of these men.  The second counselor was a brother from out in Parowan and I can't remember his name.  All three of these brethren were invited to speak and they all three did a fantastic job.  It will be a great ward and will serve so many of the single adults in the area.  It is an exciting time and interesting to see what has taken place in this ward being formed.  Glad I could attend and look forward to participating in some of the activities. 

A Step Behind

Sometimes I sit and I find myself in awe at where I am at and what I have responsibility for.  Specifically the fact that I am a single dad with three children and I carry a set of feelings that I am completely inadequate to do the job.  I don't know what I am doing, I don't have all the answers, I don't have the organizational skills to manage the family the way it should be done.  I always feel like I am a step behind everyone else.  I am slow to get it and feel like a lot of things simply sail right over my head. 

This is not something new.  I was kneeling at Andy's bedside a bit ago and was pondering the matter.  When I was in kindergarten I didn't say a word all year.  As a result I ended up in a two year first grade class.  Perhaps it was the two year first grade class that left me feeling a bit slow.  I wasn't up to speed with the other kids my age so I had to go to a special class.  Anyhow, just a thought as I really cannot pinpoint a time or an event that would lead me to believe I was always a step behind.  That was 34 short years ago when I started that special first grade class with Mrs. May.  That was the only event that I could really think of and it may have nothing to do with it.  Maybe I am not the only one who feels this way. 

Does it really matter?  I mean, regardless of what I might feel I have a job to do and I have to do it the very best that I can.  The great part is that I am judged according to what I am capable of and not what someone else is.  Truly there are some super parents out there that have it all together and my goodness I could beat myself up all day for not measuring up to their standard.  I don't need to worry about that.  I need to go forth each day with a fixed determination to do the very best that I can do and not spend a lot of time worrying about whether I am in or out of step with those around me. 

Sorry, I have rambled on a bit about nothing.  That's what you do sometimes when you are a step behind...

Life Happens

Isn't life a wonderful thing?  Everyday is so unpredictable.  We go throughout our day not really knowing what is going to happen next.  Perhaps we plan and plan and plan and we have a pretty good idea what our day will be like based on the schedule we have before us but we do not control the encounters we have or the correspondence we have with other people.  Sometimes those conversations can throw us for a loop and sometimes they bring great joy and sometimes they bring great sorrow.  Sometimes tragedy strikes and we find ourselves hurting or sad or lonely.  Sometimes we find ourselves in a position to serve others around us in a spontaneous way.  Sometimes we might feel our world crashing down upon us.  Sometimes we simply find ourselves enjoying what we have been blessed with and sit in awe at the gifts our Heavenly Father so willingly gives us.  Whatever the case may be, life happens and life is wonderful.  Life is wonderful because we have a Heavenly Father who loves us and a Savior who died that we might live again.  I am ever grateful for the plan of salvation and for the peace it brings to my heart as I navigate through both the calm and turbulent waters of my life.  And that is all I have to say about that right now... 

Dirty Kitchens

I am a fan of Kitchen Nightmares.  I find it quite interesting and informative especially since we are running a restaurant of our own.  One of the things that is typical on the show is the amount of filth that is discovered in the establishments being visited.  Lots of nastiness and lots of rotten food.  The scary thing is people are eating there.  We just moved in to our third location.  The first was the old bakery that we renovated.  It was so caked in grease I had to pressure wash the walls, ceilings and floors.  We sprayed degreaser on the ceiling and then used a squeegee on it, grease would drip like crazy and a white streak would be left on the ceiling while the rest of the ceiling remained a lovely brown color.  Disgusting.  The next place was cleaner but still had some issues and then the place we just moved into, wow.  I was shoveling grease off of the hood exhaust duct system.  It was nasty beyond belief.  I cleaned an ansul fire suppression system the other day that was likewise caked in grease so bad that the stainless steel system looked as if it were bronze.  That is just gross and that is all there is to it.  I took on a 4 burner stove today and ended up working on it for some time because it was completely caked in grease.  It was left by the last outfit and was in serious need of a cleaning.  We are planning to start using it and don't want to use it in the condition it was in. So I cleaned and while I cleaned I thought about establishments and wondered about how clean our restaurants really are?  How does a place that is filthy pass a health inspection?  I think we hope the place is clean and that our food is being prepared in a healthy environment.  I do wonder though how many places out there just don't care.  I don't like dirty kitchens and can only hope that it is the majority of food establishments that keep them clean.  Our experience moving in to places indicates that story may be different.  Let's hope not. 

An Hour Early

Yesterday the realtor for our landlord asked if they could show the house today, I agreed.  What am I going to do tell them no?  Let me say this, it is a lot more motivating to clean like a mad man when it is your house that is being sold and not the house you are renting, especially when the house selling means you are quite possibly out on the street.  I don't have it in me to allow someone to come into my home and find it in poor order.  Anyway, they were on schedule for a showing between 11 AM and noon today.  I had everything ready with the exception of a little laundry situation involving three baskets of clean clothes that I have yet to fold and a pile of dirty clothes that needed a basket.  I was in the process of emptying one basket and was actually shirtless getting ready to jump into the shower when there was a knock at the door.  I figured it was the nephews or nieces over to borrow something.  I threw on a shirt and went to the door.  It was the realtor with her client.  "Hi, we're an hour early!  Brett said to just knock on the door and see if you were home..."  Um, thanks Brett.  Well, whatever.  I let them in, decided my room was just going to have to stay like it was, grabbed my smoothie that I had waiting for me to grab when I left for work and I headed next door for 20 minutes or so. 

To all my realtor friends out there, this is not cool.  Seriously, I'm busting my back side to try and make it a good showing for you and then get surprised at my door when you show up an hour early.  Should there not at least be an attempt to call and find out if it is okay?  Two more minutes and I would have been in the shower then what?  She would have opened the door and come on in with her client and I would have been showering away.  Talk about making it awkward for everyone, "And this is the master bedroom and that is his naked butt...".  "Oh sweet, we'll take it!"   

Dessert Gum

When you are on a strict sugar free diet and have a need, yes I believe need is the right word there, you have a need for something sweet, something dessert like, it can be torturous.  I have no idea if I punctuated that even remotely close to how it should be punctuated.  Just pause a bit after every comma, for effect.  Anyways, I sat down with a pack of Extra Dessert Delights Sugar free Gum - Root Beer Float flavor.  I am on my second piece already and since the flavor is fading I may need a third.  It is almost like I am drinking a delicious root beer beverage right now.  Well, not quite.  I mean the chewing of the gum kind of takes me away from a root beer float.  Regardless, there will be no legitimate Root Beer Floats so this dessert gum will have to do.  It is a treat and we do take simple pleasure in the simple things.       

FHE - Family Home Experiment

We belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  We love it.  One of the things we have been counseled to do is to hold a weekly Family Home Evening.  Monday evenings are set aside for this purpose.  It can be a wonderful time together as a family and it can also provide an experience that must be similar in nature to walking through the very depths of hell.  It is a journey worth taking.  It is time together as a family and a fantastic oppotunity to teach the gospel and inspire rigtheousness.  As I alluded to, it can be a painful experience and there are times when you wonder why you are even bothering with it.  Well, we press forward doing what we have been asked to do and though there are some tough challenges that come our way we know that the Lord will see us through. 

Sometimes we simply have a ball as we learn from one another.  Such was the case tonight as Jack wanted to take charge of the activity.  His activity - drag racing hot wheels.  He came up with it and decided it needed to happen so that is what we did.  We each picked out two cars and then we raced them against each other to find a winner.  I ended up winning.  Beginners luck I think.  We had a good time.

As Jack was participating I asked him to say the opening prayer.  He did so and prayed that we would have a good Family Home Experiment.  I kind of chuckled to myself and thought it an appropriate title.   

Family History - James Clifford Griffin

A few days ago my mom sent out an email to the family where she shared the life history of her father, my grandfather, James Clifford Griffin.  I had not had a chance to read it.  I was deleting some junk mail today when Andy came in and asked if he could play a game.  I clicked on the email and told him he could after we read the email.  It probably took a little longer to get through than Andy was hoping for but it was a wonderful treat for me.  Naturally I cried a few times and Andy would look at my face and pat me on the back some.  I learned a number of things that I had not realized and also felt a connection with Grandpa Jim that I had not recognized until today.  He knows what it is like to be a single father working tirelessly to care for his children.  I was moved by his work ethic and his love for his family.  There were a couple of things I remember about Grandpa Jim that were not included.  I will add them at the end.  Anyway, thanks mom for taking the time to record this history and for sharing it.  James Clifford Griffin, my grandfather and a wonderful man. 

My dad, James Clifford Griffin, was born on December 19, 1911 in Oakland, California. His mother was Meta Leithoff and his father was John Henry Griffin.

There were 8 children in his family:
William Francis who only lived to be 3 years old and died before my dad was born

Raymond John who was born in 1904 and died at the age of 19 in 1923
Florence Kathryn who married Albert Hager and lived in San Francisco and San Mateo, California for most of her life. I remember visiting her in both places and playing with her grandchildren. We played lots of games at her house. She was born in 1905 and died in 1981. I remember that she always gave me pajamas for Christmas!
Evelyn Marie was born in 1905 and she married Frank Holecek. They had one son Robert and they lived in Oakland. They had a dog named Rusty. My family lived with them for about a year when I was in first grade. The neighborhood kids made a fort in her basement and we called it the Basement club. My Aunt Evy used to take my sister and I to Catholic Mass (Church) when we would come and visit her. I like to go there because I had to wear a hat when I went. We always had Christmas Eve at my Aunt Evy's house - someday I'll tell you about Christmas eve there... it was magical.
John Henry (Jack) was born in 1909 to 1953. I don't remember him although I was 3 when he died. My dad really loved this brother. I know he was very kind. He was crippled and had a hard time getting around. He never married. If I had been a boy my name would have also been John Henry for my uncle Jack and my Grandfather.
James Clifford is my dad. He was born on December 19, 19ll and died in February of 1993. I will tell you more about him later.
Edna Irene was born August 25, 1914. She married Bill Danska, they weren't able to have any children. We called her Auntie Perk. I loved to go to here house in Orinda because you had to travel through the Oakland Tunnel to get there and they had a swimming pool and basketball court in their backyard... plus they had a gulley down below where we could play in the little stream. My Auntie Perk died when I was only 8 years old on June 16, 1958 of a heart attack. I still remember staying overnight at her house and how kind she always was to me.
Grace Margaret is the aunt I remember the best. She was always lots of fun. She travelled all over the world (Germany, France, Japan) because her husband George was in the Army. She was born on July 25, 1916 and died on May 25, 1996. She had two daughters Gayle and Diane. I spent a lot of time with them. Auntie Gay was always so good to me and I love her so much.

My grandmother Meta died before I was born so I never knew her but I know that everyone loved her. She was born on April 3, 1883 in Hamburg, Germany and died on January 16, 1939 in Oakland, California. She was a widow for many years and raised my dad and his younger siblings alone. Her father was a sea captain and came to the United States after Meta was born.

My grandfather John Henry was born in San Francisco, California on November 20, 1971 and he died in August 1923. I never realized until writing this for you that he was a lot older than my grandmother. I don't know a lot about him except that my dad told me that he was a "promoter" in San Francisco and they named a street (Griffin Street) after him. I saw the street once but it is no longer there - I really don't know if my dad was kidding me or not. I was always told that my Grandfather was an orphan although I believe that from the 1880 census he is listed as a child of James Griffin which would have made him 8 years old at that time.

I am telling you about my dad's family because they were very important to him. I never heard him say a harsh or unkind word about any of his siblings. He was raised in a home full of family and he worked hard to help his mother after his father died. At a young age he would get up early in the morning and get newspapers that he sold on the street corners of Oakland. He also worked as a golf caddie. I don't really know a lot about his early years until he married my mother, Eileen Cockayne in January 16, 1943. He had been married before that to May Schultz but he never talked about that time with me... infact I was over 10 years old before I knew that he had been married before he married my mother.

During World War ll my father worked in the ship yards where he helped build and repair war ships. He had vericose veins and could not serve in the regular armed services.

I think my dad and my mother met in Lodi, California and I believe my dad was a milkman at the time. They were married somewhere in California and then lived in Lodi. My mother already had two boys, Steven Arthur and Carl Michael. I was not born for 7 1/2 years after they were married. I was born in Lodi, California on July 9, 1950 and my sister, Colleen (Kelly) was born on October 20, 1952. My dad was a policeman at that time.

After my sister was born my dad became sick with Polio. It did not cripple him or anything which was a great blessing.

My dad quit the police force sometime in the early 50's and went to work as a fireman. He did not like working as a fireman because there was too much "down time" where he had nothing to do. He liked being a policeman but was never able to do that again since he was in his 40's and too old in those days to work like that.

When I was 4 we sold our house in Lodi and moved to Salt Lake City. My dad worked at several jobs there including an insurance salesman. My mother's family was from Utah and so I think that is why they moved there. I do not think my dad liked the snow and ice and infact he fell on the ice and hurt something or other. He also had mumps while we lived there.

We moved back to California when I was in first grade. We lived with my Aunt Evy and Uncle Frank for a few months before we found a house in Berkeley. My dad worked first for Hertz Truck Rental and then transferred over to Hertz Car Rental. He stayed with Hertz until he retired in 1970 something. He started as a book keeper and was promoted to an assistant manager in Oakland then to San Francisco as an assistant manager and finally as a General manager in Oakland.

When I turned 7 my Auntie Perk died and so we moved to Orinda to live with and help my Uncle Bill. We lived there for a year and we loved it but my Uncle remarried and so we moved to Berkeley on Solano Avenue. I remember my dad teaching me about work. I would mow the strip of lawn and help pull weeds. We would enter my earnings on a log book and he tried to teach me about book-keeping. During this time I remember that my dad also worked at a second job painting CF on Certified Trucks. I thought he was brilliant being able to do that so perfectly because I never realized that he probably had a stencil to work with. My dad worked many long hard hours so that my mom could stay home with Kelly and me. I have always been grateful for that because by the time I was 14 and Kelly was 12 my mother died of cancer. I am so thankful that we had as much time as we did with her.

Another thing that was a great blessing to me is that my father borrowed money one year so that our family could take a trip across the country to New Jersey to visit with my brother Mike and his wife Kathy. We also visited in Washington DC with my mother's sister Alice and her family. It was a most wonderful trip that I have never forgotten but also knowing that within a year my mom would be sick and then die, I am so grateful that my dad spent that money on our family so that we could share that time, but also so that my mom could have that chance to see her sister and her son again.

After my mother died October 19, 1964 my dad, my sister, and I moved to Castro Valley, California to live nearer my Auntie Gay. My dad did a good job raising my sister and I during this time. It was not easy for him to be a single parent. He made sure that we were provided for. He took us on several trips and day trips. One I remember was to Lake Tahoe so we could see the snow (we loved the snow in those days and we didn't get snow where we lived). Another was to Seattle, Washington and then down through Idaho and to see our mother's family in Salt Lake.

I also remember several trips when my mom was alive. We went to Disneyland one year when I was 8 and we also visited Catalina Island and some other sites in Los Angelas. When I was a little older we went to Tucson, Arizona one year and also visited the Grand Canyon.

The Oakland Temple was dedicated the same year that my mother died and during the week she died we went to see the temple together. I think it was a comfort to my father. Although he never joined the church he was very supportive. He always made sure that we got to church and seminary and our mutual activities. He helped me memorize my Articles of Faith. He attended all of our programs and frequently came to Sacrament meetings.

My dad had several activities that he enjoyed. He played baseball with our Orinda Ward team and had such a great time. He would be so sore at night after he had played but he would go back the next week and play again! He especially loved to play golf and played with a group weekly until he had a stroke in 1989. One of his golfing buddies put some golf balls with him in his casket (just in case the play golf in heaven). He also watched Friday Night Fights (or maybe it was Wednesday Night Fights) every week.

My dad was very good to his little girls. He loved to sing songs in the car with my mom but also liked to sing songs and dance with us having us stand on his feet. In our Berkeley 2^ndward we had a Primary Girls dance every year. My dad would buy us a corsage and take us to dinner and then to the dance. It was a special evening!

After we moved to Castro Valley we lived in an apartment house for a couple of years. In 1967 my dad married Marie and we lived in a house close by your Grandpa Jim. My dad and Marie were married for over 25 years. They also lived in Alameda and San Leandro, California. My dad was a very friendly person and he had a lot of friends in those areas.

My dad and Marie came to visit our family when we moved to Carson City and then later when we moved to Salt Lake City and also to Honolulu, Hawaii. They were always good to their grandchildren and never forgot a birthday or Christmas presents.

When my dad was about 78 he had a stroke and had to stay in a wheelchair after that. We (meaning Grandpa Jim and me and our family) got to see him when we came back from living in Honolulu. We got to visit a few times before he died in 1993.

He was a very kind man and he taught me many things about being honest and trying to do my best. One year he asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up and although I was just 8 I thought I might like to become the first woman president of the United States. I remember that he didn’t even laugh at that but encouraged me to do whatever I set my mind to. I decided later to just be a mom and when you are a mom of 8 active children I think you just might work as hard or harder than the President of the United States.

He always worked hard and made sure he did a good job. When he was living in San Leandro he had a little garden that was on his property and he liked to show the kids (your Aunts and Uncles) what he was growing.

My dad was also very artistic. He painted Christmas pictures on our house windows several times when I was growing up. I thought they were fantastic. He also had the most beautiful handwriting I have ever seen. No one has ever matched his ability to have such beautiful penmenship. I will try and find something he has written so you can see how perfect and beautiful it was. He was also a perfect bow tier and my mother would always have him tie bows for my sister and my dresses when we were growing up!

I know there are other things I would like to tell you about my father. I will work on that so that you can get to know him better. Lots of things I do not know because he didn’t talk a lot and I wasn’t smart enough to ask the right questions. I am glad that your mom has asked you to find out more about your ancestors so that you can have a closer feeling to them. I can tell you that if you grow up to be as fine a man as your great-grandpa Jim… you will have done well in your life. I know you will look forward to the day when you can meet him in Heaven.


I mentioned I would add a couple of things and so I will.  Grandpa loved to watch baseball.  It was common to find a game on the tv when we went to visit.  He loved the game.  I have in my possession still today a handkerchief that has the A's logo in the middle and says Beat the Yankees! on it.  It is great.  I remember playing catch with him in the street in front of his house - that is baseball catch and we could have done it for hours and it was a regular part of our visits. 

Mom mentioned the garden.  He did love it and he did walk us around out back to show us the planter boxes that were always well maintained.  I don't recall anything he grew in that garden with the exception of strawberries.  Beautiful red strawberries ready to be eaten.  I am sure there were plenty of other things growing in his garden but it was hard for me to get beyond those strawberries. 

During our garden visits Grandpa Jim would often take those opportunities to sneak a little smoke.  Grandma Marie was not a fan of his smoking and so that was his secret smoke time.  On that same note let me just say that during my last visit with him before he passed I stood at his bedside with Jim.  Jim had just returned home from his mission and I was just getting ready to leave.  He gave us some council that day that involved our obstaining from alchohol and tobacco.  He talked about those as regrets in his life and was very clear that we should not touch it and that we should take care of ourselves.  I have ever remembered that council. 

I would like to include that recently my brother Jim had the opportunity to perform the temple work on behalf of Grandpa Jim.  That was a real treat for him and for all of us.  So very grateful for that and the small miracles that allowed for that to happen. 

Anyway, I love James Clifford Griffin.  I am grateful for his life, for his love of family, for his intergrity.  Thank you mom for sharing this peice of our family history. 
       

It Hurts!

I really have no idea what my tolerance for pain is.  I don't know if I am a wuss or if I actually have a higher than average tolerance for pain.  None of that really matters.  What I am getting at is that my lower back is killing me.   Oh my goodness does it hurt.  I was in some serious pain earlier today and periodically throughout the day.  Pain to the point that there is no way to be comfortable.  It isn't much fun I can tell you that. 

Scent Memory

I believe it was Old Spice that used to run commercials where they referenced the power of scent and how it can bring back memories.  Not in those exact terms mind you, just the idea that scent is tied to memory.  This morning I got out of the shower and when I smelled my towel I immediately saw myself in the middle of an ABC Store in Waikiki when I went there on vacation with the folks and Jim way back in 1985.  We're talking 28 years ago and I can remember being there, looking at monkey's carved into coconuts, little bags of sand, shells and ocean water, flip flops, beach mats and much more.  That is a pretty crazy thing to experience in such a sudden way.  Pretty cool.  I do know one thing for certain - it's about time to wash my towel. 

DA EYE EH TAH

The diet, we're always on one.  Just what kind of diet are you on?  I have been on the eat what ever I want diet for the last while and decided that I need to get back on a slightly stricter one.  Cutting out sugar, breads and other things while also cutting down on the portions.  This along with increased water intake.  That would be a quick summary.  Dave and I are doing it together and should draw to a close right at Thanksgiving.  To a close - not really, just to the next stage.  Gotta love a good diet.