Twitter

I don't tweet. For a long time, I thought Twitter was redundant. Finally, I signed up for the site to see what all the deal was, and haven't been back. I've got friends who I know use it, between Facebook and BlogSpot, Twitter is still redundant. If I had a BlackBerry or Iphone, I might feel differently, but I don't and I'm kind of glad my phone isn't web enabled. I'm online enough as it is. Now there's a few people who are witty enough that it would be fun to follow, but yeah, no. Anyway, what's your opinion about Twitter?

Word of Wisdom Part One

A while back, one of my roommates hosted a ward progressive dinner. The people assigned to our house were mostly Interns from the Salt Lake area. The interns were enthusiastic about their temporary work assignments and the conversation turned to Happy Hour and the appropriate drinks for a Mormon. One talked about that even water was suspicious because it looked like vodka (not many people down vodka at Happy Hour, but no one called him on it). Another replied, all I dare drink is milk because it’s the only thing that can’t be mistaken for an alcoholic drink. The group nodded their head in agreement and one told us that an LDS apostle only drank milk at get-togethers where there was alcohol.
Needless to say, I’ve been thinking of that episode off and on since it happened. Now, the Word of Wisdom is very important. The underlying principle, that we are masters over our body and aren’t mastered by a substance is key. There’s a reason we’re asked about the Word of Wisdom to enter the temple. The blessings we are promised are special and adhering to the Word of Wisdom does protect us.
However, at the same time, do we sometimes place more value over the Word of Wisdom because it separates us from other religious groups than we do commandments that may be more important?
To go back to the milk drinking interns, there’s many holes in their theory. We pointed out a couple during the discussion (most alcoholic drinks aren’t served with ice or straws ). Rather than overthink the issue, I'd just like to enjoy my beverage of choice. If someone has a question about it, just ask (like Diet Coke for example)

Poll: Do Single Women Seek Attached Men?

A friend of mine recently sent an e-mail to all of his lady friends asking them "if single men seek out attached men"? He asked us to e-mail our friends and then report the results.
A study was published that asked the question above and the results are startling. I'm not going to reveal my own thoughts about the subject at this time except that I agree with the article that often the reason women are single is because of their interest in unavailable men or their unrealistic expectations in a relationship (myself included).
Anyway, what are your thoughts about this subject? The poll is on the sidebar to the left. I don't care if men take the poll too.

http://tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/13/do-single-women-seek-attached-men/

Remodeling

I've been thinking about painting my room for the past year and will probably do it this fall. However, once the paint dries I guarantee you this won't be on my wall:

Apparently that's a 6''2" vinyl lifesize sillouhette of Edward Cullen from Twilight. I shudder at the thought of him in my room. Especially since I'm in the "Robert Pattinson is gayer than Christmas" camp. Love my gay friends, but Robert Pattinson? Creepy.

Quote of the Day

Outrage is like a lot of other things that feel good but over time devour
us from the inside out. And it’s even more insidious than most vices because we
don’t even consciously acknowledge that it’s a pleasure. We prefer think of it
as a disagreeable but fundamentally healthy involuntary reaction to negative
stimuli thrust upon us by the world we live in, like pain or nausea, rather than
admit that it’s a shameful kick we eagerly indulge again and again.

http://happydays.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/14/isnt-it-outrageous/

Death and Dinosaurs

I've realized that if I ever live out here in rural Utah permanently, my blog is going to be mostly about Utah for a while. But, there's worst things to talk about I guess. Really, I think it means that I've been away from here long enough that the oddities of this state are more apparent.

Anyway, I find myself loving reading the newspaper. Now, I follow the news when I'm in DC, but reading the Deseret News and Vernal Express are treats. My favorite part in both newspapers? The obituaries. I know it sounds morbid, but I enjoy reading about what their families choose to include in the obituaries. Word choice is a favorite also. I admit though, I do find myself mentally rewriting the obituaries often.

Moving from obituaries, I find myself being amazed a little at the article content in the Deseret News. Utah really still has a small town mentality that's kind of fun. Case in point: yesterday's Metro front page article was an interview with the gentleman who dresses Rex. For those not familiar with Rex, he's the 23 foot dinosaur that greets people from the west side of town (Dinah bats her eyelashes at visitors at the east side) . Glade Allred has been dressing the dinosaur for holidays and special events. He's worn cupid wings, a Santa cap, a cowboy hat and other assorted accessories for corresponding holidays and special events for the past 10 years or so (the article seems to indicate that Rex has dressed up for nearly 20 years, but that's not true--it's only been a regular event for about 10 years or less). Needless to say, the costumes aren't the same every year and tourists and residents alike look forward to when Rex changes costumes. Seeing a 23 foot dinosaur dressed up is sure to thrill your inner 6 year old.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705323094/Best-dressed-T-rex-in-the-West.html

Roundup

1) Uh, What’s the deal with these town halls? After listening to Hannity yesterday, you’d think that we’re in the middle of a revolution.

2) According to Sean Hannity, if someone calls you a Nazi, then it’s okay to call them every other name in the book.

3) I’m addicted to baseball. Okay, I’ve been addicted to the game for years, but after going to two games in a row and the Yankee-Sox series, I find myself wanting to schedule my free time around the Yankee games. More so than usual.

4) I’m in Utah until the 29th of this month. Part of this time I’ll be working out of the Vernal BLM Office. This is the first time in 8 years I’ve worked in the west at all, and the first time in 12 years I’ve worked in Vernal.

5) So, there's a movement of Freehikers out there (hiking in the nude-I couldn't make this up). A group of them hiked up to Red Mountain just above Vernal a few years ago, and the entry about the hike is priceless. Totally brought a smile to my face-I've hiked, snow-shoed, mountain biked, and rode atv's up Red Mountain, but never free-hiked up it. Wonder what I'm missing?
http://kenfreehiker.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-08-03T06%3A49%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7