Parker Poseurs

We just spent a wonderful three days at Kim and Ed's house at the Colorado River near Parker Arizona. I am about six pounds heavier.

We had a heck of a time trying to leave Murray Tuesday night 22 Nov. I took a vacation day on Weds so we initially planned on leaving right after I got home from work. But, Ailsa had to work until 9:30pm. So, I set up some bishopric stuff since I was kinda behind. One of my appointments apparently didn't show. So, I left early to go gas up the Blue car. Lenore called me and told me I needed to go back. I met with a sister for about 45 minutes, during that time I must have had five or six phone calls. I think there were two or three more when I got home.

We picked up Ailsa about 9:50 and headed out. Only a couple of hours into the drive I was falling asleep so we stopped in Fillmore to pick up some goodies and a Mountain Dew. There was very little traffic for our whole trip down to Parker. The price of gas in Needles was $3 so we bought it in Parker for $2.15.

We weren't having our Thanksgiving meal until Friday because Sean and Tamsyn were arriving then. So, Thursday I went for a bike ride. I thought it would be a good chance to see the difference between my top condition and probably my lowest. It has been two months since I rode. The Ehrenburgh road is very flat and you can go a long way without stopping. I was pushing hard and not really loving it. So, I decided to limit myself to 20 miles. I reached 10 miles and turned around at 32 minutes. And I reached 20 miles at 1:04:00. So it must be pretty flat.

When I got back I sat on the dock and repeatedly helped Laney get in the water. She would swim to the beach, drifting slightly downstream, climb out and come back around to the dock. The water was very cold, probably no more than 55-60 degrees. During the winter they tend to let less water through the Parker Dam. So the level starts out quite low in the morning and then reaches an okay level in the evening. During the Summer late in the day the flow is quite strong and we have nightmares of somebody's kid getting in the water and drifting down to the Gulf of California before we realize it.

I didn't ride anymore because I am a fat lazy slob. We went shooting three of the days. We used the 32 caliber semi-automatic pistol that belonged to J.C. Lillywhite and the 22 revolver that belonged to Boone Wade (and perhaps even his father) and also a couple of 22 rifles. We probably went through a couple thousand rounds and shot up everything we could find including the kitchen sink. Well, actually a bathroom sink. I shot the drain out of it at 75 yards (after many attempts). We let Laney shoot the revolver and one of the rifles. When the clip on the rifle emptied she said, "I need more bullets."

On Thursday we had Prime Rib that was very good and throughout the weekend we had more food at our disposal than we really needed.

The drive back (stopping for the night chez Puggas in St. George) was relatively uneventful. But, there was a lot of Thanksgiving return traffic and a lot of people camping out in the passing lane.

Boy Band Redux

Our Stake had a dance/concert event Friday night with the Joe Muscolino Band. We did the same thing a couple of years ago and it was mildly popular and sort of fun, mainly because the band was entertaining. I wasn't really enthused about going and neither was Jensen.

Shortly after we got there Jensen said she thought the singer looked like one of the guys from "Sons of Provo." We were clear across the hall from them so I couldn't tell. I went in for a closer look. It seemed it was either him or his brother.

So at the next break we cornered him out in the hall and talked for about 15 minute. It was Danny Taresevich. In the movie it was fairly easy for me to pick him out as probably the strongest voice. He does a great job with the Joe Muscolino Band. Lots of stage presence and a great voice with a great range. He was also very friendly and down to earth to talk to. Now when I listen to the SOP soundtrack I can tell that he does most of the prominent vocals.

Post 911 Stress?

We saw "War of the Worlds" with Tom Cruise over the weekend. I can't say it hit on all cylinders. But, it was okay. I think it especially did a good job of conveying the "nightmare." I had a bit of a flashback during the first scene where the tripod is attacking in Brooklyn(??) I've had a few dreams in the last couple of years where end of the world events are clearly taking place. One of these occurred within the last week or two. A volcano was exploding and chunks of rock started falling out of the sky. Of course, they kept getting nearer and nearer to where I was until one huge piece came extremely close.

A couple of years ago I had a dream where airplanes started falling out of the sky in the same manner, getting ever closer to killing me and the people with me.

Several months after 911 WSJ columnist Peggy Noonan said that she had heard a lot of stories of dreams and spiritual experiences connected with 911. She asked people to write in to her about their experiences because she thinking of compiling a book on them. I wrote her about a dream I had probably less than a week or two at the most prior to 911.

The setting of the dream was Florence Italy (where I have never been but, in retrospect I think was meant to represent the seat of the "Empire".) We were visiting some acquaintances of mine from my mission. Again, I don't know anyone in Florence. I ventured out of the apartment which was right on Piazza San Marco (which is dumb because Piazza San Marco is in Venice.) There were lots of people milling around. All of a sudden there was a loud report and I turned to see some smoke and dust issuing from high on one of the corner towers of a very large palazzo that surrounded the piazza. This palazzo was immense in scale. Shortly after this "report" the palazzo started to crumble and everyone started scrambling to safety. I ran with Lenore and turned into a side street where we sought shelter in a doorway. At this point I awoke from the dream.

I Forgive You

I'm not a huge fan of the "Mormon" movie genre. There have been some good ones: Saints and Soldiers was great, on par I think with just about anything Hollywood has done recently. Brigham City and Best Two Years were quite good. Most of the others have been entertaining enough. But, they still usually showed an amateurish side. No problem I can cut them some slack.

Some stars have emerged from this effort. Corbin Allred is a great actor. But, that is evident even without his performance in Saints and Soldiers. I really like Kirby Heyborne (his accent in Saints and Soldiers first struck me as odd. But, I like it now.) and I'm still rooting for Richard Dutcher and Heather Beers. Ms. Beers is beautiful enough to make watching Baptists at our Barbecue tolerable. But, there were a couple too many slow ponderous pans of her that shouted "omygosh, she's soo beautiful, do you want to see her again?" She was in our ward about 10 years ago and I have to say I like the new lightened and frosted hair. Although I wouldn't have guessed that it would work so well.

I had seen trailers for Sons of Provo that made me want to see it. But, then I heard critiques and reviews that made me doubt. So I was ambivalent at best when any opportunity arose. My in laws bought the DVD and we watched it recently. Now, This is not a great movie. It may not even be that good. But, It works pretty well for me. We didn't necessarily laugh out loud. But, did a lot of giggling. There are some gags still that are a little over the top, not subtle enough. This problem will probably plague the "Mormon" genre for some time. But, the music and the Boy Band performances were spot on. I still don't love Will Swenson as an actor. But, the music that he and Jenny Frogley wrote is crammed with talent. They could have written for any of the Boy Bands. Vocally all three leads are very strong. To my ear Danny Tarasevich may have the best voice in the group, which is saying something.

The scene our family liked the best was the one with the girl (Rachel Emmers) who was "confused" at the rap music. She did a fantastic job. I also liked Kirby serenading on guitar under the moonlight when their manager pulls out her trombone to accompany him and the device of having the boys riding bicycles in "Spirichal As Me" and changing their pedaling tempo when the music does.

Jensen's Sketch of "Sifu"

Come sweet slumber enshroud me in thy purple cloak...Hmmm...Doesn't even rhyme.

Laney had no problem sleeping in her own bed until she turned four and gave up her ciuccio. Now she finds her way into our bed at least 50% of the time. I know this is a great evil. I've been warned by other parents (including my own parents) that this behavior leads to all sorts of personality disorders and crooked teeth and that you have to "show her who's boss," "put your foot down" and "nip it in the bud." Well, the "bud" window of opportunity is long past. It's clear that neither Lenore nor I am the boss of the house. Remember, I'm just the boss of the garden on weekends and holidays.

She seems unable to fall asleep if there is any activity going on in the house. So, typically, we go to bed with her in between us. Fortunately, she tends to fall asleep quickly. The best method for transporting her to her own bed is to move her onto her favorite mint green silky polyester fabric blanket and then carry her like a small hammock into her room. She's getting big though and it's harder and harder to carry very flat. She doesn't seem to mind. She has never awakened using this method once I've gotten her into the blanket. Occasionally, she will rouse and the coherent parts of her speech are hey! or wait! and then we just have to give her a couple more minutes before she is really out. It's funny how agreeable and cooperative she is when she is sleeping. The other night I was carrying her into her room (hammock style) and I banged her head on her doorknob really hard. Not a stir. I could just see her finding a bump on her head in the middle of the day and wondering where it came from.

Often she will not make it through the night without waking. And when she does she comes back to our bed. She is not good company in bed. She flails and takes up more room than a 5 year old ought to. She gets hot (and makes everyone else hot) and then kicks off the covers. She also grinds her teeth. Between her and the new cat our mornings can start fairly early.

Matthew 19: 14

Laney drew this in church not too long ago. We like her style.