"Definitely the Coolest Guy in the Room"

Oh Brother!

Yes, we watched the Oscars. And for the most part we enjoyed it.

Ellen Degeneres got panned. But, we liked her.

Most of the dresses were very nice.

The only really political jab was quite funny, about the 2000 election.

The nominations for Best Movie were a little pathetic.

I wanted Peter O'Toole or Will Smith to win instead of Forest Whitaker. But, he did look good as Idi Amin.

But, the worst travesty was giving the Music award to An Inconvenient Pooch instead of Dreamgirls. They was robbed.

Professional movie people still don't know how to write or give a speech, or speak using a microphone.

Al Gore getting credit for the lame power point presentation and being allowed to give an acceptance speech for the Oscar is like Viggo Mortenson accepting the award for LOTR ROTK for Best Movie. He wasn't the Director or Producer. He was one of the players.

Helen Wheels

The drive home from Saint George was interesting and comical. We had to be home in time to watch "24", so we could catch up on all the new torture techniques we might need to employ if we ever encounter some unsuspecting Muslim neighbor.

We stopped at the outlet mall and bought an insufficient quantity of unneeded chocolates and goodies. After we got on the road the kids settled into their routines. Ailsa was clackity clacking away on some story. Laney and Jensen were watching Corpse Bride. And mom was browsing one of her favorite websites and mumbling about how difficult it is to the use the browser on my Treo.

The storm set in and soon we were tooling along at 30-40 mph behind a long line of cars in the passing lane not passing the occasional car in the "slow" lane. I had to keep turning the defroster on to clear the windows. But, then we would start roasting in the car. With the blue Explorer it's either all or nothing. Pretty soon the windshield wipers were so clogged with ice that they only serviced a very small swath of the windshield. I'm hunching down to try to see through the tiny patch of clear in front of me and still grumbling about the drivers in the passing lane apparently afraid to cross the 3/8ths inch of deadly snow separating the two lanes of traffic.

We dug into the goodies and quickly consumed all of the chocolate and the most thin and tenders bits of seanut brittle (see spongebob). Not wanting to bother Lenore, who is speckled with pieces of chocolate and carmel, I hold the steering wheel in my knees and try to break the remaining large, thick piece of candy. A fragment from the breaking seanut brittle springs into my eye. I imagine Stewie from Family Guy practicing for the Olympics with a huge shard of glass protruding from his forehead.

In my mind's eye I concoct a vision: I lose control of the car and we take flight over the edge of the embankment. None of the cars around us notices or stops because of the whiteout conditions. Weeks later Highway Patrolmen come upon the scene and find our lifeless bodies, well preserved because the defroster is still going at 180 degrees.

Bridge to Saint George

We just had a very nice weekend in Saint George with my parents. It reminded me of a phrase from Bruce Hafen's Conference talk from April of 2004, "This earth is not our home. We are away at school, trying to master the lessons of "the great plan of happiness" so we can return home and know what it means to be there."

It is so difficult with the kids schedule and mine to find a time to go to the temple together. We awoke Saturday morning and went the the Saint George temple to do baptisms for the dead. It was a very sweet experience. After we were finished they asked me to baptize a brother on behalf of a Toraru Tamamoto and we confirmed him directly afterward at the side of the font. I assumed he was proxy for his father in law, since it appeared his wife was oriental. This too, was a sweet experience.

I didn't take my bicycle with me. But, I took my pedals and helmet and rode my dad's bike, after substantially adjusting the seat height (up about 10cm). On Saturday I went south on River road to the state line and turned around. On Monday I went over Foremaster Hill twice and then came back down Riverside drive and then onto the bike trail and back around to the entrance to I-15 at Bluff road and then doubled back home.

Lenore and the kids and I went to see Bridge to Terabithia Saturday afternoon. We all enjoyed it thoroughly. I had read some unflattering comments about it from OSC and I see what he was getting at. So my somewhat lowered expectations may have helped in really enjoying it. AnnaSophia Robb was great as was Josh Hutcherson.

I sang Rob Gardner's "Savior, Redeemer of my Soul" at my parents ward on Sunday. It went fine. I had forgotten to bring a beta blocker. So I called Stuart and he phoned in a prescription for one pill, twelve dollars. Lenore wasn't too thrilled about that since she firmly believes a placebo would do the same thing. But, she's not the one singing a solo then is she.

Laney's Macaw

The House of the Rising Sun

This is how attentive we are to things around the house. For several months in our bedroom there have been some post-it notes on the walls. These show some of Laney's first experiments with writing.

Last night we noticed some "new" ones. They have been there all along. We just hadn't really looked at them. On the north, east and south walls of the master bedroom there are talismans inscribed with very ancient baby runes that can be interpreted as witch and spirit, with Jensen's name on the north wall mommy on the east and Ailsa on the south.

I looked, but could not find any such amulet protecting against the wicked father of the home. I'm afraid to look under the marital bed for fear of finding a large pentagram.

Do You Ever Wonder?

Remember what it was like as a child falling asleep in your bed at night? All of the thoughts that went through your mind? The other evening we had put Laney to bed. Lenore was trying to fall asleep and I was watching television waiting for Laney to drop off. Out of the blue Laney asks, "Mommy, am I Catholic?"