In the past couple of days there has been a lot of news coverage about the death of Michael Jackson. Personally, I think that it is a little much. His body wasn't even cold before they had specials on TV about his life. The only music on the radio is Michael Jackson. He was a good singer, but he also was a creeper. The only memory that comes to my mind is my ninth grade Algebra 2 teacher Mrs. Ricks. She wasn’t the best teacher (I got a bad feeling in my stomach everyday I went into her class I disliked the class so much), but she was fun to be around in a crazy sort of way. She also had an obsession with Michael Jackson. She would always tell us how much she liked him and how he was “The King of Pop Who Paved the Way.” I definitely remember a day before a holiday where we did nothing but watch Michael Jackson’s comeback concert that was just on TV (How many comebacks can one person have?). Oh the fun times of wasting time in High School.
So, in memory of Michael Jackson one of my best friend’s brother decided that people should wear white socks to honor him and his legacy. So I did, which was a real sacrifice considering I wear flip flops all year long. You’ll be missed MJ. Thanks for “paving the way.”
This week found me finishing classes, taking finals, selling books back, visiting the new Temple in South Jordan and flying to Pennsylvania instead of California. Hopefully we’ll get to go at the end of the summer. It has been a very relaxing time so far. I haven’t really done that much actually. It has been nice not having to do anything. It should be an exciting summer though. Hopefully I will make it to Philadelphia and Palmyra, but we will see. The only really exciting thing since I got home is the nest that a bird built in our grill. It was huge!
Well this week has been a blur really. After having tons of pages of reading, two papers due and working at the Cannon Center, I hardly made it to the weekend. It kicked off with going to a barbeque, which was actually scheduled for next Friday. So Owen and I made some Italian sausage in a spaghetti sauce that was halfway decent actually. Then we went and got Quantum of Solace for free from Redbox. It was really good. We’re still trying to figure out how the title fit into everything. After chatting with the honeys for awhile, I came home and went to bed, only to be awakened at 5:15 by the alarm clock.
At six we left to volunteer at the Utah Valley Marathon. We were at station number sixteen which is apparently the halfway point. It was fun. We got to cheer the runners on. Keep Going. Good Job. My hands hurt afterwards though. A friend from the mission was running. Bryan Brockbank surprised me when he came running by. His parents showed up five minutes after he came by and I recognized them from the photos he had shown me on the mission. Steven King, former Ward Prayer coordinator also ran in the race. He had a big contingent following him. There were people filming the race and people with signs. They even recruited us the “non-partial” judges to wear Burger “Steven” King crowns on his behalf. It was a lot of fun. Then I came back and did laundry and went to work, which consisted of me reading because nobody comes to the Cannon Center on Saturday. Then more reading when I came home. Good news: I finished the last of my readings for the Semester. Yay!
Sunday came early as well. Church at nine in the morning…well actually 9:15 because somebody forgot about the Sacrament. A Russian spoke through a translator. That was pretty cool. Quote of the Day by Owen----“Wouldn’t be cool if Emily Ahn had a sister named Carrie?” (Our closing hymn was entitled “Carry On”) Then we came home and made stuffing meatloaf. It was surprisingly good.
Then some conversation and a phone call with the parents. They’re excited for me to come home. Then dinner. Sam made spaghetti. It was way good. Just way too much pasta, and not enough sauce. Ward prayer followed. No candy basket from the Bishop’s Wife again. Then I decided to update my blog. So I guess the point of this post is that the week has been a busy one. It all caught up with me in Sunday School as you can see from the picture below.
P.S. I am now addicted to this song. It's really great.
California is widely known as the land of fruits and nuts, but over the past two weeks California has been standing up for what is right. So props to you California.
First of all Californians overwhelmingly voted against the government’s propositions that included increasing the state’s rainy day fund, which would have at the same time increased taxes across the board. They also vote against taking money from mental health programs to pay down the debt. The lottery modernization project was also voted down. Californians decided they didn’t want to take a gamble with the future success of their state. They did however approve a measure which prohibits legislators and the governor from giving themselves raises when there is a deficit. Essentially the citizens of California spoke up and said enough is enough. They are fed up of people who spend too much and just look to tax hikes to solve the problem. They were tired of being taken advantage of and decided to speak up. I hope they continue to voice their opposition and I also hope that other citizens in other states will follow their example.
Then this week the California Supreme upheld the results of Proposition 8, which prohibits same-sex marriage. The court ruled in a 6-1 decision that the people were sovereign and the proposition “carves out a narrow and limited exception to these state constitutional rights, reserving the official designation of the term ‘marriage’ for the union of opposite-sex couples as a matter of state constitutional law.” Instead ignoring the people and the laws that they created, the justices accepted the voice of the people, as it should be in every case. This probably isn’t the end of the same-sex marriage debate, but for now it is a victory.
Anyway, that brings me to the best news of the week concerning California. My family and I were planning to vacation in California this June. My mom had some back problems and the trip was in Jeopardy depending on when here surgery would be. Good news. My childhood dream is going to come true. My mom’s surgery is not going to affect our trip so…California, Here We Come!
Today marks the end of Obama’s first one hundred days in office. Thank goodness they are over. I honestly never thought that one person could screw up the country as much as he and the democratically controlled Congress have. Where to begin. Many of his cabinet posts are apparently unpatriotic because they don’t pay their taxes. Funny how they will gladly spend our money, but not their own money. The White House, under President Obama’s order decided that they would oversee the census rather then the commerce department, Gee, I wonder which states will have gains in congressional representation? He has signed an order to shut down Guantanamo Bay where terrorists are being held. I hope he releases all of the injured ones that we have nursed back to health so they can go back on the front lines and fight our troops even better than they did before. The "War on Terror" and "enemy combatants" are now nonexistent. The current budget (with the new health care proposal set to be passed tomorrow) will increase the deficit under President Obama to be greater than the deficit of the last 43 Presidents combined. Borrowed money is not free. The stimulus package has failed to work. Maybe that’s because it wasn’t a stimulus package, instead it funded the left-wing agenda including contraception programs and ultimate frisbee parks.
Obama has also become dependent on the teleprompter. Without that, he is nothing.
We have seen flip flopping on the issue of prosecuting former government officials for their role in the torturing of prisoners. First he wasn’t, then he was and now who know where he stands.
He also bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia and had a powwow with Hugo Chavez.
He also has made fun of handicapped people and their bowling abilities. I think the Special Olympian was right. He could beat the President any day of the week.
We have also seen the breaking of campaign promises. He has appointed lobbyists to positions in his administration. He continued to allow out of control pork in the budget. He has thrown bipartisanship out of the window. He offered hope, but has used fear tactics to get the things he feels are important passed. I can only imagine what the next one-hundred years will bring. Socialized Health Care? Patriotic Tax Increases? Kissing up to Osama bin Laden?
In other news, Obama received a gift from Arlen Specter on Tuesday when he announced he would become a Democrat. Most Republicans were disappointed and rightly so considering it was the Republicans that put him in office. We put him in to represent our values and ideals. He has sold us out for his own ambitions. He is such a sissy. He is so afraid of losing, that he switched parties. I personally am happy. Whenever we have truly needed him (Stimulus Package, Judicial Nominees, etc.) he has always sold us out. To him I say “Good Riddance You Liberal Twit.” I hope Patrick Toomey kicks his butt come 2010. At least now we actually know he really was a Democrat and a Republican in name only.
So "The Chosen One" has failed us. This only goes to show what happens when people put their trust in the arm of flesh.The good news is that the Republicans don’t have to put up with Senator Specter anymore and there are only 1362 days left in President Obama’s presidency. Until then, to quote Usher "We got it, we got it bad."
The semester ended with bang today as I got to party with all of my Magyar friends and I also took my last final which consisted of me writing nonstop for two hours and still not being able to complete the length requirements. Here is to hoping that my teacher will be lenient in grading.
The reason for this post is two fold. First it is to say goodbye to the old. Previously this blog dealt exclusively with religious themes. This blog started as an assignment in my New Testament class. The class has ended and I've decided to stop the religious themes for awhile and go to more "non-spiritual" posts. I hope that you will continue to find the posts entertaining. It will be harder to think of something to write, but I will try my best.
The second reason for this post is to say goodbye to my roommates. They are all leaving me for the semester. Owen is off to Spain and then who knows where. Mike is going back to "where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain." Adam is going back to Washington to work it up over the summer. I will be getting all new roommates for the spring. That is going to be an experience for sure. My mind is being flooded with all sorts of memories that we have had this year. Trips to YoZone and Babis 'R Us. The thumping from RockBand at all hours of the night. LOST. Our very own Thanksgiving. Seeing Bun Foo in his musical debut. The Passover. Going to Conference.Pumpkin Carving. Oreo Truffles. It has been one fun-filled year that is coming to an end. I guess the point of this all is to say that I am going to miss them.
So as we say goodbye to the old, here is to the new. The new semester. The new roommates. The new experiences. Here is to a great summer everyone!
Today the Christian world celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is when Jesus overcame death and rose from the dead. This made it possible for all mankind to overcome death as well. We too will be resurrected after our death. Christ's resurrection gives us all so much hope. We will be able to be with our loved ones again after we die. The Easter holiday also offers us hope because we remember when Jesus suffered for our sins so we don't have to. He "walked the road alone" so we don't have to walk it alone. This video by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explains this concept very well. Christ will be there every step of the way to help us through our trials. Let us all remember this not only on this Easter Sunday, but everyday of the year. Happy Easter!
