Selena

I was just writing some interesting thoughts on Selena and my mission when I accidentally pushed the back space button. I really don't have the patience to recreate the thread, although I will say that it was hearfelt and interesting, so it will have to wait for another day. I really hate how sensitive this blog is, this is like the fourth post that I've lost.

Randomizer (Series I Volume III)

- While waiting in traffic on my way to work I couldn't help but notice the OutBack in front of me. The political atmosphere is electric and many cars support bumper stickers in support of their candidates and views, this car was no exception. One of the stickers said "No more negativity in politics!" It was right next to another sticker that said "Bush: The worst president never elected." I laughed at the irony.

- Speaking of politics, I don't understand the furor and passion displayed by Hollywood against Bush. By listening to them you would think that Bush was the devil and Kerry was an angel. Let's all sit back and realize that, politically speaking, they aren't too different. I remember quite a bit of support for Iraq. He has had a prudent view on stem-cell research. His economic policy has been widely supported by the top economists and has created some results. Sure he has his faults and has made some mistakes, but don't get all Ashton Kutcher on me and accuse him of being Hitler.

- By the way, Napolean Dynamite's little brother is a missionary assigned to our ward. I'll have to see if I can get him to draw me a picture of a liger, the coolest beast to ever roam the world.

Randomizer (Series I Volume II)

- I don't understand the appeal of putting french on labels. Evidently it gives the product panache and appeal...the french are supposedly the purveyors of all things cool. I can maybe understand french on beauty oriented products but I completely couldn't figure out why there needed to be french on the bag of dog food.

- Student loans are a giant labyrinth of confusing language and obscure options. I'm sure they would be alot easier to navigate if a customer service representative would take the time to explain them to me.

- Why does the media play favorites when it comes to professions? You never hear about a prominent plumber who was involved in a hit and run. The doctors and lawyers get all of the air time. Why is it worth mentioning if he was lawyer and not if he was an accountant? One more reason to generally detest the media.

- Johnny Damon is now welcome back on my favorite players list. He has redeemed himself for a horrible series with a great game 7 performance. May the heavens have mercy on Boston and allow for a RedSox victory.

October Fizzle

The world of sports is replete with atheletes who perform during the regular season but can't up the ante, or even maintain it, when the stakes are high. (See: Karl Malone, Peyton Manning, Atlanta Braves) This month's nominee is Johnny Damon. This pains me because he is my favorite currrent baseball player. He spent the regular reason consistently getting on base and setting up the other hitters. Now he is spending the post season cluelessly swinging at the ball and being crushed under the weight of the storied rivalry. I can only imagine the gray hair that his futility is creating for the Boston faithful.

- By the way, this series is the most intense sporting event that I have seen, well.... last years ALCS with the Sox and Yankees. There's something about this rivalry that can excite even the casual baseball viewer such as myself.

The Randomizer (Series I Volume I)

A. Today's Elders lesson was on self-mastery. It was one of the few times that I actually wasn't itching to get out early, the teacher can make such a different. Why is so little thought put into Elders lessons? (Atleast in 85% of the wards I have attended) Anyways, I came to the realization that I entertain too many mundane and useless thoughts. A man's character is often revealed through what he thinks and does in his free moments. If someone was to pry open my free thoughts all they'd find was an endless reel of meaningless sports highlights. I am making a bigger effort to garnish my thoughts with more meaningful things such as family, gospel, and meaningful educational pursuits.
B. I really do like our ward. Its members are simple and diverse. You won't get many intellectual rants breaking down scriptures down until you reach a meaningless minuetia. You will get many people who simply listen to the gospel essentials and put forth their best efforts to live them.
C. I spent one of the longest mornings of my life this past Friday. I went golfing with my father-in-law. My bad game was made worse when we were paired with a couple who happened to be life long enthusiasts. My focus soon shifted from how to play golf to how trying not to slow up the group. While the couple was friendly I could tell that they were quietly ticked to have been paired up with us. Its a good thing that I have the rest of my life to figure this sport and its appeal out.
D. I once thought that having a dog was no more difficult then raising kids. That all changed this past weekend when we tended a 10 month old overnight. She was a great kid and rarely fussed but the shear amount of effort and worry was enormous. At least with the dog we can send out of the house to play in the yard. Your only tool with kids are the endless streams of expensive and colorful toys. Now I know why an evening dinner alone is so valuable to parents.

One of my callings in church is to help out with home teaching. While, on the whole, our quorum is tight and headed in the right direction we still have an issue with making our visits. Our stats for August were atrotious and the responses that I received on the phone were apathetic at best. So today I had the uneviable task of trying to stir up some response regarding this important and overlooked calling.
The response we received was slightly warmer then the tepidness I have been getting over the phone. One of the brothers went as far as to dispute one of the scriptures that we read, D&C 20:52, on the grounds that the responsibility to watch over the members belonged to the teachers and not elders. We were blunt with the assessment of our performance and I sensed some people were defensive. I have never understood the "my life is too busy and my families too unreachable" mentality that prevails in some quoroms. Hometeaching is a simple gesture that goes along way in helping members, less active or otherwise, feel fellowship and a little spirit. I apreciated the strong and heartfelt endorsement from the quorum president, I feel it validated our message and offered another testimony.
Anyways, we do love our new ward. We do a good job of being inclusive with everyone who attends. There is much to be proud of, but also, much that still needs to be done. We are in a good position to contribute.

Peeping Blogs

Every once in awhile I take advantage of the "next blog" button and explore the wide world of the blogging community. It is a very big world with many ideas and view points that are very different then my own. Somehow I feel like it gives me a pulse on what is going on outside of my self created "zip code". I have run into several political blogs, a few homosexual issue blogs, plenty of teenage gibberish ones, a couple of porn related blogs, debt consolidation blogs, and even a few blogs from people who seem like me. I guess I know what Dorothy felt like when she crashed on the old witch and was introduced to Oz, there is alot in this world that I am not familar with.
Another observation. Hats off to the fine folks from Eastern Asia and the Portuguese speaking quarters of the world. They are very well represented in the blogdom. I know that most Asian nations are more computer literate then average, but I was suprised to see so much Portuguese.

She's a ripper

Today, for work, I met with an attorney regarding a corporate case. Our mutual client, we will be performing the valuation and the attorney will provide the legal push, was muscled out of a 60/40 LLC by his partner of a business that they started together. It was very interesting to observe the attorney. It made me wonder, since I have many friends who practice law, if all attorneys possess these traits. Most of the attorneys that we work with due, maybe thats the nature of IP related law.
She was very take charge and would rarely concede to other better ideas. She was also very confident in her abilities and her chances against the opposition. After leaving the meeting it seemed to me that most cases involving potential litigation are typically won by strong arming, showmanship, and bullying. Well that and having a strong legal case. Most of the attorneys I work with, granted they are all litigators, are very adversarial.
This makes me wonder about my friends. I have several friends who practice law. Only two of them could be considered adversarial. Both of them like to argue their points of view, but neither would resort to bullying in order to win a case. The other friends seem too nice to succeed in this arena. I suppose, like all other vocations, that certain personalities excel in certain situations than others. It would be pretty funny to see some of my friends trying to intidimate the other side.

Things that suck

Despite all of the wonderful things in our lives, human beings tend to emphasize the little sucky things that can detrack or hinder. Today's thing that sucks.....computer save features on internet sites like this blog and fantasy football. Twice this week I have had great entries foiled because the entry would not post. Tonight I had pieced together a wonderful thought on the absurdity of wild percentage changes in presidential campaign polls and how the mainstream media has too much power in shaping public opinion. But alas the thought has been lost and I do not have the resolve nor the patience to reconstruct it. You will have to trust me when I say that it was good.

The roller caster we call polls

Monday, 4pm: President Bush loses 4 points to Kerry after another bad day in Iraq.
Tuesday 7am: New questions regarding Kerry's service cause the President to gain 5 points.
Friday 12pm: The results in! Kerry beats Bush in the debate and gains 7 points.

Am I the only one who has to question the validity of polls? I don't understand how there can be so many shifts in public opinion over two candidates, especially when 95% of the electorate has already made up its mind. Is this the media just trying to maintain its hold on public opinion? Its pretty scary when so many people really on the "objective" mainstream media for their political views.
I also abhor the way that the media simplistically draws relationships and conclusions from certain events. Example: The dow gained 35 points today on news of positive job earnings. The world is far too complex and the general public should be smart enough to realize that these aren't simple cause and effect events. President Clinton didn't singlehandedly ressurrect the economy and President Bushes war against Iraq didn't suddenly turn the whole world against us. But the media would have us believe these things.