i knew it!

there's a reason why you don't bring up religion and politics at a family reunion. since this is pretty much that, i'd just like to point out that i was right. you shouldn't bring up politics. but at least i know that people care enough to read about what i have to say, so thanks. and just so you know, i'm more middle/leftish than any of you think. and we'll just leave it at that. i haven't got anything better than that for today. i'm really tired and it's friday. i'm contemplating a nap. and maybe then a little bit of homework, but we'll see how things go.

obama girl

just weighing in on the presidential race because that's sort of my thing. i think it's interesting now that romney has dropped out and i really think that we'll see a mccain-huckabee ticket come november. which is one of many reasons that i'm an obama girl. i really like him and what he stands for and his ability to bring people together, which is what i think this country needs right now. he's my first and only choice. if it comes down to a choice between hillary and mccain, though, i'm exercising my right to write in a candidate. even if it doesn't count for much, i'll at least i'll know that i've put in my two cents and that's about all you can ask for. i would recommend the write-in option for all of you who don't like your other options.

i believe in ghosts.

and i'll tell you why. on ghost hunters, they say that theoretically, when a spirit is about to manifest itself, it totally drains the batteries on your electronic devices. today, i must have been surrounded by spirits all day because i charged my phone all night last night and the battery is dead already! it's proof! ghosts do exist. no manifestations though, so that kinda shoots holes in my theory. hmm. gotta work on that one.

apparell choices

today i was sitting in the class that i TA and happened to notice the shirt that one kid was wearing. i don't know why i though it was funny, but i found myself laughing at it anyway. this is what it said:

Jesus is gay.
and i don't mean that he's happy.
i'm not saying he's a homosexual either.
i'm talking about another kind of gay that you don't know about.

like i said, i don't know what's so funny about it. it's one of those things that make you tilt your head to the side with a slightly puzzled look and say, "huh."

my new love

keep your hats on folks, i'm not dating (still). this post is dedicated to paul newman. i realized last night that i am in love with pretty much everything that he ever did. not to mention the fact that we share the same birthday, which has got to count for something. last night i was watching "the long hot summer", which is one of my recent purchases. it struck me what an attractive man he is. even at 80-something, he's still got that twinkle in his eye. i realized that i'm starting a collection of his movies, which now includes the long hot summer, the sting, and cool hand luke, all of which are ranked very high on my list of favorite films. and he's been married to his wife joanne woodward for over 50 years now, which is a feat in and of itself, and absolutely unheard of in hollywood. they are still just so cute together and so much in love still, it's so romantic. and his company makes some of the best lemonade available on the market today. and that is why i love paul newman.

funny noises kids make

i'm posting twice because this didn't quite seem approprate for part one. so i was at sarah's this afternoon and i was talking with emery. sometimes he tells the most random stories. we were talking about my blue car and how it got hurt (severely, as it turns out) because it ran into a big van. then he started telling me about the dodge truck and how it's windsheild wipers are broken this is what he said:

"and in the dodge truck, the windshield wipers are broken and they say 'chugga-chugga squeeeeek'"

it was so funny. and we started laughing, so he kept doing it. sarah said she had never heard that before, from him or the truck.

emery was also telling me about his trip to the dentist. he told me about how they cleaned his teeth and the lady squirted water in his mouth and then vacuumed it out. and then he made the exact sound of the water vacuum. it was uncanny. the kid is freaking hilarious.

paying respect

this morning before work i was able to go to pres hinckley's viewing. they had a special "before hours" viewing for church employees and their families. it was nice because the lines were short and we all go in and out pretty quick.

the viewing was at the conference center in the hall of the prophets. i just thought to myself how appropriate it was for that to be chosen as the location for the public viewing. first of all, to be able to walk through the conference center, knowing that pres hinckley was responsible for such a magnificent building, was a nice beginning. and then, walking into the hall of the prophets, it was such an amazing experience, knowing that all of the men represented in that room are now together on the other side pushing the work forward there. for any of you who have been there, the hall looks out on the temple. it is such an amazing tribute to the work that each of them have done and for the blessings we can enjoy as a result.

after leaving the conference center to rush to work, i was struck with a bit of sadness, realizing that we will never again get to hear one of his amazing conference talks. in my institute class, which is the teachings of the living prophets, we are reading conference talks from each of the presidents of the church to see the continuity from beginning to end. we looked at 4 of pres hinckley's talks this week, and it was amazing to see the things that he taught. it was always the basics, but those are the things that are most easily set aside from day to day. the message was always pure and simple. i think that the best tribute we can give is to actually strive to follow the words that he spoke and lived.