Sugardoodle Link Love.

Quite some time ago, you may recall, I posted a link to my new Primary blog, ldssingingandsharing. Originally, since I was the Music Director, it was just going to be a blog about singing ideas for Primary Music Leaders. However, when I was called to be in the Primary Presidency and was responsible for teaching Sharing Time, a short 20 minute gospel lesson, I changed the blog up a bit and made a broader focus on Primary as a whole.

So let me tell you the exciting part. Last week, I posted my idea for Week Three of July and the widely-used website, Sugardoodle, picked it up and posted it as one of the ideas for July Sharing Time helps. How cool is that?!

I'm not sure who actually posted it, but I think it's great and I'm happy to know that someone liked the idea. And it's increased the traffic to that blog immensely. Considering that I probably only had two or three occasional readers of that blog and today alone, it's gotten over 300 unique visitors, I'd say Sugardoodle Link Love is awesome! And as it turns out, thanks to that link love, several people have been happy to have the idea. I'm glad to have been able to help.
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Thinking About Life and Death Again.

"The Lord compensates the faithful for every loss. That which is taken away from those who love the Lord will be added unto them in His own way. While it may not come at the time we desire, the faithful will know that every tear today will eventually be returned a hundredfold with tears of rejoicing and gratitude.

One of the blessings of the gospel is the knowledge that when the curtain of death signals the end of our mortal lives, life will continue on the other side of the veil. There we will be given new opportunities. Not even death can take from us the eternal blessings promised by a loving Heavenly Father."
~Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

Photo taken by me at Thanksgiving Point's Tulip Festival, April 2006.

This week has been another week that seems to have been filled with death. About six months ago, I felt the same way.

Bunny Bradley, a woman I did not know, died as a result of being hit by a truck, which careened into her bike group on Wednesday, July 14th, after having collided with another vehicle. She was 29 and left behind two baby girls.

My friend's sister, Rebekah, died in a car accident on Thursday, July 15th. She was 38. I sang at her funeral this Thursday.

Tiffany, a little girl who used to be in my Primary and who was also our neighbor, drowned on Sunday, July 18th in a friend's swimming pool. She was six years old. Would be turning seven in August.

I think about death a lot. I don't know why. I guess it helps to have two morticians in the family. We speak of death, bodies, embalming, and organ donation pretty freely.

Although I believe that our spirits live on after our bodies die and that there is life after this, I think I still fear death to some extent. It's not something I want to experience right now. Not for me or my family. Also, my emotions are so close to the surface when I hear of someone who is young and still, seemingly, has a lot of life yet to live. I suppose I believe that no one is taken before "their time", but what does that really mean?

I believe, strongly, that our life goes on after this one. I believe in heaven. I believe in resurrection. I believe in a merciful, loving God. I believe there is a plan to all of this. I simply cannot believe that there isn't a "bigger picture" than the one I can see. There is. And yet, I still am not fully comfortable with death. It seems the older I get, the more difficult it is for me to hear about tragic deaths, especially ones that seem to be so painful and gruesome, physically, for the one who is dying and emotionally, for those who are left behind. Call me sentimental, but that's how I feel.

I'm sad for these families. Sad that they have to continue in this life without their loved ones. But I found it interesting, at Rebekah's funeral, her mother and a few of her siblings expressed their sorrow, but pointed out that it was their sorrow and that they had had strong, distinct impressions that Rebekah was happy.

I hope they are happy and that we, who are left behind, can have some peace at that thought.


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"If I hadn't drinken so much water..."

"We spend most of our lives conjugating three verbs: to want, to have, and to do, but not to drink."
~Evelyn Underhill (italics added by moi)

So this morning started out pretty well, when I woke up to my alarm clock. Now, that may not seem like a particularly wonderful start to the day, but considering how little sleep I had last night and how much of a morning person I am NOT, it was no less than a miracle!

Then, while in the shower, I used the last of my shower gel, so I blindly aimed for the garbage over the top of the shower curtain and MADE it! Score! Seriously, I am that good. :) Haha, actually I was so stunned that I made it, that it had me smiling all morning.

In other fun news, my car reached the 150 mile mark! (And also 160 mile mark, hence the picture. I was driving when it said 150...) Yes, that's the total miles on the odometer. It started out with 4. FOUR! Crazy. And I'm a sucker for "mile"stones, so I liked watching it click to 150 (and 160), even if it IS digital. :)

Work was, well... work, but Kendra and I got a lot accomplished today. ;) So much, that we actually treated ourselves to leaving a few minutes early. We deserved it. That meant that I got to the gym earlier than planned, worked out, and then home earlier than I thought.

Great day. Well, except for that dumb headache that has been lingering all day and does not want to be conquered by normal amounts of ibuprofen. I even took my Mission President's wife's #1 advice to cure most any illness -- I drank a lot of water and it still didn't seem to do much good. I suppose it might be worse if I hadn't taken ibuprofen or if I hadn't drunk so much water.

Speak of drinking... I really love language and grammar, but I will openly admit that I hate conjugating the English verb "to drink" in the perfect, pluperfect, future perfect, past perfect conditional, perfect conjunctive, and perfect conjunctional tenses. It's a perfect nightmare to me and the "right" way sounds perfectly ridiculous to me. There. I'd much prefer to say, "...if I hadn't drinken so much water..." :) I know, I know, it's wrong. And okay, I'll even give it to you that it sounds silly. But so does "If I hadn't have drunk so much water..." Doesn't it? Am I alone in this? Hmmm. :)

Haha. Life's fun.

So, that was today.
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Honda Fit. Now Driving on a Highway Near You.

"The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above average drivers".
~Dave Barry, "Things That It Took Me 50 Years to Learn"

So, as I mentioned about a week ago, I got a new car. My brother's been hounding me to post some pictures of the actual car and not the stock photos I posted a week ago. So here they are.

The car is finally starting to feel like my own and not just a loaner. And I kinda like it.

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Wish List: Blue Ceilings.

"May flowers always line your path and sunshine light your day. May songbirds serenade you every step along the way. May a rainbow run beside you in a sky that's always blue. And may happiness fill your heart each day your whole life through."
~Irish Blessing

I love the blue ceilings in this room. And the built in library shelves... love them. The color scheme of white and blue with the dark hardwood floors is very appealing to me. And all the beautiful detailed molding doesn't hurt a bit. :)

Photos from Elements of Style.

Tonight, You Will Be Mine!

"Tonight's the night we're gonna make it happen
Tonight we'll put all other things aside
Get in this time and show me some affection
We're goin' for those pleasures in the night

I want to love you, feel you, wrap myself around you
I want to squeeze you, please you, I just can't get enough
And if you move real slow I let it go

I'm so excited and I just can't hide it
I'm about to lose control and I think I like it
I'm so excited and I just can't hide it
And I know I know I know I know I know I want you"
~"I'm So Excited" by the Pointer Sisters

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Wish List: This Kitchen.

"You should always be the best decoration in your own house."
~Phoebe Howard

I love everything about this kitchen. Everything. Beautiful.

Love it.

Photo found here.

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Looking forward to the 4th of July.

"An intense anticipation itself transforms possibility into reality; our desires being often but precursors of the things which we are capable of performing."
~Samuel Smiles

I really love the 4th of July. I think I've mentioned that before. Yes, I have. Here. I just really love the relaxed feeling of this holiday on a warm summer evening with fireworks. I feel a little cheesy, but I've really gained a ridiculous affinity toward fireworks. Maybe I've always had it. I remember going over to the Presidio to watch the fireworks over the Golden Gate Bridge as kid, or just sitting on our roof and watching them... through the fog, of course. I guess I always have loved fireworks. I suppose I just expected that this intense liking and awe of fireworks might dissipate with age. I'm here to tell you it hasn't.

So this weekend, I'm looking forward to watching three nights of fireworks!

I'm also looking forward seeing and visiting with my cousin Amber, her husband Steve, and their girls this weekend.

And to eating a grilled hamburger.

And chips! (Who looks forward to chips? Someone who never eats them except on special occasions.)

And making (and eating!) Pearl Dean's strawberry peach ice cream. It's not the 4th of July if I don't make Pearl Dean's deeeeeeelicious ice cream.

And looking forward to seeing Britt, Casey, and their girls, now home from Deutschland.

And relaxing!

And singing patriotic songs.

And eating Pearl Dean's strawberry peach ice cream.

And relaxing.

And eating Pearl Dean's strawberry peach ice cream. Oh wait, I think I already said that.

Fireworks photo found here.

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Wish List: Skinny.

"Small rooms or dwellings discipline the mind, large ones weaken it."
~Leonardo Da Vinci

I'm a city dweller at heart and in San Francisco, I always lived in a flat or house that shared walls with both neighbors, so these skinny houses seem right up my alley. Also: less to clean, less to decorate, less storage. Hence, you would be forced to constantly remain de-cluttered of unimportant items. The impact on the environment would be far less, and in return so would your own utility bills. I would love to call one of these charming abodes (or one like it), home.

This one's in South Carolina:

This one is in Amsterdam:

Another in Amsterdam:

Also in Amsterdam (I'm seeing a trend here):

How about this one in Massachusetts:

Or the narrowest one in NYC:

Or this one in Virginia:

Or I could take off to Toronto (LOVE this one!):

Amsterdam Skinnies and South Carolina here
Massachusetts Skinny here
NYC House here
Spite House (Virginia) here
Tiny Toronto here

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And you thought this whole post was going to be about losing weight...
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Babies. The Movie. Recommended.

"I restore myself when I'm alone."
~Marilyn Monroe

A few weeks ago, I had simply had a enough of people. You know those days (weeks)? When everybody seems to need a piece of you, or a moment of your time, or advice on a decision (that they don't even end up taking). I'd been working several late nights and just wanted to do something alone. Something where I didn't have to talk to anyone. I wasn't in a bad mood, just tired of talking to people. :)

So I left work at 7:00pm in time to drive to the movie theater and see a film called Babies. Interestingly, the film doesn't have a lot talking (just what I was looking for), since the main characters aren't old enough to speak. It was very much a visually moving experience.

The film follows four babies from birth through their first birthday. Ponijao from Namibia. Mari from Tokyo. Bayar from Mongolia. And Hattie from San Francisco.

The babies and their day-to-day experiences were actually really delightful to watch. I found myself laughing out loud at points and really enjoying the journey of human development on screen. Watching the babies discover their world around them and grow in their capacity to express themselves was really satisfying. Also, I think I re-learned the importance of voiding my life of excess and doing away with a focus on material things. Babies don't need tons of toys. They were most content playing with dirt, sticks, and the occasional goat.

Great film. Liked the music. The film served my intended purpose of getting away from my own life, not talking to anyone, and through delightful humor, lightening up my mood. I went home happy. The babies were just beautiful and irresistible to watch.

I definitely recommend the film. You'll learn something. You'll laugh. And you'll walk away pleasantly smiling.

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A Memorial Day Birthday in California.

"If you look deeply into the palm of your hand, you will see your parents and all generations of your ancestors. All of them are alive in this moment. Each is present in your body. You are the continuation of each of these people."
~Thich Nhat Hanh

Leave it to the smell of jasmine, the sound of Disneyland's nightly fireworks, the beauty of magnolia and jacaranda trees, and a healthy dose of Botts' dots to remind me why I love being from California!

Last weekend, we (Mom, Shep, and I) were in southern California visiting Grandpa T for his 91st birthday! Ninety-one years. Grandpa was actually pretty excited that his birthday fell on Memorial Day this year so there were flags out all over just for him. I sure love him, and it was great to spend his birthday there. Having Mom and Shep there was an added bonus!

Happy birthday, Grandpa!
Here's to many more!

Jacaranda photo found here.

Photos of Grandpa from Christmas 2007.

I Just Haven't Met You Yet.

"Just because you know someone doesn't mean you love them, and just because you don't know people doesn't mean you can't love them. You can fall in love with a complete stranger in a heartbeat, if God planned that route for you. So open your heart to strangers more often. You never know when God will throw that pass at you."
~unknown

Just thinking about my life lately, and this song popped into my head yesterday. I love that it's upbeat, not sappy and sad. It's optimistic. Hopeful. It sort of explains some of my thoughts lately. I haven't met him yet. At least, I don't think I have. Maybe I have and he just hasn't made himself known. Maybe he's just my Benchmark, and won't ever be interested. Maybe we passed on the street once. Maybe I smiled at him once. I hope if we have met, that I was nice to him, so that when the timing is right, he'll think of me fondly.

Maybe midnight is the wrong time to think/blog about such a topic, but my thoughts are what they are. I'm really happy with where my life is right now and where it is headed. I'm not sitting around, waiting for a knight in shining armor to find me. I'm anxiously engaged in life. But I am hoping, as the song says, "Wherever {he is}, whenever it's right, {He'll} come out of nowhere and into my life." That'd be nice. :)

Tonight, I ran into some married friends of mine at Stake Conference, where I had led the singing. They both complimented me on how beautiful I looked. It was really flattering. So nice. And then they just kept going on and on and M, the wife said, "O (her husband) and I were just saying how beautiful you are and how we could just watch you leading the music all night long because you're so pretty." Can I just say I love her?! I want to put her in my pocket and pull her out every time I'm feeling ugly (unfortunately, that's happened a lot lately). Seriously, so nice to hear such a genuine compliment from her tonight.

Then she turned to both me and Katie and said, "We were just saying, 'Those two are so pretty. So so pretty. Why are they not married?!?!?!'" Then the conversation turned to the lack of available men to match us. Typically, comments like: "I don't know why you're not married. You're just so great," leave me a little speechless because they usually are accompanied by apparent sympathy and pity for how lonely I must be and I'm never sure what to say in response. "Thanks?" But tonight, it was really genuine and it made me feel good, and all I could think was, (cue music) I guess "I just haven't met {him} yet."

(Thank you Michael Bublé!)

I'm not surprised, not everything lasts
I've broken my heart so many times, I stopped keeping track
Talk myself in, I talk myself out
I get all worked up, then I let myself down

I tried so very hard not to lose it
I came up with a million excuses
I thought, I thought of every possibility

And I know someday that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work, so we can work to work it out
And I promise you, kid, that I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet

I might have to wait, I'll never give up
I guess it's half timing, and the other half's luck
Wherever you are, whenever it's right
You'll come out of nowhere and into my life

And I know that we can be so amazing
And, baby, your love is gonna change me
And now I can see every possibility

And somehow I know that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work, so we can work to work it out
And I promise you, kid, I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet

They say all's fair
In love and war
But I won't need to fight it
We'll get it right and we'll be united

And I know that we can be so amazing
And being in your life is gonna change me
And now I can see every single possibility

And someday I know it'll all turn out
And I'll work to work it out
Promise you, kid, I'll give more than I get
Than I get, than I get, than I get

Oh, you know it'll all turn out
And you'll make me work so we can work to work it out
And I promise you kid to give so much more than I get
Yeah, I just haven't met you yet

I just haven't met you yet
Oh, Ipromise you, kid
To give so much more than I get

I said love, love, love, love
Love, love, love, love
(I just haven't met you yet)
Love, love, love, love
Love, love
I just haven't met you yet.

Lyrics by Michael Bublé, Alan Chang, and Amy Foster
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Salt Lake Choral Artists: Lux Aeterna.

Today's Confession.

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I'm human.

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Television is a drug.

"Television hangs on the questionable theory that whatever happens anywhere should be sensed everywhere. If everyone is going to be able to see everything, in the long run all sights may lose whatever rarity value they once possessed, and it may well turn out that people, being able to see and hear practically everything, will be specially interested in almost nothing."
~E.B. White

I think it's fair to say that I rarely turn on the TV. I'm talking maybe once a month? Truly. Now, you all know how I love Glee, but even then, I have only ever watched it on Hulu. I just don't really like a) being strapped to a specific time slot, b) spending an hour watching a show that's really only 45 minutes, and c) watching all those ridiculous commercials. And I just don't believe in paying for TiVo at the moment.

I'm not even entirely opposed to TV. Just a lot of it.

A friend of mine shared this video on Facebook. I thought it was funny. Then, when I watched it with another friend, I thought it was especially funny because he couldn't stop laughing. :) Enjoy.

Television is a drug.
from Beth Fulton on Vimeo

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The Future Is Bright.

"The future is as bright as your faith."
~Thomas S. Monson, "Be of Good Cheer," Ensign, May 2009

I Just Like Even Numbers Better.

"Birthdays are good for you. Statistics show that the people who have the most live the longest."
~Larry Lorenzoni

I like even numbers. My affection for even numbers goes well beyond just preference, however. I enjoy making everything even. Even amount of M&Ms. Even number of raviolis on my plate. Why would you ever eat anything one at a time, unless you were counting up to an even number? And the volume on my laptop or the TV -- the number always has to be even. I know, I know. A little strange. But lest you think I'm borderline cuckoo, let me assure you that multiples of 5 are okay, too. :)

So there was cause to celebrate last week, when finally after an agonizingly "odd" year, I became even again. I'm officially a number I can handle, a number I like saying. Good riddance to that previous prime number, which I patiently endured FOR A YEAR! On to bigger, better, and more even things. :)

Photo found here.

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Happy birthday to me!
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More soon... I'm just trying to get through finals.
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When the list of things to do keeps getting longer...

"For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin--real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life."
~Alfred D. Souza


Life is good, but...

I'm tired.

I haven't done my taxes. Seriously?

I have two term projects due on Monday and Wednesday next week.

Work has been non-stop busy. Business reviews. Big wigs in town. Lots of schmoozing.

I've been needing to go to Costco for oh, about three months now. Haven't made it yet.

Still haven't bought a new car. Mine died. Well, not exactly, but it's been deemed unsafe to drive.

Been driving an automatic (my mom's -- THANK YOU!) for six weeks now, and I STILL reach for the clutch and my gear shift at every intersections. Seriously, it's like I have driving Alzheimer's. I'm just a stick-shift girl for life. Besides, automatics drive themselves! What's up with that?!?! I can't figure out who decided that was a good idea.

Also, been needing to get my dry cleaning done... for five months.

I find that I don't have time (or energy) to pick up my voicemail for days. That's a little pathetic. Sorry for any unreturned phone calls.

Last week brought the sheer pleasure of singing Rachmaninoff's "All-Night Vigil" three nights (one in The Cathedral). Remember how I said life is good. Marvelously soul-soothing. (But that also meant eight hours of additional rehearsals last week.)

Trying to keep up on Primary. (Oh, I'm the first counselor in the Presidency now. That happened three and a half months ago... haven't had a chance to tell you.) We've lost eight teachers. EIGHT! My goodness.

I'm tired of people using Facebook as their political soapbox. Especially when they are so openly raunchy and disrespectful. It's exhausting. And embarrassing. And... well... annoying.

I need to clean my bathroom. Desperately.

I've been needing to take a few of my favorite pairs of shoes to the shoe repair guy... for three years.

Lots to do.

But, it's Spring. And I can feel it. Loving the fact that I can sleep with my windows open!

Oh and my Driver's License is expiring on Tuesday. Gotta get that taken care of. Oh, and yes, that does mean it's my birthday... :)

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Glee Returns!

"Glee is all about sparking ambition, getting kids off the sofa and doing creative things. But it also has a healthy dose of sarcasm and skepticism to offset its peppy interpretations of Journey hits. The production numbers show the sweat and constructive criticism that goes into good performances."
~Ken Tucker (ew.com)

Since mid-December, I've been eagerly waiting to get my Gleek on. Now, it's finally here. Since I don't really have time for TV and don't ever want to strapped to a particular time slot (I know, you're going to tell me to get a DVR... I don't want one. Thanks, though.) , Hulu is my friend. They post the episode the next day (with fewer commercials), so you can watch it whenever you want.

Here's a sneak preview.

Now, tell me you're not excited.
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Wild Cherry Steam Thing?

"I love argument; I love debate. I don't expect anyone just to sit there and agree with me; that's not their job."
~Margaret Thatcher

So what are your first thoughts after looking at this advertisement?

We spent forty minutes today, in one of my visual communication classes, discussing this advertisement. Debating ensued and the whole class was a bit riled up expressing opinions, which were met with more and more opposing arguments.

I believe that if I were flipping through a magazine and saw this ad, the image of the red washer and dryer would catch my eye first, and I'd think, "Oh, cool. Red washer and dryer." I love the color red. I enjoy "pretty things." I'd probably think that it would be cool to have a red laundry room. However, seeing as this particular advertisement was submitted for analysis of text/visual integration, I read the larger print first. My initial thought was, "Well, that's kind of stupid."

The larger text causes the reader to view the woman as rather dumb and silly because she calls the appliance, a "thing." Clearly she's not smart enough to know what the proper names for the appliances she "needs" are called. She clearly doesn't want/need the washer and dryer for it's effectiveness; she only wants it because it's pretty, which is why the discussion of the superior product qualities is in finer print.

I think it's pretty safe to assume, that often when we hear the phrase, "A woman has needs," the writer is referring to her sexual needs. And the following sentence, in the text, saying that she needs "this wild cherry steam thing," drives home the obvious intent to sell with sex. Wild. Cherry. Steam. Thing? Come on, now.

Now, for better or for worse, it's not the fact that the designer/writer of the ad was trying to sell the product with sex that irks me about this ad. It certainly pokes at stereotypes, but so does almost all comedy. I actually think that the play on words is clever and rather understated, due to the image of the woman who is pretty, but appears to look like your average American woman, with a little (very unnoticeable) smirk on her face. She could have been portrayed with an obvious smirk on her face, or bright red lipstick (matching the "wild cherry" color of the appliances), or in a more suggestive environment.

The thing that gets to me, is how instead of just coming across as a woman interested in sex, she just seems stupid. I recognize that they probably thought it was funny, but it just didn't sell me.

What do you think?

A few questions and thoughts to ponder (and leave comments on):

• Would your opinion of the advertisement change if the woman were a worn-out looking housewife? If so, how?
• What if she were wearing red lipstick to match the color of the washer and dryer, thus causing her to look a little more sultry in appearance?
• Would the ad be more or less effective (or offensive) if the woman had a definite smirk on her face (a nod to her understanding the witty/sarcastic text)?
• What if the ad said, "A man has needs...," and showed George Clooney with 5 o'clock shadow, frozen in mid-wink? Would this be more/less offensive or humorous?
• There's also the fact that LG named the color of these washers and dryers "wild cherry" and not just simply red...

What sells to you?

Image found on a Google search.