T-21 : Divine Pings

I heard in a podcast today the phrase, "...'come to Jesus' moment...".  It's not that I haven't heard the phrase before.  But today it struck me in a way that I realized that I'm not sure exactly what it means.  I have a pretty good idea.  But the fact that the phrase exists in popular culture makes me want to venture out and find some more definitive facts about the phrase.

Forbes magazine (http://www.forbes.com/sites/brettnelson/2013/04/03/come-to-jesus-moment-is-the-most-annoying-business-expression-on-earth/) calls it "annoying jargon" and even gives it it's own acronym, CTJM.

Answers.com (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_come_to_Jesus_moment_mean) defines it as "...based on the "concept" of the moment at which you decide to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, but it has a secular meaning. A "come to Jesus moment" refers to a dawning, epiphany or agreement following a disagreement. It refers to when the light bulb comes on and you understand something or make a critical decision.".  There's even a whole website devoted to the moments, http://cometojesusmoments.com/.

So, odd as it may seem as a phrase, I believe that we all ought to have CTJMs as often as possible; no disagreement precursors necessary.  Some people might even simply call them "aha" moments.

T-22 : Brace Yourself!

Before After

Hopefully it's worth it.
Can anyone who put their child in braces say that it wasn't, eventually?
What's $2,500, anyway, right?

T-23 : Dutch Care

Today in church one speaker compared our lives to that of a dutch oven.  I don't know a lot about the things.  But the way he explained it made a lot of sense.  Like a dutch oven we each need individual seasoning and care to keep from getting rusty and cobwebby.  We must know the proper time to "grease" ourselves.  We must take care to use the proper methods; apparently soap and water are not a good thing for cast iron.  This is where the analogy should stay analogous and not literal, stinky.

Later today we read an article together about the power of stories and analogies to convey meaning.  If we're not careful we can try to ingest too much information; even if it's all good.  At some point we have to put that information into practice as opposed to just blathering on and on about how wonderful certain profound thoughts might be.  I believe I have a lot to learn in this arena.  I do post a lot of ideas in snippets.  It's fun to get comments and reactions but a big part of the reason I do so is to collect them for future reference.

So, take what sources you can to learn truths and put as many of them as you can into action.  And stay seasoned, my friends!

T-24 : Yellow Stones

Today was Fee Free Day in Yellowstone.  We like free.  We're starting to realize that some free things come at different costs.  This one, however, worked out well in our favor.

For starters, we were able to stop in to see Uncle Vance.  He'd called the other night and we owed him a call back. This was one step above and beyond.  Family is important.

In the park we saw elk with radio collars, bison charging from the river toward our van, canines (most likely coyote; but we thought they were wolves until a park ranger burst our bubble), osprey diving for fish, and many geothermal features.  We often thought our names for the hot spots were better than those that they were dubbed by the geyser namers.

The most important thing is that we had fun and made some good memories.  So, if "time is money", "the best things in life are free", and "family...isn't it about...time?"; then we were richly blessed by having this day.

T-25 : Clicky Gas

When I stopped to get gas tonight there was something seemingly wrong with the pump nozzle.  When I tried to notch it into place it would run for a split-second then click off.  It was frustrating.  I ended up having to hold it by hand with slightly less pressure than would have allowed me to click it into the first notch.  Then I got to thinking how dependent I've become on this luxury.  Unless I'm mistaken, I remember the days back in the 1970s before the notch was created that I'd have to hold the nozzle until I heard the tank getting full; kind of like a reverse-Doppler effect.  When the notch was created it was fantastic!  Am I dreaming?  Or did this really happen?  Someone restore my sanity.

T-26 : Brain Bowl

Today was the first day of bowling for the new semester.  My average is up to 156.  I bowled exactly that on my first game.  The next game I went a bit unconscious and got a 213; a member of the 200-club on the first day!  I've been in the club in a few semesters but never so early.  I don't think I've ever got as high as 213, ever.  Do you remember?  So, anyway, I was at 369 and needing only 131 to get my 500 series.  I suppose my mistake was doing that math prior to game 3 because in game 3 I scored exactly 131.  It's funny how that sports psychology stuff works.  Got a similar story?

T-27 : Library Bored

I've volunteered with the Madison Library Foundation for a couple of years now.  I and my whole family really enjoy reading and learning.  So it's an easy interest to turn to a way to help.  The foundation raises money by selling used books, selling candy and popcorn at free library movie nights, and other things in order to help the library fund things they don't have money in their budget to buy.  Well, a few weeks ago I learned through some connections that the actual library board would be holding elections soon for 2 open seats.  I don't know much about it.  But, I threw my hat in the ring.  Lo and behold, only myself and one other person applied.  So, somewhat by default, I'm about to become a member of the Madison Library Board.  Tomorrow is the first meeting since finding out.  I'm a bit apprehensive but mostly excited to find out more and to do what I can to be a good advocate.  Wish me luck!  And don't forget to return your books on time!

T-28 : Balance, Grasshopper

Winston Churchill said:

“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

I think a healthy dose of skepticism, balanced with optimism, makes for a wise person.  It's kind of like you should not quite be a Care Bear but not the I Don't Care Bear, either, you know?

T-29 : Big Weekend

It's been some time since I've posted.  As such, I didn't share my thoughts about last weekend being a big weekend in these parts.  Tara graduated with a BS in Sociology Friday night.  Saturday we went to Salt Lake with Jacob.  He's getting ready for a mission.  We hope to share more about that soon.  I should have written more sooner than now as memories fade with time.  Commit today to write more often.