Modern Mormon Men: Baptists (and Mormons) on the Road to Emmaus

Modern Mormon Men: Baptists (and Mormons) on the Road to Emmaus: by  Shawn Tucker : Those who have done missionary work in the South (and perhaps other places) may be able to relate to this experience...

Body Image

I don't feel like I am qualified to write a post about body image. Most of the articles I've read or discussions I've heard discuss body image as a largely female problem. And my guess is that is right.

I still think about it though. What I think about is rather troubling to me. The two TED talks at the end say more than I can. It bothers me that we live in a society that puts so much emphasis on body image that people think they are ugly. It starts early, too. In the first video, done by Meaghan Ramsey, she shows a screen shot of a 13 year old girl doing a YouTube video asking the question, "Am I Ugly?" As a 29 year old I'm hesitant to answer, but feel it's important. No, she wasn't.

They showed some of the comments:
"Yes, you are ugly as f****!"
"Yes. Go kill yourself."
I won't put any more, but there were several along that vein. If that girl ever does any kind of self harm, these people need to be indicted. Who says that? I don't think everyone is attractive to look at, but no one should be heartless. Build people up for goodness sake! Except for rare exceptions (Stalin and Hitler come to mind) you could find something good to say about everyone with little effort. Or you could just follow Thumper's mom's advice, "If you don't have nuthin' nice to say, don't say nuthin' at all."

I recently saw a photo post on Facebook of two friends. Both of them are rather attractive. On one of the pictures one of them made the comment, "My crooked smile makes me want to puke." Not wanting to bug her, since I haven't talked to her in several years and having a mortal fear or being a problem, I waited all day after I had read it for someone to say that her smile was nice. But no one did. So I did. I always thought she was one of the most beautiful girls I have ever met.

I am not guiltless when it comes to giving in to body image issues:

I don't like the way I look. Growing up someone's nickname for me was "skinny punk." I never liked it, but you bring it up and the moniker just gets used more. Then I was told that girls don't like skinny kids. Maybe that's true, but until I was 25 I couldn't gain any weight. From 25 to 28 it was way too easy to gain weight. So last year, at 5'6" (and a little bit) I weighed almost 180 pounds. In the last year I've worked myself down to almost 140. I still don't like the way I look though. My stomach still bulges a little when I sit down. I certainly do not have a six-pack. And if girls don't like skinny guys, they don't seem to like guys whose stomachs fold in funny ways.



Why Thinking You're Ugly Is Bad For You- Meaghan Ramsey, TED

Looks Aren't Everything, Believe Me I'm A Model- Cameron Russell, TED

Everybody's Fool- Evanescence

Journey of 1,000 Miles . . .: Jesus Said Love Everyone READ THIS!

Journey of 1,000 Miles . . .: Jesus Said Love Everyone: "Jesus said love everyone."      ~ Primary Song I have received about twelve Facebook messages from people over the last few we...

10 Children's Books that have Influenced Me

I knew I couldn't stop myself. (The children's books in my first list not included. Some light reading required)

1. The Phanton Tollbooth- Norman Juster.
2. The Harry Potter Series- J.K. Rowling
3. The Lorax- Dr. Seuss
4. Oh The Places You'll Go!- Dr. Seuss
5. Charlotte's Web- E.B. White
6. Island of the Blue Dolphins- Scott O'Dell
7. My Side of the Mountain- Jean Craighead George
8. The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh- A.A. Milne
9. Complete Fairy Tales- Hans Christian Andersen
10. Children's Encyclopedia of the Animal Kingdon- Dorset Press (1991)

10 Books that Influenced me

A few weeks ago there was a flurry of people writing the names of 10 books that influenced their life. According to the posts, they:
Didn't have to be the 'right' books. Yes, the scriptures have influenced me, but anyone who knows me would know that is a given, so I'm going for non scripture here.
Don't think too hard. I could deliberate for days. I better keep it short.

On the whole I am a little put out that no one ever nominated me, since I am sure somebody on Facebook would remember how I love to read. But I won't hold grudges, I'll just make my list. So without further ado (ooh, Shakespeare) here I go, in no particular order:

1. To Kill A Mockingbird- Harper Lee
2. Night- Elie Wiesel
3. Walden- Henry David Thoreau
4. Stargirl- Jerry Spinelli
5. Where The Red Fern Grows- Wilson Rawls
6. The Chronicles of Narnia- C. S. Lewis (Is that cheating? At least I didn't use that to fill up the list.)
7. An Anthology of Poetry- Dylan Thomas
8. The Secret Garden- Francis Hogson Burnett
9. All Quiet on the Western Front- Erich Maria Remarque
10. A Separate Peace- John Knowles

This is the short list. Thank goodness it wasn't music. I'd need a top 50.

Writing Prompt 4: Do you like dinosaurs?

Yes. Except when an Allosaurus tried to eat me. I'd heard people say they weren't as scary as T. Rex. Yes, ole Rex is 50 feet long. Allosaurus is only 30. That's a bus length of difference. What no one ever wants to mention is that we are mostly less than 6 feel long (tall). I certainly am. So whether a dinosaur is 30 feet long or 50 doesn't make much of a difference. Both heads are almost as big as you are. Both have a row of very large teeth on both jaws. So yes, I like dinosaurs. just please feed yours before you let it out for a walk.

God WILL Give You More Than You Can Handle- All Our Lemmony Things (Again)

Here is this amazing post from All Our Lemmony Things. I've never met her, but Kayla Lemmon is becoming one of my favorite people. I feel a very strong friendship towards her,

http://lemmonythings.com/2014/01/05/god-will-give-you-more-than-you-can-handle-i-guarantee-it/

Time Doesn't Heal All Wounds: The Loneliest Part of Grieving- Another reblog from Kayla Lemmon

here it is. Oh my goodness. You have to read this! I just wish I had seen this earlier!

http://lemmonythings.com/2014/02/18/time-doesnt-heal-all-wounds-the-loneliest-part-of-grieving/

"It Isn't A Sin To Be Mad At God" -All Our Lemmony Things reblog

Here is a link to "It Isn't A Sin To Be Mad At God" from the blog All Our Lemmony Things, written by Kayla Lemmon. I loved this. Actually, I like most of her posts. I would strongly suggest you follow her blog. Here is the link.

http://lemmonythings.com/2014/09/08/it-isnt-a-sin-to-get-mad-at-god/

Diverging Concerts: and why I loved both

This week I went to two concerts. They were very different styles of music. I enjoyed both of them SO much!

The first concert I went to was on Wednesday (August 20, 2014) It was the first rock concert I have ever been to. I've listened to rock music for pretty much my whole life. I distinctly remember listening to Dire Straits with my dad when I was very little. Brothers In Arms is most likely the first full album I ever heard. But I had not, in my memory, ever been to an actual rock show. So when Hawthorne Heights posted on their Facebook page that they were coming through LA for their ten year anniversary tour, I bought a ticket! I was a little nervous about going. First off, even though I have followed Hawthorne for most of their career, I'd heard crazy things about rock shows and what goes on there, even if none of the CDs have parental advisory warnings on them. And I guess some of it was evident- there were people drinking, and somebody was smoking pot outside the venue. But no one asked me to do either, and I would have politely turned them down anyway. That wasn't a problem. Of the saying, "sex, drugs, and rock n' roll" there was none of the explicit first at the concert. And as for rock n' roll, that's why I was there in the first place. I like new school pop-punk. There is nothing wrong with songs about missing your girl in Ohio. The guys in Hawthorne Heights lost one of their band members early on in their career, so they always dedicate a song "Four Become One" to Casey. How amazing and dedicated is it to remember a friend, and be able to honor him every concert, almost a decade after his death?

The second concert was today, Sunday, August 24. It was a violin recital by a young Finnish violinist who graduated from BYU. It was held in a local Latter-day Saint chapel. The recital consisted of pieces by J. S. Bach, John Sibelius, LDS hymns, and Finnish folk songs. Like I said about rock, I have loved Classical music all my life. On my sixth birthday, my step-dad bought me two cassette tapes of Classical music. I listened to them until the tape spool broke. I now have one of those albums on CD. It is still one of my favorites. Back to the concert. Bach is one of my favorite composers! I've heard people say that his music is too mathematical. If that is true, then I will have to eat my words from my years of schooling, and say, "I like math." At least in Baroque music. The violinist played "Finlandia" by Sibelius combined with the hymn "Be Still My Soul." In fact the tune for the hymn is taken from that piece. It is a very beautiful song either with or without the Christian words. The calming spirit is in Classical music.

Going to these two musical events solidified my belief that all music has some value. I have always had some trouble, maybe in a prideful way, with those who only listen to one kind of music. I feel like they are missing out. I can understand not liking everything. I don't. I can freely admit I have a hard time with rap and much of the modern pop/urban scene. It doesn't appeal to me on a musical, emotional, or even spiritual level. So if someone doesn't like Classical, punk, country, or some other genre that I find great value and enjoyment in, that's fine. However, I find that it there is value in expanding horizons musically. I cannot listen to one genre of music for more than a few days without having a desire to listen to something else. When someone once told me that it was "cool" to like one kind of music and stick with it, I tried it. . . for two whole days. Forget being cool, I HAD to hear a country song after that. No matter how much I liked what I had picked out as my "cool" music, I needed that variety in my life. Another high school example, someone asked me if I listened to "rock or rap." I was flabbergasted. Not wanting an argument I said "rock" but there was, and is, so much more out there! Go and find it! You will be surprised by what you find- and what touches your deepest soul.

Yours truly & JT Woodruff, lead singer of Hawthorne Heights



















Finlandia- John Sibelius

California vs. Idaho

I have two places I want to be. Maybe one more than the other. But still, where I'm at has its perks.

"Where I'm at" happens to be California. The Beach Cities, west of Los Angeles to be more exact. I grew up here. El Segundo IS my hometown. I smile walking down Main Street. I have fond memories of Center Street Elementary on through to El Segundo High School. I love my friends from that period of my life. I have a steady job. I go and work out with a group of friends that I have found.
But . . .
I also feel like I am living in the past. I hear "Interstate Love Song" by Stone Temple Pilots or "Pop-Rocks and Coke" by Green Day, and all of the sudden I'm back in the 90s. Nostalgia and fond memories are great. However, I have a propensity towards wanting to jump in a time machine and stay there. It's like a dream world that I want to live in. I hardly talk to any of those high school friends, even on the internet, and I never see any of them. Although many live close, they have their own lives. Most have jobs, several are married or in committed relationships. I doubt that very many of them have anything against me. But they have their own life.
I have my family here. I love my family. But they all have ideas for my life. Unconsciously, I think they want to be in charge of their favorite parts of my life. Mummy likes this one girl that I've known for decades. Whenever I say that I want to see a movie or do something she says, "Call ------, take her with you!" And then when I either give her a "not again" look she adds, "I'm not trying to get you together." Yes. You are. Despite the fact I've tried to patiently explain that I'm not interested, and the object of your affection says she isn't either, yes, you do want us to be together. So much so that I wonder if you'll be happy when I do find someone.
Then there is my dad and step-mom. They feel, because I have spina bifida, like I need to be protected from everything. I feel like I am still 9 years old when I am around them.
My siblings, or at least 2 of the older ones, and the spouse of one of them, are more into the- you need to escape from under the thumb of our parents- and I, or WE, have the best plan to do that. Do as I say, and you'll be free.

On the other hand, there is Idaho. I went to college there. I know how much I like it there. The weather may not be as nice during the winter, although I'm not totally opposed to snow. I don't have a job there. I don't even have very many leads, although I have asked around.  I like the small town life. Like El Segundo, I feel comfortable in Idaho. If I found a job, I'd move there.
But . . . I'm not sure if they want to bring someone in from a different state.
I'd have to find new friends. I'm not shy. Just introverted and reserved. Because I don't understand how to do small talk, and want to skip straight to how others feel about the universe, I think I may freak people out at times. If there is a big get to know you group activity, I tend to not say much. Therefore, I don't give very good first impressions. Apparently those are important?

So, I'm not sure what to do, and where to go. Should I stay, or should I go? Maybe I should just listen to a song to tell me.

YouTube
Interstate Love Song-Stone Temple Pilots

Pop Rocks and Coke-Green Day

Heard this tonight, I'll write a story later

Lady in a restaurant to her grandfather: You won't let me get a cat, can I adopt a boy like him instead?

Returning: my first post back: Work, Working out etc.

I haven't written a blog post in a long time, several months, at least. I got a job last September and the internet on my computer stopped connecting for at least the last 6 months. But I am back now. The problem is, I have no idea what to write about. Many things have happened since my last post. I can't even remember all of the details of some of them. But I'll try.
First: my job. I work as a support/grunt/printer/filer in the customs brokerage department of a freight forwarding company. Customs brokerage works with the Customs and Border Patrol of the U.S. government doing paperwork so that freight coming on ships and airplanes can legally enter the United States. We also send paperwork and checks to TSA scanning stations to x-ray boxes to make sure dangerous or illegal objects don't make it into the country.
Second: social. I don't do much in the social arena. That is fine with me, as I'm an introvert, I don't need much. On Friday nights I attend an exercise group. I met a guy named Dean through a high school friend about a year ago. KC and Dean invited me to come and join them in their group. So last summer, June through October, I did. The group, through Herbalife, was really fun. I even started on a nutricion plan from their weight loss shakes. In one sentence of shameless advertising, "THOSE SHAKES ARE DELICIOUS!" They work too. From June through October 2013, I went from almost 180 lbs to around 155. But as fall set in, I stopped going. I did some traveling, started on my job, and just got generally lazy. I managed to maintain my weight, even through Thanksgiving and Christmas, but I pretty much stopped everything. Then around 2 months ago, I contacted Dean and said I wanted to get back into the program. He invited me out and I've gone down to 145 lbs. I've made great progress. If you're anywhere around Redondo Beach, CA you should come out. Domingues Park, Flagler Lane, Redondo Beach. Just drive on PCH until you get to the King Harbor sign and turn and go up the hill on the street that becomes 190th. Oh yeah, you get one of those delicious shakes after the workout.