A Week in Review

Hello. Guess What? Chicken butt! HaHaHa! I love that one. No, actually it’s time for a Week in Review.

I’m not feeling very inspired again today, my brain is kind of all over the place, so I thought I would do more of a random things list than the usual Review. Hope you don’t mind.

Melissa and I saw the political-thriller “State of Play” last Friday, and liked it very much. It was suspenseful, unpredictable, well acted, a good show. If you’re looking for a movie, that’s one to check out.

I started reading “Fablehaven” this week. It’s a sci-fi fantasy story for young adults by a man named Brandon Mull. He’s all the rage with middle-schoolers here in Salt Lake, and some grown-ups, too. I understand that his books have been New York Times best sellers, so he’s done well. It’s a good story. Light, easy to read, some interesting creatures, I’m not in love, but it’s a nice break from the heavier things I’ve been reading. There are four books now in the series. I don’t know if I’ll read the rest. We’ll see.

I kind of think that there are plenty of sci-fi fantasy books out there now. Lots of new writers hoping to be the next J.K. Rowling. I don’t know that there will be another Rowling, or Harry Potter, so enough already. Let’s try something new. Of course I’m not a huge fan of the genre, so maybe it’s just me.

What I am a big fan of is documentaries, and have two more in route to me right now! Did I tell you this already? I’ve ordered The French Revolution and The Presidents from Amazon, and think that they’ll be delivered today. You know where I’ll be this weekend.

If I never hear the words “Swine Flu” again it will be too soon.

I think that the decision to make Swine Flu all the rage went something like this:

Scene One – A boardroom at the Associated Press building
Person 1 – I’m sick of reporting on the economy. Economy, economy, economy! Is there something else out there?
Person 2 – I heard that some people in Mexico are sick. Something called the Swine Flu. Maybe we could make a story out of that?
Person 3 – Swine Flu huh? That has a certain ring to it.
Person 1 – Yes, but don’t we already have tens of thousands of people catching the flu, with about 30,000 fatal cases in America every year? That’s not really news.
Person 3 – But this virus has an animal name, and if we put it in absolutely every news story on every channel in the nation, we’ll have something here. Heck, this could be the next “pandemic”!
Person 2 – It has been too long since our last “pandemic”. What was it, Bird Flu, Monkey Pox? I’ve almost forgotten how to spell pandemic.
Person 1 – Ok, swine flu it is. I’m for anything, as long it’s not another economy story.

And scene.

Of course, I’ll feel foolish about writing this if the whole thing really does blow up into a pandemic, a real one, not the kind that news reporters like to make up, but until then I will keep my cynical attitude.

I just realized that Mother’s Day is ONE WEEK from this Sunday. I’ve got to buy something and get it in the mail! What does my mom want… anyone, anyone?

Downtown is gorgeous this time of year, tulips everywhere. I’ve been walking up City Creek Canyon during my lunch hour, and enjoy it so much. The water in the creek is deep with the snowmelt and runoff, so it’s gushing down the hill, loud and thundering. I really love it.

Cheryl just told me that our coworker Terry is “so full of crap sometimes”. I threw my head back and laughed out loud.

It’s kind of a faux-pas to tell others that you find yourself funny. You know, it’s like saying “I’m pretty.” Being funny is not the sort of thing you should have to point out to people. They either get it or they don’t. But I’ve been thinking about my 10 things for missionary moms, and the line “That lady in your ward doesn’t always know what she’s talking about” makes me laugh every time. That might be some of my best work.

Speaking of funny, I’m so glad that Michael and Pam are back in the real office on “The Office”. And “30 Rock” is making me laugh again. Tracy Jordan is becoming my favorite character. He and Jack have the best lines on the show.

I fly off to Minnesota four weeks from today! Only 60 pounds left to loose in that time, it can be done.

I saw Marla and family on Monday. Cute William is walking, no running around the house like crazy now. I took him outside, and he moved down the sidewalk just as fast as his baby legs could go, and still he was leaning forward, like that speed wasn’t fast enough. He would stop and yell and Jonah, and then get moving again. Who knows what he’s saying to Jonah. Something very intelligent I’m sure. We’ll all know soon enough.

We’re getting a new phone system at work next week. This frightens me. As you know, the good folks I work with were around during The Great War. New things kind of freak them out. I might have to find a valium dealer tomorrow. I think I saw someone on the corner of State and 300 South.

I was thinking the other day about how much writing anything used to scare me. Writing school papers and letters and anything else made me so nervous becuase I always thought that whoever read them would think that what I'd written was really dumb. When I was on my mission I was suppose to write a weekly letter to my president, but rarely did it for the same reason. I was too scared of what he’d think of me. Strange to think about that now. Actually, I still get nervous sometimes, but it’s not what it used to be. I was a little girl with very little confidence. I wonder if that little girl will ever really go away?

Writing this blog, and all of your kind comments, has really helped me come out of myself a little bit. I’m grateful for that.

I read two very good poems this week, and will close with those.

Letter of Resignation
by William Baer
Dear [blank]: After much deliberation,
without qualm, scruple, or further delay,
I hereby tender my formal resignation
as your lover and future fiancé.
The job provides too little satisfaction:
too many hours of unneeded duress,
a paucity of productive interaction,
uncertain working conditions, and endless stress.
Pay-wise, I'm undervalued and disenchanted:
advancement's slow, the bonus is routine,
my "on-call" overtime is taken for granted,
and benefits are few and far between.
This document, I'm hopeful, underscores
my deep regret. I'm very truly yours....


Facing it
By Yusef Komunyakaa, about the Vietnam Memorial in Washington DC

Names shimmer on a woman's blouse
but when she walks away
the names stay on the wall.
Brushstrokes flash, a red bird's
wings cutting across my stare.
The sky. A plane in the sky.
A white vet's image floats
closer to me, then his pale eyes
look through mine. I'm a window.
He's lost his right arm
inside the stone. In the black mirror
a woman's trying to erase names:
No, she's brushing a boy's hair.


Thanks, as always, for being awesome all of the time.
You are loved.