We're Moving on Up!

Al Jefferson!

   Well, ok, we actually didn't move to the East side. In fact, we moved from the East side of Provo, to the Northwest side of Provo. But, that tune from "The Jeffersons" is really catchy, and I am already a huge fan of the new Jazzman, Al Jefferson. But, yes, we moved AGAIN. Hopefully, this will be the last time for a while (until we get into a good grad school for Marriage and Family Therapy). For those who don't know, this is the second time in less than five months that Julie and I have moved and that is not including the time we moved from our respective single's housing into our first apartment together.
  The first apartment we moved into, we really should have seen that it was not a good situation. It had no separate entrance or even a door blocking us from the old lady upstairs. We thought she was sweet the first time we met her, but I should have really taken into account that the first time I met her she talked to me for a half an hour about how she's had cancer multiple times and how she had two husbands cheat on her. But, hey, I was too starry eyed in love with Julie to really notice and this lady was one of the few people who was renting mid-semester. Very quickly, the situation became painful. The old lady would keep walking downstairs while we were in our garments and we dreaded having to walk through her door everyday because we knew she would want to talk to us for hours about how rotten her life has been. This was bad enough, but then she also always wanted us to do chores for her. I had to mow all of her lawns (which were huge and on rough terrain) and Julie vacuumed her house. That was bad enough, but it gets worse! This lady complained about the job Julie did. That was the last straw! Plus, she had a cat! That might seem small to you, but I am not a fan of cats and it definitely fits her overall aura. We had to get out, so we did so. She still calls once a week for us to "come pick up our mail" (which she refuses to forward). We really think she wants us to go up there so that she can guilt us into mowing her lawn. So, what do we do? We ignore her calls and cowardly refuse to talk to an extremely old lady.
   The second place we lived was fantastic! It was right across from a park and it was fully furnished with lots of great stuff. Most importantly, it had a brand new huge TV and a DVR. Our landlords this time were awesome, as well. The only thing that was kind of weird was having to change their delicates in the laundry sometimes or having them do the same for us. We loved the place but had to leave because we were only subletting it for the summer. We left it in good condition, but I had to remember I'm in a bishopric now to not take their TV with me.
    Now, we are in a new place. So far, it seems great. We are still unpacking and looking for places to put all of our stuff. Isn't it amazing how much stuff two poor newlyweds have? I don't know where it all comes from. Julie must have done a magic trick to get everything to fit in the boxes we have--there just is more and more stuff every time I go back. Again, we will have to move again at some time. But, wherever we live, it will always be home to me, as long as Julie is with me.

Let Me Run With You Tonight, I'll Take You On a Moonlight Ride

Ok, so the heading for this blog post is from a song by Tom Petty called "Roll Another Joint." I do not condone that behavior but this particular lyric works well with this blog entry.

This was the only picture we managed to get because we were terrified of dropping my camera (or ourselves).

   On July 27th, I took Julie on a romantic date up to Sundance's ski resort . We went on a full moon light ride up the ski-lift...the only problem was that it was too cloudy to actually see that full moon. I thought I had again botched another attempt at being romantic (Julie can tell you all sorts of stories about every time I try to be romantic and smooth, something goes way off. I just don't have it in me). However, it was great just getting to sit next to each other and cuddle and just talk. It felt like a while since we had the opportunity to catch up with one another. Julie also had one of her finest moments while we were on the lift. Some immature high school boy riding the lift down called out to me, "Are you going to get a kiss, tonight?" I said nothing but Julie hollered back, "More than that!" It put the kid back in his place, and made me happy (for a host of reasons).
   While we could not see the full moon, we definitely COULD see lightning. It was a stormy night and so lightning was very prevalent. I don't know about you, but I can't really think of a place that I would less rather be at than a metal ski-lift when there is a lightning storm. It was kind of cool to look at, but I'm glad we were not electrocuted (especially now that we watched a really creepy X-Files about a kid that keeps killing people with lightning). We also remembered shortly after we got on the lift that we both have a minor fear of heights. But, none of these things could put a damper on our date night!

I heart SLC

What comes to mind when you think of Salt Lake City?
I think most people would say Mormons. The Temple. Religion. Something to that effect.

Well last night, I added a few funny experiences to MY idea of SLC.

I photographed a bride (Ilarene gets married NEXT WEEK! AGH!) at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, and then we headed up to the Capitol building. It all sounds fine and dandy, right?
Well, picture 3 different brides, all getting photographs taken of them on the same front steps of the Capitol.....
whilst at the base of the stairs, Prop 8 protesters were setting up a rally.

Then, D and I stopped at Mickey-D's for some dinn-dinn on the way home.
While we were sitting there, D stops talking and looks behind us.
There was a man, an OLD man...
rolling a doobie at the table behind us.

Okay so it probably wasn't a REAL doobie. Just a cigarette. But still. At McDONALDS of all places.

Just sitting there, rolling it out. Then he finished, put it in his mouth, put away the goods, and walked outside.

D says this is what SLC is REALLY like. And everyone thinks it's all peaceful and goody-two-shoes-esque just hasn't spent much time outside of the temple square block.

I love big cities.

Dylan's Top 90's Songs

As I was driving up to Idaho, after considering God's hand in my life and some of the converts in Wisconsin, I began to think of what my top ten 90's songs are (it was a long drive, ok?) So, without further ado, here they are. The rankings are pretty arbitrary. I just thought I should put numbers by them for some reason.

10- U Can't Touch This by MC Hammer. So, this song is pretty cheesy, now. But, when my Mom bought me a walkman for my 9th Christmas, she also gave me a tape of MC Hammer and I thought she was the coolest Mom, ever. It was a close call between this and "2 Legit 2 Quit."

9- The Kids Aren't Alright by The Offspring. Incredibly depressing song...with a sweet rhythm and guitar! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snuWz7-nJhs

8- Soul to Squeeze by Red Hot Chilli Peppers. This is a great song that captures a lot of different moods while speaking jibberish for a lot of the song. If you can tell me what he says in certain parts, I will give you a lot of respect. It lost some points because the music video is REALLY weird.
7- Sabotage by The Beastie Boys. This is a fun song to rock out to. But, the music video is really what brings it up on the list. 
6- In The Garage by Weezer. There are so many good Weezer songs that came out in the 90's that this might seem like a curious choice. To me, though, this song represents the peak of geek rock.
5- I Only Wanna Be With You by Hootie and the Blowfish. I love Hootie's voice so much that I even like him as the only black country singer who ever has and ever will exist (Darius Rucker). Plus, the music video helped me win a debate with Julie about whether the line "I'm such a baby that the Dolphins make me cry" is really about the football team or not. (It is...to which she said "that's stupid." She just doesn't understand men and sports.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln6WQqRDrCo&feature=avmsc2.
4- Mr. Jones by The Counting Crows. A classic song with funky lyrics that you just shouldn't think too much about. However, the lead singer of the band confirms the age old belief that beautiful women are helpless against a man who can play the guitar and sing--no matter how ugly or gross the man is. Maybe I should learn the guitar, so Julie will be even more attracted to me.  
3- Regulators by Warren G. and featuring Nate Dogg.  If I was awesome and black, this would SO be my theme song. But, since I am not, and I do not condone any of the content of this song, I will just have to acknowledge it was a great 90's song.
2- So Whatcha Want? by the Beastie Boys. One of my all-time favorite songs. It would be a pretty hard-core song if it was not written by three pasty white and thin Jewish guys. But, it's still got some great lyrics like "I'm as cool as a cucumber in a bowl of hot sauce." And, for some odd reason Julie finds me very attractive when I sing it in Rock Band 2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzaFGMQRBfs&feature=avmsc2
1- Loser by Beck. Since I was not awesome in high school, this was my theme song, instead. Interesting side note, in the chorus, he says, "Soy un perdedor." I am informed this means "I am a loser" in Spanish. All I've got to say to that is "get crazy with the cheese wiz!"
  

Don't Stop Believing! Hold onto that Loving Feeling! (A long mission story)

Me trying to ride Dave's youngest child's bike with training wheels. Necessary to include this picture? No! Awesome? Yes!

We had a saying on my mission in Wisconsin, "the more hours you tract in the rain, the more gorgeous your wife is going to be." I always thought that was a stupid saying. Nevertheless, my very last day in the Cheesehead state, I found myself tracting and trying to contact people for hours in the rain. Before you judge me and think I'm shallow, let me explain why I was working so hard in the rain that day. At the time, I was serving in an area called Menomonee Falls, which had a history of being very difficult. I looked back through the records and saw so many good Elders who had no fruits from their labors. I was probably a little arrogant in my belief that the drought would end with me--like I would cut off some arms of evildoers and baptize the Mayor, who would then mandate that every member of the city would listen to us. Of course, that didn't happen. In fact, in my limited perspective, nothing happened there in my six months of service. My last day ended how so many other days there ended: with me cold, exhausted emotionally and physically, frustrated and disappointed.

Now looking back, I can already see so many good things that happened or began to happen in my six months there.  First of all, we baptized an awesome man named Dave Mahr. I know, I know--even one baptism should make your work feel sufficient. But, Dave was the ONLY person we taught in six months. Literally. We didn't even teach the second lesson to ANYONE. Anyway, Dave was a little slow to open up and had not been very religious before. Little by little, his heart started to change, and his transformation (for whatever reason) was complete when I beat him at darts one night. I still can't explain why that was such a powerful experience for him but I'll take it (plus, I beat him at darts!) We baptized him not long before I left the area, and on my last week I conferred the Aaronic Priesthood upon him. We also baptized his nine year old step daughter, Kelly, as the rest of his family started to come back to church. Dave is one of my favorite people, and I love his family. Plus, he worked at the Sprecher's factory and always hooked us up with soda...not that that's the reason I love them. To be honest, though, I was still worried about him and his family and wondered if it would stick because of all the struggles they were still having. I felt like I had let them down.

Another wonderful family was the Farrenkopfs (don't worry if you can't say any of these people's names. Now you know why I was on a first name basis with most people for two years). The mother, Ann, was a fairly recent convert who had been through a ton of trials of her faith. Her husband, a good but tradition bound man, was outraged by her baptism and made her transition incredibly difficult. Ann left the Church for a while and even tried to return to her own faith. But, she realized that she already knew better. She started having the missionaries over again, and began her journey back into full activity. Her journey back was very bumpy, and she depended on us missionaries a lot for the support she was not getting in the home. During her own struggles, her beautiful daughter, Katie, began having some struggles of her own. Ann would talk to us about her and express her concern and love. Katie began sitting in with us and listening to what we were teaching her mother. A few weeks later, Ann told us that Katie told her, "the only time I feel good is when you and the missionaries are around me." Our desire to teach Katie more was cut short by her father, who felt it was bad enough to have one Mormon under his roof. Again, another disappointment and seemingly inevitable failure reared its ugly head.

Me and the former Elder Harrison with the Mahr family in Idaho!

Like I promised, though, this story ends happily! Last week, I was able to go up to Dave's oldest stepdaughter's wedding reception in Idaho. Dave and his wife were in attendance at the sealing. When I met them, I could tell that the gospel had changed them so much. Their problems were not all done, but they just seemed lighter, happier, and they glowed. Dave told me he was excited to have his family sealed to him in a few months. I could not be happier for them. A few days later, I finally got a hold of Ann and asked how she was doing. She told me that Katie had recently been baptized and how excited she was that she now had someone to share this wonderful gospel with. Katie is going to attend the Y in the Fall. I don't know exactly what changed there, but I am so excited for both of them. Ann also told me that she has received her own endowments and felt such a peace that she's never felt anywhere else while in the temple. Now, I learned two things from these experiences. First, keep the faith. You never know when things will click into place. Second, Christ has his eyes on everyone and He knows when they are ready and how to succor them. I thought they were "my converts" but they are not. They are Christ's converts and they convert themselves.

Oh, and I still don't really believe that tracting in the rain makes your wife more gorgeous. But, have you seen me wife?!?!? I am beginning to think that maybe it is a true saying, afterall.

Us with the beautiful Farrenkopf girls (and son). They make us look even fatter. But, hey, the Lord said to the righteous "I will make you fat in the Lord."

 

Sweet little Kelly's baptism.

Why I am having my doubts that tracting in the rain doesn't work!