Housework (gag) - Flylady to the Rescue / Judy

I want to talk about something we all deal with--housework. I've always wanted a clean house, but since mine has always been full of people, it hasn't happened very often.

I used to think that even if the house were really clean, just having all those bodies around makes it look cluttered. I have to say, though, that having only adults does help--a little.

flylady to the rescue

Anyway, recently I signed up with FlyLady.net and it has helped me a LOT with keeping order. The sign-up is free and then you get daily emails, lots of daily emails. I usually scan them for the interesting stuff, delete the rest, and it takes less than five minutes. I do have to warn that you might feel overwhelmed at first with all the information on the site, but don't panic! Take things one at a time, which is what she recommends anyway--baby steps.

Here's a quote from one of the emails: 

"You can't organized clutter; you have to get rid of it! In order to find peace in your home the clutter has to find a new place to reside.

Release your clutter. Spend just 15 minutes a day decluttering. When you bring home something new; get rid of something old."

Another thing she says is keep your kitchen sink clean ALL THE TIME. And it's amazing what a difference this one chore makes.

Her basic mantra is that we have to have routines/habits in place. If we don't, we can spend all day cleaning then the place just gets messy again immediately. But if we've developed routines/habits that we do almost automatically, we can keep the mess at bay.

a daily schedule that works for me

Here is my daily schedule (to quote from an article I once wrote): think of it as B,B,C,D,F, which sounds like a poor report card but which stands for: 

Bed:  make it,  

Bathroom: a quick swish and swipe while you're in there getting ready,  

Clutter: quick pick-up, especially working on the "hot spots" that gather stuff to them--I do this pretty much all day),  

Dishes: keeping the sink clean and empty, and 

Floors: sweep daily. 

There are many other chores we have to do of course (for example, she also talks about conquering Mount Washmore), but even if I do only these five things every day, I can keep the appearance of a tidy home and not panic if someone comes over unexpectedly.

I highly recommend going to that web site and/or getting her book, Sink Reflections if you're ready to do something positive in this area. Hang in there!

Another movie analysis - Kung Fu Panda / Judy

Yesterday I watched "Kung Fu Panda" in the afternoon -- the DVD was due back that day, so I had to. It wasn't as fun as watching it in the theater, so to keep from being bored, I did the analysis I told you about earlier in Scriptwriting - Pacing a Movie Script. Since the whole movie was a little less than 90 min., all the steps took place a little sooner, but they were still there. (Spoiler alert)

catalyst at 10 min

Occurs early at 8 min. with the proclamation to the whole valley that Oogway is about to choose the Dragon Warrior and they could all come watch.

new twist at 45 min

We learn that the villain, Tai Lung, is actually the adopted son of Master Shifu and has been trained by the Master himself.

reversal at 60 mins

After Shifu has been training Po with food, and Po finally says, "I'm not hungry." Also, up to that point, Po kept denying that he was the Dragon Warrior but after this realizes he is.

climax at 90 min

A long fight scene at the end of the movie.

comment

I find I only think about this sort of thing when I'm not that interested in the movie itself, and it adds to the enjoyment. But now here’s another example of structuring the script

Mountain Meadows Massacre - A Cautionary Tale / Lloyd

Friday, 14 Nov 2008, email addressed to members of the church

“As all of you know, the protests from the “No on 8” side will continue this weekend.

“We are counseled not to hold counter-demonstrations. The other side will be looking for confrontations and if they get them, guess how the attending media will spin villains and victims?

“Please counsel our people to stay away from the demonstrations and let the police handle things. Especially encourage our most passionate supporters to stay at home. . .

“Keep things in perspective: We can paint over graffiti on our buildings and we can plant new flowers on our temple grounds, but it's more difficult to repair a reputation that has been tarnished because some member loses his temper.

Be patient and kind. Turn the other cheek. This too shall pass.”

contextual comments

1. The advice not only keeps supporters of Prop. 8 out of the camera lens attempting to add fuel to the frenzied fire, but also protects them from being caught up in the rage personally, which could get out of hand.

2. Mormons have faced this politically approved lawlessness many times in its history, especially in Missouri and Illinois. [See Missouri Governor Orders Mormons Expelled—or Exterminated and Wikipedia: Latter Day Saint martyrs. Added 5 May 2013.]

3. Since the demonstrating, vandalism, and terrorist threats began in the aftermath of Proposition 8 passing, not one politician has spoken out against it. On the contrary, in California politicians from the Governor down have been telling protesters to hang in there, that their cause is just, and that Proposition 8 will be overturned.

4. Mormons left the United States for Utah to escape State sanctioned rape, murder, and plunder. Earlier, the Prophet Joseph Smith personally petitioned United States president Martin Van Buren to intercede for his people. Van Buren replied: "Your cause is just, but I can do nothing for you. If I take up for you I shall lose the vote of Missouri." And just before fleeing the States, Mormon leaders wrote to every state of the Union asking for asylum. Their pleas were met with either refusals or silence.

5. Mormons endured many hardships getting to Utah, many died on the way and after arriving because of harsh conditions. But in 1857 a single event that was totally inconsistent with their theology and history, overshadowed their own just cause.

6. On September 11, 1857 local Mormon militia members in southern Utah, in the company of Paiute Indians, murdered 120 traveling emigrants, including women and older children, leaving only a few younger children to be farmed out among the Mormon settlers. This tragedy became known as the Mountain Meadows Massacre.

7. I asked my Father about this tragedy when I first read about it in high school. His family was from Southern Utah—about an hour by automobile south of Mountain Meadows. He said that the emigrants came from Arkansas and may have participated in the earlier persecutions of Mormons. He said that people from this company expressed surprise at finding the Mormon settlement, that they thought killing off ole Joe Smith would have taken care of the Mormons once and for all, that they bragged about their own exploits in persecuting the Mormons, and that they threatened to come back and finish the job.

8. Now I don’t know what the folks from Arkansas may have said, and I don’t know how Dad learned this unless it was passed down through his family who settled in the region. But nothing said or done warranted a massacre. And in a recent study about the event, Massacre at Mountain Meadows, published by Oxford University Press, the authors ask, “How can basically good people commit such a terrible atrocity?”

9. I can tell you. They can let themselves be incited by Satan’s war cry, “Let’s you two go fight.” Any justification will do, but feelings of fear, hurt, and anger really prime the pump. And no one should figure he is completely immune to Satan’s promptings given the right conditions.

10. Currently, demonstrators in support of same-sex marriage are targeting those members of the religious community whom they blame for passing Proposition 8. And thus far that community is showing appropriate restraint. However, should Proposition 8 be overturned as politicians are promising, we may learn that many others voted to ban same-sex marriage out of hate for homosexuals, not with the objective of protecting traditional marriage. And these folks many not be so disciplined as the religious community in responding to terrorist attacks.

11. Regrettably, the political leadership in California has thus far pandered to lawlessness. Their behavior is more contemptible than that of President Martin Van Buren, who at least conceded that he was afraid to lose the vote of a loud and influential constituency by protecting life and property.

12. Whether Proposition 8 is overturned or not, the failure of politicians to uphold laws that were enacted through the established, Constitutional orderly and deliberative legislative and judicial processes have subordinated civil peace and safety to anarchy and terror. They may be jaded politicians seeking personal advantage or just cowardly. They have set the stage for a potentially more serious outbreak of violence in the future.

13. These politicians have become contributors to Satan’s agenda of civil conflict and disorder and will likely declare, "I had no idea things would get so out of hand." Such craven and criminal excuses have been repeated often and on a grand scale during my lifetime.

Something Positive / Judy

The following are some things that have been printed in the media lately. And while there are many more examples of negative, even scary things, it's encouraging that there at least a few thinking people out there.

1. From HumanEvents.com

The…response by gay-marriage advocates has been massive threats of retaliation against those participating in the political process, the LDS church in particular, as well as African-Americans, 70% of whom voted for Prop 8, according to exit polling.

Large, disruptive protests are being held at LDS places of worship in California and Utah. In the waning days of the campaign, gay-marriage advocates actually ran an outrageous hate-filled television ad “Home Invasion,” inciting religious hatred against the LDS church because its members donated to Prop 8.

These tactics however may backfire. Gay-marriage advocates are no longer looking like a movement devoted to love and tolerance. They are affirming the Yes on Prop 8 campaign's contention that religious liberty is on the line in the marriage debate. Gay-marriage advocates now appear to view anyone who thinks marriage means the union of one man and one woman is the equivalent of a racist, and can be treated as such.

Singling out minority religious communities because they exercised their basic civil rights to vote, organize and donate is a truly ugly new development..

2. Dennis Wyatt, managing editor of the Manteca Bulletin

Some of the tactics used against Proposition 8 supporters in California are objectionable:

People upset about others that voted in favor of Prop. 8 trying to put their standards on everyone else should look in the mirror -- they're trying to do the same thing. Equating a yes vote on Prop. 8 to being equivalent to hate is disingenuous at best and tells those you are trying to convince to change their views that if you disagree with them you'll get smeared.

Pursuing the principle of protecting the rights of minorities doesn't justify mob rule. There has yet to be one case of gangs of Mormons going out and defacing Gay & Lesbian Centers. Too bad the same can't be said about some who said they voted against Proposition 8 and have spray-painted meeting houses and stake centers.

Screaming in someone's face who thinks differently than you isn't an effective way to get them to change their position.

3. L.A. Times columnist Tim Rutten

When churches leap into the process as religious organizations, it raises hackles, and rightly so. It's a distasteful business, but so is singling out individual political donors for retribution and boycotts that deprive them of their living. A blacklist in the service of a good cause is still a blacklist."

4. Thomas Sowall in Mormon Times

Among the many new "rights" being conjured out of thin air, a new one seems to be a "right" to win.

Americans have long had the right to put their candidates and their ideas to a vote. Now there seems to be a sense that your rights have been trampled on if you don't win.

The worst of all the reactions from people who act as if they have a right to win have come from gay activists in the wake of voter rejection of so-called "gay marriage," which is to say, redefining what marriage has meant for centuries.

Blacks and Mormons have been the main targets of the gay activists' anger. Seventy percent of blacks voted against gay marriage in California, so racial epithets were hurled at blacks in Los Angeles— not in black neighborhoods, by the way.

Blacks who just happened to be driving through Westwood, near UCLA, were accosted in their cars and, in addition to being denounced, were warned, "You better watch your back."

Even blacks who were carrying signs in favor of gay marriage were denounced with racial epithets.

In Michigan, an evangelical church service was invaded and disrupted by gay activists, who also set off a fire alarm, because evangelicals had dared to exercise their right to express their opinions at the polls.

In Oakland, California, a mob gathered outside a Mormon temple in such numbers that officials shut down a nearby freeway exit for more than three hours.

In their midst was a San Francisco Supervisor who said "The Mormon church has had to rely on our tolerance in the past, to be able to express their beliefs." He added, "This is a huge mistake for them. It looks like they've forgotten some lessons."

Apparently Mormons don't have the same rights as other Americans, at least not if they don't vote the way gay activists want them to vote.

In the past, gay activists have disrupted Catholic services and their "gay pride" parades in San Francisco have crudely mocked nuns.

While demanding tolerance from others, gay activists apparently feel no need to show any themselves.

5. And finally, an email from Kristen that kind of puts it all into perspective

Last week a high counselor gave an interesting talk in our ward.  He had gone to the L.A. temple the day before, and he told some interesting things that he learned from the new temple president there.  The new temple president was just set apart on November 1st.  He said that his blessing to be set apart said that in the coming weeks the LA temple would stand as a beacon to the world more than it had ever been before.  The temple president said that since the election he has received letters from all over California and even the world thanking our church for standing up for marriage and family.  People feel this would not have passed if it had not been for the organized effort by our church.  Apparently he even pulled many letters out of his pocket to show a few.  He said that he had also received many phone calls and people asking him if he could take a credit card payment because people are so grateful that they wanted to make donations to "our organization."

It is nice to hear the other side of the story from the anger we always hear on the news.

Let's You Two Go Fight / Lloyd

Barmy Bible Study: Cain and Abel 

We’ve all observed that one of Satan’s most destructive and effective tactics is to say, “Let’s you two go fight.”

He is the king of contention and warfare. And he slanders his opponents as haters and demons, while he claims to be the source of peace, reason, tolerance, and the champion of civil rights.

One reason for the increasing fury over passing California’s Prop. 8 may be the lawful and disciplined response of the religious community under attack. Thus far they haven’t taken Satan’s bait to fight in the streets, which must be a terrible frustration for him.

Cain’s rejected sacrifice

Another reason for the extraordinary level of fury and hurt among homosexuals can be best illustrated by understanding the story of Cain’s rejected sacrifice.

Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain was a tiller of the ground. But to keep the law of sacrifice  they both required a firstling of the flock without blemish.

This was a ritual that foreshadowed and symbolized the eventual and ultimate sacrifice to redeem all mankind. Abel provided the appropriate sacrifice, while Cain made an offering of the fruit of the ground. The Lord accepted Abel’s offering but not Cain’s, who became very wroth and soon after killed Abel.

The Book of Moses in the Pearl of Great Price sheds light on the role Satan played in this tragedy:

But behold, Cain hearkened not [unto Eve’s admonition not to reject the Lord], saying: Who is the Lord that I should know him? . . . And Cain loved Satan more than God. And Satan commanded him, saying: Make an [inappropriate] offering unto to the Lord . . . But unto Cain, and to his offering, he [the Lord] had not respect. Now Satan knew this, and it pleased him. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. (Moses 5: 16ff) (Emphasis added.)

Essentially, Satan set Cain up for failure, to receive the Lord’s censure. You can hear Satan pointing out to Cain how unfair it was that the fruits of Abel’s labor were acceptable but not Cain’s, who certainly worked just as hard as Abel did.

Perhaps Cain even needed to trade his agricultural products for one of Abel’s prime-without-blemish sheep for the sacrifice. Insult upon injury. It wasn’t too difficult for Satan to channel Cain’s subsequent hurt and anger into murder.

Satan set up gays and lesbians

Satan set up gays and lesbians by encouraging them to prematurely expose personal and tender feelings in the fight over same-sex marriage.

The gay community needed to effectively communicate,  “Hey, we’re real people who feel and love just like you do.” To illustrate further, students at one college went around campus in kind of a performance art wherein they demonstrated same-sex couples in loving poses and relationships.

When California voters approved Prop. 8, the gay and lesbian community felt personally betrayed, hurt—rejected and victimized.

Now Satan is channeling their anger and that of their supporters for his own purposes.

self-pity, anger, and Satan’s ultimate game – murder / suicide

Scriptures refer to Satan as the devil, the adversary, the prince of this world, the wicked one, the enemy, perdition, that old serpent, the great dragon, the accuser, a liar from the beginning, and a murderer from the beginning.

It’s not unreasonable that Satan in his efforts to instigate misery and unhappiness among us all, among both homosexuals and heterosexuals, will employ every one of his negative talents to bait open warfare.

Even good men commit great evil in the name of “righteous” revenge. And from the beginning murder has been Satan’s ultimate game.

And too many buy the lie they are worthless and become so discouraged and depressed they commit suicide. Whether by murder or suicide – it would be all the same to the Father of Lies.

Fires, Red Lobster, Ben & White Chirstmas / Judy

gratitude that our fire was only itty bitty

Turns out the fire we had on our hillside last week was just a baby compared to what's happening south of here. Ours only burned 60 acres and although some of the uppermost streets were evacuated, no homes were harmed. It started with a spark from a PG&E power line up there.Things are still very dry here because the rains haven't come yet. We've had one small sprinkle time, but there hasn't been any real rain since last April. When we watch the news about Santa Barbara and Los Angeles and see what could have happened, we are SO GRATEFUL.

red lobster - ben & 

white christmas, the musical

On Saturday night Lloyd and I met Ben in Santa Maria and went to Red Lobster for dinner before going to his play - a PCPA production. I've always wanted to go to Red Lobster because of their commercials and one just opened there, so we went. And it was as good as promised.

Then we saw "White Christmas" with Ben in the ensemble and it was so much fun to see him singing and dancing. And he held his own with all those really good dancers.

The play itself was magical! It was so fun and positive and hopeful that we came out downright uplifted. Just what's needed right now.

Afterwards we waited for Ben and I felt like we were hanging around the stage door. When he came out he introduced us to several people from the play and I liked feeling a little like an insider. As I've said many times, it sure will be interesting to see where this career takes him. Meanwhile, we're having the time of our lives going along for the ride with him.

Facebook Rocks / Lloyd

I recently signed up for facebook and find myself linking with people I thought I’d never hear from again. Good friends from Frederick, MD and even from high school.

Its immediacy and pictures make facebook more fun than plain email in keeping up with family and friends. Though facebook includes private email features as well as the more fun forum with shared comments and networking.

If you’re already on facebook, please invite me to join you. If you’d like to check it out, I’ll be happy to send you an invitation with links to help set it up—though your kids may be the best help. Either way, I hope to hear from you.

FIRE! / Judy

smoke, flames & sirens

This morning about 9:00 we noticed the light looked funny outside, then we saw it was from smoke. I wondered if it was smoke from the big Santa Barbara fires a hundred miles south, but then we heard all sorts of sirens.

When we went outside to look, we saw the big hill right beside us was on fire! The whole hill was smokey and we could even see flames about half way up. Fire trucks were there from several of the surrounding towns and they blocked off the streets heading up the hill. Someone said there were firefighters right in the back yards of some of the uppermost houses. We watched a couple planes circling, then dropping flame retardant. They'd circle 3 or 4 times, then drop their load.

an offer to evacuate grandpa

It's been about two hours since we first noticed the smoke and the fire seems to be contained or even out in most places. At one point we got a call from the home health people who've been coming for physical therapy with Grandpa since his fall a couple weeks ago. They wanted to know if we'd need any help with Grandpa if we had to evacuate. Of course he's sleeping through the whole thing and we'll tell him about it tonight. But what an exciting way to start the day, especially since it looks like all is well now. I mean the fire was RIGHT THERE!

How long, Oh Lord? / Judy

when, oh when can we put this behind us?

I just received an email from my friend, who said I should listen to something on YouTube by Keith Olberman, which I did. Sigh.

They think we don’t understand and if they just say it loud enough and long enough, we’ll “get it.” The fact of the matter is, I don’t think they “get" us about our stance. So what can I say to her? So far we are still friendly and I’d like to keep it that way, but I may have to offend her by saying that homosexuality is a sin.

Meanwhile, here is an interesting little tidbit from a Santa Barbara paper:

“Proposition 8 cuts through the Babel of political scapegoating and speculation swirling around the election’s biggest surprise. The issue of traditional marriage brought together this wild, very unlikely coalition. You have the Catholics, who can’t stand the evangelical Protestants, who can’t stand the Catholics, and then the Mormons, who are outcasts, and hated by everyone [emphasis added]. What was going on here?”

Just Newsy / Judy

change in bishopric

We got a new bishopric on Sunday. When I first came in and looked at the program, it said the meeting  was under the direction of the stake president. I thought, wow, they’re going to talk about all the stuff that’s going on about Prop 8 and the backlash against the church. But no; it was a new bishopric. Bishop Pearson hasn’t been well, and the rigors of annual tithing settlement were looming large. We now have Bishop Eric Kasper and his counselors are Dave Platt and Brian Rober.

Madagascar 2

Last night Dad and I went to see “Madagascar 2” and it was really good. I laughed or smiled all the way through it. I think the kids would especially like it, although so would their parents. I couldn’t help but notice how amazing the animation/drawing was—absolutely beautiful. They’ve come a long way since “Snow White.”

just created a facebook account

By the way, I just signed up on Facebook because Hilary made me. Of course, since I’m brand new,  I have no friends, which is pretty pathetic. Now I’ll have to ask her how to get some.

great bumper sticker

I have to tell you about this great bumper sticker I saw:  “I have CDO, which is just like OCD except the letters are in alphabetical order, as they should be.”

Letter to the editor / Judy

The following is a letter to the editor I sent in yesterday. Of course they probably won’t print it, but I felt like writing it anyway. It’s scary to send in one of these because if they do print it, there is always the possibility that someone will write a rebuttal that makes you look like an idiot.

Title: WHERE’S THE BEEF?

We’ve all heard that Proposition 8 was the most expensive initiative in the country, outside of the presidential campaign. According to one source on Nov. 3, the 'Yes on 8' folks raised $35.8 million and it was obvious how they spent it. We received phone calls, had fliers handed out and left on doors, saw several different TV commercials aired several times, and read two full-page ads in The Tribune.

The 'No on 8' folks raised even more money--$37.6 million, but we got no phone calls, no door hangings. One group of students wanted bumper stickers and signs and couldn’t find any for a long time. I saw a few small newspaper ads and only 3 different TV commercials, aired once each.

So my question is: Where did the money go? And will they be sending out refund checks?

Kidney Stones & More / Judy

dealing with kidney stones

Okay, I am now officially falling apart. I’ve had an x-ray of my abdomen and evidently I have several kidney stones. So I’m getting ready to have some sort of “procedure” to smash them up and remove them.

but wait - there’s more

In preparation for this, I was told to stop taking my daily dose of baby aspirin. I did and after a few days, my varicose veins starting acting up--getting red and tender and hot and painful.

So yesterday I went to the doctor about them and he said to start up the aspirin again, walk more (helps push the blood through the veins so it doesn’t pool in the weak spots), drink more water and he gave me an antibiotic. I’ll be doing all this until the legs get better, then a week after I stop taking aspirin I can think about the kidneys.

Meanwhile, the urologist is worried because I might have a kidney stone attack any time, although I’ve had the stones since at least last summer and so far so good. But now I feel I could blow any minute.

What a depressing blog.

Grandkids -- Adorable and Direct / Judy

resolved to blog more

I know I’m disappointed when people don’t write in their blogs every day, so I’m going to try to write at least more often, even though each time it will probably be short—like today. And you probably won't get any pictures from me because I have no idea how to do that.

not in training - exhausted but worth it

This past weekend we watched the Anderson kids while their parents were in Hawaii. It was fun but exhausting. We just aren’t in training for that sort of activity any more. I’ve taken long naps and gone to bed early for the past two days. But it was worth it because those kids are so sweet and affectionate. It was adorable to see little Brennan light up and run towards him whenever Lloyd came in the room.

clear eyed & direct

On Monday I took Dallin to preschool and when I picked him up he showed me a small pumpkin he’d painted very colorfully. The stem was white and he told me, “the top is white just like yours [meaning my hair]. But this top is white because I painted it. Yours is white because you’re old.” (sigh)