Lately, a couple of news items have been bugging me.
1) The arguments to build a mosque nearby Ground Zero in New York.
2) Disney employee who refused to wear the head cover costume designed to accommodate her request to wear a hijab to work
3) A bigger woman asked to pay $5 extra for being overweight at a nail salon claiming discrimination
What bothers me even more is when the media is obviously biased in presenting the stories, without really discussing both sides. For example, the mosque discussion only paints the portrait of religious freedom and the legal "rights" of the building, regardless of location. But is it morally okay? Would America build an American cultural center in Hiroshima, would we construct a Japanese cultural center in Pearl Harbor and would it be okay to have a Nazi flag by the Museum of Tolerance?! With the Disney employee, she claims her costume makes her look silly but it is not far from the attention she would get wearing a hijab - and don't forget, she probably had to sign a detailed contract about appropriate dress code and "costumes" even if she is just a hostess, after all, she is in client service, and I likewise, cannot just dye my hair purple, claim I have a right, and not face ramifications of the expectations, and that is without a contract about dress which I am quite confident Disney made her sign! And lastly, I've always wondered why extra long or large clothes aren't more expensive and the Vietnamese ladies have a point. They claimed the wear and tear on their chairs were greater from larger patrons and the overweight lady claimed it was discrimination. So should we just pretend everyone is the same size when we're in the airplane and the overweight person who paid the same price as you, seeps over to your seat?! I just don't get it sometimes. Since when did obesity become protected?
Since Andy has call every three days, it gives me much more time to watch the ten o'clock news, and to ponder it. I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing. Am I becoming more critical, more pessimistic, or am I finally realizing the media is just a bit liberally biased?
I know liberal and conservative Mormons and regardless of such opinions, we all share in our belief that the gospel is true. That the Church is true. That Jesus is our Savior. That is such a comfort to me, especially as I shake my head at such news that just ... plain bothers me.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Time Flies When You're Married!
I finally changed my name! It wasn't THAT complicated... just had to get the license which we didn't notarize on the day of our marriage... and to avoid going in, we got it notarized, sent it into the Recorder's Office, got it back because I didn't fill out a part, sent it back in, got it back, got my passport, and got my social security card updated! WHEW! *sigh of relief!
Marriage is everything everybody said it would be - lots of hard work but oh-so worth it! I LOVEEEEEEEEEEE being married. My favorite part is coming home to my best friend everyday who is now my family, my next favorite part is knowing I have someone to share with my good and bad news, and man, I have so many favorite parts.. this blog could go on forever. Well, my least favorite part is cleaning up the hair that falls into the shower and sinks (thanks Mom!).
A month ago, we ate some of our red velvet raspberry cake from our wedding day. Note to those gearing up for a wedding, don't get fruit in your cake. Our raspberry part was just a sauce so it stayed well but the other two layers were angel cake with mangos and I don't think that lasted so well sitting out for that long. Hehe. So a month later, droopy and dented, the wedding cake was further cut into for our one month celebration. Maybe I'll ask Andy if we can eat another piece tonight. A month ago, it wasn't that great - I can't even imagine what it would be at in a year! Kinda gross if you ask me...
Marriage is everything everybody said it would be - lots of hard work but oh-so worth it! I LOVEEEEEEEEEEE being married. My favorite part is coming home to my best friend everyday who is now my family, my next favorite part is knowing I have someone to share with my good and bad news, and man, I have so many favorite parts.. this blog could go on forever. Well, my least favorite part is cleaning up the hair that falls into the shower and sinks (thanks Mom!).
A month ago, we ate some of our red velvet raspberry cake from our wedding day. Note to those gearing up for a wedding, don't get fruit in your cake. Our raspberry part was just a sauce so it stayed well but the other two layers were angel cake with mangos and I don't think that lasted so well sitting out for that long. Hehe. So a month later, droopy and dented, the wedding cake was further cut into for our one month celebration. Maybe I'll ask Andy if we can eat another piece tonight. A month ago, it wasn't that great - I can't even imagine what it would be at in a year! Kinda gross if you ask me...
We're Mere Specks By Name
I went to Camp Fox as a camp attendee on Catalina Island in 1994. Most recently, I was a camp counselor at the Ronald McDonald Camp for Good Times in 2007. But I've actually never been camping. Not officially at least.
So on Andy's first weekend off since he started school, we ventured up the Interstate 5 to Los Padres National Forest for a mini camping trip (he wanted to do something low-key being it was my first time ever in the woods!). We opted for a pack in, pack out car type camping which was explained to me as camping near our cars. I was a bit confused about why we needed to do that. Couldn't we just pitch a tent across our apartment in the hilly fields where the coyotes roam? He told me that wasn't camping. But we're going Friday night and leaving Saturday noonish? Camping was already sounding a bit fishy. Andy was so excited, like a little boy who is getting ready to see a real live train.
We got all our gear ready - a tent, an air mattress, a cooler filled with ice, water, salsa, foil wrapped veggies, potatoes, chicken, scallops, cream of mushroom and salt and pepper (thanks Dennis!), Cactus Cooler and Hawaiian bread, lime tostitos, Vanilla wafers, leftover Panera chocolate chip cookies, marshmallows, a lantern, pillows, blankets, a suitcase, chairs and a mallow - and into the car it all went. It must have taken us three trips but at least we learned an important lesson for future camping trips- some additional time on the packing side might help for the loading and unloading side.
We arrived around 6:30 PM after a 1.5 hour drive and upon entering the parking lot, we saw at least a dozen telescopes, all ranging in size, some as big as 15 feet! We knew there would be a lot of people there with telescopes because Andy had spoken with the Park Ranger beforehand and knew the spot would be popular due to the new moon and the camping spot coined as one of the best star gazing spots in all of California!
We went off in search of a camp spot but noticed most spots were taken and a bunch of grown up men and women, dressed in medieval attire were hanging out. We asked one of the guys walking with caution tape whether there were more camping spots further along the path and got to talking with him. Turns out, there were three teams of people all here for a medieval reenactment battle Saturday morning! They used weapons that were lined with cushioning, but it was such a sight. I didn't get any photos of them but it wasn't anything abnormal, we all do it but we call it Halloween or themed parties. Hehe.
I won't get into the minute details of how fun setting up the tent was, enjoying the beautiful scenery, watching Toy Story 2 in our tent, or the hike loop that we were unsure of but kept going along... but I will say I married a manly man because he cut our wood from a tree branch near by (see photo insert below). And... that the nighttime star gazing was amazing! The sky was adorned with tiny specks, each blinking, each different in brightness, each so high up in the sky. You could see the sky bending in the corners as if we were in a planetarium and it was absolutely breathtaking. We went to hang out with the amateur telescope guys and were able to look back into time at stars that had exploded and the masses that were still there. It just testified to me of how massive the universe is and how little we may be in the grand scheme of things but that Heavenly Father knows all of us by name. That is how amazing He is. And though we're just mere specks, we're specks by name.
So on Andy's first weekend off since he started school, we ventured up the Interstate 5 to Los Padres National Forest for a mini camping trip (he wanted to do something low-key being it was my first time ever in the woods!). We opted for a pack in, pack out car type camping which was explained to me as camping near our cars. I was a bit confused about why we needed to do that. Couldn't we just pitch a tent across our apartment in the hilly fields where the coyotes roam? He told me that wasn't camping. But we're going Friday night and leaving Saturday noonish? Camping was already sounding a bit fishy. Andy was so excited, like a little boy who is getting ready to see a real live train.
We got all our gear ready - a tent, an air mattress, a cooler filled with ice, water, salsa, foil wrapped veggies, potatoes, chicken, scallops, cream of mushroom and salt and pepper (thanks Dennis!), Cactus Cooler and Hawaiian bread, lime tostitos, Vanilla wafers, leftover Panera chocolate chip cookies, marshmallows, a lantern, pillows, blankets, a suitcase, chairs and a mallow - and into the car it all went. It must have taken us three trips but at least we learned an important lesson for future camping trips- some additional time on the packing side might help for the loading and unloading side.
We arrived around 6:30 PM after a 1.5 hour drive and upon entering the parking lot, we saw at least a dozen telescopes, all ranging in size, some as big as 15 feet! We knew there would be a lot of people there with telescopes because Andy had spoken with the Park Ranger beforehand and knew the spot would be popular due to the new moon and the camping spot coined as one of the best star gazing spots in all of California!
We went off in search of a camp spot but noticed most spots were taken and a bunch of grown up men and women, dressed in medieval attire were hanging out. We asked one of the guys walking with caution tape whether there were more camping spots further along the path and got to talking with him. Turns out, there were three teams of people all here for a medieval reenactment battle Saturday morning! They used weapons that were lined with cushioning, but it was such a sight. I didn't get any photos of them but it wasn't anything abnormal, we all do it but we call it Halloween or themed parties. Hehe.
I won't get into the minute details of how fun setting up the tent was, enjoying the beautiful scenery, watching Toy Story 2 in our tent, or the hike loop that we were unsure of but kept going along... but I will say I married a manly man because he cut our wood from a tree branch near by (see photo insert below). And... that the nighttime star gazing was amazing! The sky was adorned with tiny specks, each blinking, each different in brightness, each so high up in the sky. You could see the sky bending in the corners as if we were in a planetarium and it was absolutely breathtaking. We went to hang out with the amateur telescope guys and were able to look back into time at stars that had exploded and the masses that were still there. It just testified to me of how massive the universe is and how little we may be in the grand scheme of things but that Heavenly Father knows all of us by name. That is how amazing He is. And though we're just mere specks, we're specks by name.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Me Loves Some Scrapbooking
Paper cutters, ribbon curlers, stickers, glitter and more!
How I love to scrapbook, how much I do adore!
So much so that about a year ago,
I volunteered my time and service, and so...
I'd cut up some paper, I'd stick on some photos
Making scrapbook pages, how great! until a small woe...
Engaged I did get to a handsome young lad
Wedding planning evolved and man, was it mad!
Time seemed not enough, and little did it disappear
Finish I could not, deadline would I not meet - oh, the fear!
Marry we did, for all eternity
Scrapbook pages still pending...how could it be?!
Finish I did... but quite a time late
Here they all are, tell me they're great!
Though my service project for a CHLA doctor did eventually get completed, there were still some pages that were kinda silly looking and in my scrapbooking opinion, were just literally glued together with some simple stickers atop. I was reminded of something a partner once said to us at a team meeting that I think should be applied to life.
"Under promise and over deliver."
Makes sense right? This way, you're never disappointing yourself (which comes often from mismanaged or unrealistic expectations) but also not falling prey to lazy ways and under achieving. Andy always reminds me that situations don't create people, decisions do. How lucky I am to be reminded of that daily from a loving husband that I get to be with for all eternity! Make the decision today to under promise and over deliver (but don't under promise so much that you automatically over deliver.. cuz that would just be lame).
How I love to scrapbook, how much I do adore!
So much so that about a year ago,
I volunteered my time and service, and so...
I'd cut up some paper, I'd stick on some photos
Making scrapbook pages, how great! until a small woe...
Engaged I did get to a handsome young lad
Wedding planning evolved and man, was it mad!
Time seemed not enough, and little did it disappear
Finish I could not, deadline would I not meet - oh, the fear!
Marry we did, for all eternity
Scrapbook pages still pending...how could it be?!
Finish I did... but quite a time late
Here they all are, tell me they're great!
Though my service project for a CHLA doctor did eventually get completed, there were still some pages that were kinda silly looking and in my scrapbooking opinion, were just literally glued together with some simple stickers atop. I was reminded of something a partner once said to us at a team meeting that I think should be applied to life.
"Under promise and over deliver."
Makes sense right? This way, you're never disappointing yourself (which comes often from mismanaged or unrealistic expectations) but also not falling prey to lazy ways and under achieving. Andy always reminds me that situations don't create people, decisions do. How lucky I am to be reminded of that daily from a loving husband that I get to be with for all eternity! Make the decision today to under promise and over deliver (but don't under promise so much that you automatically over deliver.. cuz that would just be lame).
I'm Always Learning - cached version
When it comes to cooking, I'm a beginner. A novice. A complete mess at times.
I don't really know how to cut vegetables... but somehow I just keep at it until they're small enough to cook with. I don't really know all my spices... but I'm learning how they smell when I use them. I don't really know how to locate all the ingredients for a recipe... part of that is because I grew up with the Chinese names of everything (turnip is literally translated as white carrot in Chinese) and part of that is because my mom once said to me...
"Don't worry about cooking. You got the whole rest of your life to figure that out once you're married."
True story.
And so I'm learning. I learned that chicken stock and chicken broth are the same thing. I learned what a pork roast looks like (the butcher showed me). I learned that cream of tartar and tartar powder are two very different ingredients. And last but not least, I learned that baked beans are not the same as the Mexican black beans you get at Chipotle, Baja Fresh or La Salsa.
I don't really know how to cut vegetables... but somehow I just keep at it until they're small enough to cook with. I don't really know all my spices... but I'm learning how they smell when I use them. I don't really know how to locate all the ingredients for a recipe... part of that is because I grew up with the Chinese names of everything (turnip is literally translated as white carrot in Chinese) and part of that is because my mom once said to me...
"Don't worry about cooking. You got the whole rest of your life to figure that out once you're married."
True story.
And so I'm learning. I learned that chicken stock and chicken broth are the same thing. I learned what a pork roast looks like (the butcher showed me). I learned that cream of tartar and tartar powder are two very different ingredients. And last but not least, I learned that baked beans are not the same as the Mexican black beans you get at Chipotle, Baja Fresh or La Salsa.
We're Technically All On Call - cached version
Today is Andy's second on-call day, which means he left this morning in scrubs, a pager, a white short jacket, a back pack, a packed lunch (of leftover Cafe Rio salad made into sliders), and a smile on his face at 5:45 AM and will return with a big grin at 10:30 PM.
I think on-call days are awesome. Granted they are a long day for Andy and a lonely day for me, I choose to look at it as an opportunity for both of us. For Andy, he gets to learn for 14+ hours whether it's learning how to be bored, interact with a resident, patient, talking to random hospital people, learning the quick routes of the hospital, or walking around in scrubs. For me, it means a lot of time to further decorate the house, organize our folders and binders of bills, bank accounts, receipts, recipes, warranties, etc., do some bar method, eat a Trader Joe's mushroom and garlic pizza with diet Sprite, watch a chick-flick and do my nails with a face mask on. Plus, it's really not as bad as busy season for an auditor. I guess, the light at the end of the tunnel seems a lot closer since he does get periodic days off and because I know his ultimate residency match will determine what real hours we deal with while having a family life. So for now, I'm pretty psyched for his on-call days although he is still a bit hesitant everytime he thinks of 'em.
If you think about it, we're all on call with our faith and with keeping the commandments and doing those little things that matter. Though we may want to skip a day or two reading our scriptures or think we don't have time, it's important to always study even when we really don't feel like it and can't make the time. Decisions make us.. not situations. I know it's important that we always make time for the Temple, even when things get hectic (and I can't even imagine what it'll be like with more than two schedules to manage with kids!) and even when it just seems so darn far (45 minutes in traffic is not so bad with good conversation). I know I never want to ask my husband for a priesthood blessing and find out "he's not on call" or not able to... I'd rather he be prepared.. or "on call"... but doesn't everybody? (Well...not the adversary.. .beware!). I guess we're technically all on call...
I think on-call days are awesome. Granted they are a long day for Andy and a lonely day for me, I choose to look at it as an opportunity for both of us. For Andy, he gets to learn for 14+ hours whether it's learning how to be bored, interact with a resident, patient, talking to random hospital people, learning the quick routes of the hospital, or walking around in scrubs. For me, it means a lot of time to further decorate the house, organize our folders and binders of bills, bank accounts, receipts, recipes, warranties, etc., do some bar method, eat a Trader Joe's mushroom and garlic pizza with diet Sprite, watch a chick-flick and do my nails with a face mask on. Plus, it's really not as bad as busy season for an auditor. I guess, the light at the end of the tunnel seems a lot closer since he does get periodic days off and because I know his ultimate residency match will determine what real hours we deal with while having a family life. So for now, I'm pretty psyched for his on-call days although he is still a bit hesitant everytime he thinks of 'em.
If you think about it, we're all on call with our faith and with keeping the commandments and doing those little things that matter. Though we may want to skip a day or two reading our scriptures or think we don't have time, it's important to always study even when we really don't feel like it and can't make the time. Decisions make us.. not situations. I know it's important that we always make time for the Temple, even when things get hectic (and I can't even imagine what it'll be like with more than two schedules to manage with kids!) and even when it just seems so darn far (45 minutes in traffic is not so bad with good conversation). I know I never want to ask my husband for a priesthood blessing and find out "he's not on call" or not able to... I'd rather he be prepared.. or "on call"... but doesn't everybody? (Well...not the adversary.. .beware!). I guess we're technically all on call...
Monday, August 9, 2010
Oops!
I accidentally deleted a load of prior posts. Oops! I think they're gone ... forever? Anyone have suggestions for how to get 'em back?
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