Another new skirt

This is the skirt I have been working on for the past few days. I'm not quite done, but I think it's getting close. The border at the bottom took the longest.

Two fun nights

On Friday night, Sarah and I, only with other ward members, went to an OWLZ game at UVSC. It was a lot of fun. I went a little late to the tailgate party because of work, but I managed to make the game. It was slow to begin with and the score remained 0-0 for eight innings. In the end of the ninth inning, the OWLZ scored and we won! It was a lot of fun. I like going to baseball games. On Saturday I slept in, then did some cleaning while Sarah went golfing. In the afternoon, I took a shower in preparation for the night. At 5pm, I met Sarah over at Tahitian Noni for her work party. It was a lot of fun. They had great food, and great entertainment. Eight employees participated in Tahitian Noni Idol, half of which were excellent. Everyone did a pretty good job though. There were huge blow-up toys for the kids and some other games. We met up with Aunt Diane and Uncle Larry for a little while and saw Taylor and Easton. After dinner, the entertainment was the Dueling Pianos. For any of you who have never seen these two gentlemen, and I suspect many of you have not, they are worth looking into. They usually work at the Tavernacle, which is a non-smoking bar in Salt Lake. These two guys know a lot of songs, and one of them also knows how to play the guitar. They take requests and make funny comments as they sing the songs. By 10pm, the night was over. Thanks for inviting me Sarah! I had a lot of fun.

Jen's birthday

On Sunday we celebrated Jen's birthday at my parents house. I had a lot of fun, despite the cursed drive. I got Jen a book and Mom made a wonderful meal. The best part about Sunday was seeing my nieces and nephews. All the kids were so funny. Sidney had fun running around and putting grass on Josh's and John's heads and playing catch with me. Wyatt had fun giving flowers to people and playing with the balls. Isaac seemed slightly obsessed with the toy car. He even tried to get in the wrong side. Lauren enjoyed walking around while Tanner enjoyed his time on the grass with his parents. (Oh, and the adults had fun too.) Happy Birthday Jen! I hoped you enjoyed it.

Clubbing (or not)

These days it seems that I don't get around to writing about my weekend until the next one is almost upon me. I suppose that is the life of a busy adult. On Saturday, I went to the birthday celebration of a new friend. Happy works with a woman by the name of Mandy. Mandy is from South Africa, and for her birthday, she wanted to go clubbing in Salt Lake. For those of you who don't know me well, I don't particularly like to go clubbing. The music is usually so loud that you can't talk to people, the club usually has cigarette smoke in it, and half the people have had an alcoholic drink or two. The last time I went clubbing, which was two years ago, a strange man started kissing my neck while I was dancing. It freaked me out and I haven't been since. The only thing Mandy wanted for her birthday was to go clubbing. After much cajoling by Mandy and by Happy, I said yes. I did put time limits on it though. I didn't want to stay out too late since I had church and a family party the next day. Happy drove the two of us to Mandy's house and we waited for some of Mandy's other friends to join us. We left for Salt Lake at 10pm and proceeded to go to a club called Bliss. After waiting in line for a half an hour, we got up to the front. That was when Mandy realized that she didn't have her ID. Since clubs serve alcoholic drinks, you can't get in unless you have a picture ID. We went to several other clubs to see if they would let her in and they all said no. I must admit that I was relieved. I didn't have to go into a club and I got to walk around Salt Lake with some friends. Brandon, Happy, and I left at 12:30am and had an interesting discussion about marriage on the way home. I had fun, even though I don't know that Mandy did.

This past weekend

This weekend was a crazy, tiring one. I worked late on Friday and spent the night catching up on all the stuff I put off until the weekend. On Saturday I got up and cleaned the house, ran errands, took a shower, worked for a little while, and hung out with Sarah. My reward for all this hard work was a chance to see family on Sunday. After a excellent group of church meetings and some visiting teaching, I headed off the Shannon and Michael's house. It was nice to see both of them. Jordan, Alison, and Isaac showed up and we all played games while Isaac toddled around looking at things and playing with toys. I am amazed how well he is walking these days. I didn't stay too late because I was tired from staying up until 4:30 am reading. (I know; I'm a book addict :) I also needed some rest for new hire orientation the next day.

Man's Search for Meaning

A few days ago, I lent my copy of Man's Search for Meaning to Sarah. It is a book that I read a few years ago and then bought a copy of so that I could reread it and make notations in the margins. It is the Nazi death camp experiences of Viktor Frankl. A Jewish Austrian psychiatrist, Frankl spent time in four death camps during World War II. Along the way his parents and his pregnant wife were killed. In Man's Search for Meaning, Frankl argues that we cannot avoid suffering but we can choose how to cope with it, find meaning in it, and move forward with renewed purpose. These ideas became the basis of logotherapy, for which he has become famous for. I would recommend this book to anyone. The first part of the book are the actual experiences of Viktor as he labors in the death camps and tries to stop several suicides. The second part of the book is a more technical explanation of the therapy and how it can be applied. I have yet to be able to make it through the second part of the book. Anyway, I thought I would recommend this book to those you are looking for a serious, non-fiction read that has a touch of spirituality.

My chair

I saw a picture of this chair on a website for book lovers. It is made by a company in Italy and costs a bundle. I still found it intriguing, as it is able to hold many books and looks like a lot of fun. It comes with a similar ottoman. I will admit that I do wonder if it would be comfortable for me to sit in. When I read, I prefer to have my legs tucked up next to me.

Lunch with Jen, Mom, and Lauren

On Friday I got to eat lunch with Mom, Jen, and Lauren at Macaroni Grill in Provo. It was a nice break from a busy day at work. It was so nice to see them, have fun, and relax. Work has been a little stressful lately and I needed a small break. I hope they, and anyone else who want to come, can come down and meet me for lunch again. As a small note, I would like to encourage everyone to order what they know they like on a menu and not be swayed by others (ie a mother or a server.) Luckily, I had chocolate cake after my strange pasta to make up for it. :)

Weekend report

Although it has been a while since this last weekend, a brief report is needed. On Saturday morning, I drove up to Kaysville to help with Josh and Brooke's move. When I arrived at home, I found my mom, Jen, and Lauren. Obviously, Lauren needed me to play with her. Brooke then dropped Tanner off and he needed his aunt to sing to him. After the moving was over, people came back and I was able to see Isaac as well. What a lucky aunt I am. After playing with my kids, I went shopping for a shirt and a birthday gift for Sid. After I got home I got ready for a wedding reception. Jen Taylor and her fiancee Dan got married in the Ogden Temple and had a lovely outside reception. Ryan, Brit, and I rode together. After the reception, the three of us went out to dinner with Jacq, Travis, Hali, and Mark. It was great to get together since it had been almost a year since we had all been together. Afterwards I ended up at Ryan's house and stayed to talk. On Sunday, I awoke too late to go to church with my parents. I ended up at my old singles ward. It was strange. After six months, I only knew a dozen people in the congregation. Apparently a lot can change in six months. After church, the preparations for the birthday celebration of Sidney and Grandma Johnsen began. I ended up buying Sidney a book about being a princess, along with a plastic crown. The whole family had a wonderful time. After dinner we talked and Lauren, Sid, Isaac, and Wyatt played outside with some rather large balls. All in all, a very good weekend.