just another old post....

mmmmmmhuhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. {that is a big long drawn out exhale through my nose...}

a lot of random things have been floating through my mind this week.

c.j. was supposed to come home tomorrow. he has been in l.a. since sunday shooting a southern california edison job. whenever c.j. leaves, eli is very sad. he is typically fine during the day, but as night falls, he begins talking about dad, telling me how many more days it will be until he gets home, mentioning it in our family prayer, bawling, then rambling about it until he is asleep and i have told him a dozen times to "quit talking and get to sleep!". tonight c.j. called and said he had an opportunity to see U2 in vegas on friday night... i guess... what is another couple days right? needless to say this news brought eli to his knees with weeping and gnashing of teeth. his theory was that c.j. wasn't coming home on thursday night because he didn't want to see HIM and wanted to see U2 even more. we got it figured out and soon he was fine with the new plans. i just need to keep him preoccupied or it is going to be a long, sad "3 more days".

i had a really great day at the mall today. usually a walk around the mall is uneventful and drab. today i ran into a old friend from high school, was complimented on my unbrushed hair by a store clerk, bought a couple kids from my ward lunch, ran into a old YW leader, and generally had a smile on my face the entire time because of all the greatness that was happening around me. not to mention how cute ida was and how many "what a beautiful little boy!" comments that were thrown our way {i just couldn't correct them, it would have ruined the moment}.

i got a speeding ticket this afternoon. that kind of sucked. you know that feeling you get when that happens, i get red and sweaty and mumbly. i would be THE worst bad guy because i would never be able to do bad stuff and hold it together if i got busted.

what is with kids and michael jackson? i found this disc that someone in the family made after jackson kicked it and it has found a permanent residence in my car. i think we have listened to "thriller" 50 billion times. this morning on the way into school, through the pea soup fog, it was playing on repeat and in the backseat i could see eli lip synching it silently. i was thinking about it and i am kind of creeped out that we let him listen to him, i mean come on, the dude was not right on so MANY different levels. driving home from school earlier in the week, eli mentioned that he was sad michael jackson died. i told him that's what happens when you abuse drugs. he response went something like this, "too bad elvis died the same way...he was good, but i like michael jackson better." i think i am going to have to start playing more elvis and he might change his mind.

2 nephi chapters 2 and 3 are awesome. pull your book out and re-read them. such kind, amazing, instructive, testimony filled words from a father to his sons.

my XM radio serves me up all kinds of music. usually i can roll through the '90's, then the '80's right on down to the '60's and something good will pop up. the other morning i was switching channels around and was hitting the BEST songs. old, old songs from my memories of being younger. it was such a treat.

eli told me today 3 billion girls were chasing after him at recess. i asked him what happened if they caught him. he said, matter-of-factly, if they caught him they would drag him down into their dungeon. .....weird.... i asked if they ever caught him. he said, nope, i stood by the outdoor supervisor the whole time.

i'm gunna say it..... staying out here at my mum and dads alone is the pitts. it is scary. it is dark and secluded. your mind can really run wild. i will just keep thinking 2 more nights, 2 more nights...

i am going to go eat some hummus and pretzels, excuse me for a minute.

i heard a interview with a fellow in new jersey that goes into the myriad of foreclosed homes in his area and fixes them up to sell. he said that going into these houses is like entering a crime scene. it is like the owners had 5 minutes to get out. food still on the table, large heavy items left. he said it was sad and creepy and strange. you could actually look around the room and get a sense of how the owners had left and what had happened. the other crazy thing he mentioned was in almost every house he has gone through and fixed up, in the master bedroom/bathroom area a hole the size of a fist has been punched through the door. the said it just testified to the desperation and helplessness that he felt in these homes.

we saw "where the wild things are" the day it opened. i have to say i felt compelled to leave several times throughout the movie. it was dark. it was sad. it was full of bratty, crappy, yelly, fighting behavior. and now i am bugged we took eli to see it.

lastly... i saw this on a friend of mines blog and was blown away. the video is of a gal who lost 120 pounds. the best thing is, i know her. she used to be in my parents ward. this is recent and so crazy. be inspired. you can really do anything. i'm out.