Tuesday, June 3 - Aimee took me to campus so I could take care of a few things. My friend and colleague, David Wiseman, drove me to the airport around 4:00 pm. On my flight to Denver, I met Eduardo, a nice young man from Costa Rica. I had not spoken that much Spanish in weeks. It felt good. He currently lives in Seattle but was in Nashville to attend a Carrie Underwood fan club party. He loves Carrie Underwood (change 'loves' to 'is obsessed with'). It was fun to talk with him. The layover in Denver was short.
On the flight to Salt Lake, I sat next to Jill, a professor of molecular biology that studies protein strands. She had been at a conference in Knoxville and was trying to make her way back home to Sydney, Australia. Due to inclement weather in Denver her flights were delayed and she ended up flying to Salt Lake to be with her husband. I guess they own homes in Sydney and Salt Lake, which is where he grew up. We had a wonderful conversation about the importance of fostering and maintaining healthy relationships with other people.
My flight came in around 11:30 and Dad picked me up. Interestingly, my brother Tom was at the airport picking up one of his friends. I had not seen him in at least two years. My dad and I stayed up until 2:30 a.m. yammering about stuff. I felt bad for him since he had to get up early the next morning and go to work.
Wednesday, June 4 - I spent most of the day just hanging out at home. I unpacked my clothes, played some guitar, read a bit, surfed the web, and attempted to communicate verbally with my youngest brother, Patrick. He's 17 and lives in a different universe. We engaged in minimal contact.
Thursday, June 5 - Around 11:00 a.m., I finally got out the door and took the bus and Trax to Temple Square. It's been several years since I've visited and I thought it would be interesting to walk around with my long hippie hair and my revised views of my Mormon experience. First, I went over to the Church History Library. I was recently called as the Ward History Specialist and I wanted to look at our stake histories from the past several years. I even got to see the ward history that I had prepared for 2006 when I was an assistant clerk. That was neato torpedo.
After an hour or so at the library, I headed over to the Legacy Theater. I watched the Joseph Smith movie for the first time, and I paid attention to the cinematic techniques that were employed to elicit certain emotions. I actually thought the way they portrayed the 'devil' or the influence of evil was very cool - quite progressive. I wonder how long the Church is going to present and inaccurate portrayal of the translation process of the Book of Mormon. I realize the movie is a proselytizing and faith-promoting tool, and not necessarily meant to be an accurate portrayal of Smith's life. I liked it, but it all needs to be taken in context.
As I wandered around and interacted with the missionaries, it was kind of nice that they did not automatically assume that I was Mormon. I wasn't deceptive, but I didn't always reveal my membership. I let them ask questions and do their job. After visiting the North and South Visitor Centers, as well as the Tabernacle, I went over to the cafe in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and had a turkey pot pie for a late lunch. Then, I headed over to the Beehive House and took the tour. I made a special point of getting a slice of banana cream pie at the end of my day. A really nice lady started talking to me and I had a nice conversation with her and the rest of her group. She was probably the nicest person I met at Temple Square, and she wasn't even a Mormon. Imagine that!
I headed over to West Temple and waited for Kevin to pick me up. As I was waiting, I chatted with two sisters and we had a nice conversation. I asked them questions about their experience and what they had learned. The Temple Square sisters do a three to four month outbound experience during their mission period, in which they go and work in the field. I think they both appreciated the fact that I was interested in them and that they were on the receiving end of questions. I asked them how their experience had changed after their outbound experience and one sister commented that she was more confident in speaking with members, which I thought was interesting. She said that many members are dismissive of the sister missionaries since they think they know everything and just want to wander around by themselves.
Any way, Kevin picked me up and we went back to his place in West Valley, near Granger High. His wife, Jenn, made a delicious Thai curry. Very tasty. Heather Heiner, another KHS alum, was there. Scott Higley was supposed to come but he ended up having difficulties getting out of something. It was a nice evening and it was great to hang out with Kevin.
(continued)
Friday, June 6 - I should have finished this earlier because I cannot remember all the details. In the afternoon I took Andy with me to see Indiana Jones IV. He had seen it a week earlier. It was good. Not great, just good. When we arrived home I realized I did not have my wallet. Oops. We called the theater and they sent somebody to look for it with no luck. We drove over there, talked to a manager, and checked the theater again. It was wedged between two seats. Phew! For a minute there I thought I was hosed. That night Andy and I went over to Kevin's and watched Hot Fuzz. It was pretty funny. I dunno, but swearing sounds funnier in a British accent.
Saturday, June 7 - Patrick, Tom, Andy and I took tracks downtown. Tom went up to the U for an audition for an indie film. The rest of us headed over to the Church History Museum. It had been several years since I had been in there so it was fun. Patrick, on the other hand, was bored out of his gourd. When I asked him what his favorite part was, he said, "Oh, when we left." What a funny guy. Tom hooked up with us and we headed to a new Neopolitan pizza place downtown. It was tasty. Patrick and Tom went home and Andy and I took a tour of the Conference Center. I'm always impressed by the size of that place. As we walked through Temple Square on our way to the tracks station, I asked Andy if he would like to get a slice of pie at the Lion House Cafe. We had a nice, long conversation. It was nice to reconnect. That evening, Dad and I went shopping at Harmon's for our big camping trip. I was able to pick up some Antartica Guarana...so good.
On the flight to Salt Lake, I sat next to Jill, a professor of molecular biology that studies protein strands. She had been at a conference in Knoxville and was trying to make her way back home to Sydney, Australia. Due to inclement weather in Denver her flights were delayed and she ended up flying to Salt Lake to be with her husband. I guess they own homes in Sydney and Salt Lake, which is where he grew up. We had a wonderful conversation about the importance of fostering and maintaining healthy relationships with other people.
My flight came in around 11:30 and Dad picked me up. Interestingly, my brother Tom was at the airport picking up one of his friends. I had not seen him in at least two years. My dad and I stayed up until 2:30 a.m. yammering about stuff. I felt bad for him since he had to get up early the next morning and go to work.
Wednesday, June 4 - I spent most of the day just hanging out at home. I unpacked my clothes, played some guitar, read a bit, surfed the web, and attempted to communicate verbally with my youngest brother, Patrick. He's 17 and lives in a different universe. We engaged in minimal contact.
Thursday, June 5 - Around 11:00 a.m., I finally got out the door and took the bus and Trax to Temple Square. It's been several years since I've visited and I thought it would be interesting to walk around with my long hippie hair and my revised views of my Mormon experience. First, I went over to the Church History Library. I was recently called as the Ward History Specialist and I wanted to look at our stake histories from the past several years. I even got to see the ward history that I had prepared for 2006 when I was an assistant clerk. That was neato torpedo.
After an hour or so at the library, I headed over to the Legacy Theater. I watched the Joseph Smith movie for the first time, and I paid attention to the cinematic techniques that were employed to elicit certain emotions. I actually thought the way they portrayed the 'devil' or the influence of evil was very cool - quite progressive. I wonder how long the Church is going to present and inaccurate portrayal of the translation process of the Book of Mormon. I realize the movie is a proselytizing and faith-promoting tool, and not necessarily meant to be an accurate portrayal of Smith's life. I liked it, but it all needs to be taken in context.
As I wandered around and interacted with the missionaries, it was kind of nice that they did not automatically assume that I was Mormon. I wasn't deceptive, but I didn't always reveal my membership. I let them ask questions and do their job. After visiting the North and South Visitor Centers, as well as the Tabernacle, I went over to the cafe in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and had a turkey pot pie for a late lunch. Then, I headed over to the Beehive House and took the tour. I made a special point of getting a slice of banana cream pie at the end of my day. A really nice lady started talking to me and I had a nice conversation with her and the rest of her group. She was probably the nicest person I met at Temple Square, and she wasn't even a Mormon. Imagine that!
I headed over to West Temple and waited for Kevin to pick me up. As I was waiting, I chatted with two sisters and we had a nice conversation. I asked them questions about their experience and what they had learned. The Temple Square sisters do a three to four month outbound experience during their mission period, in which they go and work in the field. I think they both appreciated the fact that I was interested in them and that they were on the receiving end of questions. I asked them how their experience had changed after their outbound experience and one sister commented that she was more confident in speaking with members, which I thought was interesting. She said that many members are dismissive of the sister missionaries since they think they know everything and just want to wander around by themselves.
Any way, Kevin picked me up and we went back to his place in West Valley, near Granger High. His wife, Jenn, made a delicious Thai curry. Very tasty. Heather Heiner, another KHS alum, was there. Scott Higley was supposed to come but he ended up having difficulties getting out of something. It was a nice evening and it was great to hang out with Kevin.
(continued)
Friday, June 6 - I should have finished this earlier because I cannot remember all the details. In the afternoon I took Andy with me to see Indiana Jones IV. He had seen it a week earlier. It was good. Not great, just good. When we arrived home I realized I did not have my wallet. Oops. We called the theater and they sent somebody to look for it with no luck. We drove over there, talked to a manager, and checked the theater again. It was wedged between two seats. Phew! For a minute there I thought I was hosed. That night Andy and I went over to Kevin's and watched Hot Fuzz. It was pretty funny. I dunno, but swearing sounds funnier in a British accent.
Saturday, June 7 - Patrick, Tom, Andy and I took tracks downtown. Tom went up to the U for an audition for an indie film. The rest of us headed over to the Church History Museum. It had been several years since I had been in there so it was fun. Patrick, on the other hand, was bored out of his gourd. When I asked him what his favorite part was, he said, "Oh, when we left." What a funny guy. Tom hooked up with us and we headed to a new Neopolitan pizza place downtown. It was tasty. Patrick and Tom went home and Andy and I took a tour of the Conference Center. I'm always impressed by the size of that place. As we walked through Temple Square on our way to the tracks station, I asked Andy if he would like to get a slice of pie at the Lion House Cafe. We had a nice, long conversation. It was nice to reconnect. That evening, Dad and I went shopping at Harmon's for our big camping trip. I was able to pick up some Antartica Guarana...so good.
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