Beneath the Wraps

         A couple of weeks ago, Jenna came home with a form for parents interested in volunteering for an upcoming field trip.   She begged me to please fill it out and I did. The next morning, after returning home from leaving her at school, I thought better of it.   The volunteers needed to be downtown at 8:15.   Even if we caught an earlier bus, I wouldn’t be able to get downtown at the allotted time.          At first I tried to make arrangements to car pool with another student in her class.   But that didn’t pan out, and we actually ended up having Roland drop us off at her school at 6:30 in the morning, but I had to leave for the bus stop while it was still dark.   I felt bad about leaving her.   I felt worse when I arrived and discovered that there appeared to be more children than adults.   I should have taken Jenna downtown with me – but she wanted to go to s...

We have not ridden the bus this week as Roland has taken a use-it-or-lose-it vacation.   He has been driving Jenna to school each morning. He had wanted to go see a movie on Monday.   We went to the 12:00 showing and sat through the previews.   The projector (or whatever device they use now) was not working correctly.   We had a choice to wait for the 1:00 or return at a later time.   We learned that it was a three-hour movie.   Three hour movie!   I didn’t want to sit through a three-hour movie!   We couldn’t wait for the 1:00 showing because Jenna gets out of school at 3:20.   But Roland still wanted to see it.   So we returned the next day.   He kept telling me that the movie was only 2 hours and 49 minutes.   That’s more than three hours when sitting through 20 minutes worth of ads and previews. The movie is LOOOOONNNG – I think there is much that could have been edited.   I also thought ...

           Each year in May the dual immersion students will put on a program with songs and dances in featured language.   Last year there were two students from the fourth grade who had hosted the program.   They may have in previous years, but last year was the first year I had noticed them. Jenna had come home last month to ask me what it means to “M.C.”   I told her M. C. stands for “master of ceremonies” and asked her why she had brought it up.   She said that she (along with another student) had been picked to M.C the dual immersion program performance. She said she wanted to learn some jokes to tell.   We went to the library and found three or four books that were either too “over the head” or just very lame.   And so she turned to the Internet and found four or five that she thought might work. She handed me an invitation earlier this week.   The performance for the parents was yesterda...

I was watching the news this morning and saw this human interest story about a horse who had been rescued from frozen waters.   It was told in a Twas the Night Before Christmas   type manner. The way it was told seemed somewhat cute in the beginning but seemed to drag into cheesy as the reporter kept on rhyming words.   It made me think of Jane Fonda’s character in “The China Syndrome” which was released in 1979. Kimberly Wells (said character) is sent on assignment to cover the story at the zoo featuring a birthday in honor of a residential tiger (or something like that) and would rather do hard core stories.   I don’t personally know any reporters, their dreams or ambitions, or how many indeed would rather do the hard core and investigation than those human interest stories. (If I were a reporter, I would personally like to deliver the human interest over hard core) Kimberly Wells finds her story at a nuclear power plant.   She wants...

Shortly after Roland and I became engaged, he wrote me a mushy letter filled with sentiment and quotes.   One of the lines he had written was: “. . . as Pikachu say, “I choose you”” I had absolutely no clue what that even meant.   Pikachu?   I figured it must be a quote from some movie I hadn’t seen.   Not only had I never seen Pokemon, I had never even heard of it.     According to what I’ve read (or rather my understanding of what I’ve read) Pokemon started out as a video game before it became an animated cartoon that somehow made its way into the boys hearts.   The three knew all the Pokemon characters by name and site.   At least one of the three boys seemed obsessed. I don’t know where Roland may have found the time to sit down with his boys and learn the names of each character and whatever quotes.   But Pokemon has done absolutely nothing for me.   And after learning somewhat of its origin and based on a vide...

When I was younger I had a crush on Michael Cole  who portrayed the character Pete Cochran on the Mod Squad.  I was probably more in love with the idea of Pete than I was infatuated with Michael. Recently I watched an episode of the old TV Series and felt admiration all over again. Pete Cochran is a gentleman.  He opens doors for women.  He shows compassion.  This particular episode was shot in its final season around Christmas time.  An acquaintance of Pete asked him if he could watch his daughter for an hour.  The acquaintance said there was some business he needed to take care of but that he’d be right back.  Pete willingly took his daughter and kept on eye on her for several hours actually. Pete, estranged from his own parents, encouraged the little girl to pray.  She said that she didn’t believe in God and Pete’s answer introduced her to the world of hope.  I admired him for his carefully selected words.  And I...

As I mentioned in a previous post, Roland enjoys watching “Chopped” (or at least he used to) on the Food Network.   I think we were living in West Valley when we’d see the advertisements for the new upcoming show “Sweet Genius” hosted by Ron Ben-Israel a renowned chef and cake artist extraordinaire.   I allowed the ads to lead me to believe that the show would be similar to “Chopped” but with just desserts.   Roland watched it maybe twice, but would not take it seriously.   It was a squirrely show in his opinion.   He didn’t like the second surprise ingredient being introduced while in the process of trying to create something with the first one. He didn’t like the fact that the chefs need an “inspirational” theme.   But mostly I think he just doesn’t care for Chef Ron.   There is just such a bizarreness about him.          Just on his appearance alone, he seems to fi...

It’s been a couple of months since I took Jenna and her friend to see The Mysterious Happy Life of Brown Bag by Greg Near. I honestly did not know what it was about – but it was playing at the library and gave us something to do for free. It started out cute and funny.   Jaime, Trume and I all laughed.   Towards the end though, they both got bored with it and I don’t think they realized what had even taken place.   The one act play had taken me from laughter to tears in just a matter of seconds.   Brown Bag had been bullied because he was different.   He so desperately wished to have friends that he allowed them to manipulate him – even though he knew that because they were trying to hurt him, they really weren’t his friends. After the play the cast members and writer and some others held a discussion panel.   Trume and Jenna both wanted to leave – which I understood.   It’s not a comfortable subject. But I thought it was important that w...

I don’t know who suggested to the primary children to stand at the front (in Sacrament meeting) with their arms folded to set an example for those that were entering the chapel. I didn’t have a problem with it – except when Parker would try to outrun whatever other child was headed to the stand.  But as long as the children were on the stand with their arms folded, there really was a reverence there – though it seemed to vanish the minute they sat down. A visiting high councilman had given the command to the bishopric that he didn’t want the children up there.  Maybe because he knew on a first hand account that some of those standing there ordinarily do NOT represent reverence – though the three in particular (the three most irreverent – actually there are four – which is just about half of the primary) come from very devout homes, it’s just that reverence has taken a back seat.  The more we try to enforce it, the stronger the misbehavior becomes.  I say “...

          I don’t know which episode it was, but I was watching “the Middle” and Jenna decided to watch it with me.   That one episode got her hooked.  And now she’ll watch it and rewatch it and memorize it.  I don’t like it near as much as she does.   Nor do I enjoy it as much as I once did.           What’s funny is Jenna has gotten Biff hooked on “the Middle” which is surprising to me as I really didn’t think they spent that much time together.  But he went out and purchased the first season and brought it home.  Jenna’s certain that he purchased it for her.           I recently learned that Corey also likes  “the Middle”.  They are such a quirky family. It’s actually kind of an odd show. 

          There are multiple Sunday School teachers in my current ward – team teaching the same classes – including the youth class.  I find it odd in a way – though I understand the need for variety.  I don’t think the two instructors who face the youth currently are the greatest choice.            When Wade taught the youth, I believe they fully related to him – as they really are not that many years apart – or so it appears.  I know that Wade is actually older than fresh out of high school – he just has that youthful look.  He was released to take on another call.  And so it was Lori and I who’d been called to teach.           Lori’s husband attended the class along with Wade and each would contribute to the lesson with such force and such power it was no surprise that they had all been called to serve or wo...