Beneath the Wraps

          My youngest son seems to be making more money than he knows what to do with.  Boo hoo, huh?  His wife's family has paid for a few outings for the entire family - like going to Mexico.  Recently he just purchased tickets to go to Hawaii.  Roland and I never traveled.  We barely had enough to feed the family.            There was one time we had gone to Logan to see my brother's performance in something.  I can't even remember what.  Each of the boys had made arrangements to sleep over with various friends and had not shown any interest in going to the play.  Since none of the boys were at home and Roland felt too tired to drive back, we just got a room to spend the night.          Our youngest (the first to have made sleeping arrangements) calls about midnight to find out where we are.  Apparently the sleeping over plans had fallen through and h...

           I don’t know how often the boys went to Arizona to visit Roland’s sister, Jean before I joined the family.   I know Biff had lived with her for a while – perhaps a couple of years.   He had returned to live with Roland shortly before I met them all. I remember driving to Tucson with Roland to pick the boys up three times after summer was over.   The first time we had gone all the way to Tucson to get them.   The second time we met them in Panquitch, Utah, believing it was a half-way point.   The third time was further down south at Glen Canyon Dam.    We toured the facility before we parted ways and made observations on how much both Tony and Randy had grown.             Biff asked, “What about me?   Haven’t I grown?” His hair was like a small “Sideshow Bob” afro.   He was taller due to his hair.   But once he got it cut, he’d be...

          Roland was watching a documentary the other day about the brain and its functions.   The first series was about the hippocampus and explained how sometimes our memories are distorted.   In other words, we sometimes remember details but do not relate them accurately, or else we are accurate but the memories are not our personal memories but rather someone else’s.   Examples that were used came from those who were affected by September 11, 2001 so much that they felt they had been there when the towers were struck and crumbled.   Sometimes our memories are fabricated.           I notice the “fabrication” each time Roland relates experiences about our marriage or when he relates memories of the boys.   He always tells it a bit differently until after a while it doesn’t sound like there's much truth to it.  But then again, I probably do that too - especia...

            When Jenna was a baby, Roland and I had our wills done with an attorney named Kevin Jackson.   We each received copies   -   but I have no clue as to where they might be right now.               I do remember taking my copy to my mom’s house so that each will was kept at a different location.   I may have put it in the crawl space off to the back of the house.   It could still be there, but may be discarded if the current owners come across it.   I don’t remember seeing it when we were cleaning out mom’s house.             Regardless, it needs to be updated.   We certainly didn’t have much in the way of possessions at the time.   My main concern (still is) is that in the event Roland and I should go before Jenna is 18, I would want her to stay ...

After we had purchased the house Roland put the boys to work painting the trim red. That was seven years ago. Time to paint again. Randy needs money and Roland puts all three boys to work and says he’ll pay them 100 dollars each as soon as the work is done. The instructions are fairly simple:  Everything that is red needs to be painted over in green, everything that’s white needs to be repainted white. Biff was the first to show. He works graveyard and comes straight from his job though two weeks ago I think he went to the gym before coming here Roland had to work that day and so I had told Tony that he could be in charge I didn’t want Randy to be in charge because most of the time he doesn’t even know what he’s doing as he has managed to disappear each time Roland taught the boys a trade Randy appears to be genuine about helping or at least that was the case two weeks ago But he loaded the paintbrush so that it d...

  All three or my boys were in high school at the time.   (I don ’ t remember if I had given birth to Jenna yet) They were 15, 16, and 17.   My husband often referred (and still does) to the 15 year old as Casper as he had a way of disappearing for every chore. One night Biff and Tony were washing dishes when Randy went on one of his disappearing jaunts.   He had excused himself to get music – or perhaps it was already playing – his idea of music anyway. Biff and Tony listened to Soft Jazz and oldies.   Randy listened to what kids his age would listen to – I guess.   Still listens to bizarreness with no beat really.   I don ’ t care for what he thinks of as music.   Apparently neither did his brothers. As Biff and Tony (who are both older than Randy – but only by one of two years) continued to do dishes they went into discussion about how Randy was of another generation.   I started laughing.   So they trie...

I wouldn’t say that I’m a “friend” of scouting I think Hannah is the one who made the announcement that “you are not an acquaintance of scouting, but a “friend” of scouting”   “No I’m not,” I thought.   I have truly never been a friend.   I’ve actually had regrets about it. I think the scouting program is a great program for those who truly want to be involved.   I guess the thing that has always bothered me the most about scouting is all the hoopla and fuss that seems to go with it.   It would be fine if there was an equal amount of hoopla given to those not even associated with scouts – if that is what’s desired. (Some of us don’t like hoopla and fuss; my brother Patrick and his oldest son truly loved scouting and were heavily involved.   My brother Corey and nephew Brian appear to have reached a point where they almost loathed it) The boy scout program was adaptedby the LDS church in 1913 and cub scouts were adop...