Changing majors?

I’m hoping that to fill some internship time I can get credit for a year’s experience working in a rehabilitation clinic. Knowing sociology, however, where in the intro class students are asked to go around and violate a social norm and take notes, (I didn’t go intro here so I’m not beholden) I think I’d sooner get credit for being in jail. (I would be glad to come back and edit this!)

Earth's Dynamic Systems

Were things unchanging and motionless, we would not be aware of time. Time is measured by change, and change occurs on many scales if tune and space. Earth's Dynamic Systems free e-book.

Intentionality is a b/#/#t!

Yenor "Family Politics" post1 identity

The idea of choice in the giving of one’s identity is admittedly a hard- to- consider concept in a world that doesn’t allow one to hide their identity and get by, eg: an adolescent’s failure to launch, but in the idea of “sublimating” what is independent and established to make a new reality there is quite a bit of text supporting the idea. The bible says: for this purpose shall a man leave his father and mother, (to be one flesh). An example showing the truth in the “Deep and lasting ties”, even the mystery of conjugal union Yenor describes (conjugal union: the love of one's own), the popular 90’s show “Boy Meets World”, in an episode where the protagonists’ school teacher George Feeney, an older than middle aged man, is observed to be preparing for a date creates a moment where the mystery is described. In the episode Mr. Feeney sets out plates and a candle to set the mood. Soon a call is received and the second plate and the candles are removed from the table. The next day the protagonist asks his teacher about the event. It turns out it was a dinner date with Mr. Feeney’s sister. Mr. Feeney goes on to say that he would like to find someone and the boy asks why. Mr. Feeney uses the boy’s parents as an example saying, they “made the choice to enter into the relationship that brought you into the realm of possibility; choosing to explore the unbounded potential that could result from their union” (paraphrase). The end of the episode hopefully shows the old teacher asking a co-worker out to dinner. So the song goes, “Peace and plenty there abide, smiling sweet on every side”, and “there is joy in every sound, when there’s love at home”. As David Hume points out in the quote on page 7 of Yenor’s book, if there are problems in family the consequences can be severe. “Distrust and mediocrity there abide”, the details of which are also hard to explain. The jaded world of marriage may shy away from marriage and family’s deeper meaning, but an understanding of that deeper meaning is worth the look. Feel free to comment!

Journal

I'm going through some papers. As I have so many memories of where I was, fresh (now) year old paper bearing the marks I made on it. I know that my messages are in store in some server miles away and travel here on the wires of this place, but having the paper matters! Yes, It's true I'm more materialistic than I used to be. Maybe that's a part of growing up-

"Rocks!'

I'm pretty sure it was my family who invented the fist pump "rocks", but a lot of people think that way, and then everyone started to do it.

"Give yourselves to one another"

There was a quote from a talk by former dean of the law school at BYU who recommended that we "give ourselves to one another" fully and that by so doing we would be benefitted. Working at my job the other day I knew what this meant, but I also knew that there were aspects that I would not be able to , and wouldn't allow myself to give to anyone there.
I'm up in Salt Lake for a good friend's wedding. We were at the ceremony in the Salt Lake City LDS Temple where the sealer (officiator) had the chance to give the couple advice. At the end of the formal ceremony he said to the new wife, "Now, there's a deed to this property (motioning to my friend), with a copy of the [church's] Family Proclamation to the World, but there's too much going on today so I'm not going to give it to you yet." The audience, full of married and some single friends and family (some couples holding on to each other tightly) smiled and laughed at this. I thougth it was a nice ceremony and I snuck out before the line to greet reached my row.
There's a lot of current discussion on the reasons and why's to and not to marry. My friend's reaction to the acknowledgement that he now belonged to someone spoke in a way that maybe only someone who knew him could interpret. He smiled and laughed, perhaps squeezed the hand he was holding more tightly, but  it was easy to see he had given himself fully. So I say God bless families, and God bless marriage- I know a guy who's gone all-in.

yearbook

I'm making a digital copy of my last high school year book. I've tossed away all the pop culture parts that I didn't have anything to do with and digitized the cover, so now I have choices to make. The pages can be torn and separated into individual sheets- what do I keep, and what parts do I just want to "throw away"? Turns out that I can toss out the group pages, but can't throw away the pages with individual faces on them.

Wollen Kinder

I am finding what it means to want to marry, and to want to have children. I really wanted children at 24, but it was a personal, I can do this kind of thing. Now it has become more a social, there are people who want me to do this in society, and also the idea of being with someone else and having a creation, but mostly the interaction leading up to the child bearing process, (I am 25 after all, and not 40).

The nasa Missions

I was watching this weekend on Netflix video of the NASA lunar missions. It was remarkable to me the way the program started, partly in the name of national competition, and partly for novelty- It was announced as a goal, and the nation soon got behind it. One of the engineers, looking back said, "machines break.., nobody said, 'Why am I doing this?, let's not do it' it, but 'let's go'.. 'I'll go'." The same engineer said that 400,000 workers were all vital in getting a man to the moon. A flight director tells us that the average age of the systems engineers was 26.
in eight years after the recomendation by the president, people died for the goal, people worked for the goal, and it was accomplished.  Previous training missions yeilded more than just experience, it yielded memories and the iconic "earth rise" of earth so far away. Regular people were asked to improve and to aim high and the ensuing results were remarkable.

I am a priesthood holder

In the LDS culture we divide by gender at age twelve ; in young men’s and young women’s organizations. there's a picture on my Dad's wall of him and me in our Sunday Best the day I was ordained. I had forgotten that day and much else besides that, though the process was repeated at 14 when I was ordained a teacher, and then when I became a priest I was able to baptize. I was close to my priestly ordination  when for some of my friends I would always say their name, (whoever had been ordained), and call them “the baptist.” after John the Baptist.  The young women at 18 have an advancement into the adult womens’ society, called Relief society, and the men have another priesthood advancement, and then go to Elder’s Quorum. The idea that goes through the organizations is that men are deficient and need a “little extra” help in holding the priesthood, at least among those who ask why. As someone who asked why, I now think this is damaging, as girls’ advancements are just as valid. Anyone who responds with a men's deficiency answer is perpetuating gender bias.