Today I decided to watch the funeral of President Gordon B. Hinckley. I remember the past three funerals of prophets, Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, and Howard W. Hunter. When I saw those funerals, I never shed a tear or got too emotional. I was more curious of how a new prophet would be called. This morning, however, I was overcome with emotion as I thought about the life, example, and spirit of President Hinckley. He is the General Authority I have been in the midst of the most. From the Chicago Temple dedication in the early 80s to regional conferences in Peoria, Illinois and Greenville, North Carolina, and Tokyo, Japan; MTC devotionals, BYU devotionals, Live sessions of General Conference, I have had the privilege of being in his midst. I will never forget when I was a freshly called missionary in the MTC, and there was a special first presidency broadcast to all the MTCs in North and South America, originating from the Provo MTC. President Monson, President Faust, and President Hinckley all spoke, and you felt the amazing love those three men had for each other. I felt so confident in the leadership of the church, knowing that President Hinckley was first in command under the helm of the Savior himself.
This morning, as I watched the casket being taken from the conference center to the burial site, I felt so thankful for this remarkable man, for his tireless work on behalf of saints around the world, and his humor, humility, and genius in orchestrating the largest period of growth the church has ever experienced. I hope that some day I can be in his midst again.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Making Prisoners Productive
FYI, I work at a small law firm which counts many of California's penal institution "guests" as its clients. In learning about what really goes on within the prisons here, I was totally amazed to see the talent being truly utilized by a prison in the Philippines. HERE is a video of them, if you haven't seen it yet. A wonderful imitation of MJ's "Thriller" complete with a 'queen' playing the female role.
Monday, January 21, 2008
My 11Favorite things/thankful things
11. The game of football. I have loved it since I first understood it. I figure about 20% of my time as an adolescent was spent playing backyard football. Ellen would tell you that 75% of my time as an adult is spent watching it on TV.
10. Drudgereport. I probably check out Drudge 15-20 times a day. I am a news junkie and have to know what is going on in the world, and Drudge links to everything.
9. California fresh produce. After living in various parts of the nation, and eating all varieties of vegetables and fruits, California has the best fresh produce in the nation, hands down (or hands on an orange, grapes, or strawberries).
8. TIVO/DVR. I love the fact that I can study and work all week, then when I have some time, all of my favorite shows and interests are there for me to watch, and I can skip right through the commercials.
7. Friday Night Lights. I have loved this show since it debuted last year. The acting is superb, and the character arcs are very realistic. Plus it has football in it :)
6. Sincere people. I can't tell you how frustrating it is for Ellen and I to meet someone or speak to someone who give us lip service, but are never genuine with what they say. It is so easy to see through people who aren't sincere, or who stab you in the back the first chance they get. Thus, there is a special place in my heart for sincere, genuine people. We hope we can always be that kind of person to our friends and family.
5. Mild OCD. Hey, it keeps the house clean, and everyone stays calm!
4. International Marriage. There are obvious communication gaps sometimes, but I love the fact that I am part of several cultures now, and have the chance to learn so much from other people.
3. Upcoming fatherhood. We are excited, and I am very excited. I've been waiting for this for a while, and I am excited for all of the New-comers/Costners this year!
2. Parents who care. My mother in law, who communicates with me through grunts and gestures, actually shed a tear when I hugged her goodbye a few weeks ago. I assume its because she will miss us, but it could be because maybe she doesn't think I can take care of her pregnant daughter. At any rate, one of my favorite things is that I can always call up mi madre y padre at anytime, and talk to them about anything, and they don't judge me for what I think or love me any less.
1. My wife. What can I say? I have the most beautiful but low maintenance wife in the world. She is content with being at home, planting her garden, cooking always fresh all the time meals, finding bargains on baby clothes, helping her disorganized hubby stay organized, motivating her sometimes lazy husband, and she is ever patient and forgiving. I love coming home, it is the most stress-free place on earth for me to be. Ellen uses clever ways to tell me I better do something or I will suffer..but she does it without ever raising her voice or making me feel like crap, but instead makes me laugh. If I could follow her example better, I wouldn't upset so many people with my temper!
10. Drudgereport. I probably check out Drudge 15-20 times a day. I am a news junkie and have to know what is going on in the world, and Drudge links to everything.
9. California fresh produce. After living in various parts of the nation, and eating all varieties of vegetables and fruits, California has the best fresh produce in the nation, hands down (or hands on an orange, grapes, or strawberries).
8. TIVO/DVR. I love the fact that I can study and work all week, then when I have some time, all of my favorite shows and interests are there for me to watch, and I can skip right through the commercials.
7. Friday Night Lights. I have loved this show since it debuted last year. The acting is superb, and the character arcs are very realistic. Plus it has football in it :)
6. Sincere people. I can't tell you how frustrating it is for Ellen and I to meet someone or speak to someone who give us lip service, but are never genuine with what they say. It is so easy to see through people who aren't sincere, or who stab you in the back the first chance they get. Thus, there is a special place in my heart for sincere, genuine people. We hope we can always be that kind of person to our friends and family.
5. Mild OCD. Hey, it keeps the house clean, and everyone stays calm!
4. International Marriage. There are obvious communication gaps sometimes, but I love the fact that I am part of several cultures now, and have the chance to learn so much from other people.
3. Upcoming fatherhood. We are excited, and I am very excited. I've been waiting for this for a while, and I am excited for all of the New-comers/Costners this year!
2. Parents who care. My mother in law, who communicates with me through grunts and gestures, actually shed a tear when I hugged her goodbye a few weeks ago. I assume its because she will miss us, but it could be because maybe she doesn't think I can take care of her pregnant daughter. At any rate, one of my favorite things is that I can always call up mi madre y padre at anytime, and talk to them about anything, and they don't judge me for what I think or love me any less.
1. My wife. What can I say? I have the most beautiful but low maintenance wife in the world. She is content with being at home, planting her garden, cooking always fresh all the time meals, finding bargains on baby clothes, helping her disorganized hubby stay organized, motivating her sometimes lazy husband, and she is ever patient and forgiving. I love coming home, it is the most stress-free place on earth for me to be. Ellen uses clever ways to tell me I better do something or I will suffer..but she does it without ever raising her voice or making me feel like crap, but instead makes me laugh. If I could follow her example better, I wouldn't upset so many people with my temper!
Friday, January 18, 2008
The Freak Show That is American Idol
I know its a day or two late, but I had to say something about American Idol. There is a phenomenon readily apparent on Idol, but which is also prevalent in churches and schools across our country: The tone deaf person who is completely ignorant of the fact they are tone-deaf, and instead believe in the fantasy that they are actually very talented at singing.
The difficulty lies in determining where such a false perception of one's own abilities is created. My personal theory is that somewhere in history, Ms Tone Deaf decided to sing in front of a group of friends, family, or the public. After butchering the song, the listener was confronted with a difficult choice: Do I tell Ms Tone Deaf she is horrible, or give her some positive encouragement? It is a difficult situation, one where truth, kindness, reality and fantasy all blur together. So, wanting to be nice, the listener made the mistake of saying "you sang really well" or "beautiful song." This positive reinforcement became embedded into Ms Tone Deaf's psyche, no matter how many subsequent performances resulted in loud sneers or boos, Ms Tone Deaf could always fall back on that one listener who lied in order to be kind. This is how we get the people on Idol who are totally unaware of how bad they truly are at singing. With gusto and enthusiasm, they screech their way through some song. As you may have seen, some even show up with glittery makeup and middle fingers erect, sure that their talent is far better than what Simon, Randy, and Paula give them credit for. How sad. So, lastly, I want to thank those tone deaf people who are aware of their limited singing ability, and choose to enjoy music by listening to it, not subjecting those around them to the complete and utter disaster that is their singing voice.
The difficulty lies in determining where such a false perception of one's own abilities is created. My personal theory is that somewhere in history, Ms Tone Deaf decided to sing in front of a group of friends, family, or the public. After butchering the song, the listener was confronted with a difficult choice: Do I tell Ms Tone Deaf she is horrible, or give her some positive encouragement? It is a difficult situation, one where truth, kindness, reality and fantasy all blur together. So, wanting to be nice, the listener made the mistake of saying "you sang really well" or "beautiful song." This positive reinforcement became embedded into Ms Tone Deaf's psyche, no matter how many subsequent performances resulted in loud sneers or boos, Ms Tone Deaf could always fall back on that one listener who lied in order to be kind. This is how we get the people on Idol who are totally unaware of how bad they truly are at singing. With gusto and enthusiasm, they screech their way through some song. As you may have seen, some even show up with glittery makeup and middle fingers erect, sure that their talent is far better than what Simon, Randy, and Paula give them credit for. How sad. So, lastly, I want to thank those tone deaf people who are aware of their limited singing ability, and choose to enjoy music by listening to it, not subjecting those around them to the complete and utter disaster that is their singing voice.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Posting from Taipei
This is the second official post from Taipei, Taiwan (I wrote the last post about Christmas from here too). I just ate a interesting but tasty breakfast here at the Taipei office of one of the Chang family companies. The pic her shows what I ate-a doughy onion pancake wrapped around eggs and bacon. It is pretty good, much better than an Egg McMuffin.
We just got here about 2 hours ago after a long 13 hour flight. I am very much aware of the fact that Asian airlines do not use seat arrangements to suit a 300+ pound guy. 13 hours of sitting in a small metal seat made for a 150 lb chinese man is motivation for a stringent diet & exercise program, or, at least the program Randy recommends: "get some pills man, take some pills."
Tonight we hope to go to Taipei 101, currently the tallest building in the world, for the New Year's celebration. I am pretty excited about it, since it dwarfs any stupid falling ball that NYC uses for New Year's.
What a week..more to follow
Just an update. Ellen and I had a WONDERFUL time with all of my family in Wyoming and Utah. It was probably the last time in a long time that all of my brothers and sister can be together for Christmas. The big news is that there should be 3 newcomers (literally) and a new Costner by next Christmas. There were 4 officially pregnant women at the Newcomer compound in Evanston, and everyone was still able to coexist in peaceful harmony. A job well done. A BIG thanks goes out to the Ryan newcomer family, who cooked nearly every meal, and each one was gourmet delicious. The Ryan Costner clan gets a big thank you for Lacey's wonderful planning/cooking, and Ryan's incomprable comic book characteristics! The Randy Newcomer fam provided some funny moments with Dallin and Kailey, and Randy opening up his present on Christmas morning caused my Mom to have the most shocked look on her face. Sam and Cathy made custom travel pillows for Ellen and I, and I received the coveted Jason Bourne DVD set from them, so I have much gratitude in my media loving heart. D-Bone provided the ever-present sounds of the SNL cast version of Air Supply..whch I still cannot remove completely from my brain. Anyway, a Merry Christmas it was. Let's hope for Christmas 2008 Myrtle Beach! (hint hint Randy)
The pics above are of Ellen shooting a handgun for the first time and of the whole family in front of the Christmas tree.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Just a Sunday Night post
I am just posting for the sake of posting. Sunday is my one day break from studying and working, and so I truly relax. I always get a good 2-3 hour nap in. Of course, Ellen and I are able to really relax sans children. We need to hurry up and have some kids though, I figure I will be in my mid 50's when our first child goes on a mission or gets married. I'd rather not be so into the latter stages of life when that happens, so c'mon Ellen, lets get going!
The busy R.S. prez
So I'm sitting behind the R.S. president today in gospel doctrine, and I notice this weird object sticking out from the back of her neck, through her hair. As I look a little closer, I realize it is a pretty large sales tag for the necklace she is wearing. I went up and told her discreetly about it, and she was so embarrassed. She said she just bought the necklace yesterday, and must have tried it on this morning with the tag, and simply forgot to take it off. I sure hope she wasn't planning on returning the thing tomorrow, because she ripped the tag off after I told her about it.
MIDTERMS
Anyone who has taken tests in college, and thought those were difficult, needs to experience a law school exam. It will take too long to explain the process, but its like being given a Globe in August, and told to study it. Then, in December, although you have tried to memorize most countries and capitals, the question asks which village near the widest spot of the Amazon river has the biggest library. IT IS CRAZY
The busy R.S. prez
So I'm sitting behind the R.S. president today in gospel doctrine, and I notice this weird object sticking out from the back of her neck, through her hair. As I look a little closer, I realize it is a pretty large sales tag for the necklace she is wearing. I went up and told her discreetly about it, and she was so embarrassed. She said she just bought the necklace yesterday, and must have tried it on this morning with the tag, and simply forgot to take it off. I sure hope she wasn't planning on returning the thing tomorrow, because she ripped the tag off after I told her about it.
MIDTERMS
Anyone who has taken tests in college, and thought those were difficult, needs to experience a law school exam. It will take too long to explain the process, but its like being given a Globe in August, and told to study it. Then, in December, although you have tried to memorize most countries and capitals, the question asks which village near the widest spot of the Amazon river has the biggest library. IT IS CRAZY
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