4 July -- Independence Day :-)

Last night we watch the fireworks that were set off at the USU stadium.  We were invited by  Elder and Sister Kingsford to join them and their family.  They had an excellent view.  Their home is in North Logan and looks across a field to the USU campus.

Line of cars leaving the fireworks--coming down the hill and along the street.

Last year I thought they didn't have music to go with the fireworks. It turns out I was wrong; KVNU plays the musical background. The show didn't start until after 10pm--it doesn't get dark here until late. The line of traffic after the show was well orchestrated by the local police department. It was midnight by the time we arrived backed at the apartment.

Today the ward had a flag ceremony and pancake breakfast. This evening we are joining a candidate and his family for a potluck dinner, a sing-along, and watching the Lewiston Fireworks.

Wow, two nights of fireworks.  Hopefully we'll get back to the apartment a little earlier tonight because it is back to the Center tomorrow.

6 July -- Cruise-In

The weekend following the Fourth of July the city of Logan has a Cruise-in. It starts Thursday night and goes through Saturday. Classic and vintage cars come to town and are shown off in the fairgrounds. At the end of the day on Saturday, a rebuilt car is given away. This year it is '69 Dodge Super Bee. The whole event is concluded with a parade of cars crusing down Main Street in Logan.

We went over this afternoon to walk around and view all the cars on display. I was a little disappointed because I was hoping to see antique cars. A majority of the cars were mid '50s through early '70s. Beautiful paint jobs and souped up engines. Chevys and Fords seemed to be the favorites. Sister Bews saw several cars that reminded her of family. I didn't see any that reminded me of my youth--no '54 Ford Fairlane, no Ramblers, no Packards, no '60 Chevy Malibu, no Dodge Coronet. I did see an old Studabaker; we had a '49 Studabaker in the Philippines. There were a couple fun cars there.

Remember the drive-in.

An original woodie.

 

Shotgun seat is a toilet.

8 June -- Gardner's Market & Willow Park Zoo

Today we finally made it to the farmer's market here in Logan. I have to say that I was a little disappointed. There were lots of craft booths, but not as much produce. After pursuing through the market, we went over to the local zoo. It isn't very big, but it is still fun to visit. Most of the animals there are native to North America. Lots of birds. One of the more unusual exhibits were the Pet Rocks. Don't know what there is about zoos, but I always enjoy visiting them no matter how big or small.

4 June -- Jeanne's Visit

Jeanne surprised me with a visit. She hitched a ride with her Relief Society President who was making a quick trip to Salt Lake for the weekend. I picked her up at Devany's place in Salt Lake and brought her back to Logan, stopping in Layton on the way for dinner at Cracker Barrel.

I had borrowed an air mattress for her to sleep on from one of the missionaries at the Center.  Sunday morning we drove around Logan a little before church. Took her by the temple and the tabernacle. Sunday evening we were all invited to have dinner with Elder and Sister Eubanks. They are the other half of our AJS missionary team. Jeanne said she had a new perspective on listening to football games after hearing Elder Eubanks share his experience.

Monday we went into the center for the opening exercises. I wanted her to meet Becky and Paul and few of the other missionaries who work there. I gave her a tour of behind the scenes at DI. We then went shopping.

Deseret Book is across the street from the Center. We found several items for her to take back to North Platte. I bought a couple more books to send home for Micah's birthday. We also stopped at Smith's Marketplace and to look for Lego Mini-figures. They had 3 boxes of the latest set. We bought a stash for the kids and us. We ate lunch at Café Rio, an excellent Mexican restaurant, and then went on a tour of the tabernacle. It was a busy, fun day.

Jeanne is now on her way to North Platte and I'm getting ready to go back to work.  We got up at 4:30am so we could be on the road by 5am.  It was 5:20am before we left.  You know me, it takes me 20 minutes to get out the door.  We met Michelle at Kneaders in Midvale at 7am for breakfast before they took off.  It was fun having her here.  I get to show Carolyn around when she comes.

26 May -- Smelling the Roses

This morning I presented information about the LDS Employment Resource Services center to the Providence YSA 5th Ward Council.  As we were driving on the side road back to our apartment we saw two prairie dogs crossing the street.  A couple weeks ago we had seen something similar dash across a parking lot into Spring Creek as we were coming back from church.  We weren't sure what it was at that time.  This time we had a good look and I'm sure they are prairie dogs which seems a bit unusual for around here.  I didn't have my camera with me and they were too quick for my iPod.  We also saw a pair of quail in the field.  He was very colorful.

25 May -- Provo Trip/Visit

I decided not to be in a hurry to get on the road. I was up early, exercised, and cleaned my bathroom.  Sister Bews was up a little after 8am (early for her). We headed out the door around 9:30am. Elder Eubanks had given us directions on how to go the back way to Provo. He said it was much prettier drive and less traffic.

We took 84 out of Ogden and drove along the Weber River. A beautiful drive, saw a couple of old cogers--who turned out to be younger than me--fishing on the banks. We then got on 80 and turned off toward Park City. That is all very pretty country along 40 to Heber City.

Ate lunch in Heber City and played tourists. Checked out the tabernacle there and a statue that caught our interest. We have been attracted to tabernacles since being in Utah. Maybe because we didn't realize there were so many or how important they were to developing communities.



We headed out out of Heber City on 40 looking for our turn off to go through Provo Canyon on 189. When we had driven past Strawberry Reservoir and Soldier Creek Recreation Area, I thought the terrain was looking for like eastern Utah and less like the Provo area should. I felt like we were on our way to Price, Utah. So I turned around and we headed back to Heber.

Sure enough, we had missed the turn off at the edge of town. We finally headed down 189 through Provo Canyon. As we passed Deer Creek Reservoir, we saw people out on kitesurfing.

It was close between 2pm and 3pm when we arrived in Provo, a little later than I had planned. We stopped at the Provo Cemetery so I could flowers on Jonah' grave, my grandson. Then went to do a little site seeing.

Provo has a fantastic library that is also part of the Brigham Young Academy building (historic site).  Unfortunately, we couldn't check out any books. Across the street is the Provo City tabernacle, new site of the Provo City Temple. The tabernacle had a terrible fire a few years back. The church is now restoring it and making it a temple. Next we stopped at the University Mall in Orem, then headed home.

future Provo City Temple

 Turned out to be a longer trip and day that I had originally planned. Oh, well. I'm always up for an adventure.

18 May -- Star Valley, Wyoming

Wyoming Road Trip

The day started out wet and stayed that way most of the day. I wasn't about to let a little bit of rain stop me.   After living in Seattle for 10+ years, I could handle rain. We picked up Brekke around 8am and headed up Logan Canyon to Bear Lake.  As we got higher up in elevation snow began mixing in with the rain.  Luckily it didn't last. We headed north along Bear Lake and met up with a large group of cyclists out racing. There were two groups:  the professionals and the regulars. They had a motorcyclist also following along who helped the traffic to get around the pack of cyclists.

We stopped in Paris, Idaho, at the site of a very old tabernacle then in Montpelier, Idaho,at the Oregon Trail museum. They had a lovely quilt display. We didn't take the time to go through the official tour.  Besides they wanted $10 per person. Maybe another time when I have budgeted for it.

Intermittent Springs AKA cold water geyser

I think it was around 11am when we arrived in Star Valley. We met Brekke's parents at the Afton Library. They wanted to show us the sites. They took us up to Intermittent Spring in Swift Creek Canyon. It is a cold water geyser. Because of the rain and the melting snow pack, it wasn't easy to see the fluctuation in the flow. The spring stops and starts it flow at several minute intervals throughout the day. It was a dirt road drive to the spot where you can hike in to the falls, an easy hike. The spring is the water source for the town.

artisan well

The fields in Star Valley are watered by artisan wells. They have to put restricters on the wells for the fields because the pressure coming out is so high. There where a couple wells that the pipe was sent veritcal and the water allowed to spew out in winter. It made a huge icicle that had a blue tinge to it. Star Valley is very beautiful, but a bit isolated by the mountains around it in winter.

By late afternoon we headed back to Logan a different way than we came. We headed toward Preston, Idaho, when we left Montpelier. We drove through a lot of forested area before getting to the farm country. We seemed to be driving away from the rain on the way back to Logan.

Trivia:  Maverik gas started in Afton and appears to still have its headquarters here.

Elkhorn Arch

12 May -- HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY :->

Shhhh, don't tell the Mission President.

I went ATVing yesterday! :-> The Thursday, Friday, and full time missionaries were invited to the Lucherini's for a barbeque yesterday  afternoon.  It was their way of saying goodbye.  They complete their service mission May 28th (my one year anniversary), then they start their Indonesia Jakarta Mission in August as full time missionaries.  The Lucherini's live on a 300 acre farm outside Preston, Idaho.  The farm belongs to Sister Lucherini's family and they "play" at farming.  It is where she was raised.  Elder Lucherini was a pharmaceutical representative before he retired.  Living on a farm can has its unique hazardous as dangerous as living in the city.  As a child, she was told not to go past the barn during hunting season.  Kind of like telling your kids not to play in the streets in the city.

MOTHER'S DAY

Carolyn sent me a neat case and stylus for my iPod. Jeanne and family sent me a picture, window gels, and Fire Chief Car Legos which I have been admiring.  What a fun Mother's Day! I also got to teach CTR3. 

4 May -- May the Forth be with you (LOL)

SERVICE PROJECT !   :-)

Today I helped move Brekke from one apartment to another. It was fun to be part of the kaos of moving day at USU. It was also graduation day so it made the things and traffic even crazier.

We moved items out of one apartment around 11am, then she had to wait until later in the afternoon before she could move into her new apartment. Her sister Aubry had come from Star Valley, Wyoming, to help also. Brekke and Aubry drove to Weber to see their brother who has been attending school there while we waited for the okay for her to move into the new place. She was able to get in around 4pm. We went to the Mandarin Garden for dinner afterwards. Aubry headed back to Star Valley afterwards. Brekke went back to the apartment to figure out were to put everything--don't envey her that job.

The trunk was pretty loaded too.  Had to use a bungee cord to tie keep it shut.

I took advantage of the day and did a thorough clean of my room and rearranged furniture too. I really got my exercise in today!

29 April

Zone Conference  :-)

Today I attended my first Mission Zone Conference since being out on my mission. It was a great shot in the arm for me. Granted the whole day was focused on proselyting which I don't do. This time I remembered to bring scriptures with me and not rely on my iPod. However, I also needed Preach My Gospel which I didn't bring, so I still used my iPod. Next time I'll remember. The conference helped me to focus more on the purpose of a mission. The spirit there was wonderful and invigorating.

We had four new mission presidents attending our conference, in training. President Cook had attended our Christmas Conference. At that time he didn't know where he was going, but all his material was in French. It turns out they are going to the Congo Mission and leave on June 30. President and Sister Anderson are going to the Pennsylvania Philadelphia Mission. They are from Hyrum which is just down the road from us.  President and Sister Curtis are going to the Idaho Twin Falls Mission. He is opening up that mission. They had been serving in Atlanta, Georgia, as Leader Support Missionaries. They came back to Utah for the birth of a grandchild in January and where called in to speak with Elder Ballard, an apostle. He call them to serve as the new Mission President for Twin Falls. The Curtis's had to return to their mission and let their leaders know that they would not be completing their mission in Atlanta. You could say they were extended three years (that is how long a mission president is called for). I also learned that the Curtis’s had been in the MTC the same time I was. We spent the first week together learning Preach My Gospel. They remembered me; unfortunately, I didn't remember them. There were only four of us single sisters in that group at the MTC. The Curtis's are from Tremonton which is just over the Wellsville Mountains and a little north of Brigham City.  I didn't get a chance to speak with the fourth couple. I think they were going to Zimbabwe, but I'm not sure.

After Thought

Elder Cook was telling me how poor the Congo is.  Their unemployment is 75%.  The returned missionaries (RMs) are being taught how to build the chapels and housing, so they will have skills and be able to earn an income.  They are desperately in need of education.  The Church's Perpetual Education Fund will be of great assistance there.  I learned from Elder Falabella last fall that the employment center and other welfare service units outside of the US and Canada will be called "Self Reliance Centers."  I told Elder Cook to just call and I'll come help with his Self Reliance Center. 

28 April

Missionary Work

As part of my work as an Employment specialist.  I meet with Stake Presidents and Bishops to share about the services we have to support them in their calling.  I have been assigned the Providence Young Single Adult (YSA) Stake to work with.  On the 14th of this month I visit the YSA 2nd Ward.  This past Sunday I visited the YSA 3rd Ward.  We were meeting him before church, so we were still able to attend Cobblestone 1st. Bishop Wootton was very receptive to my presentation of the services available at the employment center.  He has two young ladies he will be calling to be Ward Employment
Specialists. One is preparing to go on a mission. She has some medical issues she needs to stabilize before she can leave. The bishop wants to keep her busily engaged. She has been going out with the sister missionaries.

27 April

 Death by Chocolate

Weekends seem to go better if we have something to do or someplace to go, so I propsed that we go to see a play. We drove to Perry which is next door to Brigham City to see a community theatre production. The Heritage Theatre was putting on "Death by Chocolate" which sounded rather cute. The play was a delightfully sarcastic comical murder mystery spoof. Members of the newly renovated Meadowbrook Health Resort were dropping like flies! It was up to John Stone, the manager, to find the cause and the murderer. Stone found himself teaming up with Ed Parlor, mystery writer and amateur sleuth, in a wacky race against time. The clues pointed to a sinister box of chocolates, and the suspects include all the outlandish characters working for the resort: Lady Riverdale, owner of the resort, and a woman with dark secrets; Ralph Deadwood, gym instructor and all around cad; Dick Simmering, the aerobics instructor (think Richard Simmons); Anne, the panic stricken nurse; "Sweet Pea" Meadowbrook, overweight and grieving daughter of the recently deceased founder. I won't divulge the ending. I recognized the interlude music they played:  Peter Gunn, Get Smart, Pink Panther, Inspector Gadget, Perry Mason, and Murder She Wrote theme songs.

The theatre was a converted church (LDS of course). What would have been the front of the church building inside was the stage with no curtain. They had put up a nice lighting and sound booth in the back. The seats where stadium style, but very cushiony and large. They cater to "family friendly" entertainment. We are thinking we would like to go see the next production, "The Lightening Bug -- The Musical." It sounds like it has a plot similar to "You've Got Mail," but the venue is stage theatre versus moving pictures.

We ended the evening taking a scenic route back to Logan, then eating dinner at Angie's.

20 April

Providence's Spring Creek Festival

The weather was a bit overcast and a few drops fell here and there. We decided we needed to get out. 
We finished all our shopping then went to see what the festival was all about. Saturday's festivities were held at the Old Rock Church. It was an old church building (LDS of course) that had been turned into a "bed and breakfast." There were only a few vendors braving it outside. I bought some pretty silver earrings and a couple of homemade tamales. Yummm. We tried sauerkraut prepared several different ways and in chocolate cake. It wasn't bad.

Inside we were able to tour the bed and breakfast. A large boarding house structure had been added on to the church. It was set up with a grand staircase going from the house into the church for weddings. It sounds weird, but was actually very nice. The bride's room was very large with several vanities and a large mirrored alcove. I had the whim to use the top floor "exit."  It was a wooden staircase in need of a handyman. Let's hope no one has to use it as a fire escape in the near future. It might go up in flames first.

18 March

Last week Brekke joined us and this week Steven has joined us.  He is a retired teacher and principal.  I ended up working with him on his résumé.  He has a lot of good stuff and I hesitate to redo his résumé because he is a professional.  He has attended Elder Sidwell's Professional Career Workshop, so I figure he knows more about a professional résumé.  We'll see what Paul says about what we have created today.


Mission/Job
Sister Bell shared with me today how hard it is to leave a mission when you are finished.  They served in a mission office in Samoa.  She said it often felt like a "job."  When it came time to leave, she said it was very hard because she had formed attachments.  I hadn't shared with her my challenge at the employment center, but it was so reassuring to hear her say that their mission felt like a "job."  They also did the tourist thing during P day while they were on their mission.  I've struggle with that also:  Am I a missionary or a tourist?

14 April

Primary 3

Today I got to teach Primary, the 5 year olds.  Sister J called me at the Employment center on Friday to ask if I would sub for her.  I was thrilled to be asked.  This is the same class I visited on Easter.  We had all four students show up.  Malinda has a wonderful rapport with the little kids.  The lesson was on the Holy Ghost.  It is a little challenging to get back into the teaching mode for little children. 

Malinda is a quadriplegic and very independent in her motorized wheelchair.  She is also very positive.  I wasn't very in-tune to her needs during Open and Sharing.  Shes like to follow along in the songbook when the children are singing and has her own songbook.  Malinda just needs someone to get it out and open it for her.  She has a device taped to her hand to assist her in turning the pages.  The ward members are very aware and were right there to help.

9 April

April "Snow" Showers

Last night when I went to bed, it was raining and the winds were howling.  This morning I woke up to find snow on the ground.  It looked kind of pretty, but it turned out not to be so nice.  Everything under the snow was ice because it had been raining first.  The good news is the ice melted by mid-morning from the sunshine.  However, we aren't done with the snow.  As I look out the window this evening, I see tiny snowflakes blowing down from the sky like dandelion seeds.


 

7 April -- General Conference

Today felt more like Easter than last Sunday.  Wow, Conference was great!  Yesterday, we attempted to listen/watch conference on the internet.  The morning session went alright, but we couldn't stay connected to the afternoon session.  We reverted to my clock radio.

Today I went to the Stake Center to watch Conference.  (My companion stayed in the apartment because she hasn't been feeling well.)  The building was unlocked about 15 minutes before Conference started.  I had the building all to myself.  As I was settling in, I realized it wasn't going to comfortably warm inside, so I brought in a blanket from the car and snuggled in.  A few minutes before the morning session started another couple came in.  The woman had brought a blanket with her.

I enjoyed watching and listening to the speakers in the morning.  When I saw Elder L. Whitney Clayton come to the podium to speak, I thought "I have met him and shaken his hand."  What a thrill.  His talk was about marriages.  President Uchtdorf is always great to listen to and President Monson has fun stories to tell about himself.  He is a great storyteller and has wonderful facial expressions when he tells tales on himself.  He always ties his stories into marvelous lessons.  This time it was on obedience. 

For the afternoon session I brought my tied fleece blanket to wrap up in and warm sock for my feet.  The couple that had come in the morning were there again for the afternoon session.  Another familiar face showed up at the podium.  This time it was Elder Falabella.  I feel more partial to him because I actually had the opportunity to not only meet him, I also was able to sit and visit with him and his wife over lunch.  It was a more personal connection.  He spoke of the home, too, and the relationship between husband and wife.  Whenever he mentioned his wife Blanca, I could see her responding as he said. I also enjoyed the words of Elder Holland.  The three things I brought away from his talk is:  1 believing is holding on to what I believe, be strong; 2 be true to the faith I have, trust; 3 in times of doubt & difficulty ask for help, it comes from both sides of the veil.

I liked being in the Stake Center for conference.  The Spirit was there and I could feel it.  Watching conference on the computer is convenient, but there are things around the apartment that distract from the Spirit occasionally.

31 March -- HAPPY EASTER

Sister Watson had a baby boy yesterday.  :-)  The sun is shining and the temperatures are slowly getting warmer.

Sister Bews' family from Boise, Idaho, stopped by to see her for a couple hours on their way home from their vacation in Las Vegas, Nevada.  She was thrilled to be able to visit with her grandchildren.  

Carolyn sent me a plant for Easter.  It will be 4 to 6 weeks before they start blooming.  Hurray for flowers.  Daffodils and tulips are already blossoming in Livermore, but nothing has showed it's head here yet.  Jeanne and the kids sent me some Easter and Spring window gels, a Lego Friends Squirrel packet (I love Legos), and a Happy Spring hand towel.  Lots of fun things to brighten up the apartment and chase away the winter blahs.

I went to Primary with Malinda today for the Easter lesson.  Last week Sister Bews was with the YMYW learning about genealogy.  It was fun being with the little kids.  We only had one little girl in class and three adults.

I'm so looking forward to General Conference next weekend! :-)

24 March

A Meeting and Choir

Last night I received a return call from the Providence YSA Stake Secretary.  He arranged for me to have a meeting this morning with the Stake President so that I could explain the services at the LDS Employment Resource center.  I quickly put some things together for today.

The visit went well.  We met with the Stake President, one of his counselors, the Stake Executive Secretary (who knows the Prussos in Livermore--small world), and the Stake Financial Clerk.  Sister Bews was with me because we are a companionship. I had to give an impromptu Me in 30 Seconds to explain my background and expertise, then the Stake President wanted to know what the Employment center could offer.  After my brief description of services, with emphasis on the Career Workshop, he decided he would like the information shared with the wards and bishops.  He was not sure if it should be presented at Ward Conferences or in Sunday School.  As part of my responsibility in overseeing the Stake, I am to report to the Stake on a monthly basis about how things are going.  The Stake President asked that I report to the Stake Financial Clerk. 

We had our Easter program today.  Next Sunday is going to be fast Sunday.  The two adult speakers focused primarily on the Last Supper.  The choir sang "How Great is the Miracle" and "I Stand All Amazed."  I was doing okay until the choir director started having tears run down her face.  It was a challenge for our choir to learn these numbers because we are very limited on practice time.  We did it and it turned out beautiful.  I am sure we had lots of heavenly help.

22 March

Snow Again :-(

It is snowing again.  Just light scattered showers, but it is still snow and cold.  Fortunately the streets are only wet, not slushy or icy.  We get a few nice days and then a few cold days.  I'll be glad for the time when there are more nice days.  I'm ready for warmer weather.

8 March

Long Day

Yesterday was a long day.  We started out in the center in the morning then went to Ogden for a mission meeting, and finally a Relief Society birthday dinner back in Providence.

There were a couple reasons for going to Ogden; first and foremost was a special meeting with Elder L. Whitney Clayton who is in the Presidency of the Quorum of the 70s.  Second Sister Bews needed to pick up some prescriptions from the mission doctor.

The meeting with Elder Clayton was wonderful and uplifting, made me want to work harder at being a good missionary.  The first thing he wanted to do when he arrived was to shake every missionary's hand.  He reminded us that in our mission we have missionaries from all over the world.  We were told it matters where you serve and to be grateful we are here with the Hiers because they are a wonderful example.  It matters what we do with our calling because it impacts our families.

He shared a story about a young mission president who urged the missionaries not to be tape measure missionaries.  In other words, don't measure the path to see how wide it is and how close to the edge you can get.  Stay in the center of the path and things will be okay, follow the guidelines and keep the commandments.  This work is hard but not discouraging.  He referenced Alma 23:5-7 regarding converting people to the church and more specifically he focused on verse 7.  He challenged the missionaries to put down their weapons of rebellion:  lack of confidence, disobedience, etc.  He reminded the missionaries that when they were set apart they were also blessed with power and to follow Ammon's example.

The Ward Relief Society dinner was a celebration of the Relief Society's birthday this month.  It was a lovely meal and a nice end to a long day.

3 March

Rainy Sunday

Today it rained most of the day.  Better that than snow.  The sun is suppose to come out tomorrow.  March is suppose to be a on and off month.  Meaning, just when you think spring is coming, a snow shower pops up and the temperatures drop.  We'll see if it is in like a lion and out like a lamb.

And another one bites the dust.  Hurray, Karen has a job starting tomorrow.  She received an offer Friday, but had to do a little negotiating because they offered her a smaller salary than they had talked about in her interviews.  She negotiated a $1 more than they offered with another $1 increase in 60 days if she proves herself.  We have no doubt that she will prove herself invaluable to them because she is very good at what she does, even at 58.

We'll have a new candidate start on Monday.  Her name is Brekke and she is a chemical engineer.  She has a BA and some experience.  She worked on the TSA machines that were suppose to detect bombs.  Brekke and Michael would have been a fun team; he blows up things and she keeps them from blowing up.

The funniest part of Gospel Principles class was when Brother Watson was pulling food out from inside his jacket and putting it in his wife's tote bag.  It looked like a magic trick but it wasn't suppose to be.  He was trying to be subtle.  Sister Watson is pregnant (due March 30) and directs the choir.  We have practice right before church.  She had asked him to bring some snacks for her.  He pulled something from one inside pocket, then another item from a different inside pocket, and third item from another inside pocket.  It really looked like a slight of hand trick and made me laugh.
 

28 February--Half Way

Today I am officially half way through my mission.  I treated myself to dinner out.  We went to Cafe Sabor.  It is very similar to Casa Orozco in Livermore, but in an old train depot.

26 February

 Temple Sealings We went to the temple tonight and did sealings for our manager.  She gave us 30 daughters to seal to their parents.  It was the first time Sister Bews has done sealings since she was sealed to her deceased husband and daughter, and her living daughter.  It was a very special night.

24 February

Musical Fireside

The Utah Ogden Missionaries put on a musical fireside at the Logan Tabernacle tonight.  We have a lot of very talented missionaries in our mission.  About a dozen missionaries shared their conversion story then bore their testimony in their native language.  There were several beautiful numbers, two by a choir, and several small groups.  The spirit was very strong.

23 February

More Snow

I was up by 7am this morning and skies were somewhat clear.  As I looked to the north I could see the cold front moving in.  By 9am it was snowing and it continued to snow all day.  I think we received at least 4" of snow.

I am hoping this is the last storm of the season.  In commemoration of that I built a snowman by our garage/storage unit this afternoon.  The snow off the road seemed to stick better than the snow on the grounds.  Maybe the salt in it made it a little more moist.  I had to pack the snow instead of rolling it into snowballs, so my snowman is a little unique.  The snowplow man was grading the road around the apartments while I was out.  He offered to plow around my snowman.  How nice of him.

21 February

Hurray!!!  Colleen and Terry got jobs today.  

Colleen was up early and drove down to Clearfield to apply at a temp agency there.  We are talking a 30 minute drive at least from her place.  Afterwards she came to Logan.  While she was waiting to talk to me she received a phone call.  It was the temp agency offering her a position food distributor, which is very close to her home, temp to permanent.  :-)  She starts next Wednesday.  Colleen has lots of production experience, but had been doing substitute custodial work at schools.  She enjoyed the school environment and was hoping to find something permanent there.  However, the food place pays well for the area and she would have full time work and benefits in 90 days.

Terry is still very much of a little boy at heart, he likes to tease.  I can see him sitting in a classroom pulling on the braids/ponytail of the girl in front of him just cause they are there.  He has been turning in applications for shipping or purchasing positions all over the region.  He had five interviews to do in Salt Lake within a two day period a week ago.  He even went to Idaho Falls for an interview.  At the beginning of this week he had another interview with a different company in SLC.  He was offered the job this morning and accepted.  Not only that, he has received another offer since this morning but will stick with the first one.  Terry has been in our AJS program 30 days. 

Candidates do get jobs quickly if they are willing to work the program.  I have to keep reminding myself of that fact.  Some of our candidates seem like they are in the program forever and ever.  Generally that is because they are not matching their résumé and pounding the pavement.  There are some situations that take longer to get placed, but only because it is a specialized field.

17 February -- Sick

My companion thinks she is sick.  I was wondering if the “bug” was going to catch up with us.  She says she was sick last night before going to bed and doesn’t feel well this morning.  I’m thinking positive thoughts in hopes that I don’t get sick.  I know when the missionaries have gotten the bug, one spouse will be sick, and then the other one gets sick.

We have been washing our dishes by hand because we haven’t had that many.  We have agreed that if either of us got sick, we’d go back to using the dishwasher.

I learned in church today that one of our visit teaching sisters was in the hospital in Ogden.  What a shock!  We had just visit taught her last Wednesday night.  I guess they thought she was having some heart problems Friday night, then discovered she had pneumonia.   She is quadriplegic which makes the situation much more serious.

15 February -- Is That Me?

Today I helped a gentleman rebuild his Structural Engineering résumé.  The one he brought in primarily showed his work experience and responsibilities.  At first he just wanted it checked.  I said it would be okay, but more effective if we did a skills type résumé.  At first he wasn't sure and was concerned about time.  As we started working on it, he began to doubt his skills.  I was just taking the things he had put on his résumé as responsibilities and turning them into skills.  I wasn't creating anything that wasn't already there and kept reassuring him of that.  At one point, he was even questioning if it should say Structural Engineer at the top.  I pointed to his degree (both bachelor and masters) and asked him what it said.
      "Structural Engineer," he read.
      "And that's what you are," I affirmed.
Together we continued to rearranged his résumé focusing on his skills.  It took us about an hour and half.  When it was finished he looked at it in amazement.
      "Is this really me?  I can't believe it."
He left happy and feeling much more positive about himself.

10 February -- Snow, snow, everywhere + Stake assignment

It started snowing again Friday night and has been snowing off and on ever since.  Luckily the flakes are tiny, little specks.  The roads have been wet, but not snow piled until last night.  The downside of wet roads is they are okay to drive on during the day, but turn to ice at night. 

Thursday we received an additional assignment at the Employment Center.  All the service missionaries have a Stake list of people who have registered on LDSjobs they contact every month.  We have now been given a Stake to contact besides working with the AJS candidates.  Sister Bews has the Richmond Stake and I have the Providence YSA Stake.  There are 119 people on my list.  Besides calling people on my stake list, I call or email the Bishop or representative he has designated every week on the progress of the AJS candidate from their ward.

In our new assignment, we are to contact the Stake Employment Specialist monthly to assist him or her and coordinate our efforts.  We then call each of the people on our list to see how their job search is going.  We share information of what is available to them at the Employment Center and any leads we have that may fit their job search.  If individuals do not want to be contacted by Employment Missionaries there is a place on the site where they can mark do not contact.  It doesn't affect their access to the site.  The Employment Missionaries are not proselyting missionaries.  Our sole responsibility is to assist people in finding employment.

4 February -- Deer & Jobs

As we were driving to the Center this morning, we encountered a deer on 100 East just past 600 North.  He came out into the street, stared at us for a few minutes, then went bounding into a yard.  It is a good thing I was driving slowly, 25mph

For non-Utahans, 100 East is one block east of Main Street and 600 North is 6 blocks north of Center Street.  Main Street is the part of the highway between Brigham City and Preston, Idaho.

John was offered a job in the banking business today.  He has a great résumé.  He has been interview by Chase, Zions, and USUCCU.  The offer is from USUCCU.  He has been in our program since December 3.

Troy is going into truck driving training through Department of Workforce Services at Bridgerland Applied Technology College (BATC).  There are nine people in his class and recruiters have already been in to offer jobs at the end of the 10 week training period.  Troy has a master's degree which has nothing to do with driving. He wants to earn enough so that he and his wife can go on a mission a few years down the road.

27 & 29 January

27 January -- Another Snow Storm

There is another storm coming through, but it looks like the temperatures will stay in the 20s and 30s during the day.  It seems like the temperatures go up so it can snow, then drop low to stop.  Not sure which I prefer.

      “It’s snowing still,” said Eeyore gloomily.
      “So it is.”
      “And freezing."
      "Is it?”
       “Yes,” said Eeyor.  “However,” he said, brightening up a little, “we haven’t had an earthquake lately.” (A.A. Milne)
10:00am:  Yes, it has now started snowing here again.  It is suppose to last through the night.  Glad my car is in the garage.

 29 January -- Still Snowing

It is still snowing.  Not a heavy snow, just a light snow.  Sometimes it even stops.  This is suppose to continue through tomorrow until Thursday morning.  I've been getting my exercise in by shoveling snow.  I'll be a seasoned snow shoveller by the time I move to Nebraska.  Tonight for the fun of it I made a snow angel.  I wanted to make a snowman, but the snow isn't wet enough. 

The streets have been kept pretty clear; so, no snow day. :-(  I get advise that I should go to a vacant parking lot and practice doing donuts and sliding.  I don't think so.  At least, not without someone who could coach me on what I should be doing.  I can be adventurous at times, but I'm not that adventurous in this situation.

26 January -- Road Trip

We went on a short road trip today.  It was nice weather for it.  We went to Hardware Ranch in Blacksmith Fork Canyon near Hyrum, Utah.  The skies were overcast from the inversion, but the further into the canyon we drove, the clearer the skies became.  The temperature rose too.  In Providence we were in the mid to high 30s; at Hardware Ranch we were in the mid 40s.

Hardware Ranch is a wildlife management area.  In the winter approximately 500 elk will come into the canyon to feed.  The purpose of the ranch is to provide a place for the elk to feed so they don't go down into the valley farmlands.  The rangers harvest the natural grasses and grains that grow in the area for feed.  Between December and February horse drawn sleigh rides are offered to visitors for a closer look; however, there is no getting out of the sleigh.  The elk are not domesticated; they are wild.

sleigh ride

Sister Frahm & Elder Elk

up close view

The little dots are elk grazing.

25 January -- Garage & AJS

I have rented a garage/storage unit to keep the car in at night.  Now it can stay a little warmer and no ice or snow to scrape off.  It is a month by month rental with 30 day notice for $65/month.  I figured it was worth it for the next couple months.  February is suppose to be the coldest month.  They are saying this January has been the 3rd coldest on record.

 

After shovelling--notice the icicles

Before shovelling

Becky and Paul went to Salt Lake today for a meeting about the Accelerated Job Search program.  It looks like AJS is going to be a part of the programs offered by all Employment Centers. :-)  Becky and Paul are excited because Salt Lake also wants to use the Matching Model Paul created for AJS as a tool for building résumés.  The Matching Model matches a person’s skills and talents on his résumé to what an employer is looking for.  I’ve discovered this is the only way I know how to build a résumé.  It is a hard résumé for some candidates to make because they want to include everything they can do even if it doesn’t match the job.  I assure the candidates that we are not tossing out those skills and talents; they can bring them out in an interview.

24 January -- Warmed up to 32º & My Pets

I woke up this morning and the temperature was still in the teens instead of the negatives.  It was raining ice though.  When the rain hit the pavement or windshield it would turn to ice.  The temperature rose a bit above 32ºF today, so the roads became slushy.  I think the city had put sand and salt on the roads very early this morning.  I decided to buy a shovel and clean the carport this evening.  It felt good to get out and do some physical work.  It was still 32ºF at 5:30pm.  I cleaned the carport out pretty good, then sprinkled cat litter across the carport. I then scattered salt all over the area.  I should get decent traction driving out of the carport.  This morning the car was starting to slip a bit.  I'm hoping that with the cat litter and salt I don't have a thin sheet of ice on the ground under the car in the morning

I have pets now.  They even came with a yummy treat.  The young men across the way got themselves a puppy; a cute little corgi they named Nova.  Made me wish I had a pet, so Carolyn sent me some pets.  The lion purrs when you squeeze it.

21 January -- Ceritications for everything, really?

While I was at Walmart I met a couple who had relocated here from Minnesota.  They had been told that Logan was a good place to come to so they came.  It put her a little closer to her family in Oregon and Washington.  He is working at West Liberty Food through Intermountain Staffing.  He is also a welder; however, he is not "certified."  His wife made an interesting observation about Utah.  She said the state is very "professional/college" oriented which means a person needs to be certified to do a job.  She has 15 years experience doing home health care in Minnesota but no certification; he doesn't have any certification as a welder.  As I think about it, she is pretty much on the mark.  One of our candidates was working on getting forklift certification.  For home health care, a person needs to be a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA).  People even get certified for cashiering, but it isn't required, at least not yet.

This morning I took a picture of the window sill in my bedroom.  It had ice on the inside from condensation because it was so cold outside.  The weather keeps saying it is going to get into the 20s or maybe even the 30s.  I have yet to see it happen.  I’m starting to get use to seeing my breath in the car as I drive down the road to the Center.  Pretty sad, huh?

Ah Hahs

I know it is cold when I wake up in the morning to hear the heater cycling on about every 10 minutes.  I lay in bed listing to the heater and hitting the snooze button on weekends.  The nights drop down to the negatives and we’re lucky if the temperature breaks into the teens during the day.  Even the locals are complaining about the cold.  They say this is weather is 15 degrees below normal.

Another phenomenon is freezing fog.  I learned about freezing rain when I leaved in Missouri; now I have discovered freezing fog.  The fog turns to sparkles because the moisture is actually freezing into ice crystals; this is not to be confused with snow.  When I first encountered it, I thought it was a very light, shiny snow.  It is rather pretty and can be hazardous.  Because it is ice crystals, it makes surfaces even that more slippery.

Icicles on the chapel.  Actually there are icicles hanging from most buildings around town, some 3 or 4 feet long.

Bouncing Ball

Today I felt like a bouncing ball.  I was bouncing from one candidate to another.  I was introducing D to the AJS binder, reviewing SB's résumé, interviewing a gal for AJS, helping B apply to Kelly Services online, explaining to S about the résumé download at LDSjobs, typing up the agenda for our AJS staff meeting tomorrow, putting together new AJS binders, writing a Letter of Recommendation for C, and the list goes on.  I wanted to have a little more interaction with SC to see if he needed any assistance with his job search, but I kept getting sidetracked. 

Catch-Up Day

So glad I spent the night at Devany’s.  I was really tired; it didn’t take me very long to fall asleep on her couch.

The drive back to Logan was good, no snow or freezing fog.  Lots of traffic going in the other direction and one big accident.

Return to the Mission Field

It was the kids first day back at school after Christmas/Winter break.  Tal was up early for seminary then the others started getting up and going.  I have actually been up and awake before everyone since I arrived.  This is not usual for me.  Must be those missionary hours I’ve been working on keeping.

Jeanne and I took the opportunity to run some errands and do a little shopping.  We really didn’t find anything.  Oh, I did buy some pajamas like hers from ShopKo.  She kept saying how comfortable and warm they were.

Packer was the only one who wanted to go to the airport with Jeanne and I.  Micah said he didn’t want to cry (surprisingly, I didn’t cry).  My flights to and from North Platte were extremely small, less than 10 people.  This time I didn’t meet any really social people.  I was surprised that we had two dogs on our Frontier flight to Salt Lake.  One was a poodle (rather older) that the owner held in her lap.  The other was a shepherd puppy in a travel case.  Maybe she put the case on the floor; I wasn’t close to that one to see what she did with dog.  When I first got on the plane, the puppy came strolling down the aisle.  The flight attendant retrieved the puppy and returned it to the owner with instructions to keep the puppy with her.

As this day progressed I was thinking I didn’t want to drive back to Logan after being up over 12 hours.  Jeanne arranged for me to spend the night at Devany’s and I emailed Sister Bews so she could arrange a ride to work on Tuesday.  I had already said I wouldn’t be going in on Tuesday because I would be getting in to Logan late.  So glad I did that.

No video chat with Meemaw

No video chatting with Meemaw this Sunday since I was there.  I did set up a Facetime for the boys to do with their cousin Barrett in Livermore.  Barrett had received a new iPod for Christmas and was anxious to Facetime.  I thought what a wonderful way for the boys to get to know each other a little better.  I let Packer and Micah use my new iPod.  I thought they could share their Lego creations with each other over the iPods.  Turned out to be a good call.

Baptism Day

Very busy day!  The baptism service started at 10am; Jeanne likes to keep things on time.  Packer gave a wonderful talk on baptism and Michelle did a great job speaking about the Holy Ghost.  Micah played “I Am a Child of God” on the piano and Talitha and Bekah sang “Teach Me To Walk in the Light.” 

Laurel was a bit anxious last night, but was excited and happy today.  Everything went well except Jared couldn’t remember one of Laurel’s middle names.  We all thought he was being emotional; he was just trying to think of the name.  He had to ask Laurel what it was—Evelyn.  She is the only one with two
middle names—Evelyn and Dolly after great grandmothers. 

Saturday evening Jeanne and I went to Walmart so I could buy a pillow.  The one I was using was very flat.  I don’t think I have bought a pillow for them since they lived in Provo.

Off to North Platte -- Surprise

I was up at 5:30am to catch a 10:14am flight out of Salt Lake City.  I left the apartment by 6:40am; I had aimed for 6:30am. The drive down wasn’t too bad.  Elder Eubanks had recommended that I take Legacy Highway to avoid some of the traffic and big trucks—they’re not allowed on that highway.  Parked in the economy lot and took shuttle bus to terminal.  Pretty efficient. 

I had arrived in plenty of time.  Ended up passing the time talking with a gentleman from Kansas.  He was waiting for my Frontier flight to come in so he could meet his wife.  They had booked at different times to come to Salt Lake for a grandchild’s blessing or priesthood ordination.  Not sure which because he was telling about how they fly out for their grandchildren’s special ordinations.

Frontier had a full plane and asked for people to check their carry-on through.  I took advantage of the opportunity (no charge for checking) so I wouldn’t have to worry about getting my suitcase from one gate to the other.  When I returned to my seat, someone else had sat where I was so I went to the bathroom.  Upon returning their large duffle bag was there but the person wasn’t.  A TSA gal came by to check it out and asked if I knew who it had belonged to.  No idea, but I thought it had been a woman (wasn’t even certain about that).  They notified the police.  An officer came after a bit to take it away.  The gal from TSA says it happens quite often that people leave their luggage to go to the bathroom or get a bite even though they aren’t suppose to.  She has even been asked to watch someone’s luggage which she can’t do.  I think they opened it up later and found some ID because I heard them announce on the PA for someone to come claim their lost item.

We took off at 10:14am and arrived in Denver at 11:30am.  Had a three hour layover.  There I had the opportunity to talk to a couple from Vernal, Utah.  They had been down in Texas visiting her family.  I
didn’t realize there was a flight to Vernal on Great Lakes Airline.  They seem to go to all the out of the way places.

We left Denver at 3pm and arrived in North Platte at 5pm.  The flight was pretty smooth, but noisy, the consequences of flying in a smaller aircraft.  I was able to have an isle seat and a window seat all at the same time.

Michelle was there to pick me up.  She dropped me off at Jeanne’s, but didn’t come to the door with me.  Jeanne made sure to have Laurel answer the door.  I rang the door bell a couple times before she opened it.  When Laurel opened the door, she stood there with her mouth open in disbelief.  I said “I heard there is a baptism tomorrow.   I thought I would come for it.”  All the kids were in disbelief when they saw me.  One of the few times they have been speechless.  After they recovered from their initial shock, they were very excited to see me and I had lots of hugs.

Close of 2012

December 28, we made a trip to Tremonton this evening.  Sister Bews' family from Boise was going to Salt Lake and asked if we would meet them for dinner.  I chose Tremonton over Brigham City because I thought the road might be easier to travel.  I wasn't too thrilled driving over the slush and ice of Sardine Canyon on Christmas Day.  We met them at Denny's.  Sister Bews was excited to see her family again. 

December 29, I am going to North Platte for Laurel's baptism on January 5!  President Hiers has given me permission to go.  I will be gone Friday through Monday this coming weekend.  Sister Bews is especially excited for me because I haven't had an opportunity to see my family for awhile and she has visited with hers a couple times.

Jeanne emailed me not to say anything to Laurel when I talk with the kids tonight on video chat.  We'll surprise her with my visit.  Michelle wants to pick me up at the airport, so I can just walk up to the door and knock on it.  What fun!

December 31, Becky was really happy for me when she came into the Center.  She was delighted that I was going to see my family and attend the baptism.  As other missionaries learned of my trip, they were all very excited and happy for me.  We have arranged for Sister Bews to have transportation to the Center on Friday and Monday.  The ward will watch over her during the weekend.