Pictures 'n stuff

Bob says that I ought to post some of the pictures of various activities we've been to. So I will, but by now you have learned the sad lesson that I'm not very good at this particular venture. But -- here goes:


I never know how these things are going to arrange themselves, and they keep moving around. The top two pics were taken at a bi-monthly "aloha" party they have to say hello to the new folks and goodbye to those who are leaving during the ensuing 2 months. I should explain some of the people: In the line dancing shot, the couple on the left end is a counselor in our mission presidency and his wife. Doesn't he look like a Marlboro Man? He actually is an old horse man. They're really great people and we enjoy them a lot. The other group of ladies were some of the ones that came into the mission the same time we did (our Group). I love those ladies!

The bottom ones were taken at a barbecue/picnic deep in City Creek Canyon and featured (besides delicious food) a bird show for entertainment. I always seem to be making a potluck dish to take somewhere on Monday night. Last Monday, this Monday, and next Monday we have 3 different socials, one for the branch, one for our group, and one for the zone we just left at the library. And after the last-mentioned potluck, we're meeting our own tiny little FHE group at Leatherby's, where they have killer ice cream dishes. Bob and I shared a "small" banana split last time that was so huge we had to bring half of it home. We're just partying fools here.

The top photo of Bob and I was uploaded last, but went in the top spot -- not my doing. Go figure. Now you know why we're having such a good time here! And in the idle hours we work at the Joseph Smith building with people we really enjoy, doing work we really like, and for the Lord, whom we love so dearly. It will be hard to come home.

After the Niagara dump, gentle rain and sunshine

It's been a lovely day. I love conducting this choir (the Ensign 3rd Branch Choir). We sang today after only 2 short rehearsals, along with a wonderful flutist from the area, and I was deeply satisfied. I checked with Bob to see if he was feeling the same things I was, because he also has a new assignment in which he can use the talents and skills he's been developing for years. I feel as though I'm just unfurling, or opening like a blossom, to warm rain and sunshine and comfort. We're both doing things we love. Not that we didn't love working in the library, but we were always just on the verge of our comfort zones, and trying mightily to remember everything we learned in training that would be helpful to a patron's particular problem. Now in this last week Bob has taken many pictures; group shots, mug shots, portrait shots, and scenery, and has been on PhotoShop a great deal of the time. I have finally gotten a regular assignment to practice on and play the beautiful organ in the chapel, have gotten a calling to conduct the branch choir. I quite often have time to work on my arrangements in the quiet spots at work, and a member of the mission presidency this week asked me to look at an original poem that meant a great deal to him with an eye toward composing music to go with it. And in addition I've always loved clerical-type work, and have lots of those kinds of jobs to do during the day. We love the couple who are training us and will hate to see them leave. Hope nobody slips us any Miracle-Gro in our lemonade -- we'll start fizzing like firecrackers.

Welcome news from the Outside World

I don't think I mentioned that we had the pleasure of seeing Bro. and Sister Mergill in the library not too long ago. That was delightful in itself, but I think they must have gone back to Texas and said something, because this week we've had some delightful e-mail letters from friends in the Frisco 4th ward, and they were very welcome and much appreciated! I've been keeping up with the local blogs as best I can and it makes me feel like I'm not so far away, but we were thrilled to receive the notes, as well as the ward directory -- with photos!! I've been mooning over it. Thanks so much to everyone.

I'm a little apprehensive about coming back -- not only will Amy and her family be gone but it sounds as though the ward will have changed drastically. That's a little worrisome to me -- I liked it fine the way it was. But growth is exciting too, so we will adjust. We're so glad that the Kovach family will still live close by.

We are loving our new assignments in the Administration Zone. We have the busiest printers in the zone in our cubicle, so we have members of the mission presidency as well as others popping in and out all day long. It's great. Bob has already taken the photos of the latest group of incoming missionaries and we both enjoyed that.

Not only is all well in Zion, but Zion is a lot of fun!!

A chance encounter and a zone transfer ... all in one day!

It certainly has been an interesting day! Started out with a general authority telling me to slow down on my scooter. (He was joking, or at least he was smiling). We had just crossed the street on No. Temple and were blocked by a large group of people who had apparently just left the temple. I was more or less stopped, trying to maneuver around and through them, and this very tall gentleman, with a big smile, said "Slow down on that thing." I just laughed because people are always telling me not to break speed limits, etc. I thought he looked familiar and thought he might be someone I had seen in Texas, but 2 seconds later it dawned on me it was L. Tom Perry. Fun!! We were told right off the bat when we came here that if we ever saw a General Authority walking across the plaza or Temple Square we were to leave them alone and not bother them, because they're very busy men and don't have time to spare. They didn't say anything about General Authorities harrassing me, however.

But here's the real meaty news of the day -- right after we got to work today we were asked to come in and speak with a member of the mission presidency, and Bob was called to be the mission photographer. So starting tomorrow we are back permanently on days, 8-4, with holidays off (the library staff isn't always that lucky), a beautiful and large cubicle with windows that look out on the gorgeous plaza, and lots to do. Bob's main assignment will be putting together the publication called "Mission Memories," and taking all the photos of the news missionaries. Mine will be keeping track of money and ordering badges, and I'm not sure what all else. We will train with the couple presently in this position until they leave at the end of August, and then we'll be on our own.

So even while we're rather sad about leaving our friends in the U.S./Canada Zone, we're very excited about this new assignment. Bob will be wonderful, and I'll have a good time. Two great new callings in just 4 days -- life doesn't get much better.

Win some, lose some . . .

Two things of note happened today; one was wonderful and the other was just absolutely awful. The wonderful one was that I was called to be the new branch choir director, and I'm pretty jazzed about that. I won't start until Aug. 10, and you can't tell anyone from the branch (like you would!) until after 1 o'clock Mountain Standard Time. That's the good news -- here's the bad. I had some free time at the library this afternoon so I checked my e-mail and discovered that I had invited a virus into my system and it took over my entire mail box and sent this horrible sales-pitch e-mail out to hundreds of people, some that I haven't corresponded with for years. I was mortified and have been trying to send out warnings to all, but I don't know if it's reaching everyone or not. So, if you got one please accept my most abject apologies. I would never send out something like that, but hopefully most of you already know that.

No wonder it's so hard to do research!

This little nugget of humor was in one of our training manuals:

"I am a census takers for the city of Bufflow. Our City has groan very fast in resent years, and now in 1865, it has become a hard and time consuming job to count all the peephill. There are not many that con do this werk, as it is nesessarie to have an ejucashun, wich a lot of pursons still do not have. Anuther atribeart needed for this job is god spelling, for meny of the pephill to be counted can hardle speek inglish, let alon spel there names!"

I can vouch for the above, having indexed over 20,000 names before I left for SLC and looking at censuses almost every day at the library, and I can assure you that when I run across a census with clear handwriting and good spelling I pray for that census taker to have a great reward.

Speaking of Greek (oh, we weren't?), I have pretty much conquered Irfanview and love it, and am now trying to make friends with Soundex. I may manage it -- I still have 10 months left to go. I just don't have the right atribearts for some of these challenges, but thank goodness I have god spelling going for me. And the peephill are great and very helpful.

All is well in Zion.

This 'n that

It's been an interesting week. We're adjusting to the late shift pretty well, but it's helped that we've been given the week off as far as early morning choir practice is concerned. We had 2 weeks in a row of 4 early rehearsals per week in preparation for the big Pioneer Day concert at the Devotional Monday morning. As it was the Walkers' last performance and everyone was bummed about that they gave us time off for good behavior. Monday we start in again, 3 days a week getting up at 4:45 a.m., but now we can come back home and take a nap before work. For those of you who happen to be my family, no, they didn't ask me to conduct a rehearsal -- everything was geared toward the big event on Monday. Easy come, easy go, I say. Instead I will be playing a piano solo in sacrament meeting this Sunday. With no piano to practice on and very little in the way of music. It should be a real wow. I don't think.

As far as working in the library, we're holding our own and learning a lot. I've found a few more names -- none in my direct line but some corollary lines, which was just as exciting. I've learned some nifty new web sites. It's amazing what's out there.

Our 3rd anniversary was spent working the late shift, so we just had lunch at J.B.'s and said "Happy Anniversary," and that was about it. We spent Pioneer Day in much the same quiet way and dared to eat breakfast at home instead of on a church lawn somewhere, and instead of walking down to South Temple to watch the parade turned on the TV. Then we went to the library and only worked a 4 hour shift (the library closed early today) but eschewed the fireworks tonight. So I guess we aren't really converted to Utah-ism yet. We really enjoy it when we get to relax at home. "This is the Place" for us. I will say, however, that being at the library is a very happy experience. Everyone in our zone is either nice or fun, and most of the time both at the same time. It's a great place to be. I can see us serving another mission here, after we've been home a while and taken care of some things. But I'll need a lot of family soak time before I leave again. I really get to missing our kids.

But today was the highlight of the week -- a real bonanza! This on top of listening to 2 hours of an institute class one of my sons is teaching on The Savior of the World: A phone call from a daughter, e-mails from a brother and a daughter, 2 notes with precious photos in them, and an envelope with a letter from another daughter and letters and pictures from grandsons, one of whom wrote "I love you" in "Chinees" letters. Life can hold no more joy than I had today.