Christmas Musicks

I just have to share this because...well, I love Christmas musicks, and I'm in love with She of She & Him.

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Thanksgiving

Two posts ago (count 'em: 1, 2) I told you all of my November Thankful List (NTL) where every day of November (including October 31) I would write one (or more) thing(s) for which I am thankful. I've enjoyed it: it's been great to take some time [each day] to ponder the things that mean the most to me in my life. So without further ado, the NTL.

October 31

Today I am thankful for the Lambson family. They've taken me in as though I'm one of the family. Friendship, making me feel welcome, meals, love. Couldn't have survived Columbia without them.

November 1

Today I'm thankful for Steven and Tamara. They call me almost every day. They invite me to dinner, even though it might be their date night. They let me watch movies with them and treat me like I'm their best friend and a very important guest in their home. Steven's concern for my wellbeing blows my mind, even when I'm feeling especially introverted. As I said yesterday, there's no way I could have survived this place without them.

November 2

Today I'm thankful for Mike aka Klammi aka Wiggy and Kacee. One can't really understand how much one misses a good home-cooked meal until one gets to be a taste-tester for these guys. I am so grateful for the opportunity that I'm afforded to serve them almost on a daily basis. Knowing that they are trying to improve the way they live makes me so hapy. Kalambo also makes work better than bearable.

November 3

Technology. And smiley-face emoticons.

November 4

The Hess shared her opinion on why it's OK to listen to Christmas musicks starting November 1, and so I've been enjoying some lovely Celtic Christmas tunes. I'm thankful for her and for the Celts and for Christmas.

November 5

Tonight I watched all of season 1 of The Office, and part of season 2. It made me realize how much I appreciate good humor and made me think of Haley Greet and Paul (Sephin) Harris. Haley introduced me to the fine show, and both used to sit and watch it with me for hours. So I'm thankful for The Office.

November 6

Tonight I'm thankful for my ninja skills that allow me to weave in and out of human crowds to avoid being seen and/or stopped by annoying people. Also I could protect myself during a zombie/radiation-mutated monster outbreak.

November 7

One word, two syllables: Stake Conference.

November 8

Tonight I have been watching the ever-nolstalgic Back to the Future trilogy. What this means is 1) I'm thankful for nostalgia, and 2) I'm thankful that the future didn't turn out anything like that.

November 9

More nostalgia and Final Fantasy IX. It doesn't matter what games come out or how good the graphics get. I get VGADD (Video Game A.D.D. - this is serious). Each time this hits, I pull out a classic Final Fantasy and am instantly cured. I'm thankful for Square-Enix and of course Nobuo Uematsu.

November 10

Tonight I'm thankful for tomorrow because I have the day off.

November 11

Again the Lambsons make the list. And vintage clothing shops. And Cajun restaurants. Oh, and Scott Pilgrim. (RAMOOOOONAAA!!!)

November 12

I had to work today and tomorrow is the weekend. I'm thankful that I have a job even though sometimes I really hate it.

November 13

I'm thankful for Chili's, free soup, and $5 bets that involve mixing every condiment on the table together and using it as a sort of "fry sauce." They would have had to pay me $50 to taste it, as I gagged only at the sight of them mixing and adding and mixing. This occasion reminded me of a different occasion. Picture this: me, Nate, Chris, and Brett eating at Ghetto (Apollo) Burger every Friday night. They all loved ketchup. I gag at the smell.

November 14

Travelled to Washington D.C. today for a work training. It's been good to spend time with friends, especially since I can be my normal, stupid, silly self and Wylenne just acts along with me. So I'm thankful for work friends that ease the sucky burden of work.

November 15

Lots to be thankful for. My dad encouraged getting a good education. Tonight I talked with the administrator of my agency that would only talk to you if you had a Master's in Statistics. She introduced me to two other gentlemen who spoke with me about the research division, where I would really like to be. Soon. Also I'm thankful for my friend Melly for picking me up and taking me to FHE so I could have some other Mormons to hang out with.

November 16

Tonight, again, I'm thankful for my dad, his love, his example, his dedication to his family, his advice, his funny sayings and quirks, and all the memories, good or bad, that I have of him. Love you, Dad!

November 17

My family. They love me, stick by me, laugh with (at) me, call me, text me, and always want me around. No matter how far apart we live, I'm always a priority to them.

To my mom, Amber, Mike, little Emma, Shawn, Sheeila, Josh, Jaycee, Nats, and Brooke: tonight, and always, I am thankful for you.

November 18

Art. Air. Space. Declarations. Constitutions. History. Liberty. America. New friends. Pizza. Pie. Sleep.

November 19

I'm thankful for strange, unfamiliar houses in Arlington, VA, and the people that let me stay there. Also photography.

November 20

I saw a lot of great things today. Note that "great" doesn't always mean good. Creativity. Talent. Humor. Dedication. Perseverance. Destruction. Sadness. Death. I'm thankful for the creative and talented people that fill this world and make life worth living. I'm thankful for a good sense of humor. I'm thankful that there are people out there who are so dedicated to a cause and refuse to give up even in the face of death. I'm thankful for challenges that stretch and tug and shape until they are finally overcome creating a new and strong person.

November 21

Mercy.

November 22

Modern medicine, vitamins, an understanding boss, Donkey Kong, and sick leave.

November 23

I applied for a job today in Fairfax, VA. I posted something to this effect as my fb status and my sister commented, "Sweet! :)" Maybe she doesn't know the impact that it has on me, knowing that she supports me even though I'd be even further away. Today, sis, I'm thankful for you.

November 24

Woke up at 2:30 this morning; couldn't fall back to sleep. Couldn't focus at work. I'm thankful for a scattered brain and for those who have to deal with it and don't complain.

November 25

The gospel. My Savior. The knowledge that I have that through Him, I can be with my family forever. Nothing could make me happier; nothing brings greater peace. To my family: I love you, and as I said before, I am most grateful for you!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Peace.

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Da Coolest

I went to Washington D.C. this past week. O! what a week. Laughter, smiles, new friends, old friends, new enemies, covetous feelings, tears, rejection, beauty, and I could go on. So allow me, as if you had a choice, to take you on a photo tour of our nation's capital. Pictures.

First off, a picture of yours truly with a truly spectacular stache in the Air and Space museum. Remember how I said I made new friends before? Well one of them took this photo. Why, you ask? In her own words, "You seem like the lying type. So you should probably be in the picture if you want anyone to believe you were actually here." That's a lie.

And then we went to another part of that museum where there was this sweet infrared camera you could stand in front of.

It's always night in the District, except when I took this picture. I must have tripped on a rock as I pushed the button with my index finger that releases the shutter. Or maybe I purposely took the photo like this. Gosh!

I just really liked that people have learned how to carve words into marble. It has nothing to do with what it says.

My sister loves elephants. No, I didn't say "pink elephants." These jokes are getting lame. I'm done. Oh, this was in the American History museum, where I also saw Dorothy's red slippers and Julia Child's kitchen. No photos.

And then at the gift shop, we found some relevant souvenirs.

D.C. has 2 places to eat. You can go to a bar or a cool pizza place where they cook pizzas in a stone oven. They also serve lentil and ham soup, which is delightful. Also these were embedded into the table.

Also shadows.

Remember how I said it's always night in D.C.?

Many people don't believe me, or even care, but Abraham Lincoln suffered from depression. This was kind of a fun shot. Heaps of people were taking photos with their flash turned on, so I turned mine off and just lengthened the exposure time.

Some people can't keep their eyes open. Some people have a cool mustache.

Melly and I went to the market for breakfast. The Eastern Market. It's at the Eastern Market metro stop. You scale the stairs out of the metro, head that one direction, and if it's a Saturday, they have this cool farmer's market and, well, it's superb. This place is famous (back to the Eastern Market) for their blueberry-buckwheat pancakes. While we were in the infinitely long line (because this place is so good (!)), we were greeted by the owner. This gentlemen. We talked about family, Utah, food, you name it. What a guy!

Of course, there are only 3 things to do while visiting the District. You can either 1) eat bar food, pizza, or delicious bluebuck pancakes, 2) visit the Smithsonian museums and other monuments at night, and 3) dress up like characters from the hit book series, Harry Potter. Can you guess who I am? Prolly not. Can you guess who Melly is??!

Note, I had to teach her how to act mystical.

End of line.

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What Are You Thankful For?

You may have noticed that my 3- or 4-post streak ended quite abruptly. I guess one could also make the argument that you didn't notice, meaning that you don't come to Resplendent very often anyway. Either way, you're now wondering, "Well Leon, if you hardly blog anymore, why is tonight any different?" You could also be thinking, "I don't care what it is, just get to the point."

The point. It's November. That means lots of things: food, eggnog, turkeys, tofurkeys, trebuchets launching tofurkeys from Logan to Salt Lake using calculus to determine the exact angle and power needed, oh, and if you didn't know already, Thanksgiving.




I decided on October 31 that every day until Thanksgiving, I'm going to write down one think for which I am thankful. Thanksgiving day, or maybe night, or maybe within the next day or two after, I'm going to post those things on here. Please bless you'll do it with me! If you do, email me your lists and I'll post them on here, or post them on a blog somewhere and I'll create a link from here to there. It will be like if this blog were a trebuchet in Logan and your thankful list were in Salt Lake, then the great and spacious interweb would be the trajectory along which a tofurkey would journey between my trebuchet and your thankful list. Now that's something!

PS - if nobody sends me a thankful list, that's your problem. I know where my priorities lie. End PS.

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Darkness

It's getting dark.

Visions of green- and gold-colored orbs are floating around me, spinning, threatening my very existence. All I can hear is this eerie, high-pitched noise, echoing through the corridors wherein haunts endless vibrations and brain-waves; it sounds not unlike the index-finger-sized crickets that ruthlessly invest homes in Yuma, Arizona, only slightly higher and 3 times more obnoxious. It's getting louder.

I'm delusional.

The orbs have transformed now. Instead of glowing spheres, they've all turned into bright-blue stars; the once-smoothed edges of miniature planet-like objects have become razor sharp. The sky must be falling. It can't be. They're spinning ever-so-close to my person. I'm scared.

It's now dark. Pitch black. What will happen now that all lights have been shut off and the darkness has taken over completely. Light must yet remain in somebody's heart.

Flashes of light. Brilliant. Imagine being on the top of a mountain; the sky is embedded with dark, unforgiving shapes. Lightening; bright flashes of electricity just before your face, your eyes tear up at the instantaneous reversal of their pupil-dilation. Your head begins to pound. Your body ceases entirely.

The volume of the cricket-like scream is increasing; intensifying. The darkness more immense, completely overtaking the frozen earth upon which you struggle to remain standing, ever-staggering.

I am surrounded.

An hour passes by. Two. Five. No, three. Time is now an illusion. Hands cramped up. Must hit pause. Must save state and rest while I still can, until the yellow dwarf can send forth its plasma rays and penetrate this dark cloud and these perpetual, pulsating flashes of light. Mixtures of green and gold orbs and blue stars, those relentless, selfish, life-absorbing fiends, now surround me completely; they move in. Not life-absorbing; life-sustaining. Warmth.

Light on the horizon.

I'm saved.

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Failed Attempt

Cannot get the creative juices flowing this early in the morning. So far I've tried to write a poem, write a different kind of poem, recite the probability density function (pdf) of the normal distribution, integrate said pdf into a poem, and, of course, fall back to sleep. Like so many other things in life, I have failed at each of these. Some other things I've failed at:

• Going 2 posts in a row without using bulleted lists or mentioning Ramona.
• Becoming a best-selling author.
• Moving back to Utah.
• Learning Japanese fluently by Christmas.
• Gaining a 10-foot vertical.

You'll notice something here. That's right, my creative juices are still not flowing. It was worth a try.

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The Black Mage

Cue Celtic Moon by Enya. Cue awesome CGI cutscene. Enter baddies. Enter Vivi Ornitier, The Black Mage.

Baddy 1 attacks. Dodged by Vivi. Baddy 2 attacks. Miss! Vivi readies flare. FLARE!!! Both baddies lose 1,000 hp and disintegrate right before your eyes in glorious, flawless CGI.

Cue victory music. Vivi dances. Vivi gains 358 experience points, 5 AP, a hi-potion, and a mythil ring.

If I know you as well as I think I do, you're asking yourself out loud in a mystified tone of voice in your almost-to-par British accent, "What?" Am I right? I might be. I have a 1 in 10 chance of being wrong. Does it scare you that I can see right through the wireless connections that are connecting you to this post, and hence to me, and can see your look of confusion? Does it bother you that I called you out on your poor ability to speak with a false accent? I've been called out on that many times. I've also been told the exact opposite. So what you choose to believe is up to you. As for me, I'm moving on.

And by moving on, I'm moving backwards, as if Hiro himself were controlling time. Hands on the clock moving counter-clockwise. Vivi loses experience points and AP and has to give back the mythril and hi-potion. Baddies reappear. CGI cut-scene plays from end to beginning, Enya intones in reverse sounding akin to the destroyer's music, until time freezes and you sit there face-to-face, staring eagerly at the strangest looking character you've ever seen. His skin appears to be made of burned marshmallows. He has no mouth. His planet-sized, circular eyes glow a raging, deep amber. He's short; shorter than you would expect. His appearance doesn't shout power nor pride nor alpha-mage; you see humility, compassion, curiosity.

Forward-moving time reveals itself to you once more. The all-familiar prelude to those familiar with Final Fantasy 4 enlightens your mind as the screen goes from dark to light, CGI movement commences, the strange character you deemed weak triumphs over evil with a blast of flare that could melt a red dwarf star. You begin to understand his true power.

Ladies and gentlemen, say hello to Vivi Ornitier, The Black Mage.

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Tweet Me!

Despite all claims that I do not have a sense of humor, I'm a pretty funny human. To prove this, I'd like to take this opportunity to repost some of my tweets from today. As you know, today was Apple's big music event. They announced some pretty cool crap, such as iOS 4 dot 1 and 4 dot 2, a multi-touch unit you clip to your shirt when you go for a jog (which stays out of the way if you get attacked by ninjas or zombies), among many others. The event ended with Steve Jobs sucking up to and allowing take the stage lead vocalist Chris Martin of a band whose performance left an almost-deep-enough impression for me to remember their name. I bet I just lost half of my readership.

During the event, as I just said, I twitted (?) some tweets. For those of you who follow @JLeonBell on twitter will have read these, and I apologize for making you read them again. Just look at the pretty picture at the bottom of the page. Thanks.

• New Apple store in china made from old iPhone 4 glass. #appleevent
• Words required when presenting at an apple event: beautiful, gorgeous.
• Going to switch to Microsoft. #stevejobs got a jack johnson song stuck in my head. #appleevent (there went the other half of my readership... hello, loneliness.)
• This just in: new #coldplay song boring and generic. #appleevent (can't lose any more subscribers...)
• @SmAuRsAeH everything I say is necessary.

I had to throw that last one in for the H of it. And it's entirely possible that only one of us (me) thinks any of those are remotely humorous. I'll leave you alone then. Here's my final tweet for the night. Adieu!

• Need to find a purple-haired lady! #ramona

(images not mine; Steve Jobs comments sarcasm; Coldplay comments not sarcasm)

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