It Goes Without Saying

Some things don’t need to be repeated.  And some never need to be said at all. Quite a few are read between the lines, or shown with a look in the eyes.

I throw out a few off the top of my head and our recycling bin:

"He needs to get a job."

"That dog always barks when the owner is gone.  Drives me crazy!"

"Better clean the bathroom before they come."

("And after they leave," I add.)

"There must be a way to stop the junk mail."  (And deprive USPS of essential revenue.)

Gold’s Gym junk mail: “Know your own strength”  (not that of the buff people around you, defined by Google: “…with fine muscle tone.”)

Marie Callender’s tempting mail: “Order plenty of desserts for all of your holiday gatherings …”  (I’m all for that!)

“Holiday Lighting” flier left at front door last week: “The Holidays are here … Don’t wait."  (Sorry – negative doesn't work for me here.)

DirecTV ad: “For a limited time … lowest prices ever!  Bundle and Save!”  (Yada yada ...)

A bookmark I picked up at the library: "READ"  (I already do.)

"Government is sometimes wasteful."  (No need to state the obvious.)

"We need a vacation."  (Yes!!)

"Wish we could be there with you!"

I may add a couple, but really, needless to say, it goes …

"Oh, what’s the use!"  (My rhetorical question 10/28.)

If you detect any cynicism, please excuse me.

Where is it?  You know it goes ...

Like Precise Language

Last Saturday my sweetheart and I watched a less-popular movie at a low-price theater.  We liked The Giver, based on the book Kay read and didn’t like.  “Boys like it better,” Teacher said.  In my 4/14/14 “Lighten My Load” post, I wrote: “… reminds me of hearing Lois Lowry (age 77, award-winning author of The Giver and 39 other books) describe a dystopian society that had lost all of its technology – a nightmarish tale!”

A recurring reminder by “the Elders” in charge and the sheepish people who follow the bad rules, is to “use precise language”, which “in this community, is not precise at all but rather is a language in which the meanings of words are intentionally unclear. For example, each family unit participates in the 'telling of feelings' every evening. This sharing is ironic because the people don't have any feelings. They gave up their feelings when they chose Sameness. Another word that is ironic and not precise is 'Nurturer.' Jonas' father, a Nurturer, is supposed to be a caretaker of infants. He does care for infants, but he also kills them.”  

– CliffsNotes

www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/g/the-giver/critical-essays/style-and-language-in-the-giver

So if I spoiled it for any of my five followers who have not read the book or seen the film, “I apologize.”  (Another recurring line recalled.)  I feel for you.  Better blame it on Cliff, not me.  Regardless, rent the movie next year, and don't get too political.

Memories in Family Tree

Trying to understand the big picture, not just the how-to of Memories, I remain in the dark.  One of the FamilySearch presentations I am editing for our local family history center was written by our expert, showing two kinds relating to placement (as I see it) in Family Tree: “Tree and Person Memories”.  It lists the four types of Memories: Photos, Documents, Stories, and Audio (new addition!)  I get the types, but not the kinds.  Examples and navigation are shown, which really help one learn how to do it.  Google searches find a ton of news, updates and explanation, but not the easy-to-swallow capsule I want.  Meanwhile, I continue to help patrons navigate the Memories process.

Am I just slow or what?  I have been in love with computers since the dark ages (60's), but have approached this as a beginner.  The Powerful Point [sic] is to teach patrons and new staff, many older than I, who know little about the new programs and may be uncomfortable with computers. Any youth or older expert would wonder, “What’s your problem?  It’s perfectly clear!”  Right.  (Maybe a two-hour seminar is in order. RootsTech 2015, here I come!)

Clear and user-friendly are the names of my games.

“Discover Memories of Your Ancestors

Check to see what photos, stories and other memories have been added to Family Tree and make a surprising family connection.” 
– FamilySearch.org

Photo I took of NPS museum exhibit at Ellis Island, New York Harbor

Sperry Univac History image array, courtesy of Google

Here's the Thing

A collector of odd words and phrases am I.  So here’s the thing: my Notepad has a special collection begging to post.  What it is is a lighter follow-up to a previous play with words last May:  “What I’m driving at is ... economy of words.”

It’s scary how Halloween is such a major diversion.  The thing is, we're not into the holiday that much, although our grandkids certainly have fun with it.  Now what I’m remembering is some cute characters like three amigos and Barney the dinosaur.

What I do is write these things on the fly during phone meetings and online news talk.  Call it keyboarding practice to slow my mental decline – that’s what it is.

The point I'm trying to make is ... actually, what I'm trying to say is ...

Oh, what’s the use!

Out Here on the Frontier

It was a giant leap five years ago, from central-city apartment dwelling to frontier living in the rural West.  My wife Kay and I had agreed on this “plan B” if our offer failed on an older hillside home in North Ogden.  That stubborn seller refused to budge a bit, so we chose to tame the wilderness in a new starter-home development (as she describes it) on the edge of Layton.

After years of landscaping and weeding, trying to improve our “home on the range,” we are still tormented by things that grow so easily.  Cattle graze nearby; (I heard them bellow before dawn this morning.)  The landscape has changed with new construction constantly altering our view of Antelope Island, where the pronghorn and buffalo roam; (American bison were “introduced to the island in 1893 …”  – Wikipedia.)  The white-sand beach is the main attraction for us – the perfect place for a dutch-oven breakfast alone with family last Saturday; (other visitors started arriving as we cleaned up, gathered my sandbox toys, and drove off the island.) 

Our wonderful neighbors are mostly young couples with active, small children.  "Seldom is heard a discouraging word" as they fill the streets with all things on wheels.  Yes, we are the older folks now, having enjoyed our four years as the “young kids on the block” by the old temple in Ogden.  In that ward you could hear a pin drop during sacrament service, which was followed by Primary with five children.  Here the constant cacophony, though not harsh to my sensitive hearing, was a big change for us, and required some adjustment as we began a new church life surrounded by babies and toddlers.  We loved our initial calling in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as nursery workers (like babysitters), and I always looked forward to eating the fun snacks we served to the precious one & two-year-old kiddies.

As I look at the big picture, being in the background near the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve is like a dream-come-true for me.  (Visit GSLSP at:)
www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/utah/placesweprotect/the-great-salt-lake-shorelands-preserve.xml

Smooth Sailing

After years of navigating rough water, like running rapids on the river trip we braved in the early years of marriage, our life calmed down.  We got out on firm land and set up camp in central Ogden for what we thought would be a six-month respite to catch our breath.

My wife Kay and I were already empty-nesters, distantly admiring our married sons and independent daughters – all outstanding, responsible adults.  Having moved most of our furniture and “stuff” into storage units nearby, we easily settled into a heavenly, older community as our temporary home while we looked for a permanent place to land.  I had a feeling this rest stop would be just what we needed in order to reconnoiter, and calm our nerves for a while.  It was truly a place of refuge.

So I was surprised when we soon “broke camp” and launched into four years of smooth sailing, simply going with the flow in calm waters; (no sail, of course – just paddles.)  Feeling needed in the service of the Lord and free of many earthly concerns, we metaphorically ventured out from camp and eased on down a peaceful river of no return.  Our life was never the same after that.  The scenery along the way was gorgeous, and sweet friendships endure to this day.  We thank our Father in Heaven for "rivers of living water."

Photos courtesy of my brother Russ Cannon and his Flickr cache

A Complete Aside

This one is not about English language, though I’m tempted to vent frustration over changes since my young sentence-diagramming years; (yes, I still wince – “a slight  involuntary grimace … in anticipation of pain or distress”, as Google defines it.)  “I've gotta be free ... I've gotta be me!" (the song does it to me.)  Furthermore, I am not naming the students at our favorite high school (with the "kneeling knight") who fail to understand present progressive tense.

And it’s not about food, even with another coupon-drive story waiting in the wings; (grandkids in the car bring back fun memories of our five we took to a string of drive-through fast-food restaurants in “the Buck” or “the Wart Hog” – a fun tradition to be repeated soon, I hope.  Yum!)

This post is not about the Church, through which instruction from modern-day prophets was broadcast to the world last weekend – so needed in this turbulent time.  Nor does it relate to genealogy (family history – another favorite of mine) as a fun activity to develop a forever family.  As a side note, I am registered for RootsTech 2015, to be held Feb. 11-14 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.  (rootstech.org: "Celebrating Families")

As a complete aside, it's free to share random, unrelated thoughts, observations and experiences, maybe starting an annual, tangential tradition for this blog’s anniversary month.  Liken it to a brief (always fast – the one constant here) pause on a sidetrack while the freight train of the world roars by.

Clearing the basement the other day (still struggling with OCH, but making progress), I was excited to find one (TIME, June 6, 2011) I had not yet read about “The Science of Optimism”, which gave me a needed break, asking, “Hope isn’t rational – so why are humans wired for it?” by Tali Sharot.  Wish I could legally copy the cover, a whimsical diagram of the brain.  (So that’s what it looks like inside my head! – explains a lot lately.)

I see room for two more disjointed items; (Google defines as “lacking a coherent sequence or connection” – kinda like this complete aside.)

My Notepad has one from 11/15/2012: Fox News interviewed Joseph Braude, author of The Honored Dead, in a discussion about Iran.

(See book info. at josephbraude.com/books/the-honored-dead/overview/)

He used the kith-and-kin phrase referring to people in neighboring countries, in relation to disenfranchised Iranians (non-Persians).  So what are your plans for gift-giving and entertaining kith and kin this holiday season?

Finally this one, noted 5/5/2014, will wait for a passionate post by itself: “Getting High on Classical”, referring to music I dearly love  – can’t get enough of it!  But I digress.  I should quickly throw in a couple pics that are a complete aside in their own right, having no connection with the collection in our basement.