Effluvia

Gas prices are headed to ten dollars a gallon, according to one paper. We could mitigate that by increasing domestic production with oil shale, but those damn greenies won’t let us. And in the meantime, we’re burning through our food supply to make ethanol, driving up both gas and food prices and doing absolutely nothing to help the environment. It’s more than an outrage. It’s criminal, and it needs to stop.
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I can now make it through an entire twenty-five minute personal training workout without collapsing. I talked to a woman at church yesterday, and she refuses to go back to a personal trainer because she ends up despising the trainer, no matter how nice they are. I can sympathize with her, although my trainer seems to be a pretty decent guy. But every time he says “faster” or “come on, work it!” I want to throw my barbell at him, and I would if I had sufficient upper body strength. Which I don’t.
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I have a lot to do. And the more I have to do, the less inclined I am to do it. I go through sudden spasms of productivity amid long periods of procrastination. That’s why I don’t think I would make a very good farmer.
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If you’re a Mormon, teaching Gospel Doctrine is the best church calling you can have. The worst, I would think, is Scoutmaster.
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I work in an environment where I’m supposed to wear a shirt and tie, but nobody gets too broken up if I don’t. I honestly don’t understand why workplaces have dress codes that require Sunday clothes. I am far more productive when I dress casually. I’m not talking T-shirts and sweats, but I think jeans are OK, and many people do not. I would also be happy to see casual clothing worm its way into Mormon Sunday worship, but I don’t think that will happen in my lifetime. Except when I lived in West Yellowstone, Montana, a guy in the bishopric wore jeans, cowboy boots, and a bolo tie on the stand. I was OK with that. I wish more people were.
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Had dinner with my father yesterday, and he reported favorably on attending an LDS fireside with Gladys Knight and her touring choir. They’re apparently very good and very gospel, which is virtually unheard of in the Church. I really don’t get why that style of music is considered by many old timers to be irreverent. A hot, rocking gospel choir is far more uplifting than a lot of the staid, ultraconservative dreck that’s foisted on LDS congregations. And yes, MoTab, I’m looking in your direction.
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The Jazz are winning, up 3 to 1. Suddenly I’m a fan again. And I’ll abandon them as soon as they break my heart. I’ve always loathed professional sports, but the Jazz won me over in the Karl Malone/John Stockton days. My cousin once pointed out that the Jazz are the only thing that truly unites all Utahns, both Mormons and non-Mormons alike. There’s a lot to be said for that.
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Reviewing the election, I can’t think of a single Republican I’m excited about voting for. That should be terrifying to the GOP. If they’ve lost me, they’ve lost everybody.
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I’ve been reviewing some old videos of my acting days, and I find myself woefully depressed by them. I can jump right back into the mindset I had while I was performing, and I can see why I’m not an actor anymore. I was always straining; I overthought everything, and I was never able to relax and just do it. I was also quite strange looking, and I don’t understand how anyone would put me up on a stage and look at me for two hours. Unless they dig circus freaks.
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I prefer button-up shirts to golf shirts. And I prefer long sleeves, unless it’s just too dang hot.
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I want to see Ben Stein’s Intelligent Design movie, especially since critics have excoriated it. I’m looking forward to all the big genre movies coming out this summer – Indiana Jones, Prince Caspian, Batman, Iron Man, and the Incredible Hulk – but not much else. I think the Hulk is the most likely to suck, because the Hulk looks too CGI. The only CGI character who has ever worked on screen is Gollum from the Lord of the Rings movies.
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Speaking of the Lord of the Rings movies – which I absolutely love – I can’t seem to get excited about the upcoming Hobbit adaptation. I’ve read The Hobbit, and, frankly, it’s not that good. And I’m fully dreading the “second” Hobbit film, which will supposedly bridge the time frame between The Hobbit and LOTR. It’s a sequel/prequel. And it will blow.
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My brother-in-law and his wife are thinking about naming their upcoming baby “Solomon.” But if you did that, how would you keep from calling him “Solomon Grundy” in a Challenge of the SuperFriends voice all the time?
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Solomon Grundy done with this blog now.