I Can Serve Others (but I choose not to)

Last week I had the kids in my CTR 5 class draw pictures of something they could do to be of service to other people. I contributed and drew this picture of me helping Josh with the dishes (I know that the perspective on the sink is a little off, but I'm a psychologist and not an artist).

One of the little boys said, "But you do dishes all of the time." I replied, "Clearly you don't know how things work in my house, kid." I got a kick out of that.

Josh does most of the everyday chores such as washing the dishes, cooking, taking out the trash, and cleaning the cat box. I'm not sure exactly how I got out of these things except that if I was to be in charge of food production we would be eating Red Vines, turkey bologna, and pumpkin ice cream for every meal and if I had to be in charge of the cat box we would no longer have two cats.

In my defense, I vacuum, do my own laundry, and clean the bathrooms. So, while our division of labor may not be balanced, it's not completely unfair. Also, I do help out with the dishes every once in awhile (just not as often as I should, I know).

I took some artistic license with my outfit in this drawing. When I imagine myself doing anything domestic, I always picture myself in a 1950s housewife dress with matching heels. It puts some of the glamour back into scrubbing baked-on food bits. This picture is currently taped to our refrigerator to remind me of the type of woman I could have been (in other words: helpful).

Ducks in the Rain

Josh and I went to the Ducks vs. Stanford game on Saturday and it was the most ridiculously wet time I have ever spent at a football game. The Ducks won, which only solidifies my belief that my presence is what is necessary for a win (they have won every game I have attended this season). Unfortunately, this was the last game we are planning to attend this season because Josh has a ski show this coming weekend that coincides with the last home game. For more information about our Duck pride, click here (Josh keeps telling me to include information, but I refuse to repeat myself because that's how I am. Wooh).

If we were any wetter, we'd be swimming

Thankfully my bro-in-law lent us this old sideline jacket similar to the ones the players wear between drives on inclement days. It was like being in a big, wet sleeping bag but it kept me warm.

Josh didn't wear his cape because he was worried it would get too wet.

Yes We Can.

The world is responding with jubilation at a new chapter in the incredible story of this great nation. It's time for America to once again be seen as a land of hope, opportunity and equality. This is the greatest nation on earth... one designed by God to lead the way and set an example for others. We can do that together.

Tuesday night, we did just that. Whether you voted for President-elect Obama, or not... we must unite together to make this country and this world a better place for us and all Americans of every race, culture, creed, age, sex and religion... today and in the future. Yes we can.

Watching and waiting... and CELEBRATING!!

As a total news hound, former full-time journalist and political enthusiast, I've been waiting for this day for... well, for the last four years. I voted for John Kerry in 2004 and was disappointed when he lost to George W. Bush.

Ever since the 2004 Democratic National Convention, I've been excited about Sen. Barack Obama's political career. When he announced his candidacy for the U.S. Presidency in 2006, I got excited and started following his path toward the Democratic nomination.

Senator (and almost certainly soon-to-be U.S. President-elect)
Barack Obama is ready for the White House! Are you ready for him?

The last few weeks and days have been pretty exciting as Obama has taken a sizable lead in the national polls. Emily was a Hillary Clinton supporter and we both agreed that we'd vote for whomever ended up winning the Democratic nomination. I also put up Obama signs on our house and vehicles, including these:

This one went on the Outback, Emily's car.


I wore this to the gym today to celebrate my Hispanic heritage!

Almost my entire day today has been focused on the election. CNN is my network of choice, as I love Wolf Blitzer and the network's politically diverse team of dedicated journalists, analysts and pundits. Plus, CNN is the only place to see John King and his famous "magic wall"!

"And Oregon here... well, now it's in the ocean. Yep, I can do whatever I want with this thing," said CNN's John King,
in a quote he'd never, ever actually say.

They also tend to wait a bit longer to make projections than other networks.

Sarah Palin was disappointed that John McCain conceded Michigan
to Obama a few weeks ago.I guess she didn't realize that Michigan
is apparently part of "fake America."

Plus, CNN has the coolest projection video intro in all of television (seriously, it gives me chills whenever it comes on...)!

In another CNN Projection, Senator John McCain has beat Barack Obama in the category of "number of times using the slightly creepy (coming from a 72 year old man) phrase 'my friends' during campaign appearances," by a count of 468,398 to never.

I also went to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts where they offered free, patriotic doughnuts for anyone who could prove they had voted; Here in Oregon, it's actually illegal to offer anything as a reward for voting, so Krispy Kreme gave out free doughnuts to anyone who asked.

In other election day offers, Starbucks gave voters a free cup of coffee, while Ben & Jerry's stores was giving out free ice cream cones from 5-6 p.m. (As Mormons, we don't drink coffee, and the closest Ben & Jerry's store is in downtown Portland... not quite worth the drive during rush hour!).

Two delicious "O's" for two votes for OBAMA!!

Assuming Obama wins (and as of 7:46 p.m. PST, it looks almost certain that he will), it will be a new chapter for citizens of the United States of America. I'm very optimistic that he'll be able to improve the world's view of America, hopefully get us out of the disaster that has been the Iraq War and inspire Americans to care more about the world and society in which they live. I'm excited for his presidency and very proud to have supported his historic run!

OK... time to get back to watching CNN and watch Oregon's seven electoral votes go to OBAMA!!

UPDATE: CNN has called the election for Obama!!!

And to them will I reveal all mysteries..

A few days ago, Emily posted pictures of us in Biblical garb whilst on a trip to the coast. However, she gave no reason for these pics, indicating that they were not our Halloween costumes and that details would be forthcoming in the next few days.

To quote from my favorite Dr. Seuss book, "The time has come... the time is now!"

Here's the story, morning glory:

For several years, I have been a passionately devoted reader of a film site known as Aint It Cool News. But, I'll get to that in a minute.

First, some history about me! Friends of mine will attest that my love of film borders on outright obsession: I don't just watch movies... I absolutely digest them. The same is true for most of pop culture (i.e. television, music, comics, books, etc.), and over the years, I've become known for my extreme geekiness in internally archiving loads of trivia facts, biographical information, weird anecdotes, etc., into this grey matter within my sizable cranium.

For years, I wondered if any of this "useless knowledge" (a term I loathe) would ever garner me any more than the possibilty of lifeline calls from friends trying to figure what film won Best Picture in 1978 (it was "The Deer Hunter"), or where Paul McCartney's "Michelle" fits in The Beatles' discography (Album: "Rubber Soul" (1965), track 7).

One day in 2006, it finally did. I'd known Emily Shepard for a while, though we'd never been close friends. That all changed during a late-night game of "Trivial Pursuit: Pop Culture Edition" with friends. My team ended up winning the match, but when a particular question momentarily stumped me, I was shocked (read: intrigued) when Emily confidently gave the correct answer.

The question: "This actress left behind her former, scandalous acting career when she was cast in John Water's 1990 film 'Cry Baby.'"

The answer: "Traci Lords."

Again... I should have known that instantly, and as the words left Emily's lips, I was simultaneously annoyed and attracted by this girl I hardly knew. Right then and there, I knew, that I just had to have some more Emily Shepard in my life. We had so much in common, it was almost ridiculous (NOTE: "Actually, it's completely ridiculous." -- Emily)

The rest of the story will one day be told to the ShepAlder posterity as if it were legend: Emily and I dated, fell in love and knew that life without one another would be a tragedy (and not an interesting one, like "Hamlet" or "The Awakening.").

Now, back to my point (Emily says I include way too much exposition in my blog posts, but I remind her that I didn't go to journalism school to impress girls... writing has just always been my thing.).

Emily and I both love our pop culture... and we both especially love film.

Last year, Emily's sister moved to Austin, Texas, with her husband and three (now four) kids. One day, I casually remarked, "That's awesome. We should try to get into BUTT-NUMB-A-THON and then we'd have a great excuse to visit them too!"

If you've made it this far, you're probably asking yourself, "What on earth is 'BUTT-NUMB-A-THON'?"

BUTT-NUMB-A-THON -- or BNAT (pronounced "Bee-NAT") as those in the know call it -- is a 24-hour film festival held in Austin each year in December. It is a birthday celebration of one Harry Knowles, founder of Ain't It Cool News and one of the renowned film geeks on the Interwebs.

However, unlike most film festivals, you can't just buy tickets to BNAT; you have to apply. With only a few hundred seats in the theater, it's quite the feat. We were ecstatic to get in last year, and we cherished the experience. Twenty-four consecutive hours of movies -- a mix of soon-to-be released features (last year, we saw "Charlie Wilson's War," "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street," "Mongol," and "Trick 'r Treat," all prior to their theatrical releases), vintage films ("Lonely are the Brave," "Pickup on South Street," "The Great McGinty," "The Abominable Dr. Phibes.") and trailers, plus several oddities (i.e. UCLA Medical School footage of an in-progress urethroplasty accompanied by Chuck Mangione's "Feels So Good," played just before breakfast...) -- would be enough to make most people shudder; for Emily and I, it was paradise.

And, for the past 10 months, our only desire was to somehow get back (cue Emily saying -- in her best Jack from "LOST" voice -- "We have to go back!!").

A few weeks ago, Harry posted the application for this year's BNAT. Being that it is the tenth year of the event (and in remembrance of Charlton Heston's passing in March), he dubbed it "The Ten Commandments of Butt-Numb-A-Thon." As part of the application, we were instructed to include individual photos with us dressed as extras or major characters from Cecil B. DeMille's epic 1956 film, "The Ten Commandments."

Minutes after reading these requirements, Emily and I concocted a plan to dress as Moses and Rameses II, respectively. All we needed was a background to help us recreate the mood. Without hesitation, we decided that the sandy dunes and crashing waves of the Oregon Coast near Sand Lake were perfect.

The rest of the application consisted of various questions, including our favorite Charlton Heston films:
- "Soylent Green" for me and "The Greatest Show on Earth" for Em;

Charlton Heston quotes:
- Josh: "Every man has a final weapon: his own life. If he's afraid to lose it, he throws the weapon away," "Khartoum" (1966).

- Emily: "One more word of your sauce, and I'll have your liver for breakfast," "Treasure Island" (1990)

... and much, much more.

We've been waiting anxiously all week to see if we made this years' cut... and just less than an hour from this blog posting, we found out that we've been invited once again!

I cannot express just how excited we are! This is, hands down, the most exciting thing to happen this year -- save buying our first home! -- and Dec. 13-14 can't come soon enough!!

Here are the cropped, individual photos we sent in with our BNAT applications:

"These commandments are made of people...
they're people!!!"


"You're nothing but a bastard...
a bastard in a basket!"

Powar and Greede

This was the third time this week that Josh and I donned costumes, but this time it was for a fun night of dinner and murder at Heather and Mark Noakes' house (for those of you not in the know, they are in our ward and Mark is in the same year in my PsyD program). Neither Josh nor I were the culprits, but we enjoyed some great food and fun conversation with a few other couples in the ward. It was a fun end to a packed week, though next week will probably be more hectic as I finally start my practicum and continue working on my thesis. Unfortunately, I'm really starting to feel the stress.

Me as "Ivonde B. Alohne," the beautiful and engaging film actress

Josh as "Hackford (Hack) Ryder," screenwright and not-so-secret alcoholic

I was trying to look simultaneously thin and suspicious, but achieved neither

Halloween with the ShepAlders

This is the first year that Josh and I have had an actual house to decorate in an actual neighborhood where people trick or treat, and it's been great! Halloween has been traditionally the only holiday for which I have ever decorated (ever since 2002 when my mom sent a package of blinking eyes and window clings to me), so Josh and I go a little nuts (we may have put up our pumpkin lights on October 1st). It seemed like every time I got home, Josh had bought more window clings (all cat-related).

This Halloween was cool because we were able to have the Arthertons come over, who are Josh's aunt, uncle, and cousins, and we all went trick or treating around the neighborhood while Josh's oldest cousin stayed and manned the door for us (and played Rock Band).

Falkor helped us carve the pumpkin

But Josh ended up doing all of the hard work

That pumpkin is one Cool Cat!

Josh claims that it was my idea to be Mary Poppins, but since it's been 20 years since I've even seen Mary Poppins I find it very unlikely. Both of our costumes were probably the lowest maintenance that we've ever done. I just borrowed a blouse from my mom, knit a red and pink striped scarf, and bought a carpet bag on ebay. I stressed about the hat for awhile, but then decided it was too hard, and I also forgot to wear my white gloves, but I have a feeling this costume will see the light of day a few more times. Josh bought a hat from ebay and then the coat and broom from Goodwill. I put makeup on his face to look like dirt, and by the end of the night he looked bruised! This year all of the kids knew who I was and everyone had to ask Josh who he was dressed like (which was sweet revenge from last year when kids followed Josh around on the street and everyone thought I was Sleeping Beauty).

Just a handful of candy helps the medicine go down

Josh kept confusing the kids by talking in a cockney accent

"Mary is the only one that I love!"

Thankfully we only got treats, not tricks this year!
(and Josh refused to take down the Obama sign to make room for decorations,
instead he taped it in a more visible place)