Humor will not be tolerated!! -Portia

yes, those. And the rebuttals. Can you see the sea lion one? https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10103228731133789&set=a.972789554839.2696767.6851917&type=1&relevant_count=1 Sadly, no sea lions. Oh well. I'm reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak for the first time. It's interesting...

We just bought a house, so here are *things* :) I took a first-time homebuyers class (UVU offered one through their community ed) and it was so helpful. It talked a little about the housing market, different types of loans, picking an agent, picking a lender, etc. It also explained mortgage insuranc...

Links? Or is this the youth ministry lady with the shirtless muscle sons? Or the By Common Consent article about the girls camp where the girls had to wear shirts and knee-length shorts over their swimsuits, while in the pool? How has this become such a thing lately? It's like people have lost their...

This slightly old article from Psychology Today about failure, anxiety, and college students was really interesting. If alcohol is the big thing at other campuses I wonder what thing is serving that function at BYU.

Do they still do the videos for Accounting? I always liked that you could speed those up. Also, my old roommate was on the cover of them for a while. You could see right up her nose. I took my little guys to the dinosaur museum west of the stadium today. I never made it there as a student, but it's ...

On the OT, I have years and years of Valentine's ideas thanks to this question Portia of years past answered for me. Apparently thatonemom of years past did not believe in decent punctuation, but that's another story. As for unsolicited advice, I think it's complicated. When I've gotten unsolicited ...

I finished Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, which is unrelated to that other book about shades of gray. It's about people from the Baltic who were deported to Siberian work camps during WWII/Stalin. Really interestingly sad.

My husband's a graphic designer. Depending on what you need, he might be able to help.

This is starting to make me reconsider my position of leaving crying people alone. I'm not much of a crier, so when it does happen I really prefer to be left alone. Now, if it's a kid, or I'm obviously in a sort of helper-position (like visiting teaching, or teaching a class, or when I worked for BY...

I don't care for dogs in general, but I don't dislike chihuahuas any more than any other dog. So, I'll call that indifferent.

http://www.mormonwomen.com/2013/07/31/c ... e-another/

I was in her ward when I was a little kid. She's a pretty amazing lady.

But if not... I was 24 when I went through the temple (about a week before I got married) I'd been in a ward previously where I'd asked the bishop about it (I was 23, nearly done with grad school, and had a full-time job lined up. I felt about as "adult" as I could get). Anyway, he flat ou...

I'll third the feeling that meaning can change over time. I used to be pretty ambivalent about my blessing. I remember the patriarch told me right afterward, "I think that's the shortest blessing I've ever given!" Which made me feel super special and important. (not really) But it's come i...

Aw, hugs to you, Uffish. And Whistler. And anyone else who needs them. Hugs all around. I think it's good to let yourself feel sorry for yourself every now and again. Just because there are "harder" things doesn't mean what you're going through isn't hard.

I read this on facebook. It felt slightly pertinent: http://www.joshweed.com/2013/07/sometim ... wrong.html

I need some kind of "I'm a Bitch/Ice Queen" tee shirt. Thanks for the discussion, Katya & Uffish. I feel younger & more awkward on these issues, like it bugs me, but I play into the system, y'know? It's just really tough to negotiate, because once you become aware of it, you start...

Oh dear, vorpal. I don't even know what to say to you. I know myself, and my ability to say things that I will not regret, and then will feel slightly guilty for not regretting them. I suspect we just both see the world, and our responsibilities in it, very differently. I don't know how else to expl...

But allow me to make an analogy that I hope will be helpful. Suppose a man and a woman are having a discussion and it becomes a little heated. Now, intellectually, we know that each of them has a responsibility to be polite, civil, and keep the anger in check. Each of them has the power to calm dow...

I second Uffish so, so much. This thread is giving me an ulcer, you virtual-ulcer causers! No, in all seriousness, I just wanted to add a couple of scriptures. As it seems like this has turned into slut shaming in the name of God, or something. And that makes me mad and I'd like to refute it. First,...

I finished Code Name Verity last night. Liked it about as much as I thought I would, which is very much. I liked that one, too! (bit of a slow start, though) She has a new book coming out this fall that's supposed to be similar, called Rose Under Fire. (Also, I may have peeked at your blog and now ...