Substance.

Pardon the late night post. When I don't have specific plans the next day, I stay up, irresponsibly. But the wheels in my head turn. Creative juices flow a little stronger. And I love these moments.

Recent blog-surfing led me to stumble upon this picture, and the image illustrates a goal I've been striving for lately: Living a life of substance and value.

Bear with me while I share an unlikely analogy.

A few months ago while shopping for new shoes, I noticed that I am drawn to specific details on clothing and shoes. I prefer braiding, lace, rouching, and other handwork. All of these are processes that, to begin with, don't require fancy materials. The raw materials can be (and usually are) very simple. What makes these pieces valuable are the time, effort, and handiwork that goes into making them. Something which, at the base, is so, so simple, can be transformed into an immaculate work of beauty. Money is not required, just time, effort, hard work, and perhaps, a little love.

I used to live in a world where buying a cute new t-shirt meant "today was a good day." Eating out made me feel validated, and spending money, even if it meant purchasing something as meaningless as a key chain, somehow made me feel good. Well, the truth is, those things usually made me feel good for about a day. And then, after that day, all I typically felt was a hole in my pocket.

Over the past year or two, I've realized something incredibly obvious. Life is more than today. To have "a good day." That's nice. But what about having a good year, a good decade, dare, I say, a good life?? Isn't that better? I had no idea how much my quest for everyday happiness was inhibiting the much more meaningful goal of life satisfaction.

Shifting focus from instant happiness to life satisfaction has already helped me to live out some of my dreams, and I feel very confident that several more have yet to be fulfilled.

So, here's to living a life of substance and fulfilling big dreams, no matter what the daily sacrifice may be.

Sneak Peek

of our engagement pictures. They are beautiful and fabulous, thanks to the wonderful Steven Wood. More to come.

Space Cowboy

This is gnarly and it's trippin' me out.  In a good way.  With so many faux, re-touched images out there, it's hard to believe, but this photo is not photoshopped.  This astronaut, Bruce McCandless II (wonder if there's any relation to Christopher) of the space shuttle Challenger, is floating in space, farther than anyone has ever been before.  Click here to learn more. 

Signs of the Times

Online advertising has officially surpassed TV advertising in terms of sales. 

By the end of the year, there will be more Subway stores in the world than McDonald's.

Will this knitted lego minifig be the new teddy bear?

Gold Spandex and Ghetto Fabulous

Has anyone else seen this? Leslie Hall is an Iowa native, living with her parents, whose main goal in life is to never have a desk job. I guess that leaves time to pursue other passions, like being a garage-band rapper. And rap-it-up she did. This girl has style, 'tude, and most importantly, beats. You've got to listen to her. Ready, go!

A Moral Issue

When something is important to me, I find it difficult to express my feelings publicly. I'm concerned they will be misinterpreted or even worse, ignored.

But I've held out for too long on the moral issue of our times, also known as the United States healthcare debate.


I loathe those two words because there are so many unclear, confusing messages associated with them.

Instead, I’m going to refer to the control of people’s life expectancy and well-being through medicinal practices as a moral issue.

This is the moral issue of our times.

First, two simple facts:

1. The United States spends $4,631.00 per capita on health care. That’s #1 in the world.
2. The average life expectancy of an American at birth is 78.11. That’s #50 in the world.

#1 in spending. #50 in life expectancy. For a country I believe to be very efficient in other areas, This. Does. Not. Make. Sense.

Simple facts such as this make me curious, and I don't understand why others aren't more intrigued. I've been shocked in the last few months by ignorance and un-Christianlike attitudes that I've witnessed in several fellow Americans. People (rightfully so) gripe about making their insurance payments, but when asked about the best way to help others, the response too often seems to be an “every-man-for-himself” type of answer.

This is where the morality of the issue comes in. Every man has the right to life, but the current United States healthcare system (a profit-driven industry) prevents that.

I urge all of my friends and family who are unsure where they stand on this moral issue to search, ponder, and pray about a change in American healthcare. Do so without fearing change. Instead, do so with the aim of helping others.

After some brief travel abroad over a year ago, I’ve had the opportunity to observe American culture through a foreigner’s lenses (some call it reverse culture shock), and what I’ve seen is an attitude that Americans tend to ignore reality when it is “just too sad.” Joseph Smith, the first Latter-day Saint prophet said, “We cannot be saved until we have risen above all our enemies, not the least of which is ignorance.”

Please rise above ignorance and do what you can to help others.

The following story brings a visual element to the issue, which is hard to find in the mass of misinformed speeches and text flooding our news sites and televisions. Click here, scroll to 1:10:17, and watch a 2-minute story.

This. Should. Not. Happen.

People are dying prematurely in our country, and it doesn't need to happen. Our country was not founded to survive without work. Work is required to fulfill the promises of the Constitution, including the promise of life.

I urge you to keep the debate going. Stay or get informed. Pay attention to facts and don’t be swayed by opinions.

Write your congressperson. Write something on your blog, or facebook page, or twitter page. Make a comment at the dinner table. Do something.

So Long, Sweet Summer

You've been good to me.

Insightful...

Just discovered this wonderful blogger, Joanna Goddard. She just got married, is currently on her honeymoon, and is having a different writer each day add their "secrets to a happy marriage." I like this one. And this one.

I also just read this insightful essay on marriage from the New York Times. It's very raw, scary, but incredibly mature.

Go Cougars.

BYU 14 OU 13

Keep us going, Bronco!

A HopeFUL Romantic

I used to say I was a hopeless romantic. Loved the idea of being in love. I still do love the idea of being in love. But hopeless is so sad. I was never a hopeless romantic, but a hopeful romantic. Full of hope that someday love would come. And it did! Several people helped me find it. Friends, family, books, songs, moments, and even random couples who will never know I saw the love they shared; all gave me advice, inspiration and knowledge. I tucked all that information away in both my heart and my mind. And when love came, I knew it was strong because my mind and my heart were in sync.

Often, when we think about finding love, we think about finding a person. And that once you meet a person, you know. But love isn't a person, love is so much more. It is a transcendent feeling that comes when two people, sharing their lives, have mirroring images of the world.

Everyone views the world differently. To find someone that sees it the same way you do, makes the journey of life easier.

"A burden shared is half the burden. A joy shared is twice the joy."

Discovering that you're sharing your life with someone that shares your vision of the world is beautiful. Amazing.

I love you.