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| Tanner took the crazy hair prize this year in support of red ribbon week, with this masterpiece by me. This year it was close but in the end he beat some girl who's hair did a good representation of Halloween by incorpoorating spiders and a web. Tanners impression of volume meets height was simple and effective. Oh, and don't do drugs. |
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
CraZy HaIR DaY: Tanner
Monday, October 18, 2010
To: My LDS friends and family:
I am troubled.
I am troubled by Elder Boyd K. Packer’s General Conference speech on Sunday. It was the one message I heard from General conference. I wish I had not. The uproar from LDS members and non-members is everywhere, so it was not hard to listen. Each day another person gives an opinion on the topic. Today I add my thoughts. I want to start by saying that I think the general authorities are good men who try their best. I even believe that they are and can be inspirational. They definitely do good things. But, they are also human with their own biases and opinions. So I ask, can they be wrong? Of course, the answer is yes. I could list tons of examples where the LDS leaders and the church has altered its views; even changing a view "that the church [has] been saying for the last 2 decades. Yep DECADES!!" And so could you. But this, is not about what was said. It is about how it was said.
And that is why I am confused.
I am confused because, Packard’s speech, for me, was contrary to what other LDS leaders have been doing and saying. It was contrary to how I feel the church and its members are. It was contrary to what I had been observing after prop 8. Prop 8 and the LDS involvement scared and hurt neighbors, wards, and families. Due to this, some LDS members brought groups together to educate and resolve these hurts. At one meeting where 13 gay and straight Mormons spoke “There was sobbing. There were tears. Elder Jensen also shed tears as he listened and took notes to share with other General Authorities back in Salt Lake City. At the conclusion of the hour, he apologized for the pain he was witnessing.” LDS leaders cried alongside a group of LDS and gay youth. Loving them for who they are. Observing and listening to their struggles. Gaining greater understanding for the gay individual and the LDS families that include gay and lesbian individuals. You can find more to this story here. This does not mean that I thought the LDS church changed its views but this behavior better reflected how I feel these contradictory beliefs, between the LGBT community and yours, should be handled. Unfortunately, Elder Packer's talk seemed determined to change that and for what?
His speech only caused pain.
Packard gave a “license to hate” homosexuals or to at least look down upon them. Some have said, “He did MUCH more damage with his talk to more people than he helped. A heterosexual married person certainly wasn't helped by his talk. A gay LDS boy struggling with feelings of inadequacy was certainly harmed - hopefully not to the point of suicide - but it was a bad, demeaning talk.” I think this is true. It will have an affect on those struggling with who they are, what they believe of themselves, and how society accepts them. This struggle took 3-4 young boys last month as they ended their lives. Unable to go on and face the hate and lack of acceptance from those who surrounded them. The words Packard spoke were preached as living scripture; a message from god. There is a great weight to any word he speaks and he sent a message to be interpreted and used as fuel to the bigots and prejudice among us against. And its already starting "There's no such thing as gay people. It defies the laws of nature. It's like defying gravity, don't you know?" I read this in the news regarding gay rights. These are Packard's words. Would you say this statement to anyone you know? Now, how about a gay or lesbian child? And yet, we accept these same words from a church leader who is responsible spread the word and represent the love of Christ. The weight of this, for me, hangs heavy.
I am happy to hear that Packers speech has already been altered on the LDS website. The words softened but the message still clear. Like I said... its not what was said that has everyone upset. It was how it was said.
Angie
I am troubled by Elder Boyd K. Packer’s General Conference speech on Sunday. It was the one message I heard from General conference. I wish I had not. The uproar from LDS members and non-members is everywhere, so it was not hard to listen. Each day another person gives an opinion on the topic. Today I add my thoughts. I want to start by saying that I think the general authorities are good men who try their best. I even believe that they are and can be inspirational. They definitely do good things. But, they are also human with their own biases and opinions. So I ask, can they be wrong? Of course, the answer is yes. I could list tons of examples where the LDS leaders and the church has altered its views; even changing a view "that the church [has] been saying for the last 2 decades. Yep DECADES!!" And so could you. But this, is not about what was said. It is about how it was said.
And that is why I am confused.
I am confused because, Packard’s speech, for me, was contrary to what other LDS leaders have been doing and saying. It was contrary to how I feel the church and its members are. It was contrary to what I had been observing after prop 8. Prop 8 and the LDS involvement scared and hurt neighbors, wards, and families. Due to this, some LDS members brought groups together to educate and resolve these hurts. At one meeting where 13 gay and straight Mormons spoke “There was sobbing. There were tears. Elder Jensen also shed tears as he listened and took notes to share with other General Authorities back in Salt Lake City. At the conclusion of the hour, he apologized for the pain he was witnessing.” LDS leaders cried alongside a group of LDS and gay youth. Loving them for who they are. Observing and listening to their struggles. Gaining greater understanding for the gay individual and the LDS families that include gay and lesbian individuals. You can find more to this story here. This does not mean that I thought the LDS church changed its views but this behavior better reflected how I feel these contradictory beliefs, between the LGBT community and yours, should be handled. Unfortunately, Elder Packer's talk seemed determined to change that and for what?
His speech only caused pain.
Packard gave a “license to hate” homosexuals or to at least look down upon them. Some have said, “He did MUCH more damage with his talk to more people than he helped. A heterosexual married person certainly wasn't helped by his talk. A gay LDS boy struggling with feelings of inadequacy was certainly harmed - hopefully not to the point of suicide - but it was a bad, demeaning talk.” I think this is true. It will have an affect on those struggling with who they are, what they believe of themselves, and how society accepts them. This struggle took 3-4 young boys last month as they ended their lives. Unable to go on and face the hate and lack of acceptance from those who surrounded them. The words Packard spoke were preached as living scripture; a message from god. There is a great weight to any word he speaks and he sent a message to be interpreted and used as fuel to the bigots and prejudice among us against. And its already starting "There's no such thing as gay people. It defies the laws of nature. It's like defying gravity, don't you know?" I read this in the news regarding gay rights. These are Packard's words. Would you say this statement to anyone you know? Now, how about a gay or lesbian child? And yet, we accept these same words from a church leader who is responsible spread the word and represent the love of Christ. The weight of this, for me, hangs heavy.
I am happy to hear that Packers speech has already been altered on the LDS website. The words softened but the message still clear. Like I said... its not what was said that has everyone upset. It was how it was said.
Angie
Monday, October 11, 2010
24 minuets of Moab: Tanner style
 |
| Waiting. |
 |
| Getting Instructions for the race. |
Tanner is so casual about the whole thing. Everyone is tense and excited and Tanner is going, "Yea. Ok. Whatev."
 |
| In their start positions |
Can you see the gradient of commitment from all the runners? I think I can even see a little elbow action too. Then there is Tanner in the back row... thinking "Yea, I could sit up there and jockey for a position with you guys but, why, when there is all this room back here.?"
 |
| Getting on their bikes. |
 |
| And then finally, the race! |
Good job Tanner!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Tanner
Tanners teacher asked the parents to write a letter to introduce our child to her. I thought it was a neat idea and can appreciate her desire to want to know about our awesome kids!
Dear Miss Walker,
Tanner is so excited to be in your class.
Currently, Tanner's biggest concern is how hungry he gets before lunch. I was wondering, since lunch is so late in the day, if he could bring a snack to school. Something healthy; like crackers or apple slices. No candy. Our old elementary did this and it was very successful. If not, I will continue to stuff him as full as possible in the mornings and hope he holds through.
Tanner has a passion for the the "X-sports". He skateboards, mountain bikes, boulders, and snowboards. He is not very competitive, though. I think this is why he does not excel in the more traditional sports. In soccer, for example, he had issues taking the ball away from the other team if the other player "barely got it". This is one of many examples where he manages to put other people before himself. This is a neat trait but I wonder if he forgets too much of himself.
Tanner loves the ocean. Well, he has an intense curiosity towards all creatures but the oceans creatures are definitely his favorite. Ask him about sharks and he will probably tell you all about shark week on the discovery channel or talk of something he learned from Zoo books. His favorite fact is that "sharks are made out of cartilage just like your nose".
Tanner is not the most excited reader. I wish this was otherwise. Reading is one of my favorite things. I keep thinking it will come, eventually. Perhaps, he loves moving and making strange noises too much to give such a quite process much thought. He does better in reading if he can be creative; reading in a sing song voice or monster growl usually helps. He also will read better if the book is funny. We started reading the diary of a wimpy kid series and he is excited about those books. Any suggestions for other (more appropriate) funny books would be very helpful in teaching him the value of reading.
Tanner loves math. He relishes in the numbers and adding and subtracting them from each other. He loves art and using his imagination to create all sorts of large teethed creatures. He came home yesterday and drew a mean growling bear. He said something about how you guys are drawing it in class. His bear had huge teeth. Are all boys so fascinated with large sharp objects?
If I had to choose one thing that Tanner loves the most, I would have to say being silly. He loves to make people laugh. He is constantly making strange noises and saying funny statements that I am sure gets laughs from the boys and girls his age.
Thank you for letting me write this letter. I have had so much fun putting to words all the things I love about Tanner. Here's to a wonderful school year.
Regards,
Tanners Mom
 | |||
| Tanner with missing front teeth. |
Friday, October 1, 2010
Blog neglect
I have been neglecting my blog. My posts have been random and poorly written and... I am sure that I am not the first blogger to post these things. The main reason I have been too busy to write is that I am in training.
For a race.
A mountain bike race.
This race.
I am riding on a 4 person, all girls team.
It started randomly. A girl, I barley knew, asked me to ride on a team she was trying to put together. I said "yea".
Immediately after I said yes. I regretted it. I have not ridden in 7 years and with only 8 weeks to prepare. It seemed hopeless that I would be ready. I started reading and planning and riding. Riding. Riding. Riding. And then, rode some more. I bought a new bike. Dropping over $2K. I even dreamed of riding. Not winning, or loosing, just ridding. The throbbing of my thighs teasing my conscience into a dream where I rode.
But now,
I wait. 5 days, 19 hours, 30 min, and 45 seconds, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40... And I am excited. Excited to try. To see what I can do.
If you have 6 min. This video explains the race pretty well.
On a side note: Nate has posted on his blog. Check it out. And the critter making all those nut filled holes in the previous post are my squirrels.
For a race.
A mountain bike race.
This race.
I am riding on a 4 person, all girls team.
It started randomly. A girl, I barley knew, asked me to ride on a team she was trying to put together. I said "yea".
Immediately after I said yes. I regretted it. I have not ridden in 7 years and with only 8 weeks to prepare. It seemed hopeless that I would be ready. I started reading and planning and riding. Riding. Riding. Riding. And then, rode some more. I bought a new bike. Dropping over $2K. I even dreamed of riding. Not winning, or loosing, just ridding. The throbbing of my thighs teasing my conscience into a dream where I rode.
But now,
I wait. 5 days, 19 hours, 30 min, and 45 seconds, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40... And I am excited. Excited to try. To see what I can do.
If you have 6 min. This video explains the race pretty well.
On a side note: Nate has posted on his blog. Check it out. And the critter making all those nut filled holes in the previous post are my squirrels.
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