Friends, Family and Work

Last night our friends came over. Christy’s visiting teacher (it’s a Mormon thing) brought her husband over to keep me occupied during their visit. I usually just go into my room and watch TV while she is here, but this was a nice change from the regular routine. We haven’t had many friends that are not family since the arrival of children into our brood. It was good to have Will over to play Wii and have a limited political discussion (we are an Obama household with is in the minority in our community). I am basically a hermit and like to stay home.

This week I am trying to cram 80 hours of work unto a 6 day work week. Since the introduction of the teen-aged eating, sporting, growing out of their clothes faster than we can replace them machines into our home, and the fact that Christy is unable to work, the budget is tight and is being supplemented by my working a part-time job or two. I have the type of job that finds me in a cubicle 10 hours a day, 4 days a week, ipod blasting in my ears, and me just processing paperwork submitted to the little state government agency that I work for. I work as a guest services representative at the McKay Events Center on the campus of Utah Valley University. I worked for the Orem Owlz in summer, and work an occasional shift as a produce clerk at Albertson’s. The part-time jobs force me out into public and make me interact with people. The people that I work for at the MEC are excellent and the job is enjoyable, which makes it easier to leave my family to go and do the work.

Glen Beck came to the MEC last week and I enjoyed his presentation, even though I do not agree with some of his views. I felt him to be the anti-Hannity, sincere, emotional, and trying to tell the truth as he sees it, not showboating, and humble. It was the first time that I had heard him, and I enjoyed it. One of the advantages of working that job is that I do get to see most of the events that come there. President Uchtdorf, of the first presidency of the church, was there yesterday and talked about the global economy and relative morality in the modern world. I was working, and therefore unable to give him my full attention, so I had a hard time understanding all that he was trying to say. He is German and speaks English very well, but with his heavy German accent, and my concentrating on other things, I’m sure that most of what he was trying to say was lost on me. I am now gearing up for the state volleyball championships this weekend and next.

-Dan