Tuesdays with Muerte

Exploring Shame at BYU I recently had the opportunity to look at data from a BYU "Shame" study conducted by some Counseling & Psychology professors (CPSE department).  Their comparative analysis provided evidence that BYU students (overall) feel less shame than students on other university campuses.  This got me thinking...people feel and manifest shame in many different ways.  How do BYU folks manifest shame? DeviantArt First of all, why do any of us feel shame? Zoobies (pseudonym for BYU students) are raised to be judgmental from a young age—constantly being asked to discern between good and evil. We are able to make this distinction by paying attention to the light of Christ, which some refer to as a conscience ( Moroni 7:16-19 ).  When we act against our consciences, or choose evil, we experience a "whip" of guilt from that divine light within us to let us know we are off track. Through the Atonement of Christ, we can repent and be forgiven of our t...

Have you ever wondered about how much chemistry is necessary to ensure a good relationship and what the signs of unhealthy chemistry are?  I just read this post by Utah relationship coach,  Alisa Goodwin Snell , which lays it out.  The balance of the post is in her words. (The parts in read are the highlights.) What is healthy versus addictive chemistry? I define chemistry as "the feeling or desire that compels you, when in the presence of a particular person, to want to please them, touch them, and make them happy." That's it!   Too many singles associate chemistry with the desperate feelings, longing, and compulsive thoughts that are actually a common sign of insecure attachments or addictive, abusive, or manipulative relationships. If you think that chemistry is  something you should feel all the time, that the person should be on your mind all the time, that your desire to be with them should be intense and constant, and that your fear of ...

Being a writer, he is quite naturally curious about  Heaven and Hell. So upon meeting Saint Peter at the  pearly gates, he asks if it would be possible to visit Hell  briefly before ascending to Heaven. Saint Peter, obliging  as ever, is happy to grant the writer’s request. In a  flash, they arrive in writer’s Hell where they feast their  eyes upon thousands of writers planted in front of  thousands of typewriters, arranged in rows as far as the  eye could see, a damp, dark, foul place, full of the  overpowering stench of decomposition and putrefaction.  "Just as I expected," says the writer to Saint Peter. "I’m  ready to see Heaven now."  In a flash, they arrive in writer’s Heaven where they feast their  eyes upon thousands of writers planted in front of thousands  of typewriters, arranged in rows as far as the eye could see, a  damp, dark, foul place, full of the overpowering stench of  decomposition a...

Which External Hard Drive? (Image Source ) It's time to purchase an external hard drive. Here are my needs: It must have USB 3.0 transfer speeds. It must be name brand, (preferably WD, Seagate or I-OMEGA). It must be under $150. *I'd like to purchase it from Costco.  Here are my wants: I want something large enough to hold all my other 1.5 TB of stored data so I can get rid of my other three 500GB, desktop hard drives. I want it to either be a  NAS (Network Attached Storage) , or wirelessly accessible.  That way multiple computers can read and write to it.  (e.g. I'd be able to stream media to my iPad from anywhere in the house.) I want it to be as inexpensive as possible. I couldn't find one hard drive that met all of my criteria.  So here are the three options that I like.  Each one is missing one of the aforementioned qualifications: WD My Book Live 2TB Personal Cloud Storage Drive  —Not a ton of space, nor is it really ch...

Yes, a dandelion because they are the flower of wishes. You blow that ball of seeds and the wind carries them to the one assigned to grant or reject. And it’s a good thing that it’s the dandelions who have this power because they are tough and sometimes you have to be tough to even remember that you have any desires left at all, to believe that even one could be satisfied, would not turn to an example of “be careful what you wish for, it might come true.” Maybe that’s exactly why there are so many of them - the universe gives us extra chances to keep dreaming. Each one an uprising, a burst of color in the cracks of our hearts, sunrise at an unexpected time, in an unexpected place. —Ellie Schoendfeld's “ Lucien's Birthday Poem " Context I ran across a reference to this poem while I was reading a text for a BYU evaluation class.  I was learning about how nature (and the universe) has a pattern of being adapt...

Okay, folks.  That last game was ridiculously easy for most of you.  (Everyone got it in within the first 2 or 3 quotes—even the kids.) So now, THE KID GLOVES ARE COMING OFF!  You want to go toe-to-toe with Bryan, the single man who has probably seen more movies than all 5 of you (who follow my blog) combined—here's your chance to truly prove yourselves.  Since this is only round one, I'll still be pulling punches. (e.g. If I were going all out, I would have only shown you the image of the goat costume below, instead of all three.  You'll have to ask yourself, "given the 90s fantasy hint from last week, would I have gotten it?"  That's the kind of mental pain I'll be bringing in weeks to come.) Rules: Pop culture references ONLY. (No cult stuff that only I have seen.) Nothing R-rated. (G — PG-13, including things like NOT RATED popular documentaries.) Let's start off by saying, I have to own it.  (This includes digital videos, but they must h...

Adam and Dog (2012) Full Short Animated Film Director: Minkyu Lee Oscar Nominated Short Click to reveal synopsis This hand-drawn animation explores the possible origins of the close-knit relationship of man and canine, for which Disney animation artist, Minkyu Lee, won the Annie award for Best Animated Short Subject. Lee created this independent film with friends from Disney, Dreamworks and Pixar. Click to reveal Moral of the story I think he's trying to say that even when God turns his back on you (hyperbole), your dog will still be there. (False, but moving all the same. A very accessible message.) *Read Interview with Minkyu Lee on Adam and Dog *See other Oscar-Nominated Shorts