Tuesdays with Muerte

What are all my options in Utah?  In Utah this year, we only have 25 eligible presidential candidates for whom we can legally vote: There will be  10 presidential candidates on the ballot . There are an additional  15 eligible names that can be written in . Links to all the 2016 candidates  and their positions on issues (including Evan McMullin ). Who can I write in? Between the #NeverHillary and the #NeverTrump folks, there's a lot of talk about write-in votes this year. Based on past experience, it is likely that most of the people threatening this course of action won't actually do it, and will either line up behind the major party candidate they find less odious, or will choose a third party candidate like conservative independent, Evan McMullin. But for those who really do attempt a write-in, though, what will happen? The answer to that varies by the state in which the voter resides: Seven (7) states do not allow write-ins at all—Arkansas, ...

Close your eyes, think of your mother, and you will likely recall her voice reciting familiar sayings. I am lucky to have a mom that loves her kids and takes her job as Mom very seriously. Here's a short list of some of her sayings that occasionally wander through my mind: "Are you full, Bryan?" My mom obviously favored me when it came to helping size while growing up. I was always running around and never seemed to gain weight. My mom's concern for my weight included perks like being served first more often than not, and also receiving the largest slices of dessert. "You look so good in green, and gold. Avoid white; it makes you look washed out." My mom helped me understand the importance of fashion.  In all likelihood, I'd have opted to wear sweatpants and t-shirts my whole adolescence had it not have been for her direction. "Take your school bag up to your room, please." And "when you see a cabinet open, close it."...

TL;DR — After some deep thinking, I've concluded that sarcasm is a waste of my time.  Read on if you'd like to know why. Cicero, in On the Orator , says that, “The most common kind of joke is that in which we expect one thing and another is said;…” I don't "get" sarcasm.  I've never really caught on to the art of it (to which my loved ones can attest). Even my attempts at light-hearted facetiousness (a form of  sarcasm ) have been met with confusion, resulting in awkward attempts at explanation and apologies.  To make things worse, my natural dryness regularly come off as sarcasm when it's not intending to be.  To avoid future awkwardness, I'd either need to hone my skill, or cut sarcasm out of my communication completely.  To help me decide what to do, I read 10 web articles after searching the most-applicable queries related to sarcasm .  (Note: I grouped the following like terms: satiric , facetious ,  sarcastic , and sardonic , which al...

Preface tl;dr —  I feel confident in my vote because: I know what my vote means to me. I know what I believe. I know the candidates, to the best of my ability. Which of the Two-Party Candidates is Right? Joseph Smith's First Vision  remixed with cc permission During this time of great excitement my mind was called up to serious reflection and great uneasiness; but though my feelings were deep and often poignant, still I kept myself aloof from all these parties, though I attended their several meetings as often as occasion would permit. In process of time my mind became somewhat partial to the Republican  sect, and I felt some desire to be united with them; but so great were the confusion and strife among the major political parties , that it was impossible…to come to any certain conclusion who was right and who was wrong…In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often said to myself: What is to be done? Who of all these parties a...

Recently, I have been made painfully aware of a couple of failures in my life. This inspirational clip of Oprah Winfrey speaking to the Stanford Graduate School of Business on Career, Life and Leadership made me feel good. Below is a highlight clip of one of my favorite moments. (Watch the entire 1-hour speech here .) "There are no mistakes." "Get still." "What's the next right move?" "Failure is just there to point to in a different direction." p.s. I'll be sharing this message with a couple of tennis students this week.

Well, I'm finally convinced. Thanks to these five events, I'm ready to begin Marie Kondō's guided journey of limiting my surrounding to things that spark joy: Katie Bastian's Example — For the past year, Katie, an online friend of mine, has been journaling her decluttering process via Instagram. I believe her when she raves about how the process has benefitted her. Scriptures  — Today, after reading Isaiah 23 (the final "burden" chapter), I observed that I didn't want to suffer the same fate as Tyre—a merchant city which was cursed by the Lord for its obsession with materialism. I recognized myself as a participant in the stereotypical middle-class culture; one who constantly thinks about and gathers things. Macklemore —Have you seen Macklemore's Thrift Shop or Wings music videos? Macklemore is an American hip hop artist/MC (from Kent, WA) who writes a lot about the negative effect of global materialism. He's got a lot of good points. ...

BYU-Idaho's top choral group performed  The Heavens' Flock in the SLC Tabernacle during Music & The Spoken Word last Sunday. I was incredibly moved by the Christian message by the non-Christian poet, Paulann Petersen. In the piece, the poet lauds the stars in the heavens, which obediently graze across the sky like animate beings, never straying. The poet, lost and wandering herself, enviously emulates the Great Shepherd's celestial flock by building a makeshift fire of her own made of gathered  "lichen" and "branches" and "twiggy clatter" . I loved the inferred metaphor of the collected "earthfood" to stoke the poet's internal fire. To me, her gathering efforts represent mortal obedience and sacrifice—the fuel of my own discipleship. Like the poet, though my fire is far from a constant, celestial blaze, my feeble attempts to be a light are seen and appreciated by my God, the Creator of all. LYRICS Stars, you ar...