Tuesdays with Muerte

Personal Introduction By way of introduction, my name is Bryan Tanner. 30 years ago, I was a kid in Redmond, WA; I lived just down the street from Microsoft campus and the U.S. HQ for Nintendo. 20 years ago, I was a freshman here at BYU, positive that I was going to revolutionize the biotech industry. 10 years ago, I got my first big-boy job in a completely different field, creating learning experiences for companies—first for the Air Force, and then for Church HQ. That obviously didn’t work out because a few years later, I came back to BYU as a student. I attended a South Provo ward in this stake. (For those doing the math, yes, President Hansen was Stake President at the time.) 2.5 years ago, I married my dream girl and we have a baby boy on the way. Last week, I successfully defended my doctoral dissertation on a potential model to help people in my field transition from academia into the business world. Purpose I’m grateful for this brief moment I have to be with you. I believe tha...

Image source 10 Arguments for Hand Washing Dishes  Immediately After Use 1. SHOWS CHARACTER The habit of handwashing dishes immediately after using them shows personal responsibility and consideration for others.  In the absence of clear dish-doing duties, washing one's own dishes is evidence of strong personal character and respect for others.  It is a mark of social maturity not to assume that someone else will clean up your mess. ( E.g., Necessitating "Your mother doesn't live here" signs.)  It also frees the sink and counters for others to use communal kitchen spaces. ( E.g., it's tough to rinse lettuce in a sink full of dirty dishes.)  It also allows for the re-use of favorite  dishes throughout the day.  2. PREVENTS CRUSTIES Dishes are often more difficult to clean as food hardens on them over time. (E.g., post-smoothie blender.) Even electric dishwashers can struggle to clean dishes that have sat out for more than a few hours. Exceptions to thi...

I dislike all five of these terms and will avoid using them when possible. But when they are misused (by myself or others), a little grammar nazi in my head starts to cough and spit. Common Misspellings "Disconscerning" vs. Disconcerting "Alot" vs. a lot "Could/Would/Should of" vs Could've/Would've/Should've "Ecetera" vs et certa Less vs. Fewer When you’re trying to decide between “less” and “fewer” first ask yourself: am I talking about a specific number of things? If you can count it, then use "fewer." If not, then use “less.”  Fore example: Less — If you’ve got a big bowl of salad (with an indiscernible or irrelevant number of leaves) and you can’t eat it all, you might ask for “less salad.” Fewer — If, however, there is a specific number of tomatoes in the salad and you think there are too many, you would ask for “fewer” tomatoes (or a fewer number of tomatoes). Nauseous vs. Nauseated For hundreds of years, nauseous  ...

Bryan's Lessons My idea is not necessarily the  right  idea. But even if it were, the relationship is more important than being right. When one of us is sad, and once the space is safe, it's helpful to approach an interaction with a tender hug.  It's an important habit to share a meaningful kiss as we come and go. (I picked that one up from watching  The Importance of Kissing  on The School of Life YouTube channel.) I didn't need many facial tissues before marriage. But now, it's worth investing in the Costco 12-pack. The temple is an excellent place to unwind from a stressful week. It's my job to never forget weekly date night or FHE. Intimacy cues are hard. It's important to clearly communicate what I want, whether it be that I'm tired…or not tired. Stacia's Lessons Vulnerability…is hard. It's tough being seen as less than perfect by the one you wanted to be perfect for. Trials are much easier to face with two. Having a shared ...

Jim's Amazing Story I was reminded of this PowerTales ™  story on Facebook today: “This is Jim Thorpe. Look closely at the photo. You can see that he's wearing different socks and shoes. This wasn't a fashion statement. It was the 1912 Olympics, and Jim was a Native American from Oklahoma representing the U.S. in track and field. On the morning of his competitions, his shoes were stolen. Luckily, Jim ended up finding two shoes in a garbage can. That's the pair that he's wearing in the photo. But one of the shoes was too big, so he had to wear an extra sock. Wearing these shoes, Jim won two gold medals that day.” Why I Want to Be Like Jim Thorpe I knew who Jim Thorpe was from an early age. A common Sunday afternoon activity for me was to listen along to recordings as I read,  PowerTales ™,  popular character-development books for children in the 80s. Jim Thorpe's book on Sportsmanship was my favorite. Thorpe's multiple extraordinary athleticism and praisewor...