inspiration

there is a family in our church who has had a very touching experience. their son and daughter-in-law had a baby a few weeks ago with many health issues. they knew he would enter this life with these issues and chose to go full-term and offer him life (however short) rather than abort early on. check out their blog to learn more about their experience and how they relied on God to understand this experience, and the knowledge that the gospel of Jesus Christ brings eternal families.

what's your super power?

i've recently discovered my own, personal incredible super power. even though i was born with this power, i had no idea of its potency, much less its presence in my life, until david pointed it out a few weeks ago. now i see it everywhere i go. it's almost become a curse. here are some photos of me growing up; let's see if you spy my super power:

in the top photo i am 13 months old, in the bottom probably 3 or 4. i think my super power is much more visible in the bottom photo, simply because there is an obvious glowing difference between me and the rest of my family. the unbelieving might blame genetics. here are a couple more examples, then you can tell me if you agree with genetics or super power:


the top photo is from when i was a nanny in italy. i spent every day watching the kids on the beach. the sun definitely adds strength to my super power. as you can see in the middle photo of christian and me, however, the sun doesn't work in the same way, even on blood relations. this photo was taken after christian had gotten back from his lds mission to italy, where he'd spent time walking around in the sun all day every day. i, meanwhile, had been home from italy for about 9months, and was living in central pa at the time. my power was still outshining his. the last photo on the bottom is of my two brothers and me, taken maybe a week after i'd gotten home from my lds mission to brasil. it is so obvious here i think you have guessed it by now: i am blond. super blond. i have never colored, dyed, or even so much as highlighted my hair. the sun does that for me. i guess you could say i am like superman in that respect: i draw my strength from the sun.
i guess i never noticed this power before because it's what i've always had and always lived with. here's when this power was drawn to my attention: a few weeks ago david asked me to bring his work shoes to red wing to get them waterproofed for him. so after class i drove to the store and asked the guy to waterproof the boots. he gave them back to me in a box, all gelled up and ready to go. i thanked him for being so kind and went on with my day. when david got home and saw his boots super-gelled waterproofed, sitting in a box, we had a conversation that went something along these lines:
"he did this because you're blond!" david exclaimed.
i looked at him incredulously, "what? he's a really nice guy, david. i think he was just doing his job. i said thank you."
"he's never given me a box before! and these are like, super-gelled waterproofed! he's never done this nice of a job for me. it's because you're blond. this always happens!" he complained. this isn't the first time david has made this complaint. he often says "it's because you're blond", but i typically brush off the comment because i have no idea why he can't accept people simply being courteous or doing their job.
"what are you talking about?! i think you're acting a little insecure. there are a lot of other blond connotations out there, you know, none of which have to do with getting a good waterproofing job as far as i know. give me some more proof, then maybe i'll believe you."
david then proceeded to list a number of occurrences in which he saw my super power in action:

• whenever we go to a fast food restaurant, we always stand in line next to each other so we can order together. i usually order first, and rather than turning their attention to david, the cashier person (usually male) always then states the amount due. he doesn't even look at david; it's like he isn't even present. david has to interject and order for himself.
• david says guys are always looking at me when we go jogging together; i don't notice--i'm focused on breathing. he always thinks guys are hitting on me, too. i think they are just trying to strike up conversation.
  
• i was in line at the grocery store doing a produce run, so the conveyer belt was full of fruits and veggies. the guy in the line behind me was doing some "fit" promo, i think. he had about 15 "fit" bowls with fit-in strainers and the "fit" fruit and veggie wash. he starting talking to me about eating well and complimented me on my food choices. he then offered to give me a "fit" fruit and veggie washing kit for free. after my skeptical looks he explained there were no strings attached, and he put one in my cart and told the cashier lady to charge him for it.
• i always made really good tips as a waitress, got a lot of stares, and even got asked out once. would this have happened had i been brunette?
  
• when i was in italy and brasil i constantly got whistled and stared at. i was using the pay phone in italy once when a random guy walked up to me and told me i had stars in my eyes. i think he'd had a little too much vino...
• when i worked as david's runner over christmas, i got called honey, babe, gal, and was whistled, winked, and stared at.
• i was on my deathbed sick with the flu a couple weeks ago, and when i returned to school i was still coughing a little bit. i was sitting in the lunchroom, reading my textbook before class, and started to cough a little bit. no big deal. i happened to be sitting next to the cashier guys. one guy completely stopped traffic, literally knelt on one knee as though he was about to propose, wrapped an arm around the back of my chair and very earnestly asked if i was ok. he didn't leave until i'd explained i'd been sick, but i was fine now.
  

anyway, as david listed more and more items i realized i have been getting preferential treatment nearly my entire life--and i haven't even noticed it until now! this got me thinking: do i have a 3.9gpa because i'm blond and the majority of my professors have been male? have i always gotten the job on the spot because i'm blond and not because of my resume? i usually befriend guys before girls because they're easier to talk to...do i have friends only because i'm blond? did david marry me because i'm blond? after i posed this concern to him, david assured me that although he may have become my pen pal because i was blond, he married me because he'd fallen in love with me. phew.
so david thinks i have a super power that gives us more opportunities than if i were brunette or redhead. but even after all the examples he listed, i still have to put my two cents in. i mean, if you're blond, you also have the blond curse. all you natural blonds out there know what i'm talking about. when we wear make-up, we look natural. without make-up, we look dead. then there's the "blonds have more fun" stigma, and the "dumb blond" stigma. do people always envision greek goddesses as blond? i've always pictured athena as brunette, and aphrodite with flowing red tresses. i bet all the brunettes and redheads out there picture blond princesses in fairy tales.
if i've ever made anyone do something due to my power, i sincerely apologize. it was completely unwittingly. now that i am aware of this super power, i will definitely try to keep its effects to a minimum. i mean, i certainly don't want to go through life thinking it's just my hair and not me that's making a difference!

P.S. david has a super power, too (he was jealous i didn't include this earlier). legend has it he was getting his physical to begin working as a driver for ups. part of the exam included an eye test. the proctor asked him to stand behind a predetermined line and read the smallest line of letters possible. david cheerily responded, "ok, i'll read line 8." (who knows if it really was line 8, he can't remember, we just put that number in there to further the plot) the proctor disbelievingly replied, "what line?" you see, even though she was standing right next to it, she couldn't even see a line 8 with her simple 20/20 vision. david then proceeded to read without hesitation, backwards and forwards, every letter of the line perfectly. you see, folks, he has been gifted with 20/13 vision. genetics or super power? you decide.

rocca my world

we were first introduced to mo rocca while doing saturday morning errands and listening to npr's "wait wait...don't tell me!" radio gameshow program where you can win carl kassel's voice on your answering machine (!). mo was one of the commentators and we laughed every time. he has a dry, matter-of-fact way of stating the comically obvious.

we next saw him on food network's iron chef as a judge. as always, the amusingly dry comments, which seemed even funnier in this arena because he isn't a "foodie" like the rest of the judges are. he definitely made the show a little quirkier, which is an improvement.

we then met mo in person at uvsc last wednesday!! he came to little old uvsc (most likely on a connecting flight from somewhere to somewhere), and made us all laugh with how to be an expert in any field you so choose. a little political discussion on the presidential candidates was thrown in for good measure. david and i stood in line for a book signing after the program, and we were both very impressed by how approachable he is. neither of us have ever met a celebrity before, so we don't know how they really act, but mo seemed genuinely interested in talking with the people who were getting their books signed. he didn't seem like he was in a hurry, or thought it was annoying or boring. he gladly had girls kiss him on the cheek while taking pictures, shook hands, and personalized each book. way to go mo!