A News Update

I feel the need to catch up on the "news" portion of this blog. So, here goes.

--I am no longer a journalist. So strange to say that! I covered the Cottonwood Heights government beat for the Valley Journals for almost three years, and now all of a sudden......I just don't. I will miss everyone I've worked with, but I will NOT miss the stress of my deadlines. In fact, I have to say it's been heavenly!!

The city council was very nice and presented me with some Cottonwood Heights mementos (scarf, shirt, keychain, mugs) and a $50 gastronomy gift card. New Yorker Restaurant, here I come!! I've been having naughty dreams about your smoked gouda potatoes for three years now!



(A word about this photo: so not flattering. I look better than this, I swear. But at the time I was on day 5 of the three week respiratory infection that I am just getting over. And I was nervous because I was standing at the front of a roomful of people. And the guy who took over my job is the one who snapped this shot, and he was using my camera which he didn't know how to use, and he was nervous too because it was his first night on the job. I'm just sayin' you have to take this photo with a grain of salt.)

--Randy sold his business. For those who don't know, Randy had a small used car dealership called Car Snobs. After two years, it has not been as profitable as we thought it would be, but has eaten up about 10 bazillion times more time and money than we thought it would. So, he has merged his biz with a company called Polished Image Auto Detailing. We are grateful for the change and think it will turn out really well. Major plus: Randy might not be quite so stressed anymore, and we might actually get to spend time with him now!

--I turned 34 a week ago. This is not an interesting tidbit in and of itself. What is interesting is that my friends chose to honor the occasion the best way they know how--with plastic pink lawn flamingos. In JANUARY.




I love my sweet friends so much! Thanks for the flamingos and the yummy breakfast Tanya, Renae, Sheri, and Kaylene! I love you guys!!

My cool sister Kiirstin bought me lunch at Taste of Thai, my current favorite restaurant. (They're in Jordan Landing now, so you locals should go check them out.)

Then, Randy took me out for a steak dinner that night. It was going to be dinner and a show, but the show part didn't work out. And it wasn't just any show--it was a performance of broadway showtunes! It would have been fun....for ME. Randy would have suffered miserably the entire time. But he was going to subject himself to the agony because he loves me!! Isn't he sweet? He not-so-secretly rejoiced that he was spared.

--Randy and I got new callings at church. We now teach the Sunbeam class (three-year-olds). God totally knew what He was doing when He helped me land that job at the preschool four months ago! It was a forewarning of what was to come! But we're having fun, even though I miss my class of 12-year-old young women.

--Finally, I had an uplifting moment on Friday night. I'm sure everyone has heard about the travesty perpetrated by NBC last week, removing Conan O'Brien from the Tonight Show in favor of welcoming back the worn-out, obvious "humor" of Jay Leno, who will take over his old chair at the Tonight Show on March 1. I tuned in to watch Conan's last night on the show, and I was inspired by some of the things he had to say; specifically this quote:

"To all the people watching, I can never thank you enough for your kindness to me and I'll think about it for the rest of my life. All I ask of you is one thing: please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism. For the record, it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen."

(See the video here.)

He was gracious, he was grateful, and above all he was kind. What a great example to everyone who watched this! All I can say is, I think the brass at NBC has lost their minds. Viva Conan! I'll buy tickets to watch you in a 7-11 parking lot anytime.