Newlywed Blog.

The main thing I'm looking for

in a man

is a last name

that I can make a good pun with

for the title

of our newlywed blog.

Dadaism.

Today,

I was sitting in the UVU Writing Center,

and all at once I noticed

that in front of me,

a shaggy boy was reciting

original slam poetry

to two obliging listeners, 

and next to me,

a ESL tutor and two students

were conversing on light topics

in pleasant, polite broken English.

It was the most absurd combination.

And I sat and laughed

because life is nonsense.

(Hugo Ball's nonsensical poem Karawane

and what he wore to perform it.

One day I want to have a cultural pageant

and dress up like this

and recite it.)

The Artist.

As part of my post-grad education,

I've decided to try and attend

the International Cinema

every week.

Last night,

I saw The Artist.

It was beautiful.

A silent movie

about silent movies,

made in 2011.

The form was perfect

for looking at the interaction

of speaking and silence.

I liked how hard I had to concentrate on it.

Turns out this nearly century old art form,

tossed aside so quickly to make way for "talkies,"

is powerful enough to keep us from multitasking 

while we watch it.

No Goats, No Glory.

Yesterday was my first state fair.

Thanks to Utah

for being a state

and for letting me come.

We watched the sheep judging

and a lumberjack competition.

We looked at cows and swine and rabbits

and goats.

This is me at the county fair last year.

There was a big sign that said

NO GOATS,

NO GLORY.

And I realized how much I love goats.

They're right up there with quails.

The best part was the creative arts,

seeing the woodwork

and leatherwork

and quilts

and little Christmas decorations

that people had made.

Some of the stuff

honestly looked so strange,

was so small and homely.

And I shed a tear,

thinking of the earnest people

who spent hours making these things

and cared about them enough

to enter them in the fair.

It was a great display

of American tradition

and of the human spirit.

Walking in the Same Direction.

Let's say

you're walking down the hall at school

and you see someone you know

coming the other way.

What happens?

1. You ignore them.

2. You try to say hi,

but they don't hear you.

3. You both say hi

and keep walking.

4. You both stop and talk.

5. Oh blessed number five.

You see each other and say hi

and you keep walking,

but the other person does an about face

and walks in the opposite direction

so they can talk to you.

How humble of them,

to not be deterred by the fact

that you weren't going to stop.

There's nothing like that

to make you feel like

you're worthwhile.

Labor Day.

If you read the things I write,

you'll know that I love history.

I love to think about people of the past

and what they did to make sense of their lives.

I like to see how similar we are,

and to remember how the things I have

are because of what they did.

Today is Labor Day,

a holiday I've never really thought about before.

But picture those gritty, dirty factory workers,

beat down from laboring around the clock.

This was the land of promise,

and America wasn't delivering,

as it sometimes doesn't.

So they fought back,

with that ironclad strength

that rises up through weariness.

They formed unions

and went on strike,

and said,

"I will not stand for this."

And people listened.

A hundred years later,

I spent my childhood watching television,

not languishing in soot.

Once a year,

I get a day off just because of what they did.

And I will never live through

what they lived through,

because they bore the burden of that

for me.

But I can listen to their songs

and think about them singin 'em.

In the heart of the fight,

this kind of thing must have made them feel strong.

 

What is my reason for being happy today?

We have a quote on the back of our front door.

What is my reason for being happy today?

Sometimes I see that and hate it.

Sometimes I don't.

Here's what made me happiest today:

1. The print of my new skirt,

and the fact that I got to stare at it

every time I sat down.

It is seriously so beautiful

it makes me want to weep.

This is it.

2. Turkey Hill ice cream,

imported straight from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania,

was on sale at Smith's yesterday!

Who knew that was even possible?

I bought Fudge Ripple,

and it tastes exactly like my childhood.

3. Meeting a girl who just did an internship

at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library,

and whose dream is to work at the Nixon library.

New best friend?

4. Roommates.

One who feels like my little sister,

one who is exceptionally good at reading

Lord of the Rings out loud,

one who I just met and love,

one who knows the songs of my heart.

And old roommates

who are still part of the family.

And friends who come over 

and feel like roommates.

5. Let's be honest,

Jesus Christ is my reason for being happy

any day.