Jury Duty!

I don't know why everyone wants to get out of jury duty. I have always wanted the experience. Got that on Wednesday! 31 of us (there were supposed to be 33. I feel bad for the 2 who didn't show. $1000 fine. Ugh!) were there by 8:15 as ordered. The jury wasn't selected until noon.
Sitting in a classroom-style conference room, we met the bailiff  and received our juror number.
In the court room, we all sat in order by our jury number. We were facing east, and to the north were the prosecutor and defense sitting at their table. The two attorneys were already thinking of how to use their four strikes.
A questionnaire went to each juror and we said where we worked, where our spouse worked, if we have kids, marital status, what paper we read and something else about us.
Of the 31 of us, 2 were retired, 2 were at home mom's. 1 guy likes guns and 3 guys like video games. None of those 8 made it to the jury. I was the only one who said I read The Blaze (I thought that might get me ruled out. Everyone else either read the Tribune or sports magazines. No one said the Deseret News.). So, if you don't want jury duty, say you like guns or video games :D
It was a criminal trial, so there were eight jurors. The judge talked about how many judges there are in the district, how many deal with criminal cases, what a typical week is like... just to ramble while we waited for the two judges to settle on their strikes. Being juror #12, I made the cut.
The case was a simple one. We were done by 6. I took Trax home because Matthew was tutoring.

This just in:

Matt got his summons in the mail :)

Lego happiness

At work, there's an office that it just epic. There are Legos (there was even a Lego advent calendar!) adorning her office shelves and I lamented my lack of legos. Both my and Matt's legos were donated to neices and nephews where they have been well used and loved. Eventually we need to start our own collection.

Then came Christmas :) Matt's parents got him an awesome castle. A wonderful start!

Last week at work my co-worker showed up with a bin of legos. She loaned it to me because she knew she could accommodate my desire to build something with more than 1000 pieces. Yeah, the London Tower Bridge has over 4500 pieces!! It's the perfect set to build with a friend. We each took a side, and built it in two days. 

Of course, that was after the first night of sorting the legos. Matt stayed up until after 3 am sorting and connecting the like pieces. I laughed at it, then appreciated it when we were building the massive bridge. Last night Matt took it all apart (every piece), put them in bags and Monday I'm planning to give it back, in exchange for something new to build!

So excited!!

In the morning I asked Matt "How late were you up sorting these Legos like a crazy person?" 3:30am

finished on books because the floor and carpet were not helpful (and the table is occupied)

Sick gold fish and Matt-ism #3

Have you seen our goldfish? They're HUGE! They currently reside in a 50 gallon tank. The orange one is Little John (he used to be the biggest fish). The white one is Sushi. His orange stripes used to be more prominent. Looked like sushi to us. Don't worry. We have absolutely no intention of eating our fish.

Little John got sick again. We put in peas (the veggies help. When they try to eat the pea and spit it out it helps digestion issues. Matt describes it best when he says it's like popping your ears, but for fish.) and cleaned the water thoroughly. Well, Matt takes care of the tank. The water, the filter. I really appreciate him taking care of that. Like the rubix cube next to the tank? It's a clock and thermometer. We turned the heat on with the winter coming on and it got the water too warm. Now I wear socks instead of changing the temperature and the fish don't get sick. The sacrifices I make for your fish. Where's the gratitude?
Yesterday Little John wasn't swimming much. Sushi would stay next to him, sometimes help him get out from the corners. It was cute. Now Little John is swimming all over the place, bumping the sides. It's freaking out Minion (our algae eater. He's full grown... a whole inch long! You can see him, the little line in the bubbles, toward the top of the tank.).

It's nice to see Little John swimming again. He swims by the filter a lot. Matt says (Here's Matt-ism #3) "It's like a treadmill, but for fish."

Matt-ism #2

My husbands loves nothing better than to discuss (some would say debate, but I'm going to say 'discuss' as it implies a lack of hostility) heavy or controversial topics. We enjoy to discuss things in a way that it's an intellectual exercise, rather than one side trying to convert the other. Unfortunately, when Matt gets into a discussion with his peers, it turns into a debate.
Have you ever observed a debate? Do you notice that you can tell when a participate has lost the argument (this happens to both sides when observing a political debate, so let's just stick with science here) when they become defensive and emotional? Losing the argument doesn't mean their original point is the losing side, but their defense of it is now void because they have abandoned logic for emotion. This is why a discussion about global warming always turns into a heated debate with (at best) one side using logic and the other using emotion. Maybe instead of saying "using emotion" I could say they become "preachy". Ever observe that? Instead of a discussion it starts to sound like one person is trying to convert rather than persuade?

So, for our Matt-ism of the day:
"Nothing says 'crap science' like an overly aggressive, preachy atheist."

He would love to have a discussion about global warming or creationism with an atheist, provided they don't get aggressive or preachy. (Seriously, he loves to learn other points of view, and having someone intelligently articulate a different point of view than his, he finds really exciting.) Let's have a real discussion about things we disagree on rather than argue with a I'm-right-you're-wrong attitude.

End of soapbox.

Open Letter to Ferguson

Ferguson,
 
What are you doing?

The whole world was watching, the news was announcing there would be riots long before the grand jury was done. It was expected of you. Race baiters were begging you to. Why did you? Rioting does not bring justice. It's the behavior of a lynch mob! How does destroying the businesses in your town make anything better?

The truly tragic victim of this is Ferguson Market & Liquor. The store Michael Brown stole cigars from, assaulted the clerk, leading to his confrontation and death at the hands of Officer Wilson has been destroyed. You have made full circle, with a lynch mob's vengeance.


If you want justice, what are you protesting? Justice was done. The facts are: Officer Wilson will not be indicted because the physical evidence, forensics and ballistics back up his story. The most consistent witnesses matched Wilson's version of events (not that this matters, but most of those witnesses were black).

Why is Michael Brown the face of your movement? He was not a child skipping down the street with a balloon, and shot in the back by a racist cop. He stole from a store, and in an altercation with a cop, tried to take Wilson's gun. Seriously, people, you don't need little me to tell you "if you do what a cop asks of you, you won't get shot." When you assault a cop, you will get shot. They have every right to defend themselves so they can go home at the end of the day, just as much as you have a right to defend yourself if someone assaults you. Why has this chain of events resulted in riots and burned businesses? Michael Brown is at fault for getting himself shot. I'm sorry he's dead, truly, but it's the consequence of his own actions.

The sad conclusion I'm left with is this: You never wanted justice. To demand Wilson be executed, or sentenced to life in prison is a verdict contrary to the facts. I'm left wondering if you would have rioted whatever the outcome. This is your town. WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? How do the bomb plots, vandalism, arson, death treats and chaos make anything better? It won't bring Michael Brown back. It won't make the grand jury change it's ruling. They will not reconvene. It's done.

Over a dozen buildings have been destroyed by fire because a drugged petty thief was killed in a fight with a cop. Every member of the grand jury, the attorneys, not to mention Officer Darren Wilson, now fear for their lives. That doesn't make any sense!

The worst part brought me to tears. I watched as the verdict was released and a crowd was outside listening.  The streets were decorated for the holidays. "Seasons Greetings" was up in tinsel and lights across the main street. With Thanksgiving and Christmas coming upon us, we're supposed to be reflective. It's the time of year we think about who we are and how we want to improve to be the people God wants us to be. It's a time to remember our blessings, a time to be a little kinder, be more forgiving and more charitable. Seeing the fires and tear gas amid the holiday decorations made me weep. Have we completely forgotten Christ? Have we so removed Him from our public conversation that there is nothing left make this part of the year a little more peaceful? The spirit of Christmas once stopped a World War for a day! I honestly thought Ferguson would show us how that can happen today.

Dear Ferguson, there are things worth protesting, but in the way Martin Luther King Jr. did. Peacefully, and with the goal to bring change that brings us together. Let's protest the culture. Even then, the most powerful way to change the world is to keep our families together. Make sure Mom and Dad both are involved in the kids lives, teaching responsibility, discerning right from wrong, and Christian values. Let's make sure GOD is in our lives, and in our homes! This would protest the killings that take place every day. I'm not talking about white-black vs black on black crime. It's all wrong! No cops should be killed, we should no kill each other. (Seriously, I'm having to make this point?) Let's not abandon our families. Let's not be bullies. Let us not think of ourselves and minorities or majorities.

You had such an amazing opportunity to show the world that Ferguson is a community with values. You could have shown the rest of the world how it's done. How to hear a verdict you don't like and react peacefully. It would have been amazing! I weep because of the lost opportunity. Instead of showing America the way out of our cultural famine, we now find ourselves deeper that before.

Matt-ism #1

Part of why my life isn't boring is the frequent laughter in my conversations with Matt. In an effort to remember and save these moments, I'm going to start posting "Matt-isms". (If he actually posts on our blog, maybe there will be some Beka-isms, but until then... I don't say anything silly or hilarious.)

So, for our premiere funny, here's the scene:
End of a long day. I've picked Matt up from work and we're taking Foothill Drive to get on the freeway. The First Congregational Church on the west side of the street has a different motivational statement every time I drive by (it seems). On this particular day it said "Plant seeds of kindness and you'll reap happiness." That's a nice thought.
I read it out loud to Matt, who responded with "Sometimes you'll plant seeds of kindness and you'll get punched in the nose because some people are jerks." I laughed the rest of the way home. :)

Operation Underground Railroad

If you have not heard of Operation Underground Railroad, stop reading this blog and go to their website right now! I'll wait.

Amazing isn't it? Can you seriously think of a better cause to be a part of? Follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Donate, buy the dog tags (I love mine) and shirts.

I first learned about it on Glenn Beck. I have been looking for "a cause" ever since I saw Amazing Grace. I want to make a difference in the world somehow. I participated in The Hero Dash, which originally was Comic Con's event to raise money for O.U.R., but not enough people signed up (the original 5K was to be in April this year). I kept getting emails of postponement until finally The Hero Dash teamed up with the Zombie 5K walk to fight polio in October. I went in my O.U.R. t-shirt rather than dressing up, because in my head, I was running for the kids. It felt like all I could do besides donate money. My fastest 5K ever :)

After the run (we ran around Liberty Park twice) Alex Boye sang for us! I look forward to the next event!

Boye invited the superheroes to get on stage with him!

O.U.R. raised 3K at the End Polio 5K zombie run :)

Liberty Park was beautiful. Golden leaves were raining on my walk back to the car.