Zion's quirky in the East Bay

My latest parody, "A Berkeley Ward Anthem," (a takeoff on "Battle Hymn of the Republic") had its debut at the ward variety show tonight. The performance was--As Bill and Ted would say--most triumphant (or perhaps: non non non heinous). Everyone seemed to like it, and we had a great time singing it a second time through as one big group.

So now that the song has been performed, the secret is out. I've been wanting to share it with the world for nine days now. Without further ado, here it is. Enjoy!

[For those interested in a hard copy, download the pdf version. The gif version above looks great on computer screens but is really grainy when printed.]

Diem bisextilis anni carpimus

As with all years divisible by 4 in our lifetimes (even 2000), 2008 gave us an extra day. We took that 366th day and totally seized it. Seized it to death.

(5:25am) The day (as most weekdays sadly do) started dark and early. At early morning seminary (6:15am)--after some cajoling and coaxing, mind you--I was able to get a few of the students to memorize a few mastery scriptures.

(8:00am) We hosted our friends' three kids while she went to a dentist appointment and he went to campus.

(8:35am) Walking and busing while carrying my bowling bag (complete with 16-pound bowling ball), I trekked off to nearby Albany Bowl for my weekly ritual. The rolling of balls started off not so stellar, but the last game was a frame away from 200 (I blew it by dropping the seventh frame). I was happy with the results.

(9:30am) While I was off bowling, the kids were handed over to their mom along with Ellie while Maile went to a prenatal appointment.

(10:50am) She arrived back at home just in time for her six-hour shift at the computer center, and after walking back from the alley I picked up Ellie and fed her lunch quickly so that we could pick up Max (11:45am) and take them both by bus (and a four-block walk) to preschool. Then I finally headed to campus myself (12:40pm).

After attending a few meetings I began the very tedious and soporific online human subjects training (www.citiprogram.org ... ugh), then I was finally able to chat with my advisor (5:20pm).

(5:30pm) Maile finally leaves work (where Ellie has been dropped off), gets herself and Ellie some dinner at McDonald's, and heads over to the church (6:00pm) to practice not one but two numbers for the variety show. I arrive at the church from campus mostly by foot (6:10pm).

(7:10pm) The variety show starts, and is very entertaining. Maile's violin numbers were--as always--beautiful, and though plagued by an early technical glitch, her Picasso video was also quite lovely, especially the subtitle: "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Mess". The long anticipated performance of "A Berkeley Ward Anthem" (with some of the actual singers of the ward helping out) seemed to be a crowd pleaser, and after singing it a capella for four verses we ended up sharp (which is good, I now understand).

(9:15pm) The variety show comes to a close, for which Ellie is very, very ready. We finally arrive at home (9:45pm) and get the tired and cranky cookie off to bed.

It was a good leap day, but I'm willing to wait a while before the next one rolls around.

Violinist in Training

Ellie has been asking for a violin for months. Whenever I'd practice she would ask if she could have a violin that was her size. So, I rented one. It's this teensy tiny thing, the same size I started with when I was only a little older than she is. So far she has been enthusiastic during our little 5-minute lessons, though she has said she is a bit frustrated that she can't automatically make it sound good. ("It sounds scratchy!" ... and yeah, it's pretty scratchy indeed.)

Anyway, for your listening discomfort, here is Ellie's very, very first time holding and playing a violin on the same day that we rented it.

Mike's New Puppy

Meet Mike's new pet - a LEGO Motorized AT-AT thingy. After wanting it for a long, long time, he finally received it over the holidays. It took him 5 1/2 hours to build, and he seemed very satisfied with the results. Ellie liked it because it moved -- she's a big fan of robots (like her mother) (who is a fan, not a robot). And, as far as puppies go, I'm just glad it doesn't require feeding, cleaning up after, or taking on walks.

A nation and a blog are born

February 17, 2008. As expected, Kosovo today declared independence and became the newest sort-of recognized sovereign state. Perhaps less historically, Maile and I finally managed to start a blog. Um, this one.

The coincidence is apt, in that the creation of this blog involved a bit of patient diplomacy. We've actually been seriously meaning to start a blog for weeks. We've had the time, we knew how to do it, and we've had plenty of material for several topical posts. We did not, however, have a name.

More accurately, we didn't yet have a mutually agreeable name. But the weeks of uncertainty and the hours of pondering have paid off, I believe. Without further ado, I present for your reading pleasure (or, more likely, your reading amusement): Bounded Eccentricity.

We're weird, but not that weird.