Unfortunate/Fortunate Events

First, we must assure you that the lack of posting has not been due to the lack of significant events, rather it is due to the lack of significant time to post these events.

The first set of our experiences we could call “a series of unfortunate events.” Obviously with a bit of irony behind the word “unfortunate,” since nothing is unfortunate until the afflicted person gives up…and we certainly are far from that. In other words, our experiences are rather fortunate, for we are full of hope and happiness. Regardless of that digression, here’s the progression of events:

Monday morning: first day of school. We are running late. No one on campus. Why? Maybe because it is 8am. I walk my wife close to class and dash off to work at the electric shop. The rush of tardiness and the stress of starting a new semester came to a halt: School starts on Tuesday!

Tuesday night: After the real first day of classes and 4 hours of work, I return home slightly exhausted; however, my dear wife went to school the first half of the day and worked the half-day in the floral shop. The beautiful damsel in distress has a night class after work which doesn’t get her home ‘til after 6pm. I knew she would be even more exhausted: I made her some chocolate chip cookies (of course the action wasn’t completely altruistic since I enjoy the fruit of my labor as much as she did). At the same time of doing making cookies, I made dinner. What a surprise! She was happy and I was happy. About now you may be asking what is so unfortunate about that? I’ll explain later.

Wednesday evening: Once again I find myself home alone waiting on my woman. Keeping up with the domesticated husband trend I decide to try out our Bosch again and make some homemade bread while making dinner—I have realized the art of double-tasking is hard to come by and I gained a greater respect for mothers. I love food, Yum! So began. I put the bread in the oven 20 minutes before she gets home. Victory! She came home to the smell of dinner and homemade bread in the oven!

Wednesday evening (later that evening): The bread tastes dusty. I failed. Then my kind wife asks whether I used the good flour or the expired stuff. I replied with, “Why do we have a huge can of expired stuff in our house?” –while avoiding the question, I answered it too.

Wednesday evening (a few seconds later than the last one): “But…That is the same flour I used…yeah…—slowed down and drooping—for the cookies.” When they were fresh out of the oven the cookies were good, but the second day was not so kind to them.

Thursday evening: My wife is making an exquisite soup and I entered the kitchen to help cut the carrots and such. When it came time to add garlic I said to add two pieces. Now this was no ordinary garlic: it was super-powered blow your neighbor away garlic. My obedient wife adds two…the great soup went terrible! Way too much garlic—the overpowering, odd-tasting vegetable ruined my wife’s soup! Just as the dusty old flour made our fresh bread taste old! What a week it had been, what a series of events!

Luckily my amazing wife doctored the soup so that it was edible since we made a quantity of it to last us a week. Also, the next week we made a chili that was out of this world! Nothing beats it. Mom, you have made some great chili in my life, but this one was something else. It was complete with hominy, corn, rice, home-grown bottled tomatoes (from the garden which were amazing mom—thanks for planting and preserving those), beef, kidney beans, bullion, etc. I can’t tell you the whole recipe or else I’d give away the secret! Actually, I couldn’t remake the chili if I tried. One time only.

The above events have been happy times for me and my wife. They give us something to laugh about and to remember. And that is why these are fundamentally fortunate events since we love them, laugh at them, and cherish them.

Anyway, that is the food post. Much more has happened than just food. For example, Condelezza Rice came to BYU and talked to us. She did a fantastic job.

Dad, I just read the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. I really enjoyed it. I am sure you have read it, but if not, I definitely encourage you to do so upon your return.

I have been reading some interesting philosophers and as well. I have especially liked Horkhiemer and Adorno’s ideas on the Myth of Enlightenment, however I do not recommend that to the curious reader…their stuff is deep and it is like wading through a lot of mud...unless you are up to the challenge.

Now Micheal Foucault responds to their essay with a very interesting twist in “What is Enlightenment”

And to be true to origins, I would suggest Immanuel Kant’s “Was ist Aufklärung,” but the English one if you are like me and don’t speak German yet.

Also, some interesting reads:

Edmund Burke’s “Reflections on the Revolution in France”

Thomas Paine’s “The Rights of Man,” which responds to the above work.

John Smith’s “A description of New England”

Mary Rowlanson’s “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson”

Anyway, those are just a few the things I have read thus far this semester. I have enjoyed them all. I think Marc may be interested in some of the philosopher’s ideas, but everyone is free to read or not to read…that is the question. :-)