My youngest brother’s girlfriend Adrienne bought him the entire Guitar Hero: World Tour game for Xbox this Christmas. Needless to say, we rocked out to many-a-song in the days after Philip opened up that wondrous box of musical fusion.
Even though Harrison is still too young to play the game, he got into the fun in his own little way. Check out this video of our biggest fan:
I admittedly have a deep fascination with Mormonism. Growing up in Salt Lake City, I have been around the religion for most of my life. I’m definitely not someone who agrees with their theology or their claim that they are a Christian denomination, but this American-grown religion’s short, volatile history and their modern-day people and practices are definitely interesting.
Last week, my family and I took Heidi and her parents (who were in SLC for Harrison’s adoption hearing) downtown to Temple Square for a tour. Here are a few photos of that trip:
Temple construction began within days of the Mormon pioneers settling in the Salt Lake Valley. It took 40 years for this intricate building to be completed. Its walls are nine feet thick and the outside is detailed with numerous astrological symbols (including earthstones, moonstones, sunstones, constellations, and the lunar phases).
One thing I find particularly fascinating is the architecture of the buildings are at Temple Square. The fact that these simple pioneers were able to design and build such detailed and ornate structures is amazing to me. This six-spire, Gothic-style building is the largest of all the temples worldwide (over 100).
The granite used to build the temple was quarried from Little Cottonwood Canyon 20 miles away. It took days for each block to be hauled from the canyon to the temple site. Though construction on the Salt Lake Temple was the first to get underway, it was the fourth one completed.
One particular change I have noticed in the tour since I first took it is the fact that most, if not all, the tour guides are young women. The temple guides have been called to do their two-year mission in Salt Lake City (much like other faithful Mormons are called overseas). Our guides were Sister Meyers from Albuquerque and Sister Arnquist from Dallas.
The Assembly Hall was the first building at Temple Square to be completed (1877). It was built using small scraps of granite from the temple construction. This meeting place was where Mormon pioneers met for church in the early years. The building is now used for regular community concerts.
Inside the North Visitors Center, tourists will find huge, detailed murals of popular Old and New Testament stories and a large, interactive model of ancient Jerusalem. The centerpiece of the building, however, is the 11-foot marble Christus statue which stands in the middle of a gigantic mural of the universe. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t creep me out a little.
Directly north of Temple Square is the new 21,000 seat Conference Center where large meetings are held (you’ve seen their painfully boring bi-annual television conferences, right?). This is also the building where the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performs. Mormon financial records are not made public, but the estimated cost for this building is over $240 million.
The Joseph Smith Memorial Building is east of Temple Square and was formerly the five-star Hotel Utah. This statue of Joseph Smith sits in the lobby. Mormonism’s founding father is a very interesting figure. Descriptions of this man range from prophet of God to storyteller to philanderer. Despite his murky reputation, he definitely was a man of great influence and charm.
This final photo was taken from the top floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. I think with a little work, this could easily be used as a postcard. If you are ever in Salt Lake City, I recommend that you spend a few hours to take the tour. I can guarantee you’ll discover some things you never knew about Mormonism.
I was sick last week and couldn’t do any of my half-marathon training, but this week I have been feeling much better. In celebration of the end of my bad cold, I ran 3 days for a grand total of 1 hour, 54 minutes, and 7 seconds over 9 miles of this earth (3 x 3 miles). Don’t bother trying to figure out my average time per mile — it’s still pretty crummy.
In the past I never did much running for running’s sake, but I think this may become a permanent routine in my life — and I think I may be starting to enjoy it. Today, I ran to the point of bleeding through my shoe. Please, no jokes about me bleeding pink.
D-Lo ran with me again and this time he brought a beanie for me too. Here we are making pre-run poses that far exceed our actual badness level:
Both times we have run together, Derrick has come to my side of the tracks, but next time, we’re going to hit the streets of Dreaming Summit and see what sort of damage we can do there. I’m looking forward to a change of scenery.
I spent the month of November training for a 5K race that took place on Thanksgiving Day. This picture of me flexing has nothing to do with that training, I just think it’s a cool photo. Plus it’s sure to be intimidating to all my foes (you know who you are).
These are the shoes and the new pedometer I bought prior to training. The shoes help me grip the pavement, and the pedometer shows me just how much time it takes me to run such a short distance. I’m pretty sure it makes fun of me when I’m not around.
This is my one-time training partner D-Lo. He was kind enough to join me one Friday for a run. I’m not sure why he wears that beanie — he’s already got a full head of hair to keep his dome warm. Maybe I should get one.
The 5K race took place in Fountain Hills, AZ at 7:30 on Thanksgiving morning. The whole night before, it poured down rain and only let up an hour before the race. It was a beautiful day for a trot.
Heidi and her sister Heather did the 2K fitness walk on the same day. This is us posing with the turkey mascot before the race began. That smile on my face is real.
This is about 1/3 through the race. At this point, I am still surrounded by a good handful of people — the little 10-year-old girl running with her dad is not too far ahead of me. The only reason it looks like I’m running perpendicular to the crowd is because I am getting into position for my next photo.
This is the money shot. I love the look of determination on my face, my fists raised victoriously in the air, my gut and man-boobs flapping violently in the breeze. Unfortunately, this slight photo-op detour has put the 10-year-old and her dad out of my reach. The old man behind me, however, is going down!
This is the final straight-away. To my dismay, the old guy blew by me at about the half-way mark and I never really saw him again. At this point, no one is even running with me. The people on the left finished their race long ago, completed a full after-run stretching routine, downed some bagels and juice, took a dozen photos with the turkey mascot, and are now heading back to their cars.
Just a few strides away from the finish line at this point. Heidi is there cheering me on yelling, “You can do it Michael! Give it all you’ve got!”. She told me later that she thought I would have kicked it up a notch on that last leg. What she didn’t know is that I was giving it all I had. The remaining race-watchers were nice enough to shout some encouraging words to me while they waited for their 85-year-old wounded war-vet grandfathers to round the corner in their walkers. I could definitely feel them breathing down my neck that last quarter mile.
I’m now across the line. As I strain to fill my lungs with much-needed oxygen, the lady in blue takes a moment to check me out in my sexy, form-fitting red running shirt. I swear, sometimes a guy just wants to have a workout where no one ogles his rippling abs and rock-hard pecs. Am I nothing more than a piece of meat?
This close-up shot clearly shows the agony that I endured to get to this point. I had finished my first 5K run in 40:07 — certainly not record breaking, but a steady 13.3 minute mile pace (pretty good for a fat guy). As my body began to recover, my eyes scanned the parking lot for the on-site ambulance and EMT team — just in case.
As soon as I was certain that no medical intervention was going to be necessary, I stopped to take an after-race photo with my beautiful wife. I love that she was there with me, but that smile on my face is very forced. It took every last ounce of strength I had left to have my brain tell my facial muscles to make a smile. What a day!
Well, the first hurdle toward my ultimate 2009 resolution has come and gone. While I’m not terribly impressed with my 5K run, I think it marks an important milestone and showed me that I can improve. The idea of running 13.1 miles by next September seems daunting, but then again, so was the idea of running three miles by Thanksgiving.
Disneyland, here I come!
I usually leave the family posts to Heidi’s blog, but I had to share another fatherhood first with you (if you don’t remember the first first, then click here to read it).
Sin-sen and I got to spend two entire days together while Mom was at a women’s conference. In addition to the usual fun we have during father/son time, we got to try a new dish for lunch and dinner – PEAS! Other than baby cereal, the only thing we currently feed him from a spoon is avocado and green beans. Based on past experience, a distaste for peas is part and parcel to being a child, so I wasn’t sure how this new culinary experience would fare.
When lunch rolled around, Harrison must have been extremely hungry because wasn’t even in the mood to play with his pre-meal toys. The initial bad mood made me wonder how this whole thing was going to end. Instead of boring you with words, I think I’ll just show you how it all went down:
I think the kid likes peas.
As part of a recent process of brainstorming various ways that I could earn a bit of extra money this Christmas, I thought up a t-shirt idea, designed it, and then published it on CafePress.com, an online company that specializes in custom-printed clothing. Here’s my final design:
If you or someone you know is a political junkie (or just likes wearing cool, custom-made t-shirts), please pass along this link along to them. I earn a small amount of profit for each item sold, and that money will definitely be helpful in paying Harrison’s final adoption fees (December 19 is the official date!). Any additional traffic you can drive to www.cafepress.com/the2grays will be much-appreciated!
Happy shopping!
I just returned from a Friday morning run (read: lumbering jog) with my good friend D-Lo. Since he has Fridays off, he was gracious enough to drive all the way to my house early this morning to join me in 2 miles of self-inflicted torture through the chilly streets of Avondale.
The photo above was taken just before we started. If I had taken another afterward, I would look like death warmed over and he would look pretty much the same as he does in this picture. Jerk. He makes it look so easy.
Hopefully, we can continue with this Friday tradition, and one day I may be able to keep up with him the entire time. If anyone else wants to join our running group, just give me a call. Maybe we can turn this living hell into a fun and challenging Friday mini-mini-marathon.
This Halloween, be sure to remember that the harder you trick-or-treat, the higher the chance that someone’s going to take a ton of your candy and give it to a kid who stayed home and played Grand Theft Auto IV all night.
This is what I know…
People make mistakes. Consequences are inevitable and oftentimes they can be painful. When we mess up, we’d like nothing better than to move on, forget the past, and continue living without suffering the inevitable consequences. But that’s not life.
This is what I know…
My adopted son was a “mistake”. The day he was conceived, he became equal amounts baby and consequence. As he grew each day in his young mother’s womb, the world around him was waging war — not for land or money or power, but for the heartbeat that pounded life through his little chest.
This is what I know…
Some people wanted to eliminate his life. They didn’t see his existence as a choice that had already been made, instead they weighed his value in terms of a choice that was yet to be made. They didn’t see a self-inflicted consequence that needed to be faced, only an unjust punishment that should be avoided at any cost.
This is what I know…
Some people refuse to see beyond the immediate. To these people, the value of my son’s smile, his laughter, the way he kicks excitedly when I pick him up from his naps, were once on equal footing with a girl’s impulsive decision to avoid the inherent consequence of a choice she already made. Because he was of no value to them, in their eyes, he had no value at all.
This is what I know…
We almost lost him. Twice. The constant drumbeat of what some call a woman’s right to choose almost cost the world a beautiful child. This young mother sat in the waiting room of an abortion clinic two separate times. Each time she felt a tugging inside — a voice almost — that told her not to take the easy way out. We realize now with great gratitude that the tugging was done on our behalf.
This is what I know…
Some people saw a promise, not a punishment. Instead of telling her the fairytale that she could make it all just go away, they encouraged this young mother to turn her mistake into someone else’s blessing. They didn’t remove the consequence, they taught her how to find a way to make the best out of the outcome she brought upon herself. That is what life is about. Before we were ever in the picture, these people saved the life of my unborn son.
This is what I know…
In a world where hundreds of thousands of couples long to have the opportunity to adopt and make an unwanted child a part of their family, advocating abortion is possibly one of the cruelest social views one can have — both to the child and to potential parents.
This is what I know…
We may never conceive a child. Because of people who could see beyond the superficial morality of our day, and because the birth mom ultimately listened to the tugging inside her, our inability to get pregnant became a non-issue in our journey to have a child. We have been blessed by someone else’s biggest mistake — and we couldn’t be happier about it.
