Torrie left me this week. (haha I guess I should rephrase that – Torrie flew away from Dallas a little bit early cause we found a cheaper flight for her) and I fly back to Lexington to reunite with her on Friday. I am once again a lone man. I wake up, eat breakfast, go to work, eat lunch at my desk, come home, run, watch tv, go to sleep. This repeats over and over again.

Now I’ve done this before, and I unfortunately will have to do it again – that’s just the nature of my job. As I sit here trying to come up with the will power to study for an accounting test that I could have passed after a week of that Accounting 101 class I took freshman year (listening to Christmas music), I realized that I really don’t have anything to look forward to this evening. I’ll run, which will be good, and there’s not even any NCIS or Law and Order tonight. But that’s what my life is when I’m on the road and alone – whatever is on television.

Isn’t that sad? It’s only a momentary thing for me – I’ve read all the books I’ve brought, Torrie just left, and I’ll be home tomorrow, where there will be plenty of things to do – but I look at some of my coworkers and that’s all they have. Maybe go to the bar and try to meet somebody. Maybe study some more for this accounting test.

I’m grateful for the direction that my life has – and as always has – thanks to my family and the gospel. I’m grateful for the structure of the LDS church that helped me have things to do when I was single. I’m grateful that I’m married. I can’t wait to have kids.

Oh good news. Just found out that USA has both NCIS and Law and Order on tonight. I’m going to be okay. :)

Torrie and I realized the other day that since we haven't been at our house for most of December, it hasn't felt like Christmas. Well, that is a travesty and was a situation that needed to be corrected immediately.


Work has been pretty self-directed lately, with a lot of accounting. (Yes, I took approximately 15 hours of accounting class time in university. In fact, it was a prerequisite to getting this job, as was getting good grades in those classes. So why am I getting paid to study it for a week? Great question. Good thing the FDIC is paid for by insurance premiums and not on taxes.)


This makes for an easy solution to the Christmas dilemma. Pandora! I've been rocking out and feeling the Christmas spirit all day long, with the expected benefits of being happier, working harder, etc.


However, I've decided that I have a more picky ear than I thought when it comes to Christmas songs. I will skip a few songs to listen to the ones that I really like. Here are some of the best songs I listened to today:

Merry Christmas Darling - The Carpenters
It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year - Andy Williams
Hallelujah Chorus - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
Anything where John Rutter was involved.
Jingle Bells - Bing Crosby
Holly Jolly Christmas - Burl Ives
All I Want for Christmas is You - Mariah Carey
The Christmas Song - Nat King Cole
We Need A Little Christmas - Percy Faith and His Orchestra

What is YOUR favorite christmas song? I know there's plenty of others out there. Merry Christmas!

I found an article yesterday, and I have thoughts on it. Seeing as it has to do with religion and that probably isn't kosher to discuss at work, I will instead throw it out to the blogosphere.


http://www.cnn.com/2009/OPINION/11/23/dawkins.darwin.atheism/index.html

On one hand, I don't wish to acknowledge this article, so that it gets more hits and people think it's more "legitimate". However, since the conversation is going to happen whether or not I am apart of it, I feel that it is okay to state my beliefs and opinion on the matter. Plus I have some down time at work.

In the article above, the biologist Richard Dawkins states his case for atheism becoming more "militant" and aggressive in defending their (according to him, correct) views. Among the faulty logic he mentions that: "Religion teaches us to be satisfied with non-explanations".


A quick view of the religious past may give some credence to some of what he says. There have been numerous times where religion hasn't had the answers to questions and "answers" that Science proposes, and then Religion uses its political and social power to try and cut science off. However, in the end, that never works, since as a human race we have a pretty natural instinct to try understand the world around us. (Although I have met a lot of deeply religious people who don't try to understand the world around them. Santo misterio and all that jazz. But as humankind, that peace or complacency is not prevalent.)

Unfortunately for Mr. Dawkins, I would imagine that he has never given all the religions a good chance. Just because people have frequently used the name of God for their own selfish purposes is not proof there is no God. Jacob said it well: "O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish" (2 Nephi 9:28).

I'm grateful to be a member of the true church of Jesus Christ - not a church and faith that limits the search for knowledge, but one that embraces it. Check out these treasures from revealed scripture:

"The glory of God is intelligence. Or, in other words, light and truth" D&C 93:36

"Seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom" D&C 88:118

"All things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are upon the face of it, yea, and its motion, yea, and also all the planets which move in their regular form do witness that there is a Supreme Creator." (Alma 30:44).

Mr. Dawkins says that he sees no room for science in religion. Well, if God were to establish His religion and His church on the earth, he would make that religion with room for man to learn, study, and attempt to discover all of his secrets.

I look forward to the day when our understanding of Science completely matches that which is in the scriptures and which has always been taught to us from the beginning by the prophets. I'm confident that it will happen.

Well I don't mean to ruin my great conclusion there, but here's an article from a New York Times blog about evolution. It was the 150th anniversary of the first publishment of Darwin's "On the Origin of Species". It's great (both in a little kid, cute way and also in a long-term, invigorating way) to see us humans struggle and make attempts at understanding the world around us. We'll figure it out someday...
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/24/an-evolve-by-date/?hp