Technology

We bought a new car.  Well, not really a new car, it’s used, but new to us.  It has a lot of new and awesome technology with so many features we are not sure we will ever be able to figure them all out.  It has keyless entry, heated and cooled seats, a rear window sunshade, ambient lighting (no kidding), adaptive cruise with collision warning, intelligent access (IA), and more.  When I get in the driver’s seat I feel a little like I'm in the cockpit of an airplane with so many lights and buttons, and I knew it was only a matter of time before some gadget in this car would get me into trouble.

So… not long after we purchased the car we went on a little road trip to the Wasatch Front.  Ray drove as we went to Provo where he had a meeting to attend.  Our plan was for me to then run some errands leaving him in Provo and he would get a ride up to SLC where I would meet him.  We arrived, he jumped out of the car, I moved into the driver’s seat, and took off.   I drove several miles and got to my first stop.  I pushed the button to turn the car off, gathered up my things, then notice that the “key” (that is not a "real" key) was not in the cup holder where I generally put in when I had driven this car.  It was then that I realized Ray had the IA key in his pocket and had taken it with him when he got out of the car to go to his meeting. 

Apparently, once the car is started, the vehicle will remain running until being turned off by the start/stop button even if the "key" is no longer in the vehicle.  I was stranded, and there was nothing I could do about it!  Luckily, I was able to catch my dad at home and he was able to rescue me.

Since that happened I decided it would be a smart idea for me to read the owner’s manual.  Sure enough, right there on PAGE 235 it warns you that something like this could happen.  There is even a solution to this problem if you are quick enough.  You see, there is a fast restart feature that allows you to restart the engine by pushing the start button within 20 seconds of switching the vehicle off, if you happen to discover the "key" is not present in the car (which means I am not the only one who has ever done this).   That seems very James Bond-like; to think that you actually have 20 seconds to fix a problem before something bad happens.

I must be more old fashioned than I think I am.  Is it really a bad idea to have a key that you actually put in the ignition???  I sorta like the idea of having a designated place it has to be while you are driving. 


This experience has me a little freaked out by all these new-fangled gadgets in the world today.  I can only imagine the trouble I could get into if I had a smartphone with all its advanced computing capability.  I am sure it would only be a matter of time before I accidently pushed a button on it that did something bad.

Homemade With Love

Last night our ward had a combined YM/YW activity at the park.  It was a bunch of water games and then ending like every good mutual activity... with treats.  Our ward is huge and there were a whole lot of kids there.  As the activity was nearing the end, the other leaders and I noticed that not everyone that should have brought the treats did.  All that we had were some plain Rice Krispie Treats and a package of Keebler cookies.  There was no way there were enough for all those kids.  In an attempt to fix this problem, we noticed that the Rice Krispie Treats were kind of large, so we decided to use our hands to break each one in half (since we had no knife to cut them).  They didn’t look nearly as pretty when we finished, but there were twice as many.  Problem solved.

Now I, in my stupidity, thought the kids would snub these torn treats and those who were lucky enough to be first would take the “perfect” fudge dipped Keebler cookies, and the kids at the end of the line would be forced to eat the Rice Krispie Treats we had mutilated.  To my surprise, kid after kid took the Rice Krispie Treats and it was those at the end that were left with the packaged cookies.

Moral of the story:  Homemade is ALWAYS better, no matter what!

So, I spent the afternoon making a whole bunch of Homemade Red Velvet Oreos  (which I don't particularly care for, but others seem to love) for the neighborhood BBQ tonight.

Happy Birthday

Today is President Thomas S. Monson's 85th birthday.  Ray and I were blessed to be able to attend a birthday celebration for him held at the conference center last weekend.   It was an evening of music and tributes celebrating his amazing life.

I heard it said recently, "When your heart speaks, take good notes".  So here are my "notes" from that evening:

Twice in the evening they quoted Scottish author James Matthew Barrie.  He said, "God gives us memories so that we might have June roses in the December of our lives."  I love that!  Although in Utah I think it should be the January, or February of our lives.

President Monson was described over and over again as one who has"touched hearts, come to the rescue and gone about doing good."

As I sat there that night, I thought back to a few years ago when President Monson was turning 81 years old and was interviewed by the Church News prior to his birthday. The reporter asked him what he would consider the ideal gift Church members could give him. He replied, "Find someone who is having a hard time, or is ill or lonely, and do something for him or her."

We all came away from that evening with a stronger testimony of our prophet and a desire to do just that.

He Loves Me...

I have always told Ray that I am smarter than he is.  It is pretty obvious when you look at who I married and compare that with who he married :)   He treats me the way a gentleman should.  Even though we have been married what seems like forever, we still hold hands, go on dates, and enjoy being together.

Yesterday, Ray was playing in a golf tournament with his brother and with Tyler.  They had fun spending time together doing something they all enjoy.  When it was over I met up with them in Heber so that Ray and I could travel back to Roosevelt, and so Lee and Tyler could drive back to Salt Lake.  I got out of the car while they loaded Ray's clubs into the trunk and gave Tyler a hug.  Ray then opened my car door to let me in and we were on our way.  I didn't think much of it, until later when this text message came on Ray's phone.

Ray has been doing little nice things for me, like always opening the car door, for over 30 years and I love it!

Going along with this topic, this video is one of my favorites...

I am a lucky one. I know it, and I'm glad my kids are noticing it.