Week of 20260426 - Dual Relief Society Organizations; Encouraged
the Conference Committee; Sewing Table; Lego Flower; Secured Gate; Guested on
Podcast; AI Mandate; Bonsai Exhibit; Saturday at Work
= Sunday, we learned that our Ward will have *two* Relief Society organizations - the better to manage visitation by sisters to sisters. The General Handbook [on line] makes this an option but leaves details to be worked out locally; our divide will be geographical (north/ south Montgomery). Sunday meetings remain unchanged for now.
= Heard in talks: Create an environment where people will share their needs so they can be helped. Vulnerability is the birthplace of love. Your treasure is your family. You can be sealed to them for eternity.
= We provided written encouragement to the young single adult conference committee to make more progress in specifying and planning activities.
= Monday after work, we bought a sewing table, gave excess moving boxes to the seller, and received sewing notions from her. Windows repaired its installation on my laptop.
= Tuesday, I was Toastmaster of the Day [master of ceremonies]. We were at work by 2 (unusual). I received direction; Steph prepared for her trainer's temporary absence.
= Home, Steph built a Lego flower. We assembled meals for tomorrow and organized some items to leave at work.
= Wednesday, the vehicle gate was open: a puzzler. We had a fruitful day at work. We loaded the pantry with a Walmart run. Home, we ate while listening to Sunday on Monday (scripture commentary). A Mensa Magazine article prompted me to revisit events surrounding my entry into to the Air Force.
= Thursday, I attached a short chain to the "loose" side of the vehicle gate and fastened the other end to the latch hardware and padlock. It will take more than casual effort to open our gate again.
= I was a guest on Steph's podcast to talk about my experience as a widower and about help I received during that time. Look for GloryAndGritPodcast
= Friday at work, we had a long meeting with someone who has used AI effectively; quizzed us on how we have used it; and we were told to bring examples of our use of AI each week going forward. We didn't finish things that had to be done before Monday; I requested Saturday time to do that.
= We drove directly from work to the temple and did an endowment session to assist a couple of my relatives.
= Home, we watched three episodes of The Closer.
= Saturday, I worked on getting information from PDF to Excel for use in conference invitations. We ate at Waffle House to start our fast. Steph picked up glasses and interchangeable fronts for them.
= We joined Jim Garner, who had invited us to a bonsai display he had organized in Old Alabama Town. Nice. We each bought a tree from a displayer there to train up ourselves.
= Then we went to the office; it took longer than anticipated to get things done. Home, we went to our laptops.
Simple meal for Sunday lunch
Splitting carrots for dipping
Steph's vehicle air freshener features Scooby-Do and the gang in the Mystery Machine.
The postal service has its own vehicle to deliver postal service vehicles.
A pretty plant in the courtyard of the business we work at
Delivering excess moving boxes to the person we're buying a sewing table from
SEL: Social and Emotional Learning. There's an interactive wheel at casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/what-is-the-casel-framework/#relationship
The concept reminds me of Boys Club material that provided explicit instruction for specific social interactions.
Not everyone readily learns these skills by watching others; availability of this explicit instruction is very valuable.
(On the back of a highway sign)
Subdued paints are becoming more popular for vehicles.
The crosswalk leads to a sidewalk that goes steeply downhill.
Steph noticed an unusual architectural detail..
Both have a recessed porch. The left-hand house might have needed its porch recessed to keep a distance from the house next door, but the right-hand house didn't have such a restriction to worry about.
Lady, waiting at the corner
Table loaded. And we received some other items its former owner didn't want to move.
Proof that I do throw something away; these food items were left in the RV when we departed on our mission. They're gone now.
The scent dispenser is bright.
After attempts to install a security patch failed, Windows offered to repair the operating system. That went well.
Cities need industry. Whitfield Foods (remember Alaga syrup?) sold its plant to SoGo Packaging LLC, which we pass on our drive to Toastmasters: "From precision blending and advanced pasteurization to flexible packaging lines and a 90,000 sq. ft. finished goods warehouse, our facility is designed for efficiency and scale." -- sogo.llc
We've seen machines to remove old railroad ties. Here's where some of them have been piled.
The concept of creative destruction applies to buildings, not just businesses. This was visible from a ground-floor parking deck.
Toastmasters (those in person)
No scheduled projects today, but we did have Table Topics.
Wynn Dee Allen
When I saw this, I thought of my sister's involvement with a local group in Texas.
Not the food truck we had been looking for, but good.
The Salvation Army's old meeting place; they now meet in the building that used to be our Stake center.
DARE {Drug Abuse Resistance Education} at first glance, this works because the jumping kids on the helping school license plate form the "D".
There is more than one of these in the area.
Steph listened to a scripture lesson while assembling a flower from Legos.
Frustrating; because, these special pieces don't permit rotation. Steph expected the flower to have a three-dimensional quality, as seen in the photo on the box. Instead, the parts forced the branches and flowers into a single plane. She almost threw her work away.
..
[We've moved it to the windowsill over the kitchen sink for now.]
The popcorn popper for use in the microwave works great: air popped. We added flavors afterward.
We found the gate unlocked, as if someone was trying to make a point. It had been windy.
4DARK. A black vehicle; fits.
Another flat-paneled vehicle..
COVERIT. We don't have to cover our cargo bay; we have a minivan. (Yes, there are other ways to interpret this message.)
Lobster bisque for shrimp ravioli
Vultures. Nature's cleanup crew. A small armadillo.
Somebody's RV had some damage.
Easier for distance travel
I took photos to be able to say which items I was buying, but at checkout, my camera battery died. The person at the register interpreted letters on the head of the lug screw to determine how much to charge.
[Also, Lowe's provides a military discount, confirmed after registration by scanning the back of my drivers license.]
(the other side of that damaged RV)
Imagination. See the wheels?
LVMYDS, on the back of an MDX model vehicle
[Or it could easily mean Love my days.]
The chain is attached with 3-inch lug screws. Casual effort won't open the gate now.
Preparing to be a guest on Steph's podcast. The Riverside app provides options. (The phone has a better microphone and camera than the laptop.)
The ceiling lamp is in the center of the room. To avoid having its light behind my head, I retreated into the nook in front of the door. I borrowed a light from the kitchen as well. And, the laptop is raised up by a box of crackers.
And because the camera is on the end of the phone, I have to look slightly to the right to see my host..
Done. Kimchi. The flower in the window is Steph's Lego creation.
Yes, eating with chopsticks.
Bagel with cream cheese, apple pie, carrots, and V8 juice for me.
(Steph the same, minus the V8 juice.)
At work, dressed for the temple
(It's what we would wear for church, only kicked up a notch because we don't wear head wraps or hats in the temple.)
Alternating slices of cheese and portions of soup
He could have fit that inside a minivan..
Their sticker read Cute, but Weird. That's a way to describe us sometimes.
We would contribute to refurbish this again if we knew where to send the funds. (This is a private landowner's sentiment; it's his sign; a co-worker I've lost touch with knows him.)
Tight traffic headed south
Annual competition picks "peach queens" from multiple age brackets.
Good photo of the peach-shaped water tower
Driving near Alabaster is never easy: narrow, under construction.
Powerline warning; is that for the workers?
Where they have us drive on the re-painted shoulder, at least the rumble strip is at the center of the "lane" so we don't tear up the tires.
For a few seconds of the trip, you can see the back side of Vulcan on his pedestal.
Then the road dips and turns and he's not visible again until you're in the center of Birmingham, lined up with his front side. The return trip is in the dark; so, this is as good as it gets.
Subdued paint job for paramedics; kind of misses being noticeable.
With the "new" Area Code that overlays parts of the Birmingham region, this injury lawyer can have all 7s for his phone number. (A local injury attorney in Montgomery has all 3s; he was there first.)
Amazon's vans manage to stand out even with a subdued paint job. "Is now a good time?" emphasizes rapid satisfaction of you material needs.
The electronic sign warns of a crash ahead.
The left lane is clear, but you need a center lane for the temple.
Stuff to avoid. [Coming home, we dodged a mattress.]
By now, the crash has been dealt with.
And we're lined up towards Huntsville.
No trouble remembering our exit. A church has erected a cross several stories high nearby.
And here's our turn. The spire is on the Ward building next door.
"Our" temple. Somehow, we're early; so, we nap in the car.
The words over the porch repeat those on the headpiece of the High Priest in Moses's time: Holiness to the Lord.
The House of the Lord
(The statue, not on all temples, honors a prophet who buried scriptures to be revealed centuries later.)
Home, we watched "The Closer".
The placement of this whimsical critter is a sign that we've wiped down the range.
Looking forward to a meal before we fast in advance of tomorrow's testimony meeting.
We usually go to Waffle House for this. Today is no exception (except that it's later than usual).
You are a world changer, born to shine and conquer.
Steph picked up glasses, then went back to have a look at the door.
John 13:34-35 - A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
Our destination: the Wood-Farley-Hood house (circa 1850) in Old Alabama Town.
Bonsai Show - River Region Bonsai
Jim dug this up, potted it, and is working on it.
It doesn't matter how old the tree is. The Beginner category is for trees that have been trained no longer than than five years.
Lateres Ludendi {Playing with Bricks}
Complete with fake Latin name: Legoferous
[by Jim Garner]
Juniper - 15 years - 3 years in training
This one sits on a fossil cast.
Forsythia - 8 years - 3 in training
Alberta Spruce - 15 years - 6 in training
Juniper/ Eastern Red Cedar - 10 years - 5 in training
Trident Maple - 8 years - 8 in training
Sweet Plum - 5 years - 5 in training
Satsuki Azalea - 9 years - 9 in training
Japanese Maple - 2 years - 1 in training
(See the hammock?)
Chinese Privet - 10 years - 4 in training
Juniper - 8 years - 8 in training
Bald Cypress - 9 years - 9 in training
A photo of the staircase for my brother, who has designed and built *spiral* staircases
Spirea "Goldflame" - 24 years - 10 in training
Jim Garner, explaining how to care for our bonsai
About the house, which can be rented for special occasions such as this.
I like the potential to create a scene in miniature. See the fish the fisherman is hoping to catch?
Bald Cypress - 22 years - 10 in training
Is that for the college (Auburn University Montgomery) or the truck?
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