Leaving Utah

In case you didn't know it already...

I used to live here:

But now I live here:

However, for the past few days I have been back in Utah visiting family and such. But tomorrow this blessed vacation ends. Tomorrow at exactly 1:50pm I leave to go back to Los Angeles.

*tear shed*

Small list of things I hate to leave behind in Utah:

the family
the mountains
the dog (Tobias)
the BYU
the friends at BYU
the snow (only a little bit) (and only whenever it comes) (it is, after all, very unpredictable)
the mom's cooking
the freeways without traffic

But it will be nice to be back to see some of things I have really missed the last few days!

Small list of things that beckon me back to L.A.:

the weather
the job
the beach
the dad
the dad's girlfriend
the dad's girlfriend's son
the dad's girlfriend's son's dogs

But don't cry! I'll come back! I'll come baaaaaaaack... [fades out].

Of Novels, Late Nights, and a Man Named Steinbeck, Part Deux

Well, I finished the book a few nights ago when I said I was going to stay up and finish it. But out of slight embarrassment, I won't tell you how long it took me. You see, I'm a very slow reader, and it's only necessary for slow readers to tell you whether or not they finished a book. It's up to them to decide whether or not they will you how long it actually took them to finish it. Those are the rules!

But the amount of time it took me to finish the book isn't what people are wondering. They want to know what I thought of it! They want to know if I enjoyed it, or if I though it was complete garbage. So now, without further ado...

The review:

[WARNING: I'm going to talk about the book in such a way that IT WILL GIVE IT AWAY IF YOU HAVEN'T READ IT. So, please, do yourself a favor and don't read below unless you have already read the book.]

Did I enjoy the book?

I loved the book.

Would I read it again?

Yes, but not for a while. It was a long book for me to read, and I think I'm going to go read something much lighter now. Something like...the Old Testament.

Was I disappointed in any way?

Yes, a little bit. The entire time Steinbeck describes the massive migration of the families and the terrible discrimination they receive when they arrive, and he builds it more and more all the way to the end of the book. I thought it would end with a massive strike by the people, or that it would show how the families somehow found justice in the midst of their struggles or something. I don't know, really. I was just disappointed that the Joads, or that the entire group of migrants, didn't ever find relief. But I suppose it helps further Steinbeck's main message of the book if they don't find that relief.

Also, I thought the book attacked religion too much, and that was pretty disappointing as well. Reasons why I think this: Casy (who is pretty much da bomb, by the way) spends much of his conversation in the beginning with others telling about how empty and meaningless his former preaching used to be, and then he stops talking completely because it troubles him so much, but the minute he realizes the importance of humanity (which I think is the main theme of The Grapes of Wrath), he does a complete 180 in personality and suddenly he is the martyr-leader of the strike. Also, during the dance in the middle of the book at the government camp, Steinbeck frequently describes the religious zealots as the crazy people who unfairly misjudge and criticize the other members of the camp, causing much harm to Rose of Sharon and others. Also, Uncle John's character is used to show how much of a burden people can be who are obsessive in their concern with their sins. (His character confuses me, though, as I will discuss below. Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts and ideas about him.)

What did I like about the book?
I thought the main message about contributing to humanity was deeply moving. I thought it was great how the Joads always found ways to help other people, even when they were in destitute circumstances. I thought Steinbeck's writing was incredible, and I now understand why people think he's such a great writer. I thought it was cool how he constructed the book, by following both the family and the entire struggle of the people. And lastly, I thought it was very a very applicable message for our time, and it was great to think about how such discrimination continues today.

Any parts I didn't like?
By the end of the book I was completely exhausted. But I think Steinbeck wanted the reader to feel the exhaustion from what the family was going through, so I don't mind that really.

Also, I'm still trying to figure out Uncle John. The entire book he burdens the family by being so depressed about his sins and his drinking problem. That's all I saw from him. It was a little unsettling.

And I thought the man's story who has one eye was pretty sad. I loved Tom's frank remarks to the man about how he needs to change his life. But when Steinbeck ended that scene with him lying on his cot crying to himself because his life is so miserable, I felt so sorry for the guy since he has such a depressing life. But I really don't know. I'm probably misinterpreting that scene completely.

Any memorable moments of the book?

It was really moving when they enter into California, and you find out that the during entire drive across the border the mom had forced herself to remain quiet while staying up on top of the truck with their dead grandmother so as to not wake anybody or cause them to worry. And when it shows how she is completely exhausted after such a long night...Wow. The mom is totally my hero.

Also, when Casy takes the blame for Tom hitting the sheriff and goes to jail for him...that's a great part of the book too.

And I thought the grandpa was hilarious...while he was alive.

And even the brief part at the very end where the Joads meet that boy and his dying father is amazing...how the son tells the Joads that his dad would tell him to just eat their food because the dad 'wasn't hungry' or because he 'already ate'. I find the love a parent has for his or her child a very profound and moving thing to think about. I'm glad the book included this in the ending.

And who can forget the final scene?! Rose of Sharon has absolutely nothing, and yet she still realizes the importance of finding ways to help others--to contribute to humanity--despite all of her personal losses. Even though she is devastated after losing her own child at childbirth, she still realizes that she can offer her milk to the dying man in the barn. That was an incredible scene.

And lastly...

Would I recommend that you read this book?

Most definitely.

Please send me a long, detailed email at ads23384@gmail.com and let me know what you thought of the book! (Or just leave a comment.)

Of Novels, Late Nights, and a Man Named Steinbeck, Part I

Readers of my blog:

It is 12:03 AM.

I'm reading The Grapes of Wrath.

I have a little over 100 pages left.

I will not sleep until it is finished.

I'll let you know how it goes.

(But I'll never tell you how it ends!)

Hardy-har-har

The lamest joke in the world:

A neutron walks into a bar. "I'd like a beer" he says.

     The bartender promptly serves up a beer.

     "How much will that be?" asks the neutron.

     "For you?" replies the bartender, "no charge." 

My Proclamation

A while ago I came across an old journal from a seminary class I took during my Senior year of high school. I really hated high school, and I hated the ridiculous, sappy, boring high school seminary program even more. And I definitely hated it when they would have us write in those lame paper journals they would give us each new semester.

Keep in mind, this was all back in high school, and I was a bit immature and unappreciative.

But I remember having to write this journal entry specifically (it is, unfortunately, undated), and I'll never forget what a surprisingly great experience it was to be able to write it. The lesson that day was on The Family: A Proclamation To The World, and how its proclamation affects our lives. This resulted in great discussion amongst the class, which then led to the teacher instructing us to write our own proclamations to the world in our journals. I now want to share what I came up with after about ten minutes of writing, re-writing, and further editing:

DECLARATION

"I, Andrew Stratford, solemnly proclaim that all men were created in the image of God, and that all people on the earth are sons and daughters of God, and that he knows them individually by name and loves them dearly.

I solemnly proclaim that our beloved Father in Heaven does hear every prayer said by his children upon the face of the earth.

I solemnly proclaim that the Savior Jesus Christ walked on the earth 2000 years ago and organized the true church of God upon the face of the earth during his mortal ministry.

I solemnly proclaim that this church, after hundreds of years of dark apostasy on the earth, was in fact restored again to the earth by God the Father and his beloved Son, Jesus Christ, when they appeared to the modern-day prophet Joseph Smith in the Sacred Grove in 1820.

And, finally, I solemnly proclaim that there is no other way nor means whereby man can be saved, except through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ. He is the light of the world. And if men will drop their nets of the world and come to Him as did the apostles of old, then will they feel the true joy that He gives freely to all men that follow him."

The moment that I wrote that was a defining moment for me in my religion. As I wrote it I felt that it was inspired by God. Then as I read it to the class a few minutes later it was sealed to me as Truth by the power of the Holy Ghost. After that day in seminary, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was more than just a culture to me: it was the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Way to happiness in this life and in the life to come.

And now I will say this:
I feel exactly the same about my religion now as I did back in my senior year of high school.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

Tonight I went and saw a Dodgers game. Needless to say, I am now a big Dodgers fan (even though out of all the sports I would pay to see live, baseball is the sport I understand the least).

And now, listen to my newly-acquired baseball talk as I report the game:

Tonight the Dodgers smashed the Braves out of the ballpark leaving the crowd with a surprising, yet satisfying finish. Unfortunately for the 56,000 fans at the Dodger Stadium, the crowd favorite, Manny Ramirez (no. 99), struck out both times while at bat. But disappointed crowds weren't left frowning since Andre Either hit one out of the park in the bottom of the ninth, resulting in a three-run homer that left the score standing at 5 - 4 with the game going to the Dodgers.

Other news coming from Dodger Stadium tonight: Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came from all over LA to support the Dodgers after tonight was dubbed 'Mormon Night' by the Dodger Stadium marketing team. Unfortunately, Dodger Stadium big-wigs had to learn about the Word of Wisdom the hard way after they discovered that the Mormons left the stadium with alcohol sales at an all-time low. It turns out that even the most brilliant of ideas can turn awry.

Also this:


My new-found cool person is the 77-year old organist who accompanies the entire stadium in the National Anthem, 'Take Me Out To The Ball Game' -- the 7th-inning stretch classic, and of course all the organ-led cheers we hear throughout the game. Who knew that the music they pipe through the loud speakers was actually a live accompaniment? Nancy Bea Hefley is her name, and ballpark organ playing is her game. A very cool person, indeed.

And she even has a MySpace page!

Only In LA...

"I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."


Ha ha. Right.