A Busy Saturday And No Rain, 12 Jul 2014

There was no rain today!  That was helpful with many patrons in the temple and on the grounds.  We had 17 new patrons which took extra effort on our part to help them have a good experience.  We found ourselves coming and going at times to be sure everything was covered and handled properly.  There were over 300 patrons in for sessions alone.

The wall unit air conditioner in the area I was working in started making a very loud noise.  It sounded like the fan was hitting against something.  We had to turn it off close to the end of our shift and that caused the area to get quite warm.  We closed down a half hour early to avoid the stuffy heat.

At home, we got our temple clothes in the wash, I fixed dinner, and we went over to the reading room to have a good Internet connection to be a part of Marissa's baptism at 7 p.m. our time - 11 a.m. her time.

Marissa Brown, baptized by her father, 12 July 2014, Gilbert, AZ.

Tyler's family was there, along with Katie's family, Juliann's family, and Bobby & Mariah.  It was so nice to see everyone!  Everyone seems taller, more grown up, and beautiful!  We were surprised when Bobby and Mariah came into view and we got to say hi to them!

Katie gave a fun talk on baptism that included "The Four Bears of Baptism."  She used four different Care Bears; one for "Bear His Name," "Bear One Another's Burdens," "Bear To The End."

Bobby & Mariah sang:  Baptism, When I Am Baptized, and I Like My Birthdays.  He played the ukulele and they sounded beautiful.  The words were so clear and meaningful.  It was such a treat to hear them sing.

Afterward we spoke briefly with Tyler.  He asked if we wanted them to face time us at the luncheon so we could see the good food we were missing.  I said:  "No, that will only make us sadder!"

Congratulations, Marissa.  We are so happy you made the choice to be baptized.  You are always in our prayers.

We stopped by the piano room to run through our song we are working on.  We had barely begun when Elder and Sister Parkinson came in.  That ended the music and we sat and visited.  Sister Homann, the French lady with all the family cards was cooking their dinner in the kitchen.  She came over to let us know that one of the hobs (stove top) was not working properly and that it is a hazard and should be reported.

Sister Parkinson found Brother Beer, the head of security, out in the car park and he came in to have a look.  We showed him the situation and he identified the problem immediately.

He said:  "The reason it broke was because it was made here, referring to England."

We all smiled, not sure how to respond.

He continued:  "Anything made here is no good.  Now, if it is from Germany or America, it will last. Japan is good too, but from here, nah I don't even bother.  I have learned to pay attention to where things are made any more."

He provided more information:  "If it is from here, that usually means it was made in Poland, or here, and either place is no good.  I have learned."

He got "Danger" signs and taped them across the hob so no one would use it.  He said it is an easy fix with replacing it with a new hob that can be purchased right off the shelf.  As he came back out of the kitchen and headed for the door, he said:  "That should do it.  Only my daughter would be daft enough to use it now."

We did laugh at that and he smiled, saying:  "She's 26, you know and still isn't very smart.  The Lord gave us one daughter and we got her!"

"We love her, though, and do all we can to help her," he added.

After that remark, he came over and sat down and told us one story after another about himself while growing up.  He joined the church as an adult, so his stories were quite amusing.  He had our attention so off he went on one after another, beginning with being an alter boy in the catholic church to his time in the military and then when in security.  He was in the military police and told of three instances of when he was "stitched up."  At first we didn't ask what that meant but couldn't understand how the phrase applied to what he was saying.

A half hour or so into the stories, we asked the meaning and he said:  "Well, you know, when someone makes a jest of you, etc."

"Oh," Dad said, "Like getting set up."

"Yes, yes, that is what you say in America," he replied in recognition.

We also learned from him how to pronounce the car name, Jaguar, here.  It is Jag-u-ar.  We see a lot of them around as well as Mercedes, Audis, Porch, Peugeot, Mini Coopers, etc.

It turned into a very eventful and informative evening.  Brother Beer knows how to spin a story using his rich English accent and body language.  You felt like you were right in the middle of what was going on.