Getting closer

Post-holiday letdown

All the big stores start pushing school supplies at the end of July. Most places don't start school until the end of August or first of September. Corporate America is out to destroy summer vacation!

Monday Sketchbook: One last pioneer gag

You can roll your eyes at this. I won't be offended!

Hot in here

I think that there are people who come to church in the summer just for the air conditioning. Thank goodness we have it!

Ready for anything

Actually, PPIs with the mission president were usually awesome!

The view from up here

Ever had a bad first date?

Hipster crickets

Crickets were flashmobbing before it was cool.

Welcome wagon!

It seems strange to me that the crickets are the ones that wound up with the "Mormon" name. The seagulls were the ones that were on the side of the pioneers!*

HAPPY PIONEER DAY!

*Thanks for the thought, Arie!

The road ahead

Bits and pieces of the Oregon Trail are visible from the highway as you drive across eastern Oregon. Sometimes the juxtaposition of modern highway signs and the Old Oregon Trail create an interesting combination.

Monday Sketchbook: The price of fame

Crickets are the bad boys of Mormon history, so much so that they earned their own scientific classification. And once those bad boys became famous, they hit the talk show circuit (above), picked up a couple of product endorsements (example one - example two), even a backup band, and soon they began to deny their roots.

It's a sad tale of destruction, one we hope doesn't get repeated any time soon.

The full meal deal

I think there's a reason they never ask me to go on the pioneer treks...

Crossing in style!

Shoulda stayed in the sketchbook?

Protection

Bishops hear all kinds of excuses...some that almost seem plausible!

Our heritage

There are certain youth in our area who are convinced that we do our pioneer treks because our stake president wants to see them suffer. That's not the case, I'm sure. But I know there are those who would like to explore other aspects of their heritage!

Scales

I was looking through some old Good Heavens cartoons the other day and ran across this one. I thought it was worth sharing.

With songs of praise

Our ward struggles with finding someone to play for Priesthood opening exercises, even though we have the programmed pianos that will provide accompaniment with the touch of a button. Maybe we should start recruiting people who play other instruments...?

Monday Sketchbook: Truth in advertising

This happened in our ward on Sunday.

Where are we now?

I think almost all missionaries get that feeling when they get to their first area.

The heat is on. Always on.

I don't normally do sequels, but this is a follow up to Thursday's cartoon. Our Arizona elder said that there were times when it was 100 degrees even at night!

That's on the FTP site

A while back there was a news story about the First Presidency and members of the Quorum of the Twelve having a presence on social media, including Facebook and Google+. There's a lot of good potential there. But what about the flip side? I did a cartoon a couple of years ago about being unfriended by Santa...Wouldn't it just feel awful to be unfriended by the Prophet?

It's not the heat, it's...yeah, it's the heat

One of my sons served in Arizona. Every day was that day!

Lost in translation

Missionaries run into all kinds of people. Sometimes it's hard to tell if they're interested in the message, or interested in something else.

Always welcome

We have one home teaching family that's like a box of chocolates -- we never know what we're going to get when we knock on their door...but it's always something interesting! One time the door opened and my companion got shot with a Nerf gun; another time one of the kids opened the door and said, "excuse me, I'm going to go throw up" and did.

Home teaching. It's not just a job -- it's an adventure!

Monday Sketchbook: Into the wild

Missionaries, in general, aren't really a wild bunch, especially nowadays, and more especially in the MTC. These guys are focused! It's like they are, well, men (and women) on a mission! Pointing to the wrong area on the map is about as crazy as it gets!

Apologies for the Eurasia side of the map, but hey -- it is just a sketchbook, right?

Poking the hearts

Have you tried the new Family Search website? It's pretty awesome. Some people's eyes glaze over when you talk about family history because they think it's all digging up names and dates. Other people think that it's all been done because some distant aunt or grandmother filled out all those forms.

But there's way more to it than that, as this updated website shows.

It lets you post photos of your ancestors and share some of their stories. That takes them from being names and dates to being real people.

We found one of our ancestors, John Niels Beckstrom, was a rather dapper looking gentleman with a top hat and fancy mustache. As an early settler of the Salt Lake Valley, another ancestor described the sounds and the smell of the crickets during the cricket and seagull incident. That's something I never thought of, and makes it more vivid, more real. We also discovered that one side of our family is descended from none other than Thor...and Mrs. Thor. Instead of family reunions, we assemble.

Check out the site; check out your heritage. It's probably pretty cool. You could be descended from a superhero, too!

Dinner time

I think I can safely say that I had some of the most interesting food that I've ever eaten while I was on my mission.

Have it your way

 

Every now and then I like to throw in a gag that makes readers think a just a little bit. Not too much, mind you -- just a little.

Special toppings

Happy Independence Day!

Primary Avengers

Ol' Cap believes, right?

With a bang

I've experienced a few barbecue related explosions myself...

Monday Sketchbook: With glowing hearts

Yes, today is the day we celebrate Canada, eh! This is a little bit more than I usually do for a Monday Sketchbook, but, hey! It's Canada Day!