Murder Mystery Party

Last weekend I threw my sister, Laura, a surprise Murder Mystery Party! She was turning 30 so I knew I had to step up my game!

Luckily, I found a great website: www.dinnerandamurder.com and found the perfect murder mystery. The website is great: they give you all the character backgrounds, evidence, "weapons", confidential information, instructions, nametags, and more. There was even an online RSVP center where you could manage the party! It was NOT free, which is the only way it could have been better!

Here are some pictures of the party! The theme was the 1920s, and we had a blast getting all dressed up! Enjoy!

My sister the birthday girl! She was totally surprised!


Just some of the many decorations



Okay, my dad was HILARIOUS! He is generally very straight laced and serious, but he totally got into his "role" as an Italian mob boss. He did an accent the entire night and totally cracked us up!



My dad and Paul...partners in crime.


I totally could have lived in the 20s! LOVE the clothes!



Me and Paul...who ended up dying! SAD!


The boys...and my sister Marlena who ended up playing a boy!


The girls...how I love you all!


So, if you've never done one of these, they are a TON of fun, so have a look at the website for your next party! Also, a TON of work (I was there for hours decorating!) but it was seriously a blast!

P.S. I was NOT the murderer! :)

Disconnect

Today I skived off work early and Paul and I went to the temple (haha, don't tell my boss! :) There's not a lot of media in the temple! It was so refreshing to leave my phone in the car, and completely disconnect for a few hours. I had the distinct thought that sometimes it is so sweet to turn off all the media in our life and to just.......listen.

A big surprise at the Caucus meeting

I'm blaming it on the West Wing.

You all know that the West Wing is my absolute favorite show in the whole wide world (well....tied with Girlmore Girls). It has helped me become interested in politics and now I actually CARE what is going on in the world. Paul and I are re-watching the whole series. We are currently on the 7th and final season, where surprise, there is an election! We just got through the part where there are the primaries, and the debates, and it is so well done that I actually enjoy watching it, even as we are watching the REAL primaries and debates for the current presidential race!



In the real world, I've been following the primaries with great interest: I would love Romney to win.



Not because he is Mormon, but because his political ideals lie fairly closely with mine, and because I think he would be a great president. Rick Santorum is okay, but will never win. Newt is....well Newt. Seriously, who is voting for this guy?!?!?

So, I actually voted for Obama in the last election (don't send the hate please! :) Apart from a few things, I think he's been a very good president, and I honestly think that the Republican nominee would have to be excellent for me not to vote for Obama this time round!



I definitely call myself an independent and carefully consider all the candidates regardless of party. So with this in mind, and after the multiple announcements in church, I decided to attend my local caucus last week. I had no idea what to expect. But it was kind of cool! And.....somehow I got elected to be my precint's delegate for the state convention in about a month! Talk about getting involved!!! I'm pretty nervous, but excited to actually be getting involved in the political process. I mean, realistically, it won't matter much: we all know how Utah is going to vote! :) But thanks to the West Wing, I am doing my part to be civic and politically minded and I'm feeling pretty good about things so far! Now....who to vote for???

Pandora, oh how I love you!

I'm working in my office right now and am listening to pandora. I just discovered this like 3 months ago....where have I been?!?!? It is the best thing ever! I listen to it all the time in the office now. Right now a group called "Honor by August" is playing. I've never heard of this group, but am loving it! Pandora is great because it takes your musical preferences and finds similar songs and so far it has been great! (except for that one Brittany Spears song that came on....FAIL!)

Oh Canada!

I'm baaack! This last week I attended the SRA conference (Society for Research on Adolescence) in Vancouver. Not very many media talks, unfortunately. However, at one I learned that there is something called "transportation" that is very predictive of media effects. This means you feel like you are actually "transported" into whatever media you are watching. The woman who came up with this concept is a big Harry Potter fan and felt transported to Hogwarts whenever she watched the movie or read the book. Interesting!!

Laura Walker and Larry Nelson were there as well, and we took one afternoon off the conference to do a little sightseeing. Nobody brought a camera, so good thing I had my phone to take these pictures! Yay for new media! Here are a couple from our trip.

Note the flag in the background....Oh Canada!


Cute market on Granville Island


Read the sign, and think back to our fear and media lecture! Blah!



Fish and chips for lunch...I specifically took this picture to make my husband jealous!


Steaming clock...very random


By the totem pole made the the first nations people


Okay, this is after I got home, but how cute does Aidan look as a Canadian? :)


Overall, a nice conference: I learned a few more things about media and adolescence and importantly met some very big names in the media world. I'm glad to be back, though! See you in class next week!

Unbroken

Kind of a funny title to my blog post, as I've felt a little broken this week! Earlier this week I just stood up and my neck went POP! and I've been flat on my back for a few days now! YUCK! Luckily, I'm on the mend so am excited to see you all tomorrow! But I digress......

I am in two different book clubs (I told you I love to read!), and both of them are reading the book, "Unbroken" for March. I just finished it, and let me tell you, this is one of those books that sticks with you for a long time.



It is a true story about an Olympic runner, Louis Zamperini, who enlists in World War II. His plane goes down and he is a prisoner of war for like 4 years.



There were some very difficult parts in the book, like when he gets abused at a Japanese POW camp, as one officer tries repeatedly to break his spirit. But he remains unbroken no matter what happens to him. It is a wonderful testament to the human spirit, of someone who endures to the end, and who never gives up no matter how bleak things seem. And it's a true story, which makes it all so much better! (the guy is actually still alive! Here is him, lighting the Olympic torch at 94 years old!)



SUCH an inspiring book! No matter how hard things get, and however hopeless life may feel sometimes, LIFE is always worth it!