Shortly after returning from a relaxing Thanksgiving break in Utah, a bunch of friends got together for a holiday dinner. One of my friends who’d since moved down to Oregon came up for the occasion and brought her new significant other. Him being a non-member, we figured we’d pull a harmless prank. Just after blessing the food, we would indicate to one of the attendees, who would stand and lead us, hand-over-heart, in the Pledge of Allegiance, after which we would pirouette, take our seats, and carry on the evening as if such a thing were par for the course.

The prank went splendidly. We didn’t break it to him until an hour later, and he took it in good stride. All in all, lovely times were had.

My personal trainer is active in the muay thai scene and had a large match a couple Saturdays ago, to which she invited me. The venue was an old building with a number of ballrooms – when it wasn’t hosting fight nights, it acted as a graffiti art gallery. Just down the road was the Funko Pop headquarters. Eclectic part of town, to be sure.

My trainer is in green. Hers was one of two main fights, at the tail end of a number of other matches. She prevailed.

The next evening was a Sunday, and I had nothing going on. Facebook notified me of a stake choir performing in Seattle, so I headed that way. Pulling in, I noticed the Christmas lights on the stake center’s exterior and realized I’d meant to attend a nativity to-do in Bellevue near the temple. It had been on display for a week and this would be its last night. This is an annual event where members contribute 100+ ornamental nativity sets, which get presented around the cultural hall. Side rooms get done up in elaborate fashion with pictures of Christ and period set pieces. A nice place to walk around.

The stake choir performance was not-terribly-well attended. Afterwards I dashed off to the nativity event, and I could see why. Unlike the last time I attended, this evening featured a very grand-sounding choir, with the chapel packed to the rafters with lookers-on. I caught the last five minutes, and was glad I did, though sad that I hadn’t realized that music was on the agenda. Doubly sad when I caught sight of a program that indicated there had been musical performances throughout the week, several of whom featured friends of mine. Shucks.

(These were taken back in 2019. On this evening in 2022, I had put my electronics in time-out back at my house because they were melting my brain.)

The next Monday I attended a performance put on by Ensign Symphony and Orchestra. Think MCO-junior. I’ve attended three or four of their performances, but nothing since the pandemic. Got some friends together and had a great time. Several of them had never set foot in Benaroya Hall, so, glad they had a great time.

On Tuesday and Wednesday I participated in a summit between three other companies Google works with, on an integrated root of trust specification. One of the powerhouses behind this effort works at Google and came up for the first day. However, being Argentinian, he had to step out part-way through because Argentina was playing Croatia in the World Cup. It was amusing having technical conversations while knowing exactly when a goal was scored by overhearing his shouts from out in the hallway. A group of us peeled off from the others so we could continue watching the game at a local neighborhood grill.

I’ve spent the last year and a half focusing my social agenda on the west side of the lake, in Seattle. The last month or two, though, I’ve dipped back into the east-side scene, Sammamish Valley and Bellevue YSA. Still got some old friends there, and have made a few new ones. On Saturday I hosted a get-together at my place for that crowd and had a great time. Ran a couple Conspiracy games, and had fun narrating various murders. My favorite was when someone sat down on an easy-chair in their attic but got blown through the roof by a surreptitiously-ensconced airbag hidden within the chair.

The next morning I took the left-over pizza to a World Cup Final watch party, and ermaghersh that was a crazy game. Amazing.

Last night and this morning I figured I’d finally tear the wrapping off this record I purchased in January last year, as it was finally the season.

Can’t wait to get up to shenanigans back in Utah!