Category: Partial Perspective Vortex

Release

I went to church today. I’m not sure if I would have gone or not, except my children invited me. It was Father’s Day, and my little ones wanted me to be there to listen to them sing a few songs about how much they loved their father. I agreed that it was a good day to attend church.

I also knew that today was the day that I was going to be officially released from my calling as a member of the bishopric. I had mixed feelings about being there for that. I wanted to be there, and I also didn’t really care about being there and would just as soon have stayed home. But my ambivalence was no match for my children’s request. So I went. Continue reading “Release”

Wisdom

For work this week we had a series of  business meetings with people gathered from across the country. As part of the team-building activities, we met for dinner afterward. As a Mormon, a major focus of the practice of the religion is refraining from alcohol. It’s almost as bad to drink as it is to commit adultery, at least in the way that you are accepted socially in the church. But since I no longer believe in the church, I also no longer believe that a prohibition on drinking is the will of God.

So I had a perfect opportunity to choose what I wanted in contrast to what I was taught was expected of me. Continue reading “Wisdom”

Stalled

Yesterday I got home from work and the first thing Wife said to me was, “How did you like her haircut?” I didn’t fully hear the question, and thought maybe she was asking how I liked Wife’s haircut, so I stood there for a second looking at her and finally, not seeing anything different, realized maybe she was talking about Daughter. “Whose?” I asked. “Don’t tell me you didn’t see it. How did you like it?” Confused, I again asked, “Whose?” She again replied, “I know you saw it. She probably sent you a picture.” I asked, “Who?” and she said, “You really didn’t see it? She cut it all off. As short as a boy’s haircut.” I said, “Are you talking about Girlfriend?” And she said, “Yes. Are you telling me the truth? She didn’t send you a picture?”

That’s the problem with not being completely honest. Now she doesn’t know whether to believe me. “I haven’t had any communication with her since Saturday. She hasn’t sent me anything.” Continue reading “Stalled”

Mormonism

I’m a Mormon. That is, I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I could go into detail, but suffice it to say that there are various levels of participation of members in the church, and I have never understood why someone wouldn’t participate as fully as possible. My current calling is as a counselor in the bishopric. I’m at church every Sunday. Meetings start at 9am, and I’m usually done at around 5pm. With responsibilities over the youth programs, I’m also at church almost every Wednesday evening.

I skipped church this Sunday. I don’t know when was the last time I did that. As a teenager, I guess, when I skipped by default because my family skipped. I’ve been sick a few Sundays and stayed home. I’ve gone out of town a few Sundays and didn’t always make it to church because of travel arrangements. But this is the first Sunday I skipped. I did it on the counsel of my bishop. Continue reading “Mormonism”

Welcome to the Frogstar

The name of this blog was selected with a nod to Douglas Adams. The Frogstar is the home of the Total Perspective Vortex, an horrific torture device which somehow provides the victim with a perspective of the true size of the universe and his or her own significance within it, which, needless to say, is so close to being zero that if it were any closer, it would be negative. The end result is that this glimpse of stark reality drives the victim to insanity.

While I don’t pretend to be able to mimic the incredible power of a Total Perspective Vortex, the idea for this blog is that I have a place to take a look at my life, perhaps a Partial Perspective Vortex of sorts. I need someone to talk to, and I don’t have anyone in my life right now with whom I can be completely open, completely honest. I suppose I could write this in a journal, but I wouldn’t want anyone I know to stumble upon it and read it. Since sometimes the best place to hide something is right out in the open, I decided to start this blog. And thanks to you, dear reader, and the teeming masses of disinterested readers who collectively comprise the Internet Universe, my life on the Frogstar will be almost as insignificant as that of a victim of the Total Perspective Vortex. To more fully mark my insignificance and to provide at least a modicum of anonymity, I will not give my name. If you must refer to me, you may simply call me the Frogman.

So. Where to start? Continue reading “Welcome to the Frogstar”