Out like a lamb

I can't say I have anything that interesting or profound to say this week, so if you're looking for a grand update, you'll be disappointed.

On Monday I had to go to the dentist for the periodontist to look at my gums. I'm going to have a gum graft in two weeks, and I'm so annoyed that my insurance only pays a small percentage of it. Why do we even pay insurance!? I'm glad I'm in a space where I can pay thousands of dollars and don't have to worry about where my next meal is coming from.

The periodontist said periodontal disease can be caused from overbrushing, but it can also be a result of braces. So it's good to know it's not because of a moral failing on my part. 

On Tuesday, I believe I saw the first wildflowers of the season, glacier lilies and yellowbells. These predictably show up every year in late March and early April. 

Three years ago, I bought Peeps protein powder (both marshmallow and chocolate marshmallow), because I think it's funny. But I still have it three years later because it is absolutely terrible. I don't think it's the Peeps flavoring, it's the protein powder itself. Sometimes I've incorporated it into the topping of cherry crisp, because it's entirely unpleasant on its own.

On Wednesday, I received my new CD of the soundtracks for It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown and Charlie Brown's All Stars! Since 2022, they've been releasing complete recordings of these soundtracks ever since they found the originals. But they haven't found the original for All Stars, so it's only eight minutes long—hence tagging it along with Arbor Day. I have wanted this soundtrack for years, because what else are you going to listen to on Arbor Day (besides this song)? And I've always enjoyed the special, because it's an obscure holiday, but it's also an entertaining special with some good jokes and gags.

I did some math and realized that the CD arrived exactly twenty-one years to the day after I first watched It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown, which I got in my Easter basket on Good Friday (as a bonus feature on It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown). And that was the same day that my niece (twenty months old at the time) came into my bedroom with my nephew's toy with a picture of a dog on it, and she said "Woof!" for the first time.

On Thursday, I woke up early, which gave me lots of time in the evening for a 7.5-mile run on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail between Summerwood and Woodbriar. The last time I did this stretch of the trail was in September 2021, because it's really kind of boring. Most of it is level, and it all looks the same. And at this time of year, it's mostly brown, with a few wildflowers here and there.

It annoys me that this sticker has Delicate Arch on the wrong side of the state

The first arrowleaf balsamroot of the season! I've never seen it blooming in March.

Then on Saturday afternoon, I ran up North Canyon to Rudy's Flat. Last week it was too snowy still, but this time there were only a few snowy patches. I had never been there in March before, and it was so sad and concerning to see the lack of snow. On the way down, I went on the new Mahogany Ridge Trail, which made it nine miles total, but I had to walk the last two. The last time I made it to Rudy's Flat was on Boxing Day.

At the end of my run, I was astonished to find salt deposits on my hat! (From the sweat.)

Today I sang in my ward choir for our Palm Sunday / Easter service. Our choir director has grand ambitions that I think are a little unrealistic for our little choir, but I think it went fine. I really like efforts to make Easter more like Christmas. At Christmas, the secular songs and the Nativity songs are firmly entertwined with each other, and all the songs together make it feel nice and Christmassy. I do the same thing with Easter, mixing the secular and sacred. And I've been listening to the Easter songs long enough that they have a similar effect. But there aren't as many Easter songs. 

Yeah, I don't know what else to say. Have a good week!