7 Self-Defining Statements

A friend was doing this exercise and it sounded interesting. So, as I’m just getting started on this blogging thing, I guess a little introduction to Mindy Larsen wouldn’t be out of order:

1. If you’re familiar with the Color Code book, I am a red/blue personality. My two sides often fight, but they have gotten me places in the past – good grades and organizational skills from my red streak, and some very dear friends from my blue.

2. I love food! Really good food. One of the highlights for me for our family Maui trips was the food we ate there – Joe’s cooking, restaurants we got to eat at, the big family dinners always featuring something wonderful… if I were to pick a Last Meal, it would have to be at Pacific O’s in Lahaina, with the ocean right there and warm sand between my toes, watching the sunset as I nibble on Macadamia nut crusted mahi mahi with the most amazing sauces… and my family all around me! Now that is as close to heaven as I think I’ve ever been (outside of the temple, anyway).

3. Random things I love: pomegranates, bean bag hand warmers, a clean house, So You Think You Can Dance, flavored creamers, silky pajama bottoms, being snowed in, Sophie’s laugh, Spencer’s liveliness, Maggie’s charm, head tickles, white chocolate, massages, girl time with my few but dear “bosom friends,” hot tubs, taking naps and late night tv with my hubby, reading the Conference edition of the Ensign (and Conference Weekend), scrapbooking, yoga, the smell of rainstorms and the air in Maui, paying off bills, task completion, loyalty, travel!!!, and the sweet hour of peace after the kids are all asleep and I can savor their sweetness uninterrupted.

4. Things I don’t like: being so far away from all my siblings, being interrupted while on task, not getting enough sleep, bad food, being late, donuts and salmon (alas, it’s true), commercials (yeah for TiVo), long-term coughing sicknesses, too much sun, car troubles, Washington corruption.

5. I LOVE to read. It is my escape and my joy. I like biography, history, and adolescent literature (the Little Prince, Frances Hodgson Burnett’s works, Peter Pan, the Shoe books, anything innocent, sweet and beautiful). My three great passions historically, however, are 1. the entire Jane Austen oeuvre, in its numerous incarnations (movie, book and otherwise). Wit, humor, romance, Mr. Darcy… need I say more? 2. the Twilight books (yes I will admit it, although Breaking Dawn grossed me out and I’m not about to go to Portland and beg to be an extra in the movies) and 3. Lord of the Rings. I never thought I’d be a fan of fantasy/sci fi, but the story resonates so deeply with me and I find in it so much of what I’m seeking for in literature – epic scope, marvelous characters I can love, purity of motives and action in a dark world… Okay, so we almost named Spencer Sam(wise). Anyway, none of these three works above have ever let me down. Unlike most contemporary literature which is full of sex and cussing and ambivalent morality.

6. I’m a political and moral conservative. I am fiercely proud of being American, a citizen of one of the greatest countries in the history of the world. I am a strong and active member of my church and community. I work hard to make sure my family is provided for and I try hard to be a good person. My family is sacred, and my husband and I are the ultimate authority under God for my family’s intellectual, physical and spiritual well-being. The government works for me, not vice versa, and it is answerable to me as a free, voting, thinking citizen. I find the nanny and welfare state concepts abhorrent in that they enable so many people to make so many wrong choices (aka New Orleans). I don’t believe in government bailouts and handouts to organizations and people who don’t work and won’t learn from past mistakes (halting their progression). I did not vote for Obama, nor will I kowtow to him because of the color of his skin or his cult popularity. (That doesn’t mean I won’t pray for him though.) I don’t care what color the president’s skin is, as long as he’s doing the right thing for our country. I do not want our country share the fate of socialist Europe: mediocrity, failure, unemployment, inflation, higher taxes and economic stagnation. Our Founding Fathers would be horrified at what’s going on today, on both the Democratic and Republican sides of the aisle.

Sorry, I tend to get a little passionate about politics and sometimes get carried away.

7. In case you couldn’t tell…I’m an idealist, almost to the extreme. On one hand, this means I set high standards for myself. I often fail to reach them, but at least the goals are set and I try to be realistic about how close I get. (Isn’t that what the Atonement is about, anyway?) On the other hand, this makes me slightly intolerant at times and my opinions (not always right) are slow to change and often tactlessly forwarded. I’m working on this though, trying to balance my view of the way the world (and the people in it) could and should be, vs. reality. Some things I’ll never compromise on (see #6) but I’m trying to keep my focus on improving myself and strengthening my family and community instead of stressing over things over which I have no control.