Two Worlds Colliding

Sometime last fall I was driving through "downtown" Provo and noticed a restaurant I hadn't seen before, but instantly felt drawn to.



Eight months later (give or take a few), I gave into my inner desire to eat at Sammy's. Little did I know that my two worlds were going to collide in that burger joint.

Nothing strange happened on the first visit. I went in, ordered a burger, and loved it.

On the second visit, I decided to sit on the other side of the room so I could stare at a different wall while I waited for my food. (Their walls are very well decorated.)



It was while I waited on my second visit that I noticed something that rang a bell. It was some pictures from the Nick Jr. show Yo Gabba Gabba.



Suddenly the cogs were going faster and faster in my brain.

I was thinking, "Didn't a Schultz from my stake in California create that show," and "Didn't SAM Schultz do catering in California with his dad?"

Then it hit me, "Oh, this restaurant is called Sammy's. Sammy = Sam Schultz." I was glad to find that connection, which made me love the place even more than I already did after my first visit.



Today, I made my third visit. It was on this visit that my "two worlds" collided.

On my second visit, I picked up a card at the register with their take-out number on it. Today, I decided to take advantage of the take-out, and called in a BLT order. Some dude (Chris? who used to live in P3) picked up, and then handed the phone off to "Brooke." I made my order and then was on my way to pick it up.

When I walked into the restaurant, I could not figure out how, but I recognized "Brooke." (I don't know why I'm putting "Brooke" into quotation marks.)

She wasn't in my ward here at school and I never worked with her at Catering.

And then boom, I asked, "Are you Brooke Webber from Nashville?"

"Yes..."

"Oh, my parents are Bob and Diane Johnson, they live in your ward in Nashville. We met last year at Paige's Nashville Party here in Provo."

Not only is she from an obscure place, but I met her in an obscure way. I barely even talked to her at that party, so I should not have recognized her, but I did...

Who would have thought that Placentia, Brentwood (Nashville), and Provo would have all collided this week at Sammy's?

Talk about weird.

I can't wait to see what happens on my fifth visit. (No, I didn't lose count. I made visits three and four today. Visit number four was uneventful.)

Standardized Test for Blogs

Robyn did it on her's, so I had to find out...



Try it here.

Landon "Landy-Pie" Ford

You may remember Landon from such posts as "Michael's Car Driving Follies (I've been tagged)." If not, you should maybe read that post before you continue.

Landon and I grew up in the same ward in Placentia, but now he and his family live in Bountiful, Utah. Yesterday I went up to see him and his family and to go to his homecoming talk. He left on his mission about two months before I got home from mine, so it has been a while (four years) since we've seen each other.



It was great to see firsthand how much he has grown and changed and matured over the last two (or four) years. Just by watching him, I know he was a good missionary and really "thrust[ed] in his sickle with his might." Plus, he speaks Spanish, so that's awesome.



Welcome home, Landy-Pie. Thanks for being a great missionary and a great friend!

PS

His family calls him Landy, so I naturally started calling him Landy-Pie. I guess people in Bountiful have caught on and call him Landy-Pie, too!

Going Green with Style

Maybe it was the Democrats I lived with from September '06 to August '07.



It could have been the shock I experienced when I witnessed American consumption as an outsider (recent RM).



Or was it going from the fairly green state of California to the barely green state of Utah?



Whatever it was, slowly but surely I've been adding some yellow to my blue.



It started in my apartment with some of these.



My next step was doing more of this.



Then I thought why even recycle these,



when I could just use one of these?



I drive this car, which is pretty green.



But there was something more I needed to do...



Lately, this has become a big motivator for change.



I did some thinking, and found my alternative to buying gas...the bicycle!


In a world with so many bikes, however, I had to narrow the selection.



I thought,



"I don't do this (yet),



and I haven't gotten into this (yet),



and this almost feels right, but not quite what I'm looking for."



Then finally I stumbled upon the emerging world of commuter bikes, and it just seemed to fit.



With a bike in sight, I found some dealers, and even test rode a few.



I debated going here to buy one, but quickly ruled that out for its lack of practicality.



Finally I found the bike of my dreams here (in the city, not the water treatment plant).



It's been mine for two glorious days, and we've already become practically inseparable. She even sleeps next to my bed at night (I'm not leaving her in the garage to be pillaged or plundered or whatever goes on down there after dark).



Last night I dreamt about her,



and today I couldn't wait to leave here,


so that I could hit this.



For some cool statistics, visit this site.



Now, this is my next step.



I'll let you know how it goes.



Stay green!