Family in AZ and more

After years of imagining and planning and scheming I finally was able to trick somebody to move to Phoenix! I really do love Phoenix and it has been such a great experience to see Jake and Cari and their kid(s) move down here. I’m sure at some point the honeymoon period will wear off and they will get sick of seeing us, but for now I am enjoying spending time with them. I especially love playing basketball with Jake – and hope to play some tennis with him tomorrow (after we paint the house). Though they have only been here a week it already seems like they have been here a long time. I have already asked for Jake to be added to the young mens program (with approval so far). Now we just need Kathy and Jimmy here so we can dominate their lives enjoy having them around. After conference last week I am more convinced than ever that family is so important and such a key to our happiness in this life and the next.

We have had another wonderful weather year in Phoenix so far. It hasn’t even reached 90 degrees yet, which it usually does in March. Though I have been in our pool once, by April we are usually spending the weekends in the pool. So far that hasn’t been the case. And though I look forward to swimming days, I am okay with another month or so of these fantastic temperatures.

The thing that has made me happy this last week or so was seeing Google pull out of China. I have always appreciated Google – and was happy to see them make the right choice and give up on revenue/marketshare and make the right decision to pull out of a country that can be oppressive and cruel. I love China from a cultural and people point of view. But I think sometimes we forget it is a communist country. It may have given in to trade and capitalism, but the fears that communism brought are still there. I think Google (and many other countries) entered China not only looking for people to sell products to, but to make a change in that country. But after years of seeing no change, I was happy Google pulled out. It will be interesting to see if other companies do. Probably not.

Finally, I want to put on record that my wife is such a wonderful person. This year she has made some small changes that have had a big impact on my life. One of them is that she usually makes me breakfast now. It is a small gesture that I have never asked for nor expected, and when she first started doing it, it almost bothered me. But now I love this small gesture of love and usually we take the 5 minutes to eat together (or at least have her sit near me) and talk before I go to work. Little things can make such a big difference. I am a lucky man.