Another Sunday night

I have finished reading a biography of Joseph Smith of the Book of Mormon fame. It was the one by Fawn Brodie, very scholarly, and she came at it with a view of his psychological make up as much as anything else. I found her manner tasteful, as she spoke about him exactly as she saw him, and was not at all derogatory, just matter of fact. She grew up Mormon too, so she had some understanding of the subject. He was certainly a character, if nothing else. This is an example of when Joseph Smith started getting sort of meglomanaical. He was Lieutenant colonel or something. And after that, he had his apostles proclaim him King of the Kingdom of God. Delusions of grandeur, methinks.

My interest in all this Joseph Smith reading was started when I became a viewer of Big Love, the HBO series of a man living in suburbia with three wives. The topic has always interested me, not polygamy per se, but the mormon pioneers and the settling of the west. Anyhow, there are more books in the stack to be read, and I intend to read them all. I sort of wish that I could live as a latter day saint for a week or so, to get a feeling for what it was like. I do imagine that it would be most interesting to do this in Utah.

I have also been thinking lately about other education I might obtain so that I remain employable. I have been considering Library Science. I heard today that I could get an online masters from University of Alabama. So I will look into this soon.

Daughter 1 has found a job as personal assistant to the young owner of a software company. She will excel at this sort of job, as she is personable, self starting and good at making arrangements. She can write and type and all the other things. Plus she is young and fun and sounds perfect for the place. Not in her field, but perhaps she can do research towards her doctorate whilst earning a living and having benefits.

Daughter 2 has been stressing about paying all her bills. Her dad is reneging on his promise to send her to school by griping about paying her rent and helping with her bills. So maybe I need to go ahead and fit out the garage as an apartment and let her live in there. I can have her pay some on utilities and maybe help me with the yard work. I just need to scrounge up enough money to fix the plumbing and clean and pretty the place up. I think it could be pretty nice out there, actually. And also, I would have to get rid of a bunch of stuff. But maybe after I get my tax refund I can put some of it towards that end.

That was one thing i intended to do for the weekend, was to dig out all the paperwork needed for filing my taxes. I just read, mostly. And that's okay.

I have to go to jeffj's to see Big Love shortly. so I will go find a good picture.