Tanya Spackman
Tanya was born in Provo, Utah, on a warm July day. After escaping childhood with nothing more than a few scrapes and bruises (except for 5 stitches - oh, and that incident with the staple in the thumb), she graduated from BYU with a degree in molecular biology. Before graduation, she served a mission in Chicago. As graduation neared, she decided lab work really wasn't her thing, and she had no interest in research or teaching (but really, molecular biology is interesting), so she decided to attempt the world of technical writing. Thus, she now works as a technical writer/editor at U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground, which is in the middle of nowhere in Utah. Science, writing, and weapons of mass destruction... life couldn't be more perfect. Except she's single. She loves to read, travel, and participate in politics
On the Road on the Sabbath
Posted on June 19, 2008 - Filed Under General | 17 Comments
An article from yesterday’s Mormon Times discusses attending church and otherwise observing the Sabbath while traveling or on vacation. This is an interesting topic to me because I’m pretty bad at observing the Sabbath while traveling, and I feel conflicted about it.
The article tells the stories of people who have been quite diligent in their […]
The peace of a priesthood blessing
Posted on May 20, 2008 - Filed Under General | 7 Comments
My life is currently in a bit of an upheaval, with quite a bit of uncertainty and frustration and anxiety. (Believe it or not, it involves aliens from outer space and the CIA. Never let it be said that when my life blows up in my face, it isn’t interesting. If we meet in person […]
Read More..>>The Women Shall Be Last
Posted on January 3, 2008 - Filed Under Any | 35 Comments
I’m happy to say that I live in an enlightened ward. Though some wards are stuck with bishoprics who misunderstand something and thus only let men say the opening prayer, my ward happily asks women, men, and teenagers of either sex to give the opening prayer. And closing prayer.
I was uncertain about speaking […]
FAIR Conference 2007
Posted on August 3, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 10 Comments
I’ve just returned from the annual FAIR conference. ‘Twas a lovely time. You all should come next time (7-8 August 2008). I took almost no notes, but instead just sat and listened, so I’ll keep with the minimalist theme and share very few thoughts. Transcripts and/or audio and video recordings should […]
Read More..>>Well, that’s one way to do it
Posted on June 20, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 17 Comments
Last week a man in my ward was driving with a coworker (the coworker was actually driving) between areas here at the military base where we live and work. They were driving a long stretch of road – straight, unpopulated, no stop signs. One of the security vehicles followed them closely for a […]
Read More..>>The First Endowments
Posted on May 4, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 15 Comments
Today marks the 165th anniversary of the first endowments being given in the latter days. At that time, the Nauvoo temple was still far from completion. Baptisms for the dead were conducted in the cellar font, but there was not yet a place for the endowment. The upper room of the Red […]
Read More..>>Search for the Truth, Anti-Mormon DVD
Posted on March 24, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 45 Comments
A new anti-Mormon DVD is supposed to be distributed tomorrow, and FAIR (The Foundation for Apologetic Information & Research) has a response up already. From the FAIR wiki site:
On 25 March 2007, a ninety-minute video entitled Search for the Truth was distributed to thousands of homes across the United States. The video has excellent […]
The problem with Romney….
Posted on January 29, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 66 Comments
Well, I have (defended isn’t the right word - how to put it?) suggested possible ways to view Romney’s shifting political views in a more charitable light. Mainly, this was because I was offended by the knee-jerk partisan attacking that didn’t do much beyond view Romney’s rhetoric in the most uncharitable and worst possible […]
Read More..>>Improving Gospel Teaching, Part 6: Philosophies in Lesson Preparation
Posted on January 27, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 1 Comment
[Part 6 in a series about improving gospel teaching. Previous entries in the series: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5]
From Doctrine & Covenants:
And now, behold, I give unto you a commandment, that when ye are assembled together ye shall instruct and edify each other, that ye […]
Improving Gospel Teaching, Part 5: How To Be Great
Posted on January 22, 2007 - Filed Under Any | 6 Comments
[Part 5 in a series about improving gospel teaching. Previous entries in the series: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4]
Defining what makes a teacher ‘great’–as opposed to being merely ‘good’–is a very difficult proposition. “Good” teachers are usually easy to tell apart from “poor” teachers–but what makes a […]
