Ode to Marv

Last night after my dad, Jill, Tony and I finished watching the nail-biter that was the 2007 Pioneer Las Vegas bowl we happened upon Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. The movie brought back a flood of memories. Home Alone (the original) is a John Family Favorite. Speaking of which, Anthony and I were sad to miss out on the annual Home Alone viewing party in Provo this year. Anyways, we were channel surfing and we had to stop when we saw Kevin McCallister booby-trapping his uncle's abandoned house. As we watched I couldn't help but laugh my head off anytime Marv came on the screen. He is the creative genius of the Sticky Bandits. Many of his antics make me laugh, like when he wraps tape around his hand so he can steal change out of buckets. Or when he stops and smiles for Kevin's camera in the midst of a very incriminating situation. But he is just so soft, you know he isn't really cut out for a life of crime. Remember the look of disappointment on his face when he finds out they've missed the prisoner gift exchange at the prison. Even if you don't agree with me, you can't deny he's resilient. Kevin lobs multiple bricks off a three-story building that smack him in the face but that doesn't keep him down. Before the night is through a staple gun gets him in the face and crotch, multiple paint cans fall on him, he falls through a hole to the basement, he gets electrocuted to the point you can see his skeleton, and climbs down a kerosene-soaked rope that gets lit while he's climbing! My sister Jill got Home Alone 2 for Christmas at least a decade ago and we quoted Marv all summer when we would jump into the pool. We would yell, "Harry, I've reached the top," and then jump into the water. After we came back up for air we would say, "wow, what a hole." We thought it was hilarious. Clearly, we still do. So thank you, Daniel Stern, for bringing to life one of my all-time favorite movie characters.

Some sweet bonuses for reading my entire post:

• Go here to view a sweet clip of Marv getting his brains fried.


• I found this CREEPY pic while searching for images from Home Alone. Makes you never want to leave your little boys unattended.

Christmas break

After an extended sabbatical from our blog I have returned to write at least one. It was much harder to contribute to our electronic family history (like that Meredith?) when I was so busy with school.

Carrie made us delicious food for Sunday dinner in our crock pot: chicken, red potatoes, carrots, beans, garlic, lemon juice, rosemary, and butter. I thought Carrie was culinarily talented when we were dating, but I did not realize that I would be eating this well. My waist has blossomed, and I have grown "muffin tops" (rolls of skin in the love handle area that rest on your side on top of pants) as they are called in the Crane family. I thought that maybe I would exercise during this break away from school, but I have been supremely lazy. Hopefully tomorrow I will get my butt in gear and head down to the gym and get a free week's pass so that I can exercise.

I think that I have learned and changed a fair amount since our move from Utah to Springfield. This is going to be a bit stylized, so brace yourself. I came here thinking that I would like to move away from Utah. I finish these three months knowing that it was a good decision to leave Utah, but I miss my sisters (of course that includes Jill) more than I thought I would. I came here thinking that I/O psychology would be interesting and practical to study. I finish the semester excited about the material I have learned and will learn and for future job opportunities. I have really liked the applied opportunities that I have had here at MSU. I came here thinking it would be cool to be in a "normal"/non-BYU ward. I finish the semester invested in my teacher's quorum, and I have realized that working in the young men's program is harder than it seems. I came to Springfield thinking we had a great car. I finish the semester humbled by our car's total lack of consistency. That is not true. Our car's check engine-light has been torturing us on a very consistent basis. I came here with Carrie knowing that my school was going to put her in a situation where she would sacrifice her own growth for awhile. I finish my semester grateful that I have such a wonderful wife, who dealt with a lousy job, a difficult cub scout calling, a faulty car, and a very imperfect husband with love. My love, appreciation, and admiration for her has grown. One thing has not changed- we came here grateful for the help of our family, with Laurence and Linda making our move possible. I finish up the semester grateful for our family, eager to spend Christmas break with both of our families. If I don't get to write in here again before the end of the year MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I've been Tagged

My friend Rachael tagged me, I've never done this before, so here goes.

The rules:
A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1. I get the hiccups every day. Especially in the morning or after I've eaten. I don't know if I swallow funny or what, but they hit me almost every day. They usually aren't a problem, but sometimes at work when I am on the phone it can be embarrassing.

2. I am really terrible at opening bags. Especially bags with food in them. I always rip the bag too much, sometimes beyond repair. I have to keep clips on hand or else all our food will go bad. Tony doesn't like me to open ANY cereal bags anymore and he always laughs when he opens a box and sees the messed up bag inside.

3. I love the feel of the warm sun on my face. When I lived in Chatsworth (in Provo) I would open my blinds on Sunday afternoon and put my pillow on the end of my bed and take a nap with the sun on my face. It is just so relaxing. I love to lay out at a pool and just soak up the sun. I know it is not good for my skin, but it just does something great for my soul. One day I want to have a big window that I can lay next too and take naps.

4. I really like the T-Mobile commercials with Charles Barkley and Dwayne Wade. They make me laugh every time. Sir Charles is hilarious.

5. I love to start projects, but am that great at finishing them. Not necessarily with school or work, but things at home. I will get started on a craft and get really into it--for a few hours. Then it will take longer than I planned, or my attention span is too short, or something else will come up, and I'll abandon ship. Sometimes I will have two or three projects sitting around, waiting to get finished. And I'll see them and they will discourage me so I will end up just watching TV or something and then I'll get mad at myself later. Could this be ADD?

6. I like to sleep on my right side with the sheet in my left hand pulled up over my head. It is hard for me to fall asleep any other way. Even if I am tired and lay down another way, I always turn and get in my "position."