the community

as of this morning, there were an additional +10 more tents weaving around the Marriott packed in behind the other 20 that had already hunkered down since monday.

now they are a veritable community - complete with mini grills, lawn chairs, toilet paper rolls sitting out by their tents (...communal?...and where are they using it, exactly??), and an outdoor coal-powered heater to huddle around.

they are tied by their fan-dom, which is a bond that runs deeper than blood. unfortunately, it also unites them.

...you know in those movies/musicals about enemy gangs where there's always that scene where a member of one gang is forced to pass through the hostile territory of the other? and there's that moment when the members of the home-court gang start appearing from behind fire escapes, alleyways, dumpsters, etc? and they're all leering at/following the "other" guy with that slow, deliberate "we're watching you...and about to kill you" look?!...

...well, let's just say i was the lone Jet among the Sharks this morning as i wove my way through the maze of tents to get to work....*shudder!*

so much for that loving/accepting image BYU aims for!

update...

...three more squatters today.

the pandemic continues...

squatters

I probably shouldn’t post this right after the last one, but this is ridiculous.

Monday morning I am walking to work through the Marriott Center walkways and discovered 3 squatters hunkered down in the snow.

On Tuesday, there were 5.

By this morning, there were more than 10-11, bleeding down the walkway and choking the pass I needed to cross over in order to get to work!

Isn’t the city going to do something about these miscreants abusing public walking space with their double-wide-3-bedroom-suite-tents and their 2 mile long extension cords in order to power their space heaters and gameboys?? (I say, if someone is going to be foolhardy enough to CHOOSE to live in a tent in the middle of a utah January, in my walking space, they should have their toes frozen off and be bored out of their minds, just like in olden days.)

To add insult to injury, most of these unlawful residents sport the white-and-blue banner of my university, while preventing me from going and performing my DUTIES to that university! Not to mention the silent, self-righteous taunt those waving ensigns are shouting – their claim that somehow, by living a week on an air-mattress without a bathroom and smelling like wet garbage, their BYU loyalty runs deeper.

I’m loyal – let me get by and get to work and I’ll PROVE IT!

Actions speak louder than banners, game-squatters.

what's in a name?

Today I had the pleasure of reviewing BYU related auto accidents and sending emails to the supervisors of the BYU employees who had made it on our infamous list.

As I looked up the supervisor of the next accident offender, I busted out laughing and turned to my office buddy, jerica,

"can you believe this?? This guy's supervisor's name is BRONCO - poor guy! Who would name their poor child Bronco?"

She stared at me as if she'd just had an anurism.

"Bronco…as in, Bronco MENDENHALL??"

I checked.

"…why yes, actually!"

She continued to stare - the vein on her forehead getting dangerously high.

"BRONCO MENDENHALL?! Are you kidding??...do you even KNOW who that is?!?!"

I could tell by her reaction I was supposed to.

"BRONCO?!....BRONCO!! that's!...he's!!...Did you even GO to any games this year?!"

I didn't see how watching a game was synonymous with knowing who Bronco is.

"Are you?!?...i can't!...i mean, he's our FOOTBALL COACH, emily!! He's a LEGEND!!!! A LEGEND!!! O my GOSH!! I can't BELIVE it!..."

She continued, gob-smacked like this, for some time, until she finally cried, "seriously! You must be SO embarrassed!"

...embarrassed? not really.
not nearly as embarrassed as she was for my sake, anyway. ;)

Love ya, Bronco - funny name and all.

(the legend himself) -------------------->