[Jeff Lebowski]

Well, we got tickets and took the whole family to the 2 pm session of conference today. We have been in the conference center a few times, but this was the first time to attend a conference session. The building is beautiful and with the size of the crowd, the lighting, the music, the spirit, etc, it was a feast for the senses. It was quite a remarkable experience and beat the heck out of sitting on the couch in the TV room.

I was surprised how much better the tab choir sounds live. I especially enjoyed the opening selection "Beautiful Zion". While we don't sing that hymn much in the US, it was a favorite among the Japanese saints when I was on my mission. It was performed beautifully and brought back a lot of fond memories for me.

On the lighter side, I really got a kick out of the street preachers. While we were waiting for a light, one of them was yelling at us:

"You are all going to hell. Every last one of you."

"You are following a false prophet. In a year or two, he is going to ask you to murder infidels and you are all going to do it. Because you are like blind, stupid sheep. You people are worse than Muslims!"

And my favorite:

"You people all look good in your fancy clothes. And you are rich. And you smell good. But you remind me of the snake in the Garden of Eden. You all have forked tongues. I can hear you hissing while I stand here."

I was literally laughing my head off. This guy was great.

I looked for our buddy, Brother ashaf, but I couldn't see him. Must have been on the other corner.