Rant

I am amazed at how often the question "So are you originally from Vegas," make me cringe. I know my answer and I know their response. If they are not LDS their response is "oh you are one of those Mormons, " I of course respond with a proud yes I am which either opens the door to questions or just opens the door for them to walk away, either way it doesn't matter.

What DOES bother me, is when people who ARE LDS ask me this question. It usually comes in the form of a statement "Oh so you are a UTAH Mormon" which almost invariably results in snide, unfriendly comments. This last June I was involved with a Dinner Party which one of the topics of living as a Mormon in Utah. "Utah Mormons are so judgmental," or "Utah is just one big bubble of people who don't know what is going on in the outside world." Well that may be true. Perhaps I grew up in the Utah bubble. I always tried to educate myself and care about the world around me. I felt I always knew about world affairs and the craziness that had become norm in society. I honestly don't feel any different having lived outside of Utah the last four years than I did before I left.

A comments I heard recently: "California Mormons (or any outside of Utah for that matter) tend to be a little more liberal and less arrogant than the rabid Born In the Covenant variety who live within the vacuum of the Zion Curtain."

This bothers me greatly. Although I've never lived in Provo or Salt Lake which is where I am told the complaints lie, I don't like being generalized as a drone. I think their is a great divide when it comes to the people who believe that Utah Mormons are arrogant and self righteous, and reality. The description they give happen to fit some people I know and am close to and from what I can see, these people are probably feeling guilty for their decisions.

I don't know if any of this makes sense. I don't even know if I'm coherent right now, I just know that I want to go HOME. From what I see their is no problem with living in a place that doesn't have astronomical pregnancy, gang, drug, etc problems. If that is living in ignorance than perhaps that is what I want. Are we not taught that we should live "In the world, not of the world." What is the problem with living in Black and White sometimes. Right and Wrong. Is that not the way the gospel is set up? I'm confused. I probably shouldn't even post this but I am anyway.

This was originally going to be about how much I love Utah, how I love the clean Utah air which is not swimming in smoke, the friendly people that you can feel you can trust, the safe feeling when you walk out the door that you didn't have to worry about unintelligible expletives escaping 90 percent of the people you are surrounded by. I just don't want to be in Vegas anymore.

I'm done.