I believe

How do come to know truth? I know that we are guided to truths through our experiences in life. Since time in fast and testimony meeting did not permit me to get to the pulpit, allow me to share what I have recently come to know as true. My aunt sent me a lot of candy on Christmas. Actually, I still haven't eaten it all and it's now March. Speaking of March, in two days I will be 26 years old, but I digress. I've noticed that when my sugar intake rises, I am more lethargic and sleepy. This translates into more of a need for sleep at nighttime. Likewise, I've noticed that when I avoid the high-sugar foods and focus on eating healthily, I feel more active and alert-especially when I wake up.
Now if you are skeptical of my hypothesis, I relate with you. I tire of people who claim that something is true for everyone on the basis that it works for one person. The truth: It is difficult for rules to hold consistently without good scientific data for support. But I believe that my hunch has at least led me in the right direction. In 2003, four United Nations agencies, commissioned a report compiled by a panel of 30 international experts. The panel stated that the total of free sugars should not account for more than 10% of the energy intake of a healthy diet. Source According to one source, eating a lot of refined sugars may lead to insomnia. Even though I wasn't able to find an article that specifically explained that refined sugars leads to an increased need for sleep, I feel like the data should be out there. Please post a link if anyone knows of anything.
In conclusion, there are people that say some pretty outlandish things about sugar. A plethora of diets are built around the notion that sugar is evil, there are theories that sugar fuels cancer, and there are ideas that you can't be normal when you eat too much sugar. These may be true, however, the testimony I bear is that refined sugar makes you sleepy. That's all I have to say.

I need your help!!!

In the LDS culture, going on dates is highly encouraged. If not to promote marriage, dating is generally regarded as a good way of getting to know people of the opposite gender. But as our culture is evolving, it seems like casual dating, much like what our parents participated in, is on its way out. I am frankly glad this is happening for one reason: I don't think that getting to know someone should be confused with dating, at least not initially. Why not get to know someone outside the guise of a date, and then take it to the next level? In other words, if there was a clear distinction between asking out to get to know someone better and asking out because of legitimate interest, a lot of confusion would be eliminated. Likewise, when getting to know someone, you would be focused on getting to know him or her. You wouldn't be reading into their subtle movements, thinking about the things you're supposed to do on a date, or otherwise confuse yourself with weird expectations.

You may be thinking to yourself that such a radical change is a bit too extreme. Let me remind you that since the dawn of time, however, the way in which a man and a woman get married has constantly changed. One ideology that I do believe in is the old adage that you should marry your best friend. Going on dates, in my opinion, is a bad way of forging genuine friendships with others. So I believe that the time for change is upon us. But I'm wondering what your thoughts on this are. What kind of problems would this lead to? What are some advantages? If we focused on maintaining good friendships first and foremost rather than stressing dating, what effect would that have on marriage statistics? I would GREATLY appreciate some honest input.

Sometimes you just want a corndog

It is completely natural that different areas of the world have different types of food. I experienced this firsthand on my flight to Russia as a missionary. The German stewardess could hardly understand my request for some root beer. She finally seemed to have understood what I was asking for and returned with a beer. The point being that as no one outside the United States finds root beer particularly tasty, they therefore don't sell it. I have been living in Boston for 9 months now and have still not been able to find corndogs. I'm talking specifically about the frozen style that are sold in boxes and practically ubiquitous in Utah. I ate them as a staple in Provo, not because they were good, but because they were easy to make and let me periodically spice up my boring diet. When discussing such a seemingly American food item as the corndog, the question begs to be answered why one area of the United States would choose not to sell it. Has Boston transcended the unhealthiness of American society even as they are on the forefront of change in many other social issues? A look at many of the food items sold at grocery stores causes me to doubt this is the case. Are there outlets where corndogs can be purchased that I am simply unaware of? If so, please let me know.

uhhh, huh?