Ciao!

Italian dinners are the crowd favorites of all my ethnic parties.  On May 22, 2022, I hosted an Italian dinner which included another try at the "ultimate" lasagna.  My guests were Michael, Rebekah, and their cute baby Lily, Dave's sister, Janice, and her husband, Mark.

We started with make-your-own Italian cream sodas, another crowd pleaser.

I have tried the signature recipe from SLC’s restaurant, Cavalli’s, and tonight I tried the recipe from the New York Times.   The write-up for the recipe said the developer had combined the best parts from half a dozen of the best lasagna recipes ever.  I decided I still was not there, with this dish.  It was deliciously meaty and cheesy, but it was also too full of liquid.  

For dessert, we had lemon ice cream and almond cookies.

Dentons Partner Meeting

I was spending a week at an all-inclusive resort in Cancun, paid for by my firm, and Dave could come along for an extra $50.  He wanted nothing to do with it!  Dave knew the week would be an all-work deal, and that is what it was--a very fancy, all-work deal.  I stayed at the Moon Palace in Cancun from May 11, 2022, until May 17, attending non-stop "plenaries," small group meetings, and receptions.
 

The Moon Palace is a fancy place, with many hotel annexes surrounding central swimming pools, and a huge auditorium in one hotel (the "Grand") and multiple large ballroom/meeting rooms in another hotel ("Sunrise").  

Each morning the 2000 or more partners from Dentons' international network met for "plenary" meetings, hosted by Joe Andrews and Elliot Portnoy, the founders of the 12,000 lawyer Dentons firm.  They announced the latest firm news--new offices in Viet Nam and Libya--and used skits and huge, colored charts and images to help us better understand the firm's reach, policies, finances, and goals.

The plenary presentations were entertaining.  One day, Joe and Elliott did a skit portraying the “right” way to introduce a client to the firm, focusing on the client’s concerns rather than talking about the law firm’s history and prowess.  The client was Joe Blowhard in the “hot air” and “inflatable” business.  Huge balloons in the shape of animals kept floating up and over the bar at which the men were sitting--Joe Blowhard's products.  “My crocodile likes you,” Joe said about the green balloon that hovered about Elliott.  The point of giving us the information in the form of a skit, they explained, was that people remember 10% of what they read, 40% of what they both read and see, 70% of what they read, hear, and see, and even more if the information is presented in a unique or humorous way.

And, of course, there were sessions on rainmaking and finances--the life blood of law firms.

We spent the rest of our days in group meetings, sliced and diced by specialty and geography.  I attended meetings with real estate lawyers from all over the world, and then just from the U.S. Because I am the chair of my firm's diversity committee, I also attended diversity initiative meetings with lawyers from all over the world, and then with just U.S. lawyers.  I attended a reception with board members from all over the world, and I talked with a woman from the UK who had been in charge of relocating the firm's Ukrainian lawyers from war-torn Kyiv and separating the firm from its 250 Russian lawyers.  I attended another presentation on doing business in China, during which the firm's China lawyers gave a panel presentation over Zoom.  They couldn't attend the retreat because of Covid, but they got up at 3 a.m. to give a live Zoom presentation from Shanghai!

I didn't go swimming or sunbathing, but I did walk by the pools and beach just to verify that they were there.  One evening, I attended a reception for women real estate lawyers from around the world at a beach-side bar.  The organizer was a lawyer from Paris, and there were other women from Argentina, Australia, Germany, Florida, and several other spots.

I decided to survive the rigors of the event by promising myself that, if I was a "good girl" and attended meetings all day, I could skip some of the evening receptions and eat at as many of Moon Palace's excellent restaurants as I could fit in.  The food catered during the day to the meetings was only so-so, but the food in the artfully decorated restaurants was delicious. 

One of the restaurants served French specialties.  When I said I didn't drink wine, the waiter served me juice that looked just like wine!

Another night I ate in a Peruvian restaurant, with a tent-like ceiling.

The salad included plantains and calamari.

I treated myself to three desserts!

Another evening, I ate at a Middle Eastern restaurant.

The highlight of the meal was the belly dancer.

The last night of the meeting, there was a fancy party right outside my balcony, with lights, food, and live singers.

I lounged on my marble porch, next to my private hot tub, listened to the music, and feasted on the colored lights.  I had already met a week's worth of people, and it felt good to hear the good vibes but not be right in the middle of the crowd.

Women Lawyers of Utah--50+ Years

On May 6, 2022, I attended the Women Lawyers of Utah annual retreat at the St. Regis Hotel in Park City, Utah.  The event celebrated the 51st anniversary of WLU's creation.  The 50 year celebration was delayed for a year because of Covid.  I canceled a trip to Portland to attend, and I left early to attend the funeral of my cousin, Bill Edwards.  Still, it was worth the hassle to get there, since WLU has been closely intertwined with my career as a lawyer.
 

I was not one of the five founders of WLU in 1981, but I joined soon after.  It was a radical organization, back in the day--confronting senior partners of law firms as to why they didn't have more women partners, and launching noisy campaigns to get more women judges.  

I was president of WLU in 1990, when I looked like this.  I can barely remember what I was like, back then.

At the Friday night dinner, I sat at a table of BYU and U of U law students.  Their excitement about their future careers helped bring back good feelings of my own about practicing law.  I have had amazing experiences and have met inspiring and memorable people since 1978, when I passed the Bar.  And, of course, I have been exhausted, frustrated, disgusted, and scared to death along the way! 

The mistress of ceremonies was Carolyn McHugh, who holds the highest position reached by a Utah woman lawyer.  She is a federal judge on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.  I spoke to Judge McHugh at the dinner, and she looked more battle worn than this photo suggests!  All the early WLU members, including I, have scars to prove our long service.

Christine Durham, another WLU pioneer, was a speaker at the retreat.  She was chief justice of the Utah Supreme Court and is now back in private practice.  "I have grandchildren to send to college," she said.

WLU typically holds its retreats, off season, at Utah's luxury ski resorts.  The discount block of rooms sells out within days of the announcement of the retreat.  I waited too long to get a discount room, and was shocked to pay $500 for one night.  Luckily, I have a perk account to cover such things.  I encouraged Dave to come to spend the night with me at the St. Regis.  "I can't possibly get $500 of value from this room," I told him, "but if you come, maybe we can each get $250 of value.

We were upgraded to a suite, which was like a condo, with a huge bedroom, kitchen, living room, and two bathrooms.  I sometimes daydream about what I would do if I were insanely rich.  I would take every tour MIR Travel Agency offers, and I would routinely stay at hotels like the St. Regis.  Or maybe not.  Best Westerns seem good enough.

Cinco de Mayo

We have lots of Spanish-speakers in our family.  Spencer was a missionary in East Los Angeles, where he learned to speak Spanish fluently and to love Mexican food.  My son Michael decided to learn Spanish a year or two ago and hired tutors in each of the countries of Latin America.  He brought home, from a trip to Mexico, the elegant embroidered table runner I used for my Cinco de Mayo party on May 1, 2022.

Our table was full of Mexican standards--cheese enchiladas, chicken mole, guacamole and homemade salsa, with dulce de leche ice cream for dessert.  It was a special treat to have Kirsten visit from Provo.  And we always love having Naomi and Spencer.

Audrey has become a daddy's girl after the birth of her brother, Calder, on my birthday in March.  Heidi and Calder stay home to avoid everyone's sniffles, and Audrey comes visiting her grandma with Mike.

I love to meet my children's and grandchildren's friends.  Grant brought two friends who were in his LDS ward in Seattle.  Both are now studying at BYU with Grant.  I was especially happy to host these friends because their mother had been so kind to Lisa when she first moved to Seattle in 2005.

Alan and Shauna are frequent, beloved guests.

After dinner, Naomi hauled out the foam rubber blocks, and our babies had their own party.

I routinely ask Dave to model eating my dinners.  He sometimes gives me shots like this one!

Shakin' it Up at Hi-Mountain Drug

Hi-Mountain Drug, in the mountain town of Kamas, Utah, has the best shakes in the state.  “I want to go somewhere this weekend,” Dave said, so on Saturday, April 30, 2022, we drove to Kamas and had hamburgers and shakes.  It is agonizing to have to choose among the many flavors of shakes at Hi-Mountain Drug.  This time I chose cherry nut, but my very favorite is the "everything" shake, which includes the crushed remains of half a dozen different candy bars.  It is a very guilty pleasure!  Dave never diverges from his poppy seed shake.

The tiny Hi-Mountain Drug is a combination drugstore, general store, and café. 

While Dave waited for our hamburgers, shakes and fries, and bemoaned the act that the bisonburger was not on the menu today, I wandered among the puzzles and skeins of yarn for sale.  I discovered an excellent book on candy-making, which I will explore after my diet is finally successful.

After lunch, we drove up the road towards Emerald Lake.  Barricades of snow barred our way well before we reached it.  We could only daydream of the beauty of Utah's alpine lakes in the summertime.

Easter Anytime

On Easter, Dave and I were far from home, in Mississippi.  We celebrated a late Easter dinner on April 24, 2022. I set the tables with yellow tablecloths and bright spring flowers.  I rolled out ham, sweet potato casserole, brown rice and cashew casserole, homemade rolls, and a fruit dessert—lots of tradition. But the best of Easter was, of course, enjoying the family who were with us and looking forward to joyful reunions, someday, with the people who were not. 

I noticed Naomi entertaining both Eliza and Audrey on the living room couch.  They were looking at books.  I asked Naomi which was Eliza’s favorite.  She laughed and showed me the picture book Kirsten put together last Christmas, about Eliza!  I scooped Audrey onto my lap and walked through the picture book for the family reunion, which included photos of her.  She is also interested in naming other family members, particularly Mia.

Michael K is a doting father.  He joined the sofa with the babies, keeping an eye on his darling Lily.

Jono and Sarah represented Camille's Ebert family, among a sea of Lisa's Flindt children and grandchildren.  They are both training for an Ironman race.  "Jono and Sarah are so much alike," Steve says approvingly.

Rebekah is a good friend of Carol Garza, our neighbor from across the street.  Appreciating friends and family, and recognizing that they can be with us forever through Jesus' atonement--that's the essence of Easter!