National YSA conference 2011 Saturday afternoon " Who, what, me?"

When I went back to the hall, I found another YSA struggling vainly to figure out the hall door. Not from the outside mind you. No he had managed to get himself stuck on the inside as the giant big black button which said push, was at hand height on the wall with a sign pointing to it was apparently not sufficient to grab his attention.

I also got a shock when I went back into my room and found it not only freshly tidied but the bed professionally made as well. Which although was probably standard practice seemed just a little creepy.

I was busy downloading all the photos I had taken that morning when I heard what sounded like Thunder and mentally swallowed a groan. Not bad weather! All the fun activities were starting any second and we were getting thunder? But then I realised the thunder was going on and on and on and sounded rather rhythmic.

In Mormon terms it was a what “ what the gosh darn heck moment” Other “people” probably would refer to it as a moment which is best summed up in three letters.
As it turned out the “thunder” was actually the sound of drumming coming from one of the activities. Which basically involved people drumming. So you could say I was simply following the sound of the drums...anyone? No? Okay I’ll move on.

Of course by the time I got over to the activity it started to rain, which was fine for all of people doing the activity as they were able to run under a handy large tent which was just big enough to fit all of them. Let just emphasis that again, fit all of them. Not fit an extra person who had only turned up to see what was going on with his shiny new toy.

But that was fine as I had an umbrella.......... which was fan away over the other side of the field still in my room. All I can say on this score is D’OHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! So for nothing us for it as the tree’s were proving a woeful lack of shelter, I simply had to leg it across the field as fast I could, having to accept the fact that it’s just not possible to run quickly through rain whilst retaining any sort of dignity of sophistication what so ever.

So one umbrella grabbed I headed back over to the conference centre and got there just as the rain ended. So I was no stuck with a umbrella which I was sure if I kept I wouldn’t need and if I went back to my room to drop it off, I was pretty darn sure I would. Fortunately I found that it was able to hook over the top of my camera bag nicely. It may not have looked the coolest thing in the world but it was a lot easier then carrying it in my hands.

I also saw one of the first aiders charging up the corridor obviously having been called to an emergency. The poor bloke looked rather crestfallen to discover that the big “emergency” was only someone needing a plaster. He must have been hoping it was his moment to play the knight in shining armour.

So it was round about this point I ran into phoenix and gang and well kinda ending up staying with them. I’m sure that might be some deeper explanation then that but that’s the best way I can sum it up really  I also met her “other half” Braveheart as well, in the sense of actually have a real conversation with him outside of a church meeting.

So amongst the many activities on offer there was a bungee run (which a member of Leicester stake managed to break) a giant game of operation, one of those games where you had to guide a hoop along a wire without sounded a buzzer but in a change to the norm the hoop is mounted on a helmet that you wear ( goodbye to your dignity with that game!), a circus skills workshop that Phoenix proved to be rather good at/ obsessed with as she tried to spin three plates at once. And all of this was inside.

Outside they had a giant inflatable “duel game” as well as those giant inflatable balls that you actually climb inside and then proceed to try and charge at the other person. It was when we went outside that it did started to rain again, so I was able to promptly put my umbrella up and shielded all of the girls like a proper gentleman should feeling slightly pleased with myself as lots of the other YSA had to rush for cover. Fortunately it was only a passing shower. And the sun soon reappeared in way that it has seemed curiously reluctant to do so this year.

We then headed over the road to see some of the other activities, volleyball had been started , the drumming was still in full swing and there was a couple of rather familiar large inflatable slides. We headed to an activity which was surprising fun but surprisingly simple yet remarkably hard to put set up. Basically it involved filling up balloons full of paint. Attaching them to a large wooden board with a piece of paper underneath and throwing darts at them. Okay admittedly it could be considered a little childish but you don’t go to a YSA activity to participate in deeply committed serious sporting events now do you?

So I was chatting to the others and taking some pictures when I suddenly heard a voice tell me I had a cool camera and if I had been taking some nice pictures. And not only was it a voice, it was a female voice and......... It was a voice I didn’t know. I turned to find a very nice young lady standing there, watching me and not only that she had come right up to talk to me!

Now I would like to say that I gave a response that was funny, witty and debonair...... But I would be lying, I think my actual response was along the lines of “ uh-hmm”. She then asked if she could look and if my first line was bad my second line was probably even worse, “ Oh of course, I’ve got a good one of you in here somewhere” at which point my inner mental voice started screaming something along the lines of oh no, no, no you did not just come out with a line that could have made you sound stalker like! A nice girl has come up and started talking to you without any other reason or knowing the people you are with which lets fact it never happens and you come out with that line!!!!!”

But she didn’t mind, she actually giggled and looked over my shoulder at the camera as we looked through some of the pictures and started to chat. After chatting for a little bit she then asked if I had any photos of me and I responded somewhat non commitedly, as there’s a reason I prefer to be on the other side of the camera as I am one of these people who is convinced that no matter how good the photo I still look horrible. She then suggested that did I want to get some pictures with her. Which of course I agreed to and asked phoenix to do the honours ( who as it turned out is a very good photographer and is now my unofficially official backup photographer) . Of course by this point my inner mental voice was gibbering away running around in my head screaming the mental equivalent of does not compute as I was actually agreeing willing to appear in front of a camera.

As it turned out although I started off posing in my usual stiff formal way, Phoenix soon sent me and the young lady into a complete giggling fit and thus managed to do the impossible and actually produce a photo of me I was nearly happy with!

It was at this point some of her friends came up and said they needed to go, so the young lady gave me a fantastic smile and said she would see me later.

As she moved off with her friends Phoenix asked me how I knew her. Oh I don’t I replied which prompted a very surprised look from her. Which confused me slightly“ Why” I then asked.

It was at this point my inner voice stop running around gibbering and decided to chime in

“ Okay surely you don’t need me to explain to you what just happened......”

Oh.........