Ok. Here we go!!

Trying to get past the wall.

2009-02-21T18:51:00.001-08:00

This has been a hard week for me. By Friday afternoon, there was nothing left of me.

It started on Wednesday, I had applied for a job in Utah County. I did because I didn't see many opportunities here in town. They responded and wanted to interview me the next day. I really didn't sleep that night just thinking of what may happen. I left town and went north on Thursday. I went through the interview and received an offer to work. I left thinking about what was to come. I had to start to make arrangements to move north. I had a million things go through my mind. I had lived in St. George for fifteen years. It is my home in every sense. I was starting to struggle with my emotions at that point. I spent the evening with my sister and her family. I tried to go to sleep but I still was trying to grasp what was to come. Then, on top of that, one of her cats took an interest to me and kept me up the better part of the night.

Friday morning, my sister was telling me of a couple of places by her that are for rent. We were just about to go out and look when I get a message from Eric. There was a possible job opening back in St. George and they needed my resume ASAP. What they were offering in pay was excellent and I couldn't pass it up. I packed up everything and shot south. On my way, the radiator in my car decided it was time for a leak. I was having to stop every fifty miles or so to put water in my car. It isn't a good sign when you put more water than gas in your car. My frustration at the whole situation was building. My stepfather had a good suggestion since I had determined it wasn't the radiator hose but the radiator itself. I bought some stop leak in Cedar City. I made it south without having to but any more water in. It had turned into a six hour drive. Almost twice as long as a regular trip. I get down and get my resume over to the prospective employer. I find out that it promising but not a slam dunk. I would find out by Tuesday. At that point, I really didn't know what to think. I could be dealing with the possibility of moving but then again, I may not.

I was so tired that even trying to express my frustrations was to much. I don't think I have ever felt so completely exhausted emotionally and mentally. I didn't even want to talk.

Anyway hanging out with friends and getting out in the sun today has started to help me recover. I plan on doing the same tomorrow so that I can get myself ready for whatever may come.

I guess what is the hardest for me to deal with is the uncertainty. I like being impulsive and just going where ever on a weekend or even get in a car with no destination in mind. But long term, I crave stability. This not knowing is really hard for me to cope.

I hope that the job opportunity here in town pans out. I really don't want to leave here yet.

Did you ever have one of those weekends?

2008-08-12T21:33:00.001-07:00

This past weekend has been a bitch as far as I am concerned.

It all started Friday evening when I get a call about 4:30. I find out that my grandfather had fallen out of his bed the night before and had been on the floor for at least 12 hours and possibly 18 hours. My cousin asks me if I can help so I fly out the door. Problem is that in St. George, it takes 20-30 minutes just to go 5 miles so by the time I make it there, my uncle had him picked up off the floor.

Not long after that, my parents so up and decide to stay there the weekend to see how he is doing because he looks really ragged.

I find out on Sunday that my parents took him to the emergency room and that the X-rays show a "Compression Fracture of the Spine". They tell me it is like broken ribs. There is not much you can do for them but treat the pain.

My Mom asked me if I could stay with them Sunday night to make sure everything is OK because she is a teacher and needs to get to Mesquite to get her classroom arranged. I wasn't thrilled and plenty scared but there is no way I can say "No" to my mom. I get there and the evening wasn't bad at all.

I help him get into bed they settle down for the night. About 1:00 in the morning, my grandma calls me because grandpa needs to go to the bathroom and he can't move. I try to swing the legs over the each of the bed but he starts howling in pain. Right then and there I know I am in over my head and there is no help from anywhere. It is so incredibly scary to realize that you are the only one and someone else in pain is depending on you. After 30 minutes, I finally get him out of bed and get him taken care of. I was able to get him back into bed but after that, I can't sleep. Hearing him scream in such pain really got to me.

I had to do the same thing at 4:00 then again at 6:30. Each time was as hard as the last. That screaming doesn't get any easier. I have come to label it "Heartless Compassion."

I went home but called in sick. I was to tired and my nerves were frazzled for me to concentrate on anything so I went back to bed.

I get a call about noon from an aunt saying they hadn't gotten out of bed yet so they needed me to help more. By the time I got there they were out of bed but hungry. I stayed there in the afternoon meanwhile trying to call insurance company to see what can be done about home care because the way things were going, they couldn't be left alone and everyone in the family had jobs. While I am trying to learn as I go with insurance, my aunt is falling apart and the rest of the family seemed to be eating itself apart with all the tensions. My parents decided to stay last night with my grandparents and took them to the doctor. They have solved some of the problems and tomorrow, grandpa goes in to get an MRI.

Even today, I am having difficulty trying to cope with what happened yesterday and hearing someone howl in such pain.

I guess it comes down to this, growing old SUCKS!!!!

Finally a break away from St. George

2008-07-14T21:19:00.001-07:00

I was finally able to get out of town for a bit. My friend did a show up in Beaver on Friday night. I went up to help him set up and take everything down. It was a beautiful night and I was actually able to enjoy a nice evening breeze.

The crowd was fun but on the wild side. I love small towns where they sale beer on site. They get to drinking and all sorts of fun ensues. There are times I should have a "Security" t-shirt on cause the locals were getting all over him. It did make me laugh. He even signed a girls backside. It was a shapely backside. I will say that.

After we finished up backing the band up, we took off up the mountains to hang at the condo. It was a warm night but so relaxing.

On Saturday, we went down to Three Creek Reservoir to check the area out. It had been about 20 years since I had been in that area and could remember it. It was awesome.

We tried some stream fishing but didn't have much luck. I gave up and did some hiking around. The scenery is memerable to say the least. Here some pictures from the area.

From here we went down about 20 miles south to my friends ranch to stay Saturday night. We went spotting deer and had some good luck there. We crashed at the cabin then headed back down on Sunday. It was a wonderful way to recharge the batteries.

Quick music review.

2008-06-08T21:18:00.001-07:00

I have been in a mood for '80s rock. Not the same old songs from the bands but something new from those old bands. I got my wish.

I downloaded "Lightening Strikes Again" from Dokken. There are a couple of songs that really struck me. I like the first track: Standing on the Outside. It was a fast paced song and the guitar licks reminded my of the original guitarist, George Lynch. The album as a whole is very well done. It sounds polished and they are on their game.

I always like Dokken. They seemed like sheep when it came to their image but their songs went a lot deeper and their musical abilities were among the best in the genre in my opinion.

If you are in a mood for some good '80s style rock, check this album out.

Some old school Rock.

2008-05-07T02:43:00.000-07:00

Today's update.

2008-04-22T19:53:00.001-07:00

Today I:

I ate at In-n-Out Burger. It was the grand opening of the joint here in town and the first in the state of confusion...ER...Utah. I had a double-double and it hit the spot. As far as what it took to get the burger? Just a 30 minute wait in line at the drive thru. Talk about putting up with a lot just to get a burger. It was well worth it but now I think I will let the crowds die down before doing that again.

Happy Birthday Dad.

2008-04-16T20:33:00.001-07:00

I had a special treat this week. My dad came down on his annual trip to the south land. He and his wife, Karen, crashed here Tuesday and Wednesday. We had a good visit last night catching up and seeing how everything was. He even tried my left-handed strung guitar. It isn't as easy as it looks folks.

Anyway it is his 60th birthday and we went up to Zion's National Park. He wanted to go up Observation Point on the East Rim trail. If you know Zion's, it is a really steep and long climb. We found a back way in by going above the park and hiking back into the park. It was about a 7 mile round trip hike but not hard at all. It was very windy but not really that cold. It made for a fun day.

I am happy he made it here and that we were able to spend the day together.

Above is a picture of Angel's landing from observation. It is an awesome sight.

Added security

2008-04-05T23:44:00.000-07:00

I had to tighten up the security since some idiot decided to start spamming my blog. Got ahead and post replies if you want and I will approve them. Just not from spamming idiots.

The Miracle of Life

2008-04-03T15:10:00.000-07:00

About a week ago, my friend's yellow lab had pups. It was amazing to see these little guys. It was the mother's first litter and we figured/knew there was going to be complications. The amazing part? No complications what so ever and even know it is her first litter, she has taken to the part like she was an old hand. She was caring for each pup and so far, all are healthy and being watched over by a doting mother. I need to get over there to see how they are doing and how they are growing. It is just amazing to see. My goal is to get a picture with a whole litter of pups jumping all over me.

Not to be out done, my fish decided to commit parenthood also. The funny part is that I had no idea about this till a week ago when I saw this little guy some swimming out of the this wooded alcove that the fish built up. I haven't seen any other besides this one so I am quite thrilled and a tad bit confused. I thought the fish I had weren't compatible for breeding. I was wrong. Last set of fish I had were convicts and when they breed. There is a BUNCH and it looks like a little cloud in the tank. It was fun watching them grow but it put the other fish under a lot a stress and the convicts are a VERY protective species when it comes to their young. Just to give you a frame of reference the rocks you see in this picture are no larger that little pebbles you would find in a creek. He is about 1/4 of an inch long. He is getting braver and will swim out of the alcove but not to far. He is smart enough to stay close by so he doesn't get eaten. Sad part is even my fish are having a better time than I am.

Quick update from last post.

2008-04-01T21:19:00.001-07:00

I had my first lesson tonight. The teacher is a coworker of mine and he is gonna challenge me. I am excited. I didn't realize that how much my left hand knew about the guitar and chords that my right hand will have to learn. I will have to start basically from scratch. I am up for the challenge.

He will even teach me music theory for possibly *gulp* writing songs. Now THAT will be a challenge.

For me, it is kind of a big deal.

2008-03-30T21:34:00.001-07:00

I have been thinking about doing this for a while now. What you may ask? Well, you make ask. :P

Anyway before I let you know about I decided to do, let me lay down a little bit of history. I like music. Eh, let me say that I freaking LOVE music. It touches my soul and helps me through tough times and also helps me through the good times.

I had always wanted to learn how to play the guitar and I did take lessons for a while and got to were I could play and people actually could recognize the songs I was playing. It gave me great happiness. I would practice and get down the lessons my teacher prepared and felt like I was growing.

Then something bad happened, I got engaged, then broke up and right after that? I broke my left wrist. It was a nasty break. It took me over a year to recuperate and even then, I hadn't picked my guitar back up to play. It would sit in a corner and I would look at it. I would pull it out to play. It felt good but since I was using my left wrist for the chords, it caused me a lot of pain if I played for any amount of time. It still feels like there is a hole in my soul and something that needs to be filled.

Here is the funny thing, I am left handed. I learned out to play right handed. Go figure. I decided a while back to restring my guitar to be a left handed guitar but never moved on it. Just a couple of days ago, I learned that one of my coworkers is a guitar teacher and he agreed to take me on. We start tomorrow.

It is going to be a challenge but I am excited to start to fill up a gap that has been in me for the longest time.

Wish me luck.

Easter Weekend

2008-03-22T21:31:00.001-07:00

So how is your weekend? Mine has been interesting. I found out on Friday that my grandmother, the one that had broken her hip, decided to check out of the rehab center and go home. That has cause a lot of stress in the family. We are now scrambling to make sure the house is accessible to her so that she can get around in comfort. There is still more work to be done.

Now to jump back a day. I went with a friend, Erin to the Nashville tribute to the Prophet. It was a blast and VERY uplifting. I have to say that the music was excellent and the singing was awesome. Thanks Erin for showing me the light. I just need to get the sound track.

Now to jump forward, after the trying morning with my grandparents, I needed to get out so I went with some friends. The original plan was to go out the Gunlock reservoir and check out the area. We didn't make it all the way out but turned off on a road and found a hiking trail that led us to some hieroglyphs. It was a blast. There is something about looking at the writings from another time. I wish had the learning to know what they were writing.

I want to take a moment and express my gratitude for out Savior and the sacrifice He made for all of us and the fact that he has risen from the grave to give us a chance to return. I know I have fallen short but I still appreciate what He has done.

I hope you all have a happy Easter and I hope you have success.

I must come from a tough family.

2008-03-01T21:03:00.000-08:00

About a month a ago my grandmother fell and broke her hip. It was scary and sad at the same time. They took her in a couple of days later to operate on the hip and put a clamp on the hip. It was a success.
She is doing well. She is at the rehab center now. My grandfather spends the day over there to be with her. He has held up well with all of this. I feel bad for him but he loves her so much.
Today, she did take about 50 steps with the help of a walker. I am so happy to hear that. I have been told that for someone over 80, a breakage in the hip is something major. I just keep my finger crossed and pray a lot.
I just hope I can be a strong as she.

Blessings of the season

2007-12-27T17:35:00.000-08:00

Looking back over Christmas I have been thinking of what was the best part for me. I am not one for Christmas anymore. It is a nice day and I respect what we are celebrating during the day but it has changed since I was a kid.
Having said that, the best part of Christmas is the fact I was able to spend it with my Grandparents. They are getting along in years and there is no guarantees that they will be around next year but I was able to sit with them and open presents with them. It was a most comforting feeling then to have cousins come over and have the Christmas meal with them was wonderful.
Another blessing was the fact that with a friend, we were able to fix the lighting in my grandparents house and also the lighting in their condo up at Elk Meadows. The gift of being able to help them with that was a feeling that I won't soon forget. My friend felt the same way. We did have a blast going up to Elk Meadows. He tried using an inner tube that was designed for water and being in a pool. That lasted one run and popped. It was hilarious. We were able to watch the Redskins/Vikings game on TV(way to go 'skins) then watch "Just Friends". I feel like this has been one of the best Christmases I have had in a long time and I will treasure this for some time to come.

Why do we need such a long preseason?

2007-08-20T21:12:00.000-07:00

As the NFL is smack dab in, preseason. We are all tied to the TV and the websites to see how are teams will fair during this most important time right? RIGHT??? I guess not. Yet the NFL is trying to milk the preseason for what it is worth. Charging regular season prices for game where the 1st team is only on the field for a series maybe a couple but no longer than a half. Sounds like highway robbery to me!!! It is a blast to tune into a preseason game and see the stadiums fill all the way to, well, 10 to 15 percent capacity. I guess those few are just desperate enough to try to make it a memorable experience.

I can understand the need for a preseason. You need to work out issues of timing on the offense and this is a good way to tune but it is essentially a 1/4 of a season. You just try that in the NBA or MLB. I don't think that will fly. Another drawback to such a long preseason? Go to any sports website and check the injuries. You will see a number of players already out. Some are out the whole season. You could get by with a couple of games to help timing issues and evaluate some of the players on the bubble and that would help greatly. Somehow I don't think that will fly with the powers that be. Heaven forbid you take away all that revenue from the stadiums bursting with all those fans.

Rocks longest soap opera lives on.

2007-08-14T21:39:00.000-07:00

When I first heard that David Lee Roth was to join Van Halen, I just about fell over. I thought to myself, this will be one kick ass concert!! I love the stuff the original members did, all the way from Atomic punk to Jump. Even with the synthesizers they were the best. Little did I know it wasn't going to be the original Van Halen. They seem to have forgotten one: Michael Anthony.

How could you decide that it would be Van Halen without him. I know when they toured with Sammy Hagar, I heard the argument that it wasn't Van Halen, rather Van Hagar. I understood their point of view but I still loved the band. Even the tour they did a couple of years ago I loved. But to replace an original member with your 16 year old son? What is this? The "Van Halen family values tour" with DLR just tagging along for fun? Don't label this as a reunion unless it has ALL the members the band.
Why isn't Michael Anthony along this time? Possibly because he has toured with Sammy Hagar? I wouldn't have blamed him one bit. At least he wasn't sitting on his butt before going to rehab.

To add insult to injury, the only members of Van Halen to show up at the Rock 'n' Roll hall of fame was the two members not going out on tour this time around. That is pathetic!!!

Eddie!! Pull your head out, get over the bitterness and make it an actual reunion tour with Michael. If you don't want Sammy around. That is cool. I can understand that also but give the fans,like me, a memory to really savor. As it is right now, I have no interest in going to any of the shows.

I feel like such a redneck

2007-08-12T11:39:00.000-07:00

I am hoping to get a picture up soon but last night I went to the Washington County Fair. It was a blast. I was able to get in to the Demolition Derby. Nothing like watching a bunch of old cars smash into each other. Besides it is even more fun to see true redneck watching the thing.
They had a couple of heats to start things out. Several cars didn't last long at all. The impact were bone rattling but worth it for me.
During the derby, they had a rock climbing competition. The coarse was set up with two telephone poles, then a space of 10 feet then you had a 20 ft long pile of boulders about 4 ft high then another 10 ft of space finished by two more telephone poles. The competition was to get over the whole track the least amount of time possible. They had several Jeeps that tried it. One actually hit the rock pile and basically jumped onto the pile. He lost his drive line but one the contest. There was another Jeep that lost a tire and came in second. Yet another Jeep pick up got up on the pile only to roll, get back up and try it again. My personal favorite was a Ford Explorer that looked like it had been in a pretty bad roll over. He hit the telephone poles, caught air and smashed head first into the pile of rocks. He promptly left. We figure he had a nice case of whiplash. I should feel bad but I don't. I just couldn't stop laughing and wanted him to try it again.
After that, there was a really nice firework display. The nice part was there was a thunderstorm in the back ground. Not to bad to finish off the weekend.

A video that I must share.

2007-08-08T19:31:00.000-07:00

This is a homemade video my friend did in tribute to his Grandfather. It is awesome.

2007-07-26T19:47:00.000-07:00

Today, I am celebrating a small victory. I had a bet with a coworker about who could lose the most weight in a time period. The result? I won. I dropped 11 lbs and he dropped 7. He asked for double or nothing. I agreed so I am in another competition for 6 more weeks. It is totally worth it to me just for how I am feeling. I went bike riding for an hour and a half today and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was able to ride through the Washington Fields and enjoy the evening air.

Activities

2007-07-15T19:33:00.000-07:00

Today I decided it was time to get out at get some exercise. I have been doing good but there is always room for improvement.

The decision? To do some hiking up in the Pine Valley Mountains. We got up into the mountains and it cooled off into the 80s. That is a promising sign.
The last time I hiked up there, things didn't go so well. I ended up fatigued and basically wounded to say the very least. That is when I decided it was time to lose some weight.
This time? I have dropped 15 pounds and it made a HUGE difference. Yea, I came back stiff and sore but not wounded. On top of that, it was a harder hike so I had to do more work. In the end, I feel good.

I know I am headed in the right direction.

From Kalispell to Flagstaff in a day.

2007-07-06T19:44:00.000-07:00

That's right. At the buttcrack of dawn I was in a plan leaving the paradise of Montana headed back home to the heat. I had only one reprieve, head to Flagstaff, Arizona. Yup. I am now in Arizona for the weekend.

How that happened was my friend had a weekend show to do in Flagstaff and he needed a roadie. I just happen to volunteer for that job so I landed in St. George, repacked my bags and hopped in to a truck and headed out. I figure I have gone about 1500 miles today. I tried to take a nap but I think I am so tired, I can't even do that. Oh well. I am making the most of this vacation and I will squeeze this for every once I can.

Fireworks made fun

2007-07-05T09:57:00.000-07:00

Last night I went out with my Dad to check out the fireworks. The have a neighbor about a mile away that does his own private show. I have heard good things about the show from my sister. I didn't think much about it because I know how Utah treats fireworks so I kept my expectations low.

Instead of a mini show, I was treated to a spectacular event. He had all sort of wonderful explosive devices. What made it even more impressive is that you are nestled in a valley with rolling hills all around. It makes for some killer acoustics so the explosions seem to roll back and for through the valley. I was blown away(figuratively).

We are headed out to the Flathead river to raft. I am really looking forward to that. But I know that tomorrow I have to fly back to St. George and to reality.
That bites.

Montana: Capital of Coffee houses and Casinos?

2007-07-04T15:56:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to make an observation here. It seems like there is a coffee house and casino on every intersection. It's kinda creepy. I feel like I am in a mix of Seattle/Nevada here.

BTW, Happy Independence day to all.

Those sneaky Goats!!!

2007-07-03T16:46:00.000-07:00

I have had a blast today. We took off for Glacier to see the sights. Last time I was up here, we couldn't get past Lake MacDonald due to forest fires and such. So this time we took off and started the climb.
We started up the road but found out soon that my Dad's truck had a little problem. It was overheating badly. We would have to pull over to the side of the road and let it cool. The we would go about another mile or so and pull over again. In other words, it was a long trip but I got some wonderful shots of the peaks. I am just in awe at the beauty around me. And in a sense, it was quite humbling.
We made it to the top called "Logan's pass." The parking lot was full but a Park ranger was understanding of the truck and just let us pull to the side and said as long as the hood was up, no one would really say anything. I hiked around a little bit up there and enjoyed the scenery.
On the way back down, we bumped in to some mountain goats that were just hanging out. Some where walking in the road so the traffic backed up quickly. As we got closer to a momma goat with her young I had my camera ready. At the last second she decided to head down the side of the mountain. I was 10 feet away but couldn't get a shot off in time.
Oh well.

Hello from Montana.

2007-07-01T20:06:00.000-07:00

My vacation has finally arrived. I am such a happy camper. The best part of this is that I am able to spend time with my dad in Whitefish, Montana. Part of this wonderful trip is that my sister got me a round trip ticket from St. George to Kalispell, Montana which is about 15 miles south of Whitefish.
I got up this morning and made the quick trek up and I was in God's country by noon.
I love flying. I love most to look out the window and see where I am heading. So what happens? I get an isle seat. That just about broke my heart. I had to keep craning my neck in order to look out the window to check the landscape but that didn't stop me. I saw some really impressive mountain ranges on the way up.

This afternoon my Dad got out a canoe and we took it out to check out a lake. I get in and we promptly turned it over. Welcome to Montana. :) I didn't mind whatsoever.
I had brought clothes to get wet. After that, we paddled around for a bit.

Now I am staying in the Yurt. If you want to know what a yurt is, I will have pictures posted later on. It is a blast.

More to follow in the coming days.

Sometimes, this says it all.

2007-06-17T18:44:00.001-07:00

Me likey!!!!

Time to check in.

2007-06-14T21:13:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that it is already the middle of June. If you have a clue on where the time went, I am all ears.

Last weekend I did something totally original. I went camping. :) We started by going over to visit a place just east of Zion. One of my friends has friends that manage a dude ranch. It was really a nice area. We broke out the 4 wheelers and took them around to tour the place. At one point I had a race with my friend's dog. We got up to 30-40 MPH and she kept up. I was impressed. After that we started to climb a hill. I had a girl on with me and I climbed up the hill at a good safe pace. We only went about half way because we had assumed that there would be water for the dog. There wasn't. We turned around and started heading down. The girl wanted to drive so I was more than happy to let her. My mistake. This girl freaking gunned the machine down hill and it was all I could do to stay on the back of the machine. It was a tad bit insane and if I ever ride with her again, it will be to soon.
After that we headed up on Cedar Mountain to a little secret camping spot. It was gorgeous if not a bit cold. We woke up to a very chilly morning. It was a great way to get the blood flowing.
Of coarse we are back in town and it is getting warm. Tomorrow is supposed to be 106. Welcome to summer.
On to other news, my weight loss is going well. I started out at 270. Went up to 273. Now I am at 264. I am very pleased with that loss. Slow but steady. I am still drinking at least 64 oz of water. That makes for a miserable road trip when you constantly have to pull over to take a leak.
I am mixing in different activities for exercise. I am walking for an hour and now throwing in some jogging as I feel the urge. I also go over to a friends house and we use is "Dance, Dance Revolution" for a 30 minute workout. That really gets you going. I just have to keep it up.

The way to kick off summer.

2007-05-28T21:06:00.000-07:00

To kick of the weekend, Eric and I decided to take off and camp up on Beaver Mtn. He had a delivery that he had to make in Beaver and we were just going to play off the cuff after that. We start climbing up the mountain in his truck and we found out how cold it was going to be. We decided to wimp out and stay at my Grandparents condo. It was nice for an overnighter. And in the morning, we went up on top of the mountains and got some sweet pictures of the area. I am still waiting on the email to get them. I'll post them as soon as I get them.
Anyway we came back down to St. George Saturday afternoon and I decided I needed to bum around town and do a whole lot of nothing.

Sunday comes and me and Eric decided to go up to Enterprise Reservoir. We invited a couple a friends and headed out to camp and fish. The fishing was excellent. I caught a healthy 2 lb rainbow. I was proud of that considering the dog that came with us wanted to swim wherever the line was and we have a fun time trying to control her. The best part was there was a girl with us that was helping with the fish as we caught them. Once we got them of our line and put them on a line to keep, she went to throw out the line but didn't keep hold of the end. We saw these beautiful fish flying out into the lake. Bummer. I had sandals on so I was volunteered to go out and get them. I was lucky, I got them back.

We got back up to the camp ground and started to clean the fish. One of the girls, a city girl, wanted to help gut and clean them. She said she was OK because she had dissected a fish before. That didn't last too long and we took over the duties of getting them cleaned. We decided to do an experiment, we took the fish and poked a stick right through them and cooked them over a fire. It actually came out tasty. We had some tomato and basil wheat thins and use the cracker with the fish. That was really tasty. We started to set up camp but it got windy and we wimped out(again)and headed home around midnight.

Today we went up to hike on the Pine Valley Mtns. The trail we took was called Mill Flat. It was a fun trail but long. On the way up, I apparently crossed a rattle snake. I even had a dog with me and neither of us saw it. Eric got into a battle with it after being surprised by it. I am a little shocked because it could have easily bit me or the dog once I saw where it was. Then about 1/2 mile further up. I was scared when a water snake blew past me. My nerves where frayed. We hiked about 8 miles round trip and I was TIRED on the way back down. I made the mistake of trying to cross a stream by stepping on rocks. I took a wrong step and went into the stream. The worse was to come. I ended up stretching my calf muscle funny and I ended up with a Charlie Horse. That was painful and I still had over 3 miles to go. I stretched out the best I could and hobbled down.

I made into town but even now I am stiff and extremely sore.
I came to this conclusion, the trouble I had today were in large part to my weight. I weigh just to damn much. Eric is going through a weight lost center that is also changing his eating habits. I need to change mine to make this work but I am resolved to shed off the pounds.
My goal is to get down to about 220 lbs, I am at 270. I have some work ahead of me but I am going to go over and get on the same program and see what I need to do to change. Wish me luck.

Back from Surreality.

2007-05-20T17:34:00.000-07:00

Yup...I felt like I was in the twilight zone pretty much all weekend.
I did my job as a roadie for Eric and the band. The destination? California City, Ca.

According to the locals, Cal city is the third largest city in Ca. How is it you may have never heard of such a large city? Easy, because it is third largest in square miles, and there are a lot of empty miles in there. The actual population is about 8,300. It was strange, you would leave the "downtown" section. You would go out into the desert and there would be intersections that would just go off into nowhere. The city has roads planned but obviously no need to put those roads in. You could go about 5 miles and see a grouping of houses then nothing again.

We said about 10 miles from *ahem* city center at a place called the Silver Saddle resort. It was a nice place with greenery all around. You had pools, a mini golf course, shooting range and horse rides. The guitarist for the band said that it was supposed to be from the "wild west." My response was that we know there was many a time that there was a dispute settled on a put-put course. :)

Anyway we had to put on the show Saturday. It was a pleasant evening but it cooled off quickly there. I was caught without a jacket but survived. The show was fun but things got a little crazy with everybody crowding the stage. I think they may want to hire someone to keep the audience back just a bit.

Anyway I am back at home and relaxing before work hits me upside the head tomorrow.

While I have writer's block.

2007-04-11T21:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Grandma.

2007-03-13T20:29:00.000-07:00

We had the luck of being able to celebrate my Grandmother's Birthday. She had her 81st in the hospital. It is still a bumpy ride considering that a couple of weeks ago she had to be revived with the paddles. (Yea, that caused a lot of tears among the family)
I had an uncle come in from Beaumont, TX on his Harley to be here.
The hospital staff was very accommodating considering the gang that was there. Grandma was all smiles talking with everybody. Last year she was really not happy with anybody cause she didn't want to celebrate. This year was the best for her.
Now she in back in a rehab clinic to get her back up to speed. We are all pulling for her she is in my prayers.

I like outdoor stuff.

2007-03-11T22:06:00.000-07:00

The weather has turned really nice since a couple of weeks ago. It is constantly in the 70's and I am loving it. No really. I am loving it.
Yesterday I had a friend call and asked me what I was wanting to do. I really wanted to go fishing. He wanted to go camping. The answer? Both. :) We took off from St. George to fish/camp up at Enterprise reservoir. We took along a girl that wanted to camp. She was interested because she had never been in that area. We took back roads and she was impressed with the scenery. It is always fun to play tour guide.
Anyway we get to Enterprise and guess what? It isn't really springtime up there. It was cold and windy. Heavy emphasis on the windy part. We ate a local fast food place and decided the camping was out but we'd still fish.
We get up to the reservoir and it was really windy. We still went fishing and had some success. The first fish on my line got away because of a snag. I said all the apropriate words you needed and proceeded to get my line rigged again. My friend caught one in the meantime and let it go. I brought in a nice fish and decided to keep it for dinner. I love the taste of fish. My friend caught another and kept it but gave it do me as he just felt that it was to much hassle to cook. We went down to St. George and rented a movie and hung out.
Today it was another nice day. We took my friends dog out to hike up Coal Pits wash in Zion's. It was amazing. We had a secondary goal. To teach the young pup to swim. She wasn't wanting to but we made a game out of it having her fetch a stick. We found some deep pools in the small stream and she got up to speed quickly. I hiked about 4 miles and I am plenty burnt now but it was worth everything.
Here is a picture after the hike. The dog doesn't look all that happy but it was because she had to get back in the truck and head for home. I can relate to that.

Today:

2007-02-28T21:36:00.000-08:00

It snowed. It was actually snowing pretty hard before noon. The reactions where mixed on the snow. One of the sales reps from Wisconsin wouldn't even acknowledge the snow. Some tried to get the boss to call a snow day. That didn't work out all that well either. :)
Anyway it snowed enough to make the town look white. The white on the red rock really is something to see first hand and I never tire of seeing it. Sad part is that by noon, it was all melted.
The nice part is that we will be back in the 60's by this weekend so we can get out and play.

Weekend fun.

2007-02-24T17:49:00.000-08:00

Well, despite that little storm that cooled things down for the weekend, we didn't let that slow us down.
My friend had a friend come down from the Orem area. We all had GPS units so what was in store? Geocaching of course. We loaded a couple of stashes to find and headed out.
My friend had always wanted to go for one called Sand Mountain overlook. It was in a spot that either you walk for 4 miles or take four wheelers. You don't want to take a vehicle in. You may be able to take a Jeep but that is about as much as you want to do. We loaded up the four wheelers and headed it out.
It was a NICE day. We were out in rocks, cliffs, sand dunes and sage brush. There were spots that where so tricky that we had to have one girl manage the four wheeler while both guys made sure to keep it stable. It was a total blast.
We spent the whole afternoon out on the desert and I am now feeling the sun burn on my face. It was well worth the day and it was a great way to blow off some steam.
I am thinking tonight will be a nice night to go out and camp under the stars.
I am ever grateful to live in an area that I have those options and to continue to have them throughout the year. Catch y'all later. :)

Good video from my good friend

2007-02-14T19:56:00.001-08:00

My rant on Washington County

2007-01-29T22:10:00.000-08:00

OK. Bare with me on this. I don't get political but there are times that two plus two equals one. For me, this is one of those times.

This weekend on our trip up to Baker Dam, I saw something that disturbs me. Along the side of the road, they have a paved trail for joggers, bikers, and anybody that wants to walk. It is a good stretch of trail from Snows Canyon on down, until now. The powers that be are letting it go to waste so that you can get another housing development in. Are they going to rebuild it? I don't know.

In the same vein, there are several of these trails around town. I like the idea and a lot of people use them. The sad part is a couple of years ago, we had the big flood come down both the Santa Clara and the Virgin Rivers. It destroyed the trails along with other property. What is the city/county doing? They are building new trails but seemingly leaving the damaged trails untouched. It would seem to me that you would want to rebuild that which was destroyed before building more. Yes they may be in unprotected parts but the reality of the river flooding like that bad is remote at best. I just don't know and can't see the logic in it.

Better weather, time to get out.

2007-01-28T20:36:00.000-08:00

Today was a gorgeous day. It was almost 60 degrees here in town and when it gets that nice, it is time to go out and play.
Last night my friend and I were talking about going fishing. I was all for it. He wondered if it would be to cold up higher but I figured as nice as it is here, up higher wouldn't be that bad.
We took off with some firewood to make a day of it. We started off to Baker Dam. It is a little dam about 20 miles north of here. It is a pretty place and a tad bitter cooler.
We get up there and it isn't too bad. About 43 degrees but with the sun, it was downright toasty. The problem? The lake was frozen over but it didn't look like it would support ice fishing. Besides I NEVER thought that ice fishing would be fun. We decided to enjoy the firewood anyway and had a nice little fire and kicked back. After the wood burned out, we headed back into town. It was still early afternoon and it was either do something else or take a nap.
We decided to grab a GPS unit and do a couple of geocaches. We had a couple printed out and took off. The first one was easy and kind of disappointing. The second? That was more challenging. It was located just north of town in a wash. It was a challenge to get to because it was situated on the side of a steep incline. We got to it and checked it out. On the way back out, I ended up sliding down the incline on my hands, hip and knee. The body part that took the most damage? My knee. It isn't bad but it is plenty sore. I am hoping the ibuprofen will kick in soon.
I am sore but it is nice to get out and play. It is great stress relief.
Update on my Grandparents:
They are BOTH out of the hospital and in a rehab clinic. They are both doing well and they are happy and healthy. That is great news for everybody.
I have more but if I started, I would be rambling so I will get back here tomorrow night.

Kind of cold, isn't it?

2007-01-14T21:49:00.000-08:00

Ok. So we were supposed to get this big storm last Thrusday. It was supposed to lay down 3 inches here in St. George. That would have been something considering how much snow we usually get. I didn't believe it because it has been a really dry winter here but at the same time, I had hoped because this area is really beautiful when it does snow. Friday came and the warnings where all posted. And the weather? It was cloudy but that was about it. Saturday, the still had warnings still posted. The weather? I saw about three or four flakes but nothing else. It laid an egg, just like the rest of the winter. I have to say that I am really disappointed.
Anyway Saturday night, I was invited to a bonfire. It was at a town north of here called Leeds. We went up there and it was COLD, like 10 degrees cold. We were freezing anything that could be frozen.
We helped start the fire. It help but there was a stiff north wind blowing. It didn't help the heat radiating from the fire. We would throw on a bunch a pallets and it would get really hot if you were facing the fire but the part that wasn't facing the fire would be frozen.
After a while the bonfire kind of felt like a church dance. I didn't feel comfortable at all. So we left and went to my friends house where will warmed up, hung out and played cards. Now that was good times.

Remember me?

2007-01-07T17:43:00.000-08:00

I know it has been awhile since I did anything with this site. I need to get things caught up.
The month of December was a hard one. It felt like the whole family was in a yo-yo. My grandmother ended up getting some kind of virus and got real sick. She kept telling everybody that she was ok but for a whole week, she could keep anything down. Finally my aunt basically said either you go to the hospital or we call an ambulance. My grandma relented and went.
Since that time she has been in the hospital and still is there. There was fluid filling up around her lungs that they had to drain twice and then try to get nutrients to her cause she couldn't keep anything down. It was a daily thing and still is. One day she was doing well then another she wasn't. Friday, she was going to be released in a couple of day to a rehab center only to see that Saturday she was in the ICU. They say she is doing better and hopefully she will get into rehab and get better. I can only keep my fingers crossed.
The major issue we have now is that when we ask her how she is feeling, we hope that she is truthful. She kept saying she was fine because that is what we all wanted to her. Of course we want to hear that but we want it to be the truth. If she is feeling bad, we need to hear that too.
During Christmas, I was going to head up north to celebrate Christmas with my parents and my sister and her family. The Friday before Christmas, I came down with another round of stomach flu. That pretty much nixed any plans to go anywhere. I spent Christmas playing video games while trying to recover. My mom and sister felt bad but they realized it was better I didn't try to attempt the trip even if I wasn't driving.
Anyway, once again it was a trying December.

Time to evaluate.

2006-12-03T22:21:00.000-08:00

Mat. 7: 3-5.

3. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4. Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5. Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

Yup. I found something about myself that I need to work on. It isn't a pretty thing to learn about yourself but I have.
During the past couple of weeks, I met a person that I viewed a certain way. I saw her as the arch typical Utah Mormon. Overly judgmental, blah ,blah, blah. My friend asked me why I didn't like her and I told him everything that I was seeing and what I thought of her. I didn't even give her the benefit of the doubt. He told me to lighten up but I just couldn't. During some of the events of the weekend, she did prove out some of what I thought but it left me not feeling at all well. I generally get really snappy about people that I see as "judgmental." I don't like them at all but yet, there I am doing the same thing. This is going to be a hard one for me to overcome because I don't realize that I am doing it.
If you have any suggestions, I could use them.

Update from last post

2006-11-28T20:46:00.000-08:00

OK. I need to get this updated. I was over visiting my Grandmother tonight. She is doing GOOD!! Her spirit and mental health is excellent and they let her go home this past Saturday. We made a couple of modifications to the house but overall not to much had to be done. That is such a relief to the whole family.
What I find amusing is the stay at the hospital. Right after the surgery, she was having trouble with phlegm. She was coughing it up into tissue paper. At one point she had run out and was trying to call the nurse to get another box. No one showed up so she remove the monitor on her finger. That got their attention.
She would try to joke around with the nurses. They didn't get the joke cause they were under the idea that she wasn't in control of her senses. I guess it is easy to think that older folks have dementia but my grandparents are clear thinking. She would try to joke with them but they would wave it off thinking she wasn't making rational statements. Fortunately there was a few that understood and had fun with her.

She was still in the rehab center for Thanksgiving so we made the best we could do. We all pitched in, cook the meal at our respective houses then packed it over to my Grandparents place. We had the meal there and then cleaned the house within an inch of it's life. We wanted my Grandfather to feel like he could have it there and not have to worry about cleaning. We then put up the Christmas lights. My grandpa had left to visit Grandma so we surprised him with the lights. There was a huge smile on his face. He joked around that this would be the last year cause it was a hassle to put up the lights and he loves to go around saying "BA HUMBUG!!!" We knew that he couldn't have been happier. Things are working out for the best. I do thank you for your prayers and your concern. That means a lot.

I am a tad bit nervous.

2006-11-08T21:15:00.000-08:00

Just a bit nervous, that's all. What is happening is that my grandma is going in to have heart surgery. This has been an ongoing thing and she had been resisting having the surgery for quite a while. The doctor finally talked her into having the surgery and did the preliminary tests last Friday to see if she was healthy enough to get through the operation.
It turned out that she was and they schedule the operation for THIS Friday. The family was in panic mode cause they thought the operation would be a while off like in January or something. My mother and me talked about this last night and we figure she might as well get it done now considering her health and fatigue. You never know if she puts it off, it may become to late.
I have uncles coming in from Wyoming and Texas. Everybody else is in this area. Our collective concern is my Grandpa. We just want to make sure he is alright and is cared for. He has a bum hip so isn't able to get around to much. As soon as my Grandma gets healed, he will have his surgery.
We are all hopeful that everything will turn out alright but when you talk about the heart, anything can happen.
I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for the best but still I am just a little bit nervous.

The power of Music

2006-11-03T23:09:00.000-08:00

This is another part of the post that I had written earlier about my friend's song "The Dash."
Thanks to the Fly Lady, his CD has gotten around and he has had a lot of feedback. Last night he opened up for Diamond Rio. It was a good concert and doing his part he related a story about "The Dash".
There was a lady in NY that had lost her son in a helicopter in Iraq. I guess she had been feeling awful about that but heard the song. It moved her. She wrote to Eric and said that the song had helped her in many ways to heal. I guess she said that it even gave her back her reason to live. She even sent him a Memorial Dog Tag that the military had given her asking Eric if he would wear it. He did and then dedicated the song to her and her son.
That just help reaffirm how powerful music is. It is a great comfort and I am proud to know someone that was able to help another person through a trial.

Nada en particular

2006-10-29T19:24:00.000-08:00

It was a fun weekend. I didn't do anything life threatening but it did pick up the heart beat.
Friday, I was asked to work the sound for my friend while he was doing a singles dance in town. I was hesitant because I really don't know anything about that thing. There has to be over 100 dials on that board and I don't even know which one controls the dang volume. Anyway as the time gets closer, he gets the dreaded stomach flu. It has been making the rounds down here. I don't know why but I know a lot of people that have come down with it.
Since he wasn't able to show up, the rest of the band was there and trying to figure out who was going to do what. I just went about plugging everything in. I even made a comment that I didn't realize how bad it was till after it came out of my mouth. I won't mention it here but if you want to know, email me.
Anyway it was the mid singles LDS dance. That in itself is a train wreck and the band didn't help. At one point they were doing the "Bunny Hop". Frightful stuff.
After that we cleaned everything up and I went home to detox from that.
Saturday, my Mom called. She was coming up to pick some stuff up for my stepfather who was running a concession stand in Mesquite. I went around with her to pick the stuff up. It is always a good day when I can spend time with my Mom. We just chatted and did errands. I had a blast. We went out to my Grandparents place and got them flowers. It was their 62ND wedding anniversary. My Grandpa was cracking jokes that some people didn't even live that long. He has a great sense of humor.
Today, my friend was feeling a little bit better so we went for a drive. We went up Browse Creek. There is a Redwood tree up there and it a nice place for a warm Sunday afternoon. We made it up part way but came to a quick end. The road had been washed out by a flash flood. It looked like it was a powerful flood because of where the culvert ended up below. We hiked around trying to figure out an alternate trail. We found a small road cut into the mountain but it wasn't suited for anything larger than a Jeep. Most likely a 4 wheeler would be the best. It never ceases to amaze me how nature can come up and just change everything.
Anyway it is a slow night tonight so I think I will read a book then hit the sack.

I am doing this just because I can

2006-10-23T20:26:00.000-07:00

And speaking of traffic...

2006-10-19T19:09:00.000-07:00

I figure since I started my rant yesterday about roads, I would just continue. Just not with politics. I have said my piece for now and leave it at that.
My frustrations are aimed at some of the idiot drivers that infect St. George. Since this is a going town we get a mix of almost all driving styles and it doesn't come out pretty. You have everything from Hispanics that are trying to learn or at the very best, trying to survive to the retirees that the city works so hard to bring into town.
Let me give you some of the most frustrating examples.
First a couple of months ago, I get the urge to go fishing. I take off up hwy 18 to Enterprise to fish at the reservoir above the town. It is about a 45 minute drive but it takes over 1.5 hours because some idiot feels that he can't travel over 45 MPH on a road that varies from 55 to 65 MPH. You get frustrated and I am one that I get to the point of making bad decision in desperation to get around slow drivers. Yet this idiot can't see that there is a line of over 20 plus cars behind him? It astounds me. In the Northwest, they at least have the courtesy to pull over if there are to many cars stacked up. We don't get that. Not in the slightest.
Another example in town is with all the retirees. I call them "Blue Hairs" and don't feel bad in the slightest to do that. We had one get that apparently wanted to get on I-15 southbound but did it by getting on the on ramp that is for the northbound traffic and this is in the middle of the day. People stopped at the light just couldn't believe what they were seeing and she did get on the freeway. Scary.
There are times when you see the blue hair going 15 MPH on 30 MPH roads then you have teenagers that fly with reckless abandon. Not a good combination to have.
Anyway now I have to go shopping. Pray for me.

Please excuse me while I get politcal.

2006-10-17T21:57:00.000-07:00

OK. This is a rarity. I don't usually post something about politics. I don't feel that it makes much difference but today I have to rant. Now you ask, "What has got you wound up?" "It is the federal government?" Nope. I believe that the whole bunch ought to be flushed out for being more beholden to big business and political special interest rather that the people in their districts. It is the state government?" Nope. They are just a smaller version of the feds and still bug me. "Well then, what has you so bugged?" Let me tell you.
It is the city government here in St. George and the decisions on the roadways. They have been trying to redo the boulevard here and finally got the state and feds to pony up a lot of funds. I honestly don't know how much but they spent a pretty penny. Did they increase traffic and help ease the flow? Nope. That would have made sense. They did make it pretty looking with quaint traffic lights. We should all feel a little bit of pride there. Heaven forbid they actually do something to help the flow of the traffic. Granted we are a small town in some eyes but we are growing at an believable pace and any relief would help. Instead we have nice lights.
They still haven't completed the project but went ahead with a ceremony marking the ending of the project. That makes sense to me.
On top of that, they take another major route, shut it down to two lanes to repave the road. It wasn't a road that had many chuck holes if any at all. Why would I complain about that? Well here will be my prediction. Within two to three weeks of repaving the road. It will be shut down again to put in a drain that will require that they repave the road. If the city has so much money to burn. They can certainly float some my way.
I realize that we need to work on the road in this city and county. As I said before, the rate of growth is just amazing but the city SHOULD be working on belt routes and major road to help the flow of traffic. We just can't keep up with that now but no one seems to really care about that.
Anyway...that is my rant for now.

Yogurt and Propel

2006-10-14T19:25:00.000-07:00

That has been how I spent my last two days. I get up on Friday and head off to work. I get there and I start not feeling right. Come to find out, I have a nasty stomach flu working. I spend about an hour there but I realize there was no way in hell I was staying the rest of the day.
I head home and I only get sicker. It gets downright ugly. I can't keep anything down. I get a friend to get me the yogurt and propel since I can't keep solid foods down and I was getting really dehydrated. I started to feel a little better last night and I sleep off an on through the night.
Today I am feeling a little bit better and a tad bit stronger. I am still keeping myself on softer foods but the bright side I am keeping it down.
I guess it is good timing cause I was able to rest today and I will rest tomorrow and then deal with the rest of the week as it comes. I am just thankful for friends that were willing to help me out even though they didn't want to come in the house and catch whatever I had.

Given half a chance, cats will try to neuter you.

2006-10-09T18:05:00.000-07:00

OK. That is a good start for an incident that happened about a week ago.
I was over at a friend's house watching a video. He has a pet cat that we let in to hang with us. Let's just say that this is a laid back cat but that is has TONS of personality.
Anyway the cat bounced between my friend and I getting some good kitty lovin'. Anyway the cat has it's paws down in the most tender spot on guys. My friends pushes the cat off of him saying "Get off my nuts!" The cats wasn't to be commanded that way and gathered himself on the floor and jobs and according to my friend, he got ALL for paws concentrated on that one spot. I hear this huge "OOOOWWWW" and I look over and he is doubled over and the cat is slowly jumping off like he didn't have a care in the world.
I burst out laughing while my friend was still doubled over and we were both laughing so hard that tears came out. He kept claiming that the cat did it on purpose. I had to go over and congratulate the cat for his efforts and let him out.
There has been no other incident after that little fiasco but my appreciation for that cat has doubled.

Weekend fun.

2006-10-08T16:41:00.000-07:00

Well it is interesting how things are planned and how they work out. There was a camp out planned for Friday and Saturday that was put together. Friday we had a rainstorm come in about noon. It rained HARD around noon and again in the evening. Funny thing about planning activities down here, 90% of the time the weather cooperates. Oh well we had that 10% Friday. Anyway Saturday we we able to go out to Sand Hollow and enjoy the lake. This was the first time that I have even been on a jet ski. I was given the one that they said was a "little tipsy". That will grab your attention really quick. Anyway I had a blast on that thing. There was a couple of times that I opened that thing up and went flying across the lake. Those machines are something else. We ate Dutch oven dinner later that night. It was excellent and the company of friends was a blast. I am thankful for good friends. I wussed out and didn't stay overnight but it was still more fun than I had thought I could have had. Now back to the real world of work.

The Dash

2006-10-05T17:14:00.000-07:00

"The Dash"

"The Dash between the dates, the gift we've been given
That little line that takes us from the cradle to heaven
You're born and then you die
Life goes by so fast and it's all riding on the Dash."

I borrow these lyrics from my friend. It is a song that I have dwelt on. Let me tell why I hold these lyrics so dear.
Last winter we went up to an old ghost town called Grafton. We went through the town and looked at the old buildings then we to the cemetery. They are just names and dates now. Some aren't even that. They are just mounds of dirt. I hope that somewhere their stories are written and that their families are able to read them and be able to celebrate the lives of those souls and to learn more about their lives and how they survived. I am thankful we have this time to learn and to make the time time more meaningful. I know I have a lot to improve on but I am happy that I have the time to improve. To have the knowledge that we will continue on after that final date after the dash is a blessing at we all should think about.

This is the first

2006-10-05T00:31:00.000-07:00

Ok...After some discussion, a little thought and banging my head against a wall to try this out, here I am. I am hoping like crazy this will work out. Let me know.