Merry Christmas one and Ya'll

Liv and me are still in Burley, just got done opening presents at Risa's. Fun stuff. My latest thought was a present to Olivia is like three for me, because I don't have to pay for it, she has something new to wear and she is happy. That is a pretty cool present for me.
The present that I am most excited about is the cd that has pictures of my ancestors on it. There are some great shots of Big D, my grandpa.
Anyhow, I just wanted to tell all ya'll: Merry Christmas! To those of you that I have not seen/talked to for a while, I want you to know that I think about you and hope all is going well. Linds CONGRATS on the wedding; Jared you got a heck of a wife! It is great to know that the Lord is watching over all of us and taking good care of my friends and family all over the earth.
Remember why we celebrate today and think about how we can help others to feel His love for us.
Have a very Merry Christmas one and ya'll!

3/4 Done!!!

If I were a steak, you might say I was well done, but I am surviving. Had the Civ Pro final today. It was good. It had to be good, Chuck Norris was in it. BoohYah! Hope everyone is doing well. Liv and I will be pulling out of here on the 15th, Burley Bound! Yahoo!

One down Four to go!

Does this look like the face of a man who just aced a final? No? Well, that is okay, cause I probably didn't. I am fine with that. I don't think I am the smartest kid in the class, I will be the first to admit that. I just hope, for the sake of my family, that I can at least hang in and get this stuff done right.
Just keep on keeping on is what I keep telling myself. I think I can, I think I can... Quick post, but I had better get on with things. Round two of the Battle of the Grades for 2007. DING. DING. DING... The fight is on!!!

Its hard to look Tuff in a Subaru...

Luke and I went out to Helmer and went shooting. Took out Luke's .357 and a .22. Course, you would not think that we were headed to the back country to go shootin' if you saw our ride... We took Olivia's Subaru. When we stopped to ask the folks at the Helmer store where a fella could go to shoot, they kinda just stared... They saw us get out of that car and probably could not believe that two fellas dressed like we were had anything to do with guns. Any how, shooting was great fun. We blew the crap out of Luke's old hard drive. We thought about taking it in to the computer store, after the first shot, and seein what their reaction would be if we asked them to fix it. That was till we fired on it a few more times, there wasn't much left of it. This was Wednesday. Wednesday nite, after I picked up Liv, her car died, again. Tried to push start it. It went, for a while. Liv walked home and I waited for someone from the dealership. I jumped the car with the saleswoman's Toyota, got it to run, but I had to hot-rod the car to the dealership, no lights and no brakes. BY THE WAY: if you get stranded in Moscow, ID don't even think of asking the cops to help you out. They cannot assist you, it's official police policy... AKA B.S. The car needed an alternator. Ouch.
Well, on Turkey Day we headed over to the Matt and Amy Darrington home. It was a grand gathering. Heck, it was like being home. Nobody but my wife was family, but we all felt like family. I guess that is what holidays away from home are for. 13 people over for dinner there, it was great! Matt and Amy; Rob, Monica and Ellie Hemsley; Luke, Michelle and Cy Marchant; Lynn Darrington; Trent Belnap; Aubrey and Kendrick (don't remember their last names); and Senator and Mrs. Darrington. Quite the crowd. It was dang fun.
Black Friday was long. Liv worked from 7 am to 6:30 pm, taking only a 15 minute break and eating chips and dip. She worked all day and I slept and watched Back to the Future II and III. Nice, huh? We went out to Wingers and we were able to witness the Hawaii Warriors beat the BSU Broncos... But that was not the end of my sports viewing experience...
Saturday I decided to take Dad's advice and take in a Vandal football game. They played the USU Aggies and it was the last game of the season. Matt and Amy were going and so I was gonna tag along. The plan was to sit in the student section, but since the Senator got tickets in the President's Box for everyone, we ended up gorging ourselves on buffalo meat and gyoza. Just another testament to the old addage, it ain't what you know but who you know. I brought home some chocolates for Olivia, since she couldn't attend with me. By the way, today is 9 months that we've been hitched. Neato. Well, I suppose that will be the last Vandal game I attend, they lost and won't ever have any better seats with better food, it's all down hill from here...
The picture is from the Pre-Game in the President's Tent. Notice, I am in my sweet BYU-I Hoodie and my cowboy hat. Nothing says trashy like showing up in colors of a school that doesn't even have athletics to an alumni sponsored event!

What happens when you leave Pepsi and Pepper Overnight...

人が増えた!
びっくりしたよ!
おもしろい、かな？
じゃまたこんどー

Lewiston or BUST: Well maybe...

We climbed into Olivia's Subaru to head down to Lewiston. Liv was driving because I am taking cold medication that makes me drowsy. (I got the cold the night I stayed up to 3:30 am writing my final assignment for LW&R.) About seven miles outta Moscow, going up a decent little hill, the ole Soob starts to sputtering. The last time she did this we were headed to class and work. I push started her and drove the car like a feed truck. No problems since then. Well, she died 3/4 of the way up the hill. Did I mention the fog? Well, it was darn foggy. To boot, the 'lectrical garbage kicked out. No hazards to warn others. A kind gent from Genesee, Brent, stopped to help out. He gave Liv a flashlight to start flaggin people so they didn't hit us. One feller that did dang near hit us felt bad, stopped and gave Brent a tow rope. We towed the Soob to the top of the hill, the whole time we were going I let the clutch out in 3rd and it'd run. When we stopped, so did the Soob's engine. But as we had crested the hill, I told Brent we'd try roll starting it. Off we went. The Soob fired right up and we were off! Well, for a few hundred feet. She died again and I pushed her into a local grain grower's front yard. We tried jumpin her and off she went like a rocket! Brent followed us back to Moscow. What a good fella.
Just got off the phone and the mekkanick down at the Subaru dealer. Hellifiknow is basically what the boys are saying. Battery checks good, alternater is alternatin, starter is starting and all systems are go. Hopefully this little mystery gets solved.
By the way, the picture was the scene outside our apartment. I'll be darned if it didn't snow a bit. 'Course I talked to dad and he said it was sunny and sixty in the big B town.

I got a hankerin for a Jones...

So half my family is in Texas. That is where my older sister, Kresta, lives. Mom, Dad and Riley's Family went down there to witness Jeremy's baptism and Ethan's blessing. Jeremy is Kresta's oldest boy, Ethan is her most recent addition. I just can't believe that time has gone by that fast! I remember when Kresta brought Justin home for the first time! I also remember the first time I babysat Jeremy. Man, that kid had lungs! He just kept crying, so I loaded him up in Mom's car and drove till he fell asleep, somewhere north of Paul. Course, he might have been crying because of the insane amount of baby powder on his rear. I changed his diaper (the first one I had ever changed) and I remembered that you're supposed to put powder on the bum. The only powder I had was for my calf-ropin ropes (it makes the rope soft and fast). That is what he got, but I didn't know how much to put on... Well, the kid turned out alright, despite that mistreatment.
Some of ya'll won't believe this, but I just got back from working out. Crud, am I sore! I am not the physical specimen that I once was... I can't even lift my arms up over my head. Dadgum...
Last night Olivia and I had the sweet opportunity to view a film that I think is most worthy of an Oscar. That's right, Napoleon Dynamite. I still love that flick.
For those of you not around Moscow, the weather was cruddy yesterday, but this morning has been quite enjoyable.
As the title suggests, I am really craving a cold Jones Soda, but it's too early in the morning... Shout out to JTP III.

NOT A FUN NIGHT...

No, I didn't break my nose, nor are we playing football. Olivia talked me in to cleansing my nose with some new fangled nose strip. It hurt to take the thing off, much worse than duct tape on lips. Maybe like waxing leg hair. All I know is it hurt.

Shift in Paradigm?

It has been a long time since I learned about a paradigm. Roughly 5 years ago, on the island of Japan. I never had heard the word until I went there. I was told to shift my paradigm, or change my way of thinking. At the time a quote came to my mind: "The first thing to do when you're dealin' with a slick S.O.B. is pin him down and change his oil." I have started to learn that the first oil change I need to do is with me. You know, "Kindness begins with me." Sometimes I am a bit quick to judge. I need to take my finger off the trigger, and maybe even keep the gun in the holster...
Moscow is not such a bad place. Olivia and I are attending a great ward. She is the Ward Chorister, I am the Elder's Quorum Secretary. Church is a nice blessing. We have also been blessed with good friends, both old and new. I sure miss my old friends, the folks that understood my usage of various verbs and such. I thank the new friends for putting up with such said verb usage. I don't think people can ever really understand how much good friends mean in this life. I feel bad for the feller that has never experienced the joy of a good friend.
Olivia and I have picked up a new habit, we have been playing a large amount of Scrabble. That is a fine game. It's nice to test your mettle when it comes to building a larger vocabulary. We have a good time.
The thing I miss the most is being able to spend ample time outside, running on four legs and chasing bovines. This is the longest stretch of time since I was in Japan that I haven't roped steers. I have taken to other pursuits, besides studies (if that was all I did I'd croak!), but nothing has quenched my thirst. I guess you could call roping an addiction, but it is one I have no desire to kick.
What keeps me going is my sweet wife and her loving support, along with that of friends and family. I am so glad I waited this long to find Olivia. I don't think I would have appreciated any other woman as much. I can say this because I have lived a little longer as a lone man in the wilderness. I am one lucky feller. No surprise there, though.
By the way, the picture is somewhere around Alamo NV. This was from last year's run to Hemmet. I still need to tell that story, you can see it in the archives, Hemmet Bound Prt. One. Then there is a line from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,"When legend becomes fact, print the legend."

Coming soon...

I promise a new post is coming. Things have been rather busy, but since you'd all love to hear about it, I will post Sunday or Monday... Stay tuned... Until then, enjoy the picture. Me and Olivia and Grandma Matthews. (This may be the first time Grandma has been on the Net.)

My wife and Rain

Okay, so maybe the title should be about my wife and thunder... I never would have guessed one year ago that I would be were I am right now. You should see her, just running around the house like a little girl. She is so stinkin cute...
I would like to point out to all of you that it has been over a year since Olivia and I met. We have now been married six months. How great is that? I am one lucky man. Course, as I always say, "I'd rather be lucky than good."

Well, How 'Bout That?

Have you ever realized that you may be in over your head? I haven't, even though lots of people seem to think that some of the things I try to do are a bit much. I realize that I am saying this and it is only the second week of Law School. It really ain't so bad. I will say that most of the reasons for my being okay is a good family and a great wife. She keeps my head on the ground, er my feet on the ground, anyhow. The other thing she does is gives me plenty of other things to think about. Bless her heart.

I don't know if this is an omen, but last night I had a crazy dream in which I saw a little blond haired girl that was calling me "Daddy." I told Olivia about this and she says she is not pregnant, but I tell you what, if we have a girl, I know what she is going to look like, and she will be cuter that her dad was as a kid, and maybe cuter than her mom, if that is possible.

Last weekend Olivia and I took a classmate to Spokane so he could fly back to Rexburg to bring his family to law school. We had the opportunity to celebrate our 6 month anniversary! How crazy is that? We went out for Sushi at a nice little place called Sushi.com. Don't let the name fool you, it had nothing to do with the internet or computers, it was all authentic Japanese food, and as some of you know, I can't turn that down. 日本野食べ物食べたいのでね。Any how, it was great. Good food by people that know what they are doing. I know this is a shocker to some people, but I will pay out the nose for good sushi, as opposed to steak. I can cook a good steak, as long as I can buy the meat, no problem. But I can't make sushi, so I will pay for it... Ummm Ummm good.

I am NOT a slacker, I have just been reallllly busy

In case people think that I am a lazy bum, I would like to say the complete opposite. I have been so busy I have not had time to catch up. Since my last post Olivia and I have added two members to our family. No, we didn't adopt twins.
I traded for Tiny, my good pal of a horse for a 3-year old colt we call Hawk. I am breaking him. Learning a lot of things really. The learning moment last week was not to pull on his nose. I pulled him up over backwards on top of me. Broke my saddle and should have broken my leg, but I must have been lucky.
The other new member is called Baby, or Kitty, depending on how we feel. She is a 4 month old smoky gray cat. She is pretty cute. She pretty much acts like other babies she cries, poops and pees, a lot. She is pretty entertaining though and last night I roped her with a small rope (don't tell PETA), I don't think cat roping is going to catch on very quick, even with the romanticism of the commercial of a few super bowls back, with the herding cats...
I have been busting my hump working for Dells Home Appliances, fixing appliances, you know I thought I would try something new... Oh, wait, I have only been doing this since I was knee high to a grass hopper... It is a good job and I like it, I am looking forward to Law School, though. Every day my boss, Rick, tries to talk me out of it with various jabs, threats and jokes... Nice try, but even bad lawyer jokes will not deter me.
Other than that I would like to give a shout out to Emi, who got engaged!!! 信じられないよう!おめでとうございます!私たちが子供をできるときに君の名前をつけるだよう。もし女性でありば。。。

NEW POST COMING, I PROMISE

I have been super busy at work and with being married and all, but I promise my addoring public that I will be posting soon, something of substance...

Just to show that I did indeed get married

I thought it would be nice to post a picture of me and my bride. Isn't she gorgeous? I love her very much. I will write more later.

I would have to say "Give it a try!"

So, I have been married now for almost a month. I am gonna tell you, it ain't bad. My wife is a wonderful woman and she tries pretty hard to understand my idiosyncrasies. She is a helluva woman.
My new job is pretty good. I am doing something I have never done: working on washers, dryers, stoves, fridges, dishwashers and microwaves. New location, same stuff. Makes me pretty thankful that Dad taught me all that he has. What Mom has taught me has come in handy too, all the paper work and some of the computer and phone work. What a blessing good folks are, eh?
Well, Olivia has just prepared breakfast so I will "Itadakemasu!"

HISASHIBURI

That is Japanese for "Long time, no see." It has been a while since I have updated... The reason is that I have been insanely busy getting stuff ready to get hitched. I found a job in Pocatello, we are going to live there until I go to law school. Speaking of law school, I have been accepted to Valparasio and to Florida Coastal. I am a little bit bummed cause I haven't heard yet what the University of Idaho thinks of me. I am confident though, that all will be well.
I just know that things will work out. Maybe not in the way that I want, but things will be okay.
As of today only 15 more days until I am a married man! Yahoo! Sometimes I still can't believe that she said yes. Of course, sometimes I think she wonders why she did... Heheheh...
The funny thing about all the changing in my life that has occured is that I planned for none of it. I have never said "Gosh, I want to graduate with my bachelors degree and then get married." I did often say that I didn't want to go to law school alone, but I knew there was nothing that I would be able to do about it. I think the key to the whole getting engaged thing is that Olivia kept saying "Yes." She could have turned me down for the first date, the second or so on. She could have said "No" when I kept asking her to come to Iceburg and go to concerts and events with me. She could have said "No" when I asked her to marry me, but she didn't. How great is that? I just can't tell you how good it feels. BOOYAH!

Long time coming...

How high's the water momma? Three feet high and rising...
Only Thirty one days until I become a married man!!! Yahooooey!