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!

Groundhog Day???

One of my favorite movies, you can't help but love Bill Murray. But if it weren't for the love of my life keeping things interesting, I would have a rough time telling what day is which. You see, I am checking out dehumidifiers that a friend bought from China, they are all supposed to have leaks... Not so... Any how, there are fifty of them and I have been checking them out, kinda three at a time, the same thing over and over. However, I have had some great days.
Christmas was great. I got some sweet Nihon teki gifts. It was pretty neat. You have got to love having family and friends that understand who you really are. I am one lucky fellow. I just can't get over that.
Actually went skiing for the first time in a while last night. Went with Bad-A and the Brothers Preston. (Olivia went shopping with her family...) I had a sweet time. I am even thinking about getting a new pair of skis, you know, if you don't have the equipment, it is hard to get to the mountain to go. I found a sweet package deal from the local ski shop for a couple hundred bucks, Atomic flex bindings, and Atomic skis. Pretty nice, but it is hard to justify buying skis, you know?
I guess you have got to have something to do when its too darn cold to rope.
I am looking forward to having some of the family home this week. The 30th is Davis's birthday, the 31st is Riley's, Justin's is the 29th, Risa's is today and Jay's is the 1st of January. Crud, March must be a busy month. (Wink wink...)
Anyhow, hope that where ever you are, life is good and all is well.
愛する皆さんへよろしくね。いつか話しいましょう。

DUNNN IN A BIT

That's right kiddies: McCord is graduating! I have two more finals, one tonight at 5:50 and another at 7:00am. I am as happy as a pig in poop. I just would like to say, to those who thought I might not make it: Thank you. It was your attitude and smugness that made me say: I will succeede. Now, granted, I am not done with school yet. Three more years to get my J.D. But I will do it! Yahoo! Love it!

できました！

これは恵美のために。私は婚約しました。とても美人ですよ。

Breaking News...

Last night in the Applebea's Parking Lot in Pocatello, Idaho-after watching the team roping of the 6th round of the National Finals Rodeo-I got down on my knee and asked Olivia to marry me. She said she wasn't busy so it'd be okay... Just kidding, she caught her breath and then said "Yes!" More news to follow, and the saga of the Hemet Trip will continue..

Hemmet Bound! PART ONE

We rolled out of Rexburg on Thursday, destination Hemmet CA. It was 2:30 in the afternoon. We had to make a quick stop in Idaho Falls to take a core for a tranny in to get the core charge for Virgil. He just replaced his tranny and it would be four hundred dollars that he'd loose if he didn't take the core to where he bought the new tranny. We pulled into Idaho Transmission Warehouse and explained to the folks that we wanted to get the core charge, but Virgil wanted to get the old tranny checked out, if it was worth it to fix it, he'd have it fixed so he could have it as a spare. This request sent the whole office into an uproar. They had to get everyone that was involved in the paper trail and ask them what to do. What should have been a fifteen minute stop turned into a hour long detour. Finally Virgil decided to leave, in disgust.
Back on the road. We headed down to Burley to pick up some road supplies that my mom had purchsed for our little adventure. Mom is great, she bought sixteen 32oz. bottles of Gatorade, boxes of Goldfish crackers, apples, granola bars and some rice cakes. Somehow the ricecakes and the granola bars didn't end up in the truck. She also had some burgers in a bag waiting for us. I decided to grab some other supplies at the local Ace Hardware. We got a couple of flashlights and I decided to get a 3/8 inch drill bit. I don't know why, but I thought it would be a good thing to have.
With our purchases and dinner loaded and ready to run, we hit the freeway, en route to Gooding. The reason for going to Hemmet in the first place was that Virgil drives a rig know as a "hotshot" rig. It is just a normal pickup, but he hauls laden trailers (new trailers that are going from the factory to a dealership). There is a dealership in Hemmet and they wanted a couple of trailers from Gooding. Gooding is the home to Kiefer Built, a trailer company. Virgil hauls the trailers for the dealer and gets paid on a per mile basis. This is why we were headed to Hemmet. Of course, there is more to that reason. The other part of the reason is that we wanted to go to the National Finlas Rodeo in Las Vegas, Nevada. It just so happens that I-15, the best way to get to Southern California from Idaho goes right through Las Vegas. We would have to pass through there twice, why not stop on the way down, or back, to watch the rodeo? Sounded like a good idea to us, thus the adventure.
We pulled into Gooding at 8:30 PM. We had a hitch that we had to attach to one of the trailers so that we could pull doubles (one trailer right behind the other). That is why I had been inspired to bring the 3/8" drill bit. We measured the hitch attachment and I comenced to drill. The next three and a half hours would show just how resourceful we were. My drill died half way through the first hole. Who did we know in Gooding that could provide a drill? As we thought of people, my phone rang, it was my dad calling to see where we were in our journey. I explained the situation and asked him who we know in Gooding. It just happens that one of his cousins, Lanna, and her husband, Larry, lived in Gooding. I called them and asked thier help. Our family is not the most tight knit, but we help each other, and they came to the rescue. Unfourtunatley the drills they brought gave up thier ghosts before the job was all the way done. Luckily, Virgil had a friend from his equitation class whose parents live just south of Gooding and have a nicely equipped shop. We thanked Lanna and Larry for their help and hooked up the lead trailer to head for the shop.
The shop was sweet. I have never been so thankful to see a corded drill in all my life. We drilled the needed holes and attached all the parts that would allow us to hook on to the trailer. It was now midnight. We went back to the Kiefer Built lot and hooked on to the second trailer. We thought we were home free and good to go. Never count your chickens before they get squished by the tires...

If think too hard:

You could have an annurism. Not really. It ain't too big of a deal. I just can't get over how interesting life is. I turned in my term paper today. I am quite stoked. This paper actually has more of my thoughts in it than any other paper that I have written has ever had. OKAY, so I will continue this hanashi later...

Once again, Willie Nelson takes care of what ails you...

To all the girls I've loved before
Who travelled in and out my door
I'm glad they came along
I dedicate this song
To all the girls I've loved before
To all the girls I once caressed
And may I say I've held the best
For helping me to grow
I owe a lot I know
To all the girls I've loved before
The winds of change are always blowing
And every time I try to stay
The winds of change continue blowing
And they just carry me away
To all the girls who shared my life
Who now are someone else's wives
I'm glad they came along
I dedicate this song
To all the girls I've loved before
To all the girls who cared for me
Who filled my nights with ecstasy
They live within my heart
I'll always be a part
Of all the girls I've loved before
The winds of change are always blowing
And every time I try to stay
The winds of change continue blowing
And they just carry me away
To all the girls we've loved before
Who travelled in and out our doors
We're glad they came along
We dedicate this song
To all the girls we've loved before
To all the girls we've loved before
Who travelled in and out our doors
We're glad they came along
We dedicate this song
To all the girls we've loved before

I want to thank Willie for this song. It is true. Now don't get too hung up on some of the lyrics, just realize that I have been blessed to know some pretty choice young ladies. Great and wonderful choice daughters of God. Each one has taught me different lessons and made me a better man. I am no worse for the wear. I could probably go through and list all the things that I have learned, but it would be an extensive list and then people would get lost and think I was less than the sum of my parts.

To all of you, just know that you have made my life sweeter than I could have ever imagined. I ask myself why Heavenly Father has seen fit to bless me. I reckon it comes down to a fella hadn't ought to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Anyhow, if I was going to pick sumthin for Thanksgiving to be thankful for I would have to say all of my relationships, past, present, dead, alive, hot and cold. So "Thank You."

Sometimes you just can't help it...

I am working on a paper for Poly Sci 300. It is quite the gem. I realize that it is occupying my thoughts more than most things, even roping... That is crazy. I would like to say that I am still alive, even if it is with a HUGE GINORMOUS headache. But, oh well. I swear one day I will catch up with what is going on...

I swear I am not that OLD!

Yesterday I sat in a chapel in Oakley. I had been in the chapel before, but never had I felt so old. I was there to hear a friend say goodbye before he leaves to serve the Lord in Independence Missouri. He did a wonderful job speaking, and the meeting was quite uplifting. The funny thing is that he is one of my school chum's little brothers, so the kids in the crowd were mostly younger. The best part is that I can remember seeing a lot of those kids in diapers! That made me feel old, but I also felt the wonder that I felt almost six years ago, sitting in that same chapel. Were is my life going? What am I doing? These questions can be answered pretty easily, but there is still so much to them that I just don't know. It made me a bit trepidacious. At the time I knew the answers to those questions, graduate, go serve a mission and then get to college. Now I am getting ready to graduate from college and I feel that smae wide-eyed wonder. I know some of the answers, and a bit about the journey, but I still get butterflies in my tummy.

Oh, well. I am tough. The other thought I had was that there were people that were in that room that remember me in diapers, so it isn't that bad. I had to laugh when I introduced myself to a brother there whose son was good friends with my older sister. He didn't really recognize me, but as soon as I introduced myself he remembered me. He told me that I had grown, it happens.

I guess what I am getting at is that I feel so strange sometimes. I am caught in an interesting time in my life's history. There is so much to come, but I feel like I have seen so much. What a wonderful blessing. I get to write the story of my life right now, I am in control of that story and how it plays out. Granted I cannot control everything, but I know that I can do what I can. I reckon that is all a feller can ask some days.

2 Brand New Songs

I used iTunes and downloaded a couple of brand new songs. They remind me of B-town and I actually got a bit teary eyed. Cause I am gonna stay 18 forever, and I got a twenty dollar bill that says no one has ever seen you without make-up. Booyah, Just a snippet, but props to Bad A, Champ, the PASB, water skiing and cliff jumping. K, there goes the tear...

Cute Kids Part II

This is Clancy with Grandma. He is Davis' little brother. He was sad to leave Grandma and Grandpa's house! 

Cute Kids Part I

This is Davis. He is one funny little fella, chek out the boots outside the P.J.s. This is Riley's boy. 

Epiphany

I am actually learning things at college. I know that should be an obvious statement, but sometimes I feel like I am gaining stupidity. Today was not one of those days. I more than one thing happened that shows me that I am gaining in brains. We were talking about absolute truths in political science and applying the scientific method to prove these truths. In the "hard" sciences you can prove truths by performing experiments on a hypothesis and recording results. These experiments should be replicable.
As we discussed this, I had a revelation for myself. The reason it is more difficult to see how things will go, all other things being equal, in society, is that in hard sciences there are laws that the organisms must obey. They must because that is their nature. Man and countries have no absolute rules on this earth, only agency. The ability to choose what will be done. Granted, consequences are never up to the person who performs the act. There is more to what I am saying, and I would expand, but I think it would best be understood on a one to one basis.
I hope that those of you reading this are doing well. I understand how bleak things can be. Life seems so hard and tough. Things go wrong, like I say, "It happens." Just remember that somewhere out there in Idaho a cowboy thinks the world of you. Have faith in your beliefs and doubt your doubts. It's okay, huh?

IT happens

For those of you who don't know ropin' lingo, I apologize and I will try to esplain this so's you understand. (It's okay, huh?)
I went down to Pocatello Thursday night to rope. I hauled Simba, Reed's pony, down in a two horse strait load trailer that I borrowed. He loads real nice into it and had no problems. I thought I would stop by and pick up Will, the horse I was to haul back to Iceburg, before heading to the roping. Will has never been in a strait load (the little old two-horse trailers that only poor college kids use), and I wanted him to see it in the day. He didn't want any part of loading in there. He put his front feet in and then freaked out, hit his head on the roof and he jerked back. Of course, I was holding the lead rope, and it zipped through my hand at a high rate of speed. Burned like a sunuvagunn. I said a few choice words about his parents and their marital status, and I tried again. This went on for about 15 minutes, all to no avail. The roping started at seven so I thought I had better get going.
Got to the roping, but dad wasn't there from Burley yet, so I watched what was going on, and got us entered. I roped pretty good in the first round, made it back with two fellas. I woulda made it back with three, but I missed my dallies with one guy and let the steer go. (The way a roping works, if it is a draw jackpot, most of the time, is that you enter like 5 times. So they pair you up with 5 other people. You rope in the first round with all 5. If you catch a steer in the first round, you get to rope in the second round with that same partner. If you catch the second you get to go on to the third. Last night's roping was a three steer average, so if you caught all three in good time, you'd get a check-money-).
The second round I missed for Harold and legged up (caught the steer by one leg -which adds 5 a five-second penalty-) for Gary. That meant I only got to come back to the third round with one guy, Gary. There were only 18 teams in the 3rd round and we were 12th. That might not sound good, but considering they were paying 5 places, I thought we had a decent chance. Well, the only way to get a check is to rope that last steer. I missed. Dadgumm. Dad missed with his partner as well, so no money for the Larsen Family. I'd like to say that was the worst part of my night, but that was only 8:45 pm, and I still had to load Will and head back to Rexburg.
When I got back in the truck I checked my phone for messages, but my screen wasn't working. That happens every now and then, so I thought I'd just turn it off and back on, to reset it. Nope, that didn't work. I flipped the phone out of my hands in disgust. Then I heard it snap in half. CRAP! Yeah, that'll cost me a Benjamin to replace.
Then to load Will was pretty much impossible. He would get close and then rear back and freak out. Not cool.
Friday was equally frustrating as I forgot to do some of my homework and I was deathly tired and sore from the night before.
On Saturday I was at home, sweet home, in Burley. Through use of the front end loader on the tractor I was gonna help Mom pick some fruits out of the tops of the trees. I filled the hydraulic resivour and fired up the tractor. I flipped the PTO switch to get the bucket moving. I was in the middle of raising the bucket and then I heard a WHOOSH. The supply hose from the resivoir to the hydraulic pump had come off and the fluid was promptly draining out, at a high rate of speed. Simple fix, sort of. I just put new hose clamps on and filled it back up with new fluid. The bad part was that the pump has supports to keep it from spinning around (since it's PTO driven), and the supports had broken off. That is what caused the hose to come off in the first place. Dad is going to have to fix that one, cause Saturday afternoon is not the time to do such things, least not when things are closed down.
I was then getting ready to go to Priesthood Session. Mom needed some trash hauled, so I took the burn barrel into town. When I got back I noticed I was leaking more radiator fluid than normal. Sure enough, I had a hole in my radiator hose. No P.S. for me. I had to change the hose before Sunday. Good times.
The point of all this is that sometimes things happen. Life ain't always beautiful, but its a beautiful ride. It ain't so bad. It could have been lots worse and a bigger bummer of a weekend. Probably the reason it wasn't too bad was twofold: 1)It was General Conference, and I learned a lot and 2)When somebody loves you, life ain't too bad at all. (I hope you had a Happy Birthday!) Yeah, it's okay.

Oh, Yeah

Basically, what we have here are two fine looking gentlemen. This is Blake and I on his wedding day. I think we're pretty much the best lookin cats in the mix. 

SO...

Tomorrow is my Birthday and it's my golden year! I am 24 on the 24th. Neato huh? Riley and his family came home. We had some good ice cream cake and roped. Of course, all my roping buddies were there, Ron, Clint, Wes, P-Diddy, Riley and Dad. It was lots of fun. I will download some of the pictures and let you all look. Short entry for today, but I'm tired and I need my beauty rest.