Cold Pepsi

I am downing a cold Pepsi right now, the sun is shining, the birds are singing and it is 66 outside. The only problem: I am in the Law Bldg. I am trying to wrap my head around the world of Contracts. This was my worst subject last year, and I hope I can pull my grade up a little.
The morning hasn't been all bad though, I changed the oil on the truck and installed a new fan clutch. In the last few days the fan has been making a neat whistling sound. Stuff like that bothers me, and I like to catch it when it happens, so I got it fixed. The clutch cost me about $90 and I payed $23 for my oil (I buy the five quart oil, keep some in the truck). How much is the labor? I dunno, I don't think I have been put on the payroll since my education has kicked in, so I must be worth about $1.295 an hour now. That is up from $1.00 a few years ago, I feel good about that.
By the way, I will soon be posting pics of the ammunition reloading process. In the short spare time that I have I have got 100 rounds done. My goal is to have about 250 done before finals. Then after every test take a drive in the woods and shoot some targets. It is a very therapeutic way to get through the finals around here.
Things have been good for Liv and I. It was her birthday yesterday, the big 20! She worked in the afternoon and then we went and helped some friends move. When I recovered from the moving, we went out to eat. The palce was called the Sangria, not too shabby. It wasn't exactly my cup of tea, I prefer places like Bubba's in I.F., or the Helmer Store. I was the only hat in the place and people were drinking their hoity-toity wine and talking politics (the substance of which was limited to leftist crap, the tough decision between Obama and Clinton). I caught myself thinking about the time I pulled a three year old colt up and over on top of me and almost broke my femur. That seemed a pleasant thought compared to listening to people tell each other how the price of fuel needs to rise to over $5 so people will get away from fossil fuels that pollute Mother Earth. ANY HOW, it was good tasting food. I was also pleased to be there with Liv. I love her and whatever makes her happy is what makes me happy.
Well, I guess I had ought to get studying. I wish this stuff would work by osmosis, but I just get headaches when I try that...
恵美ちゃんへおめでとう！けこんしきの発表をうけました。いくことはできないけど、行きたいね。ご主人へよろしくを伝えて下さい。そのカドをおくるつもり。また、ね！

Soon life will be back to normal...

I am happy to announce that I am sort of finished with my Appellate Brief. The reason I say sort of, is I am in the polishing stage of this gem. I am going to put it away, enjoy Church tomorrow and look at it afresh on Monday Morning.
Tuesday will be like a new life. I am certain almost all of my classmates will say the same thing, LETS GET PLASTERED!!! I don't even drink and that sounds like a good idea, almost. I have typed a lot today, so I am going to leave this post as is, and maybe post this coming week.

For those of you who thought I was perfect...

I may have taken the plunge into the abyss of weirdness, I joined the social network utility know as Facebook. This is a strange new world that I am unaccustomed to. Hopefully I am not fully assimilated. We shall see. I felt like I was almost joining the collective known as the Borg, you know, from Star Trek. Kinda freaky.
In other news: I am becoming a grown up, had to change the cell phone plan to include Olivia, we are on a family plan. I am not a fan of such things, but we had to. I just hope we can keep our minutes tamed. I used to talk a ton on my phone, but now the one person I did most of my talking to sleeps with me, and I with her, so we don't eat up a ton of time. We did do the "My Faves" thing, so we shall see who gets those honors.
Spring Break has pretty much sucked eggs for me. I have been sick to the point of not being able to even write my paper. NOT GOOD, it is due next Friday, oh well, we'll see what happens
HOWEVER, I did get something done. I completed my first 50 rounds of reloading ammunition. I made up some 158 grain Lead Round Nose .38 Specials. They look pretty good, except two that got over crimped. I may not take the chance on firing those. Pictures of reloading will come, I assure you.
Hope all is well in your neck of the woods, wherever that is. Have a good weekend and check out my profile on Facebook!
PS Thanks to the Todds for the awesome desk!

Olivia's Hair, and Flowers on Tuesday

So, I think the pictures are worth a lot of words, but I should explain a bit. Liv cut her hair a week ago. She looks great! The flowers were because I haven't bought her flowers for a long time actually since we have been at law school:(. I am just happy.
I also earned the best grade of my law school career today! A "B" on my Motion for Summary Judgment. I am so happy.
Hope you all are doing well. Don't forget to answer the quiz!

Guess what?!?!

No, we are not going to have a baby, but we finally have a kitchen table and chairs! Thanks to Gramma Marj, Dad and Matt Darrington for making this miracle possible. Gramma gave us the table that was in her kitchen, since they got a new one a while ago. It is kind of surreal to be eating at a table that I have eaten on for most of my life. Many of you blog readers may not know, but I spent a lot of time with my grandparents, when I was younger and even when I go home, I love spending time with Gramma and Grampa Larsen and Gramma Jean. I am pretty sure that is why I love being around older people. Last Fast and Testimony meeting I referred to older people as an "astute" group, I have not heard the end of it. Oh, well. Anyhow, it is just really nice to be eating on a real table instead of using the camping chairs that we received at our wedding last year. I had kinda forgotten how nice it is to have a meal at a table with my wife.
This week was a bit rough, Liv has been sick and I have been super busy at school. Liv is feeling a bit better, but she is pretty stuffed up, not to mention that tonight we both have a disparaging case of wind breaking. "Charlie, light a match!" Yeah, it is bad... Sorry to mention that, but I thought it was necessary.
How about Leap Day this year? Wasn't that fun, another day of February? I read a case at school where a prisoner was saying that he had been sentenced to 12 years of prison and that it was unjust that he would have to serve the extra three days that Leap Year provided. That is creative, but he didn't get that one past the judge.
Anyhow, I hope that all is well for all ya'll! Take care of yourselves! We love you all and miss you much!
日本にいる友達へ皆さん元気でしょうか？ひさしぶりだね。今年年賀状を出し中田のでごめんね。皆さんへよろしく。また何時か。。。

I had a lead deficiency...

But I am feeling better now. Aaron, Steve and I headed out to Helmer this morning to put some lead in the air. It was nice. We saw a lot of deer tracks as well as some smaller varmint tracks that none of us knew. It is always nice to get out in nature, hike to a spot that is safe, set up some targets and squeeze a trigger. Makes me feel good. I really miss roping and riding, but sacrifices must be made.
By the way, I have the greatest wife, she sure is wonderful. On Valentines Day she decorated my carrel at school all up with hearts and candy and stuff. It made some of the fellas jealous and some of the gals decorated each other's carrel to feel good. She sure is great.
Speaking of which, today is the 16th and our anniversary is coming up. It has almost been a year since we got married! Wow, time sure does fly. The crazy thing about life is you get used to things being a certain way, and it is hard to imagine them any other way. I just don't think I could live without Olivia. What a woman. Sure, we have our problems, disagreements and stuff, but I just cannot imagine being here at this point in my life without her. She is definitely my better half. Just ask any of my friends, Liv keeps me in line and helps me be the man I am sure the Lord wants me to be. You just can't ask for more than that.
The pictures here are things that remind me that I am still a cowboy. There is a saying "If you really wanna forget all your troubles, take a walk in a pair of high-heeled boots." I am here to tell you, these boots are comfortable, you really do forget all your troubles. The revolver is my .357 Ruger Blackhawk . It is a nice six-shooter, pretty accurate and it was a heck of a deal.
I hope everyone is doing well. Keep a prayer in your hearts and don't forget my little family. We miss all our friends and we are thankful for all ya'll. Take care!

An Ounce of Attention is Worth a Pound of...

I haven't thought about what should go at the end of this sentence. I have no idea what is going on sometimes. So, I am hoping that everyone is doing well.
Had a lot of semi-sweet moments last week. Welcome to the world Reese Naylor. What a kid, Jake and Lindsay's newborn, cutest newborn I have ever seen. Face it, some of these littlins look like aliens, all squished and red. We visited the Naylors in the horsepistol. It was pretty neat.
Two fellas checked out of life, my great uncle, Don Wixom and a Prophet of God, Gordon Bitner Hinkley. Sad to lose the association with both men. That is the funny thing about life, we all get to leave, but we just don't get to leave together. That is why sometimes people are sad, at least, that is why I get a little sad when people die. It is not because they are "gone forever," because you and I both know they are not. They are gone from our association, but not forever. Think on that happy day when we will be reunited with all those who have passed before us. What a happy day!
I know we all go through rough times, but that is the point of this world. It isn't the Lone and Dreary World for nothing. The part to note is that it will get better. The Plan is called the Plan of Happiness! Not the plan of despair. We should be grateful for the trials and the growth that comes from them and move on, stronger and better. Some of you who have been around me know that my life isn't all charmed, but I would be blatantly foolish to say my life is "hard." I just am thankful that I have the trials and do and that I don't have the trials that I don't.
If anyone wants to go shoot anything anytime soon, lemme know. I wouldn't mind firing some rounds through the .357.
Make it a good day everyone!
May the Wind be at your back, the Sun shine on your face, and may the Good Lord take a liking to ya'll.

日本人の友達たちへ元気をだしましょう！またみなさんへよろしく！

The picture is the moon in the morning on my way to school... Global Warming, gotta love it!

Just in case...

I thought I would put up this picture to thank some of our friends that we haven't seen for a long while. Hope all ya'll are doing well.

Shortest three weeks of Our Marriage.

Did you folks know that my blog has been viewed over 1,000 times?! Holy 'mokes! I would like to personally thank you for this momentous occasion. Happy New Year by the way.
Liv and I are back in Moscow and classes are back on. Grades have been posted. Let's just say that I may not have the best grades, but if they think that I am gonna just fade into the background, they are wrong. I will overcome and be successful. I have lots of support behind me and I will not let those people down, come poop and high water. I come from a long line of hard working people and I refuse to back down from a pursuit that I believe Heavenly Father has sent me on. Enough of that garbage...
It is weird to say, but it is nice to be "home." Don't get me wrong, I love Burley more than most folks, but it is nice to be home with my wife. We have great family and had a good time at home, I may have had a better time than Liv, cause I got to work. Crazy to think how much good physical labor can do for a feller's attitude. We were able to spend time with some of our favorite peoples. What good influences we have. I also got to go rope a few cows. Liv also got the opportunity to perform one of her favorite pastimes, she went shopping with her mom, sister and grandma. They left in the afternoon and didn't get home till the wee hours of the morning. Crazy! Okay, so it was only 11:30 at night, but that was later than I was out roping...
We had a chance to spend time with Riley and Allison et al. They brought a Wii with them. What a hoot! You need to see my dad play that thing, it was worth it.
We also had the opportunity to eat our complete fill of chocolates and sweets. Christmas is time for the Mortensen women to make homemade chocolates and cookies. Nothing better, I gurandamntee it.
Well, I hope all is well for all ya'll.

あきましておめでとうございます！

今年が神様の愛と祝福がありますように。。。

PS The picture is W. Brent as a baby, isn't he a cutie?

The End of an Era

Tomorrow will bring a hint of sadness. We are heading North again to Moscow. Another semester will begin. Today we are saying goodbye to family and friends and trying to get all our stuff together to pack up. It is amazing how fast this past couple weeks has flown by. Oh well, another chapter closing and another one opening... See ya'll in Moscow!

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.)