NEW POST COMING SOON!!!

Stay tuned, fans, cause a new post is coming soon. We just haven't had the time to get all updated yet!!!

Thank goodness for good friends...

Or thank goodness for people who owe you favors, cause that is really what friends are: people who like trading favors with you. Some you trade talking, some you trade odd jobs, and others you trade putting up with each other's bad days. Thanks to all out friends who came out and help put this piano where it is.

The Fortress of Solitude

So, while my wife and most of my fellow law student friends are at class, I changed the oil in the DR and played with chain saws. Is that not great? Nothing makes you feel more like a man than dirty oil and the smell of burning fuel. I do sympathize with all you folks in class, and if you are reading this in class you should wake up and pay attention to what your prof. is saying, you may learn something!

In case you feel slighted, just remember that on Tuesday and Thursday I have classes from 9:30 to 4:30, the longest break in between my classes is 30 minutes. I realize I did it to myself, but I wanted to take these classes and they are all on Tues and Thurs... Oh well.

It is a little strange to have Olivia back in school, I know she will do well. She is an absolutely amazing girl. I am so proud of her!

I guess it is almost time for me to get cleaned up to go to town, so I can learn some more. You gotta love BA with Anderson...

Traveling Partners

These are my nieces Annabelle and Adelyn. They are going to stay at Grampa Brent's, then they will be headed to California. Traveling girls, I tell you what...

What a Cutie!

On my way to Burley, I had the opportunity to visit The Naylors. I had Jake snap this picture of Reese and me. She is just too cute.

Off to B-Town!!!

Hot dang, I am headed back to Burley. I will be leaving early Thursday morning, to travel in the cool in the morning without the traffic. Olivia is not coming with me on the drive. She is staying in Moscow to attend Girl's Camp with our ward girls. She will then fly to Boise. We will be in Burley until about the 23rd of August. I am really looking forward to getting some work done. But anyone who really knows me knows that I am most excited about roping some steers and drinking root beers! Yahoo! Hopefully I will be able to cram enough roping in to satisfy my craving all the way through December. It will take a lot of work, but I think I am up to the task.
For those of you wondering what I have been doing the last few weeks since being done with Summer Skool, I will tell you. I get up with Olivia in the morning and she heads into town to work and I usually read the news. Then I kick it outside to see what I can get done. Washing concrete, watering plants, working in the garden, cutting trails with the D.R. and doing whatever else needs done. I have played a full round of golf thanks to Dave. Olivia and I did attend the ward Pioneer Day Celebration. It was a campout near Elk River. We just threw sleeping bags in the back of the truck. It was great. Our ward is fantastic. I have reloaded lots of ammo and enjoyed firing said ammo at various targets. I also make a trip into town every day to take Olivia lunch. I tell you what, this has been a nice vacation. Someone chidded me yesterday for not getting a job here in Hippie-Ville, and I thought maybe I was being selfish, but I have been working like a rented mule the last 11 months at this Law Skool thing, crud I think a little time to enjoy myself will help me in the long run. Besides, I will be back at banging my head against the wall soon enough. Hope all of you are enjoying the summer months. Take care.

What is in a name?

Its just letters right? But tell me friend: What is the difference between an "e" and an "o"? I will tell you: one is our last name: LARSEN; the other is another family, LARSON. Dutch and Sweden, C'mon people! For hell's sake, if the newspaper can get it right, you'd think that the Federal Government could get this right. The name said LARSEN on the marriage license, LARSEN on BOTH my driver's license and Olivia's. AND ON THE FORM OLIVIA FILLED OUT SHE WROTE LARSEN IN MULTIPLE PLACES!!! Why in the world would we get a letter from the Social Security department addressed to OLIVIA LYNN LARSON?!? AWESOME, right?
Chalk one up for human intelligence in our government agencies...

Doubt Your Doubts

and Believe your Beliefs. Whatever they are. I read a few stories today published by people who claim to understand what I believe and call people who worship the way I do "misguided," "brainwashed," or "uneducated." I wish that I could share the feelings of my heart with these who are my brothers and sisters. They deserve the same blessings in their lives that I enjoy. All I am I owe to my Church. I know that without the Church in my life I would be lost. I would not be married to the wonderful woman that makes me happy. I would not be attending Law School. I know that God lives. I know He is guiding me in the choices I make. I know that Christ suffered for my sins and He is my Savior, and the Savior of the world. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God, whom through God restored the Gospel, in it's fullness. I know that God has called a prophet in our day, Thomas S. Monson. I know that God loves me, and you, and everyone on this earth, we are all His children and He wants us to be happy. To this end He prepared a plan, the Plan of Salvation. We can learn this plan and understand it in our lives. Following this plan gives us assurance and hope. I know these things are true. また日本語で僕の証を皆に話したい。永遠の父なる神様は私たちの天にいるお父さん。イエスは世の救い主です。救いの計画は幸福の計画。従うと永遠の幸せをえることができる。モンソン大根著は神の預言者です。ジョセフスミスは神の預言者として福音をこの世に回復されました。神の力をとしてジョセフがモルモン書を翻訳されました。モルモン書は真理です。末日聖徒イエスキリスト教会は神の教会です。これは僕の証です。真理です。

Just a Thought (We'll See...)

So, Mac has had this blog for quite a while. When we married, it remained his blog, although I was mentioned several times. And it wasn't really that big of a deal. He loves eletronics and technology, and I enjoy them, but not like he does. It wasn't until recently (namely, when we were looking at our married friends' blogs) that he decided it might be alright to let me be a contributor. After, I am his eternal companion. So, he changed some things around, and here I am posting my first blog. Yay! In all this excitement, I decided that this blog was too much a bachelors blog, even though we've been married for over a year and he most certainly was not a bachelor. Around the Fourth, I tried new blog templates, and font colors, the whole shuh-bang. Mac wasn't so impressed. He said it was too frilly and he didn't like it. Not even the big fireworks exploding at the bottom of the page. After a bit of bickering and compromise, we found a template that we could both enjoy. However, the Fourth only lasts for one day, so, I changed the template again. He didn't like that, either. He doesn't really like any of the ideas that I have for "our" blog. I'm a girly girl, I like the frilly things. And while he likes that I'm a girly girl, I don't think he likes it seeping into his manly world (his blog). One day I told him that maybe it would be a better idea if I had my own blog. Besides, I've heard that once you have kids, your blog becomes a shrine to them. Not that that's bad, but looking around, it's true. So why should it be different when you get married? Isn't that a major change in your life? And shouldn't that be included in your personal blog? And really, nothing is personal after you get married, it's all shared. When I told him my idea, he gave me a funny glance, thought about it, and kind of agreed. I think the idea is growing on him. And me, too... We'll see...

Ahhh Summer, at Last:

I took my last final for six months last Friday. I will tell you in a while how I felt about it. So what do I do now? I have no reading to do, no outline to make, no reason to go to the Maynard and enjoy the noise of construction. Olivia is working in town at a law office as a secretary, so I am alone all day, on my own recognizance. Yes, I can be trusted. I even clean and take care of our apartment.
The first day I loaded ammunition so that I can go shooting sometime this week. Then I took Olivia lunch. On the way into town, I ran out of gas. I turned on the reserve and off I went. I made it to the station and swore when I saw the price: $4.15. Just Saturday, it had been 4.04. Oh, well. Too bad I wasn't one of those oil speculators with a good chunk of Exxon in my pocket. I got to eat lunch with Olivia and then I visited the hardware store. There really is nothing like a good hardware store, makes me feel good to walk through one. My favorite hardware store is in Murtaugh, Community Building Supply. If they don't have what you need, or can't get it, you don't need it! I wound up the day by talking to my extended family on the phone and relaxing with Olivia.
Yesterday, I got the bug to clean. I cleaned all over! I hit the trail with the weedeater and cleared things up to make the walk to the pond more enjoyable. I accidentally hit a snake and cut him in two.
Alright, enough with the play-by-play. I just hope all ya'll are having as much fun as I am. But I highly doubt it. If I can I will get pictures of the twin fawns running around here.

The 4th July

Chris LeDoux pegged my feelings about the 4th. So did Johnny Cash. I use the lyrics from their songs here, to give you some of my perspective:
4th of July Rodeos:
Just about two hundred years ago they signed that declaration
Tellin' everybody in the whole wide world they're gonna start a brand new nation
From that day on the 4th of July has been a holiday
To the rich man poor man and everybody but the cowboys in the RCA
Well I get on the phone and call the airlines rent-a-cars and Greyhound stations
Cause I've entered bout thirteen rodeos out across the great big nation
Got the car tuned up the tanks full of gas I've got money in my hand
And if I ain't overdrawn by the end of the week at the bank
I'm a lucky man
It's the 4th of July on the rodeo trail and it'll drive you insane
My wife's worried home by the telephone I'm on the road again
It's the Forth of July on the rodeo trail if I ever make it home I swear
I'm gonna to hang up my hat put up my riggin' sack
And for a month I'm gonna stay right there
Well I've been on the road about three days now and I haven't had a minutes rest
There's dark circles all around my bloodshot eyes and my face is now a whiskered mess
Boy I'd sure like a bath and a home cooked mean but for now I must be satisfied
With this double super-duper half cooked burger
And a side of grease soaked french fries
Well the week's nearly over and I wonder to myself will I ever make it home alive
When a bronc fell on me up in Calgary when he slipped tryin' to make his high dive
And the plane and the pilot that we rented looked like surplus from World War I
And I thought any times about suicide but I haven't found myself a gun
It's the 4th of July on the rodeo trail...
Ragged Ole Flag:
I walked through a county courthouse square
On a park bench, an old man was sittin' there.
I said, "Your old court house is kinda run down,
He said, "Naw, it'll do for our little town".
I said, "Your old flag pole is leaned a little bit,
And that's a ragged old flag you got hangin' on it".
He said, "Have a seat", and I sat down,
"Is this the first time you've been to our little town"
I said, "I think it is"
He said "I don't like to brag, but we're kinda proud of
That Ragged Old Flag

"You see, we got a little hole in that flag there,
When Washington took it across the Delaware.
and It got powder burned the night Francis Scott Key sat watching it,
writing "Say Can You See"
It got a rip in New Orleans, with Packingham & Jackson
tugging at its seams.
and It almost fell at the Alamo
beside the Texas flag,
But she waved on though.
She got cut with a sword at Chancellorsville,
And she got cut again at Shiloh Hill.
There was Robert E. Lee and Beauregard and Bragg,
And the south wind blew hard on
That Ragged Old Flag

"On Flanders Field in World War I,
She got a big hole from a Bertha Gun,
She turned blood red in World War II
She hung limp, and low, a time or two,
She was in Korea, Vietnam, She went where she was sent
by her Uncle Sam.
She waved from our ships upon the briny foam
and now they've about quit wavin' back here at home
in her own good land here She's been abused,
She's been burned, dishonored, denied an' refused,
And the government for which she stands
Has been scandalized throughout out the land.
And she's getting thread bare, and she's wearin' thin,
But she's in good shape, for the shape she's in.
Cause she's been through the fire before
and i believe she can take a whole lot more.

"So we raise her up every morning
And we bring her down slow every night,
We don't let her touch the ground,
And we fold her up right.
On second thought
I *do* like to brag
Cause I'm mighty proud of
That Ragged Old Flag"

GOD BLESS AMERICA: LAND OF THE FREE AND HOME OF THE BRAVE!!!
May we never forget what this country really stands for.
I have only been to a little bit if the world, but I think I have seen enough to know that we really do live in one of the greatest countries in the world. Tonight, I walked out on my balcony and shot six .357's in the air. I can do that to celebrate our independence because I have the right to bear arms. I am writing this because my right to free speech. I stay informed of what is going on in the world because of the freedom of the press. I bow my head wherever I am and pray because I have freedom of religion. I vote for my leaders. I can be heard! What a great country. I love America and I am proud to be AN AMERICAN.

House Guest

This is Bentley. She is a chocolate lab. She belongs to Pat and Tim, they went out of town and we are taking care of her. This picture was after a good game of fetch in the pond. She was tuckered out.

Projectiles...

Fun fun fun...

Luke and I went shooting...

So, this afternoon Luke and I headed out to find somewhere to go shooting, besides Helmer, since it is so far. Well, we ended up out there, because it is kinda the place to go. Luke was breaking in his new Browning .308. I was trying out some of the loads I worked up last night, while waiting for the bats to leave (pictures forthcoming).
We shot all we had to shoot by 7:00. Then a fella pulled up in a darn good looking Dodge Cummins. He had a bumper sticker that read: God Bless Our Troops, Especially the Snipers. He had a bench rest in the back of the truck and we figured he was okay. He asked us what we had been shooting and then said, "You wanna shoot a real gun?"
With trepidation, we agreed. I told him I would catch heck for being late, but he said it would be worth it.
He pulled out the gun cases. In his hard case was a AR-style .50. He told us he'd shoot one and let us. He flinched when he pulled the first time, w/o firing, then said, "I have to do that, just to get the jitters out."
"You see that rock in the sunshine above the bush?" "Yeah." (It was 120 yards). BOOOOOM!!!
The rock busted into peices and tumbled.
He handed it to me, with a smile. I loaded it, pulled it to my shoulder and then remembered the safety. I had no idea where it was. "Just like an AR-15," Mike says. Since Aaron has one, and I have shot it, I knew where the safety was. I clicked it off. Deep breath. I was aiming for a rock above a bush that I thought was 20 feet up the hill.
BOOOOM!!! I felt the kick, not too bad, but the concussion from the shot hit me right between the eyes. The feeling reverberated down my body.
The rock was actually about 40 feet up. What a rock slide! It was awesome!
Luke took his shot. BOOOOM!!! Dadgumm.
That was one fun gun to shoot. We thanked Mike, of course now we introduced ourselves. He was from Moscow. A native, and a darn good fella.
Our smiles said it all. Mike said it was almost more fun to watch people shoot the gun than it was to shoot it.
So, the load of his ammunition was 220 grains of pulled military powder with a 700 grain bullet. In comparison, I shoot a 130 grain bullet with about 4.3 grains of powder. In the picture above this post is one of Luke's .308's. The next round (middle) is the 50 BMG. The far left is a snap cap.
Way too much fun!

Here are two good articles:

I do not generally do this kind of thing, but I found a couple of great articles on the 2nd Amendment.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS
Carrying firearms a chance to educate public

Have you ever watched a Western movie and noticed the cowboy who looked out of place, but you couldn't figure out why? At some point in the movie it is pointed out that ol' Slim doesn't pack iron because he killed/nearly killed an innocent man/woman/child years ago and he swore he'd never touch another gun. How Slim deals with his demons is his own business; the point is that he stand out because he's not wearing a six-shooter.

These days the tables have turned and now most people are not seen with a handgun perched on their hip. When one sees someone carrying a gun, one usually assumes the armed person is either an off-duty police officer or someone up to no good. Most likely both assumptions are wrong.

There is a growing cadre of law-abiding gun owners who use their everyday interactions with others to educate them about firearms and our rights. According to a Los Angeles Times story, most states allow people who aren't barred from owning or carrying firearms to carry them openly. That is the way things should work in a free society; what isn't specifically forbidden is allowed. And government must have a good reason to forbid something.

Open carry is legal in Colorado, except where specifically banned. Locally, open carry was the subject du jour in 2003 when a man began carrying a shotgun with him as he went about his business. When his business included attending City Council meetings, council members took notice and banned open-carry in city-owned buildings. El Paso County has a similar law. Other than government buildings, including public schools and post offices, carrying firearms openly is legal most places in the Pikes Peak region.

Property owners have the right to forbid customers to carry on their property. We'd urge them to err on the side of freedom. When people see firearms owners as the friendly guy ahead of them in line at the grocery store or the woman sharing a joke with them at the coffee shop, they're likely to have a good opinion of firearms owners. Too often, the only thing non-owners hear about firearms is in connection to criminal activity. That unfairly casts legitimate owners in a bad light.

It's not just men packing iron these days, either. More women than ever before are attending firearms safety classes and carrying guns, openly or concealed. They know that firearms can be a safety factor for someone who knows how to use them. A 250-pound thug will think twice when he discovers his 130-pound intended victim is not inclined to do his bidding and has the ability to protect herself and her rights.

Firearms dealers and shooting clubs are presenting classes specifically aimed at educating women about firearms. Manufacturers are responding to this new market by rolling out firearms designed for women's smaller hands.

Open carry is not without its problems, though. Many police officers might not be aware of the legality of the practice and are apt to err on the side of caution when they come in contact with an armed citizen. Other people can feel uncomfortable in the presence of a firearm and might complain to management or call the police. Those who carry openly must be ready to explain their rights and let others know they don't present a threat.

It can be a dangerous world, and the recent budget cuts show there won't always be a police officer or sheriff's deputy around to protect everyone. Even if government had enough money to put an officer on every block, he could be at the other end of the block when some bad actor demands your wallet or kicks in your front door. Ultimately, each person is responsible for his or her own safety. And if gun owners can educate the public on positive aspects of firearms, everyone is better off.

Click here to read this on its original page.

Swiss prove guns not the culprit

Monday, 16 June 2008

Charley Reese Niccolo Machiavelli, who was a sort of Karl Rove of his day, though with more integrity, said of the Swiss that they were "the most free and most armed people" of Europe. Get it? The connection between arms and freedom? That statement is still true of the Swiss. Many people know that they practice neutrality, but not many know that they practice armed neutrality. If the gun controllers' claim that the mere presence of arms leads to mayhem were true, the Swiss would have wiped themselves out years ago. There are guns and gun ranges all over the place. You would be hard-pressed to find a Swiss home without a firearm and ammunition. Yet, the Swiss have a very low crime rate. If you were a robber or a rapist, who would you rather have as a victim? Someone who is armed, or someone who is defenseless? Even a stupid criminal knows the answer to that question. If the police can protect us -- which is another claim the gun-control people make -- then why are so many people murdered, raped and robbed? Even the television fictional stories tell you the answer to that. The cops get there after the crime has been committed. Otherwise, there wouldn't be a crime scene. Nearly all the cop shows open with the police looking at a dead, unarmed body. Do you really believe that the men who had just fought a long and bloody war against the British and were writing what we call the Bill of Rights had this conversation: "Well, let's see. We've guaranteed freedom of assembly, of religion, of speech and of the press. Oh, my gosh, we've forgotten the duck hunters. They'll raise heck if we leave them out, so we'd better write an amendment for them." The Second Amendment has nothing whatsoever to do with hunting. It states: "A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." The men who wrote these amendments were pretty darn fluent in English. If they had intended the right to keep and bear arms to apply only to the militia, they would have said so. They would have written "A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the states to arm their respective militias shall not be infringed." They didn't say that. The main sentence says "right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." "People" means everybody, not just the members of the militia. The subordinate clause, "A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state," just gives one, but not the only, reason why all the people have a right to keep and bear arms. The militia, after all, was drawn from the people. It was not the Army. The first meaning of "bear," by the way, is to carry, bring or take. Americans have the right to keep arms and to carry them. The word "regulate" in those days meant trained, and do you notice again the connection between arms and freedom? The subordinate clause refers to a "free state." Obviously, an unfree state would not allow the people to be armed. The Founding Fathers were not urban neurotics like so many of today's politicians. They were almost all outdoor people. Guns were to them just tools, like their axes or plows. You couldn't survive in the wilderness without firearms, and at the time of our Revolution, there were only about 3 million people from Maine to Georgia. Nor were there any police forces. There was no Secret Service, FBI or any of the other alphabet law-enforcement agencies. If you decided to travel, you traveled at your own risk, and you can bet people traveled armed. When I was last at Williamsburg, Va., they had a room in one of the historical houses arranged as if a traveler had just arrived and unpacked. There on top of a dresser was a pistol. (Write to Charley Reese at P.O. Box 2446, Orlando, FL 32802)

Click here to read the article as it appears in the Malvern Daily Record


Amen!

Our New Home...

The entry way...

The dining area/living room

The kitchen

So, yeah these pictures are kinda self explanatory, but oh well.

Tonight I tracked two deer all over the place. That was a heckuva work out.

You ever wonder where somethings come from, like just now, Olivia just asked if we can get a Christmas tree, in October... I think if we do that we may need to get one in October, then one near the end of November. An arbor I am not. In fact if it isn't a cultivated plant, I am not your man. (i.e. house plants and flowers...) Heaven knows that Grandma Jean and Gramma Marj tried to teach me.

Tomorrow is Father's Day. Call your dad and tell him how thankful you are for him. I tell you what, I am proud to have my dad as my father. He is a good man. He has raised four decent children; taught us how to work; respect ourselves and others; how to be a good husband & father; and he taught us all how to have a good time. I miss having Dad around, roping with him and working with him. I sure learn a lot from him (I almost put an "ed" on the end of learn, but that would be foolish, I learn new stuff from Dad all the time). One thing you should really see is my dad do back-flips on the basketball court during halftime when he referees... You ROCK DAD!!!

This is our view...

Looking west out of the living room, this is what we see. Sorry that the picture is not all too clear, when I find the real camera, I will post better pics.
BTW I just spent an hour or more stomping around in the woods. It was swell.

See the post below.

GLOBAL WARMING MY @$$...

For those of you who are "Green:" IT IS SNOWING HERE IN MOSCOW. NO, this is not a joke, and we are NOT in Moscow, Russia. I rode my motorcycle to skool and as I was going I thought, "Wow, that is a lot of white pollen coming off those trees." But then it hit me as the pollen melted on my helmet: that precipitation, in the form of snow. I tried to take a picture with my camera phone, but you just can't see it well enough.
In other news, we are 3/4 moved. We have a little left to move out. Then start the unpacking and organizing, Liv's favorite. We will get pictures on for everyone to see as soon as we find the camera... We think we know where it is in all the stuff we packed. At my request, we did not pack it in boxes, we packed it in trash bags. (They pack easier and there is less to clean up when your done, and we aren't moving across the country, it is only 5 miles).
Any how, I better get studying for today's classes...
Have a good one, and would someone get Al Gore's phone number for me, I have a somewhat inconvenient truth to tell him...