100 Years of Scouting Gala

Scouting began in the United States 100 years ago. To celebrate , we attended a gala dinner with 2500 others in the Salt Palace. Joseph was able to get us tickets through a neighbor in his ward. The ceremony began with a choir of Eagle Scouts conducted by Michael Huff. Pretty impressive. Did I mention that I want an Eagle choir at my funeral? Then a young man was awarded a special lifesaving award for trying to save his mother's life after she fell a thousand feet off of Mt. Olympus.

Little Caleb was an angel through the entire night. We sat right up front. The only problem with up front is that we were also right next to the loudspeakers. There was a keynote speaker who just happened to be the president of the Boy Scouts of America. Lt. Governor Greg Bell spoke and got a laugh when he said that BSA headquarters may be in Irving, Texas - but Utah is the capitol. Utah, with only 1% of the population of the United States has more than 10% of all Eagle Scouts.

We were entertained by a group of former scouts from Utah named Eclipse. They also performed at the 2002 Olympics. It was a little weird to hear scouts really sing out.

Joseph and Caleb enjoyed the evening - and so did we.

Is San Rafael Next?

A memo is floating around in the Obama administration indicating that two locations in Utah may be being considered for designation as National Monuments. This news infuriated members of the Utah State Legislature who are still smarting after the designation of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. But I wonder, why all the fuss? The San Rafael Swell has some of the most stunning scenery in the world.

The view from the Wedge Overlook is something someone never forgets. The campground is right on the rim, something that would probably change if this was a National Monument.

The view of Bottleneck Peak from the San Rafael River is only one of the incredible vistas from this single point. To the north is a view up a narrow winding canyon, to the east is the rugged Mexican Mountain and the eastern ridge of the Swell, and the southern view is one of Assembly Hall Peak.

Hidden throughout the Swell are Barrier Canyon style petroglyphs, many of them still untouched by vandals. We have enjoyed hiking in the Black Box, exploring the slot canyons of the Bell and Little Wild Horse drainages and watching the stars of the Milky Way from one of the most remote areas in the country. If this doesn't qualify for monument status, I don't know what would.

On the Road Again

From the day I bought my first car, I wanted to use it to explore the wild areas of Utah. Janene and I drove our 67 Mustang through the dirt roads of the Uintas, even once going to the shore of Haystack Lake. That trip resulted in a hole in the oil pan. I longed to own the kind of vehicle that would allow me to truly explore. Shortly before Angie was born, we bought this 1951 Willy's Station Wagon. It cost $900 - a small amount that was dwarfed by the money we (I should say "I", because Janene was against it from day one) would eventually pour into it. It was in this vehicle that we first explored the Burr Trail, the Fisher Trail, and the Murdock Basin Road. Unfortunately, this was also the vehicle that broke down on just about every scenic road in Utah.

One trip on the Burr Trail with Julia and Tammy was particularly memorable because the rear leaf springs broke after we loaded up with petrified wood. Janene was badly sunburned, pregnant and miserable and she felt every single rock on that rough road. When we arrived home, it was time to repair the vehicle. While I was working on it, the vehicle fell off the stands with me under it, badly crushing my left hand. Janene and the neighbor came out to the sounds of my screams. Our neighbor picked up ( yes, I said "picked it up") the car while I scrambled out. Miraculously, though my hand was as big as a basketball, no bones were broken. I have since had to have three or four cysts removed from that hand. Maybe connected, maybe not.

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For several years, every weekend was a new adventure for us. We went often to the Uintas with Steve and Sherry Kubisch in their 56 Ford truck. We used the CB radio to communicate with each other and to talk to people all over the world using the "skip" that we could reach from the high mountain peaks. We never camped in a campground, but instead searched for remote sites where we could be alone. Janene was truly a good sport about this. For a man, the whole world is his urinal. For Janene, with two kids in diapers, it must have been a great ordeal, an ordeal that she endured for my sake. I loved this car, but eventually we could no longer afford to maintain a vehicle that was older than I was, and we sold it to another young family for $1000.00. It was a steal for both of us.

Will you be my Valentine?

This year will be our 42nd Valentine's Day together. After all these years we both still love to be together. We never run out of things to talk about. We had a big bunch of the time with a handful of kids in the middle, and we used to wonder if we would still like each other when the diapers, soccer practice, senior proms, and weddings were over. Our last little vacation showed that we still have the spark. We always have our little differences. Janene thinks a vacation is a time to relax, and she thinks that I always want to go go go. Somehow we balance each other out and still have fun. We are looking forward to another 42 years together. If we are lucky, we might just remember who we are by then.

Like Father, Like Son?

I was trying out the facial recognition software again and both of these guys ended up in the same folder. Of course, the top one is me and the bottom one is our son Doug. The funny thing is - Doug and I are not related at all. Doug joined our family when he was about 15 years old. Doug used to work with me in the fire business, and everyone would always comment on how much we looked alike. There usually was no question until they heard Doug's last name. We have a lot of fun too, pretending to be the Dynamic Duo. Whenever Doug calls, I always respond with "Batman!" to his "Hello, Good Citizen". Since those pictures came up together, I thought I would take this chance to record that memory. Back to the Bat Cave!

What to do .... What to do?

Ok, so I'm home sick with the flu, I feel miserable and wanted something to drink to help my sore throat. Janene has gone with friends to a cabin for the weekend and I'm home alone. I found this nice bottle of vino blanc in the fridge (it's just carbonated grape juice) It was a Christmas gift. It is a fine Italian make from a French importer. This would soothe my aching throat and get some much needed liquids into my feverish system. There's only one problem....

Beginning at the first of the year, my son in law, Stephen began the year with a resolution to avoid soda pop. He tried to get lots of people to join him in his efforts - kind of like an AA group. Nobody would join him. We all liked our Diet Cokes or our Dr. Peppers, too much. Well, I finally gave in and joined him. It has now been over a month without a Diet Coke. The first two weeks were miserable. I had a caffeine headache the whole two weeks. So now my dilemma... Is this really considered soda pop? And does it really matter if it's used for medicinal purposes? Besides, I'm home alone. Who will ever know?

Well, to quote from Clarence in It's a Wonderful Life, " No, I didn't take a drink". Ok, I'm headed for the Alka-Seltzer. Plop,Plop, Fizz, Fizz! Curses - foiled again!

Swimming with Sharks

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be snorkeling or diving and come face to face with a great white shark?

Maybe with a more docile tiger shark?

Or a hammerhead?

If you go to the aquarium in Maui, you can get a little bit of an idea of what that would feel like. Many of you asked how I learned to do underwater photography. It was easy - I just took my camera and paid my $25 admission to the aquarium. Are you kidding? Me with a camera underwater? It's all I can do to bring myself to get in the water with those bizarre creations. I could never do that AND hold a camera. I would probably forget to breathe.