Like a Box of Rocks...

Lego and Star Wars

2012-02-04T12:06:00.001-08:00

Two of my most favorite things, Lego and Star Wars, so what could be better than combining them? Since my wife has a vinyl and Cricut obsession I figure why not use this power for good. So now I have the coolest Lego box anywhere.

As you can see there is still room in my box for more, so please feel free to send me your unused and unloved Lego sets. Please do it for the children.

Where's Waldo?

2011-06-10T15:35:00.000-07:00

For those of you who remember and enjoy the Where's Waldo books, I have one for you. My awesome and beautiful wife got me tickets to the greatest rock band ever (Ash is yelling in the background 'Kansas', which it's not, sorry Kansas fan) U2. Between Lenny Kravitz and U2, unbeknownst to me, they took a picture of the crowd. Using a 500 megapixel camera, that's right I said 500! Woowee, i need to get me one of those, but i digress. If you have a lot of free time on your hand and want to see the happy looks on 70,000 faces try and find me in the crowd (click the picture).

If you need a hint I'm in section 335, row M, seat 16.

One Night in Bangkok…

2010-10-18T21:55:00.000-07:00

Its true I spent one night in Bangkok, yes the one in Thailand, but I get ahead of myself.

It all started in typical fashion by that I mean that planes and dates changed at least four times. Even when I got on the plane to leave I wasn't completely convinced that it had all settled out. At least I knew that I wasn't going to be alone, there were a few others on the same plane as me, so we could commiserate together. Finally the plane took off and I was heading across the Pacific to Osaka Japan. I know you're thinking wow you've been going to Japan a lot lately. It's true I have, but that was not our final destination, just a transfer point along the way. As a side note: Did you know that Osaka airport was built on a manmade island that is sinking into the harbor at a rate of about 1"/year. Not really relevant, just thought it was interesting. Also for those who don't know being the engineering nerd that I am, while most people are watching the in-flight movie I am watching the flight info channel, you know the one that tells you that you're flying at 39000', the outside air temp is -63 deg F and that you have a head wind of 221 mph. When I saw that we had a huge head wind I had to look out the window and see if we were still moving forward. Yes we were, just slower. So as a result we got into Osaka later than anticipated. Not that this was a problem because I had a 4-1/2 hour layover till the flight to Guam left. Bah! But at least the long leg of travel was done, just a short 3-1/2 flight left. All was going well until the Project Engineer rounded us all up for some late breaking news. It went something like this "You know how we were going to get a nice easy day in Guam before heading out to the Ship? Ya that's not going to happen, we are flying out the Ship tomorrow morning (which at this point was basically today)." Yeah! Who would want to sit around on a tropical island and have a leisurely day anyway.

So to put in all in perspective (all times are Pacific), I left my house at 9:00 am, my first flight left at 12:45 pm, arrived in Osaka 12:15 am left Osaka at 4:45 am, landed in Guam at 8:25 am and to the hotel at 9:15 am so 24 hours of travel and waiting time.

After a short nap of about 4 hours it was time to get up, get going and meet up with the other members of our group. Who really needs sleep anyway? So we all met up at the Sheraton to await transportation to Anderson Air Force Base (AFB). The base was about a half an hour north of town and getting all 26 of us to the right place and the same time would have been difficult so the project leader arranged vans to get us all there. As we were waiting for our van to show up an airman came with a truck so we loaded up our bags in the truck and sent them on ahead to get stored in the plane. After waiting for what seemed like forever our van arrived and we were on our way to AFB and then to the Ship. After a brief safety lecture and donning the appropriate gear it was on to the plane. A C-2 COD (Carrier Onboard Delivery) flight is nothing if not completely different then your normal airline flight. There is no in-flight movie, beverage service, or even rest rooms, if you have to go too bad should have thought of than before you got onboard. There are also only 2 windows, which are about 6" in diameter and not very helpful unless you happen to be really lucky and get that seat ( I wasn't, just in case you were wondering). So strapped in with 24 of my new best friends, backwards, it was time to take off. Luckily it was only going to be about a 45 min flight out to the carrier. No worries I've done this before, flying is no problem. The flight was smooth until we had to start circling to wait our turn to land. Three times we went around, not nice smooth turns either, hard and sharp. Not having any sort of visual clues really messes with your equilibrium, not knowing which way was which, or that a turn was coming, just wham, turn. It wasn't too bad, kind of thrilling actually, until the last turn, where we turned and dropped all at the same time. I made it through, but a few of the others had to use the bags provided if you know what I mean. Then it was time to get on the deck, full speed to stopped in like 2 seconds. What a rush. I've now been catapulted and caught on a carrier. I have to say the launch is definitely more exciting, but both are totally awesome!

Now for the real work.... Blah blah.....confidential....national security and all the stuff.....boring! Needless to say that Aircraft Carriers are big steel rat mazes with no windows, very easy to get turned around and lost for sure. Being in the South Pacific it was hot. From the time I arrived in Guam to the time I got back to Seattle I was sweaty. Yuck. It was hot in the spaces I was working in as well. One thermometer said 105, with 90-100% humidity. I know some of you are thinking that's not really that bad its like that where I live all summer. True, but that was just the ambient air temperature, now add a large piece of equipment that is 400 deg and radiating heat that you have to be right next to. Luckily it was not all work, there was time to watch flight ops, once again I am my fathers son and love the sights, smells and sounds of airplanes. The ship also had a ‘steel beach party' while we were onboard. This is where they set up bbqs and basketball hoops and have a party on the flight deck. It was fun to take a break for a while and enjoy the cruise. After nine days onboard it was finally time to disembark.

We got off the ship in Laem Chabang Thailand. Then we had to make our way south to Pattaya Beach. It was there that we had arranged transportation to get us up to Bangkok. After a quick walk on the beach it was time to head north.

It is monsoon season in Thailand. The two hour ride was exciting, our driver didn't speak English and we didn't speak Thai. On top of that it was pouring rain for about half of the drive and people in believe that lane markers are more suggestions that rules. I'm glad I wasn't driving, but I'm also glad that I made it in one piece. The place we stayed was a super swanky 5-star hotel, didn;t really fit in there, especially after just getting of the ship. After a good meal and a few hours of sleep, my one night in Bangkok was over. The taxi from the hotel to the airport was a Mercedes. I could get used to that, I'm sure I could.. Then it was on the plane, a quick stop in Tokyo and then home. The flight home was cool, we left at 7:30 am and landed at 9:30 am, from half way around the world in only 2 hours, amazing! If only.

As far as I can figure, I've now been the farthest away from home in my family, 7439 miles, as the crow flies.

Totally Awesome Day

2010-07-19T14:13:00.000-07:00

I know it has been over a year since I blogged. I’m not going to promise that I’ll be better, because that just doesn’t sound like me. Anyway…

For those of you who don’t know me, there are certain things that I don’t like or just downright despise, paying for parking is one of those things. But I get ahead of myself. So Friday night we went out with our friends Court and Brad. We were going over to Seattle for dinner and then to REI. Just those things alone would have made it an awesome day. Trying not to sour the evening with my distain I was all prepared to pay the $3 to park for dinner. When we got to McCormick & Schmick's for dinner the harbor lot was free after 4 pm. Score! So we had a great dinner and free parking and I knew it was only get better, because we were still going to REI. So with Karen (our GPS) leading the way we successfully navigated downtown Seattle and arrived at REI only to find that the parking garage there was free! What! 2 free parking experiences in one night, I thought I must have been dreaming. I was looking for a new pair of hiking boots at REI, but I came away empty handed. I guess I should have traded the universe one of the free parking experiences for a good pair of boots.

Tadaima

2009-05-15T08:22:00.000-07:00

Hello all. I'm back home from my adventures in Japan (and the surrounding ocean) safe and sound. Here are a few highlights of the trip.

After a long 10 hour plane ride and a 1-1/2 hour bus ride we arrived in Yokosuka. Luckily is was dinner time when we arrived and I was hungry so being in Japan it was sushi for dinner. Eight of us went out and found a sushi-go-round, where the plates of various sushi travel on a conveyor belt and you just pull off what you would like to eat. After a while we all had a pile of empty plates and full bellies so it was a good evening.

In between meetings we had a bit of free time to explore the city. The people were all really friendly and since the Naval base is here they are all pretty used to Americans and our unusual ways. Lunch was a bit more interesting, no we didn't go to the McDonald's, but to the place right next door. The menu was all in kanji, but there were pictures and I understand those. There's no point to being in a foreign country if you don't try and be a bit adventurous.

Downtown Yokosuka

The next day we packed up and boarded the Ship for a pleasure cruise, umm I mean for work. Even though we planned on working 12-14 hour days there was still going to be a bit of time for some fun.

Me on the Flight Deck before departure.

Being that I am my fathers son, the best part of the trip was hanging out on 'vultures row' and watching flight ops. I probably spent at least 10 hours just watching planes take off and land enjoying the sights and sounds associated with it all.

F-18 landing on the deck.

We got done with all of our testing early. And since the ship wasn't back at the pier yet, there are only a couple of ways to get off, either by helicopter or plane. So we got our names on the list for a COD (Carrier Onboard Delivery) flight. Me and 20 of my new best friends got strapped into the C-2 for the ultimate thrill ride from zero to the end of the deck in 2 seconds. Woowee! what a ride! After being shot off the deck of an aircraft carrier commercial airline flights are pretty boring.

C-2 COD plane

After landing at Atsugi Naval Air Field we had a 1-1/2 hour bus ride up to Narita that went right through downtown Tokyo. I wish there were a couple more days to explore Japan just a bit more, but it was not to be on this trip.

Our last night was spent in Narita (right near the airport) at a pretty swanky hotel. Around the hotel was a really nice japanese garden (hee hee).

Ten days after it started I was back home again and very tired. Was an awesome experience, but would have been better if Ash could have been there as well.

I'll post some more specific accounts of life on and around the ship. Till then.

Sayounara!

The Battle Rages On

2008-12-01T04:50:00.000-08:00

A guy that was in my group at work had a sign on his cubical that read “Fight apathy, or don’t”. I always thought it was quite amusing, but as I sit here writing this at 4:30am, I feel a little apathetic. Yes once again I am on the sunset to sunrise schedule (1800-0600). That combined with the fact that there has been absolutely nothing happening and no reason for me to actually be here, but here I am waving the flag in support. It’s only supposed to be 2 more weeks and then hopefully the project will be done and we can head for home. Yeah!

In trying to fill the long quiet hours I’ve been reading talks from the last General Conference and the Church News. I came across this in a talk by President Boyd K. Packer given on November 16, 2008.

“I give you a strong caution. Be wary of the word tolerance. . . . We are not required to tolerate anything that leads to unhappiness. . . . Tolerance is often demanded but seldom returned. Beware of tolerance. It is a very unstable virtue."

Then after reading the talk from President Packer I read a talk from Elder M. Russell Ballard that was given on November 16, 2008 as well.

"It is the battle for the hearts and souls of Heavenly Father's spirit children, pitting us against Lucifer, the Great Deceiver, the father of lies," he said. "As it has always been, this battle is fought on the battleground of moral agency and free will. Regardless of the technology or the political environment of the time, it all still comes down to this: How are you going to choose to exercise your God-given agency? Are you going to choose to follow the Lord, or are you going to choose to follow Satan? It really isn't any more complicated than that. No matter how much we may try to justify or rationalize our choices, it still comes down to choosing good over evil."

Even if we don’t win every battle with the world, at least we can be on the right side.

Another Day in Paradise

2008-11-21T02:32:00.001-08:00

It’s another day, or I should say night here in tropical San Diego. Working nights lately has not put me in a blogging mood, so I apologize. This last week I’ve been on the horrible 6pm to 6am shift. Yup, 12 hours sunset to sunrise. Working all night and sleeping for most of the day has put a damper on doing anything besides work. It’s all about work when you’re on TDY, but having free time is nice too. I really can’t complain too much I’ve had several weekends off and working normal swing shift (1430-2300) allows for activities in the morning.

On to a completely unrelated topic now. I read a couple of weeks ago that they published what the code names for our new First Family and Vice President’s Family (would they be the Second Family?) are going to be. Being the simple non-spy that I am, I would think that announcing to the world what your code name is kind of defeats the purpose of having said code name.

PS: If you haven’t stayed up till 2:30 in the morning recently, I wouldn’t recommend it. No good can ever come from being awake at this hour!

Rental Car Roulette

2008-10-30T19:53:00.001-07:00

Here in San Diego I get a rental car to get myself to and from work, and other places in my off hours. It’s all pretty sweet, except for every 30 days we need to turn our car in and get another one. We are always booked to get compact cars, but the rental companies generally treat us pretty good and give us bigger cars. So I picked up my third car and it has been a mixed bag so far.

The first one was a Dodge Nitro, an ugly blue boxy SUV thing. For those of you familiar with southern California, having a big vehicle is not necessarily a good thing. The lanes are narrow, and the parking spaces are designed with enough room to park a scooter provided that nobody parks on either side of you. It was made worse by the fact that it had New Mexico license plates. So even though I’m an outsider here, I don’t like to advertise that fact. That and I didn’t like the idea of people thinking that I picked this thing on purpose to drive. So needless to say I was happy to get rid of one and hoped for something better.

Round two was much better, a red Pontiac G6. Decent car, good power, and it had California license plates. Yeah!

On to round three. I was hoping for the Nissan Z that was there, but no luck. Instead it’s a gold Chevy HHR. To make matters worse it has Oklahoma license plates. So once again I’m in an ugly, car and color, vehicle from out of state. It is not a big vehicle, wouldn’t even consider it a small SUV, its more of a large sedan. It is not that high off the ground either, but it has step boards. Huh? Is this in case Jiminy Cricket needs a ride and nobody wants to help him in? Overall not a big fan, maybe if it had some power it would make up for it, but alas no.

It’s only for a month, but who’s counting….

Flat Tires and Owwiee Fingers

2008-10-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

Last week as we came back from grocery shopping I noticed that the rear passenger tire on the car was flat. Since we hadn’t driven the car for about a week and a half, it was probably flat for a while. Since there wasn’t anybody parked next to us I decided the put on the spare. Having never used the spare tire on the car, I had bad thoughts that it would be flat as well. Much to my relief the spare was in perfect condition. So I swapped tires and loaded the flat one in the truck. Because of work getting the tire fixed would have to wait till the next morning. Bright and early we headed out to a tire shop to get the flat fixed. The guys at the tire shop were really cool. They pulled the big nail out and patched the hole. After about 1/2 hour we were on our way again with all the tires inflated and all located where they were supposed to be.
Side note: Being in California right now, there is a ballot proposition to (Prop 8) define marriage as between and man and woman only. There are lots of radio and TV commercials for both sides, and it has gotten pretty ugly. I’m all for passing Prop 8, but not being a resident of the state I can’t vote here.
Back to my original story, the tire shop had a yes on Prop 8 sticker on the counter, so I felt good about supporting their business. That and they did a good job on fixing my tire.

In our apartment the electrical box is in the hallway, just out side of our bedroom. I turned off the lights in the living room and was heading toward the bedroom in the dark. Sometimes I’ll run my hand along the wall, just so I don’t run into anything. This time is wasn’t such a good plan. My fingernail caught under the electrical panel door and bent the nail from about half way down all the way back. It hurt a lot, blood oozed out from under the nail. Now that it’s been a couple of day I can touch it without it hurting, so it probably won’t need to be amputated.

Working Tourist

2008-10-21T19:56:00.001-07:00

Currently I am working swing shift here in San Diego, so that means the mornings are mine to do as I please before having to head to work. I get to be a working-tourist. There are several things I have learned about people and events I’ve witnessed so here goes:

1) Things that are free rarely are, there is always, or almost always, a catch. Every Tuesday a different museum in Balboa Park is free, whoo hoo! free is good. While there is no monetary cost associated with visiting the museum there is a crowd/people cost. Most of the crowd consists of school age children on a field trip. While I understand it makes sense for schools to save their budgets and allow the kids a meaningful experience it makes things crowded and loud for the rest of us cheap people.

2) Signs and rules apply to everyone else. One of the free museums was the Museum of Photographic Arts. One would think, even without a sign, that taking pictures of the pictures would be frowned upon. Not for certain individuals, click click click. Just makes you want to go and lick their camera lens and then read sign to them.

3) The San Diego Zoo is big. While you can navigate the entire zoo in one day, its better to be able to enjoy it over the course of several months, which is why we have memberships. For those of you lucky enough to be in San Diego the first part of October, the zoo is free on the first Monday. That freeness comes with a cost though …

4) Regardless of where you are there is always a chance that you’ll bump into someone you know, or they’ll bump into you. We saw my brother-in-laws brother and wife (not sure what that makes us, but that’s a quandary for another day), at Disneyland. Its funny how our random paths through life often intersect.

5) Its really only cool to wear Mickey ears at Disneyland. So if you’re one of those Disney dorks out there, sorry. That’s why I’ll only don my mouse ears in the seclusion of my own living room and at Disneyland.

Mr. Fixit

2008-07-29T16:30:00.000-07:00

I got to spend the weekend doing something I enjoy, that's right taking things apart. Ashley's sewing machine was not working properly; it was bunching up stitches from the bobbin, and being all sorts of obnoxious. After reading the book for a possible cause (yes I read the manual sometimes), I figured that it hadn't been cleaned or lubricated since she got it, so it was about time.
After I got it all taken apart, with parts and pieces laying all over the table I jokingly said "I hope I can get all this put back together". Ashley didn't find this as amusing as I did.
I got it all back together without a whole lot of trouble, I even used all of the parts (I know it was amazing). So then it was time for testing. Operating the wheel manually the needle went up; it went down and then crunch! The super smart engineer that I am failed to realize that the bobbin wheel slot needed to be aligned to allow the needle to go up and down properly. So I got to not only take it all apart once, but twice, yeah! After some minor adjustment I got it all aligned properly and it seemed to be working. So it was on to testing. With the machine threaded and a spare piece of material at the ready it was time to sew. I'll admit I was a little nervous if it was actually going to work right. It was beautiful, nice even stitches, no problems. Yeah! I am so smart. Ashley was so happy that her sewing machine was working and it didn't have to get thrown out the window, and I got to tinker.

Money Trouble

2008-07-22T16:28:00.000-07:00

I feel a need to apologize to the rest of the world for our confusing money. How is somebody from a foreign country supposed to know how much a dime is worth? Where did we get the arbitrary names of dime, nickel and penny from anyway?

Last week we were on vacation. We started off by going to Boise to be a part of our niece’s baptism. Instead of heading straight back home we took the scenic route through the Columbia River Gorge and Mount St. Helens. As part of vacation we are always on the lookout for pressed penny machines. (Ashley has quite the collection and is always looking to add more to the 600 or so she already has.)

So now on to the reason for my apologetic blog.
At the Johnston Ridge Observatory at Mount St. Helens there is a penny machine. Near the penny machine there was a display of various types of volcanic rock from different volcanoes from around the world. As I was examining the different types of rock I noticed a lady having a problem making a pressed penny. For those who have never had the experience of using one of these wonderful contraptions they are really quite simple. You place 2 quarters and 1 penny in the appropriate coin slots (the quarters pay for the privilege of squishing a penny, and the penny is what you squish), push them in and let her rip. Nothing to difficult unless you have no idea what the various coins are. The lady was from London and feeling a certain affinity to the English People, I offered my assistance. Her main problem was instead of using a penny she had a dime in the slot. Since she had no penny and I happened to have one in my pocket I furthered good will between our countries by giving it to her.
I understand her dilemma; there is nothing on our coinage that indicates its value. Other countries coins have a number clearly printed on them as to there value. But not us, we like to make it as confusing as possible for those dang foreigners.

Another funny money story from our vacation. We stayed in a B&B in Hood River Oregon. As I was bringing stuff in from the car I saw a penny, 1 cent >8-), on the ground or so I thought. Never to overlook making a little extra money I picked it up. Upon initial examination I thought it was a Canadian penny, but it just didn’t look right so I looked closer. It turned out to a Euro 2 cent piece. Huh! Little town in Oregon and I find a Euro coin. It has now been added to my jar of various coins from around the world.

I'm Back - Finally

2008-07-21T16:28:00.000-07:00

Wow! July already. Where has the year gone? So I haven’t updated my blog for a while (as most of you have noticed). Here are a few of the lame reasons that I’ll use in my defense:
I had to go to Groton Connecticut for work, the basement swallowed my life for many months, I spent time in San Diego for work, work has been insanely crazy so I just couldn’t spend any more time on a computer when I got home, and the most believable reason of all LEGO Star Wars. Okay I'm going to try and repent and make the wait so worth while. I promise.

Cooking with Brent

2007-12-14T18:26:00.000-08:00

As you may know I like to watch cooking shows, taking ingredients and mixing them together in just the right quantity to make something fabulous. Having watched many shows and also spending time actually cooking I feel that there are things I can pass on to aid in your cooking endeavors.

Ashley requested a pumpkin roll for her birthday. I have never made a pumpkin or any other roll for that matter. I'll admit I was a little nervous. I pictured a crumbled pile of cake with the filling spread on top. So following the directions very carefully I proceeded to cook. The instructions said to "lay out a clean dish towel (do they really need to tell you to use a clean towel? seriously) "dusted with powdered sugar to turn the cake onto..." So I had my towel all prepared and I was ready to turn the cake over onto it. Not wanting to have it break, or go other than where I wanted it to go I turned it over quickly and probably a little too hard. Instead of having a towel dusted with powdered sugar I had a kitchen dusted with powdered sugar, it went everywhere. I know what you’re all thinking, "your man wouldn't have done that...", and your probably right, but this was my first time. So after the cloud of sugar dissipated I proceeded to pull off the wax paper and roll the cake. At this point I was feeling a little better about the success of the endeavor, but still a little worried. So I proceeded to mix the filling and let the cake cool. Once cool, I carefully unrolled the cake from the towel and proceeded to spread the gooey cream cheese mixture on it. Once frosted it got rolled up and placed in the fridge to cool.

The end product was amazing, if I do say so myself. So if any of you are brave enough to try the pumpkin roll (recipe on the Libby pumpkin can) be careful not to dust your entire kitchen in powdered sugar.

Happy Birthday

2007-12-12T19:20:00.001-08:00

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday lovie Ashley, happy birthday to you!

I want to wish my best friend a happy birthday. I hope she has had a great day! Thanks to everybody who called and wrote to wish her a happy birthday.

Bad Cows

2007-11-20T18:40:00.000-08:00

I have to rant for a minute. I read online that a super crazy environmental group is blaming cows for global warming and deforestation. They are urging us to stop drinking milk and eating meat. So if we all do what VIVA (the crazy group, not the milk producer) suggests aren’t we going to have a whole lot of cows with no purpose? So as a simple engineer here is an idea of what to do with all of our excess cows.

Let’s harness all those bad greenhouse gases that the cows are producing. We could refine it and market is as ‘bovine-diesel’. We could have the largest fuel producing region in the world, just imagine the entire Midwest in gas production. Or better yet we could go all back to the future and install a cow on every car, totally better than the Mr. Fusion. The folks in Texas would love the idea, instead of mounting a big longhorn rack on the front of their Cadillac they can install the whole bull.

I’m starting to make the “Moo-ve Over, Bovine on Board” bumper stickers right now, so place your orders early.

Seriously people, I’m as much of an environmentalist tree hugger as the next guy, but blaming cows for the problems of the world, is just crazy.

Playing with Scissors

2007-11-15T21:17:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don’t know me really well, I am fidgety, can’t sit still for more than 2 seconds. If there is a small object near me I will pick it up and play with it. This can get me into trouble, as it did the other night.

I was working on the laptop at our dining room table. Scattered on the table were various crafting items that Ashley had been using for a Young Women’s project. Among the various objects was a pair of scissors. Absently I picked them up and began to open and shut them not really paying much attention to what I was doing. Then something felt different, it wasn’t just air that I was cutting but something a little more solid. It was one of those moments when you really don’t want to look down and see what happened.

Of course it wasn’t one of the old tablecloths, it was Ashley favorite red tablecloth. So please keep all sharp objects away from me, especially when I’m distracted.

Thoughts of Dad

2007-11-02T13:38:00.001-07:00

Today is my dad’s birthday. There are things that I learned from dad that I never appreciated until recently.

Most of my memories of dad are of work related things. Whether it was making a trip to the mountains to cut firewood, or laying sod, or planting trees. There was always some home project that needed to be accomplished. Very rarely were the correct parts available to finish a job, but there was always an abundance of parts that would ‘work’. I don’t know and probably will never know if piecing things together as only dad could do really saved time and effort. It never made much sense to me but he always knew that the convoluted path to get there would work out. Dad never really needed a set of sawhorses; he had kids for that duty. There were many times that I heard “come hold the end of this board while I cut it”.

I’m appreciative of these things now that I have projects of my own and have the skills to be able to build and fix things. I’ve been spending quite a bit of time working on our basement and while I work my thoughts invariably turn to my dad. It’s during those moments that I feel his loss most. My dad was good at just about everything he did and while I do pretty good work, it just doesn’t seem to be as good.

My dad had a funny way of showing us that he loved us. Very rarely did he ever just come out and say it, but we knew anyway. We often heard things like “come look at my dumb kid” and “are you ever going to amount to anything”. I knew that this was dad’s way of showing affection. Because of my dad I’m trying to amount to something.

Doorway to Where?

2007-10-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

You may know that we have been doing some home improvement and remodeling on our basement. The ‘project’ originally started out to simply insulate the walls and paint. Over time the scope has greatly increased from a simple job to a complete overhaul and makeover. Since we will have new walls, and floor, why would we want to keep the old ugly beat-up doors? So out came the old doors and frames. Before the demolition I carefully measured each opening and made sure what direction each door opened. After making a beautiful sketch with all of the relevant information, destruction commenced.

The closet door is a bi-fold type door no door frame required. Super genius engineer that I am I carefully measured the door size to the existing frame. With the door frame removed the 30” door that I bought was too small for the 32” opening. No worries 32” is a standard size door so return the door I have and get the correct size door. Off to Home Depot to make a simple exchange. Normally you would think that if you have the product and a receipt it should be really easy to return an item. For some reason the barcode on my receipt would not scan properly so the cashier attempted to enter the receipt code in manually. After several failed attempts additional help was requested. So the other lady working the service desk came over and attempted to enter the code, same results. At this point I stated thinking that I was becoming quite attached to my closet door and should just keep it. Finally the head cashier came over to assist with my transaction. After about 15 minutes we finally get results, I got my $38 dollars back and it was time to get the correct size door. Amazingly enough it works better when you type in all the numbers on the receipt, huh. I wish I could say that it was a happy ending and all is well, but alas no. Picture if you will a nice row of closet doors all organized into sizes and styles. Down the row I go, 48”…. 36” ….. 30”, huh? Where is my 32” closet door? The manufacture makes a 32” door, I want a 32” door. How hard is this? Apparently very hard. Super genius engineer to the rescue, big door frame, smaller door, duh! make a smaller door frame. Once again I need to buy a 30” door. The three doors that are on the shelf all look pretty beat up, I don’t want a damaged door. Ashley suggests that we go get the one we just returned. So no problem just walk nonchalantly up to the return counter and grab my original door and hope the lady that helped return it doesn’t notice. So after everything I end up with the same door that I started out with. I was hoping that it would be on sale the second time around, but no, at least the price didn’t go up.

Airport Trivia

2007-10-29T08:30:00.000-07:00

Having to start somewhere so here goes….

Several weeks ago my Grandpa passed away. So I headed down to Salt Lake to be with my family. Actually I was flying down to Boise and then driving with my sister down to Salt Lake. From where we live the airport is not really convenient. Since I was traveling by myself, it was easy to catch a ferry and then a bus to the airport. Ashley dropped me off at the ferry terminal and then headed off to a Young Women’s basketball game. After an uneventful ferry and bus ride I arrived at the airport 3 hours early. I know it seems a little excessive to get to the airport so early, but it’s just the way it worked out. I wasn’t checking any bags so it was straight to the security screening and all of the joy that goes along with that. Take off the shoes, make sure all your liquids and gels are in one zip top bag and place your things on the scanner. Luckily I didn’t get selected for an ‘additional’ security screening so I moseyed down to my gate stopping for pizza along the way, hey I had nothin’ but time. Stopping along the way to check the status of my flight, and guess what, it was delayed by 35 minuets. No problem I had my ipod and book I could entertain myself. I found a place to sit near my gate and started watching the people around me. Soon a group of older people, probably mid 60’s I would imagine, started talking quite loudly. I wasn't necessarily trying to listen to their conversation, but I really couldn’t help it. Their conversation turned to TV shows, more specifically The Golden Girls. They were trying to remember the names of the main characters and could only come up with Rose and Blanche. It there desperation to solve this dilemma one of the ladies turns to me and asked if I watched The Golden Girls. Trying really hard not to laugh and make a snotty comment I just said, ‘no, never did’. Seriously, I’m a guy in my thirties, on what planet would I watch The Golden Girls. Okay I’ll admit that I’ve watched some pretty dumb shows just because there wasn’t anything else on, but not this one. Just in case you were wondering, the other ones are Dorothy and Sophia, (isn’t the internet great).

So once I got to Boise it was just a matter to make it out to the curb and wait for Jen to pick me up. Being the super nice brother that I am, I decided to make myself easier to see by standing on a bench. So my sister drives up and thinks to herself “Who’s the idiot standing on a bench? Oh wait it’s just my brother.”