Just Joshin'

Gifts 1-3

2008-06-26T21:16:00.002-07:00

1. 2000 - Back Pack - I had just finished my first semester at Snow College and made my new resolution. The back pack I had for several years had a broken zipper and just wouldn't hold stuff anymore. Instead of buying a new cheap backpack I went and spent a little more so it would be more a nice gift to myself that I could use whilst on a mission. I used the backpack for two years on a mission and by the end it was more than worn out, I think about a quarter of it was reinforced with duct tape. When I returned home I replaced it with a cheap version to go back to school with.

2. 2001 - Mini-Disc player - While I was on a mission I had a cd player which I used to listen to music. I was soon introduced to the advanced technology in Japan. It was as easier to record and share music on a mini-disc player than on a tape recorder, but you had the quality and ease of use that came with a cd player. I used this for the last year of the mission and for four years after I returned home. It was great until it was eventually made obsolete. It became such a pain to find discs, and the battery, though rechargeable, was on its last leg. I sold it on e-bay to someone in Europe who paid me 75% of what I originally paid for it.

3. 2002 - I thought I had a picture of my Toyota Tercel, the first car I ever owned. Even though buying a car doesn't really seam like a toy keep in mind that at the time I lived in Ephraim and I didn't really need a car I walked just about everywhere but the grocery store and Denny's. It was a great little car which on rare occasions I regret that I sold it, but it was a little small for me. I always felt cramped in the drivers seat and it seemed to hurt my lower back. I sold it to a guy from Brazil whom I worked with at the time and he sold it to a Hispanic guy named Felix when he returned to Brazil who still drives it to this day.
I used to drive the Tercel camping, hiking, and exploring. In fact that Tercel probably was probably driven on dirt almost as much as it was driven on paved roads.

Millenium Resolution

2008-06-22T21:26:00.003-07:00

Some people, as well as myself, set New Year's resolutions. I on the other hand also made a New Millennium's goal at the end of 1999; I set a goal to, despite financial obligations such as school, to buy myself one toy every year. When I first began the price of my gift to myself was fairly inexpensive. As this little resolution of mine has progressed the average price of the toy has tended to increase as well. Thus far I have been successful in fulfilling this goal. In later posts I will try to provide a picture of each of the gift I have purchased if I can find one and give information as to whether or not I still have it and if not, what happened to it, and why it was the gift or toy for the year.

2000 Back Pack
2001 Sony Mini-disc player
2002 Toyota Tercel 1993
2003 Phillips 12 C.D. changer
2004 Jamis Dakar 2003
2005 Mazda 626 2002
2006 Optoma HD70 Projector
2007 Jamis XAM 1.0 2007
2008 Yamaha V-Star 2002

Free Summer Fun... Almost

2008-05-20T14:46:00.002-07:00

So those of you who know me would venture to say that I'm not really a golfer. A one armed man can could with his fingers (thumb not included) the amount of times I have been golfing. So when a friend of mine suggested I try a game of disc golf I was a little hesitant.
A previous roommate of mine was an avid disc golfer but he also had many things in common with hippies not drugs or smoking but he liked drum circles (which can be cool), slack-lining, tie-dye shirts, man-capries made from pants with a pair of scissors, and a few other things that I won't bore you with, but you get the picture.
So I get to a disc golf course, which I was a little surprised even existed, only to see numerous people everywhere at this course. There was a small line to start playing, an most people I saw had form. Imagine a golfer getting ready to tee off. He lines up, makes sure his grip is good, sets his feet, takes a few practice swings, (accurate??) and then is ready to swing. I was, I dare say, flabbergasted. I thought to myself, "self, I know how to throw a frisbee, so whats the big deal, why don't these hippies just throw the thing already and get on with it?" I later concluded that most of them are much better than I and their approach to the game just may give them an edge on me. The course was actually quite scenic as we walked through trees and crossed a river that winds it way through and on the side of several fairways and pins. On the first outing I was fortunate not to have a disc land in the water, however, my friend was as fortunate. When water has a current its a good thing that the discs sink and sit in the water just about where they landed.
After a solid 18 holes or pins of disc golf I found that unbeknownst to me, I had enjoyed myself the entire time and I had not spent one cent unless you calculate the cost of fuel consumption into the cost of an activity. Still gas prices on the rise or not relatively free.
So my friend and I have been disc golfing a couple of times a week and everything seemed free to me until one day... I was standing on the tee of the 7th pin, to reach the fairway you have send your disc across the river; the path to the fairway is somewhat narrow due to trees that line the river. This isn't a big river, about 20 or 30 feet wide and about 3 feet deep. The last time we had played my friend hit a tree and his disc dropped to the river bottom, so he had to get a little wet, nothing bad. I stood there and realized that my friend was to throw first. I a jestful manner I advised him to miss the tree on his opening drive; which advise he took to heart and his disc landed safely on the fairway. I, overly confident in my frisbee skills, made threw my disc and watched it smack the very tree I advised my friend to avoid. I began to laugh at myself due to the obvious irony of the situation, when a bystander waiting at another nearby tee informed me that my disc had not sunk but landed flat in the water and was about to head through some rapids on the other side of a bridge. I didn't quite understand him until I saw my disc disappear into roar of white water never to be seen again. That is not to say I didn't look cause I did. Like an lady who doesn't want to get her pant legs wet while wading in shallow water I entered the edge of the fast moving water with my shorts hiked to an upper region of my sun lacking thighs and without success searched aimlessly in the water for a disc i shall never see again.
Since I lost that disc there have been a couple of close calls on other discs being whisked away in the river but we have been more attentive and acted a little faster and have been able to prevent other losses until a couple of days ago, my friend was throwing at the pin from about 50 feet, over shot the pin and lost another disc in the water.
Long story short, disc golf is free once you have your discs and as long as you don't loose your discs in water hazards or in deep weeds.
Now I really enjoy disc golf, I don't think I look as crazy as most of the people who play, but perhaps with time I too can let my inner hippie out.

Weekend of Wonderment

2008-04-18T18:56:00.004-07:00

That's me on the right and my brother John on the left. I think the pictures in this post do a decent job of showing what my brother and I accomplished.

I for one have been actively into mt biking for going on three years now and this was my first trip to Moab. In past years I have unsuccessfully tried to get a friend or two to journey to mt bike Mecca with me. A group of people had planned a trip to Moab and I jumped at my chance to enjoy the world famous "red rock."

In order to obtain maximum enjoyment I knew it was important to get another person to go riding with me. I contacted all of my mt biking friends and all of them wanted to come, but for one reason or another were unable to make it. As I had done in the past when I had no one to ride with I decided it was necessary to introduce another person to a hobby I have come to love. Since I live with John he was an easy target and I new he felt bad for me on account that I was so excited to bike and as of yet no one was willing to join me. As you can tell from the picture John did mt bike with me in Moab.

Even though I had never ridden the infamous "Slick Rock" trail I have heard many tales from those who have. I new it tried even the best of riders and I chose not to disclose this to John. We embarked on the trail and things were a little rough to start out with. John was rediscovering how to ride a bike on a some what unforgiving surface of jagged red rock. As we climbed on hill after another and weaved from ridge to ridge I began to feel a great amount of satisfaction. Not only had the two of us ridden where several Moab patrons only reach on motorized vehicles, but John had expressed on more than one occasion that he couldn't believe how much fun he was having despite feeling physical fatigue and saddle sore.

We had reached the just over the half-way point of the trail and we actually started to pick of the pace. The adventurer within John had begun to push fear aside and he began to let go of the brake lever. We covered 3 or 4 miles in a fraction of the time it initially took us to cover the same territory.

As we sat on top of the highest ridge the only signs of civilization you could see were jeeps and off in the distance doing there thing. As we made our way back to the trail head we stopped a few times to enjoy some fine pieces of machinery climbing what seemed impossible terrain. We didn't see any jeeps roll, but I think I saw a couple of truck bumpers destroyed in the vast red rock back country.

We rode on Friday and a little bit on Saturday and then we drove from Moab to Logan to attend a concert featuring MxPx. This concert was amazing. I tried to take a picture with my phone and it turned out to be nothing but a blur with a streak or two of light in it. At some point during the concert I got lost in the moment and the hour plus of intense concert happenings seamed to end in a matter of minutes.

Although I don't have a picture to prove it on two separate occasions, I'm not even sure how it happened, the lead signer and I pounded fists! Both times, it seems, right before and after I was kicked in head by an innocent body surfer.

The Weekend of Wonderment ended with a night at Angie's restaurant in Logan and I consumed four large glasses of water and a Belgian waffle smothered in strawberries and whipped cream.

A movie about Me?

2008-04-01T21:17:00.006-07:00

So I was talking to my friend the other day and out of no where he asks, "Josh, if someone made a movie about you and I and things we have done, who would you pick to play you?" (quotation may not be exact) I was pretty surprised and was drawing blanks as to who I would want to represent me on the big screen.

It was the next day and he sent me an e-mail of a picture of an actor he would cast to play the part of me in a movie.

I had never seen this guy before, but apparently he's pretty popular and is a doctor on Grey's Anatomy. I haven't heard his voice, but I guess my only concern is can he do comedy and action? It would be imperative that he be entertaining and capable of performing the majority of the stunts I have personally accomplished. Also, it's important that he look good with a mustache, cause I know I do.

Before I received the face shot of Eric Dane I had enlisted the help of friend who is more Hollywood savvy than I and he suggested Chris Evans. Personally I don't know if it would really matter and the only reason I even have thought about it because a friend asked I was somewhat intrigued by his choice. Kind of interesting but that's about it.

The beginning of spring fever

2008-03-26T16:38:00.007-07:00

Its been a long fun winter, but I decided it was time to get my bike out of storage and see what king of shape both of us were in. I had to replace a tube that refused to hold air for more than ten minutes. I was able to cycle through all the gears easily. Then after taking a rag and removing a winters worth of dust the bike was looking pretty darn good. I lubed the chain and she was ready to go.

On the other hand it was a little harder to discern what kind of shape I was in. Since I stopped riding last October I have gained 5 or 10 lbs and was unable to find a proper winter substitute for my most difficult summer hobby. I decided I would go on a few bike rides around the neighborhood prior to my first off-road excursion of the year. After a week or so of neighborhood riding I would be ready to test my might. (an old mortal combat reference)

I was sitting at my desk at work unable to ignore the beautiful rays of sunshine that demanded my attention. I felt like a kid at school waiting for the end of the school day on a sunny Friday afternoon. I couldn't concentrate, for the better part of the last two hours of the work day I stared at my work unable to make sense of the numbers and graphs I was trying to analyze. It was useless, I was powerless with five minutes left work I ducked out a little early, feeling confident no one would notice. A side note, my boss was taking a sick day and I couldn't help but think of him basking in the sun with a smirk on his face knowing I was working while he was lounging.

I walked home quicker than usual and arrived home about ten minutes ahead of schedule. Upon entering the house I noticed my newly tuned bike, and I knew, I had to go for a ride, but a day suck as this required I go off the street and hit a dirt trail. Fearing my lack, or abundance, of shape may hinder the experience I opted for a shorter trail that was guaranteed to be free of snow.

I hit the trail and rode 3 miles in and 3 miles out. I fared better than expected and was giddy about being speckled with mud from head to toe as there were a couple of puddles that spanned the width of the trail. Upon completion a bit of the mud fell off the bike but if you look close you can see the remainder of the mud that was.

Currently in the area there are only a couple of ridable trails until the snow melts but I'll take what I can get.

What's your Life Story?

2008-03-11T10:13:00.000-07:00

I met up with some old friends of mine a couple weeks ago. I know many other people have had similar experiences, or have they?

The night started out same as usual, casual greeting and meeting while partaking of delicious food from an old restaurant favorite that has a tendency to put everyone in a nostalgic state of mind. After a quick tell everybody what your doing now a days ect, ect, ect. We began to really get down to business. When I mean business I refer to people testing my memory of events in years past that may or may not have occurred. I consider myself to have a fairly decent memory, but when remembering happenings of 4-8 years ago the details tend to get a little fuzzy for me and I have a hard time believing others remember then so clearly. Many of things I had a vague recollection of or I did not remember at all. There were a few that I remembered clearly but the memories I chose to remember are completely different than that of my friends.

It made me wish that I had done a better job recording my own thoughts and perspectives on certain issues so I could have some hard facts on how things really were instead of just taking other people's word for the things that I did.

Could you imagine if you let other people write your life story for you on a day by day basis? Think about it. Would you trust them to be accurate without adding their own bias into the picture? More importantly would they be able to capture and accurately represent your view points and thoughts? What kind of person could you trust with that type of responsibility? Could you find people to show your true colors, whether sassy, sophisticated, suave, sarcastic, humorous, intelligent, stubborn, stupid, or just plain dazzling.

How different do you think your past might become if you had to take someone else's word, whether you could remember what really happened or not.

I guess it's kind of the same thing as being able to see how you look through other people's eyes. I guess if you got to be the guest scribe for someone else you might really get a chance to take a walk in their shoes.

As I visited with friends I was reminded of my past by several different people. Some tell stories better than other. Some, in my own opinion, tell more accurate accounts of what really happened than others. Some stories were funny and others were serious stories that make you grateful that you made it through.

All in all if your life had many different authors a bystander could probably really tell what kind of affect you had on different people at the same or different stages in your life. You could understand what areas of your life you could improve on.

Anyway, that's just a little something that I have thought about a little over the last couple of weeks. If you think about it, tt might just blow your mind, or make you wish you hadn't spent time reading this.

Arena Football

2008-03-02T22:01:00.003-07:00

I was fortunate enough to attend the season opening game of the Utah Blaze. The picture in this post along with my entrance ticket, not to mention great company were provided my good friends TJ & Kim.

This picture shows almost the entire field and the game between downs. Not pictured are the eccentric fans who came in attire reserved for true fans. Which includes their favorite players jersey, black and orange face paint, and orange hair dye. Kim was in charge of the camera so also not pictured are the Harley Davidson Blaze Dancers. I tip my hat to any person who chooses to who has that level of dedication to any sports team. The Blaze ended up loosing the game by one point and I think I saw I like face paint start to run on a couple of fanatic faces. I dared not point it out because any one of the aforementioned could have killed me without much effort.

There are several people who have watched more football than I but since your reading my blog I'm going to give you my opinion of Arena football. I'm not going to lie I like to watch football, it entertains me. The prospect of a group of guys banding together in the quest of greatness. In the NFL it takes 11 people simultaneously working together to make a big play, whether the play be on offense or defense. In the AFL there are several big offensive plays but defensive plays seem to be few and far between.

In Arena football there are so many touchdowns that the excitement spawned by a touchdown quickly looses its flavor. If a team doesn't score at least 50 points they are pretty much guaranteed to loose.

To me Arena football is like real footballs little brother. The players are smaller and have changed a few of the rules. From a distance you may think the only difference is one is played outside while the other is played inside. However, you will quickly realize that even though the basic concepts are the same there are several noticeable differences.

In the future I may watch more Arena football, but I don't ever think it will entertain me to the same extent as real football.

Free Pizza Happens

2008-02-29T20:10:00.004-07:00

So today at work was pretty busy and I had worked through the normal lunch hours. It was no big deal, it happens from time to time. So it was around 2:30pm this afternoon and this guy that works on my floor comes into my office, throws an olive garden box down on my desk and said, "There just about an entire pizza in here, I hope you haven't had lunch yet."
I was quite surprised to say the least. I opened the box and there was on piece missing from the pizza, which was replaced by 3 still warm trademark Olive Garden bread sticks. It really was a beautiful site. If I was capable of tears I just might have shed a few.

Several times I have been patron the Olive Garden and experience quite a diverse selection of foods, but this is the first time I have ever even seen an Olive Garden pizza. If by chance you are a fan of the pizza food group as myself and have yet to experience an Olive Garden pizza I would definitely suggest you give it a try. I would not say it is the best pizza I've ever had, but it was one worth noting.

Big scare

2008-02-27T18:48:00.003-07:00

Last week on Friday morning I went to send a quick e-mail before heading to work and that's when it all began. The instant my internet browser was open, before I could do anything, an alert notification appeared informing me that my computer had been compromised by 6 viruses, 2 worms, and over 1200 bits of spyware. About a minute later another window appeared telling me that one of the worms has infiltrated my e-mail and had already sent an infected e-mail to every one of my contacts. I was pretty worried that I was going to receive several hate texts from newly infected people and that all my computer data was lost.
As I did not have much time before I needed to leave for work I promptly set my anti-virus software to work. When I arrived home from work approximately 9 hours later the initial scan was not yet complete. It took 11 1/2 hours to scan my computer to locate all of the aforementioned problems. Once all the problems were located it software took 4 hours to remove the viruses. After over 15 hours of my computer running my anti-virus software was unable to remove 2 of the viruses and one of the worms.

I was at a total loss as to what to do. I computer savvy friend of mine told me it would be in my best interests if I just saved everything I could on an external hard drive and completely re-format my computer. So that is what I did. If you haven't ever done that before, it take about 8 to 10 hours to delete your hard drive and then another hour or two to load all your software and saved files back onto your computer.

So I spent the majority of my Friday and Saturday dealing with computer problems. I guess the bright side is that as far as I know there haven't been any e-mails sent from my accounts to people as a result of the viruses.

Death by elevator

2008-02-08T23:02:00.000-07:00

I was talking with friend as I was leaving work today. As per my normal routine I decided to take the elevator down to the main floor. Apparently there are stairs but I'm not quite sure where they are. Anyway, I my friend and I boarded the elevator, joining 5 other people from other floors of greater altitude. The elevator door shut, as it should have, and then suddenly the elevator dropped one foot then came to an abrupt stop. The door opened while the elevator was beeping and I could see that we were about 12 to 18 inches lower than the sixth floor. Then the door shut, dropped, I'm guessing, about another foot, the elevator began to beep again and the seven of us sat in a stopped elevator for about 1 minute. In elevator time 1 minutes is equivalent to ho long 1 minute of wall sits seem to be. After 1 minute the elevator began to move in a normal fashion again and all passengers were delivered unscathed to the lobby. Well one lady might have had a little bit of an anxiety attack, but I'll never know for sure.

As a result I thought, maybe I'll start taking the stairs, then I found out that you need to have an access card to even enter the stair well because they don't want vagrants spending the night in the building. Which by the way happened a couple of times last week. Some guy was spending the night in the mens bathroom on the 17th floor. I don't think he was doing any harm, just a little hard on the nose and eyes from what I was told.

Long story short, you never know when the elevator your riding in could send you into a 6 story free fall and either give you a cool war story to tell or possibly cripple you or end your life.

View

2008-02-07T19:13:00.003-07:00

I work on the sixth floor of the Zion's Bank building in down town SLC as mentioned in a previous post. Believe it or not my office has a window with a view. It's not really a glamorous view but a view that I can always look at due in part because it is always changing. For the time being and probably the next year or so my view includes a construction site. All day long, should I be tired of working, I can look out the window and see big trucks and tractors driving around and moving dirt. From my office it looks like little kids playing with Tonka trucks without the little kids moving the trucks and tractors.

Sometimes I find it somewhat hypnotic, why, I don't know. Once in while when the weather is pleasant I think it would be quite satisfying to do such work and in the future to be able to point to buildings and tell family and friends that I helped build that building. There are a few houses and restaurants in the Salt Lake area I have helped build or remodel but they are few in number.

I only have one window in my office but if look out the other direction I get view which includes most of the SLC Temple and most of Temple Square. It's a pretty good view, considering its my first full-time job out of college.

The Ultimate Home Cinematic Experience

2008-02-03T13:35:00.000-07:00

For roughly the past year I have a owned a projector. I have not had a quality screen on which to watch the output of said projector. Since I was in college and dealing with mediocrity the norm I was content to project movies, sports, and other programming on a white wall, which produced a glare in the middle of the picture, or a white bed sheet pinned to a wall with thumb tacks.

Being a recent grad school graduate I decided it would be advantageous in upholding the esteem of my degree if I did not profess a bed sheet hung on the wall as a movie screen.

Since purchasing a manufactured screen from a store or off the internet would cost me money my greater judgment forbid me to spend I had to find another avenue. I decided I would revert to the natural instincts of man and build one from scratch with my own hands and sweat.

Notice saw below is worn and used and on the front there is a piece of metal wire that shouldn't really be there.
I started this journey by collecting some man tools: tape measure, stapler, circular saw, power drill, and a power sander. I took some measurements and when off to the 1 of 2 man emporiums; you may know it as The Home Depot. I do not necessarily prefer Home Depot over Lowe's, its just where I went.

I purchased 1x2 boards and the necessary brackets and quickly returned home. With my shirt off and my sweat glistening on my chest I cut 45 degree angles in the boards and proceeded to fasten them together with metal picture frame brackets.

Once I had the a good sized wooden frame put together it was time to try and find a material worthy of becoming the face of my home entertainment for years to come.

I asked the people at home depot if they had anything worth of the type of responsibility mentioned above. They told me I was crazy. I looked deep within myself and realized that this finished project was important to me, so swallowed my pride and lost a few man points and I went to a fabric store on my own looking to buy fabric. I had no idea what I was doing there or even what I was looking for let alone where in the store to look for it. Finally after talking to a person or two I decided on a piece of fabric I deemed adequate. I vacated the store as quickly as possible.

Once I had the screen home I took a stapler, whose use is mainly to staple insulation into walls of homes, and I began to fasten the screen to the wood frame I had previously constructed. After a good deal of time the screen was finished and all that was left was attaching it to the wall.

Now the screen is completed, attached to the wall and with 5.1 surround sound aiding the projector and the screen I am able to provide the Ultimate Home Cinematic Experience to others and myself. Watching movies with this set-up is almost as good as being in the theater.

Here is just a preview of what it looks like in action. The picture is of a TV commercial and is even more clear and crisp when watching movies or HDTV. It really is more spectacular in person, so anyone who wishes to share in the delight of the ultimate movie or TV viewing experience, feel free to give me a call or just come over. If there are any other developments I will let you know.

Unlike any other

2008-01-31T19:34:00.000-07:00

After a life time of accepting what was provided for me I have finally taken the plunge and purchased the nicest bed I could ever hope to sleep on. I purchased a king size Bragada bed off of the internet. The Bragada web-site claims to have been in business longer and has the same memory foam as Tempurpedic, but happens to cost less.This bed is as wide as it is long. I still have yet to purchase a set of king size sheets due to a healthy dose of lazy. So for the time being I've placed a flat sheet down over the left portion of the bed and then use another flat bed sheet between myself and the blanket. I have been to the store a couple of times with the mission of getting some sheets. To this point I have been very disappointed with the local Wal-Mart.

I also became keenly aware that any blanket I possessed would be less than adequate to accompany my lavish king size commodity. Since it has been such a long time since I have bought a new blanket I decided to try and make the decision easier until and I asked my mom if she would make me a blanket for my bed. Little did I know that she would make me go to a fabric store and select fabric for said blanket. Did you know that roughly 80%-90% of fabrics in a fabric store have flowers on them? Who knew? After several minutes of aimlessly wandering through the isles and sifting through a myriad of flower patters I was able to find something that didn't have flowers and wasn't boring as my mother deemed most un-flower patterns. My wonderful mother has not yet finished this king size quilt yet, but it should be pretty sweet.

With this bed I sleep better at night in comfort like I have never thought possible. Memory foam took me a couple of days to get used to, but now I wonder how I ever lived without it.

This year

2008-01-26T16:09:00.000-07:00

I have recently have graduated from Utah State with a Master's Degree and have moved to Salt Lake City. On January 1st I began working for Zions Bancorporation as a Human Resources Generalist. It's a lot like what Toby on the office does except the people I work with don't hate me or pity me just yet. Its a pretty sweet deal I even have my on office on the sixth floor.

I live down town about 2 blocks north west of the conference center. Since I work down town at Zions I walk to work every day, sometimes twice a day due to forgetting to make a lunch or forgetting my wallet. It takes about 15 min for me to get to work, the best part is no matter what the weather and no matter how many people get in accidents my commute to work does not change. However, I will say that since its been below freezing just about everyday when I go to work that walking isn't always as nice as it may seem.

Why would some one do this to me????

2007-07-22T19:49:00.000-07:00

I had something ripped away from me without any notice. One of my most prized possessions stolen leaves a pain that would be difficult to reproduce. For over a day now there has been a pit in my stomach, as well with a sense of longing. In the next year or so I was planning on replacing my current bike with a new one. I understood that the bond I have with my current bike would be broken at some point in time; but not now, not like this. That was an issue to be addressed in the distant future. There were so many more big decisions I thought I would have to make before I seriously considered a new bike. It’s been one day and I have had several moments of weakness were I stop what I’m doing and find myself lost in a nostalgic moment of the way things used to be; the different trails I rode, the awesome jumps I landed and the crashes that left me with a few extra man points, a scar or scab, and a story to tell. Now for the first time in my life I feel somewhat vulnerable. Anything in my life whether I hold it dear or not could be dashed to pieces or ripped from my grasp at any point and leave me without direction. Several times throughout the day when I see other bikes or when something reminds me of my bike I want to curl up in the fetal position and weep for a hope of better times to come.

I have only two hopes for my bike now and those are that my bike somehow finds its way home or that the new owner of the bike takes care of it and creates fond memories for many rides to come.

Fresh Start

2007-07-06T14:44:00.000-07:00

I will not try to fill the gap from the last time I attempted to start blogging again, however, I do feel as though I could post at least a couple of times a month.

That is not to say that people even read my blog, but if your out there I will post for you, and if your not out there I guess I will post for myself or an imaginary friend of some sort. This will have to do for now until I have the capacity for more.

Good Day

2006-12-07T12:00:00.000-07:00

Last night was one of the days people are most proud to vocalize their aligence to Utah State University. The Aggies as you probably know beat the University of Utah in one heck of a basketball show down. If you missed you not only missed a great basketball game but you missed on great adrenaline rush. Watching one of the bigger players on the court take a three point shot with only seconds left in the game silenced the crowd for what seemed to be more than a breif moment in time. As the basket was made without even touching the rim the entire Spectrum erupted in one truimphant cheer. It was so loud you couldn't hear the announcer, the referee's whistle, or even your own thoughts.

The Aggies didn't win by a lot, but they won nun-the-less and that's all that matters. Basketball season is just about the only time of the year USU fans can be proud students of their school and be able to back it up with a sports team. Next week at BYU will also be a game worth watching.

Same old, same old; or is it?

2006-12-01T08:49:00.000-07:00

Sometimes life seems to constantly repeat itself. Everyday I do three things. I go to school, work, and the bathroom. Occasionally I will make small detours to Beto's or some other safe haven where I can replenish my supply of life. I don't know why but Beto's can cure just about anything. Or maybe it just creates a new illness so I don't focus on what else is currently plagueing me.

I need something new once in a while. Something like going to the Jazz game. Truth be told I get to go on Saturday night for a company party. If only this year at the Jazz game could be half as fun as last year.

Last year I watched a good game with an attractive girl, won a free twelve pack of sprite, got amazing brownies from mama Larsen, and learned that there is a store in Layton that sells "Giant Puppies." Hands down one of the best nights of last year. This year there will be amazing food, an attractive girl and what else is in store for me is yet to be discovered. Only time will tell. One thing I don't think could be topped is my new found knowlegde of the existance of giant puppies.

How valuable is your time?

2006-11-28T00:22:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a while since my last post and I apologize. Long story short I get lazy and that's all I have to say about that.

Lately the concept of time has been on my mind. I have had a lot of thoughts on the subject some are stupid and some I thought have potential to be insightful.

I noticed that I have a tendancy to be somewhat judgemental about how other people use their time. I am judgemental about how I use my own time. For instance I look at a person who is playing a video game and think what a waste of time. Is that because I myself don't really enjoy video games and it would be a waste of my time or becasue I genuinly think video games are a complete waste of time. An activity that should only take place if a person has absolutely nothing to do with their life. Then being the hypocrite that I can be I'll go home and watch TV. I may think of it as a waste of time and I might not. It would just depend on what else I have to do for the rest of the day.

My point is, every little thing we do shapes our lives. If I have a stressful day at school or work I need to unwind a little bit and a good or even a poor quality TV show helps me unwind and prepare myself for what I have to face next. If someone is playing video games they may just being wasting time but they might be escaping the pressures of the world if only for an hour or two.

So is it really a waste of time. If you unwind a little so that you can sleep better or so that you can focus better on goals you are trying to accomplish it may not be a waste of your time. You can do something you enjoy and later when it comes down to accomplishing the important things in life you can really put your mind to it.

I know that for me before I have to do a big homework assignment that I enjoy a good TV show or a Sudoku puzzle. It tends to be a way to build up reserve energy and focus that I can use later when I'm in the middle of a long tedious day at work or a school project. It may look like a waste of time but perhaps in the long run a little slacking off will prove to be beneficial to later performance.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that everyone likes to waste or spend time in their own ways. Your way may seem like a waste of time for me but not everyone enjoys TV or a friendly game of basketball. The things people do have shaped their lives and have made them who they are today. Every experience a person has impacts their life in one form or another. I once asked my brother if he had ever regretted some of the things he did when he was younger that he got in trouble for, and he told me that he doesn't have a single regret. I was baffled. I inquired futher and he told me pretty much what I have just shared. He said that he is happy with who he is right now. Every experience, good or bad, is a part of who he is. In some instances he wished he could have learned some perticular lessons through different avenues, but had his life been filled with different experiences he may not have learned the lessons that are instrumental in how he views life and what helps him make decisions.

Really I don't know why I just wrote all of this but it feels good to express myself even if only a couple of people read it. I think it is important to try and live our lives so that we are happy with ourselves every step of the way. However, if you do make a mistake like I do just about every day, don't dwell on it just learn your lesson. Let your mistakes help you grow as an individual. Spend your time in the ways you want whether others think it is a waste or not.

If by chance you still check my blog on the off chance that I would post something new let me know that you are checking and I will post again hopefully within a weeks time.

Back to Basics

2006-06-14T14:10:00.000-07:00

About a week ago I was reminded of what makes a true man tick. Thanks to a good friend of mine I was able to go back to the basics of man hood. If your confused you havn't had a good project to work on in a while.

I was able to help take apart a old Chrysler New Yorker. We took the windows out, ripped all the crome off the car and ripped out the seats. The best part was the dirt, sweat, and all of the grunting that was involved. While trying to rip out the back seat I think that just about popped a couple of veins from using pure brute strenth to rip the once cozy seat from it's resting place.

When the sun was just about gone down I looked at myself and couldn't help but notice that after some good physical manual labor that I had earned at least 2 extra man points for the day. Just before we got in the car to go home I stood there with my hands at my side, the last bits of day light barely able to glisten off of the sweat that ran down my greasy and dirt covered arms. A truely satisfied feeling came over me as I realized how important it is to revert back to basics once in a while and let yourself be a man.

Sorry that I don't have any pictures of the truely magnanimus scene that transpired that day.

Off my rocker

2006-05-24T22:32:00.000-07:00

It's funny the way things work out. I mean if you really think about it most things end up different than originally planned. In fact it seems the more planning I try to do the futher from my intended path is were I end up. However on the flip-side should I not do any planning my life tends to fall into a routine that turns everything I do into boredom.

So if every plan we've constructed is sure to drastically change along the way why then do we continue to plan? I'll tell you why it is because we don't have a clue what we want. At one point or another we may think we really know what we want, and some people do, but if we really knew what we wanted I think we be more ambitious tenatious about acheiving our dreams.

When we really want something, do we really want it? Is there some other sort of motivation? Do we only want other things because other people have them or do we want them because it is socially expected?

What types of things do you think you would be without if none of the above impacted you decision on what you really wanted? Would you car be different? You clothes would definitly be different.

I was just kind of sitting in my room and realized that I have a lot of stuff. I was just pondering why I bought half of the things that I have or why I have held on to it so long. It's kind of shocking that there are so many small and insignificant influences in our lives that have a tendency to shape who we are. Kind of a weird post I know but oh well.

Summer=Freetime??

2006-05-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

I have just graduated with a BA in Marketing and people always ask me what I want to do with it. I tell them, continue going to school. So I graduated and yet it seems like I still have yet to recieved the bench mark of freedon that is often associated there with.

Also, another school year has bit the dust and summer has come. Usually with summer comes the anticipation of a care free world in which everybody has the same goal, have fun all day everyday. Well, I think that is a disallusioned thought because now that school is out I don't have anymore freetime than I did before and other people seem to have less.

I think that I'm hitting that phase in life were I'm beginning to realize that I can't be a kid forever. I do try my best to keep in touch with my inner child, but it seems like inevitability is closing in on me and I can't escape. There always seems to be talk of the future. Children don't think about the future and neither do I. Kids like to ride bikes, play games, get dirty, and spill ice-cream down the front of their shirt. I like to do the same things that kids do, but it can be difficult because I seam to be stuck in some sort of adult world. My boss doesn't appreciate me getting dirty or playing hide and seek while on the clock. I guess I can understand why, but if I still have to go to school than I think that I should still be somewhat immune fromt he reallity that plagues the real working force.

Maybe I'm just crazy or maybe I have a problem with people ruining my fun. Either way it seems as though either school or work always take their toll at the least opportune moment. I now just rely on the fact that I only have a year and a half left and then who knows? As long as the inner child can last for another ten years I think I can make it through just about anything.

School?

2006-04-25T10:07:00.000-07:00

I don't know about the rest of you but I still have a about 1 week of school left and about 4 weeks worth of school work to complete before the end of the week. However, due to a lot of things, some I can control so I can't, I have checked out a long time ago.

I think I checked out a couple of weeks before spring break. My condition has only gotten worse and the pressure to succeed has only increased. The amount and quality of work required of me has increased and only one phrase has been able to help me keep even realatively on track.

"One day it will all be worth it!"

Meaning one day I will get a real job that will require the skills that I obtained in college. It will help me provide for a family that I one day might have or at least help me collect toys that I wish I already had. Either way after school it had better be worth it or else! I didn't really know what I was doing when I delayed the worth it part by enrolling in a masters program, so I still have another year and a half after this current term is over. So the phrase that has helped me through the last five years must remain strong and stay my attention span and study habits through another degree that I have been told will be worth it.

Candy bars

2006-04-18T10:43:00.000-07:00

I have often wondered how one chooses a candy bar. I myself have my favorites, however, when purchasing candy I don't always buy my favorites, sometimes I'll buy something else. But really, how do you choose your candy?

Do you base it all on past experience, a dare, by the ingreidients that you think they contain, fat content, carb content, the name, or do you just close your eyes and reach for whatever lucky morses shall grace your taste buds because all you need is sugar? Tell me what motivates your candy purchases.

The only reason I ask is because I'm in a situation without any candy and I'm trying to decide what to consume the instant I can break free from this sugar free environment.

Girls=Chimps??

2006-04-15T23:16:00.000-07:00

Many of you may have already read this, however, many of you may not have.

Have you ever had a hard time trying to understand women? I sure know
I have. Then the other day it hit me. The reason that I'm having a
hard time understanding women is that they may not have evolved as
much as men have.

My first inclination that my hypothesis might be true was somewhat
confirmed the other day while I was sitting in a meeting.
Just so we're on the same page as me, when I think of community
grooming, I think of chimpanzees or some sort of primate. If you
disagree, you can stop reading now and save both you and I time about
arguing are differences of what comes to mind when we think about
community grooming. Not that I think about community grooming very
often, but occasionally it gets brought to my attention.
So I was sitting there paying attention as much possible for a
mid-twenties aged male with some degree of ADD. Anyway, I was sitting
there and the girl sitting next to me, yes I was able to sit next to a
girl, starts pulling hair off of the person in front of them. She
pulled four or five strands of hair off the person in front of them
and then she proceeded to move lint off the their shirt. Not to
mention she was trying to do it without letting the "now groomed"
person finding out that she was grooming them. I said to her, why are
you doing that. She said, I don't know, it was bugging me that some
things were out of place. I told her that was stupid and she should
stop. She went to groom another person in front her. I promptly
stopped her and challenged her to let it be and see if she could just
ignore the fact that another girl had shed a piece of hair from her
head and it was sitting on her shoulder. She couldn't it, it drove
her crazy that she was not able to groom another person.
Back to my original train of thought, girls have a tendency to act
like chimps and groom other people.
Another link is you might have also noticed if you have ever been
exposed to chimps at all. To explain this next thought I used to go
to this park that had some chimps in a good sized animal friendly
environment. Anyway, the chimps would play and have a good time, and
them BAM!!, one chimp would take something too far and the chimps were
in a fight. They would scream at each other and try to scratch each
other. They would fight for about a minute or two and then they would
each retreat to a different monkey and started making chimp noises
while pointing at the other chimp with whom they were fighting with.
I don't know exactly how long the fights would last, but when I would
go to the park four or five days later the same two chimps would be
playing again as if nothing had happened before.
When I noticed the correlation of the fight, friend, fight, friend
relationship I couldn't help but think that most of the girls I've
known in my life have, on a few different occasions if not several
different occasions, have acted the same way. I don’t know if it was
just a coincidence or if there may actually be a pattern, but in a few
different areas, girls and chimps seem to have a some common ground.
Not that I think that girls and chimps should start hanging out or
getting to know each other better, just simply pointing out the fact.
Besides, guys really like girls and guys, in most cases think that
chimps are really cool.

Ode to sweats

2006-04-11T10:23:00.000-07:00

Don't expect a poem or anything, but I would like to take a minute to show my appreciation for sweats and how great they really are.

You know that feeling when you get up in the morning and you just don't want to have to do anything at all but you know that society frowns on the absence of clothing? I sure do. The only thing that gets me through times like those is a nice pare of sweat pants. These are the best kind of pants because in when it's cold they comfort you, they don't restrict, or try to hold you back in any way. Sweats just let you be you.

They're not a respecter of persons whether male or female, big or small, athletic or lounger, they embrace every person willing to held by a soft, slightly cusioned peice of fabric. If you think about it the ancient Greeks probably would have worn sweats instead of nothing if the climate would have allowed it.

There may be some nay sayers saying nay to the universalness of sweats. Saying that if you want to "look sooo good" that you can't being wearing sweats. I would combat that by saying that a girl who is confident enough to be seen in sweats and still flirt with guys as though she were all spiffed out gives her bonus points. I would dare say that there may be room to expand the market for sweats and introduce a line of formal were. Meaning that you could by a pair of sweat pants that you could put a crease in. A pull over top with a collar that has buttons down the front that are for looks only and a tie that is just screen printed on. Of course in the places the tie cover there would be no buttons. To top it all off a pair of slippers that could pass for dress shoes, but be so comfortable that you wouldn't ever want to take them off.

If this new line of clothing was developed you might see more people walking or jogging to and from work. When people got home from work they wouldn't need to change immediately they could just start unwinding. Thus a little more relaxation quicker. More relaxation faster than before and people jogging or walking to work just makes for an all around better american society.

So let us not feel pressured to dress up all the time. Let us look at what could be instead of what is. Wear sweats more often than before and increase your overall quality of life. Share the phenomenon that is sweats.

Hunt for the Jade Monkey

2006-03-30T11:02:00.000-07:00

What is a jade monkey? Does anybody really know. Is it an item of value or is it as simple as an old man making the monkey figurine out of jade. Mr. Burns has led me to believe that there is more to the jade monkey than meets they eye. Because if Mr. Burns is after a jade monkey then it almost has to possess some sort of harnessable power.

"You must find the Jade Monkey before the next full moon" - Mr Burns

What is so important about that monkey that it needs to be found in a months time?

What do you think? Does a jade monkey have ways of empowering a person? Or could it simply just be that a jade monkey could make ones collection complete?

I personally would like to get to the bottom of this whole jade monkey business. If the monkey is capable of helping me with school? If so I would like to know. Could he make it so that at work I can do less work and make more money? If so I would like to know. If this jade monkey is all that he could be cracked up to be it just might be worth spending some time and effort at least looking into this whole jade monkey business.

Let me know what you think. Look at this picture, it might help you form your opinions of what a jade monkey might be capable of. Sorry that the picture is so small but it's all I could find in a limited amount of time.

Batman, need I say more?

2006-03-28T10:58:00.000-07:00

Batman is a modern icon for us boys that are still young at heart. Think about it, out of all of the superheroes Batman is the only one who is self made. Granted having what seems to be an unlimited cash flow gives him an upper edge on the normal man. Let's look at this a little.

Where does Batman get his supper powers from?

He earns them, studying martial arts, engineering, and critical thinking. It's amazing that he can come up with most of those gadgets on his own. I know he probably steals most of them from the employees of Wayne enterprises, but he probably does have to modify them so that they resemble a bat, and so that the people who work for him don't figure out that he is Batman. What a thinker Bruce Wayne is, he must read all the time he's not running a multibillion dollar company, fighting crime, or sleeping. Which brings me to my next point, has Batman figured out a way to go through life without sleep? Or does he sleep on the job?

I think the reason being Batman is so appealing to so many people is that it almost seems achievable, except for the cash flow deal. With other superheroes they were blessed* with their powers. I personally think that one day if I tried hard enough, I could become the next super hero. I could wear a costume if it ment that no one would ever by able to reveal my identity. Being one of the other super heros might definitely be appealing, just not as realistic as the man with such suppressed rage and aggression as the man who thrust himself among the ranks of those with gifts that we deem on real in an imaginitive world.

I may be way off, but in my opinion it seems most likely that a person who wanted to become a superhero could follow in Batman's footsteps instead of search the galaxy for a way to alter their DNA in such a way that they would obtain super powers.

*The writer fully acknowledges that others may have not been blessed with powers. i.e. the X-Men. Some of their powers are blessings, but others lets be honest.

Hawaii has it all

2006-03-23T23:27:00.000-07:00

I recently spent a little time in Hawaii so I thought I might share a few things with you. I have
finally figured out why people like Hawaii so much. If you haven't figured it out by now I'll let you in on a little secret. Hawaiin have mastered the art of cooking pigs.

If Homer Simpson has taught me anything (who hasn't he taught a thing or two?) it is the fact that though shocking it may be, pigs are somewhat of a magical animal from which we get some of the worlds most suculant, mouth watering meals. I'm talking about pork chops, bacon, ham, forms of sausage, and parts of hot dogs. What can't this animal do? Infact there seems to be a rumor that if you see a flying pig your wildest and craziest dreams will come true. I think we may take the pig for granted. At least I know that I do.

Anyway, I was in Hawaii at this crazy party and they anounce that the are going to take a pig out of the ground which has been cooking for about 7 or 8 hours. To my great amazement 2 guys wearing skirts pulled this huge pig out of the ground and announced that in a few moments this pig would be processed and dinner would be served. I got caught up in the moment for a few seconds before I realized that I shed a tear at the sight of such a nobel delicious animal.

I quickly came to my senses when a few Hawaiin girls started dancing for us. On of the girls winked at me and I knew she wanted me to have a picture of her. So I got my camera in the perfect position to take a killer snap shot when from out of nowhere these dancing guys with hardly any clothes jumped out of the bushes. Naturally I became a little startled and my perfect picture was tainted. Or it became a picture that might appeal to the female readers a little more that what I had originally intended.

All in all Hawaii was great and I might share a few more Hawaiin moments later on.

Hmm... Sugar

2006-03-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

The other day I had a close call. One of those experiences that makes you so nervous that you can’t breath, your heart stops, and your blood begins to boil. I was at a Laundromat waiting for my clothes to finish drying and I spotted a vending machine. I strolled in the direction of the vending machine, lost in wonder at what delectable treasures it might hold.

As I neared my point of destination my eyes were drawn to a magic land of tantalizing goodies. I was torn with all of the choices which from which I would have to choose only ONE! However it didn’t take long before I saw the ONE. The one that made my knee’s begin to tremble, The Granny B’s Original Pink Sugar Cookie. This treat, as I consulted my appetite was the most sugar packed treasure that almost any machine could possibly hope to offer me.

My cat-like reflexes wasted no time in getting the appropriate amount of change into the coin slot. I ever so excitedly pressed the buttons 4 and 3 to release the power packed goodness contained in the Pink sugar cookie. As the turnstile moved to release the cookie the cookie rbbed up against the side of the machine and stalled… as did my life.

There is no more upsetting moment in a true sugar driven mans existence, short of the death of an immediate family member’s life, than the possibility of have you’re paid for treat stuck in a heartless unforgiving vending machine. A string of cold and cruel vocabulary entered my mind, my leg and fist both began to cock. Right before the pleasant existence of this machine was about to be ended by my fit of sugar driven rage, the machine gave up the treat and a small tear of bliss rolled down my cheek. I gently picked up the cookie and my life was complete again.

It was only a split second that my cookie was stalled and yet the emotions and feeling it stirred with in me seemed to take up eternity.

Hender-sized

2006-03-05T00:05:00.000-07:00

Hender-sized = the size just bigger than the biggest size offered.

Q: How do you know if you need a Hendersized portion of something?

A: Have you ever been to a resteraunt and been the only person who didn't need a doggie bag? Well that's no big deal. Now have you ever been to a restaraunt not needed a doggie bag but you also licked your plate clean and started begging others for their left over portions? If you answer yes to the second scenario then you should look for a Hender-sized alternative.

Q: Is Hender-sized for everybody?

A: No, Hender-sized is for those who have no fear and those who openly embrace the feeling of complete satisfaction that only comes from being so full that you belly button pops out.

Q: Are Hender-sized protions dangerous?

A: That's like asking if crayons are dangerous, of course they are if you can't handle the crazy power they poses.

Now the only problem is to get restaraunts to offer a Hender-sized alternatives. For the time being I have only been able to recieve Hender-sized portions when cooking for myself or by ordering the Kong Size Wopper at Burger King. In essence Hender-sized is the human version of Kong size. Hender-sized anything is to be used responsibly. Make sure that you can handle that much of whatever you need more of.

Real life nintendo?

2006-02-09T10:52:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to serve a mission in Japan the video game capitol of the world, I think. Anyway while I was there I could sense that I was missing something. Something that would help me put the whole culture in perspective. I was in my last are with only two months left or something like that. I was at a members house, parents and a daughter age 25 at the time were the only ones there with us (missionaries). They were letting us teach a mock discussion so we could practice a few techniques with them and towards the end of the conversation I took the opportunity to chastise the daughter for something and when I was finished the mom said to me, Wow Elder Henderson you have really powered up a couple of levels since the last time we had you over at our house.

I was flattered of course because it was only three weeks since the last visit. I couldn't help but think, hot dang, 2 or 3 levels in a time span of a couple of weeks, that's amazing.

Then the lights went on.

I finally found the missing link to understanding the Japanese culture. I was inside a video game world. No wonder Japan make a ton of cool video games they live them. Anything cool that happens into their life they write a program for it and sell it to foriegners who take turns reliving an ordinary day in Japanese life.

I never knew that experience points were actually accumulating above my head as I walked around. I could feel the definite pyscological blow if I ever lost my coins like Sonic or if I happend to lose a level do to sickness. But upon quick reflection at times I could actually pin point the exact moment when I would go up a level. In Japan you also get a turbo boost. I never was quite able to figure out how to use it, but once in a while I could feel it getting used and it was awesome.

On the way to the church from our apartment there was a little jump in the sidewalk that my companion and I would take turns jumping. One day I was taking my turn at the jump and out of nowhere my turbo kicked in I started traveling at mock 3 with the least amount of effort. I hit the jump flew over a broken umbrella that was on the other side of the jump and in mide air I jumped up a level.

That was in my top ten greatest accomplishments of the 7th month of the two thousand and sencond year.

To not make a long story longer, if you think of you life as a video game, and you can find out what things help you power up a level and you can find out how to use your turbo, you can have some great memorable experiences.

Can people find your house?

2006-02-04T19:59:00.000-07:00

The other day I went with a few friends to visit another friend of ours. Our friend Carly tells us that her house is only 15 minutes from the freeway. We are doing the caravan thing, following Carly and after about 15 minutes we notice that we are beginning to ascend up into this mountainous range. We are taking turn after turn, some left turns some right turns, but always climbing upward as if we were about to start driving through cloud or something crazy. I think we even passed a couple of mt. goats who were jocking for position on a steep ledge. Any way after what seems like a climb a small mountain, we come to a lovely little flat land that contained a little village or neiborhood of some sorts. Lovely place it is.

The point being had we not followed a native of that area to their own stomping grounds we never would have been able to make the trip without some sort of gps unit.

So we had a good time at this lovely little villa in the mountains and as it came time for us to return we realized that we would have to decend down the treacherous mountain side without the likes of a guide. Should we, at one point or another, choose the wrong path we would surely plummit to our death. So we ask our host how we should go about getting back safely without getting lost and she said, "Just go back the way we came." Like it was the easiest thing in the world. Then she says, "If you get lost just call for help."

I'm thinking to myself, self why didn't prepare for the trip a little better and hire out a sherpa who could help us navigate the perilous mountain in which you can only find your way if you were lived in the area since the time you were a papus.

Why in the world do people need to distance themselves from the rest of the world so much that they would go and settle a little community miles away from civilization. Maybe I'm a little unadventurous but if you need to have your friends and other visitors hire a sherpa just so they can get to and from you home I think that's were I would draw the line.

Cars, a metaphor for life?

2006-01-31T10:44:00.000-07:00

Think about it, if your a car guy as most people know I'm not so I could be way off, you know that some people enjoy a fixer upper project and others like to buy cars that are in mint condition. When I say car guy I'm not referring to the type of person that owns a car. I'm referring to a real car person. Someone who knows what the number associated with the engine name refers to, or someone who knows why we don't have hover cars to drive around in like Back to the Future promised us when we were kids. A real car guy.

Anyway, a real car guy can see a classic model of a car and get excited as to the potential that the car has. He knows that if he just puts in the TIME and MONEY that he could have one of the best cars in the world. A completely polished sweet ride that he can brag about to his friends. Cars of this nature, depending on the car guy, usually end up with one of two fates. One is to be cherished and babied by the guy for the rest of his existence or to be bragged about by the guy for awhile and then sold to someone else. If the car meets the latter of the two fates the car guy is usually prone to begin his search again for a project of some sort, a way to be car to be that can be repaired or upgraded to a fine tuned automobile that will earn him bragging rights for a while until he can sell it and start the continual process all over again. Until one day the car decides that he is completely happy with his most recent referberation and is content to keep that car for the rest of his life.

Then there are other car guys who are interested in the already fine tuned, polished to a high shine automobile. This is also a car that entitles him to bragging rights. There are also two types of car guys in this category. The one who buys his car and keeps it for ever the one who keep the car for a time only to become unsatisfied with the vehicle when something better comes along. At which point this car guy will do anything to trade in or upgrade his car. He may even have both cars for a while and spend time with babying both of them until he finally decides that he can only afford one car or that he just doesn't care as much for the old car as much as he does for the new car. Depending upon the resources of the the car guy may depend on how long he will hold on to each car or depending upon the features of the car could save the car from being sold. Because eventually the car guy will decide on a car that he will keep longer than any other car.

I was sitting in church the other day trying unsuccessfully to pay attention to whatever was going on and a thought came to me. Old cars are a metaphor for person to person relationships. When you think about it. There are different aproaches people take to forming and maintaining co-ed relationships. If in my rambling thoughts that you just read through you turn car guy into guy/girl and turn car into girl/guy I think that you will come to the same conclusion that I came to. Now if you we could just figure out what this all means and apply it life I could sleep at night.