Not to be outdone by Nevada

...well, actually, it has been outdone by Nevada (see this post from a few weeks ago). I'm starting to wonder if there's not some sort of issue with desert air and the need to display old shoes on trees? This beauty was found in Milford, Utah. In the middle of the small town, not in the middle of *nowhere* as the Nevada shoe tree was, so that probably accounts for its diminutive size.

Phone a friend

Truth be told, we screen our calls to our home phone. If you want to talk, leave a message. Last night, we get three calls in row without a message. We don't use caller ID, 'cuz you know, we'd be ignoring more calls. Because of this limitation and curiousity about the three calls and no message, Ivan dials *69. It's someone from Pueblo, Colorado. As soon as he puts the phone down, the thing rings again. Ok, fine, he's gotta answer now even though we've got no idea who would be calling from Pueblo.

He answers and a girl on the other line says, "Is David there?"

"I'm sorry, you must have the wrong number. There's no one here by that name," replies Ivan.

"Oh, ok, thanks." says the disappointed girl.

Ivan hangs up and almost as soon as the phone hits the desk, the phone rings again. Ivan answers, "Hello."

"Hi, I forgot to ask. Do you know any Davids?"

"I know several. What's the last name?" queries Ivan.

"Archuleta."

"No, sorry, I don't know him," Ivan states to the crushed girl.

I'm really hoping for the girl's parents sake that they've got free long distance and/or free minutes on the cell phone. We're guessing she's trying every number in the Salt Lake Valley. Go, persistant girl, go!

For those of you who aren't aware, David Archuleta is the kid on American Idol that is from Murray, Utah. The local news was reporting that the kid was back in town after a break from the TV show, so you know, his groupies must be following as closely as they can.

Arches National Park

If you're looking for something to see this summer and you happen to find yourself in southern Utah, I heartily recommend Arches National Park. My most recent visit was yesterday with my sister and my step-daughter. It showed me even more things than I had missed in my previous visits. Everytime I go, something new pops into view. There really is so much to see, and it has this "other world" feeling that you don't find just anywhere. And for $10/car for admission, you can't find much cheaper family entertainment.

I hope to make a camping trip of it this summer. Baking in a tent on some purty red rock sounds like fun at this point. Of course when it's 120 this summer, it may not sound like such a huge blast, but I'm sure that pretty red rock will keep me warm at night! Anyway, check it out when you get a chance. You won't be disappointed.

Utah is special...

I know Utah is full of conservatives...Mormon and not. Most of the time it really doesn't make any difference in how I live my own life. A few things, however, have arisen that make it more apparent that I live in an ultra-controlling conservatively off center locale. The other day, listening to the radio, the song, "Rockstar" by Nickelback came on. Now, while it may be taken seriously by some people, I find the song pretty funny and it's got an awesome grooooove to it. I especially like the little devil voice asking questions of the lead singer. At one point in the song, (here's the lyrics for those of you unfamiliar) he says that he's going to have a drug dealer on speed dial. The bleeped out "drug dealer!" OH, that's right, the rest of the seven deadly sins explicitly detailed in this song was ok...but yeah, that "drug dealer" part...wipe that out. It's far toooo explicit. "Seriously, boys and girls, when you want to be a rock star...go for everything but the drugs. Real rockstars don't do drugs." Bwwwwaaahahah.

The problem with censorship like this is that hiding the elephant of drug addiction in the room won't keep kids from trying them. Capice? Hiding it and keeping it baaaad makes it seem really, really cool for those kids wanting to be anything but their conservative parents are pretending not to do.

As if censoring music isn't bad enough, the State passed some new alcohol control laws. No longer will the grocery stores carry the already-extra-diluted-and-made-special-for-Utah alcapops (Mikes Hard Lemonade and the like). They can still carry anything that tastes bad -- like the extra diluted beers. I personally don't like the taste of alcohol and have rarely had anything alcoholic to drink, but when I did, I preferred a fruity cover up to avoid the flavor. Now, if on the off-chance I wanted something like that to drink, I would have to hunt down the state run liquor stores which are few and far between...and they're so freakin' hard to find. They're casually marked, dark dingy cinderblock buildings in bad neighborhoods (which really aren't that bad...just bad as far as Salt Lake goes.) So, yeah, the once a year trip to the house-o-liquor may get cancelled again this year.

In addition to the alcapop change, they're delving into the bars aka "private clubs for members" here in Utah to try to make the laws appear more normal to visitors. Ummm...I think they messed up. The new law affects shots...if you're drinking a margarita for instance, you cannot order an additional 1 ounce shot of tequila, but you can order a 1 ounce shot of vodka. See, if it's in your drink already, we don't want you to order an additional ounce to spice it up. No sirreeee...you've gotta drink something different, dangit. OH and don't even think of ordering a double shot...still illegal. Two ounces? Are you serious?! Far too much in Utah. So, if you're looking to get drunk in Utah, please remember that variety is the spice of life -- order a mixed drink and an extra shot of liquor not already contained in the mix. Oh, remember, though, that you can't have more than 2.5 ounces of alcohol in front of you at any given time (down from 2.75 oz), so drink up quickly and get on with your life.

Trapped!

We went to an early dinner at Tucanos in Orem today...and ended up ~trapped~ on the highway for three hours. Our departure was about 25 miles from home. Much of the time we were at a complete stop while the heavy snow and high winds pelted the car. It was kind of fun for the five of us...for the first hour. The second hour the cramped car seemed to become ever more cramped with each passing minute. There were cars off the road all along the stretch of I-15, but luckily, we arrived home safely and without incident. Well, except if you count the missing three hours that were deducted from our lives along the short stretch of highway...we shall never see those hours again...

Busy, busy!

So much going on, so little time to blog.

I've been canning up a storm of goodness -- primiarly apricot and plum. The raspberry onslaught is just beginning. So far I've made apricot jams and butters; canned whole apricots; dried about 7 batches of dehydrated apricots and froze a bunch, too. Then there's the plum jam and plum conserve. The latter is usually super yummy. I couldn't find my original Ball Canning book recipe, but I think this one ought to be just as yummy -- It's primarily plums, oranges, walnuts and sugar. It's a very holiday-y taste.

We've been working at re-doing are front room/entry. It's been covered by ugly wallpaper for 80+ years. Way past time for a facelift! We peeled a good four layers off the wall and three off the ceiling. I've never, ever sweated enough to drip off the tip of my nose....well, until it was 100 degrees outside and I was steamin' my butt off. A good pore cleansing, to be sure. Here's the mid-strip look:



And finally, the post-paint look. We haven't installed the flooring yet nor completely refurbed the woodwork. All in good time! The green is called "Feldspar" It's basically a light Mountain Dew tone. It really makes the woodwork POP from the walls. I picked out the color and loved it, but when I started painting I was a bit....ummm..scared. Now that it's up, I'm diggin' it!

After the wood flooring is laid down, I plan on getting this rug (linky) 'cuz it's funky and even maybe a wee bit arts & crafts like the house. When the room is completely put back together, I'll post more pix.

Finally, we've got a wedding going on this Friday. Ivan's youngest daughter is getting married. Much to-do over this to-do. Luckily, I'm a relatively minor player although I think we're paying for the reception. Ahhh the beauty of a traditional "father of the bride pays for the reception" gig. The truly lucky portion -- it's a super low-key barbeque. Not by our design, but rather the bride's. Gotta love a girl with simple tastes! :-)

Oh, I almost forgot about my weather report. I'm sure most of you heard about the huge fires in Utah. While we've recently gotten rain and have broken our several week stretch of 100 degree weather, I was able to view a sweet fire right near downtown Salt Lake City. Got some cute photos of firemen, I did. Oooh, yes, I did. Ya gotta love the fireman's stance on the left. It was hot, hot and hot in many ways, that day. :-)

Burnin' in Utah

It's hot, dry and firey here in Utah. I'm about 100 miles north of the big Milford Flats fire. I think it was supposed to be sunny today, but now, there's nary a mountain to be seen through the valley. It's all just a thick haze. With any luck it will keep us from getting up to the 100 degree mark again.

Speaking of the heat, this is turning out to be much like my first summer in Utah -- the hottest ever on record. The good thing is that now I've got central air to keep me from dryin' and fryin' in the late afternoon heat. We've had quite a long string of 100 degree heat so far and it appears that the forecast is calling for even more. Also, if you're in Texas and you've got some extra rain, please send it this-away. We need it!

Glacial Lake Vanishes in Southern Chile

A five-acre glacial lake in Chile's southern Andes has disappeared. (Surf to your local news site for more information on this story.) Scientists are stumped, but I have my own theory as to where all of the lake went. Las Vegas. The overbloated, water-sucking, fun-time, desert oasis is constantly searching for potable water. It found it in Chile. A few pipelines here, a few pipelines there and you've got a moistened desert hot spot...and one large missing glacial lake.

On a more sensible, serious note, shouldn't there be a limit as to how large Las Vegas can grow? It is a really dry desert for gosh sakes. There was a time, not that long ago really, when settlers moved west and stopped to take up residence in spots where water was plentiful. You see, back then, they realized that water was essential to life.

Now, 21st century settlers just *expect* water to appear through the tap without giving it a second thought that it has to come from *somewhere*. Vegas is trying to buy water from Utah and other areas, too. Do ya think that maybe, just maybe there should be a limit on development? Nah, that would be too logical and against good old American bloatishness.

Even here in the Salt Lake Valley a mountainous desert area, we're reaching critical mass as to how many people can be supported by the mountain run-off. In the days of 1847, the Mormon settlers who came were brilliant, really. There was lots of water availble for the small settlements. They built irrigation canals which are still being used today. Unfortunately, with the bloat of housing developments, secondary canal water is rarely used to water our desert-lawns. No, all those lush lawns are watered with precious clean water. The very same water that is slowly, but most assuredly, running out. Given the rate of population growth and the potential for global warming changes, I give this area 50 years, tops, before it's buying water from Montana...or just closing up shop entirely.

My First Earthquake

I knew it!...but I didn't know for certain. Last night about 9pm, I was writing an email to a friend when the whole house shook...for only about 3 seconds. I thought maybe a large truck drove by with a huge load, a house exploded or an asteroid fell in the back yard. The thought of an earthquake crossed my mind too, but not until well after I was looking out all the windows to see which house exploded. I went to the bedroom to see if Ivan felt it. He was already asleep and didn't get awoken by it, so you know, it wasn't *that* bad. I forgot about it until today when I hear a blurb on the tele about "last night's earthquake". Yay! I'm no longer a virgin. Here's the snippet from the Salt Lake Tribune:

The University of Utah Seismograph Stations confirms the southern portion of the Salt Lake Valley was hit by a mild earthquake last night. Seismologists place the magnitude of the temblor at 2.3. There were numerous reports of it being felt by residents of West Jordan and South Jordan, about 13 miles southwest of Salt Lake City. No injuries or property damage were reported in the quake, which was recorded at 9:05 p.m. Monday night.

We're in South Jordan, so yay! By the way, when it happened, the deep shaking and rumbling made my brain visualize tornado inverting into the Earth, like I was getting sucked in. Hmmm...maybe I wasn't too far off? Hold onto your hats, this could be the biggun'!

Coffee in Utah

It's taken pretty seriously, this liquid. Especially by the LDS / Mormon Church. Apparently there's a HUGE hubbub going down over t-shirts which depict the hand of god pouring coffee into the angel Moroni statue. The angel Moroni is atop all of the LDS temples, so it may or may not be familiar to you. Anyway, the Church has cried fowl and suggested that the the use of the angel Moroni statue is copyright infringement. Huh.

A couple of things -- 1. What is it about idolizing false idols that the church rails against? Oh, yeah, that. Seems a bit odd that they would be upset about the use of an "idol" on a t-shirt. 2. Secondly, if the church has actually copyrighted the image of the angel Moroni, isn't it something created and not divine?

Seriously, the bottom line more than likely isn't that there is truly copyright infringment, but because the church has billions of dollars at its disposal it is able to push it's weight to prevent a parody of anything they find offensive. It's not about the statue. It's about the coffee being closely tied to the church.

Given the resources that the church has and the fact that the coffee shop "Just Add Coffee" is just one little shop up the street from me, the guys have decided to change their t-shirt design. (The new one is pictured on the right). It now states, "The Lord Giveth and A Church Taketh Away." with a picture of God's hand pouring coffee into a trumpet. Of course it's not Moroni's trumpet...or is it??

Be Careful What you Tell Missionaries

Be careful what you tell missionaries who come to your home. Apparently discretion isn't taught at the LDS training center. I was stressed out with a work thing and the spanish speaking LDS missionaries came to my door. Not sure why they were canvassing this neighborhood, 'cept maybe trying to gain some newbie tracting experience. They were quizzing me about my religious beliefs...questions for which I really didn't have time to give them a full answer. So, suffice it to say that they left with juicy tidbits of religious gossip from a ~heathen~ like me. What did they do? Well, they went next door and spread said gossip to my neighbor. Finding out that this happened leaves me with an uncomfortably icky taste in my mouth. What can ya do? Plenty, methinks. I have a plan for the next poor missionaries who come to my door and I don't have time to chat. When asking what religion I am, for instance, I will simply state, "Did you see the sheep in back? Well, yes, we raise them for ritual sacrifices. Come June 21st, I will be stripping naked, smearing the blood of one of the innocent lambs across my nubile (hehehehe) body while dancing around the flames of satan. Would you like to come in for a cup of coffee?"