ccw part 3: climb, bike, camp

annie needed to be futher convinced of the positives of slc so we took her climbing...

holly lead us up...

my camera was in my pocket when i climbed...smooth

annie showed us her vegas moves...

and brett showed us his fancy footwork

later that night annie and i decided to camp up bell canyon so we got to the trailhead around 10:45 p.m.

but awoke to see bambi's offspring

if looks to kill...

then we had a nice little ride up temple quarry

part two (ccw) unattractive sushi eaters

so it was annie's first try at eating sushi this past weekendshe couldn't have the full experience in the sushi resturant because i was late... (my first time) so we got it to go...

danielle looks like pop-eye with her sushi cheek i personally learned that i look like a snake that can detatch it's jaw in order to eat all that's needed

in case anyone is feeling bad at themselves continue to observe this aweful picture and then look in the mirror and say, i'm fabulous!

i mean look at all those chins! yipes!

i did complete the task though...

overall we did come out sucessfully converting annie to sushi unfortunately for us all:

a. it came with the cost of horrible photos and b. i have a blog

cuz connection week...part one

so annie, my cuz from vegas has been here visiting for the week

it has been quite eventful minus all the broken vehicle madness...

i brought both her and danielle to my favorite neighborhood secret of gilgal garden

i think danielle appreciated it more since she posed more often and annie is catholic and may not enjoy the joseph smith sphinx head...

i don't get why people think mormons are weird.

we went to a delightful eartasting of calexico live at the gallivan center...

annie even helped me make my own maraca out of a powerade container and spare change i was entertained the rest of the night dancing with my own shaker...

(no photos you should have been there)

and holly and brett showed us how to get down

whoa...

falling apart

on the subway trip i felt a strange looseness coming about on my chacos

then before i knew it

the exposed strap from the bottom had broken and it was coming undone...


i was having such a good time in the subway i didn't want to worry pete with the new knowledge of the disintegrating straps and because it began to sprinkle we had to boggie to be safe for a little bit....

i decided after the last repel to tell pete so he wouldn't think i was being a slow poke on purpose this was the sight of my chaco after the hike out.

it was honestly a sad day. i have a lot of great memories in these chacos i bought 5 years ago before going to australia. for a while i even resisted the switch from my sturdy old tevas. i have yet to throw them away and there will be a memorial blog for them to come.

stay tuned.

fondest of green and grey

my park service days have come and gone but i always have a fondnest in my heart for the green a grey. on my way to vegas i was able to stay with my good ol friend pete and his darling finance, jacqueline. my biggest regret was not getting a picture of them together and her beautiful ring. i luckily made it in to jacqueline's NIGHT PREDATOR, evening program (she had a catchy name but i'm forgetful) at zion national park. the next day i was able to go out on patrol to the subway (lucky, lucky me) with pete, who's a backcountry ranger for zion.
can you believe my bootie fit through that hole? well it did with a lil spray butter which i always pack on any hike or canyoneering adventure that may have a tight squeeze.
so i've been to the subway in the past with my friend, brian, but had never came from the top down

so there were about 3 or 4 rappels and a few little scrambles down but it was all so beautiful and who doesn't love swimming through lil' slot canyons... water in the desert is amazing and is quite possible heaven on earth in my book
i was reminded of such a simple happy life in living so close to nature and working for an organization that stresses the conservation of where so many find peace and serenity



it was nice just to spend less than 24 hours with an old friend that knows the old and new you and is still a true friend

it's always refreshing to know your friend is happy, at peace with his life, and excited for his future with someone that is a great match for him

and it's a plus that you get to still do fun things with them even while they work

lucky me

sniff, sniff....

so i almost feel like i left my family...

i've been with UFCF for over 2.5 years and just resigned on wednesday so i can focus more on my graduate studies

i've been with them from moab, to slc, to orem

i fear i'll never work for a better organization and really just amazing group of people

i've learned a lot about child welfare over the years and have learned a lot of what makes an organization successful...

the core is wonderful people that are doing great work for a just cause

and have a great time together...

neighborhood watch

at approximately 5 am this morning we were awaken to a noise that sounded like a crash. since the recent events (a.k.a my car getting stolen and a few months ago cops searching our home) we're a little more sensitive and quicker jump if something is happening. we searched our bedroom windows and saw nothing but holly and i decided to check the parameter to assess the situation. we decided it didn't sound like just some garbage cans being knocked down but it surely sounded like metal to metal (cars colliding) on our street. we sneakily didn't turn our porch light on but searched the street to make sure holly or elba's car wasn't crashed...

we didn't find a thing on our search but as we got up to our porch we saw a likely suspect walking across the street from the grocery store. we spied on him as he passed with his cigarette in hand. then out of nowhere he started to run so we bolted out and watched him run down the street to an apartment complex down past our street. we decided it wasn't enough evidence to call the cops but we've got our eyes out. i felt safer with a partner and i think we may buy guns as our next step to keep our neighborhood safe. our neighbors don't even realize the protection and expertise they're getting

dungeons minus the dragons

no dragons but there may be dead bodies under our 1914 home

melanie has had the need to explore under our house for the past week and so when our long lost friend lee came to visit it seemed the perfect time to explore

we've decided that with the 12 foot brick area that was found that we'll need to watch a scary movie and squish in as many as we can...(comfortably) under our house.
we've already decided to hand pick those that will be attending and preference to attend will be those that are scared easily

strangely, first on the list is holly, who screamed after walking in the front door and got caught running past her closet ... and she stated she wasn't scared after watching the grudge 2
...likely story

a few things i love about mexico

amor everywhere...
whether it's with a partner or the kindness of words to a child, friend or family... i loved it
stomach issue needs are provided even in a vending machine for all the gringos on campus

Mexicans use what they got...creative advertisers tacos al pastor (delic)... and this man will whack of a chunk of pinapple with his knif and catch it in the taco... no extra charge...

that someone can walk down a street in the evenings with a basket full of flowers and people will actually buy them for a loved one... i´m sorry that´s romantic and i even hate roses...

mos go outdoors

so our singles ward (church congregation) of peeps ages 18-35 goes on a yearly campout... this year it was near sun valley and the sawtooths in idaho.
some may think that mo's are boring but i beg to differ
i mean with good looking chaps such as these, you know you're in for a good time

thus some might wonder why we're still single... i still haven't figured it out myself...