A job well done

I go to BYU-Idaho, a frankly better school that our sister school down south. However, our school is lacking a major college tradition. We don't have a football team. In fact we don't have any sports that involve other schools. When we have football on the weekend, BYU-I wins 3 games and loses 3 games when only 3 games are played. Yee Haw - Go BYU-I!

Our sister school down south - BYU-Provo - did a miraculous thing this weekend. After 4 straight years of losing to the University of Utah, BYU beat UofU. In fact, they beat them in Salt Lake in the last three seconds of the game. For a clip, go here.

Way to go BYU!

It's been a while

It’s been a while since I posted last. I’m working on a 5-person group project right now and only 1 ½ of the people are working. Those 1 ½ people have to pick up the work for those that aren’t. It’s frustrating. In addition to this, I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting.

It’s been a while since I’ve lived in CA. I’ve lived in Rexburg for the last 20 months. Prior to that I lived in Oregon for nearly 6 months. Prior to that I lived in Rexburg for 6 months. That’s nearly 3 years. Yet I will soon leave Rexburg for CA. I’m going to live in CA for about 3 ½ months before returning to Rexburg to graduate in July. (Assuming a lot of things like that I pass Com 235, that I then pass Com 335, Assuming that I don’t get accepted to USU and then have to decide what to do with my life after that – go to USU or Stay at BYU-I, assuming I don’t freak out in CA and join a cult of anti college freaks.)

I have a hard time remembering what it feels like to live in CA. I have been in small towns and farming communities for 2 ½ years. Slow moving, relaxing days floating down the river or sledding down the hillsides; “normal” people who show up to job interviews in slacks or at least their best overalls; “normal” people who aren’t pierced and tattooed to the extreme; Idaho politics that involves water rights and elk hunting. I’m leaving this to go “home” to CA to a different life.

It’s been a while since I was home for a major holiday. I haven’t spent a November thanksgiving with a family member since 2003, which was at KNJ’s place and my father and John came. I haven’t spent a Christmas or birthday in CA since 2004 (last year I spent it with Steve). Lastly, I haven’t worked in a theatre in over 2 years. In other words, everything I used to really enjoy has changed. It’s been a while since I was CA Sean.

It’s been a while since I was on my mission, but I still remember it. My mission was from Sept 22 1999 to Jan 12 2000. I served for an additional 3 months (Apr 9) on my couch before receiving an official release from the church. But it is now, back in 99, which I was in Tucson. During the summer I met a girl over myspace who lived in Tucson. She lives just outside my old area boundaries. While discussing with her where she lived, we used Google Maps. I found my old area and saw an aerial view of my old area (it seemed bigger when I was on a bike.) That brought back a lot of good memories. Now days I support the mission effort by writing to 8 missionaries serving through out the US (MN, NM, CA, OH & Chicago, IL) and the world (Brazil, Taiwan & Portugal). As I write to them and occasionally hear back from them, I think back to that time in my life 7 years ago. I look at the Sean that existed back in 1999. The summer Brother and Sister were married in, the mission call, and then leaving. In 2000 I met John. I met KNJ in 2002. My mother died in 2003. I left for ID in April 2004. KJN and I said our final good byes in November 2004. And then now. I look at the person I was in 1999 and who I am now. In some areas I’m a better person. In other’s, I’m worse. Nothing stayed the same, not even my hair.

Like I said, I’ve been in a reflective mood lately. Sorry

I had almost forget

...what it was like to throw up.

I have a hiated hernia on the back of my esophagus. It was discovered about 3 years ago (during an emergency apendicitus operation). I made cetain changes in my diet and I started having success in eating solid food starting in June 2006 (yes - it took that long to give up soda, chocolate, and a few other comfort foods.)

I haven't thrown up in 5 1/2 months, nor have I felt nauseas in as much time. This is way different from the 2+ years prior to that where I threw-up at least once a month and sometimes once a week.

So in that almost 6 months I had totally forgotten what it felt like to have a day like today. I woke up this morning, got ready for my day in the library (The end of the semester is coming - so are a million projects). I was just about ready to go to class when my stomach errupted. I spent the rest of the day feeling sick to my stomach.

Oooh how I have forgitten these days. Oooh how I don't miss them.

***
On a side note - KNJ enter the MTC on Wednesday. (For that metter - so did my cousin)

I got me some pumkin pie!

Money is a weird concept in my life. For example, I have a beer can coin jar that I'm using to save my pennies for the BYU-Idaho Legacy Fund.

But I don't splurge all that much with money. I kind of splurge on chocolate from time to time. But I got a really cool gift in the mail today. ~Gu~ sent me pie money. It's no secret that I'm not a fan of cake so imagine my joy when I got pie money. I went out right away and bought a Pumkin Pie with whip cream. It will be gone by Sunday and, no, I'm not sharing.

Thanks Gu!

My back packing trip

To further my adventure process, I went on a back packing trip in the middle of October. Instead of telling you about it, I'm just going to copy and paste parts of a letter I wrote to my Grandma.
There are a few pics on my Photo blog
Enjoy.
--------------

Hi. How are you? No really, how are you? I’m doing okay. Today I’m coming to terms with how much I enjoy modern technology. On Thursday, for a class I was in in the summer, I got to go backpacking. This was my first time in a tent in over 9 years. Every summer, when we’re driving to [Brother's] place, my dad requires me to bring the tent “in case we need it.” We never use it (because let’s be honest – could you see my dad camping anywhere?), but he makes me use it every year. My last several girlfriends have been anti-camping as well.

So Thursday, at 8am, I loaded a bus and headed off to Bear Creek in Southern Idaho. I was a little apprehension to go on this activity. My wrist got taken out of the cast only a week before, but it is still in a splint and continues to heal as I go to physical therapy twice a week. (I cry at every one as they push my wrist in ways it doesn’t currently want to go.) I knew the trails would be muddy and there would be several slick river crossings, but I had to go in able to fulfill my requirements for the class.

After about a 90-minute drive, we arrived at what would be my home for the next three days and two nights. We unloaded our trailer and put on our packs and moved out from there. We had hiked for about a mile when our professor gave us two options. We could go another 3 miles and camp or go another ½ mile and camp. I was with the group that voted to go on, but we were 4 lonely voices among the other 8 people chose to camp there. So we crossed a river and found ourselves in a nice little clearing with ridges on both sides and a stream to our northern side. From it we could look out to see another ridge and the river. It was really pretty. The ridges kept us sheltered from the wind, but also the sun. This was particularly important on the first night. Because the sun spends less time in the clearing, it got cold faster and deeper than if we had camped 3 miles to the west. The temperature at 2 am was 20 degrees. I didn’t really know how to camp in that weather, so I was freezing the whole night.

On Friday we went on a 2-4 mile hike. The group split up after 2 miles because a girl was having serious health problems. She had left her high blood pressure medication in town and was now on a trail that went straight up. Even the people that are physically fit were having problems. I stayed with her, and half of the rest of the group, and rested.
The rest of the group traveled another 60 minutes up the hill. After 90 minutes from their original departure, we rejoined them to walk down the hill. They went about 5 miles while the rest of us went almost 4 miles. Thankfully we were not in full backpack gear, or I’d still be on the trail. On Friday night I slept better and on Saturday we hiked out.

There were three significant things that happened on this trip. The first started on the first day. We were sitting around the campfire when two horsemen rode up into our campsite. They asked us if we had seen 2 white horses. Two of this guys horses had wondered off in the middle of the night. On Friday, the guy had 4 separate search groups out looking for these horses. He had guys on foot; horse; motorcycles; and he even had a plane searching overhead. The group that traveled the extra hour up the hill saw the horses on a ridge 3 ridges over. We were able to call on our cell phones the guy who lost his horses and helped in the rescue of these horses. And we were but humble backpackers. It felt kind of cool to be able to help in that. It was really nice to have our cell phones working in the middle of nowhere.

The second thing that happened that felt kind of nice was when we were hiking out. There were 12 in our group plus a TA and a professor. At least 4 of us had solid medical training. All 14 of us had up-to-date first aid kits. This came in very handy when we came across a hunter. He was driving in supplies for Elk season (which opened on Sunday) on a two-wheel dirt motorcycle. He rolled his cycle a couple of times down a hill. He wasn’t wearing a helmet and was about a mile into the trail when he rolled. I got to be a medical assistant to my teacher and the Teacher’s Tutor. We helped the kid walk out and get to his vehicle. The really significant thing was he was passed up by 4 other hunting parties. We were able to help him because killing an Elk wasn’t our top priority. Even his own father left him behind. It felt good to help out.

The last significant thing was I figured out how much I love modern science. Growing up, we camped as good people camp – we drove our stuff in, set up a tent, had a fire dinner (usually a “hobo” tin foil dinner of hamburger, potatoes and carrots that our moms had packed for us). This whole hiking in, using stoves to cook and having to hang a bear bag for every meal we do…Ugg! In addition, I really like sleeping on solid ground. We ended up camping in an area that was bumpy. I either had a rock in, a mound of dirt, or my tent mate’s knee in my back both nights. I really enjoyed coming home to a comfy bed that didn’t have rocks, knees or bumps in it. A warm apartment with good stoves and a dishwasher and a furnace is really a great blessing from God. I appreciate it a lot more now.

On a lighter note

My cousin in serving his mission in Africa sent this to his family and they passed it onto me:

Two men are drinking at a bar. One of the men tries to get up from the bar and falls down. He gets up again and falls again. He does this several times. The second man watches this for a few minutes before he goes over to the first man and says "I think you're too drunk. Let me drive you home."

When they get home the drunk man's wife comes out and thanks the second man for driving her husband home. Then she gets a frantic look on her face and asks the second man, "Where is my husband's wheelchair?"