This is a promotional video we did for the Film contest GCSA is doing. It didn't turn out as high quality as I'd hoped, but Joe spoke and Malu danced, so what more do you want?
Friday, February 18, 2011
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
These are a few of my favorite things...
I have been planning this post for a long time, and I am glad that I can start putting a few of my favorite things up for you to appreciate.
This will be the first of several posts on this subject.
Item #1) My Hula Dancer wallet:
This baby has been with me since the tender age of 15. I got it for free at a yard sale that our local church had to raise money for the Boy Scouts. That was a very profitable yard sale as far as scoring sweet junk goes, but I'll have to list those things at a later date. This wallet is a tri-fold black beauty with features, as you can see, a pretty nifty stitching of a Hula dancer. One of my favorite features of this wallet is that inside it's dependable Velcro fold, there is a pocket with a ZIPPER so that you will never lose your loose change. I once tried a different wallet for a while, but it just wasn't the same. I hope to actually carry money around in this wallet someday...
Item #2) Pantech Jest cell phone:
This is a fairly recent acquisition (less than a year?) and I LOVE it. This phone is the culmination of everything I want in a cell phone. It is small and compact, which I like. It was a full keyboard which has made my texting a delightful and blessed event compared to what it used to be. There is a nice large display for the size of the phone, a decent camera, a track pad with really convenient access to my alarm clock, and some fun politonal ring-tones that I never hear because it is always on vibrate mode. But they are there if I want them. The name Jest is strange, but oddly fitting. All in all, I wish I had another one to replace this one when it reaches it's distant and inevitable demise.
Item #3) My "On a Mission" t-shirt:
My beloved sister, who used to like me more than everyone else (or so I'd like to think), was an amazing package sender when I was on my mission. This is truly one of her gifts, and I have her to thank for many a Soft Batch cookie and pop-tart. One of the reasons that mi hermana was so great a package sender was that she included lenghtly letters, (often super dated but awesome nonetheless) toys, (such as a lightsaber), and even clothes. And here we arrive at the favorite item: my 'On a Mission' T-shirt. I don't know where she found it, but it is splendid. I used to work at a Utah State Park, which requires employees to wear a brown uniform. At first I detested this. But over time, I found that I couldn't help myself and every subsequent clothing purchase (and lets be honest, there weren't many before I got married) involved accruing yet more brown attire. So the solid brown of the t-shirt spoke straight to my heart. Then there was the text, which thought was immensely cleaver because, ... well, ... you know. This t-shirt ranks in the top five of my all time favorite t-shirts, and has the distinction of being the only one that is still staving off a threadbare demise.
Item #4) My Lifeguard travel backpack:
THIS BACKPACK IS AWESOME!!!
Ask anybody.
I REALLY wish I had another one because all good things must come to an end and I will probably weep like a child when this article bites the dust.
I found this gem in Peru in what is called a 'Cachina'. Picture a yardsale/handicraft fair vomited choatically around a busy Peruvian street in the degraded sty that is Juliaca and you might have a fair idea of what a cachina is like. You can find all kinds of interesting stuff, but on this day I was determined to replace a backpack that I had purchased earlier at another cachina that had literally disintegrated. I vowed that I wasn't going to by one of the flashy looking cheaply made bags, but that I would hunt until I found something that would last. When I finally laid eyes on this baby, I was tired of looking and I figured that even a heavily used canvas backpack would be better than anything else I could find. After paying the roughly $4 that it cost, I launched into what was become a never-ending honeymoon with this backpack. Seriously, this thing is possibly bulletproof, holds a shocking amount of stuff thanks to the drawstring top, and is shabby enough looking that I never worried about attracting undue thief notice. I bought the patches of the Peru and Chile flags, and patches of the Punisher symbol and another of Darth Vader and paid a shoe repair guy (also found where ever there are cachinas) to use some hardcore thread to sew them on. That whole operation cost me about 12 bucks. Than I paid a seamstress in Arequipa to shore up the holes and worn spots for about 4 dollars. So for a grand total of $20 I have a faithful companion that has accompanied me to both of my subsequent returns to S. America and has more personality than I can describe. If Indiana Jones had a backpack, ... this would be better than his. This backpack could dodge a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick, it's that amazing.
This will be the first of several posts on this subject.
Item #1) My Hula Dancer wallet:
This baby has been with me since the tender age of 15. I got it for free at a yard sale that our local church had to raise money for the Boy Scouts. That was a very profitable yard sale as far as scoring sweet junk goes, but I'll have to list those things at a later date. This wallet is a tri-fold black beauty with features, as you can see, a pretty nifty stitching of a Hula dancer. One of my favorite features of this wallet is that inside it's dependable Velcro fold, there is a pocket with a ZIPPER so that you will never lose your loose change. I once tried a different wallet for a while, but it just wasn't the same. I hope to actually carry money around in this wallet someday...
Item #2) Pantech Jest cell phone:
This is a fairly recent acquisition (less than a year?) and I LOVE it. This phone is the culmination of everything I want in a cell phone. It is small and compact, which I like. It was a full keyboard which has made my texting a delightful and blessed event compared to what it used to be. There is a nice large display for the size of the phone, a decent camera, a track pad with really convenient access to my alarm clock, and some fun politonal ring-tones that I never hear because it is always on vibrate mode. But they are there if I want them. The name Jest is strange, but oddly fitting. All in all, I wish I had another one to replace this one when it reaches it's distant and inevitable demise.
Item #3) My "On a Mission" t-shirt:
My beloved sister, who used to like me more than everyone else (or so I'd like to think), was an amazing package sender when I was on my mission. This is truly one of her gifts, and I have her to thank for many a Soft Batch cookie and pop-tart. One of the reasons that mi hermana was so great a package sender was that she included lenghtly letters, (often super dated but awesome nonetheless) toys, (such as a lightsaber), and even clothes. And here we arrive at the favorite item: my 'On a Mission' T-shirt. I don't know where she found it, but it is splendid. I used to work at a Utah State Park, which requires employees to wear a brown uniform. At first I detested this. But over time, I found that I couldn't help myself and every subsequent clothing purchase (and lets be honest, there weren't many before I got married) involved accruing yet more brown attire. So the solid brown of the t-shirt spoke straight to my heart. Then there was the text, which thought was immensely cleaver because, ... well, ... you know. This t-shirt ranks in the top five of my all time favorite t-shirts, and has the distinction of being the only one that is still staving off a threadbare demise.
Item #4) My Lifeguard travel backpack:
THIS BACKPACK IS AWESOME!!!
Ask anybody.
I REALLY wish I had another one because all good things must come to an end and I will probably weep like a child when this article bites the dust.
I found this gem in Peru in what is called a 'Cachina'. Picture a yardsale/handicraft fair vomited choatically around a busy Peruvian street in the degraded sty that is Juliaca and you might have a fair idea of what a cachina is like. You can find all kinds of interesting stuff, but on this day I was determined to replace a backpack that I had purchased earlier at another cachina that had literally disintegrated. I vowed that I wasn't going to by one of the flashy looking cheaply made bags, but that I would hunt until I found something that would last. When I finally laid eyes on this baby, I was tired of looking and I figured that even a heavily used canvas backpack would be better than anything else I could find. After paying the roughly $4 that it cost, I launched into what was become a never-ending honeymoon with this backpack. Seriously, this thing is possibly bulletproof, holds a shocking amount of stuff thanks to the drawstring top, and is shabby enough looking that I never worried about attracting undue thief notice. I bought the patches of the Peru and Chile flags, and patches of the Punisher symbol and another of Darth Vader and paid a shoe repair guy (also found where ever there are cachinas) to use some hardcore thread to sew them on. That whole operation cost me about 12 bucks. Than I paid a seamstress in Arequipa to shore up the holes and worn spots for about 4 dollars. So for a grand total of $20 I have a faithful companion that has accompanied me to both of my subsequent returns to S. America and has more personality than I can describe. If Indiana Jones had a backpack, ... this would be better than his. This backpack could dodge a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick, it's that amazing.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Sweat is a sweet last name.
There have been many over the course of my life to comment on my surname. I have had people mock it, and praise it. In elementary school my parents had the unfortunate penchant to dress me in sweat pants and sweat shirts, which was basically inviting ridicule. Maybe they were trying to teach me an important life lesson, or maybe they were oblivious. Either way, I wasn't big on sweats until college and I rediscovered the joy of elastic waistbands. When I was young, I was also examined rigorously by my peers to determine whether or not I sweated more than was socially permissible. Needless to say I was a big proponent of antiperspirant, even before the free miniature Old Spice that was divied out in 5th grade maturation class.
Later on, people would intentionally mispronounce it in order to avoid offending me if they were wrong. They mostly say "sweet" rather than sweat, which is amusing but gets old. It is a good screen for tele-marketers though, so I guess there is balance in all things.
Finally, during my mission the "SW" together gave the Latins fits with pronunciation. There aren't any words in Spanish that feature the W anyway and so my name-tag caused general stammering and uncomfortableness. Basically, for all you Spanish speakers out there, the pronunciation works best (Su-et).
Despite all of the issues my surname has caused throughout the years, I am proud of it. There aren't a whole lot of us, and I am glad of that. It originates in England, and we even have a sweet (or Sweat) coat of arms. Check it out here:
http://www.4crests.com/sweat-coat-of-arms.html
So, I'm a Sweat. Wanna fight about it?
Later on, people would intentionally mispronounce it in order to avoid offending me if they were wrong. They mostly say "sweet" rather than sweat, which is amusing but gets old. It is a good screen for tele-marketers though, so I guess there is balance in all things.
Finally, during my mission the "SW" together gave the Latins fits with pronunciation. There aren't any words in Spanish that feature the W anyway and so my name-tag caused general stammering and uncomfortableness. Basically, for all you Spanish speakers out there, the pronunciation works best (Su-et).
Despite all of the issues my surname has caused throughout the years, I am proud of it. There aren't a whole lot of us, and I am glad of that. It originates in England, and we even have a sweet (or Sweat) coat of arms. Check it out here:
http://www.4crests.com/sweat-coat-of-arms.html
So, I'm a Sweat. Wanna fight about it?
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Weather permitting
Well,
This was supposed to be an awesome post. But the lack of sunshine is cramping my style, therefore, it's going to be sub par. Although you undoubtedly are wondering what was going to be great about it, I can't tell you. You'll just have to turn in next week.
My favorite brother in law recently purchased me a copy of Star Craft 2. I think he just wants somebody to play with, but there you are.
Dancing: I am going to be dancing in the BYU Fiesta show in March. I will be dancing a Brazilian dance, and dang, it's fast. Also, as the newly appointed Publicity Chair for Global Citizens for Study Abroad (long I know), I am going to convince a bunch of poor zoobies to be in a baliwood style video to promote an international film contest. It should be fun, and how can you not want to do something like that after seeing this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRC4QrUwo9o
That little kid is cute btw.
Anywho, other than that go look at the dark, serious, political underbelly of sleepmuch8 by clicking on the political rants tab.
This was supposed to be an awesome post. But the lack of sunshine is cramping my style, therefore, it's going to be sub par. Although you undoubtedly are wondering what was going to be great about it, I can't tell you. You'll just have to turn in next week.
My favorite brother in law recently purchased me a copy of Star Craft 2. I think he just wants somebody to play with, but there you are.
Dancing: I am going to be dancing in the BYU Fiesta show in March. I will be dancing a Brazilian dance, and dang, it's fast. Also, as the newly appointed Publicity Chair for Global Citizens for Study Abroad (long I know), I am going to convince a bunch of poor zoobies to be in a baliwood style video to promote an international film contest. It should be fun, and how can you not want to do something like that after seeing this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRC4QrUwo9o
That little kid is cute btw.
Anywho, other than that go look at the dark, serious, political underbelly of sleepmuch8 by clicking on the political rants tab.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Introducing Push Button Podium
Well, I did it, I launched the political blog. If you are interested in that kind of thing, (and you really should be), go check it out. There is a link on the side and if you are old fashioned, you can find it at www.pushbuttonpodium.blogspot.com.
All you need to know about it is over there, so go check it out.
All you need to know about it is over there, so go check it out.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Urinal Etiquette
Today I had an experience that reminded me of something that I've wanted to bring up for a while now, and it happened in the men's room in the university library. For all of you sick and twisted people that read this, it is nothing sick or twisted, so read on. The event was what I consider to be a chief restroom faux pas, and the subject is Urinal Etiquette.
This is what happened:
I was standing in front of the far urinal (more on this momentarily), doing my thing, when another guy enters and approaches a urinal to relieve himself. Now, this is what you would expect an average Joe to do when entering a bathroom, but the problem was this: even though there were three vacant urinals, he chose the one RIGHT NEXT TO ME!
Now, for some of you, this may not be a big deal, and, truth be told, it isn't. However, there needs to be a general outlining of what I consider to be commonly observed rules that every guy should know instinctively. For those that don't know what these are, here are ten rules to pee by:
1) When approaching the urinal wall where one is being used, always choose the one that gives you the MOST distance from one currently in use. This is not just so you can feel comfortable about personal space and whatnot, but it is just d*** weird if you go right next to someone when you had the option not too.
2) When approaching the line of urinals, if you are the only one, choose the furthermost from the door and/or sinks. This will ensure that, even though it is highly unlikely that anyone will see your 'self'(or even looking), there will be even less of a possibility of this occurring. This phobia of other dudes sneaking a peek has much to do with rule number one as well.
3)When there are no available urinals, preferable to starting a line, use the stall. (contrary to popular practice, you can go number one just as easily as at a urinal, be advisedyou need to follow the same procedures you normally would, "if you tinkle... and all that")
4)In the event that ALL available urine depository units are occupied, you may form a line. In keeping with rule number 2, this should be furthermost from the door, and has the double sense of enabling you to access a stall should that be the first opening. ***MOST IMPORTANT*** is that you leave at least 4 feet of space between you an the guy you are waiting on. A personal note: one time at Lagoon, I was placed in the line situation and when I finally got to a urinal, the enormous black guy(not being racist, just descriptive) crowded to a mere half a foot away from me and proceeded (I imagine) to stare at my operation. Needless to say, it was an awkward situation. Not cool. Leave some space.
5) Don't look to either side. It is unnerving when you can tell from your peripheral vision that some dude is staring at you. Considering that there are good odds that dude is probably doing the same thing you are, this is just plain weird. Just keep your eyes lowered and focus on the task at hand... (heh heh). If there is a flyer or some other reading material at eye level or higher, it is OK and even expected that you read it; but not if it is over the adjacent stall, and certainly not if you have to crane your neck to see it a few stalls away.
6) Talking is unacceptable. In fact, humming, singing, eating, reading (magazine or book) and cell phone use (yes, even hands free technology) is strictly prohibited. This is one of the most violated rules, but also one of the most important. Only two buddies who know each other well can have a joking discussion while attending to bathroom business, and only if nobody else is present. If someone should enter, all conversation must cease. I suppose you can tell your good friends from your acquaintances by whether or not you can talk to them while taking care of restroom matters.
7) No excessive shaking. The Good Charlotte song of yesteryear, The Anthem gives you a good rule of thumb.
8) Don't put one hand up and lean on the wall. Actually, don't do anything strange. No sudden movements, no leaning, no spitting, no noises. Aside from the fact that men are notoriously poor multitaskers and this will place you in jeopardy of missing the target, this will tempt other urinal users to break rule # 5. Causing others to break the rules is nearly as deplorable as breaking them yourself.
9) Flush. This seems like a fairly standard protocol, but you'd be surprised at how many like to gun and run. Perhaps a violation of rule number five spooked them...
10) Wash your hands afterwards. Duh. But remember that just because you are free of the urinal yourself, you are still bound not to look at those less fortunate who are still otherwise engaged- rule #5 logic still applies.
Well, there you have it. I have had some interesting experiences going number one in my life, and can truthfully say that these are rules to live by. Once when I was a door to door salesman, I went in broad daylight while balanced awkwardly over a sewer grate. This was a desperate situation of course, but it was also rather hilarious. That job actually caused a few notable mishaps, such as the enclosed porch incident and the street lamp in the dark incident. That reminds me, Peru was a wealth of humor in that department. Aside from the drunken guys engaged in public urination (which caused Gluch and I coin the term "shleevy shleeve"), there are also urinals in the strangest places or in odd configurations. For example, the bus terminal in Arequipa has a eye level window that has no pane and looks out directly to the sidewalk and parking lot that runs the length of the bank of urinals.
And here is one of the more interesting middle of the street urinals in Tacna that I took a picture of (this was less than a block away from a house I lived in for 3 months while I was there).
But I digress...
Lest you think that these are just the deranged ramblings of one disgruntled urinator, I am inclined to direct you to a very informative post that a colleague in the blogosphere wrote that further develops the concepts outlined in rules 1 and 2: Urinal Protocol Vulnerability
Need even more alternative sources? Well, after about five clicks, I found that I am not the only proponent of Urinal Etiquette. Here are some important links to review:
Breaking the Unspoken Rule
How Men Pee In Urinals
The Rules of Urinal Etiquette
And, if you you really want to get serious about investigating the subject, visit:
The International Center for Bathroom Etiquette
Monday, December 20, 2010
The end of one heck of a semester.
I was busy this past semester. Full time graveyard job, part time multimedia reporter/web editor for the Daily Universe, and a healthy 15 credit semester. I'm glad it's behind me. I am pretty sure that I got mostly A's and perhaps a B may have snuck in there, but by and large I am only too happy for how things went. This next semester, I bit adieu to the newsroom: they haven't the position for me and I haven't the time. It was enjoyable to be sure, but I had a limited schedule for them to utilize and was tired of having no free time at all.
Simply put, I have been too lazy to update. I have been alone lately since my wife has been in Peru, but even so, I couldn’t find the energy to write a blog. Maybe the biggest issue is that my laptop screen went mysteriously dark and I have been out of a computer. I have had access to computers, but I haven’t been here at work where the abundance of time seems to work well for me to actually write things. Apparently, the guy at Wasatch Computers thinks that it would be a good deal to fix my laptop screen for 350+ dollars. Since I could buy a new one for the same price, I beg to differ. I would like to get a new Macbook Pro, but they are so bloody expensive I highly doubt that will happen. We’ll see.
What I have done is watch Beetlejuice and the Nightmare before Christmas finally. Can you believe that I’d never seen them before? All in all, good flicks. It was weird to see Alec Baldwin so young, and seeing Micheal Keaton so bizarre, but there you are. Other things that I have done: I shoveled a lot of snow in Fruitland. It was less fun than you’d think. I also attended all three hours of church there for the first time in a long time. It was strange. I hardly recognize the people there anymore.
All of the family minus Michele (and she hardly counts anymore) went to see Tron in Roosevelt. First time I can remember seeing a movie with the whole family, and in Roosevelt no less. Lets just say that it was cold everywhere in the Basin, but especially in the theatre. The other three people there must have been regulars because they came well wrapped in blankets.
Tron… not a bad flick, but I happen to like Jeff Bridges. Lets just say that this movie demonstrated what I suppose an acid trip might be like.
Another reason I delayed updating my blog is that I wanted to post PDF’s of my final design project. This proved to be more difficult than I had originally thought, so you will have to go to my online portfolio here:
And download it.
I hope you like them, the investigative reporters handbook should be useful to all because I have linked every website listed so all you have to do is click on it to go to the resource. I hope somebody uses it because it took me FOREVER to do and if nobody uses that feature, it would be a royal waste of time.
Here at sleepmuch8 we pride ourselves in putting off posting for long stretches at a time and then posting massive posts that really should be broken up into three or four different posts. Continuing that noble tradition, here is a really funny article I read titled, “Dave Barry’s Year in Review”. It can be found here:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/01/01/1992746/dave-barrys-2010-year-in-review.html
And I highly recommend giving it a read. This has inspired my to write my own short “Year in review”. So here goes,
2010 was a pretty good year all around for me personally, but fairly lame as far as politics and such go. We’ll not worry about that though. Bad things that happened in 2010 include the BP Oil Spill and pretty much everything that happened on a national level of politics (except for elections). Justin Beiber got popular enough that I actually recognize one of his songs now and that is a minor tragedy. I kind of know what Jersey Shore is as well, which makes me sad for Television. BYU lost to the UofU in football and that is never acceptable, and none of the teams I wanted for the World Cup went as far as I’d hoped. Good things include new family members and international travel. Speaking of international travel, this brings me to the beginning of the year…
January
… We had a second reception in Peru for Malu’s side of the family and it was a lot of fun. What with the drinking, the dancing, the drinking, the lights, the drinking, and the personalized details of the party, it was a great time (my side of the family probably had less fun than the Peruvians because they missed out on the first, third, and fifth things that I listed). I probably would have enjoyed the whole thing a bit more and certainly would have enjoyed the meal more if I hadn’t had a vicious case of the runs, but there you go. Malu introduced me to lying around and watching TV, which is how we came to buy all of the seasons of “2 and a half men”. I also toured the countryside in style with my parents and Jon in the finest buses where we nearly froze to death and had near accidents frequently. (and by finest, I mean cheapest and not fine at all). We were all shaken by the experience, but had a good deal of fun. Also shaking in
February
was the country of Chile, which had the major Earthquake on my birthday. Not a pleasant way to start the day, to be sure. Also in February, I dress up in traditional costume (gently called by my sister and friends the ‘gay pirate apparel’) and do a marathon of dancing during the Candelaria. I was pretty amazing, and Malu was ok too. When we weren’t dancing in the mountains, we were visiting the ocean where I enjoyed an aspect of Peru I never could as a missionary, swimming. Through all of this, I love Malu’s little brother more and more…
and eat all the foods that I love in Peru.
March
was the month that I used to sneak away from my internship to visit my family in Chile. I decided that I needed to survey the damage for myself and to see if I could be of aid sharing my recent skills; such as: donating alternative lifestyle swashbuckling clothing or if preaching the doctrine of Charlie Sheen could help speed up recovery. It was good times, and I didn’t even mind the 80+ hours I spent busing through arid desert to make it happen. My family in Chile treated me to delicious food and reminded me of why I love Chile. Speaking of food, in…
April
…we spent practically the whole month filling up on foods that we wouldn’t be able to eat for a while. Which was ironic, considering that we had done the same thing four months previously when we left the States, and that Malu did it again when she left in December to go back to Peru. But I get ahead of myself. In April, I wrap up my internship, visits to members and people from my mission, and Malu and I bid adieu to the family and country. There was many a party in our honor and I gained back all of the weight that I had danced off during the Candelaria, which made lugging all of our baggage back to the States that much more uncomfortable at the end of the month. Highlight of that trip was the 12 hour layover in LA where we went and explored the town. We also managed to move back into BYU Married Shmucks and Family Housing and I went back to my job of watching boys sleep.
May
is when we bought C3P-O AKA, the Kia Rio and were glad to finally have a car. May was also when nothing really exciting happened. Towards the end of the month, Malu insisted we buy a decent TV in preparation of
June
and the World Cup, which took place in S Africa. We decided right then and there that we would go to Brazil for the next one, just see if we don’t. We spend a lot of time lying around, watching soccer and somewhere in all of that excitement; we discovered the greatness of 7-11 hotdogs and Bahama Mama’s- finally, something to accompany my Slurpies. Malu got a job at Heritage and our poor little Kia ends up parked there most of every day and of every night. This might also be around when Michele announced her pregnancy, which was big news and an ongoing spectacle as she began swelling more and more each time we saw her.
July
at some point during the summer, and I suspect it was this month, Malu got her license. That was good news for her since she got the freedom of transportation and good news for me since I didn’t have to play chaperone anymore. (although, I’d still frequently take her to work and retrieve her if she looked at me with cute puppy dog eyes.) I also believe that this was the great Sweat family camping experiment where the whole family, even Michele, Alan, and SJ’s kids went to the old logging grounds of the Uintah’s for nostalgia. It was weird to actually be in the area for recreation, rather than hard labor. And while I’m thinking of labor,
August
was the month where my classes, along with a second job working for the Daily Universe, began. It also marked the first time that I worked full time at nightwatch while taking classes. I am a glutton for punishment it would seem. Malu also started classes at UVU and got a sample of what working full time and classes was like. Lets just say that it was a busy time.
September
I shamelessly pad my resume by being selected to be a Freshman Foothold counselor. I traumatize the impressionable freshman and had a jolly good time choreographing a really silly dance number. Somewhere in this time of year, we start the habit of going over to Michele and Alan’s to play board games. We master Bang, Carcazonne, and Ticket to Ride.
October
I finally get a Halloween off from work and Joe fulfills his role of our ever-fearless chaperone to the UVU dance. Malu and I dress up as Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf. We looked pretty snazzy if I do say so myself. Joe went as himself. Joe was also the instigator of a dinner at a Peruvian restaurant where we got together for Shane’s birthday. Miracle of miracles, Asher and his wife went, unfortunately, we haven’t seen or heard from them since. I retire from the dance group that Malu and I participate in because it’s just too much along with my other things.
November
was noteworthy because mom made smoked turkey, which was awesome and delicious. BYU lost the game against the U, which was a bummer, but not as bad a deal as I’d thought.
December
Finals, and Michele gives birth to David, who is pretty cute. Malu jumps ship to Peru the day after the birth and Alan steps up his plans to get me obsessed with Star Craft 2. I shovel plenty of snow in Fruitland and am released from my Universe job. Owing to the overabundance of spare time, and lack of a wife to fill it with trips to the Mall and other such nonsense, I attend the gym A LOT.
Well folks, there you have it: a year in review. It was really busy there towards the end, but in this year I got the best grades of any 2 semester stretch I’d ever had, I finished my internship, I finished most of my minor, and I padded the resume quite nicely for that sometime in the not so distant future law school application. I learned a lot about design programs and photography, and have gained a new appreciation for the older generations. It’s been a good ride, and a not quite set in stone goal for the year is to blog shorter posts and more frequently. We’ll see, it is not a resolution, it would just be nice.
Simply put, I have been too lazy to update. I have been alone lately since my wife has been in Peru, but even so, I couldn’t find the energy to write a blog. Maybe the biggest issue is that my laptop screen went mysteriously dark and I have been out of a computer. I have had access to computers, but I haven’t been here at work where the abundance of time seems to work well for me to actually write things. Apparently, the guy at Wasatch Computers thinks that it would be a good deal to fix my laptop screen for 350+ dollars. Since I could buy a new one for the same price, I beg to differ. I would like to get a new Macbook Pro, but they are so bloody expensive I highly doubt that will happen. We’ll see.
What I have done is watch Beetlejuice and the Nightmare before Christmas finally. Can you believe that I’d never seen them before? All in all, good flicks. It was weird to see Alec Baldwin so young, and seeing Micheal Keaton so bizarre, but there you are. Other things that I have done: I shoveled a lot of snow in Fruitland. It was less fun than you’d think. I also attended all three hours of church there for the first time in a long time. It was strange. I hardly recognize the people there anymore.
All of the family minus Michele (and she hardly counts anymore) went to see Tron in Roosevelt. First time I can remember seeing a movie with the whole family, and in Roosevelt no less. Lets just say that it was cold everywhere in the Basin, but especially in the theatre. The other three people there must have been regulars because they came well wrapped in blankets.
Tron… not a bad flick, but I happen to like Jeff Bridges. Lets just say that this movie demonstrated what I suppose an acid trip might be like.
Another reason I delayed updating my blog is that I wanted to post PDF’s of my final design project. This proved to be more difficult than I had originally thought, so you will have to go to my online portfolio here:
And download it.
I hope you like them, the investigative reporters handbook should be useful to all because I have linked every website listed so all you have to do is click on it to go to the resource. I hope somebody uses it because it took me FOREVER to do and if nobody uses that feature, it would be a royal waste of time.
Here at sleepmuch8 we pride ourselves in putting off posting for long stretches at a time and then posting massive posts that really should be broken up into three or four different posts. Continuing that noble tradition, here is a really funny article I read titled, “Dave Barry’s Year in Review”. It can be found here:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/01/01/1992746/dave-barrys-2010-year-in-review.html
And I highly recommend giving it a read. This has inspired my to write my own short “Year in review”. So here goes,
2010 was a pretty good year all around for me personally, but fairly lame as far as politics and such go. We’ll not worry about that though. Bad things that happened in 2010 include the BP Oil Spill and pretty much everything that happened on a national level of politics (except for elections). Justin Beiber got popular enough that I actually recognize one of his songs now and that is a minor tragedy. I kind of know what Jersey Shore is as well, which makes me sad for Television. BYU lost to the UofU in football and that is never acceptable, and none of the teams I wanted for the World Cup went as far as I’d hoped. Good things include new family members and international travel. Speaking of international travel, this brings me to the beginning of the year…
January
… We had a second reception in Peru for Malu’s side of the family and it was a lot of fun. What with the drinking, the dancing, the drinking, the lights, the drinking, and the personalized details of the party, it was a great time (my side of the family probably had less fun than the Peruvians because they missed out on the first, third, and fifth things that I listed). I probably would have enjoyed the whole thing a bit more and certainly would have enjoyed the meal more if I hadn’t had a vicious case of the runs, but there you go. Malu introduced me to lying around and watching TV, which is how we came to buy all of the seasons of “2 and a half men”. I also toured the countryside in style with my parents and Jon in the finest buses where we nearly froze to death and had near accidents frequently. (and by finest, I mean cheapest and not fine at all). We were all shaken by the experience, but had a good deal of fun. Also shaking in
February
was the country of Chile, which had the major Earthquake on my birthday. Not a pleasant way to start the day, to be sure. Also in February, I dress up in traditional costume (gently called by my sister and friends the ‘gay pirate apparel’) and do a marathon of dancing during the Candelaria. I was pretty amazing, and Malu was ok too. When we weren’t dancing in the mountains, we were visiting the ocean where I enjoyed an aspect of Peru I never could as a missionary, swimming. Through all of this, I love Malu’s little brother more and more…
and eat all the foods that I love in Peru.
March
was the month that I used to sneak away from my internship to visit my family in Chile. I decided that I needed to survey the damage for myself and to see if I could be of aid sharing my recent skills; such as: donating alternative lifestyle swashbuckling clothing or if preaching the doctrine of Charlie Sheen could help speed up recovery. It was good times, and I didn’t even mind the 80+ hours I spent busing through arid desert to make it happen. My family in Chile treated me to delicious food and reminded me of why I love Chile. Speaking of food, in…
April
…we spent practically the whole month filling up on foods that we wouldn’t be able to eat for a while. Which was ironic, considering that we had done the same thing four months previously when we left the States, and that Malu did it again when she left in December to go back to Peru. But I get ahead of myself. In April, I wrap up my internship, visits to members and people from my mission, and Malu and I bid adieu to the family and country. There was many a party in our honor and I gained back all of the weight that I had danced off during the Candelaria, which made lugging all of our baggage back to the States that much more uncomfortable at the end of the month. Highlight of that trip was the 12 hour layover in LA where we went and explored the town. We also managed to move back into BYU Married Shmucks and Family Housing and I went back to my job of watching boys sleep.
May
is when we bought C3P-O AKA, the Kia Rio and were glad to finally have a car. May was also when nothing really exciting happened. Towards the end of the month, Malu insisted we buy a decent TV in preparation of
June
and the World Cup, which took place in S Africa. We decided right then and there that we would go to Brazil for the next one, just see if we don’t. We spend a lot of time lying around, watching soccer and somewhere in all of that excitement; we discovered the greatness of 7-11 hotdogs and Bahama Mama’s- finally, something to accompany my Slurpies. Malu got a job at Heritage and our poor little Kia ends up parked there most of every day and of every night. This might also be around when Michele announced her pregnancy, which was big news and an ongoing spectacle as she began swelling more and more each time we saw her.
July
at some point during the summer, and I suspect it was this month, Malu got her license. That was good news for her since she got the freedom of transportation and good news for me since I didn’t have to play chaperone anymore. (although, I’d still frequently take her to work and retrieve her if she looked at me with cute puppy dog eyes.) I also believe that this was the great Sweat family camping experiment where the whole family, even Michele, Alan, and SJ’s kids went to the old logging grounds of the Uintah’s for nostalgia. It was weird to actually be in the area for recreation, rather than hard labor. And while I’m thinking of labor,
August
was the month where my classes, along with a second job working for the Daily Universe, began. It also marked the first time that I worked full time at nightwatch while taking classes. I am a glutton for punishment it would seem. Malu also started classes at UVU and got a sample of what working full time and classes was like. Lets just say that it was a busy time.
September
I shamelessly pad my resume by being selected to be a Freshman Foothold counselor. I traumatize the impressionable freshman and had a jolly good time choreographing a really silly dance number. Somewhere in this time of year, we start the habit of going over to Michele and Alan’s to play board games. We master Bang, Carcazonne, and Ticket to Ride.
October
I finally get a Halloween off from work and Joe fulfills his role of our ever-fearless chaperone to the UVU dance. Malu and I dress up as Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf. We looked pretty snazzy if I do say so myself. Joe went as himself. Joe was also the instigator of a dinner at a Peruvian restaurant where we got together for Shane’s birthday. Miracle of miracles, Asher and his wife went, unfortunately, we haven’t seen or heard from them since. I retire from the dance group that Malu and I participate in because it’s just too much along with my other things.
November
was noteworthy because mom made smoked turkey, which was awesome and delicious. BYU lost the game against the U, which was a bummer, but not as bad a deal as I’d thought.
December
Finals, and Michele gives birth to David, who is pretty cute. Malu jumps ship to Peru the day after the birth and Alan steps up his plans to get me obsessed with Star Craft 2. I shovel plenty of snow in Fruitland and am released from my Universe job. Owing to the overabundance of spare time, and lack of a wife to fill it with trips to the Mall and other such nonsense, I attend the gym A LOT.
Well folks, there you have it: a year in review. It was really busy there towards the end, but in this year I got the best grades of any 2 semester stretch I’d ever had, I finished my internship, I finished most of my minor, and I padded the resume quite nicely for that sometime in the not so distant future law school application. I learned a lot about design programs and photography, and have gained a new appreciation for the older generations. It’s been a good ride, and a not quite set in stone goal for the year is to blog shorter posts and more frequently. We’ll see, it is not a resolution, it would just be nice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
