I have not forgotten my oath for 100 words a day.

I have a home full of friends, here for the holidays, and am literally having the most wonderful Christmas season that I can recall ever having.

I may not live up the oath this week.  But, that's okay.  I'll make up for it!

I'm trying to clean house, but have been largely unsuccessful. Booper and Paul stopped by, and drank some of my beers while I did some odd things. I'm having company in a few hours and we'll all be headed over to Scott's for a Christmas dinner and drinks...

My chest cold is improving well enough that I've been mobile most of the day. I'm feeling fortunate to have the friends and family I have; it is a good time of year to have the warmth of love and friendship to keep you company.

I'm off to the store to buy some household goods and items for breakfast...

Still feeling sick, but it's the holidays and one must participate in the festivities at hand, or suffer a certain type of loneliness that only this time of year can bring about. So, I'm pulling myself up by the boot straps and headed to poker. Tonight is the annual gift exchange, which gets kinkier every year...

So, I think I have the best gift: The Accommodator. A strap-on dildo that fits over one's chin in order to aide in oral sex.

I think it's the funniest thing I've ever seen and hope someone tries it on tonight. It's going to be difficult to get online over the weekend, but I'm determined to meet my 100 words a day quest! We'll see...

I'm not feeling well. I was wet and cold on Monday and something has gotten into my chest. And, it's snowing again. Only this time it's a typical Northern California snow: wet and heavy. I was called out for work 45 minutes ago, fortunately it was a short little job. Since I was out, I stopped by the grocery store to pick up a bottle of generic Nyquil. I'm hoping to sleep this gunk off...

It's in the 30's tonight. I expect it to stay there. Fire is warm, not hot... here's a shot of the cold medicine and here's too a good night's sleep!

As a native of California, one of the most common questions asked of me the 9 years I lived in Utah was, "how do you like the snow?" "I grew up with snow," would be my reply. "But," the confused response would come, "you said you grew up in California?" Another common question when I revealed the state of my youth; "So, you're a surfer?"

It's a tired, old news story: the failings of the United States educational system in many subjects, including geography. So many people I met, mostly college students, thought (and probably still think) that California is a state that sits on the beach. I type from a seat in some of the most rugged country in the west. And, between the Ocean and this seat exists an even more rugged landscape; a vast mix of volcanic and coastal mountains make a formidable foe when it comes to travel. In this country, even if by car, it takes a while to get anywhere...

Tonight I'm not worried about that. I have a hot fire in the stove and I'm locked in until tomorrow. There's 20 inches of snow on the ground, with more coming. It's 3 degrees outside and I'm going to bed.

8 PM. The temperature is currently 8 degrees. It's been an odd couple of December storms we've had here. With an elevation of 3000 feet, most storms this time of year dump a snow that almost immediately begins to melt. We have 16 to 20 inches of what I would best describe as Utah snow; light, little moisture and very cold. The temperatures of the day, peaking at 28, preserved the snow, minus some settling, in a state similar to how it fell. The trees have held their snow for the day and into this evening. I expect that tomorrow will be the same...

It is going to be a long winter.

I can't wait to break out the snowshoes, walk somewhere not far from here... and listen to the silent breathing of our world.

I love that Google has already found both my post and the picture on flickr and listed them both, on the front page, top seven of searches for Jessie. I hope, at the very least, that she might Google her name and find that post. It does seem odd to me, that in this day and age, there is not one trace of her to be found online.

I thought everyone left an online trail? At least, that's what I've done... I'm littered all over the vast expanse of...

And for the rest of you; have you left Livejournal too? I see a few of my friends roaming around here, but not many. Where have all the silent voices gone? I propose a similar goal for you: 100 words a day. Let me see your words!

While going through boxes of my photos last night, I found a few pictures and a newspaper clipping of a girl I dated early in 2001. We met through a co-worker of mine (who I have since lost contact with) and didn't share any other friends or acquaintances. The last time I saw her was in 2004 or 2005; whe was waitressing at the Village Inn on University Way in Provo, Utah. I was visiting from California, having breakfast with friends, and didn't get up to say hello to her (something I have regretted since).

I spent some time this evening searching her name on Google, Facebook, Myspace and other engines specializing in people search, but have had no luck. I wonder if anyone still living in, or frequenting the Provo area, may have run into this girl, or perhaps know her?

Her name is Jessie Beckworth:

:::edit::: I believe her last name is Beckwith. I was confused by a newspaper clipping from Provo's Daily Herald, which gave the first name. I have been able to find traces of a Jessie Beckwith online. Now, if only I could actually find her!



If anyone has seen her in town, or frequents a similar place as her, I would love to have her email or phone number. Mostly, I just want to know that she's doing okay...

Writers block.  I've had it for years and am not quite sure what to do about it.

I accidentally found a ton of old pictures while looking for a set of particular pictures (isn't that how it's supposed to happen?) and spent the late afternoon, early evening feeling that pain one has when he/she misses his past.  I've had a lot of good times, with wonderful people, many of which I have lost over the years.  As I went through the photos I wondered how these people are doing, and if they would recognize me as the person I am now compared to who I used to be.  

I also realized that it's time to follow through on a promise I made to myself a few days ago.  Having been on Myspace (which I hate) and now Facebook (which is much more tolerable) I have been feeling the urge to reconnect with LiveJournal, which I have always liked more and once loved (if one can love such a thing as livejournal).  I am disappointed in the direction the site has gone, but still prefer it over the aforementioned sites, which seem to involve much less thought and more grandstanding...

So, I promised myself to write 100 words a day here.  Let's see if I can do it.

Here are two more photos of the pup. He's currently about nine weeks old. These photos were taken at 7 weeks...

My home has been quite empty since Kodi passed. I have made a deposit on a new puppy, which I can pick up any time, but am going to wait until after my Glacier trip. The breeder refers to him as Blue Boy:



When the time comes, and we get to know each other, I'll find a more fitting name for the little guy. As it stands now, I'll be picking him up sometime around the 20th of September...

The text below, written on Friday, has been seen on my Facebook and Myspace pages. The photo below was taken last Sunday, July 27th, at Triangle Lake in the Caribou Wilderness area.



I just posted some "quick-find" photos of my Kodi (on Myspace and Facebook). I, along with Laura and Jared, adopted him from the Salt Lake Humane Society in March of 2005. In the kennel, he seemed mellow and perfectly compatible with my personality... Once home, it didn't take long to realize that I had been far off in my assessment of his demeanor. He was extremely energetic, rambunctious and full of life! And that irritated the hell out of me! It took a good year of adjustment for me, but he became the best part of my home.

A couple of weeks ago he became quite listless, laying around much more than usual, not getting up when I came home from work or play. I thought that he was worn out from a strenuous hike into the South Warner Wilderness. He seemed a bit better this past weekend, when we hiked into Caribou Wilderness. Although an easy hike, by our standards, it seemed too much for Kodi. He barely made it out on Sunday, by Monday he was done eating and drinking. He spent the day vomiting and got progressively worse as the week wore on.

He spent most of the week at the vet, who despite her best efforts (multiple blood tests, stomach scopes, berium tests and time spent consulting with other people in the profession), could not find anything wrong with him.

Last night he spent with me; neither of us slept much, if at all. He was in obvious pain, weak and unresponsive to me. I left him with the vet this morning with the knowledge that if he did not improve, he would be put down...

After a long day, in which the vet tried everything she could think of the get a positive response from Kodi (she has refused to charge me for most of the care this week), she did exploratory surgery on his gastrointestinal system, but found that and all of his organs to be in perfect condition.

She let him go on the table.

I am grateful for the care that he received this week, and am relieved that he is no longer suffering...

But, I am absolutely crushed by this weight of no longer having my buddy.

"Kodi will be missed" is more than an understatement...

Not much happens around Burney...

But, my neighbor temporarily made the front page of Msnbc.com.

Hope this little post finds all my friends doing well!

I miss you and wish I could be there to help celebrate one more year of lokasenna! Brother, I am fortunate to have you as kin. I miss you, love you and hope for the very best on your day!

i am extremely close to divorcing myself from the common american reality.

Happy Birthday Wickenden!

In our friendship you have always inspired in me the desire to celebrate the gift of life. I am grateful and honored to have you as one of my own. I hope you are having a wonderful day!

At the request of a new Facebook friend (a woman who was a couple of years ahead of me in high school), in order to jog her memory as to who I am (or was), I scanned the only photo I could find of my youth...

It occured to me that many of you who I know have never seen me sans facial hair. So, here I am in all my baby-faced glory (along with a few class mates).

Don't you love the hair?

I believe these were taken in '85.


:::edit:::
First column, middle row

The temperature hit 60 degrees (fahrenheit) yesterday.

I've spring fever in the worst possible way. I gathered a list of essential backpacking items for this year's season:

From GoLite:
Cayenne Jacket, 12 oz., $160
GoLite Journey Pants, 13 oz., $70
Dyanamilite Cap, 1 oz., $20
Reed pants (Rain), 6 oz., $80

Mountain Hardware:
Hyperdry Boxers (2), 2 oz, $22.50 ea
Heavyweight Power Stretch Glove, 1 oz., $30
Epic Rain Bucket (hat), 2 oz, $25

La Sportvia:
Onix GTX-XCR (hiking shoes), 2 lbs 5 oz, $130

MSR:
Reactor (stove), 21 oz., $150

Platypus:
Cleanstream (waterfilter), 12.7 oz., $80

I'm trying to sell my backpack (Osprey Crescent 85), which is like new for $250 pounds as I'd like to get the new Osprey Argon 110. The newer pack is bigger and a bit lighter than my current pack.

I already have a water filter and three or four stoves, but the Cleanstream is "silly easy," as backpacker magazine states (and I hate squatting by the water source for 10 minutes, pumping water with my little filter) and I love collecting stoves. The clothing is the necessary purchase this year. I've two high-end backpacking shirts, but need to round out my wardrobe before my Ishi Wilderness trip in March. I spent too much time standing on my insulated sleeping pad, in my long underwear next and to a fire as my standard clothes and hiking shoes dried last year.

This is the year of comfortable and dry backpacking trips!

There's a good five or six inches of overnight snow on the ground. It's a chilly 59 degrees in house and I can't get the fire to warm things up. Should have emptied the ash on Saturday, when I had time and the embers had burned down enough to do so (too much ash prevents the vent from fueling the fire with outside air). As it is now, I have a stove full of smoldering wood and my fingers are cold as I flip though the pages of a new book. I already finished my pot of coffee so there is nothing warm left in this house.

Kodi is driving me crazy, always looking at me with his head cocked to one side, waiting for some sort of entertainment from me. I have nothing for him, so I throw him out and he sits at the door in the same manner...

Damn dog.

I'm not excited about the 1/2 day snowboarding trip today. My legs are gone; they left me on a snowmobile yesterday and I found a couple leg-like jello molds in their place. I'm going to Shasta, once my ride gets here, but might stay in the bar instead of on the mountain. I don't know.

I'm going to sit on top of my wood stove for a while. Seems like a good idea...

Once a quarter I have to drive out the cable system in search of signal leaks. My favorite area of the system is on Haynes Ranch. The picture here is of the main house, which is always empty...

If I were to own this land, I'd remove the cattle and buy a few buffalo...