While working thismorning, my lappy started bogging down, so I decided to re-boot. It took nearly a half hour to save the document I was working on, and shut down iTunes. Then, I went to the Start menu to restart, and for over 5 minutes, nothing happened. At that point, I CTRL+ALT+DEL’d and still, nothing happened. Finally, I decided the only way to “fix” my problems would be to take out the battery and unplug the power. So, that’s what I did. Then in calssic 8-bit Nintendo fashion, I blew into all the openings in the computer that I could find. Mic plugs, CD-ROM, USB jacks, headphones, and a couple of those PCMCIA slots were all subjected to this technique for an average of three seconds.

Then, the re-boot. Then, the horror.

I tried restarting in Safe Mode, Last Known Good Configuration, etc. THe whole kit-n-kaboodle. And nothing. It just flashes a quick blue screen and goes into a restart loop.

Scott suggested it may have caught “the mexican virus.” He could be right, but are these the symptoms? I’m opening up to what others might have to contribute as far as diagnosis goes. Feel free to comment. For your effort, I’ll send you a fragment of the HD if I can’t get it fixed.

On the morning of September 23, 2005, I awoke to the sound of roadwork outside my window. A new coating of asphalt was being placed over existing asphalt that was in generally good condition and warranted no repair. However, in an end-of-budget-year push, the city was quickly laying down blacktop and replacing pipe that really didn’t need it. The reasoning was (however faulty) that if the city let those budgeted funds go unused, their subsequent budgets would be garnered accordingly, and it was possible that, as a result, they might run out of funds early in some future budget period. So, they brought in the dump trucks, tar sprayers and the steamrollers.

I wondered, “Is all this really necessary?” There are some things we do in life that seem to come of ether rather than of necessity. Budgets for example, and fruits for another.

I like a tall glass of orange juice as much as the next guy. In fact at one point, I drank more than 1 litre per day (it was about 50 cents/litre in Switzerland). But there comes a point in every man’s life when he has to stand up and say: “I may like orange juice, but that doesn’t mean I have to like oranges.”

After all, we have chicken, ribs, steak, pork chops, bacon, sausage, salmon, halibut, sushi, french dip, noodles and all sorts of bread (toast, rolls, frenchbread, sourdough, cinamonrolls, bagels, muffins, crackers, brochette, carrotbread, Wonder… and possibly even “maize,” which I suspect is some type of bread). Plenty of stuff to eat. Do we really need more?

I say we do not. Especially not fruits. They are acidic and hard to pick. Wars have been fought over them (see the Pineapple War of 1812, the Kiwi Plague of the 1430’s, and more recently the Treaty of Grape which resulted in the infamous Grapefruit Massacre. Some also believe JFK was shot with a “salad shooter.” Said salad reportedly contained Mandarin oranges and some type of nut assortment.) If all that weren’t enough, fruits can have worms or other vestibules of horror embedded in them. Worst of all- they have an unpleasant texture. Ask anyone: which would you rather feel on your cheek- the texture of cotton candy, or the texture of the outside of a pineapple?

So with this, we establish The Coalition Against Fruits and Several Vegetables. Our goal is to eventually stop all consumption of fruits (and any vegetables that seem like they should be classified as fruits), and also celery.

We’ll start with America and over the next few months, as we experience success at home, move the campaign abroad. We invite all to join our ranks in crying out “We love the juice, but we disdain the fruit.” For just as if we didn’t have budgets- we might use money more wisely, if we didn’t have fruits- we might have peace on Earth.

Photo courtesy of Paul Mayne, 2006

Salt Lake is the greatest city in the Union, or at least in Salt Lake County. For the sake of time, here are just 3 of the many reasons:

1- I saw a midget (little person) riding his bicycle on the grass at liberty park.

2- I saw a man puting a moon boot on his right foot (the left one was alredy on) while sitting under a tree at Pioneer Park. Keep in mind that its 95 degrees in Salt Lake this week.

3- The taco stand Paul showed me for lunch last week offers the best food at the particular corner on which it is located (the green arrow on the map is on the wrong corner, but you get the point). You get tacos for a buck and you don’t pay until you’re done eating. Best part is, you sit on the sidewalk or lean against the wall of a building with a sign that says “Please do not stand or lean against the building.” At first I thought it was a weird thing to ask. But I’ve decided it’s pretty reasonable considering the fact that to topple the walls of Jericho, they just did a little jig and then shouted really loud. Surely we can’t expect the feeble wall of a downtown business to withstand more than the walls of a once great city.

Every once in a while, I’ll use one of my brother’s pictures on my blog or for something at school. Since he’s just graduated from law school, naturally, he threatens to sue me. And since I’m stronger than him, I threaten to beat him up.

In an effort to make reparations, I figured I might as well tell a little bit about a few photos I’ve actually shot. A couple people have asked about the photos in my header. So, the following are mine rather than others that I’ve borrowed over the years.

The “city on a hill” next to the ocean. This is Vernazza, Italy- one of the five cities that make up “Cinque Terre” on the Mediterranean Sea. I took the picture after visiting the cities on my trip to Europe in 2004.

This water tower is on top of the Ford Building in SLC, home to Richter7, Bysis, AgencyFusion, and the Union Pacific guys.

The picture of the wheat field is along the Alpine Loop on the back side of Mount Timponogos, UT. If i remember right, it was Cascade Springs…about two years after a boy scout burned the place to the ground.

A Seattle skyline near Pike’s Market on the way to Grant’s Island near Ketchikan, Alaska in 2003.

And finally, this lamp and stone tower is part of “Le Palais de l’Isle” (a prison in the 11th century where you can still visit the dungeon) in the middle of the Thiou river in Annecy, France.

So that’s all for today. If you want to see some of the best photography ever, check out my nephew Noah’s photo blog. He’s pretty much the coolest kid on the planet. Jake took the photos, but they’re still good.

Delta, UT —

I like big cities, but I’ve always been interested in small towns, too (Annecy, Zermatt, Chamonix, Vernazza, Gex, Sion, Jackson Hole…Delta). When I was all excited to make the trip to Delta and even more excited once we arrrived, Nate was pretty puzzled. Memorial Day weekend, I ran into a cousin of mine who lives in San Deigo. He’s in town directing a movie (Parade) due out in 2007 and needed a DJ for one of the scenes. I was happy to take a break from work and make the trip down to Millard County.

Delta has a 7-Eleven, a rodeo, and a Deseret Industries. Admittedly, it doesn’t sound like the most exciting town in the country, but I know of at least one thing that might change your mind.

I saw some Indians (feathers, not dots). Since my friend Calvert in junior high, I’ve always wished we had more Native Americans in Davis County. They’re friendly and generally wise. And I always feel less threatened by drought when they’re around.

If that wasn’t great enough, the Delta DI is probably one of the best in the state. They had a nice brown jacket, a Nat King Cole compact music disc (no scratches), and a very cool old book.

After spending some time at the DI, we had roughly four hours until the film crew showed up so Nate and I threw the football, and I read the introduction to Freakonomics- which I really think I’m going to like.

At about 8PM, we set up the equipment and started filming around 9. We were done by 11, back on the road by 12, and I was back in bed by 3AM.

The Main Events:

“D” is for Delta. After 2 1/2 hours, we arrive.

Wearing my new DI brown jacket, we visit the “Cosmic Ray Center.” The cosmic ray center is mostly just an empty building. But it sounds cool. They store aliens and guns in the basement. And probably some cans of powdered milk.

Battle wound. If you’re going to drive a trailer with your tailgate down, it’s best not to turn.

And finally, “Action.”

Kilauea Lighthouse, northernmost point of the main Hawaiian Islands

A Comprehensive History

Hawaii was discovered in 1959 by The United States of America. The Americans decided it was pretty, so they decided it was theirs. Some Hawaiians still live there, and many people who aren’t Hawaiians go there to visit.

Activities for visitors can include eating, swimming, fishing, surfing, boating, and learning about Hawiian history. On a revent trip to Kauai, I participated in most of those activities.

I’ve created a page chock full of pictures from my trip here, and I’ll probably be adding some more as soon as my brother Jack gets back from his extended stay on the islands.

Justin’s on the board, I’m about to get pummelled by the wave.

It was like eating a whole bag of soggy potato chips in 3.5 seconds.

I’ll be in Kauai if anybody needs me.

They’ll be playing at the McKay Events Center on Tuesday, August 8th. A limited number of tickets will be released for pre-sale Monday, May 8th at 3pm. To get those, go here. You’ll need the secret code: “dcfc” and the secret password: “tickets” There’s a limit of 4 per person. Good luck. Public sale begins Saturday, 5/13.

Plans changed. April is the new graduation date.