I've had my house full of kids and grandkids for the last week. It was a wonderful Christmas. My son William has returned from Argentina (with an accent) and it was nice to have him home for Christmas.
I've been trying to figure out a way to do this blog in Dreamweaver, but it's incredibly complicated. Other people I know manage to do it, but I think they do everything by hand, the hard way. I don't have time for that so I'll keep doing it on here.
I procrastinated signing up for my next class and now it's full. I had to pick another class. It doesn't really matter, I had to take it anyway. I'll take it next semester. Just one year away from the Master's degree. A whole year! I'm sick of school!
Richard's main page
Saturday, December 25, 2004
Sunday, November 28, 2004
We had a good time for Thanksgiving. I fried three turkeys. One we had on Thursday evening and the other two we had in
I also got to try my new Mantis tiller. That thing works better than I expected. It only weighs 20 pounds but it does a better job than the old one we had that costs three times more.
I'm almost finished with my greenhouse. I was looking for a fan to blow air between the two sheets of plastic and I found the cheapest fans could be purchased by buying one of the blow-up Santas or snowmen that Ace had on sale for $20. I bought one of each. The Santa is set up in the yard; the snowman is taken apart so I can use the fan. I have to replace the plug because anything designed for Christmas use has a fuse built into the plug to protect the companies from lawsuits. The idea is that most people replace lights and such regularly, so when the fuses blow people just replace the lights and don't worry about it too much. For a blower I'll be using more often, I have to get rid of the fuse. It will be on a GFCI circuit anyway, an extra fuse is not necessary.
I discovered the magic of Zantac. I feel so much better now that I'm using that regularly. I had been using Nexium with no results. Now I take the Nexium in the morning and the Zantac at night. The pain is now bearable, and in fact most of the time, I don't notice it at all.
Richard's main pageSaturday, November 13, 2004
We know that when President Bush was reelected Afghani's and Iraqi's celebrated. We know that in almost every other country they preferred John effing Kerry. Why? Do the liberal Bush haters ever ask why? Let's look at selfish reasons. The Iraqi's and Afghani's are better off with Bush, so they like him. They don't trust Kerry to continue the fight. They and other nations don't give a rat's behind about quality of life in America Vietnam Vietnam
Interestingly enough, one other country celebrated the reelection of George Bush. The story, in NewsMax tells us of Iranians dancing in the streets with joy. Why? Because they hope they're the next country freed of tyranny by the blood of our soldiers. And our wonderful soldiers are glad to do it. This is the month of Thanksgiving. Be thankful for them, and our strong president. Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran are!
Richard's main page
Interestingly enough, one other country celebrated the reelection of George Bush. The story, in NewsMax tells us of Iranians dancing in the streets with joy. Why? Because they hope they're the next country freed of tyranny by the blood of our soldiers. And our wonderful soldiers are glad to do it. This is the month of Thanksgiving. Be thankful for them, and our strong president. Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran are!
Richard's main page
Sunday, November 07, 2004
Wednesday, November 03, 2004
Saturday, October 30, 2004
Robert and family came by this weekend. Robert bought a used shotgun; much like my single shot, but his sometimes doesn't fire. I think he's got a firing pin problem. He's not happy. Then Rick talked Jessie into firing Rob's Makarov. Somehow, when she pushed the safety up it went too far and the gun wouldn't work any more. Now he was really angry and he took it out on Jessie, too much. I managed to get the safety lever out and was able to take the gun apart. The safety popped right back in and the gun works fine. Later Rob was looking in my Guns magazine and found a Makarov article where it talks about the flimsy safety! What a coincidence!
Anyway, we were shooting clay pigeons mostly. Shannon, Jessie, Rick, Rob, Charlie, and I were sharing three guns, Rob's and my 20 gauges and my 12. All of us hit enough targets that we're all happy. Jessie sure grinned when she hit her first pigeon. I was using the 12 gauge to hit the pigeon just before it hit the ground, after the others fired. That was kind of cool. I was hitting a bunch of them.
I started using a new browser yesterday. My professor in my Web page design class has been using Firefox and really recommends it. I found that it is at least as good as IE! I'd tried Opera before and didn't like it. Then I tried Thunderbird to replace Outlook Express. It took me hours to get it working. It turns out that, though Outlook allows me to list my user name as "richard," Thunderbird insists on "richard"at"richardbush.net." Apparently, it actually sees it as, "richard"at"richardbush.net"at"mvdsl.com." I think there is a bug in the way MVDSL handles private domain email addresses. I know with Outlook, when I respond to your emails, it shows my son's address as "william"at"richardbush.net"at"mvdsl.com" and I have to change it before it will send. Thunderbird shows his address correctly. So Outlook fixes one thing and breaks another. Thunderbird breaks one thing and fixes the other.
Richard's main page
Sunday, October 24, 2004
I don't have a lot to say this week. Just the normal stuff. I did have a problem with a brother of one of my students. Former students. I'm happy to say the brat has been pulled out of school.
I went to the office and the younger brother saw me and called the older brother who started screaming at me. They literally dragged him away from me. You see his brat of a little sister kept getting into trouble in class and getting kicked out of school. The last time was when she heard some boys next to her talking about their math in Spanish and one of them said "Punto." She, being a paranoid witch with a b, thought they'd called her a b word and she started shrieking at them. Of course her brother was convinced she was correct, but since they're gone now, who cares what they think? The people in the office say they've had unpleasant experiences with the family before, so they're glad they're gone too.
Richard's main page
I went to the office and the younger brother saw me and called the older brother who started screaming at me. They literally dragged him away from me. You see his brat of a little sister kept getting into trouble in class and getting kicked out of school. The last time was when she heard some boys next to her talking about their math in Spanish and one of them said "Punto." She, being a paranoid witch with a b, thought they'd called her a b word and she started shrieking at them. Of course her brother was convinced she was correct, but since they're gone now, who cares what they think? The people in the office say they've had unpleasant experiences with the family before, so they're glad they're gone too.
Richard's main page
Saturday, October 23, 2004
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Well my class sizes are finally down. I have less than 200 students now, finally. Our new teacher is a yeller. I feel sorry for all the students they took from me to give to her. I think she's a bit nuts. But she's what we could find, at least until she has a nervous breakdown or something.
My latest college class is actually fun. The problem with that is I spend a lot more time on the assignments than I should.
Jane and some of her brothers and sisters are getting together to build their parents a house. We figure we can do it for about $17,000. Of course some of us will be forced to contribute more than others because some will just decline to participate. We'll see.
We're making plans for William's arrival. Things like where the heck will we put him! People always expand into all available space—which we did. So I've come up with a perfect solution. He can carve out your space when he gets home! Actually it's not a big thing; we just have to move a few things so he'll have a room. We need to do the same thing for Charlie. He's in a room full of stuff that's not his. He never complains, though.
Richard's main page
My latest college class is actually fun. The problem with that is I spend a lot more time on the assignments than I should.
Jane and some of her brothers and sisters are getting together to build their parents a house. We figure we can do it for about $17,000. Of course some of us will be forced to contribute more than others because some will just decline to participate. We'll see.
We're making plans for William's arrival. Things like where the heck will we put him! People always expand into all available space—which we did. So I've come up with a perfect solution. He can carve out your space when he gets home! Actually it's not a big thing; we just have to move a few things so he'll have a room. We need to do the same thing for Charlie. He's in a room full of stuff that's not his. He never complains, though.
Richard's main page
Thursday, October 07, 2004
Sunday, October 03, 2004
I start my new class tomorrow. It might actually be fun since it's a web page design class. All the other classes so far have had useful things but haven't been fun--at all. So my two weeks of free time are gone. Of course one of the first things I'm supposed to do is read some instructions and reply with the subject, "I have read." I replied, "I have not read," because it's a PowerPoint document and I don't have it. If we are required to have that program they should have put it in the list of things we need
I was printing out the newsletter, finally and the printer ran out of toner. When I put the new toner cartridge in it got lighter and lighter until it wouldn't print at all. I put the old one back in and it actually printed better. "What in the world is going on?" I thought. Then I noticed I'd failed to remove the tape covering the opening in the cartridge. Of course this was after I'd printed about 70 crummy pages and I had to do them all again.
I wrote this as a letter to the editor of my newspaper. It's way too long, but I'll send it in anyway.
Democrats lie. They lie a lot. They lie for money, they lie for power. And when they are caught in a lie, they wiggle and squirm then use the excuse used by children through the entire world and for all time: "But the Republicans do it too!" This also is a lie. Republicans, with a few exceptions, do not lie to get elected. Those exceptions are telling. When a Republican lies his or her lies are not only advertised by triumphant Democrats, but the Republican Party itself turns on that person. And the media, which is, for the most part, another branch of the Democrat party, announces that person's shame with extreme smugness.
When Democrats lie, they always excuse it. The end justifies the means they imply, if not say openly. The party comes to the defense of the liar. The media makes excuses or they even refuse to report the offending Democrat's lie all together.
Here are a few examples. Witness the fall of Richard Nixon. His own party turned on him and asked him to resign. He did. Bill Clinton was a very proficient liar. When he did everything President Nixon was accused of and more, the Democrat Party did not ask him to resign and he had to be impeached. He did not have the honor even of President Nixon. President Clinton did not resign, and he continued to lie.
John Kerry is not as good a liar as Bill Clinton. He still tries. When he brought up his military service, repeatedly, most of those that served with him pointed out his lies. The response of the Democrats was to attack President Bush's military record. Since they could find nothing real, they made it up. Forged documents showed up, a serious crime by the way, and when they were found out, the Democrats and the media made excuses. They refuse to point out the truth, that President Bush not only served and did more than was required of him, but also volunteered for a unit likely to be called up for Vietnam service.
Kerry lies about his record for the last 20 years in the Senate. Time after time he has voted against our military and against our intelligence services. Now he lies that he is the one that can best protect us from enemies. He lies about Bush's record and accuses him of lying to the American people. However nearly everything he accuses Bush of lying about, he said at one time himself!Most importantly Kerry and the Democrats lie to scare people into voting for them. They claim they are the party of the working man. They are not. They are the party of the rich elite like Ted Kennedy and John Kerry. And the non-working poor who are dependent on government handouts and always vote Democrat to keep those handouts coming. The Republican Party is the real party of the working man.
Richard's main page
I was printing out the newsletter, finally and the printer ran out of toner. When I put the new toner cartridge in it got lighter and lighter until it wouldn't print at all. I put the old one back in and it actually printed better. "What in the world is going on?" I thought. Then I noticed I'd failed to remove the tape covering the opening in the cartridge. Of course this was after I'd printed about 70 crummy pages and I had to do them all again.
I wrote this as a letter to the editor of my newspaper. It's way too long, but I'll send it in anyway.
Democrats lie. They lie a lot. They lie for money, they lie for power. And when they are caught in a lie, they wiggle and squirm then use the excuse used by children through the entire world and for all time: "But the Republicans do it too!" This also is a lie. Republicans, with a few exceptions, do not lie to get elected. Those exceptions are telling. When a Republican lies his or her lies are not only advertised by triumphant Democrats, but the Republican Party itself turns on that person. And the media, which is, for the most part, another branch of the Democrat party, announces that person's shame with extreme smugness.
When Democrats lie, they always excuse it. The end justifies the means they imply, if not say openly. The party comes to the defense of the liar. The media makes excuses or they even refuse to report the offending Democrat's lie all together.
Here are a few examples. Witness the fall of Richard Nixon. His own party turned on him and asked him to resign. He did. Bill Clinton was a very proficient liar. When he did everything President Nixon was accused of and more, the Democrat Party did not ask him to resign and he had to be impeached. He did not have the honor even of President Nixon. President Clinton did not resign, and he continued to lie.
John Kerry is not as good a liar as Bill Clinton. He still tries. When he brought up his military service, repeatedly, most of those that served with him pointed out his lies. The response of the Democrats was to attack President Bush's military record. Since they could find nothing real, they made it up. Forged documents showed up, a serious crime by the way, and when they were found out, the Democrats and the media made excuses. They refuse to point out the truth, that President Bush not only served and did more than was required of him, but also volunteered for a unit likely to be called up for Vietnam service.
Kerry lies about his record for the last 20 years in the Senate. Time after time he has voted against our military and against our intelligence services. Now he lies that he is the one that can best protect us from enemies. He lies about Bush's record and accuses him of lying to the American people. However nearly everything he accuses Bush of lying about, he said at one time himself!Most importantly Kerry and the Democrats lie to scare people into voting for them. They claim they are the party of the working man. They are not. They are the party of the rich elite like Ted Kennedy and John Kerry. And the non-working poor who are dependent on government handouts and always vote Democrat to keep those handouts coming. The Republican Party is the real party of the working man.
Richard's main page
Sunday, September 26, 2004
My website has brought me an old friend. He came across my website and emailed me to find out if I was the same friend he knew in 5th grade. I remember him as a very good friend, but they didn't live there that long, unfortunately. It's been a lot of fun catching up and learning about what the other has been doing. It's also fun to find out that we have many of the same or similar interests.
We took the old Taurus up to St. George to donate it to Deseret Industries. We drove the whole way, more than 80 miles, and were just coming into St. George when the transmission went out. I found that if I turned the car off and let it sit for a few seconds I could start it up and drive for a few seconds before it kicked out of gear. So I did manage to get off the freeway off ramp. My mom was with us so she called Triple A and we got it towed to DI for free. They still wanted it so we are now less one car. We still have four others, not counting the old Mitz and Charlie's old 280ZX.
They announced at school that they're adding 11 more sessions of math. Four of those are Algebra 1 so I hope to get relief soon from the large class sizes.
I just got a call from our Branch President. He needs to give some emergency aide to someone so, since I'm the financial clerk, I have to go down and write the check. Since I want to post this before I go I guess I'll make it short.
Richard's main page
We took the old Taurus up to St. George to donate it to Deseret Industries. We drove the whole way, more than 80 miles, and were just coming into St. George when the transmission went out. I found that if I turned the car off and let it sit for a few seconds I could start it up and drive for a few seconds before it kicked out of gear. So I did manage to get off the freeway off ramp. My mom was with us so she called Triple A and we got it towed to DI for free. They still wanted it so we are now less one car. We still have four others, not counting the old Mitz and Charlie's old 280ZX.
They announced at school that they're adding 11 more sessions of math. Four of those are Algebra 1 so I hope to get relief soon from the large class sizes.
I just got a call from our Branch President. He needs to give some emergency aide to someone so, since I'm the financial clerk, I have to go down and write the check. Since I want to post this before I go I guess I'll make it short.
Richard's main page
Friday, September 24, 2004
Is this nut case for real? This guy is so far out on the left it is unbelievable! He calls bloggers and talk radio partisan news sources, yet praises Dan Rather for being a "real newsman!"
New York Daily News - Ideas & Opinions - Richard Cohen: Blind lust for a scoop, nothing more
And then there's this. Could life extention be just around the corner?
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/04/10/scanlon1004.asp?trk=nl
Here are the links to the DVD'sFarenhype 9-11 and Sean Hannity's Hannitization of America Tour. They're both about $15. Farenhype has stunned me. I had no idea how many attacks against the United States have been thwarted by Bush's security teams.
Richard's main page
New York Daily News - Ideas & Opinions - Richard Cohen: Blind lust for a scoop, nothing more
And then there's this. Could life extention be just around the corner?
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/04/10/scanlon1004.asp?trk=nl
Here are the links to the DVD'sFarenhype 9-11 and Sean Hannity's Hannitization of America Tour. They're both about $15. Farenhype has stunned me. I had no idea how many attacks against the United States have been thwarted by Bush's security teams.
Richard's main page
Sunday, September 19, 2004
The missionaries asked us if we could let them give the discussions to Maria, our tenant at our house since the house they had been using was "noisy." We of course told them no way... Yeah right! We agreed, of course. Apparently her husband doesn't really want her to have the discussions. I wonder if he doesn't want to give up his Corona.
My wife had a crock pot with Sunday dinner in it and when I opened the drawer in the fridge it fell out, smashing the up crock pot and making a huge mess all over the floor. I took the meat and put it back in the pot and put it back, then spent a considerable amount of time cleaning up. When I was finally finished, I again tried to get into the drawer and of course knocked the pot out again making yet another mess! I guess I'd better go buy another crock pot this week.
My first period class is now at 52. Two other classes are at 45, one at 33 and another at only 29. This is insane to have to go through this every year because the stupid counselors just pick the first name on the alphabet and stick the kid in there.
I just looked at a map showing the Bush and Kerry states. It's a sea of red or pink (the Bush states) with a few states like California, Hawaii, and Massachusetts blue and a few more light blue like New York and Florida. There are a handful of states that are a tossup.
Yesterday we had Jay Whipple's funeral. He was my boss for more than ten years. I got to hear a couple of stories I hadn't heard before. Van and I were the only people from the Water District that even showed up.
Richard's main page
My wife had a crock pot with Sunday dinner in it and when I opened the drawer in the fridge it fell out, smashing the up crock pot and making a huge mess all over the floor. I took the meat and put it back in the pot and put it back, then spent a considerable amount of time cleaning up. When I was finally finished, I again tried to get into the drawer and of course knocked the pot out again making yet another mess! I guess I'd better go buy another crock pot this week.
My first period class is now at 52. Two other classes are at 45, one at 33 and another at only 29. This is insane to have to go through this every year because the stupid counselors just pick the first name on the alphabet and stick the kid in there.
I just looked at a map showing the Bush and Kerry states. It's a sea of red or pink (the Bush states) with a few states like California, Hawaii, and Massachusetts blue and a few more light blue like New York and Florida. There are a handful of states that are a tossup.
Yesterday we had Jay Whipple's funeral. He was my boss for more than ten years. I got to hear a couple of stories I hadn't heard before. Van and I were the only people from the Water District that even showed up.
Richard's main page
Sunday, August 29, 2004
Well, I have a new supervisor at school. I'd rather not have this particular supervisor since she has done some things to me that I consider unfair. Not big things but the principle of the things bothers me.
My wife's car broke down in the exact same way that it did two years ago in Provo when we put my son William in the Missionary Training Center. I called Jeff Jones at about 9 PM and he went down and sold us a 2004 Dodge Intrepid. It's a really nice car! Jeff went up and towed her car back and Jeff Adams fixed it for about $200. We just spent $600 fixing the Taurus, but now I guess we'll put it up for sale since we have a Dodge, a Plymouth, a Saturn, a Mitsubishi, and a Ford Truck! Plus we have the old Mitsubishi, Colt, and my son Charlie's Datsun, none of them running, oh, and my son-in-law Mark's Datsun, too…
I spent fifteen hours on my final paper yesterday, and I'm still only two thirds done. The first draft is due this week. More work each night until it's done. Sigh! I had thought I had two weeks, so I'd spent my last two free days installing a swamp cooler in the garage, taping sheetrock and putting up shelves. Then I looked at my schedule Tuesday night and realized my mistake. Since school started Wednesday, my time is limited.
The people in the cottage apparently had visitors over the other day and while jumping on the trampoline, apparently the top ripped, so it's gone. Time to buy another, maybe. This top lasted many more years than the first one. I wish the man who made it was still around.
I downloaded the latest Ad Aware and SpyBot Search and Destroy. I'd been using Ad Aware, but didn't have a version that looked for updates. When I ran the latest Ad Aware it found 450 or so spy ware programs. Then I ran SpyBot and it found 68 more! I did tell it to leave my Download Accelerator alone since the banner ads pay for the program. I hope this solves the extreme slowness I've been experiencing lately.
My wife only had about 50 with Ad Aware and 9 with SpyBot. Again, I ran SpyBot after Ad Aware.
Richard's main page
My wife's car broke down in the exact same way that it did two years ago in Provo when we put my son William in the Missionary Training Center. I called Jeff Jones at about 9 PM and he went down and sold us a 2004 Dodge Intrepid. It's a really nice car! Jeff went up and towed her car back and Jeff Adams fixed it for about $200. We just spent $600 fixing the Taurus, but now I guess we'll put it up for sale since we have a Dodge, a Plymouth, a Saturn, a Mitsubishi, and a Ford Truck! Plus we have the old Mitsubishi, Colt, and my son Charlie's Datsun, none of them running, oh, and my son-in-law Mark's Datsun, too…
I spent fifteen hours on my final paper yesterday, and I'm still only two thirds done. The first draft is due this week. More work each night until it's done. Sigh! I had thought I had two weeks, so I'd spent my last two free days installing a swamp cooler in the garage, taping sheetrock and putting up shelves. Then I looked at my schedule Tuesday night and realized my mistake. Since school started Wednesday, my time is limited.
The people in the cottage apparently had visitors over the other day and while jumping on the trampoline, apparently the top ripped, so it's gone. Time to buy another, maybe. This top lasted many more years than the first one. I wish the man who made it was still around.
I downloaded the latest Ad Aware and SpyBot Search and Destroy. I'd been using Ad Aware, but didn't have a version that looked for updates. When I ran the latest Ad Aware it found 450 or so spy ware programs. Then I ran SpyBot and it found 68 more! I did tell it to leave my Download Accelerator alone since the banner ads pay for the program. I hope this solves the extreme slowness I've been experiencing lately.
My wife only had about 50 with Ad Aware and 9 with SpyBot. Again, I ran SpyBot after Ad Aware.
Richard's main page
Sunday, August 22, 2004
We just got back from Idaho (and Utah, and Montana...). It was a very long trip. We left here Monday at about nine PM because we had to wait and see if they would let my son Charlie miss practice to go up. They wouldn't. We also took my daughter-in-law Shannon to Mapleton and since her father Stan had given me a swamp cooler, we took the truck up and left it in Mapleton, too. We started out again the next morning driving into Idaho, then Montana, then back to Idaho, finally reaching Bonners Ferry at about 10 PM.
After all that driving, I didn't really want to go anywhere! My granddaughter Raegan has changed a lot in a short time. Friday evening, we started home but stopped in Missoula Montana for the night then continued on the next day arriving here about midnight. Kind of a repeat of the trip up.
My daughter Valery had a bunch of packages of baking soda and baking powder that she wanted us to take with us. Later, I was searching through my suitcase in a Burger King parking lot and realized that if a cop saw me with all those packages I would have a lot of explaining to do!
my son Robert and Shannon are on their way back to Navajo Mountain from Mapleton. They got separated and Robert has been calling us regularly to see if she'd called us. This went on for hours. Robert even contacted the Highway Patrol. Finally Shannon called from Paige. Somehow she'd gotten ahead of him. I wish they'd bought some two-way radios. They only have one cell phone between them so that's no good.
Richard's main page
After all that driving, I didn't really want to go anywhere! My granddaughter Raegan has changed a lot in a short time. Friday evening, we started home but stopped in Missoula Montana for the night then continued on the next day arriving here about midnight. Kind of a repeat of the trip up.
My daughter Valery had a bunch of packages of baking soda and baking powder that she wanted us to take with us. Later, I was searching through my suitcase in a Burger King parking lot and realized that if a cop saw me with all those packages I would have a lot of explaining to do!
my son Robert and Shannon are on their way back to Navajo Mountain from Mapleton. They got separated and Robert has been calling us regularly to see if she'd called us. This went on for hours. Robert even contacted the Highway Patrol. Finally Shannon called from Paige. Somehow she'd gotten ahead of him. I wish they'd bought some two-way radios. They only have one cell phone between them so that's no good.
Richard's main page
Sunday, August 15, 2004
Well the sheet rock in the garage is done. This despite driving 300 miles to help my son Robert and his wife Shannon move, then returning the same 300 miles (ten of those on a dirt road that they have to contend with anytime they want to go anywhere, and right now it's really washboardy).
Wednesday, I took my truck up to St. George to get it fixed and brought my son Charlie's car along as well. Then I drove him to Mesquite, dropped him and my truck off, picked up my car, and drove to Kanab where I met Robert and went on to Navajo Mountain. They do have a real nice home there, but it's out in the middle of nowhere! We unloaded the truck and Shannon's dad Stan, and I returned to St. George the next day to drop off the truck and then I took Stan to the airport. By then Charlie's car was done so I went to Mesquite, dropped off my car, and my wifw and I drove her car to St. George and dropped it off to be fixed, drove Charlie's car back to Mesquite where we picked up my car and, finally, I got to go home!
Friday I worked in the garage and caught up with my class. Saturday we went to my neice's wedding and came home with enough time for me to finish the sheet rock. Tomorrow I have to do the work for this next week's class so we can drive to Idaho Tuesday. So much to do crammed into so little time!
Richard's main page
Wednesday, I took my truck up to St. George to get it fixed and brought my son Charlie's car along as well. Then I drove him to Mesquite, dropped him and my truck off, picked up my car, and drove to Kanab where I met Robert and went on to Navajo Mountain. They do have a real nice home there, but it's out in the middle of nowhere! We unloaded the truck and Shannon's dad Stan, and I returned to St. George the next day to drop off the truck and then I took Stan to the airport. By then Charlie's car was done so I went to Mesquite, dropped off my car, and my wifw and I drove her car to St. George and dropped it off to be fixed, drove Charlie's car back to Mesquite where we picked up my car and, finally, I got to go home!
Friday I worked in the garage and caught up with my class. Saturday we went to my neice's wedding and came home with enough time for me to finish the sheet rock. Tomorrow I have to do the work for this next week's class so we can drive to Idaho Tuesday. So much to do crammed into so little time!
Richard's main page
Sunday, August 08, 2004
Many changes are happening. My son Robert was promoted then demoted at his job. So, he went looking for a new one, and found it teaching Social Studies on the Indian reservation in Southern Utah. He just started his vacation at Delta, which is lucky because he starts teaching a week from Monday on the sixteenth, so this week he has to move, next week he begins school and Saturday the 21st he returns to Delta for one day. That doesn’t leave us any room for delays in our flight back from Idaho on that day. If we get delayed to the 22nd we have to pay for our ticket!
My oldest son, Rick is now unemployed. He decided to go back to school, which is a good thing. If all goes according to plan, he'll be teaching next year.
My daughter Valery and her husband Mark? Well Mark's working but they're still living with his parents.
The youngest, Charlie's been going Ebay crazy, but that's slowed down a little since he now has video games coming out of his ears. He's been spending all his time… reading the Harry Potter series again! Actually I've been playing one of his games more than he has—Lode Runner 3-D, what a great game!
I've got my garage insulated except for a little, itsy, teensy bit. I can't justify buying a whole roll of insulation for that, so I'm looking for spare pieces. It's all sheet-rocked except for the east wall.
I'm running out of time (and money) for my summer projects. School starts very, very soon.
Richard's main page
My oldest son, Rick is now unemployed. He decided to go back to school, which is a good thing. If all goes according to plan, he'll be teaching next year.
My daughter Valery and her husband Mark? Well Mark's working but they're still living with his parents.
The youngest, Charlie's been going Ebay crazy, but that's slowed down a little since he now has video games coming out of his ears. He's been spending all his time… reading the Harry Potter series again! Actually I've been playing one of his games more than he has—Lode Runner 3-D, what a great game!
I've got my garage insulated except for a little, itsy, teensy bit. I can't justify buying a whole roll of insulation for that, so I'm looking for spare pieces. It's all sheet-rocked except for the east wall.
I'm running out of time (and money) for my summer projects. School starts very, very soon.
Richard's main page
Sunday, July 25, 2004
My neice reported her mission today. She told a great story about a class where the teacher threw a party. Before the party he asked an athlete how many pushups he could do. He thought he could do 200, but the teacher asked him to do 300.
At the party, in order to get a doughnut, Jeff had to do ten pushups for the person. The first few went well until another athlete insisted he could do his own pushups. He refused the doughnut unless he could do his own pushups. The teacher had Jeff do ten for him anyway, even if he wouldn't take the doughnut.
Soon four more people arrived making a total of 34 people and the teacher began to worry that Jeff couldn't do enough pushups for everyone. Some of the students took compassion on Jeff and refused to take a doughnut, but that didn't work because the teacher had him do them anyway.
When he was down to the last few people, everyone could see how tired he was and tears flowed freely, Jeff was sweating and his arms shook. Then the door opened and John started to come in. "No! Stay out!" People cried, because they knew that would mean ten more pushups for Jeff to do. But Jeff insisted that John could come in, so puzzled, he entered, and the teacher asked him if he wanted a doughnut. "Sure," he answered and the teacher had Jeff do the obligatory ten pushups. Finally there were only two girls left. When the first was asked if she wanted her doughnut she said no, but Jeff had to do the pushups anyway. The last girl, with tears running down her face, told the teacher she didn't want Jeff to do her pushups. Couldn't she do them for herself? The teacher explained that he and Jeff had an agreement and Jeff had to do her pushups, if she took the doughnut or not.
By now Jeff had done 340 pushups and he had to struggle to do each and every one of the last ten pushups, but finally, he finished and the teacher explained what was going on.
Jeff, you see, had the only perfect score in class. All the others had lost points for one thing or the other. Since on Jeff's wrestling team, the team did pushups when someone messed up, the teacher was requiring pushups for the students to have their doughnuts at the party. But because Jeff was the only one with a perfect score, he was the only one that could atone for the imperfect scores of the others. He pointed at all the uneaten doughnuts and told them that Jeff had atoned for even those who refused his atonement.
By now of course everyone understood what the teacher had been trying to teach them, and it was a lesson on the Atonement of the Savior they would never, ever forget.
Richard's main page
At the party, in order to get a doughnut, Jeff had to do ten pushups for the person. The first few went well until another athlete insisted he could do his own pushups. He refused the doughnut unless he could do his own pushups. The teacher had Jeff do ten for him anyway, even if he wouldn't take the doughnut.
Soon four more people arrived making a total of 34 people and the teacher began to worry that Jeff couldn't do enough pushups for everyone. Some of the students took compassion on Jeff and refused to take a doughnut, but that didn't work because the teacher had him do them anyway.
When he was down to the last few people, everyone could see how tired he was and tears flowed freely, Jeff was sweating and his arms shook. Then the door opened and John started to come in. "No! Stay out!" People cried, because they knew that would mean ten more pushups for Jeff to do. But Jeff insisted that John could come in, so puzzled, he entered, and the teacher asked him if he wanted a doughnut. "Sure," he answered and the teacher had Jeff do the obligatory ten pushups. Finally there were only two girls left. When the first was asked if she wanted her doughnut she said no, but Jeff had to do the pushups anyway. The last girl, with tears running down her face, told the teacher she didn't want Jeff to do her pushups. Couldn't she do them for herself? The teacher explained that he and Jeff had an agreement and Jeff had to do her pushups, if she took the doughnut or not.
By now Jeff had done 340 pushups and he had to struggle to do each and every one of the last ten pushups, but finally, he finished and the teacher explained what was going on.
Jeff, you see, had the only perfect score in class. All the others had lost points for one thing or the other. Since on Jeff's wrestling team, the team did pushups when someone messed up, the teacher was requiring pushups for the students to have their doughnuts at the party. But because Jeff was the only one with a perfect score, he was the only one that could atone for the imperfect scores of the others. He pointed at all the uneaten doughnuts and told them that Jeff had atoned for even those who refused his atonement.
By now of course everyone understood what the teacher had been trying to teach them, and it was a lesson on the Atonement of the Savior they would never, ever forget.
Richard's main page
Sunday, July 18, 2004
Well I decided to get a little dump trailer for the garden tractor. I made a little hitch so I could pull it with the truck too. Then I built a new screen to fit the trailer. Of course that took the whole day, so the next day, bright and early, I went out and screened a trailer load of gravel. It really wasn't much gravel, but even though I was very careful pulling it out of the wash something must have gone wrong and something bent. That caused a cascade reaction and pretty soon everything on the trailer was bent. I dumped what was left of the gravel and threw the trailer into the back of the truck. I had to take it apart so I could straighten every single piece of it. It's almost as good as new, but I guess it's just a garden tractor trailer. I can't risk putting it on the truck again.
Summer's half over and I still have lots of projects to do. The main problem is they almost all cost money. The ones that don't cost money are the hardest, so of course those are the ones I want to put off!
I wrote a letter to the editor for the Review Journal, but of course they didn't print it. It goes like this:
Several recent letter writers have prompted me to write. Each has used the tired old arguments that the left loves to drag out again and again. One recent letter writer once again blamed terrorist acts on Americans. We deserve it, you see, because we some how interfered in the lives of the terrorists. Terrorists hate us because we are an imperial nation or some such garbage. No, the truth is, terrorists hate us because we are a shining beacon of freedom and they don't want freedom for their people. So what are we supposed to do, eliminate our freedom so the terrorists won't hate us? (Why not, the liberals hate us for the exact same reasons. John Kerry would surely love to see our freedoms taken, with him in charge, of course.)
Another lie the left loves to tell is that President Bush lied about Iraq. Never mind that the U. N., Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Kerry, and other darlings of the left all warned us about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, now it's a convenient stick to beat the president with so that the people responsible for allowing terrorists to operate freely in the world for eight years can get back their power. Never mind that weapons of mass destruction have been found in Iraq and that the rest are hidden in the desert in Iraq and in Syria. The left pretends those facts don't exist.
The third lie is the worst. The left lies that President Bush said there was an al-Qaida-Iraq link. No, he said there was a terrorist-Iraq link, and there is! This is important for every American to think about: The Russians have now told us, and the news media, because they are controlled by the left (who hate America despite their protestations to the contrary), have not told us, is that Saddam Hussein, was apparently planning to use a terrorist group, perhaps al-Qaida, to seize a Russian missile site and launch nuclear tipped missiles at American cities. It would not have been just thousands killed, but millions. Millions of American dead. And despite all the lies of the left, President George Bush, who has not lied to the American people, can be credited with stopping that threat from Saddam Hussein for good.
Oh well, maybe I'll try another sometime.
Richard's main page
Summer's half over and I still have lots of projects to do. The main problem is they almost all cost money. The ones that don't cost money are the hardest, so of course those are the ones I want to put off!
I wrote a letter to the editor for the Review Journal, but of course they didn't print it. It goes like this:
Several recent letter writers have prompted me to write. Each has used the tired old arguments that the left loves to drag out again and again. One recent letter writer once again blamed terrorist acts on Americans. We deserve it, you see, because we some how interfered in the lives of the terrorists. Terrorists hate us because we are an imperial nation or some such garbage. No, the truth is, terrorists hate us because we are a shining beacon of freedom and they don't want freedom for their people. So what are we supposed to do, eliminate our freedom so the terrorists won't hate us? (Why not, the liberals hate us for the exact same reasons. John Kerry would surely love to see our freedoms taken, with him in charge, of course.)
Another lie the left loves to tell is that President Bush lied about Iraq. Never mind that the U. N., Bill Clinton, Al Gore, John Kerry, and other darlings of the left all warned us about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, now it's a convenient stick to beat the president with so that the people responsible for allowing terrorists to operate freely in the world for eight years can get back their power. Never mind that weapons of mass destruction have been found in Iraq and that the rest are hidden in the desert in Iraq and in Syria. The left pretends those facts don't exist.
The third lie is the worst. The left lies that President Bush said there was an al-Qaida-Iraq link. No, he said there was a terrorist-Iraq link, and there is! This is important for every American to think about: The Russians have now told us, and the news media, because they are controlled by the left (who hate America despite their protestations to the contrary), have not told us, is that Saddam Hussein, was apparently planning to use a terrorist group, perhaps al-Qaida, to seize a Russian missile site and launch nuclear tipped missiles at American cities. It would not have been just thousands killed, but millions. Millions of American dead. And despite all the lies of the left, President George Bush, who has not lied to the American people, can be credited with stopping that threat from Saddam Hussein for good.
Oh well, maybe I'll try another sometime.
Richard's main page
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
We had a very busy week. Last Tuesday we went to Can Cun. We flew all night arriving early Wednesday morning. We dropped our luggage at a very nice hotel on Isla Mujeres, then hopped the ferry back to Can Cun for the bullfight, which was way more than we expected but it was worth it. We rode the ferry back to Isla Mujeres and crashed.
The next morning we toured all the hotels, the night club "The City of Can Cun," and the new master plan community being built by the same man that owns our hotel. The next day we went on a sales meeting in one of the hotels and did a little touring in the city afterwards.
Finally on Saturday we finally spent the time on the island instead of all our time in Can Cun.
The hotel was unusual in that only the rooms were air conditioned, the common areas were hot! Still it was a wonderful hotel, we had a lot of fun and never had a chance to get bored. We were busy all the time.
We got up at five to leave on Sunday. We flew into Miami and went through customs which puts you outside the security area, so you have to go through security again, which is stupid.
We were in the air only half an hour when they turned the plane around and landed in Miami again. It took four hours to fix before we finally got on our way. We got home late Sunday night.
Unfortunately for my sleep time, I had to be in Mojave California by 6:30 the next morning and I wanted to arrive by 3:00 to get the best parking. By then I was sick and had to stop at every town to use the bathroom. I was so tired, too, but luckily my youngest son Charlie was able to drive some and let me nap.
Monday morning Space Ship 1 became the first non-government funded craft to go into space and Charlie and I were there!
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The next morning we toured all the hotels, the night club "The City of Can Cun," and the new master plan community being built by the same man that owns our hotel. The next day we went on a sales meeting in one of the hotels and did a little touring in the city afterwards.
Finally on Saturday we finally spent the time on the island instead of all our time in Can Cun.
The hotel was unusual in that only the rooms were air conditioned, the common areas were hot! Still it was a wonderful hotel, we had a lot of fun and never had a chance to get bored. We were busy all the time.
We got up at five to leave on Sunday. We flew into Miami and went through customs which puts you outside the security area, so you have to go through security again, which is stupid.
We were in the air only half an hour when they turned the plane around and landed in Miami again. It took four hours to fix before we finally got on our way. We got home late Sunday night.
Unfortunately for my sleep time, I had to be in Mojave California by 6:30 the next morning and I wanted to arrive by 3:00 to get the best parking. By then I was sick and had to stop at every town to use the bathroom. I was so tired, too, but luckily my youngest son Charlie was able to drive some and let me nap.
Monday morning Space Ship 1 became the first non-government funded craft to go into space and Charlie and I were there!
Richard's main page
Sunday, June 13, 2004
We had a good time at the family reunion yesterday. Of course, today my shoulder hurts from all the shotgun shooting I did.
My daughter and her husband, Valery and Mark agreed to come down for the reunion, but reneged on the deal, but everyone else was there.
I was very worried about the heat. Doing it in Alamo in June! What were they thinking? But the reunion was held under a grove of Ash trees and there was a slight breeze, so I don't think it was ever very uncomfortable, except around noon when the sun was coming straight down and the sun was filtered by just a few layers of leaves.
We did some skeet shooting and my score was good—for me—60%. My son Rick was using my gun so I borrowed my brother-in-law, Mark's gun. Later they started launching the pigeons with a hand launcher, instead of the machine. Again, Rick was using my gun, so I used my brother-in-law, Sam's single shot. Oh what a sweet gun. It kicks like a mule since it's a light gun, but it's really a fun gun. And I found out they're very inexpensive, under a hundred bucks! My brother-in-law who owns a gun store says he has some similar guns in stock. Oh yes! The hand launching is what did my shoulder in. It's much harder and faster than the machine, because you had to be fast or someone else would shoot the pigeon first. So, since I was using a hard kicking gun, and was shooting fast so the gun wasn't as tight to my shoulder, I got a bit banged around. It was worth it.
I had the slide show Rick had done for Grandma and Grandpa's 50th anniversary party. I did a video CD version so those who wanted, could play them on their computers, even with no DVD player in the computer, (thinking that any DVD player could play it) but I've found since that some DVD players don't play video CD's. Well I can always burn a few DVD's for those who have trouble. I've tried them in four DVD players, and only one has refused to play them. I also did a computer only version and a VHS version for the low tech people.
My granddaughters Anna and Haley had so much fun yesterday. It's too bad two others, Raegan and Damia, missed it because their parents wouldn't bring them.
Another reason it was so much fun for me yesterday, is because I've spent an intense week writing a paper for a class I'm taking. I didn't think it would be that hard, but there was so much material to wade through. Now I've got to rewrite and send it off, in two days! Since we're going to Cancún I won't have time after that.
Richard's main page
My daughter and her husband, Valery and Mark agreed to come down for the reunion, but reneged on the deal, but everyone else was there.
I was very worried about the heat. Doing it in Alamo in June! What were they thinking? But the reunion was held under a grove of Ash trees and there was a slight breeze, so I don't think it was ever very uncomfortable, except around noon when the sun was coming straight down and the sun was filtered by just a few layers of leaves.
We did some skeet shooting and my score was good—for me—60%. My son Rick was using my gun so I borrowed my brother-in-law, Mark's gun. Later they started launching the pigeons with a hand launcher, instead of the machine. Again, Rick was using my gun, so I used my brother-in-law, Sam's single shot. Oh what a sweet gun. It kicks like a mule since it's a light gun, but it's really a fun gun. And I found out they're very inexpensive, under a hundred bucks! My brother-in-law who owns a gun store says he has some similar guns in stock. Oh yes! The hand launching is what did my shoulder in. It's much harder and faster than the machine, because you had to be fast or someone else would shoot the pigeon first. So, since I was using a hard kicking gun, and was shooting fast so the gun wasn't as tight to my shoulder, I got a bit banged around. It was worth it.
I had the slide show Rick had done for Grandma and Grandpa's 50th anniversary party. I did a video CD version so those who wanted, could play them on their computers, even with no DVD player in the computer, (thinking that any DVD player could play it) but I've found since that some DVD players don't play video CD's. Well I can always burn a few DVD's for those who have trouble. I've tried them in four DVD players, and only one has refused to play them. I also did a computer only version and a VHS version for the low tech people.
My granddaughters Anna and Haley had so much fun yesterday. It's too bad two others, Raegan and Damia, missed it because their parents wouldn't bring them.
Another reason it was so much fun for me yesterday, is because I've spent an intense week writing a paper for a class I'm taking. I didn't think it would be that hard, but there was so much material to wade through. Now I've got to rewrite and send it off, in two days! Since we're going to Cancún I won't have time after that.
Richard's main page
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
I've put off doing this because I wasn't quite ready.
In 1996 I lost my father. He'd had multiple sclerosis for decades and we knew he was going to go, but it still hurt—more than I expected it too. I still think of things I would like to tell him, just for a moment forgetting he's gone. You've heard the cliché about not appreciating someone until they're gone. Well it's true. I miss him.
When I got the news that President Reagan had died, I realized I felt the same way as when my father died. Ronald Reagan was the first president I ever voted for. It was the primary when he ran against Gerald Ford. I met him during that campaign, across the street from John Ascuaga's Nugget in Reno, where he made a campaign stop. When he lost to Ford, I reluctantly voted for Ford. I was thrilled four years later to vote for him again against Jimmy Carter. He was a wonderful president to have for the next eight years.
I will miss him.
Richard's main page
In 1996 I lost my father. He'd had multiple sclerosis for decades and we knew he was going to go, but it still hurt—more than I expected it too. I still think of things I would like to tell him, just for a moment forgetting he's gone. You've heard the cliché about not appreciating someone until they're gone. Well it's true. I miss him.
When I got the news that President Reagan had died, I realized I felt the same way as when my father died. Ronald Reagan was the first president I ever voted for. It was the primary when he ran against Gerald Ford. I met him during that campaign, across the street from John Ascuaga's Nugget in Reno, where he made a campaign stop. When he lost to Ford, I reluctantly voted for Ford. I was thrilled four years later to vote for him again against Jimmy Carter. He was a wonderful president to have for the next eight years.
I will miss him.
Richard's main page
Sunday, June 06, 2004
I've had several interviews at various schools for next year, but as of this moment I'm still at my old school, where I definitely don't want to be next year.
When I got to school Friday, I found that I had forgotten my keys, which I needed to turn in so I could check out for the summer. I also had an interview for ten o'clock, which I scheduled at that time so I would have time to attend the faculty meeting first. Well they delayed the faculty meeting until 9:30! I told my supervisor I was going to go get my keys. I called my son, Charlie so I could get him to meet me half way, but he decided to come in to see the latest Harry Potter movie. It worked out well. By the time I was done, he'd arrived, so I was able to get my keys and check out by one PM.
Yesterday we loaded up my daughter, Valery's things and they headed back up to Idaho. Her father-in-law, brother-in-law and nephew, having come all this way, had to cope with record heat all day as they helped load.
My daughter-in-law, Jessie finally passed her last test, the math portion of the tests. Since her kids score higher in math than any other teacher's in her school, it just goes to show that's it's not content knowledge that's important, but knowing how to teach! People used to realize this. Now everything is the teacher's fault, despite that fact that the teacher is probably one of the most powerless to change the real problem, which is discipline!
Richard's main page
When I got to school Friday, I found that I had forgotten my keys, which I needed to turn in so I could check out for the summer. I also had an interview for ten o'clock, which I scheduled at that time so I would have time to attend the faculty meeting first. Well they delayed the faculty meeting until 9:30! I told my supervisor I was going to go get my keys. I called my son, Charlie so I could get him to meet me half way, but he decided to come in to see the latest Harry Potter movie. It worked out well. By the time I was done, he'd arrived, so I was able to get my keys and check out by one PM.
Yesterday we loaded up my daughter, Valery's things and they headed back up to Idaho. Her father-in-law, brother-in-law and nephew, having come all this way, had to cope with record heat all day as they helped load.
My daughter-in-law, Jessie finally passed her last test, the math portion of the tests. Since her kids score higher in math than any other teacher's in her school, it just goes to show that's it's not content knowledge that's important, but knowing how to teach! People used to realize this. Now everything is the teacher's fault, despite that fact that the teacher is probably one of the most powerless to change the real problem, which is discipline!
Richard's main page
Wednesday, June 02, 2004
The pictures are of Space Ship 1 (SS1) It will most likely become the world's first private space ship on June 21st!
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Just after landing SpaceShipOne on May 13 flight. Pilot Mike Melvill describes the experience while Scaled Composites chief Burt Rutan and crew chief Steve Losey listen. Note color stripes on leading edge of wing to measure aerodynamic heating on the craft's thermal protection system. Scaled Composites
Sunday, May 30, 2004
What a day we had yesterday! Last Saturday we were walking through Sears in St. George and saw a sale on a floor model refrigerator. Since we weren't happy with the used one we had purchased from a friend, we decided to buy it, and since my wife, Jane had informed me our dryer was not working right, we bought a dryer too.
Yesterday we drove the truck up with the old refrigerator and dryer to drop them off at Deseret Industries. They told us they didn't take appliances anymore! Now we're eighty miles from home with no room in the truck for a new refrigerator and dryer. Needless to say we were not happy. We called everyone we knew, to see if anyone wanted them. No one was home. It was Memorial Day weekend so I guess everyone was vacationing. Jane's sister Carrol was the only one we could find and she didn't want them.
So we started the drive home to drop off the old junk so we could drive back and pick up the new stuff. Jane remembered that a coworker mentioned she was looking for a used refrigerator, so she called her and she had us stop in Mesquite so she could look at it. She liked it and said she wanted it, but we had to wait for her to get off work.
No one wanted the dryer so we found the Mesquite landfill. I assumed as a non-resident, they would charge us, but the man said we couldn't dump at all. I gave him our sad story and he let us in to dump the dryer.
By the time we did that and ate lunch, one of her male co-workers showed up and helped us unload, in the process the fridge whacked me on the ear and the hearing aid, being a hard object, caused my ear to bleed. It looked worse than it was.
All the way back to St. George we went, but at least it was only forty miles instead of eighty. Of course on the way home the vent I bought for the dryer blew out of the truck, so I had to pay more to replace it here in Overton.
I interviewed for a science job at MV High Wednesday. I was told I was the only applicant and that she would make her decision Friday. On Friday we had a staff development day and all the teachers who were leaving went to their new schools. I was very uncomfortable planning the next year when I didn't even know whether I was going to be there. Finally I called to see what the status of the position was, but they'd already gone home. I'd been so busy I didn't realize how late it was. So, I still don't know the results
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
Sunday, May 23, 2004
I was very pleased when I found my car had run flat tires on it. Until I realized the extreme disadvantage of run flat tires--they run flat! Since they run flat you don't realize you have a problem until you notice an annoying rumble and stop to see what is wrong. By that time your tire may be ruined. Mine was. So we had to go up to St. George to get it replaced, then we did a little shopping, then a little more shopping, and a little more. We spent way too much money, of course and blew a whole Saturday afternoon. Oh well.
Somebody tagged all over my classroom Thursday. I really chewed out my class, and then someone pointed out that I'd had the camera on. I just finished watching the tape. I didn't fast forward because I was afraid I'd miss it. So I watched the whole hour. Of course it was right at the end of class when I spotted her. It was not someone I would have expected, so I was surprised.
My daughter, Valery is moving out with her husband and her daughters Saturday. I'm going to miss having the grandkids around. But they have to have their own life. It will be nice to have the house back, though.
I've really got to stop doing these in Word. When I publish them there is always something I've got to fix because of Word's special charactors.
Sunday, May 16, 2004
Well, I finally got my son Rick's slide show of Grandma and Grandpa Spencer's 50th anniversary video finished and I've burned ten video CD's plus ten CD's for the computer with the slide show and a screen saver. Now I'm using my daughter's portable DVD player to record onto video cassettes. It's almost the same as the one Rick did for the anniversary party except I added two pictures; one of my late cousin Tiffany, because Rick didn't have one at the time and one of Grandma and Grandpa at the end just because it seemed like the right slide to end it with.
This new slide show program is really nice. It's by Anix software and it's much improved over the last one.
I'm listening to LDS President Hinckley on BYUTV at the priesthood anniversary meeting. He's really, strongly, admonishing young men to shun tattoos and respect young ladies among other admonishments. He says his language is plain and he's speaking bluntly. Well that's what a prophet does, isn't it?
I'm stunned! After the end of the priesthood meeting they talked about Southern Virginia University. Apparently it's an LDS university. Hmmm, never heard of them before!
Mark and Valery will be moving to Idaho within two or three weeks. I am going to miss my granddaughters.
I got a hold of Sony tech support to get the final word on the double flash on my camera. There is a common misconception that the double flash is for red eye reduction, but it's not. When red eye is on, my camera has a triple flash, when off it's a double flash. Imagine my surprise when the tech support person had the same misconception! He/she was absolutely no help, none, nada!
I ordered a little cheap slave flash. I'm going to see if it works. I'm almost certain it won't, but I want to make absolutely certain. If it does I'll save a lot of money. If not, I'll have to buy the more expensive units that can be set to trigger on the second flash.
Oh, the school countdown! 15 days!
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Sunday, May 09, 2004
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We were watching "Second Hand Lions" on DVD. That is probably one of my favorite movies. It's great. We watched the commentaries afterwards. That movie almost didn't get made. Why is it that studio executives always pick crummy movies and the really good ones seem to get made only with great difficulty.
I'm going to shop for some new phones. Only our cordless phones are loud enough when three or more phones are off the hook. I couldn't hear my son, who we called in
Argentina today, except on the cordless.
Nineteen more school days! I hope I can find a more convenient school for next year.
I tried to burn an album to a CDRW because Rhapsody Music Service doesn't include the track information in their burns, so what I've been doing is burning a CD then ripping it to MP3's then burning it again which includes the track information. So I decided to use a CDRW so I don't waste a disk. I used the only CDRW I had, the one that came with my first CD burner. I realize now that it's at least five years old and that may be why the first five tracks were unplayable. I ended up buying the first five tracks again. I sent a message to Rhapsody so I hope they credit my account.
It's hot! Summer has come early. I'm going to have to train myself to get up early and go to bed early to beat the heat. Better yet, I could spend my summer writing inside instead of working and spending money on the yard.
We were watching "Second Hand Lions" on DVD. That is probably one of my favorite movies. It's great. We watched the commentaries afterwards. That movie almost didn't get made. Why is it that studio executives always pick crummy movies and the really good ones seem to get made only with great difficulty.
I'm going to shop for some new phones. Only our cordless phones are loud enough when three or more phones are off the hook. I couldn't hear my son, who we called in
Argentina today, except on the cordless.
Nineteen more school days! I hope I can find a more convenient school for next year.
I tried to burn an album to a CDRW because Rhapsody Music Service doesn't include the track information in their burns, so what I've been doing is burning a CD then ripping it to MP3's then burning it again which includes the track information. So I decided to use a CDRW so I don't waste a disk. I used the only CDRW I had, the one that came with my first CD burner. I realize now that it's at least five years old and that may be why the first five tracks were unplayable. I ended up buying the first five tracks again. I sent a message to Rhapsody so I hope they credit my account.
It's hot! Summer has come early. I'm going to have to train myself to get up early and go to bed early to beat the heat. Better yet, I could spend my summer writing inside instead of working and spending money on the yard.
Sunday, May 02, 2004
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Thursday I interviewed for a position in a brand new school and the interview went really, really...
...bad. I didn't feel good about it at all. Not one bit. They told me they'd let me know by Friday. They didn't, but so what? I know it didn't go well so the answer is no. It would have been nice if I'd been able to go right down the street from my daughter-in-law Jessie's school. I've felt bad about it ever since, until today, when Jessie got a call telling her that a position was opening up in (Joe) Bowler Elementary in Bunkerville. She also mentioned a position might be opening up in Virgin Valley High School, so perhaps there's a reason the interview didn't go well.
My son Charlie has a concert coming up and they're supposed to dress in costumes for the movie "Newsies." We picked up some clothes at Deseret Industries and he looked so good in the costume, he wore it to work last night. He even wore it without the suspenders to church today. His boss said the girls who came in to the theater really liked it.
I have a fluorescent street light I put up, but it stopped working. I assumed the bulb was out so I went and bought a couple, all the while complaining about the expense. How it's not cost effective to keep buying bulbs when they cost more than the electricity I'm saving by using the fluorescent. When I went to replace the bulb I noticed the old one was loose--yes, it was fine, it just needed to be screwed back in. Oh well, I won't have to buy bulbs for a long time.
The school countdown: 24 days!
Thursday I interviewed for a position in a brand new school and the interview went really, really...
...bad. I didn't feel good about it at all. Not one bit. They told me they'd let me know by Friday. They didn't, but so what? I know it didn't go well so the answer is no. It would have been nice if I'd been able to go right down the street from my daughter-in-law Jessie's school. I've felt bad about it ever since, until today, when Jessie got a call telling her that a position was opening up in (Joe) Bowler Elementary in Bunkerville. She also mentioned a position might be opening up in Virgin Valley High School, so perhaps there's a reason the interview didn't go well.
My son Charlie has a concert coming up and they're supposed to dress in costumes for the movie "Newsies." We picked up some clothes at Deseret Industries and he looked so good in the costume, he wore it to work last night. He even wore it without the suspenders to church today. His boss said the girls who came in to the theater really liked it.
I have a fluorescent street light I put up, but it stopped working. I assumed the bulb was out so I went and bought a couple, all the while complaining about the expense. How it's not cost effective to keep buying bulbs when they cost more than the electricity I'm saving by using the fluorescent. When I went to replace the bulb I noticed the old one was loose--yes, it was fine, it just needed to be screwed back in. Oh well, I won't have to buy bulbs for a long time.
The school countdown: 24 days!
Saturday, April 17, 2004
Richard's main page
I started a class last week so I again have little time. I'm counting down the weeks 'till schools out, then I'll have more time, yes!
I love spring, the garden's up and we're starting to get food out of it, especially asparagus. I started a bed a few years ago and I've been adding to it every year. This year has been great! But I think it's about played out for the year. Next year though it's going to be even better!
I just purchased the Babylon 5 fifth season. It was on sale so I snapped it up. I don't have the fourth season yet, so I want to wait to watch the fifth.
I got this from jerrypournelle.com
"From a US Marine, LCpl Ryan Christiansen, asked if he was concerned that a ceasefire would allow Saddamite forces to regroup:
'I really don't care; they're all gonna die.'"
I started a class last week so I again have little time. I'm counting down the weeks 'till schools out, then I'll have more time, yes!
I love spring, the garden's up and we're starting to get food out of it, especially asparagus. I started a bed a few years ago and I've been adding to it every year. This year has been great! But I think it's about played out for the year. Next year though it's going to be even better!
I just purchased the Babylon 5 fifth season. It was on sale so I snapped it up. I don't have the fourth season yet, so I want to wait to watch the fifth.
I got this from jerrypournelle.com
"From a US Marine, LCpl Ryan Christiansen, asked if he was concerned that a ceasefire would allow Saddamite forces to regroup:
'I really don't care; they're all gonna die.'"
Sunday, April 04, 2004
Richard's main page
My son gave me this, it's very politically incorrect!
Girls = time and money.
Time is money.
Girls = money2
Money is the root of all evil
Money = Öevil
Money2= evil
Girls = evil
My son gave me this, it's very politically incorrect!
Girls = time and money.
Time is money.
Girls = money2
Money is the root of all evil
Money = Öevil
Money2= evil
Girls = evil
Sunday, March 21, 2004
Richard's main page
We were supposed to go to Can Cun for Easter Break. The guy who's setting up the trip (the same guy who set up a Disneyland trip for us) messed up and set it up for the week after the break. He claims he can make it will happen in June.Yeah, I'll believe it when we are there.
It's hot here!
Saturday we went to St. George for a quick shopping trip but got a bubble in a tire (not the one that needed to be replaced). Since we hit a rock while four-wheeling in December, the alignment has been out, too. So I got it aligned at the same time. It took the incompetents five hours to do a simple alignment and replace two tires! So we didn't get home until bedtime. So much for a quick trip. Then of course on the way home the a/c filters we'd just bought blew out of the back of the truck.
I'm getting the summer itch. One more week to 3rd quarter then one quarter left. Ten weeks of school, just ten!
We were supposed to go to Can Cun for Easter Break. The guy who's setting up the trip (the same guy who set up a Disneyland trip for us) messed up and set it up for the week after the break. He claims he can make it will happen in June.Yeah, I'll believe it when we are there.
It's hot here!
Saturday we went to St. George for a quick shopping trip but got a bubble in a tire (not the one that needed to be replaced). Since we hit a rock while four-wheeling in December, the alignment has been out, too. So I got it aligned at the same time. It took the incompetents five hours to do a simple alignment and replace two tires! So we didn't get home until bedtime. So much for a quick trip. Then of course on the way home the a/c filters we'd just bought blew out of the back of the truck.
I'm getting the summer itch. One more week to 3rd quarter then one quarter left. Ten weeks of school, just ten!
Thursday, March 18, 2004
Richard's main page
A while ago I signed up for Rhapsody music service. I love it! But! (You knew that was coming, didn't you?) Rhapsody has listen on demand music for a monthly fee and if I really like it I can burn it to disk for just $0.79 per track. They also have radio stations, but often play music that is not available for play on demand or burning. This is so frustrating when I hear a song I really, really like but can't save it to may favorites list or burn it. Case in point. "The House of the Rising Sun" by The Animals is such a song. Now The Animals have a live version and Eric Burdon has a couple of versions that are available for listening on demand and burning, but they all stink! I like the original and only the original. I suppose I could go buy the CD if it's available, but why? I pay good money (as opposed to bad money?) for Rhapsody. I just wish the music publishers would realize they are being stupid in being so protective of their so called "rights."
I also wonder why Eric Burdon took such a popular song such as "The House of the Rising Sun" which help make him a star and ruined it! I'm listening to "When I was Young" right now from his album Best Of Eric Burdon & The Animals. He didn't butcher that one why the first? Now "San Franciscan Nights" is playing, he didn't ruin that one either. Strange...
A while ago I signed up for Rhapsody music service. I love it! But! (You knew that was coming, didn't you?) Rhapsody has listen on demand music for a monthly fee and if I really like it I can burn it to disk for just $0.79 per track. They also have radio stations, but often play music that is not available for play on demand or burning. This is so frustrating when I hear a song I really, really like but can't save it to may favorites list or burn it. Case in point. "The House of the Rising Sun" by The Animals is such a song. Now The Animals have a live version and Eric Burdon has a couple of versions that are available for listening on demand and burning, but they all stink! I like the original and only the original. I suppose I could go buy the CD if it's available, but why? I pay good money (as opposed to bad money?) for Rhapsody. I just wish the music publishers would realize they are being stupid in being so protective of their so called "rights."
I also wonder why Eric Burdon took such a popular song such as "The House of the Rising Sun" which help make him a star and ruined it! I'm listening to "When I was Young" right now from his album Best Of Eric Burdon & The Animals. He didn't butcher that one why the first? Now "San Franciscan Nights" is playing, he didn't ruin that one either. Strange...
Sunday, March 07, 2004
Richard's main page
We flew up to Salt Lake for my granddaughter's blessing. My mother and my son Rick and his wife Jessie drove up in one car while son-in-law Mark and my daughter Val drove up in another. It was a smooth flight up but a bit rougher coming back. The landing! Oh my was the landing rough! We hit hard and bounced. The second time down was much smoother. Now it was a turboprop, but it was even rougher than usual.
They had us scattered all over the plane coming back, but I stole a kid's seat and he went to the back and sat in mine.
This made for what seems to be a short weekend. Well, this is going to be short, I'm going to bed.
We flew up to Salt Lake for my granddaughter's blessing. My mother and my son Rick and his wife Jessie drove up in one car while son-in-law Mark and my daughter Val drove up in another. It was a smooth flight up but a bit rougher coming back. The landing! Oh my was the landing rough! We hit hard and bounced. The second time down was much smoother. Now it was a turboprop, but it was even rougher than usual.
They had us scattered all over the plane coming back, but I stole a kid's seat and he went to the back and sat in mine.
This made for what seems to be a short weekend. Well, this is going to be short, I'm going to bed.
Friday, February 20, 2004
Richard's main page
Well, it seems I may be getting bored with blogging, or maybe I'm just very, very busy. I do have a class that takes much of my free time.
My mother, who was on a mission for our church came home yesterday. We did a lot of catching up, so I didn't get to bed until very late. Right now it's nearly 10:00PM and I just finished my school assignments for the week.
Time for bed, I think
Well, it seems I may be getting bored with blogging, or maybe I'm just very, very busy. I do have a class that takes much of my free time.
My mother, who was on a mission for our church came home yesterday. We did a lot of catching up, so I didn't get to bed until very late. Right now it's nearly 10:00PM and I just finished my school assignments for the week.
Time for bed, I think
Sunday, January 18, 2004
Richard's main page
We had a staff development day and at one of the meetings one guy was telling the story about when he was a new teacher at another school with another teacher in our school and this teacher taught him how important staff development days were. He was doing a crossword puzzle! So this guy tells us he will make our meeting short. At the end he asked if there were any questions or comments. The other teacher raised his hand and said: "I got my crossword puzzle done!"
I just got my right hearing aid fixed, because it broke over the Christmas holidays. Got it back just in time, the left one just broke. These things cost thousands of bucks, you'd think they'd work better.
I just finished the third season Babylon 5 DVDs. It took years for the first season to come out, almost two years for the second season, a year for the third, a few months for the fourth, and the fifth will be out in April. They must be making money to accelerate it like that. I still need to find the fourth season on sale somewhere.
The class I'm taking requires many of the assignments to be done with a partner. My partner keeps doing our assignments for us. Hey, I'm not complaining one bit! Less work for me!
I'm listening to a singer from Veracruz named Yuri. Very blonde and very white. There are a lot of Mexican pop singers who dye their hair, but you can tell they're Mexican. This gal looks Caucasian. I just looked her up on AMG. her name is Yuridia Valenzuela Canseco and she is "Latin American." Whatever, she sings well and has no crossover hits. At her age (39) I don't expect any. I'm really beginning to like some Mexican pop singers. Not all, but some.
We had a staff development day and at one of the meetings one guy was telling the story about when he was a new teacher at another school with another teacher in our school and this teacher taught him how important staff development days were. He was doing a crossword puzzle! So this guy tells us he will make our meeting short. At the end he asked if there were any questions or comments. The other teacher raised his hand and said: "I got my crossword puzzle done!"
I just got my right hearing aid fixed, because it broke over the Christmas holidays. Got it back just in time, the left one just broke. These things cost thousands of bucks, you'd think they'd work better.
I just finished the third season Babylon 5 DVDs. It took years for the first season to come out, almost two years for the second season, a year for the third, a few months for the fourth, and the fifth will be out in April. They must be making money to accelerate it like that. I still need to find the fourth season on sale somewhere.
The class I'm taking requires many of the assignments to be done with a partner. My partner keeps doing our assignments for us. Hey, I'm not complaining one bit! Less work for me!
I'm listening to a singer from Veracruz named Yuri. Very blonde and very white. There are a lot of Mexican pop singers who dye their hair, but you can tell they're Mexican. This gal looks Caucasian. I just looked her up on AMG. her name is Yuridia Valenzuela Canseco and she is "Latin American." Whatever, she sings well and has no crossover hits. At her age (39) I don't expect any. I'm really beginning to like some Mexican pop singers. Not all, but some.
Wednesday, January 14, 2004
Richard's main page
It's a shame that officials at a debate would give a subject like partial birth abortion to a Christian college debate team and require them to debate the pro side. Is this the sign of a good debater, that he or she can even debate for a topic that he or she finds reprehensible?
To their credit the debate team forfeited rather than debate for such a horrible topic.
See the story here: http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=36597
We had semester finals today. I teach three Contemporary Math 1 classes. (These are like a pre-algebra course.) I gave two of the classes their finals today. One class has five out of almost thirty students who passed! The other class had only three fail. The difference? The second class is ELL (English Language Learners) students who know little English, but they have the desire to learn and succeed. The first class is made up of students who are basically lazy. They've never developed a work ethic, and find my attempts to teach them anything amusing at best, and some are down right hostile!
Well, I guess we do need people who will flip our hamburgers and wash our cars, but these kids won't even be able to do that, they'll probably end up on welfare, or in jail, or dead. (I've already lost several students to violence; it hurts, because I care more than I should. Why should I care more for them, then they care about themselves?)
It's a shame that officials at a debate would give a subject like partial birth abortion to a Christian college debate team and require them to debate the pro side. Is this the sign of a good debater, that he or she can even debate for a topic that he or she finds reprehensible?
To their credit the debate team forfeited rather than debate for such a horrible topic.
See the story here: http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=36597
We had semester finals today. I teach three Contemporary Math 1 classes. (These are like a pre-algebra course.) I gave two of the classes their finals today. One class has five out of almost thirty students who passed! The other class had only three fail. The difference? The second class is ELL (English Language Learners) students who know little English, but they have the desire to learn and succeed. The first class is made up of students who are basically lazy. They've never developed a work ethic, and find my attempts to teach them anything amusing at best, and some are down right hostile!
Well, I guess we do need people who will flip our hamburgers and wash our cars, but these kids won't even be able to do that, they'll probably end up on welfare, or in jail, or dead. (I've already lost several students to violence; it hurts, because I care more than I should. Why should I care more for them, then they care about themselves?)
Tuesday, January 06, 2004
Richard's main page
My son Rick and I cut a big hole in the wall in my Mom's rental to fix the design flaw they built into the house. (We put a box in that has the drain and faucets in it.) I told Rick since his father-in-law does sheet rock, he can fix it!
We got the new (to us) car. It has the transponder keys that we are apparently stuck with in all new cars. It only came with one and no remote control. The dealer wants $140 for the remote and $170 for a key, which is why Valery and Mark have never bought either a key or a remote for theirs. I found a remote on-line for $55. It was easy to program and works just fine. The key I found at a locksmith for $65, but their new machine doesn't have the latest patches so they couldn't program the car to accept the key, sigh! Back to the drawing board.
Speaking of cars, Rick goofed and once again parked behind us in the driveway, His brother Charlie nailed him this time (I got him the last time). You know the whole back end of a Taurus is plastic? It shattered so we need a bumper, tail light lens, and the piece just below the trunk lid. I found most of the parts on the internet a lot cheaper than at the dealer.
It cost me $320 to register my car. Sigh, just the amount I needed to replace the radio with the one I want. Let's see, I spend $320, but have nothing to show for it, Crutchfield looses a sale, multiply that by millions of people paying outrageous fees, and we wonder why the economy was in the tank.
Rick and his wife Jessie moved into my Mom's rental yesterday, but now his satellite receiver doesn't work. We've decided that possibly my Mom's two story house is in the way. He's had a week off but now he doesn't have time to trouble-shoot it. Nice huh?
My son Rick and I cut a big hole in the wall in my Mom's rental to fix the design flaw they built into the house. (We put a box in that has the drain and faucets in it.) I told Rick since his father-in-law does sheet rock, he can fix it!
We got the new (to us) car. It has the transponder keys that we are apparently stuck with in all new cars. It only came with one and no remote control. The dealer wants $140 for the remote and $170 for a key, which is why Valery and Mark have never bought either a key or a remote for theirs. I found a remote on-line for $55. It was easy to program and works just fine. The key I found at a locksmith for $65, but their new machine doesn't have the latest patches so they couldn't program the car to accept the key, sigh! Back to the drawing board.
Speaking of cars, Rick goofed and once again parked behind us in the driveway, His brother Charlie nailed him this time (I got him the last time). You know the whole back end of a Taurus is plastic? It shattered so we need a bumper, tail light lens, and the piece just below the trunk lid. I found most of the parts on the internet a lot cheaper than at the dealer.
It cost me $320 to register my car. Sigh, just the amount I needed to replace the radio with the one I want. Let's see, I spend $320, but have nothing to show for it, Crutchfield looses a sale, multiply that by millions of people paying outrageous fees, and we wonder why the economy was in the tank.
Rick and his wife Jessie moved into my Mom's rental yesterday, but now his satellite receiver doesn't work. We've decided that possibly my Mom's two story house is in the way. He's had a week off but now he doesn't have time to trouble-shoot it. Nice huh?
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