My new look

Ninja parade a huge success

LOL!! "The best part of the parade is when I found this candy in my pocket. The ninjas must have snuck it in there".


Ninja Parade Slips Through Town Unnoticed Once Again

Random people popping into your head

I just had a weird moment of two people pop into my head. I have no idea why or how, but it made me sad.

When we were younger and growing up, there was a brother (Clifford) and sister (Holly) that lived down the street from us (we lived in a somewhat rural country setting) who lived in a home with a mother that looked like a spooked-out crack addict (I'm pretty sure she was) and many different men (Biker-types) coming and going.

We played with them quite a bit growing up. Holly was my age and Clifford was a year younger (so, he was Russ' age). Considering their hard life (poor/on welfare), they both seemed to be very happy kids, but you could tell they desperately wanted out of the lives they lived and knew it was not normal. My parents were always encouraging us to play them, I think knowing that if they were with us, they were in a better/safer place.

One day their mom came to our house yelling for them. Their mom was REALLY scary/intimidating to us. Anyway, I guess she wanted them home at a certain time and they forgot (like every 10 year old does) and she grabbed them both by the hair and started dragging them home, saying she was going to kill them. We were scared to death. My mom got home a bit later and we told her what happened. She wouldn't stand for it.

She immediately marched down to their house to confront her about what she was doing. I stood at the end of our dirt road, about 200' away (I was scared to death) as she and my mom were yelling/arguing about something (I think my mom was just upset about her actions around us, and about how she was treating her own kids). This lady finally charged at my mom to hit her, but she just bounced off my mom like my mom was a brick wall. It was awesome. Right at that time a guy from our church was driving by and saw the whole thing happen. He immediately stopped and by then, this lady was on the ground crying. He asked if my mom needed help, but she said no. He drove down the road some more by me to ask what was going on and then waited to make sure everything was OK.

I can't remember what my mom said to the lady (mom...maybe you can chime in here?) but I know my mom put her arm around her and tried to comfort her, immediately forgiving her.

Anyway, as far as the kids go, I just wonder what happened to them. I know a couple of years later they moved away. I can't remember if it was with their mom, or with their grandmother. I remember as we got older (into my teens) every once in a while Holly would come to visit my family (I think she would call my mom and then my mom would pick her up???), just for the day. For some reason I was really cold to her and I have no idea why. I wasn't flat out mean, but I just kind of came in the house, said "hi", then went on my way, like I had better things to do. I think she really just wanted to be around us and loved our family, but I had to be an idiot. I feel really badly for it now. So badly that I wish I could find them and see if they're OK and just let them know I'm sorry that I wasn't a good friend later on in life.

It's weird how these things just pop in your mind....

Meaning what you say

I consider myself pretty good at figuring out if someone is full of BS or not, especially in the coaching world. I get so tired of hearing coach-speak or when I hear a coach trying to rally his troops with borrowed cliche's and nothing from the heart. I get motivated myself when I hear certain coaches speak and know that every letter of every word that comes out of their mouths, are words that they truly believe.

In the political world, I get so tired of the same things, but also so motivated when I know someone truly believes what they are saying. Newt Gingrich got a great applause for his response to this question. Some like to think he's trying to create fear and sometimes I think those in favor of the war and are in charge, just might be. However, after hearing him describe the war, I too feel SOMETHING has to be done. This doesn't mean I support what we are doing, but I know that SOMETHING must be done to prevent innocent people from being harmed.

Here is his 5 minute reply. I think it's really good.

44 Days

44 Days until I'm on the beach with Alene, sipping virgin pina colada's and basking in the clear blue carribean ocean.

I can't wait.

Here is a picture of where we'll be:

Proving my manhood

I was sitting and talking with our 75 year old security guard this morning. Somehow we got on the topic of him remembering his dad breaking in horses and I realized that breaking in a horse is a big fear of mine, but also something I would choose to do to prove that I was a man.

I think breaking in a horse has to be so scary, but would definitely prove that you have power to control something bigger and stronger than you.

I think breaking in a bear or an exotic cat would be stupid.

I remember growing up, we had 2 horses, one pony and one full-sized horse. I used to ride the pony a TON (I was about 9-10 years old) and I finally manned up to start riding our horse, which wasn't ridden as much. I had to use a stool just to get up on her. One day I was riding her and a dog spooked her and made her jump up, throw me, then roll over the top of my leg. I was scared to death and was hurt (mostly just ligament damage) and never rode a horse since then. I regret it now. It was about the time I was graduating from riding horses to riding bikes and motorcycles, so maybe that was a natural progression for a boy. I also remember one time Russ and my friend were jumping up onto our pony from behind (like the Lone Ranger) while she was eating. She finally got tired of it and bucked him off her and into the fence. I remember his back was all scratched up and he was bawling his head off.

Football

Alene gave me a hard time last night about why I don't blog much anymore. I guess I'm just totally burned out and tired from Football, that I have nothing left in my brain. I have this stupid air-vent cover that requires two screws to be screwed into a wall and it's sat all season, not screwed into the wall. That's how tired I am.

Alene is awesome. I love her support for me coaching football and her encouragement for me to blog about the team I coach, so he5re it goes:

Football is going OK. The team I coach (East HS Sophomores) struggled early on, but we've won 3 of 8 games and have one more left which we should win. We will end the season 4-5 and on a winning note (hopefully). As I pondered how the season went, I thought of what we dealt with (hazing/arrest of players, losing players to grades, etc.) and it's been pretty good. However, there are a few games I wish we could get back and play again. I believe there are two games we could have won if we played them again in the shape we're in now, so this team should/could have been 6-3, which isn't too bad.

As a Sophomore coach, you're basically teaching these kids the Varsity offense and defense so they're prepared for the next couple of years. Last year's sophomore team went 1-8 on the season, so we've definitely made great strides from the previous team, but I think it's amazing that the JV team (mostly this years Juniors) are 7-1.

Anyway, the Varsity team is still doing great. They're 6-2 with one game left. They're currently tied for first with 2 other schools in the conference (if it weren't for losing to one of those schools by a point, they would have first place locked up for themselves). They will make the playoffs and should go deep into it. I'll be helping coach the Varsity during the playoffs, so that should be a lot of fun.

I really love coaching, but it is a lot of hard work and really stressful. Sometimes I wonder how I could love something so much that stresses me out. I guess I can just say, "that's life I guess". I love life.

Got a new TV

Alene and I were gearing up to watch the BYU-New Mexico game, and on a spur of the moment we decided to go out and purchase a new TV to watch it on.

It's a 55" Sony Grand Wega rear projection HDTV. This thing is HUGE, but seriously lighter than our older 27" TV. The picture is AMAZING.

We were actually looking at the 50" TV's, but the one we wanted was a display only, so the sales guy immediately offered to sell us the 55" for the same price, so we jumped at it.

Anyone want to come over and watch some football??

I hung my head.....

Alene introduced this Johnny Cash song to me recently. At first I thought it was an older song he had written, but after researching it, I found out STING had actually written it and Johnny Cash covered it on his American IV album in 2002.

Johnny Cash is amazing. He doesn't have the best singing voice, nor is he an amazing guitarist, but he is the only one that could pull off the meaning of the lyrics he sings. I've also loved how, even in his old age, he listened to newer music and covered many songs by newer artists, and even sang songs that younger artists wrote for him.

This particular song made me cry. I could imagine all the thoughts this person is if I were in his situation. I would like to think I have hope that I would have God's mercy for an accident too.

I don't know where to find those sites that will stream the music for you for free, but I found the song on Youtube.



Here are the lyrics:

Early one morning
With time to kill
I borrowed Jebb’s rifle
And sat on a hill
I saw a lone rider
Crossing the plain
I drew a bead on him
To practice my aim

My brother’s rifle
Went off in my hand
A shot rang out
Across the land
The horse, he kept running
The rider was dead
I hung my head
I hung my head

I set off running
To wake from the dream
My brother’s rifle
Went into the sheen
I kept on running
Into the south lands
That’s where they found me
My head and my hands

The sheriff he asked me
Why had I run
And then it came to me
Just what I had done
And all for no reason
Just one peace of lead
I hung my head
I hung my head

Here in the court house
The whole town was there
I see the judge
High up in the chair
Explain to the court room
What went through you mind
And we’ll ask the jury
What verdict they find

I felt the power
Of death over life
I orphaned his children
I widowed his wife
I begged their forgiveness
I wish I was dead
I hung my head
I hung my head

I hung my head
I hung my head

Early one morning
With time to kill
I see the gallows
Up on a hill
And out in the distance
A trick of the brain
I see a lone rider
Crossing the plain

And he’d come to fetch me
To see what they’d done
And we’d ride together
To kingdom come
I prayed for god’s mercy
For soon I’d be dead
I hung my head
I hung my head

I hung my head
I hung my head

Weekend of football

It was a good weekend for football. First, the Soph team I coach won their game 43-6 and the only TD they scored off us was a lineman interception of a screen pass that he took back 70ish yards. Good for him, as it will be the only TD he likely scores in his life. It probably took him 2 minutes to run that far :).

Then the varsity rips it up the following night.

Then Caiden takes his first ever hand-off to the house for 45 yards and a TD:




Here is a video of him making a TD-saving tackle:



Here are some other various pictures of him in his game. He is the only one on the line (when he played line) that chose to get down in a 3-point stance :).







Then we go to BYU to watch them destroy the Air Force Falcons (Thanks Dad, for the extra ticket for Caiden):



Then Utah loses in the most embarassing way to a MWC doormat in UNLV 27-0.

To top it all off, my wife is HOT!!

Today we have a primary program at church, then we are going to try to go on a little hike before heading to my parents for a BD party.


What a great weekend.