Stupidity at Sliding Rock

There's a place in Alpine, UT called Sliding Rock. It's a series of gigantic rocks that are rather smooth and a large stream (small river?) runs over it (I'd guess 3 or 4 cfs). When you watch someone start at the top and start sliding down it like a waterslide, it looks violent and painful (Especially for those wearing skimpy bikinis). But I decided to try it and it wasn't painful at all. It was amazing. I would never have believed that there could be a natural rock waterslide as long as this (25 feet to 30 feet). (Maybe I'll just put this whole blog in parentheses--just remind me to close with a parenthesis. We then hiked up the stream. It was GORGEOUS, green, and heavenly. I brought a friend from Michigan who's here on an internship. She was probably weirded out by all of us mormons, but she was polite and had a good time I think. It was fun to have her, but the end of our trip was plagued by my own stupidity. On our way back down the stream hike, we got to the Sliding Rock again which was the bottom of our trip. We decided to slide down one last time and I handed her my car/house/church/anotherhouse/churchcloset/oil vial/leatherman/lock keys and told her to throw them to me once I reached the bottom. I should have just held on to them; a little water never hurt anything. I got to the pool at the bottom which was about waist high and she threw them. It wasn't a far enough throw and they slid down into the pool. They ended up right where the water plunges violently into the pool so the water was all frothy and freezing cold. You didn't want to stay in there forever. So, we took shifts trying to find the keys. It was my ONLY key and I could go on and on and on about why that would have been SO bad had we not found them but suffice it to say that by the time we reached our cars at the trailhead, somebody came running down the trail saying they found my keys. We didn't just have my group searching for them but every tattooed, smoking, bikini wearing yahoo in the territory. Someone in my group ended up finding them, but I was SO grateful to everyone who spent much time in those frigid waters risking life and limb (a slight exaggeration but a definite sacrifice) for me. I lost my other key at the bottom of the Green River two 6th Ward superactivities ago. This is already too long.)

I Hate Swimming

But one thing I would LOVE to try is SCUBA diving. I mean, who wouldn't want to be greeted in the morning by the likes of this guy.

When I roomed with Doug and BJ, I was frequently greeted in such manner, except the eel has a little more color in his face. Now that I've insulted half of my readership, I think I'll end by extending the offer. If anyone want to go scuba diving (is feeling rich), let me know. I have a friend who can certify me, and we'll go shark hunting. Isn't the underwater world fascinating? It's so unknown. To me, the whole oceanic life scene is just another witness to my testimony of the gospel. The End.

7 New Wonders of the World

I've always wondered exactly what my opinion on traveling is as a hobby. Would I like traveling? I would probably like the destinations quite a bit, but I probably wouldn't care much for the actual transport. Would I feel like it was justifiable? It's an expensive hobby and how many people could I be feeding for all that money? But I could ask myself that question every time I do just about ANYTHING in this society and spending money does stimulate the economy. Luckily, I've never had to worry about that sort of thing because I'm not wealthy enough for it to be an option. But what about when I'm a decamillionaire? So, while I ponder these imponderables, you just enjoy the 7 new wonders of the world. If I did decide in favor of an occasional trip, these destinations would probably rank highly.

Ancient Colosseum in Rome Italy

The Christ the Redeemer Statue in Rio de Janiero Brazil

Great Wall of China near western most point at Jiayuguan in China's northwest Gansu province

The Khazneh or treasury in Petra Jordan

The Mayan Ruins of Chichen Itza in southern Mexico

The ruins of Peru's famed Machu Picchu

The Taj Mahal in Agra India

Vote for Mitt '08!!!

Question #1

So, am I a Mitt fan? Well, yes. Am I also a Rudy Giuliani fan? Well, yes. I've been to one of his speeches in person and really like the guy. Always have. My biggest question (and I would like some input here from all you patriotic people out there) is how educated should one make themselves in order to make a good judgment call. I suppose the extremes for this are complete ignorance (just thinking that Mitt's a Mormon so he'll do the best job), and complete immersion of one's self (becoming best buds with each and every candidate to know their innermost beliefs and intents). Neither one is good. I have a few other things in life I should pay attention to right now like school, work, family, church.... But at the same time I want to not only say I like Mitt, but be able to give good solid reasons that he's the Man for the Job and Hilary needs to make a good contribution to society and be a stay-at-home mother for Chelsea. Part of it, no doubt, is already being familiar with the issues which I mostly am.

Question #2


Once I've finally decided that Brother Romney (or whoever) is the right man for the job, what is the most effective way (or ways) of helping that candidate run? Sure, I just ordered my Mitt Romney bumper sticker online yesterday and gave him $25 for his campaign, but what else can I do? I could send spam or call random people. That might be as counterproductive as anything. And what do you do in a state that is already quite Republican? Should I vacation up to Oregon and preach there until the fiery brimstones start breaking through my umbrella?