The Cafe

I'm Outta Here

2011-08-03T06:10:00.000-07:00

This'll be the last post on this blog for a while. I'm headed off on my mission, so I'll see you all in two years! Hopefully my mom will keep my new mission blog (find it here!) up to date, but if not, write me in the MTC at

Elder Joseph Gordon Huston III
MTC Mailbox # 129
CAN-TORW 1018
2005 N 900 E
Provo, UT 84604-1793

I have a testimony, it's humble yet certain, of Jesus Christ. This work is right, and it is one of those absolute truths of the universe. I am doing the right thing, and I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work! See you all in two years!

Elder Joseph G. Huston III

Comments

2011-05-10T16:55:00.000-07:00

HEY! YEAH YOU! THE ONE READING THIS BLOG! LEAVE A COMMENT, OKAY!!!

That is all. Thank you for your time.

There's Another One!

2011-05-03T19:08:00.000-07:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, brace yourselves! I am not as unique as I once thought. This is truly earth shattering news! Apparently, there's another strapping young lad named Joe blogging under the title "Joe In Real Life," and he's from Sweden. Fortunately, he and I aren't very similar, so there's no need to worry about there being two of me walking around. Anyway, I think it's pretty cool, no? I guess this world isn't quite as big as it once was.

Right Round

2011-05-03T09:29:00.000-07:00

A thin piece of plastic steadily spins. The lettering rights itself thirty-three times every minute. A tiny diamond vibrates in a microscopic chasm, releasing sound waves left unheard for more than thirty years. Amplified by modern technology, they fall on the ears of a person not old enough to remember the Berlin Wall, the Iron Curtain, the Yugo, or even the American Fiat. Too young. He should be listening to someone named 'Ga-Ga', or even one T. Swift, of whom he is particularly fond. However, he is engrossed in these sounds twice to three times as old as he is. Static pops and buzzes fill the air as the needle reaches the end of it's groove. The young man gently lifts the arm, flips the record over, and sets the turntable on another thirty three rotations a minute. Old School has never been so cool.

Back

2011-04-25T09:46:00.000-07:00

Well interweb world, Joe Huston is back. I've returned from glorious adventures at Brigham Young, and now I've got some time on my hands, so expect great things from this blog. As a kickoff for this little blog's rebirth, here's a college collage of pics of the last few months! Exciting, no?

And after all that, It's time for something completely different...

Who Are You?

2011-01-05T19:17:00.000-08:00

I revel in brevity.

My name is Joe.

I live in Utah.

I ski.

I also enjoy reading

And writing.

I am unique because

I unicycle.

I collect vinyl.

I have a slot car track,

A turntable,

And an arcade system

In my apartment.

I also mountain bike.

And am a bit of a petrol head.

I like cheese.

Especially with crackers.

I also enjoy Wallace and Grommet

Top Gear, Jeeves and Wooster,

Alfred Hitchcock,

And many other old things.

I was born into the wrong era

I was raised in a time warp.

I know who John Galt is.

Actually I don't because I have

Yet to read more than 400 pages

Of that book.

I have worked with Reed Smoot

And have starred as an extra in a commercial.

I am a grip, wrangler, PA, and an Assistant Camera Operator

Rolled into one.

I have filmed

A major motion picture

and 13 commercials.

I have worked as a carpenter,

cabinet craftsman,

and holder of countless flashlights

while my dad fixed the car.

I am a professional Photographer.

True story.

And I enjoy long walks on the beach.

I read Car and Driver, Popular Mechanics

And thumb through Seventeen on my spare time.

Yes I take the quizzes.

That is actually a lie.

I enjoy Hemmingway,

Hurston, and Miller.

I like to cook.

I am also an athlete.

I play baseball and run

for a lot of miles.

My name is Joseph Gordon Huston III,

And I am a Son of God.

Not Smarter

2010-09-23T20:23:00.000-07:00

Albert Einstein, one of the greatest scientists in the history of the world, was quoted as saying "It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer." Think about it.

Summer Trip No 2- The Drive-In

2010-07-01T10:36:00.000-07:00

Okay, okay, so technically I went on trek before I went to the movies, but I've got all the pics from my movie escapade right here in my hot little hands, something I can't exactly say for the trek pictures.

So here's the deal. My best friend leaves for Europe a week from when this post is published (Today), so I told her "We HAVE to do something before you jet off to Europe." I think that was actually my exact quote. So we did! Here's how it turned out:

The original plan called for an authentic Vietnamese dinner at an authentic Vietnamese noodle house, brought over to downtown Salt Lake City piece by piece from a village in Vietnam. This legit restraunt is known in these parts as Mi La Cai.

Delicious food at Mi La Cai

There was, however, a snag. All of the wonderful Vietnamese people who make the wonderful food at this wonderful restraunt had, in fact, run off on vacation until the twelfth of July. So Mi La Cai was not a dining option. Lame

So, In true Joe Huston fashion, I turned to my date, who happened to be riding in the same car as I was, and told her, "Quinci, we're going on an adventure." (once again, another direct quote.) So, thinking fast, as I always do, we proceeded to a little place I know of in Sugarhouse known as "The Blue Plate Diner"

Obviously the Blue Plate Diner

Dinner, though a little more of an adventure than I had anticipated, was delicious, and we continued on with our 50s style theme and went to Iceberg for milkshakes. Yum. Then proceeded to the drive in theaters (also fitting in nicely with this newfound theme) on Redwood road to see a movie known as Toy Story.

However, there was another snag. We were too early: the gates hadn't even opened. So in true adventuring manner, we cracked open my camera case and began to take pictures!

It was exciting! The movie was great, and after Quinci had apologized for hitting the poor little girl in the head with a Frisbee, the rest of the evening went slightly more smoothly, despite the fact that I couldn't get my lights to turn off, and my radio would not pick up the audio for the movie.

All in all, it was a great hurrah for bigger and better adventures, and I hope we'll be able to do it again before the summer's through

Summer Trip No. 1- Boise Idaho

2010-07-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, to kick off the summer, I embarked on a voyage to the far off land of Boise, Idaho. En route, I took the new header/title picture/jigger deal you see as you enter my newly titled blog. I also snapped a few pics of stuff I saw, like this window of wonder seen above. The hotel was called "Modern." No obnoxious 'the's to get in the way here, just "MODERN." I digress. Anyway the next few pics are random smidgens and snapshots of the trip. Exciting huh?

My traveling companion and sidekick, also known as my dad, looking like a boss before a day of location scouting.

Your lovable host, hero and fellow blogga looking even more like a boss in his aviators, also before a day of scouting locations

.The Beast that brought us to this magical land of Idaho, created specially for this trip by the fine people at Chevrolet

I had time to play with some perspective shots, so I did. This is one of the modern tables at Modern

A tree in the courtyard. Unfortunately this particular tree isn't bearing plastic fruit hung from fishing line.

My room was up there!

Not actually my room, but it was one of our locations. Pretty sweet

And here's me looking like a G on the bleachers at the Boise State football field

Other Highlights of my Voyage to Boise

> Throwing a frisbee from the top of Boise State Football Stadium

>Playing frisbee on the blue turf of the Boise State Football Field

>Ripping a gaping hole in my shorts while playing frisbee on the Boise State Football Field

>Breaking my camera on the FIRST DAY (not actually a highlight but it happened)

>eating a 'Free range, grass fed, hand ground beef hamburger.' Did I mention the place was a bit yuppie?

>Romping around rooms cleaner than operating rooms, rooms full of equipment worth millions of dollars, playing with lasers more expensive than said equipment, and doing all of this no questions asked

>Being an extra (if this puppy ever airs, I'm walking through a shot somewhere by the Student Union Building)

>Visiting a legit record shop, and just about buying four new vinyl albums for my collection

>Eating at Mollie's for breakfast

>But not eating at Mollie's for lunch

The Spider's Web

2010-06-03T20:53:00.000-07:00

The spider casts out a line of slender thread, stronger than steel, from a tree branch, and swings across the gaping chasm to the waiting arms of another branch. Slowly, with much deliberation and surgical precision, the lone spider weaves the web he calls home. Working tirelessly through the night, he spins, snips, attaches, detaches, and reattaches the cords that will eventually bring the rewards of food, and the satisfaction of a well-done job.

Looking back on life up to this point, as I'm sure many of the readers of this blog have, I've come to the conclusion that we are all much like the spider. We weave webs of hard work, dedication, friendship, education, religion, and enjoyment. We all have anchors, branches to which we've found hold fast. Each of us has been pounded by winds, rain, hail, emotional whirlwinds, tragedies, and even our own laziness, but the true anchors to which we've tied ourselves off to have held strong.

Because of these trials, holes have been torn through our webs; damage has been done that we think we cannot possibly repair. A friend turns his back, a falling grade in calculus seems too far gone to be mended, our testimonies have weakened, someone we love has been lost; we fear our anchors will not hold. Yet, somehow, miraculously, you and I have been able to repair these gaping holes; our anchors have held firm, and we begin the process of repairing the damage.We retie the straggling threads, reinforce the troubled area. Extra study, more selflessness, a greater degree of friendship and faith, and the holes slowly disappear, leaving a stronger web in their place.

I'd just like to take a moment and thank all of you who have made this high school career so memorable, and who, along with God and my family, have been some of the branches to which my own web has held firm to. Thank you.

Tonight

2010-05-31T17:17:00.000-07:00

Tonight, I venture to a baseball game, spend time with family, and enjoy God's favorite sport. (Don't believe me? check Genesis 1:1)...

Last Night, I visited with a wonderful woman in my ward (fancy illiteration, huh), discussed everything from westerns to golf, and found pleasure in conversation...

Saturday Night, I made the pilgrimage to senior dinner dance, borrowing from my good friend B.E. it was one of the many last_______ of my senior year, spent time with friends old and new, and danced it up like a fool...

Friday Night, I played football, with friends, scored a few TDs, looked good for the ladies, and went to seminary....

All in all, a good weekend, full of fun, hard work, and, of course, great friends.

Stop...Shower Time!

Today

2010-05-10T16:05:00.000-07:00

Thhhhhhbbbbbttthhh!!!!

D'oh Moment of the Day

2010-05-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

Well, I just kissed:
10% of books cost

20% of a month's rent

2% of a semester's tuition

150% of a group date date

a juicy Ruths Chris steak

goodbye today. LAME. And what did I receive in return for this glorious $50 of my own hard earned cash? Less than a minute's worth of labor, that's what. Goodness, I need to become a locksmith

Starting at the beginning of this epic tale, I was on a McDonald's run for the picture taking crew this afternoon. Needless to say, I took every order with care and dedication, pulled into the parking lot, double checked the order, opened the door of my 2001 PT Cruiser, locked the door, got out of the car, shut the door, and stared, in utter disbelief at my lanyard, attached to my keys, still hanging in the ignition of this fine automobile.

Needless to say, this was an 'aw shi...'moment, but I guarded my tongue, as per the seminary challenge, reached for my cell phone, and, wait for it...another 'aw shi..' moment! I left my phone at home, so as not to be a test nullifying distraction in this year's AP English exam.

Life felt pretty sucky right about now, and, scrambling for change for a one dollar bill in quarters, I called my mom and announced my folly. She was not pleased...at all. I walked back to the shoot, borrowed her cell phone, and called the locksmith, who promptly arrived after half an hour of butt-numbing hood sitting.

The handy dandy locksmith pulled up, tools in hand, and began work on my car. I anticipated a few "hold this," and "keep this here"s. But no. He walked up, jammed a wedge into the rubber window sill, reached into my door with a slim jim, and unlocked the car. He then requested payment, the $50 alluded to earlier, and was off, in under a minute. If NASCAR needed locks picked, this guy would be the front-runner for the job.

It was a day of firsts:

-First time locking my keys in the car

-First time not being able to jimmy the lock by myself

-First time using a payphone (ooh I felt like a legit stranded motorist)

-First time calling a locksmith

-First time watching said locksmith in action

-First time paying said locksmith

-And First time wanting to become a locksmith and pick up a $50 chunk of change from some chump stupid enough to lock the keys in question in the car.

All in all, it wasn't too bad. I didn't die, no one was robbed, and, if bioethics law doesn't pan out, heck, I got a new career path out of the whole experience.

Oh, and PS, if you ever do something dumb like this, make sure you've got a spare key to your car, because not having one really sucks! (and if you can, get your parents to foot the bill, then you have absolutely no out-of-pocket expense! SCORE!)

Donezo

2010-05-03T20:26:00.000-07:00

I've gone and done it. I finally cut the ties between myself and Facebook, which seemed to have a vacuum-like affect on my time and attention. I'm done with it now. No more statuses, no more updates, no more comments, no more nothing of that nature, and it feels good.

I Deleted My Facebook Account, Have YOU?

New B-Log

2010-03-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

Ladies and Gentlemen! (Just out of curiosity have you ever misspelled gentlemen by spelling gentile men? I tend to do that a ton) Anyways, I have created a brand spankin new blog to satisfy all your reading and blog enjoying needs. Andres Bosque has Bosquetography, and now the illustrious Joe G. Huston has Stuff That Teenagers Like! Check it out if you get a moment, and be sure to sign up as one of my followers, because I know you all want to!

List O Likes

2010-02-28T16:59:00.000-08:00

In no particular order, here's a random sampling of some of the things I like...

1. Wonderful daughters of God
2. Excellent friends
3. Hillcrest High
4. Korean food
5. The French Language
6. BYU
7. Cinnamon chewing gum
8. Stand-up comedy
9. Jeeves and Wooster
10. Group dates
11. Dressing up
12. Kimchi
13. Death Cab for Cutie
14. Success
15. Goofing around
16. Cary Grant
17. John Lennon
18. Paul McCartney
19. George Harrison
20. Ringo Starr
21. My exuberant little sister
22. Guitar
23. Classical music
24. Shakespeare
25. Short Films
26. Mission Impossible
27. iPods
28. Shoes
29. Loud ties
30. Family
31. My bloggin bros (and sisters)
32. Road trips
33. Roller coasters
34. In N Out
35. Vaccations
36. Florida
37. Kings Peak
38. Trail runs
39. Running in general
40. Monty Python
41. Computers
42. Facebook
43. MLIA
44. Plays
45. Film shoots
46. Photography
47. Cinematography
48. Biology
49. Justice
50. The readers of this blog

"When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed, when you are discouraged, thinking all is lost, count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord hath done."

End Transmission...

Rise and Shout!!

2010-02-17T07:20:00.000-08:00

I got in!

Feelin like 18 Today

2010-02-08T18:01:00.001-08:00

One of the coolest things about photography is being able to get different angles on everyday objects: shoes, lights, soda bottles, etc. But I was reading a short story today, and came across a brand new perspective on life. You ready? Because it just might blow your mind...well maybe at least say 'hey that's cool, thanks Joe for being so awesome!'

You know that feeling when nothing seems to be going right, everyone seems to be picking on you, and the world seems to be coming to an end? Yeah, that's when I'm 14.

Or how about when you go outside for a snowball fight with your dad? That's when I'm 7

That feeling you get when your brother drives you up the wall, your sister bugs you, and the teeniest tiniest thing'll set you over the edge? Perchance that's when I'm about 4

Maybe when you hear that your best friend is coming to town, and you can't sleep the entire night before, just like when Santa used to come? Perhaps that's when I'm 10

When you think your dad knows everything? when I'm nearly 5

When you know your dad knows nothing? when I'm 16

When you realize your dad knew a lot more than you thought he did when you were 16? Um...right now, as soon as I'm about to move out on my own

And then again, the time you drop your books in the hall, freeze up when that gorgeous girl starts a conversation in the hall, you trip over your stinkin shoelace, and you just feel like a lurp? Definitely when I'm 15

Then there's that one time when you just have to go to your mom and say 'help!!! I can't do this on my own." Clearly, that's when I'm 2

And, of course, when Mr. Talbot calls on you, and you know every single little step of cellular respiration, and then you explain it all (in detail of course) to the entire class? Yeah, then I feel like 969 years old, 'cause that's how old Methuselah was, and he knew everything.

You see, I've come to the realization that you and me aren't just 17 or 18. On a daily basis, we're 18, 17, 16,15,14,13,12,11,10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2 and of course1 year old as well. It just depends on the moment to determine which facet shines through. When we're feeling sad and just need a cry, maybe we're 3. When we feel like superheros maybe we're 9. When we feel like the bomb diggedy, maybe we're a 17 year old 'big kid.' It all depends on the day.

Chew on that for a while, and feel free to leave me some comment lovin, because I feel like no one ever reads this blog (P.S. that's when I'm 11, because no one listens to you when you're 11)

Take care guys!

~Joe

English hsilgnE

2009-10-29T08:05:00.000-07:00

Palindrome: a sentence that reads the same backwards and forwards.

Aibohphobia: Fear of Palindromes (If you suffer from this rare disease, this next post might prove stressful)

This is actually a collection of my favorite word puzzles, just 'cause I think everyone should think they're as cool as I think they are.

~Do geese see God?
~Dumb mobs bomb mud.
~Flo, gin is a sin. I golf.
~So many dynamos!
~Sit on a potato pan, Otis!
~Yahoo, hay!
~We lost a fatso, Lew.
~Live not on evil
~Son, I sack casinos.

"Moose"

2009-10-23T08:12:00.000-07:00

'nuff said

High Octane Heaven

2009-08-03T13:52:00.000-07:00

Okay, so let's just say that last Monday was the most epic day of the summer. Period. Here's the story: After completing a fine Top of the World run at 6 o'clock in the a.m., my little brother and I jumped in the family Suburban and burned rubber out to Miller MotorSports Park.

MMP, as it is known, is a little slice of heaven out in the middle of nowhere...Tooele. And believe me, when I opened the front door to exit my beautiful behemoth of an SUV, I knew the day could not possibly get any better. The whine of Porsche 911 Turbos, Chevrolet Corvette ZR1s, and Subaru WRXs sang hymns most angelic as I entered the main doors of the welcoming center of what had become, in two seconds, my favorite place on earth.

Mkay, forget Disneyland! This right here is the Happiest Place on Earth!

A meager grandstand seperated me from seeing these beautiful feats of finely tuned machinery, but as I proceded through the glass doors into the first building at the compound, following in the footsteps of my father and brother, I realized the day that I thought could not get any better just did. We were welcomed by a familiar face, and I realized the Midvale East Fourth Ward priests have the coolest young men's leader on the face of the planet. This guy drove racecars and hung out with big name celebrities, like skateboarding star Buckey Lasik, for a living! WOW! With a large smile on his face, though not nearly anywhere near as big as the grin plastered all over mine, he informed us that he had "something I'd like to show you"...I love those words.

This Is The Glorious Beast I Beheld

He threw up the corrugated garage door, and opened a gateway into a motorhead's wonderland. Inside the four walls that enclosed the museum dwelt millions of dollars of fire breathing Ford racing heritage. I about died right then. We were led on a guided tour of this wonderful piece of euphoric bliss, starting with the Cobras, Mustangs, and my personal favorites, the Ford GTs. These cars were introduced to LeMans racing with one sole purpouse: to beat Ferrari. This goal was achieved in the 1966 24 Hours at Daytona race, but this story has a bit of an ironic twist to it. The Mark II I witnessed at the Larry H. Miller Museum, in fact, finished second.

This particular Ford GT (Gran Turismo) 40 was driven by Ken Miles, the prestigious LeMans racecar driver, and personal hero of yours truly. Anyway, he had lead the race, and was ahead of the second place car, another Ford GT driven by the now famous Bruce McLaren, by a stretch of 9 miles. Henry Ford Jr., however, wanted to take the opportunity to rub the victory in the faces of his Italian competition, and stick American ingenuity in the face of Ferrari. He called for Miles to slow down in the coming laps to allow the other two GTs, which were occupying the second and third positions, to catch up and provide a straight Ford photo finish. At the finish line, Miles was expected to win...but McLaren, in a feat of driving prowess, lunged ahead and clinched the title for himself, forever sealing the Ford GT Mark II as the second place car to beat Team Ferrari in a 24 Hour race.

The Ford GT 40 1-2-3 Finish

This twist of racing fate made this car even more valuable than the winning car, and the Mark II GT 40 I saw at the LHM Motorsports park is worth a whopping $10 million. That was not the only Ford GT I saw that day, for I witnessed the only complete set of Ford GTs in the world. From the GT Mark I to mark V, I saw them all. It was awe inspiring.

After drooling over cars for half an hour, we proceded out to the Karting track, which, when the entire course is opened up, is over a mile long. This was the main attraction, and it didn't fail to please! Imagine sitting on a stack of quarters and flying over the ground at 50 miles an hour...yeah, it was all that, and much more!

Settling down into the bucket seat, gas tank between my legs, gas on the right, brake on the left, crash helmet on my head, and neck brace around my throat, I gripped the racing steering wheel and readily awaited the green flag. The green cloth dropped, and I punched the gas. Squeeling tires sent my 165 pounds sailing down the first straightaway and through the first bend. I was euphoric! Flying down the track, I quickly learned not to mash the brake, or floor the accelerator around the turns, and quickly mastered the subtle nuances of racing a kart. Skimming around the final bend into the back straightaway I hit my top speed of just over 50 miles an hour, and continued back into the first turn. I completed lap after lap, overtaking other amature karters, and being overtaken a fair number of times myself, usually after pulling off a substantial drift.

It wasn't until my second fifteen minutes of track bliss that I really found the groove and began slashing track times. I literally blew my dad out of the water, meeting his challenge of "you'll never pass me" he issued at the beginning of the second session. I was thrown around by G forces, and pinned to my seat, only to be nearly ejected from my kart as I braked for the next hairpin loop. It was a most excellent way to spend a day.

I, of course, will be heading back to my heaven in the boondocks, and am currently earning money to buy myself a competition go-kart to satisfy my recently discovered racing needs.

And I thought mondays were supposed to be the worst...

Joe's Summer: Provo Falls Edition

2009-07-10T10:47:00.001-07:00

So it's been a lifetime and a half since I've posted anything at all, so it's kinda weird starting up again. Anyways, my fam and I like to travel, but because everyone in my family is super busy all summer, we don't often find the time to do huge trips...we do awesome little day trips around the state instead! A couple of weeks ago, we took one of these trips up to the Uintahs. It was amazing! We took a boatload of pictures, and these are some of my favorites from our excellent express excursion

This was a short exposure on a little waterfall I found in my explorations. Personally, I like how the water looks like it's frozen and suspended eternally in the air

The Falls of Provo through a couple of dead trees. there were a lot of dead trees...probably from bugs or something. it was pretty crazy.

Here's my awesome Family!

My awesome sauce brother Seth...and I

I was playing with some exposures, and came up with some awesome blurred shots as the water cascaded over rocks and logs on its journey down the mountain

Foggy water from a little brook I found, i thought it looked pretty cool

2009-01-24T18:50:00.000-08:00

At the end of a day, I sit content. It's been a good day, full of physical exertion, thought, self evaluation, and endurance. I love days like today. They're the kind where you can lie in bed and think back and say "I've left no stone unturned." The rain was especially nice today, and I look forward to tomorrow and being able to look out west and being able to see the mountains. I'm excited for that. Today, I throttled today, I made it count! Two basketball games, two big Vs on our record, a baseline for my mile time to improve on, an hour and a half of basketball practice, and I feel dead tired. I earned that right, and as I sit at my computer, i can safely say "I seized the day, and throttled it!" This is how I want to live my life, going forward with faith, leaving behind absolutely no regrets.

Making Trax-The Trip to Downtown Salt Lake City

2009-01-24T15:47:00.000-08:00

These are a bunch of picturas that I took on the way to work downtown. I took some creative liberties, and played around with some angles, perspectives, and exposures.

Crazy perspective through those hand grips on the train

"All Aboaaard!!"

Just In Case

RR Crossing Arm, a personal favorite because of the angle

A cool rail to top it all off

Oh, I also threw these up on flickr.com, and I'm going to post more, but these are the first of many to come

Its Only Temporary

2009-01-22T21:44:00.000-08:00

K, as you get on, you'll notice the heading's a little screwy. Just bear with me and use that wonderful little scroll bar on the bottom of the page to scroll right and see the expanse of this picture I caught at the Midvale Trax station.

Reunited At Last

2009-01-21T20:41:00.000-08:00

So, last week I was talking with some friends of mine, and they were all talking about their workout programs, and I was sitting there thinking, "geeze, I'm way out of shape..." and was feeling pretty low. So I go home and talk to my mom about quite possibly getting me a gym membership for my birthday, and possibly getting it early. Yeah, that went over like a lead balloon. Mon mere (French for my mom, fyi) told me that I'd have to prove that I wanted one, and after further deliberation, I came to find out that meant I had to start working out at home. I'm in about the third week of "proving it" to my madre, and holy crap its amazing! I feel way more energized, happy, and everything is just kinda falling into place. Its way cool. In el scout law, young men are supposed to be physically strong, and thats about where I'm getting to. It was amazing to me how much I miss coming home tired and sweaty and being able to say I did something today. I am once again reunited with excercise, and its absolutely wonderful. Now...to join the track team...

Guess Who Loves Photosthop!?!

2008-12-28T22:40:00.000-08:00

~~THE ORIGONAL~~

~~THE PHOTOSHOP CUT~~

So I guess this is what happens to me at midnight on a Sunday...I thought it'd be fun to try, and it was! Oh, and I found out that its really really hard to draw a straight line with a mouse.

Whiteout!!

2008-12-14T07:21:00.000-08:00

I freaking love snow, it is by far the best. Unfortunately, on Saturday I was cooped up inside taking the dreaded ACT. But I did get to spend some time driving home drifting in the church parking lot, one of the best things to do when it snows. I had the honors of giving new meaning to first tracks, and, um, got my PT Cruiser stuck in a snowbank. It was epic, but way worth it! Then, my best friend Connor and I went out to get dates for Snowball, and as we were driving, we got hit with some serious whiteout. It was heinous driving down state street, and not being able to see anything but a couple of pinpricks of red tailight. It was intense. Plus, getting out of the girl's neighborhood was intense, because the roads in her neighborhood got iced over, and then snowed on, so traction was down to nil. It was great. So, after one of the best snow days ever, I welcome in the snow, but, geeze, didn't it take long enough?!

A Hero

2008-12-09T20:30:00.000-08:00

Today, and every day, I am the luckiest guy on planet Earth. Every day I'm lucky I wake up, I'm lucky I get to be educated, I'm lucky I've got a well loved pair of Adidas to put on my feet to wear around school. And when I get to school, I'm lucky I have a hero there every step of the way. This guy is a giant among men, and I am extremely lucky that I get to make his aquaintance every day. He's mentally and physically fit, he's honest, funny, and he holds his priesthood with honor, and he's one of the coolest guys I'll ever meet. I think what I like most about him is that he's always raising the bar, and isn't ever satisfied with medocrity, which is a trait i struggle to attain. It's extremely important to have these heroes around. Mine keeps me on the strait and narrow every day, and I doubt he notices it, but his influence is there. Heores like this guy are so important because they are the example we strive to be. A hero like my friend is not afraid to stand up, not afraid to accept responsibility, and is not afraid to stand out and be a shining example in someone's life. I'm one lucky guy to have this hero as one of my friends, and I hope one day I can get to where he is now. Be a hero in someone's life. Go foreward in life with faith, and by doing so, leave behind no regrets.

Friends

2008-12-07T14:05:00.000-08:00

I decided this week that friends are way stinkin important. See, this week I got told by a girl that we were "just friends," and, as any guy would think, it hurt to hear that. I kinda got bummed out, and ended up feeling depressed about life in general. It was dumb. I decided to try and give her the cold shoulder, but she's kinda in a lot of my classes, so it was tough. Plus she's like one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Anyway, i was thumbing through my wallet on Saturday and found my copy of For The Strength Of Youth, and, ironically enough, I glanced at the section about dating. The General Authortities specifically said to avoid relationships in your teenage years, which was kinda what i was throwing a tantrum about not getting into this week. I read on, and it said that relationships deprive you of long lasting friendships...Wow. So I pondered, a good thing to do when you read something really heavy, and I came to the conclusion that this girl, though blocking me from something that I thought I really wanted, was helping me and giving me something so much more valuable: friendship. It was humbling, and it made me really proud and honored that she wanted to be just friends.

Reasons To Be Of Good Cheer

2008-11-05T20:37:00.000-08:00

President Gordon B. Hinkley, beloved Prophet, commanded us to be of good cheer. That's a really tall order to fill, espeicially in troubling times like these, so I came up with a few reasons to be happy on days like today:

-We're alive
-We don't have cancer
-The sun came up today
-We have friends
-We're strong in our values and morals
-Tomorrow will come, I promise
-We're still breating
-We've got families
-The Church is true
-We're smart
-We know history
-The Church is still true
-We can vote in the next presidential election
-I've got friends like you

IN GOD WE TRUSTED

2008-11-04T20:32:00.000-08:00

We are officially screwed. Thats it. We, as a nation, have completely removed God from our political views, and do not give me that bull about church and state needing to be seperate. God is, pardon me, was our lifeline through the world's troubles, not just as a people, but as a nation. I say was because we just threw it away. We as a country just threw away our only life preserver in these stormy seas.
This is it, the end of the world. It didn't end with Obama being elected president. No. It came when we turned our back to God. The framers themselves were of many different faiths, but they wholeheartedly and firmly believed in a higher authority. Those great men believed in God! They framed a great nation, building up from that fundamental belief, the cornerstone of God. But hey, we're smarter than a 200 plus year old doccument, right? we're more evolved than the Ben Franklins, the Thomas Jeffersons, the James Madisons, the Paul Reveres, the George Washingtons, right? Plain and simple, we are not! We are a moraly degraded society, who has turned our back to God as a nation.
This eleciton is simply a reflection of what has gone wrong in this nation. "The natural man is an enemy to God," and what does the natural man want? to be taken care of, to have everything provided for them by someone else. The natural man believes wholeheartedly in socialism, in communism, in "spreading the wealth around." Barack Obama is who America wants as president, and that is, put simply, pathetic. We are a nation built on God, and we have chosen an enemy to that God, and as a nation, we deserve the wrath of God because of that choice. Plain and simple. Unless we change, and REPENT of our evil, and yes they are evil, ways, we will pay. This land upon which we live is a blessed land for those who follow and obey God, but as soon as the people inhabiting the land, us, turn their back to their Creator, the land is cursed.
Ladies and gentilemen, we are living on cursed soil as consequence for turning away God at every turn. Heck, listen to our music, look at the way we dress, listen to how our children speak! We are no longer a nation "under God," and we will, I testify, we will pay, unless we change our course. And we have to do it now! Not tomorrow, and not by someone else; It has to be you and me, and it has to be now. So, turn to God. Read the Bible, read the Book of Mormon; find God again. And it cannot work from the top down, not by some large power that will make you. You have to make the concious change within yourself, and others will follow.
Please. For the first time in my life, i wept for this nation, and yes I'm only sixteen, but i know there is a God, and i bear witness of him, and pray for the strength to continue in this depraved society. GOD BLESS AMERICA is my plea, because we sure need it right now.

2008-09-15T14:22:00.000-07:00

Hee Hee. This week is going to be great! Know why? Its HOMECOMING!!!! That means its spirit week, but most importantly its burning of the H time. For those of you who don't go to Hillcrest, you wierdos, Burning of the H is like the best thing ever! We do a HUGE fireworks show, and its just way cool, plus we light an H on fire, in honor of HILLCREST HIGH, the best school in the valley. And, of course, there's that dance to go to. I asked a cute girl to go, so I'm really excited. Um, if you still haven't read it, read my venting on the STUPIDEST THING EVER, and please leave me your opinion, because I want to know if I'm just blowing smoke out of my ears, or if I have a legit reason to be ticked off at this whole thing. Thanks Guys, you rock!

2008-09-11T14:11:00.000-07:00

Today was pretty boring. Not much happened today. Connor Phelps, my best friend, returned an onside kick in Hillcrest's football game last friday against Copper Hills, even though we got beat 33-10. Hopefully tomorrow's game will be better. Um. I did ask a girl to homecoming, and chewed out the girl i used to go out with for dumping Connor on his butt because he asked the "wrong" way (See Post Below). I was pretty brutal, and i felt pretty bad about it. That's life in a nutshell. No venting, no nothing.

STUPIDEST THING EVER!!!!

2008-09-10T12:16:00.000-07:00

Ok, here's the deal. I found out that if you have the balls to ask a girl face to face to a dance, it doesn't count!! In this wonderful state of UTARD, apparently you have to ask a girl by leaving some kind of trinket on her front porch. Personally I think this is wrong. There was a time when a young man had to work up enough courage to call the cute girl in math class on his telephone in his house (yes there was such a thing), and ask her if she would like to go to a school dance. Or there was even a less technological way to ask her, you could see her in the hall, or at lunch, walk up, sit down across from her, and say ten words: "would you like to go to the dance with me?" But, no Joe, we have to do it the right way, the traditional way. I'm letting you in on a little secret here, it was actually a longer tradition to ask a girl face to face than this doorbell ditching stuff which came up in the last 20 years. It takes more guts for a guy to ask a girl to her face than it does for him to go to wal-mart and find a cheap trinket and a card, set it on a girl's porch, ring the doorbell and take off running like a dog with its tail between its legs. It probably sounds like I'm talking like I'm from Mars, but I think it shows character for a girl to be able to turn down a guy to his face than to give him a load of candy and a letter saying "no." If you feel differently, leave me a message. I want to know what you guys, the few who read this blog, feel about this

Joe's Bucket List

2008-09-03T16:40:00.000-07:00

Hey! I know I'm only 16 but I felt like writing this today, so here it is, my list of stuff I want to do before I go to college.
-Go Skydiving
-Make a Sundance Film without making it about some morally degrading subject
-Find out if the above goal is even possible!
-Be on the Super Screen at the Bee's stadium
-Ride Trax from one end to the other and actually have someplace to go
-TP a certian friends house
-Go on a mission
-Survive High School (Shouldn't be too hard)
-Get a job that will hire me through the entire summer
-Chill out with my friends more
-And Finally, just make life ROCK!

HOLY CRAP!!!

2008-09-02T20:09:00.000-07:00

Dang it, I knew this day would come, and honestly, I'd been dreading it. Curtis McDonnald had been trying to get a hold of me for about a week, but he'd always managed to call when I wasn't around, so I didn't have to talk to him, and life was good. I figured it was some reminder about the special needs mutual on thursday, and I knew what time to be there, so I thought what's the rush. He called again today, and I actually called him back because I figured he'd had something important to tell me, but no. He casually asked me to...(are you ready for this)...SPEAK in STAKE CONFERENCE!! The first thought that shot through my head was "holy crap, you've got to be kidding." Then he continued, and I didn't think it could get any worse, but like everything else in life, it did. He didn't want me to speak in the priesthood session, or the adult session, no... he wanted me to get up and speak in the freaking general session. "holy crap" ran through my head like lightning, and i had no idea what else to say but yes. People tend to babble when their brain short circuts, but i tend to agree with everything, and tonight was no exeption. Such is my life's current drama

2008-07-27T21:53:00.000-07:00

Have you ever scaled a mountain before? Well maybe you have, but i had never done it until last weekend. I went up with a couple of friends from the neighborhood and school, and we took on Kings Peak, which is the highest peak in Utah. We started off, and began the hike in. We used the buddy system, and i got paired with one of the cross country kids, Adam Price. Honestly i was a little nervous because i wasn't sure i could keep pace. But we started off, and Adam and I lead the way. Shayne and Andrew, the two other guys who went on the trip, both wrestled, and Andrew claimed that he was built for short bursts of extreme exertion, and that hiking was not his forte. After this trip i believed him.
We started, and i was amazed at the beauty of the scenery. We stopped for lunch a few miles in, then spent the rest of the day packing in. Later in the day, we found a spot a good distance from the "No Fire" zone, and thought it a good place to camp. Adam and Cole, one of the leaders that went with us, scouted out an area, and said it was no good. Cole suggested that we go camp by one of the waterfalls way the heck off the trail. I thought it would be fun, and we were off. Needless to say, none of us looked where we were going, because by the time we reached the waterfall, we had all tramped through a good four marshy patches around the numerous creeks that teemed over the landscape, and all of us were sloshing around in soaking wet shoes.
I have no idea how far we went that day, but i was dead tired. A 40 pound pack gets pretty heavy, and i wanted it off. Adam and I set up camp on a hill, and if I were thinking, that would have been a BIG red flag. Then again i was tired, so we set up our "tent." I figured a tube tent made out of visquine would be light and durable, and i was right, I just had no idea how to make a tent out of visquine, rope and rocks. So I let Adam take care of it.
We got the tent set up and made our freeze dried dinners. Even lasagna tastes good after a full day of hiking. It was all of about 8 when i went to bed, and slept like a baby, literally. I woke up every hour to find that i was sliding down my sleeping pad in my mummy bag. I had to wriggle myself up the hill so i was at least on my pad, and would slide down again in my sleep. Finally, at about 7 the next morning, we woke up.
There are people that tell me that camping and being out in nature makes them feel more alive. Picture if you will a sixteen year old kid running on next to no sleep, trying to jump start his morning after sliding halfway down a mountain in a sleeping bag. yeah, that's about the long and the short of it. I've never felt like I'd been run over by a train until that morning, except this train was carrying a load of nuclear mosquitoes. I itched, I ached, and i was exhausted. Then Cole woke up, and told me to hurry up. That was the last thing i needed to hear this morning, but i shut up and made myself breakfast.
Looking back, i probably should have made myself something more nutritious than oatmeal, but it was the best i had. Cole was excited because today we were going to summit, but none of us could share in that rush of energy. I packed my day pack...a water bottle and a tuna cracker lunch, and all the survival stuff my Dad told me to take with me. it was extremely light, and Adam didn't have one, so he took mine and strapped his plastic grocery bag into the bungee mesh on the back of my pack and put it on his back. I went freestyle with nothing but my water bottle to climb the tallest mountain in Utah.
Hunger set in quickly, and the trail we were taking was a long, long, long one. I get cranky when i don't eat, and i was plenty cranky before the mountain was in sight. i bore with it, and tromped onwards and upwards, way upwards. By the time we got to the base of the mountain, i wanted to drop dead. I munched on the trail mix and apple rings that Adam brought, and felt a whole lot better. Andrew and Shayne complained the whole way up, stuff like the trail was too long, "why can't we just pick a mountain to climb and call it good," and stuff like that, and i agreed. So we abandoned the trail and the four of us scaled the mountatin. We rock hopped all the way up, which was easy because we couldn't even see the trail most of the way. I got to a part which looked like the peak from the base of the mountain, and i thought "Yes, I made it!!" But a nasty little surprise loomed on the other side of the 'peak.' There was more mountain to climb, and we toiled onwards, the air getting thinner and thinner as we ascended, until we made it to the peak. We had summited!