Good news, bad news, and more good news.

I just wanted to let you all know that I haven't forgotten about my blog, I just haven't had time to post anything.

I do have one recent happening to talk about. (I'm not even going to try to recap the last year.)
The good news is that I entered five inventions into a state-wide competition called "Tech Titans" and 2 of them made it to the final round. The bad news is that neither won anything. The "more good news" is that one of the judges told me afterward that he would be contacting me about pursuing one of my ideas! That's really what I wanted to get out of the competition.

And with that, I relinquish my standing as the oldest un-updated blog in the family.

Previously mentioned fore-shadowing explained.

I mentioned before that I would talk a bit about what we're up to. The biggest news is that I 've applied for graduate school at the University of Utah (gasp!) Emily and I feel it will be a good time to do this. The GI bill will help immensely and the U is starting a new combined masters of engineering/MBA program this fall. That's what I'm shooting for. And if the timing for that weren't amazing enough, the VA is starting a new kind of GI bill this fall as well that will be even more helpful! So that's my big news.

P.S. It snowed today, but I didn't mind because it was too warm for it to stick. It was like a vanquished enemy in its last death throes.

Star Trekkin'

We introduced our kids to Star Trek. We started by watching the original series on Netflix instantly. We've had mixed results, mostly due to the salt-sucking monster in the very first episode. It scared the younger kids a bit.

But the older kids, especially Andrew, are up to the fifth episode. It's better than I remembered it from when I was a kid. The special effects and acting aren't as bad as the cliches make them out to be. It's been fun to show the kids where the sci-fi genre pretty much got its start. The only other sci-fi series I could think of that pre-dates it is the old black & white Buck Rogers serials they played in the movie theaters. Given the context in which it debuted, I'm not suprised it has such a following.

Of course, it can't compete with American Idol, which Tim and Allison prefer. We've also enjoyed that. We even tape it when we can't watch it live. I must say, for those of you following the show, that Adam Lambert's rendition of "Ring of Fire" was much more to my liking the second time we watched it. The kids agreed with Simon.

Work in progress

As you may have noticed, we've updated our blog's appearance. The title "Happily Ever After" captured well our joy and enthusiasm for life, but seemed a little too happy.

"Little Did He Know..." is inspired by the movie "Stranger Than Fiction". I highly reccomend it (but with clearplay or something to edit out the PG-13ness). Emily and I thought it well portrays how we have gone through our life together with this unseen voice telling us what's going to happen next, if we'll just listen to it. The narrator knows the big picture and reveals clues to us as we go so as to not spoil the ending or deny us experiences that will help us grow. It's not a perfect analogy, but it's late.

The roller coaster expresses the fact that we can choose to be happy even through our trials, not just because we are naively unaware of them.

Next time, I'll get into the meat of what's going on in our lives. But here's a hint: Can you be a BYU fan and a Utah fan at the same time?

Why I finally decided to start a blog.

Well, resist as I may, I've finally gone and done it. I'm a blogger. I blog. The boat did most of the work...

I have numerous reasons I took so long, but Instead I'll enumerate the reasons I finally took the plunge.

1. My Father-in-law insisted. Over the years I've learned that Lloyd rarely insists on anything unless he's inspired to do so. It reminded me of the story about when Brigham Young was at a Christmas party in Salt Lake. He told a brother there that he needed to go home right then and shave his beard. Perplexed, but obedient, he left and returned beardless, but with his mustache in tact. The Prophet said, "The mustache too." He went home a second time and returned clean shaven. I, like that pioneer brother, may never know why such counsel came to me on a seemingly trivial matter. But, hey, better safe than sorry.

2. I really love reading everyone else's blogs! It's almost addicting. So, like a good druggy, I guess I better share my stash with the rest of you.

3. I always want to comment on other people's blogs but couldn't unless I was registered. And I hate getting new account names and passwords (one of the reasons it's taken me so long).

So, there's my inaugural address. I look forward to keeping you all better aprised of our happy life!