Something to make you smile

Gwen says hi to everyone.

Guess you were important enough

However, I did find this picture, and yes, the little guy was included. Enjoy your 5 seconds of fame.

Sorry Jason, they cut you off

So, I made the Salt Lake Tribune again! They must have known I was going to be there, or there wouldn't have taken this picture. And for all you naysayers out there, that IS me in the light blue circle, despite being out of focus. Jason, on the other hand, was not important enough to be included.

Centerville man claims he has new commandments

Bonanzadance, a deranged Centerville man, is claiming to have seen a vision late one night in his bedroom where he supposedly received what he calls 'new commandments' that all mankind must abide by or they 'will receive imminent death'. Among these new commandments are as he claims, "Thou shalt not watch sports" and "Thou shalt not be jockish" and "Thou shalt not cleave unto anything sports related". This 'prophet', who's elevator obviously doesn't go to the top floor, is often seen standing out on several Centerville street corners wearing only a tunic and shouting incoherent commands at passersby. So as college football, and NFL games are soon underway, expect his brother and father to drop dead due to their perpetual abuse of these 'new' commands from a grown man who prefers to watch cartoons instead of a crystal clear HD view of an exciting sporting event. HAPPY BIRTHDAY IDIOT!!!!!!!!

Summer of neglect

After visiting Mom and Dad's a couple of weeks ago, I was horrified by what I saw when I drove up. Not only was the house unrecognizable, it darn near reached condemned status after Dad's summer of discontent. Between the overgrown yard, fenceposts falling over, to Mom trembling in the basement, saying, "I'm batman....I'm batman...gotta rid...city of villains...," I could tell that my presence was more than needed. So after trimming the yard, fixing the fence, rebuilding the mailbox, and ridding the house of Annie (unsuccessfully), the house was back in order and Mom regained her sanity. As for Dad, you don't want to even know what the before and after pictures even resemble. Get well old man!

The lawn mower still worked, although it had more cobwebs on it than my scriptures...

The house was beyond recognizable, but shockingly, the truck still ran!

"Mickey Mouse is alive and well and building fences in Sunnydell, Idaho..."

Luckily, I brought my machete, not to mention my DR Lawn and Field Trimmer...

Finally, here are some of the pictures when the work was finished. The house was restored to it's original state, complete with enough dog hair to keep 1,000 eskimoes from freezing in Alaska.

After the work was done, my hand looked worse than Dad's back. Luckly, I escaped without Annie trying to lick my wounds...

Jason Little

So Jason and I just finished the summer working for TNT, and as usual, it was nothing short of an extraordinary summer (not). It didn't take long for a nickname (Chicken Little) to get attached to the little guy, and I couldn't fathom a more fitting moniker for Jason. Although the sky may be falling around him, he remains steadfast with his uncanny ability to lead his band of misfit friends on one adventure after another.

At Grandma's House

During our summer in Idaho we made some new friends:

Annie

and sweet baby Gwennie

We pondered the beauty of our Gem State

and danced until sunset...which is really really late at Grandma's in the summer.

This kid loved Idaho's wide, open spaces-

He could just run and run and run....

We Miss Grandpa

Things just aren't the same around here.

Dam Project!

Check out Aunt Jan's story on www.Rexburbia.com. My blanket request for stories from strangers that I posted on Rexburbia a couple weeks ago was fruitless, so I had to cajole family into participating for me. Aunt Jan was good to comply. Keep checking Rexburbia during the week for more "family history." (I tried to not make it appear that I was only utilizing family by asking relatives with different last names.) I swear this Rexburg journalist-ish gig is difficult for a chick living 16 hours away from Rexburg. Who ever knew.

Holland, Nolte booked on charges of lewd drunkenness

Sunday night was auspicious occasion in rural Maricopa, Arizona, as famous actor Nick Nolte, and his accomplice, Holland, terrorized the town and gave new meaning to the saying, 'Paint the town red.' Nolte is well renowned for his acting ability, but more well known for his ability to hold a drink. However, in a rare case of a child prodigy gone mad, he couldn't hold a candle to this young toddler he caroused with that night. "She was pounding them left and right..." reported an onlooker, who was unable to stop Holland from out-drinking everyone in the joint. Eventually, the party spilled outside, where young Holland screamed at oncoming traffic and reportedly shouted various threats to members of a nearby crowd, directly her vile toward her arch rival, who's only known as 'the baby with one eyebrow.' The chaotic situation eventually calmed down when police arrived to haul Nolte and his 'mini me', as he was calling her, off to the county jail. Holland, who showed no remorse for her actions, only offered this statement to reporters, "Give me fruit snacks...and a cold one."

Viewing pleasure 3

You better believe I was the X-factor...or at least I tried to be, until the old, cranky security guard came up and told me he would make me eat the flag if he saw it again...

Viewing pleasure 2

I just wish I could get more excited at the games, maybe I'll bring a book next time...

For your viewing pleasure...

In case you missed it, I'm the guy in the #8 jersey in the stands, not on the court...

Sorry Kids

Cartoons aren't entertaining anymore. Fox network tries, but it will never be able to top this:

 

Stretch's 60th

Hey if you guys haven't watched the video (link it here really- or just look at Chris's website, people) Chris made for Stretch you got to check it out. It's 20 minutes long but totally worth it. Stick around for the end, there's an extra special surprise.

What a stud! I love this guy- this is family history 21st-century style. I love that the music of The Brothers is playing at the beginning. You guys need to make a CD of all the fan faves: Rocky Top, The MTA, Sound of Silence... definitely those chart-toppers.

Uncle Jeffie

Mother steals the show at Spelling Bee

"It's mine, all mine!!!!"

Maricopa Elementary was the scene of unprecedented behavior last week, when Jenna Scoresby, local mother, housewife, and village idiot, stole the show at the local spelling bee in the midst of horrified onlookers. Scoresby, who appeared to reak of alchohol, stormed the judges table in an apparent rage over their alleged mistake of her son's word 'anoint.' Several parents had to restrain Scoresby, who apparently used some of her father's karate to finagle the Champion's trophy, who she believed belonged to her son. It was a sad, disgusting display of a helicopter Mom gone mad. One can only speculate the thoughts going through her son Conner's mind, as he sat there incredulously, wishing it all would end. And where was her husband during this abomination? At home, on the couch. One can only wonder what these children are forced to endure at home. As for Jenna, there's only one word she'll have to learn to spell for the next 3-6 months: incarceration.

Guitar Club

The elementary kids at Hibbard have been hounding me for months to have a guitar club, so I finally relented. We are going to meet each Wednesday at noon recess. The kids have to get their own guitar and have it brought to the school because they cannot be brought on the bus.

I developed a website for the kids to use, which has the music we will play as well as a video of me playing the music with them. They can email me with questions, comments, etc. We'll see how it goes.

If anyone wants to participate, just go to http://d321.k12.id.us/HE/GuitarClubII.htm and jump right in. In these tough economic times its great to have something that is free. I would embed the video here, but the accompanying sheet music wouldn't look the same. If you go to the website it is all there.

You may also visit our Hibbard Elementary Video Gallery at http://www.schooltube.com/videosearch.php?q=hibbard

Our top video was a Thanksgiving video where kindergarten children described how to cook a turkey. It has been hit over 800 times.

Other videos are about what third graders woud do if they were elected president. We also have the news, weather and sports that is a big hit. Some of the others were short videos designed to train teachers on different teaching techniques and programs. Three more are short videos I made to help kids get ready for the Idaho Standards Achievement Tests. They feature key vocabulary words kids should know in order to score well. We are not yet ready for Sesame Street, but the kids and parents love them regardless.

The sculpture of Abraham Lincoln video has been hit over 600 times, and the one where kids tell what they know about Abe has 661. If you go to the top and search you can find videos made that explain everything from long division to daily school announcements. We really like School Tube. It is well policed, clean and best of all, free.

So, come and join Guitar Club for some good, clean, free fun.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOZER

So there he was, the man I have trashed repeatedly, standing before me, as large as life itself. Awestruck? A little. Remorseful? Not really, I figure he deserves a little cricism. After all, he's a professional athlete! They brush it off like the never-ending supply of dog hair on Mom's couch. After a month long marathon of reading (and doctoring of the kids' reading slips, according to some naysayers), our school once again was one of the top 10 schools in the Wasatch front to win an assembly featuring a Jazz player. But hey, like Lavar Burton used to say, "Don't take my word for it..." So, here's KSL's story featuring Boozer's visit that ran on the 5 o'clock news. KJZZ and NBAtv were also there, so it was quite a media circus. How did all the news channels hear about this? Why email of course, thanks to yours truly. Unfortunately, I didn't appear on local news. However, I did a 5 minute interview for NBAtv for the NBA Cares program featuring athletes who reach out to their communties through various programs such as reading to kids. The guy doing the interview told me this footage could be on either a halftime show, or commercial on NBAtv, ESPN, TNT, or any other network that shows the NBA. So, I am famous after all! As for the reading slips, did I check all 1,100 slips that came in each week to ensure the kids could have a memory of a lifetime assembly that they'll never forget? Of course!!!!He was really tall in person, although I could easily take him in a game of one-on-one...

The real shock came when he was actually able to sound out all the words together resembling someone reading. I guess some guys in the NBA actually do get an education...

The real star of the assembly was the guy in the background...and Booz knew I was the go-to-guy.

Our school read a total of 1,819,264 minutes during the month of February. During this time, I did very little teaching, as most of my time was spent painting banners, delivering prizes, filling in the thermometer, and most of all... pushing the kids to read! As I told the kids each day..."Remember....KEEP READING!" (or telling your parents to sign your slip saying you read 10 hours a night just to make Mr. Shirley happy). As for winning three years in row? We all know who'll make that happen...

Karate Kids

You can guess what I found when rummaging around in one of my photo albums. That's right, out-takes from the Karate Kids! I am anxious to hear your comments on these photos. When were they taken?

I think this one was taken sometime in 1992, or possible 1993. Brett, Brandon and I were teaching karate in Idaho Falls. This is the collection of trophies we won at various tournaments. This is Brandon's black belt test. Brett and Brandon are going at it. I always had to watch out for Brandon's right hand. Brett had one of the fastest front snap kicks around. I was much taller at the time, but he still nailed me many times, and still does.

This is another shot of Brandon's black belt test. It doesn't look like Willy Green saw this one coming. Brandon liked to kick high. We were supposed to pull our punches. Opps, didn't say anything about the kicks. This is the presentation of Brandon's black belt. Brett and I already had ours. We found out that all a belt is good for is keeping your pants up. It doesn't even do that when you are wearing a karate uniform. I found it interesting that neither Brett nor Brandon liked to tell people that they were black belts. I think they took very serious the phrase we repeated each and every class period: "Karate is my secret, I pray I never have to use it."

February Idaho visit

So it was a few weeks ago that we went to Idaho, but here are a few pictures anyway, Ash was there, but wouldn't let me take any pictures of her. We encountered a horrible snowstorm on the way up, and I wanted to turn back several times, but didn't want to hear from Mom about how we never come up there... There was a lot of snow up there, luckily I didn't have to shovel any (not that I would anyway). Annie was fun to tease, but it was more fun to see Mom's reaction when I did... She'll never carry Cash's collar... I tried to train her, but she wasn't smart enough... No Idaho visit would be complete without a visit to Jud's, and they even shaped the bun like a heart! (to express their love for their best customer, of course) It's only fitting, since the 3 pounds of cholesterol I ate was soooo good for my heart.... Napkins? Who needs them... I should have ordered 2... Here's Dad's ice sculpture of Abe Lincoln at his school. I told him he didn't look honest enough. It was really 'cool' to see in person though...

Annie was completely worthless, not to mention how hyper and annoying she was, but that's what you get when you go to Idaho. It was a great visit though! Mom and Dad, see you again in 6-8 months (or more). Feel free to not comment on any of the pictures.

Happy Birthday Tubman!

It's Dad's birthday, and yes, I woke him today at 7:15 to remind him of it, so I wrote a poem in honor of the old man...

Happy Birthday to Scott,

A lazy soul he is not...(usually)

This is a tale, of my father named Scott,

Who once prevented Cash from being shot, (which I cursed him for)

A great father is he, in my mind he's the best,

Here's a little about him, so read the rest.

All morning he spends in his tub so he can soak,

(When I visit, he's always good for a joke),

With a book held 2 inches from his face,

Let's hope he can still read it, if not, then what a disgrace.

"Are you alive?" he'd say to me each day before school,

When I was younger, I thought of him as such a fool.

Now he stands as a fixture of strength,

Even while hanging upside down, to increase his length.

At the temple he spends a day here and there,

While at home Mom spends every dime he'll share.

We appreciate all his wisdom and glory,

While growing up, he was always there with a bedtime story. (a long leggedy time ago)

For many more years together, I hope Dad will spend,

With many more laughs, and puppies to tend, (thanks to Mom)

I love my Dad, he's a great man indeed,

"Now get off the couch, and go pull some weeds!" (says Mom)

--Jeff

(poeticus incredible-icus)

March History Photo of the Month

A picture is worth a thousand words. So, I have decided to make our journals a bit more interesting by posting a Photo of the Month. Each month I will pick out a photo from the many pictures we have and post it on this blog. I am going to ask each of you to comment on the photo with as much or as little as you choose. Put down what ou think the date is, what was happening at the time, who is or who is not present in the photo, how old you were at the time, why the photo was taken, etc. I will collect the responses and keep them in the family journal. I will put them in the large plates, right next to the un-sealed portion.

The "Photo of the Month" for March is this family picture. I look forward to your participation and hope you will have fun with this. Add as many comments as you deem necessary. Grandchildren are also encouraged to submit questions or make commets. This is a great opportunity to learn more about each other. In-laws may also feel free to make comments. It would be great to know where they were at this time and what they were doing. I hope we get a feeling of family history as we realize the connections we have with each other. Enjoy.

Lincoln's 200th birthday

Cuddle time

Grrrr....

Bandwagon jumper

It seems Blake has jumped on the Cardinals bandwagon as well, as seen from his outfit he wore for 'casual Friday.' But next weekend's game may not be much of a treat afterall, as Arizona is a 7 point underdog. Perhaps Blake should wear a red eyepatch for good luck. "Gotta support the team..."

Cardinals win!!!

So I called up Jenna tonight, and instead of hearing kids screaming in the background, all I could hear was people yelling about the Cardinals huge win over the Eagles. It sounded like there was quite a bit of alchohol being dispensed at the Scoresby residence. Go Cards!