Life Sucks

Have I ever mentioned that life can realy suck sometimes? Right now my life is at a really sucky point. I won't go into details right now though. I just hope that things get better soon because I am getting tired of all this suckiness.

My new toy

I am writing this post with my new toy. My work bought me a Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablet. It is quite nice and I am enjoying it. Gotta love a company that spoils their employees every once in a while.

Summer Craziness

It has been a while since I posted anything on my blog. Things have been a bit crazy around my house lately. But then that is nothing new. My house always seems to be crazy. There is always a million things going on. So lets see. Where to begin...

The last post was about how I injured my knee. Well, there was good news and bad news with that. The results of the MRI showed that I didn't tear my meniscus. That was great news because that meant I didn't need surgery. The bad news was that I almost completely tore my MCL and completely tore some Osteo-something tendon that is in the middleish area of my knee. So that meant that I would be out from soccer for 6 weeks. Talk about bad news. What made it worse was it was the first game of the season. So I have been standing on the sidelines watching my team wishing I could be out there with them. But come Friday I will be back on the field. I am so excited. I have practiced a couple times with the team and haven't had much pain so I am good to go. The worst part of it all is that I am now really out of shape. So I will probably die during the game. Oh well. I am working on that. I am just happy that I can finally play again.

Next on my list would be Cub Scouts. I am the committee chairman and so far things have been tough getting started. We did have our fist pack meeting last month and it went well. We only had like 4 boys come though. I am hoping for double that this month. We are still trying to get all our leaders in place. That has proven to be quite a challenge. No one seems to want to do it. So I have been filling in as cub master since we don't have one. On top of all of that I need to start getting the scouting program started because I am the committee chairman of that as well. That might have to wait until the end of the summer before I can get that going. Right now my focus is cub scouts because the scouts have mutual to go to every week and the cubs don't have anything. The younger cubs have been having den meetings and now we have a two deep leadership in place for the older boys so now we can get their den meetings going. I just need to find some people for the middle boys. Hopefully soon that will be in place.

On top of all of this we have been trying to get Leona and the kids out to Cali for their summer trip to visit her family. Things have been rough this year because her dad hasn't been able to help out financially at all on the trip. Normally he buys his plane ticket out here and helps with the gas money for the drive back. He was injured at work last winter so he hasn't had the extra income he normally has so he hasn't been able to do that. So I have had to scrounge up every penny I had to get the wife and kids to Cali. But they made it there. So I am a bachelor for the next month. But trying to get them out there took a lot of effort and now I have to try to get everything in the house back in order. So I will be plenty busy even with the family gone.

So I have lots going on in my life right now. To top it all off, I am kinda looking for a part time evening job so I can pay off some debt. So far things haven't worked out because nothing seems to work with my other jobs schedule. I could always go back into retail but I would only do that as a last resort. I hate working retail. I did my time in retail and I was so glad the day I got out of it. I really don't want to go back. So I am hoping I will get lucky and find something that works for me.

I am going to call it good for this post. There is so much more to say but I don't feel like typing it all out right now. Maybe tomorrow I will get around to it...

FORGET REDNECKS; THIS IS WHAT JEFF FOXWORTHY HAD TO SAY ABOUT UTAHNS!

If someone in a Home Depot store offers you assistance and they don't
work there, you live in Utah.

If you've worn shorts and a parka at the same time, you live in Utah

If you've had a lengthy telephone conversation with someone who dialed
the wrong number, you live in Utah.

If 'vacation' means going anywhere south of Salt Lake City for the
weekend, you live in Utah.

If you measure distance in hours, you live in Utah.

If you know several people who have hit a deer more than once, you
live in Utah.

If you have switched from 'heat' to 'A/C' and back again in the same
day, you live in Utah.

If you install security lights on your house and garage but leave both
unlocked, you live in Utah.

If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging
blizzard without flinching, you live in Utah.

If you design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit, you
live in Utah.

If the speed limit on the highway is 75 mph -- you're going 80, and
everyone is still passing you, you live in Utah.

If driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled
with snow, you live in Utah.

If you know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter, and
road construction, you live in Utah.

If you find 10 degrees 'a little chilly' you live in Utah.

If you actually understand these jokes and forward them to all your
friends, you live in Utah.

Close To, Round About, Near By

One Sunday, the minister was talking on baptism and in the course of his sermon he was illustrating that baptism should be performed by sprinkling and not by immersion by pointing out some instances from the Bible.

He said, “In the Bible where it says that John baptized Christ ‘in’ the River Jordan it didn’t mean ‘in’ but meant close to, round about, or near by. Then again where it tells us that Phillip baptized the eunuch in the river it didn’t mean ‘in’ but close to, round about, or near by.”

After the service, as the people were filing out, one old fellow stopped by the minister and said, “Reverend, that was the best sermon I ever heard and it uncovered many of the mysteries of the Bible to me. For example, it tells us in the Old Testament that Jonah was ‘in’ the whale for three days which seemed hard for me to believe but now I see that he was not ‘in’ the whale, but that he was close to, round about, or near by swimming in the water.”

“Then there is the story about the three young Hebrew boys who where thrown ‘into’ the fiery furnace but not burned. Well, it seemed impossible but now I see they were not ‘in’ the furnace but were close to, round about, or near by just keeping warm. But the hardest to believe was where Daniel was thrown ‘in’ the lion’s den but wasn’t hurt. Now I see that he wasn’t ‘in’ the den but was close to, round about, or just near by…like at the zoo.”

“The revealing of these mysteries was very rewarding to me, but the greatest comfort of your sermon was because I am a wicked man who sinned much and it tells us in the Bible that the wicked will be cast into Hell. But now I see that I won’t be cast ‘into’ Hell but ‘close to, round about, or near by’!”

“And…next Sunday, I won’t have to be ‘in’ church; I can just be close to, round about, or near by. Thanks for the sermon. You have really put my mind at ease.”

-- Author Unknown

My Poor Knee

Well, I really did a number on my knee during my last soccer game. I sprained the muscle in the inside of my knee and probably tore my meniscus. I have an MRI Friday and then I will know for sure. If it is torn then I will need surgery to fix it. So much for a good soccer season. I am hoping I will get lucky and I won't have to have surgery or I will be able to play the last few games of the season.

How did I do all this damage to my knee? It was near the end of the game on Friday. We were down 2-1 and running out of time. The ball was kicked up in front of me by about 10 yards. I went sprinting after the ball. So did one of their defenders. We got to the ball at the same time. I went in kicking with most of my strength to make sure I won the ball. So did he. The difference is that I turned my foot out to control the ball so that I had it at my feet after we hit the ball. He didn't. He went straight on. We both hit the ball at the same time. I won the ball all right. But in the process my knee bent out in a way that it isn't supposed to bend. I didn't feel any pain right off. It took a couple steps before that happened. But it was bad. I tried to jog on it but that wasn't happening. So I subbed out of the game. I knew it was bad. I just hoped it wasn't a season ending bad. But it looks like it might be.

What is sad is that back in the day I took hits like that all the time and didn't think twice about them. My knees could take it. They were strong back then. They aren't so strong now. Maybe it is getting time for me to hang up the cleats. But the more I think about that the more I don't think I will. I have always said that as long as I can run I can play. And that is how it is going to play out as far as I am concerned. I will keep on playing until I can't play any more. Then I will just have to turn to coaching. It isn't as fun but it is close. But I feel like I have several years of playing time left in me before I am ready to retire from playing. I look forward to the day I get the go ahead to play again...

Loser Like Me

I just watched my favorite episode of Glee. I like it because it has a couple songs that I can relate to.

The Glee song Loser Like Me (Glee Cast Version) is very fitting for me. I spent most of my life feeling like a loser. There are times when I still feel that way. I hope that someday that will change. I haven't given up hope yet even though there have been many times when I wanted to give up. But giving up isn't in my nature. I will just keep on trying.

The other Glee song Get It Right (Glee Cast Version) is fitting for me as well. I keep screwing everything up. Someday I will get it right - or at least I hope I will. Right now it seems that no matter what I do it isn't the right thing for me to do even though I feel like it is. It is really frustrating.

I guess I am just one of those people that probably doesn't belong in society because either I don't understand society or society doesn't understand me. Maybe it is a little bit of both. I will tell you one thing. Being a social outcast gets really lonely at times. Especially when you need a good friend to talk to. Good friends are hard to come by and right now I feel like I am lacking in that area. Maybe someday I will have a good friend again that I can talk with and hang out with. But right now I will just suffer through life without one.

Opposition

Cripple him and you have Sir Walter Scott

Lock him up in a prison cell and you have a John Bunyon

Burry him in the snows of Valley Forge and you have George Washington

Raise him in poverty and you have Abraham Lincoln

Subject him to bitter religious strife and you have Franklin Delanore Roosevelt, the only president to serve four terms in office.

Burn him so severely in a school house fire that the doctors say he will never walk again and you have a Glen Cunningham who set the world record in 1934 for running the mile in 4 minutes 6.7 seconds

Deafen a genius composer and you have a Ludwig von Beethoven

Drag him more dead than alive from a rice paddy and you have a Rocky Blyer, running back for the great 1970 decade Pittsburg Steelers

Have them born into a society filled with racial prejudice and hatred and you have Booker T. Washington, Harriet Truman, or Martin Luther King Jr.

Have him born into a Nazi concentration camp, paralyze him from the waist down at the age of 4 and you have an Eastman Pearlman, the incomparable pianist.

Call him retarded and write him off as uneducated and you have Albert Einstein

Amputate the cancer-ridden leg of a young Canadian and you have a Terry Fox who ran half way across Canada on artificial legs.

Take both legs away from him and you have a Douglas Bater, an RAF fighter pilot who was captured three times by the Germans and who escaped three times on artificial legs.

Label him too stupid to learn and you have Thomas Edison

Blind him at the age of 44 and you have a John Milton, who 16 years later wrote the great Paradise Lost

Call him dull, hopeless, and flunk him out of school in the 6th grade and you have Winston Churchill

Tell a boy who loves to draw that he has no talent and you have Walt Disney

Spit on Him. Mock him, humiliate Him, and crucify Him, and He forgives you and you have our Lord, Jesus Christ

-- Author Unknown

Dare to climb the Mountain

Many people view the mountain, but few ever want to climb, for when you scale a mountain high you must leave the crowds behind.

There’s a mountain that God offers, those who climb it must be true. It’s a peak called full-time service and it beacons now to you.

Will you dare to climb this mountain, though at times you’ll feel alone? Will you be a missionary, leaving your comforts at home?

Now the way it won’t be easy, many folks won’t understand, but there’ll be applause in heaven, and the Lord will hold your hand.

You won’t hear loud cries of trumpets when you tell folks of your plans. They may say, why climb this mountain? Stay and play in silver sand.

But the voice still cries from Heaven “Give me those with sights set high, give me those to match my mountain, those who’ll reach the top or die.”

As you journey up the mountain, you will feel the cold winds blow, and at times you’ll get discouraged and your feet begin to slow.

But if you’ll refuse to turn around and continue to press on, you’ll soon reach a’top the mountain – no better place to be found.

As you stand there at the summit with the world there far below, you’ll see sights reserved for climbers and your heart will feel its glow.

The Guide that led you to the top will be there at setting sun and will whisper at life’s ending, “Come home and rest – well done.”

Will you dare to climb the mountain though at times you’ll feel alone? Will you be a missionary leaving comforts of your home?

Now the way it won’t be easy, many folks won’t understand, but there’ll be applause in heaven, and the Lord will hold your hand.


-- Author unknown

Old People

Ok. So Monday's have turned into a rat race to get treadmills at the gym. If you aren't standing in line by 4:50ish you most likely won't get a treadmill. It is only Mondays that are like that. What is most annoying about it is it is pretty much all old people that get on the treadmill and walk at the slowest speed the treadmill goes. Why not just walk the track if that is what you are going to do? Leave the treadmills for those that are actually going to use the technology built into them to track their workouts (like I do).

Today I was really irritated by the old people. There are only like 10 treadmills in the place. Well, when I got there this morning the back row of treadmills (the good ones) were already taken. So I ended up taking one in the front (at least I got one). What upset me is that the treadmills behind me were both taken. One had a water bottle on it and no one there. That isn't uncommon. People will take equipment by putting their stuff on it and then run to the bathroom. No big deal. Anyways. The treadmill next to it had an old lady (about 65ish) on it. What made me mad was the fact that she was the one that the water bottle belonged to. She was saving the treadmill next to her for her friend that wasn't there yet. That is just not ok when that is the only treadmill without a person on it and there are people waiting to use it. They are first come first serve. Not get there and save one for your friend. You would think some 65 year old woman would understand that concept. I guess not. I just hope this old people who want to get in shape at 5 in the morning phase ends soon. It is really getting annoying.

What is Easter Really About?

Often times I see the meanings of things totally forgotten. I have decided that Easter is one of those things. It is sad to see how commercialized Easter has gotten. Easter, to most people, is nothing more than Christmas in the spring. It is more about giving of gifts and hunting eggs than anything else. Kids just know it as a day that they get a basket full of toys and candy. How many of those kids know what Easter is really about? I bet most don't. It breaks my heart. Even my kids don't understand the true meaning of Easter. They know that it is in celebration of the resurrection of Jesus but that is it. They don't truly understand what that means.

The resurrection of Christ isn't just something that happened. It is probably one of the most important events in the history of our world. Without this one single event there would be no hope for any of us to ever return to live with our Heavenly Father. Jesus overcame the bonds of death so that we in turn can overcome those bonds. The entire plan of salvation hinged on that one event. Without the resurrection there would be no point in anything else. We wouldn't need repentance, baptism, commandments, service, nothing. There would be no point in them because they would lead to nothing. We would die and that would be it. There would be no real and goal any more. The resurrection is, in my opinion, one of the most important things that has ever happened. People need to remember the sacrifice that was made to save them. Each and every one of us has been impacted by this one event. We can't change that. We will all be resurrected. All thanks to Jesus overcoming the bonds of death. He didn't have to do it. No one made him do it. He did it because he loves each and every one of us and he wants us all to be able to return to live with Him and our Father in Heaven.

So as you go through the day today remember the real meaning of Easter. Don't let the egg hunts and candy replace Jesus this day.

Deep Thoughts

Have you ever taken time to ponder about why things happened the way they did? I know I have. I have often thought back to events in my life and wondered what their purpose was. I am the kind of person that doesn't think that things just happen. They happen for a reason. Most of the time the reason isn't apparent when the event happens. Sometimes the reason never really comes to light. But there is a reason. I have been looking back at things lately and I have wondered what events in the past have gotten me to where I am today. What things have I done to influence my progression. And the biggest thing I have been thinking about lately is why am I in the position I am in and why do things seem to suck so badly right now. It is one thing after another and the rough times just don't seem to be letting up. Are these hard times because of something that I did in the past? Are they because of a bad choice I made years ago? Sometimes I think some of challenges I am having now are the fallout of decisions I made years ago. And then some things are the result of things that I had no control over what so ever. Things seem so unfair. I work my butt off every day to keep my family afloat. But I never seem to be able to get ahead. If we get close to getting ahead something always happens to knock us back again. Then I look around at people I know and see that a lot of them don't do the things they are supposed to be doing. They are taking the easy road. They do what they want when they want. And yet for some reason they seem to be doing just fine. So why is it that when people do the things they are supposed to be doing and work hard are the ones that seem to have the worst things happen to them? Is it because they chose to do the right thing at the time? Or is it because life isn't fair and only those who cheat will ever get ahead?

Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low, and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must but don’t you quit!

Life is a queer with all its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.

Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit,
It’s when things seem worse,
That you must not quit.

-- Author Unknown

Someone Cares

When someone cares to share my joy, I brighten up inside,
When someone cares to hear my heart, I gratefully confide.
When someone cares to lift me up when routines may seem dull,
When someone cares to strengthen me, my days can be so full.
Then I can give to someone else with spirit still to share,
And I may bless another life when I know someone cares.

Because you cared to give yourself and helped along my way,
The joy you gave me yesterday is mine to give today.
I’ll listen more within my heart as burdens may unfold,
A loving touch, a helping hand, to share a heavy load.
And I may bless another life when I know someone cares.

And when we bring to life our love, the circle will begin,
For what we choose to give away, comes back to us again.
We’re doping what our Savior taught; take time to feed His sheep,
We’re caring for each other well, the circle is complete.
Then I can give to someone else with spirit still to share,
And I may bless another life when I know someone cares.

-- Bonnie Partridge

Life

Life is a mixture of sunshine and rain
Good things and bad things, pleasure and pain.
We can’t have all sunshine
But its certainly true
There is never a cloud the sun didn’t shine through.
So always remember that whatever befalls you
The power of God is always beside you
And if a friend disappoints you, and plans go astray
And nothing worked out in just the right way,
And you feel you have failed in achieving your goal
And life wrongly placed you in an unfitting role.
Take heart and stand tall
And remember who you are
For God is your father and no one can bar
Or keep you from reaching your desired success
Or withhold the joy that is yours to possess
For with God on your side
It matters not who is working to keep
Life’s good things form you
For you need nothing more
Than God’s guidance and love
To insure you the things that your worthy of
So trust in his wisdom and follow his ways
And be not concerned with the world’s empty praise
But seek first his kingdom
And you will possess the world’s greatest riches
Which is true happiness.

-- Author Unknown