Independence Pass

When I was growing up our family would travel from the Denver area to vacation in Snowmass at Aspen. There is more than one way to Aspen from Denver, but our path typically took us over Independence Pass. "Independence Pass is [a] 3686 meters (12095 feet) high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado in the United States. The pass is at the summit of the ridge of the Sawatch Range between Aspen and Leadville . . . The pass is traversed by Colorado State Highway 82 and is one of the highest paved mountain passes in Colorado. Its narrow road provides for slow cautious navigation on its approaches. The pass is closed in winter, from the first heavy snow fall in autumn, often opening only in late May." (www.wikipedia.org) We would place complete faith in my father as he drove us up Indendence Pass in his 1965 Buick Riviera Gran Sport, powered with a 425 cubic inch engine with dual quad carburetors. At each hairpin turn we could look down on stunning dropoffs, just feet away from plunging to our doom. We would typically pass one or more packs of bike riders - - people who thought pedaling up a road like that was recreation. The summit of that pass and Aspen were a welcome sight. I found the following account by a couple who drove up Independence Pass in 2002: "Just went over this last week in the dark, late at night. As a flatlander from Florida, this was very scary. Almost hit several deer on the way down west side. This road is not for faint of heart. My wife was very terrified. The narrow single lane part was very scary with cars coming the other way. There are no road signs on 82. We turned around after a while then had to drive it again. It is not marked that you are on the right road. You may suggest to DOT that they need lines and/or reflectors. This could help immensely." (freespace.virgin.net/john.cletheroe/usa_can/scenroad/ind_pass.htm)

Lorenzo Snow's Wild Ride

One of the books I am currently reading is a biography of Lorenzo Snow (1814 - 1901), the fifth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The book was written by his sister in 1884. Here is an excerpt from a passage I read this morning; the excerpt recounts an experience he had years before he became president of the LDS Church. From Lorenzo's journal: "We took stage at Salt Lake City, about the 1st of March, 1864, for San Francisco, California. Some interesting incidents occurred during our overland trip to California, that seemed to us at the time rather interesting or, at least, a little exciting . . . At another time, having stopped to exchange horses just as night was setting in, one of our company remarked that our new driver had quite the air and appearance of an intelligent gentleman, and we soon discovered that he possessed a wonderful musical talent, in the exercise of which he elicited our surprise and admiration . . . A sudden lurch of the coach, which was occasioned by a miss-step or awkward movement of the horses, wrought a sudden, marvelous change in our entertainer, and instantaneously closed our animating entertainment, while a volley of oaths and the most horrid blasphemies succeeded. As he poured forth his disgusting and heart-sickening profanity, he most furiously lashed the innocent horses. At this time we were just commencing the descent of a mountain some miles in length; it was quite dark, the road rough and rocky, and it may be readily imagined that our prospects were not the most inviting. Our coach swayed fearfully—the wheels ever and anon striking fire as they whirled over the rocks, with a double span of horses upon a keen run, tossing us up and down, giving us a few hard strokes of the head against the cover of the coach. At length Elder Benson, in a tremulous yet powerful voice, demanded of the driver to moderate his speed, which was responded to by an increased and more furious lashing of the foaming, panting steeds; thus, and more, with a drunken coachman (as we afterwards learned), we tore along down the mountain, every moment in jeopardy of being dashed to pieces. When at last reaching a station, we were happily relieved from this perilous adventure. On our return we learned that the inebriate had been discharged. Eliza R. Snow, Biography of Lorenzo Snow, pp. 273-275

God's Army 2: States of Grace

Yesterday I saw "States of Grace" after some prompting from a friend. I paid for my own ticket. It was money well spent.

Civics

This morning I arrived a little after 7:30 am at the Mimi's restaurant in Orem, Utah. I was late to a breakfast with Congressman Chris Cannon. His campaign invited me because a few years ago I was elected to "high office," chairperson of Precinct 29 in the Utah County Republican Party. There were about 10 of us who met with Congressman Cannon. He answered questions on land use, nuclear energy, immigration, and security. It seems there are some personality types that find meeting new people energizing, and others enervating. Bill Clinton seemed to be energized by meeting people on a campaign. Chris Cannon seems to handle it all pretty well. I asked him a few questions. I'm not sure he had compelling answers to some of the questions, but on some issues I don't think anyone has compelling answers that give hope for the immediate future. I think he did just fine. Later in the morning I went to a Utah County Republic Party Central Commmittee meeting. There were about 100 people there. A panel of state legislators fielded questions on a variety of topics. There was vigorous applause after several responses, but I don't believe I applauded once - - it is my own ignorace, I suppose, because I don't want to lend applause to things I don't sufficiently understand. Politicians can be an exasperating group, but we're fortunate to have people with an inclination to play that role in our society.

700

A friend of mine works at the Harris Fine Arts Center at BYU. She worked late Friday, until about 9:30 pm. The previous year on this occasion she had worked until about midnight. The occasion is auditions, auditions by 700 high school students hoping for admittance to fine arts programs, and for scholarships. My friend helps make various arrangements for a Saturday for which the participants have prepared for years. The students come with their "support groups" of family and friends. One can imagine the nervous energy and anxiety flowing through the HFAC on these audition days. I've never even heard of such a thing until today.

Wesley Snipes and Me

I came across an informercial the other day. It was an exercise equipment piece, so it was cast with "the usual suspects" - - Chuck Norris and Cheryl Tiegs (interchangeable with Christie Brinkley for infomercial purposes). I was surprised, however, when I saw Wesley Snipes appear on the screen as well. I suppose I had lost track of his career, but I guess I know how he rates nowadays . . . A couple of days ago a co-worker invited me to have dinner with him and his wife - - they were having leftover tacos and fajitas. This was a quasi-appealing invitation, which I rejected in part because the term "leftover" invites more questions than I dare ask (e.g., who prepared the food, how long ago, when you save leftovers does that include uneaten food on an individual's plate, how long did the food sit out before it was put into the refrigerator, can you verify that it was ever put in a refrigerator, can you otherwise document the chain of custody since the date the food was originally prepared, how many times has the food been re-heated for subsequent servings, and so on). A day after this initial invitation my co-worker told me that on February 4 his wife will be preparing Chinese food, and that contingent on any leftovers resulting from the initial meal, I am invited to their home on February 5. Although he subsequently offered a somewhat plausible explanation for this invitation, the likes of which I believe may have never been extended by one person to another in the history of Western civilization, I think I know how I rate . . .

Jeopardy

I relaxed last night and watched Saints and Soldiers, courtesy of my co-worker (and TGJB reader) who loaned me his DVD. This is a World War II movie. In one scene a some American soldiers come upon a British soldier suspended by his parachute in a tree. The Americans cut him down, but the British soldier is frantic and paranoid, and suspects these Americans might actually be Germans. He grabs one American and holds a gun to his head, and then fires off a series a series of questions to find out whether these Americans are who they say they are. How would you have done if confronted with those questions under such circumstances? The questions were: "Who was the third president of the United States?!" "Who was the fourth?!!" "What is the capital of Vermont?!!!" This reminded me of a movie I saw as a child. I can't recall the name of the movie, and while a particular scene made a great impression on me, my memory is quite hazy - - maybe someone among my vast readership can write in with better recall. To the best of my recollection, the movie depicts some American solders who are in Nazi-controlled territory. There is a touring American band which, for some reason, the Nazi's would allow to travel undisturbed. The soldiers have blended in with the band to escape detection, but the Germans suspect this may have happened, and their leader confronts the band in its rehearsal room. The leader calls at random on one of the band members to play something on his instrument. The man he called on was one of the soldiers. After a pause - - the soldier picks up a trombone, and then with some deliberation plays the national anthem of the United States. The Germans leave in disgust. The soldier had been in his high school band, but had not played the trombone since.

Another Day In The Life

* This morning my car thermometer showed the temperature as low as 17 F. * Gold's Gym seemed a bit less crowded today, and the month of January is not even over yet. * I dropped off some newspapers and phone books in a recycle bin on the way to work today. * I had an interesting response to yesterday's blog entry, and later in the day Hans reappeared to comment on the January 22 entry. * A co-worker read yesterday's blog entry, and brought me his "Saints and Soldiers" DVD. * I worked a little later than usual. * Toward the end of the work day, and on the car radio on the way home, I learned that 95-year-old President Gordon B. Hinckley, the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is in the hospital. The CBS radio news program indicated the stay was for a routine procedure. President Hinckley has had a big impact on my life. * Also toward the end of the day, a co-worker received a call from another of my co-workers, advising that one of their old classmates had just passed away. * On television I caught a bit of an interview with retired NFL linebacker Bill Romanowski, and before that an account of an investigator seeking evidence in Iraq for the trial of Saddam Hussein. * I called many numbers on a voter registration list. I am coordinating an effort in my precinct to fulfill a request from the Utah County Republic Party that we update the voter lists. * I entered some family history data into the PAF program I am using. As part of this effort, I typed in the obituary of my cousin, Coy Andersen. She was a great example of faith and strength. I have an Afghan she crocheted in my condo, and use it all the time. * While working at my computer, I listened to a CD from "The Classical Collection." These are 6 CDs that I obtained - - for free - - through some type of mail-in offer when I was just out of law school. So far this evening I have heard music of Grieg, Brahms, Dvorak, Strauss, Bizet, Tarrega, Albeniz, Saint-Saens, and Dukas.

Excerpt from a Book Excerpt

In its January 9, 2006 edition, Time published an excerpt from "The Number: A Completely Different Way to Think About the Rest of Your Life," by Lee Eisenberg. Here is an excerpt from the excerpt. [Question] No. 1 . . . "Assume that you've got all the money you need. Maybe you're not Warren Buffett, but you'll never need to worry about money again. The question is, What would you do with it? How would you live?" . . . Next question, "You go to the doctor, who discovers you have a rare illness. He says that you're going to feel perfectly fine for the next five years, but then the illness will prove fatal. It will come suddenly, causing no suffering. The question is, Now that you know that your life will be over by then, how will you live it? What will you do?" . . . The final question. "You go to the doctor. You feel perfectly healthy. Again the doctor explains that you have a serious illness. But this time the doctor says, `You have only 24 hours to live.' What did you miss? What did you not get to be? What did you not get to do?"

Housekeeping?

I went to a meeting one day, and the leader kicked things off by announcing he was going to do some "house cleaning." Depending on the circumstances, that could be a little disconcerting. He actually meant "houskeeping." For today's entry, I thought I'd let you in on some of the "human drama" that has been occurring recently at The Greg Jones Blog. As Bill said to Ted, or perhaps vice versa, "Strange things are afoot at the Circle K." Yesterday I set up a hosting account for the gregjones.org website. I obtained the gregjones.org domain name through register.com a few years ago. Before yesterday, I was using a free feature of register.com that would send visitors to gregjones.org to the livejournal site that houses The Greg Jones Blog; as a result, such visitors would see register.com banners at the top and bottom of their screens, and some users experienced technical problems. By using a hosting service for gregjones.org, visitors will no longer be redirected to another site, which will hopefully eliminate any technical difficulties users had with the prior approach. This also opens up an opportunity for me to provide content other than the blog. For now, the other content will be some family history materials, and I am experimenting with providing a reading list so that my vast audience can assess at least some influences on my mind and thinking, or things that should have influenced my mind and thinking had I been able to understand and remember them. The new website also has a "Contact Us" feature whereby visitors may send e-mails directly to me, Greg Jones. By the way, I read on slashdot that hackers have been breaking into the livejournal site which, as I mentioned above, is the service I use for The Greg Jones Blog. If you happen to know any of these guys, please ask them to stop. Fortunately, in a show of unparalleled parental loyalty, my mom and dad took it upon themselves long ago to print out each and every blog entry. Anyway, here is the January 20, 2006 posting from slashdot.org: An anonymous reader writes "Brian Krebs of the Washington Post has written about the recent spate of hijackings at Six Apart's popular LiveJournal service. Hundreds of journals have now been taken over by a notorious group called 'Bantown' using a series of complicated cross-site-scripting vulnerabilities. Krebs details the recent security changes made by LiveJournal in response to the takeovers." From the article: "It is unclear whether LiveJournal has managed to close the security holes that the hackers claim to have used. The company says it has, but the hackers insist there are still at least 16 other similar Javascript flaws on the LiveJournal site that could be used conduct the same attack. [Bantown] group members said they plan to turn their attention to looking for similar flaws at another large social-networking site."

Saints and Soldiers

Tonight I heard a talk by a producer of "Saints and Soldiers," an award-winning film shot in Utah and shown in all 50 states and numerous foreign countries. This young man was one of a graduating class of 3 in an arts-based private high school in Orem, Utah; he graduated in 1995, and the school has now closed. As a high school student he had a successful internship at Paramount, which helped him greatly in his career. I saw a portion of Saints and Soldiers when it ran on the History channel, but have yet to see the whole thing. I understand the film is out on DVD now. Could anyone loan me their's? The producers of the film were surprised when the MPAA initially gave the movie an R rating. As one of the key audiences of the film would be members of the LDS Church, and as the producer and many others involved in the film are LDS, and as LDS members have been counseled against seeing R rated movies, this presented a personal and business challenge. Over a period of 6 months the producers worked with the MPAA, made some changes to the film, and ultimately the film received a PG-13 rating. Some of the rationle of the MPAA was interesting. The R rating resulted from the depiction of violent combat in World War II. A key factor was that some of the characters killed in combat are principal characters, the type of characters that the audience will grow to care about as the movie progresses; the MPAA indicated that this was too much for someone less than 17 to experience. The PG-13 rating was achieved, in part, by changing the relevant scenes so they were less graphic; for example, a camera angle was changed to eliminate a view of bullets exiting a body. The producer mentioned that in movies such as Lord of the Rings there is massive violence against large numbers of creatures the audience would never identify with on an individual level, and therefore the MPAA does not deem such violence to merit an R rating. The producer posed the question of which depiction of violence is most likely to influence a young person to choose a course other than violence (e.g., a course other than a Columbine-like assault), a depiction that shows consequences of violence, or a depiction of violence without any meaningful consequence. I had not been aware of it, but the producer said the MPAA felt it had a made a mistake when it rated "Titanic," that it should have receive an R-rating. He also mentioned some things about the funding of the MPAA, as well as the policies and politics of the rating process. Pretty educational.

www.websudoku.com

Have you caught the sudoku craze? Enjoy some mental gymnastics by printing a puzzle from www.websudoku.com. I did my first puzzle tonight on a Delta flight from Boston to Salt Lake City. There were two puzzles in the Delta's Sky magazine. I solved the first, and have gotten myself into trouble on the second.

Behind the Times

Perhaps you saw the January 18, 2006 article by Barry Cox of the NewScientist.com news service, the one titled “Disgraced cloning pioneer could keep his patents.“ Here is an excerpt: “A patent application, filed by disgraced stem cell scientist Woo Suk Hwang and colleagues and based on work now admitted to be fabricated, may nevertheless be granted, a New Scientist investigation has found . . . The UK Patent Office has taken a leading role in trying to clarify what aspects of stem cell research can be patented in Europe. Lawrence Smith-Higgins at the UKPO says: `European patent examiners are not interested in whether something will work or not. The commercial world, which is where patents belong, will judge. As long as an invention is not clearly contrary to scientific laws – like time travel – research has no bearing on the grant of a patent.’” I am confident that you, like me, were left wondering how Mr. Smith-Higgins, if not all European patent examiners, could be so ill-informed about time travel. Should we really have to point out well-established facts such as the following? 1. In the late 1800’s a man built a time machine, traveled into the future, and discovered a utopian society called the Eloi. 2. In 1912 actress Elise McKenna was visited by playwright Richard Collier, a time traveler from the 1970s. 3. In the 1930s social worker Edith Keeler was visited by three men from the future, with the last names of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. I could go on, but what would be the point?

Thumbs Up

I am sure that my vast readership has been very anxious for my ruling on Pride and Prejudice. My observation about the book several days back was less than complimentary, but I finished the book Tuesday and would recommend the book to all - - indeed, I believe I could recommend this book with almost the same zeal with which I encouraged all to see that fine American film "Napoleon Dynamite." That said, my "The Modern Library Classics" edition of P&P contained a quote from Mark Twain that gives somewhat of a different take. "When I take up one of Jane Austen's books . . . such as Pride and Prejudice, I feel like a barkeeper entering the kingdom of heaven. I know what his sensation would be and his private comments. He would not find the place to his taste, and he would probably say so." [From a conversation between 1900-1907, as reported by Albert Bigelow in "Mark Twain, a Biography: The Personal and Literary Life of Samuel Longhorne Clemons," vol. III (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1912)]

Ice Cube

Sunday evening I picked up a leased car at Novell's parking garage. It was a little past 12 am, the car was parked on the uncovered top floor of the parking garage, and earlier in the day the weather had quickly changed from 50 degrees F and rain to 10 degrees F. At first I could not open the doors because they were frozen shut, then I could not get the door to latch shut, and when I arrived at my hotel I could not get the door to open - - I exited through one of the back doors. The next morning I drove into a parking lot at a train station, stopped at the gate, and was unable to lower my window to take the parking ticket. It had been a while since I'd experienced such things . . . As a law student in Provo, Utah, I drove a 1979 Toyota Corona LE liftback sedan. My apartments had no covered parking. An unfortunately typical scenario for a winter morning was: leave apartment at 6 am, find that my car's front doors are frozen shut, enter the car through the rear liftback, take my position in the driver's seat after climbing over the back seats and the front seats, arrive at law school, front doors are still frozen shut, climb into the back seat, exit the car through a back door. In high school, some of my LDS neighbors and I would car pool to 6 am seminary. When it was their turn, they would drive their family's third car, an older 2-door that was parked outside at night. On winter mornings they would not get up early enough to warm up the car and clear the ice off the windshield, so we learned to avoid the back seat behing the driver, because the driver would roll down his window so he could stick his head outside and navigate, it being impossible to see anything through the ice-encrusted windshield.

A Blowout

I went to a birthday party tonight. As I watched the individual blow out the candles, I recalled a remarkable event that occurred one summer. Some poor soul in my student apartments had chickenpox. He looked miserable. He was miserable. He had pox all over his face, he could not shave as a result, he was listless, he had been confined to his apartment for a couple of weeks. And this was all in the heat of summer. Someone learned it was his birthday, amd baked him a cake. I was part of the group that presented the cake to him, complete with lit candles. The cake looked delicious. The young man came out, seemed happy to have some visitors for a change, and notwithstanding that he looked a little worse than death warmed over, mustered enough energy to methodically blow over the entire surface of the cake, succesfully putting out the candles. Cake eating had suddenly lost its appeal, and the visitors were gone . . .

Sneeze Suppression

There are two types of people in this world - - those who suppress their sneezes, and those who don't. Personally, I am not a sneeze suppressor, but I do attempt to direct sneezes so that no one is "in harm's way." I do recall at least one instance where it turned out someone was, in fact, directly in harm's way, but such is life. Today at the airport I saw a young man who was a prodigious sneeze suppressor, and he'd also suppress the succession of sneezes that followed the initial sneeze. The typical pattern was one suppressed sneeze, followed by three "aftershocks." I observed the same pattern on the flight as he was seated across the aisle, one row behind me. I thought his head just might explode. This prompted me to research the topic of sneeze suppression in depth (i.e., I did one Google search on the phrase). I discovered the tragic case appearing below. PENNSYLVANIA WORKER'S COMPENSATION CASE "Claimant Russell Carroll petitions for review of the May 25, 1999 order of the Workers' Compensation Appeal Board (Board) that reversed a decision of the workers' compensation judge (WCJ) granting Claimant's claim petition and awarding him specific loss benefits for loss of his left eye. Claimant contends that the Board erred in articulating the burden of proof necessary to support an award of benefits in a claim petition proceeding for specific loss benefits; Claimant also contends that the Board erred in concluding that there was no substantial evidence to show that Claimant's retinal detachment, which resulted from his suppression of a sneeze during a business meeting, was caused by the condition of Employer's premises. We reverse." (See www.romingerlegal.com/pacaselaw/commonwealth1/1516CD99.html)

Denver Broncos 27, New England Patriots 13

One win away from the Super Bowl.

In Search of Jimba

Here are excerpts from an article on "Jumbo" from www.wikepedia.com. It is evident that this is not the elphant named Jimba that I wrote of before, if there ever was such an elephant. Jumbo (1861 - September 15, 1885) was an African elephant, born in 1861 in the French Sudan from where he was imported to France . . . In 1865 he was transferred to the London Zoo, where he became famous for giving rides to visitors. It was the London zoo-keepers that gave Jumbo his name — it is a slightly garbled version of the word jambo, which is Swahili for "hello". Jumbo was sold in 1882 to P. T. Barnum, owner of "The Greatest Show on Earth", the Barnum & Bailey Circus. Estimated to be 3.25 metres high in the London Zoo, it was claimed that Jumbo was approximately 4 metres tall by the time of his death. Jumbo died at a train station in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, where he was crushed by a locomotive. A statue now at the site commemorates the tragedy . . . As a result of Barnum's publicity the word "jumbo" is now synonymous with "large" or "huge": a large hot dog sausage may be called a "jumbo hot dog"; the Boeing 747 is known as the "Jumbo Jet".

Credit for the January 6, 2005 "Moon River" Entry

The Editorial Board of The Greg Jones Blog wants to ensure that we appropriately acknowledge any sources for blog entries. With respect to the January 6 entry, the Board has directed that relevant correspondence be posted here. >>> Greg Jones 1/13/06 8:34 am >>> Hello [Colleague], The Editorial Board of The Greg Jones Blog has asked that I contact you about the January 6 entry of The Greg Jones Blog entitled "Moon River." The Board is torn by two competing principles - - giving credit where credit is due, and respecting the privacy of individuals. We feel that you should receive some recognition as the source for the Moon River story. I believe we have credited you on a past effort, perhaps without providing your full name. We could do that here, or mention you by name, or mention you without using any part of your name. [May] we update the blog to give you credit and, if so, in what form would you like the credit to appear[?] Sincerely, Greg Jones >>> [Colleague] 01/13/06 10:38 am >>> Greg: I am somewhat surprised that these concerns have come to the attention of the Greg Jones Blog Editorial Board . . . First, I appreciate the Greg Jones Blog Editorial Board's willingness to acknowledge sources of stories found on the Greg Jones Blog. In raising this issue, I do not want to draw attention to myself or try to divert attention away from the keen insights and observations of the author of the Greg Jones Blog. I believe that a simple acknowledgment that a particular story was received from "a colleague" along with an advance email notice that the story will appear on the Greg Jones Blog is sufficient to balance the issues of "giving credit where credit is due" and privacy. Thank you for your prompt consideration of this important matter. Best Regards, [Colleague] (a.k.a. A Colleague)

Lawyer Jokes

From "Did You Hear the One About . . . ", an article by Marc Galanter in the January 2006 edition of Corporate Counsel. In researching my new book, "Lowering the Bar: Lawyer Jokes and Legal Culture," I found that the preeminent subject of jokes set in large law firms is the tension between older partners and younger associates. Stories about how partners exploit associates - - and how junior attorneys turn the tables on their senior colleagues - - have been around for a long time . . . Consider the following joke: A paralegal, an associate, and a partner of a prestigious New York law firm are walking through Central Park on their way to lunch wheh they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a genie comes out in a puff of smoke. The genie says, "I usually only grant three wishes, so I'll give each of you just one." "Me first! Me first!" says the paralegal. "I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world." Poof. He's gone. "Me next! Me next!" says the associate in astonishment. "I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of pina coladas, and the love of my life." Poof. She's gone. "You're next," the genie says to the partner. The partner says, "I want those two back in the library after lunch."

Carpets

I spoke to a friend last night. She cleans her carpets every 3 months. I've lived in my condo since the fall of 1993. Had I been as diligent as she, I would have cleaned my carpets about 39 times by now . . .

Blood

I gave blood tonight. I've done so pretty regularly since 9-11 when one of my co-workers mentioned the importance of having blood available for emergencies. Remember - - donors get FREE cookies and juice!

Toenail Tails

Fungus Toenail fungus affects 2% to 18% of all people worldwide and 3% to 5% of people in the United States. It is relatively rare in children, affecting only about 1 out of every 200 people younger than 18. However, the likelihood of getting toenail fungus increases with age. Up to 48% of people have at least one affected toe by the time they reach age 70. Although 2.5 million Americans see a podiatrist annually for treatment of toenail fungus, many more are infected but never seek help. Some people consider toenail fungus just a cosmetic problem and don't bother seeking treatment. (www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/9339/24470.html) If you are a toenail fungus victim, get help today! Hoosier Hotshots Are any of you fans of the Hoosier Hotshots? Remember the story of the people that had a fish fry up at their cabin? Want to send it in?

Jimba

I heard a talk today that mentioned Jimba, reportedly the most famous elephant in the history of the Barnum and Bailey circus. According to the speaker, Jimba had been conditioned to believe he could not break loose of even a small rope tied around his leg. As a result, he almost died in a circus fire, until his trainer shouted assurances to Jimba that Jimba could escape. Jimba broke loose, and ran smiling to a little girl who had spotted the trapped animal. I searched Google in vain for any account of any elephant named Jimba. Does anyone have information on Jimba?

The Pied Piper of Park Meadows

Park Meadows is a huge mall in Littleton, Colorado near the junction of I-25 and C-470. During the Christmas season the parking lot is a zoo, especially when snow and ice have accumulated in the parking lot, and especially during the dark hours of early evening. A few years back we had been to the mall more than once leading up to Christmas, and the mall was still relatively new. One afternoon as we drove along the outside perimeter of the parking lot, I took a right turn to exit the lot, only to discover that I had entered some peculiar appendage to parking lot, an enclosed area with about 25 empty parking spaces - - the only way out was the way I had entered. We exited the little enclosure, and learned that the actual exit was the next right, just a short distance further ahead. A few days later, we found ourselves back at Park Meadows during those cold, dark hours of the early evening. We again found ourselves driving along the outer perimeter of the parking lot, and numerous vehicles were following behind us as we carefully and slowly drove through the lot. Suddenly I responded to an impulse, some inspiration, as we approached the enclosure we had encountered before. I used my indicator to signal a right turn, drove a bit further, took the right turn into the enclosure, and then continued driving slowly along the outer edge of the enclosure. With no small amount of satisfaction, I took a look in the rear view mirror, and saw that each trailing car was "taking the bait." I completed the circuit around the inside of the enclosure, then exited the enclosure - - to the cars entering the enclosure, it seemed that my car, and all of the cars trailing me, were simply entering the parking lot through an entrance from the outside. I proceeded to the true exit from the lot. As we drove away from the mall, I took a satisfied look back as a long string of headlights continued to illuminate the path into, around, and out of the enclosure . . .

Moon River

ROCKVILLE, Maryland (AP) - A Maryland man charged with flashing his bare buttocks at his neighbour during an argument has avoided a possible three year prison sentence after a judge ruled that the act was tasteless, but legal. Judge John W. Debelius III - overturning an earlier decision by another judge - said what Raymond Hugh McNealy reportedly did was a "disgusting" and "demeaning" act . . . McNealy's neighbour, Nanette Vonfeldt, accused him of yelling at her and threatening to "blow up my building" as she and her daughter walked out of their apartment. The two had a heated meeting the night before at the home owner's association, according to McNealy's lawyers, and McNealy wanted Vonfeldt off the board, The Washington Post reported in its Wednesday edition. "Then, for whatever reason, in full view of my daughter, he mooned us," Vonfeldt wrote in court documents, referring to the act of flashing the bare buttocks. McNealy was charged with indecent exposure, a charge upheld by a trial court judge. But McNealy appealed, arguing that state law only covers displays of a person's "private parts," which does not include the buttocks . . . McNealy lawyer James Maxwell said the Debelius ruling should "bring comfort to all beachgoers and plumbers" in the state. (http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1835&ncid=1835&e=2&u=/cpress/20060105/ca_pr_on_od/us_mooning_man) NOTE: This URL was received from A Colleague. (Greg Jones, January 13, 2006)

From Russia With Love

Thursday night I attended a lecture for single adults at an LDS Stake Center in Provo. The speaker was Gary Browning, a longtime professor of Russian at BYU, and former mission president to Russia in the early 1990s. He was actually based in Finland, and would travel to Russia. Today he has a calling as Patriarch to the a large portion of the Russian nation. He travels to Russia a few times a year to meet with Church members and give them a priesthood blessing known in the LDS Church as a "Patriarchal Blessing." On these trips he will meet with several members of the Church each day, moving from city to city. He generally does not have an opportunity to meet these individuals ever again. In his brief visits with these members he is able to learn a little of each individual's personal history. He has a strong love for the Russian people, and each of these meetings strengthens that love and admiration as he repeatedly hears of the inspiring faith of individuals who have embraced Christianity and the LDS Church, often in extraoardinary circumstances. Professor Browning did not really share any detailed accounts of such members, he gave a more general account of his responsibilities and activities. As I was writing this entry, it occurred to me that I could check the LDS Church web site at www.lds.org. I clicked on "Search" towards the top of the home page, on the page that came up I selected "Ensign" under the "Search Gospel Library Archive" option, entered "Russia" as the query, then clicked on "Search." There were many matches in the Search Results, and item 7 turned out to be the following article: Gary Browning, “Pioneering in Russia,” Ensign, June 1997, 25. I read the article, and there were several fascinating and inspiring stories. I'll reproduce one of them below - - if you have further interest you can find the article, and possibly other materials, on the website. The Bazarskii Family “I live in Voronezh [about 250 miles south of Moscow] and am a professor of English at an institute. … Thanks to the heritage of my parents, at a young age I learned about God. … But I never went to church, and I didn’t read the Bible until I was 40. Once I became an adult, I tried to attend church in other cities when I went on professional trips. … At 19 I married. My husband [Oleg], a physicist by education, was a thorough atheist, and at the beginning was amused by my ‘faith’ and prayers. … “The year 1985 brought great changes into my spiritual life. I was able to go to church openly, fearing neither the KGB nor any unpleasantness at work. … Then came September 1991 and my first-ever international linguistics conference in Zvenigorod, near Moscow. At that time occurred what was for me a momentous meeting with professors from Utah. “In our lives are many coincidences. And so it seemed that by sheer coincidence I was drawn into a discussion about contemporary Russia. … Suddenly I heard a question: ‘And how has the status of the Orthodox Church changed?’ I felt that the question was addressed to me personally. “In four or five phrases I tried to explain how much the church meant to me and my family, and how happy I was that now I could speak of my faith openly. I didn’t have to fear being a believer. This sincere but awkward answer, as it turned out, touched many people in the room, especially the gray-haired professor who had asked the question. It was Dr. Robert W. Blair from Brigham Young University. We became acquainted, and I invited him to Voronezh. “In the spring of 1992 Dr. Blair came … with his family to see us for the celebration of the Orthodox Easter. I invited them to a church Easter service. I had been eagerly awaiting this event. That spring … I was fasting and for the first time in my life attended confession, and I thought I was beginning a new life without any transgression or deceit. “While on my way to church that day, I hoped to experience there the feelings of Tolstoy’s heroes, so well described by him in Resurrection. But it turned out otherwise. The Holy Ghost did not descend upon me. Though the ceremony and the brilliance of the golden vestments were dazzling, the service itself did not move me at all. … I returned home discouraged, convinced that my personal sins had not allowed me to experience any feelings of redemption at the service. “During the summer of 1992, however, students from Brigham Young University arrived in Voronezh to teach English in nursery schools. I came to their Sunday meeting and was struck by the atmosphere of love and warmth that prevailed there. I wanted to become like them, and I wanted my son [Aleksandr] to be with them. These were unusual Americans, people unlike any others I knew. “At first I wasn’t going to change anything in my life. Would it really be impossible to be a member of the Orthodox Church and at the same time follow the principles of the Mormons? … Sooner or later I would have to decide for myself which side I would be on: with the Orthodox Church or with these new, unfamiliar people, whom I wanted to become more like. “This choice tortured me and would not allow me a moment’s peace. All the while it seemed to me that by choosing the Mormons I would betray the faith of my fathers, and that God would not forgive me for this apostasy. I prayed and asked God for an answer, and it came. “One day during the summer while I was sitting on the bank of a river gazing into the water and persistently thinking about the choice I had to make, I perceived a distinct voice that said I would not betray anyone, that I would simply progress farther and believe more deeply. “It’s difficult to describe the feelings that I experienced upon hearing this voice: surprise, relief, happiness. I continued to attend the students’ meetings, and then I took the discussions from the missionaries in Moscow. It was there I was baptized on December 15, 1992, on the eve of the students’ flight back to America. “My life changed. I became more tranquil, tolerant, and patient. Problems in our family life gradually diminished. For the first time in my life I understood the meaning of the words ‘quiet happiness,’ that is to say, harmony with oneself and peace of mind. During that year I became convinced that faith is capable of growing, and much that I had doubted a year ago now seemed true and right. “I don’t know what exactly it was that first influenced my husband, whether it was the example of my son and me or his interaction with the students, the mission president, or the missionaries, but in September 1993 he began to regularly attend church. … On January 15, 1994, he was baptized. … Now we are all together. “The first time I saw the student members of the Church I said to myself, This cannot be a bad church with such good people. Now I can testify that this Church is true, and that it leads people to light. This Church gives people hope, and with hope it is easier to overcome those trials which are sent to us. I know I am not alone. My family, friends, and brothers and sisters are with me, as is our Heavenly Father, who wants me to be happy.” Sister Bazarskaia has served in many callings since her baptism, including Relief Society president. Her husband became president of the Voronezh Branch. Their son, Aleksandr, served in the Latvia Riga Mission.

The Rose Bowl

I watched the Rose Bowl on Wednesday, in which Texas beat USC in an amazing game. I played organized football from second grade through twelfth grade. I participated in only one bowl game, a high school intra-squad game our coach dubbed "The Toilet Bowl." The trophy was a plunger.

Pride and Prejudice

I'm reading Pride and Prejudice - - the book has been so popular for such a sustained period of time that I decided to go ahead an read it. I'm about 100 pages in. I think the following would be a suitable subtitle: "See what happens when you get a bunch of snobs together who have too much time on their hands?"

New Year's Resolutions

The salesman at Gold's Gym told me this is a very good time of year for him. Anyone surprised? In my experience, it always gets a little busy in the gym at the beginning of January, but it gets back to normal pretty quickly.

Poles

I know of this happening three times. Once to a woman I heard in Church today, once to me, and once to my Dad. If you've got a pole to the right of your car as you're backing out of a park, don't hit it! 1. At a Church meeting this evening a woman told how one busy Sunday morning she left for Church way too late. She put her two children in the car, the oldest being her 3-year-old daughter. As the woman backed out of her covered parking, she collided with a support pole, and the passenger side of her car grated against the pole as she backed out. She did not even stop to inpect the damage, but kept driving. She engaged in an exchange something like this with her three-year-old: Woman: Honey, Mommy is late, so we can't stop now. Will you please say a prayer for us? Daughter: Our Heavenly Father, we are gratetful that we could hit the pole. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. 2. A few years ago I was parked in the covered parking outside Building A on the old WordPerfect campus in Orem, Utah. I was running late, so I jumped into the car, and pulled out quickly. Unfortunately, the support poles were set in circular concrete bases that were about 2 feet high, and that had a much larger diameter than the poles themselves. I crushed my right front fender against the concrete base - - there went $500 right there. 3. Many years earlier my family was sitting in my father's prized 1965 Buick Riviera Gran Sport. Actually, my father was not in the car; we were in a Church parking lot in Englewood, Colorado, and were waiting in the dark for my father to finish a meeting in the Church. My father had parked the car earlier in the day. When he came out of the building after his last meeting it was pitch dark outside - - there was not a light pole in entire parking lot. My Dad got into the car, and after the long day at church quickly backed out of the parking space, only to be stopped by a horrible thud and crash. He had parked the car next to telephone pole in the parking lot, the only one in the entire lot. There went the right front fender of the car.