Positive results!

Hello there and welcome to another boring post. OK, just kidding. This is actually a good post. My father had his heart surgery this morning and all is well. They took him in around 9:45 and he was back by 10:40. He was wide awake when they wheeled him back in and said he had been awake thru most of the procedure. The nurse took the vital signs and then brought him lunch , since he hadn't eaten since last night. It didn't take him long to scarf down the turkey sandwich and cookies. A half hour later the Dr came in and preceded to tell us all went well. He said there was a 20mm hole that had been fixed and everything had checked out just fine. I then asked him if it was hereditary and yes it is. There have been many strokes in his side of the family so I do believe it is time for me to get myself checked out also. I would rather catch any problem now then further down the road, if ya know what I mean! Anyhow, that's the good news for the day. It is snowing in Utah again so I am beginning to think spring has been cancelled and at some point summer will drop in like a ton of lead. I know we need the water but hell...... I want spring. I suffer from JEEP-itis and its a terrible disease. The only cure is to be out in the wilds Jeeping! Being stuck here at home is slowly zapping my strength. So, that's about it. I am very thankful for the outcome of this surgery and for all my friends who showed concern. You guys rock! Until next time...... Jeep on!

Hi there and welcome to another adventure. Today's trip wasn't the most exciting I have been on but it was fun! I took the yellow Jeep out to the Spiral Jetty this afternoon to see how it had fared after the long winter. I was surprised to see the water had actually moved closer to the Jetty. I had figured it would be way the hell out there but it is closer. I was very disappointed in someone. For those of you who follow this, you all know about the supposed pink flamingos that someone put out in the water. Well, upon arrival today, they were gone. It seems someone has removed them. So, I guess we will never really know what they were. I am sticking to my story that they were salt encrusted pink flamingos. So HA! I had hoped there was going to be more mud from last weeks storm, but to my great sorrow, there wasn't very much out there. Fact is, I found 2 puddles worth playing in and that's all. What a pisser! After the Jetty, we headed out to a nice beach down on the north end of the lake. If the lake ever rises, it will be an incredible beach to play at. For now, its just a fantasy. The lake is like a mile away still. The sand is very deep at this spot and the yellow Jeep tried to dig itself in. With a little coaxing, and 4-hi, it got out and didn't miss a beat. Gotta love a Jeep! I think the next adventure will be to the playground. I could see the mountains in the distance and they still have snow on them so that's my next trip. Anyone wanna go? Well, enough of this. Enjoy your week.... until later, Jeep on!

Spring time in the Oquirrhs

Hi there and welcome to the first real adventure of this year. Samantha got sick so my Saturday plans didn't pan out. So, I took off today and headed down to the Oquirrh mountains to see how much snow was left and find some mud. Well, there isn't a lot of snow left and the mud was non existent. This is the earliest I have ever made it to Jacob City. The road had a few gnarly spots on it but the Jeep kicked total ass and didn't miss a beat. I didn't actually get into the city itself due to the fact its a very narrow trail and it still had a ton of snow on it. I peeked over the edge and looked down on Dry canyon and its even worse. It's on the south side of the canyon and gets no sun yet so the trail is all snow. I watched the sky waiting for this huge storm to come in and it never made it while I was on the mountain. It did try to rain a bit and it was a very dirty rain. The wind had pulled tons of dust into the air and it was a nasty rain. I went up Ophir canyon to see how far I could get up it and I made it quite a ways up till the snow got kinda deep. There was mud up there and I played in it but by the time I got out of the mountains the rain had started and washed it all off. Except the dirt that fell with the rain. The jeep is dirty in a bad way. Dumb weather. I followed a few new/old trails I haven't followed before and all in all had a great day. It sure would be nice to get paid to do this. Oh well, spring is here and the Jeep season will soon be in full swing so I am looking forward to it. Well, that's enough for today. Time to get ready for another week of work. Be cool... and remember... only in a Jeep!

Family get 2gather!

Yesterday was the farewell party for my sister and her family who are moving to Arkansas. We all showed up and had a final dinner with all of us that live close enough to to attend. The foto is of me and my parents along with Samantha. We had a great time and got some laughs. I don't really get the Arkansas deal, but that's my sister, the world traveler. Her hubby was in the Air Force so they have lived all over the world. I know they have lived in Germany, Ohio, and I just lost my train of thought so oh well. Then, after retiring he got himself a contract job in the middle east in the tiny country of Oman. So, they have been everywhere. As for me, there is no way in hell I would move to a place with no mountains. It's kind of like an addiction for me. There is nothing better then escaping to the woods for some me and Jeep time. Winter is hard for me cuz I can't really do it. Back in high school, I had bought myself a snowmobile so winters were just as exciting as my summers. Oh well, the good old days. Other news, I switched to Dish Network. It has the Outdoor channel and I just love this channel. It has shows on Jeeping, ATV'ing, and other cool outdoor adventures. I sure miss my Predator. Some of the trails they show are incredible. They did a motorcycle tour in Death Valley.WOW! I am so there. That place looks so cool. I did a little research and found that even in November, the average temp is like 92. Now that's hot. I am thinking a thanksgiving trip would be fun. What do you think? Anyway, enough for tonight. I have worked out a possible trip back out to Boston Terrace. I hope it works out....... see ya!

Unkind surprises

Where to begin? It seems that life has dealt our family another trial to weather, so to speak. My father has suffered from dizzy spells the last few years and finally the reason has been brought to light. It seems that when he was born, the little " patent foramen ovale didn't seal up. When you are in the womb, the heart circulates the blood through itself since the lungs are non functioning at that time. When you are born, the blood goes to the lungs that now work and in doing that, releases a sort of enzyme that tells the heart to seal that valve off. In the case of my father, the valve rebelled and didn't seal itself off. As you can tell, its not really detectable, well not way back then, so he lived 78 years not knowing it was there. For luck, his doctor decided to have the test done that checks for it and guess what they found???? So, on the 31st, he will be going into surgery to have the hole fixed. The importance behind fixing it is the fact that for years, 40% of all strokes were from undetermined cause. It is now known that this is the cause of that 40%. There are a few ways to fix it. My father has chosen the least of the "evils" as a way to go. They will go in through an artery in his leg and place a "patch" over the hole to effectively seal it off thus preventing or minimizing the chance of a stroke. Am I worried? Yes. But I have faith that this will go well and he will live on for many more moons! Seems like none of my postings anymore are about fun exciting things. Guess I had better get off my ass and get out and do something. Spring had showed up last week, but the 8 inches of new snow on my lawn tell me its still a ways off..... dammit! Hopefully it will come soon..... till next time.... JEEP ON!

Life as I know it

The last entry was a song that I lived through once upon a time ago in a country far far away from where I am now. These days, it's a daily struggle to survive work, pain and other things that pass through my life. The last 2 weeks have really sucked shit to put it bluntly. Things are not how I had hoped they would be at this point in my life. And they don't seem to be improving. What to do? A very close friend of mine gave me a killer valentines day gift of an REO Speedwagon concert I actually happened to see. I sat my ass down today and put it in the dvd player and cranked it up. One of my favorite songs popped up and wow.... the message sunk in again as it has so many times before and I now realize life is too short to worry about shit I have no control over. So starting now, all I have to do is roll with the changes and KEEP PUSHIN ON!

I used to be lonely till I learned about livin alone
I found other things to keep my mind on
And I'm gettin to know myself a little bit better
Whoa , I keep pushin on
Keep pushin on, yeah

Goin through all the changes I made so many mistakes, oh yes I did
Tryin to leave behind the heartaches
And sometimes I think I was a little bit crazy, oh yeah
Whoa, I keep pushin on

Keep pushin, keep pushin, keep pushin, keep pushin on
Keep pushin, keep pushin, you know you have got to be so strong
Keep pushin, keep pushin, well even if you think your strength is gone
Keep pushin on

Well it's comin together I finally feel like a man, oh yes I do
I never thought that I'd be where I am, oh
Everyday I wake a little bit higher
Whoa I keep pushin on, oh yeah

So, my new goal is to do it. Forget the bull shit and just and take the good things and run with it! Rock on friends!

At night I walk this stinkin' street 
Past the crazies on my block 
And I see the same old faces 
And I hear that same old talk 
And I'm searching for the latest thing 
A break in this routine 
I'm talkin' some new kicks 
Ones like you ain't never seen 
This is home 
This is Meanstreet 
It's our home 
The only one I know 
And we don't worry 'bout tomorrow 
Cause we're sick of these four walls 
Now what'd ya think is nothing 
Might be something after all 
Now you know this ain't no through street 
The end is dead ahead 
The poor folks play for keeps down here 
They're the living dead 
Come on down 
Down to Meanstreet 
They're dancing now 
Out on Meanstreet 
It's always here and now, my friend 
It ain't once upon a time 
It's all over but the shouting 
I'll come and I'll take what's mine 
We're searching for the latest thing 
A break in this routine 
Talkin' some new kicks 
Ones like you ain't never seen 
This is home 
This is Meanstreet 
It's our home 
Only one I know 
(This is home) See, a gun is real easy 
(This is Meanstreet) In this desperate part of town 
(This is home) Turns you from hunted into hunter 
(This is Meanstreet) Go and hunt somebody down 
(This is home) But hear me now, somebody said "Fair Warning, Lord !" 
(This is Meanstreet) Lord, strike that poor boy down