Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Real life Lemmings!

When I was a kid, I loved to play this game called Lemmings.  It was fun cause you had to figure out how to get the little guys from point A to Point B.  Here's a demo video of the game:


Today, I was shown this video of some divers.  Dude, real life Lemmings!


Where's the nuke button!

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

PETA is out of touch

Peta sent me an email with this greeting on it:
I guess they haven't been following my blog.  While I do love my dog and cat, the turkey had sad life and for some animal lovers wouldn't land me in the "nice" category.

But I'll take it!  Just don't ask me for any money!

Man that rabbit looks yummy!

Friday, November 26, 2010

Thanksgiving 2010

So the turkey weighed in at 36 pounds and boy was it tasty!  It was very moist (we brined it the night before).  It took 6 1/2 hours to cook it.  It turned out perfect!  Here's some video of dinner.  Oliver and Sam both fell asleep and missed out on the main dinner, but after waking up got to eat plenty of leftovers!
Click the image below for video....

From Family Videos

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Butchering the turkey with Jacob

Warning - graphic descriptions in this post, so if you're an animal activist or have a sensitive stomach, you've been warned.

So tonight I got home and Jacob helped me tie down the turkey and then butcher it.  The turkey was very calm.  Jacob went out to the coop, and tied a rope around it's leg and led it along to the garage where it came on in.  Then we tied it's legs together and it's wings.  However with the turkey being so calm and relaxed, we realized after the ax fell, that those knots were not nearly tight enough.  It flailed all over the garage and blood was spurting everywhere! It was jumping all over and I tried to grab it quickly as it was spurting blood everywhere!  I finally got a hold of it and turned it upside down neck down into a big 5 gallon bucket.  It was kicking and it clawed me pretty good.  There was blood everywhere, and come to find out, some of it was mine.  That stupid turkey cut me open with its kicking, all without a head.

Then we filled up the garage sink with hot water and dipped it in there for a bit and then started pulling feathers out.  Man that turkey was huge!  It had thousands of feathers.  The part where I couldn't stomach it anymore was the cutting open the bottom area and gutting it.  Jacob was willing to do that and I wasn't about to argue with him.  He kept pulling things out.  "Dad what is this?"  "That looks like the gizzard."  Then he pulls out the heart.  It's still steaming.   Then he pulls out, yes the turkey balls.  He wasn't grossed out one bit, but me, I'm close to dry heaving the whole time.  The smell was terrible.  I don't get how he wasn't grossed out.  He was smelling it, and touching it.  I don't know what I'd do if he didn't help me.

We weighed Jacob (101.4 pounds), then Jacob while holding the turkey (138.2).  So that turkey, after being de-feathered and gutted weighs 36.8 pounds.  It felt heavier.  It's size is like that of a small child. I'm pretty sure we'll have to quarter the thing in order to cook it.

Then we filled up a large plastic storage tub with water and put 10 cups of sugar, 10 cups of salt and mixed it up.  Then put the turkey in there and weighed it down by putting a 5 gallon bucket full of water on top of the turkey so that it stays completely immersed in the brine mixture.  Jacob then cut off the feet and man those talons were sharp!  Jacob said he wanted to keep the chicken feet, which I'm OK with, but he also wants to keep the pair of chicken balls.  That seems a little weird.  What do you think?

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Big Helen does it again!

Jacob brought in the biggest chicken egg I've ever seen in my life the other day.  Here's a couple pics to compare a normal chicken egg we get, and Big Helen's:


















Tuesday, November 16, 2010

The most cherished blessing in my life is....

Cathi!

I'm so thankful I found her and that she picked me of all people!  What are the odds that I'd find the woman that makes me feel so complete and happy?  It's just one of those things where everything has fallen right into place and there isn't any explaining how it happened.  A miracle and a blessing which I am most grateful!

If I had everything taken from me except one, I'd keep Cathi.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Why I'm wearing purple today

This post is my opinion, I'm not posting it to start an argument, or a debate.  If you believe otherwise, fine.  I'm turning of ALL comments on this post just to be fair and to prevent wasting my time trying to read through everyone's comments on whether it is appropriate or not.  If I want your opinion (whether I agree with it or not), I will go to YOUR blog and read about it.  With that said.....

I've been invited by a facebook friend to wear purple today in recognition of the problem of gay bashing which has resulted in several teens committing suicide as a result of the harassment and bullying they've had to go through.  I'm wearing purple in hopes that the bullying, hate and fighting can stop.

Marriage
I also believe that marriage is a three way contract.  God makes a contract with a man and a woman.  He is the one that instituted it, and [some men] have decided to pervert it millenia later.  Just because a government which has been pressured into disregarding the definition of the term, doesn't mean it is right.  If every single person all of a sudden chose to become homosexuals, the entire human race would be extinct in less than a hundred years.  Clearly from a scientific standpoint, homosexuality isn't natural.  Just because there is evidence of homosexuality among animals doesn't mean that it is "natural".  Humans are not simply animals.  They're children of God and were given commandments for man and women to marry, and then procreate.  Not procreate, and then Marry.  And definitely not Man and Man to marry.  Otherwise he would have made it biologically possible for man and man to procreate.   I teach my kids that homosexuality is wrong, just like fornication before marriage is wrong.  But that it isn't our place to punish or even mistreat anyone based on their choices on the matter.

Love can exist without marriage, but that doesn't mean that just because of that love that marriage is appropriate.  Marriage is supposed to be a sacred union between God, man, woman.  Take God out of it, and it really isn't marriage.  You can form "unions" that could possibly be respected by man and government, but only marriage can be respected by God.  So the problem is that we're messing with the definition of the term.  I understand why people are trying to defend the term and its definition. The problem is that we ALL need to be civil in defending our beliefs.  There is no room for extending that defense to the next level.

Equality and Human Rights
Seriously, this "equality" thing is getting out of control.  Being denied the right to vote, or to go to a school is one thing, but claiming that the term "marriage" is a human right?  That's just plain messed up.  We're talking about a term, or a definition here, not a human right.  It isn't a human right to define something a certain way.  Human rights are just that, the way humans interact.  Not how a language is used.  If a large group of people started wearing nothing but blue shoes and claimed that another group could not wear blue shoes and non violently defended their beliefs, does that necessarily make it a human right violation?  Really?

I don't think homosexuals are bad people just because of their sexual preference.  I definitely don't believe it is right to mistreat them or harass them because of their choices (and yes I believe homosexuality is a choice).  They've made their choice.  So leave them alone.  No need to persecute them for it.  What what Jesus do?  I don't think he would have his followers tasked with doing any type of punishing anyway.

In Summary
Thus I wear purple in support of treating homosexuals with kindness and not persecuting them.  I don't agree with their choice or support their opinions.  I just want PEACE and eliminate hate.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Detailed history of an open water legend in Utah - Orson Spencer

I received a treasure in the mail today!  Orson Spencer's grand-daughter sent me several newspaper articles as well as some personal journal entries from Orson's mother.  Here is the letter she sent me:

October 6, 2010

Dear Mr. Gridley,

I appreciate your interest in my father and his swimming accomplishments, as well as the Great Salt Lake Swimming events. I apologize for being so slow at getting this information to you.

I have copied a few of the articles we had in his personal history and typed an entry from his mother about his swimming that might be interesting. If I come across any more, I'll forward them on to you. I understand that many of Utah's newspapers are now online and can be viewed and copied. I found a list of many articles from the Ogden Standard Examiner. A list of dates of those articles is as follows:

9 Dec 1926, 22 Apr, 23 Apr, 9 Dec 1927, 8 Apr 1928, 25 Aug 1929, 16 Apr, 19 Apr 1930, 11 Apr, 28 Oct 1931, 31 Jan 1932, 27 Apr 1933, 20 Apr 1934, 29 Mar, 30 Mar 1935, 19 July, 5 Sept 1937, 15 Apr 1938, 29 Jan, 14 Apr, 7 Aug 1939, 6 Apr 1940, 26 Mar, 27 Mar 1941, 26 Mar 1943, 2 Apr 1947, 7 Apr 1960. I imagine that other newspapers on similar dates would have also had articles as well.

Entry written by his mother Hazel V. Spencer in his history:

"On July 20, 1941, Orson won a two mile race at Pine View lake (fresh water), Ogden. We were so thrilled to see him beat five of Utah's best swimmers so soon after breaking his arm. Then Aug 3, 1941, on his mother's birthday he won the race from Antelope Island to Blackrock. It was a terrible day, be he battled the high waves alone, when all other swimmers quit, just because he had promised his mother he would win. The man who followed him in the boat looked like he was made of salt; and he said, 'It would take one better than a fish to swim the lake today.'"

As to the reason the race stopped, my mother agrees with the Harbormaster of the GSL, that it was because of the war.

I was thrilled to see your blog on your swim and your mentioning my father, as well as seeing his name with yours on the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame record. Thanks for your interest and efforts in bringing back the Antelope to Blackrock Race.

Sincerely,

Nancy S. Woodbury

Here are the many newspaper articles that she sent me which I have scanned and typed up below....

August 15th, 1938:
Spencer Wins Salt Water Swim
Paddles 8 Miles in 4 Hrs. 36 Minutes

Choppy water, which makes swimming in Great Salt Lake a constant battle to avoid strangulation, failed to keep Orson Spencer from successfully defending his Antelope to Black Rock marathon swim championship yesterday.

He negotiated the 8 miles of turbulent brine in 4 hours and 12 minutes to finish far ahead of Ken Lyman whose second place time was 4 hours and 36 minutes. The time was 22 minutes slower than his record of 3 hours and 40 minutes last year.

Bill Armour won a spirited race from R. L. Rigby, Magna mill worker, to finish third in 5 hours and 12 minutes. The other three starters(sp) failed to finish.

Crowd Cheers
Lyman matched Spencer stroke for stroke half way, but thereafter fell steadily behind. The winner received an ovation from a large crosed assembled at Black Rock Beach to witness the finish.

Will Receive Trophies
The Black Rock Beach Company will present tropies to all who finished the race. George Knepp, deputy sheriff, supervised boating the swimmers. The race was supervised by Dr. Munn Q. Cannon, chairman of the Intermountain A.A.U. swimming committee which annually promotes the swim.

August 4th, 1941:

Orson Spencer Alone At Finish Of Black Rock Swim

Conditions Worst in History of Race

At the start of the annual Antelope Island-Black Rock Beach swim yesterday, Orson Spencer was just a convalescing ex-champion whose complete recovery from injuries received in an automobile accident was so doubtful as to make his part in competition a distinct question mark.

When the 8.12 mile swim - through the worst conditions encountered in the history of the race - was over, Orson was not only the winner, but the iron man of the gruelling swim, so completely recovered that his strength and stamina was notably ahead of anyone else's and his position in local swimming circles restored.

Swimming the course through mountainous waves that often kept the contestants out of touch with their boats, Orson required five hours, seven hours and 22 seconds - an hour and one-half slower than his own record for the course - but could have taken twice as long and still won, for he was the only man in a starting field of six who finished.

WIND MAKES BIG WAVES

At the start of the race, the water was calm and the going smooth, but it was not long before a heavy wind came up to whip the surface into mountainous waves and made the going both difficult and perilous. Ned Winder of Granger was the first to drop out of the race, and shortly afterwards Ed Watson, who won the race two years ago under highly adverse weather conditions, was taken sick and he had to be hauled into his boat.

Key Lyman, defending champion, was battling with Spencer for the lead in the race, but when the waves got bigger and bigger he gave up the attempt, leaving Spencer, Peter Leavitt and Wayne Christensen in the water. Leavitt was the next to be taken out of the turbulent water, sick and shortly afterwards Christensen swallowed a mouthful of brine and was all through, leaving Spencer in the water alone with nearly two miles to go.

REFUSES TO STOP

Officials urged Orson to call it off and accept a "victory by elimination" but the swimmer kept grimly on under his own power until he reached the finish line unaided.

"It's Mother's birthday, and she's my trainer and coach: I have to giver her a real win for a birthday present." he said when urged to quit the swim before the end of the course.

It was Spencer's sixth win of the gruelling race. He holds both the three-hour-40-minute-52-second record for the present course, set in 1937, and the record for the old Antelope Island to Saltair course, two hours and two minutes.

July 22nd, 1956

Veteran Swimmer Gives Distance Race Slants

Great Salt Lake is a unique body of water - and distance swimming in it is a unique sport.

And if you're going to enter this season's Antelope Island-to-Saltair swim, you'd better start with the fundamentals-such as breathing.

That's the advce for this season's candidates from Orson D. Spencer, the greatest distance swimmer the Intermountain Area has produced, and one of the best in the sprints as well.

Spencer's career is almost a unique one, from his 1919 memories of the first "race" over the course by veteran instructor C. S. "Prof" Leaf, to Orson's final appearance in 1941 freshwater swim at Pineview Dam.

Prospective entrants for the July 23 race this season would do well to listen to the six-time winner of the Antelope classic, whose still-perfect condition, carries him through a program with the Wasatch Mountain Club, and plenty of skiing activity at Alta in the winter.

The swimmer in the Great Salt Lake is of a different breed.

He has no rhythmical breathing as does the ordinary swimmer - he must "breath with the waves" - if they are choppy, his breathing must be choppy; if they are big and slow - then he'd better breathe big and slow.

Because a mouth full of salt brings a definite choking sensation; and two or three mouthfuls take away all sensation, in short order.

And the stroke also is governed by the waves - the freestyle goes over the wave, so that the splash is back of the face, away from the eyes and mouth. Goggles are good only for a short time, beacuse they get covered with salt.

Spencer also learned that most of the work is done with the arms - the legs are so high because of the buoyancy that they are kicked only to maintain circulation.

Stories of Spencer's remarkable condition are legend, but perhaps the two best are these:

THE FIRST, concerns the time when, at 15 years of age, Orson hiked from Saltair north and then along the shoreline to Antelope Island, a distance of about 10 miles, and then swam the five miles back that afternoon and evening - all by himself. Orson wants this story to be forgotten, for it violates every rule of safety he has stressed for so many years since, such as requiring an accompanying boat for every swimer.

The other story concerns the time, a few year later, when he and Paul Swain rowed over to the island in 2 hours and 30 minutes - and Orson swam back in exactly the same time, that afternoon.

Highlights from Orson's career: He still holds the prep 220 free record of 2:32.2. He set a number of other prep marks, but they have since been bettered... He still holds the 150 backstroke record for colleges, at 1:45... He also holds the 300 AAU medley record of 4:04... As he recalls the Antelope swim development: "Prof" Leaf swam the distance in '19 as a dare... Chuck Mitchell won the first AAU race in '26... and Orson won in '30, '31, '32, '37, '38 and '41...

Orson sounds like a must for the Intermountain Area's sports hall of fame.

December 5th, 1962"
Swimming Now a Weighty C..."

Orson Spencer, in his day good enough to represent Utah in the nationals in the backstroke, couldn't make the prep traveling squad today, unless he shaved 10 seconds off his best time.

As a star swimmer for LDS High and the University of Utah, Spencer dominated the local scene for almost two decades and at the age of 32, he finally called it quits. Under today's stepped up swim program, Spencer would be a rarity because of his longevity, but his records would have to improve to merit consideration.

"I swam the backstroke in 1:07 and went to the nationals, where the event was won in 1:07.4" Orson laughed as he visited the Ute workout.

"Now, the high school record for the distance is 54.5 seconds."

There's a reason for this tremendous youth surge in swimming, and Orson is the first to admit it.

"Coach Don Reddish has his Ute swimmers going a mile in the morning, two miles in the afternoon and winding up with 1 1/2 hours of calisthenics in the afternoon. When we were swimming, we were lucky to get in two swims a day, total of maybe a half mile" Orson added.

The age factor is a difference now.

"When I was 15, I wanted to enter the Great Salt Lake swim to Antelope Island, but my dad believed I was too young and I was 20 before I had the chance," Spencer continued.

What a pioneer he was! I am truly blessed to have been able to contact his family who had these wonderful records to share. I truly hope that his love for the sport, and his successes can be appreciated by fellow Utah swimmers and that the Great Salt Lake gets more attention like it once did as a highly respectable open water swimming challenge and adventure.

Raising our own Thanksgiving Dinner

Per many requests of friends and family. Here is our thanksgiving dinner that is still a good 6 weeks away from being at 100% capacity. He's already too big to fit in our oven.  I was checking the size of his muscles and man he's gonna be good eatin!  I can't wait!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Beware of Pride v.2

Austin, Jacob and I went to a meeting house in St. George to view Priesthood Session.  I thoroughly enjoyed this session!  President Uchtdorf for the fourth time now wins my "Favorite talk" awared.  His topic was on avoiding pride.  It was very thought provoking.

Here is the audio version of his talk.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Gords

Here are a bunch of gourds that I got in the Black Island Farms box.  Very cool and unique.  Alot like the real Gords.

Haha

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Bay area Table Tennis kids

Whenever I go to Nationals or the Berkeley Open, I see these kids from ICC and the Bay Area.  It's weird cause I see them so much that I forget to realize that these are superstars!  Kids like Krish and Ariel are going to represent the USA in the Olympics one day, and they may just end up on a Wheeties box, and these are kids I see playing right in front of me at tournaments.  We have a ball that Ariel signed for us at last years Berkeley tournament hanging on the wall next to our table in the basement where we have a picture of her and Jacob. Watching these kids play in person is indescribable.  Their control and instincts are inhuman!


PONG from California is a place. on Vimeo.

I love Krish's priority list for playing:

1) Having Fun
2) Passion
3) Fight
4) Win!

Austin's list appears to be completely backwards.  It really depresses me when it causes him emotional distress when he doesn't win.  When he doesn't win, he stops fighting for every point and gives up.  He loses his passion and he definitely doesn't have fun.  His face says it all.

But how can you teach that?  You can teach drills, but how can you get a player to adopt a mindset like that?

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Oliver's morning routine

Last night poor Oliver wasn't feeling so good, he was coughing and whining and wouldn't sleep in his own bed so I had enough and gave him just a tiny bit of Nyquil.  Wow that stuff really worked.  He quit coughing and slept really well.  I slept in with him and Cathi got back from her run and woke us up.  Oliver woke up happy.  I got in the shower and was talking to Cathi when she looked back in the bedroom and started laughing and yelling "Go Oliver!".

Oliver was doing pushups on his own without being asked.  What gave him that idea.  What a stud!  Here's a video clip of him doing 10 reps....

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

My favorite beverage in the whole world!

I love this stuff!  This is my Mountain Dew.  Seriously, it keeps me a little wired with the natural sugar, but it doesn't have caffeine and so I get a similar effect without feeling like I'm a jack Mormon for drinking it!  So tasty!

Especially full of potassium to combat those leg cramps.

What's your favorite beverage?

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Damn you Gordon! My name has been tarnished!

Just to make it clear, I am NOT a sex offender.  But apparently there is another Gordon Gridley out in Florida who has now smeared my good name.  What a jerk!

By the way, what guy is 6'0", 178 pounds and has a double chin like that!?  That can't be right.  He should be also charged with falsifying his weight when he got booked into jail.

I hereby excommunicate you from your name.  You have to EARN the right to be GORDON GRIDLEY and you really blew it.  Your new name is Paul Hornswallow.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

The sexiest crossing guard in the world

It really should be illegal to have crossing guards that make men turn their heads when they're driving down the road.  Kids could get ran over!  My wife decided she wanted a little extra cash so she got a job helping kids cross the street before and after school.  Only 1.5 hours per day, and she likes to get outside and smile at the kids.  She's such a friendly woman.
One of my favorite pictures.  I love kissing Cathi!

So today is our 16th anniversary being happily married.  Every year I seem to love her more and more.  I love doing her hair on Sunday morning.  I take about 25 minutes to use a hot straightening tool to make her look super foxy.  The cool thing is that it lasts all week long!  Bad thing is, she gets lots of comments from ladies, "I love your hair! Who does it?"  This is bad for two reasons.  First,  If ladies are commenting, you KNOW men are also going, "Woah, check out Sister Gridley!  Hubba Hubba!".

Second bad thing is, I'm starting to get a reputation in the neighborhood for being a hairdresser.  I'm starting to talk with a lisp now and sit with my legs crossed and get junk mail from beauty colleges. J/K.

Anyhow, I'm very blessed to have such a wonderful woman.  She works hard around the house.  Does laundry EVERY WEEK and doesn't let it build up.  She doesn't demand that I hoot and holler when she does her part keeping the house in order.  She's very loving to the children and to me.  I just don't get what I did to get such a wonderful mate.  Seriously, I hit the super jackpot!

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

The league of ignorant and assembly of indifferent

This particular "vent" post has been deleted to avoid being interpreted as a personal attack upon people who shouldn't feel like that.

Bottom line - this post was about how to be better about sincerely communicating with people we love and care about.  Everybody can improve in this area, especially myself.  So if you were one of the few who had a chance to read this original post, please excuse my "poor me" attitude.

I was in a particular pissy mood this morning and took it out inappropriately in this post and wouldn't want certain parties to take it personal and get their feelings hurt.  Hopefully I can improve my own actions in this area too.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Time for a haircut


You know it's time to cut the kids hair when they wake up and look like a munchkin from Wizard of Oz.

Oliver just woke up and was a good sport as Jacob took several pictures of him and his cool do.

And then Mom couldn't resist giving him a few kisses











Looks like we'll be giving haircuts tomorrow after FHE.

Friday, August 6, 2010

My Leia meets Chewbacca

My princess over the past several months has been on a quest to find Chewbacca. Sometimes I'd go into my office and find her looking at pictures of St. Bernards. I'd tell her, "No Way woman!" I was at the time only thinking of the massive dog turds in the back, or clumps of dog hair floating gently in the air throughout our house.

I told her to quit looking. "It's like looking at porn Cathi! It's something you're never gonna get!" But she persisted and her hunger only grew. Over time my resistance to her intensifying desire started to breakdown. She did her homework and finally found one that had just the right background, and being sold at just the right price and she nabbed him.

We went out together to Tooele to get "Max", our new St. Bernard. He's two years old and HUGE! No lie, It's like having a four-legged Chewbacca in our house! Cathi just loves him to death. She seriously hasn't stopped smiling since yesterday morning. It's funny to see Cathi cuddle up and hug this monster of a dog. He's so gentle. He's fantastic with the kids, and with other animals.

We took him on a walk yesterday and he met our friend's dog Maggie. Which he was fine with. He totally ignores the cat and the chickens in the back. The cat just about jumped and clung to the ceiling when she first saw him. I didn't think a cat's back could bend up that high. But now she just sits a few feet from him staring.

Cathi's dream has come true.  Already Max's favorite is Cathi.  If she leaves the room and everyone else is in there, he'll follow her.  I'm happy for her.  All the kids are jealous that he's picked her to be the Alpha female of the house.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Ethical Suicide?

I've been thinking about my Grandpa alot lately. He used to be such a fun person to be around. I idolized him as a kid and a young man. He was wonderful with people. He had such a fantastic sense of humor that made him fun to be around.

Now he has gotten old, lost the use of his legs, and his bowels. I feel bad for him. My mom told me a long time ago about a humorous comment he made a long time ago. Something like "When I get so old that I'm shitting my pants, that's when I hope I go." When you get to that point I can imagine that can be a struggle with your self esteem. My grandpa has drawn inward so much now that he hardly speaks.

I tend to put myself in his shoes. What would I do in this situation? Or in the situations leading to this part of his life? I have rather contrary views on a few things than my wife and parents. One of which is how I feel my old age and end of life should be handled. Is it ethical for someone to decide for himself, when his life has been completely used up?

I read this document that expanded some of my thoughts. This one took more of a statistical and scientific approach. When a horse breaks a leg, often they're shot, or when a dog gets so old that he can't go up stairs or get up very well, he is euthanized. I know humans aren't animals, but why all of a sudden is a human supposed to live his life until it ends completely naturally, even at the expense of himself and others. I would argue it's an individual decision and shouldn't be a blanket thought that its wrong for everyone in any situation.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Troubleshooting when Retailnet doesn't come up

I was having trouble getting Retail.net to come up for tmx275, but not tmx249. I asked Nate Hamilton and he suggested I clear my Java Cache. What? Java cache?

Control Panel -> Java -> (Under Temporary Internet Files) Settings -> Delete Files -> OK.

Once I did that, it worked. So it might not be a bad idea to clear the java cache when you're having troubles.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Hiking with the kids

Yesterday after my long swim at Bountiful Lake, I thought it would be a perfect day to take the kids on a hike. Cathi was gone to Ragnar's Wasatch back with her girlfriend runners, and I was home with the kids. So we went up to the white rock.


I had a small cooler with Gatorades, water, and some cereal bars. Leftovers from my planned swim. I put Oliver and Sam in a wagon and pulled them from the base of the City Creek gate, up a little over a mile to the trailhead for the short little .5 mile hike up the mountain. The kids had a ball. They were very obedient to the command to stay on the creek side of the road to avoid head on collisions with bikers coming down.

I told them about Brooke Hopkins, the college professer who came down to fast on his bike and swerved to miss some hikers who weren't following instructions, and fell off his bike and died much later due to his injuries. So they were surprisingly good about staying on the correct side of the road while walking up single file.

Nobody complained and they all were excited to make it to this "famous rock" where I took Jacob once before. When we got there, we took an empty Gatorade bottle and put $1.75 in it and buried it under the other rock next to the white rock.

When we got back to the car we still had a couple hours until our Father's Day celebration at Chuck a Rama in Bountiful with the Lows. So we went over to the Capital building and walked around in the basement. They took out all the cool displays! It was so boring in there compared to what I remember. So we didn't stay there for long. We ended up going to a park in Bountiful and played on the playground.

Thank goodness for 100 spf sunscreen! The kids ate a ton at the Chuck A Rama and I did too. Much more than I should have. But hey! It's Father's Day and I had given the kids a wonderful day instead of just sitting at home watching TV waiting for Cathi to come back home. Plus I just swam for 3:15 that morning, so I don't need to be down on myself for indulging a little.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Human Foosball


The other night when we had our combined activity the Beehive Leaders introduce 'Human Foosball'. They hooked each person to a piece of PVC pipe and taped the floor. The rule is they had to stay on the line. Then used the basketball court and a couple of small goals. It was so fun to watch them move side to side to get the ball. Using the walls, and passing to each other just like a good foosball player would. It was entertaining to watch.

Jacob scored a goal as the back defender by kicking it lightly up and over the field and right into the goal. It was a very lucky kick, but he did a funny victory dance afterwards.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Welcome home Cooper

Jacob and Cathi were very busy today looking at dogs online. Cathi looking for St. Bernards, Jacob for Beagles. Cathi found a St. Bernard for free, but we had to go to Minnesota to get it. Jacob found one for $200, but we had to go to Ogden to get it. Jacob definitely had the better deal. Plus in reference to my last post, I think a Beagle would be much easier to clean up after. I don't want cow pies in my back yard.
So Jacob and Cathi went to get Cooper, the new dog for our family. Jacob paid the $200 himself out of his own account, so technically it's HIS dog. Although we counseled him not to use it as a power struggle and let the other kids enjoy him and treat him as the family dog.

He's house trained already and 3 years old. He's a little pudgy (like me) and has about 5-10 pounds to lose, so we're being strict with the kids about not feeding him human food and leftovers. Annabel could get away with that, but not this dog.

Jacob loves him and is happy as a bird.

Friday, June 11, 2010

Love your dog, but not the poop?


Cathi and I saw this bench at a corner in Boise. Love it! The type of people to be too grossed out, or careless about picking it up, aren't probably the type to pay a dime to have someone else do it. I'd love to know how much that business is making.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

A company success story - Treat your customers right and you'll get more business!


So this week I read about a good man who was badly injured in an accident. I've nearly had a similar life threatening accident happen to me and I know how fragile life can be! In sympathy for his situation I thought a small bouquet of flowers would be a nice gesture and brighten his day, and ordered some online. Oh boy was the company I chose a good move!

I went online and found ProFlowers. I did the order with the address that I got from anywho.com.

The next day when the delivery was supposed to take place, Cathi got a call from ProFlowers saying that the Order couldn't be delivered cause the address I gave didn't exist. What? So I did some more intense investigating. Found out a partial address from an Intelius report. I was still not sure of an East or West coordinate, so I ended up just giving in to traditional methods and called Joey Emig's house to get the address. I was hoping to exercise my PI skills. But I had already spent alot of extra time being an information gathering nerd.

I called ProFlowers back with the address to see if they could salvage the original order, but they refused to do that as they mentioned that the original delivery was probably not in a condition to be received, and said they would pay for another order as well as rush the delivery all at their expense. What! The wrong address wasn't their fault. I couldn't believe my ears.

So now they're probably losing money cause of me. The whole process went smooth and they were very kind. I'm definitely going back to ProFlowers should I ever need to deliver flowers again. That was a very refreshing experience considering a few of the last very crappy experiences I've had with customer satisfaction (I'm still pissed at you SquareTrade!)

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Courage or stupidity

Last night at the stake youth activity, they had the youth do several activities such as:

1) Climbing a ladder that wasn't leaning against anything, just people at the base holding it vertical.
2) Climbing another ladder about 4-5 feet high and falling backwards to a row of friends with locked hands to catch.
3) Swinging a cement block that was tethered to basketball stand. It starts placed just below the persons face and then when it swings back, don't flinch.

Here's a picture of Jacob doing the cement block swing:
Well he must have been leaning backwards when he dropped it, cause he was brave, didn't flinch and it actually hit him in the chin. Not too bad. But it definitely did hit him. It didn't appear to hurt him.

There were a few others where it hit them in the chest. And there were some who totally flinched. This exercise was fun.

Afterwards they showed a clip of the Hoyt son and father who did an Ironman. It gave me inspiration for this weekend's 70.3. I'm excited and looking forward to it!

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Jacob turns 12

This morning I took Jacob out for a birthday outing. We went to Walmart and got him a new outfit including a new watch, hat, sunglasses, shorts, shirt, shoes, socks, underwear. The works. He was very pleased. Then we went to Warren's for breakfast and he ordered a monster breakfast.

I hope I'm not spoiling him. He said Thank you several times. I have to treat that boy right, cause he's volunteered to be my support boater this year, including tonight at BL. Good thing I got him some biking gloves, otherwise he would get some serious blisters on his hands from rowing.

Happy Birthday Jacob, you're a good kid. And I'm excited to have you in Deacon's Quorum! You're very mature for your age and always so willing to help. I like how you're athletic and I can tell other boys your age like you and respect you. You represent the Gridley name very well. I love you.

Friday, May 28, 2010

I've lost my ring!

Yesterday while swimming out in the Bountiful Lake I lost my wedding ring. I'm sad about that. That water was so murky there was no way I would find it. Dang it!

I just hope that in a few hundred years a couple of hobbits who might find it while fishing there at Bountiful Lake, don't fight about it so viciously as these guys did.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

America screwed up

Biggest loser - So last night the guy I voted for was NOT picked to go to the finals of biggest loser. Koli did win the "At home" challenge of losing the most weight. A whopping 53% of bodyweight.

Mike, who started at 525 pounds did lose 50.1% of his bodyweight was the biggest loser as far as the game goes.

It's too bad though that the game allows the real biggest loser to not win the grand prize. The game has turned into survivor where you can vote people off, but isn't the game about losing weight, not gameplay?

I mean, if the biggest loser didn't lose the most percentage of body weight, he ISN'T the biggest loser. Let him have the big check, whatever, cause the show isn't about the money. It's about losing the weight. Give Mike the $250, but the biggest loser title IS Koli's.

Not to take away from Mike or anyone else on the show. They still lost a ton of weight. Good job to everyone on the show. My favorite was O'Neil. That guy had some fire!

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Chicken butt!

Last night I could help but laugh when I heard my little Oliver on his last day of being a two year old ask his older Brother Jacob, "Guess What?" Jacob said "What?", Oliver then yells in his cute little two year old voice, "Chicken butt!". Then everyone laughs out loud together.

This morning I got up and got all dressed to ride my bike in to work. I topped off my tires and was about ready to clip in when I could hear Oliver inside. He was awake and crying, "I want my Dad!". Jacob was trying to calm him by turning on Sesame Street. Cathi had already left for a run and Oli wanted some love by one of his parents. So I went back in and exclaimed, "Happy Birthday big boy?" He smiled and I hurried into my work clothes and we went to Warren's for pancakes.
He was so happy. He chose the booth to sit in and we had a wonderful breakfast together. He got syrup all over his arms and shirt, and the shoes I put on him were Sams so they kept falling off.

So after breakfast we washed up in the restroom and went over to Walmart and got him a new outfit including shoes. He picked out some cool shoes and a nice Ironman shirt and shorts combo. Then we stopped by the toy aisle and he picked out a pack of cars that he took home and played with. What a fantastic morning. He was very happy and said "Thanks Dad". What a joy to be a Dad to these cute kids!

Here's Grandma Low's traditional Happy Birthday singing.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

First blog from ipod

Today I took Jacob's iPod to the apple store and they replaced it. The new one works fine. I thought I'd make a blog entry with it.
The typing interface will take some getting used to. I think I will get me one someday soon.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Running is in her genes

Cathi finished her 29th marathon yesterday. She did great. Anytime she gets under 4:00 is a good marathon. She got 3:47. A couple minutes from being another Boston Qualifier. Jacob also ran the half marathon. He was determined to get under 2:00. He got 1:58 and took first place for the 12 and Under category. When he puts his mind to something he fights to the finish! Plus it doesn't hurt that his Mom is a running machine.

I'm so proud of these two people in my life! Congratulations Cathi and Jacob. You guys did so good.
From Cathi's Marathons

Friday, May 7, 2010

Russell Hantz did NOT win Survivor Heroes vs. Villains

I read today that Russell Hantz was arrested for hitting some guy down to the ground at a festival in Louisiana.

Based on this I can infer that he did NOT win Survivor Heroes vs. Villains because to a guy with that big of a head, if he won, he wouldn't be frustrated. This tells me that he's having so much frustration with his outcome (and his life) that he has to resort to violence because he isn't happy.

Poor guy.

Can I just say I can't stand Russell Hantz? Survivor's biggest villain and fool. If he wanted to win, he'd win over a few people instead of make everyone on the jury hate him. It's not who makes it to the end alone. It's who makes it to the end and has enough people on the jury who will vote him as the sole survivor.

I would have thought he would have learned that the first time, when he lost to some girl that I can't even remember anymore.

Goodbye Facebook

So our Stake President who is probably the most inspiring speaker I've ever heard, mentioned last Saturday in a session of conference, the problems presented with Social Networking. He said, "I'm not telling everyone to get off of Facebook, I'm just saying, be careful." He went on to give examples of problems that people often stumble over with its use.

I decided that for me, I would just get off it. It really is a waste of time, and also encourages big egos. So I'm done. I'll still keep my blogs though as they are really a form of keeping a journal.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

What do do when deploy fails in OC4J App Server

First of all, this post is WORK RELATED, and not intended for friends/family and is completely boring so feel free to hit "mark as read" now.....

I found NO help whatsoever in google for this issue, so I'm hoping that this post might help some other poor soul trying to figure it out.

Trevor tried deploying TomaxCMAdmin in 10gR3 OC4J App Server and kept getting this error:
"Operation failed with error: oracle.oc4j.admin.internal.DeployerException"

I was able to deploy the same war file to my standalone OC4J just fine. I compared settings, deleting the CMADMIN OC4J Instance and recreating it, but nothing worked. Then I asked the hero of the day: Sudhakar Pyndi, and he had an immediate answer. Man I really respect guys who have a photographic memory!

The fix for this error: "Operation failed with error: oracle.oc4j.admin.internal.DeployerException" is in the second page of the deployment in OC4J.

On the "Bind Web Module to Site" option, DO NOT select default-web-site. (I put it that way because that is how it is set in my standalone OC4J which does deploy properly). But in the OC4J App server, this needs to be set to null. Once I did that, it deployed properly and without errors.

Hoping that this helps someone else out there.

Friday, April 16, 2010

Flashback of bullies and Austin's PiƱata

Yesterday I had an experience that made me have a flashback of an encounter I had with a group of bullies:

I was about 11 or 12 and walking to the store from my house when I had to walk past a group of about 5 or 6 kids that were rough kids. The kind that used foul language and often got in trouble at school. They were hanging out on a corner where i had to turn to get to the store. I decided to walk past them and not show fear, cause they sense that and feed off it. So I walked past them. One of them said, "Hey where you goin? You got any money?" Stuff like that. I decided to just keep on walking rather than turn myself into a victim. Then the group started following me. They got up right next to me. I had to make a move, so I turned up a driveway to a house the I deliver newspapers to. The family had a couple of smaller kids not my age, but school age kids. One of the bullies said, "You live here?" I said no. I went up to the door and pretended to ring the doorbell. The bullies pretty much walked off and out of sight. I then resumed my walk to the store and didn't have any issues.

So bottom line. Don't show fear, and just modify your planned route momentarily if needed to throw off the enemy.


What caused this flashback? Layton Police department. I took the first Layton exit and was heading up to Gordon, when there was probably 3/4 mile of cars all lined up to get through the intersection at Fort Lane and Gordon. I wasn't in the mood to wait for 10 minute to get through there so I turned into the MASSIVE fort lane parking lot to cut through. I noticed after turning in that there were, no lie, about 8-10 cops on motorcycles and cars chasing other cars who were also cutting through a minute before me. Lights were flashing all over the parking lot. I knew I was busted. This was a traffic cops dream. Lots of impatient people like me trying to bypass all the old people who mosey on through.

But then I had the above flashback and had an idea. I had to throw off these bullies. One of the few remaining shops of that dying block was an authentic Mexican shop. I stopped and parked. Went inside thinking I wouldn't buy anything, but just come out a couple minutes later. But then I saw some very cool looking piƱatas. Austin's birthday party was this evening so I bought one with Shrek and donkey on it. I then went back to my car, put the piƱata in the back seat and made my way to the north end of the parking lot (still taking advantage of the cut through).

The few cops who weren't already issuing tickets were eyeballing me. I bought my way through that parking lot! It was way cheaper than a ticket and dealing with an underpaid and aggressive bully. Screw you Layton cops!

Layton should hire more construction workers to get that nightmare construction done with, rather than cops to give tickets, chasing people down like cats. But that doesn't bring revenue in for Layton does it?

So I stopped at All-A-Dollar and filled up the piƱata with candy and small toys and what a party we had with the kids and a bunch of other neighbor kids. They had a blast and enjoyed all the fun toys and treats.

So what originally was a diversion actually ended up being such a great activity for Austin's party.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Qwest (and other phone bullies) better wise up, or a little kid called Ooma is gonna kick them where it counts

I am very excited to announce another step away from the "financial tyranny of phone companies". Today I got my Ooma system which I bought on Amazon.com for $180. The Ooma system allows for telephone charges that are free. That's right free! Not a penny or two a minute. Nothing!

Within 4 months, the system pays for itself. That's a kick butt ROI.

Installation was simple. I plugged the box into my DSL box, and then from there to my network router. Then my main wireless phone receiver into the Ooma box. Then within a few minutes of setting up an account online, I got a dial tone and could make free calls.

A couple of minor catches:

  • I have to pay the one time fee of $39.99 to port my old phone number - but that's worth it.
  • At the start of the second year, the calls are still free, but I have to start paying the yearly $11 tax - I was wondering about tax. Can't really get around that, but $11/year for phone service isn't bad.

  • The phone system is only as reliable as your internet - which so far has been pretty reliable, although overpriced.



I called Qwest to cancel my over $50/month phone service and gladly told them I'm going to be paying $0/month for phone service. They tried to cut me a deal, but they couldn't come close to free. Can't wait to hear about more people jumping on the Ooma bandwagon and really make the big dogs sweat!

You gotta check them out. Ooma.com

Monday, March 29, 2010

My son Austin is a brain


Austin has done something that I have NEVER done in my schooling career.... earned a 4.0 GPA in a term.

Last quarter he was struggling, mostly with getting organized and staying on top of his assignments. This quarter, I helped him by keeping a very close eye on his assignments and reminding him when he even got behind one step. It paid off, and he is so happy. I think his days of not caring and getting lazy scholastically are over.

I'm proud of that young man!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Red sky in morning, sailor take warning

As I was heading in to swim a couple morning's ago I noticed a nicely colored sunrise going around the corner at the end of Bluff Road and turning onto Gentile at the bottom end of Syracuse.

From Panoramas

Everytime I see a red sunrise I remember a disney movie where a couple guys tried driving around the world. The saying "Red sky in morning, sailor take warning" came to my mind. Sure enough that afternoon it rained like crazy.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

My favorite Little House Episode - Albert is on drugs


Yesterday when I got home from work the TV was on while Cathi was cooking dinner. I noticed immediately that my favorite Little House on the Prairie episode was on. It's the one where Albert is addicted to Morphine.

He beats up a kid in school, hits his teacher, runs away and tries to steal more drugs from Doc Baker. But Doc Baker and Charles are too smart and trap him. Then Charles takes him up to a remote cabin. Then the fun really begins.

Albert goes through some withdrawals like seizures while he lies there screaming for help. Charles looks like he's going through the same amount of pain himself. They both scream and hug real tight. Then Albert claims to need some air so he can breath, or he'll die. Charles helps him outside when Albert pushes Charles down and runs off in the night. Charles catches him and carries him back to "rehab".

Then Albert goes through more seizures and screaming. It's hilarious. The acting is fantastic. It's so dramatic. Cathi hates it. Albert throws up white goo all over Charles and it's great.

But Cathi has had too much drama and makes me turn it off.

Dang!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Fingerprint gun

Last night I had a dream of this invention, that I thought was pretty cool. The last time I thought of a cool invention, it didn't get too many raves: A clear see through toilet for locating clogs.

It took me two hours to get back to sleep cause I was thinking about some details of implementing it. But I have no background in firearms, or in fingerprint identification software.

Anyway, it looks like someone else already thought of it. Sure would be nice if this was something out on the market. My biggest reason for NOT buying a handgun is that it could get into the wrong hands, but with the fingerprint scanner on the gun itself, that would eliminate any disasters.

Cops would love this cause it would prevent someone taking their gun and using on anyone else. It would also help in solving murders. It would help with little kids finding a gun and using it accidentally to kill their friends or themselves. Also if the gun was more digital in that for every round fired, it left a digital fingerprint on the casing and slug, logged the time it was fired, the direction it went and the fingerprint used to fire it. All this info uploaded automatically (the gun would also need to have wireless service integrated into it) to a server instead of on a chip on the gun, which could be hidden or destroyed. Also when the gun is fired without calling a service number, then the service center that logs the firing of the gun, would call 911 which would include the location of the gun and all the other data.

The cost of the gun would probably be 2 - 3 times what a normal handgun would be, but would have so many protections built in, that it would be worth it.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

If I were Aladdin

And I got three wishes, my first one would be this:

I would have the ability to transform my car into a highway patrol car anytime I wish while driving on the freeway in order to teach a little about traffic courtesy and safety. Here's my simple little chant for the day: When possible, stay in the right lane.

I realize there are alot of people who think they own the lane they're in. That includes overly aggressive drivers, as well as overly retarded drivers. Whenever you are on the highway and there is more than one lane in each direction, every driver has the obligation to drive courteously. That includes allowing those who wish to drive faster (even if they are speeding) to pass on the left.

Nobody has the right to slow down drivers by braking in front of them. That is cause for a moron slap (more on that later). If you are being passed on the right that is cause for a moron slap. Everyone has the OBLIGATION to move to the right so that those who wish to pass can do so on the left. If you are in the leftmost lane and you are going the same speed as another car at your 3 o clock, and there is a car immediately behind you, as a courtesy you should speed up and pass the car at your 3 and then move to your right at a reasonable distance in front of them. This allows the car behind you to resume they're desired speed.

The most desirable behavior is if everyone was constantly on the lookout for cars in front, behind and to the side of them, and make passing on the left the utmost priority. If you simply like to drive slow, stay in the rightmost lane.

Now back to my wish. I have no desire to make people suffer (at least financially). So as a part time Highway patrolman, after explaining the above courtesies, I would administer a moron slap. The offender would expose they're bare buttocks and I would deliver a firm slap on the bum. I believe that may be enough to discourage those who like to drive oblivious to anyone else.

Semis are one of the greatest offenders of this courtesy and they all deserve moron slaps. I realize they probably don't like merging with incoming traffic, but deal with it.

Some exceptions would be if there is an exit in the left lane, or when not on the highway (cause people need to turn left all the time), or if you are a legitimate moron.

And the world needs them. They're the first to go when a serial killer is in town or when aliens need to abduct someone.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Still no improvement on the ear

Still deaf, but totally pain and pressure free.


Cool thing is, when I breathe, because of the hearing issue, I can hear my own breathing and I sound like darth vader. Even though my respiration is clear as a bell, I can hear my own breathing inside my head just like I was in a space suit.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Valentines 2010


Back in January I looked at the Stake Calendar and it had a valentines dance for Saturday 2/13 at 7:00 pm. I put this on my calendar and planned on having a great date.

So on Tuesday this week I called and got a corsage ordered at Jimmy's floral. I picked out the dress Cathi was going to wear and got the same color flowers to match.

We went out to dinner at 6:30 and then drove over to the Stake center, no cars parked there and lights out. Drove to all the other buildings and same thing. Man was I disappointed. What happened? I went back to the Stake Calendar and the dance isn't listed at all. They removed it.

So what ended up being a dream date, I had to salvage by just going home, helping put the kids to bed. Burn a movie and try and make the date more than just like every other night.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Eulogy of Lady Annabel Boslooper Gridley




Lady Annabel Boslooper Gridley
(September 22, 2004 – February 6, 2010)

Annabel joined the Gridley Family on November 20th, 2004 and was a valued member of our home. We took her on walks, tried breeding her twice and took her to the cabin several times.

Annabel was a lively and aggressive soul. She was constantly trying to show her superiority with other dogs and would often rough them up. But on the inside she was a gentle thing. She learned to accept two kittens in her life, but not quite so gentle with chicks. Her instincts kicked in when close to chicks and she had two in her mouth before she was promptly scolded and spit them up. One survived.

Annabel was well known for terrible gas, and was often the scapegoat for others in the family who wanted to conceal their guilt. Annabel often went on walks in the neighborhood, and on hikes up at the cabin which she enjoyed thoroughly. The children, specifically, Austin was always willing to show love, to Annabel’s constant need for affection and often gave her rubs and let her sit on his lap. Annabel was always willing to give affection and great with all children. She was beautiful. Her colors and physical qualities were admirable.

She died on a Saturday evening, possibly due to the cold weather. She will be missed and remembered for all the great qualities she possessed. We hope you enjoy running around in the fields in heaven with Sadie. I’m sure you two will have quite a time exploring and finding animals to chase.

We love you.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Love Me, But Don't Show Me

So I made this little music video of one of my favorite Sons Of Provo songs.

From Movie/Music clips


It only took me about 6 hours to produce this thing. Geez. I kinda feel like it was a waste of time. But it was a little fun and I might try it again one day. Who knows.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Winter Sports


Isaac and Jonas have been playing on a basketball team. Jonas is quite the shooter, and Isaac is quite the defensive guy. Although he doesn't fully realize the importance of not fouling when defending the basket. If he steals the ball and gets a foul he still jumps up and down and says "Yes!"

The kids have been having fun outside lately with snow ball fights, making sled runs, and other things. Oliver loves to go outside and play with the other kids. He looks so cute all bundled up.

I'm home sick today. My ears and neck are in severe pain with this ear infection which I've had for a few days now. The pain meds aren't really lasting long at all and I can't overdose so I'm praying that it ends soon. I had a little fun with our cat on the computer this morning:

From Family Videos

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Ear Infection


Yesterday morning I woke up feeling like I had dove to the bottom of a 12 foot pool. (I'm not very good at going deep underwater). My ear drums felt like they were in a vice. It was very painful.

I took a leftover Lortab from my nose surgery from a couple months back. That helped a little, but not much. I was hoping it would just go away, but it got worse. Last night I couldn't sleep more than a few hours. The pain was so intense. I tried taking a hot bath at 4am. I let my mind wander and I envisioned myself on the dock at Mike Orem's boat at Dover early in the morning before the sun came up. I began to say a prayer just before my swim expressing gratitude for all the events leading up to the big swim. I almost started crying right there in the bathtub.

I heard Isaac knocking on the bedroom door to come in. I let him sleep in my bed in my place. I got dressed and camped out at the clinic. I didn't have an appointment, but I wasn't going to leave until I was seen. I felt like my ear drums were about to rupture.

I saw Scott Beckstead and sure enough I had an ear infection in both ears. He said it's rare for adults have them. I think its because I have a cold and the new areas of my sinus' going up into my ears aren't used to the issues that come with having a cold. Anyhow, I am now on Amoxicillan and some numbing ear drops. Man I went from a 90% pain level down to a 5% so I'm a very happy camper right now.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Not fat, but STOUT

Per request, here is a picture of me as a baby. I was STOUT and apparently had a self contained food storage.
From Gords


From Gords

Monday, January 25, 2010

Big Helen's going for a record


The kids were excited when I walked in the door. They had to show me the XXXL egg that Big Helen laid today. Woah, now that's ginormous (for a chicken egg).

This week one of the chickens disappeared, which is really strange because they stay in the coop the whole time. There were no signs of Annabel going on a rampage, and there were no tracks in the snow. So now we only have four chickens.

I will be placing an order soon to get some chicks in the spring. Anyhow, the kids have had fun with egg collecting every day.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

I do not think it means what you think it means


I recently used the word "Brevity" thinking it meant something related to being brave. I've not used the word before and looked it up already using it that way, and duh, it has nothing to do with being brave! It's about using concise, short descriptions to make a point. Oops. Truly something I learned today.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

My top ten most embarrasing moments in my life

10. Getting busted for having "Smurf Village" on my ipod - During a meeting, James MacDonald looked over at my ipod which was just sitting at my desk and noticed the big splash screen for "Smurf Village".  He didn't say anything, but moved closer and was staring at it and he was obviously very curious.  I wasn't playing it, but it was the last app I had up when I came in the office.  He said after the meeting that he loved the smurfs as a kid and wanted to download it on his iPhone.  But the damage was done and I was red as a beet.  Guys don't play with Smurfs.  This is a great topic of humor within the Gridley house.  The funny thing is, after the meeting he went to the bathroom, and about 15 minutes later comes back, taps me on the shoulder and says, "I'm at level 3!"

9. "He called me a name!" - Making a big deal about a coworker comment that was just a misunderstanding - Craig Butts discussing with Debi Fluckiger at his desk about rejected CCN's. I heard my name and got deeply offended. Complained to my manager who found out it was a misunderstanding and I just overreacted.

8. Depeche Mode concert disaster - took Cathi to a Depeche Mode Concert that failed miserably.

7. False Start - My senior year of High School swimming I was on the blocks for swimming a 500 free at the State Championship meet at BYU. I false started and there is no second chance when you false start, so I was disqualified. That was a major disappointment and so embarrassing!

6. Fly Down - I once went to a High School Prom dance with Patrice Bolyard. I excused myself to use the bathroom, and after a few dances afterwards realized I left my fly down. Wondered the rest of the night how many people noticed and laughed at this doofus.

5. Locked into peddles - my first time riding my triathlon bike to work. I came to a stop sign, had clipped out of my peddles and then rested my foot back down thinking that I had to clip in, but just resting on the peddle actually clips you in. Well I came to a stop and couldn't pull my leg back up off the clip and just fell on my side. A school bus full of kids were right there and the whole bus looked to the right and laughed at me as I struggled to get unclipped on my side with my right knee bleeding and my face all red.

4. AI - as in the crappy movie by Steven Spielberg. In 2001, I was excited about this movie's potential and asked my in laws to go. This was a terrible movie with alot of inappropriate sexually suggestive stuff. Cathi and my Mother In Law walked out. To this day it's an extended family joke that I thought AI was such a great show.

3. Getting caught with my pants down - I was upstairs in my bedroom preparing to take a shower. I was fully in the buff, with my bedroom doors open, when Lucy's new friend comes upstairs looking for Lucy. She got more than she wanted to see at the Gridley house that day. That friend has never attempted calling Lucy again. We now have a family rule that no friends are allowed upstairs (where there isn't anything except bedrooms).

2. Sleeping on the job - When I was working graveyard shift for the Church, I finished my rounds in the South Visitors Center on Temple square (about 4am), I sat down on a couch in the dimly lit basement and stretched my legs out. Next thing I heard some alarm in my ear-piece going off along with a voice "Gordon! Gordon!". The shift manager was right there shaking me trying to wake me up. I was in a DEEP SLEEP. I was so freaked out that I actually pissed myself a little. I was nearly fired. I was put on probation and everyone in the department now had looked at me with "SLACKER" written all over my forehead. Because my services were needed checking people into an event starting at 6am, there was a line building and quite a hold up. This was probably the worst day of my life.

1. Putting my foot in my mouth - When I was in the 8th grade, my new best friend was Mike Phillips. We were standing in line at lunch when one of the new lunchroom assistants came up to Mike and was hassling him about something needlessly. I whispered to Mike, "What a bitch!". After getting our lunch and sitting with our group of friends, someone mentioned to Mike, "Hey Mike, how is it having your mother as one of the assistants?". Oh man, what an idiot I am! I asked him, "Mike is that your Mom?" "Yeah, you didn't know?", "No.". That friendship never blossomed as to this day I still feel a little guilty over that stupid comment.

Do you dare post your top ten most embarrassing moments?