Tuesday, August 31, 2010

They're Here . . .

So on Tuesday afternoon, Bubby and I drove down to St. George. She had a doctor's appointment and we were going to enjoy the evening at the condo. Her annual checkup went very well, and after "linner" at the OG, we hooked on to the boat and headed for Sand Hollow. Fishing was good, and I caught a few. It was super hot, and I think that contributed to what ultimately spoiled our trip.

In the middle of my fishing, and before the all important last hour of daylight, I began to have the familiar spasm associated with kidney stones. I told Bubb we had better get the boat back on the trailer while I was still able. Sure enough, before we got back to the condo, I was in the grip of an attack. Anyone who has been through this knows the drill, and I won't elaborate except to say by 10:00 PM I was in real trouble. Bubby had wanted to drive home, even though our plan was to spend the night, because there were drugs at home. I was afraid that I wouldn't make it.

We finally ended up at the ER at Dixie Regional Medical Center. I got something for the pain, and back to the condo we went. The past week has been one of waiting for the stone to drop. Lots of water consumption, lots of trips to the tottie in the night, and an uncertainty as to whether the storm has passed or not. At least I have not had to use the pain medication again (knock on wood).

We laid pretty low on the weekend. Took in "39 Steps" at the USF (not my cup of tea), saw a movie on Saturday, and went to a wedding reception. Bubby go to spend a little time with Jack Bauer. She is watching the second season of "24". It doesn't do much for me, but she finds it very gripping stuff. The good news is that with the release of the new iPod touch application for Netflix, she will be able to stream the remaining seasons to her iPod and I won't have to sleep through it anymore. I am sure that I can find something else to sleep through though. That seems to be my lot in life. Awake before 4:00 AM, snoozy by 8:00 PM.

We are getting very excited for our anniversary trip to San Diego. We leave early on Friday morning, drive to Big Bear, CA, and hook up with our friends, Ron and Nancy. We will stay there together until Sunday morning, when we will part company. We are planning to attend church with Aunt Carolyn on her birthday!!! After visiting with her, we will be driving on down to Oceanside to stay at our lodgings until Sunday, September 12th. I am sure we will find some fun adventures while we are there. We will see two Padres games, venture into Old Town in search of house numbers, walk the beach, eat lots of good food, and probably visit Uncle Bill and Aunt Verona.

If we have internet access, we'll keep our faithful readers posted about what we are up to while in San Diego. Stay tuned.

Buboppy

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

T-Bird Flight School

I won't mention the fact that I have no photos.

Last week was busy with faculty retreats, the USF, and T-Bird Flight School. We had a full slate of meetings on Monday that went on, and on. Tuesday was pretty open, which allowed time to try and get organized for the rest of the week. I think that is also the day that Bubby attended the USF production of "Pride and Prejudice". Dan and I dragged the boat to New Castle res and did a little smallie fishing. We had lots of action but never really caught a big fish. The electronics and trolling motor worked flawlessly. There were lots of other folks there fishing, including a large group of non-English speakers that were harvesting the heck out of the whipers. I am wondering if they had licenses and knew anything about limits. We had to leave before that last half hour of daylight because a storm was threatening. There was lots of black and lightening popping all around us.

On Wednesday, it was more meetings, right up until 6:00 PM. On Thursday, I held a retreat and luncheon for the College of Science faculty and staff. I had planned a 20 minute presentation with questions and answers. It went nearly an hour. Lots going on, and so lots of questions. I was glad to get my part of the back to school completed on Thursday afternoon.

Jean and Jerry Oyler dropped by for a visit on Thursday afternoon. Their granddaughter, Devon, is an incoming SUU freshman, and they came to help install her in her dorm. We had a nice dinner in the backyard, and were joined by their son, Philip, daughter-in-law, Jana, and granddaughter Megan. It was a cool and pleasant evening and great fun to just catch up with such good friends. Jerry was as full of mischief as usual. Those interested, certainly not me, attended the Green Show and even had a tart. Jerry and Jean were able to spend the night, so Bubby got to see them off in the AM.

On Friday, we all participated in T-Bird Flight School. This is a campus program designed to introduce incoming students to campus and help them get connected to its resources. Part of the event involves a march under the Carter Carillon. This is a great event, but there were sure a lot of incoming students to welcome. The line seemed to go on forever.

After the students enjoyed their lunch, we welcomed those who are considering majors in the sciences to the Science building. There was a beehive of activity, and certainly far more students than we had prepared for, but we survived.

Immediately after that even, Bubb and I stole away to St. George for a trip to the Temple, dinner at the Honolulu Grill, and a visit with Uncle Rol and Auntie Nell. We talked about doing another session on Saturday morning, but there were chores that needed doing. I reattached the rain gutter downspout in the back, and Bubby trimmed the out of control roses. We had lots of little items to pick up from various stores, so we spent a fair amount of time there.

Dan and Rosalyn drove down to take a turn in the Temple, and Bubby and I took Drewfy and Mevelyn on an outing. We did Jimmy John's and the Vernon Worthen Park. It was hot, but we still enjoyed ourselves. We finished up with a trip to Larson's Frost Top and ice cream for the kids, Diet Coke with lemon for Poppy.

It is always hard to leave our little home away from home and return to real life. Neither Bubb or I was very excited to go, but, alas, Sunday was looming large.

Buboppy

Monday, August 16, 2010

The Calm Before the Back-to-School Storm

Alas, we still have no photos. Our pre-startup routine is pretty boring, because we are trying to maintain as low a profile as possible.

Bubby and I did run to St. George to do a temple session on Thursday afternoon. One Dutchman down, 19 to go in this batch. After the session, we hooked up with Uncle Rol, Auntie Nell, Uncle Bill, and Aunt B at 'Nesto's. I don't think they enjoyed their dinner as much as Bubb and I enjoyed sharing our tostado grande. After some pleasant conversation, Bubby and I hooked on to the boat and hauled it to Cedar City. I was going to have my neighborhood mechanic take a look at my electrical problems.

Friday was a busy work day, but Bubb and I drove over to Tropic to attend the wedding reception of a friend's daughter in the evening. We saw John Yardley there, and had a nice visit. We even got to have our favorite club sandwich at the Bryce Pines.

Saturday was a work day. I had promised Bubby two things this summer. One was to take a look at the under-mattress support on our bed and other was to clean off the work bench in the garage. When I took the mattresses off to take a look, the steel frame had come unclamped. I also noticed that some of the plastic inserts in the six support legs had broken and slipped so that they were no longer offering resistance to the weight of the sleepers. We tried to replace them at the Home Depot, but they didn't have anything like what we needed. I figured out how to do it with lock washers and nuts, and I put the bed frame back together. I got thinking that it might be worthwhile to add four 1 x something slats to help distribute the sleeping load, particularly on my side of the bed. So back to the Depot we went and obtained the necessary materials.

After the bed, I started on the bench. Lots of accumulation, but by 2:30 PM, I had it pretty well cleaned up. My neighborhood mechanic had been in Mesquite, and he called and offered to take a look at the boat. It turned out that the battery cable ends had not been properly crimped at the factory and that was the source of most of the problems. The big motor has a circuit that allows the charging of the trolling motor battery, and that wasn't working either. It took him less than an hour to track it down. Can't wait to see if my trolling motor and electronics are working. Maybe later this week.

We celebrated the first picking of green beans in the garden on Saturday, as well. It looks like the beginning of great things. We shared some with a neighbor who had been watching the progress of the beans over the fence and started dropping off produce in exchange as he saw them approaching maturity.

On Sunday, we enjoyed a leisurely morning, entertained Daniel, Rosalyn, and the kids for lunch, and played a few games to fill in the afternoon. Bubby has been trying to clean out the fridge, and noticed she had the key ingredients for a big lasagna. I encouraged her to put a little mild Italian sausage in it, and we had enough baby eggplants to also put a layer of sauteed eggplant in the mix. It was fabulous, the eggplant being a highlight. We also had a big bowl of green beans (Drewfy ate a ton) caprese salad, an antipasta salad, bread, some roasted veggies, and an apple cobbler with ice cream (the last two items courtesy of Daniel and Rosalyn).

Today, it all begins. We have our opening meeting this morning, and Bubby's organization is having their opening meetings this afternoon. I will be keeping an eye on Drewfy and Mevelyn this evening while their Mom and Dad go to back to school night at the SUU pre-school. I will take a camera.

Buboppy

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

An Update

I have no photos, profound thoughts, travel log, or anything else of substance to offer. Just an update of what is going on here in Cedar City.

When we returned home from the reunion, we were both pretty well knackered. Nevertheless, I had an important fund raising lunch to attend with our biggest Science Center addition benefactor. The lunch, and subsequent conversation, went very well. We continue to cultivate this donor because we may need additional resources to get our addition finished.

Late that afternoon, Bubb and I went to the movies to see "The Other Guys." Not great, but mildly amusing.

Saturday was busy. There was cleaning, yard work, and gardening to do. We stayed at it most of the day. It was so nice to be home again that, although we were very busy, the day sped by and we were blissfully content. We did take a break to go see "Dinner for Schmucks." Bubb is a big Steve Carell fan, and although the film was crude, she laughed out loud in many places.

Sunday was equally busy. We entertained the Wells family for breakfast as they made their northward return. I taught SS (Lesson 30) and Bubb conducted RS. We got to help Patsy get to church and have some Sunday dinner, which I count as a blessing. We had home teachers, our own dinner, Dan and Family for dessert, and more. It was grand.

Monday was face-the-grind-day and both Bubb and I had to go back to work with a vengeance. I had a six our Deans' Council, and Bubb had work plus presidency meeting, followed by a haircut. I went out to start my car for the homeward trek, and it was non-responsive. Bubb drove over with jumper cables, but nothing. I drove her to Uncle Roland Williams for her haircut, stopped at Auto Zone for supplies, ran home to change my clothes and grab tools, and changed out the battery myself. Just one of my many talents. I know how to replace the toothpaste, too.

I am sure there is big excitement ahead. We are going to try to squeeze in a 36 hour vacation before school starts on the 23rd. We are currently thinking about doing it in St. George, at the condo. So stay tuned.

Buboppy

Friday, August 6, 2010

Clarke Reunion

We returned home today from a five-day Clarke reunion at Brian Head. Some of our readers will know that UP, AK, Bubb, and I were in charge this year. This was the fiftieth year of the reunions, and we wanted it to be special. I hope that others thought it was.

There was great participation from the Ralph Clarke family (Steven and Ellen), the Mark Clarke family (Odeen and Lois Mae and all of their children, grandchildren, and great grands), Robert Clarke family (Stephen, Paul, and Mark), and the Edith Eves family (UP and us). All tolled, there were probably seventy people. We tried to take advantage of the fun stuff there is to do, and I think we did.

Monday morning, we rose early and eleven of us went fishing in a rented boat on Panguitch Lake. Steve Clarke (husband of Sharon of Market Grill pie fame) made all the arrangements and showed us a wonderful time. Everyone caught fish. Beany, Jake and I went along, and we had a lot of fun. We only fished half-a-day, but had a great time anyway.



Here is Jakey with his first fish. Hooked it all by himself.



The intrepid fishermen with about 1/4 of the catch (the ones we didn't turn back).

We had a really fun family home evening on Monday night, hosted by the Mannings. We played Clarke family trivia and "minute to win it" type games. Of course the team that included Poppy, Raymond, and Tony won it all. Tony even did a victory lap around the room when the winners were announced.

On Tuesday morning, eight golfers went to Cedar Ridge to conduct the 2010 Memorial Orange Ball tourney. Paul Clarke took the leadership. He made it really fun. Everyone was given one orange ball, and there was a prize for anyone who played their whole round with it.

Paul is a single-digit handicapper, and I thought he would walk away with it. He was paired with his son David, a police officer from Las Vegas. UP was paired up with Bruce Bennett of movie review fame in St. George. I played with my cousin Stephen Clarke, and Tony and Bean were the fourth team. Tony, Bean, Stephen and I were all in the same foursome.

Bean had to leave us after four holes (orientation at Weber State for his specialty schooling), but Paul allowed us to combine scores from the three of us remaining, and wonder of wonders, Stephen, Tony, and I won this year's Orange Ball. Paul and David would like to play with us again next year.

On Wednesday morning we ran to Cedar City and played nine more holes, but that put us back at Brian Head an hour late for the start of our geologic tour of Cedar Mountain. Bubby was not pleased with Poppy.



Our first stop was Brian Head peak lookout. At 11,307 feet above sea level, the view was inspiring. Rosalyn and the kids rode with me and Bubby and Babsy rode together. Kate made a conquest at the reunion. That is Connor Clarke, grandson of Paul and Dixie. He was infatuated from the get go. He is mildly autistic, so he had a little trouble knowing how to interact, but to Katie's credit, she rose above that, and they were pals by the end of the reunion.



Bubby shot this photo of Jaye in her eighth (or is it ninth?) month. She was as fun as ever and really loved being at the reunion.



We hiked to Cascade Falls, as part of the tour. Everyone made it on their own power.



We also visited Mammoth Cave and Drewfy and Rosalyn ventured down into the opening. It was dark and cool in there.



Here is Maddie and Mark Hulet. They seem to be enjoying married life. He is a super nice kid and fits in well.



I got this candid of Jaye and Vince at the mouth of the cave. Vince is too cute, still.



Upon on our return, we had a special talent night and karaoke. Elizabeth Manning McComb's husband told the kids an African adventure story that held them spellbound. Babsy and I had to leave before the karaoke got rolling (Bean was back in Parowan from orientation), but we understand that people got involved. Dan and Rosalyn both made an effort.

On Thursday, UP and I, with the help of everybody in our families, put on a Dutch oven breakfast for the reunion. We had potatoes, a breakfast cobbler (with a biscuit crust), scrambled eggs, cold cereal, muffins, yogurt, juice and milk. It was fabulous and very well attended. We probably fed about sixty-five.

In the afternoon, those interested attended a play at the USF. We stayed home and rested. That evening there was a family meeting to discuss the future of the reunion. It was a really interesting discussion, and the fourth generation attending absolutely refused to let the reunion die a natural death. The decision was made to shorten the reunion to three days, alternate between Utah and California, and continue on an alternating year basis. The next Clarke reunion will be summer of 2012 in southern California. Elizabeth McComb is going to take the lead.

We also discussed the Jasper Eves reunion, and Babsy has agreed to organize it for the summer of 2011. Keep us in mind as you plan your vacations next year. We want to have as much fun as we had in Birdseye.

We concluded the formal part of the reunion with a movie night, and Daniel was facilitator. It was loads of fun, and very apparent who the techies and Apple computer users were. Only their presentations really worked.

Thanks to all who participated and to Babs and Dan for supporting Bubb and I. We had fun together.

Buboppy