Oh what a day

It is amazing at how nature can change in a heart beat.  I was at the local airport today and a snow storm hit, canceling all the flights in and out.  All the people there were stranded!  Thankfully I live in the area and went home ha ha ha!  But really, we think we are so cool because we have so much technology.  Yet, even after hundreds of years of existing, we still can really predict how nature is going to act.

One day though, I believe some of us will control nature.  Yes that is right.  Some will grow up in an age where they will be building their own worlds!!!  Crazy I know but it is possible.  As you continue to explore those crazy places all around you in the world, you will realize that many things that once seemed impossible are all of a sudden not that to far fetch :)

Have a great day 

Outside

If you really want to escape your dull world, go outside.  There is so much to be seen and done!!!  Lets think of all the things we could in the winter:

1. Sledding (or ice blocking)
2. Ice skating
3. Build a snowman (or a mud man if there is no snow where you live)
4. Snowboarding
5. camping in the snow
6. ultimate Frisbee in the snow
7. snow

Yeah I am pulling a blank now.  But your imagination is the limit really.  Go on a family trip to some place local.  Heck take a date out to restaurant that you have never tried before!!! It will be a new experience for you both.  Have a contest to see how many stars you and your friend can count.  Find a pool and go swimming in the dark (not skinny dipping).

Go hunt down some missionaries, like those Mormon ones.  Pretty sure they have a good Christmas message for ya.  

BYU

Do you watch college football?  If you do, then you most likely have heard of Brigham Young University.  This school has one of the top accounting schools in the nation!!!  Not to mention many of the nations finest looking young ladies (I mean that is a respectful way of course...).  It is fun place to check out if you are passing through the death trap know as Provo.

On the BYU Campus you will find museums, art collections, and a lot of history about the first settlers of Utah.  At the bottom of the main campus student center you will a bowling ally, arcade games, pool, and other fun stuff to do.  Just thought I would let you guys know about this place.  Have a good one!

Potato Cannon!!!

Right now we are in the middle of a freezing winter, which makes me remember back to those good old summer days building a potato cannon with my little brother.  It took a us a good while to find a fuel that worked, but when we did, we got amazing results.

Now, in the video you only see us shooting a sheet of wood, not that impressive.  But what you don't see is us firing potatoes well over 400 feet and hitting targets!!!  You see, our camera died.  It's a fun summer project.  You can find out how to make one by watching YouTube!

P.S In case your wondering what this has to do with crazy trips, I answer by saying some crazy trips happened in your own head.

White Elephant Gift

Now, I am sorry that in this post I am not writing about a new place to go visit.  In this post I am going to get on my soap box of how much "fun" a white elephant gift is.  This last week I attend a local church Christmas party, which at the end had a white elephant gift exchange.  In the gift I prepared I had a lot of good stuff:

• A random candle (I found in my house)
• One weird walrus doll (Also found in my house)
• An orange (found in a box...in my house)
• Several Hershey kisses (removed from my house and place in the pile of other stuff found in my house)

As you can see, I expect someone to give me a gift better than this.  You might be thinking "Why should they?".  Easily answered, because I said so (jk, no I really did not expect that)  Well I ended up getting a box of princess clothes made for a little girl....  It was a dumb gift!  How on earth am i suppose to use that stuff?!!  I was not happy with my gift!  If anything, I felt like some creep child kidnapper.  So, from this experience, I conclude, that no one should host another white elephant gift exchange party again.

Temple Square, Utah

It's the season of Christmas lights again!  You know, that season where you try and beat your neighbor at having the highest electric bill by covering your house in multicolored light bulbs?  Anyway, no place tops having more lights than Temple Square.  It's located in the heart of Salt Lake City, and every December they string lights all over the trees, put up several multicultural displays of the Jesus, and much more!

My personal favorite thing to do there is to listen to all Christmas messages playing throughout the square.  It really helps bring those warm feelings of Christmas into your heart.  Many families from all around come here to spend time together and make special memories.  Actually not just families, but also young couples come to go on a beautiful walk together beneath all the lights.

(if you did not catch my hint there, I'm trying to say it would be a great date idea)

The arches

Ever see the Utah license plate and noticed the stone arch on it?  Well guess what, I’ve recently been there!  It is located near Moab, Utah in one of the national parks down there.  It was naturally formed by weather and elements over several centuries.  The hike to get there is actually not hard at all, so if you are a bit out of shape don’t worry too much.  In fact if it makes you feel better, the park rangers have installed stairs along several parts of the hike. 

Now, despite popular belief, there are actually more than one naturally formed arch out in moab.  There is a trail just a little farther up the road from the first arch that has over five arches along it.  This is most likely not the cheapest vacation but it will most assuredly not being the most expensive either.  I highly recommend it for families and the extended date.  

Corn Mazes of Utah

One of the highlights of Halloween in Utah are the corn mazes!  You may ask what a corn maze is, well let me tell you.  Each year the farmers grow their corn and then they cut large, intricate designs into the field.  Sometimes they make a large picture like a pirate or something similar.  Other time they just make a bunch of random turns and dead ends.

Within each corn maze are several posts that you have to find in order to get your prized before leaving the maze.  Each post has a unique symbol that you must collect so that you can prove that you made it.  Sounds easy enough right? Wrong.  All the corn mazes are haunted by ghost and monsters, who impede your way of getting to any of the post. 

To me thought the best part is that all the corn mazes are very inexpensive.  The price is normally around seven dollars to get in.  I don’t know about you but I see a good date idea ;)  

Pumpkin Palooza

So this was an event I attended at a friend’s house recently.  Whoever attends the Palooza needs to bring a pumpkin to carve for the best jack-o-lantern.  Also, each person is told to bring their favorite pumpkin treat (e.g. pumpkin cookies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin something, etc.).  To help spice up the event, the host picks out the craziest Halloween music he/she can find.   

At the event I attended it was encourage, not obligated, to come dressed up in your Halloween costume.  Once the food has been consumed and the pumpkins have been judged on whatever categories you and your friend have chosen (scariest, funniest, cutest, etc.), the host then last puts on a scary movie, or Halloween themed movie, to help settle everyone down before sending them home. 

It was a very fun and simple event to do with your friends.  If you wanted, you could even turn this into a date idea J

Hidden in the middle of a Draper, Utah neighborhood is a park that is home to the fabled Whisper Dome.  The Whisper Dome attracts hundreds if not a few thousand people each year, and has been the site of many marriage proposals.  So what makes the whisper dome so special?  From the outside it looks like a typical gazebo that you would find in any normal park.  There are no strange markings, colors, or any signs to suggest that this seemingly normal gazebo is a special secret of modern architectural ingenuity.

When one stands directly in the middle of the Whisper Dome your voice echoes all around you as if you were speaking into a powerful microphone yet all the people around you hear you as if you were speaking normally.  There are six to eight pillars going around the inside of the dome.  If you were to stand in front of a pillar and a friend was to stand in front of one directly across from you, you would be able to hear even the tiniest of sounds from all the way on the other side of the structure.

The Address is:

900 E 12650 S
Draper, Utah 84020

It’s definitely a great date idea if that is what you’re looking for.

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Mirror Lake and Provo Falls

Have you ever gone to a new place that was in your own state or home town and thought “I never knew that this was in my own backyard!”?  Well that is exactly what happened to me when I took a trip to see the amazing sites between Camus, Utah and Evanston, Wyoming.   The first awe inspiring place is Provo River Falls; these naturally formed waterfalls are both gorgeous and easy to access.  Many of the falls feed into one another, creating an intricate maze of waterfalls going down the river.  Since it’s not a very steep or dangerous place, it would be a fantastic family trip.

As you head farther up the road from the falls, you will start to pass numerous lakes.  Don’t speed on by the lakes because each lake is either a different color or reflects the wilderness around it, making the lake appear to be a portal into another world.  The last of the Lakes is Mirror Lake.  This is the largest of the lakes, and, like the lakes before, reflects the wilderness around it.  What makes mirror lake a little more special than the other lakes in the surrounding area is that it reflects the surrounding the mountains and the beautiful blue sky behind it.  It is the most breath taking of the lakes.  So next time you’re heading toward Evanston, consider taking a detour through Camus and seeing some of the wonders of the world. 

The Crimson Trail

Do you like the change of the seasons?  How about the change from summer to fall? If you answered yes to either of these questions then you definitely need to visit The Crimson Trail.  The trail in located in Logan Canyon and is directly across from The Wind Caves Trail.  During the change from summer to fall all the trees in this canyon change colors: yellow, red, and orange.  All trees over hang the trial, creating a tunnel of crimson leaves all around you…hence the crimson trail.  

The trail go up the side of a mountain, therefore, if you’re not in the greatest of shape you should not attempt this hike.

At the top of the mountain is a ledge, from there you can see all up and down the canyon and its multicolored sides.  The entire hike took my group and I about 3 hours to complete, but we did stop a lot.  So next fall, if you want a hike to see some awesome fall colors, check out The Crimson Trail.

Well if you’re a dog lover and you like to go outdoors then this hike was made for you and your fur ball friend.  At the top of Millcreek Canyon Utah is a hike called dog lake trail (or dog poo trail by some) that leads to a small lake up in the mountains.

This last Sunday I hiked this trail with my family and it was not too difficult.  There is a steady incline the entire time, so if you’re not in the best shape maybe you should not take on this hike.  From start to end the trail is shaded by trees meaning that you won’t have to wear a ton of sunblock.  If you go during the spring that trail is surrounded by wild flowers.  Do I hear a date possibility?

The lake at the end in reality is more of a pond than anything else and is meant for your dog to go and swim.  A lot of the dog owners just find a nice place to sit there and let their dog run and play in the water or with the other dogs that are around the lake.

Overall, the hike took me and my family about two hours to get up and an hour to get back down.  It took us that long though because members of my family took it at steadier pace.  I would say you could do it in a hour if you’re about an average physical fitness level.

Alright, well this week my friend from Logan Utah invited me to go to an event called the Brazilian Festival.  It apparently has been happening, unbeknownst to me, every year this entire time.  It was fascinating due to the several booths that sold “authentic” Brazilian food, which was basically a lot of meat.

Several times during our visit the people put on shows of Brazilian dances dressed in the traditional cultural garb.  At one point a group of men demonstrated a type of dance called Capoeira.  It originated from the slaves in Brazil back in the 1700's as a method of disguising their way of learning how to fight and defend themselves from the slave drivers.  Now what used to be a form of training to fight has now become a popular game/dance in Brazil and the United States.

Over all it was a fairly interesting festival but I am sure going once to this is enough for anybody.  I give it a 6/10 as far as things to visit and see.