Bugs, It's What's For Dinner

"America is the last country on Earth not to eat bugs."

That's what Sgt. Muramoto said to us as he passed out the paper cups full of sagebrush-boiled mealworms, crickets, and other assorted dirtborne critters. That was right before I ate them. With my mouth.

The bug eating was just a small part of a survival training weekend hosted by the Utah National Guard at Camp Williams. They made no bones about this being a recruiting event but the recruiters didn't exactly give me and my 34 year-old knees the full-court press. So I was able to enjoy the festivities free of any pressure.

Said festivities included rappelling a 45 foot wall, starting a fire with flint and steel, trudging around a bombing range in the Utah desert in search of some random dots on a map. There was also a pretty cool obstacle course. One where you have to cooperate as a team to solve real-world physical challenges in an impossibly short amount of time.

This last one, the team obstacle course, further emphasized with the recruiters that their effort was better spent on the 5 cloned 20 year-old wrestlers with matching shirts and crew cuts. All of whom would make far better soldiers than me. Even the one who broke his leg in literally the last 30 seconds of the exercises. Broken femur and all, he can still probably out-run, out-jump and out-soldier me in every possible way.

Ah, to be young and invincible again.

If I Didn't Know Better I'd Say That's My Brother Sitting There

There's not a lot to say here except that if you pause this video at 27 seconds and notice the skinny guy in uniform sitting on the front row... the one with the B.J. Hunnicutt mustache... that's my dad.



Dad spoke Vietnamese and was the translator for the Colonel that McCain is saluting. I'm told dad spent quite a bit of time with McCain that day and has, for years, spoken very highly of the Senator.

I think John McCain is a good and decent person who would do pretty much anything for his country. But I think his methods are flawed and his policies out of touch. So no, despite my respect for the man, I won't be voting for him in November.

But that doesn't make this video any less cool.

Yet Another Online Distraction

Just in case I didn't have enough to do, what with the new job and 4 daughters, I've started a new blog project. It's an idea I completely ripped off from Dave over at WriteInMyJournal.com. Which is, by the way, a very cool project you should be paying attention to. Plus, Dave is tall.

My project is CommuterPortraits.com. It gives me a excuse to meet and interact with all the interesting people I see on my daily commute. It also lets me exercise my photographic muscles in an area I haven't spent much time, which is photographing people. I mean, I've taken pictures of people before, I've just never done it as a point of emphasis.

So, go check out the site and let me know what you think.

Draper Tweetup

It's always a good time when the Salt Lake Twitter crowd gets together.

Today's lunch at the Winger's in Draper was no exception. I haven't been to many of these meet-ups but there were a few familiar faces, some familiar names and a couple of out-of-towners in attendance.

I was glad to see the ever-elusive @dmx at the end of the table. That is until he opened his mouth and stole the show with his witticisms and charming Manchester accent. How am I supposed to compete with that? I grew up in West Jordan and pronounce all my vowels as schwas. So I just shut my mouth and tried to get by on good looks alone.


But then there was Charlie Oliver. I mean, really. Look at this guy wearing his sunglasses indoors. Only a serious stud with huge self-confidence can pull that look off the way Charlie can.

Clearly, the ladies were impressed with Charlie. They always are. Don't believe me?

See how charmed they are? Oh, there on the left is Ash Buckles. After Charlie was done working his magic, Ash's family showed up. Talk about a great bunch.

I've wondered for a while why Ash's wife Monica doesn't twitter. But she explained it like this, "I have way too smart a mouth to say what I'm thinking all the time." Obviously, we all explained to her that having a smart mouth would not only serve her well but probably give her a better following than the rest of us put together.


We all enjoyed each others' company and a little good food and drink while we were at it. Next time, why don't you come with us instead of reading about it on the internet?

Fresh Meat

I've just finished my first week at a new job. I applied for a lot of jobs before making this change but the truth is this is the exact position I wanted. This is the agency I've hoped to work for since I became aware of their work several years ago.

Now that I've been here for 5 full work days, I can safely say that the agency is not exactly as I expected. In some ways, it is much, much better than I could have hoped. A few other things are eye-rollingly familiar, like seeing a play you've seen before but with a different cast. And there are a couple of things I hope I can play a role in improving.

There are people here who appreciate and know how to make proper coffee. The agency provides a bus pass to employees despite the ample available parking. I have felt almost continuously useful and it seems like I'll be able to make a difference. All-in-all, I feel very much at home.

Please, for the love of corn, don't let me eff this up.

How The Cool Kids Roll

Dawn and I met some friends - some old, some new - for lunch at The Bayou in Salt Lake. The Bayou is not famous for its food. That couldn't be possible. Nor is it famous for its service. Also, not possible.

What it is famous for is having some 200 beers on the menu. Almost any imported, domestic or local brew you can imagine. And since I'm a beer snob this is a very good thing.

Naturally, I had 2 - 12oz cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon. But since I'm a beer snob, I poured them into a glass. I mean, really. What kind of a person do you think I am?