Lake Powell 2010

Hailey and I indulged in the warm waters of a desert paradise while
Dave stayed home to ensure the continued success of our family's
financial stability. Bless him!

If Dave were here he would join the four men watching the one
man dig the holes needed to bury the anchor lines for the house-
boat.

If Dave were here he would wonder why his daughter was sitting
all alone in the middle of nowhere .

If Dave were here he would be telling the boat driver to go slower,
to not turn so sharply, to look out for the other boats, to not run
over anybody.... he would be telling Hailey to be careful, to tighten
her life jacket .
If there was room in the boat Dave would be pacing back and forth
mumbling, "someone's going to get hurt, someone's going to get hurt"


If Dave were here he would be wondering why it's so green in this
little canyon.
He would be deducing that a lot of water must run down the cliff
walls when it rains.


Dave would be right! A LOT of water runs through this canyon
on the off chance of a torrential, desert rainstorm. New waterfalls
are created, mud flows down the cracks and lightning is very, very
close. If Dave were here he would be FREAKING out!

If Dave were here he would be saying that black thunder clouds
and slot canyons DO NOT go together.


If Dave were here he would look at the largest stone arch in the world
and say, " that's the coolest thing I've ever seen"!

Sunny California???

THE PACIFIC OCEAN IN JUNE Here we are enjoying that beautiful California sun, scuba diving
in balmy waters. Can't you just feel the warmth as the ocean
envelopes your body and sends refreshing trickles of water down
the back of your wetsuit?

Here are two numbers to get my point across:
--------------60 degrees outside air
------------- 57 degrees water temp.

Here is how I survived the chill:
---7mm thick wetsuit with hood
---hot meals
---hot showers
---warm sleeping bag


As I look out into the steel gray water, imagining the shock
of 57 degree water running down my back, I can't help but
make excuses as to why I don't want to dive today.

Of course, Dave shames me into gearing up. We came
here to dive. So I pull on the suit, boots, hood, goggles,
fins. I strap on my life support and waddle to the edge
of the dive platform wearing 80 lbs of gear.


I don't feel the coldness of the water until it finds it's way
slowly through gaps in the suit, down the neck hole or the arm
holes. The worse part is submerging my exposed face and hands.

It's not so bad after my body heat warms the water in my wetsuit.
Sometimes you have to sacrifice comfort to see beautiful things.

The shock of the plunge soon is forgotten once I explore this
underwater paradise. The golden kelp beds wave in the current.
Colorful fish swarm around like bees. The sea floor is alive with
plant life. There is a lobster in every crevice, a sea creature at
every turn.

A huge jelly fish lazily floats into our path. As we look around we see
a dozen more off in the distance. It truly is a wonderland under the
sea.

My Unusual Dad

Father's Day 2010


This Father's Day my dad spent a few hours with his four
well-adjusted, successful, happy daughters. We offered
to take him shopping for some new shirts since his old,
comfortable ones are in terrible shape. He told us he
had something else in mind.

My unusual dad is mysterious: he never tells us his plan.

This time he took us to a jeep trail at the top of Guardsman's
Pass. All the while he carried this mysterious package in his
hands. He wouldn't tell us what it was until we all sat under
a big pine. Then he presented us with fresh raspberry's.

My unusual dad is a natural athlete. He hikes, he bikes, he climbs,
he skies. He explores. He can never stay on the trail, ever! He
loves to find patches of unmelted snow in the summer mountains.

My unusual dad has an unusual job. He has spent the last 45 years
running a ski lodge, sometimes with the help of his six children.
He taught us how to work.

My unusual dad is cool.
Love You Dad!