Post-Father's Day stuff

So I decided I am going to write in the blog once every other week. I think If I can do that, then people will stop harassing me...sigh. It has been a very eventful week, and to cap it all off I had a good Father's Day. I got some thing for my fire pit, and I went shooting with my youngest. I will post pictures. I do want to rant for a second. I know that isn't in my nature, but please indulge me this time. A historical thing is happening in the country of Iran. Iran has been an enemy of the US since 1979. When Islamic, Marxist and communist revolutionaries, stormed the US Embassy and seized it, as well as took US hostages, it started a chain of events that has come to a head this weekend. Since that fateful day those many decades ago, the country has been ruled by the religious authoritarian mullahs and their iron fist hold on the country, which used to be pro-western culture and European ideals. Since then the country has been a thorn in the US side. They sponsor terrorism around the world, and kill US troops in Iraq by proxy through training and distributing weapons to terrorists and criminal in that country. The face of Iran has been this slimy suave character, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He has taunted and pointed fingers at us, and been taken into the bossum of every US hating liberal in our country. Well Iran had an election between this man and his opposition. Ahmadinejad won the election, but the opposition declared voting fraud, and the country tumbled into chaos. There are riots in the streets and the people rising up to declare freedom from the oppression. They are standing for something and wanting to be democratic and free. The French President, Sarkozy, has said he stands behind them, and the German Chancellor, Merkel, says she sides with the freedom loving people, but our President Obama, wants to stay out of it. He is willing to deal with whoever winds up the President of Iran (a hollow job anyway, the real power is with the Ayatollahs) The message we are sending is so loud and clear to the middle east and the world. We will lay down with anyone as long as they play nice. North Korea, a couple of weeks ago, after a warning from the UN did another nuclear test and successful accomplished it. The also have been testing ICBM capabilities and have a missile ready to launch over 4000 miles. The UN issued and stronger resolution to have a ship search and seizure of North Korean vessels carrying weapons out of the country. The day it started, the NK merchant ship left for Myanmar, loaded with suspected weapons. Now it has been confirmed and our destroyer, USS John S. McCain watches from afar as the NK thumb their noses at us, and know we will not do anything because we fear the North Koreans. My country has become a paper tiger, and does not care for what is good and right in the world anymore. We used to believe in truth, justice and the American way. Now it is how much can we get away with things. God help us all.

I know this has not been cheery, but I don't feel cheery, I feel sad. It is hard serving for 20 years, to watch as your country continue to lose status and power, and not by anyone else, but by our own people. It is what happens when we do not pay attention to history.

Ok, Ok, I have heard you, now you will hear me.

So, I have been pretty neglectful of this blog. I am sorry.

Well, since Christmas, we have been involved in re-modeling a 5th bedroom so that our grand-daughters can have a room of their own. It is a very nice room, and there are pictures from beginning to our current state. So check them out. Thanks to Grandpra Brown, and Beth, Tori, Kaylynn, and Grandma Brown for their support and help in the building of this room. Eventually we are going to add a bathroom, and so our house will finish out as a 5 bedroom 3.5 bathroom home. I really don't know what I am going to do when Doug comes home from his mission. I guess it really depends on the economy and what spacing we have in the house. Kaylynn and I have some thoughts about moving, but sometimes we think it would be better to just stay put.



The other big news in my life is I had my tonsils removed and biopsied. Talk about rough. The first day I woke up thinking, "What have I done.." Kaylynn stayed the night with me and I was very grateful for that. She fed me soup and jello. She has been very attentive at nursing me back to health. I was able to go on medical leave at work and that really helped me a lot. My throat still feels weird, but is getting better. I had a blessing by Grandpa Brown, and in the blessing he said that I would heal faster than others would normally, and that is what happend. The doctor even said that very same thing. I am grateful to the Lord for helping me recover.



I am here in Pennsylvania for training and leadership help. So now the blog is current. I will try to be better.

The Beginning of a New Year

Happy New Year!! 2008 is gone and now we have 2009. We'll see how this one stacks up since the last one was very difficult for me. In review of the year. I finished out my time in Oman. I worked really hard to make a difference and to withstand the stupidity that I had to endure everyday from the Omani Air Force. No matter how hard I tried to convince them of the correct way to maintain their airplanes, (after all we did design and build them in addition to flying them safely for 40 years) they wanted to do things their way without actually doing any work, they were wasting money even having us there. So in the end when the new bidding came out my company lost and we wound up leaving. DynCorp International won, and came in without much excitement or fanfare. I had a few of my people cross over to their company. I won't miss the fear of camel spiders, the long drives to Salalah, the fine talcum powder dust, or the British refugees that seem to have their own agenda. Oman could be a very cool place and has some of the most beautiful beaches and water I have ever seen. Just wish the people would try to pull themselves into the 21st century.

Kaylynn came over to visit, as I had mentioned in my earlier blogs. I have posted new pictures of our time in Jerusalem, visiting the Mount of Olives, Garden of Gethsemane, and seeing the Garden tomb, which I am convinced is the burial place of Jesus Christ. So check out the pictures below. I have a whole paper on why I believe this is the place. After Israel, Kaylynn and I went to Egypt, and I caught a stomach bug and gave it to Kaylynn, so we were both sick there, but I did get to see some very cool things like the Pyramids of Giza, and the Temples of Luxor & Karnak. We went home on a wing and a prayer I miscalculated our return time and missed our flight out of Jordan, so I had to beg onto a First Class flight costing me a lot of money. We did get back to Oman and Kaylynn left and I followed two weeks later. The whole experience was that, an experience. I learned about a new culture and what the other side thinks. Very insightful.

I came home without a job. (The contracts I might have run have been postponed.) I did find a position in Utah, which was a blessing, because it was not something that usually comes up. The position was the same as in Oman except more people, and not on the operations side, but more the logistics side of things. I really feel like a fish out of water. I am still trying to get used to it as it is very challenging. The technical aspect is nothing new for these guys who have been doing it longer than me. I don't know a lot about supply, but I am learning. I am working on being more interactive, and trying to gain all the knowledge I can about what we do. I love working for Lockheed Martin.

So here we are in our house in Layton. Kaylynn and I have callings in our ward, and we are talking about renovating our home because of Beth and the girls, and Doug coming home this year from his mission. With them and Matt and Tori, our house is going to be FULL!! So we need a bigger home, and I am not sure how that will work out for us. I am enjoying my time off, and Monday, I am back to work and rolling up my sleeves and ready to learn.

Merry Christmas and End of a Year.

First, the highlight of the whole day was getting call from Doug. He called from his mission around 0900, and we talked for several hours. It was awesome and we had fun hearing about his mission and the people there. Afterward we opened presents and I have the funniest video of Matt and his disappointment. Matt had been trying to guess, and stating he knew what all his presents were, so when he guessed, and assumed he was getting and XBox 360, Kaylynn pulled it from the box and rewrapped the box with a cement brick and wires to make it sound the same. We kept telling him we couldn't affoard a XBox 360 and to stop assuming. So when it came time to open the box, well you will see his reaction.



Traek Malan was over and gave Matt a year subscription to XBox Live. Matt nearly fainted. The rest of the day was spent cleaning up and playing with new stuff. Later that day we went to Grandma & Grandpa's house for a dinner, which was really good. Thanks Tanaya (sister-in-law)! It started snowing again and dumped another 5 inches of snow while we were at their house, and Kaylynn was in flip flops and she had to put plastic bags on her feet to go to the car. That's what she gets for wearing flip flops in December.

The day after Christmas we spent the whole day looking or "easter eggs" on the DVD of "Dr. Horrible's Sing-along Blog." It is a very good video. You should check it out.

The previous days were nothing but work and getting ready for Christmas. More to follow.

My wife mentioned that in blogtime and blogspace we were still in the Middle East and asked me to correct that. We have returned!

Well, I have waited to update this for far too long. We returned to the US and I got a job with Lockheed in Utah, as the Site Manager for the Industrial Product-Support Vendor program. It is interesting and very challenging. A lot has happen since then. It is Christmas, and Kaylynn and I are doing well. I am teaching in Church and Kaylynn is working in the Library. Beth and her girls have moved in with us. More to follow on that, and maybe sometime I will be able to write what I think about it. Until then I am going to keep quiet. Doug has moved from his current area to the other side of his mission. He isn't too thrilled, but the Mission president has full confidence in Doug, that he will do a great job helping an area that was destined for closing. Matt is dating girls and just finished his Eagle Scout rank and his Duty To God. He is waiting till March to do his ceremony so that Jeremy Zaugg can return from Afghanistan to present it to him. Tori is involved in "Showboat" and she just turned 16 years old, so pull the kids off the sidewalk.
Beth and the girls, Sarah, and Emily have been a joy to have around the home. We are thinking about renovations to the house so that we can accommodate everyone. I really am enjoying being with my children. It is like learning the "dad" thing all over again. I hope Beth is enjoying staying with us too. As the days go on, she will eventually want to move away, but I am hoping that won't be for awhile. She is planning on going to Weber State University to become a High School teacher (crazy girl). Anyway. I will try to keep up with the blog, as my wife has been very disapproving and disappointed in me about it.