Nampa Mayor & City Council Elections

I went to the Nampa Mayoral Debate last night. A couple times Bob Henry brought up Mayor Dale being the the tie breaker vote in certain situations, as if that was bad. When there are members of the council that are always voting "No", then the Mayor has to step up and break the tie. You can get much always being the "No" vote. The city can't shut down. Tom Dale has been a great leader for Nampa and I see that continuing. He didn't build the Idaho Center and the Public Safety building and the new library will only draw people to Nampa. Opposing roundabouts and  saying "No" just to say "No" will not bring business to Nampa. Property rights are important, but saying that a roundabout is government waste is wrong. Being the party of "No" is no way to serve the public good.

Father and Son Time

Gabe and I had quite the adventure this week. On Wednesday Michelle (my step-sister) was married. It was a great wedding. Following the wedding some of us went to dinner at a local pizza buffet. The kids love pizza buffets. Gabe and I left separately from the rest of the family as he had his first night of eleven year old scouts and I had to be at a combined Young Womens- Young Mens activity for the ward.

I was driving my father-in-laws Mazda Pick up as our van was getting repaired and Tammy was driving my car. I had driven the pick up to work and met them at the wedding in the afternoon. When Gabe and I lef the restaurant we headed back to Nampa from Boise. It was a windy evening.

About three-quarters of the way to Nampa Gabe notices a guy waving his arm out his window to get our attention. He does this for about a mile when I finally see him and open the window. The man informs us that we had lost our bed liner. A minute later another motorist tells us the same thing. We look in the bed of the pick up and sure enough, the bed liner is gone. Then I remembered seeing something fly out of the pick up while we were driving and I thought it was just a grocery bag or something else.

Gabe and I take the next exit off the interstate and get right back on heading in the direction we had just came from. As we drove we searched for the missing bed liner. We found it six or so miles back on the south side of the freeway (we had been driving on the north side when it blew out). We pull over, traffic zooming past and I put the bed liner back in the pick up. We head out and take the next exit and head back to Nampa. As we drive I have Gabe be the lookout for the bed liner. Just in case.

Good thing Gabe was my lookout, I needed him. Because just as we passed the spot where we picked up the bed liner after it blew out before, it blew out again. This time we both saw it fly out like a bird on the wing. Attach straps and we could hang glide. We stop on the right shoulder of the interstate. The bed liner was on the other side of our lanes so the only thing to do was cross four lanes of traffic, then drive in reverse on the left shoulder of the interstate for a quarter mile until we reached the escaping bed liner. 

Again, I load it back into the pick up. This time I ask Gabe if he wants to ride in the back, up against the cab acting as weight to hold it down. By this time is it dark and traffic is still flying by. Gabe was not interested in doing that at all. In fact that is probably the most concerned about doing something that I had asked him to do; that I had ever seen. So I did not make him get in the back of the pick up. I turned on the hazard lights and we drove the final ten miles on the interstate at forty miles an hour. 

We did make it home with enough time to change our clothes and head to the church. Gabe was only five minutes late for his first time at Boy Scouts. (I made it on time, too)

Brothers- The whole story.

We all have families. I am the oldest of five children. I have two brothers and two sisters. I recently watched the film 'The 5,000 Days Project: Two Brothers'. (Click the link to watch the film) The film follows the lives of two brothers for ten years. It was interesting to see the parallels with these two brothers and the relationship that I have with my siblings.

Cort is two years younger than I. Many times growing up there were little conflicts between us. We'd fight and argue. We'd try to annoy each other- get under one another's skin. But we also played together. I remember many times organizing all our He-Man toys out on our bedroom floor. We'd set them up like a village. Then we'd have our parents get out the old movie camera and film it. Like we were making our own live-action version of the cartoon. Then it was G.I. Joe or Transformers. We were able to play together. We shared a room until I was 12.

Even though we had our own rooms we were still together. Our family built an addition on our home that gave us an upstairs. Cort and I had bedrooms next to one another. We were the only ones upstairs. So were just shared a larger room. A room that had a pool table, hide-a-bed, and a bathroom.

I remember in school we always rode the bus together to and from school. I remember we had an minor earthquake. We were waiting at the bus stop in the fall, Cort had run home quickly to take care of some "business" and the quake hit. I was sitting on the side of the road shivering in the early morning. Cort came running back to the bus stop and asked me if I had been at our house shaking the lights. I told him that I had just been shaking with cold there at the bus stop. Only after we got to school did we find out there had been an earthquake.  Then in sixth grade Cort and I were no longer in the same school. It was interesting not having him around or riding the bus home together.

We'd end up at home at different times and then argue about who was going to do which chore or what T.V. program to watch. Other times we'd work together to get his newspapers folded and then deliver them for his paper route.

In junior high we were in school together again. I was in ninth grade and Cort in seventh. By now we had acclimated to not being together. We each had our own friends that we hung out and walked home with. We'd still see each other at school though, occasionally.

In high school we were together for the last time my senior year and Cort was a sophomore. By this time we were very different people. I was in the Jazz, Concert, and Marching bands; Cort was in Cross Country and Track. Although we had separate lives at school we had something that we always did together at home. We mowed lawns. So even though we might not see each other much during the school day, we'd be ready at home to load up the Datsun pickup and cut grass. at the peak we had roughly 25-30 lawns that we tended to each week.

Then after graduating I went to college. I moved three-hundred miles from home- across the state to Ricks College.  It was the first I'd ever lived on my own and it was exciting. Going from living with my parents and siblings to having five roommates was a change. Talking to my family by phone a few times a week instead of multiple times during the day was a change too. While I was away Cort became the oldest brother. I remember my mom commenting on the change that seemed to have happened. My dad and Cort would argue sometimes, but after I moved away his countenance changed and there wasn't the same level of conflict, like before.

I was in college for a year and then I left for a two- year mission for the LDS Church. For his junior and senior years Cort was the oldest at home. While serving as a missionary I only communicated with my family via letters and the occasional phone call on Mother's Day and Christmas. I noticed a change happen to Cort during this time. He was no longer my little brother, he was becoming my friend.  A friend that had been there with me from the beginning. Through the letters we shared I saw the little brother I remember maturing into a fine young man. Cort continued with Cross Country and Track in high school and then attended a year of college while I was a missionary.

One of the most memorable experiences I have of my time as a missionary was when Cort, while on tour with a performing group from Ricks College came to California where I was serving. I was able to visit with him and then stay for the performance that evening. This was a little less than three months before I returned home.

The summer I returned home Cort was working earnestly to save for his upcoming mission. He had finished one year of college and in September he was leaving to serve a mission in the Philippines. That summer he was in and out leaving town to visit friends going on missions and it was the first time in a long time that I felt alone. Even though I was in the same upstairs that he and I had shared for those many years, when he was not there I was alone in my own room for the first time.

I returned to college the fall after coming home from the mission. Cort left to the MTC soon there after. He was in the MTC for over two months for intensive language training before leaving to the Philippines. Before Thanksgiving I learned that my parents were going to separate and later divorce. A few days after Thanksgiving we were meeting Cort at the Salt Lake Airport on his way to the Philippines. At the airport I was under strict instruction not to talk to Cort about what was about to happen. I obeyed my parents, but I was not happy about it. Cort and I shared letters while he was in the Philippines, but I must admit that I was not the best pen pal. Especially during this time, I was engulfed in my own feelings about the breakup of my family and didn't think about how it effected Cort. I tried to support him as best I could, I remember making a mix tape for him - I called it "Marinduque Blues"- Marinduque was an island where Cort was serving at the time.

While he was in the Philippines I graduated from Ricks College, returned to a very different home than the one he left and I met, dated, and married my wife; Tammy. When Cort returned home from the mission Tammy and I were there to help him adjust to life. He wasn't home too long and he was back at Ricks College. But when he'd come home to visit we always made it a point to spend time together. Cort then continued on to BYU in Provo, UT. Still a good distance away, but he'd visit from time to time. We'd go out Cort, Tammy and I for dinner or spending time together. (Sometimes Cort would forget cash- at that time not all locations accepted debit cards-). While at BYU Cort spent at semester interning for UNICEF in the Philippines. When 9/11 happened that is where he was. He was far from home, but we kept in contact.

In January 2002 Cort was back in Provo at BYU. I was working for HP and attending graduate school at Boise State University with a wife and a small child. January 29, 2002 our mom died. I rushed to meet Tammy and our eleven month son at my mother's home where my youngest brother Clark and youngest sister Carley lived. The ambulance was still there when I arrived. Along with the neighbor from across the street and my dad who came. With our parents divorced Cort and I took to planning the funeral and making other arrangements that were daunting to anyone- especially a twenty-seven and twenty-five year old. This experience; as had others, brought Cort and I closer as brothers.

When Cort married and started a family it was great that we could still be so close and live near each other. We see each other regularly and our kids play together all the time. We both have four kids and they know what it means to be friends with your cousins. When I think back to the times that we argued growing up if you'd told me that we'd be as close as we are today, I would have said you were crazy. But now I know that we're more than family, we're brothers.

From Boise State vs. Utah State

Brothers... (Part 3)

(Continued from Brothers (Part 1 & Part 2)

While Cort was in the Philippines I graduated from Ricks College and returned to a very different home than the one he left and I met, dated, and married my wife; Tammy. When Cort returned home from the mission Tammy and I were there to help him adjust to life. He wasn't home too long and he was back at Ricks College. But when he'd come home to visit we always made it a point to spend time together. Cort then continued on to BYU in Provo, UT. Still a good distance away, but he'd visit from time to time. We'd go out Cort, Tammy and I for dinner or spending time together. (Sometimes Cort would forget cash- at that time not all locations accepted debit cards-). While at BYU Cort spent at semester interning for UNICEF in the Philippines. When 9/11 happened that is where he was. He was far from home, but we kept in contact.

In January 2002 Cort was back in Provo at BYU. I was working for HP and attending graduate school at Boise State University with a wife and a small child. January 29, 2002 our mom died. I rushed to meet Tammy and our eleven month son at my mother's home where my youngest brother Clark and youngest sister Carley lived. The ambulance was still there when I arrived. Along with the neighbor from across the street and my dad who came. With our parents divorced Cort and I took to planning the funeral and making other arrangements that were daunting to anyone- especially a twenty-seven and twenty-five year old. This experience; as had others, brought Cort and I closer as brothers.

When Cort married and started a family it was great that we could still be so close and live near each other. We see each other regularly and our kids play together all the time. We both have four kids and they know what it means to be friends with your cousins. When I think back to the times that we argued growing up if you'd told me that we'd be as close as we are today, I would have said you were crazy. But now I know that we're more than family, we're brothers.

From Boise State vs. Utah State

Brothers... (Part 2)

(Continued from Brothers... (Part 1))

After graduating high school I went to college. I moved three-hundred miles from home- across the state to Ricks College.  It was the first I'd ever lived on my own and it was exciting. Going from living with my parents and siblings to having five roommates was a change. Talking to my family by phone a few times a week instead of multiple times during the day was a change too. While I was away Cort became the oldest brother. I remember my mom commenting on the change that seemed to have happened. My dad and Cort would argue sometimes, but after I moved away his countenance changed and there wasn't the same level of conflict, like before.

I was in college for a year and then I left for a two- year mission for the LDS Church. For his junior and senior years Cort was the oldest at home. While serving as a missionary I only communicated with my family via letters and the occasional phone call on Mother's Day and Christmas. I noticed a change happen to Cort during this time. He was no longer my little brother, he was becoming my friend.  A friend that had been there with me from the beginning. Through the letters we shared I saw the little brother I remember maturing into a fine young man. Cort continued with Cross Country and Track in high school and then attended a year of college while I was a missionary.

One of the most memorable experiences I have of my time as a missionary was when Cort, while on tour with a performing group from Ricks College came to California where I was serving. I was able to visit with him and then stay for the performance that evening. This was a little less than three months before I returned home.

The summer I returned home Cort was working earnestly to save for his upcoming mission. He had finished one year of college and in September he was leaving to serve a mission in the Philippines. That summer he was in and out leaving town to visit friends going on missions and it was the first time in a long time that I felt alone. Even though I was in the same upstairs that he and I had shared for those many years, when he was not there I was alone in my own room for the first time.

I returned to college the fall after coming home from the mission. Cort left to the MTC soon there after. He was in the MTC for over two months for intensive language training before leaving to the Philippines. Before Thanksgiving I learned that my parents were going to separate and later divorce. A few days after Thanksgiving we were meeting Cort at the Salt Lake Airport on his way to the Philippines. At the airport I was under strict instruction not to talk to Cort about what was about to happen. I obeyed my parents, but I was not happy about it. Cort and I shared letters while he was in the Philippines, but I must admit that I was not the best pen pal. Especially during this time, I was engulfed in my own feelings about the breakup of my family and didn't think about how it effected Cort. I tried to support him as best I could, I remember making a mix tape for him - I called it "Marinduque Blues"- Marinduque was an island where Cort was serving at the time.

Continued in Part 3-->

Brothers... (Part 1)

We all have families. I am the oldest of five children. I have two brothers and two sisters. I recently watched the film 'The 5,000 Days Project: Two Brothers'. (Click the link to watch the film) The film follows the lives of two brothers for ten years. It was interesting to see the parallels with these two brothers and the relationship that I have with my siblings.

Cort is two years younger than I. Many times growing up there were little conflicts between us. We'd fight and argue. We'd try to annoy each other- get under one another's skin. But we also played together. I remember many times organizing all our He-Man toys out on our bedroom floor. We'd set them up like a village. Then we'd have our parents get out the old movie camera and film it. Like we were making our own live-action version of the cartoon. Then it was G.I. Joe or Transformers. We were able to play together. We shared a room until I was 12.

Even though we had our own rooms we were still together. Our family built an addition on our home that gave us an upstairs. Cort and I had bedrooms next to one another. We were the only ones upstairs. So were just shared a larger room. A room that had a pool table, hide-a-bed, and a bathroom.

I remember in school we always rode the bus together to and from school. I remember we had an minor earthquake. We were waiting at the bus stop in the fall, Cort had run home quickly to take care of some "business" and the quake hit. I was sitting on the side of the road shivering in the early morning. Cort came running back to the bus stop and asked me if I had been at our house shaking the lights. I told him that I had just been shaking with cold there at the bus stop. Only after we got to school did we find out there had been an earthquake.  Then in sixth grade Cort and I were no longer in the same school. It was interesting not having him around or riding the bus home together.

We'd end up at home at different times and then argue about who was going to do which chore or what T.V. program to watch. Other times we'd work together to get his newspapers folded and then deliver them for his paper route.

In junior high we were in school together again. I was in ninth grade and Cort in seventh. By now we had acclimated to not being together. We each had our own friends that we hung out and walked home with. We'd still see each other at school though, occasionally.

In high school we were together for the last time my senior year and Cort was a sophomore. By this time we were very different people. I was in the Jazz, Concert, and Marching bands; Cort was in Cross Country and Track. Although we had separate lives at school we had something that we always did together at home. We mowed lawns. So even though we might not see each other much during the school day, we'd be ready at home to load up the Datsun pickup and cut grass. at the peak we had roughly 25-30 lawns that we tended to each week.


Continued in Brothers... (Part 2) -->

Homecoming 1991 Mix Tape (Tracks 25-29) The END Finally!

Here it is the end of the marathon that has been the tracks from Homecoming 1991 Mix Tape. If you've been reading and following along you have got a glimpse of what music I was into my senior year in high school. At least the start of my senior year.

Track 25: Is It Me: Huey Lewis & The News. From the album Picture This. This is another tape I WORE out playing in my walkman. Looking at some of these songs; this one, a couple Chicago songs- I was wavering with my self esteem. I guess all teens go through that. Mine had to do with trying to be more than friends with girls. Thank goodness I conquered that fear. It would have been hard to meet Tammy and have the wonderful life we have, if I was too shy.

Track 26: Every Breath You Take: The Police. I have always liked this song. When I added it to this play list I don't think I was paying attention to the lyrics. Not quite the song you want to hear on a date.

Track 27: Waltz Of The Flowers: Fantasia Soundtrack. Being in concert band and jazz band I developed an eclectic taste in music. Here is where shines through. There is awesome music in Fantasia.








Thanks for tagging along on this musical journey from 1991. That was a long time ago, but a part of my life that I never want to forget. I was lucky to have a lot of good friends. We had a lot of fun. When else would just hanging out in a deserted hallway before class been fun. (Right guys!). Thanks to all the people who made that fall fun! Dain Johnson, Robert Weaver, Darin Turpin, John Shumate, Joe Lammers, Athena Stallcop, Janel Kirkman, Laurie Hawkins, Megan Curtis, Bill Hankins, and many others...

And I can't forget BOLT! Ray Sagarik, Rob Kennedy, Rob Pearson, &  Shane Blacker. The lunch in the 500 BLDG hallway that started it all.

Homecoming 1991 Mix Tape (Tracks 21-24)

More tracks from the 1991 Homecoming mix tape. It's funny to see what I listened to then and that many of those same songs are still on my iPod.

Track 21: Slipping Away: Information Society. This debut album from Information Society is great. Good tracks that keep you moving. This one, however is more of a ballad.

Track 22: Song For George: Eric Johnson. I don't really know who George was, but I like this song. This album did win the Grammy in 1992 for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

Track 23: If She Would Have Been Faithful: Chicago. Another Chicago tune. I always liked this song. Not that I ever really had someone be unfaithful. I did have a friend date a girl that I really liked, and he knew it. I was too chicken to make a move, so he took her out- they hit it off and dated. What could I have done. It's water under the bridge now. I'm a different person than I was in high school... aren't we all!

Track 24: Repetition: Information Society. More Information Society. Kevin Kahle would love this tape. He loves Information Society.

Homecoming 1991 Mix Tape (Tracks 13-16)

To continue on the trek of Homecoming songs...

Track 13: Chasing The Wind: Chicago: Uncle Danny was a huge Chicago fan & so am I. So when this album came out I bought the tape. This is the only song that I can remember from it.

Track 14: Kiss The Girl: Soul II Soul: Another song from Simply Mad About the Mouse. A great rendition of The Little Mermaid song. I just liked it.

Track 15: Beat 70: Pat Metheny Group: Uncle Danny was also a huge Pat Metheny Group fan. I bought this tape at his recommendation. I don't know where it went, but it was good to listen to when I mowed lawns.
 

Track 16: Trademark: Eric Johnson: Another track from A Via Musicom. My introduction to Eric Johnson. I think Uncle Danny would have liked him too.

Homecoming 1991 Mix Tape (Tracks 12-14)

Homecoming mix tape cont'd- Continuing on our walk down memory lane. At least my memories.


 Track 12: Song For My Father: NHS Jazz Band
In 1990 the Nampa High School Jazz band competed at the University of Idaho Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. This song was recorded from one of those performances. Mr. Kennedy & Mr. Stone were the band directors at that time.

                                                                     

Track 13: Bear Necessities: Harry Connick Jr. This is another track from "Simply Mad About the Mouse" the Disney tribute album. It's a good track. I listened to that tape a lot.

Track 14: Bizarre Love Triangle: New Order. This is the original version from "Brotherhood". It's a classic.

Homecoming 1991 Mixtape (Tracks 9-11)

So on this homecoming date. I started driving a restored "Model T". My grandfather had restored it and it was the first time that I was going to drive it myself (no Dad tagging along). Well, after dinner it died. There was a problem with the battery. So I finished the date driving the family station wagon; a caprice classic. It was still fun though...

Back to the songs...

Track 9: Who Do You Give Your Love To?: Michael Morales. This was a track that I just really liked. I can't find it anywhere. I did just find a youtube version.

Track 10: MotownPhilly: Boyz II Men. This is an awesome song. It's hard to imagine a world without Boyz II Men. This was their first hit! I love the A Capella break in the middle.

Track 11: Think: Information Society. This was the first single from "Hack".

I couldn't get enough of it. I'm pretty sure that I wore my tape out listening to it.

Homecoming 1991 Mixtape (Tracks 6-8)

This is the third installment of the mixtape from Homecoming 1991. Did I mention that the girl I took to the dance was a cheerleader? That's right, a band geek (1st Trombone) took a cheerleader to homecoming!

Track 6: How Long: Information Society. This was from the newest album at the time: Hack. I think I wore that tape out listening to it so much.

Track 7: Hit Me Like A Hammer: Huey Lewis & The News. Hard At Play was the album this song was from. I listened to it all summer mowing lawns. It only made sense to include it on this mix tape.

Track 8: Walking Away: Information Society. From the Information Society album Information Society. This track was played at the stake dances all the time. Kevin Kahle loved spinning this record. Yep, we had the 8 in single that we'd play at the dances.

Homecoming 1991 Mix Tape (tracks 3-5)

On the way home I listened to the next few songs from the mix tape that I made for Nampa High Homecoming 1991.

Track 3: When You Wish Upon A Star: Billy Joel. This was from a tape I bought "Simply Mad About the Mouse". It was a compilation of artists covering Disney songs. A lot of differing styles. I remember listening to then... not sure where that tape ended up.

Track 4: Can't Stand Losing You: The Police. I had recently purchased a copy of "Every Breath You Take: The Singles" and this was from that tape. Not sure what this has to do with Homecoming or dancing.

Track 5: Man From Snowy River: Main Title. I really like this soundtrack. It relaxes me. It lasted me through two years on a mission in Southern California and I still listen to it today. Like I said before I have very eclectic musical tastes.

Homecoming... 1991

I found a tape this week. Yes, a cassette tape. This is not just any tape that could be purchased at Sam Goody. No, this is a mix tape. I made this mix tape in October 1991. I made it to use as background music for my Homecoming date. So I popped it into the cassette player in my car on the way to work this morning (yes, I still have a cassette player in my car). I listened to a couple songs on my commute to work this morning and thought I'd share them. As I listen to the rest of the tape I might share those songs too. And, you might get some details about my homecoming date as well.

Track 1: Cliffs of Dover: Eric Johnson

I had recently been introduced to Eric Johnson by a friend in Jazz Band (Dain Johnson) so it was something I was listening to a lot. Not sure why I thought it would be good for homecoming, but I have always had eccentric tastes in music.
Track 2: What's On Your Ming (Pure Energy): Information Society

This was my groove. (depending on the day) I have always liked (and still do like) synth-pop. In fact I just picked up the most recent Erasure album  "Tomorrow's World" ; another time perhaps I'll share that. Anyway, Information Society was one of those groups that if a song of theirs came on I had to move-dance! The version I included on the mix tape is actually a remix from a cassette single I owned.

We'll see what the drive home and tomorrow mornings commute will bring...

By the way, I took Athena Stallcop to the dance... In case you wondered.