Pictures

Brr...

I called Grain Growers today to see if they'd take me back. I'm pretty sure they will, I'm just waiting for them to call me back. I've called the people at Qwest a couple times and no one will return my call. They could at least have the courtesy to call me back and say we're not interested anymore. Oh well.

Today it rained, snowed and hailed. It's 37 degrees outside and feels marvelous!!

Kinda blurry. You can see the snow dusting the mountains though.

You can see it better in this picture.

Hail.

Home for Good

David and I just got back from Rock Springs, Wyoming. We had to go back to get our trailers.

Yesterday some people took pictures of us at a truck stop. Here's what we looked like:

Actually when people were taking pictures of us, we didn't have the trailers attached.

We're home and no more trips are up and coming. That's all for now!

Some Pics in Idaho & More to Come

The trees are changing in the canyons.

Too Tired

I was going to make some phone calls tonight but I'm just too tired. We made it back finally sometime before 7 PM. It has been a LONG day. We haven't hardly slept in days. I will write and call tomorrow!

New Trailer

Well, it's now 9:20 in the morning and I'm still on the side of the road. Yay for free wi-fi!!

Anyway, some guy just came and told me that my "old man" was at his place and that he had just bought his trailer and was doing some welding to the tongue and he just thought he'd let me know. Thanks dude.

David told me he might buy the trailer if it was worth it so he could put this trailer on top of the one he apparently just bought. We found out there was a trailer parts store down the street but I guess they didn't have what we needed or something. I don't know.

So I got the coolest coffee pot while in OK and I'm debating on whether I want to plug it in right now to our adaptor thing or just walk across to the hotel or not drink any coffee at all. Hm

Oh and I was supposed to start my new job today. I've been calling them since 8 this morning to explain what happened and see what my next steps are but I couldn't get a hold of anyone and I tried like 3 different buildings for Qwest trying to see if I could find someone who could transfer me to where I need to be. Someone called me a little while ao. I told him what happened and he said "let me have Scott D. call you" Um , ok. Scott D has never called me back. So we'll see what happens.

Oh Man

A little before 3 this morning, an axle on our trailer broke. It's now 5:18 and we're still sitting here on the side of the raoad. We're waiting for some place to open at 8 so David can fix it.

We looked up 13 wrecker services and can't get one, so we scrapped that idea and are just waiting til David can fix it.

Fun times.

This Sucks

The drive back to Idaho is not fun. The ride there wasn't bad but this is pretty crappy. We're tired. Our truck has leaked some sort of fluid. We almost lost the fridge. We locked our keys in our truck. We've had to pull over like 4 times. The wind is really slowing us down. It's 2:41 central time and we're still in Kansas. And apparently this state will not end today.

I have no idea what time we'll get back tonight but it will be late. I do know that.

Feels Like I Never Left!

I forgot how much I miss Edmond! Ok, maybe I didn't forget how wonderful it is here. I love this place!!

David got a good deal on a counter top stove and I'm excited b/c it has 5 burners and it's stainess steel. Nice.

I had breakfast with my dad and have been seeing friends...it's a wonderful day!

Home Sweet Home

It's a little after 2 AM and I should be going to bed since I need to get up in a few hours but oh well.

David and I had a good trip home. The drive didn't seem too bad.

We did have one slight issue come up on our way though. Our tenant called us and said the stove no longer works. This stove was "fixed" when we moved out and we were hoping it would last a while but it is the original stove to the house so it's almost 50 years old and we can't deny a new one is needed. So, that means we have to by and install a new stove. The kind that go on your counter top. Bye bye car money :( But oh well, these things come with the territory of being a landlord. So now David's got to do that plus clean out our storage unit. And depending on how heavy our load is, we may have to leave tomorrow. Who knows what's going to happen.

Let me tell you about the highlight of my day besides coming home! As David and I left we were driving through the Cache National Forest and we see something kind of like galloping along the outer white line of the road in our lane. It wasn't quite running or walking--somewhere in between. Anyway, we had to slow down and David and I are staring at it like "what in the world is that?" It galloped along in front of us for a ways and then turns left and that's when we realized it was a mountain lion. It galloped across the road and up the mountain. It was so amazing. I have never seen a cat that big. It definitely was bigger than what I had imagined apparently because I was in shock when I saw it.

It was so stinkin' cool!! David and I were in complete shock and amazement to see it so close to us.

Well, guess I should go to bed. Busy day tomorrow!

Yay!!

Ok so after being excited that we were getting to come to Oklahoma this weekend, we thought we couldn't come. Being disappointed is an understatement for me. I. Was. Not. Happy.

But thankfully Austin's sister so kindly offered to work for David.

So, the roadtrip is on! Wahoo!!!!



P.S. Dad--I will call you in the morning!

New Car Dreams

David and I are using our trail 90 money to buy a new car. One car isn't going to cut it for us since I'll be working in Logan.

Yesterday he saw some girl driving a car that said it was for sale for $600. David called her and she said she'd sell it for $300. So today David and I went to check it out and test drive it. The outside of the car was pretty decent, no dents or scratches. But as we were driving David heard some noises that he said were a really bad sign. So we didn't get the car. I am so glad that these noises showed up while we were test driving and not after we took it home!

The girl was completely clueless as to what was wrong with the car. So she was asking David if she was asking a good price for it and about what the noise was.

So, I think we have to wait til David gets paid for a side job before I can look for real. I'm really hoping to get something like a Honda Accord so I can get good gas mileage. I really want a 4 door too.

Well, that's all for now. See ya!

Fall

I love love love fall!! My favorite time of the year! It's been chilly in the mornings but not freezing. I love that. It makes me feel refreshed and motivated!

I could definitely go for a chai tea latte from Panera Bread. Or even a Pumpkin Spice Latte from 7-11. None of which are near me :0) There is a 7-11 in Logan but that's a long way to go for a drink. I guess one of these days I'll have to give one of the gas stations around here a try.

I wish I had some pictures to post but my camera has been neglected lately.

It's a bitter sweet week for me. My last week working part time. I like working part time. It gives me something to do but I still have half a day free. It will be so nice though to get a full time pay check.

Someone told me today that people who have 2 incomes, with no children are called dinks around here. I've heard her use the term "dink" as a substitution for another word so I'm assuming that's how she was using it here too. Supposedly we suck because we're making money. If only I didn't have to turn around and give that money to other people...

But while I'm supposedly rolling in it now everyone else around here is raising children and by the time we're all old, I'll still have kids at home. But I'm not bitter...:0)

Anyways, I can't remember if I mentioned that a couple of weeks ago David sent one of his tools to a Harley school. We haven't heard anything back yet. We also talked to our patent attorney who said that the U.S. Patent Office is now saying that we may need more patents on our tool. More $$$ is what that means.

I think that's all for now. Night.

Random Photos

Somewhere in Utah

Somewhere in Idaho.

David makin' sure the butt hammock thing works.

The pink sky in Preston.

Trace seeing what the sand tastes like :0)

Some sunflowers in front of the Brackin house.

Giddy Up

Today I was driving past a fast food restaurant and in the back parking lot I noticed someone rode their horse to the fast food place. They must have picked up their little girl from school on the horse and then stopped by to get some food. I only guess that because there was a little girl standing next to the horse and her pink and purple back pack was strapped to the horses' back.

I guess it wasn't all that amusing but I gotta take what I can get.

It's a Celebration!

The trail 90's are gone. Tonight we may be going out for a celebration dinner!

Other than that there still isn't much to share. David is still waiting to hear back from the state. It's for a machinist position. It makes me so mad the state is taking so long to get stuff posted and aren't sticking to their own deadlines. So frustrating.

On Monday I will be faxing a resume for David to some place for a welding position. I've already emailed them his resume but they've re-posted the job opening so I'm going to fax it in this time. I just don't understand why no one is calling him back. No one called me back either...maybe it's just us. Hmm.

David said the leaves are already starting to change colors in the canyons around here. Can't wait to go see them.

Well, that's all for now.

Gone!

Well, not gone yet but the trail 90's are being loaded on to someone else's trailer as I type this!

Woohoo!

Soccer

Today I went to watch Austin and Vicki's boy play soccer. It was pretty cute to watch all the kids chase the ball around. No one wins or loses. They just play for fun.

Someone is supposed to be coming to look at the trail 90's today. I really hope they buy them.

This week will be my last at Grain Growers. I wish I could stay there. I like the people and I like that it's here in Preston.

I'm ready to have a full time job though. I wish I could stay working part time but I can't afford it. Oh well.

That's all I know.

Chicken

I saw a chicken cross the road this morning.

I wonder why...

Decisions, Decisions

The state was supposed to post who gets interviews today but surprise, surprise they didn't. Uneasiness has settled in. A job opportunity has presented itself for David but we're not sure if he should take it or not. Decisions. They're hard. We have a couple hard decisions to make right now and it's no fun. Everything will be ok though, it always is.

"A Plague on Both Your Houses"

Anybody else love Romeo and Juliet like I do? I love the movie. I love the emotion that Leonardo DiCaprio has as he plays Romeo. Remember the scene where Mercutio has been injured and he cries out "A plague on both your houses!" (Speaking of the Capulet's and Montague's)???

Well, that's what these trail 90's have become to the Irving and Brackin household...a plague on both our houses. Except that, we live in the Brackin household...so I guess David and I don't have a household. So, I guess I'm speaking metaphorically--obviously.

I think you might have guessed that the trail 90's are still here. Someone came all the way from Salt Lake which is like 2 hours away and left empty handed. Oh well, it's only been 2 days since the ad's been out.

Also, I have to say I'm pretty dang excited that Jay Leno is back on TV. He's my fave.

PostSecret

There's a website that I found out about not too long ago. It's actually a blog. The creator of the blog is doing a project where people can anonymously send in their secrets on a postcard. He just recently made a book.

There's something fun about reading people's secrets. And I'm sure there is some sort of thrill in telling your secret for all the internet to see. Yet, you're never found out.

This fascinates me.

http://www.postsecret.blogspot.com

Still Here

Well, Vicki said that if we sell the Trail 90's we should go out to dinner to celebrate. All I have to say is: we didn't go to dinner.

Also, I'm annoyed that my camera keeps taking foggy pictures. I guess I will attempt to clean the lens or something.

Trail 90's

We're waiting for someone to come look at ours and Austin's trail 90's. He's looking at possibly buying all 8 of them. 8 I said.

These trail 90's have plagued us for long enough. Sure it was a good idea to get them and sell them but in reality, I should have remembered that all good ideas usually turn out bad for us. And by usually I mean 99.9% of the time. Only about .1% of the time does something work out in our favor.

Anyways, I really hope this guy buys them!

Some Possible Good News

David applied for a job with the state and has been waiting for them to post a list with the people they want to interview. These people are seriously in no hurry. This has been like 2 weeks here...don't they know people need jobs?! Anyways, David's resume/application was "graded" and he found out that he is in the top 10!

The lady said that doesn't necessarily mean he'll get an interview but they will be picking people to interview from those 10. Oh man, it would be so good for David to get this job.

Say a prayer for him! I guess they won't post the list of who they'll interview until Wednesday.

Just Some Thoughts

Ok, so I think I've adjusted quite nicely to small town life. I dig that there's no traffic. I like how there are only 2 stop lights in town so I don't waste my time sitting at a red light for 5 minutes, just to go down the road a mile and sit at another one for 5 minutes. I even (shh, don't tell anyone) like the smell sometimes of the cows. That sounds better than saying I like the smell of their poop :0)

I like how there isn't a restauran/fast food place on every corner to tempt me :0)

I do not like how there is no Target, Panera Bread, coffee shop, Wal Mart, Taco Bueno, Johnnie's, Old Navy, mall, Bravo, Paper Lion, Serendipity, and many other places. No wonder I've put some padding around these old bones...most of the places I miss are food places!

Even though I didn't always go to those places, it was nice knowing I could if I wanted to. Not only were they in my town but the were like a mile from my house.

I also was surprised the other morning as I stopped off at the bank before work. Only to find it closed. The bank doesn't open until 9 for the drive thru and 9:30 for the lobby. My old bank's drive thru was open at 6:30! Granted, I realize that is really early but dang, I thought surely they'd be open by 8. Am I the only person around here who has wanted to go to the bank before work? Apparently I am.

But all in all, it's not a bad place to be. In fact, it's quite nice. And I have found that I can live without the afore mentioned establishments. I like how on the weekends, everyone is out with friends and family camping or boating or doing something fun. On Fridays, you see trucks pulling boats and RV's everywhere!

And of course I like how when I drive anywhere, I see mountains. I see hills and cows and beautiful horses. And lately I've even been seeing chickens on the side of the highway. I will mention that one is now road kill :(

It's really pretty when I take David to work and it's light out but the sun hasn't peeked out from behind the mountains but it lights up the sky and the clouds in a beautiful way. I love that I now live near so many beautiful places.

Despite struggles being mentioned in the previous post. I am happy that I am where I am. David's uncle has a set of rules to live by. One of them is "no matter where you are, there you are"...I think that's how it goes. I'm glad I'm overcoming struggles in a beautiful place.

Struggles

I can't wait until I start my job at Qwest. I wish I could start tomorrow. I mean, a paycheck for 2 weeks working full time is going to be such a blessing. I hope David can get a good job. If he does, maybe things will start looking up for us.

I am so sick of struggling. I'm ready to move forward for once. We're always treading water in the same place and never advancing. No fun.

I hope I'm good at Qwest and can earn some comissions. That would be so awesome! Time for some positive thinking!

Zip, Zero, Zilch

Unfortunately I have no news to tell. No stories. Nothing.

I've been doing some deep thinking lately, that's about it. Hope everyone is well!

Labor Day Cont'd

Labor Day Weekend

These are out of order but that's ok. I'm only posting a few for now because I'm tired.

This is Bear Lake.

Sitting around the campfire.

This is where David and I slept :0)

The sky in town on Friday night. I had some cool pictures but I shot them through the windshield and there's bug guts all over it.

We camped last night and we slept on an air mattress that deflated in the middle of the night. I only brought one blanket so we froze. David slept well but I was up most of the night. Then today we went over to Bear Lake to sail and ride around on the speed boat. Well, the wind never picked up to sail anything decent and it was cool enough all day that I wore a hoodie at the beach...all day.

I came back to the house to find a belated birthday present waiting for me on the porch. It made my day!!

Weekend Plans

David has to work tomorrow night but either after he gets off work or the next morning we're going to head up to Bear Lake. I guess it's supposed to rain...hope it's nothing bad!

Yum!

The guy that David works with apparently has a huge garden and gave David a ton of stuff today. David's been bringing home zucchini's left and right. Huge ones too. I'm zucchini'd out.

But anyways, today David brought home corn, green beans, all kinds of peppers and a watermelon that he picked and an onion he pulled out of the ground and something called lemon cucumbers. They look like this:

They taste exactly like a cucumber with out that little bit of tartness that a regular cucumber can have. He didn't bring home this many. I just pulled this off the internet since I haven't dug out my camera to take a picture of ours.

Just thought I'd share these since I'd never seen them before!