By The Way.....

As you know I'm not the best at letting people know what's going on or keeping people updated.. Hence the lack of posting over how ever many weeks it's been.
But so you all know, I submitted my mission papers today. It should be about two weeks till I get my call. So around April 2nd I'm guessing. My plan is to have Mom and Dad on webcam and whoever else comes down, since Mom was talking of trying to get a heads up to some of ya'll. Other than that, I'll probably just have a few friends over for it... Most people here have been opening it in the lobby, but I don't really like large crowds.
Just thought I'd give a little note about that. Yes I am very excited, right now I'm just trying to get through school though so I'm not exactly jumpy or anything like that. But I am excited and I am anxious to see where I'll go.
On a slightly different note I feel like posting this scripture.
2 Nephi 22:2-3 "Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation.
Therefore, with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.
And in that day shall ye say: Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted."
I thank you all for you love and support and want you to know that I love you all. I hope you are doing well.

Josh

My V-Day Weekend Alone in ARCHES

Well as I'm sure most of you knew, I took off this last weekend down to Arches National Park. There's a lot more that goes behind this whole story, but I don't feel like posting it. Let's just say I had planned this trip for a while, thought I was going to have company, ended up without company, went anyways, and had a ton of fun. And yes, I did skip out on Valentine's Day and all the stuff that goes along with it. But apparently, I got Jace's approval (Even though he was down visiting a girl).

Continuing on... I have wanted to go to Arches for a long time. I am fairly certain I have never been there before... as being the youngest means I missed out or can't remember any of the amazing places everyone else seems to have gone. ;) The original plan was to spend the day there, but when I discovered I'd be alone, I thought, "Hey, what the heck?? Just spend the night in the back of the car!" So I did. From the sounds of it, most people were very worried about me. Mom, Dad, Jackie all thought I'd freeze... Friends thought I'd freeze or get attacked (apparently my family just cares about my warmth).. Just kidding. Love you!! For the record, I stayed warm.. only woke up once with my feet numb, but fell asleep 3 minutes later. And I'm glad I didn't drive back at night cause I'd probably be dead honestly... I was really tired and it was snowing in the canyon.
But Arches was amazing. The weather was beautiful the whole time. Partly cloudy with a bright blue sky, sun rays breaking free through the few clouds, sometimes creating beautiful Jacob's ladders. (If you don't know what those are, ask me). There was even an occasional snow flurry that fell from the half clear sky. It was pretty cause the snow reflected the sun light and so it looked like sparkles falling free.
Now for Dad... Forget the weather and talk about rocks right?? Well Dad, the geology was amazing. To think that nature can eat away at the weaker rocks and allow these solemn rock statues to defy gravity is spectactular. Not only were the formations amazing, but the vibrant red that stands so opposite of the blue sky was gorgeous. According to Jackie, I should take a photography class or buy a new camera. She thought I captured the scenery quite well. So thank you Jackie.

Well, there really is only so much I can say. And only so many pictures I can post... All of my pictures are posted on facebook though, and I can email you more or something if you'd like. So a late Happy Birthday to Jayme... and thanks for cooking leg of lamb while I'm gone... Mom. I hope you are all doing well and staying healthy... or getting healthy like Jayme. I pray that Aunt Suzie is getting better and that the doctors are able to find things to help her. Hope Grandpa Jay is enjoying his stay and not being too stubborn. Miss you and love you all.

Josh

No Catchy Title, Just What's Going On

Hey Everybody!
Just giving a quick update on what's up lately. Been pretty busy, yet also had time to relax. The weeks are weird though cause they seem so long. I mean, we just had a 3 day weekend what, last week or something slightly longer?? Feels like a month ago... I can barely remember it. I'm doing well though. Had to write a paper for English, turning that in tomorrow. Taking a Physical Science midterm Monday.. Hoping the best for it cause I'm a bit lost. Can't wait till we get to the geology section of class. Something I'll understand. Haha. Thanks Dad. ;)

Last Saturday I performed in another Talent Show. It was for David's ward (he was the guitarist for mine if you recall). We did a song called Fly From the Inside by Shinedown. Oh my goodness it was amazing. It fit my voice so much better and he played it perfectly! Still working on getting pictures and video from it. The video sounds like crap so we may not upload it. The pictures are on Sara's camera, and she hasn't had time to upload yet cause of her busy week. So I should have them sometime in the next week. David and I are also working on writing some songs. Wrote a full set of rifts for one of my songs with him and we're going to keep working on more. Just wish we had a drummer and something decent to record with.

Oh yeah, and last week I took my amp in to a place that appeared to be able to fix it. After waiting a week to hear back from him as to progress (which he was supposed to call me about after 3 days) I called him. Found out he probably hasn't even looked at it yet and he said he'd call me in 2 days. If that doesn't happen, I'm probably going to go in there and demand he do something. I'm starting to get kind of upset that nothing is being done about it.

Tomorrow evening I'm going to a rock concert with David in Salt Lake City. A band called Rev Theory is playing. They ain't great, but David and I thought it'd be fun and it's only 10 bucks for open seating tickets. Then Saturday night I'm going to the Winter Choirfest at the Provo Tabernacle.. which I actually need to find out where that is.

And I got a haircut finally. I do have some pics of that, but I haven't uploaded so you'll have to wait. It's kinda short. Very short on the sides and back, but tapered from the back to the front on top. Looks good I think.

Glad Mom and Dad are home safe with Grandpa Jay. Tell him I say hi and give him my love. Sorry it sounds like there's been a little sickness going around with some of ya'll. Hope everyone stays healthy. I love you all and hope you're well.

Josh

Back Again

Sorry I haven't updated for a while.. I was at home obviously so it didn't matter and now I've been trying to get back into the groove of school... if there really is one... so I've been a little out of it. But I am back and classes are going quite well so far. They're fairly spread out over the week, which is nice, but they all are pretty good on work too so it balances out. In case you didn't know, I'm taking English, Physical Science (which I'm going to mention later), Book of Mormon, Sociology, Life Planning and Decision Making, and an online health class. Unfortunately English is at 8am MWF. But so far I've been conscious enough to understand what's going on. (That was for you Mom).

Physical Science on the other hand is just weird. Right now is mostly physics, which is not something I understand or really care to understand. How many forces are acting on me as I slow down during a walk is not something that sticks out to me. Just cause gravity is acting upon me as I apply a force to the ground while it supplies a contact force back to me creating a total net force as I move forward is not that important in my mind. I'm slowing down while I'm walking cause I'm tired and feel like expending less energy. And that about sums it up. Haha. When I told Dad this I also mentioned that I do understand things about rocks and that they make more sense to me. He promptly mentioned I should take Mineralogy. Typical of him isn't it?

Other than that, classes ain't bad. I'm doing alright so far as long as I keep focused. The one thing that's bothering me most is that my amp is still basically worthless. Yes, it did get fixed at home. But apparently they messed up or something went wrong. It puts out sound, but the digital screen only lights up, it doesn't display anything. So I can't tune my guitar, I can't change settings, I can't even accurately guess what sound setting I'm on. And apparently NO ONE in the state of Utah can fix a digital amp, much less figure out what's wrong with it. So I have one last place I was recommended to, if I can find it... and if not then I may have to contact Fender directly and see if I can con.. I mean, get them to do something for me. But yeah, its really frustrating. Especially since I spent a full day driving to 4 different places to have them all say "I don't work on those amps" or "I can't tell ya anything." So we'll see what happens.

On the bright side, my friend David and I are performing in his talent show this week so that should be fun.

This weekend was also special.. cause we had a day off at BYU!! Doesn't happen often unless there's a real National Holiday. Haha. Saturday I decided to take off down to Manti. I wanted to see the temple in person mainly. It was beautiful. I walked around it for probably 30 minutes just taking pictures on my phone (didn't have my camera) and taking in the peace that was there. Also found out that Manti is my kind of town. Wide open, little hick type town, beautiful country, etc etc. Exactly the type of thing I love. I can honestly say that even though I was only there for a bit, it felt like a place I could have lived. I guess I just love my little country towns, cause it felt nice, while Provo still feels weird. But yes, I do like it here. And I still have a plan to take off down to Southern Utah for a while sometime. Kind of around Zion or Arches area I'm thinking. I just really want to go down cause I don't remember it at all. All I remember is Bryce. So we'll see what happens. Sara actually mentioned going down to Manti again sometime cause she has cousins there and she also loves the Temple there. So we may go down and hang out there for a while sometime. At the bottom I have a bunch of the pictures from the Manti Temple. So yes, this is a very long post.

Anyway, I hope you're all doing well. Mom and Dad seem to be enjoying Bethany in winter. Hope everything is well in Oregon too. Heard ya'll have been stuck in fog for a while. The past two Sunday's have been wonderful here. Very strong spirit in both church and also last week I was able to see President Monson in person at the Marriott, and then Elder Holland on Tuesday. They were both wonderful and the spirit was very strong with their words. I encourage anyone who is struggling with any problems in life to read D&C 122. We went over it a bit in Sunday School today. Incase you didn't know, that is where the Lord reminds Joseph Smith that He has descended below all. But it is not just that, the Lord also gives many wonderful words as to how we can overcome anything. D&C 122:9- "Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee... therefore, fear not what men can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever." Nothing in life is beyond comprehension or help of the Lord. A picture I have always had in my mind is that of the Lord with open arms. He waits to embrace us, it is our role to open our arms to Him and partake of His love.

I love you all and I hope everything is well. May the Lord continue to pour out His love and blessing upon you all. I'm always here if you want to call or anything. Enjoy the weekend and may you have a safe week too.

Josh

See You Friday

First semester is finally coming to a close here at BYU. And I'm still alive. I must say, I have thouroughly enjoyed it and look forward to continuing, even though it can only get harder right? Haha.

I've taken two finals so far, Mission Prep (which didn't matter) and I have a solid A in that class. I took Geology today and got an 86% on it, so hopefully I end with a low A in that class, but it may be a high B. Tomorrow I take American Heritage, which will be somewhat difficult, but I'm more stressed by Math on Thursday. Hopefully it'll go alright. Then I'll fly back Friday night and it sounds like someone may already be planning on coming up to the house to see me.. Jahnsam mentioned it. Must miss me or something.

And thanks to Dad for allowing me to have my truck back when I get home. I miss it. At the end here I'll post some pictures of the snow that fell here, though I think ya'll still have had worse weather then us.

By the way, I don't know what the plan is for Christmas Eve, but I have a request. I'd like to ask everyone to sing at least one song over the phone to Sara. If we only sing one, I'd like to sing The First Noel cause it's her favorite Christmas song. So sometime during our evening's festivities I'll call her up and have the Family and if anyone else is there sing over the phone to her. Thanks a bunch!!

Other than that, pray I survive the last tests and the flight and drive home with this weird "Global Warming" weather.... hah. Right.

Love you all! Can't wait to see you!

Josh

After the Break, Looking Ahead

Well Thanksgiving Break was fun, even being away from home. Only problem was... I didn't do much work at all and so that's probably going to hurt a bit. For those who didn't know, I was up with Bailey Brewer's family and had a lot of fun. They were very hospitable and seemed to enjoy having company. Then Friday I was with Norma and Ward helping them finish their move and enjoyed a wonderful dinner. Saturday evening I was back to watch the Beaver game... and lets not go in to that. I still want to cry.
Now it's trying to get myself back into the groove of school. Especially since I have a math test this Friday and my Basketball final to take. Other than that.. just back to normal work and prepping for finals Dec 15-19. Then fly home on the 19th.
For the record, not having Christmas trees is killing me. I miss the smell, the look of them everywhere, all of it. It kind of sucks. I guess I'm going to need some ideas of what everyone wants for Christmas too. That way what little time I have here can be spent trying to fulfill said wishes. I'll try to get some stuff out that I would like too. Mostly I wouldn't mind building a movie collection a bit more, or some new jeans. But I'll put something together.
Love you all! Glad to know Virginia's doing good. Hope Thanksgiving was wonderful and that everything is well back home. May you feel the Lord blessing and aiding you in your daily life.

Josh

First Test: Math

Just a quick update on this week's tests. The first I had to take was my Math test and I was a little worried about it even though I felt I knew how to do most of the sections. I won't lie, my studying probably could have been a little better. By that I don't mean just studying before the test but also in terms of memorizing things better as we went over each section.
My studying was thus filled with prayer as I really wanted to do better on this test and feel better about how I had learned the chapters. I prayed for peace as I worked in the testing center. As I worked, I did feel peace. Hours were beginning to pass, but I did not feel the worry I usually do. Even though I probably should not have done this, I felt like doing it... I attempted to calculate my test score as I worked just by guessing which ones I probably had gotten correct.
I calculated a 70%. Not overly bad, but I felt I probably could have done better. I ended up guessing on a few I felt lost on, but a few of the guesses also had some evidence to them.
I scored an 80%. Not great, but I knew as I walked out of the testing center that I don't think I would have recieved that score if my study had not been filled with prayer. I actually began to cry a bit as I walked home. Kind of a weird thing to have a spiritual experience over a math test, but I know I was feeling the Spirit as I walked home. It was a testimony builder and I am so grateful to the Lord for the blessings He gives me. I hope I don't seem like I'm over-using prayer because I am putting in my efforts to study and learn, though I can do better. But I know the Lord is blessing me. And I am ever grateful.
I have another test tomorrow which I need to study for. But I felt like sharing the experience I had tonight with all of you.
The Lord is in all things. He does hear and answer our prayers if we ask with sincere hearts. Trust in Him with all your might. He will not fail you.

I love you all and I hope you are well.

Josh