I beat Bo and Scott ....

We went to the church and we shot 3 pointers... We shot 10 at a time until we shot 100... I made 63, Bo made 45 and Scott made 43... Scott was rusty and got hot in the final 50 shots and let's face it Scott is getting up in years... Bo was right with me until we shot the group of ten that added to 70 and on that group I made 10 out of 10.... I am pretty happy about this because Bo and Scott are good basketball players... I had a very busy day yesterday being Bishop... I left at 7:00 and didn't get home until 6:00 but it was a very good day and I had some great visits... During church was pretty tough because my brain was going a hundred miles per hour... The Primary was great in our Sacrament meeting... All my Grandchildren were great, McKenna was very good at speaking and conducting the music and Tanner and Andy were in competition to see who could sing the loudest and yet they can really sing... Jessie had a powerful voice in his talk and I think he will be a great speaker in the future with a little of the Southern Baptist minister twang and volume... They all did great and I hope I don't hurt any of there feelings because I didn't mention them....

Jace's Birthday...

We had Jace's birthday today and he was really cute about it... Scott and I went golfing and it was fun talking with Scott but I am not sure how much Scott really cared about golfing.... It was fun being with him though... Taylor and I went to the Doctors office and Taylor has chronic fatigue... Who doesn't have that, just kidding.... At least we know what is troubling her... She is a fighter though and will not use that as an excuse to not do things she knows she needs to do... I officated a CIF volleyball game at Bethal Christian and I believe that is the end of volleyball for this season.... Yea... It was great to have the family over today... Night.... 39

I'm back....

Sometimes I just get out of the habit of writing... This time I had a lot to say but because of circumstances I was not able to write down my thoughts because it would not have been appropriate because of circumstances... I am the Bishop of the Lake Los Angeles Ward again and though I am surprise to be put into that position again, yet I knew when President Banfield interviewed me last January and asked to name three people who could be bishop of our ward and then after I replied he asked, "What about you?" I felt the Spirit run through my body and I knew for sure at that time that I was going to be the next Bishop... Some Spiritual promptings that I receive now, I know for a surety that they will come about.... That doesn't happen often but in this case it did happen... President Banfield told me that he submitted my name back at that time but that because I was the Bishop the time before the church headquarters put a red flag on it and was questioning about calling me again, so President Banfield went on with the search... In September he spoke to me again and we had a half an hour visit and again I told the President that I would serve and again that strong Spirit came... President Banfield could not find the right person but told me that I would not be the Bishop and I strug and quite frankly was relieved... This is one time that I did not want to be right about understanding the promptings... Well, I am Bishop now but I feel an unusually calm feeling and I have felt close to my Heavenly Father, similar to the moments on my mission.... We had a Bishopric meeting last night and I had the honor to meet with Jake Briggs my 2nd counselor and Jason Jay my 1st counselor, and to top it off I have my really good friend, my son Joshua as my Executive Secretary... Josh has already been very tender by the way he has been taking care of me.... Jake and Jason were masterful and mature way beyond their years... The counsel they gave me was rock solid and they carry with them a depth of wisdom that is eerie... I know I am privalage to be here to do whatever training I need to do to set these young guns into the fray of battling satan in the very last days.... Jared already received his calling and he and Julie were just wonderful in taking on the future challenge... Jake and Jason was in my office when we presented the calling and that was tender and cute... I have never felt so secure in a calling as I do in this one... We have a dependent Spanish Branch and Jacob and Jason already recognize their importance in helping to make this dependent Branch an independent one and leading to becoming a Ward... That is the obvious goal... Scott is here with Darin and Lizzy and I have enjoyed Darin and Lizzy more this time than ever before... Darin gives me hugs and Lizzy is always being coy and flirting with me... She is a real cutey... Jared looks like he might get a Littlerock HS math teaching position... If he does then that will be a dream come true... I am enjoying being around Julie, ah, I am not sure but it seems to me that we have open up some windows, doors, or something because she has been so sweet to me and I feel that we are building a relationship... I appreciate Jared and Julie very much.... Theron called a week ago and said they were coming to see us, but I don't know what day yet but I hope it happens... Wade Malesich came over last Sunday when I was called to be Bishop and it was great to see him and I know my mom really enjoys seeing Wade... My mom is doing real well and she is a blast to have in our house... She has her own room where our office used to be and she has bought herself a big screen TV and has added HD so she is doing real well... I am able to go and visit whenever I want to and that is often because her mind is still there and she is fun to talk to... She eats dinner with us each night and from time to time will come out and be with the rest of the large group that we seem to have all the time... I have a hard time grasping how fortunate I am in this life and how good Heavenly Father is to me... I am Heavenly homesick, but I am comfortable with the Full Time mission I am on, right now, by being placed here on this earth at this time to serve the Lord and try to help build the Kingdom of God... Night... 39

Lightening and Thunder...

We are having the biggest lightening and thunder session in California in all of my reccolection... It is quite the beautiful sight... All I need now is to see a Tornado and my wishes will be practically all fulfill.... I really want to see tornado before I die... I think it comes from the Wizard of Oz but no matter I just really want to see a tornado... When I retire I want to hook up with some storm chaser people and fulfill my dream.... I officiated 3 games at Knight High School and my old student and basketball player Jada Walker is the coach of the Highland team that played them... She is doing a good job as the coach... Night.... 39...

No Bishop yet....

We had interviews last January and I mean about 7 brethern was interviewed and the feeling is that a change was coming soon... We then heard that the change will come in September and now Bishop Dassler feels it might come on November 14th... It is difficult because the church is true and this is the Lord's church, but the ship is sailing but I believe that many buckets of water has been scooped out of the boat so that it would keep on sailing... I'm very impressed with Bishop Dassler and the professional way that he has handle it... I'm sure if we were in President Banfield's shoes we would understand why it has taken so long, but I have felt for Bishop Dassler though... McKenna gave a great talk in Primary today and we also had all the family in Lake LA here to celebrate McKenna's 10th birthday.... It is great to be a Grandpa... Night.... 39

Ruben Bravo is special....

Ruben is a student in my class... He is a brilliant student but is being raised from what I heard by some gang bangers type of people... I do not know them but I know that Ruben acts like a gang banger until he comes into the class and then he shines like a diamond... Today we were going over some of the propositions that are on our ballot and we were talking about legalizing marijuana and Ruben gave an intellectual argument why we should legalize it and then I had the students write their opinion and also tell me which way they would vote... Well the class came up even at 14-14 and the last paper I had to read was Ruben's... I knew which way he was going but I wanted to see how he would craft his argument on paper and then he stunned me... He argued that marijuana should never be legalized... I broke up into a belly laugh and told Ruben to come back to my desk and with a grin he told me he just wanted to shake up the class and that is why he argued for legalization... What a great young man and I am honored to put him into my blog.... Night.... 39

Being competitive is not a sin....

In fact if dealt with the right motive it becomes an asset to the Lord... This is a sample and argueably means nothing, but of the 2 Assistants to the President in our mission and the 12 zone leaders at one point, all of them, but one played competitive high school sports and a few played in college... We were all leaders and we all had an edge to ourselves... There are people who are trying to teach that being ocmpetitive is not condusive to the Spirit, but I maintain that if you are going to be valiant in the gospel then you have to be willing to battle, yes battle evil forces and not give into the competive nature of the evil one in trying to make us give up our integrity... It takes true guts to overcome a weakness of any kind and you will not be able to do it with a passive nature to deal with sin... It takes courage to be kind in all situations and control to follow the Spirit... A competitive person will not let minor aches and pains or sickness cause us to shun the work with a wimpy reason... And yet a passive person will convinced themselves that they are sick and will criticize people who are willing to go through a brick wall for there team, church or family and that was not listed in the order of importance either... I cannot believe how powerful and focus the Lord was when he was on the earth.... We saw "Secretariat" the movie and the drive to win is the grease in the wheel that brings joy into the lives of those who are driven to win and do what is right which is the same thing... I believe that the competitive ones that do evil have all kinds of chinks in their armor and really will not do everything it needs to win but will shun with fear at weak moments and then make excuses.... I love being competitive and I love the drive that is in me.... Some people look at my playing golf as foolishness but it gives me a release to air out emotions that help me cope with other things... And what is wrong with trying to improve on things in your life so you can come up a victor on whatever things you try to beat... Competition is what drives us and lack of competitiveness is luke warm or in other words not valiant... Think about it... Good night.... 39

Volleyball is getting old, but...

I sure love making the money that I am making... I made about $150 in 3 and a half hours... That is pretty good.... I worked at Palmdale and Lancaster really took it to them... Night... 39

I'm really happy for Corine...

It was nice to hear that Corine got the job with another company.... I forgot the name of the company but I know that she wanted a change and I am glad that she got it.... I golfed today and shot an 81... I was sluggish and that really bothered me... It has been fun having my mom here and she is really easy to have around the house.... She is cute with the TV thing and I am anxious when she gets HD.... I had an interview with President Beasel and that was a great experience... I love the church and though it was tough to drive down to Lancaster I still enjoyed the visit.... Night... 39

Nice Sunday....

It was fun having my mom here today... We have her room all set up and I appreciate the chair that Jake brought her and helping her set up her new TV... We didn't have PEC meeting this morning and we all thought that Bishop Dassler was going to finally get released and it didn't have it... Bishop looked a little, oh I don't know but maybe discouraged and I did something that I can't believe I did and that is sending him a text during Sacrament meeting telling him to hang in there and that we love him... Night.... 39

There's a new kid in town....

Yep, I picked up my mom yesterday from the airport at 12:30 in the afternoon and we promptly hussle home to watch the BYU game... We got her all settled and then this evening we went to Wallmart because she wanted to get lotions, toothpaste, and other essentials and oh by the way a new HD TV because the TV from Bo's room just wasn't big enough... She really cracks me up and I must say we had a lot of fun... She is so spry in her mind and easy to talk to... I enjoy telling her all the things that I did that I was afraid to tell her and see her reaction... She also took it well about the big clock that Isaiah brought down on himself... She was only worried about Isaiah... I'm glad to be on again and I started the Winter Season in golf statistics and I have played 3 times and shot a 75, 71, and a 79... I have Josh and Ryan on my mind all the time and I am determined to get ready for our golf tournament next August....Night.... 39

Exausted....

I am just exausted and I can feel it... It is weird but I haven't golf all week and I am convinced that not walking those 5 miles makes me more exausted than doing it... Had parent/teacher conference again today and I enjoyed visiting with the parents... I officiated at Palmdale and it is good money but I am tired of officiating, but thankful for the opportunity to make money to help the family... My Mom is going to be here in about a week and I am looking forward to having her here... Night... 39

Parent Teacher Conference....

I suppose that you are waiting for an interesting story but they are all boring, the parents were great... One parent was shocked that her daughter was a positive influence and I found that interesting because the girl is just wonderful... Two of the parents want their children to become authors because they are excited about the way they are writing... That's pretty cool... I was going golfing today but Taylor was really sick and I took care of Rachaels kids with Venna... I also wanted Venna to get some rest also, but we did it together... Briggs was walking around with a pop bottle in his mouth and it look like it had the cap on it... He would tilt it back and forth and finally I took it from him and it didn't have a cap on it and he was drinking the pop... I was impressed that he did not make a single mess, but I was not impressed with Bo or Taylor whichever one who left it in the front room.... Night... 39

Football season is in full bloom...

It's hard to find the time and emotions to write on the blog when you are spending time trash talking Fantasy Football with Ryan and Chad... I love football and I really enjoy spending time with all of my family members.... Bo and I worked together in volleyball today... We officiated at Mojave again... Mojave really stinks and we were out of there in a short time.... Bo and I collected about 250 dollars between us... It's fun to work with Bo too.... Night... 39

This is for my Mom...

I know you read this every morning, Mom so I just wanted you to know that I didn't forget you.... I really don't have much to say, but it is great to be alive and it is great to have a job in this day and age... Bo and I went to a volleyball meeting tonight... Life is good and good night.... 39

Read Becca's blog on soccer... LOL

The days are getting mundane and officiating volleyball is the norm, but they don't want us to call anything anymore so all I do is wave the serve in and then wait till a team makes a mistake and point in or out... The coaches know that we are suppose to do this so no one is arguing with us.... Oh well they pay me over a hundred dollars for two games... It is great golf money.... Night... 39

25 MPH wind....

And yet I still golfed and had a blast doing it... I shot an 80 and on some holes you can really hit the ball a long way with the help of the wind...It was a good day to teach and I am still having a lot of fun.... Night... 39

Life is really good.... but

The teachers or the union of the teachers are really pushing Jerry Brown for Governor and Boxer again for Senate... And they did it in our teacher's meeting and I am a little, oh all right, I am very tick over that... It is so obvious that we are spending the money of the kids I teach and probably their children's money too... And we take no regards on reeling in our spending and make sacrifices for the good of our progenitors and it makes me sick... We can see that we are reaping what we are sewing and out world and country is going to suffer for the greed of government leaders, wow, at least we members of the Lord's church is mentally ready to take on the awful situation that we are heading for... Oh the elections in November might slow it down but Satan is on the path of destruction and it still seems like it is only around the corner.... But Life is really good for me... I officiated at AV High School and Knight High and it was an ugly game but it is over... Night.... 39

It feels good to feel good....

Weird title and weird language the English language... I am really enjoying teaching the Constitution again, but I really feel bad for Venna because I know how good she is at teaching it and how much she loves it... I wish we both could teach it... I can feel the power of knowledge growing everyday and pretty soon parents are going to start telling them to shutup when their children let them know that what they are saying is not Constitutional... Night... 39

My baby's 16th birthday....

16 years ago one of the greatest blessings in my entire life came to pass when Taylor was born... She had colic for the first 6 months and I stayed up late in the morning with her while she whaled in pain and yet I remember then knowing that the little girl I was trying to comfort was a very special Spirit.... She has been on my mind for as long as I can remember... I just always felt that we would have 8 children and she was the one that was waiting for us... I was dating a girl that I thought I was serious with but, she made it clear that she could not see herself having more than 4 kids... That and other things convinced me that I could never marry her... Taylor was screaming in my ears even then... It is frustrating to see her turn 16 because I don't want any boy dating her until she is 18 and going to BYU and that is because I can't stand for any boy being next to her, but thank God she is going to have to date with a group and as long as I can I am going to try and see if Bo is in that group since he is the one that can drive... Ahh, I trust her, I just don't want to let her go in any way... She is doing a good job of driving so that is coming up soon also... Kari made the most amazing cake based on Abby Road of the Beatles... Taylor and I enjoy listening to Beatles songs together... I love Taylor so much and thank you Heavenly Father for entrusting her to our family.... Night... 39

It's five thirty AM....

I feel like crap with this gripping cold that I have.... My nose is in flames and I have the coughing, but I am now ready to leave and pick up Joshua who might have a fracture in his wrist to play golf... I hope the men in white do not pick us up and put us in the funny farm... Night... 39

I'm not feeling good...

I officiated 3 games at Paraclete and I am feeling pretty rough right now with a stuffy nose and sore throats... The very first play of the varsity game Margaret Neal which is a big part of my life in the officiating field jumped up from the Paraclete bench and started yelling at me because of a back row hit... Well, she is the best official we have in the Antelope Valley and I imediately agreed with her, I am just thankful she was right because I was a little confused, wow, being sick up there didn't help, but the rest of the game went really smooth and thank goodness for that... Now, I am going to try and get some sleep... Night... 39

Back to school....

It felt good to be back in school... My students seem to appreciate me being back also... It was a good day but now I am fighting a sore throat and I hope that I don't get really sick... With that, well.... Night.... 39

Jury days are over...

I woke up at 5:00 and went to the school to set up sub plans and then I went golfing.... After golfing 18 holes I went home and took a shower and got ready to go to the court house... I got there and was there for 20 minutes and was told that our case was pleaded and so I was done... That gave me the opportunity to come home and take a nap and then I went to Rosamond to officiate a volleyball game... It was totally a day of from school, but I am glad that I can go back tomorrow.... Both of my fantasy football teams won this weekend so life is good... Night... 39

Spent the day at the Court House....

I remember my mom was constantly doing jury duty... Today is the first day that I have ever been considered for a spot on a jury... I need to go back tomorrow at 11:00to see if I will be picked and I hope that I won't so I can go back to teaching... I missed my class... A Judge Ogden gave a half an hour Constitution lesson and he was surprised that I knew practically all the questions... He finally asked me how I knew so much and I told him that I teach a comprehensive class on Constitution in my 8th grade... It felt pretty good to know the answers and feel that power and to know that my students will hold that power, wow, I am humbled by that... Mom, I am going to take you to our Constitution Jeopardy game on October 28 and I promise you, you will be impressed.... I do love our country and I hope that Obama and other evil men will not be able to move this country to a new constitution created by the hands of man... I like the one that is created and ordained by God, Himself... Night... 39

Golf and Football is back... Rachael miscarriaged...

I went early Saturday morning to play golf... It was a little melocholny because I got beat by Josh again in the tournament and Ryan stated that there was going to be no way that he would miss the individual tournament next year and that left me feeling like what the heck, I am getting old and there is no way that I'm going to compete.... The first nine I shot an average 41 and then I experimented on a shot and my eyes lit up because something click... Then I made up my mind that I was not going to be satisfy in getting the ball on the green on my approach shot and that I have to get closer to the pin so I can get some birdies... Well, on the back nine I got three birdies and just missed on two others and now the juices are flowing and I am going to work on my short game and mid range this year... I am going to become deadly with my 3 to 7 irons so I can put those shots on the green so I can shoot pars rather than bogies... I am going to figure out how to beat these young pups and I can feel the fire already... I ended up shooting a 76 Saturday and that is very decent and I am so thankful that I have something to fire up my juices and a place to express it.... I am thankful that football is back in full bloom and I did pretty well with my fantasy teams... I got to go to jury duty tomorrow and it kills me that I am going to miss school tomorrow... Church was great... A very sad note is that Rachael miscarriaged and it is sad because you can tell Brian and Rachael are in a state of mourning.... I am thankful that I have a daughter that wants a child so badly, she told me she is anxious to try again... Wow, it is great to have Rachael back and she is so pleasant to be around with.... I have a beautiful family and I am one thankful man... Night.... 39

Officiated with Bo....

What a thrill it was to be with Bo on his first officiating assignment... I mean when I say he officiated like a 3rd year official.... He made some tough calls and he was right on every one of them... The most important thing is that he was willing to blow the whistle... It was fun working with him and it was smooth work at Mojave HS... I started teaching the Constitution in my 8th grade classes today and that was a lot of fun and the students were really involved... I am a blessed person... I hope everything with Rachael is okay, we are worried that she might be losing her baby... Night.... 39

I am a happy person....

Oh, don't get me wrong, our country is in a severe spot that I would never have expected that we could ever be in, but personally I am a very happy person... I have a wonderful family, friends, and students that I get to associate myself with... I just notice that things are going very well and I am thankful for the anchor of being a member of the Lord's church.... I am so thankful for all the people I associate myself with on how they treat me.... I officiated at Paraclete today and everything went fine.... Night... 39

Volleyball is back.....

Bo and I went to Rosamond to do a scrimmage in volleyball... It was fun watching Bo officiate for the first time... He has a very weak whistle but his mechanics for the first time was really good... It is a mix report, I just know that he needs to bust out the inner strength and blow on that stupid thing and make it screech.... It was fun talking to Taylor tonight about her liberal social studies teacher, but she likes her and feels that she is fair on the issues.... I am happy for Taylor to be tested about her beliefs but seeing her steadfast attitude... Night.... 39

Day off....

I woke up at 5:30 in the morning (No not to golf) to go help 10 other brethern put shingles on the roof of an elderly gentleman and 4 of our brethern help put them on for him.... I belong to a wonderful ward that is not afraid to do reasonable service projects.... I came home about 6:00 to go back to sleep and I slept until 9:00... Taylor and I went and got some brockworst meat and Taylor made a mean spaghetti dinner and I was in heaven... It was a lazy day, but we did fixed a couch, mostly Venna did that, I just did the heavy work... I heard Obama speak today and it really made me sick and he is absolutely the most evil man we have ever had in the White House... Night... 39

Wade and Taylor....

High light of the weekend is being able to go to the temple with Wade on Saturday morning... We went to the Spanish session so I had to use the earphones... I thought I was in another country... Wade was just fine because he knows Spanish... Oh by the way I bought a Mexico World Cup soccer shirt in Arizona and I thought I would never wear it but we had a team jersey Friday at school and I wore it... Wow, I was the hit of the day, students all over was coming over to me and slapping me five... I kept reminding them that they were my second favorite team but it was fun.... Tonight Taylor and I watched "Last Song" and it is a story about a father and a daughter and I weeped like a baby watching it with Taylor... Great, but sad movie....Night... 39

College football is back...

I watched Utah beat Pittsburgh and it is now 33-16 USC beating Hawaii and I am in Heaven... I really missed football, golf is fun but there is nothing like football.... I remember when I used to feel that way about baseball, well, not any more... Football, basketball, and golf the rest is just a waste of time... Sorry, mom, I know you love tennis and Little League...Night... 39

Haven't been in a fight since 5th grade.....

Don't worry Mom, I still haven't been in a fight since 5th grade, but as I explained to my students how to do that they got me to tell about a mind set that I have that may get me in trouble, oh well... I taught my students that you have to plan events and how you will react to them ahead of time and I told them that that's how I have stayed out of trouble... I taught them that it is okay to say your sorry and admit that it is your fault even though it wasn't just to stay out of a fight.... They asked me if there is ever a chance that I would fight and I told them that I would defend my family and anyone I love including them, but as of now I haven't had to put that to a test... They asked me if there was anything else that would make me fight and I told them I shouldn't tell you this but I will... I told them that one of my fears is being trapped in a bathroom at the theatre while I am going to the bathroom.... I told them that I have already planned what I would do if I felt in danger while I was going to the bathroom.... I told them that I would turn and pee on the intruders and then hit them as hard as I could and then run out of the theatre to my car and call Venna on the cell and tell her where I am.... They all laughed, but really that is what I would do and I have done it in my head a thousand times... Night... 39

I felt the urge but I resisted...

When I got done with school and I almost went golfing and then I realize that I am tired and I am not golfing against my family for a year, so I came home and relaxed... I will probably go tomorrow because my withdrawl pains my overcome me if I don't feed my addiction.... I sure hope no one picks out that one sentence and burns me someday.... I am teaching this year using a power point and I am having a blast... I love teaching and that is the only reason I don't want to get old because I am afraid that someday I will not be able to reason with young people and lose it... I love teaching and I can't believe I get paid doing it.... Night.... 39

36 wonderful years.... I am a lucky man!

It is impossible to put into words how happy I am to be married to Venna... This may sound strange, but our love is so strong that I did not have to do something crazy to prove my love for her... We are low on money this month, it happens, so we had 14 dollars lying around and we went to Subway and had dinner... Most of our conversation was about the triumphs of Glenn Beck, but occasionally we would add a "I love you" or how thankful we are that we have spent the last 36 years together.... I have shared already how we met and that is a miracle, but the major thing is that we have 8 wonderful children that look like they are all going to be sealed in the temple and all of them will be college graduates.... That is my wife's and my life in a nutshell... We live in Lake LA and she has never questioned it once... She is still beautiful and I am a lucky man.... I don't know why we are here, but I can say that strong impressions have kept me here, I guess I will never leave, but I love the people here and again I am a lucky man.... Wade called me up today and we are going to the temple next week, I am looking forward to going with him, I am a lucky man.... My class was so kind to me when I got back and they are working for me, they seem to love my class and I have had zero problems, I am a lucky man.... My Mom told me about being in Fairview and when everyone went into a Art Museum mom stayed out and sat on a bench, and she told me that Dad was with her the whole time, she felt his presence, I have great parents, I am a lucky man.... I have a Father in Heaven who is allowing me to commune with him in prayers and I feel his presence in a powerful way several times this past week and I realize that I have been sealed to him, well, I am a lucky man.... Rachael is pregnant and she is thrilled to have the baby and that will make 22 grandchildren, yes, yes, I am a lucky man.... Thank you Venna for having me, because by you having me, that makes me the luckiest man in the whole world.... Night.... 39

Bishop in Visalia Killed, hmmmm......

Janet just called me and told me about a Bishop in Visalia who was killed in his office today.... Add to this our building being torched two days in a row and that is the making of wonder and if it is all a coincidence or are we getting started in being persecuted because of the teachings of Jesus Christ... I had a very special prayer this morning and what took place during the prayer is not important but I can testify that I know that the Savior lives... I had a wonderful visit in my prayers.... I had the opportunity to speak in church before our Bishop and Stake President and there was a wonderful Spirit as we discussed the wards efforts on activation/missionary work.... We are having the Saints bring into their home a less active, part member, or a non-member into their home to be taught by the missionaries by Jan. 1st... We are going to have priesthood holders tell us the date that they are planning on having the lessons taught and we are going to keep track of it for the missionaries.... Bishop Dassler and President Banfield then got up and had them raise the right hand to a square to sustain the action and do their part... It is pretty exciting what takes place in our ward... People make fun of it but we are mover and shakers and the Saints are great in doing marvelous things...Again, I had so much fun this past 3 days spending it with my nephews and brothers and the Spirit of love was obvious... Grandma Barto Briggs provided the money for the league and motel for the draft and that was kind to because I know I had children myself that were blessed for this kind gift.... I received a phone call last night stating that there were blinking lights on at the church so Joshua, Billy Dassler, Bishop Dassler and myself went to investigate, but the lights were from machines that are dioxidating the rooms but I did feel that I saw someone in the lobby on the south side so we all went into the church to investigate and boy, was the adrenaline flowing as we looked into every room to make sure there was nobody there.... We always knew that persecution was suppose to come back in the Last Days and if this is it then I agree with Taylor, "Bring it on!" We are on the winning team and we are not afraid to die for the cause of truth.... I hope that I don't sound arrogant because I do not want to see any trouble, but I do know that this church is true.... Night... 39

One of the great days of my life....

Today we had the family best shot golf tournament in St. George and we had Travis, Derek, Ryan, Tate and Wayne was the sheriff on the course riding around in a golf cart but not golfing but observing.... We also had Chad, Todd, Wade, and Neil.... On our team we had Joshua, Jared, Bo, and myself... The Wayne Briggs family won by shooting 6 under par, the Malesich's shot 3 under par and we shot 2 under par.... But the feeling was one of friendship and companionship like I have never felt before with all of us together... Afterwards we went out to lunch and we spent about an hour and a half just visiting and catching up... We are all touched with this opportunity and we all feel lucky that we have an event to get us together to see each other... We are growing up and there is not any pettiness, but just pure love... Again, it was special... I met up with Scott later on and I drove in with him to Las Vegas.. We had a nice visit and I was able to see Corine and the grandkids before Scott and I went... We are now in Grandma's condo in Vegas and when I say we, I mean Jacob, Rachelle, Scott, Bo, Joshua, and myself... We also have had a wonderful visit and while Josh and Rachelle go into Grandma's bedroom to sleep I am also going into the other bedroom to sleep and Scott, Bo, and Jake are doing WOW and I refuse to try and explain that but they are having fun... I got a strange message from Becca and it caused us to have a great laugh as we talked about Noah and his artistic abilities and what he draws at school... This one the teacher wanted to send home so Mom could see it.... It was a picure of a Grandpa, cousin, and uncle peeing on a beetle of some kind, yep I am not kidding and I just hope that the Grandpa was from the Hartzel side because I swear I know nothing about this, but oh did we ever get a hoot about it.... We draft our Fantasy Football team tomorrow then we get to go home and about this time I really start missing my wife and daughter Taylor, so I am anxious to get tomorrow over with and get home.... Oh, by the way Grandma, Joshua took the time to clean out your refrigerator and it looks and smells good.... We also have given work assignmnents for tomorrow before we leave so the place will be better now that before we came and yes everything will be turned off and taken care of... Thank you Mom for allowing us to stay here... Night... 39

Dad is happy, Jeff is ticked.....

We had our annual family golf tournament and Joshua won again... He beat me by 3 strokes and Todd by 8 strokes then it went Wade, Chad, and Neil... We played 6 hours, I'm not kidding, I love the Malesich's and I would golf 8 hours with them to have this experience but they are a slow bunch of golfers... Joshua and I are used to golfing 3.5 hours when we golf on a large course for 18 holes... But, oh my, the golf course is so beautiful here in St. George... Wade and I are going to the temple next month so get ready Rachael.... The room that we stayed in stayed warm, and did not cool down until about 1:00 AM... The shower is pretty strong so that is good... but we opened the rifrigerator and freezer in our room to try and cool it off and that is helping just a little.... Bo and Jared are going to be here in a few minutes and they get to sleep on the floor, but they will get the direct beat of the very weak air conditioner... Our church in Lake LA has been hit two nights in a row with flame bombs... Someone is trying to burn our church down... I guess they got inside and burnt the tables in one of our rooms... Are we in the Last Days, uhhh, I believe so... I really appreciate Venna for her support to allow me to hang our with my brother and all my nephews, thank you Venna for your kindness to allow me to do this without having to have a guilty conscience... I love you very much.... Night... 39

Josh and I are in St. George....

Wow, we got 2 beds for $35 and yet I feel ripped off... The one chair has pee stains on it, that is Joshua's chair, mine looks ok but I am weary of it... We have had the air conditioner on for about an hour and it is better, now I feel like I am in an oven rather than scraping against the sun.... Josh and I are both excited though to play against the Malesiches, I wish that at least Travis was here from the Wayne Briggs family, but the nervous feeling is entering our body... Venna, wished me Merry Christmas this morning because this is as exciting as Christmas for us.... I wish Scott could be here, I talked to him on the phone and though he didn't complain at all I could still tell that it was painful not being here.... I really hope he can come next year... Jared and Bo are coming tomorrow night... My class went well today, I am teaching a great group of young people... It is 8:00 California time and Joshua told me he is going to sleep, he states that he is doing his winding down routine so he can relax and go to sleep... Uh, who does he think he is kidding... I bet I am asleep before he is.... Night.... 39

I wish Jake, Scott, Brent, and Brian....

I wish they were going to St George too... We have the potential to put up 2 teams of four but I also understand why they won't be there... I am thankful that Bo will be there especially since he is going on his mission for our next men weekend... So it will be Jared, Bo, Joshua, and I battling Wayne Briggs family and Malesich family.... It's going to be fun to hang out with the family though.... They are all great guys.... night.... 39

Last tuneup for Todd and others....

Ahh, no one probably really cares and maybe it's my way to feed my competitive juices but I want to win the singles and family matchups in golf really bad this Thursday and Friday... I am golfing the best I have ever golfed before at this time but on one day, well this is avery weird game and everything can collapse very quickly, but it is fun to compete... My body is getting old but the flame inside of me is still there, the same one I had when I used to play basketball and other sports.... Heck, Josh won last year and yes I want to beat him also... I don't think I will be playing anymore until Thursday... I am meeting with my students parents tomorrow because I won't be here Thursday for Back to School... Don't worry Mom I got this okay'd by my Principal last Summer.... I got to be there for the Man's weekend extrvaganza, the part I like is that I can partake of the sacrament after this weekend and also give a sacrament talk which I will have to do this Sunday.... I shot a 79 today, I think I am ready for Todd and company.... Night.... 39

It is nice teaching again....

I had the easiest 2 weeks in the history of my teaching... I never had to discipline one student the whole two weeks... I am very thankful that I don't have to teach PE, math, or science.... I love teaching US History and we have already had some provocative discussions... I try real hard to pose both sides of issues without showing bias and the only way that my students think that I am in favor of the democrats is because I said that Republicans would like to have us teachers teach for free and the Democrats want us to be rich... They are giving conservative views a real honest look and I am thrilled that the one issue they practically all agree on is that abortion is wrong, even when I tell them that the democrats want the woman to have control of her body, they don't buy it and secretly it thrills me.... I have some great writers and some real potential of fabulous writers... And if I am tired during the day I have the potential of doing silent reading in two classes because I teach two separate groups of students... Jared and I had a tremendous interview/or just talking and the Spirit was powerful and I think Jared and Julie are considering some potential earth shaking news but more important Jared got to talk about his unfortunate situation with the teaching profession... Brian is now my official councelor and it just means that he is officially there because he has already been acting in that position and he has be very helpful and special... I am glad I am back writing, but I was really thrown into a change in schedule and I have been extremely tired every night and I now sleep great.... Night.... 39

It's almost over....

I really hate seeing the Summer come to an end... I don't know how to evaluate that because I still love teaching and yet I dred next Monday coming... Bo and Taylor seem to have a wonderful Youth Conference but Bo got really sick... Bo was in a play that was done and he worked on it for nearly 6 months... He did the 3 plays but needed two blessings to get it done.... I was really worried about Bo because he was burning up... Taylor had a bounce in her step with the feeling that her testimony grew by being there... That always makes me think of Becca and that very scary moment when she stated that she did not want to go Youth Conference and assured me that she had a testimony and she did not need to go to strengthen it... It turned out well but it scared me.... I'm anxious to see how my children will react to teenage years with their children... Bye... 39

Broke my golf cart...

Yep, that is the extent of excitement yesterday... Actually that makes it a good day... My golf cart did break and I was able to get a new one and that is kind of exciting because I was able to get one of those old man three wheel cart and I used it this morning and it worked well.... I am in contact with Theron and i am going to talk with him tonight... He needs to talk to me about something... I am thrilled that we are in contact again....Bye.... 39

3 days later.... I'm ready.... Are you?....

Tom Jay, Jason Jay, Jacob Gallop, Bo, Jake, Jared, Joshua, Brian, Bishop Dassler and myself are all stalwart heroes of the best kind as we did a job, not a service project but a dingy, putrid, horrid job that we united in and we all lived (barely) to talk about it... Forget Bo's experience of taking a bath with turpentine in it, that is frolicking in the tulips compared to what we did as a group... I will not name the lady that we helped because no one who is human should ever have to have their name associated with the grotesque gunk that we had to wallow through... Jared and I went to the house 2 hours early because we wanted to see what we were up against before we picked up the U-Haul... When we walked in there was up to four dogs running throughout the house... When I say running you can put the movement of their feet in this scenario but you could also think about bowel movements that are runny.... There was about 5 puppies also running around and I instantly told this lady that she needs to put those puppies in a room so we would not have to mix their blood with the other matter on the floor as we stomp around the house moving things and surviving.... There were boxes filled with items strewn around the house but none of them were taped down.... We saw food dangling from some boxes and bread matter that even ducks near a pond would reject if we were to throw it to them... There were stains all over the matted and shreded carpet... Crumbs were draped all over the floor, but have no fear the mice would run from this disaster.... Massive ammounts of debris was scattered all around the house with no closure.... Freezers and refrigerators needing to be taken apart so that they could be moved through the door had to be done without any tools... Butter knives needed to be used and Jared was valiant to stay in a tightly setted room and take on this task... Calling Election Made Sure came to mind as I observed him doing this from the outside of the house where the air was not as stenched as inside... Ahh, the smell, well let's go to the lab and mix up urine, fecal matter, with dog sweat odor, and a touch, no check that but a dumping of vomit and you will realize the smell that we had to endure each time we went in... A side note, you might ask why did we stay and do this, well our Bishop asked us to do it and we were obedient.... There was a time that I jerked my head back and started to gag and the woman of the house was right behind me and I apoligize but I told her that you might be used to this smell but it caused me to shutter everytime I went in... She took it quite well... Hmmmm... No comment.... We filled up a U-Haul and two trailers and we still had gunk laying around, I believe it is still there now just fermenting.... We took the said items that we packed to a desert rendezvous where we put it in a storage shed that already had other unsavory items and though I knew we were in snake country I knew that a snake would be smart enough not to dwell in a place like that.... We survived but all of us took massive showers and Brian claims he used two bars of soap but I only used three-fourths of a large bar of soap.... I don't have much hair these days but I washed it about 4 times that night and stopped because the water was turning cold on me.... We did it and we will forever be bonded together in this escapade and it will be impossible to hyperbolize this experiece as we talk about it 30 years from now....
We had a wonderful 24th of July celebration at the park and we had a huge crowd... I also had wonderful PPI's and a special visit with Bo as we keep in contact and work toward the goal of Bo going on a mission... He is worthy and desires to remain so, I am proud of him.... Bo gave a nice talk in church today also... Taylor has a friend name Jenna spending the week with us in preparation of Youth Conference next week... I went with Joshua to give a priesthood blessing and I am a very happy man with wife that is my best friend and whom I love very much.... Night... 39

I am not against service projects, but.....

Today we are going to do a service project for a lady that is less active and is Utah born... So, being Utah born she just calls the Elders Quorom President and states that I am moving and I need someone to be here... I asked her to talk to Bishop because she had no money to get a truck and she kind of demanded that I get all the trucks from our ward to do it for her... Well, Bishop asked me to do it and I am so thankful that I have a bout 12 brethern who are going to drop things tonight to help me out... It was her attitude that bothered me and so you see me through this writing having a attitude about this... We will get it done and the Lord will bless us for doing it so all will be well.... I am enjoying my last days of vaction... Teachers are so spoiled as I am in the midst of self pity that I only have a couple of weeks left of an 8 week vaction... It sure isn't like my Mission Tortilla days when I delivered tortillas for 5 years and never had a sick day or a vacation day because it was unheard of in that company... I will never forget the day when I called my Mom (who was the bookeeper in that company)with a 100 degree temperature and an infected ear and I could not get a relief driver because there wasn't any in existence... I used to get up at 2:00 AM and get home about 3:00 PM.... Unbelievable, I think of this everytime I feel that I am having a bad day teaching and then I decide maybe the day isn't that bad after all... Bye.... 39

Shot a 69, one under par,,,

This morning playing with Joshua I obtained one of the most important personal goals that I have ever gave to myself in sports... Granted shooting one under par does not compare to church goals like temple, family, and Eternal Life, but for personal sports goals what I did today was as satisfying as anything I have ever done in sports... I never thought that I would shoot par and forget under par... I made a stupid comment one time that if I ever shot par then I can go to my grave in peace, hey, I was just kidding because I want to live a lot longer... And technically I didn't shoot par but one below.... Wow, it really feels good.... I now want to be able to break par every now and then since I have broken the barrier.... I was one under par with yesterday with 5 holes remaining but I blew a par 3 and loss two strokes and then I promptly went down the toilet and ended up with 6 over par and I thought to myself that that was probably my big chance to get par this year... I give the credit to the British Open champion who puts a red mark on his glove to remind him to keep his head down and all day today before I hit the ball I would remind myself to keep my head down and I think I had solid contact the whole day... I appreciate Joshua going with me and Rachelle who let's him go... We wake up at 5:00AM so we can get back and spend the day with the family but I appreciate Josh going with me... He was a great cheeleader and support.... Night.... 39

It's Tuesday: Daddy, Daughter Date....

I let Taylor drive me into town and we bought her a Legos Harry Potter WII game... We then bought a Jomba juice and came home, but we talked a lot of music and had some laughs and I am a lucky Dad to have her,,, Night... 39

Sickness and Blessings...

When our whole family was sick last week, Joshua and Jared was going around the house and giving all of us a blessing... This morning Taylor woke me up at 5:00 in the morning with severe pains in her back and ribs... I was privilege to give her a Priesthood blessing and I was thrilled to see her faith in the Priesthood and she was able to finally get some sleep this morning... Bo was kind enough to help a member of the church in Lancaster move and then came home and babysat for several hours... Venna and I worked at the school until I bailed out and went golfing with Joshua in the afternoon.... Night... 39

I'm back Mom....

It has been a long time since I have written last...I could have gotten on Becca's computer but it was difficult to find time especially when it wasn't my own computer, oh to be sure Becca wouldn't have minded, but, well... I just didn't do it... I did have fun at the triplets birthday party at a air filled major big slides in a warehouse... It was fun... I got to golf there twice and had a blast and it was cheap too.... They have a special spirit in there house... Taylor, Bo and I really got sick on the same day last week and that was a lot of fun constantly reserving the bathroom so we could spew our guts out... It only lasted for twelve hours and we celebrated by eating chicken noodle soup that night... Rachael is now a first counselor in the Young Women Presidency and Julie is the secretary... I feel bad for Rachelle because she hasn't received help in Primary yet... Taylor and I went on a Daddy/Daughter date to see "Eclipse" and she drove, it was a fun day.... Glad to be back and I hope I get into a good habit again... Luv ya all.... Night... 39

Went to Lone Star Concert...

It was a great concert, especially when they went into flat out Rock and Roll toward the end... The fireworks was the best I have ever seen and they were exploding right over our heads... One time hot ashes did his the ground though and Rachael was a crap up after that because she was so afraid of her and her kids getting hit by the hot ashes... It was a sight to see... Rayden, Angelina, and Jesse went from her family and Bo and Taylor was there typical selves being so good to the nieces and nephews... We had fun, but I am glad to be home... We go to Becca's house tomorrow to see Asher... Night... 39

Participated in a church disciplinary council again...

I participated with Bishop Dassler in a church disciplinary council and it was the first time I have participated in a ward disciplinary council since I was the Bishop... It is always a humble experience and I was also thankful to participate in this one because of my tender feelings toward the person whom the council was being done for... It is an experience that always strengthens ones testimony because of the sacredness of the event... I just listen to Obama's speech on immigration... He was eloquent but so was Korihor in Alma 30 but we know that he was a false prophet and an evil man... Obama is as evil as I have ever seen in America politics.... I base that on the people he surrounds himself with and because of the Book of Mormon I am not fooled by his rhetoric,,, It is only palpable because of 2nd Nephi 8 as the Lord put President Obama in his place and just how much power he has compared to the Lord... It makes me smile and I read that chapter often now.... Without the church Obama would drive me crazy... Bye... 39

Fun temple trip with Rachael...

I really enjoyed going with Rachael to the temple yesterday... We left at 5:00 in the morning but neither of us felt like we were crazy... It is so much fun to be around Rachael and her life is so delightful now.... I am very proud of Brian and Rachael and their family... Oh by the way the temple experience was exactly what a person would expect and it was peaceful... Taylor and I went to the dentist this morning so Taylor can be abused by the dentist, but at this moment the real purpose for me going with her was to allow her to drive to the dentist... She is getting better at driving by leaps and bounds... She is getting to be a very good driver... Bye... 39

Greatest Sac. Talk ever and we saw Grandpa Good...

Venna gave the greatest Sacrament talk I have ever heard... Her text was the Lectures on Faith by Joseph Smith... I know she is my wife but it just can't be denied that she prepares and presents unbelievable Sacrament talks... She allowed the Saints to have a real personal relationship with the Savior and helped them to understand the Savior in a way that I don't they have ever experienced before... I had a great PPI with Jason Jay as we discussed important issues... He is a special young man... Venna and I went to Anaheim to see Bob Good... He is doing quite well considering he lost his wife a few months ago... Linda and her husband Ken was there along with Gail...We had a wonderful visit and we got to do a lot of Obama bashing... When I got home I took out Taylor to practice driving... She is doing a very good job of learning... Bye... 39

Lake LA Ward does it again...

At 8:00 yesterday morning we had about 30 members in our ward at the Pierson's house and we were able to clean a three quarter acre of weeds, trash, mend a fence in one hour.... We know about the one hour service project and many of the saints are sold on this... In fact it is a spiritual experience when we see complete clutter and in one hour everything looks nice... Many of the sisters were with us on this one and some of my favorites like Venna, Rachael, Kari were there... Rachele was doing her part in watching her children play softball but Josh was there and Taylor babysat the kids so Kari and Rachael could go... Jared, Jacob, Brian, and Bo were also there... Then we had a ton more from the ward there also... There might have been more than thirty there.... Feelings were very tender there as we gather together and had a prayer before we left... I believe that is the Zion feeling that we need to have as we face these tough days ahead of us... Oh by the way Taylor is now driving and is going to finish her lessons by the end of next week... She drove the car when we went to see Toy Story 3 and she did a good job though she was nervous at the first... Toy Story 3 was a fun movie and we always like to see it in 3D if possible... Night... 39

Girls night out...

We have all of the female grandchildren in town over at our house at this time... They are having a lot of fun and I think Rayden is really having fun but also is very troubled because she is seeing that we have a fun family and we really are a family.... It was fun watching all of them doing an exercise video with music and singing and dancing together... We had pizza and they went swimming in my spa... Why anyone would try to find joy in anything but posterity is absolutely crazy... I am very proud of Becca and Asher looks really cute... We are getting soccer crazy and even though it seems that some foreign officials have tried real hard to keep us out of the next round, well they just failed... I hope the USA does well this Saturday... Taylor is done with driving school so sometime next week she will be driving my car... Wow, and the beat goes on... President Obama is really getting exposed as the fraud he is... We need to get a president who loves our country.... Night... 39

I had a wonderful Father's Day....

How could I not have a wonderful Father's Day when I had so many of my children in my house and was able to talk to those who are not here... My family has always been so kind to me and it humbles me greatly... I paused for a moment with everyone at our house and I was amazed that from my flesh and blood such wonderful individuals came about... Jacob was called to be Young Men President.... We had a wonderful Elder's Quorom Presidency meeting and I think Brian is going to be my new counselor... It seems like Brian has been here forever and it is fun to see him fellowship those who are getting activated and have such a wonderful influence on them, namely Phillip Stout today.... I also had a very spiritual interview with Loyal Dillon who just turned 19 last week... We sang "Oh My Father" in Sacrament Meeting and I was touched by a very powerful and personal Spirit as I sang that song... I do love my Father in Heaven... I talked to the Brethern about our Ward service project this Saturday at the Pierson's house and I could only see excitement in their faces... We are going to serve for one hour but I fully expect over 40 people there to serve and that is a weeks worth of work for an individual so we are looking forward to helping this less active family... I belong to a nice ward and I have a wonderful family.... I am so thankful to have a wonderful and supporting wife.... I miss my Dad.... Night.... 39

The Lakers did it Dad....

Being a romantic I need to state that if Dad wasn't with me it sure felt like it anyways... Bo watched it with me but he was rooting for the Celtics so it was not quite the same but he was fun to watch with and I felt he kept everything real... I am very thankful to Kobe Bryant, Pao Gasoll, Ron Artest, Derreck Fisher, Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, and the rest of them... Thank you Phil Jackson... I am not ashamed to admit that the tears were flowing... We went to the beach with Joshua's family, Rachaels Family, Becca's kids, and my kids at home... It was a fun experience... I still have the flu so goodnight... 39

Sickness, Lakers, and Dad.....

There has been a lot of sickness in our house especially Venna, Elijah and I... That is the reason why I never got on this thing... I am thankful that my sister is with Mom so she would be so busy that she did not have time to see that I have not written... I watched the Lakers win a lovely game that only puts us in a game seven which historically the Celtics have never lost and I hope that I am not being set up for another disaster... I was sick while I watched the game so my romantic night of spending it with my father was not as acute as I expected, but if it is possible, who knows maybe we can share tonight together especially if the Lakers win... In a romantic view I can't help think if we were both in the Spirit World that we would figure out a way to ditch the group there and take a look at the game together, so, if he can who knows, we have shared many frustrating/heartbreaking experiences together with Jerry West and the old Lakers and now we have Kobe Bryant who is in a virtual same position so why can't we share this one too... Here's to the Lakers to break the bearier of the 60ties once and for all.... Night... 39

All my Grandkids were great...

They were all here except for Scott's kids... It was great and they got along very well... Kari and Jake brought a blowup swimming pool with a slide, yep, a slide and the kids had a blast with it... Elijah was really cuddly with Taylor and myself... He was always laughing and was just a delight... Jake,Braydon, Joshua, Bo,and Noah were watching a soccer video game and everytime they scored a goal they would yell a very long and loud, "Gooooooooooooal", well Isaiah came in and told Noah that he had three strikes and Noah just waved his hand casually at Isaiah and said,"Go to the other room Isaiah".... Everyone is dancing to this music video for WII and I guess they are going for points and losing calories... I really enjoy watching all of them do it... I would rather walk 5 miles golfing... I am watching a lot of World Cup Soccer and it is fun and tomorrow night I am going to watch the Laker/Celtics game tomorrow night by myself, unless Bo watches it with me and I am going to imagine that I am wathcing it with my Dad like we did in the 60ties... I really miss him, especially at a time like this... Who knows maybe he won't be busy tomorrow... Night.... 39

Noah and the Discussion on Volume....

The control box volume is recognized by numbers... The higher the number the lower the volume and the lower the number the loucder it gets... Noah and I had about a half an hour of experimenting with the volume because Noah was fascinated with the volume getting louder when the numbers are small... Single digit numbers practically blows the house down as Noah found out when he asked me to move it to 8 and he was fascinated and yet frustrated when it went up to 60... We found out that 51 was pretty much a perfect number for volume control... Wow, I did not expect to teach a math lesson this morning.... 39

Picked up Becca's Boys....

I had a wonderful but tiring birthday yesterday... I appreciate all the people who came to Briggs and mine birthday... It was his first one, I hope he has half as fun in life as I have... The Fransens and our family all came and so did Rayden... Venna and I bought a basket for the little guys that Josh put up and we also redid the playground ground by putting rubber chips on it so it won't cause any splinters... The kids loved both of our additions... Venna and I picked up Brent and Becca's kids at Blythe and we had a wonderful drive with them and they were excellent tonight... I am doing my best to write in this journal but actually I am in a great deal of pain as the Celtics beat the Lakers again... I almost wish I wasn't a sports fan because it is so painful, I know that most of the people will say come on give me a break but it is a real pain, one that my Dad and I suffered with way back in the 60ties... That is why I cried like a baby for a long time when the Magic Johnson group beat the Celtics in 1985 and again in '87... I really thought we had them this year and we still have a chance because the final two games will be played in LA... Kobe Bryant was unbelievable again but he will need help... Jacob watched it with me and I enjoy watching games with my boys more than words can say, but his dislike for the Lakers and his honest remarks are painful as he roots for the Celtics to win... Oh I love watching games with him and all my others but it is not a laughing matter for me, a crap this is stupid, but then again stupid as it is, it is still a true feeling that I have... I hope the Lakers can figure it out and beat the Celtics in the next two games... I hope my baby in Arizona is getting some well deserve rest as she is about to have her sixth child... Night.... 39

Watching World Cup/Damn Celtics....

I am watching World Cup right now and I am hoping that Mexico breaks the South African's heart.... I love World Cup and I am thankful that I am able to watch it... The Celtics always reverts to thuggery everytime they are on the verge to get beat and I wish that Jackson would unleash his two big men on the bench who never play (Powell and Mbenga the big African) and tell them to use all twelve of their fouls and beat the crap out of the Celtics... I get so sick of overt rough play that the Celtics go to at a time of desperation... I swear the worst team is going to win again, my only hope is that Dad smashes the cigar in Red Auerbach's face when he lights it up.... I hate the Celtics with a passion that is not healthy... I even hated my two favorite college players, Danny Ainge and Bill Walton when they played for the Celtics... I am afraid that Bynum is out for the rest of the series... I hate leprechauns and I hope some Ogre steps on it.... Kobe drives to the basket and they don't even try to block the shot but just crush him and most of the time it isn't even called.... I am sick of it, but isn't this a fun time of the year... Go Lakers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Night.... 39

Didn't sleep at all last night....

I don't know why but I just couldn't sleep... Heck, I didn't take a nap or anything but I was feeling it this morning when I picked up a missionary from our ward that came home early... I hope everything is goes okay with him... I went golfing with Jacob and we were both tired at the end and I shot a 84 and he shot a 96.... Most important is the fact that I enjoyed hanging with Jacob, although I did miss Joshua who was taking a couple of tests at college... Night... 39... Oh, Julie thank you for your note to me....

Lakers Win game 3...

And Derek Fisher was great... I want to beat the Celtics, oh, so bad.... We are now ahead 2-1... Night... 39

Wow, weird things are happening....

Sunday night about midnight we got a call from Becca telling us not to get up early and go to her house... Suddenly plans changed.... I got a call from President Banfield and was asked to go pick up a missionary that is being sent home early... Well, I went to the airport in Burbank and barely got my parking spot and then I received a phone call from Venna telling me that the missionary is coming the next morning... I called President Banfield and told him that I would come down here again, but it is a pretty weird day and week... I did get in some good golfing... I golfed with Jacob yesterday and Jacob and Joshua today... We are going to meet with Becca and Brent at Blyth to pick up the boys so Becca and Brent can have a week without the boys as she prepares to have her baby... I am so glad that we are able to do that for her... Bo, DJ, and Dane Beazel came over to help prepare our ground for new ground covering for our playground equipment... John Beaudette also did some tractor work and fixed our car at a very reasonable price.... He is a great neighbor... Night... 39

John Wooden, I will never forget you...

I actually was looking forward to John Wooden's death because sometimes he is forgotten when people like Bobby Knight and Dean Smith was called by some when they retired as the greatest coach... Give me a break... The other thing I hated to hear was that John Wooden couldn't do it today, another give me a break... John Wooden was an unbelievable person, teacher, and then coach.... He loved his wife Nelle and I am happy for him that he is with his belove wife and I am sure that they will accept the baptism and eternal marriage that someone will do for them in the temple... I have heard from some officials that he could say some pretty saucy things with his program rolled up and he is speaking through it as a offial runs by, but oh my, could he coach... I particularly remember him beating Elvin Hayes and Houston in the Semi Final in the NCAA tournament... I remember taking our dates home early so all my buddies could meet at Richie Giacopuzzi house at 11:30 PM to see the replay of UCLA basketball games... He won two championships with a center that was 6'5"... He once was in the elevator with my Dad in Salt Lake when we were there playing in the All Church Tournament and UCLA with Sydney Wickes playing in the regional NCAA tournament... He encouraged my Dad and show sincere interest in what he was doing... My Dad loved him... Bill Walton was a wild hippy but he would cut his hair and bear down for John Wooden... Greg Lee and Gary Franklin whom I played with in the ninth grade was on his team.... By the way we won the State Tournament in the 9th grade and played our final game on the floor that the Lakers played on... I won the most inspirational award in the tournament, sorry, I couldn't resist adding a great moment in my life... I love John Wooden very much and I have missed him after he retired but I really miss him now, but who knows maybe my Dad can teach him something in the Spirit World elevator about the God that John Wooden loves and he will be able to act on that love for eternity.... I shot a 72 today... We are getting prepared to go to Arizona this Monday... Night.... 39

I'm back...

A lot of what I am doing at this time is working with Venna to set up our rooms... It is a cool feeling because we will be ready for the first day of school and we will be able to relax and enjoy the Summer... It looks like we are going to Arizona to be with Becca and family on Sunday... Becca is going to have the baby early, it appears... I loved the Laker game and I hope so much that they will take the Celtics down... I hope Becca has a recorder so I can see Sunday's game on Monday morning... Hey, Bec, yea that's right, hint hint... Oh, by the way put at least an extra hour on the recording because it might go into extra time..... I am looking forward to see my family in that great state and I will be sure to have my papers in order... I will love to spend money and try to help the economy there... Raydon is here and I know that Brian and Rachael and family are really thrilled... I am happy too because she is a neat girl... I believe she will be here for 6 weeks... Good for them... Jake is a bachelor this week because Kari is in Colorado but at least he is done with school today... Poor Jared still has two weeks to go,ugh... Night.... 39

Hole in one and Blueberry....

I was golfing with Joshua and on the 4th hole which is a par 3 over a pond, I was able to hit the ball and get a hole in one... It is my 4th hole in one in my life time.... This was the first one that I didn't see the ball go into the hole... Joshua said that he thought it went into the hole and it was a cool feeling to walk up and look into the hole and see the ball.... At Bo's birthday party Andy found this very ugly blue bug (she loves bugs, I am not kidding) and she would let it crawl on her arm and she gave the bug the name Blueberry, yep, I can't believe it either... Taylor later on this morning is going to post pictures for me... So beready to take anoter peek at this sight... There was a lot of people here for Bo's birthday... 5 of Bo's friends and the Fransons, Jenny Sparks and all the other regulars from our family... It was relaxing and fun... I played basketball yesterday and it was the first time that I felt I was an old man and didn't belong on the court... I am probably being hard on myself because I scored 4 points, but there was two young bucks playing guard and that made it tough... We lost by 8 points and I believe we were winning by 8 points in the first half... Bo played well but his shot waw off, but Joshua hit 4 three pointers in the second half... I am kind of on pins and needles because if Becca goes into labor again then Venna and I are on our way to help out her family... Bye,,,, 39

A wonderful day...

It started off with Bo preparing his talk and I was impress with his tenacity in doing it... I then had a wonderful PPI with Brian... Obviously, what we talked about is between us both, but I will say that there was a strong Spirit in the room... I am very proud of Brian and he is a great addition to our ward and our community... Bo and Kari Briggs gave talks today and they both did an outstanding job... Kari was so scared but she ought to relax because she had a lot of people in tears as she spoke about Eternal Marriage... After church I had to call Triple A to take care of the car that Bo is driving... A bolt came out and he had to drive it to the side of the road... Jared and Jacob said it will be easy to fix, I hope so.... Then we had Michael Good and his family and all of our family at our house and it was just a wonderful day of visiting.... There was nothing on TV worth watching so we jus visited... We also celebrated Bella, Jacob, and Bo's birthday.... I am such a lucky guy to have such a wonderful family.... Venna was a great host and I love her very much... Enjoy Bo's graduation pictures.... Bye.... 39

Wow, Lake LA Ward comes through again....

Bo and I went to a service project to help Br. Nitz who has a bad back.... In our ward we have set an hour time to our service projects and 25 brethern came out to help and we cleaned a half an acre of weeds in, yes, that's right, 1 hour... I am very thankful to belong to a ward that constantly does service like this... We are a ward that is prepared if we have a major disaster, we will come through... I am thankful... Bye... 39

It is done....

It has been a great year and one that I will always appreciate... I had a wonderful class of students who really worked for me... I am thankful that I am not going to teach math anymore because that subject always cause me great anxiety because of the black and white nature of it... I believe I did well with it but it is the one subject that I had a constant game face and it was a "don't mess with the math teacher because he means buisness" face... The other subjects I was able to have fun with, but math it was all buisness most of the time... I have practically moved into Venna's old room already and I am going to be able to keep most of her wall displays, heck I am almost ready to teach next week... Now, on the reality front, I am looking forward to getting a break... Venna and I went and got a massage and then we went to a movie.. We saw "Prince of Persia" and it was fun to see on screen a game that my older boys played on the old MAC computer we used to have... It was a cute show but Jake wouldn't like it because there was a mechanism that let people go back in time... But, save Jake's dismay, I enjoyed the movie... Night... 39

Bo's Graduation....

To be honest I wasn't all that excited about the graduation because it is college graduations that really count, but when my son walked onto the field, well, my heart was beating hard and the tears started to roll... I recognize that I was witnessing a great feat by a wonderful young man... Bo is a special young man... He is not on drugs and he is an honorable priesthood holder... I was thrilled to see Rachelle, Jacob's whole family, Rachael, and Jared and Julie with us.... Joshua would have been there but he had a final he needed to take.... I was also very proud of Yancy Rodriguez who is very important to our family... I went to shake Yancy's hand but he would have none of that and gave me a great big hug instead...Yancy is going to Brown University on a full ride scholarship... Bo and he are very good friends... Thank you Bo for a wonderful 18 years and I hardly ever had to get on him, wow, I am a lucky Dad.... Night.... Yea, Lakers.... 39

Because I love my Mom...

I was so tired last night that I didn't post a journal entry, but this morning when I woke up I felt a need to write this because I know that my mom loves to read my families blogs... Again, my students allowed me to have the nicest last Wednesday I have ever had... I am buying them pizza today and we are going to celebrate a successful year... They helped me take down my room yesterday and we transferred a lot of things to Venna's/my new room so that will mean that we will have to set up virtually one room this summer and that will be Venna's new room.... Josh and I went golfing, I really appreciate Rachelle and Venna being so supportive to our playing together.... I beat Josh by 6 strokes, but that meant we played even after the 2nd hole, Josh got off to a slow start and oh my the wind was howling and we shot an 81 and 87... Comment on the Celtics and their potential collapse to Orlando... They call the Celitics grizzly veterns in the playoffs, but really they are a team broght together with losing super stars that happen to put one post season together and beat the Lakers two years ago... Garnett, Allen, and Pierce were all losers before they were brought together and Howard from Orlando is showing why Shaquelle O'neal is not the greatest center ever, nor even in the final 5 because of the way Howard is blocking shots all over the place and constantly getting key rebounds, like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul Jabar, Bill Walton for one year with good knees and Olajawan, they were all much better than Shaq... Night.... 39

I would like to play more....

But I am definately old, but in our church league I feel that I can still participate and be productive.... I played 8 minutes and scored 9 points and had plenty of assists, but I understand because the rest of the team is young and they want to play also... I feel bad that I am reacting this way, but I have competative juices still flowing.... I am amazed that my shot is still there and this is crap because I can tell that I am bragging about myself... I am a proud person and need to repent... I enjoy playing with my boys and other church members... We have fun but we did lose, but what the heck the other team had a 6'7" player who was nailing 3 pointers regularly... He was really tough but I can tell that he is soft and a complainer, but he is sure good against people like us... I went to Magic Mountain with Venna and the 8th grade today... It was fun to be with Venna but all we did was be there if the kids needed help and we did a lot of people watching... Roller coasters don't do anything for me... I do remember hearing stories about Grandma Rigby going on roller coasters when she was in her 60ties... I am not like her... The kids were well behave and it was an easy day except for the fact that I had to go to the bathroom as soon as we left the park... It was a miserable ride home.... Joshua subbed for my class and I have 3 days to go.... Night... 39

Best last Monday of school year ever...

My class has been amazing and I have really appreciated them staying with me and I feel so blessed especially after my class of last year... I played golf in the wind but that was not the reason why I shot an 87 today.... I was just off and I hope that it is not old age... I did enjoy the walking though... I talked to my mom and she seems to be doing real well and that is wonderful.... I am worried about our government under President Obama, I really am and it is strange to feel strongly that he was foreordained to be in his position and watching evil appear to be right... Wow, he will be remembered through all eternity as just the opposite of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King and Ronald Reagon.... Secret combinations are alive and well and the Book of Mormon is alive and well today, right now.... Night... 39

Bo, Taylor and Mom win Seminary Day....

Yep, the Lake LA Ward won the competition for Seminary Day for the first time.... Venna has had some very strong teams but this one kicked the door down... Along with Bo and Taylor there was Cathern Dillon, Bernel Gonzales, Brigitte Dassler, Caleb Slafter... I felt the Scott, Becca, Joshua, Jason Jay team was really good to but this team came home with the medal... Venna and I worked together to do one of the competition and then we went to the movies together... We saw "Shrek" and it was fun... I then went to bed early and got a good night sleep.... Night.... 39...

Venna and I saw "Just Wright"....

The best part is julst being on a date with Venna... Good old Jack in a Box and a movie... Joshua subbed in the 6th grade and took a tough class and did a great job.... He is a natural... Jacob showed me his results to testing and he is doing real well... I am really proud of everyone in our family... Night.... 39

We won and it was fun....

I first want to wish Jacob a happy birthday.... 30 years ago a great young man was born and I have enjoyed Jacob a lot since he has join me on mother earth... Church basketball was on again tonight... Bo got to play and it was fun watching him shut down a boy name Jacob White... Jacob White is a nice guy but he has a little bit of a big mouth and he has been harrassing Bo since I have known him.... Jacob White is good but Bo quietly took him out of the game and we won by some 25 points... I only scored two points but I had a lot of assists and didn't shoot much, didn't need too, not that I am the first option anyways.... I played with Joshua and Jared too... Mark Gallop was there and also Jason Jay and Rod Spencer... They all treat me really nice and I want to thank them... Josh and I tried to play golf today but the wind was strong and wicked so we stopped after a few holes.... It sure is fun to see Joshua on our campus and I can tell already that he is making an impact... Jared and Julie took their first class in Foster/adoption class... I hope the best for them.... Life is good and I am a happy person... Night... 39

I got my assignment but it is not the same as.....

Last night I was destined to be a fifth grade teacher... That was alright but I really wanted 8th grade... They tried to give me a seventh grade class, but I convinced the principal that I was not a very good science and math teacher... Well Venna is going to teach that block so she will teach Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, and Science and I am going to teach 8th grade Reading, Language Arts and Social Studies... I am estacted about this and the Ms. Stowers is really excited that Venna is doing 7th and I am doing 8th grade... She gave us both a hug and was really excited, I have never seen her that way before, but wow, I am so thankful to be back home after my WAA journey... I am truly a blessed person.... Night.... 38.... Oh, Julie, thank you for your comments and good luck on the classes that you and Jared are taking for Foster Care... Double oh, I am sorry to Darin for not remembering his birthday but Grandpa is just not very good at keeping up with those types of things....

I got my new teaching assignment, but....

I can't talk about it yet because I was told through confidence and I will be able to reveal it, I believe, tomorrow... I slept for over 11 hours this day and it felt so good.... Kobe Bryant is the greatest player I have ever seen playing basketball... The greatest Laker ever.... Night.... 39

Went to bed at 7:00....

I went to bed at 7 O'clock and slept solidly until 2:30 AM and then I got up and watched the Laker game... It felt great to get that solid sleep... I talked to mom tonight and I was impressed with her quick mind... She has lost nothing when it comes to communication... I am thankful for Wayne and Deon for providing a nice living condition for her... She is also going to Texas in June with Jan... Night.... 30

Taylor's short story....

This is my daughter's short story that she wrote for her class, enjoy!!!


Lockets and Pearls
The white manor stands still, silent. The Chateau Ste Michelle Winery Manor House from first glance seems nothing more then that. The quiet, whistle of the wind blows, soft and still. But suddenly, lightning strikes, thunder bursts, and rain falls. Each drop of rain crushes the concrete; each lightning strike burns the night sky. A shadow which would frighten even the largest, strongest man flies across the upstairs room. The night sky hides behind the dark grey clouds, causing complete and utter darkness. The winery next to the manor causes a sweet fragrance to drift across the silent grounds. But the scent of death overcomes that, causing the atmosphere to change, a dark air touching into the body. Then, blood curdles, thunder is silenced, all you hear is the last breath of a dying soul. All that is seen is blood dripping from the upstairs window, down into the puddle of rain below. And the body of girl lying outside.
Sarah Reese wakes up in the prison cell. The house her and her mother moved into 3 months before is still as cold and lonely as when they moved in. Her white walls are blank, bland. Her clothes are dark, cold. Moving out of her small bed, she makes her way to the bathroom. As she walks down the plain hallway, the scent from the bacon sizzling in the pan down stairs fills the home. She breathes it in, mouth watering, as she enters the bathroom.
Sarah looks at the face in the mirror. Slim and attractive, as it was back at her home in California. Her dark brown hair gently lies along her shoulders, and curls all the way down. Her father’s hair was the same, dark brown, as dark as chocolate, with curls contained in the thickness. Her tan skin continues to lighten, reminding her she wasn’t in sunny Cali, but in rainy Woodinville, Washington. But her eyes, that’s what showed her beauty. Deep, rich, chocolate brown. They were enticing, inescapable. She could hold you in a glare for hours, just by a simple glance. But they haven’t been the same, since the day years back, when everything changed for her. When the light contained in her eyes left, destined to never return. She looks a few seconds longer, and decides that it is as good as it was going to get. She walks down the stairs to the prehistoric kitchen, containing a small, black oven, an over-size white refrigerator and a small, old, white microwave in the back. Her mom hands her the tray of bacon, ready with her fried eggs, sunny side up.
“Sarah, this Friday, I will be going out with Bryan. I’ll leave dinner in the fridge, and all you’ll have to do is heat it up.” Her mother said.
Bryan Snuff. Exactly, a snuff. It can be assumed that he was attractive, with his light brown hair, and sparkling Paul Newman eyes. He was in his late thirties, and obviously bleached his teeth quite often. Outward appearance, he was a model from a magazine. But inside, he was a prideful, vain, a simpleton. Sarah finds it amazing he could breathe and talk at the same time. Sarah’s distaste for Bryan might have been simply because of the tragic death of her father 3 years before. When Sarah was at the beginning age of adolescence, 13 years old, her father came into a bloody accident on a freeway in California. Her father was driving the new car home, and her mother and herself were in the older car. Her father, Ryan Reese, looked over to his little girl, and laughed because of the look she gave him. That one second of not paying attention cost him his life. The car in front of him through on the breaks, and the new, midnight blue Toyota crashed into the old clunker. The explosion next to them was deafening. Ryan flew out of his seat, and his cranium smashed into the safety glass, and the blood splattered across. Sarah sat in shock, unsure of what had just happened, right before her eyes. It was a nightmare she couldn’t wake up from. The ambulance rushed to the accident, but there was no hope. So much blood was lost, that Ryan was sure to die within the hour. Sarah ran to her father’s side, her best friend, the one she could trust more then any other. He leans forward, and gives her a locket. It was beautiful silver, shaped into a heart. She opens it, and it plays the melody of the lullaby her father always sang. He looks at her. His last words to her were, “Take care, I’m always going to be with you.”
Sarah could not believe her mother had forgotten the soft spoken father that was with her for 15 years, to come to this business man, who was a mere looker, but didn’t have the brains to run a corporation. Her father was everything to her. He took her everywhere, and always showed his love to the young girl. She looked at the woman who raised her alone the past 3 years. She replied with a simple, “Alright Mom, whatever.”
Sarah leaves the house and enters into the cloudy, rainy Washington day. She often walked to her school, so she had time to think about her life, on the long, frozen sidewalks. Woodinville was nothing compared to the sun of California. Why her mother moved out here to be with Bryan, she’ll never know. When she makes it to the crosswalk, the three, menacing girls, Katriana Jones, Mary Lee, and Katie Ray appeared, with there bleached, blonde hair, obviously from a bottle, since there was no sun anywhere in Woodinville. Katriana obviously disliked Sarah, probably due to her automatic popularity, even though her negativity and monotone voice. Katriana was used to being the girl everyone looked at, let it be the quarterback on the football team, or the point guard of the basketball team. Her beauty never was competed, till the new girl came around.
Katriana over the past few months, she looked for a way to get rid of her, to embarrass or scare her out. The manor. That was her master plan to be rid of Sarah. The white manor, known by the name of Chateau Ste Michelle Winery Manor House, was legend to be haunted by Elizabeth, the mistress of Frederik Stimson. Elizabeth was a servant in the home, and in her room, pearls were hidden away, given to her by her mother. After a night with Frederik, Elizabeth became pregnant. Of course Mrs. Stimson was in a fury. Her body burned with the anger held within her. Apparently shortly after Elizabeth was found out, she had an “accident” down the stairs, leading to the kitchen. Since then, Elizabeth is said to be found in the house, especially in the bathrooms. Alarms would begin blaring, and toilets would flush out of nowhere in the late hours of night. Surely it was Elizabeth. It was perfect. If this paranormal activity actually occurred, then it would scare her right out of Woodinville.
Katriana walked up to Sarah.
“Sarah, what are you doing this Friday?” asked Katriana, in an innocent voice.
“Nothing? All I’m doing is sitting at home.” Sarah replied. “Why?”
“I know that I haven’t been the most welcoming in the town, but I feel like we can become great friends. But I have to prove your good enough.” Katriana explained. “You know the manor on the hill?”
“The winery? Yeah, my house is right around from it. Why?” answered Sarah.
“If you can get the hidden pearls of Elizabeth, you will have proven yourself in this town. Well, unless your chicken.” mocked Katriana.
“I ain’t scared. It’s a silly house. That story is only a rumor. The scariest thing would be those century year old floors falling on top of me. No prob.” Sarah said, in a strong voice. But she wasn’t as sure of herself as she made it sound. When Bryan told her the story, trying to frighten her, she simply ignored it, thinking nothing of it. But in the late night dreams, she saw the ghostly spirit, the light that exalted from her. The pearls, hanging from her neck, and her wild hair flying behind with the long dress she had on. She would hear the soft moaning from the ghost. Was it singing? Even though she feared this rumored spirit, she wasn’t going to let Katriana frighten her away, make her look like a fool in the town. She would never live it down. Her mom would be out on the town that night, so she wouldn’t have to come up with a story. “I’ll do it!” she exclaimed.
Sarah begins to go through the rest of the three days before heading to the house. She feels her sanity leave her. Lying in her bed, she begins to see her worst fear, Elizabeth. She sees the spirit moving towards her, moving, with eyes bright, and a blood stained dress. Her hair flies across the room. Sarah can smell the odor of the dead body. The dress is a soft blue, and overcomes the body of the spirit. All she can do is stand, staring at Sarah. Sarah wakes in a cold sweat. What would the spirit do to her? She hears something in the closet. She steps off the bed, and moves closer to the closet. She grabs her softball bat, lying on the ground, and moves closer to the closed door. She opens it, and screams. She sees Elizabeth hiding in the back. She throws the bat, but it just hits the wall behind her closet, and leaving a mark.
These visions of the spirit cease to stop. The sound of things dropping continues. But that wasn’t all she saw. She begins to see her father at her side at all times. He follows behind, in front, or even walks at her side. She is unsure why. No one else sees him, or Elizabeth. Is her sanity gone? Is it becoming too much? Sarah hides her insecurities at school though. She can not show her fear to those around, especially to Katriana. Each of her nights ended with her crying the stress on her shoulders away. She feares Friday, but knows that she needs to face it.
Friday comes.
Sarah gets on her cherry red bike, riding on the dirt road, leading to the street to the house. As she begins to ride, her legs become Jell-O; she can hardly balance herself on the bike. The road leading to the house is bumpy, and trees grow all around. She finally makes it to the house, and sees Katriana in the distance. She rides up, nods, and continues up to the house. The gate is locked with an old antique lock. She doesn’t know if she could break in. Coming from California though, she learned to jump even the highest fences. She climbs up, and jumps down. The atmosphere changes. The air became cooler, wetter. She notices that it begins to sprinkle, and she is sure a storm was coming in.
The grounds are well kept. The trees are tall, and well cut. It obviously is well taken care of, but there never is maintenance at night. That’s when Lizzie comes out. The damp air makes Sarah sweat. Her stomach is aching, feeling as if a hole is ripped through. She keeps walking to the door. It is locked. How is she to get in? She walks to the nearest window, which is left unlocked. She looks in the freshly cleaned glass, and sees the room is empty, dark. She slides the window open, finding the room holds some of the most beautiful antiques. They are dusted and polished. In the back, a baby grand piano stands, appearing as it would in the most amazing music store. It shines in the dim light. It is a dark black, the keys are clean. Her hands sweep across the keys. It leaves a beautiful sound, a melody that echos through the mansion. It makes the home feel less empty, less frightening.
She continues to walk forward, into a great hall. A staircase stands in the back, made of beautiful white marble, with breath-taking engraved railing. She smells the polish used. She smells the lemon Pledge. The home did not hold the fear she was sure was there. She begins to walk up the steps, and sees a portrait of a man, a hardy face, and a glare going right through to her very soul. She has to turn away. She continues to walk up, and sees a long hallway. She decides to turn to the right, see what would happen. On the right, she sees a light brown, wooden door. The knob on it is gold, rusting. This confuses her. The care the house had, and they couldn’t care for a doorknob? This frightens her, so she walks down further. She walks to the next door, and saw it was only a closet, so she continued on, and at the very end of the hall, she sees a door. The light inside seems to flicker on and off.
She runs down the other side of the hall. She looks at all the rooms, and none of them contain Elizabeth’s pearls. They contain tables, chairs. A bed or two. She walks back to the door with the rusted knob. She slowly turns the knob, and walks into a dusted room, with cloth over the furniture. The particles of dust could be seen in the moonlight shining through the window. A mirror stands in the back. Sarah walks forward to the mirror. The glass is distorted. She can not see her reflection, for it has changed. She notices, in the reflection, a beautiful blue gown on a manikin. She moves slowly, steadily, quietly to it. She looks at the blue gown, a soft, baby blue, silk dress. At the neck of the manikin, she sees something sparkle. The pearls sit across the artificial body. She knows right away, they were Elizabeth’s. This is Elizabeth’s room. The hole in her stomach returns. Is she trespassing in the room she fears most? Softly, in the background, she hears a soft melody. It seems to be playing on a piano, but no one else is supposed to be in the house. She grabs the pearls off the manikin and runs to the top of the stairs. There, she sees a small figure. It appears to be a woman. It appears to be Elizabeth.
The spirit looks at Sarah, with glowing yellow eyes. She is in a tattered, blood-stained dress. She suddenly comes up the stairs. She flies past Sarah, forming circles around her. Sarah stands still, staring at the yellow eyes glaring back at her. The air is closing in, her breath is scarce. Then she hears in the back, the flushing of water. Then again. And again. The water starts to flood the house. Sarah runs to the bathroom. She walks to ward the bathroom toilet. The water is spilling over, Sarah is soaked. She sticks her hand into her pocket to hold on to the pearls. They are gone!
Elizabeth plays music again. But not from the piano. Sarah walks towards Elizabeth’s room, the room with the rusted doorknob, the room with the music. Sarah walks in, but Elizabeth can’t be found anywhere. In the back, by the dusty window, with the floral white curtains, is a locket. It is metal, and shaped in a heart. It is scratched, but beautiful. Sarah recognizes the locket her father gave to her before he died. The locket that played the lullaby her father sang to her each night. She picks it up, feeling the cold metal in her hand. It plays the old melody, making Sarah begin to sway back and forth. Stuck in the moment, she is frozen in time. Elizabeth floats over. Her spirit holds the smell of a corpse. She comes behind Sarah. Sarah turns and the angelic spirit’s face changes. She scowls, appearing as a monster, a gargoyle. Sarah walks back, coming right up to the window. She touches the cold glass. The condensed water touches her sweaty hands. Elizabeth circles around the room, closing the air again. Sarah sits there, crying. Her mind is blank, as she sits, fighting for air. She sees a man, in the corner of the room.
“Dad! Help me! Please!” Sarah cries.
He stares at her, looks in those deep brown eyes. The dark, cold, brown eyes. He turns, and walks out.
“I thought you were never going to leave me! Why?” are the last words Sarah spoke. She falls unconscious, and falls to the hard dirt floor below.
Katriana stands in the distance, sees the body fall, and hears the alarm system blare. She knows something bad happened, unsure of what. She runs to Sarah’s bike, yelling to her droids to run home, and to not look back. She rides to the police station, which is a good mile and a half away. She rides as fast as possible, runs in, and says to the chief, “The winery! Go now, a girl just fell, I believe she’s hurt!”
Chief Aaron Smith drives in his cruiser, down the dark road. It is quiet; he sees the house stood still. Suddenly, the rain and thunder strikes, blinding the man in the cruiser. They come to the home, and break the lock. As he walks up the grounds, he sees a blood puddle, next to the pale body, drenched in the blood. He notices her soft appearance. Footsteps of other policemen surround the area. Aaron hears the fire engines in the back ground, whaling as they drive down the road. He walks around, noticing a window open. He jumps in and sees the baby grand piano. He notices that it is the kind of piano, programmed to play on its own. It plays a soft melody. He wonders why it could be on so late in the night, but dares not to question it. He walks around the upstairs, and notices all the rooms to be open. The bathroom door is wide open, but nothing seems obscure. He walks to the room with the rusted door. He looks around the dark room, and sees a manikin. The body was dressed in a silk, baby blue gown, but nothing else. He sees the distorted mirror, causing a different reflection to be seen.
A month later, Sarah is well forgotten by the rest of the town. The quarterback falls in love with Katriana again, and the point guard can’t take his mind off of her. But Katriana doesn’t care. She didn’t want it to end this way. Sarah was supposed to run back to California, not end up in the Woodinville cemetery. She can not forget the cause of death, written on Sarah’s death certificate. “Suicide. Suffocated.” No one knows the truth. Except Katriana. She was scared to death.
Kimberly Reese, the mother of the dead girl, sits broken hearted. Did she not pay enough attention? Was she away too often, and spent too much time with Bryan? She can never know, for her only answer is decaying in the ground. Bryan did not understand her pain, tries to help, but is useless. They fight, they argue. They fall apart, no longer together, no longer in love.
Kim walks through the grave yard one afternoon, overcast. She walks slowly, fearing to see the once more proof of her daughter’s demise. When she gets there, she sees something. Unexplainable, unimaginable. Sarah’s locket and pearls. And a note. Kim picks up the locket, opens it, expecting the well-known melody to play. It didn’t. Kim picks up the note. It says, “This is the end. Do not face me, for you will never win.”