Monday, August 27, 2007

Summer Vacation For Everyone!

If I were the king of the world, I would grant everyone a summer vacation. Of course- I'd need to plan it properly so that not everyone would take their summer vacation all at once. We'd have to do it in shifts and not everyone can go to the same place either. And, only a certain number of employees from each company can go at once, because we can't be shutting down all our businesses for summer vacation. It's a daunting task actually-- to think about scheduling everyone's summer vacation so that it won't negatively affect our economy and global commerce. But, I guess if I'm king of the world, then I just delegate the task of scheduling everyone's summer vacations to the accountants, economists and human resource people of the world, so that I wouldn't have to worry about it. Also, if someone doesn't like the time frame that they were allotted for their summer vacation, they can't get mad at me. I just granted you the month off! Get mad at the people who scheduled it!

I got to thinking about this nonsense because I'm currently on summer vacation, while between jobs and in the process of moving my life from the east coast to the west.

Last week I was in Utah. My sisters Stef and Jess moved back up there and so the whole family was there just kind of hanging out. Mom helped the girls move into there places while Taylor and I ended up going wakeboarding everyday. We have amazing friends that were all about getting us on the lake, for which we can't be grateful enough.

Here are some pictures from the week...


Proper stretching is an important part of wakeboarding if
you're going to pull sick moves like "air railies" and stuff
(or even if your going to try to jump the wake)


C-boff.. just having a good time.. stay tuned for some upcoming
video clips of C-boff going faky and getting agro on the wake


Ryan taking off back there..
and I'm just enjoying paid vacation


sequence shot


T's got me on the better looking afro


This is after all three of us almost fell over backwards in the water
while trying to pose for the following picture..


Chels, Jenn, and J


Whit and J


Our fun little crew
(chels, ryan, whitney, me, jenn)


A little CPK after a day at the pool/on the lake
(aaron, jenn, chelsea, channing, sharla, j)


Alli slices through the water like a sharp knife through butter...


look at the size of that spray... leave some water in the lake Alli!


Stace might as well fix her hair in the mirror a few feet below her


Stace demos clean lines and big sprays


Slalom is fun, but I prefer a wakeboard


The pro water skiers and I
(Alli, me and Stace)


This was Taylor's first time wakeboarding...
he went from barely getting up to jumping off the wake...
see below


Taylor launches off this one.. and pays the price...
by the end of the week he was almost clearing the wake



Meanwhile.. back at the dorms...

the BYU co-eds in Jessica's perfectly decorated dorm room..
complete with her home-made bedspread and pillow cases-- she's so domestic


I'm explaining to Jess.. "if any guy lays a hand on you..."


the maughan kids


the fellas



the end
(ha ha.. yeah it's not that funny)
but seriously, who took this?

Monday, August 13, 2007

8k Mud Run - Virginia Beach


This past weekend a big group of us went down to Virginia Beach and ran the 8K Mud Run-- approx. 5 miles through deep beach sand, water, mud, forests, up and down little hills and around the military base. Probably 60% of the run was on sand and I have to say it was pretty tough. Especially provided the fact that the farthest I really ever run is up and down the basketball court. So, I'm not really in shape for this kind of long distance running. That's probably because I'm not a big fan of long distance running. Though, I have always been kind of curious of the allure these events seems to have to so many people. Since I've never participated in a running event like this, I've always had a hard time understanding why people will actually pay money so they can go run a ridiculous amount of miles, killing themselves on a Saturday, only to be sore for the next couple days. I realize you get a t-shirt and I don't want to belittle the importance of the t-shirt that memorializes the whole experience, but seriously.. I just didn't quite understand the hype. In fact, in my entrepreneurial mind I've over-simplified the whole concept and thought, why don't I call a bunch of people up and invite them over to my house where they can pay me ten bucks, I'll give 'em a t-shirt and they can run a couple miles around my neighborhood. I'll even time them.

Anyway, I really didn't get it, until this past weekend. This was the first "K" event I've ever done... surprising as it may be-- even after spending 5 years in Provo (which seems to be the capital of jogging) I never ran any of the 5Ks or 10Ks and especially not any marathons. So the "Mud Run" was my maiden voyage into the world of competitive amateur running as a hobby. And, despite the fact that I'm still sore, and I won't wear the t-shirt ever again except to do yard work or service projects (of course you have to wear it the day of the event after the race so everyone knows what you just did), I really enjoyed it. I think I'd like to do it again, or maybe even do a longer run- like a 10K or half marathon. This is crazy to hear myself talk like this.. but the competitive nature inside me makes me want to conquer another beast similar to or bigger than this one. Plus, I feel like it's really good for the mind and body to face a challenge that can seem at times like it's too great to overcome... and then when you do overcome the challenge there is a great sense of relief and accomplishment. It's an invigorating and addicting feeling. So, I guess I understand how people can get into these events and why they're willing to pay so they can run in them (even though running is quite free and you can do it almost anywhere you want).

One thing that really made a difference was the many race supporters that were standing along the whole race encouraging everyone along the way. That's something I don't mind paying for actually. Their constant encouragement throughout the race was a boost. I noticed their positive energy helped me to focus on finishing the race and forget about the pain I was feeling in my legs. So, maybe that's what the $40 really pays for. The support team out there to help you finish something you may not be able to have the will power or discipline to do solely on your own. In any case, I think I may be getting into this race craze. I'm not looking up the next one just yet, but I think I'm open to the idea of doing another event of some kind in the not to distant future. We'll see how this recovery process comes along...

Here are some pictures from the weekend and run:


When running a rigorous race like this, it's important to eat right and sleep well the night before... yeah right... I ate way too much at Olive Garden and don't let this picture fool you... we didn't get to bed till like 5AM


I was trying to get to sleep, but pillow fights, people Vin Dieseling people, food fights, dog piles, and people jumping on the beds made it a bit difficult for one to sleep, despite sleep-help devices such as these...


Can you tell we were all a bit loony and delirious? These were the most hyper of the bunch..


Preparing to run on 2 hours sleep... we were feeling pretty good


getting pumped


pre-race parking lot shot


at the starting line..
I thought we were supposed to have our game faces on..


introducing the mud pit.. where the shoes get heavier


the group jockeying for position in the mud pit..


Rob breaks free


Sarah tries to stiff-arm Rob..


Rob shows winning technique.. "high knees"


Sarah escapes Megan's wrath..


Megan was just Vin Dieseled by Blake..
by now, she's gotten used to it


looking at the sand with eyes of disdain


Upon reaching the finish line, we couldn't ditch our shoes fast enough.. Rachel and I were the "couple's team" with matching military camo-arm bands.. (they helped us run so much faster)


After we finished, we saved a load of money on our car insurance...
not really, but we took a pic with the Geico lizard anyway


Blake and I were so excited to be finished with the race we just started doing flips... though I'm not sure how we had the energy to do this...


Leap frog.. I must have been a bit delirious..


Our group minus Blake



Nice work team

LET'S DO IT AGAIN!



the next stop was the beach... it felt so good to lay on the sand that we'd be running on all morning


Treating ourselves to Dairy Queen... we totally deserved it


Knocked out.. after the mud run and a full day at the beach (where we actually got to surf too since Rob and Blake brought the boards and Croatan was going off--for Croatan)... thanks for driving Shelly!


*

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

A week in California... isn't long enough

I love summer. The warm weather, the sun, the long days, vacations, the beach, the people out and about everywhere... Summer has to be the best time of the year. This past week I was spent the whole week at the beach with just a couple short breaks to play basketball and golf. I feel quite blessed that I have so many great opportunities in life, and also for my family and friends.

DAY 1 - SALT CREEK

Salt Creek is a gorgeous beach in southern Orange County set in a cove of Dana Point. It has great waves, fine sand, lots of babes and showers--which are convenient for those who don't love that salty feeling when heading home after a long day of being drenched in saltwater and sun.


Salt Creek may be my favorite beach in Southern California


The view from the Ritz Carlton above the beach


I hope to spend "the first night" here...


Here are a few members of our crew talking about all the fun we're about to have.
Aaron, me, Jimmy and Rachel


I'm asking Aaron if he's excited to get out there... he was


The wait...


The fun begins... trying to get inside this mini barrel


Aaron's first of the day


Rob dog... taking off... he's addicted


soo fun


rippin' Rob


cruisin

hang loose?


get down that line


duck


go get it bro
(a little push never hurts)


he got it


Aaron and I sharing a party wave
(we've shared a lot of things in our lives)


Jimmy and Rachel getting ready to paddle out... maybe


you can't blame him, he has a great view from there


meanwhile, we're just chatting about our future wives


Zachary, our photographer, also an amazing artist..
Go to www.zacharyproctor.com!!


Zach.. "ain't no thang"


the Jeffries


how was it Rob?


Taylor can't get enough, but we finally pulled him out of the water


Day 2 - Newport Beach

Everyone knows about Newport, thanks to Seth, Ryan, Summer, and Marissa...

Here's Sandy Cohen taking a break from his law practice
oh, wait.. no, that's Aaron Renfro! (also a lawyer)


uh.. Rob.. watch out for that dude..


he's got it all under control


Sometimes it's fun to pick a spot on the wave and just launch off, like this...

eying it..

the set-up


up, up and away.. just needs a little more tuck


Rob's checking out some frolicking mermaids


like these ones


I'm seriously considering becoming a lifeguard



Here's a little sequence from Day 2 at Newport...

1


2


3

4


5

I'm not that strong riding backside... but it's still a blast...

Riding "backside" means that your body is positioned such that the wave is to your back rather than your front. It's a little more difficult to maneuver and turn when riding backside.

Here's another backside sequence...

drop in


hold tight


k, think I got it..


this is fun


uh-oh


gotta pull out


and..


made it



and then we paddle back out... forever in search of the perfect wave



my face says it all.. especially the mouth part (deep thought)



Here are some family shots from the week...

Taylor and Jess... such cuties


seriously


Maughan fam shot 1 (minus 2 in michigan)


me and my girls


Maughan fam shot 2


I'm a little worried about her going to college... I may follow her there to watch out for her!


hang loose brah



and.. it's back to the beach...



the Maughan girls have such pretty eyes and great smiles


sometimes we take a break from the surf


I'm trying to figure out what Taylor is trying to do there...




he found sand in his ears and hair for days


maybe we should keep Taylor in the water


he thinks he'll be taller than me someday


here's our classic surf pose, complete with babes (even though they're our sisters)


set, go!


oh snap!

watch out...
work it girl!

Stef's pose is perfect, but we may need to work on her outfit


they're so supportive of their older bro


and they love hanging out with him


pink blanket, mom's hat and sunglasses... but I promise I like girls (a lot)


Super cute Stef... nevermind the stolen flower


my sistas


dad, my hero



SO, to summarize... California in the summertime is pretty much amazing. I think I'll be going back very soon! ;)