Timpanogos

     Known by locals as "Timp," Mount Timpanogos is one of the highest peaks around.  At 11,750 feet elevation, it is only slightly shorter than Mt. Nebo to the south.  It also constitutes one of the 7 Peaks that the popular water park is named after.  With its majestic peaks and flower-filled cirques it is one of the most popular hikes around.  There are two commonly-used trails up the mountain: the Aspen Grove trail, and the Timpooneke trail.  We chose to hike the Aspen Grove trail because it is much closer, much shorter, and much steeper than the Timpooneke.
     This was my first time up old Timp and it was actually Beno, a several-time veteran, who suggested the hike.  I jumped at the opportunity to get a group together and conquer the summit.  The group consisted of me, Beno, his cousin, Jacob (who was visiting from Washington), and Josh Dawson, a fit and experienced hiker.  The day before the hike we checked the weather forecast and found that a 70% chance of rain was expected.  We decided to go ahead anyways.
     Pics below:

We were on the mountain by about 7:00 am.

Josh looking back through the valley at the trail head.

A cool snow cave, carved out by a waterfall.

Emerald Lake, the point just before the last ascent.

In order to make it to the saddle we had to cross this monster.

Remember that weather forecast?

A cloudless glimpse down the north side of the mountain.

The Summit Shack on top of Mt. Timpanogos!

We made it!  It was cold.  After calling home and texting a picture to our dates for bowling that evening, we headed back down.

That's right!  Your's Truly on one of Timp's cliffs.

      And then we were off, off into the mists (hear that waterfall?  That's actually the rain!)

     This is one of the few hikes that I have been on where the trail back seem far longer than the trail up.  We did eventually make it home, and took dates bowling at the BYU Game Center.  It was an epic day.

-Drew

Nova Scotia

Dear Readers,
    I just got back from a wonderful vacation in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and Prince Edward Island.  I don't feel like writing much right now (you're glad, I know ;) but here are some pictures:

One of the many WWI memorials we were to see.

Me and my Wordsworth...

The very field from which Amelia Earhart took off from for her flight over the Atlantic.

A small fishing village called Quidi Vidi.

Yours Truly in front of Green Gables.

Yours Truly looking out the window and dreaming with his bottle of Raspberry Cordial.  Yes, I do love Anne Of Green Gables.

An amazing iceberg that we took a boat out to see.  Actually, only one eighth of it floats above the water.

A mural of the little town of Lunenburg, an international heritage site.  We stayed here for a couple of nights.  It was a delightful little place.

A beautiful sea.

What a blast!  Thank you to the parents for taking me, and to Hawke for letting me borrow her iPad ;)

-Drew

Prom 2012

     Good news!  I finally received my Prom pictures!  Here are a few to give you an idea:

My cute date, Alyssa Gates.

Me in a tux.

Those of us riding in my car (Maddy and Christian on the right).

Those of us riding in Beno's Car (from left to right: Christian, Sarah, Josh, Hannah, Beno, Chrissy).

Off to Gloria's Little Italy for dinner.

     You might be wondering why there is no full group picture.  Well, my car was running a bit late and by the time we made it to the picture spot, the others had to run off to claim our dinner reservation.  It was a fantastic evening, though.  Prom was held in the Utah County Courthouse.  Great setting, delicious dinner, beautiful date; it was a fantastic evening. 

Update From Andrew

     It's a sunny Saturday afternoon and I just finished jump-starting my buddy's car and drying some dishes.  This time I have a legitimate excuse for not posting anything for a long time (besides my laziness).  Actually, I've been waiting on Prom pictures!  Unfortunately today, four weeks after the big event, I am still waiting...  Oh well, perhaps, Dear Reader, you now have something to look forward to (or dread I guess ;).  In the meantime I shall give you all a rundown of the exciting things that are going on in my life. 

1. School's Almost Over!
   That's right folks, Yours Truly is way excited to get away from Timpview High School.  I just finished my four AP tests (Biology, European History, English Comp, Calculus) and will know my scores some time in July.  The last day is on Wednesday which brings me to my next point:
2. I'm going to Canada!
   I depart for Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island on Thursday.  This is perfect because my father can get in his viking and WWI sites, and my mother her Anne Of Green Gables ones.  As for me, I'm just happy to tag along. 
   
3. Movies!
   I just had the first movie night that I've had for several months.  The playlist?  Stardust and then Signs.  I had seen Signs before which I find to be a tense and eventually uplifting movie, but I hadn't seen Stardust.  I had turned down the chance to see it when it was first in theaters based on some negative reviews, but I found it super awesome and fun-to-watch.
4. Books! Dracula by Bram Stoker.  Need I say more?
5. Tree Street Computers!
   Drew's computer-repair business is coming to town baby!  Check us out at www.treestreetcomputers.com.

Yours Truly,
Drew

The Land Of Disney

     Disneyland, the happiest place on earth, is where I have spent this year's delightful spring break.  I really had forgotten how much I love Disney but I have been pleasantly reminded.  In fact, I am about to buy several classic soundtracks such as "The Little Mermaid," "Tarzan," and "Tangled."Update: They came!
     It all started with Brother and Sister Seely deciding that Beno needed to go to Disneyland while he was old enough to enjoy it (he had been when a baby).  They invited my mother and me along with them and so on Monday morning we (Beno, I, our mothers) found ourselves in a car headed for Anaheim, California.  Picts below:

Back to Disneyland!  Okay, we both look funny.  Deal with it :)

Hanging out in Adventureland, home of Indiana Jones...

And yes, for everyone's first Disneyland trip they must endure It's A Small World.  Mother fell asleep.

The Tower of Terror, so fun!

One of the scarier rides at Disneyland because of the sensation that you are about to be thrown out of your rocket ship.

The third day Beno and I discovered that the Princesses actually have a hang-out spot called pixie hollow.  Needless to say,  we spent quite some time there.

This picture needs no caption.

The moms braving the Mad Hatter's tea cups.

One last look down Center Street...

And one last glimpse of the enchanted castle...

       We were actually fortunate enough to meet up with some Timpview orchestra kids who were there on the third day which was way fun as well.  I love Disneyland!  Fun rides plus churros galore. What a fun break!

-Drew

The Festival Of Colors

     Imagine 40,000 people gathered together in the spirit of companionship and celebration of nature.  Add to that live rock music, people holding "Free Hug" signs, absolutely ridiculous traffic, and enough multicolored, lavender scented chalk powder to block out the sun.  You've pretty much got it.
     The Festival of Colors (or Holi) is a Hindu holiday whose origins lie in ancient Bengal.  It is a celebration of spring and the devotion (as legend has it) of Prahlada, a demon prince, to Lord Vishnu.  The largest celebration of Holi in the western hemisphere is held in Spanish Fork, Utah, at the Lotus Temple. 
     Yours Truly did indeed attend this year's festivities.  It was pretty crazy!  Some friends and I drove down through Springville, through heavy traffic, and were lucky enough to find a roadside parking spot only about two miles away from the festival.  As we were walking towards the temple, we passed groups returning from it.  I got quite a few handfuls of chalk on my clothing from fellow revelers even before arriving. 
     Although quite a bit of color flies between official throwings, the actual throwings (held on odd hours) are absolutely spectacular (and make it rather hard to breath).  Pix below:

This is at the actual festival.  You can see how many people there were and this photo is only of those in front of the Lotus Temple.

Right after the throwing; unfortunately, the colors had already begun to blend together when I snapped the photo.

This is how our shoes looked after a little while.

And my hat.

A picture of Beno and me taken from the top of a trash can (for photographer's effect ;).

     Yup, I'm definitely going next year!

-Drew

Drewshizzle And The Boys

     It's been a great couple of weeks.  Morp (girls-choice ugly prom) was fantastic.  My date dumped a bucket of red paint down the back of my shirt and not many guys can say that.  It included pizza, Curses (the game), paint wars, and McDonald's.  What a night!
     It was the end of third term last week.  I can't believe that the year is almost over.  Now just for testing...  Also, Yours Truly can legally drive other people!  Booya!
     On Saturday, Ryan Shupe and the Rubber Band came to Timpview for a private concert.  Beno, Taylor, and I, tripled up for an awesome date (myself with Kimberly Russon).  It was a super fun night and everybody had a great time.  The band's sheer musical talent, energy, and goofy sense of humor make them great performers.  I would attend anytime.  Here is one of their music videos:

     On top of that, I was fortunate enough to attend the ward talent show earlier this evening.  Yes, I did participate.  I was planning on doing a solo performance on the guitar or banjo, however, a couple of awesome brothas recruited me to form a band.

    
     Not bad for one practice, eh?  Thank you Oak Hills 2nd Ward Young Women for your support ;)  We hope to be back next year even better than before...

-Drewshizzle

El Cheapo 2012

     Imagine a date, the theme of which was being cheap.  Add to that a school-sponsored dance and a whole lot of fun people and you've pretty much got El Cheapo.

     Our group consisted of Beno and Alyssa; Micheal and Kristen; Josh and Megan; Parker and Jennifer; Simon and Emily; and Nate and Emily.  Oh, and, of course, Yours Truly.  Could it be more ideal?

     I asked Kelsey Herdman who just so happens to be a fantastic girl and a great friend.

     To my relief she said, "yes!"

Pix below:
 

Josh, Parker, Jennifer, and I with the tricked-out "El Cheapo-mobile."

     We began with some fantastic chalk-art competitions at Kiwanas Park.  The drawings included sketches of Y Mountain (or in our case a pirate ship... whoops), fruit drawings, sketches of dates, and finally a great work of group-art.

Yes, we did, indeed, decorate a sidewalk big time.

Our group creation...

     Next, we headed to the Provo City Library for a surprise book hunt.  Each couple was given a checklist and tried to find the thickest, largest, or most colorful books.  We then compared results at the end of the time limit.

Yes, we found some pretty sweet books including David Bowie and Dinosaurs.

This is during the competition.  We didn't win any of the contests, but we most definitely found the coolest books.

     We then headed to a park.  On the way there, we found a cooler sitting on the side of the road with just the perfect amount of Cup-o-Noodles and french bread for dinner (thank you fairy godmother).  Micheal happened to have a camp stove in the trunk of his car.  While the water heated in the pavilion, we played a couple of intense rounds of capture the flag.  Then we enjoyed a dinner of Ramen, French bread, cider, and brownies.

The noodles were very warming in the chilly night air.  Did I mention that this was a candlelight supper?

Me in steam.

     And lastly, we headed to the dance.

3 Girls enjoying El Cheapo.

Andrew pulling an amazing improv. dance move.

     I am rarely one to really enjoy dances.  Even if I do enjoy one I rarely feel any desire to stay longer than 30 minutes.  This one, however, was fantastic.  We had so much fun that we stayed until the very end.  Afterwards we headed to Micheal's place for ice cream sundaes.  I spent a grand total of $2.05 on dinner for my date and myself.  I've been on good dates, but this one might just take the cake!