Bucket List:

A Bucket list is a list of things you want to do before you kick the bucket (die). I watched the Rob Reiner film and found it interesting. So, as a subject for writing, I will start my Bucket List. And yes, I am dying....just like everyone else. It’s just that I’m currently doing it comfortably. Here’s the ten I can currently think of:
1. I’d like to sail along the Fjords of Norway at the height of summer sunlight.
2. I will marry the girl of my dreams.
3. I want to ski black diamonds well into my 70s.
4. I want to take my dad to New England, where he can give me a tour of his mission.
5. I’d like to walk along the Great Wall of China
6. I will hold my own child, and have a little talk together
7. I want to shoot even par on a regulation golf course.
8. I will be debt free by age 40.
9. I’d like to revisit Denmark, the land of my mission, and talk with people I knew when I was a missionary.
10. I would like take an extensive tour of the Israel.


The Celtics, The Lakers, and the Kobe Dilemma:

My goal is to compare and contrast the Celtics and Lakers, and why the Lakers can’t win with Kobe Bryant. I realize that the NBA finals are just finished, but I cannot help but compare the Celtics and the Lakers, as has been done so many times before. This scenario will demonstrate why Kobe Bryant really isn’t the MVP; rather he may be in fact be the reason why the Lakers currently cannot win it all.

In 2003-2004, the Lakers had 4 All-Stars signed: Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Karl Malone, and Gary Payton.
In 2006-2007, the Celtics had 3 All-Stars signed: Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett.

In 2003-2004, Karl Malone and Gary Payton humbly took a back seat to Kobe and Shaq; Kobe and Shaq both argued throughout a moderately successful season, and then made the NBA Finals a spectacle for their argument, and lost to the Detroit Pistons in 5 games.
In 2006-2007, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett spoke to the media about how each player was for the team, and then went out and played that way. Each stepped up when it was their strengths could lift the team to victory; in addition, they graciously stepped aside when a teammates strengths were critical to win. In other words, they didn’t allow their ego to deter the others from displaying their strengths. This team play resulted in a successful season and a NBA Finals victory.

In the summer of 2004, the Lakers were forced to lose 3 All-Stars because of Kobe’s ego. The Lakers were unable to replace the talent.
In the summer of 2008, I predict the Celtics’ players will acknowledge their teammates and continue to have All-Stars for next season.


Kobe is very talented, but team-player is not one of his strong areas. We continue to hear Kobe cry for help (which he got in Pau Gasol in 2007), but continues to fail in team play. I understand the NBA has invested in Kobe, but I cannot understand how he can be named MVP when he struggles to play well with the other players. Laker fans should only hope he again begs for a trade, and the management obliges. I, being a Jazz fan, only hope that the Jazz stay Kobe-less.




Facebook:

Recently, I decided to join the network of Facebook. I knew there were pictures of me on it, and I decided that I better sign up and determine what pictures were on the open web. My friends have given me a warm welcome, and I guess I’ll have to stay up to date with this new-fangled networking tool. And no, I haven’t seen any questionable pictures of me...(I mean there aren’t any)....,so I guess I’ll have to keep it that way.




Mets Update:

I was saddened to find out that the NY Mets fired Willie Randolph. He has been a manager after my own heart. Can I say I disagreed with a few of his decisions? Yes, I think even he regrets a few of his decisions, but at the time, they seemed good. But I wish him well in the future, and I hope the NY Mets management will reconsider their error, apologize publicly to Willie, and plead for him to lead the team again. Okay, back to reality, I hope the NY Mets organization will hire somebody who can lead like Willie......because we know we need to win.



New Interns:

Life is a challenge in late June and early July. It’s the time of new interns. For my residency

program, we had the new interns start yesterday. I congratulate them, welcome them, and finally challenge them to excel. It is difficult, but thousands before them have succeeded and so will they. And now only time, patience, and work separate them from their goal. May God grant me that patience.


Mountain Biking:

So I recently had a fever to go Mountain Biking. My friend Luke and I had a good time up along a trail off the Angeles Crest Highway. There were a few technical turns, a punishing uphill climb, and single track fun. Plus, the stream at the bottom was a nice addition.

Greetings from high above Phoenix, AZ. I have just departed Phoenix on my way to Washington, D.C. A CIR convention starts this evening.

But as I have a bit of time, I thought that I should catch up on some loose ends. Mainly, updating my blog, finishing up a presentation for work, catching a little sleep, and playing a few games...maybe chess, maybe sudoku.

Michelle and Marianne:

I have had a great time after returning from Florida. My sisters Michelle and Marianne arrived the following day for a week's visit. We were saddened to discover Deborah and her family would not be joining us because of illness. We did make due however.

Our vacation together was fun. Here’s some highlights:

1. The Price is Right. I’ve been a fan for years. Perhaps this is best evidenced by a computer program based on TPIR that I created in Jr. high school. I confess my inconsistency in watching the show, but I have enjoyed it. I’ve offered to take my family to the show whenever they came out, and Marianne and Michelle were the first to take me up on that offer. We didn’t know that the tickets were rather meaningless. We didn’t have reservations as we thought. We arrived at the said time, but didn’t get in the first taping of the day. Apparently large groups get priority over reserved tickets. I guess some people had arrived 4 hours before the designated time.

Well, we waited and made it in for the second taping. Ironically, our show should air today. To our disappointment, we didn’t get called down to contestants row, but we did have fun and made a new friend in a wonderful, retired woman whom we sat next to.

I did learn a bit about attending the show. Plan to attend the afternoon showing. It’s less busy and you’ll get in; You avoid LA’s morning rush hour; and if you don’t get in, you don’t need to wait around to see if you’ll get in the next taping.

Please don't forget to vote for your favorite Price is Right Game on this week's poll.

2. Disneyland. Doesn’t everyone love this place. We had a fun time. We mostly rode the adult rides, and it was fun. Space Mountain is my fave; Indiana Jones is Marianne’s fave, and Michelle’s fave is probably the Haunted House. We also enjoyed Pirates of the Caribbean, Big Thunder Mountain, and the Matterhorn. Here’s a picture of a couple of kids on Buzz Lightyear’s ride.

3. Angels Baseball. In reality, we are all NY fans. I’m a Mets fan, and my sisters are Yankee fans. But since no NY was scheduled to visit LA during their trip, we got tickets to Oakland vs. Anaheim. As always, a night at the ballpark was fun.

4. Hollywood Boulevard. Despite multiple trips to SoCal, my sisters had never walked Hollywood Blvd (a.k.a. the Hollywood Walk of Fame). We ventured down for an afternoon. Marianne got spooked. Granted, we didn’t want tickets for a taping for America Gladiators, especially from dudes in a less-than-impressive Spiderman suit or a Sponge-Bob Square Pants. In the end, we did visit the Kodak theatere, the Chinese theater, and stop in souvenir shops.

5. The Beach. Any trip to SoCal could be incomplete without a trip to the beach. Marianne and I hit the boogie boards and threw the frisbee while Michelle soaked up the sun. Marianne was also dying to be covered with sand, so Michelle and I did our best. She objected when we tried to cover her face; maybe next time.

6. Little Tijuana and Little China (and little Phillipines and little.....) We had a great time on Olvera Street and in one of the walking areas in Little China. Michelle suggested that they get some toy accordians. I’m hoping I’ll be available to hear their first concert after a little practice.

7. Others: The Getty Villa, In-and-Out Burger, The Glendale ward including with a surprise Sunday school lesson, and games (i.e Settlers of Catan). Let’s just say we had fun.

For my Mom:
So, now it’s a week late, but I’d like to dedicate this to my mom. We recently reflected on my childhood rearing. Here’s a few highlights:

One morning during my years in elementary school, my mother had told me to make my bed before leaving. I was heading out the door, when she asked if I had made my bed. I told her that I had not, and put up an argument. She won, and I marched downstairs., but instead of performing the task, I ran downstairs and then right back up. She asked if I had made my bed. I lied and left for school. To my surprise and embarrassment, my mom came to my classroom, and announced that she needed to take me out of class for about 15 minutes. She marched me home to make my bed and promptly returned me to school. You imagine I never tried that again.

Like most children, video games, computers, and TV were exciting, and I was less enthusiastic about reading. However, my mother felt strongly about reading and would give us a book every year for Christmas. At first, I was surprised, because it was not something I usually requested from Santa Claus, but over the years, I got used to expecting an unknown book. Most of the time, the book would sit on the shelf for months, until she insisted I read it. I appreciate my mother’s emphasis on reading, because it has helped me appreciate it and discover great stories and ideas, and take time to enjoy good literature.

Sports:

MLB:

So, I wrote that on the way out to D.C., but I’ve returned and now I’m intent on publishing this blog. I just wanted to tell you about my Mets. I’ve been fortunate to be able to attend several major league baseball games. My friend Dan attended the Mets/Dodgers series with me, and although the Mets struggled here in LA, they were still fun to cheer on. The Rasmussen’s also came down from Visalia to attend the Dodgers/Cardinals game. I’m still waiting to catch a homerun, but its been fun watching the best in baseball. (P.S. I hear Pedro Martinez will be back on the mound come Tuesday against the Giants. Go Mets, and welcome back pedro. We’ve sorely missed you!)

NBA:

To my beloved Utah Jazz, I congratulation them on a fantastic season. I was sorry to see them not beat the Lakers, but they gave the Lakers all they could handle. Despite losing in the playoffs, it was a great year: 54-28 is a great record, and we played tough. I can't wait for another good year.

Just a short

I have plenty to write about. Everything from a visit from my sisters Michelle and Marianne, a Mother's Day thought, attending the Mets-Dodgers games, and so much more. But alas, I've been busy with work.

Here's a couple fun strips until I get my next post.

In the above, I often feel like Calvin. But mostly like Hobbes.

(For those who have difficulty reading it, check out the following link:http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_KWVerE0XOK0/RqfX4kcWy0I/AAAAAAAAAjE/8Y9T-GwstiY/s1600-h/Calvin+and+Hobbes.gif)


- And -

My Blogging Education

1. Blogging by Professor Ethington:
I was recently in Northern California visiting with some friends. Like good friends, I felt fortunate to have been blessed by their generosity. Landon and Shadley informed me of the adventure and then patiently waited until I reached Visalia. We then headed in the Rasmussen's stylin' van to the Petersens in Suisun City. We played a little rock band. I admit that I'm a novice, and I was intimidated by Alex and Sydney's mad-skills, but in all, I had a great time. To my delight, the Ethington family was also visiting from Toledo, and Morgan was very good at instructing me in blogging 101. Thanks to Morgan, I've learned about making this blog more fun.
Unfortunately, I only have two pictures from the trip.

Landon and I finished our Sundaes without problem.

2. Florida Vacation
I have had one fine week in Florida. Right now, I chatting with my sister-in-law, Lori. She is telling me that I should talk about the top ten most memorable experiences on this trip. Here's her wish fulfilled:

-Dave's work. I surprised to see that my brother already has his dream office on the 14th Floor over-looking downtown JAX. At age 33, he has reached the top, and what more can he hope to accomplish. How depressing! In reality, we had a great time as he introduced me to his co-workers who begged me for some embarrassing stories.... Lunch at the burrito gallery was pretty good too.

Here's an extra picture of JEA's Mr. January (P.S. Dave, I want my own autographed copy, since I hear you gave one to Julie.)
-Megan's Gymnastics. My niece is not just beautiful, she is also talented. She let me come to her gymnastics class with her and her mom. She worked out for 1 hour doing tumbling and un-even bars. She is awesome. Here's a video of her tumbling.




-Saturday with the Girls. An unexpected wedding forced a change of plans, but it created a fun day for me with my nieces. We made some fun cards for their aunts, played at the park, ate dinner at McDonalds (their favorite restaurant), made brownies al a mode, and watched a fun movie.

-Sunday BBQ. I enjoyed a relaxing, Sunday afternoon BBQ including Hamburgers, macaroni salad, and baked beans.

-Late night Miracle Whip runs. Life always has its share of unexpected events, and it occured late one night. The jar of Miracle Whip was empty. Panic ensued. After an awaking slap back into reality, we made what was to be a journey never to be forgotten. Every store seemed to be closed. No Winn-Dixie; No Target; No Kroger. How could life be so unfair? Could we ever see peace on Earth? Luckily, Walmart saved the day. They had six bottles left that late night, and a potential disaster was avoided.

-Learning to blog. Lori wanted to learn how to set up her own blog. So, I helped her with my limited knowledge. I hope you will check out the link to her blog on the column on the left. Way to go Lori.

-Beach Day. I don't know if there could have been a better day to go to the beach. One of my all-time favorite activities is building stuff in the sand. So, we set out to make a couple of sand's most fabled objects: a pyramid and a sphinx. In addition, we had a great time in the Atlantic Ocean. See the video below.

-Petting sting rays at the zoo. Lori and the kids treated me to a day at the Jacksonville zoo. Megan and Emily told me that I was in for fun, but I had no idea until we arrived and paid $2.50 to pet live sting rays. We got a little fish food, and fed them too. I have a video below, and it shows my excitement as well.

Here's a picture of my nieces outside the monkey cage sharing their best monkey impression.

-Running barefoot after a bus at the Kennedy Space Center. This was a great day full of science and exploration. We both tried the new flight simulation machine and watched the 2 new 3D IMAX films, and concur that these are good additions. However, the best part was the new, guided tour which takes you up closer to the launch pads. We were able to ask questions to our live guide, and had a pleasant experience. After the tour however, we did have our only drama of the day.....I realized I had left my camera on the bus, just a minute or two after getting off. I went running back toward the bus. As you know, flipflops are not easy to run in, and so I flipped them off and ran barefoot back to the bus. I'm glad I got my camera back.

Check out this link to see where the International Space Station is above your home town: http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/station

-Baseball game. We scored some great tickets to the Dodgers' AA-affiliate in Jacksonville, the Suns. Our seats were the first row just a few feet off center behind home plate. We also had the major league scouts sitting near us with their speed guns. We enjoyed it a lot, however we skipped out early from the gospel rock concert after watching the post-game fireworks.

Approaching the present

1. Approaching the present.


Have you ever felt like you are running in the past, trying to catch up to the present, and given up on ever getting a head of the pack in the future. That was me. As of two weeks ago, I was operating on a 2001 desktop computer running on 256K of SDRAM, and trying to run Windows XP.

For the past year or so, I've been running in the technological past. The worst part was that I had grown accustomed to it. It became more apparent than two weeks ago during a Sunday School Presidency meeting at my home. I had the agenda on my desktop computer, and when I went to load up the agenda, my computer took 5 minutes to load the wordprocessing and spreadsheet programs. I apologized profusely in my embarrassment. It wasn't that I could afford a new computer; I just hadn't found one with the desired components at the right price.

But this month, I am happy to say that I made a new purchase. Here's the transition in specifications and numbers:

Old: desktop, 15" monitor, 256K SDRAM, DVD-ROM, CD-RW, 150GB Memory
New: 15" widescreen laptop, 3MB DDRAM, DVD-RW, Wireless b/g/n+, 250GB Memory.
The Difference: 20x faster RAM, 67% more memory, wireless capability (internet from my porch).

I'm not going to say that I'm ahead of the game, but I 'm happy to be approaching the present.


2. SKIING!

One of my favorite activities is skiing. This weekend was a highlight for me. My longtime skiing buddy was on a family vacation here in SoCal. He laughed at me a few weeks ago when I suggested he bring his skis with him. Afterall, he lives in the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon in Utah where the skiing devout solemny practice their religious turns. He believed it was nearly blasphemy to suggest skiing in the warm mileau of SoCal. But I convinced to try it.

Here's a few photos and videos from our day at Big Bear Mountain Resort:

Brett and I stand for a slope above Big Bear Lake and the beautiful valley below.

As Brett announced, that's me with a little style on a mild slope.

Here's Brett with some speed.

Brett catches air on this table-top jump.

I try my hand on the same table-top jump.

...But like any ski trip, one of us has to take a tumble. (Sorry, Brett. I could help laughing at the end of the video.

I wish I could post all the videos and pictures, but some are incomplete. We had a few technical difficulties with the camera, including those involving shutter-buttons and low-battery warnings.

We had a fun day, and although we did not ski the steep or deep of Utah, Tahoe, or Jackson Hole, we realized SoCal had some fun snow and terrain parks. And the hot tub at the end of the day didn't hurt.

3. A Passing.

Ever since I can remember, I have listened to the counsel of Gordon B. Hinckley. However, he passed away in February, and I wish to add a short tribute to his memory. He was a teacher, a devoted servant, and a visionary leader. I have felt his love and trusted his words. I saw in him a man who lived as Jesus taught. May God bless his soul, for he truly sought to make bad men good and good men better.

Beginning 2008

Point #1: Again, I turn to make an entry here. As January began, I set several personal goals. It's been a month now, and I guess I have a bit of work to do yet. Is this common to forget new resolutions this quickly. I think so. Check out this link for some of the statistics:

http://www.proactivechange.com/habits/resolutions/research.htm

Optimistically, I was among the 40-50% of the population that at least turned introspectively and made resolutions. Disappointingly, I'm among the 30-35% of goal-setters to forget or abandon their goals by now.

Point #2: Although it is point #2, it may as well be #1, because it was really what prompted me to get online and update my blog. I want to give a shout out to the NY Mets management for working diligently for the best off season pitching available to them. This week's trade for Johan Santana and subsequent contract negotiation has made me and all NY Mets fans proud. We love seeing quality pitching on the mound, and I believe that Santana is going to be solid. I'd tag Santana and Pedro as the best 1-2 punch in MLB pitching. And then you look at el Duque, Perez, and Maine to follow. Wow! I think we'll see the Mets rebound to a tremendous year.

Point #3: Living 2 minutes from Pasadena, I decided to see my first Rose Parade up close. I send out my thanks to Coach T. for saving me a spot in her drive-way. We then walked a couple of blocks and saw the world famous parade. I'm posting a few pictures of my favorite floats.

(Remember, all floats in the Rose Parade must be made of organic material.)

Let's here it for my city of Alhambra for putting together a fun float for the year of the rat.

This was the years most controversial float, heralding the upcoming summer olympics in Beijing. It was controversial because it shows support of China's government and their labor laws. There were very few protestors, and the rest of us enjoyed it.

This was a favorite by the state of New Mexico. I like that they highlight the state's pre-eminence at drawing aliens to Roswell. But when it's done it flowers, it doesn't seem to weird....just more artistic.

Doesn't this look relaxing and fun. The frog learning to hula at the bottom of a erupting volcano.

Point #4: Finally, my sister Kim and her family visited me. Kim had promised to take her daughter to Disneyland in discussions with her daughter during potty training. So, true to her word, Kim brought her and the rest of her family to visit. Besides a great time at Disneyland, we also managed to play some games, see the beach, and hear a little false doctrine. Trip complete! I am going to squeeze in a picture of us at Disneyland on a "special" trolley.