Vacation!

We just got back from a family reunion in Midway, Utah. I'm happy to report that we had an awesome time with all the cousins, and that it was great being up in the Utah mountains.

This is Trish enjoying the early morning. We set up a tent under a tree, and slept great every night!

I think there were about 50 of us there for the main event, and I'm pretty sure we all got along great. Lots of kids running around having fun, lots of food, and lots of sitting around playing games and visiting.

Of course we rode the Heber Valley Railroad, which was a lot of fun. We all piled on, with engineer hats, and rode out to Soldier Hollow.

Along the way, robbers showed up to rob the train and take hostages (people who had paid to go on a wagon ride). Unfortunately, no one told the engineer or conductor that the train was supposed to be "robbed" on this particular trip! To make things more interesting, the people who were to go on the ride were never given the special green wristbands, so didn't say anything when the robbers asked for those with wristbands to get off. It all got sorted out in the end, but sure made for an interesting ride!

Tomorrow (hopefully), I will talk about the main event of the weekend, which was a recognition of the military heritage in our family. This was conducted on top of Memorial Hill, in Midway, with our parents as speakers.

*SIGH* Family

I spent the better part of today composing a letter to some relatives. After bringing them up to date on our doings, I finally got into the major subject, which was why none of my kids or their spouses want to have much to do with them.

I expect childish, self-centered, and occasionally silly behavior from 20-somethings, but from those three or four times their age, not so much. I tried, as kindly as I could, to explain what had caused the situation, and what I felt ought to be done to remedy it (ever have to tactfully tell someone to pull their head out?).

I tried to use positive things I had seen these people do as parents as examples, and pointed out how they had influenced me. Hopefully, once they get over their (predictable) anger, they will give the situation some thought and consideration.

Does anyone out there have any suggestions for tactfully correcting relatives they would like to share before I send off my letter? Comment if you do.

Just some pondering...

What to blog about when you don't know what to blog about? That question has been on my mind for the last several days. I need to get on some new model railroading projects, maybe document the process of scratch-building a structure or explain a scenery technique or something.

I want to try and stay away from politics, since it just makes me mad, and I don't want to be "that blogger".

Not wanting to be "that blogger" is the reason I don't delve into religion either, though I could certainly expound on some gospel topics at some length. Some one send me a comment if you want that...

I'd tell you about my work...but then I'd have to kill you. Let's just not go there. Besides, if I mentioned half the crazy stuff that goes on around here, no one would believe me.

I will say that it disappointed and saddened me to find out when called in for an interview that was part of an investigation by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI) that they were as interested in what rumors and gossip I had heard as anything else. The guy actually accused me of being "shady" because I didn't want to share gossip and rumor!

I'm excited about an upcoming family reunion this summer. I haven't seen any of my cousins since I was a kid (I'm almost 50 now), so this will be interesting. We're all going to meet at my aunt and uncle's farm in Midway, Utah. A beautiful place, if memory serves me right. Midway is just down the road from Heber City, Utah, where I spent many summers as a kid. In Heber, you can find the Heber Creeper. Check out the link here.

And, here is a picture of the Heber Creeper in Provo Canyon.

I've come to the conclusion that I'd rather drive on a trip than fly. At this point, it's probably cheaper, and takes about the same amount of time. We're going to drive to Utah for the family reunion, and I've already worked out that it's a bit over 15 hours driving time. Call it a day and a half, with stops. We might even make the side trip to Chama New Mexico to see the Cumbres and Toltec Railroad. Here is a link to their site.

Enought rambling for now. Maybe I'll come up with something worthwhile to write about next time...but then, maybe I won't!