Frog hunting in Barrhead (This post has a lot of brackets) (see what I mean) (oh I did it again) (and again) (oh forget it)

It was the long weekend and I was ready to head up north for Barrhead. When I arrived there wasn't as much family as I expected. But we settled down, roasted hot dogs and jumped on the trampoline. However it was spoiled by the high populations of mosquitoes (and I'm glad they don't carry malaria.) My mother was literally eaten alive. The nearby ponds and creek served as a nesting ground for (literally) bloodthirsty insects. And my Mom (despite the warnings) forgot bug repellent!! (thankfully Grandma had her own spray.) The next day after a delicious breakfast I was reading magazines in the living room. Three magazines i've gotten into are The Economist, Macleans and Consumer Reports. After I was done I decided to look for frogs. I was searching the pond but only found tadpoles. Then I searched the area by the canoe and guess what caught my eye?! Just lying in the hot sun was a toad!But I wasn't prepared to let cook in sun; so put him in the pond (not without informing my siblings and cousins of my find) and believe it or not they swim pretty well (sadly mom could not get a picture.) After that I rode around on the quad for a while until I got stuck over ankle deep in mud. I tried reverse forward, motor power, muscle power (oh wait I'm skinny) but nothing worked. It wasn't until my frustrated dad arrived when he got the quad out of the grime and I was covered in it (due to failed attempts to get it out myself.) But pretty soon I got stuck, AGAIN! Dad got it out and kicked me off the quad until further notice; and I kept reciting the quote: 'those who don't learn from the past are doomed to repeat it.' After being on the quad for probably half and hour, I went on another frog hunt that ended without a single find. The next morning I still couldn't find one amphibian. After some quad driving we hiked around thunder lake; and I found my favourite worm. The Leech. The day after that when we were driving from church mom promised another trek through the field on the quad trails. While walking, my cousin spotted a frog in the grass and I caught it but I had to get my hands dirty (literally.) After we sighted the creek (inconveniently blocked by barbed wire) we walked to the edge of the creek. But even though we heard the frogs but couldn't see them, what we found was shocking! Hundreds, no, thousands of mosquito larvae. The next morning I found another frog (and mom got a picture.) But then we had to leave. All in all my time in The ol' Wild boreal forest was great.

Jasper Adventure

Last spring break we had the ultimate ski trip ever. We traveled west to Marmot Basin in Jasper. We had only skied on hills near the river valley at home, but we had no experience in the mountains. And my siblings and I had passed the blue level and my mother was trying out skiing The drive to our hotel was long and tiring. But we passed the time with electronics and enjoying the mountain scenery. It was late when we got there and we had to unpack all our stuff which made me tired even more. so I was relieved when I got to lie down and sleep. The next day was busy we had to rent skis and ski poles. Then get our passes for the marmot basin. dad was blabbing about how much it changed over the years, but I didn't care it was my first time. We first skied down a beginner run a took a little shortcut through the a small path in a line of trees (my siblings had a habit of cutting through them at home.) But when we got to the longer lifts it was different. Unlike the ones at Sunridge, the quad chairlifts at marmot were incredibly fast, and when we were about to arrive at our stop, I thought it was going to fling me right out (It didn't.) skiing down a whole mountain was incredible; the smooth slopes the fast speeds, the long enjoyable trips, the beautiful scenery, the suspense in low lying clouds and the wind in hair. It was a thrilling experience! After skiing we went to Jasper pizza and believe it or not it was delicious. The next day we skied again and took new runs to satisfy our thirst for adventure. After that we ate at a Cantonese restaurant, then went to see a movie and the whole place as tiny compared to the ones and home. The next day unfortunately we had to leave. We could not go down straight to Magrath because of a very special occasion: my brother Grayson's ordination with the priesthood. Knowing my brother would pass the sacrament with me was exciting.

'The Cove' Review

A few weeks ago I watched 'The Cove.' A Academy Award winning documentary; one of the many documentaries that expose "the ugly truth." I decided to use Steeleopedia as an online critic for movies, books, etc. "The ugly truth" was the brutal slaughter and illegal capture of cetaceans (scientific name for dolphins, whales and porpoises.) While watching it, told about what the activist said "a little town with a really big secret." Former dolphin trainer Ric O' Barry traveling to the town of Taiji, Japan to expose the secret to the public. Some times the movie was very intense with a lot of suspense and espionage. Other times the Film was heartbreaking but of all it was enraging; i mean why would anybody do this? Oh wait, it begins with M and with honey: MONEY!!!!! Why has Humanity become so greedy?!? Anyway this post is going to be the first post to have a hyperlink. The link will go to the movie outside the Blog. In conclusion I think the show was interesting and I recommend it to all viewer. Come on the sooner everybody finds out the better. Just be warned; the movie may contain content inappropriate for younger viewers. It could frighten, anger, heartbreak, or even just plain nauseate, viewer discretion is advised.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkBBfknr4eE

My talk on reverenece

Sorry for the delay anyway I did a talk on reverence in church so here it goes Reverence Today I’ve been asked to give a talk on reverence. It’s been a long time since I’ve given a talk so I’m glad to be here today. A Primary song from the children’s songbook says… Rev’rence is more than just quietly sitting It’s thinking of Father above A feeling I get when I think of his blessing I’m rev’rent for rev’rence is love. I like this description of reverence because it helps me learn more about what reverence is. A couple of summers ago my family went to Turkey . Because Turkey is a Muslim country, in every city we visited there were many mosques and we were able to go inside lots of them. If we wanted to go inside we had to do certain things. We had to dress modestly and take off our shoes. My mother had to wear a scarf over her head. We had to talk quietly and behave reverently when we were inside. Outside the mosque we saw many men preparing to go inside to pray or worship. There were special fountains where the people washed their hands, their head and their feet. How we acted in the mosque and how the people prepared themselves to worship in the mosque teaches us about reverence. The clean feet means you should be found in reverent places, (means you won’t go into bars, casinos or any other secular places.) The clean head means you think clearly which means you’re wise and you don’t think any bad thoughts. Clean hands means you do whatever God wants you to do such as serving other people, reading the scriptures, and praying . Each of them symbolizes purity, both physical and spiritual. In other words we show reverence to God by how we live our lives. However it’s hard to be reverent due to all the things going on in The World today. Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the 12 apostles said this. “ The world grows increasingly noisy. Clothing, grooming and conduct are looser and sloppier and more disheveled. Raucous music with obscene lyrics blasted through amplifiers while lights with psychedelic colours characterizes the drug culture. Variations of these things are gaining wide acceptance and influence over our youth…This trend to more noise, more excitement, more contention, less restraint, less dignity, less formality is not coincidental or innocent nor harmless. The first order issued by a commander mounting a military invasion is the jamming of the channels of communication of those he intends to conquer. Irreverence suits the purposes of the adversary by obstructing the delicate channels of revelation in both mind and spirit.” To me this means the devil can jam our communications with Heavenly Father and conquer us if we are too irreverent in our lives. I can keep my channels clear as I pray, read the scriptures and stay quiet. My autism is an example. Whenever it’s noisy and uncomfortable for me, I always talk to myself (my mother calls it rockets.) Because of autism my mind is more complex and there are advantages and disadvantages. An advantage is my increased brain capacity and sharper memory: a disadvantage is when an unwanted thought gets into my head it’s complex to get it out. But I found the most effective method. You know the boxes in buildings that say “In case of fire break glass”, well, I have a ‘in case of bad thought, read scripture’. My emergency scripture is my favourite, James 1:5. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upraideth not and it shall be given him. but let him ask in faith, nothing wavering.” I’d like to bear my testimony. I know the church is true. I know that we will return to Heavenly Father one day. I know we can overcome sin .I know that if we are reverent we can fulfill God’s plan. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

My 14th Birthday

Sorry I kept you in suspense, forgive me please. Anyway I'm 14, and to me it's a one of those golden moments in my teenage life. You know why? First, I'm a teacher, Second, I'm now in Venturers, Third, I can stay up later, Fourth, I can get a driver's learner's permit (though that may not happen because I'm distraction prone and I wouldn't last five minutes on the open road.) Fifth I can watch 14A movies! What I got on january the 3rd, I got a movie pass, 2 history books, 2 video games, A book on the apostasy and the King James Bible, and a BOSU ball for working on my small muscles. So this is a great event in my life.

Scout Camp 4

This scout camp was the best and I'll tell you why. At the beginning it was a long drive I tell you, and while on the way Tyler and Brad threatened me to ditch me on the side of the road and leave me for the carnivorous chickens. When we arrived we made our very own shelter, and after a meal of hot dogs and hot chocolate, we played capture the flag. Most of the time I was a 'warning system' which meant I alerted my team if there was an intruder on our area. Many rounds later we walked to the other side of the campsite, and there i fired my first flare. After many people shot flares we settled into our shelters (which by the way was pretty warm) and dozed off. After a rude awakening by morning cold and loud cannon shots we ate a nice breakfast and then it was fun and games. The first one was sort of a worst-case scenario where a guy was injured (I was him) and we had to make something that will carry him to safety once we done that we had a race. My team had to drag in the 'device' and get to the finish first before the others did, and I won! Next was archery and my aunt said I could try to beat Grayson's record, and I did. Next was building a fire. We had to burn a piece of string before another team did. I grabbed sticks, dead leaves etc. and once again I won. Next after that was the obstacle course it was long and exhausting but we made it through eventually. Then was my favourite pellet guns there we fired pistols, snipers, rifles etc. and it was fun. After closing ceremonies we packed up and left.

The Current of Chasity

When I was in Hawaii during the around the world trip, I was constantly warned by signs of strong currents, and I knew why. Without warning they can pull a man from the shallow shore to the deepest, unsafe depths of the ocean. We were told keep an eye out for calmer, different colour waters that are the signs of a riptide. Just like the currents, bad choices can pull us away from God's shore and to the deep waters of the devil. The currents that drown us are adultery, homosexual, lesbian and relations outside of marriage. However we can 'swim' out of this riptide by the following. Scripture study, repentance, forgiveness and other ways. And god has set his own signs, the holy ghost to warn us of the threat. So my words are... read the signs the lord puts up and don't drown to the devil.