Some of you may know that I am participating in The Mormon Bachelorette.  Yep, you read that right

If you are familiar with the ABC TV show “The Bachelor” or “The Bachelorette“, then you probably have a pretty good idea of what it’s like (though a much tamer version lol).

The Mormon Bachelorette is a woman named Aubrey Messick.  She’s from southern California, and her and her friends got together and decided to put on their own version of the Bachelorette (no connection to the original show).  She’s going on 22 dates before she narrows it down to eight, and then one.  This past Saturday I had the opportunity to take her out.  I was date #3.  To see how the date went, check out the official blog of The Mormon Bachelorette.

I’m not going to blog much about how it went here (or anywhere), but I will say that I had a great time and hope I get another chance to take her out.

UPDATE…

Ok, so I found another blog tied to The Mormon Bachelorette.  It’s pretty funny, and the “Reality Nephi” has some funny stuff to say about each date.  Go here to see what he has to say about mine.  Whoever writes for the blog does a good job.

Also, they talk about me on This Week In Mormon (a podcast about what’s happening each week in the Mormon world).  If you do listen (at the 8 minute mark), they don’t really say anything nice about me.  It’s interesting to have people who have never met me before giving their opinions of me.

So I realize I’m not a good blogger lol

Life just moves so fast and I don’t always find the time to catch up here.  I will try to do better…

Anyway, I did have an awesome time in D.C., and in my last post I mentioned that on my second day we saw one of my favorite monuments of all.  It was way bigger than I expected, and was just beautiful.  It’s always been one of my favorites, and having my brother there to explain it’s significance and the story behind what it depicts made it even more special.  The monument I’m talking about was the Iwo Jima Memorial – the memorial of the Marine Corp.  If you ever go to D.C. and have an opportunity to see this monument up close, I think you should.

Here's me and my brother and sister at the memorial

My favorite picture of the memorial... beautiful

I loved the following view.  You can see the Memorial in the foreground of the picture, and the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building in the distance.

And I loved the quote on the back of the monument by Admiral Chester A. Nimitz, when describing the soldiers on Iwo Jima island:  “Uncommon valor was a common virtue”.

Anyway, I loved the trip.  Can’t wait to go back and visit again

So a couple weeks ago I went to Baltimore for a conference.  My sister lives in Washington, D.C., a mere 45 minutes from Baltimore, so of course I went a few days early to go sightseeing.  I went to D.C. once when I was thirteen, so I was excited for another opportunity.

My older brother also went, and together the three of us had two days of sightseeing.

So, first on our stop was the Washington, D.C. temple for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I have never seen a more majestic building.  I’d seen it in photos, but nothing compares to seeing it firsthand.

Breathtaking…

Beautiful and powerful…

I was trying to think of the word that best describes this edifice, and I decided that MAJESTIC was the best word.  If you ever get a chance to see this building in person, take it.  It is well worth it.

After our trip to the Washinton, D.C. temple, we headed over to the Marine Corp Museum.  As you can see from the image below, my older brother was in the Marines (as well as the Army and Air Force).

Inside I got to wear a sample 120 pound backpack (what our soldiers wear, without a weapon or body armor… it was heavy).  Sorry the image is blurry – my sister doesn’t know how to take pictures with my camera lol

At the end of the tour, I found the part that hit me the most… I was in the Dominican Republic when it happened, but I still felt the shock of it.

I almost cried as I stood there looking at the memorabilia from that day: photographs, items found in the debris, and newspaper clippings telling the story of my nation’s dark day.

Part of me is sad I was not here in America to feel what everyone else felt; to see the patriotism; to feel the unity of the nation I love.  I hope a day like this never happens again.

After the Marine Corp Museum we went to the Capitol Mall (where all of the monuments are).  We saw the Washington Monument and then the Capitol building (I couldn’t help it… I had to take the next photo.  It’s me holding up the Capitol Building!).

Then we drove by the Supreme Court and visited the Lincoln Memorial.

After that we went to the Vietnam Memorial (it was cool seeing it at night, but unfortunately none of my photos turned out).  And our final stop on our 1st Day was the Jefferson Memorial.  We were dead tired by the time we got there, but it was my favorite site of the day, with the exception of the Washington, D.C. temple.  It stood all alone away from the other monuments, yet the structure itself was beautiful.  I didn’t get a good picture of Jefferson or the outside of the building, but I did manage to sneak in the following picture of myself…

My next post will conclude my photographic trip through Washington D.C.  We got to see one of my favorite monuments, and I had no idea it was so huge.  Tune in tomorrow (or possibly the next day…) for Day 2 of my trip

So yesterday was indeed my birthday.  Thank you to everyone who helped make it special by sending me birthday wishes on Facebook, via text, over the phone, in person, or in your heart.  I could feel it all and it helped me have a wonderful day.

Also, special thanks to Julie for putting together the dinner and movie plans: California Pizza Kitchen (yum) and Inception (great movie).

Overall, it was an awesome day. 

This was me in the morning… (sorry I look so sad and/or mean lol… I didn’t feel that way).

My 2010 Birthday Morning

And as a birthday bonus to you… this is a funny spoof on the Old Spice commercials from my Alma Mater.  Thanks to Lyle for sending it my way…

Y0u may have noticed that I changed the look and feel of my website… I may still change some things, but I would love to know what you think about the new look… Thanks! 

I just have to say that since yesterday when I wrote my last post I have been smiling pretty much non stop… It is a great feeling.

Here’s the proof:

Here I Am Smiling!!!!

I’m not sure… I know it happened sometime in the last four months. I know this because I just realized it was gone, and I can remember a time a few months back when it was here.

The strange thing is that I don’t remember how it left. But I know that it did.

This may take some of you by surprise. If you know me at all, you know that I am generally very upbeat and happy. I love life. I love being alive. I love sharing who I am with the people around me. I love making them see the beauty that is life and the strength that is within them.

You see, I have always believed in the divine nature of man. I know that we have the potential to be so much more than we are. And I know that getting there is within our power. It’s within us.

I have always told people this. I have always tried to instill in others knowledge of the strength they have inside, the power that is their vision of themselves, and the ability they have within themselves to positively affect their lives and the world around them.

Somehow lately, I stopped actively believing this for myself. I forgot that my happiness and joy was a choice I make. I forgot that I have a reason to be happy—many reasons.

A few months ago I came face to face with a realization that shocked and hurt me. And it wasn’t so much that I had never thought of it before. The shocking part was that I didn’t realize the depth of the matter or understand how deeply it would affect me.

If I had to pick a moment when the joy began to leave my life, I would say it was that moment. From then on, this realization began its strangle hold on my life. As I allowed it to strangle me, I did my best to hide it. Unfortunately, I couldn’t hide it—not from everyone. Some very close friends had to deal with the affects too.

Instead of learning the lesson and moving on, I let the wound fester. I focused on it. I tried to make it go away by constantly dwelling on it. I started to blame my circumstances and those around me for my unhappiness. I also started to expect that the people around me would give me the happiness I couldn’t find myself.

Along this journey, I negatively affected one of the best friendships I have ever had. I became a drag. I lost the life in me, and I expected this friend to follow me through my despair and pull me out.

I realize now how wrong I was. And how unfair. I wish I could go back and undo these last months to keep the wounds I caused from being inflicted. Unfortunately, all I can do now is learn and grow.

I am very sorry to any of you that have had to carry me these last few months. I am so indebted to you for your patience and love, and I am so sorry for any pain, frustration, or annoyance I have caused you.

To my friends who put up with me despite my recent depression, I am very sorry. I am working now to revive the life and joy that you used to associate with me.

I may be down, but I am far from done. If there’s one thing I have always believed, it’s that I can do anything I put my mind to. And so can you.

Well looks like I’m way behind on my holidays…

I hope you all had a great time on New Year’s Eve, and I hope you all have a great year.  I will continue to work on my goals, and I hope you continue to work on yours as well.

I am still working on my new album.  I have finished six songs and have been working on many others as well.  I will hopefully have this second album completed this year.

Even though my six pack abs didn’t completely emerge by January 1st, I have continued to work towards them as well.  Since I started my journey, I’ve gained a lot of muscle and dropped from 189 to 175 pounds.

Anyway, I hope you guys remember that life is to be lived and enjoyed.  If you’re not enjoying life, then figure out why not and fix it.  Have a nice day

I know this is coming a little late, but I wish you all a very Merry Christmas!  I hope you had a great time and got to see your loved ones.  I hope we all can remember why we celebrate Christmas and take that message to heart.

How I Felt This Week

Wow these last few months have been rather excruciating for me… and I mean that in the most positive way imaginable.

Does your life ever sometimes just feel like too much to handle?  Mine does.  And recently it’s been overwhelming me a lot.  Luckily this week I think I hit rock bottom and have begun to claw my way out.  Thursday night I got a blessing and yesterday I had a few realizations, as well as some needed conversations, status checks, and heart to hearts.  Sorry to anyone my blueness has affected.

I felt devoid of life… like I was slipping away into blackness.  So, to commemorate the occasion, I got creative.  This is what I came up with:  a visual representation of how I’ve been feeling lately, especially this last week.  I hope you enjoy, and I hope you don’t feel this way.  If you do, listen to some good music and make a decision to knock it off, turn around, and start clawing your way out.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… Rank: wait… Traffic: wait… Price: wait… C: wait…