Bacon Ridge Climb

What a way to start the new year.  On December 31st Kevin and I met  an acquaintance of ours from here in Mongolia at our New Year's fellowship at the church.  He expressed to us his interest in starting the new year with and adventure and we were on board right away even though we had only just heard of it.  His idea was to climb one of the mountains surrounding UB first thing January 1st.  Our preparation was very brief and not comprehensive at all.  We agreed to meet him the next day at his apartment at noon and we were going to go from there.  At the time we didn't even know which mountain we were going to climb but we got that figured out when we got into the taxi.  We flagged him down right outside the gate to Micheal's apartment building.  We weren't sure if we were going to be able to get a taxi to take us were we wanted to go, but when asked him if he would take us to a "bug mountain" he said "sure, get in."  We were exited and finally on our way.  Upon making it to the foot of the mountain we had arbitrarily chosen we told him we would get out there.  That is when the fun began.  Our first ascent went well.  The sun was shining brightly and our initial effort caused to heat up quickly and begin to shed layers.  Along our trek we came across many false peaks, a point at which you can no longer go higher without going down first.  At each of them were these sacred rock piles, decorated with blue silk, small vessels, and other strange objects.  The going wasn't easy in the slippery layer of snow so we ended up stopping often.  Of course for the sake of adventure, and bragging rights, we scaled the north face of the mountain.  When we had been climbing for a while, and had reached one of those false peaks with a particularly large rock outcropping, we decided it was time to stop and find a place where we could build our fire and cook our bacon.  Micheal had the genius idea that morning that he would bring bacon with him and we'd make a fire and cook it.  We found a sheltered area, collected sticks, and got our fire started.  We also looked around to find a thin rock to use as our cooking surface.  Finally we had everything we needed and the fire was right for bacon.  With the rock heated up and the bacon strips cut in half, Micheal began to tend to and flip the bacon as I added pieces to the rock.  We all took turns as the bacon came off a piece at a time.  It was so worth the wait.  Something about the rock, the fire, or just eating bacon on a mountain made it the best I had ever eaten.  The bacon consumed, the fire put out, and all our extremities becoming numb from the inaction, we decided it was time to get moving again.  At first I couldn't feel my toes as we began again our ascent, but as I got moving again, and as I got back in the sunlight, I warmed up and everything was fine.  It didn't seem like long before we had reached our final ridge line and were making our way to the highest point on the ridge, which would be the highest we climbed that day.  The ridge line was completely unprotected and the wind was torrential and harsh.  That was the coldest it had been all day.  None of us had a thermometer, but I wouldn't be surprised if it had been thirty degrees below zero or lower.  We were all bundled up in everything had brought to keep the cold out.  At the top there was a sacred rock pile that we had to climb on to be the highest around.  We all took our turns being the highest and then began to choose our descent path.  But first we needed to preform a few ceremonies.  We set Kevin's camera on the rock pile and set the timer to take a group picture and then Kevin christened the mountain with a coke bottle.  We named it Bacon Ridge.  We didn't know that what it was called so we felt the liberty to name it ourselves.  With that taken care of, we began our final descent of the excursion.  The way down was fraught with peril as the ground was incredibly uneven and blanketed in snow.  All the little rocks, sticks, and potholes were hidden beneath a deceptively beautiful layer of pure snow.  We promptly tromped on it.  (No ice particles were seriously harmed in the making of this blog entry).  Fortunately we all made it down without any serious injury or bodily harm.  Upon reaching the road the road that runs through the valley we began to walk back toward the city, doubting that a taxi would come long to pick us up.  We didn't have to walk long however before someone did come by and offer us a ride.  All in all we had a very successful mountain climb and an absolutely awesome new year's day.  After all we can tell everyone that we climbing a mountain in the coldest capital city in the world, in the coldest month of that capital city's winter.  How's that for awesome.

John

Post Script

Wow wow wow! What an amazing trip. I had the time of my life; and what a great group to have it with. We did so much, and in doing so much we also did so little. Everything from horseback riding, a jet boat trip, rock climbing bare foot, and soccer on the beach. We played board games and billiards, watched a couple of movies and ran and walked up and down the beach. We went out to dinner and ice cream, we also made some masterpieces of our own. I had some awesome times of personal devotion on the beach, as well as being able to be a blessing through song to the small congregation of believers there in Coquille. The sun set proclaimed the glory of God and all the skies declared it so, singing their silent praises to their maker. We didn't have a single day of bad weather, despite a little cold temperature one day, and I even managed to get a little sun burned. I'm an amateur when it comes to pranks but that didn't stop me from trying to harass our sponsors. We even ended up flinging bananas and shrimp around one night when things began to come loose. I took ton of pictures, I think my camera was finally glad to be put to good use. On the way back, we stopped at the Woodburn outlet mall and I ended up buying something in almost every store I went into. All in all, it was a perfect trip.

John

Crowbar

Snow Trip

Went snowboarding on Friday. Great day; great snow. We had a blast together, Evan, James, and myself. Here is a picture.

John

Trouble Maker

I already know that I'm going to get myself into a heap of trouble with this car. For example: On Sunday Adam and I were leaving church in my car and Adam to me to rev the engine and peel out in the parking lot. Not realizing I was in second gear, I tried in the parking lot but didn't succeed in peeling out. I knew I just couldn't leave it with a engine growl so I was determined to try again at the driveway to the parking lot. This time I made sure that I was in first gave it my best shot. Leaving a drifting cloud of white smoke behind me, I screeched out of the parking lot, sliding sideways just a little as I went. My adrenaline glands dumped their load as my entire frame began to shake with excitement. That was the beginning of the end, I had tasted it and I knew that I was sure to get in trouble in the future.

John

Wolfsurg Edition

Cherry Coconut

I have the solution to depression: buying a car. I finally got a new car on St. Valentine's Day, and ever since I have been really happy. Despite a few minor cosmetic deficiencies the car is so great. I drives amazingly; it is so smooth. I'm so happy I love my car so much!

John

The Big One-Eight

I'm finally eighteen! *Does a little dance* So much is going on. I went to the Beaverton City Hall two days ago to try and apply for my passport. Realizing that I needed my birth certificate and running out of time, Mom and I decided to go home and try the next day. Next Day: Mom and I spent two hours in the waiting area, when my number was called I checked my pocket and my wallet, with my ID, at home had been forgotten. I needed to be at work in less than a half-an-hour so I had no time to have my ID brought to me. The only positive side to those three wasted hours was that I started and finished Bob Shelton's book: Through a Great Door. We also gave a tract to a ninety-four year old man. After that my afternoon only began to improve. I made it to work on time and while I was there Hannah and Josh came in and visited me. It was great to see two familiar faces. Last night was my last night for fifteen minute breaks at work.

Having been torqued one too many time by the City Of Beaverton, and wanting just to be done with the passport application process, Mom and I went to the City Of Tigard this morning and got the whole thing done in about 5 minutes; that was easy.

Besides all that I'm working on finding out was courses I can take from my major while I'm in Mongolia, working for Starbucks, working for Mr. Dutton, preparing to go on a Senior Trip, the Utah Missions Trip, and finally to leave for Mongolia in the Fall.

And I went snowboarding on Saturday and had an amzing, great day.

John

I'll take a pound of that

Today I'm unofficially back to the grind. I didn't really get going last week because I started on Thurday and then worked for Mr. Dugan on Friday. The Spiritual Emphasis Retreat was great. I'm a senior so it was my last one. I think I finished on a good note. On Saturday we got a game of frisbee on that turned out to be two games of frisbee and a game of soccer. 5 hours of fun, what a day. That night Adam, Tim, and myself took Adela back to the Popescu's house and we ended up staying until about 9:30. I'm trying to prepare for my upcoming ACT so I'll talk to you all later.

John

Building the Perfect Wake

It seems that the more crazy fun stuff that I do, you know all that fun stuff that would be so perfect for a blog entry, the less I actually write about it.

Two weeks ago Evan, Sara, and I went camping on Lemon Island with the Olsons for their annual family camping trip. We only stayed for one night but we really packed the time we had. On Sunday, the first day were there, we went tubing on the river. I had been tubing once before and doing it again was so much fun. It really wears you down though. The next day started off a little slower but the tempo picked up when Kevin and some other of Andy and Davey's friends showed up. After messing around on the island a little and hanging out we finally got out on the water to do some wake boarding. I was so pumped but waited my turn until some of the others tried it. When I got in the water I was fully expecting to be able to get up on the board after a few tries. I tried four times but didn't end up getting it. I was last and we wanted to head back to give the girls a chance to do some tubing so I was finished for the day. After that we started to slowly pack up our tent and our gear to get ready to go that evening. We all had fun and it was really quite and experience.

The very next weekend Kevin, Tim, L.J., and I went camping with L.J.'s family at Detroit Lake for four days. We started our amazing journey on Sunday right after church and the fun and excitement didn't stop until we got back. I got on the wake board on my second try and after that it was really easy. Kevin also got up on the wake board after trying a few times the week before at the island. That was a really big thing for Kevin. The weather was nice and the water was amazing. Wake boarding every day and Axis & Allies every night, what a camping trip. On my last run Tim was taking pictures and videos of me so I have quite a bit of footage from our time. The boat we were using was one of L.J.'s friend's and it was a really nice boat. We ended up spending a lot of time just hanging out on the water. We had a great trip, my happiness level was 9-10 the whole time.

And finally, this weekend after work on Friday my family all got packed up and we headed out of town to Grandma and Grandpa's house for a night. Mom had a class reunion on Woahink lake so we stayed and our Grandparent's house while they were camping with my Uncle, Aunt and cousins. One of Mom's classmates, who has been friends of Dad since before high school, was going to bring his boat for us to go wake boarding but the day they left the truck wouldn't start so we are going to reschedule for another time. After hanging out at the picnic for a while we, the Bower children, scooted off to the beach with Joel and Jesse a the North Jetty. After purloining part of the jetty we went back to the picnic and got ready to go. When we left, heading for home, we stopped down on Bay Street to buy a fish. We got it straight from the fisherman. Then we stopped for ice cream at BJ's. After a quick stop at Gram's house we were on our way home. It's nice to be at home again.

John

A Soul Overflowing

We're heading off to California tomorrow. I just came off of some kind of high after NBT; a spiritual plateau, of sorts. Last week was incredible. Jesus promised that if we ask anything in his name we will receive, that our joy may be full. Last week I cashed in that promise. If you weren't there I couldn't explain to you all that made amazing, encouraging, decisive, and wonderful. I was a team captain again this year with Taylor as my co-captain and Kevin and Sara as our opposing captains. We started the whole week off on Saturday with games skits and food in the evening. The Evangelists arrived on Thursday giving us a lot of time ahead NBT to get to know them and to go out on special blitzing opportunities that we generally don't get. On Sunday morning the evangelists were integrated with our Sunday School class. Before that we had some scoreing and points going on but everything previous to Sunday night, was inconsequential; this was when the real fun started. At this point I can no longing tie particular events to days but I will try and remember most of the crazy NBT games that we all got to participate in this summer. Big Ball Basketball, Big Ball Shot Put, Bottle Soccer, Four-way tug-of-war, Sumo Tube, Tube Tug, Waterballoon Dodgeball, Waterballoon toss, Big Ball Volleyball, Human Foosball, Volleyball, Blind Volleyball, Flag Football, Ultimate Frisbee, Stack-it, Spell-it, Switch-it, Tug-of-war, Kickbox, Big Ball Football, and many others. Every night Kevin and I had some kind of miniature skit that we would preform for the teens called The Impressions. We would come in wearing sunglass and, with a straight face, introduce ourselves as "The Impressions." Then we would do impressions. Again, I can't remember the order but we had so much fun. The impressions that we did included, rain drop, the number 11, a booger, a pimple, locomotive, cupid, mosquito, bug-zapper, snowflake, bacon, fieldgoal, and others. Throughout the week we also had little challenges that the teams would compete eachother in. Many of them were jokes, such as the blindfolded banana eating contest that everyone was in on except one guy. He thought that he was racing three others but it turned out that he was just shoving bananas in his face blindfolded while everyone else watched. Along side all the fun and games was a more serious tone. After we had been outside for the beginning of the evening, and been thorough enteretained by The Impressions and the games and challenges, Mr. Joel, the best NBT Evangelist ever, would come and teach us all a lesson from the Bible. What he said every night throughout the week really had a big impact on all of us, team captains, teens, as well as visitors. The only reason someone could come away from all of that and not be changed for the better would be by their own choice. Above all else, the best, most encouraging, uplifting, enlightening, and by far my favorite times this past week were the team captains meeting with Mr. Joel after NBT every night. I cannot express to you, the reader, all that that meant to us and all that we got from those times with Brother Joel; it was enough to make one high. This week Jesus really filled me up to overflowing and I did not come away unchanged. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD (Psalm 150:6).

John

June, Green Grass, and a Half-Empty Pint Glass.

It's strange to think that June has already started, and yet, not so strange. The Rose Festival kicked of it's centennial celebration this last weekend with it's very own firework show. It was amazing and fun, and it seemed like there were a lot of people there compared to previous years. That same night Amadan opened the Rose Festival under the big top at the Washington Mutual Waterfront Festival. Amadan is an Irish/Celtic band that's from Portland, and we a had a raucous good time. On Saturday, after the homeschool graduation and Elise Jones open house, Anna, Evan, Sara, and I headed downtown by way of the crowded MAX line to the Starlight Parade. My three favorite parts about the parade were the Kell's Irish bagpipe band, the Last Regiment drummers, and the Cloud City 501st Stormtrooper Division. All in all between fireworks, Amadan, Graduation, open house, throwing Tim in the pool, Starlight Parade, volleyball and a picnic, singing, singing(no, this is not a typo), and playing a great offering, I had a pretty good weekend.

John

Bad Dad

I really have failed at being a good dad. Two weeks ago, while Taylor was here, he and I found a pair of pigeon eggs on the roof and decided that we should try and hatch them ourselves. We wrapped them in a wash cloth and put them on a heat pad thingy. Now, two weeks later I'm sure that they're dead and won't ever hatch. What a sad story. I also caught a bee and put it in a Starbucks cup. I watched it lick the sugar off of the inside of the cup but when I came back a while later, the bee was curled into a ball. I thought it was dead but put it on the window ledge just in case it was just to cold. It never moved again. I'm a terrible daddy.

John

Gettin' In To Trouble

This is a picture of my roommate, Taylor. Last week he and I took a quick break from painting to throw little mud balls at people's windows. After he left, I went around to all the windows and cleaned the mud that had been baked on to them off.

Rock On

Here's another picture of me climbing.

Lets Rock

I know it's been a over a week since my last post, but I'm still here and I'm still alive. I guess the reason for my lack of communication this week is that I had a lot of work to do. Not just a normal lot, a whole lot; an extra lot. While the Bells have been gone, we've been working on quite a few projects, trying to get a lot done before they get back. Consequently, I have had a lot of work to do. But life here isn't all hard work and sweat. Yesterday, we all went rock climbing ;the staff and a couple of the people from IPS. I had so much fun. Towards the end of our time there, I could really tell that I was getting tired. My forearms were tight and my hands were losing their grip. Also, a couple of time my hands and my elbows would freeze up and wouldn't respond. But still we all had a lot of fun, and I can't wait to go when I get home.

John

Paint Party

While Mr. Bell is away in Russia, we all decided that it would be a good surprise for him if we painted the gazebo out in the courtyard. Yesterday we rented a power washer and Zach and I power washed the whole thing. Then last night, instead of playing Ultimate Frisbee, we all had a painting party and painted the gazebo. As can be expected in such an endeavor, there was a fair bit of 'messing around' going on. As I found out, if you 'mess' with someone they are going to 'mess' with you.

She painted my head. But at least she killed the spider.

John

The View From My Room

West
Southwest
Up

Dallas

This is the view of Downtown from the roof of
the Training Center.

Knockin'

I didn't know exactly what time I needed to be up this morning for Church so I got up at 8 and was ready to go by 9:30. I found out soon after that that I didn't need to go to church until 10:30. I now had an hour of free time and nothing to do. I read my bible for a while (I don't remember how long) and then went up to my room. I haven't taken very many pictures yet so I took my camera up to the roof to get some. The weather is finally getting to what it should now and the sun was out.