Ty.

My Goal for 2010

2010-06-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

52 books. One book per week.

I am at 16. A little behind schedule, but I'm still pleased with my efforts.

Here are my Top 5 recommendations so far. I consider all of these books a MUST READ.

1) Hearing the Voice of the Lord by Gerald Lund

Great book on revelation and the gospel. I think everyone (especially members of the LDS church) should read this book.

2) Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

I absolutely loved this book. It's about the world. I loved the heroes of this book and the principles it teaches.

3) Born to Run by Christopher McDougall

This book blew my mind. I read it faster than any other book this year because I couldn't put it down. Everyone should read this book. Even if you don't run! The subtitle tells you what the book is about- "A hidden tribe, superathletes, and the greatest race the world has never seen."

4) Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Talk about an insightful individual. Lewis is one of the greatest Christian writers of all time. He lays doctrine down in a very logical fashion. If you want to know how to lead a better life, you should read this book.

5) The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis

Yet again, another extremely insightful book on the tactics of the adversary. It helped me to realize how often we are tempted (and make the wrong choices) and don't even realize it.

Blickenstaff's

2010-05-16T20:37:00.000-07:00

For those of you that didn't know, I work at a toy store. Saturday was the grand opening of the store. It was amazing! Tons of people came in all day long. Lots of candy and toys were bought. Smiles were exchanged. Laughter was all around. Blickenstaff's is Fun For Everyone.

www.blickenstaffs.com

I finally walked

2010-04-25T13:18:00.001-07:00

This is me and my good friend Steve. We were on the same floor freshman year. We started together, and we finished together. Wonderful feeling. As I'm guessing my mom will blog about graduation as well, I'll leave the rest of the photos up to her.

Thank you family for coming to celebrate with me! Oh, and Dad, Chef's Table was delicious! I know it was difficult to fork out that much mula- Thank you!

Best Ski Day Ever

2010-04-18T11:06:00.000-07:00

We went jean skiing and wore ridiculous outfits. Probably the most fun I've had in the year 2010.

The Med

2010-03-18T16:11:00.001-07:00

Falafel is extremely delicious. Unfortunately I have to go back to Jerusalem every time I want to eat the good stuff.
I couldn't stop chanting "Maximus" in my head for 30 minutes straight.
St. Peter's Basilica is the coolest building I've ever been in.
This is me and my 74 year old girlfriend Linda. She was one of my favorites in the group.
Back home again.
Cyprus was a lovely island.
The day of the Incident. In this picture the winds were only about 40-50 mph. The gust that almost tipped us was 130 mph.
Parthenon in Athens. I loved the old ruins. Modern Greece, however, was not as cool as I thought it would be. The country is kind of falling apart.
Monaco= Legit.

In summary, it was a great trip. Aside from almost dying, I had a great time with my good friend Mark and the 109 old people in our tour group. It was definitely a worthwhile and memorable experience. I loved it! Now I have to start playing board games again. Life's not easy.

The Incident

2010-03-08T21:09:00.001-08:00

The following is a journal entry from my friend Mark Jensen. He and I are currently on a cruise. The events described occurred yesterday, March 8, 2010.

The sea was rough as we awoke to another day in the Mediterranean Sea. Turkey! We sailed through the night from Athens, Greece to the port of Marmaris, Turkey. Originally we were scheduled to go to Rhodes, Greece today but the port was damaged last week in a huge storm making it impossible to land there. We were excited to see Turkey instead and add another country to the list.

The day began with the usual “good word” and workout as the ship was getting close to port. The sea was pretty rough so the ship was doing the “sway” a little more than normal. Not bad though. I jumped in the spa shower after my workout and the next thing I knew, the ship went through a slight tilt making it difficult to shower and keep the swinging shower door shut. I went out on deck after getting ready and found a nice day, about 65 degrees, but very windy. The wind was probably around 30-40 mph sustained. The port of Marmaris was beautiful with green hills and Muslim minarets dotting the panorama.

After breakfast, Ty and I headed down to meet the group and get ready to go out and see Turkey. We then heard an announcement that we couldn’t land because of strong wind gusts right next to the port making it unsafe to dock. The ship tried again for the next 90 minutes but the wind was gusting up to about 60 mph at times. We were then told it would be a day at sea and that we would sail for Cyprus so that we could be there tomorrow as planned.

As we headed into the open sea, the wind was definitely picking up. We went out on deck at around 11am and were told to get off due to the high winds. Ty and I were sort of bummed because it was fun to be out there. After lunch, we did a “deck sneak” as we call it around 12:30pm. The wind was howling. It felt like one of those rare Kaysville days when the east wind would howl down from the mountains and make it hard to stay put. Ty and I had a hard time getting around on the deck so we made it a quick “deck sneak.”

As the day wore on, we noticed the sea getting rougher. The white caps were beginning to look like white caps straight out of a Hollywood set. Being on a monolith of a cruise ship that was built last year, we didn’t think too much of it. Ty and I headed down to our room around 1:15pm to get some reading in before a group meeting at 2pm.

Our cabin is on deck one, all the way at the front of the ship. We have two little port holes and can see all the waves below us every day. Even though we are on deck one, there are decks below us for the crew and other ship maintenance needs. I would estimate that our window is about 40 feet above sea level. As we sat in our room reading, the spray from the waves would fly past and cover our port holes momentarily. We had a stormy night the first night we were on board but this far surpassed it. Ty and I had joked earlier in the week about the Titanic and getting swallowed by the sea. Deep down we knew this was near impossible and had a good laugh over it.

At about 1:30pm, the ship began to list to one side and then quickly began to tilt downward. All of a sudden, our port hole became submerged with water and our glass vase slid off the coffee table to the floor creating a shattered mess of glass and sand.

Ty yelled, “I’m outta here!” I grabbed my back pack and we ran into the hall. It was surreal – trying to make our way down the hall which was on some weird axis we had never experienced except maybe at a ride in an amusement park. I kept falling into the wall and my Ipod Shuffle went flying out of my backpack. We ran up four flights of stairs to deck 4 which is where the muster stations and life boats are. In the rush and confusion we didn’t grab our life vests and looking back, that is what we obviously would have done differently.

We ran, or stumbled, to the part of the ship that was not quickly nearing the ocean surface. Ty and I got next to the muster deck doors which overlook the main atrium below (equivalent to the hotel lobby). The scene before us was madness. Glass was shattering everywhere creating a machine-gun like atmosphere. The bar tenders were trying to stop things from falling, but bottles of alcohol and hundreds of glasses spilled to the floor. Huge kiosk machines and other electronic devices were toppled over.

All of a sudden on the floor below us, the doors to the deck swung open. The scary thing was seeing water splashing onto the deck which is deck 3, meaning that the two floors of cabins below were submerged as well as the crew decks below that. Crew members were running around everywhere trying to shut the doors and secure loose items. Adrenaline was definitely pumping.

Ty and I stayed put in our spot hoping the ship would right itself, all the while preparing to either head towards a lifeboat or just get on top of the ship which was dangerously tipping over. The Costa Pacifica is no small ship. Over 3,000 guests are on board with 1,500 crew members to assist us and the 14 decks we enjoy. The ship was built in 2009 and is as modern as they come.

After what seemed an eternity, the ship slowly began to tilt back to a more normal position. The people stuck in elevators were able to finally get out. After talking with others, we estimate that the ordeal lasted for about 7-8 minutes.

On deck 9, the swimming pool completely emptied its waters causing people, chairs, and tables to slide into the windows and walls facing the ocean surface. We heard that someone got a concussion during that event. Nearby in the buffet, a fire began but was quickly put out. We also heard that another passenger went into a seizure. I’m sure others suffered physical malady during “the incident” as we now call it, but we don’t know for sure. Italian passengers were running around screaming, crying, you name it. Ty and I didn’t panic but were defiantly scared and in a “fight or flight mode.”

Things slowly returned to normal and the cleanup began. We found out that at the time of the tilt we were experiencing sustained winds of 80-90mph with gusts of 115-120mph. Ty and I don’t really know what happened up on the Captain’s deck – a ridiculously stupid turn or just conditions beyond control. A cruise ship in Egypt last week had huge waves heavily damage the ship killing two people and injuring 14.

As we talked to crew members after the fact, they said that they had never experienced anything like this or heard of anything like it happening. Most of the passengers on this ship are senior citizens and would not have even had a chance to get off the ship or even force their doors open to get out of their rooms. If we had not righted ourselves, we’re afraid that there would have been many deaths, especially considering the crazy waves and cold water.

Ty and I are grateful to be alive tonight as we sail through the same waters of Paul and reflect upon his shipwreck near the very same spot. “Master the Tempest is Raging” has taken on a new meaning. We are not the ones in control down here on this earth – it was a humbling reminder from above.

**On a lighter note, we love our cabin steward named Heri from Indonesia. We always joke around with him in his broken English. After “the incident”, we asked Heri if he had been scared. In his Ghandi- like voice he said, “yes yes, Mr. Roney, Jensen, Heri very scared” and then he broke into his high-pitched hilarious laugh.

Getting Tipsy

2010-03-08T07:42:00.001-08:00

Today my cruise ship almost tipped over. I felt like I was in the movie Titanic. It was like a very , very bad dream. I will post more details in the future.

Part 2

2010-02-19T18:53:00.000-08:00

NY Toy and Game Fair was held at the Javits Center in NYC. It was massive. Day 1 I spent 8 hours in two aisles- the board game aisles. Very informative, very valuable way to learn about the industry I am diving into. Turns out there are lots of board games out there. It would blow your mind. Day 2 was spent scouring the rest of the million square feet of the toy show looking for other board game booths scattered throughout the show.

My three favorite things about the show:

There were a bizillion booths to wander around and look at.
I met Kenan. He signed a picture for me.
I now feel ready to jump into the board game industry and dominate.

My three favorite things we did outside of the show:

Mary Poppins on Broadway- it was very uplifting and entertaining. I've decided I would like to do things like this more often.
Ate at Whole Foods. Quite possibly the greatest grocery store ever invented.
Went to dinner at Carnegie's Deli. Saw the biggest sandwiches of my life.

In Conclusion: I like New York.

Valentine's Day Weekend Part 1

2010-02-17T17:47:00.000-08:00

Snow has always been my Valentine :) I really could not have had a better weekend. It began with a trip up to Jackson on Friday afternoon with Bradley and Carter. Arguably the two greatest men ever to have lived. Saturday we met up with my best man Will Gardner, and we proceeded to ski. It was an amazing day. 10 inches overnight, 2 feet in the last 72 hours. That means 2 feet everywhere in the backcountry. Will got a bunch of good shots! Wonderful day. We about passed out after skiing as we ate chili at Bradley's and watched the olympics. Part 2 will be Sunday - Tuesday. My trip to NY! Coming soon.

The Spirit of Skiing - Introduction

2010-02-11T21:12:00.000-08:00

Preface: I am about to attempt to explain the importance of skiing in my life. It will be long, but skiing has played a big role in my life. My rough estimate is that in all the days of my life, about 1,000 of them were spent skiing. Think of 'The Spirit of Skiing' as a book. Aside from my regular day-to-day blog posts, you will now begin to see posts purely dedicated to my thoughts on skiing. Hopefully some day I will compile these future posts into something of substance that can be beautifully exhibited. Until then, I hope you can find something of value in my raw feelings and thoughts. Enjoy the introduction. Chapter 1 will be coming soon.

Introduction

The human body allows us to experience things that would not be possible otherwise. This, coupled with our spirits, provide a complete opportunity for us to experience everything necessary to become celestial beings. Because of our bodies, we can do so many things. We can feel, we can love... we can hurt, we can soar... we can create, we can destroy... and we can SKI.

Skiing is a celebration of the human body. It is a way for me to express myself. It is a way for me to enjoy God's creations. Many of the things I will share will be parallels to to life in general. My world of skiing has been, in its own way, a microcosm of life. Of life's lessons, experiences, seasons, and progression.

My future posts will contain lessons I've learned, and special experiences I've had while skiing. I hope you enjoy them.

Ahhh the Weekend

2010-02-07T19:32:00.000-08:00

Great Weekend! This is why:

As I am now on salary, my boss (AKA Uncle Blake) took me skiing on Friday! (In order to discuss board game development of course) I'd say it was a productive day of work :)
I went skiing on Saturday at the bird with my good friends. Skiing still brings me joy and happiness. (Soon I will unleash a very beautiful blog post on skiing, so be on the lookout)
My friend Beckie took me to the Jazz game on Saturday night. Yes, we beat the nuggets. Yes, the Jazz are freaking rocking it right now.
The Saints won. My roommates are die hard Saints fans.
Fast Sunday was excellent. I am very pleased to say that I didn't get bored during Sunday School or Sacrament Meeting. Great lessons, great insights, very uplifting.

SIA Snow Show

2010-01-29T22:17:00.001-08:00

Today was my first business trip.
It followed a Chiasmatic structure as shown in the following bullet
SLC-Denver-Casper-Denver-SLC
I was on the same flights as Dr. Baird, who coached my Sales Class
Walking into the Snow Show was intimidating. Hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of people
My purpose: establish contact with potential partners for the iSki app and snowfinder.com
I got the job done.
I forgot how different the ski/snowboard world has become...or how I have changed
I worked 14.5 hours

Work in Progress

2010-01-25T18:10:00.000-08:00

In a fantastic turn of events, I landed a great job!

However, I forgot that I like to write in bullet form. So, this post will be bullets only.

My job is awesome. I'm developing a board game, amongst several other things.
I am now working at One Enterprises for my Uncle Blake
Thank you Beckie for helping me revamp my blog. You are the best.
Going to New York in two weeks
Reading Lord of the Flies and the Giver right now- both good books thus far
Skiing on Saturday was incredible! Snowbird received several feet of snow last week.
My chin is slightly discolored due to frostbite
Struggling to work out on a consistent basis
Yoga makes me feel good. I go every week.
I wish I could grow a real mustache

Scott Sully

2010-01-24T17:04:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to share with you all the joy that my roommate Scott Stevens has brought to me. The other day I walked in on him.....turning himself into an Avatar. I laughed for two days straight. We have dubbed him Scott Sully, member of the Omaticaya clan of the Na'Vi. If we have any important decisions that need to be made, we tell him to bring it before E'wah.

JH Christmas + 3 Days in the Real World

2010-01-06T14:39:00.001-08:00

Though there wasn't much snow to be had, Will Gardner and I still managed to find some good skiing. Will is a fantastic photographer and took these shots. It is our goal later on in the season to actually get some shots that would be worthy of a ski magazine!

This Christmas was great. Plain and simple. Great to be home, great to be with the family, great games of Blokus, and great to be back on the mountain.

I have now returned to Provo for numerous reasons. The main one being that I have several opportunities down here. This week I'm meeting with several different people to see what I will do with my future. I'm beginning to shun a regular day job. Although it is undoubtedly my most secure option, it just doesn't quite appeal to me. I'm not sure I feel like being so conventional just quite yet, if ever. By the end of next week I ought to be able to return and report with more details.

Wish me luck, as tomorrow I enter my 4th day in the real world.

8 days!

2009-12-02T12:24:00.000-08:00

In 8 days I will be done with all my classes as an Undergaduate! Here's the issue: I have very large final projects due in every class. So, while I am excited, these will be 8 very stressful days! Good thing I went to Yoga last night.

On Dec. 11 I'll be going to DC to visit with my buddy Sam Wardle. Any places I need to see?

Upon my return I need to solidify what I'm going to do for a career. No biggie.

Blips of my last two weeks

2009-11-09T20:46:00.001-08:00

1) My school career (at least for now) is coming to an end. I just realized I have about one month left. Very exciting and somewhat stressful, though all the stress is self-inflicted. I have a few options, which I should be grateful for, but choosing between them is difficult.

2) The last couple of weeks have been good to me. Can't complain, I wake up, go to work, go to school, meet with study groups, and come home. Pretty standard. My big event last week was going to Yoga for the first time in years. I think I'm hooked again. I've decided I'll go every week. Yoga is good for you.

3) The weather last week was spectacular! Went on a beautiful bike ride on Saturday and enjoyed temperatures in the 60's for most of the week. I also bought a sweater for $5 at Velour and I am very happy with my purchase. I'm wearing it right now.

4) Went to Stake Conference this past weekend and I was really struck by the theme of service. I could definitely do a lot better on serving others and focusing outside of myself. Time to stop being so dang selfish.

5) I need to start working out again.

Double whammy

2009-10-24T09:06:00.000-07:00

Two weeks, two midterms. I am sure glad I'm about to graduate in December so I won't have to worry about tests every month. However, I'm still unsure about what to do for a career! I accept any and all ideas concerning this matter.

This week I also threw a party for Kara, who turned 21 years old! We all had a good time. Kara received numerous gifts, some of which I am not permitted to speak of in public forum.

Finally, I have a new favorite TV show- Shark Tank.

The True Cougar Tri

2009-10-18T20:52:00.000-07:00

This was our 2nd annual True Cougar Tri !
On the left is the infamous Matt Capone, and on the right is Scott Stevens. Two very good friends. We all did pretty well, but I was mostly proud of my outfit. Unfortunately I was topless in this shot, but I had a neon green runners jersey to match those incredible 80's swim jammers. The ladies loved it. I think.

After the Tri I had a chance to go to my Uncle Burke's to watch the BYU game with a bunch of family . During halftime we made homemade pizza in his authentic Italian brick pizza oven. I could be wrong, but I think I just threw in four adjectives before the word oven just now. Anyway, it was good to see a lot of my extended family and watch BYU win another game.

Summer and Fall

2009-10-12T21:23:00.000-07:00

After a small hiatus, I have now returned to the world of blogging. You can expect a weekly update from here on out. So, I'll start with the most recent news first. I got a job! I now work at Qualtrics as part of the Academic Sales Team. As far as company culture and co-workers is concerned, I love it! Every Friday we have a company meeting and they buy us lunch, which is always a plus. Last Friday was Panda Express; I couldn't have been happier. I happen to already know four people that work there, and so far everyone I've met is really cool and fun to work with. I actually sit about 5 feet away from a relative of mine, Greg Brassfield, who I believe is my second cousin once removed. Needless to say we have a good time. As to my actual job, I basically call up professors and try to get them to view a web demonstration of the product. I actually kind of like it! Talking to them is the easy part. Getting a hold of them is what has been super frustrating.

Aside from my job, my final semester at BYU has been fantastic so far. For once, I love most of my classes! This is due to the fact that they are all in the Entrepreneurship emphasis, which is the most stellar emphasis of all time. The entrepreneurship program was just ranked 18th in the nation and I think it will soon be top ten. Great classes and great teachers.

In my spare time I like to train for random and fun events. The photo above was taken at the beginning of the RedRockRelay, a 180 mile relay race with 12 man teams. As you can tell by my stache, I was the team captain of "The Gazelles". If you've been on my facebook lately, I'm sure you've seen us in all our glory. We may have been joking around in our short shorts, but we were serious when it came to the running; we dominated and got 3rd place overall! It turned out to be an incredible experience that I'll never forget. I highly recommend it to everyone!

Total time= 24 hours 25 min. 12 seconds

Ok, so now I can only type in bold and this is kind of bothering me. Anyway, all I had left to do is answer the two questions that everyone asks me about three times/week.

Question #1: Are you dating anyone?

Answer: Nope. I go to work and I go to school and I swim and I bike and I run and I go to ski movies and I do some homework and I socialize. Don't worry, I'm still trying to be social and meet new people. That is the key anyways, right? I just need to keep meeting new ladies and eventually it will work out....

Question #2: What are you going to do when you graduate?

Answer: I'll tell you what I'm going to do when I graduate if you tell me what you are going to do in the next five years. I bet you have no idea either. You may pretend you do, but you really don't! Once again, no need to worry. I think I'll be just fine :)

La Primavera Update

2009-05-02T16:01:00.000-07:00

Spring is here in P-town! Last week was great weather, and I just started my classes for the spring term. I really enjoy them: 1) Strategic Management 2) Money, Banking, and Business. They are actually pretty intensive on the workload, so I definitely have something to keep me busy. I'm excited to get back on my road bike as well. I need to get into shape again!

This is officially my first spring at BYU-Provo, and it definitely has a different feel to it. There are a lot less people around in the spring, but unfortunately the past few days a bazillion women took over my campus for women's conference. It was awful. Besides that, life has been pretty mellow, especially in the evenings. I think it's time to make some more friends.

Before and After

2009-04-17T19:47:00.000-07:00

My last post was me studying. This post is me sitting in the JSB after taking 4 finals, swimming, and turning in a seven-page paper in one day. I am a champ. And yes, I dressed up for this special occasion. Why? Because I can.

What I've been doing

2009-04-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

Yeah...I've been stuck in the Tanner building for the last three weeks. Don't worry, hopefully I'll have something more fun to blog about after finals are over next week. Oh, and I'm also a day trader on Etrade now.

My Sister Kara

2009-03-07T16:09:00.000-08:00

Today I went skiing with my sister Kara. It was totally radical and awesome. We shredded some groomers, threw down gnarly tricks, and hiked the Baldy Chutes for the first time at Alta. We are the coolest. These pictures were taken at the top of the hike. Kara was a little winded near the top and said a few words to me that I will not repeat in this blog. Needless to say I laughed. Kara is a great sister and she can ski better than most people I know.

Gratitude

2009-02-23T10:45:00.000-08:00

President Thomas S. Monson said that gratitude is among the "noblest of virtues." I've come to realize the veracity of that statement more and more as I study the scriptures and simply live life. It makes all the difference in every single situation we find ourselves in. In an effort to be more grateful for what I have, I'd just like to share some things I've learned recently.

After a great lesson in church I read the article, "Finding Joy in the Journey" by Thomas S. Monson. It is an amazing talk. President Monson focuses on finding joy today and not missing out on what is most important in life. I remember when I was little my dad would always try to teach me this valuable lesson. I would always get so focused on our destination when we would go hiking that I did not appreciate the beauty that surrounded me. I grew up in one of the most beautiful places on earth! I am still working on finding joy in the journey, but thanks dad for being so patient with me when I was younger! It has definitely helped to solidify this concept that the prophet taught this last general conference.

I also finally powered through the allegory in Jacob 5 the other day. With a lot of help from an Ensign article, I was able to understand a lot of the teachings and symbolism better than before. What impressed me most was the fact that the Lord will always do every single thing He can to save His vineyard. Being grateful for Him and all that He does will enrich our lives each day.

Life Is Exciting!

2009-02-11T19:48:00.000-08:00

Today I decided that life is exciting! It is a good thing that life is so exciting, because a boring life would suck. Here are a few things that have made my life exciting. I made 10 because it's a good number. These 10 things are not in any specific order.

1) Matt Capone and I fixed our DVD player today. Trust me, we shared an exhilarating moment.
2) Swimming at 6:45 every morning is freaking awesome. You should try it.
3) Skiing 19 inches at Alta yesterday brought joy to my soul. It's like the gospel, only those who participate can experience the same joy.
4)Women are so exciting. Especially at BYU. There are so many! The most exciting thing about them is that I have no idea what they are thinking. It's like predicting the weather.
5) My family is definitely exciting. I have tons of little sisters!
6) You Tube is extremely exciting. Watch Jimmy Kimmel's explanation of Miss South Carolina. Or the stoned kid after the dentist. Or any Japanese game show.
7) The Integrated Core in the business school is so boring it's exciting! Seriously, I think to myself, "wow, I get to go to the same room every day for the same amount of time! It's so consistent that I never remember which teacher is going to walk in the door!" One of my teachers likes to say "Yes?" a lot. Another one likes to say "New Topic" a lot. It is wonderful.
8) The Stock Market. What is more exciting than that? I love watching the little stock I have in Apple go up and down everyday.
9) The Fifth Floor of the Harold B. Lee Library is perhaps the most exciting location on the BYU campus. Once again, if you don't believe me, come and see.
10) Stake Conference. Elder Hamula is one of the most radical general authorities ever. He visited my mission a few years ago and blew me away. This last Sunday he was back to give one of the most spiritual discourses on the pre-mortal life I have ever witnessed. Overall, it was the most spiritually uplifting stake conference I have ever experienced.

10 Things I Like

2009-02-04T07:50:00.000-08:00

1) The Temple
2) The Book of Mormon
3) Skiing
4) Triathloning
5) MGMT
6) Avocados
7) My iPhone
8) Ab Class
9) Traveling
10) Women

2009-02-03T21:17:00.000-08:00

Skiing has been my passion in life. I figured it would be a good first post to publish on my blog.

2009-02-03T21:06:00.000-08:00