For those of you that don't know, I got involved with starting a company shortly after graduating. That was April 2007. The current name of our company is NVH Technologies. NVH stands for "Noise Vibration and Harshness" (you can check us out here) There have been lots of ups and downs along the way, but recently things have really started to take off and I wanted to share with you one of the cooler things that has happened. Forbes magazine contacted BYU to see if they had any exciting start up companies worth talking about. BYU provided them with a list of all their licensees and out of all of them, we were selected to be interviewed. Our CTO traveled to New York, and they interviewed him for a few hours and put together the following video:
http://video.forbes.com/fvn/breakout/sound-no-more
We're pretty excited that people are begining to take note of our work and the potential we have.
That's it. I just wanted to toot my horn a little bit and see if I can't get a little more publicity out of the video.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
Fire Butt Soup!
You read that right. Fire Butt Soup.
About two weeks ago, as I sat in the Dr's office pretending to be patient and failing miserably, I picked up a Rachel Ray Magazine thinking I'd find some interesting recipe ideas. Boy was I right. But one recipe out shone all the others, "Mexican Chicken Lime Soup." Here is the Recipe:
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Onion finely chopped
6 Cloves garlic thinly sliced
5 Skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Canned Chipotle Chiles in adobo sauce, finely chopped, plus 2 tablespoons adobo sauce.
6 Cups Chicken broth
1/2 Cup chopped fresh Cilantro
Juice of 2 limes
salt and pepper
1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Stir in the Onion and the Garlic, lower heat to medium and cook until the onion begins to brown, about 7 minutes. Increase the heat to high, push the veggies to the side of the pan, add the chicken and cook, stirring until golden, about 5 mins. Stir in the Chipotles and adobo sauce, then stir in the chicken broth. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes skimming any foam. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice; season with salt and pepper.
2. Place 2 avacado slices in a bowl, pout in the soup and top with tortilla chips.
(if you aren't salivating at the idea of this recipe, you and I can't be friends.)
Because of my preferences and a few key mis-understandings I made some changes to the recipe. Here is what I did:
I replaced the chicken thighs with canned chicken (patted dry) so that as it cooked it burned / caramelized the edges to give it extra texture.
I didn't have 6 cups chicken broth (and didn't think to use builla base to make it) so I only used 4
I added a can of black beans (drained), and a can of diced tomatoes with green chiles. (i figured the juice from the tomatoes would compensate...
All of these actions were intentional changes to the recipe
This was my accidental change and ironically enough the reason for the soups alias.
Instead of two canned chipotle chiles, I thought I read 2 cans of chipotle chiles... Turns out there are about 15 chiles in a can. Luckily I mis-read the recipe before shopping and only purchased one can of chiles.
(At this point the recipe is FUBAR)
Anyways, I also failed to chop the chiles and just threw them in whole.
By the time the soup was done simmering, the spicy-ness of it permeated the air. My mother-in-law was ready to have an apopeptic fit at the idea of me eating the soup,
I was commited!
My first bowl (served for lunch) was delicious and spicy. Probably the spiciest thing I've ever eaten. As proof of that, by the time I was done, my face was flushed, sweat glistened off my forehead, and I felt like I'd been through a rigorous workout at the gym...
Again, at this point pride rose up within me and I put the soup in the fridge to be finished at a later date. The rest of the day passed pleasantly and without incident.
The following evening (last night) I reached for the soup for dinner, having spurned the brocolli laden dish prepared for, and generally disliked by all. Apparently that 24 hour period gave the soup time to ferment...
Again I went through the process of cleaning every pore on my face by exuding copius amounts of sweat. Again my body felt slightly betrayed at my prideful behavior, and as I lay down to sleep I began to have second thoughts about storing the soup for future consumption.
Eight hours later I knew the course I must take... After my second trip to the bathroom I was left with a bitter reminder of my pride as my sphinctor burned with a fire I have never known before.
Nor do I wish to know it again.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Securities and Exchange Commission - Regulator or Enabelor?
So today, I read an article about a federal judge overturning the SEC's settlement of the whole Merrill Lynch / Bank of America executive bonus scandal. (Article)The article also brings up a past SEC failing during the worldcom accounting fraud business. So that got me to thinking. What the hell is the SEC actually doing? Apparently not trying to protect the investors from unscrupulous businesses. They're definately not acting on any of the complaints over the last umpteen years of Bernie Maddoff and his now spectacular ponzie scheme. So what are they doing? I looked them up on Wikipedia and it appears as though they spend their time enforcing seven primary laws. Five of which were passed before the 1940's were finished. I say they spend their time enforcing the seven laws, but i would question their efficacy, and even their ambition in doing so. Part of me wonders how closely tied the SEC is to the major players, and whether or not they can be trusted. When President Obama promises to change things, I say go get 'em tiger. Institutions like the SEC, and others that are closely linked to big business must be shaken up periodically to ensure the honesty of those participating.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Babies, the Final Frontier.
So here's the story: Two weeks ago, the Dr. had us go through another ultrasound to check on the amniotic fluid levels. We were at the very bottom end of safe, and the Dr. had amber commit to periodic bed rest throughout the day, and plenty of fluids. For two weeks, we tried this and had to go through ultrasounds twice a week. This last Tuesday we went in for another test and we were even lower on fluids. The Dr. said come back on Thursday and if things aren't better we'll talk about inducing you. Things were not better.
So at 12:00 PM Thursday September 10, Amber was admitted and began taking a drug called Cervadil. The purpose of the drug was to "ripen" Amber's Cervix in anticipation of the delivery. 12 hours later, they started us on Pitocen (the labor inducing drug). Amber and I slept through most of the night. Around 7:00 AM they checked her dilation, and she was only at a 2. So they bumped up the Pitocen a little bit, and we had to start the waiting game.
Around 11:00 AM the Dr. broke Amber's water, and she received her epidural shortly thereafter. Within the hour, Amber's contractions started getting really strong, and Baby Ru started reacting poorly to them. Her heart rate would plummet from 130 bpm, to 60 bpm during each contraction. That required some quick action on the part of the nurses but they got everything stabilized and we had to slow down the dilation so that it wouldn't stress Ruby out too much.
By 4:00 PM she was dilated to a 10, but the Dr. wanted her to "rest and descend." That's a fancy way of saying let nature take its course and get as far as possible without actively pushing. By 5:10, they wanted to start pushing. Amber was a real champ and never once cried or stopped pushing before they told her to. She pushed and pushed for all she was worth. The tip of Ruby's head was visible almost from the beginning of the pushing but we couldn't get her any farther, so after an hour and change the Dr. came in and proposed using forceps. I have to confess he didn't seem to be very gentle, and watching him pull her out was bizarre. After 4 contractions Ruby's head was out, and the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck twice! When he turned her over, her poor little face was so blue it looked purple. I freaked out at that. The Dr. slipped the cord off and started pumping and in less than 20 seconds she was breathing and crying. Shortly thereafter, the Dr. handed me a pair of scissors. (I had no idea what he was getting at until he explained it to me) So in the end I cut the umbilical cord, it felt like I was cutting through a mushy ruber hose. (not romantic but that was what I thought. Sue me) The pictures show you what happened after that.
As I write these words, Amber is cuddling and cooing baby Ru.
She's here to stay.
So at 12:00 PM Thursday September 10, Amber was admitted and began taking a drug called Cervadil. The purpose of the drug was to "ripen" Amber's Cervix in anticipation of the delivery. 12 hours later, they started us on Pitocen (the labor inducing drug). Amber and I slept through most of the night. Around 7:00 AM they checked her dilation, and she was only at a 2. So they bumped up the Pitocen a little bit, and we had to start the waiting game.
Around 11:00 AM the Dr. broke Amber's water, and she received her epidural shortly thereafter. Within the hour, Amber's contractions started getting really strong, and Baby Ru started reacting poorly to them. Her heart rate would plummet from 130 bpm, to 60 bpm during each contraction. That required some quick action on the part of the nurses but they got everything stabilized and we had to slow down the dilation so that it wouldn't stress Ruby out too much.
By 4:00 PM she was dilated to a 10, but the Dr. wanted her to "rest and descend." That's a fancy way of saying let nature take its course and get as far as possible without actively pushing. By 5:10, they wanted to start pushing. Amber was a real champ and never once cried or stopped pushing before they told her to. She pushed and pushed for all she was worth. The tip of Ruby's head was visible almost from the beginning of the pushing but we couldn't get her any farther, so after an hour and change the Dr. came in and proposed using forceps. I have to confess he didn't seem to be very gentle, and watching him pull her out was bizarre. After 4 contractions Ruby's head was out, and the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck twice! When he turned her over, her poor little face was so blue it looked purple. I freaked out at that. The Dr. slipped the cord off and started pumping and in less than 20 seconds she was breathing and crying. Shortly thereafter, the Dr. handed me a pair of scissors. (I had no idea what he was getting at until he explained it to me) So in the end I cut the umbilical cord, it felt like I was cutting through a mushy ruber hose. (not romantic but that was what I thought. Sue me) The pictures show you what happened after that.
As I write these words, Amber is cuddling and cooing baby Ru.
She's here to stay.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
A beacon of Hope
Last night we watched Seabiscuit. This movie has particular importance to me as it is the first DVD i purchased and the story of heart overcoming breeding is particularly powerful. After having researched the matter a little more, i discovered that the breeding / heart argument plot line is not really that powerful, both War Admiral and Seabiscuit share the ancestry of Man o' War, who was apparently voted as the most prestigious race horse of the 20th century.
Regardless, the story of Seabiscuit also tells of something else. A hero (an icon) rising up from obscurity to give hope and optimism to a people that are otherwise depressed about life. I know it is not accurate to compare today's society with the great depression era, but at the same time things are tough right now for a lot of people.
In situations like this people need a beacon of hope. Part of me wonders if that is not why Obama gathered so much popular support. His whole campaign was focused on providing hope for America. Lets hope he can deliver.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
This would never happen in Utah
So last night, Amber decided I needed a pair of swim trunks for the family reunion even though my foot is not 100% healed. I agreed and off we went to marshals. It took us about 15 minutes to find and buy a pair of swim trunks, but her Mom and Dad were still browsing so Amber decided to continue browsing herself.
Needing to take a break and get the weight off my foot, I sat down near the door to wait.
There were three seats near the door. On the far right, sat a hispanic fellow who was obviously waiting for his wife. I sat on the far left in order to observe the inter-galactic law of "don't-get-too-close-to-any-other-dude-unless-you-absolutely-have-to." Five minutes later, a cute, old, asian lady came and sat down between us. She was joined by another elderly asian lady, with a black (maybe polynesian) baby girl in tow. The two ladies were waiting for the mother of the baby at the register, the mother was also asian, so I believe the baby to have been adopted. A white lady with a baby girl of the same age was at the next register over, and as the two mothers checked out, the two toddlers set up an impromptu play date by the door.
White and Black toddlers playing, while a Latino, a white guy, and two older asian ladies watched; all of us smiling.
California catches a lot of grief over a lot of issues, but you have to give credit where credit is due. The cultural mixing and acceptance that has been achieved here is not something that you would ever see in Utah or many other places in the US.
Kudos to you California.
P.S. The above photograph is of twin girls from Australia. The mother was black, and the father white, apparently the chances of twins with such different complexions is a million to one according to the Dr.'s
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article68181.ece
Friday, June 19, 2009
Happy Birthday to Me!
Well, it appears as though it's been over a month since I last posted. A lot has happened so I've decided to create a chronological picture update.
May 14 - We found out our little monkey, aka Boris, was really a Boris-a. It was decided by unanimous vote that Boris-a was no longer a feasible name, The switch was made to Ruby.
May 22ish
In 
Enough said.
May 29ish
You can call me FrankinFoot - Surgery to repair ligaments in my right ankle. Surgery went well, but a week later I started to have an alergic reaction to something, and the ankle became infected. Problem solved with antibiotics and copious amounts of Bennydryl (SP?)
June 19 - Birthday. Amber surprised me with tickets to see the Blueman group. We sat in the poncho zone. The performance in Las Vegas was every bit as good as the traveling show. Different but still awesome! The group here was spectacular in their awkwardness. I snapped a picture of Amber and I after the show with one of the blue men, then failed to save the photo. (yes I'm a dummy). On the other hand, we purchased some artwork, made in-show, and they gave me a pair of used drumb sticks when they found out it was my birthday! Pictures to follow of the artwork.
May 14 - We found out our little monkey, aka Boris, was really a Boris-a. It was decided by unanimous vote that Boris-a was no longer a feasible name, The switch was made to Ruby.
May 22ish
In 
Enough said.
May 29ish
You can call me FrankinFoot - Surgery to repair ligaments in my right ankle. Surgery went well, but a week later I started to have an alergic reaction to something, and the ankle became infected. Problem solved with antibiotics and copious amounts of Bennydryl (SP?)
June 19 - Birthday. Amber surprised me with tickets to see the Blueman group. We sat in the poncho zone. The performance in Las Vegas was every bit as good as the traveling show. Different but still awesome! The group here was spectacular in their awkwardness. I snapped a picture of Amber and I after the show with one of the blue men, then failed to save the photo. (yes I'm a dummy). On the other hand, we purchased some artwork, made in-show, and they gave me a pair of used drumb sticks when they found out it was my birthday! Pictures to follow of the artwork.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Obama update and a Boris update:
Recently I've been asked a number of times if I'm happy with Obama so far. I'd like to take the time and answer that question in what I already know will be a controversial manner. So "Principleoverparty" get ready to get mad.
Short answer: Yes.
Long answer: Yes.
While I don't necessarily agree with everything he has done, and plans to do here are the things that have pleased me in no particular order.
To begin with, Obama's apparent dedication to increased transparency has been refreshing. Along with the fact that he is now de-classifying much of Bush's "closed door" decisions.
I've been very impressed with the real urgency Obama's administration has put on improving foreign relations. It seems like not a day has gone by without me hearing about opening dialog with countries we've been trying to brow beat for the last decade.
I appreciate the fact that Obama is taking a long term view of our energy situation and making the hard decisions now. I realize this is causing a lot of heart ache for families and people of our nation but the reality is that our current energy policies we destined to self destruct because of the limited nature of oil and coal. Making the move now is like making a 90 degree turn at 35 miles an hour vs 60 miles an hour. The first won't be easy, but the latter is impossible. Do we deal with it or let our kids deal with it? I vote for us.
I appreciate he's publicly anounced his agenda for Iraq, and Afghanistan and integrated their costs into our budgeting process. Instead of sliding the cost under the table like bush did. In case you didn't know it, Iraq has cost us 1 Trillion dollars to date.
I appreciate that he is trying to re-assert the moral leadership of the United States by stopping water boarding, by being open with the public and strengthening international ties.
Frankly I love the fact that he is in fact leading. Like I said, I don't agree with everything he's done, but he takes responsibility for the white house, I get the feal he is making the decisions based on his analysis (I know you can argue the validity of that analysis, but at least it is his.) I always had the strong impression that Bush was just a puppet for Dick Cheney and the rest of his corporate goons.
As far as the stimulus package is concerned, I believe that the stimulus package was an inevitable result of our situation. The difference in my mind is in how it was crafted. Give the money to the rich man? Give the money to the poor man? Frankly, from what I've been hearing about the way corporate america is run, and the behavior of the boards and their CEO's, I'd rather give it to the poor man. The former hasn't really worked has it?
I guess your take on the stimulus is fundamentally based upon what theory of economics you ascribe to. (Notice I used the word theory, cause as far as I can determine they are both just theories) Personall, I'm really losing my faith in "Free market" economics, and to some extent Capitalism. I know that sounds strange coming from someone starting his own business but I've heard a lot lately that makes me think their might be a significant difference in the actual application of capitalism based on the size of the enterprise.
I could keep writing, but Amber wants me to go to the store with her. So I'll finish with a more personal update. Baby Boris is growing healthy and strong! The other day we went in for our 9 week check up and the Dr. played for us his heart beat. It was a literal audio ambush. We were marveling at the picture of him, when his little pitter patter heart beat hit us. Even though it only lasted for two seconds that is all it took for my heart to speed up and match his. I didn't expect it and was literally dumb struck by the power it had over me. I wanted to put the recording on my blog so you could hear it to, but the Dr. couldn't figure out how to make his recorder work. :( Sufice it to say, even though it took a while for Amber to get me on board with having a baby, I'm riding this train full speed now.
Short answer: Yes.
Long answer: Yes.
While I don't necessarily agree with everything he has done, and plans to do here are the things that have pleased me in no particular order.
To begin with, Obama's apparent dedication to increased transparency has been refreshing. Along with the fact that he is now de-classifying much of Bush's "closed door" decisions.
I've been very impressed with the real urgency Obama's administration has put on improving foreign relations. It seems like not a day has gone by without me hearing about opening dialog with countries we've been trying to brow beat for the last decade.
I appreciate the fact that Obama is taking a long term view of our energy situation and making the hard decisions now. I realize this is causing a lot of heart ache for families and people of our nation but the reality is that our current energy policies we destined to self destruct because of the limited nature of oil and coal. Making the move now is like making a 90 degree turn at 35 miles an hour vs 60 miles an hour. The first won't be easy, but the latter is impossible. Do we deal with it or let our kids deal with it? I vote for us.
I appreciate he's publicly anounced his agenda for Iraq, and Afghanistan and integrated their costs into our budgeting process. Instead of sliding the cost under the table like bush did. In case you didn't know it, Iraq has cost us 1 Trillion dollars to date.
I appreciate that he is trying to re-assert the moral leadership of the United States by stopping water boarding, by being open with the public and strengthening international ties.
Frankly I love the fact that he is in fact leading. Like I said, I don't agree with everything he's done, but he takes responsibility for the white house, I get the feal he is making the decisions based on his analysis (I know you can argue the validity of that analysis, but at least it is his.) I always had the strong impression that Bush was just a puppet for Dick Cheney and the rest of his corporate goons.
As far as the stimulus package is concerned, I believe that the stimulus package was an inevitable result of our situation. The difference in my mind is in how it was crafted. Give the money to the rich man? Give the money to the poor man? Frankly, from what I've been hearing about the way corporate america is run, and the behavior of the boards and their CEO's, I'd rather give it to the poor man. The former hasn't really worked has it?
I guess your take on the stimulus is fundamentally based upon what theory of economics you ascribe to. (Notice I used the word theory, cause as far as I can determine they are both just theories) Personall, I'm really losing my faith in "Free market" economics, and to some extent Capitalism. I know that sounds strange coming from someone starting his own business but I've heard a lot lately that makes me think their might be a significant difference in the actual application of capitalism based on the size of the enterprise.
I could keep writing, but Amber wants me to go to the store with her. So I'll finish with a more personal update. Baby Boris is growing healthy and strong! The other day we went in for our 9 week check up and the Dr. played for us his heart beat. It was a literal audio ambush. We were marveling at the picture of him, when his little pitter patter heart beat hit us. Even though it only lasted for two seconds that is all it took for my heart to speed up and match his. I didn't expect it and was literally dumb struck by the power it had over me. I wanted to put the recording on my blog so you could hear it to, but the Dr. couldn't figure out how to make his recorder work. :( Sufice it to say, even though it took a while for Amber to get me on board with having a baby, I'm riding this train full speed now.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Dad, Father, Papa, Padre
Last Friday marked the 7th week of our babies' development. I've taken to calling him Boris. I don't know if it will be a he and at this point I'm not sure if the parts are there to make a difference. The point is, I'm going to be a father.
That's pretty cool.
I've been giving it a lot of thought though, and this is it. This doodle can't be un-did. (if you know that line I congratulate you.) Not that I want it to be un-did, but my life is about the change a lot. I've already anticipated a lot of the changes, but there are some that I don't think I'll recognize until they rear up and kick me in the shins.
I've also been thinking about parenting, and being a parent, and being responsible for proper up-bringing of my child. Everyone has heard the quote, "Before I had children I had five theories on raising them, now I have five children and no theories." I'm definately at the stage of having five theories. In fact, I want to have more theories, because I have an overarching theory:
The more theories one has, the more likely it is that one of them will work.
So, this is a shout out to everyone that wants to have their opinion heard about parenting. What are some of the parenting tools you find useful, or have heard about and think would be useful.
I'll give you a couple examples of those I've heard:
My good friend Liz Rhodes, once told me that growing up, she was required by her parents to always be involved in a sport, a musical instrument, and one other extra-curricular activity. I think that's great! She is an amazingly well rounded individual and I've had awesome conversations with her on just about any subject you can imagine.
My first companion on the mission, Joe Sheppard, told me that in his house the children were considered little children until they proved themselves otherwise. The little kids had to go to bed at an earlier hour and were denied certain other privaleges. To be a "big kid" they had to read their scriptures every day and fulfill their chore obligations as well. According to their consistancy and performance, they were identified as either a big kid or a little kid and treated accordingly.
I think those are both great ideas.
What are yours?
That's pretty cool.
I've been giving it a lot of thought though, and this is it. This doodle can't be un-did. (if you know that line I congratulate you.) Not that I want it to be un-did, but my life is about the change a lot. I've already anticipated a lot of the changes, but there are some that I don't think I'll recognize until they rear up and kick me in the shins.
I've also been thinking about parenting, and being a parent, and being responsible for proper up-bringing of my child. Everyone has heard the quote, "Before I had children I had five theories on raising them, now I have five children and no theories." I'm definately at the stage of having five theories. In fact, I want to have more theories, because I have an overarching theory:
The more theories one has, the more likely it is that one of them will work.
So, this is a shout out to everyone that wants to have their opinion heard about parenting. What are some of the parenting tools you find useful, or have heard about and think would be useful.
I'll give you a couple examples of those I've heard:
My good friend Liz Rhodes, once told me that growing up, she was required by her parents to always be involved in a sport, a musical instrument, and one other extra-curricular activity. I think that's great! She is an amazingly well rounded individual and I've had awesome conversations with her on just about any subject you can imagine.
My first companion on the mission, Joe Sheppard, told me that in his house the children were considered little children until they proved themselves otherwise. The little kids had to go to bed at an earlier hour and were denied certain other privaleges. To be a "big kid" they had to read their scriptures every day and fulfill their chore obligations as well. According to their consistancy and performance, they were identified as either a big kid or a little kid and treated accordingly.
I think those are both great ideas.
What are yours?
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Blessed beyond measure
Recently things have been tough with NVHT (my company.) We've had some false starts with investors and have really been struggling since July 08. Today though was a breakthrough moment, and we finally found our investment money. Enough to last us 12 months assuming absolutely zero income from sales. We're really hoping it does not come to that. After walking out of our meeting with the investors at 5:30 PM I had a car ride home to contemplate the last two years and the ups and downs of that time period.
I realize that I'm not the only one in the company, but I've noticed something very strange:
Every time things get rough, it generally correllates to my laziness in paying tithing on time. As soon as I square up with the lord, things get resolved. I've literally seen it a dozen times. Over the last 8 months when things were tough and we didn't know how we were going to cover our bills, tithing made the difference.
Tithing.
There are a select few principles of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ that I have absolute certainty in. Not faith. Certainty.
There is a God in Heaven, he knows me, and blesses me more than I deserve.
Tithing works. God doesn't need our tithing, WE need to pay tithing.
T.A.
I realize that I'm not the only one in the company, but I've noticed something very strange:
Every time things get rough, it generally correllates to my laziness in paying tithing on time. As soon as I square up with the lord, things get resolved. I've literally seen it a dozen times. Over the last 8 months when things were tough and we didn't know how we were going to cover our bills, tithing made the difference.
Tithing.
There are a select few principles of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ that I have absolute certainty in. Not faith. Certainty.
There is a God in Heaven, he knows me, and blesses me more than I deserve.
Tithing works. God doesn't need our tithing, WE need to pay tithing.
T.A.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Dunbars, Williams, and Andersons - What is Family?
On the drive home today from drill, I listened to a radio program about the tragic story of three families. Those named in the title. The purpose of this post is to record my thoughts on the matter because I was very touched and moved to serious introspection.
In summary, Julia Anderson (a field hand in North Carolina) had an illegitimate child with Walter Williams (A traveling tinker) back around the turn of the century. Their boy was named Bruce. Julia could not care for the child because of her extreme poverty and so Walter took the child with him as he traveled around the country in his wagon tuning organs, pianos, and performing handyman labor.
Around the time Bruce was 4 years old, Walter encountered Percy and Lizzy Dunbar, a wealthy couple in Mississippi, who's oldest son (Bobby) had disappeared almost one year earlier. Lizzy and Percy claimed that Bruce was their son Bobby, and in spite of dozens of testimonys to the contrary convinced the courts to give them the child. Walter avoided going to jail through a fluke, Julia lost her child and was forced to start a new life.
Fast forward 90+ years, and Bobby (Bruce) Dunbar's granddaughter Margaret starts investigating the issue because of a scrap book her father (Bobby Jr.) gives her. After multiple years of investigation, she and her father decide to perform a DNA test. She discovers that Bobby Sr. is really Bruce Anderson.
This is where it gets dicey. Bruce Anderson had 4 children, all of them had multiple children. The entire time Margaret is investigating their history they oppose her and literally revile her. When she tells them she is going to perform a DNA test they literally tell her they will never speak to her again. She does it and is ostricized from the family.
On the flip side, Margaret gets to know the families of Julia Anderson and Walter Williams and is welcomed into their lives with open arms and hearts full of gratitude for her persistance in discovering the truth.
So here is the question: What makes the family?
Blood?
Choice?
I can't claim the right answer, and would love to hear your thoughts on the matter, but here is what I think.
Blood, places us on this earth. Each of us arrives with a unique history, background, and established order. These conditions can vary greatly, and can change in a heart beat without our input of permission.
Choice on the other hand is the only part of the equation that is uniquely ours. Member's of the family can chose to participate, and accept the participation of others, or not.
I guess I would have to say Choice is the deciding factor, because our willingness to value the blood ties is again our choice. It's messy, and seldom ideal.
In the end though, if a family is the greatest source of hapiness on this earth (and I believe that to be true), I pitty those that make poor choices.
CTR
In summary, Julia Anderson (a field hand in North Carolina) had an illegitimate child with Walter Williams (A traveling tinker) back around the turn of the century. Their boy was named Bruce. Julia could not care for the child because of her extreme poverty and so Walter took the child with him as he traveled around the country in his wagon tuning organs, pianos, and performing handyman labor.
Around the time Bruce was 4 years old, Walter encountered Percy and Lizzy Dunbar, a wealthy couple in Mississippi, who's oldest son (Bobby) had disappeared almost one year earlier. Lizzy and Percy claimed that Bruce was their son Bobby, and in spite of dozens of testimonys to the contrary convinced the courts to give them the child. Walter avoided going to jail through a fluke, Julia lost her child and was forced to start a new life.
Fast forward 90+ years, and Bobby (Bruce) Dunbar's granddaughter Margaret starts investigating the issue because of a scrap book her father (Bobby Jr.) gives her. After multiple years of investigation, she and her father decide to perform a DNA test. She discovers that Bobby Sr. is really Bruce Anderson.
This is where it gets dicey. Bruce Anderson had 4 children, all of them had multiple children. The entire time Margaret is investigating their history they oppose her and literally revile her. When she tells them she is going to perform a DNA test they literally tell her they will never speak to her again. She does it and is ostricized from the family.
On the flip side, Margaret gets to know the families of Julia Anderson and Walter Williams and is welcomed into their lives with open arms and hearts full of gratitude for her persistance in discovering the truth.
So here is the question: What makes the family?
Blood?
Choice?
I can't claim the right answer, and would love to hear your thoughts on the matter, but here is what I think.
Blood, places us on this earth. Each of us arrives with a unique history, background, and established order. These conditions can vary greatly, and can change in a heart beat without our input of permission.
Choice on the other hand is the only part of the equation that is uniquely ours. Member's of the family can chose to participate, and accept the participation of others, or not.
I guess I would have to say Choice is the deciding factor, because our willingness to value the blood ties is again our choice. It's messy, and seldom ideal.
In the end though, if a family is the greatest source of hapiness on this earth (and I believe that to be true), I pitty those that make poor choices.
CTR
Friday, February 6, 2009
Life Goes On
I realize two posts on the same day is a little excessive, but I'm waiting for Amber to get home, and without her I'm lost. So this is a great way to fill the time. I thought since we didn't send out a christmas letter, I could use my blog for said purposes and if someone doesn't read this, well, I don't know what to do for them. If you know me, and know others that know me, let them know about this.
2008
Amber and I started 2008 by getting two puppies. Both Scottish Terriers of course. Persie (pronounced like the weesley brother from Harry Potter) is a black scotty, and she's all about being outside on an adventure. Lolly is white, and she's all about cuddle time. I don't think I would have believed dogs could have such differet personalities if it weren't for these two. Ironically enough, they are night and day.
The puppies were an appeasement of Ambers extreme desire to be pregnant. Not just pregnant, like already 8 months pregnant and ready to give birth. Amber isn't exactly the patient type. If you haven't seen us with them yet, you'll know we spoil our dogs tremendously, in fact, I've already spent more time bathing these two than I did bathing Tory (my cocker spaniel growing up) for her entire life.
Shortly thereafter we discovered two very good friends, Zack and Brenda VanValkenburg (SP?) They have a miniature schnauzer named Jazzy, and we spent considerable time with them going to the dog park in Parleys Canyon. Good times.
In June, for our anniversary, Amber and I bought a Wii. That has been a lot of fun, and the source of many an enjoyable game night with friends. I highly recommend it as a perfect family friendly system.
Sometime around May, Amber expressed the desire to live in Utah county to be near cousins. I wasn't exactly in love with SLC so I said OK. Amber started working for the Provo - Orem Chamber of Commerce and commuted back and forth for a month or so until our contract in SLC expired and we were able to move south. We ended up renting a home from my old boss, Priz, it's a lovely three bedroom home with a basement apartment. Life got a little dicey here, because Amber and I wanted to buy the house, but the appraisal came through at way less so in the end, we didn't. Michael Albright moved into one of the bedrooms and has been a room mate ever since August, and when the renters of the basement apartment moved out, Ryan and Becky Rust moved in. Having all of them close has been great. It's like a non stop party over here.
After a few months at the Chamber, Amber switched jobs because she was very unhappy with her boss, and started working for Spin Media Marketing as an office manager and event planner. She's been very happy there ever since and is doing a great job. Her boss gave her an Iphone as a bonus not to long ago (lucky!)
As for me, my company has gone through quite a few convolutions. The french company that was in the process of buying us defaulted in July and we've been limping along ever since trying to get funding. We've started doing business under a new banner, we're now NVH Technologies. NVH stands for noise vibration and harshness, its an industry term.
Around November I started working for Orange Soda, as an inside phone sales man. It's not a glamorous job, but it helps pay the bills while we're looking for funding and I've discovered that I'm pretty good at it. In January I was the second highest performer, and won a water bottle because of it. (I'm actually pretty excited about that, it has a google label on it.)
Thanksgiving was held with Amber's side of the family and was pretty fun. I was introduced to craps and really enjoyed it. A lot. Christmas was in Idaho. We froze. Froze bad.
New years was pretty low key. In fact, I don't think I made it all the way to midnight awake.
And that was 2008. I'll try to be better about keeping this up to date. I'm back in the game.
2008
Amber and I started 2008 by getting two puppies. Both Scottish Terriers of course. Persie (pronounced like the weesley brother from Harry Potter) is a black scotty, and she's all about being outside on an adventure. Lolly is white, and she's all about cuddle time. I don't think I would have believed dogs could have such differet personalities if it weren't for these two. Ironically enough, they are night and day.
The puppies were an appeasement of Ambers extreme desire to be pregnant. Not just pregnant, like already 8 months pregnant and ready to give birth. Amber isn't exactly the patient type. If you haven't seen us with them yet, you'll know we spoil our dogs tremendously, in fact, I've already spent more time bathing these two than I did bathing Tory (my cocker spaniel growing up) for her entire life.
Shortly thereafter we discovered two very good friends, Zack and Brenda VanValkenburg (SP?) They have a miniature schnauzer named Jazzy, and we spent considerable time with them going to the dog park in Parleys Canyon. Good times.
In June, for our anniversary, Amber and I bought a Wii. That has been a lot of fun, and the source of many an enjoyable game night with friends. I highly recommend it as a perfect family friendly system.
Sometime around May, Amber expressed the desire to live in Utah county to be near cousins. I wasn't exactly in love with SLC so I said OK. Amber started working for the Provo - Orem Chamber of Commerce and commuted back and forth for a month or so until our contract in SLC expired and we were able to move south. We ended up renting a home from my old boss, Priz, it's a lovely three bedroom home with a basement apartment. Life got a little dicey here, because Amber and I wanted to buy the house, but the appraisal came through at way less so in the end, we didn't. Michael Albright moved into one of the bedrooms and has been a room mate ever since August, and when the renters of the basement apartment moved out, Ryan and Becky Rust moved in. Having all of them close has been great. It's like a non stop party over here.
After a few months at the Chamber, Amber switched jobs because she was very unhappy with her boss, and started working for Spin Media Marketing as an office manager and event planner. She's been very happy there ever since and is doing a great job. Her boss gave her an Iphone as a bonus not to long ago (lucky!)
As for me, my company has gone through quite a few convolutions. The french company that was in the process of buying us defaulted in July and we've been limping along ever since trying to get funding. We've started doing business under a new banner, we're now NVH Technologies. NVH stands for noise vibration and harshness, its an industry term.
Around November I started working for Orange Soda, as an inside phone sales man. It's not a glamorous job, but it helps pay the bills while we're looking for funding and I've discovered that I'm pretty good at it. In January I was the second highest performer, and won a water bottle because of it. (I'm actually pretty excited about that, it has a google label on it.)
Thanksgiving was held with Amber's side of the family and was pretty fun. I was introduced to craps and really enjoyed it. A lot. Christmas was in Idaho. We froze. Froze bad.
New years was pretty low key. In fact, I don't think I made it all the way to midnight awake.
And that was 2008. I'll try to be better about keeping this up to date. I'm back in the game.
Reveal yourself! Please.
Well, obviously I haven't had much to say for a while now. In a moment of boredom, I started looking over the blogs of my friends and that prompted me to come back here. I discovered something interesting. There is a mystery responder to my posts. See if you can find him (or her). At first I thought this mystery person was part of my immediate family, but I've asked everyone one about it and they all deny it. So there is either a strong urge to avoid confrontation on the part of this person, or I was wrong about this person being in my family.
I'm stumped.
I hate being stumped.
A LOT!
Those of you that know me well, would probably be willing to testify in a court of law that I'm headstrong, opinionated, and very willing to share my opinions. I don't think I would even try to deny that. One thing that comes along with that is the total dislike of mysteries.
So, principleoverparty, reveal yourself! You can do it in a private email to me. I'm not angry, it's just driving me nuts to not know who you are? Obviously you know me somehow since your profile was created roughly the same time I started posting and was advertising my posts... It's only fair. Then I'll know not to talk politics with you. :)
I'm stumped.
I hate being stumped.
A LOT!
Those of you that know me well, would probably be willing to testify in a court of law that I'm headstrong, opinionated, and very willing to share my opinions. I don't think I would even try to deny that. One thing that comes along with that is the total dislike of mysteries.
So, principleoverparty, reveal yourself! You can do it in a private email to me. I'm not angry, it's just driving me nuts to not know who you are? Obviously you know me somehow since your profile was created roughly the same time I started posting and was advertising my posts... It's only fair. Then I'll know not to talk politics with you. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
