Baby its cold outside

Jo and Jared singing along.

Imagine This...

Just read and watch this.

Dog face

Kona loves attention. So we like to make faces with her. Tee hee!

Biggest milk shake straw

One sip with this is guaranteed to give you an ice cream headache.

Clean checks

Sven had a bag of plum juice jars and they broke through the bag.

P.S. I updated the post "Hacking a broken USB Drive" with an explanation. Check it out.

How to Tell the Difference Between Nerds and Geeks

(an article from wikihow.com)

One often has heard the term Nerd and Geek. Often these terms are used interchangeably. This is not acceptable in polite society. To avoid further offense here are some fool-proof ways to tell a one from the other.

Steps

1. To determine if the individual in question is a geek or a nerd, first engage the person in converation.
2. Within in a few minutes, a nerd will be revealed. This individual will be positively gushing with information on a specific topic... and can not wait to talk about it. Often times the subject Nerd will disregard eye contact, and avoid any acknowledgement that they are involved in a two-way conversation.
3. If within a few minutes the individual is able to steer clear of a dogmatic desire to talk about a specific topic, you may have a geek on you hand. Or perhaps a dork. But this is not about identifing dorks. However, for the sake of science I will make a clarifing statement. A dork is a geek with well developed social skills. A geek on the other hand does not have the dogged determination like a nerd to stay on one topic. They are more rounded than nerds.

Tips

• Other ways to tell a Nerd from a Geek is a simple bedroom or 'hobby room' visit. A nerd will have a single theme throughout. It will be right in line with what the person has been talking about the entire walk to their bedroom door. A geek may have a single theme - but it may be completely different than any topic you have discussed up to this point.

Warnings

• Nerds are unaware of their nerdom. They may or may not be offended by being considered a nerd. It is best to allow them to talk about their topic without interruption. If you have a question about anything they have said DO NOT ASK IT!! You will become trapped! A question is seen as a sure sign of passion for their topic. In the end the only way to break away is to allow the nerd to talk themselves to the point that they need sleep / food / bathroom break / or a previously arranged unavoidable engagement. Otherwise you will be forced to be rude to them to get away.
• Geeks are aware of their geekdom, for the most part. Be careful though in discussing their topic. They are more aware of other peoples feelings and body language, but may still be prone to mistaking a look of painful boredom as a hint of interest.
• Good Luck - Be Strong!

External Links

• The Nerd? Geek? or Dork? Test

Hacking a broken thumb drive

Explanation: Ashley's USB Drive broke when her laptop dropped onto the floor while it was plugged in. The case split apart, and the USB connector ripped off of the circuit board. Other than that the circuit board looked in tact.

The biggest tragedy was that all of her assignments for the whole semester (in one class) were on it and it was due in 3 days! So she called me and I came over. A closer look revealed that the circuit board was truly in tact and the USB connector cleanly broke off the board - only at the solder points. This was good news. So, with a pair of tweezers, and a bit of cotton from a q-tip (to insulate the tweezers from contacting metal on the circuit board) I bent the connectors of the USB to fit where they belong on the circuit board and then held them together with the tweezers.

With careful hands I plugged the hacked USB drive into her laptop, while she stood ready to copy all the filed to her Hard Drive asap... Shortly after plugging it in I heard that beautiful sound (the default sound Windows makes when it recognizes external hardware) and the explorer window popped up. With a quick "Ctrl A," and one click and drag of the mouse, all here files were saved!!! And Ashley didn't have to redo all her homework after all.

Mobile Blog works!

This message confirms that i can post pictures with my phone!

Homework, Birthdays, and Anasazi

This is a hard week. I have about four projects. One 15 pager I'm going to finish today, a survey research project due Monday (20+ pages), an e-Portfolio, and a final paper that I finished yesterday. I know this week there is not going to be much fun stuff to do.

Yesterday I took a break when Jo came over with Mary and Kori and made 7-layer dip and coconut banana cream pie. We also climbed at Sticks n Stones. Then we made our own iron-on t-shirt quotes. Thanks for the Birthday Party everyone!!!


So it's back to work today, luckily I have some left-over pie. My parents called and left a message on my phone. It was great to hear both of them singing.

I just made arrangements to go back to Anasazi on January 3rd. It's hard to leave here. I think it is because I have built friendships that I don't want to leave behind. I mean I know I will always have certain friendships always, but for the new people I met this semester, we won't keep in touch; it just happens that way every time. Last time I went to Anasazi I felt much more dedicated about it. I guess I'm getting tired of only getting to know people for four months before having to switch wards or housing. It was fun for a while but perhaps I feel a need for more establishment.

After four months at Anasazi I am coming back to Rexburg to finish my last class on the Meso America Tour. Then I will be officially done with school at BYU-Idaho. Graduated with two Bachelors Degrees. I'm wondering if the past four years was worth it. Academically probably not, but spiritually yes. I think from being in an environment where I share the same religious beliefs I have learned so much about myself. Such as more appreciation for my family and a re-connection with my siblings and parents.

I've learned a lot from my jobs on campus and some classes. Other classes were a waste of time and money because of teachers who don't know how to teach. But overall there are some of the BEST teachers at BYU-I. Well it's time to return to doing homework.

Bear World

I went to see some bears this morning. They were tame - raised with people. It was a great experience. I learned a lot about bears, considering I've never had an up close and personal experience with one before. I posted pictures on Web Albums which will tell the rest of the story... CLICK HERE

New Look

I've changed the picture on my main website page: www.cobbman.com

Journal

I was thinking of digitizing my journals so that I could "search" them for topics I may have written about. I think it's a great idea, especially since I just finished writing in it and just as I thought, i turned to a year and a half ago and I wrote that I've learned the same thing. If it were digital I could find all journal entries about the same topic and then monitor myself to see how and if I am truly learning to change or if I just keep going in circles. Right now it seems I keep having to learn things over and over again! It would take time to re-type all the words, but may be worthwhile in the long run. Big issue: what format to use (.doc, .txt, etc., or database).

I just got up from a nap which wasn't really a nap at all. I wanted to rest before doing lots of homework but things kept coming to my mind. Old things. So instead of resting I started pondering and asking myself why these old things still bothered me today. I ended up writing them down in my journal and that is how I got this idea to digitize the whole thing. I wanted to see if my current worries were merely repeats of the past or if they were truly new and fresh in my life as I sometimes think. But with a paper journal I have to thumb through the pages manually and scan the writing. In a digital journal I can link to pictures to go with people or even songs. So later in life, my posterity can see and hear and read my journal. How cool is that? I wonder if there's already a program that does this. If not, I should make it and sell it or something. If you are reading this and you would use such a journal program (It would be able to be "secure" so only you could access it on your computer) please leave a comment and let me know.

So I have a lot of school work to do. I finished the December "Out and About" (the Outdoor Newsletter) today and submitted it to the Press. We should have it ready by the 1st. I like improving it each semester and I'm really proud of the way it looks this time. The outside has a close up picture of an Ice Climber and on the back there are "Winter Tips." The inside is a calendar of events with a cool snowboarder pic.

Now, for those of you who like the long - drawn out blogs, here's what I have yet to do in school:
- 15 page research paper on Ice Climbing Facilities
- Minimum 10 page Research and Evaluation on the results of a survey I'm doing for RL487 (realistically it will be about 20 pages).
- Finish editing small video for Group Dynamics
- Make an e-Portfolio, and edit the World Gym Training Video for my Senior Capstone project
- Still group meetings, only 2 a week now instead of 2 like every day!
- The rest is small stuff like daily homework assignments and reports.

Oh yeah, did i mention my LIFE? I am going Airboarding this Saturday, but I just hope I can spare the time - out from getting school work done.

Scienformation

Mmm... the taste of knowledge.

I just got an iPod and since then I've discovered something just as good as putting music on it... Podcasting. Podcasts are pre-recorded news, stories, comedy, and information that you can download onto your iPod and then listen to just like you would a song. Compare it to Neo, in The Matrix, when he plugged his brain into the computer and downloaded "Kung-Fu".

So far I have subscribed (for FREE) to these Podcasts:

• 60 Second Science
• ABC World News
• CNN News Update
• Comic Strip Live: Stand Up Comedy
• Harvard Distance Education Program
• Learn Spanish
• National Geographic
• The Philosophy Podcast

Well, it's still cold outside, but the roads are ice-free. I think I'll go Longboarding :)

Mobile Blog

May I draw your attention to my Mobile Blog? It is a cool feature on Blogger where I can send pics from my cell phone to go@blogger.com and it will automatically post them. You can see a link to it on the right side of this page, under Links. (Note: Since I switched to the Beta Blogger, and the Mobile Blog is not a Beta Blog I am unable to make it post onto this blog, so I have to make a link).

Quick News

Here's some quick news in my life:

* I was accepted to the "Meso America Tour 2007" !!! Way cool!
* I like marketing the Outdoor Program for BYUI. It's a great job - responsibility, creativity, flexibility, and working closely with the Outdoors.
* I rode my longboard from the Rexburg Temple to 2nd South without stopping. I even rode by a police car and an Ambulance who couldn't stop me as I zipped through campus.

P.S. Here was my Halloween Costume:

Drum!

I went to a show on Friday called "Drum!". It was really cool. Quick explanation: a visual and acoustic message about culture and people, and how we come together. The drum is the heart beat of Mother Earth. They had some awesome singers and musicians. I had one of them, with the deep voice, record a message for my voice mail. I also got the producer's email and he's going to send me a copy of a poem that was recited as part of the show. When I get that, I will post it on my blog so y'all can read it.

Moose Tracks

I received a phone call from my friend yesterday telling me that there was a moose skin on the side of the road. Really? (it fell off a truck who was hauling animal skins from a factory or something).

To the average person, this would be a disgusting artifact and should be left to decompose. However, to people like me (outdoorsy and nerdy), this is a valuable piece of material. It can be tanned and made into nice leather worth 200 dollars or more. So I made a trip to the location and luckily found it on the side of the road. It was huge! It's too dark to be Elk so we're assuming it's Moose skin.

I called my friend Connie (who is married and has a house) and her backyard is already set up for tanning hides (note: "already set up for tanning hides" ... true outdoor nerds). I live in a small apartment and do not have the space or tools, so I have to enlist the help of others.

And then Katt. So Katt. Well. Katt. Hmmm. Katt. We'll just leave it at that. Don't really know what to say other than I probably shouldn't make my dating life a public matter. Eh?

So I wrapped the skin in a thick trash bag and stuffed it in my freezer...

MC Ground Breaking Ceremony

Elder Bednar came to campus today to speak in Devotional as part of the Ground Breaking Ceremony for the Manwaring Center at BYU-Idaho. His message was short and bold: about why we gather. I watched from the Kirkham area.

His message was bold in the fact that he left an Apostolic warning to all of us: Students, Faculty, and the City of Rexburg. Since we have such a great blessing here at school with all of the facilities being expanded and build, Rexburg's future definitely has extreme potential. However, Elder Bednar stated that, 'in the very day that we have and allow Intellectual Arrogance to exist among ourselves, the Spirit of the Lord will be withdrawn and the Spirit of Ricks will be near extinct.' Wow, I was humbled by that promise and I truly hope that years from now, when BYU-I is still doing great things, that we can remain humble and remember what blessing we have here. Elder Bednar also said: "Please be grateful for the singular opportunity you have to learn and work here - and for the responsibility that rests upon you as one who has been the recipient of great blessings."

(From The BYUI News Release:) Elder Bednar concluded with a promise to students, faculty, employees, administrators and the community that if they were to be intellectually modest, humble, grateful, obedient, and frugal "this university will shine forth ever brighter as a beacon of righteousness and of inspired educational innovation."

One cool thing was that after the dedicatory prayer they let the students participate in shoveling the dirt. Sterling and I bumped into each other:

Career Fair

The career fair hit me like a ton of bricks. I had my whole day and life planned and then when I entered those doors and saw all those companies - some of them interviewing students who were already dressed up in suits - I got confused.

I say confused because I felt unprepared. I thought I knew where my life was going before then. But soon I realized that the world is bigger and has much more possibilities. I wasn't sure if I was prepared.

I saw some companies there that wanted engineers. I have always loved electronics so I wanted to talk to some of the guys there, but since my background was not engineering they did not want to talk to me other than "check with us online for other services". I already planned on having an engineering degree about 10 years after my first BS.

I got information on other companies that I was interested in: Organizational, and Outdoor Recreation. I'm most interested in applying to be an Events Manager for "The Leadership Center, Inc." The Outdoor Recreation jobs weren't that great, and if that's what I really wanted I could always go back to Anasazi. I love their philosophy the most.

Overall, I learned that I need to have a more specific plan. So I made one. I have 2 classes after this semester to graduate with 2 degrees: Comm and Rec Leadership. So, May 2007 is when I need an internship or job. I have a top three list, in no particular order:
1. ILP - Teach English in Taiwan or China.
2. Work at Anasazi, try to affiliate with the Arbinger Institute through them.
3. Apply for the Events Manager position with The Leadership Center.

I may have to transfer to Provo to graduate though, I have too many credits here.

-----------------------------------------------
p.s. Google is really cool: i'm using Google calendar, and Google homepage. i recommend trying it.

First Snow

Rexburg received it's first snow this Fall today.


It fell very silently through the night and I never even knew it was there until I left my house this morning to walk to school.

Funny thing is, I'm exited! Because even though the streets will now be too cold to longboard, now the grassy hills will soon be covered with slick sticky snow to sled down! And when the winter gets really bad, I will probably head south.

Well, I think we'll have at least one more warm spell before the snow stays. I plan on longboarding for the last time on that day.

Pondering Life

as i sit here i've wanted to write these things down so i would remember them. and i will do that here:

i've gone through some phases: growing up wanting to live in the wilderness (forced to forget that dream from society) and then returning and almost touching that lifestyle while working at Anasazi (realizing it can be true) and spending many days in the desert with others who actually lived life the way i wanted. i learned a lot from them and i can say that i'm 80-90% sure i could make it if i were to leave today on my own. but, having a desire for education i am here in school instead - required to live in an apartment and follow some rules. at first i felt forced back into it b/c i didn't want to return to a busy life of school. that's okay, i'm open to any experience, knowing that none lasts forever and it can only allow me greater perspective on life. however, it's hard to live a life you don't exactly want. i've pondered this a lot and received some insight: it's not wise to seclude oneself into the wilderness with no other human contact. i decided not to be a lone traveler.

so what do i want in life? it seems like ever since i started asking that question years ago i've never stopped. i'm starting to realize that knowing what you want in life changes as normally as life itself does. so the greatest thing i can want is to know what direction my life is going in.

true, i've been depressed in the past, like most people get when they don't know what they want. in those situations you just have to make a choice; even if you have no reason for it, because if you don't make a choice then you're choosing nothing and that's the worse thing you can do to yourself. plus it will prolong depression.

so make a choice. write it down and acknowledge that good and bad will come of it. i have to choose my lifestyle after i graduate. there will always be another choice after that.

i just started a personal progress plan today. the idea is not new to me. i've done this a couple times in the past. odd that i had to be reminded of it again though. if there was ever a time when i needed a personal plan that time is now. when i'm not tied to school anymore i will be free to go in any direction. how thankful i am to have that... any direction i want. i thank God for that.

i'm realizing that my childhood curiosity of electronics has not truly diminished as i had thought. i went to the career fair the other day on campus and whenever i passed by the companies that made semi-conductors (computer stuff) or did stuff like that i gaped at the jobs they were offering and then realized i couldn't get them b/c i don't have a degree in electronics but in communications. note: i did not say i regret having a comm major. i figured i might one day want to become involved in electronics again but not like this. i left the fair with a bit of confusion.

I'm drawing from many sources. i'm pondering the present and the future.

sorting out some of my thoughts... wanna see what i've decided so far? this, in chronological order...

1. must finish school. i will have a BS in Recreation Leadership and Communications.
2. internship jan-apr. i have three options and i will go with the best one that accepts me.
3. officially graduate (yep, i need one English class which i will do in Mexico after my internship, if they let me)
4. pay off loans. teach english in the orient (15K/year) or return to Anasazi. or go back to the internship.
5. if i can work for an electronics company as a "communications person" then i bet i can still get a piece of the technology action and perhaps fulfill both dreams at the same time. maybe they'll pay for my graduate school as an electrical engineer.
6. research and invent. i have many ideas and i want to implement them. i want to invent better paradigms for waste management, better travel options for people, and many other things. in essence this is inspired by the Gospel (13th Article of Faith).
*. among all this i can envision a family. shy to admit it, don't know why, but sometimes i desire that wonderful family atmosphere i see so much here at school. other times i'm bitter towards it.

the list will always go on. there's never an end to life's plan...

Ghostland Observatory

I just got back from an awesome concert... in Rexburg? Yep, right here. Just two guys... one Native American and one white dude with a cape on. Put a synth and a guitar in their hands and you have a great combo. Kinda like the White Stripes, but with a lot more synth action. When they started I was in the back with Mary and Kyle and we were dancin' but by the end I was up on stage dancing with a bunch of other people during their songs! John and Sven were there and right now we're eating frozen custard out of a quart container that Mary and I got for free when the icecream store messed up our order. Go Mary!

See it here:
Ghostland Observatory in Concert.
Also Check out Midjet Boxing

 

Anybody missing a coat?

My mom said she found a coat in our closet upstairs. Apparently, her coat is missing and this mysterious one was left behind. Somebody probably grabbed the wrong coat. I don't have a pic, but here is what my mom said,
"Did you leave, or one of your freinds leave, a winter, black wool thick overcoat that has nice brown leather buttons here?"
So if that sounds like a coat you're missing, let me know.

Sand Storm

http://www.sunbelt-software.com/stu/iraq/sandstorm.htm

Don't believe everything you see

For those of you who aren't familiar with Adobe's Photoshop, it's a professional image editing program. While I only know basic uses, I found a web site of a guy who obviously takes it to a new level. He's a professional touch-up artist who currently works for Apple, Inc.

Anyways, this isn't a plug for his services as much as it is evidence that what we see in the media truly isn't real life. Just take a look at his portfolio. It's hard to see the changes he has made until you see the original picture, and shocking at how some consumers accept "front cover models" as a standard of what they should look like!
Click Here

More images

I am too busy to update my blog. Here are more pictures...

Elder Bednar

"Being offended is not a situation that happens to us; It is a choice we make of how to act."

Just another loco

i haven't posted in a while. and i have not much to say right now, so here's some pictures from the good 'ol times...

Jo, Angela, and Sterling painting with me Summer 2004

Me at the MTC

Cool Baby

Me playing at Guitars Unplugged 2004

Mary in a child's Kangaroo costume

Little Superstar

This is like the Jackson Five, only they look Indian and I think they speak Mandrin Chinese in the end. Napoleon Dynamite, beat this.

A dream

today i was having a dream that i was getting ready to go to my friends house. i had to get showered, dressed, brush my teeth, use the bathroom and put on chap stick before i could go. well, i was finally ready and as we were walking down the street to get to her house we saw this guy next to the sidewalk sitting on his porch using a laptop. he had a beard and was dressed kinda like a hippy. we stopped to check out his computer, said hi, then when we turned to keep walking sudenly everything around me began to fade away - the trees, the bearded guy, the house, and road. next thing i know i can't see anything but blackness. i then feel myself breathe and recognize that i'm laying down... am i awake? so i open my eyes to discover that i'm laying in my bed and i AM wide awake - it's exactly 6 am. i try to go back to sleep cuz i want to know why i was going to my friend's house, but i couldn't form the dream in my mind again. i hadn't planned on waking up for another 55 minutes, so i just decided to use the extra time to get some homework done. it was a good idea; i'll probably wake up early again tomorrow.

well i haven't been able to post with my cell phone more than once. apparently this feature is buggy and blogger still needs to work out some kinks. i've researched around the help groups and many people have had this problem.

i just added like 8 new photo ablums to my web albums. it was easy - only took 15 minutes. now i'm pretty much done. if i add anymore it will be my old stuff, like from 2004. You can find a link to my web albums above the blog links.

This is a test

This is a test

yesterday is getting older

thanks to google my reasons for learning web design and programming continue to be squished out of existence like grandma's old eyewear.

they pretty much just came out with a new feature on picasa - web albums. so now, instead of creating my own photo album on my computer and sitting through a long process of uploading to a server and double checking links, i can just select the pictures using Picasa and it will automatically upload them to a google server (Free!) and post them there. Plus the format is better than awesome. Here's my first web album: Starred Photos. So thanks a lot Google, you've just taken the last few excuses i had to program and automated the process. in a way i love and loathe it.

i don't know what else to say. this may give me the time to post my old web designs online for people to see what i did before the 21st century - back when i had to walk up hill both ways just to get to my computer desk and pound out HTML and CSS using my hands on a desktop computer - hours of work for a featureless photo album. Back in my day we really had it rough, so quit yer complaining!

i really do feel 'old' in the face of all this new automated stuff. i remember back when i had email. nobody knew what that was so i kept promoting it (cuz i wanted to email people!). Heck, i remember being on the internet using DOS before the GUI stuff cam out. i made my own business cards with my web site, email, and pager number on them. now a days this stuff is standard, and every 3 year old has a website, and soon a google photo album.

iii

welcome. i have no idea what to say here.
i just wanted to post so that it had something.
i worked all day today and there's still more to do.
but right now i'm taking what i call a 'forced break'.
i believe this break will last until i go to bed at 11.

goodnight.

New Web Site

I've sat down finally and completed a new design for my Web Site.

I wanted to make it simple, yet beautiful.

I tried using only CSS to layout the page but to no avail, so i used image spacers and tables instead.

The result is an image-heavy, slower loading page. But you probably won't notice the difference cuz by "slower" i mean a split second slower (but if you're using dial-up internet it might be noticable).

The next step is to change the way my photo albums work.

Then i will go back and learn CSS better to see if i can avoid using tables.

The new design is simple and catchy, i hope you like it!

See it Here

p.s. Pocatello Pump Images

First Hunt

This is a picture of my first hunting experince a few years ago. My roommate Jesse took me a few miles out of Rexburg. I shot a partridge and two rabbits (the picture is me holding the partridge. We took the meat from all three and made tacos at home. I used a 20 guage. It was new for me to experience killing an animal, but i justified it for the educational experience and because we were eating the meat. I have not been hunting since, but that's not because I'm against it. I'm against sport hunting though (the kind where you do not use the animal you kill for food or material). Oh by the way, the dog in this pic is "Chewy" one of the coolest dogs, being second only to Kona. 

Angel Moroni

 

Pocatello Pump 2006

hey, here are just a few pics... i have more but that will have to wait...

Musical Stuff

My ratings on Music:

Over the years i have had many favorite bands. Here is a list of the one's i have loves so far and would consider them to be some of the best...

White Zombie
Sublime
Stone Temple Pilots
Smashing Pumpkins
Modest Mouse
Radiohead
Rage Against the Machine




Runner-Up's:
+/-
Gorillaz
Avalanches
Aquabats
Beatles
Flaming Lips

hi

so if you are here you will find that i have a more updated blog located at www.cobbman.com.

but since i'm bothering putting this, here's my recent rant from my 'true' blog...

"last night a post that my hammock was tied to broke and fell on my brother Sterling and my friend Jessica. Both were taken to the hospital with head injuries. Currently both are okay. sterling has six staples and a big headache; Jess doesn't remember what happened and also has a big headache. The doctor took a cat scan and neither of them had any broken bones. I'm glad they're okay. Both will be taking it easy for a while.

Earlier yesterday i rode horses with Jo at the Blakely's and we helped find two bulls and drive them to the water-hole. it was my first "true" cowboy experience. i had fun. a lot. wanna do it again.

anyways, school is getting pretty hard for me right now. it's times like these where i feel like dropping out. i feel like i'm not really good at anything. why am i even here? i'm just wasting my time for a stupid diploma that hangs on the wall. i feel like i've learned all i can from school and now i need to move on and start learning from real life... well i keep seeing other people so motivated with their major - so ready to go out there and do a "fantastic job." yet here i am counting the hours as they go by and wondering when i will go rock climbing again. i know if i stay another semester i'll burn out and waste it just like i did last fall. i'm thinking of working and just finishing school part-time. i don't even know why i'm here anymore. this place sucks and i'm not motivated... i'm sick and tired of trying to convince myself otherwise. i'm sick of all these people who are here b/c their parents are paying for everything and they have no backbone to stand up for themselves... instead they are just "following orders" or following a checklist of what's the "right thing to do." these next two weeks are going to be hell as i try and finish two block classes. only two. yet they feel like ten right now. ahh.. i feel better now, thanks for listening. "

right now life's thoughts

right now as i was walking i was thinking of life and goals, etc. and i decided i like two things: photography and encryption. these two things i've always loved since childhood. why didn't i ever think to persue them? i dunno. i chose broadcasting and rec. leadership instead. but even though broadcasting hasn't been a childhood love, i am glad i have experienced it these past four years in college. recreation leadership is a type of childhood love i have since i grew up always playing outside and going on "adventures" with my friends and sometimes my sister. as far as encryption: its the art of coding messages and puzzles. in elementary school i made many codes for the english alphabet. the current one i've used for many years is based phonetically rather than symbolically representing each letter. all this stuff i did on my own so basically i LIKE to to them. i also remember getting my first camera and how much i loved to take pictures with it. it had strange film that came in the form of a disk cartridge. i later used my dad's SLR from the 1970's to take some awesome pics for high school and early college classes. a few weeks ago i was showing the pics to a friend and she commented highly of them. it made me ask myself why i've stopped persuing the hobby... oh yeah my camera is in wisconsin and has been for the past 6 years, but that will change when my mom brings it back to utah tomorrow, then i can drive down to get it again. hmm, me and my camera reunited. it will be nastalgic.

i feel like in life i have tried new avenues and i am better as a result. the trade-off is being involved in things i have no passion for but only curiosity. i think i'm done with that route. now it's time to go back to my old passions. that's the way life is... you do things for a while and move on, then sometimes you come back to places you've been before. hopefully with a broader perspective on life. however, before finishing i have to say that by exploring my curiousities i've found new passions: such as passion for the outdoors and especially rock climbing. also the passion to help youth to find new direction in life (such as what i did while woking at Anasazi).

above all by trying new things, old things are not wasted. i may not have a "solid" goal in life as a result, but i have a better understanding of what's on the other side of the fence, and i learned stuff about myself i probably would have never known had i not stepped out of my comfort zone.

Hi

okay,
my current blog is at http://www.cobbman.com
for those of you who wonder why this is not as updated.

but i'm thinking of using blogger.com since the school's computers don't let me edit my blog with them. right now i'm focused a ton on statistics homework and media law - both hard classes to do in only 2 months.

in order to stay sane i have to plan to recreate. last night i saw the movie "click" with Adam Sandler in it and i liked it very much. i give it a 7 of 10. which is pretty good for me. the plot is a B, the effects are grade A, the story is B-. i'd watch it again.

when i have the time (which will most likely be after classes are over) i will incorporate this blog into my main website so that in the future when i can only update at a public library or something i'll be able to do it without having my computer.