Early this month Pam and I took a drive in her car to the Hopi Cultural Center to dine. Unfortnately the Cultural Center was closed and we had to come back to Pinon with empty stomachs. On the way back our tire hit a bad spot in the road which whipped the car one hundred eighty degrees and put us in a ditch.
The incident affected Pam more than it did me because the whole time it was going on I felt that we would be okay.
The car however suffered damage to the wheel, not the tire or the axel but the wheel. What exactly that means other than over 400 dollars to replace I'm not sure. So this month we have been a one car couple, and with my driver's license being expired it means that Pam has done a lot of driving.
Today Pam wanted to see if we could at least put some more air in her tires and use the car a little today when my car decided to stop working in the middle of the street.
We were able to get it moving again, but still, its a little absurd that we're both having such problems at the same time!
Xander and Curtis
Our little men
Friday, January 28, 2011
Happy Birthday David
Today is my brother-in-law's birthday. I don't remember how old he is but as I was thinking about it, I was 11 when I met him and he married my sister, which means that I've known him for almost 15 years, which is well over half my lifetime.
During a time after my mission when he and my sister were living with my parents and I, I began to consider him one of my very best friends in this Earth. I am very glad that my sister found someone with such integrity, honor and goodness who is also able to connect with me so well.
I had a funny thought today as I was thinking about all this, when he married my sister I told him as a short twig of an 11 year old, "You better take care of my sister or else..." shaking my fist as I said it. I have no doubt that I did not seem very threatening. If anything I bet it was comical. But I am happy to report that I never had to deliver on any threats, since it would have been me getting the beating anyway.
David, you're a good man and father, and I'm happy to call you family.
During a time after my mission when he and my sister were living with my parents and I, I began to consider him one of my very best friends in this Earth. I am very glad that my sister found someone with such integrity, honor and goodness who is also able to connect with me so well.
I had a funny thought today as I was thinking about all this, when he married my sister I told him as a short twig of an 11 year old, "You better take care of my sister or else..." shaking my fist as I said it. I have no doubt that I did not seem very threatening. If anything I bet it was comical. But I am happy to report that I never had to deliver on any threats, since it would have been me getting the beating anyway.
David, you're a good man and father, and I'm happy to call you family.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
The Great Housing Debate and Gus Gus
Pam and I had already agreed that we wanted to move into a three bedroom after the wedding. Having the extra space would accommodate both of us since we both had lots of stuff. We realized that we were both going to have to get rid of some things, especially me, and that we would have a lot of organizing to do as we made this adjustment.
Every available three bedroom house has had busted pipes this winter, every single last one. Which means that we won't be able to move into a three bedroom house until next school year some time. So what do we do? Do we live out of two houses till one is available? Do we move into one or the other person's house until space opens up or do we move into one of our houses until we actually NEED the extra space and just make things work.
Paying two rents after the wedding seemed silly, and moving a lot in a row seemed like more of a hassle than it was worth. So moving into one of the houses and staying there for about a year seemed like the most reasonable plan.
But which house to move into? Neither one of us wanted to give up our houses. This is the first house I've ever been on my own in. That was only a small part of why I wanted this house, since I never planned on living in this house forever anyway. Most of why I wanted to stay in this house was because it has the most space and the most storage room. My house is also cheaper to heat.
I was willing to consider Pam's house since she is really attached to it and it has a bigger yard for the dogs. Those were the two best things that I could see about that house.
What I didn't really understand though was how much Pam was going to hate moving into a duplex. Especially since late at night and early in the morning we can hear the neighbor's TV and or radio. Pam had sworn that once she got a house there was no way that she was going to go back to living in an apartment, duplex, or anything like that. My house, though it had more space represented a step backward. Had I really understood all that at the time I would have just said that we would move into her place. But I didn't, and Pam backed down and started crying which made me feel like a big fat jerk.
I had argued for the house because of the space and now I found myself saying that the space didn't matter and I didn't care about it anymore. Pam and I went into my house and she cheered up by telling me how she was going to redecorate the apartment. Her Dad called that night and gave me the message, "Give up Brent, just give up, she's a woman and she's going to have the house look the way she wants it."
Pam's Mom also called that night and she was a little upset that Pam had agreed to move into my duplex since she understands the way that Pam feels about it. That got Pam thinking and led up to her making a demand. "I want to keep Gus Gus," I nodded and said that would be great.
Gus Gus is her cat and I happen to really like that cat. For whatever reason he doesn't like men, I am the only man he has ever liked. It was one of those things that led Pam to start thinking that there was something special about me. So, Gus Gus is an important cat to me, he helped us out you could say.
I'm just happy that we have a plan that we are both happy with.
Here are some pictures of Gus Gus and my house.
Every available three bedroom house has had busted pipes this winter, every single last one. Which means that we won't be able to move into a three bedroom house until next school year some time. So what do we do? Do we live out of two houses till one is available? Do we move into one or the other person's house until space opens up or do we move into one of our houses until we actually NEED the extra space and just make things work.
Paying two rents after the wedding seemed silly, and moving a lot in a row seemed like more of a hassle than it was worth. So moving into one of the houses and staying there for about a year seemed like the most reasonable plan.
But which house to move into? Neither one of us wanted to give up our houses. This is the first house I've ever been on my own in. That was only a small part of why I wanted this house, since I never planned on living in this house forever anyway. Most of why I wanted to stay in this house was because it has the most space and the most storage room. My house is also cheaper to heat.
I was willing to consider Pam's house since she is really attached to it and it has a bigger yard for the dogs. Those were the two best things that I could see about that house.
What I didn't really understand though was how much Pam was going to hate moving into a duplex. Especially since late at night and early in the morning we can hear the neighbor's TV and or radio. Pam had sworn that once she got a house there was no way that she was going to go back to living in an apartment, duplex, or anything like that. My house, though it had more space represented a step backward. Had I really understood all that at the time I would have just said that we would move into her place. But I didn't, and Pam backed down and started crying which made me feel like a big fat jerk.
I had argued for the house because of the space and now I found myself saying that the space didn't matter and I didn't care about it anymore. Pam and I went into my house and she cheered up by telling me how she was going to redecorate the apartment. Her Dad called that night and gave me the message, "Give up Brent, just give up, she's a woman and she's going to have the house look the way she wants it."
Pam's Mom also called that night and she was a little upset that Pam had agreed to move into my duplex since she understands the way that Pam feels about it. That got Pam thinking and led up to her making a demand. "I want to keep Gus Gus," I nodded and said that would be great.
Gus Gus is her cat and I happen to really like that cat. For whatever reason he doesn't like men, I am the only man he has ever liked. It was one of those things that led Pam to start thinking that there was something special about me. So, Gus Gus is an important cat to me, he helped us out you could say.
I'm just happy that we have a plan that we are both happy with.
Here are some pictures of Gus Gus and my house.
Harsh Winter?
All late summer and fall the kids were obsessed with telling me that Pinon is not like the rest of Arizona. That last year there were several feet of snow and this year is supposed to be worse. They strongly counseled me to invest in firewood, and if I let them get that far they would usually be the ones trying to sell the wood.
On average Pinon is ten degrees warmer than Logan. My response to the kids therefore was always the same, "Harsh winter huh? Bring it on, sounds wimpy to me." They weren't ever sure what to say to that one so they would repeat themselves about how bad it was last year and how about 20 school days had to be cancelled because things were so bad. I'd nod because I knew everything they were saying was true but then say, "The winter still doesn't seem like a big deal, it's much colder where I come from."
"But you don't understand Pinon winters!"
"Bring it on," I'd say. Part of it was that was really how I felt and the other part of it was that I didn't particularly want to buy firewood right then and there.
This winter there have been a few snow storms and one true blizzard. As my darling Pam said yesterday, "I think winter's over." We were out on a walk with Bo and Angel. The sun was shinning, most of the snow was already melted, and neither of us needed a coat.
"It might snow again," I commented.
"Yeah," she said, "but will it stick?"
It did get several degrees below zero on a few nights, I'd go out to feed the dogs in the morning and Bo would have a coat of frost on top of his coat of fur. Even so, the bugs that have been going around have been the main cause of suffering this season. Winter seems to have all but finished and its not even February yet.
Harsh Winter? I think not.
On average Pinon is ten degrees warmer than Logan. My response to the kids therefore was always the same, "Harsh winter huh? Bring it on, sounds wimpy to me." They weren't ever sure what to say to that one so they would repeat themselves about how bad it was last year and how about 20 school days had to be cancelled because things were so bad. I'd nod because I knew everything they were saying was true but then say, "The winter still doesn't seem like a big deal, it's much colder where I come from."
"But you don't understand Pinon winters!"
"Bring it on," I'd say. Part of it was that was really how I felt and the other part of it was that I didn't particularly want to buy firewood right then and there.
This winter there have been a few snow storms and one true blizzard. As my darling Pam said yesterday, "I think winter's over." We were out on a walk with Bo and Angel. The sun was shinning, most of the snow was already melted, and neither of us needed a coat.
"It might snow again," I commented.
"Yeah," she said, "but will it stick?"
It did get several degrees below zero on a few nights, I'd go out to feed the dogs in the morning and Bo would have a coat of frost on top of his coat of fur. Even so, the bugs that have been going around have been the main cause of suffering this season. Winter seems to have all but finished and its not even February yet.
Harsh Winter? I think not.
Larsen Kids Have the Camera Phone
These are a few fun pictures from Christmas Break that were mainly taken by the Larsen kids who decided to have fun with Pam's phone.
There could be peace as long as Bo was in the middle. It's hard to believe how big Angel and Clara became. Angel is now only slightly smaller than Bo.
Christmas was very special for a lot of reasons, I wanted to write about it before now, but I didn't want to do it without the pictures. Pam and I being together was great. Having her Mom there with my family was also wonderful. In addition to having a birthday party for Gracie (where I got sick), celebrating Christmas, planning wedding stuff, getting our engagement pictures taken, playing with my nieces and nephews, I was also able to take Pam and her Mom to see the Salt Lake City Temple.
Christmas time was just beautiful. Glad I finally wrote about it.
Halo and glaring pictures seemed to be what was popular that night. The halo is really just a pool ring, which is an odd thing to keep in the house and put on your head, but oh well. Kids are fun like that.
This next picture was how we had to travel during the trip, just to give an idea of the crowding.
Christmas was very special for a lot of reasons, I wanted to write about it before now, but I didn't want to do it without the pictures. Pam and I being together was great. Having her Mom there with my family was also wonderful. In addition to having a birthday party for Gracie (where I got sick), celebrating Christmas, planning wedding stuff, getting our engagement pictures taken, playing with my nieces and nephews, I was also able to take Pam and her Mom to see the Salt Lake City Temple.
Christmas time was just beautiful. Glad I finally wrote about it.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Wii
Yesterday was hard, first we dropped off Clara, then we went to the doctor who said I was getting better anyway and then we needed to pick up perscriptions. Pam had to fight with our insurance company three times that day! Grandpa and Grandma's Christmas money became a co-pay. Thanks Grandpa and Grandma.
The mood was much nicer than the day before when we made the decision about the dogs and the doctor but it still wasn't a happy one.
Throughout the day I kept mentioning Best Buy to Pam and that became our last stop. There I found them, more Wiis in one place than I have ever seen before. Pam had been saying for a long time that she really, really, wanted a Wii. I found her, brought her over to them and we picked out a couple of games.
Having a Wii certainly isn't as good as having a dog, but we made the best choice for that dog and I bought something that made my hunny smile.
Sometimes all you can do is the best you can do.
The mood was much nicer than the day before when we made the decision about the dogs and the doctor but it still wasn't a happy one.
Throughout the day I kept mentioning Best Buy to Pam and that became our last stop. There I found them, more Wiis in one place than I have ever seen before. Pam had been saying for a long time that she really, really, wanted a Wii. I found her, brought her over to them and we picked out a couple of games.
Having a Wii certainly isn't as good as having a dog, but we made the best choice for that dog and I bought something that made my hunny smile.
Sometimes all you can do is the best you can do.
One Fewer
Unfortunate realities suck.
Reality One: Angel was abusing Clara
Reality Two: Angel being an aggressive dog is non-adoptable
Reality Three: Clara, the sweet and innocent one, is adoptable.
Reality Four: Bo made things worse, stupid dog (that we love anyway)
Reality Five: Clara is gone. We gave her up yesterday to the Coconino Animal Shelter.
She clung to me as they dragged her away, she was scared, but I'm reminded of an episode of Nash Bridges, I think of it every time an animal gets put down, "You've done a lot of nice things for that dog. That's the last nice thing you did for that dog." Since she's going to be up for adoption I hope its the beginning of many nice things for her.
Yesterday was a very hard day, but we made the best choice we could. That shelter doesn't put dogs down and it has over 70 % adoption rate.
Good Luck little Clara,
We love and miss you.
Reality One: Angel was abusing Clara
Reality Two: Angel being an aggressive dog is non-adoptable
Reality Three: Clara, the sweet and innocent one, is adoptable.
Reality Four: Bo made things worse, stupid dog (that we love anyway)
Reality Five: Clara is gone. We gave her up yesterday to the Coconino Animal Shelter.
She clung to me as they dragged her away, she was scared, but I'm reminded of an episode of Nash Bridges, I think of it every time an animal gets put down, "You've done a lot of nice things for that dog. That's the last nice thing you did for that dog." Since she's going to be up for adoption I hope its the beginning of many nice things for her.
Yesterday was a very hard day, but we made the best choice we could. That shelter doesn't put dogs down and it has over 70 % adoption rate.
Good Luck little Clara,
We love and miss you.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
26 Years Old
Well, that's right, I'm getting up there. I'm over a quarter century old now. Pam started calling me her old man around my birthday. I still feel young though no matter what this sick body feels like right now, yes, I'm currently sick.
My birthday was really nice. I drove Pam to Chinle after school. I was able to cash my check there from a week before, which was good since I was completely out of money. We went out to eat at Garcias which has its branch inside the Holiday Inn. When we got back to Pinon we met up with the Fowles and played Phase 10. I spoke with most of my nieces and nephews, Mom and Dad, all but one sibling, and got a call from Grandpa and Grandma Harris a couple nights ago. All and all a really good birthday.
Do I feel any wiser? Hard to tell, I've had about four fevers since my birthday, I'm kind of fried. Any older, well, my bones tremble under my own weight and I have aches everywhere and I'm constantly cold. Yep, definitely feel older than 76. This is the third day of work that I've missed this week, the good news is I'm feeling up to going into work tomorrow!
At 25 I accomplished a lot, I graduated, got a job, met the right girl, and set a wedding date.
26 might have had a rough beginning, but so did 25 (is getting sick right after my birthday going to become some sort of sick joke tradition that my body does for now on?) and 25 turned out to be a pretty good year. So here's to you 26 and 2011, to a great year ahead of us.
Choices will be hard, but I'll figure them out. Things might not go according to plan, but I'll improvise. Difficult things are always going to be ahead, but I'll overcome them.
Why or How? I've got God, family, and my love; some people only get one out three or none at all. So I'm pretty blessed.
No matter what happens, I am blessed.
My birthday was really nice. I drove Pam to Chinle after school. I was able to cash my check there from a week before, which was good since I was completely out of money. We went out to eat at Garcias which has its branch inside the Holiday Inn. When we got back to Pinon we met up with the Fowles and played Phase 10. I spoke with most of my nieces and nephews, Mom and Dad, all but one sibling, and got a call from Grandpa and Grandma Harris a couple nights ago. All and all a really good birthday.
Do I feel any wiser? Hard to tell, I've had about four fevers since my birthday, I'm kind of fried. Any older, well, my bones tremble under my own weight and I have aches everywhere and I'm constantly cold. Yep, definitely feel older than 76. This is the third day of work that I've missed this week, the good news is I'm feeling up to going into work tomorrow!
At 25 I accomplished a lot, I graduated, got a job, met the right girl, and set a wedding date.
26 might have had a rough beginning, but so did 25 (is getting sick right after my birthday going to become some sort of sick joke tradition that my body does for now on?) and 25 turned out to be a pretty good year. So here's to you 26 and 2011, to a great year ahead of us.
Choices will be hard, but I'll figure them out. Things might not go according to plan, but I'll improvise. Difficult things are always going to be ahead, but I'll overcome them.
Why or How? I've got God, family, and my love; some people only get one out three or none at all. So I'm pretty blessed.
No matter what happens, I am blessed.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Top Moments of 2010
2010 has been a big year for me in a lot of ways. As Jeff Fowles put it, "You've crammed about 5 years of life into the last couple of months." Since its hard to put them in an order I will just go ahead and do it chronolocially.
1 January 2010 - Not so wonderful was the finding of new grey hairs on my birthday and being deathly ill (I wouldn't get sick again until I moved to Pinon) but what made January wonderful was that I was starting my student teaching. I was able to teach US History A and B and Spanish B. Some classes were better than others but they were all good kids, a lot of them were incredibly bright. It was a great experience but honestly did little to prepare me for teaching on the rez. I also took an American History class from one of my favorite professors that would end up writng the best letter of recommendation that I have ever read for me.
Here were just a few of the timeline assignments I had my US History classes do.
2 April - Something that was very difficult was when Student Teaching came to an end. In several ways I was happy, I could focus more on getting a job now and I could go out more now that I didn't have lessons to plan and papers to grade. Still, I loved those kids and having it just be over like that was hard for me.
3 May - Graduation from Utah State University. I had worked so long toward this goal, taking sometimes up to 18 credits a semester while working full time. I graduated cum laude having made the Dean's List three times in my college career. I looked forward to using my new status as a graduate to find a job and have my teaching credencial. Which actually turned out to be pretty difficult. The University wasn't going to post my degree for six weeks when it was going to mail it out to me. I went up the the university and said I wanted my degree posted now. They told me that even if it posted I wouldn't get the degree until everyone else did.
At which point I informed them that I didn't care about the piece of paper, I needed to find a job and I could do that without the paper, what I needed was for the college to formally recognize that I had graduated. That shocked the lady quite a bit and within an hour my degree was posted.
When I finally did get my degree I was surprised at what it said inside of it.
On the nomination of the Faculty and as authorized by law,
1 January 2010 - Not so wonderful was the finding of new grey hairs on my birthday and being deathly ill (I wouldn't get sick again until I moved to Pinon) but what made January wonderful was that I was starting my student teaching. I was able to teach US History A and B and Spanish B. Some classes were better than others but they were all good kids, a lot of them were incredibly bright. It was a great experience but honestly did little to prepare me for teaching on the rez. I also took an American History class from one of my favorite professors that would end up writng the best letter of recommendation that I have ever read for me.
2 April - Something that was very difficult was when Student Teaching came to an end. In several ways I was happy, I could focus more on getting a job now and I could go out more now that I didn't have lessons to plan and papers to grade. Still, I loved those kids and having it just be over like that was hard for me.
3 May - Graduation from Utah State University. I had worked so long toward this goal, taking sometimes up to 18 credits a semester while working full time. I graduated cum laude having made the Dean's List three times in my college career. I looked forward to using my new status as a graduate to find a job and have my teaching credencial. Which actually turned out to be pretty difficult. The University wasn't going to post my degree for six weeks when it was going to mail it out to me. I went up the the university and said I wanted my degree posted now. They told me that even if it posted I wouldn't get the degree until everyone else did.
At which point I informed them that I didn't care about the piece of paper, I needed to find a job and I could do that without the paper, what I needed was for the college to formally recognize that I had graduated. That shocked the lady quite a bit and within an hour my degree was posted.
When I finally did get my degree I was surprised at what it said inside of it.
Utah State University has conferred on
Brent Kay Maynard
the degree of
Bachelor of the Arts
in history
together with all the honors, rights, privileges, and responsibilities pertaining thereto.
Given at Logan in the state of Utah the eigth day of May in the year of our Lord
two thousand-ten and the University's one hundred twenty second year.
Here I am with the Meet the Challenge Aggie statue.
4 June - I got the job for Pinon High School in Pinon Unified School District #4! Why is it a number 4, especially considering there is only one school district? It's called District 4 because it is the 4th district within the Navajo Nation.
I heard about the job in an email on Friday, called the former principal Mr. Lescher and was told to have all my stuff ready by Monday so that he could interview me. I worked over the weekend to prepare for the interview and sent in my stuff to him Monday evening. Since it was the evening he was worried that I had lost interest or that I wouldn't make his deadline. I then interviewed with him after he had a chance to look over my resume. I was offered the job on the spot. It still had to be approved by the governing board though.
I went to the temple to pray about Pinon and I felt good about going. That to me was the most important thing, if I hadn't have had a good feeling I wouldn't have taken the job.
5 July - In my last nights at Logan River Academy I was brutally attacked by a kid with a pipe. I stood up, called for help, grabbed the boy by the wrists, sat him down, and held him there. From what I hear the kid has grown up a lot and is doing well which makes me glad.
6 July - With the help of my family I was able to move out to Pinon. Dad came with me, we moved during monsoon season and so we unpacked the trailer in the rain, when we finished unpacking it the rain of course stopped.
I was also able to take Bo out with me. That dog was the only real source of companionship that I had out here for the first weeks.
Some pictures around my classroom.
7 August - First day of work, I thought I was only making a new friend when I went up to a certain Ms. Miller, little did I know.
7 August - First day of work, I thought I was only making a new friend when I went up to a certain Ms. Miller, little did I know.
It was also in this month that Pam and I adopted our puppies, Angel and Clara. We chose Pam Fowles to be the puppy sitters while we worked at the High School. Going over there every day before and after school meant that Pam and I grew closer together and closer to our good friends the Fowles. It also meant that Pam started to come closer to the gospel.
I began hating the days that I missed Pam there, and staying longer when I got there before Pam. She also started staying longer to hang out with the Fowles and to see me.
8 September - Getting stuck on my way back from Flagstaff was quite an adventure. Pam and the Fowles spent several hours searching for me. It was then that I started to realize just how wonderful Pam was. After she and I had started dating Jeff made the comment, "Getting stuck was probably the most important thing you've ever done."
9 October - The month of October was full of romance. Pam and I watched General Conference with the Fowles which was the first time she cuddled up with me. Pam and I started dating officially soon after and became engaged on October 30th. And everyone out here was saying how slow we were and how we just didn't get it, but I'm not sure how we could have been much faster.
10 November - My first months in Pinon were full of illnesses and mishaps. My laundry room flooded while I had the flu. Meaning that just about everything got moved outside with the puppies who happily destroyed most of it.
Around this time was when Pam first heard me throw up. She came to visit me and I answered the door and after talking for a couple of seconds, "Excuse me for a moment babe." How do you know a woman loves you? She doesn't bolt.
11 November - After Pam's grandfather died just before Thanksgiving we had the monumental task of going to the funeral in Ohio and being in Utah for Thanksgiving. Going to Ohio was extemely important, I got to meet Pam's family face to face and Pam and I visited the Columbus Temple which is where we decided together as a couple that we wanted to be sealed for eternity.
12 November - Pam's baptism was quite possibly the happiest day of my life. After roadblocks galore and problem after problem I was able to baptize my sweetie in Smithfield, Utah.
13 December - Christmas with family and Pam's Mom, who came out from Columbus was very special. I got to spend the time with my sister Chantel's family since I stayed at their house. Brooklyn was so adorable. She came running toward Pam and I to give a hug, I bent down to catch her in my arms when she ran past me and hugged Pam. She hugged me afterwards after Pam told her to.
Seeing my brothers again was pretty great, even if they did give me a pink, "I love Twilight," tee shirt, which Pam has now claimed as her own.
14 New Year's Eve - Pam and I celebrated New Year's Eve at the Fowles house. We played Munchkin with them. We also kissed for New Year's in New York, Chicago, here, LA, and Alaska, we went to bed before Hawaii though, but 49 out of 50 states ain't bad.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
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