29 July 2009

New Post

Okay... So I'm totally going to try to update this more often, I promise. :-) Coming soon: a couple articles about my new hypnotherapy interests and summary.

Love you all.

~Jake

03 April 2009

Happy April 1st ;-)

So, a couple of months ago, Liz Vance and I got to talking, and we thought it would be funny if we put together a fake wedding invite and sent it to Ross Coughanour. (For those of you who are unfamiliar with Ross and/or Liz, here is a quick summary.)

Ross Coughanour was experiencing knee trouble while he was serving in Brazil. After 9 months of being out, he was told by his mission president that it was bad enough, that he would not be returning to the mission field and advised him to move on with life. And that he did! Ross came home, fell madly in love with Liz Vance and was engaged no later than 8 days being home. A few days after that, their blissful future was abruptly put on hold. Ross received the results back from the doctor who said, "Well, Elder. Looks like it'll just be a couple weeks of therapy and you'll be back in the mission field!" Ross faithfully returned to the mission field, in Boston and resumed his labor of love as a full time missionary. But he has not neglected his love for his committed fiance, who is ever-planning and preparing for their wedding, and writes to her affectionately. Well... at least as affectionate as a focused missionary can be. :-) A long story made short... they are still anxiously engaged in being anxiously engaged, and plan to get married when he gets home.

But while he's been busy out in the mission field, I've been stewing at home plotting this joke! Mwa ha ha ha! We asked a fantastic photographer to help us with the pictures, and took an entire Saturday trying to figure out how to put it all together in Photoshop. And here lies our finished product. We sent him the invite on the 1st of April, so that when he received it, he could see it postmarked as the 1st of April. I still await for his reply. Can't wait!

So, most of you are probably thinking this is a horrible joke to play on such a dedicated character as Ross Coughanour... but, not to worry. We did it tastefully. Take a look.


30 December 2008

Home For the 24th & 25th!

The visit home was absolutely fantastic! I can't remember the time I last had so much fun at Christmas! Glen got to come home for Christmas day for about 12 hours and we enjoyed SO many fun activities.

First off, Glen and I played a card game called Magic. It's a strategy war type of game but with cards instead of a computer. I guess he's been collecting these cards for the past couple of weeks and has enough for a couple of decent decks. I especially enjoyed playing it just because I use to be WAY into those kind of fantasy lands and creatures. I will briefly describe it the elements and purpose of the game.

You are a Planes walker, a powerful wizard who uses Mana (Magic) to summon Creatures to the battlefield to fight your battles for you.

There are 5 different types of Mana: Black for the Swamplands, White for the Plains, Blue for the Islands, Green for the Forest, and Red for the Mountains. Not only can you Summon Creatures to the battlefield, but can perform enchantments and incantations to strengthen your forces. The more mana you gain, the more powerful the creature you can call upon to fight your battles, according to the luck of the draw. Strategy is of the utmost importance.

Glen and I played this for about a good hour before moving on to the outdoors. And oh, what fun we had in the Snow!


We bundled up and prepared to face the outdoors in our new awesome coats we got for Christmas. Last year, Glen got us these hats so that we could be twinners. He calls it his Adventure hat, because he's always going on adventures with it on.

As for the outdoors, we built ourselves a nice and tall snowman. Just like us! As we put the head on, we both realized he kind of had facial features, and so we went to work defining the rest of his features. We are very proud of our own little Parson Brown. We especially enjoyed making the nose and the ear.

As we were busy defining his features, Dad came over and placed a black potting bucket on his head for a cap. We both thought it was a most genius idea! And to finish him off, we gave him a couple of shoulders... twigs for arms and a snow shovel for further character. :-)



Then, Glen and I started building a snow fort!

After about 20 minutes of building or so, Dad came over and started building his own. Apparently two can play at this game. ;-)

A couple hours later, both of our fortresses were completed and we made up a bunch of snowballs and had an extremely fun snowball fight. Dad and Glen totally ganged up on me and dominated! Halfway through the fight, Glen came running out from behind Dad's wall and Kamakazied me with a couple of direct hits at about a 2 foot distance. So much for the safety of a wall! Ha ha ha. I do believe it was the funnest Christmas I've had in a very long time.

03 December 2008

My A Cappella Group




Hey, just thought I'd post a sound clip of the song we performed in the previous mentioned concert.

09 October 2008

Snow College: Cadence Choir

Tuesday 07 October 2008 was my first concert performance this semester. It was absolutely a riot! The concert consisted of a couple different campus choirs and an independently formed a cappella group.

The first couple choir numbers were performed with the band, "The Old Phat Professors." This select rock band consisted of a bunch of professors from on campus. Our choral director, Dr Meridith at the piano, and our Dean of Fine Arts, Vance Larson, along with a handful of other musically inclined professors, stole the stage as we helped them perform two covers songs from Kansas. Once 'Dust in the Wind' began, the crowd cheered at the prospect of hearing a song they all knew and loved. The excitement further developed as we broke out into 'Carry on My Wayward Son.' Even the choir started to really get into it. We probably all looked like a bunch of silly goofs bobbing our heads up and down and shimmyin' our shoulders, but what else are you going to do when the organ solo starts blazing and the guitars shred in and out of the syncopating drum patterns?

Then, even as when cream is poured into your ghetto-mormon cup of hot chocolate, to cool it down and take off its sharp edge, so likewise, the rock band left the stage and we performed 'Like a Wink and a Smile' from the ever so popular Sleepless in Seattle.


Soon the men were left alone onstage as the sound of a hammer hitting a railroad tie sounded. We remaining onstage assumed our grumpy positions. What's that sound we hear? That's right, "That's the sound of the men, workin' on the chain gang!"

The audience exploded into laughter as each man on stage would make a ridiculous pose. On either 'ooh' or 'ahh' each expressed themselves independently in their own way. Some standing with their arms in flexing positions, others looking as if they needed to use the restroom, a machine gun, their neighbors sleeve, or tried imitating a Muppet character, along with a myriad of other expressions of foolishness. It was good fun.


But a concert is not complete with a men's number alone. It is to be accompanied by or followed thereafter by a woman's number. 'Summertime' made popular in the movie You've Got Mail was then performed. Three accomplished soloists performed each of their respective solos magnificently. One of which stunned not only the audience, but the majority of the choir members with her nearly perfect tone, timbre and resonance. Emily Coughanour(far left.)

While, the ladies sung onstage, Bred the Quintet Toaster, prepped themselves for their upcoming song.


Summertime is over, and the men storm back onto the stage to join the women for 'Footloose.' "Been workin' so hard. I'm punchin' my card. Eight hours for what? Oh tell me what I've got!" I got this feelin' that time's just holdin' me down. I'll hit the ceiling or else I'll tear up this town!" CUT FOOT LOOSE!!!


And if you thought you were getting comfortable by simply kickin' your shoes off, while you're at it, why don't you pull on a pair of srubs. That's right, 'I'm No Super Man!" Featuring the one, the only, 4 red heads and a guy named Brad in, Bred the Quintet Toaster!!! "He can't do it."

And that's the big and skinny of it. Thanks for reading folks.