#14

                For my final blog post I would like to talk about my beginnings in the  Construction Management program here at BYU.

                My journey to decide my major was long and arduous. I started my collegiate career thinking I would like to become a doctor. My father-in-law is a very successful general surgeon and his influence steered me in that direction. Once I realized that the sciences were not my strong point, I changed to studying accounting. I have always really enjoyed math and I thought that would translate to the accounting field. I was wrong. After speaking with my brother-in-law, a CPA, I came to the conclusion that I didn't want to be an accountant.

                At that point, I received my Associates in Arts degree and had been accepted to BYU. When I got here I changed my major to Civil Engineering. I thoroughly enjoyed my courses and my professors. But one math test single handedly pushed me away. I remember studying 20+ hours for a Calculus 2 test. As I walked out of the testing center and saw that I had received a failing grade I decided to switch to Construction Management. 

#13

I don’t profess to be a computer genius; I’m simply an aficionado. Currently I own a 15” MacBook Pro. I bought it with a 750 GB hard drive and 16 GB of RAM. For those who don’t understand what that means, RAM is the computers ability to process commands, it is the operating speed. Last summer, I bought a kit that enabled me to swap my optic drive out for a solid-state drive. Now days, computer manufacturers are implementing SSD (Solid State Drives) in their recent line of computers. The difference between an SSD and an HD is that an SSD has no internal moving parts while an HD has an internal disk that spins, allowing the information to be read. In my opinion, SSD are way more effective and run more efficient. My computer runs faster and cooler than before. I would recommend everyone to invest in an SSD.

#12

Today I would like to indulge my readers and tell them of one of my favorite childhood memories.

            I grew up in a little town in central Arizona called, Cottonwood. I had the same group of friends from grade school all the way through high school. They were Jeff, Mike, Ryan and Ian. We were always getting into mischief. One day we all decided to dress up in Jeff’s camouflage and play some pranks on the neighborhood. We started by finding one of Jeff’s mom’s old purses. We taped a dollar bill on the inside and attached the purse to a fishing pole. I manned the pole on one side of a culvert on one side of the street while Jeff, Ryan and Ian ran the video camera on the opposite side. When people would stop to retrieve the purse, I would jump out of the bushes and yell, “Aye, got me a Marlin!” We pissed off several people but we could care less. To this day, that memory is vivid in my mind.

#11

            I love soda pop! I know that it is very unhealthy for me in the quantities that I consume it, but I don’t care. It tastes so good. My favorite by far is Dr. Pepper. That wasn’t always the case though. I started out sipping on Sprite and Orange Soda. I guess my parents didn’t want me to be hyped up on caffeine at such a young age. At the time, it was the best. Sprite was my favorite. I can remember visiting my grandparent’s home in the town next to ours. For every meal, my grandpa would have a can of Coca Cola. So naturally, when I graduated from Sprite and Orange soda, the next step was Coke. To this day I still enjoy an ice cold Coke every once in a while. However, once I became introduced to the sweetest, most delicious nectar of all, I was hooked. That would of course be, Dr. Pepper.

#10

   Ever since I was a little boy, I have loved baseball. I love how baseball season is right around the corner. I don't necessarily have a favorite team, I like following certain players. Growing up in Arizona inherently makes me pull for the Diamondbacks. 

   Here is a list of some of my favorite players, their teams and their positions.

• Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers, P
• Mike Trout, Angels, OF
• Paul Goldschmidt, Diamondbacks, 1B
• Hunter Pence, Giants, OF
• Buster Posey, Giants, C
• Andrew McCutcheon, Pirates, OF
• Madison Bumgarner, Giants, P
• Troy Tulowitski, Rockies, SS

   When I played organized baseball I played right field, third base, first base, and pitcher. My favorite position to play was pitcher. I loved being involved in every play. Now days, I really enjoy playing outfield. I mostly play slow pitch softball. I remember one tournament I played in down in Casa Grande, AZ that went from 8:00pm till 4:00am. We ended up taking third place but at that point I didn't care. I was so tired and I just wanted to go home.  

#9

            Last post I decided to give a brief explanation on one of my favorite past time activities, Cornhole. A couple weeks ago I accepted the challenge from my wife to make our family a couple boards of our own. At first I was hesitant; I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist. I first thought I would look into purchasing a set but when I start Googling the prices I was flabbergasted. The price for a plain set of boards was upwards of $100. I said that if I was going to spend that kind of money I would build my own.

            To start myself off, I created a list of things I was going to either need or buy. The list looked something like this:

·      Palm sander

·      Wood filler

·      Paint

·      Tape

·      Brushes

·      (4) 2x4’s

·      ½” plywood

·      Tape measure

·      Skill saw

·      Safety glasses

·      5/8” screw

·      2” screw

·      Pencil

·      Polyurethane

After acquiring everything from my list I began to measure and cut and saw and before I knew it, I had made my family a couple really nice Cornhole boards. It was a really fun experience and I learned a lot from tackling it myself. We look forward to many summer evenings barbecuing and tossing some beanbags.

#8

            

            If you ever want to invest in some fun entertainment, Cornhole would be a great game to sink some money into. According the Wikipedia, the history of Cornhole is mostly unknown. However, some speculate that the game was first played in the 14^th century in Germany.

            The game consists of two boards measuring 2’x 4’. A hole is cut out in the middle of each board precisely 6” down from the top. The hole is to be 6” in diameter. There are also eight bags measuring 6”x 6”. Each bag is filled with about 16 ounces of dried corn kernels.

            In order to play the game, the boards need to be placed 27’ apart measuring front end to front end and directly across from one another. Teams are to be divided evenly and should be limited to around3-4 per team for optimum diversion. The goal of the game to toss your beanbag onto the other board with the intent to make it in the hole.