I’m trying something new here by using a combination of photos. It’s not amazing by any means, but I felt it was the best option. Is this cheating? It was also difficult to use any subject other than my adorable daughter, who has just started sitting up by herself, and is going to have a new tooth in the next few days!

I also wanted to add that I hope everyone had a fun Christmas. I know I did, despite being sick. Maybe I don’t really have an immune system made of steel. Errr silver! Or, um … never mind.

More Sunday Snapshots:

• a night like this
• Sepia Tone Lovin’

Post scriptum: Next week’s theme is “Reflection.”

As a photography neophyte, I decided to participate in a weekly photo feature, which will be part of a small syndicate of bloggers. There are three participants at the moment, including myself, and “signs” is the theme for this week.

During the majority of my runs, I travel past this black beauty of a sign. It’s not very eye-catching from a distance, but it adds to the character of the small, bucolic road which winds back and forth along the edges of a quiet stream.

Altitudes:
Loafer 10687 ft. (south)
Santaquin 10685 ft. (north)

Details of the trip:
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Started 6:05AM
Reached Santaquin peak at 9:00 AM.
Chased mountain goats up Loafer, and arrived at 10:25 AM.

This was an incredibly enjoyable hike. I was going to write that I highly recommend it, but I say that about all the peaks. As always, be sure to stay on the correct trail if you decide to take the challenge. My friend took a wrong turn on the way down and had us worried for a while. Luckily both routes made it to the road, albeit at different points.

Edit: It turns out that the embed code for flickr slideshows has been causing some odd behavior on my site (disappearing mouse cursor), so I’m providing a link to the album instead: Loafer & Santaquin Peaks.

I’ve started playing the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series again, but this time I’m playing it in chronological order (starting with Clear Sky). I’m also playing this round with the Complete mods, which are the best mods I’ve tried for the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series. Call of Pripyat Complete is currently in progress, and I’m hoping it will be finished before I finish the first two games. It seems likely, since the time I can devote to gaming is ever dwindling.

Farewell, my clear sky brother … who often rudely suggests that I bugger off with my questions.

At 10192 ft (3107 m), Spanish Fork Peak isn’t the highest in the area, but it will certainly give you a good fight. From the main trail-head in Maple Canyon (Mapleton, Utah), the hike starts out with a very rocky trail. It also doesn’t waste much time gaining altitude. After a few miles you will arrive at a small lake, and then head upward again toward the ridge. Spanish Fork Peak is of course a beautiful mountain, and I would strongly recommend these 5.2 miles (10.4 round trip) to anyone who enjoys a good hike.

This particular trip was mine and a good friend’s second attempt to hit the summit. We attempted the year previous (2009), and ended up taking the wrong trail, not noticing a split to the south at the very beginning. We would have likely noticed, were it light outside. After missing the real trail-head, we continued on a fairly well-trodden path that began to make suspicious splits and merges, much like you would see on a cattle trail. But it seemed big enough to be the right trail until we reached a nice grassy saddle which overlooked a valley to the south east of the mountain.

Hey that looks like the peak … only further away than when we started.

From there the trail split off in several unlikely directions, and the ones we tried only ended up going back down, or disappearing completely. In desperation, we bushwhacked it up a steep hill, the ascent requiring the use of all four limbs, only to arrive in a forest full of 8-10 ft. fern plants. Still no trail in sight.

Eye-level in the forest of joyful fern plants.

Having already hiked a good few miles, and after being ruffed up a bit, we decided to head back down, and try again another day. It’s not very fun to be conquered by a mountain, and it’s for this reason that we made Spanish Fork Peak a high priority this year.

Here is a short slide show of photos from this year.

Edit: It turns out that the embed code for flickr slideshows has been causing some odd behavior on my site (disappearing mouse cursor), so I’m providing a link to the album instead: Spanish Fork Peak.

I just read the news, and couldn’t be more happy.

GSC Game World announces S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 – the official sequel to best-selling game series – in development now. A completely new multi-platform technology developed by GSC will make the core of the game.

“After the official sales of the series exceeded 4 million copies worldwide, we had no doubts left to start creating a new big game in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. universe. This will be the next chapter of the mega-popular game players expect from us” – said Sergiy Grygorovych, CEO of GSC Game World.

The game is scheduled for release in 2012.

2012 gives me enough time to beat the previous 3 games released in this series on Master skill level (although on Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, this would be considerably hard for me).

A lot has happened for me in the last month or two. The primary topic of note is the arrival of Penelope. She is unquestionably adorable, but I have also forgotten how much work newborns can be (especially for Heidi).

I’ve also been able to spend a little time outdoors this summer with Kairo and family. I’m hoping to add a photo feed to the sidebar soon (along with other adjustments), so I can share some imagery. Our trusty point-and-shoot camera of 5 years decided to die on us earlier this spring, and I don’t take shopping for electronic gadgets lightly; so long story short, we ended up investing in a digital SLR camera (Nikon D5000), and I have tried to take advantage of the technology.

As far as plans for Peak-Bagging (a long-standing and cherished activity for me), I plan to hit Spanish Fork Peak (this Saturday), and Timpanogos in August. I’m hoping I will find opportunities for other peaks, but I will have to wait and see.

And lastly, on the topic of running, I have a bigger goal for this Summer/Fall. I’m planning to do the Spanish Fork half marathon in September. My hope is that from next year on, I will be doing marathons on a regular basis. I’ve definitely improved my endurance and speed this year by focusing more on tempos, fartleks, and hills. I still have a lot of room to improve on that focus, but the noticeable difference has come immediately.

Romantic love is not an unsolvable, magical mystery; and it’s also not reducible to mere lust. Anthropologist, Helen Fisher, sheds light on some of the dynamics in play, and how knowing the details does not reduce this universal and meaningful human experience.

If you enjoyed that, you should also watch this next talk, which she gave previously and involves a slightly different angle, and shares a few more details. Helen Fisher on why we love + cheat:

Thanks to Leah for posting.

Comedy Central doesn’t have to make any effort at all to tick people off and generate controversy. I love it.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – It’s not on the air yet. It’s not shot yet. There’s no pilot yet. There might not even be a script yet.

But Comedy Central’s plan to develop an animated project about Jesus Christ has the biggest names in the TV watchdog business forming a protest supergroup to preemptively smite the show.

Brent Bozell (president, Media Research Centre), Tony Perkins (president, Family Research Council), Michael Medved (talk radio host), Bill Donohue (president, Catholic League), Rabbi Daniel Lapin (American Alliance of Jews and Christians) and Tim Winter (president, Parents Television Council) are joining forces to form the Coalition Against Religious Bigotry.

Comedy Central’s “JC” is in development, which means it’s still a couple of steps from getting the green light as a series. The project is about Jesus trying to live as a regular guy in New York City and wanting to escape the shadow of his “powerful but apathetic father.” Because Comedy Central recently censored “South Park” for its portrayals of the Prophet Muhammad, some Christian leaders see the prospect of a Jesus cartoon as proof of an offensive double standard.

Hilarious. Some of the biggest bigots in the USA getting together to form a Coalition Against Religious Bigotry. We all know how horribly intolerant and prejudicial it would be for someone to make a cartoon involving a mythical, historical, political, or religious personality. How do they sleep at night?

Full article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/oukoe_uk_jesus

It’s been a while since I’ve posted on the topic, so I thought I would share this article. It has lots of great advice for boosting performance. Many of which I can personally testify. Being a night owl, however, I struggle most with the getting up early tip.

Embrace your inner early bird. British scientists found that when cyclists exercised at 6:45 a.m., they could sustain an intense pace for a longer period compared with when they exercised at 6:45 p.m. Your core body temperature is lower in the a.m., so it takes longer to overheat from exercise performed in warm conditions, says lead researcher Ruth Hobson, M.Sc., a doctoral student at Loughborough University in England. Plus, levels of cortisol (a hormone that helps break down fat for fuel) are higher at daybreak, “which might help you run a little farther, faster, and with more energy,” says Hobson.

I’ve searched for my inner early bird before, but it seems when I find him, he gets away from me pretty quickly; like after a day. I’m going to try again, but it will be hard in conjunction with one of the other tips.

Shaving seconds off your runs may be as simple as spending more time in the sack. A Stanford University study concluded that athletes who increased their sleep to 10 hours per day (including naps) clipped more than half a second off their sprint times. “Sleep is your body’s rest mode,” says William Sands, Ph.D., Director of the Monfort Family Human Performance Research Lab. “It’s the one thing you can guarantee will help you recover and improve your performance overall.” Shut off all technology one hour before bed to let your brain relax. Soak in a hot bath for 15 minutes before turning in; the heat will raise your core body temperature, which helps you drift off faster, says Sands.

Wish me luck.