Best Weekend Ever

Sorry, no pictures, but...

this was a good weekend.

Originally i wanted to get out of provo and go somewhere (portland, idaho, vegas, southern utah), but everything seemed to fall through. I was asked to teach on sunday, so i gave up and decided to stay in provo. We had a blast. Here is a day-by-day:

FRIDAY

we had tried to get a camping trip together, but everything kept falling through and it was cold and rainy. Bummer. Hayley and I swung by the Liberty Square office on our way back from class because its hot dog friday every friday. We got there about 45 minutes after it ended and we asked if there were leftovers or anything. The lady hands us a bag of 60 cooked hotdogs and a huge bag of buns. Holy smokes! Needless to say, i've eaten a lot of hot dogs this weekend. (i ate hot dogs 1-3)

We ended up playing ultimate frisbee with a light-up frisbee for like 3 hours that night. It was a BLAST! We decided to have a campout despite the weather, so we went to a spot that we knew would be warm and dry: mitch's apartment. We set up a blanket fort and all fell asleep super quick because of the aforementioned ultimate game. Solid.

SATURDAY

We woke up late-ish. We ate hot dogs (4&5) for lunch and watched the Manchester United vs. Barcelona game (its for the UEFA cup) ((its soccer)). It was a really good game, so that was fun. After that, hayley and I went on a hike/picnic, but of course it started raining. we got back and went to the RB to play soccer in the dark with a group of people. We had been playing for a while and were having a blast, and then we saw a man walking across the field with a flashlight. Busted! it was a security guard who gave us a verbal warning and had us leave. As we were leaving, 2 police officers show up to give us a second verbal warning. They were hilarious! they were cracking jokes and just having a really fun time with us. My favorite line: we are going to take your names down for 2 reasons. 1- so that we can vouch for you and say you guys didnt do any damage here, and 2- so that it looks like we're doing our job. Win-Win, right? the best part of the whole thing is that we are going to make the famed BYU police beat this wednesday!!!! hooray!!

Afterwards, we went and ate hotdogs and watched some comedy. (hot dogs 6-9)

SUNDAY:

Church, day of rest, no hotdogs, but i did make skyline chili. YUM.

MONDAY:

woke up and we went and played kickball (sport #1 of the day) over at the Marriott center like we did when we camped there. we also had a wiffle ball bat and a tennis ball (sport #2) Of course, it started raining on us. bummer. we also lost the ball and poor mitch went crawling through some thorny bushes looking for it. (un)fortunately, we found it in this other place that wasnt the thorny bushes we were crawling through. We then had J-DAWGs which are delicious. (hot dogs 10&11)

We decided, since it was raining, to play Puerto Rico (my favorite board game). Of course, it gets sunny right when we start playing the game. We finished and decided we needed to barbque. Hayley and i threw a baseball for a bit (sport #3), then we all went to the park to have our Barbque. I didnt want anything, but felt the need to barbque something, so hayley and i brought corn on the cob. ha. We threw a frisbee (#4) kicked a soccer ball (#5) threw a football (#6). The park was kinda full, so we decided to come back and play ultimate in the dark again (#7). It was tons of fun!

And thus concluded the weekend. different sports played: 7. Total sporting activities: 11. Total hot dogs eaten: 11. Sports and hot dogs balance each other out pretty well.

Night at the Arcade

Hay and I went to the Nickel City arcade and WORKED IT! We won a ton of tickets, and picked up some sweet prizes: A green inflated ball, a beach ball with soccer ball print, and some candy. It was well worth it-- now I have something i can kick around in the apartment that isnt a real soccer ball that can break things!

Highlight of the night was when i walked up to this machine and put the first ball in the 250 hole. Hayley didnt believe me at first, so i was sure to announce that I PUT IT IN THE 250! several times to drive the point home.

Whoops...

Last saturday, Eric and I went skiing at Snowbird. It was an INCREDIBLE day. It snowed a good 8 inches on top of the powder that was already up there. Most of the time, we were up to our knees, and in some spots, it was up to our waist. Who would have thought that a spring skiing day would have been so nice? We skied well and pushed ourselves a lot. At the end of the day, we were exhausted and had a lot of good memories. Mother nature decided to help us out with the memories a bit...

...with a a massive sunburn!

It blistered up and is peeling and stuff. Oh, and I look like a dork with the burn line. Some people ask me if I went skiing this weekend, and I respond: "How'd you know?"

Lesson Learned: Wear sunscreen in the mountains, even when it is cloudy and snowing.

Lesson Re-Learned: I love skiing.

A tribute to Dr. Vean

This post is a tribute to Dr. Vean.

"Mr. Vean," you ask? "Who is Dr. Vean?"

Sit down a moment and I'll tell you.

On our way down to Zion, I was talking on the phone to my 5-year-old nephew, Jacob. We were talking about our camping trip and what we were going to be doing. He then asked 'Know what you should name your tent?' "What?" The words that fell out of his mouth changed my life.

What?

Vean?

yeah!

I then announced to the car that our tent's name for the trip would be "Vean." Putzer liked that, but decided that if we called it Vean, it'd have to be Doctor Vean. It was also decided by the car that not only would the tent be called Dr. Vean, but every single thing we had would be referred to as "Dr. Vean"

"Hey! Jared! Can you pass me that Dr. Vean?"

"Which one?"

"That one--next to the Dr. Vean"

"Oh gotcha"

Here is a picture of Putzer hitting a Doctor Vean with a Doctor Vean:

And here are the Jensen boys with their Doctor Vean's on their backs
We didn't limit ourselves to just doctor vean. We referred to our mother as "Queen Vean," Dani as "Mrs. Vean," and Putzer and I's girlfriends as "Miss Vean." We also had Commander vean, Master Vean, the Vean Family, Count Vean, Sir Vean, and so on. We also had a surprise vean, as pictured below:

DARTH VEAN!

This bird was terrifyingly large. It wasnt afraid of us at all. It sat their, veaning it up, and waiting for some food. Another car pulled up while we were at the scenic overlook and they were too afraid to get out of the car! ha.

Anyways, here is a video of Putzer taking on Darth Vean:

Putt Putt and Scraggles (and Dad, Jared, Mr. Vean) go to Zion

Last weekend, the Jensen Men took a trip to Zion to go backpacking. We headed out friday morning and to got Zions National Park early that afternoon. We hiked on in through some awesome canyons and forests. We saw some pretty amazing cliffs and waterfalls. We set up camp near a spring about 5 miles in. We got the tents up just before the sun set, so we were good to go! After a scrumptious dinner of Chicken a la King and Chicken and Noodles, we got in the tents and played some rook. It was pretty cozy cramming the 4 of us in a 2 man tent to play rook before bed. All in all, a good day.

Saturday we got up and threw a baseball around for a bit after breakfast. We then started a hike to Cable Mountain, a 3 mile hike from our site. As we got the the trail from our campsite, we found a guy standing there wanting to talk to us. His name was shaun, and he was in the area working and decided to hike through the park that day. He didn't want to be all alone, so we invited him to come along with us. He was a funny guy and chattered with us the whole time. The hike wasn't bad, and the view was breathtaking. We were standing on a 2000 foot cliff! It was spectacular.

That afternoon we got back to the campsite and threw a baseball again (I think we are the first people ever to take baseball gloves backpacking). We also dug a pretty sweet latrine using big rocks for a seat and even a stick as a toilet paper holder! Cool stuff.

We had a nice dinner that consisted of mashed potatoes, sweet and sour pork, and teriyaki chicken. Yum! We played some more rook, then went to bed.

Easter morning we had to stay in our tents for while because it was raining. Bummer. The rain and terrain didn't hinder the easter bunny from showing up, though. He came in all his glory, delivering easter treats to us and easter eggs around our campsite that we had to go and find. Go Easter Bunny!

After breakfast, we had a little morning devotional. It was really good. Dad had hidden some hymns in the topographical maps he gave to each of us at the beginning of the trip, so we sang songs and talked about the importance that the Savior has had in our lives. It was a great way to spend easter morning: a dad and three brothers in a gorgeous part of the country.

We decided to roll out and pack up camp. It had rained both nights and the thought of getting up at 7 in the cold rain to pack up our stuff monday morning to hike out did not seem appealing at all. We packed up and left and drove over to bryce canyon. That place is way cool! We drove and saw some of the scenery on sunday.

Monday morning Dad, Jared, and I woke up and went on a short hike through Queen's Gate (putzer decided to sleep in). It was really cool do go down through the little "pillasters" (as dad called them) and walk through the canyon. Its pretty spectacular. After that, we made the drive back up to Provo.

It was a great weekend, and we made a ton of fun memories. Dad proved he still has his knack for the outdoors! Even at 60, the man still can get it done. Happy Birthday, Pops!

TO SEE MORE PICTURES click here

For anyone who missed it, a couple of months ago we put together this video to announce the man-cation. We had to do a lot of electronic stuff to get it together with the three brothers being in different places. But here is the announcement:

Intramurals

Another semester, another set of adventures in intramurals!

This semester, I played intertube waterpolo with the Christiansen Family team. We did well-- we were in the upper division and made it pretty deep in the upper tournament.

I also played coed soccer. Our team was made up of 1/3 of the guys from my guys intramural team from last fall and some girls that the other guys knew. We lost our first game 2-1 (against a team that had 1/3 of the guys from our fall team), then won our next two, then lost our last regular season game. They left us in the upper division for the tournament because the games we lost were pretty hard fought games (i assume).

anyways, we won our first game. Then our second. Then I had the car crash and wasnt able to play in our third game. It was the semifinals, and i was devastated. That was the same day i went to the hospital for them to tell me i had a concussion and that i needed to lay low. It was a very good thing i didnt play-- i had been feeling lightheaded and any small bonk on the head would have been very bad. I brought an extra jersey and gloves and one of the guys on our team suited up. He played really well and had 5 saves. We ended up winning 3-1. I was dying on the sideline. I was pacing and yelling encouragement and all the things i normally would from the goalbox. It was more stressful being on the sideline than on the field!

So we advanced to the finals. I decided to play and wore a headband for protection. The final score? I'll let the picture tell:

1. my favorite number is 8. 2. shutouts are my favorite, and 3. i didnt bonk my head a single time during the game. Perfect!

By winning an intramural championship, we won the much-heralded intramural championship t-shirt:

It already looks good on me

Team 156 (they didnt like the other two names we tried)

THE CHAMPS

My Brain Hurts

Right about.... THERE! is where it hurts.

I went to the doctor on Thursday and had a ct scan to make sure my brain wasn't bleeding. They told me I had a concussion and that i had to rest and take pain killers. That explains my lack of focus, the lightheadedness, the dull headaches, the upset stomach, the drowsiness, and the reason why I havent gotten nearly enough done this week.

PS. this blog post was made because i cant focus on studying....

Hopefully I get better by finals week!

pps. after i published this, colton came in and i told him how i'd worked successfully for 15 minutes while he was in the shower. we then spent the next 8 minutes trying to play a jimmy eat world song at the same exact time on our two computers.

We got it now. Back to studying!

Candle Light Vigil

Last night, we held the candle light vigil for ESPN. It was an emotional experience. Putzer gave us a riveting speech that highlighted the best ESPN had to give us.

We also have a urn with the ashes of a picture of ESPN.

Thanks to everyone who came!

Putt Putt and Scraggles try to go to conference...

Here is the story for everyone who didn't get the full scoop:

So Sunday morning, we had tickets to go to General Conference up in Salt Lake. We woke up to 4 inches of snow down in Provo (crazy because i've been wearing shorts all week!). We jump on the highway and start on our trek up to Conference. I was driving, Hayley was sitting shotgun, Putzer was back left, and Elizabeth was back right.

We were passing Lehi on I-15 in the lefthand lane at about 8:15. It was rainy and so there was spray coming up onto the windshield. I saw infront of us that the car was slowing and stopping, and that the cars in front of him were swerving into the righthand lane. I started slowing down and came to a prompt stop at least 10 feet behind the tan car in front of me. There had been a small fender bender or accident in front of the tan car, and there was an asian guy outside his car waving his hands for traffic to slow down. 1. Why didnt they get into the lefthand emergency lane? and 2. Why are you outside your car waving your hands? Scary.

We didnt skid or screech or anything, it was just a hard stop. When we stopped, we all kind of gave a sigh of relief and said 'phew.' I look in my rear view mirror and saw a big white pickup coming hard right behind us. it was able to slow and swerve into the emergency lane between us and the barrier to our left. I am looking out my left window saying 'good thing he didnt hit us.' Then all of a sudden i thought 'OH NO! WE'RE GOING TO GET HIT!' (these thoughts happen in about a fourth of a second.)

Suddenly there was a BOOM! We were thrown forward, my face into the exploded airbags. We rocked forward into the tan car infront of us. As the car was bouncing back, we were hit again. The car came to a stop, and we were all stunned. There was smoke in the car, presumably from the airbags. Needless to say, we were pretty stunned. We sat there for a couple of seconds and didn't say anything, then when I thought it was safe-ish and we weren't about to take another hit, I opened up my door and got out. Hayley climbed over from her side out my door, and then Putzer and Elizabeth from the back. We walked out between our car and the barrier and just kinda looked at the car and what happened. There were about 9 cars in the pile-up.

The driver in the tan car infront came back and was talking to us and told me to turn off my car. He was an older man and wasn't injured at all. We didnt talk to anyone else until the firemen and police came.

A police officer came over and identified me as the driver and handed me something to fill out. A fireman came a minute later to talk to each of us and see if we were okay. He talked to hayley and she had a little debate about how old she was. She told him, and then he was worried about me because of my forehead, but I told him i was okay. I then took some pictures of the car and began filling out the report. Putzer and Elizabeth went and sat in someone's car who had stopped because Elizabeth was a bit shaken up and in pain.

George Benson had driven through the crashed cars and stopped to come and check on us. Sam and my friends Bryan and Matt were with him. They came over and were talking with us and looking at the car and stuff. A bit later a couple came over and had Hayley and me go get in there car. They had their heat blasting and people sitting in there getting looked at by paramedics. Hayley sat in there and I had to go talk to a police officer and get some papers out of my car. When I came back, she was crying a bit and shaking pretty hard and said her neck hurt a bit, so I went and grabbed a paramedic to talk to her. He was helping her calm down her breathing, and the owner of the car was giving her tissues and helping out a lot.

Elizabeth and Putzer left in an ambulance to head down to the Provo hospital about a half hour after the crash. Hayley and I left about an hour and twenty minutes after. We left just as they were scooping ESPN (my beloved friend and car) up onto the tow truck. I jumped into the front seat of the ambulance and we were off. I talked to Hayley's sister, and then to her parents. Sitting in the front seat of an ambulance with their daughter on a stretcher and neck brace in the back was not the ideal way to talk to her parents for the first time... Luckily Hayley was doing well. In fact, she was asking the paramedic in the back if she had all of her teeth and if she was still cute!

We got to the hospital and we were in a room near putzer and elizabeth. Elizabeth had had x-rays done do see if she had any broken ribs, and they took Hayley for a ct scan on her head and neck. we were there for a long long time, and all turned out well. Elizabeth was fine, and Hayley had a mild concussion and strained neck muscles. Putz and Elizabeth left about 45 minutes before us. Hayley's aunt and uncle made the drive down from north of Salt Lake to come and check on us and make sure she was alright. They were really nice and helpful in getting the medications and taking us back to our apartments.

Today we are all pretty sore and tired. But we'd all rather be sore and tired than have anything worse have happened to us.

We are really grateful for the protection that the Lord gave us yesterday. We consider ourselves extremely blessed to have been able to walk out of the car with minor injuries. We know that He is mindful of his children wherever they are, and that he truly watches over us. The prayers for protection that our parents offer every day were answered.

Here is an article on fox news. You can see (from left to right) Sam, Hayley, Bryan/George, Matt, Me, and ESPN.

Hayley throwing the dueces with her aunt and uncle

They put this thing between hayley and the backboard. Its pretty cool.

Ready to leave!

I promise she is smiling and not in pain!

Again, smiling, not in pain.

ESPN, my beloved car, went out like a champ. He was a hero. He sacrificed himself to save us. He was a great little soldier in the prime of his youth: 6 years, 40,700 miles. He had just gotten a tire rotation/oil change and new brakes (which probably helped us out a bunch). We had some great moments, but he never stood stronger than yesterday when he saved all four of us in the car. I'm gonna miss ya, bud.

The pictures of ESPN:

Its incredible how much damage was done to the front and back and how intact the cab stayed. That saved us.

This one is my favorite... it almost looks like a transformer in mid-transformation

That white car in the background hit us second (i'm pretty sure). the blue excursion is where we went and sat for a while. They were such a nice couple to stop and help everyone out.

My boy got hit hard

I'm pretty sure that the red car hit us first. We were stopped back where he is, and then between getting hit by him and the white car we got pushed up 10-12 feet into the tan car.

the spoiler popped right off! i should have kept it.

those are the curtain airbags in the window. They saved us big time.

Listen Responsibly: a rebuttal to my sister's blog

While i respect the opinions of my sister's students, i disagree.

In their analysis, 'Think Responsibility,' they argue that we listen to too much music and that that drains our opinions and personality out. I have prepared the following counter-arguments.

1. listening to music while doing the mundane things in life makes you feel like you are starring in your own movie. Who hasnt thought that as they play their favorite song as a backdrop to a boring chore or walk? Personally, i enjoy throwing on my ipod to listen to a song every now and then on my walk back from class. Or better yet... 'we are the champions' after doing well on a test. Point: music spices up the mundane in life, and boosts self esteem by making one think they are starring in their own movie. (note: i kicking piles of dry leaves or giving a cheesy jump down the stairs ads to self-movie delight.)

2. I am a superstitious kinda guy. On the way to every soccer game i play, i listen to the same songs to get me fired up. If i was left to my own on these drives, i would be having the following think-conversation:
'you're going to win, T.'
'yes i am.'
'you're going to make some sick saves, T'
'sounds good to me.'
'you're going to throw it on the line tonight, T.'
'can i turn on the radio?'
Point: Listening to music can get you in the mood for anything (athletics, dates, homework, etc.)

3. Music relieves stress. This one is a fact. Here comes the example: This weekend, we discovered the 'Hide yo kids, hide yo wife' song, and have been singing it and quoting it always. On Monday, I had a tough spanish test to take, dealing with prepositions. That is not a something that rivets my soul, so my studying before the test was half-hearted. At one point, i got up off the couch and just said 'Well, its go time. I'm just going to go take this thing.' And I was off. I sat down in the ominous testing center and began. It was hard. Blast. I am about 14 questions in, 86 to go. Then, out of nowhere, enters the following: 'Hide yo kid, hide yo wife... We gonna find you, we gonna find you!' I literally put down my pencil and thought how ridiculous and hysterical it was that that song was stuck in my brain. Then i realized that it was perfect for the test! for the next 86 questions, i would read the statement and then, as i was examining the multiple guess responses, i would sing 'Im gonna find you! im gonna find you!' Turns out i found enough of the right answers, scoring a 93 on that test that i didnt really prepare too well for. Point: The humor and stress relief of music saved me on that test.

4. I am listening to music right now as i write this blog. currently playing: Boom Boom Pow by the Black Eyed Peas. It gives me swagger to do what i do.

Maybe i am just avoiding awkward conversations with my subconscious. I just had 2 years of music-free life to get to know the insides of my brain. For now, i think i'll stick with the soundtrack currently playing in the background of my life.

Intramural Sporting News:

Its been a while since i've posted. i am happy to say that i am still doing cool things with my life... its just that i never have my camera to take pictures! note to self: take your camera out of your trunk. Anywho, this post is dedicated to my intramural sports and the injuries they have produced!

#1. the Ankle. This happened in my first and only ultimate frisbee game about a month ago. I went up for a sick grab in the end zone, and in an effort to keep my foot inbounds, landed bad on it. A trip the next day to the ER showed i hadnt broken anything, but we are pretty sure i messed up the ligaments a bit. Note: it still hurts when i try and turn left or right off it, and is still swollen on the front part.
#2. No photo available. The Knee. In a soccer game, i landed bad on my knee and it swelled up really big afterwards. I iced it and everything, and the next day it was pretty bad. Luckily, though, it got better within two or three days. it was scary though! i couldnt bend it!

#3. Last saturday in our soccer game, i got a nice turf burn (all my soccer games are on turf.... its a blessing and a curse worthy of another blog post.) anyways, it scabbed up a bit. then last night in my game i opened it up again and it bled a lot! it was pretty intimidating i guess. After then game i took my sock off and it was still bleeding, so i let it run down to my ankle. showering fresh turf burns hurt!!


But, the good news is that our soccer team is currently 6-0. we have scored 36 goals and allowed 2. Thats not too shabby! we are in the tournament now, and played our first game last night ( a 6-0 victory.) apparently we are playing the #1 ranked team in our next game. (rankings are so arbitrary...we'll see how good they really are!)

Moral of the story: Life is meant to be lived in a hardcore fashion.

Finally... the ART EXTRAVAGANZA

So here it is. The Art Extravaganza. We had some fine cheeses (Danish Blue, Bourson, Mozzarella, and Cheddar.) we had 4 different flavors of Martinellis, we had grape juice, apple cider, and sprite. We had brownies and souffles and candles. it was great. We had great turn out-- about 50 people total over the night. we finger painted and had classy conversation, with some chic jazz music in the background. Overall, i'd call it a great success.
We even put the crackers on plates and had herbal teas and everything.

Colton, Andrew, Me, and Gibbs. Classy.
Some of the girls from our ward. they got the 'dress up' memo. nice.This is a nice one me and nicole picked up at DI. we opened it up and repainted the little duck. we decided he needed to be Hawaiian. He looks good. Turns out, its actually a hallmark card, and on the inside it says 'Friends...winter, spring, summer, or fowl." (ha.). and on the lower part it says 'always behave like a duck. keep calm and unruffled on the surface, but paddle like the devil underneath." A good catch-phrase for life, i guess.
This is the second one. Another DI purchase. We 'argentine-d' this one, making it a kiosko with a yellow brick road lined by empty 2 liter bottles (an argentine classic) with shrine to 'gauchito gil' (another classic) and the 'falkland islands are really argentine' banner. (also, classic.)

Food Storage.

in the past, i have always tried to have a nice little food storage in case of any emergencies. Freshman year, i had a nice supply of canned goods and other things. (see here)

This year is no different. A couple weeks ago, I went out to the grocery store Macey's to get some icecream with laura moster. When we walked in, they had huge pallets of cereal for $.98 each!!! are you kidding me? i love cereal. So we investigated a little and found out you needed a coupon to buy them for that cheap. Disappointed that i didnt have said coupon, we went and got our icecream. (it was delicious). As we were walking out, i said 'we have to at least ask if they have the coupons.' So we did. And they did-- you had to buy 5 and it dropped the price down to .98 each. WOW. I bought 20 boxes on the spot. STEAL!

I got home and unloaded my goods. I then paused and decided i need more. So i rounded up my roommate, Putzer, and his roommate landon and we raced back to maceys to get some more. A dollar a box? who wouldnt?

The final count: 35 boxes of an assortment of cap'n crunch, peanut butter cap'n crunch, honey bunches of oats, and maple brown sugar life. In addition to that, i have 10 boxes of Chewey Granola Bars (also a dollar a piece).

I am now set for the millennium. I just hope i dont get tired of this cereal!


I also had to get some soy milk to go with it--- 24 little boxes of it!

YUM!

Well, its been a while.

Well, its been a while since ive posted. Ive successfully finished the first month being back from the mission! its been weird. But im still alive! Some quick hits on stuff ive done:

CLIMBING!!! ive been like 12 times now. i can still do it! wahoo!Movies-- Avatar, Batman (i had already seen it, but i love that one), Kung Fu Panda, Iron Man.
Music- i dont like the new music yet...
Classes-- im taking accounting, new testament, living prophets, spanish, communications, and humanities
Sports: Ulitmate Frisbee, Soccer, and Football. I sprained my ankle really bad playing ultimate. X-Rays showed it wasnt broken or too too bad, so with the help of my new trusty ankle brace, i was playing soccer 3 days later. (8-0 shutout. yeah baby.)thats about it on me for the past month. I dont have any crazy stories... yet.
just give that some time. I'll be back to it soon.

ps. i love mate.