Cameron recommends: Demolition Derby

As you may have noticed I seem to have done a few very hick things as of late.  Well this is my latest one: The Preston Demolition Derby.

Surprisingly, I had a lot of fun there.  The derby was fun and it was interesting to me to see how people had decided to fix up their cars.  Some of them looked so bad going into it and then ended up doing really well whereas some of the more pristine looking cars (if you could even call them that), were out of the running first.  The real fun was that all six of us (Dave, Susan, Erin, Chelsea and I) would pick a car before they started and root for that car to win.  I picked a winner 3 times out of 5, including a high school student girl that made her derby car as a senior project.  

All of us at the Derby

The other great part about the derby was the people watching.  Oh man, some of these people must only come out at night.  Girls that wore more make up than a geisha, guys that had more hair on their face then on the top of their head, and more hick stereotypes than I even thought existed.  One guy sitting in fron of us had a big belt buckle, goatee, sideburns as wide as they were long, a feathered cowboy hat, and a toothpick in his mouth the whole time.  Another man had big overalls, a blue wife-beater, mullet, and gigantic beard.  He looked like santa's hick half-cousin that nobody mentions. All in all it was a good time.  I'd recommend going to one.  Oh and below is a sweet video of the heat with the high school student girl.  

Completing sets

So I have a problem: I like having things in sets.  Yeah, I know, it's bad.  I waited to get the Spider-man movies until they came in a set along with sets for Rocky, Star Wars and the Bourne movies.  It's truly bad when I spend money on things I already own.  For example:

The Chronicles of Narnia Collection to check it and other collections out go here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/leatherbound-classics?store=book&keyword=leatherbound+classics 

Yeah, I already own a paperback scholastic set of the Chronicles of Narnia books.  All the books are separate and have redone art for the covers.  They are nice, but this collection is awesome.  It is hardbound, embossed leather with gilded pages and a ribbon bookmark.  Oh man, it's so pretty.  So I got it.

Another problem with liking sets is if I start with one form, I have to finish it.  For example, the Inheritance series.  I used to own all the books, but my little brothers lost the first one.  Since I already owned the other two in hardback, I had to go to lengths to find the first one in hardback. I just couldn't bring myself to get the paperback version.  

And the last problem with sets is that they get me with the little box they come in.  Just the other day, I saw a box set of the Hunger Games trilogy.  Now, I already own all three books in hardback, but this box set had a cool little box they all sat in.  I wanted it, just for a second, until I realized that all I'd be getting was some cardboard with a piece of paper glued to it. 

My First Rodeo

That's right, I am 26 and I have never been to a rodeo until now.  I've never really liked things that are strongly associated with country music.  I realize that it's silly (especially since I help teach country swing every once and a while), I am changing, slow as it may be.

So last night Ben, Susan and I attended the Cache County Rodeo.  To be honest, it wasn't bad.  I wish that the events there lasted longer than 7 seconds, but I guess that is the way it is.  Luckily Susan was there and was able to explain some of the events and their rules to me.  The events that they had their were (if I get these names wrong I'm sorry): Saddled Bucking Horse Riding, Calf Roping, Bareback Bucking Horse Riding, Steer Wrestling, Team Roping, Barrel Racing, and Bull Riding.

My favorite events were the bareback horse riding, mainly because all the guys but one stayed on and it seemed as though the horses were really moving on that one.  I thought the team roping was cool and looked especially difficult.  In it one guy had to lasso the head or horns of the steer and the other guy had to lasso at least two of the legs.  The guy doing the lassoing on the legs had to be super accurate, only two teams even got it and both of their times were 7 seconds.  I also found the Barrel Racing to be cool, you could tell that it was more than just being able to ride a horse fast but these girls also had to train their horses extremely well.  The girls that had horses that rounded the barrels without hesitation won.

Riata Ranch Girl riding sideways

My other favorite part of the rodeo were the trick riding girls.  I believe that they were called the Riata Ranch cowgirls.  Oh man, they were amazing.  These girls were riding standing up, sideways, hanging with one foot, bent over backwards, and while doing flips around the horse's necks.  Not only was it cool looking, it was an amazing show of gymnastic talent and horse training expertise.  All of us were like "this was the coolest thing they showed us."

So, that was my first rodeo, I enjoyed it.  Hope you all enjoyed this.  Remember I love to read a comment.

Enjoy!

What is with all the space?

So I have been reading a lot of friend's blogs lately, mainly to catch up on what they have been up during the summer but also to get ideas.  Has anyone noticed how many spaces there are in most people's blogs?

Why is that?  Is it some secret weapon that I don't know about that makes blogs more appealing to read? That is really the only idea that I have.

Is white space attractive?  I know interior designers use it a lot.  I don't like overly crowded rooms.  Maybe it's like interior design for blogs.

I really don't know.

If you have any ideas on the cause and/or effect of this phenomenon let me know.










Thanks

Billiards Background Blogpost (or BBB for short)

For those who don't know I am really into pool, or billiards.

I have always loved the game ever since I first played it at my great aunt and uncle's house when I was 11. I played a lot in high school, DJ and Brandon Cochran both had tables. I played so much that when I was 17 I bought myself a cheap Mizerak brand cue at the sports store Copeland Sports (no I am not at all related to them). That store has since closed down but I still remember where the cue was. It was on the second floor just to the south side of the escalator. I really liked that cue and I still have it, though it is now just an extra cue I lend to someone if they don't have a cue to play with.

Rick Skinner

I continued to play pool in college and as a freshman I took a pool class which I really enjoyed. It was taught by Rick Skinner (pictured to the right), a BCA (Billiards Congress of America) certified instructor. Rick did a great job teaching the official rules to the game and also teaching the basics of form (that is right good pool playing is all about form). Right after returning from my mission I started to play again and even considered trying to join a team. At that time I was dating a girl and taught her to play. Well, that didn't work out and I stopped playing pool for a while.

Then, in the spring of 2010, my good friend and fellow biological engineer Myles Thomas wanted to take a pool class. As we had almost the exact same schedule I took the class too and started to teach Myles what I knew about pool. He got better fast and I am sure that if he hadn't of moved to Purdue that he'd be even better. It was in that class that I remembered how much I really liked playing pool. I decided that I wanted to be more involved so I gave my number to Chris Crook, Mike McIntyre and Brittany Stainbrook and told them I would be interested in being involved with whatever club or team that they were thinking of creating.

At the same time I asked Rick and the rest of the people who were in the club what type of cue I should look at if I really wanted to compete. Most of them recommended Mcdermott brand cues. After looking and thinking and saving for a couple months I bought a Mcdermott M94G Brasilia cue. Oh it was, and is, gorgeous, made from Brazilian rosewood, the same wood used in the interior of the São Paulo temple. Here is a picture of it.

The Mcdermott Brasilia Cue (just so happens I served in the Brasilia Mission)

The next fall, I became the secretary of the USU Billiards club, joined the USU Billiards team and joined Mike McIntyre and Brittany Stainbrook on their Cache Valley Pool League team. I loved it. In competing at small tournaments and also against other teams in league play, I found myself getting better at a faster rate than I ever had. In the spring of 2011 I got two amazing pool related opportunities. First, Rick had left for Arizona and had given up his teaching post. That post was given to Mike but he could not teach in the mornings due to his schedule. So I got the chance to teach three different pool classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. It was a blast and it gave me a chance to learn how to teach something I loved. The second opportunity came in February when our USU Billiards team, through much trial which would take another entry to explain, got to go to Arizona to compete in the ACUI (don't know what that stands for actually) Regional Tournament. I didn't do so well, but I had a blast with the team and several fun experiences (again, I'll right another entry on this later).

The USU Billiards Team

Overall I have loved the game of billiards and the many people I've gotten to know while playing. I wish that other people would also pick the game up, maybe I'll write a Cameron Recommends on it one of these days. Anyways, that is how and why I am so into pool. Enjoy!

Cameron Recommends: Ticket to Ride

Third week in a row, I am doing pretty good.

So for this episode of Cameron Recommends I've decided to talk about Ticket to Ride: Europe.

Ticket to Ride is a game that was introduced to me by my good friend Joe Rodger, but shortly after playing if for the first time I realized that many of my good friends, mainly Celeste Hathaway (then Porter) and Michelle Hulse, enjoyed the game. I had great people to play with and many of them had different versions of the game. The version that I have enjoyed the most though is the Europe version.

So here is a brief explanation of the game. It requires 3-5 people to play. These people must compete to get the most points by the end of the game. You can earn points by building trains from one city to another and completing "tickets". Players also can earn points by having the longest train or by completing the most tickets. The board features Europe with many major cities on it all connected by different train routes. It can be easy to connect one city to another but if another player builds on a route then you'll have to go around or spend four points and a turn to use their route.

All-in-all this is a great game with plenty of strategy and luck. It is laid back enough that you can chat while playing and most people can understand the game within a few minutes. I would Highly recommend you play this game if you haven't already. I bought it and I haven't regretted it.

Enjoy it!

Cameron Recommends: The Simpsons

Oh yeah, that is right, I am writing in the blog again, for second week in a row, and all you doubters thought that I'd go back to the pattern of once every 9 months. Well, you were wrong. HA!

This week on Cameron Recommends I'd like to talk about one of my absolute favorite shows in television history, The Simpsons. I apologize beforehand in that this will be a rather long one with plenty of back story. If you'd like to just get to the

reasons why I recommend this then skip to the last paragraph.

The Simpsons, TVs favorite dysfunctional family and my all time favorite cartoon

series ever. I have been watching the Simpsons for as long as I can remember. Mind you the series aired in 1989 when I was 5 years old. My family loved the show and we watched it every week. Why, might you ask, was my family so interested in the show from the start? Because Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson along with Rod Flanders, Nelson Muntz and Ralph Wiggum, went to Fairmount High School in Kettering Ohio with my dad. Yep, it's my one and only claim to fame. She sends us Christmas cards and even wrote me while I was serving on my mission. She is very cool and does a lot of charity work including a program for terminally ill children where she calls them on the telephone with Bart's voice and talks to kids. So from the beginning when my dad realized that someone he knew was going to be on TV he was committed to supporting her, and we loved it.

Now to address some issues that people have with my beloved show. Many people have

expressed the opinion that my parents were irresponsible for letting me watch the Simpsons as a kid. In the early 90's there was a crusade of sorts against the Simpsons. Many kids that I knew growing up were not allowed to watch the show. However, these same parents would allow their kids to watch Friends with them. Let me pose you a little question, would you rather your kids watch a show where people are constantly sleeping with other people and where sexual innuendos reign supreme or a show about a family that stays together despite being a dysfunctional?

The negative press that the Simpsons got in the beginning of their season was an overreaction to Bart being an "underachiever and proud of it". Reporters said that Bart was a bad influence on kids and that children who were allowed to watch the Simpsons would grow up to be like Bart. Well I watched the Simpsons religiously as a kid and I'm on my way to earning a PhD in biological engineering and I am a fully active member of the LDS church, so there. If anyone reading this was as a kid forbidden to watch the Simpsons I strongly urge you to grab a couple of episodes from season 2-9 and realize how strong of a family the Simpsons are. Homer and Marge are a faithful couple who got married before their first child is born. Homer works to provide for the family and Marge is a caring stay at home mom who encourages her children. The family has nightly meals at the dinner table together and go to events and vacations together. Enough with that rant, sorry.

So why do I recommend the Simpsons? Simply put it is funniest show I've ever had the pleasure to watch. The Simpsons is the best example of social satire I've ever seen. The writers had a firm grasp on what was going on in society and made fun of it in fantastic form. I've seen most of the episodes from the first 12 seasons a couple of times and I still find myself laughing out loud. Now a word of opinion, I own the first 12 seasons of the Simpsons. After season 12 I personally feel that the Simpsons declined in quality and originality. So in reality this recommendation is for the Simpsons seasons 1-12. The Simpsons golden years were from 3-9 as this is where I feel the show really was in its stride. Seasons 10-12 are great but there are some dud episodes. And while I feel that there are plenty of stand out episodes in later seasons, the overall quality of the show declined. I doubt I will buy those other seasons. However, I highly, highly, highly recommend the Simpsons seasons 1-12 to anyone who loves to laugh. Here are just a couple of my favorite episodes: Cape Fear (well any Sideshow Bob episode really), Bart the Fink, You only Move Twice, and The City of New York vs Homer.

Thanks everyone and enjoy! Oh and feel free to comment if you agree or disagree with me on this.

Cameron Recommends: Mistborn

So I have decided to do some fun things with this blog. As you may or may not know I am using this blog as a backbone for some of the journal entries that I do online. It's a nice way to write about things that aren't really that important but that are fun. I'd also like my posterity to know that I was (mostly) normal.

So I have decided that each week I will write a post titled "Cameron Recommends" which will allow me to tell about something I enjoy. It might be a recipe, book, movie, song, album or anything really. So look forward to them.

This week Cameron recommends Mistborn. Mistborn is a fantasy novel written by Brandon Sanderson. For all of you fantasy lovers out there Brandon Sanderson was the author that was chosen by the wife of the late Robert Jordan to finish the Wheel of Time Series. Mistborn was written before that. So I absolutely loved this novel. It was suggested to me by my good friend Karen Mills while I was working in Pennsylvania for the summer a few years back.

Why recommend this? Because it is well written and well thought out. The characters of Vin, Kelsier, Sazed, Breeze and Ham are interesting, especially Kelsier. The book takes place on a world where the mystical hero that was to save the world from evil actually failed thousands of years ago. In this world of ruin, ash falls from the sky and Lord Ruler is god. The nobles have the favor of the Lord Ruler and the skaa are peasants who work for nothing. This world also has a unique magic system based on metals. When a person who was born with the ability to work magic swallows a given metal then they can "burn" it inside themselves for the ability that metal gives. Each metal gives a certain ability and most people that can use magic can only burn one kind of metal. However a mistborn can burn them all. What I really liked about the magic system in this book is that the magic follows physics in a way. For each metal there is an opposite, one will pull and the other will push. For the basic example, steel allows one to push on metal objects whereas iron allows you to pull on them. Plus it is such a great and engaging story. I am not huge into fantasy but I loved this book. One of the few 5 out of 5 books I've read.

So go read it. If you are in Logan and are interested I own it if you'd like to borrow it.

Well that is it for me. Hope you enjoy!

So I have not written on this blog in FOREVER. Sorry about that. Here is the story. I am still in Logan, though I have moved to a new apartment. I am way excited about my new place. I like it a lot, we have a pool and hot tub. So nice.

The other great news, I am now a PhD student. I know crazy, so crazy. I was doing a Masters in Biological Engineering when the departement head called me into his office. I was terrified, the reason, my r

ecent results hadn't been great. The equipment I was using was contaminated and it messed with my results. So I thought that I was going to get fired. Then the unthinkable happened, Dr. Sims told me that they liked me so much that they wanted me to switch research and do a PhD. I was blown away, it took me a day to compose myself and then I accepted.

My new research is with Dr. Randy Lewis.

He is amazing. Randy came from the University Wyoming this year. His research has been with spiders, that's right spiders. For the first several years he studied the molecular biology of spider-silk. He and his team sequenced the the proteins that compose spider-silk. Then his team started engineering synthetic spider-silk. They inserted the spider-silk gene into several other systems, namely goats, bacteria, yeast, and alfalfa. Here is a link to a newspaper article about the research:

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705375752/A-web-of-possibilities-Utah-researcher-uses-goats-to-make-one-of-the-strongest-known-substances.html

My particular research is to process the spider-silk proteins that we have put into goats. The goats produce the proteins in their milk. My job is to help to refine and optimize the process in which we take that milk, extract the protein, and then turn the powder we get and make it into a fiber. This is the type of research I really want to do. I am so happy to be doing this, even though it means that I'll be here for another four and a half years. I'll be a doctor, oh yeah, a doctor. It is amazing.

Wish me luck in my new endeavor.