SolitaryRoamer

Rockin' with Frampton and more

Another busy but fun week is gone and I’m not quite ready for the next one to start. Yes, it’s 5:49 a.m. Monday as I begin to type this. I took a nap for a couple of hours Sunday evening then got up and began to edit photos, write a travel story and write a blog for work. So I decided I would just stay up since I’m interviewing the drummer from Shinedown in a few hours and don’t want to sleep through it.

The week started off slow. I didn’t feel that great on Monday so I went home early but began feeling better in the afternoon. After making 72-hour kits at my singles branch’s family home evening activity, I took my friend Shiree out to the local Spoon Me frozen yogurt shop for a food review. Obvious jokes aside, it was a fun time with a good treat (I’m talking about the yogurt).

But Tuesday I was still feeling exhausted and didn’t get into work until late. So I ended up staying there late too, but did go out to dinner with a few coworkers.

Wednesday, however, was where the real fun happened. It was the day of the Peter Frampton concert and my friend/upstairs neighbor Janell was going to the concert with me. But I had a fun Frampton moment earlier in the day as I logged onto Twitter and saw that Peter Frampton himself had re-tweeted one of my earlier posts, which read: “Tuacahn comes alive tonight! @PeterFrampton will rock the red rocks.” Finally, I had achieved my goal of getting a celebrity RT.

I was told I would get meet & greet passes but wasn’t sure if it would work out. I was supposed to be able to meet both Gladys Knight and Foreigner earlier this year at Tuacahn concerts but they canceled their meet & greets. But I did get to meet Charlie Daniels, the guys from America and four of the American Idols, including Melinda Doolittle.

The concert was great (you can read my review for TheSpectrum.com here). And we did get to meet Frampton very briefly after the show. Since it was toward the end of his tour he was apparently quite tired. He didn’t sign anything and we were all basically limited to a quick photo with him (photo is coming). But right after the photo I told him I was the reporter who interviewed him for the local paper and also thanked him for the re-tweet earlier. He made the connection and a big smile formed on his face. He thanked me for the article and shook my hand.

Then the next day I logged onto Twitter again and found a surprise. Frampton had found my review of his show online and tweeted the link. And he sent me an @ message via Twitter: “Thanks so much for the review. I am sorry we didn't get to spend more time after the show. I WILL be back thanks to all there!!”

I spent the bulk of Thursday in the Enterprise area writing about Jason Knowles, a young man with some developmental and physical challenges who wanted to help his community. So he began collecting recycling from his neighbors and talking it to the local bins. You can read my story here and watch the video I helped our photo editor shoot here. I also did a little scenic drive along the Crestline Road between Enterprise and Panaca, Nevada, for my Backways & Byways column.

I spent Thursday night on the phone telling my dad about my adventures with Peter Frampton and calling to set up about a dozen appointments for my branch president at church. I had big plans to write a couple of stories that night but it didn’t happen. So I spent Friday morning and early afternoon finishing the Jason Knowles story and the story about Ramadan that came from my dinner with the Muslim family in Cedar City the previous week.

My plans for Saturday included one event: The first Zion Canyon Music Festival in Springdale. Because it was $20 to get in and I planned to be there all day, I didn’t think anyone would be interested in going. But Janell sent me a text late that morning and said she was interested. And I was happy to have the company. You can read more about that festival on my work blog here.

We did take a break from the festival to visit some of the galleries and grab dinner. We stopped by to see my friends Tim Campbell and Dave West, who both own galleries in Springdale. Janell was just as impressed with Dave’s photography as I am every time I visit him. And he’s just a genuinely nice guy, as is Tim. We a tasty dinner at Casa de Amigos, which is probably the best Mexican joint in Southern Utah.

Then it was back to the park to finish out the festival. Unfortunately a rainstorm decided to shut it down early. We initially fled in search of an umbrella and returned. But the rain was coming down so hard we decided to call it a night, completely forgetting that we had taken my cheapo camp chairs to sit on. Apparently they now live in Springdale.

On the way home we consoled ourselves for missing the headliners, The Mother Hips, by listening to some Frampton and singing along to “Baby I Love Your Way.”

It was probably good we got home a little early because I had a long day of church ahead of me Sunday. Because my branch president had so many appointments I decided to go into church early to make sure they went well. So I got there at 9:30 a.m. and didn’t leave until after 5 p.m. It was a long, long day, but my branch president’s day was much longer so I can’t complain too much. And it felt good to serve.

This week probably won’t be quite as exciting but there are some fun things planned for a few evenings. Thursday and Friday I’ll be reviewing a couple of plays at the Utah Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City. Then on Saturday night I’m attending a couple of art openings out at Kayenta. Plus I have to try and work ahead to get some extra stories done because I’ll be covering the LDS General Conference the first weekend of October.

Polygamists and Radiohead

Another iPhone update here. I just saw an interesting version of "Julius Caesar" at the Utah Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City. It was a dress rehearsal so they were still working out some of the kinks. Still it was quite fascinating with a bunch of cool sound and lighting effects. It was also set in the present day so Brutus wore a suit instead of a toga. My favorite part, though, was when Lucius began playing a Radiohead song.

Following the play I saw the festival's executive director so I sat and talked with him for a while. He gave me some really interesting insights into the play and theater in general.

By 11 p.m., however, I was pretty hungry so I stopped by Wendy's for some chicken nuggets and a DP. I pulled up behind a horse trailer, thinking it was kind of odd to see a horse trailer in a drive-through. Suddenly I saw the backing lights come on and the trailer began to move toward me. Luckily I was able to back up so I did. The truck and trailer seemed to be making the turn so I pulled up and ordered.

As I finished I noticed the backing lights come on again so I put my own car in reverse. But this time there was a car behind me so I couldn't move as the trailer came toward me. It was only inches away from crunching into me when the car behind me realized what was going to happen and backed up.

I narrowly escaped.

Eventually the truck just pulled out of the drive-through and I saw a teenage polygamist girl (probably a mother of three by now) run up to the window. And thus my question was answered: Who takes a horse trailer through the drive-through?

Traversing streams and covering conference

It’s been a rough but exciting week. On Monday and Tuesday I wrote 11 stories in preparation to leave the office for two weeks. Then on Wednesday I left town and headed for south-central Utah. Driving up over Cedar Mountain I had hoped to see some beautiful autumn colors, but it had already faded in most places. Starting near the Red Canyon area I began taking notes for a story on scenic Utah Route 12, one of the prettiest drives in the world.

I followed 12 all the way to the tiny, isolated town of Boulder where I had dinner at the Hell’s Backbone Grill, reputed as one of the best restaurants in the state. It was good but I wasn’t blown away. And when I pay $24 for enchiladas I expect to be blown away. And I expect good service, which didn’t happen. That night I did a little car camping on the Burr Trail, a scenic drive through the sandstone canyons of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

The next morning (Thursday) I took off down the Burr Trail and made a last-minute decision to follow it all the way through Capitol Reef National Park and south to its end on the shores of Lake Powell. And I almost made it there. A few miles from the reservoir I came to a stream crossing that made me a little nervous. I nearly went for it, but the stream looked like it might just be a little too deep to safely cross in my Subaru. I hate backtracking, but I figured it wouldn't be good to get stuck in the middle of the stream in remote Utah.

So I turned around and found another dirt road heading east. This dirt road also proved to be a slight challenge. There were two stream crossings. One did concern me a bit but I made it through OK. And there were a couple of dry wash crossings that scraped the bottom of my car. Finally I made it to a paved road, a state highway leading to the same area on the banks of Lake Powell. And I found the same road I had been on earlier so I could follow it to the stream I didn’t dare cross.

Eventually I headed north toward Hanksville and then west toward Capitol Reef National Park. The trees were just beginning to change along the Fremont River in Capitol Reef, creating even more color than usual in this beautiful park. I spent some time photographing the park before I secured my hotel room in nearby Torrey. Then I went back into the park for sunset photos of the gleaming red cliffs. However I had to get back to my room in time to catch “My Name Is Earl,” “The Office” and “30 Rock.” Yeah, I’m addicted to “The Office.” That night I ate another restaurant reputed to be among the best in Utah: Café Diablo. It was a good meal, but again I was somewhat underwhelmed. The dessert, however, was a mouthwatering chocolate mousse.

Friday morning I began my way back to Boulder. As I began my ascent up Boulder Mountain to the pass at 9,600 feet the rain began to pour. But as I climbed the brilliant yellow aspens practically glowed in the middle of the dark ponderosa pines. The rain made them even more brilliant. So I got myself and my camera a little wet as I snapped about 100 photos. It was the most spectacular display of fall colors I’ve seen outside of New England.

I finally made it to Boulder where I spent some time talking to the locals for one of my Small Town Life features in the newspaper. Then I had lunch at the Burr Trail Grill. Although it doesn’t have the reputation of the Hell’s Backbone Grill next door or Café Diablo to the north in Torrey, I had a wonderful turkey sandwich that was definitely worth the $9 or so. Then I headed back over the mountain, through Torrey and up to Salina for a quick visit with Zach, Katie, Quin and Edison before I got back on the road to Provo.

In Provo I saw my dear friend Ashlee for the first time in about two years. We had dinner at a little hole-in-the-wall Chinese place that was pretty good then made our way north to Draper to meet our other friends Bonnie, John, Melanie, Justin (a faithful SolitaryRoamer reader — yo, how about that Strawberry Mango Pucker?), Ryan and Melissa and a couple of husbands for dessert. It was great, as always, seeing the old Scrollie group from Ricks. Even after all these years and with many of them married we are still quite close.

I spent Friday night at my Aunt Kathy’s in Murray and left at 8 a.m. for downtown Salt Lake City to cover the LDS General Conference. I covered conference back in April but there was a great deal of excitement surrounding this particular conference because of the impending announcement of a new counselor in the First Presidency to replace the late James E. Faust. Elder Henry B. Eyring, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, whom I had photographed once or twice at Ricks College, is the new counselor and Elder Quentin L. Cook, a former member of the Seventy, replaced Eyring in the Twelve. We had a press conference with them in between the Saturday sessions of conference, which made my day busier but a little more exciting.

After I finished my stories following the afternoon session of conference I met Kerstin, a Facebook friend, for the first time in person and took her out to dinner. We had a great conversation that lasted well beyond my self-imposed 11 p.m. curfew. I finally got back to Aunt Kathy’s at about 12:30 a.m. and ended up talking to her for a couple of hours before I finally made it to bed. So now I’m in between the Sunday sessions of the conference and trying to fight the sleep that wants to come. It’ll be a fun drive to Rexburg tonight after I finish my stories. But then it’s a week of much needed rest and relaxation for me. And I can’t wait.

Salvation Army Cuisine

I'm now hanging out on the highway near the mine where the six workers are trapped. We're waiting for the official types to come out for the media briefing. Supposedly they are notoriously late.

So while I was waiting I decided to take advantage of the Salvation Army trailer and eat some stew and three (or four?) bean salad with the rest of the journalists. The stew was actually quite good. It was much better than the ghetto tuna sandwich I made myself for lunch earlier in Huntington. I just may be eating well during this adventure.

But I did realize that I should have bought a folding chair. I'm sitting on the road right now. Yes, I am literally sitting cross-legged on Utah Highway 31 stealing wireless Internet from the sheriff's mobile command center. Oh the adventures.

A purrfect interview

I managed to escape the office again this last week. The trips were not on my calendar when I walked in at 11 a.m. Tuesday, but they were when I walked out a couple of hours later.

Upon arrival Tuesday morning, my editor, Kathryn, and I discovered that we did not have a cover story planned for last week’s Where It’s @, our weekly entertainment guide. Nothing was happening in Southern Utah. So we brainstormed until one of us (I forget who) came up with the brilliant idea: Why not interview Mr. Waits?

Now, this Mr. Waits is not the famous Tom Waits. That would have been a great interview as well but he wasn't available. Actually, I'm not sure if he was available or not. We didn't really try. This Mr. Waits, however, was named after the gravelly-voiced singer/actor. This Mr. Waits just happened to be a kitty cat.

Mr. Waits is the mascot of sorts for Groovacious, the coolest music store in all the land (and definitely the best in Cedar City). He belongs to the owners, Tim and Lisa Cretsinger. So when I left the office Tuesday, I headed north to Cedar City to interview Mr. Waits and the Cretsingers. The resulting story can be seen here.

I ended up spending the night in Cedar and playing the family favorite board game, Ticket to Ride, with my cousin Zach: his wife, Katie; and some of their friends. It was likely the last time I’ll play with Zach and Katie in their current home near Grandpa’s house because they are moving to the pulsing metropolis of Salina, Utah, where Zach will teach LDS seminary.

The next day, however, I didn’t have to return to work in the office. Instead I sent my stories via e-mail that morning from The Grind, a coffee shop in Cedar City with great Italian sodas. Then it was on to Sprngdale, where I once again had the opportunity to work in paradise. This time it was another gallery feature on a photographer. And afterwards I took the opportunity to eat at another of my favorite restaurants, Oscar’s Café in Springdale.

Yes, sometimes this job is really great.

Working in paradise

It’s always a good week at work when you get paid to go to Zion. It’s especially nice when you get paid to go to Zion twice.

Tuesday I made a trip eastward to Kanab to write a story about an art gallery there and to do a food review. The art was great and the food was fantastic — one of the best meals I’ve had in Southern Utah. So the Rocking V Café now ranks up there with my other favorite Utah restaurants, The Painted Pony and Benja’s in St. George and Oscar’s in Springdale. On the way home from Kanab I took the scenic route through the park and consequently found out that it’s only three miles longer than going through northern Arizona. And I had a wonderful soundtrack for the drive thanks to the new album by Wilco (see my glowing review at What Do You Hear In These Sounds?).

Then today I got the chance to go back to Zion for an assignment. A trip to Zion is about the only time I don’t mind beginning work at 8 a.m. And this time I wasn’t writing. My editor, Kathryn, sent me there to do photos for a story by another reporter, Patrice (who sometimes reads this blog to remind her what the strange “Solitaryroamer” page is that she has bookmarked — so, “Hi, Patrice”). It was a story about some home-schooled kids, ages 12 and 13, and their last day of school, which featured a hike along the Virgin River in Zion National Park. It made me wish I had been home-schooled in Springdale.

And tonight has actually been quite relaxing despite a lingering headache. I cleaned up the condo a bit and then helped my new neighbor — a girl my age from Idaho Falls that I met in church a few weeks back — move into the condo above me. And since she was still moving food and such, I offered to fix some stir-fry (one of three things I cook) for dinner. She took me up on it and we had nice talk before she went back to unpacking.

Not a bad week so far.

Oh, and I almost forgot that I had my fourth full article published in USA TODAY on Monday. It’s a little thing about the former fugitive polygamist prophet Warren Jeffs’ singing debut. Sort of. Check it out here.

Mmmm ... caviar ... kind of

I tried my hand at "cooking" something for my coworkers last night. It didn't involve any actual "cooking" but rather mixing things together. It was my first attempt at one of my dad's favorite recipes: Cowboy Caviar. It doesn't really contain caviar, or fish of any kind for that matter. It is a chip dip featuring tomatoes, avocado, corn, black eyed peas, onions, cilantro, garlic, red wine vinegar, Newman's Own salad dressing and Tabasco sauce. It is so popular, every time my dad makes it now he brings copies of the recipe along with him. Now I'll have to see how my first attempt stands up at work today.

Also I have written another music review for my other blog What Do You Hear in These Sounds?. It is "29," Ryan Adams' third album of 2005.

Mmmmmm ... mangoes

Filipino food. There is nothing special about it. Chinese food usually tastes better. Thai food is much better. But because I lived there for almost a year, the food from the Philippines always seems to beckon me.

Today I finally went to a Family Home Evening for the first time in my new singles branch, the congregation I moved into when I bought the condo. It was at the home a guy who just got home four months ago from a mission to the Philippines. And in the midst of reminiscing about Filipino food — the good, the bad and, yes, the ugly (have you ever seen balut?) — he went into his house and brought out some dried mangoes.

Now I’ve had dried mangoes before, but these were different. Oh yes they were. These mangoes were from the Philippines. And you could tell. Say what you will about Filipino cuisine. It’s rumored as the worst in Asia. But you simply cannot beat Filipino mangoes. Even dried Filipino mangoes. Once you have partaken of a Filipino mango, anything you buy in the United States just cannot compare.

So I asked him where one could find such a delicacy. His answer? The Evil Empire. That’s right: Wal-Mart. Yes, that wily behemoth that kills small-town America, swallowing mom-n-pop stores like little Skittles, has dried Filipino mangoes.

“Oh, no,” I thought. “Yet another thing I cannot find anywhere but the Evil Empire.” I began trying to justify a visit. What else did I have to purchase there that I could find nowhere else? And just then when I was about to break down into moral darkness, he said something else. The mangoes can also be found at Costco.

I think I just may need a membership.

A rebirth

I was getting bored with my old blog — The Neon's Too Bright — so I decided to have a new start. And what better way to start out than on my new favorite color: purple? See, I just got my parents’ old queen-size bed and when I got sheets, I decided to be secure with my masculinity and get purple sateen sheets. And I love them.

So with this site, I’m going to try and be more regular about my blogging. I went through some stressful months where I didn’t have much time. And with me being notoriously longwinded, I always had a hard time finding time to post. But hopefully I will not be afraid to write something short now and then.

An assignment today took me to Springdale, the gateway to Zion National Park. Sometimes it seems so unreal that I get paid for this. As I basked in the beauty of Zion’s cliffs, I decided to search out the Thai restaurant I had heard about in Springdale. I found it and was greatly rewarded for my effort. As the recent graduate of a Thai cooking class through Dixie State College’s continued ed program, I feel I’m becoming somewhat of a connoisseur of Thai food. My red curry was excellent, though I wish they had offered something other than pork with it. But I don’t want to give away too much since I hopefully will have an upcoming food review in The Spectrum’s entertainment guide, Where It’s @.

It also was an interesting week at work. On Thursday I interviewed Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., one of the nation’s leading voices on fighting illegal immigration. He’s also the guy that suggested the U.S. bomb Islamic holy sites, including Mecca, if terrorists ever use nuclear weapons. He also thinks we should build a wall across the southern border and to hell with the migration patterns of animals. And he hates the idea of dual citizenship, saying people need to decide they are going to be Americans and use English and leave their other culture behind and if they don’t, leave the country. So, you could say we disagreed on some things, much of which I shan’t go into here. He also spoke to a whole group of people who loved what he had to say a bit more than I did.

But there were also some good politics going on in St. George this week. On Friday, Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, (yeah, you saw that right, a “D” and “Utah” next to each other, except in my actual story where I majorly screwed up and put an "R" because I'm not used to "D"s going with "Utah"), came to St. George and spoke about some new legislation he is introducing to help protect children against Internet pornography. I was impressed by Matheson’s presence. He didn’t scream “POLITICIAN” like some (I won’t mention the name of a certain songwriting senator that’s been in office for a good 30 years or so). He was very down-to-earth, warm and just plain nice.