Megan & Chris Visit

 
 












Megan and Chris came out from Colorado to pick up Grammommy's car. Grammommy turned in her license and won't need her car anymore, so she gave it to Bill and Megan. Megan has gone back to school to get a teaching credential, so she has need of some wheels. She loves her classes and we wish her the best with her studies.

Fortunately, Megan and Chris were able to stay a few days. It had been awhile since we last saw them, so it was great to have them here, even for a short time. Janet dropped in from Fresno and the Normans came over for dinner, so we had a nice family get togther. But it's still not the same without Alan and Kristina.

Megan and Chris just left with Janet for Fresno because the road to Reno is snowbound. They are hoping the southern route will be smoother and safer. We look forward to seeing them again at the family reunion. 

Endangered Species Case Settled

A year ago, we filed a suit challenging 27 overboard critical habitat designations in the State of California. Last week, we settled the case. The agency acknowledged it had acted illegally and agreed to reconsider 75% of the contested area, a bit over 280,000 acres. The San Francisco Chronicle wrote a nice story about it. The story is unusually objective and, for that reason, all the more noteworthy.

Reagan Library

Yesterday, Mom and I attended a fundraiser for PLF. It was held at the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. The library is beautiful and sits on top of a hill with a majestic view of the valley. The library is a museum with numerous displays from President Reagan's life including the actual Air Force One, a motorcade, a presidential helicopter, and a reproduction of the oval office. We had 400 guests at $1,000 a plate. This was the largest fundraiser we have ever had. Our speaker was Peter M. Robinson who served as Reagan's speech writer for 6 years. He recently wrote a book entitled something like The Things I Learned From President Ronald Reagan. He related several anecdotes about the president both humorous and touching. The more I learn abut Reagan the more I admire him. He was truly an inspirational man and a great president.

During the program, Mom and I were unexpectedly invited to the rostrum where we were presented with a large picture of me arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court. This was the original sketch drawn for Fox News and which aired on Brit Hume. It is beautifully framed and signed by the artist. What a surprise! Now I have to figure out where to hang it.

We took some pictures of the library which can be seen here. If you ever have a chance to visit the library you are in for a treat.

Kristina's Visit

It was great having Kristina, Amara and Ethan visit last weekend. We had fun. Of course, the stay was all too short. We already miss them and we missed having Alan here too. I am already looking forward to the renunion in June.

Here are some photos from the visit. Note the hail in the last few photos. We get a storm like that only once in about ten years.

Sacramento Temple Capped

The Angel Moroni went atop the Sacramento Temple yesterday. Here's how it happened.









Looks good doesn't it!

The open house will be 4 weeks long in the month of August. A cultural celebration will be held at Arco Arena on Saturday, September 2. The temple will be dedicated in 4 separate sessions on Sunday, September 3. And, the temple will be open for use on Monday, September 4.

I can't wait!

Here's the link to the live temple webcam.

Grampy Recovery

Grammy called to tell us that Grampy's surgery went well. Yea!!!! Grampy will be coming home from the hospital Friday or Saturday and will be required to lie low for two weeks, which will be hard for him, but he should be in good shape after that.

Grammy and Grampy thank everyone for their prayers, thoughts, and well-wishes.

Devotional

Here is a link to my Stake Conference talk on hope.

A Perfect Brightness of Hope

Does anyone else have a recent talk they would be willing to share?

Survey

At Kristina's request, here are my responses to the internet survey.

4 Jobs I've had:
1. Kennel cleaner
2. Florist delivery person
3. Lab tech
4. Lawyer

4 Movies I can watch over and over:
1. LOTR
2. Pirates of the Carribean
3. Spider Man II
4. Princess Bride

4 Places I've lived:
1. Cleveland
2. Los Angeles
3. Berlin
4. New Orleans

4 Places I want to live:
1. Washington
2. Scotland
3. England
4. Oregon

4 TV shows I love:
1. 24
2. CSI
3. House
4. Lost

4 Highly regarded TV shows I have never watched:
1. Southpark
2. Nip-Tuck
3. Sopranos
4. Sex and the City

4 Places I've vacationed:
1. Edinburgh
2. London
3. Disneyland
4. Victoria

4 Places I would like to vacation:
1. Germany
2. Italy
3. Hawaii
4. Australia

4 Favorite dishes:
1. Swiss steak
2. Lasagne
3. Enchiladas
4. Bannana split

4 Websites I visit daily:
1. Drudge
2. Google News
3. Gizmodo
4. Kristina's blog

4 Places I'd rather be right now:
1. With my family
2. Reading a book
3. Sitting in front of a smoldering fire
4. London

4 Bloggers I'm tagging;
1. Hoppers' Happenings
2. Anderson Adventures!
3.
4.

Rapanos Transcript

Yep! That's me.


The transcript from the oral argument is now available on the U.S. Supreme Court website here.

04-1034 Rapanos v. United States 2-21-06.

IKEA

The IKEA store opend today in WestSac. It was crowded beyond belief, but I decided to make tha attempt. Luckily, I was able to find a parking spot and run in for a quick scan. I even had lunch. Good Swedish meatballs. In any event, I was amazed at all the things they offer. The bookshelves and tables are great. I saw about 50 room displays with the neatest stuff. You could easily furnish a house for a very reasonable price. I am anxious to go back when I have some time to browse. Definitely worth a visit. I can see why Alan and Kristina are so high on the store.