Google Street View and Me

So I accidentally zoomed in while looking at BYU's campus and I got to street view and saw this picture and this other picture. I'm 90% convinced it's me and my buddy Scott.

The other day I went to Wal-Mart to return something, and since I had a little bit of time I decided to wander around the store. Basically, this means I went to look at tools, guns, and electronics. When I was wandering around electronics I ended up on the video game isle where there was a boy maybe 7 years old ROCKING OUT playing a baseball game on a Playstation 3. He openly shared his enthusiasm with anyone standing remotely near him, saying that he loved baseball and he loved Playstation 3s. Even when no one was standing next to him...or even in the same isle...he would give a loud play-by-play of his accomplishments. His excitement was as visible as it was genuine.

Walking away I thought about the last time I got that excited about something. It's been ages and ages, and I'm sad it's gone. Let's get back to basics people! I don't know what it was that made you uncontrollably excited as a kid or what it will take to find that excitement again, but for the sake of humanity and the world I hope we call all find it. If you don't look like this kid, you haven't reached it yet.

Something I recently found (annotated)

Two weeks ago I was in Utah visiting friends and family. Because I'm an "adult" now my parents decided it was time for me to get all of my stuff out of the house, which was mainly boxes of books and and things from my childhood. I found quite a few great things. The greatest was Teddy, my teddy bear. It was like seeing my best friend again, and we stayed up all night talking and catching up and reminiscing.

I also found a biography I had to make while I was in the 8th Grade. The final section of the biography was titled "My Future Plans," and was a brief description of what I thought my life would be like in the future. I posted the unabridged version last week, but for those of you not familiar with my life may have missed how accurate I was with some descriptions, and how far off I was with others. I hope this provides some clarity.

"I have big hopes for my future. I want to design jet fighters (I currently work on attack helicopters, though I have done some limited work on fighters) for either McDonnell Douglas (Boeing bought McDonnell Douglas), Grumman, or Lockheed Martin. All of these companies have produced Jet Fighters that have, on numerous occasions, performed above or beyond the expectations of whatever the mission was. In order to be able to design jets I’ll have to need a special education (I graduated in Manufacturing Engineering Technology from BYU in April 2010. It was at the very least "special" education).

I will have to take numerous math courses throughout high school and college (I was way off here. It turns out I only had to take MATH 112, Calculus...sucks for all you other engineering majors and your multiple semesters of terrible soul-sucking math). I don’t think that will be a problem because I like math (I was way off here as well. I don't really like math at all it turns out). I will major in engineering. I don’t think that a lot of schooling will be an obstacle for me if I’m motivated to get there. The reason I want to do this is because I want to design the next F-14. I want to design the newest and most advanced multi-role fighter. I would also like to be able to afford some material possessions.

I plan on making a million dollars and then retire (is that enough or too much? I still don't know). Hopefully this will be around age fifty (70?). I would like to have a large house on the Pacific Ocean Coastal Range (I don't think this will ever happen). I hope to own my own private Pusher Plane (I had to look this one up because I couldn't remember what a pusher plane was. It turns out it's just a plane with the propeller in back. I was probably going through a phase) and have a pilot’s license. I want to get married and have a family. I plan on working hard and being a good husband and father. But before I settle down I plan to travel a little.

I want to fly around the world in my Pusher Plane (I don't think this one will happen, but I did go to Italy with some friends and it was just as cool). I’ll modify my plane with my engineering skills to make it capable of making transcontinental flights. I’ll set down in major cities along the way to take pictures to show to my family and friends. I’ll also have video cameras on the wing tips and record the flights to show my friends and family as well. After the trip I’ll be ready to work on fulfilling my dreams and ambitions.

If I can’t do all of that, then I’ll settle on being a United States Naval Aviator (nope, not in 1,000,000,000 years). “I’ve got the need for Speed,” as you hear so many times in the movie TOP GUN. It’s true. I want to go as fast as I can as many times as I can. I also wouldn’t mind working for Lucas Arts. The company that made the STAR WARS computer games (which would still be cool I think)."

-Chris Welton, September 21, 1998

So there you have it. I was close on some predictions and miles off on others. It's been a great ride so far though, and according to me at 13 I still have some great things waiting for me.

Something I recently found.

I have big hopes for my future. I want to design jet fighters for either McDonnell Douglas, Grumman, or Lockheed Martin. All of these companies have produced Jet Fighters that have, on numerous occasions, performed above or beyond the expectations of whatever the mission was. In order to be able to design jets I’ll have to need a special education.

I will have to take numerous math courses throughout high school and college. I don’t think that will be a problem because I like math. I will major in engineering. I don’t think that a lot of schooling will be an obstacle for me if I’m motivated to get there. The reason I want to do this is because I want to design the next F-14. I want to design the newest and most advanced multi-role fighter. I would also like to be able to afford some material possessions.

I plan on making a million dollars and then retire. Hopefully this will be around age fifty. I would like to have a large house on the Pacific Ocean Coastal Range. I hope to own my own private Pusher Plane and have a pilot’s license. I want to get married and have a family. I plan on working hard and being a good husband and father. But before I settle down I plan to travel a little.

I want to fly around the world in my Pusher Plane. I’ll modify my plane with my engineering skills to make it capable of making transcontinental flights. I’ll set down in major cities along the way to take pictures to show to my family and friends. I’ll also have video cameras on the wing tips and record the flights to show my friends and family as well. After the trip I’ll be ready to work on fulfilling my dreams and ambitions.

If I can’t do all of that, then I’ll settle on being a United States Naval Aviator. “I’ve got the need for Speed,” as you hear so many times in the movie TOP GUN. It’s true. I want to go as fast as I can as many times as I can. I also wouldn’t mind working for Lucas Arts. The company that made the STAR WARS computer games.

-Chris Welton, September 21, 1998

Irony

I'm trying to organize my photos on my computer and I just stumbled across these pictures of me and my Fu Manchu. I could've sworn I'd forgotten to snap these photos, but turns out I was wrong. Here they are for your enjoyment.

Life Lessons: Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

Over the past few weeks I've been growing out my beard. Last week I wanted to shave it, but a coworker convinced me we should both keep our facial hair (he'd been growing a beard as well) until the end of the week. On Thursday, the amazing idea popped into my head that we should establish "Mustache Monday." The idea was to keep our beards until Sunday, and then shave them in time for work on Monday, leaving only a mustache. And here's what I learned. Just because you can do something doesn't mean that you should do something. I do not wear a Fu Manchu well. I'd planned to take a picture of what I'd sported all day to work, but I forgot and I was in a rush to shave before I saw Inception (which was an incredible film. I recommend it to everyone). The image below give's you a (scarily accurate) representation of what I looked like. Let this be a cautionary tale.Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

Bring on the Heat

I'll be the first to admit that I don't write on my blog very often. Or the second to admit it. The first person to tell you I don't blog enough would be my wonderful mother. I recently made a deal with my friend Adam that for every day he posts to his blog I would post a day as well, and vice-versa. Here’s my answer to his wonderful first post of his experiences teaching English in Korea.

I recently moved to Arizona to take a job as an engineer. It’s a really great place and I love the work I do, and really the only negative thing I can think of is the heat. It’s almost indescribable but at the same it is survivable if you treat an Arizona summer the same way you’d treat a Colorado winter: just stay indoors and wait for better weather. It’s never really too hot in the 6:00am hour when I’m driving to work, with my thermometer in the car reading temperatures in the 80’s. Some days I can even drive with the windows down and enjoy some fresh(ish) air and blast Knights of Cydonia as I make my way to Higley and McDowell.

After work though it’s a completely different story. Trekking across the parking lot to the car is like traversing a never-ending molten sea of sadness. There is also no respite once you get to the car, instead you enter another level of hot. This level of hot is the level that doesn’t allow you to remember how cute puppies are. Or anything else that’s happy. In this level of hot there are only two things keeping you company: sweat and the light-sucking vortex of despair that used to be your soul.

Life picks up dramatically once your lethargy permits you to turn on the car and crank up the AC. Soon you can remember the laughter of children. Colors infiltrate your vision once again…with desert brown being replaced with blue and green and happy yellows and reds. Before you know it you’re more in danger of hypothermia than you are of heat stroke, but you happily let the ice-storm pour from the vents and bathe you in frozen hugs of love. I love AC.

So all is well once again. Arizona rocks. We can beat it! We have the technology and the tenacity. Never give up, and never surrender.

PS: This last week I’ve been really sad because I thought my AC was going out in my car. It turns out I’d bumped the thermostat knob so it was half-way to hot. I’m glad I discovered this today because it’s supposed to be 114 tomorrow.