Greetings from Planet Vernal

Welcome Earthlings! Just a quick visual tour of this strange and wonderful planet that I have managed to land myself and my family on. There really is no place in the universe quite like it. The creatures are strange, the people are stranger. We live two minutes from red rock and searing desert in one direction and mountain lakes, quaking aspens and bubbling streams in the opposite direction. It is BEAUTIFUL here any direction you turn.

In case it has escaped your attention, we live in the heart of Dinosaurland. Dinosaurs are everywhere on Planet Vernal including a rather large T-Rex in the center of town who insists on changing his outfit for every holiday. His fashion sense is...well...it tends to be a bit ridiculous. The cupid wings and bow and arrow he carries around in February are just downright poor taste. But he has a good personality and we citizens of Planet Vernal allow him his little eccentricities. It probably helps that he is rather large and has a mouthful of pointy sharp teeth. But I've had the opportunity to be around him for a few years now and I really think that if I insulted his fashion style he would probably just burst into tears and I would feel like an asshole. So Rexy Baby...if you're reading this...I love ya...bunny ears at Easter and all.

Please don't be alarmed! Rexy is not bearing down on my niece and nephew to gobble them up! I asked him repeatedly to step out of the shot but every time I would snap the picture he would jump back into frame. As you can see, he thought this was quite hysterical but my nephew and I were just annoyed with him.

This place is called Jone's Hole. It's a fish hatchery at the end of one of the most spectacular scenic drives I have ever taken. I took a truckload of pics. I wish I could post them all.

This is looking down into the "hole" for which it was named. The green clearing at the bottom is the actual hatchery and just beyond it is a hiking trail along the river. It is green, peaceful and one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. As you drive in, there are sheer rock cliffs with waterfalls, cedar and pine trees and breathtaking views.

Below is a pic of the girls taking a breather on the trail. We had the best time down here but I think my favorite part was when Superman almost stepped on a snake while taking a pee break and screamed like a woman. (Fun fact: there are no snakes in New Zealand. I think snakes may be his kryptonite.)

These are petroglyphs done by the Fremont Indians about 8,000 years ago. (Impressive, huh?) These were taken in Nine Mile Canyon, which is stretch of dirt road that is actually about 70 miles (ahem...after hours of driving out of this place, I'm thinking they should really think about a new name). But it's definitely worth the drive.

We drove down into high rock walls on every side and the writing was EVERYWHERE you looked. It was really amazing. But the cool thing was, it was really, really quiet down there. Like eerie quiet. You felt like you were being watched the whole time and there was NO ONE down there but us. And just to up the creepy factor, we put my Great Dane, Cleo, on her leash and my baby LOVES her walks but as we stepped into the cliffs, she FREAKED OUT! She pulled right out of her collar and ran back to the car and no matter what we did, she would not get out. It was really weird. I'm sure she sensed something we didn't but being oblivious to what was probably the spirits of Native American warrior guardians or something equally bad, we just wandered around down there for hours. Thankfully, we got out of there with no rocks falling on our heads or rattlesnakes in our path or any other revenge the Fremont's might want to inflict. But the place practically screams at you to tread lightly, show respect and just stand in awe and that's exactly what we did.

As for the native people of Planet Vernal, you will never meet a more eclectic and fun planet of people in your life. After growing up in a place actually nicknamed "Happy Valley", which by the way is predominately Mormon (this is not a bad thing), coming to Planet Vernal was a bit of a culture shock. Where I came from, the people you worked with, hung out with, did business with were the people you went to church with. And people you didn't go to church with, you didn't really know. But here, everybody knows everybody and not one person has ever asked me if I'm L.D.S. NOT ONE! Cuz they don't care. Everybody is friendly and happy, the gossip is fantastic, the BBQ's are frequent, every afternoon is beer-thirty, the funny never stops and nobody cares where you come from, what you do for a living or how much money you have. This is the only place I've ever lived where you can't tell the millionaires apart from the middle class. On Planet Vernal, you can go to a party and never even know that the man you've spent all night hanging out with just sold a plot of land down the road for 5 millions dollars, cuz seriously...nobody cares. On Planet Vernal, everybody is equal, everybody gets a second chance if they do something stupid and everybody is just "good people".

So I would encourage you all to come visit us. It's truly a remarkable place. You won't regret it. Bring your mountain bikes or rent a river raft in the summer and I promise you will see sights you never thought you'd ever see or even existed.

And don't forget to say hi to Rexy before you go!