We are in Murray Utah

Here is our input to the Dukelow family news letter that some of you may find interesting:

We are at the moment visiting the Gentrys in Murray, UT. We drove up from sunny Arizona on a two day trip. We got off to a late start Monday because Rose had a dentist appointment. We spent the first night at Page and came up Highway 89 the rest of the way. It was a very scenic drive. We woke up yesterday to heavy snow but it mostly melted by this evening. So far we have visited the SLC children's museum, had lunch at the Gormandie Restaurant in SLC (excellent food), and played several hours of Wii and Monopoly games. Today we visited Ann Palmer in the hospital in Provo. Aunt Ann just had her left knee replaced. Afterwards we saw the movie Monsters vs Aliens in 3D. If you liked The Incredibles, you will probably like Monsters vs Aliens. In my opinion, The Incredibles was a better movie. Today, the sky was black before the sun went down so we will be getting more bad weather tonight and possibly tomorrow. (In the grand Dukelow tradition I have now included geography and weather so books, animals, and personal achievements should follow.)

I picked up the book: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins but have not yet read it. There seems to be considerable pros and cons for this attempt to disprove the existence of God because it does not fit into Mr. Dawkins' interpretation of Charles Darwins' theory of the origin of species. After I read it I will tell you what I think. At the moment the most I can say is the book apparently causes some people to think. Others it causes to respond without thinking.

I am reading at the moment a very interesting book: The Great Theft, Wrestling Islam from the Extremists by Khaled Abou el Fadl. This is also a controversial book because the concept of Islam as a religion based on mercy, compassion and peace has been supplanted in many peoples minds with the concepts of violence, intolerance, and jihad. My opinion on this will also follow after I finish it. Some of the Islamic web sites believe the author should be killed so it may support Mr. Dawkins hypothesis that religion breed violence.

I have been regularly walking a big dog named Buster in Gilbert. Buster's owner is an older lady who fell and broke her arm. She is not able to control Buster and is afraid to walk him. Buster is a Canaan Dog, apparently pure bred' who was left an orphan when his previous owner died. I was told he was not well behaved but after a short review of basic commands he demonstrated he knows what is expected of him if the correct commands and proper guidance is provided.

One day the ladies of our ward organized to clean the home of a woman who was in the hospital. Her husband is handicapped. They have a little dog named Apollo who was rescued from the animal shelter a few months ago and is probably less than a year old. Apollo is a very loving dog and wants everyone to scratch his tummy. I offered to walk Apollo when I took Buster out for a walk so he would not be underfoot as the ladies were cleaning. His master correctly said Apollo did not know how to walk on a leash. As soon as we were out the door and on the sidewalk, Apollo braced his feet and refused to walk. He skidded along the sidewalk until we picked up Buster about 100 meters away. After he saw Buster walking, Apollo decided it was easier to walk down the sidewalk than skid so he also started walking. It was an interesting walk because Buster wants to pull if he is not at "heel" and Apollo wants to drag behind so I was in the middle of two dogs, one enjoying the walk and the other terrified of the exercise. I have not been back to walk Apollo. Buster's mistress told me at church that a man who looks like me walked by her home the other day and Buster thought it was me coming to take him out. When the man did not stop to take him for his walk, Buster sat at the front door and howled and cried inconsolably. I walked Buster the next day. I have walked Greta and Max each day and they seem to enjoy their outings. Neither of these dogs understand the concept of "heel" very well but they are good natured and just need some more training because they really want to please.

We had Eve birthday celebration (or graduation - as she termed it) last Saturday at the Triangle Ranch. Our big pool was too cold so Peter set up a small wading pool for Eve and Nathan and Susan to play in. It was a nice birthday party. The other grandparents, Orva and Terry were also there. Eve was radiant and bubbling over with joy. At the moment, Lydia is also a bit bubbling because they have just learned that Eve will no longer be an only child.

This past weekend we also had guests from Hawaii. Bob and Sheila Woods and Sheila's aunt, Karie. We knew the Woods from our stay in Germany as they have children the same ages as ours. Karie has taught school for 42 years and is a real gem of a person. The Woods are thinking of moving to the Phoenix area after they retire from teaching high school in Hawaii. Bob is retired military so they want to live where there is a commissary. They own a house near Salt Lake City but have decided they do not like the cold and snow. We discussed real estate markets and places to live around Phoenix. It was good practice for my budding real estate consulting business. The Woods have been following our blog and were very impressed to see the Triangle Ranch in person.

There was great joy in the Gentry home this evening as Ryan has passed the tests to qualify for the PURPLE BELT in karate. He had struggled with his karate skills on several previous attempts. There is no social advancement in karate. Either you know the skills and can demonstrate them during the test or you do not pass.

We will probably be here in Murray until 10 April barring more severe snow storms and freezing cold that may drive us back to the sunny homeland sooner.