The Blessings of Family LIfe: March 2011

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Finding Family History in Cousins

I have had an exciting week. I have been communicating with some cousins that found me online. Cousins I didn't even know I had.
This picture is the culmination of a large group of Basheins that immigrated to the United States in early 20th century from Russia. This photo commemorated my Great-Grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary. They are seated in the middle of the second row with their youngest (Hyman) between them. It was a year before my father was born and he is 85 years old.

Come to find out there are two other branches that are alive and well of the Bashein clan and we are exchanging photos and stories we heard as children. It is so interesting. The last living person from this photo is the first little girl on the right, in the front row. Helen Schechter born in December 23, 1914. I'm told she is almost completely blind but she is still active and remembers family members from this photo. She married Harry Gurdus and had children. Not sure how many but her son, Mitchell keeps us informed.

I am so very blessed to have such a wonderful family. The pictures keep rolling in and we are growing in numbers in our online google group.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

The 312 Word Big Birthday Bash!!!

Title: Deer Creek

Genre: Mystery/Romance--Women's Fiction

Status: Work in Progress (first 100 pages)

Author: Valerie J. Steimle

Wyatt Litchfield, Mason Dutton, Jake Asher, Landon Spacks, and Blake Cassin stayed together through thick and think. These five boys were always best buddies from elementary school through high school and now college.

They rode horses together, skied together and dated girls together. One day, much to the surprise of their parents’, Mason Dutton announced to the group that it was important for them to learn how to scuba dive. It was a skill not easily mastered in their area of Southern Utah. There were no great bodies of water nearby unless you count Lake Powell which was over a hundred miles away. But Mason got the scuba diving bug and the others followed suit. All five boys found themselves swimming in a pool with diving masks and breathing apparatus.

For a year, the fearless five devoted themselves to learning how to dive so it wasn’t much of a surprise when Wyatt’s father asked the boys a favor.

Jerry Litchfield and Edgar Kauffman were real estate buddies. They shared an office and did very well in the Deer Creek area of the Southern Utah Mountains. There were lots of vacation areas which became popular during the 90’s when many area residents had more money to spend and bought vacation homes to alleviate the hot, dry summers of the valley. Jerry and Edgar also treasure hunted on the side as a hobby. They heard the stories of the Montezuma treasure buried somewhere around the area but no one could find it. They studied the markers left on rock walls and traveled all over the area to find any clue they could. They became well versed with the treasure hunting lingo and kept notes so they could study what they found.

One hunting adventure took the pair to a place through a cave. Not unusual as most of the places they searched were caves,

Friday, March 11, 2011

My bucket list

This list came to me from a good friend. Bucket lists are fun because you can write down something you've always wanted to do before leaving this earth and it becomes a goal for the future. It can even give meaning to your life. So here is mine. The items not marked are some of the things I would like to do, especially the traveling ones. I have never stepped foot outside this country and would like to visit other places. I've traveled from one end of the country to the other but not outside. Food for thought!!!!

(X ) shot a gun
( X) gone on a blind date
( X )skipped school
(X) watched someone die
(  ) served on a Jury
( X ) been lost
( X ) traveled to the opposite side of the country

(  X ) visited Washington , DC
( X ) visited New York City
(  ) visited Canada
(  )visited Hawaii
( ) visited Cuba
(  ) visited Europe
(  ) visited South America
( X ) visited Las Vegas
(   ) visited Mexico
( X ) visited Florida
( ) visited Australia
( ) visited Jerusalem
( ) visited Egypt
(  ) visited Alaska
( X ) visited the Grand Canyon
( ) visited Mediterranean
( ) visited Far East
( ) lived in a foreign country (longer than a month)

( X ) swam in the Ocean

( X) cried yourself to sleep
(X) played Cops and Robbers
(X ) played Cowboys and Indians
( X) recently colored with crayons
( ) sang Karaoke

(X) Sang for a prophet (Harold B. Lee)

( )Sold a piece of your own artwork

( ) won a ribbon at a county or state fair

( X) paid for a meal with coins only
( X) made prank phone calls
( X) laughed until some beverage came out of your nose
( X ) caught a snowflake on your tongue
(X) sneaked into a theatre, movie, or ticketed event
(X) participated in a “Chinese fire drill”

( X )  had children
(X) had grandchildren
( ) been married longer than 30 years (not quite)
(X) been married more than once
( X ) had a pet
(X ) been skinny-dipping outdoors
( X ) been fishing
( X ) been boating

( ) been deep sea-diving
( x ) been water-skiing
(X) dove off the high dive board
(X ) swung from a rope into swimming-hole
(x ) been Downhill Skiing
( ) been cross country skiing
( ) been parasailing

( X ) skated on a frozen lake
( x ) been snow-mobiling
( ) been hooky bobbing (on an innertube, towed by car –snow)
( ) been ice-fishing

( X ) been Hiking
(X) been Back Packing
( X ) been camping in a trailer/RV
( X) been camping in a tent

(X) Camped in the desert

(X ) flown in a small or private 4-seater airplane
( )flown in a two-seater plane
( ) flown in a glider
(  ) flown in a helicopter
(   ) flown in a hot air balloon
( ) been on a cruise ship
(   ) walked on a glacier
( x ) driven a Motorcycle (rode on one)
( ) been bungee-jumping
( X ) gone to a drive-in movie

(X ) done something that could have killed you
( X  ) done something that you will regret (feel sad about)
(x) Rode a horse
(X ) rode an elephant
(x) eaten just cookies for dinner… or cake
(X) been on T.V.
(X) Been on the Radio
( ) talked on a ham radio

( ) stolen any traffic signs
(x) been in a car accident
(x )donated blood (plasma)
( ) bailed out of Helicopter/Plane
( X) Published a paper or book (4)
( ) gone without food & or beverages for longer than 48 hours

( X ) been Hiking

(X) been Back Packing
( X ) been camping in a trailer/RV
( X) been camping in a tent

Favorite Drink : water

Have Piercings--yes (each ear only)

Have tattoo--no

Do you drive a 4-door vehicle? yes

Favorite number: 6

Favorite Movie: Ever After

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?:

Living in an old remodeled Hotel and traveling a lot

Thursday, March 10, 2011

School Honor Code Gets Attention-Editorial

All last week the media became very hyped up about a college basketball student suspended for having sex with his girl friend. You might think that unusual but at Brigham Young University it is not. A university affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

From the beginning of the application process to this school, you have to read and sign an honor code which specifically states that you will abstain from smoking, alcohol, illegal drugs, coffee, tea and sex, if you are single. There is also a dress code. I should know about such things because I was a student there from 1977 to 1982.

Most colleges and universities don’t care about honor codes. By all means, they want hard working, honest students who excel but as far as getting students to sign an honor code to not drink alcohol or smoke, wear modest clothes and not have sex? To them that would be impossible; but not to Brigham Young University. Because it is a privately owned church school their requirements are on a higher plane and the entire student body who attend, whether a member of the LDS church or not, knows what is expected of them.

The greatest outcome of this whole fiasco is that Brandon Davies, the basketball player in question, came forward on his own admission and told of his experience. This was really bad timing on his part because the BYU Cougars were ranked number 3 in the country and were in the running for the number 1 seed in the NCAA tournament which is the highest ranking BYU ever had in basketball. But he was honest. Not only was he honest, the school stuck to their guns and suspended him off the basketball team for the rest of the season. What other school would do such a thing? There is big money in big sports especially when the school does well. BYU officials knew that, but more importantly the honor code is a signed document that you will uphold this standard and they did what they had to do.

Without Davies playing they already lost to unranked New Mexico so their dream of being the top seed is over. Tough choices but in the long run integrity has been established. Brandon Davies will forever be marked as the honest student who came forward with his admission and for BYU to follow through on their suspension. Imagine if they didn’t do anything because he was the star player and looked the other way, other students would have pushed the envelope in the honor code as well and expect the same treatment.

As the Washington Post reported: “BYU is a one-of-a-kind school and the only school with principles and honor codes. Wouldn’t it be a good thing if such principles and standards were so well and routinely enthroned that when they were applied in cases of honor code violations, they didn’t generate coast to coast publicity?”

Even better: if these same principles were applied to all universities for our future workforce. What a different that would make!