Pictures

This is Blake's first dive off the dock there at Lake Geneva. If you can look past the brilliant light that is emanating from my torso you'll notice a look of sheer surprise and wonder at the flailing individual in front of me.



So I have a lot of shirtless pictures of Blake, that's not weird....

-Ben

The Puddle

One morning in the geographic region of Switzerland Blake and I were making our way up to the train that we had to catch each morning just up the hill from our Hotel. I happened to discover something unusual on the right hand side of the road. I went to investigate, and puzzled over it for a moment until Blake let me know just what it was.
Blake forces out the words, "Dude, it's puke."
I recoil and return to our journey. Blake, I'm afraid, didn't recover quite so quickly. I continued to talk about the discovery much to Blake's dismay.
I say, "Man, the color of that, looked like fur..."
Blake whispers, "Dude, (Dry Heave) please no..."
He takes a deep breath and says, "I'll, (Dry Heave) be fine as soon as we (Dry Heave) get to the train..."
He continues, "That shiz is so (Dry Heave) nasty, someone (Dry Heave, Dry Heave) must have partied too long last night."
I mention "Dude, I think those were chunks of Dominiques bread in there!"
"(Dry Heave, Dry Heave, Dry Heave) DUDE!"
Blake did make it to the Train that morning without expelling any of his breakfast. Weak stomach, but strong will. Here's a picture of him fully recovered.


Here's another for posterity. I've put this as my desktop background.

Much Love,
Ben Evjen

More on Zombies

Hey Blake,
Happy 30 days of Blake! :)
I didn't know that you were a big zombie fan until I read about it on this blog. Everything I know about zombies I learned from the Jonathan Coulton song "Re: Your Brains" and this video that some friends from my old singles ward made. I figured you might enjoy the video, and that Becca can learn some zombie uprising survival skills that could prolong your lives when the zombies try to get you.
Happy Birthday!

Mission: Vienna, Austria

Many of you probably know that Blake was a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Vienna, Austria some 10 years ago.

Here he is with his Grandparents at the airport, saying goodbye. Grandma Williams was a big support to him, writing letters twice a week. She provided him a constant supply of Kool-aid; the packets were light and small enough to send in an envelope.

He decorated the envelopes he sent home. His parents were delighted and kept them, obviously.

He is pictured here arriving in Austria with President and Sister Mangelson. They have been a constant source of support and encouragement to Blake since he's been home. President Mangelson married us last year, which was such an honor.

One of the "highlights" of Blake's mission was the Milka challenge. He was supposed to have eaten 1500 grams of chocolate in an hour. You can see the results below. Oh, the things missionaries do for fun!

He also learned to love schnitzel, which is ok by me. We make it at home every couple of months and it is sooo good. If you ever want to come over for schnitzel, we'd be happy to cook up a batch for you!

Background Noise

Blake likes background noise. He likes to have music playing or a podcast, movie, or TV show running at all times. His work is such that he can listen to whatever he likes during the day. A full-time job makes for a lot of music and podcasts in a week. He gets more use out of his iPod than anyone else I know.

He's always looking for new stuff, and his tastes are quite diverse. Do you know any shows or podcasts or bands you think he should know about?

Tell him about it in the comments!

Tired Dance

I just shared a video of Blake from our trip to Mexico. Because this is his birthday, I decided I should give him presents and not just post embarrassing or funny things about him.

So, Blake, because I love you, I'm sharing the video of my tired dance.

This is at the Mexico City Airport during a 6 hour layover, with very little sleep.

I'm a panther

When we were in the Mexican jungle on our honeymoon, we thought we'd heard a panther. We were in the parking lot at Chichen Itza. The area was all mystical and ancient and surely protected by a mythical panther. It was very scary.

Then, I discovered it was just Blake.

"I'm a panther" is the ringtone on my phone when Blake calls. It still makes me laugh every time.

Unhappy Hipsters

This is from a website that I thought Blake might like. The comments on the pictures kill me!

Daddy was making them watch yet another documentary on the impact of Bauhaus on American architecture.

Disneyland, the more current years

Blake may have fallen in love with Disneyland in his younger days, but the love affair has continued passionately into adulthood.

It's a place where he can go to reunite with his childhood friends.

And initiate new family members to family traditions.

This night was awesome. We rode Splash Mountain 3 or 4 times in a row, without getting out of the log. It's not such a popular ride at night in the winter. That was also the night we discovered the creepy real-live guy who watches the logs go by. Scares me every time now.

I'm sure the Disney love will continue down the generations. How could it not? For our kids, it'll be the place their parents got engaged.

Disneyland, the early years

Blake's experiences at and love of Disneyland started young.

He's the little guy on the left of Eeyore.

He's working so hard to get the sword out of the stone! Blake's mom said they had to stay around for about an hour because Blake was just sure he was going to be the one to do it. Can you see the determination and excitement on his face? It just delights me!

Blake loved his Mickey Mouse sweatshirt. His parents say he practically lived in it for a whole year. This picture is from Blake's 4th birthday. His parents drove all over the Salt Lake Valley looking for a Mickey Mouse cake mold. They found one and baked this cake at home for him. Blake's brother Trevor was born that same night. (That's right, they share a birthday.) When we look at this picture or talk about his birthday, Blake always points out that his parents did all this for him while preparing for a new baby. He speaks with awe about how his mom baked and decorated a special cake for him on the same day that she gave birth to his brother. He knew he was loved.

Graphic Design

I know I've mentioned before that Blake is creative and is inspired by others' creativity. I also shared the pic of his first graphic art. And today, I invite you to see for yourself what Blake can do.

His portfolio and website (which he created himself) can be found here.

Be sure to check out the about section. It makes me laugh.

My favorite piece is the collage portrait Blake created for me as a wedding gift. It can be found under illustration in the work section.

My mom is partial to the Dance-off in the found under web in the work section.

His talent impresses me. Blake is a hard worker and is constantly seeking to improve his skills. I admire that about him.