Just July

Let's see, I can't say I had an overly exciting week. And that's just fine! It occurred to me this week that I have made a life that I enjoy even when it's not out of the ordinary. I will be going to Montana in early September and Portland in October for the Western History Association conference. And I still have seven more bookstores for the Independent Bookstore Crawl. As I think about those things, I think, "But I will miss out on doing all the things I enjoy doing at home!"

This week marked the anniversary of when I did the Utah Pin Quest. At staff meeting this week, everyone got a complete set of pins, and my colleague who made the announcement said that I got two sets, since I got the complete set last year. I did it the hard way, by going to ten museums in two days. I don't need two sets, but I took it anyway, since I did all the work to get the first set.

And because Monday was so hot, instead of running, I put up all the Pioneer Day decorations. Most of the Fourth of July stuff stays up for Pioneer Day, but there are a few things that are unique to each holiday.

My mom made the beehive for my Christmas present. Sunflowers were associated with Pioneer Day a century ago, and I love incorporating sunflowers into the celebration

Tuesday was hot again, so I swam with the swim team. But I didn't go swimming on Wednesday, because I was picking goatheads instead, and I thought the temperature might go down enough for running. Well, the temperature did go down, but it coincided with a massive dust storm, so I wasn't going to go running in that! And I didn't go swimming or running on Thursday because I had another obligation. But I went swimming on my own on Friday night. I swam 1,700 yards, which I think is the most I've ever swam on my own (I think I've done 1,800 when I swim with the team).

Saturday was my one run of the week, and because it was so hot, I only went 4.4 miles, whereas I usually go seven miles on a summer Saturday. I generally treat 85 degrees as the max temp for a run. When I was driving to the trail, my car said it was 84, and when I was done, it said it was 89. I picked the Mueller Park Trail because it's shady, but it's always busy, even yesterday.

Because it's the Pioneer Day season, I wanted to try a quirky restaurant in Ogden called Prairie Schooner Steak House. I don't even remember how I heard about it. All of the tables appear to be covered wagons, and there are taxidermy specimens. It was a fun experience, but I don't need to go back anytime soon.

When I wrote my article about Pioneer Day years ago, most of my information about the first celebration (1849) came from a newspaper called the Frontier Guardian. This year I learned that there are minutebooks that describe the first celebration, so I need to consult them. But they are very hard to read, so my first job is to transcribe them so I can easily read them. That will take some time. But my very last assignment at the Church History Library in December 2023 was making a transcription that I think was this same handwriting, so I've done it before.

***

Though the Fourth of July is over, I still have things to add to RWB roundup.

One of the more unusual treats is this Espeez USA Rocks, which I think is overpriced (nearly four dollars!). It's rock candy with the flavors of strawberry, sugar, and blue raspberry. Sugar crystals look cool, but that's about all I can say for them. Even the strawberry and raspberry portions don't have much flavor, and it's a pretty artificial flavor. And this thing is hard to eat. I think the best way to do so is to bite the crystals off the stick. 3/10.

I figured the strawberry, blueberry, and whipped cream of this Kneaders Strawberry Pecan Crunch Cheesecake makes it count as a RWB product, right? Cheesecake is not my favorite dessert, so I was surprised at how quickly I devoured this thing. It wasn't too tangy or dense and had a nice topping. 8/10.

I've seen this Red Button Red, White & Blue Popcorn for several weeks, but I was reluctant to try it, because what if it was just food coloring and the flavor was not unique? But I decided to try it, suspecting the flavors were different, and I was right. The red has a strong cherry candy flavor, and I'm pretty sure the blue is raspberry, but the white doesn't really have any flavor at all. I really want to like this kind of popcorn, but it's just not as good as regular caramel popcorn. 7/10.

The Prairie Schooner's sign about daily specials advertised this Strawberry Blueberry Waffle Sundae, which was a warm waffle with ice cream and berries. I enjoyed it, but I don't love cooked strawberries. 7/10.

Savory foods are rarer (and healthier), so I wanted to try Planters Sweet Cayenne BBQ Seasoned Peanuts. I don't usually love the flavor of spicy things, but these were better than I expected. They have a smoky flavor, and they're not super spicy. (They also have a ranch flavor, but I don't think I would like those.) 6/10.

I really wanted Strawberries and Stripes Toaster Strudel, but they were only available at the Harrisville Walmart, and there was only one box, and it had been opened, so it was missing the blueberry frosting. But I did get the Apple Pie with Star Sprinkles Toaster Strudel. I think this is their regular apple flavor, rebranded as apple pie with sprinkles. I really enjoy the Toaster Strudel, but the stars are the unpleasant, crunchy kind of sprinkle, which clashes with the soft pastry. It would have been better with the jimmies-style sprinkle, rather than these hard stars. 9/10 without the sprinkles, 5/10 with the sprinkles.

Saturday in the park, I think it was the Fourth of July

Well, we made it! The United States of America is 250 years old now! We've been preparing for this moment for years, and now it has passed. I already shared some of my thoughts about this milestone, so today's post is mostly about what I did this week.

Monday was surprisingly cool, with fresh snow on the mountains, so it was the perfect opportunity to wear my new flag sweater while I went to the office. (Apologies for the tacky bathroom selfie while I was brushing my teeth.)

In the evening, I thought I would try out a new trail. I rarely go up Holbrook Canyon in Bountiful—it is beautiful, but the trail is not good terrain for running (rocky, narrow, stream crossings, steep in parts). But there is a new portion of the Bonneville Shoreline Trail up there, so I went up anyway to see the new trail. Once I got past the old trail, the new trail was better terrain. I had to turn around before I saw it all, so I'll have to go back another time—probably a fall Saturday, since it's not terribly shady. I also saw that the Holbrook Trail will be closed for some trail work, so maybe they're going to make it better?

It's always cool to be in the Precambrian Farmington Canyon Complex

Fleabane

This bridge is almost a mile up the Holbrook Trail. How do they make such sturdy bridges up such difficult trails?

Meanwhile, the old portion of the trail has these rickety old things.

Tuesday was my mother's birthday, the same day Reggie was adorable sitting on our new dragon rug.

That evening I submitted my miles for Utah's Walk 250, which encouraged people to move 250 miles in the year leading up to July 4, 2026. Between July 1 and June 30, I ran more than 830 miles. The most miles were in May, then November, then December, which is totally nuts! (I might have run more in April except that I was recovering from my gum graft.)

Because I had worked for the grand opening of the Museum of Utah, I worked less than usual on July 2. With the extra time, I took my parents and my niece to see the museum. They were really impressed, as they should be. 

I had the full day off on July 3, so of course I ran up North Canyon.

First fireweed of the season

I had an idea to declutter by getting rid of 250 things. It was good to go through my drawers, but I underestimated how long it would take. After a couple of hours, I only got rid of 136 things. I have to decide whether I want to do the remaining 114 things.

In the evening, my mom and I went to Jordan park for Salt Lake City's drone show. We almost always go to North Salt Lake's firework show on July 3, so I was a little disappointed they overlapped this year. But drone shows have unique imagery, while fireworks are just fireworks. While we waited, I drew The Munsters on my Etch A Sketch because I had a dream this week that I did that. I'm not an artist, but I think I'm fairly proficient at the Etch A Sketch, which masks my lack of artistic ability.

I only added the columns with the awkward gargoyles because I had poorly drawn Marilyn twice, so they were meant to cover her up.

They had some local bands playing in the park, a folk band and then a country rock band. And then it was time for the drones at 10:00! They did not disappoint. I enjoy them so much more than fireworks, and they just seem better all around. The drone show seemed less chaotic (traffic-wise) than NSL's firework show, and I honestly don't understand why. (I do still like fireworks, and it is fun to watch NSL's fireworks with the mountains in the background, but still.) Adding pictures on Blogger is obnoxious, so you will see the drones in reverse order. If you want to see it sequentially, start at the bottom and scroll up. 

This is SLC's logo

Since the mailbox came after this sticker, was this in support of vote by mail? Take that, Mike Lee!

The iconic image of men eating lunch on a beam

I hope drone shows become even more common, if they can source enough lithium for all those batteries.

When we got home, there was still lots of traffic from North Salt Lake's fireworks.

On the Fourth of July itself, I ran up North Canyon again, which I also did on the Fourth last year. Since last year, I've also been up there on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and Memorial Day. (I went up to Cave Peak, which shares part of the trail, on Valentine's Day and Presidents' Day.) One mountain biker said he liked my patriotic outfit. And at one point, a small boy, between five and seven, called out to his dad, "A twail wunnew's coming!" I didn't know there was such a thing as trail running specifically until I was twenty-five!

We had a cookout at my sister's house, and I spent a lot of the day watching the Independence Day movies on Tubi. But I didn't want to waste the 250th birthday only watching TV, so I opted to go to Centerville's firework show by myself. They had Ryan Shupe and the Rubberband playing, but I didn't have a great seat. I would say Centerville's firework event was less chaotic than North Salt Lake's but more chaotic than Salt Lake's drone show. I didn't have a great seat for the fireworks because a tree was in the way.

And then I came home and went to bed.

I was pleased that I saw/heard very few fireworks besides the official shows, that people mostly followed the fireworks ban. I'm glad we didn't have a repeat of 2020 "Don't tread on me" Covidiots. People have generally agreed with the restrictions this year.

Utah's America250 commission encouraged people to gather on July 5 for America's Potluck. I don't have the personality or the house to host a potluck, but NSL was doing an America's Potluck event where they encouraged people to bring their own dinner and something to share if they liked (entirely optional), and the city would provide dessert. So I went to the event this evening (but I ate dinner beforehand). It was pretty small, and I think I was the first person there who wasn't helping with the event. Being an introvert, I didn't go out of my way to talk to people, but I had some conversations with some people. They had patriotic cookies, and then they had a pie-eating contest. I wasn't part of the contest, but I did have some leftover cherry pie. At the America250 launch last year, they gave out cherry pie to promote America's Potluck. Does that mean it's time to count cherry pie as a category 1 food?

Part of me is sad that the 250th is over. Should I have done more for it? Did I miss out on anything? But at the end of the day, 250 is just a number. The Fourth of July comes back every year.

***

And of course, RWB roundup is going strong! And it will last for three more weeks, because Pioneer Day is also the season for patriotic things.

One of the more surprising things to come across my Facebook feed was an ad for The Welsh Baker The "Patriot" Welsh Cakes. Welsh cakes are like a cross between a sugar cookie and a pancake, and they are actually Welsh, but this company is based in California (they have Welsh heritage). These patriotic cakes have blueberries, cherries, and white chocolate (though I don't detect the white chocolate). The bluberry is the strongest flavor. Such a random item! I like them, but not worth the steep price. 8/10.

When I saw the name of this Melville S'more at Sprouts, I knew I had to try it. Honestly, I don't remember much about what I thought a week later. I think it was fine? 7/10.

I made a special trip to get a Freddy's Red, White, and Blueberry Concrete, which, as you can see, is much more purple than advertised. I enjoyed it, though I don't think I'd go out of my way for it again. 7/10.

After I had a Maverik Star Donut last year, I eagerly looked for one again this year. The inside is some kind of fruity filling (berry or cherry). 8/10.

I'm glad Crumbl has mini desserts now so I can try more with less guilt. The Crumbl Cherry Bomb Cookie is a plain cookie with cherry, lime, and blue raspberry frosting. I've wanted a rocket pop Crumbl cookie for years. I enjoyed it as a cookie, but the execution seemed a little lazy. 8/10. The Crumbl Summer Berry Tart Cookie has strawberry jam with raspberries and blueberries. I think it was my favorite of this week's options, but the topping was very runny. 8/10. And the Crumbl Cornbread Cookie has been around for years, and it's rare to find corn-flavored treats. 8/10.

After the vibrant red, white, and blue of the Squatch Freedom Fresh Soap, I was surprised that Squatch Fresh Falls Soap was just one color. I have no idea what the scent is supposed to be; it smells nice though. 6/10.

The Dairy Queen Stars and Stripes Misty Slush Float has blue raspberry and cherry slush with vanilla ice cream. I thought it was less successful than the Sonic version. It was hard for me to get all the flavors together, except that the slushes blended into each other. But I still liked it. 7/10.

We accidentally ended up with an extra Dairy Queen S'mores Blizzard, which I have had in previous years. It has little chocolate pieces with marshmallow filling, which I think is creative. I like it, though it's very sweet. 7/10.

I'm not sure whether the Fritos Spicy Dill Pickle Flavor Twists are meant to be a Fourth of July flavor or not—it is a special flavor, but they also put the 250 branding on their regular chips. I like pickle, but I think the spiciness makes the pickle flavor less enjoyable. 5/10.

If I remember correctly, Taffy Town did a Stars and Stripes mix back in 2016 that had red velvet, blueberry, and maybe vanilla? This year's Taffy Town Stars and Stripes Mix has rocket pop (6/10), blueberry tart (7/10), and strawberry shortcake (6/10). I think Taffy Town is less flavorful than Sweet's. When it comes to saltwater taffy, I don't like fruity flavors as much (I prefer vanilla, chocolate, cinnamon, and minty flavors). 

RWB roundup will change a bit for the Pioneer Day season, but it will mostly remain the same.