a new addition...

so i have been seriously slacking on my posts. so sorry to disappoint. the last couple of days have been busy so i will fill you in on what's been goin on... Leno style.

the top 10 reasons why my life is cool are:

10.- Yoga. i am harnessing my chi like you would not believe. a new unlimited monthly pass has got me hooked. yesterday i did head stands and binding!

9. ear candling- if you have not done it, and think your ears are clean, guess again. i almost wretched in my mouth after seeing how much wax was removed from my melon.i can actually whisper in erika's ear and she can hear me!

8. homemade Carne Asada- mr loke stroke strikes again in the cocina. fresh bajio tortillas, fresh guacamole, salsa fresca,refried beans, succulent steak...(wipe the drool now)


7. the last good-bye: sending clint and jess off on their maiden voyage to o'side. if you haven't seen the mayflower yet, you're in for a treat!the pics don't do it justice.diego's mop- lil diego kicked it with us again.he is much bigger and his mane is off the chain. did you guys break a bottle of bubbly on the bow of the boat before your trip?


6. first day of school- what? wait a minute. school makes tone's life sweet? must be a typo. it is. provo is back to full capacity- full of clueless freshman, provo all-stars/burn-outs trying to swoo the women-folk, and even more bad drivers. so the twist is, only one more semester here! that is why my life is sweet.

5. mr. metro- clint and jess described me as the "ultimate metro" because i get facials, wax my nose hair and eyebrows, get back treatments. thats what happens when your wife is an esthetician and you have hairy mexican/spanish genes. a smooth tone means a happy e-train. besides, have you had a facial from erika? you are missin out my friend- magical hands, magical. Also the recent discovery of Yoga and my vegetarian meals are tip offs. don't worry friends, mr loke stroke could never call it quits to meat.

4. pork barbacoa salad-oh yes, the rio my friends. on monday night we celebrated our labor day with "manuel labor" and our latino friends at cafe rio. nothing like it, nothing. thats the one redeeming factor of the p-town bubble.


3. melzer- seeing jake in his "first-day corporate attire" to impress his professors and colleagues. let me spell it out for you; a white button shirt-good. solid red christmas tie- decent. black nautica "sweater vest"- looked like something jamie foxx should wear. more of a shirt than a vest really. now for the "melzer flare"- bright red dickies shorts. i could literally see him across campus. i think he caused a few wrecks on east campus drive with those ones. haviana sandals- viva brasil! his mop of Jewish locks on his skull. some sweet versace glasses.(they really are pretty dope)and to finish off the look, a dirty goatee. you da man melzer!

2. arrested development season 3- if you haven't seen the show, well then that sucks for you. season one and two have blessed my life with laughter for years to come. buster, gob, george-michael and maybe...tobias. i have only seen 3 episodes of season 3 and already am addicted. who knew little opie griffith would grow up to make soo many people laugh.














ladies and gentlemen, drumroll please......the title of the blog, the newest addition to the mendioroz crew, the tiny ball of fur that makes Erika melt like ice cream on the 4th of July

1...the one, the only- PUPPY!!a 1.1 lbs. short-legged jack russell terrier. we still haven't picked out a name yet so how 'bout we take a vote. here is what is on the ballot: jack, buster, rico, dino, bean, kepa, peanut.

breathe, bend, be

so its been a few days since my last entry, but man some interesting things sure have happened! Thursday night i got my pamper on- Erika took me into to her school where she gave me the most incredible facial i have ever had. yes, folks mr. loke stroke is now a facial and wax junkie, getting the hook up from the mrs. The hour and a half long european facial is something that everyone needs to indulge on. a lil trimmage of the eyebrows was also on the menu- something Dad could use, according to mom. the facial totally knocked me out, and i went home and fell asleep at 10:00. it was off the hizee fo shizee...as far as the menu for thursday- Bajio Grill. I got a break from the kitchen.

Friday- was a cool day, because i was able to reflect on some very important counsel from Ty and Jenny's wedding. I took notes from their sealing and reread them. Ty, if you read this, your sealing was amazing! After that, i was able to hit up the bidnay course with Francis and Melzer. Not our best game i'd say- i will leave out the scores so as to not embarrass anyone. except that jake beat chris the day before with a bumb knee...thats embarrassing enough. We attempted to kick off that round as our tour starter, but it was my first game back in a month or so...the tour is pending at the moment. We determined that empty bellies was the reason of our off game and hit up del taco to refuel.

Oh yeah, for dinner i made hawaiin haystacks. E-train was skeptic at first, but ended up loving it. I impressed myeself cuz they tasted just like mom's!

Later that day, Erika and I hit up a round of minigolf with Chris and Sarah- all cheated our brains out...Erika is definitely entertaining to watch in any competiive environment. those of you who know her-laugh now. The golf was brutal for everyone, but at least we all got a hole in one at some point of the night! After hitting up the links, we did what every other person in provo does- Got ice cream. did you know that provo is the #1 seller of ice cream in america? quick sociology tid-bit for ya. that and diapers...mormons- who knew? A great time had by all.

Saturday-- my favorite day of the week so far! we started off the day gettin the mind, body and soul flowing through Yoga. Thats right, yoga! i fell in love with it. It really was an eye opener for me, of how strong you have to be and can get through yoga. Erika is gnarly and pretty much dominated. she has been goin to it for a couple months now and can do all sorts of crazy poses- from head stands to binding/balancing- she's ripped! chris and sarah also attended with us, so i wouldn't be the only amateur on the mats. i look forward to goin more and getting better. its relaxing, but a really good work out at the same time!


saturday night we spent with Erika's old roommate and her recently returned missionary. we went out to the Happy Sumo and ate some amazing japanese food. it was really good. Chong's chicken is definitely a good plate, for those of you who know the place. sooo scrumptious! It was entertaining to watch Preston the new rm interact with people. i could relate to his awkwardness and "deer caught in headlights syndrome." All in all, he is a cool kid, and i think he enjoyed himself.

this blog is already creepin and way too long, so i will end the suffering. I will keep you posted on my yoga progression.

so its now 4 days into my week of improvement, and i must admit i like the new me. i have to confess i did not do anything physical yesterday(wed), but everyone needs a break right? speaking of breaks, my super wife needs to take a break from her running for a lil while because a festering heel problem hasn't gotten to be unbearable. it has now started to swell, and really affects her in everything she does. curse those 26.2 miles in Moab of self abuse and torture!! A marathon is a cool thing to say that you accomplished, but man it sure beats the crap out of ya. No worries though, yoga is there to keep her busy. speaking of which, thats my activity for saturday. can you picture mr loke stroke, on a yoga mat all twisted up like a pretzel? I am in for humiliation for sure, but at least i won't be alone. Erika scored some free passes for me, Chris and Sarah to go. i can't wait to see Francis get his zen on!

so last night i surprised myself again with my amazing cooking skills. I went old school and busted out a traditional spanish tortilla. man, it took me back to my preachin days in the mother land. this was the best tortilla i ever made though, because i actually had the time to make it good. the trick to a good tortilla is low heat. the lowest possible...so at that rate you could cook one for nearly an hour! needless to say, i didn't have time to kill as a missionary. so half of the tortilla was filled with roasted red pepper, and the other galf bacon(potato and onion throughout the entire thing of course). Erika approved as i showed her how to eat it like a true spaniard- we had to have fresh baked bread. along side the tortilla i made a fruit salad-strawberries, peaches and bananas. E-train is lovin the not having to cook bit. i am enjoying my cooking experience as well.

So yesterday i met up with Chris and David at a favorite spot of ours in Orem. Maria Bonitas is a little mex joint that me and Dave frequent for lunch when we have the time. We discussed important matters of life over beans, rice, tacos and enchiladas. One thing that was discussed was the Francis' plans for winter. turns out they are gunna load up the credits to be done in december, then move back to Ca to avoid a Utah winter. as sad as it is to not have them here, its a good move and one that they will hopefully be happy with. selfishly i want them to stay, but i know that if i was in there situation, i would choose san diego over provo any day.

another important matter discussed was a bidnay tour. a trip out to g-rides with the bidnays on hand is somthing to look forward to. no official plans or dates yet, but when it all falls down, it will be posted.

team discovery

so as you know, i have taken on the challenge of getting back into shape...monday started off with a quick run, but tuesday involved something a little more tolerable. like usual, erika started her day with a run. the nice guy that i am, and keeping to my promise i joined her. this time though i wised up and decided to ride my bike along side her. ahh yeah...eat your heart out mr. armstrong!Unfortunately, my bike tire was running a lil low on air, and i had to ride Erika's bike...which incase you haven't seen her bike, let me paint you a picture: a women's beach cruiser (sized for someone about 5'5), spearmint green with white detail, and a white basket on the handle bars. NICE!! so me and the e-train ran/rode down through south provo on 900 e and state street...good times, good time. Oh yeah, the bike also has a bell on it, that i rang as we passed fellow joggers.

i felt pretty good though. awake and much happier than after my run. the rest of the day pretty boring...but i did get my haircut- prepped to grow out a dope shag.some people say i look like foo fighter's own dave grohl with a shag, what do you think? you be the judge until next time...

run forrest, run

today marks an interesting day in the life of mr loke stroke...why you ask? well, today is the day that i was officially brought to the pathetic realization of how weak sauce i really am. after discussing with Erika, we decided that we needed to do more things together. well, things that don't involve tivo and food. so we deicded to take an "easy" run togther. for those of you who don't know my amazingly fit wife, she tends to dominate in all areas of life. she just aced a final exam at school (1oo% kids), she is a star chef, and enjoys "extra curricular activities" as she likes to call it: running each morning, pilates, and yoga to name a few. so our run-- if you can call it that-- consisted of 2 miles, and erika dragging me along, yet always encouraging me with "youre doing great" etc..after our 30 minute stroll, we came back to the house, her just perked up and ready to take on the day. meanwhile i passed out on the couch, ready to go back to bed,

with all that said and done, I have decided to take my wifes advice and get back into shape. i have come to the harsh reality that i am no longer the anatomical specimen i once was in my summer days of surfing. so, i hold myself accountable for trying to get some life back into my veins, keep the heart rate up and be able to keep up with the lil mrs. E-Train. with all this said i done, i now have no excuse, and will be looking to you, to keep me in check. capiche?

in better news, i have decided to tackle the kitchen this week. unlike my struggles in the p.e. dept. i am an excellent chef. today on the menu was vegetarian paninis-packed with italian flava. tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, grilled zuccini, eggplant and red onion, fresh basil, and pesto sauce. bon apetit! until next time kids, wish me luck!

its all about the fam

so i am glad that some of you have checked out my little nugget and left me some feedback. i am glad i can inspire from afar for some of you as well. kudos to me i guess. but miq, my wise, oldest sister made a good point about representin the fam! where is the love you ask? don't worry folks, its in full effect whether you have equal representation or not...but for today its all about Los Mendioroz!! (and the Provosts and Erickson)



Carribbean Cruise August '05


Jonathan James
Miss Jules
Mini-me..Drewseff

Good times guys.good times.

who could forget the e-train?!!oh the fam...thanks for the inspiration, the suppport, the laughs, the cries and the love. each of you have contributed to my life more than you will ever know. i am forever in debt to you and what you have given me. i hope that i have been able to give back or some day will- as a son, a baby brother, an uncle, and a husband. os quiero
-t

freshman crew...may hall...2000-2001


marlo, the admiral in his glory, stroke, jo-jo, cap'n nike, tuff cookie, zach james...snowboard squad '00.
the canyons...our battleground and sweet escape from reality 3-5 times a week. who wouldn't want that reality?






melzer, katz, giles...2001

.dorm life- is there anything sweeter? hmmm, what you don't see is francis' creepy as all get out roommate in that shot. where are the poker chips and blender? scoreboard anyone?






mr. francis and the accountant himself. marlo has always been serious.




Jacob Porter Melzer...need i say more? well yes actually. above mr melzer is trying his best to pull of a lil hugh heffner action. that or quite possibly is prepping for his corn rows...yes kids, corn rows.


notice the wall of amazing behind jake's head. oh glorious wall of amazing!






admiral jorgenson and his sweet, sweet lullabies. hey, matt's part of it!








mr. tyson craig brown...a night to remember and probably the only thing that zach james was ever good for. thats quite a smile on your face ninja.