Wayne and Rebecca Madsen

I have spent the past 8 months working on this idea. Originally, I was trying to engineer a way for building a 10 foot cube (or larger) out of lightweight material that could be quickly set up and quickly taken apart. PVC pipes don't really fit either of those qualifications, but they are cheaper than titanium and they stand out better against the shapes and colors of nature. Plus, we are able to have friends come help build these boxes and interact more with the community.  read more »

Some older footage of us trying to get our cat to jump for the video camera. We filmed this back in February of '05. Just got around to putting it online.

The video file is about 10 MB. It will stream for you.

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A week ago, my advanced studio class went with me up Rock Canyon park and we installed some prayer flags on the mountain side. I have been interested in Buddhist and Hindu religions for a long time; I have read many Vedas in trying to understand Eastern Philosophy and religion. One of the things which interests me is the connection between Tibetan religious life and so-called "Mormon" religious belief. I wanted to investigate connections beyond those of geographical local.  read more »

I woke up this morning, having dreamt of cereal. I dreamt of Raisin Bran, Fruit Loops and Shredded Wheat. I'm telling you this because we don't own cereal. We have never owned cereal as a married couple (except the one time someone purchased us a box of shredded wheat while in Seattle). I wished that we had cereal this morning. On Monday morning, we discussed breakfast foods in my English writing class. As a culture, we have established rules for what passes as breakfast foods and what doesn't. You do not make or order a pizza for yourself in the morning, nor do you make a casserole.  read more »

DOORS: Do not allow closed doors in any room. To get a door opened, stand on hind legs and hammer with forepaws. Once door is opened, it is not necessary to use it. After you have ordered an "outside" door opened, stand halfway in and halfway out and think about several things. This is particularly important during very cold weather, rain or snow storms, or mosquito season. Swinging doors are to be avoided at all costs.  read more »

This week was the New Zealand show from start to finish. The students from Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi, an all Maori University in New Zealand, arrived late Sunday night. Monday they made the poor jet-lagged students and faculty wake up bright and early to help put up the show. They were so sleepy. And they kept commenting on how hot it was. Monday evening was a barbeque dinner, which I got to go to as well. It was funny to hear the Maori students keep talking about how everything in America is so big (from the mountains to the hamburgers).  read more »

I haven't written a book review since middle school. But here we go. Robin McKinley likes to retell fairy tales in her own way. This one was about Sleeping Beauty, based loosely on the fairy tale. It's interesting, because you kind of know where the story is going and how it will end, but a few surprises catch you that much more off guard.  read more »

Before we moved out to Seattle, we decided to pick up some books for our trip. On long trips, we like to read each other stories out loud and we're always up for a good youth fiction or two. However, the bookstore was having a sale on all books so we suckered ourselves into buying a pile of books we would bring with us to Seattle. Never leave us alone in a bookstore, we'll end up getting SOMETHING.  read more »

My current digital installation is up in Gallery 303 at BYU.

1 loaf unseeded and unsliced Jewish Rye bread
2 pounds corned beef or deli turkey, sliced
12 ounces Russian dressing, recipe follows
12 ounces sauerkraut or cabbage
12 slices Swiss cheese
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sprinkle the corned beef with a little water, wrap it tightly in aluminum foil and steam it in the oven.

Meanwhile, put the whole loaf of rye bread (unwrapped) into the oven. Bake the bread until the crust is very crunchy, about 15 minutes. Set the bread on the counter and let it cool for about 5 minutes.

When the rye bread is cool enough to handle place it on a cutting board. Hold the bread knife at a 45-degree angle and cut 12 slices.  read more »