Peabody is an interesting and entertaining place at 2:58 on a Friday afternoon. Boys are just entertaining as they attempt to kill the two minutes before the weight room opens...

you know how when you are a little kid, and something happens that you're involved in and someone asks you a question like "what happened?" and your response is "i don't know."--maybe even you give a little shoulder shrug and that cool walk away thing kids do (or 20 year olds). but then if the person is really lucky you might provide some insight into situation which really is an effort to just provide anything to get whoever to leave you alone and you say something like "devin did it". yeah...astronomy makes me feel like a little kid and i just want to shrug my shoulders and be like "i don't know...God did it."

i really like doing laundry...and making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches...that's why i plan on making it my profession...

...rain on concrete...

I Don't Normally Get Attached to TV Personalities but...

He's gone...and that really does make me sad.

today i felt quite small

im ok with that

Peru has pretty much been amazing so far. I have had some amazing food and we have had a lot of laughs. Plus we are working on two different churches in Lima and tomorrow afternoon we are going to go to an orphanage to play with the kids and drop off some toys and old clothes and such.

I could enjoy living in Peru I think, I just need to work on my Spanish.

ah, and i ate beef heart today, who would have thunk it?

some of the funniest things that happen at camp, i swear, involve a toilet....last summer it was singing to Will on the toilet...and tonight, it was cleaning the nastiest toilet (in the boy's bathroom mind you) i have ever seen in my entire life...two rolls of toilet paper jammed down in it, an explosive case of human excrement and to top it off the stall door was locked and there was more "mess" on the floor, so i climbed over the stall praying my foot wouldn't go straight in the toilet and got to work...fortunately i can't smell because i have a sinus infection.

at one point, as i was trying to plunge this lovely thing, it splashed....all on my leg...so i ran out and immediately grabbed a bottle of sanitizer and sprayed my leg down...yeah...i love final cleanup

so, finally a week that i can say i was truly satisfied with how it ran. for the most part, no major glitches or scheduling conflicts...most everything ran just as it ought and overall the kids were pretty into all of the activities...i'm dead tired though, not just from this week but from the summer...it's ok...two more weeks and i will be on my way to Peru...yeah buddy!

i really don't have the brain capacity to compose something of much interest at the moment, so i have decided that i will just post a list of things i have thought about over the past week:

1. i do fear that i shall always struggle with apathy
2. i want a tatoo
3. i am pretty sure that deep down my life goal of being on the real world is still there, although Leann told me about this cool thing called the World Race that sounds pretty awesome.
4. i need a hair cut
5. i'm tired: emotionally. physically. mentally. spiritually.
6. sky diving might go on in december.

i am/was (Jordan just had me turn it down) listening to brevada really loud in the office right now...it's good, i want to hear "urgency", it's kind of where my heart is.

gah what a week, it is definitely the middle of the summer, let me just say that. we had ACA this week, which pretty much determines whether or not we would remain an accredited camp. let's just say monday, tuesday, and wednesday I experienced some of the most intense stress and pressure i've ever felt. by lunch on wednesday Gene was painting it as if we were really in a tight spot adding just more stress and caused me to prepare for the worst, failing. at about 5 that afternoon he called Jordan and I into his office, informed us of the "case of the stupids" we as a staff had that day, then let us know that we got a 100%...by the grace of God only, man, I had no choice but to cry. we also had The Difference from SWU in this week which is always a joy and it was quite sad to see them go this afternoon.

i feel like spiritual moral is kinda low around these parts and that there is the same underlying tension there has been for the past few weeks. part of it, i know, is because i am not with the kids as much as the counselors so i don't get to see the same growth as they do. i feel like God is really breaking me and teaching me and it's been tough, I can honestly say I haven't enjoyed the lesson but I know He is going to strengthen me, plus, I've kind of known a breaking was on the horizon for a while now.

in so many ways though God is blessing things here at Rockfish. we had so many kids come to know Christ this week and it's so exciting. I got to hang out with some way cool operation purple girls and minister to them some. there is laughter. it didn't rain. we passed ACA. so yeah. my thought process is sort of farting out right now.

not the best day ever, one day things will just work....

My Motherland is Ghe-tto

We walked into Brooklyn yesterday, over the bridge, and of course yelling over the side (well as close to the side as we could get) just like they do in Newsies. We also found a statue of Horace Greeley and did a brief reinactment of a Newsies dance sequence....you know, it's just how we roll.

But yes...yesterday was the most bizarre, out of whack, yet amazingly entertaining day ever. We caused a car accident (not at all a serious one) because some dude was staring at us from out his car window while attepting to drive, thus causing him to run smack into the back of the van in front of him.

Then we missed out on the time of our life with this creepy old man in Brooklyn who stopped us on the street.

We made an attempt to get to Coney Island which resulted in riding the subway back to Manhattan, switching to a train going in the right direction, and then re-entering Brooklyn and eventually making our way to Coney Island...a ride which would not have been complete without silly middleschool and highschool boys trying to look cool and tough in front of us.

Coney Island is quite an interesting place....not at all glamorous....seriously, not at all. The main attraction was a game called "Shoot the Freak"...with a live human target and an obnoxious guy with a microphone. We did eat at the famous Nathans and get a funnel cake and got to do some people watching, so the day was well spent.

Oh yes, and did I mention in some way shape or form we always seem to end up in Chinatown.

Today we were all dragging but determined to see more of the city. We hit up the Tenament Museum which was really cool. A man on the tour with us actually lived in the neighborhood when back in the day so it was really neat to hear his stories. We also did some last day galavanting about the city and then called it an early day to get back to clean up and pack.

We are leaving at 5:15 in the morning and I really ought to be in bed but I am suprisingly not really tired...my body is just exhausted...

Either way, I believe I shall head to bed...good night dears

If you were aiming to shoot an arrow through my heart........BULLSEYE

Thank you Chinatown...I am now officially the owner of a hot pink "Prada" bag...I love New York.

today was our Big City Day. We went to see "The Producers" which was pretty amazing and then grabbed dinner in Times Square, complete with a quite wonderful honkin' huge piece of cheesecake. We also wore dresses, which is always a great thing.

I saw the movie Say Anything for the first time tonight, I must say, I enjoyed quite a lot and it had potential to go on my list of favorite movies.

anywho, i'm about to head off to bed.

So New York is pretty sweet I must say. We got in yesterday and pretty much hung out in the apartment for the afternoon and evening, so we called it an early night.

BUT today, we got an early start and hit up the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island which was so good. So much history there and so much more interesting then I remember it. There is just so much personal history there, millions of people went through the same doors I walked through, but it wasn't just some quick check in, it was a long, tedious, and frightening process upon which their entire futures laid.

After all that though we walked around Little Italy and China Town. I invested in a killer pair of aqua sunglasses with purple stripes and a plaid scarf...it's killer, oh and more costume jewelry...i'm such a sucker.

anywho, tomorrow I believe will be our chill day in Central Park which will entail peeing at the Plaza Hotel, riding the carousel, and eating a hotdog from a vendor. so it should be lots of fun. we also might try to get on TRL, which would be sweet, we're going to ask for Peru money (by the way, if you would like to contribute to the Peru Mission Trip send the money with my name to 226 Camp Rockfish Road Parkton, NC 28371 and make the check out to Rockfish Outdoor Center for it to be tax deductable).

well i'm out, early morning...

ahh so much to write but not the motivation to do it all...

most importantly, the first week of camp went awesome. It was a good learning time for a lot of our new staff and busy for those of us on support staff because we were running program like crazy. for example, I lead 25 hours worth of GCC this week...go me, i'm so pro...

we had two teams in, one from IWU and another from Bethany Bible College who were SO awesome, we tried to buy the one team from BBC but it didn't work out. we were really blessed to have such hard workers come help us out...good servants and tons of fun to have around.

it was good to have kids in, there is always a good energy when kids finally come to camp, even though staff training brings its stresses and worries, kids are such a good reminder of why we're doing what we're doing.

I had one ROTC girl who seemed to warm up to me and I am hoping to get an email from her soon. She was pretty much amazing and seemed to be open and searching. The ROTC kids were wonderful, some of the most amazing kids I've worked with at camp. Sometimes I feel like God is really calling me to work with the military...I don't want to be in the military, but between Operation Purple and this week with the ROTC I just see the hurt and love to hang out with those kids.

anywho, tomorrow Jordan, Petra, and I are making our way up to the BIG APPLE BABY!! That's right, 6 days in NYC and the town will never be the same!

tis all for now, more later

p.s. zac hanson is getting married

Camp Has Officially Started

Kids came today...camp has officially begun...pray...things are kinda going nutso around these parts, but the kids seem to be having fun...more later

p.s. umm yeah...mail me stuff

Another Summer

So here I am, once again reporting from the lovely Rockfish staff lounge, another summer is beginning. Gradually more and more staff are getting here, a lot of new people, which is exciting, summer is going to be interesting, challenging, and I have a feeling really hot.

God's bringing the kids now we gotta bring the service.

Adam Seate had a good sermon today it was the third part of a three part series called Mission Impossible. He covered three things that we all should know and practice.

1. God has already called us. He calls sinners and unusual people to do his work.

2. God isn't going to change the world by Himself, to complete our mission we have to step up and do it.

3. Work Together, as a body, to bring people Christ and bring Christ to people.

He talked about Mark 2:1-12 and he focused on the last verse about the people being amazed and never having seen what they saw (the four friends lowering the paralytic through the roof to see Jesus). Adam talked about how they weren't amazed so much at the healing but that they probably had never seen four people work together for the sole purpose of bringing a person to Christ. A different perspective, I like it. Both Jordan and I thought it would be something worthwhile to share with the staff...I will admit, I have some anxiousness about the summer, but we all have to be working hard to make this work. So we'll see how things go.

maybe not...keep your fingers crossed

well, pretty much all my favorite camp shirts, most of my winthrop shirts, my tiedyed capris and a killer pair of orange track pants are gone...

can i have a crappier day please...

I, Brooke Currie, solemnly swear to
1) not break, lose, or scratch the recently purchased one millionth pair of shades for the year
2) not overpack for camp

Harry Potter number 5 is officially completely. I feel like a bad fan, it taking me this long to get through the 5th book and all, but there are still a few days before camp to dig into the 6th and get myself up to snuff.

it has been far to long since i've lost myself in a book...where i have seriously spent hours reading, unable to put it down...it's a good feeling...i also discovered one of my absolute favorite books as a child in the garage...i think i need to read it too.

I'm Just Going to Post This, Do With It What You Like

226 Camp Rockfish Road
Parkton, NC 28371

I will be there in a week (May 16) until August 16th

I Would Like to Have a Chat with the Dalai Lama

"We do not believe people are good because we see that they are good, but by believing that people are good we eliminate our own fear and thus we can intimately associate with them. To believe in the compassionate power of the Supreme Being which we cannot see is a discipline in order to believe in the invisible good of others.

Civilization has nothing to do with having electic lights, airplanes, or manufacturing atomic bombs. It has nothing to do with killing human beings, destroying things or waging war. Civilization is to hold one another in mind in mutual affection and respect." -Nichidatsu Fujii

"The Bodhisattva loves all living beings as if each were his only child."
-Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra 5

I wouldn't say that I am a complete inclusivist, but I do know that if I were a Religion major as opposed to a Psychology major, my senior thesis would TOTALLY be on parallels between Buddhism and Christianity. Granted, there are some major differences (karma, rebirth) but honestly, if a Buddhist were to come to know Jesus I don't think he or she would have to change much about how they view and treat the world around them, in fact, I think they would be better at living out the Gospel than a lot Christians do, myself included.

If we as Christians really had our stuff together, we would love and respect a lot more. We would reach out into the world like Jesus did. We would keep our minds pure and not hate in our hearts. We would spend hours of initimate time with the Father and see the face of Christ in everyone, because they too are children of God.

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" -Ephesians 4:32

next to playing the accordian, african dancing is my life calling...

in the words of my dear pal katie...

piss.

feel the burn

the following entry is something i never thought i would have written or even thought.

i love being sore...i love working my muscles and pushing my body...i love leaving the gym knowing that while tonight it's ok, tomorrow you're gonna feel it....i love the tight muscles, the hot showers that follow a good workout, S-T-R-E-T-C-H-I-N-G, endorphins...it's all wonderful

this all coming from the girl who two years ago did one hour of yard work and seriously thought i would never get out of bed....

ha, i laugh at my former self

do you ever have those kind of days where you just can't seem in inhale enough? not due to some horrid, allergy induced congestive state but just because there is something so intoxicating about the air outside and you just can't get enough.

today was one of those days, well, more like this afternoon and evening. right before i was walking to work, the rain began, and there are few smells as great as rain on concrete. then coming back from work, campus just smelled so fresh, that smell that comes after a good rain...i can't describe it, but i just couldn't inhale enough of it....

broadway has reached a new something...the wedding singer has been turned into a broadway musical, that's right kids, broadway. i love the movie, but i am skeptical of it's ability to be a worthwhile broadway hit.

anyone who wants to argue that psychology is not the best (and most fun) major here at winthrop, i ask you this: did you sing "You Are My Sunshine" as a class to the class across the hall? I am going to guess, probably not.

is it completely lame that i very seriously considered buying a copy of "Free to Be You and Me" tonight? do you people even know what that is? if not, you are lame.

glitter nailpolish takes me back to middleschool...i'm pretty sure i need to reinvest in sparkly blue...

Cheddar Cheese Triscuts are the most mysterious snack food you will ever eat...you won't hate them and i'm pretty sure you won't love them, but you'll keep eating them.

only three more days and I'll be at camp...ahh, can't wait...good times are on the horizon.

someone make me focus pleeeease.

when a child you love and haven't seen for more than 6 months gives you a hug and says "i miss you so much" it takes all that's in you to not cry and never want to leave.

Puff Daddy's doing commercials for ProActive...that's gansta I don't care who ya are.

i don't believe i can express how i LOATHE the Tennessee Volunteers


down with the cursed orange!

in honor of waking up to find A Walk To Remember on TV, I have declared this Nicholas Sparks, indulge in the love story, get a good cry out, watch The Notebook day.

it wouldn't hurt if people learned to use the "no harm no foul" principle a little more often.

i really need to stop watching the rockfish video so much, it's making me miss camp in a bad way.

Spring break is so close that I can taste it and let me tell you I have big plans on the horizon. The Entertainment Schedule is as follows:

* walk 2 miles every day well all but 3 days out of 11
* get a tan (weather permitting)
* watch A LOT of TLC suprised?
* watch the entire season of Project Runway complete with Season Finale well not the entire season but i did see the finale
* bake lemon drop cookies my recipe=not good, trying mom's saturday
* bake scones
* hair cut
* take my mom out for a mother/daughter dinner
* watch The Notebook, alone :)
* write a paper it just makes me laugh i even thought i'd get this one done
* read The Cancer Journals
* study for two tests when I get back
* journal
* have breakfast with God every morning let's say midnight snack instead
* catch up on camper mail
* see the McCrackins and it was wonderful
* enjoy the privledge of going to bed as early as I want ha, i couldn't get to bed before 12 a single night but i did get to sleep in
* take the time to get ready I even curled my hair!

i am going to put this out there: immaturity is the root of all evil.

perhaps not "evil" in its truest sense, but evil to the degree that it is too often the root of my frustration. and i am not talking about immaturity as in, goofing off sometimes or knowing how to be silly, i mean just people not knowing how to act like adults or at least conduct themselves properly. it's always bothered me, and now more than ever it seems to be dominating.

why can't people pick up after themselves? why are some of the kids in my honors classes some of the most immature kids i interact with? why do some girls honestly not realize the world is bigger than what daddy can buy and who you will marry? why can't parents discipline their children? why am i more capable of doing the job of people who are supposed to be instructing me? why are guys so stupid?

i think a root of a lot of problems with the church lie in immaturity. people not seeking to know God more deeply, settling for contentment, not understanding the cross, men not knowing how to lead, women being ok with that (which is an issue i could spend hours on). imagine a world if we all acted like we ought to, the way God lays it out for us.

i just pray that believers can ask God for maturity in faith, realizing that God and his kingdom is so much bigger than our Christian friends and church on sunday and campus ministries and catchy t-shirts and carrying our Bible to class, not that any of those things are bad in and of themselves, but what if behind all those things we had a deep knowledge of God's soverignty and power and love and might?

alone in my room, i'm the star of my own broadway musical...


...the things newsies does for my soul...

DUMB DUMB DUMB

more to come later

"you have to wear your sperry's because you don't have rainbows"

It's Prep Day Boys and Girls

i'm going to write a book.

despite his womanizing ways, affairs, four marriages, and a notoriously almost bipolar personality, Frank Sinatra sure knows how to tug at a girls heart, perhaps that's why he is sometimes called the Sultan of Swoon or Swoonatra.

also, did anyone else notice to birds singing today? perhaps they were just espeically loud or i have been deaf to it before but it was like everytime i went outside all i could hear was birds and as i sat in my classes i could hear them chirping. i can't say it wasn't wonderful, but that many birds kidna freaks me out...i blame hitchcock

there is really no reason for couples to hold hands while they're trying to eat...it's not really romantic, it's not practical, and unless one person is a lefty well, it's just a hassle.

it's also lame when people push the handicap button on the doors just because they don't want to hold it for the person behind them.

"Lord, let your judgment, pass over us, Lord let your love hover near,

don't let your sweet mercy, pass over us, let this blood cover over us here"

-andrew peterson

there are plenty of things in the world that sadden my heart. honestly, i have no intention of going through the whole list right now, but one particular thing has been on my mind the past few days.

this particular thing, is the one thing that hits the heart of every girl i have ever come in contact with but at the same time will bring almost any group of girls together, in a sad, but honest kind of way...it's body image. body image is something i don't usually rant or dwell on, but it's something that is very much an issue for the heart of every girl.

my developmental movement class is full of girls i normally wouldn't hang out with. in fact, it's one of those classes i would really prefer to sit quietly through and not really deal with anyone in. however, it's also a classes based entirely on group work, so i have gotten to know some of the girls.

the other day, by i'm sure God's intention, i found myself sitting and doing my observation with the two girls in the class i had built up some ridiculous and judgemental distance from. the observation took all 5 out of the 30 minutes we had to sit there, so naturally, we just began to chat. it started with talking about clothes, because it's a PE class we were dressed out and were talking about where to get nice but cheap workout clothes. which then led to the subject of working out, which inevitably led to talking about why we worked out and what in particular drove us to feel like we needed to.

we were all pretty much in the same boat, not girls particularly obsessed with our weight and appearance so much, but worried enough to have days and times when we just didn't feel pretty or just were less than happy with how we looked.

it's sad, because even some of the most godly women i know, who are so satisfied in their relationship with God, still struggle with this problem. Captivating spends time on this and acknowledges it as Satan's attack on the fairer sex, which it is.

i really don't have a profound conclusion or solution to the problem, so i will leave it alone, but, it does make me sad that there are plenty of girls out there who struggle with this way more than i do and who furthermore don't know their status as the princess of a king who is enthralled with their beauty.



in order to not leave everyone depressed...i believe we should all talk like the gamblers on Guys and Dolls (starring good ol' frank sinatra).

because yesterday was valentine's day and i KNOW you want to know my thoughts on love

after about a week and a half of irritating mental stress, all but a religion test is in the past, and i feel obligated to allow my brain some quality farting time, at least academically. not to mention, i only have twenty minutes before work and there really is no need to crack open a book just to close it again.

sigh.

it amazes me how, as someone who calls herself a Christian, I can do such a shotty job of fulfilling the most central element of the Gospel--love. If you take NOTHING else from Jesus' message, take love, it's what he was all about, it's what we are called to be all about, but we fail at it so often.

i have a really hard time loving some people, I have no good reason usually, maybe they just have a bad habit or something I don't like, but in general, i just don't care enough to love. and what a poor reflection of God to not love my neighbor?

it's funny how not matter how long you have been a Christian, sometimes you still have so many of the basics to learn. I really have just been praying for God to soften my heart to love, to revel not only in his love for me, but to love my brothers and sisters all around me, to take the focus off me and just pour love into others.

gah, i don't do emotions well, but man is my God an emotional God!

p.s. this really has nothing to do with valentine's day

tulips and lemondrop cookies...

Let's face it, the thumbs up is dorky. It is, perhaps, the silliest gesture in our culture, but we all do it, and it's always dorky.

All the Small Things

drinking the recommended 68 oz. of water a day; choosing wheat over white; turning off the water while you brush your teeth; going for a walk; using one paper towel instead of 2 or 3; recycling; pray on your way from one class to another; smile; hold doors; say thank you; say bless you; go to bed before midnight; floss; grab fruit instead of icecream; s-t-r-e-t-c-h....

there is a lot of credit to the small things. We hear about it often, how "love is in the details" and how the "little things" are what matter most, and while those are wholly true, it's kind of warm picture of all the little things that are done unto us, that we appreciate, and that's not what I'm quite driving at. I am saying, that there is a lot of credit to the small, conscious choices that we make. Living a healthier life style often starts not with joining a gym or buying lots of special food and work out equipment, but with a few small choices that you otherwise wouldn't make. Often, that's all it takes. And while the attempts may be meager, there are plenty of choices we can make to do our part and help out the environment a little. Changing someone's day can be the matter of a smile or picking up their pencil when it falls--no skin off your back, barely a second of your time, yet, it might just restore someone's faith in humanity. All of the many small things can sometimes just make the world, and life, a little bit better.

I truly believe, God appreciates detail, He does not ignore the small things. An honest and heartful "Lord, help me" is often times better than clouding a prayer with all the right words and format. Cutting of the TV or signing off the internet 15 minutes early to open the Word, God notices things like that. Neither will cause any damage to your life functioning (i promise) and it might even just make things a little better.

you might be asking though, why such credit for the small things, why do they deserve such acknowledgement? well the reason is, the small things are the first things to get shrugged off or ignored when we just don't feel like it or if we're feeling particularly mad at the world. Because the little things often go unnoticed and because the little things require discipline, self discipline in a way that, because they are small, we must constantly make the choice to do them. the big things we don't ignore, because they are there, they are in our face. we often make huge plans that we invest so much time, money, and effort into that, well, to ignore them would just be kind of stupid. it's there, it's prominent, you might as well pay attention to it. the small things though, the details, they are often overlooked and taken for granted.

the credit really comes in though, with the fruit these small things bear, sometimes in a way only you will know, or sometimes in a way you will never know, the small things are things, like small children, that just sort of wiggle right up to your heart, the small things are returned with small things, those quiet moments when God makes a cloud formation just for you, or lets you witness something funny, just because He wants to make your day better. The little niche in your heart, the one reserved especially for small things, it's God, letting you know that you're not going unnoticed (after all, we're all pretty small) and that He loves you.

the discipline of the small things though, the every day decision, the conscious effort, ahh, tis a great discipline to learn kids...there is not much that we can do that really merits much, the small things are about all we can do, but, like good ol' Mother Teresa said:

"we can do no great things; only small things with great love."

all i can do is smile...i have kid art for my wall.

"The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces" Isaiah 25:8

This verse, ah, I can't really describe the comfort it brought me as I read it. What better picture of God than as a Sovereign Father? Words like "sovereign" and "Lord" highlight God's power, his majesty, his strength...but the action, the wiping of tears, it's so paternal, so loving, so so gentle.

I read this and just got this picture of a little child (all of us) crying and then this strong index finger, from a strong hand, slightly bent to delicately wipe and catching a tear, no real words, no face, just gentleness.

How great is that, so much power and so much love and so much delicacy in one God, one Father, completely gentle without losing an ounce of his power.

I really hope that one day my passport will be full, all of the pages used up with stamps from all the various places I hop to travel to one day.

I was looking through a desk drawer today and came across my Epcot Passport from when I was 8 years old and my family and I took a trip to Disney. It was a pretty sweet idea, you got a Disney Passport and at each country at Epcot you could put in stickers and the employees would write a message in your passport in the language of the country.

I want to go back and do that again, I think it would be good times.

I want to write a manifesto, of what, I have yet to decide.

"Remember your childhood...and pass it on

I remember as a kid pretending to have "discovered" buried treasure in my backyard. I always wanted to find some amazing discovery that no one knew about. It's that moment when you come upon something so new to your senses and experiences that can be so overwhelming. Sometimes, its the journey to the discovery that gives us the satisfaction more than the discovery itself. Other times, its realizing that you may be the first, if not only, person to have this discovery. So, do you remember when you discovered something for the first time? If you think about it, everyday life is filled with discovery. That is if we are willing to look. For whether its a treasure, another land, true love, a matching sock, or even destiny...its like finding a secret doorway that you never knew was there...and then walking through it."

a little joy from some borrowed reading.

From Hook

Oh, no. To live... to live would be an awfully big adventure.

Soggy Sweatpants

there is a pair of soaking wet tevas outside 204 in Margaret Nance, not to mention grass on my icy cold toes and a pair of very soggy sweatpants in the dryer.

honestly, it kinda makes me feel like being poetic.

it's funny how the soaked bottoms of my jeans was of utmost annoyance to me today, yet sitting here, only freshly changed from being soaked from head to toe, I am in a complete state of happy.

it sorta feels like a scene from some movie like Garden State, some sort of liberation from something, although you don't really know what but it's just one of those moments you know you should commit to memory.

it really is a beautiful night, not nearly as cold as the gray day and rainy weather would lead you to believe. the puddles glistened as we ran and stomped through them. the whole time i felt like i should yell something at the top of my lungs but i didn't know what.

at one point, after much stomping, i just stood under this stream of water pouring off of the roof. it was amazing, refreshing, exciting.

i do believe, that one of the most attractice looks come from being soaked head to toe with once done hair askew and raindrops dripping off your nose--that, i just got caught in the rain and i enjoyed it kind of look. except we didn't get caught in the rain--the rain caught our attention.

perhaps one day i shall dance in the rain, in a glowing parking lot or perhaps a field.

thank you katie and brandy...my night is now perfect.

I'm tellin' ya

the acorns are out to get us. They hit you on the head while you're walking to class...you slip and fall as they roll under your feet, and I'm sure they have dented their fair share of cars...what the hey.

I just want to say, that sometimes good ol' M&M's serve a greater medicinal purpose than drugs ever can.

Part of me really wants to teach kindergarten

There is nothing, and I mean NOTHING, like a five-year-old's enthusiasm for life, and that is why, despite my many years of being adamantly opposed to teaching, deep down a part of me really wants to be a kindergarten teacher.

Earlier today, I was sitting at my desk, studying for a philosophy test, when the sound of children hits my ears from outside my window. Naturally, I drop everything to go look and there, right outside my window were 20 or so probably 4 and 5 year olds, collect leaves, kicking dirt, twirling in circles, giggling, screaming, all the with utmost excitement. It brought be such a joy to hear that, and to get to watch it. I couldn't help but smile, and honestly, part of me wanted to cry.

They were collecting leaves that had changed colors to take back to class. So all these youngin's were racing and hurrying to gather as many leaves as they could (as if there aren't a million just sitting out there) and ever so proudly carry them back to their teacher, complete with some comment about how pretty or cool or yellow their leaf was.

Then the wind blew, and I've never heard sweeter squeals of excitement as a whole new batch of leaves came showering down on their heads. It was beautiful.

Luckily, right as I had to leave to go take my test, they too were moving on to some other adventure of fall.

Man, We're Good

It was a tough, close game, but we pulled through with our mad skills, keeping up our record as
2-0, we're pretty amazing.









I want to write about things other than football but don't seem to be able to find the time.

"Let us Speak then of love...

What does it mean to 'love' something? If a man asks a woman 'do you love me?' and if after a long and awkward pause and considerable deliberation, she replies with wrinkled brow ' well, up to a certain point, under certain conditions, to a certain extent,' then we can be sure that whatever it is she feels for this poor fellow it is not love and this relationship is not going to work out. For if love is the measure, the only measure of love is love without measure (Augustine). One of the ideas behind love is that it represents a giving without holding back, an 'unconditional' commitment, which marks love with a certain excess. Physicians counsel us to eat and exercise in measured moderation and not to overdo either. But there is no merit in loving moderately, up to a certain point, just so far, all the while watching out for number one...If a woman divorces a man because he turned out to be a failure in his profession and just did not measure up to the salary expectations she had for him when they married, if she complains that he did not live up to his end of the 'bargain,' well, that is not the sort of till-death-do-us-part, unconditional commitment that is built into marital love and the marital vow. Love is not a bargain, but unconditional giving; it is not an investment, but a commitment come what may. Lovers are people who exceed their duty, who look around for ways to do more than is required of them. If you love your job, you don't just do the minimum that is required; you do more. If you love your children, what would you not do for them? If a wife asks a husband to do her a favor, and he declines on the grounds that he is really not duty bound by the strict terms of the marriage contract to do it, that marriage is all over except for the paper work. Rather than rigorously defending their rights, lovers readily put themselves in the wrong and take the blame for the sake of preserving their love. Love, St. Paul said in his stunning hymn to love, is patient, kind, not puffed up or boastful; it bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Cor. 13). A world without love is a world goverened by rigid contracts and inexorable duties, a world in which--God forbid!--the lawyers run everything. The mark of really loving someone or something is unconditionality and excess, engagement and commitment, fire and passion. Its opposite is a mediocre fellow, neither hot nor cold, moderate to the point of mediocrity. Not worth saving. No salt."

-John Caputo, On Religion

This is what I am reading for Religion class....I'm so excited.

Caputo is searching to explain St. Augustine's questions "what do I love when I love God?" And he further concludes that "If you do not love God, what good are you."

So what do we love when we love God...do we even really offer God the fire and passion, a lovers love? What do we replace our love with, what are we wasting our affections on?

The Nance Will Make You Dance

That's right ladies and gentlemen, the girls from the Nance have a football team and we're ready to dominate.

Daytime television sucks

I have been especially distracted today.

Fall break is quickly running out and I still have a lot of reading to do, yet it all goes completely unfinished.

When those attempts failed, I tried reading a book just for fun, a new one, called Captivating, and even though I couldn't put it down last night, today it took me 30 minutes to read on page. Even television wouldn't suffice as it was an endless process of flipping through the channels. I aimless wandered up and down the stairs, signing on and off the internet, digging through drawers that I knew held nothing of interest to me, stood up, sat down, and heaven forbid I crack open my Bible and just spend some time with God...I just feel so restless.

It's good to be home, but at the same time, I always kind of get this way when I'm home, it just seems to be worse this time. I've spent a lot of my break alone actually. My mom and Devin have work, school, their social lives and whatnot, and there's really not anyone here in Myrtle Beach for me to see, there's really not much here for me these days. I guess that's kind of why I feel restless.

A lot seems to change when you haven't been home for awhile, even just within my family. My mom has started wearing jeans and drinking beer (not in a bad way, just never in my life have I seen her drink beer and last night at dinner she ordered one). Not to mention, she's skinnier than I was at like five. She goes out with Randy a lot, which is good, she deserves it, I guess with not being home though, I don't really get a chance to get used to it.

Devin is slowly becoming someone I could actually see myself hanging out with. He's a good kid, really, I was worried about him for awhile, but I think he's gonna turn out ok. He even came downstairs with his arms wide open for a hug when I came home Friday. I really hope he works at camp this summer, it would be good for him, it could be cool to hang out with my lil bro some. He's got a lot of growing to do, but he'll get there.

For fear of sounding old, middle and high schoolers today really make me sad. After school today, Devin and three of his friends came over to the house (all girls oddly enough) and apparently the one girls mom thought she was actually at Myrtle Beach High School and she sat there on the phone with his mom, lying right to her face, not even just be vague but saying like "No mom, I'm at the highschool, I'm standing right here in the hall way and waiting for practice to finish." Then when her mom didn't go for one of her plans concerning transportation from point A to point B, she hung up (with not even a good bye) let out a grunt, and another girl chipped in another layer to the story to tell her mom, devised another plan, and called her mom back.

I used to be that kid...I still am sometimes.

What hurt my heart though, is they all seemed kinda empty, there wasn't much there, and even more, the girl who was instigating the new plans of lying was the one girl I actually knew pretty well, and really hoped would rise about the same kinda crap that got her sister in so much trouble in high school. And she seemed the most detached of all. It's so sad.

Sometimes it really amazes me how easily I can procrastinate, how willing I am to do so, and how sometimes I even dilerbertly look for ways to distract myself. God's yelled at me for it, my mom's yelled at me for it, I've yelled at me for it, but I do it all the same.

I need to work on self-discipline. God's been showing me a lot about discipline and how vital it is to our lives, we're all looking for order, and God's got it, just gotta stop and listen to him.

Well, I think I am done procrastinating for the time being, maybe now that I've written some of this down, my mind will settle down a bit.

Makes me Laugh

You know Love is a happy time all throughout the universe. Its when the male part of the species goes to the female part of the species and says "HEY, you wanna go on a date!" And then she would say, "Well, yes I would like to go on a date, IF YOUR LUCKY!"


And then you go to a resturant and then she gets something called a salad and he gets a big piece of beef that he eats. And that ladies and gentlemen is what I call love. Kinda makes you cry doesnt it.


Brak from Space Ghost

I've Got Mail...I've Got Mail

and not e-mail either, the real stuff...all the way from one of my campers in Jacksonville, NC.

whoo hoo.

getting mail is perhaps one of the most exciting things ever.

what made it even better is that the letter is folded in one of those complicated and obnoxious note passing ways that you learn like in the 4th grade and keep doing until about 10th grade when you finally stop passing notes and then you just forget. It's so refreshing to see those things still around.

oh, and the sun is back in action kids.

The Sandal Tan Has Been Reincarnated

Not that is actually ever goes away but it was definitely on it's way to fading when WHAM! I take off my sandals Saturday night and after being perplexed as the whether it was a dirt or a tan...it was determined that it was in fact a glorious sandal tan.

Not that is wasn't worth it. I mean, a resurrected sandal tan is a small price to pay for a high quality weekend of fun filled times at good ol' Rockfish.

The weekend was just wonderful. Good times with Good friends. Lots of hanging out at the Joiner household. Convincing kids that clay-gelled mohawks are "so rockstar." And watching one of the best dads in the world spend quality time with his three little girls just made my heart melt. Not to mention the Peru trip is SO on for the summer. I'm so exciting. Good things are happening there.

Quite honestly, I didn't want to leave, as usual, but it was a very refreshing weekend. Nice to always have a place and family to go home to.



I wanna be at Rockfish, where the mud is ripe and the trees stay green...

THERE IS HOT WATER IN THE NANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Praise God!

Classy

I feel like I need a record player and a cool vintage dress and heels.

Good Things That Happen Before Noon

Although it is just now moving towards the 10:30 hour, there have been signigicant reasons already to make today a good day. They are as follows:

1. Despite having gone to bed way late and waking up at an obnoxiously early hour (and by obnoxiously early I mean 8:00) than I normally do and after having been absolutely exhausted all yesterday, I woke up quite energized and I must say I am "alive, awake, enthusiastic."

2. Props to my biology lecture class! A girl got sick in my class and not only was the teacher incredibly helpful to her and not made she was interupting a test, but when the professor had to leave the room there was not a whisper or a shuffle through notebooks, everyone just sat there and continued taking their test--that so would not have happened in high school.

3. Chemistry majors are cute with their little protective eyewear and aprons.

4. Someone genuinely responded to the smile I gave them. It wasn't some elaborate exchange, but he took the time to stop his conversation on the phone for a brief second, smile, say hello, and go on his way.

5. Frank is in the CD player.

WaHo and Prom Dresses

As if the Waffle House is not enough fun on it's own, throw in some prom dresses and make it a night.

This is what a real man looks like

silly

Crazy girls

All dressed up for the classiest meal on earth

I Like the Way You Move

Ba dum dum.

hehe...I am far beyond delirious at the moment. Maggie and I have been in a particularly funny and witty mood since we got back from Body Sculpt which has only progressed that later it's gone the and the further we are from achieving our homework. We rhyme, we listen to Outkast. We're also hungry...we want Waffle House, Mexican, Chili's, pretty much anything.

I had every intention of going to bed way early tonight, but I am so not tired.

For those who didn't know, Kid's Radio is now unlimited.

It's served quite useful as entertainment while I locked myself in my room all weekend to study philosophy.

It's been years...

It has been years since I have had a scraped knee...a scraped chin maybe, but scraped knees are things that come from rollerblade wipeouts, flips over bicycle handlebars, vicious games of "lava monster" or tag...but all things you figure you will one day master as soon as you grow into a certain level or coordination.

hehe...that is not so. but I must say, there is this great sense of "inner-child" that comes with a good scraped knee, that sort of play focused lifestyle, the intensity that comes with the playground and recess games of soccer. It's great.

But what is even greater than that, is the paradox that comes with wearing a skirt and having a scraped knee. It's that sort of off-balance of the grown-up world and the child's world...it's the difference between play clothes and work clothes, and it's, I don't know, like when parents try to dress their children up to make them look like little adults, to make them look presentable but they really are just little people with missing teeth, goose eggs, snotty noses, and scraped knees and elbows. It doesn't quite match.

College or not, fancy clothes or not, I am still very much a kid at heart.

Can't Stop, Won't Stop

There are several kids around campus who have shirts with the "Can't Stop, Won't Stop" phrase on them, I think they're from Irmo or something like that.

Well I may not be from Irmo, but I believe I might operate on this principle, not that it's bad neccesarily, just annoying when I really would rather quit and give up on something than stick it out.

I'm not a quitter, when I start stuff-I finish it; when I'm in something-I'm there; Friendships, relationships, work obligations, all such things-I'm loyal. I just can't back out on stuff, and when I consider it I go through these lengthy battles with my conscience about it all and it often leads to more stress than I needed, because in the end I knew whatever it was I was thinking about not doing, I was still going to do.

Since the second day of class I have wanted to drop my philosophy class. I liked to rationalize that I didn't have the time to devote to it, or I wasn't ready for the class, but the truth is, I'm intimidated by the class and I am not sure I will get an A so I would rather quit than be challenged and get a B (heaven forbid).

I went to wherever and got the form ready to drop, I contacted the professor, checked my advisor's hours but I can't bring myself to drop it. I know I am capable of the work.

Curses darn work ethic and crap like that.

Because it's Beautiful

Goodnight, my angel
Time to close your eyes
And save these questions for another day
I think I know what you've been asking me
I think you know what I've been trying to say
I promised I would never leave you
And you should always know
Wherever you may go
No matter where you are
I never will be far away

Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to sleep A
nd still so many things I want to say
Remember all the songs you sang for me
When we went sailing on an emerald bay
And like a boat out on the ocean
I'm rocking you to sleep
The water's dark And deep inside this ancient heart
You'll always be a part of me

Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to dream
And dream how wonderful your life will be
Someday your child may cry
And if you sing this lullaby
Then in your heart
There will always be a part of me

Someday we'll all be gone
But lullabies go on and on...
They never die
That's how you
And I
Will be

Billy Joel.

All the Things I Didn't Say on My Philosophy Quiz

It is a pretty commonly accepted presumption, at least in Western thought, that God can be defined in three essential characteristics:
1. He is all powerful
2. He is all knowing
3. He is all loving/caring/good/etc.

It is also accepted, and I would assume rarely doubted, that evil exists in the world. Murder, rape, lying, cheating, hate, lust, toying with people's emotions, bitterness, and all the other millions of things we as humans often instigate in our own lives and add on to the heap of evil.

So, all of this leads to the philosophical argument of, "If God is so good, and so powerful, and so knowledgeable then why does evil exist in the world; and furthermore, if He is aware of the evil and has the all power, why does he allow evil to exist?"

It's a good question, one that a lot of Christians would mark of simply with the concept of free will and one that non-believers could use to try to appease the own pain in their lives, pushing off their own misfortunes onto God and not accepting the human role in anything.

But, for arguments sake, obviously if evil exists AND we have God to be an all powerful, all knowing, all loving God--something doesn't match up. Both cannot exist in their described fullness, and since evil undoubtedly exists, God therefore cannot be all He was previously defined all, or at least not to the degree of "all" that was previously ascribed. Therefore, we are posed with the question of "which of the three characteristics must be weakened or lessened to make up for the evil that is in the world?" This was our task on the quiz.

From my standpoint, most people are willing to accept God's power and knowledge. Most people can handle the idea that God has ultimate power, that He created the world, basically manages it, and it the producer and conductor of most of life's affairs. They are ok with the idea of some "faceless being" being "in charge" of things. Afterall, just because one has power doesn't mean one has to use it, so therefore, God could just choose NOT to act in instances of evil. And people are willing to accept that God is all knowledgable, that He is aware of all things, including evil, and all the things going on in their lives, but knowing doesn't do much with action or heart. So that leaves the all loving/caring/good/etc. category. That seems to be where people have the issue with God.

They ask questions of "If God is so loving then why do I have to endure such hard times or why did so and so have to die or why does no one love me" or "If God knows some terrible natural disaster is going to destroy millions of people why doesn't He stop it, if He's so powerful."

Now, free will does play a role, no doubt, but it's not just some scapegoat excuse for what might be conceived as God's inaction. God knows us as his creation, and on my observations I know something about people, and it is this...I have not met one person, who likes to feel like he or she doesn't have control of their own life, it's what makes Christianity so hard, giving up control, and even some of the most Godly people still have areas of their lives that are hard to surrender to God. WE LIKE TO BE IN CONTROL, or at least think we are in control. God did not create us to be thinking, feeling, free beings just to have Him make all of our decisions for us, it would defeat the purpose of our creation. God's already chosen us, but He wants us to chose Him. I mean, no one wants to be loved out of obligation, it should be freely given and received. And that is why God gives us the choice...and because we are imperfect yet strangly confident in our ability we screw things up, we hurt people, we hurt ourselves, we make messes.

But if God were to just step in and fix everything that we mess up, it would undermind what He created us to be, not to mention He already has made arrangements for all the time we screw up.

So the problem of evil is not an issue of God's not wanting to use his power and knowledge and love to save His children, it's a call for us, His children, to use the facilities He has given us to combat evil and make a choice to love Him.

In an MMMBop they're gone / In an MMMBop they're not there

Those were the days I tell you.

I Hope This Isn't Serious

I fear that I may be growing into some awkward like for having the bed made.

gasp.

I have never been one to enjoy making the bed, much to my mother's despair, in fact I have always held to the fact that an unmade bed is MUCH more inviting and that there was no real point in making a bed just to mess it up again.

But yesterday I was changing my sheets and I felt compelled to make my entire bed and as I was lying on top of it earlier, I sorta liked it being made...it does look a lot neater. But still, unmade and messy, I believe is a bit more my style.

This bedmaking this better not become some kind of trend.

All Was Not Well in the Nance this Weekend

What could go wrong with parflesnarf and "The Sound of Music?" One would not think such a wholesome, good clean fun kinda night could possibly go wrong, especially not in the Nance, it's pretty much the safest place on campus.

Movie night started good, but by the end, things just weren't really right, no one could really hold attention, it was almost an antsy-ness in the room, but after the movie was over I was looking out my window and waving at the people who happened to be walking around campus at 1:30 in the morning (nothing I haven't done before) but then this creepy guy on a bicycle stops and stares right up into our window. Alright, well while Stephen is telling us to call campus police just by the looks of the guy, Chris and I were trying to be rational and not jump to conclusions, afterall, if someone was waving at you, you might stop and try to figure out who it was, not neccesarily in such a creepy way, but you know he continued on his way after a moment or two.

Well a few minutes later, he's back outside our window, staring up at us again, this time the guys as well as myself are gathered at the window and again, the staring just wasn't normal, it was creepy, not right at all.

Well, being in the Nance and all, we had to kick the boys out at 2 but before they left we had them stand outside our window for awhile, check around the building, keep on the look-out and let us know "it was snowing in Japan" (code for it was all good) but while they were still down there, the guy rides by again, and not just rides by, but comes out of the breeze way connecting our dorm to another building on campus. Before the boys had even noticed he was coming I had seen him out of the corner of my eye and hit the floor like it was no one's business. The boys watched him ride off and said he was going the opposite direction so we figured he was gone, and wouldn't come back especially after seeing the four boys outside our window.

And he didn't see him ride by our window anymore

but around 2:30-3:00ish after Maggie and I calmed ourselves down I am on my way to wash my face and whatnot and I open the door and right to my left is the man WITH HIS BIKE, standing right outside my door! What the heck! SO I slam the door shut, lock it and sit down right in front of it barely able to move and just get out enough words to tell Maggie to call campus police. So I am sitting in front on the door and I call my friend Stephen and he's trying to calm me down and rally the boys together.

About 10 minutes later, campus police finally shows up and get this he knocks on the door and doesnt even bother to identify himself! And after about 10-15 minutes of "checking the building" he comes back and tells us he's done or whatever (like one cop can search the whole building effectively and he didn't even do bathrooms which he later had Maggie and I go with him to do but he sent us in while he held to door) and in the process of this our heros the boys had come back to the Nance and returned to our window.

Well after the cop left, neither Maggie or I felt very safe and we knew we weren't going to sleep and we weren't about to go out in the hall by ourselves, so we threw Maggie's ID down to the boys and broke just about every visitation policy in the Nance to let the boys back up into our room. So they call Kenneth, our friend who is a security assistant (and by the way there was no SA on duty in our building which means there was no one at the desk, the doors werent checked and the alarms weren't set) and he came and he and two of the guys did a really thorough search of the building and in the end Maggie and I ended up sleeping on the floor in Chris's room in Richardson, which is an interesting experience in and of itself, and needless to say, I didn't sleep at all really.

Much more has progressed on this whole issue since then, including the fact that some freshman on the first floor actually LET THIS GUY IN AT 2:3o IN THE MORNING!! I actually met the girl tonight and it took everything in me not to chew her out, not in an angry way but just to let her know how serious it was because giggling over it isn't how she should be responding to the situation.

Sigh, there is a lot more I can say but I'm gonna leave on a few closing points.

1. HUGE props and eternal thanks to our boys (Stephen, Chris, Kevin, Joe, and Kenneth) for being so valiant in their efforts to protect us.
2. Thank you Emilie for coming down and encouraging us to pray last night, I really needed that.
3. Thank you God for showing Maggie Psalm 27 yesterday, what a comfort in the Word.
4. To be quite honest, I have never feared for my life until that moment when I opened that door and saw that man. I have been scared to tears before, but never actually afraid, it's a very different feeling. For example, I cried going down the zipline at camp, I was scared, but deep down I knew that that wire wasn't going to break and my harness was tight and secure. I didn't know what was going on in this man's head, I didn't know he was there beforehand, I just didn't know and not knowing is terrifying. Just praise God I couldn't move on step farther after I opened that door, and praise God I didn't leave just a minute earlier leaving me by myself in the bathroom and Maggie alone in the room with the door open. Just praise God!

How Do You Eat Your Gummy Bears?

So, I have very much been on this obnoxious (but ever so delicious) gummy bear kick the past, ehh week or so and I have noticed that I have a very specific (and originally unconscious) way of eating my gummy bears.

First I eliminate the green and yellow ones (typically the green go first followed by the yellow ones but sometimes I eat them together) and then comes the pesky little pineapple clear ones, followed by the orange and (saving the best for last) slowly ration out to red ones the rest of the time I am enjoying my gummies.

Well, being the psychologists that I am (I have had three semesters after all) I am thinking that there is definitely some deeply rooted psychological finding and revelation to be had by analyzing how I and others consume gummy bears and other candies that could be sorted by flavor and/or color.

So my challenge to you, my beloved readers, is tell me...How do you eat your gummy bears (or other candies as described above)???

Three Things

Number One: Chivalry is NOT Dead!

I must say, that it brings me the greatest joy whenever I see even the tiniest displays of proper gentlemanship being expressed out in today's world.

Saturday, while having a pleasant dinner out with my grandparents I was fortunate to see not one BUT two such displays. The first was as simple as a fellow holding the door open, and it was not just for me, but also for my grandmother, his own mother, and a few other ladies, and mind you there were pauses in the flow of people coming out this door, but he stood there nonetheless holding the door and smiling, as if it were his pleasure.

Second, while walking around a shopping center there was a young man, who while walking with his lady had his elbow perfectly angled so as to be able to escort her around while they shopped...that's right elbow out and hand about level with his mid stomach...that ladies and gentlemen is something we do not see everyday.

Anywho, bravo to boys with good manners.

Number Two: Eating Alone

So due to various scheduling issues, on Mondays and Wednesdays I have to eat an early dinner, and by early I mean like 4:15. Naturally, not many people partake in such early dinners so today I was left to eat dinner by myself, and I must say, it was wonderful.

See, it dawned on me while I was enjoying my Cocoa Puffs, that is has been MONTHS since I have had any time to myself. I went from school to home to camp to home to Europe and now back to school, and each and every destination involved me being almost constantly in vicinity of and interacting with other people. Now don't get me wrong, I quite enjoy the company of those who I've been around, but dagomit, I'm pretty cool too and I like to hang out with myself sometimes.

Number Three: Body Sculpt

As is customary of Maggie and I, a new semester brings a new fitness opportunity and we have decided to continue our exercise classes, this time taking up BODY SCULPT...basically it is a low weight/high rep. strength and toning class...Whoot!! I am excited because this is definitely going to be a challenge, I can tell my the amount of muscular pain I am in at the moment. I love exercise!!

Just a Snippit

Ladies and Gentlemen, that would be Pope Benedicto the 16th himself, that's right, looking right at me, and yes, no zoom required!




And down below, this is Assisi just at sunset, this was my favorite place we visited.




This is a group of some of the kids from our group on our cruise down the Rhine.







Here I am imitating Constantine. And please please please remember, Constantine was the first Christian emperor.
Here's me and Beth throwing our coins into the Trevi fountain, which means we both shall return to Rome some day.

The Life of a Pilgrim

The past 36 hours (well it's been 37 but I am not counting the past hour) have been some of the most challenging hours of my entire life.

Last night was the World Youth Day vigil, which basically is a big camp out on a massive field where the Pope comes to speak and there is lots of prayer and music and whatnot. Well, I don't know if you know anything about the weather in Germany but it was absolutely freezing like night, as in, I could see my breath kind of cold, and the ground was muddy and the constant threat of rain was on the horizon. We left the hotel at 7:45 in the morning to stake out our place (section A, which means we were pretty close) and basically spent the entire day killing time and hanging out (and in my case sleeping) on the field. It was cold all day, but when the sun went down, oh man, it was insane. So sleeping was quite a challenge, and let me just say you get to know people you didnt know very well, very well when circumstances call for it. So needless to say, I didn't get any sleep last night. Not to mention the toilets there were backed up and overflowed which left bathroom out of the picture and we hardly had anything to eat.

So after a nice, cold, 2 and a half hour Mass with the Pope this morning, as pilgrims we set off to what was supposed to me a 4K walk to the train station, but when we got to the train station all the trains were out of order, and this was the case for the next station which was another 5K off...Needless to say, from 1 o clock to 7:30 we were walking across Germany.

I really don't know if I have ever pushed my body quite so hard, but it's insane how God can deliver strength.

Ok I only have 39 seconds left and I need to get this up...more soon.

I'm Alive and Well

Well here I am...sitting in a internet room in the ground floor of a hotel in Cologne, Germany!!!!

I must say, I have fallen in love with Europe, I could live here quite happily.

I want to write so much more, but I one, don't want to use all my internet time right now, and two, I can't quite process it all just now.

The trip has been so awesome so far though...all of last week we were in Italy and we got into Germany two nights ago and just got into Cologne yesterday night.

There are 800,000 youth here at World Youth Day and it is so amazing seeing people from all over the world in one place to worship God, although it is kind of tough with the language barriers.

Ok, I can't write eloquently just now, so I shall write more later but I am here and missing you all.

I'm friggin going to Rome today!

So today is the day--around 5ish I will be peacing out of the joint (and by joint I mean the United States) and be well on my way to Rome! And after a few days in Rome we're going to Assissi, Florence, Padua, Trenton, a few cities in Germany and then to Colonge for World Youth Day. I'm so excited I could perhaps wet myself, but I shall have to keep that under control.

I believe this trip is going to be very good for me, as all travelers say traveling is, but I just feel like it's going to be an exciting eye opener for me and only start an epidemic of all the traveling I hope to do some day.

Unfortunately, I am not done packing and doing all the other million things I had to do before I leave, so I must go, but I love you all and will miss you. I shall try to post if the opportunity arises.

Ciao!

roll out the red carpet my inner dork is coming through

Isn't he precious? For those who don't know, this is Hulk Hogan, he's a wrestler, and I must say, he's one of my favorites.

sigh, it has been quite some time since I have devoted any time on the internet looking up anything wrestling related, yet last night I found myself, back on the old websites, checking out stuff about the WWE, old favorite wrestlers, and other things of the like.

man I'm a dork. the sad part is, in middle school this was very much a regular occurance. man.

I miss DX man, the good ol' days. only the cool kids would know what that means.

Something that brought me great joy

mama
i made parfelsnarfs!! i tryed some it is even better with butter popcorn!! my parents havent tryed it yet my mom thinks it looks gross i will keep tryin though

if you have batmans phone# can i have it
his email says it does not exist

i had the best dream last nite if only it would come true
all of op c moved to the same street it was called OP C BLVD
lol
gota go I LOVE YOU and MISS YOU LOTS
LiL D


this is why i love camp.

Not Packing

I need to read more.

Because I am doing just about everything other than packing for my trip to Italy and Germany, I was piddling around on the internet today and found myself looking up books on the Dacus (Winthrop's library) on-line catalog. I looked up C.S. Lewis and decided that there is a lot of his stuff I really want to read and that I should truly make an effort to read a lot more that is NOT school related. So I believe I shall make this one of the many goals I set for myself for this coming school year.

While procrastinating I also spent time looking around the Rock Hill city website and looking at classes and such that are offered at the local rec centers, both ceramics and hip hop dancing looked interesting.

Oh yes

Oh yes, I forgot I also wanted to post the lyrics to this lovely new song Micah introduced at camp.

The Throw-up Song

I think I'm gonna throw up
I think I'm gonna throw up
I think I'm gonna throw up
my hands to the Lord

I think I'm gonna chuck
I think I'm gonna chuck
I think I'm gonna chuck
my sins out the door

I think I'm gonna hurl
I think I'm gonna hurl
I think I'm gonna hurl
Satan back to hell

I think I'm gonna pee
I think I'm gonna pee
I think I'm gonna pee
A-R-T-Y

*that spells "party" for those who don't get it

I find it quite entertaining.

Sleeping in the Staff Lounge

hehe...I tickle myself with how the title of the post definitely sounds like a parody to one of Tasha's songs "Sleeping on Seaboard" or at least to me it did.

anywho, I am for real sleeping in the newly returned staff lounge with brand new, well new to us, couches that are equally or more hideous than the one couch Gene brought in earlier this summer.

It's my last night here at camp, I am leaving at 9 am tomorrow morning, just long enough to go to breakfast and say goodbye to everyone. I figure I'm not going to sleep much tonight seeing as how i still have a whole little mess of things to do before I leave such as finish the staff banner, PACK, finish laundry, write some letters to some people before I leave and other such things. The last time I showered was Saturday night and it's very much not in the plan for tonight. Gotta love camp.

I don't have much to say at the current moment, for the fear of being too emotional with not enough brain power to make my emotions sound eloquent. So I am probably going to start unloading my stuff from Jordan's car where it has been sitting for quite some time now.

sigh.