Lapsis Linguae

One small step for man...

2007-03-09T20:52:00.000-08:00

I'm getting married!

Let me just throw that out there. I'm sure it's not quite what you were expecting to see, so just in case it didn't sink in, let me try that again...

I'm getting married!

Yup, it's true! To my wonderful beautiful girlfriend-now-fiancee. As if it would be someone else...

It's actually been about a month since we got engaged, I'm just too lazy to ever write things here. We're trying to get married on May 19, which is coming up quick, and that's presenting some challenges (i.e. where we gonna do it?) But the rule is "No Summer Wedding", so it's May or October, and there's no way I'm waiting that long.

I'll try and get some pictures up, if I can find some, as well as the Rest Of The Story. But for now, I wanted to let you all know!

Is it safe?

2006-12-21T15:42:00.000-08:00

::peeping cautiously in the window::

Is it far enough past November and my miserable failure at NaBloPoMo that I can show my face around here again?

Ahem, ok, so yeah, Hi there! Sorry about all that. What a fiasco, sheesh.

Here's the Stever Holiday Special edition of the blog! Normally, I don't do surveys. And by "normally" I mean "always". However, the lovely Audas lady was kind enough to send this to me, and I fggered what the hey, so here we go...

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Paper, all the way. Ripping a gift bag into shreds just isn't nearly as satisfying.

2. Real tree or artificial? Real! And so much the better if you cut it down yer self. With a chainsaw. Or a herring.

3. When do you put up the tree? This year? Never. Usually the first week of Decemberish.

4. When do you take the tree down? Jan 1st-ish; anything later becomds a serious fire hazard.

5. Do you like eggnog? Blech.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Legos. Lots of them.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Not unless the picture in my head counts.

8. Hardest person to buy for? My dad.

9. Easiest person to buy for? Me.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A buffalo-head shaped hat. It was furry!

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? What's a Christmas card?

12a) Favorite Christmas Movie? A Christmas Story.

12b) Favorite Animated Christmas Movie? Either Rudolph or Life and Adventures of Santa Claus.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? What's shopping?

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I don't know if it's safe to admit that here.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Any of the billions of cookies my mom makes. And chili!

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Erm, how bout white (which aren't exactly "clear")?

17. Favorite Christmas song? Oh come, oh come Emmanuel.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Travelling at Christmas falls under the "Bad Idea" heading.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers? Of course!

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel, though I can't ever stick it up there without thinking of that song "Who stuck a stump in my rump-de-rump-de-rump."

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Not having time to enjoy it.

23. What I love most about Christmas? Festivity and decorations. Oh, and Jesus. He's pretty high on the list too.

sunnuvva...

2006-11-02T21:37:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's only day two and I'm already falling behind. That's cuz I was out with my sister for dinner - check out the ClaimJumpers happy hour sometime! Good deals on appetizers, and THE BEST dessert menu I've seen outside of a dessert restaurant. I counted - there were 17 desserts listed, plus all of the desserty drinks and stuff too. Tell you what, I betcha Red Robin, The Keg, and Olive Garden probly don't have 17 desserts all put together!

One more reason why ClaimJumpers is the king of all restaurants...

November Oneth

2006-11-01T21:54:00.000-08:00

Yeah, it's the first of November! That means The HOlidays are fast approaching, and I'm stoked about it. It also means it's NaPoBloMo or whatever that thing is called, I'll look up the reference later. Lets see if I remember to post every day this monthoween!

So anyways it's bedtime, more updates on The Life and Times of That One Guy later! Look for it, and bug me if it doesn't show!

Good Gravy!

2006-10-23T11:00:00.000-07:00

Has it really been almost two months since my last post? That's just... err... lame.

Ok, I admit it. I'm a lame blogger.

BUT - there's a plan currently in development to fix that! Through a secret information broker I use for clandestine intel*, there is apparently such a thing as NaBloPoMo, or National Blog Posting Month. Basically, you post something on yer blog every day for a month. Sounds challenging? Maybe. For some of the blog addict sorts I don't imagine it'll be tough, but I feel like I'll probly just forget.

BUTT - it'd be funny and a good time and you could all have a nice time finding out what my pretty uninteresting life is all about. Sound like a deal?

Ok then troops, lets do it!!!

*ok fine, it's Lisa W who writes Mix'd Equally...

Demolition Day

2006-08-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

Today is official "Where Did All This Junk Come From?! Day". I'm moving over the next couple days, and having trouble identifying all the stuff in my room. I'm fairly sure I didn't have this much stuff last time I moved, it must all be rabbits in disguise.

Very clever disguises.

Seriously, I'm wondering where all my shtuff is gonna go. My new place is about, oh, a third the size of this one. I think the bedroom will hold my bed, my fishtank, and maybe some of my clothes. Oh, and there is No Storage. This is going to be interesting.

gah, back to tearing apart my room...

Heavenly Vision

2006-08-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

So the other weekend when we were in Cannon Beach, I had an unexpected revelation of such amazing and devastating porportions...

ok, nevermind, I'm full of it. I just had no idea that this was in Seaside. I would have guessed it was in some greasy mid-west booneyville. Hunh.

And we let them run the country...

2006-08-07T10:14:00.000-07:00

Full credit goes to Dave Berry's "News of the Weird" column for providing this little gem:

"The District of Calamity: The District of Columbia government's payroll for 2005, reported by the Washington Times in July, included 1,268 employees paid over $100,000 a year (including 43 over $150,000 a year). The figures for Baltimore (with a slightly larger population) were 55 and two, respectively, and Chicago, with five times the population of D.C., still had fewer employees in both categories. In fact, even though the D.C. workforce has shrunk by 2,000 workers since 2002, the annual payroll has increased by $180 million. [Washington Times, 7-16-06]"

And yet the have the cojones to put this on their license plates:

Wonder why.

The Story of Three Tooth and The Gift.

2006-08-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

So I was driving over to Jen's house yesterday, and got stuck at an irritatingly long stoplight. The kind where it's totally clear and green when yer driving up to it, so you speed up, and just as you hit that "point of no return" it turns yellow and then red in 1.5 seconds and you hafta slam on the brakes and end up sticking halfway into the intersection anyways.

Now this particular intersection, which sits at the top of an offramp, is known not only for it's retarded light timing but is also infamous for the bums that hang out on the corners panhandling. I don't know how they work the schedule, but there seems to be a rotation that they are all signed up on. Last week there was a middle aged couple that was kinda funny. The guy would stand on the corner with the sign, and the gal would wander around the intersection yelling at him to "try over here" or "maybe it'd work better if you stood this way" or "don't smile so much". They both appeared healthy-ish (well, as healthy as a bum can look I suppose), until one day later in the week the dude has his left arm a couple fingers wrapped up in a large Ace bandage. It looked pretty bad, and I found myself wondering what a homeless person does to get their arm that jacked up. I wondered about that right up until the next time I was over there a day or two later and the bandage had mysteriously disappeared.

God does work miracles!

None of that is the point of the story, though. Just the background. Like I started off saying, I was stuck at this light yesterday for forever, and a new guy was on the corner, as fate would have it, right next to my car. When yer parked next to them, they always get really friendly, which irritates me. I have nothing against panhandling in general, but once I've given you the "not today" signal, leave me the heck alone. Anyways, this guy, I'll call him Three Tooth (cuz that's how many he had), he's got his little sign and just kinda sitting there on the edge of the guard rail looking at me and the other drivers and hoping someone will eventually feel sorry for him. It wasn't workin though. Maybe he should try bandaging his arm.

Picture the scene - there are two lanes at the top of this offramp. One is a straight/left turn, one is a right turn. I'm trying to make a left. The whole time I was sitting there, people were flying through the right turn lane. Not even bothering to stop or look. Of course they had a green arrow, that helped. But then it turned red.

One truck, a shiny new black Toyota Tacoma, comes to a stop. There are three Hawaiian dudes in it, and they're just cruisin, windows down and tunes turned up. Suddenly the driver hops out of the cab and jumps in the back of his truck. I think to myself "That's peculiar." He rummages around for a moment and stands up with a dripping sixer of Corona, apparently fresh from the cooler. My mind wanders over to "I wonder what him and his buddies plan to do with that", assuming they are familiar with Washington state drinking and driving laws.

But then this dude runs across the street and hands the six pack to Three Tooth! I don't know who was more surprised, me or the bum. The Hawaiian dude just waves, hops back in his truck, and takes off. Three Tooth is standing there in shock, unable to believe to what just happened. Was it a dark skinned angel from God that just paid him a visit? Perhaps. But then his mind clicks into gear again, he gets a the hugest grin on his face, and he starts dancing arond holding the beer with all the care of a newborn baby. Suddenly he stops, notices us all watching him, and quickly (but carefully) hides the Corona in the bushes behind the guardrail.

Now I don't know this guy's life story, but let me tell you, that gift of beer was the happiest moment in Three Tooth's week. He was grinning from ear to ear, and twitching in happiness. He couldn't even sit down because the excitement was just bubbling out of him! He kept looking after the truck and waving, and looking around at all of us with sheer joy shining out of his eyes. Then the light turned green, and I drove away, chuckling to myself becuz the guy's happiness was that contagious.

I don't generally advocate the giving of alcohol to bums. The line between generousity and enablement is a fine one, and I struggle with that difference. But let me tell you, when the Hawaiian Party Guys gave that six pack of beer to the Homeless Dude, that was the most Christian thing I have seen in quite awhile. It was no sacrifice for the guys in the truck, and that one selfless action totally made Three Tooth's night. And there I was sitting in my car, pretending to be very interested in my iPod, and thinking "I've got 6 bucks in my wallet, which isn't much, and I might need it later."

That act of charity really made me think. Most Christians would frown at it, and say things like "that guy should just get a job" and "don't give him that beer, yer only encouraging him". For some reason it really touched my heart though, and was for me probly the most shining example of kindness and generosity I've seen in some time.

God works in funny ways.

Road Tripping

2006-07-28T08:49:00.000-07:00

Cannon Beach, Oregon - the idyllic, quiet vacation spot along the prettiest beach in the Pacific Northwest. Full of relaxation, quiet walks in the sand, and staring in wonder at the marvel that is Haystack Rock: that well loved icon of Goonies fans worldwide.

Or so I've been told. I've never been there, nor have I ever seen Goonies.

Until now!

Itinerary:

Friday Night - Anj, Randy, Steve, and Jen all meet at Jen's apartment for dinner and GoonieFest ot-6. Yours truly (apparently) is cheffing with contributions by everyone else. The movie commences by 8 pm. Conclude the evening's festivities by crashing on Jen's three (count 'em, 3) couches.

Saturday - All wake up at O-dark-30 (and what does the O stand for? "Oh My God it's early..."), fight each other for the one bathroom, hopefully all get showered and dressed (showering is mandatory, dressing is optional), and hop in the car headed south. Approximately 4.5 hours later we arrive at Seaside, Oregon, where we are staying. It's like 10 minutes from Cannon Beach, so after we get settled in we'll head down and see what kind of trouble we can find! Afternoon and evening will consist of touring the town and beach, romping in the balmy oceanside air, maxin, relaxin, and who knows what else.

Sunday - Whatever. If there is trouble yet to cause, we'll make sure we take care of it before we are kicked out of town. Leave by 5 pm, although according to my Magic 8-Ball the "Outlook is Promising" that we'll hit the road before that. Some of us DO hafta work Monday morning.

So that's the plan! I'll have pics when we get back!

Peace out, yo.

MIA

2006-07-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

You may be asking yourself "So where has this Lapsis Linguae guy been lately, anyways?" You may also be saying "He's such an incredibly gifted writer, and wittily clever with his remarks, and he's not too bad to look at either, I wish he'd post more often..." I wouldn't blame you at all. But then again you may not be.

So let me answer that first question, and maybe try and prove the second (don't get yer hopes up though).

Basically, it comes down to the fact that I've been rather distracted lately. Is it church? you ask. Nope. Is it work? Not hardly. An invasion of underground gremlins invading my basement suite and trying to establish colonial rights to my laundry room? Not that I'm aware of.

No, no, none of that.

Her name is Jen.

She's intriguing. She's smart. She's one of the kookiest people I've ever met. And so I decided it was probly in my best interests to court her.

I'd show you a picture of her, only then you'de all fall in love with her too, and we can't let that happen. Certainly not. So yer just SOL, sorry.

Courting Jen has had me a bit distracted lately, and I haven't been really keeping up with this blog thing. And then I read my friends blogs (like Lisa W's, check it out, it's one of my favorites) and think maybe I should be making my mark on the international blogging community as well. But then I remember that I don't have anything vitally important to say, nor any huge insights to share, nor any cute kids to share pictures of. (don't worry mom and dad, I'll get there one day) So I suppose I'll just leave it to the professional bloggers to keep blogland happy, and I'll just go merrily on my way spending my evenings with Jen.

So if I seem a little distracted as of late, blame the new girl. Only not too loud or I'll hafta come beat you up for picking on her.

Don't worry, I'll hook you guys up with pics later...

Special Feature

2006-07-12T08:36:00.000-07:00

So yeah, I do still exist, and sometimes I even play with this blog thing. I added a new bit of interesting something to the main page, just for kicks. There's a guy named Vlad Gerasimov who makes some pretty sweet desktop wallpapers. Some of it is just cool photography, and a lot of it is some really funky photoshop art. I use his stuff regularly.

And now you can view his latest work from the safety of my blog page! His latest work will magically appear in my "Links" column, and you can click on it to go to his webpage and download his stuff. All free, just open the picture you like, right click on it and use the "Set As Background" button.

You can also just go straight his webpage, VladStudio, by clicking here.

So enjoy! Art makes the world a more beautiful place.

Particularly when you live in Seattle... he he

Those Crazy Swedes

2006-06-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

Mom and dad are in Sweden right now buying a car. Kind of an odd thing to be doing there, if you ask me. But when Volvo says "if you come to our factory and pick up your new car, we'll take $5000 off the price tag, pay your round-trip airfare, pay the shipping and import tariffs, and roll it down a red carpet to you during the prsentation ceremony", it's hard to say no.

If you are like me, you wonder what the horrible catch must be. Here it is - they can only (for wahtever reason) import a used car. So what that means is that mom and dad "have" to drive it around Europe for two weeks to put some mileage on the thing before it can be shipped back here.

lucky buggers...

So they flew out of Seattle on Sunday and found themselves in Gothenburg, Sweden after a stop at Copenhagen. Although their luggage managed to miss the flight (a twist all good vacation stories must include), it sounds like they got the car thing all taken care of. They are driving from Gothenburg over through Sweden to Norway, heading north along the coast, back into Sweden to Stockholm, then driving across the bridge over to Denmark to do some cruising around Germany till they get to Bonn or Bremerhaven or wherever it is they're dropping the car off. They've got just about two weeks of stops planned, it sounds fabulous. I wish I could go with them, or at least do that trip myself sometime (since road trips with my folks are a little weird).

And on top of it all, during the two weeks they're gone, they will miss my birthday, Father's Day, and my sister's birthday. They better be gettin us some kick-ass presents over there...

They deserve it though, it's their 30th Wedding Anniversary this year and they haven't ever really taken a vacation just the two of them as far as I can recall. I'm sure they're having fun!

Wherever

2006-06-10T08:26:00.001-07:00

Mother’s Day came around this year (as it does every year, except for the ones that I forget), and I was trying to come up with something cool to do for mom. I know she appreciates time, so what’s fun and entertaining and good times with mum?

Cirque du Soleil, that’s what.

Have you guys ever seen one of their shows? We rolled up in my Hott Wheels (ok, it’s a 1990 Civic named “Priscilla”, but whatever) and you could see this place from miles away. A huge system of tents set up in a park, all glowing yellow and blue spirals going up to the peaks. I was excited to be going to this thing, I’ve been wanting to see a Cirque show for years. But that moment when I saw the spirally tents I knew this was going to be awesome.

We park, we get our tickets and our seats and peruse the merchandise before the show. They had the coolest stuff, it was fantastic – little dolls of the characters in the show, hand-dyed velvet masques covered in feathers and beads, even the “been there done that” t-shirts were incredibly artsy and stylish. I could have dropped hundreds of dollars easy.

The show itself was, well, really indescribable. I don’t even think I’m gonna try, you hafta go see it for yourself. The show was titled “Varekai”, which apparently means “Wherever” in the language of the Romany gypsies. It loosely describes the journey of the character Icarus, who begins the show bound and netted and stripped of his wings. He journeys through a fanciful, vibrant world filled with bizarre and whimsical creatures as he learns to fly free again. (I stole some of that from the official website, take a look)

The whole spectacle was just mind-blowing. I literally had no idea what to be looking at, what to be watching, what to be listening to – total and exhilarating sensory overload. Many of the acts were three-dimensional – four girls doing acrobatics on a triple trapeze, two guys flinging themselves around throughout the tent on the aerial straps, and the incredible opening act of Icarus’ Flight 20 feet above the stage doing aerial gymnastics held only by a net. Others were performed on the stage, and were no less awe-inspiring: contortionists, juggling, body skating on a special slick surface, Georgian dancing and “water-meteors”, and one of my favorite acts – the Icarian Games. I’d never seen foot-juggling before, I didn’t even know such a thing existed. Basically, it involves two people. One lies on his back in a cradle, and juggles the other person with his feet. They flip, twist, roll; it’s simply unbelievable. I can’t imagine the strength and dexterity needed to pull it off.

The costumes were stunning, they were so imaginative and colorful and, well, simply unusual. The whole thing was built around the idea of “whimsical”, that’s really the only way I can describe it. Color, streamers, crazy masks and hats and body paint and who knows what else. One guy even had pogo sticks or something built into his, so that he bounced across the stage.

The stage was equally incredible. It was a thrust-stage set up, which is viewed from three sides with a back-stage area on the fourth. This meant that even though we were seated around the side, the view was still good. The backdrop to the stage was a forest of brass poles, many of which were inhabited by other performers throughout the show. Out of this forest rose a fragmented walkway, which lead to the ceiling and was used throughout the performances. The lighting was very well done, and I won’t bore you with details. Suffice to say that it perfectly complimented the fantasy of the stage and costumes, and unified the whole thing into one brilliant image.

But the best part of the evening was getting to share it with mom. I don’t see her as much since I moved to Seattle, and getting to share the experience with her was just awesome. We got to have a nice dinner, pleasant drive, and good conversation. We got caught up on family stuff, work stuff, personal stuff, and all that important and maybe not so important information. And just being with her in the Cirque environment, getting away from the normalcy of the world and sharing an evening outside the boringness of the every-day world: that was just great.

I would really encourage you to go see a Cirque du Soleil show sometime. It’s a beautiful way to experience something unusual and to expand your senses and mind in an atypical way. But be sure to take someone with you, because it is definitely best to be able to share that experience with someone you love.

Home, Home on the Range

2006-04-27T21:42:00.000-07:00

It's amazing that someone can know 100 people and still be completley alone.

I guess I say it's amazing because I don't understand it. I feel like I should know enough people that I needn't be lonely, yet I am. But when it comes right down to it, how many of them really know me? And how many of them do I really know? We're not talking about the what-you-do-for-work-and-play kind of knowing, we're talking about the deep down why-you-do-the-things-you-do kind of knowing. The favorite-ice-cream where-you-wanna-go-on-your-honeymoon childhood-fears kind of knowing. The kind of why-I-don't-eat-fish knowing that really sez something about a person and reveals something of their world, that lets you see things from their perspective.

And I feel like I once had those kinds of friends, and don't any more.

Most of them I pissed off quite a long time ago, and those people that swore we'de be family forever haven't talked to me in years. And that's understandable. Maybe someday if I'm really drunk I'll tell you the story. But that doesn't mean I don't love them and miss them and wish things had been different.

The years since have brought many incredibly awesome friends my way, and some have come close to secret-life-goal status, but most top out at knowing-my-middle-name. And that isn't a bad thing; for those who do know my middle name I love you dearly, and for those who don't, well, ask me sometime. But it's just not the same, you know?

And those top 3 or 4, you know who you are, and I thank God for you every day. But even we don't talk like we used to, and that makes me cry.

Sometimes that is just the way life goes; people drift together and apart again. It's inevitable. But that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt, and it doesn't mean I don't long for someone who knows me and who I know back and who we can share life together. It's slightly ironic to me that out of the top 4 people who know-more-things-than-most-people-do about me, the two who have known me longest don't even live in this country (God bless Canada). They are true friends. Yet it's hard to really share life with someone who lives a continent away, as nice as that would be.

And to my new friends? I'm very thankful for you, and I hope that someday I can tell you what my favorite-color-in-kindergarten was. Someday. It's awesome spending time with you, cuz yer incredibly wonderful! And I know that true friendship takes time, and God grant that we get to share that.

But sometimes I just want a hug and there is no one around to give me one...

blog blog bloggaroo

2006-04-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

So I have this Myspace account, which I never touched until recently. Turns out it's kinda fun, easier to mess with than this one is. And you get amusing notes like (this is a direct quote) "Hi, you live near me, if you are interested we should get together and maybe share some pleasureable times."

ahh, the cries of a damsel in distress, how can a true gentleman resist?!

Anyways, you can find it by clicking here .

Be warned though, it contains personal information about me that might just destroy the angelic image you surely have of me!

edit - wow, thanks for teaching me a new trick, Kimmie!

Happy Easter!

2006-04-16T09:30:00.000-07:00

This time of year is always a bit odd for me. It's the time when the sun is out just enough to trick me into thinking it's warm and summery, and then I wander outside in my shorts and flip-flops only to discover it's still only 40 degrees. And then the rain and hail and snow (yes, we had a smattering of snow yesterday) comes and pounds down like it's winter all over again. About the time that starts to depress me, out pops the blue sky and the birds and flowers and suddenly the world is wonderful again.

And when you mix that with the Easter holiday, it has a weird influence on me. It brings a whole new perspective on Christ's death and resurrection to see it played out daily just outside my window. To see the cycle of dying and returning in the earth, and then to think about how Jesus only had to do it once, and he did it just for me.

I've always been one of those visual/kinetic learners, where I need to see and play with things to understand them. Gardening has becomes an almost spiritual exercise; it connects exactly with what Paul was talking about in one of his letters to the Corinthian church. He uses the word picture that unless a seed dies and get buried in the ground, it cannot produce new life. A seed sitting around by itself isn't terribly useful. Only through literal and figurative death does it fulfill it's purpose. And the new life that it generates it so much greater, so much more wonderful than that little brown seed. I don't think that if I was a seed, I would ever be able to comprehend the nature and possibilities inherent in my nature. I'd have no clue that my death could have such magnificent results.

And it's the same thing when Jesus gives you new life! The gift of eternal life that he gave us, and that we celebrate at Easter, has so much more promise and hope than I could ever fathom. By spiritually participating in his death, we also participate in his resurrection - we become new. We leave all the dirty crap, the hopelessness, the worthlessness, the loneliness behind. "The old has gone; the new has come." Our lives become so much greater and so much more worthwhile than we could ever imagine on our own. My wrinkley brown seed self develops into a magnificent rose bush (or whatever flower God happens to pick for me). I have hope, I have a purpose, and I have a God who loves me and knows me and beat death so that we could be together like he intended from creation.

And that just blows my mind...

Orange Happiness

2006-04-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

Is this the sweetest ride ever or what?! It lives in West Seattle, I think I may just hafta turn into a biker now.

180 in New Orleans

2006-04-08T12:27:00.000-07:00

An incredible thing happened this last week - 40 kids from my old youth group took their Spring Break week and went to New Orleans to help with relief efforts from the hurricanes down there. This is a youth group that only started 5 years ago with maybe 20 kids on a Wednesday night. Now there are more than 120 kids split between two groups cuz we outgrew the old space!

This is the first service trip they've done, and it blows my mind that so many teens would go. I've been getting daily updates from them, check out some of the quotes:

"It is hard to put perspective here on what we have seen and experienced. Katrina did a lot of things for sure and from what I hear, it is getting better…but better is measured in very tiny increments. The Lower Ninth Ward and the neighboring St. Bernard’s Parish, is a huge community of something like 68,000 people. In a sense they have their own brand of culture here and finding pride that they are not from New Orleans. You could say it is an adjoining suburb. Every day we drive in to our job sites, we see something new that astounds us. I am still amazed how houses not made of brick, could float as well as they did. One guy we talked to does not know where his house is. The foundation is all that remains. We have seen blocks for miles that every house on it floated somewhere, or into one another, sometimes no further than the back yard. Everyone I have met, has the same story….the hurricane came, the levy’s broke, people did what was necessary to live, whether it was riding a house to where ever it was going or being rescued, stealing a neighbors boat. One guy I talked with saw his uncle floating face down and to make sure turned him over. He had to call his Aunt to tell her while she was on another roof a few neighborhoods away. Dee the lady we helped yesterday told of her neighbor who couldn’t rescue 12 children who were across the street and three houses away because he couldn’t or didn’t have a way there. Fortunately, the kids survived. Here at the parish, you can drive for miles and see destruction on both sides of the street. If you could imagine your neighbor hood for miles, trees uprooted, cars flipped, some streets the house are all gone, just about everything you see was destroyed, you might get an idea. The media cannot do justice to how really terrible it is here. They say maybe 10,000 people have moved back. I am not sure it is that high." ~ Dave, adult leader

"I just wanted to share about my experience at emergency communities today, let me just say wow these people have amazing ways of living after they have lost absolutely everything but there lives, they are so happy and joyful about everything with a positive attitude, I will admit that I have never have so much fun washing dishes with Casey and Cassie, man mom get some Rubbermaid tubes and lets start washing some dishes in them it was a blast!! Never thought I would say I loved watching dishes, but don’t tell anyone!! It was also a struggle to fold and organize all the baby clothes and to just think about how many clothes my little bro has and these poor little kids have nothing at all and parents were so happy to have a box of diapers just one little box of diapers, because believe me these people truly have nothing at all they lost everything but there lives some of them even lost their loved ones. So just pray to bless these people and their homes." ~ Bekki, age 13

"But earlier in the week we did non-stop demolition for 3 days. One day we started @ 11 and didn’t finish until 6 o’clock. It was about a 1,800 square foot house and we couldn’t quite finish it all but we did the best that we could and finished a lot of it. Maggots were all in the kitchen, they had some interesting movies in their house, and their pool was filled with the most disgusting water ever. The guy was so thankful for us being there, He brought us soda and po-boys for us for dinner. The first day we went to a guy named Alex’s house and gutted out his whole house. Then during one of our breaks we saw a man down the street and went to talk to him. His name was brother Charles and he had actually @ one point was a helper of the poor and now he is one of the poor. Everyone up in Seattle, y’all will never be able to comprehend what people are going thorough until you see it for yourself. The pictures you see on the news, Oprah, and other shows do not even compare with what you see first hand. Houses are just chilling on the streets, dead animals are all around (particurally hard for me to see!!), and home owners are just devastated." ~ Lauren, age 16

"This has been, hands down, the coolest experience of my life. Today we basically ripped apart a house that hasn’t been touched since the flood. I didn’t even think that we would get all the stuff off of the ground. Not only did we pick everything up, but we ripped up the carpets, AND cleaned out a couple closets. The owner was a New Orleans sheriff, and had never left during the flood or the storm. He was one of the guys that had helped rescue people from their houses on jet-ski’s. All in all, its been an awesome week. I don’t think that there is a better way I could spend my spring break, and I’m amazingly glad I came down here." ~ Jon, age 15

"I am working with an amazing group of our junior high students who never cease to amaze me at home, and have really impressed me this week. We worked at Emergency Communities today and had a wonderful time. I had the opportunity to watch our kids work harder than they have never worked in their lives. While I was taking a rest after lunch, I sat and chatted with a woman named Martha (pronounced Moth-a here in the south). She told me that she her house was just tagged to get a FEMA trailer… she applied for it in October. They can’t find her sewer line so she doesn’t know when she and her 15 year old son will be able to move home. They are staying in a studio apartment right now. She said that her insurance company has deferred her mortgage until June…after that; she doesn’t know what she’ll do." ~ Tanya, adult leader

"Today was amazing. There is no other word to describe it. Seriously. Although it seemed like the day never ended, after everything was all done it was so cool to see all that we had accomplished. Our group worked insanely hard to finish knocking down the crazy walls made of sheetrock covered in plaster. We did a really great job today at busting our butts and working together. Towards the end of it all another group arrived to help us finish Karen’s home. By the way, Karen is one of the most inspiring persons I have ever met. She is so loving and caring for each and every one of us. I’m so glad God sent us to help her so we could all meet her. For lunch a group of college kids took us to a trailer where we were fed a HOME COOKED meal! It was delicious. Also, everything hit me today. And I hope all the rest of us are hit just like I was. I think I finally saw why God sent me here, and I’m glad I did. Anyways, minus a nail going through my boot, hammering my hand 4 times, and getting shoved in Jay’s soaked and sweaty armpit twice, I can honestly say today was the most amazing day ever." ~ Ari, age 15

There's many more than I can share. It just blows my mind to hear the stories of what is still going on down there, and how much work has and has not happened since last year. They've been sending pics and stuff, it's incredible.

And I'm so proud of them! Many of the kids who went I've known since they were fresh out of grade school and snotty nosed Sevies (that's seventh-graders, for you non-American folks). I've watched them grow up, and it honestly brings tears to my eyes to see them doing this and hear about the way God is changing their lives. I'm so proud of them. And what's even cooler is that I don't even know half the kids who went, and I only moved away a year ago!

This picture really sums it up for me. That amid the ruin, the devestation, the broken world that exists down there, that there is still hope and faith. We have it pretty good where we're at; I've never experienced a disaster like this in my life. God grant that my eyes would stay focused on him whatever life brings.

The View

2006-04-02T13:17:00.000-07:00

So I figured I better post some pics, since I keep talking about it...

I went out last evening too see what I could do. I don't think they'll let me take pics from the campus, but who needs to include the landscaping when you've got this to look at? The waters of Puget Sound, Bainbridge Island in the near background, and the Olympic Mountains behind. Remind me to take a pic of them when the morning light is shining on the hillsides, just gorgeous.

A little wider view, closer to sunset. This picture is from Alki Point, looking the same direction. This has to be one of my favorite places in Seattle. It's got beach, it's got sunset views, and it's got the best Fish 'n Chips to be found in the city. What more do you need?

Ok, so this is actually from last Fall, but it's one of my favorite pictures I've taken from Alki. Just wanted to share.

Well, that should get you started. I'll throw some other ones on here as I find them/take them/get better ones. Obviously, I'm still working on my landscape photography skills.

Thoughts on a New Job

2006-04-01T10:58:00.000-08:00

So I joined the ranks of Corporate America this last week. I started a new job with my own cubicle, my own phone extension, and my own security card that needs swiping to open the doors. I get to go to board meetings and order things with the company credit card. Whenever I show up is when I start, and whenever I leave is when I'm done. And to top it off, I get Workspace Ergonomics Training, with a personal consultation for my very own office!

Doesn't get any better than that.

And my building is incredible, it's fairly new (3 years I think) and full of art and landscaping and research laboratories and big windows. It's right on the shores of Puget Sound, and my window looks across the lawns and waterfalls and sculptures right out on the islands and peninsulas backdropped by the entire Olympic Mountain range. On sunny days I can wander down and eat lunch on the seawall. Starbucks is right across the street. It's the sort of place where I could be happy for a very long time.

But I'm only just starting to realize the level of responsibility I've got! I got a phone call yesterday, "Your presence is requested at a meeting right now, sorry we forgot to tell you about it." Turns out it was the directors of all the departments involved in anything related to Emergency Management. The Director of Security invited me down later for a meeting, and showed me around the security hub for the whole research facility. The Director of Maintenance wants my opinion on how to set some projects up. The head of Facilities and Engineering wants me order about $100K in equipment.

And my "previous experience" for this job was sitting around the corner of a warehouse answering phone calls about whether or not the shovels had arrived. I'm in way out of my league...

Fortunately, I long ago learned the lesson about the art of BS - if you look like you know what yer doing, people will generally assume do know what yer doing. That'll get me a long ways during business meetings, and then I can run back to my office and cry and figure out exactly how the heck I'm gonna do whatever it was I just got myself into. Good times. Hopefully nobody finds out.

asphinctersezwhut?

2006-03-25T11:03:00.000-08:00

I have awesome friends. When they heard I hadn't ever seen the movie "Wayne's World" they put together dinner and a special screening, just for me! Of course I didn't hear about till 2 days before, heh heh, glad I made it. So here's my review.

Wayne's World is one of a long list of movies created from Saturday Night Live sketches. Wayne (Mike Meyers) and Garth (Dana Carvey) are two friends who host a public access show out of Wayne's parent's basement (...excellent!). A scheming television producer buys the show for network television, and hilarity, parties, rock 'n roll, babes, heartbreak, and three different endings ensue. Pretty typical and formulaic, a fact that the director is fully aware of and mocks continually throughout the film.

Much like my mock review.

Ok, I'm tired of writing like that now. [reverts to normal] I'd give it a solid B. It's not Oscar material; it's SNL, what do you expect?! But it stayed true to the original flavor of the sketches, and I think they're funny, so there. Lots of jokes now make way more sense, and I can cross out another entry on the "List of Movies I Never Saw Cuz My Parents Wouldn't Let Me." (love you, mom and dad...)

Highlights:

Alice Cooper's history lesson about Milwaukee, gotta love that guy.
"If she was the President, she'd be Babe-raham Lincoln."
Nice cameo by Chris Farley, it's waaaayyy too bad he died.
"I mean, Led Zeppelin didn't write tunes that every one liked. They left that to the Bee Gees."
The Mirth-mobile
"It's like people only do things because they get paid, and that's just really sad."
Bohemian Rhapsodie headbanging
"I once thought I had mono for an entire year, it turned out I was just really bored."
Robert Patrick, gotta love that guy too.

So there ya go. Standard movie fare that everyone my age should have seen by now and probly should catch up on if you haven't. I can't say your life will be better for it, but it'll be a little less boring for two hours.

If yer life is boring, that is.

Not to insinuate it is...

Hoo boy.

Requiem Pisiculus Obesum

2006-03-23T10:26:00.000-08:00

It is my sad duty to pass along the information that sometime during the night of March 22-23, 2006, Molly the Balloon Molly passed away. A hybrid of the Poecilia latipinna species, she was well known for her innate curiosity and hearty appetite.

Molly joined The Fishtank in November 2004, as one of four balloon mollies. She was the youngest and smallest of the group, and unique in her salt-and-pepper coloring; characteristics for which the others constantly harassed and abused her. The other females were domineering, and Bubba the male tried to force his affections on her continually. She was often chased away from the dinner table, and left only scraps to clean up afterwards. The harsh conditions frequently left her ill. But her hard life made her tough and resilient, and Molly outlived not only her wicked step-sisters but her abusive boyfriend as well.

After the passing of the other mollies, Molly quickly grew healthy and began to enjoy her life of freedom from oppression. She loved to play with the other fish in the Tank, and filled a big sister role for many of the smaller tetras. She was neat and fastidious, quickly cleaning up any consumables left laying around the Tank. Indeed, she would eat anything she could fit in her mouth, and quite a bit that wouldn't. Molly was very affectionate and friendly, and was well known for following her owner around the room from the front of the Tank. They were very close, and her sudden and unexpected passing has left the family shocked and saddened.

Molly is survived by The Band of Five, The Clean-up Crew, and a bunch of little snails. Donations in her memory can be sent to CLiFF, the Center for Little Fat Fish.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

2006-03-20T16:16:00.000-08:00

The lights of the city play
Across the surface of the water.
As the big light sets,
The little ones vie for a place of their own,
Their own moment of importance.
Each has a purpose,
Each has a story to tell
Of the things it saw today.

I too am a light, looking to be
Seen among a billion others.
I search for a place of my own,
My moment of importance.
I want a purpose,
I want a story to tell,
But I fear I got lost amid the sudden blaze of the city.

A Slip of the Tongue

2006-03-19T14:54:00.000-08:00

The classic first post. Do I introduce myself? Do I fill in the whole backstory as to why I'm doing this and why you should care, though I know you won't? Do I just ignore it altogether and get on with the ramblings?

Maybe all of the above, maybe none of it. I could say "Hi, my name is Billy Bob, and I have important things to say", but it'd be mostly untrue. Some things that are true are that I like Darjeeling tea and poking things that live in tide pools. And if you want an opinion, here's one - James Christensen is by far one of the better living artists, and when he dies, he'll be one of the better dead ones too.

That's all you get right now though. There will more, I promise. And it'll be infinetly more interesting than this crap.

But for now, accipio universum - Welcome to my world.