the joy and pain and everything in between

New Post Coming

2009-03-24T16:45:00.003-05:00

Look for a new post coming soon and some new photos also.

House of Heroes

2009-02-17T14:04:00.004-05:00

Last week I was able to catch House of Heroes in Greenville at The Channel with Katie and G-2. It was a pretty good crowd, the guy in front of me was yelling every line! It was so cool to see someone not from Columbus singing along. Anyway it was a great show, and dinner at Five Guys before the show was really good too.
You can see the rest of the photos here.

New York City

2009-01-14T15:53:00.002-05:00

Over the Christmas & New Year's break I went to NYC with my family and girlfriend. We had an amazing time being in the city durning Christmas. One of the many high lights was my brother getting engaged at Rockefeller Center on the ice skating rink. It was pretty amazing! There are few photos on the flickr site from the trip. Let me know what you think. I'll try to update this more soon!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-18T11:36:00.002-05:00

I got a gift card to Walmart this week and what did I buy you ask. An iTunes gift card of course! I've got a flight next week up to the Promise Land and I need your help making the play list. What ya'll digging these days? Let me know. Thanks

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle does it again.

2008-10-20T11:29:00.006-05:00

Here is what you're looking for.
Now Public dot com has asked that I put the RayPaul Brands shirt "RRR" photo up on their site this week. They are running a story on the environment, mainly on waste reduction. The photo is from a shoot we (RayPaul Brands) did back in August. The model is my friend Justin and the photo was taken in Columbus at North Bank Park. Be sure to check out the story and the photo. The site isn't the most user friendly so you might have to look it. Be sure to check out more RayPaul Brands at the website coming soon. Go ahead and book mark it, you'll thank yourself.

mom told me to

2008-10-08T11:16:00.007-05:00

Well here is an update at the request of my mom. This month is slammed! My friend Lyle is getting married this weekend! Apt. R reunion! Can't wait for that. Then next week I'm heading up to Indy for FUEL conference at the Wesleyan HQ. This is going to be really great time of catching up with old friends and making some new ones. After that some special friends are coming down to check out SWU and then we are having a sweet costume party at youth group on the 29th!

In other news it is raining here today and it reminds me Ohio. It always seemed to rain in OH and especially in the fall. Here in the south east we have been in a really bad drought so the rain is much needed but none the less it still puts me in that mood. Y'know the one where you take your comforter from your bed to the couch and watch tv before you get ready for your day. When you get into the office you put on some raw acoustic music and try to stay awake. Today I'll be listening to Bon Iver.

Also there will be some new photos on the Flickr site later this week. Katie and I and another couple went to Skytop Orchard in Flatrock, NC this past weekend and picked some good apples. Hope your Fall is going well thus far. Enjoy it.

So....

2008-08-28T14:39:00.002-05:00

So the big announcement is on hold. In other news the DNC has been pretty neat to watch. The Republican Nation Convention (is that what they call it?) starts next week. I'm still on the fence about who to vote for, although some new pictures of Obama are pretty sweet.manifesthope
I will have new photos on the flickr site next week so be looking for those. Have a good rest of the week and weekend.

Big Announcement

2008-08-06T20:44:00.002-05:00

Stay tuned for a BIG ANNOUNCEMENT from RayPaul Brands!

David Chang

2008-07-23T09:25:00.008-05:00

Charlie Rose has been one of my favorite shows for a long time now and last night's episode reminded me why. He was interviewing a chef named David Chang. Chef Chang has created restaurants that people want to go to. I believe he has 3 different one in New York City. One sounds like a fast food noodle bar. I love noodle places so I'm going to make it a goal to go there. As Charlie Rose always asks great questions and one in-particular stuck with me from last night's interview. He asked the chef what was the best meal he had ever had. The chef thought and answered the question and they talked about the meal and the setting. I sat there thinking that is a pretty big question and asked my self the same. What was the best meal I have ever had? A few memories went through my mind; the first time I had Skirt Steak and then the second time I had it at Eddie George's Grill. The first time I had Jeni's Ice cream ( Not a meal but amazing none the less). And Tommy's Pizza.

These meals were all amazing but the one that stood out the most was dish my late cousin Steve made. We were on vacation in Holden Beach, NC and there were a ton of us. Steve had worked in the restaurant industry so he knew what he was doing. It was a Filet Mignon wrapped with bacon and a large shrimp on top with an amazing shrimp cream sauce and grilled to perfection. I can still remember thinking this is the most amazing thing that I've ever put in my mouth. I was a bit younger then but to still be able to remember that feeling, that is what makes it the best meal I've ever had.

So like Charlie Rose I ask you the same question. What is the best meal you've ever had?

Some New Photos

2008-07-01T16:15:00.004-05:00

Well June is finally over! What a month. There are a ton of pictures that I still have to go through but I have put up a few from the past two weeks. VBS and both youth camps were incredible! What a time of watching God move through teen's lives in powerful ways.

July is vacation month! I've got a wedding and then off to the beach! I can hardly stand it. I've been listening to Ray Barbee for the last few weeks to get in the mood and it's working. Today I started listening to the Sprout soundtrack. It's gonna be a great next few weeks!

Don't forget to keep up with me on Twitter
Here's the link to Flickr

Photos for a week

2008-06-15T11:28:00.002-05:00

This week I'll be taking pictures for the Jr. High Youth Camp at Table Rock. I'm so stoked to be able to just take pictures pretty much all week. It's an honor to be asked to do it and kind of a dream job. A big job but a dream job. I get to try and capture powerful emotions, scenes, and epressions as people encounture God this week. What a huge task. Be sure to check the Twitter and Flickr sites for updates.

Happy Father's day. Dad, your card and gift are in the mail! No for real they really are in the mail this year.

See ya!

June Plans

2008-06-07T15:33:00.003-05:00

Wow the first week of June is over already! It's a hot one in the Upstate, temperatures are hovering around in the 90's all week. I've got a window AC unit and I'm working it overtime. This month is going to be hot and crazy as for as my calendar goes and because of this blogging will be limited. You can keep up with me better on my new twitter site.

June 9-13 VBS

June 16-20 JR High Youth Camp

June 23-27 SR High Youth Camp

Also I'll be watching the NBA Finals. Boston is up 1-0. BEAT LA!

Have a good weekend.

Twitter

2008-05-30T14:42:00.000-05:00

I'm now also on Twitter. Check it out.

And the # 1 song is.......

2008-05-26T12:40:00.008-05:00

Artist: Sixpence None the Richer

Album: Sixpence None the Richer

Reason: Now despite what you might think, this is an amazing album. Aside from "Kiss Me" it has a lot of depth, very creative guitar rifts, smooth bass lines and singable melodies. This album showed me that Christians can write beautiful music and lyrics without being cheesy. It is a thought provoking album that as one critic said "makes you want to curl up with a hot tea on a gray day and read your favorite book". (or something like that)

Favorite Tracks: All of Them

We Have Forgotten

Anything

The Waiting Room

Kiss Me

Easy to Ignore

Puedo Escribir

I Can't Catch You

The Lines of My Earth

Sister, Mother

I Won't Stay Long

Love

Moving On

There She Goes

New Photos!

2008-05-24T16:35:00.002-05:00

There are new photos on the Flickr site. Stop by and enjoy.

# 2

2008-05-23T12:30:00.008-05:00

Artist: Coldplay

Album: Parachutes

Reason: I have to admit, the first time I heard "Yellow" I thought it was kind of a goofy song. But once I heard the rest of the album on a trip from Boston to Columbus, I was hooked! I just kept listening to it. From the unquic cords that Chris Martin has become famous for to the interesting lyrics that paint "a beautiful wold" Coldplay continues to write well thought out music that takes us on a wonderful journey.

Favorite Tracks: All of them

Don't Panic

Shiver

Spies

Sparks

Yellow

Trouble

Parachutes

High Speed

We Never Change

Everything's Not Lost

# 3

2008-05-21T09:48:00.007-05:00

Artist: MXPX

Album: The Ever Passing Moment

Reason: When I first heard this album it blew me away! It had sounds that I had never heard come from this band. They made an album that brought elements from their punk roots and mixed it with great power pop sounds. The guitars sound amazing and the songs are thought out and lead you to their core beliefs of who they are as band.

Favorite Tracks:

My Life Story

Responsibility

Prove it to the World

Is the Answer In the Question?

Next Big Thing

Foolish

Misplaced Memories

# 4

2008-05-15T11:05:00.003-05:00

Artist: Sufjan Stevens

Album: Illinoise

Reason: Sufjan, however you say his name, is somewhat of a acquired taste. His song writing ability is what first got my attention. His words paint a picture of where he is. Perhaps the sites you might see if you drove around Chicago or the state of Michigan if you're listening to that album. The instrument selection is very interesting, kind of makes you feel like you've fallen into the dark forgotten band room of your high school, who knows what you'll hear.

Favorite Tracks:

Chicago

Jacksonville

Casimir Pulaski Day

The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts

HELP

2008-05-14T10:55:00.003-05:00

I'm going on a trip tomorrow and I need to know what album to by for the drive.
Any suggestions?
A few I'm considering:
Tegan & Sara
Death Cab for Cutie
Duffy

My favorite albums list will continue tomorrow.

# 5

2008-05-06T10:20:00.006-05:00

Artist: Soulive

Album: Break Out

Reason: I was with my cousins killing time in Barns & Noble and we were picking up random CDs looking for something good. We found Soulive. We didn't buy the album then but we never forgot what we heard that day. 3 years later I heard about them again and bought Break Out as soon as I could. This album has everything. First off Soulive is an incredible group of musicians. They are Jazz/Funk/Soul/Rock. You have to hear this album to believe it. The keyboardist/organist also plays the bass line on the keys. Watching them live, it takes you a minute to figure out that there isn't an actual bass player on stage playing that fast, complicated bass line. You see it but you don't believe it. This album has a lot of guest artists aswell, one of the most note able might be Robert Randolph from Robert Randolph and the Family Band.

Favorite Tracks:

Reverb

Back Again

Break Out

Crosstown Traffic ( featuring Robert Randolph)

New Photos!

2008-05-05T15:52:00.004-05:00

This is one of the new photos at my Flickr site. Also my office window was open and guy started mowing the grass. Needless to say I am now covered in tiny bits of grass.

# 6

2008-05-05T10:58:00.003-05:00

Artist: Jack Johnson

Album: Brushfire Fairytales

Reason: Oh the many reasons I love this album. It came at such a great time in my life. I was less than a month from graduating from high school. I was just discovering the surfing culture and the weather was turning warm. It was the perfect album for the season. The songs are so simple and there is a raw, striped down feeling to the production. The more I learn about Jack the more I like him as an artist.

Favorite Tracks:

Middle Man ( One of the first Jack song's I heard on the movie Thicker Than Water )

Inaudible Melodies

Flake

Bubble Toes

Mud Football

F-Stop Blues

# 7

2008-05-01T13:25:00.006-05:00

Artist: Hillsong United

Album: Look To You

Reason: It is really hard to pick a favorite United album. Because they are worship albums they all have different meanings for me at different times. Looking back this album has so far had the greatest impact on my life of all their albums. "Salvation Is Here" came at a very pivital time. This album is chuck full of great pop rock worship songs, full of energy and deapth. The craftsmen in Sydney did well on this one. The problem with Hillsong United is that each album is better than the last and the latest album "I Heart Revolution" has older songs but they sound better than they ever have!

Favorite Tracks:

Salvation Is Here

What the World Will Never Take Away

Tell the World

Look To You

Shout Unto God

# 8

2008-04-30T08:41:00.005-05:00

Artist: Matthew

Album: Everybody Down

Reason: The vocals, the vocals, the vocals. Brian McSweeney, what a voice. The band is from Chicago and you can feel the Chicago rock in a lot of the tracks.

Favorite Tracks:

Everybody Down

The Darkest Night

In Your Car

Over Board

# 9

2008-04-30T08:29:00.004-05:00

Artist: Incubus

Album: Morning View (2001)

Reason: The crunchy guitars, the tight drums and the over all production of this album is amazing. I thought the song craftsmanship was stellar as well. The album's art work was really well done too.

Favorite Tracks:

Just A Phase

Blood On The Ground

Are You In

Aqueous Transmission

#10

2008-04-28T10:05:00.007-05:00

Artist: David Crowder Band

Album: Sunsets & Sushi (2005)

Reason: Great remixes of songs from the album Illuminate

Favorite Tacks:

Open Skies (Dirty Beats Mix)

How Great (Direct from Satellite City)

Stars (From the Mount Wilson Observatory)

My Top Albums: 20-11

2008-04-27T18:57:00.001-05:00

20. John Mayer Trio - Try! Live (2005)

19. The Beatles - Sgt., Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

18. Coldplay - A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)

17. G.R.I.T.S. - Grammatical Revolution (1999)

16. Chris Botti - When I Fall in Love (2004)

15. Chevelle - Point #1 (1999)

14. September Sessions Sound Track (2002)

13. Postal Service - Give Up (2003)

12. Frou Frou - Details (2002)

11. James Taylor - The Best of James Taylor (2003)

My top 20 albums

2008-04-24T11:30:00.003-05:00

If Wade is doing it than I am going to do it. (Of course he is only doing it because Brady and Cody are doing it) My list will be much shorter than theirs. I can't think of 50 albums that I have enjoyed that much to call my "top 50". Stay tuned for the first 10 tomorrow.

Engagement?

2008-04-15T14:12:00.002-05:00

Check out the Flickr site

I should get money for this..

2008-04-07T14:04:00.004-05:00

I love to eat out. I love finding new places that might be under the radar or might not look like a place worth going into. Because I'm in a new town I'm trying to find these places. One of the problems in this area is that there are a lot of chains. I'm not usually a fan of chains however there are certain diamonds that just need to be found and tried. One of these is Bellacino's in Easley. It is an Italian/pizza/grinders place. Here is my list of pros and cons,

Pros: Price isn't that bad. If I can spend less than $8.00 for lunch I am happy. Today's price. $5.90 for my grinder; $0.53 for tax; totaling: $6.43
The music, great stuff. Right now Jack Johnson, before that 30 Seconds to Mars and before that Ben Harper's "Steal My Kisses". Pretty good selection.
The biggest Pro: they have free WIFI

Cons: For the price the food is good but not amazing. I did get a water to drink so with a soda it might have been to much.
The biggest con, the annoying high school girl spring breakers at the table next to me.

"Weekend Update"

2008-03-31T13:18:00.002-05:00

The weekend, it comes and goes so fast doesn't it?

Friday: Almost got a free dog. Hesitation kills me every time.
Met the new recruit from Dayton, OH. She was really cool just like I said. Katie and I and a few of our friends took her to get some ice cream at this cool place in Clemson. I tried to make a "bubble". It's this flavor that my mom had when she was little and when we would visit the town she grew up in she would get us one. But it just wasn't the same.

Saturday: Cleaned my house, mostly my bathroom. It feels so good to have a clean house.
I also spoke at the retreat Saturday night. It was a really neat experience. I talked about remembering what God has done for us and how that needs to renew our passion for what God is doing now. I had the kids write on a small piece of paper " I remember when God..." and then fill in the blank. I took a chance and asked the kids to read the cards. I didn't know if anyone would do it, then slowly the first girl started to read. "I remember when God saved me from depression after my dad died." I was blown away! Others started to read their cards and I about lost it. It was so raw and real. These kids telling about times when God totatly impacted their world. I got goose bumps and wanted to be done right then but I was only at the halfway point. It was a pretty amazing experience.

Sunday: Finally put some photos up on my walls. Had a good discussion about the importance of reading the Bible. Katie came over and she did some homework and I started reading "Oil!" by Upton Sinclair.

Random thoughts and Weekend Plans

2008-03-28T15:28:00.008-05:00

Random thought from a crowded Wendy's:
This is horrible; In public I sometimes text people so that they will text me back and the people around me will see it. Isn't that horrible, I caought myself doing that today.
The Beligio apparently sells fanny packs in their gift shop. A lady at Wendy's had one on.
I wonder if other people from Pickens drive to Easley just for Wendy's like I did today?

Weekend Plans:
Katie has a soccer recruit in from OH. I'm sure this person will be super cool and maybe we'll show her downtown G-Ville.
I'm speaking at a youth retreat at Table Rock on Saturday night. I'm really stoked about this.I can remember dreaming about speaking at weekend things like this. It is a great honor to be asked to do this and I can't wait to see what happens. I'll be in front of some close friends, some strangers and a former professor of mine. Perhaps this will be the start of something great. I think that God has given me something to say to these kids so I hope that I convey God's message to them the best I can.

Also there are a few shots from a photo shoot that I did last week on the FLICKR site. Check them out and tell me which one you like the best. I hope the client likes them.....

"Do you think we should hide the Easter Eggs in the grave yard?"

2008-03-22T19:28:00.005-05:00

I told Gavin that I was pretty sure the lady didn't want us to hide the eggs for the little kids in the grave yard. But he asked just to make sure. Easter Egg hunts, what a joy. To see little kids run around picking up bright colored eggs off the ground, filling their baskets to the brim. I did see one kid, no kidding tip over this other kid's basket and then start picking up the eggs and putting them into his own basket! He was a little to old for the hunt though.

Easter Weekend Plans:
Good Friday - Photo shoot for a guy at church, we'll see how that turns out. Spent the evening with the Greer boys.
Saturday - Easter Egg Hunt, Church at NewSpring with Charlie then dinner at 5 Guys and editing photos from shoot.
Easter Sunday - Narrating some choir thing for church then dinner at the Potter's.

Remember what this weekend is about. It's when God said enough is enough. I want you and if this is what has to be done then so be it. Remember

Tons and Tons

2008-03-14T12:56:00.002-05:00

Alight there are a ton of new photos on the Flickr site! Be sure to block off some time to check them out and let me know what you think. They are from recent trips to Charlotte, Atlanta and the Clemson Botanical Gardens. There are also a few from my yard. Enjoy

Life is Good

2008-03-13T15:29:00.003-05:00

You know when you hear the intro to your favorite TV show, something just happens. When I hear the intro to The Office man I just feel good! Now that you can watch it online or "listen" to it as we'll call it, it just makes my office time more enjoyable.
I rented "No Country For Old Men" last night and I fell asleep. Maybe I'll give it another shot sometime later. It wasn't the movie's fault that I fell asleep it was mine, I was pretty tired.
What is your favorite TV show right now, what movies have you seen and what books are you reading?

City Wide Wireless!

2008-03-10T17:12:00.003-05:00

Well almost. I'm in downtown Greenville right now and about half the downtown is wireless. It is a public system set up by the city. Pretty neat if you ask me. Just don't check your super personal stuff and I guess you're fine. Look for new photos on the Flickr site soon! Have a great week!

Brown Extension Cord

2008-02-25T22:30:00.003-05:00

The other day I needed an extension cord to plug in my laptop. I found a brown one and began to lay the cords out to reach the outlet. Well it turned out I needed another one, I found a longer yellow one and was about to make the connection between the three and then my original cord didn't work in the brown cord that I had found. But it did work in the yellow one. I wouldn't have found the yellow cord that worked without first finding the brown one. So thanks brown extension cord, you helped me get to where I needed to be.

Later that day almost the same thing happened with different objects. What I was first looking for led me to what I really needed. It was so strange that I thought God are you trying to tell me something? The more I thought about it the more I realized we can all be brown cords. Maybe God has placed us somewhere to lead others to him? Take your current job or where your locker is at school, what if God wants to use you to show love to someone close by you? Just like the brown cord led me to what I needed, you can led people to what they need, Jesus.

New Photos!

2008-02-21T17:17:00.003-05:00

I pretty much live across the street from a cemetery and there are some cool statues there. I couldn't help taking pictures of them. Two of those photo's are on the Flickr site with more to follow. Check them out!

Sunday Night

2008-02-19T18:24:00.002-05:00

As many of you may or may not know I'm now the youth pastor at Pickens View in the town of Pickens. I've been here for just over a month and Sunday afternoon I decided to see what I could do with my youth building. They have some pretty outdated Sunday School posters on the walls. Ya know the ones with like the names of the apostles and the picture of some guy in the armor of God. We have to many of these posters up so I took half of them down. I wasn't sure what would happen, would anyone notice, would they say that that picture had real meaning or would they even notice. Here's what they noticed, the "kicking" music wasn't playing! No one noticed that the goofy posters where down! (I've been playing music as they come in) It was the music that they wanted. I'm really big on trying to create environments that allow people to feel comfortable and welcome. I think the simple thing of playing music is creating that environment. We'll see but I was pretty stoked about it.

Movies Viewed

2008-02-18T16:59:00.004-05:00

Movies viewed this passed weekend:
"Once"
"Juno"
"Rush Hour 3"

Juno is a really well done film about a girl who gets pregnant and the family she decides to give the baby to. Pretty funny and tense and just a good movie.

Once is an Irish film with the lead signer of the Irish band The Frames and the leading lady is his friend in real life so their chemistry is really neat to watch on film. In the extras they make the statement that 60% of the film is music, and what good music it is!

Rush Hour 3... well it made me laugh, but thats about it. It was Rush Hour.

New Tunes, Views & Reads

2008-02-12T22:48:00.002-05:00

Jack Johnson: "Sleeping Through the Static"
White Stripes: "Icky Thump"

Movies:
"Across The Universe"
"Karate Kid"

Books:
"First Two Years in Youth Ministry" - Duffy Robinson and Doug Fields
Some other great book with a guy long boarding on the cover. Really good.
The Book of John

What you listening to, watching and reading?

Here's one for ya

2008-02-06T23:08:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting in Java City watching UNC and Duke play. 52 seconds left, UNC 78 Duke 85 down to the wire. For those of you that were asking for an update. Here is a quick one. I'm now a youth pastor. Pretty crazy! I'm living in a small house that feels like a mountain get away. Every time my brother comes over he tells me that he feels like he is on vacation. Things are going pretty good over all. It shouldn't but it has blown me away to look back and see God's hand through out the last 6 months. In July I was working in Sacramento, then trying to finish school and now I'm in the "real" world. I'm only about 20 mins from SWU so that has been nice. I'm still taking pictures here and there. So be sure to check out the flickr site.

This is the month of love and in youth group we are learning about how to love the people that are all around us. We talked about how to love our brothers and or sisters today and how to stand up for them. Quick story. When my younger brother and I were in the city pool. I was 4 and he was 2. This bully was slashing me and I kept asking him in my polite way to stop. Of course he didn't and of course I just took it. As the story goes, my little bro rises up out of the water, hurling insults and threats in his broken english gibber and takes the kid out! Thanks bro, I owe ya.

Have a good one

Duke won

No Internet

2008-01-22T22:07:00.000-05:00

No internet at the new house, yet. New post coming soon

2007-12-04T00:55:00.000-05:00

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy." Proverbs 31:8-9

Flickr for more photos

Leopard, The Carpenters, and school

2007-11-28T00:28:00.000-05:00

My brother and I downloaded Leopard over the Thanksgiving break. I love it. Thom... well I don't know what happened but it wiped him out. He lost iPhoto and Word and several other applications. He is going to the genius bar soon and hopefully they'll be able to work their magic. I feel so guilty, I hit the install button. I'm still trying to find where all those "300 new features" are but I do like the flow of things and the presentation.

I was scanning the iTunes Holiday section and I didn't see The Carpenters Christmas! No need to fear I had a copy in the car. I was reminded over the break that my Dad had a huge crush on Kern Carpenter. Maybe because of this crush, I remember hearing this album played throughout our house growing up. The Carpenters and Kenny G. always brought in the Christmas season in our house. I think "Merry Christmas Darling" is one of my favorites from The Carpenters' album.

Top 5 Favorite Christmas Songs:
1. Holy Night by Brian McSweeney
2. Baby It's Cold Out Side, an old version
3. Cannon in D, the one with the voices?
4. Christmas Time Is Here by Vince Guaraldi Trio (Charlie Brown Christmas)
5. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

School, well I'm almost done. I have a tone of work to do but it'll get done, it has to.

New Photos!

2007-11-24T02:42:00.001-05:00

There are a whole bunch of new photos on the Flickr site. Be sure to stop by and tell me what you think! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

Almost Done

2007-11-12T16:05:00.000-05:00

If all goes as planned, I have about one month until I graduate from school. It has been a long road full of ups and downs; from pulling all nighters to chasing skunks. (Thomas I did that one last week!) If anyone has a job opening let me know!
Katie and I celebrated one year this past weekend! We had a wonderful time in Asheville, NC. We left around 11 am and started up the highway. Seeing a sign for Sky Top Orchard, I cut across a few lanes and we headed up the mountain. Upon our arrival we were informed that the apple picking season had ended, but we didn't let that stop us, we walk through the fruitless trees anyway. We had a wonderful time up on the mountain.

When we got to Asheville we walked around for awhile going into the little shops, there was some crazy clothes store were Kate found a sweet green coat but it was a little to big. We also stopped at a really cool book store called Malaprop's Bookstore. Peter Sagal from NPR's "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!" will be there this Friday. That is one my favorite NPR shows.

We then made it to lunch and we ate at a place called "Table". It was really good and had a nice modern feel to it. We did some other things but I won't bore you. Like I said we had a wonderful time!

There are some new pictures on my Flickr site so please stop by. Have a great week

Fall Break

2007-10-12T19:17:00.001-05:00

I’ve loved being back in Columbus for the week. I have been taking pictures through car windows, taking some of family and today I saw preserved bodies with my parents. We went to “Bodies… The Exhibition”. It was pretty intense but very interesting. At the first case my Mom looked and said “Gag, gag!” I said “ Mom be quiet!”. These are real people and it was pretty quiet in there so it seemed all the louder.

As far as my drive up to Columbus, I wanted to do something new. Being very careful, I stuck my camera out the window and snapped some pictures. I made a new series on the Flickr site entitled “Shots from the Car Window”. Original I know. There are kind of a lot, so be sure to go to the next pages to check them out.

This Just In....

2007-09-12T23:31:00.001-05:00

Lyle, the lead singer of the worship band "The Difference", was seen on Tuesday night wearing his RayPaul Brands "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" t-shirt. When asked about the shirt, the singer responded by saying that it was really his roommate's but was playing on buying one this week! Lyle did a great job and looked good doing it.

This shirt is on sale now for $15.00
It is printed on American Apparel 50/50
Supplies are very limited.

News!

2007-08-30T22:17:00.001-05:00

An amazing thing has happened. A few posts ago, I jokingly said it would be really cool if someone would buy me a pro account on Flickr. Well my good friend Brett, who is getting married this weekend, BOUGHT me a Pro Account! How crazy is that?! Thanks so much Brett, I hope that the photographs on the site will make you proud. Brett is like my patron. So in light of this news, be sure to check the Flickr site often.
In other news, Katie my amazing girlfriend surprised me last Sunday night with Soulive tickets! The show was in Asheville, NC and was amazing. Asheville is a crazy town, full of mountain hippies that dance crazy, have real dreads and sell balloons on the streets. Yeah not sure what gas might have been in those things, we passed on the gas. So be sure to look for some photos of that night. Thanks again Brett, see you soon!

I love this city!

2007-08-14T16:12:00.000-05:00

Where else do you see a sign like this? Of course I was 5 blocks south of The Ohio State University's campus. People are gearing up for the football season, the new clothing line is out including the new "DOT THE I" Nike shirt. Such an exciting place to live. I will miss leaving the Promise Land once again. But as I begin what hopes to be my last semester in the South, who knows where God will lead me. But nothing will ever be like O' Columbus Town.
As the summer starts to fade, what were some highs of your summer? Your favorite meal, movie, trip, album, date? Whatever?

Flickr Help!

2007-07-23T23:26:00.000-05:00

Well I was posting San Francisco photos and I ran into a problem that I knew I would one day face, I ran out of room on my free account! I reached my 200 photo limit. So I am forced to get rid of some old ones to make room for some new ones. Yes I could bite the bullet and pay the $25.00 a year and go pro but at this time I'm not able to do that. Unless you would like to make a donnation?! Just kidding but if you did want to, that would be rad! So keep your eyes open as I start adding and taking away. I also have a few new Lake Tahoe photos so be sure to check those out.
This is my last full week in Sacramento. I hope to get some shots of downtown before I get out of here. Hope you all have a good week, take care.
-Nate

San Francisco

2007-07-15T23:31:00.000-05:00

Be on the look out for San Francisco photos later this week.

New Things

2007-07-03T12:03:00.000-05:00

My new favorite things:
Business Widget
Facebook Widget
J St.
Big Spoon Yogurt on J St.
Burt’s Beeswax “Lifeguard’s choice lip balm”

What are your favorite Widgets?

AFI, food and Photos

2007-06-27T21:58:00.001-05:00

A small section of G-Force is going through AFI’s top 100 movies. According to AFI the top ten are:
1 CITIZEN KANE
2 THE GODFATHER
3 CASABLANCA
4 RAGING BULL
5 SINGIN' IN THE RAIN
6 GONE WITH THE WIND
7 LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
8 SCHINDLER'S LIST
9 VERTIGO
10 THE WIZARD OF OZ

What do you think about this list? I love that Vertigo is up there!
In other news, there are four new photos on the flickr site. I hope to go out and get some more this week.

Also I am planning a trip to San Francisco. If you have any “must sees” please let me know. So far I’m planning on going to the SFMOMA, and taking the trolley across the city. Hope you finish your week well! I’m off to find some food!

Familia, Famille, Familie, Famiglia, Family

2007-06-15T12:31:00.000-05:00

The new theme on JPG's website is family. As I browsed through the photos I noticed a trend that most of the photos seemed to be of one person. Maybe a kid or some adult, but they all seemed to only have one person in the photo. I wonder if this is a snapshot (excuse the pun) of what the American society thinks about family. Not Christmas dinners gathered around a huge table in the basement, not birthday parties that are so fun non-family members want to come. Or traditions of vacations to the beach, crazy trips out of the way to some grand city. But the view is more of isolation, of individualism that loathes unity in daily life.The pictures don’t seem to show the adventure of doing life together as a family.
Maybe I see family through rose-colored glasses, but I don’t think so. Family is supposed to be there when things suck, when death and pain occur. That support system holds you when the winds blow hard, when the sun heats up. Family is the first institute we are exposed to and it is vital to our society. This Fathers Day take the time to say thanks to your Dad, tell him that you are proud to be called his child, that you enjoy your time with him. Take the time to talk to him find out who he is as a person. What better time of the year to start something new with your father. If you are not in that kind of relationship, then start laying the foundation for it this weekend. Good luck and don’t forget to get a card.

Tahoe

2007-06-12T03:03:00.000-05:00

Photos of Lake Tahoe are now up on the Flickr site. Be sure to tell me what you think. I hope you all have a good week.

Sac Town

2007-06-06T19:44:00.000-05:00

Sac Town is a pretty cool place. The area where I am located used to be rice fields some 8 years ago, now it is a busy road with grocery stores, little restaurants, fast food, Barns & Noble, Target, a movie theater, schools and tones of over priced new homes and condos! What a great place to plant a church! The church meets in a high school that makes any mid western want to drop out of college and go back to high school. It is your California school, open air, big windows for sunlight, really cool lay outs, everything. The school we meet at is almost the ideal set up for a church. Its foyer is large enough to hold the same amount if not more people than that auditorium. We have lights built in, and a sweet stage and great theater seating. There are a few set backs, like storing the equipment but the school is only about half way to its maximum capacity so there is a lot of storage room and the school works very well with us.
The staff here is amazing! They like each other, they get along really well, they are honest and do everything as a team. It is a great place to be. Everyday things are getting better. I’m learning more about the staff and am able to interact with them more and more on a personal level. I have to fight tendencies to keep to myself in a new setting. Last night I was reading 2 Corinthians 1:21 and Paul says something like it is God who makes us stand firm in Christ. That got me thinking about all the things that come with standing with Christ, and about the whole Christian life. When we align ourselves with Christ we are teaming up with him, His Father and His Spirit. In 2 Timothy 1:7 we learn that with the Spirit comes power and love and self-discipline. Applying those truths to this experience will help me to become the person God has called me to be. And God will help me stand firm in these truths, and in His Son. I hope this encourages you today, to remember that God is on your side, that he wants what is best for you.

Oh yeah I’m going to Lake Tahoe this weekend! Look for photos next week.

New Photos

2007-05-31T12:46:00.000-05:00

Be sure to check out the Flickr site for some new photos. I also put some photos on a new site http://jpgmag.com be sure to check that out and vote for mine. The photos are titled, "Oh My Gosh" and "United Live".
Sacramento is great, more on that next time.

the last week

2007-05-08T13:03:00.000-05:00

It is the last week of school here at SWU. The air is full of excitement as students finish their final tests, some their final tests ever at SWU. I however will have one more semester after the completion of this week. My summer plans are fairly simple. Spend all next week touring Columbus, maybe Cinci, and maybe some other town. My lovely girlfriend will be making her first trip to The Promise Land as well next week. She is in for a real treat. (Joel hopefully all those practice dates with you will pay off) Very little time will be spent in Columbus that next week. One day. I'll then jump on a plane and head for the wild wild west! I'll be spending my summer in Sacramento CA! I'll be interning at a church out there called The River Church. I cannot wait to get started. I have already had a warm welcome from the staff via emails. I'm a little up set, this will be the first year for no family vacation and this will be the first town I will live in that does not start with the letter "C" or "M". 24 years, I guess my streak had to end sometime.

In other news, there is no news on when the GoGreen contest will end. Thanks to all of you that have voted. As of right now we are still in first place with 116 votes, 3.5 rating and 434 views! I think you can still vote and view and rate until the thing is over, whenever that might be. Just check the link in the previous post. Also there are a few new photos on the Flickr site, be sure to check those out.

What are your summer plans?

Youthnoise

2007-04-16T16:28:00.000-05:00

The "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" shirt is up on Youthnoise/gogreen.com
Get over there and Vote for it. Check out the show room link and then it is in the photo section. View it, rate it and vote for it! Tell all your friends! If it wins, $4000.00 goes to a charity. Also the t-shirt is for sale from RayPaul Brand for $15.00. Don't forget Earthday is coming up in a few weeks!

http://www.youthnoise.com/gogreencontest/?act=4

RayPaul Brands

2007-04-10T01:28:00.000-05:00

$15.00
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle t-shirt
printed on American Apparel 50/50
model: Thadd

Main St. Deli 3

2007-04-05T22:42:00.000-05:00

Well I have taken my first time off from Main St. I'm at home in the promise land for Easter! It was a nice drive except it is freezing here. Like 30's. It was a little chilly last night at school but to come here it was quite a change. Winter coats, hoodies, the whole works. We have only been home for a few hours and it has been a great time already.

Main St. is going really well. It got kind of scary the other day, two people were fired. The cook and I, who sometimes race to get our food out first, were taken off guard with the firing. We thought he was a good employee but I guess we were wrong. Our boss came and told us that she liked us and didn't have anything to worry about. We were both pretty relieved.

This being Easter weekend, don’t forget to find out what this weekend means. This is when the whole story gets good. The beginning of the gospel sets the stage. It’s the opening act. Jesus coming to earth is act two. This weekend is act three and what you do with the elements of act three determines your act four. The best act, because of the previous acts.

Think about it, be thankful and learn to love and live like it.

New Music

2007-04-01T01:13:00.000-05:00

My good friend Thadd has just added some new sweet music on his myspace. There is a link at the right to his site. Be sure to check out "good times" and "rain". Also my worship leader has added some new songs to his site as well.
http://www.virb.com/leemcderment
Main St. Deli is going really well. Got my first paycheck the other day. Pretty nice to make some money and have pocket change for cheap dates with my lovely Kate. oh and.....Go Bucks!

Main Street Deli 2

2007-03-21T20:42:00.001-05:00

While I was talking to the guy at Main St. Deli, I also picked up an application. I turned it in tuesday morning and started tuesday afternoon! This place is sweet. The atmosphere is really chill with brick wall on one side and art work on the other, nice mood lights and really good food. And a 90's satalite radio station playing!
I am the sandwich guy. I'm still learning the ropes but I think I'm getting the hang of it pretty quick. I still want you guys to let me know what pictures you think I should give them. If your in the area come buy (thats a play on words. Get something and say hey).
Also, I received an iTunes gift card and need some input on some good under the radar music. Currently i am listening to "Silent Alarm" by Bloc Party. Pretty cool stuff. Anyway hope to see you at the Deli!

Main St. Deli

2007-03-17T15:33:00.000-05:00

Main St. Deli is new small business in downtown Central. I know downtown Central isn't really a happening place but I think that this new place could be just the jump-start that is needed. They have a lot of sweet artwork hanging up and sweet drinks and good food. Anyway I’m going to submit some photography and I need your help in deciding what photos to submit. Go to the flickr site and let me know what ones I should give. Or if you are in the area stop by the APT and look at the others. Thanks.

Spring Break 07

2007-03-15T22:59:00.000-05:00

There are some Spring Break 07 photo's on the Flickr site. Be sure to check them out and if you do click on them so that I can see that you viewed them. it helps me keep track of what photos people like to see. have a good weekend!

NEW FLICKR PHOTOS

2007-02-10T23:23:00.000-05:00

New photos include: Soulive and Oil Mill of Pendelton and the Lane Ave. Bridge. Be sure to figure those out and tell me what you think. Happy V-Day

The Steal City has stolen you from us

2007-01-18T09:43:00.000-05:00

This semester has already had one for the books or for the blogs. Marcus my other roommate was diagnosed with acute leukemia. He won’t return to school this semester. He has already shaved his head and we are trying to plan a weekend trip up to the Steal City, Pittsburg to visit him. I talked to Marcus the other day and he seemed to be in good spirits, talking about loosing his hair and how he'll feel like a two year old. I can't imagine loosing all the hair on my body. My chest, my legs, my arms, hands, feet, everywhere!
You don't wish anything like this on anyone, and sometimes you wonder why bad things happen to good people. As odd and maybe insensitive as this sounds, there is no better person who should have this. Marcus' love for God and people make him a prime candidate. He loves God and try’s his best to follow him everyday and he loves people. Just over hearing him say something to a nurse was encouraging. He was so polite and kind; his voice was appreatative and tender. I can see the nurse station now, fighting over who gets to take care of him because he is such a joy to be around. That's the kind of kid God wants us to be, to be able to stare death in the face and look right past it into Jesus' eyes. Marcus has a hope and an attitude that should inspire us all to be more like Jesus. To love people where they are and to want to see God do amazing things. We are praying for a miracle and for healing. But sometimes our definitions of those words are not God's. But we must learn to trust him, that he wont leave us abandoned but with be even closer to us as we draw near to him, he will draw near to us.
This brings Marcus into somewhat of a spot light, but I know that his love for Jesus and people will outshine any light we can put on him.

Blog 07

2007-01-18T09:16:00.000-05:00

It is raining out right now and 30 degrees, if the weather changes at all it'll be sleet, but most likely not snow. That is just the kind of winter it has thus far. Hopes and dreams of a white Christmas for my future children are going the way of the buffalo. Now stories of my parents’ memories will become my snow memories. I do remember a few times growing up with snow. School was called off and Thomas and I would climb up the mound of snow that the local fire station had piled for their trucks. Or if we were at grandma's we would try and brave the traffic to get to the local hill which was always to crowded and not really very fun. I do remember a blizzard a few years ago on Valentines Day. I had come home early and played in the snow until my family met me at home. Then I had to house sit in the city and was snowed in for a few days. What memories will I gain this year?

Orlando!

2006-12-31T07:03:00.000-05:00

I'm in the terminal right now about to get on our plane. If there are any last minute ideas as to what to see and do in Orlando let me know. There should be some new photos on Flickr here and there. Be sure to view them and tell me what you think. Also if you are really board, you could look at all of them and tell me which ones you would buy if you were to ever buy one, one day. Just a pretend game. Happy New Year!

Chirstmas & Orlando!

2006-12-25T22:22:00.001-05:00

What an amazing Christmas break so far! I spent the first few days at home with the fam. It was great. Then I headed up to NY to visit my lovely girlfriend. She showed me around the town and it was amazing. The first night we made dinner and went to an independent film festival and then hit up a sweet coffee shop with a few of her friends. Later in the week we went to the George Eastman House. Eastman was the guy that made Kodak. You can see his house which has an art gallery attached to it. Kate is so good to me, she knew that I wanted to see all that stuff. She even took me to Lake Ontario! It was supper cold but really fun! I had an amazing time with her, seeing where she lived and meeting her family.

Today we had christmas at home with just our fam. It was pretty different. Our "big" present is a trip to Orlando so we didn't really get anything which is fine, it was just weird. You always wonder what it would be like to skip the presents part but never think you'd really do it. We pretty much did today and it was fine. I must confess that last night as I realized that that is what was happening I was a little nervous . But it was great! We had a great devotion at lunch and then later went to a nursing home to say hey to some lady. Dad made Thadd bring his guitar and we sang some carols. Thadd walked away saying how good he felt and I couldn't have agreed more. I heard today that Dwayne Wade didn't do the present thing today at all. He said his family has all they need so they just bought stuff for other families and gave money away. It was humbling to hearing that he did that. As far as i know he's not a christian, maybe he is I have no idea but if he can do that why can't I?

Anyway the original meaning of this post...Anyone know of some cool things to see and do in Orlando?

6th Baby!

2006-12-13T20:46:00.000-05:00

My girlfriend plays for the 6th nationaly ranked team in the NCCAA! How crazy is that!?
http://www.thenccaa.org/womensbasketstat.htm#Standings

In other news, the Buick makes its anual trip up 75 to the promise land tomorrow. I have one more exam and then packing will begin while I await my traveling buddies, Thomas, Marcus and Ashley. It should be a good trip and I am beyond stoked to get home. Some goals over this break:

Visit Kate up north
Get to as many art mesuems as possible
Take as many pictures as possible
Watch good movies
Survey people that live in the city
Long board
Play sequence every night

What are some of your winter goals? Next post coming from... The Promise Land!

There are four new photo's on Flickr, be sure to check them out and tell me what you think.

New Face

2006-12-06T22:14:00.000-05:00

Well it has been a month so I figured it was time to revel my new partner. This girl is incredible, she makes me laugh more than anyone else, and she is kind and makes everyone around her feel like a million bucks. The lady and I have a knack for attracting characters and sometimes people are hard to deal with, but she treats them so well and with such grace. I think that is why we attract them. Anyway, just thought I would introduce her to ya'll.

Christmas break is a week away! Oh to be in the promise land. Today my friend said, "I just want to go home." I hear ya dude. Look for a bunch of stuff in the coming weeks on the flickr site. Thomas has showed me how fun it is to shoot water from our sinks, look for those.

Let see what else, oh we busted out the synth in chapel the other day. The sound was pretty screwy but it was sweet. Seeing a synth and a Mac on stage, SWU is going to get blown away next semester! I hope you have all had chance to see "stranger than fiction" great movie. Anyway... what are you all up to?

peace

Where are my shoes?

2006-11-09T14:16:00.001-05:00

Last night I couldn't find my shoes. I was going to walk Katie to her apartment and and they were nowhere to be found. Thomas kindly opend up the freezer and there they were. With my walet, phone, tooth paste and tooth brush. I thawed out my things and left. I came back about to go to bed. Opened the freezer to get some ice and my pillow fell out. Today I could have sworn that I left my tooth brush in my room. I finaly broke down and asked Thomas were it was. He led me to the freezer and moved things around and in a glass was my tooth brush and tooth paste, frozen soild. It has begun...agian.

Make It Stop!

2006-11-09T11:39:00.000-05:00

Have you ever felt violated? Like your personal space is getting smaller. You try to keep things out but it seems like the more you try the worse it gets. You just can't keep things from getting in. Around here in Apartment R we are feeling this way. It is that time of the year again where Ladybugs seem to think that they have a VIP pass to our rooms. They just hang out on the ceiling and for the most part keep to them selves. But at times you will be laying in bed and those black dots are moving! They craw from one part of the room to the next. Right this minute I am counting...14! little red and black dotted things on my walls and ceiling! Yesterday, for the second time, I got the vacuum out and sucked them up! Like we are talking 14 hours ago! When will the invasion stop?! When will the privacy that I once enjoyed be restored? Can any one help?!?!?!

New

2006-10-19T12:29:00.000-05:00

New Blog post and Flickr pictures coming soon. Have a good rest of the week and weekend.

Mute Math

2006-10-11T09:49:00.000-05:00

Mute Math is the free download in the iTunes Music Store this week. Be sure to download this although you might already have the song. It's a good song and it is good to support artist that share similar values than you. Enjoy your day

Chicago?

2006-10-08T09:27:00.000-05:00

It is that time again, when the Buick and I make the treck up through the Smoky Mountains to the Promise Land of Columbus Ohio! I made it home late on Friday night. Getting a later start than I wanted and then hitting traffic in Asheville slowed me down about an hour and a half. On Saturday we went out to IWU to watch the SWU men's soccer team play. It was a hard fought game with SWU loosing in the end. Thomas got to come home with us and that was fun, but because of that, we know have to get him to Chicago for the rest of their scheduled games. They play Moody on Monday and Trinity on Tuesday. This time Dad and I are going to make the drive. Hopefully we will get some time to go into the city and find some cool things. I hope you all have a good week and learn something new. Make a new friends!

pe@ce
-nate

Finally a quite night

2006-10-04T20:37:00.000-05:00

All is quite tonight on the battle lines in apartment R. Thomas is away for soccer. The rest is needed after the events of last night. Thomas had made a heating pad and had some extra rice and lavender seeds. Thinking what he could do with them so that they didn't go to waste, he decided to dump the materials in Lyle's pillow. Then as the night went on Thomas found a frog named "Thom". After putting it under Lyle's bead spread, Thomas felt bad for "thom" and returned him to the wild (not without throwing him on me first). Later that night I was across the parking lot and I hear this, "what happened to my pillow!" Lyle had discovered what Thomas did. Taking the material he put it into the dryer with Thomas clothes and turned it back on. Oh what a night.

It has begun

2006-10-02T19:09:00.000-05:00

Last night Thomas started a war with Lyle. Thomas tried to pure water on Lyle's head two times. The second time, Lyle threw water on Thomas. In retaliation, Thomas poured water on Lyle's bed. Then some lotion was squirted on someone, then on me by Lyle. I then snuck around the refrigerator and shot Lyle hard with some water in the face.

Tonight Thomas sprayed Lyle with Febreze, so to get him back, Lyle dumped his trash can on Thomas' bed. Lyle's trash can was only 1/3 full while Thomas' was over the top full. Thomas took his trash and threw it on Lyle's floor. Who know when this war will end and who will come out on top.
-From the front lines of Apartment R

The week

2006-09-30T23:02:00.000-05:00

Nashville taught me a few things. You need to know people and you need to have a product to back your self up. As far photography lessons. It is all about lighting. Jeremy had just a three piece set up and what he did with it made the shoot. Being able to manipulate the light and have it work for you is the key. He also has a great eye and that goes a very long way. The day was pretty sweet. We got to the label on time and then found out that they changed to time from 11:00 to 12:00. So we kind of just bummed around the label' office. Trey gave me CD of these new guys. Leeland. Check this guys out, very good stuff.

We finally left and went to meet Jeremy and his crew at his house which was amazing! He has that chalk board paint and that was really cool and just the lay out was sweet. In the house were these kids that looked like some band but they turned out to be his assistants. They were pretty cool guys. I checked out a few their sites and they are really talented guys.

We got to the location and set up and the guys changed and we started to shoot. Over all a great time but nothing really crazy happened. A very profitable time and great to meet one of my fav. Photographers and spend time with all my old friends.

In other news The SWU Worriers Mens Soccer Team is now 8-2 win a big win on Thursday and OSU is still #1 in the nation! Have a wonderful week!

Here Fido, here boy!

2006-09-24T22:06:00.000-05:00

Well I have held off for as long as I could and now it is time to revile my activity. Right now I am in downtown Nashville writing this from a sweet coffee shop called “Fido” with my great friend Joel. The reason for being in Nashville: Everyday Sunday is having a photo shoot for their new album that is due out later this year. The guy doing the shoot is Jeremy Cowart and he is ridiculous! This guy has done some huge stuff. Have you seen any pictures or posters for the show “Prison Break”? Yeah he did those, among many other artists such as: Sting, Imogan Heap, Jars of Clay, and gobs of others! He also did a sweet book called “Hope in the Dark" with the people of Blood Water Mission. Be sure to check him out and the great people of BWM.

Let me tell you about Fido’s. It is located on the Vanderbelt university campus, or a block up from it. So there are a lot of college age and post college age kids. This is kind of the trendy place of town it seems. A good walk up from the Gaylord area and all the stuff that goes along with that area, this part is a little less glits and glamar than the strip. Every one here seems to have “cool” clothes and hair style’s. But it is really cold in here and pretty cold outside. The atmosphere is here is nice, they are playing some kind of smooth music that has an Indian vibe. There are some guys in there that are laughing at some thing and getting pretty loud. But I guess that is what life is all about, laughing really loud with your friends. Anyway, things else where are good right now. Classes are good, friends are good, Apt life is good. Welp I’m gonna jam, I’ll try to update as soon as I can about my trip. Have a great weekend and educate yourselves this week about your dreams!

Ok real quick, so I’m pretty sure the bathroom here is a oner and a guy pretty much just followed me in and used the stall. It didn’t so much bother me, more just caught me off guard. Who does that? There was a lock on the door and everything. I guess he couldn’t wait.

Uganda

2006-09-17T23:24:00.000-05:00

LRA leader could be out in the open. From BBC news.(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5354348.stm) Be sure to check this out. The whole story is there and gives a lot of good info. So rather than reiterate most of what they have already said I want to talk about Joseph Kony. He is the leader of the LRA and one of the most wanted men in the World. I don't know, that sounds pretty huge to me. So what Kony is asking is that if they do this peace thing ( I know I said I wouldn't repeat what they said on BBC but this is just a snippet, for context) he gets amnesty from all the allegations.

Ok so what would you do. You can grant this man amnesty and he will "go away" and disarm his LRA and in theory the problem of children soldiers is over. But what does he lose? Maybe he has to live in cave forever, or somewhere in the bush. Well it appears that he has been hiding out somewhere anyway. But when does justice come in? The "reap what you sow" factor? I know that God is the ultimate judge and when he stands before God he'll have to say something. But isn't there a price to pay now? What do you think? Should Kony get amnesty and in turn the people of Uganda get peace? Or should the UN try to capture him and force him to face a court and let justice take its course?

Continuum

2006-09-13T13:41:00.000-05:00

Few things before we dive in today. John Mayer's new album dropped yesterday. Really good, really mellow so don't expect a lot of craziness. There is however a Jimmy Hendrix cover "Bold As Love" that does get a little crazy. Very good track. Solid album over all. The new iTunes store it up and it's nuts. And iTunes 7 is sweet. Alright now the good stuff.

Our student body president stopped me the other day and asked if I would do an interview with a paper about the political environment here at SWU. I was like welp, I'll give it a go. I was very honored and humbled.
So I called the guy today and he called me back and we chatted for about 15 min. It was a pretty cool experience. It all happened so fast and I don't really remember what all I said. Jon, the journalist didn't say anything like "What do you mean by that?" Or "say that again?" I suppose that's good. When ever it comes out I will be sure to let you all know. In the mean time it did get me thinking about a varied of different topics. Such as: how on earth are you supposed to gage a campuses political environment when you keep to only like minded people? This made me think that I need to be more intentional with people in coversation. Not just to find out who they side with come November but to get an idea as to where they are on their spiritual journey. Through out that journey, your ideas and belief's shift and hopefully become more sound and firmer. And hopefully more Christlike, after all that is the goal. To be able to play a roll in that journey is and point someone towards Christ is the job of that I want to play.

In our evangelism class we talk about what holds people back from sharing their faith and one the most often given response is that people don't feel like they know enough. It is amazing to see when you just start talking, the Spirit really does guide you in the conversation. If you fill your heart with God's word and the things of God, than that will come out of your mouth. I hope that Jon heard that today. That the reason we here at SWU do anything is because God asked us to and because we love Him we will obey.

What crazy things are happening in your life these days?

Update on Weekend

2006-09-10T21:15:00.000-05:00

The SWU men's soccer team. Captained by Thom George beat Faulkner 6-0 on Saturday bringing their record to 4-1 this season. OSU "hooked" that Texas team. How great was that game?! Today I had the privilege of hearing John Maxwell speak at church. That was pretty cool. I stood inline to introduce myself in hopes of just planting a seed. I'll see him again in January. Maybe I'll be able to drop more than a name but some ideas or get to pick his brain. I hope your weekend was good. Don't be afraid to partner with God this week.

from laundry boy to captain

2006-09-08T09:13:00.000-05:00

What a big weekend here at SWU. Tonight the V-ball team hosts Lee, who is crazy good. They are 19th in the NAIA. Huge game. SWU is coming off a two game winning streak. (Not sure two wins in a row merits streak status). Then on Saturday, the soccer team hosts Faulkner U. The men are coming off a somewhat sloppy win over Toccoa Falls, however the captains did an amazing job in that game!

Speaking of the soccer captains, guess who had a captain's band on? Yeah G-4! My bro Thom! I was filming and thought his arm looks funny, like discolored. Then I realized that's a yellow band, that's a captain's band! From laundry boy to captain. Here's the story.

Thomas came on to the team as a walk on and was the "manager" during his freshman year. Other than dirty clothes and soap I don't know what he managed. But he did practice with the team, often finishing with the fastest guys on the team in time trials. He worked hard to show the coach and the players that he had what it took to be a college athlete. With the a strong work ethic and family giving him a tremendous amount of support, he made the team.

The next season Thom would pop up here and there, mostly with 15-20 min left in a game. He was put in as a forward to spark the team up. His first game, he just kept charging the keeper going after every ball. Thom was shifted around the field and eventually landed at the left back position, where his body knew what to do. Thomas has sense grown at that spot, learning from the two captains that he shares the back field with. This brings us today.

Due to some silly people that think shaving freshman head's is hayzing, Jeff was stripped of his captain's band until further notice. Now that band as mentioned before is finding its home with Thom. This is all to say that when you work hard and try your best and trust God in the hard times, you will one day reap what you have sown. Maybe not as quick as Thom, it might even take years, or you might not ever see the fruit of your labor on this side. But when you seek God first before anything else, he will give you what you need. He gives life and joy and peace that is often unexplainable.

The other sports event is...OSU plays Texas Saturday night! Go Bucks!

check this out

2006-08-30T00:53:00.000-05:00

Hey my friend Candice used a photo of mine for her blog. Be sure to check it out and her flickr site.
http://www.chinagirlquotes.blogspot.com/

Galleries

2006-08-28T07:41:00.000-05:00

It has been over a week sense I last saw anything from Ohio other than a few cars. I am back at school down in the south. Things are going well so far. I am looking forward to all of my classes except one. The weekend produced some good times down here. Friday we hit up Greenville with some newbs (new people). Showed them the tea bar and the bridge. As we walked along the lines that divide nature from the progresses of urban development we found a new set of art galleries. The galleries themselves were small but filled with paintings and photographs. As we got closer I noticed that everyone seemed to be dressed nice and had a big glass of wine in their hand. Due to the limited space a lot of people were standing outside talking and for some reason staring at us. We were not dressed amazing but neither were we dressed poorly. No one had shorts on or a ball cap. I even had my camera back on my back. (I suppose that says touristy more than anything else) But I know my way somewhat around art galleries like this. After all according to a resent poll, Columbus is the ninth best place for art in the country. So I was confident in being there.

But as we walked from window to window we gathered more looks and whispers. I'm not so prideful that I believe they were talking about me and my gain but never the less I did feel as though we were being looked down upon. I could feel cold eyes being laid on me. We finally found a gallery that we wanted to go into and really look at. The pictures were cool but not cool enough for people around them to be sticking their nose up at someone. Coming from the gallery Hop of Columbus where all walks of life are welcome, this place was very foreign. We left and continued our journey.

I suppose I share this story with you in order to encourage you to never think more highly of your self than you should. No one person is better than the other. Being rude to people is a real jerk thing to do. You don't know where someone might be coming from or what their day was like that would make them act a certain way. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt and love regardless of clothes, hair style, friends and character. Be Jesus to them and allow his kindness and love to bring them to repentance and shape their character.

Chicago: Wednesday

2006-08-21T14:46:00.000-05:00

Lyle and I woke up around 9:00 on Wednesday to check out of the hostel by 9:30. We could have opted to pay 5 more bucks and check out at 11:00 but our plan was to check out and take our stuff to the airport and then head back into the city. So we showered for the first time and due to our lack of a towel I took my pillow case to the bathroom and Lyle took his whole bed sheet. They were going to go into the washer and drier in about an hour anyway. We checked out and got some money back from a deposit and then headed for Midway. The ride to Midway took around 45 min due to problems fixing the track or something. We eventually got to the air port only to find that sense 9/11 they don't allow you to store luggage there before your flight. Lyle only had a book bag but I had a small suitcase and a book bag. So the rest of the day I had to carry all my stuff around Chicago. It wasn't as bad as it first sounded, my stuff was pretty light.

We walked around seeing a store that we wanted to check out. In there we thought we would try to find a legendary hot dog place. So we asked a sales clerk and she told us to head to Grant Park. We started our trek to get some food and find Grant Park. We walked forever and then only to find that when my traveling partner doesn't get food after a certain time, he doesn't function correctly. He gets really unpleasant. So we headed back to a pizza place we passed and dove into another one of Chicago's greatest things. We then took the bus to Navy Pier, which in my personal opinion is a waste of time. We did ride the fairs wheel and that was cool but other wise it was just too touristy. We then hit up a few more stores and by that time it was time to start heading back to the airport.

We got some hot dogs there at the airport and stood in line at the gate for awhile. On the flight home Lyle and I thought of funny skit ideas that we could send to SNL. Pretty much we were to afraid to do them ourselves so we figured a skit would be safe and still funny. It would be one where Will Farrell comes back to host. Look for it, airplane skits with Will Farrell. Anyway I'm back at school. Sorry for making you wait for a lame ending to a great trip.

How did your summers end?

Chicago: Tuesday

2006-08-15T21:55:00.000-05:00

We woke up around 10:30 from a hot night's sleep. The fan minus one blade spun but barely helped. We had our windows open but the curtains were pinned shut. Our room mates were still sleeping. They had come in late the night before hopefully drunk because they were loud and annoying. If they weren't a little drunk than they were really rude guys. Lyle and I put on some swimming trunks because we had to swim in Lake Michigan. We walked a few blocks down to be blocked by construction. We walked around that by jumping on large rocks in the water. Than those ran out. We finally made it to the water and waded in. It was so cold! My legs were numb. Lyle must think he is a navy seal or something because he always gets in cold water really fast, us George's take out sweet time. Oh yeah we didn't bring towels on this trip. So we "air" dried, which was pretty cold. We changed and considered the swim our shower for the day. We changed into some dry clothes and walked around our area. We were on the hunt for Devon Ave. After an hour or so we found it and left. Maybe if it didn't take us so long to find it we could have enjoyed it. Through out the trip we had to ask on average about three people for directions to the same place. No one knew how to get anywhere.

We jumped on the train and headed down to the museum. We checked our bag and were off to see some of the most famous paintings ever. We saw Picasso, Van Gogh, some other really cool guys that I can't remember. "Sunday afternoon in the park"(not sure if that the real name.) I have loved that painting since like JR. High. To see the real paintings was amazing. To see a real Jackson Pollock and to think what he might have been thinking. My favorite thing at the Art museum was the Harry Callahan exhibit. He was a photographer from the Midwest and took pictures of people, buildings and nature. He was a very creative artist, always wanting to try new things and throwing rules to the wind. He heard Ansel Adams give a seminar and then went out and pretty much did the opposite of what he had just heard. He just kept shooting. He had a lot of pictures of his wife. I thought that was cool that she would pose for him (nude).

We walked around a little bit more and found H&M! What a store. We also saw "The Dog whisper" in front of the Nike Store. I made eye contact and was like "Lyle I just saw Cesar!" He didn't seem to care. We then headed out on the Blue line to Damen. That's where Wicker park is. The park it's self was pretty lame, but I loved the area. It had some sweet restaurants, one of which we ate at. A Mediterranean place called "sultans". It was good and it was really good when we saw that they had Ting! We met Zack that night on the train ride back into the city. Zack is from Ohio and had just moved up to Chicago. We talked the whole ride back. Pretty cool guy.

Lyle and I tried to make our way to the John Hancock building for a night cap. Due to certain age restrictions we had to leave. We made due at the bottom of the building with the Cheese Cake Factory. Finally after more walking and people telling us the wrong way, back to the Red Line it was and back to the Hostel. Tuesday was a great day!
How was your Tuesday today?

One last thing, Thadd has his first show at The Mustard Seed Cafe in West Jeff. Wed. Night @ 7:00! Be there or your a square!

Chicago: Monday

2006-08-14T19:15:00.000-05:00

Lyle and I woke up early Monday morning, around 5:15 to go to the airport. Lyle dropped me off and I was off to the plane. I said hello to the girls next to me and tried not to be rude but I didn't want to talk. Between the in flight magazine and my iPod I said a few words. (it was not rude to use the iPod in this case, they had theirs out too) Knowing that I had about 8 hours before Lyle's plane landed, I tried to take my time. I ate some food, fell asleep reading in the food court and praying/sleeping in the airport chapel. After my naps I bought a ticket for the "El" and went into the city on the Orange line. Lyle and I finally meet up and went to our hostel.

We walked around looking for the place we would call home, dreaming of the adventures we would have and the people we would meet. When we finally arrived and to our dismay it wasn't the palace we had envisioned. We checked in and decided to get back on the train and find some food in the heart of the city. Thanks to many of you who posted places we should go, we ate at Giordano's pizza. It was a long wait so we put our names in and went to Mich. Ave. We caught some water droplets and look at some stores. We had a great time eating our deep dish pizza and talking about the city. We then walked around more and made our way to Oak St. Beach. We chilled on the beach with the city lights to our backs and the Great Lake Michigan crashing right before us. In honor of Sufjan Stevens we threw in the ear buds and listened to "To Be Alone with You" and "Chicago". We were pretty worn out from all the walking and were not sure when the trains stopped so we headed back. On the train I met a girl named Hillary and she pretty much planned the next day for us. And that is where I leave you, on this Monday night thinking about last Monday night. Enjoy

Get'em while they're hot!

2006-08-11T23:44:00.000-05:00

The new photos of Chicago are up! Get to the Flickr site before everyone eles, just hit the link at the right. Tell me what you think and have a good one.

Chicago update coming soon

2006-08-11T08:26:00.000-05:00

While waiting for the sweet Chi Town update. I have about a week left in C-Bus, I want to make the most of it, y'know spend time with family, friends and take pictures. I want to shoot a theme this week. If you guys could throw out some ideas that would be great. Examples: different kind of bikes ridden downtown, Colored buildings (red brick, yellow walls things like that) people getting on the bus? I let you guys give the rest. Have a great Friday!

Hey

2006-08-08T17:37:00.000-05:00

Hey From the Apple Store in Chicago!

Chicago! Here I come!

2006-08-07T00:26:00.000-05:00

In about 5ish hours I will be in Chicago! I am beyond stoked!! This is going to be a good trip. Hopefully a full on travel channel thing, were Lyle and I just try all kinds of new things! Many of you have given great ideas about things to do and places to see, thanks so much for that! Thank you also to those who gave some music suggestions. I picked up some good stuff. Hillsong's new EP, pretty good. The sound track to "Little Miss Sunshine" ,Fink, Snow patrol (just one song, Open Hands) G-Love's new single "Hot Cookin'" and a new guy from CO. Gregory Alan Isakov. All pretty good. Lyle and I will be have internet access so be sure to hit us up at Facebook or here. If any more ideas come to y'all's heads. Be sure to check sometime Thursday Night for new Flickr photos from the trip!

Our iPods are charged and the camera is loaded! Here We Go!

Uganda Update!

2006-08-05T00:03:00.000-05:00

On Friday (possibly Thursday) the LRA "announced a unilateral ceasefire, with immediate effect". Vincent Otti, the LRA's deputy leader said ""I order all our field commanders to, with immediate effect, cease all form of hostilities against the Ugandan People's Defence Forces (UDPF) positions and others." I realize that this might not amount to anything in the long run, but it does give some glimmer of hope for those of us who have been following this evil event. The LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) is run by a man named Joseph Kony, who is responsible for the kidnapping of thousands of children from the ages 5-12 in Northern Uganda. For a more detailed history lesson, check out the people at www.Invisiblechildren.com

We all need that break in the clouds, when life doesn't seem like it could get any worse, a fresh wind comes and cools our worn out spirits. Hearing and reading this news is like that for many people. A great deal of people are taking this problem very seriously and this will hopefully help fuel their passion and give them the strength they need to keep going. Although this news is good there is no guarantee that it will really do anything. Joseph Kony is not a good man, from his actions its is hard to tell if his army will follow through with the orders. However there is a guarantee that we do have, a breath of fresh air that has merit. And that is that Jesus loves us, and wants us to chase after him. To love him with all our all. The fresh air for me comes in knowing that things aren't always going to go the right way, but I have Jesus there with me. He's in the frying pan with me, when things get hot He is there. Let that comfort your souls today. Know that He wont abandon you

My Lunch

2006-07-28T11:13:00.000-05:00

Toasted bread, Schuman's chopped sirloin, cheese, eeg, A1, mayonnaise and last but not least LAWRY'S! What a great lunch. the original sandwich can be found at Ted's Montana Grill. Although I must say my version is pretty dang good.

Last night I saw a great movie. "Little Miss Sunshine" It opens today and it is rated "R" so take head. They use some pretty colorful langue. Sufjan Stevens is on the sound track among some other good tunes. So with most of my iTunes credit that I wrote about yesterday, I got the sound track. LMS is a dark comedy so also be warned, it's ok to laugh when they talk about why uncle Frank has to stay with the family. I don't want to give you any ideas about the plot, it's way more fun to go into a movie not knowing anything about the story. Certain movies are good like that. You can trust some of the actors or the director and you just enjoy hearing a story for the first time. Did you really need to see a trailer for Pirates to figure out if you were going to see it? Also be sure to also ckeck out "Lady in the Water". Just remember that it is a fairytail. Keep that in mind and enjoy the story.

Big things going on this weekend, got a little shindig at the house tonight, should be fun. We got a keg of root beer! We are pretty stoked to try it. The George's like their root beer We found it at the World Market so we'll see how it messures up. One last thing, you need to download the free single this week at iTunes. Fink, really good. I also about his EP with my credit. $6.58 left and more songs?

New Music?

2006-07-27T13:41:00.000-05:00

Coinstar now offers gift cards for different items and there is no %8 fee. So I took my jar of coins to Giant Eagle and cashed in. I got a $20.44 credit. Now I need your help in using that credit. What do y'all suggest? Any new music, cool good music. Maybe some unknown guys?

In other news, our mail lady is the coolest person today. She delivered a new book that I ordered on Sunday. "Hope in the Dark. A photographic Journey into the Humanity of Africa" The photography is done by Jeremy Cowart who is a freelance guy from Nashvegas. I didn't really think anything about him being from Nashville but he's pretty big. Ever seen a photo shoot of Imogen Heap? and many others. Be sure to check him out.

Home again home again

2006-07-19T23:07:00.000-05:00

Well I'm back in the beautiful city Columbus. ATL was great, G-Force now owns it. Anytime we are able to long board in a city, we say we own it and boy do we. We cruised up Peachtree St from the Olympic park to some CVS just inside Midtown. It was a hot night and a Sunday night so the streets weren't crowded. It's good to be back in Columbus though, where we have the great Ohio State University,Tommy's Pizza and Wendy's. I won't say what company it was but I got to test some new products today. I went back the white circular hallway to a white cubicle with a window that opened up and the product came out on a tray and the hand went back in and shut the window. I kept laughing at my self and that took up some time. I had to answer some questions and I kept studding the product before I gave my answer. I was asked to hurry along because there was more to be done. It was an easy 20 bucks.

Anyway, is anyone having any crazy thoughts? Like why God made colors, or why we don't all recycle? Or anything? I was just thinking about something the other day. Why don't I cry when I sin? I'll spend some time in the bible, try to learn something, pray about something through out the day, then I'll realize I've done something that I shouldn't have. I just think I know that I hurt God by doing that and if I say he's the most important thing to me, why don't I cry because of what I did? I wish that I did. Not so much while I'm in line at the store but in my private time with God. Maybe it's one of those things you fake for a while and then it starts to become real? But that sounds pretty wrong. I wonder what the solution is? Hope you all finish your week strong. I should have some new photos up soon on the Flickr site. Check soon.

gr@ce