.Keep Your Eyes Open.

"So, what I hear you saying is..."

2010-08-23T19:05:00.002-04:00

In the past few weeks, the news has been dominated by stories of conflict. Two opposing sides go at each other to battle for supremacy, with what seems to be a "might makes right" mentality determining who is right.

The first story that comes to mind is the Cordoba House, or "Ground Zero Mosque" in New York. Opponents claim that it is insensitive to build a mosque so close to a "sacred site," and supporters asserting free speech rights and religious freedom.

Another story is the illegal immigration debate. Tea Party members are holding rallies at the border saying we should put guards on the Mexican side to keep "them" out, and others not doing enough to point out corporate abuses of illegal immigrants by hiring them and allowing timed federal raids so as not to disturb production.

The third story is the most recent. Dr. Laura Schlessinger said on Larry King Live that she will step down at the end of her radio show contract to "regain her first amendment rights" after she used the "N" word 11 times on her show. A black woman called to ask how to confront her white husband about comments his friends and family make (including use of the "N" word) that she finds offensive. Dr. Laura then criticized the woman for being "hypersensitive" and used "that" word and defending her usage by saying black comedians use it on HBO all the time. The woman said she was offended by Dr. Laura's usage and was told she has "a chip on her shoulder."
Here's the audio. She has since issued an apology. (More on this later, it's wild stuff).

All three of these stories feature a solid example of people's inability to listen to what another person is actually saying. In every story, and on both sides, few people (and usually not the ones with any publicity) are listening. Just yelling.

When Lindsey and I were in premarital counseling, our friend Seth Hankee gave us a pretty basic, but wonder-working tool for situations of conflict. He suggested we use the phrase, "so, wat I hear you saying is..." and then reiterate to the other party what it is exactly that one thinks they are saying. The other party is then given a chance to respond. When either Lindsey or myself asks this, it is usually the beginning of the end of our dispute. We begin to listen.

There's an example in the NY Times article I linked about an opponent of the mosque apologizing to a supporter for the way he spoke to him in a previous encounter. Pretty stellar. Way to set an example sir. Humility is the first step to conflict resolution.

Now let's practice. "What I hear you saying is..."

A Brief Look at the Miseducation of the American Christian.

2010-07-28T13:50:00.003-04:00

One of my very favorite books is Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire. A key idea in the book is the discussion and critique of what Freire calls the banking concept of education. The idea is that the teacher deposits (banks) their knowledge into the student, with the implication that the student is completely ignorant and can only receive what is given to them directly. The teachers knows and understands. The student does not. This relationship provides the teacher with power over the student. It is the job of the student receive, file, and store the deposits of the teacher (pg 72).

Where's the issue? Freire points out that the idea of a teacher giving the student the "gift" of their knowledge projects an absolute ignorance of the students and that this is a characteristic of the ideology of oppression (72). No one learns. You get what the teacher has allowed. Education is drenched in presupposition.

I feel like this is how Americans approach our faith. We assume that because our nation is wealthy and powerful that God approves of it and its dealings in itself and around the world. We then read the Bible from this perspective. Rather than faith informing culture, culture informs faith. By doing this we are defending the status quo, which is an historically oppressive act.

This is how we're taught to share our faith. We share our tidbits of salvation* knowledge with the lowly sinners who should feel privileged to hear our words. This is why the word "missionary" often makes people cringe. Missionaries are famous for going somewhere with a hero complex and dismantling peoples ways of life (read Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe).

This is the opposite of what Jesus said and did. He was the very opposite of oppressive. He was and is the liberator. He acted with compassion and respect for other people. He submitted. When asked questions, he often resonded with one of his own. This is the opposite of the banking concept, it is the "problem-posing" concept (pg 80, PotO). He made people think. He also mentioned (read: stated clearly) that the world's definition of wealth and power is different (read: oftentimes opposite) from that of God's kingdom.

In teaching the principles of the kingdom, Jesus used problem-posing (liberating) techniques instead of just telling people how they should live. An example of this is his healings of the sick. Walter Brueggemann points out that by healing lepers ("unclean" people), Jesus was contradicting the societal norms of his day. By doing so he discredited the moral distinctions of the culture and thus discredited the power structures that put them in place (The Prophetic Imagination, pg 107).

When faith in Jesus informs our view of culture, the world is turned upside-down.

* When I first typed out the word "salvation" I mis-typed "slavation." I find this fitting because when we have a hero complex we do not share the freedom of God and his kingdom. Instead we perpetuate oppression.

Minaret Ban.

2009-12-12T10:10:00.002-05:00

It's been forever since I posted, and there are things I've been meaning to write about, but this is more important at the moment. It's an article about the recent ban on minarets in Switzerland.

Peace.

Hockey People.

2009-10-15T10:07:00.003-04:00

Last night I had a couple from Toronto come through Starbucks. They were on their way home. When I found out they were from Toronto, I got really excited and asked if they were Leafs fans. They were (and probably still are). We chatted for a minute, and shook hands and wished each others' teams well for the season. I smiled a big smile.

About an hour later, a woman came in wearing a Predators jacket and t-shirt. We started chatting and I told her that my lovely wife and I are going to the Blackhawks game on Saturday in Chicago(!!) and that we're really excited and such. I told her about the Toronto folks an hour before and she gave me two big thumbs down. I said, "no, no, it was great. I love talking to hockey people, especially Canadian ones. You gotta' see it kinda' like denominations in Christianity, we root for different teams, but we're following the same sport, we're family." She understood.

I wished them well in their travels and they left. I smiled again. Hockey people are great. You got "family" all over the place. I mean, even if you come in wearing some devils or Penguins jersey, we can talk hockey. And that's what's important. We can connect right off the bat.

I love hockey people.

PS: Youtube some Coaches Corner. It's hilarious, ridiculous, and informative. Don Cherry is a complete madman and watching Ron MacLean react week after week is priceless.

Starbucks Via.

2009-10-13T18:52:00.004-04:00

As you may or may not know, Starbucks recently released their version of instant coffee called "Via." In all honesty, it is not terrible. If you go by taste.

Starbucks prides itself on making the best coffee in possibly the whole world. I cannot verify this, as I am a rather inexperienced coffee drinker and also have not had coffee all over the world, but people who's coffee opinions I respect enjoy Starbucks coffee and regard it as high quality. Instant coffee is not revered for its quality. In fact, it is generally regarded as cheap (the bad kind) and pretty much anything EXCEPT high quality. The question must then be raised, "Why make a Starbucks instant coffee?"

The fundamental answer is very simple. Money.

This can't be denied. As we sat in the introductory meeting to this stuff - in which it was shown as this wonderful thing because you can put it in warm milk and make a "Via latte," or "Via whip" cream, perhaps a distraction from the basic idea that it is after all instant coffee - my store manager repeatedly mentioned that the instant coffee market is a $21 billion industry, and Starbucks has only 4% of that (which of course begs the question, if it owns 4% of it, don't they already make instant coffee?).

Towards the end of the meeting, during the questions part, I asked why this was happening. I said, the automobile industry is also a multi-billion dollar industry, so are we going to start making cars (the point being that instant coffee and Starbucks are not same product, if even related at all)? I was met with the same answer: The instant coffee market is a $21 billion industry, we only have a small piece of it. Our regional manager said that I need to look at it differently, that "15 years ago he would have had the same response." He went on saying that it opens so much room for growth and expansion.

He means and meant money. For the people up top. The ones with paid hour-long lunch breaks and sustainable pay. The ones that make the impossible-to-meet standards of keeping a clean store and potentially never had to. They're the ones that benefit.

Starbucks managed to at least try to cover it up for a while. But it caught up with them (rather, we're realizing it). They and Walmart, Nike, and any other corporation with a bad name, are all on the same team.

Here's the commercial for it. Doesn't look or sound too terrible, does it? Come on. Dunkin Donuts sells pizza and flat-bread sandwiches now. Everybody pushes the envelope to inane degrees that people call "smart business" because it's an additional and "unique" way to make money.

"Fortified cares and modified principles. Convenience is the name of the game. Self-indulgence is the rule."

Ultimately I think it's degrading to both Starbucks and their customers.

Jeff Harding.

2009-09-17T21:11:00.002-04:00

Another short post.

Here's a video of my 12th grade gym teacher, Jeff Harding (the tall one in the dark Bears jersey) fighting Rob Ray, one of the most notorious fighters in NHL history. It's an AHL game before they cracked the NHL.

Jeff Harding went on to play a total of 15 NHL games with the Flyers. No points, an even +/-, and 47 penalty minutes. He played on the ice against both Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemiuex. Grinder for sure.

Peace.

Steve-O.

2009-09-17T20:11:00.002-04:00

Today at work this customer was talking to several of us. She stops talking, looks at me and says:

"I'm sorry I keep looking at you, it's just that you look like Steve-O."

Good times.

2009-09-16T09:17:00.001-04:00

This is a video of Kanye West "interrupting" Obama's health care speech. Pretty funny.

2009-09-10T19:27:00.001-04:00

Just a quick line to mention that "Life in General" by MxPx is still one of favorite albums of all-time. Like, top 3.

It totally rules. Go listen to "Doing Time" right now.

2009-09-07T09:53:00.002-04:00

Last week I was surfing youtube and unfortunately found my way to a FoxNews video from June of 2008. They're talking about/bashing Barack Obama in whatever way when Mike Huckabee brings up Obama's comments about the sermon on the mount, which he claims Obama said is outdated (which is true, in the sense that it doesn't fit any dating period). Colmes quickly corrects him, saying that Obama said that the defense department wouldn't be able to stand under the sermon on the mount (I did read that part of Audacity of Hope). Huckabee attacks this view saying that the sermon on the mount was "never intended for use in civil government."

Check at about 1:40 in the video.

The funny part of it is that Huckabee is a Christian. When he said that, I immediately thought, "That's the whole point!" You don't need a civil government if we're following Jesus and his example. If we're serving each other and considering others better than ourselves we'll work Obama and all his political pals out of their jobs. I'd that Mike Huckabee contradicted his beliefs on air and should've quit his job right then.

As Christians, our allegiance is to Jesus Christ first. Ultimately, it's supposed to be our only allegiance. Not your job. Not your country. Jesus.

Peace.

Polyface.

2009-09-06T17:39:00.002-04:00

Yesterday Lindsey and I ventured just outside Staunton to Polyface Farms. This farm has been documented extensively in books by Michael Pollan and in Food, Inc. We'd heard about it and thought it was great. When a customer came into Starbucks the other day and asked about it, we figured it was time to check it out.

We arrived and strolled into the store, which is more of a large shed with a bunch of refrigerators in it. We asked to buy some eggs and said we only wanted a half dozen (Lindsey's vegan, so we don't need too many). Turns out they only sell them by the dozen, but he only charged us for half a dozen! We also bought some apple juice from a farm up in Front Royal, about an hour away. They have sweet shirts too, but we held off.

They let you roam the farm to see what it's like. We just wandered off, checking out their chickens and pigs and enjoying the sunny day. One of their baby-broilers had found it's way outside of the coup, so we spent close to 10 minutes trying to corral this thing to get it back inside. It was comical. We'd get close and be afraid to pick it up. We looked ridiculous. We eventually gave up, concluding that if it just walked around the outside of the cage trying to get back in, it wasn't going to wander off somewhere into danger.

It was a great day. And the apple juice is great.

2009-09-01T10:30:00.003-04:00

Jason Kay posted (mostly) some excellent suggestions on his blog at The Hockey news. I especially appreciate his suggestion to return to a divisional playoff format like in the late 80s/early 90s and to take out the anthems before games.

OCMS/Little Grill

2009-08-29T11:23:00.002-04:00

Last night Lindsey and I went to probably our favorite place to eat in our area, the Little Grill Collective ("If it was in Staunton, we'd be in trouble" ~ Lindsey). It's about a half hour away in Harrisonburg, VA. It's worker owned and very vegetarian/vegan friendly. AND it's delicious. Everybody wins.

Like many restaurants, Little Grill has pictures of the more notable people who have passed through. Last night we noticed that bluegrass heavyweights Old Crow Medicine Show come through from time to time. Their picture was signed "Little Grill is home sweet home eternal." Our waitress said that they apparently had some of their first shows at Little Grill open mic nights.

Awesome.

"Philly."

2009-08-28T08:21:00.004-04:00

I'd been looking for a weekly free bar poker game to get into in Staunton. I found one just a couple blocks from my apartment at Downtown at the Clocktower. Last week was the first time I ventured down to play. I walked in and it was real obvious that I was the new kid from out of town. I hadn't played in a bar game in a while, which made it a short stay (I was back home in just over an hour), so going into the game 2 nights ago I was hoping to have a more respectable showing.

One of the main differences in games down here is that people pick where they sit. I chose the friendliest-looking table (the only one with people smiling) to both help my comfort level in a new place and because I figured it'd be slightly easier to play there. My old friend Jonny Rashid would often say that you're there to win and that being nice is an inhibition in poker.

They also deal until they get an Ace to determine the dealer instead of high-carding. This often leads to almost 4 laps around the table.

So the first hand is dealt and I get K-Q offsuit. I see the flop and it comes out K-8-K. Trip-Kings is not too shabby for an opening hand. People like to check down here, so I check to try to get a feel for the situation. The turn comes out a 10. I bet. people fold around until the woman before me goes all-in. I start mulling over the possibilities. I assume she has a King. She would need a 10 or an Ace to beat me. I call. We flip cards and she has K-J. Not bad for a first hand.

Play goes on and before I know it we're down to 2 of 4 tables left and I'm in the middle of the pack. I get a hand of like 10-J and I consider playing it until a guy at the end of the table makes a fairly large bet. Myself and the other remaining player fold. Big-bet-guy shows us his 2-3 offsuit. After seeing the respect he'd gotten throughout the night from regular players and a play like that, I knew I was gonna have a rough time with him.

I match up against him again at the final table. I had a middle pair (like a Jack or something in the hand) and he makes another significant bet. I told him he did it before, I gotta make sure he doesn't get me again. He does, but he had the better hand this time. Him: 2 Me: 0.

I knock out two people in one hand and it sets me up against him heads up for the game. We're pretty evenly chipped (I believe he had a slight edge). I proceed to outplay him pretty fiercely - I had some help from some pocket 6s, 8s, and Aces along the way - and win the game. The new kid (they started calling me "Philly" earlier). While gathering my gift certificate to the restaurant, t-shirt, and keychain, the guy running the tournament, Chris, kind of pulls me aside and goes "you know he's the king, right? You just beat the best." I told him I knew the guy wasn't messing around. I wouldn't say I'm a better player than him, being the new guy plays to your advantage because no one knows how you play. But it certainly wasn't from pure luck, I needed a decent idea of what I was doing to win. It was a great night. I hit trip-7s a couple times (with pockets), and had quad-8s at the first table too. I played well and made few bad decisions.

I won't lie. It was and is a great feeling. I went into a totally new place all alone. I stared the king in the face after he handled me on two occasions and took him down. It was a good moment. I met Lindsey for a celebratory late Coffee on the Corner dinner and couldn't hide my smile.

We'll see how it goes next week when a bunch of folks are waiting for me.

Peace.

2009-08-20T19:53:00.002-04:00

God's love is awesome.

I was having a pretty solid day at work today. I opened, which aside from being at the store at 5:30 in the morning, is great. You get out early and there's a steady flow of work.

At around 1:15 I shifted around a pitcher of frappucino mix. It falls on the floor and spills all over, leaving a nasty mess. I was pissed. I had to pull out the mini-fridge that it's stored in to mop underneath because the mix is going everywhere. When standing up, I hit my head on the underside of the counter. More pissed.

When this happens, my brain starts running. I start mentally kicking myself:
"You're such a waste. A 25-year-old-married-college-grad working for less than $8 an hour and you can't even put a stupid pitcher in a refrigerator."

Fortunately my lovely wife Lindsey was also working at the time and proceeded to remind me of some much needed truth: I'm a child of God and he loves me. My worth is not based on what I do for a "living," but rather on the fact that God loves me. The goal is to share that love with anyone and everyone that comes into my store every time they come in.

It was a prime example of God's love. We do something stupid, and his love is constant. He stays right there with us and reminds us of it. I mean, we still have to stand in the sticky, sugary, mess we made on the floor, which helps motivate us to not do it again. But he loves us the whole way.

Thank you Jesus.

Jeremy Roenick.

2009-08-08T13:53:00.002-04:00

One of my all-time favorite Flyers retired on my birthday 2 days ago. Here's the nhl.tv video.

There's also a great article on The Hockey News. I remember the preseason before Roenick's first year with the Flyers. I went with Jeremy, our brothers, and Jeremy's dad to Trenton to see a game with the Flyers and Islanders. Roenick had signed that offseason, and I'd forgotten that he was now a member of my favorite team. We stood right against the bars where the players came out of the tunnel and watched them go by just about a foot from us. When I saw J.R., I yelled "Jeremy Roenick!" out of pure excitement. He was a stud player now suiting up for my team, I was stoked. I was not even trying to get his attention. He looked right at me, and with a big smile, high-fived me with his right glove without saying a word or missing a beat. From that moment he was one of my favorites.

In April (or early May) of my freshman year at Temple, the Flyers made a great playoff run that tok them within a game of the Stanley Cup Final. They played the Maple Leafs in the second round and the sixth game went to overtime. It was one of the most intense periods I've ever seen. Mad stressful too. J.R. netted the game winner and sent the Flyers to the next round. I remember my heart pounding for about 15 minute after the game. It was awesome.

I'll miss you J.R.

Joe Watson.

2009-07-30T12:26:00.002-04:00

This morning I received a phone call from one of my all-time favorite Flyers, Joe Watson. He was calling to congratulate me on my upcoming wedding (in 3 days!). My close friend and former Flyers intern John P. Kopp arranged the call for me.

Joe Watson won the Stanley Cup with the Flyers in 1974 and 1975 and was one of the first 3 players the Flyers ever drafted in 1967. He also helped negotiate his younger brother Jimmy's first NHL contract after the Flyers drafted him.

He requested the Lindsey and I call the PR director when we're up in Philly so we can meet.

Thank you John Kopp. This was awesome.

"...by our Love."

2009-07-23T20:20:00.000-04:00

Last night Lindsey and I were hanging out at a coffee shop playing Set and overheard the guy behind us telling this girl about how God is "bullshit" and how much he hated it when his parents made him read the bible as a kid. It was interesting to say the least.

We went for a walk after Lindsey finished thoroughly dismantling me at the game and we thought and talked about what we had heard him saying. The thing that stood out to me was his tone of voice. He was so angry. I don't think people get that angry without good reason. He hadn't received love. He'd been told "read this, this is what we do" without any show of love. Authority was abused. Somewhere along the way we forgot that leadership and servanthood are the same thing, now leadership means power, and power is rarely a good thing.

I didn't think about any absolute reason why God exists or why Jesus was born on December 25th. I kept thinking about Jesus. I kept thinking about how good he is. I kept thinking about the woman at the well and loving your enemies. This guy we'd overheard hadn't seen that stuff.

Church can be a horrible thing.

The point is that it does a limited amount of good to debate and try to persuade people that God is real and that he loves us. I believe that this is generally a waste of time. If people want to know about what I believe or why I do or don't do things a certain way, they'll ask. The key is to do it all in love. It's easy to see what sucks about people. Pick up any newspaper and very quickly you'll find examples of human idiocy and reason to not give people the benefit of the doubt (benefit of the fact may be more accurate). As a Christian, I'm called to love my enemies (Luke 6:27-28), resolve conflict (Matthew 5:9), and be merciful (Matthew 5:7). Jesus didn't say "when convenient..." He said, "you're my friends if you obey my commands" (John 15:14).

His grace comes into play when he loves us despite how lousy we are at obeying his commands. However, we are still called to obey his commands, not argue with non-Christians about the validity of the bible. God loves everybody and we're called to love our neighbors as ourselves (Leviticus 19:18, Matthew 22:39).

I'm pretty sure that when we start doing this we'll end up talking a lot less.

Flyers.

2009-07-20T16:27:00.000-04:00

My groomsman John Kopp got to cover the Pedro Martinez press conference for the Delco times. Check out his article.

Another groomsman of mine, Drew Shankweiler and I were discussing the Flyers goaltending issues this past season. I asked him the difference in skill level between the Flyers then starting goaltender Martin Biron and the Red Wings' (Drew's team) goalie Chris Osgood. The answer was/is that if Osgood is better, it is not by much. The thing that makes the Red Wings so successful is that they play team defense and every player knows their role on the team. Last week Ryan Dixon of The Hockey News posted this about the Flyers. He makes several of the same points Drew and I brought up, and adds on top of that the Flyers added Chris Pronger who, regardless of how ridiculous his 7-years-without-playing-a-game-yet extension is, will only strengthen their defensive core right now.

I don't think Ray Emery will be bad, but it totally sucks that the Flyers just let Biron go and didn't try to talk him into some kind of hometown discount that several of the Penguins players took to stay with their team.

Dixon did note that Claude Giroux's ready to take on a bigger role, which is true. However, that role will be different than Mike Knuble's just because of the skill-level that Giroux possesses. He's not gritty, he's finesse. Taking Knuble out of the picture for the Flyers I think hurts them more than swapping Emery for Biron. They won't have the same grit (different than being a brute) they had last year and Knuble will be missed.

I'm tired of offseason stuff. I just want it to get going again, I'm really excited for this season to start.

Life/Wedding Update.

2009-07-16T17:24:00.003-04:00

As I write, there are 17 days left until Lindsey and I get married. The invites have been mailed and the RSVP date is this coming Sunday. We're collecting a head count and spent much of yesterday afternoon at the church arranging the tables and chairs in the fellowship hall. Lindsey's had 2 bridal showers of 3 and we're about to head over to our new apartment to organize and put stuff away.

One of the most exciting parts of the day-to-day acitivities of wedding planning is checking our registries to see what we've gotten. Every time Lindsey or I sees something new that's been purchased, we text the other and say "we got (item)!!" One of the personal highlights is the 500 chip poker set that I'll own after August 2nd. We've asked for many things based on the apartment we do/will have. It's cool to have it come together.

I've been working at the Staunton Starbucks and as far as working goes, I like it. The people that work there are solid and it's very hands-on work. One of the things I couldn't handle about the caseworking job I had in Philly was that it was that there were very few short-term results to motivate me to keep working at it. There were no checkpoints or anything, it was constant work without rewards. Making drinks for people is very different in the sense that you're told what to make and you make it. Finished product in about 3-4 minutes. I also get to see how being profit-driven as the primary and ultimate goal really numbs people as to how they reach that goal. That side of it is both exciting and discouraging at the same time because it's right in front of you.

During the wedding countdown I've often asked Lindsey who won the Stanley Cup on the corresponding day (e.g. at 64 days it would be 1964, the Maple Leafs' last of 3 in a row. Wikipedia Bobby Baun and you'll get a great story). I only ask her the question if I know the answer. I asked her today. Today is significant because 1917 was the year in which the Cup was first won by an American team. It wasn't the Rangers or Bruins or any of the other U.S. based Originial 6 teams. It was the Seattle Metropolitans. I love that trivia tidbit.

That's it for now.

Peace.

US/Canada Olympic Teams.

2009-07-04T10:27:00.000-04:00

The U.S. and Canada have sent their invitations to their Olympic team tryouts for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Here are the lineups I'd like/expect to see.

U.S:

Goalies: Tim Thomas with Ryan Miller backing him up is a no-brainer to me.

Defense: I'd go with Tim Gleason, Erik and Jack Johnson, Mike Komisarek, Brian Rafalski is a no-brainer, and probably Scuderi/Orpik and/or Ryan Whitney.

Forwards: Patrick Kane (I love him), Phil Kessel, Chris Drury, maybe Scott Gomez, Mike Modano, Zach Parise, Bobby Ryan, David Booth, Dustin Byfuglien, probably Paul Stastny. That leaves two more forward spots, and looking at the crop so far, I don't think it matters much who they are. I think they'll rank 3rd or 4th when the rosters are finalized.

Canada:

I'm really excited to watch the Canadian team.

Goalies: I think they'll end up with either Marc-Andre Fleury or Roberto Luongo starting. That may be a little much to say, but Marty Brodeur was the starter for the last two Canadian Olympic teams, and they didn't even medal in 2006 after winning gold in 2002. I think it's time to move on.

Defense: This is where I start to get excited. I can't pick 6-8 of these guys. Scott Niedermeyer will make it. Dion Phaneuf, Chris Pronger, Dan Boyle probably, Jay Bouwmeester, Francois Beauchemin. That's 6. Shea Weber and Duncan Keith have great shots to make the team as well.

Forwards: Then to cap it off, there are the Canadian forwards. Sidney Crosby is such a lock it barely makes sense to mention his name. I think jarome Iginila is the next most probable. I'd love to see Dan Cleary, Vincent Lecavalier, Mike Richards, Jonathan Toews. Ryan Getzlaf and Jeff Carter will most likely make it. Eric Staal, Dany Heatley, Rick Nash, and if Joe Sakic is healthy, he'll make it. He'll probably be the captain.

Look at those names. I'll probably be pulling for them.

Peace.

LAF's Dream.

2009-07-04T09:21:00.004-04:00

So Lindsey comes out of her room and the first thing she says to me today is:

"I had a dream about hockey. The U.S. Olympic team was having a hard time getting people to play for them because they wouldn't get paid. They somehow asked us to help pick a defenseman, and we had to convince the guy to play for them. You've ruined me."

I love her.

Stan Mikita.

2009-06-30T09:33:00.002-04:00

I saw this post on Greatest Hockey Legends and got all excited. The author is posting about the McFarlane Stan Mikita figure and how hard it's been for him to find one.

I got all excited because I own one.

Dress codes, guns, and Chris Pronger.

2009-06-28T14:07:00.005-04:00

KC Dress Code: Lindsey came into work the other day telling me about a story she heard on NPR about the dress code at a strip of Kansas City night clubs. My first thought was "Kansas City night clubs? Sound worse than... well, nothing." She was talking about how the code does not permit baggy or saggy clothes and people are not permitted to wear sports apparel (except on game days). The problem is that KC is a hub of black culture and the clubs are surrounded by African American neighborhoods. The people who live near the clubs cannot go "out" in there own neighborhood.

"The Power and Light District received substantial tax incentives when it was redeveloped by the Baltimore-based Cordish Company. Vice President Zed Smith says they adopted these rules on the advice of police.

SMITH: We had two specific goals in mind - public safety and decorum. It has absolutely nothing to do with race."

Right. You're implying that public safety has something to do with what people are wearing. I remember a similar code at McFadden's on 3rd st in Philly. Unfortunately, I went there a few times. The last time I went I recall my friend "Rat" Matt not being let in because he was "wearing cut-off shorts." Guess who else was? Me. His looked more "cut-off" than mine. He told them he bought the shorts at Urban Outfitters as he was turned away. McFadden's sucks. Don't go there. And don't go to Kansas City either, unless you want to visit the Negro Leagues Museum.

Guns in Church: Then I found this gem the other night. A pastor in Louisville, Kentucky encouraged his congregation to wear and bring their guns to church for a talk on gun rights and safety. Here's a live blog of the evening.

I guess that's cool. I'm not going to try to get your guns taken away. But, as the church, we're called to love our neighbors as ourselves and our enemies as well. I think those callings should lead to us get rid of the guns we own, literally and figuratively. Louisville has a large homeless population, maybe this church could focus on taking care of them rather than making sure they can carry their guns? My point is, there are more important things to be talking about, especially in church.

Chris Pronger: Last, and I guess least in the grand scheme of things, the Flyers traded for big defenseman Chris Pronger at the draft on Friday night. He's a big, tough, physical defenseman, which is something the Flyers need. However, he's 34, only has one more year left on his contract, and is well known for being a dirty player. On top of that, they traded their top defensive prospect in Luca Sbisa and Joffrey Lupul, along with 2 first round draft picks. The only way this trade works out well for them is if they win the Stanley Cup this year. They've sold a large portion of the farm for this guy. The only words that come to mind are nervous, discouraging, and frustrated.

PS: Mississippi did not ratify the 13th amendment (the abolition of slavery) until 1995. They initially rejected it and held their stance until then. Look it up. Crazy.

Peace.

NHL Awards.

2009-06-17T21:03:00.003-04:00

The NHL's annual award show is tomorrow night in Las Vegas (which, by the way, is ridiculous). My good friend Weegie sent me an email about who I thought would bring home the hardware this year. I hadn't thought about it much, so I'm quite grateful that he brought it up. Thanks Weeg.

Vezina Trophy (top goalie): I think Tim Thomas is a good bet. The Bruins were so good in the regular season. Steve Mason is the runner up.

Norris Trophy (top defenseman): I'm reading a lot saying Chara is going to win (again, mostly due to the Bruins amazing regular season). People are saying Lidstrom was "quiet." I think that's funny, he's had a quiet year but is still in the top 3? I hope he wins it again, he's getting old for sure. Mike Green is at least a year away from winning this.

Calder Trophy (top rookie): Steve Mason is a lock for the Calder. Ryan and Versteeg are solid, but Mason was the big story this year and was a major reason the Blue Jackets made the playoffs for the first time in their history.

Selke Trophy (top defensive-forward): The Selke's one I really like. I'm real into 2-way forwards (Rod Brind'Amour, Bob Gainey was an older one, Bobby Clarke, Kris Draper, etc). My current favorite player, Mike Richards, is a first time-nominee this year. His all-around ability (and that he plays for the Flyers) is what makes him my favorite. I think Pavel Datsyuk of the Red Wings will win. He's won it last year and had another great season. Richards is definitely the second best. I think Ryan Kesler of the Vancouver Canucks was nominated because they nominate 3 players. Datsyuk and Richards are way ahead of everyone else. That being said, Datsyuk is incredible. He puts up 90-95 points a year and wins the top DEFENSIVE forward award. He is easily one of the top 4 players in the league, if not top 3 (yes, 3).

Lady Byng Trophy (sportsmanship): Datsyuk will most likely win this again (it would be his 4th). He's up against Martin St. Louis and Zach Parise. This is Parise's first nomination. St. Louis' been nominated two other times and has yet to win.

Hart Trophy (most valuable player): Ovechkin's my pick. Malkin could beat him, Datsyuk will not win.

Mark Messier Leadership Award: I love Jarome Iginla (tough, 2-way leader type), so I'm pulling for him. But I think the Cup victory will really weigh in for Sidney Crosby.

These are the ones I had thoughts on. There are some other great trophies up for grabs that I won't go in to. I look forward to seeing how it plays out.

Peace.

Philly Weekend.

2009-06-12T08:39:00.002-04:00

This afternoon I'm headed to Philly for the weekend for a friends wedding tomorrow. Tonight Lindsey and I are going to the Paint it Black record release show at the Broad Street Mission. They're my "currently existing" favorite band. I'm really stoked to see them, especially in Philly.

Here's a sweet interview with their singer, Dr. Dan Yemin.

On top of THAT. Tonight is Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. Be still my heart. Game 6 was the kind of game that the League would want non-hockey people to see. It was an all out war, and I had a fever for most of the third period. I'm going to be sneaking away from the show to a bar to watch this (and I'm realy happy I won't smell like smoke when I leave). Here's a great picture I saw on GHL from the early 60s, it features Punk Imlach, then coach of the Maple Leafs, enjoying a moment with the Stanley Cup after his team won it (either '62, '63, or '64). I love this picture. The chalkboard says "No Practice Tomorrow." Beautiful.

Good Memories.

2009-06-01T14:23:00.003-04:00

I just re-watched the Phillies World Series DVD and would just like to say that that celebration, particularly hugging Jonny Rashid while he repeatedly said "This is Justice!", bumping into Jeremy Samsoe, and the triple-hug with Drew Shankweiler and John Kopp, held some rather wonderful moments. The parade was amazing too. I'm so glad I was there for it all.

Peace.

2009 CBC Stanley Cup Playoff Opener.

2009-05-23T13:43:00.005-04:00

This post is over a month late, but I absolutely love this intro from the CBC. It does a really good job of getting you excited for the start of the playoffs. It gives me chills.

Job/Apartments.

2009-05-23T13:35:00.002-04:00

This past week I was hired at the Starbucks in Staunton. I'm looking forward to learning to make all those weird coffee related drinks with interesting Italian names. It'll also be good to be making more than zero dollars an hour/week/month.

Yesterday Lindsey and I went apartment hunting. We saw one that was a serious possibility, but it lacks a stove/oven. We intend to do a lot of cooking, so it's a pretty serious deal to have those. There was another one that we absolutely loved, but it's way too expensive for us. The hunt will continue. There are a couple places we're going to see this week. Pray for us.

News Stuff.

2009-05-23T13:03:00.002-04:00

Serious things first? Sure.

Dick Cheney defends the US torture policy. In a sick way, this is pretty funny. I remember at the beginning of Mission Year, I met an alum that, when I told her about my own religious upbringing, asked "people still believe in Calvinism?" I sort of have that kind of reaction with stuff like this, "people actually think something like waterboarding is 'legal, essential, justified, successful and the right thing to do'?" Come on pal. I think the only thing true there (or better yet, valid) is "successful." I heard a sound clip of this on the radio the other morning and was trying not to laugh.

Keeping with the theme of injustice (on a much lighter note), Niklas Kronwall of the Detroit Red Wings got kicked out of his game last night for this hit on Martin Havlat of the Chicago Blackhawks. By all analysts' perspectives (including Ed Olczyk, who is employed by the Blackhawks) and my own upon initial viewing, the hit was clean and Havlat just needed to keep his head up. Furthermore, the Hawks crashed the Red Wings players along the boards over top of their slightly conscious and injured teammate, putting him in further danger. You have to stand up for your guys, but don't put him in more danger. Use your heads boys!

Those are the things that jumped out at me this week.

Peace.

Wedding Update and Random News.

2009-05-08T10:06:00.002-04:00

I've been in Staunton, VA with Lindsey for the past several weeks, looking for jobs and planning our wedding. Here's what we've got:

- The wedding will be August 2nd, 2009, at 3pm
- It will be at Waynesboro SDA Church in Waynesboro, VA (The reception will most likely be at the same place)
- We've ordered the paper to print the invitations and they should be arriving at her parent's house today or Monday (chances are if you're reading this you'll receive one).
- We're registered at Target, Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and Myregistry.com (it's a furniture fund, because we don't want to sit on the floor all the time).
- My side of the wedding party's firmed up
- Pre-marital counseling is starting soon

I believe those are all of the important details at this point. There's never a dull moment. Please be praying for us. There's a lot to do in a short period of time, and finances are less than abundant. Pray that we stay focused on Jesus and His will.

In other news that's (hopefully) completely ridiculous, Jimmy Buffett, a friend of the new owner of the Miami Dolphins, is renaming Dolphins Stadium. It will be called Landshark Stadium in reference to Buffett's "Landshark Lager". That's hysterical. Philly.com has said that the logo "will feature a parrot atop a large margarita glass and the words, '"Why don't we get drunk and boo."' Espn.com says Buffett's going to play a Dolphins-inspired song at the log-unveiling today.

In less light-hearted-but-slightly-positive news, Blackwater is leaving Iraq. I was really stoked to read it, until I read that they're just being replaced by Triple Canopy, which is based less than 40 minutes outside DC. These guys aren't accounted for when they report the number of troops in Iraq. And many of them are former Blackwater employees anyway, though the Iraqi general said they would not be allowed in Iraq.

EDIT: I just read this article on CNN about violence in Chicago. I visited St. Sabina last year and saw Father Pfleger speak. I really appreciate his willingness to do things that will draw people's attention to overlooked issues.

Quote of the day: "Jesus Christ is the Center of reality. That's the revelation of God to man. ...We don't make Him the Center of all things, we turn and recognize that fact, and then begin to interpret everything we do through Him." ~ Ron Copeland, Pastor at The Early Church and director of Our Community Place in Harrisonburg, VA. Check out his talk at EMU here.

That's all. Peace.

Journey Mercies.

2009-04-22T21:01:00.000-04:00

In the past 2 weeks, Lindsey and I have had some rather ridiculous travel experiences.

On April 10th (Friday) we were supposed to fly from Philly to Atlanta, where we would connect to fly to Phoenix and stay at my mom's before driving to Tucson the following morning. We arrived at the airport at 5 for our 6 o'clock flight. I couldn't get the electronic check-in kiosk to work (I forgot that you can swipe your driver's license...) and got in line to check-in at the desk. After waiting for 15 minutes or so, we reach the desk. The guy checks us in right away, but says "You know, you can check-in at the kiosks." I was about to respond when he just about cuts me off and says, quite sternly, "You just wasted 10-15 minutes standing in line. Why don't you people ever listen to me!?" I was dumbfounded. He gave us our tickets and we left.

We got to the gate and there's all kinds of mess in Atlanta. Like, tornadoes and stuff. They have a complete ground stoppage. So after about 2 1/2 to 3 hours and exhausting many options, I work it out for us to get a flight to Cincinnati at 6am the following morning and then to Phoenix. Sweet. As we're walking away from the terminal, I realize I lost my fleece. I checked every place where we'd been sitting and the bathrooms. Nothing. It's gone. Great. We've been at the airport for like 4 hours and all we did was not leave and lose my fleece. Ugh.

We wake up at 3am and get to the airport around 3:45. We get to the gate and what's hanging over a seat by itself with no one around it? Yep. My fleece. It was ridiculous. We also bumped into some of my mom's friends so we got to fill them in on where we were going and stuff.

We land in Cincinnati and get to our next gate. We're told they've downsized the plane by 30 seats and that Lindsey and I are getting bumped and flying to Denver first. We were compensated with vouchers for $200 to Delta. On the way to Denver we met an awesome woman named Antoinette who was also a Christian. We had some cool and interesting talks with her. She grew up in a missionary family in Africa, cool stories.

After that it was pretty much smooth-sailing to Phoenix. We landed in Denver, ate lunch, and flew out. Flying back to Philly was uneventful (the good kind).

All that was ridiculous. But then, this past Monday I took a train to DC to meet Lindsey. About and hour north of Staunton we see break lights. Everything stops. This had just happened. Like, literally 5 minutes before. We stopped around 11:40 and did not leave from that spot until 5:30am. We sat still for 6 hours. It was absurd. We got to Lindsey's apartment at around 8am, 13 1/2 hours after she left to pick me up. Wow.

The cool part of all this is seeing what didn't happen to us because of all the ridiculous turns along the way. Like, if we'd flown to Atlanta, I'd never have gotten my fleece back. And if we hadn't been bumped to Denver, we'd have never gotten our vouchers (will will cover a flight in May to a friend's wedding...) and we would have never met Antoinette and has solid conversation.

My train leaving Philly the other night was like 10 minutes late. If it had been on time, we could have been in that wreck. Like, 3 people died in that huge wreck that made us sit there for 6 hours.

I'll take sitting still and sleeping uncomfortably in a car for 6 hours over dying in a fiery highway blaze any day.

God is good.

Engaged!

2009-04-22T13:43:00.001-04:00

On Easter morning I took Lindsey out for a sunrise walk in Catalina State Park outside Tucson, Arizona. It was cloudy when we got there (around 6am), so the "sunrise" part was up in the air. We decided we'd just go for a hike for a bit, so we picked a trail off the map and started walking. Lindsey was snapping pics of the various flowers and cacti that lined the trail. I'd spotted this wild looking tree at the trail head that I wanted to check out (Lindsey loves trees). We intended to read the resurrection story and pray while were out there and figured the tree would be a prime spot, except it was right next to the parking lot. I didn't want people wandering by or anything.

After walking/exploring for about an hour, I suggested we pick a different spot to read since the tree was so close to the road. Lindsey agreed, and after like 2 seconds, points and says "how about the rock out there." Perfect. This large rock in the middle of a field. It was a great spot.

We sat and read the 4 resurrection accounts. The Lindsey read a great passage from John 16 where Jesus talks about his death. The part that jumped out at me was the one where he says "I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy" (vs 20). I loved hearing Lindsey read it. The verse was so refreshing. The world celebrates the most unnecessary and vile things, and Jesus promises that our grief will turn to joy. He's conquered it. What a moment of peace it was out there.

I then asked Lindsey if we could stand while we prayed to "get a better view" of the mountains around us. I prayed a very pointed prayer, thanking God for Lindsey and for conquering death in all it's forms. I said "amen."

I opened my eyes, and we were looking right at each other. My heart was pounding. I told Lindsey that I loved her. I waited another 2 seconds, checked my footing on the rock (didn't want to fall off), then, pulling the ring* out of my pocket, got down on my right knee and asked Lindsey to marry me. She gasped as I got down and replied "of course!"

I heeded the prophet Beyonce's call. It fit (and fits) perfectly. We stood there in each other's arms for several more minutes, took some pics, then made our way back to the tree, where we took some more pictures.

We smiled a lot.

*The ring has a garnet, Lindsey's birthstone, as the main piece. It's got 3 diamonds on each side of it, and a tiny little diamond on the front and back of it.

Children on Empire.

2009-04-03T14:20:00.002-04:00

Uh oh. Another post from the God's Politics blog.

This article was great. He totally points out that kids in his class from affluent areas lose out on Jesus' message to the poor because they can't relate to it. Meanwhile, the kids that grew up in less-than-desirable neighborhoods totally resonated with it. He even mentions how the affluent kids ignored the other kids' reflections on Jesus.

Uh oh.

Affiliations.

2009-03-31T12:11:00.003-04:00

Here's an awesome blog post I read on the God's Politics blog. It's about the striking similarities between gang affiliations and blind patriotism.

This often hits close to home with me. I'm a fan of a few pro sports teams (Flyers, Phillies, a few other NHL teams). The idea's the same. Colors, flags, disdain for others different from you. We have to watch ourselves. I know I've quoted the Fugazi lyric before: "we draw lines and stand behind them, that's why flags are such ugly things."

We always need to remind ourselves that Jesus sees people, not things. We're supposed to treat people the way He did. He saw people regardless of where they were from, what color they were, or what color they wore.

John Buccigross of espn once said in his weekly hockey blogumn "love hockey first and your team second." He said something big. We need to put things in perspective. The big picture (well-being of others) comes before your "denominational" affiliation.

God is good.

THN Ryan Dixon Blog.

2009-03-27T09:35:00.005-04:00

This was a great/very funny article on The Hockey News website. The premise is that the writer ventured to the Air Canada Center (Toronto) to see the Raptors instead of the Leafs. He comments on the differences between hockey and basketball. These are the things I often think of when I think "basketball" and why it's difficult for me to watch it.

Hockey post.

2009-03-17T10:40:00.004-04:00

I was reading Greatesthockeylegends.com and came across some old NHL commercials. They had several of the old Nike skate ones from when I was like 14. They're pretty funny. Here are some highlights:

"Learn to make a kick save!"

Road trip!

"You're practically 5'6"!"

Here's a picture of one of my favorite people, John Kopp, interviewing my favorite player, Flyers captain Mike Richards (Kopp's on the right holding the FlyersTV mic).

And last, but certainly not least, here's a hilarious Dick's Sporting Goods commercial with Jimmy Rollins.

Peace.

Prayer.

2009-03-17T09:47:00.002-04:00

I had written and reflected on a prayer the other night that I emailed my Lindsey. She said I should post it. So, as per her request, here it is:

I was reading through random psalms and found a verse that really struck me. I made it my prayer.

^7:9 O righteous God,
who searches minds and hearts,
bring to an end the violence of the wicked
and make the righteous secure.

I was reminded of

Violence is a deep-seeded disease in our culture. It has nearly an endless number of shapes and avenues through which it attacks us. It pits us against each other and highlights differences as bad instead of pointing out similarities to unify. We're taught that it's only something that happens to "poor" and "bad" people and that it's not our place to care about it, and even if we wanted to, it's impossible to change. This is violent in itself. It's passive violence. I remember Shawn (my Mission Year city director) talking about how "non-political churches" are supporters of the status-quo by their inactivity. They are violent. Lord have mercy on us and on them.

We both know what Jesus says in the beatitudes (Matthew 5):
⁷Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
⁸Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
⁹Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.

I want to live those things out. I want to show mercy to others. I want to know what it is to be merciful to the violent. I want to make peace. I want to know how to identify violence and injustice constructively. That's my prayer.

Jesus help me. I want to be a light in this world of violence, hatred, and mess.

We opened the pm last night with a song that says "strangers and pilgrims with no earthly city. we find in you everything we ever could call home."

Jesus, be my home.

Amen.

New York.

2009-03-16T13:47:00.000-04:00

A few weeks back (3-7-09) Lindsey and I ventured into New York City. It was pretty excellent. New York makes you forget that anywhere else on earth even exists. It also makes you feel completely insignificant. Like, there are SO MANY people. EVERYWHERE. Of course, it was a Saturday in March where it was like 60 degrees and beautiful out, so that brings even more people into the city.

We left Trenton on a NJ Transit train around 9am, arriving at NY Penn Station at like 10:30. We then went to get our metro cards for the day and went to Queens to the P.S.1 MoMA. We saw this awesome swimming pool. It creates this illusion where there's a pane of glass or plastic about 8 inches (maybe a bit more) into the pool with water over it, leaving the bottom 7 1/2 feet empty. There's a doorway underneath where you can go into the empty part of the pool. It's wild. People are looking at you and you at them (both a bit blurry of course). Lindsey and I each took a turn doing it.

From there we headed back into Manhattan and down to near what I think is East Village to see the Joe Strummer graffiti mural. I had my picture taken in front of it, it was pretty sweet. It took us a long time to find it, so we had to stop before to have some hummus/pita/chips.

We proceeded to Central Park and enjoyed the rest of our lunch. It was even overwhelming being in a park. There are buildings just crowding over top of you the whole time. We wandered through the park a bit and made our way to the NHL Store. I've wanted to go there for a long time and it was wonderful being in a place where hockey's the focal point of the whole store. I did notice however (actually, Lindsey noticed, she's great) that the Flyers logos on the coffee mugs were upside down. All the other teams logos were right-side up. I found this sort of typical, the Flyers organization has been hated by pretty much everyone who isn't from the Philly area for over 30 years. Look it up. I got a sweet Flyers hat and another goodie for my desk at work.

We wandered forever trying to find FAO Schwartz. We went through Times Square, which is so intimidating. Everyone's bumping and rubbing against everybody else because there are so many people (yes, it is as unpleasant as it sounds). Looking back on it, I think Times Square is the kind of place you go to be like "yeah, I've been there." Aside from that, it's not a place I look to spend my time.

Then I realzied that the addresses on 5th and 7th avenues are different from 6th (why? don't know!). This means we walked like over a mile south when we needed to go just a few blocks west to begin with from the NHL store. Dang. We got there just a few minutes before they closed and time there was very limited. We wandered the Apple Store next door and found our way down to 34th st to Penn Station, bought our tickets and headed back to Trenton.

We passed through Morrisville, PA on the way back to Philly and I showed Lindsey the houses where my parents grew up. I hadn't been anywhere near these houses in a long time, it was real nostalgic. I told Lindsey some stories I remember from those houses(particularly one where my dad, brother, and I ambushed my uncle and cousin in a super-soaker fight) and in doing so managed to miss the 95 south exit off US 1 and ended up going the wrong way on Broad Street for a few blocks before righting the ship and finally getting home around 11:30.

It was an awesome day, the kind of awesome day that leaves you completely exhausted. New York reminds you that you're in no way the center of the universe. Anytime you get to wrapped up in yourself, go to NYC for a day. (I realize that this would mean daily pilgrimages to New York, and that that's entirely impossible, but the spirit of the idea stands.)

I think it brings a lot of peace to the mind to know (and be reminded) that you're not the center of things. The irony is that New York is the same place where many (most?) of the "you're the center of everything" and other lousy cultural ideas are produced.

Two sides to everything, yeah?

CNN.

2009-03-13T15:05:00.002-04:00

So the pope un-excommunicated (recommunicated?) a Holocaust-denying bishop not too long ago. He now apparently regrets his decision. His response:

Pope: We should have Googled Holocaust bishop.

CNN seems to look more and more like The Onion.

Rush.

2009-02-24T14:53:00.002-05:00

Last week I took the driving test for the company car at Children's Service, Inc. I passed, but this is not the point. While taking the test, the Safety Administrator at CSI, Mr. Mehta, puts Rush Limbaugh on the radio. I asked him what he thought of it. He said "oh, I love Rush. He's great." I asked if he found it entertaining, or if he agreed with it. He said something about Obama and that he "likes to hear the other side." So from there I knew I'd be ok to make jokes if I heard anything particularly ridiculous.

Well, I did. I hadn't heard anything so directly biased from any viewpoint in a very long time. I found it hysterical. Rush Limbaugh thinks "liberals" (read: Democrats) are the scum of the Earth, to the point that when he says the word "liberals," he says it with this SINISTER tone of voice. It's like he's speaking about Satan himself. It's hysterical.

The ads call him a "liberal dose of reality."

Anyway, I now half-try to make a point to hear his show. My mom likes to say "you gotta' know what the enemy's thinking."

Today Rush was looking at his ratings and was wondering why there's a siginificantly lower number of women listening to his shows as opposed to men. I nearly laughed out loud. He went on to say something to the effect of "if dems cared about Black People, they wouldn't be in the squallor that they're in." WOW.

So now I guess I have to find the big "liberal" host and see what those people are thinking.

Ovie.

2009-02-20T12:03:00.001-05:00

My man Alex Ovechkin scored a sick goal the other night.

He's pretty much better than everyone.

Slowing down.

2009-02-09T14:23:00.002-05:00

If my recent posts aren't an indication, I've been feeling an overwhelming pressure to combat every injustice on Earth. As you can (hopefully) imagine, this left me with an enormous feeling of helplessness and frustration. I spent much of last week just being angry with the World.

Now, I'll stand by the fact that the world is messed up and that we need to do things to change it and be conscious of what's going on. But to focus on the negative (which I'm definitely prone to doing) will only drag you down.

At the pm last night, Joshua talked about the Kingdom of God as being the grass that grows up through concrete. He used the image of empire (read: injustice) as being the concrete and how it can often seem so heavy and overwhelming. This of course made total sense to me, as it was just what I had been feeling. He reminded us of many injustices, but the thing that really stuck with me was his encouragement to us. He said that even if we only come to the pm and get angry about it like 5 minutes every week, that's great. He encouraged us to look at what we're doing right (not in a self-righteous way, in a burn-out-avoidance kind of way) and not how wrong the world is.

This morning in our SIL Team meeting, my supervisor echoed that thought by encouraging us to do our jobs and not get ahead of ourselves. It was so refreshing. Jesus was speaking through Joshua and Tara. He's in control, I can't do it. He's done it.

Paint it Black has a lyric: "Even when your ship has run-aground, don't let the bastards get you down."

Keep your head up and your eyes open. Not only to how the enemy is working, but to how God is working too. My life (our lives) is (are) not result dependent. I forgot that. We need to be reminded of it, or we'll lose our minds.

God is good.

Metro.

2009-02-04T13:30:00.000-05:00

I'm always jealous of the people on the el train who are reading a copy of the day's Metro in the morning. I usually have to stand and I end up fiddling with my phone rather uncomfortably on my way to work.

Anyway. While glancing over a shoulder today I saw a story that caught my eye, so I made a point of tracking one down this morning after I got off the train. Now, I know the Metro's not worth anything more than skimming the surface of news, but they still put a most disturbing slant on the whole thing. Here are some highlights/lowlights (depending on how you look at it):

- The article that caught my eye was about how a former prisoner at Gitmo has made a tape vowing to continue terror attacks against the U.S. The headline reads: "Out of Gitmo, still preaching hatred." The implications of the headline are supposed to strike fear and defensiveness in the reader. Come on folks, if you held me in a shady-ass prison where nobody outside of it (except the president who put you there of course) knew what actually went on inside and treated me like a non-person (as just about every prisoner in any U.S. prison is) and I got out, I'd be pissed off. I'd especially vow to terrorize the people that put me there if my mind had been drowned in nationalism/religious extremism BEFORE I went in. Duh. What (nonsense)*. "Oh no, the people that hated us before hate us even more know after we dehumanized them and terrorized them psychologically!"

- The very next page was full of more (malarky)* than any page of any newspaper I've ever read. There was a blurb about N. Korea's readiness to to test a missile that would have enough strength to hit the U.S. (PANIC!) Right next to it (no joke, IMMEDIATELY NEXT TO IT) is a spot about IBM's undertaking of building a super-computer to manage the U.S. nuclear arsenal! "This computer's so freakin' cool! We'll be able to control all of our WMDs from one place!" Please see the irony. PLEASE. Striking fear in the readers by talking about an "enemy's" nuclear capability, then talking about ways to improve "our" own stock. You've gotta be kidding me. What (silliness)**.

- Beneath those two wonderful pieces of writing was an ad. I hate ads. They're lies. The (ultimate) point of every ad is to say "you are not enough of a person without this," so you go out and buy it. They're heinous.
This one in particular really set me off. It had a picture of a couple, their faces slightly covered, though the woman's more visible (eyes closed, mouth open, soaking it all in), the man taller, their chests pressed firmly together, but with the info at the bottom just low enough so you can catch a glimpse of the top of her right breast. The words at the top and between them read; "The Couple That Lasers Together, Stays Together."
Wow. Just what we need. More ads telling us that we're not enough for our siginificant others, and that it stems from our physical "imperfections."

I think lawyers are more trustworthy than people in marketing. In law, there's at least a hint of honesty and justice at the beginning. It just gets rubbed out by the broken system. In marketing, the idea is to get people to buy something, regardless of what it does to them. It's a purely selfish industry. Sorry folks. It's nonsense. Aint no need.

* bullshit
** jackass-ery

On patriotism.

2009-02-03T14:01:00.005-05:00

Patriotism. Pride in one's country. It is often described in a way that makes it out to be the end all-be all of human existence. Gently, I'll say it makes me uncomfortable. Frankly, I'll say it makes me angry.

I think patriotism really inhibits one's perspective. It puts strict limitations on the point of view that one views the world with. Pride is phrased by Saint Augustine as "the love of one's own excellence." If one is clinging to the idea that their country is the best, it prevents one from seeing mistakes and from criticizing said mistakes.

For example, americans fear north korea's nuclear capabilities. I read a quote in Time from a n. korean official basically saying that if america disarmed its nuclear weapons, there would be no problems. The U.S. has a bit of a history of pre-emptive strikes... But not only do americans not realize the irony of fearing one from north korea, they also defend the idea of a "necessary" pre-emptive strike. A ameri-centric point of view prevents one from seeing another side of a conflict that could really bring about some clarity.

And on a basic level, patriotism says "we're better than everyone." This is not true. I don't care if you're Laos, Canada, Germany, Brazil, or the U.S. It's not true. What are we basing "better" on? It probably has a lot to do with money, military, and influence. None of those things are independently good. In fact, I'd venture to call money and military independently bad.

On an even more basic level, I think people have enough to put between us that make us different. We don't need sweeping generalizations to boost our self-worth. I mean, it all comes down to where we get our worth anyway. Countries are plots of land with imaginary lines drawn around them. They're intended to be divisive. That sucks.

There's a Fugazi lyrics I really love that says: "We draw lines and stand behind them. That's why flags are such ugly things."

Patriotism, in my mind, is a deadly weapon unto itself.

Will. Blessings. Patience.

2009-02-03T13:20:00.002-05:00

I recall a quote I was told towards the end of Mission Year. An alum said he was sitting with one of his seminary professors. The students were talking about figuring out where their lives were going and discerning God's plan for their lives. The professor replied quite hastily and sternly: "God doesn't have a plan for your life. God wants His children to make good decisions."

This has stuck with me. In my upbringing, especially during my college years, there was so much pressure to find God's will for your life. Finding God's one plan for you (specifically who you were going to marry and when) was the top concern. I don't believe that. It may be purely selfish, but I like the idea of God wanting us to make good decisions rather than discerning the one plan He has for us. There's far more freedom to experience God's Love, and far less pressure.

The whole thing has left me with an overwhelming tendency to worry about everything. I can barely buy jeans (seriously, I stood at the rack at Target last staring for like 5 minutes). Translate that into something actually important, such as my relationship with my Beloved, Lindsey. Oh dear, I'm unable to enjoy the blessing that she is because I'm always looking for the indicator that God's "one plan" is for me to not be with her.
- A by-product of the whole God's will thing is that most people around me doubted what I felt God was leading me to, leaving a pretty big issue with self-doubt. -
I assume because I love Lindsey and because I personally benefit from knowing and loving her, it's wrong for me to be with her. It's some sick idea of "God doesn't want us to have things that we think are good. Only He is good, and He constantly reshapes our definition of good by giving us "good" by our definition, and taking it away to realize that there's only one way to see Him." I use the analogy of God being some kind of bully big brother who, in order to teach us how to walk down the stairs, trips us and pushes us down them. And then He shakes His head and calls us stupid for falling. God doesn't work like that. All that theology leaves out the FACT that during Mission Year, when I was getting to know and falling in love with Lindsey, the more focused I was on God, the more I loved Lindsey. Last night I wrote "loving Jesus means loving Lindsey." To love Lindsey is to pursue Jesus. That's how it works. Duh Jordan.

When it's put in perspective, I seriously doubt that God would place Lindsey in my life, bring us so close together, have me sweat it out during Mission Year and finally get to tell her how I felt at the end of the year, just to break us apart. God is good. He is not in support of torture.

Every day's a battle to enjoy the gifts that God has given me. Weird, isn't it? While most people seem to overindulge in God's blessings, I can't even appreciate them.

Lord, have patience with me.

Obama.

2009-02-02T12:11:00.002-05:00

I thought I should clarify the whole thing with Obama.

I'm in no way opposed to his like, existence or anything. And when put up against John McCain, I'm really glad he's the president.

Working with a mostly Black staff at a historically Black agency with mostly Black kids in my program, the whole thing is exciting. People are standing tall and paying attention to politics now. One of my kids asked, "do they always broadcast the inaugurations?" It shocked me. People are now watching because the president is someone they can relate to in some way. This is positive.

However, it's only a small step. It totally sucks that people feel good about themselves because of who the president is and because they "had a part" in electing him. I voted for Obama. I feel no connection to him. As a politician, he needs to be watched. He got elected making some big claims that will be very difficult (actually, impossible) to back up all the way. I fear that he's going to be let off the hook when he does stupid things because he's 1: Not Bush, and 2: The first Black president. Neither of those are legitimate reasons to let him off the hook. Keep your eyes on him and see how he bends things his way to make his claims fit.

Like I said. It's a positive thing. But it's completely contextual. He still speaks in a way that values "american" lives over "non-american" lives, and that totally sucks. It's an american context, not an entirely human context.

Baby steps.

Solid rock.

2009-01-29T10:32:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I got to work and logged into my email as I always do. I found an email that said "Facebook: ..... Invited you to the group; Conservative Christians praying for president Obama."

Ugh. It's potentially the corniest thing I've ever read. EVER. There's so much wrong with it. Like, I know that we're supposed to "pray for our leaders" and all that, but this cause was/is clearly over-labeled. Why not "prayers for Obama"? The label of conservative Christians has so many implications, none of which are good by my thinking. It's some very divisive language.

I wonder how many conservative Christians know that the current president claims to follow the same religion as the last one... I keep hearing about the emails that circulate saying that he was born in Africa or that he's Muslim or that he's "radical." Please. None of those things are true.

And seriously, if you're so concerned about the downturn of this country, start a prayer group at your church. Not on freaking facebook of all places. And then, perhaps pray for things like why terrorists hold the country in contempt (endless wars and killing of innocent people ring a bell?). Pray for the people who own this country. The oil, cigarette, alcohol, entertainment companies. Pray for them. They need it.

For the record, I am not a supporter of president Obama. So this isn't some "liberal" condemnation of conservatives.

The whole prayer group through facebook thing is so typically American. "I'd rather be passive aggressive* and start a pseudo-group on the internet than actually do anything about it." Work on some plank-in-eye removal folks. Change starts with you, not with a politician. Truth is truth regardless of who's in office.

Remember folks, "our hope is built on NOTHING (break it down, no-thing, no-single-thing) less than JESUS' blood and righteousness." Jesus, forgive us for forgetting you, our first love.

Lord, prevent us from trusting in the "sweet" frames of this fallen world. Protect us from the foxes ruining your vineyards. Have mercy on us.

* Yes. I see the irony of complaining about passive aggresiveness and typing a blog about this whole thing.

"Don't just put me in a box..."

2009-01-23T15:59:00.004-05:00

I realized relatively recently how I was raised to see God in a very specific way.

I was thinking about how in Mission Year we often mentioned seeing Jesus in the people around us (the homeless, poor, and prostitutes) and how I felt like that's a rather "out there" kind of thing to say. Growing up, Jesus was in a very particular setting, and saying that you could see His glorious, peaceful, loving face in a person, let alone a "broken" person would have been stretching it.

Last night I saw mewithoutYou in Old City and they closed with a wonderful song where the verses said various things like "In everyone we meet, Allah, Allah," and "In every blade of grass..." I loved it. It is a beautiful song.

*I think to put Jesus in a very culturally-specific setting (particularly one that Jesus would not have been a part of) is not only hypocritically dangerous, but also very limiting to him. People see God in so many different ways and he uses them to draw us to himself. To say he only appears and interacts in a certain 5 ways is, to say the least, ignorant.

*This goes for me as well.

Mission Year blog post.

2009-01-23T15:56:00.003-05:00

Check out this blog post from a current Mission Year team member in Atlanta. It's entitled "Adventures with Aslan." It's a great read. Thanks Stephen.

Shady folk.

2009-01-08T16:10:00.001-05:00

My lovely Lindsey works at a Starbucks and was recently telling me about how she and the other girls that work there often get hit on by their male patrons. She told me of one customer that was taking it a little too far. This guy singled her out, making comments about how they didn't like the weather and were going to run away to the Caribbean together to escape it.

At Starbucks, it's part of the employees job to be nice and smile and customers. Unfortunately, it seems that there's often a misunderstanding among the customers who misinterpret this corporate responsibility as flirting. Why does this happen? I think there's something more than baristas being flirtatious. I think it shows the loneliness that people feel and the desperation we have for affirming human contact. It's our longing for community.

Our society does not vouch for community, for sharing, for struggling with each other. We are not aware that this is wrong because it's just how we're taught to live. I don't believe that people are meant to live such intensely personal lives. We're built for interaction, for coexistence.

Obviously people live together. We see other people everyday. We're surrounded by people. But we're totally alone. We don't live together. We're all just existing in the same place, we're not living. If people shared their lives with each other, the occurrences of shady (but actually just emotionally lonely) guys hitting on cute (or in this case, downright gorgeous) baristas would decrease and real and pleasant interaction will take place.

Look at the people around you. Check out the people you work/go to school/ride the train with and look for the ones that seem to be trying too hard to fit in. I'd say that the chances are that they're not actually complete losers, but rather they just need someone to treat them in a humane way.

Our society eats people alive in a daily grind of (what ultimately boils down to) greed. Time is the most valuable thing we have. Take 3 seconds to say hi to the people you see around regularly and show them some love that way. It'll make a world of difference to them.

NHL All-Star Rant.

2009-01-08T11:11:00.003-05:00

This is ridiculous. The NHL All-Star Game is January 25th in Montreal. The game is usually quite boring, with the highlight for me being the Super Skills competition coming the day before the ASG. Anyway, one of the big draws the past few years is that the NHL permits the fans to vote in the starters. It's a cool idea, but with like most other voting scenarios, it becomes a popularity contest. This year's results showcased this unfortunate truth:

Of the six starters in the East (5 skaters and 1 goalie), 4 of them are from the Montreal Canadiens. This makes sense with the Canadiens celebrating their 100th anniversary and all, but the players they voted in are rather ridiculous. They voted in Mike Komisarek (cough), Alex Kovalev (cough), Andrei Markov, and Carey Price (INJURED). Markov's the only guy who should be playing in this game, and he's STILL only a 5th or 6th defenseman (out of 6) when matched up against other Eastern defensemen.

Then there are my Flyers and their 3 players that got the shaft. Mike Richards, Simon Gagne, and Jeff Carter are all in the top 20 in points in the league. Kimmo Timonen's been a solid defenseman all season long. Carter was the only guy to make it because he's tied for the league-lead in goals. And the most ridiculous part of it is that Flyers center Danny Briere was on the ballot despite having played only 9 games! It's absurd. They need to monitor players by how they're playing and not by their supposedly big name and how many points they put up last year.

Ugh. I just wanna watch the shootout event again.

Wealth Distribution Pt II.

2009-01-07T16:04:00.000-05:00

The real issue with wealth distribution is that it ultimately won't solve anything. It won't address the issues that bring about situations that lead people to believe that we need to redistribute our resources.

Don't get me wrong, sharing stuff is good. People should do it. Redistributing is kind of a shame. Can you appreciate the distinction? Redistributing and sharing are quite different. Sharing implies a sense of mutuality, there's a mutual reliance between the parties. Redistribution is taking from one group and giving it to a "lesser" group.

The problem lies in how people view each other. We need to shake this idea that we're unequal, and then we need to act on our "newly discovered" (more like finally admitted if it happens) equality. The real issues are in our hearts, not in our policies. The policies aren't even part of the equation because their source is defunct. I recall hearing something from somebody about a plank in our eyes...

We need to fix our hearts. How do we do this? We pursue Jesus, the life-giver. When we see others through His eyes, real change takes place. If we deal with issues at the source they'll actually get fixed. We can fiddle around with the edges of it for as long as we want but nothing will ever get done until we deal with the source.

Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Wealth Distribution Pt I.

2009-01-07T15:43:00.000-05:00

With a new president about to take office, I remember hearing people talk about of one of their fears of having a democrat president (and a BLACK one at that) was that they would pursue the idea of redistribution of wealth. The circles I found myself in thought this was the worst profanity ever. The main idea was "how could someone come in and take MY hard earned money and give it away!?!? That's stealing!"

There is so much frustration about the concept of wealth distribution. The right says that they worked for and earned their money and therefore taxing it or "redistributing" it is no ones place but their own. What irks me about this is that it implies a lack of understanding of what's outside one's immediate setting. People are born with different opportunities. Someone born in North Philadelphia does not have the same opportunities that I had growing up on a farm in Bucks County and going to a great school district in the suburbs. People are influenced rather intensely by the environment that surrounds them. A kid in Bucks County is far more likely to grow up and live a "successful" life with a "good" job because those are the things that surround them. They are surrounded by "healthy" things and thus know how to live a "healthy" life.

Kids in North Philly (or any other impoverished, disinherited neighborhood) are not around those things. They're surrounded by hunger, drugs, abuse, and various other acts of violence. They are NOT surrounded by 17 year olds driving BMWs or big TVs or soccer practice or backyard pools or people who have what they need. They're shown by what they see on TV and hear on the radio that having money and things will validate them to others and make them happy. It's not true. You know the old saying; "desperate times call for desperate measures." I recall the Propagandhi song title "Ordinary people do f***ed up things when f***ed up things become ordinary." It's true. Ordinary people do desperate (f***ed up) things when desperate things become ordinary.

The point is that not everyone has the same chances to work jobs that bring one wealth. The playing field is not level. The people born into "good" situations work hard, but they do not have to work as hard to get to the "top" and the jobs they work are not as demanding, making working harder for a longer period of time possible. If everyone had the same chances, this complaint of wealth-stealing would be valid. The slanted playing field makes it invalid.

KYEO

2008-11-20T10:58:00.002-05:00

Reading my last post made me think that I should address the title of my blog. KYEO is a song by a band called Fugazi. They made independent music a respectable thing. They were conscious of the world they played in and reacted to it.

KYEO of course stands for Keep Your Eyes Open. It has a line that I love it says "Don't you know that things have settled down. But silence is a dangerous sound. We must keep our eyes open." I think it speaks to an inherent lack of trust that I believe we should have for the "powers that be." When one steps back and takes a look, I believe we'll eventually find that it is not in the powers' interest to give us what we need. We need to be looking for the ways that we're being cheated, but told that we're living what Jesus called "life abundant."

As for my last post, the radio/music industry (which by the way, when you see the word industry, warning lights should go off immediately) is one of those things that really sticks out to me. Growing up really into punk will do that to people. Music helps feed you, and when you see people butchering it and running the show they don't actually understand, you take offense to it. Being a musician is different than running Capitol Records. Ian Mackaye of Fugazi once said "Fugazi is about being a band... About playing music. The music industry is about making money." They are two VERY different things. In America we look at things through a "how can this benefit me?" lense. "Benefit" usually means "making money." When that is your lense, you've already cheated yourself and anyone that accompanies you on your journey.

Jesus said "woe to you when all men speak highly of you, for that is how they treated the FALSE prophets." Keep your eyes open.

Radio.

2008-11-20T10:26:00.004-05:00

I'm a huge fan of this song by Dead Prez called "Radio Freq." The chorus says "Turn off the radio. Turn off that bullshit."

The 2nd verse is wonderful:

"What's on the radio? propaganda, mind control

and turnin it on is like puttin on a blind-fold

cuz when you're bringin it real you don't get rotation

unless you take over the station

and yeah i know it's part of THEIR plans

to make us think it's all about party and dance

and yeah it might sound when they're spittin their raps

but in reality, don't nobody live like that...

...platinum don't mean that it gotta be hot

i aint gotta love it, even if they play it a lot

you can hear when you walk the streets

how many people they reach

how they use music to teach

a radio program aint a figure of speech..."

It's wonderful.

The other night I was on my way to Manayunk to play poker (which, by the way, I won) and had the radio on in the car. The song that came on had a title that I forget specifically, but was literally something along the lines of "I'm gonna smash out your windows." The song is a first-person account of a girl whose boyfriend cheated on her, so she got him back by smashing the windows out of his car. The whole time it goes on and on about getting him back. How bad he made her feel and how she's going to "make it hurt" for him is the focal point of the whole song. It speaks in full support of violent revenge (whether physically, verbally, or emtotionally).

Growing up I got a lot of flack for punk bands sounding the same. I understand this. What was frustrating was that the people that condemned me for this were avid supporters of radio music. Go put on your radio, tune it to a top-40 station and tell me how many songs actually sound unique. Today the whole thing is this weird echo sound that's in almost every song. Seriously. Let Daft Punk do their thing, but let it be their thing.

But that's beside the point. The point is that people are hearing songs with lousy messages as soon as they turn on the radio. Put yourself first. Satisfy every urge as quickly as possible. Having money and sex is all that's important. Only criticize your "leaders" when it's trendy and will make you money (see Eminem and Green Day). Nonsense from start to finish.

I understand the idea of it "sounding good" and stuff. But that's pure preference. And another issue. Whether people actually prefer what they're told to prefer is completely debatable.

This could go on and on. Maybe someday I'll write a book. The point is, think about what music is saying. And as is the case with just about everything, when it sounds really great, one should be immediately skeptical as to why. Be critical of what people are trying to sell you. And if it's nonsense, reject it. Don't buy it. Don't pay to see it. For every "artist" you hear on the radio, there are at least 10 (and I'm being painfully ignorant putting it as low as 10, it's probably closer to 1,000) artists you've never heard of that are doing a better and more authentic job at it.

Turn off the radio. Turn off that bullshit.

Job!

2008-11-20T10:11:00.003-05:00

So yesterday I was excited enough just to go and pick up my brand new custom messenger bag made by ReLoad right here in Philly. It's larger than my old bag and built for the riding usage that I'll give it everyday. It's a beautiful thing.

On my way home, wearing my new bag for the first time, I got a call from Child Services Inc. in Center City and they offered me the case worker position I applied and interviewed for several weeks ago. It's wild. I'll have a real job.

In the interview they asked why I would want to be involved with youth and their organization. I wrote that I believe the most effective way to empower someone is to communicate to them that they are valuable and to form meaningful and supportive relationships. I told them that I would not miss opportunities to do so.

So here I am. I'm really nervous to deal with the paperwork that comes with it. People don't speak highly of the position, often saying "wow, that'll be intense. Think you can handle it?" Well. The answer is I don't know. But if someone goes in really fired up and proud, they're more likely to hit a huge wall and crash. I know it'll be hard and challenging. But far too often I've seen people pass on good things because they're afraid. The opportunity to empower disinherited youth is far too great an opportunity to pass on.

Change isn't something you believe in (sorry Barack). It's something you live. I feel this will be a wonderful opportunity to live change.

Onion Article.

2008-11-12T10:01:00.002-05:00

Here's a funny article form The Onion. For those not familiar with it, The Onion is a satirical newspaper. And it's very funny.

Umm...?

2008-11-06T08:21:00.003-05:00

Please read/watch this segment with Bill O'Reilly. It's about Sarah Palin and such. It's at least entertaining, if not totally creepy.

Good frames won't save bad paintings.

A long overdue tribute to the World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies.

2008-11-04T17:44:00.004-05:00

And it happened. As my newly purchased t-shirt says, "Phinally."

After that disastrous night on Monday, October 27th, I had two whole days to sweat out whether or not the Phillies would win the World Series at home, or blow it and find a way to lose the series in Tampa. With the history of Philadelphia sports, it certainly felt like the whole thing was slipping away. It made me sick to think about it.

Then Wednesday finally came and game 5 resumed. The Phils quickly went up 3-2 but managed to give it back, and the knots returned with a vengeance. They re-took the lead and were hanging onto a 4-3 lead going into the 9th inning. Brad Lidge shut 'em down, and when the final strikeout was complete, the city of Philadelphia erupted. The weight of the world was off our shoulders and the wait was Phinally over.

As with the NLCS, I jumped on my bike and headed for the celebration in Center City. I saw friends along the way. When I stopped and hugged Jonny Rashid (my roommate) he said "this is justice!" as calmly as possible about 3 or 4 times in my ear. I almost teared up. I ended up in Center City and it was mobbed with people. It was not pleasant in the least (except for the guy doing pull-ups from the light post 15 feet above Broad Street) until I met up with the one and only John Kopp. He, Drew, and I shared an excellent embrace that I've been dying to have for some time. We just sort of smiled, hugged, and enjoyed the moment. It was wonderful.

(I'm not too internet-savvy, so here's the link instead of the posted pics...)

For me, that's what it's about. Watching and cheering with my friends. Back in college we all had different favorite teams in different favorite sports. But the Phillies were the team we all followed and love. We watched each others teams together and rooted together. When the Phillies won, it was a top-notch moment for all of us. John Kopp was/is the top Phillies fan, and everyone's favorite, so that added to the equation.

Then there was the parade on Friday. I work right on south Broad Street, so it passed right by. I ended up, with several friends, on the roof of the building, waving at all the players and of course the Phillie Phanatic. It was wonderful. Then there was Chase Utley's speech at the stadium. Only in Philly. I love it.

Greetings from Philadelphia, home of the World Series Champion Phillies.

2008-11-04T07:58:00.002-05:00

Nothing changes or gets better until we begin to remove the planks from our own eyes. Nothing changes until we learn to love our neighbor as ourselves. Nothing changes until we give God His due before and after giving Caesar his. Nothing changes until we submit to Jesus and He changes us.

Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Gun Jumping.

2008-10-28T00:23:00.001-04:00

Of course I jumped the gun. I live in the only city on Earth where it could play out like this. It'll never come easy.

The wait continues.

(Shh...)

2008-10-26T23:55:00.002-04:00

Well. I know I'm jumpin' the gun a bit, but today is the day. The Phillies can win the World Series for only the 2nd time in their 126 year history and end the Philly drought of 25 years without a championship.

Just to put it in perspective, here's a list I've compiled off the top of my head of cities that have won at least 1 championship since the Sixers won in '83:

New York: '94 Rangers, 2 Superbowls, '86 Mets, 3 WS' for the Yankees (the '83 Islanders also won too).

Boston: '08 Celtics, 2 WS' 3 Superbowls, '84 & '86 NBA titles

DC: 1 Superbowl

Chicago: Superbowl XX, 6 NBA titles, '05 Sox WS

Baltimore: '83 WS and 1 Superbowl

Pittsburgh: 2 Stanley Cups and 1 Superbowl

San Francisco: 4 Superbowls

ANAHEIM: 1 Stanley Cup and 1 WS

KANSAS CITY: 1 WS

St. Louis: 2 WS' and 1 Superbowl

Houston: 2 NBA titles

CAROLINA: 1 Stanley Cup

Montreal: 2 Stanley Cups

Miami (Marlins/Heat): 3 titles

Edmonton: 5 Stanley Cups ('84, '85, '87, '88, '90. Beat the Flyers in '85 and '87)

LA: 6 NBA titles

Detroit: 4 Stanley Cups, 3 NBA titles

TAMPA BAY: 1 Superbowl, 1 Stanley Cup (each beat the Philly team in the semi-final round)

Toronto: 2 WS'

NEW JERSEY: 3 Stanley Cups

Minnesota: 2 WS'

Dallas: 3 Superbowls and a Stanley Cup

It's been a long time for this city. As my roommate and friend Jonny Rashid says; "It is a good day to be alive." This would be no small monkey off the city's back, it'd be a gorilla. People in Philly are just plain unhappy and mean, and this really lowers everyone's guard for a week or two. Tonight while riding home I saw a guy walking and I looked back, raised my fist and said "One more game!" He responded with something of a "Hell yeah!"

Again, I don't want to jump the gun. But come on, JOE BLANTON HIT A HOME RUN.

Today is all about the Phillies. Bring it home boys.

JR.

2008-10-22T19:56:00.004-04:00

I just watched an interview with Jeremy Roenick during the Flyers first period intermission. He's a former Flyer and is a fan-favorite everywhere he's played. I saw him play against the Blackhawks last year (he was drafted and came up in Chicago) and the fans still love him. He now plays for the San Jose Sharks and is in Philly tonight playing against the Flyers (hence the interview).

It was great. They discussed his 5ooth goal and his goal that eliminated the Maple Leafs in 2004. Both were wild goals. He has a great personality, which I believe is a rare thing in sports. Most players seem pretty dull outside of their sport, not JR. He's great.

I'll post it if a link pops up on youtube.

World Series Bound.

2008-10-16T02:00:00.002-04:00

Tonight the Phillies won the NLCS, beating the Dodgers 4 games to 1. Ryan Howard was quoted as saying "I can only imagine how it is in Philadelphia right now."

Well. After viewing the final outs with my good friend and avid Phillies fan John Kopp, we grabbed our bikes and went down Broad St. When we got to Temple there was a huge crowd yelling and high-fiving and blocking traffic. It was wonderful.

Center City was ridiculous with fireworks going off and more people in the streets. South Philly was absolutely wild (I saw a flaming shoe in the street). One guy was wearing a shirt that said "LA Sucks." I loved it.

Everyone was happy. For at least the next 2 weeks, we're all on the same team. In a city full of angry, bitter people; I'm going to soak this in.

I can only imagine what's going to happen if they win the whole thing. I hope I find out.

Ordinary People...

2008-10-15T19:00:00.004-04:00

There's a band that I'm quite fond of called Propgandhi. They're an anarchist, vegan, pop-punk band from Canada (see why I'd be quite fond...?). I'd like to share a lyrical excerpt of theirs from a song called "Ordinary people do f***ed up things when f***ed things become ordinary." The title of the song is pretty great by itself. But anyway...

This is a world of professional liars: a bleating chorus of tempered truths, who like pealing church-bells echo its' virtues sung over and over and over again. Rotting at the bottom is better than living as a fool. I can't find the meaning in the great achievement. When you commit heart and soul to earning your place, opportunity kills common sense.

Hooray for the corporate world.

Palin Pt. II.

2008-10-13T22:36:00.002-04:00

Here's a great article about Flyers chairman Ed Snider and his decision to have sarah Palin drop the puck. Thank you Adam Proteau.

Additionally, tonight at the Flyers game they showed a young naval guy (I don't know if it's a cadet or what) re-enlist during a stoppage of play. This is getting ridiculous.

On top of THAT, the Flyers dropped a 2-1 lead going into the 3rd period and blew the game 5-3. This team/organization is wearing my patience thin. I go to/watch these games to escape nonsensical things like politics, war, racism, and oppression.

No wonder Canadian fans are resentful of American hockey, we butcher their game.

Keep nationalism out of hockey. Keep politics out of the most wonderful game on Earth.

I feel like the end of this should say "Partnership for a drug-free NHL."

Hope?

2008-10-12T09:27:00.003-04:00

Yesterday was miserable. It sucked from start to finish, with few breaks along the way. At the end of the day I thanked God it was over. What was ironic was that all the stuff I would say I hated about it won't be things that will bug me in a few days. They weren't that big of a deal.

I get pretty overwhelmed by the ways people decide and are tricked into deciding not to care about each other. It gets me down. Real down. I feel like I'm an idiot for even trying to care. It's like I'm wasting peoples "precious" time. Every single day I see more and more ways that our culture encourages us to look out for ourselves and no one past our immediate families. Get yours and screw everyone else. That's what we're told from the minute we can breath on our own. When one suggests that such lies are in fact lies, people are ready to call you "hippie" or "gay" or a variety of other misguided condescending names. I feel a dense fog of hate looming over us everyday. If you can't at least see my point, you're not paying attention.

It'll suck the love and hope right out of you. I recall praying "Jesus, I can't feel your love." But I think the fact that I can still acknowledge that things are screwed up, that I can't just "get in line" is a beautiful example of His love. There's that hope. No matter what happens, I know that life is not currently the way that God intended it. No matter how much I want to give up and believe the lies, I can't. Jesus' love is too convincing, too overwhelmingly perfect.

I remember John 15 where Jesus says "love each other" at least 5 times. In one instance He directly says "This is my command: Love each other as I have loved you... You are my friends if you do what I command" (vs 12, 14). This takes inhuman amounts of patience. No wonder people are atheists.

God is good.

Phillies.

2008-10-09T09:12:00.000-04:00

Here's a cool article about the Phillies and their postseason woes of the last century and a quarter.

My pulse is increasing. I'm pretty nervous. The NLCS begins tonight. Go Phils.

Palin.

2008-10-08T19:09:00.002-04:00

Oh my gosh. Worst news all day.

Vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is going to drop the ceremonial first puck at the Flyers opener on Saturday night. I am so angry.

Last week during the debate with Biden she kept using the word "tolerant" to explain her stance towards multiple people groups. She said it like it's a good thing, like we should give her credit. To me, "tolerant" is a condescending term. It's obligatory. She doesn't care about the groups she mentioned (Afghanis, Iraqis, and homosexuals), but feels she has to put up with them.

I hate American politics. It pains me to go to a sporting event and have to see this stuff. In my eyes, this is a stain on the Flyers worse than the Lindros mess in the late 90s.

It's funny. Last night I told my dad that Ed Snider and I view the world VERY differently. He's a businessman through and through.

Ugh.

Books.

2008-10-02T10:44:00.002-04:00

Oh my gosh. Books are simultaneously the best and worst thing on Earth. This morning I stumbled upon a site for called hockeybookreviews.com. There are so many books I want to read. Just about hockey. This is only one subject, just because I love it. Ugh. There will never be enough time.

NHL Conference Standing Predictions.

2008-10-01T09:26:00.002-04:00

I probably should've done it this way the first time. Here's how I think they'll finish in the conference standings and be seeded in the playoffs. The division winners get the top 3 spots, and the top 8 make the playoffs.

West:

1. Detroit Red Wings

2. Dallas Stars

3. Minnesota Wild

4. San Jose Sharks

5. Anaheim Ducks

6. Chicago Blackhawks

7. Calgary Flames

8. Vancouver Canucks

9. Colorado Avalanche

10. Nashville Predators

11. Edmonton Oilers

12. Columbus Blue Jackets

13. Phoenix Coyotes

14. St. Louis Blues

15. Los Angeles Kings

East:

1. Pittsburgh Penguins (They're not the best in the east, but they'll finish ahead of Montreal)

2. Montreal Canadiens

3. Washington Capitals

4. Philadelphia Flyers

5. New York Rangers

6. Ottawa Senators

7. New Jersey Devils

8. Buffalo Sabres

9. Tampa Bay Lightning

10. Boston Bruins

11. Atlanta Thrashers

12. New York Islanders

13. Carolina Hurricanes

14. Toronto Maple Leafs

15. Florida Panthers

I'm obviously very excited. We'll see how this shakes out.

Social Justice.

2008-09-30T18:09:00.002-04:00

"Social justice isn't about money, it's about bringing people to the realization that they're valuable." ~ Lindsey A. France

Damn I love this girl.

Lindsey was talking about how poverty isn't just about money, but that there's poverty of spirit. This is the true plague. The suburbs are just as screwed up as the ghettos. I'd even venture to say that it's more screwed up in the 'burbs because there are so many ways to cover it up. Families fall apart, kids are doing/selling drugs, people hate each other, cops act unjustly, people use their money in lame ways. We just don't see it because of the wide yards and the large fences surrounding them.

This is sort of a piggy-back off of my previous post. Presidents and governments cannot legislate love. They cannot pass laws that make people care genuinely for other people. Sometimes a law may be passed that makes it slightly less difficult to hate others, but our nature takes over. I honestly believe that the root of the issues is our own selfishness, and if we can seek Jesus to cure us of that, things will not get worse. Jesus said that a good tree does not bear bad fruit, and that a bad tree does not bear good fruit. If we are seeking him above all things, everything else will fall into place. There will be good fruit.

We don't need Barack Obama. We don't need his change. We need real change. We need Jesus.

Jesus Christ, son of God. Have mercy on me, a sinner.

Giving to Caesar.

2008-09-30T15:43:00.004-04:00

I registered to vote today. Actually, I just changed my address so I can vote in Philly. The guy asked me what I thought of Obama. I told him I think he's the lesser of two evils and then he gave me this "why Obama is awesome and so much more than the lesser of two evils" spiel. I should've just said that he's the guy or something and not talked about it.

Good frames won't save bad paintings. You can't drive a totaled car. Bad trees don't bear good fruit.

NHL Divisional Predictions.

2008-09-29T15:49:00.002-04:00

This is sort of arbitrary, but it's what I'm feeling right now and it's fun. The season kicks off Saturday.

Western Conference:

Pacific Division:

1. Dallas Stars

2. San Jose Sharks

3. Anaheim Ducks

4. Phoenix Coyotes

5. Los Angeles Kings

Northwest Division:

1. Minnesota Wild

2. Calgary Flames

3. Vancouver Canucks

4. Colorado Avalanche

5. Edmonton Oilers

Central Division:

1. Detroit Red Wings

2. Chicago Blackhawks

3. Nashville Predators

4. Columbus Blue Jackets

5. St. Louis Blues

Eastern Conference:

Southeast Division:

1. Washington Capitals

2. Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Atlanta Thrashers

4. Carolina Hurricanes

5. Florida Panthers

Northeast Division:

1. Montreal Canadiens

2. Ottawa Senators

3. Buffalo Sabres

4. Boston Bruins

5. Toronto Maple Leafs

Atlantic Division:

1. Pittsburgh Penguins

2. Philadelphia Flyers

3. New York Rangers

4. New Jersey Devils

5. New York Islanders

New Neighbor.

2008-09-28T09:00:00.003-04:00

Leroy Barber, the president of Mission Year, has a book coming out in the next few weeks called New Neighbor. You should read it as I consider Leroy both a mentor and friend. Many of the stories are from Mission Year team members from last year, and both myself and my teammate Joe have an article in the book. The links are to the posts on our M.Y. blogs that are in the book. I'm pretty excited about it.

Job. Learning. Philly Weekly.

2008-09-25T15:30:00.006-04:00

Today I got the job at Qdoba working as a bike delivery guy. I'll be balancing it with working at the thrift store, but I'm pretty psyched about it. My job will be to take, make, and deliver the orders. Should be fun.

One of the things that's haunting me in post Mission Year life is wanting to fix things that I can't. For example, this lady yelled at me on my bike today for something that I was not wrong in doing and all I can do is dissect why she would do that and how I wasn't in the wrong. I know it's not actually a big deal, but choosing one's battles is really freaking hard.

I'm praying that God gives the ability to react more quickly and peacefully in those situations.

On a completely unrelated note; check out this sweet article in Philadelphia Weekly about mewithoutYou and their church network. They go to Circle of Hope, and Joshua Grace (the pastor) is mentioned in it. It's solid stuff.

Montreal Canadiens 100th Anniversary Dollars.

2008-09-25T08:51:00.002-04:00

The Montreal Canadiens are having coins minted to celebrate their 100th anniversary.

This is so awesome. You think the Yankees could get a Yankee Stadium coin? I don't know.

A Day Off.

2008-09-24T15:12:00.005-04:00

So starting last Monday I worked 8 of 9 days. I know this doesn't sound like a big deal, but with it came starting the job (including opening by myself the first day), working all week and getting into the swing of it, trying to balance things like when I would eat with getting sleep, and spending time with my girlfriend (still an understatement) Lindsey as she came up from Virginia last weekend. There hasn't been time to stop and think about what's going on in my life in the bigger scheme of things. That might be good, because things are pretty rocky right now.

Today I had no plans. None. No work. Nothing. I woke up and read for a while. I'm reading The Politics of Jesus by John Howard Yoder and The Magician's Nephew by Clive. I read Clive's book because as I said, it's my day off and I wanted something light like a purely fictional story. It went nicely.

I got up and took my time finding my way to making breakfast and then took a shower before going to meet my dad for lunch. He's working in North Philly about 10 minutes from my house. I got back, read stuff about hockey and rode to Center City (a Philadelphian term for "downtown") and applied for a job as a bike delivery boy/guy/human at Qdoba. It looks decent enough and I'll get to ride my bike. I had a really good ride back and forth from Center City.

I was thinking about how we can share the love of Jesus with people doing the simplest things. I had cut a pedestrian off while working my way through a light and instead of criticizing him for not paying attention (the Philadelphian thing to do, always blame the other person), I looked him in the eye and said "Oops. Sorry man." He looked at me as if we knew each other and said "Don't worry about it." In those situations, the tendency of people is to stare at you like you're the worst slime to ever ooze out of a grimy crack in the sidewalk on earth. Proverbs 15:1 says "a gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." The point is that expressions of Christ's love are not/don't have to be these huge Times-Square-New-Year's-Eve events. They're very subtle, humanizing, everyday things.

Small tasks done with great love.

Cell and Missionaries.

2008-09-24T13:32:00.000-04:00

Missionary: A member of a religion who works to convert those who do not share the missionary's faith; someone who proselytizes. ~ wikipedia

Tonight at cell we talked about missionaries. It's a scary word because of the "we know what's best for you" attitude that has made Christians notorious over the centuries.

I remember when I got my acceptance letter for Mission Year I showed it to my dad. His response was "you're going to be a missionary!" I quickly told him that I in no way wanted to be associated with the word. The word missionary is frightening to me because it brings up images of going to "God-forsaken" places and "enlightening" people as to the wonders and superiority of western culture with little to no regard for the culture that's been lived out for who knows how long.

Being a missionary shouldn't be something noteworthy that only certain Christians are called to. It's a way of life that comes with following Jesus. The inside-the-box thinking of what a missionary is needs to stop. Spreading the love of Jesus is a day-to-day, week-to-week, year-to-year, life-life, beginning-to-end thing. The word "missionary" shouldn't need to exist. It only exists because we fail to live out Jesus' call on our lives everyday.

Don't tell someone why they need to be like you. Show someone you care about them. That's what Jesus did. And we're supposed to be like him.

Animal Farm.

2008-09-22T18:14:00.003-04:00

So last week I read Animal Farm by George Orwell. It was disturbing. I kept shaking my head going "no, No, NO, NO!" as it got more intense and the lies of the pigs became more blatant.

I loved it.

It said/says a lot about power and what those who are hungry for it are capable of doing. That's what makes a book like this so troubling, everyone's capable of turning into a power-hungry monster that can't get enough. We can start out with the best intentions. But if we don't watch ourselves and have a network of people who we trust to keep us in check, we'll ruin something beautiful and drag others down with us.

Selfishness. That's what it's about. When one puts the self ahead of others, one can destroy the best and most indestructible of ideas and relationships. It's the most slippery of slopes. And the worst part is that the whole time we're destroying something, we can convince ourselves (and maybe others) that we're completely right. By the time you realize you're a monster and you've become what you set out against, it's too late.

Just ask Old Major. And Jesus.

Richie.

2008-09-18T08:10:00.001-04:00

It's official. My current favorite NHL player is the Flyers new captain. This is great new. Mike Richards is the best example of what a hockey player should be. He does so many things right.

Sweet action.

Sports!

2008-09-15T16:36:00.002-04:00

So when I landed in Philly at 12:20 this morning, I got a text from the legendary John Kopp informing me that the Phillies had swept the Milwaukee Brewers. They're now tied for the wild card lead and only 1 behind the Mets for the division lead. It was wonderful news to get right after landing.

The Flyers are having rookie camp this week. Training camp will start very soon after. I cannot wait for the season to start.

Adult?

2008-09-15T16:23:00.003-04:00

I'm pretty astounded by how selfish people can be. I've often seen people try to solve problems by making a scene so the "ones we love" will pay attention to them. But that's not loving. It's purely selfish and will not solve anything. It makes it worse and causes a lot of stress and pain for everyone involved.

Adults should have the conflict resolution skills to reflect their age. Please try to see things from someone else's point of view.

Phoenix.

2008-09-10T10:46:00.002-04:00

Well, I'm sitting here in a room at the Holiday Inn Express in Goodyear, Arizona just outside Phoenix. We drove about 2,500 miles in 4 days. Driving through DC to Virginia was slowed by hurricane Hannah on Saturday and we briefly thought that we wouldn't make it to AZ on time (we actually made it early). There was a wonderful stop in Staunton, VA to have dinner and spend about an hour with Lindsey (she's my favorite).

Yesterday we drove through Petrified Forest National Park and saw the Painted Desert. On Monday we had our most efficient day, waking up in Little Rock, Arkansas and making our way through Oklahoma (saw Emily King in OK City), the Texas panhandle, and stopping in New Mexico.

Hopefully there will be more on the finer points of it later.

Road Trip!

2008-09-05T09:36:00.002-04:00

So this morning it was decided that I will accompany my mother on her trip as she moves to Goodyear, AZ outside of Phoenix. I'll have an opportunity to go through a few states that I haven't been to/haven't spent a lot of time in such as Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico. I'm pretty stoked. I think it will be quite the ride. I enjoy road trips. I enjoy time with the madre. Combine the two and it's a recipe for good times.

What if Jesus Meant it?

2008-09-05T09:30:00.000-04:00

Last night I had a chance to catch up with an old friend back in Doylestown. She also just got back from a rather intense missions deal. We had a great talk about living as Jesus calls us and what that looks like, and coming back to "real" life and feeling totally out of the loop with how to relate to people.

The question that I'm going to be chewing on for the rest of my life is "what does my life look like if Jesus meant what he said and did?" I think this is the question that a Christian needs to be asking. I guess it's pretty terrifying, because if he did mean it all a Christian's life will be turned upside down. You hear all kinds of sermons about "being like Jesus" or "submitting to God's will for your life" and other cute phrases, but they are the farthest thing from cute. To love your neighbor as yourself is ridiculous in today's world. To put others ahead of yourself is (at this point) un-American.

People build their lives around their job. I'm starting to get involved with a church where people build their lives around the church and their church family (circleofhope.net). It's a beautiful thing.

Peace.

Mats Sundin Soap Opera.

2008-09-05T07:38:00.002-04:00

I'm really tired of pro athletes having all this time to retire and unretire and take weeks and months to make these decisions.

First it was Brett Favre. Then it was Michael Strahan. Now it's Mats Sundin in the NHL. He won't make a decision about returning this season by the start of the season. Ridiculous. He's going to pull some Peter Forsberg/Teemu Selanne garbage where he takes forever to decide. He'll see who's got a shot to win the Cup and try to get on board with them.

I can hear folks asking "but what about Michael Jordan and/or Mario Lemiuex? They each retired and came back more than once." True. But Michael Jordan's the best ever and Mario's in the top 3 ever. And even then I think they too were stupid for going in-and-out and off-and-on about whether or not they'd play. (For the record, Mario was still awesome until he retired for good in the middle of the 05-06 season. MJ had fizzled out when he played with the Wizards.)

Mats Sundin is a solid player. (Hes the all-time leading scorer for the Maple Leafs. No small feat.) But the NHL should have him make a decision before the season starts so teams can focus on havin teams with the players they DO have and run with it.

Peace.

Busted.

2008-07-25T12:33:00.001-04:00

I'm totally caught...

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/07/20/104-unpaid-internships/

Ouch.

Note.

2008-07-25T12:11:00.005-04:00

Today I got a note from one of the women at work. It said "Thank You!!!" on the outside. When you open it up it says "For being my friend."

It probably doesn't seem like a big deal, but it is.

People make changing the world out to be this huge thing where you do all this stuff that people see. It's not a huge thing. It's a way of life, a day-to-day thing.

I'll have made a difference if people know that I actually give a crap about them. I'd venture to say that's what Jesus did.

Peace.

Guilty of being white.

2008-07-18T11:40:00.007-04:00

So Mission Year ends in like 2.5 weeks.

There are all sorts of feelings related to that.

The one that stands out the most at this point is guilt.

The people I'm leaving don't get a chance to pick up and leave for somewhere else. They're stuck. They ask questions like "why are you leaving?" I'm like, "well, Chicago's not home. God's calling me to other things."

And both of those things are true. But that doesn't always make sense to people. There's a mix of responses you get. They say "you're going back to your home," which has many implications of wealth and comfort. I even heard one woman say "you're going back to rich town" to Lindsey.

I'm associated with places and things that I don't necessarily want to be. I don't know how to handle that. Very few people have any idea about me and what I value.

That's hard to chew on.

Peace.

Brief Semi-Political Thoughts.

2008-06-04T18:39:00.003-04:00

I just have to say I'm pretty sick of Hillary Clinton.

Let me start by assuring you I'm not a "supporter" of Barack Obama. I'm not a supporter of any of the candidates. I do however believe Obama's the least lousy. I don't believe there's as big a difference between the two Dem candidates as their fans believe.
Isn't the real "fight" against John McCain?
I think the only tangible thing Hillary's accomplished is that she's split Dem voters and turned the whole mess into a popularity contest. Hillary fans won't vote for Barack and will potentially vote for McCain just to stick it to him. And that sucks.

That's all the comment I have.

Mustache Wisdom.

2008-06-03T13:53:00.002-04:00

Rusty's a friend and coworker at Breakthrough. Last week he had shaved his pseudo-beard into a mustache. Today he said he had been scolded at work for something, but because of the mustache - which we all now looked rather ridiculous, which is part of the point, if not the point - he couldn't take himself (or the scolder) seriously. He kept thinking "how is this guy not laughing? I can't take myself seriously, how can he?"

My point, however small it may be, is that when you get caught taking life too seriously just imagine that you're a 23 year old man with a mustache. Because you'll probably look silly.

Tandy.

2008-05-21T20:01:00.001-04:00

There was a guy who stayed at Breakthrough until just about a month ago named Tandy Tryon ("As in 'Try-On some clothes'" he'd say). He had been in the program since I started working here in October. He was one of "our" guys. Coming into work was great because you knew Tandy was going to be there and you could look forward to hanging out with him. Breakthrough did a focus on him a few months back. Read it here.

Tandy was one of my boys. He'd moved out of Breakthrough and was struggling a bit. He stopped into the day center from time to time and was in the process of getting by in here.
This past Monday morning I got a text message from Rusty at around 9 o'clock that informed me that Tandy had died in his room over the weekend. That was it. I don't remember the last time I talked to him, but it was just that. The last time.

Tandy certainly had his struggles. He was an alcoholic, a very visible addiction. He fought it until his last day. It helped bring him to Jesus. He found nowhere else to go but to Him. It helped him understand love and grace. I am in no way advocating for alcoholism as a means of evangelism. Jesus goes for the throat, He gets at what will get us. This is what got Tandy, and he knew God's grace and loved Jesus for it. Tandy got "it." He loved Jesus.

I love you Tandy. See you at the gates. Can't wait to hug you.

Peace.

Missed Opportunities.

2008-05-20T15:13:00.001-04:00

I usually fail to see Jesus until after I’ve spit in his face.

Like a week and a half ago a recruiter for the US Army came in to the shelter. I was in the dining hall mopping it up and he happened to walk by going about his business. I heard footsteps behind me and turned around to see him right in front of me. He handed me a recruiting card and told me to give him a call.

Now, to avoid a long drawn out semi-theological discussion, I’m just going to say that there’s no way I’m going to call him (at least not for the reasons that he wants me to). I looked at the card. He turned to walk away. I just said “I’m not going to do that.” He said something that I don’t recall very well, but it was along the lines of “give to someone who might be interested.” For the same reasons that were semi-mentioned at the beginning of this paragraph, I’m not going to redistribute his card. I went to the trash can to throw it away. He was not yet out of sight and said “well, don’t throw it away, give it back. Don’t disrespect me and what I do.”

Then it hit me. I handled the situation totally wrong. I should’ve said “no thanks man, hold onto it” or something like that. Instead I blew him off and disrespected him. I treated him less than how I would want to be treated. His profession doesn’t matter, his humanity does.

Jesus forgive me.

Peace.

2008-04-23T23:29:00.002-04:00

Last night I was reminded of the things I gave up to do Mission Year. I had sort of been saying and thinking that it wasn't a big deal and that being where I'm supposed to be is enough.

It hurts so much to deny the things that you want and love. I remembered that the reason I gave these things up is so I can have the best opportunity possible to directly share the love of Jesus with others.

I was encouraged to see the hand of God in my life. He is so good.

How Racism Hurts My Bike.

2008-04-17T12:17:00.001-04:00

Pardon me if this seems too basic, but racism SUCKS.

I hope that's an obvious thing that does not need much elaboration, but here's what got me going...

To lay the ground work:
I'm of the belief that racism in the United States (and most likely everywhere else...) is institutionalized. I recently had to write a paper for the Theology of Poverty class on where I saw racism in my neighborhood. Let's just say that I had a difficult time keeping it short enough for the paper guidelines. I said that racism isn't something that one really sees as much as it's something that we experience; whether on the top or bottom, and whether we know it's happening or not. My thesis or whatever read... "Racism is not really something that affects or influences life on the West Side, it is life, it is just how things work." I went on to explain several (not all, that'll be an ongoing/potentially lifelong process) of the areas in which I see racism. Today I found another one...

The streets are in lousy shape. Unless it's like a really major street, like Madison, you can expect to find plenty of potholes and cracks that certainly have bottom priority of getting fixed as opposed to some North Side neighborhood. I'm thinking the potholes will be there until the neighborhood is completely gentrified, because then they'll HAVE to fix them (I mean, you can't have white folks driving/parking on potholes!? Can you...?). It was and is the same way around Temple in North Philly. The neighborhood streets that surround campus are all torn up, but on campus they're pretty close to flawless. (For the record, I think Temple does a lousy job of advocating for the neighbors that live around them, and actually contributes to the problems, but that's a whole nother issue.)

I felt this mess in a painfully direct way today. It was the first 70+ degree day in Chicago in 178 days according to the Tribune. This means Jordan rides his bike to work because he couldn't ride in the snow/ice/mayhem all winter. Unfortunately, not only was it crazy windy out, but the street is just all cracked and split everywhere. Try fighting the wind, drivers that ignore/don't care about/loathe you, AND potholes that'll be here longer than me. Let me assure you it was quite the time.

Look. I know that there are potholes everywhere. I know that they're unpleasant everywhere. But I'm willing to bet a large sum of money that I don't actually have access to that the affluent potholes get fixed before they do on the West Side because they're affluent potholes. And that, to say the very least, sucks.

That's not a real bet by the way... (Because I don't have money, not because I'm not sure of what I said. Know what I mean?)

Peace.

P.S. The morning after I typed this, an article was printed in the Chicago Tribune about the allotment of $4.5 million to resurface Lake Shore Drive. Not surprisingly, it runs along the Lake (nice areas). The part where they're concentrating is on the North Side. Noteworthy. Check out the article here.

The Pharmacist.

2008-04-15T15:23:00.000-04:00

When we pursue God above all else he blesses us.

The ways in which he does so are often different than what we consider blessings. But they're better. The love of God is the best thing anyone can experience. And he shares that with us when we seek him. I think it's impossible to effectively word what it feels like to experience his love first hand. When you're feeling it you know that nothing else matters.

The only thing I want in my life is to follow Jesus, experience his love, and share it with others. I probably want to reword that to say share it with others first, as I think that's one of the best ways (if not the best way) to learn about the love of God.

Last week Rusty and I took our friend/Breakthrough guest Mike to the airport. Mike moved to Alaska.

I've been praying that God would show himself to me in clear ways and that I'd be aware of these. He's answered my prayers. It's a beautiful thing to see his hand at work. Mike showed me Jesus in how he was real with me. He didn't hesitate to tell me what he thought about things, whether I wanted to hear it or not. He was a great guy to have around and will be sincerely missed.

Paint it Black has a song called "The Pharmacist" about pointless distractions...

The medicine cabinet's empty, there's nothing for my head. Inside I'm made of concrete, my eyelids fucking feel like lead. I'm feeling for a pulse, but it's no use. My head was screwed on tight now it's coming loose. And I've been to the bottom of a bottle or two; that shit just kept me down. I'm sick of shortcuts leave me on the fucking ground.

Don't get hung up on the reference to alcohol consumption, take it abstractly. That last line's the real kicker. Anything that isn't Jesus will not fill us. I'm tired of wanting things that are outside of God's plan for my life. They'll only serve as distractions.

I was reading in Isaiah this past weekend..."Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their trength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Jesus, keep me from tripping over myself. Please don't let anything get in the way of me knowing and loving you.

Peace.

A Friendly Reminder.

2008-03-27T12:02:00.002-04:00

I want to tell you about my friend Greg.

Greg stays in our overnight shelter at Breakthrough. He's got to be one of my favorite people. He's always smiling, always willing and ready to joke and laugh, and he gets stuff done. He does his daily assigned chores without complaining (a rare and much appreciated trait). If he's got a problem, he asks about it rather than getting in my face and complaining.

It seems like nothing gets Greg down.

This morning as the guys were waking up he greeted the several remaining men by name, wishing us all a good morning. He meant it too. It is a good morning.

From a superficial standpoint, Greg has few reasons to be happy. He's homeless, jobless, and shares a room with 29 other guys. That's a less-than-ideal situation.

So I asked Greg how he keeps on the "sunny-side" (if you will). In sum this is what he said...
"God blesses us with a new day. It's a chance to do something positive, something better than yesterday. If you spend it complaining, you waste it. And that's not cool."

It's good to be reminded of stuff like that.

Peace.

Redefining "Good Plans"

2008-03-26T23:31:00.001-04:00

I know God has good things for me.

The problem is that He and I have often have conflicting definitions of what is good.

His definition is correct.

Mine is only correct when it lines up with His.

Jesus I want nothing other than what you have for me. I’m sorry for getting in your way.

Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.Thou my best thought, by day or by night,Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

I believe. Help me overcome my unbelief.

High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

Peace.