Friday was a wonderful day. I finally got paid (the whole once a month thing really gets old), which meant I immediately spent half of it on bills, food, and other things I have been waiting to buy. Top of my list was a Brita water filter.
Now, I know the kind of job these things do cleaning water isn't exactly the best. But it beats tap water. See, I was raised on clean water. We had one of those fancy under-the-sink monsters (which I'm pretty sure flooded the hardwood floored kitchen once. FYI, there's a pressure regulation valve on those things you need to adjust. unless you want to to blow itself open in an impressive display of geyser-ness. or hire a plumber.) which produced some of the best-non-tasting water. People in Oregon say we have good water, and compared to a lot of other places, that's true. But I can still taste it! And while my shiny new Brita is a far cry from those fancy filtration systems, it's also a fraction of the price. And it makes the water good enough for me to drink - something I need more of. So the next time you come over (hint hint), I'll be pleased to offer you some of my water.
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Saturday, April 29, 2006
It's My Party and I'll Cry if I Want To
Today was the one day a year people write on my Facebook wall: my birthday. I am now 23. Thank you to all who sent me kind notes. Nothing really happened today, but I want to comment on the one thing I did do today. I managed to persuade Ian, Katie, and her friend Elise to go see United93 with me. If you don't know, it's the story of the fourth plane hijacked on September 11th - the one that didn't reach its target. It's the story of the passengers on United flight 93 who fought back, resulting in a crash in the middle of a field in Pennsylvania instead of the US Capitol.
There are some things about this film that are worth knowing. Many people are upset, claiming it's too early to have a movie about September 11th. I agree - it's too early for a movie, a Hollywood blockbuster, but it's not too early for a documentary. The film feels nothing like a movie. It shot entirely with handheld video cameras, complete with poor quality and lots of movement. It watches just like home video of the event. There are no "actors." A number of the actual air traffic controllers from that day came forward to reenact their jobs in this film. None of the passengers or flight crew are people you've seen anywhere before. They're not the beautiful Hollywood fare. Each of them looks exactly like a person I've sat next to on a plane. There is almost no script. The professionals who were on the job and now in the movie recreated their lines. The passengers on the plane engaged in the normal smalltalk you share with your "single serving friends." There were hardly any "foreground" conversations. Instead, this background talking filled the movie. The phone calls passengers made to their families were recreated off of the flight recordings and the families recounting the calls. In every way it felt like someone sitting on a plane with a video camera. A plane I have been on dozens of times. There was nothing different or special about this flight or any of the people on it. We know as much about each character as they do of each other. Some people complained that we didn't know the characters well enough. I disagree. We got to know them as much as they got to know each other. The point of this film was not to explain or dramatize the happenings about UAL93, but to take us there, to put us on the plane. No commentary, no message, no spin. Just the raw happenings.
And we all supported them. People banded together to help those affected. Love poured out of every corner of this land. It became ok to talk about God, even pray in public settings. Impressed with the fleeting nature of life, people fled to God. Whoever made the statement that September 11th is our generation's version of Pearl Harbor was exactly right. I think a lot of it has to do with the heroes. That day was filled with tragedy, and, in the midst of it all, powerful stories emerged of those who gladly gave their lives for the sake of others. The brave men of the NYFD and NYPD, climbing through the collapsing towers trying to save just one more person. Or the heroic actions of those passengers on UAL93. They each embodied the strength and character we should all have as Americans, yes, but even moreso as Christians (I'm not going to elaborate, but hopefully you can draw your own conclusions).
You should see this film. It will get to you the same way the real day did. I am not an overly emotional person. I have never cried in a movie until today. See it this weekend if you can. Universal is donating 10% of the proceeds from the opening weekend to the Flight 93 Memorial Fund. If nothing else, watch this trailer. It's not the one that's currently out there. This one is much better. I first saw this over 6 months ago and it gripped me. I think it's just about the best trailer I've ever seen, at least for a dramatic movie. It's simple and powerful, much like the film itself. If you've seen United 93, leave a comment below and let me know what you thought.
There are some things about this film that are worth knowing. Many people are upset, claiming it's too early to have a movie about September 11th. I agree - it's too early for a movie, a Hollywood blockbuster, but it's not too early for a documentary. The film feels nothing like a movie. It shot entirely with handheld video cameras, complete with poor quality and lots of movement. It watches just like home video of the event. There are no "actors." A number of the actual air traffic controllers from that day came forward to reenact their jobs in this film. None of the passengers or flight crew are people you've seen anywhere before. They're not the beautiful Hollywood fare. Each of them looks exactly like a person I've sat next to on a plane. There is almost no script. The professionals who were on the job and now in the movie recreated their lines. The passengers on the plane engaged in the normal smalltalk you share with your "single serving friends." There were hardly any "foreground" conversations. Instead, this background talking filled the movie. The phone calls passengers made to their families were recreated off of the flight recordings and the families recounting the calls. In every way it felt like someone sitting on a plane with a video camera. A plane I have been on dozens of times. There was nothing different or special about this flight or any of the people on it. We know as much about each character as they do of each other. Some people complained that we didn't know the characters well enough. I disagree. We got to know them as much as they got to know each other. The point of this film was not to explain or dramatize the happenings about UAL93, but to take us there, to put us on the plane. No commentary, no message, no spin. Just the raw happenings.
And we all supported them. People banded together to help those affected. Love poured out of every corner of this land. It became ok to talk about God, even pray in public settings. Impressed with the fleeting nature of life, people fled to God. Whoever made the statement that September 11th is our generation's version of Pearl Harbor was exactly right. I think a lot of it has to do with the heroes. That day was filled with tragedy, and, in the midst of it all, powerful stories emerged of those who gladly gave their lives for the sake of others. The brave men of the NYFD and NYPD, climbing through the collapsing towers trying to save just one more person. Or the heroic actions of those passengers on UAL93. They each embodied the strength and character we should all have as Americans, yes, but even moreso as Christians (I'm not going to elaborate, but hopefully you can draw your own conclusions).
You should see this film. It will get to you the same way the real day did. I am not an overly emotional person. I have never cried in a movie until today. See it this weekend if you can. Universal is donating 10% of the proceeds from the opening weekend to the Flight 93 Memorial Fund. If nothing else, watch this trailer. It's not the one that's currently out there. This one is much better. I first saw this over 6 months ago and it gripped me. I think it's just about the best trailer I've ever seen, at least for a dramatic movie. It's simple and powerful, much like the film itself. If you've seen United 93, leave a comment below and let me know what you thought.
Friday, April 28, 2006
....And I'm Spent
Today was long. I was rudely awakened after a mere 4.5 hours of sleep, making it pretty hard to be excited, however hard I tried. I don't remember any part of the morning before getting into my car, short of waking roommate Jonny up. Apparently he also was tired, and decided to miss class. Problem is, he almost missed our gig downtown. I had about 15 minutes to make it to the PSU campus to be 'on time.' Doable, except they decided to do some construction on my route. So I was 20 minutes late. The good news was that others were already there setting up. "For what?" you might ask. Why, En Fuego Week, of course! For those of you who don't habla espanol, "En Fuego" means "on fire." It's the time of the year where all the "religious" groups on campus come together for a week of various activities. Today was the highpoint of the week, with a free all-campus BBQ happening in the park blocks (quad equivalent). Hamburgers with all the fixins, drinks, "gift bags" of some sort, and, of course, live music. Which is what brought me to campus. "The Guys," who are sometimes going by the name Eightsweek (if you're from OSU and went on the winter retreat, this is the band that was there), were asked to come downtown and play their music during the BBQ. That's right, worship music blaring across the entire campus while hundreds of people sat and ate their lunches. On the most liberal and anti-religion campus in the state. Bring it.
PSU does have a pretty nice little setup. There's a small stage in the center of the park blocks, with bench-type seating around it in a semicircle. People are always there, and several hundred of them. Bands play from time to time - most aren't very good, but it makes for a cool atmosphere. When you add free food to the equation, there was no telling how many people would be there. I didn't get an actual count, but please believe me: it was a lot. The line was consistently over 100 people long for an hour and a half. So we manage to get setup, do a rough sound check, and start the set. I think it went pretty well. There are some nice advantages to playing outside, namely there's no walls. Stage volume is the curse in any concert, and with no walls nearby, all that "bad" sound was just shot up into the sky. No echo, no sound bouncing around...total control. Rare.
People didn't seem to know what to think. The music sounded good, but the words were rather blatant. I'm actually kinda surprised no one protested, threw stuff, or picketed. Or knocked a speaker over. That would have been expensive. The event went remarkably well. It was a little bit of a strange feeling producing worship music in a non-worship setting. Not sure what I think about that, but if nothing else, it was a lot of fun. That counts, right? I'm trying to get some pictures, but since I don't have a digital camera, I'm waiting for others to send them to me. There's potentially some video too, but we'll see. I was really hoping to get a recording, but didn't have time to arrange the gear.
After that it was my one class, which I slept through. Didn't mean to, but I was exhausted at this point from both not sleeping and the load-in and load-out we just did. Oh, and I hadn't eaten anything yet today. In a brief moment of consciousness, I hear him end the class. That is, after our pop quiz. Doh!
Then it was 2 hours to kill. I got some food, talked with some friends, and did some email. You know, time killing stuff. Then it was time to set all the gear up again. Since we had gone through the trouble of bringing a complete system to campus anyway, the PSU Crusade group asked us to lead worship there. So the gear goes back up, another sound check, another set. Really liked this one because people seemed to appreciate it. They're used to just the acoustic stuff, and a full band can just be so much more powerful sometimes. Anyway, good time had by all. Bob Monaco spoke. Maybe more on that some other time. After the meeting, another tear-down, load-out and then time for a good old fashioned game of Ultimate. One cool thing about PSU is they have a really nice soccer-sized field for general use. Has the good fake turf that looks/feels like blades of grass. And lights. And just totally there for the using. So we got our game on. Always fun, but, ugh, I'm out of shape! And that pretty much brings me home and to this screen again. What did you do today?
PSU does have a pretty nice little setup. There's a small stage in the center of the park blocks, with bench-type seating around it in a semicircle. People are always there, and several hundred of them. Bands play from time to time - most aren't very good, but it makes for a cool atmosphere. When you add free food to the equation, there was no telling how many people would be there. I didn't get an actual count, but please believe me: it was a lot. The line was consistently over 100 people long for an hour and a half. So we manage to get setup, do a rough sound check, and start the set. I think it went pretty well. There are some nice advantages to playing outside, namely there's no walls. Stage volume is the curse in any concert, and with no walls nearby, all that "bad" sound was just shot up into the sky. No echo, no sound bouncing around...total control. Rare.
People didn't seem to know what to think. The music sounded good, but the words were rather blatant. I'm actually kinda surprised no one protested, threw stuff, or picketed. Or knocked a speaker over. That would have been expensive. The event went remarkably well. It was a little bit of a strange feeling producing worship music in a non-worship setting. Not sure what I think about that, but if nothing else, it was a lot of fun. That counts, right? I'm trying to get some pictures, but since I don't have a digital camera, I'm waiting for others to send them to me. There's potentially some video too, but we'll see. I was really hoping to get a recording, but didn't have time to arrange the gear.
After that it was my one class, which I slept through. Didn't mean to, but I was exhausted at this point from both not sleeping and the load-in and load-out we just did. Oh, and I hadn't eaten anything yet today. In a brief moment of consciousness, I hear him end the class. That is, after our pop quiz. Doh!
Then it was 2 hours to kill. I got some food, talked with some friends, and did some email. You know, time killing stuff. Then it was time to set all the gear up again. Since we had gone through the trouble of bringing a complete system to campus anyway, the PSU Crusade group asked us to lead worship there. So the gear goes back up, another sound check, another set. Really liked this one because people seemed to appreciate it. They're used to just the acoustic stuff, and a full band can just be so much more powerful sometimes. Anyway, good time had by all. Bob Monaco spoke. Maybe more on that some other time. After the meeting, another tear-down, load-out and then time for a good old fashioned game of Ultimate. One cool thing about PSU is they have a really nice soccer-sized field for general use. Has the good fake turf that looks/feels like blades of grass. And lights. And just totally there for the using. So we got our game on. Always fun, but, ugh, I'm out of shape! And that pretty much brings me home and to this screen again. What did you do today?
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Yeah, About That
I've been trying to get some form of the CruX video online, but it's killing my computer. See, I don't have my really nice laptop anymore, since it belonged to OSU and stayed behind when I left. I have some junky old desktop I was able to piece together. And it wanted 20 hours to render the 5 minute video. So I stopped it. The next time I go in to the Regional Office (you know, besides today), I'll load it up on their video Mac. Sorry about the delay. If you care, you could buy me a new computer.....
Friday, April 21, 2006
CruX
It's just about time for me to take off for this year's CruX games. If you're unfamiliar with CruX, there's some details over on their website. It's been fun to help these guys for the last couple of years, and we're hoping for another huge success. It's looking like there will be about 50 guys from all over Oregon making the trek about 30 minutes (Maupin) from the middle of nowhere (The Dalles). For those of you staying safe, warm, and dry, please pray for us. There haven't been any major injuries (or at least injuries we're willing to describe as 'major') yet, and we'd like to keep it that way. Pray for strength for the staff, as a couple of my comrades aren't feeling so well. If all goes well, I'll have some video to show you all when it's over.
In other news, how many of you played the game "bigger or better" as a kid? It's the one where you start out with something trivial like a paperclip or rubber band and ask strangers to trade you for something bigger in size or better in value. I remember a lot of great times with this game, scoring such prize items as couches, televisions, and washing machines. However good we all thought we were at this game as kids, the true master must be hailed. This guy started with the traditional paperclip and the goal of getting a house! How close is he? So far, after 10 trades, he has a year's rent in Phoenix. Mad props to you, sir. Rounding out the news this morning, oil is at $75/barrel, and Steven Spielberg has been asked be the Beijing Olympic committee to help design the 2008 ceremonies. Have a great weekend!
In other news, how many of you played the game "bigger or better" as a kid? It's the one where you start out with something trivial like a paperclip or rubber band and ask strangers to trade you for something bigger in size or better in value. I remember a lot of great times with this game, scoring such prize items as couches, televisions, and washing machines. However good we all thought we were at this game as kids, the true master must be hailed. This guy started with the traditional paperclip and the goal of getting a house! How close is he? So far, after 10 trades, he has a year's rent in Phoenix. Mad props to you, sir. Rounding out the news this morning, oil is at $75/barrel, and Steven Spielberg has been asked be the Beijing Olympic committee to help design the 2008 ceremonies. Have a great weekend!
Hello World!
Hey Everyone- I'm finally back! It's been over two years since I regularly blogged about anything, and I think it's about time for me to get back into it. Not that there's a ton of interesting things going on in my life.....it's just a much more efficient means of imposing my views on a larger audience. Let's face it: it's a lot of work staying in touch with people, and I'm lazy. So welcome. And by means of introduction, here's what this site is about: God, life, work, music and pretty much anything else I find interesting and/or funny. Oh, and I'm sure there will be nerd stuff from time to time, so be forewarned.
You'll notice I have the question "how did I end up here?" posed at the top of the page. I that pretty much sums of most of my thoughts on life for the last couple of years. When I look back over where I've been - and where I was planning on going - I see God's hand time and time again steering me in directions I would have never imagined. I've learned that my plans for life, in reality, mean very little. Which is ok, because in retrospect, my plans would have been a lot less exciting and fulfilling. I'm not entirely sure how I've gotten to the place I'm at now, and I sure don't know where I'm going. But I've also learned to love the mystery and excitement of being open for....whatever. God's will reminds me of the now overused scene from C.S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe where Lucy and the beaver are talking of Aslan. Is it safe? No, but it's good.
So thanks for stopping by and taking an interest in my journey. Feel free to come back as often as you like (if you're really obsessive, there's some RSS available to the right) and see what's going on. Leave some comments and let me know you were here, what you dis/like, think, or if you just want to start a fight.
You'll notice I have the question "how did I end up here?" posed at the top of the page. I that pretty much sums of most of my thoughts on life for the last couple of years. When I look back over where I've been - and where I was planning on going - I see God's hand time and time again steering me in directions I would have never imagined. I've learned that my plans for life, in reality, mean very little. Which is ok, because in retrospect, my plans would have been a lot less exciting and fulfilling. I'm not entirely sure how I've gotten to the place I'm at now, and I sure don't know where I'm going. But I've also learned to love the mystery and excitement of being open for....whatever. God's will reminds me of the now overused scene from C.S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe where Lucy and the beaver are talking of Aslan. Is it safe? No, but it's good.
So thanks for stopping by and taking an interest in my journey. Feel free to come back as often as you like (if you're really obsessive, there's some RSS available to the right) and see what's going on. Leave some comments and let me know you were here, what you dis/like, think, or if you just want to start a fight.
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