Dorm Wars is tomorrow!!!!

I think this speaks for itself.

Philippians 2

 1If
you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any
comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any
tenderness and compassion, 2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

In the middle of service this morning, I really had to pee.

So, after a fiasco removing myself from the pew, I made my way to the back of the sanctuary and out to the bathroom. Inside, I could hear the conversation taking place between a father and a son in a nearby stall.

"I don't want to have to do this . . . but you've left me no choice."

Unseen, a little boy sniffled.

"I don't like hurting you, but you have to learn discipline."

I could almost hear the boy's knees knocking.

"You'll thank me someday."

It was almost full-fledged crying now. I heard the sound of a few sharp blows to the rear.

"I have to punish you because I love you."

Funny how that works, isn't it?

It's incredible that one day could change the course of your entire life...

Don't you just hate it when someone jumps all over you for something minor that happens?? When someone jumps to conclusions when they dont know the whole story. Someone you really care about.

i must say im a little annoyed with you. i feel neglected.

sent: comment, text

recieved: nothing.

hm.

but i got it bak today. : ] im so glad they held on to it for me!

even so.

still havent found a better song yet.

bon fire tonight? well, yes, i have to go. not that i dont want to. i just gotta clean n finish a scholarship app and find time to nap first.

ugh. i wish i could stop the sun,                                                                                                                                                                      if only for a little while.

I really don't understand why sometimes I can post pics on phusebox while other times it is virtually impossible.  However, I did slip one through today.

Friday night was our typical night at CJs ... not much to talk about there.  However, Saturday night was our company's employee appreciation event.  The theme colors were: red, black, and silver. There were prizes for the best dressed .... there's just something about being overseas that makes life fun and funny .... for those of you who care ... I was selected (out of about 800 folks) as being the "No. 1 Eunuch".  I am pretty certain the folks meant "first place for unique outfit", but it just didn't come out that way.  When announced, the Americans broke out laughing ... I don't think most Indonesians figured out the enunciation issue.

 

In addition to getting a prize for the outfit (approx $160 coupon at Carrfour [like a super Walmart]), as a door prize / lucky draw we won a 30 gig iPod.

Sunday was a quiet day ... in addition to working over the weekend "in my spare time" .... we watched a couple of movies and played some pool.  I also got this foolish idea about exercising ... and did 64 minutes on the treadmill ... consuming 450 calories ... and running 8.5 kilometers (~5.3 miles) ... my body is still paying for all that running.

As for the weather here, we are getting very heavy downpours each day again ... but usually only 2-3 hours at a time. Nevertheless, this is still causing localized flooding ... including the area where we almost leased a house (Kemang).  The spiritualist say the rainy season ends on Sunday, 18-Feb - we shall see.

Other than the above, not much else to blog about.  So, I will get some work down before leaving for work ... besides it IS already 501am.

Ciao ciao.

"Be very careful if you make a woman cry, because God counts her tears. The woman came out of a man's rib. Not from his feet to be walked on. Not from his head to be superior, but from the side to be equal. Under the arm to be protected, and next to the heart to be loved."


not sure who said it, when or why....

but i like it

Well, winter break is officially over tommorrow....I mean I have to go back to school. But it has definately been an exciting and fun break.  I went to Florida and canoed 55-60 miles.  This was extremely fun and annoying at times.  I mean not the trip being annoying...just some of the people on the trip kinda got on my nerves, but whatever.

But yeah it was amazing we canoed on the Santa Fe River, the Itchnutucknee, and the Suwanee River.  There was a lot of great memories made on this trip and I'm really glad I went.

But I have tons of homework to do before school tommorrow so I'll out more up later.

Pray for me.

so wow. it's been two months and my life has taken many a turn. first off, the good news....I MADE GOVERNOR'S SCHOOL FOR VOICE!!!!!!! woot! i'm so utterly excited...i just can't even believe how much God has blessed me in the whole music thing lately...He's been so good to me, even when i'm so not good to Him.

school is...well, school. but that's ok. i do love it. and things aren't nearly as stressful this second semester. Music Man is this coming Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 7:00 and Sunday at 2:00, and yes, we are behind, but i'm sure it will turn out fine in the end. i just love getting to be a part of it all...

i'm a little upset because i have to miss One Weekend (because of the play), the Gulfport Mission Trip (because i have to get my wisdom teeth out on Spring break..oh, the fun to come!...), and i'll be @ G-school during the charleston trip and Big Stuf.....poo. but that's ok. i guess God wants me to take a break and work for Him here in the Boro...i can't wait for G-school too, because i think that it will be a fantastic opportunity to be a light for Christ in a very dark place! i know that He can do it... i just hope that i'm up to the challenge.

i definitely hit a mailbox on the way to school about a month ago, and busted the side mirror off of my passenger side door, and i haven't driven since...my parents won't let me until i raise the money to pay for it.

DBS Formal is March 10th, and i'm sure Michael and I will have tons of fun!

but one of the not-so-good things i've had to deal with lately is a certain relationship. so...there's this guy. and he is definitely my best friend. and to be completely honest, i have loved him for a long time. and things were going just great. and then december came. and things kinda went nuts. to all the guys out there, don't ever tell a girl that you like her (even if you do...) if you have no intention of dating her. it will only screw things up. so yeah...we both confessed that we liked each other. and things didn't get weird, as i had expected. but we did get closer. unreasonably so. and i realized that i was beginning to put him in the spot that Christ was supposed to be occupying in my life. what's more is, i know this could offend some, but, yeah, he's Catholic. that's the only reason that nothing could ever happen between us. the differences between what i believe and what he believes are just too big of a deal to just pass by. so anyways, this week i had to call him and tell him that we needed to tone down our closeness, because i was much too attached emotionally, and i think he probably was too, though he might not admit it. a wise man said to me that night, "Cari, you have to follow Christ, not your heart...", and i immediately knew what i had to do. and it really sucked. i felt awful for making him so upset. but what i felt more awful for was the neglect i had shown to my relationship with God as the result of this relationship. i was so ready to compromise and just throw out all the growth God had allowed in me, just to make this guy and myself happy...but...when all is said and done, i knew that, even if i never marry, even if i never even date, that's ok, because i would rather have Jesus say to me "Well done, good and faithful servant," than to have this guy like me for a little while and then move on. in the words of Sara Groves, "trying to please the world, it was breakin' me down..." so now, me and this guy are friends, but not nearly as close as it was, at least for me.

anyways, yeah. life is quite good right now. i am so blessed, even when i want to see the crappy elements of life...i just love the way that God continues to pursue me, even when i kick and scream and try to ignore. why do we as humans do that so often? who knows. all i know is that i love Jesus and i know that He loves me back, and truly, that really is all i need. i know it sounds so very sunday-school, but it's true. well, i gotta go read APUSH, so i'll be back later. much love to all of you! ----Cari

So, its snowing like theres no tomorrow here....
It has been snowing like all day! But i am all good with it : - ) Snow is so pretty! i wrote this paper on snow once and got an A+..... :) weird i know but hey, i got an A+ so i was happy :P
A lot has happened but i don't think i should put it up on here.... but please just keep me in your prayers.. i could use all the help i can get!
Thanks :)

                                ~Gr@(3~

So I had an idea for a slightly humorous, mostly satirical essay-ish thing called "WWJD? - What Would Jesus Decide?" in which I would debate different voting methods for the Christ assuming that He was around for the election in 2008.  I think that it shall be fun.

After discussing this with a few people, I also want to write a sequel about in which denomination Jesus would find his "church home."  I figured, "Hey, I spend most of my time complaining about and making fun of politics and Christianity, so why not make a marginally organized effort to create something slightly enjoyable?"

I'll get to it in a few years, I'm sure.

You consume all of my thoughts, fears, hopes, dreams, and heart. I turn to You with a heart full of longing and love for You. I cry because I am so overwhelmed by how much You truly love me and by how truly grateful I am that You have my entire heart. I can't even wrap my mind around the grace that you so freely give to those who seek it and You. You loved me so much, that even though you knew I would sin, You still died for me. I don't deserve You in my life and never will. I praise you with my lips and heart and only wish to be the daughter You would have me to be. Use me Father and please always help me to seek You in everything I do. I worship You Father....

well yesterday i was sick.... it wasnt fun...i threw up a lot and now my stomache fucking hurts.. >< and i hate throwing up... i finally got something to eat to day without throwing it up.... throwing is bad.... lol but now i feel better and i can go to the hockey game...so yay!!!!

so it's been a very long time since i've posted on phusebox. thought i would give u guys a nice lil update. i made it thru my first semester alive. i am now an aunt for the 7th time. ms. bailey anne farrar was born feb 8th she's 7lbs 1oz and 20 1/2 in. she is possibly the most precious thing i've ever seen. oh! big news. my dad has been trying to apply for disability since 2003 and they finally gave it to him!! which means i get money as well. AND they give you back pay from when you first applied. so that means beth is about to get an assload of money!! and is totally going to england this summer. but anyways, that's a brief run down of what has been going on. ciao ya'll.

So I got an incredible gift for Valentine's Day from Steph.  She bought
me a web cam!  It's awesome!  I can sit and talk to Steph or whoever
else has one, as if they were sitting across the room from me.  I've
also been messing around with Windows Movie Maker.  I'm getting the
hang of it and I like it so far.  I might post up some stupid stuff
that I've been working on so far.  We'll see how that goes.  Just
having some fun with effects.  If anyone knows of any free legally
downloadable good video editing software, then let me know.  I'm kinda
having fun with it.  That's about all right now.  I just wanted to say
thanks to my beautiful girlfriend for the awesome gift.


On a more serious note however....my youth group has really been
pushing for revival, and I am lovin every minute of it.  Our youth
group has such a passion for God, and we have just had service after
service of the goodness of the Holy Spirit.  This past Wednesday was
another crazy service, and God did a lot in it.  People were shouting
and flowing in the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the Lord moved.  It was
kinda weird though.  I felt like I was forcing it.  Like I was trying
to hard to do something that the Lord was supposed to build in me.  I
put myself in check and prayed off in a corner, and at first I thought
that I was just Spiritually flat at the moment and didn't have any more
praise in me, but I've been thinking about it a lot and maybe that's
not it.  The Bible is all about making a joyful noise, and raising your
voice and singing and shouting unto God, but there is also a verse that
I've heard a million times that I've never really thought about
seriously til now, because it's really never applied.  Psalms 46:10
says "Be still, and know that I am God."  Sometimes you don't have to
always be screaming at the top of your lungs to give God praise.  I'm
loud all of the time, so maybe my sacrifice of praise is to just be
quiet.  Correct me if I'm wrong...

I took a class this semester simply for the fun of it. The two hours credit really do nothing for my collection of hours I need, but I just felt compelled to take this class.

Theological Reflections from Africa ISP292...

We had a guest speaker. A man named Mandla from Swaziland. Or, as he would say it, "Swazlnd." He told of his father (a polygamist) and of Zionist baptisms. We went to our prof.'s house to eat "African" food (Mandla toned it down for us) and hang out. We tried to explain to Mandla and his wife Sne that being fat (or "fluffy and good" as he said) was bad in America. I don't think it clicked.

"You must be like a ti bik." If you don't know what a "ti bik" is, you are not alone. He meant tea bag, but it came out funny. Everything he said seemed to be a sermon. I loved it.

His five-year-old son Sbo ("S-B-O") was adorable and latched onto my hand. He drew me a picture on the back of one of my assignments. I didn't mind.

Do you ever have those experiences that make you feel a strong connection with another human being totally unlike you, and you have no idea why? Thank God for them.

so, i LOVE LOVE LOVE online shopping! it has recently become an obcession (well, i buy when i have money) BUT i am soooo impatient while waiting for my item! for example, i just bought rain boots at target.com and IT HASN'T SHIPPED YET!!! not only do i need it before we leave for new york, i'm just anxious to get them!

yeah, just thought i should get that out there. thanks.

Who am I? Am I my mind? Am I the summation of my mind and body over time? My body is not my own, what right do I have to my mind? Surely it holds all my thoughts and motivations and desires and hopes and dreams and emotions and pain and all that makes who I am malleable.

I've been doing things wrong. When you run out of life, you run out of time. When you run out of time, you run out of life. Therefore, if you know how to manage your time, then you know how to manage your life. If you mishandle your time, you mishandle your life. I am not entirely convinced in free will, but I know this: I am responsible for my actions.

So what am I doing with my time? Surely I can do better than this. I need to stop focusing on how I relate because I suck at that. Instead, I must first know myself and that will open the gates to what I need to do in life and how I fit in this world. For certain, every person is a puzzle and every human is a piece of a greater puzzle. I must therefore know what shape I am and what I look like in order to relate to the pieces around me. Otherwise I might as well be flipped over or continually rotating randomly until I just happen to fit in.

I am young and foolish. I haven't done much except child's play. I am tired of living like this, and I wonder when I will grow up. I know I have goals in life, but when are those possible if I am just a steam engine with no logs, or a car with no wheels? I need to get myself straight before I can go anywhere.

So this is my focus:
Personal application and reformation. God in my life. Nothing else could possibly matter right now. No school could trump that, no girl is worth pursuing before that, and no time is left to lose.

This is your life. Are you who you want to be?
I dare you to move.
Today is all you'll ever have.

Crap, I need to get off my duff.

Kenny is in VA and I’m in TN and the drive between us is a at least 10 hours. It really isn't that far but it feels like he's on the other side of the world sometimes. It sucks and I don’t like it. All I wanted for Valentine’s Day was to be with him. I didn’t want flowers or presents or chocolate; I just wanted him. And thoughts of him is what brings about this entry. So here are some quotes that seem to really catch how I feel about love.

“So how does it happen, great love? Nobody knows… but what I can tell you is that it happens in the blink of an eye. One moment you’re enjoying your life, and the next you’re wondering how you ever lived without them.” -Hitch

“We do not love someone because they are beautiful. They are beautiful because we love them.”

 â€Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.” - The Princess Bride

“Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love.” -Albert Einstein

“When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.”  -Nora Ephron, When Harry Met Sally

Love is a thing, well, its kind of like quicksand:  
The more you are in it, the deeper you sink
And when it hits you, you’ve just got to fall

“If it is your time, love will track you down like a cruise missile.” -Lynda Barry

“Love often knocks you off your feet. That is why it is called falling in love, not standing in love”

So yeah, I’ve been doing nothing but sitting at the hospital
for the past few days. Pa’s surgery went fine, but this morning he had to be
rushed into emergency surgery.

            His blood wouldn’t clot and he kept
bleeding, but they’ve fixed it. I think they’ll put him in a regular room day
after tomorrow.

 

Valentines Day was uneventful, which was fine by me. My
friend Sarah gave me a really cute flower with a Hershey in the center, but
that’s about it. I was enjoying it, I wrapped it around my pen, the pen was
green so it was funny to me.

 

So yeah, I’ve had like 4 hours of sleep today. I could go
for a hug; all day at the hospital doesn’t really do a body good. *sigh* I’ve
been listening to a lot of Laguna Coil, Evanescence, Three Days Grace, and Skillet
lately.
  I think the
general atmosphere of the hospital ICU is getting to me. I’ve been to hospitals
before, heck I’ve been a patient there more times than I care to remember. But
when it’s someone like Pa, it’s different. He’s never even been sick, and then
they just show up with a brain tumor. It’s like someone shattered a stained
glass window, almost profane.

 It’s hard you know.
Just sitting there when someone like him is laying in a bed in the Vandy ICU attached
to 9 bags of a thousand different things with his face so bruised and swollen
he can barely open his eyes, I’m amazed I haven’t just lost it all over everything
and everyone.
I have however given myself a very
small cut on my palm. I was clenching my fist so hard, my fingernails did a
little bit of damage. No, I’m not cutting, it was an accident. I was mad,
really really mad.

 

So yeah, putting up with The Aunts
hasn’t made me that happiest person in the world. Yes, I have some of those,
who doesn’t? I could tell you quite a few stories about our adventures with
them.

 

On a lighter note, I spent about 2
hours today making fun of just about everybody in FFVII. My cousin and I
watched Advent Children today, oh the jokes abounded. Cloud bore the brunt of
most of them, simply because when two people that tend to share a though
process things are always funny. Poor Cloud, the whole tight black clothing
thing failed him today, it failed him miserably…

9 How can a young man keep his way pure?
       By living according to your word.

 10 I seek you with all my heart;
       do not let me stray from your commands.

 11 I have hidden your word in my heart
       that I might not sin against you.

I will be there tomorrow -tuesday!!!

SO if u live in Quebec and Montreal maybe I will just see ya!

cya people---sarah

hahah

<33333nickyp... I will rem his face till I get back hahahaha

Why is it that God breaks you when you least expect it?????

Well, another week bites the dust.  Had a number of set backs at work during the week ... but a few small successes.  So, I guess I won't complain.  Besides, if I did ... it wouldn't do any good.

Went the JIS yesterday and talked to Chely's counsellor.  We have much to do to get Chely ready for college and to select the proper school - something that is much harder (a) being overseas, and (b) Chely being Indonesian.  Chely has the biggest workload .... hope she is up to the task.

Today, Decy will meet with two of Thasya's teachers as part of a normal Parent-Teacher update.  There is no school today and Monday ... so the girls will have a nice long weekend.

For Decy and I ... much to do today ... then we will probably go to CJs for a while tonight.  Tomorrow is the big company party .... Decy's new dress will be ready today (its a surprise ... so I don't know what it looks like) ... for me ... I bought a nice black shirt ... to go with my black pants.  I will then wear a red wrap around belt (cloth tied in a knot).  Decy is hoping to get a silver scarf (over the shoulders) made for me today ... and I will borrow a black hat from Thasya ..... I'll post a pic when I get one.

Had a bunch more rain last evening ... probably 2-3 inches as the pool filled up pretty fast.  I don't know yet about new flooding in the area.

We talked to Hotel Mulia last night about the Opera Tickets.  They had a cancellation and upgraded us to center section ... our part was agreeing to pay for the whole table (for 10).  I had anticipated this (based on our "friendships" and likeliness to get preferential treatment) ... and have rounded up another two folks to join us.  We are now at 8 confirmed attendees .... only 2 more folks to line up.

I am going to close for now ... internet access seems to be working pretty well (at least for now) so I will try to post some pics from the Christmas holidays.

Ciao ciao .....

I think it’s interesting to look back on old quiz-thingums like this and notice the things that have changed and the things that are exactly the same…this one is from mon. nov. 28, 2005, and it is now thur. Feb. 15, 2007; a year and a half, approx. really interesting stuff. Watch:

-------------------------------------------------------------

1) Last thing you burned while attempting to cook?
fried eggs; it wasn't my fault i was rusty: i haven't made them in months, and last time i did i had a no-stick skillet. this time it was in iron skillet.

 

--2007: I think that was it; lately all I’ve cooked is popcorn chicken, and I haven’t burnt that once.

2) Describe yourself in 3 words?
musical, funny, twisted.

 

--2007: same

3) How long does it take you to get ready for your day?
depends on which day.

 

--2007: 5-15 minutes

4) Favorite place to blow $50?
depositing it into my bank account.

 

--2007: same

5) How many people have you thought were "the one"?
two: one incorrectly, one remains to be seen.

 

--2007: four: two incorrectly, one because I was drunk and she was desperate, and one remains to be seen.

6) What is something that turns you off from the opposite sex?
immaturity.

 

--2007: same

7) What kind of car do you drive?
white '91 toyota corolla sr5.

 

--2007: I don’t. working on it though.

8) What's in your CD player right now?
2 nine inch nails mixes i made myself, with_teeth, a mix from my girlfriend, and a cd a co-worker made with his brother (old-school rock).

 

--2007: don’t own one anymore.

9) What celebrity would you have coffee with?
probably john cusack.

 

--2007: john cusack or bob dylan; maybe a few others.

10) What celebrity would you NOT have coffee with?
i don't know. with the media these days, somebody i think i don't like could end up being my best friend.

--2007: same

11) What kind of toothpaste do you use?
i honestly don't know. i just pick one out of the cheap section.

 

--2007: same lol

12) What time do you go to bed?
i work third shift and go to college. i don't have a specific bedtime.

 

--2007: I kind of play things by ear these days…

13) Last movie you saw?
man on fire (denzel washington, dakota fanning: 2004).

 

--2007: rumor has it (Jennifer aniston, mark ruffalo, Kevin Costner: 2006)

14) Last TV show you watched?
desperate housewives.

--2007: that 70s show

15) Who is your best friend?
kenneth and mary lane are tied.

 

--2007: sarah and trent and Leonard and nikki are tied.

16) Who in your family do you best get along with?
dad.

 

--2007: dad or matt

17) Who do you lust after?
no comment.

 

--2007: same

18]) What time is it?
6:10p.

 

--2007: 2.30PM

19) Are you planning a vacation/travel?
i want to have a nationwide scavenger hunt someday, maybe when gas prices go to under a dollar.

 

--2007: still want to do that, but otherwise just hoping for some sort of tour whenever I can get a band together.

20) When/Where was the last time you traveled?
the retreat a few weeks ago.

 

--2007:  End of last year when I had to hitchhike through east TN.

21) How many times have you been in love?
twice...last time was a mistake.

 

--2007: thrice, and I don’t regret any of them. I learned something through the first two and the third is current.

22) How old will you be in 10 years?
28.

 

--2007: almost 30, dammit.

23) Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
i honestly couldn't tell you, and thats how i like it. i would like to be in a house i own with a girl i'm married to, maybe with a kid or two under my belt, and own my own record label. time will tell...i can tell you by that time i will definitely have the label...

 

--2007: same

24) Sinful snacking weakness?
fritos, man.

 

--2007: hells yeah, fritos.

25) Rollercoasters?
not really a fan.

 

--2007: same

26) Ever run out of gas?
i have.

 

--2007: same

27) Ever been on a train?
no.

 

--2007: yes

28) Ever been on a blind date?
yes.

 

--2007: still yes

29) Ever been to Europe?
no.

 

--2007: still no

30) What would you do if you could be the opposite sex for one day?
panic.

 

--2007: same

31) Would you tell anyone it was you?
if i had to decide, i probably wouldn't have done it in the first place.

--2007: I bring a valid point here.

32) Ever been arrested?
no.

 

--2007: same

33) Have a crush on anyone you work with?
lol...i used to have plenty.

 

--2007: not since then

34) What is something you believe in?
passion.

 

--2007: same

35) What is something you fear?
not being able to protect the people i care about.

 

--2007: same

36) Big or small?
off the top of my head...

--girls: small.
--myself: moderately large.
--pancakes: big.
--waffles: small.
--cars: small.
--tours: big.
--movies: either.
--churches: small.
--bank accounts: big.
--burgers: big, but not TOO big.
--paperwork: massively small.

 

--2007: same, plus…

--hitching distances: small

--joints: HUGE (except I quit)

--bottles: HUGE (again with the reform)

--parties: HUGE (notice a pattern?)

--love: deeper than the sea

--hate: smaller than my best friend’s…nevermind

37) What is the worst pain you have ever experienced?
physical: a few weeks ago i got my hand slammed in the cardboard baler at work.
emotional: i don't want to talk about it.

 

--2007: holy hell, I forgot about that baler…

38) What is your favorite television show?
malcom in the middle or that 70s show.

 

--2007: scrubs, hands-down

39) Ever photoshopped yourself to look better in a picture?
never bothered.

 

--2007: same

40) Tell us something about your childhood.
you don't want to know.

 

--2007: you still don’t want to know

41) What would it cost for you to flash the person next to you?
i wouldn't.

 

--2007: $50 maybe.

42) Best time to catch you in a good mood?
around mary lane after i just got paid.

 

--2007: around sarah or working on my guitar, cassandra

43) If you could be anything for one day, what would it be?
rich.

 

--2007: a better person

44) Most prized possesion(s)?
my guitar.

 

--2007: same, but different guitar

45) Would you ever sell it/how much?
heck no; my guitar was a gift, and it's a nice dean acous/elec.

 

--2007: funny you should mention, the one I was referring to in ’05 I sold in spring ’06 to make rent. I hope never to sell Cassandra, but God only knows…

46) What is one of your pet peeves?
when people ask sexual questions on these surveys. seriously - a person's sex life is not something the whole world should be reading about. if you want to know, ASK.

 

--2007: same

47) Favorite kind of ice cream?
vanilla.

 

--2007: choc. Chip cookie dough

48) Coolest thing that happened today?
i slept for 12.5 hours.

 

--2007: last night, anyway, a couple in a white car picked me up off the street so I didn’t have to walk another hour and a half through the snow

56) What do you usually order from starbucks?
i don't. starbucks is for a different caste than me.

 

--2007: jones effing cream soda baby

57) What is/was your biggest mistake?
aquainting myself with eric samuel ellis.

 

--2007: tied between that and that drinking binge…

58) Have you ever hurt yourself on purpose?
no, but i have a dedication to work so intense that to get a job done right i have a tendency to completely ignore any sense of personal well-being.

 

--2007: yes.

59) Say something totally random about you:
i thouroughly enjoyed that bovarian creme donut.

 

--2007: I miss my liquor…

60) Has anyone ever said you looked like a celebrity?
just last night.

 

--2007: frequently

61) Do you still watch kiddy movies or tv shows?
never did.

 

--2007: once in awhile

62) Did you have braces?
yes.

 

--2007: still yes

63) Are you comfortable with your height?
would it really matter if i wasn't?

 

--2007: despite my above sarcasm, I always have been.

64) What is the most romantic thing done by someone of the opposite sex?
i was told i could buy a promise ring.

 

--2007: my first kiss with sarah.

65) When do you know it's love?
right now.

 

--2007: when you genuinely want whats best for them, even if it sucks ass for you.

66. Do you speak other languages?
not really.

 

--2007: I speak the language of….i can’t really think of anything funny to say here. No.

67) Have you ever been to a tanning salon?
i applied for a job there once.

 

--2007: same

68) What magazines do you read?
musicians friend.

 

--2007: cosmo

69) Have you ever ridden in a limo?
no.

 

--2007: still no

70) Has anyone you were really close with passed away?
yes.

 

--2007: still yes

71)Have you ever watched MTV?
yeah, i don't really like it.

 

--2007: same

72) What's something that really annoys you?
indecisiveness.

 

--2007: same

73) What's something you really like?
deciciveness.

 

--2007: same

74) Do you like michael jackson?
not really.

 

--2007: actually yes

75) Can you dance?
i'm told no.

 

--2007: same

76) What's the latest you've ever stayed up?
the week before last i stayed up 5 days straight by accident.

 

--2007: I think that about covers it

77) Have you ever thought that you were honestly going to die?
once or twice...fuck you, eric.

 

--2007: more times than I care to remember

78) Have you ever been rushed by an ambulance into the emergency room?
well, technically, the ambulance can only go right outside the lobby. you have to be carried into the ER by the doctors and all them. and no, i haven't.

 

--2007: still no

79) Do you actually read these when other people fill them out?
sometimes.

 

--2007: usually

80) Who did you take this from?
nick.

 

--2007: myself! hahaha

81) Whats your full name?
michael thomas burton.

 

--2007: same

82) If you had to pick another city to live in... but it was in the same state what city would you choose?
probably memphis.

 

--2007: same

83) Favortie place in the world?
anywhere with a recording studio or music shop.

 

--2007: not sure….out of where I’ve been, I’d say sarah’s family

84) Best feeling you ever had?
making mary lane smile.

 

--2007: working out hypotheticals on sarah’s demo with her, in the car Wednesday night when I asked her if she would want to be part of my life dream…

85) Life goal or dream?
i want to own a record label - including at least one studio and several bands, and controlling production, recording/mastering, distrobution and booking - and a small coffee shop. i want to be married and have one or twoo kids. i want to be a good father.and it wouldn't hurt to be good in bed.

 

--2007: well I’ve achieved the good in bed part, and the rest still holds true.

valentines day was amazing.

Happy late Valentine's Day everyone. Hope everyone's was great! I know mine was

I hope everyone had an awesome Valentine's Day!  I know I did.  It started out a little rough, what with the snow storm through the middle of the night and the roads that morning and chaos...but it turned out very well.  Trent surprised me with Roses...that I didn't see at first and then he took me out to B-Dubs.  Not the most romantic of places, but considering everywhere else was packed and we only have a few short hours, we went there.  It was fun.  Then we just hung out and talked.  It was awesome.

I am so truly blessed to be in a relationship with a man who respects me and in turn, I respect him.  It's crazy to think how one year ago, I just kinda knew Trent.  I think we really started getting to know each other and hanging out after Valentine's Day.  Trent and I discussed...and the beginnings of this friendship/relationship are pretty hazy.  But hey...we're making new memories now and that will just have to do!

"Love isn't finding someone you can live with, it's finding someone you can't live without..."
"A friend's love says: If you ever need anything, I'll be there...True love says: You'll never need anything, I'll be there..."

Footprints

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the LORD. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him, and the other to the LORD. When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he
looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it
happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life. This really bothered him and he questioned the LORD about it: "LORD, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times
in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most you would leave me." The LORD replied: "My son, my precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of
trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."

~~~Unknown

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY.....

I am not a big fan of Valentines Day but i thought i might as well say Happy Valentines anyway :) Hope you people had a FANTASTIC Valentines! :P

<3

Love is patient

Love is kind

It does not envy

It does not boast

It is not proud

It is not rude

It is not self-seeking

It is not easily angered

It keeps no record of wrongs

-1Corinthians 13:4-5

Sorry I have been absent the last couple of days .... we have had severe issues with internet access from home.  And, at the same time we had systems problems at work ... both on the internal network as well as internet access.

I think we have the home issue resolved - after several extremely frustrating days of intermittant to NO access we had a technician come out and check the wiring on the house.  It appears (so they say) that some of the telephone wires used for internet access came loose.  The guy worked on that - and voila we have access again.  Overall, it looks pretty good.  Hmmm, wonder how long it will last.

Ok, about the flooding and Decy ... first, weather ... for the most part it has been dry since about last Thursday ... but that is the "most part".  This is still the rainy season and showers come and go.  Earlier this week while Decy was delivering some supplies to the flood victims there was flash flooding in the area she was at ... and many homes had 3 feet of water come rushing in.

Yesterday (Wednesday) there was a very heavy thunderstorm that rolled through the city.  Decy looked outside our house and noticed we had 18 inches of water running down the street.  This is odd, as during the worst flooding we had no water in the street.  This just goes to show you the flooding can happen anywhere at anytime.   Because our house is 4 ft above street grade it was not an issue.

All week long Decy has been delivering supplies to flood victims ... she has received additional donations of both money, food, school supplies, and even a bed.  With the money, she obviously buys more supplies ... and then makes deliveries.  I think she is pretty much to the end of the finances ... but has a bit left.  She is beginning to shift focus to the schools as many of the schools have lost all their supplies ... books, writing paper, pencils, etc.

Yesterday was Valentine's Day ... and Decy and I spent the evening together .... it was an odd mix of events, and not at all like I had planned/anticipated. She picked me up after work and we debated (in a nice sort of way) where to go ... stopped at the Shangri-la hotel and had a drink and snacks. Then, we ran over to hotel Mulia (where CJs is at) and met with the CJs manager ... and tried to organize seating on some opera tickets we are buying for a first ever in Jakarta event in April.  Then, we got a call from our Singapore friend named James who is here in Jakarta just for Wednesday night and part of Thursday .... so we met him at the Le Meridian hotel at Club 30 (Tiga Puluh).

We haven't been to Tiga Puluh in some time due to the quality of the band and DJ.  They were VERY happy to see us come back.  The DJ has been replaced (actually was last time) and was doing well.  Unfortunately (and hopefully only for last night) between music sets they had this "heckle and jeckle" comedy team ... who talked 75% in bahasa.  As for the band, they are so so .... but their contract runs out in 2 weeks.  (we think we saw the replacement band when we were leaving).

Here's something interesting about Tiga Puluh .... like I said they were VERY happy to see us.  After we ordered our drinks they brought us complimentary calamari (nobody else got any).  Then they advised they were doing a lucky draw and collected name cards from James and I.  Later that night two cards were drawn from a pile of about 50-75 .... first name drawn .... mine (for dinner for two) .... second name drawn .... James (buffet for two).  I recognize the odds of us winning both drawings is about 1 in 2500 to 1 in 5625 ... which isn't too bad ... but it DOES seem odd.  Then, later that night Decy was given a rose.  We left Tiga Puluh at 1230am ... got to bed at 130am ... alarm went off at 400am (I set it back 30 minutes as I usually get up at 330). I'm doing ok.

Today, I work only 1/2 day ... as Decy and I have an afternoon meeting with Chely's school counsellor to talk about college options. Tomorrow morning Decy has a 20 minute conference with 2 of Thasya's teachers.  That one is right in the middle of the morning ... which means I can't attend .... you know - missing 5 hours of work for a 15-20 minute chat.

Weekend is coming up .... my company is holding an employee event on Saturday ... not sure what to expect but it is being hyped up a lot.  It will be held at hotel Mulia. Theme colors are black, silver, and red.  Decy is having a special outfit made ... as for me ... I think I will just dress in black with some scarfs in the accent color.

Notice - that I did not talk about work.  It pays well ....

Well, need to close and take care of some other issues this morning.

ciao ciao.

You don't know me, you don't even care, oh yeah
She said
You don't know me, you don't wear my chains

She said I think i'll go to Boston...
I think i'll start a new life,
I think i'll start it over, where no one knows my name,
I'll get out of California, i'm tired of the weather,
I think i'll get a lover and fly em out to Spain...
I think i'll go to Boston,
I think that i'm just tired
I think I need a new town, to leave this all behind...
I think I need a sunrise, I'm tired of the sunset,
I hear its nice in the Summer, some snow would be nice...yeah

 



So this valentines day I am very very happy with the men in my life :-) yes I said men... besides my five wonderful wonderful brothers, I have very very awesome guy friends and in addition to all of that.... I have a Prince Charming that every girl dreams of.  Someone who loves me even though I can't think of why on earth He would... the One I really just want to fall in love all over again, deeper, stronger, I want to be intoxicated.... yes you all know that I am talking about My wonderful Savior... He has saved me even when I didn't want to be saved; He has loved me even when I didn't want to be loved; and He has placed other people in my life who love and care for me.... If valentines day is about celebrating those who care about you, then today I have a lot to celebrate. I want to say thank you soo much to all my friends and family and those friends I call family :-) who have helped me in recent struggles. Thank you to those who have listened, reasoned, helped to sort, been there, cared, smiled, and hugged... "God's got it" And another thing that is absolutely wonderful is that I am being taken to dinner tonight by the earthly man who has always been there for me, my daddy :-)
With much love in Christ
       ~me~

To My Valentine:


You are the best Valentine because:

because you appreciate the silly side of life

you play in the rain with me

because you follow after God's will even if that means leaving everything close to you behind

you treated me like a princess the night you asked me to be yours forever... and you still continue to now :)

you love me so much more than i even know

you got me the BEST dog EVER!

you make a pretty cool ninja

you help make my dreams come true

you are friends with a pirate. that is pretty cool

you are the best husband a girl could ask for! thank you for being so amazing!

happy valentine's day, my love!

Well I have $1400 Rocks right? Well not when you can't use a penny of it. I had to turn it in for Hawaii yeah it is going to be fun but that is a lot of money to just hand over. That was hard. Having $1000 in cash sitting in your hand then you just pass it over. SUCKS

hey guys! i am not sure if you know but Kayla Hale was in a car accident this afternoon she was t-boned in the side (not sure which) but she had to go to hospital but she is at home now she is just really shaken up and her head hurts. Pray for her as she recovers!!!

I don't think I'm going to use this anymore.

I might log in to read blogs...but I'm pretty much done. No one comments any of these anyway.

So... a lot of you know my family situation from when we first moved here, and everything we went through to all be together and settled down at last.

Well, while my dad's current job has been ok, he has been looking around for other possibilities, and is going to have an interview tomorrow for a job with MTSU's computer science program. I really think this would be a blessing, but of course we only want God's will. So if you could pray for him that would be great! Thanks!

In other news, I just ordered my new Canon SD700 IS today on Amazon! Yay! Thanks to everyone who gave me advice; it really helped!

maybe it's because i grew up in a totally different enviroment, which is probably the case, or maybe it's because i try to have a christian attitude, but i know it doesnt always come off that way. i guess i'm a little more laid back and more of an easy going guy then other people are, and i want as many people to have an equal oppurtunity as possible, but why do others have to be so harsh and say that they cant have an equal chance to be apart of the group. just because we're having trouble supporting them doesnt mean we should "cut our losses".

and why do you have to be so harsh about things. be nicer about it. life isn't always a "dog eat dog world". we can be civil about things. i see it pop up in the rest of their daily lives as well. how their not willing to cooperate cause it's not the norm and they dont agree that it's worth wild. well, maybe if they were to give it a chance they would see that it is worth wild, and that it is to their benifit to do it, but you have to give it a chance.

or just because it's something is a little complicated and stressful your going to "cut your losses". well think about it this way man, your not the biggest guy, if you were in a litter of, lets say, lions, haha, the mother of the litter probably would of "cut her losses" and got rid of you. so think about it, would you want someone to say, "hey, i've gotta cut my losses and get rid of you" when your trying to get the same amount of enjoyment our of the same thing you are, cause thats what they are doing.

i guess i'm just used to growing up in an atmosphere where things weren't the same for everyone, but they made do. like in scouts, patrol group didnt have the same equipment because there were to many other scouts in the troop, but we made do. i mean, so what if we used to sleep 5 people in a 3 man tent for 2 weeks at a time. it was an adventure and i suppose i built a stronger character because of it.

well it's the same here, just cause we dont have the money or equipment for this one team, doenst mean that we should "cut our losses". we should try harder to make things better for them. and yes, they are somewhat of a nuesence, but that doesnt mean we should dispise them, work through it. adversity makes you stronger, and how you deal with it defines who you are. and if your just going to blow up in the end instead of batteling through it, well so be it, but dont put anyone down in the process.

i know i've been vague in this post, but i to get that off of my chest. i'm not the best arguer, i hate to arue actually. but i'm trying to defend a group of people on the rowing team, and i guess by writing i might be able to argue my point better, but it just helps to get that out there. know what i mean.

i hope everyone had a great day

piece

Having severe internet access challenges at work and home ... all is ok ....  Happy Valentines Day !!!

I have a myspace now. It's myspace.com/friendship_icecream_beach. If you have a myspace, add me to your friends list!

"All our dreams can come true-if we have the courage to pursue them."
   ~Walt Disney~

When you get into a tight place and  everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, place and time that the tide will

turn.     

--Thank you, Harriet Beecher Stowe

"To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost."   
     ~Gustave Flaubert~

"peace i leave you. My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." -john 14:27

"the Lord will fight the battle for you. you need only to be still." -exodus 14:14

"as dew never falls on a stormy night, so the dews of His grace never come to the restless soul." -A.B. Simpson

He is faithful and true. all things that happen are a result of His love. there is nothing anyone can do to increase or decrease His love for us or to ever cause Him to break His promises. He has us here for a reason. every place we were at any second of the day- we were there because he wanted us there. if you're searching...get quiet before Him. listen to what He has for you. He has a purpose. He wants to show you that reason.

Life is good....life is very good........ :-)

I am fed up. I no longer want to pursue my goals, dreams, aspirations or supposed talents. My goal in life is going to be to have good conversations. Forget everything else. I am giving up.

::sigh:: I feel better, sort of.
P.S. Not venting. Announcing.

(Strawberry Fields Forever= New Motto)

yeah so i totally did get that as a tattoo back in december and i love it well got to go write a paper for my english professor have fun guys

So it's 4am and I'm still awake-ish.  That sucks.  On brighter notes, University of Memphis beat Tulane by 44 points on Saturday, I played my song at church last night (went much better than I expected, plus a few other musicians chipped in), and I've completed/satisfied ~10 of my new year's resolutions.  >:-)

Hoorah!

Katie O'neil


AC Black

Ginny Blair


=(.... I know we all say things happen for a reason bc God has a purpose for everything... but it is sometimes hard to believe that, but it is true. So when you pray , and if you pray , pray for those sweet sweet girls.

ALSO realize this :I know we are all like omg my life is horrible blahblahblah... well at least we our breathing, at least we are living... so pick yourself up some how and realize at least I am here... bc I am here for a reason ... even not knowing why im here.. but Im here and THAT should be a reason that u should forget the sadness and realize HEY im living ..................

so stop being sad for yourself if your not in the hospital on an oxygen tank wondering if ur going to live

pray for those girls

HAVE FAITH IN HIM ALWAYS

As a Christian, it can be extremely easy to get distracted. It's so easy to take the focus off of God and put it on ourselves. It's so much easier to love ourselves more than our neighbors, to serve ourselves rather than God and others. I'm afraid that this has been something that I have been struggling with lately without even realizing it (until now). In my everyday life, there are people around me hurting. Why can't I just step back from my self-consumed world to see that and reach out to them? And why is it that when I am supposed to be worshipping God that I am so preoccupied about what's happening in my life?

I recently purchased the latest Starfield CD, "Beauty in the Broken", and there's a song on there called "Captivate" that I absolutely love. What first caught my attention about was the music and the haunting tone of it. The lyrics, however, really hit home and apply to where I am at my life right now:

You say/ Strength is found weakness/ Peace in incompleteness/ So why do I hold on/ You look / For a heart that's open/ For beauty in the broken/ So why am I withdrawn/ My soul's screaming out/ To be found in you/ Spirit draw me/ To my knees/ Captivate/ All of me/ All of me/ Here before You/ Honestly/ Captivate/ All of me/ All of me/ I'm so messy and distracted/ Undisciplined and tactless here on the inside/ I thought age would tell the secrets/ But the secrets are still secret/ And the years are passing by/ Teach me to wait in the moments of my need/ Teach me to hear the melodies of peace.

Hey yall i have some new pictures from alabama! oh and by the way it was AWESOME!!!!

in the Van on the way home

Our star...alisa,emily,mine, and scotts hands!

me and emily listening to music on the way home

us again

me and alisa on the was home((we soooo gangsta))

Random((Mwah))

antoher random

yup random AGAIN

lol in the hotel room wit scotts hat on

i love this pic

gangsta baby

well nothing much has been going on right now. Holly is trying to teach me the babaloon. and all i can say is dang. lol it is hard. other than that i have been going to school and to work. man this week is going to be hard. i am having a hard time finding Holly something for valentines day with out it being typical valentines day stuff. military ball is this week end. woot woot! and i cant wait for that. well i g2g finish my math quiz along with my science project which is due pretty much tomorrow. arg this  week is going to be hard. oh well.

Hollywood is a place where they'll pay you 50,000 dollars for a kiss and 50 cents for your soul.


 **Marilyn Monroe**

Back from Camp. Exhausted, but loved it

Now much to say ... just Monday morning ... I need to work on taxes this morning before heading to work ....

ciao ciao

Ok...

From what I can tell you didn't that site very well, or just skimmed through it and thought you read something that you didn't.  The point I think you're talking about is this:

"Interestingly, however, many Calvinists maintain that unregenerate people do possess free wills to some degree. John Piper states,

There is no doubt that man could perform more evil acts toward
his fellow man than he does. But if he is restrained from performing more evil
acts by motives that are not owing to his glad submission to God, then even
his "virtue" is evil in the sight of God (p. 5, prgh 2, emphasis added).

If unregenerate man could perform more evil acts toward his fellow man
but doesn't because he is restrained by some wrong inward
motive (thus the man is restrained by himself, and not some outside force),
then unregenerate man is making a moral decision by his own free will. Piper
also states, "Except for the continual exertion of saving grace, we will
always use our freedom to resist God" (p. 9, prgh. 6, emphasis added).
Note again the affirmation of the free will of regenerate and unregenerate man
("use our freedom"), but Piper believes that unregenerate man will
always use his freedom to resist God, because he is totally depraved."

You said:
"He makes strange assumptions
such as 'because man is doing something that God views as sin, it's
good because he's not doing sin.'"

No, he doesn't make that assumption.  He's saying that by and large people themselves have some quality for good, that by not doing more evil they are, by default, making a choice for good, which would contradict a Calvinistic viewpoint on what "totally depraved" actually means.

Alright, next point...and on to the good stuff...

You said:

Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV says "For by grace are ye saved
through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: Not of works,
lest any man should boast." Let's dissect this passage:

1. "For by grace are ye saved" - we are saved by God's grace

2. "through faith" - it is because of our faith that we can be saved
by God's grace

3. "and that not of yourselves" - the "that" in this phrase
is a pronoun; its antecedent is the nearest noun "faith." "Faith
not of yourselves" tells us that the faith we have to have in order to
partake of God's grace did not come from us

4. "it is the gift of God" - the pronoun "it" also needs an
antecedent; "faith" is still the closest PROBABLE choice (yourselves is closer, but just doesn't make sense), so it should then be read "faith is the gift of God." Do we ask for gifts (if not slightly spoiled; I know I sure do)? Not typically.

5. "Not of works" - What isn't of works? Time for another switcheroo: "Not of works are ye saved." We are not saved because of anything we do.

6. "lest any man should boast" - Since humans don't do anything, we have no right to brag.

So what do these verses tell us? In a nutshell, Eph. 2: 8-9 say "God saves you, not you, so don't brag." If God does save us, then, do we have the free will to choose Him?

I think at this point I will invoke John 3:16 to prove you wrong.  When talking about works, it's speaking of the redeeming power.  That wasn't as a result of anything we did.  God gives the gift, correct?  However, we have the right to accept that gift or not, but that doesn't mean we are saved because of what we did, but your argument here is that choosing, by default, is a work.  While I disagree that it is, I can see where you're coming from.  It's kinda like Christmas.  If your parents buy you a bike, nothing you did earned that bike, under the traditional Christmas motif; however, it's still your choice whether to accept that bike.  In other words, both views in my opinion can equally justify Ephesians 2:8,9.  With the idea of Occam's razor in mind, let's first figure which is simpler.

On top of that, it's quite interesting to note that the Calvinists I've spoken to, most of whom are on Carm.org discussion boards, say that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.  This is equivalent to saying that, as a Calvinist also said that, you can't believe in that of which you haven't heard.  That creates a problem for the Calvinist then because, by default, God would have to rely on the works of mankind in order to save people.

Like the site says:
"Here is my question to the Calvinist: Why must we preach the gospel in
order for people to be saved? If man plays no part at all in his conversion,
why must he hear the gospel to be saved, as Paul says he must in Romans
10:14? A consistently logical Calvinist could never say that persuasive preaching influences the unregenerate person to yield to God, because the unregenerate
person will always use his freedom to resist God (Piper, p. 9, prgh. 6). Thus
the only way an unregenerate person becomes regenerate is if God sovereignly
bestows upon him His irresistible grace. So all the persuasive preaching in
the world won't make a bit of difference in the saving of anyone. In fact,
to even attempt to persuade someone is an attack on God's supposed
sovereign grace in salvation, because to do so implies that salvation rests,
in part, on the hearer and also rests, in part, on the preacher."

Okay, moving on...

You said:

Romans 9:11 - " (For the children being not yet born, neither having
done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election
might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)" This verse is
talking about how God had chosen Jacob over Esau to continue the Jewish
bloodline. God chose Jacob in a few different ways listed here:

1. "being not yet born" - Jacob was chosen for his purpose before
being born

2. "neither having done any good or evil" – nothing Jacob had done would have affected/recommended him to God for any reason.

We
are then told why: "that the purpose of God according to election might
stand, not of works, but of him that calleth" Many people, when I tell
them God chooses before they're born say things to the effect of
"that's unfair." Paul had the same thing in Romans.

The problem with using this Scripture is that you're taking it out of context.  This is a famous set of Scriptures that Calvinists use, but even Calvinist commentators will say that this section of Scripture is speaking specifically about Israel and the gentiles, where Jacob represents the children of Israel, and Esau the gentiles.  If read the entire chapter, it's the only way to make heads or tails of chapters 8, 9, and 10.  I could go further, but I've already written a lot.

You said: 
It is a generally accepted principle (due to catechisms from multiple
faiths), though I honestly do not have a full scriptural basis on this
one at the moment (I'll have to look into it some more, so bear with me
on this one) that man's purpose is to bring glory to God.  Anyway,
assuming this to be true, then the answer to those questions is similar
to this purpose. God is glorified in both sending people to heaven
(Romans 9:23) AND sending people to hell (Romans 9:22).

Maybe so, but I would contend that God gets little satisfaction from making people love Him and making people hate Him.

You said:
a) Let's assume that God does not know everything.  Then you make sense.  Now,
I'm going to work off of the assumption that God does know everything
(part of being eternal, see above) because that's what I believe is
supported by scripture.  If God knows that something will happen, then it will happen, no?  Let's look especially at prophecies – God says that they're going to happen, so we'd better assume that they will.  This is God setting things in stone (as if they weren't already).  Because
of his vantage point, everything about human existence is set in stone;
we can not change the fate of the world because God already knows what
it is.Now, if God is omniscient, then it stands to reason that He would know of Satan's rebellion and Man's Fall.  Now let's use an analogy.  If
you know that if you light a match in a room filled with natural gas
that the room will explode, and, being in a room which you know is
filled with natural gas, you light the match, did you destroy the
room?  It is very hard to argue that you didn't as you very intentionally did.  If God knew what would happen with His reation, did He not destine/fate/elect/doom His creation to this state?  Sounds very intentional to me.  He knew what would happen, He knew what the repercussions would be, He knew exactly what He was doing.

Now, for a little physics – cold = absence of heat; darkness
= absence of light; evil = absence of good; suffering = absence of…well…non-suffering.  These opposites exist in a realm in which
they are allowed to exist.  There was no suffering until God came down after the Fall and said "Now you're gonna suffer; now you're gonna die," in effect.  I'm tired of this train of thought.  I'm moving on.

I could explain this to you, but I was hoping you wouldn't go here for the sake of time quite frankly, here's what I wrote a while back on the discussion boards...


You all would agree that God is sovereign. The question at
hand, of course, is what does that mean, or require. My argument is
this: God is sovereign in that He is subject to nothing or no one but
Himself. That is, He can limit Himself if He wants to do so. For
instance, Big Bus, you stated that you believed Jesus was not
omniscient during His stay on the earth. Assuming that you believe in
the Trinity, and that Jesus is God, ask yourself this: If God is
incapable of limiting what He will do, why wasn't Jesus omniscient or
omnipresent? Obviously, He is capable of limiting Himself, BUT He does so with a purpose. God limited Jesus (who is also God) to be the humble sacrifice for all mankind; He was a man and God at the same time.

So how does this apply?


Solomon Kane, you made the inquiry as to how beings contingent on
sequential events could place God in a temporal setting. Well, let me
use an illustration. To God, being outside of time and having created
it, the spectrum of past, present, and future events is like an
infinite roll of film spanning backwards and forwards. God can enter or
exit it at any point to influence the way events go, but He can also
choose to let the film run on its own. Thus, He can limit His influence
in the "infinite roll" (if you will) for His purposes, can He not?


Then, we come to the hard part: God has already seen the movie an
infinite number of times (figuratively speaking). He knows everything
that happens, and thus it's easier for us to state that, to God, everything occurs as it has already happened.


My argument here is that, although God knows everything that happens,
simultaneously, He can choose to limit His influence on any part,
regardless of whether He knows it happens or not. It will always happen
as He knows it but happens outside of His influence.


SK, Let's go back to the dice analogy. Don't think of it in literal
terms, but as means to an end of thought. I roll the dice, not knowing
what will happening, but someone, the "viewer", can go forward and
backward in time to see what the results will be. They could influence
the decision, but they don't. They could create the parameters and the
person and know what happens at the end, but did not affect the
decision. The results "prove" that they were right in our frame of time.


Time exists to prove that events happen in complete synchronicity with
God's thoughts on the matter. He may not necessarily influence the
decision, but the decision will always be what He knew beforehand.


BB, Adam and Peter "could" have not failed, but they didn't because they proved God correct. In other words, "ultimate knowledge" and "ultimate potential" don't necessarily mean "absolute influence." God could have created the earth and left it alone knowing all that would happen.


This is a hard concept, and I understand if you disagree.


The best argument Calvinists have against this line of reasoning is
that, if God knows who will get saved and who won't beforehand with
free will in the picture, why does He not just circumvent the entire
process by calling those who would be receptive and condemning those
who wouldn't anyway?


BB, the "robot" argument works b/c it accurately describes, in human
vernacular, what's going on, not because it's necessarily biblical or
unbiblical. God gives mankind a gift that he can take or receive, but
that doesn't mean man works for the gift. It just means that he can
take or receive it. While knowing the result of each man's decision
beforehand, God allows man to make that decision. That decision will
prove Him every time, glorifying God in the process.


God is not weak in these theories; He is simply giving man the chance
to change. That's what He did for Peter. It's all about perspective. If
Peter knew he would deny Jesus, and did so because he was forced to, he
should not have felt guilty. But he did because he knew Jesus told him
to give him a chance to change at that point and save him the heartache.


BB and SK, in your view, God not only does not allow things to happen,
but creates them in response. Why would God, who hates evil, directly
create it? But that's what you and countless others on this website
have said (following your logic, of course).


In the end on this topic, perspective plays a key part. This line of
logic is difficult to draw, with one side as fanatical as the other;
however, I stick with my beliefs on the Bible regarding these things
because I don't believe in a God who doesn't at least give man one
chance to change his/her fate.

And....

These are the points I'm trying to prove

Knowledge of the future does not logically dismiss free will, even it is always right.

Omnipotence and omniscience does not necessarily have to mandate everything.


BB, let's look at things through your perspective. God, being God, is always involved in even the most minute details of everything's existence. God is good, and hates evil.


Well, wait...then God is contradictory. God is good, but He directly created evil. How does that make sense?


Also, not only that, but God creates people, makes them sin, and condemns them as a result. Tell me, how does that make sense? But still, God is good, according to your logic.


Then, to avoid that problem, wouldn't be easier to say that God allows
sin and evil in the world to show His glory by giving people a choice?
By allowing it to be there, we aren't saying that God is too weak to
control it or destroy it because He can in His own timing. Allowing it
means limiting His power, does it not? Would you not agree that it
makes more sense that God would allow something to exist for a time
contrary to what we clearly know He likes to serve the purpose of
glorifying Himself than God directly creating evil and not only that
but also making people sin uncontrollably to serve the same the
purpose? By giving people free will, God is glorified. By making people
sin, how can God be glorified?


But how can we know that God is capable of holding back His
power/presence? Well, easily, Jesus was God, and He was not omniscient
or omnipresent while on earth. So for a time, we see, that God has
limited Himself for a purpose.


So I've proven so far that God can limit Himself to serve a purpose, but that brings up a problem: If
God knows about something in the future, and it will always happen the
way God knows it will, isn't any idea of free will simply an illusion? This is the question my first post in this topic tries to answer.


For example, let's say I'm on a plane, and you come back from the
future and tell me that a terrorist has a bomb, and he will use it on
my flight. Obviously, I know I can change what will happen by telling
the attendant before we take off that you strongly suspect Mr.
Terrorist has a bomb in his duffel bag and change the outcome.

God knows what will happen if He influences the decision and does
not influence the decision, and His decision not to do anything is a
choice He can make as a result of His sovereignty. It does not
contradict it. God knows that terrorist has a bomb, but that the
explosion, however horrific, will ultimately work to His design, so He
lets it happen. Perhaps, people will get saved as a result, and justice
will ultimately be served. Who knows but God?

As you can probably see, I've covered this point in what I believe to be great detail.

You said:

b) Depending on how strongly one holds to Calvinism, they may or not believe that.  You are making a generalization.  Either way…

Exodus 7:3 – "And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the lands of Egypt."  God controlled Pharaoh's reactions directly so that He would be more glorified (see far above).

Exodus 7:13 – "And he hardened Pharaoh's heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said."

Exodus 8:22 – "…and Pharaoh's heart was hardened…" and so on
and so forth until Pharaoh died.

Romans 9:15-23 – "For he saith to Moses, I will
have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on
whom I will have compassion.  So then it is not of him that wileth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.  For
the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I
raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name
might be declared throughout all the earth.
Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault?  For who hath resisted his will?  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God?  Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why has thou made me thus?  Hath not the potter power over the
clay; of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?  What
if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured
with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of
mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory."  I'm not going to say anything else on this one for now.

Actually, I'm not making a generalization so much as an observation.  If God is directly involved in everything, He would have to make people sin.  The fact that some say that that's a result of His knowledge makes no difference, and neither does the fact that it wasn't the first sin.

Calvinists often like to use Pharoah as an example because it's one of the few examples in the Bible that seem to prove their point.  I would contend that Pharoah was already in sin before God hardened his heart and that the Arminian doesn't dismiss the right of God to do that.  Actually, Arminianism is only asking the question of why would God do that to everyone now in the grace dispensation if you will.  God does have the right to do condemn whomever He wants, but I'm saying that He doesn't condemn as the Calvinist soteriology believes that He does.  Seeing as how the Pharoah incident was in a different dispensation, I would argue that God no longer does that.  But even if you disagree with that assumption, who's to say God didn't give Pharoah a chance to repent before the time He told Moses these things?

Finally, I think, you said:

(c) As I said before, there is the whole "none that seeketh after God" verse.  Also, we've got the nifty verse talking about how "many are called, few are chosen" and such things.

What's ironic about this is that the Arminian agrees with the first part as well.  No one seeks after God on His own, but God calls everyone to repent.  I believe that, no matter who it is, God gives everyone at least one chance to choose Him.  Whether you agree with that, well, is up to you.
Equally ironic is the "many are called, few are chosen" statement.  I thought all who are called were the elect and that the called were the chosen, according to the Calvinist.

Anyway...that's my argument for now...I implore to read that site a little more carefully...

So I just wrote this as a comment, but it's difficult to read because it's a little long and weird formatted, so here it is again:

Now, for my disclaimer – I am not an Armenian, nor am I a
Calvinist.  I just don't like it when
people say "A is/isn't B" but do not support it in a satisfactory manner.

Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV says "For by grace are ye saved
through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: Not of works,
lest any man should boast." Let's dissect this passage:

1. "For by grace are ye saved" - we are saved by God's grace

2. "through faith" - it is because of our faith that we can be saved
by God's grace

3. "and that not of yourselves" - the "that" in this phrase
is a pronoun; its antecedent is the nearest noun "faith." "Faith
not of yourselves" tells us that the faith we have to have in order to
partake of God's grace did not come from us

4. "it is the gift of God" - the pronoun "it" also needs an
antecedent; "faith" is still the closest PROBABLE choice (yourselves
is closer, but just doesn't make sense), so it should then be read "faith
is the gift of God." Do we ask for gifts (if not slightly spoiled; I know
I sure do)? Not typically.

5. "Not of works" - What isn't of works? Time for another switcheroo:
"Not of works are ye saved." We are not saved because of anything we
do.

6. "lest any man should boast" - Since humans don't do anything, we
have no right to brag.

So what do these verses tell us? In a nutshell, Eph. 2: 8-9 say "God saves
you, not you, so don't brag." If God does save us, then, do we have the
free will to choose Him?

Now I'm going to state a few points, then support them afterward...
 

1. Those who are saved are saved by God.

2. To be saved by God is a choice made by God.

3. God made this choice before the creation of the world.

1. As above, my summary of Ephesians 2:8-9 is that God saves us. End of point.

2. Romans 3:10-11 "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God."
It's pretty cut and dry -  no human in his natural sinful state desires or looks for God. That would mean that, if there is salvation, God comes looking for us.

3. God is perfect and unchanging, not an anthropomorphic God who was created in our image; he is an eternal being (exists outside of the system of Time which He created).  If God is not bound by time, then when He makes a choice "in-time" in 2004, it's the same as if He made it in 1904, 4, 4000, or before time was created. This is because, to Him, there is no time.  It's just our observation of change in our realm; He's outside of it.  Don't like that answer? Here's another one to chew on:

Romans 9:11 - " (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)" This verse is talking about how God had chosen Jacob over Esau to continue the Jewish bloodline. God chose Jacob in a few different ways listed here:

1. "being not yet born" - Jacob was chosen for his purpose before
being born

2. "neither having done any good or evil" – nothing Jacob had done
would have affected/recommended him to God for any reason.

We are then told why: "that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth" Many people, when I tell them God chooses before they're born say things to the effect of "that's unfair." Paul had the same thing in Romans.


9:14 - "What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God
forbid." Claiming that God is unfair is claiming that God is fallible,
therefore non-perfect.  Still, it does seem a bit harsh that a loving God would willingly send billions of people to hell, does it not? The real question we should ask, though, is why a just God would send millions or billions to heaven. We all deserve hell, but He showed some of us mercy. So what is the answer to these questions?

It is a generally accepted principle (due to catechisms from multiple faiths), though I honestly do not have a full scriptural basis on this one at the moment (I'll have to look into it some more, so bear with me on this one) that man's purpose is to bring glory to God.  Anyway, assuming this to be true, then the answer to those questions is similar to this purpose. God is glorified in both sending people to heaven (Romans 9:23) AND sending people to hell (Romans 9:22).

As for Calvinists not understanding your Armenian views, I went to a nice little independent Baptist school for 13 years where I was taught, for 13 years, that Calvinism is wrong and has no Biblical basis.  I believe that for several years, but discovered through my own study of the Bible that this isn't entirely true.  I asked teachers about it and the typical reply was "I think you should make sure of your salvation."  But, yes, I do understand where you're coming from, possibly even more than you do.

Now, I want to address the last post…

Reasons against Calvinism:
1. Westboro Baptist Church
2. Abuse from Calvinists
3. Issues with the beliefs themselves

1. Forget Westboro Baptist Church.  Every Calvinist I know (and I've met quite a few) wishes those people would fall off the face of the planet because they're not what the Church is supposed to be.

2. Just because you're berated by people of a particular ideal doesn't mean the ideal is wrong.  If so, from what I said above, then Armenianism is stupid and wrong.  If there's no free will or election, then what is there?  ;)

3. As for the issues…

(a) God is sovereign to the extent that He mandates everything. 
Now, for those of you who really don't understand what that means,
according to the Calvinist, God not only created man, and created good, but He also created evil, suffering, and the whole lot.

(b) On top of that, God makes people sin.  (Yes, I'm serious.) 

(c) God can choose to save all but instead He chooses to save some and condemn those who can do nothing else to change their fate.  Before God calls those select few, those people were totally rebellious to all things good (in theory) and would never have turned to God.  Thus, the elect are basically robots, seeing as how the love I know is predicated upon choice.

(a) Let's assume that God does not know everything.  Then you make sense.  Now, I'm going to work off of the assumption that God does know everything (part of being eternal, see above) because that's what I believe is supported by scripture.  If God knows that something will happen, then it will happen, no?  Let's look especially at prophecies – God says that they're going to happen, so we'd better assume that they will.  This is God setting things in stone (as if they weren't already).  Because of his vantage point, everything about human existence is set in stone; we can not change the fate of the world because God already knows what it is.

Now, if God is omniscient, then it stands to reason that He would know of Satan's rebellion and Man's Fall.  Now let's use an analogy.  If you know that if you light a match in a room filled with natural gas that the room will explode, and, being in a room which you know is filled with natural gas, you light the match, did you destroy the room?  It is very hard to argue that you didn't as you very intentionally did.  If God knew what would happen with His reation, did He not destine/fate/elect/doom His creation to this state?  Sounds very intentional to me.  He knew what would happen, He knew what the repercussions would be, He knew exactly what He was doing.

Now, for a little physics – cold = absence of heat; darkness
= absence of light; evil = absence of good; suffering = absence of…well…non-suffering.  These opposites exist in a realm in which
they are allowed to exist.  There was no suffering until God came down after the Fall and said "Now you're gonna suffer; now you're gonna die," in effect.  I'm tired of this train of thought.  I'm moving on.

(b) Depending on how strongly one holds to Calvinism, they may or not believe that.  You are making a generalization.  Either way…

Exodus 7:3 – "And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the lands of Egypt."  God controlled Pharaoh's reactions directly so that He would be more glorified (see far above).

Exodus 7:13 – "And he hardened Pharaoh's heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said."

Exodus 8:22 – "…and Pharaoh's heart was hardened…" and so on
and so forth until Pharaoh died.

Romans 9:15-23 – "For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.  So then it is not of him that wileth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault?  For who hath resisted his will?  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God?  Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why has thou made me thus?  Hath not the potter power over the
clay; of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory."  I'm not going to say anything else on this one for now.

(c) As I said before, there is the whole "none that seeketh after God" verse.  Also, we've got the nifty verse talking about how "many are called, few are chosen" and such things.

Frankly, I'm a little burned out at the moment.  I just got up about half an hour ago and still need to take a shower and such, so I'm off for now.

I know that the performance of PhuseBox lately has been horrible... I have tried to make a few changes to speed things up. I think I have succeeded for the most part... Let me know if you see significant speed problems anymore.

Of course, many have noticed that one of the things that has changed is the notification in the top bar. I am working to get this functioning again without sacrificing site performance, so just hold tight.

On a related topic, I am still hacking away at the new PhuseBox site. Stay tuned.

First of all, check out this link...

Okay, since someone's gotten offended at my saying that Calvinism is stupid, I offer this simple explanation--Westboro Baptist Church.  For those of you unfamiliar with Fred Phelps and WBC, he's the leader of the people who protest that "God hates fags".  They are also Calvinist.

Second of all, I've been berated a thousand times by Calvinists for something that really isn't a big deal except to them.  My thoughts on Arminianism are considered "sickening" (while being much less understood) by many Calvinists I'm come in contact with.

My basic problem with Calvinism is this one thing: God is sovereign to the extent that He mandates everything.  Now, for those of you who really don't understand what that means, according to the Calvinist, God not only created man, and created good, but He also created evil, suffering, and the whole lot.  On top of that, God makes people sin.  (Yes, I'm serious.)  God can choose to save all but instead He chooses to save some and condemn those who can do nothing else to change their fate.  Before God calls those select few, those people were totally rebellious to all things good (in theory) and would never have turned to God.  Thus, the elect are basically robots, seeing as how the love I know is predicated upon choice.

Calvinists will mostly like claim that Arminianism doesn't line up with Scripture, but in reality, it's the Calvinists who can't see the forest through the trees on this issue.  Reformed theology doesn't make sense!

It's my opinion that doctrinal differences spawn from supposed "contradictions" in Scripture; in other words, because man can't make sense of it, the way in which he does causes division.  I see this divide under the same light.

So yeah, I now have to type all my post on Word and paste
them onto the Phuzzy-box. Tis very irksome.

 

I’m waiting for everyone else to get ready for church, and
thus far, only mom is ready. I hate being low-maintenance sometimes…

 

We finally got all of our shopping done for military ball,
oh happy day. I think my favorite part about the stupid dress is the shoes,
they’re freakin’ amazing man. And all it took was a week of shopping to find it
all; I was about ready to shoot myself. We did get a little off track a store
and bought some shirts (for example the wicked cool ones I’m wearing today) and
a few other little things like that.

 

I went to practice with Todd and Andy; I can’t hear a dang thing!!
They rehearse in such a small room, I’m surprised they’ not deaf. I sure am. But
it was a barrel or so of fun, the Taco Song is freakin’ hilarious. “Do you want
a taco?  A six inch burrito?”  Oh man, it’s great.

 

In case you guys can’t tell, I’ m uploading pics like nobodies
business. I just figured out how to get into the shared documents and had a field-day.
Enjoy them.

my parents let me get a job...i am sooo tried of being bored... it's sooo annoying... i already applied to krogers....and i am going to finish the one for buckle... i need some more places to apply to...i real dont want to work at a fast food place cuz it would just gross me out even more... so i am going to try at like food line, wallgeen, pac sun, the sound shop, the shop dept., american eagle, pet land, pet smart, hobby lobby(i'll get it tomorrow cuz they are not open today), old navy, hot topic, and see on the age limit on some others... so yeah..i was bored out of my mind yesterday so that's one reason and it would also give me a chance to earn the money by working..i also hate being at home on a daily base...it's the same thing...i needa change in evoriment...yeah... i just hate being at home.. dont think i hate my family... it's just get bored at the house.. then i start to bother my parents.... so yeah

never mind on doing that...i'll just go pick one up.... lol 

but still i think a job would give me more to do then sit around and do nothing... i real thin it would help me out. i love to be around people so yeah and i also needthe money for when i go up north too.. and to get a new camra.... plus cleaning i'll get a lot of money up by then.... i real need the money... lol i just hope my parents dont tell to by my own clothing..i dont think they would. they would most likely tell me to pay for my own gas.....lol...so yeah now i am bored i'll talk to ya people later

megan

i don't like it. i miss the numbers.

Sorry...usually I don't get too irritated by people who are irrational about certain religious belief structures, but there is one that kind of got to me - a post saying, simply, that Calvinism is stupid.

Calvinism, being an organized structure of ideas, can not be stupid.  Either (a) the ideas are stupid, or (b) Calvinists are stupid, but never (c) Calvinism is stupid.

(a) the ideas are stupid - the ideas contained in Calvinism are some of the most logical and Biblically-supported religious ideas we have today.  Many of the greatest theological minds agreed with many or all of the tenets of Calvinism (like, say, John Calvin, John Wycliffe, Martin Luther, etc.).  To say that these ideas are stupid is to say that the scriptures from which they were derived are stupid.  Now, if someone says that the Bible is stupid, then that's their own thing; this, however, is not the case with this monologue.  I am directing this at a Bible-believing Christian (whether or not you are one is irrelevant; I'm simply not writing to you).  So, either the Bible is stupid or Calvinists are stupid.  I'm going to assume that it would be decided that the Bible is not stupid.

(b) Calvinists are stupid - I'm sorry...what?  The tenets of Calvinism are supported with more or less strength by exegetical study of the Bible.  The tenets of Armenianism (the relative opposite of Calvinism) are not - they are derived from eisegetical viewpoints.  If you'd like a Biblical discussion, I'm fully open to that; I haven't had one in a good while.  Otherwise, don't even try pulling this one; I'll flat out tell you that Calvinists are not stupid.  Not to say that some aren't...I know a few stupid Calvinists, and I know some brilliant ones.  'Nuff said.

(c) Calvinism is stupid - as outlined above, no.

That's all I've got for now.  It's 3:30 am, and I've got church in a few hours.

Music Man performances are coming up fast. We're not completely ready.

I think I'm finally letting go. As long as you don't play your guitar any time soon.

I could date one of my better friends, but I'm not sure if it's a good decision.

Getting my clarinet fixed. $275 out of my pocket. Ouch.

Danny

Anyone ever planned a wedding in Germany?  I'll broaden that.  Anyone ever planned a wedding in another country?  While you're in the US?  For homework?  Lucky you.

So, I'm in this course about Berlin this semester.  And ordinarily, I like Dr. Weidner's assignments.  They're inventive, and we use our German in a variety of contexts.  However...

The assignment is to plan a wedding in the tower of the Französicher Dom (French Cathedral).  Sounds fun and happy.  I found the website for the church (that's in Berlin, that I've never been to) and have looked for information on planning a wedding.  It doesn't exist.  Nothing.  Zilch.  Nada.  There are several lovely vignettes about the history of the church and cute little pictures of the sanctuary, which I would dearly love to see Satan destroy with an earth-shaking boom.

I've worked on this for over an hour, and have unearthed nothing (except my desire to see the church drown in Satanic flame).  I've contacted someone else in the class for input, and will e-mail the teacher tomorrow if the other student can't find anything.  This isn't exactly information I can make up (cost of renting the church, how many people it will hold, stuff like that).

If any of you feel inclined to help, you can visit the following website and search for the word "Hochzeit" (wedding)...

http://www.franzoesischer-dom.de/

where will i be from may 28 until august 4?

new york city.

i was appointed by the tennessee baptist collegiate ministry to do missions based out of the bronx.

there is much praise and excitement in my soul.

Hey everybody i just got back from the RJH Retreat it was pretty fun... i stood outside waiting for the G-Force Simulator and Space Shot but it turns out they were closed today and there was no kind of sign or anything to indicate that it was closed.... okie dokie well i love you all!!!! I am on my new computer it is AWESOME!!!! well see everyone tommorrrowwww hopefully.....

Tootles

Emily

1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady

During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions until I read the last one: "What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning  woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50s, but
how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade. "Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say "hello." I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.

2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain

One night, at 11:30 p.m., an older African American woman was standing
on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rain storm. Her car had broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car. A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 1960's. The man took her to safety, assistance and put her into a taxicab. She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached.
It read:
       "Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night.
The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along. Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside
just before he passed away... God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others."
 Sincerely,
 Mrs. Nat King Cole.

3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those who serve.

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass
of water in front of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?" he asked. "Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled is hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it. "Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he inquired. By now more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient. "Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins. "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said.
The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies..  You see, he couldn' t have the sundae, because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip.

4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path.

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock.
Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping!
the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never understand! Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.

5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts...

Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare &serious disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister. I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, "Yes I'll do it if it will save her." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice,
"Will I start to die right away". Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought
he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood in order to save her.

I decided to modify the notification bar at the top of the site for purposes of speed. The site should load much quicker now.

This change should be temporary, as I know many users check if they have new remarks or friend content by looking at the top bar.

As you can see, I have posted 10 new pics on the Jakarta situation.  My family knows that for over a month I haven't been able to post pics (due to the earthquake in Taiwan) ... but thanks to God ... these pics are making it through.  Everytime I hit the send button I pray ... and pray while the files are being transmitted ... glory to God !!!

We have a break in the weather here.  Thankfully it hasn't rained in 24 hours (at least not where I am).  Waters are beginning to recede .... clean up efforts are ongoing and will take months.  Unlike New Orleans where the govt can spend billions to help rebuild the city .... and many people have insurance ... the folks here have none of that.  You will see pics of people cleaning furniture, dishes, clothes - things that you and I would throw away ... but this is all they have ... they will scrub and scrub and scrub and get it as clean as possible ... and then just "live with it".  Very few have insurance.

Decy saw one house today that still had water in it.  A frig was floating.  She asked the man what he was going to do about the frig ... he said he will try to clean and fix it ... as he cannot buy another one.  I guess he can clean it .... but I assume he will have to buy at least a new motor and possibly compressor for it.

One of the other expat wives is starting to help Decy.  On Friday they assembled another set of supplies.  On Saturday (today) they delivered the supplies to the a community shelter.  Chely and Thasya and Susie's (not sure of the spelling) two kids also helped.  It was an eye opening experience.  I was not able to go ... but I cried when I saw the pics.

On Monday Decy will go out and buy more supplies with the wonderful donations that friends and family have given. Then she will deliver them - probably Tuesday.

Another expat wife called about trying to help out and make a donation ... as well as help in a delivery.  Step by step people are helping out ... in my heart ... I believe more will help as the stories (like from today) are told.  Even so, after we get through this event ... there are so many needs in the city in the base case .... I can't help but believe in my heart that Decy has started a good work that will help bring many of the expat wives together ... to help the community.

I need to close .... thank you all who have made donations to help the Jakarta victims.

ciao ciao

is it just me or p- box really slow latley, it's not my internet b/c i have tryed to log in to p-box @ school and it's slow as well...

enough said...

i'm actually semi upset about her death

idk. i mean yeah she was really weird and uber annoying, but i guess we just don't think of hollywood people dying. i mean i don't. to me it's like they are 'gods' or something. since they are out of reach to us.. idk. it's weird. i mean i know they die. but when they die so young like that. and they don't know why. its crazy. oh well

i'm still a little upset.

but right now i have a date

with the mall

Hello again!

I apologize for being gone so long.  There has been a lot going on, and Mommy and Daddy have been awful busy.

Day care is back in session.  Mommy is doing classes and teaching during the day, and Daddy is at work.  I get to play with the other kids and the ladies at day care.  It's a lot of fun!  We have been learning a lot of cool stuff, and most of the kids are really nice.  And I'm going to be in the newspaper!!!  They took our picture for an upcoming story.  At last, my climb to top shall begin.  Now, how do I make sure that picture gets into the hands of a Pampers advertising exec...

I have a lot of cool new toys because of Christmas.  When I get a toy, I like to play with it until I have it all figured out.  After that, I only play with it if its super cool.  The newest toy is the rolling toy Daddy got me!  It's kinda like a tricycle, but there are no pedals.  Mommy and Daddy say I should sit on it and pull and push myself around with my feet.  Silly parents.  I have already determined that proper play consists of standing behind it and pushing it from a standing position.  This leaves the seat available for passengers and allows me a obtain very high speeds.

Mommy and Daddy got a new camera.  They say it's because I wont sit still and their old camera is always blurry.  I tried to apologize by flailing my arms rapidly whenever they got out the camera, but I don't think they understood.  But now we have a new camera, and it's super cool!  You can take pictures of moving stuff like the bath water coming out of the faucet.  The only bad thing is that they won't stop taking pictures of me.  I don't mind usually, but then they start trying to get me to sit down, smile, or look at them, all of which are terrible violations of my personal freedom.  I won't stand (or sit) for it!  But sneaky parents... that new camera is much faster.  With the old one, I could be completely out of the picture before it would actually shoot.  They'd check what the pic looked like and I wouldn't even be in it!  Even when I was slow, I could still move enough to give them nothing more than the back of my head.  Now, though, they're just too fast.  I have been told that pictures will soon begin to populate the blogosphere.

I guess I'll go now.  It has been so cold lately that I haven't gotten to spend a lot of time outside.  Sometimes Mommy and Daddy bundle me up and let me play for a couple minutes, but we don't get to go for walks like we used to.  Hopefully it will get warm soon so I can go back out to the playgroud.

well today was an half day.....it was good.... i had like three cups of coffee... it may cause me to do something stupid but thats ok.... i am real bored..........i also go my hair cut..... it looks real good.... i dont know if my dad will like it.... but i dont care at all.... man i am bored well i am out

meg

here is my new hair cut

I'd appreciate a prayer or two this weekend. I'm going to Easter Seals for my first weekend being in charge of my own campers and all the responsibility that comes with officially being on staff. I haven't felt my best the last couple days and I really don't want that to affect the weekend. Plus I'm just extremely nervous about how things are gonna go because pretty much every moment at camp is a surprise. So if you happen to think of me this weekend a quick prayer would help a lot!

i'm coming home this weekend. first time this semester and probably the last time till summer. :( but maybe not. i was thinking about not comeing home this weekend and coming home next weekend cause i have three test this next week. no, i have four. communications,math,accounting,and a mid-term in weight lifting. but that last one wont be hard.

i dont know if my all A's goal is going to be accomplished.

well i gotta go study.

piece

Although I sure feel like it.  Working all the time, not getting paid a whole lot, and always working when my friends and Marissa aren't in work or school...  Not to mention obviously not getting my assistant manager position just yet, and my hand's been scratched up to hell thanks to this stupid piece of crap tower display I was building at work...  And there's the computer of mine that worked marvelously for 2 1/2 years and goes up and dies, just in time for my house to get wired with Comcast.  And my car needs a new timing belt.  And I don't have Thursdays off to go play the WoW TCG I've sunk a bunch of money into at Grand Adventures.  And when I do have a chance to play WoW on Marissa's computer, no one's ever on and way higher level than me.

...I'm sure that I can come up with some other stuff that bothers, annoys, and/or angers me if I wanted to sit down and think about it.  Oh, yeah, there's the tax refund I haven't gotten yet that I could most certainly use.  Gosh...

Normally, I wouldn't mind all this stuff bogging me down.  The main issue, though, is that I can't really find anything good happening to counter-balance it all.  I normally carry a burden of thoughts, issues, and whatnot, but usually don't care about it since there's usually something in my life that keeps me going.  But here lately...it's just been a draining experience, and I find myself desiring to go back in time to my senior year of high school, the time I had to do most anything I wanted and enjoyed everything I did.

I imagine something will get me back on my feet again; there usually is.  It's just a matter of waiting and/or grasping it.

There are so many people in this world constantly deliberating
their beliefs completely devoid of God in any form or fashion.  What is
worse, they're educational platforms (via masters or ph.ds) from which
they are declaming these opinions seem to automatically deem them as
qualified, and with valid, coherent claims on whatever topic they
choose to discuss.  This assumed validation of their opinions
subsequently renders those of lesser intellectual experience to
seriously consider these claims, even unto the point of being severely
challenged in their previous point of view on their faith, solely
because of this person's academic training.

Finally, and
probably somewhat conversely in view of what I just said, this is
something that I often struggle with.  I'm assuming because I'm so
super analytical, I have a problem when people assert bogus claims, and
rather than challenge them, I consider them.

But to make a long
story short, after prayer tonight.. I'm really thinking I'm called to
some extent, possibly to an intensive extent, to the field of
challenging the every so craftily contrived arguments against the
absolute, one and only God, who sent His one and only Son, Jesus
Christ, who did die and rise again on the third day, so that all
humanity could have a relationship with Him, who is undoubtedly
returning some day, and will take us home, to the real place, that is
Heaven, a very real, supernatural dwelling with the one and only
Creator of the universe for all eternity.

Haha, yes, I was being overly and exhaustively assertive, THERE ARE JUST SO MANY BOGUS PHILOSOPHIES/THEOLOGIES TO NEGATE!

it's pretty weird that's she's dead
almost right after her son
it'll be strange not hearing about her in the tabloids...
not that i follow them or anything
but it's weird to think about
maybe her family has a curse
like the kennedys

Today is Jonathan's 21st Birthday!!!
Happy Birthday, Jonathan!
Here are 21 reasons I Love Jonathan.....
1.  He is a good brother

2.  He LOVES Jesus

3.  He loves others

4.  He loves Sydney

5.  He has a servant heart

6.  He loves working with the youth group
(no pic....sorry)
7.  He is smart

8.  He is funny

9. He doesn't love this world....material things are not important to him
10.  He likes lobster

11. He stayed with me while Matt was working so I didn't have to stay by myself.
12. He handed Starburst out to strangers on the subway in NYC

13. He doesn't like TV
14. He is buddies with my husband

15. He is a sharp dresser

16. He loves Sandy as much as I do
17. He is tall

18.  He makes other people feel special
19. He has a heart for missons

20. He is random

21.  He is the great Jonathan Philip Moore...

So wish him a Happy Birthday!!!!!
or he might turn gangsta....

There is so much that I can't explain.....even to myself. There is so much I want to say but know that I can't. I want to know how to stop being afraid and just start admiting to myself how I feel.

Fear.

Finally a break in the weather .... rain continued on Thursday until 3pm ... not always a downpour like it was around 5am, but still a good solid rain.  According to the security alerts I receive several times a day, the rain cause a 3 foot wall of water to enter back into many of the previously flooded areas.

Haven't had any rain in 14 hours (its now about 5am). However, I hear thunder ... so another wave must be building up. Supposedly this weekend is supposed to be better.

Yesterday Decy made deliveries on all the supplies she purchased.  She assembled plastic bags containing baby's milk, water, medicines, clothes, blankets ... whatever she had.  She used everything and ended up with about 100 "gift baggies".  She and our driver Pak Mulyono went to the flooded areas ... specifically to two facilities for the homeless.  One facility had about 600 people crammed into it (there had been 1,000 before the waters started receding).

Based on Decy's description, the facility was more of a bunch of un-air conditioned hallways and rooms ... hundreds of people living on the floor on blankets, towels, rugs, no furniture to speak of .... what little they have is stashed in plastic baggies by their side.  Bathroom facilities are grossly inadequate and are right next to a rudimentry kitchen.  The smell throughout the place was "strong" to say the least ... consider ... that many people, coming out of a flood ... covered in mud, gunk, etc., with no place to really clean up.  Anyway ....

Decy handed out the gift baggies ... one by one ... focussing on the children as they are helpless and can do nothing for themselves.  She also helped lots of adults.  As you can appreciate ... having 100 baggies ... and 600 people in just one of the two facilities ... meant that she could not possibly give out a baggie to everybody.  Decy's eyes showed much pain when she described how the children faces looked when the "have nots" looked at the children drinking their milk (the "haves").  Painful as it was ... at least she was able to help some.

I strong believe that Decy has planted a seed.  I believe that seed with grow and multiply.  God has given Decy a rare talent where she can bring together all classes of people, all nationalities, all religions.  We are just ONE PEOPLE ... and her love and spirit draw people together.

Yesterday afternoon/evening as we reflected on the events of the day, Decy started receiving SMS's from some of the expat women here about how things went.  I'm not sure what to make from some of them ... I think overall positive.  But one, a very strong positive.  One woman, Susan, is coming over to our house today (Friday).  Decy and she will go shopping for more food, medicines, milk, and clothes.  Together they will make another delivery this weekend - Susan wants her daughter to assist in the delivery ...the seed begins to grow.

Decy says she saw a number of bridges where folks have put up tarps and are living in makeshift tents.  She is seriously considering making her next delivery there.

Some friends and family have pledged contributions to assist Decy's effort .... and on the basis of the pledge she will buy the items and make the deliveries (time is of the essence for these people; thus we cannot wait for the money to show up to begin doing His work).

While driving home last night there were a lot of street vendors in a back alley (unusual on that particular road).  Decy was with me ... and we talked about it ... apparently the shopping area was flooded out ... so they moved to the street.  I saw lots of children's clothes for sale ... many at $0.50 to $1.00 a set ... I talked to Decy about trying to go back there and buy clothes to give away ... I'm not sure if she will do that .. or focus on foods and medicines .. or maybe some of both.

Decy is also buying lots of lotions and powders ... as many people have skin rashes because of the flooding and living conditions.

For those of you reading this and are "touched" ... you too can help ... obviously there are organizations like Red Cross ... but who knows when and how the benefits would flow to the victims.  If you know any of my family members, you can give money to them and they will get it too me.  I recognize that takes time - but time is any enemy right now ... so, if you do want to help ... email me or blog me ... we will act based on pledges .... even $10 goes a long ways ... when there's no overhead, no salaries, no corruption ... just a woman handing out baggies of foods, water, milk, medicine.

God Bless You ....

There really aren't enough hours in the day anymore.

So for those of you who find it funny that I am a germ-a-phobe, I must admit that I have a rash on my hands and I have a suspicion it is from using too much hand sanitizer.  Yes, go ahead and laugh.  And I will add that I type this as I drink airborne to keep from getting my high schoolers flu germs....some things will never change....hope every one had a good day

Okay, so I met this INFJ. I typed her either INTP or INFJ, but it should've been obvious that she was INFJ. They look a lot alike, and have similar patterns of behaviour (introverted, intuitive, strive for competence, etc.). But INTPs tend to be much more rebellious, and would've come out more obviously. Anyway, she was really cute. I asked her out today. (she's like the 3rd person I have ever asked out) She has a boyfriend, which is cool. But... while I can deal with a challenge, I wouldn't want to ruin a 3-year relationship. She was really nice and flattered and such, much in the cute way that INFJs tend to be. But yeah, so she's taken. Onward! A new island approaches!

This is a bad, bad rain ... was plowing water most of the way to the office ... most streets have rivers running through them.  Water in drainage pipes shooting up through the covers in the street (visualize 1 foot fountains in the middle of the street).

It continues to pour ... its now been almost 3 hours ... I feel so sorry for the people ... there is nowhere for this rain to go ... I hope it stops soon.

After a couple of days of relative quiet (that is only a little bit of rain), the clouds moved back in.  There were scattered showers throughout the city on Wednesday, but nothing heavy. The problem, however, is that the ground is super-saturated already, the ditches are full, the rivers are full, the lakes and reservoirs are full.  Sooooo ... any rain is too much rain.  And now the city is prone to flash flooding.

Through yesterday the waters slowly began receding in the flooded areas (the press claims that 75% of the city has been affected).  However, that is changing as of right now (438am). Late last night we could hear thunder rolling overhead.  About 330am the rain started again - at least here at the house. It is still going - and its a pretty heavy and steady rain.  Time will tell if it is one of those 12 inch gully washers - but I don't think so.

As I drive from the office (central) to the house (6 miles SE of office), the roads are not too bad ... I generally take good roads.  But, we do take some short cuts along the way ... most of these are in pretty good shape (if they weren't we wouldn't be on them) ... so I am not getting a good perspective on the devastation in/around the city.  The local news shows a lot ... but don't know how good of a sample that is.

Sent an SMS to an Indonesian friend last night who lives in the far north part of town, the "old city".  She has been stuck at home all week due to flooding ... but her house was dry ... until yesterday.  Don't know what happened as it didn't rain that much yesterday ... but as I said ... any rain is too much rain right now.  She says she's ok - I need to try to contact her today.

Yesterday Decy attended an expat women's tea (our companies expats).  Normally Decy doesn't go to these things because she feels out of place and many of the woman are arrogant.  But, overall she had a pretty good time ... and even helped one woman who was from Argentina that could not speak very good English ... so they conversed in a mixture of Spanish and Portuguese ... with the other women watching in amazement wondering how an Indonesian woman speaks English and Portuguese.

While at the ladies tea, Decy presented the need to help those that have been affected by the flood.  Decy received donations of about $300 (plus our contribution) inwhich she used to buy water and other supplies. She will hand out the supplies directly to the needy ... and not go through any agency.  Not sure if she will do that today or tomorrow.  I need to talk to her about "security" to make sure she has at least one of the drivers beside her at all times ... in case the crowd presses in too close.

While $300 isn't a lot of money ... Decy was a stranger to the expat ladies ... she had met only one woman before .... so, I am thankful that they opened up their hearts and wallets.  Personally, I believe this event is really the planting of a seed.  I know that many expat wives have generous hearts ... but in a foreign country they need guidance and help in directing their monies and energies to the right source.  I believe that someday she will get a call asking for her help ... to the ladies .. so they can help others.

It is now 510am ... the rain is still coming down rather heavily.  I can see the pool filling up again, but it is not yet overflowing.

One more topic before I have to close to go to work.  Decy has been in contact with her immediate family.  Most live about about 10-15 miles south of us.  The area called Ciputat is a little bit hilly.  That means, of course, the low lying areas are getting severely flooded (as in 6-10 ft of water) while the higher areas less so.  Thankfully all the family is generally on higher ground.  Nevertheless, there is still some street flooding (2-12 inches) in and around the houses.  Back in 2002 when Decy built her house in Ciputat and rebuilt her mother's house (next door) she took a concious decision to raise the elevation of the house.  The workers hauled in truckloads of sand ... created a "pad" and then built over it.  What that means ... is that the two houses are now "above grade".  Decy says that several houses on the street where our two house are have water in them (I think measured in inches not feet.  However, our two houses are just fine - once again ... thanks to God.

Its time to do final prep's for work, so I must log off ... it will be a challenging drive ... I will try to blog once in the office so all know I arrived safely.

And, yes ... the downpour continues ... its now been 2 hours ... while it may not sound like much ... if this continues at this pace for another 2 hours the city will be paralyzed again.  Even if it stops raining right now ... this will still raise the water level for those already flooded out.

                         I LOVE MY LITTLE PUPPY DOG

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       Here is my love:   

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He is a Miniature Pincher &  i love him so much.  but you know how you can get attached...    Oh, and his name is Junior.    =]

I was right, but I was wrong.
She was right, but she was wrong.
We were both wrong, and both right.
Love is a choice. And you can't just turn off love.

A little more than a month ago, when she broke it to me, I felt like puking for a day and a half. I never shed a tear, for all my tears for her were shed on the night of August 13th, 2006. After the day of stomach ache had passed, I was fine. Everyhing was dandy. And so it has been, generally, since then.

But as always, there is a remnant that always remains. For when you give your heart, whatever you give, you can't get all of it back. So, you can't just turn off love. I still care for her more than I do most of my friends, but not out of romance. Meh. At least I can get to sleep at night in a timely manner, unlike back in July last year.

And the weird thing is, she is gonna read this.

But I won't go into more detail, really. Because I want to patch things up. I want to move on romantically and find someone else. I met this really cute INFJ, named Jessica. English Major, works at the library. I'ma ask her out. I was about to ask her this evening, but she wasn't there.

And it is hilarious, because on the way to where I expected her to be, my mind froze and my mouth got dry. Anything rehearsed was totally lost. Hah! This reminded me to say to myself, "Jon, just shut up. Don't think of anything elaborate beforehand. It won't be natural and it will be lamer than lame. Just dive in when you get there."

I got like 6 CDs (or rather, 2 double-discs, 3 cds, and a cd for my mom) for a little more than 37 bucks. Sweet deal for new CDs, eh? This is including shipping and handling.

I also bought a water filter and boots today. Yay.

turns out
I was right all along
No guy means it when he says it to me
Lord, does love exist?
or is it just me?

so sunday night at around 9 or so....i was taking pulling my cell phone charger out of my bag. Well the part that plugs in to the cell phone got hung so what do i do....i jerk it. and what does it do....comes back and pops me right in the eye. i had to go to the ER and everything. They told me that the metel part on the end on the cord made a severe abarsion to my right cornea. which means that i cut my eye ball really really bad. So they hooked me up with some eye drops and lortabs and sent me home.

before there was drugs.....

after there was drugs.mmm.

so do me a HUGE favor and never jerk a power cord.

Finally a night of no rain ... according to the news, things should be quiet today ...although it appears another weather pattern is moving into the area tomorrow - we shall see.

At least so far, it appears the new exercise equipment is being put to good use - I understand that both Chely and Decy are using all of it on a regular basis.  As for me, some basic free weights in the morning .... and (so far) 3 times on the treadmill.  Came home last night and jumped on the treadmill - ended up doing 5.6 kilometers in 45 minutes.  Not bad for an old man that is out of shape - but I was pretty wiped out afterwards ... AND I have to do better if I am going to do some serious hashing (oxymoron).

Decy confirmed we have plenty of bottled gas.  As for money - she withdrew the approx equivalent of US$3k from the banks to hold "just in case" .... over the past few weeks lots of computer servers and ATMs have been down (even yesterday AT the bank) .... we can't risk not being able to get to some cash.

Our issues with Amsouth Bank continue to have a rippling effect.  Seems my medical insurance carrier was trying to make deposits there (although they were informed months ago that I have a new account).  As part of a partial rectifications seems they decided to mail paper checks to me here in Indonesia (dumb !!).  Thankfully, the company agreed to cash them for me and give me the rupiah equivalent.  In addition to the 2 checks I have already received, there seems to be about $1k in other medical reimbursements that we can't seem to find .... ho hum ... its always something.

Think I will close for now.

ciao ciao.