Life in the Words of Derrick Strosnider

life as of 02/03/12

2012-02-03T14:33:00.000-08:00

This week was a rough week for me. I generally act as if I am unfazed by the tribulations that life tries to throw my way, but this week I was not successful in doing so. This week was rough. Having alot of time to sit and think to myself, I thought about the things that I've lost in my life. There's really not much, thank God, so even I get tired of comparing my life's battles to the same mini-tragedies over and over again. I've lived an incredibly blessed life in which I've lost barely anything. So who am I to ask God, "Why are you taking this away from me?" My life is not in shambles (though it feels like it); my life is still held together by the incredibly apparent, incredibly real hand of God.

Even taking this into account, I think it's human nature to feel as if we've been cheated. And what's worse than the feeling of being cheated, is the realization that you are the one who has cheated yourself; you are the one who has brought the pain upon your head. It's not a sad, dark and depressing thought, it's an honest realization: when you lose things in life, you often have only yourself to blame. I shouldn't be asking God "why?"—I should be thanking God for the blessings and learning to grow from the pain in the process. I heard it said to me this week that the way to love anything is to realize that someday, it might be lost. And what a life lesson that is! I know that I've already grown from this experience, as God taught me this week that instead of wallowing, to get up and do something about it. Instead of wondering why this had to happen, I chose to realize the events that caused it and promise to myself that I would never do those things again to any person in my life. I saw that I had caused the pain, but I also saw that I could, with God's guidance, create the solution.

I obviously want to gain back what I lost this week. But it's not in my hands, and I have to be okay with that. I have to start loving the things that I have, right now, as if they may be taken away or lost someday. I can truthfully say that I'm ready to do that. I see the work that God has begun in me, and He promises to bring it to completion. I trust in that. God, my family and my friends have been so comforting this past week, and I am thankful for every single one of them. I love them dearly.

But boy do I miss her.

Pictures of Life

2011-10-28T13:03:00.000-07:00

I was reminded by Grandma this week of my lack of blogs as of late. I have pondered over whether or not to apologize for not blogging in such a long time. On one hand, I feel the need to mention it because, well, I always apologize for making my loyal fans await posts. On the other, I've been so darn busy lately (this semester) that I feel that I have a legitimate excuse. So there, no apology. Anyways, I don't feel like writing anything (I don't feel like doing much after my seemingly endless homework is finished), but I will post a few pictures from my life as of recently. Enjoy!

Camping in August

I burnt the popcorn while camping

The Intervarsity Worship Team. I love playing drums with them
every Thursday!

Eating a burger with 2 patties, two eggs, 4 pieces
of bacon, three pieces of bun and al the veggies.

My girlfriend (yes, I have a gf now), Brittany and
I at the UofA vs NAU football game

Back in California with my friends to watch Darren play fb

In Point Loma to see Mark's sister play volleyball while in CA

Brittany and I at the top of Snowbowl in the Fall

Mark and I getting ready to see the Avett Bros in concert

The Man in the Glass

2011-08-06T20:47:00.000-07:00

Those of you who know me well know that up until a few months back, my dad has been a football coach. If you randomly ask me about my parents, I’ll most likely mention something about having been raised by a football coach for a father. Growing up, my dad being a football coach defined me (I thought it defined him too). I LOVED FOOTBALL. I was obsessed with football. I have always loved watching football, I loved playing football for the short time that I got to play it, and one day, I’ll probably love coaching it. Needless to say the game of football has had a big hand in shaping who I am today and continues to do so.

But bigger than the hand of football in my life has been my father and everything that he was and is about. This blog is not in response to those who have taken that title of ‘football coach’ from him or have tried to tarnish his name or diminish his passion for football. No, this post is for my dad. Dad, if you’re reading this, I love you and want to let you know, in written form, just how much you have taught me and how much I appreciate it.

From the age of five or so I have always been around high school football teams. Growing up, my favorite team, hands down, was the Rancho Verde Mustangs, the team my dad coached. I could tell you and still can to this day all of the stats; games won and lost, players names and numbers and so much more. When I started to play football at GOHS, I chose to wear #9 because my childhood heroes were stud tailbacks at Rancho who all wore #9 (Larry Ned, Damon Gayton, Kenny Stepter to name a few). I would go to any practice and workout I could, and attended every single game for years and years. I loved that team so much that the strongest bargaining power my mom held over me was the threat of not going to the game on Friday night if I got in trouble.

Hanging around high school football teams had several effects on me: for one, I knew football pretty well. This didn’t just end with stats; my knowledge included schemes, scenarios and techniques. I have seen more football and learned more football than most people will ever care to see or learn. But not only did all of the intricacies of the game intrigue me, but the methods of motivation did as well. As a young boy I heard countless quotes, speeches, songs and poems that I thought had everything to do with football and football only. I thought that the song “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins was written for pre-game locker rooms and hi-lite films; I thought that athletic tape was made for spatting your cleats, arms, hands and helmets; I thought that motivational poems were written for football players and football players only. One of these poems, “The Man in the Glass” goes like this:

When you get what you want in your struggle for self,

And the world makes you king for a day,

Go to the mirror and look at yourself,

And see what that guy has to say.

For it isn't your father, or mother, or wife,

Whose judgment upon you must pass.

The one whose verdict counts most in your life

Is the man you meet in the glass.

He's the one to please, never mind all the rest,

For he's with you right to the end.

And you've passed your most dangerous, and difficult test

If the man in the glass is your friend.

You may be like Jack Horner and Chisel-a-Plum,

And think you're a wonderful guy,

But the man in the glass says

You're only a bum if you can't look me in the eye.

You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years,

And get pats on the back as you pass,

But your only reward will be heartaches and tears

If you've cheated the man in the glass.

Yes, I did just type that from memory. Like I said, as a young kid (I memorized this poem in fourth grade), I thought that this poem was a football poem. Every single season, my dad, the football coach, gave this poem to every one of his players; it was printed in the weekly program, it was on every summer schedule flyer and it was on every end-of-the-season banquet booklet. If I memorized this poem, I thought, I would be a good football player someday.

Yes, this poem does have many applicable points to the game of football and sports in general: the person who knows everything about you is yourself and only you know if you give it your all on every play; you need to play so that you’re satisfied with your effort; your opponents and even teammates will never know if you take a play or rep off, only you will; if you cheat yourself, not even winning is going to satisfy you. These, among others, were the points that I thought my dad was teaching his team, the points that I thought I needed to embed in my very being. I used to think, “How cool that my dad is giving everyone this poem. He must really want them to work hard and be good players and a good team. Wow, he really wants to win.”

By the time I got to high school in 2005, I was ready to be the next stud tailback wearing #9 to play for Coach Stro. My goals were simple: to do what my childhood heroes had done and rush for 2000+ yards in a season and be that player that everyone remembered. I wanted to play so that I left an impact on younger kids like all the #9s did on me; I wanted to be someone’s hero. Even though I had never played one single snap of football in my entire life before high school, I was certain that I would be that player. How would I be this player? It was simple; I’d just do what it says in “The Man in the Glass”. I’d never take a practice rep off, I’d never stop training/working until I was satisfied, I’d refuse to be satisfied with anything less than the best and I’d work so hard and play so hard that I’d will our team to win and winning would satisfy me.

My high school football experience was NOTHING like what I just described. Sure, I wore #9 and was a decent tailback as a freshman as well as a good defensive and special teams player (I never left the field). As a sophomore I dressed for varsity games and scored a PAT in my first varsity game. In between my sophomore and junior year one of my childhood heroes (not one who wore 9, but 12 and 19) joined the GOHS coaching staff as the offensive coordinator. I changed positions from tailback to receiver because I thought that this would help the team more. After just three games as a junior, I got a concussion, the last of way too many, and my dad, the same person I had dreamed of playing football for all my life, told me he could never let me play football again. I was devastated to say the least. My dreams were crushed and for a little while, I thought that I had no purpose because everything I had thought about and worked for was no longer in my life. It took some persuasion from teammates, but I decided to come back for my senior season and hold PATs. Holding PATs is not football and I didn’t enjoy it for the most part (but I did at least get to spend time with my teammates, my dad and Gil so in hindsight, it was anything but a waste).

I accomplished NONE of my goals I set out to accomplish while playing high school football. I don’t remember how many touchdowns I scored, but it wasn’t what I thought I would. All of the yards from my carries and catches over the years probably didn’t add up to 2000 yards combined, and I had wanted to gain 2000+yards every season. My team didn’t win as much as I thought we would. I don’t think I was anyone’s hero and I don’t think anyone other than my brother will wear #9 at GOHS because of me.

By all my previous standards and goals, my football career was a failure.

Luckily though, as I progressed in high school and now in college, so did my understanding, interpretation and application of “The Man in the Glass”. By the time I was finished playing football, I realized that what I thought was all about football, was really about life. What my dad was teaching his teams all along, the points that he wanted his players to embed into their very beings were about life lessons, not just winning football games. Yes, the person who knows everything about you is yourself, but life is about more than giving it your all on the field; it’s about giving it your all in everything you do, and no one task is more important than the next. You need to do everything, not just play football so that you’re satisfied with your effort. If football is the only thing you’re satisfied with in life, you’re probably not satisfied with your life. If you cheat yourself, not even winning and success is going to satisfy you.

After maturing over the years, I came to realize that football and the wins associated it is not what defined my father. Being an educator and positive role model and instilling the ideals of “The Man in the Glass” into young men is what defines him. Now I think, “How cool that my dad has given everyone this poem throughout the years. He must really want them to work hard and be upstanding citizens. Wow, he really wants to help boys grow into men.” I didn’t always see the “Man in the Glass” this way, and there were some other players and coaches over the years who didn’t get it either. But there were some of us who did get it, who did turn into men, who understood the “Man in the Glass” and applied it to our lives and continue to do so. There are many of us who were effected greatly because of Coach Stro and his dedication to helping boys grow into men.

You see, by my young-self’s standards, my football career amounted to nothing. But by the standards of “The Man in the Glass,” my playing career was much more fulfilling and impactful that I could have ever dreamed. I learned how to work hard and never complain when life didn’t go as planned. I learned how to STAND TALL through trials and I learned that loyalty, integrity and perseverance translate to things greater than the football field. I learned all of this from my dad. From my coach.

For these reasons I hope that he does coach football again someday. Why? Not to show those who have tried to tarnish his name or diminish his passion for football that they’re just sad, confused souls. They don’t understand the “Man in the Glass” so trying to get back at them or reason with them is a useless task. No, I want my dad to coach again because high school football is about so much more than Xs and Os and I’m beginning to think that he’s one of the only people who knows that and has the capability of teaching the game of football the way it deserves to be taught.

Me, my dad, and my brother in 2009

In time we hate that which we often fear

2011-04-17T13:24:00.000-07:00

This semester I’m taking my second poetry class. What started as a tiny interest last January has turned into one of my main hobbies. I truly enjoy writing poetry and, as a side note, my professor, peers and friends say I'm not the worst poet they've ever read (score one for the good guys!). My professor, by any standards, is insane. She is the most scatter-brained, strange and deliberately unhinged person I’ve ever been around for any extended period of time. She is, however, a great workshop teacher and has improved my writing, not just poetry, tremendously. And if you really pay attention to her rants, there are always nuggets of gold dispersed in her little sayings and -isms.

One of the things she has said at the beginning of each semester I’ve taken her classes is this: “When I tell you that I want to know about you, I’m not asking for a birthplace and hometown or even a major. Those things don’t make who you are, today, right at this second. What I want to know, what makes you you right at this second is what you’re afraid of. What are you choosing to be afraid of right now?”

The way that my professor words that question really makes me think. I’m not really a fearful person, I never have been. I have a few strange phobias like nuns and large vaccination rooms. But my professor doesn’t wish to know those quirky and irrational fears. Instead of asking, “what are your fears” or “what are some strange phobias,” she instead asks, “What are you CHOOSING to be afraid of RIGHT NOW?”

WHAT YOU ARE CHOOSING TO BE AFRAID OF RIGHT NOW IS WHAT MAKES YOU WHO YOU ARE AT THIS VERY SECOND…

It’s interesting to realize that fear is a choice but it’s not necessarily constant. What I choose to be afraid of on a Monday is often different than what I’m going to choose on a Friday (i.e. On a Monday I may be afraid of my busy week and on a Friday I may be fearful that my weekend will be boring).

Until now, until really dissecting my professor’s question, fear has always been a stable thing in my life. What I’ve been afraid of really hasn’t changed much since I was a little kid. Sure, it has taken different forms throughout the years, but as a whole it has been constant. My fears have always centered on failure: as a little kid I had to be the best at everything, school and sports. Luckily for me, I always happened to be the best athlete on all of my sports teams and the smartest kid in all of my classes until about 4^th or 5^th grade. As an older kid, I had to prove to people that I was good at football and that I was still a good student. I was good at football for a little while and I kept my grades decent enough to portray the image that I was still smart. Now, I guess I’m afraid that I’ll fail at school (not that I’ll fail grades wise, but I’ll fail to see why God even wants me to go through school and what purpose RIGHT NOW holds to the future). How do I deal with this fear? My greatest defense mechanism has been to simply distract myself or to not even think about it. I don’t think about what would happen if I were to finally get into a classroom and actually not like teaching after all. I tell myself that I’m WAY too busy right now to think about how things could or couldn’t work out in the future. And so I don’t think about it.

Fear, at first, seems immovable and overwhelming. Yes, I mostly ignore my fears, but they are always there, always staring back at me. But, if I took this question to be true, if I believed that what I am afraid of is my CHOICE, then that changes my life. No, I’m not saying, “Fear is a choice, so choose not to be afraid!” That’s useless because there is no way to do that; everybody has fears, fears are natural and can even be good. What this means to me is that when I realize that fear is a choice, I am then able to see that fear does not have to be a bad thing. Fear can either paralyze you so much so that you are incapable of doing anything pertaining to your goals or it can, in fact, drive you to accomplish your goals.

If I realized what my fears are, and didn’t try to ignore or suppress them, then I think my true goals would become clearer on a daily basis.

What are my goals right now? Well, they have a lot to do with what I’m afraid of. My goal is to make it through college while being able to say that I have taken advantage of everything God has placed before me and that I have enjoyed everything I’ve been given. And so, the fear that I have of not having any purpose in college CAN actually drive me to search for a purpose or even realize what I have in front of me and find the purpose in what I already have been doing. It's confusing I know, but it makes sense to me.

I don’t want any of this writing to confuse or worry any of you. I’m not a lost college student “searching for meaning or my place in the world.” No, I only write this to help myself realize, to convince myself of all the great things I have been given. I pray that what I am choosing to be afraid of right now will help drive and motivate me to accomplish all that God has destined for me to accomplish. It would be really cool if all of you readers out there, whoever you are, would pray for the same for me and yourselves.

-Derrick

p.s. the title of this post is in fact a quote from Shakespeare, but no, I'm not that big of a literature nerd

Some good thoughts on writing...

2011-04-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

"To write is to live according to one's terms. If you ask me to be serious, I will be frivolous. Magnanimous? Petty. Cynical? I will be a brazen believer in all things. Whatever you demand I will not give you--unless it is with the misty hope that what I give you is not what you ask for but what you want."-Roger Rosenblatt

Anyways, that's just something that I wanted to share, more so that I can remember it because I think it's great.

MEXICO again

2011-03-20T10:06:00.000-07:00

So as many of you faithful readers probably know, I got the chance to go to San Carlos/Empalme/Fatima, Mexico on a mission and service trip for the second year in a row this past week. Once again, it was truly an amazing trip. God taught us and used us in ways that were so far beyond what we could have expected. I don't really feel like writing too much about the trip right now, but I will post a few favorite pictures for everyone to see and enjoy. I may or may not write at a later date about this trip, but as you can see from the pictures, it was such a great trip and experience.

How kind are my friends that they take pics of
me passed out on the bus ride down?

Mark, Emily and me playing worship at Pastor
Omar's church in Empalme.

Mark and I stuffing our faces with "HotDogs con todo"
after church. These hotdogs are filled with cheese, wrapped
in bacon, covered in chili, guacamole, salsa and mayo.
Yes it really is "todo" and then some.

All of us gringos challenged the local guys of Empalme to a
futbol game. They wanted to play for money but we decided
to play for the soccer ball. Guess who won?

They might have completely destroyed us, but I think all the
Mexicans were impressed with my white boy hops and over-
agressive goalie playing.

Em and Britt jump roping with a little chico.

one of the little homies of Empalme

A view of San Carlos from a hill close to the compound
that we stayed at.

Me and Joey are Gs. Seriously though, this high school kid
was really cool, I'm glad I got a chance to spend some time
with all the HS boys on the trip.

The Four Amigos sailing on a massive yacht in
the Sea of Cortes. And of course, I busted out my Mexican
tour guide character while at sea.

We were "muy sucio" after getting done with painting.

Yet more proof that I am extremely photogenic.

Painting the local pastor's house. Check out
those guns and that proper lunge
painting technique.

The heart of Elisha

2011-01-30T15:27:00.000-08:00

Last night I had the privilege of participating in an event on campus that was truly encouraging, one that I will not soon forget. The purpose of the event was to get every campus ministry and every local church college group together at one time and place for a night of worship and prayer. The Intervarsity worship team (an on campus ministry that I attend and play drums for) played the first set of worship, so I got the opportunity of playing drums for an extra long set of worship. Music-wise, it was incredible; I love playing with our team of musicians and servants. But as the event went on, it became about much more than just playing music. For three and a half hours, young Christians came together for one purpose: to worship our Lord and Savior and evoke a revival on the NAU campus and the city of Flagstaff. I have never experienced anything quite like this, as there were so many different types of people that were totally and completely like-minded. Not only did I enjoy the worship and prayer, but I also left the event with many thoughts to ponder. The name of the event was “The Heart of Elisha.” Now I had heard of Elisha, I know his story, but I had never put any thought into it.

Elisha was an Old Testament prophet from Abel Meholah in Gilead. He lived in the northern Kingdom of Israel during the reigns of Jehoram, Jehu, Jehoahaz and Jehoash. You may, just like me, know much more about Elisha’s teacher, Elijah, more than Elisha. But the story of Elisha is remarkable, and can be found in the books of first and second Kings. Elisha followed Elijah as his student for many years, and near the end of Elijah’s time, Elijah made it known to Elisha that he was going to be leaving him soon (the reason why many know of Elijah more than Elisha is because Elijah never actually died, but was ascended by God into Heaven).

An excerpt from 2 Kings 2:7-10 explains the story:

7 Fifty men from the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. 8 Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground. 9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. 10 “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise, it will not.”

Elijah was then taken up into heaven in a fiery chariot, and Elisha picked up Elijah's mantle, struck it on the waters of the Jordan River and said, "Where is the Lord the God of Elijah?" (2 Kings 2:14). The water then parted and Elisha crossed over, thus beginning his service as a prophet of God.

The organizer of the “Heart of Elisha” event focused on this idea of Elisha asking for a double portion. Elisha, like myself and all those who were in attendance last night, represents the next generation to rise up in the Kingdom of God. The fact that Elisha asks for a double portion is, at first glance, a bit brash. Does Elisha not know how great of a prophet Elijah was? But when I keep thinking about Elisha's request, it becomes encouraging and Elisha serves as an example to today’s next generation by essentially saying "go for it!" Last night’s speakers warned that this act of revival only comes when one asks for God to bless their efforts, and then follows through with action.

When Elisha asked for twice as much of Elijah's power, he was asking to be the one who would continue Elijah's work as a leader of prophets. Elisha desired to carry on the ministry of someone who was a faithful servant of God just as we (the youth) should be looking to carry on the ministry of our Godly elders. This request was similar to the Jewish custom in which the first-born son received a double portion of the father's inheritance. Elisha knew what he was called to do as the next generation, and he acted on it.

Elisha did not seek to out do Elijah for his own pride; Elisha wanted to do great things for God, and God granted Elisha's request. During his lifetime, Elisha did nearly twice as many miracles as Elijah! So why is it that most of us have barely heard of Elisha? After all, he not only received twice of Elijah’s portion from God, but he did twice as much as Elijah did. I am not a bible scholar by any means, but I would venture to say that this means that it doesn’t matter if anyone sees what we accomplish; what matters is that we, as the people of God, hear the call and follow obediently. Action is the obedient reaction to the call of God in our lives.

When we ask God for success, power, or ability, we should look closely at our motives. When our motive is to glorify and serve God, as was Elisha’s, he often answers in ways beyond our imagination. If the entire building filled of college students last night reacts with obedience for the purpose of glorifying God, I cannot even imagine the true revival that would sweep this campus and city. I’m certain that many in attendance last night are feeling excited and reenergized and ready to do God’s will on this campus and in this city, and I pray that their efforts are paired with the correct motives and an unwavering obedience.

(I tried to get someone to take videos of us playing but it was much too crowded and dark to even see anything. Sorry guys.)

Be a Man

2010-12-26T21:55:00.000-08:00

On the 13th of this month, at the very beginning of finals week, I turned twenty. Now birthdays have never been a big deal for me, and this one was no different; one year older is not that big of a deal, why do we need to celebrate survival skills anyway? However, I can now say that I am no longer a teenager.

So what am I now? I’ve never been real big into labels, but for the last eight years or so I’ve been called “young man.” When are people going to drop the ‘young’ part? Can I just go by “man” now? Or better yet, how about sir?

Regardless of what people call me (I really don’t care), I have entered a new stage of my life—a stage in which I will be confronted with what it means to be a man. There are a lot of voices that try to offer advice as to what a man is, all of them convinced that they have it all figured out. I have nothing figured out at this point, and so I resort to writing things down that catch my attention. Whether it seems like good advice or bad advice, I often write things down in my little quote book. I figured it might be a good idea to ponder a few of these quotes even further, and to write down what I feel about them and what they may mean to my future as a man.

“A man takes what he wants, he takes it all.”
Now here’s a doozie. This is classic machismo, be a man, be forceful, grunt-type advice. Whether scholastically, professionally or romantically, this quote is saying to be a go-getter without regard for anyone else. After all, nobody else matters besides yourself right? Right? No. The problem I have with this, among many, is that attitudes like this don’t work in the real world. I’m not saying that a man cannot take whatever he wants; I’m saying that it is, for one, against the law. Taking what you want can and often does involve coveting, theft, adultery and many other things that a real man would not partake in. I really think that there is a lot to be said for patience and not only being content with what you have but also using it to the best of your abilities. But sometimes I think that’s just me…

“A man should look for what is, and not for what he thinks should be.”
This quote has a lot to do with what I said in the commentary for the last one. Why are we so concerned with what we want things to be that we ignore what’s in front of us? Do we not slap God in the face when we covet things that aren’t ours? Are we not saying, “I’m not satisfied in You, God” when we allow ourselves to be consumed by possessions and circumstances? Is a real man concerned with always bettering his circumstances and his position or is he concerned with enjoying what’s in front of him? (Yes, I just strung four rhetorical questions in a row but this is not an essay so I doubt that I’ll lose any points.) I feel the need to expand here and will try to do that in minimal space: when I suggest that a man should be content with his life, I am not saying that he should not try to better himself. We should always be attempting to better ourselves, but with good intentions—with the intention to grow as a person, not to improve our position or circumstances. When life becomes about our own personal gain and circumstances, we choke out all opportunities for proper growth (I believe that it is only when we are content with our life and satisfied in God that we will experience any kind of relevant growth). On a side note, this quote was said by none other than Einstein himself; I suppose the guy knew more than just crazy complicated science.

“But the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude”
Have you ever met a hothead—somebody who gets mad at EVERY LITTLE THING? There are some guys who cannot be in a conversation without asserting their manhood, cannot play a game without cursing and cannot be in a relationship without being possessive. I have something to say to these guys: CALM DOWN! Seriously, this world has too many hotheads and not enough calm decision makers. To me, a man does not have to assert his manhood with athletic dominance, overly impressive stories or curse words. In public situations, in the midst of the crowd, a man is content in who he is. Do you see the pattern here? Contentment. The alpha-male, obnoxious, and over the top persona just doesn't impress me; and that's the point: who cares who you're impressing?

“God gave men both a penis and a brain, but unfortunately not enough blood supply to run both at the same time.”
I wrote this quote down in the notebook months ago probably because it was funny to me at the time. Upon reading it again, I laughed for a second time, gathered myself, then sighed. THIS IS TOO TRUE FOR TOO MANY GUYS! It’s no secret that guys are attracted to females, and that guys can often be controlled by sex. This is sad. This is real sad. What is even sadder is that the gift of sex, given to us by God, impacts things negatively more than it does positively. Sex is complicating, and so I’m not even going to begin to delve any deeper into it, but I do want to say one thing more: real men think, no matter what. The ‘no matter what’ part can involve sex, money, laziness etc. To me, a real man is not controlled by sex, and does not let sex complicate important decisions. A real man does not give into vices, is not controlled by any substances, and has no harmful addictions. There are no ifs and or buts about this issue; seriously guys, let’s get it under control.

“A man who doesn’t spend time with his family can never be a real man.”
I had to include this because it is one of many insightful quotes from my favorite movie, “The Godfather.” Family has been an essential part of my life and has truly shaped who I am. What I realize here when I read this is that if I am to be blessed with my own family someday, I want for my children to experience the same. I know that all of the circumstances will most likely be different, but I want my family to continue to be important; you spend so much time with your family, whether by force or choice, so why not learn from eachother? I would do anything for anyone in my family (this extends to both sides, and is meant with all sincerity. I love them all).

Not only am I curious as to what all of these quotes say a real man is, but I am also interested in what the world has to say about being a man. Not every voice is correct, nor is every voice worth following, but there is much to be heard and a man, if anything, is not above listening. I’m sure there are thousands of magazines with just as many articles about manhood to be read, but here are ten traits that real men have, according to askmen.com (This is the first list I came across, I added in my interpretation and thoughts after each listed trait).

Trait No. 1: A Real Man Is Strong
Are we talking physically? Emotionally? I agree that both are important, but again, there is too much emphasis put on the macho man persona and appearance. This also includes emotions; I’m not saying that a real man should be emotional, but he shouldn’t be completely shut off to the world (what I’m saying is a little vulnerability is okay). Strength is not demonstrated by how many weights you can throw around in a weight room nor is it measured by how long it’s been since you have cried.

Trait No. 2: A Real Man Is Focused
I absolutely agree. A real man does not allow himself to be distracted by things that are not distraction worthy. The tricky thing is deciding what exactly to remain focused on…

Trait No. 3: A Real Man Knows The Importance Of Family
As previously stated by The Godfather. Well done askmen.com, so far so good.

Trait No. 4: A Real Man Doesn't Gossip
Sorry men, but gossip is reserved for the ladies. Seriously though, this has to do with focusing on what is and not what could/should be. Besides, each of us has to worry about ourselves first, which is more than enough to keep us busy. In the 'Godfather'(yes I have another quote) Don Vito says that "Women and children can be careless, but not men." Now I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with women and children, but I truly believe that men should hold themselves to high standards. And the Godfather is absolutely right, a man cannot afford to be careless, whether with his actions or his words.

Trait No. 5: A Real Man's Word Is His Bond
This one was taught to me by my dad. If you say you are going to be somewhere at a certain time, then be there at that time. A man doesn’t need promises; a real man can be trusted by his word alone. In a world with a lot of talk and little dance, be a man who dances. Thanks dad.

Trait No. 6: A Real Man Strives To Be A Role Model
This is where it gets tricky for me. Do we live our lives to appear a certain way or do we simply live our lives a certain way? Put into other terms: do we live to appear to be righteous or do we live to actually be righteous? Certainly people will see how you live, and certainly we should be concerned with what they see. I guess what I’m getting at is that living to be a role model, or living as other people see us should not be our chief motivation. Also, the whole 'do as I say, not as I do' motto and mentality should be completely demolished. Think about it, how irresponsible is it to say such a thing?

Trait No. 7: A Real Man Makes His Own Fortune
I’m surprised that money has not been mentioned earlier in this list. Money is too big of an issue to completely ignore, as much as I would want to. Make enough money to support your family and give to the church without any concern for the ‘fortune’. That’s as much as I can really say about money because well, I have little experience and even less money.

Trait No. 8: A Real Man Doesn't Look Like A Woman
And now we get into looks…This is a good point though. God made men, and God made women. We are certainly different in emotions, chemical makeup and appearance and it should really stay that way.

Trait No. 9: A Real Man Keeps His House In Order
Another thing I have learned from my old man. This has a lot to do with being a good steward of what you have been given. While being scatterbrained and even a little bit unorganized isn’t seen as a big deal to many people, I truly value organization and order. Taking care of your things shows responsibility and thankfulness for all that you have been given.

Trait No. 10: A Real Man Can Defend Himself
This trait is undoubtedly referring to physical defense, but I see intellectual defense as being even more important here. Whether you could be successful in a fight or not is not a deciding factor of being a man, as least not to me. It may prove that you are a stud, but it does not make you a man. Instead, a real man is a critical thinker, and can defend himself verbally. There is a difference between being defensive, and being able to defend yourself (I cross this line often). A man should be quick witted enough to argue his viewpoints effectively enough if the time ever comes to do so but also reserved enough to not seek out opportunities to do so.

This list wasn’t as bad as I would have expected; there are actually a lot of good points. The question that I have is: to be a man, do you have to get all of this right? Is being a man yet another pursuit that is all or nothing? Are there some things that are more important than others when it comes to becoming a man? What does God have to say about being a man? We are, after all, made in God’s image so it would make sense that God knows a thing or two about becoming a real man.

Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy.-1 Corinthians 14:1
As men (women too) we are to desire the gifts of the spirit, not the gifts that the world wishes to offer. Is being a masculine man sinful? Is being physically strong or attractive sinful? Is earning money sinful? Is self-defense sinful? The answer to all of these is an obvious no; none of these are bad things. They only become bad things when we eagerly desire them over the gifts of the spirit.

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.-Colossians 3:16
The point in this verse is very similar: it is the message of Christ that should dwell in a real man. It is the message of Christ that should be our motivation in virtuous pursuits.

After analyzing all of my sources and experiences throughout my life, I have come to one singular conclusion: it is all about your priorities! In order to be a real man, whatever that means to you or those around you, your priorities will line up with what matters.

There are a lot of things that I will be faced with and have already been faced with that I don’t want to do. But perseverance is a necessity too. I feel like half of me doesn’t want to grow up and the other half cannot wait until I am much, much older. But that’s life—conflicted.

All of the things I have written here are obviously not written from experience, but from observation. It would be an understatement to say that I have had some amazing men to learn from: my father, two grandfathers, youth leaders and teachers. I feel that my best tool that I have at my disposal is observation and imitation.

For now, I’m working on getting my priorities in line and not whining along the way. We'll see how this goes...

The theme song to my life: 'Walk the Line'

2010-10-27T18:56:00.000-07:00

Thoughts from and branched off from a discussion with the Intervarsity worship team Bible study last night:

"1Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. 3But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. 4Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7Therefore do not be partners with them."
-Galatians 5:1-7

As you can see, we have been studying Galatians in our bible study for the last month. While the Apostle Paul is always convicting, this set of verses hit home pretty hard, harder than usual. The fact that there must not be even a HINT of immorality is a detail that if I can be honest, scares me at first. I am clearly not perfect, but I try to live my life as a testament to Christ's love and if I can be honest again, I usually succeed to those looking on in my life. I have become proficient at holding the kinds of commands that people will notice right away: I usually control my tongue, I do not sleep around and I respect girls, I don't get drunk or high and I usually treat people the way Christ does. When people see these deeds (I'm trying not to write with a sense of pride or arrogance here; I promise this has a better purpose then to merely brag), they see me as a good person, as a follower of Christ. While I most certainly do want everyone to view me this way, I can't help but think I've been fooling people. I can fool people with my outward deeds and they will never know what has truly been going on in my heart. By all standards, people are easy to fool.

But, as Paul writes, any sort of immorality, seen or unseen, (unseen in my case), is enough for a person to not have any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God. Needless to say, God cannot be fooled by us and is not fooled by us. This is the part that scares me. You see, I can try so hard to be a light to those around me and be encouraging, and even succeed, but still harbor horrible thoughts and impurities inside of me. Paul's words here are, I think, meant to evoke this very emotion.

When writing to the Ephesians, Paul has to qualify and list everything he says, as if the Ephesians have been trying to push the envelope, walk the thin line if you will. What I have been taught by this set of seven verses above is that there is not toleration for sin in a Christian's life (we're talking about habitual sin here). Paul says in another one of his books, Colossians, to "5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry" (Colossians 3:5). These sets of verses makes it pretty clear to me that the deeds of the flesh, even if only in my mind, must be gotten rid of. There is no walking on a line. We as Christians should be AS FAR FROM THE LINE AS WE CAN GET when it comes to following Jesus.

John Piper continues on Paul's thought in Colossians 3:5 in his book "When I Don't Desire God: How to Fight for Joy":
"Yes, there is a mean, violent streak in the true Christian life! But violence against whom, or what? Not other people!...It's violence against all the impulses in our own selves that would make peace with our own sin and settle in with a peacetime mentality. It's a violence against all lust in ourselves and all enslaving desires for food or sugar or chocolate or alcohol or pornography or money or the praise of men and the approval of others or power or fame. It's a violence against the impulses in our own soul toward racism and sluggish indifference to injustice and poverty and abortion. Christianity is not a settle-in-and-live-at-peace-with-this-world-the-way-it-is kind of religion. When Jesus said, "the Truth will set you free" (John 8:32), he didn't mean without a battle. He meant that truth would win the war of liberation in the soul. Christianity is a war. It is a declaration of all-out combat against our own sinful impulses...To become [and be] a Christian is to wake up to the reality that our soul is at stake. Therefore, Christianity is mortal combat for true and lasting joy."

I am bothered by is this idea of being unstained from the world because well, I don't do it. I don't hate the world so much that I try to keep it from affecting me. More often I try to indulge in as much of it as I can without crossing this imagined line into sin. I like the world, and as I grow older and familiarity grows too I learn to like it more and more. As I do so the imagined line into sin gets blury, then faint, and then it disappears. This is a clearly dangerous pattern.

How then, are we supposed to not have even a HINT of immorality? Paul answers that question before he even asks it. Ephesians 5 starts with what we are seeking: "1Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." Christ is our example of how to imitate God, and how to as a result, live without a HINT of impurity. Christ's intentions in coming to this earth, living perfectly, and dying for our sins were perfect. Our intentions, in loving each other and living for Christ must then, be the same. With perfect and loving intentions, we will no longer attempt to justify clearly impure actions; we will no longer try to walk along this imaginary line because we want people to view us a certain way. We will, with pure and perfect intentions, walk as far from the line as we can in our pursuit of Jesus.

Johnny Cash says to 'Walk the Line'. I like Johnny Cash and I like his music, but I'm choosing to listen to what Paul is saying: 'Stay away from that line you fools.'

a retrospective

2010-08-10T14:15:00.000-07:00

About one year ago I posted this on this very blog:

this is how i feel:

i want to rewind and go back in time. not because i'm scared to move on, i'm stoked about what's ahead of me. and i don't want to go back in time and stay there. i simply want to enjoy some of the great moments of this last year, it was that good

If i can say the same a year from now then freshman year will be a success

Can I say that? Not exactly. Then was this last year not as good as I had hoped? No, this last year was better. More firsts happened this last year than I could have ever expected. These firsts include but are not limited to: basically moving out, first roommate, first great roommate and friend, first college class, surviving my first blizzard(and second for that matter), fisrt dean's list, first time getting screwed over in a class, first aced final, first driving ticket, first music gig, first time leading a worship team, first short term mission trip, first time choosing my church, first job not titled "Rubios". The list goes on.

The reason why I can't and don't want to restate that statement is because I am more than stoked to move on. The past has been amazing but I'm going full speed ahead without any intention of hitting the brakes and reversing. Freshman year was better than could be expected and I hope I can say the same about sophmore year and all the years to follow. I hope and expect that this next year will hold many other firsts in store.

Hi my name's Derrick, and I'm brutally blunt

2010-07-05T22:49:00.000-07:00

It seems like many of my posts begin with me saying “well it’s been quite awhile since I’ve written anything so I might as well.” Consider the previous sentence as just that.

Now to business: I figured I was going to try to write something meaningful. Not to say that it’s going to mean anything to anyone else, it’s just that these thoughts soon to be displayed here seem to have a bit more substance than the usual stuff. I do hope that it is meaningful though, not because of me, but because of content.

Ready, go!

I was talking to one of my friends who came out to California this past week for the Resolved Conference. It’s really a long story as to how we found out about the conference and then decided to go, but I guess the most important thing to relay here is that this conference featured some of the most biblically-sound, passionate and well known preaching I have ever heard. I felt so blessed to have been there to hear the outstanding preaching. However, I walked in the door, enjoyed the worship and preaching, walked out, gave it some thought and then that was that. Over. My friend however, seemed to have a different experience. In our discussions every night after the sessions, it became apparent to me that ‘this person’ had not been as privileged as I was growing up and wasn’t exposed to sound, biblical teaching as I was. I don’t say that as if I am at any kind of advantage because of this persay, but it has been evident that I have a foundation(because of others, not me) that some students don’t. It seemed that ‘this person’ was so on fire for God and so anxious to learn from bible teachers that when they went away to school and became involved in a bible study and ministry, they didn’t question the teaching that they were receiving. Eagerness took the place of discernment. I know that sounds so weird to hear that and even for me to say that but just wait for me to attempt to explain before you excommunicate me.

One of the mornings of the conference the first speaker was John MacArthur. If you don’t know who he is I would highly recommend you google him, youtube him, read one of his books or do whatever it is you do (the man is a stud). The very first thing he said when he got up on the stage was something like this (probably not word for word but whatever), “You should question EVERYTHING I say. You should question EVERYTHING that anyone on this stage says. You should just question EVERYTHING anyone says.”

What I see now-a-days is such an anxious want and hunger for the truth that it’s often blind. And this bothers me.

* I need to take this opportunity before I go any further on that thought to say that this is ABSOLUTELY no dig or blow on ‘this person’ or anyone else who personifies this. And it is also not an intended dig on any ministry I have or have not been discontent with in the recent months. Really, it’s not, I promise. And truth be told, I envy ‘this person’s’ passion and on-fired-ness right now and will do anything to be a good friend and try to direct that passion as much as I can.*

Back to the matter at hand…Question everything you hear! Now here is my attempt to clarify so I don't make myself out to sound like a smart know-it-all; question all sources of advice and teaching and influence. I am not an anarchist, nor a conspirator nor much of a post-modern evangelical thinker, so clearly I'm not trying to stir up any controversy or decension amongst believers. I'm just saying, once again, to question what enters your ears by holding it up to the Bible. Whether it’s from a youth pastor, a teacher, parent or John MacArthur. That to me has become such a vital part of college life, especially when it comes down to choosing which ministries I do and don’t want to become involved deeper with. I question everything I hear and said more clearly and truthfully, I hold it up to the Bible and examine it for ALL it is worth. More often than not I voice my questions, and I’m not usually nice. I’m really not. I tell it like it is; sometimes that’s a great trait to have and sometimes it makes quick enemies. I pray that it will more often be the first one.

In my few experiences of voicing my opinions, I have come across as a negative hypocrite,know-it-all and whatever else (you fill in the blank). This was, is and never will be my intent. When it comes down to it, I’m a 19 and a half year old kid/adult/student/still-trying-to-figure-things-out-don’t-pretend-to-know-everything-nor-do-I-want-to-know-everything-guy. The only way I know how to judge and discern a ministry is to be critical and hold it up right next to the bible and do a side by side comparison; see how it lines up. Regardless of how entertaining a preacher/pastor/speaker can be and no matter how much earthly wisdom and wit he appears to have, there is absolutely nothing they can say that will impact my life more than the true and living word of God itself (the Bible). There is no popular or fashionable or catchy ministry or movement that could catch my attention more than the Bible, or promote the absolute truth for that matter. The Bible is what I base my questions off of and what I try to live my life by (often failing). My point in writing all of this is to say exactly what John MacArthur said. By all means, be passionate, by all means be on fire and by all means even be anxious; just don’t let that get in the way of you seeking TRUTH. As any college student is able, I write from experience no doubt. Being an education major at a public, secular and liberal university, I meet so many people who have tried to convey that they have the secrets and try to get you to see what they see by simply being strong witted and well spoken. NOTHING transforms lives like the Word and Love of God.

So, you’re trying to find a ministry to get involved with? Which one is right? (Go to the Bible).
You think you like so-and-so and want to know if they’re right for you? (Go to the Bible).
Choosing a school? (Go to the Bible).

Now there are not direct passages in the Bible titled "Jesus' thoughts on dating" or "Finding a School" or "How do I know which ministry is best".

I cannot say that there are direct answers to your questions, but I can tell you that if you read the Bible consistantly, and go to it's wisdom, not the world's wisdom, these choices do become more clear. To find a ministry that follows the Bible word for word, then guess what: GO TO THE BIBLE! Line it up side by side and use your head. When you put your faith and dependence on the solid word of God the HUGE decicions lessen. Maybe they don't become small, maybe they only shrink down to BIG decisions. And don't misunderstand me here, I am not a proponent whatsoever of the 'prosperity gospel' which more or less declares that everything will be fresh roses and amazing with Jesus. That is not the gospel. All I am urging you here is to put your decisions and trust in the only true word and wisdom of God (the Bible), then tell me what happens.

I could go on for a long time but I don’t think I need to. The point is obvious. Don’t live your life with a blindfold on. Pick up a bible, open it, read it, think about it and repeat. Don't take things for face value, ask questions. Find somebody who embodies what the Bible says and is willing to spend time with you as you mull over it. Find a ministry that does the same. I don’t make guarantees, I’m not God, but like I’ve said, nothing transforms lives like the word of God. It is continually working on me, despite my screw-ups and blatant flaws. I hope that you can say the same or maybe someday soon you will.

“For we walk by faith and not by sight, and faith will stagger if the authority of divine scriptures wavers." -Augustine

double X chromosomes=trouble

2010-04-28T19:49:00.000-07:00

As any other blog, I run the risk of sounding whiny and miserable, but just to preface the following blog, I do have that right do I not? This is my blog is it not? Oh it is? Very well then.

Just kidding. But seriously don't take this as a discouraged post, but rather as a complaint.

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

College.
College girls.
Ugh.

Yes, that's where that line of thought ends, at "ugh". No not all situations are or have been "ugh" worthy but overall, I'd say that my experience with college girls is a genuine "ugh".

Here's my short and humble list of 'complaints' of the opposite sex right now in my life:

Girls, you don't need to dress like a _ _ _ _ to get attention from guys. Sure, you get attention all right, but not from anyone respectable. Respectable guys go for respectable girls, not girls who decide that they're too good for clothes the second it's hotter than 60 degrees. I do realize that half the problem here is us guys who don't present a united front. Half of us are creepers who encourage scantily clad girls to frollick about the open fields in nothing but booty shorts and a bra and the other half of us are too shy or quiet too speak up. Well now I'm speaking up. At times it may seem like you won't get any attention from a guy if you don't catch his eye with what you wear but this isn't true. Like I said respectable guys appreciate modesty; you have no idea how much we appreciate it in fact. It's like the girl who decides to wait to have sex until marriage: at the time, the sketchy guys you're denying wont appreciate or understand it, but when you get married you have no idea how much it will mean to your husband that you waited. You have no idea how awesome it is to see an attractive girl who dresses modestly.

Girls these days, christian and non-christian, are desperate for the attention. I'm not talking like the drama queen and weird girl type, I'm talking about regular hunger for attention. All of us as humans want attention, it's only natural, but it seems like there's so many of us that will go to extreme lengths to capture the attention of someone in particular. If that person is to like you as a friend or possibly more, shouldn't they like you for who you really are, not for the facade you put on whenever you're walking by? I've heard many christian girls say this quote when talking about becoming interested in a guy: "A girl should get so lost in God that a guy has to seek God to find her." This makes a lot of sense to me but I don't know if I've ever truly seen this done by any couple I know of. Girls: truly get lost in God, truly experience and establish a deep relationship with Him, truly develop your personality and the things that make you the special person that you are. Don't get lost in trying to impress a guy, don't try to establish a relationship with someone based on an act you're putting on, and don't care about what anyone is thinking while you are developing your personality and special traits. One of the most attractive qualities and desirable traits in both an interest and a friend is her confidence. There is nothing much more attractive than a girl who is truly in love with God and serves him with all that she has and is confident in who she is. This idea carries on in so many areas; tattoos, hair colors and cuts, school work (please tell me that none of you play dumb to get a guy's attention), fake tans and other modifications, jobs. Don't do any of that to impress anyone, do it for you. You don't need to give reasons for the things that you do -- you just have to do what you want (within reason and your liberites as a christian), especially as a young college student.

I do not say this because I don't have an interest at the moment, or am upset about myself being single. I love being in The League of Singlicity , I do not feel bad for myself. I say this because I would like to see attitudes like these changed and would love nothing more that to see my female friends and acquaintances and just all young girls in general stop doing things to impress guys and be genuine. We need more REAL people in the world. Don't do stuff to catch our eye, really we're not that cool, sorry. (Although I do find it amusing that someday there may very well be a girl who truly does think I am that cool. And what a day that will be.) I do however say this with the though in mind that I would love to become involved with a girl who embodies everything I just said. Someday, maybe.

p.s. If you didn't figure it out by now, the title alludes to the only part of AP Bio I can remember; boys have XY chromosomes and girls have XX chromosomes. Creative I know...

David Crowder Band in Flag!!!

2010-04-13T16:29:00.000-07:00

Last night The David Crowder Band came to the Orpheum here in the FLG and we were most definitely there for a night of amazing music and worship.

The Orpheum in downtown Flagstaff

The Group

David Crowder is a MAN

We got a pic with him too

the intro to "No One Like You"

The Official Seal of Team Strosteyn

2010-04-02T13:00:00.001-07:00

We made a team so we figured that we needed a logo/seal...

SPRING BREAK IN MEXICO-and it's not what you think...

2010-03-22T20:28:00.000-07:00

I feel very blessed to have gotten plugged in with a great church here in Flag (Flagstaff Christian Fellowship). The people here are amazing and so genuine including the college group. When I heard about the opportunity to go to Mexico on a mission trip over spring break with a high school and college group I didn't know what to think. So much of me wanted to just go home and see friends and family that I miss alot, but part of me was intrigued. Mexico for spring break? Yea that fits in well with the college student stereotype. We (my roommate Mark and I) decided to go and so did one of our best friends Kathy. I honestly didn't know what to expect. Were we going to do the whole door to door evangelism? Orphanage? Sunburn? Tacos?

Free of booze, an abundance of Christ present, and too many memories to count made for an amazing trip! What we ended up accomplishing was far beyond my ideas or expectations but then again, that how God works.

Here are some pics of where we stayed at (we called it the compound but it really wasn't anything close to that). It was really our own little oasis in the middle of the Sonoran desert. The people who owned it were amazing as was the food. And the beds were the most comfortable thing I've ever slept on (I'm not too happy to return to the dorm bed).

One of the first things you notice when you go to an area that was hit by a hurricane is obviously, the desctruction. But where we were serving (Empalme), the neighboring city to where we stayed (San Carlos), was hit even harder than the surrounding areas becasue it is basically a flood plain. Yes, families were living in what looks like a dry river bed because this land is cheap enough for them to afford. So when the hurricane's 36 inches of rain water in 30 hours came, Empalme flooded up to five feet in many areas. But it wasn't a stagnant flood, from what we were told it was a flowing flood. This alone can cause mass destruction, but the area had to also deal with the winds. Needless to say Empalme was destroyed. A team from our church was sent down just following the hurricane for immediate relief but there was still much to be improved by the time we got down there a week ago, seven months later. We found ourselves driving by lots that appeared to be a trash dump of sorts and say "There's no way somebody lives there." Sure enough, people DID live there, often entire families living amongst rubble.

Our tasks for the week included manly things such as building houses, relocatting washed up soil, and cleaning out backyards to the more gentle tasks like painting houses, buildings and rooms, handing out food to families, washing little girls hair and doing their nails and playing with all the local ninos. I really enjoyed the brute type work like moving the dirt and pounding the nails. The people whose houses we worked on were so grateful. I really have never seen gratitude quite like this. These tasks at times seemed like they really weren't enough as there so many needs all at once. But these people didn't look at it that way; to them these minor things getting fixed and built represented a love from other people that they didn't often see and were a part of what could return life to normal (whatever that means in Empalme,Mexico).

As I had hoped, we got to interact with the local ninos. This was one of my favorite things of the entire trip. One day I got to play a game of american football with them. They didn't quite understand it but they loved it. And the next day one of the kids brought out his soccer ball and schooled us in the other futbol. These kids could seriously have fun doing basically anything. Where did I lose that kind of creativity? The thing that they liked to do the most was to have us big gringos swing them around. NONSTOP. These kids wouldn't give Mark or I a break. But it was really fun and rewarding to just hangout with these ninos.

Our team definitely worked really hard everyday. But the cool thing about this trip is that after everyday of work we got to relax on the beach for an hour or two. And after the last day of work we went to the beach again and enjoyed some frisbee, a boat ride and a bonfire with worship music. And let me not forget about our photo-shoot on the beach. Mark had a nice camera with him I just started bustin some amazing poses. Oh, and we also decided that Team Strosteyn(mine and Mark's team combining our last names Strosnider and Weststeyn), is going to send out a christmas card to our closest friends and family this year. And let me tell you, our picture is amazing! You'll just have to wait until we mail it because they're too good to post on here. But here's some other pics for you to enjoy.

Who knew I was so photogenic?

This trip was truly amazing, a great introduction to short term missions for me. I wish I could go back now, and cannot wait for next year's return trip. Until then I will be praying for God's hand to continue to work down in Mexico...

Welcome to Manhood

2010-02-27T17:17:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I went home to the central valley of california (Visalia) with my roommate. And apparently I'm a man now because I have shot a gun. It was pretty cool actually. Here's some pics of the madness:

Aubrey shooting the .223

yes Mark does look very hick here. haha

me and the .223

shooting skeet. i think i actually hit that one

such is the life of this college student

2010-02-08T14:04:00.000-08:00

So I just logged onto this thing thinking that I was going to write something new because afterall, I haven't wrote on here in awhile. But lo and behold, I have nothing to say. I guess when you're forced to write and write endlessly for different classes there's just nothing left in the brain when you're all said and done. And that's what college does to you, it drains you; mentally and physically. Because when my four years here are done, and I am handed my degree, all it's about is that I showed the propensity to make it through while doing my best and keeping my sanity. That's why they make college so rigorous, so that when I'm in an interview for my career they have proof that I will not crack under the pressure. The reality is that not everything I'm "learning" is actually being learned; it's alot of regurgitation and doing what you have to do to get by. And when I say get by I don't just mean get by, I mean get by doing what you see as either your best work or something you can live with. Most of the time I try to make it my best but let's just be honest, some of this stuff you just have to regurgitate to get by. That's just the nature of the beast. Until next time...

Snow Pics

2010-01-27T10:29:00.000-08:00

Some pics of snowy Flag for you to enjoy

SNOW

2010-01-22T13:14:00.000-08:00

Flagstaff is just getting dumped with snow. We've already got close to five feet and are supposed to get about two more. No school the last two days. Pretty much every flat roofed building in Flag is either in danger of caving in or already has. Flagstaff is an official emergency zone. So what do we do? Go sledding of course :)

One of the biggest issues in college...

2009-11-07T23:24:00.000-08:00

One of the most popular, most talked about and in my view, most damaging past times of college students is smoking weed. Getting high. Rollin the doobies. I realize that everyone who is going to read this blog doesn't need to hear and doesn't want to read any of this, but I'm quite bored right now, and this issue has come up alot lately.

Nobody sees smoking weed as a bad thing. At least nobody at a college. Everybody does it, christians included. And this bothers me. I've been asked alot about my decision to not get high and even questioned why it is bad to do. The following is my response to those who ask why I don't smoke weed, and even the few who ask where in the bible is says that it's sinful:

When the Bible talks about drugs, it does not address the word marijuana specifically, but it does discuss other mind-altering drugs.
One verse commonly quoted on this is Galatians 5:19-21,
“Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Yes in here it does not say drugs but the Latin and Greek translation for sorcery is “pharmacy” which makes it a “mind altering drug reference”. While this may be open to individual interpretation here (and trust me everyone has their own opinions), I would challenge you to ask yourself if you do in fact take the bible seriously. If so, then keep reading. If not, you may as well stop here because nothing I could say would convince you to stop smoking weed.

Drunkenness is mentioned, which in my view, is a parallel and the same advice and commands should be applied.

The Bible mentions alcohol much more frequently and the same ideals can be applied to both. In biblical times, there was no hard liquor, just wine and beer. And as you know the Bible has much to say about people who used wine to get drunk.

“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” -Ephesians 5:18

Does marijuana get you intoxicated in the same fashion? Well I don’t technically know from experience. But I do believe that the answer is yes. What I’ve come to understand in my short time at college is that while someone uses marijuana, they are clearly legally intoxicated and incapable of clear thinking and reasonable reactions. Do you have a pure mind while high? If we are made by our creator to glorify Him in all we do is is even remotely possible to do that while not in your right mind?

Being intoxicated is clearly condemned in scripture. This is why drugs or anything else used to escape and get high, or is an addictive substance, is against the commands of scripture and thus viewed as inappropriate for Christian participation.

Besides the moral question, there is also the legal question. While we are indeed justified by grace and therefore not technically under the law, we are called to obey it. We as Christians are commanded by several bible verses to be in subjection to governing authorities and submit to every human institution that is put in place.

“Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.” Romans 13:1-2

Now if marijuana were to become legal then this argument could be thrown out, but until then, we are clearly called to obey the authority we have been put under.

I have heard an argument that everything God created is good, and that this includes hemp. My response would be that everything God created is good, but all these good things can be turned into evil. Take sex for example. Sex is most definitely a good thing, but only within marriage; it is turned into adultery, and that is evil. Sex was created by God for good, but not all that men do with it is good. Poisonous mushrooms are good for breaking down dead wood and science things like that, but they are unarguably bad for eating. My argument would be that hemp is good for making rope and other things, but bad for smoking.

If you still believe that it is up to individual interpretation, and “to each his own”, just make sure you keep this verse in mind:
"Everything is permissible for me"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"--but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1 Corinthians 6:12

I read awhile ago in Tyler Andersen's blog a really cool story that I think applies well to this issue. Ty, if for some crazy reason you're reading this, consider this my citation and cred to you:

The story involves DL Moody(founder of Moody bible college and preacher) and C.H. Spurgeon(another famous preacher). Both men were famous Evangelists in the late 19th century. Mr. Moody from the US, and Spurgeon from the UK. On multiple occasions their paths crossed as they had evangelical crusades on either side of the pond. They were life long friends and corresponded frequently.

The story goes that the two men were walking together down a street, when Spurgeon lit of a cigar. He was well known for being an eloquent speaker and his cigar chomping ways, as Moody was known for his eloquent speaking and rotund midsection. As he lit the cigar Mr. Moody asked, "When am I going to be able to get you to quit those."

Spurgeon responded, "As soon as I get you to stop over-eating."

This showed that neither man was perfect, but had his own particular vice. Shamefully it also rang true for us because it appealed to the "don't judge me and I won't judge you mentality" that we as a society are so keen on. Mr. Moody showed disapproval and Surgeon wittily sent some disapproval right back.

I hear the most popular quoted Scripture these days is "judge not, lest you be judged." Who is anyone to tell me how to live my life?! The western, democratic idea of independence wins the day. This story screamed that principle and made us feel like we were free to judge ourselves and do our work, and each man's particular proclivity was his own. Black and white became grey and "if it doesn't hurt anyone..." became the great justifier of any indiscretion.

Then I heard another story. Spurgeon is back in England this time and he is all by himself. Mr. Moody is off on some evangelical mission or starting a school or whatever else. So he's not in the picture on this one. Spurgeon goes into a cigar shop to pick up his favorite jaw cancer stick when he sees that they are advertised with his name attached. "The same cigars Spurgeon smokes while he preaches" proclaimed the ad.

Spurgeon was shocked. While he never believed smoking cigars to be sin (and this writer would agree) he did not expect that they would be attached to his personality. His life became (unbenounced to him) a ringing endorsement of cigar smoking, and worse yet of smoking a particular brand. He was the posterboy, the Marlboro man of jolly England. And that he could not stand.

According to the wives' tale he quit smoking then and there.

See the issue wasn't that smoking was bad. It was an issue with what was he endorsing and what was he known for. Mr. Moody and Spurgeon would fit the moniker I like to ascribe to myself, they were Raging Evangelicals. Their whole life was about the Gospel. Their lives had been changed by the saving work of Christ, so they made it their life's mission to share the hope of Christ with the world and see many come to repentance and faith in their Lord and Savior Christ Jesus.

Neither man was interested in making people act Christianly in a social sense. They wanted people to be transformed by Christ.

As much as they didn't want to be known for social issues of the day, they didn't want to be known for worldly habits either. Their identity was in Christ, not in worldly pleasures. Spurgeon did not want to be a posterboy for cigars, he was a minister of the Gospel.

As much of the Bible warns each of us not to judge (well... judge faultily, judging sin and declaring sin as such is very much a part of Christianity) it also warns against causing another brother to stumble. It would be better to tie a millstone around your neck and jump into deep water than to lead another Christian to stumble into sin, to be an endorser of a practice that violates another man's conscience. Spurgeon knew this. So he quit smoking. Not because it was sin but because he knew by smoking he was endorsing an act that would violate another man's conscience.

I have thought in great depth about liberties and restrictions as a Christian man. It's practically required of any person who desires to serve Christ but wants to enjoy the life he's been given here on earth. I've heard all kinds of arguments about liberties and our rights as those freed from sin by Christ. A lot of these arguments are compelling and made by people far smarter than I. Some of them are made by well intentioned people trying to serve Christ and live in His grace, and some are trying to stamp "liberty" on every activity that seems amusing to them at the time.

I know my identity is in Christ. That I am righteous because of the work He did on the cross and not because of anything I have done. I know my liberties. But I also know I cannot rub those liberties in anyone's face. My heart is to bring the Gospel to people. I am not evangelist about exercising "rights", I am an evangelist for the Gospel of Christ that frees those who are imprisoned to sin, guilt, and death. I want to be known for the Gospel that has saved me, not for my slick argumentation for my rights.

Did Spurgeon have a right to keep smoking? Certainly. But he gave up that right so he wouldn't make anyone else stumble. He gave it up to be a better minister of the Gospel. He gave it up because he had the liberty to do so! He didn't have to smoke. He could easily give it up because his identity wasn't in the gratification of his own desires, but in Christ who saved Him.

I write all of this not to say “See, here…” but because this issue is effecting many people I know and care about. I do not wish to persuade, but only create a line of thought. It's becoming a bit of an epidemic amongst young christians who think it's harmless. If you are one of those people, look into the bible to see what it says on the issue for yourself and I talk to people you respect. They may respond with much of what I just wrote. As much as you may want to ignore them and call them over-analytical,uptight, religious radicals (I would consider this title a compliment), just listen to what they have to say. Think about it and let me know if you want to talk about it or debate it or whatever. I plan on sharing this with anyone else who asks or has already asked.

Ok, now I'll get off my soap box...

Some Cool Pics from the last few weeks...

2009-11-02T20:36:00.000-08:00

CAMPING!

Home Football game. Intense war paint!

snow in october, this is how i know i'm not in california anymore...

Halloween: Wayne's World, party time, excellent!

Hello Old Friends

2009-10-06T13:47:00.000-07:00

So it's been over a month since I've posted anything new on this thing. And suprisingly, it's not because I haven't had time. I just haven't had anything to say or write about, which is even more suprising.

College is hard, but not ridiculously hard. When I was getting ready to finish high school, I was really worried about the difficulty of college courses. And now it's just not that big of a deal. Don't get me wrong, it is ALOT of work, but somehow I'm managing.

I guess I shouldn't say "somehow". I know why I'm managing. Everything about the college process has just fell into place so far. And that's not me, that's God working in my life. When I decided on my choice of college, there was really no obvious and distinct reason as to why I chose NAU. I mean, I loved the campus and everything, but it was honestly kind of random. Same thing with my choice of major. I just made those decisions and moved on, without any real intense decision process.

And yet, everything has just fell into place. I have an awesome, godly roommate. I've met some really cool people who share the same beliefs and interests. I've also met some people who God has given me the opportunity to minister and care for. Up here in Flagstaff I've had the opportunity to live out what I believe. Everything has truly fallen into place.

I just want to say that it's really cool to feel like you are in the place God wants you to be. This has been the first time for me living on my own in a sense, and I know I've just began, so maybe I'm a bit naiive, but I'm really liking where everything is going.

This doesn't mean that I don't miss home. I miss home alot. I miss my loving family. I miss my awesome friends(the crew). I miss serving in jr high and all my fellow servants and jr highers. I miss all of those blessings imensely, but I feel that I've been given equally amazing blessings here, and I plan on taking advantage of all of them. Until next time(hopefully not another month)...

P.S. It's already getting pretty cold. Snow soon, which means SNOWBOARDING SOON!!!

for your viewing enjoyment...

2009-09-01T11:45:00.000-07:00

a couple videos to show u what slide rock is like

This aint Animal House

2009-08-27T11:17:00.000-07:00

So I got some time between classes here on Thursday and I've already got all my work done becuase I've been suprisingly on top of my readings and work. It's crazy. So now I have time to write.

College has to be the most bittersweet experience ever. Ok that may be a slight exaggeration; at least starting as a freshman has been the most bittersweet experience of my short life so far. I can’t remember ever being as excited as I was in the weeks leading up to leaving home. And I can’t remember ever being as unsure of my future as I am now. Those two emotions, sitting inside of me, stirring together, are something that I’m not used to dealing with. Not that I’m not capable of adjusting, I feel that I’ve already done a decent job of adjusting to college life already, and I know I can continue this feat. It’s just that these experiences, as to be expected, are completely new. And as a result, so are the strategies and activities I do to deal with and conquer my daily activities. It’s not the new activities, classes or people that make you feel uncomfortable or awkward; it’s the new strategies that you have to use now; the one’s that you aren’t sure of their results. I’m making it up as I go. I’m hoping that I study enough. I’m hoping that my work is sufficient to get the grades I want. I’m hoping that this person likes me. I’m hoping that I find fun that doesn’t involve alcohol. I’m hoping that I can balance work and play. In high school, I didn’t have to hope. I knew how much I had to study to get the grades I want. I knew the teacher’s grading scales and expectations. I knew my friends and who liked me and who didn’t. I knew where the fun was and I didn’t have to go to parties to meet new people. I knew how to do high school. And now, I’m working on knowing, not hoping, how to do college. Until next time...

First Post From College!

2009-08-26T18:19:00.000-07:00

So this week is the first week of college classes. It's all going good, hard work, but good. I don't really have time to write nor do I feel like it but I will post these pics from last weekend when we went to slide rock. It's this place that has a creek flowing through the woods in this canyon out by sedona. There are natural jumping cliffs and rock slides. It was so awesome that we're going back this next weekend. Enjoy the pics, and until next time...

Getting ready to leave for college...

2009-08-18T17:07:00.000-07:00

this is how i feel:

i want to rewind and go back in time. not because i'm scared to move on, i'm stoked about what's ahead of me. and i don't want to go back in time and stay there. i simply want to enjoy some of the great moments of this last year, it was that good

If i can say the same a year from now then freshman year will be a success

My last football vid: The Champion's Creed

2009-07-23T19:31:00.001-07:00

My last football vid for a long time, it's been fun. I think this was a good way to end.

R.I.P. MEDIUMStRO Productions

Introducing Smokey Joe and The Quesadillas

2009-07-15T10:56:00.000-07:00

So we got ourselves a sweet band with a sweet myspace music. It's nothing serious, just some songs we wanted to record before the crew split up. Check it out!

http://www.myspace.com/smokeyjoethequesadillas

Life is________

2009-07-12T19:32:00.000-07:00

A brief warning before you read this blog: it's not as dark and depressing as it would seem, just keep that in mind. It's not a rant, a complaint or a worry, just a blog with some thoughts...

I have lived a good life. No, I have lived a great life. I have the greatest family with loving siblings and parents that have provided more than I could ask for, a great house with more luxuries than I would ever need. Nobody I have been real close with has ever died. I have had the same core group of friends for many years and they're the best. I've gone to great schools and have the opportunity to further pursue my education at another great school. I have a great job that allows me flexible hours for school and church functions. I have lived a life of boundless blessings. And so, my question to myself is: when is this going to change?

Not when is God going to stop blessing me, but when are my life lessons and blessings going to come in a different form? In the bible it says that all who call Christ their Lord and Savior will suffer hardships and be persecuted. I have suffered none of this. I have had minor heartbreaks and disappointments, but I would be hardpressed to say that I've suffered any hardships or persecution. I can't help but wonder when this is going to happen.

It's a little bit of a dark thought, one that I don't like, but one that for me, is a natural conclusion. I cannot have a perfect life forever. I would love to, but I know that if I truly take risks for Christ then this cannot be a reality, and I shouldn't really want it to. If I truly pursue Christ with all that I have, then living this comfortable life of mine won't be a proirity.

Crazy thought huh? I guess it's a little less crazy when I remember that this isn't my home. So logically, I shouldn't be comfortable until I'm at home.

Home

2009-07-06T21:20:00.000-07:00

Entry 19

Monday July 6, 9:21pm Cali time

Well I don’t really know what to say after a trip like this. Everything I can think to write I’ve already said. I’ve wanted to go to Italy for as long as I can remember, and I’m very glad that I got to see so much at one time while I was here. I didn’t really want to come here and be gone for so long though, but in hindsight, it was more than worth it. After all, you never really know when you’ll get a chance to come back. This place is exactly how I imagined it would be in some places, and nothing I could ever expect in others; and that’s what made it so great. This country is so rich in history and its people are so genuine that it makes me question, at least reexamine the way that I live. This trip has taught me so much and has allowed me to just absorb as much as I can, which was often not enough. It wasn’t relaxing, and it wasn’t a vacation; it was a very intense art and culture tour. But I don’t know if I could ever have another trip like this one. I want to some back here some day, because it’s one of those places where there’s always something more to see. Someday, someday. This is my last blog in this series of blogs, but I’ll be posting more throughout the summer, and probably more when I leave home. So, until next time…

Random thoughts as I get ready to return home...

2009-07-05T10:25:00.000-07:00

Entry 18

Sunday July 5, 7:26pm Piemonte time

I wasn’t planning on writing again until I got home but there are some things that I wanted to write down before I forget them. Just random thoughts:

-I have had an extremely strong urge to watch The Gladiator for the last 3 weeks, I’m watchin it right when I get back for sure.

-Whenever anyone finds out that we’re from the states or already knows, the first thing they ask about is Obama. They want to know if he’s this superhero that he’s portrayed as on TV. My grandma’s cousin Luigi said (in Italian), “This Obama is trying to touch heaven with his finger, but his feet can’t leave the ground.” That was pretty funny. And everyone is really curious about our governor too. They want to know if he’s as good of a politician as he is an actor, because if he is the same, then “you’re in trouble”. (Luigi again). Apparently they aren’t fans of the Terminator movies here.

-Driving in Italy is insane. I know I’ve already said it, but I’ll say it again and again. I have had several heart attacks since we’ve been driving the last 3 days and I’m certain that I’m going to look like a 50 year old when I return home.

-Everyone is so familiar with each other in the countryside. Granted, the towns are of about 400 people or less, but they are so friendly and familiar with each other it’s sometimes too much. If some guy’s wife is out of town on business, the family down the street will insist that he eats with them until she returns. In the US we are barely familiar with people that we know, let alone people who we don’t really know. I’ve decided that I’m going to try to be more familiar and friendly with people; we’ll see how that turns out.

-Italian old men are awesome. They are just so easy going all day, sitting in the town square with all their homies just talking and yelling about everything; drinking wine and smoking their pipes. I want to be a cool old man later in my life…
-I now like red wine. A lot. It’s true that they say that it’s an acquired taste, and after 3 weeks, I’ve definitely acquired it. White wine is good too, but not as good as red. But don’t worry mom, I won’t drink it when I come home. For one, I’m not allowed, and two, American wine isn’t as good as Italian Vino, even if it’s imported from Italy. But we’re bringing a bottle back.

-If you were to cut their hands off, Italians would never be able to talk. Everything they say is accompanied by a hand gesture.

-You cannot just visit somebody in Italy; it has to involve an entire several course meal. Everything in Italy is centered on food, and when you visit somebody at their house, they truly make their house your own. Even if you are not hungry, you have to eat to avoid being rude. And the food is ALWAYS good.

-Whenever I talk to my grandma’s relatives here(usually through my translator, grandma), and they find out that I’m planning on going to school to become an English teacher, they all beg me to come back and teach English in Italy. I’ve had about four or five offers to come to Italy and live and eat for free and teach English. English is just so universal that if anyone wants to go anywhere, then they would be at an advantage if they knew English. But for us (American travelers), we don’t need to know anything else unless we go into a small village. So even if we wanted to learn, it’s not necessary, and so it’s harder for us to learn.

-Our Fourth of July had no fireworks, no swimming pool, and no barbeques. Just freshly made pasta (that morning), home-made wine, and just-hunted jack rabbit and a tiny American flag in the middle of the table. It was pretty good.

The Joys of Traveling

2009-07-02T11:38:00.000-07:00

Entry 17:

Thursday July 2, 8:50pm Piemonte Time

Oh Airport car rentals! Incompetent people shouldn't be given important jobs. I'm not going to elaborate, just leave it at that...The drive from the airport near Rome up to Pozzengo was interesting to say the least. I think it took a few years off my life. Haha. It's not grandpa's fault, the traffic signs are insanely confusing and drivers are out of control. But we made it, and with little damage to the car...Our Bed and Breakfast in Pozzengo is more like an italian villa with really good service and excellent food. I thought that the rest of Italy was another world but the italian countryside is incredible. We're in a town that is older then it's number of people. It really is amazing. This trip has been more than I can ask for. I have seen an entire country, it's hotspots, the way it's people lives, and a whole lot more. That being said, I am ready to come home. For everybody who is waiting for my return, you just have to wait till Monday night. Haha. I don't know if I will get internet again here, so just in case, I'll see everybody next week. Until next time...

Now we go off on our own...

2009-06-30T14:31:00.000-07:00

Entry 16:

Tuesday June 30, 11:32pm Rome time

So the tour is over and now we head off on our own. We're going to the airport just outside Rome tomorrow for a car rental and then driving back up north to Pozzengo in northern Italy. We'll be staying at a Bed and Breakfast up there for five nights while we visit with some of my grandma's relatives and such. I hope to have internet connection, but if the last two weeks continue their pattern, I'm not counting on it. Either way it should be a good time on our own with our own itinerary and sight seeing. I hope to post a few times while up there but I may not get to, so I'll say so long for now. Until next time...

Hello Again

2009-06-30T08:50:00.000-07:00

I GOT INTERNET AGAIN IN ROME!!!

Entry 9:
Wednesday June 24, 11:07am Piemonte time

Well I’m back to not having free internet. Oh well, I’ll just keep writing these journals…Would the leaning tower of Pisa be so famous if it wasn’t leaning? I don’t think so, but despite the fact that people are drawn to it because it leans a whole 16 feet, it is also an extremely beautiful piece of architecture. We stopped in Pisa yesterday for a couple hours and of course we saw the famous leaning bell tower. And I also took the classic “Hey, I’m a tourist!” picture; you know, the one with me keeping the tower from falling. It was cheesy but you gotta do it when you’re there…We also went to Milan yesterday. It was nice, not as good as Rome, which was not as good a Florence. But that doesn’t matter because with this tour all over Italy, we see everything. And every city is so different; I suppose I shouldn’t compare them as much. Italy was really a bunch of separate governments until Mussolini united them under fascist rule in the 30’s and 40’s. So each region can feel like a different country and it’s really cool to see that. Right now we’re in the Piemonte region, which is where my Grandma is from. This region, more than any other, is different from the others. It’s more small villages and towns with a lot of natural greenery, and the Alps in the background. And as I’m typing this, I’m looking out the window and our room is within 100 feet of Lake Maggiore. It’s beautiful. Anyways, we’re heading out for a day trip to another lake, Lake Como, so I gotta go. Until next time…

Entry 10:
Wednesday June 24, 7:03pm Piemonte time

So my grandma thought that I should include my daily gelato selection in my blogs and I agreed. Relax mom, we haven’t had it every day; almost though. Haha  Let me try to remember what I’ve had so far…
Rome: Coconut and Strawberry
Rome: Coconut and Strawberry
Florence: Lemon and Raspberry
San Geminiano: Coconut and Mango *the best so far
Lago Maggiore: Strawberry
Lake Como: Peach and Banana
Venice: Coconut and Mint Chip
Venice: Strawberry
Sorrento: Pineapple
Capri: Coconut and Strawberry

There you go dad. And no Darren, I don’t need the stretchy pants. As grandpa has told everybody in our tour group at least a few times, Italy sells more gelato than pasta. It’s just that good. Hopefully I don’t get fat. And I’ll keep updating the list as we go. Until next time…

Entry 11:
Thursday June 25, 6:47pm Venetian time

On the way to Venice today we stopped at Verona. If you have had to suffer through high school English then you recognize this Italian city as the setting of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Allegedly, the Montagues and the Capulets were real families in Verona. So today, during our stop we visited “the balcony” from the legendary tragedy. It was more of a joke for me, but for some people it was more sacred than visiting a church. There is a bronze statue of Juliet underneath the balcony, and the legend says that if you touch a certain part of her anatomy then you will have good luck in love. This doesn’t make sense to me as both Romeo and Juliet died at the end of the play; that’s no good luck at all. But I did it anyway, making a fool of myself in the process…Anyways, we’re in Venice now and it’s awesome. For this city you can truly say that it is set apart from all the others. Our tour guide said that it was HIGHLY unlikely that we got a room overlooking the water and the city, because those rooms go for over 400 euros a night. But, guess what: we got a room overlooking the water! And for the second hotel in a row! It’s crazy cool! I can literally hear singing from gondolas as I type this. But unfortunately I still have no internet connection. Maybe at the next hotel I’ll just pay for it. Until next time…

Entry 12:
Friday June 26, 7:18pm Venetian time

I had a ride on a gondola today. It wasn’t exactly romantic but it was still pretty cool. I can definitely see how it could be; maybe sometime down the road I’ll return here with someone special…There’s not much to say about Venice that would surprise you. It’s really a lot like the common depictions and stereotypes, and again, it’s unlike any other place you’ll ever visit. There’s something like 163 tiny islands connected by over 300 bridges, its crazy… Anyways, I don’t really feel like writing that much right now. And it’s getting harder and harder to take all the pictures as the tour goes on. I know that I’m going to want to have these memories after the trip is over, so I’m still taking pics, but it’s getting a little annoying. Haha. Where’s mom when you need her? But grandma is making sure that I take them so don’t worry. This tour is just so nonstop and you see SO much that’s its pretty draining. And I’m always tired, and I sleep on all the bus rides. I don’t know, maybe I’m going through a growth spurt. Haha, I wish. Until next time…

Entry 13:
Saturday June 27, 6:26pm Assisian(?) time

We're in Assisi, so does that make it Assisian time??? I think that I’m getting tired of writing these things because I get the feeling that I’m being repetitive and I don’t want to bore anyone. I don’t feel like I can really be that creative with this anymore because a lot of these days are similar; up at dawn, drive to a small church, then a bigger one, then a bigger town, see these ruins, etc, etc. And that sounds bad because all this ornate architecture and art and really cool places shouldn’t be reduced just because we’ve been seeing churches nonstop for the past 10 days…Anyways, Assisi, where we are now is, again, really cool. It’s more quaint and definitely the oldest preserved city we’ve been in yet…It rained as we left Venice today, making the 15 minute walk from the hotel to the bus parked on the mainland difficult for some people. And it rained a lot today en-route to Assisi. For the last 10 days or so I’ve felt as if we were in some other world, far from my everyday life. The rain today kinda reminded me that we were not in fact on another planet, but perhaps only traveled back in time in our own minds…I’m still tired and getting frustrated with the lack of internet connection. I want to share all the pictures and info with you! Hopefully soon. Until next time…

Entry 14:
Sunday June 28, 3:50pm Sorrento time

Still no internet… Today was another long day on the bus. On all the traveling days we get a wakeup call between 6 and 6:30, have breakfast, leave the hotel at around 8ish and then stop usually once or twice along the way before we reach our next destination. One stop is for lunch, usually at what they call The Autogrill, which is a gas station on steroids. This is not usual gas station food though; there is usually a salad bar or your selection of a pasta dish and even pizza if you want. Even here the food is really good…Tomorrow we’re visiting the island of Capri, then driving up the Amalfi coast. The next day is Pompeii to see Mt. Vesuvius, then back to Rome where the tour ends. After the tour we’re renting a car and driving back up to Piemonte (Rome is central Italy and Piemonte is northern), to see family and such. I know that there will be internet in Rome again so I guess none of you will see this until then. It’s kind of a bummer because I wanted this to be a daily update of what we have been doing to keep everybody up to date and such but with no internet in places that said there would be some, I cannot do that. It’ll be kinda pointless to read all this after the fact but oh well, what can you do about it, its Italy…Until next time.

Entry 15:
Monday June 29, 3:47pm Sorrento time

We took the 25 minute ferry ride from Sorrento to the island of Capri today. The island was first inhabited by Augustus Caesar as a vacation home. So obviously it’s really nice, but it’s more the natural gardens and caves that make the island special. I’m really glad that we got to see Capri today because I kinda needed a break from all the history and architecture. The Amalfi coast (south-western coast), is really beautiful and everybody is just easy going. They have what the rest of the Italians call a “domani attitude”(tomorrow attitude), because they’re so laid back…The actual tour ends tomorrow night, then we travel back up north. The tour has been great but I’m ready for it to be over, and just see things on our own and go at our own pace. For the most part our tour group has been pretty cool; there have just been a couple people who have annoyed me. Having the patience that runs in my blood (sorry dad), some people I just can’t deal with anymore so it’s a good thing that we’re going to be done before I do or say something that contradicts their nice impression of me. Haha. ..I haven’t learned as much Italian as I thought or hoped I would. It’s just that English is so universal that everyone speaks it and they would rather talk to me in English then have to teach me and listen to me struggle through Italian. Plus grandma is fluent in Italian, so anytime we need to know something she tells us; she’s our own personal translator. Until next time…

Buona Sera

2009-06-22T14:04:00.000-07:00

Entry 8:

Monday June 22, 11:04 Florentine time

So we just got back from a huge Tuscan-style celebratory dinner. Needless to say, after another full day of going nonstop, I'm extremely tired once again so I'm going to be brief...

Climbing the steps(463)to the top of the Florence Cathedral was one of the coolest experiences in my life. They said it would take a half hour but I busted it out in less than ten and spent the half hour at the top. Not only was the view of the city from top great but the view of the famous architecture(Brunelleschi's double, rib-vaulted domes) is also amazing. I seem to be using the word amazing alot. Everything is amazing, I don't know any other way to say it.

This is my eighth post and I've barely even mentioned food! Well, now's the time; like I said, we literally just got back from a Tuscan-style celebratory dinner. This included an antipasto of three different types of bruschutto, and salamis, first course of pasta with meat sauce, soup, and risotto cooked right in front of our table, and a main course of five different grilled meats; chicken, sausage, pork, rabbit and beef. And to finish it off there was fresh fruit and icecream with expresso. Once again, it was amazing. One of those meals that you look back on and say, "How did I do that?" Untill next time...

PICTURES!!!

2009-06-22T08:09:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post some pics for everyone to see. I'll write a blog later tonight...

I actually have free internet in Florence!!!

2009-06-21T12:54:00.001-07:00

Entry 7:

Sunday June 21, 10:40 Florentine time

So Tuscany (Sienna, Florence and a bunch of other small towns) is exactly how I envisioned Italy would be; small town, big architecture, cobble stone alleyways and alot of small Trattorias(kinda like delis/restaurants). Sometimes it doesn't seem real, it's life so different than what I'm used to...So I saw what may possibly be my favorite piece of art today: The Florence Cathedral. It's better in person than on paper or projector. And tomorrow I'm going to climb the steps up to the dome in the cathedral, I can't wait...I'm pretty tired right now so I'm going to get going but before I do let me tell u something crazy from today: While we were touring The Church of the Cross I was walking, checking out Galileo and Michalangelo's Mausoleums(where they're burried), I turned to the left and walking down the isle, paralled to me was Ozzy Osbourne! Yes, the Prince of Darkness. I didn't get a picture but some people in our group did and it was really him; in Florence with his wife. Haha. Well, untill next time...

When in Rome

2009-06-20T12:38:00.000-07:00

Entry 6:

Saturday June 20, 9:40 Rome time
Like I said in the last entry, there is just too much to see in Rome. You always hear about the Coliseum, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican. I knew that they were all going to be amazing, but I didn’t expect it to be this amazing. It’s hard to describe it unless you see it. After hitting basically all of the hotspots of Rome, here’s what I would see if I had limited time:

1)The Parthenon: If you’ve studied art history, then you know that the Romans were tight-wads when it came to architecture. They would build structures that rivaled the Greeks in structure, but instead of using marble, they were cheap and used concrete and paint to make it look like marble. So the Parthenon is very dirty and beaten up on the outside but when you walk inside it totally makes up for the façade. The oculus, the hole where the sunlight shines through is amazing. What they withheld in the construction of the outside they doubled up when it come to the interior. The Parthenon was built when the Romans still believed in mythology and it was supposed to be the place on earth where the earthly realm met the heavenly realm. After seeing it, I believe it.

2)The Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Square and Basilica: No, I’m not cheating. All four of these count as one because they are all together and it takes one ticket to see all which are basically on top of each other. I had heard that the Vatican was cool but I wasn’t sure I was going to like it. But as a work of art it is unheralded and unchallenged in my opinion. There is just so much in the pope’s museums and basilica; it’s just too much to take in. And of course the Sistine Chapel is breathtaking. I could have stood in that room all day and stared up for hours and hours.

3) Villa Borghese: The Villa Borghese is much less known then my previous choices, but it’s just as good. It’s a multi-hundred acre park with trees and benches everywhere for romantic picnics, and dirt walkways leading to I think five or six museums. When we walked in we felt the easy going vibes and that everybody, even in the rushed and stress-ridden Rome, was relaxed. This made for one of the coolest parks I’ve ever been to.

None of this takes anything away from anything else, such as the Coliseum, Constantine's Arch and all the hundreds of other sights. In all, Rome is a pretty awesome city, I'm definitely going to have to come back many years from now. But enough of Rome, up next is Florence. Until next time...

Yay for Internet Connection

2009-06-20T12:36:00.000-07:00

Entry 2:
Wednesday June 17, 1:45 Chicago Time
We made it to Chicago! Now I’m sitting in the airport with my laptop plugged in trying to waste four hours until our next flight. The guy next to me is extremely annoying. He’s sitting here on his phone talking to somebody very loud, threatening lawsuit after lawsuit to whoever is on the other side of the phone. I really hope he gets off his phone soon. You know how some people just annoy you and you don’t know why…This is the guy next to me. But anyways, the flight to Chicago was pretty good for me; I slept the entire time because I was so tired from partying last night. Haha, just kidding. But if anyone is reading this from home, family and friends, I’m gonna miss you guys. This morning when I was getting ready to leave I couldn’t help but think what it’s going to be like when I leave for much longer than three weeks in August; when I leave for college. But like I told mom, this is going to be good practice for when that happens. Oh no, the guy next to me is looking over my shoulder, trying to read the screen. I gotta go now, until next time…

Entry 3:
Wednesday June 17, sometime after we’ve taken off from Chicago but before we’ve landed in Rome
At this point I’m just writing to amuse myself. The in-flight movie, whatever it is, is horrible. But surprisingly, the food was decent. Usually lasagna on a plane would be a nightmare but it was actually edible. The guy directly in front of me appears to be deathly afraid of flying. He keeps asking for a seat change on a completely booked flight, and he cannot sit still. It’s kinda freaking me out, I’m not gonna lie. But now he’s falling asleep, thank God. I don’t know what to write anymore my brain is beginning to shut down. Next entry will be from Rome, I promise.

Entry 4:
Thursday June 18, 11:33am Rome time
We made it! It definitely was as long as everyone says it was going to be. And the weird thing is that when we got off the plane, it was nine o-clock here, and twelve am back home. But we’re not sleeping today, we’re gonna wait it out till tonight in attempt to get used to the new time zone. Rome is crazy cool! It’s so big and everywhere you look there are amazing buildings and monuments. But the drivers here are nuts. I heard more horns honk from the airport to the hotel then I have since I’ve had my license. But it’s actually pretty amusing. Online it said that our hotel had free Wi-Fi, but it turns out that it’s actually 10 euros per hour, which is about 14 bucks. So maybe tomorrow night, after we’ve seen Rome and taken pictures and all that I’ll just pay the 14$ and load some pics online and post all these blogs. I guess they’re not really blogs yet, more like journal entries. Haha, wow, I’m keeping a journal. I never thought that day would come…Anyways, we’re headin out right now to the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain. Until next time…

Entry 5:
Friday June 19, 10:22pm Rome time
It has been said that one life time is not enough to see all of Rome. I believe it. It is amazing how much history is in one city, it’s like everywhere you look there is something else to see, something equally amazing. There is ridiculous traffic and crowds, small rooms, bad driving and old people everywhere yet it takes absolutely nothing away from the city. We’ve only been here for a little less than two days but I feel like we’ve already become part of a culture that is so rich and different then what I’m accustomed to. It’s cool though. I mean how could I not like it when restaurants insist that you order no less than three courses at a meal. Haha, that’s my kind of restaurant. Anyways, we’re headin out early in the morning for St. Peters square, the Sistine Chapel and The Coliseum and Constantine’s arch. Gotta go and get some rest, and hopefully tomorrow night I’ll get some internet connection and post this and pictures for all to see. Until next time…

Airport

2009-06-17T05:52:00.000-07:00

Entry 1:
Wednesday June 17, 5:39am

I’m sitting at the airport right now in front of terminal 27 and it’s pretty dang exciting. Our flight leaves at 6:30, so the wait’s not that long. I decided that instead of just posting blogs when I have connectivity, I’m just going to write entries in Word and then post them when I can. This is the boring part of the trip. Ugh I hate waiting…We have a pretty long trip; four hour flight to Chicago, four hour layover then twelve hour flight to Rome. When we arrive in Rome it will be 9:15am Thursday morning, about 12:15 our time.

Italy for 3 weeks

2009-06-16T14:06:00.000-07:00

Ok, so here I am. I've been a high school graduate for nearly five whole days now. It's kinda crazy when I sit to think about it. I'm looking extremely forward to this summer and what it's going to bring, starting with my three week trip to Italy tomorrow morning. Three weeks is a long time to be gone during your last real summer at home, but it's going to be more than worth it. Definitely a trip of a life time. I'm going to be documenting the trip and it's sights right here on my blog. So mom, knowing that you're probably the only one who's going to be reading this, enjoy. I'll start tomorrow night when i arrive in Rome and try to blog at least every other day. Should be great. Until I reach Roma,

Arrivederci,

Derrick

I want to graduate

2009-05-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

I'm ready to graduate. After 3 years and nine months of high school, I'm ready to be done. The senioritis is seriously getting ridiculous, I can't focus on anything. Everyone I talk to says "You say that now, but when you're out, you'll wish tou could go back." That seems insane right now, but I'm not going to ruloe it out. I really only have two more big obstacles until the real fun of senior year happens: AP Tests and the senior exit project. After that it's disneyland grad night, a bunch of other senior activities then graduation. I'm pumped to graduate, I'm pumped for the upcoming summer and I'm pumped for college. I want it to go by fast but I also want to take the time to enjoy it. That's going to be the hardest part, actually taking everything in. I'm certainly going to try.

Understanding Humility

2009-04-12T22:20:00.000-07:00

I went to the beach yesterday. The beach is always good, no matter who you go with and no matter how the weather is. This trip was no different...

Last night after playing some songs around the bonfire i just walked towards the water with my djembe, all alone. I went crazy on my drum for awhile, standing right on shore. Call me insane, but it felt like the waves were my audience. I then laid on the sand, face towards the sky, and just stared at the clouds as they passed over my head. It was dark but I could still see them. I prayed and for the first time in awhile I humbled myself before God. So often I come to God asking him for thing after thing, even thanking him for blessings, but so few times do I recognize who I'm actually talking to. It was hard for me to come up with words to say. But somehow I did. My best prayers lately have been like this. Last night while at the beach in the midst of God's creation and when I was in Hawaii and I prayed while snorkling(that was cool).

Lately everything around me has been reminding me of how small I am. So much of God's creation around me is staring me in the eyes saying "You are not that important. You are not that cool. You are not that________"

Being humbled is a feeling that most people don't like to feel, christians included. Its hard to get your brain around the idea that your life is not about you. Everywhere you turn people are telling you to look out for good ol' #1. But when you take the time to pay attention to nature, to God's creation, it says "you're crazy for thinking that this life is about you."

My brain cannot fathom the immense greatness and sovreignty of God, I think that is why i often find it difficult to talk to him. I do not know why he chose to save me from my sin, and I cannot fathom a sacrifice as great as Jesus'. But when I sit in His creation, and first acknowledge all the great things that He has brought me, so many that i cannot even count, i get a little closer everytime.

It's hard for humans to humble themselves. But if you don't humble yourself, you could never even begin to understand sacrificing yourself for the sins of others. But when you try to humble yourself, and put yourself after others, you can begin to understand, at least a little. I know i will never fully understand Jesus' sacrifice for me until the day I meet him. But for now i'm going to try, and that's the best I got.

Reggae Music, Can't Refuse It

2009-04-07T21:57:00.002-07:00

I love reggae music. Something about it gets me in the right mood and I just like feeling happy. If you know me, then you know that I don't necessarily stand for what most reggae songs usually stand for(growing weed, smoking week and killing somebody if they take your weed). I don't condone or support the use of ol' maryjane, it has no place in my life. But regardless, my love affair with reggae music carries on.

Most reggae songs feature a catchty guitar riff, a soothing synth, an all up in your face bass line and numerous, numerous percussion instruments(my favorite part). You can say what you want about their motives or methods, but reggae bands make good music that makes you happy, bottom line. I woke up this morning, not to happy to be up before six, and slowly got ready and dragged myself into my car. As soon as my car was on, "Spread a Little Love" by Natural Vibrations just starts bumpin through my speakers. Suddenly I was no longer tired. Suddenly I was no longer in a bad mood. Suddenly I didn't care that I had to go to school today.

The first make-shift recording studio in Jamaica opened in 1951 and recorded what the locals called "mento" music, which was a mix of European and African folk dance music. The island soon became emerged in this new mix of rhythm, blues, dance and folk records. And so, Reggae was born. Not too many years later Bob Marley showed up and transformed reggae. Bob's music was and is undoubtedly legendary, and some of my favorite to listen to. But now reggae was mostly about rastafari and weed and fighting the power and all those things, when before, it was simply about creating a new kind of music that makes people happy, with no need for drugs. Now I have heard people say that you need to be high to truly enjoy reggae. Not true. I truly enjoy reggae everyday, to the fullest extent, maybe even fuller than those rollin the doobies. You don't need to be high to enjoy it, or even create it.

Which brings me to my conculsion: Who wants to make a reggae album?

Recession

2009-04-05T20:24:00.001-07:00

I just got back from 2 weeks in Hawaii. It was so great really it was amazing.There was so much to do everyday, just being there is enough. I think my favorite thing was Kipu Falls. The rope swing and waterfall was pretty dang exciting.

My cousin Brian Backflipping at Kipu

I dont want this to sound bad or anything, i don't really want to complain, but since this is my blog and i can write about what I want then I guess I'm in the clear: There were no girls anywhere!!! It was frekin ridiculous. My cousins came along and they have endless stories of when they went to Hawaii, on the very same island, staying on the very same resort and meeting girl after girl. I expected it to be like that but it wasn't at all. We were talkin to some guy in the spa one night and he said "Yea, it's the freakin recession. Hot girls can't afford anything." I don't know if this is true or not, I don't think it is, but this is where I'm going to place the blame anyways.

Other than that it was an amazing vacation, unforgettable. And I'm not crazy mad because those kinds of things are out of my control. It's just a little upsetting that there wouldn't be any girls in Hawaii on spring break! I guess the economy is really that bad. Freakin recession...

On a Beach in Hawaii

2009-03-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

Peace for the next 2 weeks, i'm sure i'll have some epic blogs when i return...

Success

2009-03-07T12:30:00.000-08:00

This week I had to write an essay for a scholarship application. I hate and love scholarships at the same time. I hate them because it's a waste of time filling out crap that nobody really cares about, but I love them because they give you free money. The prompt for the essay was "What tools do you have, outside of school, that you think will make you successful in life."

Writing this essay was weird for me. I don’t like to talk about myself, I’ve always been taught to work hard and expect nothing in return. Which honestly, is the opposite of what anybody in the world will tell you. But I had to write an entire paper about my qualities and why they were awesome, and how much I am going to offer to the world. This was hard.

The Joker, in the most recent Batman movie states, “If you’re good at something, never do it for free.” Sorry Joker, I disagree. If you’re good at something, then that’s your gift to the world, if the world needs it. And there is no price you can put on gifts.

In my life I have always been good at everything I’ve done, but I was never really great at any one thing. This used to bother me. I’m a jack of all trades but master of nothing. But lately I've realized that the world needs people who are willing do anything; the kinds of people that step into a job and get it done. If you can only do one thing productively, what good are you when the world no longer needs that one thing?

I consider myself a naturally quiet person , but I can speak up if I need or want to. I consider myself a leader, but I will follow too. I consider myself strong in my convictions and stances, but I will listen to others. Well-roundedness is quickly becoming extinct. Everywhere I look people are saying "Specialize!" "Pick a major!" People my age often enter the world saying “This is what I can offer, now what does the world have to offer me” instead of saying “What does the world need? Ok. I can do that.”

Through many years of attending youth group at my church, and now being a leader in Jr. High, I have learned many things. One of my old school leaders, Tyler Andersen, whom I look up to a lot, told a story a couple weeks ago of when he started serving in youth:

“There would be a lot college kids coming in saying ‘I really want to serve God’s youth. I play the guitar good and would like to lead worship.’ The response was ‘Good. You’ll be setting up chairs for the next couple months.’”

The point is, when you are serving people, nothing is below you. You are never too good a guitar player to set up chairs. You are never too good a leader to follow. You are never too smart to listen. You are never too reserved to speak up.

In the past couple of years I’ve taken up amateur film producing as my main hobby. I’ve had a blast taking what I have in my head and making that into a reality. It's so cool when the movie is done and it's exactly how you imagined and wrote it. Ultimately, I want to use these experiences and skills to make feature films in Hollywood someday. I want to make movies that make people think about and challenge their current moral standards. Make people think twice about the filth in movies that is stereotypes, sex and language. To get an opportunity to make movies is more than a dream to me but I’m not going to sit here and say that this is the only thing that I have to offer society and my movies would definitely change the world. I’m not so naïve to think that I’m going to make it big time in Hollywood; and it's not a big deal to me. I believe that I can have the same effect on a much smaller scale and possibly more important: person to person. That is not below me.

Someone once told me that it is nearly impossible to change the world. I turned to him and said “I agree. But you can change one person’s world.” Living life is not about going out into the real world and saying, “Here I am. Look at me. Learn from me!” When I enter the real world, I’m going to sit back and offer advice and help to anyone who needs it, but more importantly, I am going to serve people. My success in life is not going to be based off of me, but of others.

I cannot write an essay stating why I think my life is going to be successful. The definition of success to me is most likely nowhere near the definition of success to the scholarship people. I don’t know what my gift to the world is going to be; it's not going to be one thing that just pops out and amazes everyone. But I’m willing to do whatever needs to be done to help people and show Christ's hand in my life. In today’s times, I feel that this attitude will carry me anywhere I want to go, or anywhere God wants me, success or not.

My Friend Johnson

2009-03-05T22:22:00.000-08:00

So Johnathan Falls tells me I'm a horrible blogger and that i disappoint him...Watever Jony. I'm writing a new one now, just for him, but it's not done yet. I'll post it tomorrow. Peace

Darla

2009-02-22T21:14:00.001-08:00

So i finally got my new snowboard today!!! forum youngblood board, bindings and boots. my cousin hooked it up with a crazy discount... i think i'm gonna name her Darla because i like that name and i've never named anything darla before. i'm pretty stoked. snowboarding is just another awesome way to enjoy God's beautiful creation. i'm planning on gettin a season pass to the snowbowl when I head to college in flagstaff next year. but for now. i'm just gonna have to settle on hittin up mt high in like 2 weeks. hopefully.

untill next time, peace and chicken grease

honestly...ok

2009-02-21T23:35:00.000-08:00

hey so i now have a blog. yea. i don't know how much time i'll have for it now but i can tell you that it will probably come in handy in the near future...college. i know moms will like this and maybe a few others, idk. so stay tuned for some info or rants or watever i feel like puttin on here. this is my new blog, or something like it :)