my day today was kind of weak

This morning, I got a picture of some kids at YMCA (childcare) playing and having a good time. It just seemed like a good picture to take. So, I too, it. Kids are so friggin cute. After work I of course went to school. English class was good because I got to see Tom. Then, one of the guys in my English class wanted to interview me on a subject I could help him on. I can't say what the subject is, because it might not jive well with some of the people who are connected to this BLOG, but it was a good subject that I could offer some insight to.I planned on getting a lot of work done today. Alas, I did not. So, I wondered around my day without getting anything accomplished. I did, however, eat some really good pizza with my dad. The pizza was great, the fact that I was with my dad to enjoy it was even greater. We got to see the shuttle blast off into space. And I learned that the shuttle reaches speeds of 16,500MPH!! That is crazy fast!!!This is what my dad and I call, "thick or 'gooey'" pizza. And it is just that. THICK & GOOEY!!! I am going to go to bed. Tomorrow is Saturday, but because of my laziness, I am going to take my cousin to work (which he has to be there at 7:00) and then I am going straight to the 24/7 computer lab to get my butt working on my ENGLISH paper. I plan on getting a lot done tomorrow. Budda Bing, Budda BOOM!!

G'Night!

new schedule.

Okay, I went to meet with my Academic Adviser today. It was a really good meeting because he gave me all the information I needed, plus got me signed into the classes I need to be in. Next semester is going to be CRAZY!! I will be going to school full time next semester. Working about 26 hours a week. Fully participating in Young Life. Staying in BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) and doing the daily work required. It is going to be a challenge. But I figure, I mine as well take advantage of my health while it is very good. It could be taken from me at any time. Literally, any time. So I am just going to go with the flow.

I wish I could say in this BLOG post that I got a lot accomplished today. It would be a lie though. I got a little (emphasis on LITTLE) bit of writing done. I am going to have to really hunker down tomorrow as soon as I get out of class tomorrow in the AM, it is straight to the computer lab, and I am taking my thesaurus with me.

My flesh is feeling a little bit ripe. Yes, today was day # 2 of my tanning sessions. Once I get that base tan back, then this slight discomfort I am feeling will go to the way side. I decided to start tanning again, because I looked at my "white boy" thigh's when I worked out, and felt discraced by them. I will put an end to their whiteness. Ohh yes!!! BE GONE WHITENESS!!!

Love you readers!!!! I really do. :-)

check this out

I can't believe it happened again, but it totally happened again. I was at school in one of the computer labs that I don't usually go to, and I completely without a doubt had dejas vous. I want to know how this happens. If anyone can offer insight into this extrodinary event, I would greatly appreciate it and probably sleep a little better at night.I was sitting next to my friend Sharon (girl in the red), when I was typing in the google search bar, "The Golden Rule" and she was talking on the phone. Just liket that.....BAM!!! I felt as though I had been in that situation before, whether it was from a dream or what, I could not tell you. But this keeps happening to me. IT IS SO STRANGE!!

Young Life was awesome tonight. The kids had tons of energy....probably not as much as me, but who could top that amount anyways.This is a picture of Ashley Vongunten giving the "talk" tonight. She did an awesome job. The kids were super focused on what she was saying, and she said it with such confidence. It was over Jesus and the samaritin woman at the well. It was just another insight into the life of Jesus. She did wonderfully, and I think the kids pulled a lot from it. I was totally fixated on what she was saying. It sure is cram packed in there though.

When Young Life was over, I did something that was kind of out of character for me. I needed to just get away from people for a bit. I don't know why exactly, but I just felt I needed to. So...I went to the movies. I went to go see Max Payne at Rave Motion Pictures in Jefferson Pointe. I had some good talks with some of the workers there, and it was really good. The movie....THE MOVIE WAS AMAZING!!It really did the video game justice. Yes, this movie is based off a video game I use to play when I was in high school, so I really appreciated a lot of things in it that you wouldn't be able to fully appreciate if you had not played the video game. Like the slow motion bullit scene. Yea, I was all over that scene. I felt special. :-)Did I mention that I went to go see this movie alone? It was good too. I just needed to get away for a bit I suppose. And I say, "need" very lightly. I just wanted too I suppose.

G'Night!!

my workstation....dissapointing

This was my place of dwelling for the greater part of the day. I did not have to work today on account of it being Veterans Day and what not. I did however, go to my classes, get some more minutes so I can continue to go tanning, and worked out. As soon as I finished working out, I went straight to the desk you see above. My favorite books during the whole writing process are the thesaurus and my Bible. I am done with the first paper(except for one late addition I will complete tomorrow). I am feeling like I am not going nearly fast enough though. I feel like I am quite behind in comparison to some of the other people in the class. I talked with one guy on campus today, and he said he had 16 pages done already, and he felt they were really well written. Eeesh!! I only have about 6. It will work out though, I am not going to get stressed about time management because I can handle it (self-fulfilling prophecy). That is just going to have to be that!

I was extremely disappointing in myself today. When I walked into New Haven Tanning there was this girl working behind the desk that I really had it put on my heart to talk to. I got some minutes, went tanning, and prayed for her the whole time I was in the bed. When I walked out to leave for my car, she had this look again that looked in need. I can't explain it exactly, but I knew I was suppose to talk to her for whatever reason. There was people in the waiting room, so I decided not to, and reluctantly walked out. The whole drive home I was just so compelled to turn around........but did not. I directly ignored the Spirit telling me to open up to her. That will serve as a reminder the next time I am faced with a direct decision like this one.

What did I have to be afraid of?
Was I afraid that the people in the waiting room would think I was odd?
Did I think that she wouldn't want to hear what ever it was that I was going to say?
Persecution, was that the reason???

It might have been a little of all the above. I am just super disappointed in myself because I am a vessel for the work of Christ, and I directly "quenched the Spirit" if you will.I just took a picture of myself. This picture explains exactly how I feel right now. I don't think words could explain how precisely this picture explains it.

But, I am still overwhelmed by the Love God has for me. The love that I have been writing about in this paper. I am excited to be able to share it on my BLOG when I am finished. God is good, God is great, and I thank him for this day. :-)

G'Night

miraculous mondays...not really

I laughed so hard, I just have to share.

In case you can not view YouTube videos from where you are working or for whatever reason, you can watch the same video from a different media source by ~CLICKING HERE.~

I have bad news to share, my brother Troy (~CLICK HERE~ to see Troy) was putting up a tree stand in preparation for a night of hunting that was suppose to take place today I believe. Well, he fell and there is a story behind it, but the jist of it is this, he landed on his ankle really, really, really, really bad and when he looked down at his ankle, his leg was straight forward, and his foot was pointing to the left/right. He is in the hospital today, and that is no good. He needs prayer, prayer that everything will work out with work, and that he will be able to get on dissability, and just all the stuff that will be involved with this situation.
I had a great BSF today. A great day. Awesome start to my week. :-)

it's not going to be an interesting Post

I somehow left my home without my phone. I shouldn't say "somehow," because I know exactly how it happened. I was wearing my really nice black pea coat to church this morning when I took Matt to Grace Gathering, but when I got home after taking him on some errands, I decided it was time to get back tot he basics....or not as nice of a coat, and I totally left my cell in the pocket of ole~blacky (pea coat). I left my house and went to school, where I wrote for a bit, and talked to my English Prof.

I am really starting to get into this paper about loving yourself, because the more I write about it, the more I realize I am becoming it. The desire of my heart is to love as Christ loved. I am no where close to Christ, but I am living out a life, attempting to identify with the actions and lessons he taught by example. Beautiful thing.

I had a Young Life meeting with our area's leaders, and it went pretty well. Nothing "break through" by any means, but it is always good when we get together. It is 9:28PM and I am calling it quits for the night. I am at the library, but as soon as I click POST, I am going home and straight to bed. Do not pass go, do not collect $200.oo!

PEACE!

wedding and writing

Today I had the opportunity to go to my friend Sean's wedding. He married his sweetheart of a gal, Kim, and he was just GLOWING. This is a wedding I will make a mental note of when I think of what I would like mine to look like. Two individuals strongly seeking Christ in all they do, committed to each other, love just SPEWING out of their every action, and just a neat presentation.
It was just super pretty and all perfectly done up. My mom would say that it was a very, "classy" wedding. And it really was! I did not attend the reception due to the fact that I intended to continue on in writing my English paper first thing today. I managed to procrastinate this objective by telling myself that I "deserved" to lay on the couch and watch T.V. before the wedding & that I really "needed" to go work out at the YMCA before the wedding. BAH!! I just didn't want to get my but in the computer lab. However, when the wedding was over, I went home, changed clothes, and went to the 24/7 computer lab.I am currently BLOGGING from the 24/7 computer lab as well. I just snapped the above picture to show you the position I have been in since, ohhh 5:00PM. If you take note at the clock on the wall right above my left shoulder, you will see that it is nearly 1:00AM. By my calculations, that is 7 hours of typing, but I can assure you, I am extremely happy with what I have accomplished.

Holy crap, I am going home, and to bed now.

PEACE!!

The prodigal daughter returns home

Today I was invited to a party to celebrate the homecoming of my friend in Christ, Jama. Jama entered back into my life a little under a year ago. I couldn't find much mention of her in past BLOG posts, but I remember when I was reunited with her. This ~POST~ shows that I had taken notice into her past emotional instability. It is under the video and picture of bowling with my sister. To make short Jama's life journey, I will say this. She had been molested at a young age, she acted out in all the worst ways, through all the horrors she endured, some extremely THICK walls were constructed around her to keep everyone out. God brought me back into her life. I say back, because I have known Jama since a young age, and befriended her long ago. Never super close, we now exist as a brother and sister in Christ. Jama just got back from Mercy Ministries (Check yesterday's post for link to Mercy's web-site) where she was at for 6 months. The Jama I knew before her trip was guilty, angry, scared, wouldn't accept complements, didn't like touch, RAN FROM ANYTHING GOD, and pretty much just hated herself. The Jama I saw today was confident, bright eyed, filled with the spirit, glowing, empowered, loved, smiling, physically healthy, COMPLETELY DIFFERENT! I was amazed to say the least. The above picture is when I got the chance to hold hands with many "Jama advocates," while we prayed and thanked God for her return, both physically and spiritually. Besides my own, I believe this is the first time I have gotten to experience first hand the overwhelming GRACE that just pours out of an individual returning back to Christ. It was an amazing thing to be a part of.

We all took seats in the basement as Jama had an opportunity to share what Christ has been doing in her for the past six months. I cried, I laughed, I related, I smiled fervently, but mostly I just listened with an amazement that only Christ could bring out of me.

Jama spoke as if she had been giving spiritual "pep talks" for years. When only 6 months ago, she wouldn't even have dared speak out in front of anyone. She sang a song that she wrote while away for us. The lyrics were so incredibly beautiful and moving, and her voice....HER VOICE WOULD TAKE THE BREATH OUT OF YOU! It was an amazing night. She is a new creation. It reminded me of 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" or Galations 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." It was not perplexing, because I have gone through that same transformation Jama went through. It just took me a little bit longer to find my way home.

locked OUT

I have two classes on Tues & Thurs, well my philosophy class brought some interesting conversation. It was really pretty cool how it all came about. Ya see, we are currently discussing a guy (famous philosopher) who is an existential atheist. To broaden your understanding of what existential means, I found wikipedia to actually be quite helpful. Anyways, we got into the whole debate on Free Will & how this philosopher says very bluntly, you can't have God & Free Will. I kept explaining that you absolutely, and that it makes the foundation for God. It was really pretty awesome how it happened. I got to share my faith, and did not feel shunned or anything of the sort. There were those who shot down my way of thinking, but I was not defensive, I was okay with it, and continued to intelligently approach my views. My prof does not agree with me one little bit, in fact, it would be safe to say he probably thinks I am lacking in many ways of basic intelligence. BUT, he has never felt the peace that passes understanding. I kind of offended this guy named Avi. Avi is a practicing Orthadox Jew, and with my statement of faith, it did....in a round about sort of way, condem him. I say that carefully, because God never condems anyone. There is always an opportunity for change. But, by saying to an Orthadox Jew, you must accept that Jesus Christ was both fully God and fully man to inherit the kingdom of heaven, you are....in a way, condeming him/her. When class was over, I waited for him, and we both walked a bit to discuss the matter further. Much respect for him, and I believe that goes both ways.

When class got over, and I was ready to go home to eat lunch........I WAS LOCKED OUT OF MY CAR!!!Yes, it is a horrible feeling to walk up to your car and frantically search yourself for car keys that aren't there. As you approach your vehicle, you hope and hope and hope that you just accidently placed them down while in the bathroom, or maybe dropped them when exiting the class room. You are thinking that anything would be better than locking them in your car. When all other possibilities are exhausted, you reluctantly approach your car..............there they are. Right in the ignition where you left them. As Homer Simpson would say, "DO'OH!!!"

So, I called around and found that help was not going to be contacted by phone, well not without really putting someone out. So, I started walking. I started to walk to my friend Josh, who works near by. I have frequented his work while on my way home from school on Tuesdays and Thursdays when I see him in his car on lunch break. I tried calling him, but he didn't pick up. So, I didn't really have any other option, so I just started walking over there. When I did, I roamed his building a bit, which is right across the busy street by my College. And I called him again, he picked up this time, and I told him my situation, and asked if I could borrow his car for a bit while I went home to get my spare key. He agreed, and saved my butt. I put $10 in his gas tank, and all was well with the key world. I was so thankful for him today.

Something amazing happened too. My friend Jama is getting back today. WOWZERS!!! It was so crazy how God worked that situation out too. Our last phone conversation & letter happened about 2 months ago. I have been meaning ever since to write her back. But sometimes I am so darn stupid with my priorities that I just kept putting it off, and putting it off. Jama has been at a place called Mercy Ministries which is in Nashville, TN. Boy oh boy did a lot of prayers and "GOD WORK" go into getting her there. But she went, and has been there for many months. I just so happened to take the time to write her a letter. I was doing it in the 45 spare minutes I had before I had to go back to work. As soon as I was done writing it, I gave Jama's mom a call to see when she was scheduled to come back. I knew it was sometime soon, but whether it was next month or what I had no clue. I called her mom, and when her mom...or so I thought called me back, IT WAS JAMA!! She was calling from her moms phone, on the road, driving back with her mum from Nashville!! I just so happened to call her mom, on the day that Jama was coming home. Coming home from her 4-6 month stretch in Nashville at Mercy. Hummm, ironic or God ordaned..... I will go with the later of the two. :-)

I went to a seminar tonight that BSF had about preaching the gospel. It was awesome, and I am super duper tired.

G'Night!!

these halls were made for loving

I was in awe after I left Snider (school I do contact work in for Young Life) today. Left and right kids were just opening their souls up to me and allowing me to not only poke and prod into territory that is typically forbidden, but were loving and willing enough to allow me to gently provide insight and words of comfort. Now I was not providing answers and a guide to end all pain, just served as a caring individual who wants to genuinely take an interest in their lives. It's a beautiful thing when this all comes into focus and things make sense. It is a beautiful thing when you pray and pray for specific individuals to be impacted in a way, and then see God not only impact in the way you specifically prayed for, but to see God go way beyond what you ever thought was possible.

Tonight at Young Life, we played this crazy game. We took a 26' intertube, and made it do things you wouldn't think possible of a 26' bike intertube. It was controlled chaos at it's best.
After the craziness of the games and fun singing and what not. I gave the talk tonight. I gave a talk over the story in Matthew 19:13-15. I started off by sharing a story of when I was a little kid, and some of the insane crazy antics I was up to. I used a couple of pictures of me when I was a young buck to kind of set the tone for who little kids are and how they can act, both good and CRAZY!! Here are the two pictures of "little mikey" I used.I was an adorable little kid. Seriously, just look at that curly hair and that look, it just makes you wanna say "awwww." Well, the kids loved it anyways. The way I went with this was that Jesus was not this guy who only choose to be with the uppity high class society, he wanted to be with the smalls of society. He wanted to be with the children of the world, and even went so far as to say that the kingdom belongs to children such as these. WOW! We are painting this on going picture of, "who is this Jesus guy?" He hangs out with prostitutes, tax-collectors, nobody's, children, degenerates of society. He loves on them and just spreads the Good Word. It is such a powerful and amazingly sweet thing to see and be a part of. What a privdlage for me to be able to impact the lives of young people. It is needed so badly, there is so much pain and grief walking through the halls of Snider. If I just let all my true emotions out when I walk in those halls, and didn't try to be a quote, unquote, "STRONG FIGURE." I would just well up in tears constantly over what some of these kids are going through. WOW!! God is sooo GOOD!!

alright Barack, lets see what you got

Before I talk about the new president, I wanted to comment on how bedazzled I was to see this guy riding his bike down a super busy street. Now, Fort Wayne has laws and all that jazz to protect bike riders, the thing I don't understand is why this guy chooses to ride his bike in the street when there is a perfectly good side walk running to where ever he is going....it is quite bewildering.

I am honestly surprised that Barack Obama is the new president. Well, maybe not too surprised, but maybe more like......well I am just kind of taken by it all. Mark my words...I just hope he is able to stand up to half of the things he said he is gonna do. I don't really believe in him, but that doesn't matter.

I stopped by my sisters house to check on John her fiance's nose. He had surgery today. He had to have some stuff taken out of his nose to open the air way or something like that.I think two things at the same time when I see this pic, I think, Poor John because I know his nose is going through a rough time right now, but then I think GO JOHN! Because of how him and my sister Brandy are going to get into school and make something of their lives.

Crap!!! I did not vote for many reasons......I did not write what I posted below, but I agree with it 100%!!

I am not voting today.

For the last several months I have had so much propaganda thrown at me from both parties to vote for the right candidate, as well as non-partisan urgings to get out and vote because it's my civic duty. I'm just tired of it. I'm ready for tomorrow to come so all the commercials will be over.

I made the conscious decision not to vote a while ago. I've written about this in a previous note, but when Christians put so much hope in the power of the voting booth and in one man to save us all from the woes of the opposing party, this is idolatry. Christians, our faith is not to be in a political system. The Kingdom of God, which is what we should be striving for, is far above this. And for Christians to vote for the candidate who most represents Christ in their policies and character, and expect them to fulfill the duties of the Church while we sit back and live our comfortable lives is irresponsible of us. If we want change, it needs to start with us, not with our politics. If you think that spreading the wealth is the most Christ-like policy, don't just let Obama take care of it, start doing it yourself. This is what Christ has commanded us.

I know that Christians need to be active in our world. I know that voting is often a part of that. But at this point in my life, this is the best way I know how to "make my voice heard." This is my way of being active politically and spiritually. My hope is that Christians will wake up and look beyond the propaganda to see how Christ has called us to live in this world. My hope is that Christians will stop putting their hope in a political system and start being active in their own communities to bring change. My hope is that people will start taking personal responsibility for bringing hope into this world rather than relying on one man and a government to do so. This is how I'm choosing to make my voice heard this election. I'm not judging you for voting by any means, but I just hope to raise awareness that Christ has called us to something greater than a political system.

I think this election has changed the idea of Christian voting. I know it has for me, even though I haven't voted previously. Our faith shouldn't be dominated by any one political party. I hope that this election makes people really think about why they vote and where our responsibility as citizens of this great nation and as citizens of the Kingdom of God cross paths.

awe will happen once I find my nitch

(@ school typing paper)

I am pushing and pushing for this ENGLISH paper to just click. I am making leeway, but nothing that I would call break through. The main topic is "loving yourself," which I do, so one would conclude that writing and telling others how to do this would come with some what ease.......it is not though. Ohhh well, I will keep trudging through until I come up with something that is satisfactory. It is just.....well every bone in my body wants to make some serious tracks on the course of this paper, because procrastination can become my great down fall. I am putting a lot of time into it, but don't have much to show for it.
I got to see a wonderful sunset with the kids at work. They enjoyed it as much as I did. Next time I see something as beautiful as a sunset with them, I am going to try to remember to ask them some kind of a deep question and see what kind of a reply I get from them. Something like....So why do you like a sunset so much so&so? Wonder what that would get me....

BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) was uber good tonight. Those silly Israelites, they keep screwing up, making the same stupid mistakes over and over again........wait, that is just what I do!! Wow, the Israelites and I have a lot more in common that one might think. I took some great notes, but I left my notebook downstairs. I went to work out at the YMCA after I got out of BSF tonight, and my abs are hurting like crazy. Otherwise I would walk my butt downstairs and get them and share what I was learned tonight. The pain is making me march my butt right to bed.

G'Night!!

Glory, Glory, Halluliah!!

Today was awesome! I promised my Young Life buddy, Vantrell, some time ago that I would come and check out his church. He just recently got involved with the Chior, and is real proud of it. So, this morning I got myself around and drove down town to Friendship Missionary Baptist Church. If I could sum the 2 1/2 hour service up, this is what my notes have to say.

Psalms 121:1-2 When times are rough, tough, and seemingly impossible, where do I turn my eyes?

• God's plans are bigger than what I can understand, but it doesn't mean I shouldn't keep on looking towards Him always.
  

• People are always looking towards someone when in time of need. I must keep my eyes fixed on Christ, the only one worth looking at.

Isaiah 54:17 doesn't say anything about weapons not being forged, it says they are gonna keep being forged (loss of jobs, money, friends, loved ones, sadness, Flesh rising up) but that they WILL NOT PREVAIL against you. Ohhh boy what words of comfort to keep holding fast to the only Rock worth standing on. LOVE IT!!

I was the only white person in that church today. But let me tell you, I felt right at home because the pastor was preaching the word, and I was loving it. All 2.5 hours of it!! Vantrell was really happy that I came out to experience his church too. I was glad he was glad. :-)

After that, I had an appt at the library with a librarian to help me find some books for my paper.I got some helping on how to search for specific books based on key word searches. She helped me to utilize my search engines. It was good help, and I found two books relevant to the topics I needed. Then......it was off to find them. This was made extra hard because they are moving all the books in the library, all over the place. I found them eventually though.I really am not a huge fan of the dewy decimal system, but I suppose it is a good thing it is around. I am just glad there are librarians around to help me when I am unsuccessful, because I only found 1 our of 2 books. :-)

I was so tired, I passed out on the couch when I got home and almost forgot about Dave church. ALMOST, but didn't.

In Dave Church, we talked about how vastly important it is to surrender and praise God when you are being slain. Just like Job said, "even though you slay me, I shall trust you." WOW!! That is what you have to want to attain to, I JUST HAVE TO!!

please say a prayer for my friend Richard. Richard is leaving for an adventure in Christ to go down to Florida tomorrow to get new teeth. It is a long and amazing story, but the fact of the matter is he needs prayer. Please say a prayer for his safety, and that he is able to abound in TRUSTING THE LORD for EVERYTHING!!

G'Night

Happy Birth Day JARED!!

(Good meals on me)

Today is the birth day of my bestest friend in the whole wide world. Now, Jared and I have been best buddies since kindergarten. This is Nicky's brother. So I have been planning on taking Jared out to eat at this really nice Irish bar called J K O'Donnell's which I have been planning on doing. In fact, I called and got in cahoots with his girl friend Allison for about a week. We both wanted to do something awesome for his B-Day, so I helped to wrangle up all his best friends and when Jared and I walked back from J K's, we opened the front door up to a house full of pizza and closest friends. They gave him cards and we played video games all night. IT WAS VERY MUCH FUN!!!

THIS IS ACTUALLY FOR 10-31-08

It happened, a rarity I know, but it does happen. I forgot to BLOG. I fell asleep on the couch, the very comfortable and lovely couch and passed out. I was so tired, nothing was stopping it. I woke up at about 12:00AM and moved myself to my bed.

So at work...YESTERDAY, we had a Halloween party. It went really good and the kids really had a blast and dressed up in all their candy outfits.As you can probably see, I was working the prize table. They could do a pumpkin toss, a pin the nose on the pumpkin, or a pumpkin bowling game (notice the pumpkin theme?). I know they had a lot of fun.I was a footballer. It was fun, and simple. I wish I had more time to devote to coming up with a really awesome and unique costume.......but I don't.Here is dear little Mimi. She is the daughter of the site director Andrea. A cutie to say the least.

When I left, I was tired, and restless. I went to the YMCA to get my work out on, and after a little sauna time and a shower I left. The first person I called on my Friday evening......well.....it was my friend Ryan (fellow Young Life leader). He and some other guys went to a campus ministry dance, but said it was super duper lame. They left and were gonna go get some food some where. I don't like wasting money on food if I don't have to. SO, I called my mom to see what she was doing. She was at a dinner/party with friends. They were eating fish that a hand full of them caught while on their Alaska vacation. I wish I had people in my life that were close to me that I could call and hang out with, but my parents are pretty cool, and so are their friends. So, I went there and got some free fish.The men were in a different room, but I ate and talked with the women. They are a bit more "social," and of course, are more interested in hearing about what is going on in my life. :-)

I need friends my age, but this will do.

Okay, I am at my school, getting ready to type on my paper. It is like 12:00PM, and at 5:30 I will be leaving to take my BEST friend Jared out to dinner for his B-Day. It will be super fun.

Today was BIG

I went through the day with children. A lot of children. They had a half day at the school I do childcare at. And well, from 11-6 we had um. Luckily, they had great behavior and it was not bad at all. After work, I went and picked up a kid, and we went out to the Landmark Conference & Reception Centre. The last time I was in this place, I had my HUGE fundraiser for my trip to China to have a Stem Cell Transplant. ~~!!CHECK THIS POST OUT!!~~ to see what I am talking about. Well, tonight was Dessert Night. You can see Dessert Night from last year by clicking ~~THIS LINK~~ yes, Dessert night is a night devoted to putting the yearly budget in front of the people supporting Young Life. It is really quite amazing, and sweet to see how people want to support an organization like Young Life. Tonight was little more than amazingly unbelievable. Tonight was...well the definition of giving out of LOVE. Check out this picture.Yes, we moved up a bit in location. And tonight was really put together super well. Some big deci$ion makers probably made this call. We had a chance to just talk about what we (Young Life) does, and the impact God is having on kids and families in Fort Wayne. We (Young Life) just talked about what we do and how we impact kids. Well, it was great, and it got greater. I was standing at the entrance while people piled in. I saw this one individual (an old man) and told the a female leader standing next to me how I thought that he was the richest guy here tonight. Well, when everything was done and said, it was told in front of everyone that he said he would pay the remaining part of the budget ($105,000) and then match anything else that was raised tonight after that amount. HOLY WOW!!! I don't know what else to say other than God is sooo Good. That money is going to go to helping kids come to know the Christ that I serve. That money is going to go to serving kids in a way that is very impacting and powerful!! It is so exciting and just sends chills down my spine when I think about what was accomplished tonight out of love.

During the course of the night, I got to interview a kid named Vantrell. Vantrell went to camp, and goes to Snider. He is a Junior, and is a good guy. He is extremely well spoken, and well he did an awesome job. I just kind of interviewed him and made him feel comfortable in front of all those people. I LOVED IT!! God is so good people!! The power is literally limitless. You just have to have the willingness to step out in FAITH, and just get on along for the ride. With God, all things are possible. I AM JUST SO PUMPED FOR WHAT GOD IS DOING IN FORT WAYNE FOR YOUTH AND THE PEOPLE DIRECTLY IMPACTED BY THE YOUTH!!! Nothing but huge smiles coming off this face tonight.P.S.

I got a 98% on my Australia presentation. It should have been a 102%, but that is still acceptable.

COSTUME CLUB

Ohhh Baby!! Today was so close to Halloween, that we just had to get in on some Costume Party goodness. We totally did too. LOVED IT!! I am crazy tired right now, but I am going to totally post up these pictures and explain briefly how the evening went.This is the penguin man, I loved this costume a lot. I felt as though it really fit this kids personality as well. These two ladies won the prize for the "most creative" costumes. They both made their outfits right after school. I was completely impressed of their fine craftsmanship. This one was really good too. He was an Elephant, although he was walking around more like a mouse. Either way, it was great.On my way home, I took my buddy Dylan to his house. I took two other kids home as well, but Dylan I got to spend a little bit more time with. I was cruising around his "hood" telling God stories, when I came accross this house. Now, my phone doesn't do this home justice, but it was so bright and lit up. It was really very impressive. And creepy too!!

$2.38 and on the decline

I had the Australia group project presentation today in my OLS class. It went extremely good. I am quite satisfied with how everything came together. I think that the extra effort I put really paid off. ALTHOUGH, I do not think I will be putting that much effort into the next group project, unless I have some people working right there with me. The prof said how much he enjoyed our presentation though.
I don't know how to feel about this. I mean, the second I think to myself, "ohh gas is really on the decline, I bet it get's dirt cheap again." It will bounce up to $4.00/gal again. I suppose I will try to say as neutral as possible. Gas is just one of those things I don't try to understand. It will do what it will do I suppose.When I got out of work, I went straight to school and found a brilliant spot to just sit and type. The English paper got a lot of solid work done to it. Not quantity, but quality. I was in the basement of one of the buildings, where I had no phone reception, which meant no disruptions or distractions. Just typing and thinking, typing and thinking, typing and thinking. BRILLIANT! I took breaks where I visited my best friends g/f at the on campus coffee shop.It was really nice to take a break and go and have intellegent conversation with someone I enjoy having it with. Perfect break kinda gal, that is what Allison is. :-)

When I decided I was just done, I went on over to Nicky's house (Jared's parents house). To get a little Halo 3 action, and visiting time with Nick. Turns out I had just missed Jared by like 5-10 minutes. It's all good though. Nick and I had fun.Just in case your are saying to yourself, "dang, I wonder if the veins in Mikey's neck are usually sticking out like that when he is playing a video game?" The answer is....yes ;-) It get's intense, and compared to Nick, I am a peón.

I am going to bed though.

G'Night!

thesaurus

My English prof keeps telling us (his class) that it would really be in our best interest to get a Thesaurus. Well, after some writing, where I actually wrote. I wrote because I stuck to what I know, and let the power flow. Yes, that does rhyme, and yes you can smile and nod your head in approval. Like I was saying, I decided to go and get a thesaurus, just like my prof had advised me to do so. I must not have been thinking too clearly, but I figured I could find a better price than at the school bookstore. So, I thought to myself, "i'll start at Wall-Mart on Lima Rd." If you know the lay out of Fort Wayne, you would know that I would be coming off of Coliseum and passing Meijer to get to Wall-Mart which is near dupont, the road I wanted to turn on to go home. Well, when I got to Wall-Mart....They would inform me that they are not currently carrying a Thesaurus. I would be dissapointed, but smile and walk away. As soon as I got to my car, I decided I would....DO THE SMART THING, and call Meijer. Well, I use a free 411 service offered by GOOGLE called goog411(1-800-466-4411) And everyone knows that on the number pad of your phone "goog411" is 4664411, all you have to do is add a 1-800 in front of it, and you are ready to go, free of charge. Yea, I thought I was so smart. I talked to the lady at Meijer, and she told me they had it, but I didn't think to ask how much it cost. So when I get there, to my dismay.....I found the book cost $13.99, which I was not willing to pay. Dissapointed, I called my mother. I asked her if we had a Theaurus at home.....she replied.....yesSo, after a bunch of needless search and driving, I got my Thesaurus. I used it too. I need to set aside a large time for writing. Ohhh boy!!! It will be grand. :-)

BSF was awesome tonight. And challenged me as well as taught me new things. I LOVE BSF!!

I am going to end with a quote from St Francis of Assisi,

"Preach Always, When Necessary Use Words."

Thanks Tom. :-)