It's a good thing i've got God.

There came a point today where I could have been stressed out like a small dog sitting under a fat woman's chair. Here goes. Well, I woke up this morning early, so I could go and sub at one of the YMCA day camps. Well, I was hoping to be able to get just a little tincy bit of study time in this morning before I took the EXAM, but I just couldn't get my body to wake up at 6:00 to make that happen....go figure. So, I go to work and am doing my thing there. Turns out there was something crazy like 63 kids at the day camp today. It was crazy too, because we had insane numbers of unruly kids to go with those difficult to manage amounts of kids. But, it wasn't too bad, it really wasn't. I don't mind, in fact I really enjoy being with those kids. Even when they aren't behaving like they ought to. It teaches me so much patience.

I really wanted to be able to get, just a little bit of study time in today before the exam. It was really quite difficult though, and things seemed as though it would be impossible. There was a kid who was going NUTS, and I had to fill out a behavior report for him. The YMCA is very thorough about that sort of thing. This is good to protect the children, and inform the parents, and just be above reproach, but bad for a guy who wants to leave just a little bit early so he can get some last minute study time in.
This is what the majority of his face looked like. There were a lot of blatent, "NO! Get away from me, I don't care, and just extreme disobediance. He was threghtening other kids, and just being really nasty. Single mom, no father around, doesn't get punished......and it shows. I would like to say, "well, I am just going to love him." BUT, what form should that take? It was a learning experience. Ohhh, right after the angry little boy, MY PHONE FREAKS OUT!!! It is acting so crazy, I go to class, and tried being connected with my study partner buddy from class, but couldn't reach him cuz phone was freezing, not displaying anything, displaying strange stuff, making calls at random, everything connected to the memory card is no longer functionable, etc.

I got a 72% on my quiz from yesterday.......and that made me really sad. I am honestly trying my hardest to make this class work to the best of my ability. Math...especially STATS is just not my strong suite. Having everything compressed into 6 weeks doesn't help my plight either.

I tried going to the Verizon store to get a new phone, of course I was 16 minutes too late. DO'OH, I thought they closed at 9:00 for some reason. Ohh well, tomorrow I will take care of it.

Well, what kinds of things do I do when I notice the stress levels getting high? Well this is what I did.

1.) I didn't think about having to fix my car. :-)
2.) I went to the tanning bed and got super relaxed.
3.) I took deep breaths and concentrated my breathing.
4.) I just talked with God, ya know an open line of communication. I will say stuff like; to God, "today just really sucked, I wasn't over whelmed, but it just sucked. Thank you for holding me close Father, and not letting me lose my temper when I could have." Things like that. I saw a beautiful evening sky with a setting sun, and just enjoyed the crap out of it. If my phone was working correctly, I promise I would have snapped a picture of it.
5.) I play this thing ~CLICK ME~ my brother sent me. I think that is where it came from.
6.) I watch videos like this one. "I knew about this video & actually have had it on my phone, just the silent video version of the Lion going to the two guys. It is soo cool to see a whole video production. WHAT AN AMAZING STORY and lesson for life.
7.) I read random verses from PSALM like 33:5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love. YES, that verse is yummy and I need to remember that always. Look for the love in the world, and all sorrows turn to praise. :-)

My mother is a servant of Christ through and through. She constantly teaches me by showing how important it is to put others before yourself. She would drop everything to help another person. I had no time to eat, was stressing about taking exam on an empty stomach, and at super short notice. She made me up somin somin, and drove it over to my University. WOW! Seriously, that woman is amazing.

And, for some reason. The name Wendy just popped into my head. "Wendy" is such a pretty name I think. Can't think if I heard it from one of the kids at the YMCA or what, but it is just such a pretty name.

G'Night!

I wanna tell you about my day

I woke up this morning very early and worked out at the YMCA, it was so good! Well, I went and worked out after I got on my roof at 7:25AM to close the window in my bathroom. It closes a little bit, but doesn't latch. So, I had to climb out the actual window, and have my mom latch it after I pushed it shut. It was funny.

So, then I went to work out, ya know pump some iron. Then I had to take my car to the shop. Well, I was all up in 1 Peter I found 1 peter 2:11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful decires, which war against your soul.

Jeesh, this one hits me close to home. I just wanna BEAT THEM DOWN WITH A STICK!

SO FOR MY CAR:
Needs a new Alternator $169.95 +shop supplies $6.80 +assembly $48+haz materials $1.44 + Labor $49.44 TOTAL= 238.56
Needs a new Serpentine Bel. Labor and parts comes to a TOTAL+ $169.16
Needs a new Battery Total=$105.71

I added all that up and it actually spelled this out on the calculator>>>> :-(
It was the strangest thing.
Then I went to school and studied my butt off for a quiz today with a friend, and then I went to work, and then I took the quiz. There was a ton of stress through all that. But I got er DONE. I will see how I did.......EEEESH After Quiz I went and got with Young Life guys at a coffee shop.

Guess what I did next?!? Well I have an exam tomorrow, so I actually got home and studied till about 11:30, now I am going to pass out as soon as Lunesta says I can.Doing more homework was kind of like a swift kick to the groin. Without the permenant effects. I'm sleepy, I'm gonna chat a bit, and GO TO BED! The lunesta is kicking in and I have a HUGE day tomorrow.

the BMV, awww man

Okay, so the morning started off kind of late. I slept in a bit. Well, I had been online chatting with someone who has been on my heart. We talked and talked, and then it hit me. Well, maybe it didn't hit me till later on this morning, but it hit me none the less. I am not called to change people, in fact it is impossible. I just have to love. LOVE LOVING.

Well, last Thursday I lost my wallet at the theater when I was at The Dark Knight; midnight showing. So, I have to refill it. New drivers license, insurance card, Debit-card, ohh and I had my checking and savings account in it as well.....DO'OH! Got all but the drivers license taken care of.They totally redid the Pine Valley BMV, all new everything, same great pace. ;-) While I was waiting in line, I saw someone from the past. If only the phone was pointed a little bit to the left you would see her holding her baby. It was a girl named Liz. She use to be in my neighborhood when I was a young buck, she was cute and a good personality. Well, she just recently had a baby and is making due. I spoke with her and her little one Ellie.

Well, then after 10-15min in line I get to the lady behind the counter. All I wanted to do was to purchase a new license for $10. Well, my license was suspended. And the lady told me I would have to go to the reinstatement office to find out why. So I kept a smile on and did just that. about 35min later I was well on my way. Well, I guess what happened was when I got this most recent purchase of 6months of car insurance, I was not mailed an SR-22 form which is for high risk insurance. I have to carry it with me in the car at all times. Well, for one reason or another it didn't get mailed, and I wasn't notified about the suspension of my driving privdlages. Well, I GOT IT!! CHECK OUT THIS PICTURE!She had to retake it 3 times. She kept saying, nope, were not gonna allow that. Finally she gave her co-worker the "look" and he said, "just take the picture." Horray for my smile and eyebrows, the first one was EXTREME, this one isn't nearly as good. After class today, I went tanning. It felt so good. I LOVE TO GO TANNING! So relaxing, so comfortable, I was extremely close to falling asleep. Big quiz tomorrow, twill be filled with much study time. Me and someone else from class will be studying together. It will be good. I am going to go get into a devotional, and then go to bed.

G'NIGHT!

post deleted

Love God, Love People, Don't mess with the rest.

discouraged he was

Well, I had every intention to wake up early, and study study study!!! I even planed ahead to not go to church, so I could make this my top priority. But, I failed at that. I woke up at like 9:30, which was about an hour and a half later than what I wanted, then it took me forever to wake up, ya know for me to actually get going. So I started study time at about 12:30, which is about what time it would have happened if I would have just gone to church. Ohh well, live and learn. Study time was, well how can I explain it properly. It was, "Argghhhhhhh." That is about as best as I can explain it. Probability just doesn't seem real logical to me, and yuck.
So I stopped study time at 4:30 to go to Dave Church. If you are an avid reader of my BLOG, you will know that I have been going to this for quite some time. And well tonight I got some bad news. Dave has been really down for the past 3 weeks or so. He just doesn't know where he is suppose to go with career, with lots of things. It has been just been a constant nagging, and if you knew the story of Dave, you would understand better where he is coming from. And I have to admit, he is in a tough place. Well, he mentioned that maybe we should stop meeting, for several reasons that kind of made sense, but kind of were possibly his discouraged mind set. So, I don't know where this will go, and what is to happen. But, I just hate seeing him like this.

Then I went to Collateral. It was really good, and I actually met the sister of one of the guys I have in Young Life. She was really cool, and we kind of hit it off. Nothing more than common interests, but we discussed how "ironic" it was. And we even checked the definition of Ironic to make sure we were using it correctly. I am gonna wake my butt up nice and early tomorrow, WORK OUT LIKE CRAZY, and then come home to study study study.
(11:47PM)
I left my Bible and journal in the car so I don't have the verses right off hand that really talked to me tonight...........ohh shoot, I will just go get them. Just a second.
(11:49)
Okay, that didn't take too long. We were in Hebrews 2 and Hebrews 5:11 They are pretty much warnings to stay in the word. This is what I wrote in my journal after we went over 5:11, I kind of like it. No longer on milk, I must continually set my eyes on spiritual challenges that are hard to attain. I am called to so much more than "not going to hell." A righteous life is filled glory given to the Lord. I must, MUST be in the word.

i'm not a re re

Thanks Lauren! Lauren has been on Tysabri for 24 months!!

Here is a great video to explain the drug that I have had so much success with. I just think there are some key terms that need to be understood in order to fully grasp what it is that Tysabri does in my body.

Platelets are the cells circulating in the blood that are involved in the cellular mechanisms of primary hemostasis leading to the formation of blood clots.

Lymphocytes are a type of white blood cell in the vertebrate immune system. Most, but not all large granular lymphocytes are more commonly known as the natural killer cells (NK cells). The small lymphocytes are the T cells and B cells. Lymphocytes play an important and integral role in the body's defenses.

White blood cells, or leukocytes, are cells of the immune system defending the body against both infectious disease and foreign materials.
Also check these WIKI-links Cell Adhesion Molecules, Adhesion Molecule Inhibitors

So, give the video a watch if you are interested, and LEARN!
Today was great, my dad and I really worked our butts off this morning. Well, I got up at 6:45 and met my friend Matt for breakfast because he needed to talk and I am there for him. It went good, and by him trusting me and calling me, it does wonders for my spirit. Simply put...GOD IS GOOD!

But back to what my dad and I did today. We banged out the beginning of an amazing back yard treat, A FIRE PIT LUXURY HAVEN!This is the start of the job. I borrowed the truck from Pathway, and this is a shot from the back of it once we had our first load of mulch. In the back ground, you can see the fire pit surrounded by an island of small stones. All the black stuff is a matting that prevents weeds from growing up, but still allows water and air to get through to the roots of trees and all that good stuff.This is kind of a weak picture too because it just doesn't really do the fire pit area justice. Our back yard is really kicking now. LOVE IT!! As soon as the ummmmmmm fire holder thingy is made, we will be all set. What the heck is that thing called.....the fire ring maybe? I can not think of what the metal thing that holds logs while they are on fire is called for the life of me, but you know what i'm talking about. After I got done helping I showered up and went to school to get some study time in. I was so tired though I was nodding off the whole time. I believe I am going to sleep in tomorrow and fill my morning with study time, or maybe i'll go to early church. I dunno yet. LOVE YA READERS!!

Especially the Hands! My parents say hello. :-)

Also, I thought of a really cool metaphor when I was driving the church pick up from the church to my house. Okay, so I was coming up to a 4-way-stop and it's kind of a long story, but we;ll just say I pulled out when I wasn't suppose to. As the car to my left was going forward I did also, and because I am an experienced driver my foot reacted without hesitation. HIT THE BREAK and all negative actions were avoided. I thought, man, I wonder if you can train your spiritual self to react in that way. To control yourself so much, that you don't even consider SIN as an option. For example: If I see a pretty girl walk by with ample amounts of "chest" showing, I want to look away instantly. I don't want staring at her chest to even be an option in my mind. This is the level I want to be at, what I must strive for. What I do strive for.

children, children

I don't know what spured me on to go ahead and post this picture, but I feel confident that will be okay. I think the fact that I got them to stay still enough to take this picture is basis for me to get a raise right there. lol. ha, joke get it?

No, but seriously little kids are crazy and in their own little world. As long as you are cool with saying the same thing 17 times to the same person within a 4 minute time span, then all is well. Ohh, also I have found from spending time in the pool with them, you must be completely entertained and even impressed by little children asking you if you want to watch something, it'll go something like this. Little child, "Mikey, you wanna see what I can do?" Me, "ohh yes please show me." Then they will either put their head under water for a brief moment, or they will just smash their face so it goes under the water for a small amount of time. Then you have to open your eyes wide and tell them how impressed you are. Also, prepare yourself for the next little person to do probably the same thing.

It doesn't drive me crazy because I keep a good attitude and know that killing small children is a sin.....that is a joke

After work, all 9.5 hours of it, I went to the Friday evening Bible study I went to 2 weeks ago, and it was really really good AGAIN! I loved it, and was empowered by it.

After that I went over to my friend Tyler Morningstar's house where he had a bon fire and some friends over. I saw Jared MurryThis is a picture of Jared, and I met him last year. He is a friend of Tyler's, and I would say of mine, I just havn't seen him in a while. Here is a link to prove I am not making all this up. LAST YEAR @ Steak & Shake So there is some bad news, a while ago doctors found some turmors in Jared's intestine. They removed them, and thought it was done and over with. Well, recently he had his hernia checked and on the cat scan they found some more bad stuff. Well, more turmors in his intestine and 1 of them is cancerous. He is deciding how it is going to be dealt with, and is in need of prayer. Please pray for Jared, he is a great servant of Christ, and just a good person. Please pray for him.

reality check

I took some time out this morning, or maybe God made it so. I had all intentions to wake up at 7:15AM and get my butt to the Y to work out. I set my alarm, but when I woke up at 9:10, I had no idea why I wasn't working out. So, I took a little time this morning to wake up, eat some food, t.v. and then I went down stairs, got my Bibles around and prayed. Prayed that God would get me back in tune with where I need to be. I wrote this in my journal, I want to share it.

7-24
Yesterday my mom and I went to Indy for a Doc. appt. It was probably the best exam I have ever had at the M/S center. She (doctor/nrurologist) said my strength was great and coordination was supurb. She decided to keep me on the Tysabri for at least (minimum) another 6 months after these first six are up. On the drive home we (mom & I) talked about many things, one of the things she said to me/warned me about was to be careful. She said, "as you become closer in your relationship with Christ, the devil will find new ways to attack you." In my case right now, it's almost like the devil is using old tricks to lure me back in. I have to stand firm in the Truth. I can't listen to the worlds standards or pretend like I have to live up to them. Purity, humility, honesty, pridlessness, servanthood, and a heart for Christ should be the most important things in my life. Not a beautiful (physical) girl friend, money, nice car, or even wordly success.....as hard as those things are to say, I CAN'T let those things drive me in this life. (Matthew 5:20) Until I am sincere in my faith, practicing my beliefs without hesitation, I'm not living the way He intended for me to be living. From Oswald (my devotional): "Your motives must be so pure that God Almighty can see nothing to rebuke." This is a good reminder because that is what I really want in life. That is what I constantly want to attain. That is the standard I must hold myself to.I got my quiz back today, and just as my suspicion is confirmed, I DID REAL GOOD ON IT!!

That is such a good feeling, especially considering the fact that all the stuff we went over yesterday and today is so horribly confusing, I am going to have to study it all weekend to try to make sense of it. ARGHHHH!

G'Night

GOOD NEWS!

I have a clean bill of health, and I actually don't have a clue what PingmyHEALTH means, I just thought it looked good. When I was being examined at the Indiana Center For M/S, she said it was by far the best examination I have ever had. Strength was perfect, coordination was awesome, vision was a little off (colors, brightness) but the important ones were right on! Not only that, but she agreed to keep me on Tysabri for at least(minimum) 6 more months, plus one more month left in this first 6 months of it. When she said that, I was very pleased. This drug is doing amazing in my body, and I just want to keep that up. I know no body knows the long term side effects, but I really don't wanna stick myself with a needle every day, and that is the next option. If/When I get of Tysabri, they will put me on Copaxone, AHHHHHH! I don't wanna go on that stuff, it is a once a day sub-cutaneous injection, those just suck. But I am not even going to think about that, I am just going to keep my eyes on the main goal and keep trucking forward. God will do whatever He needs to do, I just have to keep on doing what I need to do. That is just how it is.

Took a QUIZ today in my class, and I believe I DID SUPER GOOD!!!

ciao

I swam, I studied, I ate, I drove

My days are filled with activities. I went to the YMCA this morning and worked out, IT FELT GOOD.

I studied, and my brain hopefully retained it (Cuz there is a quiz tomorrow)

I went to work and swam with little kids, then my supervisor told me how good of a job I did while swimming with the little kids. :-)

I filled up my GA$ tank, it was a little under 1/4 tank and I filled it up @ $3.98.oo; I dropped FIFTY BUCKS on the dot!

I must, I must, I must get some sleep tonight. I have a doctors appointment in Indianapolis tomorrow. I wish I had time to see my cousin and my friend Matt, but I am having my mom drive me because I am not 100% confident in my car right now, it has been hesitating at times to start, and I just don't wanna be stuck in Indianapolis when I finally nave to deal with that issue.

Towards the end of the day, one of my super good friend came over because this person needed to talk. We did just that, and all I have to say is, please say a prayer for this person. God will know whats up.

G'Night!

Tysabri infusion # 5

If it works, I gotta go with the flow. I know that the "unknowns" of Tysabri could be great, but seriously, I believe it is the best option for me. It's not like I haven't tried other options... The above picture is of my Emergency Room suite. I was there for an hour getting my infusion and did homework while I passed the time. So much homework, and it's not even done yet. I have to be moving on to the next chapter soon, but it will take me most of my allotted study time tomorrow to finish this chapters homework. I am becoming a study nerd. I actually didn't want to stop today, but had to because I had to go to work. I was just really into it because I just finally "got it." Ohh well, plenty more opportunities are in the near future.

I left for work around 3:00 and played with the little kiddies. Then it was off to class. When I got home I was like wired. I haven't been sleeping too well. I think it may have had something to do with the Tysabri running out of my system, but I have no idea what I am talking about. I just hope I sleep tonight.

I think I feel sleepy & i'm going to take advantage of this. BOOM SHAKA LAKA!

something that made me smile!

much to share

I woke up this morning and went to church @ Pathway. It was really good. It served as a great reminder to who I am in Christ, and I made some quick adjustments. Church may not be perfect, in fact far from it. BUT, when God shows you things that need to be changed, and you make them after a service, well I think that is just alright.

I went home and after some quick chatting, it was STUDY TIME!After many hours of diligent work, I decided to go outside and get some fresh air. This was the expression that was on my face. Not to bad for hours of statistics homework, and maybe not too deep in thought, maybe just kind of a "bla" face. After I was done doing homework and taking pictures of myself, HA!, I went over to my best friends house to chill for a bit before the fireworks. We watched an episode of MST3K (Mystery Science Theater 3,000) and Alex Mack. We watched them off of an amazing web-site called http://surfthechannel.com/. It has an impressive collection of old, new, never see, all sorts of movies and T.V. shows. I am in love with it, and plan on frequenting (real word?) it often.Well, then we went out to watch the Fireworks! We had great seats perched on top of a parking garage, and I brought my firework seats of course, they are amazing!!! (seriously, they are the perfect fire work seats)Great seats for a pleasant show. Also, it just so happened that my sister Merideth and her girl friend were up there as well, along with some of Mer's other friends. It was another neat suprise. I had quite an enjoyable evening, and that is just good.The only thing that kind of sucked was the massive amounts of traffic on the way home, with Ga$ being as much as it is, I don't like massive traffic lines. Also, on the way home my CHECK ENGINE light came on for a while, and then went away. I think it is just trying to play a joke on me. (KNOCK ON WOOD)

I had a good day today, I needed a good day.

this is it, i'll deal

I was lazy today, my body was so exhausted from yesterday, I just made sure I could sleep in, I actually fell asleep on the couch at like 8 probably, woke up at like 11PM and then went to my bed and slept in till like 10:30AM. When it was time to get up, I made some lunch (mac & cheese/w peas) and then headed to the YMCA for my Saturday work out. Did some weights, rode the bike, then hopped in the whirl pool/hot tub. YES! It feels so good, and then I swam some laps to cool off. I say VERY NICE! I still hadn't found my wallet, so when I was on my way home from the Y I stopped at the theater that I went to the night prior. I asked the lady if anyone had turned in a wallet, and she said no, it was pretty quick though, when I tried to ask her if I could go check the theater that I was in, she wasn't to keen on that idea. She took my name & cell #, but seemed very antsy and didn't act like she was going to be much of a help to me. I think I am going to have to start making phone calls tomorrow. DO'OH!!

I had the option of going to a camp ground where my parents and my moms side of the family are right now. They left Friday and will be there all weekend. I could have gone up today, but I guess I just didn't have it in me to go. I've been down, feeling kind of alone. I am in a place in my life right now where I am just wanting a different situation. I don't know why I can't be happy with the one i've got. I'm going to keep trying though.

I also managed to avoid my homework all day. I had so many perfect opportunities to do it, but NOPE, didn't even open the book bag. AHHHHHH!!!

I could try to explain specifically how I feel right now, but I think that the picture above does it more justice at this point. I would probably just get frustrated with the fingers(my fingers) trying to type the words.

lots-o-kids

So I tried to wake up this morning at 7AM, but after my hand stopped hitting the snooze button, it was 7:15. I had been called in to "sub" for a lady who was unable to run the day camp. Ohh, Yesterday evening/this morning I went to bed a little after 3AM, that's a hefty 4 hours and some change of sleep. Today I was with little children from 8:30AM to 5:30PM, SWEET! Lets just say, I was ready to not be around little children when the day ended.

Also, I think that I lost my wallet, in fact I am almost positive I did. It could have been at the theater, but I am just not positive. :-( Where is my good Samaritan?

BROKEN and The Dark Knight

I took my first test in my STAT-125 class today. I felt really confident with it too. I hope I did as good as I thought and felt I did. I was prepared and studied quite diligently, so it should be a happy grade.

So I went over to Tony's house to chill and take a breather after such a studious day. So, I was just chillen and got a phone call from my mom. She sounded extremely upset, and was crying like crazy. I stepped out side my friends house and she just started asking me where I was, I told her I was at Tony's house (which is in our neighborhood) and that I would come home right away. When I got there, she was in the dinning room and there was a huge mess of her pottery she collects all over the place. I guess what had happened was that she bought a new piece and put it on the shelf and it must have weighed too much and it all just came crashing down. It sucks, because she loves that stuff and has been collecting it for years and years. It is Polish Pottery, and it was just a sad moment for my mum.
I helped pick up many of the tiny pieces scattered on the floor of the dinning room, and then got the vaccume and cleaned up as best as I could. It was a sad moment, poor mom! I wish I could make moments like that just go away.

I went back to Tony's house and explained what had happened, he was kind of worried because I just got all alarmed on the phone, walked out while talking, then driving away quickly. It was all settled though.

Then I remembered that The Dark Knight comes out tonight! I asked Tony if he would go, and he said yes, so then we waited. When I went to pick up the tickets, the girl said it would be a good idea for us to get there early, 30min to an hour early. So we did just that and got in line.The girl (sold me tickets) said they had sold a thousand pre-sale tickets, and didn't know how many would just show up to see it. It was a long wait, but for me, it was fun. I like crouds of people, to mingle and be amongst them is cool for me. For Tony, well, I think his facial expression tells how he feels about that.

The movie was really good, but in all honesty, I think I could have waited to see it at a normal time. It's all good though.

strength to carry on

So my day was pretty good. It started out WONDERFUL because I only woke up one time last night, and it was at 5:00AM, I went and got a drink of some orange juice and quickly went back to sleep. Because I was sleeping so good, when my alarm went off at 7:15 I decided I wouldn't be going to work out and kept sleeping. It felt so good to have a good night of sleep.

Once I got up I had some breakfast and then got right to study time. I studied till it was time for me to go to work. Jennifer (camp director) wanted me and the two other workers to come in 3o minutes early so we could have a meeting. It was cool because she wanted to end it with prayer, and just make sure we were all on the same page. She really emphasized communication and that is good to hear. I really like working with her and the other workers.

After work I went directly to school as usual, and we prepared for the test a bit, it is tomorrow. I think I will do fine, and the Quiz I took on Monday I got an 86%, not bad, but I could have done much better if I would have remembered what cumulative frequency was. DO'OH! At school, this lady who has been working on this painting is almost done. It is turning out very good.She is a nice older woman, and I always tell her how much I love the eyes of the people in the picture.

When class got over, I was BEAT, I just wanted to hang out with a friend and tell him about my day, so I called up Tony and went over there for a bit.It is always fun to talk with Tony, he is always honest, and straight forward. This the set up he has created in his garage for his glass blowing venture. I am excited to see what is going to come of it all. He has even gotten to the point where he is going to try to sell his car, HE LOVES HIS CAR, but he is being realistic about it and is going to sell it so he can pay it off and then have some money left over to get his glass operation up and running. It's coolness!

G'Night!!!!

excited to love life

I want to be able to love life whether I am living here.Or here.I think that it is all a matter of how you look at life. Ohh jeeze, I wanna be able to love life where ever I am, and what ever I am doing. I have my first STAT test on Thursday, I need to be super prepared. I will do great I just know it.

I had an awesome day at the Y working with my little friends.

I am super tired because I haven't been sleeping too well lately. I really, really hope I sleep good tonight, I do. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!I watched 50 first dates this evening. I cried several times, I always cry when I watch this movie. I guess I am a sucker for love stories, especially good ones. Maybe it's because I want it so bad. Maybe it's because i'm just a hopeless romantic.

I didn't review becaue of work

I woke up early, like ohh maybe 7:10AM. I went to the Y to work out and feel real good. As soon as I got to my car to drive home, I had a voice mail from a lady at a YMCA day camp. She called to ask me if I would be interested in "subbing" for one of the ladies who wasn't able to come today because of a hurt back. I said of course I would, and drove to the other side of town to hang out with kids. I helped feed them, I helped organize them and laugh at them while they played Kick-Ball, and then I pushed many, many children on swings. It was fun, as soon as that was over, I went to the YMCA downtown location to work with those same kids at more of a day care type setting. I left at 5:00PM and went straight to class, where I had my second Quiz. I knew the stuff pretty good that is why I was okay with "not" reviewing, although I would have liked to, I think that I did very good. The only thing that I am not sure of is the difference between cummulative frequencies & relative cummulative frequencies. Ohh well though, I will find out soon enough and next time I will plan on going for the GOLD and getting that review session in no matter what!!

No pictures today, even though I could have taken so many EXTREMELY CUTE pictures, I don't know how parents feel or what the laws/rules are of taking pictures of young children with out parent conscent and posting them on a BLOG....probably better safe than sorry maybe. I dunno.

post post post, POST IT UP

I slept in today, I didn't go to church because I was darn tired. I mowed the lawn which is massive with a push mower, and then went to Dave Church at 5:00, it was good because my friend Mitchell came and I haven't seen him forever.

After it was over, I was going to go to Collateral, but I didn't because....well, because I just had every push in me not to go, I mean it was deep, right down to my bones telling me or persuading me not to go. lol, so I went over to my friend Andy's house. I hadn't been over there and caught up with him in so long, it was good for me to do so.Andy is the one with the long hair sitting close, and his brother BJ is in the back ground. I got to take B's mini bike out for a ride, that thing was quick and got me up to around 50 in no time. IT WAS SWEET, but I almost laid it down/threw myself off when I was downshifting at high speed. "NOTE TO SELF" be careful when downshifting at high speed on a mini-bike. :-)

Then we went in and ordered 10,000 B.C. off of Verizon Fios ON DEMAND and it was a pretty crappy movie, pretty crappy in deed.

yup yup

to the lake

I worked out this morning, and ya know what? It felt good! I burned some calories and felt the burn, and then I got in the hot tub/whirl-pool and relaxed. When I got home I read a little bit from this book I am reading by Philip Yancey called The Jesus I Never Knew, It is good and points out important stuff. After all that my mom said I should come to the Lake with her and my dad. It is their friends lake cottage, and I love their friends so I said, sure why not. This is what came of that.Well, everyone knows that a good lake cottage has nice toys to play with. And play I did!Dennis has a brand new Sea-Doo, the thing only has 12 hours of use on it, and it is FAST! I love those things!!! It is great fun to go out on one of those things, I always feel like I really belong on the water......"sigh" If you knew my story, you'd know why I have such a connection to the water. But, that is not where God has me...right now, so I am cool with that. Well, after the Sea-Doo and some really good lunch (Chili) we went out on a really nice boat ride.Ahhhh, the open water, the wind in your face, the splash of the water on the side of the boat, it is all so relaxing and calming. I LOVE IT!!! Someday I hope to have a boat, and maybe even a lake cottage, you just never know!

Well, once the boat ride was over, we (guests & lake cottage owners) did not want the party to stop. So, we did the one thing that made the most sense. WE PLAYED APPLES TO APPLES!!That picture is a little fuzzy, but you get the general idea. It was a good day today.

G'Night...I sure hope I can sleep

Bible Study

On Friday's I don't have class, so I suppose I didn't have enough motivation to get my butt out of bed, even though I woke up at 7:10 and ate breakfast like I was going to go, then found the couch and made reasons for not. I am going to wake up early tomorrow and go work out though. It feels good once I am there, it's just the initial push to get there that is the hard part. I can also read tomorrow and get things accomplished that will better my life, so that is exactly what I am going to do. Yesterday when I was working at the Y I saw my friend David, who also works (lifeguard) at the Y and he told me about this Bible study that got started by some of the familiar faces that I had made friends with at Collateral a while back. Well, I called one of the guys up and he was all like, "yea man, come over, you know we'd love to have ya!" So I did and I am so happy I did so. It was a serious boost of Christness and just really spiritually fulfilling. Ya know how you feel after like a thanksgiving dinner, all full and content. Well, that is exactly how I felt once I left Matt's house. Matt is so strong in the faith too. I really admire his life because it is all for Christ, he has many strong stories that constantly come up. I am back in the Christian brotherhood. Those guys were so glad to see me, and really made me feel so welcomed. Matt is the one in the blue shirt in the picture above. We were going through Ephesians and God showed up, just like he promises and I learned in the name of God. I love digging into the word with a group of guys. After the Bible study was over, their girl friends, wife and fiance's came over. They have all found the one who they will spend the rest of their lives with, but I felt okay that I haven't. And i'm cool with waiting for her. That's just that.

We were all up in Ephesians chapter 3. in vs. 8 it talkes about how the riches of Christ are unfathonable (NASB) , unsearchable (NIV). To me this means that as Christ followers we will never be able to fully comprehend the grace God has given us. In vs. 19 it talks about the love that surpasses knowledge. In vs. 18 Paul still talks about how we must keep trying to grasp how wide, long, high & deep the love of Christ is. We'll never do it, we aren't even capable of grasping it, BUT it is more than enough. That is quite powerful to me, the Spirit really pressed that concept on my heart. I love it when He does that. :-)

Interesting audio I found from Obama. Give a listen CLICK ME!

I am going to sleep like a baby 2night!

I am so tired, I can hardly keep my head up. I am not dosing off yet, but I sure am tired. Like my body is just wore out. I was at the YMCA by 8:00AM, then came home and studied and did homework right up to the time when I needed to leave for work. I went to the down town YMCA and swam with little kids for 3 hours. Then, I went to class. I was yawning the whole time. I am ready for the quiz on Monday and that is that. By the way, Lions are crazy!

Also, I keep seeing this commercial on the ole tele-tube about the new Thin Mint Blizzard from Dairy Queen. OHH MY YUM!!I always fall short of the glory, even when all I want to do is right, I can seem to find a way to not do right. It may not necessarily be a "big deal" but falling short is falling short. I must be strong, and make time to be in the word every day. I MUST.

listen to what I did today

Today I was at the YMCA by 8:15AM or so, I worked out and it felt great. I am going to keep going as long as I am able to get home and start working on my STAT 125 homework before I go to my job at the YMCA doing childcare. That is in fact, exactly what I did. I worked out and then came home and worked on homework. I am feeling good about the work so far too. IT IS JUST THE BEGINNING THOUGH. All is well, I can do it.

Time flew by and soon enough it was time for me to go to work, ya know, that new job I got at the YMCA doing childcare. It was great, I am more of a "glorified babysitter" but I already enjoy and will continue to do so. I did mostly some swimming with the kids today, and it looks like that will be the "norm" through the summer. I like it, they are a cute bunch, most are younger like 5-7ish or maybe 8 or 9, I dunno. They are cute and funny, and I can tell they are already testing me on the first day! But guess what, I was just like, or worse than the most rambunctious one of them. This gives me a little bit of an edge because I know how I appreciated or needed to be handled when I was a young buck. Not to back down, but not to let someone walk all over, and PATIENCE! Which I just so happen to have a lot of and will continue getting more and more as I am tested.After work, I went to class. After class I met up with some of the Young Life guys from the camp I went to in Michigan. It was good, they were honest and we "talked." Then they got in the pool, I had enough pool for the day, so I dipped out after we got done talking. It felt good to be home today, I was super ready to stop the go GO GO! But at the same time I seriously love being busy so much. I am excited to go to the Y & work out and feel healthy. It's all good.
Prayer Request:
That I meet some people that I really get a long with who love Christ and are SWEET/AWESOME. Meeting guys would be awesome, healthy & help to keep me accountable in ways that would be hard for a female. Meeting females, or "a female" would be great because I wouldn't mind meeting that special lady & I get a long really well with females.

G'Night

(about 35min later) I posted this BLOG, and then thought about my prayer request. Maybe I don't need "new" friends. Maybe I just need to put time and effort into the Christian friends I already have. Thy will be done, whatever he has planned for me, I want to be game for. So I guess I just tweaked the prayer request a little bit. God will understand. :-)

char·is·mat·ic

I wonder if charisma is something you can attain. Like if you feel that you aren't charismatic enough, and want to become more charismatic, can you set your goals and try to gain more of this trait?

I found this picture on a random BLOG that I came across. I love the way this person puts so much emotion and expression into her art. If you don't enlarge the picture, you can't see the writing on the lower left of the picture. It says, "The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; He utters His voice, the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress... Be still and know that I am God."I love it, and it makes me very curious. To the left of the man it says, Spain 1 Germany 0. I am wondering if maybe this man is watching a soccer game, he looks the type, and whatever he is focused on, he is really intent on "it." The verse above is from Psalm 46:6-7, I am not sure what translation it is from, but I like it. The be still and know that I am God is from Psalm 46:10. I really like it, I like it a lot (Dumb & Dumber).

I was up early this morning, like I actually woke up at like 6:50, got around and met Josh at a coffee shop and chatted a bit at 8:00, it was good. Then I went on over to the YMCA and worked out, I really like this whole early morning work out session thing. It gets me going, and I feel really refreshed afterwords. I think I would like to keep that up.

In the afternoon, a pretty big storm rolled through. You can see by the looks of this video I captured on my phone that it was the real deal. If only my phone really did the storm justice. It was pouring down rain like CRAZY! There was intense lightening and thunder, but my dad doesn't throw in much of a shocked look either. There is a tornado siren going off in the back ground, and I think a tornado actually touched down somewhere near by. It was cool. I LOVE STORMS!!

Other than that, my day was pretty average but very enjoyable. I start my new job at the YMCA doing childcare, and I am totally pumped about that. Class went good today, and all it well. :-)

drowsy

I am kind of sleepy as I BLOG this evening, I had to take some Lunesta to ensure that I would be able to sleep tonight. Tomorrow I am going to meet with Josh (Young Life area director) and chat with him before he leaves for a month to be a head leader at the camp I went to in Michigan. I gotta wake up early so I have to make sure I go to bed tonight.

I did a little stat 125 class today, was pretty lazy, studied a little bit, and was a little lazy. I can't wait till my new job at the YMCA starts. For serious, just to have something to do, and to make me move.

I am doing good and my spirits are high.

what am I currently thinking about?

Well, I am happy that I am able to speak out. I am glad I have the freedom to say what I want, how I want, when I want.

Also, I am ready for whatever life is going to throw at me next. I say that soundly.

Also, I have been thinking deeply about things lately. I almost ran a red light and it was pretty scary, I was driving down a road that I had done a million times before, but because I was so deeply in thought I missed that there was a light there, and came to a screeching halt. I didn't like that, but it has been happening more and more. Also, when I don't take my Lunesta, I have crazy dreams. It will be nice to be dreamless tonight.

G'Night

motivation, motivates!

Church was okay, I am not sure who the gentlemen was that actually spoke at my church today, but he spoke on simon-Peter, probably my favorite disciple. I say he is my favorite because he is like the average joe. Always messing up, and then coming to the realization that he did so and doing his best to fall on Christ and accept His forgiveness. It's a beautiful thing to see. BUT, this guy who spoke did a really covered over and dull presentation of Peter's spirit and personality. I didn't think it was a good depiction of who he really was. I guess it would be quite the challenge to show who he really was in 40 minutes, but I just thought the sermon was a super broad overview but at the same time it kind of had to be. The SERMON was on HOPE, and how even when we mess up, we should still keep the hope. Peter always messed up, but never gave up hope. Luke 5:6ook what happened to him, that was kind of the whole speal. He gave these examples. Example 1.) Luke 5:5 of course, is when Peter doesn't listen to the mouth of God asking him to cast out his nets, Peter gives an excuse & then gives in to his laziness and wazoo! Multitudes of FISH! Example 2.) Matthew 14:30 is another classic example given when people talk of Peter being Peter. It is when he falls into the water after he amazingly walks on it. People always stick on the negative part of this story, but he did WALK ON WATER!!! I could talk and talk, but I will give just give Example 3.) Matthew 16:23 is when Jesus talks a little sturnly to Peter, because Peter doesn't have his eternal glasses on. He is thinking like a man, and not trying to see the eternal significance of what Christ is about to do. 4.) Matthew 26:40 Peter falls asleep, MAN, I bet he was dissapointed in himself. I bet he really regrets doing that, and ya know what? I can really relate to that. In a deep way. 5.) Luke 22:57-60 This is probably the most well known example in regards to people seeking out Peters failings in Christ. It is when he denies Christ 3 times before the rooster crows.
In the evening I went to Dave church, and it was good..as always. Then, I got a phone call from my friend Nate, right before I was about to leave Daves house. He was burning up some stuff behind his house, and so I told him I would be right over. We had a good time talking, and I like being able to do that with Nate, just talk and be real. Dang it was hot as heck with the sun and the fire.

On my way home I was driving through the neighborhood and saw my friend Tony out with his dog Trouble.I got to talking to Tony about things. He is getting real serious about his whole glass blowing operation, and I have to say, I have never seen him so motivated about something in all the years I have known him. This really has the opportunity to change things in his life. He really wants to make good for himself. And I want to be a part of it. I have the ability to help him by selling much of his goods. I have all these ideas, and if he sticks to his end of the deal, I want to be able to make it work for him. I think I can do that too. It is kind of exciting, but I want to make sure I do it right. I think that in a couple more weeks, he will have everything set up, and be blowing and melting. It is pretty exciting, because he is so pumped for it. Ohhhh BOY!! It makes me extremely motivated because I see that sparkle in his eye, and I am going to just keep putting God into the development when ever I have the chance to do so. God will start to work his magic, and I will really be praying about this diligently. :-)

July to the 5th

I had a pretty average day today. Actually, I had a pretty lazy day today. I slept in till about 12:00, then eventually ate some honey nut cheerioes and then watched some more T.V. I was proud of myself for starting a new book today. It is called,

The Jesus I Never Knew by: Philip Yancey

I am really liking it because it is raw, and real. I really like real. BUT, I have this tendency to start a good read and great, amazing, profound intentions fall short of what I originally want. It is something about reading, reading is just something that I always struggle with. Yancey is real good though.

I had some amazing dinner with my parents and their friends.

I went over and tried to help John my sisters fiance with his phone, then stayed and played some GTA 4. Great game. So, I guess today was pretty average & I am okay with it.

Okay, so this guy is a huge French jerk......but it's pretty darn funny. LOL.

fireworks & friend

CHARACTER first, fireworks later. I found this on a random web-site.

Character is God's love to you, working in and through you. Real, authentic Christian character is formed when you surrender to Christ and allow His piercing work to grow and enrich you, so that the Spirit flows.Building and developing character is not something we just learn from a book or hear from a sermon. It does not come upon us in the night, or sneak up in the day. It does not come automatically, accentually, or suddenly. It is a process that comes from being parented in it. Then it rests in us and in our motives. It is a slow process. You may not realize you have it until others point it out in you. Character is not permanent once it is formed. It requires our continual hold and practice, in His Word, through our prayers and the practice of His Fruit in and through us. Our spiritual discipline, motives, obedience, and persevering faith will be the keys! All it takes is to be in love with Christ. Seek His presence and be persistent in your prayers. Galations 5:22-25
My friend Jocelyn came down from East Lansing, MI to chill for the 4th of July, the ole Independence day. We had a good time, some of the things on the activity list were:

• swimming @ friend of family's house
  
• talking
• watching fireworks in extremely comfortable chairs
• watching movie till late to kind of waste time

She made the decision to leave at 3:00AM so that she could make the 2 hour drive and go directly to work. Crazyness I know, but w/e. The fireworks weren't really all that amazing, how come they were so much more special when I was a little kid. I want to be able to watch fireworks like that again. I dunno though, I still had a good time with her, and she made it home safe. All I have to say is long distance is difficult, maybe even foolish to start with. Creates a huge restraint for me personally & ga$ is not going to get any better.

PEACE!