MySpace blog: WEEEE'RE BAAACK!!!

Current mood: hopeful

So, as you all see, I disappeared for a month. My church, the Stirring, participated in a fast from noise for the month of November, called Vox Dei, which is Latin for “the Voice of God.” The point was to cut off all or a lot of entertainment in order to spend more time with God, and learn to hear what He had to say to us. I wasn’t planning on fasting myspace, but on the 2^nd, I really met with God during chapel at school, and decided to go for it. I’m actually writing a chunk of this blog after 2 AM on the day after Thanksgiving (the 25^th), so maybe I’m cheating, but this is my journaling for the day; I’m just doing it in a way that is more beneficial for my large reader base. Speaking of which, if this blog is as well-read as my previous entries, this will be the blog that generates my 10,000^th blog view. I think that should be noted, for some reason (like bragging ;)). Now it’s really early on the 26^th, and I’m ending the fast for myself.

In honor of this being the first blog in weeks, and my 151st post, and the one that provided the 350th kudo, and the 10,000th blog view, it will contain elements of what my blog is--funniness, serious stuff, theology, and hope at the end. When I really started blogging in early April, I was in a life situation very similar to where I am right now. As in more similar than anyone will ever know, because there are some things I don't tell everyone about, and there are some things about me that I don't really tell anyone about, and I like having secrets with God. He makes me smile more than anyone else, so He deserves my secrets

Here are some things I’ve learned in the last month:
Not going on myspace isn’t all that hard to do. I logged on a few times, but just to check messages/comments.
Safeway gas stations are delightful little environmentally-friendly, wind-powered bundles of joy!
Cigars are OK
Wine is less OK, but I could learn to like it
Beer is OK, but I don’t really think it’s all that exciting, and I may never drink it again
Girls are OK, but my sister is awesome! (and prettier than everyone else too)
My guy friends are awesome, but my brother is awesomer! And he has a really cool guitar!
I can write songs
Damien Rice is alright ;)
So is Dave Matthews
Donald Miller is freakin’ amazing. I’ve only read the Author’s Note of Through Painted Deserts, and I already cried. And I was sitting on the toilet when it happened :)

Things I am seriously pondering:

I think I want to move to South Africa next year. I’ve been fascinated with the country and people since my freshman year of High School. We studied the country for an eighth of the school year in my History class (“Humanities” was actually the name of the class). Also, I met an amazing couple, Merv and Abby Coetzee, who grew up in the country as “coloureds” under Apartheid. They started a camp in Cape Town in 2002, as an extension of Alliance Redwoods campground, where they are on staff. I have been wanting to go to help out with the camp since then, but I’ve been in college, and the camps always run from late November through the last week of December, since that is the summer season in the southern hemisphere. So, at the very least, I’d like to go help with the camp next year.

I also have been really interested in relief work for quite some time, and I’m going on a missions trip to New Orleans for that this spring break. So, maybe I’ll end up in South Africa for a longer time. It’s always (at least since 1999) blown me away that so many people die of AIDS daily in Africa, particularly in that country. Even huge disasters like the tsunami last year, or the huge earthquake in Pakistan in September really don’t kill that many people compared to the number of AIDS deaths in a year. I used to be really interested in doing something about all of that, and in the last 11 months, my interest in that has picked back up, particularly in the week of Thanksgiving. I was sitting in the doctor’s waiting room the other day, getting checked out for being sick for 5 weeks, and I saw a Time or Newsweek magazine that had a feature on epidemics, and I started crying. Then, the nurse called me, so I got snapped back to my “reality,” where I go to the doctor when I’m not even feeling that bad, and get a prescription “just in case,” that the Nurse Practitioner said I could take if I felt like it. All of that goes on while thousands die daily without any medical attention. The next day, I had the most food I’ve had in my life and it was one of the best Thanksgiving meals ever. I sit here and write this at 2:00 in the morning the day after Thanksgiving, and I plan on spending a bunch of money tomorrow on clothes for myself and presents for loved ones. I want to do that still, but I kind of feel bad when there are so many misfortunate people overseas. I just invested some money the other day in mutual funds. I don’t know why God chose me to be blessed financially, but He did, and I struggle through the decision of saving it for later and just wanting to give it to some charity.

I was at my home church’s Thanksgiving service, and I passed my sister a note that said it felt a bit like Garden State. I was at home seeing all these people I hadn’t seen in ages. Maybe it was more like Elizabethtown, since in that movie, everyone knew Orlando Bloom’s dad, just like everyone in the church knows my parents, since my dad is the pastor. Also, I was feeling pretty lame at that point in the week, but I don’t care to go into details, because I’m chugging along quite normally now. Anyway, during the service, I realized just how strong the connection between the Republican Party and the American church is. I still am a Republican, but I have always been an environmentalist, and really big on equality for everyone, and recently I’ve had this passion for social justice. I think there is a right way to go about all of those things, and no political party can accomplish those aims—I think Jesus Christ is the answer.

Tidbits:
I wrote a few songs and played a lot of piano and guitar while I was home for Thanksgiving. Christmas songs are the loveliest things one can play on the guitar. I also figured out some novel arrangements for some worship songs.

I've stated always writing my name as Joshua. I’ve decided that I’m going to use it as a reminder of the meaning, “the LORD saves.”

I’m going to be more fancy-free and try new things more frequently because our life on earth is ephemeral (yes, I used a thesaurus—it means brief or short-lived), and when you try new things, you find new passions. I tried a lot of new stuff while I was home for Thanksgiving, and while I didn’t enjoy most of those things, I finally like apple pie! I still don’t like any other pies (at least that I’ve had). Sometime in October, I tried green tea, and now I love it. I also am listening to a bunch of new music, which I got from my sister, because I realized that is legal, since we both are from the same household. There is the little issue about how she got all her music in the first place, but who’s checking? I’m not.

I want to be a renaissance man, and for being 21, I think I’m doing pretty well.

I saw some old people walking the other day, and I decided that when I’m 70 years old and I go for a walk with my wife, I am still going to hold her hand, because you never see old people holding hands, but they should.

I am going to just go all out and let my vocabulary flow through my writing. If my writing is loquacious, then just grab a dictionary.

I memorized Lamentations 3:19-24. It’s a powerful section and I am going to cling to it.

I hate myspace, it keeps erasing the second half of the blog, so I'll post it separately.

Currently listening : Elevator By Hot Hot Heat Release date: 05 April, 2005