Tiger Woods...ripping more than just his 9 iron

Listen at second 29...

it makes me like him a little more.

Hello, Hurricane!

Oh boy do I love me some Switchfoot.

I have managed to get my greedy little musical hands on Switchfoot's unreleased new album entitled Hello Hurricane. At first, I was nervous. I mean, how can a band be so good for so many years?! The guys are getting older and I was worried they were losing it. Oh me of little faith! 

The new album is wonderful. It's different and I just adore it. Here's how Jon Foreman described the feel of the songs...

"One's a lot more beat driven, one's a little bit more what one of the guys has called "punchy," which is maybe a little bit more traditional, what we've been doing. And one's a little bit broader, ethereal. Trying to kind of go to "Where the Streets Have No Name" type of thing. So yeah, its just a matter of where or what song we want to play for the next ten years, and so I think its gonna be some sort of amalgam between those three elements."

I heard from a friend they are releasing a new album every few months over the next year because Jon has written about 80 since the release of Oh!Gravity. That would make 09-10 the best years of my life. Don't judge.

image from:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hellohurricane.jpg

Tears of Saint Lawrence

Nothing compares to a clear sky on the night of a meteor shower. It's one of the only things I can spend hours doing and not get bored with. Sadly though, last night was the Perseids Meteor shower and I missed it. I laid in my driveway for half and hour around midnight and could not make out a single star through the cloud covered sky. I decided to do a little research on Perseids to satiate my fascination. Here's what I found...

Perseus was the son of Zeus and Danae. Super long story short, he was sent on a journey to kill Medusa and succeeded with the help of her back-stabbing sisters. On his way back home he crossed paths with Andromeda who was chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster, dressed in nothing but her shackles (scandalous). Needless to say he fell in love and told her father he would kill the monster in exchange for her hand in marriage. Interesting, eh?

Catholics have called the shower "tears of Saint Lawrence" in remembrance of Laurentius, a deacon who was martyred through fire around 258 AD.

For optimum viewing, along with getting away from city lights, drive

toward the Constellation and lay with the horizon in your peripheral vision. If you can see all the stars in the Little Dipper you know your eyes have adjusted to the light enough to see the meteors. 

images from:

http://images.google.com/imgresimgurl=

http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/images/perseids99.jpg&imgrefurl=http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/images/perseids99.html&usg=__KlbMLwLSHJtXJpym1HL1AANiK2U=&h=553&w=838&sz=202&hl=en&start=14&um=1&tbnid=eGPQlFDFLv3XzM:&tbnh=95&tbnw=144&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dperseids%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den-us%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Perseus_und_Andromeda_MKL1888.pnghttp://my.execpc.com/60/B3/culp/astronomy/Spring/Polar.html

Save a Cow, Drink Silk

My mom has recently been buying Silk soy milk. I decided to give it a try and I actually like it, which is surprising because I basically drink a glass of dairy milk with every single meal. I did some research because I've heard a lot of random two cents from people about the drawbacks of both soy and diary. Here's what I found...

Soy protein in Silk is considered a “complete protein” in that it contains the correct amino acids for optimum health and is low in saturated fat and 100% cholesterol free, unlike animal milk. Silk also contains omega-‘s and antioxidants. Silk purchases one REC (Renewable Energy Certificate) per kilowatt hour of electricity used. The purchase of the REC helps to improve renewable energy sources, like windmills, thus aiding in the shift toward a greener environment. It is generally accepted as a substitue for animal milk. Soy milk has been said to negatively effect male fertility, so if I get married I’ll be buying Soy for myself and dairy milk for the hubby. 

My other research has shown that dairy milk is fine, too.  Some argue that milk is not intended to be consumed post-infancy but I can’t help but notice the types of diseases and cancers that milk is proven to prevent!

I think, based on my minimal investigating, I will alternate between Soy and dairy milk. I will only buy Publix milk though because they do not use the growth hormone and it lasts longer than organic milk…and is cheaper.

Mooooo.

Where The Wild Things Are

Let me just start off by saying I am more excited about the release of Where The Wild Things Are on October 16th than I am about my 20th birthday a week later. Trust that I will be front row opening night!

My fascination with this book began when I was young, as it did for most kids. I didn't have siblings and so I was responsible for making my own fun as a kid, needless to say I developed a ridiculous imagination. We didn't own this book, but it was one I would grab and read while cozied up in an old bean bag during free time in our school library.

Maurice Sendak published this book in 1964, and what is so cool to me is that he not only wrote it but he also was the illustrator. 

This movie is growing into one of those "trendy things" but I don't really care. The book has such a good message and I'm really excited to see how the movie expounds upon the themes of hope and childhood innocence. 

I can tell the movie is going to have such a magical feel to it and I know I'm going to love it-kind of like how much I love Penelope...don't judge. 

Did I mention Theta Alpha's Fall Rush week theme is Where the Wild Things Are? I know, I can't even wait!

I mean, who wouldn't want to party in gainesville, right???

This article cracked me up. Go ahead, click on the title to this blog and read it.

I just remember when UF was named "#1 Party School" and the kids I know who go to Florida tried to play it off all cool, even the kids who went to Santa Fe, and acted like they knew it all along. 

Are you kidding me?

I go to UCF and I am woken up a few nights every month to drunken college students hollering "U-C-F! U-C-F!" at 4:30 in the morning. This would be understandable if we had just won a football game (which is a rarity)  but no, it just sort of happens. I'm not necessarily bragging because it doesn't even matter to me because I don't drink, but I'm just saying that GPA is the last thing on the minds of most UCF students, which is a world of difference from everyone I know who goes to UF. How can a school full of dedicated students party that hard?

I like how Capitano points out that kids were trying so hard to live up to that expectation. I went to UF last semester to visit a friend and the first sight I saw as we rolled down Archer was a drunk kid projectile vomiting from a car window. Classy.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not hating on UF I mean this is the "Gator Nation" after all and Gators are amazing at life...we get it. I'm just saying, it made me laugh that this was the title to get ripped from their precious gator hands. 

Go Tebow, Go Gata.

Lessons learned from Arizona

I figured I should put down on paper (or Word document) what I learned this summer. This is the condensed version because I didn’t want to make anyone read a novel. Most of the things I learned are relatively simple thoughts that I am excited to attempt taking seriously. I wanted to share this with those I love and those who have supported me so much this summer. Thanks for everything. 

I really don’t know much about anyt

hing. I don’t even know all that is Apache Youth Ministries, the place I feel most passionate serving. This is not the fault of anyone on staff, just the fact that I don’t get to see how things work during the school year (but hopefully will three years from now). It’s been quite humbling if I do say so myself, which is something I think I needed a good dose of.

 

A 9-volt battery is physically smaller than a 6-volt battery.

 

It’s a waste of time and a lack of faith to be stressed out. I’ve known this for a while because it is one of the things I struggle with the most (you know this if you know me at all haha). If I had to pick one person I know that should be allowed to freak out the most it would be Ron Everingham. Ron is also the person I know that freaks out the least and exhibits a life lived in God’s peace. I’m going to try to have more faith and stress out less, so next time you see me stressing out tell me to stop being stupid. Thanks!

 

Love God, love others. It’s as simple as that. It’s not something you need a degree for or any amount of special intense training. It’s a command that is rarely followed but would change the world if people would just do it.

 

I’ve learned that God has more of a right to ask us the “tough questions in life” than we have to ask him. We ask God, “Why are there children starving all around the world?” when in reality we should be asking ourselves the same exact question.  

 

Discouragement dies when met with praise.

 

I am falling more in love with God with each passing day. Thanks to the advice of Derek (I’m not sure he even remembers saying this to me) I am focusing on what Jesus says…you know, those red letters that I’ve skimmed over my entire life. It’s really allowing me to fall in love with who God is, not that I am even close to knowing all that He is, nor will I ever be…and I think that’s what I love most.

 

I have the most amazing friends. I think the reason my suitcase was so heavy on the way home was because it was filled with letters and notes (and a crown of splendor) friends sent with me and mailed to me. You all are amazing. Thank you for your prayers and words of encouragement, I love you all. 

 

The AYM staff is composed of some of the most amazing people I have ever met. If we took out everything else amazing that happened this summer I think I would feel just as blessed to have been considered a lowly intern (ha) among the most Christ-like people I know. Y’all will continually be in my prayers and I can’t wait to be with you all again.

 

Most importantly I was reminded this summer of the crazy love of the One I try to love back.