Mind Over Matters

I haven't figured it out yet. Either it's too complex, or it's just too big. Or maybe it's too simple, or too small to pinpoint. Perhaps it's so minutely complex, or so simplistically massive that I can't seem to put my finger on it.
So then one might ponder, "why try?"
If there is no conceivable hope to understand, would it not be a blatant waste of time to attempt to comprehend? Is it a fool's errand? A pointless endeavor?
Why keep trying?
Because I want to know.
Curiosity is a...curious thing. (A redundant and obvious statement, I know.) It is our natural drive to know, to understand, to learn that of which we have no natural mental conception. It is this drive that causes us to pursue the unattainable. Even that which we perceive to be unattainable is only seen as such because it has not as of yet been grasped. There was a time when it was thoroughly believed by many that it was impossible for man to fly. And even as many attempted for years to achieve this goal, it was still widely considered to be entirely inconceivable; until that first flight at Kitty Hawk. Now we consider it a fact of life.
I may never figure it out. For all I know it is entirely impossible for me to comprehend.
However, I continue to try because, quite frankly, I can't think of much else better to do.

Addiction?

Here's one for all my college friends. You know who you are. I'm here for you.

http://www.wikihow.com/Quit-Facebook

We're all in this together. Together we can make a difference.

Hello? Is This Thing On?

I was wondering when I would see me around these parts again. Actually this blog is my home page, so I come here all the time. And I keep telling myself, 'self, you need to post some time soon. I mean just look at all the stuff that has happened since your last post. You have some many things you could write about.' But the response always comes back, 'your right. A lot of stuff has happened...and is still happening. In fact, I need to go work on some of that stuff right now.' So in the end, no post is made.
This has been a really rough month as far as...well, everything is concerned. I have such a packed schedule full of classes, activities--mandatory and otherwise, work, and friends. It's been really hard to keep up with everything. Actually, I haven't really been keeping up. It's been more like I'm tagging along just behind. Things will ebb and flow. I'll get ahead, and fall behind, over and over. I ended up dropping a class because there was just too much stuff. So I'm hoping that now I'll be able to get things caught up for good. I seriously think that I could stay ahead of the game. The only problem is that with my crazy schedule it will take some time to get to that point.
I was ahead of things at one point. Then one of my teachers switched things up and threw in a couple assignments. That then started a chain reaction leading to my falling right back behind.
The sad thing is that it's not just one class that I'm not catching on to. It's the lack of time spent working on every class that then leads to poor quality work in all my classes.
I'm not going to freak out though. That would only take more time and create unneeded stress. God can get me through this. Only God can get me through this well.

In other news, I'm really likin' my new job. I'm an A/V technician. I run sound for different events and chapel. Actually, I'm still in training. So I don't technically run it. So far I basically just help. But I think I'm picking things up fairly quickly. It's so much fun too. I think this job is a good fit for me. On the one hand it is a lot of work, it provides a challenge, it requires a good deal of focus. But it also doesn't involve a whole lot of social interaction. I don't say this to mean that I don't like being around people. It's just nice--as an introvert--to have some time in the day where I can step out of the social light and do something that I enjoy doing without using all the energy it takes for me to be in social situations. Sure, I work with people, but it's kind of different. It's hard to explain. Just suffice it to say, I like my job.

Slackerness

Starting at noon today I am going to be in three classes in a row, the third of which has requested that I bring a two page paper--of my own writing--on the importance of history in the life of a christian. As of right now I have no such paper. I know, I'm a slacker. Why am I posting on my blog right now instead of working on my paper? The answer to that is simply this, the computer is not cooperating with my thumb-drive. I started my paper and planned on finishing it during this time slot. However, once I got here I found out that this computer has decided to be really stubborn.
So, I've pretty much accepted the fact that I am not going to have a paper ready in time for the class.
Why didn't I do the paper over the weekend? Well, this was actually a really weird weekend. See, usually when people come to college they move in at least one or two days before classes actually start. No home work, nothing they need to work on right away. Just move in and get ready for the year. Well, I did that. It was great. I was ready and everything. Then I was thrown a curve ball.
I was living in one of the dorms on campus. Then probably the second day of school my room mate was offered one of the on campus apartments. So, we decided to move over there. Saturday was full of packing. Sunday was full of moving. Long story short, it was a crazy weekend, and I was very tired. I tried. I did what I could. I even have half a page done. I had a plan to finish. But life happens. No use stressing over it.
Granted, I'm sure there was probably more time this weekend than I thought. I'm not saying that this is not my fault. It is my fault. I'm a slacker. God and I need to work on that. But for now, the deed is done, and I'm willing to accept the consequences. It's only one assignment. Life isn't over. I just got to keep working, and really focus.
Laters.

My Life In A Box

Well, here I is. I'm getting ready to head out on Monday. Heading back to the big world of college. I'm excited, but I'm also very much a little worried about getting everything together. I mean, I'm sure I'll be able to survive just fine without everything that I own. I could do very well for myself without most of the stuff I end up taking. But I'm sure some of you know how it is. There's just something inside me that wants to be ready for every conceivable situation. Call me crazy.
I've just been rummaging through my entire collected life, these past couple days; going through almost everything I own. Looking through old memories, relearning old lessons, remembering old friends. All the usual stuff that happens when someone goes through his old stuff.
Of course, it makes for slow packing when everything I go through takes a few minutes to look through. And then I keep running into walls. Not physical walls, but mental ones. The one I run into the most often while packing is when I don't know what to go for next. There are a million and one things that need to be taken care of, and I can't pick which one to do first.
I'm not too worried. I know everything will come together. I just need to keep gettin' things done. I'm excited for when all this packing stuff will be over.
Laters.

The Finnish Line Is Only The Beginning

Almost there. Where? I'm not sure. Perhaps I'm just pulling into the next starting block. There is always the chance of it being the finish line. One never knows. But it looks like I'm just arriving at another beginning.
What does it mean to finish a journey anyway? Is the end of one adventure not simply the starting point of the next. We tend to measure situations by the excitement or emotion that the event brings to us. We tend to look at the events in our lives that create high levels of emotion as the only real part of the journey, or at least as the only meaningful parts.
It's kind of like a runner who lives for the feeling of running. To him, the rest of life might just seem like a pointless expanse of time which is only required because he is incapable of running non-stop. But if that's how we really see life, then we are going to spend most of our lives wishing we were somewhere else, and feeling like our lives are meaningless. However, if you were to ask someone who has made running his life's purpose, he would probably tell you that what he does while he's not running has almost, if not completely equal importance to the running itself.
What is it that an athlete does while he isn't running? He stretches, rests, eats, and gets help and encouragement from his coach and other people. If he didn't stop to do these things, his running would only get worse, he could become discouraged, and eventually he would die.
If life was just one big adventure without any change in pace, the outcome would be painful, discouraging, and disastrous. But life isn't like that. The big adventures come and go. And between those big adventures we live out some of the most important times of our lives. So why do we look at those times as meaningless, pointless, useless times that we would rather just skip.
We don't always know what's going on. And that's okay. But I think a lot of the time we just don't know that there is a point, so we don't even look. One thing leads to another and we start thinking that life is pointless, and we'd rather be doing anything else.
So I don't think that I'm losing anything as this time in my life is coming to an end. Sure there are a lot of things about this next year of school that I'm a little worried about, and there are aspects of it that make me wonder when I'll be able to move on to the next thing. But I see this as another opportunity to learn and to grow in new ways. I don't know what's going to happen, but that's half the fun.
When life is one learning and growing experience followed by another it makes everything seem so much more interesting. No two days are the same. What does God want to show you about Himself today?

My Buddy

My friends' wedding is this next Saturday. Their pretty excited. To be honest, I'm pretty excited too. Sure they are going to have a lot of rough times ahead of them, but who doesn't.
It's a crazy thing. He and I were talking not to long back when he said that he never would have thought that he would be the one to get married first. He was always the free spirited one. Not one for big responsibilities. And I was the one who lived by the book; always analyzing and second guessing his crazier ideas. It's a wonder we ever became friends to begin with. Even so, how we ever managed to stay friends is another mystery. But we did, and we are. And now he is, and I'm not anywhere close.
Of course he has matured a lot in the last few years. Now he's got himself a full time job, a home, and soon enough a wife.
As for me, I get to live the life of a vagabond. Bound to no one, and free from many responsibilities. I have no constant employment, and nothing full time. I live where I can (currently that means living with my parents while I'm not at school).
We almost switched roles, as it were. I'm sure a good chunk of it has a lot to do with each one's effect on the other. He's helped me out of my box, and I've helped him to consider things before taking action. It's a really cool relationship we have. Just the kind of thing God would put together. Like, peanut butter and potato chips.
Who woulda' thunk it?