..:Yahtzee:..

The Beginning of Something New

2008-04-06T02:16:00.004-04:00

Over the past 7 months, I've been journeying with a group that has been attempting to live missionally and intentionally in the East side of Austin. It's been a challenging 7 months, but has had its share of beautiful God encounters and enough learning moments to write a dissertation.

Come June 1st, we plan on taking what we've learned over these past few months and begin something new. Starting June 1st, we are beginning something called the 297 Collective. It's not anything fancy, snazzy or innovative, but an attempt to be community together, as well as engaging and intentional with our neighbors. We intend to embark on a journey that will bring people from different life stages together for the desire of caring for one another through intentional community, as well as extending this care to our neighbors through a missional lifestyle.

With all new things comes a need for vision and shared values, and this is what we came up with.

Generosity
Whether it be with our time, finances or grace, we want to live generously. In the world that bombards us with commercials about retirement and 401K’s, we want to live a life whose gravitational pull is not ourselves. We want to accomplish this by:

Financial Generosity
With the amount that is collected every month, our desire is to have at least 50% turned right back out to be reinvested and redistributed into the community. It may take a few years to see this happen, we will remain faithful to living generously.

Kairotic Generosity
‘Kairos’ is the Greek word for ‘time’ and has the connotation of a time which is not necessarily measurable or quantitative, but qualitative in nature. Although our minds and schedules are more used to a more rigid, or Kronos, type of time in terms of weeks, days, hours and minutes, it is in the Kairotic moments that we experience life and community changing encounters. As we live communally and intentionally, we want to be mindful of our Kairos and to share it generously.

Patient and Graceful Generosity
Much like death and taxes, pains, misunderstanding and worldview challenges are all certainties when it comes to communal and intentional missionality. But instead of like-kind retaliation or emotional forfeiture, we want to be generous with our grace so we can wisely work through our challenges, misunderstanding and hurts with the mindset that it may take longer than we want, but it is in this process of being distributors of grace that healing and transformation will take place.

Simplicity
We do not want to be caught in the cycle of consumption, nor found reliantly suckling at the teat of consumerism. With the value of simplicity influencing our lifestyle choices, we are intentionally denying ourselves that which the voices of the world say that we cannot survive without. Or as Tyler Durden once said, “Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need.” In pursuing this lifestyle, we are standing in solidarity with the belief that there is more to life than spending our time, energy and resources to romance the “American Dream”.

Intentionality
We are not products of chance encounters and random developments, but byproducts of intentional creation and mindful choices. As we live in community, we too want to have our decisions and actions be intentional and not left up to mere circumstance or dumb luck. From the relationships we foster to the activities we participate in to the daily rhythms we develop, we want to be purposeful in the choices we make and fight the natural desire to be inactive observers where we simply let life unfold around us.

Community
One thing we learn from life in the suburbs is that you can be surrounded by the people living in your subdivision, but loneliness and disconnection seems to be the normative way of life. As communal beings who were designed for community and require human interaction for survival, we want to buck the status quo of individualism. We desire a passionate pursuit of a communal existence with our housemates, with our immediate neighbors, and with those who share the same zip code. Although bumps, snags and seemingly insurmountable obstacles are guaranteed, we are willing to face these challenges together than to merely exist alone.

Longevity
We must maintain the mindset that we are not a program, but are hopefully allowing our missional and intentional lifestyles be the catalyst for influence and change. Because of this, our mindset must be one that doesn’t necessarily see an end date or parameters of conclusion regarding our involvement with the 297 Collective. Obviously, we will probably see turn over in terms of those who are involved, but our desire is to reduce that to the lowest amount possible so as to maintain and foster relationships with the community, especially since the community primarily consists of families that have been living in their respective homes for generations.

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It's one thing to have vision and a common value set, but the challenge is to take these words and give them form. So often, vision can amount to mere pillow talk, but we hope to flush these values out and allow the voices of the collective shape the way in which we communally live out Generosity, Simplicity, Intentionality, Community and Longevity.

If you could, please pray for us as we begin this dialogue to be the Church to one another, and to our neighbor.

Reality...Revisited

2008-02-15T00:54:00.002-05:00

In my last post, I talked about our house being broken into. Last week, Jim, my housemate and the owner of the home, met with the detective who was assigned our case. What we learned was that all 3 of the people arrested are under the age of 20. 2 of them are brothers, and they both live around the corner from us with their grandparents. For the eldest one, this was his second offense. To make the brothers' situation even harder, their father is currently incarcerated.

I found myself throwing out the idea of inviting the boys over for dinner. This gesture is not to rub in the fact that they got arrested, nor is it to show them what they could have stolen, but to make an attempt in getting to know them and developing a relationship. Unfortunately, this idea was not received very favorably, as it still seems to early to face these kids in hopes to usher grace and forgiveness into this situation.

Please continue to pray for us as we navigate through these tough and life defining times.

Newfound Appreciation

2008-01-30T00:33:00.000-05:00

I spent the day with 4 boys. I prepared their breakfast, helped get them ready for school, pick them up from school, entertain the one who's too young for school with Wii, food and a trip to the park. I prepared their afternoon snacks, attempt to help them with their homework, made dinner, and washed dishes.

I'm wasted.

I mention all this not to brag about my accomplishments(there's actually not much to brag about...I probably broke more rules and laws than I care to divulge), but to say that mothers all around the world do this every single day, and getting a break is more often than not a luxury.

So whether your children are grown, still growing up, or yet to be born, if you're a mother and you happen to read this, the following is for you:

YOU ARE MY HERO.

It totally baffles me how so many amazing women can do all of this day in and day out, not to mention trying to do this in a culture that takes mothers for granted. My attempt at being a parent for a day has made my appreciation for you grow exponentially. I thank you all for your tremendous love and selfless energy, and apologize for all the unappreciative people out there who thinks that what you do is "easy". And what now seems like a slap in the face is how culture has marginalized "Mother's Day" to be a 24-hour period of time where we get to tell our mothers how important they are to us. Pardon my coarse language, but that's horse shit.

Mothers, you deserve more than flowers, chocolates, neutered hallmark cards and long distance phone calls once a year.

And to my own mother, I can only look back at the pain, torture and patience she embodied while trying to raise us 3 punks, all the while keeping sanity, order and grace within the home.

"Mom, you're truly the best. It is because of your love that I am who I am today, and I owe you absolutely everything."

Love,

Unappreciative Punk-Ass Child #2.

Reality

2008-01-25T22:07:00.000-05:00

In September, while being an extra on a film set, my brand new phone was stolen. At first, I thought it was misplaced, but it wasn't long until I realized that this wasn't the case. When the reality of being a victim of theft, a feeling of disgust overwhelmed me. My phone being stolen wasn't what bothered me, as I would have gladly surrendered it to someone who needed it. It was the fact that someone felt stealing was their only option to get what they needed. To add insult to injury, the friends I shared company with began to make whispered accusations and started pointing a judgmental fingers at someone based on their ethnic and socio-economic background. To be honest, I think the stereotyping made me more sick than the actual disappearance of my phone.

Yesterday, I encountered the same feeling of being violated. Allow me to set the scene:

I was on my was back from the grocery store, but instead of going straight home, I stopped at a friend's house to drop something off. As I was pulling up, I saw the cars that belonged to my two house mates parked in front of the residence. I enter the house, deliver the goods, and engage is some side splitting conversation. Several minutes later, house mate one's phone rings, but is ignored. Immediately after, house mate two's phone rings and displays the same caller ID, but is subsequently ignored as well. Not 5 seconds after the final ring on house mate 2's phone, my friend's phone rings. She picks up, but discovers that the caller is actually looking for my house mates. On the other line is the alarm company who says:

"There has been a breach in the house."

At first, we all look at each other with confusion and begin to mentally process the situation. If everyone who lives in the house is in the same place, who could have entered the house that didn't know the security code?

My heart sank as a chill ran up my spine.

My house mates and I hop into our cars and drive straight home. I go tearing through the sub division and find myself the first to arrive home. I run to the front door and look through the glass and to my horror, I find the back door wide open. I insert the key, unlock the door, and brace myself for whatever, or whoever decided to let themselves in. I gingerly step into the house, peek into each of the rooms, with both my fists clenched, ready to swing at anything that didn't belong. But after a couple minutes, I see and hear nothing except the pounding of my own heart. I walk towards the back door to look into the backyard.

"Could they still be in the yard?"

Several turns of the head confirms that the only person in the yard was me. Upon this realization, I turn my attention to the door. The combination of the shoe print on the door, an unrecessed dead bolt, a broken door frame and pieces of blinds on the floor, it was obvious that whoever caused the alarm to sound did not have a key, and the only thing they took was our illusion of safety.

Several minutes later, the police arrive, but instead of coming into the house, begin to look around the premises. We later discover that it was not the alarm that made the police arrive as quickly as they did, but a 911 call from our neighbor. If it was not for their awareness, the police would not have received a description of the 3 young men running from the house after the alarm sounded. If it was not for our neighbor, the police would probably not have arrested the 3 suspects that they did.

But the issue that currently haunts me is this: What is to happen to these three young men. One of the suspects in custody is a 17 year old KID. Have the futures of these three been ruined by this stupid mistake? Will the fact that we decided to press charges mean a future of uncertain promise? As a person who lives with the promise of grace and forgiveness from God, how can I extend the same grace and forgiveness to these 3 boys? Is there a redemptive story that can emerge from this unfortunate incident?

I know that I will continue to wrestle with these questions for a long time, and pray that God will impart wisdom to my house mates and I so we can be a reflection of the love and forgiveness that allows us to be called Christ followers. I will also be praying that we will continue to love this neighborhood unconditionally amidst this unfortunate encounter.

Holiday Videos and Images

2008-01-04T00:46:00.000-05:00

Some of the things I've done and people I've seen these past few weeks.

Ethan The Tiger Part 1

Ethan The Tiger Part 2

Ethan Laughing Up A Storm

Sister in-law Wii Boxing Match

My First Beard Papa Experience

Places I've been since the 18th of December:
Detroit, MI
Toronto, ON
San Francisco, CA

Current location: Hamilton, ON. So happy to be back.

Despair

2007-11-08T00:47:00.001-05:00

As of this past Tuesday, I started working at a new job. I've been looking for something for a while now, but nothing has worked out...until now. I have to say that this has to be one of the most fun jobs I have ever done. I work for a company called Amplifier. Many different online companies outsource their shipping and customer service needs to Amplifier, one of which is their sister company, Despair, Inc. What is Despair, you ask? Well if you can imagine a company that specializes in motivational posters, pictures and other gadgets and doohickeys, Despair is the antithesis of these companies. They specialize in DEmotivational posters, pictures, clothing and other gadgets and doohickeys.

I'm working in their customer service department answering emails, responding to complaints, sending replacements, and all the stuff a customer service person gets to do. The only difference between the Despair way of customer service and how customer service is executed at a company like Rogers, Walmart or Target, is I am encouraged to be sarcastic, rude and borderline insulting. Can you say 'DREAM JOB'?!?!?! Actually, I think she would have a blast doing what I do. To give you a few examples of how I go about "serving the customer" at Despair, here are a few questions from customers, along with my responses. (Just so you know, the names have been changed or removed)

CUSTOMER 1
"Do you have any guidelines for suggestions for posters? I have several, but don't see anywhere on your web site to submit the ideas. I'm sure this isn't intentional. I really don't want to overwork anyone since you seem so "busy"; however, I'm (unfortunately?) one of your favorite customers and I won't go away.
Thanks."
ME
"Oh man!! These are the emails that I LOVE responding to!!! It's awesome when customers go beyond the realm of being a customer and actually become part of the Despair team. If you follow this link, you will be taken to the page where you can submit your spectacular ideas. Who know? Maybe your design will be found on our next calendar, mug or t-shirt!! Crossing my fingers, man!!"

CUSTOMER 2
"I am trying to save some trees, so I will shop in the future on your website. Please stop sending the catalog. Thanks."
ME
Thanks for loving the environment, but hating our catalog. Don't worry, we don't take things personally. Thought I would let you know that instead of printing our catalog on paper, we are currently in the process of having the catalogs printed on cow manure. As soon as they're completed, I'll be sure to send one of our pies your way.

Just kidding.

No worries. You've been taken off our mailing list. Our apologies for any inconvenience we've caused.

Thanks,

Kevin C.

CUSTOMER 3
"I would like to get on the mailing list to receive a catalog. How do I do that?"
ME
Thanks for your inquiry into a catalog!! Let me give you the proper steps for obtaining a catalog.

Step 1: Stop bothering us.
Step 2: Stop bothering us.
Step 3: Stop bothering us.
Step 4: Leave hope at the door.
Step 5: Stop bothering us.

When you have completed these 5 easy steps, you will find your catalog magically appear in the same dresser drawer you keep you socks and undergarments.

Just kidding.

Thanks for requesting a catalog!! We will be adding you to our mailing list, upon which time you will be all set up to receive one of our catalogs. Thanks for your interest in Despair, and we hope you enjoyed your stay.

Seriously, I love this job.

Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life

2007-10-18T02:32:00.000-04:00

I'm reading a book by Robert Lupton entitled 'Compassion, Justice and the Christian Life: Rethinking Ministry to the Poor'. So far, it's an amazing read that seems to be touching on many of the issues we are currently wrestling with as a community at Vox, as well as making me rethink some decisions that were made when it comes to living life here on the East side. In fact, I feel that this book is slightly prophetic in some ways because several of the issues the author discusses are ones he has trudged through in his 30+ years in Atlanta, but are current issues that seem to be blooming here in the city of Austin. Issues like gentrification, yuppies marginalizing the poor by gobbling up low income real estate and people with doing more harm than good, even if they have good intentions.

I came across this portion of his book and found it to be spectacular and full of wisdom.

Ancient Hebrew wisdom describes four levels of charity. the highest level is to provide a job for one in need without his knowledge that you provided it. The next, lower level is to provide work that the needy one knows you provided. The third level is to give an anonymous gift to meet an immediate need. the lowest level of charity, to be avoided if at all possible, is to give a poor person a gift with his full knowledge that you are the donor.

Perhaps the deepest poverty of all is to have nothing of value to offer in exchange. Charity that fosters such poverty must be challenged. We know from 40 years of failed social policy that welfare depletes self-esteem while honorable work produces dignity. We know that reciprocity builds mutual respect while one-way giving brews contempt. Yet we continue to run clothes closets and free food pantries and give-away benevolence accounts and wonder why the joy is missing.

Perhaps it is our time and place in history to re-implement the wisdom of the ages and to fashion our contemporary models of thoughtful compassion. Our donated clothes could create thrift store and job training. Our benevolence dollars could develop mini-economies within the economy - daycare, janitorial, fix-the-widow's-roof services that would employ the jobless in esteem-building work. "Your work is your calling," declares the reformer, Martin Luther. Does not the role of the Church in our day include the enabling of the poor to find their calling?

This book has sent me into a vortex of wondering if everything that I've learned, and much of what I practice when it comes to loving your neighbor was built on the what ancient Hebrew wisdom considers to be lowest level of charity that should be avoided if at all possible.

New Discovery

2007-09-24T02:31:00.000-04:00

It was either late last or early this week I found myself nursing a stuffy nose, a scratchy throat, and enough snot to fill 7 shot glasses. In other words, I came to the conclusion that I have a cold. As I began enduring these symptoms, I found myself noticing that I was not tired, nor was I feeling sick, which made me wonder if I actually had a cold or not. As I continued to observe my symptoms, I found that they would come and go. Sometimes they would be in full bloom in the morning, but a couple hours after waking up, they would disappear.

I'm no doctor. Nor am I someone who would be placed into the camp of 'I'm a smart guy', but using the powers of deduction and the process of elimination, I have come to this conclusion:

I have allergies.

I have never had allergies before in my life, but somehow, Austin has proved that there is no such thing as never when it comes to allergies. I don't know what I'm allergic to, but I'm quite sure I'm allergic to something in the air.

I'm praying that they will clear up soon. If not, I might have to resort to some more fierce tactics in the form of drugs and nasal plugs. Maybe I need to eat more BBQ and let the savory scent of hickory and beef work its magic on my sinuses.

Things That I've Done

2007-09-20T16:43:00.001-04:00

These last few weeks have been pretty insane. I arrived in Austin September 31st, and from then until now, this is what I've done:

* Dump my AAA insurance and pick up Progressive
* Change my vehicle registration
* Help several friends move stuff
* Uninstall and move an electric stove while electrocuting myself 3 times in the process.
* Get a job as an administrative assistant with the mentoring/tutoring/home-schooling organization called 'Pip Start'
* Stand in line to get my new drivers license
* Throw a birthday party for the Prock girls
* Fall in love with East Austin

In my mind, I had imagined that I would treat myself to a slow transition. Although this transition was everything but slow, it has been a lot of fun.

High Standards

2007-09-10T15:25:00.000-04:00

While waiting at the tax office to get my new plates and change over my automobile registration, I saw this and was compelled to take a picture. Apparently they either celebrate dissatisfaction, or rarely ever check this board. As for me, I had a very pleasant time getting serviced.

New Diggs: The Photo Edition

2007-09-10T01:56:00.000-04:00

Thought I'd give y'all a glimpse into my new community. I'll take more pictures of the East Austin area later and post 'em.

New Diggs

2007-09-10T01:00:00.000-04:00

Howdy, blog world. First off, shout out to my peeps up in Canada, especially my friends of Hamilton and the FRWY community. Although I'm loving Austin, I miss you all deeply. Here's a quick update on what's been going on and what has developed in my involvement with the in-breaking of God's Kingdom here in Austin.

Prior to coming down here, I've been telling everyone that I'm going to be involved in something called 'redistribution', one of three descriptors used by the pastor and civil rights leader John Perkins to describe his process of bringing change and justice to the south that had been ravaged by poverty and racism. (The three descriptors are Relocation, Redistribution and Reconciliation). I had also said that I would be involved in this said 'redistribution' on a church community level, but since moving down here and getting to know the community as well as chatting with the lead pastor and my dear friend Gideon, we've decided that my involvement would be on a smaller group level. Allow me to elaborate.

Over the past year or so, there has been a small group of people within the Vox Veniae community that has developed an awareness and heart for the socioeconomic polarization found in the Austin community, namely the poverty in East Austin and the rest of Austin. As their discussions grew and began to unravel and unfold, a handful decided that living incarnationally within the East Austin community would be their desired course of action to address the issues that laid before them. As of right now, there are 2 houses that are occupied by people from this group, and they are Evan, Stephen and Adam living in the guy's house called 'Brookswood' (because it's on Brookswood Street) and Marsha and Jan living in 'The Prock House' (I'll let you figure out where that name came from). Along with these two houses, there are 5 other houses in the East Austin community that are occupied by fellow Vox people. One of them belongs to Gideon, his wife Karen and their two boys, another belongs to Weylin, the Vox community/administrative pastor, his wife Rachel (who is also Gideon's younger sister), and their son and 6 month old daughter. Two other houses are homes to 9 women that are part of the university campus group Campus Crusade for Christ. Although not all of these women are part of Vox, we share the same desire of loving our neighbor and bringing Grace into a deeply graceless world. The final house is the one that I now call home. I share this beautiful space with an amazing couple, Jim and Gretchen, who I absolutely adore. In March of last year, Jim and I went on the same trip to India together, where we also became roommates for the trip. A year later, Jim and Gretchen got married, and I had the honor of participating in their ceremony by reading a scripture passage in Cantonese.

I share all this to say that I am super stoked about the new opportunity that has been given to me to be the community pastor here in East Austin. I get to pair my love of leading, teaching and mentoring in a small group context with a God inspired passion to love my neighbor in the East Austin community that seems to have been neglected in the city's allotment of love and grace. Although I dive into this new chapter in my journey with God and people with uncertainty, excitement, and buckets of sweat and questions, I bring along with me all that I have experienced and learned during my journey in Canada.

* From being shunned by the community at Tyndale and my initial experiences with new church communities in the GTA, I have a greater passion and desire to welcome and engage others into community.

* From being challenged academically and theologically during my scholastic pursuits, I bring with me a new lens in which I see the church and the world we've been called to love.

* From my experience with being part of a church community that saw its doors both opening and closing within a span of 2 years, I bring the heartache that comes with unactualized dreams and desires, as well as the realization that we don't have as much time as we think to dick around, and need to start doing the things God has called us to do, which is to love God, and Love our neighbor.

* From spending a month and a half living with an amazing couple who modeled sincerity, love and authenticity at every waking moment, I bring with me an experience with a living arrangement that all future living arrangements will be compared to, a greater hope for marriage in this world of broken hearts and shattered promises, and the realization that living with a married couple can actually be both fun and awesome.

* From being welcomed into the FRWY community, I have been able to finally experience authentic community in a church context for what seems to be the first time in my life. In seeing how a community can unite under the same passion and desire to love God and love their neighbor, I bring with me a new paradigm for churches of the future to learn from, innovative ways to engage the community, a heightened passion and desire to love the unloved and care for the outcast, and a community of selflessness that is in a league of its own.

Thanks everyone for putting your fingerprint on my life, whether it was a positive or negative, for my life has been influenced and affected by both. I hope to continue to journey with all of you who have loved me, and for those who don't like me, I must beg to ask the question, why are you reading this blog, sucka?

Greetings From ATX

2007-09-01T01:53:00.001-04:00

After 2 days of driving, 1 night in a hotel, and 1 massive thunderstorm later, my brother and I have arrived in Austin. I shall hopefully write more about the journey, but sufficed to say, I are tired, but thought I'd let everyone know who reads this blog that I made it to Austin safely.

Oh, have I told you how farking hot it is down here?

Success On My Watch

2007-08-28T12:49:00.000-04:00

I'm a proud uncle. Watch my 'lil nephew go!! For those who are impatient, skip to 0:55 to see the majesty.

Mad Skills

2007-08-26T23:57:00.000-04:00

My friend Allen sent me a link to this video a while ago, but it behooved me to post it here.

Until now.

For all my non-Cantonese speaking friends who see this, don't let the language deter you from watching the whole thing. In fact, if you actually understood what the commentator was saying, you'd realize that he's one of the biggest cheese balls in the world. So consider it a blessing in this particular case that Cantonese is not in your quiver of languages.

The 'Phew

2007-08-26T19:38:00.000-04:00

The more I hang out with him, the more awesome he gets. Here's some photos and a video of the stud.

Wedding Fingerprints

2007-08-26T16:25:00.000-04:00

I would've posted this sooner, but had to wait until after the Michigan reception to do so. Enjoy the slideshows from my brother's weddings.

Insane

2007-08-10T13:19:00.000-04:00

This video made my jaw drop. Props to my friend Gid for posting it on his blog.

This next video also floored me. After watching the above video, YouTube recommended that I watch this one as well. Being the lemming that I am, I obeyed and clicked. So glad that I did. After watching it, I became inspired to become a flautist.

Yummy

2007-08-08T18:51:00.000-04:00

Check out this site to make your own customized hot dogs. I've played around with it, and these are my favorites.

Hot dog with peanut butter and a barbie doll head

Hot dog with chocolate sauce and buffalo wings.

Hot dog with whipped cream and circus peanuts.

Hot dog with spaghetti-o's and fruit stripe gum.

Hot dog with tartar control gel toothpaste and a barbie doll head.

Dramatic Reading

2007-07-17T21:00:00.000-04:00

My friend Ben sent me this link. I was rolling on the floor laughing afterwards. Have a listen and see if you can get through it without laughing so hard that you start crying.

Sad Reality

2007-07-03T18:45:00.000-04:00

I was walking back home earlier today after an afternoon of paper writing at the neighborhood Starbucks and passed by this church. When I saw their sign, I knew I had to take a picture. Judging by the photograph above, it may not look out of the ordinary, but if you look closer to the inscription just underneath the name of the church, you'll find the words 'Visitors Welcome'. But thanks to the landscaping decisions, that has been all but blocked from sight.

***Before I continue, I must include this very important disclaimer that I am not insinuating, implying or stating any stance on denominational superiority or inferiority. In fact, the name on this sign could very well be any of ours, so if anyone belongs to, or knows someone who belongs to this particular church or denomination, let it be known that I am not taking cheap shots at you, this church, or this particular denomination.***

I feel that this sign is quite representative of so many churches all across this continent, regardless of denominational standings, or the lack there of. So many times churches say that visitors are welcome and you can "come as you are", but more often than not it's one big bait and switch routine where a pipe dream is dangled in front of unassuming people to lure them in, and when they least expect it, the come as you are mantra is replaced with 'assimilation time, bitch'.

The landscape of churches today deeply saddens me. We say one thing, but to another. Just because the word 'missional' or 'emergent' in our lexicon, doesn't mean that we're actually living up to what those words really mean. Although I'm excited that the idea of a missional church is beginning to catch on, I'm also saddened because in the amount of time for 'missional' to become the "in thing" for churches to do, it's been bastardized, processed, packaged, and sold on every bookshelf in our Christian bookstores. It's become WAY too easy for churches to say all the right things in public, use all the buzz words in our blogs, but yet still be more irrelevant to the pursuit of Kingdom values than screen doors on submarines.

Sorry if this post sounds really angry and frustrated, but the reality is that I'm both angry and frustrated, both with myself and with the current landscape that I see. But amidst all this intense and perhaps negative emotions that flutter through my brain and heart, there's this calming sense of peace in the reality that hope abounds, grace liberates, and God redeems. I may wrestle with all this, but the triune God of Father, Son and Holy Spirit understands, loves and never gives up on the humanity found on this side of heaven.

Killing My Meats

2007-06-10T16:25:00.000-04:00

I'm a fan of cooking, partly because I like to eat, and because it's relaxing for me. I've grown accustomed to using a stove and an oven, but felt like expanding my repertoire. A little while ago, I bought a slow cooker in hopes of venturing into the land of tender eats and all day cooking. People say that it's nearly impossible to ruin food in a slow cooker, but apparently I am the exception to the stupid rule. I can make soups and pasta sauce in there with no problem, but when I start putting in meats, they come out tasting like crap. It smells amazing, but insanely dry. In fact, I tried making a beef roast in the slow cooker today, and when it was done, I took one bite and for the life of me couldn't swallow it because it was so dry. I honestly felt like I was chewing tree bark covered in sand. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong, but I think I might retire this slow cooker and go back to what I know best, the good 'ol stove, oven and microwave.

Pwnage, and A Bit of Randomness

2007-06-02T23:53:00.000-04:00

They had such high aspirations. Up 2 games to 0, my Pistons were poised to reach the NBA finals again. Perhaps it was poor coaching. Perhaps it was a lack of determination. Or perhaps it was the reliance of "performance under pressure" that backfired. Regardless of what led to their demise, the Pistons have reached the end of their post season run. I had the Pistons going all the way to the finals, where they would eventually be crowned the new NBA champions. I guess I'll have to wait for the next season to see this happen.

While we're on the topic of bad predictions, I TOTALLY missed the mark in my NBA playoff predictions. I had Houston beating Utah. WRONG!!!! I had New Jersey beating Cleveland. WRONG!!!! And I had Detroit over Phoenix. DOUBLE WRONG!!!! I think I need to stick with what I do best and leave the predictions of the outcome of games to people who know what they're talking about.

While we're on the topic of things I do best, I must say that eating has always been up there on my list of 'skills that help pay the bills'. Recently, I found myself craving Chinese food. It's been a while since I had a decent meal of the eats from the motherland, so I decided to go get some. I remember passing by a restaurant that most people (me included) would label as 'ghetto' based on the signage, decor, and name. It's called 'Chinese Dumplings', and I must say that I really enjoyed it. I love dumplings, and this place had exactly what I needed to feed my cravings. If you're up for a new spot to eat, give this baby a try. I highly recommend the Pork dumplings with chives.

An Ode To Fudge

2007-05-22T20:20:00.000-04:00

Some people know that my parents have a little white Maltese called Fudge.

Some people also know that my goofy mom refers to her as my little sister.

But what people don't know is what kind of personality she had.

Most people don't know that whenever the doorbell rang, she would start yapping and barking.

Most people don't know that she usually sleeps in my parents' bedroom, but if they were gone and you were still asleep, she'd come in and sleep in your room.

Most people don't know that whenever she wanted to play with you, she'd start biting your socks and try to yank 'em off.

Most people don't know that when we were sitting on the couch and watching TV, she'd jump on the couch and snuggle up to you.

Most people don't know that she was an awesome and amazing dog who would never pass up the chance to play when the opportunity afforded itself.

Most people don't know that in the last few months, she's been having trouble walking.

Most people don't know that in the last few months, her hind legs were getting so weak that she was having difficulty holding her own tiny frame.

Most people don't know that in the last few months, she was having difficulty getting up and down stairs and required the assistance of someone to carry her down.

Most people don't know that she loved to eat, but in the last few months had begun to lose her appetite.

I got an email from my dad last week about their dog. This is what it said:

"Just want you all to know that Mom and I decided to put Fudge to sleep to-day. It was a very difficult decision. I took her out for the last walk this morning before taking her to the Vet. It was sad to see her leave but she is in the better place now and no more pain and suffering."

When I first read this email, I was pretty unfazed and didn't think much of it. But today, I talked to my brother in Denver and he told me that when my dad brought her to the vet, he started crying. When I heard that, I my heart broke because my dad's not an uber-emotional person, so for him to cry, the situation must've been really difficult for him. And as I re-read the email and get to the part about my dad walking Fudge for the last time, it finally hit me that the next time I go home, It'll just be my parents, and no dog.

Honestly, she was one of the sweetest, most playful little dogs I've ever known, and although I say to many people that Fudge was my parents' dog, the reality of it is that she was my dog too, and it's kinda sad that I only now acknowledge this fact after she's gone.

Fudge, I shall really miss you, for you were truly this man's best friend.

Montreal/Ottawa Road Trip

2007-05-21T15:07:00.000-04:00

Went on a road trip with Miranda this weekend to Montreal and Ottawa. It was tremendously baller. We spent one day in Montreal and one day in Ottawa, and saw pretty much everything there was to see in these two cities. Originally, I thought that 2 days in 2 cities would be way too short a time to see and do everything, but apparently not for us!! Here's some pictures and mental highlights.

* Eating some amazing food. Poutine, Beaver Tails, Quiche, Chicken and Shrimp Brochettes, Croissants, and some of the best road trip snacks ever.

* Starting the day in Old Montreal, and ending the day in Old Montreal.

* Having dinner in Old Montreal at what appeared to be the town square and feeling like we had been teleported to a European city.

* Scoring $9 all day metro passes and using them 8 times to get our $$'s worth.

* Not getting travel poo.

* Getting reprimanded in a museum in Montreal for being too loud and being dressed inappropriately.

* Check out the nightlife in Montreal and seeing stuff everything, from 6'5 transvestites to sex shops to hukah lounges to chilled out cafe's.

* Finding the US Embassy in Ottawa.

* Taking inappropriate pictures with various statues.

* Developing a 'dirty frenchman' accent and scaring a little boy by saying 'Allo, leetle boy!!'

* Learning a few French words and phrases, but using them incorrectly.

* Walking around Montreal in gorgeous weather.

* Buying coffee and then being asked by the barista if I was in high school.

* Uncontrollable road rage when driving in Ottawa.

* More laughs than you can shake a stick at.

All in all, this trip was one of the best I've ever been on. Too bad more people couldn't have come along, but bon chance we can go again sometime.

Add to my blog

Road Trip

2007-05-19T02:32:00.000-04:00

Gas is expensive here in Montreal.

It Is Finished

2007-05-15T16:58:00.000-04:00

After 4 weeks of intensive research and writing (the intensity came in spurts), I am now done with my 25 page assignment. Actually, the requirements was 20-25 pages, but including my bibliography and appendices, it turned out to be 30 pages. That's ok though, because I like giving my prof more crap to read. Anyways, if you have a moment, celebrate with me by screaming 'HUZZAH!!!!!!' at the top of you lungs, like I did a few moments ago.

Heartbreaking

2007-05-14T16:08:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting in the Williams Coffee Pub by the bay front working on my overdue assignment, sipping on a bottle of juice. There are 2 kids, brothers I presume, that have come into this establishment a couple times, and each time, make a beeline to the condiments section of the store. Both times, they fill their hands with crackers, and both times they tear off running to consume them outside.

I don't know their stories, I don't know what kind of family situation they find themselves in, and I don't know why they're taking crackers. For all I know, these kids could have a stable home that provides 3 meals a day and a set of loving parents, and maybe for them, coming in to take crackers could be their version of getting kicks from "stealing". But what I do know is that there are millions of children in North America who survive a day to day existence with much less than condiment crackers.

My heart breaks and weeps for a reality such as this to be the one we live in.

Random

2007-05-10T23:35:00.000-04:00

I went to the Hamilton library today to work on my paper. Mad props to Jojo for the parking hook up!! It was my first time there, and I must say that it's a great place to do my work. The only problem is that they don't have wireless, but I guess with my addiction, it's not a bad thing.

----------
On Tuesday, I went to the harbor front to do some reading. It was a really hot day that day, but there was an amazing breeze by the water. Sitting on one of the park benches by the water, basking in the ray while reading is something that I highly recommend to everyone. The only thing is beware of people who want to feed the ducks, geese and gulls, even when there's a large sign that say 'DON'T FEED THE WILDLIFE!!!!'

----------
I recently found out that a couple friends of mine who got married a few years ago is expecting their first child. I was so happy for them that I accidentally spilled the beans to someone that they hadn't told yet. Has anyone ever done something like that? When I realized what I had done, I felt SSSSOOOO bad.

I'm such an idiot.

----------
Has anyone seen Spiderman 3? If not, then don't. It's an over-hyped piece of crap. The acting was bad, the CG was lame, and there were parts that were serious, but because things were so poorly done that I found myself laughing. The only good thing was the trailers before the feature film, but those alone aren't worth $10. Seriously, save your $$ and wait for this movie to come out on DVD. It was THAT bad.

----------
I should've posted about this sooner, but I had an awesome time at Rachel and Nathan's wedding. It was such an honor to be part of their special day by both witnessing the ceremony as well as bringing a dish to share at the potluck. Congratulations, Nathan and Rachel!!

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I think the milk here in Canada is different from the milk in the US, and it's not just because I'm lactose intolerant. Typically when I drink milk, the only byproduct is gas, but lately when I've been drinking Canadian milk, I get the squirts. I never thought I'd say this, but I miss my milk farts.

Niagara

2007-05-07T19:15:00.000-04:00

My friends Kev and Liz are in Toronto for a conference, but decided to skip out on today's session for a trip to Niagara. I had a great time with them, but the best moment was when I captured this gem. Enjoy, friends.

Playoffs

2007-04-30T22:50:00.000-04:00

(Some would say that blogging about the playoffs and giving predictions after they've begun is cheating. But to those some who say this, I rebut with two words: Eat Me)

Although I don't have a TV, I've been doing my best to follow the 2007 playoffs as best I can. With what I've seen and the results that have unfolded, I must say that so far the East has been kinda boring, and the West has been pretty stunning.

In the East, there have been 3 series sweeps (Detroit over Orlando, Chicago over Miami and Cleveland over Washington) and 1 near sweep (New Jersey pwning Toronto 3 games to 1). At first glance, one would think that the east is unbelievably lopsided in terms of its skill and talent, but upon further observation, I believe that's not painting a clear enough picture. I honestly think that the Cleveland-Washington series would've gone to 7 games if Washington's top 2 scorers, Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler, were not injured. Also, I think Miami would've fared much, much better if Dwyane Wade were 100% and Shaq not as old, like they were last season. With the current Eastern conference landscape, here's my preditions:

Detroit/Chicago - I think this is gonna be a tough and hyper physical matchup between a Detroit ball club that has skill, experience, and the 'Bad Boys' way about 'em going up against a young but quick and also highly skilled team. With all that said, I think the Detroit starting 5 is better than the Chicago starting 5, and the Detroit bench is much deeper than the Chicago bench. But after the dust settles, I think this is what we'll see:

Detroit in 6.

Cleveland/New Jersey - Let's face it, Toronto's got a lot of work cut out for 'em if they're gonna claw back from a 3-1 deficit against a seasoned New Jersey team. I say that series ends after tomorrow's game, but you can't rule out home court playing a significant role for the Raptors. But still, I say the series wraps up at the very latest in 6 games. Anyways, I think the Cleveland/NJ series is pretty evenly matched. Although Lebron is a beast and nobody on NJ has a chance of stopping him, I don't think Cleveland has enough strong and consistent scorers to be the second option to follow LBJ. As for New Jersey, if all their players can stay healthy, especially Jason Kidd, I think they'll prove to be too much for Cleveland. With that said, my prediction will be a pretty drawn out series, but in the end:

New Jersey in 7.

As for the Western conference series, aside from the Denver Nuggets winning game one of their series against San Antonio, there's only one story line that's really making the waves and turning the heads, and that's the series between Golden State and Dallas. In my opinion, Golden State is absolutely tearing Dallas a new one. For a team that had the best regular season record as well as went all the way to the NBA finals a year prior, they're really choking during this year's playoff run. I think Golden State's regular season record does not even come close to reflecting them as a team, namely the resurgence of Jason Richardson. After an injury filled season, he made a full 180 3/4 the way through the season and has become the marquee player everyone knows that he is. Combining that with the mid-season trade and the coaching genius of Don Nelson to realize that Andris Biedrins is a mad baller, you've got a team that can hang with the best of the west. I think Dallas will give one last push to win game 5, but in the end:

Golden State in 6.

For the rest of the Western Conference:

San Antonio (over Denver) in 6

Phoenix (over LA) in 5

Houston (over Utah) in 7

As for my final predictions as to who will win it all: I say Phoenix will emerge from the West and Detroit will emerge from the East. It'll be a high scoring battle between two great teams, but in the end:

Detroit over Phoenix in 7.

Until We Meet Again

2007-04-23T01:00:00.000-04:00

Well, my time here in Charlotte is done. I've thoroughly enjoyed my time here this past week, hanging out with my brother Dennis, sister in law Liz, and nephew Ethan. The only drawback was the fact that there's only 1 Ethan, and lots of family who wanted to hold the little bundle of joy. I saw him nearly every day, and have yet to hold him in my arms. He was either sleeping, or already being held by someone who refused to let him go, namely my mom. I guess I'm gonna have to come back at a time where it's just me, Ethan and his parents. Until then, I shall savor the memories, experiences, smells and pics. See you soon, 'lil buddy.

More Flesh

2007-04-20T01:37:00.000-04:00

Went back to the hospital today to see Ethan. He was all tucked in and had this eye thingey on his face, so didn't get to hold him...again. But soon, one day he will be in my arms. Till then, more pictures will have to suffice.

In The Flesh

2007-04-19T18:59:00.000-04:00

I saw him!!!! I thought the pictures my sister in law sent were majestic, but they honestly pale in comparison to meeting Ethan in person. Here's a few pictures of 'lil buddy. If you want more, I've posted 'em on my flickr. All I can say is Unclehood friggin' roxers my boxers.

Joy

2007-04-17T00:33:00.000-04:00

Amidst a really trying and painful week, these picture my sister in law sent brought great joy to my heart.

Hope

2007-04-16T17:06:00.000-04:00

Oh God, please be the voice of hope amidst this tragedy.

Treasures Behind Glass

2007-04-14T21:06:00.000-04:00

With the help of Margie, I discovered these three gems. Enjoy!! I am still laughing.

8:06am

2007-04-13T12:35:00.000-04:00

That's when it all happened this morning in Charlotte, North Carolina. My brother and sister in law went into the hospital for the c-section. From the first incision to the final snip, everything went according to plan.

At 8:06am, Ethan was born. Weighing in at a whopping 4lbs 8oz, he was in my brother's arms for a good 30 minutes before being taken to the neonatal intensive care unit to receive some help with his weak breathing. Although that sounds scary, my brother has informed me that this is normal for children who are born premature. My sister in law Liz is recovering, but hopefully she'll be able to go see Ethan as soon as she is able.

As for me, I'm still glowing from the news that I'm an uncle!!!!! I'll be going town to Charlotte next Wednesday, so hopefully I'll be able to take some pictures and share 'em with y'all.

I wanted to thank all of you who were praying for Dennis, Liz and Ethan. Judging by the comments and emails I've gotten, I'm surrounded by some of the most caring and loving people in the world, and it's really meant a lot to me.

8:06am...man, that's got a nice ring to it.

Prayer, Please?

2007-04-12T19:47:00.000-04:00

I just got off the phone with my brother in Charlotte, and he told me some news about their new baby whose due date is to be next month. During my sister in law's checkup today, the doctor said that baby Ethan was not growing correctly. His head is normal, but his abdomen/torso is not at the size it should be. Because of this discovery, the doctor has said that the best course of action is to go for a c-section tomorrow and allow the baby to grow outside of the womb. Right now, my brother and sister in law are dealing with the shock from the news (as am I), as well as juggling an insane amount of stress (moving into a new house, work, recovering from shingles). On top of all that, although not specifically related, my mom is going in for cataract surgery this Tuesday. Needless to say, it's not been the best week for the Chen family. If I could solicit some prayers from y'all for my brother Dennis, sister in law Liz, and their baby Ethan, that would be really, really appreciated. Thanks, friends.

Death For Life

2007-04-04T09:53:00.001-04:00

I recently saw the film 'Stranger Than Fiction', and in lieu of the crux behind this faith we call Christianity, these two clips spoke volumes to me and what it means to love deeply, sacrifice greatly, and live boldly.

Sodom

2007-04-03T14:46:00.000-04:00

I thought that of all places I would find this sign, it would be in the US. Who would've known that Canada has one as well.

The Return

2007-04-03T14:34:00.000-04:00

This morning, I awaken to find my brother already gone for work. Although I was a bit sad I wasn't conscious to say goodbye, he left a little note on the table. So I fire out a reply email to him and begin preparations for my morning glory known to the world simply as 'The Barrel'.

After I shower, pack my stuff and check my email one last time, I make my trek to the nearest Cracker Barrel. If you haven't been, then friends, you have not yet lived. My usual order is the country fried steak, which is a beef tenderloin (i think) that has been battered and fried to a golden, delicious grey/brown. It is then put onto a beautiful white plate and adorned with scrumptious gravy, although I usually ask to have the gravy on the side. But this time, I discovered that they have a different version of the country fried steak called 'Grandpa's country fried breakfast'. The difference between these two meals is price and sides. For the country fried steak meal, you get your choice of 2 or 3 (depending on which restaurant you go to) vegetables. I love the baby carrots, hash brown casserole, and if they have it, sweet potato casserole. If not, I get either corn or the fried apples. But with the Grandpa's country fried breakfast, the sides are grits, 2 eggs and either hash brown casserole or fried apples. I went with the casserole, and squealed like a pig in slop when I took the first bite of hash browns coated in cheese and seasoning.

Anyways, it was a fantastic way to wrap up a fantastic trip to visit my fantastic brother in a not really all that fantastic city, even if they have a Cracker Barrel.

My Day in Buffalo

2007-04-03T00:54:00.000-04:00

**Read the previous post first**

After lunch yesterday, I hopped into the car and made my way to the land of Chicken and Sauce, otherwise known as Buffalo. In preparation for this excursion, I solicited the help of my dear friend google maps. For those of you who have not experienced the extent of its power, did you know you could input multiple destinations and create your own little road trip? Seriously, I spend a good 45 minutes punching in random destinations, one after the other to get myself what amounted to about 12 days worth of driving. I'll never do it, but it helped me put the life of a truck driver into perspective. With my map, package, computer, day bag and coffee in hand, I embarked on what has been a pretty fun day. First stop: DHL drop box.

Although I accidentally passed the box on the first time round, I eventually made one of the world's ugliest U-turns and arrived. I filled out all the information, sealed the package, applied what seemed to half a roll of clear packing tape to affix the shipping label to the pouch, and put it in the box. Wouldn't it be funny if I sealed the envelope but forgot to put the keys inside?!?!?!?!?! (Insert nervous laugh here...)

When the package was safely sitting inside the big yellow box, I thought to myself 'What next?' Then it dawned on me. I haven't checked my email in 2 hours. I must find myself some internet. So off I went. Originally, I was thinking of going back to Schwanny's, the place I spent many, many hours in when my flight to Charlotte kept getting delayed and canceled. But I thought that if I did, I would need to buy something, and if I didn't, I would feel bad. So I kept driving and thinking. Then it came to me: Maybe there's a Panera Bread around here. For my Canadian friends, Panera Bread is a cafe/deli/sandwich joint that has franchises all over the US, all of which offer free wireless. So off I went in search of my internet savior.

As I was looking around, hoping beyond hope that I would spot a Panera, I saw a movie theater, which caused me to get all excited and giddy. I haven't seen a movie in the theater for a while, so I though that since I've got about 7 hours to blow before my brother arrives, I thought what better place to do it than in the theater. As I drive up, my eyes scan the movie menu. It wasn't long until I found the movie that I was gonna see. I had wanted to see it ever since it came out a few weeks ago but haven't gotten the chance. I park, walk up to the counter, and say to the gentleman behind the glass:

"One ticket for '300' please."

I get my ticket, but realize that I've got about 20 minutes before it begins. So I hop back into my car and resume my quest for Panera.

I drive for what feels like forever, looking left and right, all the while losing hope as I pass intersection after intersection. But just as I was about to give up hope and make another ugly U-turn, I see something in the distance that piques my interest. My wireless internet senses start to tingle as my Mazda Protege 5 putters down the street and brings me closer and closer to my destiny.

...is it?...

...is it?...

IT IS!!!!!!!

Huzzah!!! I have found Panera!! As I round the corner to enter the parking lot, I start giggling like a little school girl for the successful expedition. I had planned to use my computer from inside my car, but since the sun was out and there were chairs and tables outside, I decided to step out and "borrow" internet in broad daylight. I did what I needed to do in record time and made it back to the theater just in time to catch the previews.

I'm not going to give a review of the movie in this blog post, but let me just say that it was everything that I was hoping it would be. It was what movie reviewers called a cinematic masterpiece, a feast for the senses. In other words, I thoroughly enjoyed it and would not mind seeing it again.

After the movie, I still had a few hours before Dennis' flight arrived. While I was out searching for Panera, I saw that there was a Barnes and Noble near by. For my Canadian friends, Barnes and Noble is the US equivalent to Indigo/Chapters. So I decide to go there, but not before a quick stop back to Panera to see if I got any emails or blog comments in the last couple hours.

Finally, at around 10:00, my brother rolls up with his black suitcase and black trench coat while carrying a black computer bag on one shoulder and a black bluetooth headset adorning his ear. Man, I'm so proud of him.

While he's checking in, I'm closing up my computer and wrapping up a chat with jojo. (Yes, they have free wireless in the lobby...and in the rooms too) After dropping off our stuff, we head right back out to grab some eats. At 10pm, Buffalo doesn't leave you with many dining options, so we end up going to T.G.I.Fridays. We eat, we chat, and have a really great time. Although I only got to spend about a few hours with Dennis, I really enjoyed it, because it's not necessarily all about the quantity, because quality goes a long way.

And finally, when I wake up tomorrow, Dennis will already be off to his meeting and he won't have time to have lunch. Although that's a bummer, I'm kinda excited because there's a Cracker Barrel around the corner, so before I head back to Hamilton, I'm gonna stop in for a good dose of Country Fried Steak and all the fixin's to put a gravy drenched exclamation mark onto the end of this wonderful trip.

Again, thanks Natasha for swapping shifts and making all this possible!! You're fantastic, girl!!

Keys

2007-04-02T21:05:00.000-04:00

In 2007, I've been to Buffalo 3 times. The first encounter came in February with what turned out to be one of my worst travel experiences ever. The second came in March and was the beginning of a new revelation for what lies ahead. The third time is today, but it would not have been possible if the fabulous Natasha hadn't so graciously swapped barista shifts. What am I doing in Buffalo this time, you ask. Am I flying somewhere again? Am I feeding my craving for buffalo wings? Has my desire for all things USA taken over? The answer to these three questions are as follows:
1) No
2) No
3) No

It turns out that I'm here for two seemingly unconnected reasons: Shipping and Sibling. Let me elaborate.

When I was in Texas last month, I stayed with my friend Brian, whose housemates Matt and Enoch are people I would also consider friends. Anyways, on the day I was to leave, Brian and I, along with an assorted group of other friends were supposed to grab lunch. Unfortunately, something came up at Bri's work that did not allow for the above said rendezvous to happen as planned. In fact, Bri had to leave for work before I was supposed to leave the house for lunch, so being the great guy he is, he left his house keys with me so I could lock up. The only request he had was for me to leave the keys behind with someone so he could get them back.

Fast forward several hours. I'm at the airport and have checked in my luggage and began the process of emptying out my pockets for loose change and all things metal. As I'm fumbling around, my fingers begin dancing around this object that feels foreign to me. As my Sherlock Holmes skills kick in to high gear, it takes but a moment for me to deduce that I am a total and utter poo poo head. As I pull out this foreign object, it dawns on me that I had failed to comply with Bri's one and only request to leave his house keys behind. Immediately, the floodgates of self-deprecation in the form of choice 4 letter explicatives begin to flow inside my mind. Unfortunately, I had no access to the internet so as to send an email, nor did I have access to a phone to call Bri and apologize profusely. So I had to carry all my shame on board with me that began to fester and grow with each passing moment. It wasn't until the next day that I was able to send out the email informing Brian of my stupid rookie move. I told him that I was really sorry for not leaving the keys behind and I would put the keys in the mail as soon as possible. His reply?

"It's all good."

What a gracious guy this Bri.

Now, fast forward again 10 days. I wake up, check my email, and find a message from Brian with the word 'Keys' in the subject line. Immediately, my heart skips a beat as I pull open my desk drawer and see Bri's keys staring right back at me, as if to say 'I don't belong to you!! Send me home, Sucka!!' In the email, Brian asks when I sent the keys back because he was hoping to get them back by Wednesday.

CCCCCRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!

What should I do? Should I make up a story? Should I fess up? After a couple minutes of crying in the fetal position, I decided that option 2 should be the course of action I should take, along with whatever consequences that are to follow. After I send an email back telling Bri that I still had the keys, I start looking around online to see what my options are for sending the keys back via next day shipping. Do you know how much it costs to ship something next day from Hamilton to Austin?

UPS - $35
FedEx - $53
Canada Post - $50

Upon this discovery, I begin to cry again in the fetal position. But this time around, I started rocking back and forth while repeating the sentence 'Baby going to sing night night soon mommy'.

Later that night, I get a call from my younger brother Dennis with the news that he's going to be in Buffalo on Monday night for a business meeting Tuesday. I tell him that I'd like to see him, as well as tell him about my boneheaded move. Part way though the conversation he says 'I can ship it for you next day via DHL for $7.'

'7 DOLLARS?!?!?!?!?!' I exclaim ecstatically.

'Yea. You want me to do it?'

(In my most professional voice) 'HELL YEA,BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!'

Unfortunately, my brother couldn't create a shipping label that had the origin from within Canada. So he created one where the origin was Buffalo, which leads me back to one of the reasons why I'm here in New York.

Up next: My day in Buffalo.

Implants

2007-03-27T01:48:00.001-04:00

During my trip to Texas, I found myself talking about implants with someone. I don't know how we got onto the subject, but one thing led to another and I started making up this totally absurd story. It went like this:

Me: You know how some women go get breast implants? Well some guys get calf implants.
Her: No they don't!!
Me: They do!!! In fact, I have calf implants right now.
Her: Shut up!!
Me: Honest to goodness. Look at these suckers!! Tell me that they don't look natural.
Her: Well... But why'd you get them?
Me: Actually, I got them a while ago. When I was younger, I was really, really vane. One year near my birthday, my grandpa asked me what I wanted for my birthday, and I told him that I wanted calf implants. And since my grandpa loved us 3 boys so much, he did whatever he could to spoil us, so he paid for my implants.
Her: He did?
Me: Yup. You can actually see one of the scars that was left from the incision made by the surgeon. It's right here on my left calf. (Fortunately for me, I actually have a scar in the perfect place from a little accident I had in Mexico where I got cut by a piece of rope while trying to step over it.)
Her: That's crazy!! Did it hurt?
Me: Not really.

At first, I thought that the person I was talking to would eventually realize that I was talking out my ass the entire time. But it wasn't until lunch the next day that I found out how believable my story was to her. Or perhaps it wasn't the story, but her gullibility.

Either way, my friend whom I duped, Connie, sent me an email today with a link to this website saying 'Just for future reference, in case you change your mind.'

Self Portrait?

2007-03-26T01:16:00.000-04:00

I got this from my friend Harmon's blog. Sucks to be him.

Poor Baby

2007-03-23T18:58:00.000-04:00

And people say basketball isn't a contact sport.

Indoctrination

2007-03-21T20:59:00.000-04:00

While in Texas, I went to the newest Apple store with a few friends. One of them had a newborn a little bit ago, and for fun, this is what they did to baby Gabby.

All I can say is this: Start 'em young, friends.

Smart

2007-03-21T20:32:00.000-04:00

After seeing this, I stand corrected. There IS a benefit to driving a Smart car.

Guess Who?

2007-03-21T20:17:00.000-04:00

Saw these two studs at Tyndale today. If you don't know who they are, Nathan is on the left, and Darryl is on the right. I also saw Shauna Lee, but didn't get her in the picture because I a doofus. After our brief encounter, I was left with one question:

How is it that I'm such a blessed human being to interact with such heavenly creatures?

I guess only God knows why.

Switch

2007-03-21T11:46:00.000-04:00

I'm considering switching from blogger to vox. A while ago, my friend Gid evited me to join vox. Since I was relatively happy with blogger, I joined vox, but haven't done any posting...until now. I must say that since my handle on HTML is as good as my ability to slam dunk, vox more than makes up for it, especially in the areas of photos, videos, and other digital media.

I plan on giving vox a whirl before I make my decision, but so far vox is wooing me the right way.

In the mean time, check out my vox.

Video Slideshow

2007-03-21T11:12:00.000-04:00

Here are a couple video slideshows. The first one is the slideshow for Melissa's surprise party. It was a bummer that I missed the celebration, but glad that I could help out. The second video is the slideshow Enoch put together with pictures from the New Orleans trip. Good on ya, baby.

New Orleans, Revisited

2007-03-17T16:02:00.000-04:00

In July, I got to spend a week in New Orleans gutting houses and trying to play a part in the rebuilding process in the wake of Katrina. It was an amazing experience, albeit very physically and emotionally challenging.

Fast forward 8 months into the future, where I find myself back in New Orleans, but this time doing different things with different people. The first time around, we worked with the organization called Acorn and spent the entire week gutting homes. This time, I got to experience a different side of what it means to rebuild the city.

I went along with my friends at Vox Veniae in Austin, Texas, where not only did we get to clean and gut a house, we got to do all sorts of other things like pick up trash, clean up a neighborhood park, clean up a city park, sort and label books for a school library that's planning on re-opening in the fall.

At first, I though this trip was going to be quite similar to my first trip in July. I had psyched myself out for another week of intense physical labor full of swinging hammers and crowbars. But as the first few days unfolded, I realized that it wouldn't be the same, which led me to feel a bit disappointed. Of course, after a bit of reflection and a big dose of humility, I realized that my disappointment was rooted in the desire to do what I wanted, instead of what needed to be done for the good of the city.

For some reason, I thought that the epitome of what it meant to help rebuild New Orleans was to gut someone's house. Granted, being able to gut a house gives the gutter some sense of accomplishment because we see the fruits of our labor. But what if we simply walked around a neighborhood and picked up garbage, and at the end of the day, things still looked trashed. Would it feel like the week was well spent? Initially, my heart was telling me 'no'. But getting the chance to walk the neighborhood, as well as help clean a city park by trimming away overgrown brush, collecting fallen trees and twigs, and being human weed whackers to uncover hiking paths, I realized that rebuilding the city is more than gutting houses. This trip has taught me that:

* The city is bigger than the place where people lay their heads.

* The city includes the streets these houses are on.

* The city includes the little community park in the heart of the neighborhood.

* The city includes the park that residents used to frequent, but have abandoned because it was flooded over.

* The city includes the schools that have more people on the waiting list than spots in classrooms.

Although cleaning and gutting was a small portion of this trip, I'm glad that we got to experience the bigger picture of loving this city. It's helped me see that the rebuilding efforts in New Orleans requires more than just a one trick pony with tools and wheelbarrows.

Thanks Vox for letting me join y'all on this New Orleans experience, and mad props and much love to the Big Easy for staying strong.

New Orleans...Take 2

2007-03-15T01:57:00.000-04:00

I'd love to post all the lavish details on what we've been doing here, but I cannot for two reason:

First, I'm really tired. It is nearly 1am Central time, 2am Eastern/Hamilton/Michigan/etc... time, and we're waking up in a few hours to begin round two of house gutting.

The second reason is before I catch some shut eye, I must got take a dump. I'm sure you didn't need to know that, but I though I'd be totally transparent and let you know what's on my mind.

In the mean time, here's a blog post one of the guys from the trip put together that recaps what we've been doing these last few days.

Needless to say, this time round has been just as amazing as the first time around. I'm not going to compare the trips and do the boneheaded thing of trying to say which one is better, because it'd be like asking a parent of several children 'which one do you love more?' Not only would you be putting the parent in a difficult and awkward position, it is simply a stupid question to ask.

Anyways, here's the link. Enjoy it, and I'll be sure to post my thoughts on the trip very soon.

l8r, babies.

Hello Warmth!!

2007-03-07T17:19:00.000-05:00

****NOTE:****
This post was written a few days ago, but because Blogger, in their infinite wisdom, thought that this blog was a spam blog, and thus kept me from uploading new posts. Anyways, here it is, and as we speak, I'm in the process of writing a new one.

---------------------

I'm sick.

Again.

I don't know what it is, whether the illness within my body is mutating, or if I'm getting new sickness at the heels of recovering from the previous crap. Either way, I'm hacking up a lung and blowing my nose constantly. Let me tell you, it's not a pretty sight. To top that off, I woke up to -30 degree weather yesterday. Can I tell you how much that sucked?

But all that changed for the better when I boarded the plane for my final destination of Austin Texas where the weather is a painful 24 degrees C (75 degrees F). Compared to my last flight out of Buffalo, this trip was phenomenal. Not only were there no delays, but the flights actually arrived early!! I flew from Buffalo to Chicago, had a 2 hour layover, then flew from Chicago to Austin. I slept, drank water, listened to music, and read the in flight magazines. The only crappy thing that happened was having some intense pressure on my head from my cold. It felt like Jabba the Hut was applying some insane vise grip on my head with his tail.

Upon stepping off the plane, I gathered my luggage and walked outside to wait for whoever was gonna pick me up. As I was standing there, basking in the atmosphere of Austin, I literally felt my cold symptoms melt away. I could smell the fresh air and taste the crispness of car exhaust. To some, that would be kinda gross, but I welcomed it with open arms.

After waiting for a few moment, I saw my good friend Gideon pull up in his car. I wasn't expecting him, so I was very pleasantly surprised. I put my stuff into his VW, and we went to his church office, where I was greeted by some great and familiar faces. I chilled at a desk while Gid, Enoch, Matt, Harmon and Wey had their staff meeting.

At around 6pm, Jim and Gretchen, who are getting married this weekend in Houston, accompanied by Yeeland, came by the office to pick me up for dinner. We chatted, ate, laughed, and had an amazing time. I can't wait to see them tie the knot this Saturday. I really hope my limited Cantonese skills don't get in the way of this beautiful ceremony.

All in all, this trip has been fabulous so far. I have begun the journey of filling my gullet with comfort food like beef ribs, country fried steak, and organic hamburgers, and plan on adding a wider array of tasty southern treats into my system.

Then come Sunday, I leave from Houston to New Orleans for a week of helping out in whatever way I can. Vox is sending a crew out that way to help in the rebuilding of the city and those lives affected by Katrina. I'm really looking forward to going back and see how things have changed, or not changed, since my last trip with Nathan, Pernell, Kristyn and Melissa.

Mad Skillz

2007-02-22T22:03:00.000-05:00

For everyone who missed the show, y'all should've come to the Norman 'Pinky' Lewis recreation center to see the Chenster put on one of the sickest, most illest, ankle breaking, jaw dropping, head spinning and mesmerizing displays of ball playin' that has ever graced this side of Hamilton.

Yea right. I haven't balled in many, many months, let alone do much strenuous activity in a long while. I was mentioning to Erin that I walked up a flight of stairs to get to the school library and I was already out of breath. Allow me to paint you a decent picture: Imagine a sloth. Now shave it's body and give it a basketball. Can you picture it? Good, because that's what I looked like this evening. I missed EVERY shot, dropped nearly EVERY pass, lost most ALL my dribbles, and sweat like Niagra Falls was in my pores. Oh, and did I mention that I ate dinner RIGHT before I started playing? What did I eat, you ask? Nothing but the best, my friend. I stopped by the local Golden Arches and ordered me up a quarter pounder with cheese meal, complete with oily fries and thirst quenching iced tea. It all went down so smoothly, I think the grease coated my hands, which limited my production on the court. Oh well. You live and learn, right?

Even though my skills have greatly diminished over time, it was fun ballin' with a bunch of familiar people as well as meeting lots of new people whose skill sets were far superior to mine. Needless to say, I can't wait for next week.

Canto Prowess

2007-02-21T17:27:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine in Texas is getting married in March and has asked me to read scripture during the ceremony. I was totally honored to have been invited to his wedding ceremony, but to be asked to take part in the ceremony? I was all over it!! There only one catch. He's already got somebody lined up to read scripture in English. He's also got someone lined up to read scripture in Hindi. The only language he needed someone to read the scripture in is Cantonese. I can SPEAK Cantonese, but I'm used to reading the Chinese characters in Mandarin. When he asked me and laid everything out, I was a bit hesitant. But how is it possible that I turn down an invitation as awesome as this?!?!

After learning what passage they would like read, I asked a friend of mine here at school to read it to me while I recorded it. The plan is to listen to it over and over and over again until I've got it down pat.

For your viewing pleasure, here's the Chinese text of Psalms 139:1-18. Have a gander. Enjoy the word of the Lord while I sweat bullets trying to memorize this bad boy.

Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired

2007-02-21T10:06:00.000-05:00

I'm sick...again. This is really irritating. It seems that every time I travel by plane, I come down with a cold. With this observation, I'm not looking forward to my trip down to Texas in a couple weeks. Am I going to get sick again? My hopes is 'no', but we'll see. Right now, I'm kinda getting better, but hopefully things will clear up quickly.

I searched online to find some info on how to avoid getting sick while traveling and came across this article. It's pretty amazing how many germs are floating around out there. A couple suggestions this article gives is to get at least 5oo mg. of vitamin C, and stay hydrated with beverages that do no have caffeine. With my current coffee addiction and probably unhealthy cycle of the lack of sleep combined with being over caffeinated, I think this is my achilles heel.

Anyways, I'm hoping to start getting into the habit of drinking more water and less coffee. We'll see if that works or not.

Canceled...Part 4

2007-02-15T19:20:00.000-05:00

Where did we leave off on the 'Where is Chen?'saga? Oh, I remember. I was in the process of being delayed by JetBlue...again. It's been a long day, so I'm gonna cut to the chase and summarize the last 18 hours as succinctly and briefly as possible. Here goes:

My body never touched a plane yesterday. The final flight that I was supposed to fly out on was canceled. In fact, pretty much every JetBlue flight that tried to fly into or out of JFK was canceled. Check out this article. Apparently there were passengers who were sitting on the runway for 9 to 11 hours and didn't go anywhere. It makes my debacle seem like a vacation.

After the announcement was made from the podium that our flights were canceled, I made my way to the desk to get a refund. As they were processing my request, I asked what my options were. They didn't use these words, but they pretty much said 'you're screwed.' They said the next flight from Buffalo to Charlotte was on Monday, which really doesn't help me. After getting my refund for the full amount, I call my bro and tell him the news. Like I said, I'm gonna keep it short, so after all was said and done, we booked a flight for the next morning, as well as a nearby hotel to lay my dirty head. My brother was able to book me a flight using my frequent flyer miles as well as reserve me a hotel room through the fancy schmancy internet. What a resourceful guy. After all that was said and done, I head over to the hotel, where by this time, was already midnight. I check in, change into my sleepwear, and go to sleep, because in about 4 hours, I would have to wake up.

At 6:40am this morning, I finally boarded a plane and made my way to Charlotte with a stop over at Detroit. But to expect a perfect flight after my track record would be pretty insane. During the layover in Detroit, we get news that the plane we were originally supposed to take to Charlotte had a mechanical problem with the light in the landing gear. Needless to say, I got delayed...AGAIN. But this time, it was only for 2 hours. So at around 2pm, I finally arrive at Charlotte, get my bags, meet up with my brother and sister in law, and can FINALLY relax, chill, get some good sleep.

Canceled...Part 3

2007-02-14T16:22:00.000-05:00

Ok...How do I express my frustration without relegating to using profanities? I'm not sure, but it's taking every ounce of self control to not write down what I'm currently muttering under my breath. Here's the current development...

My reschedule flight was supposed to leave at 5:10pm, so I head back to the airport at around 3:00. This time, I bring my bag to check in. As I'm checking in, the agent behind the counter goes through the clickity clacking that an airline ticketing agent does. As she's doing that, I ask them if they happen to have an extra ziploc bag I could have to put my toothpaste in. They say no, but being the scammer I am, I prance over to the Continental ticketing counter and ask, while giving her my sexiest pose: 'Do you have an extra ziploc bag I could have?' She looks around, and gives me one, probably because my sexiness wasn't really sexy to her. It was probably more nauseating, like syrup of ipecac, except in human form.

With baggie in hand, I stroll back to the counter with this dirty smile on my face, as if I had just urinated in public and gotten away with it. As I prepare to get my boarding pass and government issued ID back, I get something completely different. The agent says 'Hi. Your flight just got canceled.'

WHAT!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

After a good dose of unwarranted shock, I settle back down and ask 'So, um, what are my options?'

'I've rebooked you to the next flight, but that flight's been delayed from a 7:30pm departure to a 9:45pm departure.'

I think to myself 'Well, that's not THAT bad, I guess.' But oh does it get better.

'Well, it's a bit complicated,' the JetBlue representative says. 'By the time you arrive to JFK to catch your connecting flight to Charlotte, as things currently stand, you will be arriving after the last flight to Charlotte leaves. And unfortunately, there aren't any more flights from JFK to Charlotte until Saturday.'

NOW DO YOU UNDERSTAND MY FRUSTRATION AND URGE TO FLING PROFANITIES LIKE A MAJOR LEAGUE PITCHER?!?!?!?!!?!?!??!

Anyways, here's how things stand: I'm holding out hope that the flight from JFK to Charlotte gets delayed long enough for me to slide up on into her and hitch a ride outta the state of New York, which has so far been the bane of my existence today. If things don't change, then I'm going to ask for a refund and go to the closest bar and drink my sorrows away. The great thing about that option is I'm a cheap drunk, so I'll drop some bling for 1 drink, and have plenty extra to blow on other extracurricular activities such as...

...well, I'll leave that to your imagination.

Right now, I'm praying that the next time I blog it will be from my brother's condo in Charlotte.

Canceled...Part 2

2007-02-14T13:28:00.000-05:00

It is no lie that my original flight out of Buffalo got canceled, but I didn't find out until I was 10 minutes away from the airport. That last post didn't really do much justice to the good times I had this morning, so let me start from the beginning.

I wake up this morning thinking to myself 'Hmmm...I wonder how bad the roads are out there.' I open the blinds and and immediately consumed by a barrage of white light from the literally knee-high snow. I look up and down the street and wonder to myself 'How the deuce am I gonna get outta here?!?!' As I think that, my heart sinks because the possibly of not going to Charlotte has taken one step closer to being a reality. But after a couple minutes of crying and dry heaving, I hunker down and thought to myself: WWMD? Or for you noobs out there, "What Would MacGyver Do?" For starters, he would probably go into the kitchen, grab a spatula, then go into the bathroom and take the toilet seat off, and with the right mixture of urine, snow and semen, he would make his own airplane and fly his outta there. Unfortunately, that wasn't gonna happen, so I did the next best thing: Grab a shovel and dig.

As I was applying as much elbow grease I could possibly muster, I was pleasantly surprised that the snow was soft, light and easily tossed. But, as I was close to being done, a snow plow comes rumbling down the street and pushing all the snow aside. At first I was like 'YES!!!!! HERE COMES FREEDOM!!!!' But as the truck came closer, I realized that it was pushing the snow in such a way that would have thwarted all the hard work I had just done. But I would much rather have to clear out a bit more snow than to try and maneuver out of a side street covered in snow. So after about 20 minutes, my baby was free and clear and ready to cart my sexy body to the Buffalo airport.

I had psyched myself out for a really terrible drive, but it wasn't too bad. Obviously, people were driving much slower than usual, but it only took me 2 hours to get from Hamilton to the Buffalo airport, which seems just a tad bit more than what it would usually take on a clear day. The only little hiccup on the drive was being stuck behind a van that had broken down near the border. I would have driven around him, but there was only one lane that had been plowed. So I get out and ask him what's wrong. You should've seen his face: Sad, embarrassed and totally flustered. He said his van was dead and he was on his way to the Buffalo airport to pick up his wife who has been stranded there for 24 hours. I really felt for the guy, but really couldn't do anything for him except help push his van off to the side. On a little tangent, pushing his van reminded me of the movie 'Little Miss Sunshine' where the family has to push the van every time they needed to start driving.

Anyways, as I begin to see signs to the Buffalo airport, I get a call from my brother Dennis who says that my flight had been canceled. At first I was about to turn around and give up, but instead, I decide to keep going and hope that the ticketing agent at the airport could help me reschedule my flight.

As I get to the airport, I go park at the short term parking. If you haven't been to the Buffalo airport, I would highly recommend it because in their short term parking lot, the first 30 minutes are free. So I score on the free parking and head to the JetBlue station. The lady behind the counter was really friendly and spelled out all my options. I could either get a full refund, or get rescheduled onto the next flight out. Since I had already come this far, I decided to hop onto the next flight and hope that it doesn't get canceled as well.

So here I am, sitting in Buffalo, waiting for my flight to leave. The only silver lining so far is that I've been able to find a nice little spot that has good food and free internet. So instead of trying to pass time sitting in the car, I'm chillin' in a place called Schwanny's, eating a Chili bread bowl that came highly recommended by the staff, and surfing the net and chatting. Hopefully the day continues to unfold with good fortune and culminates with a reunion with my bro Dennis and sister-in-law Liz.

Canceled

2007-02-14T12:53:00.000-05:00

That right. Sucks to be me.

Have I Been Grounded?

2007-02-13T22:06:00.000-05:00

About a week ago, I talked to my brother Dennis about this that, and the other thing. I happened to mention to him that this week, I don't have class on Wednesday so was planning on going back home to Michigan to see my folks. I dunno if he was serious or not, but he said 'well, we're not doing anything next week, so if you wanna come down, that'd be sweet'. (Actually, those weren't his EXACT words because he doesn't talk like that, but you get the picture.) After the offer was put on the table, I mysteriously found myself seriously considering the possibility of going down to visit. Originally, I was thinking of driving down to North Carolina. I've done it before, it's not bad at all. 10 hours in a car is cake, especially with good tunes and some baller coffee flowin' through my veins. But for shits and giggles, I decided to check out some flights to see if there was even the remote possibility of saving the driving and flying down. To my surprise, I found a KILLER deal!! Let's just say that for what it currently costs to fly one way from Buffalo to Charlotte, my round trip ticket costs significantly less. To make a sweet deal even sweeter, I found a coupon code online for $20 off via a discount through 17 magazine. I know what you're thinking, but let me say that the answer is 'NO' to the question 'You read 17 magazine?!' Anyways, with these deals stacking up, I couldn't pass it up.

Fast forward to today. For anyone not living in Hamilton, or the GTA for that matter, let me paint you a picture of what I see out my window: WHITE, WHITE, and more WHITE. And no, it's not a church revival meeting. Snow like you wouldn't believe. According to some sources, they're saying that we should be expecting about 70 cm. of snow by tomorrow, which is roughly 2 feet.

2 FEET OF FRIGGIN' SNOW!!!!!!!!!

And the kicker is I may not know if I'm staying or going until shortly before I do or do not board that plane. So this kicker implies that the only way I'll know is to drive through the snow and hope that things simmer down in time.

I guess time will tell, and so will my next post. Until then, for those who are surrounded by the snow and cold, stay warm and know that you're not alone. And for those who are in a warmer climate...

...I hate you.

Just kidding...

...I think.

Phone

2007-02-07T22:35:00.000-05:00

For the past 3 years, I've been living in Canada. From North York to Hamilton, I've seen it all. Actually, that's a massive lie. I haven't seen much at all. The furthest west I've ever gone is Sarnia, and the furthest east I've ever gone is Montreal. So really, I haven't really grown beyond the 'tourist' stage. Anyways, back to the original point of this post.

Since many of my friends and all of my family live in the US, it's been a hassle for them to call me. Not to mention pretty flippin' expensive. Typically, they need to use a calling card, or VOIP service like Vonage or something to keep the costs down. But now, I've found a cheap, and FREE way for them to call.

This evening, I found myself stumbling across this website that lets you sign up for a free US based number, and forward it to any number in North America. Now, I dunno if it's ANYWHERE, but I recently signed up for a Michigan based number and had it forward all calls to my Hamilton cell phone, and guess what? It works!! Not only does it work really well, but it even shows the call display from the number of the person who's calling. Typically, if someone is using a calling card, a jumbled mess shows up on my call display. But today, when my brother called me from his cell phone, his number showed up.

Why am I blogging about this? Is my purpose to gloat? Am I rubbing my coolness all over the world wide web for all to choke on? ABSOLUTELY NOT!! The reason I post this is mainly for my friends here in Canada who find themselves traveling to the US often.

For example, let's say someone from Hamilton is to travel to somewhere like, oh, let's say, Las Vegas. And just to make the scenario all that more obscure and "not based on a real person", let's say they were going with a group of friends for a convention. And to make the "random meter" shoot off the charts, let's say this person was unable to travel with their children and significant other, although I'm quite certain that if it were possible, the whole family would go together. Anyways, what would be a way for this person to call home relatively inexpensively, or better yet, for free?

I KNOW!!!!!

Sign up for a US number through this website, setup the call forwarding to the appropriate number, and you're done!! A cool thing about this website is that it allows you to leave voicemails on its system, and every time you get a voicemail, you are alerted via email of the new message.

All I can say is "HUZZAH!!! THIS ARE TASTY!!!!!"

Grandpa

2007-02-06T16:09:00.000-05:00

This afternoon, I attended the funeral of Grandma Jewell, Kristyn's grandmother. I thought it was a really good service, but at the same time, I don't have very many funeral experiences to compare this to.

During the whole service, I found myself thinking that I may be attending one of these very soon for my grandfather. I received an email from my dad last night with news that he's not doing very well, and unless his condition improves, he may need to go into the hospital. Even as I ponder writing this post, I find myself wanting to delete it. To me, it seems a bit too morbid and perhaps wrong to be writing about someone whom I love dearly in a manner that makes them sound like they have passed away, but in reality, they have not. I desire to be as optimistic as I possibly can, which is why I want this post to be one that remembers and celebrates my grandfather. Let me tell you about the James Chen, aka, Grandpa, that I know, love and revere.

I remember during my childhood, I would always look forward to our summer vacations where we could go to San Francisco and live at Grandpa's house. He would always do stuff with us boys, whether it was kicking around a soccer ball in his backyard, play badminton in his front yard, go for drives out to the bakery and stuff us with eclairs, or sit and watch cartoons with us. I also remember that every chance he got, he would teach us something new.

I remember one summer where Grandpa was sitting at his desk opening mail, and I came up to him and asked 'Grandpa, whatcha doin'?' He looked at me and said 'I'm opening my mail.' Upon further inspection, I noticed that he was using a knife-shaped object to open his mail, to which I asked:

'Grandpa, what's that?'

'It's a letter opener. You wanna try?'

(with eyes the size of quarters and a smile that pushed my chubby cheeks up) 'YES!!!!!'

He put the letter opener in my hand, and with his hand on mine, he guided it down the side of the envelope with what seemed like surgical precision.

I also remember a time when we were sitting in the kitchen eating watermelon. As we were eating away and spitting out the seeds, my brother and I thought 'What if we took these seeds and planted them in Grandpa's garden so he can have his own watermelon tree? That way he doesn't need to buy watermelon from the garden.' If Kevin Chen from 2007 could travel back in time and have a chat with Kevin Chen at the kitchen table stuffing his face with watermelon, I would've said

'What, are you stupid or something? You can't plant watermelons with these seeds!!'

In my mind, this is what most people would be thinking to themselves, but my Grandpa responded to our juvenile sense of curiosity with

'That'd be great!! I love watermelon!!'

So off we went, into the backyard to dig a hole where we deposited what seemed like about 100 seeds. After we covered the seeds up with dirt, I went back to the kitchen with this insane grin on my face, as if I had managed to accomplish some life changing task. I come up next to Grandpa and say

'It's all done!!'

To which he replies 'Well, next summer when you come back, there'll be a great big watermelon tree in the garden!!'

It is little things like these that I remember, because I've learned that sometimes it's the small, and somewhat inconsequential events in our lives that become our fondest memories. Yea, I will always remember the hard times like when my Grandpa went through a crazy divorce, and when at the last time I saw him, he kept asking me 'Who are you?' As painful as these times were, I will always remember Grandpa as a man who loved us kids and probably gave in ways that I more often than not took for granted. I will always remember him as an amazing man who taught me a great deal. I will always remember Grandpa as the man who had a huge role in shaping me into the person I am today.

I love you Grandpa.

I Am The Church

2007-02-02T17:23:00.000-05:00

My good friend Gid from Texas sent me a link to their church blog. In it is a link to this site where people submitted pictures depicting themselves, not a building, as the church. Some pictures are funny, others are creative. But all are reflections of what the church is: PEOPLE.

Recovering from Addiction

2007-01-28T20:39:00.000-05:00

There's been quite a bit of development since I last blogged, namely I feel MUCH better. I've never gotten the winter blues before not have I ever had mono, and I'm not sure if either of that is what I had, but needless to say, I feel upbeat and fantastic. You know what did the trick? Some good sleep. And when I say good sleep, I mean 15 hours of sleep. Yup, I got myself a whopping 15 hours of log sawin' this past Thursday night starting at 9pm, and didn't wake up till noon the next day. I don't if I've ever slept that long before in my life. When I woke up, I looked around, blinked a few times, and literally smiled like a crazy clown who just farted at a wedding: smug and proud. Anyways, since that sleep did the trick, my current theory is that the funk I was feeling was merely me being totally exhausted and not getting enough sleep, thus throwing me into this crazy depression. Anyways, thanks everyone for your words of comfort, whether through blog comment, email or in person. Things probably would've gotten worse if it wasn't for y'all.

On another note, I have discovered that I am a junkie. What kind of junkie, you ask. Well, let me tell you. It's not crack, it's not the Mary Jane, and it's not the bottle. It is caffine. These past few days, I haven't had my normal cup of coffee to jump start my morning. In the beginning, I was fine, but yesterday morning, I woke up with the world's worst headache. I popped a couple advils to silence the ringing, but only to discover the pain would return 12 hours later. As I rocked back and forth, holding my head, I took a couple more advil and went to bed. I was totally expecting the drugs to kick in, but my body pretty much ignored it and scoffed at me as if I had just taken pez for the pain. As I laid in bed, I was literally sweating and moaning and saying things like 'Oh the PAIN!!!' and 'Kill me now, God!!!' In hindsight, I think what I found myself doing last night is how drug addicts in rehab are portrayed in the movies. Anyways, I finally fall asleep, but to wake up with the same headache raping my brain. Through the pain and noise, I think to myself 'Chen, you're a junkie.'

Before heading to church this afternoon, I pop a couple more advil in hopes that it would give some sort of relief to the head pwning I've been getting the last couple days. Well, it did absolutely nothing. I manage to get through practice without passing out our puking, which I think was a pretty good feat. What I think helped me make it through was the smell of coffee being brewed. When that rich aroma penetrated my nostrils, I think I let out the highest pitches squeal that only dogs could hear. After practice, I put down everything and rush over to the bar and tell Melissa 'I NEED A FRIGGIN' COFFEE!!!!!!!!!' When I get my mug of liquid ecstasy, I take one sip and literally feel the headache melt away. When this happened, I was filled with both comfort and fear: Comfort because the pain was gone, but fear because my theory of being a junkie was confirmed.

Revelation

2007-01-25T17:49:00.000-05:00

I met with my spiritual director today, and it was a pretty good session. I brought all of this mysterious baggage along and we prayed, talked, and prayed some more. I don't think I resolved anything, but being able to chat things through with a neutral party kinda helped.

One thing we talked about was taking a couple days and going away to some sort of quiet place, like a retreat center. I think I'm going to do it. I'd ask if anybody would want to come, but that'd kinda defeat the purpose of being alone. At the same time, I also brought up the possibility that I could be physically ill. Judging by my lack of energy and heightened fatigue, I'm beginning to wonder if I have mono. Of course, I'm no doctor, so until I see one, I will never know. But that's one thing we speculated that could be the cause. Plus, I know that when I get really tired, I can also get really emotional. How you like them Encyclopedia Brown sleuth skills?

As I have thought more about what exactly I'm feeling, I've discovered that it has an "I've-lost-something-terribly-important-and-I'll-never-get-it-back" feel. The only thing I can compare it to is the first time I went away for summer school at the ripe age of 12. I was in a foreign place, all alone, and my parents had just left. I remember unpacking my stuff, looking around, then all of a sudden feeling a tidal wave of anxiety and fear rush over me. I Instinctively try to look for my parents, but as soon as I realized that they were gone, my heart sank, and I began to cry. Right now, I'm feeling everything I felt then: Fear, anxiety, heart sinking. The only difference is I stop just short of crying, but if this continues, I may be doing that.

Seriously, this feeling is an absolute mystery which has caused me to wonder 'What is it that I have lost?' I'm no supernatural psychic that can see into the future, so I have no idea if I will be losing something soon, but this feeling of being alone is starting to wear on me.

Oh, and talking about being alone, I felt really bad because I really wasn't in the mood to talk, so I pretty much ignored Melissa on the ride back from Mississauga this afternoon. Sorry for spacing out on you, Mel.

Anyways, I've been fortunate enough to have found a song that's given some sort of peace and solace during this time. It's a song by a band called Dakona entitled 'Revelation', and being able to connect with it has helped tremendously.

Funk

2007-01-24T20:40:00.000-05:00

I dunno what's happening lately, but I've been in this really weird funk for the last few days. It seems to be a combination of feeling drained, unmotivated, slightly irritable and borderline depressed. I've found that when I'm with people, I'm pretty good, although some people have had the "privilege" of seeing this side of me. But when I'm by myself, all I want to do is either sleep or cry.

Take today, for instance. The entire day, I really didn't feel like talking to anybody, but because I was at school, I really couldn't avoid it. But when people ask me what's going on, the truly honest answer would be 'I don't know', which to some would raise a few mental flags. Granted, I was feeling really tired and irritable, but I've usually been pretty good at fighting it off.

Then last Saturday, I found myself working the film event at the coffee house. The event was really fun and enjoyable, except for the unbelievably bad, tremendously offensive and completely unfunny stand up comedy routines that included such "jokes" as:

'Why did God create winter?'
'To kill the homeless.'

But amidst a room full of nice people, I was in that space where I really didn't want to talk to people, but didn't really have a choice. The worst part of it was trying to keep to myself while surrounded by fellow baristas Natasha, Miranda, Melissa and Curtis.

Even as I type this, I'm noticing that my whole body is beginning to feel really heavy, as if I'm on my last ounce of strength and fighting to stay awake, even though I'm not tired.

I'm not really sure what it is, although I have my theories. Maybe blogging about this will be an outlet that will lead to some sort of healing. Until then, I think I need to spend some time in stillness and quiet with God, cuz I have a feeling part of why I feel the way I do is because of something He's got in store that's just around the corner.

Me + Online Shopping = Apocalypse

2007-01-24T20:21:00.000-05:00

Although online shopping is both cheaper and more convenient, it is also quite addicting. You can find a deal or stumble across something cool, and before you know it, the order's been placed for this, or this.

Anyways, need to reinsert the e-needle into my veins for a quick fix. Perhaps I'll see you in the digital cosmos. You can find me between the shoes and useless gadgets.

Sports and Wheels

2007-01-22T10:43:00.000-05:00

A couple random and unrelated items:

A woman in Illinois induces labor so her husband could attend the Bears - Saints game. Is that love? Or is it insanity? I dunno, but the baby boy's healthy, and the Bears won, so I guess this couple is win.

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My baby's getting old. She's all 7's on the odometer. Lucky? Or one foot in the grave? Either way, she's my sweetheart and we've had many, many fantastic adventures together. So until 'death do us part', we're stayin' together.

The Money Link

2007-01-18T11:32:00.000-05:00

For those of you who are familiar with the satire publication 'The Onion', this will be right up your alley. It's a Christian equivalent of The Onion. Enjoy, but beware: Reading this may cause uncontrollable laughter and urination. I'm on my 4 pair of draws today.

Wrestling for the Bathroom

2007-01-18T08:25:00.000-05:00

When you've got 6 people sharing 1 bathroom and 1 kitchen, not only is it tricky, but it smells like death just vomited and crapped all at the same time and didn't have the courtesy to flush or clean up after itself. To top it off, earlier this week, the bathroom was literally COVERED in hair. I don't know where it was from (my guess it's a combination of facial and pubic hair), but it was all over the floor, all over the counter, and managed to clog the sink. When I walked in, I was about to pinch one off, but the sight managed to make me lose all desire to do my business. Hopefully my body didn't reabsorb my crap.

This morning, the camel's back broke. For the past little while, I've been carpooling with Melissa to Mississauga. I usually set my alarm for 5:45am, and meet her at 6:45am. As of late, the 3 dudes who live in the attic have been getting up at around 6am to get ready for whatever the hell they do. I've grown accustomed to being the only person awake at that time, but now that the house is jumpin' at 6am, it's been damn near impossible to use the bathroom. As I was preparing my morning cup of coffee, someone was already in the bathroom. As I was finishing up, the bathroom became free, to which my internal monologue squealed in ecstasy 'YES!! I ARE WIN!!!' I scurried back to my room to collect my clothes and towel and rushed back out into the hallway. As I neared the bathroom, I noticed the door was closed. Upon further inspection, someone managed to scurry faster than I and claimed the bathroom. Can you saw 'PWNED?!?!?!'

Anyways, the sooner I can get out of this place, the better. I wonder if anyone will notice if I relocate myself to the basement of the coffee house. I'm sure I can manage to take showers using the sink...

Hoops

2007-01-17T11:03:00.000-05:00

There has been some talk lately about getting people together to play basketball. So far, nothing's happened, which has caused great sadness to well up within my soul and severe muscular atrophy to overtake my thunder thighs. I don't think the issue is whether or not there people are interested in playing, but with finding a place to play. Does anyone know of a church with a gym or a place that's open to the public where I can showcase my slick silly ankle breaking crossover moves? My ever increasing set of man boobs thank you immensely.

Utterly Rancid

2007-01-16T12:16:00.000-05:00

A little while back, I blogged about a site where someone would eat random items that most people would find strange, and perhaps repulsive. I have been visiting this site every few days in the hopes that Steve would eat something else. Alas, nothing new.

Fortunately, I stumbled across another site that is perhaps on par with Steve's shenanigans. No, they don't eat anything. Instead, they purchase different types of meats and leave them outside and document their daily changes with both pictures and words. A word of caution: some of the pictures got pretty gruesome, and even though I pride myself in having a pretty strong stomach, I was having a hard time with a few of the photographs.

With that said, please enjoy their scientific meat escapades, courtesy of the stinky meat project.

****EDIT**** It has come to my attention that this website is kinda old, so my apologies for not being up on the times.

Physically Fit, or Mentally Insane?

2007-01-15T23:24:00.000-05:00

A 49 year old man rides a stationary bike for 85 hours and enters the Guinness book of world records. I don't think I've ridden a stationary bike for 85 hours in my LIFETIME, so I can't imagine riding it for 85 hours in one go.

The cool thing is that this guy did this for more than just himself. He endured 85 hours to raise money for an organization that supports families of police officers who lost their lives while in the line of duty. In the words of my D-troit peeps, 'This dude is mad baller, yo.'

I Heart Movies, Part 2

2007-01-15T23:13:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine sent me this coupon for a buy one get one free movie ticket at the Cineplex family of theaters. The only stipulation is that they're valid on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after 6pm, and the offer ends on January 25th. I haven't tried it yet, so dunno if they'll honor it, but it's worth a shot. Anyways, if anyone tries it out, holla back and lemme know if this deal works. Till then, here's the coupon.

I Heart Movies

2007-01-11T22:38:00.000-05:00

I'm a humongous fan of movies, not just because they provide a source of entertainment and sometimes provide a couple of mind numbing hours of vegetation, but more often than not there is tremendous depth found in this kind of art form. I have recently viewed several films that I must say have moved me, inspired me, caused me to wonder, and helped me catch a glimpse of real life in it's most rawest form. I'm not gonna go into too much detail about each of these films except that I highly recommend each of them. In chronological order, the films I have recently seen are:

Who Killed The Electric Car? This is a provocative documentary-style film that seamlessly weaves between the automotive world and the area of environmental issues. According to the film, the electric car was a kind of technology that existed but was unfortunately silenced and never really given the chance to flourish and play a part in offsetting pollution and the current oil crisis. In a rather "objective" way, the film makers unfold what can only be described as a conspiracy and reveals all the many facets of life, culture, society and business that brought an end to the short life of the electric car.

Little Miss Sunshine This has to be by far one of the better, if not THE best film I have seen this past year. I saw it 3 times in the theater, and if that wasn't enough, I bought the DVD. With a blend of humor, music, dialogue and chemistry that seems to be well on its way to being put on the endangered species list, Little Miss Sunshine crafts an experience for the viewer to enter the story of the Hoover family road trip. This film seems to encapsulate the tensions and awkward moments found in what our society would label as a dysfunctional family. Through sheer genius, the film manages to suppress feelings of pity and disgust and uncovers the fingerprints of grace, redemption and love that are found in even the worst of situations.

An Inconvenient Truth From an unlikely mouthpiece spouts a plethora of facts and figures that serve as compass for why spring flowers are blooming in December and how the expression 'it's so hot you could fry an egg on the sidewalk' is no longer a figure of speech but soon to be reality. Like a drunken grandfather with a speech impediment, Al Gore dances seamlessly from story to story, fact to fact with the aid of his southern drawl and army of still and moving images. Although it took me a little while to get past the fact that this is the same guy who talked about a 'lock box' and claims to be the inventor of the internet, his impassioned presentation on the current global climate and mind boggling weather helps put together a picture of a mother earth that has been unapologetically raped and abused repeatedly by humanity with no remorse. Although guilt, condemnation and fear are typical vehicles used by communicators to reveal the errs of the listener, these modes of transportation were left in the garage. Instead, hope and an understanding of reconciliation was presented. By way of an unexpected wisdom and eloquence, this film helped me understand the role I have been playing in the issue of global warming as well as how the role can be reversed where destruction can be replaced by healing and restoration.

Dave Chappelle's Block Party If it wasn't for my buddy Al's recommendation, I would have not seen this film. Being a fan of Dave Chappelle, I have the utmost respect for his humor, as well as his desire to bring to the surface issues of racism, stereotyping and bigotry. Although his humor can be misconstrued as something that reinforces the same issues he is addressing, I cannot but hold his values and passions in high regard. With that said, this film is nothing like his show that helped him explode into the homes of millions of North Americans. Through his natural comedic genius, coupled with masters of hip-hop like The Fugees(this block party brought them back together!!), The Roots, Kanye West and Mos Def, with the heart of Brooklyn used as the backdrop, this film had me laughing, dancing, and falling deeper and deeper in love with the city. As I watching this film, I found myself thinking about Hamilton and Beasley, and how I love being a part of the Freeway and desiring to be a voice and hand of hope and restoration to people who have been forced into the margins of life. If this Block Party was able to serve as a wave of solace and be an interruption to the despair of the downtrodden, then I can only imagine what Jesus has in store for Beasley and the Freeway this year as he rolls out a party whose headliners are love, grace, mercy and justice.

Random Links

2007-01-11T11:03:00.000-05:00

Here's a few random links that I found either interesting or farking hilarious.
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MIT is offering free university and graduate level courses for anybody in the world to take. Check it out. You might learn something that could change the world.
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Thanks to an unintentional slip of the tongue from late night talk show host, this site exists and is making me feel warm and fuzzy all over. Enjoy some fantastic man-on-manatee action.
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I think this site has been around, but I still get a tremendous kick out of it. In a nutshell, it's like wikipedia for words. Here's a few terms to get you started on a journey to a more well rounded vocabulary:
Turducken
Hasselhoffing
Pwned
Noob
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I stumbled across Zach Braff's MySpace and found a couple things. First is a song by Imogen Heap that I can't seem to get enough of. It's called Speeding Cars, and my life is being transforming by it one play at a time.

The cast of Scrubs took clips of the Charlie Brown Christmas and overdubbed their voices to produce one of the funniest videos I've ever seen. Although Christmas is over, the cold weather's still around the corner so technically it's still kinda appropriate. Anyways, if you're a fan of Scrubs, this video will be right up your alley.

Extension

2007-01-10T10:18:00.000-05:00

Upon arriving at school this morning, I checked my mailbox for any spam and dirty magazine subscriptions. Unfortunately, I had neither waiting for me. Instead, I find a small, brown envelope whose contents I have been waiting for with dirty anticipation. What is this, you ask? My new student visa that allows me to stay in Canada till the end of August, 2008. Yup, that's right, I'm legal, baby. If only for a short time, I'm here to stay and will make it my duty and passion to turn this country upside down with my dirty mind and foul mouth. Praise the Lord, eh?

Now with my renewed documents, I can freely go home and not worry about being pwned at the border. Can anyone say 'ROADTRIP?!?!?!?!'

New York

2007-01-08T19:24:00.000-05:00

Why, hello world!! It's been a while since I last posted, and a lot has happened in that time. I'm gonna hopefully get a chance to blog about the latest happenings in my life soon, but for now, here's a smorgasbord of my trip to New York.

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I spent Christmas in New York with family that I don't normally get to spend much time with. I had an absolutely fantastic time with my cousins, aunts and uncles, as well as had great fun being a tourist in Manhattan for a couple days. A few highlights of that trip are:

* Visiting the Charmin store in Times Square. This is the same Charmin that puts out the toilet paper whose mascot is the bear taking a crap in the woods and then wiping its corn hole with the "softest paper on earth". This store is simply a place with approximately 20 public bathrooms that are stocked with Charmin TP. After every use, a Charmin employee enters the recently sullied toilet and cleans up whatever mess the customer left.

To get to the bathrooms, one needed to ride an escalator to the 2nd floor. As I was on the moving staircase, I look over to the people coming down, and every single person had a smile on their face. That was a good sign. After lining up, it was my turn to do my business. I enter the bathroom and close the door behind me. I was expecting the smell of feces and urine to rape my nostrils, but instead I catch the smell of flowers and baby powder. As I look around I expected to see shreds of toilet paper and urine stains all over the floor and toilet, but there was nothing of the sort to be found. Unfortunately I only had to pee, so I can't tell you how the toilet seat felt, but all I have to say is it was a really great experience.

* Hanging out with my cousins. The last time I saw all of 'em was at my younger brother Dennis' wedding a year and a half ago. It's always a really great time seeing them and realizing how important family is. Although people have different personalities and quirks, I've discovered that my family puts the fun in dysFUNctional.

Although seeing my family in New York was really great, I really missed spending Christmas with my brothers. Both of them stayed in their respective cities with the family of their significant other. This was probably the first time in a long time that we haven't spent Christmas together, so amidst all the fun and celebration, there was definitely something missing. Again, the importance of family is under appreciated in our culture today.

* Seeing old friends. I got a chance to hang out with Mogan, Leslie and Jason while I was in New York. Leslie and Jason are friends of mine from back in Michigan, and Mogan is a friend I met while on a trip to Nashville. All three of them are near and dear to my heart, so it was such a blessing to hang out with them and hear what's going on in their lives as well as chat about different things that are going on in our world.

* Getting sick...again. I've discovered that whenever I travel, I come down with some sort of illness. When I went to Denver, I caught a cold. When I went to India, I caught a cold. This time, when I went to New York, I caught a cold. Even as I type this, I'm constantly snorting mucus that's filling up my sinuses. Hopefully this sickness won't stick around for much longer because it's really getting on my nerves.

* Passing out on the NY subway. As many people know, when it comes to alcohol, I'm as lightweight as they come. The same evening that I saw Mogan, Leslie and Jason, we went out for dinner and some drinks. I ordered a beer, and it totally killed me. Of course, it didn't help that I only got about 4 hours of sleep the night before and walked around Manhattan for the better part of a day. Anyways, Mogan and I were on our way back to his place, and on the way, we were chatting, and I found myself dozing off while he was talking. I could only assume that Mogan noticed me dozing off when he said 'If you're tired, you should take a nap.' Usually I would wave off such absurd recommendations by saying 'Nah, I'm ok.' But that day, I heeded his suggestion and said ok, and promptly passed out. That was a sad day...

* I was on TV. During my first day of walking around Manhattan, I saw a big crowd gathered outside the television studio that films the morning news show 'Good Morning America'. As I mosey over to check out what's going on, I poke my head around like the tourist I am. As I'm looking around, I notice some television monitors, and as I stare more intently at them, I notice this Asian looking fella moving in unison to my movements. It took me a few more moment to realize that it wasn't some random Asian dude, but was in fact me on TV.

* I saw Uma Thurman. Yup, you read that right. The star from such movies as Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill volumes 1 and 2 walked right by me. I was just about to reach out and touch her, but thought that I'd rather not be sent to jail on charges of molesting a movie star.

She-Man

2006-12-18T13:22:00.000-05:00

A "woman" failed a gender test after winning a silver medal. Apparently there are people who will do anything for a victory these days. What's next? Covering a small child in fur and entering them in the Westminster dog show?

Laughter and Vomit

2006-12-18T11:52:00.000-05:00

My friend Ben told me about this site called 'Steve, Don't Eat It!' where a guy called Steve samples different "unique" food items most people would throw into the trash. I don't want to ruin the surprise for you, but I urge you to read it all the way through. I found myself laughing so hard I needed to get up off my chair and walk around. But as I was reading and looking at the pictures, I noticed my stomach begin to turn and felt the familiar 'I-Think-I'm-Gonna-Hurl' feeling. This site is gold, I say.

'Steve, Don't Eat It!'

Random

2006-12-16T17:37:00.000-05:00

I've been back in Michigan for about 2 days now, and it's been rather relaxing. Within these two days, I was able to:

* Watch the movie 'Apocalypto' with my dad.
* Mail out a package I sold on ebay.
* Walk my parents' dog.
* Go out to dinner with my good friend Ben during his study break.
* Watch TV.
* Play guitar.
* Sleep.

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I went to Toronto with my fellow road trippers Jen and Natasha. Apparently, after experiencing real Chinese food in Detroit (of all places!!!!!) they've been wanting more. And being the resident Chinese guy, I never turn down Chinese food, so we head over to Markham and grab some eats. We go to a Shanghainese restaurant called Asian Legend
and fill ourselves with dumplings, green onion pancakes, roasted duck, noodles and vegetables. We unfortunately ordered WAY too much food, so next time we go, hopefully more people can come along.

After lunch, we putz around and check out the different Chinese "landmarks" in the Markham/North York area. We go to a grocery store, a bakery, an Chinese herb store, and the "world renown" Pacific Mall, or as Pernell says 'The Chinese Mall'.

I must say, it was an absolutely great day spent chowing down on great food and being surrounded by such absolutely fantastic people. Thanks for the great day, Natasha and Jen!!

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I had to get gas before hitting the road on Thursday and pulled into the gas station I usually stop into. After my baby's gotten her fill, I go into the booth to pay and who do I see? Sam. Most people don't know who this guy is, but he's the gas station attendant I've gotten to know over the past few months while living in Hamilton. He's an amazingly friendly guy who loves to chat and smile. After pulling out of the gas station, I head back to my place to get my stuff and pass by another gas station that was selling gas for 5 cents cheaper than what I paid for. Normally, I would be fuming at my poor decision, but I didn't really care because if I would have let my frugality make the decision for me, I wouldn't have seen my buddy Sam, and I wouldn't have gotten to shake his hand and wish him a wonderful Christmas. That, my friends, was well worth an extra 5 cents/gallon.

Holiday Cheer

2006-12-08T07:25:00.001-05:00

This video made me laugh out loud several times.

Random Digital Musings

2006-12-07T13:12:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week, a Division III basketball team from Lincoln, PA pummels their opponent by 123 points. The final score:

201 - 78

I peed my pants after I read the article. Check it out
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Here's a story I came across that truly inspired me. For the lazy, here's a quick summary:

A woman on a United Airlines flight has a "condition" where she had uncontrollable flatulence of preposterous quantity and quality. To help reduce the odor, she literally lit her own farts to mask the smell. Other passengers were complaining of a burning sulfur odor, which forced the plane to make an emergency landing, where all the passengers were forced to de-plane and be searched.

It takes the phrase 'dropping a bomb' to a whole new level for me. Honestly, this is unbelievably funny to me, but I do feel really bad for this woman.
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I was surfing around iTunes a couple days ago looking for freebies and came across a free download of a video featuring an interview between NBC's Brian Williams and U2's Bono. It tells of the stuff that's happening in Africa, and gives an inside look at some of the tangible things that have resulted in all the awareness and work that's been poured into the country. If you've got a US account with iTunes, then go get it. If not, my apologies. It's not available on the Canadian iTunes store. But if you're nice to me, I'll consider hooking you up somehow. Until then, here's a sample to wet your palate.

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This is a beautifully crafted video. I saw it first at my good friend's church website, Vox Veniae in Austin, TX.

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This site has been the bane of my existence as of late. It has pretty much any and all TV shows you can think of available to watch online. I originally got it from Nathan's blog, but after some sleuth work, I must expand the props to include Rachel and Erin. Apparently, Erin found it first, and then told Rachel, who in turn shared the wealth and told Nathan.

In about a week, I've been able to catch up on pretty much every show I've previously watched or wanted to watch. On the list:
Prison Break
Survivor - Cook Island
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Heroes
Entourage
Lost
The Office

Approximate number of hours spent watching these shows: Too many.
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I've been in the market for a new computer bag, as the one I've got is a bit on the small side for both my books and my pack rat tendencies. I saw this one a while ago, but didn't want to pay the asking price. A couple days ago, I found a sweet online coupon, and used it in conjunction with the discount from using google checkout, and got the bag for $35 + S/H. It's scheduled to arrive sometime next week. I'm flippin' excited.
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My awesome older bro Albert bought me this mug recently. He described it to me over the phone, but I couldn't quite picture it, but when I got to Denver, he showed it to me, and my eyes bulged out and my jaw dropped. It's another French Press coffee mug similar to the other one he bought me a little while ago, but unlike the old one, this new one has a little secret compartment in the bottom of the mug that has a little container for extra grounds. So instead of having to make 2 cups of coffee with the same grounds, I've got extra grounds to make a fresh cup. This baby is glorious!! Thanks, Al!!

Productive

2006-12-07T12:21:00.000-05:00

For the past few months I've been carpooling with Mel B to Mississauga on Thursdays. I usually meet with my spiritual director these days, but even on the days that I don't have a meeting, I still make it a habit to come to Mississauga because I've found that it really helps me keep a bit more of a "normal" schedule. Plus, I've found that when I'm awake and out of the house, I usually get more stuff done. To top it off, it's always fun being stuck in a car with Melissa, cuz she's always got great stories about her kiddos.

Anyways, I had a great morning. After dropping Melissa off at school, I headed off to the nearby community center and started working on my papers. A few hours later, I was able to crank out 2 of these bad boys. Right now, I'm feeling really good. Will the productivity continue through the day? Probably not, because I've got internet right now, and I've got way too many internet shopping destinations to hit up and not enough time for more papers.

A Wet and Hot Day

2006-12-02T00:39:00.000-05:00

I was able to experience both ends of the temperature spectrum today. For some, this would be a good thing, but the way it unfolded for me, I thought it absolutely bit the big one.

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WET

This morning, I met with someone at the McMaster Divinity College to get more information about taking an elective at Mac instead of at Tyndale. What was supposed to be a simple meeting turned out to be a big suck. For starters, it was raining like nobody's business, but fortunately I had my car so I was sheltered from the vertical H2O. That is, until I needed to find parking. Today was the first time I had been on the McMaster campus, so I didn't know what to expect in terms of parking. Rachel had warned me that parking was atrocious, so I had braced myself for the worst. Apparently I didn't brace myself well enough because what I had envisioned in my mind was a day on the beach compared to what I received.

As I pull up to the booth to pay for parking, I ask the lady inside the box 'I have a meeting at the Divinity College. Where is that?' She points to the building and says 'it's over there, but you can't park there. All the spots are reserved, so you'll need to park at the main lot and walk over.' As she says this, I watch my wipers flip back and forth like the arms of someone floating in the pool who doesn't know how to swim. I look around my car and realize I had not brought my umbrella. Strike 1. Strike 2 comes when I drive up and down EVERY SINGLE AISLE and cannot find a parking space. After 15 minutes of aimless driving in a packed lot, I finally find a spot, which happens to be the absolute last spot in the furthest corner of the lot. Just my luck, right? Well, it gets better.

I get out of the car and make my way to the Divinity College. No umbrella, no hat, no gloves. I finally arrive at the office of the person I was supposed to meet with, literally dripping wet. I excuse myself and go to the mens room and grab a bunch of paper towels and dry my hair as best I could. The entire time, I was thinking to myself 'I'm so glad I didn't put gel in my hair today.' After cleaning up, I go back into the office and take a set. As I start talking to Jeff, I begin explaining my morning ordeal with the weather and tell him I had the fortune of finding the parking spot that I did. He inquisitively, yet compassionately looks at me and says 'you could've parked in our parking lot here. We've got these little tickets you could put in your dash that lets you park in our lot.' At once, I began to think of the movie 'Fight Club' to see if I could remember how to build explosives so I could chuck one into that good for nothing ticketing booth as a thank you for screwing me over.

After venting out my frustrations internally, we proceed with the meeting and start chatting about school stuff. It was a good meeting which was both informative and productive, albeit quite quick. I found myself stalling and drumming up some small talk for the purpose of giving myself more time to dry before I head back outside. Unfortunately, our conversation drew to a close, and I found myself back in the rain. This time around, I discover that the rain had gotten significantly colder and harder. In fact, as I was walking into the wind, the rain was coming down so hard that it literally felt like little tiny needles being stuck into my face. I distinctly remember audibly making sounds and noises in response to the pain. As I was walking I would randomly peep out 'Oww!!' or 'Ooohhh!!'

Needless to say, this was not a very good way to start my day.

----------------------

HOT

After my wet, wet morning, I decide to come home and dry off. I towel off my hair and change into some dry clothes, all the while start cursing at the fact that my room is unbelievably cold. In fact, it feels so cold, that more times than not it seems to be the same temperature outside as it is in my room. After cleaning up, I take a gander at the vent that is supposed to be blowing out hot air. I put my hand up to it and feel the slightest bit of warm air coming through. As I felt this tease of warm air, I think to myself 'my farts are hotter than this!!' As I was about to give up and start cursing again, I notice this tiny little lever to the left of the vent. I lift the lever up, and magically, the tiny bit of warm air turns into a turbine engine and pumps hot air into my face. It turns out that the vent has been closed this whole entire time, and I had been too much of an idiot to open it up.

Thanks to this recent discovery, I am now in a room that is no longer frigid. If only I had been an engineer, I would have made this discovery much, much sooner. Oh, wait, I was an engineer. I guess my stupidity trumps whatever education I managed to receive.

Thanksgiving in Denver

2006-11-30T15:21:00.000-05:00

I've been meaning to post about my trip to Denver earlier, but I haven't gotten a chance to do it until now.

It was a really great trip and an absolute hoot to see my family again. Although we were all in Denver to celebrate Thanksgiving, my bro Albert had a hidden agenda. What was the hidden agenda, you ask? Well let me tell you.

MY BRO IS ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm really excited for him, not just because he's engaged, but because he's gonna be marrying a really great gal. Her name is Abby, and she's an absolute gem. Here's the happy couple.

In addition to my bro's "secret" engagement (I knew it was happening, even though he didn't tell anyone), here are a few memorable highlights from the trip:

* Seeing Dennis and Liz. This is the first time I've seen them since I got the news that they're expecting. Although she's not showing, it was still awesome to see the future mother and father to-be and spend a few days with them.

* Meeting Abby's family. I've met Abby a few times before, but I've never met her family, and it's totally apparent that the apple hasn't fallen very far from the tree. I got to meet the parents, the grandparents, her brother, sister in-law, 2 nieces and 2 nephews. I got to have some really good conversations with Abby's Dad, who works for Nav Press and is currently pursuing his doctorate. I found out that Abby lives with her grandparents and helps take care of them in whatever way she can. In a culture and society that seems to marginalize and write off the elderly and see them as a burden and inconvenience, it was really inspirational to see how much Abby loves her grandparents.

* Walking around downtown Boulder. On Friday, we took a trip to the nearby city of Boulder. It was really fun walking around with everyone, taking in the sights, having some good laughs, and eating some baller ice cream.

* Bringing home 2 bags of coffee. There is a coffee shop nearby where Dennis and Liz live that has some of the best coffee I've ever had. One time, Liz bought me a bag of their beans, and I've been hooked ever since. A couple weeks before the trip, I emailed Liz and asked her if she could stop in and pick me up another bag, and being that fantabulous woman she is, she did. Unbeknownst to me, Albert had also gotten a huge stash of coffee from a friend who owns his own coffee shop that roasts their own beans. He got 3 bags, and said I could take one. So instead of leaving with 1 bag of beans, I leave with 2. Hyperactivity, here I come.

* Getting sick. Ok, this isn't really a highlight, but more of a bummer. The day I arrived in Denver, I found myself having a dry and scratchy throat. I chocked it up to the thin air in Denver, but it turned out to be the onset of a crappy cold. For the next 2 days, I was coughing and blowing my nose like a freight train. What made it worse was Albert and Abby started showing signs of a cold as well. I felt really, really bad. So far, the last 2 times I've been in Denver, I've gotten sick. I really hope this doesn't become a trend.

* Catching a basketball game with the boys. Albert went and purchased 4 tickets to the Nuggets - Warriors game. The plan was for the boys(Albert, Dennis, my Dad and I) to catch the game while the ladies(Liz, Abby and my Mom) to go do girl stuff. At first I wasn't all that keen on the idea, but it turned out to be a really great time. What could be better than 4 Chinese dudes chillin' at a ball game with pizza, pop, beer and hot dogs?

* Fooding like no tomorrow. Tis the season for gluttony. Along with a fantastic Turkey dinner with all the fixin's, I had some interesting eats. The first was a Buffalo ribeye steak. It was just that, the ribeye cut from a buffalo. It was leaner than ribeye from a cow, but still pretty tasty, although it could've used some seasoning. The second item of interest was a 'Jiffy' burger, which is a beef burger with bacon, provalone cheese and peanut butter. Yup, you heard me right, it had peanut butter. When I saw it, I was like 'NO WAY!!!!! I've GOT to try that!!!!!' So I did. I think I psyched myself out a bit too much because it wasn't as mind blowing as I thought it'd be. I mean, I tasted the peanut butter, but it was a bit more bland that I thought it'd be, and added a unique texture from the creaminess of peanut butter. Although I was hoping it would be a bit sweeter, it was nonetheless a pretty good burger.

Well, that's my 'Thanksgiving in Denver' update. Overall, it was a really, really great trip, although it's kind of a bummer that we don't see each other more often. I guess that's what happens when I'm in Hamilton, Dennis and Liz are in Charlotte, Albert and Abby are in Denver, and my parents are in Troy. But this trip made me realize how I need to savor the moment to the fullest and not take things for granted. I'm really excited for Albert and Abby, and looking forward to seeing them get married.

Hockey Props

2006-11-22T14:50:00.000-05:00

Found this on a sports site I frequent. It's a big article on Don Cherry. Some may be saying 'big whoop.' Well, the whoop is big because it's an article written by the US sports juggernaut, ESPN. What else are y'all Canadians gonna export?

Adios

2006-11-21T14:46:00.000-05:00

In the past month, I've seen my cousins more often in a span of 30 days than I have ever before. Why? Because they're moving to Thailand this Saturday. They are in the midst of packing everything and are under a lot of stress, yet made time to have dinner last night. For the last few times I've seen them, I thought it would be the last time I'd see my cousins for a while. Well, last night, that statement came true. As I prepare to leave for a week long trip to Denver this afternoon, my cousins will already be gone by the time we return.

Last night as we were saying our farewells, it was a very surreal moment. As we were passing out hugs like they were going out of style, I thought to myself 'alright, this is REALLY it!!' I think back to the last 7 or so years that we've had family nearby, and it has been an absolute blessing. But at the same time, I must honestly say that I have totally taken it for granted. For this situation I find myself in, the saying is spot on, where we don't realize the importance of something or someone until they're gone. This is how I feel about my cousins. I miss them already.

Why is this? Why is it so easy to think things will last forever? Why is it so natural to believe that things will remain the same? Is this a reflection of where our culture and society has evolved to, or is it something that I've got some serious issues with? I mean, in looking back at my life, I see this trend where every 4 or so years, I pick up and move. I've never really allowed any roots to really set in, and even if the do, I inevitably grab my chainsaw and rip up whatever has had a chance to grow. Is this self-sabotage?

Anyways, I will miss my cousins. To Anselm, Teresa, Kirsten and Chloe, I wish you all the best as you move to Thailand. Although you will be moving to a new country with a new culture, I know your joyful spirits, tremendous adaptability and deep love for one another will not only keep you all together, but will be an beautiful blessing for those around you. I love you all, and mark my words: I'm gonna come visit, yo!!!!

Retreat

2006-11-19T23:55:00.000-05:00

The spiritual retreat this weekend was really great. Going into it, I knew everyone relatively well, or at least I knew their names anyways. But with the retreat in my rear view mirror, I know that I've come away with deeper relationships with many people who were there, and although I use the image of seeing the retreat in the rear view mirror, I know that I will be continuing my journey with the people, memories and discussions that I've been blessed to experience this weekend.

Since I'm lazy, here's a real quick summary from my vantage point:

* I really had a great time hanging out with Jason. Compared to many of the other people who were at the retreat, he was perhaps one of the few people I didn't know all that well. But after this weekend, I must say that I really like this guy. Of course, that's meant in the most platonic way possible, but it's so great to have spent the weekend with another fellow non-married, easy going, and tremendously beautiful guy. (I think I share 2 of the 3 above descriptions, and I'll let you, the reader, decide which ones they are.)

* I absolutely stink at bowling. We went bowling together on Saturday and I don't think my combined scores from both games broke 100. I don't think they even broke 90. I'm pathetic. And to make things worse, I have my own bowling shoes!! Picture this: Someone who has his own bowling shoes, but is a terrible bowler. Can you imagine the amount of mockery I received? I think I need bowling lessons, or at the very least, a new pair of bowling shoes.

* I think Louise is a lot of fun. Her and I had a pretty rough relationship, mostly because I act like a complete imbecile around her. But during the course of this weekend, I offered up a truce and asked if we could be friends. After much resistance and several bribes of toffee and star fruit, she gave in. She is very smart, witty, pleasant, and loves to smile and laugh. Thanks Louise for deciding to be my friend!!!!

* For the entire weekend, we spent our time looking at Luke 10:1-12. From this passage, we talked about a variety of different topics that ranged from community to globalization to missional ecclesiology. A great thing about having a retreat with 9 people is that we could pretty much say whatever we wanted, and this is what happened. A lot of ground was covered, a lot of thoughts were unveiled, a lot of feelings were shared, and I believe God was the center point of everything. Although it was a retreat, I believe that it was more than just about us. Actually, if a retreat merely amounts to a weekend of self-satisfaction with no greater good, then we should've just stayed home and made origami swans. All the models of the early church fathers and the monastic movement painted a picture of people leaving, but bringing something back for the good of the people. And I believe it wasn't until our current model individualism that things began to be less about us and more about me.

With that said, I'm really looking forward to seeing how this weekend impacts the FRWY community, how it impacts the Beasley neighborhood, and how the ripples of this weekend will affect the landscape as we know it, from Hamilton and beyond.

* To all my fellow retreaters: Pernell, Kathy, Jen, Amber, Miranda, Jason, Melissa and Louise, thanks for the great talks, the fun memories, and challenging discussion. I love you all, and look forward to journeying deeper and further into this little blip of eternity we call life.

Specs

2006-11-19T23:52:00.000-05:00

Do these belong to anyone? I'm referring to the glasses, not the model. I found 'em in my car the other day, and since my glasses were already on my face, I knew they weren't mine. Besides, I think they're women's glasses. If you think they're yours, lemme know. But be forewarned that there's a finder's fee.

The Man

2006-11-14T20:13:00.000-05:00

Parking by my place can sometimes be a pain in the rear. We don't have designated parking spots, not do we have a driveway. All we have is street parking, and that in itself can be a challenge from time to time. There are days where people are considerate and park a bit closer to other cars to leave adequate room for other to park, but at other times, people become space hogs and have complete disregard for common courtesy.

Today, something out of the ordinary happens. Typically, when there isn't space on my street, I go around the corner and park there. When I awaken the next day and head to my car, I find this yellow piece of paper flapping underneath my front wiper. At first, I thought to myself 'Who put trash under my wiper?' Upon further inspection, I discover that it was indeed trash that some people would call a parking ticket. Apparently, there was a temporary 'no parking' permit put into play on the street I was parked on. This was unbeknownst to me as I did not return home last evening until 10:30pm, and by then, it was already really dark and whatever signs that have been put up were not visible. Needless to say, I get slapped with a $20 parking ticket for parking my car ON MY OWN FARKING STREET!!!!!!!!! WHAT THE CRAP, YO?!?!?!?!?!

Fortunately, I have a very great and knowledgable friend in Pernell who informs me that there is a place you can go to dispute parking tickets on Main street across from City Hall. After getting directions, I embark on foot from the cafe to this location that could potentially help me keep my $20 instead of forking it over to the man. At first, I couldn't find it, but fortunately, after blundering around like a tourist, I finally arrive. As I enter, I didn't know what to expect. I had psyched myself out to fight and argue and pound my fist on a table while screaming 'I DON'T DESERVE THIS TICKET!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE THE INJUSTICE IN THIS WORLD!!!' Fortunately, I didn't need to do this because the people behind the counter were uncannily friendly, chipper and kind. So after putting down my name for an appointment, I wait expectantly for my name to be called.

After about 10 minutes, my name is called and I walk through this big metal door and sit down across a stocky man who looks like he was about to turn his hand into a fist and put it through my head. Fortunately, he was kind, yet very stern, which I guess would be necessary if your job is to meet with disgruntled people who have gotten parking tickets. After I sit down, I hand him the ticket, and begin explaining my situation and why I should not need to pay the ticket. He looks on his database and sees that the street I parked on was indeed temporarily turned into a no-parking street. But I made mention to the fact that it was dark, and there was no real proper signage visible at 10pm at night. I don't know what did it, but he decides to show me some grace by saying 'I'll cut you some slack this time. Have a good day.'

YOU BET YOUR BOTTOM DOLLAR I'M GONNA HAVE A GOOD DAY!!!!

Anything For A Buck

2006-11-13T16:22:00.000-05:00

I found this article from a separate article I read on ESPN. Maybe I should sue Bobby Lee for looking like me.

Man who resembles Jordan sues MJ, Nike for $832M

A Northeast Portland man is suing basketball superstar Michael Jordan and Nike founder Phil Knight for a combined $832 million, claiming he's tired of being mistaken for Mike.

Allen Heckard filed the suit himself, June 29th in Washington County Circuit Court. Heckard said he’s been mistaken as Michael Jordan nearly every day over the past 15 years.

“I'm constantly being accused of looking like Michael and it makes it very uncomfortable for me,” Heckard said.

Heckard is suing Jordan for defamation and permanent injury and emotional pain and suffering. He’s also suing Knight for defamation and permanent injury for promoting Jordan and making him one of the most recognized men in the world.

Nike and Jordan have yet to comment on the lawsuit.

Nike signed Jordan to an endorsement contract in 1984, and built a major advertising campaign around Jordan and its signature shoe, Air Jordan.

Jordan, a former guard for the Chicago Bulls, helped his team win six NBA titles and is considered one of the best players of all time. He now runs a Las Vegas basketball training camp.

Heckard stands just over 6 feet tall. He is not 6 foot 6 inches like the real Michael Jordan.

But Heckard said many people seem to miss that. He does share a bit of resemblance to the real Michael Jordan. Heckard has a shaved head, an earring in his left ear, and is in good shape from working out, and yes, playing basketball.

“Even when I go to the gym I'm being accused of playing ball like him (Jordan)," said Heckard.

Most people would consider that a high compliment.

"Yes...don’t get me wrong it’s definitely a positive thing, because Michael, like I say is one of the best ball players that I've known to play the game. But then again, that's Michael and I'm me. So I want to be recognized as me just like Michael's being recognized as Michael."

Heckard agreed that not everyone thinks he’s a famous basketball player, but insisted a lot of people do mistake him for Jordan.

"I figure if I'm out in public and around a lot of people at least three or four times out of a crowd ...and like I was at the Blues Festival and you could see people they was pointing at me," he said.

My Week Part 3 - Euchre

2006-11-13T01:48:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, I had my semiannual Saturday class. We talked through a leadership book called 'Aqua Church' and considered how leadership would and could look like in the different contexts we find ourselves in these days. Overall, it was an ok class, although I wish I could've stayed for the after class festivities. A few people in my program are expecting or have recently given birth to a new child, so we were having a baby shower for them. I am particularly close to one of 'em, and he brought his uber-preggers wife along, so if I am sad about anything, it's the missed opportunity to hang out with Chris and Terri one last time before they welcome their new son into the world.

After class, I found myself remembering that there was a euchre night at he Bucek's. I was originally not going to go because I thought I would be at the baby shower, but since I had nothing to do, I decided to go, and boy was that a good call!! I don't think I've laughed that much in a really, really long time. Honestly, I think in the entire 3 1/2 hours I spent there, I was laughing for about 3 hours, and catching my breath and stuffing my face for the remaining half hour. Here are a few memorables:

* Marshall hooking me up with some ginger beer. It was flippin' good!! Tasty, flavorful, and burned like hades in my mouth but made me wanting more. Thanks for the hook up, baby!!

* Being taught the rules of euchre by an amazing teacher and partner, Pete. We ended the night with a 3-1 record. Not bad for a guy who's never played before. (Actually, I have played once before, but that was 10 years ago. I had forgotten the rules and knew nothing about euchre strategy, so I think for me to say I've never played before wasn't really a lie.)

* In our first game, Pete and I were playing with Laura and Carolynn. We played with the rule called 'screw the dealer', where in choosing the trump suit, everyone was allowed to pass and leave it up to the dealer to choose the suit. I was the dealer, and Carolynn was to my right. Laura and Pete had both passed, and the buck was in Carolynn's corner. I don't know what possessed me to say this, but I look at her, lean in, and in my FOB voice say 'Das ok, Caroling. You can screw me.'

* I can't remember what led up to this, but apparently I was laughing so hard, I nearly fell out of my chair. In the process, I managed to pop the plastic seat section off of the metal legs. Fortunately, there was no permanent damage to myself or the chair.

* Jaci's brother Gary was there, and we had some good times playing with mints. I had some after-coffee mints in my pocket and offered it to some of the people around me. Gary took me up on the offer, but instead of getting up off the futon, walking 4 feet and bring it over to him, we decided that I should toss it and let him catch it in his mouth. I toss it, he opens up his trap, and in goes the mint. SCORE!!!! To one up ourselves, I had popped 2 mints into my own mouth, and for some sick reason that I do not remember, I find myself spitting the mints into the air in hopes that Gary would catch them in his mouth. Unfortunately, both times were unsuccessful, but we had an absolute blast trying. Because of our chemistry, we've decided to take our show on the road. Check your local entertainment guide periodically, as we may be coming to a town near you.

* Like usual, Rich always makes me both smile and laugh. That evening was no exception. But this time, he tells a joke that nearly killed me. This is what he said:

'What do Chinese people do when they have an erection?'

'They vote.'
(I don't remember if it was Japanese or Chinese, but for the sake of not insulting my Japanese brethren, I'll say Chinese.)

Wasn't that funny? If you don't get it, let me know and I'll send a chubby little Asian dude to your place and explain it to you.

* As the evening was coming to a close, I find myself being one of the last people to leave. After putting on my coat, I start looking for my shoes. It isn't long until I realize that my shoes have disappeared. I happened to wear my new pair of Puma's, and being the last person to arrive and looking at the assortment of footwear already present, I distinctly remember that mine were distinct from the others, so nobody could have taken my shoes home by accident. After a few grueling minutes of feverishly searching for my babies, I begin entertaining the possibility that somebody stole them, which made me really, really sad. As I look out the Bucek's front door, I see my car. Upon further inspection via the squinting of the eyes, I see an unfamiliar bump on the roof of my car. Being the great, great, great, great, great person she is, sweet 'ol Natasha runs out in the freezing cold to see what it is. Lo and behold, it was my shoes, one on the roof, and one on my rear bumper. Upon this discovery, mental fingers began to point. I wasn't sure who it was, but we all had our suspects picked out. On the drive back, I receive a phone call from the culprit. During this phone conversation, I discover that there was not only 1 culprit, but 2!! I shall not divulge the identity of these shoe thieves, but know this, keep a close eye on the obituaries, because you will soon discover who did this to me, for they will pay dearly.

I know that there were MANY, MANY more memorable times of that evening, but these are the ones that are most prominent in my fleeting memory.

Thanks so much for inviting us over for the good times, Bucek/Tilley family!!

My Week Part 2 - Mississauga

2006-11-13T00:45:00.000-05:00

I've already blogged about my first trip to Mississauga this past Tuesday, so I'll skip to Thursday.

For the past few months, I've been meeting with a spiritual director as part of my program requirements for school. Although I started doing it because I had to, I have come to the point where I really enjoy our sessions. We talk about all sorts of things ranging from my self-inflicted pain from procrastination to relationships to how my world is being absolutely rocked by the book 'The Irresistible Revolution'. This past Thursday we had another really good session. We started by going through an exercise where he read a story from one of the gospel accounts and as I listened to the story, I tried to enter into the story and imagine the different sights, smells and emotions of the encounter as if I was actually there. The story he read was Luke 7:36-50. It says this:

Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”

Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.

“Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.

Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”

Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

As I listened, right off the bat I latched onto the 5th word in this story: PHARISEE. As he continued reading, I found myself stepping into the shoes of Simon and finding some eerie similarities between him and I. In the spirit of confession, and for the sake of being totally vulnerable, here's the side-by-side comparison I found between Simon the Pharisee and myself:

.:He was judgmental:. ... .:I am judgmental:.
I've noticed lately that I allow my visual perceptions determine my emotional response to others. In reflecting upon my internal attitude towards others as of late, I've discovered that I'm not as patient and understanding as I once thought I was. Instead of seeing people as they are, I allow my mind to tell me to treat them as someone who isn't living as they should. Instead of seeing the potential in people, I allow my mind to tell me that they've given up.

For example: I find myself spending quite a bit of time in the cafe. Just this week alone, I've been there pretty much every day, whether as a barista, or just kickin' it. There are certain people who walk into the cafe that I'm really excited to see. But there are others who come into the cafe that make me wish we were closed. For the people who fit into the latter category, these are typically people who I would consider 'emotionally draining', and because of that, I do my best to avoid them or make certain our conversations are either non-existent, or as short as humanly possible. The sad part is I didn't use to be this way. I think somewhere along the lines I've become jaded or just plain morphed into a jerk to these certain people. I think that just because these certain individuals are harder to get along with that I have the right to treat them like dirt? Why is it so easy for me to love certain people, but harder to love others? Where in the frig did pick up these lies? I hate where my mind has taken me, and I hate even more that I've given in to these lies.

.:He's embarrassingly prideful:. ... .:I am embarrassingly prideful:.
I think I know it all. Most of the time I hide it well because I'm a non-confrontational and intellectually reserved Chinese guy, but if you could spend a
few moments in my mind and see the sespool of junk that's spinning around, not only would you be horrified, but probably recommend that I seek professional and medical help. But that's the thing, I hide my pride well, but I know it's there. Although Simon seems to express is pride for all the world to see, that same pride is in me, and I just happen to have the personality type to suppress it, and I know that this doesn't make me any better.

That's was what we talked about in a nutshell.

Oh, one more thing. A couple sessions ago, I mentioned that after reading some of 'The Irresistible Revolution', I became convicted about the amount of excess I have, especially in the area of feet coverings. Instead of ignoring such convictions, I decided to do something about it, which amounted to me giving away a pair of brand new shoes that I recently ordered to a friend. Well, a couple weeks later, I find myself in possession of a new pair of shoes, except this pair wasn't purchased, but given to me. As our time together was wrapping up, I mentioned this to my spiritual director in a rather nonchalant manner and asked 'Are these two incidents related, or coincidence?' We didn't really talk much about this, be he did mention that there are some people who take the prosperity gospel too far. All I could do is agree and hope that it was a coincidence, because I really like these new shoes. (See? I do have an addiction.)

My Week Part 1 - Music

2006-11-13T00:09:00.000-05:00

This week has been a good one, although not quite as productive as it should have been, but good nonetheless. I got a double dose of music and Mississauga, with a cherry on top in the form of euchre. To keep these posts to a bearable size, I'll post in 3 installments, the first of which will be on music.

Although I've blogged about him before, I have never gotten the chance to see him live, until this past Wednesday. All I can say is 'FRIG!!!!!!' I am an even bigger fan of Chisai Jackson than ever before. He was part of the 4 voices tour, and although the whole entire show was really great, I was kinda partial to him because I've heard his stuff before. I absolutely love the way he crafts melodies, the way he explores his vocal range, and the textured sound of his voice. On top of that, in one of his songs, he reproduced a bang on trumpet sound with his mouth!! When he started going, I literally thought to myself 'who brought the trumpet?' When I realized that Chisai was doing it, my jaw literally dropped to the floor. After the show, I got a chance to chat with him for a bit and I told him how much I loved his music, but even more, how much I respect him as an artist to have endured the games the music industry plays. During our brief conversation, it was absolutely evident that he is brimming with humility and gratitude for being allowed the opportunities he has been afforded. I'm hoping to check out one of his future shows, whether it be in Toronto or Hamilton. But know this, if he's ever at the FRWY again, count on me being there front and center.

I've also previously blogged about the other musician I saw this week, Carrie Catherine. Her performance this past Friday was just as spectacular as her last one at the FRWY, except the crowd was not only a bit thin, but rather interesting, to say the least. The songs she sang were spectacular, and her voice is both unique and sonorous, blended with class and attitude. To top that off, she is an amazing guitar player!! If a girl can play a mean guitar and has a voice of an angel, she's all good in my book!! The only unfortunate thing about the evening was the sparseness of the crowd. In total, I'd say we had no more than a dozen people in for a spectacular show, including the baristas, all of which left before she was done. With 2 songs left, there was just one customer, Kaelyn, Adrian, Reg and myself. To top that off, we had one person who I think was drunk, high, or just plain crazy come walking in and start randomly clapping and requesting songs that she could dance to. She kept saying 'Hey sweetheart, can you play something I can dance to? Can you play Mustang Sally? I really like that song.' I could tell that this was starting to not only kill whatever vibe was in the place, but bothering Carrie because she jokingly said 'It's nights like these that remind me to not take this music thing seriously.' After hearing this, I decided to play the bad guy and ask this heckling woman to leave. I felt really bad, but it needed to be done. Hopefully I didn't hurt this lady's feelings.

After her set, we got a chance to chat briefly after her show, and like Chisai, she was pleasant, kind and thoroughly enjoyable to talk to. Hopefully this experience doesn't taint her image of Hamilton, because it would absolutely thrill me to no end if she came back and played another show in the future.

Well, that's it for the musical portion of my week. Stay tuned for the next installment: Mississauga

My Week (Teaser)

2006-11-12T03:16:00.000-05:00

As the title says, this is gonna be a teaser post. I had a really great week, but it's late and I need to catch some Z's. I shall post about my week and all the craziness that I encountered, especially about the festivities and PRANKS at the Bucek's!!

(FYI, I know the culprits who took my shoes, and know that retribution is coming your way, suckas!!)

Kitties On My Feet

2006-11-07T23:43:00.000-05:00

I still can't believe my amazing friend Tim brought these for me, and on his wedding day, no less!! I mean, how many people leave a wedding with shoes?!?! I've heard of people taking the center pieces and stuff, but this is a first for me.

Tim, you are an amazing brother and friend who oozes generosity, kindness, compassion and selfless. It shall be absolutely no surprise to me that you will be an amazing husband to Carrie, and one of the world's best dads when the time comes. Love ya bro, and can't wait to see you again!!