Deck the Halls?

As taken from the famous Christmas song entitled "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)", the lyrics describe pretty much how I feel: they're singing deck the halls, but it's not like Christmas at all. Okay, I know that I'm taking the context in a different way from the original song, but given just this part, it's holding true for me this year.

I'm not used to working during the Christmas holidays; heck, I'm not used to working at all. But it's still surreal for me to think that tomorrow is Christmas Eve and in two days it will be Christmas. The real sad thing is that I have to work tomorrow, which basically sums up what I've been doing this Christmas "holiday". I guess this is the world of working full time: no real holidays. Normally, you want to have some time off and feel all Christmasy during this week of the year, but it's not the case this year. That's why I find it strange for Christmas to be in two days, because it sure doesn't feel like it, even with the snow and cold weather. However, I don't have to work on Boxing Day, so I'm happy.

Two things at work have come to mind and are worthy of sharing. The first one is pretty odd. I will be working on the floor, dealing with my rack of clothing or whatever. Then, I'll be approached by a customer, and this is how they greet me: "do you work here?" The first time I was asked this question, the response I had ready was "what the..?", but of course, I saw that it was an elderly lady that needed help reaching for a shirt, so I was glad to help her. A while later, it happened again. And eventually, it happens at least a few times a day now. This is the conclusion that I have to everyone that asks me this question. If you are looking at me, and I'm wearing a black shirt that says "Sportchek" on it, standing with a bunch of security tags, price guns, PDT, etc., I am doing Sportchek work, and you're still retarded enough to ask me if I worked there, then I should be allowed to say no. I know it may sound very angry, but it really isn't; it's just something that I find humorous.

Here is the story of the week. I have about an hour left in my shift, and the store is packed busy. I'm walking through and my boss pulls me aside and asks me if I can do him a favor. As it is almost impossible to tell if my boss is joking or now - same with quite a few coworkers - I said something really cheesy. So after agreeing to do the favor, he handed me a twenty dollar bill to go buy him a cheeseburger and a nugget kids' meal. I had to make sure that the two meals gave two different toys as my boss has two children. So I march along to McDicks and line up, trying to remember everything my boss told me to get. So after what I thought was a successful attempt to have the order exactly the way my boss wanted, I dodged my way through many crazy shoppers back to the store. As I pass through the "employee's only" sign, I'm excited to meet my boss' kids and deliver their meal to him. However, when I entered the manager's office, he told me to just leave the stuff on the table and give him the change. My boss then rubs his hands together and starts devouring the cheeseburger and the nuggets by himself! At this point, I'm sure the expression on my face would have been a cross between Homer and Peter Griffin when they're hungover. Then my boss looks up at me and says, "man, thanks so much, I've been craving these all day." Then I laugh, and proceeded out the door realizing the kids' meals were for himself but the toys were for his kids. I thought it was a pretty awesome adventure and thus I went to tell a few coworkers about the encounter. In the end, it provided good entertainment to a long, long shift; and plus, I got a free coke for my efforts because my boss didn't want both of them!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Crazy Ambitions

Well, what more can you ask for? There is just about enough of everything for people in Edmonton to just about shutdown and go into hibernation until the new calender year hits. The weather reports kept saying that today should've hit -40 degrees including the wind chill, but oddly, it didn't feel to me as if it were that cold. I found that there were probably two reasons: the first one being that I'm starting to get used to this horrid weather that comes around once a year; the second would be because of the awesome new jacket I bought most recently.

Now, speaking on the topic of the new jacket, my brain almost would not have it when I bought it. Here I am, working to save money for school, and I go to blow a big chunk of my paycheck away by buying things that satisfy my hungry appetite for clothing. However, I must admit that I am probably most happy with this jacket; it adds on to my Christmas shopping, which I'm really trying to hold back this year, but it has served me extremely well - even if it has only been a few days. I finally feel like I'm growing up. I'm spending, I recently applied for a student visa (partly because my dad told me to), and I'm freakin' working. I don't know if I'll be going back to school in January anymore.

Anyways, it's always awesome to see everyone get into the holiday mood. You live your life to create the memories of it, and every Christmas has something new to offer. I hope that people don't become broke because of this "must spend" attitude that media and commercial outlets are planting into their brains; there's actually much better ways of gifting than just with the material, you know. I always told people that the best gift you can give someone is by spending time with them; so, why not do that instead?

So, what have I bought so far? Let's update it a bit.

• Burton Hoodie: ~$57
• Oakley T-Shirts x2: $21
  
• Thin Finn Dry Black Coated: ~$210
• Salomon Winter Jacket: ~$130

Sadly enough, I still have a few things I want to buy, and this list doesn't include the presents I buy for the family and all those wonderful gift exchanges that you spend hours stressing over because you don't want to buy something that the person doesn't need or like.

Happy spending! I'm sure your credit card companies and bank will thank you for it.

Never Knew

I knew that Ryan's blog name would come in handy one day; so, he deserves some props for inspiring the latest blog title.

Who would've known that I would completely forget about blogging for a few weeks? I don't know; there have been a lot to talk about in the last while, but I just never got to it. But since I'm bored out of my mind right now, I think it might be a good thing to do.

Life mainly consists of working right now. My usual day goes like this: I wake up, and depending on the day will either bus to work or have a ride; I work my ~8 hour shift, and come home; I am usually pretty tired so I just spend the rest of the night on the computer or watching hockey; rinse, and repeat. Even through all this working, there is still quite a bit of stuff that is going around that I'm trying to keep up with.

The sky must have been constipated and took some laxatives or something, because we just got dumped over a foot of snow over the last two days. However, with all this excretion, we can finally feel and get into that winter mode that we have every year in Edmonton. There are always little things that remind me of a classic winter day, and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, even though it really is cold and bitter all the time.

Along with winter usually comes the mad scrambling of everyone to try and find Christmas gifts. Working retail allows me to see how hectic and desperate people really get. From the month and a half that I've been working at Sportchek, I realized a few things: they should carry more curling equipment, a lot of people don't care too much for prices, and hanging clothes is not an easy task even though repetitive. But with seeing the way people behave from my corner everyday, I can kind of get a sense to why December has the highest suicide rate; okay, that's kind of random, but still.

 So, as my hands get more and more beat up, I still think that more people should blog and let others know about it. It's a great way to learn about other people without having to directly talk or interact with them one on one, because we all know those times can get pretty awkward. Yeah, I said it.

My "Christmas" spendings so far:

• Burton Hoodie: ~$57
• Oakley T-Shirts x2: $21
  
• Thin Finn Dry Black Coated: ~$210

There are a few things left for me to buy, but I am desperately hoping I don't spend too much because I need the money for school.

Loud and Clear

It has been in recent times that I've felt my calling to go into ministry being stronger than ever. I will be honest and admit that throughout the year of 2009 since I've accepted this "calling" that there are always times of doubt. When I talk to people and hear their opinions, they have their own experience and their own input to give, which influence mine - of course. There are people telling me to keep pursuing music, but a different style; there are people telling me to get a degree before I go into seminary; there are people that tell me to work a couple years before I go do Bible school so I don't burn out. I respect what everyone has to say because they've obviously had their experiences that cause them to think certain ways, and I can't change that. People don't just throw out random BS at you and assume that you'll buy it, especially when it's regarding something as important as your career.

So my final answer to anyone and everyone who wonders is this: I'm going into Bible college as soon as I can. The current goal is that, in September of 2010, I will be attending Ambrose University. Life does like to do things differently, so I can't guarantee, 100%, that I will be in school by that time. I know, that I've been telling people this for a while now, but I just want to make it official.

What led me to posting this - and I need to hurry 'cause I want to go to bed - is that there have been situations recently that I've encountered that make me want to be involved. There is something in my heart that just wants to put itself into helping reaching out to people. I'm going to be trying my best to be as involved as I can, to be as experienced as I can, in order to fulfill this passion inside of me. As I am only one person, I can only live one life - unless I'm Batman - and it hurts me to know that I can't relate to everyone to try and help them in their life. I desperately want to help those who might be struggling or something and just be available to them to talk to or for them to vent to. I want to be able to know, even though I won't be able to feel exactly, what it's like to have certain experiences. I'm so lucky that I was born and raised a Christian, and I had just realized this privilege this past summer. Because it's something that's been stamped into my life, I don't really have that vulnerability of knowing what it's like to not be a Christian; and that's why I want to hear people's stories, and know where they're coming from and where they're headed.

Yep, that's about all I really have for now. It's been a good couple weeks for me, and I don't have much to complain about. Just felt like getting some thoughts out of my head before I went night night.

Stay strong; help is on the way.

Alive and Well

I have some time right now, since I gave up on the Oilers until we're healthy again. Why? We're playing like we did last year, and that was the exact hockey that forced me to stop watching for the first time ever. Even though I'm so upset about the Oilers, I am still firm that once we get all our guys back, we'll be good again.We won't be as good as the 6-2-1 record that we started with, but better than the misery we're in right now.

On the topic of hockey, it was a sad day that my bud had to take down his hockey blog because of time restraints; he no longer had the time to write blogs on every game day.

Anyways, over the last two weeks, I've met some interesting people. I think I've established, in some way and to most people, that I have a life now. I must admit that it is hard to change my daily habits after being a bum for six months. I've met some pretty cool people and learned some pretty neat things. Although I am assigned to one specific task, I don't encase myself into doing that task alone. Since it is basically a repetition thing, I've liberated myself to watch the way other people behave. It's a natural habit for me, and most people, to be observing a lot when you're introduced to a new environment. In just two weeks, I've seen many different people and things. There are downsides to what I'm doing, but I just simply cannot complain as this is a blessing to me that came incredibly unexpected.

It's so amazing how different it is to cross paths with someone that is generally a spirited person and one that is more bitter. I've been approached by both personalities, and interacting with someone that is joyful makes me really happy. You can see that just by the way they present themselves to you, that they're people that live the way people should be living. Helping these people with their needs makes my day, and I cannot ask for more. On the flip side, there are those people that are just flat out negative, and don't seem to care how anyone else feels. I still try to help them as much as I can but it makes it difficult for me to try to present things to them in a positive manner.

My highlight so far, in two weeks, has got to seeing a lovely couple learning about what a "toque" is, and being enthusiastic in a desire to become and Oilers' fan. That situation, honestly, made my week.

Who's This?

I find it funny how some people, who believe that they're so incredible - and don't forget famous - that when it comes to phoning someone, automatically assumes the person they're calling knows who they are, so the person doesn't have to tell them who is calling and just launch right into what they're calling about. Then the person who is receiving the call is faced with a bit of an awkward moment and slight embarrassment because they need to ask who it is, and especially since the phone lines slightly distort peoples' voices, so they can carry on the conversation. The last time I faced such a situation was on the receiving side (that's what she said) a while ago. I don't recall ever being on the side that does the calling and never telling my name. I'm not usually the most confident person while speaking over the phone, because, let's face it, not too many people my age actually get up to phone people when their peers are usually on the internet. Haha. It is kind of weird though, because you'd think people are more confident over the phone than face to face. But then again, I can't say I'm all that confident face to face either.

Well anyways, I came across a few situations recently that made me come to this topic. There really isn't a point to it, but that's okay. The phrase "that's okay" seems to be my two favorite words of recent past. I find myself saying it quite a bit. Haha. And, for your information - one person in particular - this topic of phoning someone without telling them who you are, has nothing to do with the phone that woke me up Monday morning. ;)

My thumbs are quite painful and sore, hopefully it doesn't affect my guitar playing too much.

Surprise

Yeah, you knew I'd blog about this; you don't necessarily have to know what it is, but you knew I'd do it.

Is it ever possible to have your day made before you even wake up? I think it just happened to me today, granted that my days don't really start until 10:30 or 11:00am. Well, I have to say that with your day made and you not even being awake yet, helps you wake up with a smile, and then the rest of the day seems that much more awesome; even if it's a Monday today.

I'll just say that I was waken up with the phone ringing.

Something New

Ignorance truly is bliss, what else can I say? And that, to you, is the quote of the day.

While beginning to feel the effects of being a bum, I'm also finding a new way to keep myself occupied and not just go through the motions of a day after another day. So, I'm starting a new project that I'll be working on for the next little while. I don't know how long it's going to take, because I've done a couple test runs, and nothing is up to my standards. It could take a while before I'm the least bit satisfied with what I come up with, because what needs to be fixed isn't entirely achievable, at least in a short period of time. What is this project, you might ask? I don't want to tell you just yet. Wait until I'm at least half done, or half happy with my results. Don't worry though, with the amount of time I have, and the insanely long list of priorities, much of this project won't take too long.

One thing I can say is that this "project" requires the use of some technology. It's the first day, and I'm already somewhat frustrated with low budget (free) technology. I have to say that technology, at times, can cause you as much anger and frustration as it does joy and satisfaction. But that's okay, if the product don't work, producers wouldn't really sell it to you; you've just got to find your way around it. So I'll get back to the project tomorrow, and see what I get out of it.

Perhaps some planning would make this project much better. And how many times have I said "project" in this post?

Cafe de Gratitude

Hmm, since when did I start speaking french? Today is the Canadian Thanksgiving; yes, Canada's Thanksgiving is different from the U.S.A one - but not like you didn't know that. There's a few minutes left in the day, so I'll do my part of the whole "giving thanks" thing.

Honestly, today was an awesome Thanksgiving when the Oilers destroyed the Predators. I got out to Londonderry to pick out my next pair of glasses, which I don't usually look forward to, but got it done with. Supper was pretty awesome too; we don't usually do turkey because it requires a lot of prep, so we did chicken in stead: the best alternative. All in all, it was a good day.

Instead of coming up with an entire list of things I am thankful for, I've come to a conclusion that the thing I am really grateful for is the ability to be thankful. When someone learns to be thankful, they have come a long way to realizing who they are in comparison to everyone and everything else. When you're thankful, you've learned that you're a privileged person; you wouldn't take things for granted because you realize that everything you have, from good health and working body parts to the stable job, is a blessing from above. When you're thankful, you appreciate life a whole lot more because you're not stressing over the little things; heck, when you're thankful you stress less. When you learn to be thankful, you're a much more pleasant person; you're generally happier more often than not.

That is my daily horoscope reading for you, whether you are a libra, a dragon, or a whatever the heck kind of weird Greek name or Chinese zodiac you are.

So, from one grateful person to another, what are you thankful for today?

Freedom 18

I always wondered why it was "freedom 55", but I decided to top that and go with "freedom 18". I'm beginning to feel all the effects of being "retired" and nothing to do, except for the body aches and such. There really isn't very much purpose for me to sleep, so I can sleep as late as I want; and, there isn't any purpose for me to wake up, so I can wake up as late as I want. The only thing I am missing is the friends that I could go to Tim Horton's with, every morning, to talk about line dancing.

I know it's not very much, but my status on my job search is still the same. I applied for, yes, Tim Horton's yesterday, and I am begging for at least a call. I have to admit that I'm not trying as hard as I should or could be, but I think not getting calls in August and September has really brought me down in the dumps.

However, with all that being said, I was thrilled to find new ideas about how I could use this experience to help me with future encounters, which is where I came up with the whole retirement thing. Haha. I know that this may be the closest I come to experiencing retirement until I actually do retire, so I know that it will be of use if I ever come across a situation with the need to relate to this. I can understand that retiring is a bittersweet moment for many; it's a time of change and evaluation, something that I've been doing a bit. So, now I kind of know what it's like to be my grandparents. People often ask me what I do and tell me that they'd be so bored if they were in my spot; all I can do is laugh. I agree that there is not much for me to do, but I haven't really gotten noticeably bored, yet. Like everything else in life, it's about how you choose to approach it with your attitude; I don't need to explain this one again. People that become bored, in my situation, is because they're not willing to see each day as a new and different day, but the same day as yesterday and that everything there is to achieve has already been done.

"There are people who live 70 years, and there are those that live the same year 70 times." - Wayne W. Dyer.

Perfection

"If I wasn't such a dork, I'd be really awesome." This is a quote that I have somewhat labeled to myself for a couple years, but never really told anyone. Like all great quotes, I stole it. Just like Jason Mraz's latest album, entitled "We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.", he describes that everyone steals things, whether they are ideas, or inspiration, or whatever your soul desires. So, from the master himself, that quote was born, and I thought it was the most brilliant thing I have ever read.

Jason Mraz visited Edmonton, tonight, for the first time in six years, and delivered the best live performance I have ever seen. Mraz could have sucked out loud, but I would have still said that it was the best concert ever. But the thing is, Mraz doesn't know how to suck, and couldn't suck even if he tried - and no, don't worry, he's not gay. I was thoroughly entertained throughout the night, and sung quite loudly to all the songs that he performed to us. This is where the quote, and I'll say it again, "if I wasn't such a dork, I'd be really awesome", comes in.

While I was singing, I was wondering to myself: Mraz isn't a huge artist. He's well known, but not huge. Frankly, I prefer that Mraz isn't popular, because that way I could keep him to myself as much as possible. So, as I'm still singing, I start to wonder if anyone else is singing; I'm sure there were people who sang, and people who are just like me - a dork. I knew that I might have looked silly, at times, but it wasn't going to stop me from enjoying the concert: a message that Mraz has preached over the last year or so. I have to admit that I am a bit of a Mraz stalker. I know the lyrics and chords to almost all of his songs; I have to work a bit on his older and unreleased ones, but I am okay with that. I stalk Mraz so much, that I can tell what song he plays within the first two or three seconds of the song. I know the newest versions of his songs which he performs live, and I know of all the dance moves and such that are done with the songs.

What captivates me about Mraz, and there are quite a few things, is the way he conducts himself. Jason's come a long way from his early days, and it's so evident in his life. There is one thing that separates artists from regular people, and Jason Mraz bleeds this one characteristic. The way Jason lives life, and the views that he has on it, it's almost supernatural, but yet humanly. Many people recognize Mraz for his songs and insane lyrics, but not very many actually look deeper into who he is. And I, being the dork that I am, has stalked him to a point where I could be at peace every time I read something that he writes, because it's very graceful in a way that it just makes you smile, and be happy. If you want to know, Bob Marley is a comparable.

Yes, I'm a dork; but, if you look past that, I'm pretty awesome. Haha. Overall, I finally have a concert that has topped tobyMac, and his name is Mr. A-Z - Jason Mraz. I've been following his music for quite a few years now, and I'm glad to say, and take pride in the fact that, I am a Mrazddict. Truely. I could go on and on about Mraz, but I think it would just eventually bore you to tears. If you are in need of inspiration, or just some new and refreshing insight on life, read and follow Mraz's blogs, and I guarantee that it will enlighten you a whole lot.

Here is the set list for Jason's performance.

0% Interest w/ Our House
Make It Mine
Coyotes
Sleep All Day
Remedy
Lucky
Unfold
Never Too Late
Live High
Dynamo of Volition
Beautiful Mess
I'm Yours
-- Encore --
Details In the Fabric
Fall Through Glass (Bushwalla)
Butterfly

As much as I want him to myself - and no, I'm not gay either - Mraz has and always will be a breath of fresh air, an inspiration to artists, and my favorite and biggest influence in many ways of my life.

Hope that whoever went to the concert enjoyed it as much as I did.

Check It Out

Hey guys, look what I just came across? One of the sweetest new blogs I have read, and it's brand new! This guy is an Oilers' fan, just like me, and has some interesting views on hockey. I realize that it's fairly new so there isn't very much to read yet, but I will be following it, and if you're a hockey fan, so should you!

Check it out.

http://sunonoil.blogspot.com/

'Cause you know that hockey's back, man.

eMC²

Last week I was invited to join the EMC (English Ministry Committee), and I accepted. So tonight was supposedly the sixth meeting of this year, and my first time. I have to admit that it was pretty awesome. It feels that I have power now, so I will begin to plot my coup to take over and rule the world!

All joking aside, I feel very privileged to be able to be part of the leadership group that runs our English Congregation. I do realize that I am the youngest in the committee by quite a bit, but I'm okay with that; it also seems that everyone else, at least by the looks of it, are quite welcoming to having a noob like me join them. I'm not quite sure what I have to offer to this group of experience and knowledgeable people yet, because throughout the meeting, everything that everyone said seemed very polished and well spoken. But, nonetheless, I will do my best to give input where I see fit. I would never have believed that my opinion meant enough for an invitation into a leadership committee that runs a congregation in a church. I guess that some people see something in me that I can't even see in myself. But again, I feel very blessed.

On a funny note, when we got to the topic of Breakforth in January, we somehow got into talking about getting as many people to go. And since we were trying to pull some numbers, somebody pointed out that if everyone in the committee brought themselves and their significant other, it would accumulate for about half of the total we need. Then I realized that I was the only person in the room without potentially having a significant other; and that kinda drew eyes towards me and a few laughs, but it's all good! I am still a teenager, and a child at heart, so my time will come, haha.

All in all, I look forward to all the different obstacles and challenges that I will face in the next year while on the committee. It feels as if I finally have some significance, lol. I've always wanted to end a blog post with "lol", so here it is.

LOL.

OH! Yeah, song of the day:

Faber Drive - G-get Up and Dance

Love or Hate

The weekend is now over. The Oilers' preseason schedule ended with an exciting 5-4 win over the 'Nucks. I wouldn't normally blog so much about hockey, but I am so intrigued and excited to see what the season will be like for our team.

There are so many different reactions to our team this year. Some people, who I would never, for the life of me, suspect turn against the Oilers in predicting a bad season to come out and say that we'll finish close to last place in the conference. There are also the faithfully optimistic who looks on the good of the team and say that we are definitely a playoff contender. I stand somewhere in the middle, but a little close to the optimistic side of things.

I think that whether you love or hate our team this year, it will be interesting to see how the season turns out. That's why I am heavy on the hopeful side in that making the playoffs would make everyone, who doubted them, wrong. But also, if the year doesn't turn out great, I won't be too disappointed because this year, in reality, is more of an adapting year - a year of change.

With final cuts approaching, I would hate to be Pat Quinn and company in determining the starting roster for October 3rd. Based on all the pressers that I've listened to, this is what I think the lineup might look like, as well as what I would prefer based on what Quinn has said and done.

Jacques - Horcoff - Hemsky
Penner - Gagner - Cogliano
O'Sullivan - Comrie - Stone
Moreau - Brule - Stortini
MacIntyre
Reddox

Souray - Gilbert
Visnovsky - Smid
Grebeshkov - Staios
Strudwick

Out: Nilsson, Pisani, Pouliot

The bottom 4 forward spots are so tough to work with. We have an incredible depth and it's almost impossible to predict what Quinn wants. I think that the moment we signed Comrie, Nilsson was done, and I just don't think very much of Nilsson anymore. Pisani could stick instead of MacIntyre, but I believe that having MacIntyre on our team DOES make a difference. Having just Stortini doesn't have enough of a deterrence effect on other team's big fighters. However, saying goodbye to Pisani will be hard because he's a good player, but overpaid. I also really like Reddox. Pouliot is useless; exhibit A, his "pubis situation". Also, I believe this Oilers' team needs a shakeup, like cutting a veteran, to send a message through the lineup that we have to play hard. I know not everyone will agree with what I have, but that's okay, that's the fun part of it all.

Since this is so popular now:

The Script - We Cry

Breakfast At Timmy's

I had the pleasure to go to Tim Horton's for breakfast, with Uncle Alfred, today. For most people, it was just another Monday morning, a start to a new week. I very rarely, if ever, go to Tim Horton's on a weekday morning for breakfast, but I got to experience it today. If you are wondering, I had a great chat with our next English Pastor (it's going to be hard to adjust to Ps. Alfred from Uncle Alfred), and I believe that he will be an excellent pastor for our congregation.

However, the reason for this post is because of an occurrence that happened while I was waiting for Timmy's to get the food ready. I was sitting at the table waiting, patiently, and across from me were two elderly ladies enjoying tea together. They both looked very spirited from my view, and it was probably enhanced by the way the sun was shining through the window. As I'm trying to make myself look occupied, I couldn't help but overhear the conversation these two ladies were having. They were talking about participating in line dancing. When I heard about this - I can't exactly remember which dance they were talking about - two things immediately came to mind. The first one was that I was reminded of when we used to have to do social dancing in school. Those times of dancing were probably the most awkward for many people, and I don't think I need to explain it to you. The second thing that came to my mind was a very pleasant thought. It was that of a carefree feeling kind of energy that was emitting from the two of them. You can totally sense it in the tone of their voices, their facial expressions and everything about them. I thought to myself that it must be pretty awesome to be their age and to live so righteously.

So after this little encounter, I was inspired to rethink my thoughts about age. I now believe that being a child and being retired are the two best stages in life. Why? Because you get to actually live without the worry of a busy lifestyle that the majority of people seem to have.

Pretty sweet, eh?

Rejuvenated

There was a whole lot of rejuvenating being done over this past week. And even though I'm still unemployed, I am a much happier person now than I was last week. I feel great, thanks for asking. Hockey has began again - the Oilers started their preseason games this week - and AWANA began as well. However, I must take an intermission first, then I will come back to write about them.

So now that I'm back and refreshed a bit, I'm ready to go. I always find new joy every time we start up AWANA for the year. Seeing these kids and being able to work with them by helping them grow is one of the biggest honors I have, and I want to do my best to help them grow the way that they should. I know I had something I wanted to say during the night, but I've forgotten now. So I guess that's too bad. I really look forward to getting to know these kids more throughout the year. I have to admit, though, that I'm not the fondest of my small group, because I was stuck with all the kids that are harder to control. But I guess that it's a good challenge for me in teaching me how to discipline and that I get to see that these kids just want to be loved. So it's pretty sweet.

Hockey's preseason has also begun, and boy am I really excited for the Oilers this year. This year more than the last couple, I am so excited to see what our team can accomplish under a new voice in Pat Quinn and Tom Renney. I know that players-wise we didn't really get much better, but the fact that we have a proven coach makes it all the reason to be happy. And a lot of times when people come to critiquing the Oilers, they forget that we were in a playoff spot for much of last year. What screwed us over was an uninspired team because we grew out of the MacT era. So I definitely we can make a run for a playoff spot this year!

Patrick O'Sullivan; keep an eye on him, he's quickly becoming one of my favorites.

Edmonton Oilers 2009-2010 Season [Predictions]

I've been wanting to do this for a few days, but I needed to wait for the right time. Loser time again! I went back to last year's predictions and I was way off on everything. But then again, the entire season was just a big letdown. I have never stopped watching an Oilers game by choice, but it happened last year because it was very depressing to see some uninspired players play under a coach that played the guys he was crushing on more than anyone else.

For the next few moments, I will try to recap a bit of last season to remind myself of what happened. Stayed tuned for the actual predictions underneath this paragraph. If you are interested in what I think, read on. The one thing that stood out, in terms of players, was our defense. Souray reminded us of how good a player he reall is. Visnovsky, my favorite current Oiler, is fantastic; just sucks that he got injured. As for our forwards, the only thing I really feel the need to say is that, although his production went down, you can really see Gagner start to grow into a much better - Hemsky-like - player. I'm very excited to see what he and Cogliano will accomplish this year.

Last year's prediction: 45-30-7 [97 points]
Last year's actual: 38-35-9 [85 points] WAY off LOL
This year's prediction: 42-32-10 [94 points]

With the addition of Comrie back into the lineup, it really messed up how I think the line combinations can end up. So my point predictions will be based on how I would like to see our lines, and hopefully the way Quinn sees as well. There are many combinations that I would like to see, but since we might ice three scoring lines with the players we have, this is my safest and most logical guess.

Line 1: Penner - Horcoff - Hemsky
-Horcoff is our best suited first line center because I don't think Gagner is ready
-Penner, yes, it's Penner, but if he's motivated, he can really open up space for Hemsky to go

Line 2: O'Sullivan - Gagner - Cogliano
-O'Sullivan has the best all-around game, so he can shoot Gagner's passes and be the defensive mind
-Cogliano's speed can help him gun up the right side, and he sucks at faceoffs

Line 3: Nilsson - Comrie - Pisani
-Nilsson, when he wants, is incredible, so he plays Hemsky's role
-Comrie is pretty much Horcoff, with worse faceoff abilities, but just shooting Nilsson's pucks
-Pisani is our best defensive forward, he can have a multi-purpose

Line 4: Moreau - Brule - (Filler)
-Fourth lines are always hard to predict because they change a lot
-Moreau is a lock, and I'd like to think Brule makes the team based on management comments

Defense 1: Souray - Gilbert
Defense 2: Grebeshkov - Visnovsky
Defense 3: Smid/Strudwick - Staios
-Basically the same as last year.. Our defense is stud

Here come my bold predictions. Remember, the stats assume the players each play 84 games. The new NHL schedule is an 84 game season.

Name: Goals - Assists - Points
Ales Hemsky: 24 - 61 - 85 [He can do it if he's healthy]
Sam Gagner: 15 - 42 - 57 [He's going to be a huge playmaker on that line]
Lubomir Visnovksy: 13 - 42 - 55 [He was our best defenseman when he went down]
Shawn Horcoff: 19 - 35 - 54 [Defensive role will diminish offense]
Sheldon Souray: 19 - 35 - 54 [Lubo being healthy means not as many goals]
Patrick O'Sullivan: 20 - 33 - 53 [Most versatile player on the team]
Tom Gilbert: 11 - 42 - 53 [Played most of the year with a bad back, 50 is possible]
Dustin Penner: 26 - 22 - 48 [He's going to have a big year]
Andrew Cogliano: 22 - 26 - 48 [He wants 30 goals, scored 18 on third line]
Mike Comrie: 17 - 29 - 46 [Not sure what to expect with injury last year]
Robert Nilsson: 10 - 34 - 44 [I think his time with the Oilers is over]
Denis Grebeshkov: 6 - 31 - 37 [He really bloomed, but Lubo is healthy again]
Fernando Pisani: 14 - 22 - 36 [He has a shot. Defense more important though]
Ethan Moreau: 11 - 18 - 29 [Our leader's on-ice role is going]
Gilbert Brule: 7 - 15 - 22 [He's very dynamic as well]
Steve Staios: 5 - 9 - 14 [Steady Steve, what can I say]
Ladislav Smid: 1 - 10 - 11 [He'll finally score a goal, lol]
Zack Stortini: 3 - 6 - 9 [Zack attack!]
*No predictions for other players, because they won't do much anyway.

Goals total: 243 - with this roster. A 9 goal increase from last year, VERY doable. In fact, if we don't score more, I'd be pretty sad.

Okay, well, with our new coaching staff, I do believe some players will be able to have a much better season. There were some players that I predicted last year that actually came incredibly close to their actual achievement (ie. Gilbert actually got 45 points). I also underpredicted some players because I don't want my expectations to be too high.

Training camp starts tomorrow! I'm so excited (=

o9.o9.o9

I'm really not too sure what's going on at the moment. I just remembered that today is September 9, 2009, so I thought I really needed to make a post today, for the heck of it. So, umm, what do you want to talk about?

OH! The craziest thing. I don't know what's wrong with me, a midlife crisis or whatever, but I am beginning to have a whole ton of childhood-ish memories flood back into my nonfunctional brain. Maybe it's just to fill the empty void that is what I call my command center.

So, Twisted Metal 4 came in the mail last night, and the moment I looked at the case, years of memories came back. I remember sleepovers at the cousin's house. I remember we would purposely set up our beds in the living room with the TV so we can play all night long. Talk about good times. I played a bit and this game is pretty darn hard. I suck at it pretty badly, but I will try to beat it eventually.

I also don't like it when I think of something really awesome, then forget what it was a little while later. And speaking on that topic, I am inspired to write something. This something is not just anything. I'm going to attempted to write another song. I hope that it can be a song that's good enough for me to record, unlike the first one. But since I am an awful lyricist, it might take some time.

The Oilers will start training camp this Saturday, and man am I stoked. There are so many question marks going into this year, but I just want the season to begin. It seems all I'm doing with my sad days at home is read hockey articles and wait for it to begin. Oh yeah, I will write a post about my season predictions in a few days; hopefully it becomes an annual thing, and my predictions this year will be better than last year.

Happy 09/09/09, make a wish!

Bum 101: A Guide For Dummies

So, as I sit in front of the computer pondering options for what I can do today, I was thinking about school, and that if I was not to take this semester off completely, I'd be starting today with everyone else. But, in an attempt to try to lighten things up a little bit, for myself and anyone dreading school, I'm going to write a guide on teaching you how to avoid school and be a bum!

Most people should be either finished their first class, or close to it. By this time, you're either really excited to see what kind of attractive people are in your next class, hoping your professor isn't a lame one that is a little too friendly, or the one I'm usually thinking about, lunch and home time.

**Disclaimer** I'm not responsible for any offenses or injuries caused by any stereotypical remarks that you may or may not read by accident or on purpose. Please do not take them seriously, as I am only failing in my attempt to be funny; so, instead, giving a little chuckle while reading through the guide would be much appreciated!

This guide, for dummies, is designed to aid you in becoming a bum in five simple steps! If you follow them closely, you'll be out of school and being a bum within a year, give or take a few parent spankings.

Step Won --
This is the all important first step that is so key to your success in becoming a bum. Since the new school year just began, it's probably easiest to start now. You must find absolute dissatisfaction with what you're doing right now. Whatever you might be studying, or doing, you must find a way to think to yourself, that "this really isn't my thing. Sure I can listen to what mom and dad say, and become whatever they want me to become, but I feel there is a greater calling from within myself to tell me that I really don't want to be cutting people open when I faint at the sight of blood." After you cast doubt into your own mind about the direction you're heading in life, you're off to a great start, because doubt is like a torpedo: it waits for the perfect time, and it explodes on everything you are and can even put you into slight depression.

I called this "step won", simply because once you've accomplished this step, you've pretty much won already. Becoming a bum is now that much easier.

For reference's sake, let me give you an example on how "step won" may come to be -- It's September, and you're starting your first year of university. Why? Just because you've finished high school and it seems to be what the cool kids are doing. When you applied for university, you had absolutely no idea what you wanted to have accomplished when you came out of it, so going with the most logical thing that relates to your passion, let's say music, makes the most sense. After two weeks of school, you suddenly realize to yourself on the way home: I really don't want to be here, what the heck am I doing? Music isn't your thing. Well, it's your passion, but it isn't the RIGHT thing. Congrats! You've accomplished the first step, give yourself a pat on the back.

Step Two --
Now that you've convinced yourself that you don't like what you're doing and want to pursue other paths, a lot of what comes next just falls into place. Since school has just started when you began your trek to becoming a bum, you have some time and flexibility to doing this next step. Depending on where you are now in the school year, you've got to find a way to cover for yourself. What does that mean? In one simple phrase, it is this: slowly drop out of school. You don't like what you're doing, so why bother staying in all the classes that you're barely passing? *Exception* the only exception for not dropping out is if you have passed the drop out deadline date, meaning you don't get your damn money back if you withdraw from the class. Now, you have to be careful here, you don't want to drop everything at once, or else people will be onto you faster than you can drop the Niagra Falls when you've eaten some moldy sandwich for lunch. You have to make dropping out very subtle. When people ask you how your classes are going, you can't come out and directly tell them you're dropping out of school class by class. You've got to beat around the bush as best you can and drop a few hints here and there telling that you are trying to drop out because you want to become a bum.

You've decided you don't want to stay in the music program, but you're not quite sure of what you want yet, so you start planning for your early dismissal of this prison they call university. Skipping classes and using the excuse of playing games is a good way to start. However, it doesn't quite do what you want it to do, so you decide to stretch it out a bit and withdraw from your Psych 105 class. That class is boring as hell anyway, so may as well save you some torcher from having to listen to some Australian dude with a Chinese name that thinks he's "da bomb". So, to put emphasis on and abuse of the term "dropping out of school", you decide that you will not return to your old and stinky university the next semester.

Step Three --
This is the most important step in becoming a temporary, or forever, bum. I may have mentioned that "step won" is the most important, but I lied. And since you've made it this far in reading my awesome guide, you deserve to know that. This step is also optional, by the way. To avoid making yourself look like some idiot loser that just wants to drop school, you need to find the real plan right about now. Remember in "step won", how you thought to yourself that there is some greater calling for you instead of the crappy program you're doing? Well, now is the time for you to shine. You need to pretty much separate yourself from almost all of mankind and society to try to rip out your heart and ask it some questions about where you want to go and who you want to be. Yeah, that's right, this is where it gets deep. If you can't handle the pressure and being on the ocean floor, I totally understand why you chose to skip this step. However, it is all vital that this step is completed with flying colors so that you don't embarrass yourself and dig yourself into a craphole when you've officially become a bum and asked why you've become one.

Music didn't work out. Your heart has been screaming at you for about half year to go to Bible college and become a pastor. But since the soundwaves don't travel too well inside your body, those screams from your heart have pretty much turned to whispers. So, with confirmation from other fellow parasites*, you've finally found your one true path. It's not the prettiest sight to see for an eighteen year old kid, but it's been decided that this is where life wants to take you.

*Refer to Agent Smith, top agent in the Matrix series, and his view on what humans really are.

Step four on the floor --
Have you ever tried to sell something? No? Well, now's your chance. In order to sell something, you're going to want to make people buy it. In order for people to want to buy it, you have to sell it good. Now that you have your destination, you'll need a declaration, a proclamation, to tell people why it is that you want to do what you want to do. You need to informally compose a non-fictional story that allows you to sell your position. I know, for a fact, that throughout some point in your school life, you've tried to be a businessman or woman. Do you remember, back in elementary, when you tried to rip your friend off by "selling" some cheap ripoff that you have by trading it for something that is "lower" value that they possess? Yeah, that's right, I'm talking about fake Pokemon cards. Once you've marketed up your proposition, you will be well on your way to your destination of being a successful bum, because people now know where you're going and why you would become a bum, if you do succeed.

You've decided you want to become a pastor. Generally, your parents are the first people you tell about this evil scheme that you have of becoming a pastor. Let me warn you now, the parents are not ones that you should try to sell your fake Pokemon cards to. Your parents deserve the 100% legit story to why you want to become a pastor. But aside from your parents, feel free to tell, or not tell, anyone else information about your hopes and dreams. You decide to tell anyone who asks about your future, because they care enough about you to wonder. Okay, that seems fair game for now.

Step Five --
Uh oh. Hey Nate Dawg, I've decided, I think your guide is awesomely awesome, but I don't really want to be a bum anymore. I tell you this: hey man, don't worry about it. You can still carry on without having to be a bum, because this last step is really the only step you needed to accomplish to become a bum. If you no longer desire to be a bum, just skip out on this last step and continue to live high. You've decided that it is a good time to work right now, because summer is four months long for university and two months long for grade school, so it's generally what people do within this time frame. There will always be those who choose not to work when given the opportunity; those people, I must say, are almost natural bums! Bums of the world, unite! However, just because working is not in the hizzle during the summer, doesn't make you a bum. When September rolls around again, people will start crowding the market place and begin purchases of overly priced school supplies because they weren't Asian enough to plan ahead of time and by more of what you needed when the REAL deals were there six years ago. So, in all this madness, all you've got to do is keep cool, sit back, and relax a - just a little bit.

School has now begun, and you're sitting at home with no job because you decided to follow this incredible guide to being a bum. Congratulations! You've officially become a bum! You now have options to what kind of level of a bum you want to be. Of course, you can attempt to get a part time job, because bumming at home sucks: this is the lowest level of a bum. You can volunteer and get a part time job! If you want to be a superbum, go buy yourself a PlayStation and all the Final Fantasy games and Twisted Metal 4, and play your heart out. I am a man of inspiration, I love the whole concept of inspiring. So, my favorite option is that you can sit in front of the computer on the morning when everyone goes back to school, and write a guide to becoming a bum. And then, you can go play your Twisted Metal 4.

Throughout the extended four months of university summer, you've been told time and time again to get a job. Not for the lack of trying, you haven't been able to find one. One reason is that it's really hard to find a job nowadays, so that's been a pretty big setback. You're now sitting in front of a computer on the first day of school writing a guide to becoming a bum that was fueled by inspiration. You're broke, you have no money to move to Calgary to attend Bible college, and you lack life experience. So, the best plan is to become a lowleveled bum. However, life doesn't always give you lemonade for the lemons you order, so finding a full-time job has been difficult, thus bumping you up to a superbum. But nonetheless, your goal of becoming a bum has been reached, so you will continue to carry on and chase pavements. Bible college is still a year away, so there is still time to downgrade into becoming a lowleveled bum.

And that's a wrap to my guide to becoming a bum in five simple steps. I hope I've provided a little bit of entertainment for anyone that isn't so fond of going back to school. In case you haven't noticed, you now know how my first year and summer of university went, and what my plans are for the future.

This guide was completed in: one hour, nineteen minutes.

New

About this time every year, people are scrambling around and being skeptic about a new school year. In Edmonton, there is one day of summer holidays left and then it begins a new year for the edumacation.

It's completely different for me this time around, because I'm not going back to school. To add on top of that, I haven't found a job yet. So while everyone is trying to get things together, organizing supplies and such, I'm sitting here at home with next to no life. This time around, I have the leisure to be able to not be caught up with being nervous about school, but rather be calm and relaxed at home. It is a bit tough to accept that I won't get to see some friends as often anymore. I know what it's like to be disconnected for a period of time, and it's not a pretty sight to see.

In reality, though, it sucks. Not being able to find a job has been one of the hardest things for me to deal with in the last few months. It is a feeling that I can't really describe. I know I need a job, and some of the motivation and effort to find one is there, but the fact that it's so hard to find jobs now and my lack of qualifications just makes it that much harder. I try not to let it get in my way of affecting the way I behave, but to tell you the truth, it's starting to eat me alive. Okay, I'm exaggerating a bit, but it's the fear of not having a job and being a bum at home all day that keeps me up. I've had plenty of time to waste, but I can't seem to get myself to finding employment. I will give myself another week or so, to see if anyone calls from the places I applied last week, then I will probably revert to working at places I don't really want to work.

So this is what's new for me. Not going to school for the first time in my life. I can tell people that I've dropped out of school, haha. Pretty much everyday, now, is a new learning experience for me.

Anyways, I wish everyone a great start to their school year. A lot of people deserve great things, so hopefully this next year will bring nothing but greatness.

Don't lose hold of who you are.

Fall Into August

It seems that August is a bit of a slow month for blogging; most of the blogs that I follow and read have averaged less than two posts this month, which I find slightly strange. So, hopefully I bring a little bit of a light and pathway to open up for a few more entries before this month is over.

I'm not sure what to begin with, maybe just a few highlights. August has been a rather interesting month. Kids Camp was something I really looked forward to this year. The formerly known as VBS, now Kids Camp (to make it seem less like 'school'), was taking a whole new turn this year because our lovely Ps. Jen can definitely see greater things with our children in the church. The week of camp ended up to be a lot of fun. I got to play some type of a hill-billy character named Skeeter for the week, and although I don't do accents, I hope the kids enjoyed my spontaneous and random creativity during the skits. The highlight of the week, though, has got to be when we went to St. Albert for our afternoon field trip for bowling. I kind of hoped that we were to do 10 pin bowling, but seeing as most of the kids probably will have trouble lifting the balls (because I do), it was only reasonable that we did 5 pin. I am most definitely proud of making two strikes in a row, before I went downhill, so it demonstrated that my first one was not a fluke. Overall, it was right up there as one of my favorite weeks of this summer.

As I've mentioned that this year happened to be weddings bonanza, I got to witness a cousin's wedding this past weekend. It was pretty sweet, especially since people have been bugging them to get married for a few years, to be able to witness someone close to my family get married, and that it was the last one for me this year. And for a change, instead of my family going down to Vancouver, we had our relatives come up for a few days. I don't really care if it is us that go down, or them that come up, all that really matters is the company; having the cousins up this time, though, really reminded me of the old days when everyone still lived in Edmonton. I have to admit that it was a really fun weekend, especially being able to the best soccer game I've played in a long time on Sunday.

God does a pretty good job at giving me a kick in the pants every now and then in order to keep me in the right place with my attitude. God is quite the comedian, with the way He works. Every single time something dramatic happens, I end up looking at myself at the end of the day and laugh a little bit because of how impressed I am at seeing the many different ways God can peck at me without having me see it coming. But my point in this is that, even though I know I used to be a very bratty and cocky kid, I don't get why you can't see it in yourself with the way you are right now. You're old enough to make decisions for yourself and, unless you're completely oblivious, which I think you could be, should know what you think you are is not what you really are. Everyone has a different way of expressing the same feelings, and I am a pretty straight forward guy, so I will seem like I am in your face all the time of letting you know I don't appreciate the way you are. When you do decide to come challenge me and make me reinforce my opinions, I have to be forced to shut up because anything and everything I say will just reinforce what you already see of me. And because I still care for your well-being, I'm not going to steroid up those thoughts and make them ten times bigger. I just hope you learn for yourself, sooner rather than later. Wish You Well - Thousand Foot Krutch: the song I have for you.

So fall is coming, what do you fall back on to make the transition a little more fun?

Gratitude Cafe

Well, it's Saturday night and I thought that it is about time I recollect my thoughts on what my plan is for the upcoming school semester or two. I know that it is definitely possible that a few people are also interested in what my plans are - though I'm not sure if they read my blog - and have asked me about them.

I was browsing through Jason Mraz's latest tour, which he calls the "Gratitude Cafe" tour, as well as watching some of his videos and he reminds us all that we should constantly be thankful for the earth that God has given us. Throughout the three months that I've been out of school, I've done a lot of thinking, as I've mentioned many times, and I have to continually remind myself of how blessed I am. First of all, I think my parents are the best; I could not have asked for better and more supportive parents. I know that many parents stress tradition and have maps for where they usually like their kids to go. Some parents don't like their kids taking time off school to try to find themselves, but mine have been the best about it and I am completely humbled by that fact. It seems that I can do almost anything and my parents would have my back.

On top of being thankful for my parents, I also have to remind myself that I am extremely gifted. Not only do I have a fully functional body, but I can consume almost any garbage this world throws out these days and still be the same; that is just an added bonus, if you ask me. I do believe that I am gifted musically, but I think I'm beginning to discover a gift larger my musical talent. At the beginning of my first year of university, I thought that music was my one and only, which makes it the biggest, gift that God has blessed me with. Sometimes, it takes people four or five years to find out what their passions in life are and realize that they've been in school all that time studying the wrong things. God has a timeline for everyone, and I was lucky enough to have my path set straight really early in my life. I learn really quickly, and all I can say is that it is worth my trip to the Gratitude Cafe just for this one aspect. In all my years, I thought that I was just a bratty and arrogant kid with a soft spot in my heart for everything; I have to thank my mom for this quality. I know that I can still be a jerk at times, but I think that just comes with my maturity level - I am still quite a child still, you know. But along with being a softy, I have a huge desire to relate to people. With these two things that I have, I am generally really sensitive to how people are and how they are feeling; I feed off of this "energy" and it affects the way I am. I don't believe I've told anyone about this possession that I have, so if you some how come across my blog and read it all, you've just learned one of my biggest secrets and qualities to who I am and why I'm the person I've become.

So, what can you get out of all of this? There are a few things, actually. If you've skipped over most of this blog, I think it's worth reading this part. First and foremost, I think it's crucial for people to long breaks, vacations, whatever you want to call it, and just enjoy life as it is. When I say long breaks, something like my three months of doing absolutely nothing is a good start; of course, this doesn't really apply to everyone because of employment and stuff. Life is meant to be enjoyed; therefore, you should enjoy it. Second, with the break that I've been taking and discovering of who I am, it has allowed me to really solidify why Bible college is the path that God has for me. The details of my self-adventure are too much to put in this one entry, so I think I'll leave little hints here and there. Third, dealing with my future, I find it funny how when I look back to when I was younger, people always asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up (who hasn't been asked this a billion times?). I always said I wanted to do something that's like what my dad does (duh, again). But now that I'm eighteen and a half years old, I've realized that what I hope to be doing will be incredibly similar to what my dad does. My dad was an Occupational Therapist before he took on the managing role. An occupational therapist and a pastor do similar work even though it's in different fields of study. Both jobs require you to relate to people to try to help them live life. Isn't that just the coolest?

And the last thing, is that there isn't very much in life that is worth worrying about. Here's an exellent little excerpt I found of Jason Mraz talking about the topic.

I often ask myself: Am I doing enough? What contributions have I made today? If my list is short I will get out of bed and start typing something - often a letter or a journal entry, as if my own journal will someday amount to something (which it usually does, allowing me sort out the garbage from the recycling in my head.) Otherwise, I waste little energy on worry. What’s there to be anxious about? Missing a flight or not making a phone payment can be an inconvenience, just as someone you know getting sick or even dying can be very unfortunate. But Worry is what happens when you take those misfortunes on and think you have control over them. You tell yourself that you are responsible in some way for these situations. Or worse, you’ve decided if the outcome isn’t pleasant, there could be even more trouble for yourself and others.

Worry is a story you tell yourself and nothing more. Sometimes we do it to over-express our care in a matter. Other times we’re looking for sympathy. We’ll even go so far as to tell all about our worries in hopes that someone else will share the responsibility with us. There are plenty of reasons we create for Worry to creep its little head in.

But the real fact is, you are responsible for nothing to begin with.

Let’s say you send some love to someone, but they don’t reciprocate the way you expected. That’s nothing to worry about. It doesn’t mean they don’t love you. Besides, if they don’t, why worry about that? If that mattered, you’d be creating that as a condition for having love in your life. Unconditional love is what we practiced when we came into this world in the first place – so it’s best we get back to being that.

/endsuperlongpost

Memory

After the month of July and the adventures I went on, I learned that life is just basically a lot of memories stacked on top of each other.

Everything you do in life just adds onto your memory and it keeps on going. When you experience something, you remember it; when you learn something, you remember it; basically, whenever you gain something, it's stored into your brain or your body, and that is another thing that turns into memory. There are different kinds of learning - all resulting in some sort of memory - because, after all, the meaning of learning is to remember something and have the ability to recall it when needed.

It's pretty cool how when I revisit a location or a situation similar to one I've experienced before, instantaneously, my brain would throw a whole bunch of information back to the front of my brain caused by different memory hooks. I can remember things that I never even thought I remembered, but suddenly resurface and it wakes my senses up.

I was lying in my bed, one night, while in Oregon, and it basically occurred to me, this: you are who you are because of the memories you carry with you. Since time only goes one direction, and at a constant rate, what you make out of your time is what you become. Every experience you gain, everything you learn gets stored into your body and that's that. You can't go back in time to encounter moments in your life so what you remember is what apparently "happened". However you chose to record your memory at the time you experienced an event will be how it affects you in the future.

Anyways, I had a real fun month of July. I have a hard time believing that it's August already. I'm real excited for Kids' Camp at church, which starts next week. Actually, I have to say that I'm really looking forward to the bowling fieldtrip. I'm so ready to kick some of the kids' butts at bowling; okay, I suck at bowling, but no one needs to know that. One of the reasons why I love working with kids so much is because you get to mess with their mind, and they'll almost believe anything you say. Yeah, I know that's mean but no one gets hurt and all the kids get to know who I really am in the end. Making it seem like you're mysterious to them makes them want to know your more, and that is great to have. Once you can build your relationships, then you've got a good thing going.

Grow Up

This letter is written to whoever it concerns. It is mainly for you, who so believe that you're the king of the universe, and God's most valued creation; however, it may also be something of mere insight for others.

Will you ever realize that the world doesn't revolve around you? For starters, in our solar system, the earth revolves around the sun. All source of life on earth is possible because God created the lovely sun for us to have. You? Well, you're just like me; you're no more than one out of the six billion of our kind. The way you handle yourself, and how highly you think of yourself just amazes me at who you believe you are. Call me selfish or arrogant, but when I seem like I don't give a crap about the way you are, it's probably because I've come close to losing all my patience having to deal with you and your beloved attitude. When it seems like a lot of situations make you seem like you're the bad guy, you really have to look at yourself and wonder why that is. Of course, you obviously think that even though people are looking at you with the stink eye, you defend your sappy ego 'til the very end, with pointless and irrelevant excuses, as if nothing is your fault and people just like to pick on you for no reason.

You talk as if you're all-knowing, as if you've seen the world from every corner, but yet you're not even old enough to say you've experienced a fraction of what life is all about. If you love to be the smartass around here, I have no problem with that; after all, somebody's gotta do it. But if you want to live your life with that title, I wouldn't want to be around you, say, thirty years from now. Just let me say that if you think you can use your "all-powerful and all-knowing" abilities to dictate the way people around you behave, you're asking for people to point their fingers at you when something comes back to you. You're responsible for the words you put into the ears of other people. If one day you come out and randomly complain to me that everyone seems like they're grumpy and pissed off all the time, uh, I'd check to see why. News flash: it's probably because of you, dufus! Since you know all, you've probably heard that joke that says, "when you claim that everyone is weird, it's actually you that is weird and everyone else is 'normal' - whatever normal is".

Well, it's time for you to look at yourself in the mirror. "Who the heck are you?" should be the first question that you ask your reflection. Then, once you've finally realized who you are, please ask yourself who you are to this world and the reason why you're alive. I really hope that you can, soon enough, take part of a short term missions trip so life can slap you in the face and tell you that you're not all that you think you are. God is in control, not you. Other than that, there is not much else that I need to tell you. And would it kill you to at least try and show some respect to people other than yourself?

You would honestly be a very wonderful person if you went about yourself the right way; you've got it all, enough to live life very large, just an attitude adjustment is needed.

Sincerely,

Nathan

From Me to You

Okay, so I had absolutely no idea what to title this blog entry, but it sure does feel great to sleep in again. I am really enjoying this fitness challenge that I am trying to take up; even though I'm barely making through the sets, it makes me feel like I'm not completely wasting my time. Today, I started the first day of week two for my push ups and week four for my squats. I have no problem with my squats; I would start my workout with push ups - which make me feel bad about my fitness level - and then cap off the brief physical activity with squats, so I can feel better. Since I completely forgot to do my sit ups last week, I'll start them this week. I really hope that I can find three days for each of the challenges in the next few weeks, because I'll be forced to do them in Vancouver, and it would be awkward for me to randomly be doing my push up fail.

This past Saturday, I said goodbye to some relatives that visited from New Jersey. I must say that I have had a really fun week catching up with them. I met my little three year old cousin for the first time, and she is the cutest thing ever - although she did smoke me in the face a few times causing my spectacles to deform a bit. I must say that the environment you live in affects your character so much. I am not blaming my relatives as people, but by looking at the way they are, to some extent, you can see what life in America is like. I hope that they enjoyed their time here in Edmonton and Banff, because coming from the New Jersey area, there really isn't very much they haven't seen before.

Also, in other news about this past Saturday night, there was a crazy storm that hit Edmonton. I'm sure many people, all over the world, know about it since it's been appearing on the news and on youtube. I must comment about this particular storm and what I saw from it. First of all, based on the reactions I've been hearing, I know for sure that it must have been scary if you were outside, whether at Capital Ex or Taste of Edmonton or whatever, and experiencing the storm first hand. It got so bad that my dad, while on his way home from a wedding banquet, phoned me to turn off all the electronics in the house. As I was in my lair for most of the day, I was quite oblivious to how violent and dangerous the storm had become. However, from the window of my house, I looked out and was absolutely fascinated by what was going on. I will admit that you might have seen me smiling just a bit from watching all the lightning and hail and stuff. Living in Edmonton, we normally don't experience very many of these magnificant works of nature, which may be why I was smiling. It felt as if I was in the eye of the storm as I looked around at all the clouds and lightning. There was a weird feeling in me that made me feel as if I was at peace while all the chaos was going on outside.

So, that's basically what I got from the storm. I didn't really realize the kind of damage it did until I went out the next day. Driving from my house to Londonderry takes about two minutes; and in that two minutes, I saw so many trees split in half and all these things blown to pieces. Afterward, I definitely wished that I had been a part of the storm to experience all the craziness that was going on. Okay, I know that sounds crazy, but I don't know, I'm weird that way. I'm normally not very fond of storms either, haha.

I wish the new hockey season started tomorrow.

**Reminder to do day 1 of sit-ups tomorrow**

Challenge

Starting tomorrow, like many other people at another point in time, I will begin my attempt at the one hundred push ups challenge, the two hundred sit-ups challenge, and the two hundred squats challenge. I must admit that doing all three within the same six weeks is a bit bizarre. But in reality, it's more of only two challenges. Because I run and play soccer, my leg muscles are still pretty well off as I did fifty squats quite easily during the initial test; fifty consecutive squats, according to the challenge, is pretty good, so I will do this just to build a bit more endurance in my legs and lower back.

However, my initial tests for push ups and sit-ups were so bad that I don't think I will post them up here. Haha. But in the end, I will try my luck with these challenges and maybe I'll update once or twice in the middle of the challenge just to see how my body is reacting to this thing.

If you might be interested in these challenges, here's a couple sites you can visit:

www.onehundredpushups.com
www.twohundredsitups.com
www.twohundredsquats.com

Give it a go! Everyone should be doing this if you ask me, because the average fitness level nowadays is pretty nasty.

Soccer Camp

Today was the last day of our one-week-soccer-camp. I must say that I enjoyed the experience very thoroughly. It's not very often that I get to do two things that I love at the same time. It was lots of fun and quite refreshing on some spiritual terms as well.

I love being able to work with kids and to see the smiles on their faces everyday. I really think that that is the only reason that I never really felt tired throughout the week - until now. I find it really odd that motivation and inspiration can fuel your energy far better than sleep can. Not to say that sleeping doesn't energize me, because I love to sleep; but I do believe that it's really cool how you can wake up everyday thinking about what you're going to do and encounter, and allowing that to light the fire underneath you to make you go.

One thing that is really cool that I was reminded about, this week, was that what we see and what we do expand far beyond just the borders of our own individual lives. I live my life, but I know that someone, somewhere is also experiencing the same awesome things that I am and that everything links back to my big G.

Well, I'm feeling great right now: physically and mentally. I was shocked at how much I made the kids run during the "fun run" this morning; and the fact that I was able to do it without being too tired was even more satisfying. Haha. I've definitely got to rest up because my relatives are visiting from Jersey, and they'll be landing in town tomorrow in the afternoon. After they land, we'll be having another week of high energy, high paced activities. I'm not too sure about what to expect from this yet, but I've got to look at it to be an awesome opportunity to get to know them better.

July - keep it comin', comin', comin'.

Good Start

It sure does take some cold to know the sun. That's what I was missing so much today, the sun. It really sucked that we had to stay indoors the entire day of our soccer camp; even so, it was a lot of fun and sweat.

July kick started itself to a very awesome month so far. The first couple of days was loaded with Dany Heatley drama, so following it, and free agent frenzy, kept me busy for these days. Then the weekend arrived and it was time for the ECBC floor hockey tournament; it was NEAC's first time participating, but they do it every year, so I'll still refer to it as annual. Going into this tournament for the first time, we obviously did not know what to expect out of it. However, I, for one, knew that we would be in for a tough tournament because we are all skinny little small chinese kids from a north side that is too "ghetto" to be playing hockey. I entered this tournament expecting one win, for the team, and one goal, for myself. After the first day, the predictions, or expectations, were complete. I scored a goal, and we won our first game - barely. We got our butts handed to us for the second and fourth game, and the third game was a very disappointing loss, because we really should have won. Since we're all guaranteed at least one playoff game, I thought that we might be able to win one, should we be placed into a tiebreaker match. Then bring on Sunday.

So, after watching the first day, we KNEW that if we had won the first game, we would still get our asses handed to us right after because we were facing the defending champs. In the end, we did win the first game, and to add a cherry on top, I scored a hattrick and Jeff had a shutout. However, it was short lived, because we got beat 25-2 right after. Haha, I even mentioned the score!

After a fun and satisfying hockey tournament, we changed gears - well, shoes into cleats to be specific - and prepared for soccer camp with AIA. I was really happy to be able to help assist in coaching again after I missed last year's camp due to my internship with UP. The first day of camp was a load of fun, and very tiring. Today, was also new and fun, because we had to stay indoors due to the dumb rain. So now we're all praying for sun for the rest of the week, although the forecast is calling for thunderstorms for the next couple of days. Hopefully, all goes well and we get to at least go outside for tomorrow and Thursday.

I'm feeling like I'm in much better shape now, in case anyone was wondering (= and also, looking forward to a much more eventful rest of July!