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.