.sean janelle blog.

Faults

2011-01-02T22:53:00.002-07:00

Faults. We all have them. They, by definition, are blemishes in our character. They can be acknowledged, mitigated, resolved, conquered, unnoticed, unchanged, or all of the above. I believe we (as in I) like to make excuses for them while not changing them. Sometimes they are evident to others but unnoticed by ourselves. Would we be better off knowing the faults others see in us? Do we not strive to find them within ourselves out of fear or intimidation? Should we call them out in others, whether they're acquaintances, best friends or family?

I often think I have faults that others notice that I am blinded to or I don't consciously acknowledge. I sometimes think I have faults which are mere insecurities that are not faulty. As I seek to find and destroy my faults, I want everyone to point out my faults that they might see in me. Confrontation can be a catalyst for growth. Passivity can be a catalyst for prolonged ignorance. What have I done that has hurt you? What have I done that has made you hesitant to talk to me? What have I done that has caused embarrassment or awkwardness or overbearingness or under-appreciating?

I hope that everyone can answer "nothing" to all of the questions. Sadly, I know this is not the case. I can only become a better person if I improve myself, and I ask that those things be revealed to me if necessary.

Ren Ten Ten

2010-12-31T10:09:00.019-07:00

To continue my long-lasting, 1-year tradition, I will post the 10 most memorable events from 2010 (in 2050, it might be a little harder posting 50 events, but I will surely be up to the challenge - believe me):

1. PhoSho Photography

At the beginning of 2010, as I was taking public transportation to work every day, I realized I saw a lot of interesting sights. This led to me taking pictures with my mobile phone. This led me to start a photo blog of my mobile photos. This led to PhoSho Photography (www.phoshophoto.com). Enjoy PhoSho!

2. Random Photo Adventures

I have been known to take random photo adventures for the reason of not having a reason. This is one of my photos from one of my random photo adventures. The reason I took this particular photo? No reason.

3. Walk for Autism

Having a cousin with autism doesn't mean we have to treat him differently necessarily. It means we have to be on our toes and connect with him on his level. Thatcher is one of the most creative kids I have ever met, and I wouldn't trade him for anything. Here he is showing me his ninja kick while little brother, Baylor, is showing me his speed run.

4. May Day Snowshoeing

One of the most fun, semi-spontaneous events of 2010 was going snowshoeing near Estes Park on May 1 with some friends. As it was snowing pretty intensely (with 3' snow) and it was near 60 degrees this last week in December, I am often reminded that Colorado weather is as predictable as my schedule. Huh? I digress...

5. Denver Chalk Festival

One thing I really enjoy about denver is the ubiquitous festivals that take place during the summer. One that I really enjoyed was the Denver Chalk Festival. Many artists from high schoolers to college students to professionals participates in the event every year. Also, I have to give a shout out to my friend Kate (then Ohrt) Stone who chalked up an awesome design with her coworkers.

6. Europe (part 1)

Sometime in the beginning of the year, Patrick and his partner Benjamin sent out an open invite to anyone who could visit to join them at Benjamin's parents' house in Southern France...on the Mediterranean. My parents, Aunt (and godmother) Kris, and myself spent 3 days hanging out on the water, eating amazing food, drinking amazing drink, and living the life you'd expect on a Mediterranean vacation. Benjamin's parents, Michel et Monique, were absolutely wonderful hosts.

7. Europe (part 2).

Since I didn't have the luxury of taking 3 weeks vacation, I had to journey back to Colorado by myself. I took liberty to take photos around Paris, spent the night in Monmarte, and flew back to Denver via a 24-hour layover in Montreal. It was an awesome trip all around and reaffirmed why I love European life.

7. Utah

In January last year, one of my best friends, David, moved to Denver. It has been a lot of fun hanging out with him, and we decided to take a weekend trip to Salt Lake City to visit our mutual friends, Lauren and her family. We had a fun time of hiking, seeing the Tour of Utah bike race, and exploring Utah like we do. It was great seeing Lauren for the first time since she got back from her 2-year mission in Africa, as well as her parents, sister (Robyn and Jake), and brother (Don and Jenn).

8. Seattle

During 2010, my dad got a job with Frontier Airlines. What's the point? The point we get to use the benefits of flying. As I was looking at a map at 11pm on a Friday night, I tried San Francisco to visit my friend Laura but the flights were full. San Diego? LA? Seattle? Austin? Milwaukee? Atlanta? Boston? Orlando? Seattle it was at 8am the next morning. I had a great time seeing Katie, Whitney and Danny, and my friend Seattle (Leslie, where were you?). Now I just have to strategically plan my weekend trips for 2011...Laura, 2011 is the year of the San Francisco...

9. Thanksgiving

For the second year in a row, we were able to spend Thanksgiving with Peter, Ginny, and kiddos. We had an awesome time of relaxing, eating good food, and enjoying family. The only (but not small) thing missing was having Patrick and Benjamin here. We missed them, but we were able to Skype with them in Frankfurt.

10. Aspen

Patrick and Benjamin flew out for Christmas this year, and it was great spending time with them. In true Patrick and Benjamin fashion, they wanted to spend some time in Aspen (well, also Patrick used to live there). Luckily, Peter was able to fly out for a few days with Simeon (grandma babysitting time), and we four boys grabbed our Christmas money and headed for the hills. It was a fun time of wining, dining, skiing, après-skiing, Academy Film screening and enjoying. The only (but not small) thing missing was having Ginny and Anna here. It was a great boys time though, and it was a great end to 2010.

Hope you all have a Happy New Year in 2011!

Homosexuality & Christianity - Part 3

2010-06-26T05:26:00.012-06:00

So far, I have written Part 1 and Part 2 of my posts, which have relayed my experiences with homosexuality and Christianity. Part 3 takes on a different light of sorts, but I think it is the most important part for me to share.

I just want to take time to thank everyone who has shared their encouragement, criticism, thoughts and convictions with me over the last month. I often write these pieces not knowing if I am just writing for myself (which is often a good thing in itself), but I enjoy hearing peoples' thoughts, even if they disagree with me.

I know people will be reading this and want me to give answers about theology and homosexuality; however, I don't have all of the answers on this topic. From the passages in Genesis, Leviticus, Romans, 1 Corinthians, etc., the various interpretations range from conservatives condemning homosexuality as a whole to liberals condemning forced homosexuality (e.g. rape). Conservatives would argue that there is no such thing as a dedicated, truly loving homosexual relationship; Liberals would argue that homosexuals have the same potential of a truly dedicated relationship with each other than a heterosexual relationship.

I am not gay, so I honestly cannot say I understand the lifestyle. I don't say that in a condescending "we grew up being taught homosexuality is wrong so I just don't understand" type of way, but I say that in a "it's not something that I know" type of way. I do know how I, from the outside, should act towards gay people (or anyone at that).

I maintain a belief in God and carry that faith with me wherever I go. We humans try to fit God into a box of rationalization and confinement when we necessarily cannot. I have never been in love, but from what I have seen it has similar attributes to faith in God. Love makes us do crazy things. It's irrational. It's untouchable. It's a deep feeling within ourselves that we cannot explain to others other than the rationalization of experiences. Faith in God carries the same qualities. I cannot see God. I believe I can see his traits. I cannot touch God. I believe I can feel his presence. Faith in God makes me do irrational things, but I cannot explain that outside of experiences.

I summarize it as this: we live in a finite sphere of knowledge. Although we are always expanding our sphere, it will always be finite. God lives as an infinite being. As the infinite and finite cross over, they cannot be the same. To fully connect a finite and infinite sphere is one important idea, a bond stronger than any scientific bond, a bridge more sturdy than any engineered bridge. The one facet that connects the finite sphere to the infinite sphere, even if its apparently irrational, is faith in God.

All that to say, I don't think we humans can answer everything about God, even using the Bible as a guide. How can we if God is infinite and we are finite? To admit that we (finite beings) cannot fully understand God (infinite being) releases us to share our faith in a non-arrogant, non-superior manner. I say that carefully, because I know many people think the Bible has answers for absolutely everything. The problem, in my opinion, is that we then take leaps of faith that might not be founded or logical. If we need 10 points to make an argument, and we have 8 in line, we will deduct that if we are 80% there, we have evidence for a 100% conviction, even if it's just apparent, not conclusive. I think the Bible is a complete guidebook on how we live, however. Even if it doesn’t have a Q&A on everything we deal with in modern society, the story and every aspect of it serves as a beacon for our lives. We have extremists like the one in Topeka, KS, because verses are fragmented. Let's relay the gospel and let God be the avenue for judgement, while we're the avenue for love on earth. We have no room to be judging, provoke wrath or anger

I have come to realize that homosexuality might be a moot point for so many people, because you have not had experiences of knowing someone who is gay; however, I write about homosexuality because it is part of my experience and it is something that not many people think about. From a higher view, homosexuality is my experience, but yours might be different. By experience, I mean a person that has rocked your world, gone against what you grew up believing, hurt you in some way or made you feel uncomfortable - your drug-addicted parent, your unwed pregnant sister, your atheist brother, your liberal Christian cousin. Whether or not they are in the right or wrong, how should we respond?

We humans are so quick to point out what we think is wrong with people. We often (and mostly) look at the good in ourselves and wrong in others. Whenever someone makes us feel uncomfortable or is different than us, we need to put ourselves in their shoes. How would I want someone to treat me, act towards me or love me if I were in their shoes. I understand that not everyone can relate to having a brother who is gay, but everyone can relate to being mocked, looked down upon or judged. So why do we do it to others? This may resonate with you now or this may resonate with you in 6 months, but if nothing else, I write these words for you to implore your life as to how you are treating those around you.

I admit that I am young and still learning. I don’t have answers for everything; however my words I write are my beliefs that I have searched and examined. In words I write, in words that the preacher preaches, in lessons your teachers have taught and in rhetoric your politician declares, one thing I think we should do more, something we should teach our kids to do more, and something I think is highly underrated is questioning everything and thinking through everything critically - more on that another time.

Homosexuality & Christianity - Part 2

2010-06-11T18:05:00.003-06:00

If you have not done so, please read Part 1 of my current series. If you have, let's continue.

So what happens when a guy who's grown up in a conservative, Christian home for 21 years and finally gets questioned about everything by his older brother, to which he has no answers? Then what happens when goes to a Christian school that was started, and led, by the moral majority leader and outspoken televangelist Jerry Falwell? Well I'm glad you asked, because I'm about to tell you.

First, let me rewind a bit. I made a statement in my last post that has haunted me since. I said,

"During the Summer after my freshman year of college is when I 'found out' about Patrick. Frankly, it rocked my world. It hurt. I cried. It was so different than anything I ever experienced."

Well that statement is, in fact, very true. However, it's only half of the truth. That was true from my perspective, but it doesn't take into account Patrick's perspective. One of my biggest regrets in my life is how I reacted to Patrick and how I confronted him. I don't know what got into me, and I don't ever want to know. I was livid, red in the face, saying more curse words in 30 seconds than I had ever said in my life, but it wasn’t that I said those words but that I directed those words at Patrick. Who was I, and what was I saying? You have to understand - whether or not you can understand - that Patrick was raised in the same conservative, Christian family and was making a proclamation that he felt but for which he knew he'd be scorned. It's one thing to look down on someone as I did, but it's a whole other thing to not know if you'd get be shunned, because your life was not in line with your parents' beliefs. Although this story is from my perspective, it's only fair to say that I was not the victim as I selfishly thought. I was the misunderstanding, close-minded, selfish brother of Patrick.

As I got to Liberty University, I was asked to be a Prayer Leader in our dorm (presumably because I was older than most dorm-residing residents), but that is what I did. There was a protocol of what was to be discussed, but I awkwardly led the prayer group while bypassing the protocol in order to build a relationship with the guys. I had a guy who's mom was Hindu, dad was Buddhist, and he thought Christianity was a "best of both worlds" blend of the two. It was really interesting for me to immerse myself as I was older than most of the guys, I had already been in college for 3 years, and I didn't have nearly as much energy as they did. We had social events with our "sister dorm" of which we went to dinner and church together. I remember being bored during the Wednesday night services and preferred to sleep than listen. I was thinking that I wasn't a good Christian, but the reaction of those around me was a little different than I had heard from the previous institution.

My friends and the people around me told me to not worry about it, to find a church that was better for me, to engage how I wanted to engage, not how I should be engaged according to them. At the previous school, we were forced to go to church, their campus church, Sunday morning and night and Wednesday night. Having a choice for myself opened up many options. This was the necessary ingredient for me to start questioning life on my own and seeking my answers for myself, not for anyone around me. I attended chapel 3x a week - a requirement at Liberty - of which 1 per week was led by Jerry Falwell himself.

I saw a different side of Dr. Falwell than most people saw. I quickly realized that he was not the cold-hearted, heartless tv icon that was shown on many screens around the country. He was a good ole country boy with a warm heart. He would stop his vehicle and give students rides to class. He was an ornery old man who was sarcastic and pretty funny. He actually cared about people a lot more than people gave him credit. That to say, I didn't agree with a lot of things he said either. I would have rather him be the the personal, warm-hearted guy than the flat, e-evangelist that people knew. He was not afraid to make fun of the "tree huggers" and environmentalists. Having grown up in Colorado, that rubbed me the wrong way, just to name one example.

All that to say is that Dr. Falwell was perceived differently in America than he should have been based upon what I saw. He wasn't always the most tactful person, but it was even said that he remained friends with Mel While until Dr Falwell passed away. He was not afraid to tell you what he thought, even if it wasn't what you wanted to hear. Whether or not he heard it and forgave it I don't know, but one of my biggest frustrations/annoyances/angers was when kids peers around me would use the adjective "gay" as the opposite of cool. That is extremely asinine, yet it happens so often in Christian circles. We would be so offended if "the world" started using "christian" as an adjective to describe something. Think about it. "The cop pulled me over the other day and gave me a ticket. That's SO Christian of him." It might not mean anything to anyone, but even if you disagree with someone's lifestyle, please let us not speak in an ignorant, intolerant tone. Disagree, but don't attack the person. We are ALL God's people, made in His image. Remember that. I hope that people reading this implore themselves about this. It SHOULD make us feel uncomfortable, and we SHOULD stop doing it. People think it's not that big of a deal, but I say it's not that big of a deal to stop.

During Spring Break of my senior year, my friend, David, and I visited Patrick in Los Angeles. It was quite the fun trip, but it was interesting for me too. As I met some of Patrick's friends, they, naturally asked me where I went to college. As soon as I said "Liberty Universtity" their face grimaced and they knew who was the ringleader. It was a really unique opportunity for me though, because I felt like I was in a special place. They quickly warmed up to me after they found out I wasn't judging them and that I wasn't an exact Jerry replica. They were relieved when I voiced that I knew a different side of him than tv-watching America knew of him. It was at that moment that I started to realize what was happening: I was a Liberty University student with a gay brother. While most people would think of this as an internal war, I accepted it as an opportunity. Although I had come a long way in my journey, this was only the beginning of the ongoing journey.

Although Liberty was a small ingredient in my journey to date, it was a necessary foundation for how I would become as a person. My series thus far has been my story, but part 3 of the series will mainly involve my thoughts as much as the point in the story that I currently am. Already, God started opening my mind to those around me and to not be so self focused on my journey ahead - more of my thoughts, and my final thoughts on homosexuality and Christianity in part 3 to come.

World Cup - What does it mean to you?

2010-06-09T18:13:00.004-06:00

As the World Cup is just around the corner, it brings back quite the memories to me. What does the World Cup mean to you?

By far the most memorable World Cup was the 1994 World Cup. No, I wasn't so lucky to see any of the games live as no one played in Denver. Our family was in transition, living in a small apartment before we would move into the next house. We didn't even have tv service in our livingroom. That didn't matter to me one bit.

Before the World Cup in 1994, I was kicking around a soccer ball with my cousin Brian when he told me about the Italian team. I was impressed right away and took to liking them. Soon after that, I was wearing a Roberto Baggio jersey everywhere. Even though I had a favorite player, I also had a favorite American player I loved to watch - Cobi Jones (whose dreadlocks I wish I had).

It wasn't necessarily watching either of these two players play that made the World Cup so memorable, however. I was 10 years old and had already been playing soccer for 6 years. I was jealous of Peter being able to do a "rainbow" and worked effortlessly trying to kick a "banana kick." I wasn't going to become even a decent soccer player at that pace, but two games during the 1994 World Cup changed that destiny.

Since we didn't have tv service at the time, my best friend, Brian, taped two games for me to watch. Both games took place on June 22, 1994. The first one was a 4-1 Swiss victory over Romania, and the second one was an impressive 2-1 United States victory over Colombia (one of the goals for the US was an own goal by Andres Escobar - for which he was killed 10 days later for). It wasn't that these two games were among the most impressive in World Cup history, but they were the two games I had access to watching over, and over, and over...

Anyone in my family will tell you that during the Summer (and months and years following), I watched those games at least 30 times each. I could talk along with the announcers. I knew what move, play, call was next. I knew when they would show the fans holding the flags or the coaches look of disgust. I studied every single move of each of those games in detail. That was the beginning of a new soccer journey for me.

After studying those films, I became a new soccer player. I knew how to make up for being slow, short and unnoticed. I utilized those to sneak behind the defenders and score the headers in the back of the net. I knew how to place a ball through the defenders while looking the other way. I developed a touch that would've taken me years otherwise. I still was not the fastest nor most dominant player on the field, but I became the playmaker, the guy that made the plays unnoticed by most but admired by the few. It was all because of the 1994 World Cup - the two games that changed my life forever.

I would go on to play soccer in Denmark and Sweden two years later. I joined my brother's on our high school soccer team when I was in 8th grade, Patrick 10th, and Peter 12th. During that season, our homecoming game, Peter dribbled the ball down the field, crossed it to me, and I headed it past the diving goalie for the second goal in a 2-1 victory. I never developed into a world-class soccer player, but I was far better because of the 1994 World Cup than I would have been otherwise.

That's what the World Cup means to me. What does it mean to you?

Homosexuality & Christianity - Part 1

2010-06-05T09:28:00.005-06:00

To start my posts on homosexuality & Christianity, part 1 will merely set up my experience of encountering (or lack of encountering) homosexuality while growing up in a conservative, Christian home.

This post has been a long time coming, but I wasn't going to write it until I was ready, and now I'm ready more than ever. There's a topic in a lot of circles, especially Christian circles that isn't the most talked about, but I think it needs to be discussed: homosexuality. Especially we Christians don't like to talk about it and find it uncomfortable to discuss. However, we need to talk about it, and we need to talk about it now. Enough on that - now to my experiences.

A lot of people know that one of my best friends is gay and it wasn't until my other best friend confronted me on my disdain that I really started changing my mind and heart towards gay people. Yes, my brother, Patrick, is gay and my other brother, Peter, has taught me how how to treat Patrick. This might sound odd to say as it is fairly odd, but I didn't know how to treat Patrick - do I shun him or love him at arms length at most?

It sounds odd to me now that I had to be coached and questioned on how to act towards Patrick after he came out. To step back briefly, I should unwrap this: we three boys grew up in a conservative, Christian home in a conservative, family-friendly town of Fort Collins, Colorado with amazing, loving, and incredibly selfless parents. Other than Peter's stint in elementary school, we went to the same private school (of which Patrick was the first Kindergarten class, both Peter and Patrick graduated from, and we all attended for at least 8 years), where my mom taught for many years, which was affiliated with the small, Methodist church we grew up in. We all went to private, Christian colleges. So we were all supposed to live in Colorado our whole lives, get married, have kids, and settle down forever, right? If anyone knows the Janelles, that's the least likely scenario.

During the Summer after my freshman year of college is when I "found out" about Patrick. Frankly, it rocked my world. It hurt. I cried. It was so different than anything I ever experienced. I thought Patrick was personally rejecting his family - other evidence of me being extremely selfish. I thought any remaining relationship we had was over. Luckily, that was far from being the case. Over the next 2 years, the legalistic school I was attending was good for me. I was falsely accused of an event and was kicked out. For whatever reason, I accepted it and knew it happened for a reason. The school really cleaned up my life in the sense of realizing what Christianity is not. I remember writing an essay about not conforming to the world and that that meant transforming your mind, not your wardrobe and was given a low grade. Even though I had grown up in a conservative, Christian bubble, my faithless "faith" needed to be scraped clean, and I needed to be made into the Christian man I would become - I have no doubt God was leading me where I thought He would never lead me. At the end of my tenure there, I was on a 12-day, 4000-mile roadtrip which ended with a 16-hour drive with Peter.

In the middle of nowhere (literally, in South Dakota) he started questioning everything on everything. Why? Why? Why? This rocked me. I didn't know why I believed that. I couldn't answer that question. It made me realize that everything I believed was because that's what my parents, church, and school believed. I wasn't critically thinking nor questioning anything. He then proceeded to confront me on my bitterness towards Patrick. It then hit me - having gotten kicked out of my previous school was God pointing his finger at my bitterness towards Patrick. It may seem odd from the outside, but think about it. Naturally one would be bitter towards an institution that falsely kicks you out, but I accepted it. Subsequently, I learned how to overcome bitterness in other areas of my life, including one towards one of my two best friends. It has been a journey since that day in May 2005, but it's one that I would not trade for the world, nor would I expect everyone to understand. This road trip would be the fulcrum of my journey to date, whether or not Peter fully realizes this - I don't know that he would care to know he was the main ingredient as long as he knew my life would take the turn that was more God-centered and God-directed.

The most ironic part about my journey is what was to happen the next two years following this fateful conversation with Peter. I would start questioning everything in life and question how I should treat Patrick, ask for forgiveness, and be a loving brother...all while attending Liberty University, founded by Jerry Falwell, who was probably not the closest of all Christians with the gay community. How the dichotomy of this played out is another story for another time, in part 2.

Coming up: what happens when a Christian guy has a gay brother but attends one of the most conservative, "moral-majority" schools in America. Would he be affected by spending a week with Patrick and his gay friends in Los Angeles during Spring Break of his senior year at Liberty? Will his open mind deter him from deepening his faith? Has he gone too far to the extreme and come back to the middle on the issue? Has he safely distanced himself from the gay community in order to live a good Christian life? All of these and more will be discussed in the next two posts.

A Challenge to ALL Christians...Including Myself

2010-05-23T17:32:00.007-06:00

"And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Not to beat the dead horse, but I don't think I have gotten through to everyone I've talked to about this...including myself.

What does it mean to love your neighbor as yourself? Does it mean that we Christians should do service projects to help the poor, serve soup at the homeless shelter or talk to an ailing acquaintance? Well yes but that's not full. It's not a command of convenient service; it's a command of a lifestyle. Are you loving your neighbor as yourself?

If you have ever interacted with another human being, you know how much it sucks to talk to someone when your day has been horrible. The last thing you want is for them to question your attitude or come down on you for something you might have misspoken. Who are they to get frustrated with you - they don't know what kind of day you've had. However, that's what we humans, eh Christians, do so often. We are quick to judge and point fingers when we don't know the backstory to the facade. Why do we quickly think differently about someone just because they have a different color of skin? How did you react when the waitress wasn't cordial? Did you make a cunning remark to your friend? When you walked by that guy with long black hair, mascara, and a marilyn manson t-shirt, did you look in disgust? Did you scoff at the 18-year old girl carrying a baby?

I have, and you may have done one or more of these. It sounds so elementary to say this, but we aren't loving these people as we ought. Why are we so inclined to judge people when we don't know what's going on in their lives? By that, I mean why do I do this? Sure, if asked what we should do, we will give the right answers, but rarely will we act accordingly. I am not saying that every (or any) reader is necessarily doing this, because that would be quite ironic; however, I can only challenge you (us) to maintain an attitude in accordance with this idea.

So what does it mean to love your neighbor as yourself? I'm glad you asked, because I am about to unwrap it from what I think it means. Whenever we come across someone that automatically is different from us in any way, the most important thing to not do is to not pass judgement. This takes work for most of us. We don't know if the goth guy passing us was abused, neglected or is just rebellious. We don't know why the 18 year-old girl has a kid. At that, does it matter? Second, we have to give the person the benefit of the doubt, put ourselves in their shoes, and act accordingly. I know so many people will easily read over this, think to themselves, "Yeah, I've heard this ever since Sunday School in kindergarten," but for those of you whom this resonates, let it resonate deeper.

One popular book within the Christian circles (which I know has been heard outside of Christian circles) is one speaking of the 5 love languages. For those of you who don't know what the 5 love languages are, I will explain: according to the author, Dr. Chapman, every person has at least one love language to which they respond. The 5 love languages are physical touch, words of affirmation, quality time, acts of service, and gifts. His argument is that there are so many unhappy relationships, because a lot of people's spouses are not giving their respective spouse the love language that suits him or her. In other words, a person who is most receptive to physical touch but whose spouse gives infinite gifts, which the receptive spouse couldn't care less, the gift-giving spouse is missing the point. We don't need to give the type of love we want to give, but we need to give the type of love that the recipient will be the most receptive.

There goes another one of my random tangents that has nothing to do with anything. True, except this is how it applies to loving our neighbor as ourself. I myself am one who enjoys conversation, relationship building and a good shoulder to lean on, but I can't necessarily offer those to those around me. I take the 5 love languages principle and apply it to the love-your-neighbor-as-yourself principle. While a homeless man might need food and an unwed 18-year old mother might need a place of refuge and an abused kid might need a listening ear and a kid in africa might need medical aid, we all need a different type of love. Fortunately and unfortunately the secular world often puts the Christian world to shame in this category. I am so ashamed of myself when I pass by someone who I later realize I could have talked to. I am so embarrassed when Christians make asinine, ignorant and naive comments attacking those around us or interjecting adjectives completely irrelevant to the topic - listen in most Christian circles today, and you'll know what I'm talking about.

I don't write these things out of anger at my fellow Christians. I write these out of a necessity of accountability with each other, especially myself. We are not called to give staple answers with coworkers or perform service projects biannually when it's convenient. We are called to live a lifestyle that is love. We live within our bubble and go outside of it when it's on the schedule, but I don't think we should have to go outside of the bubble. We are supposed to expand our bubble to include that which we normally would not.

If I were put in the middle of a street with young Christians yelling at gay people on opposite side of the street because the Christians are protesting gay people, I would shamefully join the side of the gay people and befriend them - shamefully only because I claim the same "title" as the yelling youth. If I must be disregarded for sympathizing with the 18-year old mom but not knowing Ephesians 1:4 off the top of my head, I will bow my head. I cannot and will not point my fingers at Christians in particular, because we know who we are. The only anger that should arise from you is when you read this and see me doing differently. Otherwise, take this as a point of reference in how I think we Christians should live and act towards those around us. If it is used to work on your heart and make you question life, that is not my doing; however, I am here to offer my discussion pertaining to this topic.

In closing, I don't say any of these things as a pointed finger away from myself. It may very well be my bad, but I think we Christians look too far down stream in Christianity when we don't adhere to the most important commandments. If the river is polluted at the source, the whole river will become polluted. I've been in Bible studies where people have complained when the study was "too shallow" which was proceeded by endless gossip about people in church. I could have angrily slammed a fist, and I very well may have, if not in my mind. I believe the foundation to a solid Christian life is outward focused - on God and our neighbor - and the inward focus should be secondary, albeit just as necessary.

Christian Sex

2010-03-30T19:48:00.003-06:00

I realize that this will make me very vulnerable, but this is my view of so-called Christian sex. I would love to hear people's opinions about Rob Asghar and mine own views, because I admit that I'm relatively young and have a lot to learn. However, in my young state, this is my view on Christian sex.

I recently came across an article from Huffington Post about "The trouble with Christian Sex." I found it quite amusing for sure, and I just had to write my commentary on it. I can't preface this fully, but you should know (as most of you do) that I grew up in a conservative, Christian home and despite the ignorantly-sounding post by this particular author (read for yourself), I don't choose my lifestyle because I think God will strike me with a bolt of lightning the first sin I commit.

Forget the fallacies authors such as Asghar commits such as attacking Christians opposed to arguing the points, but even the preface of the article was odd to me:

"Forget the tired notion that Christians are "against" sex. They're as wildly for it as anyone; that's what got Bristol into trouble. Christians simply have an idealized notion of sex and relationships, one that's increasingly divorced from the reality and the direction of the larger society."

Even at the end of this paragraph, he blames Christians for having an "idealized notion of sex and relationships" which is "increasingly divorced from the reality and direction of larger society," which is like the 3rd grader saying, "You should run across the interstate - everyone else is doing it." He does proceed to admit that he's speaking "of mainstream and conservative Christians, who struggle more nervously than others," which is all Christians but liberal Christians (a minority relatively).

1. Its rules weren't intended for modern society.

This particular argument presents a philosophical interjection that is for another time as to whether or not the Bible is contextual to today's society, but he unwraps more on-topic discussion that I will leave that particular argument for a later date.

"God or Mother Nature installed sexual plumbing that slips noisily into gear around age 13 and keeps churning noisily for decades. Yet human society has developed in ways that increasingly delay marriage till 30-something. The body and mind are hardly silly to rebel."

Thanks for telling everyone that can read that puberty occurs in all of us - I forget that there could be unknowing 9-year olds reading this. However, to his point, it's true. We have been given sexual desires - whether we're sex-wild teenagers or homemade-clothes-wearing Christians, we all desire sex. However, what Rob does not realize is that God did give us the desire for sex, but used outside of God's plan, it is not utilized the best.

Christianity is so fearful of experimentation on the part of singles that it encourages passivity instead.

This is one of the most humorous parts of his excerpt in my opinion. Not only does Christianity not encourage passivity, but rather it encourages rejecting passivity. How many times has a preacher said, "If you're feel like you're wasting your time, keep wasting your time, don't do a thing about it." Also, Christianity is not fearful of experimentation; rather, it knows the repercussions of the alternatives in experimentation. It's like telling your child don't run across the street without looking both ways and your child responding "Dad, you're so fearful of experimentation." Not to sound naive here, I do realize that not all sex outside of marriage will result in a "car-hitting" relationship, but I think it's important to realize the more sexual partners (whether it's premarital or infidelity) leads to greater risk of detriment to the person: I'll unwrap this more later.

"Given that marriage is being delayed more than ever, it's little wonder that many quality people that I knew in church have moved into middle age solo, against their will and better judgment and deepest longings. And it's little wonder that some of those who married did so with people outside the church."

This presents yet another argument that many people fail to realize (or point out). Although the morals of Christianity present abstinence as the higher moral judgement, many people (even - maybe especially within Christianity) see that as a goal one must attain to gain favor with God. We can never do 100% what we think God wants us to do which burns people out and makes them worse off than where they were intially. Abstinence is not something that, in my opinion, is a rule that God commands as an order for Christians to not have fun. Again, sex is great. Sex is even great for Christians. However, sex out of the confinement of marriage will impose emotional and physical detachments towards future partners which dilutes the plans that God has for our lives (to be elaborated upon a later point).

2. It promises more than it can deliver.

It criticizes all premarital liaisons as dangerous or at least misguided, and it pooh-poohs any possibility of even some redeeming or meaningful engagement with another human being. And it sets the marital bed up as a far greater good. This leads to the common complaint of various married Christian friends, which is that married sex isn't what it was cracked up to be. Distress over the mundaneness of it all, anger at the lack of interest on the part of a spouse, and curiosity about what else may have been out there prior to marriage may not be terribly different from what anyone else feels. But Christians' sense of disappointment is more real and palpable.

Married sex, whether in Christian or secular circles can only be as good or interesting as the couple allows. What I mean is this: if there is hesitation, lack of interest, "mundaneness" of sex, can it necessarily be pointed to the abstinence of sex and the expectations that imposes? No. Humans crave love, a feeling for being needed, emotional stability, etc. So often, we humans run to the bars or to the guy giving you attention or the girl flirting with you to find that. If we're lucky, it leads to sex; however, when we find out that that person is not who we thought but rather only a temporary fix to our craving, we become unhappy and dejected. Lack of interest is not rooted in abstinence. Lack of interest is rooted in factors such as not the right person, selfishness on either end, unnecessary expectations and lack of commitment.

3. It encourages bad faith, not integrity or maturity.

In this section, he goes on to talk about Christians who claim to have this moral compass but does everything short of sex (however defined) out of a pledge of abstinence. I couldn't agree more with him. One thing that secularism has over Christianity is an ability to easily cast off hypocrisy. Although hypocrisy is in secularism, that is one argument that I cannot stand to defend, because frankly I cannot. We Christians are hypocritical to some degree and cannot claim otherwise. We can, however, know what we believe, live out those beliefs, and admit that we fail at times. To this point: I've gone to a private school my whole life ranging from sheltered elementary to legalistically-thinking to more-open-albeit-still-far-right schools. I have had so many friends that justify going 99 yards on a 100 yard field of sexual exploitations with the justification that crossing the line is the only thing that matters. We are missing the point! We are not to abstain from sex as a conduct of not crossing the line. Sex is not a tennis ball of physical attraction only but an onion with layers. Everything leading up to sex, sex itself, and any other classification of physical attachment is fun. There's no question about it. In fact, that's the argument that Rob can bring to the table. We can't deny that, but fun is not always the best in life (even though it is the most fun).

There is also the issue of premature marriage. Go back to the huge gap between puberty and marriage that arises due to social changes that extend adolescence longer than ever before. Combine this with Paul's admonitions that "it is better to marry than to burn," and far too many devout Christian singles end up getting married before they are emotionally mature. They want the sex now, and marriage is the only way they can get it in a way that they think God can bless. So they marry just after graduation from their Christian college, well before they know what they want in a relationship or can bring to it. This is bad faith, and it is thus small wonder that the divorce rate for Christians is roughly the same as for those who don't live by the Bible's demanding standards.

This is right on! I have met many healthy marriages right out of high school or college (in both Christian and secular camps) that are in fact healthy; however, many people just want to get beyond that stage of waiting and they want to have sex. If we can't have sex now because we're not supposed to, we'll get married and have sex. I'm not advocating sex before marriage, but I would say that there are many marriages in this world that include premarital sex that are far healthier than many that have waited until marriage to have sex. Sex is not the fulcrum of relationships! Wait, what? There's more to marriage than sex? You mean my wife won't have sex with me all the time, and she'll actually make me do some stuff around the house to help her? If I do it, then can we have sex? Sorry dudes, but that's how we think, and it leads to a lot of messy relationships. One thing that people cannot wrap their minds around is that healthy relationships breed great sex, not the opposite. Sex is a foundation of marriage, but it shouldn't be the preface to the marriage.

So how should we who abstain from sex view those who don't? Well, I'll give my own opinion for what it's worth. I don't look at people who have sexual relationships as necessarily bad people. No, they are just giving into the desires/temptations that they have inside them. Am I to say that I'm not tempted and don't give into temptations ever? That would be the most asinine thing I've said in awhile. So why should I point my finger at them? I do think that it is somewhat selfish for people to give a piece of themselves to people and not save themselves for their spouse. Again, I am a very selfish person, so I cannot point fingers as to being a better person. Should I only marry a girl who's never had sex or even more doesn't have kids because that's baggage? Although I see my abstinence, virginity or whatever you want to call it as a gift to my future wife, I'm not going to expect the same thing from her. I bring so many things to the table - good and bad - that I cannot complain about anything. Given, I'm not going to run out the door and marry the first girl I see. The only way I can put it with the girl I will marry no matter what her past is, if I know she's the girl for me:

I'd rather marry a girl with a pure heart and a crappy past than a girl with a crappy heart and a pure past.

Old School Denver

2010-03-29T22:24:00.008-06:00

I decided to take some pictures around Denver; however, when I got out and about I lost my creative juices. Here's what I came up with even though I'm not the most thrilled with the pictures.

The end.

LAxploring

2010-03-13T08:14:00.004-07:00

I can't believe it was exactly 3 years ago since my friend David and I were "xploring" LA. It was quite the memorable trip with an awesome video that resulted from our adventures. A lot of things have changed since then, but our friendship and quirks have not. If you take time to watch this video, you'll be delightfully surprised. Enjoy!

Anti Valentine's Day

2010-02-15T18:00:00.007-07:00

Yesterday was Valentine's Day (or Vday as I affectionally call it - for no other war-punned inferences or reason than it naturally makes sense), and beyond the Hallmark-hyped event, it is centered around Love. No, I'm not anti Valentine's Day, despite my historical anti-climactic happenings on Feb 14. Other than a few naive and youthful experiences, I'd never really had part in Valentine's Day. Rather, I only enjoy knowing when it is every year, because my birthday (and my dad's birthday) always follows exactly two weeks later. So, to my anti-Valentine's Day (which will be better framed as "What Love is Not").

Love does not buy gifts or perform acts of service out of obligation.

Love does not make itself known just to be heard.

Love does not beg a reciprocated response to be fulfilled.

Love does not often show its face explicitly, but rather remains hidden but felt.

Love is not a matter of words but a matter of expression, whether spoken words are attached or not.

Love is not the most pure in its loudest form.

Love is not rational but is pure in its complexities.

Love is not a shoulder to be cried upon for self attainment.

Love is not just affection in the most happy of times but is also a hand held in the worst of times.

Love is not apologizing for apologetic sake but love is correcting without being asked.

Love is not a perfect Van Gogh painting but the perfection of colors and shapes seen in the mountain skies.

Love is not pink and red and white but love is green and red, blue and orange, yellow and violet.

Love is not what is received but what is given.

Love is not a reflection from ourselves but a redirection from God.

Love is not just a dozen roses but a clean kitchen or folded laundry.

Love does not impose what it wants but requests how it should be expressed without asking.

Love is not just a walk on the beach but often just an improv walk under falling snow and streetlights.

Love is not self-reflecting but others impacting.

Love is not what is always said but often what is not said.

Love does not worry about comfort if someone else is lifted up.

Love does not lay low in a crowd but stands tall for the benefit of the recipient.

Love is not finite but is as infinite as one lets.

Love is not held on by one but is always shared with two.

Love is not a completion but a sum greater than the whole.

Love is not one of the greatest qualities of life, but love is THE most important attribute in all of life.

Some would say I'm so anti-Valentine's Day. Even though I've never known romantic love with a significant other, I've seen what love is and what love is not. For what it's worth, this is my humble opinion on what love is not.

PhoSho Photography

2010-02-06T11:51:00.004-07:00

As most people know, I enjoy taking pictures. One thing I have really enjoyed lately is taking pictures with my phone's camera with an app that gives me various settings. The granularity and old-school effects add to the style of my pictures. As a result, I have started a project, PhoSho Photography, to capture all of my pictures. Enjoy!

PhoSho Photography

What the Vanity?!

2010-01-09T14:35:00.002-07:00

Funerals aren't always the best ways to start a Saturday morning, but today that's how I started my day. Funerals are interesting, because some funerals are very sad in mourning the death of a loved one. Other funerals are happy celebrations of the life that was lived (with sober moments attached). For the record, I hope mine (whether it's next month or in 80 years) follows the latter style. I would much rather have people get together, play games, have great food and drink, and laugh together. If my picture is stuck in the corner of the room behind some plants - if it must - then there's nothing I could do about that.

Never mind my marathon tangent, although one thing that stuck out to me at the funeral today during the eulogy pertains to my tangent. The funeral was for my Godfather's dad who passed away last week at the age of 92. He lived more than a full life, and he was definitely a fighter and showed love to everyone around him. During the eulogy, a story was interjected that went something like this (I'm going to make up my own version, because I don't remember the full version - I apologize):

"There was a boy and his father walking through the mountains. The boy was in awe of the tall snow-capped peaks in the distance. He had never seen wildflowers with so many vibrant colors. There were about as many types of trees as there were number of rocks. Every once in awhile he would see creatures pop their heads out of the ground, just to grab some food and return. The sky was more blue and vast than the boy could imagine. The wind rustling through the leaves reminded the boy of his mom's whispering voice as she tucked him into bed. The spring air tasted as sweet as honey right off of the honeycomb.

As the boy and his dad were walking along the path, they came up to a nest that had fallen out of the tree that had a dead bird in it. The boy was taken off guard instantly, and he forgot about his surroundings. After a moment of pondering, the boy asked his father, "Dad, why did this bird have to die?" The father thought about how he could answer his little boy and finally responded with, "Son, all creatures, animals, and humans have to die at some point." The son still being confused and asked his father as most kids would have asked, "Why?!" The father, realizing his son would not be content with the answer given, thought about it and said, "Son, If you have something forever, then it isn't precious anymore."

How often do we live life as if we expect to have it. Whenever someone around us passes away - either after a long fight for life or a sudden cause - we are shortly reminded about the precious quality of life. Rather than being reminded of this at every memorial, I want to live my life as if it is a precious, fragile gift - which of course it is.

May I stop to talk to a person who needs me, even if I don't know them. May I smile at the cashier, even if I am having the worst day. May I give all of my energy so those around me can gain more. May I love life like I am taking my last breath. For now, I will strive to live life to the fullest (and please call me out if I don't), and when I am gone, celebrate the life you're living and the life I was able to enjoy (yes, I hope this is in 80 years!)

nine for 9

2010-01-02T09:37:00.004-07:00

I know most people do "best of" or "the ten most" of the year at the end of the year, but I've been known to be fashionably late. I decided to have a post of nine pictures that defined 2009. These aren't the best-photographed, the most life-altering (necessarily), or the nine pictures that I'll (necessarily) have framed in 20 years, but here are nine pictures from 2009.

1. For christmas 2008, patrick got me a homebrew kit, and this is me making my first batch of homebrew.

2. In a lifetime journey of wanting to go to all 50 states, I went to North Dakota with my friend, Audra, and crossed off #49. So, this is North Dakota.

3. In moving in with some friends from church, the friend list grew exponentially and in the best way possible. One thing we do regularly, which I love, is themed house parties. Here is one of our parties, a Quincinera-themed party.

4. Through connections from my roommate, I was able to meet Andrea Hamilton, an amazing writer/singer out of Los Angeles. No matter where she is touring around the world, her music has been truly inspirational to me in 2009.

5. Probably the most defining part of 2009 was volunteering on a medical mission trip to Malawi. This picture was taken of one of the orphans. I am thankful that the picture worked out as well as it did. I will probably have this picture framed at some point.

6. Anyone that knows anything about me knows I love games (any kind possible - except scrabble) and I am very competitive with all of them. During the summer, I played lawn games as much as possible. Although I'm trying to get better at Washers, I have a 25ish-game win streak at a game called Polish Horseshoes with my roommate Tim, and I have a 30ish-game win streak at a game called Cornhole with my roommate Josh. Yes. I love the games.

7. My 2-year old niece is getting bigger and more beautiful every time I see here. She is an awesome girl, and I can't wait to see her continue to grow. Peter and Ginny are doing an awesome job (as I would expect) with raising Anna.

8. The Janelle family continues to grow as Peter and Ginny welcomed their son, Simeon James Janelle, into the world in October. He is definitely a cool kid, and he is definitely lucky to have an awesome sister and amazing parents.

9. Last but not least, another addition to the Janelle family included Benjamin. Congratulations to Patrick and Benjamin. We are very lucky to incorporate Benjamin, and I have never seen Patrick more happy. On Christmas day, my parents and I met Benjamin's family via Skype (although his family is French and speaks little English, so we had translators).

2009 has been a great year for me. It has been a year of adventure and new beginnings. It has been a perfect stepping stone into 2010. I don't know what 2010 holds, but if it is half as good as 2009, it is sure to be a good one.

Next Scene

2009-12-05T11:17:00.002-07:00

As I had finished my ranting in my "Mad Mind" post, something happened in my life that I didn't necessarily foresee. You see, I was done with a certain project at work, and I had nothing to do, and I opted out of another project that everyone else wanted to do because of the travel involved. Anyone and everyone that knows me knows that I love to travel, but for some reason I didn't want to get into the minutia involved, even if it meant traveling.

I was given a boring, two-week audit that wasn't as bad as people made it out to be. I basically had to do research upon research for two weeks straight, mindlessly mind you. However, I was able to catch up on my favorite podcasts (of which I'll have to elaborate later) and after my manager wrote a well-written report and gave it to the executives, everyone praised it including our CFO who said, "It was so informative, I don't have any questions for you."

The next week, my VP and manager approached me with a new project as a "reward" for the boring audit (even though I still didn't think it was as bad as they thought) and because I had time. The new audit? The 2010 Risk Assessment for our company.

To preface, risk assessments are generally done at the manager or above level, and I am far from being a manager. What does a risk assessment mean? A risk assessment, well, assesses risks for the company. How we are doing this is we are interviewing every VP and above in our company (60 or so) and presenting the final report (my VP will) to our CEO. At first, myself, my manager, and our VP (the three on the project) were going to roughly interview between 15 and 25 each (skewed towards them having more). In the end, I will have interviewed 22 by myself and sat in about 30 more as a secondary interviewer - of the highest executives in our company.

It has been awesome and undoubtedly given by God (while no one at work would see it that way). Some of the highlights so far include meeting the EVP over Sales, Programming, and Marketing who was very friendly and down to earth (and one of two second-in-command executives). The Chief Marketing Officer stopped in mid sentence in our meeting, looked at me and said, "Nice Frames. Where'd you get them?" The EVP of Corporate Development was frustrated when we were going to be taking an hour of his day and asked if we could cut it into one. We agreed, and by the end of the meeting, an hour forty-five minutes later, he wanted to talk to us more. Being interviewed in confidence, the people are opening up to us, especially myself, more than I would have ever fathomed. Hearing the word, "risk" people close up and become defensive. Hearing us talk through why we're doing, most people become appreciative.

I have definitely learned a 360 view of our company and have gotten to know the intimacies and details of our company more than 99% of people in our company and am extremely thankful for that. I am now happy with where I'm at, and I am eager to see where I go. Who knows what it means in my life, but all I know is that I am a lot further along career wise than I was a year ago, and I only have One to thank.

Mad Mind

2009-10-31T10:40:00.002-06:00

A lot of people have told me recently that I belong in the TV show Mad Men on AMC, but I hope it's more of an appearance-driven statement than a personality-driven statement. I mean, I take it as a compliment that my attire points towards the show. I would be less-than-flattered if I were compared to the men of the show and their antics.

No, I'm not here to vainly talk about my non-Scott Schulman noticing look, but those words bring me around to the questions, "What am I doing?" Ok, that question is random, true, but it leads to a bigger question. I know I am where I am, working where I am, doing the activities that I'm doing for a reason but where is this yellow bricked road of life leading? It seems like most of my life is filled with self-contained rhetoric, but I don't see that as a bad thing, most of the time.

Auditing? Why would I be in the field in the first place? I recently defined my being an auditor as this: "I used to be the annoying little brother. Now, I'm just the annoying little coworker." Truly that's what auditing is. Whether or not my brothers consider me annoying still - you would have to ask them - I'm not sure. I don't enjoy being annoying. The problem-solving skills I contain do not allow yield great auditing skills necessarily. My "eccentricities," aka 60's glasses, cardigans, and "long" hair are looked down upon by my boss and coworkers, but I'm not going to change myself to conform to the corporation. Is such a rebellious attitude an immature characteristic of myself or should such "eccentricities" be more fitting elsewhere?

Advertising. Although I'm not the most creative or witty guy in the world, I relate to advertising. I take note of the corporation I work for and their advertising. I can relate to catch phrases and buzz words they use. Maybe I do fit in Mad Men. I wonder sometimes if my broad interests and relatively spread-out skills dilute a niche skill I could possess. I sometimes wish I could be in the 100-year past and have a skill that was imposed upon me as to what trade I was going to be involved in. I could build that and I could go from there. No, you will most likely never find me in an Ad Agency or coining the worlds most noticed slogans.

Oh, my musings are amusing and uninteresting I know. As I postulate my uncertainties, I do have direction. It's more humorous and enjoyable to point to a world of mass uncertainty when I only have a microcosm of certainty. I'll just have to keep my thousands of readers posted on my life, after each new yellow brick I cross. Just be glad that I'm not that annoying to you, unless of course you're a family member, coworker, roommate, friend, social-network friend or follower, or...wait, who does that leave left...

And then there were 4

2009-10-25T21:08:00.005-06:00

On November 20, 2004, 1 became 2 (well technically 2 became 1, but that wouldn't work as well). On November 25, 2007, 2 became 3. On October 24, 2009 at 4:00pm CST, 3 became 4.

Congratulations to my brother, Peter, and sister-in-law, Ginny, and Niece, Anna, in welcoming Simeon James Janelle into this world. He was 6lbs 11oz and 20.75in long. I can't wait to meet Simeon at Thanksgiving!

Inner-city Sean

2009-10-17T11:36:00.002-06:00

Last Spring, upon informing my boss that I was going to go to Africa, he asked an obviously reasonable question, "Why do you need to go all the way across the world to help African kids when there are kids right here in Denver that need help?" His motives aside, whatever they might be, I realized he had a good point. Although I don't plan on stopping going overseas, I knew that he was right that when I was in Denver I should be doing my part to help. Thank you for your criticizing, less than intentionally helpful, and enlightening advice Mr. Beggs.

With inspiration from my brother and belle-soeur (without them knowing how they'd inspired me - they mentor a whole inner-city family teaching them how to cook, attending parent/teacher conferences, communicating with the counselors) I decided that I wanted to look into becoming a mentor in Denver. I had talked to my roommates about this as one of them was interested in mentoring and the other studying to be a counselor, but it wasn't until I talked to another friend that I decided to partner with Colorado Youth at Risk to become a mentor.

Although I am currently in the application process, I don't foresee any roadblocks to this happening. I have completed all training (two nightly sessions and one 8 hour Saturday session). The gist of the program is that CYAR partners with a few high schools in Denver, including Manuel High School which is where my youth will be from and which has a 50% dropout rate and the highest gang activity of any high school in Colorado. There is a "Steps Ahead" program which most mentors are in. The Steps Ahead program is for Freshman only teaching them basic skills. I will be in the Touchstone program (which I'm excited for specifically for too many reasons to name) which is for upper grades. Each year of high school, the youth have different projects to prepare them for the future. It is completely voluntary for the youth and they have to have consent from their parents (one reason I'm excited about Touchstone is that they've already been in the program for a year and want to continue). It will be a one year commitment, and from there, we'll see what's going on.

As with any big thing like this, I know that I won't be able to fully prepare for this and I'm sure I will learn just as much from my youth as he will from me. I am more than eager to meet him and start mentoring and help him plan for his future. I hope it's not too hypocritical that I'm helping him prepare for his future when I have no idea what I'm doing in my future!

my little pumpkin

2009-10-10T17:18:00.003-06:00

So there's a girl in my life that I don't see nearly as often as I need to, but she is the cutest girl I know - my niece, Anna. This is Anna, eager for her brother or sister to be born soon, very soon (Ginny's due date is one week from today). This picture is with her in the one button cardigan that my brother Peter knitted for her, with the knitter himself. I would much rather have the self confidence Peter has in his knitting skills (including being known to knit at bars with a glass of whiskey) than be a self-conscious, I'll pretend to be cooler than I am, macho guy.

Love

2009-10-03T11:23:00.003-06:00

I have mentioned this many times before, but the most important thing in my life, in the world, in history, as an existence for the future, to those around us, to those we come across, to the few, to the many, to the young, to the old, to the poor, to the rich, to the orient, to the occident is one of the most simple words with the most impactful meanings - love.

Love as words is merely in vain, but love as an expression is dynamic.

I know that love can be defined in as many ways as it can be shown, but that phrase above is one way I thought to describe it in writing to a friend recently. Love is not a new phenomenon in the world, but it is a phenomenon that has redirected history. Without it, people could not coexist. With it, people can change lives. Love is a source of changed lives. The lack of love is a source of destruction. Love comes in many forms, but it is not always confined to spouses or family or best friends. Love in its respective forms is reserved for everyone you come across. Do not let your self-consciousness inhibit your expression of love to whomever may need it. Let your love for others build your confidence in life.

In what way have you shown love today?

The Unlikely Disciple

2009-09-11T22:39:00.002-06:00

I just got done reading "The Unlikely Disciple" by Kevin Roose. It was a fascinating true story (which has been featured on programs such as "All Things Considered" from NPR), about the author "studying abroad" for a semester and finding his stereotypes both strengthened and untrue at the same time. Kevin Roose was mostly fair, in my opinion, and was really transparent.

This might not sound that big of a deal or fascinating to anyone, but it hits home for me. To elaborate, Kevin was a student at the left-wing liberal school Brown. He decided to "study abroad" in Lynchburg, Virginia at Liberty University, one of America's largest evangelical schools. Kevin went under cover to Liberty to experience the evangelical schooling with the agenda of writing a book about his experience - The Unlikely Disciple. Other than going to Brown where rules could be compared to Liberty's, with a 180 degree twist on every single one of them, Roose grew up in a liberal Quaker family whose parents worked for Nader in the 70's. More compelling than this under-cover, from liberal to lynchburg, story is the fact that, most of you know, I graduated from Liberty University and the semester I graduated is the semester Kevin was working on his project.

Although I don't recall meeting Kevin personally, I know we ran some of the same circles, and by description (most names changed for privacy sake) I knew several of the people Kevin talked about on a first name basis. At times it was as if he was writing through my eyes as we had similar experiences (not a coincidence as that occurred often in a small school setting). I came from a different upbringing than Kevin, but I can agree on some of his opinions. He was very forthright about his stereotypes, and he was just as explicit when he admitted his stereotypes were false. Although he did a great job of admitting when he was wrong, I felt he still held all Liberty students under a ceiling. It was either Liberty students were sheltered, close minded, and necessarily evangelicals (with making references to being surprised there were Democrats or unsaved people at Liberty) or they were rebellious in sort of a cute way with the core ideologies of Jerry Falwell instilled in their minds with just a little rough edges. He talked about the gay students at Liberty, but talked about them in a way as if they weren't like his gay friends at Brown, because they were gay and going to Liberty.

I agree with his reference to having seen a different Jerry Falwell than most of America. I was fortunate to be able to see that myself. Although I didn't agree with many things with Falwell, I respected him, and Kevin and I would both agree that Falwell is consistent. It seemed as if Roose wanted to speak highly of Falwell, but he couldn't with innate fear that his liberal family, especially his gay aunt and her partner, would feel betrayed and it would be a dishonor. Roose maintained throughout the book that Christians are distinguished from non-Christians because they don't swear, drink, smoke, etc. I would also largely disagree with those statements; however, that may be the evangelical fundamentalist imposition as well, so I cannot say his statements are not self-imposed by Christians.

The loose trigger of the words such as "gay," "faggot," "queer," etc was in fact true, and that is something that I very much hated at Liberty. When a fellow Christian said such things, I would try to explain that we Christians are to love our neighbors and maliciously throwing out names is no way to be loving. I am very adamant about this as my best friend who also happens to be my brother is gay. Yes this obviously throws in kinks to Roose's belief that Liberty students are close minded and don't understand the world out there. At times I felt as if Roose was the close minded person in the story, not the Liberty students. It took me off guard, to be honest, as I stereotyped Brown journalists as necessarily being open and tolerant since that is a big problem secularists have with evangelicals. I would be the first to tell my evangelical brothers and sisters that they should be open minded and tolerable as well. My one question is what is the fear of openmindedness for Christians? Many would say that evil views could get in or Satan could use that as a tool. That sounds like they don't have that deep of faith to me! I say bring on all views and philosophies and theories and pray for discernment. If the God I believe in exists, he will give me discernment and strengthen my belief. It has happened in the past, and I have said before (even on this blog) that I am more open minded than ever and my faith is deeper than ever.

I would love to sit down with Kevin and have dialogue with him about our experiences at Liberty, discuss issues that I think he may have missed or looked past, and open up for questions from both sides. Everyone should read this book in my opinion. I really appreciate Kevin writing this book, and it gives everyone - no matter what you believe in or stand for - a good reason to always be genuine and open and loving. You never know who's listening.

This I Used to Believe

2009-06-20T09:00:00.005-06:00

I got the idea to do a "This I Used to Believe" essay from listening to a "This American Life" podcast. So my "This I Used to Believe" essay is a knockoff of that "This I Used to Believe" essay, which is a knockoff of an NPR program, "This I Believe," which is a knockoff of a 50's program, "This I Believe." *For the record, I think "This American Life" is one of the most fascinating programs on the radio today, and I would encourage everyone to listen to one or two episodes to form your own opinion. Now, for a few beliefs I used to have, essay on "This I Used to Believe."

I used to believe money and fame and power were more important than relationships.

I used to believe nothing bad would happen in my life, because I called myself a Christian.

I used to believe if anything bad did happen to us, it was necessarily a resistance for growth.

I used to believe having an open mind and deep faith were mutually exclusive.

I used to believe there are rules and regulations in our life because our parents, teachers, and God didn't want us to have fun, not because they were put in place out of love.

I used to believe I had to believe what my parents believed or I wasn't a good son (not because they taught me to believe that).

I used to believe my parents and other close family members were perfect and I had to strive to be like that.

I used to believe it is better to worry about what people think of you than helping others, even if it isn't what everyone else would do.

I used to believe any remote question about God and Christianity made me a bad Christian.

I used to believe questioning everything about God made me an atheist, not a human.

I used to believe conformity is better than individualism.

I used to believe selfless work was good but not for me.

I used to believe you can be friends with people with the stipulation they believe what you believe.

I used to believe I could pray for answers.

I used to believe I will never encounter violence in my life.

I used to believe I would someday be a professional soccer player.

I used to believe family car rides into the mountains were laborious and painful.

I used to believe if I didn't have a girlfriend by the time I was 18, I would be single forever.

I used to believe being short was a bad thing.

I used to believe I had to judge because people judged me.

I used to believe differences between my brothers and I meant we couldn't be close.

I used to believe my parents choices in raising us were normal, not to be highly admired.

I used to believe I would someday climb the corporate ladder and one day become a corporate CEO.

I used to believe war and pain in the world were sad, but I could do nothing about it.

I used to believe Africa was a distant land that I would never reach.

I used to believe the only reality is to live until I'm 100, then die.

I used to believe that love is not the most important attribute in the world.

What did you used to believe?

my time right now

2009-06-07T13:58:00.002-06:00

i know i promised a blog post by the end of the week, and, although it is technically next week, sundays are a continuation of the previous week and mondays are the start of the new week in my mind. if you don't hold to this view, i apologize for misleading you.

my time right now is an interesting one. having lived in the denver area for 10 months, denver proper for 3, it has been a fast-moving and adventurous ride. i have come to grips with several ideas that i often think about in life.

1. i am where i am for a reason. although we don't always know why we are where we are, it is good to realize that you are where you are and there's a reason for that. i, just as much as any of you, always think about the next step, where i'll be in 5 or 10 years, and what my life will look like at that point. i have come to realize that even if i wish things were different, things are how they are and in time can things change. if i can control change, i am in charge. if not, i have to adapt.

2. timing is everything. i always think about traveling and living in another country. that may not be the right thing for me at this time. if, for example, i were to up and move to another country, it might not be the right time for me and i wouldn't have the experience i would have if i wait until the right time. i also realize the things i fantasize about living in another country, i have right here in denver - albeit not with the other culture which is a large part of living elsewhere.

3. relationships are key. i have been fortunate to make several friends that live throughout the world, but i will never be able to live with all of them at once. once again, i have found several awesome friends here in denver. in the last week, we have hungout with friends every night, including different sets of friends most of those nights. all of them are in the same stage of life and most are like-minded in several areas. i know that i can not have this forever, but i am definitely beyond grateful for having it and making my denver experience that much more fun. i also don't say this in an arrogant way, but in a humbling way that i don't deserve the friends i have been given.

4. faith is fundamental. when i moved back to colorado, i had a few priorities - the two largest being that i find a church to get plugged into and that i find a good job. the second week i was here, i found the church i am currently attending - fellowship denver church in downtown denver. it has been really amazing in every facet of my life. i love knowing the pastors personally and "fellowshipping" with the fellow members. a lot of my awesome friends are from that church (including my 3 roommates), and it is awesome. the job i have is a very corporate job in every sense of the word. it is very competitive, people just look out for themselves, and most people are willing to step on other people just to get ahead. i like competition, but if it means the loss of someone else, i don't want to do it. i'd much rather help someone improve themselves then use their weakness to my advantage. i'm not a conformist and that is what makes someone a good corporate worker. with all of that said, i am very happy where i'm at. i know God gave me that job for a reason and it is definitely a means to and end. they know that i don't plan on working there my whole life. they know i want to move on and move elsewhere. ironically, they appreciate my honesty and respect i'm not trying to be secretive with my intentions.

5. God knows best. i am obviously a christian (and i hope i display this in my everyday living) and in that i fully trust God in my life. without getting into philosophies too much (another discussion for another time), there are admittedly some times in my life that i have a hard time believing God exists - whether it's in trial, tribulation, or wrath. however, i always find it impossible to believe God does not exist. i can understand how atheists claim to believe God does not exist, because they look at the manure in life. we try to rationalize life, and God cannot necessarily be rationalized. can we as humans always rationalize the love we share towards our close friends or spouse? then how can we rationalize a being so much greater than that human feeling? humans tend to look at the manure i alluded to and say that if God allows manure than he is not a loving God. atheists look at the manure. christians look at the flowers that grow as a result of the manure. to illustrate my very simple (and all-over-the-map) view of God i think of it as this: we are all magnets on a table and we try to move around and live our lives on our own. occasionally we find good things and good things happen to us. God is a metal that moves us from under the table. our faith is like the magnetic force that binds God to us - we can't see it, we can evidentially feel it, and it guides our life. while some wander on their own, we are guided by this metal we can't see. while some people say that we are just moving randomly like they are, we know there is a magnetic force that we cannot describe but we can feel it. we don't apodictically know that God is there, but there is so much conclusive evidence, it is impossible to not believe He is there. forgive my illustration, but if nothing else, it should give you a glimpse into the mind of sean. i'm a random thinker and occasionally i hit the point.

this is a summation of my life and where i am. i am very thankful for where i am, and i only have God to thank for giving me what i have. my one goal in life is to give back to His kingdom what He has blessed me with - which, in all fullness, is what i am trying to figure out what that looks like in my life every day.

Promise

2009-06-01T22:58:00.003-06:00

I promise to update my blog by the end of this week. Stay tuned for an actual post.

North Dakota 5

2009-03-22T22:55:00.002-06:00

as some of you know (actually probably all of you since i have about 2 readers - all to my own fault) i went to north dakota this last weekend. why the heck would i go there you might ask. pretending to have readers that don't know, i went because i am trying to go to all 50 states. north dakota is number 49 on the list.

so a friend of mine has a best friend up in bismarck so we planned a trip to go up there - for her to visit her friend and for me to cross of number 49. i didn't expect to be blown away by north dakota, and north dakota lived up to every ounce of expectations. it was flat, not too impressive, and slightly odd. the 5 things i take out of north dakota are listed here:

1. EVERYONE says "really." not just really really, but like this really: "did you hear about him and her. i mean they have been together for so long and he's already cheated on her twice, really?!"

2. local restaurants serve popcorn before meals.

3. north dakota has no local breweries.

4. "clam diggers" are exclusive drinks in north dakota - clamato juice (clam and tomato), vodka, banana pepper juice, banana peppers, celery, and a green olive....no joke.

5. north dakota's tallest building, the capitol, is 18 stories tall.

it was a fun trip, but it was weird too. it was a quirky state with quirky tastes. it was almost like i was living on the jerry springer show or cops or cheaters or something. all bars allow smoke and have drink specials on weekends. popular things to do are bar tabs (you buy one for a dollar and it's almost like a lottery game) and "suck and blow" (basically a jello shot in a tube that one person blows and the other person sucks). maybe i gave into the stigma by only taking note of the bars and drinks that surrounded me in north dakota. whatever the situation, it was one trip i'll never forget. all i know is number 49 is crossed off the list...now onto planning 50 - that will be paradise...

Malawhat?

2009-02-13T05:40:00.005-07:00

in a crazy whirl of the last few months, i have basically been preparing for a trip to malawi, africa.

to preface, i went to colombia, south america in the fall and saw poverty in the truest sense of the word for the first time in my life. it really hit me seeing the raw emotion of the people there and seeing their circumstances in person. i had always seen videos of people in that situation, but the background music and captions, although meant to appeal to my emotions, masked the deepest feelings i had when i experienced it first hand.

when i got back to the united states, God revealed to me that i love people, and i love to travel. should i become a full-time missionary? i know i plan on living in another country for a couple of years at some point in my life. well, i figured a short-term mission trip would be a good experience for me, so i decided that is what i was going to do - i wanted to go to africa (another story for another time why africa specifically) on a mission trip.

i met with my pastor on wednesday, december 3. i told him my story and my plans of doing a trip. i told him i would help plan one for church (which, being in a new state had never had a church-supported trip before) if one was not in the works already. he told me that that previous sunday a couple approached him wanting to lead a medical mission trip - how can anyone deny that God had His hand in that? well argue with me all you want, but i know it was God.

fast forward two months. that other couple, bert and lidie, and i have been talking to different organizations as to what would be the best trip. we decided to go with mercy and truth which was leading a trip to malawi, africa. malawi is one of the most dichotomistic countries in the world. the landscape is breathtakingly beautiful, but the people are inhumanely poor. malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world. we will be working at an AIDS orphanage for 2 weeks administering whatever medical attention possible. i myself have not medical experience and hardly got through biology in both high school and college, but i will be helping with logistics and background support. we had about 10 people total sign up from the trip, but 5 dropped out right away for personal reasons and 2 are on the edge. it may very well be the 3 of us going, but that would not deter me from going in any way. i know God has led me to go on this trip, and for that reason i plan on going no matter what.

with any trip like this, i will be needing a lot of prayer and support. i have a pretty steep curve of support i have to raise in the next couple of months, but i know God is faithful and will provide. He has never let me down in the past, and i trust that He won't let me down this time either. if anyone comes across this, please pray for the fundraising (which by the way, my church is in full support of our trip and i believe a separate group of people who want to take part but can't physically are setting up a fundraising team which is a blessing in itself), pray for the logistics, pray for us going, and pray for the people of malawi we will be helping. i will keep you updated on the trip. for now, take a look at a few pictures of malawi. God bless you all.

Fear

2009-01-27T23:11:00.004-07:00

"So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance"

I have never really thought about this quote from FDR's first Presidential inauguration, but it has hit home very hard lately. I have been in some political discussions with some good friends lately, and it kicked off my thinking - we all live based on fear. I mean some people have deeper levels of fear than others, but is it not true that fear rules most of our lives? Albeit, it may be small at times and large at others, but fear paralyzes us, it makes us retreat instead of advance, it keeps us from fulfilling our potential.

Let us think about this for a minute. How many times have we looked an extra time into the mirror out of fear of what people will think. It started as kids when we would not go down the dark hallway because we were afraid someone was down there and we would never be found. We don't talk about things we like or dislike, activities we do or don't do, people we're friends with or not friends with because we're afraid of what people will think. We think it would be awesome to go to another part of the world or even NYC at night but are afraid of who might be there. Must we live in fear, or is there a way around fear?

I will not impose a cliche´ answer; however, my answer might seem cliche´to some, but it is said with sincerity and full-hearted belief. Fear can only be conquered by love. To worry about what others think about you is retreating your ability into advancing your love for those people. To fear what might happen if you walk down the street in NYC at night is potentially bypassing the opportunity to love someone that needs you there. I know, there is reasonableness to walking down an alleyway in the Bronx in the middle of the night, but I question if reasonableness is created in our own minds.

Let me propose this: if I were to walk down the street in the Bronx in the middle of the night and saw someone being attacked (a very likely scenario), would I not have the opportunity to help the person attacked? Scenario 1. I run the opposite direction. Scenario 2. I try to help. If I run away, I abandon the person and most likely positive will not come out of it. If I try to help, two more scenarios could happen. Scenario A. I get severely hurt or killed. Scenario 2. I help the person and stop the attack. In either of Scenario A or Scenario B I have shown love to the person and have helped them. If I'm severely hurt or killed, they will see that I have tried my best to help them, and I will have meant a lot to that person. Even if I save the person, I will mean a lot to that person. Can anything we humans possibly face be worse than that of Jesus on the cross? Did he not set an example for us? I don't propose hurting yourselves intentionally, but I do propose thinking about fear in our lives.

As a person who claims to be a Christian, I should not (but often do) fear anything on this earth or even death. If I were to die tonight, and what I have given my life to is in fact true, I will gain everything. Fear is a handcuff, a roadblock, an obstacle, a black hole. If we can cast off the handcuffs, tear down the roadblocks, get around the obstacle, fill in the black hole we have the freedom to live a fulfilling life. The so-called worse case scenario of death becomes the best case scenario of eternal life. We no longer have to retreat from loving others and necessarily will advance the love towards others. Let us not live based on fear. Rather, Let us live our lives based on the love that God has shown us. Only when we walk away from living in fear do we walk towards the life of Love God has shown us.

"And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?" Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."

A new day. A new President.

2009-01-20T18:10:00.002-07:00

11.09.1988: As a young, squirrelly, 4 year old, I remember waking up and running to my dad who was reading the paper and eating breakfast at the kitchen table. He pointed to a guy on the front and said, "Sean, this is going to be our new President." It was George Bush Sr.

01.20.1993: I was sitting in a classroom in the Southwest corner of our school that had a window looking right at the flag pole and the American flag. I was in 3rd grade, and we were in the 4th grade classroom watching President Clinton walk down the street in his Inaugural Parade. I remember thinking I had to add a new name at the end of "The President's Song" we learned that year...Clinton seemed so off rhythm being stuck at the end of the song.

01.20.1997: I was in 7th grade, and I kept wondering if I would see my brother on TV as he was a U.S. House Page that year, and I knew he happened to be in DC for the inauguration. I never saw him, but I know he saw quite the spectacle that day.

11.07.2000: With a very energized history teacher in 11th grade who made us, or rather willingly taught us to, adamantly follow the election, I remember watching the Bush-Gore showdown at 7pm, 11pm, 3am. I think I finally fell asleep at 3am. I knew I was watching history that very night as it was a close Presidential race that could have changed history forever.

11.02.2004: I was standing in line at Pensacola Christian College that wrapped around a few soccer fields. We basically were our own precinct. I don't think there was one person voting against Bush at our school. If there was and the school would have found out, I could almost guarantee they would not have remained at the school for the rest of the semester - whether or not it would have been justified by the school letting them go. I have pictures of myself writing "Bush" in the dirt, smiling with friends, and basically not even knowing what I was doing. Whether or not I would have changed my vote knowing what I know now can never be changed; however, I will say I voted my first Presidential vote fairly blindly without even looking at the issues. They gave us the day off to vote which was unheard of. We were able to stay up past our 10pm curfew to watch the election results on the TVs in our sports arena. Up until 6 months after that day, I didn't even know how to think for myself. In no way do I disrespect former President Bush. Although I disagree with some of his ideologies, I respect him as a former leader and Christian.

01.20.2009: I woke up knowing that this was going to be an historic day. I had followed and supported Barack Hussein Obama for awhile at this point, and I was very excited to see him being sworn into office. It was on my way home from Pensacola Christian College the same year I voted for and watched President Bush take office that I finally learned how to question everything and believe in what I find best, not what my parents, brothers, friends, church, school, or work tell me. Today has been historic on many levels. I have not seen this country so patriotic since September 12, 2001. He is not a leader because he is in office as the first black President. He is not a leader because he will sit behind a desk and rule with an iron fist. Obama is a leader because he is has lead our country in becoming more patriotic, a better view throughout the world, being out front himself and not hiding, because he has the country's best interest in his interest. Whether or not you voted for Obama, he IS our President and we must pray for him. We have to move forward WITH him. We don't HAVE to agree with everything, but it is my opinion that God has willed him to be OUR President. I don't believe in man. I believe in God.

In God we trust.

01.20.09: The beginning to a new era.

ghost post

2008-09-09T10:30:00.002-06:00

if anyone ever comes across this blog, it will most likely be after 2010. i have failed my readers in not keeping up to date, and i can't really say that i'm too sorry.

my life in a nutshell:

i moved back to colorado at the end of july to pursue a life-long happiness with my native land. it has been more than i could ask for, and i have loved every minute being back. i have enjoyed going to rockies games, keeping in touch with several friends in the denver, fort collins, and colorado springs areas. i look forward to going to more athletic events soon.

a natural question inevitebly arises - what are you doing for work? well my skilled line of work has been slow moving on the job front. i've had some interviews, and, due to unfortunate beaurocracy it takes awhile. i'm still in the mix. i did land a job driving for a limo company during the democratic national convention and enjoyed meeting congressmen, delegates, ceos, staff aides, foreign officials, and businessmen. i have driven a bit since then, but it was a blessing of a job for a week that will be able to sustain me while i continue looking for a "real" job.

i found a really good church in downtown denver that is very welcoming and straightforward with what they're all about. i will look forward to getting involved in the next couple of weeks as i signed up for a gospel class (an explanation of what the church's vision, mission, beliefs are - important for any entity, in my opinion, to get everyone on the same page) and a bible study, as well as, a question group that meets in a coffee shop which is for anyone who believes in christianity to anyone who is flat out disgruntled by christianity to have discussions/debates/etc.

i have got really involved with a group from yelp.com that has been meeting for different social events. they put on a bowling party for us (free bowling, free drinks, 10 free burritos from qdoba for the winner on each lane). on sunday we had a "pizza quest" where 20 of us hopped 3 different pizza places and compared them. it was a fun event, and i met some great people.

i have been riding my bike around the last few days and plan on keeping that up. denver is such a great cycling city and my converted 5-speed is perfect (although i have to admit denver is more hilly than fort collins, but it's been fn). i really want to get plugged into racquetball here, but some employers have free or discounted health club memberships so i'm waiting to see if i can utilize that for racquetball.

that's my life in a nutshell over the last couple of months. i am not the best with keeping in touch, but you can always follow me on twitter (twitter.com/srj228) for quick updates. i do miss the people, but not necessarily the geography, in virginia.

ps. i am officially a colorado resident again as of yesterday, and i am happy about that.

je suis un racqueteur

2008-04-10T07:01:00.002-06:00

at the peak, or rather valley, of winter, i was getting bored and had no activities that sounded fun to me. i wanted to do something that kept me active while being able to enjoy it as well. this is about the time a friend of mine told me he was playing racquetball at a local tennis and racquetball club, the sports racket.

i knew that was what i needed to start playing again. i had played when i was a kid a bit (well probably imagined hitting homeruns in the enclosed space) and took a class in college (the only way to use the courts for free), but racquetball is what i needed to play to shoot the breeze with some people while trying to be active at the same time.

i headed over there and signed up for $18/month and started hitting the ball around by myself. the second day i played with my friend and was still trying to get used to hitting the ball. in no time, i met norm who IS lynchburg racquetball. i then met wes and jay, fellow libertyers - both better than me. i then met "outspoken garry," scott (whose in a "big fat loser competition" and is using racquetball as his weight-loss program - and doing well at it too), greg (a semi-retired engineer), ernie (who sounds exactly like my uncle wayne, and who i usually get paired up with in doubles), debbie (the short fiesty lady who beats most of us), and a few others that play occasionally. the network has been really great and i could find someone to play with every day of the week if i wanted.

i started off slowly but slowly got better. norm would keep me after games to practice drills. i finally started lowering my shots and being patient. the one thing i knew i could do no matter how good my skills were was hustle. people who play with me know that they'll have to work to beat me, because i anticipate their shots and hustle to the ball. it doesn't always work, but it works more than me not hustling. jay is also a great hustler, but his 6'3" body gets to more balls than i do.

i started getting into a slump at the end of febrary. i was hitting some good shots and tried to always hit the same shots even when i should have changed it up a bit. i then took a few weeks off for a vacation and when i came back i was ready to go. i beat norm and greg in cutthroat. i beat jay and wes in cutthroat. i beat wes two games. norm and i beat scott and garry. ernie and i beat greg and norm. i played 7.5 hours in two days. it's getting to be a lot of fun, and people have been commenting on my progression and constant hustle...i like this racquetaball stuff. you might as well call me a racqueteur - one who loves racquetball (according to me at least).

the sart

2008-02-01T10:28:00.000-07:00

as many of you know, which i’m sure you all do because apparently i’m the last person in the world to know about it, the sartorialist is an eye-catching and seemingly internet-ubiquitious blog. when I was first shown this website, i could not stop looking at the pictures and reading the captions. scott schuman has an eye for everyday people wearing everyday outfits that shouldn’t be so everyday.

How far can ninety dollars go?

2008-01-08T06:52:00.000-07:00

Alright, I promise this is the last time I will talk about my trips, of course until it gets closer to leaving and finally a summary of my trips. However here is the summary of the last few weeks with Northwest Airlines (sorry, some repeat necessary).

I got two free tickets. I am using one to go to Alaska ($20 total - $10 for the ticket. $10 for the agent booking the ticket) in June. I will be flying out of Roanoke (a podunk airport an hour away with layovers in Detroit and Minneapolis - fine with me, they can rack up my frequent flyer miles...sorry worldperk miles). I will be gone June 9-14.

I am using the second one to fly from Washington DC to Portland ($10 total -$10 for the ticket bought online) on March 7. I will be in Portland for a day or two, find a ride (hitchhike or catch a bus or a train or a friend) up to Seattle. I will tentatively be there for 4 days. I then bought a web special ticket from Southwest Airlines for $59.50 from Seattle to Boise (it cost twice as much for me to fly one way from Seattle to Boise as it did roundtrip to Alaska and the Northwest...still a good deal). I will be in Boise March 12 (late night), 13, and fly home early on the 14th. I fly home from Boise on March 14 back to D.C. That gives me $.50 to buy a newspaper on one of my trips).

1 roundtrip ticket to Alaska: $20
1 roundtrip ticket to the Northwest: $10
1 ticket from Seattle to Boise: $59.50
Crossing of states 45,46,47, and 48: priceless

sorry for the bore, but hopefully this will help.

2008-01-03T14:01:00.000-07:00

as i am immensely excited to go to alaska, i have other things i have to worry about...like planning my trip to the northwest.

as i was going to minnesota for christmas, i walked straight to the gate and my conversation with the agent went something like this.

"excuse me, how full is the flight"
"it's full"
...
"why, do you want to give up your seat?"
"yeah, actually i do"
"oh, you do, alright thank you"

so the next few minutes he gave me my voucher, bumped me into first class, made my one-stop flights direct flights, and after realizing i was going to be at the airport for a few hours, i asked if i could get some free meal vouchers...he gave me two.

now, i'm panning out details of going to seattle (hopefully with portland and boise in there too). keep your eyes open for more information.

alaska update

2007-12-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

so i had a ferociously intense conversation with nwa last night (slightly over-exaggerated in true sean style) and a just as annoying search for a plane ticket from virginia to alaska today to no avail...i decided to call again and see if someone else could help me, and the story gets brighter.

after i gave her my voucher number, amber - the nwa agent - asked when i'd like to go and where. after telling her from roanoke (a small city an hour away) to anchorage (not expecting anything) we finagled a ticked from roanoke to anchorage from june 9 - june 14. it might seem short to some people, especially flying over 5,000 miles, but no one can argue for free...i will finally be crossing off my 45th state in june, via roanoke, detroit, and minneapolis...

alaska 2008

2007-12-05T11:14:00.000-07:00

on my way home from colorado last week, i gave up my seat and got a free flight anywhere in the lower 48 states or alaska...i figured alaska would be the best for me since i've never been there, and it takes a little more effort to get there...so, i need your help.

what time of the year should i go, and where in alaska should i go?

(a)typical saturday morning in lynchburg

2007-11-19T07:11:00.000-07:00

so after waking up a bit late on saturday morning, i decided to head downtown for some coffee and reading. as i made my way to my vespa and was off, i noticed the crisp, cool air and the pretty, colorful trees. about half way from my place to downtown, i saw a peculiar sight in lynchburg - a tall, lanky guy with a big backpack, two walking sticks, and an american flag trekking down the sidewalk. i wanted to stop. i didn't stop right away but knew i would regret it if i didn't. four blocks down the road, i pulled over.

i crossed the street to where he was and sat on a little wall waiting for him to come. finally i saw him making his way, and when he finally approached, our conversation went something like this (started by me of course):

"hey man, how's it going?"
"good, how are you"
"good, where are you headed"
"key west, florida"
"where'd you start" i asked being shocked in my mind, but not showing it.
"canada" he told me.
he seemed naturally introverted but impressive all the while.
"are you just walking for fun or for a cause?"
"i'm walking for the fisher house foundation. here's a pamphlet about my blog if you want to check it out"
"have you eaten already" i asked.
"yeah, i just had some food at randolph college"
"alright, i was going to offer to buy you lunch, but i'm glad you've eaten. well good luck, it was nice meeting you"
"you too thanks"

then after getting a few blocks down the road, i remembered i had some cash so i turned around and gave it to him. he said he would put it towards the charity. wondering why he wouldn't use it for a meal or something, i left to tell others i saw about the guy i met.

it was a fun story to tell, until i googled his name because i forgot what his blog was called. what i found out was that dave madden is the fourth highest paid jeopardy winner in history and works for charities full-time. that explains what he was doing. he's a smart person. he's an even more admirable person for what he's doing, not what he's done. meet dave madden, read his blog, and see his cause.

sean's speculations and pedro: perambulations

2007-11-03T10:55:00.000-06:00

so after i became aware that i have executed one of my oldest brother's pet peeves of starting a blog and not continuing it, i decided i should make another post. actually i've been wanting to, but i haven't known what to write. in fact, while pedro's footsteps are a lot more sophisticated, real, and meaningful sean's speculations are a lot less thought provoking and a lot more whimsical - to his credit. actually it really is exciting, because peter's (pedro) wife is going to be having a kid in a couple of weeks. peter has not been a blogger in the past, but such a life-changing experience yields him to become a more avid blogger - definitely a good thing. if you care to follow pedro and ginny's experiences, follow his perambulations.

as for me, i have no life changing experiences to speak of. i graduated from college with a degree in business/finance about 6 months ago and i am working in accounting. i live in the middle of central virginia with a roommate in a small 1920's apartment building and hangout with a lot of college friends still. my job, specifically in accounts payable, consists of managing a few accounts and special projects including the executive credit card, sodexho, and soon the p-card.

on my free time, i enjoy exploring on my vespa that i recently bought, including a trip to atlanta in the rain. i've traveled through central virginia and i can't wait until the weather gets warm again so i can go on a longer trip.

so that's my life. more will follow in the near future...and i mean it, peter.

writer's blog

2007-06-28T07:53:00.000-06:00

i have been trying to write a lot lately. i really don't have a set of rules or guidelines when i write, but i just want to write. for example, last night i sat down and wrote for a few hours. here is one thing that came as a result. i rarely write poems.

good things concealed

I sit near Rivermont Park,

Almost in absolute dark.

Thinking about life for me,

And how I wish it could be.

I can’t say I have regrets,

Well, enough to pose many threats.

I just wish I could change things,

Then analyze what that brings.

Because I selfishly feel,

Good things to come can’t be real.

It is hard to understand,

The right plan leads you by the hand.

my friend and i will be starting a blog for writers. all writers will be welcome. i will keep you posted if you want to read or write.

Never Before Have I Believed in a Coffee Company

2007-06-06T15:38:00.000-06:00

I have loved several coffee shops in my day, but until now I have never believed in one. I actually haven't been to the coffee shop in Boulder, but I did spend some time with Gerry Leary, the owner, master roaster, and visionary of The Unseen Bean, and here is my story.

I was informed by my dad that my uncle knew a guy who roasts his own coffee in Longmont and sells it at his local coffee shop in Boulder. Intrigued with such news, I wondered if I could somehow spend a day with Gerry and see how the whole roasting process works. I contacted my uncle and he informed me we could stop by and hangout for awhile. When we finally got there, this is what happened.

The Unseen Bean isn't just a name whimsically dreamed up. In fact the name has extreme relevance. Gerry, the owner has been blind since birth. He used to be a Porsche mechanic but got bored and wanted to get into the coffee business. No one would teach him how to roast coffee by justifying their answer saying that coffee beans need to be seen in order to get the perfect roast. Not taking no for an answer, Gerry finally found someone in California who would teach him how to roast based on temperature and sound. So it all began. Two years ago Gerry bought a small roaster that roasted half a pound at a time. He would roast coffee for friends, and finally made enough to buy a bigger roaster and open a store off Pearl Street in Boulder. He has done well, and here was my experience.

When we got there, Gerry was roasting a batch of coffee from Zambia. To my left were raw coffee beans and to my right were freshly roasted coffee beans. He explained the process of roasting by hearing the cracks and following the temperature. He had a thermometer that would relay the numbers by sound since he obviously couldn't read the display. After the batch was done roasting, it was ready for cooling. He then made roasted some coffee from Ethiopia then Panama. He explained why the Zambian coffee roasted 3 seconds longer than the Ethiopian and why the Panaman roasted a whole 30 seconds quicker than the Ethiopian.

While we were there he gave us an espresso chocolate bar made from his coffee, of course a cup of coffee from the freshly roasted beans, and I bought a pound of coffee in support of his business. When I asked if I could try a freshly roasted bean, he replied, "Take several. Take a handful. Try them all." He sent me off with two bags that the raw beans came in, one from Zambia, and the other from Panama coincidentally enough. Midnight, his dog that's displayed on the company logo, meandered inside and out. He slept and stared. He knew his place in the business and helped out.

It wasn't as though Gerry was flawless either. Since he was blind he could be seen listening to his laptop as he filled out invoices. He often stumbled as he would run into buckets of beans. He obviously had to feel his way through the warehouse. That made me respect him and his business so much more.

The Unseen Bean put a whole new perspective on coffee for me. It is no longer just a fluid that I drink for taste or energy. I will now taste the process, the passion, and the privity. I will wholeheartedly support Gerry and his company, because I saw his zeal and love for coffee. He didn't let an "impairment" hinder him; rather he pushed forward and started one of, if not, the most respectable coffee companies in Colorado.

rum and bananas so don't go together...or do they?

2007-05-29T12:46:00.001-06:00

i have to let it known that this morning was a fabulous morning, and one that i will remember for a long time. so what's the exciting news i heard, what happened to me, who was she you might all ask. well, nothing like that really happened. to ease your intrigue, let me explain.

after waking up about 10am, i checked my e-mail and chatted with my friend dave. as he had already been up for awhile and already had been to school for the day, he left and took a nap. i looked outside and realized it was a bit cloudy. i know my readers as of late must think that colorado only rains in the summer, but that's actually really rare. in fact, i went downstairs and realized that it used to rain a lot in the summer, but as of late we've had horrible droughts in colorado in the summer. we have had watering laws as to when you could water, because it's so dry. well this soon-to-be rainy day put a smile on my face as i love to see my mom's flowers welcome rain like a vagabond in the desert.

when i was getting out of bed, i decided i was going to make banana pancakes. normally, i make coffee and breakfast then get ready for the day, but today i decided to get ready then make breakfast. it proved to be a good choice as it had started to rain, lightning, and thunder by the time i was ready to start cooking. i turned on some lights in the house (unusual for a spring morning in colorado) and decided to turn on our local jazz station as i often do when cooking. i mixed the basic ingredients to get a smooth pancake batter and cut up a banana to get my banana pancake batter ready. i then added a touch of vanilla (my cooking trademark is adding vanilla to about most everything that will be sweetened - pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, cream of wheat, etc). i then opened the cabinet and my eyes met some bacardi rum that my mom had for cooking. i was intrigued so i gave it a smell. i knew right away the rum would accent the bananas perfectly so i added some to the batter. after the pancakes were cooked, my second trademark is to drizzle honey, not syrup, on top of pancakes. don't add too much as it can get too sweet, but add enough that the vanilla comes out and you'll have a party in your mouth.

while all of this was happening, i made a smooth cup of coffee made from zoka coffee beans that my friend whitney had sent me from seattle. i truly am in love with this particular coffee and have moved it to the top of my list of all time favorite coffees. fabulous.

pancakes on the plate. coffee in the mug. jazz on the radio. rain in the air. smile on my face.

it was like a "roman holiday" morning minus audrey hepburn, gregory peck, vespas, and italy, but it gave me that feel-good mood that i could take on the world. i really think those were the best pancakes i have ever made, and i challenge you to make them, as well as, a rivaling recipe that i can later try.

enjoy the pancakes. enjoy the coffee. enjoy the rain. enjoy the jazz.
Sean-style banana rum pancakes
1c bisquick
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 t vanilla extract
1 1/2 t rum

add ingredients, mix, cook. drizzle honey on top, and enjoy with your favorite coffee or juice.

hitchhiking with my parents

2007-05-23T18:44:00.000-06:00

when my parents got an invitation for dinner with my dad's boss' at lodo denver's rodizio grill, i seized the opportunity to hitchhike with my parents down to the ecclectic area. lodo, which recently gained more popularity among the teens and tweens by being featured in real world denver, has always had my heart. admittedly, a lot has to do with my colorado upbringing, but it definitely is hip in its own respects. although it will never be near los angeles, new york, london, or tokyo on the charts, lodo is a nestled area in the heart of colorado's capital city.

if you're ever in denver looking for a coffee shop, restaurant, hotel, book store, or even vespa shop, you should look no further than lodo (forgive me, colorado's suave lingo is translated as the district of lower downtown [denver]). in a matter of one block as i am sitting in common grounds looking out the window across the intersection of 17th and wazee, i can see the famous oxford hotel, the barth hotel; bd's mongolian grill and jax bar and grill, business offices, lofts, furniture stores and italian restaurants and a martini bar/club while almost catchig 16th street mall in the distance.

even though it seems as though i am in seattle since it's raining (you know, since it always rains in seattle - please catch the facetiousness in my voice), it actually sets the mood well for a wednesday may night. i know, i would love for it to be sunny and 80 outside, but i have to catch all the seasons while i'm back home - for those of you who don't know, i just graduated from college and am moving back to virginia in three weeks. the only thing that could make the ambiance a bit more sincere would be me having brought my pipe while drinking coffee on the intersection. colorado's no smoking laws disallowed me from doing so as i would be in the no-smoke zone since i would inevitably be too close to the public coffee shop.

common grounds really is a nice coffee shop nestled in lodo. if you're looking for a quaint getaway with few people and an organized sitting area, you may want to move past common grounds to ink! (of which i am very fond of as well). there are always business people (on their pc's in their suits with their slick clothes and unmistakable style) slaving away trying to figure out the next real estate deal or the local college student (on their mac with their ipod headphones and their urban dress with their artsy accessories) designing for their portfolio or the middle aged women (who had just jumoed out of their volvos while wearing birkenstocks and a north face fleece) trying to catch up with friends or the local low-income residents (who may not be in the most current attire or be the best groomed, but nonetheless they are no less welcomed and in fact are known personally by the baristas and even shown favor to - to the coffee shop's credit).

common grounds has posters on the wall of the upcoming battle of the bands and the next art show in cherry creek. people are often seen perusing the posters or random publications lying around. you can pick a book off the wall of book shelves to keep you entertained. walking to the bathroom you can find free publications to take ranging from denver's westord, to health magazines, to band's cds, to real estate guides. the not-so-organized sitting area has wood floors, wood tables, wood chairs, chandeliers, and even an antique piano (that is not to be played mind you).

as for me, i prefer to indulge in a one-of-a-kind treat that i have not seen at any other coffee shop than common ground (if it exists elsewhere, forgive my ignorance), and my treat of choice while drinking the uncommon ground house blend is the very simple, the very tasty, and the very unique bowl of granola in steamed milk. i often crave this treat when i am outside of the lodo boundaries, but intriguingly it is captivating once tasted. the baristas will steam your milk of choice and pour it over the granola and your senses will be treated, your body will be warmed, and your mind will become renewed.

and so ends my hitchhiking experience for this rainy yet non-gloomy may night. if you're ever in town to partake in any of the exciting adventures that denver offers, you will not be disappointed stopping by common grounds. the people are friendly. the location is great. the coffee is smooth.

seniority is legit. senioritis is(n't) legit.

2007-03-31T06:59:00.000-06:00

i know, it has been a long time (forever in the minds of you avid readers around the world) since i have posted a blog. in the words of reigen, is that my bad? well here is the long awaited post that you all have been constantly refreshing your pages for.

i am in my final semester of college, getting ready to graduate in (exactly) seven weeks (from today), but who's counting? i had an uber busy last couple of weeks after basking in the sun on the west coast of los angeles. (i fell in love in los angeles, not with a girl, but with the city.) i had to turn in a 20 page paper on economic value added for my advanced financial management class. if you don't know what economic value added (eva) is, you're not far behind me. it's a simple equation for a complex analysis of performance indicators of companies. believe me, that just made me sound smarter than i really am, because i unwittingly had to explain that all in 20 pages. if you'll do me a favor and stop shifting in your seats from being impatient, i'll post that paper soon so you can see what eva is all about - or should i say what my paper is all about with hopes that it will be somewhat indicative of what eva is all about.

as mentioned before, i am in my final semester of college. i have to admit, i haven't wanted to study or do work but play and have fun. that's not entirely true, but after being in overtime (having transferred from my wonderful previous college, five years is the timeline for me to graduate), school takes its toll. i am having a great semester though. no regrets so far. i have been trying to utilize my friendships amap (as much as possible). it's been a whirlwind of activities - skating here, hockey with these people, saturday morning coffee there, chilling then, movies with those people, and an array of other activities that takes too long to mention.

speaking of mentioning, maybe you caught in there the real gem of lynchburg, virginia - skating. we found a roller skating rink that has free admission. the catch, if you don't have your own skates, is a three dollar fee to rent skates - i know, not much of a catch. since many of my friends have their own rollerblades (not to dilute the company but to express in more universal terms) we can just come and go for free as we please. howard, the apparent owner, is a nice gentlemen who appreciates kids coming in. we also organized a "party" at skate world by deciding to go skating. we invited a bunch of people on the basis of "come if you want, don't if you don't." about fifteen people showed, and that was our estimate.

seven weeks is a long time, but seven weeks is a short time. only time itself will tell what happens between now and then and after then. i wish everyone a wonderful april and to those (peter, will, judy and others) a happy birthday in april.

los silver rock park city

2007-01-16T20:07:00.000-07:00

i just got back from a whirlwind of a trip to los angeles. this is how the story goes.

my dad and i stayed at his friend's house near eagle rock. looking out the back of his house you could see pasadena, eagle rock, and towards some mountain ranges in northern la county. it was a beautiful view and the weather was great for january, cold for la.

with the help of a tour guide, we were able to explore los angeles from downtown to the hills to hollywood to the sunset strip to melrose to rodeo drive to the shakespeare bridge to the neighborhoods of studio city, los feliz, echo park, and silver lake.

here are the highlights of my trip:

1. my dad's friend, scott, drove us around and showed us a lot of the city's fun facts like where di caprio grew up, where general hospital shoots, where he and ryan seacrest had a radio interview together, etc.

2. my brother took us to a great coffee shop called chango in the echo park neighborhood. this artsy area in an ethnic neighborhood had a great energy. i loved this coffee shop and the people hanging out there.

3. we went on top of the historic gaylord hotel which was across the street from the former historic ambassador hotel (of which my brother and uncle had found a matchbook my grandpa got when he was in the military in the 40's). being on top of the gaylord you could look west and see towards the ocean, look northwest and see hollywood, and look north and see griffith park.

4. my brother took us on a little tour after eating at the gong-show of a diner called philippe's and explored a sweet area of warehouses that my brother did a shoot for a movie and where the american apparel factory is. we saw about 4 movies being filmed on this drive.

5. we went back and had a great dinner scott made for us including asparagus, lamb, artichoke salad, and a lemon curd dessert with lemon glaze and fresh blueberries...all with great red wine of course.

6. sunday for brunch we ate at the hopping griddle cafe on the sunset strip. the wait was about an hour just to sit (for three of us) but the food was phenomenal and the endless french press coffee was excellent.

7. we toured more of the area and went over the hills to studio city. studio city was great as we had some coffee at aroma cafe. tom made some perfect froth for my cappuccino and my brother's latte. we went to the quaint back just to hear someone ask a man enjoying his coffee, "you wrote 'the deer hunter,' didn't you?" he modestly replied, well, me and a few others. we then left and saw the brady bunch house.

8. we then met up with patrick's friends, mallory and her boyfriend thomas in downtown la to go...ice skating. it was the worst ice i've ever been on, but it was great ice skating in la with palm trees around me.

9. my dad and i explored more in hollywood, the beautiful benedict canyon, mullholland drive (where we saw about 50+ paparazzi waiting for someone - it was speculated that victoria beckham was in the area looking for a new house since her husband just got picked up by the galaxy), the historic griffith park, and more of the neighborhood of los feliz.

10. we went over to santa monica and venice beach and saw the beach - i'll definitely be back to that when i go back in march.

so that was my trip and the 10 highlights. it was a phenomenal trip and la is the new love of my life. sure, it has it's glamour, but the neighborhoods and nooks and crannies of the neighborhoods are what i now love.

12.20.06

2006-12-20T17:13:00.000-07:00

i don't know what your 12.20.06 is all about or what's happening in your area, but in my area it's been great.

i woke up at 9 to get ready for my cousin's kindergarten christmas program. i headed out about 10 and watched thatcher's 1/2 hour show. it was cute of course. i got home and couldn't decide what to do.

i decided to head to old town for some coffee. i got about a mile away and a car in front of me stalled on a hill. that was it for me. my momentum was literally stopped in its tracks and i couldn't get going again on the slick snow. i parked my car and walked home.

i finally decided to go snowshoeing. (for those of you that don't know what it is, it is walking with snowshoes - special shoes to help walk on top of snow). i figured i'd just showshoe to old town. i called starry night and they were closing at 3. if i left right away, i could get there about 2:20 and have 40 minutes to read then come back. i left at 1:15 and made good time. the 3 mile journey took exactly one hour in headwinds and a blizzard. starry night decided to close at 2 so i was out of luck. i walked around and finally found that mugs was open. i stepped in for half an hour and had some drip coffee. i was back on my way and had the wind at my back this last part of my trip.

the trip was about 7 miles round trip. along my journey i saw people shoveling, kids playing in the snow, dogs playing in the snow, cars getting stuck in the snow, and a plethora of other snow activities.

i have not seen 5 seconds today that it has not been blizzarding. i did get a call from my parents and my dad is stuck in denver (both of colorado's main interstates, i-25 and 1-70, are completely shut down) and my mom is stuck at school (the drifts have sealed the doors and my mom couldn't get out in time as it is my parents choice to ride to work together if my dad ever is going that way).

so i'm stuck here (luckily in my house). i'm watching seinfeld, my shirt smells like wet wool, and i'll probably start a fire and do some reading or watch a movie. i would watch the first nuggets game that allen iverson is part of the team, but that has been postponed. time will tell. oh yeah, the newscasters just said that the storm just got over the halfway point.

what goes around comes around

2006-12-19T11:16:00.000-07:00

some avid readers may remember a post awhile back i did about my coffee experiences. my very first drink that i ever ordered must have been a doppio at our lovely local starbucks. after seeing "espresso" written on the side of my aunt's mocha to go cup, i ordered an espresso and was expecting a mocha. as any 5th grader would have done, i puckered my face at the bitterness of the dark brown liquid. why does anyone care about that? alright, to be honest no one does, but its relevance becomes apparent now.

after spending a week in minnesota with my brother and belle-sœur, i bought a stovetop espresso maker at the end of the trip. sickness set in my final night, so weakness and dizziness disallowed me to pack everything myself to go back to school. i opted to let my parents take it home and i would pick it up over christmas break. that time is now.

it is still new, so i have to both learn how to use it and break it in. with that said, my espresso yesterday wasn't up to par, but i will learn. i will need my brother's help when he returns from los angeles since he is experienced on the process.

when i learn how to use it effectively, i will be making a plethora of sean-style espresso drinks. mention this, and i'll even cut you a deal on the soon-to-be world renowned espresso drinks.

and then there were 5

2006-12-11T18:14:00.000-07:00

as we are nearing the end of the year, we are trying to have some fun. after david and i made "the list" for reigen, reigen and david made "the list" for me. what is "the list?" "the list" is a list of 5 girls that they choose and i have to write about for you (the readers) and them to vote on for me. who will make it from "the list" to "the final cut?" that is solely up to the readers.

1. she is the longest known girl of the group and i know as much about her as any of them. she comes from a family who loves sports. she has aspirations that are impressive, but they are not on my list of things to do. she is cute by nature but is highly independent which may be good or bad. she has a sense of humor, but sometime she hides her laugh. she is fun to hang around, but she might power trip even the smallest broken rule.

2. she is the most athletic of the group, but frankly i don't know much about her. she is a cute girl and fun to hangout with. she has a style that yells urban outfitters which gets me, but i see her about once a month. sometimes we can talk for awhile, but sometimes we talk les than 30 seconds. she loves coffee which is a definite plus for me, but she has more friends than i have interests. she runs in the most well-known of the circles and she always smiles.

3. she is the least-known of the group but her looks are super legit. the first time i saw this cute girl, she was wearing the pumas i always have been a sucker for. the next time i saw her, her north face coat caught my eye which screamed "i'm not afraid to go outdoors" or maybe just "i'm trendy." either way, it caught my eye. i've talked to her about 1 time in total, but the times i see her and the one time i talked to her, i thought, "she's cute for sure." oh yeah, she might be leaving next semester.

4. friend of friends is how i know this ube-cute girl. well, kinda. i've spoken to her a total of two nights, but i have more in common with here than any of the others - that i know of at least. if asked what my "ideal girl" looks-wise was, i would not have described her. my "ideal girl" may have changed since then. we could talk back and forth for a few hours or days and not run out of stuff to talk about. her sense of humor is forgiving of mine and her personality captures audiences. oh yeah, to top it off, she's 4 years younger than me, and we all know what that means in college years...or does it.

5. the girl who's sense of humor is - dare i say - superior to mine would be the last of the bunch. i may pull all my tricks and dig down for any wit i think i have, but she will always surpass me. i can't keep up with her humor. she is just as cute looking as her humor is witty. we haven't talked deeply, but we haven't needed to yet. like me, she graduates in may and is eager to be done. her caregiving nature is a plus, but her height may pose a problem. she is about my height, true, but she has been spotted wearing heals, and we all know what that means.

there you have it. you the readers must comment and must tell me where my heart should be to follow. i've spoken to you. now, you speak to me.

central va is so last year next year

2006-11-11T10:10:00.000-07:00

i can't wait to get done with school. every day it is harder for me to do school work as i am overdue on graduating. it's not bad to be in school longer than 4 years per se, but when you're past your fourth year, school gets to be rough. maybe it's the location of my schooling.

i'm not one for rural. i'm not one for the south. i'm ready to go north or go west and i'll be happy. i can't wait to big-city explore like my brother has.i will never know as much as him or my other brother, or my dad at that, about the nooks and crannies of big cities, but i know i already know more than most. i can't wait to do the stuff i want to, aka finance.

i love the finance i have been doing, but will like doing it more. i can then work alot, order in some chinese, wind down with a drink, go to a cafe on saturday morning, hit up the city, and live the big-city life. i know, that may not be what it is going to be like, but after being here where there are virtually no good local coffee shops or cafes, i can make up what i want.

so my hybrid life has kicked off. i am working in the accounts payable part of the accounting department at school. i start work at 8, end at 5, and sandwich classes in between. it's good to get off main campus and work with actual adults. i mean even though they are all older and they talk about what they should or shouldn't let their high school kids do, i chime in and do my work. i enjoy going and enjoy the people and enjoy what i do. luckily i'm going to ship out to minneapolis to spend the thanksgiving week with my oldest brother, his wife, her family and my parents. until then, i have stuff to do and an aesthetically non-pleasing place to do it in - probably the worst of all my central, va concerns.

cool and crisp

2006-10-24T08:21:00.000-06:00

life in virginia has been both good and bad. wanting to graduate as soon as possible has not changed in my mind. having fun has not changed either. managerial accounting and real estate have been filling most of my academic free time lately. whenever i'm not working on real estate i have to do accounting and vice versa. speaking of accounting, i applied in liberty's accounts payable department. i'm still waiting to hear back. i really want to move to seattle when i graduate. it seems like i would like it there. i think it would be ubelegit (yes it's a word i made up to meaning uber legit) and have heard good things about it. that area is one of the last places in the continental united states that i have never visited. if i don't like it, i'll move, but until then i'll focus my job hunting on that area (unless of course i can land something in france, but even then it would be a hard decision). seattle seems chill and i have the advantage of already knowing some people up there. i also posted a new post on "That's so Euro!".

family diversity

2006-10-09T12:22:00.000-06:00

my family is about as diverse as one family could get - well kind of.

i'm sitting in virginia going to school and learning about finance and wondering where i'll be next year when i graduate. i'm enjoying hanging out with my friends but wishing i was in a more fun-filled place to have fun in. i have had a good run at school but am looking forward to being done in may. i am excited to be done but i know i'll miss college life. i am now the only one in the family who hasn't lived in a "big city" at one point in my life. i want to take on life outside of college in a city - possibly the west coast or nyc or boston. who knows. i sure don't. i've had the most bizarre semester of my life. i don't study as much as i "should" but i've been getting better grades than i have in the past. i'm taking two upper-level business classes that i have around a 93 in one and around 100 in the other. it's not that i'm smart; i attribute it to the fact that these classes both have actual work to do in them. if i could do written work and not have to ever read or take a test again, i would. should i have been a mathmetician? actually i would have if i knew i could find a job after school. dang, should i have been an art major? no. i have no art genes attached to my name.

that brings me to my brother. as i am a few hours from the atlantic ocean, he is a few minutes from the pacific ocean. we are as diverse as two brothers could be...geographically...in the united states...not taking latitude into consideration. those art genes that i didn't get, they were all given to my brother patrick, and i am glad he does have them all. if i did have an ounce of an art gene, i would wish that he could have it too (not that he needs more, but ok all art kids need more). as i am sitting on a brand new mac g5, he is typing on his computer in a cafe in la probably. while i am learning about finance and business, he is getting real world experience in la. he is doing graphic design on the side of his career in acting he is pursuing. he is great at art, but he is even better at networking. he has moved exponentially up the ranks as an actor. look for him now. look for him in the future.

peter, my other brother is a student in minnesota pursuing who knows what. if i were to take a stab at his major for graduate school it would be international public policy. i think that might be correct, but i don't know for sure. after graduating from moody bible institute, he moved up to winona, minnesota where he met his wife ginny. they got married almost two years ago and moved up to minneapolis so peter could be a golden gopher, as a graduate student, and possibly ginny too. they like the north and are as outdoor as a couple could get. i don't know for sure, but if i had to take a stab i would say that they have been to a combined 30 countries.

onto the fourth person, my mom. she also is involved in the education program for over 50 hours a week, at least. she is a full-time high school math teacher (and by full time i mean 7-5, monday through friday) while getting her masters in math education. she will be done in may at the latest and hopefully for her pursue another career in teaching...maybe overseas. she is as widely known in the northern colorado private school scene as possibly any other teacher. she has been around for at least 16 years in that particular sector and continuously runs into former students, and yes even former students kids, in classrooms and while watching athletics.

the elder of the family is my father, mi padre, mon pere. he is working hard for wells dairy as a sales representative in northern colorado, southern wyoming, and southwestern nebraska. basically what this entails is driving around to all the stores in northern colorado that carry blue bunny ice cream and make sure things are running smoothly. the intrinsic value of the job adds a lot more than one would think. i wouldn't mind having his job if i could as he gets to travel a lot. he's always itching to do something new, but that would be true no matter what the case. he is by far the most active of all of us as he is either running or cycling. he has instilled in us three boys the bug to travel, to explore, to do something new. i mean life is too short to stay in one place and do one thing.

so there we all are. one in virginia, one in california, two in minnesota, and two in colorado. that basically describes our family well. i would be, and i'm sure most people that know us would be, surprised if we all settled down within one state. although i'm the least independent of us boys, we are all very independent. we probably will stay spread out around the country or world, but that just means we will be able to visit more places and have a place to stay or people to accomodate. we love seeing each other, we love visiting each other, but we love staying spread out too.

root beer floats...in water

2006-09-27T13:33:00.000-06:00

so a recent discussion with some friends led me to the conclusion that i have been misled my whole life. whether it was my mistake or i was just not listening, i realized that i was always slamming down root beer without knowing the proper name. you know, the famous root beer in the silver cans? barqs root beer.

for some reason it always made sense to me to call it barg's root beer. whatever the reason, i was mistaken, and i am corrected. sorry barqs. sorry world.

central old dominion in the fall

2006-09-24T13:30:00.000-06:00

i sit here in virginia wanting to be done with this school. my computer janxed out on me this week, but it doesn't bother me. i backed up my files before coming to school. my ghetto machine is 4 years old. i have computer labs, and i have time to read now.

i am in the mac lab at school, because pc's are so overrated. why not learn how to use a mac when i can. the weather has been mediocre to say the least, school is sucking every penny out of me, and i am sick of studying. i can't wait to make a buck or two after school, and i can't wait to get into the world of work.

i'm reading a good book right now. actually i started reading it yesterday and have 40 pages left. i'm reading blue like jazz. i admit, it's a very trendy book circulating at school right now, but it goes beyond that. it presents genuine christians in their genuine lives.

i am ashamed to call myself a christian sometimes, not that i'm ashamed to have faith in jesus, but i'm ashamed of what christians have done to the world. the crusades, the churches. we have fallen from what we centrally are about, love. we often tell people what they are doing wrong, what they need to be fixing, how they are sinning, how they are straying, how they are lost when we aren't loving them. we are supposed to love. we christians are hypocrites more often than not. it hurts to say, but it's true. no wonder we have a bad reputation with the world. how can we tell others not to do stuff when we are out doing stuff just as bad ourselves. how can we tell others that they need to to certain things when we aren't doing the very things ourselves?

we get in a rut of going to church and singing songs and learning our 5 points of the sermon, but is that what christianity is all about. do we need to make church into a cliche. i think we distort what christianity is all about. we aren't going to please God by shaving our beards or keeping our hair short or not having tatoos or not smoking. we are going to please God by reaching out to the lost. we all know what is right and wrong. i don't need to tell someone that they are doing wrong or that they need to fix what they're doing. they know what they're doing and without me loving them they will have a hard time fixing it. i'm sorry, but we're not going to change the world by telling them they're wrong. the more we christians tell the world that they are wrong, the more we are becoming hypocrites. let's face it, we all have the same sins as the world, we just cover them up and put on a facade of "i'm better than you."

i can honestly say that i would rather be in a room full of guys with tatoos who are smoking that i know have a genuine heart than be in most baptist churches today.

i'm still here

2006-09-09T10:09:00.000-06:00

i have been busy with school and sickness lately, but i am taking on a new side-project blog as well. don't worry, i'm not going to replace varietization, but i am going to bring a new blog to the scene dealing with the subject of economics.

don't worry. i'm not going to bore you with subject matters that you don't care about. i am going to write about life and the world from the viewpoint of economics. my blog will be applicable to everyone everywhere.

That's so Euro! is not out to change the world. That's so Euro is out to change the way you look at the world.

worldview question for you

2006-09-04T12:14:00.000-06:00

here are some questions that i have thought about lately. agree. disagree. comment. no two people will have the same opinions on everything most likely. if so, they probably don't think for themselves but blindly accept what one or more people have told them. unfortunately many christians, atheists, or others live life in this manner. people should not take what they hear but should in fact question why they believe what they believe. that brings me to my next point.

1. should christians follow the bible literally or should christians use it as a guideline to live their lives?

- i have not resolved this issue for myself yet. on one hand i can see that everything should be taken literally and that we are supposed to use the bible as a strict guideline for our lives. on the other hand, it seems like when god is telling us to not do something, it is a protection he sets up for us to not get harmed. why does the bible tell us to not be drunk or not sleep around before marriage or during marriage or lie or lust or steal? is it that he knows we would enjoy ourselves too much and that we would forget about him if we did? or is it that he knows if we do do those things there will be consequences to follow? is he keeping us from fun or is he keeping us from hurt or is there another reason we are told not to do those things?

i have recently pictured in my mind an area with two circles. the bigger one has a solid red line around it and the smaller inner one has a dotted grey line around it. inside the smaller area is a green plane. the green represents everything that we do that will cause no harm to ourselves or anyone else. the dotted grey line represents the "grey" areas of the bible that are debatable. this would include drinking alocohol period, going to movies (at the far right extreme), certain music, tobacco, etc. some people can drink alcohol without being drunk or going against their conscience. some people believe that it is ok to use tobacco while others do not. if you go outside of the circle, whether it be the dotted one for some or definitely the solid one for everyone, then you are sinning.

when we are kids, our parents tell us to look both ways before crossing the road, to wear a helmet when we ride our bikes, etc. do they do this because they want to be a nuissance to us? no, they tell us to do so because they love us. they don't want us to get hurt. is that why god tells us not to do certain things? i believe that he doesn't want us to do certain things because he loves us and wants us to not get hurt. think about it.

having sex with more than one person increases your chance to get hurt. is everyone who sleeps with more than one person going to get std's? no. but is everyone who sleeps with one person their whole life safer off. definitely. can someone sit in a room by themself and get wasted without sinning (assuming that being drunk is not a sin)? it can be possible. on the other hand, physical effects of drunkeness do occur.

i was at the doctor last month and it threw me off when he was asking about my activities: drinking, sexual, social. all the things asked were not at church, but the same questions were being asked. do you drink? how much? do you get drunk? are you involved in any sexual activity? do you smoke excessively? he told me that drinking in moderation is alright for your body and he explained why it was good that i don't drink excesively or have sexual activity and that it is safer for me physically to only have sexual activity with one person - my wife when i do.

it made me think about the analogy i mentioned before of crossing the street. some people will say pertaining to some issues, it is better to just not cross the road. you'll never get hurt that way. others will say, it is alright to cross the road, as long as you look both ways before crossing. then the rebels will say, i don't care what anyone tells me. i'm going to do what i want and cross the road whenever i want however i want. sometimes they make it across the road safely. many times they don't make it across and wonder what happened when they get hit from behind.

that brings me around full circle to what i asked initially. did god want us to take the bible literally word for word or did he give it to us as an anti-consequential guideline to live our lives?

give me liberty, or give me bosc

2006-09-03T20:31:00.000-06:00

so as most know, i'm at liberty university as a senior trying to get by with my studies and learn some things along the way. what else is there to do besides school...a lot.

friday night: it was by buddy benson's which included some chilling, watching old school nickelodeon, and poker. although i had moderate hands, reigen got hands of a lifetime and owned house. i got second the second game. at least we didn't play for money. reigen and i went to bed at 6am and i woke up just in time for noon college football. i muted the tv so reigen could sleep until 1. we lazed around and saw our first sunlight of the day when we left at 3. it was pathetic, but i don't do that much.

then we got a random phone call from our friends and talked to them for awhile. the day was mediocre until the night time. another show presented by the drop was pattern is movement and bosc. it was good, because i got to see my friend kate who is visiting for the weekend.

the liberty scene kids didn't care for pattern is movement too much, but my friend carli and i liked them. the obviously indie sounding music wasn't mainstream (obviously, hence the indie) but it was a sound that made me tap my foot and do a little groove. i give a thumb up to pattern is movement.

liberty's own bosc is the scene kids favorite. brett lesher has a sweet british rock voice and the band captures the sound well. check out bosc. my boy brett captures the lyrics. brett captures the hearts.

sunday came along and my buddy david (thanks to him for the bosc show pic) and i went for a 40 mile bikeride. it was a sweet ride into virginia's countryside. we got back and hungout with kate again.

my weekend is coming to a close, but it was a good one. we'll see what the rest have to offer.

the drop online

2006-08-31T21:51:00.000-06:00

i haven't done much since getting back to virginia other than school. last week we did go to a super chill show in downtown lynchburg. the place was the best in lynchburg in my opinion. the music was chill. the atmosphere was awesome. check it out.

thedrop

words won't do it justice

2006-08-17T10:31:00.000-06:00

bike trip. miles. fun.

those were the three things that i set out to do on my bike trip this week. everything else (schedule, time, plans) were all secondary. i didn't want to meet a time goal or a certain schedule and forego having fun.

i set out on tuesday at 7:42. my bike was a bit heavier than i am used to with all of my stuff. the first 20 miles went by smoothly as the weather was perfect. it was cool, and it was pleasant. i saw the morning crowd going to work or run errands. the haze in the air added a pleasant view of the cornfields and the workers there.

about 10 miles into the ride, a fawn was running next to me for about 100 yards. i couldn't get my camera out in time, but i couldn't believe it. i almost got as excited as my friend david at seeing the animal.

a quick stop in ault allowed me to take my jacket off and set off for the next leg of the journey. 5 miles outside of ault is all it took for the corn fields to vanish. after the corn fields left, the scenery for the next 80 miles is just desolate. the wide open range allows for small winds to affect you. you get excited when you see a tree. the area is flat out boring and draining when you're by yourself. i entered into the pawnee national grasslands. desolation was still present. i made it to briggsdale ahead of schedule and was on my way to new raymer. some road construction was about the most exciting thing on that stretch. i saw a weird house with a wall around the outside. i couldn't figure it out.

exactly 70 miles into my trip and 5 hours time, i made it to new raymer. i stopped at a little park to make two peanut butter and honey sandwiches. i drank some water and gatorade and decided to take an hour break. it was a good break. i thought maybe there was a water pump nearby and was right. i filled up with water and was off. the next 30 miles to sterling took a long time. it was the most draining part of the trip as the wind was blowing and it was in the afternoon - temperatures in the high 90's. as i came to sterling, i have never felt more relieved.

the two things i forgot on my trip were nutella and a book. i figured i could find a used book store in sterling so i was on a mission. after riding around for 45 minutes, i spotted one. apparently at 4:15 in the afternoon places close in sterling. so the book store was closed, but i looked across the street and saw a café. i decided to take a rest at the café. i slipped off my bike shoes and went in. i was drained from the previous 30 miles. i couldn't decide if i wanted coffee, juice, food. i settled for a 3.75 bagel sandwich. it hit the spot. the workers were really nice as they filled me with water - not sterling water, but filtered water. i had a nice time relaxing and watching the locals come and go. a mom and her son were having a talk. an older couple came to chill. a businessman was on his laptop. two men were having a bible study. a guy and his daughter were playing cards. it was a nice diverse group. i decided to order some coffee. the girl told me that since the café closed at 6, coffee after 5 is free. so i got a free cup of coffee. i had to go so i could find my campsite for the night.

i headed out of sterling and stopped at the first town i came to - fleming, colorado. i saw the high school baseball field and decided i would head that way. i came to it and found a field adjacent that would be perfect. i pitched the tent and right when i got it up, it got dark. so i crawled inside and tried to fall asleep - at 8pm. that obviously didn't happen. dogs were barking, cars were driving by.

at one point, a truck was driving through some dirt fields and parking lots. i didn't know if he was drunk or what, but he was yelling and just being obnoxious. he then headed towards the tent and stopped. "i'm just camping for the night, and i'll be out first thing in the morning," i was thinking i would tell him if he came over. he turned on his brights. apparently nothing new caught his eye so he drove off and didn't come back.

i woke up in the middle of the night. had it rained? no, it was sweat. yes it was gross, but what do you expect after riding 130 miles and sleeping in a sleeping bag without a shower. at 1:07 a train went by. that was the last of annoyances and i woke again at dawn. it took me a bit to get up, but finally i did. i packed up and was about to be on my way when a truck drove up.

"did you sleep well last night," a guy asked me.
"yeah, it wasn't bad," i replied.
"did anyone bother you last night?"
"no, i wasn't bothered at all."
"well, that's good. the stores open if you want something to eat."
"alright, where's it at?'
"it's just around the corner"

apparently it was common for people to be bothersome in that small town.

so i went to the store and realized there was a little café attached to it. i saw biscuits and gravy for 1.75. i couldn't pass it up. of course the locals were all looking at me like i was an alien, but i didn't mind. it came with the territory. i paid for my meal and noticed the weather. it was dark gray skies all around.

i had to quickly leave as i didn't want to get rained on too bad. i altered my route and was headed back to sterling then was going to head south to fort morgan. the first 2o miles to sterling was not too bad, although the wind was just right that when a semi would come towards me, the wind would almost knock me over. at that point, i decided i would get off highway 6 and onto i-76. right before i got onto the interstate, i stopped at a gas station to fill up with water. when i got out, there was a mom and daughter presumably on their way to college. i noticed the girl keep looking at me. finally she spoke up.

"where are you going?"
"back to fort collins after fort morgan."
"how far do you normally ride per day?"
"regularly or on this trip?
"this trip."
"well yesterday i went 130 miles."

before i could ask her story, her mom came out and they were getting in the car when i heard,

"where is he going?"
"fort collins...he went 130 miles yesterday."

i was off. i got onto the interstate. some people would put bicycles and interstates in the same sentence, but in colorado it's perfectly legal. signs just say, "biycyles, stay far right." the first part of i-76 was fine, but then the road got bad. there was bad erosion in the road that made for a rough ride. every time i went over the cracks my palms hurt, and my pinky tingled. finally, after 20 miles on the interstate, i saw a sign for a town with no services. i thought that there must be a highway somewhere. i was right and found highway 6 (the one i was on earlier). this was the beginning of the most fun part of the ride. it was a more intimate part of the ride as there were locals driving by and waiving and corn fields that welcomed me again. i needed to get to brush, colorado to get some water. i got there and found a 7-11 and got water.

i needed to take a break for lunch and stopped at a grocery store to get some shade. i was eating when a pepsi worker walked by.

"is that bike light?"
"well not with all of this stuff," i said jokingly.
"well right, but is it normally."
"yeah, it's pretty light. light enough."

we proceeded to talk about bikes and races and rides. it was a nice break, but i had to leave. i was headed towards fort morgan. the stretch from fort morgan to highway 34 was the best part of the ride. the road was flat and i could see forever. corn fields on both sides of me moderated the wind and temperature. the shoulders were very wide. the people were nice. i enjoyed it. i was riding parallel to i-76 but finally crossed it to go to 34. i had to take the frontage road for 14 miles then got to wiggins, colorado. i passed through and took a right on 34.

i noticed at that time that the clouds were getting really dark. lightning was appearing, then the lightning was within a mile. the rain started to come then pour. i had to stop and put on my poncho. the heavy rain left in 2o minutes, but some packing mistake on my part got some stuff wet. i knew i couldn't sleep in those conditions.

yes, some people would have done what they needed to sleep. i might have to, but i wouldn't have had fun doing it. and since having fun was one of the primary conditions of my ride, i had to end it early. this ride was a "trial" ride to see what i could handle, what i should take, how i should pack, etc. i'm not disappointed in any way with my trip.

total trip:235 miles

i did the trip. i had fun. i rode miles. words won't do justice to how much fun i had.

solo adventure

2006-08-14T18:04:00.000-06:00

when: tuesday - friday
what: a bike trip
where: to be determined

tomorrow (hopefully earlier than later) i am headed out on a much anticipated bike trip. i have plans as to where i want to go, but i will tell exactly where i went when i get back. today there were severe thunderstorms in the area so hopefully those will hold off the next 4 days. i will make sure i write about it when i get back. until then, have a good week.

cheers.

the family gathering

2006-08-13T08:57:00.000-06:00

my cousin had a race. we all went to it, but it wasn't his typical bike race. it was a running race in the park. it was less than a mile long. he came back to the start to meet us and told us he had won.

everyone on my dad's side of the family was there. we were retracing his steps on the race path back to the car. my other cousin was throwing a fit. it was just a cute fit that is expected in a 4 year old. he came running to me, "sean, will you carry me?" i told him, "you're going to have to ask your mom if you can come with me," knowing that i didn't want to get in the way of his parents disciplining him. he came running back with his arms in the air. i looked at my aunt. she gave me the nod.

off we were down the path. i had a bag on around my waste and put my cousin in it. he is big for his size, but somehow he fit in it and fell asleep right away. i decided to go faster down the path. my two cousins joined me in the race. i was ahead of both of them. one stopped and waited for the rest of our family. i was racing my cousin trent now and was a bit ahead of him. i saw the end. it was a steep uphill with loose rocks on it. i knew i had to be careful, especially with my sleeping cousin on my back. i was making my way up the hill until my cousin, no wait it was my brother peter caught up (i didn't think anything of it). "i just hope their aren't snakes up here hiding behind some rocks," i told him. he agreed.

all of a sudden, a scraggly looking guy with loose clothes and long blonde hair jumped down and looked peter in the eye. oh no, it was the park pirates. in a move quicker than i've ever seen before, he grabbed peter. peter strained, but he was no match for this pirate. soon two comrades came and helped grab the fighting peter. the third looked around for witnesses. luckily i was hidden, but i was hoping my cousin wouldn't wake up and make a noise. it was close. i hoped the rest of my family would soon be behind me so they could help. the pirates were still too close for me to use my cell phone. i crouched in horror. following these pirates were the rest of their ships. three land rovers came bouncing over the rocks. where was my family? were they alright, i wondered.

then i woke up.

cycling...of course

2006-08-09T09:08:00.000-06:00

so i don't really have much to talk about lately other than cycling. i'm getting ready to go back to school in a week and a half. work has been slow lately. so, i have had time to cycle.

basically all i am trying to do before i go back to school is build up miles. i want to get fast, but that's not my first priority right now. even if i have a bad day, as long as i get out there and ride i'm happy.

as some of you know, i had a hard ride on saturday. i took sunday off. monday i decided to do some more hills for about 24 miles then when my dad got off work, we went out for another 35. we like to go out east as it is a nice ride out there, then there is one good hill that we like to climb. he's teaching me tactics as he said i should never stop at the top of a hill, but keep pushing. that way, opponents see that they're at the top of the hill and naturally want to relax, but if you keep pushing, it's a great place to break away. so as we approached this hill, he told me to push hard up it, then keep going for awhile longer. i did and almost regretted it as i was extremely worn out after. it was good though.

the other night i started reading a walk across america, by peter jenkins, and i kinda got an exploring spirit inside of me. yesterday, after reading some more of the book (which i can't put down and will probably finish it soon), i decided to take off riding at 12:30 and ride east for a few hours then turn around.

i think there was a slight wind out of the east as it felt like it. i had my one waterbottle with me and was ready. i passed through windsor and kept going on 392. i had always turned at 257, but never knew what was on 392. i found myself on a farm road with corn, cows, ranches, and workers. it was what i was looking for. i loved it. everyone from compact cars to semis would switch to the left side of the road just to pass me. one car coming at me even pulled off so a semi could switch lanes and pass me. that's the farming generosity i like. i decided i should stop in lucerne (14 miles past windsor) to fill up my water bottle. there were no stores. i went into a post office, but no one was there. i decided i could make it 12 miles to the next town before i needed water. big mistake.

as i came to the next "town" there were merely houses, but no stores. i was hoping i would come across something soon as the temperature was reaching the high 90's, but i had been out of water for 12 miles. i kept riding down the road (which was still great scenery in eastern colorado), but i found no water. i decided i would stop at a house and ask for water from the garden hose. i was approaching 45 miles and 20 without water. once, twice, three times. no one was home. i kept on going. i saw a house in the distance surrounded by trees and hoped i was onto something. i stopped. mrs hardy answered the door hesitantly as i'm sure she doesn't see many cyclists out that way. she filled my water bottle though. i was on my way after drinking about half of the bottle right away. i kept going and ran into briggsdale. now, i was in familiar territory. on one of my first rides of the season, we had ridden through briggsdale and stopped at a campsite to get water. i knew where water was. i finished my one bottle, drank another then another and had a snack. i filled my water bottle again and was off. i had gone 52 miles so far and knew ault was 24 miles away then fort collins 14 after. i could do it.

i turned onto highway 14 and headed west. everything seemed so slow. it seemed like i had a headwind and uphill the whole way. i could have sworn i could have walked faster. i was still thirsty, but tried rationing my water until ault. i knew there was one good downhill, but the headwind seemed to slow me down so the downhill was virtually ineffective. finally, i saw the dense trees telling me that ault was near. i was out of water. i saw no less than 12 empty dasani bottles on the side of the road. i kept going. i started feeling really weak. at that moment, i came across some cow farms (if you've never been by a cow farm - which i'm sure most people have - the smells will take you off guard. i normally don't mind the smells, but this time was different). i thought i was going to throw up. i decided there that ault should be my final destination.

fortunately for me, my dad happened to be on the same road coming back from business he had to do. he caught up with me in the middle of ault (a unique little town - no joke, there are signs in the town with this written).

heat exhaustion. dehydration. i don't know what happened to me that day, but something kept me from going on. i knew i had to refuel and get ready for the next day. 75 miles is the farthest i've ridden in one day, although i didn't feel like i deserved it. i didn't even complete my trip i had set out to conquer.

corinne bailey rae

2006-08-08T09:15:00.000-06:00

do you like the sounds of norah jones? are you not afraid to listen to chill music? do you like some soul thrown your way? do you like british singers? do you like to expand your music collection?

if all (or any) of these apply to you, check out corinne bailey rae.

i first heard her on kbco studio c. when kbco showcased her, i instantly thought of a norah jones parallel. i like norah jones, so i thought i would check corinne out. it's soulful, which i haven't always been drawn to, but corinne draws everyone in with her soft voice and her precise lyrics.

mount everest of north american cycling

2006-08-05T18:43:00.000-06:00

i just got home from a grueling day of cycling. it was fun, but remember i just started riding 4 weeks ago today.

as i had hinted earlier, today was going to be the high point of my cycling career, and it literally was.

5:15am: i woke up and made some oatmeal for my dad and myself.

6am: we were headed into the rocky mountains.

8am: we set off from idaho springs, colorado (elevation - 7,524 feet) headed up mount evans scenic byway. the first six miles were moderately flat and were somewhat difficult as we were still warming up. the first switchback was fun, but it left my dad behind for the rest of the ride. the ride continued through the trees for 7 miles from the first switchback to echo lake. it had taken me long to get there, but it was alright because i just wanted to finish.

i had to pay a $3 toll for riding my bike the rest of the way, and i headed out from echo lake. again i was riding through some trees until i hit timberline. timberline was fun riding past, but now i could see a lot farther. i winded around some mountains and came to summit lake. 5 miles to go to the peak of mount evans. the wind was cold and i had to put some arm warmers on while i was riding. it was tricky, but i managed.

i hit some more switchbacks, which were draining. i finally hit the summit closing the hardest ride of my career, and the highest ride of most people's careers.

mount evans is the highest paved road in north america.

distance: 28 miles
starting elevation: 7,524 feet
ending elevation: 14,258 feet
starting temperature: 50 degrees farenheit
ending temperature: 19 degrees farenheit windchill (according to the ranger station)
average speed: 8.6 mph
total time: 3:19:47

course map and profile

cycletastic

2006-08-03T14:29:00.000-06:00

my goal for the 5 weeks of riding before i get back to school: 1,000 miles
currently (after almost 3 weeks): 460 miles

yes, i have ridden less than half the 1,000 miles in more than half the time, but who knows. hopefully i can ride the remaining 540 in a little over two weeks - 17 days to be exact. that's about 32 miles a day. who knows. we'll see if i can do it.

happy birthday

2006-08-01T11:03:00.000-06:00

aug 1, 1876 (hence the centennial state) colorado became the 38th state.

steve tesich

2006-07-30T11:12:00.000-06:00

the name might not mean anything to anyone anywhere, but around this household, his name carries meaning. who the heck is he?

steve tesich went to indiana university and used to race bicycles. he would always get "upset" racing against my dad as my dad could draft off of him, but my dad's size disallowed tesich to draft off of my dad. apparently that was a common occurrence. "janelle, why don't you sit up a little more so i can draft," he would tell my dad.

his bicycle career wasn't record-breaking, but his film career is notable. he won an oscar for writing an original screenplay in "breaking away." breaking away, starring dennis quaid, is a film about a cutter in bloomington indiana. everyone should check it out.

tesich also wrote "american flyers," starring kevin costner. both movies have some special meaning for us janelles - moreso for my dad. my dad's sponsor was cool gear which included teammates such as bob cook, davis phinney, bob shaver, and of course jim (my dad) and jack (my uncle) janelle.

bob cook won the mount evans hill climb 5 times in a row but died young. the mount evans hill climb (a 7,000 foot ascent in 28 miles finishing at over 14,000 feet takes place and finishes on the highest paved road in north america) is now named the bob evans hill climb.

davis phinney is the winningest american rider who most notably rode for the famous 7-11 team.

bob shaver went on to start shaver sports (which is kevin costner's sponsor in "american flyers").

my dad had a solid career and made a name for himself in 70's cycling including a win as a junior on mount evans.

my uncle held the mount evans record until his teammate bob cook joined the team and had a solid career too. his son, mike janelle, is now a professional racer.

"breaking away" included some cool gear jerseys in the movie, but "american flyers" story takes the riders to "hell of the west" - the famous coors classic in colorado. the last stage of this particular coors classic took place on mount evans.

i watched these two movies yesterday getting me ready for my cycling. next saturday, weather permitting, my dad and i are going to go for the hardest ride of my career. all i have to say is if i finish it, it will be the high point of my career - or anyone's career. i'll let you know how it goes.

mount audubon

2006-07-28T16:55:00.000-06:00

i took the day off work today. why? my dad and i decided to go hiking up a mountain - a 13,223 foot mountain to be exact.

obviously you don't climb the full 13,000 feet, but you might as well as the air is as thin as a human should be able to handle. it's hard to breathe, but it's fun to climb. (colorado boasts over 50 fourteeners all but one being south of i-70. long's peak is the only fourteener in northern colorado - remember that name)

the day started out at 5:30am when i got out of bed. i packed my bags, ate my blueberry cereal from whole foods along with chocolate milk, and we were off. we stopped at starbucks on the way.

we got up to the base about 7:45 and were about the 5th car in the lot. we were on our way about 7:50. first off, we saw a sign warning us of mountain lions. beware. we were. we climbed up some switchbacks and saw some intriguing mushrooms. whatev. there were also some pretty wild flowers that i had to capture - including colorado's state flower, the rocky mountain columbine. after the switchbacks, we reached timberline.

for those of you who don't know (especially easterners), timberline is the altitude that trees don't grow anymore. some places it's higher than others, but here in colorado it's about 11,000ft.

timberline allowed a beautiful view of the front range (the eastern slopes of the rocky mountains) and the continental divide. long's peak came into view at that time to the north.

now, long's peak is interesting. again, it's the only fourteener (mountain of 14,000 feet of elevation or higher), but it's "twin" mt meeker is next to it with an elevation of less than 14,000 feet.

winding up to the summit of mount audubon proved that there is still snow in colorado in july (no, colorado does not have snow all year round - just in some of the mountains).

the rocky trail led us to the top and climbing to the top wasn't bad. we reached the top about 10:00am and enjoyed the view. we enjoyed the view, now you can enjoy the pictures.

*if you happen to watch the video, i kept saying pike's peak instead of long's peak. pike's peak is the famous peak near colorado springs that was first discovered by zebulon pike. "america the beautiful" was written by the katharine lee bates while visiting pikes peak..."for purple mountain majesties." forgive the mistake, and know that i meant long's peak.

320 miles is nothing

2006-07-26T20:53:00.000-06:00

so far, i've ridden 320 miles on my bike for the last week and a half. it seems like it would have given me a lot of power, muscle, and speed. i was wrong. i was riding the daily "peak to pub" ride today and felt good to start out. i was with the front pack and eager to go. i stuck with the pack for about the first 6 miles. we came up to a light, it turned green just in time, and i was in the wrong gear. they sprinted ahead and i could not catch them. oh well. it was fun to ride the route. i mean really, most of these guys have been riding since february or march so they're months ahead of me. next year i'll get them. next year.

bicycling for fun

2006-07-24T12:23:00.000-06:00

as many of you know, i have been riding my bike lately. what has it given me?

1. shaved legs - yes it's true. i spent a better part of friday figuring out how to get everything shaved, in two sessions. i will not ever underestimate the time it takes to do so.
2. possibly an infected cut from shaving my legs - i was so cocksure of myself that i wasn't paying attention. i felt a little pain and looked down to see blood covering the shower floor. i looked at my razor and peeled off a piece of skin that looked like a transluscent carrot peel. yes it was that long.
3. an odd biker's tan leaving my hands, ankles and feet, torso, and upper arms white while my legs and arms are pink.
4. 293 miles of exploration so far - given a lot of those are repeat miles, you always see new things while riding your bike.

what's next? i am going to ride an easy 2 hour ride today out on the flats. my legs are sore from my 105 miles in the last two days - most of which took place in the rocky mountains. i'll for sure keep everyone updated as my muscles get toned and my skin gets tanned.

royce union - made in west germany, rebuilt in fort collins. day 1

2006-07-20T21:36:00.000-06:00

as many readers have been waiting eagerly to see my new cruiser that i am building, i am now 90% done and will start posting the project.

i had noticed an old black royce union frame hanging in our garage and wondered why it was just hanging there. i then found out its history, and decided to continue its life.

my dad said that he had found that very frame in a dumpster in colorado springs when my parents lived there in the 80's. having worked at a bike shop, he built it up and the guys at the bike shop would use it for errands. not everything worked perfectly on the frame so they had to ghetto-rig some of it. it was going to take a lot for me, but i was ready.

i wanted to keep the vintage feel with keeping the chipped up frame and the old seat, but i did want to clean it up. first things first. i took apart the handlebars, crankset, and fork. these three all had bearings that had old grungy grease that needed to be removed to make way for new grease. it was tedious as i had to use a pencil to get into the rings and polish. i then used steel wool to shine up everything. it wasn't too hard, but it took awhile. and that is what i did in day one...cleaned.

the worst and best 24 hours in cycling

2006-07-20T11:17:00.000-06:00

july 19

la toussuire, france: the american in contention for the yellow jersey in le tour de france, floyd landis, bonked on the last climb of the day. he finished 8 minutes back for the day and moved into 11th place i believe. it almost sounds like my day.

fort collins, colorado: i heard that there was a group ride leaving from lee's cyclery, so i considered going. as time drew near, i didn't know if i wanted to go. there was wind and it looked like it was going to rain. i ended up going. i put on my shorts, jersey, gloves, cleats, helmet, sunglasses, gatorade and energy bars.

i got to lee's cyclery at 5:30. among me were guys with their shorts, jerseys, globes, cleats, helmets sunglasses, water, gatorade and shaved legs. i was out of place as they all knew each other. it was time to go and we were off.

there were two clearly defined groups - a racing group and a citizens group. i found myself in the racing group and was doing well for awhile. we came to a stop light and we all stopped. as the light turned green, all you could hear was the clicking of cleats. for some reason, as i had just clicked in, the person in front of me hit he brakes and i couldn't escape soon enough. i fell down and my chain came off. it didn't hurt, but i missed the light. the citizens group caught me.

i was in the lead of that group (mind you it wasn't really a race). we turned onto highway 287 and we were going south. as we had a tailwind, i decided i wanted to try to catch the racing group. i was going 35mph. i had almost reached them, but they had turned and i realized i didn't know where i was going. i slowed down considerably to wait for the second group so i knew where to go. this threw off my momentum and made me realize i had wasted energy unnecessarily. i was in a group of about 6 people. heading east into the headwind, i couldn't keep up with the top three riders of the citizens race.

we ended up missing our turn and going an extra 5 miles. we then turned north back to fort collins and were still going straight into the north east wind. the last 10 miles were grueling as we had missed our turn and were going into the wind. it was mentally draining. i got done with the ride in about 1:50. the 35 mile ride probably shouldn't have taken that long. oh well, i was done. i didn't care about anything else.

july 20

morzine, france: landis responded to critics by having the best single day in cycling history. he moved from being 8 minutes out of the lead to being 30 seconds off the lead, in one day. usually riders will watch their rivals and stay with them on the climbs. that wasn't going to happen with landis. no one could keep up with him. he outpaced everyone.

l'alpe d'huez

2006-07-18T16:00:00.000-06:00

as the l'alpe d'huez took place today in le tour de france, and i will note that for the first time a luxemberger took the stage - fränk schleck, i took a ride for myself in the foothills of the rocky mountains yesterday.

the twenty five mile or so ride took me past the famous jj's (famous in foco for the entrance to the street that leads up to horsetooth reservoir" up onto that road wich has one switchback before going up to horsetooth dam. centennial drive is one of the best roads in fort collins. to the right and below about three or four hundred feet is the front range (which you can clearly see fort collins). to the left is horsetooth reservoir. there are four substantial climbs in all. being in the lowest gear is the only way i could climb them.

climb one: there is a switchback that slows your momentum to the top.

climb two: the infamous "maniac hill" is the second climb as it is very steep for awhile and as you are getting to the top, you realize it still continues for another five hundred or so meters.

climb three: anyone who knows fort collins knows that hughes stadium, home to the csu rams, is on the other side. on that same hill facing fort collins (since centennial drive is on the back of the hill, you can't see it) is the famous "A" that traditionally gets repainted every year for csu's homecoming ritual (csu used to be colorado a&m and their mascot used to be the aggies, hence the "A"). this climb is hard because you're done with maniac hill and think that you're almost done with the ride. it's the most rewarding hill looking back on when you're done with the mountains surrounding horsetooth in the background.

climb four: this "ceremonial climb" as i call it because it's the last and easiest of the climbs isn't bad at all. it looks hard as you're going downhill to get to the base of it, but it is easy.

after you're done, you coast down past the north dam into the town of bellevue. you then pass verns which is famous for their cinnamon rolls. continuing on, you run into highway two eighty seven, which takes you into oldtown fort collins then a few miles more and i'm at my house.

it is a very scenic ride, and probably it is the most fun so far. it's good for the hills. it's good for the scenery.

as i promised

2006-07-17T19:14:00.000-06:00

check out these great blogs by marian (scooter adventure) and mark (must see tv).

tour de central noco

2006-07-17T08:17:00.000-06:00

well the weekend is over, and i'm a bit sore.

as i know most of you all are following le tour de france intently, as you should, i am following it and doing a bit of some riding myself.

friday night, my dad asked me if i wanted to go for a bike ride saturday morning. i said sure. no, this isn't a lolly dally to get some saturday morning coffee in old town (although i love doing that). i knew this was a get-on-your-shorts-cleats-and-helmet type of ride. we were going for more than a stroll.

saturday, we slept in till eight and got on our bicycle shorts, our jerseys, our helmets, our sunglasses, and our shoes. we were off. a ride through fort collins, across i-twenty five to windsor, past the kodak plant on highway three fifty seven to johnstown back across the interstate to berthoud to fort collins via loveland. approximately sixty-three miles was the total trip (despite getting a flat two and a half miles from my house at the end).

i must say, there's nothing like eating a good meal after a long ride. it's good stuff. after dinner, we called my uncle to see if he would want to ride the next day. he said he would, but wanted to see how we were after we woke up.

sunday, we woke up and were both looking forward to another day of riding. having gone to church the night before, we were preparing for a good day by going grocery shopping. against my will, we went to wal-mart. we then to a local health food sunflower market, then completed our trip at whole foods.

my uncle called and was still surprised we would be ready to ride despite the record-breaking heat (we saw one hundred five degrees, but it may have been marginally hotter). we decided we would leave from his house and head straight east on highway fourteen, then my aunt would leave hours later and drive until she caught up with us. as soon as we left, both my dad and i agreed our seats hurt a bit. we rendez vous-ed with my uncle then were off. as it was calm, out of nowhere a fierce wind came up. it was coming from the west. we fought it off going north for a few miles, but when we turned east, it was the best tailwind. we were off. many hills and climbs met us, but it felt great. we passed ault with ease then were off to brigsdale. there we went to a campsite and got some water. the attendant greeted us and showed us the pump with better water and asked if there was anything we needed. we didn't but thanked her and were on our way. at that point, my uncle decided to go on ahead (he passed one thousand miles for the summer on that trip so he was in better shape). my dad and i slowed down to about sixteen miles per hour for the next eighteen miles. my aunt picked us up there.

stats:day two
max speed: thirty six mph (approximately fifty eight kmh)
average speed: approximately eighteen mph (approximately twenty eight and a half kmh)
total distance: sixty one miles

my legs are a bit sore, but i feel good. it was a fun weekend.

*click to enlarge

as a side note, check this out about fort collins.
1. coloradoan
2. today@nbc
3. money
4. you get the point

i need your advice, expertise, and support

2006-07-12T20:12:00.000-06:00

so i had the craziest idea after reading "a walk in the woods" and an article in "fort collins weekly" about a guy who gave himself thirty days to make his one hundred dollars into one million dollars. he created a kitchen swiss army knife tool that is a few contracts away from making one million dollars. he has until july sixteenth.

so what's my idea? well, i don't think (although it might be nice) that it will make one million dollars, but a few bucks would be helpful.

my idea: since i am building up a one speed crusier, i wondered how i could do three things i constantly want to do:
1. excercise
2. have an adventure
3. make money

how do i do these three things? ride my (one speed cruiser) bike from fort collins, colorado to lynchburg, virginia where i go to college. how in the heck am i going to do this?

believe me, it will be a hard feat especially since school starts in about five weeks from today. i need to get my bike ready, sponsors, and fine tune the plans.

sponsors: i was thinking of having two sponsors, grand sponsors and journey sponsors. (names subject to change) grand sponsors pledge to give me one dollar per mile ONLY after i finish. journey sponsors pledge ten, twenty, one hundred dollars or whatever for a certain leg of the journey (ten, twenty, one hundred miles or whatever respectively). i would like to set up a blog or website documenting my journey, as well as, video tape the journey and make a documentary of it. i don't have a video camera though. i would camp along the way, unless people take me in for the night.

like i said, i need to fine tune the details and work on sponsors quickly. i just have ideas of doing local bike, food, and beverage businesses around fort collins, but i don't know how to go about contacting/presenting to them. if you have any advice, i'll need your help. what do you think?

goodwill good price

2006-07-11T15:46:00.000-06:00

the scene: as i was walking around old town after doing some work at mugs, i remembered that goodwill was around the corner. remembering the sweet fort collins soccer club soccer jersey that my brother bought, i figured i would see what it had to offer me.

it is so hard to go to thrift stores for me. it's either adult clothes that are too big for me or its kids clothes that are very kiddish. i guess it's a long shot for all people who shop at goodwill.

i did find two kids shirts that i knew would be perfect, then i meandered over to the dishes section. i saw a brown and white set that i thought i'd like. then i saw a sixties mikasa flower set that i really liked. with some consulting and thinking, i decided to buy the four dinner plates, the five saucers, and the two salad plates. don't try to bargain at goodwill - it's no use. oh well, nine dollars for eleven mikasa dishes is fair in my opinion.

with any old dishes, i will now work to finish my collection on ebay. so, if you come across some mikasa dishes, leilani d1765, that's what i need. i don't care what anyone says. flowers are not always girlie, especially if they're cool sixties ones. if you don't like them, i won't feed you on them. enjoy.

mile high suspense

2006-07-10T15:45:00.000-06:00

i know, i mean i really know, that all of you out there are eager to read about my royce union cruiser project that i am going to write about.

if you didn't know, i'm working on restoring an old royce union cruiser into a one speed coaster brake cruiser.

i am currently waiting for my coaster brake back wheel to come in then, i need to get some tires - i'll hold out on saying what kind for now. i 'm also looking into other accessories to add, but i should be on the road (no pun intended) blogging about my royce union soon. what the heck, i'll give you a preview of the bike in it's original form. enjoy.

cheers.

i'm speechless

2006-07-09T16:27:00.000-06:00

france struggled through the qualifying for world cup 2006, and when it came time for the world cup, zinedine zidane came out of retirement to help les bleus during the world cup.

at the beginning, france looked like a mediocre team and did not show too much excitement. as the tournament went on, france kept getting better and found ways to win. then they made it to the world cup final.

in the first twenty minutes, zinedine zidane scored a penalty kick on a controversial call, then italy came back and tied it. the whole game was back and forth with both sides having their chances. it was a nail-biting contest for everyone watching. regulation ended with a one one tie, and extra time was played. the first fifteen minutes was somewhat boring as france controlled the ball but didn't score. the second overtime will go down in history forever, unfortunately for france. unfortunately for zidane.

as stated before, zidane came out of retirement to help les bleus to the final. he was well respected and people all over wanted to see him win a world cup in his last game...so, why did he do what he did? what did he do?

in the one hundred tenth minute, marco materazzi must have said something to zidane that zidane didn't like. zidane proceded to headbutt materazzi leaving him flat on the ground. zidane got a red card and left a bad taste in fans all over the world. i was chearing for france and was biting my nails, but after zidane headbutted materazzi, i lost interest and didn't care about the outcome. i felt if france won, they didn't deserve it, but if they lost, they deserved it. it was a very unfortunate event, and it will be remembered for a long time to come. it was the worst world cup game i have ever seen.

* on a personal note, this cost me a bet or two

worldview post part 3: i need your help

2006-07-08T21:22:00.000-06:00

so i was chilling in the shower after a rain soccer game (yes there are few things in this world more relaxing than a hot shower after a soccer game in the rain) and i was thinking. i don't know what the occasion was (alright inside joke).

again, as with all of my worldview posts, this is from a christian worldview so either talk from yours (if it's a christian one) or try to jump into a christian worldview for this discussion.

a lot of times we (everyone) believe what we believe because that's what our parents, teachers, pastors (bishops, fathers, rabbi's, other religious figures) tell us is right. but that's not a good process. we should know what we believe because we believe it, not because that's what we've been told. so here's what i was thinking in the shower and i have foregone thinking deep into this for the sake of hearing everyone else's opinion. so please, comment on this so i can hear what you have to say about this.

we often get punished for not doing or believing what our parents believe. it may not necessarily be wrong, but because our parents deem it wrong, we get punished for it. so here's my thought:
can we narrow our decisions to a few guidelines or are there more that we should allow people to structure their lives around and not be ashamed for ones outside of these.

1. if it is legal, and
2. if the bible doesn't go against it, and
3. if it doesn't hurt others

it is alright to do.

so think about it, are those the only criteria, or should there be more that parents could teach kids. if they follow those three guidelines (or more if you think) then anything they do goes unpunishable and should not be talked against. it seems like there are more criteria that should be used, but i think we complicate things too much. again, i didn't think too hard about this, so let me hear your opinions. are those three criteriums sufficient, or should there be more? please, give me your opinions.

allez les bleus!

2006-07-08T15:24:00.000-06:00

eleven thirty mountain standard time july ninth two thousand six.

france vs. italy

unless you're kate, cheer for france and chant "allez les bleus!" (ah-lay lay bleuh [as in book]); go blue!

fédération française de football

coming soon to a screen near you

2006-07-07T11:41:00.000-06:00

so for a fun side project, i decided to fix up an old royce union cruiser frame that was collecting dust in the garage. it is going to be an uber basic project, but it's fun anyway.

i'm fixing up the bike into a single speed coaster brake. in other words, a coaster brake on your bike means you don't have hand brakes on the handle bars. you reverse the rotation of the pedals (backwards) which engages the brake. unlike those kids bikes (like the one i used to have) you can still coast without pedaling.

so, i'm fixing this bike, and i will keep an online journal of my project daily. it will be coming soon to a screen near you. until then, read my other blogs.
*actual badge *badge from google

maria sharapova

2006-07-06T14:11:00.000-06:00

july six, two thousand six. this match will for sure be one that will be grouped with the classics among the ages. as many readers know, i am a fan of maria sharapova. i know i'm not the only one, but i have good reasons.

what would any tennis player do when they are down six three, three one, love forty in the best out of three. for anyone that doesn't know about the scoring, i'll elaborate. women's tennis is the best two out of three sets to a match. the first one to six games wins the set (winning by two). of course tennis scoring for a game goes love, fifteen, thirty, forty (deuce if needed, then advantage) with the one who gets the point after forty or advantage winning the game - winning by two of course. confused? yeah it's confusing, especially in words.

just to put it simply, she was down a set, about to go down in the second set four one, but fought back from three one love forty (mauresmo, the opponent by the way, only had to get one point before sharapova got four in the fifth game to win). i won't even start to explain break points.

ok, so sharapova fought back from love forty three games to six in the second match to win the point, win the game, win the next four games after that to even the match at one set to one. she wasn't giving up.

momentum was on her side, so what do you think happened? actually sharapova went down four love in the third match. so naturally you think it's over, right? did you forget who i'm writing about? sharapova fought back to win the next two games. four two.

maria sharapova would go on to lose the next two games, very closely. it was probably the best ladies single match i have ever watched - despite the unfavorable outcome.

you don't know how tempted i was to go to wimbledon's website to see who won (a lot of times sports played in europe, or elsewhere, are taped and shown at a more convenient time for prime time audiences). it was a great game between two world class ladies tennis players. hats off to both. an extra nod and smile to sharapova.

vive la france!

2006-07-05T17:25:00.000-06:00

so they did it. well they made it at least. france has made it to the final in the world cup for the second time in eight years. last time they were in this position, they won the whole world cup on their own turf. let's see if they can do it again on their northern neighbor's turf against their southern neighbors.

near the end of the first half, france got a penalty kick which zidane masterfully put in the back of the net. tune your tubes to the world cup on sunday. it will be the ninety-four runners up against the ninety-eight winners.

france vs italy

european sports

2006-07-04T10:11:00.000-06:00

this is a great day for sports and they are all taking place in a close radius and a couple neighboring countries with another separated by a channel. although nothing final has been established today, history is being made.

1. tour de france: matthias kessler struggled so hard yesterday but was overtaken in the last stretch won the stage today. overall standings changed a bit with american george hincapie is five seconds behind and in third place.

2. wimbledon: if you think i was putting on my poker face and bluffing, think again. maria sharapova cruised through the russian match by defeating fellow russian elena dementieva moving into the women's single semi-finals at the two thousand six wimbledon, the championships.

3. world cup: speaking of semi-finals, the world cup semi-finals kick off today with host germany taking on the much-controversial italy. germany has never beaten italy in world cup history, but history may be the only thing going against germany. germany has a new-found energy not usually seen by the squad. although if you asked me twelve years ago who i was cheering for, i would have prouldy said italy. this game, i am cheering for germany. i would love to see a germany france final. time will tell. turn your telies this holiday and see some european sports in the making.

happy fourth of july.

cherry creek arts festival

2006-07-03T18:01:00.000-06:00

i just got back from the high-energy cherry creek arts festival in the north cherry creek shopping district in denver. cherry creek arts festival, which i will call ccaf, had artists from around the globe with arts ranging from drawings to paintings to sculptures to music to food. considering cherry creek is a fun place in itself, it was a perfect setting for the ccaf. people of all ages were able to enjoy interactive activities from kids painting tents to illustration interaction. food was ranging from snow cones to local burgers and pizza to starbucks to beer. ccaf is a must for any visitor or any resident in town fourth of july weekend.

happy birthday lacoste

2006-07-02T22:20:00.000-06:00

july second, nineteen o' four lacoste was born. not the clothing brand, the man, the crocodile, jean rené lacoste.

most people don't know there is such a guy. most people know lacoste as being the trendy clothes worn around the world. most people know the funky clothes made in france. jean rené lacoste is the beginning. jean rené lacoste is l'homme.

jean rené lacoste made a name for himself as a tennis player in the twenties. he claimed singles titles in the french, us, and british opens, as well as, forrest hills and wimbledon. he also was part of the doubles winning the french championships, french open, british open, and wimbledon. he was ranked number one in nineteen twenty six and nineteen twenty seven. i know, you love learning about lacoste's tennis career, but you're really wondering about the clothes...of course.

one time he bet a friend that he would win a tennis match and the prize was an alligator-skin suitcase. after winning, his friend embroidered a crocodile on his jacket and the american press started calling him "the alligator." in nineteen thirty three lacoste collaborated with andré gillier, the president of the largest french knitwear manufacturing firm, to sell his "crocodile wear." so there you have it.

world cup 2006

2006-07-01T14:55:00.000-06:00

1-0
vive la france!

Que-est ce que vous aimez regarder?

2006-07-01T08:33:00.000-06:00

the one sport event, the one time of the year, the one household sporting conversation that is talked about most in our family yearly, it is not the superbowl, it is not the stanley cup, it is not the world cup. it is le tour de france.

this may be true for families across america today, but i was watching le tour before armstrong made his run, i watched it as early as i remember. as eddy merckx and greg lemond have been as familiar as john elway and michael jordan to me, nous aimons regarder le tour de france - we love to watch the tour de france.

the question this year is who will win with lance out. will it be basso, ullrich, mancebo, or vinokourov from italy, germany, spain, and kazakhstan repectively? they did finish second, third, fourth, and fifth in that order. who will it be?

none of them. as doping scandals has rocked le tour for years, these four know about the scandal in the harsh way. they all will not be able to ride this year because of the scandal.

le tour kicked off today with the seven and one-tenth kilometer individual time trial as the norwegian thor hushovd took first place with a time of eight minutes seventeen seconds and lance armstrong's wingman and leader of this years discovery team george hincapie came in second with a time of eight minutes seventeen seconds and seventy-three hundredths of a second.

merckx. lemond.

wimbledon update

2006-06-30T16:48:00.000-06:00

2003: i had never watched tennis much in my life, but for some reason this year was different. i followed it some, but some players caught my eye.

2004: i had my player picked out to watch and it wasn't just because i thought she was cute. i knew she had potential to take on the hingis', the graf's, and the williams of women's tennis. people criticized her for her play and immaturity. people ridiculed me claiming i was just cheering for a cute girl. when it was her time to take on serena williams, everyone thought that the thirteenth seed was no match for the first seed. i knew differently. i knew right. time would tell, and i should have taken people up on their bets - even though i had bragging rights and that was good enough for me, maria sharapova became the two thousand four wimbledon champ. she has talent, she has vigor, she has aggression. unless you have your favorite picked out, vote sharapova.

maria sharapova

what do you think?

2006-06-29T19:31:00.000-06:00

christian conservatism - really, how legit is it?

2006-06-28T12:41:00.000-06:00

this may be the second in my series of worldview posts. in fact. i'll deem it that.

as most people have noticed - whether they live inside or outside christian circles - that christians tend to be more conservative. *let me make this note, these opinions are in fact stereotypes and both sides can carry both extremes. i understand that there are many non-christians that are very conservative, and there are many christians that aren't so conservative, but have an open mind.

christians are taught to do things that the world doesn't do. in some circles, this means don't dress the same - wear khakis and collared shirts, absolutely no shorts for guys, and skirts for the girls. other circles (or the same) interpret this as don't listen to music with beat or secular lyrics. more left (or not as far right) circles allow for dress and music but not alcohol or tobacco. so really, are christians supposed to be more conservative from the (secular) "world" or is that a church misleading.

i have seen both sides. i think christians must be careful what they do and don't do. i don't think it is necessary for christians to necessarily be conservative, whatever that means. i think it is alright for churches to have drums and guitars and for the people attending to (modestly) wear whatever they want. i mean really, who is to say what we should wear in church. i hardly think that jesus stood out in crowds with his clothes. people say that we should dress up out of respect. i can see that, but i've also been to churches that the guys are all in suits and the girls are all in dresses with an attitude that screams hypocrite. i've been in churches that the previous church would look down on but have genuine hearts and attitudes of growing spiritually and aiding others around them to do so as well.

isn't worship and church about your heart anyway. who's to judge someone with a t-shirt in church if god is the one to judge.

christian conservatism has gone too far in my opinion. we can't say "the world is doing this, let's do the opposite" and be doing the right thing always. there are so many non-christians that are putting christians to shame with their "samaritan" acts and their hearts and attitudes. instead of worrying about our clothes or our music in church, we need to live lives that portray the life of jesus, that makes us -yes i am a christian- live up to our names. i think christian and conservative can be synonymous, but i think christian and conservative do not have to be synonymous, but rather liberal or conservative can be right if they follow the christian guidelines, in my opinion. i know this is debatable, so i want to hear what you have to say about it. prove me wrong. prove me right.

foco, noco, loco

2006-06-28T10:41:00.000-06:00

it's been a descent last couple of days. same routine.

yesterday, i drove down to denver to pick up my brother, because he's in town for a couple days. we ate at a cool carribean restaurant at the trendy highlands square neighborhood in west denver. i ordered jerk chicken, even though i intended on ordering curry chicken. i'm not good with hot food, and this chicken was uber spicy. oh well, it tasted good. back north to foco, noco (fort collins, northern colorado for you non-fort collins, northern colorado lingoists) pat and i drove. we talked about his plans in la and typical brother catch up chats. we got back and chatted it up with the parents then i was off to two more soccer games.

the first game, we played the all-infamous core staff team. craig deacon wasn't there, heck if i know why. we didn't mind, and the usual trash-talking started (sarcastically me being my self of course).
"you guys only have three players?" they asked me.
"yeah, but we only need three players,against you guys" i told them.
i knew they had no sense of humor so i expected it when they scoffed at it. the game got started and we played really well. it was a great game. we were up six four with thirty seconds left and they scored. six five. then they were carrying the ball back to the midfield to speed up the game, but he dropped it and i picked it up, so he proceded to push me in disgust. oh well, we were the first team to beat them this season. they lost their second game six one.

the second game was against a team who wasn't that good, but needless to say we didn't play well either. we lost. i'm extremely sore today.

a side project: i found two of my grandpa's old pipes and have speculated through research that they're about seventy years old. i want to restore them.

*a few posts ago, i decided the dog i want evenutally and found new pictures of it so you can see why i want it.

coton de tuléar

no more master of the domain

2006-06-25T12:59:00.000-06:00

last night was the official ending of my housesitting run as i left the house. it was a good week that i enjoyed thoroughly.

as the world cup was happening, i was able to watch on their hdtv and surround sound. that made a difference in the experience. i was able to watch the dog, maggie, that gave me the urge to get a dog. i fed the birds, the fish, and the guinea pig. i watered the plants. it was an uber-chill week as i didn't have to do much at all. most nights met me with a sunset sillhouetting the front range and horsetooth while relaxing in the hot tub, and the days were filled with reading at the pool, walking on the trails through the neighborhood, entertaining friends, and , of course, working.

thursday night, steve came over and we had tempeh burgers, asparagus, goat cheese and basil spread (which i roughly made up, roughly copied) on crostini's, and a rough draft of raspberry garden fruit smoothies. it was a great time of cooking, conversation, hot tubbing, and relaxing.

cooking. maggie. sunset.

anti-consequence - the guide to life

2006-06-22T12:59:00.000-06:00

as some have noticed, i have been on a writing frenzy lately. why? i don't know. while i'm working, reading, and thinking i think to write. i think that writing is a good "therapy." as stated before, these words are merely an expression of my thoughts. i don't know how many people read them, but it doesn't matter.

as the world is diverse and families and friends are diverse, are we all supposed to be diverse? i mean the "world" thrives on diversity and makes their stand on diversity. we are all brought up under our parents and raised with their beliefts, standards, ethics, and morals. we then break free and choose for ourselves what we want to do. we are continuously scolded and disciplined for not following our parents standards. is that right? what is right?

as i grew up "believing" what my parents believe, i was stunned when my oldest brother bombarded me with questions of why i believed what i believed. i was speechless as it was obvious i didn't know. i "believed" what i believed because that's what my parents, school, and church told me to believe. isn't that all i needed? then i had some challenges.

i went to an uber-conservative christian school that pulled me from the right. i had friends and family that pulled me from the left. i had friends and family that pulled me from outside my moral bubble. it was definitely time to know what i believe and believe it for a reason.

i am a christian and believe the same "religious" beliefs as my parents - not because they taught me but because i have a solid reason to. i feel that the moral and ethical decisions i make are the best for me and for society. i don't sleep around, because i know there are consequences of doing so and don't think that it is a coincidence. i don't get drunk, buy minors alcohol, eat tons of food, do drugs, or steal for the same reason. outside of religious beliefs, i think it is perfectly clear what is right or wrong by the consequences following. resulting consequences can be a very clear rule of thumb to follow setting aside religious beliefs. i don't follow crowds. some see that as a curse, but i see it as a blessing. i am not as conservative of a christian as some of my friends. i don't think that drinking alcohol is wrong and have done it. i am fully against being drunk, but i don't dress to set myself apart from the secular world. i do go to church and don't use vulgar language often. i try to be the best friend and person i can be.

now, the question i have wondered. as i make choices that my right-wing christian friends don't agree with and i have family and friends that don't make choices i agree with, how are we supposed to handle it? i feel betrayed and hurt. am i betraying and hurting others with my choices? how do i act towards the people i feel betrayed and hurt by?

it's a hard scenario. how exactly do we handle those who are outside of our moral bubble and make choices we disagree with? i know i am on the inside of the bubble with some people, and i am outside of the bubble with others.

farewell usa in world cup 2006

2006-06-22T09:52:00.000-06:00

i can't say i'm too thrilled about the performance that the united states has shown this world cup. i didnt' know anything about the team until coverage in germany started. i found out that we had "the best team the united states has ever sent to the world cup." i didn't see it. i think the us puts too much effort on strategy and possession than pushing forward and passion. i think i saw more passes backwards in the first game than i've ever seen. the us put forth a good effort in the second game, but with the help of the referees, they had to play 9 on 10 for several minutes. the third game, no one showed urgency. i have to admit, beasley had a good pass to dempsey in the forty-third minute that was put in the back of the net. other than that, the dempsey/donovan duo could have maybe scored if only the goalie was on the field and not the full eleven players. if it was anyone else who was playing, they would have had passion and would have played for fun. i don't know if it was bruce arena or donovan or reyna, but the us was very disappointing this world cup. i have to give it to ghana. they proved to the world that they deserve to be in the world cup.

the world cup is about strategy about mind games. don't take that to heart united states. the world cup is about passion and having fun. the united states didn't have passion and it sure wasn't fun.

i have decided

2006-06-21T22:11:00.000-06:00

as i have never (ever) owned a pet in my house and have been housesitting, i have grown fond of pets, specifically dogs. (alright, i have owned a few betas in college, but does that really count?) i had decided earlier that i wanted a scottish terrier but after some research, i have changed my mind. i have always wanted a small dog that could follow me in the house, that i could take for walks and play with, and that would not shed a lot or smell. luckily for me, the breed i found is an non-allergenic breed meaning that even people allergic to dogs shouldn't be allergic.

when madagascan sailors were sailing, they would bring little white dogs along to accompany the women and children, as well as, eat the mice and rats on the ship. one ship was caught in a storm and the ship sank, no one survived, but several of these little white dogs swam into the port of tuléar on the southern side of madagascar. this particular breed found its way to france which the french gave the name coton de tuléar (cotton of tuléar). that is it. i have decided that when i live on my own eleven months from now, i will invest in a coton de tuléar. ranging between 9.5-13" and weigh an average 14lbs., i know i could handle one. they're cute, they're small, they're active, they're fun, they're happy. i'm not saying i'm cute, but i can relate to the rest. you know how you can look at dog owners and know they are perfect for their dogs.

i know, but do you

2006-06-20T13:35:00.000-06:00

what: if you know me, you probably know. if you don't know me, you'll quickly find out. i'm random, very random at times.

why: because i can and you can't.

and it is: a random picture blog about myself, my parents, and my house. learn about me. learn about us. enjoy.

ink - what does it mean to you

2006-06-19T11:15:00.000-06:00

aspen. denver. what do these two places have in common? they are both located in the centennial state. they are both located in the highest state in mean elevation. they are both located south of i-seventy. they both are located at least a mile high.

well yes, these all are common denominators of aspen and denver, but one thing that coffee connaisseuers may find in common is ink! ink! coffee is brilliant in style, in taste, in atmosphere. as i am sitting in lodo (lower downtown for the non-denver lingo-ists), i am getting ready to work. after my parents got back from lake tahoe less than 48 hours ago, they're off to phoenix for the week. my godmother is moving out from phoenix back to join us (mainly to be close to her grandkids) which we are all happy about. the pheonix real estate market proved to be favorable for her and she benefited immensely.

so here i am, on my way back to the house that i am housitting for the week (i'll write more on that in a few days) after some work.

lodo mustsee: ink! unless however you're in the mood for some food. the list is endless for eateries, but i want to check out zenga, which i have heard about. (zenga is nestled across the street from ink! coffee, but i'm having a hard time finding info on the net for it).

l'histoire au café...pour moi.

2006-06-16T12:39:00.000-06:00

forgive my french, literally, as it may be gramatically or completely incorrect, but i enjoy french and hope to get better at it. if it is wrong, forgive me. if it works, read on. now, let me tell you about the history of coffee...for me.

nineteen eighty eight: as my uncle would babysit us (he was a 25 year old bachelor) we loved him. we always looked forward to him visiting from denver as he would put us in boxes and skateboard us around the neighborhood. he would then put us in a car seat with a helmet and skateboard us around the neighborhood pretending we were in a space shuttle. one time, whether it was a family renuion or get together (i forget) he was to take us to our aunt and uncle's in salina, kansas (i'm sure my parents just wanted a break so they met us there). he brought some unfamiliar candy for us as it looked like round chocolates. smooth, round, soft, aromatically pleasing. i bit into one and found a hard core. it was unfamiliar, but i liked it. about twenty chocolate-covered espresso beans later, we were all wired. i don't know too many people who could handle a four, six, and eight year old buzzing from coffee and chocolate on a six hour car ride.

nineteen ninety five: going to a small, private, christian school growing up, fifth and sixth graders at my school would put on a "dinner theatre" as a fundraiser for a three day camp we would go on. so the routine happened. we would have auditions, the same kids would get the main parts, and the rest of us would be everyone-is-in-the-play type characters - whatever that was. i'm sure the teachers would pencil in characters to fit everyone in. anyway, before the play we would serve dinner, usually salad, and either spaghetti or lasagna. then we would clean up, start the show, and serve coffee/dessert during intermission. that's where it happened.

trevor was my accomplice as we both had minor (if you can even claim them as being that major) parts. we found the coffee, cream, and sugar in the back room as the play was in the spotlight. we decided that we should have some. of course it was just gross for eleven year olds so we had to put some creme and some sugar in our coffee. gross. we had to put alot of sugar and alot of cream in our coffee to be good. anyone that has ever spent more than five minutes around eleven year olds know what sugar and coffee can do.

nineteen ninety six: my aunt (the wife of my previous bachelor uncle) had a peculiar looking drink and offered some to me (with my parent's approval). mmm, it was warm like hot chocolate, it was sweet like hot chocolate, but it had that coffee taste that i had remembered before. i made a note of the "espresso" written on the side of the cup for when i had a chance of my own to order a non-hot chocolate drink.

remembering exactly what i had seen and being surprised at the price, i looked confidently and boldly at the starbucks barista.
"i'll have an espresso please."
...
"are you sure, it's pretty strong" said the barista looking at an eight year old looking twelve year old.
"oh i know. i had one the other day, and it was tasty," i said even more confidently.
the barista looked at my brother, then sixteen, for guidance but found none.
"alright, is that all for today"
my brother got a drink too, which i forget exactly. as i got my espresso, i wondered why it was so small. maybe because i was small, i thought. this explains the price, my proceding thought declared.
as i delicately handled the warm, smooth, rich liquid, i tipped it to my little lips and sipped the foam... it was the worst thing i had ever touched. this most definitely wasn't espresso. i knew my espresso and this wasn't it.
we walked to church meeting the rest of the family as they had to prepare for sunday school or something. peter finished his drink with no resistance.

nineteen ninety seven: as i went to the same school for twelve years (kindergarten through eleventh grade - the same small private school) i knew everyone. my eighth grade year came along, and i met the new girl in ninth grade. seeing that i looked three years premature my age and she looked three years mature her age, everyone naturally picked us (sarcastically) to be friends. well that exact thing happened and we hung out quite a bit. as most guys liked her at the school, i was happy she hungout with me at all, even especially since it was alot. we declared that we would go to starbucks (this time i would take the upper hand and make sure they gave me what i ordered) once a month to reminisce about life, school, sports, and...her guys. i do believe i chose a caramel macchiato most of the time as it was coffee, but sweet, and tasty. those were fun times. as i'm sure she hadn't consumed as much coffee as i had since she was easily nine inches to a foot taller than me, people would often ask if she was babysitting (despite our only sixteen month age difference. her now-fiance is thirty two months younger :).

two thousand three: as i had moved to littleton, colorado, i was looking for a job - preferably at a restaurant. i think i walked in to a mexican restaurant and wasn't too thrilled. i was then walking around downtown littleton, poking my head into different places when i walked in to main street tavern. i asked the guy if they were hiring, and he looked at me with a smirk and said, "we aren't, but you might check next door," as he realized i was far too young to work at a tavern (i had thought it was a restaurant). i then went next door and was amazed with the preset dining room, the white table cloths, the sparkling glasses, the custom-made light holders, the workwers wearing dress pants and finely pressed white shirts.
"i talked to the guy next door, and he said you might be hiring. i'm a college student and i just moved here, and am looking for a job."
"we are, and you're just the type of person we're looking for," richard said in a charming british accent. "fill out this application, bring it back tomorrow before four, and allan will be here to talk to you." so i did, and with some convincing (despite having not previous restaurant or wine knowledge whatsoever), i got the job. it turned out to be the best job i have ever had until this summer. it also turned out to not just be a fine dining restaurant, but it was a café as well. i learned how to work the espresso machine and soon was making drinks for the whole kitchen staff (as i enjoyed experimenting, and they seemed to like my coffee opus - opus is the name of the restaurant by the way). i then learned about wine and coffee, becoming somewhat of a connaisseur of both - moreso coffee as i couldn't drink the wine only being nineteen years old.

that was the groundbreaking coffee time for me. i had grown to love coffee, but at that point, i realized how it was made, the different steps involved, and the appreciation for the wonderfully smelling beans. even though during college my college years it has been easiest to drink coffee black, i mostly enjoy drinking drip coffee black, café nature, but, unlike my particular friend david who will only drink it one way, will drink it according to my mood. café nature, café crème, café au lait - it all depends. i have found that i am very productive, in fact most productive, with written work, research, or designing while in a coffee shop atmosphere.

craig deacon

2006-06-14T11:54:00.000-06:00

the name might not mean anything to most people, but around fort collins soccer, it's a big name. with a resumé unrivaled by most people, he is a standout in fort collins.

born in london, england, he has played division 3, 2, and 1 soccer in england. he has coached in several countries and states including the fort collins women's professional soccer team, the fort collins force. he started his own soccer camp, core soccer, which has won two national titles. craig deacon knows coaching. craig deacon knows soccer.

as this is the year of soccer, i am busy during my free time watching world cup and now playing on a team. i was debating playing as soccer doesn't have the same glamour as it used to. if me, my teammates, everyone we played, and all the fans had class and maturity, soccer would be fun. craig deacon does not have class.

his "core staff" team, made up of primarily brits, is the best team in the men's competitive league - no question about it. they play with chemistry, they play with spark, and they play with creativity. it's hard, and nearly impossible for us, to stop them.

a simple example of the teams non-class is when we shot at the goal and phil cooper stuck out his hand to stop the goal. someone who's played division 1 soccer in england as phil has knows not to do that. if the refs weren't the "core staff's" players, phil should have received a red card. that doesn't matter though, it's not about the red card, it's about class. ridiculous, yeah. forgivable, yeah.

what gets to me is craig. craig, as stated earlier, is a great player and coach. it felt good to score the first goal yesterday as we slid past them twice. we were practicing long shots before the game but i couldn't hit the goal in the game. admittedly, they probably got in my head. now back to craig. last year it started. as i received a pass from a friend, i stepped between craig and the ball using my body as a shield. i was a textbook play if i must say so myself. as he tried to kick the ball, he tripped over me and raised his hands in disgust as he thought he should get a call. anyone who has ever played division 1 soccer in england or even watched any soccer ever knows that that is a very acceptable play.

last night as we were getting beaten, probably 8-2 at least, my friend was dribbling toward the goal and i, having been a student of soccer as i have studied games upon games, stood in front of craig providing a screen and a shield - again a perfectly legal play. he then proceeded to push me from behind. sure, that's fine, he was frustrated and he retaliated. i can handle that. rightfully so, i got the call and there was a free kick. what happened next is what bothered me.

the "core staff" is loved by many people. kids who go to the core training camp, who watch force games, and are in awe of their ability, admire the "core staff." unfortunately, craig doesn't take this to heart...craig said to me, "stop being a dickhead in front of the kids, our fans. they are watching" as he said it loud enough for the kids, our fans to hear. i didn't cry to my parents as i was called that, but i was disappointed as craig deacon, the coach for the force that kids love to watch and a trainer for core soccer that kids are the nucleus of the camp, said that in front of the fans. as craig deacon is one of the greatest players in fort collins and has so many people admiring him, he should have class. he should shake off his fouls. he should have fun and be a good sport. i take that back, he's not one of the greatest soccer players in fort collins. the great soccer players don't just have skills, they have class, charisma, and character. craig deacon doesn't.

world cup 2006

2006-06-12T15:35:00.000-06:00

world cup two thousand six. although the united states had a very disappointing loss to the czech republic this morning (us-mountain standard time), we are very much in the running in group e. italy pulled off a much-needed win against ghana which will be our biggest contender for 2nd place i think. if we pull off wins against both ghana and italy then we will most likely advance, but we won't do it if we play like today. today we kind of looked like canada, china, congo, indonesia, and greece as these teams have been to the world cup but never scored in a world cup. i think we had more backward passes than forward and we just looked, as many have pointed out, flat. other than reyna's shot that hit the post, we looked like we were warming up for a game the whole ninety minutes. saturday, turn your televisions to abc at one o'clock us-mst.

i have to admit, it was more fun being in england during the two thousand two world cup. the spirit was more alive and people cared more. pubs stopped. shops closed. the games were the most important events of the time. it has been impressive though how locals have adapted to the events.

forget hockey. forget basketball. although these are respectable sports, and i usually like watching hockey more, the world cup is a once-every-four-years event and loved by all (well, except canada, china, congo, indonesia, and greece). do it, and you'll be glad.

i don't know why, but it's here again

2006-06-08T11:49:00.001-06:00

as i have been back in fort collins and enjoying every minute of it, i have been filling my time with work, running, riding my bike to old town, socializing, and...designing.

every summer i get on a kick of learning dreamweaver, fireworks, and flash - all macromedia products. again, i'm here this summer and i have used mainly dreamweaver and fireworks to build a basic site. it's 99% done and i have enjoyed it. so if you don't know a lot about me, check it out and learn some stuff. .sean janelle.

(my unofficial logo. see my site to understand.)