Monday

Well, let's talk about my break so far. Since I was "UNABLE" to participate in my trade mission to Croatia due to what I would like to refer to as "Technical Difficulties" [p.s. Brandon, your parents STILL haven't called me about my passport which leads me to believe that it's @ ACU], I had to pursue alternative forms of entertainment this break.

I woke up fairly early Sunday morning, cleaned my house and began to pack for home [packing consisted of a couple pairs of jeans, a jacket and a hoodie, toiletrees, and two hampers of dirty clothes]. I called Tyler to make sure he was awake and began to pack the car. Estimated Time of Departure: 9:15 A.M. As I was packing the car, a very nervous Mrs. Cosgrove called me because Tyler wasn't picking up his phone. I reassured her that I had already spoken with Tyler and that he was most definately up. I got gas, picked Tyler up, and we were off! ON TIME I MIGHT ADD... and, with homemade bannana bread! MMM!!! [Good job Tyler, although baking in the dark is clearly a questionable practice!]

We were off! We made it to Dallas in record tiime, talkin' the whole way. We stopped in Arlington @ Braums and had lunch. Then we were @ DFW. My DB8 partner's dad helped us unload the car. I hung out in the terminal with them for a while until it was about time to go. I everyone a hug and took my leave. [The girls were not aware of the whole shindig, so when I headed out they were confused, and after I explained what happened and that I wasn't coming, they were noticibly upset.]

I headed to a hosptial off of 690 and chilled with Mary Helen and Norbert - old friends of la familia from Lockhart. Then, after a few hours, we headed to Austin.

I spent the night at Andrew's.

As I was on my way there Andrew and I decided I would get more concise directions after I was close enough to use them. Interestingly enough, Andrew wasn't answering his phone when I got to Austin proper. So, in a panic, I called his mom. HEHEHE

He and Scott and I took a tour of UT in the dark and ordered pizza from Austin's Pizza [frappin' good!]. Then, we ate it and watched Down With Love. Then, we went to HEB where, besides being scared by the ghetto signs reading "Hispanic Cookies" in Aisle 8, the number of inebriated people alarmed but didn't surprise me. Among that population were some of my dear friends from high school debate dramas: John and Barron Heymann from Corpus Christi King.

It was a good day, and a good night.

p.s. andrew - your roomate odds me out.

p.p.s. the outlet malls on they way home totally rocked.

I Don't Want To Talk About It - So DON'T ASK

Ok, so let me update those of you who don't know the story. This past Thursday I'm getting nervous because my passport is overdue in my hands for my trip to Eastern Europe. Well, on a hunch I give the State Department a call and lo and behold, my passport has been put on hold - or frozen if you will. It seems, that my birth certificate could not be authenticated. Yes it was a certified copy and no it wasn't from a hospital - it was from a county courthouse. Anyhoodlez, the only logical and tangible advice I get from "Natalie" the operator of death is that I should
1. BUY a new birth certificate from some random place
2. call my Congressman

I opted for #2. This whole thing went down at about 4:30 Thursday afternoon. By 11:30 am yesterday [Friday], Senator K. B. Hutchison had her office so all over it, the State Dept. overnighted my passport. El problemo? It never got here. Guess I'm not going tomorrow - I don't want to talk about it.

Freshman

Freshman never cease to amaze me. There are so many interesting people that come in with every class, it just doesn't surprise me anymore that ACU continues to be cool decade after decade. Tonight, I had the interesting pleasure of getting to know one of them.

Jordan Williams is a Freshman Class Senator from Longview, Texas. He grew up with farming in his blood, loves Snap-Dragons [the flowers], has two younger brothers and a strong belief that the middle child is the best looking one in the family. He's taller than me [as is everyone] and beyond that , I have NO IDEA how tall he is. He ran cross-country and loves music.

I also learned about his dad. Jordan's father was class president for three years [a class senator] and then was SA president and in galaxy. Jordan wants to follow in his father's footsteps. Moreover, he wants to compete I think, with his father. fI wonder if he has any other reason to want to be SA president?

The mall - with an OBVIOUS STOP at the new Best Buy for serious filmage - and Taco Bell and Starbucks. Fun - fun - fun...especially as I wonder WHERE IN THE NAME OF HOT GLUE IS MY PASSPORT.

Theoretically, if I go, I said I would join Jordan for skiing in Croatia - shamefully I hate snow.

Irregularities

So I haven't been as regular as I usally am concerning posting on this blog. But, oh well, u know??? Well, today is the Monday of Lectureship and I'm a bit sad that my dad and my brother went home already. I'm kinda used to having my dad here for lectureship. But I guess I'll be allright. So last night I went to the Gospel Coffee House with Tommy Butler, who is back in town all the way from Cali. I'm so excited to see him. He called me while I was doing homework and watching the Simpsons season 3 on DVD, and told me I'd better pack it up and move it out there. So I did. The whole dealio was on the Passion of the Christ. :-)

Crud - I've gotta work. Peace out

Valentine's Day

"I do not aspire to be someone with a psychotic fixation on evil and human suffering. It is a poorly lived live that cannot experience joy, peace, laughter, beauty and mirth despite all the oppression and injustice that mars the goodness of God's creation." - Gary Haugen The Good News About Injustice .

So, it's Valentine's Day and I went to my mailbox and the box of truffles and the stuffed animal from parents wasn't there - it was disconcerting, but life goes on. I'm on my way LYNAY, so I'll fill in my BLOGNESS laterz. But, today is a good day...I can see and speak and I'm walking out of here in jeans with full vision from an uncovered face.

Pens

"So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance. Truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty and enter. Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The Lord looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, and He was appalled that there was no one to intervene; So his own arm worked salvation for him and his own righteousness sustained him."

So me and pens: I'm a little addicted. Those of you who know me know that my entire life is color coded. Each one of my classes has a color that they are "assigned". Now, this color is the pen color ALL notes must be taken in, and the folder for handouts must match the color. Furthermore, my book must be written in and underlined in that color and the highlighter used must also be that color. [Now if you think that's shameful, just wait.] So, I have mild OCD and I cannot stand "cheap" pens. These two things together work towards such a wondeful way of life...not so much.

I have at least $300 worth of pens in my apartment in large pencil bags in drawers. I cannot resist pens: I always "need" more. What's more, I always need expensive ones.

Patrick Dennis' classical charater Auntie Mame teaches people to embrace life & "Live! Live! Live! Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!" How right, & how wrong she is. Life is short span of time on a fallen world with scarce resources. The prevailing viewpoint of the American secular society [and sometimes even the American Christian community] is that God has blessed us with an abundance of resources [gracias por su ayuda John flippin' Locke] and we need not consider the scarcity of our resources in the context of our consumption patterns. The opportunity costs of my pens [besides the probably slave labor used in their construction, and the probably wasteful use of water used in their production] is the life of one AIDS free child, or as an aggregate, the legal cost of freeing three children from sexual slavery in Thailand. I'm sickened.

It's Been A While

It's been about a week since I've posted on this blog. I know, I know, I haven't been doing my duty to myself but I suppose I'll have to convince myself to get over it. :)

Well, I cannot even begin to tell you how beautiful the Law and Social Justice Conference was this weekend at Malibu. I stayed with the Caseys and I had my own room and my own bathroom and my own deck overlooking the Pacific, and I was so happy. The smell of the ocean has always calmed me, and the climate and the people remind me of home, even though it is indeed, so very very far away.

I'd like to take a moment to share with you something I heard this weekend which struck me to the very core. One of the panelists, Mary Ellen Burns, was a Catholic Sister with a Law Degree from Yale. She works in the inner city and frankly, she's one tough cookie. Anyway, she was talking about the parable in Luke of Lazarus and the Rich Man. Interestingly enough, as she pointed out, we don't know why the Rich Man was rich nor do we know why Lazarus was poor. One could just as easily have been a crook as the other. But Jesus doesn't tell us. He doesn't tell us, because he in fact doesn't care. Lazarus was a fellow human being, and crooked or not, the Rich Man is punished for ignoring his suffering - whatever the cause. You know why we got a savior? - because we needed one. We help and give because people need. Period. oh yah.