Thirsty

Change is upon me. Here for this , soon. Man always travels along precipices. His truest obligation is to keep his balance. - JP2

[If I really were as humble as this thing sez I am, would I post this? Please forgive my inclusion of the crude language.] Emo Kid You are 42% Rational, 14% Extroverted, 0% Brutal, and 14% Arrogant. You are the Emo Kid, best described as a quiet pussy! You tend to be an intuitive rather than a logical thinker, meaning you rely more on your feelings than your thoughts. Not only that, but you are introverted, gentle, and rather humble. You embody all the traits of the perfect emo kid. You are a push-over, an emotional thinker, gentle to the extent of absurdity, and so humble that it even makes Jesus puke. (And Jesus almost never pukes, being immortal and not requiring an act of puke to dispell toxins from his corporeal manifestation.) If you write poetry, you no doubt write angsty, syrupy lines about depression, sadness, and other such redundant states of emo-being that go something like this: life is a spike / upon which i have impaled mysefl / fuck you dad So, your per...

Ever heard of the word onomatopoeia ? I hadn't, before I saw this blurb about the creation of the THX sound. So I googled, followed the 2nd result to Wikipedia's entry for the word, and began skimming the article. I found myself making the weirdest noises - out loud! - and then laughing at myself as I kept reading. So I would recommend reading this somewhere in a dark corner, with nobody around, maybe even with your shades drawn. Onomatopoeia .

Ah... the wanderings of affection. A house built upon sand can only sink. The tide comes in, I swim, I crawl to the second floor, I get comfortable and get used to it. The tide goes back out, I naively wander back downstairs, hoping that this time will be different. Come Holy Spirit! Here I sit in the upper room, vaguely remembering the teacher's assurances, fearfully doubting his success.

Psalm 55 (New International Version) For the director of music. With stringed instruments. Amaskil of David. [ a ] 1 Listen to my prayer, O God,       do not ignore my plea; 2 hear me and answer me.       My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught 3 at the voice of the enemy,       at the stares of the wicked;       for they bring down suffering upon me       and revile me in their anger. 4 My heart is in anguish within me;       the terrors of death assail me. 5 Fear and trembling have beset me;       horror has overwhelmed me. 6 I said, "Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!       I would fly away and be at rest- 7 I would flee far away       and stay in the desert;  ...

.. for the son has exceeded the father. Disregarding contributing factors such as the congested flow of 42,000+ runners, my own familiarity with such conditions, and his lack of familiarity with them, I finished the 10K/6.2mi race about 1 minute and 6 seconds ahead of my Dad. This is a first for me! The Cooper River Bridge Run . I'm also now officially a quarter of a century old. :) So, let's see. I did some stuff. Then some other stuff. It was fun, and I enjoyed my family. That pretty much sums it up. Due to overbooking on my return flight, I got a free ticket for United Airlines that can be used anytime in the next year to fly anywhere in the continental U.S. I got locked out of my apartment because I don't normally carry a key because it's a small building and all the doors to the outside stay locked and my landlord locked my door after he showed my disgusting apartment to potential renters. I got to see Chuck 's workplace. In the last 2 weeks I'v...

In case I don't come back on Sunday, here's where to start looking: This weekend, I am here with these people. :) Update: The trip was good. I ended up driving, with Mary Wanta riding with me, and we met the other five at "The Gallery", a family-style restaurant attached to Day's Inn in Danville, and then one at the trailhead waiting for us. Glen County Forest Preserve seemed to be in relatively good shape - the trash can at the campsite needed to be secured from being opened by animals, and other than that things were good. There were a number of large trees down over the trail, though I didn't particularly mind them. There were just a few steep climbs through ravines, though again I enjoyed the challenge. The group was very friendly, everybody was pretty easy-going and while a few of them knew each other, the general lack of knowledge people had about each other going into the trip did not turn into a bad situation. Other than the vast overabundan...

(post title is an inside joke with myself. explanation will follow when i can better explain what needs explaining) We sinned each day we passed you by And did not bind your wound, To this one's pain and that one's cry Remaining unattuned. So doing to the very least, We did, Oh Lord, to you; For, like the Levite and the priest, We had so much to do. We left you lying there for dead, Abandoned and unhealed; In your unheeded cry for bread Is selfishness revealed! I have a subscription to Magnificat at Therese 's suggestion, so that I can easily follow the Office of Readings which is a wealth of scripture for your daily prayer time. I'm very inconsistent with my reading of it. This morning, Magnificat had a very poetic and reflective reference (above) to the parable of the good samaritan ( Luke 10:30-37 ).

Time for a quick recap of the weekend. Friday after work I stopped at McDonald's to stuff my face because I didn't think I could even make it home. My Ramadan-Lent is a constant challenge.. sometimes it's success brings failure elsewhere. Then I biked up to St. Josaphat for their monthly Taize service, which is a very peaceful use of a Friday evening. I thought about how much I would miss it if/when I leave. Then I biked home, stopping briefly for some groceries. I was able to get to bed at a decent time after forcing myself up at a decent time that morning. Sleep patterns make or break my whole lifestyle. Saturday morning I drove down to Hyde Park to help Rachel & Joanne move, including spending an hour trying to obtain the rental truck. Made it back up to the loop in time to find street parking and bike to where the St. Patty's Day (not yet) Parade, Northside, was getting ready to start. The SJC marching band wasn't present due to their very necess...

As I sat in the back of the scout truck, bumping along an especially pock-marked portion of the highway during our return to Banjul , one of my brothers who sat back there with me - Abdoulie - taught me a new phrase. After a particularly jarring pothole, it is appropriate to mutter " Pouno mega dat !". I gave him an "Oy vey!" in return. See me for the proper pronunciation. That's a completely arbitrary approximation, as there is no standard written form of Mandinka. My brain is exploding. I've been attending a Friday afternoon service at a Muslim Mosque downtown with my co-worker Mehdi for awhile now, I think I've been 4 times now. I'm looking at Hindu-Christian dialogue via a book recommendation I received a couple weeks ago about a Catholic Sanyasi , a seeming contradiction in terms. I've discovered that I can possibly embrace my Jewish heritage more fully by learning the ways of Messianic Judaism. I'm arriving very close to my rel...

sent to me and others on 09 Feb 2001... In the harshness of the outside world, in the confusion of my inner thoughts, in the perils of my work, there is no comfort to be found. In the pain of my memories, in the hurt of my past, in the despair of my loneliness, there is no comfort to be found. In the depths of my depression, in the wastefulness of my actions, in the anger of my heart, there is no comfort to be found. In the eyes of my parents, in the caring of my friends, in the kindness of strangers, comfort is found. In the belief of God, in the harmony of nature, in the peacefulness of the night, comfort is found. In the joy of friendship, in the love of the soul, in the hope for tomorrow, comfort is found. - Don Shuler

Yes, I'm back from Africa, and I'm alive, but I don't have a monstrous post ready for you to read yet. :-/ I hope you can forgive me. On my return, first I focused on regaining my energy, and now I'm just kind've waiting for the stars to align before I can properly express the tsunami of experiences. In the meantime, you may peruse the pictures , knowing that they will be only the slightest taste without my narration. Also in the meantime, Jack has been posting the most thorough response to a question I've ever received. He has begun a 5 part series on the relationship between Catholic Parishes and "Lay Movements" that find their existence independently from parishes. Thanks Jack, I'm blown away by the depth of your response.

- said to be the personal motto of Alex Haley, popular writer from The Gambia, West Africa. Friday night I drive home to Muncie, Saturday morning I drive down to the Indy airport with my parents. Many hours later, we arrive in The Gambia, the smallest country in Africa, touching the west coast and surrounded on all other sides by Senegal. Rebecca will meet us there and show us her life as a Peace Corps Volunteer for the next 10 days. We'll arrive back in Indianapolis 2 weeks from Friday. I'm looking forward to meeting the Mandinka people, the hot African sun of the dry season, and drinking in some time with my parents and my passionate sister. Wikipedia: The Gambia , Mandinka people CIA World Factbook , Peace Corps , Catholic Relief Services As a Christian, pray for and with the 95% Muslim population via their 99 names for God . Friends of Senegal and The Gambia .

Today's "Penny Arcade". Generally, the comic is so worthless that I'm not even going to link to it. But today's was absolutely amazing. Post title from Father Bob's Billboard .

You know what "For Adults Only" means. X-rated. Porn star. "Explicit material." Seedy characters walking into an adult video store just off the Interstate. The word "adult" is commonly used this way. So what does it mean to be an adult? Some stuff that you can complain about all day (both about yourself and about others) without being called a Jesus freak. This stuff applies to everyone, regardless of your vocabulary blacklist.

Forgive me in advance. This blonde joke is high -larious! P.S. - while I'm linking, you must read a bit about Obi-Wan Kenobi I can't help you my love. All I can suggest is three things (1) whether you feel as I'm sure you do that Christ was true in his claims and is God (2) whether you are satisfied that the claims of the Catholic Church are reasonably justified. And then (3) -- probably more difficult for you than for me, as it's a question of temperament to start with -- whether in a Catholic Church you feel a sense of worship. For me this last grows. I find it less and less a difficulty -- in fact none really -- except through my own fidgetiness and distraction and general crossness with people and things -- but I accept absolutely now and with no effort that I am in the actual presence of God on the altar. There have been very few days this year when I haven't paid a visit -- even if only for three minutes -- to a church, merely to kneel and be astonished at t...

Today over my lunch hour I walked with Mehdi and Dan to a Mosque downtown near State and Adams. On the walk down, among other things, we discussed a bit about organized religion and how it compares to personal individual religion. The entrance was not very clearly labeled but Mehdi knew immediately where it was by all the Arabs coming in from the street. It was very close to the 1:10 start time so the small foyer was packed with men waiting for one of the two small elevators to take us up to the 5th floor. A few men waited in the foyer, making sure things were running smoothly, offering a "Salem Aleikum" to those they recognized. Once at the 5th floor, we squeezed into a packed gathering room where the preaching portion of the service had already begun. Shoes were taken off and placed in shelves on the back wall and in a side room. Some barefoot, some with socks. The front of the room was located in the northeast corner of the room, where a man was giving a moderately...

(A Tale of Flodden Field) Day set on Norham's castled steep, And Tweed's fair river, broad and deep, And Cheviot's mountains lone: The battled towers, the donjon keep, The loophole grates, where captives weep, The flanking walls that round it sweep, In yellow lustre shone. The warriors on the turrets high, Moving athwart the evening sky, Seemed forms of giant height: Their armour, as it caught the rays, Flashed back again the western blaze, In lines of dazzling light. Nought say I here of Sister Clare, Save this, that she was young and fair; As yet a novice unprofessed, Lovely and gentle, but distressed. She was betrothed to one now dead, Or worse, who had dishonoured fled. Her kinsmen bid her give her hand To one who loved her for her land: Herself, almost heart-broken now, Was bent to take the vestal vow, And shroud within Saint Hilda's gloom, Her blasted hopes and withered bloom. Lovely, and gentle, and distressed- These charms might tame ...