We ain't gonna take it

What do I wanna do after I graduate? I've been mulling this question over recently. One thing that I know for sure is that I can't settle into a 9-5 job, get married, buy a house, and start living the American dream. I don't think there's anything wrong with all that except for the perception that this post-college routine that society hands us is as good as it gets. There's a bible verse that pounds in my skull:

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10

What the crap is a full life? I have to believe that it is more than getting good grades, being nice to everybody, going to church on Sunday,graduating from college, raising your kids right and retiring when you're 65. Where is the risk in all that? It's like society is saying "everybody keep your heads low, there's dangerous stuff out there that you don't wanna get mixed up in." John Elderedge makes an excellent point in Waking the Dead, when he points out that Jesus had two objectives. The first, make sure we all don't have to go to hell. The second, and the more important, bestow life eternal. If you read the gospel carefully, I believe there is a distinct difference between the two. I think we've been brainwashed into thinking that our real life will start after we leave this "meaningless" world. I bet to differ with this opinion. I think what Jesus meant by "life eternal" was life right now until eternity. So when I think about settling into the low risk, 9 to 5 routine, something inside of me absolutely screams not to buy it. Obviously, I'm gonna have to have a job. But I think that when my job, or getting a house, or raising a family, or going to church becomes the thing that occupies my passion then I've fallen right into the trap that has been set for me and squandered the gift of real life. So, maybe I'll get a job or go to graduate school or maybe I'll go on EDGE. All that I know is that I can feel God warning me not to buy what the world is selling when it comes to life.

When the deal goes down

I have a renewed interest in Bob Dylan. I've always been a fan but lately I really can't stop listening to him. What an amazing lyricist and musician. I would definetely put him in the top ten musicians of all time. And who hasn't been influenced by his music? Nearly every genre of music has certain artists that reflect, if not imitate, Bob Dylan's music. I was watchin VH1 classic yesterday (always on at the Asylum) when they did a few of Dylan's music videos. The first video was Just Like a Woman. The video consisted of Bob and two other dudes on a stage. Bob had an acoustic geetar and a harmonica. The other guys had an electric guitar and a bass guitar respectively. The other guys kept rhythm while Bob had the melody and vocals. It was so effin simple. There were no complex guitar riffs or hardcore bass lines, just a dude playin his guitar on stage. Yet, it's an amazing song. Plus, when you listen to Bob Dylan's lyrics you get the idea that he's passionate about what he's singing about. He doesn't care what the audience wants to hear about or how they wanna hear it. His songs are about his experiences and things he's passionate about. That's an extremely rare thing in today's music, I'd say almost non-existent.

These aren't the droids you're looking for

Creepy Campout this weekend. There are a multitude of great things about the Creepy Campout. First, there a lot of people that take this weekend very, very seriously. So the tradition of going to the Creepy Campout has become more of a tradition of mocking the events that happen anually at this weekend. For example, there is a pumpkin carving contest every year. Everyone spends hours, if not days, constructing and carving their pumpkins until they drip with over-achievement. There's little pumpkin villages and pumpkin snowmen and Parky the raccoon always comes out to judge and handout trophies. Here's how we've ruined this for people:
"Parky Sucks", carved by Austin Lubbers
"Elder Sucks" , carved by Doug Schmaltz
Smashed pumpkin, carved and then smashed by Rob Kleemeier
"Bush/ Cheney '04", carved by Doug Schmaltz
"The People's Pumpkin", carved by Rob Kleemeier
knifed pumpkin, stabbed by Jon Meyer

The contest is judged partially by audience noise. So if one of your good friends enters a pumpkin which plainly has no right to be in the contest, your friend has as much of a chance to win as anyone. He'll probably have an even better chance, than anyone else, if your friend brings five of his friends to be as obnoxious and loud as possible during the judging. All of the forementioned pumpkin designs were entered into the contest and made it to at least the semi finals before being removed by facist park officials. However, the point is not to win the contest but instead to beat out as many people, who put their hearts and souls into this contest every year, as possible. Is this crual and unjust? I say no. Is it cruel and unjust when it storms at the end of an otherwise beautiful day? Of course not, it just happens. It's been happening for a long time and will continue to happen for a long time to come. It's the same idea with our campout antics. Everyone knows to expect it now because it has been happening for as long as anyone can remember. yeah Creepy Campout '06

There's a Calm Before the Storm...

Postin again. Yeah now what jerks. I have one hour left at work and nothing to do with it but stare at my computer screen in my makeshift cubical. That's right, I have a cubical. It's not a full fledged cubical, but it certainly serves the same purpose. The walls aren't very high so anyone walking past can see what I'm doing and there's no wall behind me. I need some stuff to put on the walls in here. Right now, I have a periodic table of elements on the right side of my desk and thats it. Maybe I'll get a calendar or a plaque with some inspirational quote on it. Then I'll be like every other corporate tool box out there. It's a good thing that I can walk away from my desk and go work at the lab bench anytime I want. Sitting in front of a computer screen all day, every day is essentially my worst nightmare. I have to be able to get up and do something.
I went to a meeting at church last night (Northern Hills United Methodist). There's some crazy stuff that's starting to happen there. First off, the church is finally looking at modes of outreach to the community. I've been pushing for some Vineyard like, servant evangelism stuff and God has started to break down barriers. Also, we approved a new ministry last night that blends the Buddist Zen tradition of meditation with Christian belief. Essentially, this ministry will focus on meditation as a means of communicating with God. I'm probably going to try it out. I could use some time of just sitting still and doing nothing but being quiet.

Everybody's Workin for the Weekend

So...I live in Clifton now. Actually I've been living in Clifton for more than a month but I haven't bothered to post on this thing since July. But it's pretty great, never a dull moment in the Asylum. We get along most of the time and everybody does their fair share around the house.
I have notice one problem however. There seems to be some confusion about how often we leave our house and at what time between us and the girls upstairs. I noticed this because one of our female neighbors parked in the driveway yesterday. But instead of parking next to Dave and I to allow us to pull out of the driveway, she parked behind both of us. So instead of blocking no one in, she chose to block two people in until she decides to leave. This is kind of a big deal since I leave for work at 7:30 in the morning. Consequently, I had to try to shimmy (in a Jeep Wrangler) my vehicle out of our driveway. It took all of my driving skill to not hit Dave or the girl's car. This process took at least 5-10 minutes and I ended up being late for work. I shoulda snapped a picture of the situation to post on here. From now on, if I have to park in the driveway, I think I'm just gonna park at the very end so that nobody can park behind me.

I'm leading small group for the first time, this year, tomorrow. It's gonna be a good time. Davie and Robby are in my group this time. It's almost a revival of guy's group. It would be a complete revival if Austin Q. Lubbers hadn't ran off and joined Monday night.

Things to look forward to: Creepy Campout Oct 13 and 14th
Alice in Chains Nov 9th
Fall Conference
Turkey Day Race