Shout Out to Lil' Joe Morrow

This weekend has been pretty good so far. I still have a small list of things I have not yet accomplished but it is not even noon yet so I have hope.

I want to give a shout-out to Zach and Erin Morrow. I have confirmation that they had a baby boy about a week and a half ago named Joseph Robert or "Lil' Joe" as I have decided to call him. I can't wait to see pictures especially since his uncle, Lee claims he is particularly well-endowed. Congrats to the Morrow family.

Kari, Amy and I went to the mall on Friday night to see our new friend, May Lee. She is in our Bible Study and seems really fun. She works as a make-up artist and at the MAC make-up counter. She gave Kari and Amy make-overs but ran out of time before she got to me. I didn't mind since we were going to the gym afterwards and I knew I would just sweat it off.

After the gym, we had one of the craziest hitches I have ever had. This guy picks us up and soon after asks if any of us know how to roll a cigarette. None of us know how so he asks Kari to take the wheel while he does it himself. Kari holds the wheel as he is rolling the cigarette and not looking at the road at all. He is continuing to accelerate with his eyes at his lap. Kari warns him just in time not to hit a car in front of us. SCARY! I made sure to fasten my seatbelt. He finally finishes rolling the cigarette and takes control of the wheel. He starts to tell Kari about his ten years in prison. This is all happening with the Tupac Greatest Hits cd blaring in the background. Amy and I sat in the back, laughing at the absurdity of it all but also filled with fear. Luckily we made it home safe and sound. I want my car to hurry up and get fixed so I don't have to experience any more near-death experiences.

Yesterday morning, some of us participated in a community clean-up day and cleaned the main street of our town. It was pretty dirty. I think this is something YWAM should at least do every couple of months. It is needed and it shows our community that we care. At one point, I was with our base director's six year-old son, Timmy. He found an almost full 40 oz bottle of alcohol. He kept trying to get me to let him take a drink. I told him he would be arrested if the police saw him and that the stuff was kind of like poision. I didn't know how else to explain it to a 1st grader.

Last night we went to a carnival. It was not as cool as I had hoped. It was very crowded with families and junior high kids. Gena and I rode the Zipper and she won a mini stuffed monkey. The carnies there were not near as good as those on the mainland. There were a few traditionally gnarly looking ones but most were just local Hawaiians. I did get to snap a few good mullet pictures. Always a pleasure.

YWAM gets fancy

If you read my email prayer requests, you will know some of the following:

Yesterday I found out that Sherelle, one of Sherry's bridesmaids, was just diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I really bonded with her and Char, the other bridesmaid when they were in Maui. This kind of news makes me want to puke. She is 23 and just found out she has cancer. I looked on the internet to find out more about this kind of cancer and it said the survival rate is 80-90% even if found in a late stage. This is comforting but she may still have to go through chemo and all that scary stuff. Please pray.

My friend, Wil hit a deer with his motorcycle. I didn't know they even had deer here. They seem out of place. He and Melika were thrown from the bike with Wil breaking Melika's fall. Wil is in pretty rough shape but in very good spirits. He is covered in bandages so his road rash won't get infected. He has to wear these little booties and his hands are bandaged making him look a baby with mittens on so it doesn't scratch itself. He has to get a skin graft on his ankle. The phrase "skin graft" makes me want to puke. Luckily none of his tattoos were ruined. That was one of his biggest concerns. Pray that he doesn't get infected by Maui's rampant staf infections.

Last night we had a commissioning ceremony for our new base director. Tom, who used to run our School of Biblical Foundations in Missions has been named our new base director. I think he will do a great job. He is such a solid man of God. He is meek in the good Biblical way and strong and wise. The ceremony included dinner and was held at this plantation place. A bunch of the YWAMers tried to use this as an excuse to get really dressed up. It was a bit ridiculous how people were freaking out about what they should wear. I dressed fancy but not over the top. Some people didn't get the fancy memo and came in t-shirts and cargo pants. Before the whole thing started, Amy and I were sent back to the houses to pick up more people. We had to drive Sara Engler's car. That car is so funny. It is an 1989 Toyota hatchback painted in camo. Some kid once exclaimed to his mother that it was the GI Joe car. You must also have the heater on at all times when you are driving. Great for hot Maui.

This morning we woke up in the 6's. Anyone that knows me knows that I despise waking up in the 6's. I don't even like waking up in the 7's. Ashley borrowed a car from a lady she babysits for and we wanted to take advantage so we drove to the Bamboo forest. It is a hiking trail to some waterfalls through a forest of bamboo. I was wearing my hiking boots that while comfortable, lacked grip. I couldn't keep my balance to save my life. I was slipping and sliding everywhere. I actually fell at least 10 times. It was very humbling since no one else seemed to having as much trouble. By the end of the hike, I was soaking wet and covered in mud. It was fun but I feared for my life a few times.

If you read my email prayer requests, you will know some of the following:

Yesterday I found out that Sherelle, one of Sherry's bridesmaids, was just diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I really bonded with her and Char, the other bridesmaid when they were in Maui. This kind of news makes me want to puke. She is 23 and just found out she has cancer. I looked on the internet to find out more about this kind of cancer and it said the survival rate is 80-90% even if found in a late stage. This is comforting but she may still have to go through chemo and all that scary stuff. Please pray.

My friend, Wil hit a deer with his motorcycle. I didn't know they even had deer here. They seem out of place. He and Melika were thrown from the bike with Wil breaking Melika's fall. Wil is in pretty rough shape but in very good spirits. He is covered in bandages so his road rash won't get infected. He has to wear these little booties and his hands are bandaged making him look a baby with mittens on so it doesn't scratch itself. He has to get a skin graft on his ankle. The phrase "skin graft" makes me want to puke. Luckily none of his tattoos were ruined. That was one of his biggest concerns. Pray that he doesn't get infected by Maui's rampant staf infections.

Last night we had a commissioning ceremony for our new base director. Tom, who used to run our School of Biblical Foundations in Missions has been named our new base director. I think he will do a great job. He is such a solid man of God. He is meek in the good Biblical way and strong and wise. The ceremony included dinner and was held at this plantation place. A bunch of the YWAMers tried to use this as an excuse to get really dressed up. It was a bit ridiculous how people were freaking out about what they should wear. I dressed fancy but not over the top. Some people didn't get the fancy memo and came in t-shirts and cargo pants. Before the whole thing started, Amy and I were sent back to the houses to pick up more people. We had to drive Sara Engler's car. That car is so funny. It is an 1989 Toyota hatchback painted in camo. Some kid once exclaimed to his mother that it was the GI Joe car. You must also have the heater on at all times when you are driving. Great for hot Maui.

This morning we woke up in the 6's. Anyone that knows me knows that I despise waking up in the 6's. I don't even like waking up in the 7's. Ashley borrowed a car from a lady she babysits for and we wanted to take advantage so we drove to the Bamboo forest. It is a hiking trail to some waterfalls through a forest of bamboo. I was wearing my hiking boots that while comfortable, lacked grip. I couldn't keep my balance to save my life. I was slipping and sliding everywhere. I actually fell at least 10 times. It was very humbling since no one else seemed to having as much trouble. By the end of the hike, I was soaking wet and covered in mud. It was fun but I feared for my life a few times.

Weekend Fun

I feel that this weekend was pretty productive. Amy worked a lot of the weekend so I had more alone time than usual. It was pretty good. Yesterday I rode my bike for the first time in a long time. It was fun but hard with the wind. I also played some basketball and had some contemplative God time at the beach.

Today I tanned on the beach. I have been trying to go to the beach more often. It is so crazy how living here can make you immune to the place's beauty. I realized that it had been way too long since I had enjoyed the beach. I know I will miss it a lot when I am back in Texas so I am trying to take advantage.

Tonight, Sherry, Matty and I went to see our DTS friend, Cherish in a play. The play was Sweeny Todd and it was a bit weird but pretty good. It was a musical. I am not that in to musicals. I can't pay attention to them very well. It was cool to get to see Cherish. She had a pretty big part. She wore this ridiculously cheap looking long blonde wig. It made me giggle quite a bit. Then we all hung out at Border's afterwards. It was fun times.

Crazy dancing with everyone I know

Last night I went to the Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, Willie Nelson concert. It was part of the Kokua festival, a save the earth kind of thing. I originally found out about it when I looked at Ben Harper's website. He was the one I wanted to see the most. Unfortunately he played first and only played about four songs. Pretty lame! It only left me wanting more. It seems pretty crazy to have Jack Johnson as the headliner when he is the newest artist of the three. Luckily they had Ben come back out at the end and play several songs with Jack. There was even one song with Willie, Jack and Ben. This redeemed the concert for me though I still felt slightly unfulfilled by my Ben time.

It was nice to go to a concert. On the mainland I go to one at least once a month but this was my first one here. We don't get a lot of big names here very often. The venue was good for people watching but not as good for music listening. Where we sat, there were large groups of people walking by in between us and the stage. It was still fun but it was no Stubbs or the Backyard in Austin.

The event was a festival, which meant there were booths with free stuff. I love free stuff. I got lots of stickers, misc. health food-type snacks, recycled bottle opener, recycled shoe laces and some organic feminine products. The snacks were especially nice because I didn't have to buy much food.

I think half of my YWAM friends were there as well as a large percentage of the non-YWAMers I know or recognize on Maui. It makes you realize how small Maui really is.

Ben Harper and Jack Johnson are the type of artists I like to listen to while chillin on a blanket with my friends. Their music is not that conducive to dancing. This did not stop a lot of people. I am not much of a dancer myself but I like to imitate other people's dancing attempts. This brought me and my friend, Gena tons of amusement as we imitated all the crazy dancers around us. One girl had some seriously spastic Elaine Benes type moves. It was hard to keep up. While imitating one of her twirls, I fell onto the people next to me. There was also a very strange new age man who was basically having stand-up sex with his clothes on with a new age young lady. It was frightening and made me feel uncomfortable as it felt like they needed to get a room. So, to combat my fear, Gena and I danced like crazy around them. It was great! I have pictures that I will be posting on my website shortly.

Car Envy

This weekend was pretty good and relaxing. I was hoping for nothing but sunny skies but that didn't work out. It was rainy and sunny on and off. Often rain would start with no warning. Nice!

My roommate Jacki is buying a car tomorrow and lately I have really been wanting to get my car fixed. I have been unable to sell it so far. I guess a car that does not run is not in high demand. If I got it fixed, it would be easier to sell when I leave and I would get more $$. I am going to talk to some people about pricing. We'll see. I am just tired of hitchhiking everyday to get to the gym. Hitching isn't as bad when it is done in moderation.

Amy is doing this work trade thing where she works at a local boutique in exchange for clothes. We met her co-worker the other day and she is the epitome of new age. For those of you unfamiliar with this term, it is basically someone who is searching for spiritual fulfillment in a variety of ways. The person may practice yoga and meditation. They make study Buddha and witchcraft. They often talk of karma and energy. They would likely say that whatever religion works for you is right. They don't see all the contradictions between their beliefs and the tenets of the major religions.

So, this co-worker of Amy's, Kristin- She was asking about what we do with YWAM and tried to say that what she was trying to do was very similar. She is trying to buy the property that most of our base was on before we moved because of a rent increase. She wants to create some sort of group that will go to other countries and spread loving feelings, good will, healings and meditation. We are currently allowed to use this basement room in the building as a prayer room. She said that she would turn that room into a "reading" room where there would be two people seperated by a curtain that gave readings. I was mildly offended by her nonchalantly suggesting that she would turn our prayer room into a psychic reading room. Not cool. It was mainly crazy to me to think that she sees no difference in what we are trying to do. I have a very hard time reasoning with New Age people because they are so quick to say that everything is okay and they don't use logic.

At church today there were a ton of kids. It feels like the church gets bigger everytime I go. There are a lot of brand-new Christians, which is cool. It seems like almost everyone from church is related. There is one lady at church who kind of bothers me. Her name is Catherine and she sometimes sings these long songs that she makes up in the middle of the service. She also speaks in tongues and keeps trying to make me and Amy pray so that we can do it too. I don't want to and no randomly singing lady can make me. Today she talked about healing and I simply did not agree. She said that if you are sick and people pray for you to get healed, you are healed automatically but sometimes you don't see results because you don't have enough faith. The fact that you still have symptoms is all in your head, because you have been healed. You just have to realize this fact. I don't agree at all. I think God promises healing but that may not happen this side of Heaven and He has his reasons for that. If you are not being healed from an ailment, it is not your fault. People don't die of cancer because they just don't believe hard enough. That is not true and not biblical.

Training for free

I think I am finally out of my post-home funk. I have felt pretty homesick this past week. I got to talk to some of my friends on the phone which you would think might make things worse but actually made things better. It's like I get a little home fix when I talk to my home friends.

Amy and I have been working out like crazy. We went seven days in a row and then we decided that we should probably take today off. We actually went walking in the morning because we are pretty addicted to this whole exercise thing. We are hardcore because going to the gym means hitchhiking and since it keeps raining here, it is a wet time. Amy is very good at manipulating people. That is how my rental car got upgraded from a Dodge Neon to a convertible PT cruiser. Her latest conquest has been figuring out how to get this trainer guy at the gym to train us for free. He is a nice guy who may or may not have a crush on her. This doesn't really matter since the only place we see him is at the gym and he is not inappropriate. Yesterday, he led us through an arm workout. It was good. Then, when we were hitching home, he picked us up. Not a bad person to know.

Today Amy and I went to a Bible study at her friend, Moana's house. Moana is a great Christian lady who happens to be a millionaire. Her house in Maui overlooks the whole island and is really cool and funky as it was designed by her artist husband. The Bible study consisted of me, Amy, Moana, Holly-used to be a YWAMer, Melissa-current YWAMer, and four of Moana's friends. It was good times. We also ate a lovely feast of Salmon patties and pineapple afterwards. That sure beats Build A Whatever, which is what we likely had on base. For lunch we usually build a sandwich, build a wrap, build a burrito, or build a salad. That is of course unless we have taco salad day or tomato soup and grilled cheese day.

Gym People

I would like my blog readers to get a feel for my gym experience since I spend so much of my time there. So faithful readers, I present a segment I call "Gym People." These are real people I encounter during my times at the gym.

Flat top man- This guy is great. He is a fifty year old black guy with a "kid n play" style flat top. He also wears a visor and matches in a way that puts me to shame. He has a camo outfit, a blue and grey outfit, among others. His shoes, shirt, shorts and visor ALWAYS match.

Grey Outfit man- I have only seen this guy once but the image of him will stick in my mind for eternity. He was wearing a grey shirt and grey shorts and had the most unorthodox workout style I have ever seen. He performed familiar exercises with an elaborate gusto. It was like watching a train wreck. I couldn't look away. I can't believe that his spasmatic methods did not cause him some serious back injuries.

Big butt guy- This guy wears some strange tight men's dance pants. He has one of the biggest butts I have ever seen on a man. He wears a black leotard-type top. He also has unorthodox exercise methods that often include a bizarre serious of punches and kicks amidst the exercise equipment. He once left the gym in a huff after being told not to kick the exercise balls.

Amazing Mullet man- It's a shame they don't allow photos at the gym because this guy would for sure be in my hall of fame. From the front he looks like your average middle-aged Asian guy with a short spikey do. But when he turns to the side, he reveals his wild side with a snazzy little ponytail. I mean, from the front you would never see the pony tail coming. It is A-Mazing!

Hitching to a death metal soundtrack

So, it still feels a bit strange to be back but not near as much as the first few days. I have come to realize that a lot of it is having so few people on base. We have teams in Thailand, Borneo, Bangladesh and Nepal right now so the base feels empty. We do have two smaller schools starting up- our SBFM and our School of Worship. There are currently four Texans on base including myself, who I can reminisce with when I get to missing my beloved home state.

I found out yesterday that my brother is scheduled to go to Iraq for a year starting in October. He is in the army so going to Iraq was pretty much a given. It is weird to have an actual date it's supposed to happen. The army seems to change its mind a lot so I will believe it when I see it. I am not that worried about the actual Iraq part. I figure my parents will do more than enough worrying to cover my family. I know that Andrew is more likely to die in a car accident than he is to die in Iraq. What bums me out the most is the idea that I have to go two whole years without seeing my brother, who happens to be one of my favorite people in the whole world. If I think about it too much, I will cry.

On a happier note, Amy and I have picked up right where we left off, spending 90% of our free time together. I have already gone to the gym three times and I have only been back three full days. Amy and I are going to try to guilt trip each other into eating better. I know that this is the only way to make my working out really pay off.

I also went hitchhiking today. We got in the back of a pick-up truck where there was already a guy hitchhiker in the back. He had yet to discover the concept of deodorant. At one point, the truck stopped short and he flew into my lap. Lucky me! The driver of the truck was agressively friendly and kept yelling back to us to figure out exactly where to drop us off. Then he pumped up some horrible music that sounded like someone yelling until they became hoarse and then yelling louder. To make matters worse, the guy was singing, or maybe I should say yelling along. Mmmm.... hitchhiking!

Good bye bluebonnets, hello plumerias!

I am back in Hawaii. It is weird. It is much stranger than I expected. Actually I did not expect it to be weird at all. But, alas it is. I have been trying to put my finger on why things are weird because this feeling is quite disconcerting. The conclusion I have come to so far is that three weeks at home was too long. It allowed me to become too attached to home and the amazing people I have there. When I am here, I am loosely attached to home and tightly attached to Maui. Then when I went home I became tightly attached to home and lightly attached to Maui.

I know I am supposed to be here and that I am supposed to go to Bangladesh in August but it sure doesn't feel like it right now. I miss home quite a bit. It doesn't help that the students left for outreach while I was gone as did many of my friends here. Luckily, Amy, my best friend here, is around to hang out with me in my melancholy. When I come home at Christmas I need to make it a shorter trip because this is hard.

I have posted home pics on my website so check it out: www.ywamconnect.com/sites/hightower

The bouquet toss

So I feel that randomness is abundant right now and there is likely more randomness to come before I leave Texas. Today's installment of randomness quarterly:
I was having dinner in Kemah (a collection of restaurants and out of place carnival rides and games next to the ocean) with some of my fun college friends. My friend, Sarah Thompson Musselman is pregnant so her bulging belly brought me endless amusement.

Anyway, we were sitting and minding our own business at our table outside when a party boat thing came by with a wedding party aboard. We could see a bride and groom and a few of their attendants. They slowed as they passed the restaurant. Then the bride just chunked her bouquet at some randome people at another table. She was way to far away and the bouquet fell into the ocean. The bride looked sad but she should have known she didn't have much of a throwing arm. So then she appears with another bouquet and the boat draws near to our table. She doesn't say anything to warn us. I guess she assumed a table full of girls would automatically swing into action. By the time we figured out what was going on, she had thrown the bouquet at us. It landed on the canopy above our table and slid into the ocean. This was definitely the first time I have had a random stranger/bride chunk her bouquet at me. If she had given me some warning, I could have sprung into action. I actually like catching those things but I was too confused to go for this one. Weird!

First a graveyard pick-up attempt and now a random bouquet toss. I can't wait for what tomorrow will bring.

Graveyard pick-up lines

Today was a first for me. A guy tried to pick me up in a graveyard. Here's what went down: As you have rightfully assumed, it was hilarious.

I am now car-less after returning the car I had been blessed with for most of my time here. I decided to go to the cemetary by my house to take pictures. Cemetaries can make for some cool pics and this cemetary is old and gigantic. I walked around reading grave stones and taking pics. This guy in a white Explorer stops me and asks if I know where Howard Hughes' grave is. (He is buried in the cemetary.) I tried my best to explain it to him but the cemetary is like a giant maze. He drives off and I go back to my pensiveness and photography.

Then when I am in another part of the cemetary, he rolls up again. I tried to head in the other direction, but he calls out to me. I go over to his car and he introduces himself as Smiley. I immediately notice that his name is tattooed on his arm. How lovely. He tells me that the Howard Hughes question earlier was just his excuse to talk to me. He used to work at the cemetary until he got fired. He says he is in the military now and stationed at Ellington Field. He makes me hold his puppy, Tiny. He tells me that he thinks I am cute and beautiful so he had to talk to me.

The man is clearly near-sighted as I am wearing a baggy shirt and work out shorts, I am sweaty and have a serious case of cloud hair frizz. He has a strange definition is beautiful. I usually use these types of situations as a chance to lie but this time I gave it to him straight. I told him I was going back to Hawaii and would not have time to get together with him. I did not mention the part about not being interested in someone with Smiley tattooed on his arm. We shook hands and I walked home, constantly looking over my shoulder to see if Tiny and Smiley were following me. Pretty funny! Who tries to pick up a girl in a graveyard. So romantic!

This is my second funny experience in this particular graveyard. The first was right before I went to Maui the first time. My dad convinced me, Emily and Sarah Morgan to go on a walk through the cemetary at night. The place was closed but we didn't think that was a big deal since we were just going for a walk. We walked deep into the cemetary for about twenty minutes before we noticed headlights in the distance. Then came a big spotlight that began searching the woods. We realized they were after us and that we were technically trespassing.

My dad started freaking out about how he is lawyer and that trespassing would look really bad. So, we decided to try to sneak out of the cemetary without getting caught. We crouched behind gravestones and traveled in the shadows. Emily was not dressed for the ocassion, wearing bright white pants. She was running, crouched down with her gleaming white butt waggling in the air. It was quite a sight. At one point we lost Sarah Morgan. I wasn't worried, though, because she is the most competant person I know. We finally all made it back to the entrance and ran out. Moments later, we looked back to see police cars at the entrance of the cemetary. We had narrowly escaped.

What a sight it must have been to see four adults: a lawyer and three teachers: one with white pants running like guerilla soldiers through the darkened cemetary. What an adventure!

Day of Discontent

Yesterday I felt moody and melancholy. I hate those feelings. I think being home has aroused some emotions in me that I was not prepared for. I have noticed an annoying pattern within my post-college self, I am not content to chill where I am. I constantly feel the need to think and daydream about the next step. When I was at home after DTS, I couldn’t wait to get back to full-time ministry in Maui. But now that I am so briefly home again, I find myself longing for stability, money, and a family. This probably has something to do with my friends buying houses and having kids. I think I get nervous that I will never settle down. I like security and I don’t like change so the thought of settling down in Houston, sounds really appealing right now.

If I were God, I know I would be thinking something like this: She didn't like living in Houston. She wanted to go back to Maui and I let her go back to Maui. Now, she wants to be back in Houston. Can't she just make up her mind?

At the same time, I know that when I am settled in Houston with a husband and kids, I will miss my missionary days and the crazy adventures. I need to become like the apostle Paul and be able to say that I can find content in every circumstance. Constantly thinking about the next phase in my life is only going to cheapen what I am going through now. I am excited to return to Maui and lead a team to Bangladesh. I just think that being in Houston has made me think too much about how my life will be when I return in a year. I know that returning to Maui will make a lot of this future plan stuff seem less pressing. I am also trying to spend more time with God and let his word speak to my insecurities.

An ode to Kitty

For those of you who know me well, you may remember my family cat, Whiskers (otherwise known as "kitty"). This is the cat my mom was given at Christmas time in 1990. My dad let me in on the secret gift and when my dad saw the cat food my mom bought, he knew I had squealed.

Kitty did not care for me and I did not care for kitty. He was a Siamese cat, which meant he was mean. He would be in your lap purring and then turn on you. His eyes would turn red and he would pounce on you. He scratched my brother in the head and made him bleed. The only person he liked was my mom.

David Ray tried to make kitty love him but it did not work. When David came over to my house, he would immediately cuddle with kitty. He would insist that despite the fact that kitty was hissing and struggling to get out of his arms, kitty loved him. I was not buying it. I always feared for David's life during these exchanges.

I knew kitty was going downhill the other day when he came and laid on my lap. If he was in his right mind he would have been able to clearly see that I was not my mom/his only fan. He stopped eating this week and my mom said he smelled like death, whatever that means.

He had been close to death during the Hurricane Rita scare. My mom wanted to take him to the vet to be put down but the hurricane shut everything down. As my dad said, kitty got a reprieve from his death sentence. He liked to yell, Dead Cat Walking!

This time my mom tried to get me to do her dirty work. She tried to make me take kitty to the vet today to get killed. Now I was not opposed of getting rid of this cat that never did anything nice for me. I just didn't feel right about forcing kitty to spend his final hours with me, who could care less about him. My mom needed to do this herself. So, she did it and Whiskers "kitty" Hightower is no longer of this earth. My mom thinks kitty will be in kitty heaven but if there is a kitty heaven (i have seen no evidence for this in the Bible), kitty was far too nasty to gain admittance.

Despite my animosity towards kitty, it is strange that he is gone. So, rest in peace kitty. You will be missed, well kind of.
Whiskers "kitty" Hightower November 1990- March 28, 2006

Bluebonnets a plenty

This weekend I went to Austin. It was a short trip but good times. I got to see Jocelyn and Jason, Lucy, Lindsay, Julie Schwarz and my old pal, Paul Dabney. I got to go to some of my favorite eating establishments: Magnolia Café, EZ’s, Spider House, Jimmy John’s and that excellent little snow cone stand near Barton Springs. Mmmm. I love visiting Austin but there are always moments of sadness when I realize that I no longer have a home there. I am no longer a resident but a mere visitor. There are always a lot of changes and I hate change.

Unfortunately my Longhorns lost in basketball to LSU. I was a bit torn because I had enjoyed watching LSU win the other day and had grown fond of this team that includes a player called “Big Baby.” Though I root for my alma mater, UT, over any other team, I had a hard time with this game. In fact, when we started sucking in overtime, I actually wanted LSU to win. I will be rooting for them to win the whole thing.

There were some amazing bluebonnets on the way to Austin. John and Sarah and I stopped and took some pictures on our way back. I am posting them on my website for all to enjoy.

I can’t sleep lately and I think it is some sort of mutant jet lag. I tried to stick to Maui time and go to bed late and wake up late. That quickly turned into go to bed late and wake up at a reasonable time so you don’t feel like a total slacker. This meant I was going to sleep at 4am and waking up at 9:30. This is not an adequate amount of sleep. Then at 9pm each night, I felt dreadfully tired but could not fall asleep until way after midnight. This cycle sucks! It is like my body is already trying to get back on Maui time but it is not doing a good job. Luckily I can call Amy in Maui when I am up late at night. Hooray for drastic time changes.

Random Japanese woman

Last night I watched my Texas longhorns win due to a three-pointer with .8 seconds left. It was amazing! Have I mentioned how much I love college basketball? Well, I do. Right now I am watching a b-ball game whose teams I don't care about but it's college basketball so I am enjoying it. I just like college sports. With the exception of the Rockets in the early 90's I think college sports is where it's at. It doesn't hurt that my alma mater has some awesome teams.

Today I felt kind of anxious with an overall lack of peace. In Maui, I feel peaceful because I understand my role and I know what is going to happen next. Here in Houston again, I am not sure what I should be doing with my time and I feel uncertain about the eventual outcomes of life situations. I pretty much need to be patient but that is something I constantly struggle with. I tried working out but this did not aleviate my uneasiness. Then I came to the logical decision that I need to spend more time with God. I went to a coffee shop with my Bible, journal and a book I'm reading called Velvet Elvis. My time with the Big Guy was all that I had hoped. I came to this semi-insightful realization. The bible talks about fruits of the spirit- Galatians 5:22
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." When we are obviously lacking in one of these areas, like me with patience and peace right now, we need to go back to the source of this fruit- God. When you reconnect with Him, you will find as I did today that it is much easier to have patience or peace or whatever you're lacking.

After my coffee shop God time, I felt much better. As I was walking in the parking lot, an older Asian woman stopped me. She had been sitting near me and noticed me reading my Bible. She proceeded to tell me herr life story in broken English. She had tried a lot of different religions including: Budhism, Judaism and New Age. She had recently become a Christian by watching TBN. This seems like a miracle in itself since that lady with pink hair frightens me quite a bit. She felt like God wanted her to come to Texas and marry this doctor. She has been here five years and is not even close to marrying the doctor. Now her job prospects here are slim but she has had offers in Kentucky. She is confused about what God wants her to do next. I mainly listened to her and then I prayed for her. It was an odd experience but a cool chance to encourage a fellow believer. It really pays to spend time wth God.

Oh college basketball, how do I love thee?

Blog 3-23

Time is going by more quickly here than I expected. Sleeping until 11am most mornings is a contributing factor for sure.

I did not purposely time my trip around the NCAA Basketball tournament but being able to watch tons of good basketball games on an HD cable television is amazing! It is a big change from my TV in Maui that looks like fuzz at all times. During college football season, I often had to hold the antenna above my head to make it no longer look like it was snowing on the field. Ahhh….. the perks of being at my parents’ house.

Last night I visited some of my Young Life kids. Due to lack of leaders, they have had to combine my Northbrook High School kids with their rival, Spring Woods High School. It was good to see the kids but most of my favorites were not there. I hope they will be there when I go next week. They did a skit where the kids had to wrap a live chicken in wrapping paper. Some of the kids and leaders just spazzed when the chicken would get near them. It was so funny! I guess I am used to random chickens after living in Maui.

Today I went bowling with my friend, Katie H. It was good times even though I really sucked. I’d been wanting to go bowling for a while since the only bowling alley in Maui is supposedly so local that they would refuse service to haolies (Howlies or white people). Then we ate lunch at a café that my mom refers to as “the lesbian deli.” Lesbians or no lesbians, they make some great food. Everything I have ever had there is excellent.

Later I played disc golf by myself. It was ridiculously cold so I tried to play fast. I just really wanted to play and I wasn’t going to let the fact that I could see my breath stop me. It was also a good time for me to get away from distractions and spend some time with God.

Then I watched an excellent game of basketball. LSU played awesome and beat Duke, the number one seed team. It was so good! I kept yelling out loud. Thankfully no one else was home to make fun of me. Now I am watching my Longhorns, who are doing good so far. Hooray for college basketball!

Too much Dr. Pepper

I have caffeinated myself too much this evening and that is why I find myself writing in my blog at 3am. I thought about calling my Hawaii friends but even they might be asleep at this hour.

Yesterday I visited my old work, Soundwaves. I saw pretty much all the people I wanted to see. I also found out that I still get my discount even though it has been lowered from 45% to 35%. It was nice to be able to get it without sneaking around and having a friend buy my stuff. When I was shopping, I kept feeling like I needed to get back to work. It was a bit weird. I have considered working there if I come back from YWAM in a year to get a teaching job. The job wouldn't start until August so I would need something until then. Maybe Soundwaves. We'll see because that is a long way off.

I went to my friends, Sarah and John's new house. They have finally moved back to Texas and have settled in Pearland, which is apparently the new cool place to be. Their house was cool and bigger than I expected. They are officially real people. I on the other hand, am definitely not a real person right now. My dad would object to this kind of labeling so maybe I should say that my life is more unorthodox than theirs right now.

I watched part of the show Dog the Bounty Hunter today. It was funny because they were looking for a big Samoan guy wearing a grey shirt and black shorts. My friend, Terry is from the Cook islands, so he looks Samoan, he is big and always wears a grey shirt and black shorts. It turns out Dog the bounty hunter was not looking for my friend afterall, but it was a funny thought.

I have received some disturbing news that people in Maui are watching my boxsets without my permission. Normally I would not mind but certain YWAM people are not careful with stuff and things that get left in the living room get trashed. The worst part was that the offenders were watching my Season 2 of Arrested Development, which I have not even watched yet. Shady! I think Amy is going to regulate on them. She has my back.

Blog lessons

I have had a blog epiphany. I read someone else's blog who wrote about someone but withheld enough details so that I couldn't figure out who they were talking about. I decided to use this technique to discuss some frustrations I was having. Unfortunately I tend to over-detail rather than under-detail and my attempt at being vague ended up being ridiculously obvious to most people I know. I tried to back peddle by erasing the aforementioned posting but it was too late. Several people had already read it including the person I was not so vaguely talking about. Smooth move. It ended up facilitating a much needed conversation, but I think I will stick to being funny and stop with the vulnerable stuff.

So far, being at home is still going well. It is so nice to be free of responsibility for a bit. I have decided not to worry too much about seeing people this week and let stuff happen naturally. Then next week I will make more of an effort to see my friends. This three week thing is nice because I don't feel rushed. This is very unlike my two previous visits where I barely had time to breathe.

I already got to go on a mini roadtrip. It was just to College Station but it felt so nice to drive. Road trips are one of the things I miss the most on Maui. Next week i am going to Austin, which is a little bit longer drive. The bluebonnets are out and they are beautiful. I have missed them. I will definitely live in Texas for most of my life. This place is just too great as are the people I love here. I have decided that all my friends (excluding the YWAMers- though they are welcome to participate) must live within an 8 hour radius of Houston, TX. This seems more than reasonable since this includes parts of Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and even Mexico. This way I can take a one day road trip to visit those that I love. This seems like an excellent arrangement.

I am very excited about all the babies my friends are bringing into the world. Hoku, a YWAM wife just gave birth to Elias Osterhus. There are two more YWAM babies on the way. Then there will be little Joe Morrow and baby girl Musselman and baby Muir. So fun! I can't wait to see what they all will look like.

Sleeping in a V shape

Blog

So I am back in the Lone Star State! Yay!

The day I left Maui, I felt kind of apprehensive about coming home but I am not even sure why. Now that I am actually here, it feels good.

The day I left I got to go with Amy and her visiting Canadian youth group kids to Kaanapali. It is fun playing tourist. It was also good to hang out with Amy since my friendship with her is one of the best things about Maui.

I took some Tylenol PM to try to sleep on the plane. I thought it wasn’t working but then I woke up four hours later. There was a strange spunky old lady sitting next to me on that flight. In the middle of my nap, I wake up to find her leaping over me. It was a bit strange since she was old and the normal action would be to shake me awake and ask me to move; not vault over me.

I have decided to just stick to Maui time while I am here. I will just stay up late and wake up late. This is my ideal schedule anyway. Most of my friends work during the day anyway. I have already gotten a chance to hang out with Sarah, John, Thama and Emily. I was worried about not having much car access since my mom needs her car for work. I have been so incredibly blessed. One of my supporters is letting me use her car while I am here. What an amazing surprise! I was speechless. This unexpected generosity will make my time here so much better. Yay God!

My parents have changed my room around. When I was living with them before, I started out in the room on the bottom floor and later moved to the third floor. Now I am back on the first floor. The bed in the room is one of those craftmatic adjustable beds like you see on tv. My grandparents bought it but didn’t like it. You push a button and the end of the bed raises up. Another button makes the head of the bed raise up. If you press both of them, you end up making a V shape. I tried squishing Emily in the V shaped bed. It was fun.

Here are some things I have missed while I have been in Hawaii.
-carpet- it feels amazing
-clean- with constantly open windows and Maui dirt, nothing is ever really clean
-my own indoor bathroom with a bathtub that won’t give me hepatitis if I lay in it
-stocked refrigerator where I don’t have to write my name on everything and I can eat whatever I want
-No bugs or spiders in the house. They burned the cane fields right before I left causing spiders and roaches to infiltrate our house.

Despite all these amenities, I do miss my YWAM friends.