just a funny video showing NZ's personality

this is the video you see before the plane takes off in New Zealand. It is only for their domestic flights. the All Blacks are New Zealand's rugby team and they love them.

click here for video

New Zealand is rocking us...already

Well, I have been here two-ish days and we are already getting rocked.

We were hit by a 7.4 magnitude earthquake last night. That was the magnitude that hit Haiti, luckily, there are mostly sheep in New Zealand. I'm sure they were flying around. The shaking was unbelievable! It was a first for me and most of us. The base is fine and we are all alive. Praise the Lord! Christchurch, the second biggest city got the most damage.

The epicenter was 8 miles east of us...

Here is a NZ newspaper article.

if i made a post about what i will miss...there would be tears shed and I'm in no mood for tears...

Well, as many of you know, I am headed back to the Land of the Long White Cloud on Tuesday.

Time moves too fast! I can't believe how soon that is.

Here is a couple things worth mentioning that I am most excited about...

My YWAM friends, I have to call them that because while I am stoked to see them and live life together, I am also leaving the ones that were with me through a lot of crazy in college and which became my best friends (and to be cliche, yet true) forever. I am now missing two weddings that I would have had the great privilege to be a part of. I just looked up the definition of apart (to make sure it was apart or a part in the last sentence and found this as the example of apart in a sentence: countries as far apart as New Zealand and the U.S.). That officially shows how far it is, in case there was any doubt.

The YWAM community. Sharing, cleaning, unity, worshipping and praying together, playing, climbing, talking, coffee. So many things make the community worth every penny I put forth to this and every penny friends and family do as well. The people we meet are struck by our family. Just our small outreach team amazed people on the miracle of us all getting along and having a blast together.

New Zealand's indescribable beauty.

The little things too (in no particular order), such as, rock climbing, Orange Franks (a soda), Tim Tams (cookies), always having another person to hangout with and enjoy things you do, fish and chips, walking to the grocery store, sheep, not seeing trash anywhere, Christchurch, Seagar's hot chocolate, believe me there many more than just these...

Thanks for supporting me, whoever is reading this. Your prayers and even thoughts of this journey means so much.

Signing off until I am in New Zealand next week.

to be surprised

I think one of my favorite songs puts it well...

To be surprised by Sondre Lerche

I'm not gonna lie
saying everyone will be all right
and fine until we die
what else can you do but
hope and pray and say that we'll get by
be prepared to be suprised
better be prepared to be suprised
baby be prepared to be suprised
better be prepared to be suprised
it's all I know

I am always surprised by the turns my life and others lives take. The current turn surprised me a lot, it even scares me at times. I do know for sure that where I am headed is where I am supposed to go. That's comforting. So, Off to Narnia I go...

portland or bust

Well, here is my official plan for January 2010. That is 6 months away, folks. It involves packing up my bike, long board, and clothes into my VW Jetta and hitting the road. The 2,000 mile journey will take atleast 4 days. It is a joy to have something to plan for, to get excited about and to enjoy my time here in Tulsa knowing I shall be leaving soon and for an indefinite amount of time.

life must be a more sacred thing than a couple cheap words and a promise ring

I'm not sure what it is about coffee shops that make me want to think, question, explain, describe, and write. Maybe it's that place I can go enjoy a cup o joe and just be. I can listen to some good music and leave my troubles at the front door. The peaceful atmosphere, the comfy seats, the smell of fresh ground espresso; this is a love relationship that I can happily know that it will never leave. God is good to create different things that each person on Earth can enjoy and give them a happy heart. Our day to days get so busy and full, but to sit back and feel why life is good is a beautiful thing. My thoughts have been somewhat of a mess since being back from New Zealand. There are many reasons for this, but finding the small, good things can get you through the crazy. Although I believe life, in general, is crazy.

"And if I keep on walking on past the crooked bend I will meet my Maker I will meet my Friend It's a long hard road With a good, good end."

The Circumference of Home

I rode my bike to Riverside today and sat down to read a book. Little did I know that I would have what some people might call an epiphany.

I literally read two pages of this book and had the scales fall from my eyes. I complain a lot about driving around Tulsa. The roads are in disarray and the traffic is awful. I hate driving. So...why not take the bus? In Kurt Hoelting's book, he talks about living locally, and draws a 100 kilometer/62 mile radius around his home in Puget Sound. He writes, "This much is clear to me. If I can't change my own life in response to the greatest challenge now facing our human family, who can? And if I won't make the effort to try, why should anyone else? So I've decided to start at home, and begin with myself. The question is no longer whether I must respond. The question is whether I can turn my response into an adventure." While this may seem like a abnormal step, to me, it makes sense. It is cheaper for me to buy a bus pass for a month. I spend $50-$60 on gas in one month in my 2006 Jetta! A bus pass is $40. I also get the added bonus of not driving (YOU don't have to hear it), also I will get to meet people and learn to be patient while waiting. It also gets me to better plan each day. I can bring my bike on the bus and go! Think I'm crazy...oh well.

I can't ignore the fact that this is going to be hard and my dedication strong, but I need a change. I'm going to work for this.

www.tulsatransit.org