So a couple weeks ago, my car was keyed because we park the car right outside York on a side street, which is fairly close to Jane and Finch. Apparently ppl think it's a great past-time to ruin other people's cars. Anyway, yesterday, I get to my car around 1am, and what do you stinking know, both my right tires have been slashed. Unbeeeeeeeelivable. Inconceeeeivable! (ahahaha, Princess Bride). But really, I was quite upset. My car has a spare, but no jack. The gas station that was a second away had no jack. No one pulling into the station had a jack for a while, but we finally found someone who did. Hah, then we couldn't check the tire pressure on the spare, so that was great. Oh, but this is all as we're thinking that only the back tire is punctured. We get it fixed, thanks to Andrew and Melissa (I will always and forever love chivalrous guys and handy girls!) and I drop them off. As I'm nearing my house, I realize that my car is VERY slanted, and that my front tire is now also flat. I pull into the driveway, and sure enough, totally deflated. Craziness. At this point, I'm quite upset, especially because I'm really tired. In addition, I have now drive from Jane to Kipling on a flat tire which is VERY unhealthy for my car, I'm sure. So yep, there ya go, I'm not very impressed with the hoodlums around York at this point. Sigh. What things like this always teach me is grace. Beyond anything, if there were some way to track down whoever did this and punish them, I would love to. In my mind, I'm upset enough to think they really don't deserve to go to Heaven. But that's when grace comes in. No one really deserves to go to Heaven, and I have to admit, that if this hoodlum person made a genuine decision to follow Christ, I'd be seeing them in Heaven. It seems so unfair to me. And yet, that's because my love is limited. I really can't love this stupid stupid STUPID person right now.
In more exciting news, I actually got to my car late because we had gone in someone else's car to Guelph, to see the I Agree with Graydon presentation. It was pretty good. I think there were around 400 people that came out, and Graydon spoke about his beliefs. There were some people dressed as Satan in the crowd, and others carrying signs that said "Hell no" (in response to the question "Do you agree with Graydon?"). It was an interesting mix, and they had a question/answer period after where a lot of interesting issues were raised. What annoys me to no end is people who take verses in the Bible out of context, however. ANNOYING ANNOYING ANNOYING! But yeah, overall, a well-executed event.
Blond moment of the week: I see some people on their bikes and think back to my recent bike-riding experience, where one leg of my pants kept getting dirty while cycling. I ask my sister, "Hey, why is it that only ONE pant leg gets dirty when you cycle?" She responds, "Was it the RIGHT pant leg?" I'm surprised she knows. Then it dawns on my. Duh. Chains are only on one side of the bike. Sigh.
Friday, October 29, 2004
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
Controversy and excitement
I'm off to Agree with Graydon tmw at Guelph! I'm excited. It's been a pretty controversial thing at Guelph. I get to see my friend Rebecca, and all the cows that apparently hang out around Guelph. Moo cow.
Hey, did you know that the Jesus Week at Guelph was once rated in the Top 10 University events in some magazine??
Hey, did you know that the Jesus Week at Guelph was once rated in the Top 10 University events in some magazine??
Things that matter...
I wrote a 6-page paper last night after much hesitation. Things happen in life that we can't control, but I appreciate the things that help me to keep everything in perspective. Some things just make you realize that school isn't the end of it all.
Today, I'm grateful for friends and family.
Today, I'm grateful for friends and family.
Sunday, October 24, 2004
Dear Bloggie
Dear Bloggie,
Nancy has suggested a stake-out on my payphone stalker. What do you think? I think it might just make us ultra creepy, and there's no telling which payphone in Brampton or Cooksville he'll be at. I wonder, dear Bloggie, what to do. I guess we'll see if I can find out payphone locations. We'll have to bring a scary boy.
Till next time, Dear Bloggie,
Your faithful blogger.
AHahahahaha. I stole it, only I modified it. I'm briiiiiiiilliant.
Bloggie is my Blog's name. That's right. And I've named my snowflake robe Snowflake. Only, it's complicated with the robe, because when I put it on, I actually become Snowflake and respond to that name. That's right. Hm. I seem to have regressed. I'm naming things again. Sigh.
Nancy has suggested a stake-out on my payphone stalker. What do you think? I think it might just make us ultra creepy, and there's no telling which payphone in Brampton or Cooksville he'll be at. I wonder, dear Bloggie, what to do. I guess we'll see if I can find out payphone locations. We'll have to bring a scary boy.
Till next time, Dear Bloggie,
Your faithful blogger.
AHahahahaha. I stole it, only I modified it. I'm briiiiiiiilliant.
Bloggie is my Blog's name. That's right. And I've named my snowflake robe Snowflake. Only, it's complicated with the robe, because when I put it on, I actually become Snowflake and respond to that name. That's right. Hm. I seem to have regressed. I'm naming things again. Sigh.
Saturday, October 23, 2004
The House that Crack built
One of my education teachers loves picture books. He has an extensive collection, and this past Tuesday, we were talking about censorship, and how we as teachers censor many of the materials in our class. He pulled out this book and told us that he has never read this to any children, and you'll see why. It's a powerful book. I've put the verses on here, but check out The House that Crack built for the pictures. Read it slowly, it's really interesting.
1 This is the House that crack built.
2 This is the man who lives in the House that crack built.
3 These are the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
4 These are the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
5 These are the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
6 This is the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
7 This is the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
8 This is the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
9 This is the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
10 This is the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
11 And this is the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
12 This is the Girl who's killing her brain. smoking the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
13 And this is the Baby with nothing to eat, And this is the Baby with nothing to eat, born of the Girl who's killing her brain. smoking the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
14 And these are the Tears we cry in our sleep that fall for the Baby with nothing to eat, born of the Girl who's killing her brain. smoking the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man WHO LIVES IN THE HOUSE THAT CRACK BUILT.
I almost cried. The saddest thing is that it's all true. :(
1 This is the House that crack built.
2 This is the man who lives in the House that crack built.
3 These are the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
4 These are the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
5 These are the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
6 This is the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
7 This is the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
8 This is the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
9 This is the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
10 This is the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
11 And this is the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
12 This is the Girl who's killing her brain. smoking the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
13 And this is the Baby with nothing to eat, And this is the Baby with nothing to eat, born of the Girl who's killing her brain. smoking the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man who lives in the House that crack built.
14 And these are the Tears we cry in our sleep that fall for the Baby with nothing to eat, born of the Girl who's killing her brain. smoking the Crack that numbs the pain, bought from the Boy feeling the heat, chased by the Cop working his beat who battles the Gang, fleet and elite, that rules the Street of a town in pain that cries for the Drug known as cocaine, made from the Plants that people can't eat, raised by the Farmers who work in the heat and fear the Soldiers who guard the Man WHO LIVES IN THE HOUSE THAT CRACK BUILT.
I almost cried. The saddest thing is that it's all true. :(
Thursday, October 21, 2004
Interesting...
So you Looers, have you been to the site? I just visited, and the discussion forums are pretty intense. I'm half laughing at the people who are complaining about all these things, because some are quite ridiculous. I think it was a really really good advertising campaign, and yeah, it simply advertised Byron and agreeing with him. No one forced anyone to agree with him. I find it interesting that people get so riled up over all this. I think I almost like ppl riled up than really passive and not caring about it. I think it's something people should think about. I'm glad there's an open forum for discussion.
But really, honestly, what do these posters say? They just ask if you agree with Byron. Please, cramming God down people's throats. How does that happen unless these people seek out information? Unless Byron is God, I don't see it happening. It's sad that when people get really upset, they lose all sense of logic.
And oh please, as if every campus in Canada isn't littered with advertising and postering for hundreds of random causes, clubs and products. I think it's an awesome campaign, because I mean, they haven't even advertised the site, and there are all these ppl visiting it. Ahahaha. Anyway, the T-shirts come out tomorrow! We'll see what happens with all that!
P.S. Mac guys, I'll be there on Oct. 29th! Oh, do you agree with Dave? Ahahahah.
But really, honestly, what do these posters say? They just ask if you agree with Byron. Please, cramming God down people's throats. How does that happen unless these people seek out information? Unless Byron is God, I don't see it happening. It's sad that when people get really upset, they lose all sense of logic.
And oh please, as if every campus in Canada isn't littered with advertising and postering for hundreds of random causes, clubs and products. I think it's an awesome campaign, because I mean, they haven't even advertised the site, and there are all these ppl visiting it. Ahahaha. Anyway, the T-shirts come out tomorrow! We'll see what happens with all that!
P.S. Mac guys, I'll be there on Oct. 29th! Oh, do you agree with Dave? Ahahahah.
I Agree With Byron
I agree with Byron
Now you know! AHahahaha, wasn't the advertising great?!
And the world is on fire.
Now you know! AHahahaha, wasn't the advertising great?!
And the world is on fire.
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Mich mash
Humans and love get complicated sometimes, n'est-ce pas?
So guess, oh, you'll never guess just WHO won the Battle of the Bands at church today. Ahahaha, yes indeed. The Sc-Hotties. We won! And we were really just formed this morning, too. Ahahahaha. We were talking last week about forming a joke band to be totally dumb in the competition, but we didn't talk about it again until this morning. I saw Naomi come in and I ran over to ask her what we were doing. She had no idea. Neither did Emika, who was the 3rd member of this fantastic band. Anyway, we finally decided after many many MANY silly ideas, that we would be a performance art band, who danced and sang and rapped. Amazing, I know. We're so multi-talented! Ahahahaha. Part 1 of our amazing act was a dance-off. We're talking about the revival of many an 80s dance move. Then, when the winner couldn't be decided, we went for the musical chair-off, where Naomi and I competed to win a game of Musical Chairs. We're amazingly cheesy. Anyway, then came the rap that I accompanied with my great (ahahahahahah) drumming skills. The grand finale was a song dedicated to the man who inspired our band...Sc-Hott. Ahahahaha. Last weekend, we made up this pretend fan club for Scott and we kept joking about how we love him so. Anyway, so what better way to pay tribute to the man we all admire than by dedicating our band to him. Yes, it was all for him. AHAHAHahahaha. It was hilarious. We were SO BAD. But the thing is, the judging was done by audience cheering, and for some random reason, ppl cheered the loudest for the Sc-Hotties. Sigh. So we won, and now we'll be defending champions next year. Craziness. It was great fun, though, to be super-silly again.
I rediscovered this song on a CD my friend forgot....
Turn your ear
To Heaven and hear
The noise inside
The sound of angels
The sound of angel's songs
And all this for a King
We could join and sing
"All to Christ the King!"
How constant
How divine
This song of ours will rise
Oh, how constant
How divine
This love of ours will rise
Will rise...
Turn your gaze
To Heaven and raise
A joyous noise
Oh, the sound of salvation come
The sound of rescued ones
And all this for a king
Angles join to sing"
All for Christ the King!"
How infininte and sweet
This love so rescuing
Oh how infinitely sweet
This great love that has redeemed
As one, we sing...
So guess, oh, you'll never guess just WHO won the Battle of the Bands at church today. Ahahaha, yes indeed. The Sc-Hotties. We won! And we were really just formed this morning, too. Ahahahaha. We were talking last week about forming a joke band to be totally dumb in the competition, but we didn't talk about it again until this morning. I saw Naomi come in and I ran over to ask her what we were doing. She had no idea. Neither did Emika, who was the 3rd member of this fantastic band. Anyway, we finally decided after many many MANY silly ideas, that we would be a performance art band, who danced and sang and rapped. Amazing, I know. We're so multi-talented! Ahahahaha. Part 1 of our amazing act was a dance-off. We're talking about the revival of many an 80s dance move. Then, when the winner couldn't be decided, we went for the musical chair-off, where Naomi and I competed to win a game of Musical Chairs. We're amazingly cheesy. Anyway, then came the rap that I accompanied with my great (ahahahahahah) drumming skills. The grand finale was a song dedicated to the man who inspired our band...Sc-Hott. Ahahahaha. Last weekend, we made up this pretend fan club for Scott and we kept joking about how we love him so. Anyway, so what better way to pay tribute to the man we all admire than by dedicating our band to him. Yes, it was all for him. AHAHAHahahaha. It was hilarious. We were SO BAD. But the thing is, the judging was done by audience cheering, and for some random reason, ppl cheered the loudest for the Sc-Hotties. Sigh. So we won, and now we'll be defending champions next year. Craziness. It was great fun, though, to be super-silly again.
I rediscovered this song on a CD my friend forgot....
Turn your ear
To Heaven and hear
The noise inside
The sound of angels
The sound of angel's songs
And all this for a King
We could join and sing
"All to Christ the King!"
How constant
How divine
This song of ours will rise
Oh, how constant
How divine
This love of ours will rise
Will rise...
Turn your gaze
To Heaven and raise
A joyous noise
Oh, the sound of salvation come
The sound of rescued ones
And all this for a king
Angles join to sing"
All for Christ the King!"
How infininte and sweet
This love so rescuing
Oh how infinitely sweet
This great love that has redeemed
As one, we sing...
Saturday, October 16, 2004
Friday, October 15, 2004
Why I love love ministry!
So I wandered up to the CCC office today, and was sitting around when a guy wandered by and was all, "I'm looking for some information." I couldn't even believe it. It's pretty rare that anyone comes to the office who just wants to engage in a conversation about spiritual things. Anyway, this guy asked some goooood good questions. All those tough ones about the Bible's authenticity, homosexuality, and salvation! It was so exciting just to sit around and talk with this guy who's just genuinely interested in Christianity. Anyway, I loved it! This is totally why I love university ministry! I also had my first Bible study yesterday, and I baked muffins for it! Only one person ate one tho! :( The Bible study went really well otherwise, except for some slight difficulty with 2 of the girls whispering in the corner. Inside, the teacher totally came out in me and I thought to myself, "If these girls weren't in university, I'd ask them to split up." AHahahahaha, I chuckled as I realized my classroom management strategies surfacing in my Bible study! Crazy, I feel like teaching is really taking over my life.
I had a stressful moment at school today in the multimedia language centre. It's basically a computer lab for students learning different languages, and I was in there for Chinese. Anyway, there's one part of the program where you have to speak into the mic to practice your pronounciation. The only thing was, when I walked in, it was DEAD quiet. I played around with the program for so long, all the while avoiding the pronounication practice. Finally, I sucked it up and started to do it. Unfortunately, the mic didn't seem very sensitive, and the computer kept asking me to repeat my words! Ack. This one guy turned around and looked at me as I was speaking into the mic. Sigh. I've decided not to go there on Fridays anymore. It's all about going on a busy day when more people are doing pronounciation drills.
I feel like there's not as much to update in my life lately. Although, big news, on October 29th, I'll be at either MacMaster or at Western for the CCC weekly meeting! Yaaaaay! I'm actually hoping Mac because it's a long way to drive to London. I'll see the respective bananas then!
I had a stressful moment at school today in the multimedia language centre. It's basically a computer lab for students learning different languages, and I was in there for Chinese. Anyway, there's one part of the program where you have to speak into the mic to practice your pronounciation. The only thing was, when I walked in, it was DEAD quiet. I played around with the program for so long, all the while avoiding the pronounication practice. Finally, I sucked it up and started to do it. Unfortunately, the mic didn't seem very sensitive, and the computer kept asking me to repeat my words! Ack. This one guy turned around and looked at me as I was speaking into the mic. Sigh. I've decided not to go there on Fridays anymore. It's all about going on a busy day when more people are doing pronounciation drills.
I feel like there's not as much to update in my life lately. Although, big news, on October 29th, I'll be at either MacMaster or at Western for the CCC weekly meeting! Yaaaaay! I'm actually hoping Mac because it's a long way to drive to London. I'll see the respective bananas then!
Tuesday, October 05, 2004
Super Summit Summary!
Whew, so I had an awesome awesome weekend! I wish some of you had come along. Actually before I start, let me tell you about last week. I feel like ever since I went on a missions trip to East Asia, God's been calling me back. Anyway, I finally worked up the nerve to ask my dad what he thought about this, and he waid he'd think about it. Anyway, a couple days later, he said, "So, when you get back from East Asia, what are you going to do?" Mahahaahha. That's good enough for me! I was surprised he wasn't overtly totally against it all. Anyway, I figure I am old enough to start making decisions about my own life, and I guess he's started to realize that, too.
Which brings me to this weekend. I love these CCC retreats and conferences, not just because I get spiritually fed, but also because I get to see a lot of old friends. My friend Russ, who was over in the Orient last year was back, and I got to have a good chat with him. I also saw Maria and Rebecca, who I was on my missions trip with! :) On the last night, we always bond over praying together, and it's awesome that we're continually encouraging one another. There was some good Dutch Blitz games late night with hot-hands-Wickens, this random guy from Queens who rocked at Dutch Blitz (lemme know if you haven't played this...it's the most fun game ever!). There was an awesome speaker named Rick James who was HILARIOUS. What spoke to me most about what he said this weekend was when he spoke from a passage in Luke 9 about the cost of following Jesus. It struck me because I was thinking about leaving next year for the Orient, and how I'm petrified of leaving behind my family and friends, but also because I feel like I'm leaving behind a posh (ahaha, somewhat posh?) teaching job. My logical, play-it-safe part says that I should stay for another 2 years to teach so that I can get my permanent teacher's position, but I know I'm not supposed to, so the only reason I would is to chicken out from stepping out in faith.
I also got to see Jen and Graham, who have a new cute baby! SOOOOOOO cute! Amazingly cute. She's totally adorable. It's funny to see Graham as a dad, but he totally seems to love it. Jen's awesome as always, and it was good to see them after not seeing them for 2 years! Another highlight of the weekend was the Campus Challenge competition. The metro team (U of T, Ryerson and York) totally sucked at the beginning of this competition, so we weren't kicked off (this was played Survivor style, where universities got to vote other unis off). Finally, we actually made it to the final 3, slipping in under the radar, and it was the Fear Factor eating competition. I volunteer for this, thinking it will just be a battle of wills to eat something totally disgusting. I find out later on that it's actually who can eat ridiculous amounts of normal stuff the fastest. This had me in a bit of a fix, because as most of you know, I AM the WORLD'S SLOWEST eater. SLOWEST. Literally, food is pure liquid in my mouth before I can swallow it. Thankfully, there was soup, so I volunteered for that. I peered at it beforehand and thought it looked a little strange, but didn't pursue it further. Anyway, the teams were tied as the soup eating began, and I took the first bite and realized that it was CONDENSED mushroom soup with some spicy sauce in it. It was absolutely DISGUSTING. Lucky for me, soup requires no chewing, so I kept swallowing. At one point, one of my teammates patted me on the back and encouraged me, at which I almost gagged up everything. I managed to keep it down and here's the big surprise............GUESS WHO FINISHED THE SOUP FIRST?! I know. I know, it's unbelievable, but I actually did. Everyone else was gagging big-time on it. Apparently it was too spicy. Anyway, it was totally fun, and because we won that competition, Toronto actually gained immunity and made it to the final 2! We actually won the final vote, too, so we won a scholarship to the Winter Conference. Amaaaaazing, eh? Yep. Totally. We're so strategic. "Pretending" we suck to get into the finals. Ahahahaha. So that was fun competition time.
I have to say this was my most favorite Summit ever. I think being old, it was just nice not to worry about anything and to just hang out with everyone. I love the frosh and newbies at CCC this year. They're so fun! One of my favorite parts is the worship on the dock, too. It's beautiful to hear 50 voices all singing praises to an awesome God. Someone brought bongos and the beat just carries across the water beautifully. The moon was out...it was just amazing. I had a good talk with Melissa, too, and we just thought over what it would be like to leave our families. I got a chance to pray for her, too, which was awesome. I totally love Mel to death, and I'm so amazed at her spiritual growth over the years. It's amazing to get to mentor someone who's so teachable! :) Thanks Mel!
Wow, that was a long update, and that doesn't even begin to describe what the weekend was really like. I attribute a lot of my spiritual growth in these past couple of years to these retreats, conferences, and the ppl I've met. I'm going to miss Summit!
Which brings me to this weekend. I love these CCC retreats and conferences, not just because I get spiritually fed, but also because I get to see a lot of old friends. My friend Russ, who was over in the Orient last year was back, and I got to have a good chat with him. I also saw Maria and Rebecca, who I was on my missions trip with! :) On the last night, we always bond over praying together, and it's awesome that we're continually encouraging one another. There was some good Dutch Blitz games late night with hot-hands-Wickens, this random guy from Queens who rocked at Dutch Blitz (lemme know if you haven't played this...it's the most fun game ever!). There was an awesome speaker named Rick James who was HILARIOUS. What spoke to me most about what he said this weekend was when he spoke from a passage in Luke 9 about the cost of following Jesus. It struck me because I was thinking about leaving next year for the Orient, and how I'm petrified of leaving behind my family and friends, but also because I feel like I'm leaving behind a posh (ahaha, somewhat posh?) teaching job. My logical, play-it-safe part says that I should stay for another 2 years to teach so that I can get my permanent teacher's position, but I know I'm not supposed to, so the only reason I would is to chicken out from stepping out in faith.
I also got to see Jen and Graham, who have a new cute baby! SOOOOOOO cute! Amazingly cute. She's totally adorable. It's funny to see Graham as a dad, but he totally seems to love it. Jen's awesome as always, and it was good to see them after not seeing them for 2 years! Another highlight of the weekend was the Campus Challenge competition. The metro team (U of T, Ryerson and York) totally sucked at the beginning of this competition, so we weren't kicked off (this was played Survivor style, where universities got to vote other unis off). Finally, we actually made it to the final 3, slipping in under the radar, and it was the Fear Factor eating competition. I volunteer for this, thinking it will just be a battle of wills to eat something totally disgusting. I find out later on that it's actually who can eat ridiculous amounts of normal stuff the fastest. This had me in a bit of a fix, because as most of you know, I AM the WORLD'S SLOWEST eater. SLOWEST. Literally, food is pure liquid in my mouth before I can swallow it. Thankfully, there was soup, so I volunteered for that. I peered at it beforehand and thought it looked a little strange, but didn't pursue it further. Anyway, the teams were tied as the soup eating began, and I took the first bite and realized that it was CONDENSED mushroom soup with some spicy sauce in it. It was absolutely DISGUSTING. Lucky for me, soup requires no chewing, so I kept swallowing. At one point, one of my teammates patted me on the back and encouraged me, at which I almost gagged up everything. I managed to keep it down and here's the big surprise............GUESS WHO FINISHED THE SOUP FIRST?! I know. I know, it's unbelievable, but I actually did. Everyone else was gagging big-time on it. Apparently it was too spicy. Anyway, it was totally fun, and because we won that competition, Toronto actually gained immunity and made it to the final 2! We actually won the final vote, too, so we won a scholarship to the Winter Conference. Amaaaaazing, eh? Yep. Totally. We're so strategic. "Pretending" we suck to get into the finals. Ahahahaha. So that was fun competition time.
I have to say this was my most favorite Summit ever. I think being old, it was just nice not to worry about anything and to just hang out with everyone. I love the frosh and newbies at CCC this year. They're so fun! One of my favorite parts is the worship on the dock, too. It's beautiful to hear 50 voices all singing praises to an awesome God. Someone brought bongos and the beat just carries across the water beautifully. The moon was out...it was just amazing. I had a good talk with Melissa, too, and we just thought over what it would be like to leave our families. I got a chance to pray for her, too, which was awesome. I totally love Mel to death, and I'm so amazed at her spiritual growth over the years. It's amazing to get to mentor someone who's so teachable! :) Thanks Mel!
Wow, that was a long update, and that doesn't even begin to describe what the weekend was really like. I attribute a lot of my spiritual growth in these past couple of years to these retreats, conferences, and the ppl I've met. I'm going to miss Summit!
Monday, October 04, 2004
Sick...
Got back from an awesome retreat, but I don't have time to blog about it right now. I'm so sick. :( Can you pray I get better?
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