Halloween Imminent

Yes Jacob, apples do taste better in the shower.

 Hey guys!  It's been about two weeks being back in Austin after having gone to Illinois twice.  I can honestly say it's good to be back here without all this traveling. 

Here's some bullet points:

• I got a tetanus shot.  All by myself.  It's like I'm an adult.  I'm so good at fooling people...
• I realized: awful horror movies still scare the crap out of me. Even if they're awfully hilarious. (e.g. The Thing)
• I played this board/card game called Dominion.  If you ever get a chance, play it.  Awesome.
• I'm working on a Halloween costume...hopefully it doesn't fall through!
• I realized this past week that one of the things I'm working on at work is really cool.  But I'm not allowed to tell anyone.  Guys....it's so cool!!
• My mom might be visiting me for Thanksgiving!? What?!

 So yeah.  Let's see.  Oh yeah, I made spinach and tofu pizza!  Here's the recipe.  I thought when they said prepared pizza dough, they meant like, Boboli, or some crap.  Apparently not.  Here's the finished product:

It wasn't really bad, actually.  Probably too much tofu and not enough cheese, though.  Will have to try again!

I also went to another Master Pancake. Guys, these are so good.  This one was on the movie, Halloween.  It was freaking hilarious.  They do great commentary on these things.  Guys, did you know that this movie's setting is in Illinois?!  Yeah, well, watch the movie.  Watch it closely.  Look at the greenery of October.  Look at outdoor lockers of a high school.  Look at the lemon tree.  LOOK AT THE PALM TREES.  Yeah, that's Illinois alright.

(start paraphrasing)

Also, when I was in line (I was wearing my Illini Racquetball shirt), this girl near us was like, "Liek, omg, you're from Illinois?  OMG can we get a picture together?!  My friend goes there and she's gonna flip when I she sees that I met an ill-eye-nee!!!!"

"Haha...uhh..yeah, it's actually Ill-eye-nye."
"Oh, liek ogm ok, well, let's take a picture together, Mr. Ill-eye-nee or Eye-lye-nee or whatever!"
*snap*

(end paraphrasing)

So, yeah!  I'm looking for a new place to live now, as G moves back to Illinois in December, and that's when our lease ends.  Let the hunt begin.  Busy busy busy!  Thanks for reading!

Chicago, Ich liebe Dich

They made Paris, Je t'aime.  They made New York, I Love You.  Now...it's time for Chicago, Ich liebe Dich. Don't you think?

This weekend was awesome.  It was another wedding weekend; my friends Peter and Amanda got married!

I flew in Friday morning, and I just spent great times with great friends that I've missed dearly.  I was reminded of a few things that I had almost forgotten about back home:

• Most of my friends are still way taller than me.
• My friends beat me all the time at video games and board games.
• Chicago pizza is really delicious.
• Chicago weather is still stupid.  Seriously.  Two weeks ago, I show up in a T-shirt and shorts, and it's 50. This weekend, I show up in jeans and a long-sleeve, and it's 80.  Thanks Chicago.

But yeah, I got to spend a ton of good quality time with a ton of great people.  Played video games, board games, drank some wine, ate Giordano's deep-dish pizza, ate an apple in the shower, went to church with friends, gave some head rubs, made breakfast, and...did I mention Peter and Amanda got married?!  It was super cute.  It's so weird to see my friends getting married now, but I'm also really happy for them.  :D :D :D

Wow.  I just loved this weekend.  I just kinda want to gush about my friends, and how welcome I felt, and how much we all just....were together.  It felt so right.  I felt like...like I was in love.  I can't express how much those kids mean to me.

Alright, well, I just wanted to share that with you.  I could go into details, but you probably don't want to hear about the nitty gritty details.  I gotta focus on my life back here in Austin.  Because, like 2 weeks ago, I'm realizing more and more that Illinois really isn't my home anymore.  Gotta keep moving.  Gotta keep arbitrating!

 So, in the next few weeks, I've got some things I gotta do.  Like officially become a Texas resident.  And get my eyes checked.  And my teeth.  And maybe the rest of my body.  And get a Halloween costume.  We'll see.  Maybe they'll be some interesting stories.


P.S.  Yeah, I danced again.  It was awesome.
P.P.S. Did you know that the guy who's credited for inventing Chicago-style pizza was from Texas?!  He went to school at the University of Texas here in Austin!!!!
P.P.P.S. That Home Slice Pizza place here in Austin is alright.  It tastes good.  But it's still not Chicago-style pizza.

Advance, Yield, Advance, Yield

 Hello!  Thanks for coming!  I've got some things to share from this past weekend and what's to come!

This weekend was a conference at my church called Advance.  And the theme of it was called Yield.  So while we were thinking of advancing, we were also trying to remember to yield. I just...felt so torn! 

But seriously, it was a pretty sweet weekend.  To sum it up really quickly, we had a lot of teaching, a lot of intense prayer time, and story sharing of what God has been doing in the church this past year.  A lot of growth happened, and many have come out of really tough places in life into very loving, biblical communities to which they have contributed themselves.  It was really motivating, and I'm excited to be a part of God's work here at this church.

I also felt a lot more peace this weekend.  I was struck by how similar I felt like the Israelites in the Bible in Exodus. Look at these parallels I've observed.

• In the Bible, the Israelites were enslaved by Egypt.
• In January, I was concerned about what my future looked like. (Stick with me here.) 
• The Israelites cried out to God for deliverance.  
• I asked God for this job here in Austin.  
• God brought the Israelites out of Egypt into the desert.
• God brought me out here with a job in the desert. (i.e., Austin)
•  The Israelites then freaked out that God abandoned them in the desert.
• I then freaked out that God abandoned me in the desert. (i.e., Austin)

I shared a little before about wondering what God has in store for me down here.  I don't think I shared how much I've actually been worried about my future down here.  I've just had a lot of doubt as to what my future will look like away from Illinois.  But, after this weekend, I realized, I should have peace, because God will provide like He did before, you know?  So, I got some freakin' peace, and you should too!  Peace be with you!  (for all you Catholics :D)

Also, I want to tell you about FUSE.  FUSE is this group of 20's/30's people at my church.  I met them a few weeks ago at a little get together party they were having.  Well, after hanging with a few of them some more at Advance, I went to their small group meeting after church on Sunday for lunch.  And then we were together again later that night at our Network Rally.  And I gotta tell you...these people...I like em!  They're all rather different, but I like...I dunno.  I felt like I belonged among them.  It was the first time I really felt like I belonged in a long time.  I really can't wait to get to know them more!

Anyway....I need to sleep soon.  Sorry for the lack of media lately. I just wanted to share these things with you all, because I'm really excited about it.  Here's a few more bullet points of things goin' on...

• I went to a Dave and Buster's this weekend.  When I was a kid, I loved that place.  Now, I'm pretty sure that's the reason America has ADD.
• I'm going to a place called Home Slice Pizza tomorrow.  Supposedly it's awesome.  We'll see...I am from Chicagoland.
• I asked for a pop at a Starbucks this weekend.  The girl working there looked at me like, "You know you're at an effing Starbucks, right?"  But then she got this huge smile on her face, and exclaimed, "You just called it pop.  Liek...Ohmaigawd, are you from the North?!"  Darn tootin', sister.
• I cooked pork chops last night.  With wine.  That's right.  And it was AWESOME.  Guys...I'm getting the hang of this cooking thing!
• Bugs keep coming up in my life.
•  There was some bug (or 2) that looked like it/they were mutating/mating/spawning like some demon spider or something in my shower.  Freaking out, I squashed it with 8 wipings worth of toilet paper, and flushed it down the toilet.  While flushing, it crawled out of the TP, and skitted atop the water as it was being flushed down.  Pretty sure it was evil incarnate.
• I had a dream about a Black Widow jumping on my face a few weeks ago.  Do not want.
• We talked about bugs today at lunch at work.  Effin' gross. 
• I had a dream last night about going through a house, and there were slimy bugs everywhere.  
• What does this all mean!?!?   Does this mean something about my childhood or something?  Or does it relate to all the bugs (errors, not creepy crawlers) I find at work? 
• I'm starting to look for a new place to live, because G moves out back to Illinois in December.  Is it bad that one of my criteria for an apartment is if it has a racquetball court?
• I keep playing tennis with a friend from work.  I'm like freakin' Federer or somethin'.  You should see my backhand!
• I'm going back to Illinois this weekend for another wedding!! I'm so excited!  I may even get to visit my friends at college!! Awwww yeah!

Well that was coherent.  Anyway, off to bed.  Thanks for reading, I really appreciate you doing so!  Peace!