11.28.07.b :: Shirts
Yes, I'm procrastinating. But Palmer Cash has such cool shirts! Here are my favourites:Drink apple juice, because...
Road trips... a whole shirt for road trips!
Headphones
Yeah, I'd never wear this but it's crudely funny... and I listen to emo!Yo, I can't wait to get 8 hours of sleep again into my schedule. That would be some awesomeness, I tell you!
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11.28.07.a :: Up and at 'em
You see there's too much energy to do nothing
And we don't care what ya'll do but do something, move something
Everybody's in the place, like this, we up and at 'em-"Up and At 'Em" by John Reuben
Parkdale food bank will see Christmas: Closing delayed as fundraising begins
Well, lookee here. Another food bank on the verge of being shut down. Why are social organizations stretched to the limit of their resources? Oh, right. No one remembers them until they need them. Right.United Way is way better at co-ordinating community-building efforts than the Christian church. I always find it so embarassing that the church, the very institution that is supposed to work towards the coming of God's kingdom, does worse than secularists. Yes, we have to share the gospel, but do we share the gospel, wish the poor "godspeed", and leave them hungry and freezing on the streets?
Anyway, if you want to help the Parkdale Food Bank stay open a few more months, please send a cheque, payable to St. Francis Table, to 1322 Queen St. W., Toronto, Ont., M6K 1L4.
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11.25.07 :: Dreamers
Praise God for Ceci who is as bold a dreamer as me. I'm looking forward to our dreams and plans! :o)Every life comes with a broken heart
Dying here to be made whole
We are the lost souls with a second start
Following the builder home
There's a temple I've found in the strangest part
Where the stones are built of souls
Where the builder himself has promised, "love,
I'm never going to let you go. Go!"Oh we're the regeneration
Oh with time to kill
Oh we're the regeneration
Oh rebuild, rebuild-From "Rebuild" by Switchfoot, with Matt from Relient K and Dustin from Ruth
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11.24.07 :: The point that God keeps shouting
Before that, the next grocery run is DECEMBER 1ST @ 11am.Would you go to war for me, baby?
Would you cry for the weak
And die for the peace of men?
Oh how can we know?
You and I both don't
So let's make this boatload of excuses burn and sinkOne day it all comes down to this
You can sink or swim
You can hit or miss
One day it all comes down
One day we all come downI'll take my heart back and set the people free
I'll leave the dead to die and take who's coming with meStep back for all the world to see
Your life means all the world to me
I'll take all pain and suffering
But I'm such a sucker sometimes
Sometimes we don't know
So plug up those bullet holes
Oh you feel so close
Don't let go until I say
One day we'll drink to this and say, "Remember when we died... we went out in flames!"I'll take my heart back and set the people free
I'll leave the dead to die and take who's coming with me
I'll take my heart back and set the people free
I'll leave the dead to die... there will be blood in the streets.-"The Fight" by The Classic Crime
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"The true prophetic message always calls us to a spiritual defiance of the world as it now is. Our prayer, to the extent that it is fully authentic, undermines the status quo. It is a spiritual underground resistance movement. We are subversives in a world of injustice, oppression, and violence." - Richard Foster
"There is a way of life that, if generally adopted, would eliminate all of the social and political problems from which we suffer. This way of life comes to whole-hearted disciples of Christ who live in the disciplines of the spiritual life and allow grace to bring their bodies into alignment with their redeemed spirits." - Dallas Willard
"Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor's crown." - Psalm 105:10
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This could just be a result of the position I've placed myself in. But, yeah, I think social justice is the right track to be on. The biggest ache is not seeing others cling on as tightly to this whole justice thing as I do (could just be my pride), but I thank God for the small number who do.
On a different note, I just posted Winter Sun. Read if you are into that kind of thing.
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11.20.07 :: Farming, or, "California sounds nice, but California's a lie"
Rain on my hopes
Rain on my soul
Rain on everything that I know
It feels so ludicrous the pursuit of this dream
We thought we�d be there long ago-From "Seattle" by The Classic Crime (listen to the Seattle EP)
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"Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near." � James 5:7-9 (TNIV)
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11.19.07 :: Concert aftermath
Yes, folks. "28.Go to a Mae concert- Nov. 19, 2007"It's really too bad that they a)weren't the greatest and b)sang all of one song that I love ("Brink of Disaster") out of the 7-song set (at least, I think it was 7 songs). Three from Singularity, two from The Everglow, and one from Destination: Beautiful. Well, I suppose it was nice that they sang "Summertime" too, my first favourite song of theirs (but not so much now). And! Wow! Mark (the bassist) and Rob (the keyboardist) are both gone! Replaced by some other dudes! So sad. And so sad they didn't do "Tisbury Lane" either, choosing to rock out the crowd instead (as with the other bands). I think I'll stick with their studio stuff from now on.
Anberlin, on the other hand, was great. I would love to see them headline sometime. I was happy they did "Paperthin Hymn" and "Dismantle.Repair." Sweeeeeeet. "Godspeed" and the fist pumping action at the hey! hey!'s were awesome (the crowd in the front must've watched the DVD). I even crushed into the merch line to get stickers and buttons. Haha. What a nerd.
But, might I say that the most memorable moment has been granted to the sound check guy for Anberlin. "Chsshhhhhhhhheck, HEEEEEEYYYYY!!! Piiiizzzza! Pajama paaaaarty! Chsshhhhhhhhheck, HEEEEEEYYYYY!!!" Heh.
Jeff, Josey and I skipped out on Motion City Soundtrack and opted for home instead. And I do regret not bringing a camera to Kool Haus. Last time, for Switchfoot, we weren't allowed. Oh well.
So that's the concert of the year. Go me.
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11.17.07 :: Vic and the real boys
JOY Fellowship (aka Vic and the boys... honestly, where did all the girls go???) was great last night - another round of honest and real conversations. There's something magical happening when we get together lately. I guess people pine for brutal honesty sometimes, and you find out you're not so alone after all.Lars and the Real Girl was excellent. The right combination of humour and drama, just the way Vicki likes. :o) It's most remarkable to see the level of complete acceptance of Lars and his bizarre behaviour from the community - I think I shed the most tears over the scenes where the community treats him with dignity and care. Of course, it greatly helps that he is such a sweetheart, with that dorky, sheepish grin and all. That Ryan Gosling is an excellent actor!
Some dialogue from the movie which made me grin like an idiot:
[Lars talking to Dagmar, the town doctor, about Karin, his sister-in-law.]
Lars: It's just, and I think it's because she's insecure, it's just, she's just always trying to hug everybody. You know, some people don't like that. Some people don't like to be hugged. But she doesn't realize that. She takes it personally, and, it hurts her feelings. I don't know what to do about that. Do you?
Dagmar: It's such a comfort sometimes, just to have somebody's arms around you. Don't you think?
Lars: No.
Dagmar: It feels good.
Lars: It does not feel good. It, it hurts.
Dagmar: Oh, like a cut, or bruise?
Lars: Like a burn. Like when you go outside and your feet freeze and you come back in and then they thaw out? It's like that. It's almost exactly like that.But, okay, kids. I really don't shun hugs *that* much! Honest! No, seriously! Really!
On another note, MAE AND ANBERLIN TOMORROW!!! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAH!!!
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11.14.07 :: Bandages
The prompt: "Face down, this carpet tastes like coffee grounds ground into my face now, and every angle's covered with just another band-aid." -From "Falling Out" by Relient KThe other prompt: So Sherbino announces that each of us have to teach a class on the last day, show how we're going to leave our thumbprint on the class. Hah, as if 2 papers and the reading statements weren't enough. But anyway, he said that one student in a previous class decided to write his/her number on bandages, and told the class that if they were ever hurting and in pain, that they could give him/her a call. Pretty smart person.
I've been thinking the grocery runs, the OCC boxes, and the YSM collections I've been doing lately. All good, all lovely, all bandage solutions. Are you hungry? I'll shove you a box of nutritionless mac and cheese. You're a kid with no toys? Here's your annual box of toys to tide you over until next Christmas, a box which will give you about 30 minutes of material happiness amidst the other 23 hours and 30 minutes of misery and desperation of your day. In need of some new clothes? Here are some old ones that are somewhat worn already that you can wear down completely as you freeze on the streets.
But as bad as these solutions are in the long-run, bandages cover up wounds to promote healing, as long as we don't rip them off too prematurely. Does this work with social wounds that plague our society?
Well, since I'm dry of ideas of long-term solutions, I guess I'll keep digging in my box of bandages and sticking them on people who need them until its empty.
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11.10.07 :: We haven't located us yet.
Thanks for another successful grocery run! A little over budget, but still fun nonetheless. The best part was probably seeing one of the firefighters practicing his bagpipes in the garage for tomorrow's Remembrance Day Ceremony. I shall be keeping stats from our monthly grocery runs. Tabulations will be posted... probably after school is out for the year.Oh, and of course, thanks Ceci for a smokin' awesome meal at Miller's Country Bistro. Mmm... moules et frites in pancetta cream ("wait... that's not a tomato"). Not to mention the punky-hair-in-the-face waiter and the laughing (oh, the laughing).
V: [Mumbles something incoherent to all.]
C: "What? Did she say chicken tandoori?"
R: "No, I think it was chicken dirty."
V: [Laughs.]
A: "I heard chicken too."
A,C,R: [Looks at V.]
V: "I said: quick 'n dirty!"Yes, it is good to spend a hilarious, seemingly drunken time with the Moks. Honestly, how have we gone so long without these kind of nights? I do cherish these times. And how we've grown up from making Angela get us the bill!
The night capped off with The Darjeeling Limited. "No, it's EXPRESS." ;o) It left a lot to be figured out on your own, but, hey, I guess it's true to life. Here are some lines that I thought rang true:
Jack: "I love you too, but I'm gonna mace you in the face!"
Brendan: "We haven't located us yet."
Rita: What's wrong with you?
Jack: I honestly don't know. I'll tell you the next time I see you.Jack: "I wonder if the three of us would've been friends in real life. Not as brothers, but as people."
Sometimes, I wonder all of these things too.
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11.9.07 :: Yonge Street Mission Christmas Drive
Yonge Street Mission is calling for donations for their Christmas assistance programs! I've arranged for a pick up of items at my house in early December, which means you have the rest of November to gather all your goods and bring them on over.What stuff? You can bring anything from toys, books, games for kids and teens, food items (packaged, frozen or canned), clothing, personal hygiene items, housewares, baby stuff, gift certificates, TTC tokens... for a list of items they require, check out YSM's Christmas Wish List 2007 (PDF).
You can also arrange your own pick up. Contact Anne Keyes at 416-929-9614, ext. 274, or by e-mail at [email protected].
In other news, I think I'm way off on my OT paper on sacrifice. The topic is a) boring and b) too big! I'm screwed because every book on anthropological views on sacrifice in the ancient Near East have been snatched up. Oh well. I guess that's why Dr. Kessler said, "don't stress too much! Just think of it as a learning opportunity!" Only in seminary do they say underachieving is not all that bad!
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11.4.07 :: Next grocery run: Nov. 10th
Fact: Did you know that 53% of Foodpath (Mississauga's largest food bank) clients are children?Here are the details on our next grocery run:
Date: Sat. Nov. 10th
Time: Starts at 4:30pm
Place: Food Basics, Hurontario and Eglinton; East Credit Fire Station, 1045 Bristol Rd. WHere's how you can get involved:
-Meet up outside the entrance at Food Basics at 4:30pm and shop 'til we run out of cash
-Can't make it? Let me know how much you want to chip in and we'll buy food on your behalf
-Donate to FoodPath at http://www.foodpath.org/
-Bring a friend or two with you on Saturday! The more, always the merrier. :o)A few more things:
-We can jig around the times to allow for more people to come out. Let me know what time on Saturdays are best for you.
-Remember: You can always hold your own grocery run anytime you want!That's it! Questions, comments, creative ideas to alleviate poverty in our city, send them my way!
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11.2.07 :: Two-four
Hah, I can finally have the following as my theme song!Twenty-four oceans, twenty-four skies, twenty-four failures, and twenty-four tries
Twenty-four finds me in twenty-fourth place
With twenty-four dropouts at the end of the dayLife is not what I thought it was twenty-four hours ago
Still I�m singing Spirit take me up in arms with You
And I�m not who I thought I was twenty-four hours ago
Still I�m singing Spirit take me up in arms with YouTwenty-four reasons to admit that I�m wrong
With all my excuses still twenty-four strongSee I�m not copping out
When you�re raising the dead in meOh, I am the second man
Oh, I am the second man now
Oh, I am the second man nowAnd You�re raising these twenty-four voices
With twenty-four hearts
With all of my symphonies in twenty-four parts
But I want to be one today
Centered and trueI want to see miracles
To see the world change
I wrestled the angel
For more than a name
For more than a feeling
For more than a cause
Singing Spirit take me up in arms with You
You�re raising the dead in me- "Twenty-Four" by Switchfoot
Funny, today with Anna, we talked about my desire to change the apathy in the church through social justice (she bought me Justice in the Burbs by Will and Lisa Samson - sweeeeeeeeeeet!!!). And in Spiritual Formation, we're looking at wrestling with God. This theme song was meant to be.
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11.1.07 :: Courage, if there was ever any
"Burmese comics laugh in the face of crackdown", Dinah Gardner (October 30, 2007)These guys are quite hilarious. A trio of Rick Mercers, really. Except that they are under an oppressive authoritarian rule, and are thus under the constant threat of imprisonment for what they are doing. Can you imagine the entertainers in our culture being arrested for the good they are doing?
One month of praying for Burma, and there are some answered requests. There is peace, though uneasy. The civil unrest has stopped in the streets, though still stirring in hearts. Soon enough, even the best of us will stop thinking about Burma, forgetting about the nation's plight as it slips through the cracks of the media again. We have the luxury of leaving the situation (and what a luxury it is), while the Burmese continue to suffer with no escape.
Here is a quote from an anonymous man in the article "An ominous calm returns to streets of Rangoon" by Choe Sang-Hun (October 24, 2007):
"We want to explode our feelings, but if we do, who will help us?"
Can we really just sit idly by?