Just an Update

I noticed it has been awhile since I last posted, and I thought that an update was in order. So here it goes. Sunday, took it easy, bowled that night, shot a little 600. Monday, to Evansville for shopping, Shyler's and Bowling. I didn't really like the shopping, loved Shyler's, and enjoyed bowling (580 and 61o). Tuesday, to Indianapolis for Johnson family christmas, it was cool, got some nice stuff. Wednesday, worked from 9-1 at CVS (reminded me that I don't like retail), then home, took Dad's car in for a oil change, then home, then off to eat, then bowled (713), then home to play a little with my new PDA (a Sony Clie PEG-NX73V...pretty cool thus far).

There you have it. My life updated. Now you are in the know. You should feel very special!

And now the moment you've been waiting for...the completely odd random saying (if you laugh, great...if you don't, just ignore it and move on):

A running tiger is as normal as a butterfly dancing in the wind.

Merry Christmas!!!!

Just a quick Christmas note. Just a quick reminder of the true reason for the season, the gift from God, Jesus the Christ. Here's a reader's digest version of Dad's Christmas Eve service sermon:

What's in the middle of the natvity scene? The Christ child. Not the sheperds, not Mary and Joseph, not the wise men (who really shouldn't be there, but that's another sermon), not the animals. The baby King is in the middle. That's how it should be in our lives, not just at this time of year, but all the time. We can learn from the natvity scene...Keep Jesus in the center of all you do.

There's the 30 sec. sermon for you. I thought it was pretty good. Another interesting tale was that of the song O Holy Night. It was written by an unsavory Frenchmen (spent more time in the pubs than the church) at the request of a priest. The writer wanted the poem to be put to music, so he had a friend write up a tune for it. It turns out that this friend was Jewish. After falling out of favor with the church (because of its creators), the song was picked up in America by an abolitionist. An assitant to Thomas Edison created the microphone. And the first thing that was ever sent across the airwaves was the Christmas story (scripture) and then he played O Holy Night on his violin. Three people that would not be considered holy, religious people went in to make O Holy Night one of the most revered songs in Christenom. An unsavory Frenchmen, a Jewish songwrite, and a scientist....God works in mysterious ways.

Alright, I'm done. Just thought those were really neat points. Have a very Merry Christmas!!!

Let it Snow!!

So, to recap the last day....it's snowed....alot. There's a good foot 1/2 (maybe 20"+) out there. Today the wind is supposed to blow hard all day creating some massive drifts. This upcoming weekend the temperature will get down to -11 (not counting windchill). So, in other words, this snow is not going anywhere very quickly. I do believe that dad and I are just gonna hunker down for the next day or so. The weather may make the plans of getting to Sean and Abigails a bit difficult...in fact, they may be altogether canceled, only time will tell.

If I were still a kid this would be awesome. However, being the only "kid" at home, the snow looks nice, but is a bit of an inconvience. If I were younger with the brother and sister around, there would be tons of fun being had today, but alas, I am grown and home alone. Tis aight, I can still enjoy the beauty of snow, the hot chocolate, and avoid the extremely cold, wet feeling that goes with playing in the snow.

Long live the frozen tundra of morningside dr!!

An untraditional Christmas

This Christmas is going to be a bit different. Acutally, a lot different. First of all, Mom and the young'un (Kristen) are in England until Jan. 3. Thereby, it's just Dad and I at the house all holidays long. It is due to this that the rest of the normal Christmas is being changed. Here's how it would normally work:

Christmas eve - church service, dinner, exchange some gifts (siblings, etc.)
Christmas day - get mom and dad gifts in the morning, breakfast pizza, family comes in (all sides), more gift exchanging, lunch/supper

Now, here's what's happened and going to happen:

Saturday 12/18 - exchanged family gifts (mom and dad gifts)
Christmas eve - dinner at church members house, church service
Christmas day - to Sean and Abigails, exchange gifts, play video games
12/28 - to indianapolis for Johnson side of the family Christmas, exchange gifts
1/08 - to Tell City for Litherland (mom's side) of the family christmas, exchange gifts

Things are a bit different, but change isn't always bad. I'm not complaining, I'm just making an observation. It's all good. I'm still with family. Mom and Kristen are enjoying themselves and visiting the future in-laws. All's well.

After all, it is the Hap-hap-happiest time of the year!!

I have not fallen

off the face of the earth. The delay between posts has been due to those pesky little things known as finals. My past week has pretty much consisted of staying up until 10-11pm studying, taking tests, eating unhealthy (but tasty) food, and then studying some more. I run on less sleep than I should and turn my mind to pretty much mush. But it is over and done with. I will let you know how the grades turn out (worst case: 3 B's, 3 A's, best case: 1 B, 5 A's....I'm hoping for the latter, but will take what I get).

Good news is I am now on Christmas break. One month without school. It should be a good time to get re-energized. I will try to post more regularly and maybe even have a deep thought/discussion type post...you know, get people riled up and whatnot. Only time will tell. As for now, I have a friggin' sweet water bed calling my name.

I'll hitya up lata.

A decision made and one still pending

Alright, I have decided on my course of action for housing next year/semester. I am going to take my uncle up on the offer to live at my cousins house for free. Here's the rationale: 1) Free rent and saving money w/ increased expenses coming (braces and summer school tuition), 2) I still get to hang with my friends (just not on a daily basis), and 3) It just seemed right to me (hey, I'm a big go with what feels right kinda guy).

Now for the big decision still pending. I have decided to purchase a video game system to have at my cousin's house and keep me from being too bored. But I have not decided which game system to buy. The type of gamer I am: sports and shoot'ems, no RPGs, no fighting games. Here's the choices and pros/cons as I see them.

PS2 - pro: good controller, DVD player, great game selection (cheap w/ the classic games); con: no major cons (that I can think of....no HALO, but I could deal with that)

Xbox- pro: great graphics, decent game selection, HALO, DVD player, can be hacked for free gaming!!!; con: don't like the controller all that well, less games than PS2

Gamecube - pro: good controller, Nintendo loyalist since birth, cheaper; con: less games, no DVD

Ok, honestly, the Gamecube is running a very distant 3rd in this race. But I would love comments about which system you would recommend. And give me some reasons, not just this one rocks, or that one sucks. Come on, let me know what you think.

A Bittersweet weekend

Well, where to begin, bitter or sweet. I guess as the word is written, bitter comes first, so I'll start there. On Saturday morning, my grandpa (my dad's dad) had a heart attack and passed away. He was in failing health and everyone expected this eventually, but it did come sooner than we anticpated. A very saddening moment for our family. I especially feel bad for my grandma. They were married for 65+ years. That's a long time to wake up next to one person, and then to not... That's gotta be hard. Prayers for our family are very much appreciated. I can take comfort in the fact that I now believe that my grandpa is in heaven and suffers no more.

Ok, now for the sweet. I bowled in the Indianapolis City Tournament this weekend. On Saturday, I bowled 234-237-222 = 693 in Team Event. As a team, we shot 3450 with handicap and were in about 5th place (1 weekend remains in the tournament). Today, Sunday, I bowled singles/doubles. In singles, I bowled 300-244-210 = 754. It was my 5th 300 game (perfect game...I'm now only 8 behind my dad). The 754 (778 w/handicap) put me in 2nd actual, 3rd handicap. However, I lost all reaction in doubles and did not bowl well, 180-147-200 = 527. What I hateevents. As it turned worse about that is how it cost me in all out, I had 693-754-527 = 1974, with my handicap 2046. I'm in the top 10 scratch and top 20 handicap. But it could've been a lot more. Overall I am pleased, excited about the 300, and the tournament should turn out to be profitable for me.

That's it. Thanks for reading and your thoughts and prayers.

I need your opinion

First, let me get the recent events out of the way. My car decided to act crazy, so I took it in to the Ford dealership. Turns out some kind of sensor shorted out and that was making the craziness occur. A day and half later, $234 poorer, and I have my car back in good working order. Also, the crack on my windshield is now HUGE. After a frost, and running the heater, the thing just ballooned. Finally, my pharmacy class got pounded on in the COPHS basketball challenge.

Alright, now, here is what I need your opinion on. I have the offer for free housing from my uncle. He is offering me 2 rooms (bedroom and study/living area) and a bathroom at my cousin's house. I would also have use of the kitchen and the washer/dryer. All at NO charge...aka FREE. The other option is to continue living in Speedway with friends, but pay rent for the house. So, here's the pros and cons as I see them. Distance from school is similar, and I'm sure that I will have a job either place, I know of good churches in both areas, so those are none factors.

Free housing: pro--> it's free and I'd save a lot of money (nearly $1600) if I live here next semester, closer to bowling; con--> living by myself, no friends to hangout with on a daily basis, the hassle of switching CVS stores

Speedway: pro --> hanging out with friends, companionship, some accountability (keeping things clean and whatnot); con--> cost

As you can see, it basically comes down to cost. The biggest advantage to saving that money, is that I will have to pay summer tuition this year while on rotations. That just means more money to school, with less time to work and make it back. So, please comment with what you think is the best course of action (in your opinion). Thanks in advance...and I will post what my final decision is.