25 October 2005

I am very fond of this woman...







Rosa Parks passed away.
We are deeply grateful for her decision...

Living in the mountains...

There is something unique living up here in the Oakhurst-Coarsegold-Fish Camp Triopolis. Today, October 25, not only do we celebrate Pablo Picasso's birthday, but we close the power down in the entire area for the day to replace power poles. The entire area is blacked out.

The school are closed down for the week because of... well, umm, because, ummm, no one knows. They always have.

The Tarantula Festival is this weekend, just three weeks after the Chichansi Pow Wow.

I do love living here...

18 October 2005

Change...



The Dogwoods are changing colors around us.

It is truly glorious...

14 October 2005

I just like to hear myself type...

To anyone who reads this...

I am an insignificant scum who really doesn't deserve any of the attention that I get. I like to blog because it makes me think. I don't think I am insignificant because I am no good, I am just aware of how many other wonderful people there are out there who are risking their lives, working hard, going unnoticed, and making a real difference in the world. I am humbled by the job that I have, by the people who care about me and would want to hear something I have to say. But please don't take anything I have to say as something that should make a difference in your life. If you are trying to follow the path that the Lord has laid out for you then I should not have any influence on you unless you grant me access to your heart. If you do grant me access, I will try to keep your trust by listening to the Lord WITH you, not for you.

I am sorry that my humor, my writing style, my trying to play with words would cause anyone any pain or conflict. To those whom I have please accept my apology...

12 October 2005

The witches of Macbeth...

There are people in life who never do anything but conjure up troubles for others. They sit at a distance and brew over what others are doing and speak ill of them. I've met them. They cackle out their distain for people who are trying but these witches never try. It is easy to cast spells on others from a distance but never reach out to help. They have opinions but never get to the truth. They crash parties and rarely do they bring a dish. They throw darts that prick and distract.
Useless. Friction. Tiring.

To misquote Carly Simon, They're so vain, they probably think this blog is about them...

Misinformation, the new tool of terrorism...

I subscribe to a new emailing service and this was one of the reports I got yesterday:

-- Informant in Iraq admits information about a terror plot against New York subway was a hoax, sources tell CNN.

11 October 2005

The wind in my hair...

Last night at about 8p, I drove home after "work" on my motorcycle. The moon was so bright, even though it was less than half full (or for some of my critics, half empty). The air was a bit brisk with the smell of autumn. I had a little music playing in the head set that was calling me to the "Danger Zone."

I had a huge smile on my face, which caught a lot of bugs, as I remembered my evening. I had spent the previous hour or so in the Cedar Lodge at The Premier, watching a video that the "Staff Kids" wrote, acted, and shot on the story of Robin Hood. A lot of the year-round staff was there to encouraged the kids on their show. But the entertainment surprised all of us. It was clever and well done. Sure, it had the usual kind of dialogue and shots that kid movies have but this was fun. We laughed deeply. The soundtrack held the suspense and the out-takes at the end capped it off with a lasting grin. I needed that, it was good for the soul.

TJ, the Kelseys, Sam and Scott, the Rose boys, and Josh did an outstanding job. I will not be surprised to be attending a premier of one of these talented young Spielbergs in Hollywood in the future. I will be able to say, "I knew them when..."

Thank you and well done.

09 October 2005

A time away...

I went away for a few days to listen and talk to the Quiet Voice, to see who I have become, and to have some seafood bisque.

I read some Nouwen, Reaching Out, which provoke some major conversation with God. I found myself alone with Him in which I found myself alone with my self. I re-met myself for the first time and I don't think I made a good first impression.

A long time ago, I spent a half a year in Monterey, I went to Monterey Peninsula College or MPC as the locals call it, where I took some art and political science classes. I worked at a donut shop, Beardsley's, and spent a lot of time driving back and forth to Calvin Crest and Fresno. I had a girlfriend with a nose ring until I met my wife, Christel. I turned 21 and went to my first pub and ordered an imported beer with some new friends in Pacific Grove.

I was baptised in the Holy Spirit on Del Monte Beach, where I also saw the red tide for the first time. I remembered praying all the time when I was there. I had only been a believer for five months, so everything was fresh. Moving to Monterey syncopated with moving into the Kingdom. I didn't know my directions. When you are on a peninsula you are surrounded by water so it is hard to tell which way is north. The water cannot be the landmark used to find north. You have to understand where you are in order to know directions. Hard to explain - you have to have been there. I grew a lot, spent a lot of time learning what it was to be a believer. I had to know new things to believed. I read Acts. I loved what I read of the power of the believer.

I was in a covenant group with some Calvin Crest staff people who I had met the summer before. Because of this group, I read my first book, Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This was an amazing feat because I didn't read. I had a reading disorder that was diagnoised as "being stupid." I taught myself to read. Slow but steady. I learned about the Holy Spirit and about myself.

Once I adventured into an abandoned cannery, which is where the Monterey Aquarium sits today, and for a week I read John Steinbeck's Cannery Row inside the old cannery. I was sitting in the place Steinbeck was writing about. I took risks, I met new people, went new places, tried new things.

I made some decision about the person I wanted to be. I remembered watching Richard Nazarian, a friend's father, one weekend. Everywhere we went this man would talk to everyone as if they were his friend. No one was off limits. Conversations struck up at any time and place. When people walked off from meeting him they were in a better mood. I decided I wanted to be that. I wanted to make people feel better when we met. I started talking to waitresses, store clerks, movie ushers and ticket agents. I found it wasn't just about talking to them but it was respecting them as souls who had something to offer and each one had value.

Amazing times...

This past week, I drove around, remembering what happened to me there. I saw places I walked and discovered and I realized I don't spend as much time discovering because I don't take the time to walk. My prayers are more to Him instead of letting it come from Him. I drive more than walk. My rhythmn is too fast. I need to deal with my ADD, my eating, my fear and what I do to resolve my fear. Time to take risks again.

I enjoyed my time even though it brought up some realities to which I need to change. I am appreciative to Dianne for her "questions" and her hospitality. I found The Old St. Angela Inn to be a place of sanctuary.

02 October 2005

I am going to do it...

When I want to listen I like to drive. I turn off the iPod, roll down the windows, listen, feel, and smell the wind.

There are friends with whom I like to pray with my eyes open. Scott, Dianne, Rudy, some Calvin Crest folks, my mom, Randy, Ben, Keith...

I like to walk, quietly and leisurely. Not for exercise but for the movement. Walking makes for a 360 degree experience. Sometimes when I walk, the Lord will tell me to turn around and look at something. Stop and consider.

Butcher paper is an important part of listening for me. I like to get a sharp pencil and draw what I hear. Considering, with a visual aid, brings dimension to the listening.

Sometimes fasting helps, sometimes food... good food opens my heart and mind. Tasting is an important part of listening. It takes time to taste as it does to listen. Ruminating food or an idea takes time.

Well, I am going to do that. I am taking off for a few days this week and go to one of my favorite places, Pacific Grove. Spend some time with my friend, Dianne. Walk on the beach, downtown, the wharf, and the butterfly sanctuary. Go to mass, eat seafood bisque and good bread, hike the Pinnacles, drive Hwy 152, eat a few tacos aPastor in Los BaƱos, and spend time reading Matthew, Songs of Solomon, a few psalms, a little Nouwen and Chesterton.