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In Missouri Now
Wednesday, May 11, 2005

I'm at my grandparents' in Missouri now. The flights were smooth. I spent Monday night in St. Louis with my Aunt Bev and Uncle Paul. My cousins are doing well. Daniel is about to "graduate" from middle school to high school, and Alicia is only weeks away from graduating from high school altogether. I can't believe that she's nearly in college. Makes me feel old.

My grandpa let me drive a while so I could "get practice" because I haven't driven for months. I don't think I'll forget how to drive anytime soon, but I imagine he just wanted to relax and ride. :-) We talked a lot along the way. He's very opinionated. When I told him I settled on Latin as my foreign language, he didn't approve. I don't mind, and am still going to pursue Latin, but he says I need to learn Spanish and French and that Latin is a waste of time. He's a funny man. I figure I'll just learn them all. Why not?

I'm in the process of downloading and installing all of the needed software onto this computer. Trillian, Firefox, WS_FTP, etc. I've been spoiled by having that broadband Internet at school. Now I'm trying to do too many things and the computer dislikes me. I want to convert my weblog from greymatter to movabletype, and I think it's going to take a while.

Today we're going to town to eat lunch, go grocery shopping, and get my grandma a haircut. When she's at her haircutting appointment I'll stop in at the library and see what there is to see. I've never been to this public library. I wonder what sort of selection they can have in a town this small... We'll see.

posted at 10:47 AM       Reply [9]

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Final Freshman Entry
Monday, May 9, 2005

Finals have been done for a while. They went well. Most were essay-based, which I think I prefer. Friday and Saturday I helped some friends move their belongings from dorm rooms to vehicles. Went to a birthday party. Said "see ya in a few months" to more and more friends as time passed.

Saturday night I went through all my school folders and sorted out what I wanted to keep and what I wanted to toss. Of the entire semester's work, only a few pages didn't get tossed. It felt odd, as though I was letting go of what I had learned, but I still have the knowledge and experience gained in those classes, so it's not as much of a loss as it felt when I was (literally) chucking the papers onto the floor. But even though it felt odd to do that, it felt cleansing. Another semester completed; a year done. Hard to believe, still, but I'm sure it will sink in on the plane ride from Dallas to St. Louis.

Another thing that seems odd to me: I'm not leaving the country. Always before when someone was finished I'd go to wherever my family was. Now I'm going to Missouri and my family is coming stateside. When I pack, I don't have to make sure I have enough toothpaste for the whole summer or enough books to get me through. I'll be able to go to the store and the library. Such a change in mentality.

This "move" is the most unusual one I can remember. I'm not heading off to a foreign country, and I'm eventually returning to the place I'm leaving behind. I've always been the one to move and not come back, leaving friends to stay behind. This year I made friends with several seniors who will not be back when I return in the fall. That is an odd thought, and one I am not accustomed to. It will take some adjustment, but I'd better get used to it because that's part of the college life.

Now it's Monday morning and I'm packed and ready to go. Missouri, here I come. My flight leaves in a bit over two hours, but the airport here is very small and the wait will be almost none. Still, Andy and I will head out within the hour and be there just in case. I'm going to miss this place, or at least the people I associate with it. It'll be nice to see family again, though.

Let's see... I have books, water, money... everything needed for travel. I'm all set. Guess it's time to say "till later" and sign off. Goodbye, freshman year. You were a good year.

Till later,
James

posted at 9:32 AM       Reply [7]

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Today's Date
Thursday, May 5, 2005

Whether you are in the States and use mm/dd/yy format or in Fiji and use dd/mm/yy format, today is 05/05/05.

posted at 7:20 AM       Reply [1]

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One Down. Four Remain.
Tuesday, May 3, 2005

This morning I got my English exam out of the way. It was easier than I expected, but took me the whole two hours to complete. I planned well, paced myself, and think I did a good job. I know I have an A in the class, so that makes me rest easier as I go into the four other finals. Two of the ones left are essay exams, so I can't do much to prepare other than think about the topics. Astronomy I need to review the online quizzes we've been taking, and Missionary Biographies should be fairly easy but I still need to review for it as well. The two essay exams might be the hardest, but I'd rather have essays than be required to cram useless facts into my head that I'll forget in a week or two. Philosophy class requires one last essay, only four pages, which we will turn in at the final exam. The exam consists of further reflections on what we write our essay about, and there will be prompt questions once we get there. Bible exam was going to be difficult, but the professor had mercy on us and is removing the useless facts portion and requiring more thoughtful reflection and contemplation on what we have learned this semester and how it applies to our lives. All in all, I'm not worried about the remaining exams. So long as I use my time wisely, I'll be well prepared for each of them. I have a lot on my mind these days besides school work, so that's a big distraction. But not all distractions are bad or even unwanted. Friends and I are supposed to go to the zoo tomorrow, but the weather is looking sour. I'm not sure what will come of it. We may go Thursday instead. This week is going too quickly. Summer is around the corner, so I'm glad to be seeing my family soon, but I'll miss my friends. I think I need a nap. G'night.

posted at 2:24 PM       Reply [1]

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TexMex
Sunday, May 1, 2005

Tonight a bunch of us guys from church went out to a Mexican restaurant called Abuelo's. It was very tasty. We enjoyed the food and the conversation, the last we'll be having till after the summer. It's hard to believe this school year has gone already. I'm going to miss these people.

posted at 10:58 PM       Reply [4]

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How Poetry Connects
Friday, April 29, 2005

Recent English classes have been covering poetry, a friend has recommended a few poets and poems, and last night there was an open-mic poetry reading event here on campus. I'm growing to like this stuff, and only didn't love it before because I hadn't had exposure to good poetry. I just finished Matthew Arnold's poem The Buried Life. Wow. I really like it. He talks about the human experience of wanting to express what's inside, but our reluctance to do that and our tendency instead to bury our real feelings and thoughts. I think that's why activities like the open-mic poetry reading are so important. People otherwise don't see the depth around them and connect to their peers at this level.

I was amazed, genuinely, at the beauty and heart of so many of the students I thought I knew. Many of them I didn't know at all, but some I have been in close proximity to for 15 weeks without ever getting to know them. How sad. I must try harder. I must spend time talking with people about bigger things and stronger things than class assignments and current events, unless those things can lead into deeper topics. Because I want to be able to see some of the wonderfulness in people that I saw last night.

After last night I'm thinking people aren't as shallow as I want to think they are. Not all people. I'm more shallow than what I think I am. Tonight was humbling. I hope I can remember what I learned and am learning. With the summer coming, chances to put these lessons into practice are cut short. But school begins again in a few months, and I'll be back and try harder next time to connect with people and relate to people and get to know the people I sit next to all semester long.

posted at 4:29 PM       Reply [5]

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Now, for a post about my daily life.
Wednesday, April 27, 2005

I generally neglect to mention details about my day-to-day life. Mostly I pontificate or contemplate out loud. But I have more time on my hands than I've had in quite some time, and I feel like jabbering on for a bit with no specific aim in mind but to tell you about what's up in my life.

Last night I went to a Jazz Ensemble Concert. It was beautiful, and featured an amazing Canadian saxophonist named Pat Belliveau. Having played the saxophone at one time in my life, I couldn't help but wonder if I would ever have become that good had I stuck with it. I'm not very broken up about not pursuing that course, however, and I enjoyed the fantastic music of the evening. At several points I closed my eyes and just enjoyed the relaxing feeling of music washing over the auditorium. Music is a great thing, people.

What's not great is the weather. It's gorgeous outside in the mornings, and I've been leaving my window open at night to bring in the brisk 40-50 degree air. But Fiji's heat was always damp. This dry heat makes me so tired. Then again, maybe I just didn't get enough sleep last night. I usually don't need to take naps, but I'm going to crash in a second. What's nice is that I can do that now without worrying about messing up my schedule. I have a test tomorrow, but it should be very easy. Then the next thing is my English final exam next Tuesday. Until then, I'm mainly involved in non-academic activities. For example:

Friday - Going to who-knows-where in the evening. Plans aren't final, but a friend wants to get a group together and go to dinner or something.
Saturday - Picnic at the park! It should be a beautiful day, and I bought 124 ounces of bubbles and a frisbee just for the occasion. I think I should get some sunscreen, too. Need to write that down. Anyway, we'll have a smashing time and enjoy the company of good friends before finals week rolls around.
Sunday Morning - My Sunday School class is meeting in another park instead of at the church building. There'll be a cookout and plenty of laughing and fun times. It'll be grand, and it'll be a good way to round out the semester and school year.
Sunday Night - LifeGroup, a group of 5 or so guys who meet in my apartment, will be cooking dinner and just chilling. It'll be our last meeting of the year.
Monday - Our guys' bible study group is going to take a break from studying and simply hang out. Maybe throw in a movie along the way. It'll be good to hang with the guys without getting deep like we usually do.

So, as you can see, it seems every group of friends I'm involved with has some event planned to end the school year and relax and say goodbye for the summer and whatnot. Friday and Saturday are more for hanging out than for goodbyes, since I see that group of people daily. But Sunday and Monday are "it's been a great semester; have a good summer; we'll see you in three months" meetings. What's so unusual is that the semester is winding down so quickly and yet I'm not leaving for almost two weeks. I take off from here in Abilene on Monday the 9th of May and fly via Dallas / Fort Worth to St. Louis. From there, I'll go two hours south to my grandparents' house. Two weeks of relaxing, reading, and helping my grandpa with whatever odd jobs need doing, and then my family arrives stateside. We'll bounce between Missouri and Indiana a time or so and fly off to Israel for the rest of the summer. If anyone wants a postcard, e-mail me your mailing address.

posted at 4:08 PM       Reply [3]

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Journal Archives

May 2005 / April 2005 / March 2005 / February 2005 / January 2005 / December 2004 / November 2004 / October 2004 / September 2004 / August 2004 / July 2004 / June 2004 / May 2004 / April 2004 / March 2004 / February 2004 / January 2004 / December 2003 / November 2003 / October 2003 / September 2003 / August 2003 / July 2003