Cultural awareness: so hot right now.

I had a very culturally diverse weekend. On Saturday, Brian and I visited three different international food stores. First stop: Betty Jo Corner gas station on Wedington which has a small selection of Middle Eastern groceries. I bought some Arabian cheese (really good!) and some hummus. Next stop: Mexico Aqui Tienda (also on Wedington). I bought a couple of Coca-Cola (hecho in Mexico) in glass bottles and made with real sugar....muy delicioso! Last stop: Oriental market/Philpino restaurant which was next door to the tienda. I bought some cassava chips and coconut milk.

Later that night, Brian, Cara, Laura, and I went to an Indian restaurant in Rogers for dinner. It was pretty good! They had a buffet so we got to try a few different dishes.

To top the cultural weekend off, we watched a movie called Kite Runner last night. It is filmed mostly in Afghanistan and most of the dialog is in Arabic. It was pretty good, I recommend it.

Friday: Weirdos and Withdrawals

Is anyone else concerned/annoyed that it is 30 degrees colder today than yesterday? I am.

I walked to the union for lunch today and the crazies are out, folks. Here is a sampling of just a few of them:
-Guy/girl with green hair juggling by RZ's

-Crowd of medieval enthusiasts by juggler with green hair.

-Some sort of international fair thing between union and library - the international people weren't weird, but the non-international people there were.

-There was a table of hippies with a sign for peace or something at the international fair. That wasn't too weird (it is Fayetteville, after all) but the punk girl with plaid skirt roller skating around the table was.

Yay for diversity!


In a completely unrelated story, I stopped taking zyrtec a week or two ago after taking it pretty solid for several years for allergies. I don't like being on medication long term and it didn't seem that necessary anymore. I noticed that my skin has been really itchy the past few days but I couldn't figure out why. The only thing I could think of that was different was that I wasn't taking zyrtec anymore. So I googled it (as I do) and sure enough, I'm having "zyrtec withdrawals." It's not listed in any of the side effects or in any professional literature, but lots of people are realizing that it's a real thing. Apparently when some people stop taking zyrtec after extended periods it can cause them to have really sensitive and itchy skin. It can be really severe, mine's not though (thankfully). So just fyi, if you are considering zyrtec as your allergy medication of choice (especially now that it's over the counter) you might want to rethink. Class-action lawsuit, anyone? Jk Jk.

Psalm 30

1 I will exalt you, O LORD,
for you lifted me out of the depths
and did not let my enemies gloat over me.

2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help
and you healed me.

3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave;
you spared me from going down into the pit.

4 Sing to the LORD, you saints of his;
praise his holy name.

5 For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning.

6 When I felt secure, I said,
"I will never be shaken."

7 O LORD, when you favored me,
you made my mountain stand firm;
but when you hid your face,
I was dismayed.

8 To you, O LORD, I called;
to the Lord I cried for mercy:

9 "What gain is there in my destruction,
in my going down into the pit?
Will the dust praise you?
Will it proclaim your faithfulness?

10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me;
O LORD, be my help."

11 You turned my wailing into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

12 that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.

World's Youngest Hey Jude

The whole L pronunciation probrem apparentry happens at a very young age.

Sleepless in Fayetteville

I'm having trouble sleeping, so I thought I'd blog. Just so you know, I have no idea where this post is going so don't be surprised if it doesn't make any sense.

I'm thankful for people who have talked me through things lately. I've realized in the last few months that I think through problems/issues best when I can bounce my ideas off people instead of trying to figure it all out in my head. I'm amazed at how God has been continually providing ears for this purpose recently, and in places I didn't necessarily expect to find them.

I inherited two fish earlier tonight. My buddy Dan is moving (river of tears) to New York and can't take them with him, so I volunteered to be the godfather. It'll be a nice memento to have when he's gone. I hope they don't die.

There's real therapeutic value in music for me I think. I pretty much have music for any possible emotion (at least the male spectrum of emotions), and when my soul can identify with a song it can be really comforting.

Speaking of emotions, I feel like I'm alot more emotional the older I get. I haven't quite figured out the reason for this, but I have some ideas. Maybe I'm more comfortable with who I am that I'm not afraid to be vulnerable. Maybe my world view is changing and it's not all about me anymore. Maybe my life sucks more now than before (I'm 100% positive that this ISN'T the case). I feel like I've been teary-eyed and/or cried more in the past 6 months or so than I have my whole life. And it's been a variety of reasons such as crying to God in prayer, sad movies, saying goodbye. I'm really thankful I'm surrounded by people that I feel comfortable crying with.

I'm gonna try this whole sleeping thing again. Goodnight.

Clarity

The last few weeks have allowed me to spend some quality time with some of my closest friends. Some of which live here, some visiting from exotic places such as Tennessee and Mississippi. I'm kinda prone to becoming delusional in my spiritual view of things (I know that is vague), but something about being around my best friends brings tremendous clarity to all my delusions. Whether it be dumping all my sinful baggage on someone, laughing at inside jokes from back in the day, wrestling with God together about injustice in the world, or just riding in the car listening to music and being silent, the Lord blesses me from just being in their presence.

If you've never read Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, I recommend it (and I hate to read). I really like the image he presents at the beginning of the book about his spiritual journey. He is walking down a long dirt road and he can barely see God as a tiny speck way off in the distance. As his journey progresses he can see God getting closer and closer. I'm so thankful for the people in my life who help me see God more clearly. He is coming into view on my dirt road.

Those crazy Sunday school kids...

I forgot to write this in my post yesterday. Here is the funny Sunday school story of the week: The kids were coloring pictures of baby Jesus, and then they started coming up with names for their baby Jesus. Most of them were just silly kid names, but then Max (the youngest kid in the class) says "Mine's name is Lord." He said it so matter-of-factly as if to say "try topping that, fools." The kids stopped coming up with names after that, and I laughed real hard. Way to go, Max.

Winter's almost over.

This weekend was good for my soul. My least favorite month of the year is over, and there is finally a sense of anticipation in the air for Spring.

Saturday was probably one of the most fun days I can remember from the last two or three years. The weather was GORGEOUS and I got to play a sweet game of ultimate frisbee at the park for a couple of hours. This was followed by an impromptu cookout at our house. As if that wasn't enough fun, a bunch of us went to Dickson for some adult beverages. Eventually, the night was capped off by me smoking Dan in guitar hero and a fun game of "find the liquor that mysteriously got hidden."

The day was definitely enhanced by the people that were involved. I love all of you guys. A lot.

After a warm weekend, it's supposed to snow tomorrow. WTF? Oh well, this weekend was enough to get me through the rest of the winter I think.