Scary Lady Looking at Me!

Start of a New Thing

So Tori is the one who got me started in this but I want something fun to do...sooooo. I am going to post a daily photo on this blog... I may slack off a lot sometimes but it is a challenge and something to do and it sounds fun. At the moment it becomes an obligation I will quit.

Here is the first photo and quite an awesome one too. 

This is my new Macbook

Oh the Bare Essentials

So I was thinking of things that I needed to pack to take to Singapore today and I, playfully, tried to narrow it down to just a few things. I thought of books. I hate reading so I shot that one right out of my head but then the Bible popped up in my head. Then I thought of clothing. One or two pairs of clothes would do me some good. One to wear, one to wash. Then I thought of music. I could not exist without any music to listen to. So I thought that the guitar was an instant #1 pick but it is too big. So I told myself that an ipod would do just fine, but then again I am trying to narrow it down a bit. So I immediately decided that I would take U2's "How to Dismantle and Atomic Bomb" album with me. I picked this one because musically, I love U2, and lyrically, I love their lyrics, and rockily (haha) there is some rock. Then I thought about companionship. I could not do without a good friend. So I would have to take a friend with me, and oh, of course something to do with that friend. I thought about the greatest times I have ever had with my friends and that would be something along the lines of a Frisbee. So I would take my Frisbee for me and my friend to play with. Then I thought of the other side of me. The side that is fully content with being alone and what I like to do when I am alone. Immediately, without one doubt in my mind, running was the top of the list. So running shoes hit my mind. But who says you have to run with running shoes on? So I thought of running clothes... but who has to run with a shirt on? So running shorts was my top option.
So here is my list of essentials:

- Bible

- 2 pairs of Clothes

- U2

- A Friend

- A Frisbee

and...

- Some Running Shorts.


And the awesome thing is that I already have packed all these things... and too much more.

The Irony in Service

So moving to Singapore will bring more than one hard times. Mostly it will be leaving people that will be the hardest. but if there is one thing that I will miss the most, though impossible to choose, it will be Brazos Pointe Fellowship. Now I don't want to sound like an adult or anything but I am writing this post to point a little irony.

We started attending BPF right when we moved here and right as the church was starting. I grew up in All Stars (the children's ministry area) watching a few of the older guys and girls teaching us about God. My path with God started in those days, and it was not a mistake.

I hit the 7th grade and went into the Student Ministry. In these times God started really working with me. He put a desire in my heart to learn guitar, and also the desire to love on little kids. This is where I started to get active in serving in places like the children's ministry play area for the toddlers, All Stars, and eventually joined the student band. And the ironic part in all this is that these are the areas I will miss the most. It is the places I chose to serve in. How funny that is that God lead me in that direction and helped me become active in the church and for some awesome reason the place you would think I would be glad to leave is actually the place I will miss. I love playing guitar with the whole student band. They are amazing and they are a part of what I will miss most. All Stars. I loved working in there because of the kids. Not just the kids sitting and watching but the kids from 1st grade all the way to 12th grade who served with me. The atmosphere every week was a sense of comfort and happiness in the fact that we could just relax and worship God and hopefully spread that all to the kids.

I just really came to this realization today, how powerful serving is. I have never been so happy to do something for the Kingdom of God so willingly, but now I am also starting to come to the realization that we really don't know what we have till it is gone. This week is my last time to play with the student band at 6:33 and May 10th is my last time to work in All Stars. I just hope and pray that these last times I go through serving at BPF will be totally amazing and that I will connect with the full emotion and the extent of how amazing doing this for God is. I know for a fact that serving does not stop here though.

Ode to the Greatest Running Shoes on Earth

So these are my old running shoes. I cannot tell you the right name of the pair but I know they are Adidas. I quit running in them at about 350 miles and as you can tell, they were a good pair of running shoes. I just had to do a blog post over them. They will soon become mowing shoes and have actually made it to work shoes already. This is a picture of them. I have stitches in them because of some huge holes that formed. That means I definitely used them enough.

5K PR- Gator Gallop. 15 minutes.

My family (who, is unknown), and I are going to run the Gator Gallop tomorrow. I haven't run this in like 2 years and this is the race in which my present PR is held. I can't remember the last 5k that I did but it has been over a year and 5ks have brought me nothing but displeasure every time I run one. But for some reason this is always a good one. Since it has been many years since my PR, I am sure I can break my last one ( 24:17 ). This one is not fun to look at because I know that I can and have beat it, just not officially. In the Bayou City Classic 10k, my 5k time was just over 23 minutes, so I am hoping for around 22 minutes or maybe even under...

There is only one catch. I have only run 3 miles this week. I have no worries though because I successfully ran 40-41 miles last week so I needed the recover after my 15 miler on Saturday. but whatever.

This was an overly extensive blog post to tell you that I am running a race tomorrow and I want to PR a way out-dated PR. So I hope it goes well.

Excitements of Singapore

Dude! Singapore! It hasn't quite hit me yet. I am moving half way across the world. Like the farthest I can possibly get from Texas, and this huge thought won't hit until we start to pack. I have been searching some trails to run and it doesn't look like there is a whole lot, but more than Lake Jackson for sure! All we have is the Wilderness, which is in horrific condition, and the McClean trail, which is what I decide to run if I don't want to get up in the morning. Dad and I, if we want to run a trail, end up running behind houses in high grass. And I guarantee that we are the only ones because of the lack of hard beaten trail.

I am excited about high temperatures, tropical climates, easy transportation, new cultures, and probably at most, the food. I love Chinese food, I love Indian food, and I have never tried Malaysian food, but I am sure it is good too. I can't wait to hit the Hawker Centers and suck some bone marrow and eat sharks head.... not really... but Anthony Bourdain made it look good! I don't think that it is all gross food though. I think they have pretty normal food too, so I am not labeling them as the gross food country because that wouldn't be right. The budget for eating is unknown to me right now, but I am pretty sure we will be eating out a lot. Can't wait!

I am crazy pumped about the school I am going to. Anna and I are both going to ISS, and no we will not be spending our time at the "In School Suspension." This is not correct. International Singapore School. It has a different type of curriculum than American schools that, I think, will fit me better. It will be more challenging but I will understand and learn more. It is also a fun-looking school. They have a basketball program that I will probably join. I don't know if I will be much better or much worse than them, considering I am from America. But we will see. I don't know if basketball will mess with me running like it did all through Jr. High and Freshman High School. But once again, just like everything else about Singapore... we will see.