Before today my only exposure to someone using this Afrikaans phrase was typically during Bible Study prayers to God. I guess, now that I think about it, we don’t really say “thank you” that much in America anymore (or maybe I’m just not very thankful?!).

But today was different because God wanted to teach me something about being thankful.

I was about to enter this great checkout line at Pick-n-Pay, a local grocery store, but I freaked out because for some reason I randomly thought the clerk wouldn’t be able to speak or understand English. So I got out of what was the shortest-checkout-line-ever and then walked around for a little while until I found another suitable line. During that brief “walking around” period I realized that there’s really not even any dialog that has to take place between myself and the cashier so it would actually be reasonably safe to enter any line at this point.

(I suddenly feel like this is a confession of insanity blog…)

I ended up in a checkout behind a rather short elderly woman with a regular sized cart. She was slowly but steadily unloading her things from the tallest and closest within reach to the smaller, lower lying items on the bottom of the cart. I noticed that she was already struggling with the medium height items so I decided ahead of time to intervene and help her with the last few products that I knew she wouldn’t be able to easily reach. As I reached my hand into her cart for the remaining products her first reaction was mild confusion but once I handed them to her I think she realized I was just trying to help her out a bit. She promptly said, “Buy ah Donkey” (Obviously that’s not how it’s correctly spelled in Afrikaans but I’m just going with English phonetics until I figure out the right way to spell it). I just smiled and nodded to her since I had no idea how to reply in Afrikaans.

So that’s all it was. I didn’t go out of my way to perform any amazing, self-sacrificing feat. I’m no hero. I just helped grabs some stuff out of a cart for a lady.

As the elderly woman proceeded to check out she had a small conversation with the cashier in Afrikaans. Once she had paid the final total she turned to me again and (this time in English) said, “Thank you very much young man ,” and I replied with a simple “You’re welcome.” After the woman walked away, the cashier began to total up my groceries. But then she said something that caught me off guard, “You know, that sort of thing never happens around here anymore. That lady won’t be able to sleep tonight. What you did is going to keep her up the whole time.”

Wow! Was what I had done really that spectacular?

As I walked towards the doors my eyes began to well up with tears.

Was what I had done really that spectacular? I could think of a million more substantial acts of service than that one. It was literally nothing. And yet, to receive such a disproportionate response…

God, I don’t understand this world I live in! I can’t believe there’s so little hope that my simple act of service brought startling joy to an old woman. How sad has this world become? Is this what you’re talking about when you said to “be a light in the darkness”? Thank you for using me, in even the most mundane of ways, to bring glory to your name. I’m amazed how you can turn my simple obedience into a great testimony of your redemption. May the name of Jesus be lifted high here on earth!

I walked away from the store tonight in prayer.

May that woman know the source of all joy and life, Jesus Christ. God, thank you for opening my eyes to see how my life reflects back to you. Any change, any transformation people see in my life is because of the working power of Christ. The forgiveness I give comes from the fact that I’ve been forgiven much by the Father. And the joy that I share flows out of the abundance that I receive in Jesus.

I really had no idea what it meant to live a life so serious and aware of the fact that I reflect the one I serve, or that the impact could be so substantial. And God impressed on my heart that if I’m faithful and obedient with the small things then he can trust me with larger things. I can’t imagine what would happen if all Christians lived daily aware of the impact their actions can have on others. I’ll never know, this side of heaven, the impact I’ve had on peoples’ lives but I feel that God chose to reveal just a glimpse of what that might look like to me today.

So be encouraged! Your life, a living sacrifice, burns as a testimony to unending love and power of Jesus Christ. Don’t just settle for ordinary. Ask God for boldness to step out in faith and proclaim his name. The next time I encounter someone I pray that I’ll have the yearning to go beyond just a simple deed and actually tell them about this source of living water I’ve found in Christ.

(Written on September 30, 2009)

I’ll admit upfront that I’m as haoli as they come but I sure feel a little weird being around all these other white people over in YWAM. I end up hovering around the few pidgin speaking locals on the campus.  I’m also going through major Zippy’s  and Acai bowl withdrawals. But most of all, I miss all the relationships I felt like I was just beginning. When I found out that I was going to be spending three months with NHDH before YWAM I was definitely excited but didn’t think that I would feel so much at home in such a relatively short time. I think that’s a true testament to the hospitality of the church and families of Hawaii.

With that said, I really wanted to say thank you for the encouragement I received just from being around you guys! Everyone from Apex, Radi8, the Edge and the big church has affected my life going forward into YWAM and the world. So I always wanted to give you a chance to stay in the loop with me while I’m off doing whatever God has in store for me. So far all I know is in two months the majority of our PhotogenX DTS team will be headed for Panama in Central America and possible Cuba or Colombia after that. DTS has already been an amazing time for me. I think I’ve heard God speak more clearly now than almost any other time in my life. And there’s been major victory from past areas of struggle and lies I had bought into from Satan. YWAM motto is “To know God and make Him known” and I definitely feel like these first three months are bringing me closer to the “to know God” part. I can’t wait to see what happens when I get off this lovely little island (ok, Kona’s not all that, especially compared to Oahu) and hit the ground running overseas.

On a practical note, I’d love your guys’ support both financially and in prayer and encouragement. I’m sure there’s going to be many amazing stories to tell of God’s faithfulness while on missions along with some cool photos, Lord will, and I’d love for you to partner with me in the work God’s doing. I’ll be trying to use my blog as the go-to center for the latest information and prayer updates as well as testimonies, etc.  Right now, my most pressing request is for all my support money to come in on time (I actually need $2,500 by Thursday and I’m not quite there yet), so that’s a big one. The other area is around my relationship with God as my Father. I really desire to grow closer to him in an intimate relationship, not just head-knowledge.

Oh, and if anyone wants to by me a quick round trip ticket from Kona I’ll totally come hang out with you for a weekend.

If you’re looking to support me financially you can donate online through my home church’s website. You should use “Missions” as the category and specify “Cale Livingston YWAM.”

I’m so excited to be attending Youth With A Mission (YWAM) as I enter this next phase of my life. If you don’t already know what I’ve been up to, this letter should definitely bring you up to speed.

In the summer of 2008, while I was on vacation with friends in O’ahu, I felt God calling me to commit a longer portion of my time towards missions before I continued with any further education. Through a rather unique series of events, I recognized God was specifically calling me to join YWAM and go through the Discipleship Training School (DTS) program. After searching through the various DTS focuses, I stumbled upon one called PhotogenX which had a strong emphasis on photography along with serving in the global community, combating injustice and delivering the gospel message to the world. Once I had committed to YWAM, I actually ended up talking with friend of mine who lived and worked at a church in Hawaii about a job opportunity before my DTS started. The first three months of 2009 I ended up working with New Hope Diamond Head (NHDH) Church in Honolulu, Hawaii. That short stint at NHDH really reignited my passion for the work God’s doing in the church around the globe.

It’s that same passion that’s fueled my desire to join YWAM and learn more about a missional lifestyle. As a Christian, I’ve received the commission to go into the world and proclaim the gospel of Christ to the lost, bring hope to the hopeless, stand against injustice, feed the poor, clothe the naked, and pray for the sick to be healed. YWAM is awesome because it exists to equip young people, like myself, to live missional lives intentionally focused on reaching the world for Christ and living out the great commission (Matthew 28:19). They’ve sent out nearly four million young people over the course of their more than 50 years in the field. Even in the short time I’ve been here, I already feel like I’m apart of a great heritage of believers who are excited about reaching the world.

And here’s the part where you come in! One of the luxuries I have as a child of the internet is the ability to be in constant communication with you, as supporters, and give you current updates and prayer requests. My vision is that this wouldn’t just be a one-time letter but that, as you choose to partner with me in what God is doing, we would grow closer as the global family of God and in our understanding of the work he’s doing in every corner of the world. I have a sense that God’s preparing me for a long term investment in real global issues of injustice and poverty.

So what does partnership with me look like? Well, I definitely need to be showered in prayer while I’m here in Kona, Hawaii and also once I’m on my outreach in Panama. Classes have already been pretty intense and, by God’s grace, I don’t even think I’ll be able to recognize my old self once this course is over. It’s certainly exciting to know that God will be doing a work in me but I’m also a bit timid or guarded about being completely open and honest with a group of total strangers. I’d specifically like prayer around the area of God refining and pruning me spiritually in this season. I think it’s safe to say I bring a bit of baggage into this experience and I’m just looking to grow closer to God as my spiritual father and feel his love in my life. I would be personally blessed if you committed to pray for me weekly in the various areas I list on my website.

The other real element of support is in my financial needs. God has already blessed me with enough resources for the first half of the DTS but I still need another $5,000 for the following 12 week outreach to Panama. The great thing is I already know in my heart that God is the faithful Provider, he has proven that fact over my last four years of life. There are two different ways to give. One would be electronically through Mountain View Community Church’s online giving system on their website. The other would be to mail a check to them and they can process the rest.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this letter and I hope that you will prayerfully consider partnering with me in the ministry of Christ. To stay connected, I’ll be making a real effort to consistently update my blog each week at www.calelivingston.com along with additional email updates.

And here are a few pieces of info if you’re looking to support me financially:

If you’re looking to donate through Mountain View’s website you should use “Missions” as the category and specify “Cale Livingston YWAM.” If you want to write a check, make it payable to “MVCC” and write “Cale Livingston YWAM” in the memo line.

But really, the one thing I want to convey in my support letter is how excited I am that I get to partner with what God is doing in the world through the Church. It’s a simple as that. Everything else is just a great story about the process.

For instance, we’ve been having really great speakers in our morning classes as of late. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve enjoyed every guest speaker along with our regular leaders. Paul and Susi are amazing and you can just feel how committed their hearts our to the cause of equipping young Christians to use their gifts and talents to more effectively communicate God’s love in the world. The most recent example being the Hakani project. I encourage you to check out the website and watch the video. It will really give you a sense of what I want dedicate my life to. There’s so many untold stories out there, victims that don’t have a platform to speak. There are people dying in hopeless situations but it doesn’t have to be that way…

One of the things God has really impressed on me is the idea of partnering with friends and family and that they’re included on my journey into various parts of the world. It’s not just a letter at the beginning and a thank you when all is said and done. I’m really looking to create an ongoing relationship with both my supporters and those whose lives we’re affecting. A few years ago God gave me a vision of a needle going around the globe and sewing together all different patches of clothe. In the same way, I believe that, as we both go on missions and and support those who do, we continue to unify the global Church, the bride of Christ.

I think, over all, the thing I’m really struggling with is my tone in writing these letters and blogs. I don’t want to sound like a broken record. I feel like I’m stuck on “global church” and “great commission” in everything I say. Realistically, there’s not much else I need to talk about. Everything else is secondary. The other key thing is I want people to really catch my excitement and anticipation for this YWAM experience. If you know me at all, you’ll know that I don’t really buy into hype too much. I was never one for wearing school colors, support class functions or sporting green on St. Patrick’s Day (I still think most of that stuff is pretty lame). But I can say that this is definitely an entirely new and different experience. There’s a true sense that something is culminating in the Kingdom of God. I have the honor to serve on the front lines at the climax of the battle. And, in the same way, those who support me are also there with me in spirit and prayer. I’ve already heard one-too-many testimonies about how God works through prayer instantaneously to pass up the opportunity to have fellow believers praying for me daily.

My encouragement would be for anyone who is already supporting a missionary in one way or another. You don’t realize how much of a blessing you are to them! Your prayers have real power and are felt tangibly daily. And your financial support releases missionaries to fully devote their lives to serving in the field. For me, when I use the term “missional lifestyle” I believe that includes people who take an active role in supporting and equipping other missionaries in their work. It also applies to people who are intentionally living out the Great Commission in their own neighborhoods. There’s never a lack of lost souls to bring to the Lord, rather there’s a lack of Christians willing to reach them. God has only just begun to reveal this revelation in my life. I invite everyone to join me in expectation for what God is about to do in coming months.

As I said in my tweets earlier, I feel like I should be some sort of indie artist/homeless person. Let’s just say I won’t get any flak for not shaving my beard any time soon!

Landing in Kona was pretty nice but I was surprised by all the bareness and lava fields. A large majority of the island is sparsely vegetated and mostly black. In hindsight, O’ahu is definitely the most densely populated island of the bunch. The weather was also emo-esque, just for me. There was a blanket of what might very well be volcanic ash but I’m just going to ignorantly assume it was fog/clouds.

I already went through the sign-in process which wasn’t too bad. But I knew I should have transferred my bank funds earlier since I ran into the problem of not being able to withdraw my money right away. I guess I get to leave some work for tomorrow, huh? I also had a quick peek at my room and it’s pretty much a Hume Camp Cabin with a nice kitchen and bathroom attached. There’s also no wifi there yet since the dorms are actually brand new. Again, just leaves something to look forward too. Oh, and my entire 50 person PhotogenX team is staying in these new dorms because our classroom is adjoined on the first floor. Short walk to class, awesome. Long walk to lunch, not so cool. Oh, did I mention that we all have work duties and I inexplicably chose 5:30-7:30am kitchen chores of 3:00-5:00pm outdoors work. It was such a tough call. Only time will tell if I made the right choice. Honestly though, I was leaning towards becoming a “normal” with my sleep schedule and I think this is definitely one way to jump start that effort, for better or worse. And, if you think about it, working outside during the hottest part of the Hawaiian day doesn’t sound very smart.

There’s probably some key points I’m leaving out but I’ll inevitably get back to those…

Lastly, for those of you who know my crush on Survivor: I’ve already made an alliance with some of the girls on my team and I think we’re going to win the first immunity challenge (one the them is really athletic). But I’m not sure who I’d vote off at this point. It actually feels pretty hard now that I think about it. Man, I really need to stop this comparison between missions and reality TV!

Here I am, at the end of my venture with New Hope Diamond Head, about to embark on the epic journey that is “YWAM,” wondering what I’m actually going to do for the next three months of my life. I had a bit of a sobering conversation with a friend who works with YWAM and was informed that it’s basically lectures and schooling with a strict schedule. *Oh goodies! Just what I’ve never wanted…*

Really? Three months of classes that I paid for? I thought I was avoiding college with this missions endeavor. The first thing I thought was, “Uh oh, I’m pretty sure the teachers aren’t going to like me.” Mostly because I’ve never taken the time to do just school before. I don’t even think I have the patience to focus solely on classes and books. If anything, I’ll probably end up doing a lot of extracurricular work in my free time, just to find a release.

I can now count the amount of days I have left at Diamond Head on one hand which is equal parts: exciting, terrifying and convenient. I think my biggest fear is coming to terms with losing my desktop and all that comes with it. No more 22 inch monitor with loud speakers. No more Adobe CS3! If you really want to break it down I’m basically giving up graphic design for photography, my seditary desktop for a portable netbook, and my nocturnal lifestyle for that of a loser (read: regular person). Let’s be honest, school has never been the main focus for any given time of my life. There’s always been something else to accompany and overshadow it. Unfortunately for these YWAM teachers, they’re going to have my full and undivided attention. *Maybe I should apologize in advance?*

Don’t get me wrong, I love learning and I love people, but my tolerance level is usually so high that I go ADHD if my requirements aren’t met. And right now, I’m not holding out hope. Who knows, maybe it’ll be a completely mindblowing and submersive experience. Ultimately, I’ll have to get through it if I ever want to leave the country and take photos abroad since that’s the goal, after all.

What else…?

• Oh, I’m completely obsessed with LifeHacker.com right now. I think their tagline says it all, “Tips and tricks for getting things done.” I must caution, though, that perhaps there’s a point where you have so many tips and tricks that you won’t get anything done. Right now my goal is to find that point! But seriously, I could have used a lot of these programs and features about five years ago and it’s only until just now, right before I have no more use for them, that I find them. Great timing…
• Other good news is I’m finally winding down on the transition from my desktop to netbook. Most of my files are already over and I’m pretty comfortable on it now. Oddly enough, I disabled half of the multi-touch functions on the touchpad because they got annoying. *Score one for minimalism!*
• I still haven’t installed the extra gigabyte of RAM in my netbook either. Somehow I keep forgetting to ask Kamu for the screwdrivers. Hopefully I’ll capitalize on that soon as well.
• I’m also almost done making my list of contacts for YWAM support letters (oh the lucky few).

Ok, I think that’s it for this entry, even if the ending falls a bit flat. It’s sort of like those movies that you love up until the last half an hour.

And, going back to procrastination, you can’t really do that unless you have something to preoccupy yourself with, right? Well, luckily for me, I just got my new netbook a little bit ago and I’ve been tinkering with it and loading it with all my favorite programs and media. I have to admit, I’m definitely impressed with this little investment! I think it’ll serve be well during my YWAM trip, internet connections not withstanding. I’ve even put it through the course and it’s passed most of my tests. It handles the internet like a champ and I might even try and see if I can’t get Lightroom working on it as well. Honestly, I don’t know how I called myself a photographer before Lightroom. There’s nothing better than being able to handle your entire photo workflow process in one unified program.

On a different note, I’ve really had to ask for forgiveness lately when it comes to my unrealistic expectations. I didn’t realize how much I expect people to have a firm understand of the principles of design. Obviously that’s just not the case though! And yet, somehow, I fell into the trap of setting my bar of expectations at a level so high I could barely reach it. As an artist I think I’ll always struggle with wanting perfection from myself but this was a case of that bleeding over onto other people. But that part that really caught me  was when I realized that’s there’s no possible way people would even know these sort of principles of design that I do. They haven’t had any training, formal or otherwise. It’d be like me, as a teacher, requiring my students to pass a test I haven’t prepared them for.  I really missed the boat, didn’t I?

The good news is, there’s still time. I now feel more empowered to actively teach and equip those around me whether it be in graphic design or any other area of expertise. I think I’ve spent plenty of time giving people fish without ever really teaching them to fish. And the worse part is that doesn’t help either of us in the end. Ahh, I smell co-dependent tendencies!

So that concludes the “personal” portion of this blog.
Now I get to dive into the “rant” section…

First off, directly following in the spirit of the last few paragraphs, this will be a much more educational and productive rant (if there ever was such a thing).

The topic: Facebook.

I’m not exactly happy with the new design change that Facebook underwent. I now have a completely useless and irrelevant “Highlights” column on the right that I can’t even remove if I wanted to. But that’s not really my main point. The thing I really don’t like is the now chaotic “feed” on the homepage. I feel inundated with information now more than ever before. And my problem is I usually try to assimilate all of it. Obviously that’s not healthy either so something has to be cut, but how? Well, I’m glad you asked! It’s a little thing called “Friends Lists.” It’s actually a new feature that rolled out a week or so before Facebook redesigned the whole site. It’s a feature that lets you create a list and add any friends you want to it. Pretty simple, right? Well, the payoff is in the fact that now you can filter down your “feed” by clicked on one of your custom built friends lists. Now, if I only want to see people from Mountain View I can just click on that list and my feed will reveal only people I’ve added to that group. So far I have a group for almost every circle of friends! Without this key feature I probably wouldn’t have lasted more than a few days on the new Facebook. And that’s why I also wanted to share it with you, too. This sort of qualifies as my “trying to teach others” for the day. I hope it all makes sense and is immediately applicable to you. I don’t aim to waste your time, that usually just happens naturally!

Lastly, because of the previously mentioned Lightroom, I’ve really found my passion for photography again. With that said I spent hours cleaning out my old Flickr accounts and bringing them back up to speed. I’ve poured in enough time on the front end to really benefit from it during the rest of my YWAM trip. So be sure to check out some of my photos, too, when you have the chance.

They’re even displayed right over there, on the right side >>>
(maybe up a little higher though)

You can also check out my flickr site directly at flickr.com/photos/kalel559

*Yay! Yahoo! w00t! Yippeee! etc…*

But now reality is beginning to sink in, as it usually does, and I’m starting to panic a bit. I was totally fine with the idea of raising some $5,000+ in funds for all the YWAM expenses like travel, room and board. No problem, God will provide, I’m great. That is, until I joined the YWAMconnect.NET online community for my PhotoGenX team. I’m totally camera insecure! People are talking about lenses and tripods and flash and battery and …. *make it stop!*….. *tears*……

I didn’t think the next struggle would be with jealous and insecurity around material things. Honestly, that’s never been a struggle for me, I guess, until now. I think the problem is I originally made the decision to give up all those great camera upgrades this year so I could go on YWAM. So all of my personal funds are going towards financing my trip instead of  the tools and equipment I’ll be using during the trip. Oh the irony! I think God still has a sense of humor.

I want it all! I want the new Canon 5D Mark II with a new flash, extra batteries and a vertical hand grip, along with a netbook or Mac to download all my pictures to. That’s not too much to ask for, right?

*Oh wait, reality…*

Maybe I should find some secret rich benefactors who want nothing more than to shower me with lavish gifts (ok, now I’m just being ridiculous and delusional).

The facts:

It’s still going to be a great trip. I still have a camera and some great lenses. And I’m pretty sure using my camera for one more year won’t be the worst thing that’s happened to me. I need to be grateful for what I’ve got. This whole jealous/rant will pass eventually. In the meantime I need to just keeping praying faithfully for the Lord to provide (something I’m already convinced of spiritually, maybe not-so-much mentally, if that makes any sense?). Seriously, I don’t know why I’m so worried. God was the one who spoke so clearly to me a year ago and lead me out here in the first place. I didn’t even know the first thing about YWAM, like what it stood for (Youth with a Mission). And now I’m here, in Hawaii, three weeks away from starting an epic six month journey around the world (well, at least half… and I bet it’s the better half!) with a whole new group of people.

PS. If anyone seriously wants to buy me some new equipment I can send you the links to amazon.com and b&hphoto.com.

There are so many different things I still want to experience before my time here ends. It’s hard to keep my roots from growing deep wherever I may be. But at the same time, I find myself scared of getting too attached since I know it comes with an expiration date.

All this has inadvertently answered one of those bizarre life questions: “If you could know the exact day you’re going to die, would you want to?” For me, the answer is an emphatic “No!” Knowing the ending ruins the entire plot. Suddenly I find myself living in fear of the looming finish line instead of enjoying the moments along the way. I think that’s why, at this point in my life, I want something a little more long term and enduring. Anything under three months is just a teaser trailer. I’m ready for a full featured film! (wow, lately I find myself consistently relying on movie analogies).

So if I could stay in Hawaii for a more substantial amount of time that would be awesome. But on the same token, I’m really looking forward to this upcoming YWAM trip. Six months is a considerable amount of time to spend with an entirely new set of people and experiences. I’m anticipating the day I get to take photographs in a foreign country as a form of service to the global Church. What an awesome opportunity to use a medium I enjoy to raise awareness of so many conditions, especially when they all center around the human condition. In a certain sense, I feel like I have the change to redeem photography for the Church. From my perspective the Church hasn’t been very good at assimilating new types of media  into its arsenal of tools. Which is made all the more tragic since the Church is centered around telling stories, both of the community of believers and of Jesus.

I think one of the key things God is trying to teach me right now is how to be most effective whatever my current given location or situation. In hindsight, being here in Hawaii has given me the chance to teach and equip the local church with tools for productivity and communication. At the same time I’ve had a chance to decompress from my four year internship with Mountain View. It’s been a great time to glean all the useful bits of knowledge from that experience and consolidate them mentally as well as strategically for further dissemination. This wasn’t something I was able to do until I had a chance to step away from MV altogether.

One of the other things I’ve learned recently is that I value spending my down time with people, especially at home. I guess I had taken it for granted at home and it never transferred over here with me. People seem to be too busy to just chill with each other at home and, unfortunately, I don’t have a vehicle so I can’t go where the people are (no Little Mermaid reference intended).

It’s been raining recently and I love watching it out my big windows. I truly must be emo because there’s nothing more exciting for me than dreary overcast and the sound of little rain drops splashing to the ground. It’s almost medicinal. The only thing missing is a bamboo forest!

Lastly, it’s amazing to me how little I need, materialistically speaking, to be happy. I have a futon, desk, computer, camera and phone. The only other thing I worry about is food and transportation. Suddenly my life feels entirely too simple but I’m completely fine with that. I have a feeling that one day, whenever I move into my own place, it’ll be very empty.

Speaking of having all I need, God has really been convincing me of the fact that He is faithful to provide for me in every area of my life. It’s definitely calmed my fears about raising money for YWAM.

What’s the phrase I’m looking for? Oh, who cares! I’m just finally getting excited about Hawaii and not even for the reasons you’d think, unless you know me too well. The main reason? I’m finally getting my website going! I’m just waiting on a few finishing details before www.calelivingston.com can go live.

The key features I’m looking forward to are integrating my google calendar with the site so people can see what I’m doing and steal all my free time, assuming I’ll have any. The other thing I’ll be working on is fleshing out each of my main areas of interest: art, photography, graphic design, and video. But most importantly, blogging. I’ve got to stay in touch with all you guys on the mainland!

Which reminds me…

So far there’s not too much to report. I made it here safely, on the correct flight no less, along with all 120 pounds of my luggage. I was never in denial about my ability to pack light. And oddly enough the one thing I forgot to pack was my brand new program, Lightroom. Once I got here I had to fast from my computer for over four days since I was first lacking a monitor and secondly unable to connect to the wireless internet.

Helpful hint: Don’t put your computer directly against the corner of the room. Apparently that affects wireless potency. Who knew?

Hawaiian Home

The other big project has been situating myself, and my roomie TJ, into our new house. Ok, it’s actually just a living room, bathroom, bedroom, and kitchen/laundry room. We’re staying in the guest house of a great couple, Ray and Sherryl something… (eek, I hope they don’t read my blogs!). So this whole week has consisted of rearranging furniture, shopping for various items, disregarding a regimented sleep schedule and choke meetings (oh yeah, I’m going to re-introduce some pidgin english as well. Choke = tons). The meetings have been a bit of a stretching time for me since I’m working on this new thing they call “listening” and not just taking control of everything. Whether or not it has merit has yet to be determined.

Last night was actually the best time I’ve had since I’ve been here. Several of us drove almost 45 full minutes, a feat in and of itself in Hawaii, to Mililani for a night of Cranium and Catchphrase. My team won Cranium, naturally, but proved to have a difficult time claiming victory and captilizing on our early lead in Catchphrase. I swear “muffin couch” came up at least twice! After two demoralizing losses on the “Loud Team,” I jumped ship and joined the other team which only escalated sectarian aggressions (aka Cale-TJ rivalry).

Side rant: Apparently some people can’t handle my clue giving style. Maybe they should learn to cope, hey TJ?

In conclusion (yes, that’s a shout out for Mr. Garret Menges), I’m gearing up to start work this next week on various videos, posters and training at New Hope Diamond Head. In the meantime I’m also trying to complete my YWAM application so I actually have somewhere to go in three months!