Parkland College

So this morning I went to Parkland with my boss and met with the two instructors for the ASSET program. The meeting was far beyond anything I could have imagined. I found out that my math and english classes should tranfer no problem, and that basically I already have all the electives taken care of, except maybe one social science one later in the program. Which translates to no class on Friday, at least for the first session, and class on Monday doesn't start til after noon, and class on Tues/Thurs starts at 10! Which also means I can commute for a little while and I'm not under the gun for a place to live. I found out Parkland also has a Motorsports Club, and they have a 1980 Chevy Malibu that is set up for drag racing that the students work on and get to drive! I was so excited, though due to the 8-week blocks that I'll be there, I don't know if I'll be able to get involved or not. I just had to think on the way home how God has made everything work out so beautifully, and it helps me to be thankful.

Well, I hope you're having a blessed week, hope to see ya at Leo!

My life so far as an Illinoian

Ok, so I haven't blogged in a while. Big hairy deal. jk :) Seriously, things are good, although since school/work hasn't started yet, it is extremely difficult to motivate myself to do much of anything. I am going to Champaign Thurs. morn with one of my future bosses at Mangold's to see the director of Ford's program at Parkland College. I am not sure what this meeting is going to entail, but at least it is something. I have heard from other employees that this is how it goes at Mangold's sometimes: ........yeah, we'll get back to you........oh, right, we'll get on that...............sure, let's do that..........now...let's do it. You get the picture? In their defense, there is a lot to do running a dealership, so I guess I'm not really upset about the whole thing. I am actually quite more concerned with the fact that as of yet I do not have a place to live, either in Bloomington or Champaign. I have had some good leads finally, so hopefully one will pan out.
Much to my delight, the Washington YG has a tradition of DQ every Wed. after services. :) I have also been at both Sarah Hodel's apt. and Erin Hodel's house later than midnight in the last two weeks, so it seems I should fit in well with the YG here. ;) Joe came out this past weekend, that was sweet. As far as the lack of posts go, I have had to use Luke's computer to get online, and his favorites list is obviously different from mine and I'm a little leery to change things.
Well, that's about all I have, sorry if you fell asleep at work or wherever you were when you read this.

P.S. - I miss my KS buds so much, I have actually had dreams about some of you. (That's as sentimental as I'm going to get in public. :))

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow...

For those of you who weren't in KC this weekend or wo haven't found out already, my youngest sibling, Austin, gave his life to Christ late Sat/early Sunday. Quite a shock, as it semmed his life had been going in a direction that didn't lead to God. Praise God for seeds planted and nourished by Christian parents, as well as (hopefully) Christian siblings. Our family circle is now complete, which brings joy to my heart. Austin plans to attend KSU, mostly because there is little to no Christian influence or fellowship at Highland CC where he is currently in school.

P.S. - On a lighter note, I got a ticket Sunday morning going home to be with Austin his first Sunday as a believer, but it really doesn't bother me. :)

Hot Times in Kansas

Wow. I think today is the first time I have come home from work and seen Weatherbug reading 100+ (without the heat index)! It currently reads 102, and with the index, 110. Sometime earlier today the temp was 105, so I imagine it was around 115 with the index then. No wonder I have been perspiring profusely nearly all day at work. That really takes it out of a guy, as I'm sure you all know. That cool shower was soooo refreshing, believe me. Well, I now realize that this is indeed a totally random post, so I'll not bore you any longer.

Ok, a little news....

All right, so here is a little piece of news from my oh-so-exciting life. Since January of this year, I have been working full time in Manhattan, not sure where to go or what to do next, but believing that God would show me when it was time. Well, an opportunity has presented itself, and I am currently attempting to get things finalized. As it looks now, I will hopefully be moving to central Illinois sometime around the end of July or the beginning of August. I don't have a place to live yet, but I trust that He will provide. God willing, I will be working at Mangold Ford/Mercury in Eureka, and taking my mechanic classes at Parkland College in Champaign. I'm hoping I can find an apartment or some living arrangements around the Bloomington area. Any parayers, if you feel moved, are appreciated. None of this is concrete yet, although I have officially quit my job as of July 30. So I take each day trusting in God and His faithfulness.

Ughh......I hate sickness

Wow, let me say nothing ruins my day(s) like being sick. Especially the kind of sickness that doesn't necessarily render you useless as far as strength and work ability, but yet tethers you to the house/apartment anyway. Grrr...

Well, I just had to vent a little. Now I am going to try and enjoy my day as best as I can.

Isaiah 40

All I can say is wow. I read Is. 40 over breakfast, and since I am early today, I just felt like writing a little. My first thoughts are of vss. 6 - 8:
"...All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field:
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand forever."

Talk about a little perspective! It humbled me for sure.
For me and for many of you as well, vs. 31 is very familiar, and is a great piece of encouragement in itself. That said, I would encourage anyone to read from verse 12 through 31 as a whole. I feel it adds even more to that last verse. That section of Scripture speaks of the majesty of God. It reminds me a little of Job 38. Something else I noticed: immediately preceding the majesty of God is verse 11:
"He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young."

What a picture of the many dimensions of our God! I think I'll amend a previous statement and recommend the entire chapter. It has blessed me to read it this morning, and I hope it will you as well, should you have the opportunity to read it yourself.

Not-So-Deep Thoughts by Ash Crash

I don't have much to say, except that I just awoke from 11.5 hours of sweet, sweet rest. I feel amazing considering I felt nearly dead after work yesterday. Well, I guess that'a about it.

Friends....I Love Ya All

So tonite at about 9:30, I decided to make an effort to catch up on blogs that I have neglected to read for quite some time now. I have recently tried to get my own blog running again, so I figured this was the logical next step.
About a third of the way through the blogs I currently have on my Favorites list (about 15 or so) the devil starts telling me that I'm too tired, this list is too long, and I should just go to bed. Grace gave me the strength to continue, and I was thankful for many of the various blog entries that help me to remember the countless blessings God has chosen to bestow upon me. This led me to the thought that the reason the list seemed so long at first was because God has given me the opportunity to love and know some amazing people! So, this post is dedicated to my friends, beloved brothers and sisters, those from the past but certainly not forgotten, those in the present that I certainly take for granted, and to those I haven't even met yet.
I apologize and ask forgiveness where I have failed to adequately communicate my love and appreciation for each and every one of you.

P.S. - Sorry if the previous post was too graphic or descriptive. I tend to get into writing without always thinking of the readers. :)

Sometimes the craziest things get to me....

As the title to this post indicates, I don't understand why little things sometimes really get to me. Case in point: I'm at work, starting to close things down in the shop as the clock nears 5 pm. I walk through the doorway into the shop, and catch a movement towards me on the floor just out of the corner of my eye. I happen to be in mid-stride, and as my left foot comes down, I feel something soft under my foot. I look down, and there on the concrete is a little brown mouse, maybe five inches from nose to tail. I have only crushed it enough to wound/cripple it, but not enough to kill it very quickly. It lay there shaking and struggling, so I had to put it out of its misery. So I carefully put the side of my shoe on its head (I could have eaasily covered the whole thing with my shoe, but I really did not want that kind of a mess) and tried to crush the skull as quickly as I could. As I did so, all the little legs and the tail of the mouse stuck out and tensed as the little creature passed out of this life.
Now here is where I start to lose faith in my understanding. It has been roughly an hour since this took place, and it is STILL bothering me. Why does the death of a little animal, a rodent no less, make me feel like I've done something terribly wrong? It isn't something I've never done before, so why is it such a big deal all of a sudden? I am somewhat confused about the whole situation, I must say. I guess I must be turning into a softie or something.
Well, that's my little tidbit for today. Now, naptime.

Not-So-Deep Thoughts by Ash Crash

Not-So-Deep Thoughts by Ash Crash

Ok, I'm sorry if no one reads this because I have noticed that it has been over three months since my last post. Anyway, I don't have alot to say, just that the days really start to run together when you are working full time, especially during the summer. I am thankful that there are several people working here in Manhattan this summer because it has been a blessing to be able to continue things like the Monday night prayer meetings, or just hangin' out, getting coffee, etc. I would like to give a special thanks to Luke for forwarding Jeff Wiegand's e-mail to me, as I had an encouraging chat with Jeff on the phone about it. Luke, if you don't read this, I'll try to tell you in person sometime in the future. :)
One last little joy - I saw the Phantom of the Opera the other day, and the soundtrack got so stuck in my head that I had to go out and get it after work. I am still listening to it, right now in fact, some three days later. It is awesome!
Well, I guess that's about it. I am hoping to make it to Latty, although it isn't super promising right now. I also am going to try really hard to make it to Detroit over the Fourth, and it is getting harder to not get over excited about it.
Hmmm... Ok, I think that is REALLY about it :)

Various ramblings...

So I thought I'd post again since my last posts were pretty depressing (at least for me). For those concerned, I am nearly over my cold/flu, and thankfully was getting over it by Saturday last week. That and the awesome and moving testimony of our dear Brother Toffee helped to lift my spirits considerably. I also realized once again how much I love the Taylor Church. Anyway, the end of the weekend was brought down slightly when I learned that I had left my keys at Joe's house. I have extra keys here, but they don't help much with the car in Topeka.:) Oh, well. I am quite excited for the upcoming weekend as well. Last year's Dallas/Ft. Worth trip was incredible, and I am looking forward to it again this year. Well, I have to be off to clean our Apt. for singing tomorrow. Ta Ta

Just keeps going and going....

Well, another day of fighting the flu is drawing to a close. Called in sick to work today, as I had another night of 1-2 hrs of actual sleep. Then Aaron introduced me to the wonderous drug that is Tylenol PM. After eating breakfast and hitting the sack, I promptly cashed out for nearly five hours. Sweet, sweet rest. Didn't do much of anything the rest of the day, except to take care of a long-overdue grocery list. Then I did laundry at ~9 pm, since I won't have time to do it tommorrow before I leave for Taylor. I am anticipating this weekend with joy in my heart, since it is about the only thing I can be joful about right now.:) Just kidding, God has blessed me in more ways than I can ever imagine, and he will still be there long after this little sickness has gone. It would be nice if He couls take care of it before the weekend, though.:)

Luke's not the only one...

Stuffy head, runny nose, aches and pains, chills, fever, fatigue, headache...I really REALLY dislike being sick. I really REALLY dislike having to work while sick, let alone when I don't have time to eat lunch as well. Not a good day at work, and I'll leave it at that. Plus, I missed walleyball at the rec because of this junk. Oh, well, at least tommorrow night is church services. I need something to lift my spirits.
Sorry for the overly negative post, but that's about all I got today.:(

All Things New

Well, I just got back from KC for the weekend. Great weekend, got to go to my first mainstream contempory Christian concert (I have seen Accapella 3 times). It was awesome! It was the All Things New Tour, w/ Steven Curtis Chapman, Casting Crowns, and Chris Tomlin. There was about 25 of us that went together, and it really was a great time. It was a little loud at times, but I imagine that's to be expected.
One other kind of amusing thing was riding from Topeka to KC in Chelsie Bahr's Blazer with a total of four girls and two guys in it. As one of the guys in the front seats, I didn't have much of a problem with it, but I think the girls would have a different opinion. :)

Nothin' goin' down

Wow, I can't believe it has already been a week since my last post. I guess I still don't quite have the habit formed yet. Anyway, I did want to say that I'm sorry for so few postings, but honestly, not much happens with me cause I'm at work every day. And believe me, you don't want me to bore you with the mondo excitemnet that is the Manhattan AmPride station. I do finally have a saturday off, though, which is nice since I've worked the last three in a row. Some excitement: I am Napolean Dynamite according to the quiz thingy that's been goin' around. Sweet!
Oh, yes, musn't forget - Congrats to Bryce and Erin!! I wonder if I should ask when the new CD will be out.... :).

Shoveling ..it...

Ok, I'll start by saying that I had a really crappy day at work today. Thank goodness I only had to work until two, even though I was scheduled to leave at one. (That was a direct result of my crappy day). In the floor of the shop at work is a drain pit, about 2 ft wide x 4 ft long, and about 4 ft deep. This pit is used when washing the floor, washing new tires/rims prior to balancing them, etc. The drain for the pit is approximately 3/4 of the way up on one side. This allows solid particles to settle and then it is mostly water that drains off the top. The problem with this system is that eventually, the solid particles will fill up the pit to the point that they block the drain, and then the whole thing fills with water rather rapidly. Take a wild guess as to what I was doing from around 10:30 or 11 this morning until nearly two this afternoon. Yup, five trashcans full of ..it...and don't think for a minute that it was mostly mud and therefore would not smell bad. This mud also contained traces of various other fluids, such as oil, gasoline, antifreeze, coffee (when it gets cold in my thermos), and who knows what else. Needless to say, I removed my boots and left them OUTside the apartment when I got home. So, my day has been looking up ever since I got home.

Still Champions....

Yes, yes, it's true. Tonight the Euchre Championship of Manhattan was held at the Hunting House where the defeated Joe and Brooke (0 - like, 1,349) challenged the undeafeated champs, Ash and Tommie (Like 1,349 - 0). As usual, the final outcome was easily predicted. Although close at 9-9 late in Game One, the reigning euchre studs pulled ahead in the final hand for yet another win. Game Two started in dramatic fashion with Ash getting euchred by a killer spade hand. Though disappointed, the champs were not down for the count. As luck would have it, another killer spade later in the game gave Tommie a loner hand, in which he took all five tricks. The Dueling Dynamos from Tridek never looked back, sealing the deal by euchreing the Westside Wanna-be Winners (aka The WWW's) twice in a row for the victory and title. The WWW's are crying for a rematch but The Dueling Dynamos will not play till their victory dinner from The WWW's has been served. Then and only then will the Dynamos agree to a rematch. We send our condolences to The WWW's and our congrats to the Dynamos.

This has been Tournament coverage brought to you by Killer Spades

Apologies

Ok, first off, I want to apologize to all those who faithfully checked this blog in the last month only to see no new posts day ater day. I am truly sorry, and just ask for forgiveness because I have become one of those people that wants to read everyone else's blogs, but too lazy to provide anything, funny or not, for anyone else. So, sorry again, I'll try to do better.

Well, there have been some interesting events in my life in the past month, but my memory will not be able to reproduce them well enough to be complete or as funny as they were at the time. I don't really have alot to say, but I finally felt like writing, so I figured I'd better take advantage of it. I'll try to keep my posts a little more frequent :).

Oh, I have learned that when a customer brings in his truck for an oil change, and you forget to change the filter, he gets quite upset. That, and tractor tire rims hurt alot when they land on your foot.

Famous Relatives? Me? Nawww....

Ok, I have to blog this. For several years now I had heard that my grandpa's sister's daughter was some kind of a movie actress, but not having seen her name or any of the movies she had been in, I really didn't think much about it anymore. Well, I was in KC last weekend, and my Aunt Diane had found an old home video of a bunch of B-day parties and Christmases from waaaay bcak (from 12 years ago). At the end of the tape was a recording of an Oprah Winfrey show on which my cousin appeared. Turns out, she was April O'Neill on Broadway w/ the TMNT. Anyway, last night I did some more thorough web searching and found out that my cousin was much more of a Broadway star than movies. She has been in The Almost Perfect Bank Robbery (1999), and Marci X (2002 w/Lisa Kudrow), but I guess her theatre performances are more noteworthy. She was Amneris in the show Aida from 2000 to 2004, and she has performed in several othe musicals , such as Grease, as well. Here is some more info:
http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Star_File.aspx?CI=40824 (sorry, but stupid link shortcut thingy didn't work). Michelle also sent me two songs from the Original Cast Recording for Aida that have Sherie on them. Thanx to Mitch!
Now for the kicker.
I called my Aunt Pauline, who is the resident family tree expert, because I didn't remember if Sherie's mom was my grandma or grandpa's sister. Well, she also told me someone else in my family tree is famous. For those 80's rock fans out there, you may know of Gary Richrath, a founding member and lead gutarist for REO Speedwagon fom 1971 to 1988? Believe it, he is a cousin of mine as well.
Anyway, I was so excited to find out somebody from my family is actually cool that I couldn't hold back.