firsts

Tonite, after school, I went to a promotional shoot for Life Groups for James River. I went to a guy's house and pretended to be friends with people I didn't know. It was super awkward at first, but then the camera people started making us talk, and we actually got along-imagine that! So I ended up meeting a bunch of new people, some of whom seemed very cool. I was able to avoid most of the video shoots, and I'm pretty sure any video I was in will end up on the cutting room floor, but I was in one of the group photos, which could mean I have my face on some stationary that James River uses to recruit people to join Life Groups. That could prove to be a bit weird.

So I've come home now, and am doing the Tar Heels medicine ball 200 workout that my mom printed off for me from Men's Health. I'm already dying. My legs are absolutely killing me; my shoulders are shot, and I'm breathing hard. It seems like every exercise is meant to work my core, so my abs and lower back are throbbing. The advantages are: I will sleep well tonite, I don't have the TV on, I don't even have music on. I'm living life in a productive manner without consuming. I'm producing by exercising and I'm producing by writing, and soon I will add a new picture to my 365/2010 project. I'm feeling good about myself today. Let's hope most Mondays in 2010 start off this well.

very exciting

I’m writing on an Apple computer. Today I received my MacBook Pro in the mail, and I’m really excited about learning to use it. So many people use Macs that I feel like I had to experience the usefulness myself. I’m already impressed with how light it is, and sleek--something that Apple prides themselves on. I also already know that I will have to get an external mouse to use with this thing, because I haven’t quite figured out the mouse-pad yet, and I can see confusion continuing as I use PCs at school all the time. I’m starting to learn some shortcut keys, and will be installing Microsoft Office soon, and am interested if my knowledge of shortcut keys will transfer over from PCs. Let’s make a list of the programs I need install: Microsoft Office, Tweetdeck, Smart Notebook, Adobe Creative Suite (which I still need to get, somehow), Audacity (although I have GarageBand and will need to learn how to use it), and many others that I can’t think of right now.

But first, I need to eat something. For dinner tonite: catfish, carrots, celery, and onions over basmati rice. It will be wonderfully warm and nice on an absolutely frozen day. Look forward to some new pictures uploaded in the project 365 folder.

really?

This project 365 thing is hard.

I take pictures everyday, but almost always within the context of school. I enjoy the regular pacing and routine of my life outside of school. I am trying to learn to be more observant of the ordinary things in my life that can turn out amazing. I have looked at other 365 projects, and lots of people use filters and enhance their pictures, but I’m sticking with the plain image – no editing, no cropping. It’s just the image. Many times, I'm just taking pictures with my phone, and the quality is lousy, but it captures the moment. Yes, I like the way the filters make things look, and I wish I had time to really play with stuff, because I’ve done some neat things before, but that’s not what this is about. I guess, I'm trying to convince myself that it's ok to not edit the photos, but deep down inside I want to because I want them to look cool and clean, as I've seen others.

Today, after school, Keri and I met with the Comm. Arts Curriculum Coordinator about the PD proposal we've been working on. The meeting was 2 hours long, and in the middle of it the head Curriculum Coordinator for all programs sat down for a chat. It was interesting and very educational. I learned so much about people, and how this program works. I’m learning “on the job” as they say. The challenge is great fun, and I couldn’t imagine doing much else with my time. Coaching soccer and working with the OWP has provided so many cool opportunities for me to learn and grow as an individual. I’m really working on understanding the big picture issues in these scenarios, and looking ahead to what is available in the future. I’m not great about looking ahead; I focus much more on the here and now, and I reflect on what needs to change. I’m trying to consciously take the time to look two, three, five years down the road. That’s really hard for me, because I don’t want to make any plans on my own. I must remember why I am blessed, and why I am where I am. For me, no scripture is more important that Exodus 33:12-18. It serves as the best model for me with regard to the attitude I approach all ventures.

Tomorrow, I’m going to try to get the Kanye West Storytellers DVD. I saw a portion of it while at home in New Orleans on winter holiday, and I really liked it. I enjoy concert DVDs, and so I think it would be an interesting addition to my collection.